Search results for "support"
showing 10 items of 2310 documents
Optimization of anemia treatment in hemodialysis patients via reinforcement learning
2013
Objective: Anemia is a frequent comorbidity in hemodialysis patients that can be successfully treated by administering erythropoiesis-stimulating agents (ESAs). ESAs dosing is currently based on clinical protocols that often do not account for the high inter- and intra-individual variability in the patient's response. As a result, the hemoglobin level of some patients oscillates around the target range, which is associated with multiple risks and side-effects. This work proposes a methodology based on reinforcement learning (RL) to optimize ESA therapy. Methods: RL is a data-driven approach for solving sequential decision-making problems that are formulated as Markov decision processes (MDP…
Effects of a weight management program delivered by social media on weight and metabolic syndrome risk factors in overweight and obese adults: A rand…
2017
Author(s): Jane, Monica; Hagger, Martin; Foster, Jonathan; Ho, Suleen; Kane, Robert; Pal, Sebely | Abstract: IntroductionThe aim of this project was to evaluate the effectiveness of using social media to augment the delivery of, and provide support for, a weight management program delivered to overweight and obese individuals during a twenty four week intervention.MethodsParticipants randomly divided into either one of two intervention groups or a control group. The two intervention groups were instructed to follow identical weight-management program. One group received the program within a Facebook group, along with a support network with the group, and the other intervention group receive…
Children from broken homes: visits to the school nurse.
1980
Children from broken homes, especially females, have an increased tendency to visit the school nurse. Complaints are often ill-defined, possibly psychosomatic. These children may require additional medical and emotional support from the school nurse. The effect the broken home may have upon a student has important implications for the physical and emotional health of today's youth. An awareness of this finding can provide school nursing personnel valuable insight in the assessment of students who visit the school nurse.
Liraglutide and cardiovascular outcomes in type 2 diabetes
2016
The cardiovascular effect of liraglutide, a glucagon-like peptide 1 analogue, when added to standard care in patients with type 2 diabetes, remains unknown. METHODS In this double-blind trial, we randomly assigned patients with type 2 diabetes and high cardiovascular risk to receive liraglutide or placebo. The primary composite outcome in the time-to-event analysis was the first occurrence of death from cardiovascular causes, nonfatal myocardial infarction, or nonfatal stroke. The primary hypothesis was that liraglutide would be noninferior to placebo with regard to the primary outcome, with a margin of 1.30 for the upper boundary of the 95% confidence interval of the hazard ratio. No adjus…
Does Social Activity Decrease Risk for Institutionalization and Mortality in Older People?
2012
Objectives. Social inactivity predicts adverse health events, but less is known about how different dimensions of social activity are related to health. The aim of this study was to investigate collective (e.g., cultural and organizational activities) and productive (e.g., helping others) social activity as predictors of risk for mortality and institutionalization in old age. Method. A total of 1,181 community-living people aged 65–84 years at baseline were interviewed face to face as part of the Evergreen project, in Jyvaskyla, Finland in 1988. Time to institutionalization and mortality were analyzed in separate models for proportional hazard regression on mortality and competing risks ana…
Motives for and barriers to physical activity among older adults with mobility limitations
2007
The purpose of this study was to investigate what older adults with severe, moderate, or no mobility limitation consider motives for and barriers to engaging in physical exercise. Community-dwelling adults (N = 645) age 75–81 years completed a questionnaire about their motives for and barriers to physical exercise and answered interview questions on mobility limitation. Those with severely limited mobility more often reported poor health, fear and negative experiences, lack of company, and an unsuitable environment as barriers to exercise than did those with no mobility limitation. They also accentuated disease management as a motive for exercise, whereas those with no or moderate mobility …
Predicting perceived health in Angolan elderly: The moderator effect of being oldest old
2012
The objective of this study was to test the predicting effects of variables measuring social support, dependence/active perceptions, and generativity, on this facet of well-being when controlled for socio-demographic variables (age, gender, marital status, and institutionalization). The research tries to extend previous literature by assessing them in a multivariate context, studying differential effects of these variables in young old and oldest old, and offering evidence of the scarcely studied population of Angola. The sample was formed by 737 young old and 266 oldest old. It was built a hierarchical regression, in which, among the different predictors, interactions effects between age a…
Contributions of Psychosocial Factors and Physical Activity to Successful Aging
2018
AbstractThe aim of this study was twofold: (a) To validate a successful aging model in a Spanish older adult’s sample, and (b) to predict successful aging from psychosocial factors and physical activity. Participants were 725 Spanish older people, of whom 478 were women and 247 men, aged between 55 and 100 years. Of these, 501 were physically active and 197 persons did not practice physical activity. The sample was collected in three areas: Sport centers, day centers and public areas of several Spanish towns. Factorial validity of the Successful Aging Inventory was studied by confirmatory factor analysis, and four multiple regressions to predict each of the dimensions of successful aging (f…
Evaluation design of the Social Engagement Framework for Addressing the Chronic-disease-challenge (SEFAC): a mindfulness-based intervention to promot…
2019
Background The Social Engagement Framework for Addressing the Chronic-disease-challenge (SEFAC) project intends to empower citizens at risk of or with type 2 diabetes (T2DM) and/or cardiovascular disease (CVD) to self-manage their chronic conditions through the SEFAC intervention. The intervention combines the concepts of mindfulness, social engagement and information and communication technology support, in order to reduce the burden of citizens with chronic conditions and to increase the sustainability of the health system in four European countries. Methods A prospective cohort study with a 6-month pre-post design will be conducted in four European countries: Croatia, Italy, the Netherla…
The assessment of lifestyle changes during the COVID-19 pandemic using a multidimensional scale
2020
Introduction Healthy lifestyles are relevant to several diseases and to maintain individuals’ mental health. Exposure to epidemics and confinement have been consistently associated with psychological consequences, but changes on lifestyle behaviours remain under-researched. Materials and Methods An online survey was conducted among the general population living in Spain during the COVID-19 home-isolation. In addition to demographic and clinical data, participants self-reported changes in seven lifestyle domains. The Short Multidimensional Inventory Lifestyle Evaluation was developed specifically to evaluate changes during the confinement (SMILE-C). Results A total of 1254 individuals comple…