Frequency of participation of 8-12-year-old children with cerebral palsy: a multi-centre cross-sectional European study

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Michelsen, Susan I; Flachs, Esben M; Uldall, Peter

2008-01-01

might influence participation. We undertook a multi-centre, population-based study in children with and without cerebral palsy. Working from the Life-H instrument, we developed a questionnaire to capture frequency of participation in 8-12-year-old children. In nine regions of seven European countries......, parents of 813 children with cerebral palsy and 2939 children from the general populations completed the questionnaire. Frequency of participation for each question was dichotomised about the median; multivariable logistic regressions were carried out. In the general population, frequency of participation...... varied between countries. Children with cerebral palsy participated less frequently in many but not all areas of everyday life, compared with children from the general population. There was regional variation in the domains with reduced participation and in the magnitude of the differences. We discuss...

Monitoring the European standard series in 10 centres 1996-2000

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bruynzeel, D P; Diepgen, T L; Andersen, Klaus Ejner

2005-01-01

A 5-year retrospective study of the frequency of sensitization to the 25 allergens of the European standard series (ESS) was conducted in 10 centres in 8 European countries. Included were the results of 26 210 patients. The range in sensitivities differed moderately between the centres. Combining...

Closing the gender leadership gap: a multi-centre cross-country comparison of women in management and leadership in academic health centres in the European Union.

Science.gov (United States)

Kuhlmann, Ellen; Ovseiko, Pavel V; Kurmeyer, Christine; Gutiérrez-Lobos, Karin; Steinböck, Sandra; von Knorring, Mia; Buchan, Alastair M; Brommels, Mats

2017-01-06

Women's participation in medicine and the need for gender equality in healthcare are increasingly recognised, yet little attention is paid to leadership and management positions in large publicly funded academic health centres. This study illustrates such a need, taking the case of four large European centres: Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin (Germany), Karolinska Institutet (Sweden), Medizinische Universität Wien (Austria), and Oxford Academic Health Science Centre (United Kingdom). The percentage of female medical students and doctors in all four countries is now well within the 40-60% gender balance zone. Women are less well represented among specialists and remain significantly under-represented among senior doctors and full professors. All four centres have made progress in closing the gender leadership gap on boards and other top-level decision-making bodies, but a gender leadership gap remains relevant. The level of achieved gender balance varies significantly between the centres and largely mirrors country-specific welfare state models, with more equal gender relations in Sweden than in the other countries. Notably, there are also similar trends across countries and centres: gender inequality is stronger within academic enterprises than within hospital enterprises and stronger in middle management than at the top level. These novel findings reveal fissures in the 'glass ceiling' effects at top-level management, while the barriers for women shift to middle-level management and remain strong in academic positions. The uneven shifts in the leadership gap are highly relevant and have policy implications. Setting gender balance objectives exclusively for top-level decision-making bodies may not effectively promote a wider goal of gender equality. Academic health centres should pay greater attention to gender equality as an issue of organisational performance and good leadership at all levels of management, with particular attention to academic enterprises

European Network of Bipolar Research Expert Centre (ENBREC)

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Henry, Chantal; Andreassen, Ole A; Barbato, Angelo

2013-01-01

Bipolar disorders rank as one of the most disabling illnesses in working age adults worldwide. Despite this, the quality of care offered to patients with this disorder is suboptimal, largely due to limitations in our understanding of the pathology. Improving this scenario requires the development...... centres across Europe can collaborate on a wide range of basic science and clinical programmes using shared protocols. This paper is to describe the network and how it aims to improve the quality and effectiveness of research in a neglected priority area....... of a critical mass of expertise and multicentre collaborative projects. Within the framework of the European FP7 programme, we developed a European Network of Bipolar Research Expert Centres (ENBREC) designed specifically to facilitate EU-wide studies. ENBREC provides an integrated support structure...... facilitating research on disease mechanisms and clinical outcomes across six European countries (France, Germany, Italy, Norway, Spain and the UK). The centres are adopting a standardised clinical assessment that explores multiple aspects of bipolar disorder through a structured evaluation designed to inform...

Effects of unstratified and centre-stratified randomization in multi-centre clinical trials.

Science.gov (United States)

Anisimov, Vladimir V

2011-01-01

This paper deals with the analysis of randomization effects in multi-centre clinical trials. The two randomization schemes most often used in clinical trials are considered: unstratified and centre-stratified block-permuted randomization. The prediction of the number of patients randomized to different treatment arms in different regions during the recruitment period accounting for the stochastic nature of the recruitment and effects of multiple centres is investigated. A new analytic approach using a Poisson-gamma patient recruitment model (patients arrive at different centres according to Poisson processes with rates sampled from a gamma distributed population) and its further extensions is proposed. Closed-form expressions for corresponding distributions of the predicted number of the patients randomized in different regions are derived. In the case of two treatments, the properties of the total imbalance in the number of patients on treatment arms caused by using centre-stratified randomization are investigated and for a large number of centres a normal approximation of imbalance is proved. The impact of imbalance on the power of the study is considered. It is shown that the loss of statistical power is practically negligible and can be compensated by a minor increase in sample size. The influence of patient dropout is also investigated. The impact of randomization on predicted drug supply overage is discussed. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Trends in Data Centre Energy Consumption under the European Code of Conduct for Data Centre Energy Efficiency

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maria Avgerinou

2017-09-01

Full Text Available Climate change is recognised as one of the key challenges humankind is facing. The Information and Communication Technology (ICT sector including data centres generates up to 2% of the global CO2 emissions, a number on par to the aviation sector contribution, and data centres are estimated to have the fastest growing carbon footprint from across the whole ICT sector, mainly due to technological advances such as the cloud computing and the rapid growth of the use of Internet services. There are no recent estimations of the total energy consumption of the European data centre and of their energy efficiency. The aim of this paper is to evaluate, analyse and present the current trends in energy consumption and efficiency in data centres in the European Union using the data submitted by companies participating in the European Code of Conduct for Data Centre Energy Efficiency programme, a voluntary initiative created in 2008 in response to the increasing energy consumption in data centres and the need to reduce the related environmental, economic and energy supply security impacts. The analysis shows that the average Power Usage Effectiveness (PUE of the facilities participating in the programme is declining year after year. This confirms that voluntary approaches could be effective in addressing climate and energy issue.

The Scandinavian Propaten(®) trial - 1-year patency of PTFE vascular prostheses with heparin-bonded luminal surfaces compared to ordinary pure PTFE vascular prostheses - a randomised clinical controlled multi-centre trial

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lindholt, J S; Gottschalksen, B; Johannesen, N

2011-01-01

To compare 1-year potencies' of heparin-bonded PTFE [(Hb-PTFE) (Propaten(®))] grafts with those of ordinary polytetraflouroethylene (PTFE) grafts in a blinded, randomised, clinically controlled, multi-centre study.......To compare 1-year potencies' of heparin-bonded PTFE [(Hb-PTFE) (Propaten(®))] grafts with those of ordinary polytetraflouroethylene (PTFE) grafts in a blinded, randomised, clinically controlled, multi-centre study....

Pilates based core stability training in ambulant individuals with multiple sclerosis: protocol for a multi-centre randomised controlled trial.

Science.gov (United States)

Freeman, Jennifer; Fox, Esther; Gear, Margaret; Hough, Alan

2012-04-05

People with Multiple Sclerosis (MS) frequently experience balance and mobility impairments, including reduced trunk stability. Pilates-based core stability training, which is aimed at improving control of the body's stabilising muscles, is popular as a form of exercise with people with MS and therapists. A replicated single case series study facilitated by the Therapists in MS Group in the United Kingdom (UK) provides preliminary evidence that this approach can improve balance and mobility in ambulant people with MS; further evidence is needed to substantiate these findings to ensure that limited time, energy, finances and resources are used to best effect.This study builds upon the pilot work undertaken in the case series study by implementing a powered randomised controlled study, with the aims of: 1 Establishing the effectiveness of core stability training; 2 Comparing core stability training with standardised physiotherapy exercise; 3 Exploring underlying mechanisms of change associated with this intervention This is a multi-centre, double blind, block randomised, controlled trial. Eligible participants will be recruited from 4 UK centres. Participants will be randomly allocated to one of three groups: Pilates based core stability training, standardised physiotherapy exercise or contract-relax relaxation sessions (placebo control). All will receive face to face training sessions over a 12 week period; together with a 15 minute daily home programme. All will be assessed by a blinded assessor before training, at the end of the 12 week programme and at 4 week follow-up. The primary outcome measure is the 10 metre timed walk. Secondary outcome measures are the MS walking Scale (MSWS-12), the Functional Reach (forwards and lateral), a 10 point Numerical Rating Scale to determine "Difficulty in carrying a drink when walking", and the Activities-specific Balance Confidence (ABC) Scale. In addition, ultrasound imaging of the abdominal muscles will be performed before

Pilates based core stability training in ambulant individuals with multiple sclerosis: protocol for a multi-centre randomised controlled trial

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Freeman Jennifer

2012-04-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background People with Multiple Sclerosis (MS frequently experience balance and mobility impairments, including reduced trunk stability. Pilates-based core stability training, which is aimed at improving control of the body's stabilising muscles, is popular as a form of exercise with people with MS and therapists. A replicated single case series study facilitated by the Therapists in MS Group in the United Kingdom (UK provides preliminary evidence that this approach can improve balance and mobility in ambulant people with MS; further evidence is needed to substantiate these findings to ensure that limited time, energy, finances and resources are used to best effect. This study builds upon the pilot work undertaken in the case series study by implementing a powered randomised controlled study, with the aims of: 1 Establishing the effectiveness of core stability training 2 Comparing core stability training with standardised physiotherapy exercise 3 Exploring underlying mechanisms of change associated with this intervention Methods This is a multi-centre, double blind, block randomised, controlled trial. Eligible participants will be recruited from 4 UK centres. Participants will be randomly allocated to one of three groups: Pilates based core stability training, standardised physiotherapy exercise or contract-relax relaxation sessions (placebo control. All will receive face to face training sessions over a 12 week period; together with a 15 minute daily home programme. All will be assessed by a blinded assessor before training, at the end of the 12 week programme and at 4 week follow-up. The primary outcome measure is the 10 metre timed walk. Secondary outcome measures are the MS walking Scale (MSWS-12, the Functional Reach (forwards and lateral, a 10 point Numerical Rating Scale to determine "Difficulty in carrying a drink when walking", and the Activities-specific Balance Confidence (ABC Scale. In addition, ultrasound imaging of the

The international ISOE programme. ISOE European technical centre activities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ascenzo, L. d'; Crouail, P.; Levy, F.; Livolsi, P.; Schieber, C.; Lefaure, C.

1996-01-01

The CEPN has been involved from the beginning in the NEA Information System on Occupational Exposure (ISOE). As ISOE European Technical Centre, the CEPN is responsible for the collection and distribution of European data to the various ISOE partners, the collection of data from the other regional technical centres, and the custodianship of the full ISOE data base. This full data base is updated annually and distributed to all the European participating utilities and to other Regional Technical Centres. The European data are also sent to the European Commission (EC) as a contribution to their own occupational exposure data base. In addition to these activities, the CEPN has developed two computer programmes under Windows to facilitate the management of ISOE data bases. The first software, called ASPIC, allows participating utilities to electronically complete NEA1 and NEA3 questionnaires, as well as to consult the NEA3 data base using key words search routine. This software is available in six different languages. The second programme is a relational data base for the performance of statistical analyses using data from NEA1. The CEPN also contributes significantly to the efficient flow of information through the ISOE Network. This includes participation in the preparation and distribution of the ISOE Annual Report (which presents and analyses NEAI data), ISOE Information Sheets (providing short synthesis using NEA1 and NEA3 data), and Technical Reports. Participating Authorities and Utilities have each made information requests to the CEPN concerning dosimetric data, radiation protection experiences, policies and practices. Some examples of these requests, and of the types of data provided, will be presented. (author)

Croatian Airports as Potential European Flight Crew Training Centres

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tomislav Gradišar

2012-10-01

Full Text Available The paper deals with the possibilities of offering Croatianailports as potential flight crew training centres on the Europeanmarket of se!Vices. With her available ai1port capacities,mainly those located on the Adriatic coast, Croatia has significantadvantages compared to other countries of Westem andCentral Europe. The most important condition for establishinga specialised training centre for the European market is the harmonisationof the national aviation regulations i.e. the implementationof global and European standards of flight crewtraining, as well as conditions that have to be met by a specialisedtraining centre from the aspect of the necessary infrastructure.The study has evaluated the potential airports of Rijeka,Pula and Losinj, acc01ding to the basic criteria of their geo-Lraffic location, infrastructure resources (technical elements ofrunway, navigation equipment, abport se1vices, availability ofspecial equipment for flight crew training on the ground and inthe ail; as well as climate conditions.

Risk of upper aerodigestive tract cancer and type of alcoholic beverage: a European multicenter case-control study.

LENUS (Irish Health Repository)

Marron, Manuela

2012-07-01

The general relationship between cancers of the upper aerodigestive tract (UADT) and alcohol drinking is established. Nevertheless, it is uncertain whether different types of alcoholic beverages (wine, beer and liquor) carry different UADT cancer risks. Our study included 2,001 UADT cancer cases and 2,125 controls from 14 centres in 10 European countries. All cases were histologically or cytologically confirmed squamous cell carcinomas. Controls were frequency matched by sex, age and centre. Logistic regression models were used to estimate odds ratios (OR) and 95 % confidence intervals (95 %CI) adjusted for age, sex, centre, education level, vegetable and fruit intake, tobacco smoking and alcohol drinking, where appropriate. Risk of beverage-specific alcohol consumption were calculated among \\'pure drinker\\' who consumed one beverage type exclusively, among \\'predominant drinkers\\' who consumed one beverage type to more than 66 % and among \\'mixed drinkers\\' who consumed more than one beverage type to similar proportions. Compared to never drinkers and adjusted for cumulative alcohol consumption, the OR and 95 %CI for wine, beer and liquor drinking, respectively, were 1.24 (0.86, 1.78), 1.54 (1.05, 2.27) and 0.94 (0.53, 1.64) among \\'pure drinkers\\' (p value for heterogeneity across beverage types = 0.306), 1.05 (0.76,1.47), 1.25 (0.87,1.79) and 1.43 (0.95, 2.16) among \\'predominant drinkers\\' (p value = 0.456), and 1.09 (0.79, 1.50), 1.20 (0.88, 1.63) and 1.12 (0.82, 1.53) among \\'mixed drinkers\\' (p value = 0.889). Risk of UADT cancer increased with increasing consumption of all three alcohol beverage types. Our findings underscore the strong and comparable carcinogenic effect of ethanol in wine, beer and liquor on organs of the UADT.

Coronary CT angiography using 64 detector rows: methods and design of the multi-centre trial CORE-64

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Miller, Julie M.; Vavere, Andrea L.; Arbab-Zadeh, Armin; Bush, David E.; Lardo, Albert C.; Texter, John; Brinker, Jeffery; Lima, Joao A.C. [Johns Hopkins Hospital, Johns Hopkins University, Department of Medicine, Division of Cardiology, Baltimore, MD (United States); Dewey, Marc [Charite - Universitaetsmedizin Berlin, Medical School, Humboldt-Universitaet und Freie Universitaet zu Berlin, Department of Radiology, Berlin, PO Box 10098 (Germany); Rochitte, Carlos E.; Lemos, Pedro A. [University of Sao Paulo Medical School, Heart Institute (InCor), Sao Paulo (Brazil); Niinuma, Hiroyuki [Iwate Medical University, Department of Cardiology, Morioka (Japan); Paul, Narinder [Toronto General Hospital, Department of Medical Imaging, Toronto (Canada); Hoe, John [Medi-Rad Associates Ltd, CT Centre, Mt Elizabeth Hospital, Singapore (Singapore); Roos, Albert de [Leiden University Medical Center, Department of Radiology, Leiden (Netherlands); Yoshioka, Kunihiro [Iwate Medical University, Department of Radiology, Morioka (Japan); Cox, Christopher [Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Department of Epidemiology, Baltimore, MD (United States); Clouse, Melvin E. [Harvard University, Department of Radiology, Beth Israel Deaconess, Boston, MA (United States)

2009-04-15

Multislice computed tomography (MSCT) for the noninvasive detection of coronary artery stenoses is a promising candidate for widespread clinical application because of its non-invasive nature and high sensitivity and negative predictive value as found in several previous studies using 16 to 64 simultaneous detector rows. A multi-centre study of CT coronary angiography using 16 simultaneous detector rows has shown that 16-slice CT is limited by a high number of nondiagnostic cases and a high false-positive rate. A recent meta-analysis indicated a significant interaction between the size of the study sample and the diagnostic odds ratios suggestive of small study bias, highlighting the importance of evaluating MSCT using 64 simultaneous detector rows in a multi-centre approach with a larger sample size. In this manuscript we detail the objectives and methods of the prospective ''CORE-64'' trial (''Coronary Evaluation Using Multidetector Spiral Computed Tomography Angiography using 64 Detectors''). This multi-centre trial was unique in that it assessed the diagnostic performance of 64-slice CT coronary angiography in nine centres worldwide in comparison to conventional coronary angiography. In conclusion, the multi-centre, multi-institutional and multi-continental trial CORE-64 has great potential to ultimately assess the per-patient diagnostic performance of coronary CT angiography using 64 simultaneous detector rows. (orig.)

Proposal for the standardisation of multi-centre trials in nuclear medicine imaging

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Dickson, John Caddell; Tossici-Bolt, Livia; Sera, Terez

2012-01-01

Multi-centre trials are an important part of proving the efficacy of procedures, drugs and interventions. Imaging components in such trials are becoming increasingly common; however, without sufficient control measures the usefulness of these data can be compromised. This paper describes a framew...

The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) pilot point prevalence survey of healthcare-associated infections and antimicrobial use.

Science.gov (United States)

Zarb, P; Coignard, B; Griskeviciene, J; Muller, A; Vankerckhoven, V; Weist, K; Goossens, Mm; Vaerenberg, S; Hopkins, S; Catry, B; Monnet, Dl; Goossens, H; Suetens, C

2012-11-15

A standardised methodology for a combined point prevalence survey (PPS) on healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) and antimicrobial use in European acute care hospitals developed by the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control was piloted across Europe. Variables were collected at national, hospital and patient level in 66 hospitals from 23 countries. A patient-based and a unit-based protocol were available. Feasibility was assessed via national and hospital questionnaires. Of 19,888 surveyed patients, 7.1% had an HAI and 34.6% were receiving at least one antimicrobial agent. Prevalence results were highest in intensive care units, with 28.1% patients with HAI, and 61.4% patients with antimicrobial use. Pneumonia and other lower respiratory tract infections (2.0% of patients; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.8–2.2%) represented the most common type (25.7%) of HAI. Surgical prophylaxis was the indication for 17.3% of used antimicrobials and exceeded one day in 60.7% of cases. Risk factors in the patient-based protocol were provided for 98% or more of the included patients and all were independently associated with both presence of HAI and receiving an antimicrobial agent. The patient-based protocol required more work than the unit-based protocol, but allowed collecting detailed data and analysis of risk factors for HAI and antimicrobial use.

26th May 2011 -Delegate to CERN Open Council sessions and European Commission Head of Unit for Joint Programming European Research Area, DG Research and Innovation R. Lečbychová visiting the CERN Control Centre with M. Pojer, accompanied by CERN S. Stavrev.

CERN Multimedia

Maximilien Brice

2011-01-01

26th May 2011 -Delegate to CERN Open Council sessions and European Commission Head of Unit for Joint Programming European Research Area, DG Research and Innovation R. Lečbychová visiting the CERN Control Centre with M. Pojer, accompanied by CERN S. Stavrev.

Interaction Control Protocols for Distributed Multi-user Multi-camera Environments

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gareth W Daniel

2003-10-01

Full Text Available Video-centred communication (e.g., video conferencing, multimedia online learning, traffic monitoring, and surveillance is becoming a customary activity in our lives. The management of interactions in such an environment is a complicated HCI issue. In this paper, we present our study on a collection of interaction control protocols for distributed multiuser multi-camera environments. These protocols facilitate different approaches to managing a user's entitlement for controlling a particular camera. We describe a web-based system that allows multiple users to manipulate multiple cameras in varying remote locations. The system was developed using the Java framework, and all protocols discussed have been incorporated into the system. Experiments were designed and conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of these protocols, and to enable the identification of various human factors in a distributed multi-user and multi-camera environment. This work provides an insight into the complexity associated with the interaction management in video-centred communication. It can also serve as a conceptual and experimental framework for further research in this area.

Multi-centre audit of VMAT planning and pre-treatment verification.

Science.gov (United States)

Jurado-Bruggeman, Diego; Hernández, Victor; Sáez, Jordi; Navarro, David; Pino, Francisco; Martínez, Tatiana; Alayrach, Maria-Elena; Ailleres, Norbert; Melero, Alejandro; Jornet, Núria

2017-08-01

We performed a multi-centre intercomparison of VMAT dose planning and pre-treatment verification. The aims were to analyse the dose plans in terms of dosimetric quality and deliverability, and to validate whether in-house pre-treatment verification results agreed with those of an external audit. The nine participating centres encompassed different machines, equipment, and methodologies. Two mock cases (prostate and head and neck) were planned using one and two arcs. A plan quality index was defined to compare the plans and different complexity indices were calculated to check their deliverability. We compared gamma index pass rates using the centre's equipment and methodology to those of an external audit (global 3D gamma, absolute dose differences, 10% of maximum dose threshold). Log-file analysis was performed to look for delivery errors. All centres fulfilled the dosimetric goals but plan quality and delivery complexity were heterogeneous and uncorrelated, depending on the manufacturer and the planner's methodology. Pre-treatment verifications results were within tolerance in all cases for gamma 3%-3mm evaluation. Nevertheless, differences between the external audit and in-house measurements arose due to different equipment or methodology, especially for 2%-2mm criteria with differences up to 20%. No correlation was found between complexity indices and verification results amongst centres. All plans fulfilled dosimetric constraints, but plan quality and complexity did not correlate and were strongly dependent on the planner and the vendor. In-house measurements cannot completely replace external audits for credentialing. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Nuclear safety research at the European Commission's Joint Research Centre

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Toerroenen, K.

2003-01-01

Nuclear power plants currently generate some 35 % of electricity used in the European Union and applicant countries. Nuclear safety will therefore remain a priority for the EU, particularly in view of enlargement, the need to monitor ageing nuclear installations and the licencing of advanced new reactor systems. The European Commission's Joint Research Centre (JRC), with its long involvement and recognised competence in nuclear safety related activities, provides direct support to the European Commission services responsible for nuclear safety and civil protection. (author)

The European Resource Centre for Alternatives in Higher Education.

Science.gov (United States)

de Boo, Jasmijn; Dewhurst, David; van der Valk, Jan

2004-06-01

The European Resource Centre for Alternatives in Higher Education (EURCA: http://www.eurca.org) is an exciting new project, which aims to enable teachers using animals in teaching to be more creative and innovative in their approach to teaching and learning, to foster high-quality training for science students, and to significantly reduce the number of animals used, often unnecessarily, in teaching. This will be achieved by: a) establishing a resource centre--a collection of mainly electronic alternatives, and taking this to relevant scientific meetings in Europe, where it would function as a drop-in advice centre for teachers; b) creating a network of academic teachers who actively use alternatives, to take responsibility for disseminating information about alternatives to other teachers in the European Union, to participate in the activity outlined above, and to share experiences and good practice; c) setting up an Internet website with an expansive, information-rich database (peer-reviews, demos, peer-evaluations, peer-recommendations, links to users, etc.) on selected "tried and tested" alternatives; and d) encouraging and promoting the findings of evaluative studies on the effectiveness of alternatives in higher education teaching and learning.

Multi-centre experience of implementing image-guided intensity-modulated radiotherapy using the TomoTherapy platform

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dean, J.C.; Tudor, G.S.J.; Mott, J.H.; Dunlop, P.R.; Morris, S.L.; Harron, E.C.; Christian, J.A.; Sanghera, P.; Elsworthy, M.; Burnet, N.G.

2013-01-01

Use of image guided (IG) intensity modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) is increasing, and helical tomotherapy provides an effective, integrated solution. Practical experience of implementation, shared at a recent UK TomoTherapy Users' meeting, may help centres introducing these techniques using TomoTherapy or other platforms. Seven centres participated, with data shared from 6, varying from 2500 - 4800 new patients per year. Case selection of patients “most likely” to benefit from IG-IMRT was managed in all centres by multi-professional groups comprising clinical oncologists, physicists, treatment planners and radiographers. Radical treatments ranged from 94% to 100%. The proportions of tumour types varied substantially: head and neck: range 0%–100% (mean of centres 50%), prostate: 3%–96% (mean of centres 28%). Head and neck cases were considered most likely to benefit from IMRT, prostate cases from IGRT, or IG-IMRT if pelvic nodes were being treated. IMRT was also selected for complex target volumes, to avoid field junctions, for technical treatment difficulties, and retreatments. Across the centres, every patient was imaged every day, with positional correction before treatment. In one centre, for prostate patients including pelvic treatment, the pelvis was also imaged weekly. All centres had designed a ‘ramp up’ of patient numbers, which was similar in 5. One centre, treating 96% prostate patients, started with 3 and increased to 36 patients per day within 3 months. The variation in case mix implies wide applicability of IG-IMRT. Daily on-line IGRT with IMRT can be routinely implemented into busy departments

Efficacy and safety of acupuncture for chronic pain caused by gonarthrosis: A study protocol of an ongoing multi-centre randomised controlled clinical trial [ISRCTN27450856

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Krämer Jürgen

2004-03-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Controlled clinical trials produced contradictory results with respect to a specific analgesic effect of acupuncture. There is a lack of large multi-centre acupuncture trials. The German Acupuncture Trial represents the largest multi-centre study of acupuncture in the treatment of chronic pain caused by gonarthrosis up to now. Methods 900 patients will be randomised to three treatment arms. One group receives verum acupuncture, the second sham acupuncture, and the third conservative standard therapy. The trial protocol is described with eligibility criteria, detailed information on the treatment definition, blinding, endpoints, safety evaluation, statistical methods, sample size determination, monitoring, legal aspects, and the current status of the trial. Discussion A critical discussion is given regarding the considerations about standardisation of the acupuncture treatment, the choice of the control group, and the blinding of patients and observers.

Fast neutrons in the treatment of head and neck cancers: the results of a multi-centre randomly controlled trial

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Duncan, W.; Arnott, S.J.; Orr, J.A.; Kerr, G.R.; Schmitt, G.

1984-01-01

The results are presented of a multi-centre randomly controlled trial of fast neutron irradiation and mega-voltage X-rays in the treatment of patients with locally advanced squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck region. No significant difference was observed in local tumour control rates. Salvage surgery was performed in a similar number of patients in the two groups. Late morbidity was also similar in the two treatment groups. Patients in a subgroup with cancer of the larynx treated by photons had a significantly better survival than those in the neutron treated group. (Auth.)

Inventory Control System for a Healthcare Apparel Service Centre with Stockout Risk: A Case Analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Pan, An; Hui, Chi-Leung

2017-01-01

Based on the real-world inventory control problem of a capacitated healthcare apparel service centre in Hong Kong which provides tailor-made apparel-making services for the elderly and disabled people, this paper studies a partial backordered continuous review inventory control problem in which the product demand follows a Poisson process with a constant lead time. The system is controlled by an ( Q , r ) inventory policy which incorporate the stockout risk, storage capacity, and partial backlog. The healthcare apparel service centre, under the capacity constraint, aims to minimize the inventory cost and achieving a low stockout risk. To address this challenge, an optimization problem is constructed. A real case-based data analysis is conducted, and the result shows that the expected total cost on an order cycle is reduced substantially at around 20% with our proposed optimal inventory control policy. An extensive sensitivity analysis is conducted to generate additional insights.

The challenges facing the European Union Centres of Excellence

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dupre, Bruno; )

2012-10-01

On 19 April 2012, the United Nation Security Council congratulated the European Union for its initiative on centres of excellence in the nuclear, radiological, biological, and chemical fields. The time for glowing reports is over. Three years after its creation, the support of EU Member Sates, the Security Council, the G8, the IEAE, the WHO, the USA, Interpol, the ICRC, has been obtained. Other diplomatic, organisational, and communicative challenges have now arisen regarding implementation. The manifest challenges include: 1/Political exploitation of the centres. Following a recent round table in Algiers, the Algerian press ran headlines such as 'terrorism, the Malian crisis arrives in Algiers' CBRN centres of excellence' and 'Bouteflika, the centres of excellence slight'. 2/Communication errors. A unanimously approved expert in South East Asia became a persona non grata over the last six months despite not making any fundamental mistake, aside from his inability to evaluate the degree of a country's sensitivity and pride. The countries in the region went so far as to threaten to pull out of the Manila centre as a result of this ultimately minor error in communication. 3/The scope of the centres' role complicates the grasp of its objectives. To date, the focus has essentially been on non-proliferation and the fight against CBRN terrorism, under the well-established theme of Resolution 1540. The shift of CBRN focus, at the behest of certain regions, on to real natural risks (pandemics) or industrial risks (protection of crucial infrastructure following an earthquake, flooding, or a tsunami) fundamentally changes the teams' make-up and the mobilization of resources. The emergency services culture is different to that of nonproliferation. However, they both very much address CBRN risks and threats. 4/The limits of the 'bottom-up' approach. To date, the centres' success has been due to the lack of restrictive rules. The policy is to enlist willing third-party States

Inventory Control System for a Healthcare Apparel Service Centre with Stockout Risk: A Case Analysis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

An Pan

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Based on the real-world inventory control problem of a capacitated healthcare apparel service centre in Hong Kong which provides tailor-made apparel-making services for the elderly and disabled people, this paper studies a partial backordered continuous review inventory control problem in which the product demand follows a Poisson process with a constant lead time. The system is controlled by an (Q,r inventory policy which incorporate the stockout risk, storage capacity, and partial backlog. The healthcare apparel service centre, under the capacity constraint, aims to minimize the inventory cost and achieving a low stockout risk. To address this challenge, an optimization problem is constructed. A real case-based data analysis is conducted, and the result shows that the expected total cost on an order cycle is reduced substantially at around 20% with our proposed optimal inventory control policy. An extensive sensitivity analysis is conducted to generate additional insights.

Yield of chest X-ray tuberculosis screening of immigrants during the European refugee crisis of 2015: a single-centre experience

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Weinrich, Julius Matthias; Sauer, Markus; Henes, Frank Oliver; Adam, Gerhard; Bannas, Peter [University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Department of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology and Nuclear Medicine, Hamburg (Germany); Diel, Roland [University Medical Hospital Schleswig-Holstein, Airway Research Center North (ARCN), Institute for Epidemiology, Kiel (Germany); Meywald-Walter, Karen [Public Health Department Hamburg Central, Hamburg (Germany); Schoen, Gerhard [University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Department of Medical Biometry and Epidemiology, Hamburg (Germany)

2017-08-15

Our aim was to determine the prevalence of tuberculosis (TB), the number needed to screen (NNS), and the diagnostic accuracy of chest X-ray (CXR) screening to detect active pulmonary TB during the 2015 European refugee crisis. We evaluated data of all refugees who underwent CXR screening in a single-centre of one German metropolitan area in 2015. We determined the prevalence of TB, NNS, and accuracy of CXR to detect active pulmonary TB. Reference method for active TB was the database of all definite TB cases registered at the Department of Public Health. A total of 17,487 immigrants underwent single-centre CXR screening in 2015; prevalence of definite pulmonary TB was 0.103%. The NNS for detecting one case of active pulmonary TB was 1749. CXR had a sensitivity of 55.6% 95% confidence interval (CI 30.8-78.5%) and a specificity 98.3% (CI 98.1-98.5%) to reveal one case of active TB. Our single-centre study indicates that chest X-ray screening for TB during the 2015 European refugee crisis was of low yield due the low prevalence of TB and high number needed to screen, thus implicating the need for improved screening algorithms adapted to the overwhelming number of refugees. (orig.)

Yield of chest X-ray tuberculosis screening of immigrants during the European refugee crisis of 2015: a single-centre experience

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Weinrich, Julius Matthias; Sauer, Markus; Henes, Frank Oliver; Adam, Gerhard; Bannas, Peter; Diel, Roland; Meywald-Walter, Karen; Schoen, Gerhard

2017-01-01

Our aim was to determine the prevalence of tuberculosis (TB), the number needed to screen (NNS), and the diagnostic accuracy of chest X-ray (CXR) screening to detect active pulmonary TB during the 2015 European refugee crisis. We evaluated data of all refugees who underwent CXR screening in a single-centre of one German metropolitan area in 2015. We determined the prevalence of TB, NNS, and accuracy of CXR to detect active pulmonary TB. Reference method for active TB was the database of all definite TB cases registered at the Department of Public Health. A total of 17,487 immigrants underwent single-centre CXR screening in 2015; prevalence of definite pulmonary TB was 0.103%. The NNS for detecting one case of active pulmonary TB was 1749. CXR had a sensitivity of 55.6% 95% confidence interval (CI 30.8-78.5%) and a specificity 98.3% (CI 98.1-98.5%) to reveal one case of active TB. Our single-centre study indicates that chest X-ray screening for TB during the 2015 European refugee crisis was of low yield due the low prevalence of TB and high number needed to screen, thus implicating the need for improved screening algorithms adapted to the overwhelming number of refugees. (orig.)

Surgical timing after chemoradiotherapy for rectal cancer, analysis of technique (STARRCAT): results of a feasibility multi-centre randomized controlled trial.

Science.gov (United States)

Foster, J D; Ewings, P; Falk, S; Cooper, E J; Roach, H; West, N P; Williams-Yesson, B A; Hanna, G B; Francis, N K

2016-10-01

The optimal time of rectal resection after long-course chemoradiotherapy (CRT) remains unclear. A feasibility study was undertaken for a multi-centre randomized controlled trial evaluating the impact of the interval after chemoradiotherapy on the technical complexity of surgery. Patients with rectal cancer were randomized to either a 6- or 12-week interval between CRT and surgery between June 2012 and May 2014 (ISRCTN registration number: 88843062). For blinded technical complexity assessment, the Observational Clinical Human Reliability Analysis technique was used to quantify technical errors enacted within video recordings of operations. Other measured outcomes included resection completeness, specimen quality, radiological down-staging, tumour cell density down-staging and surgeon-reported technical complexity. Thirty-one patients were enrolled: 15 were randomized to 6 and 16-12 weeks across 7 centres. Fewer eligible patients were identified than had been predicted. Of 23 patients who underwent resection, mean 12.3 errors were observed per case at 6 weeks vs. 10.7 at 12 weeks (p = 0.401). Other measured outcomes were similar between groups. The feasibility of measurement of operative performance of rectal cancer surgery as an endpoint was confirmed in this exploratory study. Recruitment of sufficient numbers of patients represented a challenge, and a proportion of patients did not proceed to resection surgery. These results suggest that interval after CRT may not substantially impact upon surgical technical performance.

Authorship issues in multi-centre clinical trials

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rosenberg, Jacob; Burcharth, Jakob; Pommergaard, Hans-Christian

2015-01-01

Discussions about authorship often arise in multi-centre clinical trials. Such trials may involve up to hundreds of contributors of whom some will eventually co-author the final publication. It is, however, often impossible to involve all contributors in the manuscript process sufficiently for th...

Presentations to the Emergency Department Following Cannabis use--a Multi-Centre Case Series from Ten European Countries.

Science.gov (United States)

Dines, Alison M; Wood, David M; Galicia, Miguel; Yates, Christopher M; Heyerdahl, Fridtjof; Hovda, Knut Erik; Giraudon, Isabelle; Sedefov, Roumen; Dargan, Paul I

2015-12-01

Cannabis is the most commonly used illicit drug in Europe, and is generally regarded as having low acute toxicity. We present the findings of the first 6 months of data collection from the Euro-DEN project on presentations related to cannabis use to further understand the acute toxicity related to the use of cannabis. Data was extracted on clinical features, treatment and outcome from the Euro-DEN minimum dataset for all cases of acute recreational drug toxicity reported 1st October 2013 to 31st March 2014 for all cannabis-related presentations. Of 2198 presentations reported by 14 of the 16 Euro-DEN centres, 356 (16.2 %) involved cannabis either alone or together with other drugs/alcohol. There were 36 that involved lone use of cannabis (1.6 % of all presentations). Of the 35 non-fatal lone cannabis presentations, the most commonly reported features were neuro-behavioural (agitation/aggression 8 (22.9 %), psychosis 7 (20.0 %), anxiety 7 (20.0 %)) and vomiting 6 (17.1 %). Most patients (25, 71.4 %) received no treatment and 30 (85.7 %) were discharged/self-discharged from the ED. There was one fatality amongst these lone-cannabis cases: an 18-year-old male collapsed with an asystolic cardiac arrest whilst smoking cannabis and suffered hypoxic brain injury related to prolonged cardiac arrest. THC was detected in a urine sample taken at ED arrival; no other drugs were detected. Lone acute cannabis toxicity was typically associated with neuro-behavioural symptoms and vomiting. Although uncommon, severe toxicity including cardiovascular toxicity and death may be under-recognised, and it is important that Emergency Physicians are aware of this.

Authorship issues in multi-centre clinical trials

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rosenberg, Jacob; Burcharth, Jakob; Pommergaard, Hans-Christian

2015-01-01

to qualify for authorship as defined by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors. Therefore, rules for authorship in multi-centre trials are strongly recommended. We propose two contracts to prevent conflicts regarding authorship; both are freely available for use without pay but with reference...... to the original source....

Dietary practices in propionic acidemia: A European survey

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. Daly

2017-12-01

Conclusions: There was high use of PFAA with intakes of natural protein commonly below WHO/FAO/UNU (2007 safe levels. Optimal dietary management can only be determined by longitudinal, multi-centre, prospective case controlled studies. The metabolic instability of PA and small patient cohorts in each centre ensure that this is a challenging undertaking.

Yield of chest X-ray tuberculosis screening of immigrants during the European refugee crisis of 2015: a single-centre experience.

Science.gov (United States)

Weinrich, Julius Matthias; Diel, Roland; Sauer, Markus; Henes, Frank Oliver; Meywald-Walter, Karen; Adam, Gerhard; Schön, Gerhard; Bannas, Peter

2017-08-01

Our aim was to determine the prevalence of tuberculosis (TB), the number needed to screen (NNS), and the diagnostic accuracy of chest X-ray (CXR) screening to detect active pulmonary TB during the 2015 European refugee crisis. We evaluated data of all refugees who underwent CXR screening in a single-centre of one German metropolitan area in 2015. We determined the prevalence of TB, NNS, and accuracy of CXR to detect active pulmonary TB. Reference method for active TB was the database of all definite TB cases registered at the Department of Public Health. A total of 17,487 immigrants underwent single-centre CXR screening in 2015; prevalence of definite pulmonary TB was 0.103%. The NNS for detecting one case of active pulmonary TB was 1749. CXR had a sensitivity of 55.6% [95% confidence interval (CI) 30.8-78.5%) and a specificity 98.3% (CI 98.1-98.5%) to reveal one case of active TB. Our single-centre study indicates that chest X-ray screening for TB during the 2015 European refugee crisis was of low yield due the low prevalence of TB and high number needed to screen, thus implicating the need for improved screening algorithms adapted to the overwhelming number of refugees. • Prevalence of pulmonary tuberculosis (TB) among refugees in 2015 was low (0.103%). • The number needed to screen to detect one case of active pulmonary TB was 1749. • Tuberculosis X-ray screening resulted in a low sensitivity and high specificity. • Tuberculosis X-ray screening during the European refugee crisis is of low yield. • Improved screening algorithms are needed due to the overwhelming the number of refugees.

Blood phenylalanine control in phenylketonuria : a survey of 10 European centres

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Ahring, K.; Belanger-Quintana, A.; Dokoupil, K.; Gokmen-Ozel, H.; Lammardo, A. M.; MacDonald, A.; Motzfeldt, K.; Nowacka, M.; van Rijn, M.; Robert, M.

Background: Only limited data are available on the blood phenylalanine (Phe) concentrations achieved in European patients with phenylketonuria (PKU) on a low-Phe diet. Objective: A survey was conducted to compare blood Phe control achieved in diet-treated patients with PKU of different age groups in

The impact of study design and diagnostic approach in a large multi-centre ADHD study. Part 1: ADHD symptom patterns

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Roeyers Herbert

2011-04-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The International Multi-centre ADHD Genetics (IMAGE project with 11 participating centres from 7 European countries and Israel has collected a large behavioural and genetic database for present and future research. Behavioural data were collected from 1068 probands with the combined type of attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD-CT and 1446 'unselected' siblings. The aim was to analyse the IMAGE sample with respect to demographic features (gender, age, family status, and recruiting centres and psychopathological characteristics (diagnostic subtype, symptom frequencies, age at symptom detection, and comorbidities. A particular focus was on the effects of the study design and the diagnostic procedure on the homogeneity of the sample in terms of symptom-based behavioural data, and potential consequences for further analyses based on these data. Methods Diagnosis was based on the Parental Account of Childhood Symptoms (PACS interview and the DSM-IV items of the Conners' teacher questionnaire. Demographics of the full sample and the homogeneity of a subsample (all probands were analysed by using robust statistical procedures which were adjusted for unequal sample sizes and skewed distributions. These procedures included multi-way analyses based on trimmed means and winsorised variances as well as bootstrapping. Results Age and proband/sibling ratios differed between participating centres. There was no significant difference in the distribution of gender between centres. There was a significant interaction between age and centre for number of inattentive, but not number of hyperactive symptoms. Higher ADHD symptom frequencies were reported by parents than teachers. The diagnostic symptoms differed from each other in their frequencies. The face-to-face interview was more sensitive than the questionnaire. The differentiation between ADHD-CT probands and unaffected siblings was mainly due to differences in hyperactive

The impact of study design and diagnostic approach in a large multi-centre ADHD study. Part 1: ADHD symptom patterns.

LENUS (Irish Health Repository)

Muller, Ueli C

2011-04-07

Abstract Background The International Multi-centre ADHD Genetics (IMAGE) project with 11 participating centres from 7 European countries and Israel has collected a large behavioural and genetic database for present and future research. Behavioural data were collected from 1068 probands with the combined type of attention deficit\\/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD-CT) and 1446 \\'unselected\\' siblings. The aim was to analyse the IMAGE sample with respect to demographic features (gender, age, family status, and recruiting centres) and psychopathological characteristics (diagnostic subtype, symptom frequencies, age at symptom detection, and comorbidities). A particular focus was on the effects of the study design and the diagnostic procedure on the homogeneity of the sample in terms of symptom-based behavioural data, and potential consequences for further analyses based on these data. Methods Diagnosis was based on the Parental Account of Childhood Symptoms (PACS) interview and the DSM-IV items of the Conners\\' teacher questionnaire. Demographics of the full sample and the homogeneity of a subsample (all probands) were analysed by using robust statistical procedures which were adjusted for unequal sample sizes and skewed distributions. These procedures included multi-way analyses based on trimmed means and winsorised variances as well as bootstrapping. Results Age and proband\\/sibling ratios differed between participating centres. There was no significant difference in the distribution of gender between centres. There was a significant interaction between age and centre for number of inattentive, but not number of hyperactive symptoms. Higher ADHD symptom frequencies were reported by parents than teachers. The diagnostic symptoms differed from each other in their frequencies. The face-to-face interview was more sensitive than the questionnaire. The differentiation between ADHD-CT probands and unaffected siblings was mainly due to differences in hyperactive

The impact of study design and diagnostic approach in a large multi-centre ADHD study: Part 2: Dimensional measures of psychopathology and intelligence

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Roeyers Herbert

2011-04-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The International Multi-centre ADHD Genetics (IMAGE project with 11 participating centres from 7 European countries and Israel has collected a large behavioural and genetic database for present and future research. Behavioural data were collected from 1068 probands with ADHD and 1446 unselected siblings. The aim was to describe and analyse questionnaire data and IQ measures from all probands and siblings. In particular, to investigate the influence of age, gender, family status (proband vs. sibling, informant, and centres on sample homogeneity in psychopathological measures. Methods Conners' Questionnaires, Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaires, and Wechsler Intelligence Scores were used to describe the phenotype of the sample. Data were analysed by use of robust statistical multi-way procedures. Results Besides main effects of age, gender, informant, and centre, there were considerable interaction effects on questionnaire data. The larger differences between probands and siblings at home than at school may reflect contrast effects in the parents. Furthermore, there were marked gender by status effects on the ADHD symptom ratings with girls scoring one standard deviation higher than boys in the proband sample but lower than boys in the siblings sample. The multi-centre design is another important source of heterogeneity, particularly in the interaction with the family status. To a large extent the centres differed from each other with regard to differences between proband and sibling scores. Conclusions When ADHD probands are diagnosed by use of fixed symptom counts, the severity of the disorder in the proband sample may markedly differ between boys and girls and across age, particularly in samples with a large age range. A multi-centre design carries the risk of considerable phenotypic differences between centres and, consequently, of additional heterogeneity of the sample even if standardized diagnostic procedures are

The impact of study design and diagnostic approach in a large multi-centre ADHD study: Part 2: Dimensional measures of psychopathology and intelligence.

LENUS (Irish Health Repository)

Muller, Ueli C

2011-04-07

Abstract Background The International Multi-centre ADHD Genetics (IMAGE) project with 11 participating centres from 7 European countries and Israel has collected a large behavioural and genetic database for present and future research. Behavioural data were collected from 1068 probands with ADHD and 1446 unselected siblings. The aim was to describe and analyse questionnaire data and IQ measures from all probands and siblings. In particular, to investigate the influence of age, gender, family status (proband vs. sibling), informant, and centres on sample homogeneity in psychopathological measures. Methods Conners\\' Questionnaires, Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaires, and Wechsler Intelligence Scores were used to describe the phenotype of the sample. Data were analysed by use of robust statistical multi-way procedures. Results Besides main effects of age, gender, informant, and centre, there were considerable interaction effects on questionnaire data. The larger differences between probands and siblings at home than at school may reflect contrast effects in the parents. Furthermore, there were marked gender by status effects on the ADHD symptom ratings with girls scoring one standard deviation higher than boys in the proband sample but lower than boys in the siblings sample. The multi-centre design is another important source of heterogeneity, particularly in the interaction with the family status. To a large extent the centres differed from each other with regard to differences between proband and sibling scores. Conclusions When ADHD probands are diagnosed by use of fixed symptom counts, the severity of the disorder in the proband sample may markedly differ between boys and girls and across age, particularly in samples with a large age range. A multi-centre design carries the risk of considerable phenotypic differences between centres and, consequently, of additional heterogeneity of the sample even if standardized diagnostic procedures are used. These

Multi-level governance: The way forward for European illicit drug policy?

Science.gov (United States)

Chatwin, Caroline

2007-12-01

Illicit drug policy has long been an area that has attracted international policy intervention, however, the European Union has declared it an area of subsidiarity, leaving ultimate control to national governments. Nevertheless, European Union preoccupation with the illicit drug issue and international drug trafficking and organised crime concerns have ensured that continued and increased cooperation in illicit drug policy is never off the agenda. This article examines the history of European integration in contrasting areas of policy and considers both the desirability and the viability of an increasingly harmonised drug policy for Europe. Finally, it proposes a model of integrated illicit drug policy that is strongly connected to developing patterns of European social policy, calling on multi-level governance and close involvement at the level of the citizen.

Design and performance of a multi-centre randomised controlled trial and economic evaluation of joint tele-consultations [ISRCTN54264250

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Thompson Simon

2002-01-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Appropriate information flow is crucial to the care of patients, particularly at the interface between primary and secondary care. Communication problems can result from inadequate organisation and training, There is a major expectation that information and communication technologies may offer solutions, but little reliable evidence. This paper reports the design and performance of a multi-centre randomised controlled trial (RCT, unparalleled in telemedicine research in either scale or range of outcomes. The study investigated the effectiveness and cost implications in rural and inner-city settings of using videoconferencing to perform joint tele-consultations as an alternative to general practitioner referral to the hospital specialist in the outpatient clinic. Methods Joint tele-consultation services were established in both the Royal Free Hampstead NHS Trust in inner London, and the Royal Shrewsbury Hospitals Trust, in Shropshire. All the patients who gave consent to participate were randomised either to joint tele-consultation or to a routine outpatients appointment. The principal outcome measures included the frequency of decision by the specialist to offer a follow-up outpatient appointment, patient satisfaction (Ware Specific Questionnaire, wellbeing (SF12 and enablement (PEI, numbers of tests, investigations, procedures and treatments. Results A total of 134 general practitioners operating from 29 practices participated in the trial, referring a total of 3170 patients to 20 specialists in ENT medicine, general medicine (including endocrinology, and rheumatology, gastroenterology, orthopaedics, neurology and urology. Of these, 2094 patients consented to participate in the study and were correctly randomised. There was a 91% response rate to the initial assessment questionnaires, and analysis showed equivalence for all key characteristics between the treatment and control groups. Conclusion We have designed and

Measles and respiratory failure: Case report and review of the last European outbreaks

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Leonel Lagunes

2015-08-01

Full Text Available Measles is an preventable acute viral illness, with the potential for severe and fatal complications. According to the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control in the last surveillance report, a total of 10 271 cases of measles were reported from January to December 2013. And 127 of those were reported in Spain with a 2.7/1 million habitants rate. In 2010, the World Health Organization European Region made a new commitment to eradicate measles by 2015 in the zone, however, measles cases and outbreaks are still occurring in many countries. We present the last 2 cases with severe measles-associated respiratory failure and a review of the literature of the last European outbreaks. Two young adults were admitted in the intensive care unit due to respiratory failure with a confirmed measles infection. Both treated with high flow nasal cannula during 3 to 5 days; one had a pneumococcal pneumonia coinfection. An incomplete vaccination schedule was documented in one of them while the other did not remember his. Within 10 days of admission, both were discharged from intensive care unit and the hospital with no complications. Measles can present with a variety of symptoms in adults and is responsible for a high morbidity especially during outbreaks. Pneumonia is a severe complication of measles infection, commonly reported. Surveillance and vaccination programs should be strengthened in order to achieve measles elimination.

Quality control for diagnostic oral microbiology laboratories in European countries

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Andrew J. Smith

2011-11-01

Full Text Available Participation in diagnostic microbiology internal and external quality control (QC processes is good laboratory practice and an essential component of a quality management system. However, no QC scheme for diagnostic oral microbiology existed until 2009 when the Clinical Oral Microbiology (COMB Network was created. At the European Oral Microbiology Workshop in 2008, 12 laboratories processing clinical oral microbiological samples were identified. All these were recruited to participate into the study and six laboratories from six European countries completed both the online survey and the first QC round. Three additional laboratories participated in the second round. Based on the survey, European oral microbiology laboratories process a significant (mean per laboratory 4,135 number of diagnostic samples from the oral cavity annually. A majority of the laboratories did not participate in any internal or external QC programme and nearly half of the laboratories did not have standard operating procedures for the tests they performed. In both QC rounds, there was a large variation in the results, interpretation and reporting of antibiotic susceptibility testing among the laboratories. In conclusion, the results of this study demonstrate the need for harmonisation of laboratory processing methods and interpretation of results for oral microbiology specimens. The QC rounds highlighted the value of external QC in evaluating the efficacy and safety of processes, materials and methods used in the laboratory. The use of standardised methods is also a prerequisite for multi-centre epidemiological studies that can provide important information on emerging microbes and trends in anti-microbial susceptibility for empirical prescribing in oro-facial infections.

Dosimetry audit for a multi-centre IMRT head and neck trial

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Clark, Catharine H.; Hansen, Vibeke Nordmark; Chantler, Hannah; Edwards, Craig; James, Hayley V.; Webster, Gareth; Miles, Elizabeth A.; Guerrero Urbano, M. Teresa; Bhide, Shree A.; Bidmead, A. Margaret; Nutting, Christoper M.

2009-01-01

Background and purpose: PARSPORT was a multi-centre randomised trial in the UK which compared Intensity-Modulated Radiotherapy (IMRT) and conventional radiotherapy (CRT) for patients with head and neck cancer. The dosimetry audit goals were to verify the plan delivery in participating centres, ascertain what tolerances were suitable for head and neck IMRT trials and develop an IMRT credentialing program. Materials and methods: Centres enrolling patients underwent rigorous quality assurance before joining the trial. Following this each centre was visited for a dosimetry audit, which consisted of treatment planning system tests, fluence verification films, combined field films and dose point measurements. Results: Mean dose point measurements were made at six centres. For the primary planning target volume (PTV) the differences with the planned values for the IMRT and CRT arms were -0.6% (1.8% to -2.4%) and 0.7% (2.0% to -0.9%), respectively. Ninety-four percent of the IMRT fluence films for individual fields passed gamma criterion of 3%/3 mm and 75% of the films for combined fields passed gamma criterion 4%/3 mm (no significant difference between dynamic delivery and step and shoot delivery). Conclusions: This audit suggests that a 3% tolerance could be applied for PTV point doses. For dose distributions tolerances of 3%/3 mm on individual fields and 4%/3 mm for combined fields are proposed for multi-centre head and neck IMRT trials.

The Scandinavian Propaten(®) trial - 1-year patency of PTFE vascular prostheses with heparin-bonded luminal surfaces compared to ordinary pure PTFE vascular prostheses - a randomised clinical controlled multi-centre trial.

Science.gov (United States)

Lindholt, J S; Gottschalksen, B; Johannesen, N; Dueholm, D; Ravn, H; Christensen, E D; Viddal, B; Flørenes, T; Pedersen, G; Rasmussen, M; Carstensen, M; Grøndal, N; Fasting, H

2011-05-01

To compare 1-year potencies' of heparin-bonded PTFE [(Hb-PTFE) (Propaten(®))] grafts with those of ordinary polytetraflouroethylene (PTFE) grafts in a blinded, randomised, clinically controlled, multi-centre study. Eleven Scandinavian centres enrolled 569 patients with chronic functional or critical lower limb ischaemia who were scheduled to undergo femoro-femoral bypass or femoro-poplitaeal bypass. The patients were randomised 1:1 stratified by centre. Patency was assessed by duplex ultrasound scanning. A total of 546 patients (96%) completed the study with adequate follow-up. Perioperative bleeding was, on average, 370 ml with PTFE grafts and 399 ml with Heparin-bonded PTFE grafts (p = 0.32). Overall, primary patency after 1 year was 86.4% for Hb-PTFE grafts and 79.9% for PTFE grafts (OR = 0.627, 95% CI: 0.398; 0.989, p = 0.043). Secondary patency was 88% in Hb-PTFE grafts and 81% in PTFE grafts (OR = 0.569 (0.353; 0.917, p = 0.020)). Subgroup analyses revealed that significant reduction in risk (50%) was observed when Hb-PTFE was used for femoro-poplitaeal bypass (OR = 0.515 (0.281; 0.944, p = 0.030)), and a significant reduction in risk (50%) was observed with Hb-PTFE in cases with critical ischaemia (OR = 0.490 (0.249; 0.962, p = 0.036)). The Hb-PTFE graft significantly reduced the overall risk of primary graft failure by 37%. Risk reduction was 50% in femoro-poplitaeal bypass cases and in cases with critical ischaemia. Copyright © 2011. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

A pragmatic multi-centre randomised controlled trial of fluid loading and level of dependency in high-risk surgical patients undergoing major elective surgery: trial protocol

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Norrie John

2010-04-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Patients undergoing major elective or urgent surgery are at high risk of death or significant morbidity. Measures to reduce this morbidity and mortality include pre-operative optimisation and use of higher levels of dependency care after surgery. We propose a pragmatic multi-centre randomised controlled trial of level of dependency and pre-operative fluid therapy in high-risk surgical patients undergoing major elective surgery. Methods/Design A multi-centre randomised controlled trial with a 2 * 2 factorial design. The first randomisation is to pre-operative fluid therapy or standard regimen and the second randomisation is to routine intensive care versus high dependency care during the early post-operative period. We intend to recruit 204 patients undergoing major elective and urgent abdominal and thoraco-abdominal surgery who fulfil high-risk surgical criteria. The primary outcome for the comparison of level of care is cost-effectiveness at six months and for the comparison of fluid optimisation is the number of hospital days after surgery. Discussion We believe that the results of this study will be invaluable in determining the future care and clinical resource utilisation for this group of patients and thus will have a major impact on clinical practice. Trial Registration Trial registration number - ISRCTN32188676

Feasibility and Preliminary Efficacy of Visual Cue Training to Improve Adaptability of Walking after Stroke: Multi-Centre, Single-Blind Randomised Control Pilot Trial

Science.gov (United States)

Hollands, Kristen L.; Pelton, Trudy A.; Wimperis, Andrew; Whitham, Diane; Tan, Wei; Jowett, Sue; Sackley, Catherine M.; Wing, Alan M.; Tyson, Sarah F.; Mathias, Jonathan; Hensman, Marianne; van Vliet, Paulette M.

2015-01-01

Objectives Given the importance of vision in the control of walking and evidence indicating varied practice of walking improves mobility outcomes, this study sought to examine the feasibility and preliminary efficacy of varied walking practice in response to visual cues, for the rehabilitation of walking following stroke. Design This 3 arm parallel, multi-centre, assessor blind, randomised control trial was conducted within outpatient neurorehabilitation services Participants Community dwelling stroke survivors with walking speed adaptability practice using visual cues are feasible and may improve mobility and balance. Future studies should continue a carefully phased approach using identified methods to improve retention. Trial Registration Clinicaltrials.gov NCT01600391 PMID:26445137

An inter-centre quality assurance network for IMRT verification: Results of the ESTRO QUASIMODO project

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gillis, Sofie; Wagter, Carlos de; Bohsung, Joerg; Perrin, Bruce; Williams, Peter; Mijnheer, Ben J.

