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Identifying
Terms modified by Identifying Selected AbstractsIdentifying Left Ventricular Dysfunction in Pulmonary HypertensionCONGESTIVE HEART FAILURE, Issue 5 2009Navin Rajagopalan MD The significance of left ventricular (LV) dysfunction in patients with pulmonary hypertension (PH) is unknown. Our purpose was to quantify LV function in PH patients by measuring LV myocardial performance index (MPI) and correlating it with invasively determined hemodynamic variables. The authors prospectively measured LV MPI via transthoracic echocardiography in 50 patients with PH (53±11 years; 35 women) who also underwent right heart catheterization within 1 day of echocardiography. For comparative purposes, LV MPI was also measured in 15 healthy volunteers who served as controls. LV MPI was significantly increased in the PH group compared with controls (0.62±0.27 vs 0.36±0.08; P<.001), indicating worse LV dysfunction despite that LV ejection fraction was not significantly different between the groups (58%±4% vs 60%±3%). LV MPI demonstrated significant correlations with invasively determined mean pulmonary artery pressure (r=.50; P<.001), pulmonary vascular resistance (r=.57; P<.001), and cardiac index (r=,.64; P<.001). By receiver operating characteristic analysis, LV MPI >0.75 predicted cardiac index <2 L/min/m2 with 89% sensitivity and 78% specificity (area under the curve, 0.89). In a multivariate model, LV MPI was independently associated with cardiac index (P<.01). Patients with PH demonstrate abnormal LV function as quantified by elevated LV MPI, which correlates significantly with pulmonary vascular resistance and cardiac index. [source] Identifying and assessing environmentally harmful subsidies in Germany: an overview of studies and their underlying methodologies in the energy and transport sectorENVIRONMENTAL POLICY AND GOVERNANCE, Issue 1 2007Tilmann Rave Abstract The discussion on the reduction and reform of subsidies in Germany has gained momentum lately. It has repeatedly been suggested that environmental and wider efficiency consideration be taken into account in reform strategies. Yet, progress at reforming environmentally harmful subsidies seems to be slow overall. This paper provides an overview on monitoring and assessing environmentally harmful subsidies in selected German policy sectors and discusses the underlying study methodologies. For this purpose we first briefly deal with the concept of subsidy and the measurement of subsidies in general and illustrate the linkage between subsidies and their environmental effects. The main focus of the paper is then on the current state of subsidy impact assessment and/or related monitoring activities. We discuss studies relating to two different policy sectors, energy policy and transport policy. While no single best methodology exists, it is suggested that different approaches may fertilize each other. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment. [source] REVIEW ARTICLE: Cortical control of eye and head movements: integration of movements and perceptsEUROPEAN JOURNAL OF NEUROSCIENCE, Issue 5 2007L. Longtang Chen Abstract The cortical control of eye movements is well known. It remains unclear, however, as to how the eye fields of the frontal lobes generate and coordinate eye and head movements. Here, we review the recent advances in electrical stimulation studies and evaluate relevant models. As electrical stimulation is conducted in head-unrestrained, behaving subjects with the evoked eye and head movements sometimes being indistinguishable from natural gaze shifts, a pertinent question becomes whether these movements are evoked by motor programs or sensory percepts. Recent stimulation studies in the visual cortex and the eye fields of the frontal lobes have begun to bring both possibilities to light. In addition, cognitive variables often interact with behavioral states that can affect movements evoked by stimulation. Identifying and controlling these variables are critical to our understanding of experimental results based on electrically evoked movements. This understanding is needed before one can draw inferences from such results to elucidate the neural mechanisms underlying natural and complex movements. [source] TRITURUS NEWTS DEFY THE RUNNING-SWIMMING DILEMMAEVOLUTION, Issue 10 2006Lumíl Gl Abstract Conflicts between structural requirements for carrying out different ecologically relevant functions may result in a compromise phenotype that maximizes neither function. Identifying and evaluating functional trade-offs may therefore aid in understanding the evolution of organismal performance. We examined the possibility of an evolutionary trade-off between aquatic and terrestrial locomotion in females of European species of the newt genus Triturus. Biomechanical models suggest a conflict between the requirements for aquatic and terrestrial locomotion. For instance, having an elongate, slender body, a large tail, and reduced limbs should benefit undulatory swimming, but at the cost of reduced running capacity. To test the prediction of an evolutionary trade-off between swimming and running capacity, we investigated relationships between size-corrected morphology and maximum locomotor performance in females of ten