A bio-inspired LIDA cognitive-based Digital Twin architecture for unmanned maintenance of machine tools

Affected by COVID-19, the maintenance process of machine tools is significantly hindered, while unmanned maintenance becomes an emerging trend in such background. So far, three challenges, namely, the dependence on maintenance experts, the dynamic maintenance environments, and unsynchronized interactions between physical and information sides, exist as the main obstacles in its widespread applications. In order to fill this gap, a bio-inspired LIDA cognitive-based Digital Twin architecture is proposed, so as to achieve unmanned maintenance of machine tools through a self-constructed, self-evaluated, and self-optimized manner. A three phases process in the architecture, including the physical phase, virtual phase, and service phase, is further introduced to support the cognitive cycle for unmanned maintenance of machine tools. An illustrative example is depicted in the unmanned fault diagnosis on the rolling bearing of a drilling platform, which validates the feasibility and advantages of the proposed architecture. As an explorative study, it is wished that this work provides useful insights for unmanned maintenance of machine tools in a dynamic production environment. © 2022

A comparative bibliometric analysis of Omicron and Delta variants during the COVID-19 pandemic

Background: To compare the research hotspots of infections with the Delta and Omicron variants of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic and to identify future research trends. Methods: Studies about Delta and Omicron variant infections published over the last 3 years were retrieved from the Web of Science (WoS) database. A comparative bibliometric analysis was conducted through machine learning and visualization tools, including VOSviewer, Bibliographic Item Co-Occurrence Matrix Builder, and Graphical Clustering Toolkit. Research hotspots and trends in the field were analyzed, and the contributions and collaborations of countries, institutions, and authors were documented. A cross-sectional analysis of the relevant studies registered at ClinicalTrials.gov was also performed to clarify the direction of future research. Results: A total of 1,787 articles distributed in 107 countries and 374 publications from 77 countries focused on the Delta and Omicron variants were included in our bibliometric analysis. The top five productive countries in both variants were the USA, China, the UK, India, and Germany. In 5,999 and 1,107 keywords identified from articles on the Delta and Omicron, the top two frequent keywords were the same: "COVID-19” (occurrence: 713, total link strength: 1,525 in Delta;occurrence: 137, total link strength: 354 in Omicron), followed by "SARS-CoV-2” (occurrence: 553, total link strength: 1,478 in Delta;occurrences 132, total link strength: 395 in Omicron). Five theme clusters from articles on Delta variant were identified: transmission, molecular structure, activation mode, epidemiology, and co-infection. While other three theme clusters were recognized for the Omicron variant: vaccine, human immune response, and infection control. Meanwhile, 21 interventional studies had been registered up to April 2022, most of which aimed to evaluate the immunogenicity and safety of different kinds of vaccines in various populations. Conclusions: Publications and clinical trials related to COVID-19 increased annually. As the first comparative bibliometric analysis for Delta and Omicron variants, we noticed that the relevant research trends have shifted from vaccine development to infection control and management of complications. The ongoing clinical studies will verify the safety and efficacy of promising drugs. © Annals of Palliative Medicine. All rights reserved.

Analysis and Prediction of COVID-19 Spread in Ernakulam District, Kerala

The world is witnessing a pandemic of SARS-CoV2 infection since the first quarter of the twenty-first century. Ever since the first case was reported in Wuhan city of China in December 2019, the virus has spread over 223 countries. Understanding and predicting the dynamics of COVID-19 spread through data analysis will empower our administrations with insights for better planning and response against the burden inflicted on our health care infrastructure and economy. The aim of the study was to analyze and predict COVID-19 spread in Ernakulam district of Kerala. Data was extracted from lab data management system (LDMS), a government portal to enter all the COVID-19 testing details. Using the EpiModel package of R-mathematical modeling of infectious disease dynamics, the predictive analysis for hospitalization rate, percentage of patients requiring oxygen and ICU admission, percentage of patients getting admitted, duration of hospital stay, case fatality rate, age group and gender-wise fatality rate, and hospitalization rate were computed. While calculating the above-said variables, the percentage of vaccinated population, breakthrough infections, and percentage of hospitalization among the vaccinated was also taken into consideration. The time trend of patients in ICU showed men outnumbered women. Positive cases were more among 20–30 years, while 61–70 years age group had more risk for ICU admission. An increase in CFR with advancing age and also a higher CFR among males were seen. Conclusions: Analyzing and predicting the trend of COVID-19 would help the governments to better utilize their limited healthcare resources and adopt timely measures to contain the virus. © 2023, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.

