WorldWideScience

Sample records for preventing severe forms

  1. Severe form of Legionnaires' disease in an immunocompetent patient

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Andrijević Ilija

    2009-01-01

    Full Text Available Background. Legionnaires' disease (LD is a pneumonia caused by Legionella pneumophila (LP. The disease occurs more often in immunocompromised persons and can be manifested by severe pneumonia, multiple organ failure and has a high mortality. Case report. Immunocompetent patient, male, 53- year old, with severe form of LB had fever, cough, weakness and diarrhea as the initial symptoms of the disease. Laboratory results showed increased number of leukocytes, increased values of acute phase proteins, liver enzymes and hyponatremia. Computed tomography of the chest showed the marked inflammatory lesions on both sides. Pathohystological analysis of the samples retrieved by bronchoscopy pointed to a pneumonia, and diagnosis of LD was confirmed by positive urine test for LP antigen. Later, the disease was complicated by acute adult respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS. Treatment with antibiotics (erythromycin, rifampicin, azithromycin combined with ARDS treatment led to a clinical recovery of the patient together with complete resolution of inflammatory lesions seen on chest radiography. Conclusion. In severe pneumonias it is necessary to consider LD in differential diagnosis, perform tests with aim of detecting LP and apply adequate antibiotic treatment in order to accomplish positive outcome of the therapy and prevent complications.

  2. Severe forms of food allergy

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Emanuel Sarinho

    Full Text Available Abstract Objectives: To guide the diagnostic and therapeutic management of severe forms of food allergy. Data sources: Search in the Medline database using the terms “severe food allergy,” “anaphylaxis and food allergy,” “generalized urticaria and food allergy,” and “food protein-induced enterocolitis syndrome” in the last ten years, searching in the title, abstract, or keyword fields. Summary of data: Food allergy can be serious and life-threatening. Milk, eggs, peanuts, nuts, walnuts, wheat, sesame seeds, shrimp, fish, and fruit can precipitate allergic emergencies. The severity of reactions will depend on associated cofactors such as age, drug use at the onset of the reaction, history and persistence of asthma and/or severe allergic rhinitis, history of previous anaphylaxis, exercise, and associated diseases. For generalized urticaria and anaphylaxis, intramuscular epinephrine is the first and fundamental treatment line. For the treatment in acute phase of food-induced enterocolitis syndrome in the emergency setting, prompt hydroelectrolytic replacement, administration of methylprednisolone and ondansetron IV are necessary. It is important to recommend to the patient with food allergy to maintain the exclusion diet, seek specialized follow-up and, in those who have anaphylaxis, to emphasize the need to carry epinephrine. Conclusion: Severe food allergy may occur in the form of anaphylaxis and food-protein-induced enterocolitis syndrome, which are increasingly observed in the pediatric emergency room; hence, pediatricians must be alert so they can provide the immediate diagnosis and treatment.

  3. Severe forms of food allergy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sarinho, Emanuel; Lins, Maria das Graças Moura

    To guide the diagnostic and therapeutic management of severe forms of food allergy. Search in the Medline database using the terms "severe food allergy," "anaphylaxis and food allergy," "generalized urticaria and food allergy," and "food protein-induced enterocolitis syndrome" in the last ten years, searching in the title, abstract, or keyword fields. Food allergy can be serious and life-threatening. Milk, eggs, peanuts, nuts, walnuts, wheat, sesame seeds, shrimp, fish, and fruit can precipitate allergic emergencies. The severity of reactions will depend on associated cofactors such as age, drug use at the onset of the reaction, history and persistence of asthma and/or severe allergic rhinitis, history of previous anaphylaxis, exercise, and associated diseases. For generalized urticaria and anaphylaxis, intramuscular epinephrine is the first and fundamental treatment line. For the treatment in acute phase of food-induced enterocolitis syndrome in the emergency setting, prompt hydroelectrolytic replacement, administration of methylprednisolone and ondansetron IV are necessary. It is important to recommend to the patient with food allergy to maintain the exclusion diet, seek specialized follow-up and, in those who have anaphylaxis, to emphasize the need to carry epinephrine. Severe food allergy may occur in the form of anaphylaxis and food-protein-induced enterocolitis syndrome, which are increasingly observed in the pediatric emergency room; hence, pediatricians must be alert so they can provide the immediate diagnosis and treatment. Copyright © 2017 Sociedade Brasileira de Pediatria. Published by Elsevier Editora Ltda. All rights reserved.

  4. Severe forms of food allergy

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Emanuel Sarinho

    2017-11-01

    Conclusion: Severe food allergy may occur in the form of anaphylaxis and food‐protein‐induced enterocolitis syndrome, which are increasingly observed in the pediatric emergency room; hence, pediatricians must be alert so they can provide the immediate diagnosis and treatment.

  5. Prevention and mitigation of severe accidents

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Weisshaeupl, H.

    1996-01-01

    For the European Pressurized water Reactor (EPR), jointly developed by French and German industry, great emphasis is laid to gain further improvement in prevention of severe accidents based on the accumulative experience and proven technology of the French and German PWR reactors. In this evolutionary development, a balanced and comprehensive approach in respect to implement new passive features has been chosen. Improvements in each step of the defense in depth concept lead to a further decrease in the probability of occurrence of a severe accident with partial or even gross melting of the core. The different phenomenons that occur during such an hypothetical accident must be taken into account during the conception of specific measurements necessary to mitigate accident consequences. To cope with the consequences of a severe accident with core melt down means to deal with different phenomena which may threaten the integrity of the containment or may lead to an enhanced fission product release into the environment: high pressure reactor pressure vessel failure; energetic molten fuel coolant interaction; direct containment heating, molten core concrete interaction; hydrogen combustion; long term pressure and temperature increase in the containment. The EPR approach follows the recommendations from the DFD (Deutsch-Franzosischer Direktionsausschuss), jointly prepared by the French and German safety authorities. The EPR concept consist to prevent or eliminate as far as possible scenarios which are connected with high loads (high pressure failure of the reactor pressure vessel, or global hydrogen detonation etc..) by dedicated design provisions, and to deal with the consequences of severe accident scenarios which are not ruled out by specific safety measures. The measures comprise: the primary system depressurization; the control of hydrogen; the stabilisation and cooling of the melted core; the containment heat removal. They are completed by specific characteristics

  6. System 80+ design features for severe accident prevention and mitigation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jacob, M.C.; Schneider, R.E.; Finnicum, D.J.

    1993-01-01

    ABB-CE, in cooperation with the US Department of Energy, is working to develop and certify the System 80+ design, which is ABB-CE's standardized evolutionary Advanced Light Water Reactor (ALWR) design. It incorporates design enhancements based on Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA) insights, guidance from the EPRI's Utility Requirements Document, and US NRC's Severe Accident Policy. Major severe accident prevention and mitigation design features of the system is discussed along with its conformance to EPRI URD guidance, as applicable. Computer simulation of a best estimate severe accident scenario is presented to illustrate the acceptable containment performance of the design. It is concluded that by considering severe accident prevention and mitigation early in the design process, the System 80+ design represents a robust plant design that has low core damage frequencies, low containment conditional failure probabilities, and acceptable deterministic containment performance under severe accident conditions

  7. Natural Forms of Vitamin E as Effective Agents for Cancer Prevention and Therapy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jiang, Qing

    2017-11-01

    Initial research on vitamin E and cancer has focused on α-tocopherol (αT), but recent clinical studies on cancer-preventive effects of αT supplementation have shown disappointing results, which has led to doubts about the role of vitamin E, including different vitamin E forms, in cancer prevention. However, accumulating mechanistic and preclinical animal studies show that other forms of vitamin E, such as γ-tocopherol (γT), δ-tocopherol (δT), γ-tocotrienol (γTE), and δ-tocotrienol (δTE), have far superior cancer-preventive activities than does αT. These vitamin E forms are much stronger than αT in inhibiting multiple cancer-promoting pathways, including cyclo-oxygenase (COX)- and 5-lipoxygenase (5-LOX)-catalyzed eicosanoids, and transcription factors such as nuclear transcription factor κB (NF-κB) and signal transducer and activator of transcription factor 3 (STAT3). These vitamin E forms, but not αT, cause pro-death or antiproliferation effects in cancer cells via modulating various signaling pathways, including sphingolipid metabolism. Unlike αT, these vitamin E forms are quickly metabolized to various carboxychromanols including 13'-carboxychromanols, which have even stronger anti-inflammatory and anticancer effects than some vitamin precursors. Consistent with mechanistic findings, γT, δT, γTE, and δTE, but not αT, have been shown to be effective for preventing the progression of various types of cancer in preclinical animal models. This review focuses on cancer-preventive effects and mechanisms of γT, δT, γTE, and δTE in cells and preclinical models and discusses current progress in clinical trials. The existing evidence strongly indicates that these lesser-known vitamin E forms are effective agents for cancer prevention or as adjuvants for improving prevention, therapy, and control of cancer. © 2017 American Society for Nutrition.

  8. Improving preventive service delivery at adult complete health check-ups: the Preventive health Evidence-based Recommendation Form (PERFORM cluster randomized controlled trial

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Moineddin Rahim

    2006-07-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background To determine the effectiveness of a single checklist reminder form to improve the delivery of preventive health services at adult health check-ups in a family practice setting. Methods A prospective cluster randomized controlled trial was conducted at four urban family practice clinics among 38 primary care physicians affiliated with the University of Toronto. Preventive Care Checklist Forms© were created to be used by family physicians at adult health check-ups over a five-month period. The sex-specific forms incorporate evidence-based recommendations on preventive health services and documentation space for routine procedures such as physical examination. The forms were used in two intervention clinics and two control clinics. Rates and relative risks (RR of the performance of 13 preventive health maneuvers at baseline and post-intervention and the percentage of up-to-date preventive health services delivered per patient were compared between the two groups. Results Randomly-selected charts were reviewed at baseline (n = 509 and post-intervention (n = 608. Baseline rates for provision of preventive health services ranged from 3% (fecal occult blood testing to 93% (blood pressure measurement, similar to other settings. The percentage of up-to-date preventive health services delivered per patient at the end of the intervention was 48.9% in the control group and 71.7% in the intervention group. This is an overall 22.8% absolute increase (p = 0.0001, and 46.6% relative increase in the delivery of preventive health services per patient in the intervention group compared to controls. Eight of thirteen preventive health services showed a statistically significant change (p Conclusion This simple, low cost, clinically relevant intervention improves the delivery of preventive health services by prompting physicians of evidence-based recommendations in a checklist format that incorporates existing practice patterns. Periodic updates

  9. A severe form of Crouzon's Syndrome: clinical and radiological correlation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Abdallah, Ahmad M.

    2003-01-01

    Craniofacial dysostosis (Crouzon's syndrome) is a well defined, dominantly inherited disorder, described by Crouzon in 1912. It is characterized by several deformities involving the skull,face and eyes. This case report details a rare form of Crouzon's syndrome in which proptosis was so severe that globes were completely proptotic outside the patient's extremely shallow orbits, and the eyelids were undeveloped bilaterally and replaced by small folds of skin. It appears that this is the first report of such a severe form of Crouzon's syndrome. (author)

  10. System 80+TM PRA insights on severe accident prevention and mitigation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Finnicum, D.J.; Jacob, M.C.; Schneider, R.E.; Weston, R.A.

    2004-01-01

    The System 80 + design is ABB-CE's standardized evolutionary Advanced Light Water Reactor (ALWR) design. It incorporates design enhancements based on Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA) insights, guidance from the ALWR Utility Requirements Document (URD), and US NRC's Severe Accident Policy. Major severe accident prevention and mitigation design features of the System 80 + design are described. The results of the System 80 + PRA are presented and the insights gained from the PRA sensitivity analyses are discussed. ABB-CE considered defense-in-depth for accident prevention and mitigation early in the design process and used robust design features to ensure that the System 80 + design achieved a low core damage frequency, low containment conditional failure probability, and excellent deterministic containment performance under severe accident conditions and to ensure that the risk was properly allocated among design features and between prevention and mitigation. (author)

  11. Lipid Fingerprinting in Mild versus Severe Forms of Gestational Diabetes Mellitus.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bárbara Yasmin Gueuvoghlanian-Silva

    Full Text Available The blood serum lipid profile of women with Gestational Diabetes Mellitus (GDM is still under study. There are no data on the serum lipid profile of GDM patients with more severe (insulin treated compared to milder forms (diet treated GDM. The aim of our study was to analyze the blood serum lipid profile of patients with milder versus more severe forms of GDM and to compare these findings with those of healthy pregnant women. This cross-sectional analytical study included 30 insulin-treated GDM, 30 diet-only GDM and 30 healthy pregnant women. Serum lipid was extracted from the 90 participants and their lipid profiles were analyzed by lipid fingerprinting using liquid-chromatography-mass spectrometry. A total of 143 parent ions were differentially represented in each of the three groups, belonging to the following classes: Glycerophospholipids, Sterol Lipids, Sphingolipids, Prenol Lipids, Fatty Acyls and Glycerolipids. There were significant differences in the lipid profiles of healthy pregnant women compared to GDM patients and also between milder versus more severe forms of GDM. There are marked differences in lipid fingerprinting between healthy pregnant women compared to those with GDM in the third trimester. Moreover, the lipid profile of women with more severe forms of GDM differs considerably from that of women with milder forms of GDM. These findings may be useful to help clarify the pathogenesis of milder and more severe forms of GDM.

  12. Strategies for the prevention and mitigation of severe accidents

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ader, C.; Heusener, G.; Snell, V.G.

    1999-01-01

    The currently operating nuclear power plants have, in general, achieved a high level of safety, as a result of design philosophies that have emphasized concepts such as defense-in-depth. This type of an approach has resulted in plants that have robust designs and strong containments. These designs were later found to have capabilities to protect the public from severe accidents (accidents more severe than traditional design basis in which substantial damage is done to the reactor core). In spite of this high level of safety, it has also been recognized that future plants need to be designed to achieve an enhanced level of safety, in particular with respect to severe accidents. This has led both regulatory authorities and utilities to develop guidance and/or requirements to guide plant designers in achieving improved severe accident performance through prevention and mitigation. The considerable research programs initiated after the TMI-2 accident have provided a large body of technical data, analytical methods, and the expertise necessary to provide for an understanding of a range of severe accident phenomena. This understanding of the ways severe accidents can progress and challenge containments, combined with the wide use of probabilistic safety assessments, have provided designers of evolutionary water cooled reactors opportunities to develop designs that minimize the challenges to the plant and to the public from severe accidents, including the development of accident management strategies intended to further reduce the risk of severe accidents. This paper describes some of the recent progress made in the understanding of severe accidents and related safety assessment methodology and how this knowledge has supported the incorporation of features into representative evolutionary designs that will prevent or mitigate many of the severe accident challenges present in current plants. (author)

  13. Insights Into Severe Form of Dwarfism Could Lead to New Treatment Strategies

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... Spotlight on Research Insights Into Severe Form of Dwarfism Could Lead to New Treatment Strategies By Colleen ... a mutation that causes a severe form of dwarfism have led to a better understanding of the ...

  14. Tertiary individual prevention improves mental health in patients with severe occupational hand eczema.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Breuer, K; John, S M; Finkeldey, F; Boehm, D; Skudlik, C; Wulfhorst, B; Dwinger, C; Werfel, T; Diepgen, T L; Schmid-Ott, G

    2015-09-01

    Occupational hand eczema (OHE) is associated with impaired health-related quality of life (QoL) and mental distress. Interdisciplinary inpatient rehabilitation measures in the framework of tertiary individual prevention (TIP) offered by the German employers' liability insurance associations include dermatological treatment, education and psychological interventions. To investigate the effects of interdisciplinary inpatient rehabilitation in the framework of TIP on mental health in patients with severe OHE and the relationships between recovery of OHE and improvement of mental health and QoL. A total of 122 patients participated in the study. A test battery consisting of the German versions of the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS-D), the Dermatology Life Quality Index (DLQI), the Short Form Health Survey-36 (SF-36) and the Trier Inventory for the Assessment of Chronic Stress (TICS) was applied at the time of admission (T1) and 3 weeks after dismissal (T2). Severity of hand eczema was assessed with the Osnabrueck Hand Eczema Severity Index (OHSI). All parameters improved significantly from T1 to T2. A relationship was established between the improvement of QoL and recovery of OHE, while there was no such relationship between the improvement of mental distress and improvement of OHE. Nonresponders had significantly more cumulative days of sickness at T1. Our data underscore the importance of psychological interventions in addition to dermatological treatment in the framework of prevention measures for OHE. These measures should be applied at an early stage of OHE prior to the occurrence of sick leave. © 2015 European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology.

  15. Neuromuscular exercises prevent severe knee injury in adolescent team handball players.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Achenbach, Leonard; Krutsch, Volker; Weber, Johannes; Nerlich, Michael; Luig, Patrick; Loose, Oliver; Angele, Peter; Krutsch, Werner

    2017-10-20

    Team handball is associated with a high risk of severe knee injury that needs to be reduced, particularly at the youth level. The purpose of this study was to show how an injury-prevention programme effectively reduces severe knee injury in adolescent team handball players. Of 23 adolescent handball teams of both sexes, 13 were randomly allocated into the intervention group (168 players) and 10 into the control group (111 players). Players of the intervention group regularly participated in an injury-prevention programme for one season. Handball exposure and sustained injuries were documented for both groups on a monthly basis. The primary outcome parameter of the injury-prevention programme was the incidence of severe knee injury. Of the 279 included players, 68 (24%) sustained 82 injuries yielding an overall incidence of 1.85 injuries per 1000 h handball exposure (intervention group: 50 injuries/incidence: 1.90/1000 h; control group: 32 injuries/incidence: 1.78/1000 h). Knee injury was the second most frequent injury in adolescent team handball. The primary outcome parameter, severe knee injury occurred significantly more often in the control group [mean age (SD) 15.1 (1.0), injury incidence 0.33/1000 h] than in the intervention group [mean age (SD) 14.9 (0.9), injury incidence 0.04/1000 h]. The odds ratio was 0.11 (95% CI 0.01-0.90), p = 0.019. Other injuries to the lower extremities showed no significant difference between the two groups. Frequent neuromuscular exercises prevent severe knee injury in adolescent team handball players and should thus be included in the practical routine as well as in the education of team coaches.

  16. Impact and prevention of severe exacerbations of COPD: a review of the evidence

    Science.gov (United States)

    Halpin, David MG; Miravitlles, Marc; Metzdorf, Norbert; Celli, Bartolomé

    2017-01-01

    Severe exacerbations of COPD, ie, those leading to hospitalization, have profound clinical implications for patients and significant economic consequences for society. The prevalence and burden of severe COPD exacerbations remain high, despite recognition of the importance of exacerbation prevention and the availability of new treatment options. Severe COPD exacerbations are associated with high mortality, have negative impact on quality of life, are linked to cardiovascular complications, and are a significant burden on the health-care system. This review identified risk factors that contribute to the development of severe exacerbations, treatment options (bronchodilators, antibiotics, corticosteroids [CSs], oxygen therapy, and ventilator support) to manage severe exacerbations, and strategies to prevent readmission to hospital. Risk factors that are amenable to change have been highlighted. A number of bronchodilators have demonstrated successful reduction in risk of severe exacerbations, including long-acting muscarinic antagonist or long-acting β2-agonist mono- or combination therapies, in addition to vaccination, mucolytic and antibiotic therapy, and nonpharmacological interventions, such as pulmonary rehabilitation. Recognition of the importance of severe exacerbations is an essential step in improving outcomes for patients with COPD. Evidence-based approaches to prevent and manage severe exacerbations should be implemented as part of targeted strategies for disease management. PMID:29062228

  17. Evaluation of strategies for severe accident prevention and mitigation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tokarz, R.

    1989-01-01

    The NRC is planning to establish regulatory oversight on severe accident management capability in the US nuclear reactor industry. Accident management includes certain preparatory and recovery measures that can be taken by the plant operating and technical personnel to prevent or mitigate the consequences of a severe accident. Following an initiating event, accident management strategies include measures to (1) prevent core damage, (2) arrest the core damage if it begins and retain the core inside the vessel, (3) maintain containment integrity if the vessel is breached, and (4) minimize offsite releases. Objectives of the NRC Severe Accident Management Program are to assure that technically sound strategies are identified and guidance to implement these strategies is provided to utilities. This paper will describe work performed to date by Pacific Northwest Laboratory (PNL) and Battelle Memorial Institute (BMI) relative to severe accident strategy evaluation, as well as work to be performed and expected results. Working with Brookhaven National Laboratory, PNL evaluated a series of NRC suggested accident management strategies. The evaluation of these strategies was divided between PNL and Brookhaven National Laboratory and a similar paper will be presented by Brookhaven regarding their strategy evaluation. This paper will stress the overall safety issues related to the research and emphasize the strategies that are applicable to major safety issues. The relationship of these research activities to other projects is discussed, as well as planning for future changes in the direction of work to be undertaken

  18. Impact and prevention of severe exacerbations of COPD: a review of the evidence

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Halpin DMG

    2017-10-01

    Full Text Available David MG Halpin,1 Marc Miravitlles,2 Norbert Metzdorf,3 Bartolomé Celli4 1Department of Respiratory Medicine, Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital, Exeter, UK; 2Pneumology Department, Hospital Universitari Vall d’Hebron, CIBER de Enfermedades Respiratorias (CIBERES, Barcelona, Spain; 3Respiratory Medicine, Boehringer Ingelheim Pharma GmBH & Co KG, Ingelheim am Rhein, Germany; 4Pulmonary Division, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, MA, USA Abstract: Severe exacerbations of COPD, ie, those leading to hospitalization, have profound clinical implications for patients and significant economic consequences for society. The prevalence and burden of severe COPD exacerbations remain high, despite recognition of the importance of exacerbation prevention and the availability of new treatment options. Severe COPD exacerbations are associated with high mortality, have negative impact on quality of life, are linked to cardiovascular complications, and are a significant burden on the health-care system. This review identified risk factors that contribute to the development of severe exacerbations, treatment options (bronchodilators, antibiotics, corticosteroids [CSs], oxygen therapy, and ventilator support to manage severe exacerbations, and strategies to prevent readmission to hospital. Risk factors that are amenable to change have been highlighted. A number of bronchodilators have demonstrated successful reduction in risk of severe exacerbations, including long-acting muscarinic antagonist or long-acting β2-agonist mono- or combination therapies, in addition to vaccination, mucolytic and antibiotic therapy, and nonpharmacological interventions, such as pulmonary rehabilitation. Recognition of the importance of severe exacerbations is an essential step in improving outcomes for patients with COPD. Evidence-based approaches to prevent and manage severe exacerbations should be implemented as part of targeted strategies for disease management. Keywords

  19. Severe accident approach - final report. Evaluation of design measures for severe accident prevention and consequence mitigation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tentner, A.M.; Parma, E.; Wei, T.; Wigeland, R.

    2010-01-01

    An important goal of the US DOE reactor development program is to conceptualize advanced safety design features for a demonstration Sodium Fast Reactor (SFR). The treatment of severe accidents is one of the key safety issues in the design approach for advanced SFR systems. It is necessary to develop an in-depth understanding of the risk of severe accidents for the SFR so that appropriate risk management measures can be implemented early in the design process. This report presents the results of a review of the SFR features and phenomena that directly influence the sequence of events during a postulated severe accident. The report identifies the safety features used or proposed for various SFR designs in the US and worldwide for the prevention and/or mitigation of Core Disruptive Accidents (CDA). The report provides an overview of the current SFR safety approaches and the role of severe accidents. Mutual understanding of these design features and safety approaches is necessary for future collaborations between the US and its international partners as part of the GEN IV program. The report also reviews the basis for an integrated safety approach to severe accidents for the SFR that reflects the safety design knowledge gained in the US during the Advanced Liquid Metal Reactor (ALMR) and Integral Fast Reactor (IFR) programs. This approach relies on inherent reactor and plant safety performance characteristics to provide additional safety margins. The goal of this approach is to prevent development of severe accident conditions, even in the event of initiators with safety system failures previously recognized to lead directly to reactor damage.

  20. Severe accident approach - final report. Evaluation of design measures for severe accident prevention and consequence mitigation.

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Tentner, A. M.; Parma, E.; Wei, T.; Wigeland, R.; Nuclear Engineering Division; SNL; INL

    2010-03-01

    An important goal of the US DOE reactor development program is to conceptualize advanced safety design features for a demonstration Sodium Fast Reactor (SFR). The treatment of severe accidents is one of the key safety issues in the design approach for advanced SFR systems. It is necessary to develop an in-depth understanding of the risk of severe accidents for the SFR so that appropriate risk management measures can be implemented early in the design process. This report presents the results of a review of the SFR features and phenomena that directly influence the sequence of events during a postulated severe accident. The report identifies the safety features used or proposed for various SFR designs in the US and worldwide for the prevention and/or mitigation of Core Disruptive Accidents (CDA). The report provides an overview of the current SFR safety approaches and the role of severe accidents. Mutual understanding of these design features and safety approaches is necessary for future collaborations between the US and its international partners as part of the GEN IV program. The report also reviews the basis for an integrated safety approach to severe accidents for the SFR that reflects the safety design knowledge gained in the US during the Advanced Liquid Metal Reactor (ALMR) and Integral Fast Reactor (IFR) programs. This approach relies on inherent reactor and plant safety performance characteristics to provide additional safety margins. The goal of this approach is to prevent development of severe accident conditions, even in the event of initiators with safety system failures previously recognized to lead directly to reactor damage.

  1. Newborn Bilirubin Screening for Preventing Severe Hyperbilirubinemia and Bilirubin Encephalopathy: A Rapid Review.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bhardwaj, Kalpana; Locke, Tiffany; Biringer, Anne; Booth, Allyson; Darling, Elizabeth K; Dougan, Shelley; Harrison, Jane; Hill, Stephen; Johnson, Ana; Makin, Susan; Potter, Beth; Lacaze-Masmonteil, Thierry; Little, Julian

    2017-01-01

    According to the 2004 American Academy of Pediatrics guideline on the management of hyperbilirubinemia, every newborn should be assessed for the risk of developing severe hyperbilirubinemia with the help of predischarge total serum bilirubin or transcutaneous bilirubin measurements and/or assessments of clinical risk factors. The aim of this rapid review is 1) to review the evidence for 1) predicting and preventing severe hyperbilirubinemia and bilirubin encephalopathy, 2) determining the efficacy of home/community treatments (home phototherapy) in the prevention of severe hyperbilirubinemia, and 3) non-invasive/transcutaneous methods for estimating serum bilirubin level. In this rapid review, studies were identified through the Medline database. The main outcomes of interest were severe hyperbilirubinemia and encephalopathy. A subset of articles was double screened and all articles were critically appraised using the SIGN and AMSTAR checklists. This review investigated if systems approach is likely to reduce the occurrence of severe hyperbilirubinemia. Fifty-two studies met the inclusion criteria. Included studies assessed the association between bilirubin measurement early in neonatal life and the subsequent development of severe hyperbilirubinemia and chronic bilirubin encephalopathy/kernicterus. It was observed that, highest priority should be given to (i) universal bilirubin screening programs; (ii) implementation of community and midwife practice; (iii) outreach to communities for education of prospective parents; and (iv) development of clinical pathways to monitor, evaluate and track infants with severe hyperbilirubinemia. We found substantial observational evidence that severe hyperbilirubinemia can be accurately predicted and prevented through universal bilirubin screening. So far, there is no evidence of any harm. Copyright© Bentham Science Publishers; For any queries, please email at epub@benthamscience.org.

  2. [Clinical and neurophysiological aspects of severe forms of autism in children].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Simashkova, N V; Iakupova, L P; Bashina, V M

    2006-01-01

    The aim of the study was to elucidate fundamentals for the phenomenon of universality of childhood autism by comparison of clinical and neurophysiological features of its severest forms--children endogenous autism (CEA) and Rett's syndrome (RS). Each group included 20 patients. Both groups were similar by age-at-disease-onset, clinical appearances during the disease course and dynamics of psychopathological syndromes. The theta-rhythm is common for CEA and RS at the disease stage with marked signs of disease acuity, autism, regress and, therefore, may be regarded as a marker of severity and development delay. The universality of autism phenomenon in its severe forms was confirmed both at the clinical and neurophysiological levels.

  3. Prebiotics and probiotics: the prevention and reduction in severity of atopic dermatitis in children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Foolad, N; Armstrong, A W

    2014-06-01

    The purpose of this review was to identify whether supplementation with prebiotics and/or probiotics help prevent the development or reduce the severity of atopic dermatitis in children less than three years of age. Since 1997, immunostimulatory supplements, such as prebiotics and probiotics, have been investigated. Various supplementations include probiotics (single strain or mix), probiotics with formula, probiotics mix with prebiotics, and prebiotics. In this narrative review, we examined 13 key articles on prebiotics and/or probiotics, and their effects on infant atopic dermatitis. Among the selected studies, a total of 3,023 participants received supplements or placebo. Eight out of the 13 (61.5%) studies reported a significant effect on the prevention of atopic dermatitis after supplementation with probiotics and/or prebiotics. Five out of the 13 (38.5%) studies indicated significant reduction in the severity of atopic dermatitis after supplementation. Based on the available studies, supplementation with certain probiotics (Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG) appears to be an effective approach for the prevention and reduction in severity of atopic dermatitis. A mix of specific probiotic strains prevented atopic dermatitis among infants. Based on studies with prebiotics, there was a long-term reduction in the incidence of atopic dermatitis. Supplementation with prebiotics and probiotics appears useful for the reduction in the severity of atopic dermatitis. Additional interventional studies exploring prebiotics and probiotics are imperative before recommendations can be made.

  4. Parenteral Fish-Oil Lipid Emulsions in the Prevention of Severe Retinopathy of Prematurity: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vayalthrikkovil, Sakeer; Bashir, Rani A; Rabi, Yacov; Amin, Harish; Spence, Jill-Marie; Robertson, Helen Lee; Lodha, Abhay

    2017-06-01

    Objective  Omega-3 fatty acids are vital for brain and retinal maturation. It is not clear if early use of ω-3 fatty acids in the form of fish-oil lipid emulsions (FLEs) prevents retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) in preterm infants. The aim of this meta-analysis is to evaluate whether early administration of parenteral FLEs reduces ROP requiring laser therapy or severe ROP ≥stage 3 in preterm infants. Methods  A literature search was performed to identify studies comparing parenteral FLEs with soybean-based lipid emulsions (SLEs) in preventing ROP. The main outcome was incidence of severe ROP or ROP requiring laser therapy. Results  Studies met the inclusion criteria (four RCTs and two observational studies). The pooled relative risk of ROP requiring laser therapy or severe ROP ≥ stage 3 in FLEs group was 0.47 [95% CI: 0.24-0.90] and 0.40 [95% CI: 0.22-0.76] in RCTs and observational studies, respectively. FLEs also reduced cholestasis; however, other secondary outcomes of bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD), necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC), sepsis, intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH), and mortality were similar. Conclusion  The use of FLEs may reduce the incidence of severe ROP or need for laser therapy in preterm infants. A large multicenter RCT is required to confirm this. Thieme Medical Publishers 333 Seventh Avenue, New York, NY 10001, USA.

  5. [Cardiac and metabolic risk factors in severe mental disorders. Task of a prevention manager].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lederbogen, F; Schwarz, P; Häfner, S; Schweiger, U; Bohus, M; Deuschle, M

    2015-07-01

    People with severe mental disorders have a reduction in life expectancy of 13-30 % compared with the general population. This severe disadvantage is primarily due to an increased prevalence of cardiac and metabolic disorders, especially coronary heart disease (CHD) and type 2 diabetes mellitus and are the result of untoward health behavior characterized by smoking, low levels of physical activity and unhealthy dietary habits. Obesity, arterial hypertension and lipid disorders are also associated with this behavior and further increase the risk of CHD and type 2 diabetes. Thus, people with mental disorders constitute a population with a high risk of cardiovascular events. Appropriate measures for prevention and therapy are urgently indicated but rarely applied. This article presents new organizational structures to overcome this deficit with a prevention manager playing a central role in organizing and applying preventive and therapeutic care. Results from cardiology and diabetic medicine have shown the effectiveness of pooling this responsibility. The measure has the potential to reduce the increased mortality of people with severe mental disorders.

  6. Determination of benefit of early identification of severe forms of ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Background/Aims: A pilot study to determine benefits of early identification of severe forms of malaria in peripheral centres was carried out in 3 rural communities of South Eastern Nigeria. Methodology: The study area is located in the rain forest belt of South Eastern Nigeria with high temperature and humidity. It is a typical ...

  7. Prevention of heavy missiles during severe PWR accidents

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Krieg, R.

    1994-01-01

    For future pressurized water reactors, which should be designed against core melt down accidents, missiles generated inside the containment present a severe problem for its integrity. The masses and geometries of the missiles as well as their velocities may vary to a great extend. Therefore, a reliable proof of the containment integrity is very difficult. To overcome this problem the potential sources of missiles are discussed. In section 5 it is concluded that the generation of heavy missiles must be prevented. Steam explosions must not damage the reactor vessel head. Thus fragments of the head cannot become missiles endangering the containment shell. Furthermore, during a melt-through failure of the reactor vessel under high pressure the resulting forces must not catapult the whole vessel against the containment shell. Only missiles caused by hydrogen explosions might be tolerable, but shielding structures which protect the containment shell might be required. Here further investigations are necessary. Finally, measures are described showing that the generation of heavy missiles can indeed be prevented. In section 6 investigations are explained which will confirm the strength of the reactor vessel head. In section 7 a device is discussed keeping the fragments of a failing reactor vessel at its place. (author). 12 refs., 8 figs

  8. Natural Products and Dietary Prevention of Cancer

    Science.gov (United States)

    The concept of cancer prevention was first introduced in studies using the natural form of vitamin A in the prevention of epithelial cancers. Ever since, research on cancer prevention has grown and become a rather specialized field study. Cancer is a multistage process, and takes several years for...

