Being aware of the painful body: Validation of the German Body Awareness Questionnaire and Body Responsiveness Questionnaire in patients with chronic pain

© 2018 Cramer et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. Body awareness is an attentional focus on and awareness of internal body sensations. This study aimed to validate German versions of the Body Awareness Questionnaire (BAQ) and the Body Responsiveness Questionnaire (BRQ) in chronic pain patients and to assess their associations with pain-related variables and to assess their responsiveness to intervention. The instruments were translated to German and administered to 512 chronic pain patients (50.3±11.4 years, 91.6% female) to assess their factor structure and reliability. Cronbach’s α for the BAQ total score was 0.86. Factor analysis of the BRQ revealed the two factors Importance of Interoceptive Awareness (Cronbach’s α = 0.75) and Perceived Connection (Cronbach’s α = 0.75) and the single-item Suppression of Bodily Sensations. The BAQ was independently associated with lower mindfulness, self-esteem, stress, and depression; Importance of Interoceptive Awareness with mindfulness, self-acceptance, self-esteem, and physical contact; Perceived Connection with self-acceptance, vitality, and lower sensory pain; Suppression of Bodily Sensations with lower self-esteem, physical contact, and higher depressive symptoms. After a 10-week multimodal mind-body program (n = 202), the BAQ and Importance of Interoceptive Awareness increased and pain intensity and Suppression of Bodily Sensation decreased. In conclusion, body awareness and body responsiveness are associated with pain-related variables in patients with chronic pain. Mind-body interventions may positively influence both pain and body awareness, hinting at a potential mechanism of action of these interventions to be tested in further research

Antecedent anti-NMDA receptor encephalitis in two patients with multiple sclerosis

Anti-N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor (NMDAR) encephalitis is an autoimmune disorder characterised by psychiatric symptoms, movement disorder and seizures often evolving into a severe encephalopathy. An overlap has recently been recognised between anti-NMDAR encephalitis and inflammatory demyelinating disorders, particularly neuromyelitis optical spectrum disorder (NMOSD). In this case report, we describe two patients with an initial presentation consistent with anti-NMDAR encephalitis who have subsequently developed relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (MS) and discuss the literature pertaining to potential overlap between NMDAR encephalitis and inflammatory demyelinating disorders

Reach-scale bankfull channel types can exist independently of catchment hydrology

© 2020 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Reach-scale morphological channel classifications are underpinned by the theory that each channel type is related to an assemblage of reach- and catchment-scale hydrologic, topographic, and sediment supply drivers. However, the relative importance of each driver on reach morphology is unclear, as is the possibility that different driver assemblages yield the same reach morphology. Reach-scale classifications have never needed to be predicated on hydrology, yet hydrology controls discharge and thus sediment transport capacity. The scientific question is: do two or more regions with quantifiable differences in hydrologic setting end up with different reach-scale channel types, or do channel types transcend hydrologic setting because hydrologic setting is not a dominant control at the reach scale? This study answered this question by isolating hydrologic metrics as potential dominant controls of channel type. Three steps were applied in a large test basin with diverse hydrologic settings (Sacramento River, California) to: (1) create a reach-scale channel classification based on local site surveys, (2) categorize sites by flood magnitude, dimensionless flood magnitude, and annual hydrologic regime type, and (3) statistically analyze two hydrogeomorphic linkages. Statistical tests assessed the spatial distribution of channel types and the dependence of channel type morphological attributes by hydrologic setting. Results yielded 10 channel types. Nearly all types existed across all hydrologic settings, which is perhaps a surprising development for hydrogeomorphology. Downstream hydraulic geometry relationships were statistically significant. In addition, cobble-dominated uniform streams showed a consistent inverse relationship between slope and dimensionless flood magnitude, an indication of dynamic equilibrium between transport capacity and sediment supply. However, most morphological attributes showed no sorting by hydrologic setting. This study suggests that median hydraulic geometry relations persist across basins and within channel types, but hydrologic influence on geomorphic variability is likely due to local influences rather than catchment-scale drivers. © 2020 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd

Histological validation of a type 1 diabetes clinical diagnostic model for classification of diabetes

This is the final version. Available on open access from Wiley via the DOI in this recordAims: Misclassification of diabetes is common due to an overlap in the clinical features of type 1 and type 2 diabetes. Combined diagnostic models incorporating clinical and biomarker information have recently been developed that can aid classification, but they have not been validated using pancreatic pathology. We evaluated a clinical diagnostic model against histologically defined type 1 diabetes. Methods: We classified cases from the Network for Pancreatic Organ donors with Diabetes (nPOD) biobank as type 1 (n = 111) or non-type 1 (n = 42) diabetes using histopathology. Type 1 diabetes was defined by lobular loss of insulin-containing islets along with multiple insulin-deficient islets. We assessed the discriminative performance of previously described type 1 diabetes diagnostic models, based on clinical features (age at diagnosis, BMI) and biomarker data [autoantibodies, type 1 diabetes genetic risk score (T1D-GRS)], and singular features for identifying type 1 diabetes by the area under the curve of the receiver operator characteristic (AUC-ROC). Results: Diagnostic models validated well against histologically defined type 1 diabetes. The model combining clinical features, islet autoantibodies and T1D-GRS was strongly discriminative of type 1 diabetes, and performed better than clinical features alone (AUC-ROC 0.97 vs. 0.95; P = 0.03). Histological classification of type 1 diabetes was concordant with serum C-peptide [median < 17 pmol/l (limit of detection) vs. 1037 pmol/l in non-type 1 diabetes; P < 0.0001]. Conclusions: Our study provides robust histological evidence that a clinical diagnostic model, combining clinical features and biomarkers, could improve diabetes classification. Our study also provides reassurance that a C-peptide-based definition of type 1 diabetes is an appropriate surrogate outcome that can be used in large clinical studies where histological definition is impossible. Parts of this study were presented in abstract form at the Network for Pancreatic Organ Donors Conference, Florida, USA, 19–22 February 2019 and Diabetes UK Professional Conference, Liverpool, UK, 6–8 March 2019.Diabetes UKNational Institutes of Health (NIH)National Institute for Health Research (NIHR)JDRFHelmsley Charitable Trus

