Home About us Contact
|
Home About us Contact | ||
|
|
||
Very Good (very + good)
Terms modified by Very Good Selected AbstractsA Multicenter, 47-Month Study of Safety and Efficacy of Calcium Hydroxylapatite for Soft Tissue Augmentation of Nasolabial Folds and Other Areas of the FaceDERMATOLOGIC SURGERY, Issue 2007NEIL S. SADICK MD OBJECTIVES Each soft tissue filler product has its own unique profile in terms of adverse events. In this large-scale study, we investigated the safety profile of Radiesse, an injectable calcium hydroxylapatite (CaHA) implant, in treatment of nasolabial folds and other areas of the face. We also investigated the efficacy in a subset of the larger patient group. METHODS After obtaining informed consent from the subjects, researchers injected CaHA at two treatment centers into 113 patients (100 women and 13 men, ranging in age from 26 to 78 years) for a variety of facial aesthetic applications over a period of 47 months. Seventy-five patients had a single injection session; 38 had multiple sessions. Most patients (102) received 1.0 mL of CaHA per session; 12 received 2.0 mL per session. Typically, CaHA was administered with a 27-gauge 0.5- or 1 1/4-in. needle. RESULTS Safety. Of 113 patients, only 7 reported minor adverse events that were short-term and resolved within 1 month: transient ecchymosis (3), nongranulatomous submucosal nodules of the lip (2), and inflammation and edema (2). Efficacy. Efficacy ratings were performed for a subset of patients (n=41). On a scale of 1 to 5 (1=unsatisfactory; 5=excellent), the mean patient evaluation score for look and feel of the implant was 4.6; the mean physician scores for the look and feel of the implant were 4.5 and 4.6, respectively. During the 6-month follow-up visit, patients' mean ratings of the look and feel of the implant were 4.8 and 4.9, respectively. The physician's mean ratings for the look and feel of the implant were 4.5 and 4.9, respectively. CONCLUSIONS In our study, CaHA performed well, with a favorable safety profile, high patient satisfaction (90% of patients reported very good or excellent results), and good durability. We are especially pleased with the low incidence of adverse events coupled with the favorable responses from the patients themselves due to longevity of correction. [source] The Safety and Effectiveness of Single-Pass Erbium:YAG Laser in the Treatment of Mild to Moderate PhotodamageDERMATOLOGIC SURGERY, Issue 8 2004David K. Avram MD Background. There are several treatment modalities for mild to moderate photodamage. The demand for effective treatments with minimal side effects has increased. Objective. The objective of this study was to determine the effectiveness of short-pulsed erbium:YAG laser in treating mild to moderate photodamage. Methods. Twenty patients were treated with the short-pulse erbium:YAG laser on the face and neck. One pass was given over the entire face with two to three passes over the perioral and periorbital regions. Patients were evaluated for improvement of pigmentary irregularities, skin texture, and fine wrinkles. All side effects were recorded at follow-up visits. Two lasers were used, Sciton and Cynosure CO3, under local anesthesia. Results. There was a 58% reduction in pigment irregularities and a 54% improvement in skin texture. There was minimal improvement in fine wrinkles with one pass. Two and three passes resulted in a 50% reduction in wrinkles. The procedure was minimally painful. Side effects included 3 to 5 days of erythema and edema. Patients returned to work within 3 days on average. There were no infections. Patient satisfaction with the procedure was rated as very good. There was no difference in efficacy or adverse effects with either laser. Conclusions. One-pass short-pulse erbium:YAG laser in treating photodamage of the face and neck is safe and effective. There are minimal side effects and patients heal within 3 to 5 days. [source] Evaluation of agreement between conventional and liquid-based cytology in cervical cancer early detection based on analysis of 2,091 smears: Experience at the Brazilian National Cancer InstituteDIAGNOSTIC CYTOPATHOLOGY, Issue 9 2007Vania Reis Girianelli M.Sc. Abstract The aim of this work was to evaluate the agreement between conventional cytology (CC) and liquid-based cytology (LBC) in cervical cancer early detection. The results of CC and LBC (DNACitoliq®) in 2,059 women aged 25,59 years were compared. The percent agreement, kappa coefficient, prevalence-adjusted bias-adjusted kappa coefficient (PABAK), and Chamberlain's percent positive agreement (PPA) were calculated. The percent agreement between the two methods was very good (80% and 79%, respectively, for normal versus ASCUS+; and normal versus ASCUS, AGUS and LSIL+ vs. HSIL+). The kappa coefficient indicates slight agreement (0.26 and 0.23, respectively), but when PABAK was used the agreement was good (0.61 and 0.68, respectively). PPA was high for normal results (79.2%) and low for the remaining categories. To conclude, in this study, agreement between LBC and CC was only good for normal results, which involves the majority of cases and positively influences the overall agreement rate. Diagn. Cytopathol. 