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The Journal of Frailty & Aging 2023Global migration has increased in the past century, and aging in a foreign country is relevant to the Chinese diaspora.
BACKGROUND
Global migration has increased in the past century, and aging in a foreign country is relevant to the Chinese diaspora.
OBJECTIVE
With regard to migration, this study focuses on the places of aging as the context of older Chinese adults. This study aimed to describe the general health and wellbeing of this population with respect to their location.
DESIGN
This study has a cross sectional design.
SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS
Participants were recruited who were "aging in place" from Tianjin, China (199 participants), and "aging out of place" from the Netherlands (134 participants). Data from April to May 2019 in China and November 2018 to March 2019 in the Netherlands were aggregated.
MEASUREMENTS
frailty, QoL and loneliness were used in both samples.
RESULTS
T-tests and regression analyses demonstrated that social domains of frailty and QoL, as well as loneliness and frailty prevalence characterized the major differences between both places of aging. A correlation analysis and visual correlation network revealed that frailty, quality of life (QoL), and loneliness were more closely related in the aging out of place sample. Social domains of frailty and QoL, as well as the prevalence of loneliness and frailty, characterized the major differences between both places of aging.
CONCLUSIONS
The findings indicate that frailty, QoL, and loneliness have a complex relationship, confirming that loneliness is a major detriment to the general wellbeing of older Chinese adults aging out of place. This study examined the places of aging of the larger Chinese population and allows a comprehensive understanding of health and wellbeing. The social components, especially loneliness, among the aging out of place Chinese community should receive more attention practice and clinical wise. On the other hand, frailty as well as its prevention is of more importance for the Chinese community aging in place.
Topics: Aged; Humans; Middle Aged; Aging; Cross-Sectional Studies; East Asian People; Frailty; Loneliness; Quality of Life; China; Netherlands; Transients and Migrants
PubMed: 37493383
DOI: 10.14283/jfa.2022.27 -
Veterinary Sciences Dec 2021Urine retention secondary to neoplastic obstructions of the upper and lower urinary tracts is a life-threatening condition in both humans and companion animals. Stents... (Review)
Review
Urine retention secondary to neoplastic obstructions of the upper and lower urinary tracts is a life-threatening condition in both humans and companion animals. Stents can be placed to temporarily or permanently open obstructed urinary tract lumens and are often able to be placed using minimally invasive techniques with guidance via ultrasonography or fluoroscopy. The literature for these techniques is vast for humans and growing for companion animals. The below review provides a discussion of the principles of stenting and types of ureteral and urethral stents, as well as the techniques for placing these stents in humans and companion animals.
PubMed: 35051097
DOI: 10.3390/vetsci9010013 -
Journal of Geographical Systems 2023While platial representations are being developed for sedentary entities, a parallel and useful endeavor would be to consider time in so-called "platio-temporal"...
While platial representations are being developed for sedentary entities, a parallel and useful endeavor would be to consider time in so-called "platio-temporal" representations that would also expand notions of mobility in GIScience, that are solely dependent on Euclidean space and time. Besides enhancing such aspects of place and mobility via spatio-temporal, we also include human aspects of these representations via considerations of the sociological notions of mobility via the mobilities paradigm that can systematically introduce representation of both platial information along with mobilities associated with 'moving places.' We condense these aspects into 'platial mobility,' a novel conceptual framework, as an integration in GIScience and the mobilities paradigm in sociology, that denotes movement of places in our platio-temporal and sociology-based representations. As illustrative cases for further study using platial mobility as a framework, we explore its benefits and methodological aspects toward developing better understanding for disaster management, disaster risk reduction and pandemics. We then discuss some of the illustrative use cases to clarify the concept of platial mobility and its application prospects in the areas of disaster management, disaster risk reduction and pandemics. These use cases, which include flood events and the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, have led to displaced and restricted communities having to change practices and places, which would be particularly amenable to the conceptual framework developed in our work.
PubMed: 35875724
DOI: 10.1007/s10109-022-00389-3 -
Health & Place Nov 2022This study explores the role of architecture in the affordance of hope for people with cancer. Specifically, it revisits 'enabling places' debates to understand the...
This study explores the role of architecture in the affordance of hope for people with cancer. Specifically, it revisits 'enabling places' debates to understand the influence of spatial design in the experience of cancer care. Combining interviews and focus group data from two separate studies of visitors, volunteers, and staff members of Maggie's Centres, an organisation providing cancer support in the UK and internationally, the study investigates the emotional power of their buildings. In particular, we explore how Maggie's Centre buildings provide material, social, and affective resources for their users. We argue that Maggie's Centres help its visitors to orient themselves to their changing lives and uncertain futures in thoughtful ways and, thus, their buildings offer examples of the 'taking place' of hope.
