Correlation of the Subjective Hip Value with Validated Patient-Reported Outcome Measurements for the Hip

Background: The subjective hip value (SHV) was developed as a patient-reported outcome measurement (PROM) that is easily and quickly performed and interpreted. The SHV is defined as a patient's subjective hip measurement tool expressed as a percentage of an entirely normal hip joint, which would score 100%. The hypothesis is that results of the subjective hip value correlate with the results of the modified Harris hip score and the International Hip Outcome Tool in patients with hip-related diseases. Methods: 302 patients completed the modified Harris hip score (mHHS), the International Hip Outcome Tool (iHot-33) as well as the SHV. The SHV consist of only one question: "What is the overall percent value of your hip if a completely normal hip represents 100%?". The patients were divided into five different groups depending on the diagnosis. Pearson correlation was used to evaluate the correlation between the different PROMs and linear regression analysis was used to calculate R2. Results: 302 complete datasets were available for evaluation. There was a high correlation between the SHV and the iHOT-33 (r = 0.847; r2 = 0.692, p < 0.001) and the mHHS (r = 0.832; r2 = 0.717, p < 0.001). The SHV showed a medium (r = 0.653) to high (r = 0.758) correlation with the mHHS and the iHOT-33 in all diagnosis groups. Conclusion: The SHV offers a useful adjunct to established hip outcome measurements, as it is easily and quickly performed and interpreted. The SHV reflects the view of the patient and is independent of the diagnosis. Further research with prospective studies is needed to test the psychometric properties of the score

Investigating the role of prey depletion in cetacean distributions and population dynamics

34th European Cetacean Society Conference, O Grove, 16-20 April 2023A key driver in determining the distribution and demography of cetaceans is the dispersion of their prey, in terms of availability, abundance and quality. A Working Group on Resource Depletion has been established within ASCOBANS to review current knowledge and develop recommendations for research and action. It includes members with expertise in veterinary and fishery science, cetacean biology, ecology and conservation. The group has eight terms of reference - reviewing and collating recent information on resource depletion and its impacts, prey distribution and abundance, health and condition indicators, small cetacean diet, spatio-temporal trends in small cetacean species, emerging technologies, integrating information from multiple data sources, and making recommendations for possible mitigation measures to aid conservation. As a first step, the group has summarised information on the diets of all small cetacean species regularly occurring in the ASCOBANS Agreement Area, and explored the parameters required to assess cetacean health and condition at both an individual and population level. The need to better understand prey choice in terms of prey availability and caloric content is highlighted along with the development of indicators of food shortage through necropsies of dead animals and photographic assessments of body condition in live animals. Future research, monitoring and conservation needs include refining the definition of prey depletion, developing prey depletion reference points, and articulating associated conservation objectives. We also need a better understanding of the relationships between cetacean physiology, energetics, body condition, health and diet, and of the population and ecosystem level consequences of prey depletion (e.g. based on the use of ecosystem models). Improved monitoring of prey and cetacean distribution and abundance at relevant spatiotemporal scales would facilitate estimation and mapping of resource depletion riskN

Local Signal Time-Series during Rest Used for Areal Boundary Mapping in Individual Human Brains

It is widely thought that resting state functional connectivity likely reflects functional interaction among brain areas and that different functional areas interact with different sets of brain areas. A method for mapping areal boundaries has been formulated based on the large-scale spatial characteristics of regional interaction revealed by resting state functional connectivity. In the present study, we present a novel analysis for areal boundary mapping that requires only the signal timecourses within a region of interest, without reference to the information from outside the region. The areal boundaries were generated by the novel analysis and were compared with those generated by the previously-established standard analysis. The boundaries were robust and reproducible across the two analyses, in two regions of interest tested. These results suggest that the information for areal boundaries is readily available inside the region of interest

Traveling EEG slow oscillation along the dorsal attention network initiates spontaneous perceptual switching

An ambiguous figure such as the Necker cube causes spontaneous perceptual switching (SPS). The mechanism of SPS in multistable perception has not yet been determined. Although early psychological studies suggested that SPS may be caused by fatigue or satiation of orientation, the neural mechanism of SPS is still unknown. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) has shown that the dorsal attention network (DAN), which mainly controls voluntary attention, is involved in bistable perception of the Necker cube. To determine whether neural dynamics along the DAN cause SPS, we performed simultaneous electroencephalography (EEG) and fMRI during an SPS task with the Necker cube, with every SPS reported by pressing a button. This EEG–fMRI integrated analysis showed that (a) 3–4 Hz spectral EEG power modulation at fronto-central, parietal, and centro-parietal electrode sites sequentially appeared from 750 to 350 ms prior to the button press; and (b) activations correlating with the EEG modulation traveled along the DAN from the frontal to the parietal regions. These findings suggest that slow oscillation initiates SPS through global dynamics along the attentional system such as the DAN