2005-01-01

Background and purpose: IMRT necessitates extension of existing inter-centre quality assurance programs due to its increased complexity. We assessed the feasibility of an inter-centre verification method for different IMRT techniques. Materials and methods: Eight European radiotherapy institutions of the QUASIMODO network, have designed an IMRT plan for a horseshoe-shaped PTV surrounding a cylindrical OAR in a simplified pelvic phantom. All centres applied common plan objectives but used their own equipment for planning and delivery. They verified the delivery of this plan according to a common protocol with radiographic film and ionisation chamber measurements. The irradiated films, the results of the ionisation chamber measurements and the computed dose distributions were sent to one analysis centre that compared the measured and computed dose distributions with the gamma method and composite dose-area histograms. Results: 4% (relative to the prescribed dose) and 3 mm (distance-to-agreement) were decided feasible gamma criteria. The composite dose-area histograms showed a maximum local deviation of 3.5% in the mean dose of the PTV and 5% in the OAR. Systematic differences could be identified, and in some cases explained. Conclusions: This multi-centre dosimetric verification study demonstrated both the feasibility of a multi-centre quality assurance network to evaluate any IMRT planning and delivery system combination, as well as the validity of the methodology involved

European Cosmoscapes. The case of the Festival of Europe in Florence

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Dario Verderame

2015-01-01

Full Text Available The aim of this essay is to offer an empirical contribution to the understanding of cosmopolita-nization processes, centred on Europe. Specifically, the subject of my study is the Festival of Europe, an event dedicated to European themes that is held every two years in the city of Florence (Italy. By means of this case study I intend to analyse those elements that enable or constrain the formation of a European cosmopolitan imaginary within a concrete situational context. This analysis will also permit the formulation of some observations with regard to the role that such organizational and social forms – festivals – can play in the construction of a cosmopolitan social space.

Multi-technology control centre to integrate 460 MW renewables; Centro de control multitecnología para la integración de 460 MW renovables

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2016-07-01

The new RWE Innogy Aersa Control Centre that has been certified to act as an interface with CECRE (the Renewable Energy Control Centre) since February 2015, connects RWE’s 20 renewable energy facilities with REE, the Spanish Electricity Grid. As a result, it ensures that wind farms, in addition to hydropower and solar plants, can inject the energy generated by its 460 MW installed safely and with no penalties. Green Eagle Solutions, a provider of software solutions for renewable energy companies, has collaborated with RWE in the development of this Control Centre, meeting the high standards of quality and safety required by RWE. This centre uses CompactSCADA® technology to integrate power generation facilities that need to be integrated in a Control Centre to communicate with REE’s CECRE. (Author)

Day-Case Treatment of Peripheral Arterial Disease: Results from a Multi-Center European Study

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Spiliopoulos, Stavros, E-mail: stavspiliop@med.uoa.gr, E-mail: stavspiliop@upatras.gr; Karnabatidis, Dimitrios, E-mail: karnaby@med.upatras.gr [Patras University Hospital, Department of Interventional Radiology (Greece); Katsanos, Konstantinos, E-mail: katsanos@med.upatras.gr; Diamantopoulos, Athanasios, E-mail: adiamantopoulos@gmail.com [Guy’s and St Thomas’ Hospitals, NHS Foundation Trust, King’s Health Partners, Department of Interventional Radiology (United Kingdom); Ali, Tariq, E-mail: tariq.ali@addenbrookes.nhs.uk [Addenbrooke’s University Hospital, NHS Foundation Trust, Department of Interventional Radiology (United Kingdom); Kitrou, Panagiotis, E-mail: panoskitrou@gmail.com [Patras University Hospital, Department of Interventional Radiology (Greece); Cannavale, Alessandro, E-mail: alessandro.cannavale@hotmail.com; Krokidis, Miltiadis, E-mail: miltiadis.krokidis@addenbrookes.nhs.uk [Addenbrooke’s University Hospital, NHS Foundation Trust, Department of Interventional Radiology (United Kingdom)

2016-12-15

PurposeThe purpose of the study was to investigate safety and feasibility of day-case endovascular procedures for the management of peripheral arterial disease.Materials and MethodsThis was a multi-center, retrospective study including all patients treated over a 30-month period with endovascular angioplasty or stenting for intermittent claudication (IC) or critical limb ischemia (CLI) on a day-case basis, in Interventional Radiology (IR) departments of three European tertiary hospitals. Exclusion criteria were not related to the type of lesion and included unavailability of an adult able to take care of patient overnight; high bleeding risk and ASA score ≥4. Primary efficacy outcome was the rate of procedures performed on an outpatient basis requiring no further hospitalization and primary safety outcome was freedom from 30-day major complications’ rate.ResultsThe study included 652 patients (male 75 %; mean age 68 ± 10 years; range: 27–93), 24.6 % treated for CLI. In 53.3 % of the cases a 6Fr sheath was used. Technical success was 97.1 %. Haemostasis was obtained by manual compression in 52.4 % of the accesses. The primary efficacy outcome occurred in 95.4 % (622/652 patients) and primary safety outcome in 98.6 % (643/652 patients). Major complications included five (0.7 %) retroperitoneal hematomas requiring transfusion; one (0.1 %) common femoral artery pseudoaneurysm successfully treated with US-guided thrombin injection, two cases of intra-procedural distal embolization treated with catheter-directed local thrombolysis and one on-table cardiac arrest necessitating >24 h recovery. No major complication was noted after same-day discharge.ConclusionsDay-case endovascular procedures for the treatment of IC or CLI can be safely and efficiently performed in experienced IR departments of large tertiary hospitals.

CCS-MIP: Low cost Customizable Control Centre

Science.gov (United States)

Labezin, Christian; Vielcanet, Pierre

1994-01-01

The positioning and station keeping of French national satellites are among the main missions of CNES French Space Agency CNES. The related experience and skills of the Toulouse Space Centre are reknown and often required at international level for a wide range of missions. CISI, a software engineering company, has been contributing during the last 20 years to the development of the French space programs, particularly in the field of space missions ground control segments. The CCS-MIP system, presented here, is a satellite positioning and station-keeping system designed to answer the CNES multi-mission needs, easily adaptable for a wide range of applications.

European Federation of Associations of Families of People with Mental Illness initiatives on person-centred care.

Science.gov (United States)

Steffen, Sigrid

2011-04-01

European Federation of Associations of Families of People with Mental Illness is working towards the goal of shifting the emphasis of care for people with metal illness from the treatment of the symptoms to a more holistic approach of treating the whole person - in other words 'person-centred care'. It is also working with the Geneva conference on person-centred medicine and various interested groupings and organizations to ensure that the role of the family is fully recognized and supported. By engaging primarily with the medical community in bringing to fruition certain initiatives which European Federation of Associations of Families of People with Mental Illness considers as important to the success of person-centred care. To date, no formal reviews have taken place and feedback from the initiatives has been informal and anecdotal. Early reports from the various initiatives are positive. But they also indicate that there is still much work to be done in order for the concept to become a reality across the majority of European countries. © 2010 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

Characteristics and prognosis of pneumococcal endocarditis: a case-control study.

Science.gov (United States)

Daudin, M; Tattevin, P; Lelong, B; Flecher, E; Lavoué, S; Piau, C; Ingels, A; Chapron, A; Daubert, J-C; Revest, M

2016-06-01

Case series have suggested that pneumococcal endocarditis is a rare disease, mostly reported in patients with co-morbidities but no underlying valve disease, with a rapid progression to heart failure, and high mortality. We performed a case-control study of 28 patients with pneumococcal endocarditis (cases), and 56 patients with non-pneumococcal endocarditis (controls), not matched for sex and age, during the years 1991-2013, in one referral centre. Alcoholism (39.3% versus 10.7%; p endocarditis. Cardiac surgery was required in 64.3% of patients with pneumococcal endocarditis, much earlier than in patients with non-pneumococcal endocarditis (mean time from symptom onset, 14.1 ± 18.2 versus 69.0 ± 61.1 days). In-hospital mortality rates were similar (7.1% versus 12.5%). Streptococcus pneumoniae causes rapidly progressive endocarditis requiring life-saving early cardiac surgery in most cases. Copyright © 2016 European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Multi-disciplinary facilities at the centre for nuclear sciences, U.W.I

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lalor, G.C.; Robotham, H.

1994-01-01

The Centre for Nuclear Sciences was established in 1984 with the mandate to introduce Caribbean scientists to the application of nuclear technology in multi-disciplinary studies, and to carry out research in areas of national and regional importance. It describes the present facilities and the major programmes being carried out at the Centre. (author) 9 refs

Turkey’s multi-polar diplomacy on its way to the European Union

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lika Mkrtchyan

2011-12-01

Full Text Available Turkey conducts a multi-polar foreign diplomacy in order to strengthen its positions in the region, to gain control over the neighboring countries; as well as to make its way towards the European Union. Being on the EU’s waiting list, Turkey strives to get advantages of its prolonged status as a candidate country

Distributed Scheduling to Support a Call Centre: a Co-operative Multi-Agent Approach

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Brazier, F.M.; Jonker, C.M.; Jungen, F.J.; Treur, J.; Nwana, H.S.

1998-01-01

This paper describes a multi-agent system architecture to increase the value of 24 hour a day call centre service. This system supports call centres in making appointments with clients on the basis of knowledge of employees and their schedules. Relevant activities of employees are scheduled for

Heterogeneous FDG-guided dose-escalation for locally advanced NSCLC (the NARLAL2 trial): Design and early dosimetric results of a randomized, multi-centre phase-III study

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Møller, Ditte Sloth; Nielsen, Tine Bjørn; Brink, Carsten

2017-01-01

Background and purpose: Local recurrence is frequent in locally advanced NSCLC and is primarily located in FDG-avid parts of tumour and lymph nodes. Aiming at improving local control without increasing toxicity, we designed a multi-centre phase-III trial delivering inhomogeneous dose-escalation d......Background and purpose: Local recurrence is frequent in locally advanced NSCLC and is primarily located in FDG-avid parts of tumour and lymph nodes. Aiming at improving local control without increasing toxicity, we designed a multi-centre phase-III trial delivering inhomogeneous dose...

Livestock-associated meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) among human MRSA isolates, European Union/European Economic Area countries, 2013.

Science.gov (United States)

Kinross, Pete; Petersen, Andreas; Skov, Robert; Van Hauwermeiren, Evelyn; Pantosti, Annalisa; Laurent, Frédéric; Voss, Andreas; Kluytmans, Jan; Struelens, Marc J; Heuer, Ole; Monnet, Dominique L

2017-11-01

Currently, surveillance of livestock-associated meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (LA-MRSA) in humans in Europe is not systematic but mainly event-based. In September 2014, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) initiated a questionnaire to collect data on the number of LA-MRSA from human samples (one isolate per patient) from national/regional reference laboratories in European Union/European Economic Area (EU/EEA) countries in 2013. Identification of LA-MRSA as clonal complex (CC) 398 by multilocus sequence typing (MLST) was preferred, although surrogate methods such as spa -typing were also accepted. The questionnaire was returned by 28 laboratories in 27 EU/EEA countries. Overall, LA-MRSA represented 3.9% of 13,756 typed MRSA human isolates, but it represented ≥ 10% in five countries (Belgium, Denmark, Spain, the Netherlands and Slovenia). Seven of the reference laboratories did not type MRSA isolates in 2013. To monitor the dispersion of LA-MRSA and facilitate targeted control measures, we advocate periodic systematic surveys or integrated multi-sectorial surveillance.

CANDU 9 Control Centre Mockup

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Webster, A.; Macbeth, M.J.

1996-01-01

This paper provides a summary of the design process being followed, the benefits of applying a systematic design using human factors engineering, presents an overview of the CANDU 9 control centre mockup facility, illustrates the control centre mockup with photographs of the 3D CADD model and the full scale mockup, and provides an update on the current status of the project. (author)

Cities, Europeanization and Multi-level Governance: Governing Climate Change through Transnational Municipal Networks

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Kern, K.; Bulkeley, H.

2009-01-01

This article focuses on a variant of multi-level governance and Europeanization, i.e. the transnational networking of local authorities. Focusing on local climate change policy, the article examines how transnational municipal networks (TMNs) govern in the context of multi-level European governance.

A multi-dimensional framework to assist in the design of successful shared services centres

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mark Borman

2012-04-01

Full Text Available Organisations are increasingly looking to realise the benefits of shared services yet there is little guidance available as to the best way to proceed. A multi-dimensional framework is presented that considers the service provided, the design of the shared services centre and the organisational context it sits within. Case studies are then used to determine what specific attributes from each dimension are associated with success and how they should be aligned. It is concluded that there appears to be a single, broadly standard pattern of attributes for successful Shared Services Centres (SSCs across the proposed dimensions of Activity, Environment, History, Resources, Strategy, Structure, Management, Technology and Individual Skills. It should also be noted though that some deviation from the identified standard along some dimensions is possible without adverse effect – ie that the alignment identified appears to be relatively soft.

The group-based social skills training SOSTA-FRA in children and adolescents with high functioning autism spectrum disorder--study protocol of the randomised, multi-centre controlled SOSTA--net trial.

Science.gov (United States)

Freitag, Christine M; Cholemkery, Hannah; Elsuni, Leyla; Kroeger, Anne K; Bender, Stephan; Kunz, Cornelia Ursula; Kieser, Meinhard

2013-01-07

Group-based social skills training (SST) has repeatedly been recommended as treatment of choice in high-functioning autism spectrum disorder (HFASD). To date, no sufficiently powered randomised controlled trial has been performed to establish efficacy and safety of SST in children and adolescents with HFASD. In this randomised, multi-centre, controlled trial with 220 children and adolescents with HFASD it is hypothesized, that add-on group-based SST using the 12 weeks manualised SOSTA-FRA program will result in improved social responsiveness (measured by the parent rated social responsiveness scale, SRS) compared to treatment as usual (TAU). It is further expected, that parent and self reported anxiety and depressive symptoms will decline and pro-social behaviour will increase in the treatment group. A neurophysiological study in the Frankfurt HFASD subgroup will be performed pre- and post treatment to assess changes in neural function induced by SST versus TAU. The SOSTA - net trial is designed as a prospective, randomised, multi-centre, controlled trial with two parallel groups. The primary outcome is change in SRS score directly after the intervention and at 3 months follow-up. Several secondary outcome measures are also obtained. The target sample consists of 220 individuals with ASD, included at the six study centres. This study is currently one of the largest trials on SST in children and adolescents with HFASD worldwide. Compared to recent randomised controlled studies, our study shows several advantages with regard to in- and exclusion criteria, study methods, and the therapeutic approach chosen, which can be easily implemented in non-university-based clinical settings. ISRCTN94863788--SOSTA--net: Group-based social skills training in children and adolescents with high functioning autism spectrum disorder.

Authorship issues in multi-centre clinical trials: the importance of making an authorship contract.

Science.gov (United States)

Rosenberg, Jacob; Burcharth, Jakob; Pommergaard, Hans-Christian; Vinther, Siri

2015-02-01

Discussions about authorship often arise in multi-centre clinical trials. Such trials may involve up to hundreds of contributors of whom some will eventually co-author the final publication. It is, however, often impossible to involve all contributors in the manuscript process sufficiently for them to qualify for authorship as defined by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors. Therefore, rules for authorship in multi-centre trials are strongly recommended. We propose two contracts to prevent conflicts regarding authorship; both are freely available for use without pay but with reference to the original source.

A multi-centre evaluation of oral cancer in Southern and Western Nigeria: an African oral pathology research consortium initiative.

Science.gov (United States)

Omitola, Olufemi Gbenga; Soyele, Olujide Oladele; Sigbeku, Opeyemi; Okoh, Dickson; Akinshipo, Abdulwarith Olaitan; Butali, Azeez; Adeola, Henry Ademola

2017-01-01

Oral cancer is a leading cause of cancer deaths among African populations. Lack of standard cancer registries and under-reporting has inaccurately depicted its magnitude in Nigeria. Development of multi-centre collaborative oral pathology networks such as the African Oral Pathology Research Consortium (AOPRC) facilitates skill and expertise exchange and fosters a robust and systematic investigation of oral diseases across Africa. In this descriptive cross-sectional study, we have leveraged the auspices of the AOPRC to examine the burden of oral cancer in Nigeria, using a multi-centre approach. Data from 4 major tertiary health institutions in Western and Southern Nigeria was generated using a standardized data extraction format and analysed using the SPSS data analysis software (version 20.0; SPSS Inc. Chicago, IL). Of the 162 cases examined across the 4 centres, we observed that oral squamous cell carcinomas (OSCC) occurred mostly in the 6 th and 7 th decades of life and maxillary were more frequent than mandibular OSCC lesions. Regional variations were observed both for location, age group and gender distribution. Significant regional differences was found between poorly, moderately and well differentiated OSCC (p value = 0.0071). A multi-centre collaborative oral pathology research approach is an effective way to achieve better insight into the patterns and distribution of various oral diseases in men of African descent. The wider outlook for AOPRC is to employ similar approaches to drive intensive oral pathology research targeted at addressing the current morbidity and mortality of various oral diseases across Africa.

Museums as brokers of participation: how visitors view the emerging role of European science centres and museums in policy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Andrea Bandelli

2016-05-01

Full Text Available Science centres and museums in Europe traditionally offer opportunities for public participation, such as dialogues, debates and workshops. In recent years, starting with the support of grants from the European Commission, the purpose of these initiatives is increasingly more connected with the policy making processes where science centres play a role as brokers between the public and other stakeholders. This article begins an investigation on how these two levels of participation – the participation of museums in policy, and the participation of visitors in museums – are related in seven European science centres and museums. The results suggest that science centres and museums are regarded by their visitors as potential platforms to facilitate public participation in policy, especially in countries where the general infrastructure for public participation in science is weak.

Dietary management practices in phenylketonuria across European centres

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ahring, Kirsten; Bélanger-Quintana, Amaya; Dokoupil, Katharina

2009-01-01

, and the definition of foods that could be eaten without restriction ('free foods'). Eighty percent (n=8/10) of centres encouraged breastfeeding together with protein substitute in infants with PKU. CONCLUSIONS: Important differences exist among centres across Europe in the dietary management of PKU, and in support...... systems designed to assist patients in managing their diets. Further studies are needed to compare different dietary treatments with the aim of identifying best practice to optimise phenylalanine control and dietary adherence....

Council celebrates CERN Control Centre

CERN Multimedia

2006-01-01

With the unveiling of its new sign, the CERN Control Centre was officially inaugurated on Thursday 16 March. To celebrate its startup, CERN Council members visited the sleek centre, a futuristic-looking room filled with a multitude of monitoring screens.

Strategic verbal rehearsal in adolescents with mild intellectual disabilities: A multi-centre European study.

Science.gov (United States)

Poloczek, Sebastian; Henry, Lucy A; Danielson, Henrik; Büttner, Gerhard; Mähler, Claudia; Messer, David J; Schuchardt, Kirsten; Molen, Mariët J van der

2016-11-01

There is a long-held view that verbal short-term memory problems of individuals with intellectual disabilities (ID) might be due to a deficit in verbal rehearsal. However, the evidence is inconclusive and word length effects as indicator of rehearsal have been criticised. The aim of this multi-site European study was to investigate verbal rehearsal in adolescents with mild ID (n=90) and a comparison group of typically developing children matched individually for mental age (MA, n=90). The investigation involved: (1) a word length experiment with non-verbal recall using pointing and (2) 'self-paced' inspection times to infer whether verbal strategies were utilised when memorising a set of pictorial items. The word length effect on recall did not interact with group, suggesting that adolescents with ID and MA comparisons used similar verbal strategies, possibly phonological recoding of picture names. The inspection time data suggested that high span individuals in both groups used verbal labelling or single item rehearsal on more demanding lists, as long named items had longer inspection times. The findings suggest that verbal strategy use is not specifically impaired in adolescents with mild ID and is mental age appropriate, supporting a developmental perspective. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Consumption of added fats and oils in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) centres across 10 European countries as assessed by 24-hour dietary recalls.

Science.gov (United States)

Linseisen, J; Bergström, E; Gafá, L; González, C A; Thiébaut, A; Trichopoulou, A; Tumino, R; Navarro Sánchez, C; Martínez Garcia, C; Mattisson, I; Nilsson, S; Welch, A; Spencer, E A; Overvad, K; Tjønneland, A; Clavel-Chapelon, F; Kesse, E; Miller, A B; Schulz, M; Botsi, K; Naska, A; Sieri, S; Sacerdote, C; Ocké, M C; Peeters, P H M; Skeie, G; Engeset, D; Charrondière, U R; Slimani, N

2002-12-01

To evaluate the consumption of added fats and oils across the European centres and countries participating in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC). 24-Hour dietary recalls were collected by means of standardised computer-guided interviews in 27 redefined EPIC centres across 10 European countries. From an initial number of 36 900 subjects, single dietary recalls from 22 924 women and 13 031 men in the age range of 35-74 years were included. Mean daily intake of added fats and oils varied between 16.2 g (Varese, Italy) and 41.1 g (Malmö, Sweden) in women and between 24.7 g (Ragusa, Italy) and 66.0 g (Potsdam, Germany) in men. Total mean lipid intake by consumption of added fats and oils, including those used for sauce preparation, ranged between 18.3 (Norway) and 37.2 g day-1 (Greece) in women and 28.4 (Heidelberg, Germany) and 51.2 g day-1 (Greece) in men. The Mediterranean EPIC centres with high olive oil consumption combined with low animal fat intake contrasted with the central and northern European centres where fewer vegetable oils, more animal fats and a high proportion of margarine were consumed. The consumption of added fats and oils of animal origin was highest in the German EPIC centres, followed by the French. The contribution of added fats and oils to total energy intake ranged from 8% in Norway to 22% in Greece. The results demonstrate a high variation in dietary intake of added fats and oils in EPIC, providing a good opportunity to elucidate the role of dietary fats in cancer aetiology.

The outcome of a multi-centre feasibility study of online adaptive radiotherapy for muscle-invasive bladder cancer TROG 10.01 BOLART

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Foroudi, Farshad; Pham, Daniel; Rolfo, Aldo; Bressel, Mathias; Tang, Colin I.; Tan, Alex; Turner, Sandra; Hruby, George; Williams, Stephen; Hayne, Dickon; Lehman, Margot; Skala, Marketa; Jose, Chakiath C.; Gogna, Kumar; Kron, Tomas

2014-01-01

Purpose: To assess whether online adaptive radiotherapy for bladder cancer is feasible across multiple Radiation Oncology departments using different imaging, delivery and recording technology. Materials and methods: A multi-centre feasibility study of online adaptive radiotherapy, using a choice of three “plan of the day”, was conducted at 12 departments. Patients with muscle-invasive bladder cancer were included. Departments were activated if part of the pilot study or after a site-credentialing visit. There was real time review of the first two cases from each department. Results: 54 patients were recruited, with 50 proceeding to radiotherapy. There were 43 males and 7 females with a mean age of 78 years. The tumour stages treated included T1 (1 patient), T2 (35), T3 (10) and T4 (4). One patient died of an unrelated cause during radiotherapy. The three adaptive plans were created before the 10th fraction in all cases. In 8 (16%) of the patients, a conventional plan using a ‘standard’ CTV to PTV margin of 1.5 cm was used for one or more fractions where the pre-treatment bladder CTV was larger than any of the three adaptive plans. The bladder CTV extended beyond the PTV on post treatment imaging in 9 (18%) of the 49 patients. Conclusions: From a technical perspective an online adaptive radiotherapy technique can be instituted in a multi-centre setting. However, without further bladder filling control or imaging, a CTV to PTV margin of 7 mm is insufficient

Computerized detection of breast lesions in multi-centre and multi-instrument DCE-MR data using 3D principal component maps and template matching

Science.gov (United States)

Ertas, Gokhan; Doran, Simon; Leach, Martin O.

2011-12-01

In this study, we introduce a novel, robust and accurate computerized algorithm based on volumetric principal component maps and template matching that facilitates lesion detection on dynamic contrast-enhanced MR. The study dataset comprises 24 204 contrast-enhanced breast MR images corresponding to 4034 axial slices from 47 women in the UK multi-centre study of MRI screening for breast cancer and categorized as high risk. The scans analysed here were performed on six different models of scanner from three commercial vendors, sited in 13 clinics around the UK. 1952 slices from this dataset, containing 15 benign and 13 malignant lesions, were used for training. The remaining 2082 slices, with 14 benign and 12 malignant lesions, were used for test purposes. To prevent false positives being detected from other tissues and regions of the body, breast volumes are segmented from pre-contrast images using a fast semi-automated algorithm. Principal component analysis is applied to the centred intensity vectors formed from the dynamic contrast-enhanced T1-weighted images of the segmented breasts, followed by automatic thresholding to eliminate fatty tissues and slowly enhancing normal parenchyma and a convolution and filtering process to minimize artefacts from moderately enhanced normal parenchyma and blood vessels. Finally, suspicious lesions are identified through a volumetric sixfold neighbourhood connectivity search and calculation of two morphological features: volume and volumetric eccentricity, to exclude highly enhanced blood vessels, nipples and normal parenchyma and to localize lesions. This provides satisfactory lesion localization. For a detection sensitivity of 100%, the overall false-positive detection rate of the system is 1.02/lesion, 1.17/case and 0.08/slice, comparing favourably with previous studies. This approach may facilitate detection of lesions in multi-centre and multi-instrument dynamic contrast-enhanced breast MR data.

Tuberculosis among migrant populations in the European Union and the European Economic Area.

Science.gov (United States)

Odone, Anna; Tillmann, Taavi; Sandgren, Andreas; Williams, Gemma; Rechel, Bernd; Ingleby, David; Noori, Teymur; Mladovsky, Philipa; McKee, Martin

2015-06-01

Although tuberculosis (TB) incidence has been decreasing in the European Union/European Economic Area (EU/EEA) in the last decades, specific subgroups of the population, such as migrants, remain at high risk of TB. This study is based on the report 'Key Infectious Diseases in Migrant Populations in the EU/EEA' commissioned by The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control. We collected, critically appraised and summarized the available evidence on the TB burden in migrants in the EU/EEA. Data were collected through: (i) a comprehensive literature review; (ii) analysis of data from The European Surveillance System (TESSy) and (iii) evidence provided by TB experts during an infectious disease workshop in 2012. In 2010, of the 73,996 TB cases notified in the EU/EEA, 25% were of foreign origin. The overall decrease of TB cases observed in recent years has not been reflected in migrant populations. Foreign-born people with TB exhibit different socioeconomic and clinical characteristics than native sufferers. This is one of the first studies to use multiple data sources, including the largest available European database on infectious disease notifications, to assess the burden and provide a comprehensive description and analysis of specific TB features in migrants in the EU/EEA. Strengthened information about health determinants and factors for migrants' vulnerability is needed to plan, implement and evaluate targeted TB care and control interventions for migrants in the EU/EEA. © The Author 2014. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Public Health Association.

The group-based social skills training SOSTA-FRA in children and adolescents with high functioning autism spectrum disorder - study protocol of the randomised, multi-centre controlled SOSTA - net trial

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Freitag Christine M

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Group-based social skills training (SST has repeatedly been recommended as treatment of choice in high-functioning autism spectrum disorder (HFASD. To date, no sufficiently powered randomised controlled trial has been performed to establish efficacy and safety of SST in children and adolescents with HFASD. In this randomised, multi-centre, controlled trial with 220 children and adolescents with HFASD it is hypothesized, that add-on group-based SST using the 12 weeks manualised SOSTA–FRA program will result in improved social responsiveness (measured by the parent rated social responsiveness scale, SRS compared to treatment as usual (TAU. It is further expected, that parent and self reported anxiety and depressive symptoms will decline and pro-social behaviour will increase in the treatment group. A neurophysiological study in the Frankfurt HFASD subgroup will be performed pre- and post treatment to assess changes in neural function induced by SST versus TAU. Methods/design The SOSTA – net trial is designed as a prospective, randomised, multi-centre, controlled trial with two parallel groups. The primary outcome is change in SRS score directly after the intervention and at 3 months follow-up. Several secondary outcome measures are also obtained. The target sample consists of 220 individuals with ASD, included at the six study centres. Discussion This study is currently one of the largest trials on SST in children and adolescents with HFASD worldwide. Compared to recent randomised controlled studies, our study shows several advantages with regard to in- and exclusion criteria, study methods, and the therapeutic approach chosen, which can be easily implemented in non-university-based clinical settings. Trial registration ISRCTN94863788 – SOSTA – net: Group-based social skills training in children and adolescents with high functioning autism spectrum disorder.

Science case and requirements for the MOSAIC concept for a multi-object spectrograph for the European extremely large telescope

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Evans, C.J.; Puech, M.; Bonifacio, P.; Hammer, F.; Jagourel, P.; Caffau, E.; Disseau, K.; Flores, H.; Huertas-Company, M.; Mei, S.; Aussel, H.

2014-01-01

Over the past 18 months we have revisited the science requirements for a multi-object spectrograph (MOS) for the European Extremely Large Telescope (E-ELT). These efforts span the full range of E-ELT science and include input from a broad cross-section of astronomers across the ESO partner countries. In this contribution we summarise the key cases relating to studies of high-redshift galaxies, galaxy evolution, and stellar populations, with a more expansive presentation of a new case relating to detection of exoplanets in stellar clusters. A general requirement is the need for two observational modes to best exploit the large (=40 arcmin 2 ) patrol field of the E-ELT. The first mode ('high multiplex') requires integrated-light (or coarsely resolved) optical/near-IR spectroscopy of ≥100 objects simultaneously. The second ('high definition'), enabled by wide-field adaptive optics, requires spatially-resolved, near-IR of ≥10 objects/sub-fields. Within the context of the conceptual study for an ELT-MOS called MOSAIC, we summarise the top level requirements from each case and introduce the next steps in the design process. (authors)

The cataract national data set electronic multi-centre audit of 55,567 operations: case-mix adjusted surgeon's outcomes for posterior capsule rupture.

Science.gov (United States)

Sparrow, J M; Taylor, H; Qureshi, K; Smith, R; Johnston, R L

2011-08-01

To develop a methodology for case-mix adjustment of surgical outcomes for individual cataract surgeons using electronically collected multi-centre data conforming to the cataract national data set (CND). Routinely collected anonymised data were remotely extracted from electronic patient record (EPR) systems in 12 participating NHS Trusts undertaking cataract surgery. Following data checks and cleaning, analyses were carried out to risk adjust outcomes for posterior capsule rupture rates for individual surgeons, with stratification by surgical grade. A total of 406 surgeons from 12 NHS Trusts submitted data on 55,567 cataract operations between November 2001 and July 2006 (86% from January 2004). In all, 283 surgeons contributed data on >25 cases, providing 54,319 operations suitable for detailed analysis. Case-mix adjusted results of individual surgeons are presented as funnel plots for all surgeons together, and separately for three different grades of surgeon. Plots include 95 and 99.8% confidence limits around the case-mix adjusted outcomes for detection of surgical outliers. Routinely collected electronic data conforming to the CND provides sufficient detail for case-mix adjustment of cataract surgical outcomes. The validation of these risk indicators should be carried out using fresh data to confirm the validity of the risk model. Once validated this model should provide an equitable approach for peer-to-peer comparisons in the context of revalidation.

A multi-centre clinical follow-up database as a systematic approach to the evaluation of mid- and long-term health consequences in Chernobyl acute radiation syndrome patients

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fischer, B.; Weiss, M.; Fliedner, T.M.; Belyi, D.A.; Kovalenko, A.N.; Bebeshko, V.G.; Nadejina, N.M.; Galstian, I.A.

1996-01-01

This paper describes scope, design and first results of a multi-centre follow-up database that has been established for the evaluation of mid- and long-term health consequences of acute radiation syndrome (ARS) survivors. After the Chernobyl accident on 26 April 1986, 237 cases with suspected acute radiation syndrome have been reported. For 134 of these cases the diagnosis of ARS was confirmed in a consensus conference three years after the accident. Nearly all survivors underwent regular follow-up examinations in two specialized centres in Kiev and in Moscow. In collaboration with these centres we established a multi-centre clinical follow-up database that records the results of the follow-up examinations in a standardized schema. This database is an integral part of a five step approach to patient evaluation and aims at a comprehensive base for scientific analysis of the mid- and long-term consequences of accidental ionizing radiation. It will allow for a dynamic view on the development of the health status of individuals and groups of patients as well as the identification of critical organ systems that need early support, and an improvement of acute and follow-up treatment protocols for radiation accident victims

European Food Safety Authority, European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control; The European Union Summary Report on Trends and Sources of Zoonoses, Zoonotic Agents and Food-borne Outbreaks in 2009

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Korsgaard, Helle; Borck Høg, Birgitte; Helwigh, Birgitte

and the statistically significant decreasing trend in the case numbers continued. Eighteen Member States reached the European Union Salmonella reduction target for breeding flocks of fowl, 17 Member States met their reduction target for laying hens and 18 Member States met the reduction target for broilers...... and Yersinia from pigs and pig meat. Brucellosis and tuberculosis decreased in cattle, sheep and goat populations. In humans 1,987 Q fever cases were detected and Q fever was found in domestic ruminants. Trichinellosis and echinococcosis caused 748 and 790 human cases, respectively, and Trichinella...... and Echinococcus were mainly detected in wildlife. There were 1,259 human cases of toxoplasmosis reported and in animals Toxoplasma was most often found in sheep and goats. Rabies was recorded in one person in the European Union and the disease was also found in animals. Most of the 5,550 reported food...

Market Attractiveness Classification of European Union Countries for Establishing Logistics Centres

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Schüller David

2016-10-01

Full Text Available At present, enterprises are forced to serve their customers as quickly as possible if they want to succeed on turbulent global markets. Enterprises are looking for regions with high-quality infrastructure where they can establish new logistics centres that enable enterprises to serve their customers quickly. This paper focuses on the segmentation of the European Union market for enterprises that are willing to set up logistics centres in order to be able to distribute products fluently and more quickly to their customers in Europe. An agglomerative hierarchical clustering algorithm was used and Ward’s criterion applied for the purposes of market segmentation. A Logistic Performance Index and the indicator Dealing with Construction Permits were used as two relevant dimensions reflecting the market attractiveness of identified clusters. Based on the given statistical output, fundamental marketing concepts were formulated for each cluster composed of EU countries with similar characteristics.

Dosimetric inter-institutional comparison in European radiotherapy centres: Results of IAEA supported treatment planning system audit.

Science.gov (United States)

Gershkevitsh, Eduard; Pesznyak, Csilla; Petrovic, Borislava; Grezdo, Joseph; Chelminski, Krzysztof; do Carmo Lopes, Maria; Izewska, Joanna; Van Dyk, Jacob

2014-05-01

One of the newer audit modalities operated by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) involves audits of treatment planning systems (TPS) in radiotherapy. The main focus of the audit is the dosimetry verification of the delivery of a radiation treatment plan for three-dimensional (3D) conformal radiotherapy using high energy photon beams. The audit has been carried out in eight European countries - Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Serbia, Slovakia, Poland and Portugal. The corresponding results are presented. The TPS audit reviews the dosimetry, treatment planning and radiotherapy delivery processes using the 'end-to-end' approach, i.e. following the pathway similar to that of the patient, through imaging, treatment planning and dose delivery. The audit is implemented at the national level with IAEA assistance. The national counterparts conduct the TPS audit at local radiotherapy centres through on-site visits. TPS calculated doses are compared with ion chamber measurements performed in an anthropomorphic phantom for eight test cases per algorithm/beam. A set of pre-defined agreement criteria is used to analyse the performance of TPSs. TPS audit was carried out in 60 radiotherapy centres. In total, 190 data sets (combination of algorithm and beam quality) have been collected and reviewed. Dosimetry problems requiring interventions were discovered in about 10% of datasets. In addition, suboptimal beam modelling in TPSs was discovered in a number of cases. The TPS audit project using the IAEA methodology has verified the treatment planning system calculations for 3D conformal radiotherapy in a group of radiotherapy centres in Europe. It contributed to achieving better understanding of the performance of TPSs and helped to resolve issues related to imaging, dosimetry and treatment planning.

Field tests applying multi-agent technology for distributed control. Virtual power plants and wind energy

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Schaeffer, G.J.; Warmer, C.J.; Hommelberg, M.P.F.; Kamphuis, I.G.; Kok, J.K. [Energy in the Built Environment and Networks, Petten (Netherlands)

2007-01-15

Multi-agent technology is state of the art ICT. It is not yet widely applied in power control systems. However, it has a large potential for bottom-up, distributed control of a network with large-scale renewable energy sources (RES) and distributed energy resources (DER) in future power systems. At least two major European R and D projects (MicroGrids and CRISP) have investigated its potential. Both grid-related as well as market-related applications have been studied. This paper will focus on two field tests, performed in the Netherlands, applying multi-agent control by means of the PowerMatcher concept. The first field test focuses on the application of multi-agent technology in a commercial setting, i.e. by reducing the need for balancing power in the case of intermittent energy sources, such as wind energy. In this case the flexibility is used of demand and supply of industrial and residential consumers and producers. Imbalance reduction rates of over 40% have been achieved applying the PowerMatcher, and with a proper portfolio even larger rates are expected. In the second field test the multi-agent technology is used in the design and implementation of a virtual power plant (VPP). This VPP digitally connects a number of micro-CHP units, installed in residential dwellings, into a cluster that is controlled to reduce the local peak demand of the common low-voltage grid segment the micro-CHP units are connected to. In this way the VPP supports the local distribution system operator (DSO) to defer reinforcements in the grid infrastructure (substations and cables)

Field tests applying multi-agent technology for distributed control. Virtual power plants and wind energy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schaeffer, G.J.; Warmer, C.J.; Hommelberg, M.P.F.; Kamphuis, I.G.; Kok, J.K.

2007-01-01

Multi-agent technology is state of the art ICT. It is not yet widely applied in power control systems. However, it has a large potential for bottom-up, distributed control of a network with large-scale renewable energy sources (RES) and distributed energy resources (DER) in future power systems. At least two major European R and D projects (MicroGrids and CRISP) have investigated its potential. Both grid-related as well as market-related applications have been studied. This paper will focus on two field tests, performed in the Netherlands, applying multi-agent control by means of the PowerMatcher concept. The first field test focuses on the application of multi-agent technology in a commercial setting, i.e. by reducing the need for balancing power in the case of intermittent energy sources, such as wind energy. In this case the flexibility is used of demand and supply of industrial and residential consumers and producers. Imbalance reduction rates of over 40% have been achieved applying the PowerMatcher, and with a proper portfolio even larger rates are expected. In the second field test the multi-agent technology is used in the design and implementation of a virtual power plant (VPP). This VPP digitally connects a number of micro-CHP units, installed in residential dwellings, into a cluster that is controlled to reduce the local peak demand of the common low-voltage grid segment the micro-CHP units are connected to. In this way the VPP supports the local distribution system operator (DSO) to defer reinforcements in the grid infrastructure (substations and cables)

Efficacy of night-time compression for breast cancer related lymphedema (LYNC): protocol for a multi-centre, randomized controlled efficacy trial

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

McNeely, Margaret L.; Campbell, Kristin L.; Webster, Marc; Kuusk, Urve; Tracey, Karen; Mackey, John

2016-01-01

Lymphedema is a prevalent long-term effect of breast cancer treatment that is associated with reduced quality of life. More recent observational data suggest that the addition of night-time compression to day-time use of a compression garment results in better long-term control of arm lymphedema. The primary objectives of the randomized controlled phase of the trial are to determine the efficacy of night-time compression on arm lymphedema volume maintenance and quality of life in breast cancer survivors who have completed intensive reduction treatment for their lymphedema. The study will be a parallel 3-arm, multi-centre randomized fast-track trial. A total of 120 women with breast cancer related lymphedema will be recruited from 3 centres in Canada and randomized to group 1: Day-time compression garment alone or Group 2: Day-time compression garment + night-time compression bandaging or Group 3: Day-time compression garment + use of a night-time compression system garment. The duration of the primary intervention period will be 12 weeks. The follow-up period after the intervention (weeks 13 to 24) will follow a longitudinal observational design. The primary outcome variables: differences from baseline to week 12 in arm volume and quality of life (Lymphoedema Functioning, Disability and Health Questionnaire: Lymph-ICF). Secondary outcomes include bioimpedance analysis, sleep disturbance and self-efficacy. All measurements are standardized and will be performed prior to randomization, and at weeks 6, 12, 18 and 24. The use of night-time compression as a self-management strategy for chronic breast cancer related lymphedema is seen as an innovative approach to improve long-term control over the condition. This trial aims to advance the knowledge on self-management strategies for lymphedema

Use of platelet rich plasma to treat plantar fasciitis: design of a multi centre randomized controlled trial

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Peerbooms Joost C

2010-04-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background If conservative treatment for chronic plantar fasciitis fails, often a corticosteroid injection is given. Corticosteroid injection gives temporarily pain reduction, but no healing. Blood platelets initiate the natural healing rate. GPS® gives an eightfold concentrate platelets of patients own blood. Injection of these platelets in the attachment of the fascia to the os calcis might induce a healing rate. Methods and design A randomized controlled multi centre trial will be performed. The study population consists of 120 patients of 18 years and older. Patients with chronic plantar fasciitis will be allocated randomly to have a steroid injection or an autologous platelet concentrate injections. Data will be collected before the procedure, 4,8,12,26 weeks and 1 year after the procedure. The main outcome measures of this study are pain and function measured with questionnaires. Conclusion Recent literature show positive effects for the treatment of tendinosis with autologous platelet injections. The forthcoming trial will compare treatment for chronic plantar fasciitis with a steroid injection versus an autologous platelet injection. Our results will be published as soon as they become available. Trial Registration Trial registration number: http://www.clinicaltrials.gov NCT00758641.

Quantum state preparation using multi-level-atom optics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Busch, Th; Deasy, K; Chormaic, S Nic

2007-01-01

One of the most important characteristics for controlling processes on the quantum scale is the fidelity or robustness of the techniques being used. In the case of single atoms localized in micro-traps, it was recently shown that the use of time-dependent tunnelling interactions in a multi-trap setup can be viewed as analogous to the area of multi-level optics. The atom's centre-of-mass can then be controlled with a high fidelity, using a STIRAP-type process. Here, we review previous work that led to the development of multi-level atom optics and present two examples of our most recent work on quantum state preparation

The CERN Control Centre is up and running!

CERN Multimedia

2006-01-01

The CERN Control Centre (CCC) that combines all the control rooms for the accelerators, the cryogenic system and the technical infrastructure came into operation on 1st February. This is not a mock-up but the real thing! The CERN Control Centre has been built and put into operation in only 15 months.On 1st February, at 2.00 p.m., Patrick Villeton Pachot started the first Technical Infrastructure shift at the brand new CERN Control Centre. From now on, when you dial 72201 to report a leak or an electrical fault, your call will ring out in the brand new CERN Control Centre. The much anticipated CCC came on line on 1st February, exactly as planned. The 2.00 p.m. shift by the operators of the former Technical Control Room (TCR), now renamed TI for Technical Infrastructure, marked the start of operations at the Centre. The PCR, MCR, TCR and QCR are no more, and all the individual control rooms have been merged into one. And what a control room it is! True to the streamlined image announced when the project was f...

Harmonization process and reliability assessment of anthropometric measurements in the elderly EXERNET multi-centre study.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alba Gómez-Cabello

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: The elderly EXERNET multi-centre study aims to collect normative anthropometric data for old functionally independent adults living in Spain. PURPOSE: To describe the standardization process and reliability of the anthropometric measurements carried out in the pilot study and during the final workshop, examining both intra- and inter-rater errors for measurements. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 98 elderly from five different regions participated in the intra-rater error assessment, and 10 different seniors living in the city of Toledo (Spain participated in the inter-rater assessment. We examined both intra- and inter-rater errors for heights and circumferences. RESULTS: For height, intra-rater technical errors of measurement (TEMs were smaller than 0.25 cm. For circumferences and knee height, TEMs were smaller than 1 cm, except for waist circumference in the city of Cáceres. Reliability for heights and circumferences was greater than 98% in all cases. Inter-rater TEMs were 0.61 cm for height, 0.75 cm for knee-height and ranged between 2.70 and 3.09 cm for the circumferences measured. Inter-rater reliabilities for anthropometric measurements were always higher than 90%. CONCLUSION: The harmonization process, including the workshop and pilot study, guarantee the quality of the anthropometric measurements in the elderly EXERNET multi-centre study. High reliability and low TEM may be expected when assessing anthropometry in elderly population.

Calculation of controllability and observability matrices for special case of continuous-time multi-order fractional systems.

Science.gov (United States)

Hassanzadeh, Iman; Tabatabaei, Mohammad

2017-03-28

In this paper, controllability and observability matrices for pseudo upper or lower triangular multi-order fractional systems are derived. It is demonstrated that these systems are controllable and observable if and only if their controllability and observability matrices are full rank. In other words, the rank of these matrices should be equal to the inner dimension of their corresponding state space realizations. To reduce the computational complexities, these matrices are converted to simplified matrices with smaller dimensions. Numerical examples are provided to show the usefulness of the mentioned matrices for controllability and observability analysis of this case of multi-order fractional systems. These examples clarify that the duality concept is not necessarily true for these special systems. Copyright © 2017 ISA. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The new European Competence Centre for Moor and Climate - A European initiative for practical peat bog and climate protection

Science.gov (United States)

Smidt, Geerd; Tänzer, Detlef

2013-04-01

The new European Competence Centre for Moor and Climate (EFMK) is an initiative by different local communities, environmental protection NGOs, agricultural services, and partners from the peat and other industries in Lower Saxony (Germany). The Centre aims to integrate practical peat bog conservation with a focus on green house gas emission after drainage and after water logging activities. Together with our partners we want to break new ground to protect the remaining bogs in the region. Sphagnum mosses will be produced in paludiculture on-site in cooperation with the local peat industry to provide economic and ecologic alternatives for peat products used in horticulture business. Land-use changes are needed in the region and will be stimulated in cooperation with agricultural services via compensation money transfers from environmental protection funds. On a global scale the ideas of Carbon Credit System have to be discussed to protect the peat bogs for climate protection issues. Environmental education is an important pillar of the EFMK. The local society is invited to explore the unique ecosystem and to participate in peat bog protection activities. Future generations will be taught to understand that the health of our peat bogs is interrelated with the health of the local and global climate. Besides extracurricular classes for schools the centre will provide infrastructure for Master and PhD students, as well for senior researchers for applied research in the surrounding moor. International partners in the scientific and practical fields of peat bog ecology, renaturation, green house gas emissions from peat bogs, and environmental policy are invited to participate in the European Competence Center for Moor and Climate.

MultiController: the PLC-SCADA object for advanced regulation

CERN Document Server

Ortola, J

2007-01-01

Nowadays, industrial solutions with PLCs (Programmable Logic Controllers) have basic control loop features. The SCADA (Supervisory Control And Data Acquisition) system is a key point of the process control system due to an efficient HMI (Human Machine Interfaces) that provides an open method of tuning and leading possibilities. As a consequence, advanced control algorithms have to be developed and implemented for those PLC-SCADA solutions in order to provide perspectives in solving complex and critical regulation problems. The MultiController is an object integrated for a large scale project at CERN (the European Organization for Nuclear Research) named LHC-GCS (Large Hadron Collider - Gas Control System). It is developed for a Framework called CERN-UNICOS based on PLC-SCADA facilities. The MultiController object offers various advanced control loop strategies. It gives to the user advanced control algorithms like PID, Smith Predictor, PFC, GPC and RST. It is implemented as a monolithic entity (in PLC and SCA...

Multi-scale analysis of the European airspace using network community detection.

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Gérald Gurtner

Full Text Available We show that the European airspace can be represented as a multi-scale traffic network whose nodes are airports, sectors, or navigation points and links are defined and weighted according to the traffic of flights between the nodes. By using a unique database of the air traffic in the European airspace, we investigate the architecture of these networks with a special emphasis on their community structure. We propose that unsupervised network community detection algorithms can be used to monitor the current use of the airspace and improve it by guiding the design of new ones. Specifically, we compare the performance of several community detection algorithms, both with fixed and variable resolution, and also by using a null model which takes into account the spatial distance between nodes, and we discuss their ability to find communities that could be used to define new control units of the airspace.

Implementing the ESC/ERS pulmonary hypertension guidelines: real-life cases from a national referral centre

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

D. Montani

2009-12-01

Full Text Available Pulmonary hypertension (PH comprises a heterogeneous group of disorders characterised by increased pulmonary vascular resistance that results in progressive right ventricular failure. In order to translate current evidence into routine clinical practice, the European Society of Cardiology (ESC and the European Respiratory Society (ERS have recently jointly proposed evidence-based guidelines for the optimal management of different PH patient groups. This article describes a series of clinical cases of PH due to various aetiologies that were referred to a large national PH expert referral centre. In each case, the assessment and therapeutic approach undertaken is described in the context of the new ECS/ERS guidelines. The routine diagnostic work-up of suspected idiopathic pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH and recommended treatments for patients with functional class II, III and IV disease is emphasised. Familial screening and management of heritable PAH is discussed. Appropriate investigation and therapeutic strategies for patients with chronic thromboembolic disease and PH that is associated with congenital heart disease, pulmonary veno-occlusive disease and systemic sclerosis are also highlighted.

PM 2.5 and NO 2 assessment in 21 European study centres of ECRHS II: annual means and seasonal differences

Science.gov (United States)

Hazenkamp-von Arx, Marianne E.; Götschi, Thomas; Ackermann-Liebrich, Ursula; Bono, Roberto; Burney, Peter; Cyrys, Josef; Jarvis, Deborah; Lillienberg, Linnea; Luczynska, Christina; Maldonado, Jose A.; Jaén, Angeles; de Marco, Roberto; Mi, Yahong; Modig, Lars; Bayer-Oglesby, Lucy; Payo, Felix; Soon, Argo; Sunyer, Jordi; Villani, Simona; Weyler, Joost; Künzli, Nino

The follow-up of cohorts of adults from more than 20 European centres of the former ECRHS I (1989-1992) investigates long-term effects of exposure to ambient air pollution on respiratory health, in particular asthma and change of pulmonary function. Since PM 2.5 is not routinely monitored in Europe, we measured PM 2.5 concentrations in 21 participating centres to estimate 'background' exposure in these cities. Winter (November-February), summer (May-August) and annual mean (all months) values of PM 2.5 were determined from measuring periods between June 2000 and November 2001. Sampling was conducted for 7 days per month for a year. Annual and winter mean concentrations of PM 2.5 vary substantially being lowest in Iceland and highest in centres in Northern Italy. Annual mean concentrations ranged from 3.7 to 44.9 μg m -3, winter mean concentrations from 4.8 to 69.2 μg m -3, and summer mean concentrations from 3.3 to 23.1 μg m -3. Seasonal variability occurred but did not follow the same pattern across all centres. Therefore, ranking of centres varied from summer to winter. Simultaneously, NO 2 concentrations were measured using passive sampling tubes. Annual mean NO 2 concentrations range from 4.9 to 72.1 μg m -3 with similar seasonal variations across centres and constant ranking of centres between seasons. The correlation between annual NO 2 and PM 2.5 concentrations is fair (Spearman correlation coefficient rs=0.75), but when considered as monthly means the correlation is far less consistent and varies substantially between centres. The range of PM 2.5 mass concentrations obtained in ECRHS II is larger than in other current cohort studies on long-term effects of air pollution. This substantial variation in PM 2.5 exposure will improve statistical power in future multi-level health analyses and to some degree may compensate for the lack of information on within-city variability. Seasonal means may be used to indicate potential differences in the toxicity

Nuclear research and development in the European community

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1979-01-01

Research programmes undertaken by the European Atomic Energy Community and the European Economic Community are discussed. These programmes are carried out both at the Communities own Joint Research Centres (at Ispra, Karlsruhe, Geel and Petten) and also, although centrally managed by the Commission, at research organizations in the Member States. Such research projects include radioactive waste management and storage, decommissioning of nuclear power stations and nuclear fusion. Culham Laboratory is not only the centre for the UKAEA's research into controlled thermonuclear fusion but is also host to the Joint European Torus Joint Undertaking. (U.K.)

Multi-port versus single-port cholecystectomy: results of a multi-centre, randomised controlled trial (MUSIC trial).

Science.gov (United States)

Arezzo, Alberto; Passera, Roberto; Bullano, Alberto; Mintz, Yoav; Kedar, Asaf; Boni, Luigi; Cassinotti, Elisa; Rosati, Riccardo; Fumagalli Romario, Uberto; Sorrentino, Mario; Brizzolari, Marco; Di Lorenzo, Nicola; Gaspari, Achille Lucio; Andreone, Dario; De Stefani, Elena; Navarra, Giuseppe; Lazzara, Salvatore; Degiuli, Maurizio; Shishin, Kirill; Khatkov, Igor; Kazakov, Ivan; Schrittwieser, Rudolf; Carus, Thomas; Corradi, Alessio; Sitzman, Guenther; Lacy, Antonio; Uranues, Selman; Szold, Amir; Morino, Mario

2017-07-01

Single-port laparoscopic surgery as an alternative to conventional laparoscopic cholecystectomy for benign disease has not yet been accepted as a standard procedure. The aim of the multi-port versus single-port cholecystectomy trial was to compare morbidity rates after single-access (SPC) and standard laparoscopy (MPC). This non-inferiority phase 3 trial was conducted at 20 hospital surgical departments in six countries. At each centre, patients were randomly assigned to undergo either SPC or MPC. The primary outcome was overall morbidity within 60 days after surgery. Analysis was by intention to treat. The study was registered with ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT01104727). The study was conducted between April 2011 and May 2015. A total of 600 patients were randomly assigned to receive either SPC (n = 297) or MPC (n = 303) and were eligible for data analysis. Postsurgical complications within 60 days were recorded in 13 patients (4.7 %) in the SPC group and in 16 (6.1 %) in the MPC group (P = 0.468); however, single-access procedures took longer [70 min (range 25-265) vs. 55 min (range 22-185); P risk of incisional hernia following SPC do not appear to be justified. Patient satisfaction with aesthetic results was greater after SPC than after MPC.

Multi-agent simulation of competitive electricity markets: Autonomous systems cooperation for European market modeling

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Santos, Gabriel; Pinto, Tiago; Morais, Hugo; Sousa, Tiago M.; Pereira, Ivo F.; Fernandes, Ricardo; Praça, Isabel; Vale, Zita

2015-01-01

Highlights: • Definition of an ontology allowing the communication between multi-agents systems. • Social welfare evaluation in different electricity markets. • Demonstration of the use of the proposed ontology between two multi-agents systems. • Strategic biding in electricity markets. • European electricity markets comparison. - Abstract: The electricity market restructuring, and its worldwide evolution into regional and even continental scales, along with the increasing necessity for an adequate integration of renewable energy sources, is resulting in a rising complexity in power systems operation. Several power system simulators have been developed in recent years with the purpose of helping operators, regulators, and involved players to understand and deal with this complex and constantly changing environment. The main contribution of this paper is given by the integration of several electricity market and power system models, respecting to the reality of different countries. This integration is done through the development of an upper ontology which integrates the essential concepts necessary to interpret all the available information. The continuous development of Multi-Agent System for Competitive Electricity Markets platform provides the means for the exemplification of the usefulness of this ontology. A case study using the proposed multi-agent platform is presented, considering a scenario based on real data that simulates the European Electricity Market environment, and comparing its performance using different market mechanisms. The main goal is to demonstrate the advantages that the integration of various market models and simulation platforms have for the study of the electricity markets’ evolution

Control of trafficking of radioactive sources/substances on European Community eastern border

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lovjagina, Irina; Graveris, Visvaldis

2008-01-01

Full text: Taking into account Latvia geographical location, historical core stones (the dissolution of Soviet Union, join to European Community) and increasing of the international terrorism treats, control fissile and non-fissile radioactive material become one of high priorities. During past 2 years active work and practical exercise with representative from Ministry of Defense, Police, and Custom etc. on control of trafficking of such materials were performed and Operational Manual for Control on Radioactive Materials for Customs and Policy officers is issued. All land borders check points with Russian Federation and Byelorussian, all harbors and airports were equipped with a gamma/ neutrons or gamma control portals. To control unwanted material traffic within the country, as well as to ensure the recycled scrap metal is source-free use of monitoring portals and additional portable detectors in the past years strictly increased. Cases with alarm levels, when gamma dose rate exceeds more than 1.5 times the background level, are subject to reporting and analyzing by Radiation Safety Centre (RDC) experts (24 hours on duty). Consultative phone service for inhabitants is maintained; guidelines and working procedures within Authority and other Institutions involving were developed and implemented. As a result, in 2007 RDC has got 612 reports from the border. In 83% cases this was relevant to the trains, in 17%- to the trucks. Mostly enhanced activity was due to potassium compounds in fertilizers (85%), due to ceramics (4%), abrasives (2.5%), and refractory materials (3%). Controlling scrap metal there were revealed two sources in 2007 - one Sr-90 calibration source and other Cs-137 orphan source (origin unknown). The presence of radioactive sources in scrap in the past 3 years has been represented by Co-60, Cs-137 and Sr-90 sources, parts of statically electricity neutralizers, Ra-226. Several times NORM industries polluted materials were from scrap excluded

The CERN Control Centre is up and running!

CERN Multimedia

Maximilien Brice

2006-01-01

The CERN Control Centre (CCC) that combines all the control rooms for the accelerators, the cryogenic system and the technical infrastructure came into operation on 1st February. On 1st February, at 2.00 p.m., Patrick Villeton Pachot started the first Technical Infrastructure shift at the brand new CERN Control Centre.

A multi-centre randomised controlled trial of rehabilitation aimed at improving outdoor mobility for people after stroke: Study protocol for a randomised controlled trial

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Logan Pip A

2012-06-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Up to 42% of all stroke patients do not get out of the house as much as they would like. This can impede a person’s quality of life. This study is testing the clinical effectiveness and cost effectiveness of a new outdoor mobility rehabilitation intervention by comparing it to usual care. Methods/design This is a multi-centre parallel group individually randomised, controlled trial. At least 506 participants will be recruited through 15 primary and secondary care settings and will be eligible if they are over 18 years of age, have had a stroke and wish to get out of the house more often. Participants are being randomly allocated to either the intervention group or the control group. Intervention group participants receive up to 12 rehabilitation outdoor mobility sessions over up to four months. The main component of the intervention is repeated practice of outdoor mobility with a therapist. Control group participants are receiving the usual intervention for outdoor mobility limitations: verbal advice and provision of leaflets provided over one session. Outcome measures are being collected using postal questionnaires, travel calendars and by independent assessors. The primary outcome measure is the Social Function domain of the SF36v2 quality of life assessment six months after recruitment. The secondary outcome measures include: functional ability, mobility, the number of journeys (monthly travel diaries, satisfaction with outdoor mobility, mood, health-related quality of life, resource use of health and social care. Carer mood information is also being collected. The mean Social Function score of the SF-36v2 will be compared between treatment arms using a multiple membership form of mixed effects multiple regression analysis adjusting for centre (as a fixed effect, age and baseline Social Function score as covariates and therapist as a multiple membership random effect. Regression coefficients and 95% confidence

European surveillance for enterovirus D68 during the emerging North-American outbreak in 2014

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Poelman, Randy; Schuffenecker, Isabelle; Van Leer-Buter, Coretta

2015-01-01

BACKGROUND: In August and September 2014, unexpected clusters of enterovirus-D68 (EV-D68) infections associated with severe respiratory disease emerged from North-America. In September, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) asked European countries to strengthen respiratory...... sample screening for enterovirus detection and typing in cases with severe respiratory presentations. OBJECTIVES: To provide a detailed picture of EV-D68 epidemiology in Europe by conducting a retrospective and prospective laboratory analysis of clinical specimens. STUDY DESIGN: An initiative supported...

