Systemic Immune-Inflammation Index and Neutrophil-To-Lymphocyte Ratio: U-Shaped Association With Overactive Bladder.

Objectives: This study aims to examine the association of systemic immune-inflammation index (SII) and neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) with the prevalence of overactive bladder (OAB).

Methods: This cross-sectional study analyzed data from 22,343 participants (≥ 20 years) in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (2005-2018). We applied weighted multivariate logistic regression, restricted cubic spline (RCS) regression, subgroup, and sensitivity analyses to assess the associations between SII, NLR, and OAB.

Patient-reported outcomes and their associated factors at 1- and 2-year follow-up after lumbar spine surgery: a surgery registry study.

Purpose: Degenerative lumbar conditions are a leading cause of disability worldwide, often requiring surgery when conservative treatments fail. Data on surgical outcomes from patients' perspectives and influencing factors remain limited. This study aimed to assess 1-year and 2-year Patient-Reported Outcomes (PROs) following lumbar spine surgery and identify factors associated with these outcomes.

EORTC QLU-C10D was similarly valid and sensitive as EQ-5D-5L but more responsive to cancer patients' health deterioration.

Objective: The psychometric performance of the Quality-of-Life Utility-Core 10 Dimensions (QLU-C10D), a recently developed disease-specific preference-based measure (PBM) for cancer patients, is not well understood yet. This study aimed to compare the construct validity, sensitivity, and responsiveness of QLU-C10D with that of EQ-5D-5L, a generic PBM.

Study Design And Setting: We recruited cancer patients from outpatient clinics of a tertiary cancer hospital then interviewed them face-to-face at two consecutive clinic visits using both QLU-C10D and EQ-5D-5L questionnaires.

Developing an EQ-5D-5L Value Set for Singapore.

Objectives: The EQ-5D-5L is a multi-attribute utility instrument recommended by many health technology assessment agencies. This study aimed to develop an EQ-5D-5L value set for Singapore.

Methods: A 'lite' version of the EuroQol Research Foundation's EQ-5D-5L valuation protocol, which was designed to value a total of 91 health states using a composite time trade-off (cTTO) method, was followed.

Validation of the consumer health activation index (CHAI) among community-dwelling adults in primary care clinics in Singapore.

Background: Health activation is an individual's knowledge, skills, and confidence in managing personal health and healthcare. The Consumer Health Activation Index (CHAI) is a freely available, 10-item measure originally developed in the United States. This study aimed to validate CHAI among community-dwelling adults in Singapore, examining its content validity, construct validity and test-retest reliability.

Flu-CNN: identifying host specificity of Influenza A virus using convolutional networks.

Influenza A viruses (IAVs) have historically posed significant public health threats, causing severe pandemics. Viral host specificity is typically constrained by host barriers, limiting the range of species that can be infected. However, these barriers are not absolute, and occasionally, cross-species transmission occurs, leading to human outbreaks.

Assessing Caregiver Burden in Kidney Failure: A Systematic Review of Measurement Properties of Instruments.

Caregiver burden in end-stage kidney disease requires assessment using validated instruments. This systematic review evaluated measurement properties of caregiver burden instruments in end-stage kidney disease using Consensus-Based Standards for the Selection of Health Measurement Instruments methodology. We searched 8 databases (PubMed, CINAHL, Embase, Web of Science, MEDLINE, Cochrane Library, Scopus, and PsycINFO) for studies evaluating measurement properties of caregiver burden instruments in caregivers of patients with kidney failure.

A Head-to-Head Comparison of the Psychometric Properties of the EQ-5D-Y-3L, EQ-5D-Y-5L, and CHU9D in Children Aged 8 to 18 Years With Eczema.

Objectives: This study evaluated and compared the psychometric properties (ceiling effects, construct validity, and responsiveness) of EQ-5D-Y-3L (Y-3L), EQ-5D-Y-5L (Y-5L), and child health utility 9D (CHU9D) in pediatric patients with eczema.

