Methods for health workforce projection model: systematic review and recommended good practice reporting guideline.

BACKGROUND: Health workforce projection models are integral components of a robust healthcare system. This research aims to review recent advancements in methodology and approaches for health workforce projection models and proposes a set of good practice reporting guidelines. METHODS: We conducted a systematic review by searching medical and social science databases, including PubMed, EMBASE, Scopus, and EconLit, covering the period from 2010 to 2023. The inclusion criteria encompassed studies projecting the demand for and supply of the health workforce. PROSPERO registration: CRD 42023407858. RESULTS: Our review identified 40 relevant studies, including 39 single countries analysis (in Australia, Canada, Germany, Ghana, Guinea, Ireland, Jamaica, Japan, Kazakhstan, Korea, Lesotho, Malawi, New Zealand, Portugal, Saudi Arabia, Serbia, Singapore, Spain, Thailand, UK, United States), and one multiple country analysis (in 32 OECD countries). Recent studies have increasingly embraced a complex systems approach in health workforce modelling, incorporating demand, supply, and demand-supply gap analyses. The review identified at least eight distinct types of health workforce projection models commonly used in recent literature: population-to-provider ratio models (n = 7), utilization models (n = 10), needs-based models (n = 25), skill-mixed models (n = 5), stock-and-flow models (n = 40), agent-based simulation models (n = 3), system dynamic models (n = 7), and budgetary models (n = 5). Each model has unique assumptions, strengths, and limitations, with practitioners often combining these models. Furthermore, we found seven statistical approaches used in health workforce projection models: arithmetic calculation, optimization, time-series analysis, econometrics regression modelling, microsimulation, cohort-based simulation, and feedback causal loop analysis. Workforce projection often relies on imperfect data with limited granularity at the local level. Existing studies lack standardization in reporting their methods. In response, we propose a good practice reporting guideline for health workforce projection models designed to accommodate various model types, emerging methodologies, and increased utilization of advanced statistical techniques to address uncertainties and data requirements. CONCLUSIONS: This study underscores the significance of dynamic, multi-professional, team-based, refined demand, supply, and budget impact analyses supported by robust health workforce data intelligence. The suggested best-practice reporting guidelines aim to assist researchers who publish health workforce studies in peer-reviewed journals. Nevertheless, it is expected that these reporting standards will prove valuable for analysts when designing their own analysis, encouraging a more comprehensive and transparent approach to health workforce projection modelling.

Effects of Rurality on Distance and Time Traveled to Receive Vaccination Against Mpox-New Mexico and Idaho 2022-2023.

ABSTRACT: We compared mpox vaccination access between urban and rural residents who received ≥1 JYNNEOS dose using immunization data in Idaho and New Mexico. Rural residents traveled 5 times farther and 3 times longer than urban residents to receive mpox vaccination. Increasing mpox vaccine availability to health care facilities might increase uptake.

Observed face mask use outside retail chain stores during the COVID-19 pandemic in two cities in the state of Idaho, USA.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, public health authorities have encouraged the use of face masks to minimize transmission within the community. To assess mask wear during a COVID-19 surge and guide public health response efforts, including public messaging on mask recommendations, we compared observed mask use in the largest city in each of Idaho's 2 most populous counties, both without a current mask mandate. We recorded mask usage by every third person exiting stores of 5 retail chains in Boise and Nampa during November 8-December 5, 2021. Observations were conducted during three time periods (morning, afternoon, and evening) on weekday and weekend days. A multivariable model with city, retail chain, and city-chain interaction was used to assess mask wear differences by city for each chain. Of 3021 observed persons, 22.0% wore masks. In Boise, 31.3% (430/1376) of observed persons wore masks; in Nampa, 14.3% (236/1645) wore masks. Among all persons wearing masks, > 94% wore masks correctly; cloth and surgical masks were most common. By retail chain, observed individuals at Boise locations were 2.3-5.7 times as likely to wear masks than persons at respective Nampa locations. This study provided a rapid, nonconfrontational assessment of public use of mitigation measures in 2 Idaho cities during a COVID-19 surge.

