Examining How Congruence in and Satisfaction with Dyadic Care Type Appraisal Contribute to Quality of Life in Heart Failure Care Dyads

AIMS: Given the complexity of heart failure (HF) management, persons with HF and their informal caregivers often engage in dyadic illness management. It is unknown how congruent appraisal of dyadic HF care type is associated with dyadic health. Our aim was to examine how congruence in and satisfaction with appraisal of dyadic HF care type contribute to quality of life (QOL) for dyads. METHODS AND RESULTS: This is a secondary analysis of cross-sectional data on 275 HF care dyads (patients 45.1% female, caregivers 70.5% female). Congruent appraisal and satisfaction were assessed using the Dyadic Symptom Management Type instrument. Quality of life was measured using the Short Form-12. Multilevel dyadic models were estimated to examine the contribution of congruence and satisfaction with dyadic care type to physical and mental QOL. Congruent appraisal of dyadic care type was positively associated with caregivers\u27 mental QOL (B = 2.69, P = 0.026). Satisfaction with dyadic care type was positively associated with physical and mental QOL for persons with HF (B = 1.58, P = 0.011 and B = 2.09, P = 0.002, respectively) and informal caregivers (B = 1.70, P = 0.004 and B = 2.90, P \u3c 0.001, respectively), while controlling for age, New York Heart Association class, daily hours spent together, relationship type, and congruence with dyadic care type. CONCLUSION: Satisfaction with dyadic care type appraisal was a stronger contributor to QOL for HF care dyads, compared with congruent appraisals. It is important to understand reasons for dissatisfaction within the dyad to assist dyad members in reaching shared appraisals while managing HF

Effects of Thermomechanical Processing on the Resulting Mechanical Properties of 6101 Aluminum Foam

Porous materials represent a tremendous weight savings for light-weight structural applications. The fabrication path can play a critical role in the resulting properties. High porosity aluminum was fabricated in a number of ways. The starting material was a cast 6101 aluminum that had a relative density of 9.8%. The cast aluminum block was compressed by uniaxial, biaxial, and triaxial densification. Uniaxial compression was done at room temperature and 200 C. Biaxial compression was achieved by unidirectional rolling at room temperature and 200 C. Triaxial compression was done by cold isostatic pressing at 3.4, 6.7, and 34 MPa (0.5, 1.0, and 5.0 ksi). Metallography and mechanical test specimens were machines from the processed bars. The mechanical properties showed that the relative yield strength depended both on relative density and processing temperature

Patients on Antithrombotic Agents with Small Bowel Bleeding –Yield of Small Bowel Capsule Endoscopy and Subsequent Management

Background and Aims: Small bowel gastrointestinal bleeding (GIB) is associated with multiple blood transfusions, prolonged and/or multiple hospital admissions, utilization of significant healthcare resources, and negative effects on patient quality of life. There is a well-recognized association between antithrombotic medications and small bowel GIB. We aimed to identify the diagnostic yield of small bowel capsule endoscopy (SBCE) in patients on antithrombotic medications and the impact of SBCE on treatment course. Methods: The electronic medical records of nineteen hundred eighty-six patients undergoing SBCE were retrospectively reviewed. Results: The diagnostic yield for detecting stigmata of recent bleeding and/or actively bleeding lesions in SBCE was higher in patients that were on antiplatelet agents (21.6%), patients on anticoagulation (22.5%), and in patients that had their SBCE performed while they were inpatient (21.8%), when compared to the patients not on antiplatelet agents (12.1%), patients not on anticoagulation (13.5%), and with patients that had their SBCE performed in the outpatient setting (12%). Of 318 patients who had stigmata of recent bleeding and/or actively bleeding lesion(s) identified on SBCE, SBCE findings prompted endoscopic evaluation (small bowel enteroscopy, esophagogastroduodenoscopy (EGD), and/or colonoscopy) in 25.2%, with endoscopic hemostasis attempted in 52.5%. Conclusions: Our study, the largest conducted to date, emphasizes the importance of performing SBCE as part of the evaluation for suspected small bowel bleeding, particularly in patients taking antithrombotic therapy, and especially during their inpatient hospital stay

