Understanding older adults’ perceptions of and attitudes towards exergames

Purpose Maintaining physical activity is a key component of successful aging and has benefits for both physical and cognitive functioning in the older adult population. One promising method for engaging in physical activity is through exergames, which are video games designed to promote exercise. Exergames have the potential to be used by a wide range of people, including older adults, in a variety of settings, such as at home, in community living environments, or senior centers. However, exergames have not been designed for older adults (e.g., with respect to their attitudes, needs). Thus, older adults may not adopt these systems if they perceive them as not useful or relevant to them. Method Twenty older adults (aged 60-79) interacted with two exergames, and were then interviewed about their perceptions of the system’s ease of use and usefulness, as well as their general attitudes towards the system. Results Participants identified the potential for exergames’ usefulness for various goals, such as to increase their physical activity. However, they also reported negative attitudes concerning the system, including perceiving barriers to system use. Overall, participants said they would use the system in the future and recommend it to other people at their age for improving health, despite these use challenges. Conclusion The older adults were open to adopting exergames, which could provide opportunities to increase physical activity. Given the participants’ overall positive perceptions of the usefulness of exergames, designers must address the perceived challenges of using these systems. Understanding barriers and facilitators for older adults’ use of exergames can guide design, training, and adoption of these systems

Influenţa ozonoterapiei asupra fluxului sangvin portal

Conferinţa naţională în medicina internă din Republica Moldova cu participare internaţională, 19-20 mai 2011, Chişinău, Republica Moldovahepatitis C, of which 80 were men (70%) and 34 women (30%) aged from 34 to 54. In patients with chronic hepatitis C, mejor disturbances of venous and hepatic arterial blood flow are present. Inclusion of ozone therapy in tye complex treatment allows a major compensation of blood flow in the liver.Scopul studiului: evaluarea efectului ozonoterapiei asupra stării circulaţiei fluxului arterial şi a celui venos hepatic. Material şi metode. Au fost examinaţi 114 pacienţi cu hepatită cronică virală C (HCV C), dintre care 80 erau bărbaţi şi 34 femei, cu vârsta cuprinsă între 34 şi 54 de ani. Diagnosticul a fost stabilit conform datele clinice şi paraclinice. Rezultate. În funcţie de tratament, toţi pacienţii au fost divizaţi în două loturi. Primul lot a inclus 71 persoane care, concomitent cu terapia complexă, au folosit ozonoterapie. Al doilea lot a inclus 43 de pacienţi, trataţi fără ozonoterapie. Lotul de control l-au constituit 22 de voluntari sănătoşi. La pacienţii cu HCV C am determinat majorarea veridica semnificativa a diametrului venelor portă şi lienală, CI şi diminuarea parametrilor vitezei liniare a fluxului sangvin în vena portă. Indicatorii vitezei volumului sangvin în vena portă în ambele loturi nu se diferenţiau semnificativ veridic. Concomitent, volumul sangvin în vena lienală a fost semnificativ mai mare. Indicele sangvin portal-splenic a fost semnificativ mai diminuat. Pe parcursul tratamentului, la pacienţii lotului I indicii circulaţiei venoase au suferit modificări semnificative şi valorile lor au fost mai aproape celor din grupul de control. La pacienţii lotului II, de asemenea, am determinat modificări pozitive, dar care nu au fost statistic veridice. La bolnavii cu HCV C diametrul arterei hepatice, indicele de pulsaţie, indicele perfuziei arteriale, IAP au fost semnificativ mai mari decât în lotul de control. La finisarea curei de tratament, am constatat la pacienţii din lotul I o dinamică pozitivă a fluxului sangvin arterial hepatic statistic veridic. În lotul II modificările indicilor fluxului sangvin arterial hepatic au avut aceleaşi tendinţe, dar nu au fost statistic veridice. Concluzii. La pacienţii cu HCV C sunt prezente dereglari majore în fluxul sangvin hepatic venos şi arterial. Includerea ozonoterapiei în tratamentul complex duce la compensarea mai evidentă a dereglărilor fluxului sangvin hepatic

Importanţa imunocorectorului BioR în tratamentul ulcerului duodenal la pacienţii vârstnici