Cluster of Carbapenemase-Producing Carbapenem-Resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa Among Patients in an Adult Intensive Care Unit - Idaho, 2021-2022.

Treatment of carbapenemase-producing carbapenem-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa (CP-CRPA) infections is challenging because of antibiotic resistance. CP-CRPA infections are highly transmissible in health care settings because they can spread from person to person and from environmental sources such as sink drains and toilets. During September 2021-January 2022, an Idaho hospital (hospital A) isolated CP-CRPA from sputum of two patients who stayed in the same intensive care unit (ICU) room (room X), 4 months apart. Both isolates had active-on-imipenem metallo-beta-lactamase (IMP) carbapenemase gene type 84 (blaIMP-84) and were characterized as multilocus sequence type 235 (ST235). A health care-associated infections team from the Idaho Division of Public Health visited hospital A during March 21-22, 2022, to discuss the cluster investigation with hospital A staff members and to collect environmental samples. CP-CRPA ST235 with blaIMP-84 was isolated from swab samples of one sink in room X, suggesting it was the likely environmental source of transmission. Recommended prevention and control measures included application of drain biofilm disinfectant, screening of future patients who stay in room X (e.g., the next 10 occupants) upon reopening, and continuing submission of carbapenem-resistant P. aeruginosa (CRPA) isolates to public health laboratories. Repeat environmental sampling did not detect any CRPA. As of December 2022, no additional CP-CRPA isolates had been reported by hospital A. Collaboration between health care facilities and public health agencies, including testing of CRPA isolates for carbapenemase genes and implementation of sink hygiene interventions, was critical in the identification of and response to this CP-CRPA cluster in a health care setting.

Variants in JAZF1 are associated with asthma, type 2 diabetes, and height in the United Kingdom biobank population.

Background: Asthma, type 2 diabetes (T2D), and anthropometric measures are correlated complex traits that all have a major genetic component. Objective: To investigate the overlap in genetic variants associated with these complex traits. Methods: Using United Kingdom Biobank data, we performed univariate association analysis, fine-mapping, and mediation analysis to identify and dissect shared genomic regions associated with asthma, T2D, height, weight, body mass index (BMI), and waist circumference (WC). Results: We found several genome-wide significant variants in and around the JAZF1 gene that are associated with asthma, T2D, or height with two of these variants shared by the three phenotypes. We also observed an association in this region with WC when adjusted for BMI. However, there was no association with WC when it was not adjusted for BMI or weight. Additionally, only suggestive associations between variants in this region and BMI were observed. Fine-mapping analyses suggested that within JAZF1 there are non-overlapping regions harboring causal susceptibility variants for asthma, T2D, and height. Mediation analyses supported the conclusion that these are independent associations. Conclusion: Our findings indicate that variants in the JAZF1 are associated with asthma, T2D, and height, but the associated causal variant(s) are different for each of the three phenotypes.

Evaluation of Public Health Contact Tracing for Mpox Among Gay, Bisexual, and Other Men Who Have Sex With Men-10 US Jurisdictions, May 17-July 31, 2022.

Objectives. To examine the potential impact of contact tracing to identify contacts and prevent mpox transmission among gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men (MSM) as the outbreak expanded. Methods. We assessed contact tracing outcomes from 10 US jurisdictions before and after access to the mpox vaccine was expanded from postexposure prophylaxis for persons with known exposure to include persons at high risk for acquisition (May 17-June 30, 2022, and July 1-31, 2022, respectively). Results. Overall, 1986 mpox cases were reported in MSM from included jurisdictions (240 before expanded vaccine access; 1746 after expanded vaccine access). Most MSM with mpox were interviewed (95.0% before vaccine expansion and 97.0% after vaccine expansion); the proportion who named at least 1 contact decreased during the 2 time periods (74.6% to 38.9%). Conclusions. During the period when mpox cases among MSM increased and vaccine access expanded, contact tracing became less efficient at identifying exposed contacts. Public Health Implications. Contact tracing was more effective at identifying persons exposed to mpox in MSM sexual and social networks when case numbers were low, and it could be used to facilitate vaccine access. (Am J Public Health. 2023;113(7):815-818. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2023.307301).

