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Background

Few previous studies have established Snaith–Hamilton Pleasure Scale (SHAPS) cut-off values using receiver operating characteristic curve analysis and applied these values to compare predictors of anhedonia between clinical and nonclinical groups.

Aims

To determine the optimal cut-off values for the SHAPS and use them to identify predictors of anhedonia in clinical and nonclinical groups in Taiwan.

Method

This cross-sectional and correlational study used convenience sampling to recruit 160 patients from three hospitals and 412 students from two universities in northern Taiwan. Data analysis included receiver operating characteristic curve, univariate and multivariate analyses.

Results

The optimal SHAPS cut-off values were 29.5 and 23.5 for the clinical and nonclinical groups, respectively. Moreover, two-stage analysis revealed that participants in the clinical group who perceived themselves as nondepressed, and participants in the nonclinical group who did not skip classes and whose fathers exhibited higher levels of care and protection were less likely to attain the cut-off values. Conversely, participants in the nonclinical group who reported lower academic satisfaction and were unwilling to seek help from family or friends were more likely to attain the cut-off values.

Conclusions

Our findings highlight the importance of optimal cut-off values in screening for depression risk within clinical and nonclinical groups. Accordingly, the development of comprehensive, individualised programmes to monitor variation trends in SHAPS scores and relevant predictors of anhedonia across different target populations is crucial.

A clinical decision support system, EvalMpox, was developed to apply person under investigation (PUI) criteria for patients presenting with rash and to recommend testing for PUIs. Of 668 patients evaluated, an EvalMpox recommendation for testing had a positive predictive value of 35% and a negative predictive value of 99% for a positive mpox test.

Objective:

To investigate the source in an outbreak of carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii (CRA) in a general hospital due to contamination of a laundry evaporative cooler and the laundry environment using multilocus sequence typing (MLST).

Methods:

For CRA culture, clinical samples were collected from infected patients and close contacts, and environmental sampling was performed in patient surroundings and laundry facilities. MLST was used for the molecular typing of representative CRA isolates. Bacterial isolates with identical sequence types were considered epidemiologically linked and attributable to the same source. OXA genes in Acinetobacter baumannii were detected using polymerase chain reaction (PCR).

Results:

In total, 58 patients were affected in this outbreak. The mean patient age was 75.3, and 50% were female. The most common diagnoses at admission were skin and soft-tissue infection (n = 12, 20.7%) and pneumonia (n = 12, 20.7%). OXA-23 was positive in 64.7% of isolates. A CRA isolate from the evaporative cooler in the laundry was identical to that of 11 patients across 3 wards, belonging to ST345. Isolates from 3 laundry linen racks were identical to those of 7 patients from 3 wards, classified as ST1145. Isolates found on another linen rack and a pajama shelf were identical to isolates from 3 other patients from 2 wards, belonging to ST2207. There was no significant difference between sequence type distributions of clinical and environmental isolates (P = .12), indicating high likelihood of CRA originating from the same source.

Conclusions:

MLST confirmed that contamination of the laundry evaporative cooler and surrounding environment caused a polyclonal CRA hospital outbreak. Hospital laundry is an important area for infection control and outbreak investigations of CRA.

Objective:

To describe the incidence of systemic overlap and typical coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) symptoms in healthcare personnel (HCP) following COVID-19 vaccination and association of reported symptoms with diagnosis of severe acute respiratory coronavirus virus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection in the context of public health recommendations regarding work exclusion.

Design:

This prospective cohort study was conducted between December 16, 2020, and March 14, 2021, with HCP who had received at least 1 dose of either the Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna COVID-19 vaccine.

Setting:

Large healthcare system in New England.

Interventions:

HCP were prompted to complete a symptom survey for 3 days after each vaccination. Reported symptoms generated automated guidance regarding symptom management, SARS-CoV-2 testing requirements, and work restrictions. Overlap symptoms (ie, fever, fatigue, myalgias, arthralgias, or headache) were categorized as either lower or higher severity. Typical COVID-19 symptoms included sore throat, cough, nasal congestion or rhinorrhea, shortness of breath, ageusia and anosmia.

Results:

Among 64,187 HCP, a postvaccination electronic survey had response rates of 83% after dose 1 and 77% after dose 2. Report of ≥3 lower-severity overlap symptoms, ≥1 higher-severity overlap symptoms, or at least 1 typical COVID-19 symptom after dose 1 was associated with increased likelihood of testing positive. HCP with prior COVID-19 infection were significantly more likely to report severe overlap symptoms after dose 1.

