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Wide Acceptance (wide + acceptance)
Selected AbstractsBotulinum toxin in the management of cerebral palsyDEVELOPMENTAL MEDICINE & CHILD NEUROLOGY, Issue 7 2004Rosalind J Jefferson MB BS BSc PhD DIC MRCP MRCPCH Botulinum toxin has rapidly gained wide acceptance as a treatment for focal spasticity, and is becoming more readily available. Early studies established its effectiveness, but many issues are still open for discussion. After a brief re view of the historical and scientific development of botulinum toxin as a clinical tool and an outline of previous work in the field, some important questions are discussed in the light of more recent trials. [source] The Bookmark Standard-Setting Method: A Literature ReviewEDUCATIONAL MEASUREMENT: ISSUES AND PRACTICE, Issue 1 2006Ana Karantonis The Bookmark method for setting standards on educational tests is currently one of the most popular standard-setting methods. However, research to support the method is scarce. In this report, we review the published and unpublished literature on this method as well as some seminal work in the area of evaluating standard-setting studies. Our review highlights both strengths and limitations of the method. Strengths include its wide acceptance and panelist confidence in the method. Limitations include a potential bias to produce lower-than-intended standards and problems in selecting the most appropriate response probability value for ordering the items presented to panelists. It is clear that more research on this method is needed to support its wide use. Several areas for future research to better understand the validity of the Bookmark method for setting standards on educational tests are presented. [source] The simultaneous consideration of between-participants and within-participants analyses in research on predictors of behaviours: The issue of dependenceEUROPEAN JOURNAL OF SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY, Issue 6 2004Dr David Trafimow Although there is wide acceptance among personality and social psychologists of the importance of performing both between-participants and within-participants analyses to obtain a more complete picture of the phenomena under investigation, such analyses are rare (Mishela, 1990). Research on the predictors of behaviour, particularly concerning variables such as attitude, subjective norm, affect, cognition, and intention provides an exception, where the results from within-participants analyses are sometimes compared to the results from between-participants analyses. These comparisons raise the issue of whether the two types of analyses are independent of each other (and whether they can be validly compared), which is the topic of the present paper. Although we show that there is dependence, which suggests that it is a bad idea to compare both kinds of analyses, we also show that the degree of dependence approaches zero as the number of participants and items increase. Thus, with a sufficiently large design, the degree of dependence is unimportant, and therefore is no obstacle to the simultaneous consideration of both within-participants and between-participants analyses. How large is large enough? A set of computer simulations suggests that 15 participants and 15 items is sufficient, though we provide data from which researchers can designate their own criteria. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Global evidence that deforestation amplifies flood risk and severity in the developing worldGLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY, Issue 11 2007COREY J. A. BRADSHAW Abstract With the wide acceptance of forest-protection policies in the developing world comes a requirement for clear demonstrations of how deforestation may erode human well-being and economies. For centuries, it has been believed that forests provide protection against flooding. However, such claims have given rise to a heated polemic, and broad-scale quantitative evidence of the possible role of forests in flood protection has not been forthcoming. Using data collected from 1990 to 2000 from 56 developing countries, we show using generalized linear and mixed-effects models contrasted with information-theoretic measures of parsimony that flood frequency is negatively correlated with the amount of remaining natural forest and positively correlated with natural forest area loss (after controlling for rainfall, slope and degraded landscape area). The most parsimonious models accounted for over 65% of the variation in flood frequency, of which nearly 14% was due to forest cover variables alone. During the decade investigated, nearly 100 000 people were killed and 320 million people were displaced by floods, with total reported economic damages exceeding US$1151 billion. Extracted measures of flood severity (flood duration, people killed and displaced, and total damage) showed some weaker, albeit detectable correlations