Phosphatidylserine and caffeine attenuate postexercise mood disturbance and perception of fatigue in humans

Phosphatidylserine (PS) may attenuate the adverse effects of physical fatigue. Therefore, we investigated the effects of a multi-ingredient supplement containing 400 mg/d PS and 100 mg/d caffeine (supplement [SUP]) for 2 weeks on measures of cognitive function (CF), reaction time (RT), and mood (MD) following an acute exercise stress. It is hypothesized that PS will maintain preexercise CF and RT scores, while attenuating postexercise fatigue. Participants completed 2 acute bouts of resistance exercise (T1 and T2) separated by 2-week ingestion of SUP or control (CON). Outcome measures were assessed pre- and postexercise. When collapsed across groups, a significant decrease in RT performance was seen in the 60-second reaction drill from pre- to postexercise at T1. All other RT tests were similar from pre- to postexercise at T1. Reaction time was not significantly changed by PS. When collapsed across groups, a significant increase in performance of the serial subtraction test was seen. A significant increase (8.9% and 7.1%) in the number of correct answers and a significant decrease (8.0% and 7.5%) in time to answer were seen from pre- to postworkout at T1 and T2, respectively. A significant increase in total MD score from pre- to postworkout was observed for CON but not for PS at T2. Phosphatidylserine significantly attenuated pre- to postexercise perception of fatigue compared to CON. Ingestion of SUP for 14 days appears to attenuate postexercise MD scores and perception of fatigue, but does not affect CF or RT, in recreationally trained individuals.     

中国人Schwarz颜面侧貌分类的审美研究

目的 应用Schwarz侧貌分类方法对中国人颜面侧貌的审美进行调查。方法 选取标准中国人面像的男女各1名，拍摄侧貌像，用Photoshop图像处理软件得到符合Schwarz分类方法的男女面像各9幅。随机选取成都市居民212名对上述面像进行评价。结果 通过多组方差分析及两两比较，男性侧貌以直面型为最佳，女性侧貌以双颌稍前突面型为最佳，与其他面型的得分比较，差异有统计学意义（P＜0．001）。结论 最具吸引力的男女侧貌有差异。直颌型组是最容易接受的面型组。侧貌美学效果有个体差异。     

Oral health–related quality of life and unmet dental needs among women living with HIV

BackgroundOral health–related quality of life (OHRQoL) is a multidimensional, perception-based measure of how oral health affects social and physical functioning and self-image. OHRQoL is important for assessing women living with HIV (WLWH) who may have unmet dental needs and experience disparities that impact dental care accessibility.MethodsIn 2016, the authors conducted an assessment of OHRQoL among a national sample of 1,526 WLWH in the Women’s Interagency HIV Study using the Oral Health Impact Profile instrument, which assesses the frequency of 14 oral health impact items. OHRQoL was measured using multivariable linear regression with a negative binomial distribution to assess the association between report of a recent unmet dental need and OHRQoL.Results“Fair or poor” oral health condition was reported by 37.8% (n = 576) of WLWH. Multivariable linear regression showed that unmet dental needs had the strongest positive association with poor OHRQoL (difference in Oral Health Impact Profile mean, 2.675; P < .001) compared with not having unmet needs. The frequency of dental care utilization was not associated with higher OHRQoL. Older age, fair or poor dental condition, smoking, symptoms of anxiety and loneliness, and poor OHRQoL were also associated with worse OHRQoL.ConclusionSelf-perceived impact of oral health on social and physical function and self-image, as measured by OHRQoL, may be an easily assessable but underrecognized aspect of OHRQoL, particularly among women aging with HIV.Practical ImplicationsDentists should implement OHRQoL assessments in their management of the care of patients with HIV to identify those who do have significant oral health impacts.     

The role of view in human face detection

The ability to detect faces in visual scenes is little understood. Across three experiments we examined whether particular facial views (for example those revealing a pair of eyes) facilitate detection while observers are searching for faces in complex visual scenes. Viewers’ performance was equivalent for faces shown in frontal and mid-profile pose, but declined in profile (Experiment 1). These differences persisted when only half the face was shown, so that one eye was visible in frontal and profile view but both eyes were preserved in mid-frontal faces (Experiment 2). The same pattern was found when only the upper region of a face appeared in visual scenes, but the presentation of lower half faces eliminated all differences (Experiment 3). These findings demonstrate that the upper face mediates detection across different views, but ‘a pair of eyes’ cannot explain differences in detectability.     

