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Abreu MIT, Santos AF, Gama JMR, Valente S, Valente MJ, Pereira H, Regateiro F, Sousa-Pinto B, Ventura MT, Bousquet J, Taborda-Barata L. Factors Affecting Usage of a Digital Asthma Monitoring Application by Old-Age Asthmatics Living in Inner Central Portugal. Clin Interv Aging 2024; 19:971-979. [PMID: 38827238 PMCID: PMC11143487 DOI: 10.2147/cia.s448797] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/23/2023] [Accepted: 04/01/2024] [Indexed: 06/04/2024] Open
Abstract
Purpose To analyse factors affecting the ability to use the digital asthma monitoring application Mask-Air® in old-age individuals living in inland Portugal. Patients and Methods In this observational study, patients with medically confirmed asthma who agreed to participate were interviewed and subdivided into Non-users Group: those who could not use the application and Users Group: those who could. Sociodemographic and psychological data, comorbidities, and asthma status were compared between groups. Assessment of reasons for refusal was based on a 6-item questionnaire. Results Among the 72 sequentially recruited patients (mean age±SD 73.26±5.43 yrs; 61 women; 11 men), 44 (61.1%; mean age±SD 74.64±5.68 yrs; 38 women; 6 men)) were included in Non-users Group and 28 (38.9%; mean age±SD 71.11±4.26 yrs; 23 women; 5 men) in Users Group. Non-users Group patients were significantly older, had lower socioeconomic level, and more frequently had severe asthma (25% vs 3.6%; Odds ratio=0.08 (95% CI=0.01-0.81; p=0.033)) and diabetes (32.6% vs 7.4%; Odds ratio=0.17 (95% CI=0.03-0.80; p=0.025)) than Users Group. The main reasons for not using the App were "Lack of required hardware" (n=35) and "Digital illiteracy" (n=26), but lack of interest to use the App among those who had conditions to use it was uncommon. Conclusion Most old-age asthmatics living in Beira Interior either lack a smartphone or digital skills, which are significant obstacles to implementing app-based monitoring studies.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Adalberto Fernandes Santos
- Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Beira Interior, Covilhã, Portugal
- CICS-UBI – Health Sciences Research Centre, University of Beira Interior, Covilhã, Portugal
- Faculty of Medicine, Agostinho Neto University, Luanda, Angola
| | - Jorge M R Gama
- Center of Mathematics and Applications, Faculty of Sciences, University of Beira Interior, Covilhã, Portugal
| | - Salete Valente
- Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Beira Interior, Covilhã, Portugal
- Department of Pulmonology, Cova da Beira University Hospital Centre, Covilhã, Portugal
| | - Maria Jesus Valente
- Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Beira Interior, Covilhã, Portugal
- Department of Pulmonology, Cova da Beira University Hospital Centre, Covilhã, Portugal
| | - Henrique Pereira
- Psychology and Education Department, Faculty of Human and Social Sciences, University of Beira Interior, Covilhã, Portugal
- The Research Center in Sports Sciences, Health Sciences and Human Development (CIDESD), University of Beira Interior, Covilhã, Portugal
| | - Frederico Regateiro
- CICS-UBI – Health Sciences Research Centre, University of Beira Interior, Covilhã, Portugal
- Institute of Immunology, Faculty of Medicine of the University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal
- Centro de Neurociências e Biologia Celular, CIBB, University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal
- Allergy & Clinical Immunology Unit, Centro Hospitalar e Universitário de Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal
| | - Bernardo Sousa-Pinto
- MEDCIDS - Department of Community Medicine, Information and Health Decision Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Porto, Porto, Portugal
- CINTESIS - Center for Health Technology and Services Research, University of Porto, Porto, Portugal
| | - Maria Teresa Ventura
- Unit of Geriatric Immunoallergology, University of Bari Medical School, Bari, Italy
- Institute of Science of Food Production, National Research Council (Ispa-Cnr), Bari, Italy
| | - Jean Bousquet
- Institute of Allergology, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
- Allergology and Immunology, Fraunhofer Institute for Translational Medicine and Pharmacology ITMP, Berlin, Germany
- Department of Pulmonology, University Hospital Montpellier, Montpellier, France
| | - Luis Taborda-Barata
- Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Beira Interior, Covilhã, Portugal
- CICS-UBI – Health Sciences Research Centre, University of Beira Interior, Covilhã, Portugal
- UBIAir - Clinical & Experimental Lung Centre, UBIMedical, University of Beira Interior, Covilhã, Portugal
- Department of Immunoallergology, Cova da Beira University Hospital Centre, Covilhã, Portugal
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Fabian MCP, Astorga RMN, Atis AAG, Pilapil LAE, Hernandez CC. Anti-diabetic and anti-inflammatory bioactive hits from Coriaria intermedia Matsum. stem and Dracontomelon dao (Blanco) Merr. & Rolfe bark through bioassay-guided fractionation and liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. Front Pharmacol 2024; 15:1349725. [PMID: 38523640 PMCID: PMC10957545 DOI: 10.3389/fphar.2024.1349725] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/05/2023] [Accepted: 02/07/2024] [Indexed: 03/26/2024] Open