Implementation of indication-based antibiotic order sentences improves antibiotic use in emergency departments.

INTRODUCTION: Prior data have suggested that suboptimal antibiotic prescribing in the emergency department (ED) is common for uncomplicated lower respiratory tract infections (LRTI), urinary tract infections (UTI), and acute bacterial skin and skin structure infections (ABSSSI). The objective of this study was to measure the effect of indication-based antibiotic order sentences (AOS) on optimal antibiotic prescribing in the ED. METHODS: This was an IRB-approved quasi-experiment of adults prescribed antibiotics in EDs for uncomplicated LRTI, UTI, or ABSSSI from January to June 2019 (pre-implementation) and September to December 2021 (post-implementation). AOS implementation occurred in July 2021. AOS are lean process, electronic discharge prescriptions retrievable by name or indication within the discharge order field. The primary outcome was optimal prescribing, defined as correct antibiotic selection, dose, and duration per local and national guidelines. Descriptive and bivariate statistics were performed; multivariable logistic regression was used to determine variables associated with optimal prescribing. RESULTS: A total of 294 patients were included: 147 pre-group and 147 post-group. Overall optimal prescribing improved from 12 (8%) to 34 (23%) (P < 0.001). Individual components of optimal prescribing were optimal selection at 90 (61%) vs 117 (80%) (P < 0.001), optimal dose at 99 (67%) vs 115 (78%) (P = 0.036), and optimal duration at 38 (26%) vs 50 (34%) (P = 0.13) for pre- and post-group, respectively. AOS was independently associated with optimal prescribing after multivariable logistic regression analysis (adjOR, 3.6; 95%CI,1.7-7.2). A post-hoc analysis showed low uptake of AOS by ED prescribers. CONCLUSIONS: AOS are an efficient and promising strategy to enhance antimicrobial stewardship in the ED.

Analytical Approaches to Uncover Genetic Associations for Rare Outcomes: Lessons from West Nile Neuroinvasive Disease.

West Nile viral infection causes severe neuroinvasive disease in less than 1% of infected humans. There are no targeted therapeutics for this serious and potentially fatal disease, and to date no vaccine has been approved for humans. With climate change expected to result in rising incidence of West Nile and other related vector-borne viral infections, there is an increasing need to identify those at risk for serious disease and potential leads for therapeutic and vaccine development. Genetic variation, particularly in genes whose products are either directly or indirectly connected to immune response to infections, is a critical avenue of investigation to identify those at higher risk of clinically apparent West Nile infection. Given the small percent of infections that progress to severe disease and the relatively low numbers of reported infections, it is challenging to conduct well-powered studies to identify genetic factors associated with more severe outcomes. In this chapter, we outline several approaches with the objective to take full advantage of all available data in order to identify genetic factors which lead to increased risk of severe West Nile neuroinvasive disease. These methods are generalizable to other conditions with limited cohort size and rare outcomes.

Epidemiologic and Clinical Features of Children and Adolescents Aged <18 Years with Monkeypox - United States, May 17-September 24, 2022.

Data on monkeypox in children and adolescents aged <18 years are limited (1,2). During May 17­September 24, 2022, a total of 25,038 monkeypox cases were reported in the United States,† primarily among adult gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men (3). During this period, CDC and U.S. jurisdictional health departments identified Monkeypox virus (MPXV) infections in 83 persons aged <18 years, accounting for 0.3% of reported cases. Among 28 children aged 0­12 years with monkeypox, 64% were boys, and most had direct skin-to-skin contact with an adult with monkeypox who was caring for the child in a household setting. Among 55 adolescents aged 13­17 years, most were male (89%), and male-to-male sexual contact was the most common presumed exposure route (66%). Most children and adolescents with monkeypox were non-Hispanic Black or African American (Black) (47%) or Hispanic or Latino (Hispanic) (35%). Most (89%) were not hospitalized, none received intensive care unit (ICU)­level care, and none died. Monkeypox in children and adolescents remains rare in the United States. Ensuring equitable access to monkeypox vaccination, testing, and treatment is a critical public health priority. Vaccination for adolescents with risk factors and provision of prevention information for persons with monkeypox caring for children might prevent additional infections.

