Prevalence of tachyphagia at lunch and associated factors in a population of workers.

PURPOSE: Obesity is a public health problem worldwide. The eating habits of French workers need to be clarified. In particular, tachyphagia (meal lasting < 15 min) promotes weight gain. The present study aimed to investigate the presence of tachyphagia at lunchtime, the factors associated with tachyphagia, and the relationship between tachyphagia and obesity among workers. METHODS: This cross-sectional study was conducted between January and May 2016 in five departments of occupational medicine. An anonymous self-administered questionnaire was used to gather general declarative data, such as weight and height (to calculate body mass index [BMI]) and information about lunchtime habits, including the time spent eating. RESULTS: A total of 415 workers with a mean age of 41.1 ± 12.6 years were included. The mean BMI was 23.8 ± 4.6 kg/m2, and the prevalence of obesity was 15.9%. Tachyphagia occurred in 20.3% of the cases and was more frequent in younger workers. Multivariate analysis revealed that skipping meals, eating standing up, and eating fast food were positively associated with tachyphagia (p = 0.015, p = 0.028, and p = 0.027, respectively). Older age and eating with colleagues/friends were negatively associated with tachyphagia (p = 0.003 and p < 0.0001, respectively). No significant association was observed between tachyphagia and obesity. CONCLUSION: Our study provides important information about the lunchtime habits of workers. Maintaining commensality is crucial, particularly in young workers. Companies should play a role in organising their employees' lunch breaks. Level III Evidence obtained from well-designed cohort or case-control analytic studies.

Exploring Stereotypes of Athletes With a Disability: A Behaviors From Intergroup Affect and Stereotypes Map Comparison.

Identifying as a regular exerciser has been found to effectively alter stereotypes related to warmth and competence for adults with a physical disability; however, it remains unclear how sport participation can influence this trend. Therefore, this study aimed to examine warmth and competence perceptions of adults with a physical disability portrayed as elite and nonelite athletes relative to other athletic and nonathletic subgroups of adults with and without a physical disability in the context of the stereotype content model. Using survey data from able-bodied participants (N = 302), cluster analyses were applied to a behaviors from intergroup affect and stereotypes map for displaying the intersection of warmth and competence perceptions. The results demonstrated that adults with a physical disability who are described as elite athletes (i.e., Paralympians) are clustered with high warmth and high competence, similar to their able-bodied athletic counterparts (i.e., Olympians). The findings suggest that perceiving athletic and elite sport statuses for adults with a physical disability may counter the stereotypes commonly applied to this group.

Narratives of athletic identity after acquiring a permanent physical disability.

Individuals with acquired physical disabilities report lower levels of athletic identity. The objective of this study was to further explore why athletic identity may be lost or (re)developed after acquiring a physical disability. Seven women and four men (range = 28-60 years) participated in approximately 1-hour-long semistructured interviews; data were subjected to a narrative analysis. The structural analysis revealed three narrative types. The nonathlete narrative described physical changes in the body as reasons for diminished athletic identity. The athlete as a future self primarily focused on present sport behavior and performance goals such that behavior changes diminished athletic identity. The present self as athlete narrative type focused on the aspects of their present sport involvement, such as feedback from other athletes and skill development, which supported their athletic identity. Implications of these narrative types with respect to sport promotion among people with acquired physical disabilities are discussed.

Evidence-informed recommendations for constructing and disseminating messages supplementing the new Canadian Physical Activity Guidelines.

