H1N1 Influenza Pandemic in Italy Revisited: Has the Willingness to Get Vaccinated Suffered in the Long Run?

Background: The aim of the study is to assess the long-term secondary effects of personal experience with the H1N1 pandemic of 2009/2010 and the perception of the institutional reaction to it on Italians' willingness to get vaccinated in case of a novel influenza pandemic.

Design And Methods: We conducted 140 face-to-face interviews in the Registry Office of the Municipality of Milan, Italy, from October to December 2012.

Results: Willingness to get vaccinated during a novel influenza pandemic was best predicted by having been vaccinated against the seasonal flu in the past (OR=5.

In vivo measurements and numerical analysis of the biomechanical characteristics of the human periodontal ligament.

The periodontal ligament is a complex tissue with respect to its biomechanical behaviour. It is important to understand the mechanical behaviour of the periodontal ligament during physiological loading in healthy patients as well as during the movement of the tooth in orthodontic treatment or in patients with periodontal disease, as these might affect the mechanical properties of the periodontal ligament (PDL). Up to now, only a limited amount of in vivo data is available concerning this issue.

A polarizable coarse-grained protein model for dissipative particle dynamics.

We present a new coarse-grained polarizable protein model for dissipative particle dynamics (DPD) method. This method allows large timesteps in particle-based systems and speeds up sampling by many orders of magnitude. Our new model is based on the electrostatic polarization of the protein backbone and a detailed representation of the sidechains in combination with a polarizable water model.

Addressing issues of vaccination literacy and psychological empowerment in the measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccination decision-making: a qualitative study.

Background: Whether or not to vaccinate one's child is one of the first health-related decisions parents have to make after their child's birth. For the past 20 years, the share of parents choosing not to immunize their children has increased in many countries, for various reasons. Among these, rumors affirming that vaccinations contain dangerous chemicals or might trigger severe chronic diseases have negatively affected parental attitudes towards pediatric immunizations, particularly the vaccination against measles, mumps and rubella (MMR), raising a number of public health concerns.

Inflow/Outflow Boundary Conditions for Particle-Based Blood Flow Simulations: Application to Arterial Bifurcations and Trees.

When blood flows through a bifurcation, red blood cells (RBCs) travel into side branches at different hematocrit levels, and it is even possible that all RBCs enter into one branch only, leading to a complete separation of plasma and RBCs. To quantify this phenomenon via particle-based mesoscopic simulations, we developed a general framework for open boundary conditions in multiphase flows that is effective even for high hematocrit levels. The inflow at the inlet is duplicated from a fully developed flow generated in a pilot simulation with periodic boundary conditions.

Young drivers' night-time mobility preferences and attitude toward alcohol consumption: A Hybrid Choice Model.

This paper proposes an analysis of mobility preferences of young people at nighttime. In OECD countries in the last decades, data show that road crashes are the single biggest cause of death of 15-24 years-old drivers. On average, over 8500 young drivers were killed each year and it is demonstrated that the accidents tend to occur on weekend nights and when young people drive under the influence of alcohol.

Low health literacy associated with higher medication costs in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus: Evidence from matched survey and health insurance data.

Objective: Studies have shown that people with lower levels of health literacy create higher emergency, inpatient and total healthcare costs, yet little is known about how health literacy may affect medication costs. This cross-sectional study aims at investigating the relationship between health literacy and three years of medication costs (2009-2011) in a sample of patients with type 2 diabetes.

Methods: 391 patients from the German-speaking part of Switzerland who were insured with the same health insurer were interviewed.

Health literacy in Mainland China: Validation of a functional health literacy test in simplified Chinese.

Health literacy tests in the Chinese-speaking parts of the world have been mainly developed in traditional Chinese to be used in Hong Kong or Taiwan. So far no validated tool in simplified Chinese to assess functional health literacy in Mainland China has been developed. The aim of the study was to validate the simplified Chinese version of the Short Test of Functional Health Literacy in Adults (S-TOFHLA).

EMPOWER--pathways for supporting the self-management of diabetes patients.

Diabetes is a serious world-wide medical challenge and there is a recognised need for improved diabetes care outcomes. This paper describes results of the EMPOWER project, to foster the self-management of diabetes patients by integration of existing and new services offered to patients after having been diagnosed with diabetes. The Self-Management Pathway described in this paper helps patients in the specification of personalized activities based on medical recommendations and personal goals, as well as self-monitoring of the results.

School-based diabetes interventions and their outcomes: a systematic literature review.

Type 1 diabetes is one of the most common chronic childhood diseases, while type 2 diabetes in children is increasing at alarming rates globally. Against this backdrop, the school is a critical environment for children with diabetes. They continue to face barriers to education that may lead to depression, poor academic performance, and poor quality of life.

Influences of health literacy, judgment skills, and empowerment on asthma self-management practices.

Unlabelled: Asthma self-management has been recognized as an essential factor for the improvement of asthma outcomes and patients' quality of life (WHO, 2013). Likewise, empowerment and health literacy have been noted as important elements for the management of chronic diseases.

Objective: To study the influence of health literacy and empowerment on asthma self-management.

EMPOWER-support of patient empowerment by an intelligent self-management pathway for patients: study protocol.

Background: Diabetes education together with patient empowerment has shown to be key to effective self-management behavior. When delivered through information and communication technologies (ICT), this solution has shown to lead to better health outcomes. However, the potential of ICT and their integration into the healthcare environment have not yet been fully exploited.

A kMC-MD method with generalized move-sets for the simulation of folding of α-helical and β-stranded peptides.

