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Spectral Analysis of Confined Cylinder Wakes
No full textBluff body flows, while commonly assumed to be isolated, are often subject to confinement effects due to interactions with nearby objects. In this study, a simple approximation of such a flow configuration is considered, where a cylinder is placed symmetrically within an infinite channel. The presence of walls implies the wake is physically confined and introduces interactions between the wake and the boundary layer along the wall. To isolate the effect of confinement, simulations are conducted with slip channel walls, removing the boundary layers. Comparisons of flow statistics between simulations of slip and no-slip channel walls show minor differences at a low blockage ratio, β (defined as the ratio of cylinder diameter to channel height), while for larger blockage ratios, the differences are significant. Spectral analysis is also performed on the wake and shear layers. At the lowest blockage, β=0.3, little modification is made to the wake, and we find that Kármán vortices are one-way coupled to the boundary layers along the walls. For β=0.5, wall–wake interactions are determined to significantly contribute to wake dynamics, thus to two-way coupling Kármán vortices and the wall boundary layers. Finally, for β=0.7, the absence of Kármán shedding couples Kelvin–Helmoltz vortices in the shear layer, separating off the cylinder to the wall boundary layer
Prevalence of Complex Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (CPTSD): A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
No full textThis systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to assess complex post-traumatic stress disorder (CPTSD) pooled prevalence across global and specific populations (e.g., military, clinical) and examined potential gender differences. We systematically searched five major databases (Web of Science, Scopus, PsycNET, Psych and behavioural sciences collection, PubMed) up to 31/01/2025 for peer-reviewed articles reporting CPTSD prevalence using validated ICD-11 assessments. Articles were assessed for quality using the JBI prevalence checklist; no studies were excluded. In total 138,681 participants from 167 studies were analysed. Gender-specific analyses were conducted where prevalence was reported by gender. A random-effects model with the meta package in R estimated the global pooled prevalence of CPTSD at 6.2 % (95 % CI [3.7 %, 10.3 %]). Prevalence varied across specific trauma-exposed population groups; highest in clinical (44.7 %), domestic violence/sexual abuse survivors (40.0 %), and military (36.4 %) samples, and lowest in emergency services (7.4 %). No gender difference in prevalence was observed. Findings suggest the support systems or selection processes inherent in emergency services may lower CPTSD risk. Conversely, extreme trauma, limited support, or cultural factors may explain elevated prevalence in military samples. High CPTSD prevalence in clinical samples highlight trauma's pervasive impact, underscoring the need for targeted treatment addressing both CPTSD and comorbidities (e.g., mood, anxiety disorders). The absence of gender differences contrasts with typically higher PTSD rates in women. Limitations include inconsistent trauma definitions and lack of clinician-administered instruments. Findings highlight the need for standardised data collection and reporting, gender-specific reporting, and recognition of CPTSD as a comorbidity in clinical settings
Impacts of circular economy strategies on product carbon footprint: A lithium-ion battery case
No full textCircular economy (CE) strategies hold substantial potential for reducing product carbon footprints (CF), yet their effectiveness and specific impact pathways remain unclear. This study develops a quantitative framework for calculating and comparing the CF under various CE strategies, demonstrated with a case of lithium-ion batteries (LIBs). Results show CE strategies have varying impacts on material and other flows in a battery lifecycle and do not necessarily reduce CF. A combination of six CE strategies halves the CF of LIBs, suggesting additional efforts are required for deeper decarbonisation. This framework offers insights to guide effective CE actions and advance sustainable products
Establishing trust in emergency telehealth consultations
No full textOver recent years, emergency telehealth has developed rapidly in Australasia. From the patient's perspective, establishing trust with a healthcare provider is uniquely challenging when using the audio and video modalities commonly used in telehealth. It is crucial to consider how we may improve the delivery of care through this emerging pathway if high-quality care is to be delivered. Several simple techniques have been identified in the literature and can be employed to create trust and improve the patient-provider relationship. These include ensuring privacy and an appropriate setting for the consultation; considering how eye contact and expressions are best used; providing alternative options to telehealth; and clearly identifying names, roles and qualifications. We describe how these methods can best be employed in the virtual emergency care setting