BACKGROUND: Few validated guidelines exist for developing messages in health promotion practice. In clinical practice, the Appraisal of Guidelines, Research, and Evaluation II (AGREE II) Instrument is the international gold standard for guideline assessment, development, and reporting. In a case study format, this paper describes the application of the AGREE II principles to guide the development of health promotion guidelines for constructing messages to supplement the new Canadian Physical Activity Guidelines (CPAG) released in 2011. METHODS: The AGREE II items were modified to suit the objectives of developing messages that (1) clarify key components of the new CPAG and (2) motivate Canadians to meet the CPAG. The adapted AGREE II Instrument was used as a systematic guide for the recommendation development process. Over a two-day meeting, five workgroups (one for each CPAG - child, youth, adult, older adult - and one overarching group) of five to six experts (including behavior change, messaging, and exercise physiology researchers, key stakeholders, and end users) reviewed and discussed evidence for creating and targeting messages to supplement the new CPAG. Recommendations were summarized and reviewed by workgroup experts. The recommendations were pilot tested among end users and then finalized by the workgroup. RESULTS: The AGREE II was a useful tool in guiding the development of evidence-based specific recommendations for constructing and disseminating messages that supplement and increase awareness of the new CPAG (child, youth, adults, and older adults). The process also led to the development of sample messages and provision of a rationale alongside the recommendations. CONCLUSIONS: To our knowledge, these are the first set of evidence-informed recommendations for constructing and disseminating messages supplementing physical activity guidelines. This project also represents the first application of international standards for guideline development (i.e., AGREE II) to the creation of practical recommendations specifically aimed to inform health promotion and public health practice. The messaging recommendations have the potential to increase the public health impact of evidence-based guidelines.

Pregnant women with mild COVID-19 followed in community setting by telemedicine, and factors associated with unfavorable outcome.

OBJECTIVES: Few is known on pregnant women with mild COVID-19 managed in a community setting with a telemedicine solution, including their outcomes. The objective of this study is to evaluate the adverse fetal outcomes and hospitalization rates of pregnant COVID-19 outpatients who were monitored with the Covidom© telemedicine solution. METHODS: A nested study was conducted on pregnant outpatients with confirmed COVID-19, who were managed with Covidom© between March and November 2020. The patients were required to complete a standard medical questionnaire on co-morbidities and symptoms at inclusion, and were then monitored daily for 30 days after symptom onset. Adverse fetal outcome was defined as a composite of preterm birth, low birthweight, or stillbirth, and was collected retrospectively through phone contact with a standardized questionnaire. RESULTS: The study included 714 pregnant women, with a median age of 32.0 [29.0-35.0] and a median BMI of 23.8 [21.3-27.0]. The main comorbidities observed were smoking (53%), hypertension (19%). The most common symptoms were asthenia (45.6%), cough (40.3%) and headache (25.7%), as well as anosmia (28.4%) and agueusia (32.3%). Adverse fetal outcomes occurred in 64 (9%) cases, including 38 (5%) preterm births, 33 (5%) low birthweights, and 6 (1%) stillbirths. Hospitalization occurred in 102 (14%) cases and was associated with adverse fetal outcomes (OR 2.4, 95% CI 1.3-4.4). CONCLUSIONS: Our study suggests that adverse fetal outcomes are rare in pregnant women with mild COVID-19 who are monitored at home with telemedicine. However, hospitalization for COVID-19 and pregnancy-induced hypertension are associated with a higher risk of adverse fetal outcome.

The management of lower back pain using pilates method: assessment of content exercise reporting in RCTs.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the quality of the reporting of exercise interventions with Pilates method for the treatment of lower back pain (LBP) in adults. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Two independent evaluators selected randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of moderate and high methodological quality included in a Cochrane Systematic Review (SR) and from an additional updated search in the following databases: CENTRAL, MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, PEDro and SPORTDiscus. Three assessment tools (Consensus on Therapeutic Exercise Training (CONTENT) scale, Template for Intervention Description and Replication (TIDieR) checklist and Consensus on Exercise Reporting Template (CERT) checklist) were utilized by three pairs of two independent researchers trained. The scales' concordance was measured using the Kappa coefficient. RESULTS: Ten RCTs were included. The CONTENT scale score was 5.3 (± 1.33) out of 9 points; the TIDieR checklist was 8.5 (± 1.71) out of 12 points and the CERT checklist was 9.5 (± 3.62) out of 19 points. The CONTENT and CERT had moderate concordance, while there was fair concordance between the other tools. CONCLUSIONS: The overall reporting quality for the Pilates exercises in ten moderate-to-high quality RTCs for the management of LBP was low according to CONTENT scale and CERT checklist and high according to TIDieR checklist.Implications for RehabilitationReporting of Pilates exercise program in moderate-to-high quality RCTs for the management of lower back pain remains incomplete.Pilates exercise program should be personalized and contextualized to individual participants.There may be a need to consider adding to or combining the information available from various trials.