species of newts. Phylogenetic comparative analyses revealed that an evolutionary trend of body elongation (increasing axilla-groin distance) is associated with a reduction in head width and forelimb length. Body elongation resulted in reduced maximum running speed, but, surprisingly, also led to a reduction in swimming speed. The evolution of longer tails was associated with an increase in maximal swimming speed. We found no evidence for an evolutionary trade-off between aquatic and terrestrial locomotor performance, probably because of the unexpected negative effect of body elongation on swimming speed. We conclude that the idea of a design conflict between aquatic and terrestrial locomotion, mediated through antagonistic effects of body elongation, does not apply to our model system. [source] Identifying infection-associated genes of Candida albicans in the postgenomic eraFEMS YEAST RESEARCH, Issue 5 2009Duncan Wilson Abstract The human pathogenic yeast Candida albicans can cause an unusually broad range of infections reflecting a remarkable potential to adapt to various microniches within the human host. The exceptional adaptability of C. albicans is mediated by rapid alterations in gene expression in response to various environmental stimuli and this transcriptional flexibility can be monitored with tools such as microarrays. Using such technology it is possible to (1) capture a genome-wide portrait of the transcriptome that mirrors the environmental conditions, (2) identify known genes, signalling pathways and transcription factors involved in pathogenesis, (3) identify new patterns of gene expression and (4) identify previously uncharacterized genes that may be associated with infection. In this review, we describe the molecular dissection of three distinct stages of infections, covering both superficial and invasive disease, using in vitro, ex vivo and in vivo infection models and microarrays. [source] Climate change and plant invasions: restoration opportunities ahead?GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY, Issue 6 2009BETHANY A. BRADLEY Abstract Rather than simply enhancing invasion risk, climate change may also reduce invasive plant competitiveness if conditions become climatically unsuitable. Using bioclimatic envelope modeling, we show that climate change could result in both range expansion and contraction for five widespread and dominant invasive plants in the western United States. Yellow starthistle (Centaurea solstitialis) and tamarisk (Tamarix spp.) are likely to expand with climate change. Cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum) and spotted knapweed (Centaurea biebersteinii) are likely to shift in range, leading to both expansion and contraction. Leafy spurge (Euphorbia esula) is likely to contract. The retreat of once-intractable invasive species could create restoration opportunities across millions of hectares. Identifying and establishing native or novel species in places where invasive species contract will pose a considerable challenge for ecologists and land managers. This challenge must be addressed before other undesirable species invade and eliminate restoration opportunities. [source] Identifying and managing inhibitor patients requiring orthopaedic surgery , the multidisciplinary team approachHAEMOPHILIA, Issue 2005C. LUDLAM Summary., Until recently, surgery in haemophilia patients with inhibitors was strongly contraindicated and was therefore often not even contemplated. Inhibitor patients entering the surgical arena face unique challenges; the most frequently encountered problem during surgical intervention is bleeding, and thrombosis is occasionally observed. The activated prothrombin complex concentrate, FEIBATM, and recombinant activated factor VII (rFVIIa) are available as haemostatic cover during surgery. The use of rFVIIa enables inhibitor patients to undergo orthopaedic surgery with an expectation of success, and results are generally good. An organized team approach is critical to this success. However, further information is required to enable different procedures to be optimized in terms of both outcome and safety. [source] Receptor for the globular heads of C1q (gC1q-R, p33, hyaluronan-binding protein) is preferentially expressed by adenocarcinoma cellsINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CANCER, Issue 5 2004Daniel B. Rubinstein Abstract Combinatorial Ig libraries with phage display allow in vitro generation of human Ig fragments without the need to maintain hybridomas in ongoing cell culture or to select circulating Ig from human serum. Identifying tumor-associated antigens on the surface of intact tumor cells, as opposed to purified proteins, presents a challenge due to the difficulty of preserving complex 3-D epitopic sites on the cell surface, the variable expression of antigens on different malignant cell types and the stereotactic interference of closely associated proteins on the intact membrane surface limiting accessibility to antigenic sites. A combinatorial Ig library of 1010 clones was generated from the cDNA of PBMCs derived from patients with breast adenocarcinoma. Following subtractive panning, the library was enriched for Ig (Fab fragment) binding to intact adenocarcinoma cells and the resultant Fabs were screened