bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Surfactant- and elasticity-induced inertialess instabilities in vertically vibrated liquids
Authors: SUMAN BALRAM , KUMAR SATISH
Published: August 2008

We investigate instabilities that arise when the free surface of a liquid covered with an insoluble surfactant is vertically vibrated and inertial effects are negligible. In the absence of surfactants, the inertialess Newtonian system is found to be stable, in contrast to the case where inertia is present. Linear stability analysis and Floquet theory are applied to calculate the critical vibration amplitude needed to excite the instability and the corresponding wavenumber. A previously reported long-wavelength instability is found to persist to finite wavelengths, and the connection between the long-wavelength and finite-wavelength theories is explored in detail. The instability mechanism is also probed and requires the Marangoni flows to be sufficiently strong and in the appropriate phase with respect to the gravity modulation. For viscoelastic liquids, we find that instability can arise even in the absence of surfactants and inertia. Mathieu equations describing this are derived and these show that elasticity introduces an effective inertia into the system.
Gilles Vergnon,Le Vercors. Histoire et mémoire d'un maquis. Paris: Atelier/Ouvrières, 2002. 256 pp. 21€.
Authors: Horn Gerd-Rainer
Published: August 2008

Travellers zooming up or down the Rhône Valley in the TGV Méditerranée, when passing through the area on a reasonably clear day, will undoubtedly notice an impressive mountain range suddenly rising from the low-level terrain of the Rhône Valley east of Valence. When this reviewer crossed on foot what is now known as Le Vercors in a week-long gruelling hike in 1984, the ubiquity of historical markers denoting the precise locations where resistance fighters had been shot and killed impressed itself upon the two trekkers holding German passports already during the very first day. In France, the Vercors has become a lieu de mémoire and incorporates a great variety of aspects and interpretations of the French resistance experience in an almost exemplary manner.
Michael Seidman,Republic of Egos: A Social History of the Spanish Civil War. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, 2002. xi + 304 pp. $55.00 cloth; $24.95 paper.
Authors: Price Curtis
Published: August 2008

Many historians usually interpret the Spanish Civil War as a confrontation of great collective movements. Looking back into the trenches of the Iberian Peninsula, they see the organized forces of nationalism, communism, anarcho-syndicalism, and socialism clashing along battle lines as much ideological as military. In these standard accounts, such movements, whatever their sharp political differences, commanded popular support based on an ethos of heroism, sacrifice and devotion to a larger cause.
Himani Bannerji, Sharzad Mojab, and Judith Whitehead,Of Property and Propriety: The Role of Gender and Class in Imperialism and Nationalism. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2001. 244 pp. $60.00 cloth; 24.95 paper.
Authors: Granger J. David
Published: August 2008

The authors succinctly note that contemporary studies of nationalism tend towards oversimplification. This oversimplification is manifested in a tacit and serious misrepresentation. The misrepresentation is a bifurcation of the colonial experience into the primary or self and the other. Such a manifestation is best represented by Said (1978) in terms of “orientalism.” Such a binary configuration of the colonial experience is an oversimplification for two reasons. First, it fails to acknowledge the interdimensional diversity of the colonized. To ignore interdimensional diversity is to fail to account for the role that gender and class play in the construct of the colonized. Second, binary configurations tend to misrepresent path dependence or the historical unfolding of particular nationalisms. In this sense, nationalism acquires an assumption of natural progression in terms of rights and welfare. The authors challenge the assumption that gender rights are acquired consummately in conjunction with nationalism. Instead, the authors make the argument that nationalism often acquires a regressive effect in terms of gender-class rights and welfare. As an example, Sharzad Mojab notes that Kurdish nationalism has had a conflictive relationship with the progression of women's welfare in addition to rights. Contemporary Kurdish nationalism has tended towards the regression of women's welfare. The root causes of a resort to regression are noted by Mojab to lie in the failure to effectively transform the preexisting precapitalist gender and class structure.
Fernando Teixeira da Silva.Operários sem patrões: Os trabalhadores da cidade de Santos no entreguerras. Campinas: Editora Uncamp, 2003. 475 pp. $34.00 cloth.
Authors: Chazkel Amy
Published: August 2008

This book portrays the labor movement in the Brazilian port city of Santos in the period between the two World Wars. Author Fernando Teixeira da Silva reconstructs a period of rapid urbanization, economic instability, and worker ferment in a city known for the combative nature of organized labor. The author focuses on the two types of work that predominated in interwar Santos: civil construction and, above all, dock work. Through his finely grained local history approach, Silva describes both the clashes of interests between labor and management and the reformulation of each class from within.
Ben Fallaw,Cárdenas Compromised:The Failure of Reform in Postrevolutionary Yucatán. London: Duke University Press, 2001. 222 pp.
Authors: Pansters Wil G.
Published: August 2008

