Rationale, design and methodology of APPROACH-IS II: International study of patient-reported outcomes and frailty phenotyping in adults with congenital heart disease.

In recent years, patient-reported outcomes (PROs) have received increasing prominence in cardiovascular research and clinical care. An understanding of the variability and global experience of PROs in adults with congenital heart disease (CHD), however, is still lacking. Moreover, information on epidemiological characteristics and the frailty phenotype of older adults with CHD is minimal. The APPROACH-IS II study was established to address these knowledge gaps. This paper presents the design and methodology of APPROACH-IS II. APPROACH-IS II is a cross-sectional global multicentric study that includes Part 1 (assessing PROs) and Part 2 (investigating the frailty phenotype of older adults). With 53 participating centers, located in 32 countries across six continents, the aim is to enroll 8000 patients with CHD. In Part 1, self-report surveys are used to collect data on PROs (e.g., quality of life, perceived health, depressive symptoms, autonomy support), and explanatory variables (e.g., social support, stigma, illness identity, empowerment). In Part 2, the cognitive functioning and frailty phenotype of older adults are measured using validated assessments. APPROACH-IS II will generate a rich dataset representing the international experience of individuals in adult CHD care. The results of this project will provide a global view of PROs and the frailty phenotype of adults with CHD and will thereby address important knowledge gaps. Undoubtedly, the project will contribute to the overarching aim of improving optimal living and care provision for adults with CHD

Myopes experience greater contrast adaptation during reading

In this study, we investigated whether reading influences contrast adaptation differently in young adult emmetropic and myopic participants at the spatial frequencies created by text rows and character strokes. Pre-adaptation contrast sensitivity was measured for test gratings with spatial frequencies of 1 cdeg−1 and 4 cdeg−1, presented horizontally and vertically. Participants then adapted to reading text corresponding to the horizontal “row frequency” of text (1 cdeg−1), and vertical “stroke frequency” of the characters (4 cdeg−1) for 180 s. Following this, post-adaptation contrast sensitivity was measured. Twenty young adults (10 myopes, 10 emmetropes) optimally corrected for the viewing distance participated. There was a significant reduction in logCS post-text adaptation (relative to pre-adaptation logCS) at the row frequency (1 cdeg−1 horizontal) but not at the stroke frequency (4 cdeg−1 vertical). logCS changes due to adaptation at 1 cdeg−1 horizontal were significant in both emmetropes and myopes. Comparing the two refractive groups, myopic participants showed significantly greater adaptation compared to emmetropic participants. Reading text on a screen induces contrast adaptation in young adult observers. Myopic participants were found to exhibit greater contrast adaptation than emmetropes at the spatial frequency corresponding to the text row frequency. No contrast adaptation was observed at the text stroke frequency in either participant group. The greater contrast adaptation experienced by myopes after reading warrants further investigation to better understand the relationship between near work and myopia development

A Classification System for Economic Stochastic Control Models

stochastic control, economic stochastic control models, classification system, naming system, adaptive control, min–max control, robust control,