Traduction franco-canadienne de l'Assessment of Systematic Reviews Revised (AMSTAR 2) : validation transculturelle et fidélité interjuges.

Objective: Produce a French-Canadian translation of AMSTAR 2, affirm its content validity, and examine interrater reliability. Methods: Based on Vallerand's methodological approach, we conducted forward and parallel inverse-translations. Subsequently, an expert panel evaluated the translations to create a preliminary experimental French-Canadian version. A second expert panel examined this version and proposed additional modifications. Twenty future health professionals then rated the second experimental version for ambiguity on a scale (from 1 to 7). The principal co-investigators then reviewed the problematic elements and proposed a pre-official version. To ascertain content validity, a final back-translation was conducted resulting in the official version. Four judges evaluated 13 systematic reviews using the official French-Canadian version of AMSTAR 2. The Kappa coefficient was used to evaluate interrater reliability. Results: This rigorous adaptation enabled the development of a Franco-Canadian version of AMSTAR 2. Its application demonstrated low ambiguity (mean 1.15; SD 0.26) as well as good overall interrater reliability (total κ > 0.64) across all items. Conclusion: The French-Canadian version of AMSTAR 2 can now support francophone clinicians, educators, and managers in Canada as they undertake evidence-based practice.

Patient factors associated with return to driving poststroke: findings from a multicenter cohort study.

OBJECTIVE: To estimate the extent to which body structure, function, activity, and context explain driving resumption at 1 year. DESIGN: Cohort study with relationships modeled in a path analysis. SETTING: Three urban Canadian communities. PARTICIPANTS: Patients admitted to hospital with acute stroke who had driven before their stroke (n=290) who participated in a longitudinal study of stroke outcomes. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Driving resumption 1 year after the initial stroke diagnosis. RESULTS: One hundred seventy-seven patients (61%) returned to driving after 1 year. Direct relationships were found between measures of strength and motor activity (Stroke Impact Scale), cognition (Mini-Mental State Examination), type of stroke (hemorrhagic vs ischemic), and driving resumption at 1 year. The effects of stroke severity, fatigue, and sex on driving resumption were mediated through strength and motor activity shown by a model that had excellent fit (comparative fit index=.985, Tucker-Lewis Index=.952, root mean square error of approximation=.046). CONCLUSIONS: There are multiple direct and indirect influences on driving resumption at 1 year, from the type of stroke, physical strength and motor activity, cognition, sex, and fatigue measured at 3 months. The paths outlined by this model highlight how stroke sequelae influence community mobility, as well as factors related to driving resumption that are amenable to intervention.

The risk of motor vehicle crashes and traffic citations post stroke: a structured review.

BACKGROUND: Stroke impacts the domains known to be important for driving and is a primary condition for driving evaluation referrals. Given the high prevalence of stroke, the objective was to summarize the evidence regarding risk of crashes and traffic citations post stroke. METHODS: A structured review of six databases was conducted to retrieve studies that included stroke as a separate exposure from other disorders and measured crashes or traffic citations as an outcome. RESULTS: Four cohort and three case-control studies met the inclusion criteria. Five of the seven studies found increased odds or risk ratios ranging from 1.9 to 7.7, while two found an association of 0.8. Only one result was statistically significant (RR=2.7). One study examined the outcome traffic citations and found no significant association. CONCLUSION: There is cause for concern regarding increased risk of crashes post stroke. Future studies that examine the impact of stroke severity and sequelae will help health professionals, families, and those with stroke make informed decisions regarding driving post stroke. This review indicates that drivers with stroke have an increased risk of crashing compared to their counterparts without stroke, as demonstrated by increased risk estimates in five out of the seven studies that have examined this issue. This review also points to an urgent need for rigorous studies investigating the risk of crashes according to specific stroke sequelae: an understanding of crash risk based on stroke severity, impairments, and function will assist clinicians in making informed decisions regarding the need for comprehensive driving evaluation and the potential for driver retraining for specific subgroups.

