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Risk Areas (risk + area)
Kinds of Risk Areas Selected AbstractsEtiology and prevention of gastric cancer: a population study in a high risk area of ChinaJOURNAL OF DIGESTIVE DISEASES, Issue 4 2005Wei Cheng YOU A series of studies has been carried out in Linqu County, Shandong Province, China, a high-risk area for gastric cancer, to investigate the risk factors associated with gastric cancer, precancerous lesions and the prevention of gastric cancer. Our studies showed that sour pancakes (a popular local food), salted foods, cigarette smoking, and family history of gastric cancer were risk factors, whereas fresh vegetables, and intake of vitamin C and calcium were inversely associated with the risk of gastric cancer. The prevalence of chronic atrophic gastritis was approximately 20% in an adult population in Linqu County, intestinal metaplasia was approximately 50%, and dysplasia was approximately 20%. A follow-up study showed that the relative risk of developing gastric cancer increased with the severity of gastric lesions, and was associated with dietary factors, cigarette smoking and H. pylori infection in this population. The findings strongly support the idea that gastric cancer is primarily determined by environmental factors and develops in a multistep progression of precancerous lesions. [source] Pregnancy testing prior to sterilisationBJOG : AN INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF OBSTETRICS & GYNAECOLOGY, Issue 11 2000Asha Kasliwal Specialist Registrar Objective To determine the incidence of positive pregnancy test on the day of laparoscopic sterilisation. Design Prospective longitudinal observational study. Setting Gynaecology unit in a UK teaching hospital. Sample Between 1 January 1997 and 31 December 1998, eight hundred and two consecutive women were admitted for laparoscopic sterilisation after assessment in the gynaecology clinic. On the day of planned surgery, all women had a pregnancy test performed on a urine sample taken that morning following overnight fasting, immediately prior to operation. Main outcome measures A positive pregnancy test on the day of planned surgery. Results Of 802 women tested, 21 (2.6%) were pregnant. A careful medical history taken before surgery revealed evidence of amenorrhoea and menstrual irregularity in 17 of the pregnant women. Of the 21 pregnant women, 11 underwent termination of pregnancy, six continued the pregnancy, four had a miscarriage and one had an ectopic pregnancy. Conclusion The routine practice of pregnancy testing on the day of laparoscopic sterilisation introduced in our hospital should continue to be part of a thorough clinical assessment before surgery. This may help to reduce the considerable level of existing litigation in a high risk area of gynaecological practice. [source] The anti-diabetic drug miglitol is protective against anginal ischaemia through a mechanism independent of regional myocardial blood flow in the dogCLINICAL AND EXPERIMENTAL PHARMACOLOGY AND PHYSIOLOGY, Issue 10 2005Yoshihiro Uno SUMMARY 1.,In the present study, we attempted to clarify whether the antidiabetic drug miglitol, an ,-glucosidase inhibitor, has a protective effect against anginal ischaemia. We had reported previously that miglitol reduces myocardial infarct size through inhibition of glycogenolysis during ischaemia in rabbits. However, the effect of miglitol on anginal ischaemia remains unknown. 2.,In open-chest beagle dogs with a severely stenosed left anterior descending coronary artery, an epicardial electrode was attached to the surface of the risk area of the left ventricle and a microdialysis probe was implanted into the myocardium to measure ST segment changes and interstitial lactate accumulation. The first episode of anginal ischaemia was induced by atrial pacing and phenylephrine infusion (50,100 µg/min) for 10 min. The second episode of anginal ischaemia was induced 210 min after the first episode. Miglitol (10 mg/kg, i.v.) was administered to the miglitol group (n = 10) 30 min before the second episode of anginal ischaemia, whereas saline was administered to the control group (n = 10). Regional myocardial blood flow was measured using coloured microspheres. 3.,There was no significant difference in regional myocardial blood flow in the risk and non-risk areas between the first and second episodes of anginal ischaemia and between the miglitol and control groups. During the first and second episodes of anginal ischaemia, the ST segment was decreased to a similar extent in the control group. Although ST segment depression during the first episode of anginal ischaemia was similar in both groups, ST segment depression during the second episode of anginal ischaemia was significantly attenuated in the miglitol-treated group compared with the control group (1.3 ± 0.4 vs 2.2 ± 0.4 mV, respectively). Miglitol significantly attenuated myocardial interstitial lactate accumulation in the risk area. 4.,In conclusion, in the present study miglitol improved ST segment depression and attenuated the accumulation of myocardial interstitial lactate during anginal ischaemia without altering regional myocardial blood flow. Miglitol has an anti-anginal ischaemia effect via a mechanism that is independent of regional myocardial blood flow. [source] Planning to Reduce Risk: The Wildfire Management Overlay in Victoria, AustraliaGEOGRAPHICAL RESEARCH, Issue 2 2009RACHEL HUGHES Abstract In a world where climate change is a ,given', the concepts of vulnerability, resilience and risk are now pivotal in public policy debates in many countries. Within this context, planning controls are designed to facilitate safe, sustainable and prosperous communities. In line with March's (2007, 11) observation that ,one important "reason to plan" is the reduction of risk', Victoria's Wildfire Management Overlay (WMO) was developed with the aim of mitigating wildfire risk through the identification of high risk areas and ensuring that minimum fire protection measures are implemented. The need for such an Overlay is becoming increasingly apparent as climate change contributes to the growing frequency and intensity of bushfires in Australia. Empirical research has found that, by following WMO prescriptions, the risk of a dwelling igniting from direct flame or radiant heat generated in a one in 50-year fire event can be greatly minimised. Yet not all local Councils in Victoria have built the WMO into their land use planning processes and schemes. Barriers to adoption include: lack of