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Autism : the International Journal of... May 2024The assumption that autistic people lack empathy, particularly imagining how others feel, has been much debated and is now being challenged by an alternative view: the...
The assumption that autistic people lack empathy, particularly imagining how others feel, has been much debated and is now being challenged by an alternative view: the 'double empathy problem'. This suggests that non-autistic people may find it equally difficult to imagine how autistic people feel. Although this perspective is gaining popularity, research testing whether non-autistic people can accurately imagine and feel an autistic person's emotions is still limited. Our study used video clips of autistic and non-autistic people recounting emotional events to test if participants from the general population could: track the intensity of the narrators' emotions; name and feel the same emotion; match where the narrator felt the emotion and indicate how intensely they felt the emotion using a body map. Our results show that participants found it significantly harder to track autistic narrators' emotions compared to non-autistic narrator's emotions, especially when viewing clips of narrators feeling happy and sad. We also found that participants felt emotions more intensely in the body when viewing clips of autistic narrators compared to non-autistic narrators, especially when describing anger and fear. These findings support the double empathy problem and have strong implications for therapeutic and interpersonal relationships with autistic people.
PubMed: 38757626
DOI: 10.1177/13623613241252320 -
European Journal of Psychotraumatology 2024There has been growing concern regarding increasing levels of post-traumatic stress (PTS) symptoms experienced by healthcare workers (HCW) in the UK, particularly...
There has been growing concern regarding increasing levels of post-traumatic stress (PTS) symptoms experienced by healthcare workers (HCW) in the UK, particularly following the COVID-19 pandemic. PTS symptom typologies have been investigated in other adult populations using person-centred latent variable approaches, revealing profiles showing differing symptom levels and patterns. We aimed to explore typologies among clinical and non-clinical healthcare staff to elucidate heterogeneity of presentation. : This was a retrospective study using referral data from treatment-seeking healthcare staff in the North of England ( = 1600) We employed latent profile analysis using the PTSD International Trauma Questionnaire domains as profile indicators. We included covariates relating to role-type, depression, anxiety and mental health concerns before March of 2020. : A model with six profiles fit the data best. Profile names were given as follows: 'No symptom'; 'Low symptom'; 'Low symptom (moderate Sense of current threat (Th_dx) and Functional impairment (FI))'; 'Moderate symptom (low Th_dx and high Avoidance (Av_dx))'; 'Moderate symptom'; and 'High symptom'. Covariates were shown to have differential predictive power on profile membership. : The finding of profiles with pattern differences suggests a need for both differential and specifically targeted treatments, as well as a consideration of early intervention for those individuals with subclinical PTS symptoms. As expected, anxiety and depression were both predictors of several of the symptomatic profiles, with anxiety producing a larger effect. Further research is required to fully understand the link between role-type and PTS symptom typologies among HCW. .
Topics: Humans; Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic; Health Personnel; COVID-19; Female; Male; Adult; Retrospective Studies; England; Surveys and Questionnaires; Middle Aged; SARS-CoV-2; Anxiety; Depression
PubMed: 38753619
DOI: 10.1080/20008066.2024.2351323 -
International Journal of Nursing... Jun 2024: The number of individuals undergoing maintenance haemodialysis has continued to increase in recent years. This treatment method can lead to social isolation, which has...
BACKGROUND
: The number of individuals undergoing maintenance haemodialysis has continued to increase in recent years. This treatment method can lead to social isolation, which has a significant impact on an individual's health. Unfortunately, research on this issue is insufficient, and no effective interventions have been developed. Moreover, existing research lacks attention to and understanding of patient aspirations-a critical area that warrants further exploration.
OBJECTIVES
: We aimed to reveal the natural coping trajectory of individuals undergoing maintenance haemodialysis in the context of social isolation to provide a useful reference for further research and the development of effective interventions.
DESIGN
: This was a descriptive qualitative study.
SETTING S
This study was conducted at a haemodialysis centre in a provincial capital city of northern China.
PARTICIPANTS
Using maximum variant and purposive sampling, we recruited 15 patients undergoing maintenance haemodialysis.
