bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Is autonomous motivation the key to maintaining an active lifestyle in first‐episode psychosis?
Authors: Vancampfort Davy , De Hert Marc , Broderick Julie , Lederman Oscar , Firth Joseph , Rosenbaum Simon , Probst Michel
Published: September 2016

Aim

Physical activity has the potential to improve the health of patients with first‐episode psychosis (FEP), yet many patients with FEP remain inactive. Exploring the theoretical basis of the motivational processes linked to the adoption and maintenance of physical activity behaviours in FEP patients can assist with the design and delivery of physical activity interventions. Within the self‐determination theory and the transtheoretical model (stages of change) frameworks, we investigated motives for physical activity adoption and maintenance in FEP.

Methods

Overall 56 FEP patients (20♀) (24 ± 4 years) completed the Behavioural Regulation in Exercise Questionnaire 2 to assess exercise motives, and the Patient‐Centred Assessment and Counselling for Exercise to determine stage of change. Gender and setting differences in motives for physical activity were compared with unpaired t‐tests. The relationship between motives for physical activity and stage of change was investigated using anova with post‐hoc Scheffe tests.

Results

No significant differences were found according to gender and setting. Multivariate analyses found significantly higher levels of amotivation and lower levels of autonomous motivation in the earlier stages of change.

Conclusions

Our results suggest that in FEP patients, autonomous regulations may play an important role in the adoption and maintenance of physical activity behaviours. The study provides a platform for future research to investigate the importance of autonomous motivation within physical activity interventions for this population.
Cost‐effectiveness analysis of epilepsy surgery in a controlled cohort of adult patients with intractable partial epilepsy: A 5‐year follow‐up study
Authors: Picot Marie‐Christine , Jaussent Audrey , Neveu Dorine , Kahane Philippe , Crespel Arielle , Gelisse Philippe , Hirsch Edouard , Derambure Philippe , Dupont Sophie , Landré Elizabeth , Chassoux Francine , Valton Luc , Vignal Jean‐Pierre , Marchal Cécile , Lamy Catherine , Semah Franck , Biraben Arnaud , Arzimanoglou Alexis , Petit Jérôme , Thomas Pierre , Macioce Valérie , Dujols Pierre , Ryvlin Philippe
Published: September 2016

Objective

Despite its well‐known effectiveness, the cost‐effectiveness of epilepsy surgery has never been demonstrated in France. We compared cost‐effectiveness between resective surgery and medical therapy in a controlled cohort of adult patients with partial intractable epilepsy.

Methods

A prospective cohort of adult patients with surgically remediable and medically intractable partial epilepsy was followed over 5 years in the 15 French centers. Effectiveness was defined as 1 year without a seizure, based on the International League Against Epilepsy (ILAE) classification. Clinical outcomes and direct costs were compared between surgical and medical groups. Long‐term direct costs and effectiveness were extrapolated over the patients’ lifetimes with a Monte‐Carlo simulation using a Markov model, and an incremental cost‐effectiveness ratio (ICER) was computed. Indirect costs were also evaluated.

Results

Among the 289 enrolled surgery candidates, 207 were operable—119 in the surgical group and 88 in the medical group—65 were not operable and not analyzed here, 7 were finally not eligible, and 10 were not followed. The proportion of patients completely seizure‐free during the last 12 months (ILAE class 1) was 69.0% in the operated group and 12.3% in the medical group during the second year (p < 0.001), and it was respectively 76.8% and 21% during the fifth year (p < 0.001). Direct costs became significantly lower in the surgical group the third year after surgery, as a result of less antiepileptic drug use. The value of the discounted ICER was 10,406 (95% confidence interval [CI] 10,182–10,634) at 2 years and 2,630 (CI 95% 2,549–2,713) at 5 years. Surgery became cost‐effective between 9 and 10 years after surgery, and even earlier if indirect costs were taken into account as well.

Significance

Our study suggests that in addition to being safe and effective, resective surgery of epilepsy is cost‐effective in the medium term. It should therefore be considered earlier in the development of epilepsy.
Longing for a House in Ghana: Ghanaians’ Responses to the Dignity Threats of Elder Care Work in the United States
Authors: Coe Cati
Published: September 2016

Home health care is a growing occupation in the United States which calls for significant emotional labor. On the basis of interviews and participant observation with home health workers from Ghana, this article argues that home health work is different from other kinds of emotional labor in that living and working in the client's house are central to the conditions of work and the dignity assaults of workers’ experience. Among their strategies for responding to these dignity threats is to long for a house and to direct their energy toward an alternative social field through house construction “at home” in Ghana. Thus, the dignity threats experienced by immigrant home health workers raise concerns about the occupation's ability to retain workers as well as immigrants’ sense of worth and belonging in the United States.
Competing Etiologies of Trauma and the Mediation of Political Suffering: The Disengagement from the Gaza Strip and West Bank in Secular and Religious Therapeutic Narratives
Authors: Plotkin Amrami Galia
Published: September 2016

