The Before Baby Relationship Checkup: A Couples-Based Intervention to Reduce Relationship Risk Factors for Perinatal Mood and Anxiety Disorders.

Relationship conflict and lack of partner support are risk factors for perinatal mood and anxiety disorders. An intervention to strengthen couples' relationships before birth may reduce relationship risk factors for perinatal mood and anxiety disorders, though no research has explored this to date. The aims of this Stage 1 open-series non-experimental proof of concept study were to adapt the 'Marriage Checkup', an evidence-based intervention for relationship distress, as a preventative intervention for perinatal mood and anxiety disorders and to assess its feasibility and acceptability. Pregnant women receiving care at a university-based obstetric practice, and their partners, were recruited. Ten couples participated in the Before Baby Relationship Checkup, a personalized relationship health service offered in the obstetric clinic. Quantitative and qualitative data gathered suggests the intervention is feasible to implement in an obstetric setting, and acceptable to perinatal couples. Specific adaptations to the Marriage Checkup for perinatal couples are warranted and further testing is needed to evaluate efficacy.

Marriage checkup in integrated primary care: A randomized controlled trial with active-duty military couples.

OBJECTIVE: This study assessed the efficacy of the marriage checkup, as adapted to integrated primary care settings and active-duty military couples, for improving relationship health and depressive symptoms. METHOD: Married couples (N = 244, Mage = 32.4, 67.6% Caucasian) in which at least one member was active-duty Air Force were recruited from bases across the U.S. via online advertisement, emails sent from medical clinics to enrolled beneficiaries, social media posts, and flyers, and randomly assigned to active treatment or waitlist control. Treatment and control couples were linked in pairs sequentially and pairs completed nine sets of questionnaires at baseline, 1-, and 6-month posttreatment. Outcome measures included the Couples Satisfaction Index, Intimate Safety Questionnaire, Responsive Attention Scale, Partner Compassion Scale, Communication Skills Test, and the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale. RESULTS: A three-level multilevel model indicated, after adjustment for multiple comparisons, treatment couples experienced statistically significant small-to-moderate improvements compared to the control group (Cohen's d from 0.21 to 0.55) at 1 month that were sustained at 6 months for relationship satisfaction, responsive attention, compassion toward their partners, communication skills, intimate safety, and depressive symptoms. CONCLUSIONS: A longitudinal randomized control trial of the MC supports the hypothesis that the MC significantly improves relationship satisfaction, intimacy, communication, partner compassion, responsive attention, and depressive symptoms. Implications for theory, treatment, and dissemination are discussed. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Electrocoagulation-electrooxidation for mitigating trace organic compounds in model drinking water sources.

In-situ water treatment can be accomplished using electrochemical treatments such as electrocoagulation (EC), which generates coagulants, and electrooxidation (EO), which generates oxidants (e.g., free chlorine and reactive oxygen species) via electrolysis using boron-doped diamond electrodes. In sequential EC-EO, EC can remove oxidant scavengers present in dissolved organic carbon (DOC), thereby improving the efficacy of downstream oxidation via EO. This study evaluated sequential EC-EO (and each process independently for comparison) for mitigating the trace organic compounds (TOrCs) acyclovir (ACY), trimethoprim (TMP), and benzyldimethyldecylammonium chloride (BAC-C10) in model groundwaters and surface waters. EO-only removed greater than 70% of ACY and TMP but negligible BAC-C10 in model groundwaters. In model surface waters, EO-only removed ∼55-75% BAC-C10, but had less removal for ACY and TMP (∼20-55%), primarily due to DOC interference. Sequential-EC-EO was investigated to better gauge the potential process improvement due to the addition of EC ahead of EO. EC removed 74 ± 7% DOC from model surface water and improved downstream EO treatment relative to EO-only by a factor of 3.4 for ACY, 1.7 for TMP, and 1.4 for BAC-C10. When treating model groundwater, EC-EO resulted in no improvement compared to EO-only for ACY and TMP. BAC-C10 removal was attributed to the particle separation step between EC and EO rather than electrochemical inputs. EO-only treatment was more energy efficient for model groundwater compared to model surface waters based on electrical energy per order (EEO) values. Sequential EC-EO further improved the energy efficiency for treating model river water.

Mechanisms of virus mitigation and suitability of bacteriophages as surrogates in drinking water treatment by iron electrocoagulation.

