Training Effects on the Stress Predictors for Young Lusitano Horses Used in Dressage.

The purpose of this study was to investigate stressful responses during a 6-week training protocol in young Lusitano horses used for dressage. The hypothesis was that the proposed training protocol would improve fitness and ensure the welfare of the animals by reducing stress predictors. Nine 4-year-old horses were evaluated before (M1) and six weeks after (M2) beginning a training protocol. The training program was performed six times per week and included 40−80 min of individually intensity-adjusted preparatory exercises for dressage. For both moments, the horses were examined before (T0) and after (T1) dressage simulation tests (DST), and at 30 (T2) and 240 min (T3) during the recovery period. Blood samples were taken to determine the horses' cortisol levels, total WBC, and neutrophil and lymphocyte counts. All variables were analyzed by one-way ANOVA and Tukey tests, with p ≤ 0.05. After training, there was a significant reduction in cortisol (p = 0.0133), HR (p = 0.0283), total WBC (p < 0.0001), and neutrophil (p < 0.0001) and lymphocyte (p = 0.0341) counts. Other findings included an increase in HRV parameters related to a cardiac vagal modulation. In conclusion, the chosen training protocol led to better fitness as the horses worked more intensively with lower cardiovascular requirements, and they showed blunted cortisol responses at M2. Such data can be used to evaluate performance, but also to predict the welfare of athletic horses.

Translation and Validation of the Clinician Administered PTSD Scale (CAPS-CA-5) for Portuguese Children and Adolescents.

INTRODUCTION: The aim of this study was to translate and validate into European Portuguese the CAPS-CA-5 (Clinician Administered PTSD Scale for Children and Adolescents), a semi-structured scale for the diagnosis of post-traumatic stress disorder in children and adolescents, according to the DSM-5 criteria. MATERIAL AND METHODS: This study was developed in three stages. In the first stage, the translation and back-translation of CAPS-CA-5 into European Portuguese was carried out. In the second stage, the version obtained in the previous step was subjected to a pre-test. In the third stage, the final version of CAPS-CA-5, the KIDCOPE questionnaires and the Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale-Children were applied to 101 children who had experienced at least one potentially traumatic event. The children included in this study were between seven and 18 years old and had a follow-up period in a Child Psychiatry or Pediatrics Clinic in one of the three hospitals involved in this project of at least one month. RESULTS: Regarding the confirmatory factor analysis, our results show that the CAPS-CA-5 is a suitable psychometric instrument to assess the diagnosis and symptoms severity of post-traumatic stress disorder according to DSM-5. Convergent validity was comparable to its original version. Although there were negative relationships with almost all of its clusters, these were not statistically significant when applied with the positive coping strategies of the KIDCOPE. The European Portuguese version of the CAPS-CA-5 showed a good internal consistency (Cronbach's α for the total scale was 0.89). CONCLUSION: The European Portuguese version of CAPS-CA-5 has similar psychometric properties to its original version.

Introdução: O objetivo deste estudo foi traduzir e validar para português europeu a CAPS-CA-5 (Clinician Administered PTSD Scale for Children and Adolescents), uma escala semiestruturada para o diagnóstico de perturbação de stress pós-traumático em crianças e adolescentes, de acordo com os critérios do DSM-5. Material e Métodos: Este estudo foi desenvolvido em três etapas. Na primeira, foi realizada a tradução e contra-tradução da CAPS-CA-5 para português europeu. Na segunda etapa, a versão obtida anteriormente foi submetida a um pré-teste. Na terceira etapa, a versão final da CAPS-CA-5, os questionários KIDCOPE e a Escala de Depressão, Ansiedade e Stresse - Crianças foram aplicados em 101 crianças que experienciaram pelo menos um evento potencialmente traumático. As crianças incluídas neste estudo tinham entre sete e 18 anos e tinham um período de acompanhamento em consulta de Psiquiatria Infantil ou Pediatria de pelo menos um mês, num dos três hospitais envolvidos neste projeto. Resultados: Em relação à análise fatorial confirmatória, os nossos resultados mostram que a CAPS-CA-5 é um instrumento psicométrico adequado para avaliar o diagnóstico e a gravidade dos sintomas de perturbação de stresse pós-traumático de acordo com o DSM-5. A validade convergente foi comparável à versão original. Embora tenha havido relações negativas com quase todos os seus clusters, estas não foram estatisticamente significativas quando aplicadas com as estratégias de coping positivo do KIDCOPE. A versão em português europeu da CAPS-CA-5 apresentou boa consistência interna (α de Cronbach para a escala total foi de 0,89). Conclusão: A versão em português europeu do CAPS-CA-5 possui propriedades psicométricas semelhantes à sua versão original.

