Removing barriers to COVID-19 vaccine intention in a university population: Results of a serial mediation study through the dimensions of the Health Belief Model.

Background: While many studies have used the Health Belief Model (HBM) to understand vaccine intention, none claim to have used serial mediation to understand the relationship between HBM dimensions and COVID-19 vaccine intention. This study developed a serial mediation model to assess the direct and indirect effects of the latent HBM dimensions on COVID-19 primary vaccine intention.

Methods: A cross-sectional study: from 01 April to 10 June 2021, a self-administered online questionnaire on vaccine intention against COVID-19 was distributed to staff and students at the University of Liège (Belgium).

Incidence and features of pulmonary track nodules after CT-guided lung biopsy with track sealing using gelatin sponge slurry.

Background: Track sealing (TS) with gelatin sponge slurry (GSS) is efficient in reducing pneumothorax after CT-guided lung biopsy. Nodule appearance along the pulmonary track after TS with GSS is a potential issue that has not been previously evaluated.

Methods: A secondary analysis of two studies evaluating the efficacy of lung TS in 710 patients in reducing post-biopsy pneumothorax was performed.

Contamination levels and distribution of persistent and non-persistent pollutants in paired hair, urine and serum samples from a Belgian non-occupationally exposed population.

Designing ideal human biomonitoring studies involves the selection of reliable markers of exposure in adequate biological matrix. Besides conventional matrices such as blood or urine, hair has been increasingly investigated as a promising noninvasive alternative. However, understanding the pollutant distribution between differing biological compartments is essential for reliable interpretation of data collected.

Apomorphine for prolonged disorders of consciousness: a multimodal open-label study.

Background: Apomorphine is a dopaminergic candidate therapy to improve recovery in patients with prolonged disorders of consciousness (PDoC). Behavioural improvements were previously described in non-controlled case series, but its efficacy and neural mechanisms remain largely unknown. This open-label controlled study using multimodal outcome measures investigates the action of apomorphine in severely brain-injured patients.

Track Sealing in CT-Guided Lung Biopsy Using Gelatin Sponge Slurry versus Saline in Reducing Postbiopsy Pneumothorax: A Prospective Randomized Study.

Purpose: To compare the effectiveness of 2 track sealing techniques following computed tomography (CT)-guided lung biopsy using either gelatin sponge slurry (GSS) or saline to reduce the rate of postbiopsy pneumothorax.

Materials And Methods: In this prospective study, a total of 266 patients (median age, 66.2 years; range, 25.

A comparison of foot and ankle biomechanics during running drills and distance running.

The aim of this study was to compare the foot-ankle joint mechanics of running drills and running. Seventeen long-distance runners performed five popular running drills (A-skip, B-skip, Bounding, Heel flicks, Straight leg running) and a run at 3.88 m/s.

Mapping the Lequesne Functional Index Into the EQ-5D-5L Utility Index in Patients With Knee Osteoarthritis.

Objective: This study aimed to map the Lequesne index onto the EuroQol 5 Dimension (EQ-5D-5L) utility index for patients with knee osteoarthritis.

Methods: Baseline data from a previous randomized controlled trial were used; 461 patients were involved in the mapping development, and 230 in the validation phase. Various modeling techniques, including generalized linear models, tobit, and beta regression, were used.

Exploring nursing student self-esteem change and its predictors: Cohort study and its methodological challenges.

Objective: Considering methodological difficulties and inconsistent results of previous studies on it, the objective was to describe the change in nursing student self-esteem over time and its predictors, using a sound theoretical framework and relevant tools to measure and analyse the data.

Method: Cohort study. Self-esteem and related factors were assessed in nursing students in a 4-year bachelor's program at the beginning of each academic year from 2017 to 2019 and at the end of the academic year in May 2020, using he revised version of Self-liking/Self-competence scale of Tafarodi and Swann.

Vaccine hesitancy for the COVID-19 vaccine booster dose among nursing home staff fully vaccinated with the primary vaccination course in Belgium.

In Belgium, nursing home (NH) staff (NHS) and residents were prioritised for the initial COVID-19 vaccination and successive booster doses. The vaccination campaign for the first booster started in September 2021 in Belgian NH. Our first study about vaccine hesitancy towards the COVID-19 vaccine in Belgian NHS already showed a degree of fear for the primary vaccination course (T1).

Convalescent Plasma for Covid-19-Induced ARDS in Mechanically Ventilated Patients.

Background: Passive immunization with plasma collected from convalescent patients has been regularly used to treat coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19). Minimal data are available regarding the use of convalescent plasma in patients with Covid-19-induced acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS).

Methods: In this open-label trial, we randomly assigned adult patients with Covid-19-induced ARDS who had been receiving invasive mechanical ventilation for less than 5 days in a 1:1 ratio to receive either convalescent plasma with a neutralizing antibody titer of at least 1:320 or standard care alone.

Sham-controlled randomized multicentre trial of transcranial direct current stimulation for prolonged disorders of consciousness.

Background And Purpose: Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) has been shown to improve signs of consciousness in a subset of patients with disorders of consciousness (DoC). However, no multicentre study confirmed its efficacy when applied during rehabilitation. In this randomized controlled double-blind study, the effects of tDCS whilst patients were in rehabilitation were tested at the group level and according to their diagnosis and aetiology to better target DoC patients who might repond to tDCS.

Quadriceps handheld dynamometry during the post-ICU trajectory: using strictly the same body position is mandatory for repeated measures.

Background: The level of quadriceps strength (QS) generated in the supine or seated position is not similar. For QS follow-up from intensive care unit (ICU) stay to recovery, getting comparable measures is essential. This study aimed to develop and validate new equations for estimating QS in a given position based on the measurement taken in another one.

