Sex differences in the effects of exercise on cognition post-stroke: Secondary analysis of a randomized controlled trial

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether there are differences in exercise-associated changes in cognitive func-tion between males and females living with stroke. DESIGN: Secondary analysis of data from a prospective assessor-blinded randomized controlled trial. PARTICIPANTS: Fifty participants (50-80 years, \u3e 1 year post-stroke, able to walk ≥ 5 m). METHODS: Participants were allocated into a 6-month aerobic exercise programme (14 males, 11 females) or balance and flexibility programme (15 males, 10 females). Working memory (Verbal Digit Span Backwards Test), selective attention and conflict resolution (Stroop Colour-Word Test), and set shifting/cognitive flexibility (Trail-Making Test B) were assessed before and after the programmes. RESULTS: There was a group × time interaction in females (effect size 0.28, p = 0.03), which was not observed in males (effect size 0.01, p = 0.62). Females demonstrated a Stroop Colour-Word Interference test change of -2.3 s, whereas males demonstrated a change of +5.5 s following aerobic exercise. There were no differences between exercise groups in either sex for any of the other outcomes (working memory and set-shifting/cognitive flexibility). CONCLUSION: Females living with stroke may demonstrate a greater response to exercise on selective attention and conflict resolution compared with males with stroke. These findings suggest that there may be sex-specific effects of exercise on cognitive func-tion in individuals with stroke

Sequencing of Rhinoviruses in Egyptian children with respiratory tract infections

Background: Human rhinoviruses (HRV) are one of the most common causes of upper respiratory tract infections among young children.  Human rhinoviruses have  a wide genetic diversity. They include three different species A, B and-C. Acute Respiratory Infection (ARI) is considered to be  an important  cause of morbidity and mortality in neonates and children. Aim of the study:  To  detect  the common  subtypes of circulating HRV among Egyptian children with respiratory infections for  further epidemiological characterization. Methods: We enrolled 161 children admitted to Ain Shams Pediatric University Hospital complaining of respiratory tract infections.  Human rhinoviruses  were detected by RT-PCR. Sequencing of HRV was done based on viral proteins (VP4-VP2) genomic region analyses by RT-PCR. Results: HRV were detected in 54 cases (33.5%)with respiratory tract infections.Sixty-five (65) % of detected HRV was in children aged 5-10 years. Molecular sequencing  showed high prevalence of HRV-C (67%) followed by HRV-A (33%). Conclusion:  This study is from the first few studies that revealed diversity of HRV in Egypt. Different phylogenetic studies are needed to evaluate their diversity and to trace their spread and epidemiological origin

Can religious affiliation explain the disadvantage of Muslim women in the British labour market?

This article aims to explain the labour market penalties among Muslim women in Britain. It draws on theories of intersectionality and colour/cultural racism to argue that the labour market experience of British-Muslim women is multiply determined via criteria of ascription such as ethnicity, migration status, race and religion rather than criteria of achievement. The study uses data from the Labour Force Survey (2002–2013) with a large sample (N=245,391) of women aged 19–65 years. The overarching finding suggests that most Muslim women, regardless of their multiple ascriptive identities, generation and levels of qualifications, still face significant penalties compared with their White-British Christian counterparts. The penalties for some groups, such as Pakistani, Bangladeshi and Black-Muslim women, are harsher than for Indian and White-Muslim women, demonstrating how different social markers and multiple identities have contingent relationships to multiple determinants and outcomes

The Effects of Diet on the Proportion of Intramuscular Fat in Human Muscle: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

