How people with persistent pain experience in-person physiotherapy blended with biopsychosocial digital health - A qualitative study on participants' experiences with Back2Action.

Background: A blended intervention consisting of in-person physiotherapy and psychologically-informed digital health, called Back2Action, was developed to optimise the management of people with persistent spinal pain who also have psychosocial risk factors associated with the development or maintenance of persistent pain. This study aimed to gain insights in how participants experienced this blended intervention. Methods: A qualitative study using semi-structured interviews was conducted. Eleven people with persistent non-specific spinal pain who received the blended intervention within a randomised clinical trial were included. All interviews were recorded, transcribed verbatim and analysed independently by two researchers. Data were analysed using a thematic analysis. Results: The analysis identified four themes: (1) Experiencing a better understanding of the relationship between own physical and mental health; (2) Importance of the physiotherapist's active involvement in biopsychosocial blended care, which describes the crucial role of physiotherapists in supporting participants in this; (3) Appreciation of digital health, to better understand persistent pain and make meaningful lifestyle changes; and (4) Trials and triumphs, revealing gains such as better coping, but also challenges with implementation of changes into long-term routines. Conclusion: Participants of the blended intervention experienced positive changes in thoughts and behaviours, which highlights the feasibility and acceptability of the blended intervention as a more holistic treatment within pain management. The differences in personal preferences for receiving psychologically-informed digital health poses challenges for implementation of blended biopsychosocial care in evidence-based practice.

Insulin-induced capillary recruitment is impaired in both lean and obese women with PCOS.

BACKGROUND: Insulin resistance, i.e. impaired insulin-mediated glucose uptake (IMGU), is a major risk factor for type 2 diabetes in women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). Insulin-induced capillary recruitment (IICR) is considered a significant determinant of IMGU. We investigated whether IICR is a determinant IMGU in obese and lean women with and without PCOS. METHODS: The study included 36 women with PCOS (20 lean, BMI 21.9 ± 2.3 kg/m(2) and 16 obese, BMI 35.9 ± 6.0 kg/m(2)) and 27 age-matched healthy controls (14 lean, BMI 22.2 ± 1.8 kg/m(2) and 13 obese, BMI 40.5 ± 7.0 kg/m(2)). IICR was evaluated by capillary microscopy during an isoglycemic-hyperinsulinemic clamp. IMGU was expressed as M/I value. RESULTS: The M/I value was significantly lower in obese PCOS women compared with obese controls [0.5 (0.2-1.1) versus 0.8 (0.3-1.4) (mg kg(-1) min(-1) pmol l(-1)) × 100, P < 0.01], whereas the small difference between lean PCOS and lean control women was non-significant [1.5 (0.5-2.6) versus 1.7 (1.0-3.7) (mg kg(-1) min(-1) pmol l(-1)) × 100, P = 0.17]. Hyperinsulinemia increased capillary recruitment in lean controls (53.5 ± 20.3 versus 64.9 ± 27.4 n/mm(2), P < 0.05), but not in either PCOS group nor in obese controls. IICR and androgens were a determinant of M/I value only in lean women with or without PCOS. CONCLUSIONS: PCOS per se is associated with impaired IICR. Obese women with PCOS, in part independent of obesity, demonstrated a profound insulin resistance, whereas the difference between lean PCOS women and healthy controls was small and statistically non-significant. IICR was a determinant of IMGU in lean, but not in obese, women regardless of the presence of PCOS.