  9. Simplified methods for the evaluation of the risk of forming renal stones and the follow-up of stone-forming propensity during the preventive treatment of stone-formation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Grases, Fèlix; Costa-Bauzá, Antonia

    2016-02-01

    Renal lithiasis is a complex multifactorial disease in which recurrence is common. Thus, simple and reliable procedures are needed to evaluate patients with previous kidney stones to determine the risk of recurrence. In this paper we review simple biochemical procedures that can be used to determine the risk for renal stone formation when the stone is available or unavailable for analysis. Our present knowledge of renal lithiasis indicates that renal stones form due to several well-defined factors. Analysis of the renal stone itself can provide important information about clinical factors that require further investigation. When the stone is unavailable, it is necessary to perform a general evaluation of main urinary risk factors associated to renal stone formation, but this study should be complemented considering information related to direct familial antecedents, recidivant degree, radiological images, medical history, and life style habits. Finally, tools for patient follow-up of stone-forming propensity during the preventive treatment are discussed .

  10. Diabetes: Good Diabetes Management and Regular Foot Care Help Prevent Severe Foot Sores

    Science.gov (United States)

    Amputation and diabetes: How to protect your feet Good diabetes management and regular foot care help prevent severe foot sores that ... and may require amputation. By Mayo Clinic Staff Diabetes complications can include nerve damage and poor blood ...

  11. Update on the management of severe hypertriglyceridemia--focus on free fatty acid forms of omega-3.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pirillo, Angela; Catapano, Alberico Luigi

    2015-01-01

    High levels of plasma triglycerides (TG) are a risk factor for cardiovascular diseases, often associated with anomalies in other lipids or lipoproteins. Hypertriglyceridemia (HTG), particularly at very high levels, significantly increases also the risk of acute pancreatitis. Thus, interventions to lower TG levels are required to reduce the risk of pancreatitis and cardiovascular disease. Several strategies may be adopted for TG reduction, including lifestyle changes and pharmacological interventions. Among the available drugs, the most commonly used for HTG are fibrates, nicotinic acid, and omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (usually a mixture of eicosapentaenoic acid, or EPA, and docosahexaenoic acid, or DHA). These last are available under different concentrated formulations containing high amounts of omega-3 fatty acids, including a mixture of EPA and DHA or pure EPA. The most recent formulation contains a free fatty acid (FFA) form of EPA and DHA, and exhibits a significantly higher bioavailability compared with the ethyl ester forms contained in the other formulations. This is due to the fact that the ethyl ester forms, to be absorbed, need to be hydrolyzed by the pancreatic enzymes that are secreted in response to fat intake, while the FFA do not. This higher bioavailability translates into a higher TG-lowering efficacy compared with the ethyl ester forms at equivalent doses. Omega-3 FFA are effective in reducing TG levels and other lipids in hypertriglyceridemic patients as well as in high cardiovascular risk patients treated with statins and residual HTG. Currently, omega-3 FFA formulation is under evaluation to establish whether, in high cardiovascular risk subjects, the addition of omega-3 to statin therapy may prevent or reduce major cardiovascular events.

  12. Prevention of Severe Hypoglycemia-Induced Brain Damage and Cognitive Impairment with Verapamil.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jackson, David A; Michael, Trevin; Vieira de Abreu, Adriana; Agrawal, Rahul; Bortolato, Marco; Fisher, Simon J

    2018-05-03

    People with insulin-treated diabetes are uniquely at risk for severe hypoglycemia-induced brain damage. Since calcium influx may mediate brain damage, we tested the hypothesis that the calcium channel blocker, verapamil, would significantly reduce brain damage and cognitive impairment caused by severe hypoglycemia. Ten-week-old Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly assigned to one of three treatments; 1) control hyperinsulinemic (200 mU.kg -1 min -1 ) euglycemic (80-100mg/dl) clamps (n=14), 2) hyperinsulinemic hypoglycemic (10-15mg/dl) clamps (n=16), or 3) hyperinsulinemic hypoglycemic clamps followed by a single treatment with verapamil (20mg/kg) (n=11). As compared to euglycemic controls, hypoglycemia markedly increased dead/dying neurons in the hippocampus and cortex, by 16-fold and 14-fold, respectively. Verapamil treatment strikingly decreased hypoglycemia-induced hippocampal and cortical damage, by 87% and 94%, respectively. Morris Water Maze probe trial results demonstrated that hypoglycemia induced a retention, but not encoding, memory deficit (noted by both abolished target quadrant preference and reduced target quadrant time). Verapamil treatment significantly rescued spatial memory as noted by restoration of target quadrant preference and target quadrant time. In summary, a one-time treatment with verapamil following severe hypoglycemia prevented neural damage and memory impairment caused by severe hypoglycemia. For people with insulin treated diabetes, verapamil may be a useful drug to prevent hypoglycemia-induced brain damage. © 2018 by the American Diabetes Association.

  13. Severe childhood malnutrition.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bhutta, Zulfiqar A; Berkley, James A; Bandsma, Robert H J; Kerac, Marko; Trehan, Indi; Briend, André

    2017-09-21

    The main forms of childhood malnutrition occur predominantly in children malnutrition. Here, we use the term 'severe malnutrition' to describe these conditions to better reflect the contributions of chronic poverty, poor living conditions with pervasive deficits in sanitation and hygiene, a high prevalence of infectious diseases and environmental insults, food insecurity, poor maternal and fetal nutritional status and suboptimal nutritional intake in infancy and early childhood. Children with severe malnutrition have an increased risk of serious illness and death, primarily from acute infectious diseases. International growth standards are used for the diagnosis of severe malnutrition and provide therapeutic end points. The early detection of severe wasting and kwashiorkor and outpatient therapy for these conditions using ready-to-use therapeutic foods form the cornerstone of modern therapy, and only a small percentage of children require inpatient care. However, the normalization of physiological and metabolic functions in children with malnutrition is challenging, and children remain at high risk of relapse and death. Further research is urgently needed to improve our understanding of the pathophysiology of severe malnutrition, especially the mechanisms causing kwashiorkor, and to develop new interventions for prevention and treatment.

  14. Severe accident analysis to prevent high pressure scenarios in the EPR TM

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Azarian, G.; Gandrille, P.; Gasperini, M.; Klein, R.

    2010-01-01

    The EPR TM has incorporated several design features in order to specifically address major severe accident safety issues. In particular, it was designed with the objective to transfer high pressure core melt scenarios into a low pressure scenario with high reliability so that a high pressure vessel failure can be practically eliminated. It is the key issue in the defense-in-depth approach, for a postulated severe accident with core melting, to prevent any risk of containment failure due to possible Direct Containment Heating or due to reactor vessel rocketing which results from vessel failure at high pressure. Temperature-induced steam generator tube rupture, which could lead to a radiological containment bypass, has also to be prevented. On the basis of the analysis of the main high pressure core melt scenarios which are calculated with the MAAP4.07 code which was developed to support the EPR TM, this paper explores the benefits of primary depressurization by dedicated valves on transient evolutions. It specifically addresses the thermal response of the structures by sensitivity studies involving the timing of valve actuation. It outlines that a grace period of at least one hour is available for a delayed valve actuation without inducing excessive loads and without increasing the risk of a temperature-induced steam generator tube rupture. (authors)

  15. Portable Filtered Air Suction System for Released Radioactive Gases Prevention under a Severe Accident of NPPs

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gu, Beom W.; Choi, Su Y.; Rim, Chun T.

    2013-01-01

    In this paper, the portable filtered air suction system (PoFASS) for released radioactive gases prevention under a severe accident of NPP is proposed. This technology can prevent the release of the radioactive gases to the atmosphere and it can be more economical than FVCS because PoFASS can cover many NPPs with its high mobility. The conceptual design of PoFASS, which has the highest cost effectiveness and robustness to the environment condition such as wind velocity and precipitation, is suggested and the related previous research is introduced in this paper. The portable filtered air suction system (PoFASS) for released radioactive gases prevention can play a key role to mitigate the severe accident of NPP with its high cost effectiveness and robustness to the environment conditions. As further works, the detail design of PoFASS to fabricate a prototype for a demonstration will be proceeded. When released radioactive gases from the broken containment building in the severe accident of nuclear power plants (NPPs) such as the Chernobyl and Fukushima accidents occur, there are no ways to prevent the released radioactive gases spreading in the air. In order to solve this problem, several European NPPs have adopted the filtered vented containment system (FVCS), which can avoid the containment failure through a pressure relief capability to protect the containment building against overpressure. However, the installation cost of FVCS for a NPP is more than $10 million and this system has not been widely welcomed by NPP operating companies due to its high cost

  16. Enhanced Severe Transient Analysis for Prevention Technical Program Plan

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Gougar, Hans [Idaho National Lab. (INL), Idaho Falls, ID (United States)

    2014-09-01

    This document outlines the development of a high fidelity, best estimate nuclear power plant severe transient simulation capability that will complement or enhance the integral system codes historically used for licensing and analysis of severe accidents. As with other tools in the Risk Informed Safety Margin Characterization (RISMC) Toolkit, the ultimate user of Enhanced Severe Transient Analysis and Prevention (ESTAP) capability is the plant decision-maker; the deliverable to that customer is a modern, simulation-based safety analysis capability, applicable to a much broader class of safety issues than is traditional Light Water Reactor (LWR) licensing analysis. Currently, the RISMC pathway’s major emphasis is placed on developing RELAP-7, a next-generation safety analysis code, and on showing how to use RELAP-7 to analyze margin from a modern point of view: that is, by characterizing margin in terms of the probabilistic spectra of the “loads” applied to systems, structures, and components (SSCs), and the “capacity” of those SSCs to resist those loads without failing. The first objective of the ESTAP task, and the focus of one task of this effort, is to augment RELAP-7 analyses with user-selected multi-dimensional, multi-phase models of specific plant components to simulate complex phenomena that may lead to, or exacerbate, severe transients and core damage. Such phenomena include: coolant crossflow between PWR assemblies during a severe reactivity transient, stratified single or two-phase coolant flow in primary coolant piping, inhomogeneous mixing of emergency coolant water or boric acid with hot primary coolant, and water hammer. These are well-documented phenomena associated with plant transients but that are generally not captured in system codes. They are, however, generally limited to specific components, structures, and operating conditions. The second ESTAP task is to similarly augment a severe (post-core damage) accident integral analyses code

  17. A rare form of atrioventricular septal defect with severe subaortic stenosis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Venugopalan, P; Agarwal, A K; Reyes, Z

    2001-06-01

    An unusual form of atrioventricular septal defect associated with severe subaortic obstruction is reported in a neonate who presented with intractable cardiac failure. The baby had a large defect in the atrioventricular septum allowing communication from the left ventricle to the right atrium, without interatrial or interventricular communication, and a cleft anterior mitral leaflet. The baby expired despite palliative surgery performed to bypass the subaortic stenosis.

  18. Prevention of pressure ulcers in patients undergoing subacute rehabilitation after severe brain injury: An observational study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sachs, Marianne Brostrup; Wolffbrandt, Mia Moth; Poulsen, Ingrid

    2018-01-09

    To uncover efforts made by healthcare professionals to prevent pressure ulcers in patients with severe brain injury undergoing treatment at a subacute rehabilitation department. Pressure ulcers are a major burden for patients and also generate considerable healthcare costs. Pressure ulcers are, nevertheless, prevalent in both secondary care and primary care. In this qualitative study, we performed 24-hour observation on four patients undergoing rehabilitation for severe brain injury. An observation guide was developed inspired by the Braden Scale and Spradley's theory and methods. Observations were analysed using content analysis. Patricia Benner's aspects of clinical grasp were employed in the interpretation of the observations. One overarching theme was identified: "Professionalism expressed by preventing intervention, involving the patient, employing clinical grasp and professional pride." Seven subcategories were summed up into the following three categories: organisation of clinical practice, professional assessment and interactions with the patient. The healthcare professionals' actions to prevent pressure ulcers consisted of attaining the necessary knowledge about pressure ulcer care and performing the activities. However, our observations revealed one important additional aspect: a very distinct impression that the healthcare professionals were committed to learning about the patients' former life and actively used this knowledge in their planning and provision of daily patient care. We believe this commitment has a very positive effect on prevention of pressure ulcers. Professional knowledge about prevention of pressure ulcer is a necessary requisite, but is not sufficient to ensure effective treatment. To transfer knowledge into practice, we recommend that patients' rehabilitation days be planned in such a manner that activities, mobilisation and training are conducted throughout the day and evening. We also recommend that professional staff are

  19. Ocular firework trauma: a systematic review on incidence, severity, outcome and prevention.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wisse, R P L; Bijlsma, W R; Stilma, J S

    2010-12-01

    To provide a systematic review on ocular firework trauma with emphasis on incidence and patient demographics, the extent of ocular trauma and visual function loss, and firework regulation effects on injury rates. A literature search was performed using predetermined inclusion and exclusion criteria. Demographic characteristics of ocular firework casualties were obtained and incidence rates of sustained trauma and vision loss calculated. Twenty-six relevant articles were suitable for calculation of trauma incidence and patient demographics, of which 17 articles could be used for calculating trauma severity and vision loss. Victims were male (77%), young (82%) and often bystander (47%). Most of the trauma was mild and temporary. Penetrating eye trauma, globe contusions and burns accounted for 18.2%, with a 3.9% enucleation rate. Mean visual acuity was >10/20 in 56.8%, with severe vision loss (firework legislation show 87% less eye trauma (pfirework traumas show severe vision loss, mostly in young males. Bystanders are as frequently injured. Firework traumas are a preventable cause of severe ocular injury and blindness because countries using restrictive firework legislation have remarkable lower trauma incidence rates.

  20. Thermo-responsive in-situ forming hydrogels as barriers to prevent post-operative peritendinous adhesion.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chou, Pang-Yun; Chen, Shih-Heng; Chen, Chih-Hao; Chen, Shih-Hsien; Fong, Yi Teng; Chen, Jyh-Ping

    2017-11-01

    In this study, we aimed to assess whether thermo-responsive in-situ forming hydrogels based on poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAM) could prevent post-operative peritendinous adhesion. The clinical advantages of the thermo-responsive hydrogels are acting as barrier material to block penetration of fibroblasts, providing mobility and flexibility during application and enabling injection through a small opening to fill spaces of any shape after surgery. The thermo-responsiveness of hydrogels was determined to ensure their clinic uses. By grafting hydrophilic biopolymers chitosan (CS) and hyaluronic acid (HA) to PNIPAM, the copolymer hydrogels show enhanced water retention and lubrication, while reduced volume shrinkage during phase transition. In cell culture experiments, the thermo-responsive hydrogel has good biocompatibility and reduces fibroblast penetration. In animal experiments, the effectiveness of preventing post-operative peritendinous adhesion was studied in a rabbit deep flexor tendon model. From gross examination, histology, bending angles of joints, tendon gliding excursion and pull-out force, HA-CS-PNIPAM (HACPN) was confirmed to be the best barrier material to prevent post-operative peritendinous adhesion compared to PNIPAM and CS-PNIPAM (CPN) hydrogels and a commercial barrier film Seprafilm®. There was no significant difference in the breaking strength of HACPN-treated tendons and spontaneously healed ones, indicating HACPN hydrogel application did not interfere with normal tendon healing. We conclude that HACPN hydrogel can provide the best functional outcomes to significantly prevent post-operative tendon adhesion in vivo. We prepared thermo-responsive in-situ forming hydrogels based on poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAM) to prevent post-operative peritendinous adhesion. The injectable barrier hydrogel could have better anti-adhesive properties than current commercial products by acting as barrier material to block penetration of fibroblasts

  1. Prevention of Graves' ophthalmopathy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bartalena, Luigi

    2012-06-01

    Smoking is the most important risk factor for the occurrence/progression of Graves' ophthalmopathy (GO), as well as for its lower/slower response to immunosuppression. Accordingly, refrain from smoking should be urged, both as primary prevention (removal of risk factors in Graves' patients without GO), secondary prevention (early detection and treatment of asymptomatic/very mild GO) and tertiary prevention (reduction of complications/disability of overt GO). A 6-month course of 200 μg/day sodium selenite can prevent progression of mild GO to more severe GO and is, therefore, a form of secondary prevention and, probably, primary prevention. Correction of thyroid dysfunction and stable maintenance of euthyroidism are important preventive measures. The optimal treatment for hyperthyroidism in patients with GO is uncertain, because evidence demonstrating the superiority of antithyroid drugs over thyroid ablation (radioiodine, thyroidectomy, or both) is lacking. If radioiodine is used, low-dose steroid prophylaxis is recommended, particularly in smokers, to prevent radioiodine-associated GO progression. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  2. Hatha Yoga as a Form of Physical Activity in the Context of Lifestyle Disease Prevention

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Grabara Małgorzata

    2017-06-01

    Full Text Available Physical activity is interrelated with health, physical fitness, and quality of life. The role physical activity plays in the context of lifestyle disease prevention is indisputable. Physical exercises of yoga (hatha yoga are a type of recreational physical activity classified as a form of body and mind fitness. Hatha yoga training consists of slow or fast and smooth entering into, holding, and exiting yoga postures called “asanas”. Besides asanas, a yoga class may also include breathing exercises (pranayama and relaxation exercises. The aim of this paper is to analyse the benefits of regular hatha yoga training in the light of scientific studies in regard to primary and secondary prevention of lifestyle diseases (cardiovascular diseases, respiratory system diseases, type 2 diabetes, obesity, and diseases of the musculoskeletal system in particular. The results of the analysis revealed that regular hatha yoga training including pranayama (breathing exercises produced a reduction in blood pressure and heart rate, improved respiratory functions, decreased blood glucose levels and body mass, as well as improving functional fitness and self-perceived quality of life. Therefore, hatha yoga as a form of physical activity can be a useful intervention for primary and secondary prevention of cardiovascular diseases, respiratory system diseases, metabolic diseases, and diseases of the musculoskeletal system, including back pain.

  3. Subject description form of crime prevention (morphological analysis

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Валерій Федорович Оболенцев

    2016-06-01

    Full Text Available Activities of the National Crime Prevention is a system object. Therefore, it should be improving on the basis of systems analysis techniques. The practice of systematic approach was realized in the works of  N. F. Kuznetsova, A. I. Dolgova, D. O. Li, V. M. Dryomin, O. Y. Manokha, O. G. Frolova. Crime models developed C. Y. Vitsin, Y. D. Bluvshteyn, N. V. Smetanina. We previously disclosed basic principles of system analysis system to prevent crime and its genetic and prognostic aspects, classification features, systemic factors latentyzatsiyi criminogenic factors - object protective activity, the amount of protected public relations. In order to investigate the systemic properties of the system of crime prevention in Ukraine we have defined objectives of the study - to its morphological analysis. Elements of a specialized system of crime prevention - a prosecution, Interior, Security Service, the Military Service of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine, bodies of state border protection agencies revenues and fees, enforcement and penal institutions, remand centers, public financial control, fisheries, the state forest protection. We determined depth analysis of your system functions at the level of law enforcement agencies. Intercom system to prevent crime is information links between elements of the system (transfer of information on crimes and criminals current activity. External relations systems provide processes of interaction with the environment. For crime prevention system external relations are relations of elements (law enforcement society. In the system of crime prevention implemented such coordination links: 1 Departmental coordination meeting of law enforcement agencies; 2 inter-agency coordination meeting of law enforcement agencies (Prosecutor General of Ukraine, the State Border Service of Ukraine and others. 3 mutual exchange of information; 4 order the prosecution, SBU on other agencies

  4. Severe maternal morbidity due to sepsis: The burden and preventability of disease in New Zealand.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lepine, Sam; Lawton, Beverley; Geller, Stacie; Abels, Peter; MacDonald, Evelyn J

    2018-02-20

    Sepsis is a life-threatening systemic condition that appears to be increasing in the obstetric population. Clinical detection can be difficult and may result in increased morbidity via delays in the continuum of patient care. To describe the burden of severe maternal morbidity (SMM) caused by sepsis in New Zealand and investigate the potential preventability. A multidisciplinary expert review panel was established to review cases of obstetric sepsis admitted to intensive care or high-dependency units over an 18 month span in New Zealand. Cases were then analysed for the characteristics of infection and their preventability. Fifty cases met the inclusion criteria, most commonly due to uterine, respiratory or kidney infection. Fifty per cent (25) of these cases were deemed potentially preventable, predominantly due to delays in diagnosis and treatment. A high index of suspicion, development of early recognition systems and multi-disciplinary training are recommended to decrease preventable cases of maternal sepsis. © 2018 The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists.

  5. Update on the management of severe hypertriglyceridemia – focus on free fatty acid forms of omega-3

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Pirillo A

    2015-04-01

    Full Text Available Angela Pirillo,1,2 Alberico Luigi Catapano2,3 1Center for the Study of Atherosclerosis, Bassini Hospital, Cinisello Balsamo, Italy; 2IRCCS Multimedica, Milan, Italy; 3Department of Pharmacological and Biomolecular Sciences, Università degli Studi di Milano, Milan, Italy Abstract: High levels of plasma triglycerides (TG are a risk factor for cardiovascular diseases, often associated with anomalies in other lipids or lipoproteins. Hypertriglyceridemia (HTG, particularly at very high levels, significantly increases also the risk of acute pancreatitis. Thus, interventions to lower TG levels are required to reduce the risk of pancreatitis and cardiovascular disease. Several strategies may be adopted for TG reduction, including lifestyle changes and pharmacological interventions. Among the available drugs, the most commonly used for HTG are fibrates, nicotinic acid, and omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (usually a mixture of eicosapentaenoic acid, or EPA, and docosahexaenoic acid, or DHA. These last are available under different concentrated formulations containing high amounts of omega-3 fatty acids, including a mixture of EPA and DHA or pure EPA. The most recent formulation contains a free fatty acid (FFA form of EPA and DHA, and exhibits a significantly higher bioavailability compared with the ethyl ester forms contained in the other formulations. This is due to the fact that the ethyl ester forms, to be absorbed, need to be hydrolyzed by the pancreatic enzymes that are secreted in response to fat intake, while the FFA do not. This higher bioavailability translates into a higher TG-lowering efficacy compared with the ethyl ester forms at equivalent doses. Omega-3 FFA are effective in reducing TG levels and other lipids in hypertriglyceridemic patients as well as in high cardiovascular risk patients treated with statins and residual HTG. Currently, omega-3 FFA formulation is under evaluation to establish whether, in high cardiovascular risk

  6. Validity and Reliability of the Turkish version of DSM-5 Social Anxiety Disorder Severity Scale- Child Form.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yalin Sapmaz, Şermin; Ergin, Dilek; Şen Celasin, Nesrin; Karaarslan, Duygu; Öztürk, Masum; Özek Erkuran, Handan; Köroğlu, Ertuğrul; Aydemir, Ömer

    2017-12-01

    This study aimed to assess the validity and reliability of the Turkish version of the Diagnostic and statistical manual of Mental Disorders. (5 th ed.) (DSM-5) Social Anxiety Disorder Severity Scale- Child Form. The scale was prepared by carrying out the translation and back translation of the DSM-5 Social Anxiety Disorder Severity Scale - Child Form. The study group consisted of 31 patients that had been treated in a child psychiatry unit and diagnosed with social anxiety disorder and 99 healthy volunteers that were attending middle or high school during the study period. For the assessment, the Screen for Child Anxiety and Related Emotional Disorders (SCARED) was also used along with the DSM-5 Social Anxiety Disorder Severity Scale - Child Form. Regarding reliability analyses, Cronbach's alpha internal consistency coefficient was calculated as 0.941, while item-total score correlation coefficients were measured between 0.566 and 0.866. A test-retest correlation coefficient was calculated as r=0.711. As for construct validity, one factor that could explain 66.0 % of the variance was obtained. As for concurrent validity, the scale showed a high correlation with the SCARED. It was concluded that the Turkish version of the DSM-5 Social Anxiety Disorder Severity Scale - Child Form could be utilized as a valid and reliable tool both in clinical practice and for research purposes.

  7. [School shootings in Germany: current trends in the prevention of severe, targeted violence in German schools].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bondü, Rebecca; Scheithauer, Herbert

    2009-01-01

    In March and September 2009 the school shootings in Winnenden and Ansbach once again demonstrated the need for preventive approaches in order to prevent further offences in Germany. Due to the low frequency of such offences and the low specificity of relevant risk factors known so far, prediction and prevention seems difficult though. None the less, several preventive approaches are currently discussed. The present article highlights these approaches and their specific advantages and disadvantages. As school shootings are multicausally determined, approaches focussing only on single aspects (i.e. prohibiting violent computer games or further strengthening gun laws) do not meet requirements. Other measures such as installing technical safety devices or optimizing actions of police and school attendants are supposed to reduce harm in case of emergency. Instead, scientifically founded and promising preventive approaches focus on secondary prevention and for this purpose employ the threat assessment approach, which is widespread within the USA. In this framework, responsible occupational groups such as teachers, school psychologists and police officers are to be trained in identifying students' warning signs, judging danger of these students for self and others in a systematic process and initiating suitable interventions.

  8. Red peppers with moderate and severe pungency prevent the memory deficit and hepatic insulin resistance in diabetic rats with Alzheimer's disease.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yang, Hye Jeong; Kwon, Dae Young; Kim, Min Jung; Kang, Suna; Moon, Na Rang; Daily, James W; Park, Sunmin

    2015-01-01

    Dementia induced by β-amyloid accumulation impairs peripheral glucose homeostasis, but red pepper extract improves glucose homeostasis. We therefore evaluated whether long-term oral consumption of different red pepper extracts improves cognitive dysfunction and glucose homeostasis in type 2 diabetic rats with β-amyloid-induced dementia. Male diabetic rats received hippocampal CA1 infusions of β-amyloid (25-35) (AD) or β-amyloid (35-25, non-plaque forming), at a rate of 3.6 nmol/day for 14 days (Non-AD). AD rats were divided into four dietary groups receiving either 1% lyophilized 70% ethanol extracts of either low, moderate and severe pungency red peppers (AD-LP, AD-MP, and AD-SP) or 1% dextrin (AD-CON) in Western diets (43% energy as fat). The ascending order of control memory deficit measured by passive avoidance test and water maze test. Furthermore, the accumulation of β-amyloid induced glucose intolerance, although serum insulin levels were elevated during the late phase of oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT). All of the red pepper extracts prevented the glucose intolerance in AD rats. Consistent with OGTT results, during euglycemic hyperinulinemic clamp glucose infusion rates were lower in AD-CON than Non-AD-CON with no difference in whole body glucose uptake. Hepatic glucose output at the hyperinsulinemic state was increased in AD-CON. β-amyloid accumulation exacerbated hepatic insulin resistance, but all red pepper extract treatments reversed the insulin resistance in AD rats. The extracts of moderate and severe red peppers were found to prevent the memory deficit and exacerbation of insulin resistance by blocking tau phosphorylation and β-amyloid accumulation in diabetic rats with experimentally induced Alzheimer's-like dementia. These results suggest that red pepper consumption might be an effective intervention for preventing age-related memory deficit.

  9. Prevention of pressure ulcers in patients undergoing sub-acute rehabilitation after severe brain injury

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Sachs, Marianne Brostrup; Wolffbrandt, Mia Moth; Poulsen, Ingrid

    2018-01-01

    OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to uncover efforts made by healthcare professionals to prevent pressure ulcers (PUs) in patients with severe brain injury undergoing treatment at a sub-acute rehabilitation department. BACKGROUND: PUs is a major burden for patients and also generate considerable...... healthcare costs. PUs are, nevertheless, prevalent in both secondary and primary care. DESIGN: In this qualitative study, we performed 24-hour observation on four patients undergoing rehabilitation for severe brain injury. An observation guide was developed inspired by the Braden Scale and Spradley's theory...... that patients' rehabilitation days be planned in such a manner that activities, mobilisation and training are conducted throughout the day and evening. We also recommend that professional staff are encouraged to seek information about the former life of patients with severe brain injury. This article...

  10. Natural Disasters under the Form of Severe Storms in Europe: the Cause-Effect Analysis

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Virginia Câmpeanu

    2009-07-01

    Full Text Available For more than 100 years, from 1900 to 2008, there were almost 400 storms natural disasters in Europe, 40% of which occurred in the 1990s. The international prognoses for the world weather suggest a tendency toward increasing in frequency and intensity of the severe storms as the climate warms. In these circumstances, for a researcher in the field of Environmental Economics, a natural question occurs, on whether people can contribute to reducing the frequency and the magnitude of severe storms that produce disastreous social and economic effects, by acting on their causes. In researching an answer to support the public policies in the field, a cause-effect analysis applied to Europe might make a contribution to the literature in the field. This especially considering the fact that international literature regarding the factors influencing global warming contains certainties in regard to the natural factors of influence, but declared incertitudes or skepticism in regard to anthropogenic ones. Skepticism, and even tension arised during the international negotiations in Copenhagen (December 2009 in regard to the agreement for limiting global warming, with doubts being raised about the methods used by experts of the International Climate Experts Group (GIEC, and thus the results obtained, which served as a basis for the negotiations. The object of critics was in regard to the form, and at times in regard to the content. It was not about contesting the phenomenon of Global warming during the negotiations, but the methods of calculation. The methodology relies on qualitative (type top down and quantitative (type correlations bottom up cause-effect analysis of the storm disasters in Europe. Based on the instruments used, we proposed a dynamic model of association of the evolution of storm disasters in Europe with anthropogenic factors, with 3 variants. Results: The diagram cause-effect (Ishikawa or fishbone diagram and quantitative correlation of sub

  11. 8 CFR 1214.2 - Review of alien victims of severe forms of trafficking in persons; aliens in pending immigration...

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-01-01

    ... 8 Aliens and Nationality 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Review of alien victims of severe forms of trafficking in persons; aliens in pending immigration proceedings. 1214.2 Section 1214.2 Aliens and... NONIMMIGRANT CLASSES § 1214.2 Review of alien victims of severe forms of trafficking in persons; aliens in...

  12. Assessment of severe accident prevention and mitigation features: PWR, large dry containment design

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Perkins, K.R.; Hsu, C.J.; Lehner, J.R.; Luckas, W.J.; Cho, N.; Fitzpatrick, R.G.; Pratt, W.T.; Eltawila, F.; Maly, J.A.

    1988-07-01

    Plant features and operator actions which have been found to be important in either preventing or mitigating severe accidents in PWRs with large dry containments have been identified. These features and actions were developed from insights derived from reviews of risk assessments performed specifically for the Zion plant and from assessments of other relevant studies. Accident sequences that dominate the core-damage frequency and those accident sequences that are of potentially high consequence were identified. Vulnerabilities of the large dry containment to severe accident containment loads were also identified. In addition, those features of a PWR with a large dry containment, which are important for preventing core damage and are available for mitigating fission-product release to the environment were identified. The report is issued to provide focus to the analyst examining an individual plant. The report calls attention to plant features and operator actions and provides a list of deterministic tributes for assessing those features and actions found to be helpful in reducing the overall risk for Zion and other PWRs with large dry containments. Thus, the guidance is offered as a resource in examining the subject plant to determine if the same, or similar, plant features and operator actions will be of value in reducing overall plant risk. This report is intended to serve solely as guidance

  13. Assessment of severe accident prevention and mitigation features: PWR, ice-condenser containment design

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hsu, C.J.; Perkins, K.R.; Luckas, W.J.; Fitzpatrick, R.G.; Cho, N.; Lehner, J.R.; Pratt, W.T.; Eltawila, F.; Maly, J.A.

    1988-07-01

    Plant features and operator actions which have been found to be important in either preventing and mitigating severe accidents in PWRs with ice-condenser containments have been identified. Thus features and actions were developed from insights derived from reviews of risk assessments performed specifically for the Sequoyah plant and from assessments of other relevant studies. Accident sequences that dominate the core-damage frequency and those accident sequences that are of potentially high consequence were identified. Vulnerabilities of the ice-condenser containment to sever accident containment loads were also identified. In addition, those features of a PWR with an ice-condenser containment, which are important for preventing core damage and are available for mitigating fission-product release to the environment were identified. This report is issued to provide focus to an analyst examining an individual plant. The report calls attention to plant features and operator actions and provides a list of deterministic attributes for assessing those features and actions found to be helpful in reducing the overall risk for Sequoyah and other PWRs with ice-condenser containments. Thus, the guidance is offered as a resource in examining the subject plant to determine if the same, or similar, plant features and operator actions will be of value in reducing overall plant risk. This report is intended to serve solely as guidance. 14 tabs

  14. Assessment of severe accident prevention and mitigation features: BWR, Mark II containment design

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lehner, J.R.; Hsu, C.J.; Eltawila, F.; Perkins, K.R.; Luckas, W.J.; Fitzpatrick, R.G.; Pratt, W.T.

    1988-07-01

    Plant features and operator actions, which have been found to be important in either preventing or mitigating severe accidents in BWRs with Mark II containments (BWR Mark II's) have been identified. These features and actions were developed from insights derived from reviews of in-depth risk assessments performed specifically for the Limerick and Shoreham plants and from other relevant studies. Accident sequences that dominate the core-damage frequency and those accident sequences that are of potentially high consequence were identified. Vulnerabilities of the BWR Mark II to severe-accident containment loads were also noted. In addition, those features of a BWR Mark II, which are important for preventing core damage and are available for mitigating fission-product release to the environment were also identified. This report is issued to provide focus to an analyst examining an individual plant. This report calls attention to plant features and operator actions and provides a list of deterministic attributes for assessing those features and actions found to be helpful in reducing the overall risk for Mark II plants. Thus, the guidance is offered as a resource in examining the subject plant to determine if the same, or similar, plant features and operator actions will be of value in reducing overall plant risk. This report is intended to serve solely as guidance

  15. Can prevention classification be improved by considering the function of prevention?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Foxcroft, David R

    2014-12-01

    Universal, selective and indicated forms of prevention have been adopted as improvements on previous notions of primary and secondary prevention. However, some conceptual confusion remains concerning the placing of environmental, community-based or mass media preventive interventions within this typology. It is suggested that a new dimension of functional types of prevention, namely environmental, developmental and informational prevention should be specified alongside the forms of prevention in a taxonomy matrix. The main advantage of this new taxonomy is that a matrix combining the form and function dimensions of prevention can be used to identify and map out prevention strategies, to consider where research evidence is present and where more is needed, and to evaluate the relative effectiveness of different categories and components of prevention for specific health and social issues. Such evaluations would provide empirical evidence as to whether the different categories of prevention are related to outcomes or processes of prevention in ways that suggest the value of the taxonomy for understanding and increasing the impact of prevention science. This new prevention taxonomy has been useful for conceptualising and planning prevention activities in a case study involving the Swedish National Institute for Public Health. Future work should assess (1) the robustness of this new taxonomy and (2) the theoretical and empirical basis for profiling prevention investments across the various forms and functions of prevention.

