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Helen Nothnagel,1,2,* Christian Puta,1,3,* Thomas Lehmann,4 Philipp Baumbach,5 Martha B Menard,6,7 Brunhild Gabriel,1 Holger H W Gabriel,1 Thomas Weiss,8 Frauke Musial2 1Department of Sports Medicine and Health Promotion, Friedrich Schiller University, Jena, Germany; 2Department of Community Medicine, National Research Center in Complementary and Alternative Medicine, UiT, The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway; 3Center for Interdisciplinary Prevention of Diseases Related to Professional Activities, 4Department of Medical Statistics, Computer Sciences and Documentation, Friedrich Schiller University, 5Department of Anesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine, University Hospital Jena, Germany; 6Crocker Institute, Kiawah Island, SC, 7School of Integrative Medicine and Health Sciences, Saybrook University, Oakland, CA, USA; 8Department of Biological and Clinical Psychology, Friedrich Schiller University, Jena, Germany *These authors contributed equally to this work Background: Quantitative sensory testing (QST) is a diagnostic tool for the assessment of the somatosensory system. To establish QST as an outcome measure for clinical trials, the question of how similar the measurements are over time is crucial. Therefore, long-term reliability and limits of agreement of the standardized QST protocol of the German Research Network on Neuropathic Pain were tested. Methods: QST on the lower back and hand dorsum (dominant hand) were assessed twice in 22 healthy volunteers (10 males and 12 females; mean age: 46.6±13.0 years), with sessions separated by 10.0±2.9 weeks. All measurements were performed by one investigator. To investigate long-term reliability and agreement of QST, differences between the two measurements, correlation coefficients, intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs), Bland–Altman plots (limits of agreement), and standard error of measurement were used. Results: Most parameters of the QST were reliable over 10 weeks in healthy volunteers: Almost-perfect ICCs were observed for heat pain threshold (hand) and mechanical pain sensitivity (back). Substantial ICCs were observed for heat pain threshold (back), pressure pain threshold (back), mechanical pain sensitivity (hand), and vibration detection threshold (back and hand). Some QST parameters, such as cold detection threshold, exhibited low ICCs, but also very low variability. Generally, QST measures exhibited narrow limits of agreement in the Bland–Altman plots. Conclusion: The standardized QST protocol of the German Research Network on Neuropathic Pain is feasible to be used in treatment trials. Moreover, defining a statistically meaningful change is possible, which is a prerequisite for the use of QST in clinical trials as well as in long-term investigations of disease progression. Keywords: QST, healthy volunteers, test–retest reliability, intraclass correlations, Bland–­Altman plot, limits of agreement, standard error of measurement, minimum detectable difference

Mechanical ventilation is a life-saving intervention, which despite its use on a routine basis, poses the risk of inflicting further damage to the lung tissue if ventilator settings are chosen inappropriately. Medical decision support systems may help to prevent such injuries while providing the optimal settings to reach a defined clinical goal. In order to develop and verify decision support algorithms, a test bench simulating a patient’s behaviour is needed. We propose a Java based system that allows simulation of respiratory mechanics, gas exchange and cardiovascular dynamics of a mechanically ventilated patient. The implemented models are allowed to interact and are interchangeable enabling the simulation of various clinical scenarios. Model simulations are running in real-time and show physiologically plausible results.

Overweight and obesity are associated with severe metabolic disorders and an increased risk of cardiovascular diseases. It is a known fact that physical activity has a positive effect on metabolic parameters, and also reduces the risk of diseases such as diabetes. Some products can enhance the rate of lipolysis and help in improving fat loss. One of these are selective androgen receptor modulators (SARMs) which act as anabolic agents and are also believed to aid in fatburning. In this study, we investigated whether 30 days of ostarine administration could potentially improve metabolic parameters using the rat model of obesity combined with exercise. We assessed the levels of biochemical and hormonal parameters in serum samples as well as insulin sensitivity indices of tissues. There were significant changes in the metabolic parameters with exercise. However, we did not find any additive effects of ostarine and exercise on most of the parameters tested. Similar results were obtained from the analysis of gene expression and the concentration of leptin and adiponectin. Our results indicated that ostarine had a lowering effect on cholesterol concentration in the serum (P<0.05). Moreover, when combining ostarine and exercise, additive changes were only observed in the levels of total and HDL cholesterol. No significant change was observed in the metabolic parameters of obese rats with the use of ostarine at the dose of 0.4 mg/kg body weight. Since ostarine is known to enhance performance, further research on its effects is needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]