Is Marital Status A Determinant Of Self-Monitoring Of Blood Glucose?

Glycemic control is one of the most important aspects of diabetes management and is necessary for the prevention or delay of complications associated with diabetes mellitus (DM). Self-monitoring of blood glucose (SMBG) is a technique used achieve glycemic control by revealing day-to-day changes in blood glucose levels. Since marriage protective effects have been shown for mortality, especially for men, it is useful to determine whether a similar relationship is found between marriage and SMBG. The purpose of this study is to examine whether marital status is a determinant of SMBG, when controlling for other variables, and whether marital status determines SMBG differently for males and females. Demographic data were obtained from 465 individuals who self-reported a diagnosis of DM in the continuous NHANES 2009-2010, along with data about treatment, condition, and self-management practices. Using logistic regressions, significant predictors were identified for SMBG. One-third (36%) of adults with diabetes in the U.S. population do not self-monitor their blood glucose level at least 1 time/day. A minority (29.5%) of females who are not married do not self-monitor daily, while this is true for nearly half (47.6%) of males who are not married. Insulin use is the major determinant for SMBG, along with age, race/ethnicity, and patient DM education. Marital status was found to be a significant predictor for SMBG among males, only when insulin and pills use were not included in the regression. Marital status was not identified as a significant predictor of SMBG for females. Although marital status is independently associated with reduced mortality, a similar protective relationship is not shown between marital status and SMBG. Since SMBG may be a useful in the achievement of glycemic control, individuals with diabetes should incorporate this practice into their regimens for diabetes self-management

Fast and slow readers and the effectiveness of the spatial frequency content of text: Evidence from reading times and eye movements

© 2016 American Psychological Association. Text contains a range of different spatial frequencies but the effectiveness of spatial frequencies for normal variations in skilled adult reading ability is unknown. Accordingly, young skilled adult readers showing fast or slow reading ability read sentences displayed as normal or filtered to contain only very low, low, medium, high, or very high spatial frequencies. Reading times and eye movement measures of fixations and saccades assessed the effectiveness of these displays for reading. Reading times showed that, for each reading ability, medium, high, and very high spatial frequencies were all more effective than lower spatial frequencies. Indeed, for each reading ability, reading times for normal text were maintained when text contained only medium, high, or very high spatial frequencies. However, reading times for normal text and for each spatial frequency were all substantially shorter for fast readers than for slow readers, and this advantage for fast readers was similar for normal, medium, high, and very high spatial frequencies but much larger for low and very low spatial frequencies. In addition, fast readers made fewer and shorter fixations, fewer and shorter regressions, and longer forward saccades, than slow readers, and these differences were generally similar in size for normal, medium, high, and very high spatial frequencies, but larger when spatial frequencies were lower. These findings suggest that fast and slow adult readers can each use a range of different spatial frequencies for reading but fast readers make more effective use of these spatial frequencies and especially those that are lower

Effects of spatial frequencies on word identification by fast and slow readers: Evidence from eye movements

� 2016 Jordan, Dixon, McGowan, Kurtev and Paterson. Recent research has shown that differences in the effectiveness of spatial frequencies for fast and slow skilled adult readers may be an important component of differences in reading ability in the skilled adult reading population (Jordan et al., 2016a). But the precise nature of this influence on lexical processing during reading remains to be fully determined. Accordingly, to gain more insight into the use of spatial frequencies by skilled adult readers with fast and slow reading abilities, the present study looked at effects of spatial frequencies on the processing of specific target words in sentences. These target words were of either high or low lexical frequency and each sentence was displayed as normal or filtered to contain only very low, low, medium, high, or very high spatial frequencies. Eye movement behavior for target words was closest to normal for each reading ability when text was shown in medium or higher spatial frequency displays, although reading occurred for all spatial frequencies. Moreover, typical word frequency effects (the processing advantage for words with higher lexical frequencies) were observed for each reading ability across a broad range of spatial frequencies, indicating that many different spatial frequencies provide access to lexical representations during textual reading for both fast and slow skilled adult readers. Crucially, however, target word fixations were fewer and shorter for fast readers than for slow readers for all display types, and this advantage for fast readers appeared to be similar for normal, medium, high, and very high spatial frequencies but larger for low and very low spatial frequencies. Therefore, although fast and slow skilled adult readers can both use a broad range of spatial frequencies when reading, fast readers make more effective use of these spatial frequencies, and especially those that are lower, when processing the identities of words

