AI in Radiology: C. Rainey et al. (2023) Restricted Dataset

Artificial intelligence decision support systems have been proposed to assist a struggling National Health Service (NHS) workforce in the United Kingdom. Its implementation in UK healthcare systems has been identified as a priority for deployment. Few studies have investigated the impact of the feedback from such systems on the end user. This study investigated the impact of two forms of AI feedback (saliency/heatmaps and AI diagnosis with percentage confidence) on student and qualified diagnostic radiographers’ accuracy when determining binary diagnosis on skeletal radiographs. The AI feedback proved beneficial to accuracy in all cases except when the AI was incorrect and for pathological cases in the student group. The self-reported trust of all participants decreased from the beginning to the end of the study. The findings of this study should guide developers in the provision of the most advantageous forms of AI feedback and direct educators in tailoring education to highlight weaknesses in human interaction with AI-based clinical decision support systems. All data analysis was conducted on SPSS® v 27 [27] and Microsoft® Excel® [28]. This dataset is restricted because of the personal nature of the responses. Access to the data may be applied for following instructions provided here. This work has been funded by the College of Radiographers Research Industry Partnership Research awards scheme (CoRIPS) no. 183

Research Pulse. Volume 2, No. 2, June 2007

Neuroscience: Researching the nervous system in health and disease. Messages from the Dean. Paul Arbon. Major new research funds. Paul Bennett. Synchrotron science in 21st century medicine and medical research. Queen's Birthday Honours. PRISM news spectrum. Driving the research dollar further. Water research in the Department of Environmental Health. Veterans' health. New Hepatitis B vaccine trial. Award winning postgraduate research at Flinders. Have your say

The Watching Pregnancy Project: an exploration of low back pain occurrence, symptoms and healthcare use in pregnant women

Introduction Many women experience low back pain (LBP) during pregnancy, which often persists after birth. Those affected have reported frustration that their symptoms are not taken seriously, along with limited availability of treatments to meet their needs. To our knowledge, no UK-based studies have prospectively investigated the extent of LBP as a problem for women both during pregnancy and after birth. Therefore, this study aimed to explore the extent and current management of this problem in a UK healthcare setting over four pre-defined study time points; two during pregnancy and two after birth. Materials and Methods A prospective observational cohort study followed a sample of pregnant women living in the UK, from 20 to 22-weeks’ gestation until six months after birth. All women attending their routine anomaly scan were informed of the study. Those with red flags, inflammatory / neurological disease, urinary tract infection (UTI) or otherwise deemed ineligible by their treating midwife, were excluded. A bespoke online questionnaire was distributed to consenting women to remotely collect demographic data and self-reported LBP history, symptom presentation, healthcare use and outcomes at four pre-defined study time-points, (i) 20 to 22-weeks’ and (ii) 31 to 34-weeks’ gestation, (iii) six weeks and (iv) six months after birth. At the end of the study women provided feedback about their experiences and an evaluation of the methods of recruitment and online data collection was carried out to inform a future, fully powered study. Results 307 women, from middle and upper socioeconomic groups, consented to participate and completed the first questionnaire. Women found the study procedures easy to follow with 50% completing the final questionnaire and 121 completing all four questionnaires. In the first questionnaire, 43% of women (N=132) reported having a history of LBP, with 46% of these currently experiencing LBP. Average composite pain scores ranged from 6.4 to 7.1/10 over the course of the study and were highest during the third trimester. Between 20 and 34 weeks´ gestation women reported a clinically important deterioration in health-related quality of life and back-specific function, along with high fear-avoidance beliefs between 31 to 34 weeks’ gestation. Women with a history of LBP were more likely to report symptoms 6-weeks after birth. Over 50% did not receive any treatment for their LBP. A significant proportion opted to self-medicate with painkillers, and many of those receiving physiotherapy for their LBP chose to self-refer. Conclusions Pregnant women, predominantly from affluent socioeconomic groups, were interested in taking part in this study and found the procedures easy to follow. A significant proportion had a history of LBP. The deterioration observed in function and health-related quality of life, along with high fear-avoidance beliefs about physical activity when pain symptoms were at their worst, could be contributing to the increasing socioeconomic burden of LBP. In addition, women’s use of over-the-counter painkillers for their LBP is concerning, given the considerable uncertainty about the effects of these on the unborn child. These findings would suggest that more research should be directed at ways of preventing LBP from becoming a problem for pregnant women, in particular reducing the risk factors for chronicity that may be perpetuating this often ‘trivialised’ problem

A Qualitative Exploration of the Therapeutic Qualities of the Art of Therapy from the Therapists Perspective within the Context of Ayres Sensory Integration Dataset

This qualitative phenomenological study explores the therapeutic qualities of the art of therapy, emphasizing the just right challenge; the therapeutic relationship, and the experience of “flow”, from the therapists’ viewpoint, offering a novel perspective. Eight participants kept reflective journals and engaged in semi-structured interviews, which were analyzed using Reflective Thematic Analysis. Three overarching themes emerged: The Human Connection: Bonding, exploring the components of the therapeutic relationship; Setting the Scene: An investigation of the preparation involved, including setting the just right challenge and considering external factors; Magic Happens! The Optimal Experience: An exploration of self-actualization, the experiences of flow and how it is learned. Participants shared their unique therapeutic observations and provided clear insight into their understanding of the art of therapy. The findings demonstrate that this concept is complex and multifaceted, with learning enhanced through hands-on experiences, which has significant implications for the education and ongoing mentoring of both practicing and new clinicians. This dataset is made up of 8 individual interviews and 8 participants reflective journals. The data are all in MS Word format

