Protocol for a population-based Ankylosing Spondylitis (PAS) cohort in Wales

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>To develop a population-based cohort of people with ankylosing spondylitis (AS) in Wales using (1) secondary care clinical datasets, (2) patient-derived questionnaire data and (3) routinely-collected information in order to examine disease history and the health economic cost of AS.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>This data model will include and link (1) secondary care clinician datasets (i.e. electronic patient notes from the rheumatologist) (2) patient completed questionnaires (giving information on disease activity, medication, function, quality of life, work limitations and health service utilisation) and (3) a broad range of routinely collected data (including; GP records, in-patient hospital admission data, emergency department data, laboratory/pathology data and social services databases). The protocol involves the use of a unique and powerful data linkage system which allows datasets to be interlinked and to complement each other.</p> <p>Discussion</p> <p>This cohort can integrate patient supplied, primary and secondary care data into a unified data model. This can be used to study a range of issues such as; the true economic costs to the health care system and the patient, factors associated with the development of severe disease, long term adverse events of new and existing medication and to understand the disease history of this condition. It will benefit patients, clinicians and health care managers. This study forms a pilot project for the use of routine data/patient data linked cohorts for other chronic conditions.</p

Adjusted Light and Dark Cycles Can Optimize Photosynthetic Efficiency in Algae Growing in Photobioreactors

Biofuels from algae are highly interesting as renewable energy sources to replace, at least partially, fossil fuels, but great research efforts are still needed to optimize growth parameters to develop competitive large-scale cultivation systems. One factor with a seminal influence on productivity is light availability. Light energy fully supports algal growth, but it leads to oxidative stress if illumination is in excess. In this work, the influence of light intensity on the growth and lipid productivity of Nannochloropsis salina was investigated in a flat-bed photobioreactor designed to minimize cells self-shading. The influence of various light intensities was studied with both continuous illumination and alternation of light and dark cycles at various frequencies, which mimic illumination variations in a photobioreactor due to mixing. Results show that Nannochloropsis can efficiently exploit even very intense light, provided that dark cycles occur to allow for re-oxidation of the electron transporters of the photosynthetic apparatus. If alternation of light and dark is not optimal, algae undergo radiation damage and photosynthetic productivity is greatly reduced. Our results demonstrate that, in a photobioreactor for the cultivation of algae, optimizing mixing is essential in order to ensure that the algae exploit light energy efficiently

Panel 5 : Impact of otitis media on quality of life and development

OBJECTIVE: To summarize recent advances in knowledge on otitis media (OM) and quality of life (QoL) and development by synthesizing relevant research in this field published between June 1., 2015 until June 1., 2019. DATA SOURCES: Systematic searches of PubMed, Embase and the Cochrane Library using predefined database-specific syntaxes. REVIEW METHODS: Articles selected were randomized controlled trials and observational studies with an adequate control group estimating treatment effects of OM including acute OM (AOM), recurrent AOM (RAOM), OM with effusion (OME), chronic OM (COM) and chronic suppurative OM (CSOM). Items included were Health Status, Health Status Indicators, Quality of Life, Functional Status, Specific Learning Disorder, Developmental Disabilities, Language Development Disorders, and Problem Behavior. RESULTS: The electronic database searches yielded a total of 699 records. After screening titles and abstracts, we identified 34 potentially eligible articles. Of these, 18 were excluded. This left 15 articles suitable for inclusion. CONCLUSIONS: Although evidence is accumulating that OM may significantly impair children's QoL and development as well as caregiver's QoL, studies on this topic are relatively scarce and vary substantially in terms of methodological quality and outcome measurement instruments (OMI) used. In this review, studies have used 10 different OMIs capturing a wide range of OM symptoms as well as generic and disease-specific QoL outcomes. OM was associated with negative effects on auditory processing, language and speech development, school readiness, social competence, psychosocial wellbeing, and sleep. We found only four relevant randomized controlled trials, which mostly failed to demonstrate superiority of interventions in terms of QoL improvement and reports on reversibility are lacking. This underpins the urgent need for high quality studies in this field using validated and uniform OMIs. To facilitate interpretation and harmonization of study findings, we suggest and support the development of a core outcome set for the various OM entities that should include the most reliable and meaningful QoL and developmental OMIs

Panel 5 : Impact of otitis media on quality of life and development

OBJECTIVE: To summarize recent advances in knowledge on otitis media (OM) and quality of life (QoL) and development by synthesizing relevant research in this field published between June 1., 2015 until June 1., 2019. DATA SOURCES: Systematic searches of PubMed, Embase and the Cochrane Library using predefined database-specific syntaxes. REVIEW METHODS: Articles selected were randomized controlled trials and observational studies with an adequate control group estimating treatment effects of OM including acute OM (AOM), recurrent AOM (RAOM), OM with effusion (OME), chronic OM (COM) and chronic suppurative OM (CSOM). Items included were Health Status, Health Status Indicators, Quality of Life, Functional Status, Specific Learning Disorder, Developmental Disabilities, Language Development Disorders, and Problem Behavior. RESULTS: The electronic database searches yielded a total of 699 records. After screening titles and abstracts, we identified 34 potentially eligible articles. Of these, 18 were excluded. This left 15 articles suitable for inclusion. CONCLUSIONS: Although evidence is accumulating that OM may significantly impair children's QoL and development as well as caregiver's QoL, studies on this topic are relatively scarce and vary substantially in terms of methodological quality and outcome measurement instruments (OMI) used. In this review, studies have used 10 different OMIs capturing a wide range of OM symptoms as well as generic and disease-specific QoL outcomes. OM was associated with negative effects on auditory processing, language and speech development, school readiness, social competence, psychosocial wellbeing, and sleep. We found only four relevant randomized controlled trials, which mostly failed to demonstrate superiority of interventions in terms of QoL improvement and reports on reversibility are lacking. This underpins the urgent need for high quality studies in this field using validated and uniform OMIs. To facilitate interpretation and harmonization of study findings, we suggest and support the development of a core outcome set for the various OM entities that should include the most reliable and meaningful QoL and developmental OMIs