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Jennifer Corwin-Buell, Denise Callahan, Deborah McGrath, Kimberly Millard, Gary Mosehauer, Nitasha R Phatak Vision Care, Bausch & Lomb Incorporated, Rochester, NY, USACorrespondence: Nitasha R Phatak, Vision Care, Bausch & Lomb Incorporated, Rochester, NY, USA, Tel +1 585-413-6397, Email Nitasha.Phatak@bausch.comPurpose: This study was conducted to evaluate and compare the in vitro disinfection efficacies of six commercial lens cleaning and disinfecting products for planned replacement soft contact lenses.Methods: Disinfection efficacies of five multi-purpose solutions (MPSs) and one hydrogen peroxide solution (HPS) as control were evaluated in the presence of organic soil according to the International Organization for Standardization (ISO, Geneva, Switzerland) ISO 14729 stand-alone test protocol. The five specified compendial organisms, three bacteria (Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Serratia marcescens) and two fungi (Candida albicans and Fusarium solani) were incubated with each solution under standard conditions, after which microbes were recovered and quantified.Results: Each of the solutions evaluated met or exceeded the standard’s primary criteria (3-log reduction of bacteria and 1-log reduction of fungi) after incubation for the manufacturer-recommended soaking time, except for COMPLETE MPS, which achieved only 0.4 ± 0.1 average log reduction for C. albicans. However, differences in efficacy between the solutions were noted. Average log reduction across all microbes for Biotrue Hydration Plus (4.6 ± 0.1) was comparable to that for CLEAR CARE PLUS HPS (4.3 ± 0.1) and greater than those for OPTI-FREE puremoist (3.6 ± 0.1), OPTI-FREE Replenish (4.0 ± 0.2), ACUVUE RevitaLens (3.9 ± 0.03), and COMPLETE MPS (3.6 ± 0.1). Biotrue Hydration Plus was especially effective at reducing the population of C. albicans (4.2 ± 0.7-log reduction).Conclusion: Products marketed for planned replacement soft CL disinfection generally meet the ISO 14729 standard’s primary criteria for reducing populations of compendial organisms, with larger differences between solutions noted with C. albicans.Keywords: multi-purpose solution, MPS, hydrogen peroxide solution, HPS, disinfection, myristamidopropyl dimethylamine, MAPD, polyhexamethylene biguanide, PHMB, ISO 14729

Robert John Laidlaw, Richard McGrath,* Caroline Adams,* Saravana Kumar,* Carolyn M Murray Allied Health and Human Performance, IIMPACT in Health, University of South Australia, Adelaide, South Australia, 5001, Australia*These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Carolyn M Murray, Senior Lecturer, Occupational Therapy Program, University of South Australia, PO Box 2471, Adelaide, South Australia, 5001, Australia, Email carolyn.murray@unisa.edu.auAbstract: Older people can experience health and social challenges such as loneliness, depression, and lack of social connectedness. One initiative that has been trialed to address these challenges is reminiscence programs. These programs can include music, art, photographs, sports, and general discussion to stimulate memories. This review aimed to systematically search for literature that explored the impact and experience of reminiscence programs for older people living in the community for the purposes of informing community programming. The PICOS framework was used to develop the review parameters and search strategy. Qualitative and quantitative research focused on community-based reminiscence programs were included. Commercially produced databases and grey literature were searched. The Critical Appraisal Skills Program qualitative critical appraisal tool and McMaster quantitative critical appraisal tool were used to assess the methodological quality of the included studies. Quantitative data were descriptively synthesized, and qualitative data were thematically analyzed, with each reported separately. Twenty-seven studies were included in the review. All quantitative studies (n = 17) provided clear information regarding the purpose, sample size, and justification. The measures adopted were reliable and valid. All studies reported clear data collection/analysis information and statistically significant findings. All qualitative studies (n = 10) clearly articulated a purpose with nine clearly describing recruitment, data collection, and researcher relationship. Synthesis of quantitative data demonstrated positive findings through a reduction in depression, anxiety, and loneliness and improvements in quality of life and mastery. These findings were supported and broadened by qualitative findings with three key themes identified: program processes, program ingredients, and program benefits. Providing opportunities for older adults to come together to tell stories about their past experiences may positively contribute to social outcomes. As reminiscence programs gain popularity, their implementation in practice should be underpinned by clear and reproducible practices.Keywords: health, loneliness, depression, quality of life, relationships

