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Consensus on measurement properties and feasibility of performance tests for the exercise and sport sciences: a Delphi study
No full textAbstract
Background
Performance tests are used for multiple purposes in exercise and sport science. Ensuring that a test displays an appropriate level of measurement properties for use within a population is important to ensure confidence in test findings.
The aim of this study was to obtain subject matter expert consensus on the measurement and feasibility properties that should be considered for performance tests used in the exercise and sport sciences and how these should be defined. This information was used to develop a checklist for broader dissemination.
Methods
A two-round Delphi study was undertaken including 33 exercise scientists, academics and sport scientists. Participants were asked to rate the importance of a range of measurement properties relevant to performance tests in exercise and sport science. Responses were obtained in binary and Likert-scale formats, with consensus defined as achieving 67% agreement on each question.
Results
Consensus was reached on definitions and terminology for all items. Ten level 1 items (those that achieved consensus on all four questions) and nine level 2 items (those achieving consensus on \u22652 questions) were included. Both levels were included in the final checklist.
Conclusions
The checklist developed from this study can be used to inform decision-making and test selection for practitioners and researchers in the exercise and sport sciences. This can facilitate knowledge sharing and performance comparisons across sub-disciplines, thereby improving existing field practice and research methodological quality
Breakage and retention of thoracic paravertebral catheter: a case report
No full textAbstract
Background
Paravertebral catheters are generally inserted and removed without complications. However, catheter breakage occurs rarely. This is the first report describing breakage of a thoracic paravertebral catheter and retention of the catheter fragment within the patient.
Case presentation
A 65-year-old female patient complained of an unusual sensation in her back during postoperative chemotherapy for lung cancer. A catheter fragment was identified in the soft tissues of the back on computed tomography. The paravertebral catheter had been placed 2\ua0years prior left lower lobectomy. The patient had neither neurological symptoms nor infection signs around the fragment. However, the potential side effects of chemotherapy, including coagulopathy and immunosuppression, increased the risk of late-onset hematoma and abscess formation around the fragment. Therefore, we surgically removed the catheter fragment. Analysis of the fragment revealed that the catheter had been severed by the cutting edge of the Tuohy needle or the suture needle.
Conclusion
In this report, a paravertebral catheter fragment was retained in the posterior mediastinum for 2\ua0years. The catheter was likely damaged during the insertion procedure. We suggest that catheters should not be withdrawn through the Tuohy needle, but be withdrawn together with the Tuohy needle. Although secure fixation of the catheter can be achieved with sutures, to reduce the risk of damage to the catheter, alternative methods, such as surgical tapes or skin glue should be considered. After removal of a catheter, its tip should be checked to ensure that the entire catheter has been completely removed. If a catheter fragment is retained within the patient, removal of the fragment should be considered according to the patient\u2019s condition and risks
Glycine-alanine dipeptide repeat protein contributes to toxicity in a zebrafish model of C9orf72 associated neurodegeneration
No full textAbstract
Background
The most frequent genetic cause of frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD) and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is the expansion of a GGGGCC hexanucleotide repeat in a non-coding region of the chromosome 9 open reading frame 72 ( C9orf72) locus. The pathological hallmarks observed in C9orf72 repeat expansion carriers are the formation of RNA foci and deposition of dipeptide repeat (DPR) proteins derived from repeat associated non-ATG (RAN) translation. Currently, it is unclear whether formation of RNA foci, DPR translation products, or partial loss of C9orf72 predominantly drive neurotoxicity in vivo. By using a transgenic approach in zebrafish we address if the most frequently found DPR in human ALS/FTLD brain, the poly-Gly-Ala (poly-GA) protein, is toxic in vivo.
Method
We generated several transgenic UAS responder lines that express either 80 repeats of GGGGCC alone, or together with a translation initiation ATG codon forcing the translation of GA80-GFP protein upon crossing to a Gal4 driver. The GGGGCC repeat and GA80 were fused to green fluorescent protein (GFP) lacking a start codon to monitor protein translation by GFP fluorescence.
Results
Zebrafish transgenic for the GGGGCC repeat lacking an ATG codon showed very mild toxicity in the absence of poly-GA. However, strong toxicity was induced upon ATG initiated expression of poly-GA, which was rescued by injection of an antisense morpholino interfering with start codon dependent poly-GA translation. This morpholino only interferes with GA80-GFP translation without affecting repeat transcription, indicating that the toxicity is derived from GA80-GFP.
Conclusion
These novel transgenic C9orf72 associated repeat zebrafish models demonstrate poly-GA toxicity in zebrafish. Reduction of poly-GA protein rescues toxicity validating this therapeutic approach to treat C9orf72 repeat expansion carriers. These novel animal models provide a valuable tool for drug discovery to reduce DPR associated toxicity in ALS/FTLD patients with C9orf72 repeat expansions
Regulatory elements and transcriptional control of chicken vasa homologue (CVH) promoter in chicken primordial germ cells
No full textAbstract
Background
Primordial germ cells (PGCs), the precursors of functional gametes, have distinct characteristics and exhibit several unique molecular mechanisms to maintain pluripotency and germness in comparison to somatic cells. They express germ cell-specific RNA binding proteins (RBPs) by modulating tissue-specific cis - and trans -regulatory elements. Studies on gene structures of chicken vasa homologue ( CVH ), a chicken RNA binding protein, involved in temporal and spatial regulation are thus important not only for understanding the molecular mechanisms that regulate germ cell fate, but also for practical applications of primordial germ cells. However, very limited studies are available on regulatory elements that control germ cell-specific expression in chicken. Therefore, we investigated the intricate regulatory mechanism(s) that governs transcriptional control of CVH .