Conclusions:

Reported overlap symptoms were common; however, only report of ≥3 low-severity overlap symptoms, at least 1 higher-severity overlap symptom, or any typical COVID-19 symptom were associated with infection. Work-related restrictions for overlap symptoms should be reconsidered.

Background

Little is known about the effects of physical exercise on sleep-dependent consolidation of procedural memory in individuals with schizophrenia. We conducted a randomized controlled trial (RCT) to assess the effectiveness of physical exercise in improving this cognitive function in schizophrenia.

Methods

A three-arm parallel open-labeled RCT took place in a university hospital. Participants were randomized and allocated into either the high-intensity-interval-training group (HIIT), aerobic-endurance exercise group (AE), or psychoeducation group for 12 weeks, with three sessions per week. Seventy-nine individuals with schizophrenia spectrum disorder were contacted and screened for their eligibility. A total of 51 were successfully recruited in the study. The primary outcome was sleep-dependent procedural memory consolidation performance as measured by the finger-tapping motor sequence task (MST). Assessments were conducted during baseline and follow-up on week 12.

Results

The MST performance scored significantly higher in the HIIT (n = 17) compared to the psychoeducation group (n = 18) after the week 12 intervention (p < 0.001). The performance differences between the AE (n = 16) and the psychoeducation (p = 0.057), and between the AE and the HIIT (p = 0.999) were not significant. Yet, both HIIT (p < 0.0001) and AE (p < 0.05) showed significant within-group post-intervention improvement.

Conclusions

Our results show that HIIT and AE were effective at reverting the defective sleep-dependent procedural memory consolidation in individuals with schizophrenia. Moreover, HIIT had a more distinctive effect compared to the control group. These findings suggest that HIIT may be a more effective treatment to improve sleep-dependent memory functions in individuals with schizophrenia than AE alone.

Background:

Extensive environmental contamination by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has been reported in hospitals during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. We report our experience with the practice of directly observed environmental disinfection (DOED) in a community isolation facility (CIF) and a community treatment facility (CTF) in Hong Kong.

Methods:

The CIF, with 250 single-room bungalows in a holiday camp, opened on July 24, 2020, to receive step-down patients from hospitals. The CTF, with 500 beds in open cubicles inside a convention hall, was activated on August 1, 2020, to admit newly diagnosed COVID-19 patients from the community. Healthcare workers (HCWs) and cleaning staff received infection control training to reinforce donning and doffing of personal protective equipment and to understand the practice of DOED, in which the cleaning staff observed patient and staff activities and then performed environmental disinfection immediately thereafter. Supervisors also observed cleaning staff to ensure the quality of work. In the CTF, air and environmental samples were collected on days 7, 14, 21, and 28 for SARS-CoV-2 detection by RT-PCR. Patient compliance with mask wearing was also recorded.

Results:

Of 291 HCWs and 54 cleaning staff who managed 243 patients in the CIF and 674 patients in the CTF from July 24 to August 29, 2020, no one acquired COVID-19. All 24 air samples and 520 environmental samples collected in the patient area of the CTF were negative for SARS-CoV-2. Patient compliance with mask wearing was 100%.

Conclusion:

With appropriate infection control measures, zero environmental contamination and nosocomial transmission of SARS-CoV-2 to HCWs and cleaning staff was achieved.

Summary

Introduction

E-commerce has garnered considerable attention from competition authorities, given that there are a growing number of competition cases related to digital commerce in recent years. For instance, the US Department of Justice prosecuted David Topkins, an art seller on Amazon Marketplace, for price fixing. Topkins conspired with other sellers to fix the prices of posters using customized algorithms between September 2013 and January 2014 (United States Department of Justice 2015). Most Favoured Nation (MFN) clauses have also been the subject of investigations by the European Union DG Competition (EU DG COMP) and national competition authorities in EU member states.

