Higher Daily Use Research Articles

Using a Novel Connected Device for the Collection of Puffing Topography Data for the Vuse Solo Electronic Nicotine Delivery System in a Real-World Setting: Prospective Ambulatory Clinical Study.

Over the last decade, the use of electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDSs) has risen, whereas studies that describe how consumers use these products have been limited. Most studies related to ENDS use have involved study designs focused on use in a central location environment or attempted to measure use outcomes through subjective self-reported end points. The development of accurate and reliable tools to collect data in a naturalistic real-world environment is necessary to capture the complexities of ENDS use. Using connected devices in a real-world setting provides a convenient and objective approach to collecting behavioral outcomes with ENDS. The Product Use and Behavior instrument was developed and used to capture the use of the Vuse Solo ENDS in an ambulatory setting to best replicate real-world use behavior. This study aims to determine overall mean values for topography outcomes while also providing a definition for an ENDS use session. A prospective ambulatory clinical study was performed with the Product Use and Behavior instrument. Participants (n=75) were aged between 21 and 60 years, considered in good health, and were required to be established regular users of ENDSs. To better understand use behavior within the population, the sample was sorted into percentiles with bins based on daily puff counts. To frame these data in the relevant context, they were binned into low-, moderate-, and high-use categories (10th to 40th, 40th to 70th, and 70th to 100th percentiles, respectively), with the low-use group representing the nonintense category, the high-use group representing the intense category, and the moderate-use group being reflective of the average consumer. Participants with higher daily use took substantially more puffs per use session (6.71 vs 4.40) and puffed more frequently (interpuff interval: 32.78 s vs 61.66 s) than participants in the low-use group. Puff duration remained consistent across the low-, moderate‑, and high-use groups (2.10 s, 2.18 s, and 2.19 s, respectively). The moderate-use group had significantly shorter session lengths (P<.001) than the high- and low-use groups, which did not differ significantly from each other (P=.16). Using connected devices allows for a convenient and robust approach to the collection of behavioral outcomes related to product use in an ambulatory setting. By using the variables captured with these tools, it becomes possible to move away from predefined periods of use to better understand topography outcomes and define use sessions. The data presented here offer a possible method to define these sessions. These data also begin to frame international standards used for the analytical assessments of ENDSs in the correct context and begin to shed light on the differences between standardized testing regimens and actual use behavior. Clinicaltrials.gov NCT04226404; https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT04226404.

Information and communication technologies (ICT) access indicators in the LGBTQ+ population with a high risk of contagion by acquired immunodeficiency virus (HIV) in Honduras

In all societies, some populations are prioritized to be served by civil organizations and governments; access to technologies is typically left aside, especially in developing countries. The sample was for intentional contributions through the snowball method to reach 107 study participants. A survey-type instrument has been carried out where access, the use, and knowledge about convergent devices have been measured in a sample of individuals belonging to the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and more (LGBTQ+) community. Basic statistics have been carried out to describe the frequencies of the sociodemographic variables and access to information and communication technologies (ICT). The LGBTQ+ community has access to convergent technologies, with a regular quality of service, with a preference for mobile devices and high daily use of them; there's an incongruence between income and spending on telecommunications services since it was perceived that this is a prioritized expense for all of them, even for those with the lowest economic income. The results of this study indicate that the LGBTQ+ community has significantly greater access to information technology and telecommunications services than the general population that hosts them; this study gives us a vision of how to offer technological solutions to prevent HIV in this community with a high incidence of this disease. Keywords: ICT; Digital divide; LGBTQ+; Convergency

Hypertriglyceridemia-associated acute pancreatitis: Response to continuous insulin infusion.