Antithrombotic Therapy Recommendations in the European Society of Cardiology Guidelines: How Robust Are the Randomized Controlled Trials Underpinning Them?

Introduction Criticisms have been raised against the sole use of p -value in interpreting results from randomized controlled trials (RCTs). Additional tools have been suggested, like the fragility index (FI), a measure of a trial's robustness/fragility, and derivative measures. The FI is the minimum number of patients who would have to be converted from nonevents to events, in the group with the least events, for a result to lose statistical significance. Objective This study aimed to evaluate RCT supporting European Society of Cardiology (ESC) guidelines regarding antithrombotics, using the FI and FI-related measures. Methods FI, fragility quotient (FQ), and FI minus LTF lost to follow-up (FI - LTF) were calculated for the RCT underpinning recommendations regarding antithrombotic therapy from the updated ESC guidelines. LTF was compared with FI. Results were calculated for the total group of studies, as per guideline and as per recommendation type. Results Overall, 61 studies were included. The median FI was 24.5 (interquartile range [IQR]: 9.0-60.0) and median FQ was 0.0035 (IQR: 0.0019-0.0056). Median FI - LTF was 2.0 (IQR: 0.0-38.0). Twenty (32.8%) of the studies had one primary or main safety outcome with LTF exceeding FI. Peripheral arterial disease guideline and chronic coronary syndrome guideline had the lowest (2.5; IQR: 1.8-3.3) and the highest (48.5; IQR: 23.8-73.0) FI, respectively. Conclusion The median FI suggests robustness of clinical trials evaluating antithrombotic drugs cited in the guidelines, but about one-third of them had LTF larger than FI. This emphasizes the need for assessing trials' robustness when constructing guidelines.

The Five-Factor Perceived Shared Mental Model Scale: A Consolidation of Items Across the Contemporary Literature.

Literature on Shared Mental Models (SMMs) has been burgeoning in recent years and this has provided increasingly detailed insight and evidence into the importance of SMMs within specific contexts. However, because past research predominantly focused on SMM structure as measured by diverse, context-dependent measures, a consolidated multi-dimensional measure of perceived SMMs that can be used across diverse team contexts is currently lacking. Furthermore, different conceptualizations of the dimensionality of SMMs exist, which further impedes the comparison between studies. These key limitations might hinder future development in the SMM literature. We argue that the field of SMMs has now matured enough that it is possible to take a deductive approach and evaluate the prior studies in order to refine the key SMMs dimensions, operationalizations, and measurement. Hence, we take a three-stage approach to consolidate existing literature scale-based measures of SMMs, using four samples. Ultimately, this leads to a 20-item five-dimensional scale (i.e., equipment, execution, interaction, composition, and temporal SMMs) - the Five Factor Perceived Shared Mental Model Scale (5-PSMMS). Our scale provides scholars with a tool which enables the measurement, and comparison, of SMMs across diverse team contexts. It offers practitioners the option to more straightforwardly assess perceived SMMs in their teams, allowing the identification of challenges in their teams and facilitating the design of appropriate interventions.