Is Fitbit Charge 2 a feasible instrument to monitor daily physical activity and handbike training in persons with spinal cord injury? : A pilot study

Study design: It is a longitudinal pilot study. Objectives: To investigate the feasibility of a low-cost and widely used fitness tracker with step count and heart rate data to monitor daily physical activity in wheelchair users with spinal cord injury (SCI). Setting: Dutch community. Methods: Six participants with SCI who were in training for a handbike event were recruited. They were asked to wear a Fitbit Charge 2® 24 h a day for at least 2 weeks and were questioned about the utility and user-friendliness of this device. Results: Five out of six participants managed to wear the device nonstop for 2 weeks, and continued to wear the device after this initial period. Most participants were enthusiastic about the direct feedback provided by the tracker and reported the data to be accurate. Data collected during more than 2 months of three participants and during 8 months on one of them showed the possibility of detecting training days and observing interpersonal and intrapersonal variation in daily physical activity level. Conclusions: A commercially available, low-cost, self-monitoring multi-sensor wrist device or a fitness tracker like the Fitbit Charge 2® can be a promising instrument to monitor daily activity levels among wheelchair users with SCI. The free commercial dashboard and log data clearly show trends of variations in physical activity and increases in heart rate, which are of value to both researchers and clinicians interested in identifying training schedules of wheelchair athletes

Is Fitbit Charge 2 a feasible instrument to monitor daily physical activity and handbike training in persons with spinal cord injury?:A pilot study

Study design: It is a longitudinal pilot study.Objectives: To investigate the feasibility of a low-cost and widely used fitness tracker with step count and heart rate data to monitor daily physical activity in wheelchair users with spinal cord injury (SCI).Setting: Dutch community.Methods: Six participants with SCI who were in training for a handbike event were recruited. They were asked to wear a Fitbit Charge 2® 24 h a day for at least 2 weeks and were questioned about the utility and user-friendliness of this device.Results: Five out of six participants managed to wear the device nonstop for 2 weeks, and continued to wear the device after this initial period. Most participants were enthusiastic about the direct feedback provided by the tracker and reported the data to be accurate. Data collected during more than 2 months of three participants and during 8 months on one of them showed the possibility of detecting training days and observing interpersonal and intrapersonal variation in daily physical activity level.Conclusions: A commercially available, low-cost, self-monitoring multi-sensor wrist device or a fitness tracker like the Fitbit Charge 2® can be a promising instrument to monitor daily activity levels among wheelchair users with SCI. The free commercial dashboard and log data clearly show trends of variations in physical activity and increases in heart rate, which are of value to both researchers and clinicians interested in identifying training schedules of wheelchair athletes.</p

Geoarcheologisch inventariserend veldonderzoek van het Yangtzehavenproject (verkennende fase 2)

Voor de aanleg van een scheepvaartverbinding tot het Maasvlakte 2 gebied - in het meest westelijk gelegen havengebied van Rotterdam - zal de Yangtzehaven worden verdiept en in westelijke richting worden verlengd. Dit werk wordt uitgevoerd door het Havenbedrijf Rotterdam N.V. De geplande havenverdieping ligt in het huidige Maasvlakte 1 gebied en maakt onderdeel uit van het project Maasvlakte 2. Bij de uitvoering van dit werk zullen Vroeg en Laat Holocene lagen verstoord worden die archeologische waarden kunnen bevatten. Het betreft de lagen op een diepte van 17 - 22 m -NAP. Uit het archeologisch vooronderzoek komt naar voren dat er twee archeologische verwachtingscategorieën met betrekking tot de bedreigde diepere ondergrond (17 en 22 m - NAP) kunnen voorkomen: - Archeologische waarden uit de steentijd in de top van de rivierduinzanden en de basis van de Vroeg Holocene delta-afzettingen. - Scheepswrakken in de Subatlantische geulen. In Bijlage 14 zijn met een arcering de meest kansrijke gebieden aangegeven voor wat betreft de steentijd archeologie en het mogelijk voorkomen van scheepswrakken. In deze studie wordt aanbevolen om deze kansrijke gebieden nader archeologisch en paleolandschappelijk te onderzoeken. Met deze aanvullende kennis kan de beste veldstrategie bepaald - voor beide categorieën - worden met betrekking tot het archeologische vervolgonderzoek in het Yangtzehaven gebied

Epidemiology and clinical characteristics of autoimmune hepatitis in the Netherlands

Abstract Background and aims. Epidemiological data on autoimmune hepatitis (AIH) are scarce. In this study, we determined the clinical and epidemiological characteristics of AIH patients in the Netherlands (16.7 million inhabitants). Methods. Clinical characteristics were collected from 1313 AIH patients (78% females) from 31 centers, including all eight academic centers in the Netherlands. Additional data on ethnicity, family history and symptoms were obtained by the use of a questionnaire. Results. The prevalence of AIH was 18.3 (95% confidential interval [CI]: 17.3-19.4) per 100,000 with an annual incidence of 1.1 (95% CI: 0.5-2) in adults. An incidence peak was found in middle-aged women. At diagnosis, 56% of patients had fibrosis and 12% cirrhosis in liver biopsy. Overall, 1% of patients developed HCC and 3% of patients underwent liver transplantation. Overlap with primary biliary cirrhosis and primary sclerosing cholangitis was found in 9% and 6%, respectively. The clinical course did not differ between Caucasian and non-Caucasian patients. Other autoimmune diseases were found in 26% of patients. Half of the patients reported persistent AIH-related symptoms despite treatment with a median treatment period of 8 years (range 1-44 years). Familial occurrence was reported in three cases. Conclusion. This is the largest epidemiological study of AIH in a geographically defined region and demonstrates that the prevalence of AIH in the Netherlands is uncommon. Although familial occurrence of AIH is extremely rare, our twin data may point towards a genetic predisposition. The high percentage of patients with cirrhosis or fibrosis at diagnosis urges the need of more awareness for AI

The symbiotic division of labour between heterogeneous districts in the Dutch and Italian horticultural industry.

This article focuses on the historical development of one ornamental horticulture district in the Netherlands and two in Italy. The aim is to underline the global division of labour among three districts driven by industrial district heterogeneity, uneven learning systems and a unique specialisation in production and retailing. The historical development of all the districts is very similar, but the application of science and the role of local institutions explain the evolution of the cluster in the Netherlands. Despite the lack of natural resources and unfavourable climate, high labour and energy costs, the Dutch district and the Netherlands-based horticulture industry hold a leading position. Although endowed with better natural resources, the Italian districts belong to a very weak national innovation system and are now strongly dependent on the Dutch system