The effect of COVID-19 pandemic on the characteristics of patients presenting to the pediatric ocular emergency department in Türkiye: Demographic and diagnoses

BACKGROUND: This study aims to evaluate how the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has impacted the demographics and diagnoses of patients presenting at a pediatric ophthalmology emergency department (POED) in Türkiye. METHODS: The electronic medical records of patients <18 years old who presented at the POED from March 15 to May 31, 2020 (first stay-at-home period), and from November 15 to December 31, 2020 (second stay-at-home period), were retrospectively scanned. The demographic data and clinical diagnoses from those periods and the same periods in 2019 were compared. RESULTS: No significant differences emerged regarding age (p=0.067) or sex (p=0.268) among the 839 pediatric patients who visited the POED in 2019 (n=510) versus 2020 (n=329). Compared with 2019, 50.63% of fewer patients visited the POED in the first stay-athome period (i.e., 322 vs. 159) and 9.66% fewer visited in the second period (i.e., 188 vs. 170). The diagnoses in 2019 and 2020 were similar, with foreign body being the most common diagnosis, followed by ocular trauma. CONCLUSION: Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, fewer pediatric patients visited the POED during the first and second stay-athome periods than during the same periods in 2019, although the difference was less during the second period. Demographic data and diagnoses from year to year, however, were similar. These findings could aid clinicians in developing new strategies and guidelines for POED management in extraordinary situations such as pandemics. AMAÇ: 2019 koronavirüs hastalığı (COVID-19) pandemisinin Türkiye'de pediatrik oftalmoloji acil servisine (POAS) başvuran hastaların demografik özelliklerini ve tanılarını nasıl etkilediğini değerlendirmek. GEREÇ VE YÖNTEM: 15 Mart-31 Mayıs 2020 (ilk evde kalma süresi) ve 15 Kasım-31 Aralık 2020 (ikinci evde kalma süresi) arasında POAS'ye başvuran 18 yaşından küçük hastaların elektronik tıbbi kayıtları, geriye dönük olarak tarandı. Bu dönemlere ait demografik veriler ve klinik tanılar 2019 yılının aynı dönemleriyle karşılaştırıldı. BULGULAR: Sekiz yüz otuz dokuz pediyatrik hastanın dosyası incelendiğinde POAS'yi 2019 yılında ziyaret edenler (n=510) ile 2020 yılında ziyaret edenler (n=329) arasında yaş (p=.067) veya cinsiyet (p=.268) açısından anlamlı bir fark bulunmadı. 2019 ile karşılaştırıldığında, ilk evde kalma döneminde (yani, 322'ye karşı 159) POAS'yi ziyaret eden hasta %50.63 daha az ve ikinci dönemde (yani, 188'e karşı 170) %9.66 daha az hasta ziyaret etti. 2019 ve 2020'deki tanılar benzerdi;en sık tanı yabancı cisimdi ve ikinci en sık tanı oküler travmaydı. TARTIŞMA: COVID-19 pandemisinin ortasında, fark ikinci dönemde daha az olmasına rağmen, birinci ve ikinci evde kalış dönemlerinde 2019'un aynı dönemlerine göre daha az pediatrik hasta POED'yi ziyaret etti. Bununla birlikte, yıldan yıla demografik veriler ve teşhisler benzerdi. Bu bulgular, pandemiler gibi olağanüstü durumlarda POAS yönetimi için yeni stratejiler ve kılavuzlar geliştirmede klinisyenlere yardımcı olabilir.

Physical fitness before and during the COVID-19 pandemic: Results of annual national physical fitness surveillance among 16,647,699 Japanese children and adolescents between 2013 and 2021

