Validation of a Computerized Version of the Trait Subscale of the Physical Appearance State and Trait Anxiety Scale in Mexican Preadolescents

Anxiety is a feeling of fear, dread or restlessness and can develop into a weight-related disorder. The objective was to analyze the psychometric properties of the trait anxiety subscale of the Physical Appearance State and Trait Anxiety Scale (PASTAS), as well as the invariance in Mexican preadolescents. The sample consisted of 604 participants, 285 female and 319 male, whose ages ranged between 11 and 12 years (M = 11.37; SD = 0.48). The questionnaire’s factor structure was analyzed using confirmatory factor analyses. The analyses show the viability and adequacy of a two-factor structure (weight and non-weight factors) both for the total sample and for the populations of male and female. The two-factor structure showed adequate reliability and validity fit indicators. The factor structure, the factor loadings and intercepts are considered invariant according to the variable sex; however, differences between female and male participants were found for levels of anxiety caused by physical appearance. In conclusion, the PASTAS can be considered a convenient instrument to assess the variables related to anxiety generated by one’s physical appearance, as well as allowing more participants to be quickly assessed.

Ciało fortepianu – artykulacja doświadczenia cielesnego w korespondencji Fryderyka Chopina

The article focuses on the presentation and analysis of selected excerpts from Frédéric Chopin’s letters from the 1824-1849 period that illustrate their author’s attitude towards physical experiences. In contrast to the “disembodied” reception of the artist that reproduces the “soul of the piano” metaphor, the article describes a broad representation of the composer’s texts on physical appearance, the role of the body in the performance act, living through illness and the oncoming death. The cross-sectional and chronologically ordered study presented in the article shows the evolution of the subject’s attitude towards his own body along the progress of his illness. It is at the same time an illustration of the style and imagery used by the author of the letters while describing specific aspects of physical experience.

Intersectional Discrimination Attributions and Health Outcomes Among American Older Adults: A Latent Class Analysis

Guided by an intersectionality framework, this study examined intersectional discrimination attributions and their associations with health outcomes. Older respondents (aged ≥50) from the Health and Retirement Study in 2014-2015 were included ( N = 6286). Their reasons for discrimination (age, gender, sexual orientation, race, national origin, religion, financial status, weight, physical appearance, disability, and others) were examined. Latent class analysis examined the subgroup profiles. Six classes were identified: class 1 (54.52% of the sample) had no/minimal discrimination; Class 2 (21.89%) experienced primarily ageism; class 3 (8.81%) reported discrimination based on age/gender/national origin/race; class 4 (7.99%) attributed discrimination to financial/other reasons; class 5 (5.87%) experienced discrimination based on age/weight/physical appearance/disability; and class 6 (0.92%) perceived high discrimination. Intersectional discrimination was associated with poorer self-rated health and higher depressive symptoms compared to the no/minimal discrimination group. Multiple marginalized identities co-occur and contribute to discrimination. An intersectional approach is recommended to understand discrimination in later life.

Effects of Results-Based Financing on Patient Satisfaction in Afghanistan

<p>A Results-Based Financing (RBF) program has been implemented in Afghanistan since September 2010 to improve the quality of health care and increase the utilization of maternal and child health services. This PhD study examines the impact of RBF on patient satisfaction and on determinants of patient satisfaction at health facility level in Afghanistan. Determinants of patient satisfaction in the study refer to health provider performance, availability of medicines, vaccines, equipment, and physical appearance of health facilities. I used data collected from a panel of health facilities over a three-year period. The data consist of nearly 3000 patient observations and exit interviews. I included 112 health facilities in my study. These health facilities were part of the 428 health facilities which had been randomly assigned to treatment and control groups prior to the start of RBF in 2010. Financial incentives were distributed among health providers in the treatment facilities through four administration mechanisms: salary-based, task-based, equal-amount, and mixed-method. Follow-up surveys were conducted in 2011 and 2012 in the same 112 facilities, but for new cross-sections of patients and health providers. I analysed a range of patient satisfaction and patient satisfaction determinants measures using a regression-adjusted difference-in-differences estimation model. The results from this study show that after a period of two years, there was an increase of only 8 percentage points in the proportion of patients who were very satisfied with services as a whole. However, the effect was not statistically significant. Similarly, specific aspects of patient satisfaction were not significantly affected by the intervention. Likewise, RBF did not have any significant effect on health provider performance, on availability of medicines, vaccines, and equipment, and on physical appearance of health facilities over a two-year period. I also found no difference in RBF treatment effects by the different incentive administration mechanisms. My study provides evidence which suggests that paying monetary incentives alone may not have the impetus to improve health provider performance to the satisfaction of patients in a post conflict country. In such settings, RBF initiatives need to include both financial and non-financial incentives for health providers in order to achieve the intended objectives of quality of care and patient satisfaction. My study provides pragmatic recommendations aimed at holistic approaches to improving quality and delivery of healthcare in a post conflict setting.</p>