ATP-Dependent Infra-Slow (<0.1 Hz) Oscillations in Thalamic Networks

An increasing number of EEG and resting state fMRI studies in both humans and animals indicate that spontaneous low frequency fluctuations in cerebral activity at <0.1 Hz (infra-slow oscillations, ISOs) represent a fundamental component of brain functioning, being known to correlate with faster neuronal ensemble oscillations, regulate behavioural performance and influence seizure susceptibility. Although these oscillations have been commonly indicated to involve the thalamus their basic cellular mechanisms remain poorly understood. Here we show that various nuclei in the dorsal thalamus in vitro can express a robust ISO at ∼0.005–0.1 Hz that is greatly facilitated by activating metabotropic glutamate receptors (mGluRs) and/or Ach receptors (AchRs). This ISO is a neuronal population phenomenon which modulates faster gap junction (GJ)-dependent network oscillations, and can underlie epileptic activity when AchRs or mGluRs are stimulated excessively. In individual thalamocortical neurons the ISO is primarily shaped by rhythmic, long-lasting hyperpolarizing potentials which reflect the activation of A1 receptors, by ATP-derived adenosine, and subsequent opening of Ba2+-sensitive K+ channels. We argue that this ISO has a likely non-neuronal origin and may contribute to shaping ISOs in the intact brain

Genome-wide association identifies nine common variants associated with fasting proinsulin levels and provides new insights into the pathophysiology of type 2 diabetes.

OBJECTIVE: Proinsulin is a precursor of mature insulin and C-peptide. Higher circulating proinsulin levels are associated with impaired β-cell function, raised glucose levels, insulin resistance, and type 2 diabetes (T2D). Studies of the insulin processing pathway could provide new insights about T2D pathophysiology. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: We have conducted a meta-analysis of genome-wide association tests of ∼2.5 million genotyped or imputed single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and fasting proinsulin levels in 10,701 nondiabetic adults of European ancestry, with follow-up of 23 loci in up to 16,378 individuals, using additive genetic models adjusted for age, sex, fasting insulin, and study-specific covariates. RESULTS: Nine SNPs at eight loci were associated with proinsulin levels (P < 5 × 10(-8)). Two loci (LARP6 and SGSM2) have not been previously related to metabolic traits, one (MADD) has been associated with fasting glucose, one (PCSK1) has been implicated in obesity, and four (TCF7L2, SLC30A8, VPS13C/C2CD4A/B, and ARAP1, formerly CENTD2) increase T2D risk. The proinsulin-raising allele of ARAP1 was associated with a lower fasting glucose (P = 1.7 × 10(-4)), improved β-cell function (P = 1.1 × 10(-5)), and lower risk of T2D (odds ratio 0.88; P = 7.8 × 10(-6)). Notably, PCSK1 encodes the protein prohormone convertase 1/3, the first enzyme in the insulin processing pathway. A genotype score composed of the nine proinsulin-raising alleles was not associated with coronary disease in two large case-control datasets. CONCLUSIONS: We have identified nine genetic variants associated with fasting proinsulin. Our findings illuminate the biology underlying glucose homeostasis and T2D development in humans and argue against a direct role of proinsulin in coronary artery disease pathogenesis

New genetic loci link adipose and insulin biology to body fat distribution.

Body fat distribution is a heritable trait and a well-established predictor of adverse metabolic outcomes, independent of overall adiposity. To increase our understanding of the genetic basis of body fat distribution and its molecular links to cardiometabolic traits, here we conduct genome-wide association meta-analyses of traits related to waist and hip circumferences in up to 224,459 individuals. We identify 49 loci (33 new) associated with waist-to-hip ratio adjusted for body mass index (BMI), and an additional 19 loci newly associated with related waist and hip circumference measures (P < 5 × 10(-8)). In total, 20 of the 49 waist-to-hip ratio adjusted for BMI loci show significant sexual dimorphism, 19 of which display a stronger effect in women. The identified loci were enriched for genes expressed in adipose tissue and for putative regulatory elements in adipocytes. Pathway analyses implicated adipogenesis, angiogenesis, transcriptional regulation and insulin resistance as processes affecting fat distribution, providing insight into potential pathophysiological mechanisms

Is transverse screw fixation really necessary in PAO?—A comparative in vivo study

The optimal fixation technique in periacetabular osteotomy (PAO) remains controversial. This study aims to assess the in vivo stability of fixation in PAO with and without the use of a transverse screw. We performed a retrospective study to analyse consecutive patients who underwent PAO between January 2015 and June 2017. Eighty four patients (93 hips) of which 79% were female were included. In 54 cases, no transverse screw was used (group 1) compared with 39 with transverse screw (group 2). Mean age was 26.5 (15–44) in group 1 and 28.4 (16–45) in group 2. Radiological parameters relevant for DDH including lateral center edge angle of Wiberg (LCEA), Tönnis angle (TA) and femoral head extrusion index (FHEI) were measured preoperatively, post-operatively and at 3-months follow-up. All patients were mobilized with the same mobilization regimen. Post-operative LCEA, TA and FHEI were improved significantly in both groups for all parameters (P ≤ 0.0001). Mean initial correction for LCEA (P = 0.753), TA (P = 0.083) and FHEI (P = 0.616) showed no significant difference between the groups. Final correction at follow-up of the respective parameters was also not significantly different between both groups for LCEA (P = 0.447), TA (P = 0.100) and FHEI (P = 0.270). There was no significant difference between initial and final correction for the respective parameters. Accordingly, only minimal loss of correction was measured, showing no difference between the two groups for LCEA (P = 0.227), TA (P = 0.153) and FHEI (P = 0.324). Transverse screw fixation is not associated with increased fragment stability in PAO. This can be taken into account by surgeons when deciding on the fixation technique of the acetabular fragment in PAO