Concordance between European and US case definitions of healthcare-associated infections

Science.gov (United States)

2012-01-01

Background Surveillance of healthcare-associated infections (HAI) is a valuable measure to decrease infection rates. Across Europe, inter-country comparisons of HAI rates seem limited because some countries use US definitions from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC/NHSN) while other countries use European definitions from the Hospitals in Europe Link for Infection Control through Surveillance (HELICS/IPSE) project. In this study, we analyzed the concordance between US and European definitions of HAI. Methods An international working group of experts from seven European countries was set up to identify differences between US and European definitions and then conduct surveillance using both sets of definitions during a three-month period (March 1st -May 31st, 2010). Concordance between case definitions was estimated with Cohen’s kappa statistic (κ). Results Differences in HAI definitions were found for bloodstream infection (BSI), pneumonia (PN), urinary tract infection (UTI) and the two key terms “intensive care unit (ICU)-acquired infection” and “mechanical ventilation”. Concordance was analyzed for these definitions and key terms with the exception of UTI. Surveillance was performed in 47 ICUs and 6,506 patients were assessed. One hundred and eighty PN and 123 BSI cases were identified. When all PN cases were considered, concordance for PN was κ = 0.99 [CI 95%: 0.98-1.00]. When PN cases were divided into subgroups, concordance was κ = 0.90 (CI 95%: 0.86-0.94) for clinically defined PN and κ = 0.72 (CI 95%: 0.63-0.82) for microbiologically defined PN. Concordance for BSI was κ = 0.73 [CI 95%: 0.66-0.80]. However, BSI cases secondary to another infection site (42% of all BSI cases) are excluded when using US definitions and concordance for BSI was κ = 1.00 when only primary BSI cases, i.e. Europe-defined BSI with ”catheter” or “unknown” origin and US-defined laboratory-confirmed BSI (LCBI), were

Concordance between European and US case definitions of healthcare-associated infections

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hansen Sonja

2012-08-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Surveillance of healthcare-associated infections (HAI is a valuable measure to decrease infection rates. Across Europe, inter-country comparisons of HAI rates seem limited because some countries use US definitions from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC/NHSN while other countries use European definitions from the Hospitals in Europe Link for Infection Control through Surveillance (HELICS/IPSE project. In this study, we analyzed the concordance between US and European definitions of HAI. Methods An international working group of experts from seven European countries was set up to identify differences between US and European definitions and then conduct surveillance using both sets of definitions during a three-month period (March 1st -May 31st, 2010. Concordance between case definitions was estimated with Cohen’s kappa statistic (κ. Results Differences in HAI definitions were found for bloodstream infection (BSI, pneumonia (PN, urinary tract infection (UTI and the two key terms “intensive care unit (ICU-acquired infection” and “mechanical ventilation”. Concordance was analyzed for these definitions and key terms with the exception of UTI. Surveillance was performed in 47 ICUs and 6,506 patients were assessed. One hundred and eighty PN and 123 BSI cases were identified. When all PN cases were considered, concordance for PN was κ = 0.99 [CI 95%: 0.98-1.00]. When PN cases were divided into subgroups, concordance was κ = 0.90 (CI 95%: 0.86-0.94 for clinically defined PN and κ = 0.72 (CI 95%: 0.63-0.82 for microbiologically defined PN. Concordance for BSI was κ = 0.73 [CI 95%: 0.66-0.80]. However, BSI cases secondary to another infection site (42% of all BSI cases are excluded when using US definitions and concordance for BSI was κ = 1.00 when only primary BSI cases, i.e. Europe-defined BSI with ”catheter” or “unknown” origin and US-defined laboratory-confirmed BSI

Design and baseline characteristics of the Food4Me study: a web-based randomised controlled trial of personalised nutrition in seven European countries.

Science.gov (United States)

Celis-Morales, Carlos; Livingstone, Katherine M; Marsaux, Cyril F M; Forster, Hannah; O'Donovan, Clare B; Woolhead, Clara; Macready, Anna L; Fallaize, Rosalind; Navas-Carretero, Santiago; San-Cristobal, Rodrigo; Kolossa, Silvia; Hartwig, Kai; Tsirigoti, Lydia; Lambrinou, Christina P; Moschonis, George; Godlewska, Magdalena; Surwiłło, Agnieszka; Grimaldi, Keith; Bouwman, Jildau; Daly, E J; Akujobi, Victor; O'Riordan, Rick; Hoonhout, Jettie; Claassen, Arjan; Hoeller, Ulrich; Gundersen, Thomas E; Kaland, Siv E; Matthews, John N S; Manios, Yannis; Traczyk, Iwona; Drevon, Christian A; Gibney, Eileen R; Brennan, Lorraine; Walsh, Marianne C; Lovegrove, Julie A; Alfredo Martinez, J; Saris, Wim H M; Daniel, Hannelore; Gibney, Mike; Mathers, John C

2015-01-01

Improving lifestyle behaviours has considerable potential for reducing the global burden of non-communicable diseases, promoting better health across the life-course and increasing well-being. However, realising this potential will require the development, testing and implementation of much more effective behaviour change interventions than are used conventionally. Therefore, the aim of this study was to conduct a multi-centre, web-based, proof-of-principle study of personalised nutrition (PN) to determine whether providing more personalised dietary advice leads to greater improvements in eating patterns and health outcomes compared to conventional population-based advice. A total of 5,562 volunteers were screened across seven European countries; the first 1,607 participants who fulfilled the inclusion criteria were recruited into the trial. Participants were randomly assigned to one of the following intervention groups for a 6-month period: Level 0-control group-receiving conventional, non-PN advice; Level 1-receiving PN advice based on dietary intake data alone; Level 2-receiving PN advice based on dietary intake and phenotypic data; and Level 3-receiving PN advice based on dietary intake, phenotypic and genotypic data. A total of 1,607 participants had a mean age of 39.8 years (ranging from 18 to 79 years). Of these participants, 60.9 % were women and 96.7 % were from white-European background. The mean BMI for all randomised participants was 25.5 kg m(-2), and 44.8 % of the participants had a BMI ≥ 25.0 kg m(-2). Food4Me is the first large multi-centre RCT of web-based PN. The main outcomes from the Food4Me study will be submitted for publication during 2015.

Study protocol: SPARCLE – a multi-centre European study of the relationship of environment to participation and quality of life in children with cerebral palsy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Colver Allan

2006-04-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background SPARCLE is a nine-centre European epidemiological research study examining the relationship of participation and quality of life to impairment and environment (physical, social and attitudinal in 8–12 year old children with cerebral palsy. Concepts are adopted from the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health which bridges the medical and social models of disability. Methods/Design A cross sectional study of children with cerebral palsy sampled from total population databases in 9 European regions. Children were visited by research associates in each country who had been trained together. The main instruments used were KIDSCREEN, Life-H, Strength and Difficulties Questionnaire, Parenting Stress Index. A measure of environment was developed within the study. All instruments were translated according to international guidelines. The potential for bias due to non response and missing data will be examined. After initial analysis using multivariate regression of how the data captured by each instrument relate to impairment and socio-economic characteristics, relationships between the latent traits captured by the instruments will then be analysed using structural equation modelling. Discussion This study is original in its methods by directly engaging children themselves, ensuring those with learning or communication difficulty are not excluded, and by studying in quantitative terms the crucial outcomes of participation and quality of life. Specification and publication of this protocol prior to analysis, which is not common in epidemiology but well established for randomised controlled trials and systematic reviews, should avoid the pitfalls of data dredging and post hoc analyses.

Systematic review on tuberculosis transmission on aircraft and update of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control risk assessment guidelines for tuberculosis transmitted on aircraft (RAGIDA-TB).

Science.gov (United States)

Kotila, Saara M; Payne Hallström, Lara; Jansen, Niesje; Helbling, Peter; Abubakar, Ibrahim

2016-01-01

As a setting for potential tuberculosis (TB) transmission and contact tracing, aircraft pose specific challenges. Evidence-based guidelines are needed to support the related-risk assessment and contact-tracing efforts. In this study evidence of TB transmission on aircraft was identified to update the Risk Assessment Guidelines for TB Transmitted on Aircraft (RAGIDA-TB) of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC). Electronic searches were undertaken from Medline (Pubmed), Embase and Cochrane Library until 19 July 2013. Eligible records were identified by a two-stage screening process and data on flight and index case characteristics as well as contact tracing strategies extracted. The systematic literature review retrieved 21 records. Ten of these records were available only after the previous version of the RAGIDA guidelines (2009) and World Health Organization guidelines on TB and air travel (2008) were published. Seven of the 21 records presented some evidence of possible in-flight transmission, but only one record provided substantial evidence of TB transmission on an aircraft. The data indicate that overall risk of TB transmission on aircraft is very low. The updated ECDC guidelines for TB transmission on aircraft have global implications due to inevitable need for international collaboration in contract tracing and risk assessment.

Development of the Advanced CANDU Reactor control centre

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Malcolm, S.; Leger, R.

2004-01-01

The next generation CANDU control centre is being designed for the Advanced CANDU Reactor (ACR) station. The design is based upon the recent Qinshan control room with further upgrades to meet customer needs with respect to high capacity factor with low Operation, Maintenance and Administration (OM and A) costs. This evolutionary design includes the long proven functionality at several existing CANDU control centres such as the 4-unit station at Darlington, with advanced features made possible by new control and display technology. Additionally, ACR control centres address characteristics resulting from Human Factors Engineering (HFE) analysis of control centre operations in order to further enhance personnel awareness of system and plant status. Statistics show that up to 70% of plant significant events, which have caused plant outages, have a root cause attributable to the human from such sources as complex interfaces, procedures, maintenance and management practices. Consequently, special attention is made for the application of HFE throughout the ACR design process. The design process follows a systematic analytical approach to define operations staff information and information presentation requirements. The resultant human-system interfaces (HSI) such as those for monitoring, annunciation and control information are then verified and validated against the system design requirements to provide a high confidence level that adequate and correct information is being provided in a timely manner to support the necessary operational tasks. The ACR control centre provides plant staff with an improved operability capability due to the combination of systematic design and enhanced operating features. Significant design processes (i.e. development) or design features which contribute to this improved operability, include: Design Process: Project HFE Program Plan - intent, scope, timeliness and interfacing; HFE aspects of design process - procedures and instructions

Development of the advanced CANDU reactor control centre

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Malcolm, S.; Leger, R.

2004-01-01

The next generation CANDU control centre is being designed for the Advanced CANDU Reactor (ACR) station. The design is based upon the recent Qinshan control room with further upgrades to meet customer needs with respect to high capacity factor with low Operation, Maintenance and Administration (OM and A) costs. This evolutionary design includes the long proven functionality at several existing CANDU control centres such as the 4-unit station at Darlington, with advanced features made possible by new control and display technology. Additionally, ACR control centres address characteristics resulting from Human Factors Engineering (HFE) analysis of control centre operations in order to further enhance personnel awareness of system and plant status. Statistics show that up to 70% of plant significant events, which have caused plant outages, have a root cause attributable to the human from such sources as complex interfaces, procedures, maintenance and management practices. Consequently, special attention is made for the application of HFE throughout the ACR design process. The design process follows a systematic analytical approach to define operations staff information and information presentation requirements. The resultant human-system interfaces (HSI) such as those for monitoring, annunciation and control information are then verified and validated against the system design requirements to provide a high confidence level that adequate and correct information is being provided in a timely manner to support the necessary operational tasks. The ACR control centre provides plant staff with an improved operability capability due to the combination of systematic design and enhanced operating features. Significant design processes (i.e. development) or design features which contribute to this improved operability, include: Design Process: Project HFE Program Plan - intent, scope, timeliness and interfacing; HFE aspects of design process - procedures and instructions

Evaluation of the preliminary auditory profile test battery in an international multi-centre study

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van Esch, T.E.M.; Kollmeier, B.; Vormann, M.; Lijzenga, J.; Houtgast, T.; Hallgren, M.; Larsby, B.; Athalye, S.P.; Lutman, M.E.; Dreschler, W.A.

2013-01-01

Objective: This paper describes the composition and international multi-centre evaluation of a battery of tests termed the preliminary auditory profile. It includes measures of loudness perception, listening effort, speech perception, spectral and temporal resolution, spatial hearing, self-reported

European Train Control System: A Case Study in Formal Verification

Science.gov (United States)

Platzer, André; Quesel, Jan-David

Complex physical systems have several degrees of freedom. They only work correctly when their control parameters obey corresponding constraints. Based on the informal specification of the European Train Control System (ETCS), we design a controller for its cooperation protocol. For its free parameters, we successively identify constraints that are required to ensure collision freedom. We formally prove the parameter constraints to be sharp by characterizing them equivalently in terms of reachability properties of the hybrid system dynamics. Using our deductive verification tool KeYmaera, we formally verify controllability, safety, liveness, and reactivity properties of the ETCS protocol that entail collision freedom. We prove that the ETCS protocol remains correct even in the presence of perturbation by disturbances in the dynamics. We verify that safety is preserved when a PI controlled speed supervision is used.

Improving tuberculosis case detection in underdeveloped multi-ethnic regions with high disease burden: a case study of integrated control program in China.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Jun; Liu, Xiao-Qiu; Jiang, Shi-Wen; Li, Xue; Yu, Fei; Wang, Yan; Peng, Yong; Gu, Xiao-Ming; Sun, Yan-Ni; Zhang, Hui; Wang, Li-Xia

2017-11-29

In the underdeveloped multi-ethnic regions of China, high tuberculosis (TB) burden and regional inequity in access to healthcare service increase the challenge of achieving the End TB goals. Among all the provinces, the highest TB burden is reported in Xinjiang, where ethnic minorities and older people have suffered most. However, current case-finding strategy is inadequate given the complex social determinants and suboptimal case detection rates. Thus, we developed an integrated TB control program to improve case detection and conducted a pilot in Xinjiang from 2014 to 2015. In this case study, we summarized the activities and key findings. We also shared the experiences and challenges of implementing interventions and provided recommendations to inform the TB control program in the future. The pilot interventions were implemented in one selected town in Yining based on local TB control programs. By applying tailor-made educational materials, outreach TB educational activities were conducted in diverse ways. In 22 Masjids, the trained imams promoted TB education to the Muslims, covering 20,440 person-times in 88 delivered preaching sessions. In seven schools, 1944 students were educated by the teachers and contributed to educating 6929 family members. In the village communities, 13,073 residents participated in household education and screening. Among them, 12,292 people aged under 65 years were investigated for suspicious pulmonary TB symptoms, where six TB patients were diagnosed out of 89 TB suspects; 781 older people were mobilized for screening directly by chest X-ray, where 10 patients were diagnosed out of 692 participants. Supportive healthcare system, multi-sectoral cooperation and multi-channel financing mechanism were the successful experiences of implementation. The interventions were proved to be more effective than the previous performance: the number of TB suspects consulting doctors and patients detected increased by 50% and 26%, respectively

An Expanded Genome-Wide Association Study of Type 2 Diabetes in Europeans

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Scott, Robert A; Scott, Laura J; Mägi, Reedik; Marullo, Letizia; Gaulton, Kyle J; Kaakinen, Marika; Pervjakova, Natalia; Pers, Tune H; Johnson, Andrew D; Eicher, John D; Jackson, Anne U; Ferreira, Teresa; Lee, Yeji; Ma, Clement; Steinthorsdottir, Valgerdur; Thorleifsson, Gudmar; Qi, Lu; Van Zuydam, Natalie R; Mahajan, Anubha; Chen, Han; Almgren, Peter; Voight, Ben F; Grallert, Harald; Müller-Nurasyid, Martina; Ried, Janina S; Rayner, William N; Robertson, Neil; Karssen, Lennart C; van Leeuwen, Elisabeth M; Willems, Sara M; Fuchsberger, Christian; Kwan, Phoenix; Teslovich, Tanya M; Chanda, Pritam; Li, Man; Lu, Yingchang; Dina, Christian; Thuillier, Dorothee; Yengo, Loic; Jiang, Longda; Sparso, Thomas; Kestler, Hans A; Chheda, Himanshu; Eisele, Lewin; Gustafsson, Stefan; Frånberg, Mattias; Strawbridge, Rona J; Benediktsson, Rafn; Hreidarsson, Astradur B; Kong, Augustine; Sigurðsson, Gunnar; Kerrison, Nicola D; Luan, Jian'an; Liang, Liming; Meitinger, Thomas; Roden, Michael; Thorand, Barbara; Esko, Tõnu; Mihailov, Evelin; Fox, Caroline; Liu, Ching-Ti; Rybin, Denis; Isomaa, Bo; Lyssenko, Valeriya; Tuomi, Tiinamaija; Couper, David J; Pankow, James S; Grarup, Niels; Have, Christian T; Jørgensen, Marit E; Jørgensen, Torben; Linneberg, Allan; Cornelis, Marilyn C; van Dam, Rob M; Hunter, David J; Kraft, Peter; Sun, Qi; Edkins, Sarah; Owen, Katharine R; Perry, John Rb; Wood, Andrew R; Zeggini, Eleftheria; Tajes-Fernandes, Juan; Abecasis, Goncalo R; Bonnycastle, Lori L; Chines, Peter S; Stringham, Heather M; Koistinen, Heikki A; Kinnunen, Leena; Sennblad, Bengt; Mühleisen, Thomas W; Nöthen, Markus M; Pechlivanis, Sonali; Baldassarre, Damiano; Gertow, Karl; Humphries, Steve E; Tremoli, Elena; Klopp, Norman; Meyer, Julia; Steinbach, Gerald; Wennauer, Roman; Eriksson, Johan G; Mӓnnistö, Satu; Peltonen, Leena; Tikkanen, Emmi; Charpentier, Guillaume; Eury, Elodie; Lobbens, Stéphane; Gigante, Bruna; Leander, Karin; McLeod, Olga; Bottinger, Erwin P; Gottesman, Omri; Ruderfer, Douglas; Blüher, Matthias; Kovacs, Peter; Tonjes, Anke; Maruthur, Nisa M; Scapoli, Chiara; Erbel, Raimund; Jöckel, Karl-Heinz; Moebus, Susanne; de Faire, Ulf; Hamsten, Anders; Stumvoll, Michael; Deloukas, Panagiotis; Donnelly, Peter J; Frayling, Timothy M; Hattersley, Andrew T; Ripatti, Samuli; Salomaa, Veikko; Pedersen, Nancy L; Boehm, Bernhard O; Bergman, Richard N; Collins, Francis S; Mohlke, Karen L; Tuomilehto, Jaakko; Hansen, Torben; Pedersen, Oluf; Barroso, Inês; Lannfelt, Lars; Ingelsson, Erik; Lind, Lars; Lindgren, Cecilia M; Cauchi, Stephane; Froguel, Philippe; Loos, Ruth Jf; Balkau, Beverley; Boeing, Heiner; Franks, Paul W; Gurrea, Aurelio Barricarte; Palli, Domenico; van der Schouw, Yvonne T; Altshuler, David; Groop, Leif C; Langenberg, Claudia; Wareham, Nicholas J; Sijbrands, Eric; van Duijn, Cornelia M; Florez, Jose C; Meigs, James B; Boerwinkle, Eric; Gieger, Christian; Strauch, Konstantin; Metspalu, Andres; Morris, Andrew D; Palmer, Colin Na; Hu, Frank B; Thorsteinsdottir, Unnur; Stefansson, Kari; Dupuis, Josée; Morris, Andrew P; Boehnke, Michael; McCarthy, Mark I; Prokopenko, Inga

2017-01-01

To characterise type 2 diabetes (T2D) associated variation across the allele frequency spectrum, we conducted a meta-analysis of genome-wide association data from 26,676 T2D cases and 132,532 controls of European ancestry after imputation using the 1000 Genomes multi-ethnic reference panel.

Migration-related tuberculosis: epidemiology and characteristics of tuberculosis cases originating outside the European Union and European Economic Area, 2007 to 2013.

Science.gov (United States)

Ködmön, Csaba; Zucs, Phillip; van der Werf, Marieke J

2016-01-01

Migrants arriving from high tuberculosis (TB)-incidence countries may pose a significant challenge to TB control programmes in the host country. TB surveillance data for 2007-2013 submitted to the European Surveillance System were analysed. Notified TB cases were stratified by origin and reporting country. The contribution of migrant TB cases to the TB epidemiology in EU/EEA countries was analysed. Migrant TB cases accounted for 17.4% (n = 92,039) of all TB cases reported in the EU/EEA in 2007-2013, continuously increasing from 13.6% in 2007 to 21.8% in 2013. Of 91,925 migrant cases with known country of origin, 29.3% were from the Eastern Mediterranean, 23.0% from south-east Asia, 21.4% from Africa, 13.4% from the World Health Organization European Region (excluding EU/EEA), and 12.9% from other regions. Of 46,499 migrant cases with known drug-susceptibility test results, 2.9% had multidrug-resistant TB, mainly (51.7%) originating from the European Region. The increasing contribution of TB in migrants from outside the EU/EEA to the TB burden in the EU/EEA is mainly due to a decrease in native TB cases. Especially in countries with a high proportion of TB cases in non-EU/EEA migrants, targeted prevention and control initiatives may be needed to progress towards TB elimination.

European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) calibration study: rationale, design and population characteristics

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Slimani, N.; Kaaks, R.; Ferrari, P.

2002-01-01

The European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC), which covers a large cohort of half a million men and women from 23 European centres in 10 Western European countries, was designed to study the relationship between diet and the risk of chronic diseases, particularly cancer......, a calibration approach was developed. This approach involved an additional dietary assessment common across study populations to re-express individual dietary intakes according to the same reference scale. A single 24-hour diet recall was therefore collected, as the EPIC reference calibration method, from...... in a large multi-centre European study. These studies showed that, despite certain inherent methodological and logistic constraints, a study design such as this one works relatively well in practice. The average response in the calibration study was 78.3% and ranged from 46.5% to 92.5%. The calibration...

Ethical dilemmas of a large national multi-centre study in Australia: time for some consistency.

Science.gov (United States)

Driscoll, Andrea; Currey, Judy; Worrall-Carter, Linda; Stewart, Simon

2008-08-01

To examine the impact and obstacles that individual Institutional Research Ethics Committee (IRECs) had on a large-scale national multi-centre clinical audit called the National Benchmarks and Evidence-based National Clinical guidelines for Heart failure management programmes Study. Multi-centre research is commonplace in the health care system. However, IRECs continue to fail to differentiate between research and quality audit projects. The National Benchmarks and Evidence-based National Clinical guidelines for Heart failure management programmes study used an investigator-developed questionnaire concerning a clinical audit for heart failure programmes throughout Australia. Ethical guidelines developed by the National governing body of health and medical research in Australia classified the National Benchmarks and Evidence-based National Clinical guidelines for Heart failure management programmes Study as a low risk clinical audit not requiring ethical approval by IREC. Fifteen of 27 IRECs stipulated that the research proposal undergo full ethical review. None of the IRECs acknowledged: national quality assurance guidelines and recommendations nor ethics approval from other IRECs. Twelve of the 15 IRECs used different ethics application forms. Variability in the type of amendments was prolific. Lack of uniformity in ethical review processes resulted in a six- to eight-month delay in commencing the national study. Development of a national ethics application form with full ethical review by the first IREC and compulsory expedited review by subsequent IRECs would resolve issues raised in this paper. IRECs must change their ethics approval processes to one that enhances facilitation of multi-centre research which is now normative process for health services. The findings of this study highlight inconsistent ethical requirements between different IRECs. Also highlighted are the obstacles and delays that IRECs create when undertaking multi-centre clinical audits

IDRANAP - European Centre of Excellence

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Buzatu, Florin D.

2003-01-01

Selected by the European Commission (EC) experts out of 185 proposals from 11 countries, IDRANAP (Inter-Disciplinary Research and Applications based on Nuclear and Atomic Physics) is the only EC Centre of Excellence in nuclear physics. The project, initiated and developed by a remarkable team from our institute, researchers with a recognized international scientific level, has as main objectives: - promotion in Romania and in the region of modern applications derived from basic and applied research in nuclear and atomic physics; - disciplinary research in ecology, health, biology, science of materials; - specific nuclear and atomic physics research aimed to open new possibilities for applications; - to ensure stimulative conditions for PhD students from Romania and other EC candidate countries to improve their knowledge and experience by joining scientific activities in the region, a fact that might counteract their tendency to migrate to Western countries. The high scientific level of researchers, their access to national and international facilities as well as the link with prestigious laboratories abroad and the socio-economic demand motivated the development of the project. Among expected results, we mention: improving and spreading the scientific knowledge by publications; producing new facilities, devices and instruments; application of nuclear methods in industry, health-care and environment protection, and training of young researchers. The project consists of 18 workpackages structured in 5 distinct areas: - Determining environmental pollution; - Nuclear methods in biology and medicine; - Radionuclide metrology; - Analysis and characterization of materials; - Nuclei far from stability, decay modes, cosmic rays, and facilities.We make an up-to-date presentation of obtained results and activities performed within IDRANAP project, as well as a short overview of our institute. (author)

Tuberculosis control in big cities and urban risk groups in the European Union: a consensus statement.

Science.gov (United States)

van Hest, N A; Aldridge, R W; de Vries, G; Sandgren, A; Hauer, B; Hayward, A; Arrazola de Oñate, W; Haas, W; Codecasa, L R; Caylà, J A; Story, A; Antoine, D; Gori, A; Quabeck, L; Jonsson, J; Wanlin, M; Orcau, Å; Rodes, A; Dedicoat, M; Antoun, F; van Deutekom, H; Keizer, St; Abubakar, I

2014-03-06

In low-incidence countries in the European Union (EU), tuberculosis (TB) is concentrated in big cities, especially among certain urban high-risk groups including immigrants from TB high-incidence countries, homeless people, and those with a history of drug and alcohol misuse. Elimination of TB in European big cities requires control measures focused on multiple layers of the urban population. The particular complexities of major EU metropolises, for example high population density and social structure, create specific opportunities for transmission, but also enable targeted TB control interventions, not efficient in the general population, to be effective or cost effective. Lessons can be learnt from across the EU and this consensus statement on TB control in big cities and urban risk groups was prepared by a working group representing various EU big cities, brought together on the initiative of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control. The consensus statement describes general and specific social, educational, operational, organisational, legal and monitoring TB control interventions in EU big cities, as well as providing recommendations for big city TB control, based upon a conceptual TB transmission and control model.

The role of the Joint Research Centre from the European Commission in the European Structural Integrity Networks AMES, ENIQ and NESC

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Estorff, U. von; Torronen, K.

1999-01-01

Due to the reduction in many countries of the research budget for nuclear safety several European institutions and organisations and the Institute for Advanced Materials (IAM) of the Joint Research Centre (JRC) of the European Commission (EC) have developed co-operative programmes now organised into 'Networks' for mutual benefit. They include utilities, engineering companies, research and development (R and D) laboratories and regulatory bodies. These Networks are all organised and managed in a similar way, i.e. like the successful Programme for the Inspection of Steel Components (PISC). The IAM plays the role of Operating Agent, Reference Laboratory and Network Manager of these Networks: European Network on Ageing Materials Evaluation and Studies (AMES), European Network for Inspection Qualification (ENIQ) and Network for Evaluating Steel Components (NESC), each of them dealing with a specific aspect of fitness for purpose of materials in structural components. This article will describe how the network organisation works, which was the positive experience from the past, why the networks are a tool for integrating fragmented research in Europe and how they fit into the mission of the JRC and therefore follow the EC policy. (orig.)

The new AMS control centre

CERN Multimedia

Anaïs Schaeffer

2011-01-01

Construction work for the future AMS control room began in November 2010 and should be finished this June. The new building, which will have been completed in record time thanks to the professionalism of the project team, will soon be ready to receive the initial data from the AMS experiment.     Luigi Scibile and Michael Poehler, from the GS department, at the AMS control centre construction site.   The Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer (AMS) is due to wing its way towards the International Space Station (ISS) on board the shuttle Discovery in April. Mainly intended for research on antimatter and dark matter, the data collected by AMS will be sent to Houston in the United States and then directly to CERN’s new Building 946. Construction work for the AMS control centre building on the Route Gentner at CERN’s Prévessin site started in November 2010 and must be completed in time to receive the first data from the spectrometer in June. “It normall...

Obesity: a systematic review on parental involvement in long-term European childhood weight control interventions with a nutritional focus

OpenAIRE

Kruk, J J; Kortekaas, F; Lucas, C; Jager-Wittenaar, H

2013-01-01

In Europe, about 20% of children are overweight. Focus on parental responsibility is an effective method in weight control interventions in children. In this systematic review we describe the intensity of parental involvement and behaviour change aimed at parents in long-term European childhood weight control interventions. We include European Union studies targeting parents in order to improve children's weight status in multi-component (parental, behaviour change and nutrition) health promo...

The adaptive reuse of historic city centres. Bologna and Lisbon: solutions for urban regeneration

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Andrea Boeri

2016-11-01

Full Text Available The European historic city centres are currently experiencing innovative approaches for rehabilitation of urban spaces afflicted by social and physical decay. The revitalization challenges are a consequence of the integration of contemporary technologies and solutions to achieve new requirements and of the impacts of socio-economic dynamics. Understanding and boosting the drivers connected to the cultural potential of the historic city centres can play an important role in adaptive re-use. This paper focuses on the synergy between cultural heritage and urban development, cultural heritage preservation and local economic growth, proposing adaptive reuse design practices applied in historic city centre, through the adoption of a multi-criteria methodology for heritage-led regeneration.

HIV and childhood disability: a case-controlled study at a paediatric antiretroviral therapy centre in Lilongwe, Malawi.

Science.gov (United States)

Devendra, Akash; Makawa, Atupele; Kazembe, Peter N; Calles, Nancy R; Kuper, Hannah

2013-01-01

As paediatric antiretroviral therapy (ART) is rapidly scaled up in Southern Africa, Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) infection is becoming a chronic illness. Children growing up with HIV may begin to encounter disabilities. The relationship between HIV, disability and the need for rehabilitation has added an additional element that needs to be addressed by paediatric HIV treatment programmes. 1) Estimate the prevalence of disabilities in HIV-infected and HIV-uninfected children in Lilongwe, Malawi. 2) Examine types of disability and associated clinical and socio-demographic factors. 3) Identify needs, opportunities and barriers for rehabilitation in Malawi. A case-controlled study of 296 HIV-infected children aged 2-9 years attending an ART centre in Lilongwe (cases) and their uninfected siblings (controls) was conducted. Disability was assessed using the WHO Ten Question Screen (TQS). Socio-demographic and clinical data were collected using a parent-proxy questionnaire and medical records. Of 296 case and control pairs recruited, 33% (98) versus 7% (20) screened positive for a disability (OR 8.4, 4.4-15.7) respectively. Of these 98 HIV-infected cases, 6%, 36%, 33%, 53%, 46% and 6% had a vision, hearing; physical, learning/comprehension, speech or seizure-related disability respectively and 51% had multiple coexisting disabilities. HIV-infected cases with a disability were more likely to be WHO stage III or IV at enrolment (71% vs. 52%, OR 2.7, 1.5-4.2), to have had TB (58% vs. 39%, OR 2.3, 1.4-3.8) and to have below-average school grades (18% vs. 2%, OR 11.1, 2.2-54.6) than those without. Sixty-seven percent of cases with a disability had never attended any rehabilitative service. Twenty-nine percent of caregivers reported facing stigma and discrimination because of the child's disability. This study reveals the magnitude of disability among HIV-infected children and the large unmet need for rehabilitation services. This expanding issue demands further

HIV and childhood disability: a case-controlled study at a paediatric antiretroviral therapy centre in Lilongwe, Malawi.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Akash Devendra

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: As paediatric antiretroviral therapy (ART is rapidly scaled up in Southern Africa, Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV infection is becoming a chronic illness. Children growing up with HIV may begin to encounter disabilities. The relationship between HIV, disability and the need for rehabilitation has added an additional element that needs to be addressed by paediatric HIV treatment programmes. STUDY OBJECTIVES: 1 Estimate the prevalence of disabilities in HIV-infected and HIV-uninfected children in Lilongwe, Malawi. 2 Examine types of disability and associated clinical and socio-demographic factors. 3 Identify needs, opportunities and barriers for rehabilitation in Malawi. METHODS: A case-controlled study of 296 HIV-infected children aged 2-9 years attending an ART centre in Lilongwe (cases and their uninfected siblings (controls was conducted. Disability was assessed using the WHO Ten Question Screen (TQS. Socio-demographic and clinical data were collected using a parent-proxy questionnaire and medical records. RESULTS: Of 296 case and control pairs recruited, 33% (98 versus 7% (20 screened positive for a disability (OR 8.4, 4.4-15.7 respectively. Of these 98 HIV-infected cases, 6%, 36%, 33%, 53%, 46% and 6% had a vision, hearing; physical, learning/comprehension, speech or seizure-related disability respectively and 51% had multiple coexisting disabilities. HIV-infected cases with a disability were more likely to be WHO stage III or IV at enrolment (71% vs. 52%, OR 2.7, 1.5-4.2, to have had TB (58% vs. 39%, OR 2.3, 1.4-3.8 and to have below-average school grades (18% vs. 2%, OR 11.1, 2.2-54.6 than those without. Sixty-seven percent of cases with a disability had never attended any rehabilitative service. Twenty-nine percent of caregivers reported facing stigma and discrimination because of the child's disability. CONCLUSION: This study reveals the magnitude of disability among HIV-infected children and the large unmet need for

Persistent multi-scale fluctuations shift European hydroclimate to its millennial boundaries.

Science.gov (United States)

Markonis, Y; Hanel, M; Máca, P; Kyselý, J; Cook, E R

2018-05-02

In recent years, there has been growing concern about the effect of global warming on water resources, especially at regional and continental scales. The last IPCC report on extremes states that there is medium confidence about an increase on European drought frequency during twentieth century. Here we use the Old World Drought Atlas palaeoclimatic reconstruction to show that when Europe's hydroclimate is examined under a millennial, multi-scale perspective, a significant decrease in dryness can be observed since 1920 over most of central and northern Europe. On the contrary, in the south, drying conditions have prevailed, creating an intense north-to-south dipole. In both cases, hydroclimatic conditions have shifted to, and in some regions exceeded, their millennial boundaries, remaining at these extreme levels for the longest period of the 1000-year-long record.

A day in the CERN Control Centre

CERN Multimedia

Rosaria Marraffino

2015-01-01

The CERN Control Centre (CCC) is the nerve centre of the CERN beam systems. From this room, the experts prepare, monitor, adjust, and control the particle beams that circulate throughout the accelerator complex while ensuring that the services and the technical infrastructure work flawlessly. Buttons, screens, telephones, lights (but no sound): in the CCC, everything is ready to make it possible for the LHC to reach the unprecedented energies expected at Run 2.   Seen from above, the CERN Control Centre resembles the shape of a quadrupole magnet. The consoles are distributed in four circles, called “islands”, dedicated to the LHC, the SPS, the PS Complex and the Technical Infrastructure (TI) respectively. Spread between TI and LHC are the Cryogenics consoles. Being in the same room allows the 24h-manned islands to be constantly in touch with one another, thus ensuring the best performance of the machines. At the LHC island, operators are currently busy training the magnet...

The Need for European Surveillance of CDI.

Science.gov (United States)

Wiuff, Camilla; Banks, A-Lan; Fitzpatrick, Fidelma; Cottom, Laura

2018-01-01

Since the turn of the millennium, the epidemiology of Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) has continued to challenge. Over the last decade there has been a growing awareness that improvements to surveillance are needed. The increasing rate of CDI and emergence of ribotype 027 precipitated the implementation of mandatory national surveillance of CDI in the UK. Changes in clinical presentation, severity of disease, descriptions of new risk factors and the occurrence of outbreaks all emphasised the importance of early diagnosis and surveillance.However a lack of consensus on case definitions, clinical guidelines and optimal laboratory diagnostics across Europe has lead to the underestimation of CDI and impeded comparison between countries. These inconsistencies have prevented the true burden of disease from being appreciated.Acceptance that a multi-country surveillance programme and optimised diagnostic strategies are required not only to detect and control CDI in Europe, but for a better understanding of the epidemiology, has built the foundations for a more robust, unified surveillance. The concerted efforts of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) CDI networks, has lead to the development of an over-arching long-term CDI surveillance strategy for 2014-2020. Fulfilment of the ECDC priorities and targets will no doubt be challenging and will require significant investment however the hope is that both a national and Europe-wide picture of CDI will finally be realised.

Controlling Delegated Powers in the Post-Lisbon European Union

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Brandsma, Gijs Jan; Blom-Hansen, Jens

2016-01-01

Most European Union rules are made by the Commission, not the Council of Ministers or the European Parliament. But although the Commission is an important rule-maker, it is not autonomous. The member states have always taken care to install committees to control the Commission (comitology). However......, the Lisbon Treaty introduced alternative control mechanisms (delegated acts) and a reform of the comitology system (implementing acts). This article investigates how the post-Lisbon control system works in daily legislative practice. It represents the first investigation of the institutional preferences...... of the Council, the Parliament and the Commission in the new system. Further, it utilizes better data than previous studies. The analysis is based on data on the control preferences of all actors before the first trilogue meeting for a large number of cases in the period 2010–13. The results indicate...

Operation and Power Flow Control of Multi-Terminal DC Networks for Grid Integration of Offshore Wind Farms Using Genetic Algorithms

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rodrigo Teixeira Pinto

2012-12-01

Full Text Available For achieving the European renewable electricity targets, a significant contribution is foreseen to come from offshore wind energy. Considering the large scale of the future planned offshore wind farms and the increasing distances to shore, grid integration through a transnational DC network is desirable for several reasons. This article investigates a nine-node DC grid connecting three northern European countries — namely UK, The Netherlands and Germany. The power-flow control inside the multi-terminal DC grid based on voltage-source converters is achieved through a novel method, called distributed voltage control (DVC. In this method, an optimal power flow (OPF is solved in order to minimize the transmission losses in the network. The main contribution of the paper is the utilization of a genetic algorithm (GA to solve the OPF problem while maintaining an N-1 security constraint. After describing main DC network component models, several case studies illustrate the dynamic behavior of the proposed control method.

THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION – THE EXERCISE OF THE POWERS OF CONTROL AND MONITORING OF THE ENFORCEMENT OF THE LEGISLATION OF THE EUROPEAN UNION IN THE MOLDOVA NOUA CASE

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Adriana Deac

2014-11-01

Full Text Available One of the competencies that the EU Treaties confer to the European Commission is the control and supervision of the application of primary and secondary law and the enforcement of this legislation so it is observed by private persons, Member States and EU institutions2 . Further to an official communiqué in October 2014, the European Commission has announced that it sued Romania at the European Union Court of Justice concerning the failure to observe EU legislation on the treatment of extractive industry waste. Namely, it refers to the Moldova Noua case, in which toxic waste from the zinc and copper mines were discharged into the Bosneag pond. This paper means to present the regulations in the field of extractive industry, the competence of the European Commission regarding the enforcement of EU legislation and the ability to sue a Member State at the EU Court of Justice, when the entity exploiting the zinc and copper deposits is not the Romanian state, but a private law legal person.

EFSA (European Food Safety Authority) and ECDC (European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control), 2014. The European Union Summary Report on Trends and Sources of Zoonoses, Zoonotic Agents and Food-borne Outbreaks in 2012

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Korsgaard, Helle; Helwigh, Birgitte; Sørensen, Anna Irene Vedel

the same as in 2011. The number of brucellosis-positive cattle, and sheep and goat herds continued to decrease, although marginally compared with 2011. Trichinella caused 301 confirmed human cases in the European Union. Although the number of cases was slightly higher in 2012 than in 2011, human...... trichinellosis cases remained at a low level in the European Union compared with 2009 and previous years. In 2012, the prevalence of Trichinella in pigs was similar to that observed in 2011. The parasite was more prevalent in wildlife than in farmed animals. However, seven out of the nine strong......-evidence outbreaks reported were due to consumption of pig meat. Toxoplasma was reported by the Member States from pigs, sheep, goats, hunted wild boar and hunted deer, in 2011 and 2012. In addition, positive findings were detected in cats (the natural hosts), cattle and dogs as well as several other animal species...

SLA-based optimisation of virtualised resource for multi-tier web applications in cloud data centres

Science.gov (United States)

Bi, Jing; Yuan, Haitao; Tie, Ming; Tan, Wei

2015-10-01

Dynamic virtualised resource allocation is the key to quality of service assurance for multi-tier web application services in cloud data centre. In this paper, we develop a self-management architecture of cloud data centres with virtualisation mechanism for multi-tier web application services. Based on this architecture, we establish a flexible hybrid queueing model to determine the amount of virtual machines for each tier of virtualised application service environments. Besides, we propose a non-linear constrained optimisation problem with restrictions defined in service level agreement. Furthermore, we develop a heuristic mixed optimisation algorithm to maximise the profit of cloud infrastructure providers, and to meet performance requirements from different clients as well. Finally, we compare the effectiveness of our dynamic allocation strategy with two other allocation strategies. The simulation results show that the proposed resource allocation method is efficient in improving the overall performance and reducing the resource energy cost.

Splinting after contracture release for Dupuytren's contracture (SCoRD: protocol of a pragmatic, multi-centre, randomized controlled trial

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chojnowski Adrian J

2008-04-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Splinting as part of the overall post-surgical management of patients after release of Dupuytren's contracture has been widely reported, though there is variation in practice and criteria for using it. The evidence on its effectiveness is sparse, of poor quality and contradictory with studies reporting negative and positive effects. Methods/Design A multi-centre, pragmatic, randomized, controlled trial is being conducted to evaluate the effect of static night splinting for six months on hand function, range of movement, patient satisfaction and recurrence at 1 year after fasciectomy or dermofasciectomy. Using a centrally administered computer randomization system consented patients will be allocated to one of two groups: i splint group who will be given a static splint at approximately 10 to 14 days after surgery to be worn for 6 months at night time only as well as hand therapy; ii non-splint group, who will receive hand therapy only. The primary outcome measure is the patient-reported Disabilities of the Arm, Hand and Shoulder Questionnaire (DASH. Secondary outcomes are total active flexion and extension of fingers, patient satisfaction and recurrence of contracture. Outcome measures will be collected prior to surgery, 3 months, 6 months and 1 year after surgery. Using the DASH as the primary outcome measure, where a difference of 15 points is considered to be a clinically important difference a total of 51 patients will be needed in each group for a power of 90%. An intention-to-treat analysis will be used. Discussion This pragmatic randomized controlled trial will provide much needed evidence on the clinical effectiveness of post-operative night splinting in patients who have undergone fasciectomy or dermofasciectomy for Dupuytren's contracture of the hand. Trial Registration Current Controlled Trials ISRCTN 57079614

PREFACE: 12th European Workshop on Advanced Control and Diagnosis (ACD 2015)

Science.gov (United States)

Straka, Ondřej; Punčochář, Ivo; Duník, Jindřich

2015-11-01

The 12th European Workshop on Advanced Control and Diagnosis (ACD 2015) took place at the Research Centre NTIS - New Technologies for the Information Society, Faculty of Applied Sciences, University of West Bohemia, Pilsen, Czech Republic, on November 19 - 20, 2015. The annual European Workshop on Advanced Control and Diagnosis has been organized since 2003 by Control Engineering departments of several European universities in Germany, France, the UK, Poland, Italy, Hungary, and Denmark to bring together senior and junior academics and engineers from diverse fields of automatic control, fault detection, and signal processing. The workshop provides an opportunity for researchers and developers to present their recent theoretical developments, practical applications, or even open problems. It also offers a great opportunity for industrial partners to express their needs and priorities and to review the current activities in the fields. A total of 74 papers have been submitted for ACD 2015. Based on the peer reviews 48 papers were accepted for the oral presentation and 10 papers for the poster presentation. The accepted papers covered areas of control theory and applications, identification, estimation, signal processing, and fault detection. In addition, four excellent plenary lectures were delivered by Prof. Fredrik Gustafsson (Automotive Sensor Mining for Tire Pressure Monitoring), Prof. Vladimír Havlena (Advanced Process Control for Energy Efficiency), Prof. Silvio Simani (Advanced Issues on Wind Turbine Modelling and Control), and Prof. Robert Babuška (Learning Control in Robotics). The ACD 2015 was for the first time in the workshop history co-sponsored by the International Federation of Automatic Control (IFAC). On behalf of the ACD 2015 organising committee, we would like to thank all those who prepared and submitted papers, participated in the peer review process, supported, and attended the workshop.

Centre of the European gas market. The European Autumn Gas Conference

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Van Hasselt, F.; Van der Wal, W.; Ruinen, H.

1998-01-01

From the results of the 1997 European Autumn Gas Conference in Barcelona, Spain, it appears that the European gas industry is mainly focused on the liberalization of the European energy market. The main topic of the Conference was 'dealing with surplus'. A brief overview is given of the natural gas trade developments in the European countries. 1 ill., 1 tab. 2 ills

Colorectal cancer and its association with the metabolic syndrome: a Malaysian multi-centric case-control study.

Science.gov (United States)

Ulaganathan, V; Kandiah, M; Zalilah, M S; Faizal, J A; Fijeraid, H; Normayah, K; Gooi, B H; Othman, R

2012-01-01

Colorectal cancer (CRC) and the metabolic syndrome (MetS) are both on the rise in Malaysia. A multi-centric case-control study was conducted from December 2009 to January 2011 to determine any relationship between the two. Patients with confirmed CRC based on colonoscopy findings and cancer free controls from five local hospitals were assessed for MetS according to the International Diabetes Federation (IDF) definition. Each index case was matched for age, gender and ethnicity with two controls (140: 280). MetS among cases was highly prevalent (70.7%), especially among women (68.7%). MetS as an entity increased CRC risk by almost three fold independently (OR=2.61, 95%CI=1.53-4.47). In men MetS increased the risk of CRC by two fold (OR=2.01, 95%CI, 1.43-4.56), demonstrating an increasing trend in risk with the number of Mets components observed. This study provides evidence for a positive association between the metabolic syndrome and colorectal cancer. A prospective study on the Malaysian population is a high priority to confirm these findings.

European public health policies for managing contacts of invasive meningococcal disease cases better harmonised in 2013 than in 2007.

Science.gov (United States)

Vygen, Sabine; Hellenbrand, Wiebke; Stefanoff, Pawel; Hanquet, Germaine; Heuberger, Sigrid; Stuart, James

2016-01-01

In 2007, a European survey identified variation in country policies on public health management of invasive meningococcal disease (IMD). In 2009-10, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) published evidence-based guidance on IMD. We therefore surveyed again European countries to describe policies for managing IMD cases and contacts in 2013. We asked national IMD public health experts from 32 European countries to complete a questionnaire focusing on post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) for IMD contacts and meningococcal vaccination. Proportions in 2007 and 2013 were compared using the chi-squared test. All 32 countries responded, with responses from two regions for Belgium and Italy; half stated having used ECDC guidance to update national recommendations. PEP was recommended to close contacts in 33 of 34 countries/regions, mainly ciprofloxacin for adults (29/32 countries) and rifampicin for children (29/32 countries). ECDC guidance for managing IMD contacts in airplanes was strictly followed by five countries/regions. Twenty-three countries/regions participated in both surveys. Compared with 2007, in 2013, more countries/regions recommended i) ceftriaxone for children (15/23 vs 6/20; p = 0.03), ii) PEP for all children in the same preschool group (8/23 vs 17/23; p = 0.02). More countries/regions recommended evidence-based measures for IMD public health management in 2013 than 2007. However, some discrepancies remain and they call for further harmonisation.

Psychological and psychosocial functioning of children with burn scarring using cosmetic camouflage: a multi-centre prospective randomised controlled trial.

Science.gov (United States)

Maskell, Jessica; Newcombe, Peter; Martin, Graham; Kimble, Roy

2014-02-01

Burns leave patients with long-term physical scarring. Children with scarring are required to face challenges of reintegration into their community, including acceptance of an altered appearance and acceptance by others. This can be difficult given society's preoccupation with physical appearance. Limited research exists investigating validity of cosmetic camouflage as a psychosocial intervention for children with scarring. This study investigated whether using cosmetic camouflage (Microskin™) had a positive impact on health-related quality of life, self-concept and psychopathology for children and adolescents (8-17 years) with burn scarring. A prospective multi-centre randomised controlled trial was conducted across Australian and New Zealand paediatric hospitals. 63 participants (49 females, mean age 12.7 ± 2.1 years) were enrolled. Data points were baseline (Time 1) and at 8 weeks (Time 2) using reliable and valid psychometric measures. Findings indicate there were significant improvements in socialisation, school and appearance scales on the Paediatric Quality of Life Inventory and psychopathology scores particularly peer problems decreased. However self-concept remained stable from baseline throughout intervention use. Cosmetic camouflage appears to have a positive impact on quality of life particularly socialisation. Cosmetic camouflage is a valid tool to assist children with scarring to actively participate socially within their communities. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd and ISBI. All rights reserved.

The role of function analysis in the ACR control centre design

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Leger, R.P.; Davey, E.C.

2006-01-01

An essential aspect of control centre design is the need to characterize: plant functions and their inter-relationships to support the achievement of operational goals, and roles for humans and automation in sharing and exchanging the execution of functions across all operational phases. Function analysis is a design activity that has been internationally accepted as an approach to satisfy this need. It is recognized as a fundamental and necessary component in the systematic approach to control centre design and is carried out early in the design process. A function analysis can provide a clear basis for: the control centre design for the purposes of design team communication, and customer or regulatory review, the control centre display and control systems, the staffing and layout requirements of the control centre, assessing the completeness of control centre displays and controls prior and supplementary to mock-up walkthroughs or simulator evaluations, and the design of operating procedures and training programs. This paper will explore the role for function analysis in supporting the design of the control centre. The development of the ACR control room will be used as an illustrative context for the discussion. The paper will also discuss the merits of using function analysis in a goal-or function-based approach resulting in a more robust, operationally compatible, and cost-effective design over the life of the plant. Two former papers have previously outlined, the evolution in AECL's application approach and lessons learned in applying function analysis in support of control room design. This paper provides the most recent update to this progression in application refinement. (author)

Zoonoses in the European Union: origin, distribution and dynamics

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lahuerta, A.; Westrell, T.; Takkinen, J.

2011-01-01

We present a summary of the main findings of the latest report of the European Food Safety Authority and European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control on zoonoses, zoonotic agents and food-borne outbreaks in the European Union (EU), based on data from 2009. Zoonoses are prevalent and widely...... distributed across several countries in the EU. The most important highlight of this report was the continuous decrease of human salmonellosis since 2005, probably due to effective control programmes in livestock....

A new European plan to attack cancer

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hegarty, Seamus

1989-01-15

While cancer remains the scourge of mankind, a large proportion of cases these days are amenable to treatment by irradiation. Bringing new irradiation centres to large concentrations of population is thus a vital task. This was highlighted at the first three-day workshop of the European Light Ion Medical Accelerator (EULIMA) project to assess the potential value of light ion beam therapy. Held in November at the Antoine-Lacassagne Centre, Nice, one of twenty cancer centres in France, the workshop was attended by some 60 delegates from Europe, USA, Canada and Japan, representing the fields of physics, radiobiology, radiotherapy and medicine.

A European multicentre survey of impulse control behaviours in Parkinson's disease patients treated with short- and long-acting dopamine agonists.

Science.gov (United States)

Rizos, A; Sauerbier, A; Antonini, A; Weintraub, D; Martinez-Martin, P; Kessel, B; Henriksen, T; Falup-Pecurariu, C; Silverdale, M; Durner, G; Røkenes Karlsen, K; Grilo, M; Odin, P; Chaudhuri, K Ray

2016-08-01

Impulse control disorders (ICDs) in Parkinson's disease (PD) are associated primarily with dopamine agonist (DA) use. Comparative surveys of clinical occurrence of impulse control behaviours on longer acting/transdermal DA therapy across age ranges are lacking. The aim of this study was to assess the occurrence of ICDs in PD patients across several European centres treated with short- or long-acting [ropinirole (ROP); pramipexole (PPX)] and transdermal [rotigotine skin patch (RTG)] DAs, based on clinical survey as part of routine clinical care. A survey based on medical records and clinical interviews of patients initiating or initiated on DA treatment (both short- and long-acting, and transdermal) across a broad range of disease stages and age groups was performed. Four hundred and twenty-five cases were included [mean age 68.3 years (range 37-90), mean duration of disease 7.5 years (range 0-37)]. ICD frequencies (as assessed by clinical interview) were significantly lower with RTG (4.9%; P controlling for possible confounding factors. © 2016 EAN.

Measuring the Extent of European State Aid Control : An Econometric Analysis of the European Commission Decisions

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Brouwer, E.; Ozbugday, F.C.

2011-01-01

This paper provides an analysis of the European Commission (EC) decisions on state aid control using data on 550 state aid cases approved by the EC between 1998 and 2009. More specifically, we measure the determinants of the duration of state aid, total budget of state aid and daily budget of state

Measuring the Extent of European State Aid Control : An Econometric Analysis of the European Commission Decisions

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Brouwer, E.; Ozbugday, F.C.

2010-01-01

This paper provides an analysis of the European Commission (EC) decisions on state aid control using data on 550 state aid cases approved by the EC between 1998 and 2009. More specifically, we measure the determinants of the duration of state aid, total budget of state aid and daily budget of state

Training infection control and hospital hygiene professionals in Europe, 2010: agreed core competencies among 33 European countries.

Science.gov (United States)

Brusaferro, S; Cookson, B; Kalenic, S; Cooper, T; Fabry, J; Gallagher, R; Hartemann, P; Mannerquist, K; Popp, W; Privitera, G; Ruef, C; Viale, P; Coiz, F; Fabbro, E; Suetens, C; Varela Santos, C

2014-12-11

The harmonisation of training programmes for infection control and hospital hygiene (IC/HH) professionals in Europe is a requirement of the Council recommendation on patient safety. The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control commissioned the 'Training Infection Control in Europe' project to develop a consensus on core competencies for IC/HH professionals in the European Union (EU). Core competencies were drafted on the basis of the Improving Patient Safety in Europe (IPSE) project's core curriculum (CC), evaluated by questionnaire and approved by National Representatives (NRs) for IC/HH training. NRs also re-assessed the status of IC/HH training in European countries in 2010 in comparison with the situation before the IPSE CC in 2006. The IPSE CC had been used to develop or update 28 of 51 IC/HH courses. Only 10 of 33 countries offered training and qualification for IC/HH doctors and nurses. The proposed core competencies are structured in four areas and 16 professional tasks at junior and senior level. They form a reference for standardisation of IC/HH professional competencies and support recognition of training initiatives.

Mild asthma and chronic bronchitis seem to influence functional exercise capacity: a multi-case control study.

Science.gov (United States)

Marcon, Alessandro; Girardi, Paolo; Ferrari, Marcello; Olivieri, Mario; Accordini, Simone; Bombieri, Cristina; Bortolami, Oscar; Braggion, Marco; Cappa, Veronica; Cazzoletti, Lucia; Locatelli, Francesca; Nicolis, Morena; Perbellini, Luigi; Sembeni, Silvia; Verlato, Giuseppe; Zanolin, Maria Elisabetta; de Marco, Roberto

2013-01-01

In the Genes Environment Interaction in Respiratory Diseases population-based multi-case control study, we investigated whether asthma, chronic bronchitis (CB) and rhinitis were associated with a reduced 6-minute walk distance (6MWD), and whether the 6MWD determinants were similar for subjects with/without respiratory diseases. Cases of asthma (n = 360), CB (n = 120), rhinitis (n = 203) and controls (no respiratory diseases: n = 302) were recruited. The variation in the 6MWD across the groups was analyzed by ANCOVA, adjusting for gender, age, height, weight and comorbidity. The 6MWD determinants were studied by linear regression, and heterogeneity across the cases and controls was investigated. The 6MWD differed across cases and controls (p = 0.01). It was shorter for cases of asthma (-17.1, 95% CI -28.3 to -5.8 m) and CB (-20.7, 95% CI: -36.6 to -4.8 m) than for controls (604 ± 68 m on average), but not for cases of rhinitis. The negative association between age and the 6MWD was significant for cases of CB, but not for the other groups (p = 0.001). Even at the level of severity found in the general population, asthma and CB could influence the 6MWD, which seems to reflect the functional exercise level for daily physical activities. The negative association between ageing and the 6MWD was particularly strong in subjects with CB. Our report adds to the mounting evidence that CB is not a trivial condition, especially in the ageing adult population, and it supports the importance of monitoring functional capacity and of physical reconditioning in mild asthma. Copyright © 2013 S. Karger AG, Basel.

Factors controlling stable isotope composition of European precipitation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rozanski, K.; Sonntag, C.; Muennich, K.O.

1982-01-01

The seasonal and spatial variations of stable isotope ratios in present day European precipitation are simulated with a simple multibox model of the mean west-east horizontal transport of the atmospheric water vapour across the European continent. Isotope fractionation during the formation of precipitation leads to an increasing depletion of heavy isotopes in the residual air moisture as it moves towards the centre of the continent. This isotopic depletion is partly compensated, particularly in summer, by evapotranspiration, which is assumed to transfer soil water into the atmosphere without isotope fractionation. The model estimates are based on horizontal water vapour flux data, varying seasonally between 88 and 130 kg m -1 s -1 for the Atlantic coast region, and on the monthly precipitation, evapotranspiration and surface air temperature data available for various locations in Europe. Both continental and seasonal temperature effects observed in the stable isotope composition of European precipitation are fairly well reproduced by the model. The calculations show that the isotopic composition of local precipitation is primarily controlled by regional scale processes, i.e. by the water vapour transport patterns into the continent, and by the average precipitation-evapotranspiration history of the air masses precipitating at a given place. Local parameters such as the surface and/or cloud base temperature or the amount of precipitation modify the isotope ratios only slightly. Implications of the model predictions for the interpretation of stable isotope ratios in earlier periods as they are preserved in ice cores and in groundwater are also discussed. (Auth.)

Europol’s Cybercrime Centre (EC3), its Agreements with Third Parties and the Growing Role of Law Enforcement on the European Security Scene

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Vendius, Trine Thygesen

2015-01-01

The European Cyber Crime Centre, EC3, established under the umbrella of Europol, started operations on January 1 2013. It is to act as the focal point in the fight against cybercrime in the European Union. Using a “shared, cross-community approach” the EC3 is concluding partnerships with member...... states, European agencies, international partners and the private sector. This article describes the coming about of EC3 and its efforts to address cybercrime. Furthermore, the article is an attempt to assess the growing role of the European law enforcement community on the European security scene...

