Isotemporal substitution of accelerometer-derived sedentary behavior and physical activity on physical fitness in young children.

This study investigates the effects of different types of physical activity (PA) on the physical fitness (PF) of young children in Japan, with a particular focus on how substituting sedentary behavior (SB) with active behaviors influences PF. We conducted a cross-sectional analysis of 1843 participants aged 3-6 years from northeastern Japan. Using triaxial accelerometers, we quantified PA, and PF was assessed via standardized tests. The innovative application of isotemporal substitution modeling (ISM) allowed us to analyze the impact of reallocating time from SB to more active states, specifically moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) and light physical activity (LPA). Our findings reveal a robust association between increased MVPA and enhanced PF outcomes, underscoring the health benefits of reducing SB. Notably, replacing SB with LPA also showed beneficial effects on certain PF metrics, indicating LPA's potential role in early childhood fitness. These results highlight the critical importance of promoting MVPA and minimizing sedentary periods to bolster PF in young children. The study offers vital insights for shaping public health policies and emphasizes the need to cultivate an active lifestyle from an early age to secure long-term health advantages.

Barriers towards exercise and physical activity of different ethnic groups in middle-aged female Singaporeans.

The government has collaborated with the Health Promotion Board in coming out a bountiful of initiatives for the citizens to engage in exercise. Despite the initiatives, the obesity rate in middle-aged women is still high. This study seeks to understand and identify the vast barriers that prevent middle-aged women from exercising. Purposive sampling and semi-structured interview were conducted for the participants. The analysis of the interview revealed the significance of barriers in three areas: Priority of Family and Work Commitments, Minimal Promotion of Subsidized Initiatives by the Government, and Discrimination through the Usage of Language. It highlights that racial barriers are minimal and better time management would be appropriate to engage a healthier lifestyle. The study suggested female Singaporeans to incorporate sports in the lifestyle, more aggressive promotion of subsidized initiatives and the use of common languages (English) in the exercise class.

Delayed-phase CT angiography is superior to arterial-phase CT angiography at localizing occlusion sites in acute stroke patients eligible for intra-arterial reperfusion therapy.

We compared the accuracy for localizing arterial occlusion sites between delayed-phase computed tomography angiography (CTA) and arterial-phase CTA in acute stroke patients with large vessel occlusion. Institutional Review Board approval was obtained, and informed consent was waived. For patients treated with intra-arterial thrombolysis within a 6 hour window between January 2009 and November 2011, we retrospectively assessed the arterial occlusion sites of pre-treatment, delayed-phase and arterial-phase CTA and compared these with digital subtraction angiography (DSA) findings. The positive predictive value for detection of vessel occlusion for both CTA methods was derived using DSA as a reference standard. The outcomes were compared using the McNemar test. Inter-observer disagreement within each modality was assessed using the Kendall W test. Among 73 patients treated with intra-arterial thrombolysis, 24 (32.9%) underwent both arterial-phase and delayed-phase CTA, and 66 (90.4%) underwent arterial-phase CTA only. For 24 patients undergoing both arterial-phase and delayed-phase CTA, the delayed-phase CTA detected concordant occlusion sites with DSA in 21 patients, yielding a positive predictive value of 87.5%, whereas the arterial-phase CTA detected this in 14 patients, for a positive predictive value of 58.3% (p=0.013). When discordant with DSA, arterial-phase or delayed-phase CTA indicated occlusions in more proximal sites than DSA. Delayed-phase CTA more precisely localized the occlusion site than arterial-phase CTA in acute stroke patients with large vessel occlusion. Thus, delayed-phase CTA findings could guide neurointerventionists in selecting intra-arterial thrombolysis modalities.