The Association Between Preschool Type and Children\u27s Concentration Abilities

The author of the study compared concentration abilities in 4-5 year-olds attending Montessori and traditional preschools in Bowling Green, Ohio. Number of errors and processing times on the Marburg concentration test were used to measure children\u27s concentration abilities. No significant differences in concentration abilities were found for preschoolers attending Montessori and traditional schools

Within - and between - session reliability of the spider drill test to assess Change of Direction Speed in youth tennis athletes

Agility or Change of Direction Speed (CODS) is a critical physical attribute in a sport such as tennis, which is categorised by frequent and multiple changes of direction. Recently a CODS test called the ‘spider drill’ has been used to assess tennis athletes’ ability to change direction. To the authors’ knowledge, no study has solely assessed its reliability and compared this with other commonly-used CODS tests; thus, this was the aim of the study. Ten nationally ranked youth tennis athletes (age: 15.1 ± 2.6; mass: 66.4 + 17.2 kg; height: 163.0 + 16.2 cm) completed three trials of the spider drill, modified t-test and pro-agility test on two separate testing occasions. All CODS tests had low typical percentage error, both within-sessions (CV = 1.8 - 4.1%), and between session (CV = 1.2 - 3.7%). The SEM was also consistent within tests both within- and between- testing sessions. Within-session test-retest consistency illustrates strong reliability for the spider drill (ICC = 0.93, 0.95), modified t-test (ICC = 0.79, 0.83), however for pro-agility session 2 fell outside of the accepted threshold (ICC = 0.88, 0.69). These trends were similar when assessing between-session consistency, with both the spider drill and modified t-test providing high levels of reliability (ICC = 0.95 and 0.97 respectively). However, the pro-agility fell outside of the accepted threshold (ICC = 0.66), with 95% confidence intervals wide-ranging in nature (95% CI: 0.11 - 0.9). These results suggest that the spider drill and modified t-test are both reliable tests when measuring CODS within youth tennis athletes. Strength and conditioning practitioners could consider changes in excess of ± 1.1% as meaningful (based off the SDD) when assessing CODS through the spider drill or modified t-test within youth tennis athletes

A preliminary evaluation of a client-centred prompting tool for supporting everyday activities in individuals with mild to moderate levels of cognitive impairment due to dementia

Objectives: Technology-based prompting has the potential to support people with dementia to complete multistep tasks in the home. However, these devices can be complex to use. This paper reports a feasibility trial of a personalised touchscreen digital prompter designed for home use. Methodology: A tablet-based prompter suitable for people living with dementia was developed, along with a detailed guidance manual. Carers loaded instructions for completing the task onto the prompter, and the person with dementia then used the tablet independently to complete a task. Eleven couples used the prompter ‘out-of-the-box’ with no support other than a guidance manual. Results: The majority of participants with dementia could follow the steps on the prompter, and carers were able to breakdown and load tasks onto the prompter. Eight couples used the prompter successfully to complete goals that they had identified in advance. These included preparing simple snacks and using a TV remote control. Successfully achieving goals was associated with more frequent use of the prompting screen on more days, but not higher levels of editing or previewing of tasks. Conclusion: The study provides the preliminary evidence that family caregivers can use a touchscreen tablet, software and manual package to identify specific tasks and break these down into steps and that people living with dementia can then follow the prompts to complete the tasks. This potentially represents an important advance in dementia care. Further testing is required to establish efficacy and to identify any factors that impact on outcomes

Probing Unexpected Reactivity in Radiometal Chemistry: Indium-111-Mediated Hydrolysis of Hybrid Cyclen-Hydroxypyridinone Ligands

Chelators based on hydroxypyridinones have utility in incorporating radioactive metal ions into diagnostic and therapeutic agents used in nuclear medicine. Over the course of our hydroxypyridinone studies, we have prepared two novel chelators, consisting of a cyclen (1,4,7,10-tetraazacyclododecane) ring bearing two pendant hydroxypyridinone groups, appended via methylene acetamide motifs at either the 1,4-positions (L1) or 1,7-positions (L2) of the cyclen ring. In radiolabeling reactions of L1 or L2 with the γ-emitting radioisotope, [111In]In3+, we have observed radiometal-mediated hydrolysis of a single amide group of either L1 or L2. The reaction of either [111In]In3+ or [natIn]In3+ with either L1 or L2, in aqueous alkaline solutions at 80 °C, initially results in formation of [In(L1)]+ or [In(L2)]+, respectively. Over time, each of these species undergoes In3+-mediated hydrolysis of a single amide group to yield species in which In3+ remains coordinated to the resultant chelator, which consists of a cyclen ring bearing a single hydroxypyridinone group and a single carboxylate group. The reactivity toward hydrolysis is higher for the L1 complex compared to that for the L2 complex. Density functional theory calculations corroborate these experimental findings and importantly indicate that the activation energy required for the hydrolysis of L1 is significantly lower than that required for L2. This is the first reported example of a chelator undergoing radiometal-mediated hydrolysis to form a radiometalated complex. It is possible that metal-mediated amide bond cleavage is a source of instability in other radiotracers, particularly those in which radiometal complexation occurs in aqueous, basic solutions at high temperatures. This study highlights the importance of appropriate characterization of radiolabeled products