Exploring Family Medicine Residents' Experiences Teaching Medical Students.

INTRODUCTION: Near-peer teaching offered by residents is common in a medical students' educational career, so preparation of residents for their role as teachers is essential. Understanding resident perspectives on interactions with medical students may provide insight into this near-peer relationship and allow stakeholders to emphasize concepts that add value to this relationship when preparing residents to teach. This study presents the results from an inquiry focusing on a cohort of family medicine residents' experiences with medical students in their role as teachers. METHODS: Family medicine residents at a Southeastern US academic medical center participated in one of three focus groups to assess resident perceptions of their role in teaching students and approaches employed. We coded focus group transcripts for themes. RESULTS: Themes identified from questions on residents' perceptions of teaching role and employed teaching approaches focused on teaching interactions and methods. Six categories of major themes were derived from this qualitative analysis: (1) the learning environment, (2) stimulating learning, (3) supervising, (4) role modeling, (5) collaborating, and (6) transferring knowledge. Trends within these categories include creating a safe environment for clinical reasoning and inquiry, setting expectations, developing clinical reasoning skills through practical application of knowledge, providing appropriate student supervision and autonomy, and including students as part of the team. CONCLUSIONS: Residents adopted a variety of teaching approaches that assist medical students in their transition into and ability to function within a clinical environment. Findings from this study have implications for program directors and educators when preparing residents as teachers.

A new method for exploring gene-gene and gene-environment interactions in GWAS with tree ensemble methods and SHAP values.

BACKGROUND: The identification of gene-gene and gene-environment interactions in genome-wide association studies is challenging due to the unknown nature of the interactions and the overwhelmingly large number of possible combinations. Parametric regression models are suitable to look for prespecified interactions. Nonparametric models such as tree ensemble models, with the ability to detect any unspecified interaction, have previously been difficult to interpret. However, with the development of methods for model explainability, it is now possible to interpret tree ensemble models efficiently and with a strong theoretical basis. RESULTS: We propose a tree ensemble- and SHAP-based method for identifying as well as interpreting potential gene-gene and gene-environment interactions on large-scale biobank data. A set of independent cross-validation runs are used to implicitly investigate the whole genome. We apply and evaluate the method using data from the UK Biobank with obesity as the phenotype. The results are in line with previous research on obesity as we identify top SNPs previously associated with obesity. We further demonstrate how to interpret and visualize interaction candidates. CONCLUSIONS: The new method identifies interaction candidates otherwise not detected with parametric regression models. However, further research is needed to evaluate the uncertainties of these candidates. The method can be applied to large-scale biobanks with high-dimensional data.

In-Depth Analysis of Genetic Variation Associated with Severe West Nile Viral Disease.

West Nile virus (WNV) is a mosquito-borne virus which causes symptomatic disease in a minority of infected humans. To identify novel genetic variants associated with severe disease, we utilized data from an existing case-control study of WNV and included population controls for an expanded analysis. We conducted imputation and gene-gene interaction analysis in the largest and most comprehensive genetic study conducted to date for West Nile neuroinvasive disease (WNND). Within the imputed West Nile virus dataset (severe cases n = 381 and asymptomatic/mild controls = 441), we found novel loci within the MCF.2 Cell Line Derived Transforming Sequence Like (MCF2L) gene (rs9549655 and rs2297192) through the individual loci analyses, although none reached statistical significance. Incorporating population controls from the Wisconsin Longitudinal Study on Aging (n = 9012) did not identify additional novel variants, a possible reflection of the cohort's inclusion of individuals who could develop mild or severe WNV disease upon infection. Many of the top gene-gene interaction results were intergenic, with currently undefined biological roles, highlighting the need for further investigation into these regions and other identified gene targets in severe WNND. Further studies including larger sample sizes and more diverse populations reflective of those at risk are needed to fully understand the genetic architecture of severe WNDD and provide guidance on viable targets for therapeutic and vaccine development.

