Psychological status of pregnant women during the omicron pandemic outbreak in China.

BACKGROUND: Pregnant women faced great challenges and psychological and physiological changes of varying degrees during the omicron epidemic outbreak. It is important to recognize the potential impact of these challenges on the mental health of pregnant women and to provide appropriate resources and support to mitigate their effects. METHOD: By using the convenience sampling approach, a total of 401 pregnant women from two hospitals of different grades in two cities were included in the survey. The cross-sectional survey was conducted by basic characteristics, Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD-7), Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9), Insomnia Severity Index (ISI) and self-made questionnaire. RESULTS: Insomnia affected 207 participants (51.6%), depression affected 160 participants (39.9%) and anxiety affected 151 participants (37.7%). Moreover, pregnant women in provincial capital city were more likely to experience anxiety, depression and insomnia than those in county-level city (P < 0.01). Pregnant women's anxiety, depression and insomnia were positively correlated with the severity of COVID-19 infection (P < 0.05). However, COVID-19 infection had no appreciable impact on maternal demand for termination of pregnancy and cesarean section (P > 0.05). CONCLUSION: Pregnant women frequently suffer from anxiety disorder, depression and insomnia as a result of the omicron pandemic in China. During this period, the community and medical professionals should provide more psychological counseling, conduct health education and offer virtual prenatal care to pregnant women (particularly in the provincial capital city).

Progressive Pattern Interleaver with Multi-Carrier Modulation Schemes and Iterative Multi-User Detection in IoT 6G Environments with Multipath Channels.

Sixth-generation (6G) wireless networks demand a more efficient implementation of non-orthogonal multiple access (NOMA) schemes for severe multipath fading environments to serve multiple users. Using non-orthogonal multiple access (NOMA) schemes in IoT 6G networks is a promising solution to allow multiple users to share the same spectral and temporal resource, increasing spectral efficiency and improving the network's capacity. In this work, we have evaluated the performance of a novel progressive pattern interleaver (PPI) employed to distinguish the users in interleaved division multiple access (IDMA) schemes, suggested by 3GPP guidelines as a NOMA scheme, with two multi-carrier modulation schemes known as single-carrier frequency-division multiple access (SC-FDMA) and orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing (OFDM), resulting in SC-FDMA-IDMA and OFDM-IDMA schemes. Both schemes are multi-carrier schemes with orthogonal sub-carriers to deal against inter-symbol interference (ISI) and orthogonal interleavers for the simultaneous access of multiple users. It has been suggested through simulation outcomes that PPI performance is adequate with SC-FDMA-IDMA and OFDM-IDMA schemes in terms of bit error rate (BER) under multipath channel conditions. Moreover, regarding bandwidth requirement and the implementation complexity of the transmitted interleaver structure, PPI is superior to the conventional random interleaver (RI).

A Pilot Randomized Trial of Combined Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy and Exercise Training Versus Exercise Training Alone for the Management of Chronic Insomnia in Obstructive Sleep Apnea.

Insomnia treatment among individuals with comorbid insomnia and obstructive sleep apnea is suboptimal. In a pilot randomized controlled trial, 19 individuals with comorbid insomnia and obstructive sleep apnea were allocated to one of two arms: EX + EX, consisting of two 8-week phases of exercise training (EX), or RE + CBTiEX, encompassing 8 weeks of relaxation training (RE) followed by 8 weeks of combined cognitive-behavioral therapy and exercise (CBTiEX). Outcomes included Insomnia Severity Index (ISI), polysomnography, and cardiorespiratory fitness measures. A mixed-model analysis of variance revealed a Group × Time interaction on peak oxygen consumption change, F(1, 14) = 10.1, p = .007, and EX increased peak oxygen consumption (p = .03, g' = -0.41) and reduced ISI (p = .001, g' = 0.82) compared with RE (p = .49, g = 0.16) post-8 weeks. Post-16 weeks, there was a significant Group × Time interaction (p = .014) driven by RE + CBTiEX yielding a larger improvement in ISI (p = .023, g' = 1.48) than EX + EX (p = .88, g' < 0.1). Objective sleep was unchanged. This study showed promising effects of regular EX alone and combined with cognitive-behavioral therapy for insomnia on ISI in comorbid insomnia and obstructive sleep apnea.

