Longitudinal Relationships Between Heart Failure Self-care and All-Cause Hospital Readmissions.

Background: Many patients with heart failure (HF) are repeatedly hospitalized. Heart failure self-care may reduce readmission rates. Hospitalizations may also affect self-care.

Outcomes of a tailored self-care intervention for patients with heart failure and major depression: A secondary analysis of a randomized controlled trial.

Background: Depression is a recognized barrier to heart failure self-care, but there has been little research on interventions to improve heart failure self-care in depressed patients.

Objectives: To investigate the outcomes of an individually tailored self-care intervention for patients with heart failure and major depression, and to determine whether the adequacy of self-care at baseline, the severity of depression or anxiety, or other factors affect the outcomes of this intervention.

Design: Secondary analysis of data from a pre-registered randomized controlled trial (NCT02997865).

Treatment of depression and inadequate self-care in patients with heart failure: One-year outcomes of a randomized controlled trial.

Objective: Both depression and inadequate self-care are common in patients with heart failure. This secondary analysis examines the one-year outcomes of a randomized controlled trial of a sequential approach to treating these problems.

Methods: Patients with heart failure and major depression were randomly assigned to usual care (n = 70) or to cognitive behavior therapy (n = 69).

Measurement and Processing of Thermographic Data of Passing Persons for Epidemiological Purposes.

Non-contact temperature measurement of persons during an epidemic is the most preferred measurement option because of the safety of personnel and minimal possibility of spreading infection. The use of infrared (IR) sensors to monitor building entrances for infected persons has seen a major boom between 2020 and 2022 due to the COVID-19 epidemic, but with questionable results. This article does not deal with the precise determination of the temperature of an individual person but focuses on the possibility of using infrared cameras for monitoring the health of the population.

Examiners' perceptions of forensic mental health assessments conducted via videoconferencing.

The COVID-19 pandemic led to an acceleration in the adoption of videoconferencing (VC) for conducting forensic mental health evaluations (forensic mental health assessments [FMHA]). Two years into the COVID-19 pandemic, we administered a survey to 71 Minnesota-licensed forensic evaluators. Approximately two-thirds (65.

Statistical Study on Human Temperature Measurement by Infrared Thermography.

Increased temperature in humans is the symptom of many infectious diseases and it is thus an important diagnostic tool. Infrared temperature measurement methods have been developed and applied over long periods due to their advantage of non-contact and fast measurements. This study deals with a statistical evaluation of the possibilities and limitations of infrared/thermographic human temperature measurement.

Sequential Interventions for Major Depression and Heart Failure Self-Care: A Randomized Clinical Trial.

Background: Major depression and inadequate self-care are common in patients with heart failure (HF). Little is known about how to intervene when both problems are present. This study examined the efficacy of a sequential approach to treating these problems.

Depression and Hospital Readmissions in Patients with Heart Failure.

Depression increases the risk of mortality in patients with heart failure (HF). Less is known about whether depression predicts multiple readmissions or whether multiple hospitalizations worsen depression in patients with HF. This study aimed to test the hypotheses that depression predicts multiple readmissions in patients hospitalized with HF, and conversely that multiple readmissions predict persistent or worsening depression.

Arsenic and lead in soil: impacts on element mobility and bioaccessibility.

Long-term brown coal mining contributes to risk element contents in soils surrounding coal basins. However, there is a lack of bioaccessibility characterization of the risk elements in the soils at the impacted locations for estimation of the potential health risk, in relation to the effects of soil particle size and element origin. In this study, soils from different geological areas (geogenic vs.

Psychosocial Syndemics and Multimorbidity in Patients with Heart Failure .

Heart failure (HF) is a common cause of hospitalization and mortality in older adults. HF is almost always embedded within a larger pattern of multimorbidity, yet many studies exclude patients with complex psychiatric and medical comorbidities or cognitive impairment. This has left significant gaps in research on the problems and treatment of patients with HF.

Left Ventricular Dysfunction and Depression in Hospitalized Patients with Heart Failure.

Objective: This study examined whether the severity of left ventricular systolic dysfunction is associated with depression in patients with heart failure (HF). Other factors were also studied to identify independent correlates of depression in HF.

Methods: The sample consisted of 400 hospitalized patients with HF.

Effects of Depression on Heart Failure Self-Care.

Background: Depression has been identified as a barrier to effective heart failure self-care, but recent studies suggest that the relationship between depression and self-care is more complex than was previously believed. This study was designed to clarify the relationship between depression and self-care in hospitalized patients with HF.

Methods And Results: During hospitalization with a confirmed clinical diagnosis of HF, 400 patients completed a structured interview to diagnose Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, 5th edition (DSM-5) depressive disorders, the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) depression questionnaire, the Self-Care of Heart Failure Index (SCHFI), and several psychosocial questionnaires.

Antidepressant use in patients with heart failure.

Objective: There is little evidence that antidepressants are efficacious for depression in patients with heart failure (HF), and equivocal evidence that they are safe. This study identified characteristics that are associated with antidepressant use in hospitalized patients with HF.

Method: Logistic regression models were used to identify independent correlates of antidepressant use in 400 patients hospitalized with HF between 2014 and 2016.

Magnetized plasma implosion in a snail target driven by a moderate-intensity laser pulse.