EFFECT OF SLC22A1 GENE POLYMORPHISMS ON METFORMINRESPONSE IN LEBANESE TYPE 2 DIABETES MELLITUS PATIENTS

Metformin is one of the most widely prescribed oral ant diabetic drugs, it is generally used for treating type 2 diabetes mellitus patients. The organic caution transporter 1(OCT1), encoded by the SLC22A1 gene is responsible for the uptake of metformin in the hepatocytes. Polymorphisms in SLC22A1 gene contribute to variable responses to metformin leading to inter-individual variations in its clinical efficacy. We evaluated the impact of SLC22A1 rs622342 gene polymorphisms on the efficacy of metformin in Lebanese type 2 diabetes mellitus patients. A total of 63 patients who were on metformin monotherapy were followed up for 6 months. Single nucleotide polymorphisms were determined using Simple Probe® real-time PCR assay. The percentage reduction of fasting plasma glucose after 3 months were 31 % in patients having AA genotype slightly higher than in patients having AC genotype 30.3 % (P=0.676) but much higher than in patients carrying two copies of ‘‘C’’ allele 19.7% (P \u3c 0.001).The percentage reduction of HbA1c after 3 months were 11.16 % in patients having AA genotype higher than in patients having AC genotype 8.58 % (P=0.04) and much higher than in patients carrying two copies of ‘‘C’’ allele 5.65% (P=0.011).Similar results are shown after 6 months. Although preliminary, these data suggest that metformin response in individuals with diabetes mellitus patients may vary according to rs622342 in SLC22A1

Positioning ourselves within global health equity goals and landscapes

Twenty years ago, I decided to return to academia after a 2004 visit to Nicaragua, Central America. I was working in documentary film production. I had gotten a small grant to develop a scenario on water privatization. I travelled the country speaking to families and community leaders about unaffordable public water, contaminated well-water from the agricultural industry, and indigenous communal land under threat from a dam project. As I observed casual greetings between neighbours and acquaintances (often in more impoverished neighborhoods or encampments), I was struck by how often the answer to the question “How are things?” would be: “Bad!” (Malo!). Such statements would sometimes lead to vague descriptions of “the situation” (in the country) or specifics: about the buying power of a cordoba (the currency); the theft of a water barrel in the night; too much rain ruining belongings or bringing illnesses; diabetes, back pain, eye problems, toothaches

Energy availability modulates regional blood flow via estrogen-independent pathways in regularly menstruating young women dataset

Dataset collected at pre and post time points during a randomised controlled trial including two conditions of energy availability (45 and 15 kcals per kg fat-free mass per day). Data are presented in Excel format including (but not limited to) the following variables: body mass and composition, resting energy expenditure, indices of cardiovascular function, hydration status, hormonal and metabolic markers (17b-oestradiol, T3, B-OHB, glucose). These data support the publication titled 'Energy availability modulates regional blood flow via estrogen-independent pathways in regularly menstruating young women' in the European Journal of Applied Physiology

HEALTH-RELATED QUALITY OF LIFE IN TREATMENT-SEEKING ARAB PATIENTSWITH OBESITY

Background & Aim: Health-Related Quality of Life (HRQoL) is an important outcome that reflectsthe impact of chronic diseases on patients’ wellbeing. There is a paucity of studies on HRQoL and obesity in Arab-speaking countries. Therefore we aimed to investigate this outcome in this population. METHODS: The HRQoL was assessed by the validated Arabic version of the ORWELL 97 questionnaire in 116 seeking-treatment patients with obesity referred to the Nutritional and Weight management outpatient clinic of Beirut Arab University (BAU) in Lebanon, matched by age and gender to 116 normal-weight participants. RESULTS: Patients with obesity displayed higher total ORWELL 97 scores when compared with normal-weight controls (52.16 ± 33.34 vs. 13.04 ± 11.36, p \u3c 0.001), and linear regression analysis showed that the increase of Body Mass Index (BMI) among patients with obesity is associated with an increase of ORWELL 97 scores (β= 1.790, 95% CI= 0.808 - 2.772, p \u3c 0.001). Moreover, the logistic regression analysis showed that regardless the class of obesity, the only one-unit increase in BMI may increase the odds of scoring above 71.75 increased by nearly 11% (OR, 95% CI= 1.110, 1.003 - 1.229, p=0.04), which is considered indicative of a clinically significant impairment of HRQoL, especially in those with lower social status (i.e. lower education and unemployed). CONCLUSIONS: Our findings are considered new in an Arab population, and showed that obesity impairs HRQoL in treatment-seeking patients, where higher BMI is associated with more impairment in HRQoL. Moreover, interestingly an only one-unit increase in BMI dramatically increases the risk of HRQoL impairment to become clinically significant. Future studies are needed on larger scale in different Arab countries, to identify factors that are mostly associated with HRQoL, and to detect also changes in the latter in association with obesity treatment

Research Pulse. Volume 1, No. 2, September 2005

From the Executive Dean. All you need to know about ARC funding opportunities. From the Dean of the School of Medicine. How might losing your job affect your health? Working together to improve Aboriginal health through research. Major research grants awarded. New report: Annual survey of divisions of general practice. Richard Reed. Trial of point-of-care testing in general practice. Speech pathologists honoured. Flinders Medical Centre foundation. Student forum. News from the School of Nursing & Midwifery health research HUB. Getting on with business. A new face in research administration. Primary health care conference exceeds attendance records. Mutagenic effects of low dose radiation. Update on areas of Strategic Research Investment