against a cDNA expression library, itself generated from breast cancer cells. Using this approach, we isolated clones from the cDNA library expressing gC1q-R, a glycoprotein comprising the major structure of C1, the first component of the complement system. gC1q-R is a 33 kDa glycoprotein expressed not only on the cell surface but also intracellularly, with motifs that target it to mitochondria and complete homology with HABP and human HeLa cell protein p32, which is copurified with pre-mRNA SF2. Sequencing of the gene encoding tumor-associated gC1q-R did not reveal any consistent tumor-specific mutations. However, histochemical staining with anti-gC1q-R MAb demonstrated marked differential expression of gC1q-R in thyroid, colon, pancreatic, gastric, esophageal and lung adenocarcinomas compared to their nonmalignant histologic counterparts. In contrast, differential expression was not seen in endometrial, renal and prostate carcinomas. Despite high expression in breast carcinoma, gC1q-R was also expressed in nonmalignant breast tissue. Although the precise relation of gC1q-R to carcinogenesis remains unclear, our finding of tumor overexpression and the known multivalent binding of gC1q-R to not only C1q itself but also a variety of circulating plasma proteins as well as its involvement in cell-to-cell interactions suggest that gC1q-R may have a role in tumor metastases and potentially serve in molecule-specific targeting of malignant cells. © 2004 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Second Conference on Identifying and Serving Child Victims of TraffickingINTERNATIONAL MIGRATION, Issue 1-2 2005Micah Bump First page of article [source] Global Religious Transformations, Political Vision and Christian Witness,INTERNATIONAL REVIEW OF MISSION, Issue 375 2005Vinoth Ramachandra From the nineteenth-century onwards religion has been, and continues to be, an important resource for nationalist, modernizing movements. What was true of Protestant Christianity in the world of Victorian Britain also holds for the nationalist transformations of Hindu Neo-Vedanta, Theravada Buddhism, Shintoism and Shi'ite Islam in the non-Western world. Globalizing practises both corrode inherited cultural and personal identities and, at the same time, stimulate the revitalisation of particular identities as a way of gaining more influence in the new global order. However, it would be a gross distortion to identify the global transformations of Islam, and indeed of other world religions, with their more violent and fanatical forms. The globalization of local conflicts serves powerful propaganda purposes on all sides. If global Christian witness in the political arena is to carry integrity, this essay argues for the following responses, wherever we may happen to live: (a) Learning the history behind the stories of ,religious violence' reported in the secular media; (b) Identifying and building relationships with the more self-critical voices within the other religious traditions and communities, so avoiding simplistic generalizations and stereotyping of others; (c) Actively engaging in the political quest for truly participatory democracies that honour cultural and religious differences. In a hegemonic secular culture, as in the liberal democracies of the West, authentic cross-cultural engagement is circumvented. There is a militant secularist ,orthodoxy' that is as destructive of authentic pluralism as its fundamentalist religious counterpart. The credibility of the global Church will depend on whether Christians can resist the totalising identities imposed on them by their nation-states and/or their ethnic communities, and grasp that their primary allegiance is to Jesus Christ and his universal reign. [source] Identifying and Attracting the "right" Investors: Evidence on the Behavior of Institutional InvestorsJOURNAL OF APPLIED CORPORATE FINANCE, Issue 4 2004Brian Bushee This article summarizes the findings of research the author has conducted over the past seven years that aims to answer a number of questions about institutional investors: Are there significant differences among institutional investors in time horizon and other trading practices that would enable such investors to be classified into types on the basis of their observable behavior? Assuming the answer to the first is yes, do corporate managers respond differently to the pressures created by different types of investors, and, by implication, are certain kinds of investors more desirable from corporate management's point of view? What kinds of companies tend to attract each type of investor, and how does a company's disclosure policy affect that process? The author's approach identifies three categories of institutional investors: (1) "transient" institutions, which exhibit high portfolio turnover and own small stakes in portfolio companies; (2) "dedicated" holders, which provide stable ownership and take large positions in individual firms; and (3) "quasi-indexers," which also trade infrequently but own small stakes (similar to an index strategy). As might be expected, the disproportionate presence of transient institutions in a company's investor base appears to intensify pressure for short-term performance while also resulting in excess volatility in the stock price. Also not