Effects of a partially supervised conditioning programme in cystic fibrosis: an international multi-centre randomised controlled trial (ACTIVATE-CF): study protocol.

Science.gov (United States)

Hebestreit, Helge; Lands, Larry C; Alarie, Nancy; Schaeff, Jonathan; Karila, Chantal; Orenstein, David M; Urquhart, Don S; Hulzebos, Erik H J; Stein, Lothar; Schindler, Christian; Kriemler, Susi; Radtke, Thomas

2018-02-08

Physical activity (PA) and exercise have become an accepted and valued component of cystic fibrosis (CF) care. Regular PA and exercise can positively impact pulmonary function, improve physical fitness, and enhance health-related quality of life (HRQoL). However, motivating people to be more active is challenging. Supervised exercise programs are expensive and labour intensive, and adherence falls off significantly once supervision ends. Unsupervised or partially supervised programs are less costly and more flexible, but compliance can be more problematic. The primary objective of this study is to evaluate the effects of a partially supervised exercise intervention along with regular motivation on forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV 1 ) at 6 months in a large international group of CF patients. Secondary endpoints include patient reported HRQoL, as well as levels of anxiety and depression, and control of blood sugar. It is planned that a total of 292 patients with CF 12 years and older with a FEV 1  ≥ 35% predicted shall be randomised. Following baseline assessments (2 visits) patients are randomised into an intervention and a control group. Thereafter, they will be seen every 3 months for assessments in their centre for one year (4 follow-up visits). Along with individual counselling to increase vigorous PA by at least 3 h per week on each clinic visit, the intervention group documents daily PA and inactivity time and receives a step counter to record their progress within a web-based diary. They also receive monthly phone calls from the study staff during the first 6 months of the study. After 6 months, they continue with the step counter and web-based programme for a further 6 months. The control group receives standard care and keeps their PA level constant during the study period. Thereafter, they receive the intervention as well. This is the first large, international multi-centre study to investigate the effects of a PA intervention in CF with

How European centres diagnose, treat, and prevent CIED infections

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bongiorni, Maria Grazia; Marinskis, Germanas; Lip, Gregory Y H

2012-01-01

in most centres and is substantially under 2% in the majority of centres interviewed. However, there are still differences in terms of prophylactic antibiotic therapy: 8.9% of the centres administer oxacillin as preoperative treatment, 4.4% of them do not give any antibiotic therapy, all centres use some...

Oxygen titration after resuscitation from out-of-hospital cardiac arrest: a multi-centre, randomised controlled pilot study (the EXACT pilot trial).

Science.gov (United States)

Bray, Janet E; Hein, Cindy; Smith, Karen; Stephenson, Michael; Grantham, Hugh; Finn, Judith; Stub, Dion; Cameron, Peter

2018-04-20

Recent studies suggest the administration of 100% oxygen to hyperoxic levels following return-of-spontaneous-circulation (ROSC) post-cardiac arrest may be harmful. However, the feasibility and safety of oxygen titration in the prehospital setting is unknown. We conducted a multi-centre, phase-2 study testing whether prehospital titration of oxygen results in an equivalent number of patients arriving at hospital with oxygen saturations SpO2 ≥ 94%. We enrolled unconscious adults with: sustained ROSC; initial shockable rhythm; an advanced airway; and an SpO2 ≥ 95%. Initially (Sept 2015-March 2016) patients were randomised 1:1 to either 2 litres/minute (L/min) oxygen (titrated) or >10 L/min oxygen (control) via a bag-valve reservoir. However, one site experienced a high number of desaturations (SpO2 titrated arm and this arm was changed (April 2016) to an initial reduction of oxygen to 4 L/min then, if tolerated, to 2 L/min, and the desaturation limit was decreased to titrated (n = 37: 2L/min = 20 and 2-4 L/min = 17) oxygen or control (n = 24). Patients allocated to titrated oxygen were more likely to desaturate compared to controls ((SpO2 titrated: 90% vs. control: 100%) and all patients had a SpO2 ≥ 90%. One patient (control) re-arrested. Survival to hospital discharge was similar. Oxygen titration post-ROSC is feasible in the prehospital environment, but incremental titration commencing at 4L/min oxygen flow may be needed to maintain an oxygen saturation >90% (NCT02499042). Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier B.V.

PREGO (presentation of Graves' orbitopathy) study: changes in referral patterns to European Group On Graves' Orbitopathy (EUGOGO) centres over the period from 2000 to 2012

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Perros, Petros; Žarković, Miloš; Azzolini, Claudio; Ayvaz, Göksun; Baldeschi, Lelio; Bartalena, Luigi; Boschi, Antonella; Bournaud, Claire; Brix, Thomas Heiberg; Covelli, Danila; Ćirić, Slavica; Daumerie, Chantal; Eckstein, Anja; Fichter, Nicole; Führer, Dagmar; Hegedüs, Laszlo; Kahaly, George J.; Konuk, Onur; Lareida, Jürg; Lazarus, John; Leo, Marenza; Mathiopoulou, Lemonia; Menconi, Francesca; Morris, Daniel; Okosieme, Onyebuchi; Orgiazzi, Jaques; Pitz, Susanne; Salvi, Mario; Vardanian-Vartin, Cristina; Wiersinga, Wilmar; Bernard, Martine; Clarke, Lucy; Currò, Nicola; Dayan, Colin; Dickinson, Jane; Knežević, Miroslav; Lane, Carol; Marcocci, Claudio; Marinò, Michele; Möller, Lars; Nardi, Marco; Neoh, Christopher; Pearce, Simon; von Arx, George; Törüner, Fosun Baloş

2015-01-01

The epidemiology of Graves' orbitopathy (GO) may be changing. The aim of the study was to identify trends in presentation of GO to tertiary centres and initial management over time. Prospective observational study of European Group On Graves' Orbitopathy (EUGOGO) centres. All new referrals with a

European union standards for tuberculosis care.

Science.gov (United States)

Migliori, G B; Zellweger, J P; Abubakar, I; Ibraim, E; Caminero, J A; De Vries, G; D'Ambrosio, L; Centis, R; Sotgiu, G; Menegale, O; Kliiman, K; Aksamit, T; Cirillo, D M; Danilovits, M; Dara, M; Dheda, K; Dinh-Xuan, A T; Kluge, H; Lange, C; Leimane, V; Loddenkemper, R; Nicod, L P; Raviglione, M C; Spanevello, A; Thomsen, V Ø; Villar, M; Wanlin, M; Wedzicha, J A; Zumla, A; Blasi, F; Huitric, E; Sandgren, A; Manissero, D

2012-04-01

The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) and the European Respiratory Society (ERS) jointly developed European Union Standards for Tuberculosis Care (ESTC) aimed at providing European Union (EU)-tailored standards for the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of tuberculosis (TB). The International Standards for TB Care (ISTC) were developed in the global context and are not always adapted to the EU setting and practices. The majority of EU countries have the resources and capacity to implement higher standards to further secure quality TB diagnosis, treatment and prevention. On this basis, the ESTC were developed as standards specifically tailored to the EU setting. A panel of 30 international experts, led by a writing group and the ERS and ECDC, identified and developed the 21 ESTC in the areas of diagnosis, treatment, HIV and comorbid conditions, and public health and prevention. The ISTCs formed the basis for the 21 standards, upon which additional EU adaptations and supplements were developed. These patient-centred standards are targeted to clinicians and public health workers, providing an easy-to-use resource, guiding through all required activities to ensure optimal diagnosis, treatment and prevention of TB. These will support EU health programmes to identify and develop optimal procedures for TB care, control and elimination.

Psychosis associated with acute recreational drug toxicity: a European case series.

Science.gov (United States)

Vallersnes, Odd Martin; Dines, Alison M; Wood, David M; Yates, Christopher; Heyerdahl, Fridtjof; Hovda, Knut Erik; Giraudon, Isabelle; Dargan, Paul I

2016-08-18

Psychosis can be associated with acute recreational drug and novel psychoactive substance (NPS) toxicity. However, there is limited data available on how common this is and which drugs are most frequently implicated. We describe a European case series of psychosis associated with acute recreational drug toxicity, and estimate the frequency of psychosis for different recreational drugs. The European Drug Emergencies Network (Euro-DEN) collects data on presentations to Emergency Departments (EDs) with acute recreational drug and NPS toxicity at 16 centres in ten countries. Euro-DEN data from October 2013 through September 2014 was retrospectively searched, and cases with psychosis were included. The proportion of cases with psychosis per drug was calculated in the searched Euro-DEN dataset. Psychosis was present in 348 (6.3 %) of 5529 cases. The median (interquartile range) age was 29 (24-38) years, 276 (79.3 %) were male and 114 (32.8 %) were admitted to psychiatric ward. The drugs most commonly reported were cannabis in 90 (25.9 %) cases, amphetamine in 87 (25.0 %) and cocaine in 56 (16.1 %). More than one drug was taken in 189 (54.3 %) cases. Psychosis was frequent in those ED presentations involving tryptamines (4/7; 57.1 %), methylenedioxypyrovalerone (MDPV) (6/22; 27.3 %), methylphenidate (6/26; 23.1 %), lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) (18/86; 20.9 %), psilocybe mushrooms (3/16; 18.8 %), synthetic cannabinoid receptor agonists (4/26; 15.4 %) and amphetamine (87/593; 14.7 %), but less common in those involving mephedrone (14/245; 5.7 %), methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) (20/461; 4.3 %) and methedrone (3/92; 3.3 %). Amphetamine was the most frequent drug associated with psychosis when only one agent was reported, with psychosis occurring in 32.4 % of these presentations. The frequency of psychosis in acute recreational drug toxicity varies considerably between drugs, but is a major problem in amphetamine poisoning. In rapidly changing drug markets and

Changes in chlamydia control activities in Europe between 2007 and 2012: A cross-national survey

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

van den Broek, I; Andersen, Berit; Herrmann, B

2015-01-01

Background: In 2012, the levels of chlamydia control activities including primary prevention, effective case management with partner management and surveillance were assessed in 2012 across countries in the European Union and European Economic Area (EU/EEA), on initiative of the European Centre...... indicators of chlamydia prevention and control activities; countries were assigned to one of five categories of chlamydia control. Results: In 2012, more countries than in 2007 reported availability of national chlamydia case management guidelines (80% vs. 68%), opportunistic chlamydia testing (68% vs. 44......%) and consistent use of nucleic acid amplification tests (64% vs. 36%). The number of countries reporting having a national sexually transmitted infection control strategy or a surveillance system for chlamydia did not change notably. In 2012, most countries (18/25, 72%) had implemented primary prevention...

Multi-centre evaluation of recent troponin assays for the diagnosis of NSTEMI

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Camille Chenevier-Gobeaux

2018-07-01

Full Text Available Objectives: We aimed to compare the use of nine different cardiac troponin (cTn assays (2 cTnT and 7 cTnI for the diagnosis of NSTEMI in a single multi-centre population. Design and methods: One hundred and fifty-eight patients were included (mean age 60 years, SD 17 years, including 23 patients (14% with NSTEMI. Results: The analytical comparison highlighted a large heterogeneity of cTn assays, as reflected by percentages of patients with detectable cTn, correlation coefficients, Passing-Bablok comparisons and concordance coefficients. Correlations within cTnI assays were good and correlation within cTnT assays was excellent. Diagnostic performances demonstrated that each cTn assay has specific threshold values. Furthermore, some assays (HS-cTnI and T, cTnI-Pathfast and cTnI-Centaur indicated high sensitivity and negative predictive value using the limit of detection (LoD diagnostic strategy. For the latter assays, a significant increase in specificity was found when using the 99th percentile or the H0-H3 strategies, in comparison to the LoD strategy. When applying the European Society of Cardiology H0-H3 algorithm, comparable diagnostic performances were obtained. Conclusion: All 9 cTn assays indicated overall good diagnostic performances for the diagnosis of NSTEMI in emergency departments when the recommended algorithm based on the variation of cTn value between two measurements at admission and 3 h later was used. Keywords: Cardiac troponin, High-sensitivity assay, Chest pain, Emergency department, NSTEMI, Analytical evaluation

A hard lesson for Europeans: the ASEAN CDC.

Science.gov (United States)

Tibayrenc, Michel

2005-06-01

Despite the growing threat of major pandemics, the European Union is planning no more than a meager surveillance agency staffed with 70 people on the 2007 horizon: the new European Centre for Disease Control. I argue that an effective structure should be much larger and include a strong research activity. Asian countries, inspired by the US CDC, are now taking this concept in hand and creating an ASEAN Center For Disease Control, with sophisticated laboratory facilities to be included. This is a tough lesson for us Europeans, and our avarice in this domain could have tragic consequences in the future.

Pilomatricoma in childhood: a retrospective study from three European paediatric centres.

Science.gov (United States)

Cigliano, Bruno; Baltogiannis, Nikolaos; De Marco, Marianna; Faviou, Elsa; Settimi, Alesandro; Tilemis, Stefanos; Soutis, Michail; Papandreou, Evangellos; D'Agostino, Sergio; Fabbro, Maria Angelica

2005-11-01

Pilomatricoma is characterised as a common, slowly growing benign cutaneous tumour that appears generally within the first decades of life. The clinical diagnosis is frequently missed, especially by the paediatrician unfamiliar with these tumours. We present the experience gained in three European tertiary care paediatric centres with the treatment of pilomatricoma and also current data on the aetiology, clinical presentation and management. A retrospective study was carried out in 83 patients suspected for pilomatricoma during a 7-year period (1996-2002) at the departments of Paediatric Surgery of the Children's University Hospital "Federico II", Naples, Hospital "San Bortolo", Vicenza and "Aghia Sophia" Children's Hospital, Athens. The age range was from 10 months to 17 years, median age 8 years. All patients were treated by surgical excision and all specimens were examined by histopathological assessment. The follow-up varied from 5 months to 6 years. The correct diagnosis was made preoperatively in 68 patients (82%). The female/male ratio was 2:1. The sites of occurrence were the head (47.5%), especially in the periorbital region, the neck (9%), the upper limbs (35.5%), the inferior limbs (4%) and the thorax (4%). Each patient exhibited a single pilomatricoma except for two patients who had multiple lesions (2.4%). One of them had Steinert disease (myotonic dystrophy). No recurrences were observed during the follow-up period. Pilomatricoma is one of the most common cutaneous adnexal neoplasms in children. Surgical excision including clear margins and its overlying skin in most cases is the treatment of choice. The recurrence as well as malignant evolution is rare.

The European Gonococcal Antimicrobial Surveillance Programme (Euro-GASP)--a sentinel approach in the European Union (EU)/European Economic Area (EEA).

Science.gov (United States)

Spiteri, Gianfranco; Cole, Michelle; Unemo, Magnus; Hoffmann, Steen; Ison, Catherine; van de Laar, Marita

2013-12-01

Antimicrobial resistance in Neisseria gonorrhoeae is monitored in the European Union/European Economic Area through the European Gonococcal Antimicrobial Surveillance Programme (Euro-GASP) coordinated by the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control. Euro-GASP includes a sentinel surveillance programme which aims to detect in a timely manner changes in resistance patterns and inform treatment guidelines. The programme aims to test a representative number of isolates from each European Union/European Economic Area member state per year for a range of therapeutically relevant antimicrobials through a biannual hybrid centralised/decentralised system. Testing is supported by an External Quality Assurance programme and a laboratory training programme. Participation in the programme has increased to 21 countries in 2012. Euro-GASP has been able to detect the rapid spread of isolates with decreased susceptibility to cefixime across Europe in 2010 and 2011. Results from the programme have informed changes in European treatment guidelines for gonorrhoea and led to the development of the 'Response plan to control and manage the threat of multidrug resistant gonorrhoea in Europe'. Future challenges for Euro-GASP include supporting countries to participate in Euro-GASP through decentralised testing, improving timeliness and epidemiological data quality, and increasing participation from Eastern Europe.

New concepts of control centre design and development

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dittmar, E.; Kiersch, J.J.; Schmudlach, U.; Weihrauch, J.

1977-02-01

The concept of modern control centre technology is shown, its realization at project including the supervision of an electric power distribution system is described. A modern control centre is characterized by the fact that the conventional control elements are more and more replaced by elements of computer technology, i.e. computer and displays. The different functions implemented by hard- and software set new standards relative to flexibility, adaptability, dimensioning. The communication interface man/process is defined and designed in a new way allowing dynamic and more efficent supervisionstrategy of technical processes via display in different operation modes. Special attention is paid to adjustments and extensions of process elements and their integration into the supervised network. (orig./WB) [de

Improved operability of the CANDU 9 control centre

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Macbeth, M. J.; Webster, A.

1996-01-01

The next generation CANDU nuclear power plant being designed by AECL is the 900 MWe class CANDU 9 station. It is based upon the Darlington CANDU station design which is among the world leaders in capacity factor with low Operation, Maintenance and Administration (OM and A) costs. This Control Centre design includes the proven functionality of existing CANDU control centres (including the Wolsong 2,3, and 4 control centre improvements, such as the Emergency Core Cooling panels), the characteristics identified by systematic design with human factors analysis of operations requirements and the advanced features needed to improve station operability which is made possible by the application of new technology. The CANDU 9 Control Centre provides plant staff with an improved operability capability due to the combination of proveness, systematic design with human factors engineering and enhanced operating features. Significant features which contribute to this improved operability include: · Standard NSP, BOP and F/H panels with controls and indicators integrated by a standard display/presentation philosophy. · Common plant parameter signal database for extensive monitoring, checking, display and annunciation. · Powerful annunciation system allowing alarm filtering, prioritizing and interrogation to enhance staff recognition of events, plant state and required corrective procedural actions. · The use of an overview display to present immediate and uncomplicated plant status information to facilitate operator awareness of unit status in a highly readable and recognizable format. · Extensive cross checking of similar process parameters amongst themselves, with the counterpart safety system parameters and as well as with 'signature' values obtained from known steady state conditions. · Powerful calculation capabilities, using the plant wide database, providing immediate recognizable and readable and readable output data on plant state information and plant state change

A multi-centre dosimetry audit on advanced radiotherapy in lung as part of the Isotoxic IMRT study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yat Tsang

2017-10-01

Conclusion: This multi-centre dosimetry audit of complex IMRT/VMAT delivery provides confidence in the accuracy of modern planning and delivery systems in inhomogeneous tissues. The findings from this study can be used as a reference for future dosimetry audits.

A designated centre for people with disabilities operated by Sunbeam House Services Ltd, Wicklow

LENUS (Irish Health Repository)

Muller, Ueli C

2011-04-07

Abstract Background The International Multi-centre ADHD Genetics (IMAGE) project with 11 participating centres from 7 European countries and Israel has collected a large behavioural and genetic database for present and future research. Behavioural data were collected from 1068 probands with the combined type of attention deficit\\/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD-CT) and 1446 \\'unselected\\' siblings. The aim was to analyse the IMAGE sample with respect to demographic features (gender, age, family status, and recruiting centres) and psychopathological characteristics (diagnostic subtype, symptom frequencies, age at symptom detection, and comorbidities). A particular focus was on the effects of the study design and the diagnostic procedure on the homogeneity of the sample in terms of symptom-based behavioural data, and potential consequences for further analyses based on these data. Methods Diagnosis was based on the Parental Account of Childhood Symptoms (PACS) interview and the DSM-IV items of the Conners\\' teacher questionnaire. Demographics of the full sample and the homogeneity of a subsample (all probands) were analysed by using robust statistical procedures which were adjusted for unequal sample sizes and skewed distributions. These procedures included multi-way analyses based on trimmed means and winsorised variances as well as bootstrapping. Results Age and proband\\/sibling ratios differed between participating centres. There was no significant difference in the distribution of gender between centres. There was a significant interaction between age and centre for number of inattentive, but not number of hyperactive symptoms. Higher ADHD symptom frequencies were reported by parents than teachers. The diagnostic symptoms differed from each other in their frequencies. The face-to-face interview was more sensitive than the questionnaire. The differentiation between ADHD-CT probands and unaffected siblings was mainly due to differences in hyperactive

CoDuSe group exercise programme improves balance and reduces falls in people with multiple sclerosis: A multi-centre, randomized, controlled pilot study.

Science.gov (United States)

Carling, Anna; Forsberg, Anette; Gunnarsson, Martin; Nilsagård, Ylva

2017-09-01

Imbalance leading to falls is common in people with multiple sclerosis (PwMS). To evaluate the effects of a balance group exercise programme (CoDuSe) on balance and walking in PwMS (Expanded Disability Status Scale, 4.0-7.5). A multi-centre, randomized, controlled single-blinded pilot study with random allocation to early or late start of exercise, with the latter group serving as control group for the physical function measures. In total, 14 supervised 60-minute exercise sessions were delivered over 7 weeks. Pretest-posttest analyses were conducted for self-reported near falls and falls in the group starting late. Primary outcome was Berg Balance Scale (BBS). A total of 51 participants were initially enrolled; three were lost to follow-up. Post-intervention, the exercise group showed statistically significant improvement ( p = 0.015) in BBS and borderline significant improvement in MS Walking Scale ( p = 0.051), both with large effect sizes (3.66; -2.89). No other significant differences were found between groups. In the group starting late, numbers of falls and near falls were statistically significantly reduced after exercise compared to before ( p balance and reduced perceived walking limitations, compared to no exercise. The intervention reduced falls and near falls frequency.

Analysis of potential protein-modifying variants in 9000 endometriosis patients and 150000 controls of European ancestry

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sapkota, Yadav; Vivo, Immaculata De; Steinthorsdottir, Valgerdur

2017-01-01

-modifying variants in endometriosis using exome-array genotyping in 7164 cases and 21005 controls, and a replication set of 1840 cases and 129016 controls of European ancestry. Results in the discovery sample identified significant evidence for association with coding variants in single-variant (rs1801232-CUBN...... sufficient power, our results did not identify any protein-modifying variants (MAF > 0.01) with moderate or large effect sizes in endometriosis, although these variants may exist in non-European populations or in high-risk families. The results suggest continued discovery efforts should focus on genotyping...

Second-Order Controllability of Multi-Agent Systems with Multiple Leaders

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liu Bo; Han Xiao; Shi Yun-Tao; Su Hou-Sheng

2016-01-01

This paper proposes a new second-order continuous-time multi-agent model and analyzes the controllability of second-order multi-agent system with multiple leaders based on the asymmetric topology. This paper considers the more general case: velocity coupling topology is different from location coupling topology. Some sufficient and necessary conditions are presented for the controllability of the system with multiple leaders. In addition, the paper studies the controllability of the system with velocity damping gain. Simulation results are given to illustrate the correctness of theoretical results. (paper)

New institutional assemblages for borderless customs control in the European Union

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Naber, A.C.; Hofman, W.; Enserink, B.; Kotterink, B.

2013-01-01

This article is based on a use case proposing a Single Window implementation for borderless customs control in the European Union (EU). This EU e-Customs initiative proposes to combine trade facilitation from a customs perspective with secure trade based on supply chain risk analysis. To achieve

Distribution of Malaria Case in Simpenan Public Health Centre Sukabumi District in 2011

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hubullah Fuadzy

2012-12-01

Full Text Available The number of malaria in Simpenan public health centre area needs a quick step in the patients finding by malaria microscopic officers, both by Active Case Detection (ACD and Passive Case Detection (PCD. The objective of th is article is to determine the distribution of malaria cases at Simpenan public health centre in Sukabumi during 2011. Data collection was carried out by malaria officersfrom Simpenan public health centre by identifying malaria parasite with microscope to any gold miners who just got home and was having a highfever. Malaria cases during the year 2011 experienced an increasing trend (R2 = 0.0175 from January (8.86% to December (15.18%, 79 cases of malaria was found and the peak of cases happened in December. Malaria was notfound in the age group of 0-14 years, but cases ofmalaria were found in productive age group (15-44 years old = 83%, 45-59 years old = 14%, 2: 60 years old = 3%, and also to all people working as gold miners in malaria-endemic areas i.e. Aceh, Bangka, Jambi, Kalimantan, Medan, Papua, Riau, and Sumbawa. This indicated that malaria in Simpenan was predicted as import cases.

European trauma guideline compliance assessment: the ETRAUSS study.

Science.gov (United States)

Hamada, Sophie Rym; Gauss, Tobias; Pann, Jakob; Dünser, Martin; Leone, Marc; Duranteau, Jacques

2015-12-08

Haemorrhagic shock is the leading cause of preventable death in trauma patients. The 2013 European trauma guidelines emphasise a comprehensive, multidisciplinary, protocol-based approach to trauma care. The aim of the present Europe-wide survey was to compare 2015 practice with the 2013 guidelines. A group of members of the Trauma and Emergency Medicine section of the European Society of Intensive Care Medicine developed a 50-item questionnaire based upon the core recommendations of the 2013 guidelines, employing a multistep approach. The questionnaire covered five fields: care structure and organisation, haemodynamic resuscitation targets, fluid management, transfusion and coagulopathy, and haemorrhage control. The sampling used a two-step approach comprising initial purposive sampling of eminent trauma care providers in each European country, followed by snowball sampling of a maximum number of trauma care providers. A total of 296 responses were collected, 243 (81 %) from European countries. Those from outside the European Union were excluded from the analysis. Approximately three-fourths (74 %) of responders were working in a designated trauma centre. Blunt trauma predominated, accounting for more than 90 % of trauma cases. Considerable heterogeneity was observed in all five core aspects of trauma care, along with frequent deviations from the 2013 guidelines. Only 92 (38 %) of responders claimed to comply with the recommended systolic blood pressure target, and only 81 (33 %) responded that they complied with the target pressure in patients with traumatic brain injury. Crystalloid use was predominant (n = 209; 86 %), and vasopressor use was frequent (n = 171, 76 %) but remained controversial. Only 160 respondents (66 %) declared that they used tranexamic acid always or often. This is the first European trauma survey, to our knowledge. Heterogeneity is significant across centres with regard to the clinical protocols for trauma patients and as to locally

Short video interventions to reduce mental health stigma: a multi-centre randomised controlled trial in nursing high schools.

Science.gov (United States)

Winkler, Petr; Janoušková, Miroslava; Kožený, Jiří; Pasz, Jiří; Mladá, Karolína; Weissová, Aneta; Tušková, Eva; Evans-Lacko, Sara

2017-12-01

We aimed to assess whether short video interventions could reduce stigma among nursing students. A multi-centre, randomised controlled trial was conducted. Participating schools were randomly selected and randomly assigned to receive: (1) an informational leaflet, (2) a short video intervention or (3) a seminar involving direct contact with a service user. The Community Attitudes towards Mental Illness (CAMI) and Reported and Intended Behaviour Scale (RIBS) were selected as primary outcome measures. SPANOVA models were built and Cohen's d calculated to assess the overall effects in each of the trial arms. Compared to the baseline, effect sizes immediately after the intervention were small in the flyer arm (CAMI: d = 0.25; RIBS: d = 0.07), medium in the seminar arm (CAMI: d = 0.61; RIBS: d = 0.58), and medium in the video arm (CAMI: d = 0.49 RIBS: d = 0.26; n = 237). Effect sizes at the follow-up were vanishing in the flyer arm (CAMI: d = 0.05; RIBS: d = 0.04), medium in the seminar arm (CAMI: d = 0.43; RIBS: d = 0.26; n = 254), and small in the video arm (CAMI: d = 0.22 RIBS: d = 0.21; n = 237). Seminar had the strongest and relatively stable effect on students' attitudes and intended behaviour, but the effect of short video interventions was also considerable and stable over time. Since short effective video interventions are relatively cheap, conveniently accessible and easy to disseminate globally, we recommend them for further research and development.

Qualified and Unqualified (N-R C) mental health nursing staff--minor differences in sources of stress and burnout. A European multi-centre study.

Science.gov (United States)

Sorgaard, Knut W; Ryan, Peter; Dawson, Ian

2010-06-14

Unqualified/non-registered caregivers (N-R Cs) will continue to play important roles in the mental health services. This study compares levels of burnout and sources of stress among qualified and N-R Cs working in acute mental health care. A total of 196 nursing staff --124 qualified staff (mainly nurses) and 72 N-R Cs with a variety of different educational backgrounds--working in acute wards or community mental teams from 5 European countries filled out the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI), the Mental Health Professional Scale (MHPSS) and the Psychosocial Work Environment and Stress Questionnaire (PWSQ). (a) The univariate differences were generally small and restricted to a few variables. Only Social relations (N-R Cs being less satisfied) at Work demands (nurses reporting higher demands) were different at the .05 level. (b) The absolute scores both groups was highest on variables that measured feelings of not being able to influence a work situation characterised by great demands and insufficient resources. Routines and educational programs for dealing with stress should be available on a routine basis. (c) Multivariate analyses identified three extreme groups: (i) a small group dominated by unqualified staff with high depersonalization, (ii) a large group that was low on depersonalisation and high on work demands with a majority of qualified staff, and (iii) a small N-R C-dominated group (low depersonalization, low work demands) with high scores on professional self-doubt. In contrast to (ii) the small and N-R C-dominated groups in (i) and (iii) reflected mainly centre-dependent problems. The differences in burnout and sources of stress between the two groups were generally small. With the exception of high work demands the main differences between the two groups appeared to be centre-dependent. High work demands characterized primarily qualified staff. The main implication of the study is that no special measures addressed towards N-R Cs in general with regard

Risk factors for idiopathic orbital inflammation: a case-control study

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Bijlsma, Ward R.; van Gils, Carla H.; Paridaens, Dion; Mourits, Maarten P.; Kalmann, Rachel

2011-01-01

Objective To identify risk factors involved in the development of idiopathic orbital inflammation (IOI). Methods Case-control study of 69 adults who had had a first episode of IOI and 296 adult controls with rhegmatogenous retinal detachment (RD) selected from three orbital centres in The

Investigation of reference levels and radiation dose associated with abdominal EVAR (endovascular aneurysm repair) procedures across several European Centres

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tuthill, E.; Rainford, L. [University College Dublin, Diagnostic Imaging, School of Medicine, Dublin (Ireland); O' Hora, L.; O' Donohoe, M. [Mater Misericordiae University Hospital, Dublin (Ireland); Panci, S. [San Giovanni di Dio Hospital, Florence (Italy); Gilligan, P.; Fox, E. [Mater Private Hospital, Dublin (Ireland); Campion, D. [Mauriziano-Umberto Hospital, Turin (Italy); Trenti, R. [Policlinico S. Orsola-Malpighi, Bologna (Italy); Catania, D. [AITRI, Association of Italian Interventional Radiographers, Milan (Italy)

2017-11-15

Endovascular aneurysm repair (EVAR) is considered the treatment of choice for abdominal aortic aneurysms with suitable anatomy. In order to improve radiation safety, European Directive (2013/59) requires member states to implement diagnostic reference levels (DRLs) in radio-diagnostic and interventional procedures. This study aimed to determine local DRLs for EVAR across five European centres and identify an interim European DRL, which currently remains unestablished. Retrospective data was collected for 180 standard EVARs performed between January 2014 and July 2015 from five specialist centres in Ireland (n=2) and Italy (n=3). Data capture included: air kerma-area product (P{sub KA}), total air kerma at the reference point (K{sub a,r}), fluoroscopic time (FT), number of acquisitions, frame rate of acquisition, type of acquisition, patient height, weight, and gender. The mean values for each site A, B, C, D, and E were: P{sub KA}s of 4343 ± 994 μGym{sup 2}, 18,200 ± 2141 μGym{sup 2}, 11,423 ± 1390 μGym{sup 2}, 7796 ± 704 μGym{sup 2}, 31,897 ± 5798 μGym{sup 2}; FTs of 816 ± 92 s, 950 ± 150 s, 708 ± 70 s, 972 ± 61 s, 827 ± 118 s; and number of acquisitions of 6.72 ± 0.56, 10.38 ± 1.54, 4.74 ± 0.19, 5.64 ± 0.36, 7.28 ± 0.65, respectively. The overall pooled 75th percentile P{sub KA} was 15,849 μGym{sup 2}. Local reference levels were identified. The pooled data has been used to establish an interim European DRL for EVAR procedures. (orig.)

The EFQM excellence model: European and Dutch experiences with the EFQM approach in health care. European Foundation for Quality Management.

Science.gov (United States)

Nabitz, U; Klazinga, N; Walburg, J

2000-06-01

One way to meet the challenges in creating a high performance organization in health care is the approach of the European Foundation for Quality Management (EFQM). The Foundation is in the tradition of the American Malcolm Baldrige Award and was initiated by the European Commission and 14 European multi-national organizations in 1988. The essence of the approach is the EFQM Model, which can be used as a self-assessment instrument on all levels of a health care organization and as an auditing instrument for the Quality Award. In 1999 the EFQM Model was revised but its principles remained the same. In The Netherlands many health care organizations apply the EFQM Model. In addition to improvement projects, peer review of professional practices, accreditation and certification, the EFQM Approach is used mainly as a framework for quality management and as a conceptualization for organizational excellence. The Dutch National Institute for Quality, the Instituut Nederlandse Kwaliteit, delivers training and supports self-assessment and runs the Dutch quality award programme. Two specific guidelines for health care organizations, 'Positioning and Improving' and 'Self-Assessment', have been developed and are used frequently. To illustrate the EFQM approach in The Netherlands, the improvement project of the Jellinek Centre is described. The Jellinek Centre conducted internal and external assessments and received in 1996, as the first health care organization, the Dutch Quality Prize.

Free and Open Source Software underpinning the European Forest Data Centre

Science.gov (United States)

Rodriguez Aseretto, Dario; Di Leo, Margherita; de Rigo, Daniele; Corti, Paolo; McInerney, Daniel; Camia, Andrea; San-Miguel-Ayanz, Jesús

2013-04-01

Worldwide, governments are growingly focusing [1] on free and open source software (FOSS) as a move toward transparency and the freedom to run, copy, study, change and improve the software [2]. The European Commission (EC) is also supporting the development of FOSS (see e.g., [3]). In addition to the financial savings, FOSS contributes to scientific knowledge freedom in computational science (CS) [4] and is increasingly rewarded in the science-policy interface within the emerging paradigm of open science [5-8]. Since complex computational science applications may be affected by software uncertainty [4,9-11], FOSS may help to mitigate part of the impact of software errors by CS community-driven open review, correction and evolution of scientific code [10,12-15]. The continental scale of EC science-based policy support implies wide networks of scientific collaboration. Thematic information systems also may benefit from this approach within reproducible [16] integrated modelling [4]. This is supported by the EC strategy on FOSS: "for the development of new information systems, where deployment is foreseen by parties outside of the EC infrastructure, [F]OSS will be the preferred choice and in any case used whenever possible" [17]. The aim of this contribution is to highlight how a continental scale information system may exploit and integrate FOSS technologies within the transdisciplinary research underpinning such a complex system. A European example is discussed where FOSS innervates both the structure of the information system itself and the inherent transdisciplinary research for modelling the data and information which constitute the system content. The information system. The European Forest Data Centre (EFDAC, http://forest.jrc.ec.europa.eu/efdac/) has been established at the EC Joint Research Centre (JRC) as the focal point for forest data and information in Europe to supply European decision-makers with processed, quality checked and timely policy relevant

Analysis of the European Food Industry

OpenAIRE

Banse, Martin; McDonald, Scott; Joint Research Centre; Institute for Prospective Technological Studies; Kaditi, Eleni

2008-01-01

This report is based on a study assigned to the Centre for European Policy Studies (CEPS) by the European Commission¿s Joint Research Centre, Institute for Prospective Technological Studies (JRC-IPTS) to investigate recent developments in the European food industry and the impact of foreign direct investment (FDI) and trade flows on the food industry in the EU-25. The report illustrates trends in and the structure of the European food industry. Past and possible future developments are ana...

Flowering time control in European winter wheat

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Simon Martin Langer

2014-10-01

Full Text Available Flowering time is an important trait in wheat breeding as it affects adaptation and yield potential. The aim of this study was to investigate the genetic architecture of flowering time in European winter bread wheat cultivars. To this end a population of 410 winter wheat varieties was evaluated in multi-location field trials and genotyped by a genotyping-by-sequencing approach and candidate gene markers. Our analyses revealed that the photoperiod regulator Ppd-D1 is the major factor affecting flowering time in this germplasm set, explaining 58% of the genotypic variance. Copy number variation at the Ppd-B1 locus was present but explains only 3.2% and thus a comparably small proportion of genotypic variance. By contrast, the plant height loci Rht-B1 and Rht-D1 had no effect on flowering time. The genome-wide scan identified six QTL which each explain only a small proportion of genotypic variance and in addition we identified a number of epistatic QTL, also with small effects. Taken together, our results show that flowering time in European winter bread wheat cultivars is mainly controlled by Ppd-D1 while the fine tuning to local climatic conditions is achieved through Ppd-B1 copy number variation and a larger number of QTL with small effects.

Infection prevention and control measures and tools for the prevention of entry of carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae into healthcare settings: guidance from the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. P. Magiorakos

2017-11-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Infections with carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE are increasingly being reported from patients in healthcare settings. They are associated with high patient morbidity, attributable mortality and hospital costs. Patients who are “at-risk” may be carriers of these multidrug-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (MDR-E. The purpose of this guidance is to raise awareness and identify the “at-risk” patient when admitted to a healthcare setting and to outline effective infection prevention and control measures to halt the entry and spread of CRE. Methods The guidance was created by a group of experts who were functioning independently of their organisations, during two meetings hosted by the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control. A list of epidemiological risk factors placing patients “at-risk” for carriage with CRE was created by the experts. The conclusions of a systematic review on the prevention of spread of CRE, with the addition of expert opinion, were used to construct lists of core and supplemental infection prevention and control measures to be implemented for “at-risk” patients upon admission to healthcare settings. Results Individuals with the following profile are “at-risk” for carriage of CRE: a a history of an overnight stay in a healthcare setting in the last 12 months, b dialysis-dependent or cancer chemotherapy in the last 12 months, c known previous carriage of CRE in the last 12 months and d epidemiological linkage to a known carrier of a CRE. Core infection prevention and control measures that should be considered for all patients in healthcare settings were compiled. Preliminary supplemental measures to be implemented for “at-risk” patients on admission are: pre-emptive isolation, active screening for CRE, and contact precautions. Patients who are confirmed positive for CRE will need additional supplemental measures. Conclusions Strengthening the microbiological

Psychosocial development of full term singletons, born after preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) at preschool age and family functioning: a prospective case-controlled study and multi-informant approach.

Science.gov (United States)

Winter, C; Van Acker, F; Bonduelle, M; Desmyttere, S; Nekkebroeck, J

2015-05-01

Do full term singletons born after preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) differ in their psychosocial functioning from children born after intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) and spontaneous conceived controls (SC)? The psychosocial maturation process of 5-6-year-old PGD children is comparable between the three conception groups (PGD, ICSI and SC). In general, a lot of research has been published regarding follow-up of children born after artificial reproductive technologies (ART), which mainly is reassuring. But the ART population itself is marked by broad diversity [IVF, ICSI, gamete donation, preimplantation genetic screening (PGS) or PGD] which complicates comparisons. Some literature concerning the socio-emotional development of PGD/PGS children is available and it suggests a normal maturation process. However, the complex reality of PGD families (e.g. safety of the technique and psychological burden of genetic histories) asks for an exclusive PGD sample with matched control groups and a multi-informant approach. Between April 2011 and May 2013, the psychosocial wellbeing of preschoolers and their families born after PGD was assessed in a prospective case-controlled, matched follow-up study, with a multi-informant approach. A group of 47 PGD, 50 ICSI and 55 SC 5-6-year-old children participated in a follow-up study performed at the Centre for Medical Genetics of the Universitair Ziekenhuis Brussel (UZ Brussel). Assessments took place in the hospital and in kindergartens. Children performed the Bene-Anthony family relations test (FRT), yielding their perceptions upon family relationships. Parents and teachers completed the child behaviour checklist (CBCL) and Caregiver Teacher Report Form (C-/TRF), respectively. Parental and family functioning were measured by the NEO-FFi, the parenting stress index (PSI), the Greenberger Work-Parenting Investment Questionnaire and the Marlowe-Crowne Social Desirability Scale (MCSDS). Statistical analysis was performed by

A European multi-language initiative to make the general population aware of independent clinical research

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Mosconi, Paola; Antes, Gerd; Barbareschi, Giorgio

2016-01-01

2. An animated film about clinical trials, dubbed in the 23 official languages of the European Community, and an interactive tutorial 3. An inventory of resources, available in 23 languages, searchable by topic, author, and media type 4. Two educational games for young people, developed in six......BACKGROUND: The ECRAN (European Communication on Research Awareness Needs) project was initiated in 2012, with support from the European Commission, to improve public knowledge about the importance of independent, multinational, clinical trials in Europe. METHODS: Participants in the ECRAN...... materials and tools, making them freely available under a Creative Commons licence. RESULTS: The principal communication materials developed were: 1. A website ( http://ecranproject.eu ) in six languages, including a Media centre section to help journalists to disseminate information about the ECRAN project...

Rural health centres, communities and malaria case detection in Zambia using mobile telephones: a means to detect potential reservoirs of infection in unstable transmission conditions.

Science.gov (United States)

Kamanga, Aniset; Moono, Petros; Stresman, Gillian; Mharakurwa, Sungano; Shiff, Clive

2010-04-15

Effective malaria control depends on timely acquisition of information on new cases, their location and their frequency so as to deploy supplies, plan interventions or focus attention on specific locations appropriately to intervene and prevent an upsurge in transmission. The process is known as active case detection, but because the information is time sensitive, it is difficult to carry out. In Zambia, the rural health services are operating effectively and for the most part are provided with adequate supplies of rapid diagnostic tests (RDT) as well as effective drugs for the diagnosis and treatment of malaria. The tests are administered to all prior to treatment and appropriate records are kept. Data are obtained in a timely manner and distribution of this information is important for the effective management of malaria control operations. The work reported here involves combining the process of positive diagnoses in rural health centres (passive case detection) to help detect potential outbreaks of malaria and target interventions to foci where parasite reservoirs are likely to occur. Twelve rural health centres in the Choma and Namwala Districts were recruited to send weekly information of rapid malaria tests used and number of positive diagnoses to the Malaria Institute at Macha using mobile telephone SMS. Data were entered in excel, expressed as number of cases per rural health centre and distributed weekly to interested parties. These data from each of the health centres which were mapped using geographical positioning system (GPS) coordinates were used in a time sensitive manner to plot the patterns of malaria case detection in the vicinity of each location. The data were passed on to the appropriate authorities. The seasonal pattern of malaria transmission associated with local ecological conditions can be seen in the distribution of cases diagnosed. Adequate supplies of RDT are essential in health centres and the system can be expanded throughout the

Rural health centres, communities and malaria case detection in Zambia using mobile telephones: a means to detect potential reservoirs of infection in unstable transmission conditions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kamanga Aniset

2010-04-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Effective malaria control depends on timely acquisition of information on new cases, their location and their frequency so as to deploy supplies, plan interventions or focus attention on specific locations appropriately to intervene and prevent an upsurge in transmission. The process is known as active case detection, but because the information is time sensitive, it is difficult to carry out. In Zambia, the rural health services are operating effectively and for the most part are provided with adequate supplies of rapid diagnostic tests (RDT as well as effective drugs for the diagnosis and treatment of malaria. The tests are administered to all prior to treatment and appropriate records are kept. Data are obtained in a timely manner and distribution of this information is important for the effective management of malaria control operations. The work reported here involves combining the process of positive diagnoses in rural health centres (passive case detection to help detect potential outbreaks of malaria and target interventions to foci where parasite reservoirs are likely to occur. Methods Twelve rural health centres in the Choma and Namwala Districts were recruited to send weekly information of rapid malaria tests used and number of positive diagnoses to the Malaria Institute at Macha using mobile telephone SMS. Data were entered in excel, expressed as number of cases per rural health centre and distributed weekly to interested parties. Results These data from each of the health centres which were mapped using geographical positioning system (GPS coordinates were used in a time sensitive manner to plot the patterns of malaria case detection in the vicinity of each location. The data were passed on to the appropriate authorities. The seasonal pattern of malaria transmission associated with local ecological conditions can be seen in the distribution of cases diagnosed. Conclusions Adequate supplies of RDT are essential in

Commission of the european communities. Joint research centre. Petten Establishment. Annual Report 1977

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1977 marked the beginning of a new multiannual research programme for the European Commission's Joint research Centre. Regarding the exploitation of HFR (High Flux Reactor), the year was one of steady, on-schedule operation with high utilization, although this fell off slightly in the autumn due to overloading of our capsule project engineering team and manufacturing services. We are pleased to note that the HFR Users' Meeting, held in October, drew about 100 participants from Europe and America and demonstrated a lively interest in the Commission's materials testing reactor. Technical improvements to the plant are being examined as one means of maintaining or even increasing this interest in the 1980's. Following the wishes of the Council of Ministers, new Advisory Committees for Programme Management have been set up for all the Joint Research Centre's activities and those for HFR and High Temperature Materials Programmes have met at Petten. This latter Committee is entirely new to its task, the programme having been served until 1977 by a number of ad hoc meetings of national experts. The work of the Organic Chemistry Laboratory falls under the wings of the Community Reference Bureau Advisory Committee, who have met in Brussels and strongly encouraged the development of the activity

ZOOM or Non-ZOOM? Assessing Spinal Cord Diffusion Tensor Imaging Protocols for Multi-Centre Studies.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rebecca S Samson

Full Text Available The purpose of this study was to develop and evaluate two spinal cord (SC diffusion tensor imaging (DTI protocols, implemented at multiple sites (using scanners from two different manufacturers, one available on any clinical scanner, and one using more advanced options currently available in the research setting, and to use an automated processing method for unbiased quantification. DTI parameters are sensitive to changes in the diseased SC. However, imaging the cord can be technically challenging due to various factors including its small size, patient-related and physiological motion, and field inhomogeneities. Rapid acquisition sequences such as Echo Planar Imaging (EPI are desirable but may suffer from image distortions. We present a multi-centre comparison of two acquisition protocols implemented on scanners from two different vendors (Siemens and Philips, one using a reduced field-of-view (rFOV EPI sequence, and one only using options available on standard clinical scanners such as outer volume suppression (OVS. Automatic analysis was performed with the Spinal Cord Toolbox for unbiased and reproducible quantification of DTI metrics in the white matter. Images acquired using the rFOV sequence appear less distorted than those acquired using OVS alone. SC DTI parameter values obtained using both sequences at all sites were consistent with previous measurements made at 3T. For the same scanner manufacturer, DTI parameter inter-site SDs were smaller for the rFOV sequence compared to the OVS sequence. The higher inter-site reproducibility (for the same manufacturer and acquisition details, i.e. ZOOM data acquired at the two Philips sites of rFOV compared to the OVS sequence supports the idea that making research options such as rFOV more widely available would improve accuracy of measurements obtained in multi-centre clinical trials. Future multi-centre studies should also aim to match the rFOV technique and signal-to-noise ratios in all

Clustering of European winter storms: A multi-model perspective

Science.gov (United States)

Renggli, Dominik; Buettner, Annemarie; Scherb, Anke; Straub, Daniel; Zimmerli, Peter

2016-04-01

The storm series over Europe in 1990 (Daria, Vivian, Wiebke, Herta) and 1999 (Anatol, Lothar, Martin) are very well known. Such clusters of severe events strongly affect the seasonally accumulated damage statistics. The (re)insurance industry has quantified clustering by using distribution assumptions deduced from the historical storm activity of the last 30 to 40 years. The use of storm series simulated by climate models has only started recently. Climate model runs can potentially represent 100s to 1000s of years, allowing a more detailed quantification of clustering than the history of the last few decades. However, it is unknown how sensitive the representation of clustering is to systematic biases. Using a multi-model ensemble allows quantifying that uncertainty. This work uses CMIP5 decadal ensemble hindcasts to study clustering of European winter storms from a multi-model perspective. An objective identification algorithm extracts winter storms (September to April) in the gridded 6-hourly wind data. Since the skill of European storm predictions is very limited on the decadal scale, the different hindcast runs are interpreted as independent realizations. As a consequence, the available hindcast ensemble represents several 1000 simulated storm seasons. The seasonal clustering of winter storms is quantified using the dispersion coefficient. The benchmark for the decadal prediction models is the 20th Century Reanalysis. The decadal prediction models are able to reproduce typical features of the clustering characteristics observed in the reanalysis data. Clustering occurs in all analyzed models over the North Atlantic and European region, in particular over Great Britain and Scandinavia as well as over Iberia (i.e. the exit regions of the North Atlantic storm track). Clustering is generally weaker in the models compared to reanalysis, although the differences between different models are substantial. In contrast to existing studies, clustering is driven by weak

Laser-assisted lead extraction: the European experience.

Science.gov (United States)

Kennergren, C; Bucknall, C A; Butter, C; Charles, R; Fuhrer, J; Grosfeld, M; Tavernier, R; Morgado, T B; Mortensen, P; Paul, V; Richter, P; Schwartz, T; Wellens, F

2007-08-01

The aim of this study is to investigate the safety and effectiveness of Excimer laser-assisted lead extraction in Europe. The final European multi-centre study experience is presented. The Excimer is a cool cutting laser (50 degrees C) with a wavelength of 308 nm. The energy is emitted from the tip of a flexible sheath and is absorbed by proteins and lipids, 64% of the energy is absorbed at a tissue depth of 0.06 mm. The sheath is positioned over the lead, and the fibrosis surrounding the lead is vaporized while advancing the sheath without damaging other leads. From August 1996 to March 2001, 383 leads (170 atrial, 213 ventricular) in 292 patients (mean age 61.6 years, range 13-96) were extracted at 14 European centres. Mean implantation time was 74 months (3-358). Most frequent indications were pocket infection (26%), non-functional leads (21%), patient morbidity (21%), septicaemia or endocarditis (14%), erosion (5%), and lead interference (8%). Median extraction time was 15 min (1-300). Complete extraction was achieved in 90.9% of the leads and partial extraction in 3.4%. Extraction failed in 5.7% of the leads. Major complications = perforations caused 10/22 (3.4/5.7%) of the failures. Most partially extracted patients were considered clinically successful, as only minor lead parts without clinical significance were left. Femoral non-laser technique was used to remove 8/12 of the non-complication failures. The total complication rate, including five minor complications (1.7%), was 5.1%. No in-hospital mortality occurred. Pacing and implantable cardioverter-defibrillator leads can safely, effectively, and predictably be extracted. Open-heart extractions can be limited to special cases. The results indicate that the traditional policy of abandoning redundant leads, instead of removing them, may be obsolete in many patients.

A novel SDN enabled hybrid oiptical packet/circuit switched data centre network - The LIGHTNESS approach

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Peng, S.; Simeonidou, D.; Zervas, G.; Nejabati, R.; Yan, Y; Shu, Yi; Spadaro, S.; Perelló, J.; Agraz, F.; Careglio, D.; Dorren, H.J.S.; Miao, W.; Calabretta, N.; Bernini, G.; Ciulli, N.; Sancho, J.C.; Iordache, S.; Becerra, Y.; Farreras, M.; Biancani, M.; Predieri, A.; Proietti, R.; Cao, Z.; Liu, L.; Yoo, S.J.B.

2014-01-01

Current over-provisioned and multi-tier data centre networks (DCN) deploy rigid control and management platforms, which are not able to accommodate the ever-growing workload driven by the increasing demand of high-performance data centre (DC) and cloud applications. In response to this, the EC FP7

Community Documentation Centre on Industrial Risk. Bulletin no. 8

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Masera, M.; Rasmussen, K.

1993-01-01

The Directorate-General for Environment, Nuclear Safety and Civil Protection of the Commission of the European Communities is responsible for the effective and harmonized implementation of the Directive 82/501/EEC on the major-accident hazards of certain industrial activities. To this end, the Commission, in collaboration with the Committee of Competent Authorities responsible for the implementation of this Directive in the twelve Member States, carries out a whole range of activities. One of the most essential areas for action identified was the need for a systematic diffusion of information concerning the practical implementation of the Directive in the Member States, including the technical rules and guidelines applied, the safety practices and the lessons learnt from major accidents. Therefore, the Commission decided to set up a Community Documentation Centre on Industrial Risks (CDCIR). This Documentation Centre is run by the European Commission, Joint Research Centre, Institute for Systems Engineering and Informatics (ISEI), at Ispra, Italy, among its support activities on the implementation of the Directive. The Documentation Centre will collect, classify and review technical rules, guidelines and documents concerning the requirements of the Directive, as well as the safety of industrial installations produced by governments, administrative, scientific or technical bodies, national or international organizations and industrial or professional associations. Documents on major accidents in the form of reports, videotapes will also be collected and reviewed. The Centre is accessible to interested visitors, documents which are not covered by copyright and are not restricted can be obtained from the Documentation Centre on request. Periodical volumes which will feature the inventory, including abstracts, of the collected material will be published and made available to all interested parties. The Centre will also publish documents devoted to compare existing

Community Documentation Centre on Industrial Risk. Bulletin no. 4

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gow, H.B.F.

1991-01-01

The Directorate-General for Environment, Nuclear Safety and Civil Protection of the Commission of the European Communities is responsible for the effective and harmonized implementation of the Directive 82/501/EEC on the major-accident hazards of certain industrial activities. To this end, the Commission, in collaboration with the Committee of Competent Authorities responsible for the implementation of this Directive in the twelve Member States, carries out a whole range of activities. One of the most essential areas for action identified was the need for a systematic diffusion of information concerning the practical implementation of the Directive in the Member States, including the technical rules and guidelines applied, the safety practices and the lessons learnt from major accidents. Therefore, the Commission decided to set up a Community Documentation Centre on Industrial Risks (CDCIR). This Documentation Centre is run by the European Commission, Joint Research Centre, Institute for Systems Engineering and Informatics (ISEI), at Ispra, Italy, among its support activities on the implementation of the Directive. The Documentation Centre will collect, classify and review technical rules, guidelines and documents concerning the requirements of the Directive, as well as the safety of industrial installations produced by governments, administrative, scientific or technical bodies, national or international organizations and industrial or professional associations. Documents on major accidents in the form of reports, videotapes will also be collected and reviewed. The Centre is accessible to interested visitors, documents which are not covered by copyright and are not restricted can be obtained from the Documentation Centre on request. Periodical volumes which will feature the inventory, including abstracts, of the collected material will be published and made available to all interested parties. The Centre will also publish documents devoted to compare existing

Community Documentation Centre on Industrial Risk. Bulletin no. 10

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Perschke, A.; Kirchsteiger, C.

1996-01-01

The Directorate-General for Environment, Nuclear Safety and Civil Protection of the Commission of the European Communities is responsible for the effective and harmonized implementation of the Directive 82/501/EEC on the major-accident hazards of certain industrial activities. To this end, the Commission, in collaboration with the Committee of Competent Authorities responsible for the implementation of this Directive in the twelve Member States, carries out a whole range of activities. One of the most essential areas for action identified was the need for a systematic diffusion of information concerning the practical implementation of the Directive in the Member States, including the technical rules and guidelines applied, the safety practices and the lessons learnt from major accidents. Therefore, the Commission decided to set up a Community Documentation Centre on Industrial Risks (CDCIR). This Documentation Centre is run by the European Commission, Joint Research Centre, Institute for Systems Engineering and Informatics (ISEI), at Ispra, Italy, among its support activities on the implementation of the Directive. The Documentation Centre will collect, classify and review technical rules, guidelines and documents concerning the requirements of the Directive, as well as the safety of industrial installations produced by governments, administrative, scientific or technical bodies, national or international organizations and industrial or professional associations. Documents on major accidents in the form of reports, videotapes will also be collected and reviewed. The Centre is accessible to interested visitors, documents which are not covered by copyright and are not restricted can be obtained from the Documentation Centre on request. Periodical volumes which will feature the inventory, including abstracts, of the collected material will be published and made available to all interested parties. The Centre will also publish documents devoted to compare existing

Community Documentation Centre on Industrial Risk. Bulletin no. 5

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gow, H.B.F.

1991-11-01

The Directorate-General for Environment, Nuclear Safety and Civil Protection of the Commission of the European Communities is responsible for the effective and harmonized implementation of the Directive 82/501/EEC on the major-accident hazards of certain industrial activities. To this end, the Commission, in collaboration with the Committee of Competent Authorities responsible for the implementation of this Directive in the twelve Member States, carries out a whole range of activities. One of the most essential areas for action identified was the need for a systematic diffusion of information concerning the practical implementation of the Directive in the Member States, including the technical rules and guidelines applied, the safety practices and the lessons learnt from major accidents. Therefore, the Commission decided to set up a Community Documentation Centre on Industrial Risks (CDCIR). This Documentation Centre is run by the European Commission, Joint Research Centre, Institute for Systems Engineering and Informatics (ISEI), at Ispra, Italy, among its support activities on the implementation of the Directive. The Documentation Centre will collect, classify and review technical rules, guidelines and documents concerning the requirements of the Directive, as well as the safety of industrial installations produced by governments, administrative, scientific or technical bodies, national or international organizations and industrial or professional associations. Documents on major accidents in the form of reports, videotapes will also be collected and reviewed. The Centre is accessible to interested visitors, documents which are not covered by copyright and are not restricted can be obtained from the Documentation Centre on request. Periodical volumes which will feature the inventory, including abstracts, of the collected material will be published and made available to all interested parties. The Centre will also publish documents devoted to compare existing

Community Documentation Centre on Industrial Risk. Bulletin no. 7

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gow, H.B.F.; Carditello, I.

1993-04-01

The Directorate-General for Environment, Nuclear Safety and Civil Protection of the Commission of the European Communities is responsible for the effective and harmonized implementation of the Directive 82/501/EEC on the major-accident hazards of certain industrial activities. To this end, the Commission, in collaboration with the Committee of Competent Authorities responsible for the implementation of this Directive in the twelve Member States, carries out a whole range of activities. One of the most essential areas for action identified was the need for a systematic diffusion of information concerning the practical implementation of the Directive in the Member States, including the technical rules and guidelines applied, the safety practices and the lessons learnt from major accidents. Therefore, the Commission decided to set up a Community Documentation Centre on Industrial Risks (CDCIR). This Documentation Centre is run by the European Commission, Joint Research Centre, Institute for Systems Engineering and Informatics (ISEI), at Ispra, Italy, among its support activities on the implementation of the Directive. The Documentation Centre will collect, classify and review technical rules, guidelines and documents concerning the requirements of the Directive, as well as the safety of industrial installations produced by governments, administrative, scientific or technical bodies, national or international organizations and industrial or professional associations. Documents on major accidents in the form of reports, videotapes will also be collected and reviewed. The Centre is accessible to interested visitors, documents which are not covered by copyright and are not restricted can be obtained from the Documentation Centre on request. Periodical volumes which will feature the inventory, including abstracts, of the collected material will be published and made available to all interested parties. The Centre will also publish documents devoted to compare existing

Community Documentation Centre on Industrial Risk. Bulletin no. 9

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Perschke, A.

