Self-rated health differences between exclusive e-cigarette users and exclusive cigarette smokers: evidence from the 2017-2019 Scottish Health Survey.

The comparative health implications of e-cigarette use versus traditional cigarette smoking remain a critical focus in public health research. This cross-sectional study examined differences in self-rated general health between exclusive e-cigarette users and exclusive cigarette smokers, using data from the 2017-2019 Scottish Health Survey. A total of 2484 adults (aged 16 and above) were included and categorized as exclusive e-cigarette users (n = 565) or exclusive cigarette smokers (n = 1919).

A novel framework to build saliva-based DNA methylation biomarkers: Quantifying systemic chronic inflammation as a case study.

Accessible and non-invasive biomarkers that measure human ageing processes and the risk of developing age-related disease are paramount in preventative healthcare. Here, we describe a novel framework to train saliva-based DNA methylation (DNAm) biomarkers that are reproducible and biologically interpretable. By leveraging a reliability dataset with replicates across tissues, we demonstrate that it is possible to transfer knowledge from blood DNAm to saliva DNAm data using DNAm proxies of blood proteins (EpiScores).

An Audit of Sport Nutrition Services Within Male and Female International Rugby Union: Implications for Research and Practice.

To critically evaluate sport nutrition services available to male and female international rugby unions. Fifteen participants, representing 16 international rugby unions, including nine female and seven male teams (one participant worked with both a female and male union), responded to an online survey. Twelve of the unions recruited were ranked in the top 10 globally by World Rugby.

Effects of UV-B light exposure during automatic milking on vitamin D levels in Holstein Friesian cows.

Vitamin D is essential for cattle and can be synthesized in the skin under ultraviolet irradiation. This study investigated the effects of narrow-band UV-B irradiation during automatic milking on blood vitamin D concentration and the influence of hair and black skin areas on cutaneous vitamin D synthesis in Holstein Friesian cows. Fifty-one cows were stratified by milk yield, days after calving, and percentage of black skin, then divided into three groups: shaved and irradiated (80 J/m), unshaved and irradiated (129-305 J/m), and a control group.

Post COVID glaucoma service redesign utilising electronic patient triage and community optometry clinics (Fife, Scotland 2020-2022).

Background: COVID-19 caused a huge backlog of patients in glaucoma clinics. This study describes redesign of an entire glaucoma service with electronic patient triage to three levels and utilisation of the Scottish optometry infrastructure of upskilled optometrists.

Methods: 2276 patients in glaucoma clinics were identified and triaged to three levels in keeping with Glauc-strat-fast guidance with local amendments.

Warming and cooling catalyse widespread temporal turnover in biodiversity.

Turnover in species composition through time is a dominant form of biodiversity change, which has profound effects on the functioning of ecological communities. Turnover rates differ markedly among communities, but the drivers of this variation across taxa and realms remain unknown. Here we analyse 42,225 time series of species composition from marine, terrestrial and freshwater assemblages, and show that temporal rates of turnover were consistently faster in locations that experienced faster temperature change, including both warming and cooling.

The obesity paradox in osteoporosis risk among older adults is mostly driven by women: a population-based prospective study.

Objectives: The obesity paradox is common among older adults at risk for various diseases. Although this paradox has also been observed in the association between obesity and osteoporosis, the available evidence remains controversial. This study aimed to investigate the association between obesity and OP risk in an older population.

Sleep characteristics and intervertebral disc degeneration risk: an observational and Mendelian randomization study.

Objectives: Sleep disorders are considered a risk factor for aging and skeletal degeneration, but their impact on intervertebral disc degeneration (IDD) remains unclear. The aim of this study was to assess associations between sleep characteristics and IDD, and to identify potential causal relationships.

Methods: Exposure factors included six unhealthy sleep characteristics: insomnia, short sleep duration (< 7 h), long sleep duration (≥ 9 h), evening chronotype, daytime sleepiness, and snoring.

Blood-based epigenome-wide association study and prediction of alcohol consumption.

Alcohol consumption is an important risk factor for multiple diseases. It is typically assessed via self-report, which is open to measurement error through recall bias. Instead, molecular data such as blood-based DNA methylation (DNAm) could be used to derive a more objective measure of alcohol consumption by incorporating information from cytosine-phosphate-guanine (CpG) sites known to be linked to the trait.

Coronary CT angiography-guided management of patients with stable chest pain: 10-year outcomes from the SCOT-HEART randomised controlled trial in Scotland.

Background: The Scottish Computed Tomography of the Heart (SCOT-HEART) trial demonstrated that management guided by coronary CT angiography (CCTA) improved the diagnosis, management, and outcome of patients with stable chest pain. We aimed to assess whether CCTA-guided care results in sustained long-term improvements in management and outcomes.

Methods: SCOT-HEART was an open-label, multicentre, parallel group trial for which patients were recruited from 12 outpatient cardiology chest pain clinics across Scotland.

Intranasal oxytocin for apathy in people with frontotemporal dementia (FOXY): a multicentre, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, adaptive, crossover, phase 2a/2b superiority trial.

Background: No treatments exist for apathy in people with frontotemporal dementia. Previously, in a randomised double-blind, placebo-controlled, dose-finding study, intranasal oxytocin administration in people with frontotemporal dementia improved apathy ratings on the Neuropsychiatric Inventory over 1 week and, in a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover study, a single dose of 72 IU oxytocin increased blood-oxygen-level-dependent signal in limbic brain regions. We aimed to determine whether longer treatment with oxytocin improves apathy in people with frontotemporal dementia.