surprising, transient investors are attracted to companies with investor relations activities geared toward forward-looking information and "news events," like management earnings forecasts, that constitute trading opportunities for such investors. By contrast, quasi-indexers and dedicated institutions are largely insensitive to shortterm performance and their presence is associated with lower stock price volatility. The research also suggests that companies that focus their disclosure activities on historical information as opposed to earnings forecasts tend to attract quasi-indexers instead of transient investors. In sum, the author's research suggests that changes in disclosure practices have the potential to shift the composition of a firm's investor base away from transient investors and toward more patient capital. By removing some of the external pressures for short-term performance, such a shift could encourage managers to establish a culture based on long-run value maximization. [source] More than one Wavelength: Identifying, Understanding and Resolving Conflicts of Interest between People with Intellectual Disabilities and their Family CarersJOURNAL OF APPLIED RESEARCH IN INTELLECTUAL DISABILITIES, Issue 1 2001V. Williams The present paper describes conflicts of interest in families which include someone with intellectual disabilities. Data were taken from a study concerned with the 1995 Carers Act. The research examined the experiences and views of 51 families who had some kind of assessment by a social services department. Cases were analysed where it was found that carers, the people for whom they cared and the assessors did not agree about such conflicts. Assessors sometimes stereotyped families and spoke of conflicts of interest when the situation was more complex. In particular, the real conflict was often between the whole family and an inadequate service system that did not offer enough support or choices to the individual. Conflicts which had occurred were related to three major motives driving carers: (1) the need for a break from caring; (2) the need to speak for their disabled relative; and (3) their concern for standards of behaviour. The present authors report on how these situations were handled by assessors and conclude with some recommendations for good carer assessments which will help to resolve conflicts of interest. A greater degree of informed choice for individuals with intellectual disabilities will in itself resolve many potential conflicts of interest. [source] Autonomy through identification: a qualitative study of the process of identification used by people with type 2 diabetesJOURNAL OF CLINICAL NURSING, Issue 7b 2008Albine Moser MPH Aims and objectives., The aim of this study is to clarify the process of identification with diabetes as a dimension of autonomy as described by people with type 2 diabetes. Background., People with type 2 diabetes view autonomy as competency in shaping one's life. This concept of autonomy has seven dimensions, which emerged as categories in prior research. Dynamic processes shape these dimensions of autonomy. One of the dimensions of autonomy is identification. Method., This study has a qualitative descriptive and exploratory design and an inductive approach as described in grounded theory. Data were collected by means of in-depth interviews. The sample consisted of 15 people with type 2 diabetes mellitus in a nurse-led, shared-care setting in the Netherlands. Results., The phases of identification are comprehending, struggling, evaluating and mastering. Each phase has its own characteristics. Identifying with the diabetes is a non-linear, cyclical and continuous process because people with diabetes have to deal with changing conditions. Conclusion., The dynamics of identification is directed to a process of identifying with diabetes and its care requirement. Recognizing identification as an element of autonomy enables nurses to adopt a more patient-oriented view of autonomy. Relevance to clinical practice., Nursing that fosters the process of identification promotes autonomy. This implies that a person with diabetes should be able to identify with the nurse's interventions. Hence it is vital that nurses build supportive partnerships when providing care for such a patient. [source] Identifying and screening for psychological and comorbid medical and psychological disorders in medical settings,JOURNAL OF CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGY, Issue 3 2009Rodger Kessler Abstract There is increased attention to the medical and economic consequences of psychological problems comorbid with medical issues. There is also a clear awareness that most psychological problems are assessed and responded to in nonpsychiatric medical settings. This has furthered interest and attention in implementing screening procedures to better identify psychological, behavioral, and substance abuse problems in medical settings. Such interest is taking the form of recommendations from federal government task forces, and the funding of large projects to include screening in medical settings. At the same time there has been further attention to brief, valid, and reliable measures with which to capture psychological comorbidities. However, there have been multiple concerns raised about a variety of issues concerning the utility and effectiveness of such screening procedures and the identification of multiple issues to be considered in screening design. The author outlines and reviews the rationale and concerns about screening, identifies the issues that need to be considered in screening program development, and describes the efforts to develop a screening capacity in a rural family practice. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Clin Psychol: In Session 65:1,15, 2009. [source] Identifying and changing the normative beliefs about aggression which lead young Muslim adults to join extremist anti-Semitic groups in PakistanAGGRESSIVE BEHAVIOR, Issue 6 2009Naumana Amjad Abstract Two studies investigated the role of beliefs about the acceptability of aggression ("normative beliefs") against Jews in determining who would join an extremist group. In Study 1, students in a university in Pakistan (N=144) completed self-report attitude measures, and were subsequently approached by a confederate who asked whether they wanted to join an extremist anti-Semitic organization. Normative beliefs about aggression against Jews were very strong predictors of whether participants agreed to join. In Study 2, participants (N=92) were experimentally assigned to either a brief educational intervention, designed to improve inter-group relations, or to a control group. They also filled in self-report attitude measures pre and post intervention. Participants in the intervention group were much less likely to agree to join the extremist group, and this effect of the intervention on joining was mediated by changes in normative beliefs about aggression against Jews. The results have implications for theories of inter-group aggression and interventions to prevent people from being recruited into extremist groups. Aggr. Behav. 35:514,519, 2009. © 2009 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Identifying and reducing error in cluster-expansion approximations of protein energiesJOURNAL OF COMPUTATIONAL CHEMISTRY, Issue 16 2010Seungsoo Hahn Abstract Protein design involves searching a vast space for sequences that are compatible with a defined structure. This can pose significant computational challenges. Cluster expansion is a technique that can accelerate the evaluation of protein energies by generating a simple functional relationship between sequence and energy. The method consists of several steps. First, for a given protein structure, a training set of sequences with known energies is generated. Next, this training set is used to expand energy as a function of clusters consisting of single residues, residue pairs, and higher order terms, if required. The accuracy of the sequence-based expansion is monitored and improved using cross-validation testing and iterative inclusion of additional clusters. As a trade-off for evaluation speed, the cluster-expansion approximation causes prediction errors, which can be reduced by including more training sequences, including higher order terms in the expansion, and/or reducing the sequence space described by thecluster expansion. This article analyzes the sources of error and introduces a method whereby accuracy can be improved by judiciously reducing the described sequence space. The method is applied to describe the sequence,stability relationship for several protein structures: coiled-coil dimers and trimers, a PDZ domain, and T4 lysozyme as examples with computationally derived energies, and SH3 domains in amphiphysin-1 and endophilin-1 as examples where the expanded pseudo-energies are obtained from experiments. Our open-source software package Cluster Expansion Version 1.0 allows users to expand their own energy function of interest and thereby apply cluster expansion to custom problems in protein design. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Comput Chem, 2010 [source] Application of DNA Technique for Identifying the Species of Different Processed Products of Swordfish MeatJOURNAL OF FOOD SCIENCE, Issue 1 2004H. S. HSIEH ABSTRACT: Polymerase chain reaction technology and sequence analysis were used to identify the species in fresh, frozen, cooked, sterilized, and dressed dried fried meat of swordfish Xiphias gladius. The specific primers L-HS I, II, III, and IV, in conjunction with H-CSBDH, produced 357-, 238-, 137-, and 87-bp fragments, respectively, in the control region of swordfish mitochondrial DNA, but not for other billfish. These fragments were useful for detecting the species used in processed products claiming to be X. gladius. The primers L-HS IV and H-CSBDH produced 87-bp mtDNA fragments to identify the species of dressed dried fried swordfish meat products. Using L-HS IV and H-CSBDH primers'gene fragment to judge, it was found that only 45.8% (11/24) commercial samples of dressed dried fried products were made from swordfish. [source] Antiplatelet Therapy: Anti-Ischemic Benefits versus Bleeding RiskJOURNAL OF INTERVENTIONAL CARDIOLOGY, Issue 2008C. MICHAEL GIBSON M.D., F.A.C.C. Balance between efficacy and safety is a major concern in therapeutic interventions of patients with acute coronary syndromes. Identifying and managing the risks that may negatively affect this balance can potentially minimize the incidence of morbidity and/or