2007;35:545-549. © 2007 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Fiscal Policy in the UKECONOMIC OUTLOOK, Issue 3 2001Brian Henry Although the conduct of macroeconomic policy in the UK has been very good by historical standards, Brian Henry argues in this article that there are shortcomings in the framework which mean it is less well suited to adverse shocks than it should be. He recommends that an extension of the present framework be made setting up a committee charged with the independent assessment of fiscal policy. This would help mitigate the lack of balance between monetary and fiscal policy which is evident at present. Fiscal judgements based on cyclical adjustments are too heavily dependant on domestic factors and underestimate the effects of the cycle on revenues. In consequence, fiscal policy, rather than supporting monetary, has been loosened and this indirectly accounts for the continuing strength of the exchange rate. [source] Generalized Birnbaum-Saunders distributions applied to air pollutant concentrationENVIRONMETRICS, Issue 3 2008Víctor Leiva Abstract The generalized Birnbaum-Saunders (GBS) distribution is a new class of positively skewed models with lighter and heavier tails than the traditional Birnbaum-Saunders (BS) distribution, which is largely applied to study lifetimes. However, the theoretical argument and the interesting properties of the GBS model have made its application possible beyond the lifetime analysis. The aim of this paper is to present the GBS distribution as a useful model for describing pollution data and deriving its positive and negative moments. Based on these moments, we develop estimation and goodness-of-fit methods. Also, some properties of the proposed estimators useful for developing asymptotic inference are presented. Finally, an application with real data from Environmental Sciences is given to illustrate the methodology developed. This example shows that the empirical fit of the GBS distribution to the data is very good. Thus, the GBS model is appropriate for describing air pollutant concentration data, which produces better results than the lognormal model when the administrative target is determined for abating air pollution. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Interobserver and intraobserver reproducibility in focal cortical dysplasia (malformations of cortical development)EPILEPSIA, Issue 12 2009Wendy A. Chamberlain Summary Purpose:, Malformations of cortical development (MCD) (cortical dysplasias) are well-recognized causes of intractable epilepsy. Although a histologic classification system for MCD has been proposed by Palmini et al. (Neurology; 2004; 62:S2), studies to date have not assessed reproducibility. The purpose of this study was to analyze inter- and intraobserver agreement among eight experienced neuropathologists (NPs) with respect to this classification system. Methods:, Sections from 26 epilepsy resections were selected to represent the range of pathologies described by Palmini et al. Recuts of single sections from each case were sent to the NPs to classify. The slides were resent at a later date for reclassification. Kappa analysis for both inter- and intraobserver concordance was performed. Results:, Interobserver agreement was moderate (, = 0.4968). There was ,62.5% (5 of 8 NPs) agreement for 19 of 26 cases. The greatest concordance was present when making focal cortical dysplasia (FCD) types IIA/B classifications (12 of the 14 cases with ,75% consensus). Mild MCD (types I/II) and FCD types IA/B classifications were the least reproducible, and used most frequently in cases without consensus. Intraobserver concordance was moderate to very good (range , = 0.4654,0.8504). The category with the fewest classification changes made on reevaluation was FCD type IIB (4.2%), whereas that with the most changes was mild MCD (types I/II) (52.9%). Discussion:, Interobserver concordance using this approach was moderate. The classification categories with the greatest concordance were FCD type IIA/B, and the least, mild MCD and FCD types IA/B. In addition, difficulty in differentiating Mild MCD/FCD type I lesions from normal and/or gliotic tissue was noted. [source] Different methods of monitoring susceptibility of oilseed rape beetles to insecticidesEPPO BULLETIN, Issue 1 2008T. Thieme The resistance of oilseed rape pollen beetles to lambda-cyhalothrin has increased in Germany over the period 2002 to 2007. Oilseed rape pollen beetles are very good at dispersing, therefore field results should always be compared with those of laboratory experiments. The response of oilseed rape pollen beetles to active substances may not be the same as that to formulated products. Bioassays in which beetles are exposed to insecticides on either complete inflorescences or flower buds give different results. It is evident that samples of the genus Meligethes collected in the field can include several different species. Monitoring for insecticide resistance should be done using only the true oilseed rape pollen beetle. [source] Solvent-Free Microwave-Assisted Efficient Synthesis of 4,4-Disubstituted 2-OxazolinesEUROPEAN JOURNAL OF ORGANIC CHEMISTRY, Issue 22 2003Fernando García-Tellado Abstract 4,4-Disubstituted 2-oxazolines have been synthesized by a microwave-promoted solvent-free direct condensation of carboxylic acids and disubstituted ,-amino alcohols in good to excellent yields. Zinc oxide is a very good solid support in cases where a Lewis acid is required. The method described herein is a very good, safe, clean, economical, and environmentally friendly alternative to the classical procedures. (© Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, 69451 Weinheim, Germany, 2003) [source] Estimating diesel degradation rates from N2, O2 and CO2 concentration versus depth data in a loamy sandEUROPEAN JOURNAL OF SOIL SCIENCE, Issue 1 2007J. Van De Steene Summary The degradation rate of the pollutant is often an important parameter for designing and maintaining an active treatment system or for determining the rate of natural attenuation. A quasi-steady-state gas transport model based on Fick's law with a correction term for advective flux, for estimating diesel degradation rates from N2, O2 and CO2 concentration versus depth data, was evaluated in a laboratory column study. A loamy sand was spiked with diesel fuel at 0, 1000, 5000 and 10 000 mg kg,1 soil (dry weight basis) and