Electrospinning Photocatalysis Meet In Situ Irradiated XPS: Recent Mechanisms Advances and Challenges.

Producing solar fuels over photocatalysts under light irradiation is a considerable way to alleviate energy crises and environmental pollution. To develop the yields of solar fuels, photocatalysts with broad light absorption, fast charge carrier migration, and abundant reaction sites need to be designed. Electrospun 1D nanofibers with large specific areas and high porosity have been widely used in the efficient production of solar fuels. Nevertheless, it is challenging to do in-depth mechanism research on electrospun nanofiber-based photocatalysts since there are multiple charge transfer routes and various reaction sites in these systems. Here, the basic principles of electrospinning and photocatalysis are systemically discussed. Then, the different roles of electrospun nanofibers played in recent research to boost photocatalytic efficiency are highlighted. It is noteworthy that the working principles and main advantages of in situ irradiated photoelectron spectroscopy (ISI-XPS), a new technique to investigate migration routes of charge carriers and identify active sites in electrospun nanofibers based photocatalysts, are summarized for the first time. At last, a brief summary on the future orientation of photocatalysts based on electrospun nanofibers as well as the perspectives on the development of the ISI-XPS technique are also provided.

Chaotic Pulse-Shaping Filter Based on Root-Raised-Cosine Division.

Chaotic baseband wireless communication system (CBWCS) suffers bit error rate (BER) degradation due to their intrinsic intersymbol interference (ISI). To this end, an ISI-free chaotic filter based on root-raised-cosine (RRC) division is constructed to generate a chaotic signal. A wireless communication system using this chaotic signal as a baseband waveform is proposed. The chaotic property is proved by the corresponding new hybrid dynamical system with topological conjugation to symbolic sequences and a positive Lyapunov exponent. Simulation results show that under a single-path channel and multi-path channel, the proposed method outperforms CBWCS in both BER performance and computational complexity.

Siloxene-Functionalized Laser-Induced Graphene via COSi Bonding for High-Performance Heavy Metal Sensing Patch Applications.

Here, 2D Siloxene nanosheets are newly applied to functionalize porous laser-induced graphene (LIG) on polydimethylsiloxane, modify the surface chemical properties of LIG, and improve the heterogeneous electron transfer rate. Meanwhile, the newly generated COSi crosslink boosts the binding of LIG and Siloxene. Thus, the Siloxene/LIG composite is used as the basic electrode material for the multifunctional detection of copper (Cu) ions, pH, and temperature in human perspiration. Moreover, to enhance the sensing performance of Cu ions, Siloxene/LIG is further modified by carbon nanotubes (CNTs). The fabricated Siloxene-CNT/LIG-based Cu-ion sensor shows linear response within a wide range of 10-500 ppb and a low detection limit of 1.55 ppb. In addition, a pH sensor is integrated to calibrate for determining the accurate concentration of Cu ions due to pH dependency of the Cu-ion sensor. The polyaniline-deposited pH sensor demonstrates a good sensitivity of -64.81 mV pH-1 over the pH range of 3-10. Furthermore, a temperature sensor for accurate skin temperature monitoring is also integrated and exhibits a stable linear resistance response with an excellent sensitivity of 9.147 Ω °C-1 (correlation coefficient of 0.139% °C-1 ). The flexible hybrid sensor is promising in applications of noninvasive heavy-metal ion detection and prediction of related diseases.

The Residual ISI for Which the Convolutional Noise Probability Density Function Associated with the Blind Adaptive Deconvolution Problem Turns Approximately Gaussian.

