Thiamin dynamics during the adult life cycle of Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar)

Thiamin is an essential water-soluble B vitamin known for its wide range of metabolic functions and antioxidant properties. Over the past decades, reproductive failures induced by thiamin deficiency have been observed in several salmonid species worldwide, but it is unclear why this micronutrient deficiency arises. Few studies have compared thiamin concentrations in systems of salmonid populations with or without documented thiamin deficiency. Moreover, it is not well known whether and how thiamin concentration changes during the marine feeding phase and the spawning migration. Therefore, samples of Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) were collected when actively feeding in the open Baltic Sea, after the sea migration to natal rivers, after river migration, and during the spawning period. To compare populations of Baltic salmon with systems without documented thiamin deficiency, a population of landlocked salmon located in Lake Vänern (Sweden) was sampled as well as salmon from Norwegian rivers draining into the North Atlantic Ocean. Results showed the highest mean thiamin concentrations in Lake Vänern salmon, followed by North Atlantic, and the lowest in Baltic populations. Therefore, salmon in the Baltic Sea seem to be consistently more constrained by thiamin than those in other systems. Condition factor and body length had little to no effect on thiamin concentrations in all systems, suggesting that there is no relation between the body condition of salmon and thiamin deficiency. In our large spatiotemporal comparison of salmon populations, thiamin concentrations declined toward spawning in all studied systems, suggesting that the reduction in thiamin concentration arises as a natural consequence of starvation rather than to be related to thiamin deficiency in the system. These results suggest that factors affecting accumulation during the marine feeding phase are key for understanding the thiamin deficiency in salmonids. Atlantic salmon, Baltic Sea, M74 syndrome, Salmon life cycle, Thiamin, Thiamin deficiencypublishedVersio

Clustering patients on the basis of their individual course of low back pain over a six month period

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Several researchers have searched for subgroups in the heterogeneous population of patients with non-specific low back pain (LBP). To date, subgroups have been identified based on psychological profiles and the variation of pain.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>This multicentre prospective observational study explored the 6- month clinical course with measurements of bothersomeness that were collected from weekly text messages that were sent by 176 patients with LBP. A hierarchical cluster analysis, Ward's method, was used to cluster patients according to the development of their pain.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Four clusters with distinctly different clinical courses were described and further validated against clinical baseline variables and outcomes. Cluster 1, a "stable" cluster, where the course was relatively unchanged over time, contained young patients with good self- rated health. Cluster 2, a group of "fast improvers" who were very bothered initially but rapidly improved, consisted of patients who rated their health as relatively poor but experienced the fewest number of days with bothersome pain of all the clusters. Cluster 3 was the "typical patient" group, with medium bothersomeness at baseline and an average improvement over the first 4-5 weeks. Finally, cluster 4 contained the "slow improvers", a group of patients who improved over 12 weeks. This group contained older individuals who had more LBP the previous year and who also experienced most days with bothersome pain of all the clusters.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>It is possible to define clinically meaningful clusters of patients based on their individual course of LBP over time. Future research should aim to reproduce these clusters in different populations, add further clinical variables to distinguish the clusters and test different treatment strategies for them.</p

The Nordic back pain subpopulation program: Can low back pain patterns be predicted from the first consultation with a chiropractor? A longitudinal pilot study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>It is widely believed that non-specific low back pain (LBP) consists of a number of subgroups which should be identified in order to improve treatment effects. In order to identify subgroups, patient characteristics that relate to different outcomes are searched for. However, LBP is often fluctuating or recurring rather than clearly limited in time. Therefore it would be relevant to consider outcome after completed treatment from a longitudinal perspective (describing "course patterns") instead of defining it from an arbitrarily selected end-point.</p> <p>Aims</p> <p>The objectives of this pilot study were to investigate the interobserver reliability of a diagnostic classification system and to evaluate whether diagnostic classes or other baseline characteristics are associated with the LBP course pattern over a period of 18 weeks.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Patients visiting one of 7 chiropractors because of LBP were classified according to a diagnostic classification system, which includes end-range loading, SI-joint pain provocation tests, neurological examination and tests for muscle tenderness and abnormal nerve tension. In addition, age, gender, duration of pain and presence of leg pain were registered in the patient's file. By weekly SMS-messages on their mobile phones, patients were asked how many days they had LBP the preceding week, and these answers were transformed into pain course patterns and the total number of LBP days.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>A total of 110 patients were included and 76 (69%) completed follow-up. Thirty-five patients were examined by two chiropractors. The agreement regarding diagnostic classes was 83% (95% CI: 70 - 96). The diagnostic classes were associated with the pain course patterns and number of LBP days. Patients with disc pain had the highest number of LBP days and patients with muscular pain reported the fewest (35 vs. 12 days, p < 0.01). Men had better outcome than women (17 vs. 29 days, p < 0.01) and patients without leg pain tended to have fewer LBP days than those with leg pain (21 vs.31 days, p = 0.06). Duration of LBP at the first visit was not associated with outcome.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The study indicated that there is a clinically meaningful relationship between diagnostic classes and the course of LBP. This should be evaluated in more depth.</p

A united statement of the global chiropractic research community against the pseudoscientific claim that chiropractic care boosts immunity.

BACKGROUND: In the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, the International Chiropractors Association (ICA) posted reports claiming that chiropractic care can impact the immune system. These claims clash with recommendations from the World Health Organization and World Federation of Chiropractic. We discuss the scientific validity of the claims made in these ICA reports. MAIN BODY: We reviewed the two reports posted by the ICA on their website on March 20 and March 28, 2020. We explored the method used to develop the claim that chiropractic adjustments impact the immune system and discuss the scientific merit of that claim. We provide a response to the ICA reports and explain why this claim lacks scientific credibility and is dangerous to the public. More than 150 researchers from 11 countries reviewed and endorsed our response. CONCLUSION: In their reports, the ICA provided no valid clinical scientific evidence that chiropractic care can impact the immune system. We call on regulatory authorities and professional leaders to take robust political and regulatory action against those claiming that chiropractic adjustments have a clinical impact on the immune system

Experience of Stress Assessed by Text Messages and Its Association with Objective Workload-A Longitudinal Study

Exploring stress trajectories in detail and over a long time may give valuable information in terms of both understanding and practice. We followed a group of primary health care employees in a randomized controlled trial. The objective was to describe their experience of stress, explore the intra-individual variability and examine the association between the experience of stress and the objective workload. Weekly text messages with a single item stress question were distributed in two time series: 12 weeks at the beginning of the trial and 26 weeks after the 6-month follow up. Aggregated objective data about workload were collected from their administration office and related to stress levels. There was a seasonal variation, with higher stress during the fall than in spring and summer. The analysis comparing high and low stress subgroups showed that the stress trajectory of a high-stress subgroup was different from that of a low-stress subgroup. Individuals with high exhaustion scores had higher odds of belonging to a subgroup of individuals with high intra-individual variability in stress experience. The objective workload was measured in two ways and was strongly associated with the stress experience. We found that the lower the productivity, the higher the feeling of stress.Funding Agencies|Swedish Research Council for Health, Working life and WelfareSwedish Research CouncilSwedish Research Council for Health Working Life &amp; Welfare (Forte) [1284/11]; AFA insurance [130153]</p