Driving poststroke: problem identification, assessment use, and interventions offered by canadian occupational therapists.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Driving is a key factor in maintaining autonomy and participation in life. Occupational therapists (OTs) are expected to assess individuals who want to resume driving post stroke and to provide retraining where appropriate. Research from the 1980s and 1990s indicated that patients were, for the most part, not being assessed and retrained. However, little is known about current practice management. Thus, this study examined clinicians' management of driving-related issues when treating clients with stroke. METHODS: We performed a Canadawide telephone survey of 480 OTs providing stroke rehabilitation in both inpatient rehabilitation and community-based settings. Clinicians reported on problems they noted and assessments and interventions they would provide for a "typical patient" described in a vignette that matched their work setting. RESULTS: 20% and 34% of clinicians responding to the inpatient rehabilitation and community-based vignettes, respectively, identified return to driving as a problem. Clinician and work environment variables significantly associated (P < .01) with identifying driving as a potential problem included being male, involvement in university teaching, research conducted in setting, and hosting student placements. The use of driving-specific assessments was under 12%. Less than 6% of clinicians offered driving retraining, and their desired use of retraining was low. CONCLUSION: Few clinicians identified driving as a problem post stoke, raising concern that patients attempt to drive on their own or never resume driving because of a lack of attention to driving during their rehabilitation. Poststroke driver assessment and retraining is a critical component of poststroke community reintegration that requires greater awareness by clinicians.

Mindfulness-based interventions for children and adolescents across all settings: a scoping review protocol.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Although mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) are becoming increasingly popular, the application of MBIs with children and adolescents is still in its infancy. Mapping the existing literature is necessary to help guide pediatric mindfulness interventions. Our purpose is to synthesize the evidence of reported MBIs for children and adolescents with and without physical, mental, and cognitive disorders. Accordingly, we aim to identify trends and gaps in the literature, so that we can provide direction to researchers who seek to advance the evidence base for using MBIs in pediatric populations. METHODS: Our search strategy will be conducted following Arksey and O'Malley's methodological framework. It will include a comprehensive search of published studies in 7 databases, gray literature, conference proceedings, and citations of selected articles. Two independent reviewers will evaluate all abstracts and full articles that have a pediatric sample (children 2-17 years), use MBIs to promote development or to remediate underlying disorders, and are written in English or French. We will identify the definitions and concepts from MBIs, categorize accepted studies according to etiology and rehabilitation type, describe intervention methodology, and report outcomes of selected studies. DISCUSSION: Our review will provide a comprehensive overview of the pediatric mindfulness intervention literature to date, involving a range of mental, cognitive, and physical outcomes for healthy children and adolescents and for those with a variety of disorders in clinical and institutional settings. We will disseminate results to mindfulness practitioners and provide guidance to future pediatric researchers in their development and application of mindfulness interventions, thereby contributing to the scientific understanding of mindfulness for the ultimate betterment of child and adolescent well-being and life-long functioning. SYSTEMATIC REVIEW REGISTRATION: PROSPERO does not accept scoping review protocols.

Guideline Recommendations for Oral Care After Acquired Brain Injury: Protocol for a Systematic Review.