METHODS
: The interviews were transcribed verbatim, and data were analysed using deductive content analysis.
RESULTS
Three themes were identified: (a) prerequisites for coping with social isolation; (b) maintaining the bond between coping and social isolation; and (c) the results of coping with social isolation. These themes revealed the natural trajectory of individuals undergoing maintenance haemodialysis in dealing with social isolation.
CONCLUSION
: We interpreted the findings to mean that it was necessary to establish a three-way linkage among family, hospitals, and society to develop multicomponent and multilevel intervention measures.
TWEETABLE ABSTRACT
: A study of the response of individuals undergoing maintenance haemodialysis to social isolation revealed their coping trajectory and conveyed their aspirations.
PubMed: 38746804
DOI: 10.1016/j.ijnsa.2024.100193 -
International Journal of Nursing... Jun 2024Across international healthcare systems, healthcare assistant roles have proliferated, in part to decrease nursing costs and support workplace staffing. There is a lack...
BACKGROUND
Across international healthcare systems, healthcare assistant roles have proliferated, in part to decrease nursing costs and support workplace staffing. There is a lack of consensus about the professional title for healthcare assistants, and whether this group requires professional regulation. The variety of terms for healthcare assistants has resulted in confusion around their scope of practice and role within the healthcare team, which may influence patient care.
AIM
We aimed to identify the terminology used for healthcare assistants across English speaking countries and determine the international status of professional regulation of healthcare assistants.
METHOD
We conducted a deductive, structured search for healthcare assistant roles that were codified on English-language nursing regulator websites in each jurisdiction in Australia, New Zealand, USA, Canada, Ireland, and the United Kingdom. We assessed what terminology were used for healthcare assistant roles in each area, and whether they were regulated by a professional regulator, such as a college of nursing.
RESULTS
Across 77 jurisdictions, we identified 37 different terms for healthcare assistants. The most frequent term was Certified Nurse Aid with 24 uses, and Certified Nursing Assistant with 13 uses. The majority of healthcare assistants are not professionally regulated. Only 12 jurisdictions have professional regulation programs for healthcare assistants, all in the USA.
CONCLUSION
There is an urgent need for international consensus about the nomenclature for healthcare assistants, so the healthcare assistant workforce can be supported, and their work evaluated via research studies. Regulators can consider how to engage with healthcare assistants and protect the public, as healthcare assistants provide an increasing proportion of patient care.
PubMed: 38746790
DOI: 10.1016/j.ijnsa.2024.100200 -
Arquivos de Neuro-psiquiatria Jul 2024was an early designation used for cervical dystonia. The origin of this name is attributed to French physician and writer François Rabelais in the mid-sixteenth...
was an early designation used for cervical dystonia. The origin of this name is attributed to French physician and writer François Rabelais in the mid-sixteenth century. This early description of torticollis in the book was an inspiration for the understanding of cervical dystonia. The art expressed in Rabelais' literature ‒ which was immortalized by the drawings of Gustave Doré ‒ influenced poetry, art, and photography, and led to the adoption of the term in the neurological sciences.
Topics: Torticollis; France; History, 16th Century; Neurology; Famous Persons
PubMed: 38740023
DOI: 10.1055/s-0044-1786764 -
Exploratory Research in Clinical and... Jun 2024Interrogating the literature is among the first steps a researcher undertakes when actuating a research project or also when any scholar might seek to know what has been...
Interrogating the literature is among the first steps a researcher undertakes when actuating a research project or also when any scholar might seek to know what has been done in an area, best practices for conducting a certain activity, or simply to seek answers for a question ranging from one's own personal curiosity to those that might affect departmental or institutional guidance. Decisions on the type of review process to undertake is one that is not taken lightly. This methods commentary outlines the reasons for conducting a scoping review versus a systematic review for topics related to pharmacy education. Considerations for conducting the scoping review are outlined including considerations for writing a protocol prior to conducting a scoping review, to potential platforms to use for transparency of sharing data, processes related to guidelines for data extraction and types of search strategies utilized.
