The Impact of Accessible Email on the Written Communication of People with Aphasia

Aphasia is a language disorder affecting individuals\u27 ability to speak, listen, read, and write. Because of repeated communication breakdowns, people with aphasia often avoid social interactions, which can lead to feelings of social isolation. Email may reduce the frustrations of face-to-face communication by providing additional time to compose and revise messages. The purpose of this study was to investigate how the use of email would impact functional communication and social participation in people with aphasia. A single-subject, multiple-baseline across participants design was used to evaluate the effect of a simplified email program on participants\u27 written communication skills and feelings of social isolation. Two individuals with moderate aphasia participated in the study; a 52-year-old female, two years post-onset and a 72-year-old female, three years post-onset. Participants were instructed how to use a simplified email program until the program was mastered. Composition time and error rates were analyzed to determine if there was any change in written communication skills. Both participants saw a decrease in composition rates, while error rates for both participants were unchanged. Effective conveyance of intended messages were judged by unfamiliar readers using a 5-point rating scale. One participant reported an increase in her comprehension abilities, while comprehension ratings of the other participant decreased over the course of the study. Feelings of social isolation and satisfaction with the instructional program were evaluated using surveys. While both participants were satisfied with the CogLink program, neither participant experienced a measurable change in feelings of social isolation

Sterolomics: State of the Art, Developments, Limitations and Challenges

Sterolomics can be thought of as the quantitative determination of the entire complement of molecules based on the cyclopentanoperhydrophenanthrene skeleton in a system. Mass spectrometry is the dominant analytical technology employed. In this article we highlight some pitfalls in analysis, data interpretation and annotation. We give our opinion on how some of these pitfalls can best be avoided

Harmonization study between LC-MS/MS and Diasorin RIA for measurement of 25-hydroxyvitamin D concentrations in a large population survey

Background: Population-based research on vitamin D has increased dramatically in recent years. Such studies are typically reliant on assay procedures to measure reliable and comparable levels of 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] concentrations. Methods: Concentrations of 25(OH)D3 and 25(OH)D2 were measured using LC-MS/MS in 5,915 participants (aged 31 years) of Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1966. Blood samples were assayed in batches over a course of 18 months. As anomalies were present in the measurements, 200 samples were reassayed using Diasorin RIA. Agreement between measurements was assessed by Passing–Bablok regression and limits of agreement (LoA). To harmonize LC-MS/MS with Diasorin RIA measurements, formulae were derived from the LoA. Results: Concentrations measured by LC-MS/MS were much higher than those measured by Diasorin RIA, with a mean difference of 12.9 ng/ml. Constant variation was evident between batch measurements after log transformation. Statistical formula was applied separately for each batch of LC-MS/MS measurements, enabling us to remove both the constant and proportional bias that was evident prior to the transformation. Conclusion: Despite the introduction of schemes/programs to improve accuracy of assays to measure 25(OH)D, significant differences can still happen. In these instances, methods to harmonize measurements based on a relatively small number of replicates can be successfully applied to establish confidence and to enable between-study comparisons

Antioxidants inhibit low density lipoprotein oxidation less at lysosomal pH: a possible explanation as to why the clinical trials of antioxidants might have failed

Oxidised low density lipoprotein (LDL) was considered to be important in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis, but the large clinical trials of antioxidants, including the first one using probucol (the PQRST Trial), failed to show benefit and have cast doubt on the importance of oxidised LDL. We have shown previously that LDL oxidation can be catalysed by iron in the lysosomes of macrophages. The aim of this study was therefore to investigate the effectiveness of antioxidants in preventing LDL oxidation at lysosomal pH and also establish the possible mechanism of oxidation. Probucol did not effectively inhibit the oxidation of LDL at lysosomal pH, as measured by conjugated dienes or oxidised cholesteryl esters or tryptophan residues in isolated LDL or by ceroid formation in the lysosomes of macrophage-like cells, in marked contrast to its highly effective inhibition of LDL oxidation at pH 7.4. LDL oxidation at lysosomal pH was inhibited very effectively for long periods by N,N'-diphenyl-1,4-phenylenediamine, which is more hydrophobic than probucol and has been shown by others to inhibit atherosclerosis in rabbits, and by cysteamine, which is a hydrophilic antioxidant that accumulates in lysosomes. Iron-induced LDL oxidation might be due to the formation of the superoxide radical, which protonates at lysosomal pH to form the much more reactive, hydrophobic hydroperoxyl radical, which can enter LDL and reach its core. Probucol resides mainly in the surface monolayer of LDL and would not effectively scavenge hydroperoxyl radicals in the core of LDL. This might explain why probucol failed to protect against atherosclerosis in various clinical trials. The oxidised LDL hypothesis of atherosclerosis now needs to be re-evaluated using different and more effective antioxidants that protect against the lysosomal oxidation of LDL

Harold A. Kahn (1920–2009): A Remembrance of a Life Devoted to Public Health

This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial Licens

Predictors of vitamin D-containing supplement use in the Australian population and associations between dose and serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D concentrations