In a blind adaptive deconvolution problem, the convolutional noise observed at the output of the deconvolution process, in addition to the required source signal, is-according to the literature-assumed to be a Gaussian process when the deconvolution process (the blind adaptive equalizer) is deep in its convergence state. Namely, when the convolutional noise sequence or, equivalently, the residual inter-symbol interference (ISI) is considered small. Up to now, no closed-form approximated expression is given for the residual ISI, where the Gaussian model can be used to describe the convolutional noise probability density function (pdf). In this paper, we use the Maximum Entropy density technique, Lagrange's Integral method, and quasi-moment truncation technique to obtain an approximated closed-form equation for the residual ISI where the Gaussian model can be used to approximately describe the convolutional noise pdf. We will show, based on this approximated closed-form equation for the residual ISI, that the Gaussian model can be used to approximately describe the convolutional noise pdf just before the equalizer has converged, even at a residual ISI level where the "eye diagram" is still very closed, namely, where the residual ISI can not be considered as small.

The use of dietary supplements for mental health among the Saudi population: A cross-sectional survey.

Introduction: Despite limited evidence about the efficacy and safety of dietary supplements (DSs) for improving mental health, people with or without mental disorders often tend to use them, especially during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Previous studies focused on DS use for maintaining or improving overall health; Therefore, this study aimed to assess the prevalence of DSs for mental health among the SA population and to determine the factors that affect their use. Methods: This cross-sectional study was based on an online survey of Saudi Arabian participants between July and August 2021 with an anonymous, self-completed questionnaire distributed using convenience sampling. The questionnaire included queries related to demographic information, DS use assessment, and mental health evaluation using the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9), the Generalized Anxiety Disorder 7-item (GAD-7), questionnaire, and the Insomnia Severity Index (ISI). Results: In total, 443 participants from various regions of Saudi Arabia completed the questionnaire. The prevalence of DS use in the Saudi population was 44%. Vitamin D (28%) and melatonin (20%) were the most commonly reported DSs used for mental health. The odds of DS use were three times higher in responders with previous mental health diagnoses (OR: 2.972; 95% CI: 1.602-5.515). Furthermore, the chances of using DSs almost doubled in patients with sub-threshold and moderate to severe insomnia (OR: 1.930; 95% CI: 1.191-3.126 and OR: 2.485; 95% CI: 1.247-4.954, respectively). Conclusion: Responders diagnosed by a specialist with psychiatric disorders or current insomnia had a higher chance of using DSs. Thus, healthcare providers must provide evidence-based information regarding DSs for mental health improvement and encourage the public to consult healthcare professionals before self-medicating for mental health problems.

Retinal ON and OFF pathways contribute to initial optokinetic responses with different temporal characteristics.

Visual information in the retina is processed via two pathways: ON and OFF pathways that originate from ON and OFF bipolar cells. The differences in the receptors that mediate signal transmission from photoreceptors imply that the response speed to light signals differs between ON and OFF pathways. We studied the initial optokinetic responses (OKRs) of mice using two-frame motion stimuli presented with interstimulus intervals (ISIs) to understand functional difference of these pathways. When two successive image frames were presented with an ISI, observers often perceived motion in the opposite direction of the actual shift. This directional reversal results from the biphasic nature of the temporal filters in visual systems whose characteristics can be estimated from the dependence on ISIs. We examined the dependence on ISIs in the OKRs of TRPM1-/- mice, whose ON bipolar cells are dysfunctional, as well as in those of wild-type control mice. Wild type and TRPM1-/- mice showed comparable OKRs in the veridical direction when no ISI was present. Both types of mice showed OKRs that decreased and eventually reversed as the ISI increased, but with a directional reversal at a shorter ISI in TRPM1-/- than wild-type mice. In addition, the temporal filters of TRPM1-/- mice estimated from dependence on ISIs were tuned for higher frequencies, suggesting that compared with wild-type mice, the visual system of TRPM1-/- mice responds to light signals with faster dynamics. We conclude that the ON and OFF pathways contribute to initial OKRs by providing visual signals processed with different temporal resolutions.

Transcriptome Analysis Reveals IsiA-Regulatory Mechanisms Underlying Iron Depletion and Oxidative-Stress Acclimation in Synechocystis sp. Strain PCC 6803.