The presidency of Lázaro Cárdenas (1934–1940), one of the leading figures of Latin American populism of the first half of the twentieth century, has long been surrounded by myth and politicized interpretations. To a certain extent this is understandable: under Cárdenas's leadership major and spectacular reforms were carried out that had their roots in claims originally formulated during and in the aftermath of the Mexican Revolution (1910–1917). Moreover, these reforms have had a lasting impact on Mexico's political and socioeconomic development. In state-sanctioned historia oficial the figure of “grandfather” Cárdenas long reached mythical proportions: he carried out huge projects of land reform and thus finally responded to the demands of poor peasants and Indians, stood up against international capital by nationalizing the oil industry, rebuffed the conservative factions of the national bourgeoisie and laid the foundations for the corporatist state and party, that was to rule Mexico for the remaining part of the century, and thus gave institutional voice to the country's working classes. This image has also been influential in scholarly writings, particularly in those that studied cardenismo as a national phenomenon. Recent years, however, have seen important changes. Nationalist populism is drastically reevaluated in the dominant discourse of neoliberal modernity, and scholars have started to break down the phenomenon, thereby trying to overcome politicized interpretations.
Cindy Forster,The Time of Freedom: Campesino Workers in Guatemala's October Revolution. Pittsburgh: University of Pittsburgh Press, 2001. xi + 287 pp. $32.95 cloth; 19.95 paper.
Authors: Granger J. David
Published: August 2008

Forster's work in The Time of Freedom is a worthy contribution to scholarship on collective behavior in Latin America. The work appears largely intended to provide a narrative account of peasant organizing in a specific locale; however, the work implicitly incorporates a more comprehensive theory about bottom-up collective action. The account of bottom-up collective action given by the author is really one of contentious politics involving the simultaneous dynamics of four key groups: rural indigenous, rural ladinos, large landowners, and politicians. The movement is contentious for two reasons. First, the social movement arises from a previous period of relative stability, although under a dictatorship, and it incurs a significant change in elite political ideology. Second, the time frame spans about ten years, from the fall of Ubico in 1944 to the fall of Arbenz in 1954. The author leads the reader through the three stages of initial formation, mass action, and demobilization. The author's account of the 1944 Guatemalan Revolution challenges the traditional interpretation of hierarchical initiation. Historical accounts of the 1944 Revolution portray it as urban in its locale and middle-class in its support. Ignoring the rural indigenous and ladinos leaves a chasm in the understanding of contemporary Guatemalan history and politics. This is of particular importance in understanding the movement towards violence that followed from the failure to institutionalize the hard-earned gains of the collective movement.
Pem Davidson Buck,Worked to the Bone: Race, Class, Power, and Privilege in Kentucky. New York: Monthly Review Press, 2001. viii + 288 pp. $55.00 cloth; $21.00 paper.
Authors: Arnesen Eric
Published: August 2008

Pem Davidson Buck's book is intended to offer readers a view from under the sink (1). Initially rejecting a career for which her middle-class upbringing had prepared her, Buck moved from Pennsylvania to central Kentucky, where she and her husband became back-to-the-landers, growing and canning food and raising goats and calves, sometimes supplementing the family income by working as part-time day laborers on tobacco farms, as hod-carriers, and as plumbers. But it's not so easy to leave a middle-class liberal upbringing behind, especially down on the farm living below the poverty level. Working as a helper in the small plumbing and heating business she operated with her husband, Buck spent time lying on her back on the floors of the wealthy fixing leaks; from that perspective under the sink she looked up and saw fine furniture and other manifestations of wealth she could not afford. One thing led to another: seeing the world as if for the first time, “it appeared oppressive” (2). People, working people, that is, work extremely hard, and what do they get for their efforts? Boney fingers.
Measurement of charged particles and cavitation bubble expansion velocities in laser induced breakdown in water
Authors: Nath A. , Khare A.
Published: August 2008

The measurement of charged particles and cavitation bubble expansion velocity is reported in a laser induced breakdown in water using beam deflection set-up. Effect of laser power on charged particles, cavitation bubble velocities and higher order bubble oscillations is also studied.
Lines and circles, West and East
Authors: Biao Zuo
Published: August 2008

Nothing in the world is absolute. Everything is relative, cultural difference being no exception. Culture, as the total pattern of human behavior and its products, oversteps geographical limits and historical conditions in many ways, and it is characterized by its strong penetrativeness and fusibility. The advancement of the globalized economy and the rapidity and ease of modern communication, transportation and mass media have resulted in an ever-increasing exchange between cultures, unprecedented in scale, scope and speed. Consequently, an increase in universality and reduction in difference between cultures is an inevitable trend. It is no surprise to see phenomena characteristic of one culture existing considerably in another. As a result, some people even fear that the world will become a dull place when all the different nationalities behave exactly alike. The exploration of cultural difference conducted under the condition of tremendous exchange between cultures might be misled into the pitfall of generalization or absolutization. Nevertheless, the “cultural sediment” formed through long-range accumulation is not to be easily removed and the cultural tradition handed down from generation to generation shows great consistency and continuity.
Missing in action: verbal metaphor for information technology
Authors: Bruthiaux Paul
Published: August 2008

The rapid spread of Information Technology (IT) in recent years and the role it plays in many aspects of our lives has not left language use untouched. A manifestation of this role is the degree of linguistic creativity that has accompanied technological innovation. In English, this creativity is seen in the semantic relabeling of established terms such as web, bug, virus, firewall, etc. Another strategy favored by IT lexifiers is the use of lexical items clustered in heavy premodifying groups, as in random access memory, disk operating system, central processing unit, and countless others (White, 1999). In brief, IT technology – and in particular, the World Wide Web – has made it possible for users to break free of many linguistic codes and conventions (Lemke, 1999).