Automated integration of multi-slice spatial transcriptomics data in 2D and 3D using VR-Omics
No full textThe field of spatial transcriptomics is rapidly evolving, with increasing sample complexity, resolution, and tissue size. Yet the field lacks comprehensive and intuitive solutions for automated integration and analysis of multi-slice data in either co-planar (2D) or stacked (3D) formation. To address this, we develop VR-Omics, a free, platform-agnostic software that provides end-to-end automated processing of multi-slice data through a biologist-friendly interface. Benchmarking against existing methods demonstrates VR-Omics' unique strengths to perform comprehensive end-to-end analysis of multi-slice stacked data. Through co-planar slice analysis, VR-Omics uncovers previously undetected, dysregulated metabolic networks within rare pediatric cardiac rhabdomyomas, demonstrating its potential for biological discoveries
Using Causality to Infer Coordinated Attacks in Social Media Authors
No full textThe rise of social media has been accompanied by a dark side with the ease of creating fake accounts and disseminating misinformation through coordinated attacks. Existing methods to identify such attacks often rely on thematic similarities or network-based approaches, overlooking the intricate causal relationships that underlie coordinated actions. This work introduces a novel approach for detecting coordinated attacks using Convergent Cross Mapping (CCM), a technique that infers causality from temporal relationships between user activity. We build on the theoretical framework of CCM by incorporating topic modelling as a basis for further optimizing its performance. We apply CCM to real-world data from the infamous IRA attack on US elections, achieving F1 scores up to 75.3% in identifying coordinated accounts. Furthermore, we analyse the output of our model to identify the most influential users in a community and uncover leader-follower dynamics based on inferred causal relationships. We also demonstrate how our method reveals coordinated behaviour across different time periods, including campaigns predating the 2016 elections. We apply our model to a case study involving COVID-19 anti-vax related discussions on Twitter. Our results demonstrate the effectiveness of our model in uncovering causal structures of coordinated behaviour, offering a promising avenue for mitigating the threat of malicious campaigns on social media platforms
Breastfeeding after breast cancer in young BRCA carriers
No full textBACKGROUND: We investigated safety of breastfeeding after breast cancer in patients carrying germline BRCA pathogenic or likely pathogenic variants. METHODS: This was an international, multicenter, hospital-based, retrospective cohort study including BRCA carriers diagnosed with stage I-III invasive breast cancer at age 40 years or younger between January 2000 and December 2020 (NCT03673306). Locoregional recurrences and/or contralateral breast cancers, disease-free survival (DFS), and overall survival (OS) were compared between patients who breastfed after delivery and those who did not. RESULTS: Among 4732 patients included from 78 centers worldwide, 659 had a pregnancy after breast cancer diagnosis, of whom 474 delivered a child. After excluding patients with uptake of bilateral risk-reducing mastectomy prior to delivery (n = 225) or unknown breastfeeding status (n = 71), 110 (61.8%) breastfed (median duration 5 months) and 68 (38.2%) did not breastfeed. Compared to patients in the no breastfeeding group, those who breastfed were more frequently nulliparous at breast cancer diagnosis (61.8% vs 45.6%) and did not report prior smoking habit (71.8% vs 57.4%). After a median follow-up of 7.0 years following delivery, 7-year cumulative incidence of locoregional recurrences and/or contralateral breast cancers was 29% in the breastfeeding group and 36% in the no breastfeeding group (adjusted subdistribution hazard ratio [HR] = 1.08, 95% CI = 0.57 to 2.06). No difference in DFS (adjusted hazard ratio [aHR] = 0.83, 95% CI = 0.49 to 1.41) nor in OS (aHR = 1.32, 95% CI = 0.31 to 5.66) was observed. CONCLUSIONS: Breastfeeding did not appear to be associated with a higher risk of developing locoregional recurrences or contralateral breast cancers, emphasizing the possibility of achieving a balance between maternal and infant needs without compromising oncological safety
Apathy and affective symptoms associated with elevated plasma neurofilament light but not p-tau181 in Alzheimer's disease
