Exploring sex differences for acute ischemic stroke clinical, imaging and thrombus characteristics in the INTERRSeCT study

Stroke; Menopause; ThrombusIctus; Menopausia; TromboIctus; Menopausa; TrombeWomen, especially following menopause, are known to have worse outcomes following acute ischemic stroke. One primary postulated biological mechanism for worse outcomes in older women is a reduction in the vasculoprotective effects of estrogen. Using the INTERRseCT cohort, a multicentre international observational cohort studying recanalization in acute ischemic stroke, we explored the effects of sex, and modifying effects of age, on neuroradiological predictors of recanalization including robustness of leptomeningeal collaterals, thrombus burden and thrombus permeability. Ordinal regression analyses were used to examine the relationship between sex and each of the neuroradiological markers. Further, we explored both multiplicative and additive interactions between age and sex. All patients (n = 575) from INTERRseCT were included. Mean age was 70.2 years (SD: 13.1) and 48.5% were women. In the unadjusted model, female sex was associated with better collaterals (OR 1.37, 95% CIs: 1.01-1.85), however this relationship was not significant after adjusting for age and relevant comorbidities. There were no significant interactions between age and sex. In a large prospective international cohort, we found no association between sex and radiological predictors of recanalization including leptomeningeal collaterals, thrombus permeability and thrombus burden.This prospective cohort study was funded by an operating grant from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research

Teaching Medical Students to Suture: Evaluation of a Modern Medical School Curriculum

Background: Medical students are traditionally introduced to suturing in a simulated environment using animal products or synthetic materials. However, there is little evidence to support this pedagogy. Our study explored whether a modern suturing curriculum adequately prepares medical students and examined   student preference for learning suturing skills.   Methods: Suturing performance was recorded and assessed by expert raters. Students also completed a survey that inquired about self-perceived knowledge and confidence in suturing, and preferred pedagogical methods.   Results: The majority (79%) of students that completed our suturing curriculum demonstrated competence in basic suturing techniques. There was no correlation between objective abilities and self-perceived knowledge or confidence. Students reported being significantly more confident suturing anesthetized patients and in simulated environments. Students reported a desire for earlier introduction to suturing and more frequent simulation training.   Conclusion: A modern medical school suturing curriculum, comprising online modules and in-person simulation-based learning, adequately develops basic suturing techniques

Investigating impact exposure and functional neurological status in collegiate football players

A single head impact in sport can cause an acute concussion, whereas repetitive head impacts are suspected to cause chronic neurological impairment. However, the diagnostic accuracy of concussion assessment tools are not well understood and sparse research evidence exists regarding the neurological implications of repetitive head impacts. The objective of this thesis was to investigate repetitive head impacts, including impact detection technology and neurocognitive function, over the duration of a collegiate football season. Thirty-five healthy participants were recruited from a collegiate football program for a three-part study. Participants adhered an impact detection sensor (xPatch, X2 Biosystems) to their right mastoid process prior to each game and practice. As well, they completed a weekly battery of neurological testing that included the graded symptom checklist, standardized assessment of concussion, balance error scoring system and King-Devick test. In experiment 1, we investigated the accuracy of the xPatch to classify each detected event as an impact or non-impact. We matched each event to game video and assigned a true positive, false positive, true negative or false negative classification. The sensitivity of the sensor was 77.6%, specificity was 70.4% and overall accuracy was 75.1%. Additionally, we determined that impact count is strongly correlated to cumulative head kinematic load, i.e. cumulative linear acceleration (r²=0.98), cumulative rotational acceleration (r²=0.98) and cumulative rotational velocity (r²=0.99). In experiment 2, we explored the relationship between alterations in neurological status and repetitive head impact exposure using linear mixed models. The number of head impacts sustained was significantly related to the number and severity of symptoms in participants, but not to any other indicator of neurological status. In experiment 3, we investigated the diagnostic accuracy of each neurological test using receiver operating characteristic curves and corresponding area under the curve values. The diagnostic accuracy for the graded symptom checklist was high (0.76-0.93), King-Devick Test was moderate (0.64-0.80), standardized assessment of concussion and balance error scoring system were poor (0.47-0.71). In summary, this thesis identified limitations in current impact detection technology, provided evidence of a link between repetitive head impacts and symptomatology, and determined that the graded symptom checklist can accurately diagnose concussion.Education, Faculty ofKinesiology, School ofGraduat