To assess the response of serum triglycerides (TG) to continuous insulin infusion (CII) in adults with hypertriglyceridemia-associated acute pancreatitis (HTGP). Retrospective analysis of TG response to standardized CII therapy in 77 adults admitted to intensive care with TG >1000 mg/dL and HTGP. Participants had initial TG 3869.0 [2713.5, 5443.5] mg/dL and were 39.3 ± 9.7 years old, 66.2% males, 58.4% Hispanic, BMI 30.2 [27.0, 34.8] kg/m2, 74.0% with diabetes mellitus (DM) and 50.6% with excess alcohol use. TG-goal, defined as ≤1,000 ± 100 mg/dL, was achieved in 95%. Among the 73 TG-goal achievers (responders), 53.4% reached TG-goal in <36 hours after CII initiation (rapid responders). When compared to slow responders taking≥36 hours, rapid responders had lower initial TG (2862.0 [1965.0, 4519.0] vs 4814.5 [3368.8, 6900.0] mg/dL), BMI (29.4 [25.9, 32.8] vs 31.9 [28.2, 38.3] kg/m2), DM prevalence (56.4 vs 94.1%), and reached TG-50% (half of respective initial TG) faster (12.0 [6.0, 17.0] vs 18.5 [13.0, 32.8] hours). Those with DM (n = 57) vs non-DM (n = 20) were obese (31.4 [28.0, 35.6] vs 27.8 [23.6, 30.3] kg/m2), took longer to reach TG-final (41.0 [25.0, 60.5] vs 14.5 [12.5, 25.5] hours) and used more daily insulin (1.7 [1.3, 2.1] vs 1.1 [0.5, 1.9] U/kg/day). Among those with DM, the rapid responders had higher daily use of insulin vs slow responders 1.9 [1.4, 2.3] vs 1.6 [1.1, 1.8] U/kg/day. All results significant. In multivariable analysis, predictors of faster TG response were absence of DM, lower BMI and initial TG. CII was effective in reaching TG-goal in 95% of patients with HTGP. Half achieved TG-goal within 36 hours. Presence of DM, higher BMI and initial TG slowed the time to reach TG-goal. These baseline parameters and rate of decline to TG-50% may be real-time indicators to initiate and adjust the CII for quicker response.

The association between loneliness and medication use in older adults.

Loneliness is common in older adults, and it is associated with unhealthy behaviours, including substance use. We evaluated the association between loneliness and self-reported use of opioids and benzodiazepines in older adults. We used data from the Canadian Community Health Survey's 'Healthy Aging' sub-survey and included adults 65years or older who administered their own medications. We classified individuals as lonely if they scored 6 or more on the three -item University of California, Los Angeles's Loneliness Scale. We used multinomial logistic regression models, adjusting for demographics and self-reported comorbidities, to describe the association between loneliness and daily or occasional use of opioids, benzodiazepines and non-opioid analgesics. We also explored the association between loneliness and polypharmacy. Our cohort included 15,302 older adults, of whom 2,096 (13.7%) were classified as lonely. Daily use of opioids (4.1%) and benzodiazepines (1.7%) were less common than daily use of non-opioid analgesics (33.9%). Lonely older adults had higher daily use of opioids (odds ratio [OR] 1.61, 1.31-1.98) and benzodiazepines (OR 1.66, 1.21-2.28), but not non-opioid analgesics (OR 1.05, 0.92-1.19). Loneliness was not associated with occasional use of opioids, benzodiazepines or non-opioid analgesics in older adults, but was associated with polypharmacy (OR 1.27, 1.06-1.52). Loneliness in older adults is associated with increased daily use of opioids and benzodiazepines. Further research should evaluate patient- and physician-level factors that mediate this association, and develop strategies to mitigate loneliness and its attendant adverse outcomes.

An estimation of US horse-owner/caregiver willingness-to-pay for daily use and infectious upper respiratory disease treatment options.