Hybrid Mechanical Systems

We discuss hybrid systems in which a mechanical oscillator is coupled to another (microscopic) quantum system, such as trapped atoms or ions, solid-state spin qubits, or superconducting devices. We summarize and compare different coupling schemes and describe first experimental implementations. Hybrid mechanical systems enable new approaches to quantum control of mechanical objects, precision sensing, and quantum information processing.Comment: To cite this review, please refer to the published book chapter (see Journal-ref and DOI). This v2 corresponds to the published versio

Elevated white cell count in acute coronary syndromes: relationship to variants in inflammatory and thrombotic genes

BACKGROUND: Elevated white blood cell counts (WBC) in acute coronary syndromes (ACS) increase the risk of recurrent events, but it is not known if this is exacerbated by pro-inflammatory factors. We sought to identify whether pro-inflammatory genetic variants contributed to alterations in WBC and C-reactive protein (CRP) in an ACS population. METHODS: WBC and genotype of interleukin 6 (IL-6 G-174C) and of interleukin-1 receptor antagonist (IL1RN intronic repeat polymorphism) were investigated in 732 Caucasian patients with ACS in the OPUS-TIMI-16 trial. Samples for measurement of WBC and inflammatory factors were taken at baseline, i.e. Within 72 hours of an acute myocardial infarction or an unstable angina event. RESULTS: An increased white blood cell count (WBC) was associated with an increased C-reactive protein (r = 0.23, p < 0.001) and there was also a positive correlation between levels of β-fibrinogen and C-reactive protein (r = 0.42, p < 0.0001). IL1RN and IL6 genotypes had no significant impact upon WBC. The difference in median WBC between the two homozygote IL6 genotypes was 0.21/mm(3 )(95% CI = -0.41, 0.77), and -0.03/mm(3 )(95% CI = -0.55, 0.86) for IL1RN. Moreover, the composite endpoint was not significantly affected by an interaction between WBC and the IL1 (p = 0.61) or IL6 (p = 0.48) genotype. CONCLUSIONS: Cytokine pro-inflammatory genetic variants do not influence the increased inflammatory profile of ACS patients

Radio Emission from Ultra-Cool Dwarfs

The 2001 discovery of radio emission from ultra-cool dwarfs (UCDs), the very low-mass stars and brown dwarfs with spectral types of ~M7 and later, revealed that these objects can generate and dissipate powerful magnetic fields. Radio observations provide unparalleled insight into UCD magnetism: detections extend to brown dwarfs with temperatures <1000 K, where no other observational probes are effective. The data reveal that UCDs can generate strong (kG) fields, sometimes with a stable dipolar structure; that they can produce and retain nonthermal plasmas with electron acceleration extending to MeV energies; and that they can drive auroral current systems resulting in significant atmospheric energy deposition and powerful, coherent radio bursts. Still to be understood are the underlying dynamo processes, the precise means by which particles are accelerated around these objects, the observed diversity of magnetic phenomenologies, and how all of these factors change as the mass of the central object approaches that of Jupiter. The answers to these questions are doubly important because UCDs are both potential exoplanet hosts, as in the TRAPPIST-1 system, and analogues of extrasolar giant planets themselves.Comment: 19 pages; submitted chapter to the Handbook of Exoplanets, eds. Hans J. Deeg and Juan Antonio Belmonte (Springer-Verlag

Sitting time and obesity in a sample of adults from Europe and the USA

This is an Accepted Manuscript of an article published by Taylor & Francis in Annals of Human Biology on 25 Sep 2016, available online: http://www.tandfonline.com/10.1080/03014460.2016.1232749.Obesity is a risk factor for many chronic diseases and the prevalence is increasing worldwide. Research suggests that sedentary behaviour (sitting) may be related to obesity.To examine the association between sitting time and obesity, while controlling for physical activity, in a large international sample.5338 adults from the UK, USA, Germany, Spain, Italy, France, Portugal, Austria and Switzerland self-reported their total daily sitting time, physical activity, age, height and weight. BMI (kg/m(2)), total physical activity (MET-minutes/week) and sitting time (hours/day) were derived. Participants were grouped into quartiles based on their daily sitting time (<4, 4 - ≤6, 6 - ≤8, and >8 hours/day) and logistic regression models explored the odds of being obese versus normal weight for each sitting time quartile.Participants in the highest sitting time quartile (≥8 hours/day) had 62% higher odds of obesity compared to participants in the lowest quartile (<4 hours/day) after adjustment for physical activity and other confounding variables (OR = 1.62, 95% CI = 1.24-2.12, p<0.01).Sitting time is associated with obesity in adults, independent of physical activity. Future research should clarify this association using objective measures of sitting time and physical activity to further inform health guidelines