For the linguist, the happy outcome of the spread of IT is that it has created an opportunity to analyze the simultaneous development of technology and the language that encodes it and the influence of one on the other (Stubbs, 1997). To linguists of a broadly functional disposition, this is a chance to confirm the observation that scientific language differs substantially from everyday language. More importantly, it is also a chance to verify the claim made chiefly by Halliday & Martin (1993) that this difference in the characteristics of each of these discourses stems from a radical difference between scientific and common sense construals of the world around us.
In defence of triphthongs
Authors: Jowitt David
Published: August 2008

The vowel phonemes of English conventionally subdivide into ‘pure’ vowels and diphthongs, and diphthongs are a well recognised component of the system. Triphthongs are a different story. The very word ‘triphthong’ sounds faintly preposterous, as if somebody has dared a coinage with ‘diphthong’ and wants to have some further fun. Without wishing to prejudge the question of the actual existence of triphthongs, I shall use the word to refer to a sequence of three vocalic elements that may be interpreted as a single unit and, as a phoneme, has a contrastive function.
Cook stew of pidgin
Authors: Jesse Moba
Published: August 2008

This paper discusses pidgin English, and far from calling it a corrupt and decayed form of the English language (as has been the case in many well-meaning literary circles), shows that pidgin has poetic resources capable of expressing a wide range of mentalities, tastes, customs, and even fashion itself. Because of this flexibility, pidgin reveals a high degree of closeness to the original speech patterns, notably in an attempt to preserve syntactical equivalents. Thus, if pidgin is adopted as a lingua franca throughout the sub-Saharan African region, it will enable Africans to take new pride in their artistic traditions and non-Africans to share in the joy and excitement of Africa's art.
Minimum viable populations and sluggish management
Authors: Bulte Erwin H.
Published: August 2008

On the shoulders of some ecologists and conservation biologists rests the responsibility for guarding environmental systems from excessive abuse by humans. To this end, policy makers may be advised to introduce restrictions on behaviour of individuals and firms alike. Needless to say, such proposals often receive a hostile welcome, especially amongst private industries, where it is sometimes felt that ecologists overstate the importance of their case, proposing too stringent regulation too early and thereby causing excessive costs. Early signalling of resource depletion may be a rational (and indeed necessary) response by ecologists to the vagaries of policy making.
Ecosystem structure, economic cycles and market-oriented conservation
Authors: Crook Carolyn , Clapp Roger Alex
Published: August 2008

Whether market-oriented conservation, by which we mean the promotion of markets for the products of intact ecosystems, protects biodiversity, and under what conditions, has been a subject of much research and debate. Our evaluation of three strategies of the market-oriented use of natural resources led us to conclude that, at least for these three strategies, market-oriented mechanisms of conservation are often socially, economically, or ecologically unsustainable, and that proposals for market-oriented conservation should be approached with caution (Crook & Clapp 1998). Shackleton's (2001) critique and extension of the conditions for market-oriented conservation offers many useful insights, although we question some of his interpretations. Herein we examine some of those extensions, and revisit the criteria for successful market-oriented conservation.
Identifying and assessing ecotourism visitor impacts at eight protected areas in Costa Rica and Belize
Authors: Farrell Tracy A. , Marion Jeffrey L.
Published: August 2008

Protected area visitation is an important component of ecotourism, and as such, must be sustainable. However, protected area visitation may degrade natural resources, particularly in areas of concentrated visitor activities like trails and recreation sites. This is an important concern in ecotourism destinations such as Belize and Costa Rica, because they actively promote ecotourism and emphasize the pristine qualities of their natural resources. Research on visitor impacts to protected areas has many potential applications in protected area management, though it has not been widely applied in Central and South America. This study targeted this deficiency through manager interviews and evaluations of alternative impact assessment procedures at eight protected areas in Belize and Costa Rica. Impact assessment procedures included qualitative condition class systems, ratings systems, and measurement-based systems applied to trails and recreation sites. The resulting data characterize manager perceptions of impact problems, document trail and recreation site impacts, and provide examples of inexpensive, efficient and effective rapid impact assessment procedures. Interview subjects reported a variety of impacts affecting trails, recreation sites, wildlife, water, attraction features and other resources. Standardized assessment procedures were developed and applied to record trail and recreation site impacts. Impacts affecting the study areas included trail proliferation, erosion and widening, muddiness on trails, vegetation cover loss, soil and root exposure, and tree damage on recreation sites. The findings also illustrate the types of assessment data yielded by several alternative methods and demonstrate their utility to protected area managers. The need for additional rapid assessment procedures for wildlife, water, attraction feature and other resource impacts was also identified.
The rapid emergence of genetic modification in world agriculture: contested risks and benefits
Authors: Pretty Jules
Published: August 2008

