关键词： allied health   clinic   hand therapy   occupational therapy   postoperative   satisfaction  

摘要： Introduction To assist with the increasing orthopaedic workload, an allied health led hand therapy clinic was established to manage people having routine hand surgeries. The aim of this study was to evaluate patient and doctor satisfaction and safety of this alternative service delivery model. Methods Prospective multimethod design evaluation was undertaken by occupational therapists and physiotherapists working in the field of hand therapy. Satisfaction surveys were completed by orthopaedic doctors and patients. Patient outcomes were assessed at 6 weeks post operatively using the Quick Disability of Arm, Shoulder and Hand questionnaire, total active range of motion, Crawford Classification, sensation using light touch and pain with activity utilising Wong Baker FACES (R) Pain Rating Scale. Quantitative satisfaction survey data were analysed and presented as frequencies and percentages with open question responses analysed using a qualitative description approach. All complications and readmissions within a 3-month period were identified and recorded to assess safety of this model of care. Results For the 6-week post-operative review, 81 patients were seen by an allied health professional rather than a doctor. Patient satisfaction was high with 90% of patients satisfied with post-operative care provided by allied health;2% of patients preferred to be seen by a doctor. Doctor satisfaction was also high with 95% of doctors being satisfied and confident with the quality of care provided. A high proportion of patients reported pain 2/10 or less with activity (82.72%), had full sensation (69.14%), excellent range of motion (82.72%), and Quick Disability Arm, Shoulder and Hand scores on average were below 25% indicating minimal functional deficits. Only five patients required doctor involvement post-operatively. Conclusion The allied heath led service delivery model was demonstrated to be safe and have high patient and doctor satisfaction, indicating an acceptable alterna

关键词： thermal spraying   ferrochromium slag   high temperature   TBC   dry sliding wear  

摘要： The aim of this study is to show that ferrochrome (FeCr) slag, an industrial waste material, can be used as an alternative protective coating material in service conditions for the caster roll surfaces used in the continuous casting line of steelmaking. Atmospheric plasma spray (APS) method was utilized in coating processes. Considering the working conditions of continuous casting production line, the Thermal Barrier Coating (TBC) system was used as a basis for deposition processes. For production of the TBC system, the commercial NiCoCrAlY (Amdry, 45 + 5 mu m) coating powder was initially deposited as metallic bond coat layer onto the surface of AISI 316L substrate, and then FeCr slag layer was successfully deposited as the top coating layer. After the deposition of FeCr slag powder, the resulting coating layer was found to have low porosity with a homogeneous microstructure. Dry sliding wear tests were performed under different loads (7N, 10N and 13N) and temperatures (200, 400 and 600 degrees C) using a ball-on-disc test rig with heating unit. At low loads (7N, 10N) and temperatures (200, 400 degrees C), predominantly spallation type abrasion was observed, while at high load and temperatures (13N, 600 degrees C), the formation of tribolayer and delamination were the dominant wear mechanisms on the surface of FeCr slag coatings. According to the test results, it can be said that FeCr slag powder is a suitable candidate as a protective coating material against adhesive wear at elevated temperatures for caster rolls.

关键词： Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP)   PrEP navigation   Transgender   trans women   Gender non-binary persons   Gender queer persons   Men who have sex with men (MSM)  

摘要： Strategies to reduce new HIV infections include pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP). Of the estimated over 221,000 Californians with an indication for PrEP, only 31,280 (14 %) were currently taking the medication as of 2019. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Project PrIDE funds were used to support and develop California PrEP navigation programs designed to increase PrEP uptake among trans persons and men who have sex with men (MSM). An analysis of PrIDE-funded PrEP navigation service outcomes was conducted to highlight where continuum drop-off occurred and how it varied among priority populations. Quantitative service delivery data for PrEP navigation program activities conducted from October 1, 2015 to September 30, 2018 were collected across three county-level local health jurisdictions (LHJs) via standardized, agency-completed service delivery data collection tools. Analyses included frequencies and crosstabs. These variations were not tested statistically but highlight group-specific needs to be addressed before implementing PrEP navigation within California. Continued systematic collection and analyses of PrEP continuum outcomes will allow programs to dynamically identify and address barriers to PrEP uptake in priority populations.

