“A good little tool to get to know yourself a bit better”: a qualitative study on users’ experiences of app-supported menstrual tracking in Europe

Background: Menstrual apps facilitate observation and analysis of menstrual cycles and associated factors through the collection and interpretation of data entered by users. As a subgroup of health-related apps, menstrual apps form part of one of the most dynamic and rapidly growing developments in biomedicine and health care. However, despite their popularity, qualitative research on how people engaging in period-tracking use and experience these apps remains scarce. Results: An inductive content analysis was performed and eight characteristics of app-supported menstrual tracking were identified: 1) tracking menstrual cycle dates and regularities, 2) preparing for upcoming periods, 3) getting to know menstrual cycles and bodies, 4) verifying menstrual experiences and sensations, 5) informing healthcare professionals, 6) tracking health, 7) contraception and seeking pregnancy, and 8) changes in tracking. Our study finds that period-tracking via apps has the potential to be an empowering practice as it helps users to be more aware of their menstrual cycles and health and to gain new knowledge. However, we also show that menstrual tracking can have negative consequences as it leads to distress in some cases, to privacy issues, and the work it requires can result in cessation. Finally, we present practical implications for healthcare providers and app developers. Conclusions: This qualitative study gives insight into users’ practices and experiences of app-supported menstrual tracking. The results provide information for researchers, health care providers and app designers about the implications of app-supported period-tracking and describe opportunities for patient-doctor interactions as well as for further development of menstrual apps.This research has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation program under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie grant agreement No 675378

Childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia in the Middle East and neighboring countries: A prospective multi-institutional international collaborative study (CALLME1) by the Middle East Childhood Cancer Alliance (MECCA)

Background: Little is known about childhood ALL in the Middle East. This study was undertaken by MECCA as initial efforts in collaborative data collection to provide clinical and demographic information on children with ALL in the Middle East. Procedure: Clinical and laboratory data for patients with ALL between January 2008 and April 2012 were prospectively collected from institutions in 14 Middle East countries and entered into a custom-built-database during induction phase. All laboratory studies including cytogenetics were done at local institutions. Results: The 1,171 voluntarily enrolled patients had a mean age of 6.1±3.9 years and 59.2 were boys. T-ALL represented 14.8 and 84.2 had B-precursor ALL. At diagnosis, 5.6 had CNS disease. The distribution of common genetic abnormalities reflected a similar percentage of hyperdiploidy (25.6), but a lower percentage of ETV6-RUNX1 translocation (14.7) compared to large series reported from Western populations. By clinical criteria, 47.1 were low/standard risk, 16.9 were intermediate risk, and 36 were high risk. Most patients received all their care at the same unit (96.9). Patients had excellent induction response to chemotherapy with an overall complete remission rate of 96. Induction toxicities were acceptable. Conclusions: This first collaborative study has established a process for prospective data collection and future multinational collaborative research in the Middle East. Despite the limitations of an incomplete population-based study, it provides the first comprehensive baseline data on clinical characteristics, laboratory evaluation, induction outcome, and toxicity. Further work is planned to uncover possible biologic differences of ALL in the region and to improve diagnosis and management. Pediatr Blood Cancer 2014; 61:1403-1410. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc

Do Arabic weight-loss apps adhere to evidence-informed practices?

Mobile technology has been used successfully for promoting health and weight loss and for treating obesity. There is a high prevalence of smartphone and tablet users among the Saudi population. This study aimed to identify whether current Arabic weight-loss apps had features that adhered to evidence-informed practices. The six most relevant app stores were systematically searched using the Arabic words for weight and diet (n = 298). All apps that met the inclusion criteria (n = 65) were downloaded and examined for adherence to 13 evidence-informed practices. Latent class analysis identified two subgroups of apps: self-monitoring (15 % of apps) and advice-giving apps (85 %). The median number of evidence-informed practices was 1 (1, 2), with no apps having more than six and only nine apps including four to six. Meal planning was the most common feature (38 % of apps). These findings identify serious weaknesses in the currently available Arabic weight-loss apps. Thus, existing and future apps should include more features based on the best available evidence in the context of Arab culture

MKP-2 : out of the DUSP-bin and back into the limelight

The MKPs (mitogen-activated protein kinase phosphatases) are a family of at least ten DUSPs (dual-specificity phosphatases) which function to terminate the activity of the MAPKs (mitogen-activated protein kinases). Several members have already been demonstrated to have distinct roles in immune function, cancer, fetal development and metabolic disorders. One DUSP of renewed interest is the inducible nuclear phosphatase MKP-2, which dephosphorylates both ERK (extracellular-signal-regulated kinase) and JNK (c-Jun N-terminal kinase) in vitro. Recently, the understanding of MKP-2 function has been advanced due to the development of mouse knockout models, which has resulted in the discovery of novel roles for MKP-2 in the regulation of sepsis, infection and cell-cycle progression that are distinct from those of other DUSPs. However, many functions for MKP-2 still await to be characterize

