Exploring the barriers to cervical screening and perspectives on new self-sampling methods amongst under-served groups.

Background: Cervical screening rates have fallen in recent years in the UK, representing a health inequity for some under-served groups. Self-sampling alternatives to cervical screening may be useful where certain barriers prohibit access to routine cervical screening. However, there is limited evidence on whether self-sampling methods address known barriers to cervical screening and subsequently increase uptake amongst under-screened groups.

Impacts, Adaptations, and Preparedness Among SNAP-Ed Implementers During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Multistate Study.

Objective: The study examines: 1) impacts of COVID-19 on the work of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program - Education (SNAP-Ed) implementers, 2) facilitators and barriers experienced in making adaptations, and 3) factors that would have helped with preparedness to adapt.

Design, Setting, And Participants: A purposive sample of 181 SNAP-Ed program implementers from across five states completed a survey or interview based on the study aims. Quantitative data was summarized with descriptive statistics and qualitative data was analyzed thematically.

Beekeepers' perceptions toward a new omics tool for monitoring bee health in Europe.

Pressures on honey bee health have substantially increased both colony mortality and beekeepers' costs for hive management across Europe. Although technological advances could offer cost-effective solutions to these challenges, there is little research into the incentives and barriers to technological adoption by beekeepers in Europe. Our study is the first to investigate beekeepers' willingness to adopt the Bee Health Card, a molecular diagnostic tool developed within the PoshBee EU project which can rapidly assess bee health by monitoring molecular changes in bees.

Public Involvement to Enhance Care Home Research; Collaboration on a Minimum Data Set for Care Homes.

Introduction: Information on care home residents in England is captured in numerous data sets (care home records, General Practitioner records, community nursing, etc.) but little of this information is currently analysed in a way that is useful for care providers, current or future residents and families or that realises the potential of data to enhance care provision. The DACHA study aimed to develop and test a minimum data set (MDS) which would bring together data that is useful to support and improve care and facilitate research.

Modified Delphi expert elicitation of the clinical and economic burden of obstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy in England and Northern Ireland.

Objective: To estimate the resource use of patients with obstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM), stratified by New York Heart Association (NYHA) class, in the English and Northern Irish healthcare systems via expert elicitation.

Design: Modified Delphi framework methodology.

Setting: UK HCM secondary care centres (n=24).

Effectiveness and user experience of nose and throat swabbing techniques for SARS-CoV-2 detection: results from the UK COVID-19 National Testing Programme.

Background: The UK's National Health Service Test and Trace (NHSTT) program aimed to provide the most effective and accessible SARS-CoV-2 testing approach possible. Early user feedback indicated that there were accessibility issues associated with throat swabbing. We report the results of service evaluations performed by NHSTT to assess the effectiveness and user acceptance of swabbing approaches, as well as qualitative findings of user experiences from research reports, surveys, and incident reports.

Frailism: a scoping review exploring discrimination against people living with frailty.

People living with frailty can experience discrimination, but unlike the characteristics of age and disability, frailty is not protected by law. Frailty is a clinical syndrome associated with ageing in which health deficits increase a person's vulnerability to illness, disability, and death. This scoping review, conducted by a team of methodologists, clinicians, lawyers, and patients, aimed to investigate the extent of discrimination against people living with frailty described in health-care literature.

Intestinal barrier function, caecal microbiota and growth performance of thermoneutral or heat stressed broiler chickens fed reduced crude protein diets supplemented with guanidinoacetic acid.

The effectiveness of guanidinoacetic acid (GAA) in reduced protein (RP) diets on performance and gut health of broilers under heat stress is largely unknown. A 35-d experiment was conducted using four dietary treatments: a standard protein diet (SP, 22.1 and 20.

Multifaceted barriers associated with clinical breast examination in sub-Saharan Africa: A multilevel analytical approach.

Objectives: Clinical breast examination (CBE) open the pathway to early detection and diagnosis of breast cancer. This study examined barriers to CBE uptake in seven sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries.

Methods: Data from the most current Demographic and Health Surveys of Burkina Faso, Cote d'Ivoire, Ghana, and Kenya Mozambique, Senegal and Tanzania was used.

Recovery, interrupted: persisting symptoms after concussion and the power of iatrogenesis.

Persisting symptoms after concussion (PSaC) affect up to 30% of children, adolescents, and young adults beyond 1 month post-injury, posing challenges in clinical care. This retrospective study examined 54 patients referred for neuropsychological evaluation due to PSaC, exploring factors contributing to symptom persistence. Results showed that 75.

Real-World Evaluation of i-gel Introduction on Intraoperative Airway-Related Safety Events: A Retrospective Cohort Study From a New England Hospital Network.

Background: Several health care networks have fully adopted second-generation supraglottic airway (SGA) i-gel. Real-world evidence of enhanced patient safety after such practice change is lacking. We hypothesized that the implementation of i-gel compared to the previous LMA®-Unique™ would be associated with a lower risk of airway-related safety events.

Interventions implemented through sporting organisations for promoting healthy behaviour or improving health outcomes.

Background: Chronic diseases are the leading cause of mortality and morbidity worldwide. Much of this burden can be prevented by adopting healthy behaviours and reducing chronic disease risk factors. Settings-based approaches to address chronic disease risk factors are recommended globally.

An umbrella review of health outcomes following traumatic brain injury.

While numerous reviews have assessed the association between traumatic brain injury (TBI) and various mental and physical health outcomes, a comprehensive evaluation of the scope, validity, and quality of evidence is lacking. Here we present an umbrella review of a wide range of health outcomes following TBI and outline outcome risks across subpopulations. On 17 May 2023, we searched Embase, Medline, Global Health, PsycINFO, and Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews for systematic reviews and meta-analyses.