mortality among patients with acute coronary syndromes. Unstable angina and non-ST-elevation myocardial infarction are potentially life-threatening disorders and a major cause of hospitalization and emergency medical care. At the time of presentation, the use of algorithms that provide reasonable assessment of a patient's risk of cardiovascular events, such as the Thrombolysis in Myocardial Infarction risk score, can help clinicians identify which patients will most likely benefit from a specific strategy. The ultimate goal of treatment for non-ST-elevation myocardial infarction is to reduce short- and long-term morbidity and mortality, as well as salvage myocardial cells and cardiac function. Pharmacologic intervention with antiplatelet and/or antithrombotic agents has proven to be effective in achieving this goal in numerous outcome studies. However, clinicians must balance anti-ischemic efficacy with the need to minimize the risk of serious bleeding complications (e.g., hemorrhage). Issues related to safety include timing of the dose, duration of infusion, drug compatibility, errors in estimating a patient's weight and/or age, failure to adjust the dosage based upon renal function, and errors in drug preparation. [source] Identifying, Enabling and Managing Dynamic Capabilities in the Public Sector*JOURNAL OF MANAGEMENT STUDIES, Issue 5 2007Amy L. Pablo abstract In this paper, we examine how a public sector organization developed a new strategic approach based on the identification and use of an internal dynamic capability (learning through experimenting). In response to the need for continual performance improvement in spite of reduced financial resources, this organization engaged in three overlapping phases as they shifted to this strategic approach. First, managers identified appropriate latent dynamic capabilities. Next, they used their leadership skills and built on established levels of trust to enable the use of these dynamic capabilities. Finally, they managed the tension between unrestricted development of local initiatives and organizational needs for guidance and control. [source] Identifying and implementing prevention programmes for childhood mental health problemsJOURNAL OF PAEDIATRICS AND CHILD HEALTH, Issue 12 2007Femke Giesen Abstract: A substantial number of children and adolescents in Australia have mental health problems. This review provides guidance to service providers for selecting prevention programmes designed to reduce mental health problems experienced by children. It addresses three issues. First, it highlights the importance of utilising programmes that focus on risk and protective factors which have a causal relationship with mental health problems. Second, it describes approaches that can be used to assess the quality of programme evaluations, and identifies common characteristics of more effective programmes. Finally, it identifies general factors which influence the uptake of innovations, such as new prevention programmes, in health services. These features include, for example, compatibility with potential providers' values, norms and perceived needs, and some flexibility which allows potential providers to adapt programmes to suit their specific needs and context. Addressing these general issues is important to maximise the uptake of effective new prevention programmes. [source] Identifying and managing childhood obesity: We can do it betterJOURNAL OF PAEDIATRICS AND CHILD HEALTH, Issue 7-8 2006Louise A. Baur Professor No abstract is available for this article. [source] ,Where are you from?': Identifying place1JOURNAL OF SOCIOLINGUISTICS, Issue 3 2006Greg Myers Many social research projects, such as interviews, focus groups, and surveys, take local place as a given: they choose participants from a particular place, take this place as background for what the participants say, ask them about place-related issues, and correlate responses with different places. But people can identify places in different ways, in geographical or relational terms, and in different levels of scale. This study analyses passages in focus groups in which participants say where they are from, shows that participants generally take the question and answer as routine, and then shows the ways the interaction develops when this routineness is broken, amended, or called into question. When a participant revises their statement of where they are from, they adapt to what they see as the knowledge and stance of their interlocutor, they re-present themselves, and they create possibilities for further talk, defending, telling stories, or showing entitlement to an opinion. I argue that the ways people answer this question, interactively, can tell us about them, and us, as well as about their map of the world. [source] Reactivity to images in health and irritable bowel syndromeALIMENTARY PHARMACOLOGY & THERAPEUTICS, Issue 1 2010H. R. CARRUTHERS Summary Background, We have been using a medical artist to record and paint the images patients have of their irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and have hypothesized that the reaction to such images might differ in health and IBS, which could have practical implications for future research. Aim, To examine reactivity to images in health and IBS. Methods, Twelve paintings