Nutrition Interventions for Lowering Cardiovascular Risk After Hypertensive Disorders of Pregnancy: A Systematic Review.

Background: Hypertension is one of the most common medical problems during pregnancy. Hypertensive disorders of pregnancy (HDP) increase the risk of premature cardiovascular disease (CVD) 2- to 4-fold within 10 years after delivery. Early health behaviour modifications may prevent or manage several cardiovascular risk factors. Importantly, compared with women without HDP, fewer women with HDP achieve national dietary guidelines to prevent CVD. This highlights an opportunity for programs tailored for women post-HDP to support their nutritional behaviours as a key component of postpartum CVD preventive care. This systematic review investigated the impacts of nutrition modifications on lowering measures of CVD risk after HDP. Methods: Four electronic databases (MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, Cochrane Library) were searched in October 2022 with a search strategy focused on nutrition programs/interventions and women post-HDP. Additional inclusion criteria were original research and reported outcome of CVD risk or cardiovascular risk factors. Results: Six studies were included: 4 experimental trials and 2 prospective cohort studies. Of the nutrition interventions, 4 were embedded within comprehensive health behaviour intervention programs. Outcome measures varied, but all studies reported blood pressure. A narrative synthesis found that the range of changes in blood pressure varied from no change to clinically meaningful change. Conclusions: This review found statistically nonsignificant yet clinically important improvements in measures of cardiovascular risk across a range of nutritional interventions in women after HDP. Further high-quality evidence is needed to inform the design and implementation of nutritional preventive cardiovascular care targeting this high CVD-risk population.

Contexte: L'hypertension est l'un des problèmes médicaux les plus fréquents durant la grossesse. Les troubles hypertensifs de la grossesse (THG) font augmenter le risque de maladies cardiovasculaires (MCV) prématurées de 2 à 4 fois dans les 10 années après l'accouchement. Des modifications précoces des comportements liés à la santé peuvent permettre de prévenir ou de prendre en charge plusieurs facteurs de risque cardiovasculaire. Notamment, par rapport aux femmes sans THG, moins de femmes atteintes de THG se conforment aux lignes directrices nationales en matière d'alimentation pour prévenir les MCV. D'où la possibilité qui s'offre aux programmes adaptés aux femmes post-THG d'encourager l'adoption de leurs comportements nutritionnels, une composante essentielle des soins de prévention des MCV dans la période du post-partum. La présente revue systématique visait à examiner les répercussions des modifications nutritionnelles sur la réduction des mesures du risque de MCV après les THG. Méthodes: En octobre 2022, nous avons effectué des recherches dans 4 bases de données électroniques (MEDLINE, Embase, CINAHL, Cochrane Library) au moyen d'une stratégie de recherche axée sur les interventions/programmes nutritionnels et les femmes post-THG. Les critères d'inclusion supplémentaires étaient la recherche initiale et les résultats signalés du risque de MCV ou des facteurs de risque cardiovasculaire. Résultats: Nous avons tenu compte de 6 études : 4 essais expérimentaux et 2 études de cohorte prospectives. Parmi les interventions nutritionnelles, 4 étaient intégrées aux programmes exhaustifs d'interventions sur les comportements liés à la santé. Les critères de jugement variaient, mais la pression artérielle était signalée dans toutes les études. Une synthèse narrative a permis de constater que l'étendue des changements dans la pression artérielle allait d'une absence de changement à des changements significatifs sur le plan clinique. Conclusions: Cette revue a permis de constater des améliorations non significatives sur le plan statistique, mais importantes sur le plan clinique des mesures du risque cardiovasculaire de différentes interventions nutritionnelles chez les femmes après les THG. D'autres données probantes de grande qualité sont nécessaires pour faciliter l'élaboration et la mise en œuvre de soins de prévention nutritionnelle des maladies cardiovasculaires visant cette population exposée à un risque élevé de MCV.

Creation of a Métis-Specific Instrument for Cancer Screening: A Scoping Review of Cancer-Screening Programs and Instruments.

Understanding the barriers to and facilitators of cancer screening programs among Indigenous populations remains limited. In the spirit of mutual respect, this co-led, collaborative project was carried out between the Métis Nation of Alberta and Screening Programs from Alberta Health Services (AHS). This scoping review assessed the cancer screening literature for available questionnaires and then identified themes and suitable questions for a Métis-specific cancer screening questionnaire. Literature searches on cervical, breast, and colorectal cancer screening programs and related concepts were conducted in electronic databases, including the Native Health Database, MEDLINE (Ovid), PsycINFO, PubMed, PubMed Central, CINAHL, MEDLINE (Ebsco), Psychology & Behavioral Sciences Collection, and Web of Science. Grey literature was collected from AHS Insite, Open Archives Initiative repository, American Society of Clinical Oncology, European Society of Medical Oncology, Google, and Google Scholar. 135 articles were screened based on the eligibility criteria with 114 articles selected, including 14 Indigenous-specific ones. Knowledge, attitude, belief, behaviour, barrier, and facilitator themes emerged from the review, but no Métis-specific cancer screening instruments were found. Thus, one was developed using existing cancer screening instruments, with additional questions created by the project team. A survey of the Métis population in Alberta will use this questionnaire and provide data to address the burden of cancer among Métis people.

Persistent Contralateral Pain Compromises Exercise Tolerance but Does not Alter Corticomotor Responses During Repeated, Submaximal Isometric Knee Extensions to Task Failure.

Muscle pain is an important determinant of exercise tolerance, but its relationship with neurophysiological responses during a submaximal exercise trial is unclear. The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of persistent contralateral pain on neurophysiological function and perceptual responses during ipsilateral isometric knee extensions to task failure. Ten participants performed a single-leg repeated submaximal isometric knee extensions with (PAIN) or without (CTRL) constant pain induced by intermittent blood flow occlusion combined with evoked muscle contraction applied to the contralateral, resting leg. Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) applied over the motor cortex was used to assess corticospinal excitability (quantified as motor evoked potentials), corticospinal inhibition (quantified as silent period duration), and short interval intracortical inhibition. Maximal voluntary contractions (MVCs), coupled with femoral nerve stimulation to the exercising leg, were performed every 12 submaximal contractions to assess neuromuscular function. Perceived leg pain and effort were also assessed throughout the exercise. The experimental pain shortened the time to task failure compared to CTRL (P = 0.019). Although time effects were present, no differences appeared between conditions for MVC force, voluntary activation, or potentiated twitch force across both tasks (all P > 0.05). Additionally, no differences between CTRL and PAIN were demonstrated for any TMS-derived measures assessing corticospinal responses. Exercising leg pain was higher in CTRL (P = 0.018), as was perceived exertion (P = 0.030). Overall, when using a persistent, submaximal experimental pain intervention, it appears that although muscle pain compromises exercise tolerance, this phenomenon occurs independently of potential alterations in corticomotor mechanisms.