incubated for 15 weeks. Soil gas was sampled weekly at 6 selected depths in the columns and analysed for O2, CO2 and N2 concentrations. The agreement between the measured and the modelled concentrations was good for the untreated soil (R2= 0.60) and very good for the soil spiked with 1000 mg kg,1 (R2= 0.96) and 5000 mg kg,1 (R2= 0.97). Oxygen consumption ranged from ,0.15 to ,2.25 mol O2 m,3 soil day,1 and CO2 production ranged from 0.20 to 2.07 mol CO2 m,3 soil day,1. A significantly greater mean O2 consumption (P < 0.001) and CO2 production (P < 0.005) over time was observed for the soils spiked with diesel compared with the untreated soil, which suggests biodegradation of the diesel substrate. Diesel degradation rates calculated from respiration data were 1.5,2.1 times less than the change in total petroleum hydrocarbon content. The inability of this study to correlate respiration data to actual changes in diesel concentration could be explained by volatilization, long-term sorption of diesel hydrocarbons to organic matter and incorporation of diesel hydrocarbons into microbial biomass, aspects of which require further investigation. [source] Stable, Glassy, and Versatile Binaphthalene Derivatives Capable of Efficient Hole Transport, Hosting, and Deep-Blue Light EmissionADVANCED FUNCTIONAL MATERIALS, Issue 15 2010Bin Wei Abstract Organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) have great potential applications in display and solid-state lighting. Stability, cost, and blue emission are key issues governing the future of OLEDs. The synthesis and photoelectronics of a series of three kinds of binaphthyl (BN) derivatives are reported. BN1,3 are "melting-point-less" and highly stable materials, forming very good, amorphous, glass-like films. They decompose at temperatures as high as 485,545,°C. At a constant current density of 25,mA,cm,2, an ITO/BN3/Al single-layer device has a much-longer lifetime (>80,h) than that of an ITO/NPB/Al single-layer device (8,h). Also, the lifetime of a multilayer device based on BN1 is longer than a similar device based on NPB. BNs are efficient and versatile OLED materials: they can be used as a hole-transport layer (HTL), a host, and a deep-blue-light-emitting material. This versatility may cut the cost of large-scale material manufacture. More importantly, the deep-blue electroluminescence (emission peak at 444 nm with CIE coordinates (0.16, 0.11), 3.23 cd A,1 at 0.21,mA cm,2, and 25200,cd,m,2 at 9,V) remains very stable at very high current densities up to 1000,mA,cm,2. [source] Power and robustness of a score test for linkage analysis of quantitative traits using identity by descent data on sib pairsGENETIC EPIDEMIOLOGY, Issue 4 2001Darlene R. Goldstein Abstract Identification of genes involved in complex traits by traditional (lod score) linkage analysis is difficult due to many complicating factors. An unfortunate drawback of non-parametric procedures in general, though, is their low power to detect genetic effects. Recently, Dudoit and Speed [2000] proposed using a (likelihood-based) score test for detecting linkage with IBD data on sib pairs. This method uses the likelihood for ,, the recombination fraction between a trait locus and a marker locus, conditional on the phenotypes of the two sibs to test the null hypothesis of no linkage (, = ½). Although a genetic model must be specified, the approach offers several advantages. This paper presents results of simulation studies characterizing the power and robustness properties of this score test for linkage, and compares the power of the test to the Haseman-Elston and modified Haseman-Elston tests. The score test is seen to have impressively high power across a broad range of true and assumed models, particularly under multiple ascertainment. Assuming an additive model with a moderate allele frequency, in the range of p = 0.2 to 0.5, along with heritability H = 0.3 and a moderate residual correlation , = 0.2 resulted in a very good overall performance across a wide range of trait-generating models. Generally, our results indicate that this score test for linkage offers a high degree of protection against wrong assumptions due to its strong robustness when used with the recommended additive model. Genet. Epidemiol. 20:415,431, 2001. © 2001 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Enhancing the outcome of free latissimus dorsi muscle flap reconstruction of scalp defectsHEAD & NECK: JOURNAL FOR THE SCIENCES & SPECIALTIES OF THE HEAD AND NECK, Issue 1 2004FRCS(C), Joan E. Lipa MD Abstract Background. Reconstruction of scalp and calvarial defects after tumor ablation frequently requires prosthetic cranioplasty and cutaneous coverage. Furthermore, patients often have advanced disease and receive perioperative radiotherapy. We evaluated the complications of scalp reconstruction with a free latissimus dorsi muscle flap in this setting. Methods. The complications and the oncologic and aesthetic outcomes of six consecutive scalp reconstructions with a free latissimus dorsi muscle flap and skin graft in five patients with advanced cancer were retrospectively evaluated. Patient, tumor, defect, reconstructive, and other treatment characteristics were reviewed. Reconstructive and perioperative techniques intended to improve flap survival and aesthetic outcome and reduce complications in these patients. Results. All patients (52,76 years old) had recurrent tumors (sarcoma, melanoma, or squamous cell carcinoma) and received postoperative radiotherapy. The mean scalp defect size was 367 cm2, and partial-thickness or full-thickness calvarial resection was required in all six cases. No vein grafts were needed. The mean follow-up period and disease-free survival time were 18 and 13 months, respectively. Three patients died of their disease, and two survived disease free. There were no flap failures or dehiscences. Complications consisted of donor site seroma in two patients; partial skin graft loss in one patient; and radiation burns to the flap, face, and ears in one patient. Scalp contour and aesthetic outcome were very good in all cases except for the one case with radiation burns. Conclusions. Good outcomes were achieved using a free latissimus dorsi muscle flap with a skin graft for flap reconstruction in elderly patients with advanced recurrent cancers who received perioperative radiotherapy. Several technical aspects of the reconstruction technique intended to enhance the functional and aesthetic outcome and/or reduce complications were believed to have contributed to the good results. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Head Neck26: 46,53, 2004 [source] Erosion models: quality of spatial predictionsHYDROLOGICAL PROCESSES, Issue 5 2003Victor Jetten Abstract An Erratum has been published for this article in Hydrological Processes 18(3) 2004, 595. An overview is given on the predictive quality of spatially distributed runoff and erosion models. A summary is given of the results of model comparison workshops organized by the Global Change and Terrestrial Ecosystems Focus 3 programme, as well as other results obtained by individual researchers. The results concur with the generally held viewpoint in the literature that the predictive quality of distributed models is moderately good for total discharge at the outlet, and not very good for net soil loss. This is only true if extensive calibration is done: uncalibrated results are generally bad. The more simple lumped models seem to perform equally well as the more complex distributed models, although the latter produce more detailed spatially distributed results that can aid the researcher. All these results are outlet based: models are tested on lumped discharge and soil loss or on hydrographs and sedigraphs. Surprisingly few tests have been done on the comparison of simulated and modelled erosion patterns, although this may arguably be just as important in the sense of designing anti-erosion measures and determining source and sink areas. Two studies are shown in which the spatial performance of the erosion model LISEM (Limburg soil erosion model) is analysed. It seems that: (i) the model is very sensitive to the resolution (grid cell size); (ii) the spatial pattern prediction is not very good; (iii) the performance becomes better when the results are resampled to a lower resolution and (iv) the results are improved when certain processes in the model (in this case gully incision) are restricted to so called ,critical areas', selected from the digital elevation model with simple rules. The difficulties associated with calibrating and validating spatially distributed soil erosion models are, to a large extent, due to the large spatial and temporal variability of soil erosion phenomena and the uncertainty associated with the input parameter values used in models to predict these processes. They will, therefore, not be solved by constructing even more complete, and therefore more complex, models. However, the situation may be improved by using more spatial information for model calibration and validation rather than output data only and by using ,optimal' models, describing only the dominant processes operating in a given landscape. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Good outcome in HIV-infected refugees after resettlement in New Zealand: population studyINTERNAL MEDICINE JOURNAL, Issue 5 2007S. M. Nisbet Abstract Background: The aims of this study were to determine the clinical characteristics on arrival and the subsequent clinical outcome of HIV-infected UN quota refugees who settled in New Zealand during the last 11 years and to estimate their rate of HIV transmission. Methods: A population study was conducted. Data were provided by the Mangere Refugee Resettlement Centre, the infectious disease physicians caring for the subjects, the New Zealand AIDS Epidemiology Group and laboratories carrying out HIV viral load assays. Results: One hundred of 7732 (1.3%) UN quota refugees were HIV positive; mean age 30 years, 56% were men, median initial CD4 count was 320 (range 20,1358). HIV infection was most commonly acquired by heterosexual intercourse (74%). The median follow up was 5.0 years (range 1 month to 9.7 years). Five died and 15 subjects had 16 AIDS-defining illnesses, most commonly tuberculosis (n = 10). Sixty subjects commenced highly active antiretroviral therapy of whom 36/59 (61%) had an undetectable HIV viral load after 1 year of treatment. None of the six children born to HIV-infected women in New Zealand were infected. There were two known cases of horizontal transmission of HIV infection. Conclusion: Although HIV-infected quota refugees often have to overcome severe social, cultural and financial handicaps, their clinical outcome is generally very good, with response rates to highly active antiretroviral therapy that are similar to other patient groups. Furthermore, they have not been a significant source of transmission of HIV infection after resettlement in New Zealand. [source] Parallel multipole implementation of the generalized Helmholtz decomposition for solving viscous flow problemsINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL FOR NUMERICAL METHODS IN ENGINEERING, Issue 11 2003Mary J. Brown Abstract The evaluation of a domain integral is the dominant bottleneck in the numerical solution of viscous flow problems by vorticity methods, which otherwise demonstrate distinct advantages over primitive variable methods. By applying a Barnes,Hut multipole acceleration technique, the operation count for the integration is reduced from O(N2) to O(NlogN), while the memory requirements are reduced from O(N2) to O(N). The algorithmic parameters that are necessary to achieve such scaling are described. The parallelization of the algorithm is crucial if the method is to be applied to realistic problems. A parallelization procedure which achieves almost perfect scaling is shown. Finally, numerical experiments on a driven cavity benchmark problem are performed. The actual increase in performance and reduction in storage requirements match theoretical predictions well, and the scalability of the procedure is very good. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley Sons, Ltd. [source] Solution of the hyperbolic mild-slope equation using the finite volume methodINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL FOR NUMERICAL METHODS IN FLUIDS, Issue 3 2003J. Bokaris Abstract A finite volume solver for the 2D depth-integrated harmonic hyperbolic formulation of the mild-slope equation for wave propagation is presented and discussed. The solver is implemented on unstructured triangular meshes and the solution methodology is based upon a Godunov-type second-order finite volume scheme, whereby the numerical fluxes are computed using Roe's flux function. The eigensystem of the mild-slope equations is derived and used for the construction of Roe's matrix. A formulation that updates the unknown variables in time implicitly is presented, which produces a more accurate and reliable scheme than hitherto available. Boundary conditions for different types of boundaries are also derived. The agreement of the computed results with analytical results for a range of wave propagation/transformation problems is very good, and the model is found to be virtually paraxiality-free. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] TiO2(B) Nanowires as an Improved Anode Material for Lithium-Ion Batteries Containing LiFePO4 or LiNi0.5Mn1.5O4 Cathodes and a Polymer Electrolyte,ADVANCED MATERIALS, Issue 19 2006G. Armstrong Rechargeable lithium-ion batteries have been constructed with a TiO2(B) nanowire anode, a gel electrolyte, and either a LiFePO4 or LiNi0.5Mn1.5O4 cathode. Cycling stability is very good as is rate capability (see figure), with 80% of the low-rate capacity being retained at C/5. [source] A model for latent heat energy storage systemsINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENERGY RESEARCH, Issue 14 2006Numan Yuksel Abstract In this study, a theoretical approach is proposed for the prediction of time and temperature during the heat charge and discharge in the latent heat storage of phase changed materials (PCM). By the use of the average values of the mean specific heat capacities for the phase-changed materials, analytical solutions are obtained and compared with the available experimental data in the literature. It is shown that decreasing the entry temperature of the working fluid from ,4 to ,15°C has a very dominant and strong effect on the PCM solidification time. The effect of the working fluid flow rate and the material of PCM capsules on the time for complete solidification and total charging is also investigated. The agreement between the present theoretical model results and the experimental data related to the cooling using small spheres and the heat storage using rectangle containers is very good. The largest difference between the present results and the experimental data becomes about 10% when the fluid temperature approaches the phase change temperature at high temperatures. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Performance of the XE-2100 leucocyte differentialINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF LABORATORY HEMATOLOGY, Issue 5 2002G. Stamminger Summary The XE-2100Ô was evaluated in a multicentre study following a previously established protocol. In this paper, we demonstrate the results of analytical performance studies, including comparison of the leucocyte differential with the NCCLS H20-A method and evaluation of flagging sensitivity. Linearity of the leucocyte count over a wide clinical range, low imprecision in clinically important ranges and no measurable carry over were confirmed. For comparability studies, 4 × 200 cell microscopic differential leucocyte counts were correlated with the automated five-part-differential counts. No significant differences were detected in (1) a group without morphological abnormality and in (2) a leukopenic group. The sensitivity of flags for the detection of immature granulocytes and myeloid blasts was very good. Only few samples containing blast cells remained unrecognized but these would have been examined microscopically in any event because of other abnormalities indicated by the instrument. Atypical/abnormal lymphocytes/and lymphoblasts were detected very reliably when the total lymphocyte count and the flags were evaluated in combination. A similiar procedure is recommended for the detection of left shift. When the neutrophil count is elevated, the sensitivity of the left shift flag is improved. The absolute immature granulocyte (IG) count by the instrument correlates well with that of myeloid precursor cells by microscopy. [source] Structure analysis of Antonovsky's sense of coherence from an epidemiological mental health survey with a brief nine-item sense of coherence scaleINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF METHODS IN PSYCHIATRIC RESEARCH, Issue 1 2007Olav Martin Klepp Abstract Antonovsky has proposed the sense of coherence (SOC) as a crucial factor that protects against symptoms of mental disease. A central issue in research on the SOC construct is whether this is most appropriately considered as one-dimensional or three-dimensional with comprehensibility (C), manageability (Ma) and meaningfulness (Me) as separate dimensions. In this paper we address this issue by means of confirmatory factor analysis of