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Various Grades (various + grade)
Selected AbstractsA systematic review protocol on the use of teaching portfolios for educators in further and higher educationJOURNAL OF ADVANCED NURSING, Issue 12 2009Karen McColgan Abstract Title.,A systematic review protocol on the use of teaching portfolios for educators in further and higher education. Aim., This paper is a review protocol that will be used to identify, critically appraise and synthesize the best current evidence relating to the use of teaching portfolios for educators in further and higher education. Background., While portfolio use as a means to assist students in further and higher education has undergone extensive research and review, their use as a tool to assist educators has yet to receive systematic attention. Reviews conducted on studies related to portfolio use and undergraduate students have suggested that a teaching portfolio may have a benefit for educators in higher education as a means to provide relevancy and focus to their teaching. Design., The objectives of the review are to evaluate how a teaching portfolio assists educators in teaching and learning; to evaluate the effects of maintaining a teaching portfolio for educators in relation to personal development; to explore the type of portfolio used; to determine whether a teaching portfolio is perceived more beneficial for various grades and professional types; and to determine any motivating factors or workplace incentives behind its implementation and completion. A search of the following databases will be made: MEDLINE, CINAHL, BREI, ERIC and AUEI. The review will follow the Joanna Briggs Institute guidance for systematic reviews of quantitative and qualitative research. Conclusion., The review will offer clarity and direction on the use of teaching portfolios for educators, policymakers, supervisory managers and researchers involved in further and higher education. [source] New Considerations Relating to Class Effect With Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme Inhibitors-The PEACE StudyJOURNAL OF CLINICAL HYPERTENSION, Issue 3 2005Domenic A. Sica MD Angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor therapy provides positive outcome benefits in a number of cardiac scenarios including congestive heart failure, postmyocardial infarction, as well as in the hypertensive patient at cardiac risk. This benefit exists both in normotensive and hypertensive individuals and is present in those with various grades of cardiovascular risk. This beneficial cardiovascular effect has now been observed with several angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors, suggesting a class effect. The Prevention of Events with Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme Inhibition trial studied the effect of adding the angiotensinconverting enzyme inhibitor trandolapril to a contemporary therapeutic regimen of patients with stable coronary artery disease and preserved left ventricular function. In this study, the addition of trandolapril did not confer any additional benefit in terms of reducing the incidence of cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction, or coronary revascularization. The neutral findings in this trial add a new wrinkle to the concept of class effect for cardiovascular protection with angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors in patients with coronary artery disease. [source] Evaluation of chondromalacia of the patella with axial inversion recovery,fast spin-echo imagingJOURNAL OF MAGNETIC RESONANCE IMAGING, Issue 3 2001Sang Hoon Lee MD The purpose of our study was to assess the accuracy of inversion recovery,fast spin-echo (IR-FSE) imaging for the evaluation of chondromalacia of the patella. Eighty-six patients were included, they underwent magnetic resonance (MR) examination and subsequent knee arthroscopy. Medial and lateral facets of the patella were evaluated separately. Axial images were obtained by using IR-FSE (TR/TE/TI = 3000/25/150 msec; echo train length, 8; 4-mm thickness; 12-cm field of view; 512 × 256 matrix; two, number of excitations) with a 1.5-T MR machine. MR interpretation of chondromalacia was made on the basis of the arthroscopic grading system. Of a total of 172 facets graded, arthroscopy revealed chondromalacia in 14 facets with various grades (G0, 158; G1, 1; G2, 3; G3, 6; G4, 4). Sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy in the chondromalacia grades were 57.1%, 93.0%, and 90.1%, respectively. There was one false-negative case (G4) and 11 false-positive cases (G1, eight; G2, two; G3, one). Sensitivity