Microorganisms in nature are commonly exposed to various stresses in parallel. The isiA gene encodes an iron stress-induced chlorophyll-binding protein which is significantly induced under iron starvation and oxidative stress. Acclimation of oxidative stress and iron deficiency was investigated using a regulatory mutant of the Synechocystis sp. strain PCC 6803. In this study, the ΔisiA mutant grew more slowly in oxidative-stress and iron depletion conditions compared to the wild-type (WT) counterpart under the same conditions. Thus, we performed transcriptome sequencing (RNA-seq) analysis of the WT strain and the ΔisiA mutant under double-stress conditions to obtain a comprehensive view of isiA-regulated genes. Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) enrichment analyses showed significant differences between the WT strain and ΔisiA mutant, mainly related to photosynthesis and the iron-sulfur cluster. The deletion of isiA affects the expression of various genes that are involved in cellular processes and structures, such as photosynthesis, phycobilisome, and the proton-transporting ATPase complex. Weighted gene coexpression network analysis (WGCNA) demonstrated three functional modules in which the turquoise module was negatively correlated with superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity. Coexpression network analysis identified several hub genes of each module. Cotranscriptional PCR and reads coverage using the Integrative Genomics Viewer demonstrated that isiA, isiB, isiC, ssl0461, and dfp belonged to the isi operon. Three sRNAs related to oxidative stress were identified. This study enriches our knowledge of IsiA-regulatory mechanisms under iron deficiency and oxidative stress.IMPORTANCE This study analyzed the impact of isiA deletion on the transcriptomic profile of Synechocystis The isiA gene encodes an iron stress-induced chlorophyll-binding protein, which is significantly induced under iron starvation. The deletion of isiA affects the expression of various genes that are involved in photosynthesis and ABC transporters. WGCNA revealed three functional modules in which the blue module was correlated with oxidative stress. We further demonstrated that the isi operon contained the following five genes: isiA, isiB, isiC, ssl0461, and dfp by cotranscriptional PCR. Three sRNAs were identified that were related to oxidative stress. This study enhances our knowledge of IsiA-regulatory mechanisms under iron deficiency and oxidative stress.

Effect of conditioning and test stimulus intensity on cortical excitability using triad-conditioning transcranial magnetic stimulation.

Cortical facilitation assessed with triad conditioning transcranial magnetic stimulation has been termed triad-conditioned facilitation (TCF). TCF has been supposed to reflect increased intracortical facilitation (ICF) at short interstimulus intervals (ISI) around 10 ms and an intrinsic rhythm of the motor cortex at longer ISI around 25 ms. To gain further insight into the pathophysiological mechanism of TCF, we systematically studied the effect of suprathreshold conditioning stimulus (CS) and test stimulus (TS) intensity on TCF. Various CS intensities and TS intensities were used in a triad-conditioning paradigm that was applied to 11 healthy subjects. ISI between pulses were studied between 5 and 200 ms. TCF at 10 ms ISI enhanced with increasing CS intensity but decreased with increasing TS intensity. The duration of facilitation was longer with higher CS intensity. However, TCF at 25 ms ISI could not be elicited with none of the CS and TS intensities addressed here. Our results are consistent with the notion of TCF at short ISI reflecting ICF. The enhanced and prolonged facilitation with increase of CS without additional isolated facilitation at longer ISI suggest a prolongation of ICF.

Respiratory syncytial virus and human metapneumovirus after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation: Impact of the immunodeficiency scoring index, viral load, and ribavirin treatment on the outcomes.