to natural forest cover and loss. Based on an arbitrary decrease in natural forest area of 10%, the model-averaged prediction of flood frequency increased between 4% and 28% among the countries modeled. Using the same hypothetical decline in natural forest area resulted in a 4,8% increase in total flood duration. These correlations suggest that global-scale patterns in mean forest trends across countries are meaningful with respect to flood dynamics. Unabated loss of forests may increase or exacerbate the number of flood-related disasters, negatively impact millions of poor people, and inflict trillions of dollars in damage in disadvantaged economies over the coming decades. This first global-scale empirical demonstration that forests are correlated with flood risk and severity in developing countries reinforces the imperative for large-scale forest protection to protect human welfare, and suggests that reforestation may help to reduce the frequency and severity of flood-related catastrophes. [source] Fallacies of High-Speed HemodialysisHEMODIALYSIS INTERNATIONAL, Issue 2 2003Zbylut J. Twardowski Chronic hemodialysis sessions, as developed in Seattle in the 1960s, were long procedures with minimal intra- and interdialytic symptoms. Financial and logistical pressures related to the overwhelming number of patients requiring hemodialysis created an incentive to shorten dialysis time to four, three, and even two hours per session in a thrice weekly schedule. This method spread rapidly, particularly in the United States, after the National Cooperative Dialysis Study suggested that time of dialysis is of minor importance as long as urea clearance multiplied by dialysis time and scaled to total body water (Kt/Vurea) equals 0.95,1.0. This number was later increased to 1.3, but the assumption remained unchanged that hemodialysis time is of minimal importance as long as it is compensated by increased urea clearance. Patients accepted short dialysis as a godsend, believing that it would not be detrimental to their well-being and longevity. However, Kt/Vurea measures only removal of low molecular weight substances and does not consider removal of larger molecules. Besides, it does not correlate with the other important function of hemodialysis, namely ultrafiltration. Whereas patients with substantial residual renal function may tolerate short dialysis sessions, the patients with little or no urine output tolerate short dialyses poorly because the ultrafiltration rate at the same interdialytic weight gain is inversely proportional to dialysis time. Rapid ultrafiltration is associated with cramps, nausea, vomiting, headache, fatigue, hypotensive episodes during dialysis, and hangover after dialysis; patients remain fluid overloaded with subsequent poor blood pressure control, left ventricular hypertrophy, diastolic dysfunction, and high cardiovascular mortality. Short, high-efficiency dialysis requires high blood flow, which increases demands on blood access. The classic wrist arteriovenous fistula, the access with the best longevity and lowest complication rates, provides "insufficient" blood flow and is replaced with an arteriovenous graft fistula or an intravenous catheter. Moreover, to achieve high blood flows, large diameter intravenous catheters are used; these fit veins "too tightly," so predispose the patient to central-vein thrombosis. Longer hemodialysis sessions (5,8 hrs, thrice weekly), as practiced in some centers, are associated with lower complication rates and better outcomes. Frequent dialyses (four or more sessions per week) provide better clinical results, but are associated with increased cost. It is my strong belief that a wide acceptance of longer, gentler dialysis sessions, even in a thrice weekly schedule, would improve overall hemodialysis results and decrease access complications, hospitalizations, and mortality, particularly in anuric patients. [source] Therapeutic touch and postmodernism in nursing,NURSING PHILOSOPHY, Issue 3 2001Sarah Glazer Abstract Therapeutic touch, a healing technique based upon the laying-on of hands, has found wide acceptance in the nursing profession despite its lack of scientific plausibility. Its acceptance is indicative of a broad antiscientific trend in nursing. Adherents of this movement use the jargon of postmodern philosophy to justify their enthusiasm for a variety of mystically based techniques, citing such postmodern critics of science as Derrida and Michel Foucault as well as philosophical forerunners Heidegger and Husserl. Between 1997 and 1999, 94 articles in nursing journals referred to postmodernism, according to a database search. This paper criticizes the postmodern movement for abandoning the biological underpinnings of nursing and for misreading philosophy in the service of an antiscientific world-view. It is also suggested that nursing can retain its tradition of ,caring' without abandoning the scientific method. [source] Advocates