1995-01-01

The Directorate-General for Environment, Nuclear Safety and Civil Protection of the Commission of the European Communities is responsible for the effective and harmonized implementation of the Directive 82/501/EEC on the major-accident hazards of certain industrial activities. To this end, the Commission, in collaboration with the Committee of Competent Authorities responsible for the implementation of this Directive in the twelve Member States, carries out a whole range of activities. One of the most essential areas for action identified was the need for a systematic diffusion of information concerning the practical implementation of the Directive in the Member States, including the technical rules and guidelines applied, the safety practices and the lessons learnt from major accidents. Therefore, the Commission decided to set up a Community Documentation Centre on Industrial Risks (CDCIR). This Documentation Centre is run by the European Commission, Joint Research Centre, Institute for Systems Engineering and Informatics (ISEI), at Ispra, Italy, among its support activities on the implementation of the Directive. The Documentation Centre will collect, classify and review technical rules, guidelines and documents concerning the requirements of the Directive, as well as the safety of industrial installations produced by governments, administrative, scientific or technical bodies, national or international organizations and industrial or professional associations. Documents on major accidents in the form of reports, videotapes will also be collected and reviewed. The Centre is accessible to interested visitors, documents which are not covered by copyright and are not restricted can be obtained from the Documentation Centre on request. Periodical volumes which will feature the inventory, including abstracts, of the collected material will be published and made available to all interested parties. The Centre will also publish documents devoted to compare existing

Community Documentation Centre on Industrial Risk. Bulletin no. 6

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gow, H.B.F.

1992-06-01

The Directorate-General for Environment, Nuclear Safety and Civil Protection of the Commission of the European Communities is responsible for the effective and harmonized implementation of the Directive 82/501/EEC on the major-accident hazards of certain industrial activities. To this end, the Commission, in collaboration with the Committee of Competent Authorities responsible for the implementation of this Directive in the twelve Member States, carries out a whole range of activities. One of the most essential areas for action identified was the need for a systematic diffusion of information concerning the practical implementation of the Directive in the Member States, including the technical rules and guidelines applied, the safety practices and the lessons learnt from major accidents. Therefore, the Commission decided to set up a Community Documentation Centre on Industrial Risks (CDCIR). This Documentation Centre is run by the European Commission, Joint Research Centre, Institute for Systems Engineering and Informatics (ISEI), at Ispra, Italy, among its support activities on the implementation of the Directive. The Documentation Centre will collect, classify and review technical rules, guidelines and documents concerning the requirements of the Directive, as well as the safety of industrial installations produced by governments, administrative, scientific or technical bodies, national or international organizations and industrial or professional associations. Documents on major accidents in the form of reports, videotapes will also be collected and reviewed. The Centre is accessible to interested visitors, documents which are not covered by copyright and are not restricted can be obtained from the Documentation Centre on request. Periodical volumes which will feature the inventory, including abstracts, of the collected material will be published and made available to all interested parties. The Centre will also publish documents devoted to compare existing

Community Documentation Centre on Industrial Risk. Bulletin no. 11

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Perschke, A.; Kirchsteiger, C.; Carnevali, C.

1997-01-01

The Directorate-General for Environment, Nuclear Safety and Civil Protection of the Commission of the European Communities is responsible for the effective and harmonized implementation of the Directive 82/501/EEC on the major-accident hazards of certain industrial activities. To this end, the Commission, in collaboration with the Committee of Competent Authorities responsible for the implementation of this Directive in the twelve Member States, carries out a whole range of activities. One of the most essential areas for action identified was the need for a systematic diffusion of information concerning the practical implementation of the Directive in the Member States, including the technical rules and guidelines applied, the safety practices and the lessons learnt from major accidents. Therefore, the Commission decided to set up a Community Documentation Centre on Industrial Risks (CDCIR). This Documentation Centre is run by the European Commission, Joint Research Centre, Institute for Systems Engineering and Informatics (ISEI), at Ispra, Italy, among its support activities on the implementation of the Directive. The Documentation Centre will collect, classify and review technical rules, guidelines and documents concerning the requirements of the Directive, as well as the safety of industrial installations produced by governments, administrative, scientific or technical bodies, national or international organizations and industrial or professional associations. Documents on major accidents in the form of reports, videotapes will also be collected and reviewed. The Centre is accessible to interested visitors, documents which are not covered by copyright and are not restricted can be obtained from the Documentation Centre on request. Periodical volumes which will feature the inventory, including abstracts, of the collected material will be published and made available to all interested parties. The Centre will also publish documents devoted to compare existing

The relation between paracetamol use and asthma

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Shaheen, S; Potts, J; Gnatiuc, L

2008-01-01

Studies from the UK and the USA suggest that frequent use of paracetamol (acetaminophen) may increase the risk of asthma, but data across Europe are lacking.As part of a multi-centre case-control study organised by the GA(2)LEN network we have examined whether frequent paracetamol use is associated...... with adult asthma across Europe. The network compared 521 cases with a diagnosis of asthma and reporting asthma symptoms in the last 12 months with 507 controls with no diagnosis of asthma and no asthmatic symptoms in the last 12 months across 12 European centres. All cases and controls were selected from...... the same population defined by age (20-45 years) and place of residence.In a random effects meta-analysis, after controlling for confounders, the adjusted odds ratio for asthma associated with weekly use of paracetamol, compared with less frequent use, was 2.87 (95% CI: 1.49 to 5.37), P=0...

The Effect of Using Assessment Instruments on Substance-abuse Outpatients' Adherence to Treatment: a Multi-centre Randomised Controlled Trial

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Broekaert Eric

2011-05-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Drop-out is an important problem in the treatment of substance use disorder. The focus of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of within treatment assessment with feedback directly to patients with multiple substance use disorder on outpatient individual treatment adherence. Feedback consisted of personal resources' and readiness to change status and progress that facilitate or hinder change, thereby using graphical representation. Methods Informed consent was obtained from both the control and experimental groups to be involved in research and follow-up. Following Zelen's single consent design, baseline participants (n = 280 were randomised (sample-size-estimation: 80%power, p=.05, 2-sided and treatment consent was obtained from those allocated to the experiment (n = 142. In both groups, equal numbers of patients did not attend sessions after allocation. So, 227 persons were analyzed according to intention-to-treat analysis (ITT: experiment n = 116;control n = 111. Excluding refusals 211 participants remained for per-protocol analysis (PP: experiment n = 100; control n = 111, The study was conducted in five outpatient treatment-centres of a large network (De Sleutel in Belgium. Participants were people with multiple substance use disorder -abuse and dependence- who had asked for treatment and who had been advised to start individual treatment after a standardised admission assessment with the European Addiction Severity Index. The experimental condition consisted of informing the patient about the intervention and of subsequent assessments plus feedback following a protocol within the first seven sessions. Assessments were made with the Readiness to Change Questionnaire and the Personal Resources Diagnostic System. The control group received the usual treatment without within treatment assessment with feedback. The most important outcome measure in this analysis of the study was the level of adherence to treatment

Integrating of renewable energy in operation system: the Special Regime Control Centre (CECRE)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Division, M.

2007-01-01

The implementation of Red Electrica de Espana Special Regime Control Centre (CECRE) has demonstrated the Spanish System Operators commitment of integrating the maximum possible wind power generation into the electrical system compatible with secure operation. With this leadership initiative,for the first time in the world, a System Operator Control Centre (CECRE) has succeeded in sending power control instructions to wind power generators over the country through Generation Control Centres (CGC) to which these generators must be connected complying with the Spanish Rules. (Author)

Tuning method for multi-variable control system with PID controllers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fujiwara, Toshitaka

1983-01-01

Control systems, including thermal and nuclear power plants, generally and mainly use PID controllers consisting of proportional, integral and differential actions. These systems consist of multiple control loops which interfere with each other. Therefore, it is present status that the fine control of the system is carried out by the trial and error method because the adjusting procedure for a single control loop cannot be applied to a multi-loop system in most cases. In this report, a method to effectively adjust PID controller parameters in a short time in a control system which consists of multi-loops that interfere with each other. This method makes adjustment by using the control area as the evaluation function, which is the time-dependent integration of control deviation, the input to the PID controllers. In other words, the evaluation function is provided for each control result for every parameter (gain constant, reset rate, and differentiation time), and all parameters are simultaneously changed in the direction of minimizing the values of these evaluation functions. In the report, the principle of tuning method, the evaluation function for each of three parameters, and the adjusting system configuration for separately using for actual plant tuning and for control system design are described. It also shows the examples of application to the actual tuning of the control system for a thermal power plant and to a control system design. (Wakatsuki, Y.)

Effect of medication-related factors on adherence in people with schizophrenia: a European multi-centre study

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Meier, Johanna; Becker, Thomas; Patel, Anita; Robson, Debbie; Schene, Aart; Kikkert, Martijn; Barbui, Corrado; Burti, Lorenzo; Puschner, Bernd

2010-01-01

To investigate the relation between medication-related factors and adherence in people with schizophrenia in outpatient treatment. The sample comprised 409 outpatients (ICD-10 diagnosis of schizophrenia) with clinician-rated instability in four European cities (Amsterdam, The Netherlands; Verona,

PATIENT-CENTRED SCREENING FOR PRIMARY IMMUNODEFICIENCY, A MULTI-STAGE DIAGNOSTIC PROTOCOL DESIGNED FOR NONIMMUNOLOGISTS: 2011 UPDATE

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

E. de Vries

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Abstract. Members of the European Society for Immunodeficiencies (ESID and other colleagues have updated themulti-stage expert-opinion-based diagnostic protocol for non-immunologists incorporating newly defined primary immunodeficiency diseases (PIDs. The protocol presented here aims to increase the awareness of PIDs among doctors working in different fields. Prompt identification of PID is important for prognosis, but this may not be an easy task. The protocol therefore starts from the clinical presentation of the patient. Because PIDs may present at all ages, this protocol is aimed at both adult and paediatric physicians. The multi-stage design allows cost-effective screening for PID of the large number of potential cases in the early phases, with more expensive tests reserved for definitive classification in collaboration with a specialist in the field of immunodeficiency at a later stage.

Assessment of data quality in an international multi-centre randomised trial of coronary artery surgery

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bochenek Andrzej

2011-09-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background ART is a multi-centre randomised trial of cardiac surgery which provided a unique opportunity to evaluate the data from a large number of centres from a variety of countries. We attempted to assess data quality, including recruitment rates, timeliness and completeness of the data obtained from the centres in different socio-economic strata. Methods The analysis was based on the 2-page CRF completed at the 6 week follow-up. CRF pages were categorised into "clean" (no edit query and "dirty" (any incomplete, inconsistent or illegible data. The timelines were assessed on the basis of the time interval from the visit and receipt of complete CRF. Data quality was defined as the number of data queries (in percent and time delay (in days between visit and receipt of correct data. Analyses were stratified according to the World Bank definitions into: "Developing" countries (Poland, Brazil and India and "Developed" (Italy, UK, Austria and Australia. Results There were 18 centres in the "Developed" and 10 centres in the "Developing" countries. The rate of enrolment did not differ significantly by economic level ("Developing":4.1 persons/month, "Developed":3.7 persons/month. The time interval for the receipt of data was longer for "Developing" countries (median:37 days compared to "Developed" ones (median:11 days (p Conclusions In this study we showed that data quality was comparable between centres from "Developed" and "Developing" countries. Data was received in a less timely fashion from Developing countries and appropriate systems should be instigated to minimize any delays. Close attention should be paid to the training of centres and to the central management of data quality. Trial registration ISRCTN46552265

A design basis for the development of advanced CANDU control centres

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Feher, M P; Davey, E C; Lupton, L R [Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd., Chalk River, ON (Canada)

1996-12-31

The basic design for current CANDU control centres was established in the early 1970`s. Plants constructed since then have, for the most part, retained the same basic design. Several factors have led to the need to re-examine CANDU control centre design for plants to be built beyond the year 2000. These factors include the changing roles and responsibilities for the operations staff, an improved understanding of operational issues associated with supervisory control, an improved understanding of human error in operational situations, the opportunity for improved plant performance through the introduction of new technologies, and marketing pressures. This paper describes the proposed design bases for the development of advanced control centres to be implemented in CANDU plants beyond the year 2000. Four areas have been defined covering design goals, design principles, operational bases, and plant functional bases. (author).

A design basis for the development of advanced CANDU control centres

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Feher, M.P.; Davey, E.C.; Lupton, L.R.

1995-01-01

The basic design for current CANDU control centres was established in the early 1970's. Plants constructed since then have, for the most part, retained the same basic design. Several factors have led to the need to re-examine CANDU control centre design for plants to be built beyond the year 2000. These factors include the changing roles and responsibilities for the operations staff, an improved understanding of operational issues associated with supervisory control, an improved understanding of human error in operational situations, the opportunity for improved plant performance through the introduction of new technologies, and marketing pressures. This paper describes the proposed design bases for the development of advanced control centres to be implemented in CANDU plants beyond the year 2000. Four areas have been defined covering design goals, design principles, operational bases, and plant functional bases. (author)

Protocol for the combined immunosuppression & radiotherapy in thyroid eye disease (CIRTED trial: A multi-centre, double-masked, factorial randomised controlled trial

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kingston Laura

2008-01-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Medical management of thyroid eye disease remains controversial due to a paucity of high quality evidence on long-term treatment outcomes. Glucocorticoids are known to be effective initially but have significant side-effects with long-term use and recrudescence can occur on cessation. Current evidence is conflicting on the efficacy of radiotherapy and non-steroid systemic immunosuppression, and the majority of previous studies have been retrospective, uncontrolled, small or poorly designed. The Combined Immunosuppression and Radiotherapy in Thyroid Eye Disease (CIRTED trial was designed to investigate the efficacy of radiotherapy and azathioprine in combination with a standard course of oral prednisolone in patients with active thyroid eye disease. Methods/design Patients with active thyroid eye disease will be randomised to receive (i azathioprine or oral placebo and (ii radiotherapy or sham-radiotherapy in this multi-centre, factorial randomised control trial. The primary outcome is improvement in disease severity (assessed using a composite binary measure at 12 months and secondary end-points include quality of life scores and health economic measures. Discussion The CIRTED trial is the first study to evaluate the role of radiotherapy and azathioprine as part of a long-term, combination immunosuppressive treatment regime for Thyroid Eye Disease. It will provide evidence for the role of radiotherapy and prolonged immunosuppression in the management of this condition, as well as pilot data on their use in combination. We have paid particular attention in the trial design to establishing (a robust placebo controls and masking protocols which are effective and safe for both radiotherapy and the systemic administration of an antiproliferative drug; (b constructing effective inclusion and exclusion criteria to select for active disease; and (c selecting pragmatic outcome measures. Trial registration Current controlled trials

A case-control study: occupational cooking and the risk of uveal melanoma

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marr Anja

2010-10-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background A European-wide population based case-control study (European rare cancer study undertaken in nine European countries examined risk factors for uveal melanoma. They found a positive association between cooks and the risk of uveal melanoma. In our study we examine whether cooks or people who worked in cook related jobs have an increased uveal melanoma risk. Methods We conducted a case-control study during 2002 and 2005. Overall, 1653 eligible subjects (age range: 20-74 years, living in Germany participated. Interviews were conducted with 459 incident uveal melanoma cases, 827 population controls, 180 ophthalmologist controls and 187 sibling controls. Data on occupational exposure were obtained from a self-administered postal questionnaire and a computer-assisted telephone interview. We used conditional logistic regression to estimate odds ratios adjusting for the matching factors. Results Overall, we did not observe an increased risk of uveal melanoma among people who worked as cooks or who worked in cook related jobs. When we restricted the source population of our study to the population of the Federal State of Northrhine-Westphalia, we observed an increased risk among subjects who were categorized as cooks in the cases-control analysis. Conclusion Our results are in conflict with former results of the European rare cancer study. Considering the rarity of the disease laboratory in vitro studies of human uveal melanoma cell lines should be done to analyze potential exposure risk factors like radiation from microwaves, strong light from incandescent ovens, or infrared radiation.

A study of melanoma in Eastern European migrants in Italy.

Science.gov (United States)

Astrua, Chiara; Fava, Paolo; Brizio, Matteo; Savoia, Paola

2017-04-01

Cancer survival rates are lower in Eastern Europe. To describe, based on a single-centre database in northern Italy, clinical, histopathological, and prognostic features of melanoma in a migrant population from Eastern Europe. We retrospectively analysed data from 18,190 consecutive foreign patients who visited our institution, with 49 cases of melanoma from Eastern Europe. The control group was represented by 1,003 Italian melanoma patients diagnosed and followed at our centre during the same time period. Patients from Eastern Europe were mainly females with lower median age, without significant differences regarding primary melanoma site, relative to the control group. Diagnosis was made at the place of birth in 30.6% and in our centre for the remainder. Median Breslow thickness was greater (p = 0.0178), and aggressive histotypes (p = 0.0017) and ulcerated melanomas (p = 0.002) were significantly over-represented, particularly when diagnosed in the patients' native country. Disease was more advanced at diagnosis (p = 0.0001), regardless of the place of initial diagnosis (51% had a progressive disease within one year which rose to 80% if diagnosed before admission to our centre), and the percentage of patients who died within one year was significantly higher (p = 0.022), relative to the control group. Our study shows a poor prognosis for melanoma patients diagnosed in Eastern Europe. Moreover, for migrant populations moving from Eastern to Western European countries, financial difficulties, poor social integration, and language barriers, with consequent late access to healthcare facilities, may account for a worse prognosis.

Protocol for the ProFHER (PROximal Fracture of the Humerus: Evaluation by Randomisation trial: a pragmatic multi-centre randomised controlled trial of surgical versus non-surgical treatment for proximal fracture of the humerus in adults

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maffulli Nicola

2009-11-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Proximal humeral fractures, which occur mainly in older adults, account for approximately 4 to 5% of all fractures. Approximately 40% of these fractures are displaced fractures involving the surgical neck. Management of this group of fractures is often challenging and the outcome is frequently unsatisfactory. In particular it is not clear whether surgery gives better outcomes than non-surgical management. Currently there is much variation in the use of surgery and a lack of good quality evidence to inform this decision. Methods/Design We aim to undertake a pragmatic UK-based multi-centre randomised controlled trial evaluating the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of surgical versus standard non-surgical treatment for adults with an acute closed displaced fracture of the proximal humerus with involvement of the surgical neck. The choice of surgical intervention is left to the surgeon, who must use techniques that they are fully experienced with. This will avoid 'learning curve' problems. We will promote good standards of non-surgical care, similarly insisting on care-provider competence, and emphasize the need for comparable provision of rehabilitation for both groups of patients. We aim to recruit 250 patients from a minimum of 18 NHS trauma centres throughout the UK. These patients will be followed-up for 2 years. The primary outcome is the Oxford Shoulder Score, which will be collected via questionnaires completed by the trial participants at 6, 12 and 24 months. This is a 12-item condition-specific questionnaire providing a total score based on the person's subjective assessment of pain and activities of daily living impairment. We will also collect data for other outcomes, including general health measures and complications, and for an economic evaluation. Additionally, we plan a systematic collection of reasons for non-inclusion of eligible patients who were not recruited into the trial, and their baseline

Risk factors for prostate cancer in Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Medical Centre: a case-control study.

Science.gov (United States)

Subahir, Mohd Nizam; Shah, Shamsul Azhar; Zainuddin, Zulkifli Md

2009-01-01

In Malaysia, prostate cancer is ranked 6th among male cancer and expected to increase in the future. Several factors have shown to be related to prostate cancer such as sociodemographic, lifestyle, diet, occupational exposure, medical and health status. This is the first time a similar study was conducted in Malaysia to recognize the risk factors for prostate cancer patients who came for treatment at University Kebangsaan Malaysia Medical Centre (UKMMC). Prostate cancer cases diagnosed between 2003 and 2008 which met with the inclusion criteria were included in the study. One hundred and twelfth (112) pairs of cases and controls matched by age and ethnicity were analysed. McNemar Odds Ratios (OR(M)) were calculated using McNemar Calculator software for univariate analysis while conditional logistic regression was used for multivariate analysis, both using SPSS version 12.0. Most of the prostate cancer patients (68.8%) that came for treatment in UKMMC were above 70 years old. The majority were Chinese (50.0%) followed by Malay (46.4%) and Indian (3.6%). Multivariate analysis showed cases were more likely to have a first-degree relative with a history of cancer (OR= 3.77, 95% CI= 1.19-11.85), to have been exposed to pesticides (OR= 5.57, 95% CI= 1.75-17.78) and consumed more meat (OR= 12.23, 95% CI= 3.89-39.01). Significantly reduced risks of prostate cancer were noted among those consuming more vegetables (OR= 0.12, 95% CI= 0.02-0.84), more tomatoes (OR= 0.35, 95% CI= 0.13-0.93) and those who had frequent sexual intercourse (OR= 0.44, 95% CI= 0.19-0.96). Some lifestyle and occupation factors are strong predictors of the occurrence of prostate cancer among patients in UKMMC. More importantly, with the identification of the potentially modifiable risk factors, proper public health intervention can be improved.

Design principles for CANDU control centres in response to evolving utility business needs

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Davey, E.

2002-01-01

Nuclear generation operators are facing a challenging business environment at the beginning of the new millennium. Evolving changes in business context, competitive commercial pressures, and changes in technology have dictated recurring evaluation of operational practices and the adequacy of supporting tools, and the pursuit of opportunities for operational improvement. A key area of utility operations that has been impacted by these changes is the nuclear plant control centre. Changes to workspace layout, equipment provisions, staffing, and work organization are examples of some of the adjustments being introduced to improve operational and safety effectiveness. This paper discusses some of the key factors influencing these changes and identifies additional design principles for CANDU control centres that will enable new control centre designs and retrofits of existing control centres to remain relevant and responsive to utility needs. (author)

Involving older people in a multi-centre randomised trial of a complex intervention in pre-hospital emergency care: implementation of a collaborative model.

Science.gov (United States)

Koniotou, Marina; Evans, Bridie Angela; Chatters, Robin; Fothergill, Rachael; Garnsworthy, Christopher; Gaze, Sarah; Halter, Mary; Mason, Suzanne; Peconi, Julie; Porter, Alison; Siriwardena, A Niroshan; Toghill, Alun; Snooks, Helen

2015-07-10

Health services research is expected to involve service users as active partners in the research process, but few examples report how this has been achieved in practice in trials. We implemented a model to involve service users in a multi-centre randomised controlled trial in pre-hospital emergency care. We used the generic Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) from our Clinical Trials Unit (CTU) as the basis for creating a model to fit the context and population of the SAFER 2 trial. In our model, we planned to involve service users at all stages in the trial through decision-making forums at 3 levels: 1) strategic; 2) site (e.g. Wales; London; East Midlands); 3) local. We linked with charities and community groups to recruit people with experience of our study population. We collected notes of meetings alongside other documentary evidence such as attendance records and study documentation to track how we implemented our model. We involved service users at strategic, site and local level. We also added additional strategic level forums (Task and Finish Groups and Writing Days) where we included service users. Service user involvement varied in frequency and type across meetings, research stages and locations but stabilised and increased as the trial progressed. Involving service users in the SAFER 2 trial showed how it is feasible and achievable for patients, carers and potential patients sharing the demographic characteristics of our study population to collaborate in a multi-centre trial at the level which suited their health, location, skills and expertise. A standard model of involvement can be tailored by adopting a flexible approach to take account of the context and complexities of a multi-site trial. Current Controlled Trials ISRCTN60481756. Registered: 13 March 2009.

Patient-centred performance monitoring systems and multi-agency care provision: a case study using a stakeholder participative approach.

Science.gov (United States)

Connell, N A; Goddard, A R; Philp, I; Bray, J

1998-05-01

We describe the processes involved in the development of an information system which can assess how care given by a number of agencies could be monitored by those agencies. In particular, it addresses the problem of sharing information as the boundaries of each agency are crossed. It focuses on the care of one specific patient group--the rehabilitation of elderly patients in the community, which provided an ideal multi-agency setting. It also describes: how a stakeholder participative approach to information system development was undertaken, based in part on the Soft Systems Methodology (SSM) approach (Checkland, 1981, 1990); some of the difficulties encountered in using such an approach; and the ways in which these were addressed. The paper goes on to describe an assessment tool called SCARS (the Southampton Community Ability Rating Scale). It concludes by reflecting on the management lessons arising from this project. It also observes, inter alia, how stakeholders have a strong preference for simpler, non-IT based systems, and comments on the difficulties encountered by stakeholders in attempting to reconcile their perceptions of the needs of their discipline or specialty with a more patient-centred approach of an integrated system.

Information report on nuclear safety and radiation protection of the Manche storage Centre - 2012

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2013-06-01

After a presentation of the Manche Storage Centre (CSM), the first French centre of surface storage of weakly and moderately radioactive wastes, of its history, its buildings and activities, of the multi-layer cover, of the water management system (installation, controls, sampling), this report describes the measures related to nuclear safety (principles and objectives, prevention measures, technical measures, regulatory plan of control of the Centre and of its environment, control of releases from storage installations, quality organisation, archiving system). It describes measures related to radiation protection: principles, staff dosimetry, and personnel safety. The next part presents the nuclear event scale (INES) and indicates that no incident occurred. The effluents and releases from the Centre are then addressed: origin, locations and results of radiological controls of rainfalls, of risky effluents, of underground waters, of rivers, impacts of the Centre on its environment (releases in the sea, in rivers). The management of conventional and nuclear wastes produced by the Centre is reviewed as well as the actions related to information and transparency. Recommendations of the CHSCT are reported

Is tuberculosis crossing borders at the Eastern boundary of the European Union?

Science.gov (United States)

van der Werf, Marieke J.; Hollo, Vahur; Noori, Teymur

2013-01-01

Background: The Eastern border of the European Union (EU) consists of 10 countries after the expansion of the EU in 2004 and 2007. These 10 countries border to the East to countries with high tuberculosis (TB) notification rates. We analyzed the notification data of Europe to quantify the impact of cross-border TB at the Eastern border of the EU. Methods: We used TB surveillance data of 2010 submitted by 53 European Region countries to the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control and the World Health Organization Regional Office for Europe. Notified TB cases were stratified by origin of the case (national/foreign). We calculated the contribution of foreign to overall TB notification. Results: In the 10 EU countries located at the EU Eastern border, 618 notified TB cases (1.7% of all notified TB cases) were of foreign origin. Of those 618 TB cases, 173 (28.0%) were from countries bordering the EU to the East. More specifically, 90 (52.0%) were from Russia, 33 (19.1%) from Belarus, 33 (19.1%) from Ukraine, 13 (7.5%) from Moldova and 4 (2.3%) from Turkey. Conclusions: Currently, migrants contribute little to TB notifications in the 10 EU countries at the Eastern border of the EU, but changes in migration patterns may result in an increasing contribution. Therefore, EU countries at the Eastern border of the EU should strive to provide prompt diagnostic services and adequate treatment of migrants. PMID:23813718

Human factors engineering applied to Control Centre Design of a research nuclear reactor

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Farias, Larissa P. de; Santos, Isaac J.A. Luquetti dos; Carvalho, Paulo V.R., E-mail: larissapfarias@ymail.com [Instituto de Engenharia Nuclear (DENN/SEESC/IEN/CNEN-RJ), Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil). Lab, de Usabilidade e Confiabilidade Humana; Monteiro, Beany G. [Universidade Federal do Rio Janeiro (UFRJ), Rio Janeiro, RJ (Brazil). Departamento de Desenho Industrial

2017-07-01

The Human Factors Engineering (HFE) program is an essential aspect for the design of nuclear installations. The overall aim of the HFE program is the improvement of the operational reliability and safety of plant operation. The HFE program main purpose is to ensure that human factor practices are incorporated into the plant design, emphasizing man-machine interface issues and design improvement of the nuclear reactor Control Centre. The Control Centre of nuclear reactor is a combination of control rooms, control suites and local control stations, which are functionally connected and located on the reactor site. The objective of this paper is to present a design approach for the Control Centre of a nuclear reactor used to produce radioisotopes and for nuclear research, including human factor issues. The design approach is based on participatory design principles, using human factor standards, ergonomic guidelines, and the participation of a multidisciplinary team during all design phases. Using the information gathered, an initial sketch 3D of the Control Centre was developed. (author)

Human factors engineering applied to Control Centre Design of a research nuclear reactor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Farias, Larissa P. de; Santos, Isaac J.A. Luquetti dos; Carvalho, Paulo V.R.; Monteiro, Beany G.

2017-01-01

The Human Factors Engineering (HFE) program is an essential aspect for the design of nuclear installations. The overall aim of the HFE program is the improvement of the operational reliability and safety of plant operation. The HFE program main purpose is to ensure that human factor practices are incorporated into the plant design, emphasizing man-machine interface issues and design improvement of the nuclear reactor Control Centre. The Control Centre of nuclear reactor is a combination of control rooms, control suites and local control stations, which are functionally connected and located on the reactor site. The objective of this paper is to present a design approach for the Control Centre of a nuclear reactor used to produce radioisotopes and for nuclear research, including human factor issues. The design approach is based on participatory design principles, using human factor standards, ergonomic guidelines, and the participation of a multidisciplinary team during all design phases. Using the information gathered, an initial sketch 3D of the Control Centre was developed. (author)

The manned space-laboratories control centre - MSCC. Operational functions and its implementation

Science.gov (United States)

Brogl, H.; Kehr, J.; Wlaka, M.

This paper describes the functions of the MSCC during the operations of the Columbus Attached Laboratory and the Free Flying Laboratory as part of the In-Orbit-Infrastructure Ground Segment. For the Attached Laboratory, MSCC payload operations coordination for European experiments within the Attached Laboratory and elsewhere on the Space Station Freedom will be explained. The Free Flying Laboratory will be operated and maintained exclusively from the MSCC during its 30 years lifetime. Several operational scenarios will demonstrate the role of the MSCC during routine - and servicing operations: of main importance are the servicing activities of the Attached Laboratory and the Free Flyer at the Space Station as well as servicing of the Free Flyer by the European Space Plane Hermes. The MSCC will have complex operational-, communications-and management interfaces with the IOI Ground Segment, the Space Station User community and with the international partners. Columbus User Support Centres will be established in many European member states, which have to be coordinated by the MSCC to ensure the proper reception of the scientific data and to provide them with quick access to their experiments in space. For operations planning and execution of experiments in the Attached Laboratory, a close cooperation with the Space Station control authorities in the USA will be established. The paper will show the development of the MSCC being initially used for the upcoming Spacelab Mission D-2 (MSCC Phase-1) and later upgraded to a Columbus dedicated control centre (MSCC Phase-2). For the initial construction phase the establishing of MSCC requirements, the philosophie used for the definition of the 'basic infrastructure' and key features of the installed facilities will be addressed. Resulting from Columbus and D-2 requirements, the sizing of the building with respect to controlrooms, conference rooms, office spare and simulation high-bay areas will be discussed. The defined 'basic

The Control of the Implementation and Management of European Funds

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vasile Burja

2018-03-01

Full Text Available Effective implementation and management of European funds is of major importance for the new members of the European Union. Controlling these funds aims to increase the performance of their use. European regulations require Member States to take appropriate measures to properly maintain and operate their management and control systems so that they can offer the necessary assurances regarding the correct use of the allocated funds. This article highlights the importance of control exercised within institutions that implement and manage European funds. There have been many irregularities in the implementation of projects funded by European funds. In order to determine the most frequent types of irregularities, a questionnaire was applied to the experts responsible for controlling European funds in intermediary bodies. In this article we will present the results obtained after the centralization of expert responses and the importance of control in the prevention of irregularities and fraud.

A designated centre for people with disabilities operated by Daughters of Charity Disability Support Services Ltd., Dublin 7

LENUS (Irish Health Repository)

Muller, Ueli C

2011-04-07

Abstract Background The International Multi-centre ADHD Genetics (IMAGE) project with 11 participating centres from 7 European countries and Israel has collected a large behavioural and genetic database for present and future research. Behavioural data were collected from 1068 probands with the combined type of attention deficit\\/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD-CT) and 1446 \\'unselected\\' siblings. The aim was to analyse the IMAGE sample with respect to demographic features (gender, age, family status, and recruiting centres) and psychopathological characteristics (diagnostic subtype, symptom frequencies, age at symptom detection, and comorbidities). A particular focus was on the effects of the study design and the diagnostic procedure on the homogeneity of the sample in terms of symptom-based behavioural data, and potential consequences for further analyses based on these data. Methods Diagnosis was based on the Parental Account of Childhood Symptoms (PACS) interview and the DSM-IV items of the Conners\\' teacher questionnaire. Demographics of the full sample and the homogeneity of a subsample (all probands) were analysed by using robust statistical procedures which were adjusted for unequal sample sizes and skewed distributions. These procedures included multi-way analyses based on trimmed means and winsorised variances as well as bootstrapping. Results Age and proband\\/sibling ratios differed between participating centres. There was no significant difference in the distribution of gender between centres. There was a significant interaction between age and centre for number of inattentive, but not number of hyperactive symptoms. Higher ADHD symptom frequencies were reported by parents than teachers. The diagnostic symptoms differed from each other in their frequencies. The face-to-face interview was more sensitive than the questionnaire. The differentiation between ADHD-CT probands and unaffected siblings was mainly due to differences in hyperactive

European networks in the field of structural integrity managed by the Joint Research Centre of the EC

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Crutzen, S.; Estorff, U. von

1998-01-01

Three European networks on structural integrity aspects of ageing nuclear components are presently managed by the Institute for Advanced Materials of the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission: AMES (Ageing Materials Evaluation and Studies), ENIQ (European Network for Inspection Qualification) and NESC (Network for Evaluating Steel Components). These club-type co-operations involving nuclear industry have the following broad objectives: 1) the integration of fragmented R and D work on structural integrity through the execution of studies and projects at European level; 2) the support or introduction of a long term strategy in some of the European groups or actions conducted by the Commission; 3) the use of European networks to influence studies and project results in the direction of codes and standards in Europe and for the harmonisation of codes in general The networks were launched during 1992 and 1993. Since then considerable progress has been achieved: AMES has identified priority items in reactor materials ageing research, which are of common interest. They were fit into a general strategy to be followed by AMES. ENIQ has moved to a Steering Committee composed of utilities as voting members. An important step was reached by issuing a consensus document about a European methodology for qualification of non-destructive testing and by developing pilot exercises. The NESC initiative provides a means for EU countries to collaborate in large scale shared cost experiments that investigate the entire process of structural integrity assessment. The pressurised thermal shock experiment of the first project NESC I has taken place during spring 1997 and it made use of the AEA Technology spinning cylinder facility. Evaluation of the test data is going on through destructive examination. (author)

Denmark and the European Union

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Manners, Ian

2011-01-01

Over the past two decades Morten Kelstrup’s work has been at the centre of three important intellectual innovations in political science – the study of the EU as a regional political system; European security studies; and small states in European integration. Kelstrup’s best known books (Buzan, K...... of this book, two of Kelstrup’s most important intellectual contributions come from his work on Denmark’s relations with the European Union, and his use of systems theory to understand the EU.......Over the past two decades Morten Kelstrup’s work has been at the centre of three important intellectual innovations in political science – the study of the EU as a regional political system; European security studies; and small states in European integration. Kelstrup’s best known books (Buzan...

Proposal for an ecoradiological centre model

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Perovic, S.M.; Zunic, Z.; Demajo, M.; Konjevic, N.

1998-01-01

The problem of establishing an optimal Ecoradiological Centre Model is studied in some detail for the town of Kotor which is under the protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage. The proposed structure of the Centre is analyzed from the view of Engineering, Education and Scientific parameters. This Model is suitable for implementation as a network Centre Model for the state of Montenegro. Further, the modelling strategy of the ecoradiological condition control of natural, construction, bio and technological systems is elaborated. The proposal includes the ecoradiological monitoring, radioactive and electromagnetic radiation processing and protection for different natural zones as well as their different geostructures, aerial and hydrogeological conditions. The programme also includes all housing objects (hotels, flats, houses, office premises etc.). Here will also be presented the radiation protection and recommendations for the implementation of Title VII of the European Basic Safety Standards Directive (BSS), concerning significant increase in exposure due to natural radiation sources. Also, the proposal of Local Radiation Protection for the town of Kotor is presented. Our proposal for an Ecoradiological Centre Model presented here is in a form of a pilot programme, applicable also for other towns and states. (author)

Internal Border Controls in the European Union

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jørgensen, Carsten Willemoes; Sørensen, Karsten Engsig

2012-01-01

Recent events, involving inter alia France and Denmark, have stimulated renewed interest in the introduction of different forms of border controls at the internal borders within the European Union. These border control measures are aimed at checking either persons or goods or both. Against...... the background of these events, this article analyses the existing rules regulating controls of persons and goods, and explores how these rules may or may not stand in the way of introducing border controls at the European Union’s internal borders. These events have resulted in a call for reforms of the current...

Consent: an event or a memory in lumbar spinal surgery? A multi-centre, multi-specialty prospective study of documentation and patient recall of consent content.

Science.gov (United States)

Lo, William B; McAuley, Ciaran P; Gillies, Martin J; Grover, Patrick J; Pereira, Erlick A C

2017-11-01

Prospective, multi-centre, multi-specialty medical notes review and patient interview. The consenting process is an important communication tool which also carries medico-legal implications. While written consent is a pre-requisite before spinal surgery in the UK, the standard and effectiveness of the process have not been assessed previously. This study assesses standard of written consent for elective lumbar decompressive surgery for degenerative disc disease across different regions and specialties in the UK; level of patient recall of the consent content; and identifies factors which affect patient recall. Consent forms of 153 in-patients from 4 centres a, b, c, d were reviewed. Written documentation of intended benefits, alternative treatments and operative risks was assessed. Of them, 108 patients were interviewed within 24 h before or after surgeries to assess recall. The written documentation rates of the operative risks showed significant inter-centre variations in haemorrhage and sphincter disturbance (P = 0.000), but not for others. Analysis of pooled data showed variations in written documentation of risks (P recall of these risks, there was no inter-centre variation. Patients' recall of paralysis as a risk was highest (50.9%) and that of recurrence was lowest (6.5%). Patients recalled risks better than those ≥65, significantly so for infection (29.9 vs 9.7%, P = 0.027). Patients consented >14 days compared to recall for paralysis (65.2 vs 43.7%) and recurrence (17.4 vs 2.8%). Patient recall was independent of consenter grade. Overall, the standard of written consent for elective lumbar spinal decompressive surgery was sub-optimal, which was partly reflected in the poor patient recall. While consenter seniority did not affect patient recall, younger age and longer consent-to-surgery time improved it.

Factors influencing choice of care-seeking for acute fever comparing private chemical shops with health centres and hospitals in Ghana: a study using case-control methodology.

Science.gov (United States)

Ansah, Evelyn K; Gyapong, Margaret; Narh-Bana, Solomon; Bart-Plange, Constance; Whitty, Christopher J M

2016-05-25

Several public health interventions to improve management of patients with fever are largely focused on the public sector yet a high proportion of patients seek care outside the formal healthcare sector. Few studies have provided information on the determinants of utilization of the private sector as against formal public sector. Understanding the differences between those who attend public and private health institutions, and their pathway to care, has significant practical implications. The chemical shop is an important source of care for acute fever in Ghana. Case-control methodology was used to identify factors associated with seeking care for fever in the Dangme West District, Ghana. People presenting to health centres, or hospital outpatients, with a history or current fever were compared to counterparts from the same community with fever visiting a chemical shop. Of 600 patients, 150 each, were recruited from the district hospital and two health centres, respectively, and 300 controls from 51 chemical shops. Overall, 103 (17.2 %) patients tested slide positive for malaria. Specifically, 13.7 % (41/300) of chemical shop patients, 30.7 % (46/150) health centre and 10.7 % (16/150) hospital patients were slide positive. While it was the first option for care for 92.7 % (278/300) chemical shop patients, 42.7 % (64/150) of health centre patients first sought care from a chemical shop. More health centre patients (61.3 %; 92/150) presented with fever after more than 3 days than chemical shop patients (27.7 %; 83/300) [AOR = 0.19; p private drug retail sector is the first option for the majority of patients, including poorer patients, with fever in this setting. Most patients with fever arrive at chemical shops with less delay and fewer signs of severity than at public health facilities. Improving chemical shop skills is a good opportunity to diagnose, treat or refer people with fever early.

Case Study of Multi-Unit Risk: Multi-Unit Station Black-Out

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Oh, Kyemin; Jang, Seung-cheol [KAERI, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of); Heo, Gyunyoung [Kyung Hee University, Yongin (Korea, Republic of)

2015-05-15

After Fukushima Daiichi Accident, importance and public concern for Multi-Unit Risk (MUR) or Probabilistic Safety Assessment (PSA) have been increased. Most of nuclear power plant sites in the world have more than two units. These sites have been facing the problems of MUR or accident such as Fukushima. In case of South Korea, there are generally more than four units on the same site and even more than ten units are also expected. In other words, sites in South Korea also have been facing same problems. Considering number of units on the same site, potential of these problems may be larger than other countries. The purpose of this paper is to perform case study based on another paper submitted in the conference. MUR is depended on various site features such as design, shared systems/structures, layout, environmental condition, and so on. Considering various dependencies, we assessed Multi-Unit Station Black-out (MSBO) accident based on Hanul Unit 3 and 4 model. In this paper, case study for multi-unit risk or PSA had been performed. Our result was incomplete to assess total multi-unit risk because of two challenging issues. First, economic impact had not been evaluated to estimate multi-unit risk. Second, large uncertainties were included in our result because of various assumptions. These issues must be resolved in the future.

Case Study of Multi-Unit Risk: Multi-Unit Station Black-Out

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Oh, Kyemin; Jang, Seung-cheol; Heo, Gyunyoung

2015-01-01

After Fukushima Daiichi Accident, importance and public concern for Multi-Unit Risk (MUR) or Probabilistic Safety Assessment (PSA) have been increased. Most of nuclear power plant sites in the world have more than two units. These sites have been facing the problems of MUR or accident such as Fukushima. In case of South Korea, there are generally more than four units on the same site and even more than ten units are also expected. In other words, sites in South Korea also have been facing same problems. Considering number of units on the same site, potential of these problems may be larger than other countries. The purpose of this paper is to perform case study based on another paper submitted in the conference. MUR is depended on various site features such as design, shared systems/structures, layout, environmental condition, and so on. Considering various dependencies, we assessed Multi-Unit Station Black-out (MSBO) accident based on Hanul Unit 3 and 4 model. In this paper, case study for multi-unit risk or PSA had been performed. Our result was incomplete to assess total multi-unit risk because of two challenging issues. First, economic impact had not been evaluated to estimate multi-unit risk. Second, large uncertainties were included in our result because of various assumptions. These issues must be resolved in the future

The role of dosimetry audit in lung SBRT multi-centre clinical trials.

Science.gov (United States)

Clark, Catharine H; Hurkmans, Coen W; Kry, Stephen F

2017-12-01

Stereotactic Body Radiotherapy (SBRT) in the lung is a challenging technique which requires high quality clinical trials to answer the un-resolved clinical questions. Quality assurance of these clinical trials not only ensures the safety of the treatment of the participating patients but also minimises the variation in treatment, thus allowing the lowest number of patient treatments to answer the trial question. This review addresses the role of dosimetry audits in the quality assurance process and considers what can be done to ensure the highest accuracy of dose calculation and delivery and it's assessment in multi-centre trials. Copyright © 2017 Associazione Italiana di Fisica Medica. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Effectiveness of a Hospital-Based Work Support Intervention for Female Cancer Patients – A Multi-Centre Randomised Controlled Trial

Science.gov (United States)

Tamminga, Sietske J.; Verbeek, Jos H. A. M.; Bos, Monique M. E. M.; Fons, Guus; Kitzen, Jos J. E. M.; Plaisier, Peter W.; Frings-Dresen, Monique H. W.; de Boer, Angela G. E. M.

2013-01-01

Objective One key aspect of cancer survivorship is return-to-work. Unfortunately, many cancer survivors face problems upon their return-to-work. For that reason, we developed a hospital-based work support intervention aimed at enhancing return-to-work. We studied effectiveness of the intervention compared to usual care for female cancer patients in a multi-centre randomised controlled trial. Methods Breast and gynaecological cancer patients who were treated with curative intent and had paid work were randomised to the intervention group (n = 65) or control group (n = 68). The intervention involved patient education and support at the hospital and improvement of communication between treating and occupational physicians. In addition, we asked patient's occupational physician to organise a meeting with the patient and the supervisor to make a concrete gradual return-to-work plan. Outcomes at 12 months of follow-up included rate and time until return-to-work (full or partial), quality of life, work ability, work functioning, and lost productivity costs. Time until return-to-work was analyzed with Kaplan-Meier survival analysis. Results Return-to-work rates were 86% and 83% (p = 0.6) for the intervention group and control group when excluding 8 patients who died or with a life expectancy of months at follow-up. Median time from initial sick leave to partial return-to-work was 194 days (range 14–435) versus 192 days (range 82–465) (p = 0.90) with a hazard ratio of 1.03 (95% CI 0.64–1.6). Quality of life and work ability improved statistically over time but did not differ statistically between groups. Work functioning and costs did not differ statistically between groups. Conclusion The intervention was easily implemented into usual psycho-oncological care and showed high return-to-work rates. We failed to show any differences between groups on return-to-work outcomes and quality of life scores. Further research is needed to study which aspects of

The importance of agglomeration effects for distribution centres around Amsterdam Airport Schiphol

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Warffemius, P.; van der Hoorn, T.; Klaassen, H.

2010-01-01

Amsterdam Airport Schiphol is a main European airport and represents an important concentration of European distribution centres (EDCs). It is commonly assumed that distribution centres are attracted to the airport region because of its air transport services. However, if one considers economies of

A French network of bipolar expert centres: a model to close the gap between evidence-based medicine and routine practice.

Science.gov (United States)

Henry, Chantal; Etain, Bruno; Mathieu, Flavie; Raust, Aurélie; Vibert, Jean-Francois; Scott, Jan; Leboyer, Marion

2011-06-01

Bipolar disorders are a major public health concern. Efforts to provide optimal care by general practitioners and psychiatrists are undermined by the complexity of the disorder and difficulties in applying clinical practice guidelines and new research findings to the spectrum of cases seen in day to day practice. A national network of bipolar expert centres was established. Each centre has established strong links to local health services and provides support to clinicians in delivering personalized care plans derived from systematic case assessments undertaken at the centre. A common set of diagnostic and clinical assessment tools has been adopted at eight centres. Evaluations are undertaken by trained assessors and cross-centre reliability is monitored. A web application, e-bipolar© is used to record data in a common computerized medical file. Anonymized data is entered into a shared national database for use in multi-centre audit and research. Instead of offering treatment advice based on clinical practice guidelines recommendations for selected sub-populations of patients (a 'top-down' approach), the French bipolar network offers systematic, comprehensive, longitudinal, and multi-dimensional assessments of cases representative of general bipolar populations. This 'bottom-up' strategy may offer a more efficient and effective way to transfer knowledge and share expertise as the referrer can appreciate the rationale underpinning suggested treatment protocols and more readily apply such principles and approaches to other cases. The network also builds an infrastructure for clinical cohort and comparative-effectiveness research on more representative patient populations. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Prevalence of maternal anaemia and its predictors: a multi-centre study.

Science.gov (United States)

Barroso, Filipa; Allard, Shubha; Kahan, Brennan C; Connolly, Catriona; Smethurst, Heather; Choo, Louise; Khan, Khalid; Stanworth, Simon

2011-11-01

To investigate the prevalence, predictors, and management of anaemia in pregnancy. A multi centre study across 11 maternity units in the UK. Data were collected over a two week study period in 2008 on maternal history, haemoglobin (Hb) and ferritin concentrations, iron therapy during pregnancy and in the postpartum period. Logistic regression models were used to explore factors associated with anaemia during pregnancy. Main outcomes included anaemia, defined as Hbanaemia by 32 weeks gestation included young maternal age (odds ratio 1.96, 95% CI 1.38-2.79), non-white ethnic origin (odds ratios varied 1.37-2.89 depending on ethnic origin) and increasing parity (odds ratio 1.24, 95% CI 1.08-1.41). Of women who had postnatal Hb levels checked, 30% (309/1031) were anaemic and, depending on centre, 16% to 86% of these received iron therapy. Anaemia was reported in nearly one in four women in the antenatal period, and nearly one in three of the women who had a postpartum Hb checked. Despite national guidelines, there was considerable variation in administration of iron including low utilisation of parenteral iron therapy. Future research needs to focus on the consequences of iron deficiency anaemia for maternal and infant health outcomes and effectiveness of implementation strategies to reduce anaemia. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Standard procedures for adults in accredited sleep medicine centres in Europe

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Fischer, Jürgen; Dogas, Zoran; Bassetti, Claudio L

2012-01-01

The present paper describes standardized procedures within clinical sleep medicine. As such, it is a continuation of the previously published European guidelines for the accreditation of sleep medicine centres and European guidelines for the certification of professionals in sleep medicine, aimed...... at creating standards of practice in European sleep medicine. It is also part of a broader action plan of the European Sleep Research Society, including the process of accreditation of sleep medicine centres and certification of sleep medicine experts, as well as publishing the Catalogue of Knowledge...... and Skills for sleep medicine experts (physicians, non-medical health care providers, nurses and technologists), which will be a basis for the development of relevant educational curricula. In the current paper, the standard operational procedures sleep medicine centres regarding the diagnostic...

European Analytical Column

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Karlberg, B.; Grasserbauer, M.; Andersen, Jens Enevold Thaulov

2009-01-01

for European analytical chemistry. During the period 2002–07, Professor Grasserbauer was Director of the Institute for Environment and Sustainability, Joint Research Centre of the European Commission (EC), Ispra, Italy. There is no doubt that many challenges exist at the present time for all of us representing...

Challenges in Constructing a Multi-dimensional European Job Quality Index

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Leschke, Janine; Watt, Andrew

2014-01-01

quality performances and the outcomes in six sub-dimensions of job quality and compare them with each other, across gender and over time. At the same time, the limitations of such a composite index need to be borne in mind. The most important challenges are the availability (over time), timeliness......There are few attempts to benchmark job quality in a multi-dimensional perspective across Europe. Against this background, we have created a synthetic job quality index (JQI) for the EU27 countries in an attempt to shed light on the question of how European countries compare with each other and how...... they are developing over time in terms of job quality. Taking account of the multi-faceted nature of job quality, the JQI is compiled on the basis of six sub-indices which cover the most important dimensions of job quality as identified in the literature. The paper addresses the methods used to construct the JQI...

The new European Hubble archive

Science.gov (United States)

De Marchi, Guido; Arevalo, Maria; Merin, Bruno

2016-01-01

The European Hubble Archive (hereafter eHST), hosted at ESA's European Space Astronomy Centre, has been released for public use in October 2015. The eHST is now fully integrated with the other ESA science archives to ensure long-term preservation of the Hubble data, consisting of more than 1 million observations from 10 different scientific instruments. The public HST data, the Hubble Legacy Archive, and the high-level science data products are now all available to scientists through a single, carefully designed and user friendly web interface. In this talk, I will show how the the eHST can help boost archival research, including how to search on sources in the field of view thanks to precise footprints projected onto the sky, how to obtain enhanced previews of imaging data and interactive spectral plots, and how to directly link observations with already published papers. To maximise the scientific exploitation of Hubble's data, the eHST offers connectivity to virtual observatory tools, easily integrates with the recently released Hubble Source Catalog, and is fully accessible through ESA's archives multi-mission interface.

A Critical Assessment of a Eurosceptic Party Group on European Integration: A Case Study of the European Conservatives and Reformists Group

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Akbaba Sertan

2014-06-01

Full Text Available The article explores Euroscepticism and the way it is utilized within the politics of Europe, analyzed upon evidence from a Eurosceptic Euro-party located in the European Parliament, namely the European Conservatives and Reformists Group (ECR. The aim of this article is to clarify that the selected party> disproves the argument of EU- criticism being an unfavourable condition, and, more importantly, its contribution to the political contestation in the EU. For such an assessment, a survey of the party> manifesto, party working documents, as well as the discourses of the Member of the European Parliament (MEPs will be analyzed, and the concept of Euroscepticism will be once again in the centre of this analysis. This argument is evaluated based on the transnational-level analysis of the aforementioned party, focusing primarily on three specific issues-the democratic deficit, the issue of sovereignty! and anti-immigration rhetoric.

Historical centres: changing definitions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Roberta Lazzarotti

2014-02-01

Full Text Available Since the end of the Second World War, the architectural and planning culture has been showing a fluctuating attention to the theme of historical centres and their enhancement. First of all this uneven progress explains the difficulty to reach a homogeneous definition and this is still lacking. During a long phase of this period, the historical parts of the town were considered as objects to be preserved in an integral way, as urban monuments. This is mostly due to the high symbolic value of these settlements, that represent fundamental landmarks. Identity building and empowerment of local communities are indispensable conditions for any development programme, especially in the case of centres or other historic environments at risk of abandonment. The progressive evolution of this concept brings awareness of the impossibility of separating – either in analytical or in planning terms ­ historical centres from their urban and territorial contexts, which are linked by mutual, deep relationships. This article attempts to retrace the steps signaled by the publication of international documents and conventions, from the Charter of Gubbio (1960 to the Charter of Krakow and the European Landscape Convention (2000; they obviously represent particular points of view, not exhaustive of the richness of the positions in the debate, but extremely significant in terms of diffusion and consensus.

Water reactor fuel research at the Joint Research Centre of the Commission of the European Union

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Markgraf, J [HFR Unit, Inst. for Advanced Materials, Petten (Netherlands)

1997-12-01

The JRC programmes 1995-1998 are in progress within 8 JRC Institutes located within different research centres situated in five member states of the European Union. Except for the area of reactor safety and waste management, there are no JRC research programmes related to water reactor fuel directly. However, the JRC is providing support on basis of contracts and cooperations to bilateral and international R and D programmes through access to its large test facilities like the High Flux Reactor at the JRC Petten and the hot cell facilities of the Transuranium Institute at the JRC Karlsruhe. Access is available to customers from all over the world. 3 tabs.

Evolution of the CANDU control centre retrofit and new stations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Olmstead, R.A.; Mitchell, W.

1991-01-01

Significant event data from operating nuclear plants in many countries consistently indicates human errors are the root cause for 40-60% of operating station significant events. Because so much information is already in digital form, opportunities exist to improve the CANDU control centre with retrofits that exploit this information. These opportunities are enhanced because of rapid technological development in computers and electronics, coupled with significant progress in the behavioural sciences that greatly increases our knowledge of the cognitive strengths and weaknesses of human beings. CANDU control rooms are undergoing retrofits and for future CANDU stations, a new concept of the control centre is emerging. The objective is to significantly reduce the incidence of human error, reduce operations and maintenance costs and improve both reliability and safety

Evolution of the CANDU control centre retrofit and new stations

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Olmstead, R A [AECL-CANDU, ON (Canada); Mitchell, W [Ontario Hydro, Darlington Nuclear Generating Station, Bowmanville, ON (Canada)

1991-04-01

Significant event data from operating nuclear plants in many countries consistently indicates human errors are the root cause for 40-60% of operating station significant events. Because so much information is already in digital form, opportunities exist to improve the CANDU control centre with retrofits that exploit this information. These opportunities are enhanced because of rapid technological development in computers and electronics, coupled with significant progress in the behavioural sciences that greatly increases our knowledge of the cognitive strengths and weaknesses of human beings. CANDU control rooms are undergoing retrofits and for future CANDU stations, a new concept of the control centre is emerging. The objective is to significantly reduce the incidence of human error, reduce operations and maintenance costs and improve both reliability and safety.

Prevalence of chronic complications, metabolic control and nutritional intake in type 1 diabetes

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Toeller, M; Buyken, A E; Heitkamp, G

1999-01-01

and proliferative retinopathy were more common. Persons from the eastern European and the German centres consumed undesirably high amounts of cholesterol, total and saturated fat. Overall, improvements in the prevention, detection and management of diabetes complications in persons with type 1 diabetes......) and chronic diabetes complications (retinopathy, nephropathy, neuropathy, cardiovascular disease) were all considerably more frequent in the eastern European centres. HbA1c was lower in the German centres than in the total EURODIAB cohort or in the north-western European centres, but severe hypoglycaemia......This study compares the prevalence of chronic complications, the quality of metabolic control and the nutritional intake in people with type 1 diabetes in different European regions. The EURODIAB Complications Study included a sample of 3250 European patients with type 1 diabetes stratified...

Multi-centre point prevalence survey of hospital-acquired infections in Ghana.

Science.gov (United States)

Labi, Appiah-Korang; Obeng-Nkrumah, Noah; Owusu, Enid; Bjerrum, Stephanie; Bediako-Bowan, Antoinette; Sunkwa-Mills, Gifty; Akuffo, Christiana; Fenny, Ama Pokua; Opintan, Japheth Awuletey; Enweronu-Laryea, Christabel; Debrah, Samuel; Damale, Nelson; Bannerman, Cynthia; Newman, Mercy Jemima

2018-05-03

There is a paucity of data describing hospital acquired infections (HAIs) in Africa. To describe the prevalence and distribution of HAIs in acute care hospitals in Ghana. Between September and December 2016, point prevalence surveys were conducted in participating hospitals using protocols of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control. We reviewed medical records of eligible inpatients at or before 8am on the day of survey to identify HAIs present at the time of survey. Ten hospitals were surveyed, representing 32.9% of all acute care beds in government hospitals. Of 2107 inpatients surveyed, 184 HAIs were identified among 172 patients, corresponding to an overall prevalence of 8.2%. The prevalence values in hospitals ranged from 3.5 to 14.4% with higher proportion of infections in secondary and tertiary care facilities. The most frequent HAIs were surgical site infections (32.6%), bloodstream infections (19.5%), urinary tract infections (18.5%), and respiratory tract infections (16.3%). Device-associated infections accounted for 7.1% of HAIs. For 12.5% of HAIs, a microorganism was reported; the most isolated microorganism was Escherichia coli. Approximately 61% of all patients surveyed were on antibiotics; 89.5% of patients with an HAI received at least one antimicrobial agent on the day of survey. The strongest independent predictors for HAI were the presence of invasive device before onset of infection and duration of hospital stay. We recorded a low HAI burden compared to findings from other low and middle income countries. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Genetic and environmental risk factors for rheumatoid arthritis in a UK African ancestry population: the GENRA case-control study.