Given that competition authorities are in the business of regulating business behaviour, how does e-commerce activities impact competition assessment? In this chapter, we consider the impact of e-commerce on two fundamental steps of competition assessment:

Residents of Hong Kong have undergone a dietary transition from a traditional Chinese diet that is high in seafood to a more Western diet. This may have affected the nutritional composition of breast milk of Hong Kong mothers. The present study aims to investigate the relationship between the dietary pattern and the fatty acid profile of the breast milk of lactating women in Hong Kong. Seventy-three volunteering healthy Hong Kong lactating mothers participated in the study. Their dietary intakes were assessed by using a 3-d dietary record and FFQ. The mean n-3 fatty acid levels were approximately 0·4 % (EPA) and 0·9 % (DHA) of total fatty acids in the breast milk of lactating mothers who had exclusively breastfed their infants aged 2–6 months. Maternal dietary intakes of n-3 fatty acids were positively associated with their levels in the breast milk. The levels of maternal intakes of freshwater and saltwater fish, especially the consumption of salmon, croaker and mandarin, were significantly correlated with the content of DHA in breast milk. The present study is among the very few in the literature to determine the fatty acid profile of breast milk in Hong Kong populations and verify certain dietary factors that influence this profile. High levels of n-3 PUFA, especially DHA, were observed in the breast milk of Hong Kong lactating women. The findings may serve as a dietary reference for lactating mothers to optimise the fatty acid profile of their breast milk.

Background

Refugees commonly experience difficulties with emotional processing, such as alexithymia, due to stressful or traumatic experiences. However, the functional connectivity of the amygdala, which is central to emotional processing, has yet to be assessed in refugees. Thus, the present study investigated the resting-state functional connectivity of the amygdala and its association with emotional processing in North Korean (NK) refugees.

Methods

This study included 45 NK refugees and 40 native South Koreans (SK). All participants were administered the Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS), Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), and Clinician-administered PTSD Scale (CAPS), and differences between NK refugees and native SK in terms of resting-state functional connectivity of the amygdala were assessed. Additionally, the association between the strength of amygdala connectivity and the TAS score was examined.

Results

Resting-state connectivity values from the left amygdala to the bilateral dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC) and dorsal anterior cingulate cortex (dACC) were higher in NK refugees than in native SK. Additionally, the strength of connectivity between the left amygdala and right dlPFC was positively associated with TAS score after controlling for the number of traumatic experiences and BDI and CAPS scores.

Conclusions

The present study found that NK refugees exhibited heightened frontal–amygdala connectivity, and that this connectivity was correlated with alexithymia. The present results suggest that increased frontal–amygdala connectivity in refugees may represent frontal down-regulation of the amygdala, which in turn may produce alexithymia.

We report detections of thermal X-ray line emission and proper motions in the supernova remnant (SNR) RX J1713.7-3946, the prototype of the small class of synchrotron dominated SNRs. Based on deep XMM-Newton observations, we find clear line features including Ne Lyα, Mg Heα, and Si Heα from the central portion of the remnant. The metal abundance ratios suggest that the thermal emission originates from core-collapse SN ejecta arising from a relatively low-mass (≲20 M⊙) progenitor. In addition, using XMM-Newton observations on a 13 yr time interval, we have measured expansion in the southeastern rim to be ~0.75″ yr−1 or ~3500 km s−1 at a distance of 1 kpc. Given this, we derive an upstream density to be ~0.01 cm−3, compatible with the lack of thermal X-rays from the shocked ambient medium. We also estimate the age of the remnant to be ~1200–1600 yr, roughly consistent with the idea that RX J1713.7-3946 is the remnant of SN 393.

OBJECTIVE

To determine the impact of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus and vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus (MRSA/VRE) designations, or flags, on selected hospital operational outcomes.

DESIGN

Retrospective cohort study of inpatients admitted to the Massachusetts General Hospital during 2010–2011.

METHODS

Operational outcomes were time to bed arrival, acuity-unrelated within-hospital transfers, and length of stay. Covariates considered included demographic and clinical characteristics: age, gender, severity of illness on admission, admit day of week, residence prior to admission, hospitalization within the prior 30 days, clinical service, and discharge destination.

RESULTS

Overall, 81,288 admissions were included. After adjusting for covariates, patients with a MRSA/VRE flag at the time of admission experienced a mean delay in time to bed arrival of 1.03 hours (9.63 hours [95% CI, 9.39–9.88] vs 8.60 hours [95% CI, 8.47–8.73]). These patients had 1.19 times the odds of experiencing an acuity-unrelated within-hospital transfer [95% CI, 1.13–1.26] and a mean length of stay 1.76 days longer (7.03 days [95% CI, 6.82–7.24] vs 5.27 days [95% CI, 5.15–5.38]) than patients with no MRSA/VRE flag.