PubMed: 38737524
DOI: 10.1016/j.rcsop.2024.100448 -
Heliyon May 2024The global concern regarding protection against the COVID-19 variants through pre-existing antibodies from vaccination or previous infection is evident. Reports from...
BACKGROUND
The global concern regarding protection against the COVID-19 variants through pre-existing antibodies from vaccination or previous infection is evident. Reports from around the world indicate that a considerable number of healthcare professionals/individuals experience re-infection despite being vaccinated. Moreover, several studies have highlighted cases of symptomatic SARS-CoV-2 re-infection, specifically among individuals who have been vaccinated. Understanding the factors that contribute to these re-infections is crucial for implementing effective public health measures and enhancing vaccination strategies.
METHOD
A comprehensive search was conducted between January 1, 2021, and February 14, 2024, using various reputable sources such as PubMed, Google scholar, Medline, EMBASE, CINAHL, and others. The search aimed to retrieve relevant research on topics related to "world nations" and phrases like "COVID-19 vaccination breakthrough infection," "SARS re-infection after COVID-19 vaccination," "COVID-19 vaccine complication," "post COVID-19 vaccination symptoms," and specific nation names. The data obtained from the databases underwent extraction and quality assessment using the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale (NOS) and the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analyses. Data analysis was performed using STATAMP software, and measures such as the I test statistic and Egger's test were used to assess heterogeneity and publication bias. The findings were presented using forest plots, displaying the odds ratio (OR) and 95 % confidence interval (CI).
RESULT
This review and meta-analysis comprised a total of 15 articles, or a total sample size of 342,598. The pooled prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 after vaccination of COVID-19 was 9 % (95CI 7%-11 %) of population globally. This implied that reduced the overall attack rate of COVID-19 by 91 % after vaccination. The highest pooled estimated of SARS-CoV-2 infection after COVID -19 Vaccinations was seen among developing nations, 20 % (95 % CI: 5%-36 %).The pooled odds ratio showed that a significant association was found between SARS-CoV-2 infection after COVID-19 vaccination and older age (OR = 2.04; 95%CI: 1.10-2.98) and comorbidity (OR = 3.25; 95%CI: 1.04-5.47).
CONCLUSION
It is important for policymakers to prioritize continuous monitoring and surveillance of SARS-CoV-2 infection rates among vaccinated individuals globally, as there is a significant estimate of the combined prevalence of post-COVID-19 vaccine SARS-CoV-2 infections.
PubMed: 38737290
DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e30609 -
Cognitive Research: Principles and... May 2024Auditory stimuli that are relevant to a listener have the potential to capture focal attention even when unattended, the listener's own name being a particularly...
Auditory stimuli that are relevant to a listener have the potential to capture focal attention even when unattended, the listener's own name being a particularly effective stimulus. We report two experiments to test the attention-capturing potential of the listener's own name in normal speech and time-compressed speech. In Experiment 1, 39 participants were tested with a visual word categorization task with uncompressed spoken names as background auditory distractors. Participants' word categorization performance was slower when hearing their own name rather than other names, and in a final test, they were faster at detecting their own name than other names. Experiment 2 used the same task paradigm, but the auditory distractors were time-compressed names. Three compression levels were tested with 25 participants in each condition. Participants' word categorization performance was again slower when hearing their own name than when hearing other names; the slowing was strongest with slight compression and weakest with intense compression. Personally relevant time-compressed speech has the potential to capture attention, but the degree of capture depends on the level of compression. Attention capture by time-compressed speech has practical significance and provides partial evidence for the duplex-mechanism account of auditory distraction.
Topics: Humans; Attention; Female; Male; Names; Speech Perception; Adult; Young Adult; Speech; Reaction Time; Acoustic Stimulation
PubMed: 38735013
DOI: 10.1186/s41235-024-00555-9 -
International Journal of Molecular... Apr 2024Non-muscle invasive bladder cancer is a common tumour in men and women. In case of resistance to the standard therapeutic agents, gemcitabine can be used as off-label...