and specificity corrected by one grade difference were improved to 85.7% and 98.1%, respectively. When cartilage changes were grouped into early (corresponding to grade 1 and 2) and advanced (grade 3 and 4) diseases, sensitivity and specificity of the early and advanced diseases were 75% and 94% and 80% and 99%, respectively. IR-FSE imaging of the knee revealed high specificity but low sensitivity for the evaluation of chondromalacia of the patella. J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2001;13:412,416. © 2001 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] LKB1 protein expression in neuroendocrine tumors of the lungPATHOLOGY INTERNATIONAL, Issue 2 2008Randa Mahmoud Sobhi Amin During a recent investigation of LKB1 gene abnormality in lung lesions, strong expression of LKB1 protein in normal neuroendocrine (NE) cells of the bronchial epithelium was found. Because LKB1 functions as a tumor suppressor gene, the question of whether alteration of LKB1 expression is related to the development of pulmonary NE tumors of various grades was investigated. LKB1 immunohistochemistry was examined in a total of 68 primary pulmonary NE tumors consisting of 30 specimens of small cell lung carcinoma (SCLC), 23 large cell neuroendocrine carcinomas (LCNEC), two atypical carcinoids, and 13 typical carcinoids. Loss or low expression (<20% immunoreactive cells) of LKB1 protein expression was more frequently observed in high-grade NE tumors (SCLC and LCNEC; 45/53, 84.9%) than in typical and atypical carcinoids (3/15; 20%). The difference in LKB1 immunoreactivity between the high-grade NE tumors and the carcinoid group was statistically significant (P < 0.0001). In conclusion, marked reduction of LKB1 expression in high-grade NE tumors of the lung suggests a possible role of LKB1 inactivation in its tumorigenesis. Although a few previous studies indicated rare genetic alterations of LKB1 in SCLC, further studies including analysis of other NE tumors and focusing on epigenetic abnormalities of LKB1 gene are warranted. [source] Morphology and mechanical properties of impact modified polypropylene blendsPOLYMER ENGINEERING & SCIENCE, Issue 11 2008Nathan Tortorella Isotactic polypropylene (PP) has been reactively blended with various grades of an ethylene,octene copolymer (EOC) in a twin-screw extruder. Free radical polymerization of styrene and a multifunctional acrylate during melt extrusion has resulted in an enhancement of mechanical properties over the binary blend. The reactive blend exhibits a notched Izod impact strength over 12 times that of pure polypropylene and greater than double the performance of the binary blend. Electron microscopy shows that by grafting onto the polymers, elastomer particle size and interparticle distance decrease, while particle shape becomes less spherical. The acrylate is crucial to achieve superior performance, as infrared spectra correlate an increase in graft yield to improvements in stress,strain behavior and impact strength. In addition, melt flow index (MFI) and melt strength data indicate a reduction in unwanted side reactions of polypropylene and the presence of long-chain branching. Dynamic-mechanical analysis reveals that the reaction promotes miscibility between polypropylene and the EOC and reduces molecular mobility at their glass-transition temperatures. Mechanical properties, graft yield, and MFI are shown to be highly dependent upon the elastomer's concentration, density, and molecular weight, initiator and monomer concentration, as well as processing temperature. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 2008. © 2008 Society of Plastics Engineers [source] Tissue reaction of the rabbit urinary bladder to tension-free vaginal tape and porcine small intestinal submucosaBJU INTERNATIONAL, Issue 6 2002D.M. Rabah Objectives ,To compare the histological tissue reactions of urinary bladder in close contact with polypropylene mesh tension-free vaginal tape (TVT) or porcine small intestinal submucosal (SIS) grafts, as the commercial availability of various materials has considerably simplified sling procedures for treating urinary incontinence, but erosion and infection after using artificial sling materials remain an important concern. Materials and methods ,Thirty female New Zealand rabbits were randomized to three groups, i.e. group A (TVT, 12 animals), group B (SIS, 12) and group C (surgical control, six). Through a laparotomy under anaesthesia and an aseptic technique, the bladder was approached at its dome, where a 0.5 × 1 cm piece of TVT or SIS was fixed in direct contact with the bladder wall. The control group underwent only bladder