The forced evacuation of Jewish Israeli settlers from the Gaza Strip and parts of the West Bank in August 2005 (known as the Disengagement) was an extremely controversial political event in Israeli public discourse. This article seeks to explore how political differences in the public sphere were reflected in the professional narratives of mental health practitioners. Based on my field notes documenting the processes of the narration of the Disengagement within various professional settings of Israeli mental health experts, I compare the narratives produced by practitioners who hold different ideological positions vis‐à‐vis the settlement project. I contend that the political views of practitioners expressed in causal explanations of the Disengagement experience and in the modes of mediation of this experience in order to mobilize empathy with evacuated settlers. By focusing on the professional narration and mediation of the experience of a controversial group of sufferers (“the bad victims,” as they might be called), this research highlights the importance of the anthropological perspective on therapeutic empathy as a socially mediated reflection of the moral experience of health practitioners.
Suffering Peacefully: Experiences of Infancy Death in Contemporary Zambia
Authors: Smørholm Sesilie
Published: September 2016

In Ng'ombe Township in Lusaka, the death of a baby is often met with silence. Based on long‐term ethnographic fieldwork, this article explores how the bereaved mother's silence is guided by wider cultural norms and values associated with death, by complex notions of what it means to be a person, and by local perceptions of mental health and well‐being. To enhance the complexity of the mother's silences, it also explores how structures of poverty manifest in mothers’ experiences of loss and how silence may hold feelings of inadequacy but also of care and compassion. Finally, the article aims to provide a counterweight to the predominant assumption that mothers in poor communities, who experience high levels of infant mortality, fail to mourn the death of their babies, as well as to psychological theories that assumes verbal expressions as vital for the mourner's mental recovery after loss.
Despite Adults: Learning Experiences on the Tapajós River Banks
Authors: Medaets Chantal
Published: September 2016

In this article, I analyze learning practices that take place in the everyday life (outside of school or other institutional setting) of two villages in the Amazonian region of the Tapajós River basin in Brazil. These practices closely match the main attributes of what has been referred to as a “learning through intent participation” (Rogoff et al. 2003), or “learning as progressive participation in communities of practice” (Lave and Wenger 1991) model—with one important difference. While the child learners may be keen participant observers, the experts display little interest in collaborating with novices or evince much empathy for them. I will describe and analyze the relationship between the rather disengaged experts and the eager novices, showing that this process can only be understood if we consider broader aspects of social relationships among peoples of the Tapajós.
The sensitivity of soil respiration to soil temperature, moisture, and carbon supply at the global scale
Authors: Hursh Andrew , Ballantyne Ashley , Cooper Leila , Maneta Marco , Kimball John , Watts Jennifer
Published: September 2016

Soil respiration (Rs) is a major pathway by which fixed carbon in the biosphere is returned to the atmosphere, yet there are limits to our ability to predict respiration rates using environmental drivers at the global scale. While temperature, moisture, carbon supply, and other site characteristics are known to regulate soil respiration rates at plot scales within certain biomes, quantitative frameworks for evaluating the relative importance of these factors across different biomes and at the global scale require tests of the relationships between field estimates and global climatic data. This study evaluates the factors driving Rs at the global scale by linking global datasets of soil moisture, soil temperature, primary productivity, and soil carbon estimates with observations of annual Rs from the Global Soil Respiration Database (SRDB). We find that calibrating models with parabolic soil moisture functions can improve predictive power over similar models with asymptotic functions of mean annual precipitation. Soil temperature is comparable with previously reported air temperature observations used in predicting Rs and is the dominant driver of Rs in global models; however, within certain biomes soil moisture and soil carbon emerge as dominant predictors of Rs. We identify regions where typical temperature‐driven responses are further mediated by soil moisture, precipitation, and carbon supply and regions in which environmental controls on high Rs values are difficult to ascertain due to limited field data. Because soil moisture integrates temperature and precipitation dynamics, it can more directly constrain the heterotrophic component of Rs, but global‐scale models tend to smooth its spatial heterogeneity by aggregating factors that increase moisture variability within and across biomes. We compare statistical and mechanistic models that provide independent estimates of global Rs ranging from 83 to 108 Pg yr−1, but also highlight regions of uncertainty where more observations are required or environmental controls are hard to constrain.
Global patterns of root dynamics under nitrogen enrichment
Authors: Peng Yunfeng , Guo Dali , Yang Yuanhe
Published: September 2016

Aim

Root production and turnover play a key role in regulating carbon (C) flow in terrestrial ecosystems. However, a general pattern reflecting the responses of roots to increasing nitrogen (N) input has yet to be described.

Location

Global terrestrial ecosystems.

Methods

We conducted a meta‐analysis to assess the central tendencies of root production, turnover rate and standing crop with respect to the experimental addition of N. We evaluated the effect of the form of N, root diameter and climatic (mean annual temperature, MAT; mean annual precipitation, MAP), biotic (ecosystem type, plant type and forest stand age) and forcing factors (experimental duration, N addition rate and cumulative amount of N) on the variations in root response.

