Bringing Creative Psychotherapies to Primary NHS Mental Health Services in the UK:A Feasibility Study on Patient and Staff Experiences of Arts for the Blues Workshops Delivered at Improving Access to Psychological Therapies (IAPT) services

There have been several arguments for the need to generate evidence-based creative forms of psychological interventions in Improving Access to Psychological Services (IAPT), the main primary mental health provider in hospitals in England, UK. In this feasibility study, we sought to identify helpful and unhelpful factors of a new creative group psychotherapy, titled Arts for the Blues. We also wanted to find out whether the research tools used were acceptable and sensitive. We therefore engaged a group of seven patients attending an IAPT service in the North West of England, and a group of six staff working in the same service, to attend one creative workshop each, followed by a focus group. The two focus groups were transcribed and analysed using thematic analysis. We also collected pre- and post-measures of depression (PHQ-9) and anxiety (GAD-7), measures commonly used in IAPT services, plus measures of well-being (WHO-5), the PANAS, and goal-setting, which were considered for acceptability and sensitivity. We received largely positive responses from service users and staff in the use of creative methods in psychotherapy. Although the measures used had limitations due to the short duration of one-off creative workshops, we found that they were sensitive enough, easy to complete and, thus, were acceptable. We concluded that Arts for the Blues is a promising intervention in IAPT, especially since it is shaped by service users and staff working in these services. Further work is needed to establish the effectiveness of this new intervention

Geodetic VLBI Observations of EGRET Blazars

We present VLBI observations of the EGRET quasars 0202+149, CTA 26, and 1606+106, as well as additional analysis of VLBI observations of 1156+295 presented in Piner & Kingham (1997b). We have produced 8 and 2 GHz VLBI images at 11 epochs, 8 epochs, and 12 epochs, spanning the years 1989 to 1996, of 0202+149, CTA 26, and 1606+106 respectively. The VLBI data have been taken from the Washington VLBI correlator's geodetic database. We have measured the apparent velocities of the jet components and find that CTA 26 and 1606+106 are superluminal sources, with average apparent speeds of 8.9 and 2.9 h^{-1}c respectively (H_{0}=100h km s^{-1} Mpc^{-1}, q_{0}=0.5). The components in 0202+149 are stationary, and we identify this source as a compact F double. These sources all have apparently bent jets, and we detected non-radial motion of components in CTA 26 and 1156+295. We have not yet detected any components emerging subsequent to the gamma-ray flares in CTA 26, 1156+295, and 1606+106, and we derive lower limits on the ejection times of any such components. The misalignment angle distribution of the EGRET sources is compared to the distribution for blazars as a whole, and we find that EGRET sources belong preferentially to neither the aligned nor the misaligned population. We also compare the average values for the apparent velocities and Doppler beaming factors for the EGRET and non-EGRET blazars, and find no significant differences. We thus find no indication, within the measurement errors, that EGRET blazars are any more strongly beamed than their counterparts which have not been detected in gamma-rays.Comment: 47 pages, including 13 figures; accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journa

Influence of local sequence context on damaged base conformation in human DNA polymerase ι: molecular dynamics studies of nucleotide incorporation opposite a benzo[a]pyrene-derived adenine lesion

Human DNA polymerase ι is a lesion bypass polymerase of the Y family, capable of incorporating nucleotides opposite a variety of lesions in both near error-free and error-prone bypass. With undamaged templating purines polymerase ι normally favors Hoogsteen base pairing. Polymerase ι can incorporate nucleotides opposite a benzo[a]pyrene-derived adenine lesion (dA*); while mainly error-free, the identity of misincorporated bases is influenced by local sequence context. We performed molecular modeling and molecular dynamics simulations to elucidate the structural basis for lesion bypass. Our results suggest that hydrogen bonds between the benzo[a]pyrenyl moiety and nearby bases limit the movement of the templating base to maintain the anti glycosidic bond conformation in the binary complex in a 5′-CAGA*TT-3′ sequence. This facilitates correct incorporation of dT via a Watson−Crick pair. In a 5′-TTTA*GA-3′ sequence the lesion does not form these hydrogen bonds, permitting dA* to rotate around the glycosidic bond to syn and incorporate dT via a Hoogsteen pair. With syn dA*, there is also an opportunity for increased misincorporation of dGTP. These results expand our understanding of the versatility and flexibility of polymerase ι and its lesion bypass functions in humans

Talking about sex after traumatic brain injury: perceptions and experiences of multidisciplinary rehabilitation professionals

Purpose: Research indicates that although 50–60% of people who have had a traumatic brain injury (TBI) experience changes in sexual functioning, sexuality issues remain largely unaddressed in rehabilitation. This study aimed to explore rehabilitation professionals’ perceptions and experiences of discussing sexuality with service-users who have had a TBI. Method: Purposeful sampling was used to recruit 24 participants from two local National Health Service trusts and from a national charity. Four focus groups were conducted with pre-existing groups of professionals, using a semi-structured interview schedule. Focus group data were transcribed verbatim and analysed using thematic analysis. Results: Six main themes were derived from the analysis: (1) sexuality after TBI is a specialist issue; (2) sexuality is a sensitive subject; (3) practicalities of discussing sexuality; (4) roles and responsibilities; (5) dilemmas about risk and vulnerabilities; and (6) organisational and structural issues. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that a more proactive approach to addressing sexuality issues be taken by incorporating sexuality into assessments and by having sexuality information available for service-users. Support for professionals is also needed in the form of the development of policy, on-going training and supervision

Starch-gelatin antimicrobial packaging materials to extend the shelf life of chicken breast fillets