Effects of thermomechanical processing on the resulting mechanical properties of 6101 aluminum foam

Porous materials represent a tremendous weight savings for light-weight structural applications. The fabrication path can play a critical role in the resulting properties. High porosity aluminum was fabricated in a number of ways. The starting material was a cast 6101 aluminum that had a relative density of 9.8%. The cast aluminum block was compressed by uniaxial, biaxial, and triaxial densification. Uniaxial compression was done at room temperature and 200 C. Biaxial compression was achieved by unidirectional rolling at room temperature and 200 C. Triaxial compression was done by cold isostatic pressing at 3.4, 6.7, and 34 MPa (0.5, 1.0, and 5.0 ksi). Metallography and mechanical test specimens were machines from the processed bars. The mechanical properties showed that the relative yield strength depended both on relative density and processing temperature

Simultaneous Mapping of T1 and T2 Using Cardiac Magnetic Resonance Fingerprinting in a Cohort of Healthy Subjects at 1.5T

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/162735/2/jmri27155.pdfhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/162735/1/jmri27155_am.pd

Self-Reported Adolescent Health Status of Extremely Low Birth Weight Children Born 1992-1995

To compare the self-reported health of extremely low birth weight (ELBW

The Biosurveillance Analytics Resource Directory (BARD): Facilitating the Use of Epidemiological Models for Infectious Disease Surveillance

Epidemiological modeling for infectious disease is important for disease management and its routine implementation needs to be facilitated through better description of models in an operational context. A standardized model characterization process that allows selection or making manual comparisons of available models and their results is currently lacking. A key need is a universal framework to facilitate model description and understanding of its features. Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) has developed a comprehensive framework that can be used to characterize an infectious disease model in an operational context. The framework was developed through a consensus among a panel of subject matter experts. In this paper, we describe the framework, its application to model characterization, and the development of the Biosurveillance Analytics Resource Directory (BARD; http://brd.bsvgateway.org/brd/), to facilitate the rapid selection of operational models for specific infectious/communicable diseases. We offer this framework and associated database to stakeholders of the infectious disease modeling field as a tool for standardizing model description and facilitating the use of epidemiological models

Qualitative and Quantitative Performance of 18 F-FDG-PET/MRI versus 18 F-FDG-PET/CT in Patients with Head and Neck Cancer

ABSTRACT BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: MR imaging and PET/CT are integrated in the work-up of head and neck cancer patients. The hybrid imaging technology 18 F-FDG-PET/MR imaging combining morphological and functional information might be attractive in this patien

Bullying of extremely low birth weight children: Associated risk factors during adolescence

Preterm children have many risk factors which may increase their susceptibility to being bullied. AIMS: To examine the prevalence of bullying among extremely low birth weight (ELBW, <1kg) and normal birth weight (NBW) adolescents and the associated sociodemographic, physical, and psychosocial risk factors and correlates among the ELBW children

Migration of wear debris of polyethylene depends on bone microarchitecture

The mechanism of hip arthroplasties loosening is related to the migration of wear debris throughout the implant environment. In vivo, polyethylene particles (PE) were shown to infiltrate the bone implant interface and the medullary spaces of the cancellous bone. Our test hypothesis was that polyethylene particle migration is correlated to bone porosity. Bone samples with a high or low trabecular volume and microarchitecture were harvested in 20 calves and 20 human cadavers. They were extensively washed to remove marrow cells. Bone cylinders were filled with a light-curing monomer having the same viscosity as bone marrow. PE particles (7 and 33 μm) were deposited at the surface of the polymer. The bone cylinders were agitated during 7 days on an orbital shaker and the gel was left to polymerize at day light. X-ray microtomography was performed to characterize bone volume and microarchitecture. Cylinders were sectioned and observed under polarized light. The migration distance and rate were determined. Migration of PE particles strongly depended on trabecular bone volume and microarchitecture. We found a linear relationship (r = 0.61) between speed migration and bone volume and an exponential relationship between speed migration and bone architecture. The present in vitro model confirmed our hypothesis about the key role of bone microarchitecture in the migration of large PE wear particles. This is an explanation for the development of inflammatory reaction at distance from a prosthesis although our study did not include submicron particles