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Exciton transport in extended molecular systems and how to manipulate such transport in a complex environment are essential to many energy and optical-related applications. We investigate the mechanism of plasmon-coupled exciton transport by using the Pauli master equation approach, combined with kinetic rates derived from macroscopic quantum electrodynamics. Through our theoretical framework, we demonstrate that the presence of a silver nanorod induces significant frequency dependence in the ability of transporting exciton through a molecule chain, indicated by the exciton diffusion coefficient, due to the dispersive nature of the silver dielectric response. Compared with the same system in vacuum, great enhancement (up to a factor of 103) in the diffusion coefficient can be achieved by coupling the resonance energy transfer process to localized surface plasmon polariton modes of the nanorod. Furthermore, our analysis reveals that the diffusion coefficients with the nearest-neighbor coupling approximation are ∼10 times smaller than the results obtained beyond this approximation, emphasizing the significance of long-range coupling in exciton transport influenced by plasmonic nanostructures. This study not only paves the way for exploring practical approaches to study plasmon-coupled exciton transport but also provides crucial insights for the design of innovative plasmon-assisted photovoltaic applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Aim: The aim of this study was to assess the impact of body mass index (BMI) on the clinical and histological characteristics of patients with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). Methods: Patients with clinically diagnosed NAFLD who received liver biopsy were retrospectively enrolled from 2007 to 2019. For comparison, all of the patients were divided into lean body mass (< 23 kg/m2), overweight (23–24.9 kg/m2), and obesity (BMI ≧ 25 kg/m2). Results: A total of 572 patients with histologically confirmed NAFLD, including 40 (6.99%) lean body mass, 54 (9.44%) overweight, and 478 (83.57%) obese patients, were recruited. Obese NAFLD patients had significantly higher grade of steatosis (grade 3: 29.92% vs 22.22% vs 12.5%, P < 0.0001) and hepatocyte ballooning (grade 2: 14.85% vs 12.96% vs 12.5%, P < 0.0001) than overweight and lean NAFLD patients. The prevalence of nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) was 22.5%, 25.93%, and 36.19% in lean, overweight, and obese NAFLD patients, respectively. Obesity was significantly associated with fibrosis severity (P = 0.03). The fibrosis index based on four factors (FIB‐4) score can identify NAFLD patients without significant fibrosis or with cirrhosis. The areas under the receiver‐operating characteristic curve of FIB‐4 score to identify patients without significant fibrosis or with cirrhosis were 0.82 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.69–0.96) and 0.87 (95% CI: 0.76–0.99) in lean patients; 0.77 (95% CI: 0.61–0.93) and 0.81 (95% CI: 0.59–1.0) in overweight patients; and 0.77 (95% CI: 0.72–0.82) and 0.89 (95% CI: 0.85–0.92) in obese patients. Conclusions: The majority of NAFLD patients are obese, as defined by BMI. Obesity was significantly associated with NASH and hepatic fibrosis severity in patients with NAFLD. In the present study, we demonstrated that the prevalence of nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) was higher in obese NAFLD patients than in those with lean and overweight NAFLD. Histologically, obese NAFLD patients had significantly higher grade of steatosis and hepatocyte ballooning than lean and overweight NAFLD patients. Moreover, the fibrosis index based on four factors (FIB‐4) score had good values of area under receiver‐operating characteristic curves to identify NAFLD patients without significant fibrosis or with cirrhosis, irrespective the body mass index. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We characterized the heterogeneity and risk factors of cognitive decline in euthymic bipolar disorder (BD), and their magnitude of associations with subjective daily functions. In this retrospective cohort, BD type I patients (N = 128) were followed for an average of 6.5 years. Intelligence quotient (IQ) at index date was recorded, and premorbid IQ was estimated. We used Brief Assessment of Cognition in Affective Disorders (BAC-A) to assess cognition at follow-up. We evaluated current functions with World Health Organization Disability Assessment Schedule 2.0. Clinical and sociodemographic factors were examined for their independent effects on longitudinal cognitive decline. In addition, we employed multivariate adaptive regression spline to detect inflection points for the nature of slope changes in cognitive decline among BD patients. During follow-up years, 21 BD patients (16.4%) showed longitudinal cognitive decline. In cognitive decline group, all cognitive domains of BAC-A were significantly worsened. We found that density of episodes with psychotic features was an independent risk factor for cognitive decline after adjusted for age, gender and dose of mood stabilizer. After the age of 42 years, a steeper cognitive change was observed in the cognitive decline group. The correlation pattern between cognitive domains and functional outcomes differed between patients with and