Methods: Patients completed the Y-3L, Y-5L, CHU9D, and the Child Dermatology Life Quality Index and were followed up during their next visit. Clinicians assessed patients' skin status using the Validated Investigator Global Assessment scale for Atopic Dermatitis.

Assessing the Health-Related Quality of Life of Children With Asthma or Eczema by a Proxy: Does Assessment Perspective Matter?

Objectives: We compared the measurement properties of 2 proxy versions (proxy-proxy perspective, P1 and proxy-patient perspective, P2) of EQ-5D-Y-3L (Y-3L) and EQ-5D-Y-5L (Y-5L) for assessing the health-related quality of life (HRQoL) of pediatric patients with asthma or eczema.

Methods: We recruited pediatric patients with asthma or eczema and their parents or legal guardians from 2 tertiary hospitals in Singapore. Patients completed Y-3L, Y-5L, and a disease-specific HRQoL questionnaire.

Identifying and developing culturally relevant EQ-5D-5L bolt-on items for Chinese population: qualitative phase of a mixed-methods study.

Purpose: EQ-5D might not fully capture certain aspects of health-related quality of life (HRQoL) important to the Chinese population. The study aimed to identify and develop culturally relevant additional items (bolt-ons) for the EQ-5D-5L in China.

Methods: This study represents the qualitative phase of a larger mixed-methods project.

Utilizing plasma exchange for severe cytokine release syndrome after CAR-T cell therapy: clinical experience and literature insights.

Cytokine release syndrome (CRS) is a severe complication following Chimeric Antigen Receptor T-cell (CAR-T) therapy, characterized by an excessive inflammatory response triggered by the activation of CAR-T cells. Clinically, approaches like tocilizumab and corticosteroids are commonly used to treat CRS. However, those methods might be insufficient, particularly in treating severe CRS patients (grade 3-4).

Milliwatt-scale 3D thermoelectric generators additive screen printing.

Electronic components driving digitalization, such as wearables, Internet of Things (IoT), and Industry 4.0 systems, consume a growing portion of the global primary energy, largely relying on lithium-ion batteries. To enable a sustainable alternative, we explore cost-effective, fully printed thermoelectric generators (TEGs), which can be an alternative to batteries in low-power electronics.

Psychometric testing of two respiratory bolt-on items to EQ-5D-5L in patients with obstructive airway diseases.

Objectives: Two recently developed respiratory bolt-ons were shown to improve the construct validity of EQ-5D-5L among community-treated patients with obstructive airway disease (OAD). We evaluated their psychometric properties, including responsiveness and reliability in a specialist-managed OAD cohort.

Methods: We performed in-depth interviews with ten OAD patients and ten clinicians to assess their content validity.

Comparisons of Preferences Toward EQ-5D-Y-3L Health States Between Adult Own and Child Perspectives.

Objectives: The international valuation protocol for EQ-5D-Y-3L recommends elicitation of utilities using adults' preference for a hypothetical 10-year-old child. Published studies have reported preference difference in adults when valuing for a child and valuing for themselves. This study aimed to obtain EQ-5D-Y-3L preferences in Hong Kong and understand the preference difference between the adult own perspective and the child perspective.

Effect of transcranial direct current stimulation combined with cognitive rehabilitation on cognitive function and activities of daily living in patients with post-stroke cognitive impairment: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Objective: The incidence of post-stroke cognitive impairment (PSCI) has increased alongside the rising prevalence of stroke, making it one of the most serious and prevalent complications among stroke survivors. Growing interest has emerged in whether combined or multi-modal therapies can enhance outcomes through additive or synergistic effects, leading more researchers to investigate the efficacy of transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) combined with cognitive rehabilitation (CR) in this population. This study aims to systematically review and meta-analyze the effects of tDCS combined with CR on cognitive function and activities of daily living (ADL) in individuals with PSCI.

Developing and testing a patient-reported outcome measure for patients with sleep disturbances using EQ-5D and condition-specific bolt-ons: a mixed method study.