Single cell immune profiling of dengue virus patients reveals intact immune responses to Zika virus with enrichment of innate immune signatures.

The genus Flavivirus contains many mosquito-borne human pathogens of global epidemiological importance such as dengue virus, West Nile virus, and Zika virus, which has recently emerged at epidemic levels. Infections with these viruses result in divergent clinical outcomes ranging from asymptomatic to fatal. Myriad factors influence infection severity including exposure, immune status and pathogen/host genetics. Furthermore, pre-existing infection may skew immune pathways or divert immune resources. We profiled immune cells from dengue virus-infected individuals by multiparameter mass cytometry (CyTOF) to define functional status. Elevations in IFNß were noted in acute patients across the majority of cell types and were statistically elevated in 31 of 36 cell subsets. We quantified response to in vitro (re)infection with dengue or Zika viruses and detected a striking pattern of upregulation of responses to Zika infection by innate cell types which was not noted in response to dengue virus. Significance was discovered by statistical analysis as well as a neural network-based clustering approach which identified unusual cell subsets overlooked by conventional manual gating. Of public health importance, patient cells showed significant enrichment of innate cell responses to Zika virus indicating an intact and robust anti-Zika response despite the concurrent dengue infection.

Adolescent exposure to fluoxetine impairs serial pattern learning in the serial multiple choice (SMC) task in adult rats.

The effects of chronic adolescent fluoxetine (FLX, Prozac®) exposure on adult cognition are largely unknown. We used a serial multiple choice (SMC) task to characterize the effects of adolescent FLX exposure on rat serial pattern learning in adulthood. Male rats were exposed to either 1.0, 2.0, or 4.0 mg/kg/day FLX for five consecutive days each week for five weeks during adolescence, followed by a 35-day drug-free period. As adults, the rats were trained in a task that required them to learn a highly structured sequential pattern of responses in an octagonal chamber for water reinforcement. In a transfer phase, the terminal element of the pattern was replaced by a violation element that was inconsistent with previously learned pattern structure. Results indicated that adolescent FLX exposure caused differential learning deficits for different types of elements in the serial pattern. Adolescent exposure to 1.0 or 4.0 mg/kg/day FLX, but not 2.0 mg/kg/day FLX, impaired chunk-boundary element learning, which is known to be mediated by stimulus-response (S-R) learning. All three doses of FLX impaired violation element learning, which is known to be mediated by multiple-cue learning. FLX did not impair within-chunk element learning, which is known to be mediated by rule-learning mechanisms. The results indicate that adolescent FLX exposure produced multiple cognitive impairments that were detectable in adulthood long after drug exposure ended.

Comparison on simultaneous caillary and venous parasite density and genotyping results from children and adults with uncomplicated malaria: a prospective observational study in Uganda.