Results

Globally, the addition of N significantly decreased root production and turnover rate but had only a minor impact on root standing crop. In different ecosystems, the three root variables exhibited heterogeneous responses to N enrichment. Additionally, root production and turnover rate responded distinctly to diverse forms of N. The responses of root production and turnover rate to the addition of N were generally positively correlated with MAT and MAP but negatively related to forest stand age and experimental duration. The response pattern of root standing crop was negatively affected by MAT, MAP and forest stand age. However, none of the three root parameters had any obvious correlations with N addition rate or cumulative amount of N.

Main conclusions

Our results demonstrate that, on aggregate, the addition of N decreased root production and turnover rate at the global scale. These root response patterns and the regulatory factors can be incorporated into earth system models to improve the prediction of belowground C dynamics.
After the ‘World City’ has Globalised: Four Agendas Towards a More Nuanced Framework for Global Urban Research
Authors: Sigler Thomas J.
Published: September 2016

World Cities (or Global Cities) research has formed one of the most widely circulated strands of literature relating to contemporary urbanisation. It has been explored from increasingly diverse geographical perspectives and fortified by a range of theoretical and methodological positions. In the recent past, however, critical theorists have questioned the ‘World City’ concept's value, mustering a range of arguments pertaining to the reification of particular cities and structurally deterministic modes of thinking. In the same time frame, however, the concept has been widely appropriated in policy circles, leading to a host of political platforms positioning cities as ‘global’ through neoliberally oriented fast policy. This presents a curious divergence in which the policy community has placed increasing faith in the concept based on the perceived economic benefits of ‘global’ policy, while the academic community concurrently realises that new ways of understanding cities in a global context are necessary for complex international systems to be properly theorised. This paper addresses this juxtaposition, offering an ontology of four discrete agendas within the realm of World Cities. These are as follows: as a hypothesis for understanding the role of cities in the contemporary economy; as a label for cities with certain characteristics; as a new (meta) geography of cities; and as sites for understanding and studying globalisation. The purpose of this article is to delineate these so as to guide scholars and practitioners alike who find themselves inundated with publications that may in fact be discussing divergent concepts with the selfsame language. Within each respective agenda, new language is needed to guide policy conversations that are productive and specific and draw from new theory rather than relatively antiquated and generic ideals.
Pharmaceuticals and the Global South: A Healthy Challenge for Development Theory?
Authors: Horner Rory
Published: September 2016

Although the pharmaceutical industry does not usually feature prominently in overviews of research on development, the sector has considerable significance for both health and economic development. This article reviews research on the pharmaceutical industry in the global South, identifying some broader themes that echo with prominent debates in the wider realm of development studies. In research in the 1970s and early 1980s, the pharmaceutical industry seemed to represent a near‐classic illustration of the power and influence of large, Northern‐based multinational companies, producing dependent development. Later research focused on patent issues in relation to the debate over the TRIPs Agreement, with policy developments in the sector being used to highlight institutional monocropping within global governance. More recently again, research on access to medicines, patent policymaking and local pharmaceutical production has highlighted complementarities between industry and health. Increasingly bridging an oft‐present dichotomy, which is also manifest within geographical research, between economic and social aspects of development, recent research on pharmaceuticals challenges some conventional aspects of development theory.
Resilience, Political Ecology, and Power: Convergences, Divergences, and the Potential for a Postanarchist Geographical Imagination
Authors: Mullenite Joshua
Published: September 2016

Over the past three decades, resilience has emerged as an ecological concept that has transformed the way international development is conceptualized. However, it is only recently that the topic has been approached within the geography literature. In this article, I trace the linkages between resilience as an ecological concept and an emerging framework in political geography, its relationship to the field of political ecology, and the potential of a postanarchist geography in bridging the extant gap between these areas of study. To do this, I focus on the different conceptualizations of power prevalent in resilience scholarship and political ecology and offer a postanarchist conceptualization as a potential bridging point that can address the concerns of both of the fields.
Simultaneous selection for seed and forage production in cocksfoot (Dactylis glomerata): application of drought tolerance and susceptibility indices
Authors: Majidi M. M. , Hoseini B. , Barati M. , Mirlohi A. , Araghi B.
Published: September 2016

An experiment was conducted to estimate drought tolerance of some cocksfoot genotypes based on seed and forage yield and related indices (including tolerance index, mean productivity, geometric mean productivity, reduction percentage index, stress tolerance index and stress susceptibility index) and to identify relationships between measured traits. Twenty‐five genotypes were evaluated in the field under control and drought‐stress environments over 2 years. The results revealed a high variation for seed yield and forage yield and the measured indices under both moisture conditions. No correlation was observed between seed yield and forage yield under the control treatment, but this correlation was positively significant under the water‐stress treatment. Drought‐tolerant and susceptible genotypes were identified based on seed and forage yield performance. Genotypes 2, 4 and 7 had high seed yield, while genotypes 7 and 10 had high forage yield under both stressed and non‐stressed conditions and were identified as the most tolerant genotypes in each category. The results also revealed that genotypes 1, 2, 4, 6, 7, 8 and 24 had relatively high seed and forage yield in both control and drought‐stressed conditions. These genotypes can be used for further studies to improve both seed and forage yields concurrently.
Accurate Determination of Chlorine, Bromine and Iodine in U.S. Geological Survey Geochemical Reference Materials by Radiochemical Neutron Activation Analysis
Authors: Sekimoto Shun , Ebihara Mitsuru
Published: September 2016