BACKGROUND: Oral care is important to prevent buccal and systemic infections after an acquired brain injury (ABI). Despite recent advancements in the development of ABI clinical practice guidelines, recommendations for specific clinical processes and actions to attain adequate oral care often lack information. OBJECTIVE: This systematic review will (1) identify relevant ABI clinical practice guidelines and (2) appraise the oral care recommendations existing in the selected guidelines. METHODS: A search strategy was developed based on a recent systematic review of clinical practice guidelines for ABI. The protocol includes a search of MEDLINE, EMBASE, and DynaMed Plus databases, as well as organizational and best-practice websites and reference lists of accepted guidelines. Search terms will include medical subject headings and user-defined terms. Guideline appraisal will involve the Appraisal of Guidelines for Research and Evaluation II ratings, followed by a descriptive synopsis for oral care recommendations according to the National Health and Medical Research Council evidence levels. RESULTS: This project started in April 2019, when we developed the search strategy. The preliminary search of databases and websites yielded 863 and 787 citations, respectively, for a total of 1650 citations. Data collection will start in August 2020 and we expect to begin disseminating the results in May 2021. CONCLUSIONS: Nursing staff may not have detailed recommendations on how to provide oral care for neurologically impaired patients. The findings of this review will explore the evidence for oral care in existing guidelines and improve outcomes for patients with ABI. We expect to provide adequate orientations to clinicians, inform policy and guidelines for best practices, and contribute to future directions for research in the ABI realm. INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT IDENTIFIER (IRRID): PRR1-10.2196/17249.

Swallowing behaviours and feeding environment in relation to communication development from early infancy to 6 years of age: a scoping review protocol.

INTRODUCTION: Understanding the influences of early swallowing function and feeding environment on the development of communication will enhance prevention and intervention initiatives for young children. This scoping review will help elucidate key elements affecting the developmental trajectory of communicative systems, typically robust and well-developed by formal school entry. We aim to (1) map the current state of the literature in a growing field of interest that has the potential to advance knowledge translation, (2) identify existing gaps and (3) provide research direction for future investigations surrounding feeding-swallowing functions and environment that support or forestall communication development in young children. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: We are proposing a scoping review to identify the breadth and depth of the existing literature regarding swallowing-feeding functions and environment relative to the onset and progression of communicative behaviours from infancy to 6 (<6;0) years of age. Our protocol delineates rigorous methods according to Arskey and O'Malley's framework and includes elaborations by Levac and colleagues. We will search the literature based on 10 databases, 17 peer-reviewed journals, 4 conference proceedings and 6 grey literature sources. Two authors will independently screen abstracts and review full articles, remaining blind to each other's results. A third author will contribute to resolving any discrepant results from both the abstract and article review. Subsequently, we will extract data and chart information from accepted articles using a pre-established data collection form. We will stratify results according to healthy versus impaired swallowing-feeding functions and communication development. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: Our scoping review does not require ethical approval. We will disseminate our final study results through international and national conference presentations, publication in a peer-reviewed journal and knowledge translation activities with stakeholders.

Surgical Site Infection in Endometriosis Surgery Is a Rare Complication: Results of a Single Center's Prospective Surveillance of Eight Hundred Ninety-Six Procedures.

Background: There are no studies reporting the rate of surgical site infection (SSI) after surgery for endometriosis, although this information is valuable when discussing the most appropriate treatment strategy with the patient. Methods: We conducted a prospective cohort study in a university hospital and regional reference center for endometriosis. We sought to measure the rate of SSI after endometriosis surgery using prospective SSI post-discharge surveillance data and the hospital information system via an ad hoc algorithm using both diagnosis and procedure code classifications. Results: Among 896 consecutive endometriosis surgical procedures, we identified 365 procedures with involvement of the gastrointestinal tract, defined as the deep invasive procedure (DIP) group, 107 procedures with involvement of an ovary, and 424 other procedures. Twelve SSI (all organ/space infections) were observed, all in the DIP group, corresponding to an overall SSI incidence of 1.3% 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.7-2.3, and an SSI incidence in the DIP group of 2.8%, 95% CI 1.5-4.9. The median delay between the procedure and the SSI was 6.5 days (range, 3-23). At least one micro-organism was found in 10 patients (four Escherichia coli, four Enterobacter cloacae, three Enteroccus faecalis, two Bacteroides fragilis, one Pseudomonas aeruginosa, one Candida albicans). Conclusion: A low overall rate of SSI after surgery for endometriosis was observed. Nevertheless, procedures with involvement of the intestinal tract were at risk of SSI.