BackgroundThere is an increasing trend in the consumption of poor-quality diets worldwide, contributing to the increase of non-communicable diseases. Diet directly influences physiological composition and subsequently physical health. Studies have shown that dietary macronutrient and energy content can influence the proportion of intramuscular fat (IMF), which mediates various metabolic and endocrine dysfunction. The purpose of this systematic review was to identify evidence in the literature assessing the association between different dietary interventions on the proportion of IMF in humans.MethodsThree medical databases were investigated (Medline, EMBASE, and Cochrane) to identify studies assessing changes in IMF after dietary interventions. The primary outcome measure was the change in IMF proportions after a dietary intervention. The effects of high-fat, high-carbohydrate, low-calorie, and starvation diets were assessed qualitatively. A meta-analysis assessing the effect of high-fat diets was conducted. Follow-up sensitivity and subgroup analyses were also conducted.ResultsOne thousand eight hundred and sixty-six articles were identified for review. Of these articles, 13 were eligible for inclusion after a full screening. High-fat diets increased IMF proportions, standardized mean difference = 1.24 (95% confidence interval, 0.43–2.05) and a significant overall effect size (P = 0.003). Diets with an increased proportion of carbohydrates decreased IMF proportions; however, increasing caloric intake with carbohydrates increased IMF. Starvation diets increased IMF stores, and hypocaloric diets did not result in any IMF proportion changes.ConclusionThis systematic review suggests that high-fat diets and diets with caloric intake increased above the amount required to maintain BMI with carbohydrates, and short-term starvation diets are associated with increases in IMF content. Further studies are needed to assess the effects of macronutrient combinations on IMF and the influence of diet-induced IMF alterations on health outcomes. In addition, IMF poses a possibly effective clinical marker of health

The effects of exercise on cognition post-stroke: are there sex differences? A systematic review and meta-analysis

© 2020, © 2020 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group. Purpose: The aim of this systematic review was to investigate if sex moderated the effect of exercise on cognition in adults post-stroke. Methods: A systematic review was conducted of randomized controlled trials that involved adults ≥18 years with stroke, any exercise intervention, and reported any outcome related to cognitive function. We compared effect sizes of cognitive outcomes between studies of lower and higher proportion of females (CRD42018092757). Results: The effects of exercise did not differ between studies of higher and lower female proportions with respect to memory (χ2 =1.52, p = 0.22), executive function (χ2 = 0.56, p = 0.45; Chi2 = 0.00, p = 0.98), language (Chi2 = 3.17, p = 0.08) or global cognition (χ2 = 0.88, p = 0.35). Conclusion: There were no sex differences in the effects of exercise on memory, executive functioning, language or global cognition in individuals with stroke. Further research is warranted to address sex differences in individuals with stroke to enable better targeting, prevention, and interventions in stroke rehabilitation.IMPLICATIONS FOR REHABILITATION Understanding sex differences and potentially similarities in the relationship between exercise and cognition is an important step in enhancing stroke rehabilitation and the development of optimal, sex-specific rehabilitation. Although our findings suggest that there is no clear rationale for incorporating sex into our clinical decision making, it is still imperative to consider sex factors in research and report results in the literature disaggregated by sex to help inform clinical practice

Prolactinoma and Adenomyosis – More than Meets the Eye: A Case Report

Background/Objective: To report a case of adenomyosis in a woman with hyperprolactinemia which resolved after initiation of dopamine agonist therapy. Case Report: A 35-year-old woman with a history of Graves’ disease was referred for evaluation of hyperthyroidism in March 2020. She was started on methimazole and thyroid function normalized. The patient also had a history of a pituitary microadenoma and was previously treated with cabergoline which was stopped after 12 months as she became pregnant.In July 2020, the patient began to have polymenorrhea. Hyperprolactinemia was thought to be an unlikely cause as it most often causes hypogonadotropic hypogonadism with amenorrhea. A pelvic ultrasound demonstrated a bulky uterus with adenomyosis. Gynecology recommended treating adenomyosis by lowering her prolactin levels. She was started on cabergoline 0.25 mg weekly in October 2021. Within 2 months of initiation of cabergoline, she had resolution of symptoms and radiological resolution of adenomyosis. Discussion: Prolactin has been implicated in the pathogenesis of adenomyosis, endometriosis and leiomyomas suggesting that a decrease in prolactin levels may suppress these lesions. The pathogenesis of adenomyosis has been related to direct prolactin effects in the promotion of gland/cell proliferation and function. Conclusion: We conclude that prolonged elevation in prolactin may result in the development of adenomyosis and subsequent prolonged abnormal uterine bleeding. Dopamine agonists, like cabergoline, inhibit the synthesis and secretion of prolactin from the pituitary gland and may have a role in the management of adenomyosis in patients with hyperprolactinemia

