A CLINICAL PREDICTION RULE FOR CLASSIFYING POSTPARTUM SUBJECTS WITH LOW BACK AND PELVIC GIRDLE PAIN WHO DEMONSTRATE SHORT-TERM IMPROVEMENT WITH MOBILIZATION OF THE SACROILIAC JOINT

Objective: develop a Clinical Prediction Rule (CPR) for identifying postpartum women with Low Back (LBP) or Pelvic Girdle Pain (PGP) who demonstrate short-term improvement with Sacroiliac Joint (SIJ) mobilization. Significance: Development of a CPR for classifying subject's a-prior would improve the clinical decision-making process and research. Methods: a prospective cohort of 69 postpartum women was conducted at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. Subjects were six weeks to one year postpartum and had a chief complaint of pain in the lower back, pelvic girdle, or thigh. Subjects completed several self-report measures, questionnaires and underwent a physical examination. Subjects then underwent a grade V mobilization to the SIJ. Success with treatment was determined using percent changes in disability scores after one mobilization and served as the reference standard for determining accuracy of the examination variables. Variables with univariate prediction of success and non-success were combined into multivariate CPR's. Results: Fifty-five subjects (80%) had success with the mobilization and 14 (20%) were categorized as non-success. A CPR for success with four variables (seated flexion test, prone knee bend test, negative posterior superior iliac spine symmetry test, and symptom location in the lower lumbar spine and/or SIJ areas only) was identified. The presence of 2/4 criteria (+LR=3.05) increased the probability of success with mobilization from 80% to 92%. A CPR for non-success with three variables (age > 35 years, visual analogue score-best > 3, and negative prone knee bend test) was identified. The presence of 2/3 criteria (+LR=11.79) increased the probability of non-success with the mobilization from 20% to 75%. Conclusion: In our sample, 80% of subjects were successful after one mobilization without an attempt at prediction. This success rate was higher than the success rate of the general LBP population of a previously developed CPR. There is a low risk accompanying this intervention, it does not take long and benefits would be experienced after one session. The broad inclusion criteria of women with LBP or PGP allows clinicians to include women without a traditional diagnosis. Clinicians may opt to try the mobilization; an alternate approach can be used if it fails

Electrochemical oxidation of dihydronicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NADH) : Comparison of highly oriented pyrolytic graphite (HOPG) and polycrystalline boron-doped diamond (pBDD) electrodes

The electro-oxidation of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NADH) is studied at bare surfaces of highly oriented pyrolytic graphite (HOPG) and semi-metallic polycrystalline boron-doped diamond (pBDD). A comparison of these two carbon electrode materials is interesting because they possess broadly similar densities of electronic states that are much lower than most metal electrodes, but graphite has carbon sp2-hybridization, while in diamond the carbon is sp3-hybridised, with resulting major differences in bulk structure and surface termination. Using cyclic voltammetry (CV), it is shown that NADH oxidation is facile at HOPG surfaces but the reaction products tend to strongly adsorb, which causes rapid deactivation of the electrode activity. This is an important factor that needs to be taken into account when assessing HOPG and its intrinsic activity. It is also shown that NADH itself adsorbs at HOPG, a fact that has not been recognized previously, but has implications for understanding the mechanism of the electro-oxidation process. Although pBDD was found to be less susceptible to surface fouling, pBDD is not immune to deterioration of the electrode response, and the reaction showed more sluggish kinetics on this electrode. Scanning electrochemical cell microscopy (SECCM) highlights a significant voltammetric variation in electroactivity between different crystal surface facets that are presented to solution with a pBDD electrode. The electroactivity of different grains correlates with the local dopant level, as visualized by field emission-scanning electron microscopy. SECCM measurements further prove that the basal plane of HOPG has high activity towards NADH electro-oxidation. These new insights on NADH voltammetry are useful for the design of optimal carbon-based electrodes for NADH electroanalysis

Health Status, Behaviors, and Beliefs of Health Sciences Students and Staff at Kuwait University: Toward Maximizing the Health of Future Health Professionals and Their Patients

