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Local Data (local + data)
Selected AbstractsFurther characterization of MHC haplotypes demonstrates conservation telomeric of HLA-A: update of the 4AOH and 10IHW cell panelsINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF IMMUNOGENETICS, Issue 5-6 2000S. K. Cattley Cell panels have been used extensively in studies of polymorphism and disease associations within the major histocompatibility complex (MHC), but the results from these panels require continuous updates with the increasing availability of novel data. We present here an updated table of the typings of the 10IHW and 4AOH panels. Local data included are HFE, HERV-K(C4) and six microsatellites telomeric of HLA-A. Typings for class I, MICA (PERB11.1), MICB (PERB11.2), XA, XB, LMP2 and 10 microsatellites reported by others have also been consolidated in this table. The tabulation shows that the length of conservation in the human MHC is even more extensive than previously thought. Human MHC ancestral haplotypes are inherited as a conserved region of genomic sequence spanning some 6,8 megabases from the HLA class II region and beyond the HLA class I region up to and including the HFE gene. Numerous examples of historical recombinations were also observed. [source] ,When will I see you again?' Using local recurrence data to develop a regimen for routine surveillance in post-treatment head and neck cancer patientsCLINICAL OTOLARYNGOLOGY, Issue 6 2009S.E. Lester Objective:, To develop an evidence-based regimen for routine surveillance of post-treatment head and neck cancer patients. Design:, Review of 10 years of prospectively collected patient data. Main outcome measures:, Time of first presentation of ,new cancer event' (either first recurrence or second primary tumour). We did not evaluate whether or not the detected new cancer events were curable. Results:, Data from patients with primary squamous cell carcinoma of the larynx, oropharynx and hypopharynx were analysed. A total of 676 previously undiagnosed squamous cell carcinomas were recorded in these regions. In these patients there were 105 recurrences and 20 second primary cancers were recorded; 95th percentile of "time to a new cancer event" was calculated in years. These were for larynx 4.7 years, oropharynx 2.7 years, hypopharynx 2.3 years. The time to new cancer event was similar for early and late laryngeal cancers. Only 36 (47%) of the hypopharyngeal cancers were treated with curative intent and of these 36% had a previously undiagnosed cancer event. Conclusion:, Local data and published evidence support a follow-up duration of 7 years for laryngeal primaries and 3 years for both oropharyngeal and hypopharyngeal primaries. Late stage oropharyngeal cancers may require longer follow up than early cancers. Patients who continue to smoke may need longer follow up. A change in local follow-up protocol to this regimen would save 10 patient slots every week with no detriment to patient care. Clin. Otolaryngol. 2009, 34, 546,551. [source] An Urban Approach to Firm Entry: The Effect of Urban SizeGROWTH AND CHANGE, Issue 4 2005JOSEP-MARIA ARAUZO-CAROD ABSTRACT This article explores the determinants of firm entry in Spanish municipalities. The authors consider that size is an important determinant of a city's capacity to attract new manufacturing firms. Panel data were used to estimate the determinants of entry according to urban size in Spain (from 1994 to 1702). This article contributes to the literature on market entry because most previous contributions have focused on regional factors rather than urban ones. The results show that local characteristics affect the formation of new firms. However, more local data are needed to obtain more specific results. [source] Assessing the suitability of central European landscapes for the reintroduction of Eurasian lynxJOURNAL OF APPLIED ECOLOGY, Issue 2 2002Stephanie Schadt Summary 1After an absence of almost 100 years, the Eurasian lynx Lynx lynx is slowly recovering in Germany along the German,Czech border. Additionally, many reintroduction schemes have been discussed, albeit controversially, for various locations. We present a habitat suitability model for lynx in Germany as a basis for further management and conservation efforts aimed at recolonization and population development. 2We developed a statistical habitat model using logistic regression to quantify the factors that describe lynx home ranges in a fragmented landscape. As no data were available for lynx distribution in Germany, we used data from the Swiss Jura Mountains for model development and validated the habitat model with telemetry data from the Czech Republic and Slovenia. We derived several variables describing land use and fragmentation, also introducing variables that described the connectivity of forested and non-forested semi-natural areas on a larger scale than the map resolution. 3We obtained a model with only one significant variable that described the connectivity of forested and non-forested semi-natural areas on a scale of about 80 km2. This result is biologically meaningful, reflecting the absence of intensive human land use on the scale of an average female lynx home range. Model testing at a cut-off level of P > 0·5 correctly classified more than 80% of the Czech and Slovenian telemetry location data of resident lynx. Application of the model to Germany showed that the most suitable habitats for lynx were large-forested low mountain ranges and the large forests in east Germany. 