Background: Limited nationally representative evidence is available on temporal trends in physical fitness (PF) for children and adolescents during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. The primary aim was to examine the temporal trends in PF for Japanese children and adolescents before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. The secondary aim was to estimate the concurrent trends in body size (measured as body mass and height) and movement behaviors (exercise, screen, and sleep time). Methods: Census PF data for children in Grade 5 (aged 10–11 years) and adolescents in Grade 8 (aged = 13–14 years) were obtained for the years 2013–2021 from the National Survey of Physical Fitness, Athletic Performance, and Exercise Habits in Japan (n = 16,647,699). PF and body size were objectively measured, and movement behaviors were self-reported. Using sample-weighted linear regression, temporal trends in mean PF were calculated before the pandemic (2013–2019) and during the pandemic (2019–2021) with adjustments for age, sex, body size, and exercise time. Results: When adjusted for age, sex, body size, and exercise time, there were significant declines in PF during the pandemic, with the largest declines observed in 20-m shuttle run (standardized (Cohen's) effect size (ES) = −0.109 per annum (p.a.)) and sit-ups performance (ES = −0.133 p.a.). The magnitude of the declines in 20-m shuttle run and sit-ups performances were 18- and 15-fold larger, respectively, than the improvements seen before the pandemic (2013–2019), after adjusting for age, sex, body size, and exercise time. During the pandemic, both body mass and screen time significantly increased, and exercise time decreased. Conclusion: Declines in 20-m shuttle run and sit-ups performances suggest corresponding declines in population health during the COVID-19 pandemic. © 2023

Wastewater Surveillance—"Messy" Science With Public Health Potential

The authors comment on wastewater surveillance, which they think is critical public health tool for communities with limited access to clinical testing or health care. Topics discussed include advantages of wastewater analysis over traditional surveillance methods, significance of timely wastewater disease data for marginalized, rural, and resource-poor communities and their associated public health institutions, and threats facing wastewater analysis as a disease surveillance modality.

Time series analysis of COVID-19 infection curve: A change-point perspective

In this paper, we model the trajectory of the cumulative confirmed cases and deaths of COVID-19 (in log scale) via a piecewise linear trend model. The model naturally captures the phase transitions of the epidemic growth rate via change-points and further enjoys great interpretability due to its semiparametric nature. On the methodological front, we advance the nascent self-normalization (SN) technique (Shao, 2010) to testing and estimation of a single change-point in the linear trend of a nonstationary time series. We further combine the SN-based change-point test with the NOT algorithm (Baranowski et al., 2019) to achieve multiple change-point estimation. Using the proposed method, we analyze the trajectory of the cumulative COVID-19 cases and deaths for 30 major countries and discover interesting patterns with potentially relevant implications for effectiveness of the pandemic responses by different countries. Furthermore, based on the change-point detection algorithm and a flexible extrapolation function, we design a simple two-stage forecasting scheme for COVID-19 and demonstrate its promising performance in predicting cumulative deaths in the U.S. © 2020 Elsevier B.V.

Impact of COVID-19 on Outcomes of Patients Hospitalized With STEMI: A Nationwide Propensity-matched Analysis

Patients with ST-segment elevation myocar-dial infarction (STEMI) and concurrent coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) have been reported to have poor outcomes. However, previous studies are small and limited. The National Inpatient Sample database for the year 2020 was queried to identify all adult hos-pitalizations with a primary diagnosis of STEMI, with and without concurrent COVID-19. A 1:1 propensity score matching was performed. A total of 159,890 hos-pitalizations with a primary diagnosis of STEMI were identified. Of these, 2210 (1.38%) had concurrent COVID-19. After propensity matching, STEMI patients with concurrent COVID-19 had a significantly higher mortality (17.8% vs 9.1%, OR 1.96, P< 0.001), lower likelihood to receive same-day percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) (63.6% vs 70.6%, P = 0.019), with a trend towards lower overall PCI (74.9% vs 80.2%, P = 0.057) and significantly lower coronary artery bypass grafting) (3.0% vs 6.8%, P = 0.008) prior to discharge, compared with STEMI patients without COVID-19. The prevalence of cardio-genic shock, need for mechanical circulatory support, extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, cardiac arrest, acute kidney injury (AKI), dialysis, major bleeding and stroke were not significantly different between the groups. COVID-19-positive STEMI patients who received same-day PCI had significantly lower odds of in-hospital mortality (adjusted OR 0.42, 95% CI 0.20-0.85, P = 0.017). STEMI patients with concurrent COVID-19 infection had a significantly higher (almost 2 times) in-hospital mortality, and lower likelihood of receiving same-day PCI, overall (any-day) PCI, and CABG during their admission, compared with STEMI patients without COVID-19. (Curr Probl Cardiol 2023;48:101547.)