The Economic Analysis of the Overlooked Recurrent Low Back Pain: Three Years Retrospective Observational Study.

Purpose: Recent redefinitions of pain emphasize the importance of the previously overlooked recurrent low back pain (LBP). Understanding the direct medical cost for recurrent LBP cases based on the cost per visit is crucial economically. We aimed to compare the cost per visit for LBP and recurrent LBP, including the impact of gender and type of medical service, estimating the approximate annual cost of recurrent LBP.

Patient specific variables impact sensitivity to association between joint balance and 2 Year outcomes.

Background: This study investigates the association between intra-operative balance and 2-year outcomes within subgroups defined by demographics and pre-operative joint balance. Our hypothesis is that patient demographics and the pre-operative state of the joint will impact patient sensitivity to post-operative balance and laxity and subsequent impact on outcome.

Methods: A retrospective analysis of prospectively captured data across 5 sites with 5 surgeons was performed.

Psychological impact of an intensive care admission for COVID-19 on patients in the United Kingdom.

Background: The psychological impact of surviving an admission to an intensive care unit (ICU) with COVID-19 is uncertain. The objective of the study was to assess the prevalence of anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms in ICU survivors treated for COVID-19 infection, and identify risk factors for psychological distress.

Methods: This observational study was conducted at 52 ICUs in the United Kingdom.

Factors Influencing the Use of Shave Biopsy for Lesions Suspicious of Melanoma in Australia: An Exploratory Mixed-Methods Study.

Background: Recent Australian trends indicate that shave biopsies for diagnosing lesions suspicious of melanoma are increasing, yet reasons for this remain relatively unknown. We sought to understand which factors influence Australian clinicians' use of shave biopsy for managing thin lesions suspicious of melanoma in sites of low cosmetic sensitivity.

Methods: We used a convergent, exploratory mixed-methods design, with a cross-sectional online survey (n = 59) and semi-structured qualitative interviews (n = 15).

Evaluating student understanding of core pharmacokinetic concepts.

Both educators and graduates have expressed concern about a perceived pharmacology knowledge gap that includes difficulty applying fundamental principles to clinical and research problems. Consequently, we sought to determine the extent to which current students can explain the meaning of, and appropriately apply, a subset of core concepts, and to identify any misconceptions arising from the responses. Of the twenty-four pharmacology core concepts arising from the recent international collaboration, four pharmacokinetic concepts were chosen, namely drug bioavailability, drug clearance, volume of distribution, and steady-state concentration.

Incentives for smoking cessation.

Background: Financial incentives (money, vouchers, or self-deposits) can be used to positively reinforce smoking cessation. They may be used as one-off rewards, or in various schedules to reward steps towards sustained smoking abstinence (known as contingency management). They have been used in workplaces, clinics, hospitals, and community settings, and to target particular populations.

Lower limb strength differentiates between fallers and non-fallers with multiple sclerosis.

Objective: To determine whether hip flexion (HF), extension (HE), abduction (HA), knee flexion (KF) and extension (KE), and ankle plantarflexion (APF) and dorsiflexion (ADF) Maximum Voluntary Contraction (MVC) differentiates between non-fall and fall history in persons with MS (PwMS) after accounting for age, gender, fatigue, disability, and disease duration.

Design: Secondary analysis of a cross-sectional study.

Setting: Community-based comprehensive MS Center PARTICIPANTS: 172 persons with MS who completed a one-time visit INTERVENTIONS: Not applicable MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Lower limb (LL) MVC was measured for each muscle group as isometric peak torque (Newton-meter: Nm) of both limbs (Strongest: S; Weakest: W) using a Biodex Dynamometer and normalized by body weight (Nm/kg).

Rising cardiovascular mortality among obstructive sleep apnea patients: United States epidemiological trends (1999-2019).

Background: Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) prevalence has risen significantly, affecting millions globally and posing a major healthcare burden. OSA is strongly associated with cardiovascular diseases (CVD) such as heart failure, stroke, and ischemic heart disease. However, trends in CVD-related mortality among individuals with OSA remain underexplored.

Issues and Limitations on the Road to Fair and Inclusive AI Solutions for Biomedical Challenges.

Objective: In this paper, we explore the correlation between performance reporting and the development of inclusive AI solutions for biomedical problems. Our study examines the critical aspects of bias and noise in the context of medical decision support, aiming to provide actionable solutions. Contributions: A key contribution of our work is the recognition that measurement processes introduce noise and bias arising from human data interpretation and selection.

The Impacts of Programs and Policies to Address Food Insecurity: An Analysis of Change in Income.

Background/objectives: This paper examines hunger over time to analyze how food insecurity is impacted by reduced income, including household funding from the government. Federal policies and community-based programs have the ability to prevent increases in food insecurity, particularly for populations that have risk factors, such as households with children; single-parent households; low-income households, especially those in rural areas; Black and Hispanic households; and, households experiencing economic hardships.

Methods: This study is bas ed on a cross-sectional survey that was administered in 2018 and 2019 to food pantry clients, an already food insecure population accessing resources, in Eastern Massachusetts.

Human-Caused High Direct Mortality in Birds: Unsustainable Trends and Ameliorative Actions.

Human interaction with birds has never been more positive and supported by so many private citizens and professional groups. However, direct mortality of birds from anthropogenic causes has increased and has led to significant annual losses of birds. We know of the crucial impact of habitat loss on the survival of birds and its effects on biodiversity.