Using Electronic Handgrip Dynamometry and Accelerometry to Examine Multiple Aspects of Handgrip Function in Master Endurance Athletes: A Pilot Study.

ABSTRACT: Klawitter, LA, Hackney, KJ, Christensen, BK, Hamm, JM, Hanson, M, and McGrath, R. Using electronic handgrip dynamometry and accelerometry to examine multiple aspects of handgrip function in master endurance athletes: A Pilot Study. J Strength Cond Res 37(9): 1777-1782, 2023-Electronic handgrip dynamometry and accelerometry may provide novel opportunities to comprehensively measure muscle function for human performance, especially for master athletes. This investigation sought to determine the multivariate relationships between maximal strength, asymmetry, rate of force development, fatigability, submaximal force control, bimanual coordination, and neuromuscular steadiness to derive one or more handgrip principal components in master-aged endurance athletes. We included n = 31 cyclists and triathletes aged 35-70 years. Maximal strength, asymmetry, rate of force development, fatigability, submaximal force control, bimanual coordination, and neuromuscular steadiness were measured twice on each hand using electronic handgrip dynamometry and accelerometry. The highest performing measures were included in the analyses. A principal component analysis was conducted to derive a new collection of uncorrelated variables from the collected handgrip measurements. Principal components with eigenvalues >1.0 were kept, and individual measures with a factor loading of |>0.40| were retained in each principal component. There were 3 principal components retained with eigenvalues of 2.46, 1.31, and 1.17. The first principal component, "robust strength," contained maximal strength, rate of force development, submaximal force control, and neuromuscular steadiness. The second principal component, "bilateral synergy," contained asymmetry and bimanual coordination, whereas the third principal component, "muscle conditioning," contained fatigability. Principal components 1, 2, and 3 explained 44.0, 31.6, and 24.4% of the variance, respectively. Different dimensions of muscle function emerged from our findings, suggesting the potential of a muscle function battery. Further research examining how these measures are associated with appropriate human performance metrics and lower extremity correlates is warranted.

Indigenous Model to Support Nursing Student Success, Cultural Identity and Workforce Diversity.

BACKGROUND: Indigenous nurses are underrepresented in the nursing workforce. Important strategies have been developed to increase the diversity of the future nursing workforce; however, unique cultural needs of Indigenous students must be addressed to provide holistic support while maintaining and strengthening cultural identity. METHOD: The Niganawenimaanaanig (We Take Care of Them) Indigenous Nursing Education Model was developed based on the Medicine Wheel and previous diverse nursing education models. This model supports the cultural, social, academic, and financial needs of Indigenous nursing students throughout recruitment, enrollment, retention, graduation, and licensure and specifies eight essential resources necessary for success. RESULTS: Lessons learned from implementing the Niganawenimaanaanig Model are shared. CONCLUSION: The Niganawenimaanaanig Model may be employed in nursing schools to guide educators and universities in promoting the success of Indigenous nursing students. [J Nurs Educ. 2023;62(9):523-527.].

Factors leading to discontinuation of biologic therapy in patients with severe asthma.

OBJECTIVE: To assess patient- and physician-reported reasons for discontinuing biologic therapy among patients with severe asthma from a real-world US cohort. METHODS: This retrospective analysis surveyed US physicians and their patients with severe asthma who were receiving/had previously received biologic therapy between August and December 2019. Physicians managing ≥3 patients with asthma per month completed surveys on disease management, demographics, exacerbation history, and biologic adherence for eligible patients. Patients could voluntarily complete a questionnaire, providing perceptions of their disease and treatment. RESULTS: 117 physicians completed case reports for 285 patients; 85 patients had discontinued biologic therapy. Physicians (n = 85) and patients (n = 64) reported patient request (28.2% and 46.9%), shortness of breath (45.9% and 23.4%), other chronic respiratory symptoms (29.4% and 10.9%), cost/reimbursement (17.7%/9.4% and 20.3%/7.8%), and exacerbations (25.9% and 10.9%) among the main reasons for biologic discontinuation. Patients who continued biologic therapy were older (mean age 47.6 years) than those who discontinued (43.8 years), and were more likely to have ≥2 exacerbations in the previous year (52.5% vs 35.3%), allergic rhinitis (70.0% vs 62.4%), or chronic rhinosinusitis (30.0% vs 12.9%). Side effects were cited as reasons by only 15.3% and 7.8% of physicians and patients, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The most common reasons given for discontinuation of biologic therapy were lack of symptom control, exacerbations, cost, and patient request. These data highlight the complexity of care for this patient group and the need for ongoing, regular assessment of common challenges to biologic continuation and reasons for discontinuation, including both clinical and non-clinical factors.

