Whole Body Vibration Training is Osteogenic at the Spine in College-Age Men and Women

Osteoporosis is a chronic skeletal disease characterized by low bone mass which is currently challenging the American health care system. Maximizing peak bone mass early in life is a cost-effective method for preventing osteoporosis. Whole body vibration (WBV) is a novel exercise method with the potential to increase bone mass, therefore optimizing peak bone and decreasing the risk for osteoporotic fracture. The aim of this investigation was to evaluate changes in bone mineral density at the hip, spine, and whole body in college-age men and women who underwent a WBV training protocol. Active men (n=6) and women (n=4), ages 18-22 participated in the WBV training; while an additional 14 volunteers (1 male, 13 female) served as controls. All participants completed baseline and follow-up questionnaires to assess health history, physical activity, dietary intake, and menstrual history. The WBV training program, using a Vibraflex 550, incorporated squats, stiff-leg dead lifts, stationary lunges, push-up holds, bent-over rows, and jumps performed on the platform, and occurred 3 times a week, for 12 weeks. Dual energy x-ray absorptiometry (Hologic Explorer, Waltham, MA, USA) was used to assess bone mineral density (BMD, g/cm2). A two-tailed, t-test identified significantly different changes in BMD between the WBV and control groups at the lateral spine (average change of 0.022 vs. -0.015 g/cm2). The WBV group experienced a 2.7% and 1.0% increase in BMD in the lateral spine and posterior-anterior spine while the control group decreased 1.9% and 0.9%, respectively. Results indicate that 12 weeks of WBV training was osteogenic at the spine in college-age men and women

Do You K now D.O.?: Pre Medical Students’ Knowledge of Osteopathic Medicine and Its Relation to Burnout

It is estimated that in the near future there will be a shortage of physicians available to keep up with the needs of a growing older population. To try to account for this, medical schools are expanding class sizes and new schools are being created. While both allopathic and osteopathic schools are expanding, osteopathic schools are doing so a much faster rate. Unfortunately, it seems many students enter their undergraduate careers unaware of osteopathic medicine despite having an interest in medical school. Undergraduate student interest in becoming a medical doctor continues to rise, but so too does the difficulty of earning acceptance to medical school. In this competitive environment, little is known about students’ knowledge of their medical school options. Moreover, as undergraduate students’ emotional health continues to decline, little is known about whether premedical students experience or are at increased risk for the burnout symptoms reported by medical students and other physicians in training. This study examined students’ knowledge of osteopathic medicine, how they learned of osteopathic medicine, and any reported burnout

Embrittlement of MISSE 5 Polymers After 13 Months of Space Exposure

Understanding space environment induced degradation of spacecraft materials is essential when designing durable and stable spacecraft components. As a result of space radiation, debris impacts, atomic oxygen interaction, and thermal cycling, the outer surfaces of space materials degrade when exposed to low Earth orbit (LEO). The objective of this study was to measure the embrittlement of 37 thin film polymers after LEO space exposure. The polymers were flown aboard the International Space Station and exposed to the LEO space environment as part of the Materials International Space Station Experiment 5 (MISSE 5). The samples were flown in a nadir-facing position for 13 months and were exposed to thermal cycling along with low doses of atomic oxygen, direct solar radiation and omnidirectional charged particle radiation. The samples were analyzed for space-induced embrittlement using a bend-test procedure in which the strain necessary to induce surface cracking was determined. Bend-testing was conducted using successively smaller mandrels to apply a surface strain to samples placed on a semi-suspended pliable platform. A pristine sample was also tested for each flight sample. Eighteen of the 37 flight samples experienced some degree of surface cracking during bend-testing, while none of the pristine samples experienced any degree of cracking. The results indicate that 49 percent of the MISSE 5 thin film polymers became embrittled in the space environment even though they were exposed to low doses (approx.2.75 krad (Si) dose through 127 mm Kapton) of ionizing radiation

Treatment satisfaction, adherence and behavioral assessment in patients de – escalating from natalizumab to interferon beta

Background: De-escalating natalizumab (NTZ) to interferon beta 1b (IFN B 1B) is a possible treatment option in multiple sclerosis (MS) patients interrupting NTZ because of increased risk of progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML). The aim of this study was to evaluate satisfaction and adherence to treatment, behavioral and fatigue changes in patients switched to IFN B 1B compared to continued NTZ treatment. Methods: A 1 year, prospective, randomized, rater-blinded, parallel-group study. Nineteen relapsing remitting (RR) MS patients, randomly assigned to undergo either NTZ (n = 10) or IFN B 1B (n = 9) treatment, who had previously received NTZ for at least 12 months with disease stability and fearing or at risk for PML were included. Patients underwent behavioral and treatment assessments at baseline, after 24-week and 1 year follow-up. Behavioral assessment included measures of cognition, fatigue and quality of life. Treatment assessment included measures of satisfaction, persistence and adherence to treatment. Clinical-radiological disease activity and safety were also assessed. Results: Baseline characteristics of patients were similar between groups except for Euro Quality Visual Analogue Scale, being higher in the NTZ group (p = 0.04). Within-group comparisons at the three time points, as well as interaction analysis of treatment effect over time did not show any statistically significant differences in behavioral or treatment assessments, but a coherent trend favoring NTZ over IFN B 1B. Conclusions: De-escalating NTZ to IFN B 1B is feasible and associated with overall good patient related outcome and persistently stable behavioral measures

Prevalence of comorbidities according to predominant phenotype and severity of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

BACKGROUND: In addition to lung involvement, several other diseases and syndromes coexist in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Our purpose was to investigate the prevalence of idiopathic arterial hypertension (IAH), ischemic heart disease, heart failure, peripheral vascular disease (PVD), diabetes, osteoporosis, and anxious depressive syndrome in a clinical setting of COPD outpatients whose phenotypes (predominant airway disease and predominant emphysema) and severity (mild and severe diseases) were determined by clinical and functional parameters. METHODS: A total of 412 outpatients with COPD were assigned either a predominant airway disease or a predominant emphysema phenotype of mild or severe degree according to predictive models based on pulmonary functions (forced expiratory volume in 1 second/vital capacity; total lung capacity %; functional residual capacity %; and diffusing capacity of lung for carbon monoxide %) and sputum characteristics. Comorbidities were assessed by objective medical records. RESULTS: Eighty-four percent of patients suffered from at least one comorbidity and 75% from at least one cardiovascular comorbidity, with IAH and PVD being the most prevalent ones (62% and 28%, respectively). IAH prevailed significantly in predominant airway disease, osteoporosis prevailed significantly in predominant emphysema, and ischemic heart disease and PVD prevailed in mild COPD. All cardiovascular comorbidities prevailed significantly in predominant airway phenotype of COPD and mild COPD severity. CONCLUSION: Specific comorbidities prevail in different phenotypes of COPD; this fact may be relevant to identify patients at risk for specific, phenotype-related comorbidities. The highest prevalence of comorbidities in patients with mild disease indicates that these patients should be investigated for coexisting diseases or syndromes even in the less severe, pauci-symptomatic stages of COPD. The simple method employed to phenotype and score COPD allows these results to be translated easily into daily clinical practice