Surveying Search Terms for COVID-19 Disease Surveillance

Studies on disease surveillance for COVID-19 have utilized search interests such as from Google Trends. The selection of search terms can play a pivotal role and affect the validity of the results of such systems. The present study inventoried search terms from studies associated with outbreak detection or prevention with the intent of contributing to the process of deriving an optimal search strategy. The studies were retrieved from the Google Scholar database using the phrase coronavirus+ "relative search volume”. Seventy-nine (79) were found eligible for the period from 2020 to 2021. The collection of search terms obtained comprised of COVID-19 names, symptoms, public measures and protective measures. The network of search interests depicted disease-related terms and symptoms to be predominant. Further studies are directed to model search interests and incidence of the outbreak leading to the deployment of early warning systems geared for outbreak detection. © 2023, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.

The Future of Education-A Survey of Current Scientific Research Trends

Today, the field of education is the subject of various reforms at several levels, either pedagogical, didactic or technological, especially with the rapid and continuous evolution of ICT which means information and communication technologies, the resulting constraints and the challenges of the Covid-19 epidemic, as well as the new understanding of the teaching-learning process and the psychology of learning. In this regard, the present study aims to collect the most requested research topics in doctoral studies centers, indexed conferences and journals, related to this field, and then analyze them to determine their categorization, as well as define the current trends and the lines of research necessary to meet the needs of the educational field. To do this, a bibliometric approach, taking advantage of the univariate indicators development method and relational indicators development method, is implemented to effectively achieve the objectives of the study. © 2023, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.

Changes in antidepressant use in Australia: A nationwide analysis (2015–2021)

Background: Depression and anxiety affect 4–14% of Australians every year;symptoms may have been exacerbated during the COVID-19 pandemic. We examined recent patterns of antidepressant use in Australia in the period 2015–2021, which includes the first year of the pandemic. Methods: We used national dispensing claims for people aged ⩾10 years to investigate annual trends in prevalent and new antidepressant use (no antidepressants dispensed in the year prior). We conducted stratified analyses by sex, age group and antidepressant class. We report outcomes from 2015 to 2019 and used time series analysis to quantify changes during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic (March 2020–February 2021). Results: In 2019, the annual prevalence of antidepressant use was 170.4 per 1000 women and 101.8 per 1000 men, an increase of 7.0% and 9.2% from 2015, respectively. New antidepressant use also increased for both sexes (3.0% for women and 4.9% for men) and across most age groups, particularly among adolescents (aged 10–17 years;46–57%). During the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, we observed higher than expected prevalent use (+2.2%, 95% CI = [0.3%, 4.2%]) among females, corresponding to a predicted excess of 45,217 (95% CI = [5,819, 84,614]) females dispensed antidepressants. The largest increases during the first year of the pandemic occurred among female adolescents for both prevalent (+11.7%, 95% CI = [4.1%, 20.5%]) and new antidepressant use (+15.6%, 95% CI = [8.5%, 23.7%]). Conclusion: Antidepressant use continues to increase in Australia overall and especially among young people. We found a differential impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in treated depression and anxiety, greater among females than males, and greater among young females than other age groups, suggesting an increased mental health burden in populations already on a trajectory of increased use of antidepressants prior to the pandemic. Reasons for these differences require further investigation.

Editorial Perspective: Rapid responses to understand and address children and young people's mental health in the context of COVID‐19

Prior to the pandemic, we already had good reason to be concerned about the mental health of children and young people. As an example, the 2017 Mental Health of Children and Young People (MHCYP) survey in England, comprising a large, national probability sample, identified that one in nine children had a probable mental health disorder, with a 49% increase in emotional disorders compared to a previous survey in 2004 (Sadler et al., 2018). The pandemic has clearly brought a broad range of challenges to children and young people. These include the direct viral threat to self, friends, and family (with recent estimates of a 17.5%–20.2% increase in parental bereavement in the United States;Kidman et al, 2021), as well as disruptions to school work, social interactions, family pressures, economic impacts, a lack of opportunity and ongoing uncertainty, and reduced access to mental health and other support from outside the home. So how have these experiences affected the mental health of children and young people?

