Health literacy, health status, and healthcare utilization of Taiwanese adults: results from a national survey

Abstract Background Low health literacy is considered a worldwide health threat. The purpose of this study is to assess the prevalence and socio-demographic covariates of low health literacy in Taiwanese adults and to investigate the relationships between health literacy and health status and health care utilization. Methods A national survey of 1493 adults was conducted in 2008. Health literacy was measured using the Mandarin Health Literacy Scale. Health status was measured based on self-rated physical and mental health. Health care utilization was measured based on self-reported outpatient clinic visits, emergency room visits, and hospitalizations. Results Approximately thirty percent of adults were found to have low (inadequate or marginal) health literacy. They tended to be older, have fewer years of schooling, lower household income, and reside in less populated areas. Inadequate health literacy was associated with poorer mental health (OR, 0.57; 95% CI, 0.35-0.91). No association was found between health literacy and health care utilization even after adjusting for other covariates. Conclusions Low (inadequate and marginal) health literacy is prevalent in Taiwan. High prevalence of low health literacy is not necessarily indicative of the need for interventions. Systematic efforts to evaluate the impact of low health literacy on health outcomes in other countries would help to illuminate features of health care delivery and financing systems that may mitigate the adverse health effects of low health literacy.http://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/78252/1/1471-2458-10-614.xmlhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/78252/2/1471-2458-10-614.pdfPeer Reviewe

Optimally combining dynamical decoupling and quantum error correction

We show how dynamical decoupling (DD) and quantum error correction (QEC) can be optimally combined in the setting of fault tolerant quantum computing. To this end we identify the optimal generator set of DD sequences designed to protect quantum information encoded into stabilizer subspace or subsystem codes. This generator set, comprising the stabilizers and logical operators of the code, minimizes a natural cost function associated with the length of DD sequences. We prove that with the optimal generator set the restrictive local-bath assumption used in earlier work on hybrid DD-QEC schemes, can be significantly relaxed, thus bringing hybrid DD-QEC schemes, and their potentially considerable advantages, closer to realization.Comment: 6 pages, 1 figur

Low-Cost Virtual Reality System - PC Driven System

The concept of Virtual Reality has been around since early 1960s, but the availability and development of Virtual Reality systems were largely limited due to its nature of high cost and difficulty in maintenance. Until recently, thanks to the fast development of the modern technology, the idea of building Virtual Reality system using commodity-off-the-shelf hardware became feasible. By using Personal Computers, we have in this project developed a Low-Cost Distributed Virtual Reality system that is much cheaper, easier to maintain and mobile. In this project, the design of stereo vision, corner projection and distributed architecture had been discussed and applied in the implementation of the Virtual Reality system. User experiment had been conducted. The aim of the user experiment is to test the system for presence level, Slater, Usoh and Steed (SUS) questionnaire was used as an indication to the level of presence. Furthermore, network performance related to scene complexities were also evaluated. From these experiment, we have found that the Virtual Reality system developed creates a good level of presence to the participants and scene complexity would influence the roundtrip time of the network. Lastly, this paper concludes by discussing why the Low-Cost Virtual Reality system developed to be an effective Virtual Reality system

Low-Cost Virtual Reality System (PS2-driven)

A low cost virtual reality system that generates corner projection using three PlayStation2 is presented. Two display stations each connected to one projector is used to provide panoramic view of the VR scene. A control station receives user input and broadcasts the instruction to the two display stations in order to update their respective camera positions and orientations. A demo application which immerses the user inside a glider flying through a night city has also been implemented. We report the performance of our system using random primitives. The benchmark revealed a gradual decline in frame rate in response to polygon counts in the scene. Polygon rate in our system remained near constant and does not vary with the polygon count on the screen. The results indicated for our system, a polygon count of 3540 on the screen with a refresh rate of 24fps is optimum in an interactive environment. Investigation on the relationship between roundtrip time and scene complexity revealed a significant positive correlation of (0.966). This suggests system response to user command can be delayed in a complex virtual environment

Combinatorial CRISPR-Cas9 screens for de novo mapping of genetic interactions.