a shortened nine-item version of Antonovsky's original 29- and 13-items Sense of Coherence Scale (SOCS-29), using epidemiological data from a mental health survey of adults in local communities (N = 1,062). In addition to analysing the internal structure of the SOC items, we examine the association between estimated factor scores and variables expected to be statistically related to SOC. Goodness-of-fit indices were very good for the three-factor model but acceptable even for the one-factor model. In the three-factor model, however, the factors were found to be very highly or, with regard to Ma and C, even perfectly correlated. Moreover, the factor scores had very similar correlations with measures of psychological wellbeing, depression and anxiety and they are also very similarly related to age (and none of them are related to gender). We therefore conclude in favour of a one-factor model. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Tourism demand response by residents of Latin American countriesINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF TOURISM RESEARCH, Issue 1 2009Manuel Vanegas Sr Abstract A general-to-specific methodology was used to build international tourism demand models by residents from Argentina, Brazil, Colombia and Venezuela to Aruba. We seek to evaluate demand parameters, especially elasticity values, which were disaggregated on a country-to-country basis. We also aim to learn more about the structure and important variables and investigate the process of adjustment. The study has provided new and compelling evidence that, in the short run, residents in developing countries respond rationally and substantially to economic stimulus. The short-run income elasticity ranges from the low of 1.52 for Venezuela to the high of 2.34 for Argentina. These results indicate that Aruba will benefit differently from income increases in these four Latin American countries. The coefficients of the price variable had the expected negative signs, inelastic in the short-run for all countries but significant at the 5% level for Venezuela only. Any deliberate effort to expand tourist arrivals will require a much larger decline in prices than would be the case in the presence of short-run elastic response. The adjustment elasticity, being less than one, suggests that a period of more than one year is required for Latin American residents to fully adjust their tourism decisions in response to demand shocks. This study would seem to provide some useful information about international tourism demand from developing to developing countries that could form a very good and solid basis for analyses and policy action. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Decrease in urethral pressure following repeated cough efforts: A new concept for pathophysiology of stress urinary incontinenceINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF UROLOGY, Issue 11 2007Xavier Deffieux Aims: To describe the decrease in maximum urethral closure pressure (MUCP) following repeated coughs in women with stress urinary incontinence (SUI). Methods: MUCP was recorded at rest and after seven cough efforts in 70 women under age 40 referred for urodynamic investigation (47 women with SUI and 23 women without SUI). Results: The intraclass correlation coefficient for repeatability was very good at 400 mL filling volume: 0.94 (95%CI: 0.85,0.98), as compared to the mean and standard-deviations of the MUCP measurements. A decrease in MUCP >20% after seven cough efforts was observed in 18(38%) patients in the SUI group and in just 1(4%) woman in the non-SUI group (P = 0.0069). Conclusions: Many women with SUI exhibit a sharp decrease in MUCP after repeated coughs. Many hypotheses may explain this phenomenon, including increased fatigue of the periurethral muscles. [source] The career paths of a group of Romanian nurses in Italy: a 3-year follow-up studyINTERNATIONAL NURSING REVIEW, Issue 2 2008A. Palese rn, bnsc Purpose:, The objective of this study was to describe for how long a homogeneous group of 17 Romanian nurses who first arrived at the ,Teaching Hospital' in Italy in 2003, stayed in the same hospital/ward of the host country, why and when they decided to move from one hospital to another, and their levels of competence in core skills, after either 6 months or 3 years. Methods:, A longitudinal study design was adopted. The first phase was carried out in 2004, the second in 2006. We used an anonymous questionnaire. Results:, Only ten of the 17 nurses, who had started working in Italy 3 years before, remained in the same Hospital where they first started working. In spite of being given the opportunity to stay, some decided to move to hospitals where it is possible to earn more money or where they could save more by living in less expensive towns. The first nurse left the hospital in the first year, five in the second and one in the third year. Levels of perceived professional independence after 3 years are very good: the permanent group had improved their skills in all areas even though they felt a lack of confidence during the first 6 months. Conclusions:, This study, within the limits of the sample and the methods, shows that foreign nurses are highly mobile in the host country and this revolves around the opportunity to earn more. With increasing recruitment of nurses from within the European continent, it is necessary to continue studying the factors that sustain foreign nurses, to find out how they can be helped, how to value their imported professional skills, how to reduce the initial lack of faith in their own abilities and to discover which strategies would encourage them to stay in the hospital where they arrived. [source] Single-stage Matriderm® and skin grafting as an alternative reconstruction in high-voltage injuriesINTERNATIONAL