Health professionals who engage in healthy lifestyle behaviors are more likely to promote their patients’ health. We evaluated health status, behaviors, and beliefs of students (future health professionals) and staff in four health sciences faculties, Kuwait University. In total, 600 students and 231 staff participated in this descriptive cross-sectional study. Questionnaire surveys were used to evaluate lifestyle-related practices and participants’ beliefs about these practices, in addition to health-related objective measures, e.g., heart rate, blood pressure, and body mass index. Overweight/obesity was prevalent among the participants (staff, 68.7%, students, 48.1%; p 0.05). Only 25.1% of staff and 27.9% of students reported at least 8 h sleep nightly (p > 0.05). Staff reported healthier dietary practices than students (p-value range < 0.001–0.02). Overall, the participants had sub-optimal health indices. A marked gap existed between participants’ beliefs about healthy lifestyle practices and their actual health status. Healthy lifestyle programs are needed on campus with respect to diet, exercise, and stress management. As emerging health professionals, students in health sciences faculties, Kuwait University, need exposure to a health-promoting environment including healthy staff as role models.Medicine, Faculty ofNon UBCPhysical Therapy, Department ofReviewedFacult

Investigation of Health Science Students’ Knowledge Regarding Healthy Lifestyle Promotion During the Spread of COVID-19 Pandemic: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

BACKGROUND: Health sciences students as future health care providers, can play a valuable role in protecting societies against the spread of COVID-19 through health promotion and lifestyle modification education. Therefore, proper education of these students is essential. OBJECTIVE: This study sought to assess and measure the change of knowledge of health sciences students regarding healthy lifestyle promotion strategies during the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic, after participation in different types of online and social media educational programs. METHODS: In order to serve the purpose of the study, a methodological research design was first used to ensure the validation of the developed scale; the COVID-19 Healthy Lifestyle Promotion Scale (COVID-19 HLPS). The study utilized a four-arm randomized control research design in which the participants were randomly assigned into one of four groups, (1) control group (placebo intervention), (2) brochure group, who received brochures relevant to healthy lifestyle promotion, (3) Instagram group, who received similar information but through Instagram posts, and (4) online interactive educational workshop group, who also received similar information through an online interactive educational workshop. RESULTS: In total, 155 participants participated in the online and social media intervention programs. There was a significant improvement in the intervention groups in the total knowledge subscale of the healthy promotion strategies compared with the control group (p < 0.001). Overall, the workshop group was the most effective group (effect size = 1.54) followed by the Instagram group (effect size = 0.99) and then the brochure group (effect size = 0.91). CONCLUSIONS: In order to meet the challenges posed by this pandemic, the use of such online and social media interventions is essential and may be the key for health promotion during this pandemic. Health science students, as future health care professionals, can play a fundamental role during the COVID-19 pandemic in disseminating knowledge relevant to healthy lifestyle to their families and communities thus promoting healthy living and behavioral changes. We propose the development of research initiatives at both national and international levels targeting changes within health science curricula that can meet potential challenges of future pandemics, leading to advancement of health care services globally

Micro-Imprinting of Oligonucleotides and Oligonucleotide Gradients on Gold Surfaces: A New Approach Based on the Combination of Scanning Electrochemical Microscopy and Surface Plasmon Resonance Imaging (SECM/ SPR-i)

International audienceA new strategy for the formation of DNA patterns on thin gold surfaces together with DNA hybridization is described. The formation and characterization of the oligonucleotide array is based on a combination of an electrochemical and an optical technique: scanning electrochemical microscopy and surface plasmon resonance imaging (SECM/SPR-i). The DNA array is formed through electropolymerization of a mixture of pyrrole and pyrrole bearing covalently linked oligonucleotides probes using SECM. SPR-i as well as fluorescence imaging are used to quantify DNA hybridization on these multi-parametric interfaces. The capability of scanning electrochemical microscopy (SECM) to pattern gold surfaces with density gradients of oligonucleotides attached to the gold surfaces is further demonstrated. These density gradients result from the progressive increase in the movement of the x-axis while applying continuous potential pulses to the gold surface. Surface plasmon resonance imaging is used to detect the deposition step, while fluorescence imaging is employed to visualize the deposited oligonucleotide density gradient