manipulation with no material applied. Half the animals in each group were killed after 6 weeks and the other half after 12 weeks. The urinary bladder was harvested and examined histologically. Results ,The grafts in both groups were characterized by dense foreign-body type reactions and were mostly attached loosely to the bladder wall by a thin layer of fibrovascular tissue. More importantly, the bladder wall reactions showed no inflammation in all 12 animals in group A (TVT) but three of them had various grades of fibrosis. There was severe transmural inflammation in one animal in group B (SIS); one rabbit had grade I and two had grade II fibrosis. The controls, as expected, showed no bladder wall reactions. Conclusion ,In this descriptive analysis of reaction types elicited on the urinary bladder by these grafts, both materials appeared to be safe. Although TVT elicited fewer and less severe adverse reactions, no statistical conclusions can be drawn. The clinical significance of these findings should emerge from long-term clinical data when they become available. [source] Victorian orthoptists' performance in the photo evaluation of diabetic retinopathyCLINICAL & EXPERIMENTAL OPHTHALMOLOGY, Issue 8 2007Zoran Georgievski BAppSc(Orth)Hons Abstract Purpose:, The aim of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of orthoptists in detecting various grades of diabetic retinopathy (DR) and retinal pathology not directly associated with diabetes and to identify factors associated with best performance. Methods:, Forty-five orthoptists completed a survey comprising questions regarding their workplace experiences, plus a photo evaluation task with 36 digital fundus images. Results:, We found that orthoptists' overall performance in detecting the presence of abnormality in a series of DR images was high, the mean sensitivity being 86% and specificity 91%. The sensitivity was lower for images with minimal non-proliferative DR, but higher for those with mild,moderate and severe grades of DR. No factors were predictive of performance on the screening task. Conclusions:, Orthoptists performed extremely well, meeting the guidelines for DR screening recommended by National Health and Medical Research Council. The results indicate that orthoptists could potentially be used in DR screening models in Australia. [source] The effect of transient balloon occlusion of the mitral valve on left atrial appendage blood flow velocity and spontaneous echo contrastCLINICAL CARDIOLOGY, Issue 7 2000Jianan Wang M.D. Abstract Background: Spontaneous echo contrast (SEC) is a phenomenon that is commonly seen in areas of blood stasis. It is a slowly moving, cloud-like swirling pattern of "smoke" or increased echogenicity recorded on echocardiography. SEC is commonly seen in the left atrium of patients with mitral stenosis or atrial fibrillation. The prescence of SEC has been shown to be a marker of increased thromboembolic risk. Hypothesis: By using transesophageal echocardiography during percutaneous balloon mitral valvotomy (PBMV), the study investigated the relationship between SEC and varying left atrial appendage (LAA) blood flow velocity in the human heart. Methods: Thirty,five patients with rheumatic mitral stenosis underwent percutaneous balloon mitral valvotomy with intraoperative transesophageal echocardiography monitoring. We alternatively measured LAA velocities and observed the left atrium for various grades of SEC (0 = none to 4 = severe) before and after each balloon inflation. Results: Left atrial appendage maximal ejection velocity was reduced from 35 ± 14 to 6 ± 2 mm/s at peak balloon inflation and increased to 40 ± 16 mm/s after balloon deflation. In comparison with the values before balloon inflation and after balloon deflation, LAA velocities were significantly lower (p < 0.001). New or increased SEC grade was observed during 54 of 61 (88%) inflations and unchanged in 7 (12%) inflations at peak balloon inflation. Spontaneous echo contrast became lower in grade after 55 balloon deflations (90%), completely disappeared after 18 deflations (30%), and remained unchanged after 6 deflations (10%). The mean time to achieve maximal SEC grade (2.5 ± 1.2 s) coincided with the mean time to trough LAA velocities (2.3 ±1.1 s) after balloon inflation. Upon deflation, the mean time to lowest SEC grade (2.9 ± 1.8 s) coincided with mean time to achieve maximal LAA velocities (2.7 ± 1.6s). Conclusion: During balloon inflation, the severity of SEC was enhanced with corresponding reduction in LAA flow velocity. Upon balloon deflation, SEC lightens or disappears with increase in LAA flow velocity. [source] | ||||||||||