Imaging incidence and type in primary care patients with low back pain: a cross-sectional study on new referrals to an Australian specialist spinal surgical centre.

Introduction Low back pain (LBP) is common and a significant cause of morbidity. Many patients receive inappropriate imaging for LBP in primary care. Aim To explore the incidence and type of spinal imaging conducted for LBP patients referred from general practice for specialist surgical opinion, and evaluate whether imaging conformed to clinical guidelines.

An investigation of the PM concentrations and cumulative inhaled dose during subway commutes in Changchun, China.

Air quality in subway systems is crucial as it affects the health of passengers and staff. Although most tests of PM concentrations in subway stations have taken place in public areas, PM is less understood in workplaces. Few studies have estimated the cumulative inhaled dose of passengers based on real-time changes in PM concentrations as they commute.

Using general practitioners with an extended role in spinal practice for the initial assessment of patients referred to spinal surgeons: preliminary experience and challenges.

Aim: To describe experience using general practitioners (GPs), with an extended role (GPwER) in spinal medicine, to expedite assessment, triage, and management of patients referred from primary care for specialist spinal surgical opinion.

Background: Low back and neck pain are common conditions in primary care. Indiscriminate or inappropriate referral to a spinal surgeon contributes to long waiting times.

A review of human thermal comfort model in predicting human-environment interaction in non-uniform environmental conditions.

This paper presented a review of the literature on the human thermal comfort model, which can be employed to predict the response of a human towards the environmental surroundings. An important premise of this paper is that governments in tropical regions have taken proactive action in minimizing energy consumption by air-conditioning through elevated room temperature. However, would such an action worsen the quality of interior conditions, particularly the thermal comfort? To answer this question, developing a human thermal comfort model under stratum ventilation mode can become a reference model for air-conditioning system design in all tropical buildings and indirectly reduce the emission of carbon dioxide (CO) from heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) system that caused a warmer environment.

Relationship between impulsivity, uncontrolled eating and body mass index: a hierarchical model.

Background: Impulsivity increases the risk for obesity and weight gain. However, the precise role of impulsivity in the aetiology of overeating behavior and obesity is currently unknown. Here we examined the relationships between personality-related measures of impulsivity, Uncontrolled Eating, body mass index (BMI), and longitudinal weight changes.

Anticipating local flaps closed-form solution on 3D face models using finite element method.

A realistic three-dimensional (3D) computational model of skin flap closures using Asian-like head templates from two different genders, male and female, has been developed. The current study aimed to understand the biomechanics of the local flap designs along with the effect of wound closures on the respective genders. Two Asian head templates from opposite genders were obtained to use as base models.

Application of anaerobic bacterial ammonification pretreatment to microalgal food waste leachate cultivation and biofuel production.

Food waste constitutes the largest component of municipal solid waste in many urbanized societies. The current practice of disposing of biodegradable food waste mixed with other solid wastes to landfills is not sustainable and is environmentally undesirable. Moreover, the leakage of nutrient-rich food waste leachate (FWL) impacts the environment by eutrophication of the water body.

Degenerative Cervical Myelopathy: A 7-Letter Coding System That Supports Decision-Making for the Surgical Approach.

Objective: To validate with a prospective study a decision-supporting coding system for the surgical approach for multilevel degenerative cervical myelopathy.

Methods: Ten cases were presented on an internet platform, including clinical and imaging data. A single-approach (G1), a choice between 2 (G2), or 3 approaches (G3) were options.

Pellino1 specifically binds to phospho-Thr18 of p53 and is recruited to sites of DNA damage.

Pellino1 is an E3 ubiquitin ligase that plays a key role in positive regulation of innate immunity signaling, specifically required for the production of interferon when induced by viral double-stranded RNA. We report the identification of the tumor suppressor protein, p53, as a binding partner of Pellino1. Their interaction has a K of 42 ± 2 μM and requires phosphorylation of Thr18 within p53 and association with the forkhead-associated (FHA) domain of Pellino1.

An investigation of thermal environment of an existing UFAD system in a high-rise office building in the tropics.

The current case study was conducted to identify the causes of environmental health issues in the office space associated with the existing Underfloor Air Distribution (UFAD) system in a high-rise office building in the tropics. The causes of the indoor environmental quality degradation are the key to resolve the environmental health issues. Thus, the parameters such as the indoor air temperature, relative humidity (RH), relative air velocity, carbon monoxide (CO), carbon dioxide (CO), formaldehyde, total volatile organic compound (TVOC) and particulate matter (PM) were evaluated in five office spaces.

Restaurant oil and grease management in Hong Kong.

Oil and grease (O&G) in wastewater can be considered as two parts or proportion contained in emulsion which exceeded O&G standard. Most of oil becomes emulsified with water when they pass through grease trap and discharged in the effluents. Thus, it may indicate that either treatment of grease traps or standards for O&G content stipulated in technical memorandum of Water Pollution Control Ordinance (WPCO) do not reflect the actual situation.

The potential of foodwaste leachate as a phycoremediation substrate for microalgal CO fixation and biodiesel production.

Foodwaste leachate (FWL) is often generated during foodwaste treatment processes. Owing to its high nutrient content, FWL has high potential for phycoremediation, a microalgal technology application for water treatment while acting as CO fixation tank. Additionally, the end product of microalgal from phycoremediation can be potentially used for biodiesel production.

A quasi-randomised, controlled, feasibility trial of GLITtER (Green Light Imaging Interpretation to Enhance Recovery)-a psychoeducational intervention for adults with low back pain attending secondary care.