Conferinţa naţională în medicina internă din Republica Moldova cu participare internaţională, 19-20 mai 2011, Chişinău, Republica MoldovaSummary. The combination of immunocorrector BioR with standard antiulcer scheme helped for earlier disappearing of pain and dyspeptic syndromes, shrinking of the terms of scarring of ulcerous defect, in increasing the level T-helpers and T-suppressors, and production of Ig M, G and В lymphocytes.Actualitatea temei. În ulcerul duodenal (UD) la pacienţii vârstnici se implică multe niveluri ale homeostazei, inclusiv sistemul imun, se stabileşte un proces cronic imun, manifestat prin implicarea verigilor celulare şi umorale ale sistemului imun, fapt ce necesită studierea ulterioară şi sistematizarea pentru crearea metodelor eficiente şi ştiinţific justificate de tratament. BioR este un imunocorector şi un stabilizator de membrane celulare, care are o acţiune antioxidantă, este un produs al Spirulinei platensis. Scopul lucrării: studiul comparativ al eficacităţii clinice a imunocorectorului BioR în tratamentul complex al ulcerului duodenal la pacienţii vârstnici. Material şi metode. Au fost investigaţi 50 de pacienţi vârstnici. Lotul I (25 pacienţi) – cu tratament standard antiulceros, la care s-a asociat BioR 0,5%- 1,0 (5,0 mg) ml i/m pe zi, timp de 10 zile. Lotul II (25 pacienţi) – cu tratament standard. Rezultate. La pacienţii lotului I media termenelor de suprimare a sindromului algic a constituit 10,4±0,3 zile (р<0,001); gradul mediu de gravitate (GMG) a sindromului dolor până şi după tratament a constituit 1,99 şi 0,91, cicatrizarea defectului ulceros peste 14 zile s-a constatat în 96% cazuri, peste 21 zile – 100% cazuri, s-a evidenţiat creşterea nivelului СD3, СD8, СD4, Ig M, G, B-limfocitelor. În lotul II media termenelor de suprimare a sindromului algic a fost de 15,5±0,6 zile (р<0,001); GMG până şi după tratament a constituit 1,97 şi 1,21; cicatrizarea defectului ulceros peste 14 zile s-a constatat în 88%, peste 21 de zile cicatrizarea completă nu a fost atestată la 1 (4%) pacient; modificări statistic veridice ale indicilor imunităţii celulare şi celei umorale nu au fost observate, cu toate că a existat o tendinţă de ameliorare a acestora. Concluzii. Administrarea imunocorectorului BioR în asociere cu terapia standard pacienţilor vârstnici cu UD contribuie la ameliorarea în termene mai reduse a sindromului dolor, la cicatrizarea mai rapidă a defectului ulceros, la diminuarea intensităţii reacţiilor imunopatologice celulare şi umorale, ceea ce argumentează asocierea remediului dat la tratamentul de bază al pacienţilor vârstnici cu UD

Изменения портального кровотока у пациентов с хроническим гепатитом C при использовании озонотерапии

Catedra Medicină internă nr. 6, USMF “Nicolae Testemiţanu”, Universitatea „Lucian Blaga” Sibiu, România, Spitalul Clinic al Ministerului Sănătăţii, Chişinău, Conferinţa Ştiinţifico-Practică „Medicina modernă, actualităţi şi perspective”, consacrată aniversării de 40 de ani ai Spitalului Clinic al Ministerului Sănătăţii, 27-28 mai, 2010, Chişinău, Republica MoldovaWe examined 114 patients with chronic hepatitis C, of which 80 were men (70%) and 34 women (30%) aged from 34 to 54. In patients with chronic hepatitis C, major disturbances of venous and hepatic arterial blood flow are present. Inclusion of ozone therapy in the complex treatment allows a major compensation of blood flow in the liver.Были обследованы 114 пациентов с хроническим гепатитом С, из которых 80 мужчин (70%) и 34 женщины (30%) в возрасте от 34 до 54 лет. У больных с хроническим гепатитом С имеются нарушения венозного и артериального печеночного кровотока. Включение озонотерапии в комплексное лечение позволяет компенсировать нарушения кровотока печени

