The role of the Black Church in the lives of young Black men who have sex with men

In the USA, the Black Church is among the most important institutions in the Black community, offering numerous spiritual, social and health benefits. Yet, the presence of homonegativity in many Black Churches may mitigate those effects for gay Black youth. This research examines the role of the Church in the lives of gay and bisexual Black youth to understand how they reconcile any tension between their religious and sexual identities. Through interviews with pastors of Black churches (n = 21) and young Black men who have sex with men (n = 30), we explored homonegativity and young men’s experiences within the Black Church. Findings reveal that despite the prevalence of homonegativity within Black churches, religious involvement remains important for young men and many remain involved in non-affirming churches. The importance of the Church for young men stems from their significant involvement as youth and the integration of religion, family and community. Young men may not be able to leave their religious homes as readily as other gay youth given the cultural relevance of the Church. As a result, young men made attempts to conceal their sexuality in church to avoid shame and gossip and find opportunities to balance their sexuality and religiosity.     

Accuracy and Precision of Acetabular Component Placement With Imageless Navigation in Obese Patients

Background

Obesity is a risk factor for acetabular component malposition when total hip arthroplasty is performed with manual techniques. The utility of imageless navigation in obese patients remains unknown. This study compared the accuracy and precision of imageless navigation for component orientation between obese and nonobese patients.

Completeness and timeliness of diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis,measles-mumps-rubella,and polio vaccines in young children with chronic health conditions: A systematic review

Objective

To systematically review literature on uptake and timeliness of diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis, measles-mumps-rubella, and/or polio-containing vaccines in infants who were born preterm, with a low birth weight, and/or with chronic health conditions that were diagnosed within the first 6?months of life.

Oxyhemoglobin changes in the prefrontal cortex in response to cognitive tasks: a systematic review

Purpose of the study: the aim of this study was to synthesize PFC fNIRS outcomes on the effects of cognitive tasks compared to resting/baseline tasks in healthy adults from studies utilizing a pre/post design.

Material and methods: original research studies were searched from seven databases (MEDLINE, EMBASE, CENTRAL, CINAHL, SCOPUS, PEDro and PubMed). Subsequently, two independent reviewers screened the titles and abstracts followed by full-text reviews to assess the studies' eligibility.

Results: eleven studies met the inclusion criteria and had data abstracted and quality assessed. Methodology varied considerably and yet cognitive tasks resulted in the ΔO₂Hb increasing in 8 of the 11 and ΔHHb decreasing in 8 of 8 studies that reported this outcome. The cognitive tasks from 10 of the 11 studies were classified as “Working Memory” and “Verbal Fluency Tasks”.

Conclusions: although, the data comparison was challenging provided the heterogeneity in methodology, the results across studies were similar.