© 2016 by the authors; licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.Despite concerns about vitamin D deficiency in the Australian population, little is known about the prevalence and predictors of vitamin D-containing supplement use. We described the use of vitamin D-containing supplements, and investigated associations between supplemental vitamin D intake and serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) concentrations, using a single 24-h dietary recall from the 2011–2013 Australian Health Survey (n = 12,153; ages = 2 years). Multiple regression models were used to investigate predictors of vitamin D-containing supplement use in adults, and associations between dose and serum 25(OH)D concentrations/vitamin D sufficiency (=50 nmol/L), adjusting for potential confounders. The prevalence of vitamin D-containing supplement use was 10%, 6% and 19% in children, adolescents and adults, respectively. Predictors of vitamin D-containing supplement use in adults included being female, advancing age, higher educational attainment, higher socio-economic status, not smoking, and greater physical activity. After adjusting for potential confounders, a 40 IU (1 µg) increase in vitamin D intake from supplements was associated with an increase of 0.41 nmol/L in serum 25(OH)D concentrations (95% CI 0.35, 0.47; p < 0.001). However, the prevalence of vitamin D-containing supplement use was generally low in the Australian population, particularly for single vitamin D supplements, with most supplement users obtaining only low levels of vitamin D from other supplement types

Effect of dietary sodium reduction on red blood cell sodium concentration and sodium-lithium countertransport

A randomized, crossover trial was carried out on the effect of moderate sodium reduction on red-blood-cell sodium metabolism. The participants were healthy high school students (mean age = 16 years, n = 33). Changes in sodium-lithium countertransport and intracellular sodium concentration were evaluated 24 days after a decrease in dietary sodium from approximately 110 to 40 mEq per day. Dietary sodium restriction had no significant effect on either sodium-lithium countertransport or intracellular sodium concentration. © 1984 American Heart Association, Inc

The association between cardiovascular disease risk factors and 25-hydroxivitamin d and related analytes among hispanic/latino adults: A pilot study

Although the association of vitamin D levels with cardiovascular risk profiles among Hispanics/Latinos has been studied, little is known about this association among Hispanics/Latinos with chronic conditions. This pilot study determined serum vitamin D and parathyroid hormone (PTH) levels in a sample of participants from the University of Illinois at the Chicago Cohort of Patients, Family and Friends (UIC Cohort) and examined their association with traditional cardiovascular disease risk factors. From July 2012 to June 2016, the UIC Cohort study enrolled and conducted clinical examinations on men and women ages 18 years and older, who had one or more diagnosed chronic diseases/conditions (excluding cancer). This pilot study sample included 40 participants from the six main Hispanic/Latino background groups in the United States, namely Dominican, Cuban, Puerto Rican, Mexican, Central American, and South American, and were grouped by Caribbean or mainland origin. No substantial differences were noted in the vitamin D-related measures by Hispanic/Latino background, but the PTH levels were somewhat higher in the Caribbean vs. mainland group (43.0 ± 4.6 vs. 38.6 ± 2.7 pg/mL). The associations between selected CVD risk factors (systolic and diastolic blood pressure (SBP, DBP), total cholesterol, glucose) and PTH and vitamin D-related analytes were investigated using interval-censored multivariate regression models adjusted for age, sex, percent body fat, serum albumin/calcium, and Hispanic/Latino background. A negative association between total 25[OH]D and blood pressure was corroborated (SBP: β = -1.2, 95%CI = -2.0, -0.3; DBP: β = -0.7, 95% CI = -1.2, -0.1), whereas a positive association with total cholesterol was observed (β = 1.9, 95% CI = 0.02, 3.7). Levels of 1, 25[OH]2D were not associated with CVD risk factors, whereas 24, 25[OH]2D3 was associated with blood pressure (SBP: β = -13.0, 95% CI = -20.7, -5.2; DBP: β = -6.3, 95% CI = -11.6, -1.0). Estimated free 25[OH]D was inversely associated with both SBP (β = -3.5, 95% CI = -6.1, -0.9) and DBP (β = -2.1, 95% CI = -3.8, -0.3). Similarly, calculated bioavailable 25[OH]D was inversely associated with both SBP (β = -9.2, 95% CI = -15.9, -2.4) and DBP(β = -5.3, 95% CI = -9.8, -0.8). In conclusion, a negative association between 25[OH]D with BP was observed and a positive association with lipids is suggested. Due to the small sample size, most associations did not reach statistical significance

Appropriateness of the probability approach with a nutrient status biomarker to assess population inadequacy: a study using vitamin D

Background: There are questions about the appropriate method for the accurate estimation of the population prevalence of nutrient inadequacy on the basis of a biomarker of nutrient status (BNS). Objective: We determined the applicability of a statistical probability method to a BNS, specifically serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D]. The ability to meet required statistical assumptions was the central focus. Design: Data on serum 25(OH)D concentrations in adults aged 19–70 y from the 2005–2006 NHANES were used (n = 3871). An Institute of Medicine report provided reference values. We analyzed key assumptions of symmetry, differences in variance, and the independence of distributions. We also corrected observed distributions for within-person variability (WPV). Estimates of vitamin D inadequacy were determined. Results:We showed that the BNS [serum 25(OH)D] met the criteria to use the method for the estimation of the prevalence of inadequacy. The difference between observations corrected compared with uncorrected for WPV was small for serum 25(OH)D but, nonetheless, showed enhanced accuracy because of correction. The method estimated a 19% prevalence of inadequacy in this sample, whereas misclassification inherent in the use of the more traditional 97.5th percentile high-end cutoff inflated the prevalence of inadequacy (36%). Conclusions: When the prevalence of nutrient inadequacy for a population is estimated by using serum 25(OH)D as an example of a BNS, a statistical probability method is appropriate and more accurate in comparison with a high-end cutoff. Contrary to a common misunderstanding, the method does not overlook segments of the population. The accuracy of population estimates of inadequacy is enhanced by the correction of observed measures for WPV