BACKGROUND: Blood smear microscopy remains the gold-standard method to diagnose and quantify malaria parasite density. In addition, parasite genotyping of select loci is the most utilized method for distinguishing recrudescent and new infections and to determine the number of strains per sample. In research settings, blood may be obtained from capillary or venous compartments, and results from these matrices have been used interchangeably. Our aim was to compare quantitative results for parasite density and strain complexity from both compartments. METHODS: In a prospective observational study, children and adults presenting with uncomplicated Plasmodium falciparum malaria, simultaneous capillary and venous blood smears and dried blood spots were collected over 42-days following treatment with artemether-lumefantrine. Blood smears were read by two microscopists, any discrepancies resolved by a third reader. Parasite DNA fingerprinting was conducted using six microsatellites. Bland Altman analysis and paired t-test/McNemar's test were used to assess the difference in density readings and measurements. RESULTS: Two hundred twenty-three participants were included in the analysis (177 children (35 HIV-infected/142 HIV-uninfected), 21 HIV-uninfected pregnant women, and 25 HIV-uninfected non-pregnant adults). Parasite density measurements did not statistically differ between capillary and venous blood smears at the time of presentation, nor over the course of 42-day follow-up. Characterization of merozoite surface protein-2 (MSP-2) genetic polymorphism demonstrated a higher level of strain diversity at the time of presentation in venous samples, as compared with capillary specimens (p = 0.02). There was a high degree of variability in genotype-corrected outcomes when pairs of samples from each compartment were compared using MSP-2 alone, although the variability was reduced with the use of multiple markers. CONCLUSIONS: Parasite density measurements do not statistically differ between capillary and venous compartments in all studied demographic groups at the time of presentation with malaria, or over the course of follow-up. More strains were detected by MSP-2 genotyping in venous samples than in capillary samples at the time of malaria diagnosis. The use of multiple polymorphic markers reduces the impact of variability in strain detection on genotype-corrected outcomes. This study confirms that both capillary and venous compartments can be used for sampling with confidence in the clinical research setting. TRIAL REGISTRATION: The trial was registered at ClinicalTrials.gov under registration no. NCT01717885 .

Serial pattern retention in male and female rats.

Serial pattern learning is a model paradigm for studying parallel-processing in complex learning in rats. The current experiment extends the paradigm to the study of sequential memory by examining forgetting curves for the component element types that make up a serial pattern. Adult male and female rats were trained in a serial multiple choice (SMC) task in which rats learned a serial pattern of nose-poke responses in a circular array of 8 receptacles mounted on the walls of an octagonal operant chamber. The pattern was 123-234-345-456-567-678-781-818, where digits represent the clockwise positions of successive correct receptacles. Previous work has shown that chunk-boundary elements (the first element of each 3-element chunk), within-chunk elements (the second and third elements in all but the last chunk), and the violation element (the last element of the pattern) are learned via different cognitive mechanisms. After each rat was trained to an 85% correct performance criterion on the violation element, we then assessed serial pattern retention at 24-h, 2-week, and 4-week retention intervals. For chunk-boundary and within-chunk elements, forgetting was observed only at the 4-week retention interval. Sex differences were observed; females performed better than males on within-chunk elements at 24-h and 4-week retention intervals. For the violation element, significant forgetting was observed earlier at the 2-week retention interval as well as at the 4-week retention interval. Thus, pattern elements that were learned slower were forgotten faster. The experiment provides a proof of concept for evaluating forgetting curves separately for the multiple memory systems rats appear to employ concurrently in this paradigm, a method that may prove useful in characterizing the impact of relevant neurobiological manipulations on forgetting in multiple sequential memory systems.

Identification of genetic variants associated with dengue or West Nile virus disease: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Dengue and West Nile viruses are highly cross-reactive and have numerous parallels in geography, potential vector host (Aedes family of mosquitoes), and initial symptoms of infection. While the vast majority (> 80%) of both dengue and West Nile virus infections result in asymptomatic infections, a minority of individuals experience symptomatic infection and an even smaller proportion develop severe disease. The mechanisms by which these infections lead to severe disease in a subset of infected individuals is incompletely understood, but individual host differences including genetic factors and immune responses have been proposed. We sought to identify genetic risk factors that are associated with more severe disease outcomes for both viruses in order to shed light on possible shared mechanisms of resistance and potential therapeutic interventions. METHODS: We applied a search strategy using four major databases (Medline, PubMed, Embase, and Global Health) to find all known genetic associations identified to date with dengue or West Nile virus disease. Here we present a review of our findings and a meta-analysis of genetic variants identified. RESULTS: We found genetic variations that are significantly associated with infections of these viruses. In particular we found variation within the OAS1 (meta-OR = 0.83, 95% CI: 0.69-1.00) and CCR5 (meta-OR = 1.29, 95% CI: 1.08-1.53) genes is significantly associated with West Nile virus disease, while variation within MICB (meta-OR = 2.35, 95% CI: 1.68-3.29), PLCE1 (meta-OR = 0.55, 95% CI: 0.42-0.71), MBL2 (meta-OR = 1.54, 95% CI: 1.02-2.31), and IFN-γ (meta-OR = 2.48, 95% CI: 1.30-4.71), is associated with dengue disease. CONCLUSIONS: Despite substantial heterogeneity in populations studied, genes examined, and methodology, significant associations with genetic variants were found across studies within both diseases. These gene associations suggest a key role for immune mechanisms in susceptibility to severe disease. Further research is needed to elucidate the role of these genes in disease pathogenesis and may reveal additional genetic factors associated with disease severity.