National disparities in laparoscopic colorectal procedures for colon cancer

Introduction: Racial disparity in the treatment of colorectal cancer (CRC) has been cited as a potential cause for differences in mortality. This study compares the rates of laparoscopy according to race, insurance status, geographic location, and hospital size. Methods: The 2009 Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project: Nationwide Inpatient Sample (HCUP-NIS) database was queried to identify patients with the diagnosis of CRC by the International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision (ICD-9) codes. Multivariate logistic regression was performed to look at age, gender, insurance coverage, academic versus nonacademic affiliated institutions, rural versus urban settings, location, and proportional differences in laparoscopic procedures according to race. Results: A total of 14,502 patients were identified; 4,691 (32.35 %) underwent laparoscopic colorectal procedures and 9,811 (67.65 %) underwent open procedures. The proportion of laparoscopic procedures did not differ significantly by race: Caucasian 32.4 %, African-American 30.04 %, Hispanic 33.99 %, and Asian-Pacific Islander 35.12 (P = 0.08). Among Caucasian and African-American patients, those covered by private insurers were more likely to undergo laparoscopic procedures compared to other insurance types (P ≤ 0.001). The odds of receiving laparoscopic procedure at teaching hospitals was 1.39 times greater than in nonteaching hospitals (95 % confidence interval [CI] 1.29-1.48) and did not differ across race groups. Patients in urban hospitals demonstrated higher odds of laparoscopic surgery (2.24, 95 % CI 1.96-2.56) than in rural hospitals; this relationship was consistent within races. The odds of undergoing laparoscopic surgeries was lowest in the Midwest region (0.89, 95 % CI 0.81-0.97) but higher in the Southern region (1.14, 95 % CI 1.06-1.22) compared with the other regions. Conclusions: Nearly one-third of all CRC surgeries are laparoscopic. Race does not appear to play a significant role in the selection of a laparoscopic CRC operation. However, there are significant differences in the selection of laparoscopy for CRC patients based on insurance status, geographic location, and hospital typ

Plasmonic photoconductance in free-standing monolayered gold nanoparticle membranes

cited By 0; Conference of 11th IEEE Nanotechnology Materials and Devices Conference, NMDC 2016 ; Conference Date: 9 October 2016 Through 12 October 2016; Conference Code:125383International audienceWe report on photo-current generation in freestanding monolayered gold nanoparticle membranes excited by using a laser. The absence of a substrate leads to a 50% increase of the photocurrent at plasmon resonance. This current is attributed to a combination of trap state dynamics and bolometric effects in a nanocomposite medium yielding a temperature rise of 40K

Plasmonic photo-current in freestanding monolayered gold nanoparticle membranes

We report on photo-current generation in freestanding monolayered gold nanoparticle membranes excited by using a focused laser beam. The absence of a substrate leads to a 50% increase of the photo-current at the surface plasmon resonance. This current is attributed to a combination of trap state dynamics and bolometric effects in a nanocomposite medium yielding a temperature rise of 40 K

Impact of smoking status and nicotine dependence on academic performance of Health Sciences students

Background: Smoking behavior has been associated with poor academic performance among adult students worldwide. However, the detrimental effect of nicotine dependence on several students’ academic achievement indicators is still unclear. This study aims to assess the impact of smoking status and nicotine dependence on grade point average (GPA), absenteeism rate and academic warnings among undergraduate health sciences students in Saudi Arabia. Methods: A validated cross-sectional survey was conducted, in which, participants responded to questions evaluated cigarette consumption, urge to consume and dependency, learning performance, days of absentees, and academic warnings. Results: A total of 501 students from different health specialties have completed the survey. Of whom, 66% were male, 95% ranging between the age of 18– 30 years old, and 81% reported no health issues or chronic diseases. Current smokers estimated to be 30% of the respondents, of which 36% revealed smoking history of 2– 3 years. The prevalence of nicotine dependency (high to extremely high) was 50%. Overall, smokers had significantly lower GPA, higher absenteeism rate, and higher number of academic warnings when compared to nonsmokers (p< 0.001). Heavy smokers demonstrated significantly less GPA (p=0.036), higher days of absences (p=0.017), and more academic warnings (p=0.021) compared to light smokers. The linear regression model indicated a significant association between smoking history (increased pack-per-year) and poor GPA (p=0.01) and increased number of academic warning last semester (p=0.01), while increased cigarette consumption was substantially linked with higher academic warnings (p=0.002), lower GPA (p=0.01), and higher absenteeism rate for last semester (p=0.01). Conclusion: Smoking status and nicotine dependence were predictive of worsening academic performance, including lower GPA, higher absenteeism rate and academic warnings. In addition, there is a substantial and unfavorable dose–response association between smoking history and cigarette consumption with impaired academic performance indicators