political will, a distrust of ,over-regulation', lack of training and mentoring of planning staff, and potential conflicts with vegetation conservation objectives. [source] Flood risk management and planning policy in a time of policy transition: the case of the Wapshott Road Planning Inquiry, Surrey, EnglandJOURNAL OF FLOOD RISK MANAGEMENT, Issue 3 2009S. Tunstall Abstract This paper focuses on an English case study example of decision making on development and flood risk. It was carried out through qualitative document analysis and 13 in-depth interviews with flood risk professionals and others in the Lower Thames Valley. It illustrates the recent shift in policy in England from flood defence to a flood risk management approach with an increased emphasis on spatial planning and development control. It shows that decision makers take time to come to terms with new government policy. Despite the more prescriptive government guidance on development and flood risk in Planning Policy Guidance 25 and later documents, there remains scope for disagreements, for example, over what constitutes ,safe' development in flood risk areas. Other sustainability objectives can still weigh heavily against flood risk in local decision making. The potential contributions of modelling, and new visualisation techniques in the flood risk management and planning context are considered. [source] Using Penalized Splines to Model Age- and Season-of-Birth-Dependent Effects of Childhood Mortality Risk Factors in Rural Burkina FasoBIOMETRICAL JOURNAL, Issue 1 2009Heiko Becher Abstract Several previous studies have identified risk factors for childhood mortality in high risk areas, such as Sub-Saharan Africa. Among these are lifestyle factors related for example to nutrition or sanitation. Other factors are related to social class, ethnicity and poverty in general. Few studies have investigated a dependence of these factors by age and season of birth which is the focus in this study. We perform a survival analysis of 9121 children born between 1998 and 2001 in a rural area of western Burkina Faso. The whole population is under demographic surveillance since 1993. All cause mortality is used as the endpoint and follow-up information until the age of five years is available. Recently developed spline regression methods are used for the analysis. Ethnic group, religion, age of mother, twin status, sex, and distance to next health center are used as covariates all of which having a clear effect on survival in standard Cox regression analysis. With penalized spline regression, a more detailed risk pattern is observed. Ethnicity is more related to death at early age, as well as age of mother. The effect of the risk factors considered also appear to be related with season of birth (© 2009 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim) [source] Mixed inflammatory/regulatory cytokine profile marked by simultaneous raise of interferon-, and interleukin-10 and low frequency of tumour necrosis factor-,+ monocytes are hallmarks of active human visceral Leishmaniasis due to Leishmania chagasi infectionCLINICAL & EXPERIMENTAL IMMUNOLOGY, Issue 1 2006V. Peruhype-Magalhćes Summary Considering the complexity of the immunological events triggered during active visceral Leishmaniasis (VL), the relevance of the segregation of the immune response during human VL into type 1 and type 2 still remains unclear. For this purpose, in individuals living in risk areas for VL, we have evaluated especially asymptomatic individuals and patients with active VL, the plasmatic levels of cytokines and reactive nitrogen species under ex vivo conditions. In addition, we have also performed an analysis of intracellular cytokine patterns of circulating leucocytes after short-term culture, particularly in the absence of antigenic-specific stimulation, in order to reflect dynamic events of immune response in vivo during Leishmania chagasi infection. Although asymptomatic individuals and non-infected subjects presented a similar immunological profile, an outstanding inflammatory/regulatory profile, based on higher plasmatic levels of cytokines such as interleukin (IL)-8, interferon (IFN)-,, tumour necrosis factor (TNF)-,, IL-6 and IL-10, was associated with clinical status observed in active VL. In this context, we hypothesize that IL-10, through its ability to inhibit anti-leishmanial macrophage activation, associated with the lower frequency of TNF-,+ monocytes and ordinary levels of nitrite and nitrate are the major mechanisms associated with disease onset. [source] Low level laser therapy for healing acute and chronic wounds , the extendicare experienceINTERNATIONAL WOUND JOURNAL, Issue 2 2008Anita E Saltmarche Abstract The purpose of the study is to assess the effectiveness of low level laser therapy for wound healing when combined with the Extendicare Wound Prevention and Management Program. Sixteen residents at a Canadian Extendicare nursing home had a total of 27 sites treated consisting of 23 open wounds and 4 ,at risk' areas. Of the 23 open wounds, two wounds in between toes were not able to be ,traced' and deemed ,immeasurable' wounds, resulting in 21 open, measured wounds. The four ,at risk' (closed) areas were treated preventatively. Pressure, venous insufficiency and diabetic wounds were included. The majority (12/21) or 57·1%, of the wounds were chronic (,3 months duration) and 42·9% were acute (<3 months duration). The primary outcome measures included the PUSH Tool score, EZ GraphTM tracings and photographs. Secondary outcome measures were employed to better understand potential barriers to successful integration into clinical practice. Feedback on the effectiveness of low level laser therapy, the education program and determinations of hands-on relevance was sought from staff. At the end of the 9-week trial, the majority (61·9%) of the 21 wounds achieved significant improvement (,50% wound closure). Nine (42·8%) had 100% closure. Some improvement was seen in 14·3% and 23·8% of wounds demonstrated no change. Chronic and acute wounds had similar improvement. None of the wounds in this debilitated, frail population deteriorated during the study and no negative consequences of treatment were encountered. Without staff support, even if new technology has positive clinical outcomes, success would be limited. Staff rated low level laser, easy to learn and use, effective for the majority of their residents worth the additional time. Staff requested a continuation of low level laser even after study completion. [source] | ||||||||||