Science.gov (United States)

Traylor, Matthew; Curtis, Charles; Patel, Hamel; Breen, Gerome; Hyuck Lee, Sang; Xu, Xiaohui; Newhouse, Stephen; Dobson, Richard; Steer, Sophia; Cope, Andrew P; Markus, Hugh S; Lewis, Cathryn M; Scott, Ian C

2017-08-01

To evaluate whether genetic and environmental factors associated with RA in European and Asian ancestry populations are also associated with RA in African ancestry individuals. A case-control study was undertaken in 197 RA cases and 868 controls of African ancestry (Black African, Black Caribbean or Black British ethnicity) from South London. Smoking and alcohol consumption data at RA diagnosis was captured. Genotyping was undertaken (Multi-Ethnic Genotyping Array) and human leukocyte antigen (HLA) alleles imputed. The following European/Asian RA susceptibility factors were tested: 99 genome-wide loci combined into a genetic risk score; HLA region [20 haplotypes; shared epitope (SE)]; smoking; and alcohol consumption. The SE was tested for its association with radiological erosions. Logistic regression models were used, including ancestry-informative principal components, to control for admixture. European/Asian susceptibility loci were associated with RA in African ancestry individuals. The genetic risk score provided an odds ratio (OR) for RA of 1.53 (95% CI: 1.31, 1.79; P = 1.3 × 10 - 7 ). HLA haplotype ORs in European and African ancestry individuals were highly correlated ( r = 0.83, 95% CI: 0.56, 0.94; P = 1.1 × 10 - 4 ). Ever-smoking increased (OR = 2.36, 95% CI: 1.46, 3.82; P = 4.6 × 10 - 4 ) and drinking alcohol reduced (OR = 0.34, 95% CI: 0.20, 0.56; P = 2.7 × 10 - 5 ) RA risk in African ancestry individuals. The SE was associated with erosions (OR = 2.61, 95% CI: 1.36, 5.01; P = 3.9 × 10 - 3 ). Gene-environment RA risk factors identified in European/Asian ancestry populations are relevant in African ancestry individuals. As modern statistical methods facilitate analysing ancestrally diverse populations, future genetic studies should incorporate African ancestry individuals to ensure their implications for precision medicine are universally applicable. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the British Society for

An Expanded Genome-Wide Association Study of Type 2 Diabetes in Europeans

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Scott, Robert A; Scott, Laura J; Mägi, Reedik

2017-01-01

To characterise type 2 diabetes (T2D) associated variation across the allele frequency spectrum, we conducted a meta-analysis of genome-wide association data from 26,676 T2D cases and 132,532 controls of European ancestry after imputation using the 1000 Genomes multi-ethnic reference panel. Promi...... secretion, and in adipocytes, monocytes and hepatocytes for insulin action-associated loci. These findings highlight the predominant role played by common variants of modest effect and the diversity of biological mechanisms influencing T2D pathophysiology....

Controllability of multi-partite quantum systems and selective excitation of quantum dots

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schirmer, S G; Pullen, I C H; Solomon, A I

2005-01-01

We consider the degrees of controllability of multi-partite quantum systems, as well as necessary and sufficient criteria for each case. The results are applied to the problem of simultaneous control of an ensemble of quantum dots with a single laser pulse. Finally, we apply optimal control techniques to demonstrate selective excitation of individual dots for a simultaneously controllable ensemble of quantum dots

Multi-criteria correlation of tephra deposits to source centres applied in the Auckland Volcanic Field, New Zealand

Science.gov (United States)

Hopkins, Jenni L.; Wilson, Colin J. N.; Millet, Marc-Alban; Leonard, Graham S.; Timm, Christian; McGee, Lucy E.; Smith, Ian E. M.; Smith, Euan G. C.

2017-07-01

Linking tephras back to their source centre(s) in volcanic fields is crucial not only to reconstruct the eruptive history of the volcanic field but also to understand tephra dispersal patterns and thus the potential hazards posed by a future eruption. Here we present a multi-disciplinary approach to correlate distal basaltic tephra deposits from the Auckland Volcanic Field (AVF) to their source centres using proximal whole-rock geochemical signatures. In order to achieve these correlations, major and trace element tephra-derived glass compositions are compared with published and newly obtained whole-rock geochemical data for the entire field. The results show that incompatible trace element ratios (e.g. (Gd/Yb)N, (La/Yb)N, (Zr/Yb)N) vary widely across the AVF (e.g. (La/Yb)N = 5 to 40) but show a more restricted range within samples from a single volcanic centre (e.g. (La/Yb)N = 5 to 10). These ratios are also the least affected by fractional crystallisation and are therefore the most appropriate geochemical tools for correlation between tephra and whole-rock samples. However, findings for the AVF suggest that each volcanic centre does not have a unique geochemical signature in the field as a whole, thus preventing unambiguous correlation of tephras to source centre using geochemistry alone. A number of additional criteria are therefore combined to further constrain the source centres of the distal tephras including age, eruption scale, and location (of centres, and sites where tephra were sampled). The combination of tephrostratigraphy, 40Ar/39Ar dating and morphostratigraphic constraints allow, for the first time, the relative and absolute ordering of 48 of 53 volcanic centres of the Auckland Volcanic Field to be resolved. Eruption frequencies are shown to vary between 0.13 and 1.5 eruptions/kyr and repose periods between individual eruptions vary from <0.1 to 13 kyr, with 23 of the 48 centres shown to have pre-eruptive repose periods of <1000 years. No spatial

Campylobacteriosis in New Zealand: results of a case-control study.

OpenAIRE

Eberhart-Phillips, J; Walker, N; Garrett, N; Bell, D; Sinclair, D; Rainger, W; Bates, M

1997-01-01

STUDY OBJECTIVE: To identify and assess the contributions of major risk factors for campylobacteriosis in New Zealand. DESIGN: Case-control study. Home interviews were conducted over nine months using a standardised questionnaire to assess recent food consumption and other exposures. SETTING: Four centres in New Zealand with high notification rates of campylobacter infections--Auckland, Hamilton, Wellington, and Christchurch. PARTICIPANTS: Case patients were 621 people notified between 1 June...

Abortion in the light of case-law of the European Court of Human Rights

OpenAIRE

Koubková, Iveta

2012-01-01

Thesis: Abortion in the light of case law of European Court of Human Rights This thesis focuses on the legal regulation of abortion in selected European countries in order to find single European standard. It concentrates primarily on issues of assessing violations of particular articles of the Convention on Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms by the European Court of Human Rights or former European Commission of Human Rights in relation to specific cases associated with abortion. Abortion ...

Exposure to Ambient Air Pollution and the Risk of Inflammatory Bowel Disease : A European Nested Case-Control Study

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Opstelten, Jorrit L; Beelen, Rob M J; Leenders, Max; Hoek, Gerard; Brunekreef, Bert; van Schaik, Fiona D M; Siersema, Peter D; Eriksen, Kirsten T; Raaschou-Nielsen, Ole; Tjønneland, Anne; Overvad, Kim; Boutron-Ruault, Marie-Christine; Carbonnel, Franck; de Hoogh, Kees; Key, Timothy J; Luben, Robert; Chan, Simon S M; Hart, Andrew R; Bueno-de-Mesquita, H Bas; Oldenburg, Bas

2016-01-01

BACKGROUND: Industrialization has been linked to the etiology of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). AIM: We investigated the association between air pollution exposure and IBD. METHODS: The European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition cohort was used to identify cases with Crohn's

Exposure to Ambient Air Pollution and the Risk of Inflammatory Bowel Disease: A European Nested Case-Control Study

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Opstelten, J.L.; Beelen, R.M.; Leenders, M.; Hoek, G.; Brunekreef, B.; Schaik, F.D. van; Siersema, P.D.; Eriksen, K.T.; Raaschou-Nielsen, O.; Tjonneland, A.; Overvad, K.; Boutron-Ruault, M.C.; Carbonnel, F.; Hoogh, K. de; Key, T.J.; Luben, R.; Chan, S.S.; Hart, A.R.; Bueno-de-Mesquita, H.B.; Oldenburg, B.

2016-01-01

BACKGROUND: Industrialization has been linked to the etiology of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). AIM: We investigated the association between air pollution exposure and IBD. METHODS: The European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition cohort was used to identify cases with Crohn's

An elementary components of variance analysis for multi-centre quality control

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Munson, P.J.; Rodbard, D.

1978-01-01

The serious variability of RIA results from different laboratories indicates the need for multi-laboratory collaborative quality-control (QC) studies. Simple graphical display of data in the form of histograms is useful but insufficient. The paper discusses statistical analysis methods for such studies using an ''analysis of variance with components of variance estimation''. This technique allocates the total variance into components corresponding to between-laboratory, between-assay, and residual or within-assay variability. Problems with RIA data, e.g. severe non-uniformity of variance and/or departure from a normal distribution violate some of the usual assumptions underlying analysis of variance. In order to correct these problems, it is often necessary to transform the data before analysis by using a logarithmic, square-root, percentile, ranking, RIDIT, ''Studentizing'' or other transformation. Ametric transformations such as ranks or percentiles protect against the undue influence of outlying observations, but discard much intrinsic information. Several possible relationships of standard deviation to the laboratory mean are considered. Each relationship corresponds to an underlying statistical model and an appropriate analysis technique. Tests for homogeneity of variance may be used to determine whether an appropriate model has been chosen, although the exact functional relationship of standard deviation to laboratory mean may be difficult to establish. Appropriate graphical display aids visual understanding of the data. A plot of the ranked standard deviation versus ranked laboratory mean is a convenient way to summarize a QC study. This plot also allows determination of the rank correlation, which indicates a net relationship of variance to laboratory mean

MULTI-LOOP CONTROL DESIGN IN MULTIVARIABLE (2X2 CONTINUOUS STIRRED TANK REACTOR

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Abdul Wahid

2015-06-01

Full Text Available With this study, the design and tuning of multi-loop for multivariable (2x2 CSTR will be made in order to achieve optimum CSTR control performance. This study used Bequette model reactor and MATLAB software and is expected to be able to cope with disturbances in the reactor so that the reactor system is able to stabilize quickly despite the distractions. In this study, the design will be made using multi-loop approach, along with PI controller as the next step. Then, BLT and auto-tune tuning method will be used in PI controller and given disturbances to both of tuning method. The controller performances are then compared. Results of the study are then analyzed for discussions and conclusions. Results from this study have shown that in terms of disturbance rejection, BLT is better than auto-tune based on comparison between both of controller performances. For IAE for the case of temperature, BLT is 30% better than auto-tune, but it is almost the same for the case of concentration. For settling time for the case of concentration, BLT is 30% better than auto-tune, and for the case of temperature, BLT is 18% better than auto-tune. For rise time for the case of concentration and temperature, BLT is 30% better than auto-tune.

Zgaga, P., Teichler, U., & Brennan, J. (Eds.) (2012). The globalisation challenge for European higher education / Convergence and Diversity, Centres and Peripheries. Frankfurt/M.: Peter Lang. [Book review

OpenAIRE

Strajn, Darko

2013-01-01

Book review of: Zgaga, P., Teichler, U., & Brennan, J. (Eds.) (2012). The globalisation challenge for European higher education / Convergence and Diversity, Centres and Peripheries. Frankfurt/M.: Peter Lang. 389 pp., ISBN 978-3-631- 6398-5.

Three-dimensional multi-physics model of the European sodium fast reactor design applied to DBA analysis - 15293

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lazaro, A.; Ordonez, J.; Martorell, S.; Przemyslaw, S.; Ammirabile, L.; Tsige-Tamirat, H.

2015-01-01

The sodium cooled fast reactor (SFR) is one of the reactor types selected by the Generation IV International Forum. SFR stand out due to its remarkable past operational experience in related projects and its potential to achieve the ambitious goals laid for the new generation of nuclear reactors. Regardless its operational experience, there is a need to apply computational tools able to simulate the system behaviour under conditions that may overtake the reactor safety limits from the early stages of the design process, including the three-dimensional phenomena that may arise in these transients. This paper presents the different steps followed towards the development of a multi-physics platform with capabilities to simulate complex phenomena using a coupled neutronic-thermal-hydraulic scheme. The development started with a one-dimensional thermal-hydraulic model of the European Sodium Fast Reactor (ESFR) design with point kinetic neutronic feedback benchmarked with its peers in the framework of the FP7-CP-ESFR project using the state-of-the-art thermal-hydraulic system code TRACE. The model was successively extended into a three-dimensional model coupled with the spatial kinetic neutronic code PARCS able to simulate three-dimensional multi-physic phenomena along with the comparison of the results for symmetric cases. The last part of the paper shows the application of the developed tool to the analysis of transients involving asymmetrical effects, such as the coast-down of a primary and secondary pump or the withdrawal of a peripheral control rod bank, demonstrating the unique capability of the code to simulate such transients and the capability of the design to withstand them under design basis

Governing the energy challenge : Canada and Germany in a multi-level regional and global context

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Eberlein, B.; Doern, G.B.; Exeter Univ.,

2009-01-01

This book features essays by leading energy and public policy specialists from Canada and Germany. It originated in the Transatlantic Energy Conference which was hosted by the Canadian Centre for German and European Studies at Toronto's York University in September 2005. The conference was attended by leading energy scholars and experts from Canadian and European universities, research institutes and governmental and non-governmental organizations. The purpose of this book was to compare the dynamics of multi-level energy regulatory governance in Germany and Canada, notably the energy policy challenges that include energy security, environmental sustainability and a competitive resource economy. Many strategies to produce more efficient and sustainable energy are presented in the book. Part 1 of the book focuses on the energy industry, with particular emphasise on electricity, nuclear energy and natural gas. Part 2 of the book focuses on domestic patterns of multi-level energy governance and regulation in the two countries. As a member of the European Union, Germany is more advanced in dealing with multi-level governmental and sustainability constraints than Canada is as a member of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). The book focuses on the influence that the energy sector and multi-level institutional arrangements have on energy governance, with particular attention to the link between environmental study, climate change issues and economic market reforms. The growing differences between NAFTA and European Union member countries were highlighted. refs., tabs., figs.

A business case modelling framework for smart multi-energy districts

OpenAIRE

Good, Nicholas; Martinez Cesena, Eduardo Alejandro; Liu, Xuezhi; Mancarella, Pierluigi

2017-01-01

The potential energy, environmental, technical and economic benefits that might arise from multi-energy systems are increasing interest in smart districts. However, in a liberalised market, it is essential to develop a relevant attractive business case. This paper presents a holistic techno-economic framework that couples building/district, multi-network and business case assessment models for the development of robust business cases for smart multi-energy districts. The framework is demonstr...

CMS Centre at CERN

CERN Multimedia

2007-01-01

A new "CMS Centre" is being established on the CERN Meyrin site by the CMS collaboration. It will be a focal point for communications, where physicists will work together on data quality monitoring, detector calibration, offline analysis of physics events, and CMS computing operations. Construction of the CMS Centre begins in the historic Proton Synchrotron (PS) control room. The historic Proton Synchrotron (PS) control room, Opened by Niels Bohr in 1960, will be reused by CMS to built its control centre. TThe LHC@FNAL Centre, in operation at Fermilab in the US, will work very closely with the CMS Centre, as well as the CERN Control Centre. (Photo Fermilab)The historic Proton Synchrotron (PS) control room is about to start a new life. Opened by Niels Bohr in 1960, the room will be reused by CMS to built its control centre. When finished, it will resemble the CERN Contro...

Training of nuclear power plant personnel in the member states of the European Community

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Misenta, R.; Matfield, R.S.; Volta, G.; Ancarani, A.; Lhoir, J.

1981-01-01

After the Three Mile Island accident the Commission of the European Communities undertook various actions in order to assess the status of the training of nuclear power plant personnel with particular attention to their training for incidents and accidents. This presentation attempts a review of the training situation in the six member states of the European Community together with some other European states, that are operating nuclear power plants. Schemes for the training of control room operators, shift leaders, major European training centres and simulator training will be described

Floor heating in the multi-functional centre `Gelderhorst` in Ede, Netherlands; De Gelderhorst slaat bouwfase over

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wondergem, J. [Wondergem Intermedium, Weesp (Netherlands)

1997-11-01

The Gelderhorst is a multi-functional centre for elderly, deaf people. Building systems are installed normally after the rough building structure is finished. In the building process of Gelderhorst the floor heating is installed in a pre-phase of the construction of the building. Thereto, the cooperation between the installation company, the manufacturer, the wholesale business and the contractor had to be well planned. Also, problems had to be solved with respect to the choice of building materials and installation techniques. 4 ills.

A case study and critical assessment in calculating power usage effectiveness for a data centre

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Brady, Gemma A.; Kapur, Nikil; Summers, Jonathan L.; Thompson, Harvey M.

2013-01-01

Highlights: • A case study PUE calculation is carried out on a data centre by using open source specifications. • The PUE metric does not drive improvements in the efficiencies of IT processes. • The PUE does not fairly represent energy use; an increase in IT load can lead to a decrease in the PUE. • Once a low PUE is achieved, power supply efficiency and IT load have the greatest impact on its value. - Abstract: Metrics commonly used to assess the energy efficiency of data centres are analysed through performing and critiquing a case study calculation of energy efficiency. Specifically, the metric Power Usage Effectiveness (PUE), which has become a de facto standard within the data centre industry, will be assessed. This is achieved by using open source specifications for a data centre in Prineville, Oregon, USA provided by the Open Compute Project launched by the social networking company Facebook. The usefulness of the PUE metric to the IT industry is critically assessed and it is found that whilst it is important for encouraging lower energy consumption in data centres, it does not represent an unambiguous measure of energy efficiency

Integration of Composite Structures in Modern Day Architecture: Case Study of City Business Centre, Timisoara, Romania

Science.gov (United States)

Vataman, Adina; Gaivoronschi, Vlad; Mosoarca, Marius

2017-10-01

In current day structural design the use of composite steel-concrete structures has become the norm; because of the advantages that each of these materials has to offer. Composite structures also have the benefit of a faster execution at a lower cost, compared to traditional structures. While the arguments in favour of designing composite structures are well-known and appreciated by civil engineers; there remains a question of integrating these structures in modern-day urban landscapes. Eastern European countries are welcoming a blossoming of culture, arts, economy and industry, which unavoidably and necessarily will lead to a change in urban landscapes. With an increasing amount of foreign companies opening offices in these areas, the need for modern office solutions has arisen. The current paper presents a case study of an office building complex situated in the western part of Romania, in the city of Timişoara. The complex consists of 5 office buildings; all designed in composite steel-concrete structure, an underground parking lot, multiple terraces and adjacent promenade areas. Within the context of rapid growth and development of the city, the City Business Centre has offered high quality office spaces in the heart of the city, while considering the needs of the community. A very important aspect in the successful completion of the project was the efficient and professional collaboration between the separate project teams, between the owner, represented by the project management team, the architect, the structural designer and the building company. The successful joining of seismic structural solutions with modern architectural aesthetics has led to a dynamic, vibrant environment, making the City Business Centre the core of the region’s business life, at the same time redefining Timisoara’s architectural landscape. A testimony to the success of the project was the Civil Engineering Structural Designers Associations’ (AICPS) 3rd Prize awarded for great

Observation and control of blinking nitrogen-vacancy centres in discrete nanodiamonds.

Science.gov (United States)

Bradac, C; Gaebel, T; Naidoo, N; Sellars, M J; Twamley, J; Brown, L J; Barnard, A S; Plakhotnik, T; Zvyagin, A V; Rabeau, J R

2010-05-01

Nitrogen-vacancy colour centres in diamond can undergo strong, spin-sensitive optical transitions under ambient conditions, which makes them attractive for applications in quantum optics, nanoscale magnetometry and biolabelling. Although nitrogen-vacancy centres have been observed in aggregated detonation nanodiamonds and milled nanodiamonds, they have not been observed in very small isolated nanodiamonds. Here, we report the first direct observation of nitrogen-vacancy centres in discrete 5-nm nanodiamonds at room temperature, including evidence for intermittency in the luminescence (blinking) from the nanodiamonds. We also show that it is possible to control this blinking by modifying the surface of the nanodiamonds.

Enhancing Safety at Airline Operations Control Centre

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lukáš Řasa

2015-04-01

Full Text Available In recent years a new term of Safety Management System (SMS has been introduced into aviation legislation. This system is being adopted by airline operators. One of the groundbased actors of everyday operations is Operations Control Centre (OCC. The goal of this article has been to identify and assess risks and dangers which occur at OCC and create a template for OCC implementation into SMS.

An accountancy system for nuclear materials control in research centres

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Buttler, R.; Bueker, H.; Vallee, J.

1979-01-01

The Nuclear Accountancy and Control System (NACS) was developed at KFA Juelich in accordance with the requirements of the Non-Proliferation Treaty. The main features are (1) recording of nuclear material in inventory items. These are combined to form batches wherever suitable; (2) extrapolation of accounting data as a replacement for detailed measurement of inventory items data. Recording and control of nuclear material are carried out on two levels with access to a common data bank. The lower level deals with nuclear materials handling plus internal management while on the upper level there is a central control point which is responsible for nuclear safeguarding within the entire research centre. By keeping the organizational and technical infrastructure it was possible to develop a system which is both economical and operator-oriented. In this system the emphasis of nuclear safeguarding is placed on the acquisition of the nuclear material inventory. As much consideration has been given to the interests of the various operational levels and organizational units as to internal and national regulations. Since it is part of the safeguarding and control system, access to the NACS must be restricted to a limited number of users only. Furthermore, it must include facilities for manual control in the form of records. Authorization for access must correspond with the various tasks of different user groups. All necessary data are acquired decentrally in the organizational units and entered via a terminal. It is available to the user groups on both levels through a central data bank. To meet all requirements, the NACS has been designed as an integrated, computer-assisted information system for the automated processing of extensive and multi-level nuclear materials data. As part of the preventive measures entailed with nuclear safeguarding, the accountancy system enables the operator of a nuclear plant to furnish proof of non-diversion of nuclear material. (author)

Multi-region fuzzy logic controller with local PID controllers for U-tube steam generator in nuclear power plant

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Puchalski Bartosz

2015-12-01

Full Text Available In the paper, analysis of multi-region fuzzy logic controller with local PID controllers for steam generator of pressurized water reactor (PWR working in wide range of thermal power changes is presented. The U-tube steam generator has a nonlinear dynamics depending on thermal power transferred from coolant of the primary loop of the PWR plant. Control of water level in the steam generator conducted by a traditional PID controller which is designed for nominal power level of the nuclear reactor operates insufficiently well in wide range of operational conditions, especially at the low thermal power level. Thus the steam generator is often controlled manually by operators. Incorrect water level in the steam generator may lead to accidental shutdown of the nuclear reactor and consequently financial losses. In the paper a comparison of proposed multi region fuzzy logic controller and traditional PID controllers designed only for nominal condition is presented. The gains of the local PID controllers have been derived by solving appropriate optimization tasks with the cost function in a form of integrated squared error (ISE criterion. In both cases, a model of steam generator which is readily available in literature was used for control algorithms synthesis purposes. The proposed multi-region fuzzy logic controller and traditional PID controller were subjected to broad-based simulation tests in rapid prototyping software - Matlab/Simulink. These tests proved the advantage of multi-region fuzzy logic controller with local PID controllers over its traditional counterpart.

Procedures for the accounting and control of nuclear materials in large research centres, as related to the needs of international safeguards

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kotte, U.; Bueker, H.; Stein, G.

1976-07-01

In signatory states of the Non-Proliferation Treaty nuclear material is subject to the supervision of the International Atomic Energy Agency. The IAEA safeguards concept intended for nuclear material has, so far, been predominantly applied to nuclear facilities of the nuclear fuel cycle. It is the aim of this report to consider the applicability of these control measures to a nuclear research centre. The report refers to the concrete example of the Juelich Nuclear Research Centre (KFA). The particular features of a nuclear research centre and the handling of nuclear material in the KFA are described. A review is given of the various licence areas and permitted handling quantities as well as of the inventories and flow of nuclear material. The concept of a control system for a nuclear research centre satisfying the operator's requirements, national requirement and international obligations at the same time is developed along these lines. The essential characteristic of the concept is a far-reaching clarity of the distribution of nuclear material items within the Nuclear Research Centre. The clarity desired will be achieved by means of an integrated accountancy system processing all necessary data with the aid of a central computer and remote terminals. The availability of information is based on differentiated material acountancy in conjunction with adequate measurement of nuclear material data. In the case of the KFA two groups are formed by research reactors and critical assemblies. Research institutes and central departments the permitted handling quantities of which do not exceed 5 eff.kg constitute a further group. Two further groups are formed for cases where the permitted handling quantities are above or below 1 eff.kg. The report shows the safeguards measures that can be applied in certain circumstances and conditions in a nuclear research centre

Transparency about net neutrality : A translation of the new European rules into a multi-stakeholder model

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Nooren, P.; Prins, M.J.

2011-01-01

The new European framework directive contains a number of policy objectives in the area of net neutrality. In support of these objectives, the universal service directive includes a transparency obligation for ISPs. This paper proposes a multi-stakeholder model for the implementation of this

Geodetic Control Points - Multi-State Control Point Database

Data.gov (United States)

NSGIC State | GIS Inventory — The Multi-State Control Point Database (MCPD) is a database of geodetic and mapping control covering Idaho and Montana. The control were submitted by registered land...

Multi-centre evaluation of mass spectrometric identification of anaerobic bacteria using the VITEK® MS system.

Science.gov (United States)

Garner, O; Mochon, A; Branda, J; Burnham, C-A; Bythrow, M; Ferraro, M; Ginocchio, C; Jennemann, R; Manji, R; Procop, G W; Richter, S; Rychert, J; Sercia, L; Westblade, L; Lewinski, M

2014-04-01

Accurate and timely identification of anaerobic bacteria is critical to successful treatment. Classic phenotypic methods for identification require long turnaround times and can exhibit poor species level identification. Matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) is an identification method that can provide rapid identification of anaerobes. We present a multi-centre study assessing the clinical performance of the VITEK(®) MS in the identification of anaerobic bacteria. Five different test sites analysed a collection of 651 unique anaerobic isolates comprising 11 different genera. Multiple species were included for several of the genera. Briefly, anaerobic isolates were applied directly to a well of a target plate. Matrix solution (α-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamic acid) was added and allowed to dry. Mass spectra results were generated with the VITEK(®) MS, and the comparative spectral analysis and organism identification were determined using the VITEK(®) MS database 2.0. Results were confirmed by 16S rRNA gene sequencing. Of the 651 isolates analysed, 91.2% (594/651) exhibited the correct species identification. An additional eight isolates were correctly identified to genus level, raising the rate of identification to 92.5%. Genus-level identification consisted of Actinomyces, Bacteroides and Prevotella species. Fusobacterium nucleatum, Actinomyces neuii and Bacteroides uniformis were notable for an increased percentage of no-identification results compared with the other anaerobes tested. VITEK(®) MS identification of clinically relevant anaerobes is highly accurate and represents a dramatic improvement over other phenotypic methods in accuracy and turnaround time. © 2013 The Authors Clinical Microbiology and Infection © 2013 European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases.

Efficacy and safety of rasagiline as an adjunct to levodopa treatment in Chinese patients with Parkinson's disease: a randomized, double-blind, parallel-controlled, multi-centre trial.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Lina; Zhang, Zhiqin; Chen, Yangmei; Qin, Xinyue; Zhou, Huadong; Zhang, Chaodong; Sun, Hongbin; Tang, Ronghua; Zheng, Jinou; Yi, Lin; Deng, Liying; Li, Jinfang

2013-08-01

Rasagiline mesylate is a highly potent, selective and irreversible monoamine oxidase type B (MAOB) inhibitor and is effective as monotherapy or adjunct to levodopa for patients with Parkinson's disease (PD). However, few studies have evaluated the efficacy and safety of rasagiline in the Chinese population. This study was designed to investigate the safety and efficacy of rasagiline as adjunctive therapy to levodopa treatment in Chinese PD patients. This was a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group, multi-centre trial conducted over a 12-wk period that enrolled 244 PD patients with motor fluctuations. Participants were randomly assigned to oral rasagiline mesylate (1 mg) or placebo, once daily. Altogether, 219 patients completed the trial. Rasagiline showed significantly greater efficacy compared with placebo. During the treatment period, the primary efficacy variable--mean adjusted total daily off time--decreased from baseline by 1.7 h in patients treated with 1.0 mg/d rasagiline compared to placebo (p rasagiline treatment. Rasagiline was well tolerated. This study demonstrated that rasagiline mesylate is effective and well tolerated as an adjunct to levodopa treatment in Chinese PD patients with fluctuations.

WHEDA study: Effectiveness of occupational therapy at home for older people with dementia and their caregivers - the design of a pragmatic randomised controlled trial evaluating a Dutch programme in seven German centres

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vernooij-Dassen Myrra

2009-10-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background A recent Dutch mono-centre randomised controlled trial has shown that occupational therapy improves daily functioning in dementia. The aim of this present study is to compare the effects of the Dutch community occupational therapy programme with a community occupational therapy consultation on daily functioning in older people with mild or moderate dementia and their primary caregivers in a German multi-centre context. Methods/Design A multi-centre single blind randomised controlled trial design is being used in seven health care centres (neurological, psychiatric and for older people in urban regions. Patients are 1:1 randomised to treatment or control group. Assessors are blind to group assignment and perform measurements on both groups at baseline, directly after intervention at 6 weeks and at 16, 26 and 52 weeks follow-up. A sample of 140 community dwelling older people (aged >65 years with mild or moderate dementia and their primary caregivers is planned. The experimental intervention consists of an evidence-based community occupational therapy programme including 10 sessions occupational therapy at home. The control intervention consists of one community occupational therapy consultation based on information material of the Alzheimer Society. Providers of both interventions are occupational therapists experienced in treatment of cognitively impaired older people and trained in both programmes. 'Community' indicates that occupational therapy intervention occurs in the person's own home. The primary outcome is patients' daily functioning assessed with the performance scale of the Interview for Deterioration in Daily Living Activities in Dementia and video tapes of daily activities rated by external raters blind to group assignment using the Perceive, Recall, Plan and Perform System of Task Analysis. Secondary outcomes are patients' and caregivers' quality of life, mood and satisfaction with treatment; the caregiver

Association between tobacco control policies and smoking behaviour among adolescents in 29 European countries

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hublet, Anne; Schmid, Holger; Clays, Els

2009-01-01

AIMS: To investigate the associations between well-known, cost-effective tobacco control policies at country level and smoking prevalence among 15-year-old adolescents. DESIGN: Multi-level modelling based on the 2005-06 Health Behaviour in School-aged Children Study, a cross-national study...... at individual level, and with country-level variables from the Tobacco Control Scale and published country-level databases. SETTING: Twenty-nine European countries. PARTICIPANTS: A total of 25 599 boys and 26 509 girls. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Self-reported regular smoking defined as at least weekly smoking...... vending machines) = -0.372, P = 0.06]. CONCLUSIONS: For boys, some of the currently recommended tobacco control policies may help to reduce smoking prevalence. However, the model is less suitable for girls, indicating gender differences in the potential efficacy of smoking policies. Future research should...

A pragmatic multi-centre randomised controlled trial of fluid loading in high-risk surgical patients undergoing major elective surgery--the FOCCUS study.

Science.gov (United States)

Cuthbertson, Brian H; Campbell, Marion K; Stott, Stephen A; Elders, Andrew; Hernández, Rodolfo; Boyers, Dwayne; Norrie, John; Kinsella, John; Brittenden, Julie; Cook, Jonathan; Rae, Daniela; Cotton, Seonaidh C; Alcorn, David; Addison, Jennifer; Grant, Adrian

2011-01-01

Fluid strategies may impact on patient outcomes in major elective surgery. We aimed to study the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of pre-operative fluid loading in high-risk surgical patients undergoing major elective surgery. This was a pragmatic, non-blinded, multi-centre, randomised, controlled trial. We sought to recruit 128 consecutive high-risk surgical patients undergoing major abdominal surgery. The patients underwent pre-operative fluid loading with 25 ml/kg of Ringer's solution in the six hours before surgery. The control group had no pre-operative fluid loading. The primary outcome was the number of hospital days after surgery with cost-effectiveness as a secondary outcome. A total of 111 patients were recruited within the study time frame in agreement with the funder. The median pre-operative fluid loading volume was 1,875 ml (IQR 1,375 to 2,025) in the fluid group compared to 0 (IQR 0 to 0) in controls with days in hospital after surgery 12.2 (SD 11.5) days compared to 17.4 (SD 20.0) and an adjusted mean difference of 5.5 days (median 2.2 days; 95% CI -0.44 to 11.44; P = 0.07). There was a reduction in adverse events in the fluid intervention group (P = 0.048) and no increase in fluid based complications. The intervention was less costly and more effective (adjusted average cost saving: £2,047; adjusted average gain in benefit: 0.0431 quality adjusted life year (QALY)) and has a high probability of being cost-effective. Pre-operative intravenous fluid loading leads to a non-significant reduction in hospital length of stay after high-risk major surgery and is likely to be cost-effective. Confirmatory work is required to determine whether these effects are reproducible, and to confirm whether this simple intervention could allow more cost-effective delivery of care. Prospective Clinical Trials, ISRCTN32188676.

The CERN Control Centre Setting Standards for the 21st Century

CERN Document Server

Manglunki, Django

2008-01-01

In 2003, CERN decided to build a unified control centre to replace four of its control rooms: the â€ﾜMeyrin Control Room” which controlled the PS complex, the â€ﾜPrevessin Control Room” (PCR) which controlled the SPS and until 2000 LEP, the Technical Control Room (TCR), and the Cryogenics Control Room (QCR). After first contemplating a possible implementation next to the â€ﾜGlobe of Science and Innovation”, it was decided for budgetary reasons to build the new CERN Control Centre (CCC) on the same location as the PCR. This represented a 50% saving in construction costs as most of the technical infrastructure (computer network, water, electricity, ventilation) was already in place, but added stringent time constraints: civil engineering could not begin before the SPS shutdown in November 2004, yet the room had to be ready for the accelerator operations to resume in March 2006. Although this presented a strict construction schedule, it allowed the project to be completely driven by th...

University career centres – venues of non-formal learning for students

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sabina Žnidaršič Žagar

2015-04-01

Full Text Available Incorporation of young people, including tertiary graduates, into the labour market is facing stagnation in Slovenia. Besides external factors that are beyond the control of an individual, good employability also depends on personal characteristics of the employment seeker. Awareness of the importance of good employability means empowering and strengthening individuals through process of lifelong learning, thus enabling them to find and retain sustainable employment within the labour market. This consequently enables them to fulfil their career goals and creatively contribute to their own personal satisfaction and success, as well as that of society as a whole. Universities in Slovenia have established careers centres. The University of Ljubljana opened its first careers centre years ago (in 2008, and we are now beginning to see the results, which are similar to those achieved by careers centres of other European universities. This confirms that promotion and facilitation of good employability is more effective when careers centres are closely involved in the study process.

A sit-ski design aimed at controlling centre of mass and inertia.

Science.gov (United States)

Langelier, Eve; Martel, Stéphane; Millot, Anne; Lessard, Jean-Luc; Smeesters, Cécile; Rancourt, Denis

2013-01-01

This article introduces a sit-ski developed for the Canadian Alpine Ski Team in view of the Vancouver 2010 Paralympic games. The design is predominantly based on controlling the mass distribution of the sit-ski, a critical factor in skiing performance and control. Both the antero-posterior location of the centre of mass and the sit-ski moment of inertia were addressed in our design. Our design provides means to adjust the antero-posterior centre of mass location of a sit-ski to compensate for masses that would tend to move the antero-posterior centre of mass location away from the midline of the binding area along the ski axis. The adjustment range provided is as large as 140 mm, thereby providing sufficient adaptability for most situations. The suspension mechanism selected is a four-bar linkage optimised to limit antero-posterior seat movement, due to suspension compression, to 7 mm maximum. This is about 5% of the maximum antero-posterior centre of mass control capacity (151 mm) of a human participant. Foot rest inclination was included in the design to modify the sit-ski inertia by as much as 11%. Together, these mass adjustment features were shown to drastically help athletes' skiing performance.

Species distribution and susceptibility profile to fluconazole, voriconazole and MXP-4509 of 551 clinical yeast isolates from a Romanian multi-centre study

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Minea, B; Nastasa, V; Moraru, R F; Kolecka, A; Flonta, M M; Marincu, I; Man, A; Toma, F; Lupse, M; Doroftei, B; Marangoci, N; Pinteala, M; Boekhout, T; Mares, M

This is the first multi-centre study regarding yeast infections in Romania. The aim was to determine the aetiological spectrum and susceptibility pattern to fluconazole, voriconazole and the novel compound MXP-4509. The 551 isolates were identified using routine laboratory methods, matrix-assisted

Sentinel European Node Trial (SENT)

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Schilling, Clare; Stoeckli, Sandro J; Haerle, Stephan K

2015-01-01

in patients with early-stage oral squamous cell carcinoma. METHODS: An European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer-approved prospective, observational study commenced in 2005. Fourteen European centres recruited 415 patients with radiologically staged T1-T2N0 squamous cell carcinoma. SNB...

Centre for urban ecotechnology in ``Oeksnehallen``

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

1992-03-01

The Lord Mayor`s Department of the municipality of Copenhagen, Denmark, has with support from this project made a proposal for the establishment of the Centre for Urban Ecotechnology in ``Oeksnehallen``, located in the Vesterbro area of the city. The centre should contribute to the dissemination of knowledge on ecological techniques (regarding passive solar energy etc.) to the inhabitants of Vesterbro and other citizens of Copenhagen, and also serve as a centre in an European context. The ecological demonstration centre will cover an area of two thousand square meters and will also include a cafe, a room for showing coloured slides, facilities for exhibitions created by the center and interested firms etc. The centre should play an important role as part of the ecological concept of urban renewal in Vesterbro. (author).

Much of the variation in breast pathology quality assurance data in the UK can be explained by the random order in which cases arrive at individual centres, but some true outliers do exist.

Science.gov (United States)

Cross, Simon S; Stephenson, Timothy J; Harrison, Robert F

2011-10-01

To investigate the role of random temporal order of patient arrival at screening centres in the variability seen in rates of node positivity and breast cancer grade between centres in the NHS Breast Screening Programme. Computer simulations were performed of the variation in node positivity and breast cancer grade with the random temporal arrival of patients at screening centres based on national UK audit data. Cumulative mean graphs of these data were plotted. Confidence intervals for the parameters were generated, using the binomial distribution. UK audit data were plotted on these control limit graphs. The results showed that much of the variability in the audit data could be accounted for by the effects of random order of arrival of cases at the screening centres. Confidence intervals of 99.7% identified true outliers in the data. Much of the variation in breast pathology quality assurance data in the UK can be explained by the random order in which cases arrive at individual centres. Control charts with confidence intervals of 99.7% plotted against the number of reported cases are useful tools for identification of true outliers. 2011 Blackwell Publishing Limited.

Coordinated Control of Multi-terminal DC Grid for Wind Power Integration

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hao, Yu; Zhao, Haoran; Wu, Qiuwei

2016-01-01

Multi-terminal HVDC (MTDC) technology using voltage source converter (VSC) is a good option for wind power integration. Compared with point to point DC connection, MTDC provide better controllability based on different control strategies. In this paper, proportional-integral (PI) controllers...... with tuned PI parameters are designed to coordinate DC flow among the DC grid with good dynamic performance. In order to overcome the disadvantages of the conventional PI control, a simple adaptive PI control strategy is proposed based on the system transfer function. Case studies were conducted with PowerFactory....

Manche storage Centre. Information report on nuclear safety and radiation protection 2015

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2016-01-01

After a presentation of the Manche Storage Centre (CSM), the first French center of surface storage of low- and intermediate-level radioactive wastes, of its history, its buildings and activities, of the multi-layer cover, of the water management system (installation, controls, sampling), this report then describes the measures related to nuclear safety, the management of conventional and nuclear wastes produced by the Centre, the other impacts, the control, maintenance and follow-up of installations, the radiation protection and security of the center, the incidents and accidents that occurred at the facility, and the public information and communication actions. Recommendations of the Health and safety Committee (CHSCT) are reported at the end

Multi-criteria analysis for the detection of the most critical European UNESCO Heritage sites

Science.gov (United States)

Valagussa, Andrea; Frattini, Paolo; Berta, Nadia; Spizzichino, Daniele; Leoni, Gabriele; Margottini, Claudio; Battista Crosta, Giovanni

2017-04-01

A GIS-based multi-criteria analysis has been implemented to identify and to rank the most critical UNESCO Heritage sites at the European scale in the context of PROTHEGO JPI-Project. Two multi-criteria methods have been tested and applied to more than 300 European UNESCO Sites. First, the Analytic Hierarchy Procedure (AHP) was applied to the data of the UNESCO Periodic Report, in relation to 13 natural hazards that have affected or can potentially affect the Heritage sites. According to these reports, 22% of sites are without any documented hazard and 70% of the sites have at least one hazard affecting the site. The most important hazards on the European country are: fire (wildfire), storm, flooding, earthquake and erosion. For each UNESCO site, the potential risk was calculated as a weighed sum of the hazards that affect the site. The weighs of the 13 hazards were obtained by AHP procedure, which is a technique for multi-attribute decision making that enables the decomposition of a problem into hierarchy, based on the opinion of different experts about the dominance of risks. The weights are obtained by rescaling between 0 and 1 the eigenvectors relative to the maximum eigenvalue for the matrix of the coefficients. The internal coherence of the expert's attributions is defined through the calculation of the consistency ratio (Saaty, 1990). The result of the AHP method consists in a map of the UNESCO sites ranked according to the potential risk, where the site most at risk results to be the Geirangerfjord and Nærøyfjord in Norway. However, the quality of these results lies in the reliability of the Period Reports, which are produced by different experts with unknown level of scientific background. To test the reliability of these results, a comparison of the information of the periodic reports with available high-quality datasets (earthquake, volcano and landslide) at the Italian scale has been performed. Sites properly classified by the Period Reports range from

European network for promoting the physical health of residents in psychiatric and social care facilities (HELPS)

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Weiser, Prisca; Becker, Thomas; Losert, Carolin

2009-01-01

of defined health promoting interventions. The key methods are (a) stakeholder analysis, (b) international literature reviews, (c) Delphi rounds with experts from participating centres, and (d) focus groups with staff and residents of mental health care facilities.Meanwhile a multi-disciplinary network...... by promoting behaviour-based and/or environment-based interventions. METHODS AND DESIGN: HELPS is an interdisciplinary European network that aims at (i) gathering relevant knowledge on physical illness in people with mental illness, (ii) identifying health promotion initiatives in European countries that meet...... consisting of 15 European countries has been established and took up the work. As one main result of the project they expect that a widespread use of the HELPS toolkit could have a significant positive effect on the physical health status of residents of mental health and social care facilities, as well...

Shaping Place Identity through Interaction on the Example of the European Solidarity Centre in Gdansk

Science.gov (United States)

Targowski, Wojciech; Piotr, Czyż

2017-10-01

The article presents process of shaping place identity on the example of an important for Pomerania region investment - European Solidarity Centre. The idea of a Solidarity social movement is strongly associated with the formation of post-socialist national identity of Poland as well as local identity of Pomerania, from which movement originates. The realization of the European Solidarity Centre aims to be one of the essential elements of shaping Gdańsk’s identity of space. The article is an attempt to analyse how the presence of realization gradually affects the formation of the place identity of new urban space. Analysis of this realization will allow on the one hand to verify design assumptions made by authors, on the other provides the opportunity to search for best description of still vague notion of local identity. This concept, though intuitively close to everyone still seems to elude conceptual apparatus of theory of architecture. The intention of this article is to explore the notion of identity based on the observations of the newly realized significant cultural space. This analysis approaches the concept of identity from two perspectives. The first approach draws from the concept of identity of Christian Norberg-Schulz. Here, local identity is seen as a unique set of characteristics of space. So seen the concept of place identity is a correlate of concept of personal identity. In this analysis, methods of description of personal identity were transferred to the identity of the place. In the second approach, the identity of place is understood as a unique for that place way of being in space, way to spend time and development of the site-specific urban rituals. Such a concept of identity, draws from the concept of place of Kim Dovey. Both presented approaches seems to complement each other but they also emphasize different qualities. The now-traditional concept of Genius Loci sees architecture as a structural system of meanings. Meaningful elements

When Triple Helix Unravels: A Multi-Case Analysis of Failures in Industry-University Cooperative Research Centres

Science.gov (United States)

Gray, Denis; Sundstrom, Eric; Tornatzky, Louis G.; McGowen, Lindsey

2011-01-01

Cooperative research centres (CRCs) increasingly foster Triple Helix (industry-university-government) collaboration and represent significant vehicles for cooperation across sectors, the promotion of knowledge and technology transfer and ultimately the acceleration of innovation. A growing social science literature on CRCs focuses on their…

Variable cycle control model for intersection based on multi-source information

Science.gov (United States)

Sun, Zhi-Yuan; Li, Yue; Qu, Wen-Cong; Chen, Yan-Yan

2018-05-01

In order to improve the efficiency of traffic control system in the era of big data, a new variable cycle control model based on multi-source information is presented for intersection in this paper. Firstly, with consideration of multi-source information, a unified framework based on cyber-physical system is proposed. Secondly, taking into account the variable length of cell, hysteresis phenomenon of traffic flow and the characteristics of lane group, a Lane group-based Cell Transmission Model is established to describe the physical properties of traffic flow under different traffic signal control schemes. Thirdly, the variable cycle control problem is abstracted into a bi-level programming model. The upper level model is put forward for cycle length optimization considering traffic capacity and delay. The lower level model is a dynamic signal control decision model based on fairness analysis. Then, a Hybrid Intelligent Optimization Algorithm is raised to solve the proposed model. Finally, a case study shows the efficiency and applicability of the proposed model and algorithm.

Range based power control for multi-radio multi-channel wireless mesh networks

CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

Olwal, TO

2009-08-01

Full Text Available Multi-Radio Multi-Channel (MRMC) systems are key to power control problems in Wireless Mesh Networks (WMNs). In this paper, researchers present a range based dynamic power control for MRMC WMNs. First, WMN is represented as a set of disjoint Unified...

Hearing impairment associated with oral terbinafine use : a case series and case/non-case analysis in the Netherlands Pharmacovigilance Centre Lareb database and VigiBase™

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Scholl, Joep H G; van Puijenbroek, Eugene P

2012-01-01

BACKGROUND: The Netherlands Pharmacovigilance Centre Lareb received reports of six cases of hearing impairment in association with oral terbinafine use. This study describes these cases and provides support for this association from the Lareb database for spontaneous adverse drug reaction (ADR)

Multi-loop control of UPS inverter with a plug-in odd-harmonic repetitive controller.

Science.gov (United States)

Razi, Reza; Karbasforooshan, Mohammad-Sadegh; Monfared, Mohammad

2017-03-01

This paper proposes an improved multi-loop control scheme for the single-phase uninterruptible power supply (UPS) inverter by using a plug-in odd-harmonic repetitive controller to regulate the output voltage. In the suggested control method, the output voltage and the filter capacitor current are used as the outer and inner loop feedback signals, respectively and the instantaneous value of the reference voltage feedforwarded to the output of the controller. Instead of conventional linear (proportional-integral/-resonant) and conventional repetitive controllers, a plug-in odd-harmonic repetitive controller is employed in the outer loop to regulate the output voltage, which occupies less memory space and offers faster tracking performance compared to the conventional one. Also, a simple proportional controller is used in the inner loop for active damping of possible resonances and improving the transient performance. The feedforward of the converter reference voltage enhances the robust performance of the system and simplifies the system modelling and the controller design. A step-by-step design procedure is presented for the proposed controller, which guarantees stability of the system under worst-case scenarios. Simulation and experimental results validate the excellent steady-state and transient performance of the proposed control scheme and provide the exact comparison of the proposed method with the conventional multi-loop control method. Copyright © 2017 ISA. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Current status of the European contribution to the Remote Data Access System of the ITER Remote Experimentation Centre

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

De Tommasi, G.; Manduchi, G.; Muir, D.G.; Ide, S.; Naito, O.; Urano, H.; Clement-Lorenzo, S.; Nakajima, N.; Ozeki, T.; Sartori, F.

2015-01-01

The ITER Remote Experimentation Centre (REC) is one of the projects under implementation within the BA agreement. The final objective of the REC is to allow researchers to take part in the experimentation on ITER from a remote location. Before ITER first operations, the REC will be used to evaluate ITER-relevant technologies for remote participation. Among the different software tools needed for remote participation, an important one is the Remote Data Access System (RDA), which provides a single software infrastructure to access data stored at the remotely participating experiment, regardless of the geographical location of the users. This paper introduces the European contribution to the RDA system for the REC.

Intersection signal control multi-objective optimization based on genetic algorithm

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zhanhong Zhou

2014-04-01

Full Text Available A signal control intersection increases not only vehicle delay, but also vehicle emissions and fuel consumption in that area. Because more and more fuel and air pollution problems arise recently, an intersection signal control optimization method which aims at reducing vehicle emissions, fuel consumption and vehicle delay is required heavily. This paper proposed a signal control multi-object optimization method to reduce vehicle emissions, fuel consumption and vehicle delay simultaneously at an intersection. The optimization method combined the Paramics microscopic traffic simulation software, Comprehensive Modal Emissions Model (CMEM, and genetic algorithm. An intersection in Haizhu District, Guangzhou, was taken for a case study. The result of the case study shows the optimal timing scheme obtained from this method is better than the Webster timing scheme.

ENES the European Network for Earth System modelling and its infrastructure projects IS-ENES

Science.gov (United States)

Guglielmo, Francesca; Joussaume, Sylvie; Parinet, Marie

2016-04-01

The scientific community working on climate modelling is organized within the European Network for Earth System modelling (ENES). In the past decade, several European university departments, research centres, meteorological services, computer centres, and industrial partners engaged in the creation of ENES with the purpose of working together and cooperating towards the further development of the network, by signing a Memorandum of Understanding. As of 2015, the consortium counts 47 partners. The climate modelling community, and thus ENES, faces challenges which are both science-driven, i.e. analysing of the full complexity of the Earth System to improve our understanding and prediction of climate changes, and have multi-faceted societal implications, as a better representation of climate change on regional scales leads to improved understanding and prediction of impacts and to the development and provision of climate services. ENES, promoting and endorsing projects and initiatives, helps in developing and evaluating of state-of-the-art climate and Earth system models, facilitates model inter-comparison studies, encourages exchanges of software and model results, and fosters the use of high performance computing facilities dedicated to high-resolution multi-model experiments. ENES brings together public and private partners, integrates countries underrepresented in climate modelling studies, and reaches out to different user communities, thus enhancing European expertise and competitiveness. In this need of sophisticated models, world-class, high-performance computers, and state-of-the-art software solutions to make efficient use of models, data and hardware, a key role is played by the constitution and maintenance of a solid infrastructure, developing and providing services to the different user communities. ENES has investigated the infrastructural needs and has received funding from the EU FP7 program for the IS-ENES (InfraStructure for ENES) phase I and II

A European Research Area

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Caro, R.

2001-01-01

This article is a summary of the presentation of the European Commissioner, Philippe Busquen, to the European Parliament (beginning of year 2000) with the proposal and method for a revival of the Research and Development in this wider sense in the European Union. The starting point of his thesis is that Europe performs less, and more disorderly, activities in this field that her main competitors. USA and Japan. His basic proposal is a larger coordination among the european research projects, with a previous phase of informatics intoxicator among the european research centres and the cross-linked participation, real of virtual in the experiments and projects. (Author)

Characterization of female breast lesions from multi-wavelength time-resolved optical mammography

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Spinelli, Lorenzo; Torricelli, Alessandro; Pifferi, Antonio; Taroni, Paola; Danesini, Gianmaria; Cubeddu, Rinaldo

2005-01-01

Characterization of both malignant and benign lesions in the female breast is presented as the result of a clinical study that involved more than 190 subjects in the framework of the OPTIMAMM European project. All the subjects underwent optical mammography, by means of a multi-wavelength time-resolved mammograph, in the range 637-985 nm. Optical images were processed by applying a perturbation model, relying on a nonlinear approximation of time-resolved transmittance curves in the presence of an inclusion, with the aim of estimating the major tissue constituents (i.e. oxy- and deoxy-haemoglobin, lipid and water) and structural parameters (linked to dimension and density of the scatterer centres) for both the lesion area and the surrounding tissue. The critical factors for the application of the perturbation model on in vivo data are also discussed. Forty-six malignant and 68 benign lesions were analysed. A subset of 32 cancers, 40 cysts and 14 fibroadenomas were found reliable for the perturbation analysis. For cancers, we show a higher blood content with respect to the surrounding tissue, while cysts are characterized by a lower concentration of scattering centres with respect to the surrounding tissue. For fibroadenomas, the low number of cases does not allow any definite conclusions

A computer simulation of the new Control Centre (CCC)

CERN Multimedia

2004-01-01

In a development crucial for the success of the LHC, CERN will build a Control Centre (CCC) for the operation of all its beams and accelerators. The CCC will be an extension of the existing PCR building at Prévessin and is due to be operational by 1 February 2006.

Thyroid cancer in French Polynesia: a population based case control study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Brindel, P.; Doyon, F.; Adjadj, E.; Vathaire, F. de; Drozdovitch, V.; Bouville, A.; Paoaafaite, J.; Teuri, J.

2006-01-01

Full text of publication follows: Because a previous study had shown that registered thyroid cancer incidence is higher among natives of French Polynesia (FP) than in other Maori populations from Hawaii and New-Zealand, a case-control study of thyroid cancer coordinated by Unit 605 of INSERM was conducted in FP. The main objective was to assess the potential role of atmospheric nuclear weapons tests performed by France between 1966 and 1974 on such a high incidence. The study included 600 subjects born and residing in FP: 229 cases of differentiated thyroid carcinoma diagnosed between 1979 and 2004, aged up to 30 years old at start of nuclear weapons testing and 371 control s matched on gender and birth date randomly selected from t he FP registry of births. Face to face interviews were conducted from 2002 to 2004 by specialized investigators native from FP who received a specific formation for this study. Addresses were collected from the territorial medical insurance, which covers all the inhabitants, whatever their professional status. Detailed information about nutrition at time of interview and at the end of adolescence was collected by means of a semi-quantitative method using pictures. Data concerning residence, hormonal and reproductive life, familial and personal background of thyroid pathologies and cancers, and professional and environmental exposure to carcinogens were also collected. For each study subject, radiation thyroid dose was estimated taking into account residential history and dietary habits of the subject and deposition densities of radionuclides reconstructed for each island where the subject resided during the testing period. The iodine intake will be estimated from the dietary questionnaire, as well as from mass-spectrometry measurements of stable iodine in nail clippings, which were collected during the interviews. Among the 229 cases, 89% were females, 54% declared themselves as of pure Maori origin, another 36% of Maori-Asian or Maori-European

The impact of the treaty basis on health policy legislation in the European Union: A case study on the tobacco advertising directive

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maarse Hans

2008-04-01

' foundation of health policy legislation in the Community. The absence of a clear-cut legal basis for health policies does not imply that the EU's impact on health is negligible. In the case of tobacco-control measures, the creative use of other Treaty bases has resulted in significant European action in the field of public health.

The impact of the treaty basis on health policy legislation in the European Union: a case study on the tobacco advertising directive.

Science.gov (United States)

Boessen, Sandra; Maarse, Hans

2008-04-08

absence of a clear-cut legal basis for health policies does not imply that the EU's impact on health is negligible. In the case of tobacco-control measures, the creative use of other Treaty bases has resulted in significant European action in the field of public health.

The European Narcolepsy Network (EU-NN) database

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Khatami, Ramin; Luca, Gianina; Baumann, Christian R

2016-01-01

Narcolepsy with cataplexy is a rare disease with an estimated prevalence of 0.02% in European populations. Narcolepsy shares many features of rare disorders, in particular the lack of awareness of the disease with serious consequences for healthcare supply. Similar to other rare diseases, only a ......, identification of post-marketing medication side-effects, and will contribute to improve clinical trial designs and provide facilities to further develop phase III trials....... Narcolepsy Network is introduced. The database structure, standardization of data acquisition and quality control procedures are described, and an overview provided of the first 1079 patients from 18 European specialized centres. Due to its standardization this continuously increasing data pool is most...

Case-Based Multi-Sensor Intrusion Detection

Science.gov (United States)

Schwartz, Daniel G.; Long, Jidong

2009-08-01

Multi-sensor intrusion detection systems (IDSs) combine the alerts raised by individual IDSs and possibly other kinds of devices such as firewalls and antivirus software. A critical issue in building a multi-sensor IDS is alert-correlation, i.e., determining which alerts are caused by the same attack. This paper explores a novel approach to alert correlation using case-based reasoning (CBR). Each case in the CBR system's library contains a pattern of alerts raised by some known attack type, together with the identity of the attack. Then during run time, the alert streams gleaned from the sensors are compared with the patterns in the cases, and a match indicates that the attack described by that case has occurred. For this purpose the design of a fast and accurate matching algorithm is imperative. Two such algorithms were explored: (i) the well-known Hungarian algorithm, and (ii) an order-preserving matching of our own device. Tests were conducted using the DARPA Grand Challenge Problem attack simulator. These showed that the both matching algorithms are effective in detecting attacks; but the Hungarian algorithm is inefficient; whereas the order-preserving one is very efficient, in fact runs in linear time.

Implementation method of multi-terminal DC control system

Science.gov (United States)

Yi, Liu; Hao-Ran, Huang; Jun-Wen, Zhou; Hong-Guang, Guo; Yu-Yong, Zhou

2018-04-01

Currently the multi-terminal DC system (MTDC) has more stations. Each station needs operators to monitor and control the device. It needs much more operation and maintenance, low efficiency and small reliability; for the most important reason, multi-terminal DC system has complex control mode. If one of the stations has some problem, the control of the whole system should have problems. According to research of the characteristics of multi-terminal DC (VSC-MTDC) systems, this paper presents a strong implementation of the multi-terminal DC Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) system. This system is intelligent, can be networking, integration and intelligent. A master control system is added in each station to communication with the other stations to send current and DC voltage value to pole control system for each station. Based on the practical application and information feedback in the China South Power Grid research center VSC-MTDC project, this system is higher efficiency and save the cost on the maintenance of convertor station to improve the intelligent level and comprehensive effect. And because of the master control system, a multi-terminal system hierarchy coordination control strategy is formed, this make the control and protection system more efficiency and reliability.