INTRODUCTION: Respiratory viral infections are a major cause of morbidity and mortality among stem cell transplant recipients. While there is a substantial amount of information on prognostic factors and response to ribavirin therapy is available for RSV infections, this information is largely lacking for hMPV. PATIENTS AND METHODS: In total, 71 patients were included in this study: 47 patients with RSV and 24 with hMPV. Forty-one patients presented as an upper respiratory tract infection (URTI) and 30 as a primary lower respiratory tract infection (LRTI). Patients were stratified as per ISI criteria into low-, moderate-, and high-risk groups. Twenty-two patients in the URTI cohort received treatment with ribavirin (mainly oral), and 19 patients received no antiviral therapy. The decision for antiviral treatment was at the discretion of the attending physician. All 30 patients with primary LRTI and 10 patients with secondary LRTI were treated with ribavirin, 95% with the intravenous formulation. 45% of these patients received additional treatment with intravenous immunoglobulins. The viral load was assessed indirectly by using the CT value of the RT-PCR. RESULTS: In the cohort, as whole 11.5% suffered a virus-associated death, 5% in the URTI group, and 20% in the LRTI group. Sixty-day mortality was significantly higher in the ISI high-risk group (log-rank P = .05). Mortality was independent of the type of virus (P = .817). Respiratory failure with an indication for mechanical ventilation developed in 11.5%, this risk was independent of the type of virus. Progression from URTI to LRTI was observed in 24% of cases with a significantly higher risk (75%) in the ISI high group (log-rank P = .001). In the ISI high-risk group, treatment with ribavirin significantly reduced the risk of progression (log-rank P < .001). Neither the type of virus nor the viral load in the nasopharyngeal swab impacted the risk of progression (P = .529 and P = .141, respectively). The detection of co-pathogens in the BAL fluid was borderline significant for mortality (P = .07). CONCLUSIONS: We could detect no differences between RSV and hMPV with respect to progression to LRTI, risk of respiratory failure or need for mechanical ventilation and virus-associated death. The ISI index is of predictive value in hMPV patients with a high ISI score and treatment with oral ribavirin has an equivalent protective effect in RSV and hMPV patients. Treatment of LRTI with intravenous ribavirin results in a similar outcome in RSV- and hMPV-infected patients. We could not detect any benefit of adjunctive treatment with immunoglobulins in both primary and secondary LRTI. No role of viral load as an independent prognostic marker could be detected either for progression to LRTI or death.

Development and psychometric evaluation of the female infertility stigma instrument (ISI-F): protocol for a mixed method study.

BACKGROUND: Infertility stigma is one of the greatest challenges in most societies for reproduction and sexual health of infertile women. Since no specific tool exists for assessing the infertility stigma in women, this study would be conducted to develop and evaluate the psychometric properties of Female Infertility Stigma Instrument (ISI-F). METHODS: This is a mixed method study with sequential exploratory design (qualitative and quantitative phase). In the first qualitative phase, semi-structured interviews would be performed with infertile female who had experienced infertility whithout any psychological disorder. Women who are eligible for participating in the study will be selected using purposeful sampling method with maximum variation in terms of age, education, occupation and infertility duration. Data would be analyzed using conventional content analysis and in this phase the primary item pool will be developed for the Female Infertility Stigma Instrument (ISI-F). In the quantitative phase, the psychometric properties of the Instrument would be evaluated, including the content, face and construct validity as well as reliability via the internal consistency and stability. The psychometric properties described in the COSMIN checklist will be utilized for designing the instrument. DISCUSSION: Developing a valid and reliable scale for Female Infertility Stigma Instrument (ISI-F) would be helpful for future studies to assess the status of this situation. It also helps planning interventional studies for improvement of the reproductive health of infertile women.

Prenatal Identification of Restrictive and Non-restrictive Ventricular Septal Defects Based on End-Systolic Flow Patterns in the Fetal Aortic Isthmus.

Fetuses with large ventricular septal defects (VSDs) must be closely monitored during the perinatal period. Intrauterine assessment of size of septal defects with bidimensional echocardiography are unreliable. The objective of the present study is to document the contribution of flow pattern analysis in the fetal aortic isthmus for prenatal identification of large non-restrictive VSDs requiring immediate postnatal attention. We conducted a cross-sectional retrospective study of Doppler recordings from patients referred to our Fetal Cardiology Unit and diagnosed with one or multiple VSDs from January 2006 to November 2015. Three groups were defined: (1) large non-restrictive VSDs (n = 11) with postnatal cardiac failure (2) small restrictive VSDs (n = 28) asymptomatic, and (3) absence of cardiac abnormality (n = 66). The Isthmic end-Systolic Index (ISI) was computed to quantify aortic isthmus flow and compared between the three groups. Fetuses with restrictive VSD and control group showed similar ISI: stable at 0.20 ± 0.01 up to 27 weeks of gestation and dropping later due to the fall of end-systolic velocities in the aortic isthmus. By 35 weeks, a brief end-systolic retrograde flow was present, associated with a further fall of ISI down to -0.26 ± 0.05. In contrast, ISI of fetuses with large non-restrictive VSDs were unchanged throughout gestation (0.18 ± 0.06), becoming significantly higher during the last weeks of gestation compared to the two other groups (p < 0.001). In fetuses with VSDs, the ISI measurement from the aortic isthmus Doppler flow during the second half of gestation is a reliable predictor of a large non-restrictive defect with risk of major postnatal clinical impact.

