Center for Assessment

Background: Sleep disturbances are common in occupational settings and may impair health, safety, and work performance. Professional drivers represent a safety-critical occupational group, whereas information technology (IT) workers are frequently exposed to prolonged screen use and high cognitive workload. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted during 2023-2025 among 488 workers, including professional drivers and IT workers. Participants completed the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, STOP-Bang questionnaire, Epworth Sleepiness Scale, and Athens Insomnia Scale. Age, sex, body mass index, and total work experience were recorded. Group comparisons and multivariable logistic regression analyses adjusted for demographic and occupational factors were performed. A predefined subgroup analysis was conducted among night-shift workers (n = 113). Results: IT workers were younger and reported poorer subjective sleep quality and more frequent insomnia symptoms compared with professional drivers. In contrast, moderate-to-high OSA risk was more prevalent among drivers. Excessive daytime sleepiness did not differ significantly between groups. In multivariable models, occupational group independently predicted poor sleep quality and insomnia, whereas age and body mass index were the strongest predictors of OSA risk. Conclusions: Sleep-related outcomes differ across occupational groups. Professional drivers appear more vulnerable to OSA-related risk, while IT workers experience a higher burden of insomnia and poor subjective sleep quality. Occupational context should be considered when designing sleep screening and prevention strategies.

Prescription depressants, particularly benzodiazepines, gabapentinoids, and Z-drugs, pose overdose risk. Understanding their prevalence in overdose fatalities and co-involved substances is critical. To identify latent substance classes in prescription depressant-involved overdose deaths. Retrospective cohort study PARTICIPANTS: All individuals whose fatal overdoses involved prescription depressants from 2000-2023 in Massachusetts, US (n = 8,665). Data were obtained from the Massachusetts Registry of Vital Records and Statistics. Substances were identified using ICD-10 codes. Literal text entries were available from 2015-2023. We conducted a latent class analysis to derive substance classes and a multinomial logistic regression to examine associated factors. We assessed the proportion of deaths these classes comprised over time. Five latent classes emerged and were characterized based on the substances with highest conditional probabilities within and across classes: 1) antidepressants (21.2%); 2) fentanyl, cocaine, and benzodiazepines (34.4%); 3) antidepressants and antipsychotics (8.2%); 4) prescription opioids and benzodiazepines (19.5%); and 5) fentanyl and gabapentin or xylazine (16.7%). Over time, fentanyl-related classes came to dominate earlier prescription-only classes; deaths in Class 1 declined by 86.5%, while those in Class 5 rose from 9.6% to 45.1%. Compared to Class 2, all other classes were older, more likely female, married, educated, from rural areas, and overdosed at home. Classes 1, 3, and 5 were more likely non-White. Thousands of Massachusetts overdose deaths have involved prescribed medications, suggesting missed opportunities for intervention. Over time, the demographic patterns of deaths involving antidepressants, antipsychotics, benzodiazepines, and prescription opioids persisted, reflecting longstanding trends in polypharmacy among older women and racial disparities in prescribing. Prescription monitoring, deprescribing, screening for illicit drug use, and discussion of diversion risks are all needed. Findings underscore the need for clinical and policy interventions to reduce overdose risks among women, older individuals, and racial minorities.

Slow uptake kinetics hinder metal ion sorption in solid sorbents, especially those with cross-linked matrices and hydrophobic grafted ligands. To address this, we propose an “access and recognition” design: an embedded ionic core enhances hydrophilicity and ion transport, while grafted metal-selective ligands enable specific binding. Based on this concept, a novel resin, namely, Butyl Monoamide Poly Pyridinium Styrene Divinylbenzene (BM-PPSD) resin, was developed, which showed fast uranium uptake kinetics with equilibrium attained within 15 min of contact. The optimum condition for maximum uranium uptake was observed for dilute nitric acid feed solutions having 2.0 M nitrate ions. Saturation loading capacity for uranium was found to be ∼25 mg/g of resin. Dynamic column runs have shown treatment of a significant quantity of effluent (∼80 Bed volumes) before reaching breakthrough, and high concentration of uranium was reported in eluant (∼0.8 g/L). Resin has shown excellent recyclability for multiple cycles of sorption, elution, and regeneration. Very high selectivity for uranium was observed owing to the grafted monoamide functionality in the resin. Detailed spectroscopic studies, including Fourier transform infrared, elemental analysis, NMR, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, were done along with density functional theory calculation to decipher the mode of interactions between uranium, ionic core, and amidic functionality of BM-PPSD resin.