Monitoring Incidence of COVID-19 Cases, Hospitalizations, and Deaths, by Vaccination Status - 13 U.S. Jurisdictions, April 4-July 17, 2021.

COVID-19 vaccine breakthrough infection surveillance helps monitor trends in disease incidence and severe outcomes in fully vaccinated persons, including the impact of the highly transmissible B.1.617.2 (Delta) variant of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. Reported COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations, and deaths occurring among persons aged ≥18 years during April 4-July 17, 2021, were analyzed by vaccination status across 13 U.S. jurisdictions that routinely linked case surveillance and immunization registry data. Averaged weekly, age-standardized incidence rate ratios (IRRs) for cases among persons who were not fully vaccinated compared with those among fully vaccinated persons decreased from 11.1 (95% confidence interval [CI] = 7.8-15.8) to 4.6 (95% CI = 2.5-8.5) between two periods when prevalence of the Delta variant was lower (<50% of sequenced isolates; April 4-June 19) and higher (≥50%; June 20-July 17), and IRRs for hospitalizations and deaths decreased between the same two periods, from 13.3 (95% CI = 11.3-15.6) to 10.4 (95% CI = 8.1-13.3) and from 16.6 (95% CI = 13.5-20.4) to 11.3 (95% CI = 9.1-13.9). Findings were consistent with a potential decline in vaccine protection against confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection and continued strong protection against COVID-19-associated hospitalization and death. Getting vaccinated protects against severe illness from COVID-19, including the Delta variant, and monitoring COVID-19 incidence by vaccination status might provide early signals of changes in vaccine-related protection that can be confirmed through well-controlled vaccine effectiveness (VE) studies.

Assessment of SARS-CoV-2 Infection Prevalence in Homeless Shelters - Four U.S. Cities, March 27-April 15, 2020.

In the United States, approximately 1.4 million persons access emergency shelter or transitional housing each year (1). These settings can pose risks for communicable disease spread. In late March and early April 2020, public health teams responded to clusters (two or more cases in the preceding 2 weeks) of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in residents and staff members from five homeless shelters in Boston, Massachusetts (one shelter); San Francisco, California (one); and Seattle, Washington (three). The investigations were performed in coordination with academic partners, health care providers, and homeless service providers. Investigations included reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction testing at commercial and public health laboratories for SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, over approximately 1-2 weeks for residents and staff members at the five shelters. During the same period, the team in Seattle, Washington, also tested residents and staff members at 12 shelters where a single case in each had been identified. In Atlanta, Georgia, a team proactively tested residents and staff members at two shelters with no known COVID-19 cases in the preceding 2 weeks. In each city, the objective was to test all shelter residents and staff members at each assessed facility, irrespective of symptoms. Persons who tested positive were transported to hospitals or predesignated community isolation areas.

Research priorities for accelerating progress toward measles and rubella elimination identified by a cross-sectional web-based survey.