Optical generation of compact magnetized plasma structures is studied in the moderate intensity domain. A sub-ns laser beam irradiated snail-shaped targets with the intensity of about 10 W/cm. With a neat optical diagnostics, a sub-megagauss magnetized plasmoid is traced inside the target.

Neuropeptides SP and CGRP Diminish the Outer Membrane Vesicle- (OMV-) Triggered Inflammatory Response of Human A549 Epithelial Cells and Neutrophils.

Neuropeptides such as substance P (SP) and calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) play both pro- and anti-inflammatory activities and are produced during infection and inflammation. is one of the leading infectious agents responsible for inflammatory exacerbation in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Since the airway inflammation in COPD is connected with activation of both epithelial cells and accumulated neutrophils, in this study we determined the effects of neuropeptides on the inflammatory potential of these cells in response to outer membrane vesicle (OMV) stimulant.

Quantitative evaluation of active thermography using contrast-to-noise ratio.

Active thermography is an infrared-based technique for nondestructive testing of materials. It often uses advanced evaluation techniques based on temperature spatial and temporal changes. Results of active thermography are contrast differences, which indicate possible defects in an inspected material.

Which Compounds Contribute Most to Elevated Soil Pollution and the Corresponding Health Risks in Floodplains in the Headwater Areas of the Central European Watershed?

The main topic of this study is a human health risk assessment of a defined exposure scenario in the floodplain soils of the headwater areas of the central European watershed, with the aim of exploring both multivariate and regional data structures. Flood-prone areas are recognized worldwide to be susceptible to contamination and its redistribution. Contributions of various classes of toxic compounds (organochlorine pesticides (OCPs), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs)) to human health risks were assessed in a screening risk assessment.

Formation and dynamics of a solar eruptive flux tube.

Solar eruptions are well-known drivers of extreme space weather, which can greatly disturb the Earth's magnetosphere and ionosphere. The triggering process and initial dynamics of these eruptions are still an area of intense study. Here we perform a magnetohydrodynamic simulation taking into account the observed photospheric magnetic field to reveal the dynamics of a solar eruption in a real magnetic environment.

Synchronizing single-shot high-energy iodine photodissociation laser PALS and high-repetition-rate femtosecond Ti:sapphire laser system.

A system of precise pulse synchronization between a single-shot large-scale laser exploiting an acousto-optical modulator and a femtosecond high repetition rate laser is reported in this article. This opto-electronical system has been developed for synchronization of the sub-nanosecond kJ-class iodine photodissociation laser system (Prague Asterix Laser System-PALS) with the femtosecond 25-TW Ti:sapphire (Ti:Sa) laser operating at a repetition rate 1 kHz or 10 Hz depending on the required energy level of output pulses. At 1 kHz synchronization regime, a single femtosecond pulse of duration about 45 fs and a small energy less than 1 mJ are exploited as a probe beam for irradiation of a three-frame interferometer, while at 10 Hz repetition rate a single femtosecond pulse with higher energy about 7-10 mJ is exploited as a probe beam for irradiation of a two-channel polaro-interferometer.

Active thermography inspection of protective glass contamination on laser scanning heads.

Industrial lasers are an expanding technology of welding and other materials processing. Lasers with optical scanning heads are often used, as these provide more versatility, accuracy, and speed. The output part of the scanning head is covered by a protective glass, which might get contaminated by various particles from the laser processing.

Major Depression and Long-Term Survival of Patients With Heart Failure.

Objectives: Previous studies have found that depression predicts all-cause mortality in heart failure (HF), but little is known about its effect on long-term survival. This study examined the effects of depression on long-term survival in patients with HF.

Methods: Patients hospitalized with HF (n = 662) at an urban academic medical center were enrolled in a prospective cohort study between January 1994 and July 1999.

Depression and Multiple Rehospitalizations in Patients With Heart Failure.

Background: There have been few studies of the effect of depression on rehospitalization in patients with heart failure (HF), and even fewer on its role in multiple rehospitalizations.

Hypothesis: Depression is an independent risk factor for multiple readmissions in patients with HF.

Methods: A cohort of 662 patients with HF who were discharged alive after hospitalization were interviewed to evaluate symptoms of depression and were followed for 1 year.

Bactericidal, opsonophagocytic and anti-adhesive effectiveness of cross-reactive antibodies against Moraxella catarrhalis.

Moraxella catarrhalis is a human-restricted significant respiratory tract pathogen. The bacteria accounts for 15-20% of cases of otitis media in children and is an important causative agent of infectious exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease in adults. The acquisition of new M.

Measurement of the target current by inductive probe during laser interaction on terawatt laser system PALS.

Measurements of the return-current flowing through a solid target irradiated with the sub-nanosecond kJ-class Prague Asterix Laser System is reported. A new inductive target probe was developed which allows us measuring the target current derivative in a kA/ns range. The dependences of the target current on the laser pulse energy for cooper, graphite, and polyethylene targets are reported.

Genes of phenylpropanoid pathway are activated in early response to Fusarium attack in flax plants.

Fusarium is the most common flax pathogen causing serious plant diseases and in most cases leading to plant death. To protect itself, the plant activates a number of genes and metabolic pathways, both to counteract the effects of the pathogen, and to eliminate the threat. The identification of the plant genes which respond to infection is the approach, that has been used in this study.