  16. Career Development and Adults with Moderate to Severe Mental Retardation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wadsworth, John; Cocco, Karen

    Lifelong career development activities may assist persons with more severe forms of mental retardation in achieving occupational tenure. Occupational tenure is important if individuals are to move away from a succession of entry-level employment. Adaptive career development strategies and techniques may prevent job dissatisfaction and poor…

  17. Update on entecavir in the management of severe forms of Hepatitis B

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sacco R

    2012-05-01

    Full Text Available Rodolfo SaccoDepartment of Gastroenterology, Pisa University Hospital, Pisa, ItalyAbstract: Despite the effective management of most cases of hepatitis B virus (HBV infection, there is still much room for improvement in the treatment of more severe cases of hepatitis B, such as those occurring in patients with decompensated cirrhosis, in transplanted subjects, and in patients with exacerbations of HBV infection. Among the treatments currently approved for the therapy of hepatitis B, entecavir determines a rapid suppression of viral load. This drug is also associated with a high genetic barrier and an overall favorable safety profile. This review provides an overview of recent evidence related to the use of entecavir in the management of the most severe forms of hepatitis B. The results obtained for this drug in real-life clinical practice are also reviewed.Keywords: entecavir, HBV, hepatitis B, chronic hepatitis

  18. Subject description form of crime prevention (morphological analysis)

    OpenAIRE

    Валерій Федорович Оболенцев

    2016-01-01

    Activities of the National Crime Prevention is a system object. Therefore, it should be improving on the basis of systems analysis techniques. The practice of systematic approach was realized in the works of  N. F. Kuznetsova, A. I. Dolgova, D. O. Li, V. M. Dryomin, O. Y. Manokha, O. G. Frolova. Crime models developed C. Y. Vitsin, Y. D. Bluvshteyn, N. V. Smetanina. We previously disclosed basic principles of system analysis system to prevent crime and its genetic and prognostic aspec...

  19. δ-Tocotrienol, a natural form of vitamin E, inhibits pancreatic cancer stem-like cells and prevents pancreatic cancer metastasis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Husain, Kazim; Centeno, Barbara A; Coppola, Domenico; Trevino, Jose; Sebti, Said M; Malafa, Mokenge P

    2017-05-09

    The growth, metastasis, and chemotherapy resistance of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is characterized by the activation and growth of tumor-initiating cells in distant organs that have stem-like properties. Thus, inhibiting growth of these cells may prevent PDAC growth and metastases. We have demonstrated that δ-tocotrienol, a natural form of vitamin E (VEDT), is bioactive against cancer, delays progression, and prevents metastases in transgenic mouse models of PDAC. In this report, we provide the first evidence that VEDT selectively inhibits PDAC stem-like cells. VEDT inhibited the viability, survival, self-renewal, and expression of Oct4 and Sox2 transcription factors in 3 models of PDAC stem-like cells. In addition, VEDT inhibited the migration, invasion, and several biomarkers of epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition and angiogenesis in PDAC cells and tumors. These processes are critical for tumor metastases. Furthermore, in the L3.6pl orthotopic model of PDAC metastases, VEDT significantly inhibited growth and metastases of these cells. Finally, in an orthotopic xenograft model of human PDAC stem-like cells, we showed that VEDT significantly retarded the growth and metastases of gemcitabine-resistant PDAC human stem-like cells. Because VEDT has been shown to be safe and to reach bioactive levels in humans, this work supports investigating VEDT for chemoprevention of PDAC metastases.

  20. A puzzle form of a non-verbal intelligence test gives significantly higher performance measures in children with severe intellectual disability.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bello, Katrina D; Goharpey, Nahal; Crewther, Sheila G; Crewther, David P

    2008-08-01

    Assessment of 'potential intellectual ability' of children with severe intellectual disability (ID) is limited, as current tests designed for normal children do not maintain their interest. Thus a manual puzzle version of the Raven's Coloured Progressive Matrices (RCPM) was devised to appeal to the attentional and sensory preferences and language limitations of children with ID. It was hypothesized that performance on the book and manual puzzle forms would not differ for typically developing children but that children with ID would perform better on the puzzle form. The first study assessed the validity of this puzzle form of the RCPM for 76 typically developing children in a test-retest crossover design, with a 3 week interval between tests. A second study tested performance and completion rate for the puzzle form compared to the book form in a sample of 164 children with ID. In the first study, no significant difference was found between performance on the puzzle and book forms in typically developing children, irrespective of the order of completion. The second study demonstrated a significantly higher performance and completion rate for the puzzle form compared to the book form in the ID population. Similar performance on book and puzzle forms of the RCPM by typically developing children suggests that both forms measure the same construct. These findings suggest that the puzzle form does not require greater cognitive ability but demands sensory-motor attention and limits distraction in children with severe ID. Thus, we suggest the puzzle form of the RCPM is a more reliable measure of the non-verbal mentation of children with severe ID than the book form.

  1. [Non-operative treatment for severe forms of infantile idiopathic scoliosis].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Trobisch, P D; Samdani, A; O'Neil, C; Betz, R; Cahill, P

    2012-02-01

    Infantile idiopathic scoliosis (IIS) is a rare orthopaedic condition. Braces and casts are popular options in the treatment of IIS but there is a paucity of studies commenting on the outcome of non-operative treatment. The purpose of this study was to analyse failure and success after non-operative treatment for severe forms of IIS. We retrospectively reviewed the data of all children who had been treated for IIS between 2003 and 2009 at a single institution. After calculating the failure and success rates, we additionally performed a risk factor analysis for patients who failed non-operative treatment. Chi (2) and T tests were used for statistical analysis with significance set at p failure (55 versus 42) while neither age, gender, nor RVAD seem to influence the outcome. In children who were considered as successfully treated, the Cobb angle decreased from 42 to 18 degrees. Non-operative treatment for IIS is successful in 3 out of 4 patients. © Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.

  2. 28 CFR 1100.31 - Procedures for protecting and providing services to victims of severe forms of trafficking in...

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ... risk of transmission of sexually transmitted diseases to the victim. Other forms of mental health... sexually transmitted diseases in cases involving sexual assault or trafficking into the sex industry, as... services to victims of severe forms of trafficking in persons in federal custody. 1100.31 Section 1100.31...

  3. Evaluation of a cavity flooding strategy for the prevention of reactor vessel failure in a severe accident

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Park, Rae Joon; Je, Moo Sung; Park, Chang Kyoo [Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, TaeJon (Korea, Republic of)

    1994-10-01

    As a part of the evaluation of accident management strategies for severe accident prevention or mitigation in a station blackout scenario for YGN 3 and 4, an external vessel cooling strategy for the prevention of reactor vessel failure has been estimated using the MAAP4 computer code. The sensitivity studies have been performed such as actuating timings and the number of spray pumps used. To explore external vessel cooling strategies, containment spray pumps were actuated by varying time spanning core uncovery, core melting and relocation of molten core material. It was shown that flooding of the reactor cavity using the containment spray system may prevent reactor vessel failure but may not prevent the failure of the relocation of molten core material during the station blackout sequence of YGN 3 and 4. Reactor vessel failure can be prevented by external vessel cooling using condensed water from the operation of two containment spray pumps at the time of core melting and using water from the operation of one containment spray pumps at the time of core melting and using water from the operation of one containment spray pump at the time of core uncovery. (Author) 46 refs., 26 figs., 5 tabs.

  4. IAEA Regional Workshop on Development and Validation of EOP/AMG for Effective Prevention/Mitigation of Severe Core Damage

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1999-01-01

    Materials of the IAEA Regional Workshop contain 24 presented lectures. Authors deal with development and validation of emergency operating procedures as well as with accident management guidelines (EOP/AMG) for effective prevention and mitigation of severe core damage

  5. School Violence in Secondary Education in the Governorate of Mafraq: Forms, Causes and Prevention--A Case Study

    Science.gov (United States)

    Khaled, Mohammad S. Bani

    2014-01-01

    This study considers school violence. It was investigated in secondary schools in the governorate of Mafraq. The aim is to identify the forms and causes of the phenomenon; hence to come out with the preventive and remedial measures, accordingly. The study was conducted in one of the secondary schools selected randomly in the city of Mafraq in the…

  6. Targeted Therapy for Breast Cancer Prevention

    Science.gov (United States)

    den Hollander, Petra; Savage, Michelle I.; Brown, Powel H.

    2013-01-01

    With a better understanding of the etiology of breast cancer, molecularly targeted drugs have been developed and are being testing for the treatment and prevention of breast cancer. Targeted drugs that inhibit the estrogen receptor (ER) or estrogen-activated pathways include the selective ER modulators (tamoxifen, raloxifene, and lasofoxifene) and aromatase inhibitors (AIs) (anastrozole, letrozole, and exemestane) have been tested in preclinical and clinical studies. Tamoxifen and raloxifene have been shown to reduce the risk of breast cancer and promising results of AIs in breast cancer trials, suggest that AIs might be even more effective in the prevention of ER-positive breast cancer. However, these agents only prevent ER-positive breast cancer. Therefore, current research is focused on identifying preventive therapies for other forms of breast cancer such as human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-positive and triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC, breast cancer that does express ER, progesterone receptor, or HER2). HER2-positive breast cancers are currently treated with anti-HER2 therapies including trastuzumab and lapatinib, and preclinical and clinical studies are now being conducted to test these drugs for the prevention of HER2-positive breast cancers. Several promising agents currently being tested in cancer prevention trials for the prevention of TNBC include poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase inhibitors, vitamin D, and rexinoids, both of which activate nuclear hormone receptors (the vitamin D and retinoid X receptors). This review discusses currently used breast cancer preventive drugs, and describes the progress of research striving to identify and develop more effective preventive agents for all forms of breast cancer. PMID:24069582

  7. Preventative and Curative Effects of Several Plant Derived Agents Against Powdery Mildew Disease of Okra

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Moustafa Hemdan Ahmed MOHARAM

    2012-08-01

    Full Text Available The preventative and curative effects of some plant derived agents based on plant extracts or essential oils were studied at different concentrations against Erysiphe cichoracearum DC. ex Merat, the causal pathogen of okra powdery mildew by the detached leaf-disk and potted plants bioassays. Through detached leaf-disk assay, the highest mean preventative effect (97.74% was recorded by neem seed oil followed by jojoba oil (89.82% and extract of Rynoutria sachalinensis (82.77%. Neem seed oil at 1% was the most effective agent followed by jojoba oil and extract of R. sachalinensis at 1.5% and 2%, respectively, where they suppressed E. cichoracearum completely. Potted plants assay revealed that neem seed oil, jojoba oil and extract of R. sachalinensis as well as the fungicide (active ingredient dinocap showed higher preventative efficacy at all leaf olds treated after 7 and 14 days of inoculation as compared with extracts of henna and garlic. Moreover, the preventative efficacy partly remained apparent after 14 days of inoculation at all leaf olds tested. In field trials through 2010 and 2011 growing seasons, when the first symptoms of powdery mildew appeared naturally, 1.5% jojoba oil, 2% extract of R. sachalinensis and 1% neem seed oil were sprayed individually twice on grown plants to evaluate their efficacy on controlling powdery mildew, growth and yield of okra. Resulted showed that neem seed oil was the most effective agent and highly decreased the disease severity to 29.92%, recorded the highly curative effect (68.15% and also improved plant growth and pods yield.

  8. Understanding the Social Networks That Form within the Context of an Obesity Prevention Intervention

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sabina B. Gesell

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available Background. Antiobesity interventions have generally failed. Research now suggests that interventions must be informed by an understanding of the social environment. Objective. To examine if new social networks form between families participating in a group-level pediatric obesity prevention trial. Methods. Latino parent-preschool child dyads (N=79 completed the 3-month trial. The intervention met weekly in consistent groups to practice healthy lifestyles. The control met monthly in inconsistent groups to learn about school readiness. UCINET and SIENA were used to examine network dynamics. Results. Children’s mean age was 4.2 years (SD=0.9, and 44% were overweight/obese (BMI≥85th percentile. Parents were predominantly mothers (97%, with a mean age of 31.4 years (SD=5.4, and 81% were overweight/obese (BMI≥25. Over the study, a new social network evolved among participating families. Parents selectively formed friendship ties based on child BMI z-score, (t=2.08; P<.05. This reveals the tendency for mothers to form new friendships with mothers whose children have similar body types. Discussion. Participating in a group-level intervention resulted in new social network formation. New ties were greatest with mothers who had children of similar body types. This finding might contribute to the known inability of parents to recognize child overweight.

  9. VITAMIN DEFICIENCY IN CHILDREN: MAIN CAUSES, FORMS, AND MEANS OF PREVENTION IN INFANTS AND PRESCHOOL CHILDREN

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    L.Yu. Volkova

    2007-01-01

    Full Text Available The lecture deals with the main causes of development of hypo vitaminoses in infants and preschool children, with the emphasis made on the lack of pathognomonic signs of vitamin in sufficiency, showing the demands for the essential vitamins, and describing the natural sources of their entering the human body. The authors compare the composition of various multivitamin preparations registered in Russian the liquid dosage form convenient for use in 1ctoc7cyearcold children.Key words: avitaminosis, hypovitaminosis, prevention, infants, children.

  10. Clinical Epidemiology of Buruli Ulcer from Benin (2005-2013: Effect of Time-Delay to Diagnosis on Clinical Forms and Severe Phenotypes.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Carlos Capela

    Full Text Available Buruli Ulcer (BU is a neglected infectious disease caused by Mycobacterium ulcerans that is responsible for severe necrotizing cutaneous lesions that may be associated with bone involvement. Clinical presentations of BU lesions are classically classified as papules, nodules, plaques and edematous infiltration, ulcer or osteomyelitis. Within these different clinical forms, lesions can be further classified as severe forms based on focality (multiple lesions, lesions' size (>15 cm diameter or WHO Category (WHO Category 3 lesions. There are studies reporting an association between delay in seeking medical care and the development of ulcerative forms of BU or osteomyelitis, but the effect of time-delay on the emergence of lesions classified as severe has not been addressed. To address both issues, and in a cohort of laboratory-confirmed BU cases, 476 patients from a medical center in Allada, Benin, were studied. In this laboratory-confirmed cohort, we validated previous observations, demonstrating that time-delay is statistically related to the clinical form of BU. Indeed, for non-ulcerated forms (nodule, edema, and plaque the median time-delay was 32.5 days (IQR 30.0-67.5, while for ulcerated forms it was 60 days (IQR 20.0-120.0 (p = 0.009, and for bone lesions, 365 days (IQR 228.0-548.0. On the other hand, we show here that time-delay is not associated with the more severe phenotypes of BU, such as multi-focal lesions (median 90 days; IQR 56-217.5; p = 0.09, larger lesions (diameter >15 cm (median 60 days; IQR 30-120; p = 0.92 or category 3 WHO classification (median 60 days; IQR 30-150; p = 0.20, when compared with unifocal (median 60 days; IQR 30-90, small lesions (diameter ≤15 cm (median 60 days; IQR 30-90, or WHO category 1+2 lesions (median 60 days; IQR 30-90, respectively. Our results demonstrate that after an initial period of progression towards ulceration or bone involvement, BU lesions become stable regarding size and focal

  11. Design measures for prevention and mitigation of severe accidents at advanced water cooled reactors. Proceedings of a technical committee meeting

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1998-06-01

    Over 8500 reactor-years of operating experience have been accumulated with the current nuclear energy systems. New generations of nuclear power plants are being developed, building upon this background of experience. During the last decade, requirements for equipment specifically intended to minimize releases of radioactive material to the environment in the event of a core melt accident have been introduced, and designs for new plants include measures for preventing and mitigating a range of severe accident scenarios. The IAEA Technical Committee Meeting on Impact of Severe Accidents on Plant Design and Layout of Advanced Water Cooled Reactors was jointly organized by the Department of Nuclear Energy and the Department of Nuclear Safety to review measures which are being incorporated into advanced water cooled reactor designs for preventing and mitigating severe accidents, the status of experimental and analytical investigations of severe accident phenomena and challenges which support design decisions and accident management procedures, and to understand the impact of explicitly addressing severe accidents on the cost of nuclear power plants. This publication is intended to provide an objective source of information on this topic. It includes 14 papers presented at the Technical Committee meeting held in Vienna between 21-25 October 1996. It also includes a Summary and Findings of the Working Groups. The papers were grouped in three sections. A separate abstract was prepared for each paper

  12. Clinical report of an extremely severe bone marrow form of acute radiation sickness

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Qiao Jianhui; Yu Changlin; Luo Weidong; Guo Mei; Wang Danhong; Sun Qiyun; Zhang Shi; Zhang Xigang; Li Guang; Niu Wenkai; Chen Jiankui; Li Xiaobing; Ge Feijiao; Ai Huisheng

    2007-01-01

    Objective: To sum up the experiences from the diagnosis and treatment of patient B subjected to an accidental 60 Co exposure on October 21st, 2004, in Jining, Shandong Province, China. Methods: Radiation dose of B was assessed by analysis of chromosome aberration and microneucleus assay, simulation test of the accident site, autopsy and electron spin resonance (ESR). The ultimate clinical diagnosis was based on analysis of irradiation dose, clinical manifestations and laboratory results. In therapeutical aspects, total environmental protection, HLA-identical allogeneic peripheral blood stem cell transplantation (PBSCT), anti- infection and protection managements of organs were given. Results: Patient B was diagnosed as extremely severe bone marrow form of acute radiation sickness (ARS). HLA-identical allogeneic PBSCT was performed on the patient from his brother on the 7th day after the accident. The hematopoietic recovery began on the 9th day after transplantation. The patient acquired permanent full donor' engraftment without graft versus host disease (GVHD), But the radiation injury was continuing and the patient complicated with polyinfection in lung, and cardiac insufficiency. On the 45th day after the accident, patient B was performed with tracheotomy and maintained ventilation with respirator. On the 75th day after the accident, patient B died of multiple organ failure. Conclusions: Early triage diagnosis and total environmental protection should be performed as soon as possible for extremely severe bone marrow form of ARS. It is very important to perform a successful HLA-identical allogeneic PBSCT, in order to extend the life time of the patient. Multiple organ injuries and infections of bacteria and fungi usually occurred on this kind of patients, so intense measures of anti-infection and protection of multiple organs should be taken. The important and difficult point in the treatment of this kind ARS might be for help the immune-reconstruction and tissue

  13. BONE SEVERE FORM OF HYPERPARATHYROIDISM IN A PATIENT WITH ADENOMA OF PARATHYROID GLAND

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    K. M. Petrosyan

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available Hyperparathyroidism is one of the most common endocrinopathies. This disease leads to a violation of phosphorus-calcium metabolism and the washing out of calcium from bone tissue. Breach of the skeleton’s structure in hyperparathyroidism is often mistaken for metastatic bone damage, which leads to incorrect treatment tactics. In this work we present the clinical observation of a patient with an adenoma of the parathyroid gland and a severe bone form of hyperparathyroidism. Multiple lesions of bones with destruction of the cortical layer and the presence of the softtissue component were initially regarded as metastases in the bone. However, the morphological pattern of bone foci, as well as an elevated level of calcium and parathyroid hormone, made it possible to diagnose the bony form of hyperparathyroidism. The search for the cause of hyperparathyroidism revealed a tumor in the projection of the right lower parathyroid gland. Surgical removal of parathyroid adenoma led to the normalization of the level of calcium and parathyroid hormone. The article presents data of laboratory-instrumental methods of research and the results of surgical treatment of a patient.

  14. Vitamin D and calcium supplementation prevents severe falls in elderly community-dwelling women

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Larsen, Erik Roj; Mosekilde, Leif; Foldspang, Anders

    2005-01-01

    Background and aims: We evaluated the effect of two programs for the prevention of falls leading to acute hospital admission in a population of elderly community-dwelling Danish residents. Methods: This was a factorial, pragmatic, intervention study. We included 9605 community-dwelling city......, or no intervention. Results: The Calcium and Vitamin D program was followed by 50.3% and the Environmental and Health Program by 46.4%. According to a multivariate analysis including age, marital status and intervention program, female residents who followed the Calcium and Vitamin D Program had a 12% risk reduction...... in severe falls (RR 0.88; 95% CI 0.79-0.98; pfalls leading to acute hospitalization in community-dwelling elderly females in a northern European region known to be deficient in vitamin D....

  15. Secondary benefit of maintaining normal transcranial Doppler velocities when using hydroxyurea for prevention of severe sickle cell anemia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ghafuri, Djamila Labib; Chaturvedi, Shruti; Rodeghier, Mark; Stimpson, Sarah-Jo; McClain, Brandi; Byrd, Jeannie; DeBaun, Michael R

    2017-07-01

    In a retrospective cohort study, we tested the hypothesis that when prescribing hydroxyurea (HU) to children with sickle cell anemia (SCA) to prevent vaso-occlusive events, there will be a secondary benefit of maintaining low transcranial Doppler (TCD) velocity, measured by imaging technique (TCDi). HU was prescribed for 90.9% (110 of 120) of children with SCA ≥5 years of age and followed for a median of 4.4 years, with 70% (n = 77) receiving at least one TCDi evaluation after starting HU. No child prescribed HU had a conditional or abnormal TCDi measurement. HU initiation for disease severity prevention decreases the prevalence of abnormal TCDi velocities. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  16. Severed cuff inflation tubing of endotracheal tube: A novel way to prevent cuff deflation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rao, Amrut K; Chaudhuri, Souvik; Joseph, Tim T; Kamble, Deependra; Gotur, Gopal; Venkatesh, Sandeep

    2014-01-01

    A well-secured endotracheal tube (ETT) is essential for safe anesthesia. The ETT has to be fixed with the adhesive plasters or with tie along with adhesive plasters appropriately. It is specially required in patients having beard, in intensive care unit (ICU) patients or in oral surgeries. If re-adjustment of the ETT is necessary, we should be cautious while removal of the plasters and tie, as there may be damage to the cuff inflation system. This can be a rare cause of ETT cuff leak, thus making maintenance of adequate ventilation difficult and requiring re-intubation. In a difficult airway scenario, it can be extremely challenging to re-intubate again. We report an incidence where the ETT cuff tubing was severed while attempting to re-adjust and re-fix the ETT and the patient required re-intubation. Retrospectively, we thought of and describe a safe, reliable and novel technique to prevent cuff deflation of the severed inflation tube. The technique can also be used to monitor cuff pressure in such scenarios.

  17. A New Surgical Procedure "Dumbbell-Form Resection" for Selected Hilar Cholangiocarcinomas With Severe Jaundice: Comparison With Hemihepatectomy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Shuguang; Tian, Feng; Zhao, Xin; Li, Dajiang; He, Yu; Li, Zhihua; Chen, Jian

    2016-01-01

    The aim of the study is to evaluate the therapeutic effect of a new surgical procedure, dumbbell-form resection (DFR), for hilar cholangiocarcinoma (HCCA) with severe jaundice. In DFR, liver segments I, IVb, and partial V above the right hepatic pedicle are resected.Hemihepatectomy is recognized as the preferred procedure; however, its application is limited in HCCAs with severe jaundice.Thirty-eight HCCA patients with severe jaundice receiving DFR and 70 receiving hemihepatectomy from January 2008 to January 2013 were included. Perioperative parameters, operation-related morbidity and mortality, and post-operative survival were analyzed.A total of 21.1% patients (8/38) in the DFR group received percutaneous transhepatic biliary drainage (PTBD), which was significantly jaundice. However, its indications should be restricted.

  18. DEFINITION DESIRED MODE ULTRAVIOLET RADIATION, WHICH PREVENT MYCOBACTERIUM TUBERCULOSIS SURVIVAL AND CONVERSION TO L-FORMS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Moiseenko TN

    2015-04-01

    the pathogen were grown in the media of Levenstain- Yensen, Blood media of Shkolnikova and medium VCG to detect L-forms. For the accuracy of the results, each experiment was performed in 6 series was set down three times (at intervals of 30 days. Results and discution. UV using for 20 minutes almost 1/5 of M. tuberculosis it caused survival (21,60 ± 1,83%; at 30-minute UV (standard exposure time - 13% M. tuberculosis remain viable; 3,24 ± 1,28% remain viable even 40 minutes of ultraviolet irradiation. Оnly by increasing the time to 50 minutes to achieve sufficient efficacy in destroying vegetative forms, but even this term may not be enough to prevent the formation and survival of L-form (1,08 ± 0.91% in the medium VCG. The effective exposure time vegetative forms of мycobacterium 40 minutes at a distance of 70 cm, at least 50 minutes at a distance of 210 cm. The effective exposure time to prevent the survival of L-form is at least 50 minutes at a distance of 70 cm. Conclusion. The UV irradiation causes the Ltransformation of the bacteria. This phenomenon detected on VKG media. The formation of L-forms and the possibility of reversion to consider when using UV. Among the experimental crops more resistant compared to the referent strain differed clinical isolates with the presence of resistance to anti-TB drugs.

  19. End-Users' Product Preference Across Three Multipurpose Prevention Technology Delivery Forms: Baseline Results from Young Women in Kenya and South Africa.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Weinrib, Rachel; Minnis, Alexandra; Agot, Kawango; Ahmed, Khatija; Owino, Fred; Manenzhe, Kgahlisho; Cheng, Helen; van der Straten, Ariane

    2018-01-01

    A multipurpose prevention technology (MPT) that combines HIV and pregnancy prevention is a promising women's health intervention, particularly for young women. However, little is known about the drivers of acceptability and product choice for MPTs in this population. This paper explores approval ratings and stated choice across three different MPT delivery forms among potential end-users. The Trio Study was a mixed-methods study in women ages 18-30 that examined acceptability of three MPT delivery forms: oral tablets, injections, and vaginal ring. Approval ratings and stated choice among the products was collected at baseline. Factors influencing stated product choice were explored using multivariable multinomial logistic regression. The majority (62%) of women in Trio stated they would choose injections, 27% would choose tablets and 11% would choose the ring. Significant predictors of choice included past experience with similar contraceptive delivery forms, age, and citing frequency of use as important. Ring choice was higher for older (25-30) women than for younger (18-24) women (aRR = 3.1; p < 0.05). These results highlight the importance of familiarity in MPT product choice of potential for variations in MPT preference by age.

  20. Preventing drug resistance in severe influenza

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dobrovolny, Hana; Deecke, Lucas

    2015-03-01

    Severe, long-lasting influenza infections are often caused by new strains of influenza. The long duration of these infections leads to an increased opportunity for the emergence of drug resistant mutants. This is particularly problematic for new strains of influenza since there is often no vaccine, so drug treatment is the first line of defense. One strategy for trying to minimize drug resistance is to apply periodic treatment. During treatment the wild-type virus decreases, but resistant virus might increase; when there is no treatment, wild-type virus will hopefully out-compete the resistant virus, driving down the number of resistant virus. We combine a mathematical model of severe influenza with a model of drug resistance to study emergence of drug resistance during a long-lasting infection. We apply periodic treatment with two types of antivirals: neuraminidase inhibitors, which block release of virions; and adamantanes, which block replication of virions. We compare the efficacy of the two drugs in reducing emergence of drug resistant mutants and examine the effect of treatment frequency on the emergence of drug resistant mutants.

  1. Open trial of cimetidine in the prevention of upper gastro-intestinal haemorrhage in patients with severe intracranial injury.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mouawad, E; Deloof, T; Genette, F; Vandesteene, A

    1983-01-01

    The present study evaluates the efficacy of Cimetidine in the prevention of clinically important gastro-intestinal haemorrhage in patients suffering from severe head injury. Fifty patients (39 males and 11 females) were included in the study. We excluded from the trial patients on anticoagulant therapy or concomitant non-steroid anti-inflammatory agents, pregnant and lactating women, and patients with previous histories of peptic ulcer disease.

  2. The combined benefits of motorcycle antilock braking systems (ABS) in preventing crashes and reducing crash severity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rizzi, Matteo; Kullgren, Anders; Tingvall, Claes

    2016-01-01

    Several studies have reported the benefits of motorcycle antilock braking systems (ABS) in reducing injury crashes, due to improved stability and braking performance. Both aspects may prevent crashes but may also reduce the crash severity when a collision occurs. However, it is still unknown to what extent the reductions in injury crashes with ABS may be due to a combination of these mechanisms. Swedish hospital and police reports (2003-2012) were used. The risk for permanent medical impairment (RPMI) was calculated, showing the risk of at least 1 or 10% permanent medical impairment. In total, 165 crashes involving ABS-equipped motorcycles were compared with 500 crashes with similar motorcycles without ABS. The analysis was performed in 3 steps. First, the reduction in emergency care visits with ABS was calculated using an induced exposure approach. Secondly, the injury mitigating effects of ABS were investigated. The mean RPMI 1+ and RPMI 10+ were analyzed for different crash types. The distributions of impairing injuries (PMI 1+) and severely impairing injuries (PMI 10+) were also analyzed. In the third step, the total reduction of PMI 1+ and PMI 10+ injured motorcyclists was calculated by combining the reductions found in the previous steps. An additional analysis of combined braking systems (CBS) together with ABS was also performed. The results showed that emergency care visits were reduced by 47% with ABS. In the second step, it was found that the mean RPMI 1+ and RPMI 10+ with ABS were 15 and 37% lower, respectively. Finally, the third step showed that the total reductions in terms of crash avoidance and mitigation of PMI 1+ and PMI 10+ injured motorcyclists with ABS were 67 and 55%, respectively. However, PMI 1+ and PMI 10+ leg injuries were not reduced by ABS to the same extent. Indications were found suggesting that the benefits of ABS together with CBS may be greater than ABS alone. This article indicated that motorcycle ABS reduced impairing injuries

  3. CYCLOSPORINE IN TREATMENT OF SEVERE ATOPIC DERMATITIS IN CHILDREN

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    A.A. Alekseeva

    2010-01-01

    Full Text Available Atopic dermatitis (AtD is one of the most widespread types of allergic lesions of skin in children. Increase of severe types of AtD with lesion of big parts of skin, high frequency of exacerbations, presence of concomitant atopic diseases, and inefficiency of standard therapeutic approaches, torpid clinical course and early development of disability, causes an anxiety. Present standard approaches can be ineffective in children with severe clinical course of AtD and they are not able to prevent progression of disease, development of severe exacerbations and child’s disability. One of therapeutic alternatives for these patients is treatment with immunosuppressive agents. The article describes questions of treatment with cyclosporine in systemic therapy of severe resistant forms of AtD in children. Author discusses effectiveness and safety of a drug, formulated rules of treatment of severe AtD with cyclosporine. Key words: children, atopic dermatitis, cyclosporine, treatment.(Voprosy sovremennoi pediatrii — Current Pediatrics. 2010;9(5:117-120

  4. Severe form of streptococcal necrotizing fasciitis of the upper limb - diagnostic and therapeutic challenge: A case report

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mikić Dragan

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available Introduction. Since delay in recognition and effective treatment of necrotizing fasciitis (NF caused by invasive group A streptococcus increases the mortality and disability, the early diagnosis and management of this disease are essential for a better outcome. We presented a patient with a severe form of streptococcal NF of the left upper limb in whom amputation was performed as a life saving procedure. Case report. A 65-year-old man, previously healthy, suffered an injury to his left hand by sting on a fish bone. Two days after that the patient got fever, redness, swelling and pain in his left hand. Clinical examination of the patient after admission indicated NF that spread quickly to the entire left upper limb, left armpit, and the left side of the chest and abdomen. Despite the use of aggressive antibiotic and surgical therapy severe destruction of the skin and subcutaneous tissues developed with the development of gangrene of the left upper limb. In this situation, the team of specialists decided that the patient must be operated on submited to amputation of the left arm, at the shoulder. After amputation and aggressive debridement of soft tissue on the left side of the trunk, the patient completely recovered. β-hemolytic streptococcus group A was isolated from the skin and tissue obtained during the surgery. Conclusion. In the most severe forms of streptococcal NF of the extremities, adequate multidisciplinary treatment, including limb amputation, can save the life of a patient.

  5. Preventing HIV among U.S. women of color with severe mental illness: perceptions of mental health care providers working in urban community clinics.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Agénor, Madina; Collins, Pamela Y

    2013-01-01

    Given their knowledge of the behavioral issues related to psychiatric illness, mental health care providers are in a unique position to help prevent HIV among women with severe mental illness (SMI). We conducted in-depth interviews with providers at two New York City community clinics. We identified three major, interrelated themes pertaining to HIV prevention among women of color with SMI. Interventions that address the barriers that clinicians face in discussing sex, sexuality, and HIV with patients and train providers in the cultural considerations of cross-cultural mental health care are needed to help prevent HIV among women of color with SMI.

  6. Forming a Learning Culture to Promote Fracture Prevention Activities

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hjalmarson, Helene V.; Strandmark, Margaretha

    2012-01-01

    Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to explore interprofessional experiences of incorporating fracture prevention activities in clinical practice inspired by an empowerment approach. Design/methodology/approach: Data collection consisted primarily of focus groups interviews, systematized and analyzed by the grounded theory method. The study took…

  7. Successful Prednisolone Therapy in Elderly Patients with Severe Forms of Henoch–Schönlein Purpura Nephritis

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Saiko Kato-Okada

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available Introduction Recently, Henoch–Schönlein purpura (HSP has been observed in elderly people, although it was believed to be uncommon in these subjects. The increased risks of developing end-stage renal disease (ESRD in adults in comparison with children were highlighted by different studies; however, limited data are available on the treatment of HSP nephritis in adults. Methods Between 2002 and 2008, five elderly Japanese patients (>65 years old (mean age, 68 years, ranging from 65 to 72 with severe forms of HSP nephritis were entered into a prospective study to evaluate prednisolone therapy on the outcome of nephropathy in terms of clinical symptoms and histopathological changes. The patients were considered at risk of developing chronic renal failure when they presented with a nephrotic syndrome and crescentic glomeruli. Results At the last follow-up, 4–10 years after initiation of the therapy, four patients had clinically recovered and one died of lung cancer. No patients developed ESRD. The clinical outcome seemed to be correlated with glomerular activity (massive proteinuria and crescent formation. In spite of a relatively large dose of prednisolone, a few adverse effects, such as insomnia and skin lesions, were observed. Discussion Our preliminary small study suggests that renal outcome as well as survival of elderly patients with severe forms of HSP might be altered by aggressive prednisolone therapy.