Bruxism as a new risk factor of musculo-skeletal disorders?

Objectives: Musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs), particularly neck and low back pain, constitute a major public health issue worldwide with a heavy morbidity and economic impact. However, the relationships between the stomatognathic system and MSDs are subjected to debate, data sorely lacking. The study objective was to investigate the association between bruxism (BR) and MSDs.

Incidence of near-death experiences in patients surviving a prolonged critical illness and their long-term impact: a prospective observational study.

Background: So far, the few prospective studies on near-death experience (NDE) were carried out only in intensive care unit (ICU) patients with homogeneous aetiologies, such as cardiac arrest or trauma survivors. The aims of this 1-year prospective and monocentric study were to investigate the incidence of NDE in ICU survivors (all aetiologies) as well as factors that may affect its frequency, and to assess quality of life up to 1 year after enrolment.

Methods: We enrolled adults with a prolonged ICU stay (> 7 days).

Feasibility and Acceptability of a Home-Based Sensory Perception Training Game for Patients with Fibromyalgia: A Pilot Study.

The primary aim of this pilot study was to test the feasibility and acceptability of a prototype of a novel digital system enabling somatosensory training at home by means of a gamified mobile application in patients with chronic pain. The secondary aims were to test the effect size of the intervention on clinical outcomes to power a subsequent randomized controlled trial. We conducted a pilot randomized controlled trial in patients with fibromyalgia.

Bone Marrow-Derived Mesenchymal Stromal Cell Therapy in Severe COVID-19: Preliminary Results of a Phase I/II Clinical Trial.

Background: Treatment of acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) associated with COronaVIrus Disease-2019 (COVID-19) currently relies on dexamethasone and supportive mechanical ventilation, and remains associated with high mortality. Given their ability to limit inflammation, induce immune cells into a regulatory phenotype and stimulate tissue repair, mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) represent a promising therapy for severe and critical COVID-19 disease, which is associated with an uncontrolled immune-mediated inflammatory response.

Methods: In this phase I-II trial, we aimed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of 3 intravenous infusions of bone marrow (BM)-derived MSCs at 3-day intervals in patients with severe COVID-19.

Factors influencing the adoption and participation rate of nursing homes staff in a saliva testing screening programme for COVID-19.

Testing strategies are crucial to prevent and control the spread of covid-19 but suffer from a lack of investment in understanding the human factors that influence their implementation. The aim of this study was to understand the factors that encourage participation and the level of engagement of nursing homes staff in a routine saliva testing programme for COVID-19 In December 2020, nursing homes (n = 571) in Wallonia (Belgium) were invited to participate in a saliva testing programme for their staff. The directors were questioned by telephone at the end of a 3-week pilot phase.

Clinical prediction models for diagnosis of COVID-19 among adult patients: a validation and agreement study.

Background: Since the beginning of the pandemic, hospitals have been constantly overcrowded, with several observed waves of infected cases and hospitalisations. To avoid as much as possible this situation, efficient tools to facilitate the diagnosis of COVID-19 are needed.

Objective: To evaluate and compare prediction models to diagnose COVID-19 identified in a systematic review published recently using performance indicators such as discrimination and calibration measures.

Acceptability of Community Saliva Testing in Controlling the COVID-19 Pandemic: Lessons Learned from Two Case Studies in Nursing Homes and Schools.

Current public health debate centers on COVID-19 testing methods and strategies. In some communities, high transmission risk may justify routine testing, and this requires test methods that are safe and efficient for both patients and the administrative or health-care workers administering them. Saliva testing appears to satisfy those criteria.

Prevention of ventilator-associated pneumonia by noble metal coating of endotracheal tubes: a multi-center, randomized, double-blind study.

Background: Ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) causes increased mortality, prolonged hospital stay and increased healthcare costs. Prevention of VAP in intensive care units (ICUs) is currently based on several measures, and application of noble metal coating on medical devices has been shown to inhibit the bacterial adherence of microorganisms to the surface. The objective of this study was to evaluate the potential benefit of noble metal coating of endotracheal tubes for the prevention of VAP.

Physical capacities assessment in critically ill patients: An exploratory study.

Background: The severity of muscle weakness after critical illness is very heterogeneous. To identify those patients who may maximally benefit from early exercises would be highly valuable. This implies an assessment of physical capacities, comprised at least of strength measurement and functional tests.

Virtual reality and hypnosis for anxiety and pain management in intensive care units: A prospective randomised trial among cardiac surgery patients.

Background: Virtual reality and hypnosis are little studied in complex contexts, such as intensive care, where patients need significant physical and psychological assistance.

Objectives: To compare and combine hypnosis and virtual reality benefits on anxiety and pain on patients before and after cardiac surgery.

Design: Prospective randomised controlled clinical trial.

A systematic review of prediction models to diagnose COVID-19 in adults admitted to healthcare centers.

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic is putting significant pressure on the hospital system. To help clinicians in the rapid triage of patients at high risk of COVID-19 while waiting for RT-PCR results, different diagnostic prediction models have been developed. Our objective is to identify, compare, and evaluate performances of prediction models for the diagnosis of COVID-19 in adult patients in a health care setting.

Validation of a French-language version of TeamSTEPPS® T-TPQ and T-TAQ questionnaires.

Teamwork training and evaluation are essential to enhance safety and quality of care. The lack of the psychometric testing of the TeamSTEPPS® Teamwork Attitudes Questionnaire (T-TAQ) and Teamwork Perceptions Questionnaire (T-TPQ) across different language and cultural settings has questioned their widespread use because such attitudes and perceptions are highly subjective and context-bound. The present study aims to translate the T-TAQ and T-TPQ into the French language and validate the psychometric properties of the two questionnaires in a public health context.