of IBS were shown to 70 patients to determine the four most evocative images. The spontaneous response to these images and four ,non-IBS painful' and four neutral paintings was assessed in another 100 IBS patients and 100 controls. The prompted reaction in terms of whether an image evoked the notion of pain, bloating or discomfort and to what degree was also recorded. Results, Four images depicting bloating and pain scored the highest. These IBS images triggered significantly different reactivity between patients and controls in terms of their spontaneous and prompted responses. Even ,non-IBS painful' and neutral images resulted in exaggerated and frequently significantly different responses in patients than in controls. Conclusions, Visual hypersensitivity appears to be another manifestation of the tendency of IBS patients to react adversely to a variety of endogenous and exogenous stimuli. Identifying how individuals relate to different images might also give useful insights into understanding gastrointestinal symptoms. [source] How can we prepare medical students for theatre-based learning?MEDICAL EDUCATION, Issue 10 2007Nishan Fernando Context, The quality of medical undergraduate operating theatre-based teaching is variable. Preparation prior to attending theatre may support student learning. Identifying and agreeing key skills, competences and objectives for theatre-based teaching may contribute to this process of preparation. Methods, We carried out a cross-sectional survey of consultant surgeons and students using a forced choice questionnaire containing 16 skills and competences classified as ,essential', ,desirable' or ,not appropriate', and a choice of 6 different teaching methods, scored for perceived effectiveness on a 5-point Likert scale. Questionnaire content was based on the findings from an earlier qualitative study. Results, Comparative data analyses (Mann, Whitney and Kruskal,Wallis tests) were carried out using spss Version 14. A total of 42 consultant surgeons and 46 students completed the questionnaire (46% and 100% response rates, respectively). Knowledge of standard theatre etiquette and protocols, ability to scrub up adequately, ability to adhere to sterile procedures, awareness of risks to self, staff and patients, and appreciation of the need for careful peri-operative monitoring were considered ,essential' by the majority. Student and consultant responses differed significantly on 5 items, with students generally considering more practical skills and competences to be essential. Differences between students on medical and surgical attachments were also identified. Conclusions, Consultant surgeons and medical students agree on many aspects of the important learning points for theatre-based teaching. Compared with their teachers, students, particularly those on attachment to surgical specialties, are more ambitious , perhaps overly so , in the level of practical skills and risk awareness they expect to gain in theatre. [source] Lesbians: Identifying, facing, and navigating the double bind of sexual orientation and gender in organizational settingsNEW DIRECTIONS FOR ADULT & CONTINUING EDUCATION, Issue 112 2006Julie Gedro This chapter explores the challenges and the opportunities that lesbians experience in organizational America. [source] Surveillance of occupational health disparities: Challenges and opportunities,,AMERICAN JOURNAL OF INDUSTRIAL MEDICINE, Issue 2 2010Kerry Souza ScD Abstract Increasingly, the occupational health community is turning its attention to the effects of work on previously underserved populations, and researchers have identified many examples of disparities in occupational health outcomes. However, the occupational health status of some underserved worker populations is not described due to limitations in existing surveillance systems. As such, the occupational health community has identified the need to enhance and improve occupational health surveillance to describe the nature and extent of disparities in occupational illnesses and injuries (including fatalities), identify priorities for research and intervention, and evaluate trends. This report summarizes the data sources and methods discussed at an April 2008 workshop organized by NIOSH on the topic of improving surveillance for occupational health disparities. We discuss the capability of existing occupational health surveillance systems to document occupational health disparities and to provide surveillance data on minority and other underserved communities. Use of administrative data, secondary data analysis, and the development of targeted surveillance systems for occupational health surveillance are also discussed. Identifying and reducing occupational health disparities is one of NIOSH's priority areas under the National Occupational Research Agenda (NORA). Am. J. Ind. Med. 53:84,94 2010. Published 2010 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Should neurologists wait and see or see and treat RRMS?PROGRESS IN NEUROLOGY AND PSYCHIATRY, Issue 5 2009David Bates MA Early and aggressive treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is now regarded as best practice to limit irreversible joint damage. However, in the case of relapsing remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS), current