Assessment of heterogeneity between European Populations: a Baltic and Danish replication case-control study of SNPs from a recent European ulcerative colitis genome wide association study.

Science.gov (United States)

Andersen, Vibeke; Ernst, Anja; Sventoraityte, Jurgita; Kupcinskas, Limas; Jacobsen, Bent A; Krarup, Henrik B; Vogel, Ulla; Jonaitis, Laimas; Denapiene, Goda; Kiudelis, Gediminas; Balschun, Tobias; Franke, Andre

2011-10-13

Differences in the genetic architecture of inflammatory bowel disease between different European countries and ethnicities have previously been reported. In the present study, we wanted to assess the role of 11 newly identified UC risk variants, derived from a recent European UC genome wide association study (GWAS) (Franke et al., 2010), for 1) association with UC in the Nordic countries, 2) for population heterogeneity between the Nordic countries and the rest of Europe, and, 3) eventually, to drive some of the previous findings towards overall genome-wide significance. Eleven SNPs were replicated in a Danish sample consisting of 560 UC patients and 796 controls and nine missing SNPs of the German GWAS study were successfully genotyped in the Baltic sample comprising 441 UC cases and 1156 controls. The independent replication data was then jointly analysed with the original data and systematic comparisons of the findings between ethnicities were made. Pearson's χ2, Breslow-Day (BD) and Cochran-Mantel-Haenszel (CMH) tests were used for association analyses and heterogeneity testing. The rs5771069 (IL17REL) SNP was not associated with UC in the Danish panel. The rs5771069 (IL17REL) SNP was significantly associated with UC in the combined Baltic, Danish and Norwegian UC study sample driven by the Norwegian panel (OR = 0.89, 95% CI: 0.79-0.98, P = 0.02). No association was found between rs7809799 (SMURF1/KPNA7) and UC (OR = 1.20, 95% CI: 0.95-1.52, P = 0.10) or between UC and all other remaining SNPs. We had 94% chance of detecting an association for rs7809799 (SMURF1/KPNA7) in the combined replication sample, whereas the power were 55% or lower for the remaining SNPs.Statistically significant PBD was found for OR heterogeneity between the combined Baltic, Danish, and Norwegian panel versus the combined German, British, Belgian, and Greek panel (rs7520292 (P = 0.001), rs12518307 (P = 0.007), and rs2395609 (TCP11) (P = 0.01), respectively).No SNP reached genome

Multi-periodic nanostructures for photon control

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kluge, Christian; Adam, Jost; Barié, Nicole

2014-01-01

We propose multi-periodic nanostructures yielded by superposition of multiple binary gratings for wide control over photon emission in thin-film devices. We present wavelength- and angle-resolved photoluminescence measurements of multi-periodically nanostructured organic light-emitting layers...

Multiple-state based power control for multi-radio multi-channel wireless mesh networks

CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

Olwal, TO

2009-01-01

Full Text Available Multi-Radio Multi-Channel (MRMC) systems are key to power control problems in wireless mesh networks (WMNs). In this paper, we present asynchronous multiple-state based power control for MRMC WMNs. First, WMN is represented as a set of disjoint...

The ESTRO European assurance programme for radiation treatments (EQUAL Network)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ferreira, I.H.; Dutreix, A.; Bridier, A.; Svensson, H.

2002-01-01

factor. In about 6% of the checked photon beams, it was found at least one parameter with a proven 'dosimetric' problem. For electron beams, 83% of the beam output in reference conditions (10 cm x 10 cm) are at the optimal level, i.e. deviations vertical bar d vertical bar below 3%. Compared to photon dose checks for RBO, there are more deviations between 3 and 5 %. In 2002, EQUAL programme was recently extended to include dose checks in photon fields shaped with Multileaf Collimators (MLC). In the MLC audit, EQUAL checks the dose in five fields with shapes and dimensions defined by the MLC. Seventy centres have applied to take part to the MLC dose checks showing the great interest of radiotherapy centres for the new service offered by ESTRO. The results of the MLC dose checks for 44 radiotherapy centres, including 73 beams shaped by a MLC, are shown. Five of these centres have been rechecked, and one has presented real 'dosimetric' problems for an MLC field combined with wedges. In addition, the MLC results show that 94% of the beam outputs checked in reference conditions (RBO) are at the optimal level (vertical bar d vertical bar ≤ 3 %), and 6 % have deviations between 3 % and 5 %. Similar results are found for the small square fields (5 cm x 5 cm). However, for the complex fields shaped with MLC: 'Circular' and 'Inverted Y', a large percentage of beams (10% to 14%) have deviations between 3 % and 5 %. For the 73 checked MLC beams, no deviation larger than 10% has been found. After the starting of EQUAL programme in 1998, a real improvement on the radiotherapy dosimetry has been found for the European radiotherapy centres and the reduction of uncertainties in dosimetry gives the possibility to optimize doses in radiotherapy. It would lead to an increased percentage of local control of the tumour with a constant or reduced number of complications. For a large number of European centres, the EQUAL project was the first opportunity to take part in an external audit both

Adaptive fuzzy sliding-mode control for multi-input multi-output chaotic systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Poursamad, Amir; Markazi, Amir H.D.

2009-01-01

This paper describes an adaptive fuzzy sliding-mode control algorithm for controlling unknown or uncertain, multi-input multi-output (MIMO), possibly chaotic, dynamical systems. The control approach encompasses a fuzzy system and a robust controller. The fuzzy system is designed to mimic an ideal sliding-mode controller, and the robust controller compensates the difference between the fuzzy controller and the ideal one. The parameters of the fuzzy system, as well as the uncertainty bound of the robust controller, are tuned adaptively. The adaptive laws are derived in the Lyapunov sense to guarantee the asymptotic stability and tracking of the controlled system. The effectiveness of the proposed method is shown by applying it to some well-known chaotic systems.

Benchmarking in European Higher Education: A Step beyond Current Quality Models

Science.gov (United States)

Burquel, Nadine; van Vught, Frans

2010-01-01

This paper presents the findings of a two-year EU-funded project (DG Education and Culture) "Benchmarking in European Higher Education", carried out from 2006 to 2008 by a consortium led by the European Centre for Strategic Management of Universities (ESMU), with the Centre for Higher Education Development, UNESCO-CEPES, and the…

New challenges for urban consolidation centres: A case study in The Hague

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Duin, J.H.R. van; Quak, H.; Muñuzuri, J.

2010-01-01

The objective of this research is to advice the Municipality of The Hague whether, if and under which conditions, the implementation of an Urban Consolidation Centre (UCC) is possible and desirable. To determine factors that caused the success or failure of UCCs in practice, a survey of 6 cases in

Sensor-augmented pump therapy lowers HbA(1c) in suboptimally controlled Type 1 diabetes; a randomized controlled trial

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Hermanides, J.; Nørgaard, K.; Bruttomesso, D.; Mathieu, C.; Frid, A.; Dayan, C. M.; Diem, P.; Fermon, C.; Wentholt, I. M. E.; Hoekstra, J. B. L.; DeVries, J. H.

2011-01-01

To investigate the efficacy of sensor-augmented pump therapy vs. multiple daily injection therapy in patients with suboptimally controlled Type 1 diabetes. In this investigator-initiated multi-centre trial (the Eurythmics Trial) in eight outpatient centres in Europe, we randomized 83 patients with

Virtual patients design and its effect on clinical reasoning and student experience: a protocol for a randomised factorial multi-centre study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bateman James

2012-08-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Virtual Patients (VPs are web-based representations of realistic clinical cases. They are proposed as being an optimal method for teaching clinical reasoning skills. International standards exist which define precisely what constitutes a VP. There are multiple design possibilities for VPs, however there is little formal evidence to support individual design features. The purpose of this trial is to explore the effect of two different potentially important design features on clinical reasoning skills and the student experience. These are the branching case pathways (present or absent and structured clinical reasoning feedback (present or absent. Methods/Design This is a multi-centre randomised 2x2 factorial design study evaluating two independent variables of VP design, branching (present or absent, and structured clinical reasoning feedback (present or absent.The study will be carried out in medical student volunteers in one year group from three university medical schools in the United Kingdom, Warwick, Keele and Birmingham. There are four core musculoskeletal topics. Each case can be designed in four different ways, equating to 16 VPs required for the research. Students will be randomised to four groups, completing the four VP topics in the same order, but with each group exposed to a different VP design sequentially. All students will be exposed to the four designs. Primary outcomes are performance for each case design in a standardized fifteen item clinical reasoning assessment, integrated into each VP, which is identical for each topic. Additionally a 15-item self-reported evaluation is completed for each VP, based on a widely used EViP tool. Student patterns of use of the VPs will be recorded. In one centre, formative clinical and examination performance will be recorded, along with a self reported pre and post-intervention reasoning score, the DTI. Our power calculations indicate a sample size of 112 is required for

Assessment of Diet, Physical Activity and Biological, Social and Environmental Factors in a Multi-centre European Project on Diet- and Lifestyle-related Disorders in Children (IDEFICS)

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bammann, Karin; Peplies, Jenny; Sjöström, Michael

2006-01-01

Obesity is a major public health problem in developed countries. We present a European project, called Identification and Prevention of Dietary and Lifestyle-induced Health Effects in Children and Infants (IDEFICS), that focuses on diet- and lifestyle-related diseases in children. This paper...... outlines methodological aspects and means of quality control in IDEFICS. IDEFICS will use a multicentre survey design of a population-based cohort of about 17,000 2- to 10-year-old children in nine European countries (Belgium, Cyprus, Estonia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Spain and Sweden). The project...... will investigate the impact of dietary factors such as food intake and food preferences, lifestyle factors such as physical activity, psychosocial factors and genetic factors on the development of obesity and other selected diet- and lifestyle-related disorders. An intervention study will be set up in pre...

Control System Design of the YWZ Multi-Fingered Dexterous Hand

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Wenzhen Yang

2012-07-01

Full Text Available The manipulation abilities of a multi-fingered dexterous hand, such as motion in real-time, flexibility, grasp stability etc., are largely dependent on its control system. This paper developed a control system for the YWZ dexterous hand, which had five fingers and twenty degrees of freedom (DOFs. All of the finger joints of the YWZ dexterous handwere active joints driven by twenty micro-stepper motors respectively. The main contribution of this paper was that we were able to use stepper motor control to actuate the hand's fingers, thus, increasing the hands feasibility. Based the actuators of the YWZ dexterous hand, we firstly developed an integrated circuit board (ICB, which was the communication hardware between the personal computer (PC and the YWZ dexterous hand. The ICB included a centre controller, twenty driver chips, a USB port and other electrical parts. Then, a communication procedure between the PC and the ICB was developed to send the control commands to actuate the YWZ dexterous hand. Experiment results showed that under this control system, the motion of the YWZ dexterous hand was real-time; both the motion accuracy and the motion stability of the YWZ dexterous hand were reliable. Compared with other types of actuators related to dexterous hands, such as pneumatic servo cylinder, DC servo motor, shape memory alloy etc., experiment results verified that the stepper motors as actuators for the dexterous handswere effective, economical, controllable and stable.

Energy efficiency in the European water industry. A compendium of best practices and case studies

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Frijns, J. [Watercycle Research Institute KWR, Nieuwegein (Netherlands); Uijterlinde, C. [Foundation for Applied Water Research STOWA, Amersfoort (Netherlands)

2010-02-15

This European report on best practices of energy efficiency in the water industry showcases 23 energy efficiency initiatives which were collected as case studies from European water utilities. The 25 case studies presented in this report will be submitted to UKWIR and Black and Veatch, for potential inclusion in the Global Water Research Coalition (GWRC) global compendium of best practice case studies. The aim of the GWRC-compendium is to identify the promising developments and future opportunities to help deliver incremental improvements in energy efficiency through optimisation of existing assets and operations. But also more substantial improvements in energy efficiency from the adoption of novel (but proven at full scale) technologies. The European report describes case studies from: Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Hungary, Netherlands, Norway, Spain and Switzerland. Black and Veatch has gathered furthermore information on 47 cases from the UK. These are reported separately and are not included in this European overview.

Complete quantum control of exciton qubits bound to isoelectronic centres.

Science.gov (United States)

Éthier-Majcher, G; St-Jean, P; Boso, G; Tosi, A; Klem, J F; Francoeur, S

2014-05-30

In recent years, impressive demonstrations related to quantum information processing have been realized. The scalability of quantum interactions between arbitrary qubits within an array remains however a significant hurdle to the practical realization of a quantum computer. Among the proposed ideas to achieve fully scalable quantum processing, the use of photons is appealing because they can mediate long-range quantum interactions and could serve as buses to build quantum networks. Quantum dots or nitrogen-vacancy centres in diamond can be coupled to light, but the former system lacks optical homogeneity while the latter suffers from a low dipole moment, rendering their large-scale interconnection challenging. Here, through the complete quantum control of exciton qubits, we demonstrate that nitrogen isoelectronic centres in GaAs combine both the uniformity and predictability of atomic defects and the dipole moment of semiconductor quantum dots. This establishes isoelectronic centres as a promising platform for quantum information processing.

How to make a particular case for person-centred patient care: A commentary on Alexandra Parvan.

Science.gov (United States)

Graham, George

2018-06-14

In recent years, a person-centred approach to patient care in cases of mental illness has been promoted as an alternative to a disease orientated approach. Alexandra Parvan's contribution to the person-centred approach serves to motivate an exploration of the approach's most apt metaphysical assumptions. I argue that a metaphysical thesis or assumption about both persons and their uniqueness is an essential element of being person-centred. I apply the assumption to issues such as the disorder/disease distinction and to the continuity of mental health and illness. © 2018 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Voluntary agreements, implementation and efficiency. European relevance of case study results. Reflections on transferability to voluntary agreement schemes at the European level

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Helby, Peter

2000-04-01

As a policy instrument, voluntary agreements often fascinate policy-makers.This is fuelled by a number of assumed advantages, such as the opportunity for co-operation rather than confrontation, speed and flexibility and the cost-effectiveness. Some advantages might even be accentuated at the European level: Co-operation has added advantage at the European level where the culture of consensus decision is strong. Flexibility is extra attractive for policy makers dealing with an economy less homogeneous than the average national economy. Speed is certainly welcomed by policy-makers otherwise faced with the slow-winding European legislative process. Cost-effectiveness is eagerly sought by European policy makers facing tight administrative budgets and staff limits. This report examines lessons from the VAIE case studies that may be useful to policy makers engaged in the development of voluntary approaches at the European level. These case studies are about voluntary agreement schemes for industrial energy efficiency deployed in Denmark, France, Germany, Netherlands, and Sweden. For a summary of these case studies, please refer to the the VAIE final report. More detailed information is available in the VAIE national reports. It needs to be emphasised that the empirical base is very narrow. The 'lessons' presented can only be hypotheses, based on an inductive leap from a very narrow experience. The reader will need to check these hypotheses against her own broader experience and personal judgement. According to the principle of subsidiarity, voluntary agreements should be implemented at the European level only if that would have significant advantage over national action. Action at the European level, rather than the national level, would have these potential advantages: Being more consistent with the development of the single market; Allowing higher demands on energy efficiency without negative effect on competitiveness and employment; Stimulating company

Radon in homes and risk of lung cancer: 13 collaborative analyses of individual data from European case-control studies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Darby, S.; Hill, D.; Doll, R.; Auvinen, A.; Barros Dios, J.M.; Ruano Ravina, A.; Baysson, H.; Tirmarche, M.; Bochicchio, F.; Deo, H.; Falk, R.; Forastiere, F.; Hakama, M.; Heid, I.; Schaffrath Rosario, A.; Wichmann, H.E.; Kreienbrock, L.; Kreuzer, M.; Lagarde, F.; Pershagen, G.; Makelainen, I.; Ruosteenoja, E.; Muirhead, C.; Oberaigner, W.; TomaBek, L.; Whitley, E.

2007-01-01

Objective: To determine the risk of lung cancer associated with exposure at home to the radioactive disintegration products of naturally occurring radon gas. Design: Collaborative analysis of individual data from 13 case-control studies of residential radon and lung cancer. Setting: Nine European countries. Subjects: 7148 cases of lung cancer and 14 208 controls. Main outcome measures: Relative risks of lung cancer and radon gas concentrations in homes inhabited during the previous 5-34 years measured in becquerels (radon disintegrations per second) per cubic metre (Bq/m3) of household air. Results: The mean measured radon concentration in homes of people in the control group was 97 Bq/m3, with 11% measuring > 200 and 4% measuring > 400 Bq/m3. For cases of lung cancer the mean concentration was 104 Bq/m3. The risk of lung cancer increased by 8.4% (95% confidence interval 3.0% to 15.8%) per 100 Bq/m3 increase in measured radon (P=0.0007). This corresponds to an increase of 16% (5% to 31%) per 100 Bq/m3 increase in usual radon- that is, after correction for the dilution caused by random uncertainties in measuring radon concentrations. The dose-response relation seemed to be linear with no threshold and remained significant (P = 0.04) in analyses limited to individuals from homes with measured radon < 200 Bq/m3. The proportionate excess risk did not differ significantly with study, age, sex, or smoking. In the absence of other causes of death, the absolute risks of lung cancer by age 75 years at usual radon concentrations of 0, 100, and 400 Bq/m3 would be about 0.4%, 0.5%, and 0.7%, respectively, for lifelong non-smokers, and about 25 times greater (10%, 12%, and 16%) for cigarette smokers. Conclusions: Collectively, though not separately, these studies show appreciable hazards from residential radon, particularly for smokers and recent ex-smokers, and indicate that it is responsible for about 2% of all deaths from cancer in Europe. (author)

City Centres as Places for Strategic Cooperation through Active City Management – The Significance of Trade Entities

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Brańka Sebastian

2016-03-01

Full Text Available This paper posits that the contemporary city should be viewed as a common space that needs the effort of many various stakeholders in order to satisfy the diverse (and changing needs of its stakeholders. Yet, achieving this effectively requires active management and coordination of a range of activities. This paper discusses three examples of recent activities in Cracow (Poland that reflect strategic approach. The first of these case studies focuses on identifying the factors encouraging students to remain in Cracow after completing their studies. The second case study corresponds to a shopping centre opened in 2006 and the last case study shows the recent application of the cultural park legal framework to the city centre of Cracow. This study also makes reference to recent research funded by the European Commission’s Life Long Learning programme on the professional competences of city managers across 6 countries.

Shiitake dermatitis recorded by French Poison Control Centers - new case series with clinical observations.

Science.gov (United States)

Boels, D; Landreau, A; Bruneau, C; Garnier, R; Pulce, C; Labadie, M; de Haro, L; Harry, P

2014-07-01

Shiitake (Lentinula edodes) is an edible mushroom which was initially grown in Japan and China and is now sold on the European market. Flagellate erythema may arise following shiitake consumption and was first described in Japan in 1974. This paper reports a French shiitake dermatitis case series. The findings of retrospective study of shiitake dermatitis cases, reported to French Poison Control Centres (PCC) from January 2000 to December 2013, are reported. Among 32 exposed patients, 15 presented flagellate urticarial lesions after raw shiitake consumption. The first case of this series was reported in 2006 and the last nine cases were reported as of 2012. After shared meals, no symptoms were reported among guests, who preferred cooked shiitake to the raw mushroom. In this series, rashes appeared 12 h to 5 days (median: 24 h) after raw shiitake ingestion. Linear and itchy urticarial lesions formed on the trunk, arms, and legs within a few hours and persisted for 3-21 days. In four cases, rash and pruritus were either triggered or worsened by sun exposure. Eleven patients received corticosteroids, antihistamines, or both. All patients completely recovered. Due to the rapidly increasing consumption of exotic food in Western countries, it is no surprise that cases of shiitake dermatitis are now appearing in Europe. The mechanism of shiitake dermatitis is thought to be toxic and due to lentinan, a polysaccharide component of the mushroom. There is no specific validated treatment for shiitake dermatitis. Health professionals and the general population should be aware of both the risk associated with raw shiitake consumption and of the good prognosis of this very spectacular and uncomfortable toxic dermatitis.

Acute renal failure in acute poisoning: prospective study from a tertiary care centre of South India.

Science.gov (United States)

Sweni, Shah; Meenakshisundaram, Ramachandran; Sakthirajan, R; Rajendiran, Chinnasamy; Thirumalaikolundusubramanian, Ponniah

2012-03-01

Cases of people presenting with poisoning are likely to develop acute renal failure (ARF), which may be due to multiple mechanisms/aetiologies. These cases need careful observation and appropriate treatment. To find the risk of ARF among acute poisoning cases, identify the underlying causes and to analyse the outcome. In this prospective study with nested case control, 1,250 cases admitted to the Poison Control, Training and Research Centre of Government General Hospital, Madras Medical College were monitored and evaluated for development of ARF. Patients with history of diabetes/hypertension, known chronic kidney disease, chronic NSAID therapy, those on drugs that increase serum creatinine by inhibiting creatinine secretion and other co-morbid illnesses were excluded. Data were interpreted after subjecting them to bivariate logistic regression and then step wise multivariate analysis. Thirty-two cases developed ARF. Twenty-four were due to snake bite, the rest due to chemical poisons. Chances of developing ARF were greater (6.15%) among the poisoning due to bites and stings than chemical poisoning (0.9%). Five in the former and seven in the latter expired. Among cases bitten by snakes, only 22 (7%) cases bitten by Russell Viper Daboia russelii developed renal failure. Copper sulphate and rat killer poisonings were the commonest causes of chemical induced ARF, dichromate, indigenous medicines and vasmol 33 (paraphenelyne diamine) were the least causes for ARF. None of the patients with organophosphate developed ARF nor did any of the 150 admitted for overdose of medicines developed ARF. The risk of ARF among the cases of poisoning was 2.5%. The outcome of ARF among bites and stings was better than chemical poisoning, and the difference was highly significant (p= 0.005, OR = 0.04-1.0, 95% CI = 0.004-0.38). Early recognition and appropriate measures reduce the occurrence of ARF. © 2011 European Dialysis and Transplant Nurses Association/European Renal Care

RTEMS Centre - Support and Maintenance Centre to RTEMS Operating System

Science.gov (United States)

Silva, H.; Constantino, A.; Freitas, D.; Coutinho, M.; Faustino, S.; Mota, M.; Colaço, P.; Sousa, J.; Dias, L.; Damjanovic, B.; Zulianello, M.; Rufino, J.

2009-05-01

RTEMS CENTRE - Support and Maintenance Centre to RTEMS Operating System is a joint ESA/Portuguese Task Force initiative to develop a support and maintenance centre to the Real-Time Executive for Multiprocessor Systems (RTEMS). This paper gives a high level visibility of the progress, the results obtained and the future work in the RTEMS CENTRE [6] and in the RTEMS Improvement [7] projects. RTEMS CENTRE started officially in November 2006, with the RTEMS 4.6.99.2 version. A full analysis of RTEMS operating system was produced. The architecture was analysed in terms of conceptual, organizational and operational concepts. The original objectives [1] of the centre were primarily to create and maintain technical expertise and competences in this RTOS, to develop a website to provide the European Space Community an entry point for obtaining support (http://rtemscentre.edisoft.pt), to design, develop, maintain and integrate some RTEMS support tools (Timeline Tool, Configuration and Management Tools), to maintain flight libraries and Board Support Packages, to develop a strong relationship with the World RTEMS Community and finally to produce some considerations in ARINC-653, DO-178B and ECSS E-40 standards. RTEMS Improvement is the continuation of the RTEMS CENTRE. Currently the RTEMS, version 4.8.0, is being facilitated for a future qualification. In this work, the validation material is being produced following the Galileo Software Standards Development Assurance Level B [5]. RTEMS is being completely tested, errors analysed, dead and deactivated code removed and tests produced to achieve 100% statement and decision coverage of source code [2]. The SW to exploit the LEON Memory Management Unit (MMU) hardware will be also added. A brief description of the expected implementations will be given.

System of regional centres of first aid in cases of radiation accidents in Germany

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fehringer, F.; Seitz, G.

1996-01-01

When in the seventies the number of occupational radiation exposed persons in the Federal Republic of Germany increased from about 35,000 (1974) to about 160,000 (1978) the Industrial Injuries Insurance Institutes felt prompted to reflect about special measures to prevent radiation accidents and provide health care for this special cases. They did so without any actual occasion: accidents were persons have been exposed by ionizing radiation were in the seventies just as rare as today. But that fact does not allow the Industrial Injuries Insurance Institutes to neglect the existing potential for severe accidents. So the Industrial Injuries Insurance Institute for the Electrical Industry including Precision Mechanics and the Industrial Injuries Insurance Institute for the Chemical Industry created the Institute for Radiation Protection in 1978. The primary task of that Institute is to guarantee an effective first aid in the case of a radiation accident. To realize that task the Institute contracted 11 wellknown institutions like radiological departments of large hospitals or the medical departments of research centres where the i knowledge on diagnostic and therapy of radiation effects is present. They are called 'Regionale Strahlenschutzzentren', Regional Centres for Radiation Protection (RCRP). In the case of radiation accidents these RCRP are the logistical centres for all arising questions of treatment. They have facilities for reconstructing exposure situations and assessing and evaluating doses, including measurements of internal contamination as well as for medical inpatient or out-patient treating like internal or external decontamination. Another important task of the RCRP is to advise employers in ad radiation protection questions which arise with the industrial application of ionizing radiation. Of course the centres give also answer to many question from members of the public, for example the personal effects of the power plant accident at Chernobyl

Considerations on Directive 98/8 of the European Commission - the biocide directive.

Science.gov (United States)

Patryn, Rafał; Jarosz, Mirosław J; Włoszczak-Szubzda, Anna; Sak, Jarosław; Pawlikowski, Jakub

2011-01-01

Nowadays, versatile human activity requires the development of technologies in the chemical and biological industries that ultimately enable an increase in human activity, and help create the living conditions in the domain of human civilization. Increasing this activity very frequently requires the implementation of new technologies concerning the active elimination of numerous threats and obstacles which are found in the human and natural environment. The concept of so-called biocidal products has been introduced into the European legislation as long as ten years ago, defining them as various types of 'chemical substances or microorganisms which can deter, render harmless, or exert a controlling eff ect on any harmful organism, by chemical or biological means'. They can be added to other materials (typically liquids) to protect them against biological infestation and growth. Biocidal products - due to their specificity, toxicity and composition - create a serious risk for human and animal life and health, as well as for the natural environment, it is therefore fully justified to have legal regulations concerning such biocides. Because biocidal products are intended to kill living organisms, and as such, many biocidal products pose a significant risk to human health and welfare, and have significant adverse eff ects on the natural environment. Great care is required when handling biocides and appropriate protective clothing and equipment should be used. Currently, Directive 98/8/EC is a comprehensive set of legal regulations concerning biocidal products, their specificity, principles relating to their placing on the market, and guidelines for their control. It is worth emphasizing that Directive 98/8/EC implements the clampdown on poisoning cases with biocides, the duty of which was passed to the so-called Centres of Consultation and Toxicological Information. These centres provide round-the-clock (24-hour) medical consultation and assistance in cases of

Standardised surveillance of Clostridium difficile infection in European acute care hospitals: a pilot study, 2013.

Science.gov (United States)

van Dorp, Sofie M; Kinross, Pete; Gastmeier, Petra; Behnke, Michael; Kola, Axel; Delmée, Michel; Pavelkovich, Anastasia; Mentula, Silja; Barbut, Frédéric; Hajdu, Agnes; Ingebretsen, André; Pituch, Hanna; Macovei, Ioana S; Jovanović, Milica; Wiuff, Camilla; Schmid, Daniela; Olsen, Katharina Ep; Wilcox, Mark H; Suetens, Carl; Kuijper, Ed J

2016-07-21

Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) remains poorly controlled in many European countries, of which several have not yet implemented national CDI surveillance. In 2013, experts from the European CDI Surveillance Network project and from the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control developed a protocol with three options of CDI surveillance for acute care hospitals: a 'minimal' option (aggregated hospital data), a 'light' option (including patient data for CDI cases) and an 'enhanced' option (including microbiological data on the first 10 CDI episodes per hospital). A total of 37 hospitals in 14 European countries tested these options for a three-month period (between 13 May and 1 November 2013). All 37 hospitals successfully completed the minimal surveillance option (for 1,152 patients). Clinical data were submitted for 94% (1,078/1,152) of the patients in the light option; information on CDI origin and outcome was complete for 94% (1,016/1,078) and 98% (294/300) of the patients in the light and enhanced options, respectively. The workload of the options was 1.1, 2.0 and 3.0 person-days per 10,000 hospital discharges, respectively. Enhanced surveillance was tested and was successful in 32 of the hospitals, showing that C. difficile PCR ribotype 027 was predominant (30% (79/267)). This study showed that standardised multicountry surveillance, with the option of integrating clinical and molecular data, is a feasible strategy for monitoring CDI in Europe. This article is copyright of The Authors, 2016.

Applying human factors to the design of control centre and workstation of a nuclear reactor

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Santos, Isaac J.A. Luquetti dos; Carvalho, Paulo V.R.; Goncalves, Gabriel de L., E-mail: luquetti@ien.gov.br [Instituto de Engenharia Nuclear (IEN/CNEN-RJ), Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil); Souza, Tamara D.M.F.; Falcao, Mariana A. [Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ), Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil). Dept. de Desenho Industrial

2013-07-01

Human factors is a body of scientific factors about human characteristics, covering biomedical, psychological and psychosocial considerations, including principles and applications in the personnel selection areas, training, job performance aid tools and human performance evaluation. Control Centre is a combination of control rooms, control suites and local control stations which are functionally related and all on the same site. Digital control room includes an arrangement of systems, equipment such as computers and communication terminals and workstations at which control and monitoring functions are conducted by operators. Inadequate integration between control room and operators reduces safety, increases the operation complexity, complicates operator training and increases the likelihood of human errors occurrence. The objective of this paper is to present a specific approach for the conceptual and basic design of the control centre and workstation of a nuclear reactor used to produce radioisotope. The approach is based on human factors standards, guidelines and the participation of a multidisciplinary team in the conceptual and basic phases of the design. Using the information gathered from standards and from the multidisciplinary team, an initial sketch 3D of the control centre and workstation are being developed. (author)

Applying human factors to the design of control centre and workstation of a nuclear reactor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Santos, Isaac J.A. Luquetti dos; Carvalho, Paulo V.R.; Goncalves, Gabriel de L.; Souza, Tamara D.M.F.; Falcao, Mariana A.

2013-01-01

Human factors is a body of scientific factors about human characteristics, covering biomedical, psychological and psychosocial considerations, including principles and applications in the personnel selection areas, training, job performance aid tools and human performance evaluation. Control Centre is a combination of control rooms, control suites and local control stations which are functionally related and all on the same site. Digital control room includes an arrangement of systems, equipment such as computers and communication terminals and workstations at which control and monitoring functions are conducted by operators. Inadequate integration between control room and operators reduces safety, increases the operation complexity, complicates operator training and increases the likelihood of human errors occurrence. The objective of this paper is to present a specific approach for the conceptual and basic design of the control centre and workstation of a nuclear reactor used to produce radioisotope. The approach is based on human factors standards, guidelines and the participation of a multidisciplinary team in the conceptual and basic phases of the design. Using the information gathered from standards and from the multidisciplinary team, an initial sketch 3D of the control centre and workstation are being developed. (author)

HUMAN BEINGS TRAFFICKING IN THE EUROPEAN COURT OF HUMAN RIGHTS CASE-LAW

OpenAIRE

Laura-Cristiana SPĂTARU-NEGURĂ

2017-01-01

After last year’s analysis regarding the European Union’s commitment to fight against the human beings trafficking, we have considered to further explore the human beings trafficking approach in the European Court of Human Rights case-law, the most developped regional jurisdiction on human rights. Surprisingly, the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms does not make an express reference to the human beings trafficking. However, we have to bear in mind...

Topology Control in Aerial Multi-Beam Directional Networks

Science.gov (United States)

2017-04-24

Topology Control in Aerial Multi-Beam Directional Networks Brian Proulx, Nathaniel M. Jones, Jennifer Madiedo, Greg Kuperman {brian.proulx, njones...significant interference. Topology control (i.e., selecting a subset of neighbors to communicate with) is vital to reduce the interference. Good topology ...underlying challenges to topology control in multi-beam direction networks. Two topology control algorithms are developed: a centralized algorithm

Using a Science Centre as a School Lab ? a Case Story

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sørensen, Helene

2004-01-01

responsibility for their own learning committed themselves to learn the scientific language. The study shows that in school science there has to be scaffolding around a project to insure that all students gain experience with science as a learning process in an environment with self-motivated, self......The study has the overall goal of finding suggestions for improving school visits to Science Centres and similar places. One such centre (Experimentarium) has established a partnership with a nearby school to investigate possibilities for cooperation. This case story tells about a project where...... tenth graders were trained to become museum ?explainers? as part of their science education. The objectives were to investigate if it was possible to obtain a quality out-of?school experience using the Experimentarium as a science lab. The intention of the study was to look at science learning...

Rapid molecular detection of rifampicin resistance facilitates early diagnosis and treatment of multi-drug resistant tuberculosis: case control study.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Philly O'Riordan

2008-09-01

Full Text Available Multi-drug resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB is a major public health concern since diagnosis is often delayed, increasing the risk of spread to the community and health care workers. Treatment is prolonged, and the total cost of treating a single case is high. Diagnosis has traditionally relied upon clinical suspicion, based on risk factors and culture with sensitivity testing, a process that can take weeks or months. Rapid diagnostic molecular techniques have the potential to shorten the time to commencing appropriate therapy, but have not been put to the test under field conditions.This retrospective case-control study aimed to identify risk factors for MDR-TB, and analyse the impact of testing for rifampicin resistance using RNA polymerase B (rpoB mutations as a surrogate for MDR-TB. Forty two MDR-TB cases and 84 fully sensitive TB controls were matched by date of diagnosis; and factors including demographics, clinical presentation, microbiology findings, management and outcome were analysed using their medical records. Conventionally recognised risk factors for MDR-TB were absent in almost half (43% of the cases, and 15% of cases were asymptomatic. A significant number of MDR-TB cases were identified in new entrants to the country. Using rpoB mutation testing, the time to diagnosis of MDR-TB was dramatically shortened by a median of 6 weeks, allowing patients to be commenced on appropriate therapy a median of 51days earlier than those diagnosed by conventional culture and sensitivity testing.MDR-TB is frequently an unexpected finding, may be asymptomatic, and is particularly prevalent among TB infected new entrants to the country. Molecular resistance testing of all acid fast bacilli positive specimens has the potential to rapidly identify MDR-TB patients and commence them on appropriate therapy significantly earlier than by conventional methods.

Case-control study on uveal melanoma (RIFA: rational and design

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Schmidt-Pokrzywniak Andrea

2004-08-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Although a rare disease, uveal melanoma is the most common primary intraocular malignancy in adults, with an incidence rate of up to 1.0 per 100,000 persons per year in Europe. Only a few consistent risk factors have been identified for this disease. We present the study design of an ongoing incident case-control study on uveal melanoma (acronym: RIFA study that focuses on radiofrequency radiation as transmitted by radio sets and wireless telephones, occupational risk factors, phenotypical characteristics, and UV radiation. Methods/Design We conduct a case-control study to identify the role of different exposures in the development of uveal melanoma. The cases of uveal melanoma were identified at the Division of Ophthalmology, University of Essen, a referral centre for tumours of the eye. We recruit three control groups: population controls, controls sampled from those ophthalmologists who referred cases to the Division of Ophthalmology, University of Duisburg-Essen, and sibling controls. For each case the controls are matched on sex and age (five year groups, except for sibling controls. The data are collected from the study participants by short self-administered questionnaire and by telephone interview. During and at the end of the field phase, the data are quality-checked. To estimate the effect of exposures on uveal melanoma risk, we will use conditional logistic regression that accounts for the matching factors and allows to control for potential confounding.

International benchmarking of specialty hospitals. A series of case studies on comprehensive cancer centres

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

Background Benchmarking is one of the methods used in business that is applied to hospitals to improve the management of their operations. International comparison between hospitals can explain performance differences. As there is a trend towards specialization of hospitals, this study examines the benchmarking process and the success factors of benchmarking in international specialized cancer centres. Methods Three independent international benchmarking studies on operations management in cancer centres were conducted. The first study included three comprehensive cancer centres (CCC), three chemotherapy day units (CDU) were involved in the second study and four radiotherapy departments were included in the final study. Per multiple case study a research protocol was used to structure the benchmarking process. After reviewing the multiple case studies, the resulting description was used to study the research objectives. Results We adapted and evaluated existing benchmarking processes through formalizing stakeholder involvement and verifying the comparability of the partners. We also devised a framework to structure the indicators to produce a coherent indicator set and better improvement suggestions. Evaluating the feasibility of benchmarking as a tool to improve hospital processes led to mixed results. Case study 1 resulted in general recommendations for the organizations involved. In case study 2, the combination of benchmarking and lean management led in one CDU to a 24% increase in bed utilization and a 12% increase in productivity. Three radiotherapy departments of case study 3, were considering implementing the recommendations. Additionally, success factors, such as a well-defined and small project scope, partner selection based on clear criteria, stakeholder involvement, simple and well-structured indicators, analysis of both the process and its results and, adapt the identified better working methods to the own setting, were found. Conclusions The improved

DALI: Defining Antibiotic Levels in Intensive care unit patients: a multi-centre point of prevalence study to determine whether contemporary antibiotic dosing for critically ill patients is therapeutic.

Science.gov (United States)

Roberts, Jason A; De Waele, Jan J; Dimopoulos, George; Koulenti, Despoina; Martin, Claude; Montravers, Philippe; Rello, Jordi; Rhodes, Andrew; Starr, Therese; Wallis, Steven C; Lipman, Jeffrey

2012-07-06

The clinical effects of varying pharmacokinetic exposures of antibiotics (antibacterials and antifungals) on outcome in infected critically ill patients are poorly described. A large-scale multi-centre study (DALI Study) is currently underway describing the clinical outcomes of patients achieving pre-defined antibiotic exposures. This report describes the protocol. DALI will recruit over 500 patients administered a wide range of either beta-lactam or glycopeptide antibiotics or triazole or echinocandin antifungals in a pharmacokinetic point-prevalence study. It is anticipated that over 60 European intensive care units (ICUs) will participate. The primary aim will be to determine whether contemporary antibiotic dosing for critically ill patients achieves plasma concentrations associated with maximal activity. Secondary aims will compare antibiotic pharmacokinetic exposures with patient outcome and will describe the population pharmacokinetics of the antibiotics included. Various subgroup analyses will be conducted to determine patient groups that may be at risk of very low or very high concentrations of antibiotics. The DALI study should inform clinicians of the potential clinical advantages of achieving certain antibiotic pharmacokinetic exposures in infected critically ill patients.

The Governance of Multi-Use Platforms at Sea for Energy Production and Aquaculture: Challenges for Policy Makers in European Seas

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marian Stuiver

2016-04-01

Full Text Available European seas are encountering an upsurge in competing marine activities and infrastructures. Traditional exploitation such as fisheries, tourism, transportation, and oil production are accompanied by new sustainable economic activities such as offshore windfarms, aquaculture, and tidal and wave energy. One proposed solution to overcome possible competing claims at sea lies in combining these economic activities as part of Multi-Use Platforms at Sea (MUPS. MUPS can be understood as areas at sea, designated for a combination of activities, either completely integrated in a platform or in shared marine space. MUPS can potentially benefit from each other in terms of infrastructure, maintenance, etc. Developing MUPS in the marine environment demands adequate governance. In this article, we investigate four European sites to find out how governance arrangements may facilitate or complicate MUPs. In particular, we apply a framework specifying policy, economic, social, technical, environmental, and legal (PESTEL factors to explore governance arrangements in four case study sites in different sea basins around Europe (the Mediterranean Sea, the Atlantic Ocean, the North Sea, and the Baltic Sea. The article concludes with policy recommendations on a governance regime for facilitating the development of MUPS in the future.

ERS/ECDC Statement: European Union standards for tuberculosis care, 2017 update.

Science.gov (United States)

Migliori, Giovanni Battista; Sotgiu, Giovanni; Rosales-Klintz, Senia; Centis, Rosella; D'Ambrosio, Lia; Abubakar, Ibrahim; Bothamley, Graham; Caminero, Jose Antonio; Cirillo, Daniela Maria; Dara, Masoud; de Vries, Gerard; Aliberti, Stefano; Dinh-Xuan, Anh Tuan; Duarte, Raquel; Midulla, Fabio; Solovic, Ivan; Subotic, Dragan R; Amicosante, Massimo; Correia, Ana Maria; Cirule, Andra; Gualano, Gina; Kunst, Heinke; Palmieri, Fabrizio; Riekstina, Vija; Tiberi, Simon; Verduin, Remi; van der Werf, Marieke J

2018-05-01

The International Standards for Tuberculosis Care define the essential level of care for managing patients who have or are presumed to have tuberculosis, or are at increased risk of developing the disease. The resources and capacity in the European Union (EU) and the European Economic Area permit higher standards of care to secure quality and timely TB diagnosis, prevention and treatment. On this basis, the European Union Standards for Tuberculosis Care (ESTC) were published in 2012 as standards specifically tailored to the EU setting. Since the publication of the ESTC, new scientific evidence has become available and, therefore, the standards were reviewed and updated.A panel of international experts, led by a writing group from the European Respiratory Society (ERS) and the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), updated the ESTC on the basis of new published evidence. The underlying principles of these patient-centred standards remain unchanged. The second edition of the ESTC includes 21 standards in the areas of diagnosis, treatment, HIV and comorbidities, and public health and prevention.The ESTC target clinicians and public health workers, provide an easy-to-use resource and act as a guide through all the required activities to ensure optimal diagnosis, treatment and prevention of TB. The content of this work is copyright of the authors or their employers. Design and branding are copyright ©ERS 2018.

Flexible Processes in Project-Centred Learning

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Ceri, Stefano; Matera, Maristella; Raffio, Alessandro; Spoelstra, Howard

2007-01-01

Ceri, S., Matera, M., Raffio, A. & Spoelstra, H. (2007). Flexible Processes in Project-Centred Learning. In E. Duval, R. Klamma, and M. Wolpers (Eds.), European Conference on Technology Enhanced Learning, Lecture Notes in Computer Science, Vol. 4753, pp. 463-468. Berlin Heidelberg: Springer-Verlag

Theoretical and algorithmic advances in multi-parametric programming and control

KAUST Repository

Pistikopoulos, Efstratios N.; Dominguez, Luis; Panos, Christos; Kouramas, Konstantinos; Chinchuluun, Altannar

2012-01-01

This paper presents an overview of recent theoretical and algorithmic advances, and applications in the areas of multi-parametric programming and explicit/multi-parametric model predictive control (mp-MPC). In multi-parametric programming, advances include areas such as nonlinear multi-parametric programming (mp-NLP), bi-level programming, dynamic programming and global optimization for multi-parametric mixed-integer linear programming problems (mp-MILPs). In multi-parametric/explicit MPC (mp-MPC), advances include areas such as robust multi-parametric control, multi-parametric nonlinear MPC (mp-NMPC) and model reduction in mp-MPC. A comprehensive framework for multi-parametric programming and control is also presented. Recent applications include a hydrogen storage device, a fuel cell power generation system, an unmanned autonomous vehicle (UAV) and a hybrid pressure swing adsorption (PSA) system. © 2012 Springer-Verlag.

Theoretical and algorithmic advances in multi-parametric programming and control

KAUST Repository

Pistikopoulos, Efstratios N.

2012-04-21

This paper presents an overview of recent theoretical and algorithmic advances, and applications in the areas of multi-parametric programming and explicit/multi-parametric model predictive control (mp-MPC). In multi-parametric programming, advances include areas such as nonlinear multi-parametric programming (mp-NLP), bi-level programming, dynamic programming and global optimization for multi-parametric mixed-integer linear programming problems (mp-MILPs). In multi-parametric/explicit MPC (mp-MPC), advances include areas such as robust multi-parametric control, multi-parametric nonlinear MPC (mp-NMPC) and model reduction in mp-MPC. A comprehensive framework for multi-parametric programming and control is also presented. Recent applications include a hydrogen storage device, a fuel cell power generation system, an unmanned autonomous vehicle (UAV) and a hybrid pressure swing adsorption (PSA) system. © 2012 Springer-Verlag.

Study Protocol. IDUS -- Instrumental delivery & ultrasound. A multi-centre randomised controlled trial of ultrasound assessment of the fetal head position versus standard care as an approach to prevent morbidity at instrumental delivery

LENUS (Irish Health Repository)

Murphy, Deirdre J

2012-09-13

AbstractBackgroundInstrumental deliveries are commonly performed in the United Kingdom and Ireland, with rates of 12 – 17% in most centres. Knowing the exact position of the fetal head is a pre-requisite for safe instrumental delivery. Traditionally, diagnosis of the fetal head position is made on transvaginal digital examination by delineating the suture lines of the fetal skull and the fontanelles. However, the accuracy of transvaginal digital examination can be unreliable and varies between 20% and 75%. Failure to identify the correct fetal head position increases the likelihood of failed instrumental delivery with the additional morbidity of sequential use of instruments or second stage caesarean section. The use of ultrasound in determining the position of the fetal head has been explored but is not part of routine clinical practice.Methods\\/DesignA multi-centre randomised controlled trial is proposed. The study will take place in two large maternity units in Ireland with a combined annual birth rate of 13,500 deliveries. It will involve 450 nulliparous women undergoing instrumental delivery after 37 weeks gestation. The main outcome measure will be incorrect diagnosis of the fetal head position. A study involving 450 women will have 80% power to detect a 10% difference in the incidence of inaccurate diagnosis of the fetal head position with two-sided 5% alpha.DiscussionIt is both important and timely to evaluate the use of ultrasound to diagnose the fetal head position prior to instrumental delivery before routine use can be advocated. The overall aim is to reduce the incidence of incorrect diagnosis of the fetal head position prior to instrumental delivery and improve the safety of instrumental deliveries.Trial registrationCurrent Controlled Trials ISRCTN72230496

Separate and combined associations of obesity and metabolic health with coronary heart disease: a pan-European case-cohort analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Lassale, Camille; Tzoulaki, Ioanna; Moons, Karel G M; Sweeting, Michael; Boer, Jolanda; Johnson, Laura; Huerta, José María; Agnoli, Claudia; Freisling, Heinz; Weiderpass, Elisabete; Wennberg, Patrik; van der A, Daphne L; Arriola, Larraitz; Benetou, Vassiliki; Boeing, Heiner; Bonnet, Fabrice; Colorado-Yohar, Sandra M; Engström, Gunnar; Eriksen, Anne K; Ferrari, Pietro; Grioni, Sara; Johansson, Matthias; Kaaks, Rudolf; Katsoulis, Michail; Katzke, Verena; Key, Timothy J; Matullo, Giuseppe; Melander, Olle; Molina-Portillo, Elena; Moreno-Iribas, Concepción; Norberg, Margareta; Overvad, Kim; Panico, Salvatore; Quirós, J Ramón; Saieva, Calogero; Skeie, Guri; Steffen, Annika; Stepien, Magdalena; Tjønneland, Anne; Trichopoulou, Antonia; Tumino, Rosario; van der Schouw, Yvonne T; Verschuren, W M Monique; Langenberg, Claudia; Di Angelantonio, Emanuele; Riboli, Elio; Wareham, Nicholas J; Danesh, John; Butterworth, Adam S

2018-02-01

The hypothesis of 'metabolically healthy obesity' implies that, in the absence of metabolic dysfunction, individuals with excess adiposity are not at greater cardiovascular risk. We tested this hypothesis in a large pan-European prospective study. We conducted a case-cohort analysis in the 520 000-person European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition study ('EPIC-CVD'). During a median follow-up of 12.2 years, we recorded 7637 incident coronary heart disease (CHD) cases. Using cut-offs recommended by guidelines, we defined obesity and overweight using body mass index (BMI), and metabolic dysfunction ('unhealthy') as ≥ 3 of elevated blood pressure, hypertriglyceridaemia, low HDL-cholesterol, hyperglycaemia, and elevated waist circumference. We calculated hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CI) within each country using Prentice-weighted Cox proportional hazard regressions, accounting for age, sex, centre, education, smoking, diet, and physical activity. Compared with metabolically healthy normal weight people (reference), HRs were 2.15 (95% CI: 1.79; 2.57) for unhealthy normal weight, 2.33 (1.97; 2.76) for unhealthy overweight, and 2.54 (2.21; 2.92) for unhealthy obese people. Compared with the reference group, HRs were 1.26 (1.14; 1.40) and 1.28 (1.03; 1.58) for metabolically healthy overweight and obese people, respectively. These results were robust to various sensitivity analyses. Irrespective of BMI, metabolically unhealthy individuals had higher CHD risk than their healthy counterparts. Conversely, irrespective of metabolic health, overweight and obese people had higher CHD risk than lean people. These findings challenge the concept of 'metabolically healthy obesity', encouraging population-wide strategies to tackle obesity. Published on behalf of the European Society of Cardiology. All rights reserved. © The Author 2017. For permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

8. European sewage and refuse symposium. Documentation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1990-01-01

The subject of the 8. European Sewage and Refuse Symposium is covered under the following headings: collection and control in sewers, industrial waste water management, pretreatment, combined treatment, special cases, industrial waste water sludges disposal and the European waste business. (orig./BBR)

Association between tobacco control policies and smoking behaviour among adolescents in 29 European countries.

Science.gov (United States)

Hublet, Anne; Schmid, Holger; Clays, Els; Godeau, Emmanuelle; Gabhainn, Saoirse Nic; Joossens, Luk; Maes, Lea

2009-11-01

To investigate the associations between well-known, cost-effective tobacco control policies at country level and smoking prevalence among 15-year-old adolescents. Multi-level modelling based on the 2005-06 Health Behaviour in School-aged Children Study, a cross-national study at individual level, and with country-level variables from the Tobacco Control Scale and published country-level databases. Twenty-nine European countries. A total of 25 599 boys and 26 509 girls. Self-reported regular smoking defined as at least weekly smoking, including daily smoking (dichotomous). Interaction effects between gender and smoking policies were identified, therefore boys and girls were analysed separately. Large cross-national differences in smoking prevalence were documented. Intraclass correlations (ICC) of 0.038 (boys) and 0.035 (girls) were found. In the final multi-level model for boys, besides the significance of the individual variables such as family affluence, country-level affluence and the legality of vending machines were related significantly to regular smoking [b(country affluence) = -0.010; b(partial restriction vending machines) = -0.366, P vending machines had a borderline significance in the final model [b(total ban vending machines) = -0.372, P = 0.06]. For boys, some of the currently recommended tobacco control policies may help to reduce smoking prevalence. However, the model is less suitable for girls, indicating gender differences in the potential efficacy of smoking policies. Future research should address this issue.

Controlling the EU Executive? The Politics of Delegation in the European Union

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Brandsma, Gijs Jan; Blom-Hansen, Jens

Every year the EU Commission issues thousands of rules based on powers delegated by the Council of Ministers and the European Parliament. But delegation is carefully controlled. Traditionally, control has been exerted through a system of committees of member state representatives (‘comitology......’). However, this system was contested by the European Parliament which was left without any influence. The Lisbon Treaty introduced a new control regime for delegated powers, the so-called delegated acts system, which was meant to supplement the existing system. The new system involves direct control...... by the Council of Ministers and the European Parliament and thus for the first time gave the European Parliament real influence over delegated powers. However, the choice over which delegation regime to use in practice has turned into one of the most vehement institutional conflicts in the EU political system...

Delay-based virtual congestion control in multi-tenant datacenters

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Yuxin; Zhu, Danhong; Zhang, Dong

2018-03-01

With the evolution of cloud computing and virtualization, the congestion control of virtual datacenters has become the basic issue for multi-tenant datacenters transmission. Regarding to the friendly conflict of heterogeneous congestion control among multi-tenant, this paper proposes a delay-based virtual congestion control, which translates the multi-tenant heterogeneous congestion control into delay-based feedback uniformly by setting the hypervisor translation layer, modifying three-way handshake of explicit feedback and packet loss feedback and throttling receive window. The simulation results show that the delay-based virtual congestion control can effectively solve the unfairness of heterogeneous feedback congestion control algorithms.

Defining and describing birth centres in the Netherlands - a component study of the Dutch Birth Centre Study.

Science.gov (United States)

Hermus, M A A; Boesveld, I C; Hitzert, M; Franx, A; de Graaf, J P; Steegers, E A P; Wiegers, T A; van der Pal-de Bruin, K M

2017-07-03

During the last decade, a rapid increase of birth locations for low-risk births, other than conventional obstetric units, has been seen in the Netherlands. Internationally some of such locations are called birth centres. The varying international definitions for birth centres are not directly applicable for use within the Dutch obstetric system. A standard definition for a birth centre in the Netherlands is lacking. This study aimed to develop a definition of birth centres for use in the Netherlands, to identify these centres and to describe their characteristics. International definitions of birth centres were analysed to find common descriptions. In July 2013 the Dutch Birth Centre Questionnaire was sent to 46 selected Dutch birth locations that might qualify as birth centre. Questions included: location, reason for establishment, women served, philosophies, facilities that support physiological birth, hotel-facilities, management, environment and transfer procedures in case of referral. Birth centres were visited to confirm the findings from the Dutch Birth Centre Questionnaire and to measure distance and time in case of referral to obstetric care. From all 46 birth locations the questionnaires were received. Based on this information a Dutch definition of a birth centre was constructed. This definition reads: "Birth centres are midwifery-managed locations that offer care to low risk women during labour and birth. They have a homelike environment and provide facilities to support physiological birth. Community midwives take primary professional responsibility for care. In case of referral the obstetric caregiver takes over the professional responsibility of care." Of the 46 selected birth locations 23 fulfilled this definition. Three types of birth centres were distinguished based on their location in relation to the nearest obstetric unit: freestanding (n = 3), alongside (n = 14) and on-site (n = 6). Transfer in case of referral was necessary for all

Centre for urban ecotechnology in ''Oeksnehallen''. [Copenhagen, Denmark

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

1992-03-01

The Lord Mayor's Department of the municipality of Copenhagen, Denmark, has with support from this project made a proposal for the establishment of the Centre for Urban Ecotechnology in ''Oeksnehallen'', located in the Vesterbro area of the city. The centre should contribute to the dissemination of knowledge on ecological techniques (regarding passive solar energy etc.) to the inhabitants of Vesterbro and other citizens of Copenhagen, and also serve as a centre in an European context. The ecological demonstration centre will cover an area of two thousand square meters and will also include a cafe, a room for showing coloured slides, facilities for exhibitions created by the center and interested firms etc. The centre should play an important role as part of the ecological concept of urban renewal in Vesterbro. (author).

Sytemic lupus erythematosus presenting with protein losing enteropathy in a resource limited centre: a case report

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ratnayake Eranda C

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Abstract Introduction Systemic lupus erythematosus is a disease which may initially present with varying symptoms, most commonly a photosensitive rash and arthritis. Protein losing enteropathy is a recognized but rare presenting manifestation. Diagnosing protein losing enteropathy in resource limited centres is challenging but possible through the exclusion of other possible causes of hypoalbunaemia. Case Presentation We report a case of protein losing gastroenteropathy secondary to intestinal lymphangiectasia as the initial manifestation of systemic lupus erythematosus in a 57 year old Sri Lankan (South Asian male patient. The diagnosis was made by the exclusion of other causes of hypoalbuminaemia as the gold standard investigations for protein losing enteropathy were not available at this centre. Conclusions Protein losing enteropathy is a diagnosis of exclusion in resource limited centres in the world. Systemic lupus erythematosus should be considered in the differential diagnosis of protein losing enteropathy. Intestinal lymphangiectasia should also be recognized as a possible pathophysiological mechanism.

The Libyan civil conflict: selected case series of orthopaedic trauma managed in Malta in 2014.

Science.gov (United States)

Ng, Colin; Mifsud, Max; Borg, Joseph N; Mizzi, Colin

2015-11-20

The purpose of this series of cases was to analyse our management of orthopaedic trauma casualties in the Libyan civil war crisis in the European summer of 2014. We looked at both damage control orthopaedics and for case variety of war trauma at a civilian hospital. Due to our geographical proximity to Libya, Malta was the closest European tertiary referral centre. Having only one Level 1 trauma care hospital in our country, our Trauma and Orthopaedics department played a pivotal role in the management of Libyan battlefield injuries. Our aims were to assess acute outcomes and short term mortality of surgery within the perspective of a damage control orthopaedic strategy whereby aggressive wound management, early fixation using relative stability principles, antibiotic cover with adequate soft tissue cover are paramount. We also aim to describe the variety of war injuries we came across, with a goal for future improvement in regards to service providing. Prospective collection of six interesting cases with severe limb and spinal injuries sustained in Libya during the Libyan civil war between June and November 2014. We applied current trends in the treatment of war injuries, specifically in damage control orthopaedic strategy and converting to definitive treatment where permissible. The majority of our cases were classified as most severe (Type IIIB/C) according to the Gustilo-Anderson classification of open fractures. The injuries treated reflected the type of standard and improved weaponry available in modern warfare affecting both militants and civilians alike with increasing severity and extent of damage. Due to this fact, multidisciplinary team approach to patient centred care was utilised with an ultimate aim of swift recovery and early mobilisation. It also highlighted the difficulties and complex issues required on a hospital management level as a neighbouring country to war zone countries in transforming care of civil trauma to military trauma.

The Role of the Two Sides of Industry in Initial and Continuing Training. Documentation of the Conference Organized by the European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training (CEDEFOP) in Collaboration with the Commission of the European Communities and the Economic and Social Committee of the EC (Brussels, Belgium, November 8-9, 1988).

Science.gov (United States)

European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training, Berlin (West Germany).

This document reports the proceedings of a conference held in Brussels to take stock (on the basis of the studies conducted by the European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training and the analyses carried out in this field in all the European Community member states) of the work undertaken in the last few years and to present…

Risk Factors for Anemia in Pregnancy: A Case Control Study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rutuja Pundkar

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Background: Aim of the study was to find the risk factors leading to Anemia in pregnancy. The main objective was to study the various sociodemographic factors leading to anemia. And to assess the knowledge about anemia among study participants. Material and methods: The present Case control study was carried out at Primary Health Centre, to determine the risk factors leading to anemia in pregnancy. A total of 308 pregnant females were registered. Among them two groups were made, group I cases and group II controls. Each group had 50 cases each. Laboratory test were done and females having hemoglobin less than 11mg/dl were considered anemic. Anemic females were considered cases and females having Hb >11mg/dl were considered controls. Data analysis was done using SPSS software. Results: The overall mean haemoglobin (Hb was 11.55g/dL in controls, whereas it was seen that among the cases it was 9.58g/dL.It would seem that diet, family size, education, social class, gravida and parity are associated with anemia in pregnancy. Conclusion: After adjusting for all the possible covariates there seems to be significant association between Hb levels and age group, education level, family size, diet, gravida and parity.