without cognitive decline. The present study characterized cognitive heterogeneity longitudinally in BD patients. As density of episodes play roles for cognitive decline, our results emphasize the importance of relapse prevention. Our findings provide hints for future personalized interventions and facilitating genetic and biological studies for dissecting the heterogeneity of bipolar illness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Our previous study showed Tai‐Chi‐Chuan (TCC) training, a moderate exercise, at school improved pulmonary function and inflammation profiles in children with mild asthma. However, habitual practice is hard to maintain with the lack of continuous family and peer support. We investigated whether parental intervention with social media could enhance children's adherence to exercise at home and improve asthmatic outcome measures. Parents were opted to attend a 12‐week TCC classroom training, supervise home practice, and report to a four‐step web‐based social media platform to stay updated and motivated through logging activity and tracking competition. Fractional exhaled nitric oxide (FeNO), FEV1/FVC and peak expiratory flow (PEF) were measured before and after 12 weeks of training. Fifty‐three asthmatic children were allocated into non‐TCC (control, n = 12), TCC groups with moderate‐to‐severe (TCC‐S, n = 26) and mild‐to‐moderate (TCC‐M, n = 15) asthma. We found both TCC groups exhibited better pulmonary function than the non‐TCC control. TCC increased FVC in mild‐to‐moderate asthma children while more pronounced improvement in FEV1, FEV1/FVC, PEF and FeNO was noticed in moderate‐to‐severe asthmatic children. All TCC subjects retained greater participation and better interaction online except for low‐ranking families who dramatically dropped their practice 9 weeks later. For asthmatic children, moderate exercise improves pulmonary functions in a severity‐dependent fashion. Parent‐based Learn‐Practice‐Persuade‐Award wheel is a useful platform to motivate children engagement in physical activity. Classical social persuasive skills could enhance general parent‐child relationship but tend to decrease in persuasiveness over time in low‐ranking families. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to evaluate the association between visual impairment (VI) and psychological distress (PD) among older adults in Taiwan. The present cohort study included participants aged >65 years who participated in a physical examination program. Participants were divided into two groups on the basis of whether they had PD at baseline. The association between PD and VI with other variables was compared using the two-sample t-test for continuous variables and chi-squared test for discrete variables. Cox regression analyses were used to calculate the hazard ratio (HR). Cumulative incidence of PD was analyzed using the Kaplan-Meier method, and differences among participants with different severities of VI were analyzed using the two-tailed log-rank test. Subgroup analyses were performed to calculate the HR for PD among participants with different severities of VI. The PD group showed a significantly high percentage of VI. In addition, participants with VI showed a significantly higher HR and seven-year cumulative incidence rate of PD than those without VI. VI was independently and significantly associated with a higher incidence of PD among older Asian people. Therefore, identifying and treating correctible VI is important to prevent PD and improve the overall quality of life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Specimens (water/cement ratio of 0·35) with various volume fractions (0, 0·1, 0·2, 0·3, 0·4 and 0·5) of fine aggregates were cast and tested to investigate the behaviour of the interfacial transition zone in mortar and the effect of the interfacial transition zone on the chloride migration coefficient. The double-inclusion method and Mori-Tanaka theory were used to predict the migration coefficient of three-phase composite materials, which are cement paste, interfacial transition zone and fine aggregate. There are two stages to calculate the overall migration coefficient of mortar. The first stage, the equivalent migration coefficient of fine aggregate and the interfacial transition zone, was calculated by Hori and Nemat-Nasser's double-inclusion model. The second stage, the equivalent migration coefficient, was used to calculate the overall migration coefficient of the mortar composite by Mori-Tanaka theory. A comparison was conducted between the theoretical and experimental data in this study. The results indicated that the migration coefficient of the interfacial transition zone is 1·5 to 10 times the migration coefficient of cement paste when an interfacial transition zone thickness of 20 to 30 μm is assumed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background/purpose: Vaccination is the most important preventive measure to protect people from coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Governments worldwide have prioritized their vaccination policy against COVID-19. However, there is a lack of relevant research on Taiwanese attitudes and considerations toward COVID-19 vaccination. This study aimed to investigate the cognition, preventive behaviors, and attitudes toward COVID-19 vaccines that influence people's willingness to get vaccinated in