Ping-Chen Hou,1,* Nathalie del Agua,2,3,* Su M Lwin,4 Chao-Kai Hsu,1– 3 John A McGrath1,3,4 1Department of Dermatology, National Cheng Kung University Hospital, College of Medicine, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan, Taiwan; 2Institute of Clinical Medicine, College of Medicine, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan, Taiwan; 3International Center for Wound Repair and Regeneration (iWRR), National Cheng Kung University, Tainan, Taiwan; 4St John’s Institute of Dermatology, School of Basic and Medical Biosciences, King’s College London, London, UK*These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Chao-Kai Hsu, Department of Dermatology, National Cheng Kung University Hospital, 138 Sheng-Li Road, Tainan City, Taiwan, Tel +886-62353535 Ext.5415, Fax +886-62766180, Email kylehsu@mail.ncku.edu.tw John A McGrath, St John’s Institute of Dermatology, School of Basic and Medical Biosciences, King’s College London, London, UK, Tel +44-2071886409, Fax +44-2071888050, Email john.mcgrath@kcl.ac.ukAbstract: Dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa (DEB) is one of the major types of EB, a rare hereditary group of trauma-induced blistering skin disorders. DEB is caused by inherited pathogenic variants in the COL7A1 gene, which encodes type VII collagen, the major component of anchoring fibrils which maintain adhesion between the outer epidermis and underlying dermis. DEB can be subclassified into dominant (DDEB) and recessive (RDEB) forms. Generally, DDEB has a milder phenotype, while RDEB patients often have more extensive blistering, chronic inflammation, skin fibrosis, and a propensity for squamous cell carcinoma development, collectively impacting on daily activities and life expectancy. At present, best practice treatments are mostly supportive, and thus there is a considerable burden of disease with unmet therapeutic need. Over the last 20 years, considerable translational research efforts have focused on either trying to cure DEB by direct correction of the COL7A1 gene pathology, or by modifying secondary inflammation to lessen phenotypic severity and improve patient symptoms such as poor wound healing, itch, and pain. In this review, we provide an overview and update on various therapeutic innovations for DEB, including gene therapy, cell-based therapy, protein therapy, and disease-modifying and symptomatic control agents. We outline the progress and challenges for each treatment modality and identify likely prospects for future clinical impact.Keywords: skin, blister, gene therapy, cell therapy, inflammation, fibrosis

Chase D Latour,1,2 Leah J McGrath,2 Mary Clouser,3 Carrie Nielson,3 Ying Yu,2 Akhila Balasubramanian,3 Alexander Breskin,1,2 M Alan Brookhart2,4 1Department of Epidemiology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA; 2Target RWE, Durham, NC, USA; 3Center for Observational Research, Amgen Inc., Thousand Oaks, CA, USA; 4Department of Population Health Sciences, Duke University, Durham, NC, USACorrespondence: Chase D Latour, Department of Epidemiology, UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 135 Dauer Drive, 2101 McGavran-Greenberg Hall, CB #7435, Chapel Hill, NC, USA, Tel +1 765 418 2743, Email chasedlatour@gmail.comPurpose: Regression-to-the-mean (RTM) is a statistical phenomenon that may occur in epidemiologic studies where inclusion in the study cohort is contingent upon experiencing a laboratory/clinical measurement beyond a defined threshold. When differential across treatment groups, RTM could bias the final study estimate. This poses substantial challenges in observational studies that index patients upon experiencing extreme laboratory or clinical values. Our objective was to investigate propensity score-based methods as a tool for mitigating this source of bias via simulation.Methods: We simulated a noninterventional comparative effectiveness study, comparing treatment with romiplostim to standard-of-care therapies for immune thrombocytopenia (ITP), a disease characterized by low platelet counts. Platelet counts were generated from normal distributions according to the underlying ITP severity, a strong confounder of treatment and outcome. Patients were assigned treatment probabilities based upon ITP severity, which created varied levels of differential and non-differential RTM. Treatments were compared via the difference in median platelet counts during 23 weeks of follow-up. We calculated four summary metrics of the platelet counts measured prior to cohort entry and built six propensity score models to adjust for those variables. We adjusted for these summary metrics using inverse probability of treatment weights.Results: Across all simulated scenarios, propensity score adjustment reduced bias and increased precision of the treatment effect estimator. Adjusting for combinations of the summary metrics was most effective at reducing bias. Adjusting for the mean of prior platelet counts or the difference between the cohort-qualifying platelet count and the largest prior count eliminated the most bias when assessed individually.Conclusion: These results suggest that differential RTM could be reasonably addressed by propensity score models with summaries of historical laboratory values. This approach can be easily applied to any comparative effectiveness or safety study, though investigators should carefully consider the best summary metric for their data.Keywords: bias correction, propensity scores, real-world evidence, immune thrombocytopenia

The mineral processing industry faces a pressing challenge of declining productivity, particularly in metal minerals production, driven by soaring operational costs, with crushing and grinding operations accounting for a substantial portion of the energy consumption. To mitigate these challenges, early gangue rejection or preconcentration is proposed as an effective solution. This approach involves the removal of non-valuable materials and the concentration of valuable minerals at the initial processing stages, leading to increased efficiency, higher ore feed grades, cost savings, and reduced environmental impact. Various methods for gangue rejection exist, with gravity-based separation and ore sorting being the predominant options. Gravity-based separation stands out for its simplicity and versatility, making it the preferred choice in many scenarios. This study introduces a novel approach for evaluating gangue rejection potential, optimizing data distribution, and generating theoretical separation potential curves that account for both grade and density criteria. These curves provide insights into material rejection, metal losses, and optimal separation points, offering valuable guidance for mineral processing operations. Additionally, the study investigates the correlation between raw ore grade and density data, highlighting a strong relationship across different size fractions. This finding suggests that gravity-based separation can effectively rely on both grade and density parameters, resolving previous disparities observed in distribution models. By shedding light on advanced gangue rejection strategies, this research contributes to improved productivity and informed decision-making in the mineral processing industry.

Emily O’Reilly,1 Deborah Casey,1 Hisham Ibrahim,1 Alice McGrath,1 Tomás McHugh,1 Punitha Vairamani,1 Jill Murphy,1 Barry Plant,1,2 Desmond M Murphy1,2 1Department of Respiratory Medicine, Cork University Hospital, Cork, Ireland; 2Health Research Board Clinical Research Facility, University College Cork, Cork, IrelandCorrespondence: Desmond M Murphy, Department of Respiratory Medicine, Cork University Hospital, Wilton, Cork, Ireland, Email desmond.murphy@hse.ie