Assessment of heterogeneity between European Populations: a Baltic and Danish replication case-control study of SNPs from a recent European ulcerative colitis genome wide association study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jonaitis Laimas

2011-10-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Differences in the genetic architecture of inflammatory bowel disease between different European countries and ethnicities have previously been reported. In the present study, we wanted to assess the role of 11 newly identified UC risk variants, derived from a recent European UC genome wide association study (GWAS (Franke et al., 2010, for 1 association with UC in the Nordic countries, 2 for population heterogeneity between the Nordic countries and the rest of Europe, and, 3 eventually, to drive some of the previous findings towards overall genome-wide significance. Methods Eleven SNPs were replicated in a Danish sample consisting of 560 UC patients and 796 controls and nine missing SNPs of the German GWAS study were successfully genotyped in the Baltic sample comprising 441 UC cases and 1156 controls. The independent replication data was then jointly analysed with the original data and systematic comparisons of the findings between ethnicities were made. Pearson's χ2, Breslow-Day (BD and Cochran-Mantel-Haenszel (CMH tests were used for association analyses and heterogeneity testing. Results The rs5771069 (IL17REL SNP was not associated with UC in the Danish panel. The rs5771069 (IL17REL SNP was significantly associated with UC in the combined Baltic, Danish and Norwegian UC study sample driven by the Norwegian panel (OR = 0.89, 95% CI: 0.79-0.98, P = 0.02. No association was found between rs7809799 (SMURF1/KPNA7 and UC (OR = 1.20, 95% CI: 0.95-1.52, P = 0.10 or between UC and all other remaining SNPs. We had 94% chance of detecting an association for rs7809799 (SMURF1/KPNA7 in the combined replication sample, whereas the power were 55% or lower for the remaining SNPs. Statistically significant PBD was found for OR heterogeneity between the combined Baltic, Danish, and Norwegian panel versus the combined German, British, Belgian, and Greek panel (rs7520292 (P = 0.001, rs12518307 (P = 0.007, and rs2395609 (TCP11 (P = 0

Multi-Objective Nonlinear Model Predictive Control: Lexicographic Method

OpenAIRE

Zheng, Tao; Wu, Gang; Liu, Guang-Hong; Ling, Qing

2010-01-01

In this chapter, to avoid the disadvantages of weight coefficients in multi-objective dynamic optimization, lexicographic (completely stratified) and partially stratified frameworks of multi-objective controller are proposed. The lexicographic framework is absolutely prioritydriven and the partially stratified framework is a modification of it, they both can solve the multi-objective control problem with the concept of priority for objective’s relative importance, while the latter one is mo...

Organization of Multi-controller Interaction in Software Defined Networks

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sergey V. Morzhov

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Software Defined Networking (SDN is a promising paradigm for network management. It is a centralized network intelligence on a dedicated server, which runs network operating system, and is called SDN controller. It was assumed that such an architecture should have an improved network performance and monitoring. However, the centralized control architecture of the SDNs brings novel challenges to reliability, scalability, fault tolerance and interoperability. These problems are especially acute for large data center networks and can be solved by combining SDN controllers into clusters, called multi-controllers. Multi-controller architecture became very important for SDN-enabled networks nowadays. This paper gives a comprehensive overview of SDN multi-controller architectures. The authors review several most popular distributed controllers in order to indicate their strengths and weaknesses. They also investigate and classify approaches used. This paper explains in details the difference among various types of multi-controller architectures, the distribution method and the communication system. Furthermore, it provides already implemented architectures and some examples of architectures under consideration by describing their design, communication process, and performance results. In this paper, the authors show their own classification of multi-controllers and claim that, despite the existence of undeniable advantages, all reviewed controllers have serious drawbacks, which must be eliminated. These drawbacks hamper the development of multi-controllers and their widespread adoption in corporate networks. In the end, the authors conclude that now it is impossible to find a solution capable to solve all the tasks assigned to it adequately and fully. The article is published in the authors’ wording.

Integrated control centre concepts for CANDU power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lupton, L.R.; Davey, E.C.; Lapointe, P.A.; Shah, R.R.

1990-01-01

The size and complexity of nuclear power plants has increased significantly in the last 20 years. There is general agreement that plant safety and power production can be enhanced if more operational support systems that are significantly different from the ones based on the more conventional technologies used in plant control rooms. In particular, artificial intelligence and related technologies will play a major role in the development of innovative methods for information processing and presentation. These technologies must be integrated into the overall management and control philosophy of the plant and not be treated as vehicles to implement point solutions. The underlying philosophy behind our approach is discussed in this paper. Operator support systems will integrate into the overall control philosophy by complementing the operator. Four support systems are described; each is a prototype of a system being considered for the CANDU 3 control centre

Integrated control centre concepts for CANDU power plants

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lupton, L. R.; Davey, E. C.; Lapointe, P. A.; Shah, R. R.

1990-01-15

The size and complexity of nuclear power plants has increased significantly in the last 20 years. There is general agreement that plant safety and power production can be enhanced if more operational support systems that are significantly different from the ones based on the more conventional technologies used in plant control rooms. In particular, artificial intelligence and related technologies will play a major role in the development of innovative methods for information processing and presentation. These technologies must be integrated into the overall management and control philosophy of the plant and not be treated as vehicles to implement point solutions. The underlying philosophy behind our approach is discussed in this paper. Operator support systems will integrate into the overall control philosophy by complementing the operator. Four support systems are described; each is a prototype of a system being considered for the CANDU 3 control centre.

Effectiveness of structured patient-clinician communication with a solution focused approach (DIALOG+) in community treatment of patients with psychosis ? a cluster randomised controlled trial

OpenAIRE

Priebe, Stefan; Kelley, Lauren; Golden, Eoin; McCrone, Paul; Kingdon, David; Rutterford, Clare; McCabe, Rosemarie

2013-01-01

Background Large numbers of patients with psychosis have regular meetings with key clinicians in the community. There is little evidence on how these meetings should be conducted to be therapeutically effective. DIALOG, a computer mediated procedure, was shown to improve outcomes in a European multi-centre trial. DIALOG structures the patient-clinician communication and makes it patient-centred, but does not guide clinicians as to how to respond to patients? concerns. DIALOG has been further ...

A nested case-control study of predictors for tuberculosis recurrence in a large UK Centre.

Science.gov (United States)

Rosser, Andrew; Richardson, Matthew; Wiselka, Martin J; Free, Robert C; Woltmann, Gerrit; Mukamolova, Galina V; Pareek, Manish

2018-02-27

Tuberculosis (TB) recurrence represents a challenge to control programs. In low incidence countries, the prevailing risk factors leading to recurrence are poorly characterised. We conducted a nested case-control study using the Leicester TB service TBIT database. Cases were identified from database notifications between 1994 and 2014. Controls had one episode and were matched to cases on a ratio of two to one by the date of notification. Multiple imputation was used to account for missing data. Multivariate conditional logistic regression analysis was employed to identify clinical, sociodemographic and TB specific risk factors for recurrence. From a cohort of 4628 patients, 82 TB recurrences occurred (1.8%). Nineteen of 82 patients had paired isolates with MIRU-VNTR strain type profiles available, of which 84% were relapses and 16% reinfections. On multivariate analysis, smoking (OR 3.8; p = 0.04), grade 3/4 adverse drug reactions (OR 5.6; p = 0.02), ethnicity 'Indian subcontinent' (OR 8.5; p = <0.01), ethnicity 'other' (OR 31.2; p = 0.01) and receipt of immunosuppressants (OR 6.8; p = <0.01) were independent predictors of TB recurrence. Within this UK setting, the rate of TB recurrence was low, predominantly due to relapse. The identification of an elevated recurrence risk amongst the ethnic group contributing most cases to the national TB burden presents an opportunity to improve individual and population health.

Robust multi-model predictive control of multi-zone thermal plate system

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Poom Jatunitanon

2018-02-01

Full Text Available A modern controller was designed by using the mathematical model of a multi–zone thermal plate system. An important requirement for this type of controller is that it must be able to keep the temperature set-point of each thermal zone. The mathematical model used in the design was determined through a system identification process. The results showed that when the operating condition is changed, the performance of the controller may be reduced as a result of the system parameter uncertainties. This paper proposes a weighting technique of combining the robust model predictive controller for each operating condition into a single robust multi-model predictive control. Simulation and experimental results showed that the proposed method performed better than the conventional multi-model predictive control in rise time of transient response, when used in a system designed to work over a wide range of operating conditions.

The Treaty of Lisbon and the European Border Control Regime

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marianne Takle

2012-08-01

Full Text Available The question raised in the article is how the new provisions of the Lisbon Treaty and the Stockholm programme concerning the EU’s asylum and migration policy might consolidate existing trends within the European border control regime. The regime is defined by a combination of three features: (i a harmonisation of categories among the EU/Schengen member states, (ii a growing use of new technology in networked databases and (iii an increasing sorting of individuals based on security concerns. Although none of these features is new, the combination gives a new impetus to the European border control regime. The article concludes that the Lisbon Treaty and the Stockholm programme consolidate and strengthen existing trends. This implies that policies on border control, asylum, immigration, judicial cooperation and police cooperation are consolidated in a broader approach to border control, and that there is a strengthening of EU foreign policy within the European border control regime. The boundaries between previously dispersed policy areas are blurred. The combination of different aspects of security and various levels of authority requires coordination of policies with substantially different goals, and goes beyond mere border control.

Future systems for regional defence: The case in an enlarged European Union. Report on working group 3

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1998-01-01

Report deals with the future systems for regional defense in case of an enlarged European Union. In the frame of security issues the future of nuclear arms control and disarmament if of concern. The implications of NATO expansion to the east and desirability of establishing a nuclear-weapon-free-zone from the Baltic to the Black Sea are discussed at length

Control method for multi-input multi-output non-Gaussian random vibration test with cross spectra consideration

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ronghui ZHENG

2017-12-01

Full Text Available A control method for Multi-Input Multi-Output (MIMO non-Gaussian random vibration test with cross spectra consideration is proposed in the paper. The aim of the proposed control method is to replicate the specified references composed of auto spectral densities, cross spectral densities and kurtoses on the test article in the laboratory. It is found that the cross spectral densities will bring intractable coupling problems and induce difficulty for the control of the multi-output kurtoses. Hence, a sequential phase modification method is put forward to solve the coupling problems in multi-input multi-output non-Gaussian random vibration test. To achieve the specified responses, an improved zero memory nonlinear transformation is utilized first to modify the Fourier phases of the signals with sequential phase modification method to obtain one frame reference response signals which satisfy the reference spectra and reference kurtoses. Then, an inverse system method is used in frequency domain to obtain the continuous stationary drive signals. At the same time, the matrix power control algorithm is utilized to control the spectra and kurtoses of the response signals further. At the end of the paper, a simulation example with a cantilever beam and a vibration shaker test are implemented and the results support the proposed method very well. Keywords: Cross spectra, Kurtosis control, Multi-input multi-output, Non-Gaussian, Random vibration test

Measurement strategies for the Dutch Nuclear Emergency Response System of the National Poisons Control Centre

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Van Oostrum, I.E.A.; Joore, J.C.A.; Meulenbelt, J.; Savelkoul, T.J.F.

1997-04-01

The measurement strategy applicable to Public Health in case of a Nuclear Emergency affecting the Netherlands is presented. Within the framework of the Dutch Nuclear Emergency Response System (NPK, abbreviated in Dutch) the National Poisons Control Centre of the RIVM/AZU has an advisory obligation towards the Ministry of Public Health, Welfare and Sports (WVS). This role comprises advice to relevant ministries, coordination of the measurement strategies and advice on persons to be reviewed, i.e. physical, biological and clinical dosimetry. The choice of dosimetric methods and measurements to be achieved in case of a larger scale nuclear emergency in the Netherlands is discussed. An actual plan of handling is presented for this measurement plan. Intervention levels defined in NPK 1991 serve as guidelines for successive actions to be performed by regional health services. 8 figs., 6 tabs., 81 refs

Multi-agent control system with information fusion based comfort model for smart buildings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang, Zhu; Wang, Lingfeng; Dounis, Anastasios I.; Yang, Rui

2012-01-01

Highlights: ► Proposed a model to manage indoor energy and comfort for smart buildings. ► Developed a control system to maximize comfort with minimum energy consumption. ► Information fusion with ordered weighted averaging aggregation is used. ► Multi-agent technology and heuristic intelligent optimization are deployed in developing the control system. -- Abstract: From the perspective of system control, a smart and green building is a large-scale dynamic system with high complexity and a huge amount of information. Proper combination of the available information and effective control of the overall building system turns out to be a big challenge. In this study, we proposed a building indoor energy and comfort management model based on information fusion using ordered weighted averaging (OWA) aggregation. A multi-agent control system with heuristic intelligent optimization is developed to achieve a high level of comfort with the minimum power consumption. Case studies and simulation results are presented and discussed in this paper.

European healthcare policies for controlling drug expenditure.

Science.gov (United States)

Ess, Silvia M; Schneeweiss, Sebastian; Szucs, Thomas D

2003-01-01

In the last 20 years, expenditures on pharmaceuticals - as well as total health expenditures - have grown faster than the gross national product in all European countries. The aim of this paper was to review policies that European governments apply to reduce or at least slow down public expenditure on pharmaceutical products. Such policies can target the industry, the wholesalers and retailers, prescribers, and patients. The objectives of pharmaceutical policies are multidimensional and must take into account issues relating to public health, public expenditure and industrial incentives. Both price levels and consumption patterns determine the level of total drug expenditure in a particular country, and both factors vary greatly across countries. Licensing and pricing policies intend to influence the supply side. Three types of pricing policies can be recognised: product price control, reference pricing and profit control. Profit control is mainly used in the UK. Reference pricing systems were first used in Germany and The Netherlands and are being considered in other countries. Product price control is still the most common method for establishing the price of drugs. For the aim of fiscal consolidation, price-freeze and price-cut measures have been frequently used in the 1980s and 1990s. They have affected all types of schemes. For drug wholesalers and retailers, most governments have defined profit margins. The differences in price levels as well as the introduction of a Single European Pharmaceutical Market has led to the phenomenon of parallel imports among member countries of the European Union. This may be facilitated by larger and more powerful wholesalers and the vertical integration between wholesalers and retailers. To control costs, the use of generic drugs is encouraged in most countries, but only few countries allow pharmacists to substitute generic drugs for proprietary brands. Various interventions are used to reduce the patients' demand for drugs by

A double-edged sword!: The Dutch centre-right and the 'foreigners issue'

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van Kersbergen, C.J.; Krouwel, A.P.M.

2008-01-01

We study the impact of the 'foreigners issue' on centre-right politics in the Netherlands. This issue concerns a complex of problems related to migration, asylum-seekers, nationalism, multiculturalism and European integration. The Dutch centre-right has moved towards hard-line and restrictive

Control of multi-machine using adaptive fuzzy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bouchiba Bousmaha

2011-01-01

Full Text Available An indirect Adaptive fuzzy excitation control (IAFLC of power systems based on multi-input-multi-output linearization technique is developed in this paper. The power system considered in this paper consists of two generators and infinite bus connected through a network of transformers and transmission lines. The fuzzy controller is constructed from fuzzy feedback linearization controller whose parameters are adjusted indirectly from the estimates of plant parameters. The adaptation law adjusts the controller parameters on-line so that the plant output tracks the reference model output. Simulation results shown that the proposed controller IAFLC, compared with a controller based on tradition linearization technique can enhance the transient stability of the power system.

The European standard series in 9 European countries, 2002/2003 -- first results of the European Surveillance System on Contact Allergies

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Uter, W; Hegewald, J; Aberer, W

2005-01-01

Since January 2001, the European Surveillance System on Contact Allergies (ESSCA), supported by European Union funding (contract QLK4-CT-2001-00343), has started to collect patch-test data. This comprises a standardized clinical history and the patch-test results using the European standard series...... observed. The prevalence of contact allergy to Myroxylon pereirae resin (balsam of Peru) (5.8%) is coming close to the frequency found with the fragrance mix (6.4%). Regarding contact allergy to chromium compounds, different frequencies were noted in the 2 centres focused on occupational dermatitis (2......-marketing surveillance in the field of contact allergy, ESSCA will meet its objective of increased consumer safety across Europe....

Manche storage Centre. Information report on nuclear safety and radiation protection 2014. Annual report 2014

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2015-06-01

After a presentation of the Manche Storage Centre (CSM), the first French centre of surface storage of weakly and moderately radioactive wastes, of its history, its buildings and activities, of the multi-layer cover, of the water management system (installation, controls, sampling), this report then describes the measures related to nuclear safety (principles and objectives), the management of conventional and nuclear wastes produced by the Centre and its other environmental impacts. The follow up of the installations and of their effluents and releases are then addressed: origin, locations and results of radiological controls of rainfalls, of risky effluents, of underground waters, of rivers, impacts of the Centre on its environment (releases in the sea, in rivers, in sediments). The measures related to radiation protection are described: principles, staff dosimetry, and personnel safety. The next part presents the nuclear event scale (INES) and indicates that no incident occurred in 2014. Finally the actions related to public information and transparency are summarized. Recommendations of the CHSCT are reported at the end

The effect of TCM acupuncture on hot flushes among menopausal women (ACUFLASH study: A study protocol of an ongoing multi-centre randomised controlled clinical trial

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Borud Einar K

2007-02-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background After menopause, 10–20% of all women have nearly intolerable hot flushes. Long term use of hormone replacement therapy involves a health risk, and many women seek alternative strategies to relieve climacteric complaints. Acupuncture is one of the most frequently used complementary therapies in Norway. We designed a study to evaluate whether Traditional Chinese Medicine acupuncture-care together with self-care is more effective than self-care alone to relieve climacteric complaints. Methods/Design The study is a multi-centre pragmatic randomised controlled trial with two parallel arms. Participants are postmenopausal women who document ≥7 flushes/24 hours and who are not using hormone replacement therapy or other medication that may influence flushes. According to power calculations 200 women are needed to detect a 50% reduction in flushes, and altogether 286 women will be recruited to allow for a 30% dropout rate. The treatment group receives 10 sessions of Traditional Chinese Medicine acupuncture-care and self-care; the control group will engage in self-care only. A team of experienced Traditional Chinese Medicine acupuncturists give acupuncture treatments. Discussion The study tests acupuncture as a complete treatment package including the therapeutic relationship and expectation. The intervention period lasts for 12 weeks, with follow up at 6 and 12 months. Primary endpoint is change in daily hot flush frequency in the two groups from baseline to 12 weeks; secondary endpoint is health related quality of life, assessed by the Women's Health Questionnaire. We also collect data on Traditional Chinese Medicine diagnoses, and we examine treatment experiences using a qualitative approach. Finally we measure biological variables, to examine potential mechanisms for the effect of acupuncture. The study is funded by The Research Council of Norway.

Predictors of weight loss and maintenance during 2 years of treatment by sibutramine in obesity. Results from the European multi-centre STORM trial. Sibutramine Trial of Obesity Reduction and Maintenance

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hansen, D; Astrup, A; Toubro, S

2001-01-01

In this report we assess pre-treatment determinants of weight loss and maintenance outcome in The Sibutramine Trial of Obesity Reduction and Maintenance (STORM), a 2 y randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, European multicenter study examining the effect of sibutramine (Sib) on inducing...

Tobacco control policy development in the European Union: do political factors matter?

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Bosdriesz, Jizzo R.; Willemsen, Marc C.; Stronks, Karien; Kunst, Anton E.

2015-01-01

There has been much variation between European countries in the development of tobacco control policy. Not much is known about the factors that shape this variation. This study aimed to assess the role of political factors in tobacco control policy development. We used data from 11 European

Study Protocol. IDUS – Instrumental delivery & ultrasound. A multi-centre randomised controlled trial of ultrasound assessment of the fetal head position versus standard care as an approach to prevent morbidity at instrumental delivery

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Murphy Deirdre J

2012-09-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Instrumental deliveries are commonly performed in the United Kingdom and Ireland, with rates of 12 – 17% in most centres. Knowing the exact position of the fetal head is a pre-requisite for safe instrumental delivery. Traditionally, diagnosis of the fetal head position is made on transvaginal digital examination by delineating the suture lines of the fetal skull and the fontanelles. However, the accuracy of transvaginal digital examination can be unreliable and varies between 20% and 75%. Failure to identify the correct fetal head position increases the likelihood of failed instrumental delivery with the additional morbidity of sequential use of instruments or second stage caesarean section. The use of ultrasound in determining the position of the fetal head has been explored but is not part of routine clinical practice. Methods/Design A multi-centre randomised controlled trial is proposed. The study will take place in two large maternity units in Ireland with a combined annual birth rate of 13,500 deliveries. It will involve 450 nulliparous women undergoing instrumental delivery after 37 weeks gestation. The main outcome measure will be incorrect diagnosis of the fetal head position. A study involving 450 women will have 80% power to detect a 10% difference in the incidence of inaccurate diagnosis of the fetal head position with two-sided 5% alpha. Discussion It is both important and timely to evaluate the use of ultrasound to diagnose the fetal head position prior to instrumental delivery before routine use can be advocated. The overall aim is to reduce the incidence of incorrect diagnosis of the fetal head position prior to instrumental delivery and improve the safety of instrumental deliveries. Trial registration Current Controlled Trials ISRCTN72230496

Ophthalmic epidemiology in Europe : the "European Eye Epidemiology" (E3) consortium

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Delcourt, Cecile; Korobelnik, Jean-Francois; Buitendijk, Gabrielle H. S.; Foster, Paul J.; Hammond, Christopher J.; Piermarocchi, Stefano; Peto, Tunde; Jansonius, Nomdo; Mirshahi, Alireza; Hogg, Ruth E.; Bretillon, Lionel; Topouzis, Fotis; Deak, Gabor; Grauslund, Jakob; Broe, Rebecca; Souied, Eric H.; Creuzot-Garcher, Catherine; Sahel, Jose; Daien, Vincent; Lehtimaki, Terho; Hense, Hans-Werner; Prokofyeva, Elena; Oexle, Konrad; Rahi, Jugnoo S.; Cumberland, Phillippa M.; Schmitz-Valckenberg, Steffen; Fauser, Sascha; Bertelsen, Geir; Hoyng, Carel; Bergen, Arthur; Silva, Rufino; Wolf, Sebastian; Lotery, Andrew; Chakravarthy, Usha; Fletcher, Astrid; Klaver, Caroline C. W.

The European Eye Epidemiology (E3) consortium is a recently formed consortium of 29 groups from 12 European countries. It already comprises 21 population-based studies and 20 other studies (case-control, cases only, randomized trials), providing ophthalmological data on approximately 170,000

High performance pseudo-analytical simulation of multi-object adaptive optics over multi-GPU systems

KAUST Repository

Abdelfattah, Ahmad; Gendron, É ric; Gratadour, Damien; Keyes, David E.; Ltaief, Hatem; Sevin, Arnaud; Vidal, Fabrice

2014-01-01

Multi-object adaptive optics (MOAO) is a novel adaptive optics (AO) technique dedicated to the special case of wide-field multi-object spectrographs (MOS). It applies dedicated wavefront corrections to numerous independent tiny patches spread over a large field of view (FOV). The control of each deformable mirror (DM) is done individually using a tomographic reconstruction of the phase based on measurements from a number of wavefront sensors (WFS) pointing at natural and artificial guide stars in the field. The output of this study helps the design of a new instrument called MOSAIC, a multi-object spectrograph proposed for the European Extremely Large Telescope (E-ELT). We have developed a novel hybrid pseudo-analytical simulation scheme that allows us to accurately simulate in detail the tomographic problem. The main challenge resides in the computation of the tomographic reconstructor, which involves pseudo-inversion of a large dense symmetric matrix. The pseudo-inverse is computed using an eigenvalue decomposition, based on the divide and conquer algorithm, on multicore systems with multi-GPUs. Thanks to a new symmetric matrix-vector product (SYMV) multi-GPU kernel, our overall implementation scores significant speedups over standard numerical libraries on multicore, like Intel MKL, and up to 60% speedups over the standard MAGMA implementation on 8 Kepler K20c GPUs. At 40,000 unknowns, this appears to be the largest-scale tomographic AO matrix solver submitted to computation, to date, to our knowledge and opens new research directions for extreme scale AO simulations. © 2014 Springer International Publishing Switzerland.

Effectiveness of malaria control interventions in Madagascar: a nationwide case-control survey.

Science.gov (United States)

Kesteman, Thomas; Randrianarivelojosia, Milijaona; Raharimanga, Vaomalala; Randrianasolo, Laurence; Piola, Patrice; Rogier, Christophe

2016-02-11

Madagascar, as other malaria endemic countries, depends mainly on international funding for the implementation of malaria control interventions (MCI). As these funds no longer increase, policy makers need to know whether these MCI actually provide the expected protection. This study aimed at measuring the effectiveness of MCI deployed in all transmission patterns of Madagascar in 2012-2013 against the occurrence of clinical malaria cases. From September 2012 to August 2013, patients consulting for non-complicated malaria in 31 sentinel health centres (SHC) were asked to answer a short questionnaire about long-lasting insecticidal nets (LLIN) use, indoor residual spraying (IRS) in the household and intermittent preventive treatment of pregnant women (IPTp) intake. Controls were healthy all-ages individuals sampled from a concurrent cross-sectional survey conducted in areas surrounding the SHC. Cases and controls were retained in the database if they were resident of the same communes. The association between Plasmodium infection and exposure to MCI was calculated by multivariate multilevel models, and the protective effectiveness (PE) of an intervention was defined as 1 minus the odds ratio of this association. Data about 841 cases (out of 6760 cases observed in SHC) and 8284 controls was collected. The regular use of LLIN provided a significant 51 % PE (95 % CI [16-71]) in multivariate analysis, excluding in one transmission pattern where PE was -11 % (95 % CI [-251 to 65]) in univariate analysis. The PE of IRS was 51 % (95 % CI [31-65]), and the PE of exposure to both regular use of LLIN and IRS was 72 % (95 % CI [28-89]) in multivariate analyses. Vector control interventions avoided yearly over 100,000 clinical cases of malaria in Madagascar. The maternal PE of IPTp was 73 %. In Madagascar, LLIN and IRS had good PE against clinical malaria. These results may apply to other countries with similar transmission profiles, but such case-control surveys could be

Matched case-control studies: a review of reported statistical methodology

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Niven DJ

2012-04-01

Full Text Available Daniel J Niven1, Luc R Berthiaume2, Gordon H Fick1, Kevin B Laupland11Department of Critical Care Medicine, Peter Lougheed Centre, Calgary, 2Department of Community Health Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, CanadaBackground: Case-control studies are a common and efficient means of studying rare diseases or illnesses with long latency periods. Matching of cases and controls is frequently employed to control the effects of known potential confounding variables. The analysis of matched data requires specific statistical methods.Methods: The objective of this study was to determine the proportion of published, peer reviewed matched case-control studies that used statistical methods appropriate for matched data. Using a comprehensive set of search criteria we identified 37 matched case-control studies for detailed analysis.Results: Among these 37 articles, only 16 studies were analyzed with proper statistical techniques (43%. Studies that were properly analyzed were more likely to have included case patients with cancer and cardiovascular disease compared to those that did not use proper statistics (10/16 or 63%, versus 5/21 or 24%, P = 0.02. They were also more likely to have matched multiple controls for each case (14/16 or 88%, versus 13/21 or 62%, P = 0.08. In addition, studies with properly analyzed data were more likely to have been published in a journal with an impact factor listed in the top 100 according to the Journal Citation Reports index (12/16 or 69%, versus 1/21 or 5%, P ≤ 0.0001.Conclusion: The findings of this study raise concern that the majority of matched case-control studies report results that are derived from improper statistical analyses. This may lead to errors in estimating the relationship between a disease and exposure, as well as the incorrect adaptation of emerging medical literature.Keywords: case-control, matched, dependent data, statistics

Diabetic retinopathy screening in New Zealand requires improvement: results from a multi-centre audit.

Science.gov (United States)

Hutchins, Edward; Coppell, Kirsten J; Morris, Ainsley; Sanderson, Gordon

2012-06-01

To determine whether diabetic retinal screening services and retinopathy referral centres in New Zealand meet the national guidelines for referral and assessment of screen detected moderate retinal and mild macular diabetic eye disease. Diabetic retinal screening pathways and the data collected at four main centre retinal screening services were described and compared with recommendations in the national diabetes retinal screening guidelines. A retrospective audit of photoscreen detected moderate retinopathy (grade R3), and mild maculopathy (grades M2B and M3) during May to August 2008 was undertaken. Data collected by retinopathy referral centres were used to examine the follow-up of screen detected cases and to make comparisons with the national recommendations. All four screening services used the guidelines for grading, but the recommended dataset was incomplete. Not all recorded data were readily accessible. The retinal photos of 157 (2.4%) patients were graded as R3, M2B, M3 or a combination. The proportion of those screened with these grades varied across the four centres from 1.2% to 3.4%. Follow-up of the 157 screen positive patients did not always comply with guideline recommendations. Seventy five (48%) were referred for review by an ophthalmologist as recommended, 45 (60% of referred) were seen within the recommended six months. Nine patients (15% of the 60 with a documented assessment) were referred for or received laser treatment at 12-months follow-up. Quality diabetic retinal screening data systems and quality assurance programs are required to improve the monitoring and quality of retinal screening in New Zealand. © 2012 The Authors. ANZJPH © 2012 Public Health Association of Australia.

A Case of Cooperation in the European OR Education

Science.gov (United States)

Miranda, Joao; Nagy, Mariana

2011-01-01

European cooperation is a relevant subject that contributes to building a competitive network of high education institutions. A case of teacher mobility on behalf of the Erasmus programme is presented: it considers some Operations Research topics and the development of the Lego on My Decision module. The module considers eight lecture hours in…

Evaluating Partnerships to Enhance Disaster Risk Management using Multi-Criteria Analysis: An Application at the Pan-European Level

Science.gov (United States)

Hochrainer-Stigler, Stefan; Lorant, Anna

2018-01-01

Disaster risk is increasingly recognized as a major development challenge. Recent calls emphasize the need to proactively engage in disaster risk reduction, as well as to establish new partnerships between private and public sector entities in order to decrease current and future risks. Very often such potential partnerships have to meet different objectives reflecting on the priorities of stakeholders involved. Consequently, potential partnerships need to be assessed on multiple criteria to determine weakest links and greatest threats in collaboration. This paper takes a supranational multi-sector partnership perspective, and considers possible ways to enhance disaster risk management in the European Union by better coordination between the European Union Solidarity Fund, risk reduction efforts, and insurance mechanisms. Based on flood risk estimates we employ a risk-layer approach to determine set of options for new partnerships and test them in a high-level workshop via a novel cardinal ranking based multi-criteria approach. Whilst transformative changes receive good overall scores, we also find that the incorporation of risk into budget planning is an essential condition for successful partnerships.

Community Documentation Centre on Industrial Risk. Volume 3 (consolidated volume containing also content of vol. 1 and 2)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1990-09-01

The Directorate-General for Environment, Nuclear Safety and Civil Protection of the Commission of the European Communities is responsible for the effective and harmonized implementation of the Directive 82/501/EEC on the major-accident hazards of certain industrial activities. To this end, the Commission, in collaboration with the Committee of Competent Authorities responsible for the implementation of this Directive in the twelve Member States, carries out a whole range of activities. One of the most essential areas for action identified was the need for a systematic diffusion of information concerning the practical implementation of the Directive in the Member States, including the technical rules and guidelines applied, the safety practices and the lessons learnt from major accidents. Therefore, the Commission decided to set up a Community Documentation Centre on Industrial Risks (CDCIR). This Documentation Centre is run by the European Commission, Joint Research Centre, Institute for Systems Engineering and Informatics (ISEI), at Ispra, Italy, among its support activities on the implementation of the Directive. The Documentation Centre will collect, classify and review technical rules, guidelines and documents concerning the requirements of the Directive, as well as the safety of industrial installations produced by governments, administrative, scientific or technical bodies, national or international organizations and industrial or professional associations. Documents on major accidents in the form of reports, videotapes will also be collected and reviewed. The Centre is accessible to interested visitors, documents which are not covered by copyright and are not restricted can be obtained from the Documentation Centre on request. Periodical volumes which will feature the inventory, including abstracts, of the collected material will be published and made available to all interested parties. The Centre will also publish documents devoted to compare existing

An Operational Event Announcer for the LHC Control Centre Using Speech Synthesis

CERN Document Server

Page, S

2011-01-01

The LHC Island of the CERN Control Centre is a busy working environment with many status displays and running software applications. An audible event announcer was developed in order to provide a simple and efficient method to notify the operations team of events occurring within the many subsystems of the accelerator. The LHC Announcer uses speech synthesis to report messages based upon data received from multiple sources. General accelerator information such as injections, beam energies and beam dumps are derived from data received from the LHC Timing System. Additionally, a software interface is provided that allows other surveillance processes to send messages to the Announcer using the standard control system middleware. Events are divided into categories which the user can enable or disable depending upon their interest. Use of the LHC Announcer is not limited to the Control Centre and is intended to be available to a wide audience, both inside and outside CERN. To accommodate this, it...

Characteristics of Precedent : The Case Law of the European Court of Justice in Three Dimensions

OpenAIRE

Derlén, Mattias; Lindholm, Johan

2015-01-01

The case law of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) is one of the most important sources of European Union law. However, case law’s role in EU law is not uniform. By empirically studying how the Court uses its own case law as a source of law, we explore the correlation between, on the one hand, the characteristics of a CJEU case— type of action, actors involved, and area of law—and, on the other hand, the judgment’s “embeddedness” in previous case law and value as a precedent in...

Effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of transmural collaborative care with consultation letter (TCCCL) and duloxetine for major depressive disorder (MDD) and (sub)chronic pain in collaboration with primary care: design of a randomized placebo-controlled multi-Centre trial: TCC:PAINDIP.

Science.gov (United States)

de Heer, Eric W; Dekker, Jack; van Eck van der Sluijs, Jonna F; Beekman, Aartjan Tf; van Marwijk, Harm Wj; Holwerda, Tjalling J; Bet, Pierre M; Roth, Joost; Hakkaart-Van Roijen, Leona; Ringoir, Lianne; Kat, Fiona; van der Feltz-Cornelis, Christina M

2013-05-24

The comorbidity of pain and depression is associated with high disease burden for patients in terms of disability, wellbeing, and use of medical care. Patients with major and minor depression often present themselves with pain to a general practitioner and recognition of depression in such cases is low, but evolving. Also, physical symptoms, including pain, in major depressive disorder, predict a poorer response to treatment. A multi-faceted, patient-tailored treatment programme, like collaborative care, is promising. However, treatment of chronic pain conditions in depressive patients has, so far, received limited attention in research. Cost effectiveness of an integrated approach of pain in depressed patients has not been studied. This study is a placebo controlled double blind, three armed randomized multi centre trial. Patients with (sub)chronic pain and a depressive disorder are randomized to either a) collaborative care with duloxetine, b) collaborative care with placebo or c) duloxetine alone. 189 completers are needed to attain sufficient power to show a clinically significant effect of 0.6 SD on the primary outcome measures (PHQ-9 score). Data on depression, anxiety, mental and physical health, medication adherence, medication tolerability, quality of life, patient-doctor relationship, coping, health resource use and productivity will be collected at baseline and after three, six, nine and twelve months. This study enables us to show the value of a closely monitored integrated treatment model above usual pharmacological treatment. Furthermore, a comparison with a placebo arm enables us to evaluate effectiveness of duloxetine in this population in a real life setting. Also, this study will provide evidence-based treatments and tools for their implementation in practice. This will facilitate generalization and implementation of results of this study. Moreover, patients included in this study are screened for pain symptoms, differentiating between nociceptive

Identifying and controlling a multiresistant pseudomonas aeruginosa outbreak in a latin-american cancer centre and its associated risk factors

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jorge Alberto Cortes

Full Text Available Pseudomonas aeruginosa is an important and frightening microorganism for patients suffering from cancer. Multiresistant P. aeruginosa (MRPA may appear as a consequence of exposure to multiple antibiotics or from a breakdown in infection control practices. This article reports an MRPA outbreak in a cancer treatment centre and the consequent case control study. Mechanical ventilation was identified as being the main risk factor for developing MRPA colonisation or infection; molecular analysis confirmed the outbreak. A multifaceted strategy was adopted, involving reinforcing hand-washing practices, contact isolation, antibiotic restriction and suction devices for mechanically-ventilated patients. MRPA was controlled and the outbreak ended. Such strategy may be effective in controlling MRPS in low-resource environments amongst high risk cancer patients.

Characterization and optimized control by means of multi-parameter controllers

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nielsen, Carsten; Hoeg, S.; Thoegersen, A. (Dan-Ejendomme, Hellerup (Denmark)) (and others)

2009-07-01

Poorly functioning HVAC systems (Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning), but also separate heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems are costing the Danish society billions of kroner every year: partly because of increased energy consumption and high operational and maintenance costs, but mainly due to reduced productivity and absence due to illness because of a poor indoor climate. Typically, the operation of buildings and installations takes place today with traditional build-ing automation, which is characterised by 1) being based on static considerations 2) the individual sensor being coupled with one actuator/valve, i.e. the sensor's signal is only used in one place in the system 3) subsystems often being controlled independently of each other 4) the dynamics in building constructions and systems which is very important to the system and comfort regulation is not being considered. This, coupled with the widespread tendency to use large glass areas in the facades without sufficient sun shading, means that it is difficult to optimise comfort and energy consumption. Therefore, the last 10-20 years have seen a steady increase in the complaints of the indoor climate in Danish buildings and, at the same time, new buildings often turn out to be considerably higher energy consuming than expected. The purpose of the present project is to investigate the type of multi parameter sensors which may be generated for buildings and further to carry out a preliminary evaluation on how such multi parameter controllers may be utilized for optimal control of buildings. The aim of the project isn't to develop multi parameter controllers - this requires much more effort than possible in the present project. The aim is to show the potential of using multi parameter sensors when controlling buildings. For this purpose a larger office building has been chosen - an office building with at high energy demand and complaints regarding the indoor climate. In order to

Manche centre

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1997-05-01

After a general presentation of radioactivity and radioactive wastes and of the French national agency for the management of radioactive wastes (ANDRA), this brochure gives a general overview of the Manche low- and medium-level radioactive waste disposal centre: principles of storage safety, waste containers (first confinement barrier), storage facility and cover (second confinement barrier), the underground (third confinement barrier), the impact of the centre on its environment, and the control of radioactivity in the vicinity of the centre. (J.S.)

A multi-channel humidity control system based on LabVIEW

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang Aiwu; Xie Yuguang; Liu Hongbang; Liu Yingbiao; Cai Xiao; Yu Boxiang; Lu Junguang; Zhou Li

2011-01-01

A real time multi-channel humidity control system was designed based on LabVIEW, using the dry air branch of BESⅢ drying system. The hardware of this control system consist of mini humidity and temperature sensors, intelligent collection module, switch quantity controller and electromagnetic valves. The humidity can be controlled at arbitrary value from air humidity to 3% with accuracy better than 2%. Multi microenvironment with different humidity can be easily controlled and monitored in real time by this system. It can also be extended to hybrid control of multi channel humidity and temperature. (authors)

[Internal quality control of the blood products in the Lomé National Blood Transfusion Centre].

Science.gov (United States)

Fétéké, L; Mawussi, K; Lakté, P; Kuéviakoe, I M; Haudrechy, D; Ségbéna, A Y

2008-07-01

Evaluate the conformity of blood red cells units prepared in the Lomé CNTS with European norms concerning volume, haemoglobin content and haematocrite. Measure the conservation of the haemostatic properties and the rate of haemostasis factors V and VIII in the fresh frozen plasma. Measure the rate of residual cells in the plasma. In the year 2006, from March 1st to April 15th, we analysed the quality of 135 units of whole blood, red blood cells (RBC) and plasma from blood donors in the Lomé National Blood Transfusion Centre. The quality control had concerned: the volume of whole blood units; the volume, the haemoglobin content and the haematocrite of red blood cells units; the volume, the prothrombin rate, the cephalin with activator time (TCA), the rate of haemostasis factors V and VIII and the number of residual cells (red cells, leucocytes and platelets) in the plasma. Among the 135 units of whole blood which were controlled, 50.57% were in conformity with the norms concerning the volume. The red blood cells units were in conformity with norms concerning their volume, their haemoglobin content and their haematocrite respectively in 21.48%, 80.75% and 20% of the cases. The volume of 75.56% of the plasma units controlled were conform with the norm. All of the plasma units were conform with the norm concerning the number of residual platelets while the number of residual red blood cells and leucocytes were conform respectively in 80.74% and 60%. The percentage of conformity concerning the prothrombin rate, the TCA, the coagulation factor V and the factor VIII were respectively 66.67; 97.78; 48.89 and 47.4 before freezing, and 54.81; 88.14; 64.44; 84.44 a month after freezing. To improve the quality of the new blood products of the Lomé CNTS, some correctives actions must be applied concerning the adequate volume of blood which must be collected from the donors, the position of the blood bags in during the centrifugation and the volume of plasma which must be

Resistance patterns and outcomes in intensive care unit (ICU)-acquired pneumonia. Validation of European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) classification of multidrug resistant organisms.

Science.gov (United States)

Martin-Loeches, Ignacio; Torres, Antonio; Rinaudo, Mariano; Terraneo, Silvia; de Rosa, Francesca; Ramirez, Paula; Diaz, Emili; Fernández-Barat, Laia; Li Bassi, Gian Luigi; Ferrer, Miquel

2015-03-01

Bacterial resistance has become a major public health problem. To validate the definition of multidrug-resistant organisms (MDRO) based on the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) classification. Prospective, observational study in six medical and surgical Intensive-Care-Units (ICU) of a University hospital. Three-hundred-and-forty-three patients with ICU-acquired pneumonia (ICUAP) were prospectively enrolled, 140 patients had no microbiological confirmation (41%), 82 patients (24%) developed ICUAP for non-MDRO, whereas 121 (35%) were MDROs. Non-MDRO, MDRO and no microbiological confirmation patients did not present either a significant different previous antibiotic use (p 0.18) or previous hospital admission (p 0.17). Appropriate antibiotic therapy was associated with better ICU survival (105 [92.9%] vs. 74 [82.2%]; p = 0.03). An adjusted multivariate regression logistic analysis identified that only MDRO had a higher ICU-mortality than non-MDRO and no microbiological confirmation patients (OR 2.89; p < 0.05; 95% CI for Exp [β]. 1.02-8.21); Patients with MDRO ICUAP remained in ICU for a longer period than MDRO and no microbiological confirmation respectively (p < 0.01) however no microbiological confirmation patients had more often antibiotic consumption than culture positive ones. Patients who developed ICUAP due to MDRO showed a higher ICU-mortality than non-MDRO ones and use of ICU resources. No microbiological confirmation patients had more often antibiotic consumption than culture positive patients. Risk factors for MDRO may be important for the selection of initial antimicrobial therapy, in addition to local epidemiology. Copyright © 2014 The British Infection Association. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

THE AUDIT OF THE EUROPEAN FUNDS - THE ROMANIA CASE PARTICULARITIES

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tara Ioan Gheorghe

2010-12-01

Full Text Available The European funds are committed to improving the economic and financial state of the eastern European countries. Therefore they have to be performing spent. The financial audit has an extremely important duty from this point of view. In Romania case there are some particularities which are, at the same time, the possible ways to improve the financial audit activity as well. The vital thing among them is to improve the independence of the financial audit and to take in account the necessary report between internal and external audit. A proposal is made here.

Complications and Short-Term Explantation Rate Following Artificial Urinary Sphincter Implantation: Results from a Large Middle European Multi-Institutional Case Series.

Science.gov (United States)

Kretschmer, Alexander; Hüsch, Tanja; Thomsen, Frauke; Kronlachner, Dominik; Obaje, Alice; Anding, Ralf; Pottek, Tobias; Rose, Achim; Olianas, Roberto; Friedl, Alexander; Hübner, Wilhelm; Homberg, Roland; Pfitzenmaier, Jesco; Grein, Ulrich; Queissert, Fabian; Naumann, Carsten Maik; Schweiger, Josef; Wotzka, Carola; Nyarangi-Dix, Joanne N; Hofmann, Torben; Seiler, Roland; Haferkamp, Axel; Bauer, Ricarda M

2016-01-01

Background/Aims/Objectives: To analyze perioperative complication and short-term explantation rates after perineal or penoscrotal single-cuff and double-cuff artificial urinary sphincter (AUS) implantation in a large middle European multi-institutional patient cohort. 467 male patients with stress urinary incontinence underwent implantation of a perineal single-cuff (n = 152), penoscrotal single-cuff (n = 99), or perineal double-cuff (n = 216) AUS between 2010 and 2012. Postoperative complications and 6-month explantation rates were assessed. For statistical analysis, Fisher's exact test and Kruskal-Wallis rank sum test, and a multiple logistic regression model were used (p AUS, penoscrotal single-cuff implantation led to significantly increased short-term explantation rates (8.6% (perineal) vs. 19.2% (penoscrotal), p = 0.019). The postoperative infection rate was significantly higher after double-cuff compared to single-cuff implantation (6.0% (single-cuff) vs. 13.9% (double-cuff), p = 0.019). The short-term explantation rate after primary double-cuff placement was 6.5% (p = 0.543 vs. perineal single-cuff). In multivariate analysis, the penoscrotal approach (p = 0.004), intraoperative complications (p = 0.005), postoperative bleeding (p = 0.011), and perioperative infection (p < 0.001) were independent risk factors for short-term explantation. Providing data from a large contemporary multi-institutional patient cohort from high-volume and low-volume institutions, our results reflect the current standard of care in middle Europe. We indicate that the penoscrotal approach is an independent risk factor for increased short-term explantation rates. © 2016 S. Karger AG, Basel.

Europeanization by it is tools: the case of European transnational projects

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Sanchez Salgado, R.

2010-01-01

In the understanding of Europeanization, specific tools of governance matter. Europeanization through flexible tools of governance enables strategic uses by domestic actors, and does not necessaritly preclude policy transfer or transformation. As long as they favour participation, European

Associated factors and outcomes for OXA-232 Carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae infections in a tertiary care centre in Mexico City: A case-control-control study.

Science.gov (United States)

Torres-González, Pedro; Ortiz-Brizuela, Edgar; Cervera-Hernandez, Miguel Enrique; Bobadilla-Del Valle, Miriam; Martínez-Gamboa, Areli; Sifuentes-Osornio, José; Ponce-de-Leon, Alfredo

2016-10-01

We describe the outcomes and factors associated with OXA-232 producing carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae infections. A case-control-control study was performed; each case of infection by a carbapenem-resistant/OXA-232 (OXA-232-cases, n=27) was matched by isolation site, species, and date, with 2 cases of infection by carbapenem-susceptible/third-generation cephalosporin-susceptible (TGCS-controls, n=54) and 2 cases by carbapenem-susceptible/ESBL producing Enterobacteriaceae (ESBL-controls, n=54); 66% were urinary tract and 18.5% intra-abdominal infections. In the multivariable analysis with ESBL-controls, previous use β-lactam/β-lactamase antibiotics (OR 6.2; 95% CI 1.6-23.8) and, third-generation cephalosporins (OR 0.2; 95% CI 0.05-0.8) were associated with OXA-232 infection; with TGSC-controls previous use of β-lactam/β-lactamase antibiotics (OR 3.7; 95% 1.1-12.0) was associated. Among the OXA-232-cases, 29% received imipenem/cilastatin or meropenem, 11.1% ceftriaxone, 22.2% a carbapenem-based combination and 33.3% other antimicrobials as treatment. Previous β-lactam/β-lactamase antibiotics are associated with OXA-232 infections, and some may be treated with other active carbapenems or, in the absence of ESBL, third-generation cephalosporins. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Active case finding of tuberculosis in Europe: a Tuberculosis Network European Trials Group (TBNET) survey

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bothamley, G H; Ditiu, L; Migliori, G B

2008-01-01

Tuberculosis control depends on successful case finding and treatment of individuals infected with Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Passive case finding is widely practised: the present study aims to ascertain the consensus and possible improvements in active case finding across Europe. Recommendations...... from national guidelines were collected from 50 countries of the World Health Organization European region using a standard questionnaire. Contacts are universally screened for active tuberculosis and latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI). Most countries (>70%) screen those with HIV infection, prisoners...... and in-patient contacts. Screening of immigrants is related to their contribution to national rates of tuberculosis. Only 25 (50%) out of 50 advise a request for symptoms in their guidelines. A total of 36 (72%) out of 50 countries recommend sputum examination for those with a persistent cough; 13...

Assessing reported cases of sexual and gender-based violence, causes and preventive strategies, in European asylum reception facilities.

Science.gov (United States)

Oliveira, Charlotte; Keygnaert, Ines; Oliveira Martins, Maria do Rosário; Dias, Sónia

2018-05-09

Sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) is a widespread public health problem and a violation of human rights rooted in gender and power inequities. Refugees, asylum-seekers and migrants living in European asylum reception facilities (EARF) are especially vulnerable to SGBV. To contribute to closing the gap on systematic and accurate evidence on SGBV, we aim to explore reported cases of SGBV, causes and preventable measures described by residents and professionals from EARF. We developed a cross-sectional study using the Senperforto project database. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with residents (refugees, asylum-seekers and unaccompanied minors) and professionals (service and health care providers) at EARF, in 7 European countries. We used IBM® SPSS software to analyze our data. Further, statistical tests - Chi-square Test and Fisher's exact test (5% significance level) were conducted. In total 562 respondents: 375 residents (R) and 187 professionals (P) participated in the study. The majority of respondents were male (56.9%), aged 19 to 39 years (67.3%). Respondents described 698 cases of SGBV (R 328, P 370), comprising 1110 acts of multi-types of violence. Respondents from Malta (160) and Belgium (143) reported the highest number of SGBV cases. The main reported causes were frustration and stress (R 23.6%, P 37.6%, p 0.008) and differences related with cultural background (R 19.3%, P 20.3%, p 0.884). Respondents assumed that these acts of violence could be prevented by SGBV prevention interventions (R 31.5%, P 24.7%, p 0.293); improving living conditions (R 21.7%, P 15.3%, p 0.232); and promoting communication (R 16.1%, P 28.2%, p 0.042). The majority of R were not aware of existing preventable measures in the asylum facility or host country. While the majority of P were aware of existing preventable measures in the asylum facility or country. Proposed SGBV prevention strategies in EARF included SGBV sensitization and awareness, improving living

Cities as command and control centres of the world economy: An empirical analysis, 2006–2015

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Csomós György

2017-12-01

Full Text Available As a result of their rapid economic growth, several powerful corporate giants have emerged in developing countries, especially in China, operating not only in the traditional manufacturing sector, but also in high-tech industries and finance. Major cities in developing countries have gradually become important command and control centres of the global economy, and have also become powerful enough to be in the same tier as major cities of developed countries around the world. In this paper, I examine the position of cities as command and control centres on the basis of the power of their headquartered corporations. The result shows that until 2012, New York, London, Tokyo, and Paris; i.e. the global cities, were the leading command and control centres. However, the gap between these global cities and Beijing gradually closed, and by 2015, the Chinese capital outranked all the global cities. The outstanding performance of Beijing-based corporations that operate in financial, energy, and construction services sectors is the driving force behind Beijing’s increasing global power. In addition, the leading position of the global cities as command and control centres has been threatened by the San Francisco-San Jose metropolitan region, a newly emerging economic hub in the United States.

Contraceptive Use and the Risk of Ectopic Pregnancy: A Multi-Center Case-Control Study.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Cheng; Zhao, Wei-Hong; Meng, Chun-Xia; Ping, Hua; Qin, Guo-Juan; Cao, Shu-Jun; Xi, Xiaowei; Zhu, Qian; Li, Xiao-Cui; Zhang, Jian

2014-01-01

To evaluate the association between the risk of ectopic pregnancy (EP) and the use of common contraceptives during the previous and current conception/menstrual cycle. A multi-center case-control study was conducted in Shanghai. Women diagnosed with EP were recruited as the case group (n = 2,411). Women with intrauterine pregnancy (IUP) (n = 2,416) and non-pregnant women (n = 2,419) were matched as controls at a ratio of 1∶1. Information regarding the previous and current use of contraceptives was collected. Multivariate logistic regression analyses were performed to calculate odds ratios (ORs) and the corresponding 95% confidential intervals (CIs). Previous use of intrauterine devices (IUDs) was associated with a slight risk of ectopic pregnancy (AOR1 = 1.87 [95% CI: 1.48-2.37]; AOR2 = 1.84 [1.49-2.27]), and the risk increased with the duration of previous use (P1 for trend contraceptives reduced the risk of both unwanted IUP (condom: AOR = 0.04 [0.03-0.05]; withdrawal method: AOR = 0.10 [0.07-0.13]; calendar rhythm method: AOR = 0.54 [0.40-0.73]; oral contraceptive pills [OCPs]: AOR = 0.03 [0.02-0.08]; levonorgestrel emergency contraception [LNG-EC]: AOR = 0.22 [0.16-0.30]; IUDs: AOR = 0.01 [0.005-0.012]; tubal sterilization: AOR = 0.01 [0.001-0.022]) and unwanted EP (condom: AOR1 = 0.05 [0.04-0.06]; withdrawal method: AOR1 = 0.13 [0.09-0.19]; calendar rhythm method: AOR1 = 0.66 [0.48-0.91]; OCPs: AOR1 = 0.14 [0.07-0.26]; IUDs: AOR1 = 0.17 [0.13-0.22]; tubal sterilization: AOR1 = 0.04 [0.02-0.08]). However, when contraception failed and pregnancy occurred, current use of OCPs (AOR2 = 4.06 [1.64-10.07]), LNG-EC (AOR2 = 4.87 [3.88-6.10]), IUDs (AOR2 = 21.08 [13.44-33.07]), and tubal sterilization (AOR2 = 7.68 [1.69-34.80]) increased the risk of EP compared with the non-use of contraceptives. Current use of most contraceptives reduce the risk of both IUP and EP. However, if the

Contraceptive Use and the Risk of Ectopic Pregnancy: A Multi-Center Case-Control Study.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Cheng Li

Full Text Available To evaluate the association between the risk of ectopic pregnancy (EP and the use of common contraceptives during the previous and current conception/menstrual cycle.A multi-center case-control study was conducted in Shanghai. Women diagnosed with EP were recruited as the case group (n = 2,411. Women with intrauterine pregnancy (IUP (n = 2,416 and non-pregnant women (n = 2,419 were matched as controls at a ratio of 1∶1. Information regarding the previous and current use of contraceptives was collected. Multivariate logistic regression analyses were performed to calculate odds ratios (ORs and the corresponding 95% confidential intervals (CIs.Previous use of intrauterine devices (IUDs was associated with a slight risk of ectopic pregnancy (AOR1 = 1.87 [95% CI: 1.48-2.37]; AOR2 = 1.84 [1.49-2.27], and the risk increased with the duration of previous use (P1 for trend <10-4, P2 for trend <10-4. The current use of most contraceptives reduced the risk of both unwanted IUP (condom: AOR = 0.04 [0.03-0.05]; withdrawal method: AOR = 0.10 [0.07-0.13]; calendar rhythm method: AOR = 0.54 [0.40-0.73]; oral contraceptive pills [OCPs]: AOR = 0.03 [0.02-0.08]; levonorgestrel emergency contraception [LNG-EC]: AOR = 0.22 [0.16-0.30]; IUDs: AOR = 0.01 [0.005-0.012]; tubal sterilization: AOR = 0.01 [0.001-0.022] and unwanted EP (condom: AOR1 = 0.05 [0.04-0.06]; withdrawal method: AOR1 = 0.13 [0.09-0.19]; calendar rhythm method: AOR1 = 0.66 [0.48-0.91]; OCPs: AOR1 = 0.14 [0.07-0.26]; IUDs: AOR1 = 0.17 [0.13-0.22]; tubal sterilization: AOR1 = 0.04 [0.02-0.08]. However, when contraception failed and pregnancy occurred, current use of OCPs (AOR2 = 4.06 [1.64-10.07], LNG-EC (AOR2 = 4.87 [3.88-6.10], IUDs (AOR2 = 21.08 [13.44-33.07], and tubal sterilization (AOR2 = 7.68 [1.69-34.80] increased the risk of EP compared with the non-use of contraceptives.Current use of most

Tax haven or international financial centre? The case of Kenya

OpenAIRE

Waris, Attiya

2014-01-01

International financial centres are geared to provide optimal conditions for the financial services industry. They encourage activities that can improve a country’s economy, but they may also facilitate money laundering, tax evasion, tax avoidance, and other harmful practices. The Nairobi International Financial Centre and similar centres in Africa can foster development, but also pose significant challenges. Legal and regulatory arrangements determine what types of capital a financial centr...

Recruiting ENT and Audiology patients into pharmaceutical trials: evaluating the multi-centre experience in the UK and USA.

Science.gov (United States)

Sanchez, Victoria A; Hall, Deborah A; Millar, Bonnie; Escabi, Celia D; Sharman, Alice; Watson, Jeannette; Thasma, Sornaraja; Harris, Peter

2018-01-21

Recruiting into clinical trials on time and on target is a major challenge and yet often goes unreported. This study evaluated the adjustment to procedures, recruitment and screening methods in two multi-centre pharmaceutical randomised controlled trials (RCTs) for hearing-related problems in adults. Recruitment monitoring and subsequent adjustment of various study procedures (e.g. eligibility criteria, increasing recruiting sites and recruitment methods) are reported. Participants were recruited through eight overarching methods: trial registration, posters/flyers, print publications, Internet, social media, radio, databases and referrals. The efficiency of the recruitment was measured by determining the number of people: (1) eligible for screening as a percentage of those who underwent telephone pre-screening and (2) randomised as a percentage of those screened. A total of 584 participants completed the pre-screening steps, 491 screened and 169 participants were randomised. Both RCTs completed adjustments to the participant eligibility, added new study sites and additional recruitment methods. No single recruitment method was efficient enough to serve as the only route to enrolment. A diverse portfolio of methods, continuous monitoring, mitigation strategy and adequate resourcing were essential for achieving our recruitment goals.