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Investigating the stretch-shortening cycle fatigue response to a high-intensity stressful phase of training in collegiate men's basketball
No full textIntroduction
While using force-plate derived measures of vertical jump performance, reflective of stretch-shortening-cycle (SSC) efficiency is common practice in sport science, there is limited evidence as to which tests and measures may be most sensitive toward neuromuscular fatigue. The aim of this study was to explore the SSC fatigue response to a one-week high-intensity fatiguing phase of training in National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division-I basketball players.
Methods
The study timeline consisted of three weeks of baseline measures, one week of high-intensity training, and two weeks of follow-up testing. Countermovement jumps (CMJ) and 10-5 hop tests were performed at baseline, as well as at two time-points during, and three time-points following the fatiguing training period, allowing for performance-comparisons with baseline.
Results
Compared to the weekly training sum at baseline, during the high intensity training phase, athletes were exposed to very large increases in selected external load metrics (ES = 1.44–3.16), suggesting that athletes experienced fatigue acutely, as well as potential longer lasting reductions in performance. Vertical jump data suggested that in the CMJ, traditional metrics such as jump height, as well as metrics reflecting kinetic outputs and movement strategies, were sensitive to the stark increase in high-intensity training exposure. The 10-5 hop test suggested a fatigue-induced loss of tolerance to ground impact reflected by performance reductions in metrics related to jump height and reactive strength qualities.
Discussion
These findings emphasize that when monitoring neuromuscular fatigue, variables and assessments may not be looked at individually, but rather as part of a more global monitoring approach
Starters vs. non-starters differences in vertical jump force-time metrics in female professional volleyball players
No full textAs one of the fundamental volleyball skills, countermovement vertical jump (CMJ) has been commonly implemented in the applied sports setting as a non-invasive and time-efficient assessment of athletes' lower-body neuromuscular function. The purpose of the present study was to examine the differences in CMJ characteristics between starters and non-starters within a cohort of professional female volleyball players. Nineteen athletes competing in one of the top European leagues (i.e., SuperLeague) volunteered to participate in the present investigation. Following the completion of a warm-up protocol, each athlete performed three maximal-effort CMJs with no arm swing while standing on a uni-axial force plate system sampling at 1,000 Hz. The following force-time metrics were used for performance analysis purposes: braking phase duration and impulse, eccentric and concentric duration, mean and peak force and power, contraction time, jump height, and reactive strength index-modified. Mann-Whitney and independent -tests revealed no statistically significant differences (> 0.05) during both eccentric and concentric phases of CMJ between the players included in the starting lineup ( = 9) and their substitutions ( = 10), with the effect sizes being small to moderate in magnitude (= 0.053-0.683). While further research is warranted on this topic, these results suggest that securing a position in a starting lineup at the professional level of volleyball play may be more contingent on the player's ability to proficiently execute sport-specific skills (e.g., blocking, attacking), rather than the performance on the CMJ assessment, considering that the observed values for both groups fall within the desired ranges for this specific population of athletes
A Transcultural Perspective on Social Work with Cultural and Spiritual Diversity
No full textEdward R. Canda, MA, MSW, Ph.D., is Professor Emeritus and Coordinator of the Spiritual Diversity Initiative in the School of Social Welfare at the University of Kansas (KU). He was on the faculty at KU from 1989 to 2019 and at the University of Iowa for three years prior. Dr. Canda was also a Courtesy Professor of Religious Studies and a Member of the Center for East Asian Studies at KU. Dr. Canda frequently lectures and consults on topics related to spiritual diversity in social work, nationally and internationally.