Changing health-promoting behaviours through narrative interventions: A systematic review.

The objective of this review was to summarize the literature supporting narrative interventions that target health-promoting behaviours. Eligible articles were English-language peer-reviewed studies that quantitatively reported the results of a narrative intervention targeting health-promoting behaviours or theoretical determinants of behaviour. Five public health and psychology databases were searched. A total of 52 studies met inclusion criteria. In all, 14 studies found positive changes in health-promoting behaviours after exposure to a narrative intervention. The results for the changes in theoretical determinants were mixed. While narrative appears to be a promising intervention strategy, more research is needed to determine how and when to use these interventions.

Narrative interventions for health screening behaviours: A systematic review.

Health information can be presented in different formats, such as a statistically-based or a story-based (e.g. narrative) format; however, there is no consensus on the ideal way to present screening information. This systematic review summarizes the literature pertaining to narrative interventions' efficacy at changing screening behaviour and its determinants. Five psychology and public health databases were searched; 19 studies, 18 focused on cancer and 1 on sexual health, met eligibility criteria. There is consistent evidence supporting the efficacy of narratives, but mixed evidence supporting an advantage for narratives over statistical interventions for screening behaviour and its determinants. Further investigation is warranted.

Psychosocial factors associated with physical activity in ambulatory and manual wheelchair users with spinal cord injury: a mixed-methods study.

PURPOSE: To identify psychosocial factors which explain lower levels of leisure time physical activity (LTPA) in persons with spinal cord injury (SCI) who are ambulatory relative to those who use manual wheelchairs. METHOD: For the quantitative study component, 347 adults with SCI (78% male; M age = 47.7) completed baseline measures of LTPA attitudes, subjective norms, perceived behavioural control and intentions. Six months later, LTPA was assessed. The qualitative component involved semi-structured interviews with six ambulant adults with SCI (five male, M age = 52.8) addressing LTPA experiences with an emphasis on barriers and facilitators. RESULTS: Ambulatory individuals had poorer attitudes towards LTPA than chair users (p = 0.004). Their attitudes had significant indirect effects on LTPA, through intentions. Perceived behavioural control was a significant negative predictor of LTPA. Qualitative analysis revealed three themes: an underestimated disability, low wheelchair skill self-efficacy and experiencing chronic pain. CONCLUSIONS: Poorer attitudes towards LTPA may partially explain why ambulatory individuals are less active. The qualitative and quantitative data suggest ambulators are an often-overlooked subgroup in need of targeted resources to enhance their attitudes, wheelchair skill self-efficacy and awareness of LTPA opportunities. Implications for Rehabilitation Rehabilitation practitioners must be sensitive to the unique needs of spinal cord injured individuals who are ambulatory, and tailor physical activity promotional strategies to suit the needs of this distinct group. Lack of wheelchair skills is a participation barrier for ambulators; ambulators should be introduced to activities that do not require wheelchair use, such as swimming, hand-cycling and adapted forms of circuit training. Strategies that encourage wheelchair skill development in non-wheelchair using ambulators, may increase physical activity opportunities for this segment of the spinal injured population.

Sport participation among individuals with acquired physical disabilities: group differences on demographic, disability, and Health Action Process Approach constructs.