Trace amounts of three halogens (chlorine, bromine and iodine) in seventeen U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) geochemical reference materials were determined by radiochemical neutron activation analysis (RNAA). The materials analysed were AGV‐2 (andesite), BCR‐2, BHVO‐2 and BIR‐1a (basalts), CLB‐1 (coal), COQ‐1 (carbonatite), DGPM‐1 (disseminated gold ore), DNC‐1a (dolerite), DTS‐2b (dunite), GSP‐2 (granodiorite), Nod‐A‐1 and Nod‐P‐1 (manganese nodules), QLO‐1a (quartz latite), SBC‐1 (marine shale), SDC‐1 (mica schist), SGR‐1b (shale rock) and W‐2a (diabase). The chlorine, bromine and iodine contents were determined to be 5.64 mg kg−1 (BIR‐1a) to 4410 mg kg−1 (Nod‐A‐1), 0.039 mg kg−1 (BIR‐1a) to 52.1 mg kg−1 (CLB‐1), and 0.041 mg kg−1 (BIR‐1a) to 599 mg kg−1 (CLB‐1), respectively. The RNAA data of the three halogens were compared with the corresponding data in the literature.
Non–Invasive Vagus Nerve Stimulation for the ACute Treatment of Cluster Headache: Findings From the Randomized, Double‐Blind, Sham‐Controlled ACT1 Study
Authors: Silberstein Stephen D. , Mechtler Laszlo L. , Kudrow David B. , Calhoun Anne H. , McClure Candace , Saper Joel R. , Liebler Eric J. , Rubenstein Engel Emily , Tepper Stewart J. ,   on Behalf of the ACT1 Study Group
Published: September 2016

Objective

To evaluate non‐invasive vagus nerve stimulation (nVNS) as an acute cluster headache (CH) treatment.

Background

Many patients with CH experience excruciating attacks at a frequency that is not sufficiently addressed by current symptomatic treatments.

Methods

One hundred fifty subjects were enrolled and randomized (1:1) to receive nVNS or sham treatment for ≤1 month during a double‐blind phase; completers could enter a 3‐month nVNS open‐label phase. The primary end point was response rate, defined as the proportion of subjects who achieved pain relief (pain intensity of 0 or 1) at 15 minutes after treatment initiation for the first CH attack without rescue medication use through 60 minutes. Secondary end points included the sustained response rate (15‐60 minutes). Subanalyses of episodic cluster headache (eCH) and chronic cluster headache (cCH) cohorts were prespecified.

Results

The intent‐to‐treat population comprised 133 subjects: 60 nVNS‐treated (eCH, n = 38; cCH, n = 22) and 73 sham‐treated (eCH, n = 47; cCH, n = 26). A response was achieved in 26.7% of nVNS‐treated subjects and 15.1% of sham‐treated subjects (P = .1). Response rates were significantly higher with nVNS than with sham for the eCH cohort (nVNS, 34.2%; sham, 10.6%; P = .008) but not the cCH cohort (nVNS, 13.6%; sham, 23.1%; P = .48). Sustained response rates were significantly higher with nVNS for the eCH cohort (P = .008) and total population (P = .04). Adverse device effects (ADEs) were reported by 35/150 (nVNS, 11; sham, 24) subjects in the double‐blind phase and 18/128 subjects in the open‐label phase. No serious ADEs occurred.

Conclusions

In one of the largest randomized sham‐controlled studies for acute CH treatment, the response rate was not significantly different (vs sham) for the total population; nVNS provided significant, clinically meaningful, rapid, and sustained benefits for eCH but not for cCH, which affected results in the total population. This safe and well‐tolerated treatment represents a novel and promising option for eCH. ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT01792817.
And, the Winner Is…A Visual Preference for Endpoints over Starting Points in Infants’ Motion Event Representations
Authors: Lakusta Laura , DiFabrizio Stephanie
Published: September 2016

Infants represent objects that are endpoints in motion events and show a preference for encoding the endpoint (the duck waddles into a bowl) over the starting point (the duck waddles out of a box). This asymmetry continues to appear in nonlinguistic cognition and language throughout development. This study tests whether this asymmetry also shows up in 16‐month‐old infants’ visual preferences for motion events, and if so, for which types of events. Infants looked longer at events depicting an “agentive” figure (e.g., duck) moving into an object (endpoint) than out of an object (starting point), and this asymmetry persisted even when the starting point object was larger and more colorful than the endpoint object and when it caused the motion of the figure. However, an asymmetry was not found when motion into/out of the endpoint/starting point involved was performed by a “nonagentive” (e.g., leaf) figure. These findings suggest that an endpoint/starting point asymmetry in infant cognition (1) extends to infants’ visual preferences of motion events, (2) shows up most strongly for events that involve an “agentive” figure, and (3) is largely unaffected by the physical saliency of the starting point object. How a visual endpoint preference may support the acquisition of spatial language is considered.
Does the Type of Family Control Affect the Relationship Between Ownership Structure and Firm Value?
Authors: Martínez Beatriz , Requejo Ignacio
Published: September 2016