Non-muscle invasive bladder cancer is a common tumour in men and women. In case of resistance to the standard therapeutic agents, gemcitabine can be used as off-label instillation therapy into the bladder. To reduce potential side effects, continuous efforts are made to optimise the therapeutic potential of drugs, thereby reducing the effective dose and consequently the pharmacological burden of the medication. We recently demonstrated that it is possible to significantly increase the therapeutic efficacy of mitomycin C against a bladder carcinoma cell line by exposure to non-toxic doses of blue light (453 nm). In the present study, we investigated whether the therapeutically supportive effect of blue light can be further enhanced by the additional use of the wavelength-specific photosensitiser riboflavin. We found that the gemcitabine-induced cytotoxicity of bladder cancer cell lines (BFTC-905, SW-1710, RT-112) was significantly enhanced by non-toxic doses of blue light in the presence of riboflavin. Enhanced cytotoxicity correlated with decreased levels of mitochondrial ATP synthesis and increased lipid peroxidation was most likely the result of increased oxidative stress. Due to these properties, blue light in combination with riboflavin could represent an effective therapy option with few side effects and increase the success of local treatment of bladder cancer, whereby the dose of the chemotherapeutic agent used and thus the chemical load could be significantly reduced with similar or improved therapeutic success.
Topics: Humans; Riboflavin; Urinary Bladder Neoplasms; Gemcitabine; Deoxycytidine; Cell Line, Tumor; Light; Photosensitizing Agents; Oxidative Stress; Cell Survival; Lipid Peroxidation; Adenosine Triphosphate; Mitochondria; Blue Light
PubMed: 38732087
DOI: 10.3390/ijms25094868 -
Cardiovascular Diabetology May 2024Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) is the proposed name change for non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). This study aimed to... (Comparative Study)
Comparative Study
Prognostic value of metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease over coronary computed tomography angiography findings: comparison with no-alcoholic fatty liver disease.
BACKGROUND
Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) is the proposed name change for non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). This study aimed to investigate the association of cardiovascular disease risk with MASLD and NAFLD in patients who underwent clinically indicated coronary computed tomography angiography (CCTA).
METHODS
This retrospective study included 2289 patients (60% men; mean age: 68 years) with no history of coronary artery disease who underwent CCTA. The steatotic liver was defined as a hepatic-to-spleen attenuation ratio of < 1.0 on CT just before CCTA. MASLD is defined as the presence of hepatic steatosis along with at least one of the five cardiometabolic risk factors. Adverse CCTA findings were defined as obstructive and/or high-risk plaques. Major adverse cardiac events (MACE) encompassed composite coronary events, including cardiovascular death, acute coronary syndrome, and late coronary revascularization.
RESULTS
MASLD and NAFLD were identified in 415 (18%) and 368 (16%) patients, respectively. Adverse CCTA findings were observed in 40% and 38% of the patients with MASLD and with NAFLD, respectively. Adverse CCTA findings were significantly associated with MASLD (p = 0.007) but not NAFLD (p = 0.253). During a median follow-up of 4.4 years, 102 (4.4%) MACE were observed. MASLD was significantly associated with MACE (hazard ratio 1.82, 95% CI 1.18-2.83, p = 0.007), while its association with NAFLD was not significant (p = 0.070). By incorporating MASLD into a prediction model of MACE, including the risk score and adverse CCTA findings, global chi-squared values significantly increased from 87.0 to 94.1 (p = 0.008).
CONCLUSIONS
Patients with MASLD are likely to have a higher risk of cardiovascular disease than those with NAFLD. Concurrent assessment of MASLD during CCTA improves the identification of patients at a higher risk of cardiovascular disease among those with clinically indicated CCTA.
Topics: Humans; Male; Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease; Female; Retrospective Studies; Aged; Middle Aged; Computed Tomography Angiography; Coronary Angiography; Predictive Value of Tests; Coronary Artery Disease; Prognosis; Risk Assessment; Cardiometabolic Risk Factors; Risk Factors
PubMed: 38730426
DOI: 10.1186/s12933-024-02268-1