CONCLUSIONS

MRSA/VRE designation was associated with delays in time to bed arrival, increased likelihood of acuity-unrelated within-hospital transfers and extended length of stay. Efforts to identify patients who have cleared MRSA/VRE colonization are critically important to mitigate inefficient use of resources and to improve inpatient flow.

Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol 2016;37:782–790

Objective

Human impulsivity is a complex multidimensional construct encompassing cognitive, emotional, and behavioural aspects. Previous animal studies have suggested that striatal dopamine receptors play a critical role in impulsivity. In this study, we investigated the relationship between self-reported impulsiveness and dopamine D2/3 receptor availability in striatal subdivisions in healthy subjects using high-resolution positron emission tomography (PET) with [11C]raclopride.

Methods

Twenty-one participants completed 3-T magnetic resonance imaging and high-resolution PET scans with [11C]raclopride. The trait of impulsiveness was measured using the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale (BIS-11). Partial correlation analysis was performed between BIS-11 scores and D2/3 receptor availability in striatal subregions, controlling for the confounding effects of temperament characteristics that are conceptually or empirically related to dopamine, which were measured by the Temperament and Character Inventory.

Results

The analysis revealed that the non-planning (p = 0.004) and attentional (p = 0.007) impulsiveness subscale scores on the BIS-11 had significant positive correlations with D2/3 receptor availability in the pre-commissural dorsal caudate. There was a tendency towards positive correlation between non-planning impulsiveness score and D2/3 receptor availability in the post-commissural caudate.

Conclusion

These results suggest that cognitive subtrait of impulsivity is associated with D2/3 receptor availability in the associative striatum that plays a critical role in cognitive processes involving attention to detail, judgement of alternative outcomes, and inhibitory control.

We surveyed patient access managers on the impact of contact precautions (CP) for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and vancomycin-resistant enterococcus (VRE) on time to bed assignment, and we investigated the factors influencing infection control policies allowing for discontinuation of CP. The majority of respondents reported an increase in time to bed assignment for patients with a history of MRSA and/or VRE infection or colonization.

Hydrogenated nanocrystalline Si (nc-Si:H) thin films were prepared by plasma- enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD). The films were deposited with a radio-frequency power of 100 W, while substrates were exposed to direct current (dc) biases in the range from 0 to −400 V. The effects of dc bias on the formation of nanoscale Si crystallites in the films and on their optical characteristics were investigated. The size of the Si crystallites in the films ranges from ∼1.9 to ∼4.1 nm. The relative fraction of the crystallites in the films reached up to ∼56.5% when a dc bias of −400 V was applied. Based on the variation in the structural, chemical, and optical features of the films with dc bias voltages, a model for the formation of nanostructures of the nc-Si:H films prepared by PECVD was suggested. This model can be utilized to understand the evolution in the size and relative fraction of the nanocrystallites as well as the amorphous matrix in the nc-Si:H films.

Summary

GEOPOLITICAL FEATURES OF NORTHEAST ASIA

Although the countries constituting Northeast Asia are few, the region's security environment is very complicated. The following geopolitical elements complicate the security situation of the region:

• The existence of the world's only remaining divided state, North and South Korea;
• The existence of two states with nuclear capabilities — China and Russia;
• The military presence of another state with nuclear capabilities, the United States — which is allied to the Republic of Korea (hereafter cited as Korea or ROK) and Japan;
• The absence of official bilateral relations between North Korea and the United States, as well as between North Korea and Japan; and
• The presence of two vast semi-enclosed seas, causing various maritime disputes, including territorial ones.

With these geopolitical elements, security in the Northeast Asian region has long been characterized by the following three features.

First, there is a deep-rooted distrust and rivalry arising from the states' historical experiences with each other. This is reflected in the volatile relations between the two sets of major powers, namely China and Japan, and China and the United States.

Second, the region's political survival is not only dependent on each state's international autonomy and territorial integrity, but also the protection of its existing political system and survival of its incumbent government. This is one of the core security concerns for some of the states in the region, particularly North Korea and Taiwan.

Third, the formation of alliance and alignment has been a key security strategy for most of the Northeast Asian states. The security order created during the Cold War era was built on a complete set of bilateral alliances, with the United States as a maritime power and, less stably, the Soviet Union as a continental power. Given the strategic alliance emphasis to security, the area had been largely bipolar, and there were little horizontal linkages between alliance partners.