There has been a rapid expansion in the commercial cultivation of genetically modified crops, rising from the first plantings in 1995 to 44.5 million hectares worldwide in 2000, most of which have grown in North America. Though there are sharp divisions in opinions on benefits and risk, genetic modification (GM) does not represent a single, homogenous technology. Each application brings different potential benefits and risks for different stakeholders. This paper reviews recent scientific progress and future applications using a new typology of three generations of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) ranged against five types of scientific application. Agricultural GMOs pose a range of potential environmental and health risks. An analysis of recent independent field and scientific evidence from industrialized countries summarizes the current state of knowledge on seven types of risk that apply to all agricultural systems: (1) horizontal gene flow; (2) new forms of resistance and pest problems; (3) recombination to produce new pathogens; (4) direct and indirect effects of novel toxins; (5) loss of biodiversity from changes to farm practices; (6) allergenic and immune system reactions; and (7) antibiotic resistance marker genes. There remain highly contrasting positions taken by different stakeholders over GMOs. A review of three debates explains claims and counter-claims for (1) genetic modification as technological fix or contributor to sustainability; (2) genetic modification as driver of corporate power or friend of farmer; and (3) genetic modification as feeder of the world or eliminator of alternatives.
Re-examining local and market-orientated use of wild species for the conservation of biodiversity
Authors: Shackleton Charlie M.
Published: August 2008

The hypothesis of attaching and realising market values as one means of conserving biodiversity has gained ground over the last decade. This has been challenged recently after examination of a number of case studies, largely from tropical Amazonia, on high value logging, marketing of non-timber forest products, and bioprospecting. The conclusion was that market-orientated conservation has seldom generated the financial returns envisaged, and as such cannot be used as an incentive to prevent land transformation. This paper reviews the basis of the challenge to market-orientated conservation on a number of grounds, drawing on examples largely from southern Africa. It concludes that generalizations from tropical Amazonia regarding the failure of market-orientated conservation are probably premature, and that it should remain an option, amongst a number of options, for conservation of biodiversity. Additionally, the prerequisite criteria identified as necessary to create an enabling framework for the success of market-orientated conservation are insufficient. Case studies are presented where the prerequisites do not apply, yet current extraction for market purposes is sustainable. Other potential prerequisites are also considered. There is a need for multivariate analysis, based on a large sample size drawn from across a range of environments and resources, of which factors are important prerequisites for successful market-orientated conservation, and under which circumstances.
Overstocking in the trans-Himalayan rangelands of India
Authors: Mishra Charudutt , Prins Herbert H.T. , Wieren Sipke E. van
Published: August 2008

High livestock densities in rangelands can result in reduced animal production due either to overgrazing or reduced per caput food availability, yet evidence for reduced animal production due to overstocking is scarce. Here simple animal production models establish the occurrence of overstocking in a traditional agropastoral system in the Spiti Valley of the Indian Trans-Himalaya. Empirical data show that fecundity of adult female livestock is related to total livestock biomass density (S) as a negative linear function of S. Total herd production is modelled as a quadratic function of S, thereby calculating an optimum livestock biomass density (Sop), at which total herd production is maximized. A sample of 40 villages showed that over 83% of Spiti's rangelands may be overstocked with values of S > Sop. Overstocking seems to be a classic case of the tragedy of the commons, as livestock is individually owned while the land is communally grazed. Recent socio-economic changes have probably contributed to high levels of overstocking. Even areas within wildlife reserves are overstocked. Conservation management needs to focus on creation of grazing free areas and management of livestock densities.
A study of infectious intestinal disease in England: risk factors associated with group A rotavirus in children
Authors: SETHI D. , CUMBERLAND P. , HUDSON M. J. , RODRIGUES L. C. , WHEELER J. G. , ROBERTS J. A. , TOMPKINS D. S. , COWDEN J. M. , RODERICK P. J.
Published: August 2008

Objective: To identify risk factors for infectious intestinal disease (IID) due to rotavirus group A in children aged under 16 years.

Methods: Case-control study of cases of IID with rotavirus infection presenting to general practitioners (GPs) or occurring in community cohorts, and matched controls.

Results: There were 139 matched pairs. In children under 16 years the following risk factors were significantly associated with rotavirus IID: living in rented council housing (adjusted OR=3·78, P=0·022), accommodation with more than five rooms (OR=0·72, P=0·002), contact with someone ill with IID (OR=3·45, P<0·001). Some foods were associated with decreased risk. In infants, bottle feeding with or without breast feeding was associated with increased risk (OR=9·06, P<0·05).