One of the challenges in managing patients with hantavirus infection is accurately identifying individuals who are at risk of developing severe disease. Prompt identification of these patients can facilitate critical decisions, such as early referral to an intensive care unit. The identified prognostic factors could be of utility in guiding medical care to enhance the management of hantavirus infection. To identify and evaluate prognostic factors associated with mortality in hantavirus infection. We conducted a Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses-reported systematic review following Cochrane guidance adapted for prognosis. We searched PubMed/MEDLINE, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), Biblioteca Virtual de Saúde or Lilac and EMBASE, from 1 January 1993 to 2 October 2025. We included studies evaluating individual prognostic factors or risk assessment models of New World hantavirus infections, with no restrictions on study design, publication status or language. When feasible, we conducted meta-analyses for prognostic factors using the inverse variance-based method with random effect model. We assessed the certainty of the evidence using the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation approach. We included 25 studies with a total of 7284 participants. We identified the following prognostic factors for which we found moderate to high certainty that are associated with increased mortality: age over 18 years, female sex, rural residence, elevated creatinine levels, increased haematocrit, signs of bleeding and the presence of infiltrates on chest radiographs. Our systematic review identified prognostic factors for mortality in patients with New World hantavirus infection. These factors can inform clinicians in making more informed management decisions. Furthermore, our findings lay the groundwork for the future development of a clinical prognostic model, potentially enhancing patient care and outcomes. CRD42021225823.

Este artigo detalha o desenvolvimento e a implementação de um Jogo da Memória eletrônico, similar ao popular "Genius", utilizando a plataforma de microcontrolador Arduino Uno. O projeto foi concebido como uma ferramenta educacional e prática para apresentar conceitos de eletrônica digital, programação e Sistemas Embarcados. O protótipo incorpora componentes essenciais de hardware, como LEDs para representação visual, botões para entrada do usuário, um speaker para feedback auditivo e um display LCD para gerenciamento de interface. Um aspecto crucial é o uso da memória não volátil EEPROM do Arduino para o armazenamento persistente do recorde de pontuação (high score). O trabalho demonstra a aplicação prática de conceitos fundamentais de programação e arquitetura de microcontroladores.

HighlightsWhat are the main findings?The Greek validation of the Colorado Learning Difficulties Questionnaire (CLDQ) demonstrated satisfactory reliability and strong construct validity among Greek parents and caregivers.Exploratory factor analyses supported a five-factor structure (Reading, Mathematics, Social Cognition, Social Anxiety, and Spatial Problems) consistent with the original version, with minor item variations.What is the implication of the main finding?The Greek version of the CLDQ constitutes a valid and reliable instrument for screening learning difficulties in Greek children and adolescents.Its implementation can facilitate early detection and targeted interventions for students with learning challenges.Background: Learning disabilities have a significant impact on children’s and adolescents’ academic progress; thus, early detection is of great importance. Parents play a key role, as they can provide valuable and unique information regarding their offspring’s learning challenges. The Colorado Learning Difficulties Questionnaire (CLDQ) is a quick and easy-to-use parent-report rating questionnaire evaluating specific areas of functioning that are most affected in children and adolescents with learning difficulties, such as reading, mathematics, social cognition, spatial abilities, and memory. This study aimed to examine the validity and reliability of the Greek version of the CLDQ. Methods: A cross-sectional design was employed in a sample of Greek parents and caregivers to test the Greek version of the CLDQ. The 20-item questionnaire was translated into Greek using the appropriate forward-backward translation. Results: The final sample consisted of 303 parents/caregivers of children and adolescents aged 11–17 years with learning difficulties. Analysis was consistent with the original scale and revealed five major factors labeled Reading, Mathematics, Social Cognition, Social Anxiety, and Spatial Problems. Contrary to the original version, two items loaded on two separate factors. Conclusions: The Greek version of the CLDQ demonstrated acceptable reliability and good validity. Consistent with the original version, exploratory factor analysis identified five distinct factors. These findings support the Greek version of the CLDQ as a valid and reliable tool for assessing and screening students with learning difficulties in Greece.