in the Age of Jazz: Women and the Campaign for the Dyer Anti-Lynching BillPEACE & CHANGE, Issue 3 2003Mary Jane Brown More than three thousand people, predominantly African American males, were lynched in the United States between 1892 and 1940. Occurring mostly in the South, lynching was a means that white southerners used to enforce white supremacy and prevent African Americans from achieving political, social, and economic gains after the Civil War ended slavery. White southerners declared that the threat of black men raping white women necessitated lynching. They further argued that inaction by the courts and the black community's shielding of criminals justified mob action, theories that gained wide acceptance in the South and that were commonly accepted in the North as well. In the 1890s, black women, led by anti-lynching advocate Ida B. Wells-Barnett, began a protest against lynching that swelled into a sizable movement. Under Wells-Barnett's leadership, anti-lynching activists dismantled the theory of white women's protection and formulated a strategy of investigation and exposure that became the template for future anti-lynching drives. When the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People was founded in 1909, it made anti-lynching a priority and drew black and white women to its anti-lynching battle. By the 1920s, women 's anti-lynching activity had become essential to the NAACP's drive for federal anti-lynching legislation and its campaign for passage of the Dyer bill. NAACP secretary Walter White's reliance on women increased throughout the 1920s, and women, courted both as voters and moral authorities, achieved a new level of importance in social movements and drives for legislation. This marked the beginning of the NAACP's twenty-year struggle for federal anti-lynching legislation, a campaign in which black and white women worked cooperatively and were essential to the campaign for the Dyer bill. [source] The use of life-cycle assessment to evaluate the environmental impacts of growing genetically modified, nitrogen use-efficient canolaPLANT BIOTECHNOLOGY JOURNAL, Issue 4 2008Alison Strange Summary Agriculture, particularly intensive crop production, makes a significant contribution to environmental pollution. A variety of canola (Brassica napus) has been genetically modified to enhance nitrogen use efficiency, effectively reducing the amount of fertilizer required for crop production. A partial life-cycle assessment adapted to crop production was used to assess the potential environmental impacts of growing genetically modified, nitrogen use-efficient (GMNUE) canola in North Dakota and Minnesota compared with a conventionally bred control variety. The analysis took into account the entire production system used to produce 1 tonne of canola. This comprised raw material extraction, processing and transportation, as well as all agricultural field operations. All emissions associated with the production of 1 tonne of canola were listed, aggregated and weighted in order to calculate the level of environmental impact. The findings show that there are a range of potential environmental benefits associated with growing GMNUE canola. These include reduced impacts on global warming, freshwater ecotoxicity, eutrophication and acidification. Given the large areas of canola grown in North America and, in particular, Canada, as well as the wide acceptance of genetically modified varieties in this area, there is the potential for GMNUE canola to reduce pollution from agriculture, with the largest reductions predicted to be in greenhouse gases and diffuse water pollution. [source] The Art and Science of Autologous Breast ReconstructionTHE BREAST JOURNAL, Issue 5 2003James C. Grotting MD Abstract: Three significant advances are responsible for the recent evolution in breast reconstruction. The first of these is the introduction of the transverse rectus abdominis musculocutaneous (TRAM) flap, which made reliable autologous breast reconstruction a reality. The subsequent application of microsurgical principles to this procedure brought further refinements in terms of improved blood supply and lessened donor site morbidity. Finally, the wide acceptance of the skin-sparing mastectomy by oncologic surgeons has allowed further progress in the aesthetic possibilities that can be realized by the plastic surgeon. The authors discuss each of these factors and provide an overview of the current state of the art of autologous free tissue breast reconstruction. [source] QUADRAPOD MESH FOR POSTERIOR WALL RECONSTRUCTION IN ADULT INGUINAL HERNIASANZ JOURNAL OF SURGERY, Issue 3 2008Shih-Chung Wu Inguinal hernia repairs are the most frequently carried out operations worldwide, and open-mesh herniorrhaphies have gained wide acceptance for advantages of little tension, less pain and lower recurrence rates. Even so, potential drawbacks of original open-mesh repairs exist, and we accordingly make some