A Novel Technique for Achieving the Approximated ISI at the Receiver for a 16QAM Signal Sent via a FIR Channel Based Only on the Received Information and Statistical Techniques.

A single-input-multiple-output (SIMO) channel is obtained from the use of an array of antennas in the receiver where the same information is transmitted through different sub-channels, and all received sequences are distinctly distorted versions of the same message. The inter-symbol-interference (ISI) level from each sub-channel is presently unknown to the receiver. Thus, even when one or more sub-channels cause heavy ISI, all the information from all the sub-channels was still considered in the receiver. Obviously, if we know the approximated ISI of each sub-channel, we will use in the receiver only those sub-channels with the lowest ISI level to get improved system performance. In this paper, we present a systematic way for obtaining the approximated ISI from each sub-channel modelled as a finite-impulse-response (FIR) channel with real-valued coefficients for a 16QAM (16 quadrature amplitude modulation) source signal transmission. The approximated ISI is based on the maximum entropy density approximation technique, on the Edgeworth expansion up to order six, on the Laplace integral method and on the generalized Gaussian distribution (GGD). Although the approximated ISI was derived for the noiseless case, it was successfully tested for signal to noise ratio (SNR) down to 20 dB.

Unraveling Photoexcited Charge Transfer Pathway and Process of CdS/Graphene Nanoribbon Composites toward Visible-Light Photocatalytic Hydrogen Evolution.

Converting solar energy into chemical fuels is increasingly receiving a great deal of attention. In this work, CdS nanoparticles (NPs) are solvothermally anchored onto graphene nanoribbons (GNRs) that are longitudinally unzipped from multiwalled carbon nanotubes. The as-synthesized CdS/GNR nanocomposites with recyclability present GNR content-dependent activity in visible-light-driven hydrogen evolution from water splitting. In a range of 1-10 wt% GNRs, the CdS/GNR composites with 2 wt% GNRs achieves the greatest hydrogen evolution rate of 1.89 mmol h-1 g-1 . The corresponding apparent quantum efficiency is 19.3%, which is ≈3.7 times higher than that of pristine CdS NPs. To elucidate the underlying photocatalytic mechanism, a systematic characterization, including in situ irradiated X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and Kelvin probe measurements, is performed. In particular, the interfacial charge transfer pathway and process from CdS NPs to GNRs is revealed. This work may open avenues to fabricate GNR-based nanocomposites for solar-to-chemical energy conversion and beyond.

Inferring longitudinal hierarchies: Framework and methods for studying the dynamics of dominance.