Conclusions: Contact with persons with IID, living in rented council housing and accommodation with fewer rooms, were significant risk factors for sporadic rotavirus IID in children whereas breast feeding is protective in infants.
Serological survey of parapoxvirus infection in wild ruminants in Japan in 1996–9
Authors: INOSHIMA Y. , YAMAMOTO Y. , TAKAHASHI T. , SHINO M. , KATSUMI A. , SHIMIZU S. , SENTSUI H.
Published: August 2008

The prevalence of parapoxvirus infection was examined in free-ranging wild ruminants in Japan, Japanese serow (Capricornis crispus) and Japanese deer (Cervus nippon centralis), in 1996–9. We collected a total of 151 serum samples from 101 Japanese serows and 50 Japanese deer and tested for antibodies against parapoxvirus by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and an agar gel immunodiffusion test. Overall seroprevalences among Japanese serows were 5/25 (20·0%) in 1996, 4/14 (28·6%) in 1997, 5/32 (15·6%) in 1998 and 2/30 (6·7%) in 1999, respectively. The seroprevalence increased with age but was not affected by sex. No antibodies were detected from any of 50 serum samples taken from Japanese deer. Our results in this study suggest that parapoxvirus infection is widespread among the population of Japanese serows, however, Japanese deer appear to be still free of the disease.
The effectiveness of Haemophilus influenzae type b conjugate vaccines in a high risk population measured using immunization register data
Authors: MARKEY P. , KRAUSE V. , BOSLEGO J. W. , COPLAN P. M. , DARGAN J.M. , KAPLAN K. M.
Published: August 2008

The Northern Territory of Australia has had historically very high incidence rates of invasive Haemophilus influenzae type b disease in children less than 5 years of age, with the burden of disease greatest among Aboriginal infants less than 12 months. This study documents the impact of conjugate Hib vaccines introduced in 1993. Immunization rates were monitored using an existing immunization register, and case finding was done retrospectively using hospital and laboratory records. Following the vaccine introduction, the incidence fell abruptly to a seventh of its pre-vaccination level, in both Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal children. The effectiveness of PRP-OMPC (PedvaxHIBTM) was 97·5% and the overall effectiveness of the vaccination programme was 86·3%. The study shows Hib immunization as an effective intervention while discussing continuing needs for Hib control in high risk populations. It also illustrates the benefit of immunization registers in the evaluation of immunization programmes and assessment of vaccine effectiveness.
Risk-factors for meningococcal disease in Victoria, Australia, in 1997
Authors: ROBINSON P. , TAYLOR K. , NOLAN T.
Published: August 2008

In Victoria between 1990 and 1996, meningococcal infections occurred in 1–2/100000 people each year, with sometimes devastating outcome. In 1997, a typical year, we conducted a case-control study of all cases notified to the State Disease Control Unit, to investigate personal, environmental and lifestyle risk factors. In bivariate analysis many exposures were statistically significantly different (at P = 0·01) in cases and controls. The level of risk, and specific risks, differed between children (under 16) and adults (16 years and over). In multivariate analysis few exposures remained significant (at P = 0·05). However, these included having a smoker amongst close contacts, exposure to construction dust, recent illness, a history of snoring and speech problems, and sharing a bedroom. Besides confirming some previously identified risk factors, this is the first time that snoring and speech problems have been identified as risk factors for meningococcal disease.
Day-care and meningococcal disease in young children
Authors: GREIN T. , O’FLANAGAN D.
Published: August 2008

The Republic of Ireland has the highest incidence of meningococcal disease in Europe with 40% of all cases occurring in children under the age of 5 years. Attending day-care increases the risk of certain infections, including Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) meningitis. The risk of meningococcal disease associated with day-care is not known. We conducted a case-control study among pre-school children with 130 laboratory-confirmed cases and 390 controls, matched on age, gender and place of residence, to determine if day-care attendance was a risk factor for meningococcal disease. Multivariate analysis showed that day-care attenders had a lower risk of disease than non-attenders (OR 0·3, 95% CI 0·1–0·7) whereas the number of adults in a household, and household crowding were independent risk factors for disease. Asymptomatic carriers of Neisseria meningitidis are the main source of transmission and these carriers are usually adults. Regular day-care attendance may reduce this risk by removing children from close and prolonged contact with adults.
Microbiologic effectiveness of hand washing with soap in an urban squatter settlement, Karachi, Pakistan
Authors: LUBY S. P. , AGBOATWALLA M. , RAZA A. , SOBEL J. , MINTZ E. D. , BAIER K. , HOEKSTRA R. M. , RAHBAR M. H. , HASSAN R. , QURESHI S. M. , GANGAROSA E. J.
Published: August 2008

We conducted a study in a squatter settlement in Karachi, Pakistan where residents report commonly washing their hands to determine if providing soap, encouraging hand washing, and improving wash-water quality would improve hand cleanliness. We allocated interventions to 75 mothers and collected hand-rinse samples on unannounced visits. In the final model compared with mothers who received no hand-washing intervention, mothers who received soap would be expected to have 65% fewer thermotolerant coliform bacteria on their hands (95% CI 40%, 79%) and mothers who received soap, a safe water storage vessel, hypochlorite for water treatment, and instructions to wash their hands with soap and chlorinated water would be expected to have 74% fewer (95% CI 57%, 84%). The difference between those who received soap alone, and those who received soap plus the safe water vessel was not significant (P = 0·26). Providing soap and promoting hand washing measurably improved mothers' hand cleanliness even when used with contaminated water.
Antibodies to hepatitis A virus in Italian patients with chronic liver disease
Authors: SAGNELLI E. , ROSSI G. , COPPOLA N. , SCOLASTICO C. , ONOFRIO M. , FILIPPINI P. , CHIARAMONTE M. , PIZZIGALLO E. , ACETI A. , SPADARO A. , RAIMONDO G. , PICCININO F.
Published: August 2008