WOUND JOURNAL, Issue 5 2010Henning Ryssel This article presents a retrospective analysis of a series of nine patients requiring reconstruction of exposed bone, tendons or joint capsules as a result of acute high-voltage injuries in a single burn centre. As an alternative to free tissue transfer, the dermal substitute Matriderm® was used in a one-stage procedure in combination with split-thickness skin grafts (STSG) for reconstruction. Nine patients, in the period between 2005 and 2009 with extensive high-voltage injuries to one or more extremities which required coverage of exposed functional structures as bone, tendons or joint capsule, were included. A total of 11 skin graftings and 2 local flaps were performed. Data including regrafting rate, complications, hospital stays, length of rehabilitation and time until return to work were collected. Eleven STSG in combination with Matriderm® were performed on nine patients (success rate 89%). One patient died. One patient needed a free-flap coverage as a secondary procedure. The median follow-up was 30 months (range 6,48 months). The clinical results of these nine treated patients concerning skin-quality and coverage of exposed tendons or joint capsule were very good. In high-voltage injuries free-flap failure occurs between 10% and 30% if performed within the first 4,6 weeks after trauma. The use of single-stage Matriderm® and skin grafting for immediate coverage described in this article is a reliable alternative to selected cases within this period. [source] The Relationship Between Self-Rated Health and Mortality in Older Black and White AmericansJOURNAL OF AMERICAN GERIATRICS SOCIETY, Issue 10 2007Sei J. Lee MD OBJECTIVES: To determine whether the association between self-rated health (SRH) and 4-year mortality differs between black and white Americans and whether education affects this relationship. DESIGN: Prospective cohort. SETTING: Communities in the United States. PARTICIPANTS: Sixteen thousand four hundred thirty-two subjects (14,004 white, 2,428 black) enrolled in the 1998 wave of the Health and Retirement Study (HRS), a population-based study of community-dwelling U.S. adults aged 50 and older. MEASUREMENTS: Subjects were asked to self-identify their race and their overall health by answering the question, "Would you say your health is excellent, very good, good, fair, or poor?" Death was determined according to the National Death Index. RESULTS: SRH is a much stronger predictor of mortality in whites than blacks (c -statistic 0.71 vs 0.62). In whites, poor SRH resulted in a markedly higher risk of mortality than excellent SRH (odds ratio (OR)=10.4, 95% confidence interval (CI)=8.0,13.6). In blacks, poor RSH resulted in a much smaller increased risk of mortality (OR=2.9, 95% CI=1.5,5.5). SRH was a stronger predictor of death in white and black subjects with higher levels of education, but differences in education could not account for the observed race differences in the prognostic effect of SRH. CONCLUSION: This population-based study found that the relationship between SRH and mortality is stronger in white Americans and in subjects with higher levels of education. Because the association between SRH and mortality appears weakest in traditionally disadvantaged groups, SRH may not be the best measure to identify vulnerable older subjects. [source] Performance of a confocal multilayer X-ray opticJOURNAL OF APPLIED CRYSTALLOGRAPHY, Issue 1 2002J. Kusz In recent years, several companies have developed the technique of arranging two multilayer mirrors in confocal optics for monochromatizing X-rays. In this study, a focusing device of Osmic Inc., with a source-to-focus distance of 1005,mm, has been used. The goal was to measure the homogeneity of the beam, the cross section at various distances from the focus and the efficiency of the optic when it is operated with vacuum and with air in the beam path. A small crystal sphere set at various distances is used to compare the intensities and the widths of reflections with those of a flat graphite monochromator. In a standard diffraction experiment (crystal size 0.25,mm), the gain factor with respect to graphite is roughly ten at a position where the beam plateau is 0.5,mm. The suppression of the Cu K, radiation and of higher harmonics of K, is very good. [source] Recovery from bark harvesting of 12 medicinal tree species in Benin, West AfricaJOURNAL OF APPLIED ECOLOGY, Issue 3 2009Claire Delvaux Summary 1The growing interest in medicinal plants from both international industry and local markets requires management of tree bark harvesting from natural forests in order to prevent inappropriate exploitation of target species. This study was designed to determine the bark re-growth response of a selected number of medicinal tree species as a basis for the development of an optimal bark harvesting method. 2In 2004, bark was harvested from 925 trees belonging to 12 species in 38 sites in a dry forest in Benin, West Africa. Two years later, the response of trees to bark harvesting was examined with respect to re-growth (edge or sheet), development of vegetative growth around the wound, and the sensitivity of the wound to insect attack. 3Two species, Khaya senegalensis and Lannea kerstingii, showed complete wound recovery by edge growth. At the other extreme, Afzelia africana, Burkea africana and Maranthes polyandra had very poor edge growth. M. polyandra showed good sheet growth, whereas the other 11 species had none or poor sheet growth after total bark harvesting. In contrast, partial bark removal allowed better sheet growth in all 12 species studied. 