  8. Severe accident management. Prevention and Mitigation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1992-01-01

    Effective planning for the management of severe accidents at nuclear power plants can produce both a reduction in the frequency of such accidents as well as the ability to mitigate their consequences if and when they should occur. This report provides an overview of accident management activities in OECD countries. It also presents the conclusions of a group of international experts regarding the development of accident management methods, the integration of accident management planning into reactor operations, and the benefits of accident management

  9. Conceptual Design of Portable Filtered Air Suction Systems For Prevention of Released Radioactive Gas under Severe Accidents of NPP

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Gu, Beom W.; Choi, Su Y.; Yim, Man S.; Rim, Chun T. [Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

    2014-05-15

    It becomes evident that severe accidents may occur by unexpected disasters such as tsunami, heavy flood, or terror. Once radioactive material is released from NPP through severe accidents, there are no ways to prevent the released radioactive gas spreading in the air. As a remedy for this problem, the idea on the portable filtered air suction system (PoFASS) for the prevention of released radioactive gas under severe accidents was proposed. In this paper, the conceptual design of a PoFASS focusing on the number of robot fingers and robot arm rods are proposed. In order to design a flexible robot suction nozzle, mathematical models for the gaps which represent the lifted heights of extensible covers for given convex shapes of pipes and for the covered areas are developed. In addition, the system requirements for the design of the robot arms of PoFASS are proposed, which determine the accessible range of leakage points of released radioactive gas. In this paper, the conceptual designs of the flexible robot suction nozzle and robot arm have been conducted. As a result, the minimum number of robot fingers and robot arm rods are defined to be four and three, respectively. For further works, extensible cover designs on the flexible robot suction nozzle and the application of the PoFASS to the inside of NPP should be studied because the radioactive gas may be released from connection pipes between the containment building and auxiliary buildings.

  10. Cannabinoids prevent the differential long-term effects of exposure to severe stress on hippocampal- and amygdala-dependent memory and plasticity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shoshan, Noa; Segev, Amir; Abush, Hila; Mizrachi Zer-Aviv, Tomer; Akirav, Irit

    2017-10-01

    Exposure to excessive or uncontrolled stress is a major factor associated with various diseases including posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The consequences of exposure to trauma are affected not only by aspects of the event itself, but also by the frequency and severity of trauma reminders. It was suggested that in PTSD, hippocampal-dependent memory is compromised while amygdala-dependent memory is strengthened. Several lines of evidence support the role of the endocannabinoid (eCB) system as a modulator of the stress response. In this study we aimed to examine cannabinoids modulation of the long-term effects (i.e., 1 month) of exposure to a traumatic event on memory and plasticity in the hippocampus and amygdala. Following exposure to the shock and reminders model of PTSD in an inhibitory avoidance light-dark apparatus rats demonstrated: (i) enhanced fear retrieval and impaired inhibitory extinction (Ext), (ii) no long-term potentiation (LTP) in the CA1, (iii) impaired hippocampal-dependent short-term memory in the object location task, (iv) enhanced LTP in the amygdala, and (v) enhanced amygdala-dependent conditioned taste aversion memory. The cannabinoid CB1/2 receptor agonist WIN55-212,2 (0.5mg/kg, i.p.) and the fatty acid amide hydrolase (FAAH) inhibitor URB597 (0.3mg/kg, i.p.), administered 2 hr after shock exposure prevented these opposing effects on hippocampal- and amygdala-dependent processes. Moreover, the effects of WIN55-212,2 and URB597 on Ext and acoustic startle were prevented by co-administration of a low dose of the CB1 receptor antagonist AM251 (0.5mg/kg, i.p.), suggesting that the preventing effects of both drugs are mediated by CB1 receptors. Exposure to shock and reminders increased CB1 receptor levels in the CA1 and basolateral amygdala 1 month after shock exposure and this increase was also prevented by administering WIN55-212,2 or URB597. Taken together, these findings suggest the involvement of the eCB system, and specifically CB1

  11. A novel IMPDH1 mutation (Arg231Pro) in a family with a severe form of autosomal dominant retinitis pigmentosa.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Grover, Sandeep; Fishman, Gerald A; Stone, Edwin M

    2004-10-01

    To define ophthalmic findings in a family with autosomal dominant retinitis pigmentosa and a novel IMPDH1 gene mutation. Genetic and observational family study. Sixteen affected members of a family with autosomal dominant retinitis pigmentosa. Ophthalmic examination, including best-corrected visual acuity (VA), slit-lamp biomicroscopy, direct and indirect ophthalmoscopy, Goldmann kinetic perimetry, and electroretinography were performed. Deoxyribonucleic acid single-strand conformation polymorphism (SSCP) analysis was done. Abnormal polymerase chain reaction products identified by SSCP analysis were sequenced bidirectionally. All affected patients had the onset of night blindness within the first decade of life. Ocular findings were characterized by diffuse retinal pigmentary degenerative changes, marked restriction of peripheral visual fields, severe loss of VA, nondetectable electroretinography amplitudes, and a high frequency of posterior subcapsular lens opacities. Affected members were observed to harbor a novel IMPDH1 gene mutation. A novel IMPDH1 gene mutation (Arg231Pro) was associated with a severe form of autosomal dominant retinitis pigmentosa. Families affected with a severe form of this genetic subtype should be investigated for a mutation in the IMPDH1 gene.

  12. 76 FR 55915 - Agency Forms Undergoing Paperwork Reduction Act Review

    Science.gov (United States)

    2011-09-09

    ... type 2 diabetes DPRP Application Form........ 120 1 1 prevention programs. DPRP Evaluation Data... mechanism for recognizing organizations that deliver effective, community-based type 2 diabetes prevention...] Agency Forms Undergoing Paperwork Reduction Act Review The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention...

  13. Real-time continuous glucose monitoring as a tool to prevent severe hypoglycaemia in selected pregnant women with Type 1 diabetes

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Secher, A L; Stage, E; Ringholm, Lene

    2014-01-01

    AIMS: Among women with Type 1 diabetes who have had severe hypoglycaemia the year before pregnancy, 70% also experience this complication in pregnancy, and particularly in the first half of pregnancy. We evaluated whether routine use of real-time continuous glucose monitoring from early pregnancy...... onwards could prevent severe hypoglycaemia in these women. METHODS: All 136 consecutive pregnant women with Type 1 diabetes referred to our centre were asked about severe hypoglycaemic events in the year before pregnancy and early in pregnancy at their first antenatal visit. Women with a relevant recent...... history were informed about their additional high risk of severe hypoglycaemia, their treatment was focused on restricted insulin doses during the first 16 gestational weeks, and they were offered real-time continuous glucose monitoring on top of self-monitored plasma glucose measurements. RESULTS: Among...

  14. Early enteral nutrition prevents intra-abdominal hypertension and reduces the severity of severe acute pancreatitis compared with delayed enteral nutrition: a prospective pilot study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sun, Jia-Kui; Li, Wei-Qin; Ke, Lu; Tong, Zhi-Hui; Ni, Hai-Bin; Li, Gang; Zhang, Lu-Yao; Nie, Yao; Wang, Xin-Ying; Ye, Xiang-Hong; Li, Ning; Li, Jie-Shou

    2013-09-01

    To investigate the effects of early enteral nutrition (EEN) on intra-abdominal pressure (IAP) and disease severity in patients with severe acute pancreatitis (SAP). Enteral nutrition (EN) was started within 48 h after admission in the EEN group and from the 8th day in the delayed enteral nutrition (DEN) group. The IAP and intra-abdominal hypertension (IAH) incidence were recorded for 2 weeks. The caloric intake and feeding intolerance (FI) incidence were recorded daily after EN was started. The severity markers and clinical outcome variables were also recorded. Sixty patients were enrolled to this study. No difference about IAP was found. The IAH incidence of the EEN group was significantly lower than that of the DEN group from the 9th day (8/30 versus 18/30; P = 0.009) after admission. The FI incidence of the EEN group was higher than that of the DEN group during the initial 3 days of feeding (25/30 versus 12/30; P = 0.001; 22/30 versus 9/30; P = 0.001; 15/30 versus 4/30; P = 0.002). Patients with an IAP FI incidence than those with an IAP ≥15 mmHg on the 1st day (20/22 versus 17/38; P < 0.001), the 3rd day (11/13 versus 8/47; P < 0.001), and the 7th day (3/5 versus 3/55; P = 0.005) of feeding. The severity markers and clinical outcome variables of the EEN group were significantly improved. Early enteral nutrition did not increase IAP. In contrast, it might prevent the development of IAH. In addition, EEN might be not appropriate during the initial 3-4 days of SAP onset. Moreover, EN might be of benefit to patients with an IAP <15 mmHg. Early enteral nutrition could improve disease severity and clinical outcome, but did not decrease mortality of SAP.

  15. [Pain in herpes zoster: Prevention and treatment].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Calvo-Mosquera, G; González-Cal, A; Calvo-Rodríguez, D; Primucci, C Y; Plamenov-Dipchikov, P

    Shingles is a painful rash that results from reactivation of latent varicella-zoster virus in the dorsal root ganglia or cranial nerves. In this article an update is presented on the prevention and pharmacological treatment of the secondary pain from the virus infection. The most effective way to prevent post-herpetic neuralgia and its consequences is the prevention of herpes itself. A live attenuated vaccine (the Oka strain varicella zoster virus) has been available for several years, and is approved in adults aged 50 years old. Although this vaccine has shown to be effective against herpes zoster and post-herpetic neuralgia, its effectiveness decreases with age and is contraindicated in patients with some form of immunosuppression. Today the recombinant vaccines provide an alternative, and may be administered to immunocompromised persons. Copyright © 2016 Sociedad Española de Médicos de Atención Primaria (SEMERGEN). Publicado por Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.

  16. Micronutrient special issue: Coenzyme Q10 requirements for DNA damage prevention

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Schmelzer, Constance; Döring, Frank

    2012-01-01

    Coenzyme Q 10 (CoQ 10 ) is an essential component for electron transport in the mitochondrial respiratory chain and serves as cofactor in several biological processes. The reduced form of CoQ 10 (ubiquinol, Q 10 H 2 ) is an effective antioxidant in biological membranes. During the last years, particular interest has been grown on molecular effects of CoQ 10 supplementation on mechanisms related to DNA damage prevention. This review describes recent advances in our understanding about the impact of CoQ 10 on genomic stability in cells, animals and humans. With regard to several in vitro and in vivo studies, CoQ 10 provides protective effects on several markers of oxidative DNA damage and genomic stability. In comparison to the number of studies reporting preventive effects of CoQ 10 on oxidative stress biomarkers, CoQ 10 intervention studies in humans with a direct focus on markers of DNA damage are limited. Thus, more well-designed studies in healthy and disease populations with long-term follow up results are needed to substantiate the reported beneficial effects of CoQ 10 on prevention of DNA damage.

  17. Interaction of malaria with a common form of severe thalassemia in an Asian population

    Science.gov (United States)

    O'Donnell, A.; Premawardhena, A.; Arambepola, M.; Samaranayake, R.; Allen, S. J.; Peto, T. E. A.; Fisher, C. A.; Cook, J.; Corran, P. H.; Olivieri, Nancy F.; Weatherall, D. J.

    2009-01-01

    In many Asian populations, the commonest form of severe thalassemia results from the coinheritance of HbE and β thalassemia. The management of this disease is particularly difficult because of its extreme clinical diversity; although some genetic and adaptive factors have been identified as phenotypic modifiers, the reasons remain unclear. Because the role of the environment in the course of severe thalassemia has been neglected completely and because malaria due to both Plasmodium falciparum and Plasmodium vivax has been prevalent in Sri Lanka, we carried out a pilot study of patients with HbE β thalassemia that showed high frequencies of antibodies to both parasite species and that 28.6% of the children had DNA-based evidence of current infection with P. vivax. Malarial antibodies then were assessed in patients with HbE β thalassemia compared with those in age-matched controls. There was a significant increase in the frequency of antibodies in the thalassemic patients, particularly against P. vivax and in young children. There was also a higher frequency in those who had been splenectomized compared with those with intact spleens, although in the latter it was still higher than that in the controls. The thalassemic patients showed significant correlations between malaria antibody status and phenotype. Patients with HbE β thalassemia may be more prone to malaria, particularly P. vivax, which is reflected in their clinical severity. Because P. vivax malaria is widespread in Asia, further studies of its interaction with HbE β thalassemia and related diseases are required urgently as a part of ongoing thalassemia control programs. PMID:19841268

  18. Mathematical Modelling of Immune Parameters in the Evolution of Severe Dengue

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    M. K. Premaratne

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Aims. Predicting the risk of severity at an early stage in an individual patient will be invaluable in preventing morbidity and mortality caused by dengue. We hypothesized that such predictions are possible by analyzing multiple parameters using mathematical modeling. Methodology. Data from 11 adult patients with dengue fever (DF and 25 patients with dengue hemorrhagic fever (DHF were analyzed. Multivariate statistical analysis was performed to study the characteristics and interactions of parameters using dengue NS1 antigen levels, dengue IgG antibody levels, platelet counts, and lymphocyte counts. Fuzzy logic fundamentals were used to map the risk of developing severe forms of dengue. The cumulative effects of the parameters were incorporated using the Hamacher and the OWA operators. Results. The operator classified the patients according to the severity level during the time period of 96 hours to 120 hours after the onset of fever. The accuracy ranged from 53% to 89%. Conclusion. The results show a robust mathematical model that explains the evolution from dengue to its serious forms in individual patients. The model allows prediction of severe cases of dengue which could be useful for optimal management of patients during a dengue outbreak. Further analysis of the model may also deepen our understanding of the pathways towards severe illness.

  19. Role of Passive Safety Features in Prevention And Mitigation of Severe Plant Conditions in Indian Advanced Heavy Water Reactor

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Jain, Vikas; Nayak, A.; Dhiman, M.; Kulkarni, P. P.; Vijayan, P. K.; Vaze, K. K. [Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Mumbai (India)

    2013-10-15

    Pressing demands of economic competitiveness, the need for large-scale deployment, minimizing the need of human intervention, and experience from the past events and incidents at operating reactors have guided the evolution and innovations in reactor technologies. Indian innovative reactor 'AHWR' is a pressure-tube type natural circulation based boiling water reactor that is designed to meet such requirements, which essentially reflect the needs of next generation reactors. The reactor employs various passive features to prevent and mitigate accidental conditions, like a slightly negative void reactivity coefficient, passive poison injection to scram the reactor in event of failure of the wired shutdown systems, a large elevated pool of water as a heat sink inside the containment, passive decay heat removal based on natural circulation and passive valves, passive ECC injection, etc. It is designed to meet the fundamental safety requirements of safe shutdown, safe decay heat removal and confinement of activity with no impact in public domain, and hence, no need for emergency planning under all conceivable scenarios. This paper examines the role of the various passive safety systems in prevention and mitigation of severe plant conditions that may arise in event of multiple failures. For the purpose of demonstration of the effectiveness of its passive features, postulated scenarios on the lines of three major severe accidents in the history of nuclear power reactors are considered, namely; the Three Mile Island (TMI), Chernobyl and Fukushima accidents. Severe plant conditions along the lines of these scenarios are postulated to the extent conceivable in the reactor under consideration and analyzed using best estimate system thermal-hydraulics code RELAP5/Mod3.2. It is found that the various passive systems incorporated enable the reactor to tolerate the postulated accident conditions without causing severe plant conditions and core degradation.

  20. ROLE OF PASSIVE SAFETY FEATURES IN PREVENTION AND MITIGATION OF SEVERE PLANT CONDITIONS IN INDIAN ADVANCED HEAVY WATER REACTOR

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    VIKAS JAIN

    2013-10-01

    Full Text Available Pressing demands of economic competitiveness, the need for large-scale deployment, minimizing the need of human intervention, and experience from the past events and incidents at operating reactors have guided the evolution and innovations in reactor technologies. Indian innovative reactor ‘AHWR’ is a pressure-tube type natural circulation based boiling water reactor that is designed to meet such requirements, which essentially reflect the needs of next generation reactors. The reactor employs various passive features to prevent and mitigate accidental conditions, like a slightly negative void reactivity coefficient, passive poison injection to scram the reactor in event of failure of the wired shutdown systems, a large elevated pool of water as a heat sink inside the containment, passive decay heat removal based on natural circulation and passive valves, passive ECC injection, etc. It is designed to meet the fundamental safety requirements of safe shutdown, safe decay heat removal and confinement of activity with no impact in public domain, and hence, no need for emergency planning under all conceivable scenarios. This paper examines the role of the various passive safety systems in prevention and mitigation of severe plant conditions that may arise in event of multiple failures. For the purpose of demonstration of the effectiveness of its passive features, postulated scenarios on the lines of three major severe accidents in the history of nuclear power reactors are considered, namely; the Three Mile Island (TMI, Chernobyl and Fukushima accidents. Severe plant conditions along the lines of these scenarios are postulated to the extent conceivable in the reactor under consideration and analyzed using best estimate system thermal-hydraulics code RELAP5/Mod3.2. It is found that the various passive systems incorporated enable the reactor to tolerate the postulated accident conditions without causing severe plant conditions and core degradation.

  1. Factors related to severe dengue during an epidemic in Vitoria, State of Espirito Santo, Brazil, 2011

    OpenAIRE

    Vicente, Creuza Rachel; Lauar, Julia Castanheira; Santos, Bruna Silva; Cobe, Victor Marchesi; Cerutti Junior, Crispim

    2013-01-01

    Introduction The prognosis of dengue depends on early diagnosis and treatment, which can help prevent severe forms whose characteristics were evaluated here. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted involving dengue cases in Vitória, State of Espírito Santo, Brazil, in 2011. Results Two health regions registered 56.3% of 371 cases of severe dengue. Of these cases, 21.3% presented with dengue hemorrhagic fever. There were associations between dengue hemorrhagic fever with yo...

  2. A familial risk enriched cohort as a platform for testing early interventions to prevent severe mental illness.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Uher, Rudolf; Cumby, Jill; MacKenzie, Lynn E; Morash-Conway, Jessica; Glover, Jacqueline M; Aylott, Alice; Propper, Lukas; Abidi, Sabina; Bagnell, Alexa; Pavlova, Barbara; Hajek, Tomas; Lovas, David; Pajer, Kathleen; Gardner, William; Levy, Adrian; Alda, Martin

    2014-12-02

    Severe mental illness (SMI), including schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and severe depression, is responsible for a substantial proportion of disability in the population. This article describes the aims and design of a research study that takes a novel approach to targeted prevention of SMI. It is based on the rationale that early developmental antecedents to SMI are likely to be more malleable than fully developed mood or psychotic disorders and that low-risk interventions targeting antecedents may reduce the risk of SMI. Families Overcoming Risks and Building Opportunities for Well-being (FORBOW) is an accelerated cohort study that includes a large proportion of offspring of parents with SMI and embeds intervention trials in a cohort multiple randomized controlled trial (cmRCT) design. Antecedents are conditions of the individual that are distressing but not severely impairing, predict SMI with moderate-to-large effect sizes and precede the onset of SMI by at least several years. FORBOW focuses on the following antecedents: affective lability, anxiety, psychotic-like experiences, basic symptoms, sleep problems, somatic symptoms, cannabis use and cognitive delay. Enrolment of offspring over a broad age range (0 to 21 years) will allow researchers to draw conclusions on a longer developmental period from a study of shorter duration. Annual assessments cover a full range of psychopathology, cognitive abilities, eligibility criteria for interventions and outcomes. Pre-emptive early interventions (PEI) will include skill training for parents of younger children and courses in emotional well-being skills based on cognitive behavioural therapy for older children and youth. A sample enriched for familial risk of SMI will enhance statistical power for testing the efficacy of PEI. FORBOW offers a platform for efficient and unbiased testing of interventions selected according to best available evidence. Since few differences exist between familial and 'sporadic' SMI, the

  3. The D173G mutation in ADAMTS-13 causes a severe form of congenital thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura

    KAUST Repository

    Lancellotti, S.

    2015-08-13

    Congenital thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (TTP) is a rare form of thrombotic microangiopathy, inherited with autosomal recessive mode as a dysfunction or severe deficiency of ADAMTS-13 (A Disintegrin And Metalloprotease with ThromboSpondin 1 repeats Nr. 13), caused by mutations in the ADAMTS-13 gene. About 100 mutations of the ADAMTS-13 gene were identified so far, although only a few characterised by in vitro expression studies. A new Asp to Gly homozygous mutation at position 173 of ADAMTS-13 sequence was identified in a family of Romanian origin, with some members affected by clinical signs of TTP. In two male sons, this mutation caused a severe (< 3 %) deficiency of ADAMTS-13 activity and antigen level, associated with periodic thrombocytopenia, haemolytic anaemia and mild mental confusion. Both parents, who are cousins, showed the same mutation in heterozygous form. Expression studies of the mutant ADAMTS-13, performed in HEK293 cells, showed a severe decrease of the enzyme’s activity and secretion, although the protease was detected inside the cells. Molecular dynamics found that in the D173G mutant the interface area between the metalloprotease domain and the disintegrin-like domain significantly decreases during the simulations, while the proline-rich 20 residues linker region (LR, 285–304) between them undergoes extensive conformational changes. Inter-domain contacts are also significantly less conserved in the mutant compared to the wild-type. Both a decrease of the inter-domain contacts along with a substantial conformational rearrangement of LR interfere with the proper maturation and folding of the mutant ADAMTS-13, thus impairing its secretion.

  4. The D173G mutation in ADAMTS-13 causes a severe form of congenital thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura

    KAUST Repository

    Lancellotti, S.; Peyvandi, F.; Pagliari, M.; Cairo, A.; Abdel-Azeim, Safwat; Chermak, Edrisse; Lazzareschi, I.; Mastrangelo, S.; Cavallo, Luigi; Oliva, R.; De Cristofaro, R.

    2015-01-01

    Congenital thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (TTP) is a rare form of thrombotic microangiopathy, inherited with autosomal recessive mode as a dysfunction or severe deficiency of ADAMTS-13 (A Disintegrin And Metalloprotease with ThromboSpondin 1 repeats Nr. 13), caused by mutations in the ADAMTS-13 gene. About 100 mutations of the ADAMTS-13 gene were identified so far, although only a few characterised by in vitro expression studies. A new Asp to Gly homozygous mutation at position 173 of ADAMTS-13 sequence was identified in a family of Romanian origin, with some members affected by clinical signs of TTP. In two male sons, this mutation caused a severe (< 3 %) deficiency of ADAMTS-13 activity and antigen level, associated with periodic thrombocytopenia, haemolytic anaemia and mild mental confusion. Both parents, who are cousins, showed the same mutation in heterozygous form. Expression studies of the mutant ADAMTS-13, performed in HEK293 cells, showed a severe decrease of the enzyme’s activity and secretion, although the protease was detected inside the cells. Molecular dynamics found that in the D173G mutant the interface area between the metalloprotease domain and the disintegrin-like domain significantly decreases during the simulations, while the proline-rich 20 residues linker region (LR, 285–304) between them undergoes extensive conformational changes. Inter-domain contacts are also significantly less conserved in the mutant compared to the wild-type. Both a decrease of the inter-domain contacts along with a substantial conformational rearrangement of LR interfere with the proper maturation and folding of the mutant ADAMTS-13, thus impairing its secretion.

  5. Reduced frequency and severity of residential fires following delivery of fire prevention education by on-duty fire fighters: cluster randomized controlled study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Clare, Joseph; Garis, Len; Plecas, Darryl; Jennings, Charles

    2012-04-01

    In 2008, Surrey Fire Services, British Columbia, commenced a firefighter-delivered, door-to-door fire-prevention education and smoke alarm examination/installation initiative with the intention of reducing the frequency and severity of residential structure fires in the City of Surrey. High-risk zones within the city were identified and 18,473 home visits were undertaken across seven temporal delivery cohorts (13.8% of non-apartment dwellings in the city). The frequency and severity of fires pre- and post- the home visit intervention was examined in comparison to randomized high-risk cluster controls. Overall, the frequency of fires was found to have reduced in the city overall, however, the reduction in the intervention cohorts was significantly larger than for controls. Furthermore, when fires did occur within the intervention cohorts, smoke detectors were activated more frequently and the fires were confined to the object of origin more often post-home visits. No equivalent pattern was observed for the cluster control. On-duty fire fighters can reduce the frequency and severity of residential fires through targeted, door-to-door distribution of fire prevention education in high-risk areas. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  6. Intrauterine growth restriction and placental gene expression in severe preeclampsia, comparing early-onset and late-onset forms.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nevalainen, Jaana; Skarp, Sini; Savolainen, Eeva-Riitta; Ryynänen, Markku; Järvenpää, Jouko

    2017-10-26

    To evaluate placental gene expression in severe early- or late-onset preeclampsia with intrauterine growth restriction compared to controls. Chorionic villus sampling was conducted after cesarean section from the placentas of five women with early- or late-onset severe preeclampsia and five controls for each preeclampsia group. Microarray analysis was performed to identify gene expression differences between the groups. Pathway analysis showed over-representation of gene ontology (GO) biological process terms related to inflammatory and immune response pathways, platelet development, vascular development, female pregnancy and reproduction in early-onset preeclampsia. Pathways related to immunity, complement and coagulation cascade were overrepresented in the hypergeometric test for the Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) database. Ten genes (ABI3BP, C7, HLA-G, IL2RB, KRBOX1, LRRC15, METTL7B, MPP5, RFLNB and SLC20A) had a ≥±1 fold expression difference in severe early-onset preeclampsia group compared to early controls. There were 362 genes that had a ≥±1 fold expression difference in severe early-onset preeclampsia group compared to late-onset preeclampsia group including ABI3BP, C7, HLA-G and IL2RB. There are significant differences in placental gene expression between severe early- and late-onset preeclampsia when both are associated with intrauterine growth restriction. ABI3BP, C7, HLA-G and IL2RB might contribute to the development of early form of severe preeclampsia.

  7. Validity and Reliability of the Turkish Version of the DSM-5 Posttraumatic Stress Symptom Severity Scale-Child Form.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yalin Sapmaz, Şermin; Ergin, Dilek; Özek Erkuran, Handan; Şen Celasin, Nesrin; Öztürk, Masum; Karaarslan, Duygu; Köroğlu, Ertuğrul; Aydemir, Ömer

    2017-09-01

    This study assessed the validity and reliability of the Turkish version of the DSM-5 Posttraumatic Stress Symptom Severity Scale-Child Form for use among the Turkish population. The study group consisted of 30 patients that had been treated in a child psychiatry unit and diagnosed with posttraumatic stress disorder and 83 healthy volunteers that were attending middle or high school during the study period. For reliability analyses, the internal consistency coefficient and the test-retest correlation coefficient were measured. For validity analyses, the exploratory factor analysis and correlation analysis with the Child Posttraumatic Stress Reaction Index for concurrent validity were measured. The Cronbach's alpha (the internal consistency coefficient) of the scale was 0.909, and the test-retest correlation coefficient was 0.663. One factor that could explain 58.5% of the variance was obtained and was congruent with the original construct of the scale. As for concurrent validity, the scale showed high correlation with the Child Posttraumatic Stress Reaction Index. It was concluded that the Turkish version of the DSM-5 Posttraumatic Stress Symptom Severity Scale-Child Form can be used as a valid and reliable tool.

  8. 75 FR 6671 - Agency Forms Undergoing Paperwork Reduction Act Review

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-02-10

    ... programs implemented a new consent form. This form asked participants for permission for CDC to contact...] Agency Forms Undergoing Paperwork Reduction Act Review The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention... prevention behaviors, CDC will conduct telephone interviews of 425 Matter of Balance program participants six...

  9. Features of new realization forms of the prevention and correction of nervous and psychosomatic disorders in the personnel of the Kombinat and Spetsatom industrial associations

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Spitenko, Yu.P.; Kozlyuk, V.M.; Tabachnikov, S.I.; Aleksandrovskij, Yu.A.; Bebeshko, V.G.; Rozhnov, V.E.; Shcherbina, A.E.; Filatov, A.G.; Macheret, E.N.; Sedov, I.M.

    1989-01-01

    Features of the clinic of boundary nervous-mental disorders (BNMD) in the Chernobyl' NPP personnel in the third period (from 1986, November up to 1988) of extremal situation development were studied to create the adequate and effective therapeutic-preventive measures. Analysis of the stress factors in extremal and postextermal situations shows the increase in load on psychology adaptation systems in postextremal situation. Differential system of the realization forms and methods necessary preventive and therapeutic-rehabilitation measures was developed

  10. Monoclonal antibody form and function: manufacturing the right antibodies for treating drug abuse.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Peterson, Eric; Owens, S Michael; Henry, Ralph L

    2006-05-26

    Drug abuse continues to be a major national and worldwide problem, and effective treatment strategies are badly needed. Antibodies are promising therapies for the treatment of medical problems caused by drug abuse, with several candidates in preclinical and early clinical trials. Monoclonal antibodies can be designed that have customized affinity and specificity against drugs of abuse, and because antibodies can be designed in various forms, in vivo pharmacokinetic characteristics can be tailored to suit specific clinical applications (eg, long-acting for relapse prevention, or short-acting for overdose). Passive immunization with antibodies against drugs of abuse has several advantages over active immunization, but because large doses of monoclonal antibodies may be needed for each patient, efficient antibody production technology is essential. In this minireview we discuss some of the antibody forms that may be effective clinical treatments for drug abuse, as well as several current and emerging production systems that could bridge the gap from discovery to patient use.

  11. Severe accidents: in nuclear power plants

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1986-01-01

    A ''severe'' nuclear accident refers to a reactor accident that could exceed reactor design specifications to such a degree as to prevent cooling of the reactor's core by normal means. This report summarizes the work of a NEA Senior Group of Experts who have studied the potential response of existing light-water reactors to severe accidents and have found that current designs of reactors are far more capable of coping with severe accidents than design specifications would suggest. The report emphasises the specific knowledge and means that can be used for diagnosing a severe accident and for managing its progression in order to prevent or mitigate its consequences

  12. Lessons from obesity prevention for the prevention of mental disorders: the primordial prevention approach.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hayward, Joshua; Jacka, Felice N; Waters, Elizabeth; Allender, Steven

    2014-09-10

    Emerging evidence supports a relationship between risk factors for obesity and the genesis of the common mental disorders, depression and anxiety. This suggests common mental disorders should be considered as a form of non-communicable disease, preventable through the modification of lifestyle behaviours, particularly diet and physical activity. Obesity prevention research since the 1970's represents a considerable body of knowledge regarding strategies to modify diet and physical activity and so there may be clear lessons from obesity prevention that apply to the prevention of mental disorders. For obesity, as for common mental disorders, adolescence represents a key period of vulnerability. In this paper we briefly discuss relationships between modifiable lifestyle risk factors and mental health, lifestyle risk factor interventions in obesity prevention research, the current state of mental health prevention, and the implications of current applications of systems thinking in obesity prevention research for lifestyle interventions. We propose a potential focus for future mental health promotion interventions and emphasise the importance of lessons available from other lifestyle modification intervention programmes.

  13. Micronutrient special issue: Coenzyme Q{sub 10} requirements for DNA damage prevention

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Schmelzer, Constance, E-mail: schmelzer@fbn-dummerstorf.de [Leibniz Institute for Farm Animal Biology (FBN), Nutritional Physiology, Wilhelm-Stahl-Allee 2, 18196 Dummerstorf (Germany); Doering, Frank [University of Kiel, Institute of Human Nutrition and Food Science, Molecular Prevention, Heinrich-Hecht-Platz 10, 24118 Kiel (Germany)

    2012-05-01

    Coenzyme Q{sub 10} (CoQ{sub 10}) is an essential component for electron transport in the mitochondrial respiratory chain and serves as cofactor in several biological processes. The reduced form of CoQ{sub 10} (ubiquinol, Q{sub 10}H{sub 2}) is an effective antioxidant in biological membranes. During the last years, particular interest has been grown on molecular effects of CoQ{sub 10} supplementation on mechanisms related to DNA damage prevention. This review describes recent advances in our understanding about the impact of CoQ{sub 10} on genomic stability in cells, animals and humans. With regard to several in vitro and in vivo studies, CoQ{sub 10} provides protective effects on several markers of oxidative DNA damage and genomic stability. In comparison to the number of studies reporting preventive effects of CoQ{sub 10} on oxidative stress biomarkers, CoQ{sub 10} intervention studies in humans with a direct focus on markers of DNA damage are limited. Thus, more well-designed studies in healthy and disease populations with long-term follow up results are needed to substantiate the reported beneficial effects of CoQ{sub 10} on prevention of DNA damage.

  14. The Relationship Between Age of Gambling Onset and Adolescent Problematic Gambling Severity

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rahman, Ardeshir S.; Pilver, Corey E.; Desai, Rani A.; Steinberg, Marvin A.; Rugle, Loreen; Krishnan-Sarin, Suchitra; Potenza, Marc N.

    2012-01-01

    The aim of this study was to characterize the association between problem gambling severity and multiple health, functioning and gambling variables in adolescents aged 13–18 stratified by age of gambling onset. Survey data in 1624 Connecticut high school students stratified by age of gambling onset (≤11 years vs. ≥ 12 years) were analyzed in descriptive analyses and in logistic regression models. Earlier age of onset was associated with problem gambling severity as indexed by a higher frequency of at-risk/problem gambling (ARPG). Most health, functioning and gambling measures were similarly associated with problem gambling severity in the earlier- and later-age-of-gambling-onset groups with the exception of participation in non-strategic forms of gambling, which was more strongly associated with ARPG in the earlier-onset (OR=1.74, 95%CI=[1.26, 2.39]) as compared to later-onset (OR=0.94, 95%CI=[0.60, 1.48]) group (Interaction OR=1.91, 95%CI=[1.18, 3.26]). Post-hoc analysis revealed that earlier-onset ARPG was more strongly associated with multiple forms of non-strategic gambling including lottery (instant, traditional) and slot-machine gambling. The finding that problem gambling severity is more closely associated with multiple non-strategic forms of gambling amongst youth with earlier onset of gambling highlights the relevance of these types of youth gambling. The extent to which non-strategic forms of gambling may serve as a gateway to other forms of gambling or risk behaviors warrants additional study, and efforts targeting youth gambling should consider how best to address non-strategic gambling through education, prevention, treatment and policy efforts. PMID:22410208

  15. Determining critical groundwater level to prevent degraded peatland from severe peat fire

    Science.gov (United States)

    Putra, E. I.; Cochrane, M. A.; Vetrita, Y.; Graham, L.; Saharjo, B. H.

