Overweight and obesity management in musculo-skeletal primary care: a survey of Australian health practitioners exploring ‘the elephant in the room’.

Background: Overweight and obesity has a bi-directional association with the growing burden of musculoskeletal (MSk) dysfunction and pain. It seems inevitable that MSk practitioners will see increasing numbers of patients who are overweight and or obese and require this to be addressed as part of their management. Little evidence exists to describe the engagement of patients and their MSk practitioner in weight management as an adjunct or direct component of their intervention or therapy.

Development of the ‘AusPROM’ recommendations for elective surgery patients.

Objective Implementing the routine collection of patient reported outcome measures (PROMs) is key to improving healthcare quality and patient satisfaction. The implementation process can be strengthened through staff and patient co-design. The aim of this project was to develop a set of Australian PROM implementation recommendations ('AusPROM') to guide rapid translation into practice.

‘What is this about? Let’s play this out’: the experience of integrating primary health care registered nurses with school learning and support teams.

Changes in public health profiles and moves towards inclusive models of education have led to significant number of students in mainstream schools with special health needs. Addressing these needs requires collaboration between health professionals, educators and families. Integrated models of school-based health care can facilitate this collaboration; however, there is little evidence to guide their implementation.

‘We’re also healers’: Elders leading the way in Aboriginal community healing.

Background: The impact of colonisation, dispossession and marginalisation on the health of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander peoples (hereafter respectfully referred to as Aboriginal people) is well documented. Aboriginal people continue to practice traditional healing, and in recent years have initiated numerous community-based healing programs around Australia. The Closing the Gap policy has also resulted in numerous community health programs.

‘Look, wait, I’ll translate’: refugee women’s experiences with interpreters in healthcare in Aotearoa New Zealand.

This study aimed to explore refugee women's experiences of interpreters in healthcare in Aotearoa, New Zealand (NZ). Semi-structured interviews were conducted with nine women who arrived in NZ as refugees. Analysis involved a 'text in context' approach.

‘The chances are zero’: a qualitative study on perceived susceptibility to pregnancy among women experiencing homelessness.

Background: Women experiencing homelessness are at higher risk of unintended pregnancy than women stably housed. The way women perceive their susceptibility to pregnancy may contribute to effective contraceptive use. This study aimed to explore how women experiencing homelessness perceive their susceptibility to pregnancy with and without contraception from a qualitative, emic perspective.

A ‘joint’ approach: design, implementation and preliminary outcomes of an early conservative knee and hip osteoarthritis service in northern New South Wales, Australia.

Australia is facing a growing burden of knee and hip osteoarthritis (OA). To address this demand in northern New South Wales, a community health-based conservative OA joint management service was established in the Tweed Valley. This paper describes the design, implementation and initial evaluation of the service.

‘I didn’t want to visit a doctor unless it was extremely necessary’: perspectives on delaying access to sexual and reproductive health care during the COVID-19 pandemic in Australia from an online survey.

Australians were subject to a series of COVID-19 lockdown restrictions throughout 2020. Although accessing medical care was allowable, concerns were raised that people were avoiding healthcare services. We explored young Australians' reasons for delaying seeking sexual and reproductive health (SRH) care during the pandemic, using data from two cross-sectional surveys.

Effectiveness of Accelerated Recovery Performance for Post-ACL Reconstruction Rehabilitation.

Atrophy and protracted recovery of normal function of the ipsilateral quadriceps femoris muscle following anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction surgery is well documented. The Accelerated Recovery Performance trainer is a type of electrical stimulation device that delivers a high-pulse frequency via a direct current, making it unique from many other devices on the market. The purpose of the present study was to investigate the effects of the direct current (via the Accelerated Recovery Performance trainer protocol) on gains in thigh circumference following anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction.

Fatigue Improvement after Switching Multiple Sclerosis Treatment from Interferon-β to Glatiramer Acetate in Clinical Practice.

Background/aims: The immunomodulatory effect of glatiramer acetate may help in reducing multiple sclerosis (MS)-related fatigue; however, evidence to prove this notion especially after switching from another immunomodulatory therapy is limited. We assessed the 6-month effect of glatiramer acetate on MS-related fatigue in patients switching from interferon-β (IFN-β) in clinical practice.

Methods: This was an observational study including 54 patients with relapsing-remitting MS that showed moderate/severe fatigue primarily caused by MS before switching from IFN-β to glatiramer acetate and received glatiramer acetate for ≥6 months in daily practice.

Spontaneous Pneumomediastinum as a Potential Predictor of Mortality in Patients with Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis.

Background: Spontaneous pneumomediastinum (PM) is a rare event in patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) with unknown prognostic implications.

Objectives: To analyze the incidence and prognostic impact of PM in a cohort of patients with IPF.

Methods: PM diagnosed by computed tomography was identified retrospectively in the clinical and radiological records of 182 patients with IPF who were admitted to our center between August 2006 and July 2013.