Dr. Canda’s career work addresses connections between cultural diversity, spirituality, transilience, and philosophy of social welfare in relation to social service, health, mental health, and disabilities. In 2013, Dr. Canda received the Council on Social Work Education’s Significant Lifetime Achievement Award for innovations on spirituality through scholarship and education.A Transcultural Perspective on Social Work with Cultural and Spiritual Diversity offers theoretical and practical guidelines for ways that social workers and other professional helpers can honor the distinctiveness of particular cultures and spiritual views as well as the common qualities of humanity. The transcultural perspective promotes mutual understanding and collaboration toward wellbeing and justice for all people and all beings. This book reveals the historical development and current state of the art of Dr. Edward Canda’s innovations on culturally appropriate and spiritually sensitive social work, with examples from refugee resettlement, interreligious dialogue, cross-cultural marriage, international social work collaborations, and spiritual strengths-based practice. A Transcultural Perspective provides a concise and thorough framework for inclusive spiritually sensitive social work including ethical decision-making, spiritual assessment, therapeutic relationship, mindfulness, fulfillment supporting organizational culture, and global ecological compassion and justice
The Promise of Explainable AI in Digital Health for Precision Medicine: A Systematic Review
No full textA grant from the One-University Open Access Fund at the University of Kansas was used to defray the author's publication fees in this Open Access journal. The Open Access Fund, administered by librarians from the KU, KU Law, and KUMC libraries, is made possible by contributions from the offices of KU Provost, KU Vice Chancellor for Research & Graduate Studies, and KUMC Vice Chancellor for Research. For more information about the Open Access Fund, please see http://library.kumc.edu/authors-fund.xml.This review synthesizes the literature on explaining machine-learning models for digital health data in precision medicine. As healthcare increasingly tailors treatments to individual characteristics, the integration of artificial intelligence with digital health data becomes crucial. Leveraging a topic-modeling approach, this paper distills the key themes of 27 journal articles. We included peer-reviewed journal articles written in English, with no time constraints on the search. A Google Scholar search, conducted up to 19 September 2023, yielded 27 journal articles. Through a topic-modeling approach, the identified topics encompassed optimizing patient healthcare through data-driven medicine, predictive modeling with data and algorithms, predicting diseases with deep learning of biomedical data, and machine learning in medicine. This review delves into specific applications of explainable artificial intelligence, emphasizing its role in fostering transparency, accountability, and trust within the healthcare domain. Our review highlights the necessity for further development and validation of explanation methods to advance precision healthcare delivery.
Keywords: digital health; explainable artificial intelligence; precision medicine; machine learnin
Exploring the Impact of Primer–Template Mismatches on PCR Performance of DNA Polymerases Varying in Proofreading Activity
No full textPolymerase chain reaction (PCR) is a widely used technique in gene expression analysis, diagnostics, and various molecular biology applications. However, the accuracy and sensitivity of PCR can be compromised by primer–template mismatches, potentially leading to erroneous results. In this study, we strategically designed 111 primer–template combinations with varying numbers, types, and locations of mismatches to meticulously assess their impact on qPCR performance while two distinctly different types of DNA polymerases were used. Notably, when a single-nucleotide mismatch occurred at the 3’ end of the primer, we observed significant decreases in the analytical sensitivity (0–4%) with Invitrogen™ Platinum™ Taq DNA Polymerase High Fidelity, while the analytical sensitivity remained unchanged with Takara Ex Taq Hot Start Version DNA Polymerase. Leveraging these findings, we designed a highly specific PCR to amplify Babesia while effectively avoiding the genetically close Theileria. Through elucidating the critical interplay between types of DNA polymerases and primer–template mismatches, this research provides valuable insights for improving PCR accuracy and performance. These findings have important implications for researchers aiming to achieve robust qPCR results in various molecular biology applications.
Keywords: PCR, DNA Polymerases, nucleotide mismatch, Proofreadin
The impact of amplification on quality of life in women with Turner syndrome
No full textA grant from the One-University Open Access Fund at the University of Kansas was used to defray the author's publication fees in this Open Access journal. The Open Access Fund, administered by librarians from the KU, KU Law, and KUMC libraries, is made possible by contributions from the offices of KU Provost, KU Vice Chancellor for Research & Graduate Studies, and KUMC Vice Chancellor for Research. For more information about the Open Access Fund, please see http://library.kumc.edu/authors-fund.xml.Background
Individuals with Turner syndrome (TS, ORPHA 881) experience barriers in communication throughout life as they navigate both early conductive, and progressive sensorineural hearing loss amid other healthcare needs. Hearing loss is self-identified as one of the largest unmet healthcare needs.
Purpose
The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of treatment for hearing loss on communication confidence and quality of life measures for individuals with TS.
Research design
We employed a prospective cross-sectional study design that included both online survey data and audiometric data for a subset of participants.
Study sample
We recruited 179 adults with TS at the Turner Syndrome Society of the United States (TSSUS) Conference, and through a variety of regional TS organizations’ social media platforms. Audiological data was collected onsite at the conference for a subset of 67 participants; 8 of which who were followed after receiving subsequent treatment with hearing aids.
Data collection and analysis
The online survey design included demographic questions, the Communication Confidence Profile (CCP), and the RAND 36-Item Health Survey 1.0. Audiometric data included tympanometry, puretone air, and puretone bone conduction thresholds. Descriptive statistics, parametric, and non-parametric tests were used to analyze both survey and audiometric data.