Equine injury and disease cause two types of costs for those financially responsible for treating and caring for the infected horse(s); direct costs of treating the horse and indirect cost of lost use of the horse for a period of time to the user of the horse (daily horse use). Indirect costs are more difficult to estimate but pose significant financial implications for equine-owners/caregivers. Additionally, there exists a gap in existing research regarding the valuation of infectious treatment options in horses. To estimate the value a US horse-owner/caregiver places on daily horse use and describe respondents' willingness-to-pay for various attributes of equine treatment options. Online questionnaire survey. An online questionnaire was provided to equine-owners and caretakers, and owner demographic, horse care and horse use information from respondents were requested. Additionally, respondents were presented with hypothetical disease treatment options with the following attributes: daily dosage, number of days of rest required, route of administration and out-of-pocket cost to the owner/caretaker through a choice experiment. Data were analysed using a rank-ordered logit analysis and willingness-to-pay estimates for daily use and treatment options were calculated. Results suggest that the average horse-owner with an uninsured and insured horse is willing to pay $12.07 (95% confidence interval: -$15.01, -$9.69) and $17.95 (95% confidence interval: -$25.30, -$11.20) per day to reduce lost use days required (due to need for rest) respectively. Respondents showed preferences for oral administration over treatments requiring i.m. injections. As this study employed an online survey it was subjected to self-selection bias and a sample size calculation was not performed. Veterinarians and pharmaceutical companies may use these results when promoting various treatment options to horse-owners/caregivers and in product development. Additionally, promotion efforts may be targeted towards equine-owners with higher daily use values (owners with insured horses).

Findings From EuroTrak Surveys From 2009 to 2015: Hearing Loss Prevalence, Hearing Aid Adoption, and Benefits of Hearing Aid Use.

The purpose of this study was to analyze data from the EuroTrak surveys performed from 2009 to 2015 in Germany, France, and the United Kingdom to identify factors that could account for the growth in hearing aid sales over that period. Data of 132,028 people-approximately 15,000 for each of the 3 countries at 3-year intervals-were collected using a questionnaire. The sample in each country was weighted using the respective country age-gender populations to get balanced results. Furthermore, 11,867 persons with self-reported hearing impairment filled in a comprehensive questionnaire on hearing status and related matters; 4,631 were hearing aid owners. Data were pooled over the 3 countries for each of the years 2009, 2012, and 2015 and analyzed for developments over the 6-year period. In certain cases, data were pooled across countries and years. The analysis focused on hearing loss prevalence, hearing aid adoption rates, satisfaction with hearing aids, and benefits of hearing aid use. Hearing loss prevalence was stable over the period around 10%-slightly higher for men than for women. Hearing aid adoption overall increased from 33% to 37%, and bilateral use increased from 55% to 69%. Intervals between hearing aid renewals decreased. These factors contribute to increased hearing aid sales. Bilateral users are more satisfied with the hearing aid product features (76%) and performance (72%) and use their hearing aids 9.1 hr per day, compared with unilateral users where the corresponding numbers are 71%, 67%, and 7.8 hr, respectively. Satisfaction with hearing aid product features and performance in general is slightly increasing; hearing aid users are 14.5% less exhausted at the end of the day compared with nonusers with similar hearing loss and exhibit less depressive and forgetfulness symptoms. The prevalence of self-reported hearing loss is 10.6% and stable, and hearing aid adoption has increased, particularly of bilateral fittings that are more satisfactory and exhibit higher daily use patterns. Higher uptake of hearing aids contributes to growing hearing aid sales.

Patterns of Use and Perceptions of Harm of Smokeless Tobacco in Navi Mumbai, India and Dhaka, Bangladesh.

Background:Globally, smokeless tobacco use is disproportionately concentrated in low-income and middle-income countries like India and Bangladesh.Objectives:The current study examined comparative patterns of use and perceptions of harm for different smokeless tobacco products among adults and youth in Navi Mumbai, India, and Dhaka, Bangladesh.Methods:Face-to-face interviews were conducted on tablets with adult (19 years and older) smokeless tobacco users and youth (16–18 years) users and non-users in Navi Mumbai (n = 1002), and Dhaka (n = 1081).Results:A majority (88.9%) of smokeless tobacco users reported daily use. Approximately one-fifth (20.4%) of the sample were mixed-users (used both smoked and smokeless tobacco), of which about half (54.4%) reported that they primarily used smokeless over smoked forms like cigarettes or bidis. The proportion of users planning to quit was higher in India than in Bangladesh (75.7% vs. 49.8%, p < 0.001). Gutkha was the most commonly used smokeless product in India, and pan masala in Bangladesh. Among users in Bangladesh, the most commonly reported reason for using their usual product was the belief that it was “less harmful” than other types. Perceptions of harm also differed with respect to a respondent's usual product. Bangladeshi respondents reported more negative attitudes toward smokeless tobacco compared to Indian respondents.Conclusions:The findings highlight the high daily use of smokeless tobacco, and the high prevalence of false beliefs about its harms. This set of findings reinforces the need to implement effective tobacco control strategies in low and middle-income countries like India and Bangladesh.