关键词： Layered double hydroxides   Intercalation   5-aminosalicylic acid   Drug delivery  

摘要： Among a great variety of applications, layered double hydroxides (LDH) can be used as drug delivery systems improving the dissolution rate of poorly water-soluble drugs. Different methods, as co-precipitation, ion exchange, reconstitution, among others, can be used in order to intercalate drugs in the LDH interlayer space, such as 5-aminosalicylic acid (5ASA), widely used in the treatment of inflammatory bowel diseases, although it presents low bioavailability and water solubility. The chosen method can determine structural and material properties of the final product, such as crystal size, particle distribution and morphology. This study presents the reconstitution method as an alternative. The samples were characterized by elemental analysis, X-ray diffraction, infrared molecular absorption spectroscopy, thermal analysis and atomic force microscopy. The characterization proved the interaction between LDH and 5ASA by changes in the interplanar distances and hydrogen interactions between drug and layer hydroxyls. This system presented a 25.5% of drug load. Also, the microscopy showed a rough surface in the system, indicating that the drug was not only present in the LDH interlayer space, but also adsorbed on its surface. This set of data indicate that the method was efficient for 5ASA intercalation in the LDH, reinforcing the proposal of LDHs as functional pharmaceutical excipients.

关键词： Pain   musculoskeletal   older adults   complementary and alternative medicine   alternative therapies  

摘要： Background: This study describes the use of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) among older adults who report being hampered in daily activities due to musculoskeletal pain. The characteristics of older adults with debilitating musculoskeletal pain who report CAM use is also examined. Methods: Cross-sectional European Social Survey Round 7 data from 21 countries were examined for participants aged 55years and older, who reported musculoskeletal pain that hampered daily activities in the past 12 months. Results: Of the 4950 older adult participants reporting musculoskeletal pain that hampered daily activities, the majority (63.5%) were from the West of Europe, reported secondary education or less (78.2%), and reported at least one other health-related problem (74.6%). In total, 1657 (33.5%) reported using at least one CAM treatment in the previous year. Manual body-based therapies (MBBTs) were most used, including massage therapy (17.9%) and osteopathy (7.0%). Alternative medicinal systems (AMSs) were also popular with 6.5% using homoeopathy and 5.3% reporting herbal. treatments. A general trend of higher CAM use in younger participants was noted. CAM use was associated with physiotherapy use, female gender, higher levels of education, being in employment and living in West Europe. Those reporting multiple health problems were more likely to use all CAM treatments, except MBBT. Conclusion: A third of older Europeans with musculoskeletal pain report CAM use in the previous 12 months. Certain subgroups with higher rates of CAM use could be identified. Clinicians should comprehensively and routinely assess CAM use among older adults with musculoskeletal pain.

关键词： Cement hydration   Impedance   Microstructure   EDTA   Non-destructive testing  

摘要： Alternative current impedance spectroscopy (ACIS) is a promising non-destructive testing method to monitor long-term change and assess the durability of concrete. This study investigates the influences of Ethylene Diamine Tetraacetic Acid (EDTA) on the hydration of hardening cement by ACIS. It is found that EDTA retards the early-age hydration of cement but can facilitate the later age reaction. Pastes with EDTA show comparable or higher compressive strength than Control at 28 d, especially when the dosage is higher than 0.4%. Microstructural characterization results reveal the working mechanism of EDTA originating from its complexing effect on free ions. The resistivity evolution of the pastes detected by ACIS can well reflect the effects of EDTA on the cement hydration in different ages. Proportional relations are identified between the resistivity and other hydration parameters, such as reaction degree, chemical shrinkage, compressive strength. The results of this study indicate a wider prospect of ACIS in monitoring the microstructure evolution and macro-properties of cementitious materials.