Results
74% of participants had a self-reported diagnosis of hearing loss, of which 61% were previously recommended amplification. Only 38% of participants reported using hearing aids. For those participants who wore hearing aids, Total CCP Score, ‘Confidence in Ability to Hear Under Various Conditions’, and ‘Energy/Vitality’ metrics were significantly greater than those with untreated hearing loss warranting a hearing aid. Collectively, Total CCP Score and ‘Confidence in Ability to Hear Under Various Conditions’ increased significantly when participants were fit with hearing aids.
Conclusion
The results support previous data where hearing loss is a self-identified healthcare concern among women with Turner syndrome, yet many fail to receive appropriate hearing evaluation or treatment. Additionally, the use of hearing aids may improve communication confidence and quality of life in women with Turner syndrome. Furthermore, this study confirms the need for long-term audiological care and monitoring in women with Turner syndrome
Who Posts on Instagram? Using Natural Language Processing to Assess the Relationship Between Training Background and Content of 700,000 Posts
No full textA grant from the One-University Open Access Fund at the University of Kansas was used to defray the author's publication fees in this Open Access journal. The Open Access Fund, administered by librarians from the KU, KU Law, and KUMC libraries, is made possible by contributions from the offices of KU Provost, KU Vice Chancellor for Research & Graduate Studies, and KUMC Vice Chancellor for Research. For more information about the Open Access Fund, please see http://library.kumc.edu/authors-fund.xml.Background
Instagram (Menlo Park, CA) is a major platform for the dissemination of plastic surgery (PS) information, but the training background of users is difficult to ascertain.
Objectives
We sought to better characterize the source and content of PS-related posts on Instagram.
Methods
Metadata from publicly available Instagram posts containing PS relevant hashtags was collected from December 2018 to August 2020 using Node.js (Node.js Foundation, San Francisco, CA). The data was characterized by account type, and post topics were analyzed using a custom dictionary of PS procedures applied with natural language processing. All data analyses were performed with R (The R Foundation, Vienna, Austria).
Results
Board-certified plastic surgeons account for 38% of posts on Instagram, followed by organizations (31%), nonplastics-trained physicians (19%), facial plastics (5%), oculoplastics (1%), and nonphysician providers (5%). Oculoplastics had the highest engagement rate with their posts (3.7 ± 5.1), whereas plastic surgeons had the lowest (2.7 ± 4.2). Breast aesthetics was the predominant topic posted by plastic surgeons (42%, P < .001), and board certification phrases distinguished their posts from other account types (23%, P < .001). Nonphysician posts focused on nonsurgical aesthetics like Botox and fillers (80%). However, nonplastics-trained physicians and organizations significantly contributed to procedural subcategories in a similar distribution to plastic surgeons.
Conclusions
Board-certified plastic surgeons are not the predominant source of PS content on Instagram. Furthermore, posts by plastic surgeons have the lowest rate of engagement out of all account types studied. Although declarations of board certification distinguish content from plastics disciplines, they are only used in 21% of posts.
Level of Evidence:
Blood Flow Restriction during Walking Does Not Impact Body Composition or Performance Measures in Highly Trained Runners
No full textBlood flow restriction (BFR) is a commonly used training modality that has been demonstrated to enhance muscle characteristics such as size and function. The purpose of this study was to determine if a 4-week walking program with or without BFR in healthy, active adults has an effect on body composition, anaerobic, and aerobic running performance. Thirty-three participants, randomized among three groups, completed the walking program, which included five sets of 2 min walking intervals with 1 min rest, with or without BFR, or 10 min walking with BFR. Assessments completed before and after the walking program included body composition, 40-yard sprints, and a VO test on a treadmill. A two-way ANOVA revealed no changes among the groups nor for any variables at any time ( > 0.05). Additionally, one main effect for time indicated the VO at V-slope threshold was greater following training for all groups combined ( = 0.001). The results demonstrate that low volume and intensity walking with BFR for 4 weeks did not provide a sufficient stimulus for changing body composition or performance metrics in a group of very active adults. Longer or more isolated exposure of BFR on the limbs may contribute to more pronounced adaptations
Dimensions of caregiver strain may partially mediate the relationship between youth symptomology and counseling utilization among Latinxs