    2018-05-01

    Peat fires have been a severe recurrent problem for Indonesia, but droughts due to prolonged dry season aggravate burning conditions. To get a better understanding of this issue, we studied fire conditions in a portion of the ex-Mega Rice Project (MRP) area, Central Kalimantan. To examine fire season and hydrology factors affecting peat fires we analyzed daily TRMM data, Nino 3.4 SST Anomalies, and changing groundwater levels (GWL) from 300 dipwells. Our results quantify time-lags between the period of lowest precipitation and the lowest GWL; providing some ability to predict fire risk in advance of the lowest GWL. The rise of Nino 3.4 SST anomalies is significant risk factors for peat fire as they signify dry months which may yield large fire occurrences. GWL in 2011 was lower than in 2012, but fires were more frequent in 2012, indicating that low precipitation amounts in the wet season of 2011/2012 left the peat in a dry condition early in 2012. Most of the fires occurred in areas with GWL less than -30 cm, powerfully illustrating the importance of maintaining GWL at more than -10 cm, to prevent degraded peatlands from experiencing surface and deep peat fires.

  16. Preventing Melanoma PSA (:60)

    Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Podcasts

    2015-06-02

    This 60 second public service announcement is based on the June 2015 CDC Vital Signs report. Skin cancer is the most common form of cancer in the U.S. In 2011, there were more than 65,000 cases of melanoma, the most deadly form of skin cancer. Learn how everyone can help prevent skin cancer.  Created: 6/2/2015 by National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion (NCCDPHP).   Date Released: 6/2/2015.

  17. Reflections on preventive medicine.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Miettinen, Olli S

    2014-10-01

    Having thought much about medicine in my career-long effort to understand it and the research for its advancement, I have come to views rather different form the now-prevailing ones in respect to what preventive medicine is about; what epidemiology is in relation to preventive medicine; what distinguishes preventive medicine in preventive healthcare at large; the relation of preventive medicine to public health; the concept of health promotion; and also the core principles of preventive medicine. All of these views I set forth in this article, for the readers' critical reflection. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  18. Preventive effect of eccentric training on acute hamstring injuries in men's soccer: A cluster-randomized controlled trial

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Petersen, Jesper; Thorborg, Kristian; Nielsen, Michael Bachmann

    2011-01-01

    Background: The incidence of acute hamstring injuries is high in several sports, including the different forms of football. Purpose: The authors investigated the preventive effect of eccentric strengthening of the hamstring muscles using the Nordic hamstring exercise compared with no additional h...

  19. Mustard Group Chemical War Agents from Preventive Medicine Perspective

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Muharrem Ucar

    2007-06-01

    Full Text Available Although many preventive efforts and treaties, chemical warfare agents have still been a severe assault form against both military and civilian individuals. The most important chemical warfare agents sulphur mustard and others are easy to handle and cheap those the important reasons to accept sulphur mustard as a chemical warfare agent. Many individuals attacked by sulphur mustard have severe health problems such as respiratory system diseases. After ten years of sulphur mustard exposure, several health problems such as respiratory tract problems (%42.5, eye problems (%40 and other systemic diseases have been observed to insist on induviduals when examined. Exposure of even single sulphur mustard exposure has been seen to result high level of disability and early deaths. In spite of the fact that there is no available antidote and/or remedy against sulphur mustard exposure, our country has an incremental chemical assault threat for both military personels and civilians because of its jeopolitics position. Experimental studies regarding sulphur mustard toxicity will be helpful for novel preventive strategies and antidot devolepment. [TAF Prev Med Bull 2007; 6(3.000: 209-214

  20. Deterministic analyses of severe accident issues

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Dua, S.S.; Moody, F.J.; Muralidharan, R.; Claassen, L.B.

    2004-01-01

    Severe accidents in light water reactors involve complex physical phenomena. In the past there has been a heavy reliance on simple assumptions regarding physical phenomena alongside of probability methods to evaluate risks associated with severe accidents. Recently GE has developed realistic methodologies that permit deterministic evaluations of severe accident progression and of some of the associated phenomena in the case of Boiling Water Reactors (BWRs). These deterministic analyses indicate that with appropriate system modifications, and operator actions, core damage can be prevented in most cases. Furthermore, in cases where core-melt is postulated, containment failure can either be prevented or significantly delayed to allow sufficient time for recovery actions to mitigate severe accidents

  1. Discrimination of Spore-Forming Bacilli Using spoIVA

    Science.gov (United States)

    Venkateswaran, Kasthuri; LaDuc, Myron; Stuecker, Tara

    2009-01-01

    A method of discriminating between spore-forming and non-spore-forming bacteria is based on a combination of simultaneous sporulation-specific and non-sporulation-specific quantitative polymerase chain reactions (Q-PCRs). The method was invented partly in response to the observation that for the purposes of preventing or reducing biological contamination affecting many human endeavors, ultimately, only the spore-forming portions of bacterial populations are the ones that are problematic (or, at least, more problematic than are the non-spore-forming portions). In some environments, spore-forming bacteria constitute small fractions of the total bacterial populations. The use of sporulation-specific primers in Q-PCR affords the ability to assess the spore-forming fraction of a bacterial population present in an environment of interest. This assessment can provide a more thorough and accurate understanding of the bacterial contamination in the environment, thereby making it possible to focus contamination- testing, contamination-prevention, sterilization, and decontamination resources more economically and efficiently. The method includes the use of sporulation-specific primers in the form of designed, optimized deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) oligonucleotides specific for the bacterial spoIVA gene (see table). [In "spoIVA," "IV" signifies Roman numeral four and the entire quoted name refers to gene A for the fourth stage of sporulation.] These primers are mixed into a PCR cocktail with a given sample of bacterial cells. A control PCR cocktail into which are mixed universal 16S rRNA primers is also prepared. ["16S rRNA" denotes a ribosomal ribonucleic acid (rRNA) sequence that is common to all organisms.] Following several cycles of heating and cooling according to the PCR protocol to amplify amounts of DNA molecules, the amplification products can be analyzed to determine the types of bacterial cells present within the samples. If the amplification product is strong

  2. CDC Vital Signs-Preventing Melanoma

    Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Podcasts

    2015-06-02

    This podcast is based on the June 2015 CDC Vital Signs report. Skin cancer is the most common form of cancer in the U.S. In 2011, there were more than 65,000 cases of melanoma, the most deadly form of skin cancer. Learn how everyone can help prevent skin cancer.  Created: 6/2/2015 by National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion (NCCDPHP).   Date Released: 6/2/2015.

  3. Hydrogen permeation preventive structural materials

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fukushima, Kimichika; Nakahigashi, Shigeo; Imura, Masashi; Terasawa, Michitaka; Ebisawa, Katsuyuki.

    1986-01-01

    Purpose: To provide highly practical wall materials for use in thermonuclear reactors capable of effectively preventing the permeation of hydrogen isotopes such as tritium thereby preventing the contamination of coolants. Constitution: Helium gas is injected into or at the surface of base materials comprising stainless steel plates to form a helium gas region. Alternatively, boron, nitrogen or the compound thereof having a greater helium forming nuclear reaction cross section than that of the base materials is mixed or injected into the base material to form the helium gas region through (n,α) reaction under neutron irradiation. Since the helium gas region constitutes a diffusion barrier for the tritium as the hydrogen isotope, the permeation amount of tritium is significantly suppressed. Helium gas bubbles or lattice defects are formed in the helium gas region under the neutron irradiation, by which the hydrogen isotope capturing effect can also be effected. In this way, permeation of the hydrogen isotope, contamination of the coolants, etc. can be prevented to provide great practical effectives. (Kawakami, Y.)

  4. Targeted ethnography as a critical step to inform cultural adaptations of HIV prevention interventions for adults with severe mental illness.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wainberg, Milton L; Alfredo González, M; McKinnon, Karen; Elkington, Katherine S; Pinto, Diana; Gruber Mann, Claudio; Mattos, Paulo E

    2007-07-01

    As in other countries worldwide, adults with severe mental illness (SMI) in Brazil are disproportionately infected with HIV relative to the general population. Brazilian psychiatric facilities lack tested HIV prevention interventions. To adapt existing interventions, developed only in the US, we conducted targeted ethnography with adults with SMI and staff from two psychiatric institutions in Brazil. We sought to characterize individual, institutional, and interpersonal factors that may affect HIV risk behavior in this population. We conducted 350 hours of ethnographic field observations in two mental health service settings in Rio de Janeiro, and 9 focus groups (n=72) and 16 key-informant interviews with patients and staff in these settings. Data comprised field notes and audiotapes of all exchanges, which were transcribed, coded, and systematically analyzed. The ethnography identified and/or characterized the institutional culture: (1) patients' risk behaviors; (2) the institutional setting; (3) intervention content; and (4) intervention format and delivery strategies. Targeted ethnography also illuminated broader contextual issues for development and implementation of HIV prevention interventions for adults with SMI in Brazil, including an institutional culture that did not systematically address patients' sexual behavior, sexual health, or HIV sexual risk, yet strongly impacted the structure of patients' sexual networks. Further, ethnography identified the Brazilian concept of "social responsibility" as important to prevention work with psychiatric patients. Targeted ethnography with adults with SMI and institutional staff provided information critical to the adaptation of tested US HIV prevention interventions for Brazilians with SMI.

  5. Recombinant factor VIII Fc fusion protein for the prevention and treatment of bleeding in children with severe hemophilia A.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Young, G; Mahlangu, J; Kulkarni, R; Nolan, B; Liesner, R; Pasi, J; Barnes, C; Neelakantan, S; Gambino, G; Cristiano, L M; Pierce, G F; Allen, G

    2015-06-01

    Prophylactic factor replacement, which prevents hemarthroses and thereby reduces the musculoskeletal disease burden in children with hemophilia A, requires frequent intravenous infusions (three to four times weekly). Kids A-LONG was a phase 3 open-label study evaluating the safety, efficacy and pharmacokinetics of a longer-acting factor, recombinant factor VIII Fc fusion protein (rFVIIIFc), in previously treated children with severe hemophilia A (endogenous FVIII level of hemophilia A. © 2015 The Authors. Journal of Thrombosis and Haemostasis published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of International Society on Thrombosis and Haemostasis.

  6. Tuberculosis and parenteral viral hepatitides: incidence of mixed forms

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    A. A. Asratyan

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available Objective: to estimate the frequency of parenteral viral hepatitides (HB and HC (PVH in patients with tuberculosis in Moscow in relation to data on their incidence in the aggregate population of the capital.Materials and methods. The authors analyzed the incidence of (acute, chronic HB and HC (carriage and tuberculosis in Moscow in 2009. A total of 24,220 cards for infectious patients (No. 089/y and federal statistical follow-up forms (No. 2 were first processed to compare and search for personal data among the patients with tuberculosis and all forms of PVH and to establish the evidence of PVH and tuberculosis comorbidity.Results. The infection of tuberculosis patients with parenteral hepatitis B and C viruses was ascertained to be 5.5 to 284.9 times higher (in relation to the form of a hepatitis course than that in the aggregation population of Moscow, which suggests that PVH is of high significance for the tuberculosis patients and that it is necessary to improve a PVH prevention program among this cohort patients. Analysis of the sex-age structure shows that male tuberculosis patients in the 20-39-year-old group should be considered to be a special risk group that should attract special attention when implementing preventive measures. The tuberculosis mortality rate among mixed infected patients was 1.8-fold higher than among those who had PVH-uncomplicated tuberculosis.Conclusion. The results of the investigations are suggestive of the evidence of PVH and tuberculosis comorbidity. The mixed forms of these infections in different combinations have been established to be accompanied by their severer clinical course and high death rates. 

  7. Prevention: Exercise

    Medline Plus

    Full Text Available ... A SPECIALIST Prevention Strengthening Exercise Committee Exercise Committee Core Strengthening Many popular forms of exercise focus on ... acute pain, you should stop doing it. Transverse Core Strengthening This strengthens the muscles that cross from ...

  8. The DELTA PREP Initiative: Accelerating Coalition Capacity for Intimate Partner Violence Prevention

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zakocs, Ronda; Freire, Kimberley E.

    2018-01-01

    Background The DELTA PREP Project aimed to build the prevention capacity of 19 state domestic violence coalitions by offering eight supports designed to promote prevention integration over a 3-year period: modest grant awards, training events, technical assistance, action planning, coaching hubs, the Coalition Prevention Capacity Assessment, an online workstation, and the online documentation support system. Objectives Using quantitative and qualitative data, we sought to explain how coalitions integrated prevention within their structures and functions and document how DELTA PREP supports contributed to coalitions’ integration process. Results We found that coalitions followed a common pathway to integrate prevention. First, coalitions exhibited precursors of organizational readiness, especially having prevention champions. Second, coalitions engaged in five critical actions: engaging in dialogue, learning about prevention, forming teams, soliciting input from the coalition, and action planning. Last, by engaging in these critical actions, coalitions enhanced two key organizational readiness factors—developing a common understanding of prevention and an organizational commitment to prevention. We also found that DELTA PREP supports contributed to coalitions’ abilities to integrate prevention by supporting learning about prevention, fostering a prevention team, and engaging in action planning by leveraging existing opportunities. Two DELTA PREP supports—coaching hubs and the workstation—did not work as initially intended. From the DELTA PREP experience, we offer several lessons to consider when designing future prevention capacity-building initiatives. PMID:26245934

  9. 78 FR 40151 - Agency Forms Undergoing Paperwork Reduction Act Review

    Science.gov (United States)

    2013-07-03

    ... resistant Staphylococcus aureus ABCs Case Report Form. ABCs Invasive Pneumococcal 10 41 10/60 Disease in... DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [30-Day 13-13DB] Agency Forms Undergoing Paperwork Reduction Act Review The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention...

  10. [Reliability and validity of the Severe Impairment Battery, short form (SIB-s), in patients with dementia in Spain].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cruz-Orduña, Isabel; Agüera-Ortiz, Luis F; Montorio-Cerrato, Ignacio; León-Salas, Beatriz; Valle de Juan, M Cristina; Martínez-Martín, Pablo

    2015-01-01

    People with progressive dementia evolve into a state where traditional neuropsychological tests are not effective. Severe Impairment Battery (SIB) and short form (SIB-s) were developed for evaluating the cognitive status in patients with severe dementia. To evaluate the psychometric attributes of the SIB-s in patients with severe dementia. 127 institutionalized patients (female: 86.6%; mean age: 82.6 ± 7.5 years-old) with dementia were assessed with the SIB-s, the Global Deterioration Scale (GDS), Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), Severe Mini-Mental State Examination (sMMSE), Barthel Index and FAST. SIB-s acceptability, reliability, validity and precision were analyzed. The mean total score for scale was 19.1 ± 15.34 (range: 0-48). Floor effect was 18.1%, only marginally higher than the desirable 15%. Factor analysis identified a single factor explaining 68% of the total variance of the scale. Cronbach's alpha coefficient was 0.96 and the item-total corrected correlation ranged from 0.27 to 0.83. The item homogeneity value was 0.43. Test-retest and inter-rater reliability for the total score was satisfactory (ICC: 0.96 and 0.95, respectively). The SIB-s showed moderate correlation with functional dependency scales (Barthel Index: 0.48, FAST: -0.74). Standard error of measurement was 3.07 for the total score. The SIB-s is a reliable and valid instrument for evaluating patients with severe dementia in the Spanish population of relatively brief instruments.

  11. Prevention Of Stroke

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nagaraja D

    2005-01-01

    Full Text Available Stroke is an important cause for neurological morbidity and mortality. Prevention of ischemic stroke involves identification and prevention of risk factors and optimal use of pharmacotherapy. Risk factors have been classified as modifiable and non-modifiable; control of modifiable factors should prevent stroke occurrence. Stroke prevention has been described at three levels: primary, secondary and tertiary. Prolonged hypertension increases an individual′s risk for developing fatal or nonfatal stroke by three times and its control has been shown to prevent stroke. Diabetes mellitus is an important cause for microangiopathy and predisposes to stroke. Statin trials have shown significant reduction in stroke in those who were treated with statins. Stroke risk can be reduced by avoiding tobacco use, control of obesity and avoiding sedentary life style. Anti platelet medications are effective for secondary prevention of stroke. Educating society regarding modifiable risk factors and optimal use of pharmacotherapy form the cornerstone for the prevention of stroke.

  12. What is the place of pre-exposure prophylaxis in HIV prevention?

    Science.gov (United States)

    De Man, Jeroen; Colebunders, Robert; Florence, Eric; Laga, Marie; Kenyon, Christopher

    2013-01-01

    New tools are needed to bring down ongoing high HIV incidence. This review aims to evaluate the place of one of these new tools (pre-exposure prophylaxis) in a comprehensive prevention strategy. Several trials have demonstrated the safety and the efficacy of pre-exposure prophylaxis in HIV prevention. Two large trials have, however, failed to show such efficacy. This was likely due to poor adherence in these trials. New forms of long-acting pre-exposure prophylaxis currently in trials may deal with these problems of low adherence. Pre-exposure prophylaxis has been demonstrated to be cost-effective within certain settings. The introduction of pre-exposure prophylaxis into prevention programs needs to be carefully thought through. For example, pre-exposure prophylaxis-induced risk compensation, at both an individual and population level, could undermine other aspects of a comprehensive HIV prevention program. In conclusion, pre-exposure prophylaxis could be a useful additional tool for the prevention of HIV in specific high-risk groups. It should be implemented in a way that deals with issues such as ensuring high adherence and ensuring that pre-exposure prophylaxis does not detract from, but complements, other more fundamental elements of HIV prevention programs.

  13. Electroacupuncture at Zusanli Prevents Severe Scalds-Induced Gut Ischemia and Paralysis by Activating the Cholinergic Pathway

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Huan Wang

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available Severe burn injuries may result in gastrointestinal paralysis, and barrier dysfunction due to gut ischemia and lowered vagus excitability. In this study we investigate whether electroacupuncture (EA at Zusanli (ST36 could prevent severe scalds-induced gut ischemia, paralysis, and barrier dysfunction and whether the protective role of EA at ST36 is related to the vagus nerve. 35% burn area rats were divided into six groups: (a EAN: EA nonchannel acupoints followed by scald injury; (b EA: EA at ST36 after scald injury; (c VGX/EA: vagotomy (VGX before EA at ST36 and scald injury; (d VGX/EAN: VGX before EAN and scald injury; (e atropine/EA: applying atropine before scald injury and then EA at ST36; (f atropine/EAN: applying atropine before scald injury and then EA at nonchannel acupoints. EA at the Zusanli point significantly promoted the intestinal impelling ratio and increased the amount of mucosal blood flow after scald injury. The plasma diamine oxidase (DAO and intestinal permeability decreased significantly after scald injury in the EA group compared with others. However, EA after atropine injection or cervical vagotomy failed to improve intestinal motility and mucosa blood flow suggesting that the mechanism of EA may be related to the activation of the cholinergic nerve pathway.

  14. Coolability of severely degraded CANDU cores

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Meneley, D.A.; Blahnik, C.; Rogers, J.T.; Snell, V.G.; Mijhawan, S.

    1995-07-01

    Analytical and experimental studies have shown that the separately cooled moderator in a CANDU reactor provides an effective heat sink in the event of a loss-of-coolant accident (LOCA) accompanied by total failure of the emergency core cooling system (ECCS). The moderator heat sink prevents fuel melting and maintains the integrity of the fuel channels, therefore terminating this severe accident short of severe core damage. Nevertheless, there is a probability, however low, that the moderator heat sink could fail in such an accident. The pioneering work of Rogers (1984) for such a severe accident using simplified models showed that the fuel channels would fail and a bed of dry, solid debris would be formed at the bottom of the calandria which would heat up and eventually melt. However, the molten pool of core material would be retained in the calandria vessel, cooled by the independently cooled shield-tank water, and would eventually re solidify. Thus, the calandria vessel would act inherently as a core-catcher as long as the shield tank integrity is maintained. The present paper reviews subsequent work on the damage to a CANDU core under severe accident conditions and describes an empirically based mechanistic model of this process. It is shown that, for such severe accident sequences in a CANDU reactor, the end state following core disassembly consists of a porous bed of dry solid, coarse debris, irrespective of the initiating event and the core disassembly process. (author). 48 refs., 3 tabs., 18 figs

  15. Case report: Ribavirin and vitamin A in a severe case of measles.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bichon, Amandine; Aubry, Camille; Benarous, Lucas; Drouet, Hortense; Zandotti, Christine; Parola, Philippe; Lagier, Jean-Christophe

    2017-12-01

    Despite a vaccine being widely available, measles continues to occur frequently, with sometimes lethal consequences. The mortality rate reaches 35% and measles represents 44% of the 1.4 million deaths which are due to preventable diseases. Severe forms of measles are reported, mainly in young, unvaccinated adults, and in specific populations. The risk factors for severe measles include no or incomplete vaccination and vitamin A deficiency. Apart from secondary measles-related infections, severe measles is mainly represented by neurological, respiratory, and digestive symptoms. Strengthening the hypothesis that there is a link between vitamin A deficiency and severe measles in this paper we report the case of a 25-year-old unvaccinated man hospitalized for severe and complicated measles. The evolution was good after administration of intramuscular vitamin A as well as intravenous ribavirin. Measles remains a fatal and serious disease. The early use of ribavirin and vitamin A shows significant improvements regarding morbimortality and should be systematic in severe cases. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. All rights reserved.

  16. Severe Form of Brachydactyly Type A1 in a Child with a c.298G > A Mutation in IHH Gene.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Salian, Smrithi; Shukla, Anju; Nishimura, Gen; Girisha, Katta M

    2017-09-01

    Brachydactyly type A1 (BDA1) is characterized by short middle phalanges. We report the case of a child with a severe form of BDA1 with complete absence of the middle phalanges of all extremities. He had c.298G > A (p.D100N) mutation in IHH gene.

  17. [Prevention of mental disorders].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Riedel-Heller, Steffi; Gühne, Uta

    2013-12-01

    Investment in prevention is a major public health requirement. Mental disorders are common and are associated with severe consequences. They are a major target for prevention. Based on vulnerabilitiy-stress-models the theoretical background for prevention in mental disorders is outlined. Effective strategies for children, adolescents, adults and individuals in old age do exist. Results regarding the prevention of depres-sion and psychoses are outlined and risk groups which require current actions are determined. Current activities towards a national prevention strategy in Germany are discussed. © Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.

  18. Grant Programs for Pollution Prevention

    Science.gov (United States)

    The Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics is responsible for overseeing several grant programs for tribes and states which promote pollution prevention through source reduction and resource conservation.

  19. The invisibility of men in South African violence prevention policy: national prioritization, male vulnerability, and framing prevention

    Science.gov (United States)

    van Niekerk, Ashley; Tonsing, Susanne; Seedat, Mohamed; Jacobs, Roxanne; Ratele, Kopano; McClure, Roderick

    2015-01-01

    Background South Africa has a significant violence problem. The exposure of girls and women to interpersonal violence is widespread, and the victimization of men, especially to severe and homicidal forms of aggression, is of considerable concern, with male homicide eight times the global rate. In the last two decades, there have been a plethora of South African policies to promote safety. However, indications suggest that the policy response to violence is not coherently formulated, comprehensive, or evenly implemented. Objective This study examines selected South African national legislative instruments in terms of their framing and definition of violence and its typology, vulnerable populations, and prevention. Design This study comprises a directed content analysis of selected legislative documents from South African ministries mandated to prevent violence and its consequences or tasked with the prevention of key contributors to violence. Documents were selected using an electronic keyword search method and analyzed independently by two researchers. Results The legislative documents recognized the high levels of violence, confirmed the prioritization of selected vulnerable groups, especially women, children, disabled persons, and rural populations, and above all drew on criminological perspectives to emphasize tertiary prevention interventions. There is a policy focus on the protection and support of victims and the prosecution of perpetrators, but near absent recognition of men as victims. Conclusions There is a need to broaden the policy framework from primarily criminological and prosecutorial perspectives to include public health contributions. It is likewise important to enlarge the conceptions of vulnerability to include men alongside other vulnerable groups. These measures are important for shaping and resourcing prevention decisions and strengthening primary prevention approaches to violence. PMID:26228996

  20. The invisibility of men in South African violence prevention policy: national prioritization, male vulnerability, and framing prevention

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ashley van Niekerk

    2015-07-01

    Full Text Available Background: South Africa has a significant violence problem. The exposure of girls and women to interpersonal violence is widespread, and the victimization of men, especially to severe and homicidal forms of aggression, is of considerable concern, with male homicide eight times the global rate. In the last two decades, there have been a plethora of South African policies to promote safety. However, indications suggest that the policy response to violence is not coherently formulated, comprehensive, or evenly implemented. Objective: This study examines selected South African national legislative instruments in terms of their framing and definition of violence and its typology, vulnerable populations, and prevention. Design: This study comprises a directed content analysis of selected legislative documents from South African ministries mandated to prevent violence and its consequences or tasked with the prevention of key contributors to violence. Documents were selected using an electronic keyword search method and analyzed independently by two researchers. Results: The legislative documents recognized the high levels of violence, confirmed the prioritization of selected vulnerable groups, especially women, children, disabled persons, and rural populations, and above all drew on criminological perspectives to emphasize tertiary prevention interventions. There is a policy focus on the protection and support of victims and the prosecution of perpetrators, but near absent recognition of men as victims. Conclusions: There is a need to broaden the policy framework from primarily criminological and prosecutorial perspectives to include public health contributions. It is likewise important to enlarge the conceptions of vulnerability to include men alongside other vulnerable groups. These measures are important for shaping and resourcing prevention decisions and strengthening primary prevention approaches to violence.

  1. The invisibility of men in South African violence prevention policy: national prioritization, male vulnerability, and framing prevention.

    Science.gov (United States)

    van Niekerk, Ashley; Tonsing, Susanne; Seedat, Mohamed; Jacobs, Roxanne; Ratele, Kopano; McClure, Roderick

    2015-01-01

    South Africa has a significant violence problem. The exposure of girls and women to interpersonal violence is widespread, and the victimization of men, especially to severe and homicidal forms of aggression, is of considerable concern, with male homicide eight times the global rate. In the last two decades, there have been a plethora of South African policies to promote safety. However, indications suggest that the policy response to violence is not coherently formulated, comprehensive, or evenly implemented. This study examines selected South African national legislative instruments in terms of their framing and definition of violence and its typology, vulnerable populations, and prevention. This study comprises a directed content analysis of selected legislative documents from South African ministries mandated to prevent violence and its consequences or tasked with the prevention of key contributors to violence. Documents were selected using an electronic keyword search method and analyzed independently by two researchers. The legislative documents recognized the high levels of violence, confirmed the prioritization of selected vulnerable groups, especially women, children, disabled persons, and rural populations, and above all drew on criminological perspectives to emphasize tertiary prevention interventions. There is a policy focus on the protection and support of victims and the prosecution of perpetrators, but near absent recognition of men as victims. There is a need to broaden the policy framework from primarily criminological and prosecutorial perspectives to include public health contributions. It is likewise important to enlarge the conceptions of vulnerability to include men alongside other vulnerable groups. These measures are important for shaping and resourcing prevention decisions and strengthening primary prevention approaches to violence.

  2. Coolability of severely degraded CANDU cores. Revised

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Meneley, D.A.; Blahnik, C.; Rogers, J.T.; Snell, V.G.; Nijhawan, S.

    1996-01-01

    Analytical and experimental studies have shown that the separately cooled moderator in a CANDU reactor provides an effective heat sink in the event of a loss-of-coolant accident (LOCA) accompanied by total failure of the emergency core cooling system (ECCS). The moderator heat sink prevents fuel melting and maintains the integrity of the fuel channels, therefore terminating this severe accident short of severe core damage. Nevertheless, there is a probability, however low, that the moderator heat sink could fail in such an accident. The pioneering work of Rogers (1984) for such a severe accident using simplified models showed that the fuel channels would fail and a bed of dry, solid debris would be formed at the bottom of the calandria which would heat up and eventually melt. However, the molten pool of core material would be retained in the calandria vessel, cooled by the independently cooled shield-tank water, and would eventually resolidify. Thus, the calandria vessel would act inherently as a 'core-catcher' as long as the shield tank integrity is maintained. The present paper reviews subsequent work on the damage to a CANDU core under severe accident conditions and describes an empirically based mechanistic model of this process. It is shown that, for such severe accident sequences in a CANDU reactor, the end state following core disassembly consists of a porous bed of dry solid, coarse debris, irrespective of the initiating event and the core disassembly process. (author)

  3. Retinopathy of prematurity: the need for prevention

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liegl, Raffael; Hellström, Ann; Smith, Lois EH

    2016-01-01

    More than 450,000 babies are born prematurely in the USA every year. The improved survival of even the most vulnerable low body weight preterm infants has, despite improving health outcomes, led to the resurgence in preterm complications including one of the major causes for blindness in children, retinopathy of prematurity (ROP). The current mainstay in ROP therapy is laser photocoagulation and the injection of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) antibodies in the late stages of the disease after the onset of neovascularization. Both are proven options for ophthalmologists to treat the severe forms of late ROP. However, laser photocoagulation destroys major parts of the retina, and the injection of VEGF antibodies, although rather simple to administer, may cause a systemic suppression of normal vascularization, which has not been studied in sufficient depth. However, the use of neither VEGF antibody nor laser treatment prevents ROP, which should be the long-term goal. It should be possible to prevent ROP by more closely mimicking the intrauterine environment after preterm birth. Such preventive measures include preventing the toxic postbirth influences (eg, oxygen excess) as well as providing the missing intrauterine factors (eg, insulin growth factor 1) and are likely to also reduce other complications of premature birth as well as ROP. This review is meant to summarize the current knowledge on the prevention of ROP with a particular emphasize on the use of insulin growth factor 1 supplementation. PMID:28539804

  4. Factors related to severe dengue during an epidemic in Vitoria, State of Espirito Santo, Brazil, 2011

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Creuza Rachel Vicente

    2013-09-01

    Full Text Available Introduction The prognosis of dengue depends on early diagnosis and treatment, which can help prevent severe forms whose characteristics were evaluated here. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted involving dengue cases in Vitória, State of Espírito Santo, Brazil, in 2011. Results Two health regions registered 56.3% of 371 cases of severe dengue. Of these cases, 21.3% presented with dengue hemorrhagic fever. There were associations between dengue hemorrhagic fever with younger ages and a longer time before receiving care. Conclusions There was a greater involvement of dengue hemorrhagic fever in young people. Delay in care, poor urban quality and high endemicity were identified as possible risk factors for dengue severity.

  5. Risk Factors for Gout and Prevention: A Systematic Review of the Literature

    Science.gov (United States)

    Singh, Jasvinder A.; Reddy, Supriya G.; Kundukulam, Joseph

    2014-01-01

    Purpose Our objective was to perform a systematic review of risk factors and prevention of gout. We searched Medline for fully published reports in English using keywords including but not limited to “gout”, “epidemiology”, “primary prevention”, “secondary prevention”, “risk factors’. Data from relevant articles meeting inclusion criteria was extracted using standardized forms. Main Findings Of the 751 titles and abstracts, 53 studies met the criteria and were included in the review. Several risk factors were studied. Alcohol consumption increased the risk of incident gout, especially beer and hard liquor. Several dietary factors increased the risk of incident gout, including meat intake, seafood intake, sugar sweetened soft drinks, and consumption of foods high in fructose. Diary intake, folate intake and coffee consumption were each associated with a lower risk of incident gout and in some cases a lower rate of gout flares. Thiazide and loop diuretics were associated with higher risk of incident gout and higher rate of gout flares. Hypertension, renal insufficiency, hypertriglyceridemia, hypercholesterolemia, hyperuricemia, diabetes, obesity and early menopause were each associated with a higher risk of incident gout and/or gout flares. Summary Several dietary risk factors for incident gout and gout flares are modifiable. Prevention and optimal management of comorbidities is likely to decreased risk of gout. Research in preventive strategies for the treatment of gout is needed. PMID:21285714

  6. 7 CFR 58.729 - Forming containers.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 3 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Forming containers. 58.729 Section 58.729 Agriculture... Procedures § 58.729 Forming containers. Containers either lined or unlined shall be assembled and stored in a sanitary manner to prevent contamination. The handling of containers by filler crews should be done with...

  7. Politics of prevention: The emergence of prevention science.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Roumeliotis, Filip

    2015-08-01

    This article critically examines the political dimension of prevention science by asking how it constructs the problems for which prevention is seen as the solution and how it enables the monitoring and control of these problems. It also seeks to examine how prevention science has established a sphere for legitimate political deliberation and which kinds of statements are accepted as legitimate within this sphere. The material consists of 14 publications describing and discussing the goals, concepts, promises and problems of prevention science. The analysis covers the period from 1993 to 2012. The analysis shows that prevention science has established a narrow definition of "prevention", including only interventions aimed at the reduction of risks for clinical disorders. In publications from the U.S. National Institute of Drug Abuse, the principles of prevention science have enabled a commitment to a zero-tolerance policy on drugs. The drug using subject has been constructed as a rational choice actor lacking in skills in exerting self-control in regard to drug use. Prevention science has also enabled the monitoring and control of expertise, risk groups and individuals through specific forms of data gathering. Through the juxtaposition of the concepts of "objectivity" and "morality", prevention science has constituted a principle of delineation, disqualifying statements not adhering to the principles of prevention science from the political field, rendering ethical and conflictual dimensions of problem representations invisible. The valorisation of scientific accounts of drugs has acted to naturalise specific political ideals. It simultaneously marginalises the public from the public policy process, giving precedence to experts who are able to provide information that policy-makers are demanding. Alternative accounts, such as those based on marginalisation, poverty or discrimination are silenced within prevention science. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights

  8. Prevention and management of severe pre-eclampsia/eclampsia in Afghanistan

    Science.gov (United States)

    2013-01-01

    Background An evidence-based strategy exists to reduce maternal morbidity and mortality associated with severe pre-eclampsia/eclampsia (PE/E), but it may be difficult to implement in low-resource settings. This study examines whether facilities that provide emergency obstetric and newborn care (EmONC) in Afghanistan have the capacity to manage severe PE/E cases. Methods A further analysis was conducted of the 2009–10 Afghanistan EmONC Needs Assessment. Assessors observed equipment and supplies available, and services provided at 78 of the 127 facilities offering comprehensive EmONC services and interviewed 224 providers. The providers also completed a written case scenario on severe PE/E. Descriptive statistics were used to summarize facility and provider characteristics. Student t-test, one-way ANOVA, and chi-square tests were performed to determine whether there were significant differences between facility types, doctors and midwives, and trained and untrained providers. Results The median number of severe PE/E cases in the past year was just 5 (range 0–42) at comprehensive health centers (CHCs) and district hospitals, compared with 44 (range 0–130) at provincial hospitals and 108 (range 32–540) at regional and specialized hospitals (p Afghanistan, but providers lack knowledge in some areas, especially concerning the use of MgSO4 and diazepam. Providers who have specialized training or work at larger facilities are better at managing cases of severe PE/E. The findings suggest a need to clarify service delivery guidelines, offer refresher training, and reinforce best practices with supervision and reinforcement. PMID:24119329

  9. Preventing Melanoma PSA (:60)

    Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Podcasts

    This 60 second public service announcement is based on the June 2015 CDC Vital Signs report. Skin cancer is the most common form of cancer in the U.S. In 2011, there were more than 65,000 cases of melanoma, the most deadly form of skin cancer. Learn how everyone can help prevent skin cancer.