To improve our knowledge for future hepatitis A virus (HAV) vaccination strategies we carried out a multicentre study on naturally acquired immunological protection against HAV in patients with chronic hepatitis in Italy. We enrolled 830 consecutive patients with chronic hepatitis on their first observation at one of the six Italian liver units participating in the study. Six hundred and fifty-eight patients (79·3%) were positive for total anti-HAV and 172 (20·7%) were negative. The anti-HAV negative patients were younger (median age 33, range 11–78) than the anti-HAV positive (median age 56, 18–87). There was a higher prevalence of cases with circulating anti-HAV among the 508 patients residing in southern Italy than in the 322 residing in northern Italy (88·8% vs. 64%, P < 0·001). No significant difference in the anti-HAV prevalence was observed between patients from northern Italy and those from southern Italy aged 0–30 years or in those over 60 years, while in those 31–60 years old there was a higher prevalence of anti-HAV positive patients from southern Italy (90·2% vs. 65·8%, P < 0·0001). Of the patients with liver cirrhosis in this study, only 3 of the 26 (11·5%) from northern Italy and 8 of the 228 (3·5%) from southern Italy had no immunological protection against HAV infection. The data suggest that the number of patients with chronic liver disease without naturally acquired immunity against HAV is substantial in Italy, particularly in the north of the country, and that new vaccination strategies are needed.
The aetiology of maculopapular rash diseases in Niterói, State of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: implications for measles surveillance
Authors: OLIVEIRA S. A. , SIQUEIRA M. M. , CAMACHO L. A. B. , NOGUEIRA R. M. , SPINETTI C. C. J. , CUBEL GARCIA R. C. N. , KNOWLES W. , BROWN D. W. G.
Published: August 2008

A study investigating the causes of rash diseases using systematic laboratory testing was conducted in Niterói, Rio de Janeiro, between January 1994 to April 1998. Sera from 327 patients were tested for evidence of anti-rubella virus, measles virus, human parvovirus B19 and dengue fever virus specific immunoglobulin IgM and anti-human herpes virus type 6 (HHV-6) IgG antibodies. A laboratory confirmed diagnosis was achieved in 71·3% of the cases investigated: dengue fever (33·0%), rubella (20·2%), parvovirus B19 (9·2%), measles (6·7%) and HHV-6 (2·1%). No diagnosis was established for 94 cases (28·7%). An outbreak of measles was detected during 1997, with a peak in September and October. All of the diseases studied here presented with clinical features similar to measles and classical symptoms were found in all measles confirmed cases. The large overlap of combinations of signs and symptoms seen in this study highlights the difficulties of diagnosing a rash illness on clinical grounds alone.
Epidemiology of varicella zoster virus infection in Canada and the United Kingdom
Authors: BRISSON M. , EDMUNDS W. J. , LAW B. , GAY N. J. , WALLD R. , BROWNELL M. , ROOS L. L. , DE SERRES G.
Published: August 2008

Many countries are currently studying the possibility of mass vaccination against varicella. The objective of this study was to provide a comprehensive picture of the pre-vaccine epidemiology of the varicella zoster virus (VZV) to aid in the design of immunization programs and to adequately measure the impact of vaccination. Population-based data including physician visit claims, sentinel surveillance and hospitalization data from Canada and the United Kingdom were analysed. The key epidemiological characteristics of varicella and zoster (age specific consultation rates, seasonality, force of infection, hospitalization rates and inpatient days) were compared. Results show that the overall epidemiology of varicella and zoster is remarkably similar between the two countries. The major difference being that, contrary to Canada, the epidemiology of varicella seems to be changing in the United Kingdom with an important decrease in the average age at infection that coincides with a significant increase in children attending preschool. Furthermore, differences exist in the seasonality between the United Kingdom and Canada, which seem to be primarily due to the school calendar. These results illustrate that school and preschool contact patterns play an important role in the dynamics of varicella. Finally, our results provide baseline estimates of varicella and zoster incidence and morbidity for VZV vaccine effectiveness and cost-effectiveness studies.
Prospective study of the incidence of diarrhoea and prevalence of bacterial pathogens in a cohort of Vietnamese children along the Red River
Authors: ISENBARGER D. W. , HIEN B. T. , HA H. T. , HA T. T. , BODHIDATTA L. , PANG L. W. , CAM P. D.
Published: August 2008