[EN] Antimicrobial starch:gelatin (1:1) films containing N-¿-lauroyl-l-arginine ethyl ester monohydrochloride (LAE) (10 % wt.) were used as food contact active layers in chicken breast fillets vacuum-packaged in polyamide/polyethylene pouches. Active layers were thermoprocessed (TP) or cast (OC) on the plastic film. Oxidized starch was used in OC coatings. Packaged chicken breast samples were stored at 4¿°C and their physicochemical properties (pH, colour and lipid oxidation) and microbial quality were analysed throughout storage. Both TP and OC films significantly (p¿<¿0.05) extended the shelf life of chicken breast fillets compared to control samples. The starch oxidation reaction in OC films promoted the formation of Maillard reaction compounds in the starch-gelatine blends, which enhanced the antimicrobial effectiveness of the OC films, but also promoted oxidative processes. This greatly affected the pH and colour parameters in OC packaged samples. Therefore, TP blend films containing LAE are recommended since they effectively extended the shelf life of chicken breast fillets without affecting the meat oxidation.The authors acknowledge the financial support provided by Ministerio de Economia y Competividad (Projects AGL2016-76699-R and AGL2013-42989-R). Olga Moreno Marro also thanks the Ministerio de Educacion, Cultura y Deporte for the FPU 2012-1121 grant.Moreno Marro, O.; Atarés Huerta, LM.; Chiralt, A.; Cruz-Romero, MC.; Kerry, J. (2018). Starch-gelatin antimicrobial packaging materials to extend the shelf life of chicken breast fillets. LWT - Food Science and Technology. 97:483-490. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lwt.2018.07.005S4834909

Effects of antiplatelet therapy on stroke risk by brain imaging features of intracerebral haemorrhage and cerebral small vessel diseases: subgroup analyses of the RESTART randomised, open-label trial

Background Findings from the RESTART trial suggest that starting antiplatelet therapy might reduce the risk of recurrent symptomatic intracerebral haemorrhage compared with avoiding antiplatelet therapy. Brain imaging features of intracerebral haemorrhage and cerebral small vessel diseases (such as cerebral microbleeds) are associated with greater risks of recurrent intracerebral haemorrhage. We did subgroup analyses of the RESTART trial to explore whether these brain imaging features modify the effects of antiplatelet therapy

External validation of the RISC, RISC-Malawi, and PERCH clinical prediction rules to identify risk of death in children hospitalized with pneumonia

From Crossref journal articles via Jisc Publications RouterBackground Existing scores to identify children at risk of hospitalized pneumonia-related mortality lack broad external validation. Our objective was to externally validate three such risk scores. Methods We applied the Respiratory Index of Severity in Children (RISC) for HIV-negative children, the RISC-Malawi, and the Pneumonia Etiology Research for Child Health (PERCH) scores to hospitalized children in the Pneumonia REsearch Partnerships to Assess WHO REcommendations (PREPARE) data set. The PREPARE data set includes pooled data from 41 studies on pediatric pneumonia from across the world. We calculated test characteristics and the area under the curve (AUC) for each of these clinical prediction rules. Results The RISC score for HIV-negative children was applied to 3574 children 0-24 months and demonstrated poor discriminatory ability (AUC = 0.66, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.58-0.73) in the identification of children at risk of hospitalized pneumonia-related mortality. The RISC-Malawi score had fair discriminatory value (AUC = 0.75, 95% CI = 0.74-0.77) among 17 864 children 2-59 months. The PERCH score was applied to 732 children 1-59 months and also demonstrated poor discriminatory value (AUC = 0.55, 95% CI = 0.37-0.73). Conclusions In a large external application of the RISC, RISC-Malawi, and PERCH scores, a substantial number of children were misclassified for their risk of hospitalized pneumonia-related mortality. Although pneumonia risk scores have performed well among the cohorts in which they were derived, their performance diminished when externally applied. A generalizable risk assessment tool with higher sensitivity and specificity to identify children at risk of hospitalized pneumonia-related mortality may be needed. Such a generalizable risk assessment tool would need context-specific validation prior to implementation in that setting.11pubpub

A multiple timepoint pre-post evaluation of a ‘sexual respect’ dvd to improve competence in discussing sex with patients with disability

Sexual problems are common after chronic illnesses and disability, yet research indicates that this is a neglected area in healthcare services. Evaluation studies provide evidence of the effectiveness of education in enhancing professionals’ knowledge, skills, and comfort in addressing patients’ sexual concerns. However, there are limited evaluations aimed at improving ability to discuss sexuality when working with people with disabilities. The overall aim of this study was to evaluate a ‘Sexual Respect’ DVD as an intervention to improve competence in addressing ‘sexuality and disability’. A mixed methods design was used with both quantitative and qualitative components. Nursing students’ self-report ratings of knowledge, confidence, comfort and willingness (to discuss sexuality) levels were collected across four time points: baseline, pre-intervention, post-intervention, and follow-up. Data were analysed using one-way repeated measures ANOVAs with post hoc comparisons. Open-ended qualitative comments relating to the barriers and facilitators to discussing sexuality were analysed using content analysis and subsequent frequency analysis. Reported barriers included lack of knowledge about sex¬uality and disability issues, the patient’s level of disability, and waiting for the patient to raise sexuality issues first. Facilitators included education/training, written information, and if the patient raised it first. Overall, the DVD intervention had a significant and positive impact on nursing students’ self-reported knowledge, confidence, comfort and willingness levels. The findings are discussed in relation to the PLISSIT model, which emphasises the importance of a proactive approach to addressing sexuality issues