  10. We are to do everything possible to prevent severe accidents

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Asmolov, V.

    2011-01-01

    The fundamental approach to safety assurance at a nuclear power plant is the principle of defence-in-depth. It means two key aspects: prevention of accidents through the creation and maintenance of engineering barriers, as well as mitigation of the consequences of accident. After Fukushima-1 accident re-evaluation was carried out of the effectiveness the defence-in-depth measures at Russian nuclear power plants, particularly in view of the very low-probability external events. The results of this evaluation demonstrated that all plants are fully compliant with the requirements of the current Russian safety standards [ru

  11. Developing a matrix to identify and prioritise research recommendations in HIV Prevention

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Coates Bob

    2011-05-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background HIV prevention continues to be problematic in the UK, as it does globally. The UK Department of Health has a strategic direction with greater focus on prevention as part of its World Class Commissioning Programme. There is a need for targeted evidence-based prevention initiatives. This is an exploratory study to develop an evidence mapping tool in the form of a matrix: this will be used to identify important gaps in contemporary HIV prevention evidence relevant to the UK. It has the potential to aid prioritisation in future research. Methods Categories for prevention and risk groups were developed for HIV prevention in consultation with external experts. These were used as axes on a matrix tool to map evidence. Systematic searches for publications on HIV prevention were undertaken using electronic databases for primary and secondary research undertaken mainly in UK, USA, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, 2006-9. Each publication was screened for inclusion then coded. The risk groups and prevention areas in each paper were counted: several publications addressed multiple risk groups. The counts were exported to the matrix and clearly illustrate the concentrations and gaps of literature in HIV prevention. Results 716 systematic reviews, randomised control trials and other primary research met the inclusion criteria for HIV prevention. The matrix identified several under researched areas in HIV prevention. Conclusions This is the first categorisation system for HIV prevention and the matrix is a novel tool for evidence mapping. Some important yet under-researched areas have been identified in HIV prevention evidence: identifying the undiagnosed population; international adaptation; education; intervention combinations; transgender; sex-workers; heterosexuals and older age groups. Other research recommendations: develop the classification system further and investigate transferability of the matrix to other prevention areas

  12. Prevention and Control Strategies to Counter Dengue Virus Infection

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Irfan A. Rather

    2017-07-01

    Full Text Available Dengue is currently the highest and rapidly spreading vector-borne viral disease, which can lead to mortality in its severe form. The globally endemic dengue poses as a public health and economic challenge that has been attempted to suppress though application of various prevention and control techniques. Therefore, broad spectrum techniques, that are efficient, cost-effective, and environmentally sustainable, are proposed and practiced in dengue-endemic regions. The development of vaccines and immunotherapies have introduced a new dimension for effective dengue control and prevention. Thus, the present study focuses on the preventive and control strategies that are currently employed to counter dengue. While traditional control strategies bring temporary sustainability alone, implementation of novel biotechnological interventions, such as sterile insect technique, paratransgenesis, and production of genetically modified vectors, has improved the efficacy of the traditional strategies. Although a large-scale vector control strategy can be limited, innovative vaccine candidates have provided evidence for promising dengue prevention measures. The use of tetravalent dengue vaccine (CYD-TDV has been the most effective so far in treating dengue infections. Nonetheless, challenges and limitation hinder the progress of developing integrated intervention methods and vaccines; while the improvement in the latest techniques and vaccine formulation continues, one can hope for a future without the threat of dengue virus.

  13. Prevention and Control Strategies to Counter Dengue Virus Infection.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rather, Irfan A; Parray, Hilal A; Lone, Jameel B; Paek, Woon K; Lim, Jeongheui; Bajpai, Vivek K; Park, Yong-Ha

    2017-01-01

    Dengue is currently the highest and rapidly spreading vector-borne viral disease, which can lead to mortality in its severe form. The globally endemic dengue poses as a public health and economic challenge that has been attempted to suppress though application of various prevention and control techniques. Therefore, broad spectrum techniques, that are efficient, cost-effective, and environmentally sustainable, are proposed and practiced in dengue-endemic regions. The development of vaccines and immunotherapies have introduced a new dimension for effective dengue control and prevention. Thus, the present study focuses on the preventive and control strategies that are currently employed to counter dengue. While traditional control strategies bring temporary sustainability alone, implementation of novel biotechnological interventions, such as sterile insect technique, paratransgenesis, and production of genetically modified vectors, has improved the efficacy of the traditional strategies. Although a large-scale vector control strategy can be limited, innovative vaccine candidates have provided evidence for promising dengue prevention measures. The use of tetravalent dengue vaccine (CYD-TDV) has been the most effective so far in treating dengue infections. Nonetheless, challenges and limitation hinder the progress of developing integrated intervention methods and vaccines; while the improvement in the latest techniques and vaccine formulation continues, one can hope for a future without the threat of dengue virus.

  14. Preventative Therapeutics: A Study of Risk and Prevention in Australian Mental Health

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Andrew McLachlan

    2014-10-01

    Full Text Available his study investigates the preventative therapeutics of two major Australian mental health organisations - beyondblue and The Black Dog Institute. The aim of this study is to examine how the resilience-based programs of both organisations reconfigure clinical and preventative expertise into new forms of ‘anticipatory action' (Anderson 2010. First, this article situates beyondblue and the Black Dog Institute within their historical contexts to consider how issues of risk and protection have become essential to mental health care today. Second, it examines the institutional practices of beyondblue and the Black Dog Institute and the role of clinical and preventative expertise as enacted forms of authority. Finally, this study investigates the intellectual and biokeeping technologies promoted through both organisations“ resilience-based pedagogies. The view taken in this study is that such technologies actively participate in the making of new therapeutic cultures and practices. Moreover, as biomarkers continue to act as indicators of future states of ‘unhealth' (Dumit 2012: 112, biokeeping technologies will continue to act as essential elements in the governmentality of mental health and wellbeing.

  15. Cyberbullying Prevention and Intervention Efforts: Current Knowledge and Future Directions

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hong, Jun Sung

    2016-01-01

    Bullying is a serious public health concern that is associated with significant negative mental, social, and physical outcomes. Technological advances have increased adolescents’ use of social media, and online communication platforms have exposed adolescents to another mode of bullying—cyberbullying. Prevention and intervention materials, from websites and tip sheets to classroom curriculum, have been developed to help youth, parents, and teachers address cyberbullying. While youth and parents are willing to disclose their experiences with bullying to their health care providers, these disclosures need to be taken seriously and handled in a caring manner. Health care providers need to include questions about bullying on intake forms to encourage these disclosures. The aim of this article is to examine the current status of cyberbullying prevention and intervention. Research support for several school-based intervention programs is summarised. Recommendations for future research are provided. PMID:28562094

  16. Cyberbullying Prevention and Intervention Efforts: Current Knowledge and Future Directions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Espelage, Dorothy L; Hong, Jun Sung

    2017-06-01

    Bullying is a serious public health concern that is associated with significant negative mental, social, and physical outcomes. Technological advances have increased adolescents' use of social media, and online communication platforms have exposed adolescents to another mode of bullying- cyberbullying. Prevention and intervention materials, from websites and tip sheets to classroom curriculum, have been developed to help youth, parents, and teachers address cyberbullying. While youth and parents are willing to disclose their experiences with bullying to their health care providers, these disclosures need to be taken seriously and handled in a caring manner. Health care providers need to include questions about bullying on intake forms to encourage these disclosures. The aim of this article is to examine the current status of cyberbullying prevention and intervention. Research support for several school-based intervention programs is summarised. Recommendations for future research are provided.

  17. Preventing Schizophrenia and Severe Mental Illness: A Grand Challenge for Social Work

    Science.gov (United States)

    DeVylder, Jordan E.

    2016-01-01

    Schizophrenia is a leading cause of disability and health expenditure worldwide and is associated with homelessness, substance use, familial and social isolation, unemployment, involvement with the criminal justice system, stigma, and excess mortality. Prevention may be feasible through intervention with help-seeking "clinical high-risk"…

  18. 76 FR 6514 - Reports, Forms, and Recordkeeping Requirements

    Science.gov (United States)

    2011-02-04

    ... Vehicle Theft Prevention Standard (49 CFR Part 543). OMB Control Number: 2127-0542. Form Number: None... theft prevention standard to provide for the identification of certain motor vehicles and their major replacement parts to impede motor vehicle theft. 49 U.S.C. 33106 provides for an exemption to this...

  19. Biofilm-forming bacteria with varying tolerance to peracetic acid from a paper machine.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rasimus, Stiina; Kolari, Marko; Rita, Hannu; Hoornstra, Douwe; Salkinoja-Salonen, Mirja

    2011-09-01

    Biofilms cause runnability problems in paper machines and are therefore controlled with biocides. Peracetic acid is usually effective in preventing bulky biofilms. This study investigated the microbiological status of a paper machine where low concentrations (≤ 15 ppm active ingredient) of peracetic acid had been used for several years. The paper machine contained a low amount of biofilms. Biofilm-forming bacteria from this environment were isolated and characterized by 16S rRNA gene sequencing, whole-cell fatty acid analysis, biochemical tests, and DNA fingerprinting. Seventy-five percent of the isolates were identified as members of the subclades Sphingomonas trueperi and S. aquatilis, and the others as species of the genera Burkholderia (B. cepacia complex), Methylobacterium, and Rhizobium. Although the isolation media were suitable for the common paper machine biofoulers Deinococcus, Meiothermus, and Pseudoxanthomonas, none of these were found, indicating that peracetic acid had prevented their growth. Spontaneous, irreversible loss of the ability to form biofilm was observed during subculturing of certain isolates of the subclade S. trueperi. The Sphingomonas isolates formed monoculture biofilms that tolerated peracetic acid at concentrations (10 ppm active ingredient) used for antifouling in paper machines. High pH and low conductivity of the process waters favored the peracetic acid tolerance of Sphingomonas sp. biofilms. This appears to be the first report on sphingomonads as biofilm formers in warm water using industries.

  20. Enzyme replacement therapy prevents dental defects in a model of hypophosphatasia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    McKee, M D; Nakano, Y; Masica, D L; Gray, J J; Lemire, I; Heft, R; Whyte, M P; Crine, P; Millán, J L

    2011-04-01

    Hypophosphatasia (HPP) occurs from loss-of-function mutation in the tissue-non-specific alkaline phosphatase (TNALP) gene, resulting in extracellular pyrophosphate accumulation that inhibits skeletal and dental mineralization. TNALP-null mice (Akp2(-/-)) phenocopy human infantile hypophosphatasia; they develop rickets at 1 week of age, and die before being weaned, having severe skeletal and dental hypomineralization and episodes of apnea and vitamin B(6)-responsive seizures. Delay and defects in dentin mineralization, together with a deficiency in acellular cementum, are characteristic. We report the prevention of these dental abnormalities in Akp2(-/-) mice receiving treatment from birth with daily injections of a mineral-targeting, human TNALP (sALP-FcD(10)). sALP-FcD(10) prevented hypomineralization of alveolar bone, dentin, and cementum as assessed by micro-computed tomography and histology. Osteopontin--a marker of acellular cementum--was immuno-localized along root surfaces, confirming that acellular cementum, typically missing or reduced in Akp2(-/-) mice, formed normally. Our findings provide insight concerning how acellular cementum is formed on tooth surfaces to effect periodontal ligament attachment to retain teeth in their osseous alveolar sockets. Furthermore, they provide evidence that this enzyme-replacement therapy, applied early in post-natal life--where the majority of tooth root development occurs, including acellular cementum formation--could prevent the accelerated tooth loss seen in individuals with HPP.

  1. The monomeric form of Neisseria DNA mimic protein DMP19 prevents DNA from binding to the histone-like HU protein

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ko, Tzu-Ping; Liao, Yi-Ting; Hsu, Kai-Cheng

    2017-01-01

    DNA mimicry is a direct and effective strategy by which the mimic competes with DNA for the DNA binding sites on other proteins. Until now, only about a dozen proteins have been shown to function via this strategy, including the DNA mimic protein DMP19 from Neisseria meningitides. We have shown previously that DMP19 dimer prevents the operator DNA from binding to the transcription factor NHTF. Here, we provide new evidence that DMP19 monomer can also interact with the Neisseria nucleoid-associated protein HU. Using BS3 crosslinking, gel filtration and isothermal titration calorimetry assays, we found that DMP19 uses its monomeric form to interact with the Neisseria HU dimer. Crosslinking conjugated mass spectrometry was used to investigate the binding mode of DMP19 monomer and HU dimer. Finally, an electrophoretic mobility shift assay (EMSA) confirmed that the DNA binding affinity of HU is affected by DMP19. These results showed that DMP19 is bifunctional in the gene regulation of Neisseria through its variable oligomeric forms. PMID:29220372

  2. Severe childhood burns in the Czech Republic: risk factors and prevention

    Science.gov (United States)

    Čelko, Alexander Martin; Dáňová, Jana; Barss, Peter

    2009-01-01

    Abstract Objective To assess risk factors for paediatric burn injuries in the Czech Republic and to suggest preventive measures. Methods This study included all children aged 0–16 years hospitalized during 1993–2000 at the Prague Burn Centre and data from the Czech Ministry of Health on national paediatric burn hospitalizations during 1996–2006. Personal, equipment and environmental risk factors were identified from hospital records. Findings The incidence of burn admissions among 0–14 year-olds increased from 85 to 96 per 100 000 between 1996 and 2006, mainly due to a 13% increase among 1–4 year-olds. Between 1993–2000 and 2006, the proportion of burn victims in the country hospitalized at the Prague Burn Centre increased from 9% to 21%. Detailed data were available on 1064 children (64% boys). Around 31% of all burn hospitalizations were in 1 year-olds. Some 79% of burns occurred at home: 70% in the kitchen, 14% in the living room or bedroom and 11% in the bathroom. Of the 18% occurring outdoors, 80% involved boys. Scalds from hot liquids accounted for 70% of all burns. The mean hospital stay was 22 days for boys and 18 days for girls. Conclusion Most burns involved scalds from hot liquids at home: beverages in kitchens and water in bathrooms. There is a need for passive preventive measures, such as redesigned domestic cooking and eating areas, safer electrical kettles and temperature control devices for bathrooms. Educational programmes should be developed for parents and caregivers. A national plan for child burn prevention with specific targets would be helpful. PMID:19551256

  3. Homology blocks of Plasmodium falciparum var genes and clinically distinct forms of severe malaria in a local population.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rorick, Mary M; Rask, Thomas S; Baskerville, Edward B; Day, Karen P; Pascual, Mercedes

    2013-11-06

    The primary target of the human immune response to the malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum, P. falciparum erythrocyte membrane protein 1 (PfEMP1), is encoded by the members of the hyper-diverse var gene family. The parasite exhibits antigenic variation via mutually exclusive expression (switching) of the ~60 var genes within its genome. It is thought that different variants exhibit different host endothelial binding preferences that in turn result in different manifestations of disease. Var sequences comprise ancient sequence fragments, termed homology blocks (HBs), that recombine at exceedingly high rates. We use HBs to define distinct var types within a local population. We then reanalyze a dataset that contains clinical and var expression data to investigate whether the HBs allow for a description of sequence diversity corresponding to biological function, such that it improves our ability to predict disease phenotype from parasite genetics. We find that even a generic set of HBs, which are defined for a small number of non-local parasites: capture the majority of local sequence diversity; improve our ability to predict disease severity from parasite genetics; and reveal a previously hypothesized yet previously unobserved parasite genetic basis for two forms of severe disease. We find that the expression rates of some HBs correlate more strongly with severe disease phenotypes than the expression rates of classic var DBLα tag types, and principal components of HB expression rate profiles further improve genotype-phenotype models. More specifically, within the large Kenyan dataset that is the focus of this study, we observe that HB expression differs significantly for severe versus mild disease, and for rosetting versus impaired consciousness associated severe disease. The analysis of a second much smaller dataset from Mali suggests that these HB-phenotype associations are consistent across geographically distant populations, since we find evidence suggesting

  4. Are c.436G>A mutations less severe forms of Lafora disease? A case report

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hélène-Marie Lanoiselée

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available Lafora disease is a form of progressive myoclonic epilepsy with autosomal recessive transmission. Two genes have been identified so far: EPM2A and NHLRC1, and a third gene, concerning a pediatric onset subform, has been recently proposed. We report the case of a 23-year-old woman of Turkish origin with an unusual disease course. Clinical onset was at the age of 19 years with tonic–clonic seizures, followed by cognitive impairment; EEG was in favor of Lafora disease, and the mutation c.436G>A (a missense mutation substituting aspartic acid in asparagine in the NHLRC1 gene confirmed this diagnosis. After 5 years of evolution, the patient only has moderate cognitive impairment. Some NHLRC1 mutations, particularly c.436G>A, are associated with a slower clinical course, but there are conflicting data in the literature. This case strengthens the hypothesis that the c.436G>A mutation in the NHLRC1 gene leads to less severe phenotypes and late-onset disease.

  5. Canada-Africa Prevention Trials Network : Building African Capacity ...

    International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

    Canada-Africa Prevention Trials Network : Building African Capacity for HIV/AIDS Prevention Trials. The Canada-Africa Prevention Trials Network (CAPT Network) was formed through a capacity building grant from the Global Health Research Initiative (GHRI). The Network comprises eight African centres (four in Uganda, ...

  6. Building African Capacity for HIV/AIDS Prevention Trials

    International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

    Canada-Africa Prevention Trials Network : Building African Capacity for HIV/AIDS Prevention Trials. The Canada-Africa Prevention Trials Network (CAPT Network) was formed through a capacity building grant from the Global Health Research Initiative (GHRI). The Network comprises eight African centres (four in Uganda, ...

  7. The development of youth-onset severe obesity in urban US girls

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kathleen M. McTigue

    2015-12-01

    Conclusions: Youth-onset severe obesity warrants particular concern in urban girls due to high prevalence and an increasing secular prevalence trend. Late childhood and early adolescence may represent a key developmental window for prevention and treatment, but is too late to prevent youth-onset severe obesity entirely.

  8. CDC Vital Signs-Preventing Melanoma

    Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Podcasts

    This podcast is based on the June 2015 CDC Vital Signs report. Skin cancer is the most common form of cancer in the U.S. In 2011, there were more than 65,000 cases of melanoma, the most deadly form of skin cancer. Learn how everyone can help prevent skin cancer.

  9. Severe forms of fibromyalgia with acute exacerbation of pain: costs, comorbidities, and length of stay in inpatient care

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Romeyke T

    2017-06-01

    Full Text Available Tobias Romeyke,1,2 Elisabeth Noehammer,1 Hans Christoph Scheuer,2 Harald Stummer1,3 1Institute for Management and Economics in Health Care, University of Health Sciences, Medical Informatics and Technology (UMIT, Hall in Tirol, Austria; 2Waldhausklinik Deuringen, Acute Hospital for Internal Medicine, Pain Therapy, Complementary, and Individualized Patient-Centered Medicine, Stadtbergen, Germany; 3Institute for Management and Innovation in Healthcare, University Schloss Seeburg, Seekirchen/Wallersee, Austria Background and purpose: As a disease of the musculoskeletal system, fibromyalgia is becoming increasingly important, because of the direct and indirect costs to health systems. The purpose of this study of health economics was to obtain information about staff costs differentiated by service provider, and staff and material costs of the nonmedical infrastructure in inpatient care.Patients and methods: This study looked at 263 patients who received interdisciplinary inpatient treatment for severe forms of fibromyalgia with acute exacerbation of pain between 2011 and 2014. Standardized cost accounting and an analysis of additional diagnoses were performed.Results: The average cost per patient was €3,725.84, with staff and material costs of the nonmedical infrastructure and staff costs of doctors and nurses accounting for the highest proportions of the costs. Each fibromyalgia patient had an average of 6.1 additional diagnoses.Conclusion: Severe forms of fibromyalgia are accompanied by many concomitant diseases and associated with both high clinical staff costs and high medical and nonmedical infrastructure costs. Indication-based cost calculations provide important information for health policy and hospital managers if they include all elements that incur costs in both a differentiated and standardized way. Keywords: fibromyalgia, DRG, cost, length of stay, comorbidities, interdisciplinary care, inpatient care, musculoskeletal, pain

  10. Treatment and prevention of serious complications after arterial perfusion chemotherapy of esophageal cancer

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zhang Yaoyong; Song Taimin; Guo Hongqiang; Li Naxin; Ma Guizhen; Li Huizhi

    2004-01-01

    Objective: To investigate the cause of severe complications after arterial perfusion for esophageal cancer and the methods of prevention. Methods: 368 cases of esophageal cancer were treated with arterial perfusion of drugs for chemotherapy. The treatment numbers were 909 including 215 males and 153 females with the age ranging from 39 to 86. These patients were verified as esophageal cancers histopathologically. Selective angiography of the relevant esophageal segments and drugs for perfusion chemotherapy were undertaken. Results: The complications included one case of paralysis due to spinal cord injury, two cases with esophageal perforation and three cases of necrotic esophagitis. The case of paralysis died of original disease one month after the treatment. Of the cases of esophageal perforation, one formed the esophagus-trachea fistula and survived for eight months after being esophageal stent implantation and the other formed esophagus-mediastinum fistula and died of massive hemorrhage after six weeks. Three cases of necrotic esophagitis occurred at the normal segments of the esophagus and formed esophgeal perforation. Of these three cases, one formed esophago-bronchial fistula and survived up to now after creating drainage stoma of stomach. Two cases of the esophagus-mediastinum and esophagus-bronchus fistula died of severe infection. Conclusions: Severe complications of esophageal arterial catheterization with drugs for chemotherapy are rare. Less harmful, non-ionization contrast medium, low cellular toxicity drugs for chemotherapy with proper doses and concentrations should be selected together with optimal speed of infusion. Esophageal internal stent placement drainage stoma creation of stomach should be the useful adjunct for severe complications. (authors)

  11. Pathogenesis and Prevention of Hepatic Steatosis

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nassir, Fatiha; Rector, R. Scott; Hammoud, Ghassan M.

    2015-01-01

    Hepatic steatosis is defined as intrahepatic fat of at least 5% of liver weight. Simple accumulation of triacylglycerols in the liver could be hepatoprotective; however, prolonged hepatic lipid storage may lead to liver metabolic dysfunction, inflammation, and advanced forms of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. Nonalcoholic hepatic steatosis is associated with obesity, type 2 diabetes, and dyslipidemia. Several mechanisms are involved in the accumulation of intrahepatic fat, including increased flux of fatty acids to the liver, increased de novo lipogenesis, and/or reduced clearance through β-oxidation or very-low-density lipoprotein secretion. This article summarizes the mechanisms involved in the accumulation of triacylglycerols in the liver, the clinical implications, and the prevention of hepatic steatosis, with a focus on the role of mitochondrial function and lifestyle modifications. PMID:27099587

  12. Good Practice Guide Waste Minimization/Pollution Prevention

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    J Dorsey

    1999-10-14

    This Good Practice Guide provides tools, information, and examples for promoting the implementation of pollution prevention during the design phases of U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) projects. It is one of several Guides for implementing DOE Order 430.1, Life-cycle Asset Management. DOE Order 430.1 provides requirements for DOE, in partnership with its contractors, to plan, acquire, operate, maintain, and dispose of physical assets. The goals of designing for pollution prevention are to minimize raw material consumption, energy consumption, waste generation, health and safety impacts, and ecological degradation over the entire life of the facility (EPA 1993a). Users of this Guide will learn to translate national policy and regulatory requirements for pollution prevention into action at the project level. The Guide was written to be applicable to all DOE projects, regardless of project size or design phase. Users are expected to interpret the Guide for their individual project's circumstances, applying a graded approach so that the effort is consistent with the anticipated waste generation and resource consumption of the physical asset. This Guide employs a combination of pollution prevention opportunity assessment (PPOA) methods and design for environment (DfE) philosophies. The PPOA process was primarily developed for existing products, processes, and facilities. The PPOA process has been modified in this Guide to address the circumstances of the DOE design process as delineated in DOE Order 430.1 and its associated Good Practice Guides. This modified form of the PPOA is termed the Pollution Prevention Design Assessment (P2DA). Information on current nationwide methods and successes in designing for the environment also have been reviewed and are integrated into this guidance.

  13. Early Prevention of Severe Neurodevelopmental Behavior Disorders: An Integration

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schroeder, Stephen R.; Courtemanche, Andrea

    2012-01-01

    There is a very substantial literature over the past 50 years on the advantages of early detection and intervention on the cognitive, communicative, and social-emotional development of infants and toddlers at risk for developmental delay due to premature birth or social disadvantage. Most of these studies excluded children with severe delays or…

  14. A framework for assessing severe accident management strategies

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kastenberg, W.E.; Apostolakis, G.; Dhir, V.K.; Okrent, D.; Jae, M.; Lim, H.; Milici, T.; Park, H.; Swider, J.; Xing, L.; Yu, D.

    1991-01-01

    Accident management can be defined as the innovative use of existing and or alternative resources, systems and actions to prevent or mitigate a severe accident. Together with risk management (changes in plant operation and/or addition of equipment) and emergency planning (off-site actions), accident management provides an extension of the defense-in-depth safety philosophy for severe accidents. A significant number of probabilistic safety assessments (PSA) have been completed which yield the principal plant vulnerabilities. For each sequence/threat and each combination of strategy there may be several options available to the operator. Each strategy/option involves phenomenological and operational considerations regarding uncertainty. These considerations include uncertainty in key phenomena, uncertainty in operator behavior, uncertainty in system availability and behavior, and uncertainty in available information (i.e., instrumentation). The objective of this project is to develop a methodology for assessing severe accident management strategies given the key uncertainties mentioned above. Based on Decision Trees and Influence Diagrams, the methodology is currently being applied to two case studies: cavity flooding in a PWR to prevent vessel penetration or failure, and drywell flooding in a BWR to prevent containment failure

  15. Development of Krsko Severe Accident Management Database (SAMD)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Basic, I.; Kocnar, R.

    1996-01-01

    Severe Accident Management is a framework to identify and implement the Emergency Response Capabilities that can be used to prevent or mitigate severe accidents and their consequences. Krsko Severe Accident Management Database documents the severe accident management activities which are developed in the NPP Krsko, based on the Krsko IPE (Individual Plant Examination) insights and Generic WOG SAMGs (Westinghouse Owners Group Severe Accident Management Guidance). (author)

  16. Crystal Structure of a Monomeric Form of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus Endonuclease Nsp15 Suggests a Role for Hexamerization As An Allosteric Switch

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Joseph, J.S.; Saikatendu, K.S.; Subramanian, V.; Neuman, B.W.; Buchmeier, M.J.; Stevens, R.C.; Kuhn, P.; /Scripps Res. Inst.

    2007-07-09

    Mature nonstructural protein-15 (nsp15) from the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV) contains a novel uridylate-specific Mn{sup 2+}-dependent endoribonuclease (NendoU). Structure studies of the full-length form of the obligate hexameric enzyme from two CoVs, SARS-CoV and murine hepatitis virus, and its monomeric homologue, XendoU from Xenopus laevis, combined with mutagenesis studies have implicated several residues in enzymatic activity and the N-terminal domain as the major determinant of hexamerization. However, the tight link between hexamerization and enzyme activity in NendoUs has remained an enigma. Here, we report the structure of a trimmed, monomeric form of SARS-CoV nsp15 (residues 28 to 335) determined to a resolution of 2.9 Angstroms. The catalytic loop (residues 234 to 249) with its two reactive histidines (His 234 and His 249) is dramatically flipped by {approx}120 degrees into the active site cleft. Furthermore, the catalytic nucleophile Lys 289 points in a diametrically opposite direction, a consequence of an outward displacement of the supporting loop (residues 276 to 295). In the full-length hexameric forms, these two loops are packed against each other and are stabilized by intimate intersubunit interactions. Our results support the hypothesis that absence of an adjacent monomer due to deletion of the hexamerization domain is the most likely cause for disruption of the active site, offering a structural basis for why only the hexameric form of this enzyme is active.

  17. Analysis of iodine chemical form noted from severe fuel damage experiments

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Cronenberg, A.W.; Osetek, D.J.

    1986-01-01

    Data from the TMI-2 accident has shown that only small amounts of iodine (I) escaped the plant. The postulated reason for such limited release is the formation of CsI (a salt) within fuel, which remains stable in a reducing high-temperature steam-H 2 environment. Upon cooldown CsI would dissolve in water condensate to form an ionic solution. However, recent data from fuel destruction experiments indicate different iodine release behavior that is tied to fuel burnup and oxidation conditions, as well as fission product concentration levels in the steam/H 2 effluent. Analysis of the data indicate that at low-burnup conditions, atomic I release from fuel is favored. Likewise, at low fission product concentration conditions HI is the favored chemical form in the steam/H 2 environment, not CsI. Results of thermochemical equilibria and chemical kinetics analysis support the data trends noted from the PBF-SFD tests. An a priori assumption of CsI for risk analysis of all accident sequences may therefore be inappropriate

  18. MICROBIOLOGICAL METHODS APPLICATION EXPERIENCE IN THE SEVERE INJURIES INFECTIOUS COMPLICATIONS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    S. A. Svistunov

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available Modern clinical medicine and surgery problems are associated with infections complications after medical care. In recent years, surgery has made substantial progress related to the new organizational approaches and medical technology specialized medical care to the wounded and injured. However, these gains are offset by a high rate of infectious complications that require finding effective measures emerging infectious complications timely diagnosis and their prevention. Clinical manifestations are often nosocomial in patients with severe injuries and are largely determined by the influence of clinical and pathogenetic risk factors. Such infectious complications require a comprehensive assessment, including microbiological testing. The main causative agents of infectious complications in surgical hospitals are S. aureus, K. pneumoniae, P. aeruginosa, Acinetobacter spp., which can cause bloodstream infections, soft tissue, respiratory and urinary tract infections, especially in debilitated and immunocompromised patients and patients in intensive care units. These micro organisms are dangerous to patients and medical staff, as they can survive for a long time in the hospital environment, as well as to spread from patient to patient in violation of isolation restrictive measures and requirements for hygiene of medical workers hands. Clinical patterns of infection associated with medical care for severe injuries are to the possibility of serial and parallel development, both in different and in the same time frame of local, visceral and generalized infection with prevalence of combined forms of patients surgical hospital with a high risk of nosocomial infection against the background of factors, diagnostic and treatment process and hospital environment, introduction of the agent. Early etiological diagnosis allows timely assign empirical causal treatment and arrange for infection control to prevent the spread of microorganisms in the hospital. The

  19. Studies of severe accidents in light water reactors. Containment performance

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hayns, M.R.; Phillips, D.W.; Young, R.L.D.

    1987-01-01

    The containment system of a LWR is an obvious component of the plant which performs an important safety function in preventing the release of fission products to the environment in the event of design basis accidents. With over 260 LWRs in service worldwide, and others still under construction, there is a considerable diversity of containment types and combinations of containment safeguards systems. All of these satisfy local regulatory requirements which are principally aimed at the design basis accidents, and these requirements naturally have a considerable uniformity. However, their design diversity becomes more relevant to the performance of the containment in severe accident conditions, and this aspect of containment performance is reviewed in this paper. The ability of the containment to mitigate severe accident consequences introduces the potential for accident management and recovery and this in turn points towards a range of new containment systems and concepts. PSA helps in judging these possibilities and in forming policies and procedures for accident management. It is perhaps in accident management that severe accident containment performance will be most beneficial in the future, and where additional effort in containment analysis will be focused

  20. Neural network-based expert system for severe accident management

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Klopp, G.T.; Silverman, E.B.

    1992-01-01

    This paper presents the results of the second phase of a three-phase Severe Accident Management expert system program underway at Commonwealth Edison Company (CECo). Phase I successfully demonstrated the feasibility of Artificial Neural Networks to support several of the objectives of severe accident management. Simulated accident scenarios were generated by the Modular Accident Analysis Program (MAAP) code currently in use by CECo as part of their Individual Plant Evaluations (IPE)/Accident Management Program. The primary objectives of the second phase were to develop and demonstrate four capabilities of neural networks with respect to nuclear power plant severe accident monitoring and prediction. The results of this work would form the foundation of a demonstration system which included expert system performance features. These capabilities included the ability to: (1) Predict the time available prior to support plate (and reactor vessel) failure; (2) Calculate the time remaining until recovery actions were too late to prevent core damage; (3) Predict future parameter values of each of the MAAP parameter variables; and (4) Detect simulated sensor failure and provide best-value estimates for further processing in the presence of a sensor failure. A variety of accident scenarios for the Zion and Dresden plants were used to train and test the neural network expert system. These included large and small break LOCAs as well as a range of transient events. 3 refs., 1 fig., 1 tab

  1. Dental caries: Strategies to control this preventable disease

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Andrew Rugg-Gunn

    2013-11-01

    Full Text Available Objective. To provide a brief commentary review of strategies to control dental caries. Dental decay is one of man’s most prevalent diseases. In many counties, severity increased in parallel with importation of sugar, reaching its zenith about 1950s and 1960s. Since then, severity has declined in many countries, due to the wide use of fluoride especially in toothpaste, but dental caries remains a disease of medical, social and economic importance. Within the EU in 2011, the cost of dental treatment was estimated to be €79 billion. The pathogenesis is well understood: bacteria in dental plaque (biofilm metabolise dietary sugars to acids which then dissolve dental enamel and dentine. Possible approaches to control caries development, therefore, involve: removal of plaque, reducing the acidogenic potential of plaque, reduction in sugar consumption, increasing the tooth’s resistance to acid attack, and coating the tooth surface to form a barrier between plaque and enamel. At the present time, only three approaches are of practical importance: sugar control, fluoride, and fissure sealing. The evidence that dietary sugars are the main cause of dental caries is extensive, and comes from six types of study. Without sugar, caries would be negligible. Fluoride acts in several ways to aid caries prevention. Ways of delivering fluoride can be classed as: ‘automatic’, ‘home care’ and ‘professional care’: the most important of these are discussed in detail in four articles in this issue of the Acta Medica Academica. Conclusion. Dental caries is preventable – individuals, communities and countries need strategies to achieve this.