We report thin SGOI (Silicon Germanium on Insulator) with 65% Ge concentration p- MOSFET (Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor-Field-Effect-Transistor) using Ni-germanosilicide Schottky S/D (source/drain) and HfO2/TaN gate stack integrated with conventional self-aligned top gate process. Unlike high temperature S/D activation needed for conventional transistor, low Ni-germanosilicide S/D formation temperature contributes to the excellent capacitance-voltage characteristic, low gate leakage current and hence, well-behaved transistor performance. In addition, SOI structure suppresses the junction leakage problem, resulting in good agreement between the source current and drain current of the MOSFET.

TiO2 nanocrystalline powder was synthesized by homogeneous precipitation method using urea, and its characteristics were investigated through comparison with the powder prepared by conventional precipitation using ammonia. The homogeneously precipitated powder was anatase-type TiO2 with a particle size of 4–5 nm and a uniform spherical particle shape. The fact that the transformation from anatase to rutile was prohibited at elevated temperatures in the homogeneously precipitated powder can be useful to prepare anatase-type TiO2 thin films by calcination at high temperatures. With increasing heat-treatment temperature, the particle size of the homogeneously precipitated powder was smaller than that of the conventionally precipitated powder, and the particle shape was more uniform. The homogeneously precipitated powder showed good photocatalytic activity for Ag ion photoadsorption because the powder had both good crystallinity and a large specific surface area of 280 m2/g.

The MIM capacitors with HfO2 and HfAlOx are investigated for Si RF and analog applications. The results show that both the capacitance density and voltage coefficients of capacitance (VCCs) increase with decreasing the HfO2 thickness. A high capacitance density of 13 fF/μm2with a low leakage current and a VCC of 607 ppm/V is obtained for 10 nm HfO2 MIM capacitor, which can meet the requirement of the ITRS roadmap by 2007 for silicon RF application. On the other hand, it was found that both the capacitance density and voltage coefficients of capacitance (VCC) values of the HfAlOx MIM capacitors decrease with increasing Al2O3 concentration. The results show that HfAlOx MIM capacitor with an Al2O3 mole fraction of 0.14 is optimized. It provides a high capacitance density of 3.5 fF/μm2 and a low VCC of μ140 ppm/V2. Also, small frequency dependence, low leakage current, and low loss tangent are obtained. Thus, the HfAlOx MIM capacitor with an Al2O3 mole ratio of 0.14 is very suitable for use in silicon analog applications.

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Determining cut-off values and predictors for the Snaith–Hamilton Pleasure Scale: comparison between clinical and school settings

Separating the rash from the chaff: novel clinical decision support deployed during the mpox outbreak

Clean clothes or dirty clothes? Outbreak investigation of carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii related to laundry contamination through multilocus sequence typing (MLST)

Structure and Field Evolution of Magnetic Skyrmions in Co/Pt-Based Multilayers by In-Situ Electron Holography

Symptom monitoring after coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination in a large integrated healthcare system: Separating symptoms from severe acute respiratory coronavirus virus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection

Effect of high-endurance exercise intervention on sleep-dependent procedural memory consolidation in individuals with schizophrenia: a randomized controlled trial

Infection control challenges in setting up community isolation and treatment facilities for patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19): Implementation of directly observed environmental disinfection

3 - E-commerce and Competition Law: How Does Competition Assessment Change with E-commerce?

Summary

Positive relationship between consumption of specific fish type and n-3 PUFA in milk of Hong Kong lactating mothers

Alexithymia and frontal–amygdala functional connectivity in North Korean refugees

Detecting Thermal X-Ray Emission and Proper Motions in RX J1713.7-3946

The Impact of Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and Vancomycin-Resistant Enterococcus (VRE) Flags on Hospital Operations

Dopamine D2/3 receptor availability and human cognitive impulsivity: a high-resolution positron emission tomography imaging study with [11C]raclopride

Contributors

Resource Burden Associated with Contact Precautions for Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus and Vancomycin-Resistant Enterococcus: The Patient Access Managers' Perspective

Characterization of hydrogenated nanocrystalline silicon thin films prepared with various negative direct current biases

3 - Changing Security Environments in Northeast Asia: A Korean View

Summary

Schottky Source/Drain Transistor on Thin SiGe on Insulator Integrated with HfO2/TaN Gate Stack

Synthesis and characterization of TiO2 nanocrystalline powder prepared by homogeneous precipitation using urea

Mim Capacitors with HfO2 and HfAlOx for Si RF and Analog Applications

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