Results
We constructed green fluorescence protein (GFP) or luciferase reporter vectors containing the various 5\u2032 flanking regions of CVH gene. From the 5\u2032 deletion and fragmented assays in chicken PGCs, we have identified a CVH promoter that locates at \u2212316 to +275 base pair fragment with the highest luciferase activity. Additionally, we confirmed for the first time that the 5\u2032 untranslated region (UTR) containing intron 1 is required for promoter activity of the CVH gene in chicken PGCs. Furthermore, using a transcription factor binding prediction, transcriptome analysis and siRNA-mediated knockdown, we have identified that a set of transcription factors play a role in the PGC-specific CVH gene expression.
Conclusions
These results demonstrate that cis -elements and transcription factors localizing in the 5\u2032 flanking region including the 5\u2032 UTR and an intron are important for transcriptional regulation of the CVH gene in chicken PGCs. Finally, this information will contribute to research studies in areas of reproductive biology, constructing of germ cell-specific synthetic promoter for tracing primordial germ cells as well as understanding the transcriptional regulation for maintaining germness in PGCs
A new measure of skill mismatch: theory and evidence from PIAAC
No full textAbstract
This paper proposes a new measure of skill mismatch to be applied to the recent OECD Survey of Adult Skills (PIAAC). The measure is derived from a formal theory and combines information about skill proficiency, self-reported mismatch and skill use. The theoretical foundations underling this measure allow identifying minimum and maximum skill requirements for each occupation and to classify workers into three groups: the well-matched, the under-skilled and the over-skilled. The availability of skill use data further permits the computation of the degree of under- and over-usage of skills in the economy. The empirical analysis is carried out using the first round of the PIAAC data, allowing comparisons across skill domains, labour market statuses and countries.
JEL Classification: J0, J20, J24
Budget impact analysis of vaccination against Haemophilus influenzae type b as a part of a Pentavalent vaccine in the childhood immunization schedule of Iran
No full textAbstract
Background
Health decision makers need to know the impact of the development of a new intervention on the public health and health care costs so that they can plan for economic and financial objectives. The aim of this study was to determine the budget impact of adding Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) as a part of a Pentavalent vaccine (Hib-HBV-DTP) to the national childhood immunization schedule of Iran.
Methods
An excel-based model was developed to determine the costs of including the Pentavalent vaccine in the national immunization program (NIP), comparing the present schedule with the previous one (including separate DTP and hepatitis B vaccines). The total annual costs included the cost of vaccination (the vaccine and syringe) and the cost of Hib treatment. The health outcome was the estimated annual cases of the diseases. The net budget impact was the difference in the total annual cost between the two schedules. Uncertainty about the vaccine effectiveness, vaccination coverage, cost of the vaccine, and cost of the diseases were handled through scenario analysis.
Results
The total cost of vaccination during 5 years was 67,774,786 in the present program. Inclusion of the Pentavalent vaccine would increase the vaccination cost about 6 million in the healthcare costs due to reduction of disease cases and treatment costs. The introduction of the Pentavalent vaccine resulted in a net increase in the healthcare budget expenditure across all scenarios from 50.7 million.
Conclusions
The results of this study showed that the inclusion of the Pentavalent vaccine in the NIP of Iran had a significant impact on the health care budget and increased the financial burden on the government.