  2. Fiscal Year 2015 Pollution Prevention Grant Summaries

    Science.gov (United States)

    The Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics is responsible for overseeing several grant programs for tribes and states which promote pollution prevention through source reduction and resource conservation.

  3. Fiscal Year 2014 Pollution Prevention Grant Summaries

    Science.gov (United States)

    The Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics is responsible for overseeing several grant programs for tribes and states which promote pollution prevention through source reduction and resource conservation.

  4. LFR core design for prevention & mitigation of severe accidents

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Grasso, Giacomo

    2012-01-01

    Conclusions: • Aiming at fully complying Gen-IV safety requirements – even in case of Fukushima-like events –, prevention and mitigation strategies must be stressed in FR design. • The safety of Lead-cooled Fast Reactors can rely on intrinsic features due to the coolant, such as: • the practical impossibility of Lead boiling, hence the unreliability of core (only) voiding for wide safety margins, and the retention of corium; • the high density of lead, for the buoyancy of Control Rods (allowing their safe positioning below the core), and the dispersion of molten core up to the setting up of a “cold melting pot”. • the possibility to adopt wide coolant channels for encouraging natural circulation, without affecting the hardness of the neutron spectrum; • the hard neutron spectrum allows the adiabatic operation of LFRs (which implies minimal criticality swings even through long cycles) with small amounts of Mas (hence with a negligible detriment to the safety features); • an effective reduction of the coolant density effect simply through the shortening of the active height

  5. The 21st century form of vitamin E--tocotrienol.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bardhan, Jayeeta; Chakraborty, Runu; Raychaudhuri, Utpal

    2011-01-01

    Vitamin E family constitutes of tocopherol and tocotrienol. Each form has several isomers: alpha,beta, gamma, delta, desmo and didesmo. Although tocopherol is known much earlier, tocotrienol has been discovered more recently.Tocotrienol has higher antioxidant potential than tocopherol. Research shows that tocotrienol can inhibit the induced oxidative damage to lipids and proteins. Cholesterol biosynthesis pathway requires HMG Co A reductase. Tocotrienol degrades HMG Co A reductase protein and in turn lowers cholesterol synthesis. Tocotrienol can reverse ischemia-reperfusion which mediates cardiac dysfunction and induces c-Src protein expression. Tocotrienol prevents oxytosis and offers protection against Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, Hungtington's disease. Tocotrienol exerts anticancer property through cell cycle arrest, induction of apoptosis, inhibition of angiogenesis; antitumor activity. Tocotrienol also possesses anti-inflammatory, antidiabetic, antiadipogenic and antiatherogenic effect.

  6. Сriminological crime prevention: the concept, the specifics, the structure, the object of precautionary influence

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    В. В. Голіна

    2015-11-01

    Full Text Available Problem setting. Crime is one of the oldest existing forms of social life, despite the burning desire of human to destroy it. World history persuades explicitly that cruel, inhumane punishment punishments are inefficient to prevent crime. It’s necessary to rebuild human behavior, and this is possible through the elimination of various stimuli that enhance human passions and lead to irrational, destructive behavior. Recent research and publications analysis. Theory of combating crime primarily through its prevention has been substantively enriched during XIX-XXI centuries through scientific works of domestic and foreign criminologists and other researchers, which laid the philosophical, sociological, moral, psychological, social, anthropological, organizational, managerial, economic, educational, penitentiary and other types of crime prevention (Yu. M. Antonyan, A. Herry, A. Quetelet, C. Lombroso, D. Drill, E. Durkheim, G. Tarde, E. Ferry, R. Garofalo, A. Kystyakivskyi, M. Gernet, A. Gertsenzon, E. Sutherland, N. Kuznetsov, V. Kudryavtsev, A. Sakharov, I. Karpets, A. Zelinsky, V. Dryomin, O. Tulyakov, O. Litvinov, A. Zakalyuk, V. Shakun, B. Golovkin etc.. Paper objective is providing a thorough analysis of a range of issues, related to the criminological crime prevention as an essential part of special criminological crime prevention. Paper main body. Crime is a complex social phenomenon whose causes and conditions are usually associated with a genetic predisposition to decline form normal behavior, along with the defects and imperfections of the society. Crime prevention is state social policy aimed at overcoming dangerous criminal contradictions in social relations in order to reach positive resolution and the gradual elimination (so-called general social prevention along with proactive practice of combating criminal offenses at various stages. Crime prevention can be divided into several types: prevention in advance, restrictive prevention

  7. Stress Prevention@Work : A study protocol for the evaluation of a multifaceted integral stress prevention strategy to prevent employee stress in a healthcare organization: a cluster controlled trial

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Hoek, R.J.A.; Havermans, B.M.; Houtman, I.L.D.; Brouwers, E.P.M.; Heerkens, Y.F.; Zijlstra-vlasveld, M.C.; Anema, J.R.; van der Beek, A.J.; Boot, C.R.L.

    2018-01-01

    Adequate implementation of work-related stress management interventions can reduce or prevent work-related stress and sick leave in organizations. We developed a multifaceted integral stress-prevention strategy for organizations from several sectors that includes a digital platform and collaborative

  8. Stress Prevention@Work: a study protocol for the evaluation of a multifaceted integral stress prevention strategy to prevent employee stress in a healthcare organization: a cluster controlled trial

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Hoek, R.J.A.; Havermans, B.M.; Houtman, I.L.D.; Brouwers, E.P.M.; Heerkens, Y.F.; Zijlstra-Vlasveld, M.C.; Anema, J.R.; Beek, A.J. van der; Boot, C.R.L.

    2017-01-01

    Background. Adequate implementation of work-related stress management interventions can reduce or prevent work-related stress and sick leave in organizations. We developed a multifaceted integral stress-prevention strategy for organizations from several sectors that includes a digital platform and

  9. High Adherence to CPAP Treatment Does Not Prevent the Continuation of Weight Gain among Severely Obese OSAS Patients

    Science.gov (United States)

    Myllylä, Minna; Kurki, Samu; Anttalainen, Ulla; Saaresranta, Tarja; Laitinen, Tarja

    2016-01-01

    Study Objectives: Obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS) patients benefit from continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) treatment in a dose-response manner. We determined adherence and weight control, as well as their predictors, among long-term CPAP users. Methods: Cohort of 1,023 OSAS patients had used CPAP on average of 6.6 ± 1.2 years. BMI was determined at baseline and at follow-up visits. There were 7.4 ± 1.7 BMI and 6.5 ± 1.8 CPAP usage measurements per patient on average. Using the Bayesian hierarchical model, we determined the patients' individual trends of BMI and adherence development. Patients with significantly increasing or decreasing trends were identified at the posterior probability level of > 90%. Results: The mean age in the cohort was 55.6 ± 9.8 years, BMI 33.5 ± 6.4 kg/m2, apnea-hypopnea index 33.7 ± 23.1, and CPAP usage 6.0 ± 1.8 h/day. The majority of patients had no significant change in BMI (mean annual weight gain 0.04 ± 0.29 kg/m2) or CPAP adherence (mean annual increase 11.4 ± 7.0 min/day). However, at the individual level, 10% of the patients showed significant annual weight gain (0.63 ± 0.35 kg/m2) during the 5-year follow-up period. At baseline these patients were already more severely obese (mean BMI 40.0 ± 5.9 kg/m2) despite being younger (mean 50.9 ± 9.5 years) than the rest of the cohort. Conclusions: In the majority of CPAP-treated OSAS patients, weight did not significantly change but gained slightly slower than in age-matched population in general. However, in 10% of patients, high adherence to CPAP treatment did not prevent the continuation of weight gain. These patients present a high-risk group for OSAS-related multimorbidity later in life. Citation: Myllylä M, Kurki S, Anttalainen U, Saaresranta T, Laitinen T. High adherence to CPAP treatment does not prevent the continuation of weight gain among severely obese OSAS patients. J Clin Sleep Med 2016;12(4):519–528. PMID:26888588

  10. 'Change means sacrificing a good life': perceptions about severity of type 2 diabetes and preventive lifestyles among people afflicted or at high risk of type 2 diabetes in Iganga Uganda.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mayega, Roy W; Etajak, Samuel; Rutebemberwa, Elizeus; Tomson, Goran; Kiguli, Juliet

    2014-08-21

    Interventions for prevention of type 2 diabetes ought to be acceptable to target communities. We assessed perceptions about type 2 diabetes and lifestyle change among people afflicted or at high risk of this disease in a low income setting in Iganga Uganda. Twelve focus group discussions (FGDs) of eight participants each were conducted, balancing rural and peri-urban (near the Municipality) residence and gender. The FGDs involved people with suspected type 2 diabetes (based on fasting plasma glucose (FPG), people with suspected pre-diabetes and obese people with normal FPG. Content analysis was conducted. Diabetes was perceived to be a very severe disease. Its severity was attributed to its incurability and its numerous health effects. Men were also concerned about reduced sexual performance. However, participants' strong concerns about the severity of diabetes were not reflected in their perceptions about the risk factors and lifestyles associated with it. While people with diabetes perceive obesity as 'sickness', those without diabetes perceive it as a sign of 'success'. Although participants are willing to change their diet, they mention numerous barriers including poverty, family size, and access to some foods. Because of their good taste, reduction of high risk foods like sugar and fried food is perceived as 'sacrificing a good life'. Increments in physical activity were said to be feasible, but only in familiar forms like domestic work. An over-arching theme emerged that 'lifestyle changes are viewed as sacrificing a good life'. Health promotion should target both community norms and individual awareness regarding obesity, physical activity and diet, and should address the notion that obesity and unhealthy foods represent a good life. Health educators should plan with clients on how to overcome barriers and misconceptions to lifestyle change, leveraging the pervasive perception of type 2 diabetes as a severe disease to motivate change.

  11. Severe rosacea: A case report

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ebrahim Shirzadeh

    2017-01-01

    Conclusion: Rosacea can be extremely severe and disfiguring, and it can be misdiagnosed as the pathognomonic butterfly rash of LE. Demodex carriage in rosacea is consistent and may play a significant role in the severe forms.

  12. Applying boundary objects to create coherence between management decisions regarding prevention of Musculoskeletal Disorders and implemented changes

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Ipsen, Christine; Edwards, Kasper; Poulsen, Signe

    Purpose. This study aims to support social healthcare workplaces with methods to establish coherence between management decisions regarding prevention of Musculoskeletal Disorders (MSD) and the work related preventive changes implemented in the organization. The study builds on the known risk...... of the risk factors of MSD. The search resulted in the following methods: Workbooks, Photo-Safari, Layout Games, Employee Exchange, Videos and the Fishbone workshop. Three Occupational Health and Safety Departments in municipalities and one hospital tested the methods, which several public workplaces...... will apply starting January 2017. Results. The identified visualization methods each addresses specific risk factors of MSD but when combined, they provide a holistic insight in to the work-related causes to MSD at the workplace. The new knowledge forms the basis for focused work-related preventive changes...

  13. Science 101: What Causes Severe Thunderstorms and Tornadoes?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Robertson, Bill

    2016-01-01

    What causes severe thunderstorms and tornadoes? Tornadoes, often accompanied by severe thunderstorms and hail, form in pretty much the same way as severe thunderstorms. In the continental United States, tornadoes usually form in spring and summer, when warm, humid air from the Gulf of Mexico moves across the continent from southeast to northwest…

  14. 77 FR 76045 - Agency Forms Undergoing Paperwork Reduction Act Review

    Science.gov (United States)

    2012-12-26

    ... case classification (disease staging system). Recommendations for revisions in the case definition were... DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [30Day-13-0573] Agency Forms Undergoing Paperwork Reduction Act Review The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention...

  15. 77 FR 40363 - Agency Forms Undergoing Paperwork Reduction Act Review

    Science.gov (United States)

    2012-07-09

    ... Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) among Patients Recently Discharged from Acute Care... DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [30-Day-12-12II] Agency Forms Undergoing Paperwork Reduction Act Review The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention...

  16. Problems and perspectives of domestic violence prevention

    OpenAIRE

    Kasperskis, Darius

    2009-01-01

    This paper will analyze the domestic violence prevention problems and perspectives. The goal of this work is to discuss the main domestic violence characteristics, analyze Lithuanian and international prevention means and offer suggestions to improve Lithuanian domestic violence prevention. This work consentrates on mens violence over women. The conseption of violence is analyzed – the general violence features in criminology and law literature are discussed, the main domestic violence forms ...

  17. Prevalence, characteristics and severity of hypomineralization of the first permanent molars and incisors in children from the northern part of Kosovo and Metohija

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Martinović Brankica

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Introduction/Objective. Molar-incisor hypomnineralization (MIH is relatively common developmental anomaly characterized by hypomineralized enamel defects in the first permanent molars and incisors. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of hypomineralization of the first permanent molars and incisors in children aged eight and 10 years who live in the northern part of Kosovo and Metohija. Methods. The study included 712 respondents, 289 of whom aged eight (40.6% and 423 of whom aged 10 years (59.4%. Criteria according to Weerheijm were used for diagnosis of hypomineralization and the severity of changes was determined. Results. The frequency of hypomineralized changes in the first permanent molars and incisors of the examined children in this area was 12.2%. It was lower in children aged eight years (10.7% compared to those aged 10 (13.2%. Demarcated enamel opacity was more common in younger children, whereas both atypical restoration and tooth extraction due to hypomineralization were more common in older children. Mild form is more common in children aged eight years, whereas both severe form and severe form with extracted teeth are more common in children aged 10 years. The results indicate that the first permanent molars were most commonly affected by MIH changes. Conclusion. The percentage of the respondents with MIH changes in the northern part of Kosovo and Metohija, which is 12.2%, is not negligible and points to the necessity of early diagnosis in order to prevent and reduce the complications of the condition by timely prevention and treatment.

  18. Differential forms orthogonal to holomorphic functions or forms, and their properties

    CERN Document Server

    Aizenberg, L A

    1983-01-01

    The authors consider the problem of characterizing the exterior differential forms which are orthogonal to holomorphic functions (or forms) in a domain D\\subset {\\mathbf C}^n with respect to integration over the boundary, and some related questions. They give a detailed account of the derivation of the Bochner-Martinelli-Koppelman integral representation of exterior differential forms, which was obtained in 1967 and has already found many important applications. They study the properties of \\overline \\partial-closed forms of type (p, n - 1), 0\\leq p\\leq n - 1, which turn out to be the duals (with respect to the orthogonality mentioned above) to holomorphic functions (or forms) in several complex variables, and resemble holomorphic functions of one complex variable in their properties.

  19. Extremism among young people and its prevention in educational organization

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    A.I. Kirsanov,

    2014-08-01

    Full Text Available We describe the results of a survey of 50 experts – representatives of educational institutions of Moscow, district education authorities and the staff of the juvenile justice system. We note that the researchers often miss the opinion of the subjects of preventive work. Expert survey allowed to specify the conditions and behavioral manifestations of contemporary youth extremism, rank his psychological reasons, summarize the available methods and forms of prevention. We show the basic extremist ideas that are common among young people, and extremists speech features. The study revealed the understanding by the subjects of the preventive work of the “extremism” concept content, of goals and mechanisms of prevention, shows the typical difficulties in this work. The results can be used to search for new and more effective forms of prevention and improving the organization of preventive work in general.

  20. Method of assessing severe accident management strategies

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kastenberg, W.E.; Apostolakis, G.; Dhir, V.K.; Okrent, D.; Jae, M.; Lim, H.; Milici, T.; Park, H.; Swider, J.; Xing, L.; Yu, D.

    1991-01-01

    Accident management can be defined as the innovative use of existing and or alternative resources, systems, and actions to prevent or mitigate a severe accident. A significant number of probabilistic safety assessments (PSAs) have been completed that yield the principal plant vulnerabilities. These vulnerabilities can be categorized as (1) dominant sequences with respect to core-melt frequency. (2) dominant sequences with respect to various risk measures. (3) dominant threats that challenge safety functions. (4) dominant threats with respect to failure of safety systems. For each sequence/threat and each combination of strategy, there may be several options available to the operator. Each strategy/option involves phenomenological and operational considerations regarding uncertainty. These considerations include uncertainties in key phenomena, operator behavior, system availability and behavior, and available information. This paper presents a methodology for assessing severe accident management strategies given the key uncertainties delineated at two workshops held at the University of California, Los Angeles. Based on decision trees and influence diagrams, the methodology is currently being applied to two case studies: cavity flooding in a pressurized water reactor (PWR) to prevent vessel penetration or failure, and drywell flooding in a boiling water reactor to prevent vessel and/or containment failure

  1. Treatment and prevention of music performance anxiety.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Spahn, Claudia

    2015-01-01

    Music performance anxiety (MPA) regularly occurs when musicians present themselves before an audience in performance situations, and thus, it plays an important role in the careers of professional musicians. MPA is expressed on the emotional and physical level, as well as on the levels of thinking and behavior, and extends along a continuum of varying severity. Its performance-impairing, afflicting form is considered to be a specific type of social phobia, which requires therapy. There are different psychological theories, which contribute to the understanding of the phenomenon of MPA and provide basic principles for the various treatment approaches. Current "best practice," in our clinical experience, is a personal- and problem-oriented approach within a multimodal therapy model, including the range of psychoanalytic and cognitive behavioral therapies, body-oriented methods, and mental techniques. In order to avoid severe MPA, prevention in the field of music pedagogic is very important. Thus, the concepts of dealing positively with MPA should be implemented very early into the instrumental and vocal education of musicians. © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  2. Good Practice Guide Waste Minimization/Pollution Prevention; TOPICAL

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    J Dorsey

    1999-01-01

    This Good Practice Guide provides tools, information, and examples for promoting the implementation of pollution prevention during the design phases of U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) projects. It is one of several Guides for implementing DOE Order 430.1, Life-cycle Asset Management. DOE Order 430.1 provides requirements for DOE, in partnership with its contractors, to plan, acquire, operate, maintain, and dispose of physical assets. The goals of designing for pollution prevention are to minimize raw material consumption, energy consumption, waste generation, health and safety impacts, and ecological degradation over the entire life of the facility (EPA 1993a). Users of this Guide will learn to translate national policy and regulatory requirements for pollution prevention into action at the project level. The Guide was written to be applicable to all DOE projects, regardless of project size or design phase. Users are expected to interpret the Guide for their individual project's circumstances, applying a graded approach so that the effort is consistent with the anticipated waste generation and resource consumption of the physical asset. This Guide employs a combination of pollution prevention opportunity assessment (PPOA) methods and design for environment (DfE) philosophies. The PPOA process was primarily developed for existing products, processes, and facilities. The PPOA process has been modified in this Guide to address the circumstances of the DOE design process as delineated in DOE Order 430.1 and its associated Good Practice Guides. This modified form of the PPOA is termed the Pollution Prevention Design Assessment (P2DA). Information on current nationwide methods and successes in designing for the environment also have been reviewed and are integrated into this guidance

  3. Preparation and characterization of solid oral dosage forms containing soy isoflavones

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Stela R. de Oliveira

    2013-02-01

    Full Text Available Soy isoflavones have been extensively used for menopausal symptoms and prevention of hormone-related cancer, osteoporosis and cardiovascular diseases. Commercially available forms of isoflavones include supplements, capsules and tablets. However, the non-standardization of soy isoflavones extracts and different dissolution profiles of these solid dosage forms highlight the need of additional studies on the development of well characterized pharmaceutical dosage forms of isoflavones. In this work, immediate release oral tablets of soy isoflavones were obtained and evaluated. Genistein and daidzein, were the main constituents of the dried soy extract. Preparation of the tables was accomplished in a rotary tableting machine following either a dry mixture for direct compression or wet granulation with different excipients. Powder, granules and tablets were evaluated for several parameters, including flow properties, Carr and Hausner indexes, hardness, friability, disintegration time and drug release profile. Also, a fast and validated HPLC analytical method for both genistein and daidzein was developed. Formulations containing sodium croscarmellose and sodium dodecyl sulfate resulted in better flowability as indicated by the flow rate and angle of repose, faster disintegration time and immediate release dissolution profile.

  4. 75 FR 20601 - Agency Forms Undergoing Paperwork Reduction Act Review

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-20

    .... Proposed Project Asthma Information Reporting System (AIRS)--New--Air Pollution and Respiratory Health... DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [30Day-10-09CK] Agency Forms Undergoing Paperwork Reduction Act Review The Centers for Disease Control and prevention...

  5. 78 FR 24422 - Agency Forms Undergoing Paperwork Reduction Act Review

    Science.gov (United States)

    2013-04-25

    ... System (AIRS) (0920-0853, Expiration 06/30/2013)--Extension--Air Pollution and Respiratory Health Branch... DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [30Day-13-0853] Agency Forms Undergoing Paperwork Reduction Act Review The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention...

  6. Improving the forming capability of laser dynamic forming by using rubber as a forming medium

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shen, Zongbao; Liu, Huixia; Wang, Xiao; Wang, Cuntang

    2016-04-01

    Laser dynamic forming (LDF) is a novel high velocity forming technique, which employs laser-generated shock wave to load the sample. The forming velocity induced by the high energy laser pulse may exceed the critical forming velocity, resulting in the occurrence of premature fracture. To avoid the above premature fracture, rubber is introduced in LDF as a forming medium to prolong the loading duration in this paper. Laser induced shock wave energy is transferred to the sample in different forming stages, so the forming velocity can be kept below the critical forming velocity when the initial laser energy is high for fracture. Bulge forming experiments with and without rubber were performed to study the effect of rubber on loading duration. The experimental results show that, the shock wave energy attenuates during the propagation through the rubber layer, the rubber can avoid the premature fracture. So the plastic deformation can continue, the forming capability of LDF is improved. Due to the severe plastic deformation under rubber compression, adiabatic shear bands (ASB) occur in LDF with rubber. The material softening in ASB leads to the irregular fracture, which is different from the premature fracture pattern (regular fracture) in LDF without rubber. To better understand this deformation behavior, Johnson-Cook model is used to simulate the dynamic response and the evolution of ASB of copper sample. The simulation results also indicate the rubber can prolong the loading duration.

  7. Teaching Prevention in Internal Medicine Clerkships.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kinsinger, Linda

    2000-01-01

    Reviews the rationale for including prevention in the clinical medicine clerkship. Summarizes current guidelines, presents examples of curricula in several medical schools, and proposes a future direction that stresses integrating teaching preventive medicine into internal medicine clerkships and across the entire four-year medical curriculum. (DB)

  8. One thousand cases of severe occupational contact dermatitis

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Schwensen, Jakob Ferløv; Friis, Ulrik Fischer; Menné, Torkil

    2013-01-01

    Background. Occupational contact dermatitis is frequent, and further understanding of the epidemiology will improve the basis of its prevention. Objectives. To identify occupations at risk for severe occupational contact dermatitis. Methods. The last 1000 cases of severe occupational contact...... dermatitis seen at our department were identified. Results. The study population comprised 618 females and 382 males. The mean age at onset of irritant contact dermatitis was significantly lower than the mean age at onset of allergic contact dermatitis for both sexes, irrespective of the presence of atopic....... Occupational contact dermatitis remains frequent, even if only severe cases are considered. It is a concern that no effective, systematic interventions and prevention schemes have been launched in Europe, despite documentation of a significant problem overmany years, and knowledge of risk occupations and risk...

  9. Severe childhood malnutrition

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bhutta, Zulfiqar A; Berkley, James A; Bandsma, Robert H J

    2017-01-01

    The main forms of childhood malnutrition occur predominantly in children malnutrition. Here, we use...... the term 'severe malnutrition' to describe these conditions to better reflect the contributions of chronic poverty, poor living conditions with pervasive deficits in sanitation and hygiene, a high prevalence of infectious diseases and environmental insults, food insecurity, poor maternal and fetal...... nutritional status and suboptimal nutritional intake in infancy and early childhood. Children with severe malnutrition have an increased risk of serious illness and death, primarily from acute infectious diseases. International growth standards are used for the diagnosis of severe malnutrition and provide...

  10. [PREVENTION AND CORRECTION OF PULMONARY COMPLICATIONS FOR SEVERE ACUTE PANCREATITIS].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fedorkiv, M B

    2015-06-01

    Increased of proinflammatory cytokines levels, including interleukin-8 (IL-8) and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) on severe acute pancreatitis causes vasodilatation, increased permeability of the wall, accumulation of fluid in lung tissue and pleural sinuses. Transudate from acute parapancreatyc clusters of hot liquid and abdomen falls into the chest cavity through microscopic defects in the diaphragm due to the formation of pathological pleural-peritoneal connections or the relevant pressure gradient between the abdominal and pleural cavities. Remediation and removal of acute parapancreatyc clusters combined with the use of a multicomponent drug infusion therapy Cytoflavin provide a reduction in the frequency of pulmonary complications of acute pancreatitis from 48.3 to 31.0%. Use of the drug Cytoflavin reduces the severity of endogenous intoxication and mortality from acute lung injury from 12.9 to 6.1%.

  11. Pollution Prevention Information Network (PPIN) Grant Summaries 2014

    Science.gov (United States)

    The Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics is responsible for overseeing several grant programs for tribes and states which promote pollution prevention through source reduction and resource conservation.

  12. Severe head injury in children - a preventable but forgotten epidemic

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Severe head injury in a child is a sociological disaster that crosses all sociological ... permanently disabled each year as a result of accidental injury." Over a ..... the daylight when transportation of the patient is more rapid; this results in some ...

  13. Obesity Prevention and Screening.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mackey, Eleanor R; Olson, Alexandra; DiFazio, Marc; Cassidy, Omni

    2016-03-01

    Obesity is widespread, associated with several physical and psychosocial comorbidities, and is difficult to treat. Prevention of obesity across the lifespan is critical to improving the health of individuals and society. Screening and prevention efforts in primary care are an important step in addressing the obesity epidemic. Each period of human development is associated with unique risks, challenges, and opportunities for prevention and intervention. Screening tools for overweight/obesity, although imperfect, are quick and easy to administer. Screening should be conducted at every primary care visit and tracked longitudinally. Screening tools and cutoffs for overweight and obesity vary by age group. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  14. [Infection prevention check-in and infection prevention check-out to prevent nosocomial infections].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kramer, A; Schilling, M; Heidecke, C D

    2010-02-01

    A precondition for the success of the prevention of SSI is the complete realisation of the proven anti-infective measures in form of the multi-barrier strategy or the so-called bundles. In daily practice it is important to follow the fixed instructions, i. e., to ensure a high compliance. In much the same way as an airline pilot or co-pilot must examine whether all instruments are functioning before each take-off, a comparable procedure should be developed as a pre-operative control for the observance of all -defined measures by the responsible surgeon and for the post-operative supervision by the patient. For the control of the observance of the defined pre-operative prevention measures, a check list with 12 items was developed, named the "infection prevention check-in". The check list is authorised by the responsible surgeon be-fore each operation. For the surveillance of the general hygiene in the post-operative period the "infection prevention check-out" with 14 items was developed. Thereby the patient is able to evaluate the staff's compliance with the hygienic measures at the time of dismissal. With the introduction of the check-lists a simple means is given to involve both the team of the surgeons and the ward staff, together with the patient, into the infection prophylaxis even more effectively. In order to assess the success of those measures, the influence on the rate of SSI is to be determined prospectively. Georg Thieme Verlag Stuttgart, New York.

  15. Roles of viroplasm-like structures formed by nonstructural protein NSs in infection with severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome virus.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wu, Xiaodong; Qi, Xian; Liang, Mifang; Li, Chuan; Cardona, Carol J; Li, Dexin; Xing, Zheng

    2014-06-01

    Severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome (SFTS) virus is an emerging bunyavirus that causes a hemorrhagic fever with a high mortality rate. The virus is likely tick-borne and replicates primarily in hemopoietic cells, which may lead to disregulation of proinflammatory cytokine induction and loss of leukocytes and platelets. The viral genome contains L, M, and S segments encoding a viral RNA polymerase, glycoproteins G(n) and G(c), nucleoprotein (NP), and a nonstructural S segment (NSs) protein. NSs protein is involved in the regulation of host innate immune responses and suppression of IFNβ-promoter activities. In this article, we demonstrate that NSs protein can form viroplasm-like structures (VLSs) in infected and transfected cells. NSs protein molecules interact with one another, interact with NP, and were associated with viral RNA in infected cells, suggesting that NSs protein may be involved in viral replication. Furthermore, we observed that NSs-formed VLS colocalized with lipid droplets and that inhibitors of fatty acid biosynthesis decreased VLS formation or viral replication in transfected and infected cells. Finally, we have demonstrated that viral dsRNAs were also localized in VLS in infected cells, suggesting that NSs-formed VLS may be implicated in the replication of SFTS bunyavirus. These findings identify a novel function of nonstructural NSs in SFTSV-infected cells where it is a scaffolding component in a VLS functioning as a virus replication factory. This function is in addition to the role of NSs protein in modulating host responses that will broaden our understanding of viral pathogenesis of phleboviruses. © FASEB.

  16. Spices for Prevention and Treatment of Cancers.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zheng, Jie; Zhou, Yue; Li, Ya; Xu, Dong-Ping; Li, Sha; Li, Hua-Bin

    2016-08-12

    Spices have been widely used as food flavorings and folk medicines for thousands of years. Numerous studies have documented the antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory effects of spices, which might be related to prevention and treatment of several cancers, including lung, liver, breast, stomach, colorectum, cervix, and prostate cancers. Several spices are potential sources for prevention and treatment of cancers, such as Curcuma longa (tumeric), Nigella sativa (black cumin), Zingiber officinale (ginger), Allium sativum (garlic), Crocus sativus (saffron), Piper nigrum (black pepper) and Capsicum annum (chili pepper), which contained several important bioactive compounds, such as curcumin, thymoquinone, piperine and capsaicin. The main mechanisms of action include inducing apoptosis, inhibiting proliferation, migration and invasion of tumors, and sensitizing tumors to radiotherapy and chemotherapy. This review summarized recent studies on some spices for prevention and treatment of cancers, and special attention was paid to bioactive components and mechanisms of action.

  17. Spices for Prevention and Treatment of Cancers

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zheng, Jie; Zhou, Yue; Li, Ya; Xu, Dong-Ping; Li, Sha; Li, Hua-Bin

    2016-01-01

    Spices have been widely used as food flavorings and folk medicines for thousands of years. Numerous studies have documented the antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory effects of spices, which might be related to prevention and treatment of several cancers, including lung, liver, breast, stomach, colorectum, cervix, and prostate cancers. Several spices are potential sources for prevention and treatment of cancers, such as Curcuma longa (tumeric), Nigella sativa (black cumin), Zingiber officinale (ginger), Allium sativum (garlic), Crocus sativus (saffron), Piper nigrum (black pepper) and Capsicum annum (chili pepper), which contained several important bioactive compounds, such as curcumin, thymoquinone, piperine and capsaicin. The main mechanisms of action include inducing apoptosis, inhibiting proliferation, migration and invasion of tumors, and sensitizing tumors to radiotherapy and chemotherapy. This review summarized recent studies on some spices for prevention and treatment of cancers, and special attention was paid to bioactive components and mechanisms of action. PMID:27529277

  18. Mechanical ventilation in patients with most severe forms of influenza a H1N1

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Romić Predrag

    2011-01-01

    Full Text Available Background/Aim. Pandemic of A H1N1 influenza is noted for its rapid spreading and life-threatening consequences like acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS which requires mechanical ventilation (MV and intensive therapy (IT. The aim of the study was to determine the significance of mechanical ventilation application in the presence of comorbidities on the outcome of the disease and patients with severe forms of acute influenza caused by A H1N1 virus. Methods. Five patients with acute respiratory failure caused by A H1N1 influenza that required MV were included in the study. Course and outcome of the treatment were monitored in relation to age and sex of the patients, concomitant diseases, time of influenza beginning, a time of admittance in an intensive care unit, a time of an endotracheal intubation and MV beginning, MV duration and occurrence of secondary infections. Results. Three patients were on a very prolonged MV (39, 43 and 20 days, respectively and they all survived. Two patients with a significantly shorter duration of MV (14 and 12 days, respectively died because of a very severe clinical course and concomitant diseases. Unexpectedly, we found a positive correlation between duration of MV and survival although two patients, who were on MV for the longest period of time (43 and 39 days, respectively, developed, as a complication, secondary bacterial pneumonia. Conclusion. Intensive therapy of patients with ARDS due to A H1N1 influenza virus requires MV which should be carried out according to guidelines of international expert forums. That is in accordance with our unexpected observation on negative correlation between duration of MV and fatal outcome. Intensive treatment of these patients, specially MV, can be very prolonged and, therefore, requires specialized teams of anesthesiologists, separate, isolated intensive therapy units and high level of medical staff protection, as was the case in this study, so no member of medical

  19. Erosive osteoarthritis: a more severe form of radiographic hand osteoarthritis rather than a distinct entity?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Marshall, Michelle; Nicholls, Elaine; Kwok, Wing-Yee; Peat, George; Kloppenburg, Margreet; van der Windt, Danielle; Myers, Helen; Dziedzic, Krysia

    2015-01-01

    Objectives To determine whether erosive osteoarthritis shares the same pattern of joint involvement and risk profile as increasing grades of non-erosive hand osteoarthritis. Methods Participants were from two population-based cohorts, aged ≥50 years, reporting hand symptoms in the previous month. Interphalangeal joints were assessed for erosive osteoarthritis (Verbruggen–Veys erosive or remodelled phase) and radiographic osteoarthritis (sliding cut-offs of K&L≥2, K&L≥3 and K&L=4). At the joint level, similarities in the frequency and pattern of erosive and non-erosive osteoarthritis were assessed by Spearman's rank correlation coefficients and generalised estimating equations. At the person level, individuals with erosive osteoarthritis were compared to those with non-erosive osteoarthritis using logistic regression, adjusted for age and gender (aOR), for the following exposures: family history, previous injury, overuse and metabolic factors (BMI, dyslipidaemia, hypertension, diabetes). Results In 1076 symptomatic participants the ranked frequency of involvement for erosive joints was comparable to joints with K&L≥3 and K&L=4 (r>0.95). Patterns of joint involvement in erosive osteoarthritis were strongest for symmetry (aOR=6.5; 95% CI 3.0 to 14.1), followed by row (2.0; 0.8 to 5.0) and ray (0.3; 0.0 to 2.5), which was similar to joints with K&L≥3 and K&L=4. Individuals with erosive osteoarthritis (n=80) had an increased risk of metabolic syndrome (2.7; 1.0 to 7.1), notably dyslipidaemia (4.7; 2.1 to 10.6) compared with non-erosive osteoarthritis classed K&L≥3 (n=193). Conclusions The similar frequency of radiographic joint involvement and patterning in erosive osteoarthritis and more severe non-erosive osteoarthritis is consistent with prevalent erosive osteoarthritis being a severe form of hand osteoarthritis rather than a distinct entity. Metabolic exposures, dyslipidaemia in particular, may be implicated in erosive osteoarthritis. PMID:24095935

  20. Bullying Prevention for the Public

    Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Podcasts

    2012-01-19

    This is the first podcast of a series to discuss the severity of bullying and provide resources for prevention efforts. CDC shares the most recent statistics and trends, provides valuable tips to implement in communities, and teaches individuals how to take action against bullying.  Created: 1/19/2012 by National Center for Injury Prevention and Control (NCIPC).   Date Released: 1/19/2012.