Post–COVID-19 Conditions Among Children 90 Days After SARS-CoV-2 Infection

IMPORTANCE Little is known about the risk factors for, and the risk of, developing post-COVID-19 conditions (PCCs) among children. OBJECTIVES To estimate the proportion of SARS-CoV-2-positive children with PCCs 90 days after a positive test result, to compare this proportion with SARS-CoV-2-negative children, and to assess factors associated with PCCs. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS This prospective cohort study, conducted in 36 emergency departments (EDs) in 8 countries between March 7, 2020, and January 20, 2021, included 1884 SARS-CoV-2-positive children who completed 90-day follow-up; 1686 of these children were frequency matched by hospitalization status, country, and recruitment date with 1701 SARS-CoV-2-negative controls. EXPOSURE SARS-CoV-2 detected via nucleic acid testing. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES Post-COVID-19 conditions, defined as any persistent, new, or recurrent health problems reported in the 90-day follow-up survey. RESULTS Of 8642 enrolled children, 2368 (27.4%) were SARS-CoV-2 positive, among whom 2365 (99.9%) had index ED visit disposition data available; among the 1884 children (79.7%) who completed follow-up, the median age was 3 years (IQR, 0-10 years) and 994 (52.8%) were boys. A total of 110 SARS-CoV-2-positive children (5.8%; 95% CI, 4.8%-7.0%) reported PCCs, including 44 of 447 children (9.8%; 95% CI, 7.4%-13.0%) hospitalized during the acute illness and 66 of 1437 children (4.6%; 95% CI, 3.6%-5.8%) not hospitalized during the acute illness (difference. 5.3%; 95% CI, 2.5%-8.5%). Among SARS-CoV-2-positive children, the most common symptom was fatigue or weakness (21 [1.1%]). Characteristics associated with reporting at least 1 PCC at 90 days included being hospitalized 48 hours or more compared with no hospitalization (adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 2.67 [95% CI, 1.63-4.38]); having 4 or more symptoms reported at the index ED visit compared with 1 to 3 symptoms (4-6 symptoms: aOR, 2.35 [95% CI, 1.28-4.31]; >= 7 symptoms: aOR, 4.59 [95% CI, 2.50 8.44]); and being 14 years of age or older compared with younger than 1 year (aOR, 2.67 [95% CI, 1.43-4.99]). SARS-CoV-2-positive children were more likely to report PCCs at 90 days compared with those who tested negative, both among those who were not hospitalized (55 of 1295 [4.2%; 95% CI, 3.2%-5.5%] vs 35 of 1321[2.7%; 95% CI, 1.9%-3.7%]; difference, 1.6% [95% CI, 0.2%-3.0%]) and those who were hospitalized (40 of 391[10.2%; 95% CI, 7.4%-13.7%] vs 19 of 380 [5.0%; 95% CI, 3.0%-7.7%]; difference, 5.2% [95% CI, 1.5%-9.1%]). In addition, SARS-CoV-2 positivity was associated with reporting PCCs 90 days after the index ED visit (aOR, 1.63 [95% CI, 1.14-2.35]), specifically systemic health problems (eg, fatigue, weakness, fever; aOR, 2.44 [95% CI, 1.19-5.00]). CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE In this cohort study, SARS-CoV-2 infection was associated with reporting PCCs at 90 days in children. Guidance and follow-up are particularly necessary for hospitalized children who have numerous acute symptoms and are older.This studywas supported by grants from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (operating grant: COVID-19-clinical management); the Alberta Health Services-University of Calgary-Clinical Research Fund; the Alberta Children's Hospital Research Institute; the COVID-19 Research Accelerator Funding Track (CRAFT) Program at the University of California, Davis; and the Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center Division of Emergency Medicine Small Grants Program. Dr Funk is supported by the University of Calgary Eyes-High PostDoctoral Research Fund. Dr Freedman is supported by the Alberta Children's Hospital Foundation Professorship in Child Health andWellness

BHPR research: qualitative1. Complex reasoning determines patients' perception of outcome following foot surgery in rheumatoid arhtritis

Background: Foot surgery is common in patients with RA but research into surgical outcomes is limited and conceptually flawed as current outcome measures lack face validity: to date no one has asked patients what is important to them. This study aimed to determine which factors are important to patients when evaluating the success of foot surgery in RA Methods: Semi structured interviews of RA patients who had undergone foot surgery were conducted and transcribed verbatim. Thematic analysis of interviews was conducted to explore issues that were important to patients. Results: 11 RA patients (9 ♂, mean age 59, dis dur = 22yrs, mean of 3 yrs post op) with mixed experiences of foot surgery were interviewed. Patients interpreted outcome in respect to a multitude of factors, frequently positive change in one aspect contrasted with negative opinions about another. Overall, four major themes emerged. Function: Functional ability & participation in valued activities were very important to patients. Walking ability was a key concern but patients interpreted levels of activity in light of other aspects of their disease, reflecting on change in functional ability more than overall level. Positive feelings of improved mobility were often moderated by negative self perception ("I mean, I still walk like a waddling duck”). Appearance: Appearance was important to almost all patients but perhaps the most complex theme of all. Physical appearance, foot shape, and footwear were closely interlinked, yet patients saw these as distinct separate concepts. Patients need to legitimize these feelings was clear and they frequently entered into a defensive repertoire ("it's not cosmetic surgery; it's something that's more important than that, you know?”). Clinician opinion: Surgeons' post operative evaluation of the procedure was very influential. The impact of this appraisal continued to affect patients' lasting impression irrespective of how the outcome compared to their initial goals ("when he'd done it ... he said that hasn't worked as good as he'd wanted to ... but the pain has gone”). Pain: Whilst pain was important to almost all patients, it appeared to be less important than the other themes. Pain was predominately raised when it influenced other themes, such as function; many still felt the need to legitimize their foot pain in order for health professionals to take it seriously ("in the end I went to my GP because it had happened a few times and I went to an orthopaedic surgeon who was quite dismissive of it, it was like what are you complaining about”). Conclusions: Patients interpret the outcome of foot surgery using a multitude of interrelated factors, particularly functional ability, appearance and surgeons' appraisal of the procedure. While pain was often noted, this appeared less important than other factors in the overall outcome of the surgery. Future research into foot surgery should incorporate the complexity of how patients determine their outcome Disclosure statement: All authors have declared no conflicts of interes