4Our approach illustrates how information on habitat fragmentation on a large scale can be linked with local data to the potential benefit of lynx conservation in central Europe. Spatially explicit models like ours can form the basis for further assessing the population viability of species of conservation concern in suitable patches. [source] What does partnership in care mean for children's nurses?JOURNAL OF CLINICAL NURSING, Issue 3 2007Dip N, Polly Lee MSc Aim and objective., To explore partnership in care with a small sample of children's nurses in an inner city trust. (i) To obtain local data on what a sample of children's nurses understand by partnership in care and to what degree partnership in care is evident in their practice; (ii) where feasible, to compare these data with national and international literatures describing partnership in care and provide pointers that will be useful in contributing and responding to the children's national service framework. Background., Partnership in care has been practised within children's nursing in UK for over a decade, but is an amorphous topic. More recently, it has been suggested that partnership in care can be described as a part of the spectrum of family-centred care. An exploratory study with 10 experienced children's nurses was undertaken to determine what they understood by the term partnership in care. Results., Seven categories emerged from the data: attitudes, respect for family, communication, parent understanding, effective partnership, all parties (satisfied) and improved well-being. Conclusion., It is suggested that a negative approach to one of the first four categories leads to ineffective partnership in care. Relevance to clinical practice., Attitudes, respect for the family and communication should improve to enhance the practice of partnership in care. Respect for the child and family and communication have both been identified as important qualities within the new National Service Framework for Children, Young People and Maternity Services. Further research is suggested to determine the applicability of these findings to other members of the multi-disciplinary team. [source] Successful fluoride plebiscite in the township of Deniliquin, New South Wales, AustraliaJOURNAL OF PUBLIC HEALTH DENTISTRY, Issue 2 2010DPH (Dent), Shanti Sivaneswaran BDS Abstract Objectives: This article describes the strategies adopted to influence the outcome of a plebiscite held in March 2004 in favor of water fluoridation in Deniliquin, a rural town in New South Wales, Australia. Methods: The health promotion strategies undertaken included the following: a) the skillful use of media to educate the community on the benefits of water fluoridation; b) disseminating contemporary local data to demonstrate oral health disparities with neighboring fluoridated townships; and c) a well-established lobbying machine to mobilize the community. Results: Out of a total population of 5,280 on the electoral roll, 4,539 residents voted, giving a response rate of 86 percent. The wording of the plebiscite was "Do you support the addition of fluoride to Deniliquin town water supply?" There were 2,533 "yes" votes (55.8 percent), 1,879 "no" votes (41.4 percent), and 127 spoiled votes (2.8 percent). Conclusions: The council resolved to implement water fluoridation and the residents received fluoridated water in January 2005. [source] Institutional Performance And Social Capital: An Application To The Local Government LevelJOURNAL OF URBAN AFFAIRS, Issue 5 2005Hilde Coffé This literature reveals that societies characterized by higher levels of social capital tend to achieve superior performance. Still, enquiries to date predominantly concentrate on country-level data or large sub-national units. The primary purpose of this article is to extend the empirical work to the local government level, while retaining the use of objective data to gauge institutional performance. This use of local data has the advantage of increasing the data set available and provides a more stringent test of the effect of social capital because social capital is likely to vary less at lower levels of government. The results,based on an empirical analysis of 305 Flemish municipalities in 2000,support the view that social capital leads to government (out)performance also at the local level of government. [source] Surgical management of colorectal cancer in south-western Sydney 1997,2001: a prospective series of 1293 unselected cases from six public hospitalsANZ JOURNAL OF SURGERY, Issue 9 2005S. K. Cyril Wong Background: The aim of the present study is to provide local data for the management of colorectal cancers in the south-western Sydney health area from 1997 to 2001. Methods: The data were collected prospectively. Follow up was conducted in late 2001 and early 2002. Data were cross-validated with hospital and area databases and with data from the New South Wales Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages. Results: This was an unselected series of 1293 patients from 36 surgeons; 16.5% of patients presented as emergencies. Only 3% presented as a result of bowel cancer screening. Of the 1293 patients, 1270 received an operation. There were 598 elective colonic resections with the mortality rate of 1.2%, reoperation rate of 2.7% and anastomotic leak rate of 0.8%. For the 410 elective rectal resections, the rates were 2.9%, 2.7% and 1.2%, respectively. For the 290 emergency operations, the rates were much worse at 7.7%, 6.6% and 4.8%, respectively. The corrected overall 3-year survival rate was 64%. For Dukes' A, B, C and D, the figures were 94%, 87%, 61% and 7%, respectively. Conclusions: Colorectal cancer is a major cause of mortality and morbidity in our community. Very few bowel cancers were discovered at the asymptomatic stage. This paper strongly supports community bowel cancer screening and early diagnosis. The local database has provided a rich source of information to benchmark management and outcomes of bowel cancer patients treated in the South Western Sydney Area Health Service. An area-wide computer network with online data input facilities at individual workplaces will improve data integrity and data collection efficiency. [source] Impacts of Demographics on Citizen's Access to Information: An Empirical Study of District Dera Ismail Khan, North Western Frontier Province, PakistanASIAN SOCIAL WORK AND POLICY REVIEW, Issue 2 2008Najeebullah Khan The impact of demographic dimensions on local