Background: Although it is broadly accepted that clinicians should endeavour to reassure patients with low back pain, to do so can present a significant clinical challenge. Guidance for how to provide effective reassurance is scarce and there may be a need to counter patient concerns arising from misinterpretation of spinal imaging findings. 'GLITtER' (Green Light Imaging Intervention to Enhance Recovery) was developed as a standardised method of communicating imaging findings in a manner that is reassuring and promotes engagement in an active recovery.

The reassuring potential of spinal imaging results: development and testing of a brief, psycho-education intervention for patients attending secondary care.

Purpose: To develop and test a standardised method of interpreting spinal imaging findings in a manner designed to reassure patients with low back pain and promote engagement in an active recovery.

Methods: A five-phase development and testing process involved collaborative working party contributions, informal and formal appraisal of the intervention content by clinicians and consumers, a two-stage online evaluation of the take-home patient resource, and onsite testing.

Results: A total of 12 health professionals and 77 consumers were included in formal evaluative processes at various stages of the development and testing process.

Modulation of the Vault Protein-Protein Interaction for Tuning of Molecular Release.

Vaults are naturally occurring ovoid nanoparticles constructed from a protein shell that is composed of multiple copies of major vault protein (MVP). The vault-interacting domain of vault poly(ADP-ribose)-polymerase (INT) has been used as a shuttle to pack biomolecular cargo in the vault lumen. However, the interaction between INT and MVP is poorly understood.

EZH2 promotes neoplastic transformation through VAV interaction-dependent extranuclear mechanisms.

Recently, we reported that the histone methyltransferase, EZH2, controls leukocyte migration through interaction with the cytoskeleton remodeling effector, VAV, and direct methylation of the cytoskeletal regulatory protein, Talin. However, it is unclear whether this extranuclear, epigenetic-independent function of EZH2 has a profound impact on the initiation of cellular transformation and metastasis. Here, we show that EZH2 increases Talin1 methylation and cleavage, thereby enhancing adhesion turnover and promoting accelerated tumorigenesis.

Most Cited Publications in Cervical Spine Surgery.

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to perform a citation analysis on the most frequently cited articles in the topic of cervical spine surgery and report on the top 100 most cited publication in this topic.

Methods: We used the Thomson Reuters Web of Science to search citations of all articles from 1945 to 2015 relevant to cervical spine surgery and ranked them according to the number of citations. The 100 most cited articles that matched the search criteria were further analyzed by number of citations, first author, journal, year of publication, country and institution of origin.

ANGPTL4 T266M variant is associated with reduced cancer invasiveness.

Angiopoietin-like 4 (ANGPTL4) is a secretory protein that can be cleaved to form an N-terminal and a C-terminal protein. Studies performed thus far have linked ANGPTL4 to several cancer-related and metabolic processes. Notably, several point mutations in the C-terminal ANGPTL4 (cANGPTL4) have been reported, although no studies have been performed that ascribed these mutations to cancer-related and metabolic processes.

The Value of Prognostic Screening for Patients With Low Back Pain in Secondary Care.

Unlabelled: Prognostic screening in patients with low back pain (LBP) offers a practical approach to guiding clinical decisions. Whether screening is helpful in secondary care is unclear. This prospective cohort study in adults with LBP placed on outpatient clinic waiting lists, compared the performance of the short-form Orebro Musculoskeletal Pain Screening Questionnaire, the Predicting the Inception of Chronic Pain Tool, and the STarT Back Tool.

Enhancement of Chlorella vulgaris harvesting via the electro-coagulation-flotation (ECF) method.

This article explores the potential of using an electro-coagulation-flotation (ECF) harvester to allow flotation of microalgae cells for surface harvesting. A response surface methodology (RSM) model was used to optimize ECF harvesting by adjusting electrode plate material, electrode plate number, charge of the electrodes, electrolyte concentration, and pH value of the culture solution. The result revealed that three aluminum electrode plates (one anode and two cathodes), brine solution (8 g/L), and acidity (pH = 4) of culture solution (optimized ECF harvester) The highest flocculant concentration was measured at 2966 mg/L after 60 min and showed a 79.

Problematic Internet use, well-being, self-esteem and self-control: Data from a high-school survey in China.

Given the prevalence of Internet use among youth, there is concern that a subset of Internet-using youth may exhibit problematic or addictive patterns of Internet use. The present study examines the association between problematic Internet use (PIU), demographic variables, and health-related measures among Chinese adolescents. Survey data from 1552 adolescents (male=653, mean age=15.

Behavioral addictions in addiction medicine: from mechanisms to practical considerations.

Recent progress has been made in our understanding of nonsubstance or "behavioral" addictions, although these conditions and their most appropriate classification remain debated and the knowledge basis for understanding the pathophysiology of and treatments for these conditions includes important gaps. Recent developments include the classification of gambling disorder as a "Substance-Related and Addictive Disorder" in the 5th edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) and proposed diagnostic criteria for Internet Gaming Disorder in Section 3 of DSM-5. This chapter reviews current neuroscientific understandings of behavioral addictions and the potential of neurobiological data to assist in the development of improved policy, prevention, and treatment efforts.

Detection of Pathogenic Biofilms with Bacterial Amyloid Targeting Fluorescent Probe, CDy11.

Bacterial biofilms are responsible for a wide range of persistent infections. In the clinic, diagnosis of biofilm-associated infections relies heavily on culturing methods, which fail to detect nonculturable bacteria. Identification of novel fluorescent probes for biofilm imaging will greatly facilitate diagnosis of pathogenic bacterial infection.