West Nile Virus Seroprevalence, Connecticut, USA, 2000-2014.

West Nile virus (WNV) infection is mainly asymptomatic but can be severe in elderly persons. As part of studies on immunity and aging in Connecticut, USA, we detected WNV seroconversion in 8.5% of nonimmunosuppressed and 16.8% of immunosuppressed persons. Age was not a significant seroconversion factor. Our findings suggest that immune factors affect seroconversion.

Screening for Depression in Cardiac Rehabilitation: A REVIEW.

PURPOSE: Practice guidelines promote depression screening in cardiac rehabilitation (CR). The objectives of this study were to review (1) CR program compliance with depression screening recommendations, and (2) the evidence evaluating whether screening for depression is related to improved outcomes in patients eligible for CR. METHODS: A limited literature search was conducted on key resource databases (MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, Cochrane Library, Evidence-Based Medicine Reviews, SCOPUS, and the University of York Centre for Reviews and Dissemination). A focused Internet search was also conducted with a concentrated gray literature search for evidence reports. Inclusion criteria included English language documents published between January 1, 2002, and August 1, 2013. RESULTS: Five studies were included in this review. Three studies were found in regard to the first objective and reported varying program compliance rates with depression screening recommendations, ranging from 29.0% to 68.4%. Two studies examined whether depression screening led to improved outcomes in CR-eligible patients. Both studies found that, among patients who recalled being screened, there was no significant difference in depressive symptom scores at followup as compared with patients who were not screened (P > .05). CONCLUSIONS: Approximately one-third to two-thirds of CR programs routinely screen for depression. There are no randomized controlled trials testing the effects of screening on any outcomes. Although some observational studies suggest that screening alone may not improve patient outcomes, more randomized controlled research is needed to address this issue.

Balance interventions for diabetic peripheral neuropathy: a systematic review.

Diabetic Peripheral Neuropathy (DPN) is a complication of diabetes experienced by more than 30% of all diabetic patients. It causes decreased sensation, proprioception, reflexes, and strength in the lower extremities, leading to balance dysfunction. The purpose of this study was to assess the effectiveness of interventions used by physical therapists to minimize balance dysfunction in people with DPN. Currently, no systematic review exists that explores the effectiveness of these interventions. When conducting this systematic review, we searched the electronic databases CINAHL, EMBASE, Cochrane Review, and Medline using specific search terms for the period from inception of each database to June 2009. Two independent reviewers analyzed the abstracts obtained to determine whether the article focused on balance interventions that are within the scope of physical therapy practice. All study designs were eligible for review with the exception of case reports and systematic reviews. The Delphi criteria was used to assess methodological quality. This literature search and methods assessment resulted in 2213 titles, 82 abstracts, and 6 articles, including 1 randomized controlled trial eligible for inclusion. The 6 articles contained 4 physical therapy interventions including monochromatic infrared energy therapy, vibrating insoles, lower extremity strengthening exercises, and use of a cane. Upon thorough analysis of outcome measures, statistical significance, and clinical relevance, the intervention of lower extremity strengthening exercises was given a fair recommendation for clinical use in treating balance dysfunction in patients with DPN. All others had insufficient evidence to either support or refute their effect on balance in this population.