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Summary: Worldwide prevalence of adult overweight and obesity is a growing public health issue. Adults with overweight/obesity often have chronic musculoskeletal pain. Using a mixed‐methods review, we aimed to quantify the effectiveness and explore the appropriateness of weight loss interventions for this population. Electronic databases were searched for studies published between 01/01/90 and 01/07/16. The review included 14 randomized controlled trials that reported weight and pain outcomes and three qualitative studies that explored perceptions of adults with co‐existing overweight/obesity and chronic musculoskeletal pain. The random‐effects pooled mean weight loss was 4.9 kg (95%CI:2.9,6.8) greater for intervention vs control. The pooled mean reduction in pain was 7.3/100 units (95%CI:4.1,10.5) greater for intervention vs control. Study heterogeneity was substantial for weight loss (I2 = 95%, tau = ±3.5 kg) and pain change (I2 = 67%, tau = ±4.1%). Meta‐regression slopes for the predictors of study quality, mean age and baseline mean weight on mean study weight reduction were shallow and not statistically significant (P > 0.05). The meta‐regression slope between mean pain reduction and mean weight lost was shallow, and not statistically significant, −0.09 kg per unit pain score change (95%CI:−0.21,0.40, P = 0.54). Meta‐synthesis of qualitative findings resulted in two synthesized findings; the importance of healthcare professionals understanding the effects of pain on ability to control weight and developing management/education programmes that address comorbidity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The X-ray spectra of pure elements, excited using MeV energy beam of protons from the nuclear microprobe, have known spectra signatures. This makes X-ray spectra for more complex mixtures amenable to decomposition into contributions from the component elements. By devising this procedure as a matrix operation that transforms directly from spectrum vector to elemental concentration vector, the decomposition can be performed very efficiently enabling the real-time projection of the component element signals. In the case of a raster-scanned beam, with data that contain position information for each X-ray event, this approach enables the real-time projection of component element spatial distribution images. This paper describes the matrix transform approach called dynamic analysis (DA), which enables on-line real-time imaging of major and trace elements using proton-induced X-ray emission (PIXE). The method also provides off-line iterative yield corrections to these images to compensate for changing sample composition across an image area. The resulting images are quantitative in two respects: (1) they resolve the pure element components and strongly reject interferences from other elements and (2) they can be directly interrogated for sample composition at each pixel, over areas, or along lines across the image area, with accuracy comparable to microanalytical point analysis methods. The paper describes the DA method, presents tests, and discusses its application to quantitative major and trace element imaging in geology. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Int J Imaging Syst Technol 11, 219–230, 2000 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the spatial distribution of lead in enamel and coronal dentine of human primary teeth which would provide temporal information regarding the pattern and intensity of lead exposure experienced during the prenatal and neonatal periods of development. In the outer layers of enamel, high concentration of lead was found whereas the interior of enamel had substantially lower concentrations of lead. The spatial distribution of lead in coronal dentine adjacent to the dentinoenamel junction showed a strong positive correlation with lead intake. The results of the animal experiments and pilot human study support the applicability of dentine-lead levels as a biomarker for prenatal and neonatal lead exposure.