Health impact of bioaccessible metal in lip cosmetics to female college students and career women, northeast of China

Actual measure-based studies have estimated ingestion rate of moderate and high daily use to female college students and career women in northeast of China. Sequential extraction analyses showed that total bioaccessible metals concentration in lipstick ranged from 2.103 to 31.103 μg/g and in lip balm ranged from 0.100 to 3.716 μg/g. The relationship between total bioaccessible metal concentrations and the cost of lip cosmetics showed a negative correlation. Lead was detected in all 30 products (100%), with an average concentration of 0.346 for lip balm and 0.407 μg/g for lipstick. With the exception of chromium content in three lipsticks, the estimated exposure in female college students and career women to target metals via lipstick and lip balm ingestion (calculated for moderate and high use) were much lower than the acceptable reference limits. The findings strongly emphasize the need to focus on the health risk of lip balm.

Early recovery of a multi-lingual speaker with aphasia using Cantonese and English

This study reports a systematic monitoring of recovery from bilingual aphasia in a 75-year-old high-functioning multi-lingual female speaker of Cantonese and English, S1. She received six monthly evaluations after stroke by means of the Western Aphasia Battery and its Cantonese version (to monitor linguistic recovery and change of aphasia syndrome), cognitive linguistic quick test (to monitor cognitive recovery), and the main concept analysis (to assess the changes of narrative skills). Results indicated a non-parallel linguistic recovery, with a better improvement in her native L1 (Cantonese) than English. Since S1 demonstrated a change of using Cantonese dominantly post stroke, the results illustrated that a higher daily use of one language post-morbidly would lead to better post-morbid proficiency profile at the early recovery period. S1's changes in cognitive functions and narrative skills were also consistent with her linguistic improvement.

Satisfaction of patients fit with a hearing aid in a high complexity clinic

The process of selecting and fitting hearing aid devices is only effective and only bring about good outcomes if the individual makes effective use of the device. Therefore, the individuals need to be happy with the outcome. AimTo check the satisfaction of adults and elderly patients concerning their hearing aid in a high complex care clinic accredited by the Unified Health System, and to correlate this outcome with the variables related to age, gender, fitting period, daily use, as well as the type of sound amplifying device. MethodsThis is a descriptive cross-sectional study in which 60 subjects were evaluated using the questionnaire: Satisfaction with Amplification in Daily Life, applied by means of oral presentation, in individual interviews by the researcher. This instrument is divided into subscales: positive effects, service and costs, negative factors and personal image. ResultsIt was shown that the subjects of this study were very happy with the use of hearing aid devices. There was significant difference in relating the daily use of the devices with the overall satisfaction score and subscale of personal image. ConclusionIt was found that the subjects of the study were very happy with the use of hearing aids, although satisfaction was not related to the variables: age, gender, time of use and device type. In general, participants with higher daily use are happier.

Transtorno de estresse pós-traumático e uso de drogas ilícitas em mulheres encarceradas no Rio de Janeiro