Graphical abstract
Budget impact of including Pentavalent vaccine in the national immunization schedule of Iran\u115
Large firm dominance on country\u2019s entrepreneurship potentials
No full textAbstract
This paper aims to determine whether countries where large firms are very dominant have less entrepreneurial activities. There is anecdotal evidence that the continued decline in the business dynamism or the number of start-ups in the United States is said to be partly attributed to large firms. One key explanation is that the regulatory environment tends to favor existing large firms \u2013 an environment that allows near monopolies and a protection of tiny entrepreneurial elite. Using the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) data together with the World Bank \u2013 International Finance Corporation\u2019s MSME country indicators, I empirically test whether large firm dominance influences entrepreneurial activities as well as intentions. Using fixed effects regression analysis on unbalanced panel of 40 countries over the period 2002\u20132007, I found that the entrepreneurship potential of a country is potentially at risk if the growth of large firms\u2019 stake in the economy is left unchallenged. In particular, a one percentage point increase in the share of large firms to total employment is associated with 0.35 percentage point lower total early-stage entrepreneurial activity rate, holding other factors constant. Also, worth noting is the sensitivity of entrepreneurial intentions to large firm dominance. A one percentage point increase in the share of large firms to total employment dampens (i.e., by 0.56 percentage point) intentions of latent entrepreneurs to start a business within the next 3\ua0years, other factors remaining constant. This second-order effect of large firm dominance depends heavily on the country\u2019s institutions. Thus, it is critical for governments to foster a dynamic system that guarantees free competition and rewards creativity. Likewise, it is necessary to review and amend policies that seem to favor large firms that compromise the establishment as well as growth of smaller enterprises
Balancing decoding speed and memory usage for Huffman codes using quaternary tree
No full textAbstract
In this paper, we focus on the use of quaternary tree instead of binary tree to speed up the decoding time for Huffman codes. It is usually difficult to achieve a balance between speed and memory usage using variable-length binary Huffman code. Quaternary tree is used here to produce optimal codeword that speeds up the way of searching. We analyzed the performance of our algorithms with the Huffman-based techniques in terms of decoding speed and compression ratio. The proposed decoding algorithm outperforms the Huffman-based techniques in terms of speed while the compression performance remains almost same
Perception of injury risk among amateur Muay Thai fighters
No full textAbstract
Background
Muay Thai is a style of kickboxing that allows full-contact blows to an unprotected head, torso and legs, and, as in any combat sport, there is an inherent risk of injury. Previous observational studies have shown there is a substantial risk of injury in competitive kickboxing. None of these studies, however, have investigated the potential role of psychological risk factors and, consequently, little is known about the perception of injury risk among these athletes. Notwithstanding the important role risk perception may play in the occurrence and prevention of sports injuries, there is very limited empirical data pertaining to athletes in full-contact combat sports such as Muay Thai.
Because the development and successful implementation of effective injury prevention policies for combat sports are likely to benefit from an increased understanding of the perception of injury risk and sport safety attitudes and behavior of its participants, further study is warranted.
Methods
Muay Thai fighters were invited to complete an online survey in which they rated the perceived risk of injury in a range of different sports, including Muay Thai kickboxing. Perceived comparative risk was obtained indirectly by subtracting perceived risk of injury to oneself from perceived risk of injury to a peer. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, comparison of means, and ordinal logistic regression.
Results
Contrary to the best available epidemiological evidence, Muay Thai fighters perceived the risk of injury in their own sport to be average and significantly lower than that in other collision and contact sports, including popular combat sports such as boxing and mixed martial arts. On average, Muay Thai fighters perceived their own risk injury to be significantly lower compared to their peers ( p \u2009<\u20090.001).
Conclusions
There appears to be a mismatch between injury risk perception and actual risk among Muay Thai fighters. Moreover, these athletes also exhibit a slight degree comparative optimism or unrealistic optimism. Because behavior is determined by perceived rather than actual risk, underestimation of injury risk and concomitant overestimation of ability to negotiate risk may lead to an increased frequency of injury. Future injury prevention strategies in combat sports such as Muay Thai kickboxing should consider educational- and psychosocial-based interventions that include efforts to correct erroneous beliefs and attitudes about actual risk of injury in the sport
Anomalous decrease in relatively large shocks and increase in the p and b values preceding the April 16, 2016, M7.3 earthquake in Kumamoto, Japan
No full textAbstract
The 2016 Kumamoto earthquakes in Kyushu, Japan, started with a magnitude ( M ) 6.5 quake on April 14 on the Hinagu fault zone (FZ), followed by active seismicity including an M 6.4 quake. Eventually, an M 7.3 quake occurred on April 16 on the Futagawa FZ. We investigated if any sign indicative of the M 7.3 quake could be found in the space\u2013time changes in seismicity after the M 6.5 quake. As a quality control, we determined in advance the threshold magnitude, above which all earthquakes are completely recorded. We then showed that the occurrence rate of relatively large ( M \ua0\u2265\ua03) earthquakes significantly decreased 1\ua0day before the M 7.3 quake. Significance of this decrease was evaluated by one standard deviation of sampled changes in the rate of occurrence. We next confirmed that seismicity with M \ua0\u2265\ua03 was well modeled by the Omori\u2013Utsu law with p \ua0~\ua01.5\ua0\ub1\ua00.3, which indicates that the temporal decay of seismicity was significantly faster than a typical decay with p \ua0=\ua01. The larger p value was obtained when we used data of the longer time period in the analysis. This significance was confirmed by a bootstrapping approach. Our detailed analysis shows that the large p value was caused by the rapid decay of the seismicity in the northern area around the Futagawa FZ. Application of the slope (the b value) of the Gutenberg\u2013Richter frequency\u2013magnitude distribution to the spatiotemporal change in the seismicity revealed that the b value in the northern area increased significantly, the increase being \u394 b \ua0=\ua00.3\u20130.5. Significance was verified by a statistical test of \u394 b and a test using bootstrapping errors. Based on our findings, combined with the results obtained by a stress inversion analysis performed by the National Research Institute for Earth Science and Disaster Resilience, we suggested that stress near the Futagawa FZ had reduced just prior to the occurrence of the M 7.3 quake. We proposed, with some other observations, that a reduction in stress might have been induced by growth of the slow slips on the Futagawa FZ.
Graphical Abstract