Plos One
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There are some practical factors, such as arm position change and donning/doffing, which prevent robust myoelectric control. The objective of this study is to precisely characterize the impacts of the two representative factors on myoelectric controllability in practical control situations, thereby providing useful references that can be potentially used to find better solutions for clinically reliable myoelectric control. To this end, a real-time target acquisition task was performed by fourteen subjects including one individual with congenital upper-limb deficiency, where the impacts of arm position change, donning/doffing and a combination of both factors on control performance was systematically evaluated. ⋯ Donning/doffing was still problematic in online control conditions. It was further observed that no benefit was attained when using a control model trained with multiple position data in terms of arm position change, and the degree of electrode shift caused by donning/doffing was not severely associated with the degree of performance loss under practical conditions (around 1 cm electrode shift). Since this study is the first to concurrently investigate the impacts of arm position change and donning/doffing in practical myoelectric control situations, all findings of this study provide new insights into robust myoelectric control with respect to arm position change and donning/doffing.
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To investigate the association of psychotropic drug use with falls among older adults in Germany based on data from the National Health Interview and Examination Survey for Adults 2008-2011 (DEGS1). ⋯ Use of psychotropic drugs overall, especially synthetic antidepressants like SSRIs, is associated with higher risks of falls and recurrent falls among community dwelling older adults aged 65-79 years in Germany.
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Comparative Study
Induction of labor versus expectant management of large-for-gestational-age infants in nulliparous women.
There is no apparent consensus on obstetric management, i.e., induction of labor or expectant management of women with suspected large-for-gestational-age (LGA)-fetuses. ⋯ In women with LGA infants, induction of labor at 38 weeks gestation is associated with increased risk of cesarean delivery compared to expectant management, with no difference in neonatal morbidity.
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The incidence of stroke in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected individuals has been well analyzed in recent epidemiological studies. However, little is known about the specific contribution of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection to stroke among HIV-infected individuals. The aims of this study were to analyze trends in the incidence rates of stroke in HIV-infected individuals during the combination antiretroviral (cART) era in Spain and to categorize them by the presence or absence of HCV coinfection. ⋯ The CFR of HS in HIV-monoinfected patients decreased significantly (47.4% [1997-1999] to 30.6% [2008-2013]; P = 0.010) but did not change significantly among HIV/HCV-coinfected patients (41.4% [1997-1999] to 44.7% [2008-2013]; P = 0.784). The CFR of IS in the whole HIV-infected population decreased significantly (14.6% [1997-1999] to 10.9% [2008-2013]; P = 0.034), although no significant differences were found when each group was analyzed separately. In conclusion, after the introduction of cART, HS and IS rates decreased in HIV-monoinfected individuals, but increased steadily in HIV/HCV-coinfected individuals.
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Identifying essential competencies in end-of-life care, as well as general practitioners' (GPs) confidence in these competencies, is essential to guide training and quality improvement efforts in this domain. ⋯ GPs considered non-somatic competencies (such as spiritual, cultural, ethical and legal aspects) nearly as important as pain and symptom control. Yet, few GPs felt confident in these non-somatic competencies. These findings should inform training and quality improvement efforts in this domain, in particular for younger, less experienced GPs.