Military medicine
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Novel Phototherapy Kiosk Shows Promise as a Treatment Option for Low Vitamin D.
The purpose of this study was to demonstrate the feasibility of a phototherapy kiosk (PK) to engage community adults in health promotion and to stimulate production of circulating 25-hydroxyvitamin (OH)D as effectively as a vitamin D3 oral supplement (OS). Although optimal production of vitamin D comes from sun exposure, ultraviolet B radiation with a wavelength of 290 to 320 nm penetrates exposed skin and may produce vitamin D3 using a PK. ⋯ Programmed ultraviolet B phototherapy appears to be an efficacious alternative to oral vitamin D supplementation with consistent use.
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More than 280,000 Active Duty Service Members (ADSMs) sustained a mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) between 2000 and 2019 (Q3). Previous studies of veterans have shown higher utilization of outpatient health clinics by veterans diagnosed with mTBI. Additionally, veterans with mTBI and comorbid behavioral health (BH) conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, and substance use disorders have significantly higher health care utilization than veterans diagnosed with mTBI alone. However, few studies of the relationship between mTBI, health care utilization, and BH conditions in the active duty military population currently exist. We examined the proportion of ADSMs with a BH diagnosis before and after a first documented mTBI and quantified outpatient utilization of the Military Health System in the year before and following injury. ⋯ Behavioral health comorbidities affect approximately one-third of ADSMs following a first mTBI, and approximately 17% of previously healthy active duty men and women will be diagnosed with a new BH condition in the year following a first mTBI. Post-mTBI outpatient health care utilization is highly dependent on the presence or absence of BH condition and is markedly higher is ADSMs with a BH diagnosis in the year after a first documented mTBI.
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Measuring hemodynamic characteristics of injured limbs is paramount to early identification of potentially damaging ischemic conditions, but can often prove difficult attributable to a multitude of factors. Here, we present an in vivo optical imaging technique to characterize pulsatile blood flow quality through the distal extremity in multiple animal models that replicate the signs of distal extremity ischemia. The purpose of this study is to examine the feasibility of the optical imaging technique and relevance to hemodynamic complications such as acute compartment syndrome (ACS) and nonobvious hemorrhage. ⋯ Here, we show that a novel, optics-based sensing system can be used to diagnose and assess ACS in animal models. This technology is comparable to other standards used to monitor ACS and nonobvious hemorrhage and may also be a plausible alternative to prolonged invasive monitoring of patients with sustained extremity trauma.