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Selected AbstractsQUALITIES OF EXTRUDED PUFFED SNACKS FROM MAIZE/SOYBEAN MIXTUREJOURNAL OF FOOD PROCESS ENGINEERING, Issue 2 2006A. OBATOLU VERONICA ABSTRACT A maize-based snack was fortified with partially defatted soybean (PDS) at 10, 20 and 30% of total weight and analyzed for physical (expansion ratio, density, color and texture [brittleness, breaking strength and hardness]), chemical and sensory characteristics. Incorporating PDS in a maize-based snack had a positive effect on chemical properties but had a negative effect on the physical and sensory characteristics. The results showed a protein range of 9.3 ± 0.90% in 100% maize-based snacks to 19.3 ± 1.03% in 30% replacements with soybean. The overall consumer acceptability test showed a score range between 4.1 ± 0.82 in 30% level of fortification and 8.2 ± 1.04 in 100% maize and 10% fortified extrudate. Panelists perceived the puffed extrudates with 20 and 30% PDS as not puffy or crispy, less acceptable and harder to crack. Up to 20% of PDS could be used in maize-based puffed extrudates. [source] Health economics of asthma: assessing the value of asthma interventionsALLERGY, Issue 12 2008J. D. Campbell The aim of this systematic review was to summarize and assess the quality of asthma intervention health economic studies from 2002 to 2007, compare the study findings with clinical management guidelines, and suggest avenues for future improvement of asthma health economic studies. Forty of the 177 studies met our inclusion criteria. We assessed the quality of studies using The Quality of Health Economic Studies validated instrument (total score range: 0,100). Six studies (15%) had quality category 2, 26 studies (65%) achieved quality category 3, and the remaining eight (20%) studies were scored as the highest quality level, category 4. Overall, the findings from this review are in line with the Global Initiative for Asthma clinical guidelines. Many asthma health economic studies lacked appropriate long term time horizons to match the chronic nature of the disease and suffered from using effectiveness measures that did not capture all disease related risks and benefits. We recommend that new asthma simulation models: be flexible to allow for long term time horizons, focus on using levels of asthma control in their structure, and estimate both long term asthma specific outcomes like well-controlled time as well as generic outcomes such as quality adjusted survival. [source] Anaesthetic choice for palatal canine exposureORAL SURGERY, Issue 1-2 2010S. Hetherington Abstract Aim:, To determine if predicted difficulty of exposure of palatally displaced, unerupted canines assessed by radiographic score had influenced the choice between a local or a general anaesthetic procedure in adolescents. Materials and methods:, This was a retrospective analysis of patients undergoing surgical exposure of palatal canines between December 2005 and June 2008 in a dental hospital setting. A total of 56 subjects, for whom complete records were available, aged 16 years or under and assessed and treated by one surgeon, were included. The predicted degree of difficulty of exposure was graded from preoperative radiographs based on three criteria; the horizontal and vertical position of the crown, and the canine angulation (possible score range 3,11: higher score = more difficulty). The radiographic scores and patient age for the local anaesthetic and general anaesthetic groups were compared using Student's unpaired t -tests. Other variables including gender, other surgical treatment required and unilateral or bilateral exposure were evaluated by chi-squared analysis. Results:, Thirty-one (55%) patients were treated with local anaesthetic and 25 (45%) with general anaesthetic, the mean age was 13.7 years. The mean radiographic scores did not differ between groups being 7.53 and 7.36 for the local anaesthetic and general anaesthetic groups, respectively. Chi-squared analysis showed concurrent other surgical treatment to be the only statistically significant factor in anaesthetic choice. Conclusions:, Difficulty of canine exposure is not a significant factor in anaesthetic choice for adolescents, other concurrent surgical treatment appears a more significant factor in anaesthetic choice in this group. [source] Genomic dissection of drought resistance in durum wheat × wild emmer wheat recombinant inbreed line populationPLANT CELL & ENVIRONMENT, Issue 7 2009ZVI PELEG ABSTRACT Drought is the major factor limiting wheat productivity worldwide. The gene pool of wild emmer wheat, Triticum turgidum ssp. dicoccoides, harbours a rich allelic repertoire for morpho-physiological traits conferring drought resistance. The genetic and physiological bases of drought responses were studied here in a tetraploid wheat population of 152 recombinant inbreed lines (RILs), derived from a cross between durum wheat (cv. Langdon) and wild emmer (acc# G18-16), under contrasting water availabilities. Wide genetic variation was found among RILs for all studied traits. A total of 110 quantitative trait loci (QTLs) were mapped for 11 traits, with LOD score range of 3.0,35.4. Several QTLs showed environmental specificity, accounting for productivity and related traits under water-limited (20 QTLs) or well-watered conditions (15 QTLs), and in terms of drought susceptibility index (22 QTLs). Major genomic regions controlling productivity and related traits were identified on chromosomes 2B, 4A, 5A and 7B. QTLs for productivity were associated with QTLs for drought-adaptive traits, suggesting the involvement of several strategies in wheat adaptation to drought stress. Fifteen pairs of QTLs for the same trait were mapped to seemingly homoeologous positions, reflecting synteny between the A and B genomes. The identified QTLs may facilitate