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A roadmap for prioritising technology-enabled capabilities in road freight transportation management
No full textThis study proposes a roadmap to guide the adoption of information and communication technologies (ICTs) to support road freight transportation management. A mixed-method approach, including four methodological steps, was used to develop the roadmap. In phase 1, 12 capabilities are identified in the literature and validated by experts. In phase 2, an empirical assessment of cause–effect relationships between capabilities was performed using a multiple case study with 15 firms and fuzzy DEMATEL. Following this, the model was proposed and validated. This study identifies a roadmap that proposes a path to guide ICT acquisition and adoption decisions based on the understanding of base and triggered capabilities. The proposed roadmap provides a basis for researchers and practitioners to identify which technology-enabled capabilities support road freight transportation management. In addition, the technologies that need to be prioritised to better manage freight operations activities were also identified.</p
Patients' Experiences of Day Surgery:A Qualitative Systematic Review
No full textAim: To examine how patients experience day surgery. Design: Systematic review using Thomas and Harden's framework for synthesis and analysed through Ricoeur's theory of interpretation. Methods and Data Sources: Systematic searches in MEDLINE, CINAHL and EMBASE (September 2023) identified qualitative studies focusing on patients' lived experiences with day surgery (defined as < 24-h hospital stay). Studies were required to provide qualitative data on patient experiences and be published in English or Scandinavian languages. Forward and backward citation searches were also conducted in Scopus. Results: Thirty-four studies met the inclusion criteria. The analysis revealed four key themes: (1) ‘Perceptions of the day surgery concept shape patient expectations’; (2) ‘Navigating expectation and reality: Surprises and challenges in day surgery’; (3) ‘Navigating through postoperative recovery: Feelings of responsibility and insecurity following day surgery’; and (4) ‘The vital role of support from both family and professionals during recovery after day surgery’. Conclusion: Patients' expectations of day surgery strongly influence their overall experience, while the complex self-care demands of postoperative recovery underscore the need for robust support systems involving families and healthcare professionals. Implications for Patient Care: This review highlights the importance of thorough preoperative counselling and ongoing support for patients' complex postoperative self-care. These findings suggest that improved patient-centred care and targeted support could enhance recovery outcomes in day surgery pathways. Impact: Problem addressed: The study explores the often-overlooked challenges that patients face with postoperative self-care following day surgery. Main findings: Expectations of day surgery as ‘minor’ often conflict with patients' emotional and physical self-care needs, revealing a need for comprehensive support. Research impact: Insights from this review can inform patient-centred care practices in day surgery settings globally, underscoring the critical role of family and professional support. Patient or Public Contribution: No patient or public contribution. Trial Registration: Registered with PROSPERO: CRD42023414310.</p
Philanthropic Funding for Agroecology in Europe:Opening the (black) box of sustainable food system actors
No full textThe global food system has severe environmental and health repercussions. Thus, calls for transforming food systems are becoming increasingly louder. However, this requires a significant financial overhaul. Financing an agroecological transition is critical and has received little academic attention so far. Specifically, philanthropic and non-philanthropic foundations as essential actors in private funding for food system transformation are hardly investigated due to their organizational nature. This study is the first to aim to understand the landscape of foundations supporting an agroecological transition in Europe and opening the “black box” through desk research (n = 100), an online questionnaire (n = 23) and semi-structured interviews (n = 15). We analyzed the context, the organizational characteristics and their strategies by adapting an international integrative framework of foundation types to find (i) a Western European prominence of places of origin and resources, (ii) a few vital financial players responsible for a significant amount of the annual funding and (iii) a rising interest to support agroecology and the transformation to a more sustainable food system. In discussing these results, the article touches upon questions of legitimacy and democratic aspirations, which are recommended for further research.</p
Paternal ischemic heart disease and chance of successful pregnancy outcomes
No full textBackground: Only approximately 30% of conceptions result in live births. Historically, research has predominantly focused on maternal factors impacting pregnancy success, despite the cause remaining unidentified in most cases. The influence of paternal factors on a couple's likelihood of achieving a successful pregnancy is still not well understood and warrants further investigation. Objectives: This study aims to examine the chance of biochemical pregnancy, clinical pregnancy, and a live-born child in couples where the male partner has ischemic heart disease. Materials and methods: This nationwide cohort study based on Danish health registries included couples undergoing in vitro fertilization with or without intracytoplasmic sperm injection from 2006 to 2019. The cohort was divided into two groups: exposed and unexposed. The exposed cohort included embryo transfers in couples where the male partner had ischemic heart disease, while the unexposed group included those where the male partner did not have this condition. Results: A total of 101,875 couples with a known male partner were included. Among these, 653 couples were included in the exposed cohort and 101,222 were included in the unexposed cohort. The adjusted odd ratios (ORs) for a biochemical pregnancy, clinical pregnancy, and live-born child were 0.99 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.79; 1.23), 0.79 (95% CI: 0.51, 1.23), and 0.94 (95% CI: 0.62, 1.44), respectively. Conclusions: These findings indicate that paternal ischemic heart disease prior to oocyte retrieval is not associated with a statistically significant decrease in the chances of biochemical pregnancy, clinical pregnancy, or live birth.</p
The Danish Nationwide Osteoporosis Cohort Trials Environment (NOCTE) – a DXA dataset for the 1900-1960 birth cohort
