A scoping review of the effectiveness of underwater treadmill exercise in clinical trials of chronic pain.

Objective: The objective of this scoping review was to investigate the available literature on physical and quality of life (QoL) outcomes of underwater treadmill exercise trials in clinical chronic pain samples.

Methods: A scoping search of studies of the effectiveness of underwater treadmill exercise trials from 1947 to 2024 was conducted using the following databases: EMBASE, MEDLINE, SPORTDiscus, CINAHL, and Cochrane Reviews. To be included, studies were required to have included adult participants living with chronic pain (defined as pain lasting for 3 months or longer) who participated in an active underwater treadmill exercise intervention.

Use of Narrow Band Imaging to Guide Endobronchial Biopsy for Suspected Sarcoidosis.

Background: Diagnosis of sarcoidosis often involves endobronchial biopsy (EBB), but studies have shown varying yields for EBB in suspected sarcoidosis, partly due to differences in identifying abnormal mucosa under white light (WL). Narrow band imaging (NBI) may assist in the visualization of abnormal mucosa, but its role in sarcoidosis remains to be characterized.

Methods: Individuals referred for suspected sarcoidosis were considered for enrollment.

Distribution of airway pressure opening in the lungs measured with electrical impedance tomography (POET): a prospective physiological study.

Background: In patients with acute hypoxemic respiratory failure (AHRF) under mechanical ventilation, the change in pressure slope during a low-flow insufflation indicates a global airway opening pressure (AOP) needed to reopen closed airways and may be used for titration of positive end-expiratory pressure.

Objectives: To understand 1) if airways open homogeneously inside the lungs or significant regional AOP variations exist; 2) whether the pattern of the pressure slope change during low-flow insufflation can indicate the presence of regional AOP variations.

Methods: Using electrical impedance tomography, we recorded low-flow insufflation maneuvers (< 10 L/min) starting from end-expiratory positive pressure 0-5 cmHO.

The association between physician sex and patient outcomes: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Some prior studies have found that patients treated by female physicians may experience better outcomes, as well as lower healthcare costs than those treated by male physicians. Physician-patient sex concordance may also contribute to better patient outcomes. However, other studies have not identified a significant difference.

Doctors taking bribes from pharmaceutical companies is common and not substantially reduced by an educational intervention: a pragmatic randomised controlled trial in Pakistan.

Introduction: Incentive-linked prescribing, which is when healthcare providers accept incentives from pharmaceutical companies for prescribing promoted medicines, is a form of bribery that harms patients and health systems globally. We developed a novel method using data collectors posing as pharmaceutical company sales representatives to evaluate private doctors' engagement in incentive-linked prescribing and the impact of a multifaceted educational intervention on reducing this practice in Karachi, Pakistan.

Methods: We made a sampling frame of all doctors running for-profit, primary-care clinics and randomly allocated participants to control and intervention groups (1:1).

Supplementation of lake extender with cysteamine preserves quality parameters and fertility potential of post-thawed rooster sperm during cryopreservation process.

Background: In the cryopreservation process, rooster spermatozoa are vastly sensitive to reactive oxygen species (ROS). This study aimed to investigate the effects of Lake extender supplemented via Cysteamine (CYS) on the quality and fertility characteristics of rooster semen during the cryopreservation process.

Methods: Semen samples were collected from 10 proved Ross-308 roosters, diluted and cryopreserved in the Lake extender which contained 0, 1, 2, 4, and 8 mM of CYS (C-0, C-1, C-2, C-4, and C-8, respectively).

Development of water safety risk matrices to improve water safety in Arctic drinking water systems in Nunavut, Canada.

Safe drinking water is key to individual and community health. Water safety is often evaluated based on whether or not a community's drinking water meets the quality standards specified by a governing authority. These water quality standards address many microbial and chemical water safety risks but may not capture risks that are difficult to quantify or community-specific needs and preferences.