modifications, suggesting a new ,quadrapod' marlex mesh as an alternative. From July 2002 to March 2004, we carried out 288 consecutive inguinal hernia repairs using quadrapod mesh in 273 patients, all of them were male and aged older than 35 years. Patient demographics, operative parameters, morbidity and outcomes were collected in detail. After surgery, patients were followed up every 6 months at one surgeon's clinic and any major abnormality was recorded. Mean age of the 273 patients was 58.7 years. Twenty-eight patients had recurrent hernias and 15 bilateral hernias. Mean surgical duration was 50.7 min. One patient suffered from major wound infection and needed prolonged hospitalization for parenteral antibiotics. Owing to old age and benign prostatic hyperplasia, 11 patients receiving spinal anaesthesia had temporary postoperative urine retention and needed short-term urinary catheter insertion. Most patients were discharged 1 day following surgery. Acute wound pain generally improved within days, and no patients complained of chronic pain or debility necessitating special interventions. With a mean follow up of 40.7 months, no case of recurrent herniation was detected to date. Open-mesh herniorrhaphy using quadrapod mesh provides a cheap, feasible and effective alternative choice in centres with limited resources. Preliminary results are encouraging, and a formal prospective study may be warranted. [source] Early development of the silver catfish Rhamdia quelen (Quoy & Gaimard, 1824) (Pisces:Heptapteridae) from the São Francisco River Basin, BrazilAQUACULTURE RESEARCH, Issue 2 2009Marcelo Pimenta De Amorim Abstract The silver catfish, Rhamdia quelen, is endemic to North, Central and South America with high aquaculture potential and wide acceptance in the market. Breeder fish were subjected to induced reproduction through hypophysation using a crude common carp pituitary extract. Egg characteristics, oocyte surface ultrastructure and histology of larval ontogenesis until whole yolk resorption were described for the first time for this species. Oocytes and semen were obtained by manual extrusion, and fertilization was conducted using the dry method. After fertilization, eggs were kept in incubators at 24 °C. The embryonic development was monitored using a stereomicroscope every 10 min until hatching. To analyse the larval development, larvae samples were collected from incubators daily until the fifth day, fixed in Bouin's fluid and subjected to routine histological techniques. The oocyte extrusion occurred 8 h after the second hormone dose at 26 °C. The oocytes were spherical, non-adhesive and yellow, with a diameter of 1471.75±47.63 ,m. Scanning electron microscopy revealed a thin jelly coat covering the zona radiata in the animal pole around the micropyle. The blastopore closure occurred within 8 h after fertilization, and the fertilization rate was 79.9±5.2% at 24 °C. Embryonic development was completed within 25 h 30 min after fertilization. The complete resorption of the yolk and the formation of the digestive system organs and the mouth opening occurred on the fifth day, indicating a need for exogenous feeding. The results of this study provide information important for improvement in R. quelen culture and management. [source] Effect of dietary probiotic Biogen® supplementation as a growth promoter on growth performance and feed utilization of Nile tilapia Oreochromis niloticus (L.)AQUACULTURE RESEARCH, Issue 14 2006E R EL-Haroun Abstract Probiotic microbial feed supplements are gaining wide acceptance in livestock production, and may be applicable to aquaculture production systems. The present study was conducted to examine probiotic treatment in the fingerling diet of Nile tilapia Oreochromis niloticus (L.). A total of 240 of Nile tilapia fingerlings (weight ranged from 22.96 to 26.40 g) were divided into five experimental groups. The experiment was conducted for 120 days. Experimental diets were identical in all, except for the variation in probiotic levels. A probiotic (Biogen®) was used at 0% (diet 1), 0.5% (diet 2), 1.5% (diet 3), 2.0% (diet 4) and 2.5% (diet 5) inclusion rates in the experimental diets. The growth performance and nutrient utilization of Nile tilapia including weight gain, specific growth rate, protein efficiency ratio, protein productive value and energy retention were significantly (P,0.01) higher in the treatment receiving probiotic (Biogen®) than the control diet. No differences were observed for moisture, ash and protein content (P,0.01) among the experimental diets. The lowest gross energy and lipid contents were recorded for fish fed the diet containing 0.5% Biogen® (P,0.01). The production performance and subsequent cost,benefit analyses clearly indicated that the diets containing probiotic biogen recorded the highest net return and the lowest total cost compared with the control diet. [source] The physiological role of hormones in salivaBIOESSAYS, Issue 