BACKGROUND: In 2012, the World Health Assembly endorsed the Global Vaccine Action Plan (GVAP) that set a target to eliminate measles and rubella in five of the six World Health Organization (WHO) regions by 2020. Significant progress has been made toward achieving this goal through intensive efforts by countries and Measles & Rubella Initiative (M&RI) partners. Accelerating progress will require evidence-based approaches to improve implementation of the core strategies in the Global Measles and Rubella Strategic Plan. The M&RI Research and Innovation Working Group (R&IWG) conducted a web-based survey as part of a process to identify measles and rubella research priorities. Survey findings were used to inform discussions during a meeting of experts convened by the M&RI at the Pan American Health Organization in November 2016. METHODS: The cross-sectional web-based survey of scientific and programmatic experts included questions in four main topic areas: (1) epidemiology and economics (epidemiology); (2) new tools for surveillance, vaccine delivery, and laboratory testing (new tools); (3) immunization strategies and outbreak response (strategies); and (4) vaccine demand and communications (demand). Analyses were stratified by the six WHO regions and by global, regional, or national/sub-national level of respondents. RESULTS: The six highest priority research questions selected by survey respondents from the four topic areas were the following: (1) What are the causes of outbreaks in settings with high reported vaccination coverage? (epidemiology); (2) Can affordable diagnostic tests be developed to confirm measles and rubella cases rapidly and accurately at the point of care? (new tools); (3) What are effective strategies for increasing coverage of the routine first dose of measles vaccine administered at 9 or 12 months? (strategies); (4) What are effective strategies for increasing coverage of the second dose given after the first year of life? (strategies); (5) How can communities best be engaged in planning, implementing and monitoring health services including vaccinations? (demand); (6) What capacity building is needed for health workers to be able to identify and work more effectively with community leaders? (demand). Research priorities varied by region and by global/regional/national levels for all topic areas. CONCLUSIONS: Research and innovation will be critical to make further progress toward achieving the GVAP measles and rubella elimination goals. The results of this survey can be used to inform decision-making for investments in research activities at the global, regional, and national levels.

Accelerating measles and rubella elimination through research and innovation - Findings from the Measles & Rubella Initiative research prioritization process, 2016.

The Measles & Rubella Initiative (M&RI) identified five key strategies to achieve measles and rubella elimination, including research and innovation to support cost-effective operations and improve vaccination and diagnostic tools. In 2016, the M&RI Research and Innovation Working Group (R&IWG) completed a research prioritization process to identify key research questions and update the global research agenda. The R&IWG reviewed meeting reports and strategic planning documents and solicited programmatic inputs from vaccination experts at the program operational level through a web survey, to identify previous research priorities and new research questions. The R&IWG then convened a meeting of experts to prioritize the identified research questions in four strategic areas: (1) epidemiology and economics, (2) surveillance and laboratory, (3) immunization strategies, and (4) demand creation and communications. The experts identified 19 priority research questions in the four strategic areas to address key areas of work necessary to further progress toward elimination. Future commitments from partners will be needed to develop a platform for improved coordination with adequate and predictable resources for research implementation and innovation to address these identified priorities.

Shared Processing of Language and Music.

The present study sought to explore whether musical information is processed by the phonological loop component of the working memory model of immediate memory. Original instantiations of this model primarily focused on the processing of linguistic information. However, the model was less clear about how acoustic information lacking phonological qualities is actively processed. Although previous research has generally supported shared processing of phonological and musical information, these studies were limited as a result of a number of methodological concerns (e.g., the use of simple tones as musical stimuli). In order to further investigate this issue, an auditory interference task was employed. Specifically, participants heard an initial stimulus (musical or linguistic) followed by an intervening stimulus (musical, linguistic, or silence) and were then asked to indicate whether a final test stimulus was the same as or different from the initial stimulus. Results indicated that mismatched interference conditions (i.e., musical - linguistic; linguistic - musical) resulted in greater interference than silence conditions, with matched interference conditions producing the greatest interference. Overall, these results suggest that processing of linguistic and musical information draws on at least some of the same cognitive resources.

Seroepidemiology: an underused tool for designing and monitoring vaccination programmes in low- and middle-income countries.