No full textWhether Latinx families use youth mental health services (MHS) depends on complex influences of barriers and facilitators within and outside of the home. This research sought to shed light on caregiver strain as part of the equation focused on parental identification and responses to youth mental health needs. We examined multiple dimensions of caregiver strain as potential mediators between youth mental health symptom severity and psychological counseling utilization. The present sample consisted of 598 Latinx caregivers to youths ages 6-18 who provided information on youth internalizing and externalizing problems, caregiver strain, and youth psychological counseling service utilization within the last year. Our findings suggest that youth symptom severity (internalizing and externalizing problems) was generally positively associated with dimensions of caregiver strain. Youth symptom severity through objective and subjective internalized strain pathways were associated with greater odds of youth MHS utilization. In contrast, youth symptom severity through subjective externalized strain reduced the odds that Latinx caregivers would report utilizing youth MHS. These models only partially mediated the relationship between youth problems and service use. Findings suggest that Latinx caregivers may navigate conflicting sources of strain related to their child's mental health problem severity in ways that may differentially impact the odds that they access youth MHS. Along with addressing structural and systemic barriers to care, utilization of psychological counseling services may also be improved through interventions that help Latinx caregivers view youth services as avenues for addressing caregiver strain and providing psychoeducation that frames externalized strain within a mental health lens
Advancing Biomolecular Analysis through Capillary Electrophoresis Techniques
No full textCapillary electrophoresis (CE) has become an important analytical tool in biomolecular analysis due to its speed, efficiency, low sample consumption and low cost. Recent advancements in CE have broadened its application in bio molecular analysis, making it highly effective for separation and analysis of various molecules including inorganic ions, amino acids, proteins, and aptamers. CE is also used to characterize biomolecular interactions particularly in clinical and biopharmaceutical settings. In this study we developed a new technique, planar capillary electrophoresis (PCE) combined with back-scatter interferometry (BSI) which enables rapid and accurate separation and detection of inorganic ions and underivatized amino acids in both standard solutions and biological samples. Refractive index (RI) detection using BSI offered the universal detection feature to the PCE platform, which broaden its applications with label free detection capability in the analysis of various biomolecules. By using thin- walled capillaries, the method reduces joule heating which facilitates efficient heat dissipation, even at high- field strengths, separating the analytes within seconds. The separation displayed a good repeatability with excellent precision, and also revealed its capability to detect concentrations as low as high nanomolar range. This system has been also applied in close clinical applications like for analyzation of biological samples. It was tested for separation and simultaneous detection of amino acids, creatinine (CR) and inorganic ions in human urine and plasma samples with minimal sample preparation. The separation was achieved in under 100 seconds in both sample types. The results were consistent with physiological levels, providing a powerful tool for diagnosing metabolic disorders. Another significant application of PCE platform is the performance of serum protein electrophoresis (SPE) using universal BSI detection. By integrating the fluorescence detection into the same platform allows simultaneous dual detection capability to detect both serum proteins and immunoassays. This platform uses a single laser source for dual detection, where RI measurements were used for proteins and fluorescence detection was used for immunoassays. The technique achieved a limit of detection of 23 nM for the tested analyte FITC. Additionally, a modified PCE platform has been developed to enhance the separation of fluorescently labeled antibodies, enabling the quantification of III biomarkers like β2-microglobulin (B2M), relevant to diseases such as multiple myeloma, which promises its applicability in future clinical diagnostics. To further enhance the applicability of the PCE platform a significant enhancement of the detection limits was required. Incorporating photothermal excitation with BSI in CE was capable of enhancement of the detection sensitivity by three orders of magnitude. This approach shows a promise in a variety of applications, including enhanced detection of biomolecules in complex biological samples, binding studies, and interaction kinetics. A newly engineered multi-loop CE platform provides the capability of simultaneous calculation of kinetic parameters such as the dissociation constant (Kd), off-rate (koff), and on-rate (kon) in biomolecular interactions. This system was validated with FITC and anti FITC-antibodies and a thrombin-targeting aptamer. The study characterized the real-time monitoring capability of the separation, using multi detection points along the capillary which significantly enhanced the accuracy of calculating the kinetic parameters of the biomolecules. In the future, the multi-looped capillary system could be applied to determine diffusion coefficients and the hydrodynamic radius of molecules through Taylor dispersion analysis (TDA), offering further intuitions into molecular behavior and migration properties. This would expand utility of CE in biophysical characterization of the molecules and pharmaceutical research. These advancements in CE, particularly through the integration of BSI, fluorescence, and photothermal techniques in to the same PCE platform, highlight its growing potential for rapid, sensitive, and cost-effective biomolecular analysis. From clinical diagnostics to therapeutic research, CE continues to be a valuable and innovative tool for advancing biomolecular studies