The prevalence and severity of disease-related disabilities and their impact on quality of life in neuromuscular diseases

Purpose: People with neuromuscular disease experience lower quality of life levels than people from the general population. We examined the prevalence and severity of a broad range of neuromuscular disease-related disabilities and their impact on health-related quality of life.

Materials and methods: A cross-sectional postal survey study was conducted among patients diagnosed with neuromuscular disease. Patients completed the Neuromuscular Disease Impact Profile, a disease-related disability impact questionnaire, and two generic health-related quality of life questionnaires: the medical outcome study Short Form Questionnaire and the World Health Organization Quality of Life-bref. The impact of disabilities on quality of life was estimated using multiple regression analyses.

Results: Six hundred sixty two patients (68% response rate) completed the questionnaires. There were no differences in quality of life between diagnosis-based subgroups. ‘Impairments in muscle functions’ had the highest prevalence and severity scores in the total sample and diagnosis-based subgroups. Neuromuscular disease-related disabilities showed strong and independent associations with all aspects of health-related quality of life. ‘Impairments in mental functions and pain’ was the most important predictor of health-related quality of life followed by ‘restrictions in participation in life situations’.

Conclusions: Although ‘impairment in muscle functions’ is the most prevalent and severe disability, the ‘impairments in mental functions and pain’ have a strong association with health-related quality of life in patients with a neuromuscular disease.

• Implications for rehabilitation

• Disease-related disabilities have a strong and independent associations with all aspects of health-related quality of life.

• Although health-related domains of quality of life are affected by the neuromuscular disease, the general quality of life is quite good.

• The most prevalent and severe disability in total group and diagnosis-based subgroups is ‘impairments in muscle functions’.

• The most significant predictor in health-related quality of life is ‘impairments in mental functions and pain’.

     

The Impact of Migraine on Health Status

Problems.-What is the effect of migraine on health status, defined as the patient's physical, psychological, and social functioning? And, suppose that the health status of migraine sufferers appears to be impaired, to what extent is this a consequence of migraine-associated comorbidity rather than of migraine itself? Methods.-A group of 846 migraineurs, selected from the general population following IHS criteria, and a control group were surveyed with the Medical Outcomes Study 36-item Short-Form Health Survey, Nottingham Health Profile, EuroQol instrument, end the COOP/WONCA charts. Questions on demographic characteristics and comorbidity were included. Results.-The health status of migraineurs appeared to be significantly impaired in comparison to the control group. Because statistical significance is distinct from relevance, effect size estimators were employed. Although the direction of the differences indicated consistently a worse health status of the migraineurs, regardless of the instrument used, the sizes of the differences were small to medium. Self-reported comorbidity, especially depression, was more prevalent in the migraine group. However, this offered only a partial explanation for the impaired health status of the migraine group. Conclusions.-Migraine has an independent moderately deteriorating effect on the daily functioning of individuals.     

The MOS SF-36 health survey questionnaire in severe chronic airflow limitation: Comparison with the Nottingham health profile

This study documents the cross-sectional, health-related quality of life (HRQOL) measures obtained at baseline for patients with severe chronic airways limitation (CAL) being assessed for home oxygen therapy (HOT) at the Flinders Medical Centre, Adelaide, South Australia. Two generic quality of life instruments, the Nottingham Health Profile (NHP) and the Medical Outcomes Study (MOS) short form 36-item questionnaire (SF-36), were administered by interview to the same patients to permit comparisons to be made between the two instruments. SF-36 mean scores were also compared with scores obtained in separate studies of a South Australian elderly general population and of groups of Australian subjects with various medical and psychiatric conditions. NHP mean scores were compared with scores from an elderly group of Adelaide residents from a household survey. HRQOL measures were obtained for 60 patients, 32 males and 28 females. At assessment for HOT, patients with severe CAL were experiencing severe impairment in their quality of life in comparison to age-matched South Australian norms, with physical disability the major limitation. There were several significant correlations between the domains of the SF-36 and the NHP which were predominantly gender-specific. Only small decrements in mental health were found with the SF-36 questionnaire. The SF-36 and the NHP appear to provide discrepant information for severely disabled CAL patients for the subjective domains of emotional and mental health.