Obstructive sleep apnea is common among rural Veterans, however, access to diagnostic sleep testing, sleep specialists, and treatment devices is limited. To improve access to sleep care, the Veterans Health Administration (VA) implemented a national sleep telemedicine program. The TeleSleep program components included 1) virtual clinical encounters; 2) home sleep apnea testing; and 3) web application for Veterans and providers to remotely monitor symptoms, sleep quality and use of positive airway pressure (PAP) therapy. This study aimed to identify factors impacting Veteran's participation, satisfaction and experience with the TeleSleep program as part of a quality improvement initiative.
 
  Semi-structured interview questions elicited patient perspectives and preferences regarding accessing and engaging with TeleSleep care. Rapid qualitative and matrix analysis methods for health services research were used to organize and describe the qualitative data.
 
  Thirty Veterans with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) rriences of patients served by other subspecialties or healthcare systems.
 The VA TeleSleep program improved patient experiences across multiple aspects of care including a reduction in travel burden, increased access to clinicians and remote monitoring, and patient-reported health and quality of life outcomes, though some communication and continuity challenges remain. Implementing telehealth services may also improve the experiences of patients served by other subspecialties or healthcare systems.Drug-resistant Plasmodium is a frequent global threat in malaria eradication programmes, highlighting the need for new anti-malarial drugs and efficient detection of treatment failure. Plasmodium falciparum culture is essential in drug discovery and resistance surveillance. Microscopy of Giemsa-stained erythrocytes is common for determining anti-malarial effects on the intraerythrocytic development of cultured Plasmodium parasites. Giemsa-based microscopy use is conventional but laborious, and its accuracy depends largely on examiner skill. Given the availability of nucleic acid-binding fluorescent dyes and advances in flow cytometry, the use of various fluorochromes has been frequently attempted for the enumeration of parasitaemia and discrimination of P. falciparum growth in drug susceptibility assays. However, fluorochromes do not meet the requirements of being fast, simple, reliable and sensitive. Thus, this review revisits the utility of fluorochromes, notes previously reported hindrances, and highlights the challenges and opportunities for using fluorochromes in flow cytometer-based drug susceptibility tests. It aims to improve drug discovery and support a resistance surveillance system, an essential feature in combatting malaria.
  Physical inactivity is a global health concern. mHealth interventions have become increasingly popular, but to date, principles of effective communication from Self-Determination Theory have not been integrated with behavior change techniques to optimize app effectiveness. We outline the development of the START app, an app combining SDT principles and 17 purposefully chosen BCTs to support inactive office employees to increase their walking during a 16-week randomized controlled trial. We also explored acceptability, engagement with, associations between app usage and behavioral engagement, and perceived impact of the app in supporting behavior change.
 
  Following development, fifty insufficiently physically active employees (M age = 44.21 ± 10.95years; BMI = 29.02 ± 5.65) were provided access and instructions on use of the app. A mixed methods design was used to examine feasibility of the app, including the User Mobile App Rating Scale, app engagement data, step counts, and individual interviews. Linear mcal Trials Registry (ACTRN12618000807257) on 11 May 2018 https//www.anzctr.org.au/Trial/Registration/TrialReview.aspx?id=375049&isReview=true .
 This study was part of a pilot larger randomized controlled trial, in which a component of the intervention involved the use of the mobile app. The trial was retrospectively registered with the Australian and New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry (ACTRN12618000807257) on 11 May 2018 https//www.anzctr.org.au/Trial/Registration/TrialReview.aspx?id=375049&isReview=true .
  Breastfeeding and postpartum contraception critically influence infant and maternal health outcomes. In this pilot study, we explore the effects of timing and duration of postpartum levonorgestrel exposure on milk lipid and levonorgestrel content to establish baseline data for future research.
 
  This sub-study recruited a balanced convenience sample from 259 participants enrolled in a parent randomized controlled trial comparing immediate to delayed (4-8weeks) postpartum levonorgestrel IUD placement. All planned to breastfeed, self-selected for sub-study participation, and provided the first sample at 4-8weeks postpartum (before IUD placement for the delayed group) and the second four weeks later.  https://www.selleckchem.com/products/polybrene-hexadimethrine-bromide-.html  We used the Wilcoxon rank sum (inter-group) and signed rank (intra-group) tests to compare milk lipid content (creamatocrit) and levonorgestrel levels between groups and time points.
 
  We recruited 15 participants from the immediate group and 17 from the delayed group with 10 and 12, respectively, providing both early and late samples. Initially, median levonorgestrel concentration of the immediate group (n = 10) (32.5pg/mL, IQR 24.8, 59.4) exceeded that of the delayed group (n = 12) (17.5pg/mL, IQR 0.0, 25.8) (p = 0.01). Four weeks later, the values aligned 26.2pg/mL (IQR 20.3, 37.3) vs. 28.0pg/mL (IQR 25.2, 40.8). Creamatocrits were similar between both groups and timepoints.
 
  Immediate postpartum levonorgestrel IUD placement results in steady, low levels of levonorgestrel in milk without apparent effects on lipid content. These findings provide initial support for the safety of immediate postpartum levonorgestrel IUD initiation, though the study was not powered to detect noninferiority between groups.
 
  This randomized controlled trial was registered with ClinicalTrials.gov (Registry No. NCT01990703) on November 21, 2013.
 This randomized controlled trial was registered with ClinicalTrials.gov (Registry No. NCT01990703) on November 21, 2013.