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

Columbia Glacier bedrock topography and ice thickness

Columbia Glacier bedrock topography and ice volume. Bedrock topography and ice thickness for 1957 and 2007 on a 100 m grid are provided in NetCDF format, referenced to WGS84 UTM Zone 6N. For details about the method and the datasets used, please see: McNabb, R., Hock, R., O’Neel, S., Rasmussen, L., Ahn, Y., Braun, M., . . . Truffer, M. (2012). Using surface velocities to calculate ice thickness and bed topography: A case study at Columbia Glacier, Alaska, USA. Journal of Glaciology, 58(212), 1151-1164. 10.3189/2012JoG11J24

ExBreasts data set

ExBreastS survey dataset for deposi

Dataset Supporting McClean and Hunter: 17a-Estradiol limits the impact of ibuprofen upon community respiration by streambed biofilms in a sub-urban stream. DOI: 10.1101/718924

Pharmaceuticals compounds such as the non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug ibuprofen and the artificial estrogen 17a-estradiol are contaminants of emerging concern in freshwater systems. Globally, the use of these compounds is growing by around ~3 % per year, yet we know little about how interactions between different pharmaceuticals may affect aquatic ecosystems. Here we test how interactions between ibuprofen and 17a-estradiol affect the growth and community metabolism of streambed biofilms. Here we provide supporting data from contaminant exposure experimentsreporting how ibuprofen and estradiol affected biofilm biomass (ash free dry weigh), community respiration, net and gross primary production

A Study on the Trading Routes Connecting the Red Sea and Ethiopia as Serial Heritages

The Red Sea Area in north-east Africa, characterized by its specific geographical condition represented by deserts and highlands, has been the stage of interrelation among different political powers and cultural groups. The presence of imperial Ethiopia was decisive in the highland area while other powers such as Egypt and Turkey tried to dominate coastal area by way of navigation. Port cities like Suakin, Massawa, Zeila were thus established under the authority of Ottoman Empire or Egyptian rulers. These ports were connected to inland cities by caravan route. Inland post cities like Sennar, Adowa, and Harar flourished as relaying post and market. This paper aims at the analysis and the re-evaluation of the onceexisted network of such caravan routes by clarifying the urban formation of port and post cities, the identification of the routes, their transformation in the modern period and resulting decaying process. The rapid changes of transportation system in the 20^ century have made them out of fashion. Some of these cities have been menaced by severe deterioration, both in natural and social senses

Brexit and Young People News Media Archive (2016-2022)

A dataset of newspaper articles relating to Brexit and young people between 2016 and 2022

Using the Tea Bag Index to unravel how interactions between an antibiotic (Trimethoprim) and endocrine disruptor (17a-estradiol) affect aquatic microbial activity: Supporting Dataset 1

The constant release of complex mixture of pharmaceuticals, including antimicrobials and endocrine disruptors, into the aquatic environment. These have the potential to affect aquatic microbial metabolism and alter biogeochemical cycling of carbon and nutrients. We used the Tea Bag Index (TBI) for decomposition within a series of contaminant exposure experiments to test how interactions between an antibiotic (trimethoprim) and endocrine disruptor (17a-estradiol) affects microbial activity in an aquatic system. The TBI is a citizen science tool used to test microbial activity by measuring the differential degradation of green and rooibos tea as proxies for labile and recalcitrant organic matter decomposition. Here we present the raw data on pharmaceutical exposures and the mass loss of the Rooibos and Green tea bags within the experiment. From Tea Bag mass loss we then calculated the Stabilisation Factor (S) and Initial Decomposition Rate of the labile organic matter fraction

Training Needs of Paediatric Occupational Therapists in eating and drinking occupations for children with dysphagia

Occupational therapists are a part of the team to support children and infants presenting with eating and drinking difficulties as a result of dysphagia, yet the available literature shows limited focus on training requirements of UK-based occupational therapists working in dysphagia management. This qualitative research project's aim was to explore the training needs and the barriers and opportunities to accessing training in this area. Nine virtual, semi-structured interviews were completed across stakeholder groups (occupational therapists, speech and language therapists and parents). Interviews were transcribed and reflexive thematic analysis was completed. Four themes generated were, the role of occupational therapists, logistics of accessing training, interdisciplinary working and training pathways. Occupational therapists do not have a consensus definition of their role in dysphagia practice, compared to speech and language therapists. The positive impacts of interdisciplinary workings on competencies are reflected, where the realities of current practice are identified by therapists and parents alike. The COVID-19 Pandemic bought opportunities and barriers in relation to the logistics of accessing training. A greater understanding and definition of the role of occupational therapy in dysphagia is required, and a formal competency document may be beneficial to facilitate the identification of appropriate professional development for occupational therapists. Future research into this area is required to develop an understanding of training needs in this area of practice