Impact of Dietary Betaine and Metabolizable Energy Levels on Profiles of Proteins and Lipids, Bioenergetics, Peroxidation and Quality of Meat in Japanese Quail

Three different diets were formulated with three levels of metabolizable energy (ME) (optimum; 2900, restricted; 2800 and low; 2700 kcal ME/kg diet) without or with (0 and 0.15%) betaine supplementation in 2 × 3 factorial design to evaluate the effect of six experimental diets on performance, proteins and lipids profiles, bioenergetics, peroxidation and meat quality of Japanese quail. Therefore, 360 quails allocated into six groups in a 23-day experiment. Dietary betaine and ME levels did not affect the performance, meat energy indices (ATP and AMP) and malondialdehyde (MDA) levels of Japanese quail meat. Dietary betaine and/or ME levels induced significant changes in serum triacylglycerol (TAG), total cholesterols (TC), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-c), very low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (VLDL-c), meat total lipids and cholesterol of Japanese quail. Optimum and restricted ME levels reduced total volatile basic nitrogen (TVBN) whereas dietary betaine increased ecosapentaenoic (EPA), docosahexaenoic acids (DHA) and glutamine concentrations in breast meat of Japanese quail. Dietary betaine and low energy diet improved cooking loss, thawing loss (ThL) and water holding capacity (WHC) in breast meat of Japanese quail. Conclusively, dietary betaine improved meat quality of Japanese quail fed diets containing either restricted or low ME by enrichments the meat with omega-3 fatty acids and reduction of lipids levels

Smart Home IoT System by Using RF Energy Harvesting

IoT system becomes a hot topic nowadays for smart home. IoT helps devices to communicate together without human intervention inside home, so it is offering many challenges. A new smart home IoT platform powered using electromagnetic energy harvesting is proposed in this paper. It contains a high gain transmitted antenna array and efficient circularly polarized array rectenna system to harvest enough power from any direction to increase lifetime of the batteries used in the IoT system. Optimized energy consumption, the software with adopting the Zigbee protocol of the sensor node, and a low-power microcontroller are used to operate in lower power modes. The proposed system has an 84.6-day lifetime which is approximately 10 times the lifetime for a similar system. On the other hand, the proposed power management circuit is operated at 0.3 V DC to boost the voltage to ~3.7 V from radio frequency energy harvesting and manage battery level to increase the battery lifetime. A predictive indoor environment monitoring system is designed based on a novel hybrid system to provide a nonstatic plan, approve energy consumption, and avoid failure of sensor nodes in a smart home

Global economic burden of unmet surgical need for appendicitis

Background There is a substantial gap in provision of adequate surgical care in many low- and middle-income countries. This study aimed to identify the economic burden of unmet surgical need for the common condition of appendicitis. Methods Data on the incidence of appendicitis from 170 countries and two different approaches were used to estimate numbers of patients who do not receive surgery: as a fixed proportion of the total unmet surgical need per country (approach 1); and based on country income status (approach 2). Indirect costs with current levels of access and local quality, and those if quality were at the standards of high-income countries, were estimated. A human capital approach was applied, focusing on the economic burden resulting from premature death and absenteeism. Results Excess mortality was 4185 per 100 000 cases of appendicitis using approach 1 and 3448 per 100 000 using approach 2. The economic burden of continuing current levels of access and local quality was US $92 492 million using approach 1 and$73 141 million using approach 2. The economic burden of not providing surgical care to the standards of high-income countries was $95 004 million using approach 1 and$75 666 million using approach 2. The largest share of these costs resulted from premature death (97.7 per cent) and lack of access (97.0 per cent) in contrast to lack of quality. Conclusion For a comparatively non-complex emergency condition such as appendicitis, increasing access to care should be prioritized. Although improving quality of care should not be neglected, increasing provision of care at current standards could reduce societal costs substantially