No full textBackground: Osteoporosis is a common, underdiagnosed condition causing increased risk of fracture. While dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) is the diagnostic standard, this may not be successfully targeted to individuals at the highest risk. This study presents an extensive nationwide dataset characterizing DXA-scanning practices in Denmark. Methodology: In this study, we identified all Danish residents from the birth cohort 1900-1960, with a first DXA scan between 2010-2022 to form the Nationwide Osteoporosis Cohort Trials Environment (NOCTE) dataset. These individuals were matched 1:5 to a non-scanned reference population by birth year, sex, and region of residence. Individual data were linked to national registers for comprehensive sociodemographic and clinical information. Results: The final cohort included 263,651 individuals who underwent DXA scanning. At their first scan, 33% of women and 17% of men had osteoporosis. Compared to the matched reference, the scanned cohort had similar socioeconomic profiles but substantially different clinical profiles. Scanned individuals had a much higher prevalence of prior major osteoporotic fractures, prior systemic glucocorticoid exposure, and overall comorbidity burden. Conclusion: Referral for DXA in Denmark is driven by clinical risk rather than socioeconomic status, reflecting an equitable resource allocation. However, a significant diagnostic gap persists, as many high-risk individuals with prior fractures did not receive a DXA. The NOCTE cohort is a new, powerful resource for developing strategies to help close this gap.</p
RhD-negative red blood cell use and conservation strategies in the Region of Southern Denmark
No full textBackground and Objectives: Suboptimal use of RhD-negative red blood cells (RBCs) can lead to reduced inventories of this scarce resource. Prevention of D-alloimmunization is particularly important for RhD-negative females of childbearing potential (FCPs). The utilization of RBCs in the Region of Southern Denmark was analysed to elucidate opportunities for conserving RhD-negative RBCs. Materials and Methods: RBC transfusions from 1 January 2020 to 31 December 2024 were identified using the South Danish Transfusion Service's laboratory and inventory IT systems. RhD-typing results, including the time when the patient's RhD type became known, were used to identify whether a historical or current RhD type was available at the time of RBC transfusion. Transfusions were grouped into 72-h ‘transfusion episodes’, and the achievement of the RBC critical administration threshold (CAT; 3 RBC units/h) was noted. Results: There were 30,564 recipients of 162,778 RBC units. Of these units, 36,483 (22%) units were RhD-negative, out of which 22,922 (63%) were crossmatched (i.e., sufficient time was available to demonstrate compatibility with recipient plasma) and issued to RhD-negative non-FCPs; 1934 (5%) units were uncrossmatched and urgently transfused to 1409 patients who were historically known to be RhD-positive, and 934 (3%) units were transfused to 303 non-FCPs without a current or historical RhD type. In RhD-negative patients who reached CAT, 1440 of 36,483 (4%) RhD-negative RBC units were transfused after they had reached CAT. Conclusion: Many of the RhD-negative RBC units were issued to recipients who were not RhD-negative FCPs, those known to be RhD-positive and those requiring massive transfusion, suggesting strategies for resource conservation.</p
Patient specific characteristics and risk of iatrogenic pneumothorax after CT-guided biopsy of the lung parenchyma
No full textDistinct trajectories of symptoms, cognitive functions and daily activities in twins discordant for past depression
No full textDepression's direct and indirect health effects compound the disease burden of normal aging. Personalised prevention is limited by existing diagnostic classifications. The network theory conceptualises individual depressive symptoms and associated protective factors (e.g., cognition) as a complex system of interrelated components, which enables the identification of potential personalisation targets. We evaluated the temporal stability and connectivity of extended networks including symptoms, cognitive functions and daily activities in elderly co-twins discordant for past depression, and explored possible genetic contributions to the structure of associations between the networks’ elements. Gaussian graphical models estimated the networks of 228 like-sex (104 monozygotic and 124 dizygotic) co-twins aged >70 from the Danish Twin Registry at three timepoints, set two years apart. The networks of both the affected and unaffected by past depression co-twins showed stable global strength and global structure across time. At each timepoint, the affected co-twins showed stronger global network associations and stronger local associations among both depressive symptoms and cognitive functions than the unaffected networks. In affected co-twins, anhedonia was the most central network element (i.e., with the strongest independent associations with remaining variables), and learning – the most central cognitive function. In unaffected co-twins, memory functions were the most influential elements in the extended networks of depressive symptoms. Frequency of engagement in daily activities was not central in either networks at any timepoint. No significant differences were observed when comparing monozygotic to dizygotic networks. Depression preventative strategies in the elderly should target anhedonia and stimulating/maintaining memory functions.</p
A quantitative size stability metrics for long-acting suspensions and its prediction with machine learning
No full textDefining suspension stability can be extremely complex, but beyond critical during the formulation development of nano- and microsuspensions intended for long-acting injectables. As of now, the current practice is based on the trial-and-error approach to determine suitable stabilizers and corresponding stabilization concentrations to allow size reduction due to proper wetting while minimizing particle agglomeration or crystal growth by Ostwald ripening during storage, making the definition of suspension stability subjective in the existing literature. The present study proposed a quantitative measurement of the suspension stability (i.e., suspension stability index (SSI)) defined by two coefficients of variation from the suspension population median, i.e., D50CV, and distribution, i.e., SpanCV, over 28 days of storage under accelerated conditions. Various predictive models for SSI were constructed with a defined threshold for the D50CV and SpanCV where the support vector classification (SVC) model was found to hold the best performance based on a 5-fold cross-validated accuracy of 0.82 and F1 score of 0.82 while also having a good transferability. Critical factors that impacted the SSI included the stabilizer type and its corresponding concentration while the drug compound was found to interact with multiple parameters with the exception of the bead size. Overall, the presented quantitative metric of suspension stability based on the SSI could potentially contribute to a more comparable investigation of suspension stability during formulation development by using the classification model from the presented dataset as a screening tool.</p