government behavior is well identified, analyzed and documented at the global level. Likewise, several studies are available on developing countries, but empirical evidence on the conditions of Pakistan is lacking. This study is an effort to unearth empirical evidence on access to information in the local government system exemplifying data from the district Dera Ismail Khan (DIK), North Western Frontier Province (NWFP). Most global hypotheses for developing countries are accepted in this study but the statistics on local data are far more different in terms of the value and weight of variables, relationships and impacts on the research concepts. The most dominant concept in the impact of access to information on the local government system is "education for all." Mass education is a leading concept in making or breaking the role of people participation in the success or failure of local democracies. Data show that illiteracy is causing many problems, including the mass population's unawareness of their interests and duties at the public level, thereby giving the ruling elite a free hand in exploiting public resources for self-interest, at the cost of the public good. [source] Incidence and risk factors predicting blood transfusion in caesarean sectionAUSTRALIAN AND NEW ZEALAND JOURNAL OF OBSTETRICS AND GYNAECOLOGY, Issue 5 2009Seng Chai CHUA Background: Routine preoperative evaluation for caesarean section (CS) has commonly included a blood type and screen evaluation due to risk of blood transfusion. However, there have been no objective local data to support such practices. Aims: To evaluate the cost-effectiveness of blood type and screen testing for CS. Methods: This retrospective study reviewed all singleton CS at a tertiary hospital using data from Blood Bank Registry and Obstetric Database, from 1 January 2004 to 31 December 2005. Clinical variables including demographic characteristics, estimated blood loss, indications for CS, preoperative haemoglobin and indications for transfusions were gathered. All patients who had blood transfusion recorded in Obstetric Database or in Blood Bank Registry had their medical records reviewed by two reviewers to confirm accuracy and identify risk factors for haemorrhage. Results: Of 2212 patients with singleton pregnancy who underwent CS, 14 (0.63%) required a blood transfusion. The risk of blood transfusion for elective and emergency CS are 3.9 per 1000 and 9.8 per 1000, respectively. In the absence of risk factors identified in this study, no women (of a total of 1293 elective CS) required blood transfusion. Conclusion: In the absence of significant risk factors for haemorrhage at CS in a tertiary setting, routine blood type and screen testing does not enhance patient care. In the rare event that a patient without previously identifiable risk factors requires an urgent blood transfusion, O negative blood could be given in the interim pending formal determination of type and cross-match. [source] FRACTURES OF THE FEMORAL NECK IN AUSTRALIAN ABORIGINALS AND TORRES STRAIT ISLANDERSAUSTRALIAN JOURNAL OF RURAL HEALTH, Issue 3 2001David J. Macintosh ABSTRACT: The objective was to study patients of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander origin who were admitted to Cairns Base Hospital with the diagnosis of femoral neck fracture. An analysis of all 232 admissions with this diagnosis between November 1997 and July 2000 was carried out. Information was gathered from data accumulated on the Clinical Pathways database; other local data was also considered. Patients registered as being of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander origin have a lower incidence of these fractures than might be expected on an overall population basis, but similar rates on age-standardised data. The female age profile is substantially older than the female non-indigenous osteoporotic fracture group. Indigenous females develop osteoporotic type fractures of the femoral neck at a later age than do non-indigenous females. This may reflect a genetic difference in bone mineral density or a healthy lifestyle in earlier days. Further research is suggested. [source] Science and its application in assessing the welfare of laying hens in the egg industryAUSTRALIAN VETERINARY JOURNAL, Issue 10 2003JL BARNETT Objective To provide a rational framework for the scientific assessment of welfare and to use this framework to assess the welfare implications of issues relevant to the Australian egg industry. Procedure A well-accepted approach to the assessment of animal welfare, based on assessing how well the animal is adapting, is described. This approach is used to consider the welfare implications of issues such as space, perches, nest boxes, dust baths, abrasive strips and non-cage housing systems. Conclusions The role of science in the welfare debate is to provide biological facts and thus it is important to separate welfare and ethics. The welfare of an animal in response to a housing system or husbandry procedure can be assessed by evaluating how much has to be done by the animal in order to cope and the extent to which the coping attempts are succeeding. Using this approach there is evidence for improved welfare from increasing space in cages, based on reduced aggression, corticosterone concentrations and mortalities and increased production, and for incorporating perches, based on the reduction in injuries at depopulation. Similar evidence for the inclusion of dust baths and nest boxes is lacking. The data on abrasive strips are equivocal with recommendations from overseas for their inclusion, whereas some local data have shown an increase in mortality can occur. Similarly, the data on non-cage systems are equivocal. The data on bone strength suggest improved fitness in non-cage systems, the data on stress suggest fitness may be better, similar or worse in non-cage systems, and the limited data on immunology suggest fitness may be worse in non-cage systems than in conventional cages. [source] | |||||||||||||