Medicare's search for effective obesity treatments: Diets are not the answer.

The prevalence of obesity and its associated health problems have increased sharply in the past 2 decades. New revisions to Medicare policy will allow funding for obesity treatments of proven efficacy. The authors review studies of the long-term outcomes of calorie-restricting diets to assess whether dieting is an effective treatment for obesity. These studies show that one third to two thirds of dieters regain more weight than they lost on their diets, and these studies likely underestimate the extent to which dieting is counterproductive because of several methodological problems, all of which bias the studies toward showing successful weight loss maintenance. In addition, the studies do not provide consistent evidence that dieting results in significant health improvements, regardless of weight change. In sum, there is little support for the notion that diets lead to lasting weight loss or health benefits. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Assessment of Chronic Pain in Rehabilitation: Outcomes Measures in Clinical Trials and Clinical Practice.

Objective: Chronic pain, or pain that lasts for months or even years, is prevalent among patients in rehabilitation settings, and treatment is costly. People with chronic pain often suffer physical limitations and emotional distress. As new treatments become available and clinical trials are initiated, it is important to measure outcomes in an effort to determine the efficacy of treatment interventions. This article provides a review of the core domains of outcomes assessment among people with chronic pain, including recommendations for outcome measures to be used in clinical trials and clinical practice settings. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The microbial safety of fish and fish products: Recent advances in understanding its significance,contamination sources,and control strategies

Microorganisms play a crucial and unique role in fish and fish product safety. The presence of human pathogens and the formation of histamine caused by spoilage bacteria make the control of both pathogenic and spoilage microorganisms critical for fish product safety. To provide a comprehensive and updated overview of the involvement of microorganisms in fish and fish product safety, this paper reviewed outbreak and recall surveillance data obtained from government agencies from 1998 to 2018 and identified major safety concerns associated with both domestic and imported fish products. The review also summarized all available literature about the prevalence of major and emerging microbial safety concerns, including Salmonella spp., Listeria monocytogenes, and Aeromonas hydrophila, in different fish and fish products and the survival of these pathogens under different storage conditions. The prevalence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria (ARB) and antibiotic-resistant genes (ARGs), two emerging food safety concerns, is also reviewed. Pathogenic and spoilage microorganisms as well as ARB and ARGs can be introduced into fish and fish products in both preharvest and postharvest stages. Many novel intervention strategies have been proposed and tested for the control of different microorganisms on fish and fish products. One key question that needs to be considered when developing and implementing novel control measures is how to ensure that the measures are cost and environment friendly as well as sustainable. Over the years, regulations have been established to provide guidance documents for good farming and processing practices. To be more prepared for the globalization of the food chain, harmonization of regulations is still needed.     

Marginalization and invasion of architects’ role on house projects: Institutional intervention inadequacy and super wicked problems

The design and construction of houses normally require an architect's input. However, architects are increasingly being marginalized in these projects, and their roles are constantly being invaded by others. Despite repeated institutional interventions toward remedying this phenomenon, signs are not abating. This article examines the complexity of this phenomenon to explain the inadequacy of institutional interventions to address the problem. This article conceptualizes the phenomenon of marginalization and role invasion as a super wicked problem with six key features. First, the problem has a difficult definition. Second, the solution involves a large structural and economic burden.Third, time is of the essence. Fourth, multiple stakeholders attempting to solve the problem are part of the cause. Fifth, institutional interventions addressing the issue are weakorill-equipped. Sixth, institutional interventions discount the future irrationally. The implications of this conceptualization for institutional intervention and research are discussed.     

Predicting time to recovery among depressed adolescents treated in two psychosocial group interventions.

Aims were to identify the demographic, psychopathology, and psychosocial factors predicting time to major depressive disorder (MDD) recovery and moderators of treatment among 114 depressed adolescents recruited from a juvenile justice center and randomized to a cognitive behavioral treatment (CBT) condition or a life skills-tutoring control condition. Nine variables predicted time to recovery over 1-year follow-up (e.g., earlier MDD onset, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, functional impairment, hopelessness, negative thoughts, low family cohesion, coping skills); suicidal ideation and parental report of problem behaviors were the best predictors. CBT resulted in faster recovery time relative to control treatment, specifically among adolescents of White ethnicity, with recurrent MDD, and with good coping skills. Results suggest that psychopathology plays a more prominent role in maintaining adolescent depression than demographic or psychosocial factors. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Does one size fit all African American smokers? The moderating role of acculturation in culturally specific interventions.