Overweight and Underweight Prevalence Trends in Children from Romania - Pooled Analysis of Cross-Sectional Studies between 2006 and 2015.

Aim: High-quality national representative data on obesity in Romanian children are needed to shape public health policies. To provide a unified data landscape on national prevalence, trends and other factors associated with underweight, overweight, and obesity in Romanian children aged 6-19 years, across the last decade (2006-2015).

Methods: Using a common protocol, we selected published and unpublished studies that measured Romanian children in schools between 2006 and 2015.

Assessment of a Potential Pharmacokinetic Interaction between Nebivolol and Bupropion in Healthy Volunteers.

Background/aims: The study aimed at investigating the effects of multiple-dose bupropion (potent inhibitor of CYP2D6) on the pharmacokinetics (PKs) of single-dose nebivolol (CYP2D6 substrate) and to evaluate the clinical relevance of this potential drug interaction.

Methods: This open-label, nonrandomized clinical study had a 2-period design: during period 1 (reference), a single dose of 5 mg nebivolol was administered, while during period 2 (test), 5 mg nebivolol + 300 mg bupropion were ingested concomitantly, after a pretreatment regimen with bupropion (7 days). The PK parameters of nebivolol and its active metabolite were analyzed by noncompartmental modeling, while the pharmacodynamic (PD) parameters (blood pressure and heart rate) were assessed at rest.

Sustained Inflation and Its Role in the Delivery Room Management of Preterm Infants.

A noninvasive approach in the delivery room in place of intubation and mechanical ventilation can reduce rates of bronchopulmonary dysplasia and death. Nevertheless, the rate of nasal continuous positive airway pressure failure still remains high. In order to prevent lung injury and to enhance the success of continuous positive airway pressure, sustained inflation (administration by face mask or nasopharyngeal tube of a high peak pressure of 20-25 cm H2O, maintained for 10-15 s) has been recently proposed to establish an early and efficient functional residual capacity in the delivery room.

Synchronized Nasal Intermittent Positive Pressure Ventilation of the Newborn: Technical Issues and Clinical Results.

Although mechanical ventilation via an endotracheal tube has undoubtedly led to improvement in neonatal survival in the last 40 years, the prolonged use of this technique may predispose the infant to development of many possible complications including bronchopulmonary dysplasia. Avoiding mechanical ventilation is thought to be a critical goal, and different modes of noninvasive respiratory support beyond nasal continuous positive airway pressure, such as nasal intermittent positive pressure ventilation and synchronized nasal intermittent positive pressure ventilation, are also available and may reduce intubation rate. Several trials have demonstrated that the newer modes of noninvasive ventilation are more effective than nasal continuous positive airway pressure in reducing extubation failure and may also be more helpful as modes of primary support to treat respiratory distress syndrome after surfactant and for treatment of apnea of prematurity.

Development of the Mexican Heart Team: The Long and Winding Road.

Heart failure (HF) is the leading cause of death worldwide. Efforts to decrease HF mortality rates include a multidisciplinary approach management. Although evidence suggests that this has been an optimal strategy for treating HF, the model remains not widely implanted.

EEG Source Reconstruction in Male Nonsmokers after Nicotine Administration during the Resting State.

Modern psychopharmacological research in humans focuses on how specific psychoactive molecules modulate oscillatory brain activity. We present state-of-the-art EEG methods applied in a resting-state drug study. Thirty healthy male nonsmokers were randomly allocated either to a nicotine group (14 subjects, 7 mg transdermal nicotine) or a placebo group (16 subjects).

Simplified Method to Measure Glomerular Filtration Rate by Iohexol Plasma Clearance in Conscious Rats.

Background/aims: Glomerular filtration rate (GFR) is the best index for evaluating renal function. We aimed to develop a simplified iohexol plasma clearance procedure for GFR measurement in rats without urine collection, animal catheterization or anesthesia, with limited sampling and requiring blood instead of plasma, to further reduce the sample volume and improve animal welfare.

Methods: After iohexol injection (129.

Neuromuscular Electrical Stimulation for Treatment-Refractory Chronic Dysphagia in Tube-Fed Patients: A Prospective Case Series.

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the role of neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES) in tube-fed patients with severe and chronic dysphagia refractory to traditional swallowing therapy (TT).

Patients And Methods: A total of 11 consecutive dysphagic patients with tube-dependent nutrition and who had not responded to 6 months of TT were enrolled. Each patient received NMES for 30 min and TT for 30 min, twice a day, 5 days per week for 4 weeks.

Different Prognostic Significance of Cardiac Troponin at Presentation and Peak Cardiac Troponin in Patients with Non-ST Segment Elevation Myocardial Infarction.

Objectives: Non-ST elevation myocardial infarction (NSTEMI) is one of the most common manifestations of acute coronary syndromes (ACS). We evaluated the prognostic role of cardiac troponin I (cTnI) at presentation and peak cardiac troponin I in patients with NSTEMI.

Methods: We consecutively enrolled 215 subjects presenting with NSTEMI.