Long-Term Adoption of Televisits in Nursing Homes During the COVID-19 Crisis and Following Up Into the Postpandemic Setting: Mixed Methods Study.

Background: There is growing evidence that telemedicine can improve the access to and quality of health care for nursing home residents. However, it is still unclear how to best manage and guide the implementation process to ensure long-term adoption, especially in the context of a decline in telemedicine use after the COVID-19 crisis.

Objective: This study aims to identify and address major challenges for the implementation of televisits among residents in a nursing home, their caring nurses, and their treating general practitioners (GPs).

Temperature and Pressure Effects on Unrecoverable Voids in Li Metal Solid-State Batteries.

All-solid-state batteries (ASSB) can potentially achieve high gravimetric and volumetric energy densities (900 Wh/L) if paired with a lithium metal anode and solid electrolyte. However, there is a lack in critical understanding about how to operate lithium metal cells at high capacities and minimize unwanted degradation mechanisms such as dendrites and voids. Herein, we investigate how pressure and temperature influence the formation and annihilation of unrecoverable voids in lithium metal upon stripping.

The Epidemiological Boehringer Ingelheim Employee Study (Part 3): Association of Elevated Fasting Insulin Levels but Not HOMA-IR With Increased Intima Media Thickness and Arteriosclerosis in Middle-Aged Persons.

Recently published genetic studies have indicated a causal link between elevated insulin levels and cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk. We, therefore, hypothesized that increased fasting insulin levels are also associated with precursors of CVD such as endothelial lesions. Middle-aged (≥40 years, = 1,639) employees were followed up for the occurrence of increased intima media thickness (IMT ≥ 1 mm) or plaques in abdominal or cervical arteries (arteriosclerosis).

Determination of Postprandial Glycemic Responses by Continuous Glucose Monitoring in a Real-World Setting.

Background: Self-monitoring of blood glucose using capillary glucose testing (C) has a number of shortcomings compared to continuous glucose monitoring (CGM). We aimed to compare these two methods and used blood glucose measurements in venous blood (IV) as a reference. Postprandial blood glucose levels were measured after 50 g oral glucose load and after the consumption of a portion of different foods containing 50 g of carbohydrates.

Pelvic Tilt Angle Differences Between Symptom-Free Young Subjects and Elderly Patients Scheduled for THA: The Rationale for Tilt-Adjusted Acetabular Cup Implantation.

Background: The question whether Pelvic Tilt (PT) angles measured in the supine position are adequate for the alignment of the acetabular cup without an adjustment for anatomical differences between patients is of clinical importance. The aim of this work was to test for factors that can significantly affect PT angles.

Methods: In the present retrospective cohort comparison, the PT angles of 12 Symptom-Free Young Subjects (SFYS) and 45 patients scheduled for Total Hip Arthroplasty (THA) were compared.

Can administrative health utilisation data provide an accurate diabetes prevalence estimate for a geographical region?

Aim: To validate the New Zealand Ministry of Health (MoH) Virtual Diabetes Register (VDR) using longitudinal laboratory results and to develop an improved algorithm for estimating diabetes prevalence at a population level.

Methods: The assigned diabetes status of individuals based on the 2014 version of the MoH VDR is compared to the diabetes status based on the laboratory results stored in the Auckland regional laboratory result repository (TestSafe) using the New Zealand diabetes diagnostic criteria. The existing VDR algorithm is refined by reviewing the sensitivity and positive predictive value of the each of the VDR algorithm rules individually and as a combination.

Intra- and Inter-rater Reliability of Navigated Ultrasound in the Assessment of Pelvic Tilt in Symptom-Free Young Adults.

Objectives: Pelvic tilt is the angle between the anterior pelvic plane and the coronal plane. It affects cup positioning in total hip arthroplasty. The primary objective of this study was to test the intra- and inter-rater reliability of a navigated smart device-based ultrasound system for pelvic tilt assessment.

Rho-inhibiting C2IN-C3 fusion toxin inhibits chemotactic recruitment of human monocytes ex vivo and in mice in vivo.

Bacterial protein toxins became valuable molecular tools for the targeted modulation of cell functions in experimental pharmacology and attractive therapeutics because of their potent and specific mode of action in human cells. C2IN-C3lim, a recombinant fusion toxin (~50 kDa) of the Rho-inhibiting C3lim from Clostridium (C.) limosum and a non-toxic portion of the C.

Adjusting health spending for the presence of comorbidities: an application to United States national inpatient data.

Background: One of the major challenges in estimating health care spending spent on each cause of illness is allocating spending for a health care event to a single cause of illness in the presence of comorbidities. Comorbidities, the secondary diagnoses, are common across many causes of illness and often correlate with worse health outcomes and more expensive health care. In this study, we propose a method for measuring the average spending for each cause of illness with and without comorbidities.

A Virtual Try-On System for Prescription Eyeglasses.

Corrective lenses introduce distortion caused by the refraction effect, which changes the wear's appearance. To give users a more realistic experience, a virtual try-on system for prescription eyeglasses modifies an input video and virtually inserts prescription eyeglasses, producing an output similar to a virtual mirror. The proposed system generates a 3D representation of the corrective lenses mounted into the eyeglasses frame and modifies the video sequence to virtually insert the eyeglasses through image-based rendering.

Application of Navigated Ultrasound for Assessment of the Anterior Pelvic Plane in Patients With Degenerative Hip Diseases.

Objectives: Correct positioning of the acetabular cup is the key for successful total-hip replacement. In common clinical practice, the target alignment of the cup is defined with respect to the anterior pelvic plane. In patients with substantial anterior pelvic plane inclination, this condition may lead to inappropriate distribution of the load on the cup, as most of the forces exerted within the hip joint act along the vertical axis.