Our objective is to disentangle which family business characteristics enable family ownership to be an effective corporate governance mechanism. To this aim, we investigate whether the relationship between ownership concentration and firm value is moderated by the type of family influence. This study shows that family control positively affects performance, primarily when family members serve on the board and when the founder is still influential. Our findings hold when we control for the general blockholder effect and they are robust to a battery of tests. We conclude that the impact of ownership concentration on firm value differs across family firms.
Variation in Corporate Governance and Firm Valuation – an International Study
Authors: Fan Steve Z. , Yu Linda
Published: September 2016

In this paper, we investigate the types of firms that are likely to deviate from common practice in corporate governance of their home countries and examine how the deviation is correlated with firm value. Our results show that firms with higher institutional holdings, lower insider holdings, and higher sales growth are more likely to deviate from common practice in civil law countries, whereas, in common law countries, especially in the USA, firms with lower institutional holdings, higher insider holdings, and lower sales growth are likely to deviate from common practice. We document a strong positive correlation between governance deviation and firm value in civil law countries. This relationship is robust to different testing and sample selection methods. The results, however, are mixed for US firms and not significant in other common law countries. Using the deviation from common practice as a proxy of firm‐level impact on corporate governance, our results provide evidence that firm‐level effect matters in governance quality and the effect varies across countries.
Sentinel lymph node biopsy plus wide local excision vs. wide location excision alone for primary cutaneous melanoma: a systematic review and meta‐analysis
Authors: Santos‐Juanes J. , Fernández‐Vega I. , Galache Osuna C. , Coto‐Segura P. , Martínez‐Camblor P.
Published: September 2016

Background

Sentinel lymph node biopsy and wide local excision of the primary melanoma (SLNB) is now a standard staging procedure for patients with melanomas 1 mm or more in thickness, but its therapeutic benefit is not clear.

Objective

To determine whether there is an association between performance of SLNB and patient prognosis.

Methods

Studies assessing the association between performance of SLNB and patient prognosis were pooled from MEDLINE, EMBASE, PubMed, Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews and Google Scholar. From each study, first author's last name, publication year, origin country, type of study design, characteristics of participants and the Hazard risk (HR) for melanoma specific survival (MSS) with the corresponding 95% confidence interval (95% CI) were collected. Methodological assessment of the studies was evaluated using the Newcastle‐Ottawa scale (NOS) and the ‘Risk of bias’ tool detailed in the Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Reviews of Interventions. Meta‐analyses for the global HR were performed. In addition, in order to explore the sources of heterogeneity among the studies, sensitivity analyses are also provided.

Results

A total of six studies with 8764 patients who had undergone SLNB and 11054 patients who had undergone wide location excision alone (WLEA) were identified for the analysis. The indicators suggest that the heterogeneity is low: τ2 = 0; H = 1 [1; 1.74]; I2 = 0% [0%; 66.5%]. Evidence for publication bias was not found (Egger's test P = 0.4654). The pooled MSS HR from fixed effects analysis was determined to be 0.88 (95% CI = 0.80–0.96).

Conclusions

Although no significant survival difference was observed in four of the six series, the pooling summary data from all the studies that deal with this issue suggested that SLNB is associated with a significantly better outcome compared with WLEA for localized melanoma.
Exposure to fine particulate matter associated with senile lentigo in Chinese women: a cross‐sectional study
Authors: Peng F. , Xue C.‐H. , Hwang S.K. , Li W.‐H. , Chen Z. , Zhang J.‐Z.
Published: September 2016

Background

Skin ageing especially senile lentigo directly affects self‐esteem. For decades, senile lentigo has been associated with chronic exposure to solar radiation. However, a study conducted recently in Caucasian subjects suggested that exposure to air pollution was significantly correlated with extrinsic skin ageing, in particular senile lentigines.

Objective

To investigate the association between fine particulate matter (PM2.5) and skin ageing, particularly senile lentigo and seborrheic keratosis.

Methods

The study enrolled 400 Chinese women aged 40–90 years including 210 from the Yanqing county in Beijing (low PM2.5 exposure group) and 190 from the Xuanwumen in Beijing (high PM2.5 exposure group). Skin ageing symptoms, particularly senile lentigines and seborrheic keratoses, were clinically assessed using scores of intrinsic and extrinsic skin ageing. An ordinal logistic regression model was used to analyse the effect of PM2.5 on skin ageing adjusted for factors underlying skin ageing.

Results

In the study population of Xuanwumen, we found that senile lentigo on cheeks and back of hands was 1.48 times and 2.8 times higher, respectively, compared with those from Yanqing county. However, no association was found between PM2.5 and seborrheic keratosis. We found that other variables such as smoking, second‐hand smoking, contact with fossil fuels and skin types were significantly associated with skin ageing.