Emerging water treatment technologies using ferrous and zero-valent iron show promising virus mitigation by both inactivation and adsorption. In this study, iron electrocoagulation was investigated for virus mitigation in drinking water via bench-scale batch experiments. Relative contributions of physical removal and inactivation, as determined by recovery via pH 9.5 beef broth elution, were investigated for three mammalian viruses (adenovirus, echovirus, and feline calicivirus) and four bacteriophage surrogates (fr, MS2, P22, and ΦX174). Though no one bacteriophage exactly represented mitigation of the mammalian viruses in all water matrices, bacteriophage ΦX174 was the only surrogate that showed overall removal comparable to that of the mammalian viruses. Bacteriophages fr, MS2, and P22 were all more susceptible to inactivation than the three mammalian viruses, raising concerns about the suitability of these common surrogates as indicators of virus mitigation. To determine why some bacteriophages were particularly susceptible to inactivation, mechanisms of bacteriophage mitigation due to electrocoagulation were investigated. Physical removal was primarily due to inclusion in flocs, while inactivation was primarily due to ferrous iron oxidation. Greater electrostatic attraction, virus aggregation, and capsid durability were proposed as reasons for virus susceptibility to ferrous-based inactivation. Results suggest that overall treatment claims based on bacteriophage mitigation for any iron-based technology should be critically considered due to higher susceptibility of bacteriophages to inactivation via ferrous oxidation.

From micro to macro-contaminants: The impact of low-energy titanium dioxide photocatalysis followed by filtration on the mitigation of drinking water organics.

This study evaluated strategies targeting macro- and micro-organic contaminant mitigation using low-energy titanium dioxide photocatalysis. Energy inputs of 1, 2, and 5 kWh m-3 resulted in incomplete oxidation of macro-organic natural organic matter, signified by greater reductions of UV254 and specific ultraviolet UV absorbance (SUVA) in comparison to dissolved organic carbon (DOC). The rate of UV254 removal was 3 orders of magnitude greater than the rate of DOC degradation. Incomplete oxidation improved operation of downstream filtration processes. Photocatalysis at 2 kWh m-3 increased the bed life of downstream granular activated carbon (GAC) filtration by 340% relative to direct filtration pretreatment. Likewise, photocatalysis operated ahead of microfiltration decreased fouling, resulting in longer filter run times. Using 2 kWh m-3 photocatalysis increased filter run time by 36 times in comparison to direct filtration. Furthermore, levels of DOC and UV254 in the membrane permeate improved (with no change in removal across the membrane) using low-energy photocatalysis pretreatments. While high-energy UV inputs provided high levels of removal of the estrogenic micro-organics estrone (E1), 17ß-estradiol (E2), estriol (E3), and 17α-ethynlestradiol (EE2), low-energy photocatalysis did not enhance removal of estrogens beyond levels achieved by photolysis alone. In the cases of E1 and E3, the addition of TiO2 as a photocatalyst reduced degradation rates of estrogens compared to UV photolysis. Overall, process electrical energy per order magnitude reductions (EEOs) greatly improved using photocatalysis, versus photolysis, for the macro-organics DOC, UV254, and SUVA; however, energy required for removal of estrogens was similar between photolysis and photocatalysis.

Analysis of operational parameters, reactor kinetics, and floc characterization for the removal of estrogens via electrocoagulation.

Estrogenic compounds can cause human and ecological health issues and have been detected in surface and drinking water. In this research a reactor analysis determined the impact of operational parameters, the best fit kinetic model for the removal of estrone (E1), 17ß-estradiol (E2), estriol (E3), and 17α-ethynylestradiol (EE2) using a bench-top iron electrocoagulation reactor, and characterized the floc generated in-situ. The parameters investigated were current density, conductivity, stir rate, and polarity reversal. Estrogen removal correlated well with an increase in current density, while conductivity did not impact removal but did reduce potentials. High stir rates and frequent polarity reversal demonstrated greater removal. The operating parameters that achieved the greatest estrogen removal were a current density of 16.7 mA cm-2, conductivity of 1000 µS cm-1, stir rate of 500 rpm, and a polarity reversal time of 30 s. These parameters led to average removal efficiencies of 81%, 87%, 85%, and 97% for E1, E2, E3, and EE2, respectively. The removal data for all estrogenic compounds best fit a pseudo-first order relationship with kinetic rate constants of 0.015 min-1 for E1 and E2, 0.016 min-1 for E3 and 0.040 min-1 for EE2. The floc formed in-situ were characterized by determining the crystalline phases with X-ray diffraction, the size and zeta potential, and the shape and major components using scanning electron microscope with energy-dispersive X-ray spectrometer. The iron coagulant generated during electrocoagulation was lepidocrocite with a point of zero charge of 5.67 and an average floc diameter of 2255 nm.