Temporal Trend of COVID-19 Clinical Severity and the Ethnic/Racial Disparity: A Report from the Maryland Study Group

Objectives This study aimed to evaluate the temporal trend of novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) symptoms and severity of clinical outcomes among pregnant women over a calendar year in the State of Maryland and compare clinical outcomes between different ethnic and racial groups. Study Design We conducted a retrospective, multicenter observational study of the temporal trend of COVID-19 clinical presentation during pregnancy in the State of Maryland. We reviewed consecutive charts of adult pregnant females, aged 18 to 55 years, with laboratory-confirmed severe acute respiratory syndrome-coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection between March 1, 2020, and February 28, 2021, and managed within the University of Maryland Medical System and Johns Hopkins Medicine. We excluded cases with insufficient data for assessing the COVID-19 diagnosis, pregnancy status, or clinical outcomes. We evaluated the evolution of COVID-19 symptoms at the time of presentation. Also, we compared COVID-19 infection rate, hospitalization rate, oxygen use, and intensive care unit (ICU) admission rates between different ethnic and racial groups. Results We included 595 pregnant women with laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 over the study period. The prevalence of respiratory and systemic symptoms decreased over time with incidence rate ratios (IRRs) of 0.91 per month (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.88–0.95) and 0.87 per month (95% CI: 0.83–0.95), respectively. The prevalence of hospitalization, O 2 requirement, and ICU admission decreased over time with IRRs of 0.86 per month (95% CI: 0.82–0.91), 0.91 per month (95% CI: 0.84–0.98), and 0.70 per month (95% CI: 0.57–0.85), respectively. The Hispanic and Black populations had a higher COVID-19 infection rate and hospitalization rate than the non-Hispanic White population (p = 0.004, < 0.001, and < 0.001, respectively). Conclusion Understanding the concepts of viral evolution could potentially help the fight against pandemics like COVID-19. Moreover, this might improve the knowledge of how pandemics affect disadvantaged populations and help close the gap in health care inequities. Key Points A trade-off between virulence and transmissibility is determined by the natural selection of viruses. Understanding the concepts of viral evolution can help the fight against pandemics like COVID-19. Evolution of SARS-CoV-2 over time resulted in decreased virulence and increased infectivity.

A narrative review of the use of alcohol during the Covid-19 pandemic, effects and implications

The Covid-19 pandemic created an environment wherein stress and isolation could increase alcohol consumption. The effects of alcohol consumption on Covid-19 susceptibility and the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on alcohol use, related harms and services were explored. Search terms were inputted to Medline and Embase databases, with relevant published papers written in English chosen. Alcohol ingestion both increased and decreased throughout the population globally, however, the overall trend was an increase. Risk factors for this included female sex, young age, family conflicts, unemployment, mental health disorders, substance misuse and lack of support. Alcohol misuse was found to be an aggravator of domestic violence and worsening mental health. It exacerbated the risk of contracting SARS-CoV-2 and worsened the Covid-19 infection severity, with >10 drinks/week increasing the acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) risk similarly to established risk factors. This was attributed to the immunosuppressive and disinhibition effects of alcohol. Therefore, healthcare professionals should provide support to vulnerable groups, encouraging stress reduction, healthy habits, limiting alcohol consumption (<5 drinks/week) and promoting coping techniques. Self-help tools that monitor individual alcohol intake and psychosocial interventions in a primary care setting can also be employed. Finally, governing bodies should inform the public of the risks of alcohol ingestion during the Covid-19 pandemic. Thus, the Covid-19 pandemic could create a cycle whereby alcohol misuse could become a risk factor for Covid-19 infection and the Covid-19 pandemic could become a risk factor for alcohol misuse. Healthcare professionals should counsel people on alcohol misuse risk and protective factors.

Original Article The state of telehealth: 2 years into the COVID-19 pandemic-back to business as usual?