We developed a systematic approach to map human genetic networks by combinatorial CRISPR-Cas9 perturbations coupled to robust analysis of growth kinetics. We targeted all pairs of 73 cancer genes with dual guide RNAs in three cell lines, comprising 141,912 tests of interaction. Numerous therapeutically relevant interactions were identified, and these patterns replicated with combinatorial drugs at 75% precision. From these results, we anticipate that cellular context will be critical to synthetic-lethal therapies

Selenium in serum and neoplastic tissue in breast cancer: correlation with CEA

Trace element selenium (Se) is regarded to be a breast cancer preventive factor involved in multiple protective pathways. In all, 80 women with breast cancer who underwent a radical mastectomy were enrolled in the study. Serum Se and carcinoembryonic antigen levels were measured using a fluorometric and IRMA assay, respectively. Se tissue concentration was determined by a tissue extracting fluorometric assay. For statistical analysis purposes t-test was used and P-values <0.001 were regarded as statistically significant. Serum Se was 42.5±7.5 μg l−1 in breast cancer patients and 67.6±5.36 μg l−1 in the age-matched control group of healthy individuals. Serum carcinoembryonic antigen in patients was 10±1.7 U ml−1 (normal <2.5 U ml−1 in nonsmokers/<3.5 U ml−1 in smokers). A statistically significant difference was found for both serum Se and CEA between two groups studied (P<0.001). Neoplastic tissue Se concentration was 2660±210 mg g−1 tissue; its concentration in the adjacent non-neoplastic tissue was 680±110 mg g−1 tissue (P<0.001). An inverse relationship between Se and CEA serum levels was found in the two groups studied (r=−0.794). There was no correlation between serum/tissue Se concentration and stage of the disease. The decrease in serum Se concentration as well as its increased concentration in the neoplastic breast tissue is of great significance. These alterations may reflect part of the defence mechanisms against the carcinogenetic process

Access and utilisation of primary health care services comparing urban and rural areas of Riyadh Providence, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) has seen an increase in chronic diseases. International evidence suggests that early intervention is the best approach to reduce the burden of chronic disease. However, the limited research available suggests that health care access remains unequal, with rural populations having the poorest access to and utilisation of primary health care centres and, consequently, the poorest health outcomes. This study aimed to examine the factors influencing the access to and utilisation of primary health care centres in urban and rural areas of Riyadh province of the KSA

Capture the fracture: a best practice framework and global campaign to break the fragility fracture cycle

Summary The International Osteoporosis Foundation (IOF) Capture the Fracture Campaign aims to support implementation of Fracture Liaison Services (FLS) throughout the world. Introduction FLS have been shown to close the ubiquitous secondary fracture prevention care gap, ensuring that fragility fracture sufferers receive appropriate assessment and intervention to reduce future fracture risk. Methods Capture the Fracture has developed internationally endorsed standards for best practice, will facilitate change at the national level to drive adoption of FLS and increase awareness of the challenges and opportunities presented by secondary fracture prevention to key stakeholders. The Best Practice Framework (BPF) sets an international benchmark for FLS, which defines essential and aspirational elements of service delivery. Results The BPF has been reviewed by leading experts from many countries and subject to beta-testing to ensure that it is internationally relevant and fit-for-purpose. The BPF will also serve as a measurement tool for IOF to award ‘Capture the Fracture Best Practice Recognition’ to celebrate successful FLS worldwide and drive service development in areas of unmet need. The Capture the Fracture website will provide a suite of resources related to FLS and secondary fracture prevention, which will be updated as new materials become available. A mentoring programme will enable those in the early stages of development of FLS to learn from colleagues elsewhere that have achieved Best Practice Recognition. A grant programme is in development to aid clinical systems which require financial assistance to establish FLS in their localities. Conclusion Nearly half a billion people will reach retirement age during the next 20 years. IOF has developed Capture the Fracture because this is the single most important thing that can be done to directly improve patient care, of both women and men, and reduce the spiralling fracture-related care costs worldwide.</p