The Spitzer Extragalactic Representative Volume Survey and DeepDrill extension: clustering of near-infrared galaxies

We have measured the angular auto-correlation function of near-infrared galaxies in SERVS+DeepDrill, the Spitzer Extragalactic Representative Volume Survey and its follow-up survey of the Deep Drilling Fields, in three large fields totalling over 20 sq. deg on the sky, observed in two bands centred on 3.6 and 4.5 micron. We performed this analysis on the full sample as well as on sources selected by [3.6]-[4.5] colour in order to probe clustering for different redshift regimes. We estimated the spatial correlation strength as well, using the redshift distribution from S-COSMOS with the same source selection. The strongest clustering was found for our bluest subsample, with z~0.7, which has the narrowest redshift distribution of all our subsamples. We compare these estimates to previous results from the literature, but also to estimates derived from mock samples, selected in the same way as the observational data, using deep light-cones generated from the SHARK semi-analytical model of galaxy formation. For all simulated (sub)samples we find a slightly steeper slope than for the corresponding observed ones, but the spatial clustering length is comparable in most cases.Comment: 20 pages, 15 figures, 6 tables, accepted for publication in MNRA

Dynamic changes in methadone utilisation for opioid use disorder treatment: a retrospective observational study during the COVID-19 pandemic

Objectives: Opioid use disorder (OUD) is a major public health concern in the USA, resulting in high rates of overdose and other negative outcomes. Methadone, an OUD treatment, has been shown to be effective in reducing the risk of overdose and improving overall health and quality of life. This study analysed the distribution of methadone for the treatment of OUD across the USA over the past decade and through the COVID-19 pandemic. Design: Retrospective observational study using secondary data analysis of the Drug Enforcement Administration and Medicaid Databases. Setting: USA. Participants: Patients who were dispensed methadone at US opioid treatment programmes (OTPs). Primary and secondary outcome measures: The primary outcomes were the overall pattern in methadone distribution and the number of OTPs in the USA per year. The secondary outcome was Medicaid prescriptions for methadone. Results: Methadone distribution for OUD has expanded significantly over the past decade, with an average state increase of +96.96% from 2010 to 2020. There was a significant increase in overall distribution of methadone to OTP from 2010 to 2020 (+61.00%, p\u3c0.001) and from 2015 to 2020 (+26.22%, p\u3c0.001). However, the distribution to OTPs did not significantly change from 2019 to 2021 (-5.15%, p=0.491). There was considerable state-level variation in methadone prescribing to Medicaid patients with four states having no prescriptions. Conclusions: There have been dynamic changes in methadone distribution for OUD. Furthermore, pronounced variation in methadone distribution among states was observed, with some states having no OTPs or Medicaid coverage. New policies are urgently needed to increase access to methadone treatment, address the opioid epidemic in the USA and reduce overdose deaths

Restraint Free in 2023

This EBP project evaluated if in hospitalized adult patients on Sands 800 does the use of a restraint management bundle decrease the use of restraints during the inpatient admission compared to current restraint practices. In the SICU, restraint usage is an initial response instead of last intervention. This culture of care concerns nurses and providers. It was hypothesized that decrease restraint usage and time in restraints will allow the patient to remain safer by evaluating usage of restraint alternatives, cost savings, patient mobility, and clinical staff understanding of appropriate restraint usage. The SICU was educated on the least restrictive device, which in this project was soft mitts. In-services and poster included the restraint wheel that provided alternatives to restraints. The team prioritized peer support and chart review. Restrained patients were reported to leadership daily with a focus on restraint use greater than 72 hours. Twice-daily audits verified orders and nursing documentation then were reported at shift change. The RGH results showed 636 orders for non-violent restraint orders across 17 units with 96.7 average restraint time in hours June 1, 2023 to June 11, 2023. SICU restraint use decreased since the implementation of restraint education and restraint alternative wheel. Prior to implementation, 38 total patients restrained in March decreased to 28 restrained in August 2023. From the results, the hypotheses was supported. An increased availability of alternatives and types of alternatives as well as education for staff members would continue the culture change.https://scholar.rochesterregional.org/nursingresearchday_2023/1011/thumbnail.jp