We prospectively studied diarrhoea incidence among 1655 children < 5 years of age in northern Vietnam for 1 year using primarily passive surveillance. Standard culture methods were used to detect bacterial pathogens. Overall 2160 cases occurred (1·3 cases/child per year). Peak rates of diarrhoea occurred in children < 12 months old. Rates ranged from 3·3 cases/child per year in children < 1 year old, to 0·7 cases/child per year in 4-year-olds. Campylobacter, shigella and enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli were most commonly isolated. Rates detected by active surveillance were about twice those detected passively. S. flexneri was the most common shigella serogroup (65%). S. flexneri serotypes 6, 4, 1 and Y were most common, but 40% were untypable using commercial antisera. The data illustrate important regional differences in pathogen prevalence and shigella serotype distribution. Shigella vaccine development strategies, commonly targeting S. flexneri 2a, S. sonnei and S. dysenteriae 1, will have little impact on diarrhoea rates in Vietnam.
The epidemiology of hepatitis A in Rio de Janeiro: environmental and domestic risk factors
Authors: ALMEIDA L. M. , WERNECK G. L. , CAIRNCROSS S. , COELI C. M. , COSTA M. C. E. , COLETTY P. E.
Published: August 2008

A serological study of hepatitis A was carried out in low-income areas scheduled for a major sanitation programme in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Blood spots were collected by finger puncture and transported on filter paper, and total antibodies to hepatitis A virus were detected by ELISA. Households were also interviewed to collect information on their environmental conditions and socio-economic status. A generalized linear model using a complementary log–log function was fitted to the data, using the logarithm of age as an explanatory variable to derive adjusted rate ratios (RR). The risk of infection was greater among households with 2–3 members per room (RR = 1·4; 95% CI = 1·04–1·8) or more than three per room (RR = 1·5; 95% CI = 1·2–2·0). People living on hilltops (RR = 1·5; 95% CI = 1·02–2·2), near to open sewers (RR = 1·2; 95% CI = 1·03–1·5) or lacking a kitchen (RR = 1·4; 95% CI = 1·08–1·9) were also at greater risk than others. The number of taps and water-using fittings in the house was associated with a protective effect (RR = 0·9 for each tap; 95% CI = 0·9–0·98). A significant protective association was found with maternal education but not with gender or household income. The results do not suggest a strong association with water quality. Ownership of a ceramic water filter was associated with a protective effect on the margin of significance, but the practice of boiling drinking-water was not, nor was the type of water source used. The results suggest that that the risk of infection with hepatitis A is determined by environmental variables in the domestic and public domains.
Cost analysis of two strategies for preventing hepatitis A virus infection in Spanish travellers to developing countries
Authors: BAYAS J. M. , GONZÁLEZ A. , VILELLA A. , SAN-MARTÍN M. , BERTRAN M. J. , ADELL C.
Published: August 2008

Our objectives were to assess the prevalence of anti-hepatitis A (HAV) antibodies in Spanish travellers to developing countries and to carry out a cost analysis to allow the comparison of two vaccination strategies. Adult subjects were selected from among travellers to developing countries. Information was obtained on age, sex, destination, previous vaccination against HAV and having received immunoglobulin. Blood specimens were obtained for anti-HAV antibody determination. A total of 485 travellers were studied. The prevalence of anti-HAV antibody was 30·5% (95% CI 26–35). Antibody prevalence was inversely correlated with age: 9·8% in 18–25 years of age, rising to 75·4% in those 41–55 years of age. Cost analysis determined that the critical value of prevalence for vaccination with HAV vaccine was 37·5%. It was concluded that the youngest Spanish travellers lack anti-HAV antibodies. Vaccination without screening in those [les ] 35 years of age and screening before vaccination for those > 35 years, are the preferred alternatives.
The epidemiology of hepatitis A infection in Palestine: a universal vaccination programme is not yet needed
Authors: YASSIN K. , AWAD R. , TEBI A. , QUEDER A. , LAASER U.
Published: August 2008

In Palestine, there has been an increase in the reported incidence of acute hepatitis A virus (HAV) infection since 1995. Since overt clinical disease occurs only among adults, questions were raised whether or not a shift in the epidemiology of HAV has occurred. This is generally characterized by a decrease in the overall incidence rate and a shifting in the mean age of infection towards adolescence and early adulthood. The need for a vaccination programme is being discussed. To resolve this issue, we examined the prevalence of anti-HAV in a representative sample of 396 school children in the Gaza Strip. The prevalence of anti-HAV was 93·7% (95% CI: 91·3, 96·1%). Stratifying the prevalence by age showed that 87·8% (95% CI: 78·6, 97%) were HAV antibody positive by the age of 6. By the age of 14, almost 98% (95% CI: 92·7, 100%) were HAV antibody positive. This means that the majority of HAV infection is still taking place in early childhood, when it is usually asymptomatic and of little clinical significance. The results refuted the shifting epidemiology theory and we recommend that a vaccination programme against HAV infection is not yet needed. Alternative explanations for the increase in reported cases are discussed.
Culturally verified Mycoplasma pneumoniae pneumonia in Japan: a long-term observation from 1979–99
Authors: ITO I. , ISHIDA T. , OSAWA M. , ARITA M. , HASHIMOTO T. , HONGO T. , MISHIMA M.
Published: August 2008