Effects of Results-Based Financing on Patient Satisfaction in Afghanistan

<p>A Results-Based Financing (RBF) program has been implemented in Afghanistan since September 2010 to improve the quality of health care and increase the utilization of maternal and child health services. This PhD study examines the impact of RBF on patient satisfaction and on determinants of patient satisfaction at health facility level in Afghanistan. Determinants of patient satisfaction in the study refer to health provider performance, availability of medicines, vaccines, equipment, and physical appearance of health facilities. I used data collected from a panel of health facilities over a three-year period. The data consist of nearly 3000 patient observations and exit interviews. I included 112 health facilities in my study. These health facilities were part of the 428 health facilities which had been randomly assigned to treatment and control groups prior to the start of RBF in 2010. Financial incentives were distributed among health providers in the treatment facilities through four administration mechanisms: salary-based, task-based, equal-amount, and mixed-method. Follow-up surveys were conducted in 2011 and 2012 in the same 112 facilities, but for new cross-sections of patients and health providers. I analysed a range of patient satisfaction and patient satisfaction determinants measures using a regression-adjusted difference-in-differences estimation model. The results from this study show that after a period of two years, there was an increase of only 8 percentage points in the proportion of patients who were very satisfied with services as a whole. However, the effect was not statistically significant. Similarly, specific aspects of patient satisfaction were not significantly affected by the intervention. Likewise, RBF did not have any significant effect on health provider performance, on availability of medicines, vaccines, and equipment, and on physical appearance of health facilities over a two-year period. I also found no difference in RBF treatment effects by the different incentive administration mechanisms. My study provides evidence which suggests that paying monetary incentives alone may not have the impetus to improve health provider performance to the satisfaction of patients in a post conflict country. In such settings, RBF initiatives need to include both financial and non-financial incentives for health providers in order to achieve the intended objectives of quality of care and patient satisfaction. My study provides pragmatic recommendations aimed at holistic approaches to improving quality and delivery of healthcare in a post conflict setting.</p>

Cosmetic contact lenses: beauty can be blinding

Background: Although cosmetic contact lenses are ideally indicated for patients with corneal and iris abnormalities, they are currently fashionable among the younger generation of emmetropes to enhance their physical appearance. Cosmetic contact lens wearers carry a greater risk of microbial keratitis, even more so with counterfeit ones.Case presentation: Here, we report two cases of counterfeit cosmetic contact lens wearers with Acanthamoeba keratitis (AK) who were misdiagnosed as herpes simplex virus (HSV) keratitis.Conclusion: AK is a sight-threatening complication among contact lens wearers. Since clinically AK may masquerade as HSV, early diagnosis of AK is often delayed. As both microorganisms can mimic each other, determining the co-existence of both infections can be challenging. Delay in initiating proper treatment can lead to blinding complications.

MRI Visualization and Distribution Patterns of Foreign Modeling Agents: A Brief Pictorial Review for Clinicians

Since the ancient Egyptians, people have always been worried about their physical appearance. Nowadays, for some cultures like Latin American, physical appearance depends on the context, and the concept of beauty is to have wider hips and more prominent buttocks. One way to achieve these goals is to inject foreign modelants that include some oils to modify certain body regions. Until today, the search continues to find a modelling agent that is nonteratogenic, noncarcinogenic, and not susceptible to infection and can stay at the spot where it was injected (not migration). This review is aimed at providing a brief, comprehensive assessment of the use of modeling agents and summarizes some key imaging features of filler-related complications. The topics of this review are historical data, epidemiology, classification of dermal fillers (xenografts, hyaluronic acid derivatives, autografts, homografts, synthetic materials), adverse reactions, imaging method used in the detection of injectable fillers, MRI patterns observed in complications of injectable fillers, and histological findings of immune response, treatment, and conclusions. We present several classifications of injectable fillers based on composition, degradation, and complications. Additionally, readers will find some representative cases of the most common locations of injectable fillers demonstrating their infiltrative MRI patterns.