Conclusion

These results indicate that PM2.5 was another extrinsic factor promoting skin ageing.
Impact of farm management on expression of early mortality syndrome/acute hepatopancreatic necrosis disease (EMS/AHPND) on penaeid shrimp farms in Thailand
Authors: Boonyawiwat V , Patanasatienkul T , Kasornchandra J , Poolkhet C , Yaemkasem S , Hammell L , Davidson J
Published: September 2016

Asian shrimp farming industry has experienced massive production losses due to a disease caused by toxins of Vibrio bacteria, known as early mortality syndrome/acute hepatopancreatic necrosis disease (EMS/AHPND) for the last 5 years. The disease can cause up to 100% cumulative pond mortality within a week. The objective of this study was to identify factors associated with AHPND occurrence on shrimp farms. A case–control study was carried out on shrimp farms in four provinces of Thailand. Factors related to farm characteristics, farm management, pond and water preparation, feed management, post‐larvae (PL) shrimp and stock management were evaluated. Multivariable logistic regression analysis identified factors affecting AHPND occurrence at the pond level. Chlorine treatment, reservoir availability, use of predator fish in the water preparation, culture of multiple shrimp species in one farm and increased PL stocking density contributed to an increased risk of AHPND infection, while delayed first day of feeding, polyculture and water ageing were likely to promote outbreak protection. Additionally, the source of PL was found to be associated with AHPND occurrence in shrimp ponds, which requires further study at the hatchery level. Identification of these factors will facilitate the development of effective control strategies for AHPND on shrimp farms.
Parasite fecundity decreases with increasing parasite load in the salmon louse Lepeophtheirus salmonis infecting Atlantic salmon Salmo salar
Authors: Ugelvik M S , Skorping A , Mennerat A
Published: September 2016

Aggregation is common amongst parasites, where a small number of hosts carry a large proportion of parasites. This could result in density‐dependent effects on parasite fitness. In a laboratory study, we explored whether parasite load affected parasite fecundity and survival, using ectoparasitic salmon lice (Lepeophtheirus salmonis Krøyer, 1837) infecting Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) hosts. We found a significant reduction in fecundity with higher parasite load, but no significant effect on survival. Together with previous findings, this suggests that stronger competition amongst female lice under high parasite load is a more likely explanation than increased host immune response.
A nurse‐led intervention improves detection and management of AKI in Malawi
Authors: Kirwan Christopher J. , Wright Kelly , Banda Peter , Chick Aylwin , Mtekateka Mwayi , Banda Enos , Kawale Zuze , Evans Rhys , Dobbie Hamish , Dreyer Gavin
Published: September 2016

Background

Acute kidney injury is common and has significant impact on mortality and morbidity. There is a global drive to improve the lack of knowledge and understanding surrounding the recognition, diagnosis and management of patients with AKI in resource poor healthcare systems.

Objectives

We propose a nurse‐led education programme to medical and nursing staff of the Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital (QECH) in Blantyre, Malawi, will improve the overall care and understanding of patients with AKI that will still be effective 3 months later.

Methods

This was a three phase, prospective interventional pilot study which evaluated base line knowledge and clinical practice amongst healthcare workers, provided a comprehensive combination nurse‐led class room and ward based teaching programme and evaluated the change in knowledge and clinical management of patients in the high dependency areas of the hospital immediately, and 3 months, after the teaching intervention.

Results

The nurse‐led intervention significantly improved the healthcare workers attitudes towards detecting or managing patients with suspected AKI (p < 0.0001). There were also significant improvements in the completion of fluid charts and recording of urine output (p < 0.0001), corner stones of AKI management. Knowledge and clinical intervention was still present three months later. There was however little change in the understanding that AKI could be a significant clinical problem in QECH and that it may have a major impact on mortality and working practice and this needs to be addressed in future teaching programmes.

Conclusions

A low cost, nurse‐led AKI educational intervention improved the knowledge and management of AKI at QECH, which was still evident 3 months later.
Parents’ experiences in registering with and accessing funding under the National Disability Insurance Scheme for early intervention services for children with developmental disabilities
Authors: Ranasinghe Tharangi , Jeyaseelan Deepa , White Deirdre , Russo Ray
Published: September 2016

Aim

To evaluate parents’ feedback regarding their experience in registering and accessing funding with the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) and communicating with the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA).

Methods

Parents of children less than 7 years of age, who were assessed through the Child Development Unit (CDU) at the Women's and Children's Health Network from July 2013 to June 2014 and referred to the NDIS, were invited to complete a study questionnaire regarding their experience with the NDIS. The questionnaire was initially mailed to the parents. If no response was returned, families were telephoned to complete the questionnaire by phone or to be sent another copy of the questionnaire to complete.

Results

Of 121 children eligible for the study, 42 (34.7%) parents completed the questionnaire. Thirty‐six (85.7%) parents reported having no difficulty with the NDIS registration process, while six parents (14.3%) had difficulty. With regards to accessing funding, 27 (64.3%) reported having no difficulty, 11 (26.2%) stated that it was difficult and 4 parents did not comment. Twenty‐six parents (61.9%) reported that it was easy to communicate with the NDIA, while 12 (28.6%) found it difficult. Overall, 26 (61.9%) parents were satisfied with the NDIS and NDIA, 6 (14.8%) were unsatisfied and 9 (21.4%) were neutral.