US Spending on Personal Health Care and Public Health, 1996-2013.

Importance: US health care spending has continued to increase, and now accounts for more than 17% of the US economy. Despite the size and growth of this spending, little is known about how spending on each condition varies by age and across time.

Objective: To systematically and comprehensively estimate US spending on personal health care and public health, according to condition, age and sex group, and type of care.

Structured Volume Decomposition via Generalized Sweeping.

In this paper, we introduce a volumetric partitioning strategy based on a generalized sweeping framework to seamlessly partition the volume of an input triangle mesh into a collection of deformed cuboids. This is achieved by a user-designed volumetric harmonic function that guides the decomposition of the input volume into a sequence of two-manifold level sets. A skeletal structure whose corners correspond to corner vertices of a 2D parameterization is extracted for each level set.

30-Year Trends in Stroke Rates and Outcome in Auckland, New Zealand (1981-2012): A Multi-Ethnic Population-Based Series of Studies.

Background: Insufficient data exist on population-based trends in morbidity and mortality to determine the success of prevention strategies and improvements in health care delivery in stroke. The aim of this study was to determine trends in incidence and outcome (1-year mortality, 28-day case-fatality) in relation to management and risk factors for stroke in the multi-ethnic population of Auckland, New Zealand (NZ) over 30-years.

Methods: Four stroke incidence population-based register studies were undertaken in adult residents (aged ≥15 years) of Auckland NZ in 1981-1982, 1991-1992, 2002-2003 and 2011-2012.

Burden of Traumatic Brain Injury in New Zealand: Incidence, Prevalence and Disability-Adjusted Life Years.

Objective: The study aimed to estimate the incidence, prevalence and disability-adjusted life years (DALY) for traumatic brain injury (TBI) in New Zealand (NZ) in 2010.

Methods: A multi-state life table model was constructed using inputs from the Brain Injury Outcomes New Zealand in the Community study for the first-ever incidence of TBI in a lifetime and its severity distribution, from the NZ Ministry of Health's Mortality Collection for the data on TBI mortality and from Statistics of NZ for the population data. The modeled estimate of prevalence was combined with the disability weights for TBI (by stage and severity level) from the Global Burden of Disease 2010 study to obtain estimates of health loss (DALYs) for TBI.

Alternative Pathway to a Glycopeptide-Resistant Cell Wall in the Balhimycin Producer Amycolatopsis balhimycina.

Balhimycin, a vancomycin-type glycopeptide, is a lipid II targeting antibiotic produced by Amycolatopsis balhimycina. A. balhimycina has developed a self-resistance mechanism based on the synergistic action of different enzymes resulting in modified peptidoglycan.

Causes of international increases in older age life expectancy.

In high-income countries, life expectancy at age 60 years has increased in recent decades. Falling tobacco use (for men only) and cardiovascular disease mortality (for both men and women) are the main factors contributing to this rise. In high-income countries, avoidable male mortality has fallen since 1980 because of decreases in avoidable cardiovascular deaths.

Cost of traumatic brain injury in New Zealand: evidence from a population-based study.

Objective: We aimed to estimate from a societal perspective the 1-year and lifetime direct and indirect costs of traumatic brain injury (TBI) for New Zealand (NZ) in 2010 projected to 2020.

Methods: An incidence-based cost of illness model was developed using data from the Brain Injury Outcomes New Zealand in the Community Study. Details of TBI-related resource use during the first 12 months after injury were obtained for 725 cases using resource utilization information from participant surveys and medical records.

Global, regional, and national prevalence of overweight and obesity in children and adults during 1980-2013: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2013.

Background: In 2010, overweight and obesity were estimated to cause 3·4 million deaths, 3·9% of years of life lost, and 3·8% of disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs) worldwide. The rise in obesity has led to widespread calls for regular monitoring of changes in overweight and obesity prevalence in all populations. Comparable, up-to-date information about levels and trends is essential to quantify population health effects and to prompt decision makers to prioritise action.

Migration and Pacific mortality: estimating migration effects on Pacific mortality rates using Bayesian models.

Pacific people living in New Zealand have higher mortality rates than New Zealand residents of European/Other ethnicity. The aim of this paper is to see whether Pacific mortality rates vary by natality and duration of residence. We used linked census-mortality information for 25- to 74-year-olds in the 2001 census followed for up to three years.

The burden of cancer in New Zealand: a comparison of incidence and DALY metrics and its relevance for ethnic disparities.

Aim: Cancer burden measured in disability adjusted life years (DALYs) captures survival and disability impacts of incident cancers. In this paper, we estimate the prospective burden of disease arising from 27 cancer sites diagnosed in 2006, by sex and ethnicity; and determine how its distribution differs from that for incidence rates alone.

Methods: Using a prospective approach, Markov and cancer disease models were used to estimate DALYs with inputs of population counts, incidence and excess mortality rates, disability weights, and background mortality.

Ambient occlusion effects for combined volumes and tubular geometry.

This paper details a method for interactive direct volume rendering that computes ambient occlusion effects for visualizations that combine both volumetric and geometric primitives, specifically tube-shaped geometric objects representing streamlines, magnetic field lines or DTI fiber tracts. The algorithm extends the recently presented the directional occlusion shading model to allow the rendering of those geometric shapes in combination with a context providing 3D volume, considering mutual occlusion between structures represented by a volume or geometry. Stream tube geometries are computed using an effective spline-based interpolation and approximation scheme that avoids self-intersection and maintains coherent orientation of the stream tube segments to avoid surface deforming twists.