4Insect sensitivity was species-specific. Insect attacks were negatively correlated with non-recovered wound area, but there was a marked species effect for the same rate of regeneration. L. kerstingii and K. senegalensis had very good and similar re-growth, but L. kerstingii was very susceptible to insect attack, whereas K. senegalensis appeared to be very resistant. Only a few individuals developed vegetative growth, and each tree usually developed only one or two agony shoots, but there was no significant difference between species. 5Synthesis and applications. This is the first study to provide data on the ability of trees to close wounds after bark harvesting in West Africa. We report large variability in the response of different species to our bark harvesting technique, and identify just two out of the 12 study species as suitable for sustainable bark harvesting. Based on our results, we developed a decisional step method to help forest managers select the best techniques for managing medicinal tree species as an alternative to bark harvesting, for example, coppice management, harvesting leaves instead of bark, stand establishment, and collaboration with timber companies. [source] Performance assessment of a UASB,anoxic,oxic system for the treatment of tomato-processing wastesJOURNAL OF CHEMICAL TECHNOLOGY & BIOTECHNOLOGY, Issue 6 2006Alpesh Gohil Abstract An upflow anaerobic sludge blanket (UASB),anoxic,oxic system was used to achieve biochemical oxygen demand, NH4 and total suspended solids (TSS) criteria of 15, 1 and 15 mg dm,3 at 1.17 days of system hydraulic retention time during treatment of tomato-processing waste. The incorporation of an anoxic tank was found to affect the improvement in sludge-settling characteristics, as reflected by about 25,33% reduction in the sludge volume index, along with final effluent TSS and soluble biochemical oxygen demand concentrations of 13 and 9 mg dm,3, respectively, which met the discharge criteria. Despite incomplete denitrification, sludge settleability was very good (sludge volume index < 60 cm3 g,1) owing to reduction in volatile suspended solids/TSS ratio from 0.75 to 0.6 as a result of higher alkalinity in the UASB effluent. Also in this study, phosphorus release was observed in the anoxic tank, predominantly due to abundance of acetic acid in the UASB effluent. A phosphate release of 5.4 mg P dm,3 was observed in the anoxic tank with subsequent P uptake in the following aerobic stage. Copyright © 2006 Society of Chemical Industry [source] Omeprazole and analogue compounds: a QSAR study of activity against Helicobacter pylori using theoretical descriptors,JOURNAL OF CHEMOMETRICS, Issue 8-10 2002Aline Thais Bruni Abstract Omeprazole and analogues were studied with respect to their activity as inhibitors of urease Helicobacter pylori. Conformational analysis was performed according to the method proposed by Bruni et al. Theoretical descriptors were calculated by an ab initio method (6,31G** basis set). Since several minimum energy structures were obtained for each compound, and the calculated descriptors proved to be sensitive to the structural conformation, different criteria were proposed for conformation selection. Three data sets were generated wherein conformations were grouped according to minimum heat of formation, minimum electronic energy and structural similarity. For these three sets, experimental per cent of control was used to develop quantitative structure,activity models by PLS. Their cross-validation and correlation coefficients were very good (Q2,=,0.97 and R2,=,0.99 on average) and the standard error of validation was much smaller in comparison with results from the literature. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Improved intermolecular force field for molecules containing H, C, N, and O atoms, with application to nucleoside and peptide crystalsJOURNAL OF COMPUTATIONAL CHEMISTRY, Issue 11 2001Donald E. Williams Abstract A new intermolecular force field for nitrogen atoms in organic molecules was derived from a training dataset of 76 observed azahydrocarbon crystal structures and 11 observed heats of sublimation. The previously published W99 force field for hydrogen, carbon, and oxygen was thus extended to include nitrogen atoms. Nitrogen atoms were divided into four classes: N(1) for triply bonded nitrogen, N(2) for nitrogen with no bonded hydrogen (except the triple bonded case), N(3) for nitrogen with one bonded hydrogen, and N(4) for nitrogen with two or more bonded hydrogens. H(4) designated hydrogen bonded to nitrogen. Wavefunctions of 6-31g** quality were calculated for each molecule and the molecular electric potential (MEP) was modeled with net atomic and supplementary site charges. Lone pair electron charge sites were included for nitrogen atoms where appropriate, and methylene bisector charges were used for CH2 and CH3 groups when fitting the MEP. XH bond distances were set to standard values for the wave function calculation and then foreshortened by 0.1 Å for the MEP and force field fitting. Using the force field optimized to the training dataset, each azahydrocarbon crystal structure was relaxed by intermolecular energy minimization. Predicted maximum changes in unit cell edge lengths for each crystal were 3% or less. The complete force field for H, C, N, and O atoms was tested by intermolecular energy relaxation of nucleoside and peptide molecular crystals. Even though these molecules were not included in any of the training datasets for the force field, agreement with their observed crystal structures was very good, with predicted unit cell edge shifts usually less than 2%. These tests included crystal structures of representatives of all eight common nucleosides found in DNA and RNA, 15 dipeptides, four tripeptides, two tetrapeptides, and a pentapeptide with two molecules in the asymmetric unit. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Comput Chem 22: 1154,1166, 2001 [source] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||