Best Tool (best + tool)

Distribution by Scientific Domains


Selected Abstracts


Low Back Pain: Best Evidence,Best Tools

PAIN PRACTICE, Issue 3 2005
Craig T. Hartrick MD
No abstract is available for this article. [source]


Methodology of clinical research: an overview

DRUG DEVELOPMENT RESEARCH, Issue 3 2006
Irene Floriani
Abstract The goal of clinical research is to establish safety efficacy and effectiveness of treatments or intervention. In order to obtain it, different clinical studies are needed, with a quite definite hierarchy of research objectives, in order to gather all information needed for appraising the clinical role of the intervention being tested. Clinical trials are generally considered as the best tool for learning whether a new treatment is safe and effective in patients. They are conducted in all areas of medicine but represent only a small part of the research for developing a new treatment. In particular, even after providing evidence for the approval of treatment, further research is needed on the implementation of results of clinical research into clinical practice and health policy. This is the place of outcome research that investigates the impact of various influences, especially interventions, on final endpoints that matter to decision makers with special emphasis on the use of patient-reported outcomes. This article reviews the methodological characteristics of each research phase, with particular emphasis on comparative trials and effectiveness studies. Drug Dev. Res. 67:183,187, 2006. © 2006 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source]


A unified formulation of the piecewise exact method for inelastic seismic demand analysis including the P -delta effect

EARTHQUAKE ENGINEERING AND STRUCTURAL DYNAMICS, Issue 6 2003
M. N. Ayd
Abstract The non-linear analysis of single-degree-of-freedom (SDOF) systems provides the essential background information for both strength-based design and displacement-based evaluation/design methodologies through the development of the inelastic response spectra. The recursive solution procedure called the piecewise exact method, which is efficiently used for the response analysis of linear SDOF systems, is re-formulated in this paper in a unified format to analyse the non-linear SDOF systems with multi-linear hysteresis models. The unified formulation is also capable of handling the P-delta effect, which generally involves the negative post-yield stiffness of the hysteresis loops. The attractiveness of the method lies in the fact that it provides the exact solution when the loading time history is composed of piecewise linear segments, a condition that is perfectly satisfied for the earthquake excitation. Based on simple recursive relationships given for positive, negative and zero effective stiffnesses, the unified form of the piecewise exact method proves to be an extremely powerful and probably the best tool for the SDOF inelastic time-history and response spectrum analysis including the P-delta effect. A number of examples are presented to demonstrate the implementation of the method. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]


Treatment of the myeloproliferative disorders with 32P

EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF HAEMATOLOGY, Issue 1 2000
Nathaniel I. Berlin
After World War II when 32P became widely available, it was used extensively to treat the chronic leukemias and polycythemia vera. Its use in the treatment of essential thrombocythemia began later in 1950. Today it is not widely used in the treatment of the chronic leukemia, if at all, its use in polycythemia vera appears to have decreased substantially and replaced by hydroxyurea, and its use in the management of essential thrombocythemia is not widespread. In each instance it has been replaced by a drug developed for use in cancer chemotherapy, and in some instances by interferon. It probably has wider use in polycythemia vera in the rest of Western Europe than in the UK, and there are cogent reasons to suggest that it may be the best tool for the treatment of polycythemia vera. Thus have we discarded a treatment modality that in polycythemia vera may be the best? [source]


How valuable are animal models in defining antidepressant activity?

HUMAN PSYCHOPHARMACOLOGY: CLINICAL AND EXPERIMENTAL, Issue 1 2001
M Bourin
Abstract Animal models of depression have been utilised to screen novel compounds with antidepressant potential although uncertainty lingers concerning their clinical relevance. In order for a model to be considered of any value, it must possess predictive validity (does drug action in the model correspond to that in the clinic?), face validity (are there phenomenological similarities between the model and the clinic?) and construct validity (does the model possess a strong theoretical rationale?). On the one hand, there are models based on stress such as the learned helplessness model, the forced swimming test and the chronic mild stress model and, on the other hand, models based on neuronal deficits such as the olfactory bulbectomy model. To date, among models more frequently used in depression, none of them meet all these criteria. Moreover, improvements to tests are often poorly validated and estimating time of onset of action of antidepressants remains a major challenge in animal model research. Finally, reproducing the tests outside the laboratory of origin continues to be problematic and leads to variability in results. Although animal models of depression fail to be unequivocally valid, they represent the best tool to define potential antidepressant activity of drugs, to investigate their mechanism of action and, to a greater extent, explore this complex heterogeneous illness. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]