Taiwan., Methods: From October 1 to 31, 2021, a computer-assisted telephone interview system was used to randomly select Taiwanese people to investigate their COVID-19 preventive behaviors, knowledge, and willingness to be vaccinated., Results: We included 2000 participants of whom 96.45% showed vaccination willingness. The overall mean age and knowledge scores were 48.6 years and 5.78, respectively. All of the participants chose to wear masks, and 80% chose to be vaccinated to prevent COVID-19. Compared with the non-willing vaccination participants, those with younger ages, higher incomes, and higher knowledge scores regarding masks and vaccination were more likely to be vaccinated. Furthermore, apprehensions about vaccine side effects and negative news about COVID-19 vaccines were the major reasons for vaccination hesitancy., Conclusion: To improve people's willingness to get vaccinated, the government should strive to deliver correct knowledge and refute inappropriate negative information about COVID-19 vaccination. Moreover, recommendation by physicians was an important factor for older individuals to decide on receiving the COVID-19 vaccine, and policies could be implemented from this aspect., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest All authors report there are no conflicts of interest to declare., (Copyright © 2024 Formosan Medical Association. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Background: Obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS) is a common disorder associated with serious sequelae. The current gold standard diagnostic method, polysomnography, is costly and time consuming and requires patients to stay overnight at a facility., Aim: This study aimed to reveal the prevalence of OSAS in general adult population using a home sleep test (HST) during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic., Methods: This prospective cohort study was conducted by the Department of Otolaryngology, Taipei City Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan, between January 2020 and December 2021. A total of 1372 patients aged 30-70 years completed an HST using a Type 3 portable sleep monitor (PM). The apnea-hypopnea index (AHI) was analyzed to assess the association of OSAS with age, body mass index (BMI), sex, Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS) and the Sleep Apnea Risk Assessment questionnaire (STOP-Bang questionnaire) rating., Results: The mean age of the patients (782 men, 57%; 590 women, 43%) was 49.24 ± 11.04 years. OSAS was detected in 954 (69.5%) patients with 399 (29.1%) mild OSAS; 246 (17.9%) moderate OSAS; and 309 (22.5%) severe OSAS. Among these, the prevalence of moderate-to-severe OSAS was 143 (10.4%) in women and 412 (30.0%) in men. The mean age was the highest (51.29 ± 11.29) in the mild OSAS group and lowest (47.08 ± 10.87) in the healthy group. OSAS severity was greater with increasing BMI, 23.39 ± 3.44 in the healthy group and 29.29 ± 5.01 in the severe OSAS group. A positive correlation was also noted between the ESS/STOP-Bang questionnaire rating and OSAS severity., Conclusion: The prevalence of OSAS in Taiwan was 69.5% in our study. It showed strong evidence that OSAS has important public health consequences and PMs are simple, fast, feasible, and cost-effective tools for OSAS screening in the home environment, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest., (© 2023 Chou et al.)

Background: Few prognostic factors have been proposed for patients with locally advanced renal cell carcinoma (RCC). This study aimed to investigate the possible predictive factors for disease-free survival (DFS) after curative surgery for RCC stage T3 or higher., Methods: Patients with locally advanced RCC who underwent cure-intended partial or radical nephrectomy, with or without tumor thrombectomy, at our institution from April 1, 2005 to October 31, 2013 were retrospectively reviewed. Those undergoing cytoreductive nephrectomy were excluded. Preoperative data, including surgical and pathologic characteristics, were assessed for correlation with DFS. Chi-square tests, univariate and multivariate Cox regression analysis, and Kaplan-Meier survival curve analyses were performed to determine potential predictive factors. A p value less than 0.05 was considered statistically significant., Results: A total of 159 patients were included for analysis. The mean duration of follow-up was 37.9 months, and 119 (74.8%) patients remained disease-free during follow-up. Disease recurrence was found in 40 (25.2%) patients, and pathologic T stage, capsule penetration, Fuhrman grade, thrombocytosis, renal vein thrombosis, and elevated serum alkaline phosphatase, platelet/lymphocyte ratio, and γ-glutamyl transpeptidase levels were significantly associated with disease recurrence on univariate analysis. On multivariate analysis, Fuhrman grade 3 or 4 (HR = 5.70, p = 0.0003, 95% CI = 2.23-14.56) showed significant associations with DFS., Conclusion: In patients with locally advanced RCC, Fuhrman grade was associated with worse DFS after curative surgery. Urologists should closely monitor patients with high Fuhrman grades., Competing Interests: Conflicts of interest: The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest related to the subject matter or materials discussed in this article., (Copyright © 2021, the Chinese Medical Association.)