the use of wild alleles for improvement of drought resistance in elite wheat cultivars. [source] Emergency Medicine Resident Attitudes and Perceptions of HIV Testing Before and After a Focused Training Program and Testing ImplementationACADEMIC EMERGENCY MEDICINE, Issue 11 2009Yu-Hsiang Hsieh MSc Abstract Objectives:, The objectives were to determine attitudes and perceptions (A&P) of emergency medicine (EM) residents toward emergency department (ED) routine provider-driven rapid HIV testing services and the impact of both a focused training program (FTP) and implementation of HIV testing on A&P. Methods:, A three-phase, consecutive, anonymous, identity-unlinked survey was conducted pre-FTP, post-FTP, and 6 months postimplementation. The survey was designed to assess residents' A&P using a five-point Likert scale. A preimplementation FTP provided both the rationale for the HIV testing program and the planned operational details of the intervention. The HIV testing program used only indigenous ED staff to deliver HIV testing as part of standard-of-care in an academic ED. The impact of the FTP and implementation on A&P were analyzed by multivariate regression analysis using generalized estimating equations to control for repeated measurements in the same individuals. A "favorable" A&P was operationally defined as a mean score of >3.5, "neutral" as mean score of 2.5 to 3.5, and "unfavorable" as mean score of <2.5. Results:, Thirty of 36 residents (83.3%) participated in all three phases. Areas of favorable A&P found in phase I and sustained through phases II and III included "ED serving as a testing venue" (score range = 3.7,4.1) and "emergency medicine physicians offering the test" (score range = 3.9,4.1). Areas of unfavorable and neutral A&P identified in phase I were all operational barriers and included required paperwork (score = 3.2), inadequate staff support (score = 2.2), counseling and referral requirements (score range = 2.2,3.1), and time requirements (score = 2.9). Following the FTP, significant increases in favorable A&P were observed with regard to impact of the intervention on modification of patient risk behaviors, decrease in rates of HIV transmission, availability of support staff, and self-confidence in counseling and referral (p < 0.05). At 6 months postimplementation, all A&P except for time requirements and lack of support staff scored favorably or neutral. During the study period, 388 patients were consented for and received HIV testing; six (1.5%) were newly confirmed HIV positive. Conclusions:, Emergency medicine residents conceptually supported HIV testing services. Most A&P were favorably influenced by both the FTP and the implementation. All areas of negative A&P involved operational requirements, which may have influenced the low overall uptake of HIV testing during the study period. [source] 2010 Rheumatoid arthritis classification criteria: An American College of Rheumatology/European League Against Rheumatism collaborative initiative,ARTHRITIS & RHEUMATISM, Issue 9 2010Daniel Aletaha Objective The 1987 American College of Rheumatology (ACR; formerly, the American Rheumatism Association) classification criteria for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) have been criticized for their lack of sensitivity in early disease. This work was undertaken to develop new classification criteria for RA. Methods A joint working group from the ACR and the European League Against Rheumatism developed, in 3 phases, a new approach to classifying RA. The work focused on identifying, among patients newly presenting with undifferentiated inflammatory synovitis, factors that best discriminated between those who were and those who were not at high risk for persistent and/or erosive disease,this being the appropriate current paradigm underlying the disease construct "rheumatoid arthritis." Results In the new criteria set, classification as "definite RA" is based on the confirmed presence of synovitis in at least 1 joint, absence of an alternative diagnosis that better explains the synovitis, and achievement of a total score of 6 or greater (of a possible 10) from the individual scores in 4 domains: number and site of involved joints (score range 0,5), serologic abnormality (score range 0,3), elevated acute-phase response (score range 0,1), and symptom duration (2 levels; range 0,1). Conclusion This new classification system redefines the current paradigm of RA by focusing on features at earlier stages of disease that are associated with persistent and/or erosive disease, rather than defining the disease by its late-stage features. This will refocus attention on the important need for earlier diagnosis and institution of effective disease-suppressing therapy to prevent or minimize the occurrence of the undesirable sequelae that currently comprise the paradigm underlying the disease construct "rheumatoid arthritis." [source] The adult sense of coherence scale is applicable to 12-year-old schoolchildren,an additional tool in health promotionACTA PAEDIATRICA, Issue 8 2006Päivi-Leena Honkinen Abstract Background: Two principal operationalizations of sense of coherence (SOC) for the study of adults have been developed, one consisting of 29 and another consisting of 13 items. According to these studies, SOC is associated with various aspects of perceived health. Also, a 16-item scale for determining SOC in young children (,10 y) is available. It is unclear from which age on SOC can be studied by using any of the scales for adults. Aim: To determine whether the 13-item SOC scale for adults is applicable to children 12 y of age. Methods: Comparable data of SOC had been collected by a mail survey directed to adults (mean age 36 y, n=706) in 1985. Twelve-year-old children filled in questionnaires in school class in 1997 (n=994). Results: SOC score range, mean, median