A new approach for assessing the radioecological risk associated with the legacy discharge of oil derived natural radioactivity in the UK North Sea.

Although oil and gas (O&G) derived produced waters and drill cuttings are known to contain enhanced levels of naturally occurring radium-228 (Ra) and radium-226 (Ra), most relevant ecological impact assessments have excluded radiological hazards and focus on other important contaminants, such as hydrocarbons and metals. Also, due to restricted access to the delimiting safety zone around operational O&G platforms, the few previous radioecological risk assessment studies have been conducted using seawater samples collected far from the main discharge point and applying default dilution and transfer factors to estimate concentrations of contaminants in biota. In this case study, sediment cores were collected close to a former O&G platform, Northwest Hutton (NWH), that used to be in the UK North Sea (61.

The influence of patient gender on exercise prescription in ACL reconstruction rehabilitation.

Objective: To assess differences in physical therapists' exercise prescription and confidence in return-to-sport readiness between girl and boy patients undergoing rehabilitation post-ACLR.

Design: Cross-sectional survey.

Methods: 115 physical therapist responses were collected in an electronic survey.

Pathophysiology of Penetrating Captive Bolt Stunning in Horned and Polled Sheep and Factors Determining Incomplete Concussion.

Penetrating captive bolt (PCB) is widely used for stunning and on-farm dispatch of livestock, yet its efficacy can vary, with the potential for animal welfare compromise. This study investigated the pathophysiology of PCB-induced trauma in horned and polled sheep (), focusing on factors contributing to incomplete concussion. Thirty-seven ( = 18 horned Scottish blackface and = 19 polled North Country mule) mature ewes (aged 4-10 years) were shot with PCB with varying cartridge power and PCB modifications, followed by clinical assessment and post-mortem analysis using magnetic resonance imagining (MRI) and gross pathology.

VIEWER: an extensible visual analytics framework for enhancing mental healthcare.

Objective: A proof-of-concept study aimed at designing and implementing Visual & Interactive Engagement With Electronic Records (VIEWER), a versatile toolkit for visual analytics of clinical data, and systematically evaluating its effectiveness across various clinical applications while gathering feedback for iterative improvements.

Materials And Methods: VIEWER is an open-source and extensible toolkit that employs natural language processing and interactive visualization techniques to facilitate the rapid design, development, and deployment of clinical information retrieval, analysis, and visualization at the point of care. Through an iterative and collaborative participatory design approach, VIEWER was designed and implemented in one of the United Kingdom's largest National Health Services mental health Trusts, where its clinical utility and effectiveness were assessed using both quantitative and qualitative methods.

Best evidence summary for nutritional management of cancer patients with chyle leaks following surgery.

Background: Chyle leaks (CL) is a significant postoperative complication following lymph node dissection in cancer patients. Persistent CK is related to a series of adverse outcomes. Nutritional management is considered an effectively strategy that treat CL.

Low-Cost Lower Extremity Screening to Predict Shoulder Distraction Force in College Softball Pitchers.

Background: During a windmill softball pitch, the throwing shoulder experiences forces greater than the pitcher's body weight. Various kinematic, kinetic, and performance factors have been related to shoulder forces and torques in softball pitchers, and softball research has examined clinical screening measures such as range of motion, muscular strength, and/or neuromuscular control. However, no studies have explicitly identified low-cost, clinic-friendly screening measures predictive of shoulder distraction forces in softball pitchers.

Cryopreserved human alternatively activated macrophages promote resolution of acetaminophen-induced liver injury in mouse.

Acute liver failure is a rapidly progressing, life-threatening condition most commonly caused by an overdose of acetaminophen (paracetamol). The antidote, N-acetylcysteine (NAC), has limited efficacy when liver injury is established. If acute liver damage is severe, liver failure can rapidly develop with associated high mortality rates.

Association of GLP1R locus with mental ill-health endophenotypes and cardiometabolic traits: A trans-ancestry study in UK Biobank.

Aims: Glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor agonists (GLP1RA), used to treat type 2 diabetes and obesity, have been associated with off-target behavioural effects. We systematically assessed genetic variation in the GLP1R locus for impact on mental ill-health (MIH) and cardiometabolic phenotypes across diverse populations within UK Biobank.

Materials And Methods: All genetic variants with minor allele frequency >1% in the GLP1R locus were investigated for associations with MIH phenotypes and cardiometabolic phenotypes.

Pilot study of a ketogenic diet in bipolar disorder: a process evaluation.

Background: Bipolar disorder is a serious mental illness, which requires new strategies for prevention and management. Recent evidence suggests that a ketogenic diet may be an effective intervention. This research aimed to explore the feasibility and acceptability of a ketogenic diet intervention for bipolar disorder, fidelity to its behavioural components and the experiences of the participants and research clinicians involved.

A network-based systems genetics framework identifies pathobiology and drug repurposing in Parkinson's disease.

Parkinson's disease (PD) is the second most prevalent neurodegenerative disorder. However, current treatments only manage symptoms and lack the ability to slow or prevent disease progression. We utilized a systems genetics approach to identify potential risk genes and repurposable drugs for PD.

Prevalence and potential implications of HPV infection in transgender women with gender reaffirming genital surgery: a systematic literature review and meta-analysis.

Background: Human papillomavirus (HPV) is a common infection of the anogenital tract. Although most infections clear, persistent infections with oncogenic types can predispose to cancer. While the natural history of anogenital HPV infection in cisgendered women is relatively well understood, there are significant knowledge gaps regarding HPV prevalence and clinical implications of genital HPV infection in transgender women (TGW) with neovagina(s).