guidelines recommend that disease modifying therapy should only be initiated in patients with evidence of actively progressing disease. Here, the authors present the key findings of the Programme Identifying and Observing Novel Therapy Adoption in Chronic Diseases (PIONEER) study to examine the reasons for these different management approaches. Copyright © 2009 Wiley Interface Ltd [source] Mothers' Decision-Making Processes Regarding Health Care for Their ChildrenPUBLIC HEALTH NURSING, Issue 3 2001Gloria Jean Gross Ph.D. This research study explored mothers' decision-making processes regarding health care for their children. Identifying how decisions are made by mothers about health care for their children will assist health care professionals to be appropriate advocates for mothers, to improve quality of life, and to contain costs of health care for children. A sample of 114 rural mothers (51 with one child, 63 with more than one child) completed questionnaires identifying demographics, social support, client and professional interaction elements, self-determinism, competence in problem-solving skills, and relationships to responses to health care scenarios. Qualitative data were also gathered by structured in-depth interviews of 7 subjects. ANOVA, correlations, and factor analysis were completed to analyze data. Most of the mothers' decisions were based on the perceived degree of seriousness, mother's degree of fear of the child's condition, attitude of the health care provider, previous experience with the situation, and social support for the mother. There were no significant differences in decision-making processes by first time mothers and by mothers with more than one child. Implications include teaching mothers assessment skills to identify serious versus nonserious situations and to utilize other social supports. [source] Utility of Lead aVR for Identifying the Culprit Lesion in Acute Myocardial InfarctionANNALS OF NONINVASIVE ELECTROCARDIOLOGY, Issue 3 2009B.Sc., Jørgen Tobias Kühl M.A. Background: Lead aVR is a neglected, however, potentially useful tool in electrocardiography. Our aim was to evaluate its value in clinical practice, by reviewing existing literature regarding its utility for identifying the culprit lesion in acute myocardial infarction (AMI). Methods: Based on a systematic search strategy, 16 studies were assessed with the intent to pool data; diagnostic test rates were calculated as key results. Results: Five studies investigated if ST-segment elevation (STE) in aVR is valuable for the diagnosis of left main stem stenosis (LMS) in non,ST-segment AMI (NSTEMI). The studies were too heterogeneous to pool, but the individual studies all showed that STE in aVR has a high negative predictive value (NPV) for LMS. Six studies evaluated if STE in aVR is valuable for distinguishing proximal from distal lesions in the left anterior descending artery (LAD) in anterior ST-segment elevation AMI (STEMI). Pooled data showed a sensitivity of 47%, a specificity of 96%, a positive predicative value (PPV) of 91% and a NPV of 69%. Five studies examined if ST-segment depression (STD) in lead aVR is valuable for discerning lesions in the circumflex artery from those in the right coronary artery in inferior STEMI. Pooled data showed a sensitivity of 37%, a specificity of 86%, a PPV of 42%, and an NPV of 83%. Conclusion: The absence of aVR STE appears to exclude LMS as the underlying cause in NSTEMI; in the context of anterior STEMI, its presence indicates a culprit lesion in the proximal segment of LAD. [source] Integrated river basin management in England and Wales: a policy perspectiveAQUATIC CONSERVATION: MARINE AND FRESHWATER ECOSYSTEMS, Issue 4 2002G. Mance Abstract 1.There is now an irresistible momentum for a truly integrated and strategic approach to river basin management. As a consequence, the framework within which individual organizations can carry out their roles and responsibilities in a co-ordinated and sustainable way can be determined. 2.Extreme events such as floods and droughts have severe social and economic consequences. ,Traditional' engineered responses, which take little account of fluvial processes and ecosystem functioning, often exacerbate these problems and can have severe adverse consequences on the environment. 3.Bringing together a range of scientific, technical and engineering disciplines to address catchment management has many advantages. Identifying and implementing innovative solutions that benefit local communities and the environment is the only sustainable way forward for river management. 4.Public understanding of risk assessment and management is vital to the success of an integrated approach. So too is a strategic dimension to inform the town and country planning system and major investment decisions by major utilities and public bodies responsible for water supply, pollution control and flood management. 5.There are major challenges ahead for public utilities, agencies and professional bodies in terms of attracting, retaining and blending together skilled scientific, engineering and technical specialists. These skills need to be complemented by the ability to convey sophisticated information in readily understood language. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||