BACKGROUND: Despite numerous physical, social, and mental health benefits of engaging in moderate and vigorous intensity physical activities (e.g., sport), few individuals with acquired physical disabilities currently participate in adapted sport. Theory-based sport promotion interventions are one possible way to increase the amount of individuals who engage in sport. OBJECTIVES: The primary objective of this study was to examine the profiles of three different sport participation groups with respect to demographic, injury, and Health Action Process Approach (HAPA) constructs. METHODS: ANOVAs and Chi-square tests were used to determine group differences on demographic and disability-related constructs. A MANCOVA was conducted to determine differences between three sport participation groups (non-intenders, intenders, and actors) with age, years post-injury, mode of mobility, and sex included as covariates. RESULTS: A cohort of 201 individuals was recruited; 56 (27.9%) were non-intenders, 21 (10.4%) were intenders, and 124 (61.7%) were actors. The MANCOVA revealed significant differences between groups on the HAPA constructs, F(22,370) = 9.02, p < .0001, Pillai's trace = .70, demonstrating that individuals with acquired physical disabilities will rate important health behavior constructs differently based on their sport intentions. CONCLUSION: These results provide an important framework that adapted sport organizations can use to tailor their sport promotion programs.

Long-term functional benefits of epicardial patches as cell carriers.

Both enzymatic dissociation of cells prior to needle-based injections and poor vascularization of myocardial infarct areas are two important contributors to cell death and impede the efficacy of cardiac cell therapy. Because these limitations could be overcome by scaffolds ensuring cell cohesiveness and codelivery of angiogenic cells, we used a chronic rat model of myocardial infarction to assess the long-term (6 months) effects of the epicardial delivery of a composite collagen-based patch harboring both cardiomyogenesis-targeted human embryonic SSEA-1(+) (stem cell-derived stage-specific embryonic antigen-1 positive) cardiovascular progenitors and autologous (rat) adipose tissue-derived angiogenesis-targeted stromal cells (n = 27). Cell-free patches served as controls (n = 28). Serial follow-up echocardiographic measurements of left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) showed that the composite patch group yielded a significantly better preservation of left ventricular function that was sustained over time as compared with controls, and this pattern persisted when the assessment was restricted to the subgroup of rats with initial LVEFs below 50%. The composite patch group was also associated with significantly less fibrosis and more vessels in the infarct area. However, although human progenitors expressing cardiac markers were present in the patches before implantation, none of them could be subsequently identified in the grafted tissue. These data confirm the efficacy of epicardial scaffolds as cell carriers for ensuring long-term functional benefits and suggest that these effects are likely related to paracrine effects and call for optimizing cross-talks between codelivered cell populations to achieve the ultimate goal of myocardial regeneration.

Narrative environments and the capacity of disability narratives to motivate leisure-time physical activity among individuals with spinal cord injury.

PURPOSE: Few individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI) engage in the recommended amount of leisure time physical activity (LTPA). Yet little is known about how, and why, active individuals engage in specific types of LTPA. This study explored how a unique narrative environment and disability narratives motivated individuals with SCI to engage in LTPA. METHOD: Fourteen individuals with SCI from a physical activity program participated in approximately hour-long interviews. Interviews were then subjected to a narrative analysis. RESULTS: Individuals who used a restitution narrative (n = 6) were motivated to engage in functional LTPA because of the desire to maintain the body and restore the past self. The individual who used the chaos narrative (n = 1) preferred solitary LTPA as exposure to others with SCI was a constant reminder of the lost, pre-injury self. Individuals who used a quest narrative (n = 7) explored LTPA options that fit with their interests; these individuals were open to new types of LTPA, such as sport and outdoor recreation. CONCLUSION: The plot of three disability narratives can all motivate the pursuit of LTPA; however, not all types of LTPA are seen as equal. LTPA interventions can be enhanced through the lessons learned from this unique type of environment. IMPLICATIONS FOR REHABILITATION: Despite individuals' views about their disability, they can still be motivated to engage in routine LTPA. Different theoretical determinants, such as health or social benefits, hold different relevance for LTPA among individuals with differing disability narratives. The environment provided by practitioners can therefore elicit some stories of SCI while stifling others. Open narrative environment will attract individuals to listen and maintain involvement in LTPA.