Revered and Reviled: The Plight of the Vanishing Sea Cucumbers.

Sea cucumbers paradoxically suffer from being both highly prized and commonly disregarded. As an Asian medicine and delicacy, they command fabulous prices and are thus overfished, poached, and trafficked. As noncharismatic animals, many are understudied and inadequately protected.

Non-invasive brain stimulation over the Frontopolar Cortex promotes willingness to exert cognitive effort in a foraging-like sequential choice task.

Individuals avoid spending cognitive effort unless expected rewards offset the perceived costs. Recent work employing tasks that provide explicit information about demands and incentives, suggests causal involvement of the Frontopolar Cortex (FPC) in effort-based decision-making. Using transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS), we examined whether the FPC's role in motivating effort generalizes to sequential choice problems in which task demand and reward rates vary indirectly and as a function of experience.

Gender trends in orthopedic surgical residency programs in Canada over 20 years.

Background: Gender disparities exist in several surgical specialties, particularly in orthopedic surgery. The purpose of this study was to determine the current trends in gender diversity among orthopedic surgical residents in Canada over the last 20 years.

Methods: We analyzed gender distribution data for orthopedic trainees from the Canadian Resident Matching Service (CaRMS) for 2013-2022 and the Canadian Post-MD Education Registry for 2000-2022 using linear and quadratic regressions.

Olutasidenib in combination with azacitidine induces durable complete remissions in patients with relapsed or refractory mIDH1 acute myeloid leukemia: a multicohort open-label phase 1/2 trial.

Background: Olutasidenib is a potent, selective, oral, small molecule inhibitor of mutant IDH1 (mIDH1) which induced durable remissions in high-risk, relapsed/refractory (R/R) mIDH1 AML patients in a phase 1/2 trial. We present a pooled analysis from multiple cohorts of the phase 1/2 trial of patients with R/R AML who received combination olutasidenib and azacitidine therapy.

Methods: Adult patients with mIDH1 AML received 150 mg olutasidenib twice daily plus standard-of-care azacitidine (OLU + AZA) and were evaluated for response and safety.

Validation of the Maslach burnout inventory-general survey 9-item short version (MBI-GS9) among care aides in Canadian nursing homes.

Background: The Maslach Burnout Inventory-General Survey (MBI-GS) is the leading measure of burnout for all occupations. The MBI-GS9, the 9-item version of the MBI-GS, was formulated based on the MBI-GS and has been used for several years. However, very few studies have systematically tested its psychometric properties, and none have focused on care aides working in nursing homes who are susceptible to burnout.

Unraveling calcium dysregulation and autoimmunity in immune mediated rippling muscle disease.

Rippling Muscle Disease (RMD) is a rare skeletal myopathy characterized by abnormal muscular excitability manifesting with wave-like muscle contractions and percussion-induced muscle mounding. Hereditary RMD is associated with caveolin-3 or cavin-1 mutations. Recently, we identified cavin 4 autoantibodies as a biomarker of immune-mediated RMD (iRMD), though the underlying disease-mechanisms remain poorly understood.

What does cancer screening have to do with tomato growing?

Cancer screening is considered to be a major strategy for combatting cancer. The United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) recommends screening for five cancers, but the strength of evidence about the effectiveness of screening is limited. To gain insights into the efficacy of early detection requires prospective, blinded, placebo-controlled clinical trials with decades of follow-up and inclusion of millions of participants.

Epidemiology of transthyretin (ATTR) amyloidosis: a systematic literature review.

Introduction: Significant advances in the treatment of transthyretin (ATTR) amyloidosis has led to an evolving understanding of the epidemiology of this condition. This systematic literature review (SLR) aims to synthesize current evidence on epidemiology and mortality outcomes in ATTR amyloidosis, addressing the need for a comprehensive understanding of its current global impact.

Methods: An SLR of the literature from January 2018 to April 2023 was conducted using the Medline and Embase databases.