CONTEXTO: O risco para o desenvolvimento de transtorno de estresse pós-traumático (TEPT) entre mulheres encarceradas pode estar associado ao consumo de drogas. OBJETIVOS: Determinar a frequência de TEPT entre mulheres encarceradas e sua relação com o uso de drogas na prisão. As voluntárias foram também avaliadas para a determinação de ansiedade-traço, depressão, eventos estressores e características sociodemográficas e comparadas quanto à presença ou não do transtorno. MÉTODOS: Estudo transversal com mulheres encarceradas em que foram utilizados para a avaliação de TEPT os critérios determinados pelo DSM-IV, o Inventário Christo para descrição de uso de drogas, o Inventário de Ansiedade Traço-Estado e o Inventário Beck para avaliação de sintomas de ansiedade e depressão, respectivamente. RESULTADOS: Das 134 mulheres avaliadas, 40,3% apresentaram TEPT. Houve maior uso diário de cocaína entre as positivas para o transtorno (p < 0,01). O uso diário de drogas ilícitas na prisão foi descrito por 53% das entrevistadas. Todas as participantes TEPT-positivas apresentavam algum grau de depressão em comparação às TEPT-negativas (p < 0,05). CONCLUSÃO: A alta prevalência de TEPT encontrada é comparável à de populações de risco. Apesar de estarem em regime prisional, é alto o uso de drogas ilícitas. O maior uso de cocaína entre as detentas que apresentaram TEPT indica preferência por drogas estimulantes em mulheres com o transtorno.

Aggregate National Experience With the Wearable Cardioverter-Defibrillator: Event Rates, Compliance, and Survival

The purpose of this study was to determine patient compliance and effectiveness of antiarrhythmic treatment by the wearable cardioverter-defibrillator (WCD). Effectiveness of the WCD for prevention of sudden death is dependent on event type, patient compliance, and appropriate management of ventricular tachycardia/ventricular fibrillation (VT/VF). Compliance and events were recorded in a nationwide registry of post-market release WCDs. Survival, using the Social Security Death Index, was compared with survival in implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) patients. Of 3,569 patients wearing the WCD (age 59.3+/-14.7 years, duration 52.6+/-69.9 days), daily use was 19.9+/-4.7 h (>90% of the day) in 52% of patients. More days of use correlated with higher daily use (p<0.001). Eighty sustained VT/VF events occurred in 59 patients (1.7%). First-shock success was 76 of 76 (100%) for unconscious VT/VF and 79 of 80 (99%) for all VT/VF. Eight patients died after successful conversion of unconscious VT/VF (89.5% survival of VT/VF events). Asystole occurred in 23 (17 died), pulseless electrical activity in 2, and respiratory arrest in 1 (3 died), representing 24.5% of sudden cardiac arrests. During WCD use, 3,541 of 3,569 patients (99.2%) survived overall. Survival occurred in 72 of 80 (90%) VT/VF events and 78 of 106 (73.6%) for all events. Long-term mortality was not significantly different from first ICD implant patients but highest among patients with traditional ICD indications. Compliance was satisfactory with 90% wear time in >50% of patients and low sudden death mortality during use. Survival was comparable to that of ICD patients. However, asystole was an important cause of mortality in sudden cardiac arrest events.

Are children from Crete abandoning a Mediterranean diet?&#x0D;

Mediterranean countries such as Greece have experienced rapid social change in the last decade. These community changes affect nutritional habits and there is a tendency for the traditional healthy Mediterranean diet to be abandoned. The parents of children from one rural Greek village on Crete (Neapolis), and one rural village in Sweden (Kisa) were invited to their primary health care centers for an interview and to fill in a validated nutrition questionnaire, KidMed. There were no differences (p = 0.48) in total KidMed score between the Cretan and Swedish children, adjusted for gender and age. However, there were some significant differences in scores on certain KidMed questions. Parents of the Cretan children reported significantly higher daily use of olive oil at home and more regular nut consumption, but also more commercially baked goods or pastries for breakfast. The parents of Swedish children reported significantly higher use of cereals, grains or bread for breakfast. The mean BMIs were similar for the Cretan (Neapolis mean 16.8, 95% CI 13.5-23.0) and for the Swedish children (Kisa mean 17.4, 95% CI 13.7-25.5) The results suggest the possibility of changing nutritional habits, measurable among young children in rural areas. The study raises the question of whether Cretan children may have abandoned some aspects of the traditional Mediterranean diet. It may also be that Swedish children have changed their diet in favor of a more Mediterranean food choice. The major limitation of the study is the small sample size, and further, larger studies are warranted.