'Gut health': a new objective in medicine?

'Gut health' is a term increasingly used in the medical literature and by the food industry. It covers multiple positive aspects of the gastrointestinal (GI) tract, such as the effective digestion and absorption of food, the absence of GI illness, normal and stable intestinal microbiota, effective immune status and a state of well-being. From a scientific point of view, however, it is still extremely unclear exactly what gut health is, how it can be defined and how it can be measured. The GI barrier adjacent to the GI microbiota appears to be the key to understanding the complex mechanisms that maintain gut health. Any impairment of the GI barrier can increase the risk of developing infectious, inflammatory and functional GI diseases, as well as extraintestinal diseases such as immune-mediated and metabolic disorders. Less clear, however, is whether GI discomfort in general can also be related to GI barrier functions. In any case, methods of assessing, improving and maintaining gut health-related GI functions are of major interest in preventive medicine

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Körperliche Aktivität als therapeutische Intervention bei Depression

Ziel Ziel der Arbeit ist die Darstellung des aktuellen Forschungsstandes zu körperlicher Aktivität als therapeutische Intervention bei Patienten mit Depressionen. Methodik Es wurde eine systematische Bewertung von im Zeitraum 1980 bis März 2016 veröffentlichten Fachartikeln, die den Einfluss einer Bewegungsintervention im Vergleich zu einer Kontrollbedingung in der Behandlung von Depressionen untersuchen, durchgeführt. Neben einer Beschreibung der Studiendesigns werden die Ergebnisse zu den verwendeten Zielvariablen depressive Symptomatik (DS) und affektive Befindlichkeit (AB), Art und Ausmaß der Bewegungsintervention und verwendete Erhebungsinventare tabellarisch dargestellt. Ergebnisse Insgesamt 34 der 48 in den Literaturüberblick aufgenommenen Studien berichten von signifikant positiven Auswirkungen von Bewegungsinterventionen auf die DS und die AB. 5 Studien berichten von einer tendenziell reduzierten DS infolge der Bewegungsintervention. 9 Studien konnten keinen positiven Einfluss von Bewegung auf die DS und die AB feststellen. Diskussion Dieser Übersichtssartikel zeigt, dass körperliche Aktivität zu einer Verminderung der Symptomatik und einer Steigerung der affektiven Befindlichkeit bei Patienten mit depressiven Erkrankungen führt. Daher sollten am aktuellen Trainingszustand depressiver Patienten orientierte moderate Bewegungsinterventionen einen Behandlungsbaustein im Rahmen eines mehrdimensionalen therapeutischen Zuganges darstellen.Aim This article gives a conspectus of the present state of research on the efficiency of exercise as a treatment for patients suffering from depression. Methods A systematic review of articles published between December 1980 and March 2016 was carried out. The review focused on studies that examined the effects of exercise compared to control conditions in the treatment of depression. Extracted and analyzed information from the articles included details about participants, characteristics of exercise and control conditions, assessments, study design and outcomes. Results A total of 34 of the 48 studies included in the literature search reported a significant reduction of depressive symptoms due to exercise interventions. There was a trend to reduced depressive symptoms following the exercise interventions in five studies. In nine studies no positive impact of exercise on depression and affective well-being could be detected. Discussion This review article shows that physical activity decreases depressive symptoms and increases affective well-being in patients with depressive diseases; therefore, exercise should be recommended as a component of depression treatment within the framework of a multi-dimensional approach.(VLID)452661

Immediate affective responses of gait training in neurological rehabilitation: a randomized crossover trial

Objective: To examine the immediate effects of physical therapy and robotic-assisted gait training on affective responses of gait training in neurological rehabilitation. Design: Randomized crossover trial with blinded observers. Patients: Sixteen patients with neurological disorders (stroke, traumatic brain injury, spinal cord injury, multiple sclerosis). Methods: All patients underwent 2 single treatment sessions: physical therapy and robotic-assisted gait training. Both before and after the treatment sessions, the self-report Mood Survey Scale was used to assess the effects of the treatment on distinct affective states. The subscales of the Mood Survey Scale were tested for pre-post changes and differences in effects between treatments, using non-parametric tests. Results: Fourteen participants completed the study. Patients showed a significant increase in activation (r=0.55), elation (r=0.79), and calmness (r=0.72), and a significant decrease in anger (r=0.64) after robotic-assisted gait training compared with physical therapy. Conclusion: Affective responses might be positively influenced by robotic-assisted gait training, which may help to overcome motivational problems during the rehabilitation process in neurological patients.(VLID)3080985Version of recor

To What Extent Do Attitudes Regarding Ski Helmets Change After a Period of Utilization?

Background: Common reasons reported for helmet non-use are impaired hearing and impaired vision and an increasing level of risk taking. Therefore, health communication programmes should be instituted to get non-helmeted skiers and snowboarders to try out helmets to eliminate their potential prejudices. Aim: to evaluate whether and to what extent attitudes regarding ski helmets change after a period of utilization. Methods: Subjects who wanted to borrow a ski helmet in a ski rental shop had to rate 14 attitudes about ski helmets using a 5-point Likert scale two times (1) before they borrow a helmet and (2) after the return of the helmet. Results: A total of 231 (43.7% females) subjects with a mean age of 35.2 +/- 14.3 years participated. A ski helmet was used never before, one time, and more times by 21.2, 16.7, and 62.1%, respectively. There was a significant increase after borrowing in the agreement that all winter sport participants should wear a ski helmet (p = .003), and that a ski helmet damages the hairstyle (p = .021) while there was a decreasing agreement that a ski helmet looks good/is stylish (p = .030). According to a factor analysis, attitudes about ski helmets clustered around two major dimensions - “safety awareness/comfort” and “subjective disadvantages” explaining 42-43% of the overall variance. A significant increase in the dimension “safety awareness/comfort” from pre- 31.8 5.9 to post-borrowing 32.6 5.9 (p < .001) was found while the dimension “subjective disadvantages” did not significantly change (pre: 18.6 4.3 vs. post: 19.1 4.3, p = .091). Regarding subgroup analysis with these two dimensions, previous helmet use (never before vs. one time vs. more times) did not show significant differences in the change in attitudes. Conclusion: The ski helmet-related dimension “safety awareness/comfort” significantly increased after a period of utilization, irrespective of previous helmet use.(VLID)3080979Version of recor

Determinants of COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy in French hospitals

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