Topics: Humans; Neoplasms
PubMed: 35177318
DOI: 10.1016/j.healthplace.2022.102758 -
JBJS Essential Surgical Techniques 2022Achilles tendon ruptures commonly occur in physically active individuals and drastically alter the ability to perform recreational activities. Many patients want to...
UNLABELLED
Achilles tendon ruptures commonly occur in physically active individuals and drastically alter the ability to perform recreational activities. Many patients want to continue participating in recreational activities, which can be facilitated by operatively treating the injury in a timely fashion, maximizing their functional recovery. The Percutaneous Achilles Repair System (PARS) Jig (Arthrex) can be utilized in patients with acute mid-substance Achilles tendon ruptures.
DESCRIPTION
Begin by positioning the patient prone with a thigh tourniquet on the operative side. Mark a 3-cm transverse incision 1 cm distal to the proximal Achilles stump and make the incision, taking care to protect the sural nerve laterally. Next, create a transverse paratenon incision and bluntly dissect it from the Achilles circumferentially. After gaining access to the proximal Achilles stump, clamp it with an Allis clamp and insert the PARS Jig between the Achilles tendon and paratenon, sliding it proximally to the myotendinous junction. To secure the jig to the proximal Achilles tendon, insert a guide pin into the jig position-1 hole. To pass sutures through the Achilles tendon, insert pins with their respective sutures into positions 2 through 5 and insert the FiberTape suture (Arthrex) in position 1. Remove the jig from the transverse incision, pulling the suture ends out of the incision. Once they are out, reorient the sutures on the medial and lateral sides to match their positions when initially placed. On both sides, wrap the blue suture around the 2 striped green-and-white sutures twice, and pull the blue suture through the looped green-and-white suture on the ipsilateral side. After doing that, fold the blue suture on itself to create a shuttling suture with the green-and-white suture. Next, pull on the medial non-looped green-and-white suture until it has been pulled out medially, and repeat that with the lateral non-looped green-and-white suture until it has been pulled out laterally, to create a locking stitch. Group the medial sutures together and the lateral sutures together, and utilize a free needle to further incorporate both bundles of sutures into the Achilles tendon. Next, create bilateral mini-incisions 1.5 cm proximal to the calcaneal tuberosity. Insert a rigid cannulated suture-passing device into each mini-incision, pass it through the distal Achilles tendon, load the ipsilateral suture bundle into the Nitinol wire, and pull the suture-passing device out the distal mini-incision to approximate the Achilles. To prepare the calcaneus, drill calcaneal tunnels toward the midline bilaterally, taking care to avoid convergence of the tunnels. Place a suture-passing needle in the tunnels to assist with placing the anchors. Next, tension the sutures, cycling them 5 to 10 times to remove any slack in the system. With the ankle in 15° of plantar flexion, anchor the sutures with cortical bioabsorbable interference screws, following the angle that the suture-passing needles are in. After confirming function of the Achilles tendon, close the peritenon, deep tissues, and superficial tissues, and place the ankle in a splint in 15° of plantar flexion.
ALTERNATIVES
Acute Achilles ruptures can be treated operatively or nonoperatively. Operative techniques include open, percutaneous, or minimally invasive Achilles tendon repair. Open Achilles tendon repair involves making a 10-cm posteromedial incision to perform a primary repair, while percutaneous Achilles tendon repair involves the use of medial and lateral mini-incisions to pass needles and sutures into the Achilles tendon to repair it. Minimally invasive Achilles tendon repair involves the use of a small 3 to 4-cm incision to introduce instrumentation such as modified ring forceps or an Achillon device (Integra), along with a percutaneous technique, to repair the Achilles tendon. Nonoperative treatment can be utilized in patients with <5 mm of gapping between the ruptured tendon edges on dynamic ultrasound in 30° of plantar flexion, in patients with limited activity, or in patients whose comorbidities make them high-risk surgical candidates. Nonoperative treatment includes a below-the-knee rigid cast in 30° of plantar flexion or the use of a functional splint in 30° of plantar flexion with gradual progression to a neutral position, along with early rehabilitation according to the postoperative protocol described in the present article.
RATIONALE
This technique allows patients to begin early postoperative rehabilitation, limits wound and soft-tissue complications such as superficial and deep infections, and protects neurovascular structures such as the sural nerve that may be injured if utilizing other techniques. These benefits are achieved through the use of a minimally invasive knotless approach that places nearly all of the suture material into the Achilles tendon, reducing friction within the paratenon and potentially facilitating improved gliding. Additionally, securing the sutures into the calcaneus minimizes postoperative Achilles tendon elongation and facilitates early postoperative rehabilitation.