关键词： reference strain   alternative strain   Pharmacopeia   microbial characteristic   Staphylococcus aureus  

摘要： The National Culture Collection of Pathogens (NCCP) is a microbial resource bank in Korea that collects pathogen resources causing infectious disease in human and distributes them for research and education. The NCCP bank attempts to discover strains with various characteristics and specific purposes to provide diverse resources to researchers. Staphylococcus aureus American Type Culture Collection (ATCC) 6538P is used as a reference strain in the microbial assay for antibiotics in the Korean and in the United States Pharmacopoeias. We aimed to analyze domestically isolated microbial resources from the NCCP to replace the S. aureus reference strain. Staphylococcus aureus strains were identified using matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry and the VITEK-2 system and characterized by multilocus sequence typing, 16S rRNA sequencing, and antibiotic susceptibility testing. Several candidate strains had similar characteristics as the reference strain. Among them, the nucleotide sequence of the 16S rRNA region of NCCP 16830 was 100% identical to that of the reference strain;it was sensitive to six types of antibiotics and showed results most similar to the reference strain. A validity evaluation was conducted using the cylinder-plate method. NCCP 16830 presented valid results and had the same performance as ATCC 6538P;therefore, it was selected as an alternative candidate strain.

关键词： heart failure   acute   iron   quality of life  

摘要： This commentary refers to ‘The effect of intravenous ferric carboxymaltose on health-related quality of life in iron-deficient patients with acute heart failure: the results of the AFFIRM-AHF study’, by E.A. Jankowska et al. , https://***/10.1093/eurheartj/ehab234 and the discussion piece ‘Dilemmas on diagnosis and treatment of iron deficiency in patients after an episode of acute heart failure’, by E.A. Jankowska and P. Ponikowski, https://***/10.1093/eurheartj/ehab839 .

关键词： mRNA variants   5'UTR   Coat color   Gene expression   Alternative splicing  

摘要： The Agouti gene (ASIP) is one of the most important genes for coat color determination in mammals. It has a complex structure with several promoters and alternative non-coding first exons that are transcribed into mRNAs with different 5'UTR. These mRNA isoforms regulate the temporal and spatial expression of the gene, producing diverse pigmentation patterns. Here, we studied ASIP transcriptional variants and their expression in the skin of llamas with different coat color phenotypes. We also described the ASIP locus, including promoter usage and the splicing events that originate each transcript variant. Using 5'RACE-PCR we isolated seven ASIP transcripts with alternative 5'UTR, where exons 1A, 1A', 1C, 1D, and a novel non-coding exon 1A" were identified. Additionally, new alternative spliced forms were found. The diversity of ASIP 5'UTRs is originated by a complex pattern of alternative promoter usage, multiple transcription start sites and splicing events that include exon skipping and alternative 3' splicing site selection. We found that ASIP was highly expressed in llamas with white and brown phenotypes while black animals presented very low expression. The main responsible for this difference was a fusion transcript between ASIP and NCOA6 genes, which was present in the skin of white and brown llamas but not in the black ones. The rest of ASIP transcripts presented very low expression in the skin, indicating that the main regulation point for ASIP gene expression is at the transcriptional level. Nevertheless, the characteristics of the 5'UTRs sequences suggest that alternative transcripts could be regulated differently at the protein synthesis level.

关键词： Internet of things  

摘要： The arrival of 5G will usher in an era of "Internet of Everything." Massive Internet of Things data contains great value in the dynamic analysis of alternative elements of automated packaging systems. From the perspective of the realization of personalized customization functions, this article solves the problem of dynamic analysis of alternative elements in the automated packaging system. We analyze the connection mechanism and interaction method between the cloud service system layer and the mobile terminal service layer, and carry out the corresponding software design. From the perspective of the realization of the intelligent production of the system in this paper, this topic mainly studies the information interaction mechanism and production control mechanism of the cloud service system and the manufacturing system. Based on the hardware of the manufacturing system layer, a flexible production implementation mechanism is formulated to make it the basis for the implementation of intelligent production of the system. Based on the massive data processing capabilities of the cloud service system, the information processing mechanism and the production planning decision-making mechanism are formulated for it, so as to realize the intelligent adjustment of the manufacturing system layer in the production process. For the connection scenario of IoT group paging, based on the application of NB-IoT technology in the next-generation mobile communication network, the focus of network optimization is to ensure the random access performance of IoT devices as much as possible. To this end, this paper proposes a random access optimization strategy for IoT group paging based on time slot scattering. We establish a mathematical model based on queuing theory for the connection scenario of the Io T group paging, then use the mathematical formula to derive the number of IoT devices scattered to each time slot in the initial state, thereby deriving the specific time slot scattering