8 2009Michael Gröschl Abstract The assessment of hormones in saliva has gained wide acceptance in clinical endocrinology. To date, there is no hypothesis as to why some hormones can be found in saliva, while others cannot, and whether there is a physiological consequence of this fact. A number of carefully performed studies give examples of important physiological hormonal activity in saliva. Steroids, such as androgens, act as pheromones in olfactory communication of various mammalian species, such as facilitating mating behavior in swine or serving as odor cues for rodent nestlings. Salivary peptide hormones, such as epidermal growth factor (EGF) and transforming growth factor-, (TGF-,), and amines such as melatonin, are involved in the regulation of inflammatory processes and in the promotion of cell proliferation, and contribute to a rapid wound healing in the oropharyngeal epithelia. Current data provide evidence of the involvement of salivary cytokines, such as interleukin-8 and leptin, in tumorgenesis in the oral cavity and the salivary glands. The tumor tissues express and release significantly more of these cytokines than healthy glands. Consequently, the assessment of salivary hormone profiles may provide promising targets for diagnostic tumor markers. [source] Astroblastoma: Clinicopathologic Features and Chromosomal Abnormalities Defined by Comparative Genomic HybridizationBRAIN PATHOLOGY, Issue 3 2000Daniel J. Brat M.D., Ph.D. Astroblastomas are uncommon brain tumors whose classification and histogenesis have been debated. Precise criteria for diagnosis have been described only recently, but have not found wide acceptance. We report the clinical, radiographic, and histopathologic features of 20 astroblastomas, and the chromosomal alterations in seven cases as detected by comparative genomic hybridization (CGH). The tumors occurred both in children and young adults (average age, 14 years), most often as well circumscribed, peripheral, cerebral hemispheric masses. Radiographically, the lesions were contrastenhancing and solid, often with a cystic component. All were characterized histologically by astroblastic pseudorosettes, and most displayed prominent perivascular hyalinization, regional hyaline changes, and pushing borders in regard to adjacent brain. Tumor cells were strongly immunoreactive for S-100 protein, GFAP, and vimentin. Staining for EMA was focal. Ten of 20 astroblastomas were classified as "well differentiated" and 10 were classified as "malignant," largely on the basis of hypercellular zones with increased mitotic indices, vascular proliferation, and necrosis with pseudopalisading. All 10 well differentiated lesions and 8 of 10 malignant lesions were completely resected. None of the well differentiated astroblastomas recurred within the limited follow-up period. Three malignant astroblastomas recurred, including two incompletely resected tumors, and one that had been totally resected. One patient died of disease following recurrence. The most frequent chromosomal alterations detected by CGH were gains of chromosome arm 20q (4/7 tumors) and chromosome 19 (3/7). The combination of these gains occurred in three, including two well differentiated and one malignant astroblastoma. Other alterations noted in two tumors each were losses on 9q, 10, and X. These chromosomal alterations are not typical of ependymoma or infiltrating astrocytic neoplasms, and suggest that astroblastomas may have a characteristic cytogenetic profile in addition to their distinctive clinical, radiographic, and histopathologic features. [source] Routine use of laparoscopic repair for perforated peptic ulcerBRITISH JOURNAL OF SURGERY (NOW INCLUDES EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF SURGERY), Issue 4 2004W. T. Siu Background: Laparoscopic repair of perforated peptic ulcer was reported in 1990 but has not gained wide acceptance. The aim of this study was to evaluate the safety and efficacy of laparoscopic repair for perforated peptic ulcer in routine clinical practice. Methods: This was a prospective analysis of 172 patients who underwent laparoscopic repair of a perforated peptic ulcer between July 1997 and June 2003. Results: One hundred and seventy-two patients of mean age 54 (range 14,93) years had perforated peptic ulcer diagnosed by laparoscopy. There were 172 duodenal ulcers, 22 prepyloric and 13 non-juxtapyloric gastric ulcers. One hundred and sixty-five patients underwent omental patch closure of perforations; there were six Pólya gastrectomies and one ulcerectomy. Thirty-seven patients (21·5 per cent) required conversion to laparotomy. The mean operating time was 64·8 (range 14,180) min. The median postoperative requirement for intramuscular pethidine was one dose. The median postoperative hospital stay was 6 days. Complications occurred in 28 patients (16·3 per cent) resulting in three reoperations. Six patients with intra-abdominal collections were managed by percutaneous drainage. Two patients who underwent conversion developed a wound infection. Fourteen patients (8·1 per cent) died, 11 of whom were American Society of Anesthesiologists grade III and IV. Conclusion: Laparoscopic repair of perforated peptic ulcer is a safe emergency procedure in routine clinical practice for patients with perforated pyloroduodenal ulcer. Copyright © 2004 British Journal of Surgery Society Ltd. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Long-term effects of stapled haemorrhoidectomy on internal anal function and sensitivity,BRITISH JOURNAL OF SURGERY (NOW INCLUDES EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF SURGERY), Issue 11 2001Dr D. F. Altomare Background: Stapled haemorrhoidectomy is gaining wide acceptance but there is still some concern about the risk of injury to the internal anal sphincter (IAS). IAS function and morphology, and anal canal sensitivity were studied prospectively in patients undergoing this operation. Methods: Twenty patients (11 women; mean age 43 years) with stage III haemorrhoids entered the study. All underwent preoperative anorectal manometry, rectoanal inhibitory reflex (RAIR) testing and three-dimensional transanal ultrasonography. A test of anal sensation was administered to evaluate ability to discriminate between air and warm water. All the investigations were repeated 6 months after the operation. Results: The mean(s.d.) maximal resting pressure was 87(30) mmHg before surgery and 81(20) mmHg afterwards (P not significant). The maximal squeeze pressure did not change after operation (178(43) versus 174(60) mmHg). The RAIR showed the same features in 19 of 20 patients before and 18 of 20 after operation. Three-dimensional ultrasonography demonstrated no changes in the width of the IAS (mean(s.d.) 2·1(4) mm before and 2·1(3) mm after surgery). The ability of the anal mucosa to discriminate air from warm water improved in five patients. Continence scores did not differ significantly after 6 months. Conclusion: Stapled haemorrhoidectomy does not affect the function and morphology of the IAS in the long term. The sensitivity of the anal canal can improve in patients with preoperative sensory impairment. © 2001 British Journal of Surgery Society Ltd [source] Left ventricular unloading and concomitant total cardiac output increase by the use of percutaneous impella recover LP 2.5 assist device during high-risk coronary interventionCATHETERIZATION AND CARDIOVASCULAR INTERVENTIONS, Issue 2 2005Marco Valgimigli Abstract A number of techniques have been proposed for circulatory support during high-risk percutaneous coronary interventions (PCI), but no single approach has achieved wide acceptance so far. We report on a patient with severe left ventricular (LV) impairment who underwent a PCI with the use of a new left ventricular assist device, the Impella Recover LP 2.5 system. The effects on global cardiac output were determined by thermodilution (TD) and LV pressure-volume loops obtained by conductance catheter. The activation of the pump resulted in a rapid and sustained unloading effect of the LV. At the same time, the continuous expulsion of blood into ascending aorta throughout the cardiac cycle produced by the pump resulted in an increase of systemic overall CO, measured by the TD technique, of 1.43 L/min. The procedure was uncomplicated and the patient remained uneventful at follow-up. Our single experience gives new input for future trials to assess the effect of the Impella Recover LP 2.5 assist device on outcome in this subset of patients. © 2005 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] The Evolution of RelevanceCOGNITIVE SCIENCE - A MULTIDISCIPLINARY JOURNAL, Issue 4 2010Thomas C. Scott-Phillips Abstract With human language, the same utterance can have different meanings in different contexts. Nevertheless, listeners almost invariably converge upon the correct intended meaning. The classic Gricean explanation of how this is achieved posits the existence of four maxims of conversation, which speakers are assumed to follow. Armed with this knowledge, listeners are able to interpret utterances in a contextually sensible way. This account enjoys wide acceptance, but it has not gone unchallenged. Specifically, Relevance Theory offers an explicitly cognitive account of utterance interpretation that presents a radical challenge to the neo-Gricean paradigm. Evolutionary considerations are one way in which we can choose between competing theories. A simple game-theoretic model of the evolution of communication is presented, and it is used to derive a number of basic qualities that will be satisfied by all evolved communication systems. These qualities are observed to precisely predict the foundational principles of Relevance Theory. The model thus provides biological support for that enterprise in general, and for the plausibility of the cognitive mechanisms that it describes in particular. [source] | ||||||||||||||||