Conclusion

The majority of parents were satisfied with both the processes required to register and access funding through the NDIS for early intervention services for their children with developmental disabilities, and their ability to communicate with the NDIA.
Infant and toddler drowning in Australia: Patterns, risk factors and prevention recommendations
Authors: Gaida Fellon J , Gaida James E
Published: September 2016

Drowning is a leading cause of death among infants and toddlers. Unique physiological and behavioural factors contribute to high mortality rates. Drowning incidents predominantly occur during warmer months and holidays. Recent studies link high socio‐economic status and drowning, in contrast to earlier studies. Cardiac arrhythmias, epilepsy and autism are strong risk factors for drowning incidents. Prevention strategies have substantially lowered drowning rates. While legislation‐compliant pool fencing substantially reduces drowning risk, compliance levels are low, and penalties are minor. Active supervision education for parents and carers is an effective drowning prevention strategy. Bystanders provide basic life support in only 30% of cases; strategies to increase training uptake are needed. Fencing costs should be a mandatory inclusion for pool installations, with high penalties for non‐compliance. Basic life support training should be compulsory for pool owners, and tax incentives should be used as a lever to increase training uptake.
A clinical audit cycle of post‐operative hypothermia in dogs
Authors: Rose N. , Kwong G. P. S. , Pang D. S. J.
Published: September 2016

OBJECTIVES

Use of clinical audits to assess and improve perioperative hypothermia management in client‐owned dogs.

METHODS

Two clinical audits were performed. In Audit 1 data were collected to determine the incidence and duration of perioperative hypothermia (defined as rectal temperatures <37·0°C). The results from Audit 1 were used to reach consensus on changes to be implemented to improve temperature management, including re‐defining hypothermia as rectal temperature <37·5°C. Audit 2 was performed after 1 month with changes in place.

RESULTS

Audit 1 revealed a high incidence of post‐operative hypothermia (88·0%) and prolonged time periods (7·5 hours) to reach normothermia. Consensus changes were to use a forced air warmer on all dogs and measure rectal temperatures hourly post‐operatively until temperature ≥37·5°C. After 1 month with the implemented changes, Audit 2 identified a significant reduction in the time to achieve a rectal temperature of ≥37·5°C, with 75% of dogs achieving this goal by 3·5 hours. The incidence of hypothermia at tracheal extubation remained high in Audit 2 (97·3% with a rectal temperature <37·5°C).

CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE

Post‐operative hypothermia was improved through simple changes in practice, showing that clinical audit is a useful tool for monitoring post‐operative hypothermia and improving patient care. Overall management of perioperative hypothermia could be further improved with earlier intervention.
Factors affecting the efficiency of aerosolized salbutamol delivery via a metered dose inhaler and equine spacer device
Authors: Pirie R. S. , McGorum B. C. , Owen C. , Carr O. , Oakley H. , McLachlan G.
Published: September 2016

Despite frequent use of metered dose inhalers (MDIs) and spacers in equine practice, limited information exists on the efficiency of aerosol delivery using such devices. We determined the particle size distribution within anMDI‐generated salbutamol aerosol delivered via an equine spacer using ‘best practice’ delivery technique and assessed the effect of variations inMDIuse technique (shaking prior to each actuation, rapid repetitive actuations, andMDIangulation) on aerosol delivery efficiency. Under optimal conditions, only 53(±18) μg salbutamol per 100 μg actuation was delivered beyond the spacer. Although this aerosol had a high [89.6% (±2.4)] fine particle (<5 μm) fraction, and a low mass median aerodynamic diameter [2.52 (±0.29) μm], and particle size variability [geometricSD– 1.66 (±0.16) μm], within all particle size fractions, there was a high coefficient of variance (31–79%) of the percentage salbutamol delivered between experimental runs, thus impeding any effort to predict drug delivery to the patient during equine inhalation therapy. Despite observable trends and with the exception of minor statistically significant changes in the least abundant particle sizes, none of the deviations from a ‘best practice’ delivery technique significantly altered the relative salbutamol delivery beyond the spacer, a finding which has potential relevance with regard to maintaining user compliance.
On Government‐Subsidized Training Programs for Older Workers
Authors: Dauth Christine , Toomet Ott
Published: September 2016

We analyze the impact of subsidized training programs for older workers. We apply a dynamic matching approach using German registry data. We find that subsidized training improves the probability to remain in paid employment by approximately 2.5 percentage points in the 2 years following treatment. The impact on benefit claims is small and largely insignificant. Effects are more pronounced for part‐time workers, for long‐duration program participants, and for workers older than 55 years. The results suggest that the main driver of these outcomes is postponed retirement, potentially because of improved job satisfaction.
Full‐On Stating
Authors: Stainton Robert J.
Published: September 2016

What distinguishes full‐on stating a proposition from merely communicating it? For instance, what distinguishes claiming/asserting/saying that one has never smoked crack cocaine from merely implying/conveying/hinting this? The enormous literature on ‘assertion’ provides many approaches to distinguishing stating from, say, asking and commanding: only the former aims at truth; only the former expresses one's belief; etc. But this leaves my question unanswered, since in merely communicating a proposition one also aims at truth, expresses a belief, etc.