Knowledge of procedural sedation and analgesia of emergency medicine physicians.

OBJECTIVES: Pediatric procedural sedation and analgesia (PSA) is unique. The goals of this study were to examine emergency medicine (EM) physicians' baseline knowledge of general and pediatric PSA compared with that of other nonanesthesiologist physicians and to test effectiveness of a seminar required for credentialing in PSA. METHODS: This was a retrospective, before and after interventional study of participants in a major university teaching hospital's PSA course. Analysis was conducted to determine: (1) performance of EM physicians on questions related to general and pediatric PSA compared with other participating physicians, and (2) effect of seminar on participants' knowledge of PSA. RESULTS: The mean +/- SE PSA pretest score for EM physicians was higher than that of other physicians (63.7% +/- 1.1% vs 50.2% +/- 2.2%, P < 0.001), but not for the pediatric PSA pretest scores (54.8% +/- 1.7% vs 51.0% +/- 1.8%, P = 0.17). The EM practitioners performed worse on the pediatric versus the adult portion of the PSA pretest (55.2% +/- 1.8% vs 66.8% +/- 1.4%, P < 0.001). Practitioners trained in American Heart Association advanced life support classes performed better than the untrained (52.1 +/- 1.4 vs 41.6+/- 2.5, P < 0.001). Total and pediatric PSA test scores improved significantly after educational intervention in all practitioners. CONCLUSIONS: The EM physicians have stronger knowledge about general PSA than other nonanesthesiologist physician participants, but not for pediatric PSA, thus providing a target for future interventions. This course on PSA improved practitioners' knowledge of general and pediatric PSA and can be used as an educational model for PSA training. Further study is needed to determine decay rates for this knowledge and impact on patient care.

Adaptations to "Thermal Time" Constraints in Papilio: Latitudinal and Local Size Clines Differ in Response to Regional Climate Change.

Adaptations to "thermal time" (=Degree-day) constraints on developmental rates and voltinism for North American tiger swallowtail butterflies involve most life stages, and at higher latitudes include: smaller pupae/adults; larger eggs; oviposition on most nutritious larval host plants; earlier spring adult emergences; faster larval growth and shorter molting durations at lower temperatures. Here we report on forewing sizes through 30 years for both the northern univoltine P. canadensis (with obligate diapause) from the Great Lakes historical hybrid zone northward to central Alaska (65° N latitude), and the multivoltine, P. glaucus from this hybrid zone southward to central Florida (27° N latitude). Despite recent climate warming, no increases in mean forewing lengths of P. glaucus were observed at any major collection location (FL to MI) from the 1980s to 2013 across this long latitudinal transect (which reflects the "converse of Bergmann's size Rule", with smaller females at higher latitudes). Unlike lower latitudes, the Alaska, Ontonogon, and Chippewa/Mackinac locations (for P. canadensis) showed no significant increases in D-day accumulations, which could explain lack of size change in these northernmost locations. As a result of 3-4 decades of empirical data from major collection sites across these latitudinal clines of North America, a general "voltinism/size/D-day" model is presented, which more closely predicts female size based on D-day accumulations, than does latitude. However, local "climatic cold pockets" in northern Michigan and Wisconsin historically appeared to exert especially strong size constraints on female forewing lengths, but forewing lengths quickly increased with local summer warming during the recent decade, especially near the warming edges of the cold pockets. Results of fine-scale analyses of these "cold pockets" are in contrast to non-significant changes for other Papilio populations seen across the latitudinal transect for P. glaucus and P. canadensis in general, highlighting the importance of scale in adaptations to climate change. Furthermore, we also show that rapid size increases in cold pocket P. canadensis females with recent summer warming are more likely to result from phenotypic plasticity than genotypic introgression from P. glaucus, which does increase size in late-flight hybrids and P. appalachiensis.