There is a consensus that interventions for ethnic minority populations should be culturally specific (CS). A previous study found that although African American smokers indicated a preference for CS self-help materials over standard materials, several outcomes were superior for the standard information (Webb, 2008). The current study reports on a priori analyses that tested level of acculturation as a moderating variable for the efficacy of CS interventions in a sample of low-income African Americans. Participants (N = 182) completed the African American Acculturation Scale--Revised before receiving a CS smoking cessation guide or a standard guide. As hypothesized, level of acculturation predicted evaluations of the intervention content, readiness to quit smoking, and 24-hr point prevalence abstinence at the 3-month follow-up. Lower levels of acculturation (i.e., more engagement in traditional African American culture) predicted a preference for CS materials and greater readiness to quit smoking after receiving the CS guide. Yet, among participants who were less acculturated, 24-hr abstinence was greater after receiving the standard guide. Overall, these findings emphasize that individual differences in levels of acculturation to the dominant culture affect receptivity to CS written interventions. Intragroup differences should be considered prior to the provision of CS interventions. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Efficacy of moderation-oriented cue exposure for problem drinkers: A randomized controlled trial.

The effectiveness of cue exposure following a priming dose was compared with cognitive-behavioral intervention in a community sample of problem drinkers. Participants were randomly associated to 1 of the 2 conditions and received a mean of 5.84 (SD=2.69) sessions. A psychologist blind to treatment condition conducted an 8-month follow-up. Compared with pretreatment levels, significant decreased in alcohol consumption were evidence posttreatment and maintained at follow-up for both groups. Reductions in severity of dependence, impaired control, and alcohol-related problems were also evidence for both groups at follow-up. No differences in outcome associated with initial severity of alcohol dependence were apparent. The results raise the issue of the appropriateness of reserving a goal of controlled drinking for those with relatively mild alcohol problems and low alcohol dependence. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Intake of Pro- and/or Prebiotics as a Promising Approach for Prevention and Treatment of Colorectal Cancer

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the third most common type of cancer, posing a serious threat to human life. It is widely believed that dietary factors may be crucial modifiers of CRC risk, with pro-and/or prebiotics being especially promising. In this review, a synthesis of CRC prevention and treatment of strategies relying on usage of pro- and/or prebiotics supplements is given, as well as discuss mechanisms underlying the contribution of pro-and/or prebiotics to the suppression of colonic carcinogenesis. Furthermore, a framework for personalizing such supplements according to the composition of an individual's gut microbiome is suggested. Various factors including diversity of one's intestinal microflora, integrity of their intestinal barrier, and the presence of mutagenic/carcinogenic/genotoxic and beneficial compounds are known to have a prominent influence on the development of CRC; thus, clarifying the role of pro- and/or prebiotics will yield valuable insight toward optimizing interventions for enhanced patient outcomes in the future.     

Examination of Serum Metabolome Altered by Dietary Carbohydrate,Milk Protein,and Soy Protein Interventions Identified Novel Metabolites Associated with Blood Pressure: The ProBP Trial

Scope

This study aims to discover metabolites of dietary carbohydrate, soy and milk protein supplements and evaluate their roles in blood pressure (BP) regulation in the protein and blood pressure (ProBP), a cross-over trial.

Methods and results

Plasma metabolites are profiled at pre-trial baseline and after 8 weeks of supplementation with carbohydrate, soy protein, and milk protein, respectively, among 80 ProBP participants. After Bonferroni correction (α = 6.49 × 10⁻⁴), dietary interventions significantly changed 40 metabolites. Changes of erucate (22:1n9), an omega-9 fatty acid, are positively associated with systolic BP changes (Beta = 1.90, p = 6·27 × 10⁻⁴). This metabolite is also associated with higher odds of hypertension among 1261 participants of an independent cohort (odds ratio per unit increase = 1.34; 95% confidence interval: 1.07–1.68). High levels of acylcholines dihomo-linolenoyl-choline (p = 4.71E-04) and oleoylcholine (p = 3.48E-04) at baseline predicted larger BP lowering effects of soy protein. Increasing cheese intake during the trial, as reflected by isobutyrylglycine and isovalerylglycine, reduces the BP lowering effect of soy protein.

Conclusions

The study identifies molecular signatures of dietary interventions. Erucate (22:1n9) increases systolic BP. Acylcholine enhances and cheese intake reduces the BP lowering effect of soy protein supplement.     

经皮冠状动脉介入治疗2335例临床分析

目的评价经皮冠状动脉造影、介入治疗对冠心病的疗效及安全性。方法统计并分析2004年7月至2009年6月行经皮冠状动脉造影、介入治疗2335例患者的住院随访资料。结果经股动脉行冠状动脉造影318例,经桡动脉行冠状动脉造影2017例,成功率分别为99.4%、98.5%。经股动脉行冠状动脉介入治疗227例,成功率99.6%,经桡动脉行冠状动脉介入治疗633例,成功率98.4%。围术期发生各种并发症160例（6.85%）。结论经皮冠状动脉介入治疗冠心病临床疗效确切、安全,手术成功率高,并发症少。