In Monte-Carlo simulations of protein folding, pathways and folding times depend on the appropriate choice of the Monte-Carlo move or process path. We developed a generalized set of process paths for a hybrid kinetic Monte Carlo-Molecular dynamics algorithm, which makes use of a novel constant time-update and allows formation of α-helical and β-stranded secondary structures. We apply our new algorithm to the folding of 3 different proteins: TrpCage, GB1, and TrpZip4.

Medical information on the internet: a tool for measuring consumer perception of quality aspects.

Background: Most of adult Internet users have searched for health information on the Internet. The Internet has become one of the most important sources for health information and treatment advice. In most cases, the information found is not verified with a medical doctor, but judged by the "online-diagnosers" independently.

In vivo electromechanical assessment of heart failure patients with prolonged QRS duration.

Background: Combined measurement of electrical activation and mechanical dyssynchrony in heart failure (HF) patients is scarce but may contain important mechanistic and diagnostic clues.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to characterize the electromechanical (EM) coupling in HF patients with prolonged QRS duration.

Methods: Ten patients with QRS width >120 ms underwent left ventricular (LV) electroanatomic contact mapping using the Noga® XP system (Biosense Webster).

Exploring the relationships between participatory decision-making, visit duration, and general practitioners' provision of argumentation to support their medical advice: results from a content analysis.

Objective: General practitioners' medical recommendations are not always accepted by their patients. As patients bring their own beliefs, knowledge, and preferences to the medical encounter, their opinions concerning diagnosis and treatment may deviate from their doctors'. Aiming to convince their patients of the acceptability of their advice, doctors can advance arguments.

Does regulatory fit lead to more effective health communication? A systematic review.

Many of today's threats to public health arise from people's lifestyle. Hence, the public's compliance with advice given for health promotion and disease prevention has to be enhanced. Much research traces back the efficacy of health promotion messages to message qualities, while other work focuses on recipient qualities.

The effect of social support features and gamification on a Web-based intervention for rheumatoid arthritis patients: randomized controlled trial.

Background: Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is chronic systematic disease that affects people during the most productive period of their lives. Web-based health interventions have been effective in many studies; however, there is little evidence and few studies showing the effectiveness of online social support and especially gamification on patients' behavioral and health outcomes.

Objective: The aim of this study was to look into the effects of a Web-based intervention that included online social support features and gamification on physical activity, health care utilization, medication overuse, empowerment, and RA knowledge of RA patients.

Impact of patients' judgment skills on asthma self-management: a pilot study.

Background: The majority of current health literacy tools assess functional skills including reading, writing, and numeracy. Although these tools have been able to underline the impact of such skills on individuals' health behaviour, there is a need for comprehensive measures to examine more advanced skills. The individual's ability to use health-related information considering his/her own health context, and judging positive and negative consequences of their decisions has been conceptualized as judgment skills.

How water layers on graphene affect folding and adsorption of TrpZip2.

We present a computational study of the folding of the Trp-rich β-hairpin TrpZip2 near graphene, a surface of interest as a platform for biosensors. The protein adsorbs to the surface, populating a new bound, folded state, coexisting with extended, adsorbed conformations. Adsorption and folding are modulated by direct interactions between the indole rings of TrpZip2 and the rings on the graphene surface, as well as by indirect water-mediated interactions.

Deep learning in neural networks: an overview.

In recent years, deep artificial neural networks (including recurrent ones) have won numerous contests in pattern recognition and machine learning. This historical survey compactly summarizes relevant work, much of it from the previous millennium. Shallow and Deep Learners are distinguished by the depth of their credit assignment paths, which are chains of possibly learnable, causal links between actions and effects.

A polarizable coarse-grained water model for dissipative particle dynamics.

We present a polarizable water model for the Dissipative Particle Dynamics (DPD) method. Employing long-range electrostatics and Drude oscillators, we calibrate the model using the compressibility and the dielectric constant of water. We validate the model by sampling the dielectric properties of solutions of sodium chloride at various concentrations.

Functional validity of a judgment skills measure within the concept of health literacy for sleeping disorder patients.

The concept of health literacy has been widened to include higher order aspects such as patient decision-making skills while its measurement continued to rely narrowly on reading and numeracy skills, known as functional health literacy. We developed a Judgment Skills measure, designed to assess patients' ability to make appropriate decisions with regard to their condition. The measure offers scenarios with answer options ranked for biomedical adequacy.

Experiences of cancer caregiving in socioeconomically deprived areas of Attica, Greece.

The shift of the majority of cancer care from inpatient to outpatient settings has given rise to a number of issues that have not yet been adequately addressed. This is especially true in countries undergoing rapid and profound socioeconomic changes that have substantially affected the health care sector. We conducted 12 in-depth interviews with family cancer caregivers residing in socioeconomically deprived areas of Attica, Greece.

The Effects of General Practitioners' Use of Argumentation to Support Their Treatment Advice: Results of an Experimental Study Using Video-Vignettes.

In recent years, general practice consultation has often been characterized as an argumentative activity. It has been argued that, guided by the ethical and legal principle of informed consent and the ideal standards of participatory and evidence-based medicine, doctors should provide argumentative support for their recommendations in order to encourage patients to actively take part in the treatment decision-making discussion. Thus far, however, it has remained unclear what causal effect general practitioners' provision of argumentation may have on consultation outcomes, such as patients' perceptions of their doctors' decision-making style and credibility, their acceptance and recall of the medical advice, and subsequently their intention to adhere to the advice.