Association of Physical Activity with Co-morbid Conditions in Geriatric Population

To find out association of physical activity with co-morbid conditions in geriatric population, a cross-sectional study was conducted in different cties of Pakistan in 2015. A total of 114 participants were inducted by non-probability convenience sampling technique. Data was collected after informed verbal consent by a validated questionnaire that is Rapid Assessment of Physical Activity (RAPA). Participants were categorized into two groups i.e. physically active and physically inactive. Data was entered and analyzed in SPSS version 20. There were 66 (57.9%) males and 48 (42.1%) females with mean age of 57.04±7.348 years. Among hypertensive individuals (n=43, 37.7%) there were 39 (90.7%) physically inactive, among individuals having angina (n=17, 14.9%) there were 15 (88.2%) physically inactive. Out of 37 (32.5%) diabetics, 35 (94.6%) were physically inactive. Among individuals suffering from arthritis (n=40, 35.1%), there were 38 (95%) physically inactive. A significant association was found between physical activity and diabetes and arthritis with p-value of 0.048 and 0.029 respectively. Physical activity is significantly associated with diabetes and arthritis in geriatric population. Adequate physical activity should be performed to reduce the risk of co-morbid conditions and improve the quality of life in geriatric population

Machine Learning for Mental Health Screening

Mental health disorders such as depression are prevalent in both the United States and the world. Left untreated, such conditions can greatly decrease the quality of one’s life and even lead to suicide. Therefore, accurate screening methods for mental health are a necessity. Surveys are commonly used but can be biased and perceived as intrusive, so there is a need for passive screening methods. This project builds on three previous years of MQP research that aimed to develop passive mental health screening methods. We made improvements to the Android and website surveys developed by previous teams. In addition, we collected two new datasets: one to investigate how students are affected by depression and another that aimed to answer remaining research questions about the mobile application survey in order to improve it. We refined the existing machine learning pipeline to increase efficiency and usability. Finally, we investigated the potential of using time series constructed from text and call logs to predict depression. Overall, this work contributed to the development of non-intrusive passive mental health screening methods that will facilitate faster diagnosis and treatment for those affected

A Rare Phenomenon of Lithium-Associated Acne Inversa: A Case Series and Literature Review

Lithium use has been associated with dermatological issues, including psoriasis, folliculitis, and acneiform outbreaks. The lithium dosage and the therapeutic range of serum lithium levels are closely correlated with the frequency of cutaneous adverse effects. Lithium-induced acne inversa is a less well-known adverse effect, causing significant morbidity. Acne inversa (hidradenitis suppurativa) is a chronic inflammatory illness of the skin seen in the folds of the skin and face and distinguished by the presence of painful nodules and fistulas, as well as a propensity for tissue fibrosis. We report two cases of bipolar affective disorder who received long-term lithium treatment and experienced acne inversa during treatment, which subsided once the lithium was withdrawn

A Sensor Array for the Nanomolar Detection of Azo Dyes In Water

Azo dyes are ubiquitous pollutants that contaminate water supplies and threaten human, biota, and ecosystem health. Their detection and discrimination are a considerable challenge owing to the numerous structural, chemical, and optical similarities between dyes, complexity of the wastewater in which they are found, and low environmental concentrations. Here, we demonstrate that the inner filter effect (IFE), in combination with conjugated polymer array-based sensing, offers a rapid approach for the quantitative profiling of these pollutants. The array was constructed using three anionic conjugated polyelectrolytes whose varying spectroscopic properties led to distinct IFE patterns in the presence of various dyes. These unique fluorescence response patterns were identified and processed using linear discriminant analysis (LDA), enabling the individual identification of 12 closely related azo dyes. To demonstrate the potential for utility in the environment, the array was used to differentiate between these dyes at nanomolar concentrations in water

Hospitalizations for Students With an Alcohol-Related Sanction: Gender and Pregaming as Risk Factors

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study is to investigate whether pregaming (i.e., drinking prior to a social event) is a risk factor for hospitalization. PARTICIPANTS: Participants (N=516) were undergraduate students with an alcohol-related sanction. METHOD: Participants completed a survey about alcohol use, as well as behaviors and experiences prior to and during the referral event. The dependent variable was whether participants received medical attention at an emergency department during the sanction event. RESULTS: Results indicated that older students, females who pregame, students with higher alcohol use screening scores, lighter drinkers, and higher numbers of drinks before the referral event all increased the odds of receiving medical attention. Pregaming alone was not significantly related to receiving medical attention in the multivariate analysis. CONCLUSIONS: Female students who pregame appear to be at risk for requiring hospitalization after drinking when controlling for the number of drinks consumed

Reimagining Children’s Rights in the US

ImportanceThe US faces a pivotal moment of opportunity and risk regarding issues affecting children (aged 0-17 years). Although the US remains the only United Nations member state to not have ratified the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), a child rights framework is essential for child health professionals seeking to advance many issues affecting children in the US. The Reimagining Children's Rights project (2020-2021) conducted an in-depth environmental scan of relevant literature and policy analysis using the Three Horizons design process to assess strategies that could advance the rights and well-being of children in the US. The project was overseen by a steering committee and informed by an advisory committee composed of youth leaders and experts in children's rights, advocacy, health, law, and a range of child-specific issues (eg, youth justice, early childhood development), who provided expert input on strategic considerations for advancing children's rights.ObservationsSeven findings about advancing children's rights in the US are notable, all reflecting current gaps and opportunities for using a whole-child rights framework in the US, even without formal adoption of the CRC. Actionable strategies, tactics, and tools to leverage sustainable change in the multitude of issue areas can advance the current state of children's rights. High-potential strategies for catalyzing advancement of children's rights include youth activism, innovations in governance and accountability, legislative action, impact litigation, place-based initiatives, education and public awareness, alignment with other children's movements, and research. The child rights framework is unifying and adaptive to future unforeseen challenges.Conclusions and relevanceChildren's rights provide a powerful, synergistic framework for child health professionals-in partnership with youth and other leaders-to increase equity and protect the rights and well-being of all children in the US

Reporting guidelines for human microbiome research: the STORMS checklist

The particularly interdisciplinary nature of human microbiome research makes the organization and reporting of results spanning epidemiology, biology, bioinformatics, translational medicine and statistics a challenge. Commonly used reporting guidelines for observational or genetic epidemiology studies lack key features specific to microbiome studies. Therefore, a multidisciplinary group of microbiome epidemiology researchers adapted guidelines for observational and genetic studies to culture-independent human microbiome studies, and also developed new reporting elements for laboratory, bioinformatics and statistical analyses tailored to microbiome studies. The resulting tool, called 'Strengthening The Organization and Reporting of Microbiome Studies' (STORMS), is composed of a 17-item checklist organized into six sections that correspond to the typical sections of a scientific publication, presented as an editable table for inclusion in supplementary materials. The STORMS checklist provides guidance for concise and complete reporting of microbiome studies that will facilitate manuscript preparation, peer review, and reader comprehension of publications and comparative analysis of published results. The STORMS tool provides guidance for concise and complete reporting of microbiome studies to facilitate manuscript preparation, peer review, reader comprehension of publications, and comparative analysis of published results