High-level biosynthesis and purification of the antimicrobial peptide Kiadin based on non-chromatographic purification and acid cleavage methods.

Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are renowned for their potent bacteriostatic activity and safety, rendering them invaluable in animal husbandry, food safety, and medicine. Despite their potential, the physiological toxicity of AMPs to host cells significantly hampers their biosynthetic production. This study presents a novel approach for the biosynthesis of the antimicrobial peptide Kiadin by engineering a DAMP4-DPS-Kiadin fusion protein to mitigate host cell toxicity and achieve high-level expression.

International Society of Wheelchair Professionals' Basic Manual Wheelchair Service Provision Knowledge Test Version 2: Assessment of preliminary psychometric evidence.

Valid and reliable assessment tools to test wheelchair service personnel/provider knowledge are needed to support good practice. The International Society of Wheelchair Professionals' Basic Manual Wheelchair Service Provision Test (Version 1) has been widely used across contexts and settings to assess the knowledge of personnel who provide manual wheelchair services. Test Version 2 has been recently developed according to current evidence.

Post-Stroke Recovery in Relation to Parvalbumin-Positive Interneurons and Perineuronal Nets.

Background: There is a critical time window of post-stroke neuroplasticity when spontaneous behavioral recovery occurs. Potential factors responsible for this heightened plasticity are the reduction of parvalbumin-immunoreactive (PV+) interneuron inhibitory signaling and the disappearance of extracellular matrix synaptic stabilizers called perineuronal net(s; PNN/PNNs).

Objective: This study investigated whether behavioral recovery during this critical period following stroke is associated with changes in densities of PV+ interneurons and PNNs.

Stroke survivors with limited walking ability have unique barriers and facilitators to physical activity.

Purpose: Stroke is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in Canada. Approximately 73% of stroke survivors experience limited walking ability, requiring a gait aid or assistance. Physical activity is important for secondary stroke prevention, in addition to its benefits for physical and mental health.

Antipsychotic Drug Prescribing in Children Previously Treated With Stimulants for ADHD: A Population-Based Longitudinal Study: La prescription d'antipsychotiques chez les enfants précédemment traités avec des stimulants pour le TDAH : une étude longitudinale basée sur la population.

Objective: Stimulant drug treatment in preschool-age children for attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) as well as the concomitant use of antipsychotic drugs is largely unstudied in terms of longitudinal outcomes. We characterized longitudinal patterns of stimulant drug use in children diagnosed for ADHD and analyzed the mental health disorders leading to add-on therapy with antipsychotics.

Method: The study population comprised of children and adolescents (age: 0-19 years) in the province of British Columbia (BC), Canada, with at least one dispensing for any psychotropic drug between 1997 and 2017 ( = 144,825).

Limitations and Future Directions in Pharmacological Treatment for Amphetamine-Type Stimulant Use Disorder.

Plain Language Summary Stimulant addiction, such as addiction to drugs like amphetamines, is a growing public health concern, but there are very few effective medications to treat it. A recent study reviewed a drug called modafinil and found it didn't help reduce drug use, cravings, or improve treatment outcomes. This article discusses why treatments that work for other addictions, like opioids, are less effective for stimulants.

Frequency and Impact of Constitutional Mismatch Repair Deficiency in Patients With High-Grade Glioma, a Retrospective Analysis of 7 Years in Pakistan: an IRRDC Study.

Purpose: Constitutional mismatch repair deficiency (CMMRD) is a genetic cancer predisposition syndrome among children and young adults. This study aimed to evaluate the frequency of CMMRD among patients with pediatric high-grade glioma (pHGG) in a single tertiary care center in Pakistan, a country with high consanguinity rates.

Patients And Methods: We reviewed the data of patients age <18 years with pHGG, anaplastic astrocytoma, and diffuse midline glioma (DMG) with CMMRD testing between 2016 and 2023.