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The nuclear charge radius of ^{32}Si was determined using collinear laser spectroscopy. The experimental result was confronted with ab initio nuclear lattice effective field theory, valence-space in-medium similarity renormalization group, and mean field calculations, highlighting important achievements and challenges of modern many-body methods. The charge radius of ^{32}Si completes the radii of the mirror pair ^{32}Ar-^{32}Si, whose difference was correlated to the slope L of the symmetry energy in the nuclear equation of state. Our result suggests L≤60  MeV, which agrees with complementary observables.

The changes in the mean-square charge radius (relative to ^{209}Bi), magnetic dipole, and electric quadrupole moments of ^{187,188,189,191}Bi were measured using the in-source resonance-ionization spectroscopy technique at ISOLDE (CERN). A large staggering in radii was found in ^{187,188,189}Bi^{g}, manifested by a sharp radius increase for the ground state of ^{188}Bi relative to the neighboring ^{187,189}Bi^{g}. A large isomer shift was also observed for ^{188}Bi^{m}. Both effects happen at the same neutron number, N=105, where the shape staggering and a similar isomer shift were observed in the mercury isotopes. Experimental results are reproduced by mean-field calculations where the ground or isomeric states were identified by the blocked quasiparticle configuration compatible with the observed spin, parity, and magnetic moment.

Objectives: Our aim in this pilot study was to identify potential predictors of chronic post-surgical pain (CPSP) and other outcomes to consider for inclusion in future prospective studies of CPSP following abdominal gastrointestinal surgery., Methods: We followed 76 surgical patients during this prospective single-centre cohort study. Pain characteristics, health-related quality of life (HRQOL), and healthcare utilization were assessed preoperatively, at six weeks postoperatively, and at six months postoperatively. Statistical analyses included descriptive statistics and repeated measures analysis of variance., Results: Prior to surgery, 42% of patients reported no pain, 18% reported remote pain, and 33% reported pain at the surgical site. Six months after surgery, 29% of patients with preoperative remote pain and 35% of patients with preoperative pain at the surgical site reported CPSP. Pain-related interference declined from the preoperative to postoperative period; however, six months after surgery almost one-third of participants continued to report pain-related interference with mood (28%), sleep (30%), and enjoyment of life (30%). Consistent with studies of other surgical procedures, measures of anxiety and depression were associated with an increased risk of CPSP. During the six months following surgery, 12% of patients visited the Emergency Department, 15% visited non-traditional providers, and 9.2% visited a walk-in clinic for pain. Compared with Canadian norms, HRQOL was poorer in all domains preoperatively, in all domains but mental health six weeks postoperatively, and in most domains six months postoperatively., Conclusion: This feasibility study provides a template for future studies of CPSP following gastrointestinal surgery. Results suggest a substantial burden of persistent pain, healthcare utilization, and decreased HRQOL. Larger-scale studies that are similarly designed will serve to identify predictors of CPSP in this surgical population.

Background and Objectives: A better understanding of the pathogenesis of chronic postsurgical pain is needed in order to develop effective prevention and treatment interventions. The objective of this study was to evaluate the incidence and risk factors for chronic postsurgical pain in women undergoing gynecologic surgery., Methods: Pain characteristics, opioid consumption, and psychologic factors were captured before and 6 months after surgery. Analyses included univariate statistics, relative risks (RRs) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs), and modified Poisson regression for binary data., Results: Pain and pain interference 6 months after surgery was reported by 14% (n = 60/433) and 12% (n = 54/433), respectively. Chronic postsurgical pain was reported by 23% (n = 39/172) with preoperative pelvic pain, 17% (n = 9/54) with preoperative remote pain, and 5.1% (n = 10/197) with no preoperative pain. Preoperative state anxiety (RR = 1.8; 95% CI, 1.1-2.8), preoperative pain (pelvic RR = 3.7; 95% CI, 1.9-7.2; remote RR = 3.0; 95% CI, 1.3-6.9), and moderate/severe in-hospital pain (RR = 3.0; 95% CI, 1.0-9.4) independently predicted chronic postsurgical pain. The same 3 factors predicted pain-interference at 6 months. Participants describing preoperative pelvic pain as "miserable" and "shooting" were 2.8 (range, 1.3-6.4) and 2.1 (range, 1.1-4.0) times more likely to report chronic postsurgical pain, respectively. Women taking preoperative opioids were 2.0 (range, 1.2-3.3) times more likely to report chronic postsurgical pain than those not taking opioids. Women with preoperative pelvic pain who took preoperative opioids were 30% (RR = 1.3; 95% CI, 0.8-1.9) more likely to report chronic postsurgical pain than those with preoperative pelvic pain not taking opioids., Conclusions: Preoperative pain, state anxiety, pain quality descriptors, opioid consumption, and early postoperative pain may be important predictors of chronic postsurgical pain, which require further investigation.

Objectives: To measure the change in health-related quality of life (HRQOL) before and after gynaecologic surgery and to compare HRQOL to age-matched Canadian normative data., Methods: This prospective observational cohort study consisted of a convenience sample of 460 women scheduled for elective gynaecologic surgery. Women underwent surgery for a variety of reasons, including cancer, menorrhagia/dysfunctional uterine bleeding, benign uterine masses, prolapse or urinary incontinence, and chronic pelvic pain syndromes. Women were recruited preoperatively and followed for six months after surgery. HRQOL questionnaires were completed preoperatively and at six weeks and six months postoperatively, using the SF-36, and compared between time points and against normative data. Analysis included univariate statistics, repeated measures ANOVA, paired t tests, and independent samples t tests., Results: The mean age of women in the study cohort was 49 years (± 11); the majority were married, employed, had an education beyond high school, were overweight or obese, had a hysterectomy, and had an abdominal incision. Twenty-eight percent underwent surgery for cancer. General and mental health domains showed significant improvement between the preoperative and six-week postoperative assessments, while the remaining domains showed statistically significant declines. All but one (general health) of 10 outcomes saw significant improvements from the preoperative to the six-month follow-up assessment. Preoperatively, the surgical sample scored worse on all but one (role emotional) outcome than the normative data. By six months, domain scores were much closer to normative values., Conclusion: Health-related quality of life improved considerably from the preoperative period to six months postoperative in women who underwent gynaecologic surgery. When compared with normative data from age-matched women, the surgical sample reported significantly reduced HRQOL preoperatively and at six weeks following surgery, but by six months after surgery HRQOL had rebounded to the point of being comparable to age-matched peers.