Frame running to confidence: the athlete-perceived impact of an adapted physical activity on aspects of physical fitness, functional mobility and psychosocial outcomes

Objective: Frame Running (RaceRunning) allows people with moderate-to-severe mobility impairments to participate in physical activity using a 3-wheeled frame with a saddle and handlebars. The aim of this study was to investigate athlete-perceived impact of Frame Running on aspects of physical fitness, functional mobility and psychosocial outcomes. Design: Survey. Participants: Frame Running athletes aged 5 years and over. Methods: A survey was distributed to athletes through their club or sports organization. Results: The survey was completed by 115 athletes (53 females). Median age was 17 years (range 5–62 years) and 64 (57%) used a wheelchair or walker for distances over 50 m. Many felt that Frame Running stretched their muscles (n=93, 87%) and increased their self-confidence (n=63, 93%). Four (4%) reported extreme fatigue or sore muscles after training (n=17, 15%). Of the 110 athletes who had been participating in Frame Running for over 3 months, 46 (47%) reported being less out of breath during mobility tasks and 66 (66%) felt they had improved their functional mobility. However, 7 (7%) reported increased muscle tightness and 4 (4%) reported a Frame Running-related injury lasting more than 4 weeks. Conclusion: Frame Running is a safe physical activity with athlete-perceived benefits on physical fitness, functional mobility and psychosocial outcomes.

Cutaneous leishmaniasis–Awareness, knowledge and practices among general population in rural and urban areas in Malakand region, Pakistan

Malakand region is an endemic area for cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL). However, there are limited number of studies of this disease in Pakistan. Therefore, a study was conducted to understand the level of awareness attitude and practice among the residents of Makaland towards CL and the disease vectors. This study adopted a cross-sectional approach with a total of 400 respondents (n=93 rural and n= 307 urban). Overall, the population in Malakand region (61.2%) were well-informed in the role of sand fly in transmitting diseases, but most lack knowledge on the vector’s behavior and almost a quarter (24.5%) were unable to provide knowledge on proper control measures. Alarmingly, the practice and attitudes of the general population was not satisfactory as close to half (49.8%) of the population did adopt any control method. This study calls for increase in awareness through health education campaign to reduce the risk of cutaneous leishmaniasis outbreaks in the future.

3+1 İş Başında Eğitim Uygulaması Modelinin Kahramankazan Meslek Yüksekokulu Örneğinde Değerlendirilmesi

Bu çalışmada, Başkent Üniversitesi Kahramankazan Meslek Yüksekokulu tarafından 2020-2021 Akademik Yılı Bahar Döneminde gerçekleştirilen 3+1 İş Yeri Uygulamasından elde edilen sonuçlar tartışılmıştır. Pandemi koşulları nedeniyle uygulama 12 hafta süreyle icra edilmiştir. Uygulamaya katılma hakkı olan 227 öğrencinin %68,7’si (N=156) 139 farklı firmada eğitimlerini tamamlamıştır. Öğrencilerden %62,8’i (N=93) uygulama yaptıkları firmalardan iş teklifi almıştır. İş teklifi alan öğrencilerin %32,4’ü (N=48) iş teklifini kabul etmiştir. Öğrenci algılarına göre uygulama; planlı ve düzenli çalışmanın öğrenildiği, ekip çalışmalarının nasıl gerçekleştirildiği ve okulda verilen teorik bilgilerin iş yaşantısındaki pratik karşılıklarının ne olduğunun kavranıldığı bir faaliyet olarak değerlendirilmiştir. Öğrenci kabul eden firma algılarına göre de öğrencilerin verimli çalışarak firmalara katkı sağladıkları tespit edilmiştir. Aynı zamanda iş yaşamına hazırlık açısından çok önemli bir faaliyet olduğu belirtilmiştir.

Quality Practitioners’ Differing Perspectives on Future Software Quality Assurance Practices

Constant changes in a business context and software development make it important to understand how software quality assurance (SQA) should respond. Examining SQA from supplier and client perspectives, this study explores how different groups of SQA practitioners perceive future needs. A survey (n = 93) conducted in fall 2017 explored the views of SQA organizations on future trends. The results indicate that SQA organizations differ slightly in their attitudes to quality categories, as do different groups of SQA practitioners. It is argued that these differences should be taken into account when developing and implementing future SQA strategy. It is further argued that the found basic enables SQA management, evaluation of new practices, and allocation of resources to ensure that all quality categories remain balanced in the future.

Peer instruction versus conventional group work-based teaching in a laboratory exercise on respiratory physiology: a randomized study

Collaborative teaching strategies such as peer instruction and conventional group work have previously been shown to enhance meaningful learning, but they have not previously been compared. In this present study, we compared the impact of solving quizzes with peer instruction and conventional group work on immediate learning in a laboratory exercise. A total of 186 second-year medical students were randomized to solve two quizzes by either a peer instruction strategy ( n = 93) or conventional group work ( n = 93) during a mandatory laboratory exercise on respiratory physiology, after which all students completed an individual test. There was no difference in total test scores between groups, but students randomized to peer instruction obtained the highest test scores in solving simple integrated questions. Conversely, students randomized to conventional group work provided the best evaluations of the overall assessment of the laboratory exercise. In conclusion, different collaborative teaching strategies implemented during a laboratory exercise appear to affect immediate learning and student satisfaction differently.