Objectives: The EQ-5D-5L may not adequately capture the health-related quality of life in patients with sleep disturbances. We examined the psychometric properties of a hybrid PROM comprising a module of four sleep-related bolt-ons and EQ-5D-5L.

Methods: We employed a sequential exploratory mixed method by first qualitatively testing the face validity of "sleep", "cognition", "tiredness" and "relationship" and refining these bolt-ons through in-depth interviews with 23 patients and clinicians.

Isolation, Identification, and Potential Biotechnological Application on Soil Porosity of the Microbial Exopolysaccharides (EPS) from .

Microbial exopolysaccharides (EPS) exhibit high viscosity, offering significant potential for reducing soil porosity. In this paper, a kind of producing EPS was selected and its chemical and physical properties, including the morphology, molecular weight, monosaccharide composition, structure, and rheological properties, were studied. Subsequently, the effect of EPS on soil porosity was investigated by the permeability coefficient and X-ray computed tomography (X-CT), and the mechanism by which EPS reduced soil porosity was elucidated.

Functions and therapeutic applications of pseudouridylation.

The success of using pseudouridine (Ψ) and its methylation derivative in mRNA vaccines against SARS-CoV-2 has sparked a renewed interest in this RNA modification, known as the 'fifth nucleotide' of RNA. In this Review, we discuss the emerging functions of pseudouridylation in gene regulation, focusing on how pseudouridine in mRNA, tRNA and ribosomal RNA (rRNA) regulates translation. We also discuss the effects of pseudouridylation on RNA secondary structure, pre-mRNA splicing, and in vitro mRNA stability.

Disease burden of aortic aneurysm from 1990 to 2021 with a forecast to 2045: insights from the global burden of disease 2021.

Introduction: Aortic aneurysm is one of the causes of cardiovascular disease-related death, posing a significant challenge to global healthcare. Understanding the burden of aortic aneurysm is crucial for formulating effective public health intervention policies and allocating resources. The study aims to assess the global, regional, and national burden, trend, and inequalities of aortic aneurysm.

Association of cardiovascular health with morbidity and mortality among U.S. adults with osteoarthritis: a population-based study.

Background: Osteoarthritis (OA) is recognized as the most common joint disease with serious public health implications. Cardiovascular health (CVH) is also an issue that is frequently emphasized in public health and has an impact on a variety of diseases and mortality rates. This study aims to investigate the association of CVH with the morbidity of OA.

Head-to-Head Comparisons of the Distributional Characteristics and Measurement Properties of the 3-Level and 5-Level Versions of the EQ-5D-Y: A Systematic Review.

Objectives: This systematic review compared the distributional characteristics and measurement properties of EuroQol's EQ-5D-Y-3L and EQ-5D-Y-5L instruments, using results from published head-to-head comparative studies.

Methods: The review was reported following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses-COnsensus-based Standards for the selection of health Measurement INstruments (PRISMA-COSMIN) guideline. We searched 8 databases up to February 14, 2024 for studies on the measurement properties and distributional characteristics (missing data, ceiling/floor effects, consistency, and informativity) of both EQ-5D-Y versions.

Physical, psychological, cognitive, social health outcomes, and health-related quality of life in out-of-hospital cardiac arrest survivors and their caregivers: Protocol of the quality cardiac arrest survivorship cohort study (QualiCAS).

Background: Out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) is an emergency with historically low survival rates. Advances in resuscitation and post-resuscitation care have improved survival, precipitating greater scientific interest in OHCA patients' survivorship. However, there is insufficient high-quality population-based long-term survivorship data and limited research on the impact of OHCA sequelae on survivors' caregivers.

Peripapillary intrachoroidal cavitation in myopic eyes with open-angle glaucoma: association with myopic fundus changes.

Purpose: To investigate the clinical characteristics and associated risk factors of peripapillary intrachoroidal cavitation (PICC) in myopic eyes with open-angle glaucoma (OAG).

Methods: In this study, eyes of consecutive participants were categorized into the myopia only group and the myopia with OAG group. PICC was identified by radial scans centered on the optic disc using optical coherence tomography.