Multivesicular exocytosis in rat pancreatic beta cells

AIMS/HYPOTHESIS: To establish the occurrence, modulation and functional significance of compound exocytosis in insulin-secreting beta cells. METHODS: Exocytosis was monitored in rat beta cells by electrophysiological, biochemical and optical methods. The functional assays were complemented by three-dimensional reconstruction of confocal imaging, transmission and block face scanning electron microscopy to obtain ultrastructural evidence of compound exocytosis. RESULTS: Compound exocytosis contributed marginally (&lt;5% of events) to exocytosis elicited by glucose/membrane depolarisation alone. However, in beta cells stimulated by a combination of glucose and the muscarinic agonist carbachol, 15-20% of the release events were due to multivesicular exocytosis, but the frequency of exocytosis was not affected. The optical measurements suggest that carbachol should stimulate insulin secretion by ∼40%, similar to the observed enhancement of glucose-induced insulin secretion. The effects of carbachol were mimicked by elevating [Ca(2+)](i) from 0.2 to 2 μmol/l Ca(2+). Two-photon sulforhodamine imaging revealed exocytotic events about fivefold larger than single vesicles and that these structures, once formed, could persist for tens of seconds. Cells exposed to carbachol for 30 s contained long (1-2 μm) serpentine-like membrane structures adjacent to the plasma membrane. Three-dimensional electron microscopy confirmed the existence of fused multigranular aggregates within the beta cell, the frequency of which increased about fourfold in response to stimulation with carbachol. CONCLUSIONS/INTERPRETATION: Although contributing marginally to glucose-induced insulin secretion, compound exocytosis becomes quantitatively significant under conditions associated with global elevation of cytoplasmic calcium. These findings suggest that compound exocytosis is a major contributor to the augmentation of glucose-induced insulin secretion by muscarinic receptor activation

Older Norwegians' understanding of loneliness

This interpretive study explored older people's understanding of loneliness and what they considered appropriate and effective ways of dealing with it. Thirty elderly people were interviewed in-depth; 12 described themselves as “lonely” and 18 as “not lonely.” We found a striking difference in the way “lonely” and “not lonely” people talked about loneliness. The “not lonely” participants described loneliness as painful, caused by the person's negative way of behaving and a state they should pull themselves out of. The “lonely” participants also described loneliness as painful, and gave more detailed descriptions of loneliness as disconnection from others, from their former home and from today's society. The “lonely” participants were more reserved and subdued in trying to explain loneliness, attributing it partly to themselves, but mostly to the lack of social contact with important others. Some felt able to handle their loneliness, while others felt unable to cope. This study underlines the importance of subjective experiences in trying to understand a phenomenon like loneliness and of developing support for lonely older people unable to cope on their own

Minimal state models for ionic channels involved in glucagon secretion

Pancreatic alpha cells synthesize and release glucagon. This hormone along with insulin, preserves blood glucose levels within a physiological range. During low glucose levels, alpha cells exhibit electrical activity related to glucagon secretion. In this paper, we introduce minimal state models for those ionic channels involved in this electrical activity in mice alpha cells. For estimation of model parameters, we use Monte Carlo algorithms to fit steadystate channel currents. Then, we simulate dynamic ionic currents following experimental protocols. Our aims are 1) To understand the individual ionic channel functioning and modulation that could affect glucagon secretion, and 2) To simulate ionic currents actually measured in voltage-clamp alpha-cell experiments in mice. Our estimations indicate that alpha cells are highly permeable to sodium and potassium which mainly manage action potentials. We have also found that our estimated N-type calcium channel population and density in alpha cells is in good agreement to those reported for L-type calcium channels in beta cells. This finding is strongly relevant since both, L-type and N-type calcium channels, play a main role in insulin and glucagon secretion, respectively

Do Zebra Finch Parents Fail to Recognise Their Own Offspring?

Individual recognition systems require the sender to be individually distinctive and the receiver to be able to perceive differences between individuals and react accordingly. Many studies have demonstrated that acoustic signals of almost any species contain individualized information. However, fewer studies have tested experimentally if those signals are used for individual recognition by potential receivers. While laboratory studies using zebra finches have shown that fledglings recognize their parents by their “distance call”, mutual recognition using the same call type has not been demonstrated yet. In a laboratory study with zebra finches, we first quantified between-individual acoustic variation in distance calls of fledglings. In a second step, we tested recognition of fledgling calls by parents using playback experiments. With a discriminant function analysis, we show that individuals are highly distinctive and most measured parameters show very high potential to encode for individuality. The response pattern of zebra finch parents shows that they do react to calls of fledglings, however they do not distinguish between own and unfamiliar offspring, despite individual distinctiveness. This finding is interesting in light of the observation of a high percentage of misdirected feedings in our communal breeding aviaries. Our results demonstrate the importance of adopting a receiver's perspective and suggest that variation in fledgling contact calls might not be used in individual recognition of offspring