My aim is not to criticize extant accounts of the state‐versus‐merely‐convey contrast, but rather to draw on clues from Dummett, functional linguistics and moral theory, to offer a novel one. The main idea is that full‐on stating is distinctively conventionalized in a way that conversationally implicating, hinting, giving to understand, etc., are not. Specifically, full‐on stating is constitutively tied to a particular conventional, linguistic, function‐bearing device, the declarative sentence. To full‐on state that p is to hit that ‘target speech act’ which owes its existence to that special‐purpose device. It is therefore also to make one's action lie‐prone. Nonetheless, once that sui generis target is there to be aimed for, a person may reach it without using the special‐purpose tool—e.g. one may full‐on state using a mere word or phrase, or coded hand signals, or semaphore.

I end by considering several philosophical implications of this means of capturing the contrast.
The mirage of Balkan Piedmont: state formation and Serbian nationalisms in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries
Authors: Malešević Siniša
Published: September 2016

The continuous rise of the Serbian state in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries is often described as a typical example of the Piedmont‐style of national unification. The conventional historiography emphasises the role popular nationalism has played in this process, making little if any distinctions between the forms of Serbian nationalisms within and outside of the Serbian state. This article challenges such interpretations and argues that the formation and expansion of Serbia had less to do with society‐wide national aspirations and much more with the internal elite politics within the Serbian state. Moreover, the paper makes a case that, rather than being a driving force of national unification, the expansionist nationalism was a by‐product of the state development. This argument is articulated further through the comparison of the different nationalist trajectories in Serbia and among the ethnic Serbian populations in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Therapeutic effects of intensive inpatient rehabilitation in advanced Parkinson's disease
Authors: Kaseda Yumiko , Ikeda Junko , Sugihara Katsunobu , Yamawaki Takemori , Kohriyama Tatsuo , Matsumoto Masayasu
Published: September 2016

Background

The importance of rehabilitation therapy in Parkinson's disease is well recognized. However, the effects of an inpatient rehabilitation program for advanced Parkinson's disease have not been fully investigated.

Aim

To assess the effects of intensive inpatient rehabilitation.

Methods

We enrolled 31 patients (mean age 69.5 ± 9.4 years; mean disease duration 8.8 ± 6.4 years) with advanced Parkinson's disease, without severe cognitive impairment. The median Hoehn–Yahr stage was IV. Patients received 2 h of individualized rehabilitation for 6–7 days each week for 1 month. At hospital discharge, patients and caregivers were instructed to continue daily exercise.

Results

Motor and total scores of Functional Independence Measures significantly improved between admission and discharge in patients with stage III and IV disease, but not stage V. There was no significant effect of Hoehn–Yahr stage on improvements in Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale scores, (total, part I, II or III), cognitive Functional Independence Measures or Berg Balance Scale.

Conclusion

Intensive inpatient rehabilitation was effective even in advanced Parkinson's disease. Intensive inpatient rehabilitation, together with home and day‐care exercise, might counteract the progressive motor decline in Parkinson's disease.
Can a community‐based multidisciplinary intervention effectively restore renal function? A non‐randomized clinical trial
Authors: Phuphaibul Rutja , Teamprathom Watana , Puckpinyo Apa , Tharakul Supannee
Published: September 2016

There is insufficient evidence in the literature to indicate whether the promotion of lifestyle changes to prevent renal dysfunction and activate regeneration is effective. We examined the effectiveness of a community‐based intervention program on renal restoration using a non‐randomized clinical trial design with a follow‐up period of six months. The training focused on lifestyle changes, including health education and personal consultation with a multidisciplinary health team. Our study included 120 patients with fractional excretion of magnesium levels of > 2%, who were assigned to experimental or control groups. Fractional excretion of magnesium levels were significantly decreased within six months in the experimental group; however, changes in the estimated glomerular filtration rate were not identified in either of the groups. These results suggest that screening of the fractional excretion of magnesium level and the “Healthy Kidney Program” had an effect in preventing chronic kidney disease or restoring kidney function.
MODELING THE EFFECTS OF WOOD AND NON‐WOOD BASED INDUSTRIES ON FORESTRY RESOURCES
Authors: LATA KUSUM , DUBEY B. , MISRA A.K.
Published: September 2016

Pollution due to the wood and non‐wood based industries is one of the main reasons for the depletion of forestry resources. On the onset of industrial era, the number of industries was less but now it has increased much due to rapid pace of development. Industrialization affects forestry resources in two ways: (i) using raw materials by wood based industries and cut down by non‐wood based industries and (ii) emitting pollutants by wood and non‐wood based industries. In view of this, in this paper, we have proposed and analyzed a mathematical model to assess the effects of wood and non‐wood based industries on the depletion of forestry resources. In the modeling process, it is assumed that wood and non‐wood based industries deplete the forestry resources directly, whereas pollutants emitted by both types of industries decrease the growth rate of forestry resources indirectly. The equilibria are obtained and their stability is discussed. The model analysis reveals that forestry resources decrease due to the growth in wood based industries but the overgrowth in non‐wood based industries and pollutants emitted by them in the environment adversely affect the forestry resources. Numerical simulation is provided to support analytical findings.