Social inequality is a consistent feature of animal societies, often manifesting as dominance hierarchies, in which each individual is characterized by a dominance rank denoting its place in the network of competitive relationships among group members. Most studies treat dominance hierarchies as static entities despite their true longitudinal, and sometimes highly dynamic, nature. To guide study of the dynamics of dominance, we propose the concept of a longitudinal hierarchy: the characterization of a single, latent hierarchy and its dynamics over time. Longitudinal hierarchies describe the hierarchy position (r) and dynamics (∆) associated with each individual as a property of its interaction data, the periods into which these data are divided based on a period delineation rule (p) and the method chosen to infer the hierarchy. Hierarchy dynamics result from both active (∆a) and passive (∆p) processes. Methods that infer longitudinal hierarchies should optimize accuracy of rank dynamics as well as of the rank orders themselves, but no studies have yet evaluated the accuracy with which different methods infer hierarchy dynamics. We modify three popular ranking approaches to make them better suited for inferring longitudinal hierarchies. Our three "informed" methods assign ranks that are informed by data from the prior period rather than calculating ranks de novo in each observation period and use prior knowledge of dominance correlates to inform placement of new individuals in the hierarchy. These methods are provided in an R package. Using both a simulated dataset and a long-term empirical dataset from a species with two distinct sex-based dominance structures, we compare the performance of these methods and their unmodified counterparts. We show that choice of method has dramatic impacts on inference of hierarchy dynamics via differences in estimates of ∆a. Methods that calculate ranks de novo in each period overestimate hierarchy dynamics, but incorporation of prior information leads to more accurately inferred ∆a. Of the modified methods, Informed MatReorder infers the most conservative estimates of hierarchy dynamics and Informed Elo infers the most dynamic hierarchies. This work provides crucially needed conceptual framing and methodological validation for studying social dominance and its dynamics.

Factor Analysis of the Insomnia Severity Index and Epworth Sleepiness Scale in Shift Workers.

BACKGROUND: Over one million Korean night shift workers undergo clinical assessment of sleep using the Insomnia Severity Index (ISI) and Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS) by occupational medical examination each year. Therefore, this study was conducted to evaluate the reliability and validity of the ISI and ESS using occupational medical examination data. METHODS: The study subjects included 12,056 shift workers at an electronics company who underwent an occupational health examination about shift work in 2018. The evaluation of the ISI and ESS was performed using exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). RESULTS: According to the results of the EFA, the ISI had a single-factor structure, while the ESS had a two-factor structure, which was inconsistent with the findings of previous studies. The results of the EFA of 15 items from the combined ISI and ESS suggested a three-factor structure, with one factor for ISI items and two factors for ESS items, while the results of the CFA suggested sufficient validity of the combination of the ISI and ESS for sleep evaluation. CONCLUSION: The results suggest that the ISI and ESS have sufficient reliability and validity to be used for occupational health examinations about shift work.

Evaluation of the Instability Severity Index score in predicting failure following arthroscopic Bankart surgery in an active military population.

BACKGROUND: The Instability Severity Index (ISI) score is a preoperative risk stratification tool used to identify patients at heightened risk of recurrent anterior instability after an arthroscopic Bankart procedure. The primary objective of this study was to validate the utility of the ISI score in predicting failure of primary arthroscopic Bankart surgery in an active-duty military population. METHODS: A retrospective study was performed to compare all military service members undergoing primary arthroscopic Bankart repairs at a single military treatment facility between 2007 and 2014. The primary outcome of interest was surgical failure due to recurrent instability. The ISI framework was used to stratify each patient for recurrence, and multivariate analysis was performed to evaluate the composite ISI score and individual domains between patients with and patients without failed Bankart repairs. RESULTS: A total of 131 patients were identified, with a mean patient age of 26.8 years (range, 19-47 years), among whom 42 patients (32%) were identified as having a higher-demand military occupation. At a minimum 2-year follow-up, 34 patients (26%) sustained recurrent anterior shoulder instability. The mean ISI score of patients in the failed Bankart repair group was not statistically different than that of patients with a successful repair (3.41 vs 3.5, P = .74), and no individual ISI domains were identified as independent risk factors for subsequent surgical failure or revision stabilization. CONCLUSION: Contrary to the findings of previous validation studies, the composite ISI score and its individual risk factors were not predictive of subsequent surgical failure after primary arthroscopic Bankart repair in an active military population.

Ultrasonic Transducer for Non-Destructive Testing of Structures Immersed in Liquid Sodium at 200 °C.

TUCSS transducer (French acronym standing for Transducteur Ultrasonore pour CND Sous Sodium) is designed for performing NDT (Non-Destructive Testing) under liquid sodium. Under sodium, the tests results obtained show that these transducers have sufficiently good acoustic properties to perform basic NDT of a structure immersed under liquid sodium at about 200 °C using conventional immersion ultrasonic technics. Artificial defects were made next to an X-shaped weld and could clearly be detected.