Effects of high-intensity interval exercise on arterial stiffness in individuals at risk for cardiovascular disease: a meta-analysis.

Objective: The purpose of this meta-analysis was to investigate the effect of high-intensity interval training (HIIT) on arterial stiffness (AS) and vascular function in persons at high risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD). Methods: We conducted a comprehensive search of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) published in electronic databases (PubMed, Web of Science, Cochrane, Embase, and Ebsco) since their inception through October 2023 to evaluate the effect of HIIT on AS and vascular function in persons at high risk for CVD. The weighted mean difference (WMD) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CI) were calculated, and heterogeneity was assessed using the I2 test. Results: This study included 661 participants from 16 studies. HIIT significantly reduced pulse wave velocity (PWV) in persons at high risk for CVD [weighted mean difference (WMD), -0.62; 95% CI, -0.86--0.38; P < 0.00001]. Subgroup analysis showed that the PWV improvement effect was better when the HIIT program was performed 2-3 times per week and the duration was controlled within 40 min [2-3 times, -0.67; 95% CI, -0.93--0.41; P < 0.00001; time of duration, ≤40 min, -0.66; 95% CI, -0.91--0.41; P < 0.00001]. HIIT significantly reduced systolic blood pressure (SBP, -5.43; 95% CI, -8.82--2.04; P = 0.002), diastolic blood pressure (DPB, -2.96; 95% CI, -4.88--1.04; P = 0.002), and resting heart rate (RHR, -4.35; 95% CI, -7.04--1.66; P = 0.002), but had no significant effect on augmentation index (AIX, -2.14; 95% CI, -6.77-2.50; P = 0.37). Conclusion: HIIT can improve PWV in high-risk individuals with CVD and reduce SBP, DBP, and RHR, but has no significant effect on AIX. HIIT can effectively improve AS and vascular function and can be recommended as an effective method to improve AS in high-risk persons with CVD. Systematic Review Registration: https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/PROSPERO/, identifier: CRD42023471593.

Review Article Imaging Evaluation for the Size of Saccular Intracranial Aneurysm.

BACKGROUND: In addition to evaluate the morphologic characteristics of intracranial aneurysms, the dimension of the aneurysm is an important parameter for selecting treatment strategies, determining follow-up period, and predicting the risk of rupture. High-resolution vessel wall imaging has an increasingly dominant role in measuring aneurysm size and assessing the risk of rupture accurately. The size of saccular intracranial aneurysm may play an important role as a predictor of the rupture risk. With the rapid improvement in radiological techniques, different noninvasive imaging methods have respective characteristics in saccular intracranial aneurysms (sIA) measurement and morphologic description. Although most studies believe that the larger the aneurysm, the higher the risk of rupture, there is still a synergistic effect of multiple factors (such as location, morphology, history of aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage, and even patient factors) to explain the rupture of small aneurysms. METHODS: A literature search was performed of intracranial aneurysm size and risk of rupture. RESULTS: The specificity and sensitivity of different imaging methods for evaluating intracranial aneurysms varied based on sizes. Rupture risk of aneurysms was associated with multiple factors. A comprehensive assessment that considered aneurysm size in conjunction with other relevant factors would be helpful in guiding options of management. CONCLUSIONS: Accurate measurement of the dimension of sIA is an important basis in the selection of appropriate treatment including intravascular intervention or surgical clipping, as well as for determining the follow-up cycles for conservative or postoperative treatment. A uniform definition of sIA size is recommended to facilitate the integration of similar studies and to accomplish rapid and effective screening of cases in sIA treatment.

Diagnostic value of chest computed tomography images in adult Poland syndrome: a report of two cases.

Poland syndrome is a rare congenital developmental deformity characterized by unilateral agenesis or hypoplasia of thoracic wall soft tissue. We report two adult cases of Poland syndrome detected by computed tomography (CT) images. CT images of the two cases depicted an asymmetric chest wall with the absence of a breast and agenesis of the pectoralis muscles. A physical examination of case 1 showed a thin right chest wall with depression of the right nipple region. Hand deformities were also observed, including brachydactyly and syndactyly. In case 2, hand deformities were not found in a physical examination. Using multi-planar reconstruction, the size, position, origin, and termination of bilateral pectoral muscles could be compared symmetrically. For patients with Poland syndrome, a timely diagnosis and treatment are important. The use of chest CT in clinical practice could play an important role in the early diagnosis and treatment of Poland syndrome.