Examining Subjective Aging through the Lens of the Caregiver Experience

Caregivers of individuals with Alzheimer’s disease and related dementia (ADRD) often experience burden that has been associated with poor physical and psychological health outcomes (Andren & Elmstahl, 2007; Zimmerman et al., 2018). However, very little research investigates how the caregiving experience may impact an individual’s subjective aging experience. Various aspects of subjective aging have been implicated in health outcomes and memory function (Brothers et al., 2017; Stephan, Sutin, Caudroit, & Terracciano, 2016). The purpose of this study was to investigate the differences in perceptions of subjective aging between caregivers and non-caregivers. Participants (N = 185) completed a survey assessing several aspects of subjective aging, including subjective age, or how old an individual feels, memory function, well-being, attitudes towards aging, and aging stereotypes. A series of independent t-tests indicated that there were significant differences between groups on subjective age (p = .013), and subjective memory function (p = .013). Caregivers (n = 93) reported feeling significantly older than their chronological age, reported significantly more subjective memory complaints, and also reported poorer subjective memory function when compared to the non-caregiver (n = 92) control group. Previous literature does suggest that older subjective age ratings are associated with poor subjective memory function, so these results are not necessarily surprising. However, these results suggest that caregiving for individuals with ADRD may negatively impact caregivers’ perceptions of their own aging experience, but not necessarily their perceptions about aging in general.

Experiences With Physical Distancing: Coping Strategies and Positive Experiences

A representative U.S. sample of adults completed an online survey (N=360) about perceived changes in social health and wellbeing since the implementation of physical distancing restrictions in April. Analyses are conducted on a subsample of adults aged 60+ (n=93; m=65.7 years; SD=4.7). Baseline bivariate descriptive analyses showed no geographic-based differences in self-rated health, resilience, perceived financial wellbeing, or family/friend support measures. Content analysis of rural residents’ (n=20) responses about coping strategies and positive experiences across three time points (April/July/November) revealed aspects of resilience. Individuals coped via acceptance and planning; engaging in activities; and keeping with routines. Positive experiences were relatively stable over time, with individuals describing improved health habits and enhanced social connectedness with family/neighbors. Individuals identified societal betterment and saving money as unintended benefits of the efforts to mitigate the spread of COVID-19. When faced with adversity, identifying positive experiences may help individuals cope with challenges in the long-term

Electronic case report forms generation from pathology reports by ARGO, automatic record generator for onco-hematology

The unstructured nature of Real-World (RW) data from onco-hematological patients and the scarce accessibility to integrated systems restrain the use of RW information for research purposes. Natural Language Processing (NLP) might help in transposing unstructured reports into standardized electronic health records. We exploited NLP to develop an automated tool, named ARGO (Automatic Record Generator for Onco-hematology) to recognize information from pathology reports and populate electronic case report forms (eCRFs) pre-implemented by REDCap. ARGO was applied to hemo-lymphopathology reports of diffuse large B-cell, follicular, and mantle cell lymphomas, and assessed for accuracy (A), precision (P), recall (R) and F1-score (F) on internal (n = 239) and external (n = 93) report series. 326 (98.2%) reports were converted into corresponding eCRFs. Overall, ARGO showed high performance in capturing (1) identification report number (all metrics > 90%), (2) biopsy date (all metrics > 90% in both series), (3) specimen type (86.6% and 91.4% of A, 98.5% and 100.0% of P, 92.5% and 95.5% of F, and 87.2% and 91.4% of R for internal and external series, respectively), (4) diagnosis (100% of P with A, R and F of 90% in both series). We developed and validated a generalizable tool that generates structured eCRFs from real-life pathology reports.

Why are children with asthma bullied? A risk factor analysis

The links between bullying and asthma have not been explored in children. We wanted to determine the child/parent factors and attitudes associated with asthma-related bullying. Individual child/parent responses of children with asthma (N=943) from the Room to Breathe survey were analysed. 1 in 10 children reported asthma-related bullying/teasing (n=93). Children with well-controlled asthma were less likely to report being a victim of asthma-related bullying/teasing (OR 0.51, 95% CI 0.23 to 0.84, p=0.006). Being a victim of bullying/teasing was more common in children reporting activity restriction (OR 1.74, 95% CI 1.11 to 2.75, p=0.010), who described their asthma as ‘bad’ (OR 3.02, 95% CI 1.86 to 4.85, p<0.001) and those whose parents reported ongoing asthma-related health worries (OR 1.64, 95% CI 1.04 to 2.58, p=0.024). Asthma consultations should incorporate specific questions about bullying and be child-focused in order to gain a representative appreciation of asthma control and its impact on the child’s life.

Prevalence of Otolaryngology Diseases in an Urban Homeless Population

Objective Otolaryngology diseases are common among people experiencing homelessness; however, they are seldom evaluated in a specialist setting, and investigations on their prevalence have rarely been conducted. The aim of this retrospective study was to evaluate the prevalence of otolaryngology conditions in an urban homeless population. Study Design Retrospective study. Setting Primary health care facility. Methods The clinical records of patients referred to the medical facilities of the Primary Care Services of the Eleemosynaria Apostolica, Vatican City, between October 1, 2019, and July 31, 2021, were retrospectively reviewed; those reporting at least 1 otolaryngology disease were included in the study. Results A total of 2516 records were retrospectively reviewed, and 484 (19.24%) were included in the study. The most common otolaryngology disease was pharyngotonsillitis (n = 118, 24.13%), followed by rhinitis with nasal obstruction (n = 107, 21.88%), hearing loss (n = 93, 19.01%), otitis (n = 81, 16.56%), abscess (n = 46, 9.40%), and sinusitis (n = 33, 6.74%). Head and neck cancer or precancerous lesions were reported in 34 subjects (7.02%). More than 1 simultaneous otolaryngology disorder was found in nearly 50% of our sample. A wide range of comorbidities was also reported. Conclusions Our results confirm an elevated otolaryngology demand in the homeless population and encourage the development of more efficient and effective strategies for a population-tailored diagnosis and treatment of these conditions.