Predictors of Cognitive Decline in a Multi-Ethnic Sample of Midlife Women: A Longitudinal Study

Hypertension, diabetes, depressive symptoms, and smoking are predictors of cognitive decline in late life. However, it is not known if these risk factors are associated with cognition during midlife orif the associations between these risk factors and cognition vary by race. This longitudinal study hypothesized that (1) the risk factors would predict cognitive decline in midlife, (2)African Americans would have greater cognitive decline than European Americans and East Asians, and (3) there would be stronger associations between risk factors and cognition for African American women compared to European American and East Asian women. Participants (aged 42-52) were European American (n= 1,000), African American (n= 516), and East Asian (n= 437) women from the Study of Women’s Health Across the Nation who were studied for 8 years. Risk factors (i.e., diabetes, hypertension, smoking, and depressive symptoms) and cognitive outcomes (i.e., episodic memory, processing speed, and working memory) were measured at multiple timepoints. Two-level hierarchical linear models tested change in cognition over time controlling for income, education, and age. African Americans had lower scores than European Americans and East Asians on all cognitive outcomes. East Asian smokers had greater episodic memory decline compared to European American smokers. Depressive symptoms did not adversely impact processing speed for East Asian relative to European Americans. Contrary to our hypothesis, hypertension was associated with improved processing speed over time for African Americans compared to European Americans. Racial disparities in cognition were evident for African American women

Discrimination and Cognition in Midlife Black Women: The Protective Roles of Social Support and Religiosity/Spirituality

Black women are at high risk of discrimination due to intersectionality as well as cognitive impairment in later life. However, we do not yet know enough about the association between discrimination and cognition in this population or which protective factors may buffer the adverse effect of discrimination on cognitive outcomes. The present study aimed to determine whether discrimination was associated with adverse cognitive outcomes (i.e., episodic memory, processing speed, working memory) in midlife Black women and whether social support and religiosity/spirituality were significant moderators of the association between discrimination and cognitive outcomes. The present study was conducted using data from 669 midlife Black women from the Study of Women’s Health Across the Nation (SWAN). Results indicated that there was a high prevalence of spirituality and a low incidence of discrimination exposure in the sample. Using structural equation modeling, discrimination was not associated with cognition, nor was social support a significant moderator of the association between discrimination and cognition. Spirituality was a significant moderator of the association between discrimination and cognition such that, for women with greater spirituality, greater discrimination was associated with better processing speed. These surprising results suggest that there is heterogeneity in how discrimination is associated with cognition in midlife Black women. There is an opportunity to better incorporate spirituality into clinical interventions to promote cognitive health for Black women

First Nations students and the English curriculum area

This PETAA Paper provides vital insights into the major types of First Nations language ecologies on a national scale and shows how this translates into teaching considerations in schools - providing the knowledge and advice teachers need when differentiating planning, pedagogy and resources. The paper looks at the ramifications of language ecologies for guiding teaching, particularly English teaching, and examines different uses of literature depending on each ecology

MUSIC - Metadata Used in Semantic Indexes and Charts

The main objective of the “Metadata Used in Semantic Indexes and Charts” (MUSIC) project is to facilitate musicological research in the area of popular music by bringing together an extensive database of popular music charts, already linked to academic publications, with open data found on the Semantic Web. Emerging Linked Data technologies enable the combination of several music related data sources. The effective fusion of these resources will enable innovative, to date unprecedented ways of navigating through the popular music space, enabling novel research to be carried out, while providing much sought-after use cases and new consumption patterns to the Linked Data and broader Semantic Web communities. The project aims to integrate these resources with the interfaces and analytical tools already provided by Academic Charts Online. The project will thus rely on, and bring value to multiple disciplines including musicology, Linked Data and Semantic Web development, user interface design, software development, and the broader field of music informatics and pedagogy