African American women's experiences of menopause: A focus group study.

OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to characterize African American women's experiences of menopause and their interactions with the health care system related to menopausal symptoms. STUDY DESIGN: We conducted four focus groups with community-dwelling midlife African American women. MAIN OUTCOMES MEASURES: Women who consented to participate completed demographic surveys. Transcripts of the four focus groups (n = 26) were analyzed and themes were elucidated. RESULTS: In total, 26 midlife African American women participated in the four focus groups. Participants revealed unmet needs regarding obtaining menopause information from their clinicians. Clinician discussions about menopause tended to be initiated by patients based on their symptoms. Some women reported feeling ignored and/or dismissed by the clinician when they initiated discussions of menopause. Women wanted their clinicians to provide information on menopause, which included receiving information prior to the menopause transition to help them know what to expect. CONCLUSION: Women wanted their clinicians to initiate discussions of menopause rather than wait for women to mention symptoms. Prioritizing menopause training for clinicians taking care of midlife African American women may help to improve discussions of menopause.

Primary outcomes from Partner2Lose: A randomized controlled trial to evaluate partner involvement on long-term weight loss.

Background: Partner support is associated with better weight loss outcomes in observational studies, but randomized trials show mixed results for including partners. Unclear is whether teaching communication skills to couples will improve weight loss in index participants. Purpose: To compare the efficacy of a partner-assisted intervention versus participant-only weight management program on long-term weight loss. Methods: This community-based study took place in Madison, WI. Index participants were eligible if they met obesity guideline criteria to receive weight loss counseling, were aged 74 years or younger, lived with a partner, and had no medical contraindications to weight loss; partners were aged 74 years or younger and not underweight. Couples were randomized 1:1 to a partner-assisted or participant-only intervention. Index participants in both arms received an evidence-based weight management program. In the partner-assisted arm, partners attended half of the intervention sessions, and couples were trained in communication skills. The primary outcome was index participant weight at 24 months, assessed by masked personnel; secondary outcomes were 24-month self-reported caloric intake and average daily steps assessed by an activity tracker. General linear mixed models were used to compare group differences in these outcomes following intent-to-treat principles. Results: Among couples assigned to partner-assisted (n=115) or participant-only intervention (n=116), most index participants identified as female (67%) and non-Hispanic White (87%). Average baseline age was 47.27 years (SD 11.51 years) and weight was 106.55 kg (SD 19.41 kg). The estimated mean 24-month weight loss was similar in the partner-assisted (2.66 kg) and participant-only arms (2.89 kg) (estimated mean difference, 0.23 kg [95% CI, -1.58, 2.04 kg]). There were no differences in 24-month average daily caloric intake (50 cal [95% CI: -233, 132 cal]) or steps (806 steps [95% CI: -1675, 64 steps]). The percentage of participants reporting an adverse event with at least possible attribution to the intervention did not differ by arm (partner-assisted: 9%, participant-only, 3%, p=0.11). Conclusions: Partner-assisted and individual weight management interventions led to similar outcomes in index participants. Trial registration: Clinicaltrials.gov NCT03801174.

Quality of Life Outcomes According to Differential Nusinersen Exposure in Pediatric Spinal Muscular Atrophy.

The purpose of this study was to explore early changes in patient and family caregiver report of quality of life and family impact during the transitional period of nusinersen use. Communication; family relationships; physical, emotional, social, and cognitive functioning; and daily activities were measured using Pediatric Quality of Life modules (Family Impact Modules and both Patient and Proxy Neuromuscular-Specific Reports) pre- and post-nusinersen exposure. A total of 35 patients with SMA (15 Type 1, 14 Type 2, and 6 Type 3) were grouped according to nusinersen exposure. When analyzed as a whole cross-sectional clinical population, no significant differences were found between the initial and final surveys. Nusinersen therapy was associated with improved communication and emotional functioning in subsets of the population, particularly for patients on maintenance therapy for longer duration. Several unexpected potentially negative findings including increases in family resources and trends towards increases in worry warrant further consideration. Further research is warranted to explore the impact of novel pharmaceuticals on quality of life for children with SMA longitudinally to optimize clinical and psychosocial outcomes.

A Prospective, Crossover Survey Study of Child- and Proxy-Reported Quality of Life According to Spinal Muscular Atrophy Type and Medical Interventions.

BACKGROUND: Spinal muscular atrophy is an autosomal-recessive, progressive neuromuscular disease associated with extensive morbidity. Children with spinal muscular atrophy have potentially increased life spans due to improved nutrition, respiratory support, and novel pharmaceuticals. OBJECTIVES: To report on the quality of life and family experience for children with spinal muscular atrophy with attentiveness to patient- and proxy-concordance and to stratify quality of life reports by spinal muscular atrophy type and medical interventions. METHODS: A prospective, crossover survey study inclusive of 58 children (26 spinal muscular atrophy type I, 23 type II, 9 type III) and their family caregivers at a free-standing Midwestern children's hospital. Twenty-eight families completed the 25-item PedsQL 3.0 Neuromuscular Module. Forty-four participants completed the 36-item PedsQL Family Impact Module and 47 completed the Caregiver Priorities and Child Health Index of Life with Disabilities (CPCHILD) questionnaire. RESULTS: The PedsQL Family Impact Module demonstrated significant differences between spinal muscular atrophy types I and II in functioning domains including physical, emotional, social, and family relations (P < .03). Child self-report and proxy report surveys demonstrated significant differences between spinal muscular atrophy types in the communication domains (P < .003). Children self-reported their quality of life higher than proxy report of child quality of life. Gastrostomy tube (P = .001) and ventilation support (P = .029) impacted proxy-reported quality of life perspectives, whereas nusinersen use did not. Spinal surgery was associated with improved parental quality of life and family impact (P < .03). CONCLUSIONS: The measurement and monitoring of quality of life for children with spinal muscular atrophy and their families represents an implementable priority for care teams.

Close proximity, but not VLA-4-dependent adherence between pre-B cells and bone marrow stromal cells, is required for DMBA-induced apoptosis of pre-B cells in vitro.

We have previously reported that 7,12-dimethylbenz[a]anthracene (DMBA) induced apoptosis in precursor B lymphocytes (pre-B cells) only when they were co-cultured with bone marrow stromal (BMS) cells. The goal of this research was to determine whether this process was dependent on the adherence of the pre-B cells and stromal cells. Conditioned media from DMBA-treated BMS cells induced apoptosis in pre-B cells, but only when the pre-B cells were co-cultured with stromal cells. This result suggested that stromal cells may release a soluble factor that initiates apoptosis, but their presence was still required for apoptosis. When the stromal cells and pre-B cells were separated with a membrane filter insert, DMBA-induced apoptosis of the pre-B cells was blocked suggesting that contact with or close proximity to stromal cells was required for apoptosis. The addition of an anti-VLA-4 Mab disrupted adherence of pre-B cells to the stromal cell monolayer, but did not diminish the numbers of apoptotic pre-B cells. The results of this study support the hypothesis stromal cells and pre-B cells must be in close proximity for apoptosis to occur, but direct interaction via VLA-4 and VCAM-1 is unlikely to be required for this response.