Abstract
Women have been found to be at a higher risk of morbidity and mortality from type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and asthma. α-Glucosidase inhibitors have been used to treat T2DM, and arachidonic acid 15-lipoxygenase (ALOX15) inhibitors have been suggested to be used as treatments for asthma and T2DM. Compounds that inhibit both enzymes may be studied as potential treatments for people with both T2DM and asthma. This study aimed to determine potential anti-diabetic and anti-inflammatory bioactive hits from Coriaria intermedia Matsum. stem and Dracontomelon dao (Blanco) Merr. & Rolfe bark. A bioassay-guided fractionation framework was used to generate bioactive fractions from C. intermedia stem and D. dao bark. Subsequently, dereplication through ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-MS/MS) and database searching was performed to putatively identify the components of one bioactive fraction from each plant. Seven compounds were putatively identified from the C. intermedia stem active fraction, and six of these compounds were putatively identified from this plant for the first time. Nine compounds were putatively identified from the D. dao bark active fraction, and seven of these compounds were putatively identified from this plant for the first time. One putative compound from the C. intermedia stem active fraction (corilagin) has been previously reported to have inhibitory activity against both α-glucosidase and 15-lipoxygenase-1. It is suggested that further studies on the potential of corilagin as an anti-diabetic and anti-inflammatory treatment should be pursued based on its several beneficial pharmacological activities and its low reported toxicity.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | - Christine Chichioco Hernandez
- Bioorganic and Natural Products Laboratory, Institute of Chemistry, University of the Philippines Diliman, Quezon City, Philippines
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Madlock-Brown C, Lee A, Seltzer J, Solomonides A, Mathews N, Phuong J, Weiskopf N, Adams WG, Lehmann H, Espinoza J. Racial Disparities in Diabetes Care and Outcomes for Patients with Visual Impairment: A Descriptive Analysis of the TriNetX Research Network. RESEARCH SQUARE 2024:rs.3.rs-3901158. [PMID: 38352357 PMCID: PMC10862972 DOI: 10.21203/rs.3.rs-3901158/v1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/23/2024]
Abstract
Background: This research delves into the confluence of racial disparities and health inequities among individuals with disabilities, with a focus on those contending with both diabetes and visual impairment. Methods: Utilizing data from the TriNetX Research Network, which includes electronic medical records of roughly 115 million patients from 83 anonymous healthcare organizations, this study employs a directed acyclic graph (DAG) to pinpoint confounders and augment interpretation. We identified patients with visual impairments using ICD-10 codes, deliberately excluding diabetes-related ophthalmology complications. Our approach involved multiple race-stratified analyses, comparing co-morbidities like chronic pulmonary disease in visually impaired patients against their counterparts. We assessed healthcare access disparities by examining the frequency of annual visits, instances of two or more A1c measurements, and glomerular filtration rate (GFR) measurements. Additionally, we evaluated diabetes outcomes by comparing the risk ratio of uncontrolled diabetes (A1c > 9.0) and chronic kidney disease in patients with and without visual impairments. Results: The incidence of diabetes was substantially higher (nearly double) in individuals with visual impairments across White, Asian, and African American populations. Higher rates of chronic kidney disease were observed in visually impaired individuals, with a risk ratio of 1.79 for African American, 2.27 for White, and non-significant for the Asian group. A statistically significant difference in the risk ratio for uncontrolled diabetes was found only in the White cohort (0.843). White individuals without visual impairments were more likely to receive two A1c tests, a trend not significant in other racial groups. African Americans with visual impairments had a higher rate of glomerular filtration rate testing. However, White individuals with visual impairments were less likely to undergo GFR testing, indicating a disparity in kidney health monitoring. This pattern of disparity was not observed in the Asian cohort. Conclusions: This study uncovers pronounced disparities in diabetes incidence and management among individuals with visual impairments, particularly among White, Asian, and African American groups. Our DAG analysis illuminates the intricate interplay between SDoH, healthcare access, and frequency of crucial diabetes monitoring practices, highlighting visual impairment as both a medical and social issue.
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