Hydrodynamic Cavitation of Creosote Oil in the Presence of a Ni2+ Initiator Results in an Increase in Its Overall Naphthalene Content.

Hydrodynamic cavitation (HC) of aromatic hydrocarbons present in creosote oil obtained from coal tar in the presence of 0.3% (w/w) Ni2+ as an inducer increased its naphthalene and phenanthrene content by 7.3 and 2.6%, respectively. An optimal procedure was developed based on the use of an upstream pressure of 2.6 MPa, an immersing height (H) for the cavitator of 105 mm, 10% H2O content, use of a NiSO4 solution at pH 4.0, and an operating temperature of 75 °C. Enrichment of the naphthalene and phenanthrene components is caused by hydroxyl and hydrogen radicals generated in the reaction inducing aromatic components to undergo a series of radical demethylation/methylation reactions to produce new product ratios. The observed increases in naphthalene and phenanthrene content using Ni2+ as a radical inducer are in contrast with the previous results using Fe2+ under similar conditions, which led to the enrichment of the acenaphthalene fraction of creosote oil.

Treatment of rhodamine B with cavitation technology: comparison of hydrodynamic cavitation with ultrasonic cavitation.

This paper presents the use of hydrodynamic cavitation and ultrasonic cavitation technologies for treating rhodamine B (RhB) in simulated wastewater. Various parameters of each technology that influence the RhB degradation rate were compared and optimized. The results showed that the optimal conditions for the hydrodynamic cavitation determined by the single-factor method were as follows: inlet pressure, 0.4 MPa; initial concentration, 10 mg L-1; reaction temperature, 30 °C; and pH value, 3. The RhB degradation rate was 38.7%. In addition, the optimal conditions for the ultrasonic cavitation determined by the response surface methodology were as follows: initial RhB concentration, 10 mg L-1; ultrasonic power, 850 W; ultrasonic time, 100 min; addition amount of H2O2, 0.6%; and pH value, 3. The RhB degradation rate was 84.06%. We also found that the degradation of RhB by both cavitation technologies conformed to the first-order kinetic reaction model. The rate constant of UC was 5.22 × 10-3 min-1 and that of HC was 4.35 × 10-3 min-1. The ultrasonic cavitation has a stronger cavitation effect than hydrodynamic cavitation.

Effect of Ostomy Care Team Intervention on Patients With Ileal Conduit.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of a nurse-led multicomponent intervention on ostomy-related complications, self-efficacy, and health-related quality of life in patients with an ileal conduit. DESIGN: Randomized controlled trial. SAMPLE AND SETTING: Forty-six patients who underwent radical cystectomy and creation of an ileal conduit participated in the trial; data were collected over a 6-month period. The study setting was Shanghai Pudong Hospital, affiliated with Fudan University, located in Shanghai, China. METHODS: Participants were randomly allocated to an experimental or control group. Participants in the control group received routine care over a 6-month period following ostomy surgery, while those in the experimental group received a nurse-led, multicomponent, structured intervention delivered by an ostomy care team. The Chinese language versions of the Stoma Self-Efficacy Scale (SSES) and the City of Hope Quality of Life-Ostomy (COHQOL-O) questionnaire were used to assess self-efficacy in stoma care and health-related quality of life. Ostomy-related complications including peristomal moisture-associated skin damage and uric acid crystal deposits in the peristomal area were also assessed. Fisher's exact test was used to compare the incidence of ostomy-related complications between the 2 groups. Independent-samples t tests were used to compare SSES and COHQOL-O scores. RESULTS: No statistically significant differences were found between demographic characteristics of the control and experimental groups. After 6 months, the incidence of complications was significantly lower in the experimental group as compared to the control group (4.35% vs 30.43%, P = .047). In addition, the mean SSES score was significantly higher in the experimental group (indicating greater self-efficacy in stoma care) (107.13 ± 11.87 vs 85.65 ± 12.87, P = .000), and the mean COHQOL-O score was also significantly higher in the experimental group, indicating higher health-related quality of life (154.48 ± 16.01 vs 138.26 ± 13.42, P = .001). CONCLUSION: The nurse-led multicomponent intervention provided by the ostomy care team reduced ostomy-related complications and improved the self-efficacy level and health-related quality of life in persons with a new urostomy.