and standard deviation (SD), and Cronbach alpha coefficients of the total SOC scale were almost identical in children and adults. Conclusion: The 13-item SOC scale aimed at adults is applicable to children of 12 y of age or older. The SOC scale could be a useful additional tool for identifying children with perceived health deficits potentially in need of supportive interventions. [source] Quality of life before and after proctocolectomy and IPAA in patients with ulcerative proctocolitis , a prospective studyCOLORECTAL DISEASE, Issue 2 2003I. Berndtsson Abstract Objective The principal aim of the present investigation was to study the general QoL and disease-specific adjustment before, and one-year after, operation with an ileal pouch anal-anastomosis (IPAA) in a consecutive series of patients with ulcerative colitis (UC). Patients and method Eleven patients were medically treated and 31 patients underwent colectomy with ileostomy. The patients were interviewed before the IPAA operation and again one-year after closure of the covering loop ileostomy. General quality of life was estimated with a Swedish instrument (according to Kajandi, score range 16,96) and a VA-scale. The instrument for disease-specific adjustment contained specific questions with five factors (score range 34,204). Open questions about quality of life were used to identify areas of concern, which were not included in the other instruments. Postoperative function was described in terms of a functional score (score range 0,15). Results The results of the general quality of life assessments did not differ significantly when comparing pre-operative to postoperative values. Disease-specific adjustment showed that the medically treated patients had a score of 162; interquartile range (IQR) 145,176. The patients with ileostomy scored 164; IQR 141,180. Postoperatively there was a statistically significant improvement in both groups to 189 (IQR 172,199), an increase of 15%. The open questions revealed restrictions in daily life for both patient groups pre-operatively with improvements after IPAA. The median grading of functional outcome according to the score system was 2. The most frequent problems were: patients who had occasional bowel movements at night, 40%; intermittent perianal soreness, 51%; antidiarrhoeal medication use, 61%. Conclusion General QoL did not change after IPAA. The bowel-specific adjustment in most factors improved in the majority of patients after IPAA. However, half of the IPAA patients had occasional bowel movements at night perianal soreness, and used antidiarrhoeal medication. [source] The Infant Feeding Intentions scale demonstrates construct validity and comparability in quantifying maternal breastfeeding intentions across multiple ethnic groupsMATERNAL & CHILD NUTRITION, Issue 3 2010Laurie A. Nommsen-Rivers Abstract Research tools that are comparable across ethnic groups are needed in order to understand sociodemographic disparities in breastfeeding rates. The Infant Feeding Intentions (IFI) scale provides a quantitative measure of maternal breastfeeding intentions. IFI score ranges from 0 (no intention to breastfeed) to 16 (very strong intentions to fully breastfeed for 6 months). The objective of this study was to examine intra- and inter-ethnic validity of the IFI scale. The IFI scale was administered to 218 white non-Hispanic, 75 African-American, 80 English-speaking Hispanic, 62 Spanish-speaking Hispanic and 64 Asian expectant primiparae. Participants were asked their planned duration of providing breast milk as the sole source of milk (full breastfeeding). The IFI scale was examined for intra-ethnic internal consistency and construct validity and for inter-ethnic comparability. For all five ethnic categories, principal component analysis separated the scale into the same two factors: intention to initiate breastfeeding and intention to continue full breastfeeding. Across ethnic categories, the range in Cronbach's alpha was 0.70,0.85 for the initiation factor and 0.90,0.93 for the continuation factor. Within each ethnic category, IFI score increased as planned duration of full breastfeeding increased (P < 0.0001 for all). Within the planned duration categories of <1, 1,3, 3,6 and ,6 months, the median IFI score by ethnic category ranged from (low,high) 5,8, 9,10, 12,14 and 16,16, respectively. The IFI scale provides a valid measure of breastfeeding intentions in diverse populations of English- and Spanish-speaking primiparae, and may be a useful tool when researching disparities in breastfeeding practices. [source] Soil properties and perceived disturbance of grasslands subjected to mechanized military training: evaluation of an indexLAND DEGRADATION AND DEVELOPMENT, Issue 3 2007D. P. Althoff Abstract Mechanized maneuver training impacts the landscape by creating depressions, compacting soils, producing bare ground areas, transporting seeds of invasive plants, and crushing vegetation. We measured 3 physical, 13 chemical, and 2 biological soil properties and used a disturbance index (DI) based on perceptions of soil conditions on a military installation to assess the condition of 100,×,100,m plots (1 ha): 10 in 2002 and 10 in 2004. Potential DI scores range from 0 (no appreciable evidence of disturbance) to 1 (>95 per cent of the plot disturbed). Bulk density, porosity (%), and water content (%),all at 5·1,10·0,cm depth, and nematode family richness (NFR) were significantly, negatively correlated (Spearman coefficients, rs) with the DI of both years. The strong negative correlation (rs,=,,0·69 in 2002, ,0·79 in 2004) of NFR with the DI appears to reflect the status of nematode diversity and, therefore, may serve as a useful, inexpensive approach to rapidly assessing grasslands subjected to mechanized military training. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] | ||||||||||