Introduction: Telemedicine (TM) was underutilized prior to the COVID-19 pandemic presumably due to nonstandardized reimbursement routes and a perceived lack of need. Early experience with the pandemic necessitated this form of medical care, although durability of consistent delivery remains in question. We quantify the utilization patterns of TM over the past 2 years over multiple waves of the pandemic across various service lines in a large rural health system. Materials: Data of TM utilization were prospectively collected between March 2020-January 2022. Rates of adoption among the various surgical and non-surgical services disciplines were compared. Subgroup analyses between different surgical subspecialties and within the urologic subspecialties was performed. Results: 3.5 million visits were recorded;3.14 million (90%) on-site and 349,989 (10%) TM;254,919 (73%) video-assisted and 95,070 (27%) were telephonic. Throughout the pandemic, non-surgical services utilized TM to a greater extent than surgical services (mean% 12 vs 6). Significant variation in the utilization among surgical services was reported, with Urology representing a high utilizer (15%);Among Urologic subspecialties utilization, Endourology (28%) was highest and Pediatric Urology (5%) was lowest. Following an initial spike in TM utilization during the pandemic, rates have declined and plateaued at 5-7% of all visits over the past 6-months. Conclusion: TM utilization in this large health system has remained under 10% following the initial surge in 2020. Non-surgical services preferentially use TM more than surgical domains. Certain subspecialties utilize TM more than others, possible due to patient population, practice patterns and medical conditions. Barriers to adoption are essential to determine the relatively low volume of use across this health system.

The pandemic effect: The outlook of lung transplantation

Lung transplant (LT) is a life-saving treatment for patients with end-stage lung disease. In the setting of COVID-19-associated acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), LT emerged as a therapeutic option for select cases. It is challenging to determine the extent of the knowledge and interest the United States (US) general population has on LT as salvage therapy during and following the COVID-19 pandemic. It is the authors' opinion that patient therapeutic education (PTE) can directly influence established practices by creating an open channel of communication based on needs and expectations for healthcare services. This perspective is a cursory reflection of the nuances between healthcare providers, their services, the interests and expectations of the general population, specifically on LT following COVID-19. The main endpoint of this study is to analyze the US general population's interest in LT as COVID-19 salvage therapy via the Google Trends (GT) web-kit tool. © 2022

Trends in operating room-based glaucoma procedures at a single eye center from 2016–2020

• AIM: To evaluate trends in glaucoma procedures at the Peking University Eye Center in 2016–2020. • METHODS: A retrospective search of all glaucoma procedures performed at our institution were performed. Data were analyzed by calculating the absolute numbers and relative weightage of each procedure per year. • RESULTS: The average age of glaucoma patients undergoing surgical procedures was 62.33±17.87y, and 55% were women. From 2016 to 2019, the number of surgical procedures performed in glaucoma patients showed an overall upward trend from 749 to 1460, although it decreased slightly in 2020 (n=1393), probably due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The number of trabeculectomies did not change significantly in 2016 (n=161) to 2018 (n=164) but decreased in 2019 (n=139) to 2020 (n=121), indicating a reduction in its relative weightage among glaucoma procedures (from 21.50% to 8.69%). The number of glaucoma drainage device implantations and minimally invasive glaucoma surgeries both increased (50 and 58 respectively in 2019), except in 2020. The number of transscleral cyclophotocoagulation procedures was relatively stable, increasing until 2017 (n=218) and then decreasing. Cataract surgeries with or without glaucoma procedures accounted for a large number of the total surgeries, increasing from 247 (32.97%) in 2016 to 967 (69.42%), among which cataract extraction combined with goniosynechialysis was the most frequent. • CONCLUSION: The overall increase in the number of operating room-based surgical procedures is significant. Trabeculectomy is one of the most commonly performed procedures, despite the relative decline in its weightage. Other procedures, including use of glaucoma drainage devices and mini shunts and minimally invasive glaucoma surgeries, are gaining greater acceptance. Notably, lens-related surgery plays an important role in glaucoma management. © 2023 International Journal of Ophthalmology (c/o Editorial Office). All rights reserved.

Worldwide Survey of Fitness Trends for 2023

The annual ACSM's Health & Fitness Journal® worldwide survey to determine industry trends by health and fitness professionals is now in its 17th consecutive year. The COVID-19 pandemic certainly made an impact on the 2021 survey and continued for 2022, but for 2023, some current trends are emerging whereas others are weakening because of the world's recovery from the isolation caused by COVID-19. The #1 trend for 2023, as it was for 2022, is wearable technology. Home exercise gyms was #2 for 2022 but has dropped to #13 for 2023. Fitness programs for older adults will make a comeback in 2023, breaking the top 10 at #4. Functional fitness training, a popular form of exercise for the older adult, is the #5 trend for 2023. Apply It!: From this article, the reader should understand the following concepts: • Explain the differences between a fitness fad and a fitness trend • Use the worldwide fitness trends in the commercial, corporate, clinical (including medical fitness), and community health and fitness industry to further promote physical activity • Study expert opinions about identified fitness trends for 2023