We describe the prevalence of community-acquired M. pneumoniae pneumonia diagnosed by culture methods in a single institute in Japan from January 1979 to December 1999. Cultures were performed in 2971 pneumonia cases and yielded M. Pneumoniae in 508 cases. The epidemic peaks recurred regularly at 4-year intervals (1980, 84, 88 and 91–2). Although a large epidemic has not occurred since 1992, traces of epidemic periodicity have still persisted from 1992 to 1999 at 3-year intervals.
Trichinellosis acquired in the United Kingdom
Authors: MILNE L. M. , BHAGANI S. , BANNISTER B. A. , LAITNER S. M. , MOORE P. , EZA D. , CHIODINI P. L.
Published: August 2008

An outbreak of trichinellosis that occurred in the United Kingdom is described. Members of four households consumed pork salami from northern Serbia, the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. Eight cases of trichinellosis occurred. Clinical and laboratory features of the cases were typical with myalgia (7 cases), fever (6), headache (5), periorbital oedema (4), non-specific ST/T wave changes on electrocardiogram (3), Trichinella antibodies (6), eosinophilia (7) and raised serum creatine kinase (3). All recovered. Trichinella larvae were detected in the salami. During pre-travel counselling, travellers should be advised about possible risk from cured pork products which have been produced locally in Trichinella endemic areas.
Immunization strategies to control a community-wide hepatitis A epidemic
Authors: THORBURN K. M. , BOHORQUES R. , STEPAK P. , SMITH L. L. , JOBB C. , PALMER SMITH J.
Published: August 2008

One fifth of 527 cases of hepatitis A occurred in self-identified injection drug users during a community-wide epidemic in Spokane County (Washington) in 1997–8. We hypothesized that an immunization campaign targeted at illicit drug users could control the epidemic. Starting in May 1998, hepatitis A vaccine was provided to individuals in jails and other sites frequented by illicit drug users. Volunteers at vaccination sites were surveyed about risk. Serial convenience samples of jail inmates who denied previous vaccination were anonymously tested for hepatitis A virus (HAV) immunoglobulin G (IgG). From May to December 1998, 2765 high-risk individuals were vaccinated against hepatitis A. The proportion of HAV IgG seropositive inmates increased from 30% to more than 50%. Our findings suggest that vaccination along with naturally occurring infection increased the rate of hepatitis A immunity among illicit drug users during the final months of the epidemic. This supports the hypothesis that targeted immunization of high risk groups may shorten the natural history of a community-wide epidemic.
Streptococcal contamination of food: an unusual cause of epidemic pharyngitis
Authors: KATZENELL U. , SHEMER J. , BAR-DAYAN Y.
Published: August 2008

The purpose of this article is to define the distinguishing characteristics of food-borne streptococcal pharyngitis by reviewing the literature. The main cause of this infection lies in poor handling and preservation of cold salads, usually those which contain eggs and are prepared some hours before serving. A shorter incubation period and a higher attack rate (51–90%) than in transmission by droplets was noted. The epidemics tend to occur in warm climates and in the hottest months of the year. Streptococcus pyogenes seems to originate from the pharynx or hand lesions of a food handler. In comparison to airborne transmission symptoms such as sore throat, pharyngeal erythema, and enlarged tonsils, submandibular lymphadenopathy are more frequent than coughing and coryza. Seven out of 17 reports revealed an M-untypeable serotype, which may possess virulent characteristics. Penicillin prophylaxis was shown to limit additional spread of the infection. There were no non-suppurative sequels, and suppurative sequels were very rare. We assume that the guidelines for the prevention of food poisoning would apply to food-borne streptococcal pharyngitis. Food handlers should be supervised to ensure they comply with strict rules of preparation and storage of food. Cold salads, especially those containing eggs, should not be left overnight before serving.
Risk factors for sporadic cases of Escherichia coli O157 infection: the importance of contact with animal excreta
Authors: LOCKING M. E. , O'BRIEN S. J. , REILLY W. J. , WRIGHT E. M. , CAMPBELL D. M. , COIA J. E. , BROWNING L. M. , RAMSAY C. N.
Published: August 2008

To determine environmental risk factors for sporadic E. coli O157 infection in Scotland we undertook a prospective, matched case-control study between 1 October 1996 and 31 March 1999. One hundred and eighty-three cases and 545 matched controls were recruited. Contact with animal faeces (OR = 3·65; 95% CI 1·81, 7·34; P < 0·0005) and likely contact with animal faeces (OR = 4·8; 95% CI 2·42, 9·48; P < 0·0005) emerged as strong risk factors for infection. Certain exposures (mainly food-related) were inversely associated with infection i.e. were statistically protective. Most striking was the consumption of bottled water (OR = 0·28; 95% CI 0·15, 0·52; P < 0·0005). Transmission of E. coli O157 does not occur simply through contaminated food. Members of the public need to be aware of the potential for acquiring E. coli O157 through contamination of the environment with animal faeces so that they may take measures to mitigate their risk.