EXPECTED OUTCOMES
Patients undergoing this procedure can expect to return to their baseline physical activities by 5 months, with the best functional results observed at ≥12 months postoperatively. One retrospective cohort study compared the results of 101 patients who underwent Achilles repair with use of the PARS Jig and 169 patients who underwent open Achilles repair, and found that 98% of PARS patients returned to baseline activities in 5 months compared with 82% of patients undergoing open Achilles repair (p = 0.0001). Another retrospective chart review assessed the results of 19 patients who underwent Achilles repair with the PARS Jig and found that patients began to return to sport as early as 3 months postoperatively and that functional scores in patients increased as time progressed, with significant increases observed at 12 months and longer postoperatively.
IMPORTANT TIPS
Locate the Achilles tendon rupture site prior to marking the transverse incision.Bluntly dissecting the paratenon during closure stimulates healing and reduces scarring, thereby maintaining the integrity of the tissue.When advancing the PARS Jig, ensure that the proximal Achilles tendon remains inside the device.Maintaining meticulous suture management and organization prevents tangles and improves suture shuttling.Ensure that the Achilles tendon is tensioned with the ankle in 15° of plantar flexion prior to distal anchor fixation.
ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS
MRI = magnetic resonance imagingUS = ultrasoundBID = twice dailyPRN = as neededDVT = deep vein thrombosis.
PubMed: 36816527
DOI: 10.2106/JBJS.ST.21.00050 -
The Pan African Medical Journal 2022Medical research in the United States remains a global reference, endowed with unrivalled financing, a source of endless advancements, and recognized with many...
Medical research in the United States remains a global reference, endowed with unrivalled financing, a source of endless advancements, and recognized with many accolades; with 45 per cent of the winners, the United States outrageously dominates the Nobel Prize for Medicine. The volume of health spending in the United States is far more than any other country; however, the health outcomes are far below expectation. An American child Born in 2016 will live on average 78.6 years, which places the country around the thirty-fifth place in the world, somewhere between Cuba and Qatar; the United States has other modest results, as evidenced by the ranking of countries in terms of infant mortality in 2015, which placed the country 33 out of 35 member countries, ahead of only Turkey and Mexico. Although the United States ranks 35th out of 190 countries based on infant mortality in 2015, it is still far behind Cuba, which was 30 and the first "non-high" income country. In 2016, US health expenditures/gross domestic product (GDP) exceeded 16%, with an average of 10,000 USD/inhabitants, while Cuban health expenditures/GDP did not exceed 11% during the same period. We aim through the present work to show that the state of health doesn't improve by spending more. However, it improves by spending more on programs that we know from the evidence can improve health outcomes.
Topics: Delivery of Health Care; Gross Domestic Product; Health Expenditures; Health Facilities; Humans; Income; United States
PubMed: 36034037
DOI: 10.11604/pamj.2022.42.95.35133 -
Journal of Urban Health : Bulletin of... Oct 2020The places that people go and interact with others, along with the characteristics of those places, determine degrees of sexual health risk and concomitant prevention... (Comparative Study)
Comparative Study
The places that people go and interact with others, along with the characteristics of those places, determine degrees of sexual health risk and concomitant prevention opportunities for gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men (MSM). The objective of this paper is to use syndemic theory to guide analyses of 20 in-depth interviews with African American and Hispanic/Latinx MSM living in Los Angeles. We describe the places in which African American and Latinx MSM interviewees live and socialize, and how these places influence sexual behavior, drug use, and access to health care. We find common spatial patterns in mobility, incongruence in residential and sexual places, and differing geographic patterns of sex by men who use geo-social hook-up apps. Significant instability in home life and varying forms of mobility and risk-taking were a response to cumulative disadvantage and intersecting structural forces including poverty, racism, and homophobia. Our results strongly suggest that geographic mobility is a syndemic factor for HIV risk among MSM in Los Angeles, as mobility amplified negative impacts of other syndemic factors. Innovative place-interventions to reduce HIV incidence and disparities in HIV need to acknowledge the synergistic factors that drive higher HIV incidence among AA and Latinx MSM.
Topics: Adult; Black or African American; Bisexuality; Geography; HIV Infections; Hispanic or Latino; Homophobia; Homosexuality, Male; Humans; Interpersonal Relations; Los Angeles; Male; Middle Aged; Poverty; Risk Factors; Sexual Behavior; Sexual and Gender Minorities; Substance-Related Disorders; Syndemic; Young Adult
PubMed: 32996024
DOI: 10.1007/s11524-020-00481-3 -
The Gerontologist Aug 2023Neighborhood places that facilitate older residents to meet and interact (third places) receive an increasing research interest as studies have consistently shown the... (Review)
Review
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES
Neighborhood places that facilitate older residents to meet and interact (third places) receive an increasing research interest as studies have consistently shown the benefits of social engagement for older adults' health. This scoping review synthesized the findings of studies examining the role of third places in older adults' social engagement.
RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS
Searching 5 databases (CINAHL, Medline, PsycInfo, Scopus, and Web of Science) in October 2021, this study identified quantitative and qualitative studies that examined the relationships between third places and social engagement (interaction and network) among older adults.
RESULTS
A total of 32 studies (12 quantitative and 20 qualitative studies) met the eligibility criteria. These studies examined 4 types of third place, namely, community facilities, local businesses, open/green spaces, and transition spaces. More than two thirds of the studies reviewed found that access to community facilities, local businesses, and open/green spaces were related to older adults' social interaction. For the relationships between third places and social networks, the importance of accessible local businesses and the quality of open/green spaces was supported by fewer studies.
DISCUSSION AND IMPLICATIONS
The findings of quantitative and qualitative studies suggest that local places that are convenient to visit and comfortable to stay in for older adults are likely to enhance their social interaction and network. However, more specific evidence is needed to inform the planning and design of third places. The review discusses future research topics that address the gaps identified in the current literature.
Topics: Humans; Aged; Social Participation; Qualitative Research; Databases, Factual; Residence Characteristics; Environment Design
PubMed: 36512515
DOI: 10.1093/geront/gnac180 -
PloS One 2019The timing and magnitude of sex differences in athletic performance during early human development, prior to adulthood, is unknown.
BACKGROUND
The timing and magnitude of sex differences in athletic performance during early human development, prior to adulthood, is unknown.
OBJECTIVE
To compare swimming velocity of boys and girls for all Olympic-length freestyle swimming events to determine the age of divergence in swimming performance.
METHODS
We collected the all-time top 100 U.S. freestyle swimming performance times of boys and girls age 5 to 18 years for the 50m to 1500m events.
RESULTS
Swimming performance improved with increasing age for boys and girls (p<0.001) until reaching a plateau, which initiated at a younger age for girls (15 years) than boys (17 years; sex×age; p<0.001). Prior to age 10, the top 5 swimming records for girls were 3% faster than the top boys (p<0.001). For the 10th-50th places, however, there were no sex-related differences in swimming performance prior to age 10 (p = 0.227). For both the top 5 and 10th-50th places, the sex difference in performance increased from age 10 (top 5, 2.5%; 10th-50th places, 1.0%) until age 17 (top 5, 7.6%; 10th-50th places, 8.0%). For all places, the sex difference in performance at age 18 was larger for sprint events (9.6%; 50-200m) than endurance events (7.1%; 400-1500m; p<0.001). Additionally, the sex-related difference in performance increased across age and US ranking from 2.4% for 1st place to 4.3% for 100th place (p<0.001), indicating less depth of performance in girls than boys. However, annual participation was ~20% higher in girls than boys for all ages (p<0.001).
CONCLUSION
The top 5 girls demonstrated faster swimming velocities and the 10th-50th place girls demonstrated similar swimming velocities than boys (until ~10 years). After age 10, however, boys demonstrated increasingly faster swimming velocities than girls until 17 years. Collectively, these data suggest girls are faster, or at least not slower, than boys prior to the performance-enhancing effects of puberty.
Topics: Adolescent; Athletic Performance; Child; Child, Preschool; Female; Humans; Male; Sex Characteristics; Swimming; Testosterone
PubMed: 31756208
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0225724 -
International Journal of Environmental... Dec 2019This study describes the implementation, in North Macedonia, of a "tool", initially devised in Scotland, to generate community and stakeholder discussion about the...
This study describes the implementation, in North Macedonia, of a "tool", initially devised in Scotland, to generate community and stakeholder discussion about the places in which they live and notably a place's capacity to generate health wellbeing and greater equity among citizens. In this study, the "place standard tool" (PST) is viewed from the perspective of creating places which can deliver a triple win of health and wellbeing, equity, and environmental sustainability. Skopje, North Macedonia's capital, inevitably differs economically, culturally, and politically from Scotland, thus providing an opportunity to augment existing knowledge on adaptability of the tool in shaping agendas for policy and action. Тhe PST was tested through seminars with selected focus groups and an online questionnaire. Over 350 respondents were included. Information on priorities enabled the distillation of suggestions for improvement and was shared with the Mayor and municipal administration. Skopje citizens valued an approach which solicited their views in a meaningful way. Specific concerns were expressed relating to heavy traffic and related air and noise pollution, and care and maintenance of places and care services. Responses varied by geographic location. Application of the PST increased knowledge and confidence levels among citizens and enthusiasm for active involvement in decision making. Effective implementation relies heavily on: good governance and top-level support; excellent organization and good timing; careful training of interviewers and focus group moderators; and on prior knowledge of the participants/respondents.
Topics: Focus Groups; Health Promotion; Humans; Latvia; Republic of North Macedonia; Residence Characteristics; Urban Health
PubMed: 31892126
DOI: 10.3390/ijerph17010194