No full textINTRODUCTION: Apathy and affective neuropsychiatric symptoms (NPS) are prevalent in Alzheimer's disease (AD), yet their neurobiological cause is still unclear. We examined associations between plasma neurofilament light chain (NfL) and tau pathology (p-tau181) with apathy and affective symptoms in mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and AD dementia. METHODS: This longitudinal study analyzed data from 781 participants with MCI and AD dementia enrolled in ADNI, with annual blood samples collected over 4 years. NPS were assessed via the Neuropsychiatric Interview (NPI), and biomarker trajectories were analyzed using mixed-effects models. RESULTS: Elevated plasma NfL levels were associated with apathy, anxiety and depression in MCI and AD dementia, with apathy linked to a significantly higher rate of NfL increase, indicating accelerated neurodegeneration. DISCUSSION: Apathy and affective symptoms may indicate greater neurodegenerative burden in AD independent of tau-related pathology. Apathy was associated with a steeper rise in plasma NfL, suggesting a more aggressive disease progression. HIGHLIGHTS: Apathy and affective neuropsychiatric symptoms (NPS) are highly prevalent in clinical Alzheimer's disease (AD).The presence of apathy, depression or anxiety was associated with higher plasma levels of neurofilament light chain (NfL).Apathy was associated with an accelerated increase in plasma NfL levels over time.Apathy and affective NPS were not associated with p-tau181 levels in plasma
Evaluation of whole blood CD64 for identifying infection in neonates receiving hospital care
No full textIntroduction: Infection remains one of the most common causes of death in neonates. However, early detection of neonatal infections to inform treatment decisions remains clinically and technically challenging due to the non-specific nature of symptoms, and the lack of a sufficiently accurate diagnostic test. Neonatal infections and sepsis in adults have been associated with increased CD64 expression on neutrophils. We investigated whole blood CD64 (wbCD64) and neutrophil elastase (NE) in neonates who were evaluated and treated for potential infection and evaluated the potential for these biomarkers as diagnostic tools. Methods: Neonates were prospectively recruited from two neonatal units. Whole blood samples were collected at the time of clinical evaluation for potential infection, if antimicrobials were also initiated. Whole blood CD64 and NE, as a marker of the neutrophil count, were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA). Correlations between wbCD64, NE, and standard hematologic indices were evaluated and diagnostic performance of wbCD64 in relation to infections analyzed using logistic regression and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves. Results: Samples were analyzed from a total of 178 episodes of infection evaluation from 163 neonates. Whole blood CD64 and NE had a positive, non-linear correlation. Infection was diagnosed in 45% (80/178) of episodes, and 31% (55/178) had infection that was microbiologically confirmed. There was no association identified between wbCD64 and infections, and wbCD64 had poor diagnostic performance for infection detection. Evaluation of wbCD64 relative to levels of NE did not improve diagnostic performance. WbCD64 levels were significantly higher among a subgroup of neonates aged >48 hours who had microbiologically-confirmed bacterial bloodstream infections (BSI), with optimal sensitivity and specificity for BSI detection 53% and 87% respectively. Conclusion: WbCD64 is generally not significantly associated with infection in neonates, but shows some association with bacterial bloodstream infections. The diagnostic performance of wbCD64, with or without NE, does not afford sufficient diagnostic accuracy to aid antimicrobial therapeutic decisions for neonatal infections
A qualitative evidence synthesis of participant, caregiver, and provider experiences of lung cancer exercise programs
No full textPURPOSE: This review sought to synthesise the existing qualitative literature to answer the question: "What are the experiences of people with lung cancer, caregivers, and/or providers regarding participation in or delivery of exercise programs?". METHODS: A qualitative evidence synthesis. Published literature from databases EMBASE (Ovid), MEDLINE (Ovid), PsycINFO (Ovid), CINAHL (EBSCO), Cochrane Library, Scopus, PEDro, and Web of Science and grey literature using thesis repositories and Google Scholar were searched on 18th February 2022 and updated on 8th October 2024. Included studies' methodological limitations were evaluated using the Critical Appraisal Skills Programme (CASP) checklist by two independent researchers. First- and second-order qualitative data were extracted, cross-checked, and combined in thematic synthesis by one researcher, with another coding 10%, and they collaborated to determine the final themes, subthemes, and findings. Two independent researchers assessed the confidence in the findings using the GRADE-CERqual approach. RESULTS: Twenty-four studies were included comprising 23 unique exercise programs (10 supervised centre-based and 13 unsupervised, home-based programs.). All studies included patients'/participants' perspectives; six included clinicians, and two included caregivers. Forty-one findings were organised under four broad themes: 1) components of exercise program design, 2) providers of exercise programs, 3) the value of exercise programs, and 4) facilitating behaviour change. Overall, key stakeholders viewed exercise programs as effective and acceptable and valued individualised and tailored programs. Most findings were of moderate-to-high confidence. CONCLUSION: Based on the experiences of key stakeholders, 15 specific recommendations were generated that may improve the acceptability and effectiveness of lung cancer exercise programs