Diet and food partitioning between juveniles of mutton Lutjanus analis, dog Lutjanus jocu and lane Lutjanus synagris snappers (Perciformes: Lutjanidae) in a mangrove-fringed estuarine environment

JOURNAL OF FISH BIOLOGY, Issue 10 2010
C. R. Pimentel
Diet of juvenile mutton Lutjanus analis, dog Lutjanus jocu and lane Lutjanus synagris snappers were studied in the tropical Brazilian estuarine system of the Piraquê-açú and Piraquê-mirim Rivers to determine how these species share the resources in this restricted space. The three species prey principally upon Peracarida (L. synagris: relative importance index IRIc = 29%), Natantia (L. analis and L. synagris: IRIc = 39 and 38%, respectively), Reptantia (L. analis and L. jocu: IRIc = 28 and 43%, respectively) and Teleostei (L. jocu: IRIc = 24%). The three species use estuaries as nursery habitats but food overlap was not biologically significant due to a combination of interspecific differences in size, spatial distribution, microhabitat preferences and seasonal patterns of abundance and prey choice. Large marine protected areas incorporating essential habitats for all life stages are suggested to be the best tool for the management of these economically important species. [source]


Association of pulmonary artery agenesis and hypoplasia of the lung

PEDIATRIC PULMONOLOGY, Issue 9 2006
Renato Vitiello MD
Abstract Pulmonary artery agenesis and hypoplasia of the homolateral lung occasionally occurs as an isolated lesion, but more often has associated congenital cardiac anomalies. We present a case where pulmonary artery agenesis was the sole lesion in an asymptomatic child. Pulmonary artery agenesis should be suspected in asymptomatic patients if a plain chest X-ray shows asymmetric lung fields, lung hypoplasia, or hyperinflation of the contralateral lung. Echocardiography is the best tool to establish the diagnosis. In our opinion, invasive procedures, such as cardiac catheterization, may be postponed if there is no echocardiographic evidence of pulmonary hypertension. Pediatr Pulmonol. © 2006 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source]


Comparing Parameter Manipulation with Mouse, Pen, and Slider User Interfaces

COMPUTER GRAPHICS FORUM, Issue 3 2009
Colin Swindells
Abstract Visual fixation on one's tool(s) takes much attention away from one's primary task. Following the belief that the best tools ,disappear' and become invisible to the user, we present a study comparing visual fixations (eye gaze within locations on a graphical display) and performance for mouse, pen, and physical slider user interfaces. Participants conducted a controlled, yet representative, color matching task that required user interaction representative of many data exploration tasks such as parameter exploration of medical or fuel cell data. We demonstrate that users may spend up to 95% fewer visual fixations on physical sliders versus standard mouse and pen tools without any loss in performance for a generalized visual performance task. [source]


SCREENING FOR CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE IN PATIENTS WITH ADVANCED CHRONIC KIDNEY DISEASE

JOURNAL OF RENAL CARE, Issue 2010
Rajan Sharma BSc
SUMMARY Cardiovascular disease remains the major cause of mortality and morbidity in patients with advanced chronic kidney disease (CKD) and after renal transplantation. The mechanisms for cardiotoxicity are multiple. Identifying high-risk patients remains a challenge. Given, the poor long-term outcome of dialysis patients who do not receive renal transplantation and the lower supply of donor kidneys relative to demand, optimal selection of renal transplantation candidates is crucial. This requires a clear understanding of the validity of cardiac tests in this patient group. This paper explores the strengths and weaknesses of currently available diagnostic tools in patients with advanced CKD. Echocardiography is very useful for the detection of cardiomyopathy and prognosis. Stress echocardiography, myocardial perfusion imaging and coronary angiography are the best tools for the assessment of coronary artery disease. All predict outcome. No single gold standard investigation exists. At present, there is not an optimal technique for predicting sudden cardiac death in this patient group. Ultimately, the choice of cardiac test will always be determined by patient preference, local expertise and availability. [source]