Seroepidemiology, the use of data on the prevalence of bio-markers of infection or vaccination, is a potentially powerful tool to understand the epidemiology of infection before vaccination and to monitor the effectiveness of vaccination programmes. Global and national burden of disease estimates for hepatitis B and rubella are based almost exclusively on serological data. Seroepidemiology has helped in the design of measles, poliomyelitis and rubella elimination programmes, by informing estimates of the required population immunity thresholds for elimination. It contributes to monitoring of these programmes by identifying population immunity gaps and evaluating the effectiveness of vaccination campaigns. Seroepidemiological data have also helped to identify contributing factors to resurgences of diphtheria, Haemophilus Influenzae type B and pertussis. When there is no confounding by antibodies induced by natural infection (as is the case for tetanus and hepatitis B vaccines), seroprevalence data provide a composite picture of vaccination coverage and effectiveness, although they cannot reliably indicate the number of doses of vaccine received. Despite these potential uses, technological, time and cost constraints have limited the widespread application of this tool in low-income countries. The use of venous blood samples makes it difficult to obtain high participation rates in surveys, but the performance of assays based on less invasive samples such as dried blood spots or oral fluid has varied greatly. Waning antibody levels after vaccination may mean that seroprevalence underestimates immunity. This, together with variation in assay sensitivity and specificity and the common need to take account of antibody induced by natural infection, means that relatively sophisticated statistical analysis of data is required. Nonetheless, advances in assays on minimally invasive samples may enhance the feasibility of including serology in large survey programmes in low-income countries. In this paper, we review the potential uses of seroepidemiology to improve vaccination policymaking and programme monitoring and discuss what is needed to broaden the use of this tool in low- and middle-income countries.

Trauma Pod: a semi-automated telerobotic surgical system.

BACKGROUND: The Trauma Pod (TP) vision is to develop a rapidly deployable robotic system to perform critical acute stabilization and/or surgical procedures, autonomously or in a teleoperative mode, on wounded soldiers in the battlefield who might otherwise die before treatment in a combat hospital could be provided. METHODS: In the first phase of a project pursuing this vision, a robotic TP system was developed and its capability demonstrated by performing selected surgical procedures on a patient phantom. RESULTS: The system demonstrates the feasibility of performing acute stabilization procedures with the patient being the only human in the surgical cell. The teleoperated surgical robot is supported by autonomous robotic arms and subsystems that carry out scrub-nurse and circulating-nurse functions. Tool change and supply delivery are performed automatically and at least as fast as performed manually by nurses. Tracking and counting of the supplies is performed automatically. The TP system also includes a tomographic X-ray facility for patient diagnosis and two-dimensional (2D) fluoroscopic data to support interventions. The vast amount of clinical protocols generated in the TP system are recorded automatically. CONCLUSIONS: Automation and teleoperation capabilities form the basis for a more comprehensive acute diagnostic and management platform that will provide life-saving care in environments where surgical personnel are not present.

Self-assembled, kinetically locked, Ru(II)-based metallomacrocycles: physical, structural, and modeling studies.

By using a "complex as ligand approach," the metal-ion-templated self-assembly of heterometallic tetranuclear metallomacrocycles containing kinetically locked Ru(II) centers is described. Depending on the metal-ion template employed in the self-assembly process, the final macrocycle can be kinetically labile or inert. Electrochemical studies reveal that the kinetically inert macrocycles display reversible Ru(III/II) oxidation couples. The crystal structure of a kinetically inert Ru2Re2 macrocycles reveals a structurally complex palmate anion-binding pocket. Host-guest studies carried out with the same macrocyle in organic solvents reveals that the complex functions as a luminescent sensor for anions and that binding affinity and luminescent modulation is dependent on the structural nature and charge of the guest anion. Computational density functional theory (DFT) studies support the hypothesis that the luminescence of the macrocycle is from a 3MLCT state and further suggests that the observed guest-induced luminescence changes are most likely due to modulation of nonradiative decay processes.