  1. Forming of superplastic ceramics

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Lesuer, D.R.; Wadsworth, J.; Nieh, T.G.

    1994-05-01

    Superplasticity in ceramics has now advanced to the stage that technologically viable superplastic deformation processing can be performed. In this paper, examples of superplastic forming and diffusion bonding of ceramic components are given. Recent work in biaxial gas-pressure forming of several ceramics is provided. These include yttria-stabilized, tetragonal zirconia (YTZP), a 20% alumina/YTZP composite, and silicon. In addition, the concurrent superplastic forming and diffusion bonding of a hybrid ceramic-metal structure are presented. These forming processes offer technological advantages of greater dimensional control and increased variety and complexity of shapes than is possible with conventional ceramic shaping technology.

  2. [Cardiac tamponade as first manifestation in Mediterranean fever with autosomal dominant form].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sánchez Ferrer, F; Martinez Villar, M; Fernández Bernal, A; Martín de Lara, I; Paya Elorza, I

    2015-01-01

    Familial Mediterranean fever (FMF) is a hereditary disease characterized by brief, recurring and self-limited episodes of fever and pain with inflammation, of one or several serous (peritoneum, pleura, pericardium, synovial or vaginal tunic of the testicle). Amyloidosis is its more important complication and the principal reason of death in the cases in which it appears. Diagnosis is based on the clinic and is confirmed by genetic tests. The treatment with Colchicine (0,02-0,03 mg/kg/day) prevents the recurrence of FMF attacks and the development of secondary (AA) amyloidosis. We report a case of a 13-year-old child in which FMF was diagnosed after several coincidental episodes with fever, pericarditis and cardiac tamponade. The genetic confirmation showed an autosomal dominant inheritance that is less frecuent than the recesive form, in this disease. Copyright © 2013 Asociación Española de Pediatría. Published by Elsevier Espana. All rights reserved.

  3. Severe pediatric influenza in California, 2003-2005: implications for immunization recommendations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Louie, Janice K; Schechter, Robert; Honarmand, Somayeh; Guevara, Hugo F; Shoemaker, Trevor R; Madrigal, Nora Y; Woodfill, Celia J I; Backer, Howard D; Glaser, Carol A

    2006-04-01

    The 2003-2004 influenza season was marked by both the emergence of a new drift "Fujian" strain of influenza A virus and prominent reports of increased influenza-related deaths in children in the absence of baseline data for comparison. In December 2003, the California Department of Health Services initiated surveillance of children who were hospitalized in California with severe influenza in an attempt to measure its impact and to identify additional preventive measures. From December 2003 to May 2005, surveillance of children who were hospitalized in PICUs or dying in the hospital with laboratory evidence of influenza was performed by hospital infection control practitioners and local public health departments using a standardized case definition and reporting form. In the 2003-2004 and 2004-2005 influenza seasons, 125 and 35 cases, respectively, of severe influenza in children were identified in California. The mean and median age of cases were 3.1 years and 1.5 years, with breakdown as follows: AAP) recommendations for immunization, but only 8 had been vaccinated. More than 3 times as many children were reported to be hospitalized in intensive care with influenza in California during the 2003-2004 season compared with the 2004-2005 season. Because children who are younger than 6 months remain at highest risk for severe influenza yet cannot currently be immunized, development and validation of preventive measures for them (eg, maternal immunization, breastfeeding, immunization of young infants and their close contacts) are urgently needed. ACIP's recent recommendation for influenza vaccination of children with conditions that can compromise respiratory function (eg, cognitive dysfunction, spinal cord injuries, seizure disorders, other neuromuscular disorders) is further supported by the frequency of underlying neurologic disease in these cases of severe influenza. A significant proportion of children with severe influenza in California, including children who are

  4. Probiotics: Prevention of Severe Pneumonia and Endotracheal Colonization Trial-PROSPECT: a pilot trial.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cook, Deborah J; Johnstone, Jennie; Marshall, John C; Lauzier, Francois; Thabane, Lehana; Mehta, Sangeeta; Dodek, Peter M; McIntyre, Lauralyn; Pagliarello, Joe; Henderson, William; Taylor, Robert W; Cartin-Ceba, Rodrigo; Golan, Eyal; Herridge, Margaret; Wood, Gordon; Ovakim, Daniel; Karachi, Tim; Surette, Michael G; Bowdish, Dawn M E; Lamarche, Daphnee; Verschoor, Chris P; Duan, Erick H; Heels-Ansdell, Diane; Arabi, Yaseen; Meade, Maureen

    2016-08-02

    Probiotics are live microorganisms that may confer health benefits when ingested. Randomized trials suggest that probiotics significantly decrease the incidence of ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) and the overall incidence of infection in critically ill patients. However, these studies are small, largely single-center, and at risk of bias. The aim of the PROSPECT pilot trial was to determine the feasibility of conducting a larger trial of probiotics to prevent VAP in mechanically ventilated patients in the intensive care unit (ICU). In a randomized blinded trial, patients expected to be mechanically ventilated for ≥72 hours were allocated to receive either 1 × 10(10) colony-forming units of Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG or placebo, twice daily. Patients were excluded if they were at increased risk of L. rhamnosus GG infection or had contraindications to enteral medication. Feasibility objectives were: (1) timely recruitment; (2) maximal protocol adherence; (3) minimal contamination; and (4) estimated VAP rate ≥10 %. We also measured other infections, diarrhea, ICU and hospital length of stay, and mortality. Overall, in 14 centers in Canada and the USA, all feasibility goals were met: (1) 150 patients were randomized in 1 year; (2) protocol adherence was 97 %; (3) no patients received open-label probiotics; and (4) the VAP rate was 19 %. Other infections included: bloodstream infection (19.3 %), urinary tract infections (12.7 %), and skin and soft tissue infections (4.0 %). Diarrhea, defined as Bristol type 6 or 7 stools, occurred in 133 (88.7 %) of patients, the median length of stay in ICU was 12 days (quartile 1 to quartile 3, 7-18 days), and in hospital was 26 days (quartile 1 to quartile 3, 14-44 days); 23 patients (15.3 %) died in the ICU. The PROSPECT pilot trial supports the feasibility of a larger trial to investigate the effect of L. rhamnosus GG on VAP and other nosocomial infections in critically ill patients. Clinicaltrials

  5. Prevention of hospital-acquired pneumonia: European perspective.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bonten, Marc J M

    2003-12-01

    Several preventive measures for VAP have been empirically tested. There is clear evidence that antibiotic-containing preventive strategies, such as SDD and oropharyngeal decontamination, are very effective in different patient populations. Selection of antibiotic resistance remains the major disadvantage of these strategies, however, limiting its applicability in settings with high levels of antibiotic resistance. This probably precludes the use of these strategies in many American settings, but may allow their use in European countries with much lower endemic levels of resistance. There is little evidence that systemic prophylaxis is effective for the prevention of VAP, and initial studies were associated with resistance problems. Of the non antibiotic-containing preventive strategies, subglottic aspiration was effective in several studies, whereas other strategies, such as immunonutrition with glutamine or the semirecumbent patient position, were effective in single studies. All these studies were executed in European ICUs. For these interventions, more data are needed on the generalizability, feasibility, and cost effectiveness. Few data support the use of sucralfate for stress ulcer prophylaxis and modulation of enteral nutrition practices as preventive measures for VAP.

  6. Overproduction of an amino-terminal form of PTH distinct from human PTH(1-84) in a case of severe primary hyperparathyroidism: influence of medical treatment and surgery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Räkel, Agnès; Brossard, Jean-Hugues; Patenaude, Jean-Victor; Albert, Caroline; Nassif, Edgard; Cantor, Tom; Rousseau, Louise; D'Amour, Pierre

    2005-06-01

    Rare patients with severe primary hyperparathyroidism present with large parathyroid tumours, severe hypercalcaemia, very high PTH levels and osteitis fibrosa cystica. Some of these patients display a large amount of C-PTH fragments in circulation and present with a higher C-PTH/I-PTH ratio than seen in less severe cases of primary hyperparathyroidism. We wanted to determine how PTH levels and circulating PTH high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) profiles analysed with PTH assays having different epitopes could be affected by medical and surgical treatment in such patients. A 55-year-old man with severe hypercalcaemia (Ca(2+): 2.01 mmol/l), very high PTH levels (CA-PTH 82.1 and T-PTH 72 pmol/l) caused by a large parathyroid tumour (7.35 g) and accompanied by significant bone involvement (alkaline phosphatase of 185 UI/l and subperiostal bone resorption of hands) was referred to us. Blood was obtained at various time points during his medical treatment, before and after surgery, to measure parameters of calcium and phosphorus metabolism, and of bone turnover. HPLC separations of circulating PTH molecular forms were performed and analysed with PTH assays having 1-4 (CA), 12-18 (T), 26-32 (E) and 65-84 (C) epitopes. Before surgery, serum Ca2+ was nearly normalized with hydratation, intravenous (IV) pamidronate and oral vitamin D administration. Despite a decrease in Ca2+ to 1.31 mmol/l, CA-PTH and T-PTH levels decreased by half in relation to a threefold increase in basal 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D [1,25(OH)2D] level (94 to 337 pmol/l). After this initial positive response, hypercalcaemia and elevated CA- and T-PTH levels recurred even if 1,25(OH)2D levels remained elevated. The tumour was removed surgically and proved to be poorly differentiated with nuclear atypia and mitosis. After surgery, the Ca2+ level and PTH secretion normalized. The higher CA-PTH level relative to the T-PTH level observed before surgery in this patient was related to the oversecretion of

  7. Allergy in severe asthma.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Del Giacco, S R; Bakirtas, A; Bel, E; Custovic, A; Diamant, Z; Hamelmann, E; Heffler, E; Kalayci, Ö; Saglani, S; Sergejeva, S; Seys, S; Simpson, A; Bjermer, L

    2017-02-01

    It is well recognized that atopic sensitization is an important risk factor for asthma, both in adults and in children. However, the role of allergy in severe asthma is still under debate. The term 'Severe Asthma' encompasses a highly heterogeneous group of patients who require treatment on steps 4-5 of GINA guidelines to prevent their asthma from becoming 'uncontrolled', or whose disease remains 'uncontrolled' despite this therapy. Epidemiological studies on emergency room visits and hospital admissions for asthma suggest the important role of allergy in asthma exacerbations. In addition, allergic asthma in childhood is often associated with severe asthma in adulthood. A strong association exists between asthma exacerbations and respiratory viral infections, and interaction between viruses and allergy further increases the risk of asthma exacerbations. Furthermore, fungal allergy has been shown to play an important role in severe asthma. Other contributing factors include smoking, pollution and work-related exposures. The 'Allergy and Asthma Severity' EAACI Task Force examined the current evidence and produced this position document on the role of allergy in severe asthma. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  8. Prevalence and Severity of Malaria Parasitemia among Children ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    induced anemia is much more common in younger children and may require blood transfusion with high mortality rates.[2,3]. In Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), children admitted with severe anemia are more likely to die than those without anemia.[4,5]. Blood transfusion in severe malarial anemia can be important in preventing ...

  9. Nuclear safety in light water reactors severe accident phenomenology

    CERN Document Server

    Sehgal, Bal Raj

    2011-01-01

    This vital reference is the only one-stop resource on how to assess, prevent, and manage severe nuclear accidents in the light water reactors (LWRs) that pose the most risk to the public. LWRs are the predominant nuclear reactor in use around the world today, and they will continue to be the most frequently utilized in the near future. Therefore, accurate determination of the safety issues associated with such reactors is central to a consideration of the risks and benefits of nuclear power. This book emphasizes the prevention and management of severe accidents to teach nuclear professionals

  10. Hydrogen embrittlement of steels: study and prevention

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Brass, A.M.; Chene, J.; Coudreuse, L.

    2000-01-01

    Hydrogen embrittlement of steels is one of the important reason of rupture of pieces in the industry (nuclear, of petroleum..). Indeed, there are a lot of situations which can lead to the phenomenon of hydrogen embrittlement: introduction of hydrogen in the material during the elaboration or during transformation or implementation processes (heat treatments, welding); use of steels when hydrogen or hydrogenated gaseous mixtures are present; hydrogen produced by electrolytic reactions (surface treatments, cathodic protection). The hydrogen embrittlement can appear in different forms which depend of a lot of parameters: material (state, composition, microstructure..); surrounding medium (gas, aqueous medium, temperature..); condition of mechanical solicitation (static, dynamic, cyclic..). The industrial phenomena which appear during cases of hydrogen embrittlement are more particularly described here. Several methods of steels studies are proposed as well as some possible ways for the prevention of hydrogen embrittlement risks. (O.M.)

  11. Sex differences in the prevalence, symptoms, and associated features of migraine, probable migraine and other severe headache: results of the American Migraine Prevalence and Prevention (AMPP) Study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Buse, Dawn C; Loder, Elizabeth W; Gorman, Jennifer A; Stewart, Walter F; Reed, Michael L; Fanning, Kristina M; Serrano, Daniel; Lipton, Richard B

    2013-09-01

    The strikingly higher prevalence of migraine in females compared with males is one of the hallmarks of migraine. A large global body of evidence exists on the sex differences in the prevalence of migraine with female to male ratios ranging from 2:1 to 3:1 and peaking in midlife. Some data are available on sex differences in associated symptoms, headache-related disability and impairment, and healthcare resource utilization in migraine. Few data are available on corresponding sex differences in probable migraine (PM) and other severe headache (ie, nonmigraine-spectrum severe headache). Gaining a clear understanding of sex differences in a range of severe headache disorders may help differentiate the range of headache types. Herein, we compare sexes on prevalence and a range of clinical variables for migraine, PM, and other severe headache in a large sample from the US population. This study analyzed data from the 2004 American Migraine Prevalence and Prevention Study. Total and demographic-stratified sex-specific, prevalence estimates of headache subtypes (migraine, PM, and other severe headache) are reported. Log-binomial models are used to calculate sex-specific adjusted prevalence ratios and 95% confidence intervals for each across demographic strata. A smoothed sex prevalence ratio (female to male) figure is presented for migraine and PM. One hundred sixty-two thousand seven hundred fifty-six individuals aged 12 and older responded to the 2004 American Migraine Prevalence and Prevention Study survey (64.9% response rate). Twenty-eight thousand two hundred sixty-one (17.4%) reported "severe headache" in the preceding year (23.5% of females and 10.6% of males), 11.8% met International Classification of Headache Disorders-2 criteria for migraine (17.3% of females and 5.7% of males), 4.6% met criteria for PM (5.3% of females and 3.9% of males), and 1.0% were categorized with other severe headache (0.9% of females and 1.0% of males). Sex differences were observed in

  12. TRASYS form factor matrix normalization

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tsuyuki, Glenn T.

    1992-01-01

    A method has been developed for adjusting a TRASYS enclosure form factor matrix to unity. This approach is not limited to closed geometries, and in fact, it is primarily intended for use with open geometries. The purpose of this approach is to prevent optimistic form factors to space. In this method, nodal form factor sums are calculated within 0.05 of unity using TRASYS, although deviations as large as 0.10 may be acceptable, and then, a process is employed to distribute the difference amongst the nodes. A specific example has been analyzed with this method, and a comparison was performed with a standard approach for calculating radiation conductors. In this comparison, hot and cold case temperatures were determined. Exterior nodes exhibited temperature differences as large as 7 C and 3 C for the hot and cold cases, respectively when compared with the standard approach, while interior nodes demonstrated temperature differences from 0 C to 5 C. These results indicate that temperature predictions can be artificially biased if the form factor computation error is lumped into the individual form factors to space.

  13. Cancer prevention.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tubiana, M

    1999-01-01

    Over 70% of human cancers are associated with lifestyle and about half of cancer deaths could be prevented by relatively simple individual actions: no smoking, moderate consumption of alcohol, increased consumption of fruit and vegetables, avoidance of sunbathing, obesity and a too high consumption of saturated lipids. Most of these efforts would also markedly decrease the incidence of cardiovascular and respiratory diseases. However, the concept of prevention is currently neither well accepted nor understood by the medical community and the general public. It is often felt that it restricts freedom, imposes a choice between pleasure and duty, and that passing judgement on lifestyle is a form of intolerance. The case of tobacco illustrates the difficulties encountered by prevention, notably among adolescents. The fight against smoking requires information, a societal approach (ban on advertising, increase in price), and a reduction of the example given by adult smoking (parents, peers, teachers, physicians, TV presenters, movie stars, have a great influence on adolescents), while tobacco cessation programs must be promoted. The various approaches should be integrated into a global program of health prevention, including health education at school from 5 to 12 years of age. The efficacy of each of the global program's components should be evaluated. Misconceptions such as overestimation of the impact of pollution on health should also be corrected. Health is created and experienced by people within the setting of their daily lives, in particular during childhood. Prevention is the responsibility of individual members of the community but also of the community as a whole.

  14. A framework for the assessment of severe accident management strategies

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kastenberg, W.E.; Apostolakis, G.; Dhir, V.K.; Okrent, D.; Jae, M.; Lim, H.; Milici, T.; Park, H.; Swider, J.; Xing, L.; Yu, D.

    1992-01-01

    Accident management can be defined as the innovative use of existing and or alternative resources, systems and actions to prevent or mitigate a severe accident. Together with risk management (changes in plant operation and/or addition of equipment) and emergency planning (off-site actions), accident management provides an extension of the defense-in-depth safety philosophy for severe accidents. A significant number of probabilistic safety assessments (PSA) have been completed which yield the principal plant vulnerabilities. For each sequence/threat and each combination of strategy there may be several options available to the operator. Each strategy/option involves phenomenological and operational considerations regarding uncertainty. These considerations include uncertainty in key phenomena, uncertainty in operator behavior, uncertainty in system availability and behavior, and uncertainty in available information (i.e., instrumentation). The objective of this project is to develop a methodology for assessing severe accident management strategies given the key uncertainties mentioned above. Based on decision trees and influence diagrams, the methodology is currently being applied to two case studies: cavity flooding in a pressurized water reactor to prevent vessel penetration or failure, and drywell flooding in a boiling water reactor to prevent containment failure

  15. Preventing School Violence

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rulloda, Rudolfo Barcena

    2011-01-01

    School violence has mushroomed into a devastating epidemic and is deteriorating the basic foundation of education. In this article, the author will present several teaching strategies for preventing school violence from becoming an arduous enigma within the classroom and school environments, and focus on assessment and reflection in order to…

  16. Severe accidents in nuclear reactors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ohai, Dumitru; Dumitrescu, Iulia; Tunaru, Mariana

    2004-01-01

    The likelihood of accidents leading to core meltdown in nuclear reactors is low. The consequences of such an event are but so severe that developing and implementing of adequate measures for preventing or diminishing the consequences of such events are of paramount importance. The analysis of major accidents requires sophisticated computation codes but necessary are also relevant experiments for checking the accuracy of the predictions and capability of these codes. In this paper an overview of the severe accidents worldwide with definitions, computation codes and relating experiments is presented. The experimental research activity of severe accidents was conducted in INR Pitesti since 2003, when the Institute jointed the SARNET Excellence Network. The INR activity within SARNET consists in studying scenarios of severe accidents by means of ASTEC and RELAP/SCDAP codes and conducting bench-scale experiments

  17. Prevention of hand eczema

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Fisker, Maja H; Ebbehøj, Niels E; Vejlstrup, Søren Grove

    2018-01-01

    Objective Occupational hand eczema has adverse health and socioeconomic impacts for the afflicted individuals and society. Prevention and treatment strategies are needed. This study aimed to assess the effectiveness of an educational intervention on sickness absence, quality of life and severity...... of hand eczema. Methods PREVEX (PreVention of EXema) is an individually randomized, parallel-group superiority trial investigating the pros and cons of one-time, 2-hour, group-based education in skin-protective behavior versus treatment as usual among patients with newly notified occupational hand eczema...

  18. Treatment and education reduce the severity of schistosomiasis periportal fibrosis

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Paula Carolina Valenca Silva

    2013-07-01

    Full Text Available Introduction This study evaluates the factors associated with the development of severe periportal fibrosis in patients with Schistosoma mansoni. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted from April to December 2012 involving 178 patients infected with S. mansoni who were treated in the Hospital das Clínicas of Pernambuco, Brazil. Information regarding risk factors was obtained using a questionnaire. Based on the patients' epidemiological history, clinical examination, and upper abdomen ultrasound evaluation, patients were divided into 2 groups: 137 with evidence of severe periportal fibrosis and 41 patients without fibrosis or with mild or moderate periportal fibrosis. Univariate and multivariate analyses were conducted using EpiInfo software version 3.5.5. Results Illiterate individuals (30.1% and patients who had more frequent contact with contaminated water in towns in the Zona da Mata of Pernambuco (33.2% were at greater risk for severe periportal fibrosis. Based on multivariate analysis, it was determined that an education level of up to 11 years of study and specific prior treatment for schistosomiasis were preventive factors for severe periportal fibrosis. Conclusions The prevailing sites of the severe forms of periportal fibrosis are still within the Zona da Mata of Pernambuco, although there has been an expansion to urban areas and the state coast. Specific treatment and an increased level of education were identified as protective factors, indicating the need for implementing social, sanitary, and health education interventions aimed at schistosomiasis to combat the risk factors for this major public health problem.

  19. Vitamin D and Calcium supplementation prevents severe falls in elderly community dwelling residents: a pragmatic population-based 3-year intervention study

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Larsen, Erik Roj; Mosekilde, Leif; Foldspang, Anders

    2005-01-01

    Background and aims: We evaluated the effect of two programs for the prevention of falls leading to acute hospital admission in a population of elderly community-dwelling Danish residents. Methods: This was a factorial, pragmatic, intervention study. We included 9605 community-dwelling city......, or no intervention. Results: The Calcium and Vitamin D program was followed by 50.3% and the Environmental and Health Program by 46.4%. According to a multivariate analysis including age, marital status and intervention program, female residents who followed the Calcium and Vitamin D Program had a 12% risk reduction...... in severe falls (RR 0.88; 95% CI 0.79-0.98; pfalls leading to acute hospitalization in communitydwelling elderly females in a northern European region known to be deficient in vitamin D....

  20. 75 FR 24706 - Agency Forms Undergoing Paperwork Reduction Act Review

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-05-05

    ... parent consent 214 1 10/60 form. Child Clinic Visit--Case 107 1 1.5 children packet. Parent Clinic Visit...] Agency Forms Undergoing Paperwork Reduction Act Review The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention...; (4) a telephone interview focusing on pregnancy-related events and early life history (biological...

  1. 76 FR 38654 - Agency Forms Undergoing Paperwork Reduction Act Review

    Science.gov (United States)

    2011-07-01

    ... consent for an interview. After the data collection phase, a multidisciplinary case review team (CRT) will... Post-Partum HIV- FIMR/HIV Maternal 300 1 1.5 infected Women. Interview Form. Daniel L. Holcomb, Reports...] Agency Forms Undergoing Paperwork Reduction Act Review The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention...

  2. EDUCATIONAL ACTIONS TO PREVENT DENGUE: EXPERIENCES AND STRATEGIES WITH ELDERLY

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rosamaria Rodrigues Garcia

    2015-04-01

    Full Text Available Objective: Describe the activities performed on apublic specialized ambulatory care for dengue prevention among elderly. Case report: the epidemiological outlook of dengue is scaring being characterized as a public health problem. The elderly are most at risk for hospitalization and severe forms of the disease, thus health education activities are essential to improve awareness of the need to fight and prevent the disease. A Health Education project was created, evolving communication strategies to raise awareness on the issue. They were performed by a post graduate Gerontology group in activities such as interactive puppet show, myths and truths dynamic, informative folder, parody, posters, training seniors, caregivers and family members, internal and external health professionals, staff and residents of nearby long term care facilities. The materials were available in print and digital version. 2,500 elderly and 350 professionals were trained and encouraged to multiply the information and inspire adoption of preventive measures. The actions provided intergenerational interaction and empowerment of the elderly, whom trained, had the opportunity to exercise social participation and disseminate recommendations for other users. Conclusion: the project enabled the construction of knowledge through interactive educational activities that contributed to strengthen the individual and collective awareness, awareopinion leaderstothe importance of communication/education in the fight against dengue, which emphasized social responsibility in rescuing citizenship in a perspective thateach citizen is responsible for himself and for community. DESCRIPTORS: Dengue. Aged. Disease prevention. Health education.

  3. Spore-Forming Bacteria that Resist Sterilization

    Science.gov (United States)

    LaDuc, Myron; Venkateswaran, Kasthuri

    2003-01-01

    A report presents a phenotypic and genotypic characterization of a bacterial species that has been found to be of the genus Bacillus and has been tentatively named B. odysseensis because it was isolated from surfaces of the Mars Odyssey spacecraft as part of continuing research on techniques for sterilizing spacecraft to prevent contamination of remote planets by terrestrial species. B. odysseensis is a Gram-positive, facultatively anaerobic, rod-shaped bacterium that forms round spores. The exosporium has been conjectured to play a role in the elevated resistance to sterilization. Research on the exosporium is proposed as a path toward improved means of sterilization, medical treatment, and prevention of biofouling.

  4. [Parental Alienation (Syndrome) - A serious form of child psychological abuse].

    Science.gov (United States)

    von Boch-Galhau, Wilfrid

    2018-04-13

    Induced parental alienation is a specific form of psychological child abuse, which is listed in DSM-5, the current Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of the American Psychiatric Association (APA), under diagnostic code V 995.51 "child psychological abuse". Untreated induced parental alienation can lead to long-term traumatic psychological and physical effects in the children concerned. This fact is still not given sufficient attention in family court cases. The article gives a condensed overview of parental alienation, summarising its definition, the symptoms and the various levels of severity. It also describes some major alienation techniques and possible psychosomatic and psychiatric effects of induced parental alienation. Finally, attention is drawn to programmes of prevention and intervention now used and evaluated in some countries. The article concludes with two real-life examples from psychiatric practice, and a comprehensive list of international references.

  5. Respiratory Tract Infections and the Role of Biologically Active Polysaccharides in Their Management and Prevention.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jesenak, Milos; Urbancikova, Ingrid; Banovcin, Peter

    2017-07-20

    Respiratory tract infections (RTIs) are the most common form of infections in every age category. Recurrent respiratory tract infections (RRTIs), a specific form of RTIs, represent a typical and common problem associated with early childhood, causing high indirect and direct costs on the healthcare system. They are usually the consequence of immature immunity in children and high exposure to various respiratory pathogens. Their rational management should aim at excluding other severe chronic diseases associated with increased morbidity (e.g., primary immunodeficiency syndromes, cystic fibrosis, and ciliary dyskinesia) and at supporting maturity of the mucosal immune system. However, RRTIs can also be observed in adults (e.g., during exhausting and stressful periods, chronic inflammatory diseases, secondary immunodeficiencies, or in elite athletes) and require greater attention. Biologically active polysaccharides (e.g., β-glucans) are one of the most studied natural immunomodulators with a pluripotent mode of action and biological activity. According to many studies, they possess immunomodulatory, anti-inflammatory, and anti-infectious activities and therefore could be suggested as an effective part of treating and preventing RTIs. Based on published studies, the application of β-glucans was proven as a possible therapeutic and preventive approach in managing and preventing recurrent respiratory tract infections in children (especially β-glucans from Pleurotus ostreatus ), adults (mostly the studies with yeast-derived β-glucans), and in elite athletes (studies with β-glucans from Pleurotus ostreatus or yeast).

  6. Purpose and methods of a Pollution Prevention Awareness Program

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Flowers, P.A.; Irwin, E.F.; Poligone, S.E.

    1994-08-15

    The purpose of the Pollution Prevention Awareness Program (PPAP), which is required by DOE Order 5400.1, is to foster the philosophy that prevention is superior to remediation. The goal of the program is to incorporate pollution prevention into the decision-making process at every level throughout the organization. The objectives are to instill awareness, disseminate information, provide training and rewards for identifying the true source or cause of wastes, and encourage employee participation in solving environmental issues and preventing pollution. PPAP at the Oak Ridge Y-12 Plant was created several years ago and continues to grow. We believe that we have implemented several unique methods of communicating environmental awareness to promote a more active work force in identifying ways of reducing pollution.

  7. The management of severe accidents in modern pressure tube reactors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Popov, N.K.; Santamaura, P.; Blahnik, C.; Snell, V.G.; Duffey, R.B.

    2007-01-01

    Advanced new reactor designs resist severe accidents through a balance between prevention and mitigation. This balance is achieved by designing to ensure that such accidents are very rare; and by limiting core damage progression and releases from the plant in the event of such rare accidents. These design objectives are supported by a suitable combination of probabilistic safety analysis, engineering judgment and experimental and analytical study. This paper describes the approach used for the Advanced CANDU Reactor TM -1000 (ACR-1000) design, which includes provisions to both prevent and mitigate severe accidents. The paper describes the use of PSA as a 'design assist' tool; the analysis of core damage progression pathways; the definition of the core damage states; the capability of the mitigating systems to stop and control severe accident events; and the severe accident management opportunities for consequence reduction. (author)

  8. Assessing injury severity in bicyclists involved in traffic accidents to more effectively prevent fatal bicycle injuries in Japan.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gomei, Sayaka; Hitosugi, Masahito; Ikegami, Keiichi; Tokudome, Shogo

    2013-10-01

    The objective of this study was to clarify the relationship between injury severity in bicyclists involved in traffic accidents and patient outcome or type of vehicle involved in order to propose effective measures to prevent fatal bicycle injuries. Hospital records were reviewed for all patients from 2007 to 2010 who had been involved in a traffic accident while riding a bicycle and were subsequently transferred to the Shock Trauma Center of Dokkyo Medical University Koshigaya Hospital. Patient outcomes and type of vehicle that caused the injury were examined. The mechanism of injury, Abbreviated Injury Scale (AIS) score, and Injury Severity Score (ISS) of the patient were determined. A total of 115 patients' records were reviewed. The mean patient age was 47.1 ± 27.4 years. The average ISS was 23.9, with an average maximum AIS (MAIS) score of 3.7. The ISS, MAIS score, head AIS score, and chest AIS score were well correlated with patient outcome. The head AIS score was significantly higher in patients who had died (mean of 4.4); however, the ISS, MAIS score, and head AIS score did not differ significantly according to the type of vehicle involved in the accident. The mean head AIS scores were as high as 2.4 or more for accidents involving any type of vehicle. This study provides useful information for forensic pathologists who suspect head injuries in bicyclists involved in traffic accidents. To effectively reduce bicyclist fatalities from traffic accidents, helmet use should be required for all bicyclists.

  9. Directory of energy data collection forms. Forms in use as of October 1995

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    1996-01-01

    This is an authoritative listing of selected public use forms currently used as basic energy information gathering tools by the Department of Energy (DOE). This directory provides an overview of DOE`s energy information collection programs for decisionmakers in Government and industry. Forms designed to collect energy information and used by the Energy Information Administration (EIA) as of October 1995 are included in this directory. For each form listed in this directory, an abstract is included that describes the form`s uses, its respondents, and the data collected. For the reader`s convenience in finding specific types of collections, several indices have been provided in this directory. A listing of the forms grouped by energy source and function begins on page 26. Beginning on page 38 are the publications derived from the collections, and on page 50, are the forms linked to general respondent categories.

  10. Clinical outcomes of isolated renal failure compared to other forms of organ failure in patients with severe acute pancreatitis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gougol, Amir; Dugum, Mohannad; Dudekula, Anwar; Greer, Phil; Slivka, Adam; Whitcomb, David C; Yadav, Dhiraj; Papachristou, Georgios I

    2017-08-07

    To assess differences in clinical outcomes of isolated renal failure (RF) compared to other forms of organ failure (OF) in patients with severe acute pancreatitis (SAP). Using a prospectively maintained database of patients with acute pancreatitis admitted to a tertiary medical center between 2003 and 2016, those with evidence of persistent OF were classified to renal, respiratory, cardiovascular, or multi-organ (2 or more organs). Data regarding demographics, comorbidities, etiology of acute pancreatitis, and clinical outcomes were prospectively recorded. Differences in clinical outcomes after development of isolated RF in comparison to other forms of OF were determined using independent t and Mann-Whitney U tests for continues variables, and χ 2 test for discrete variables. Among 500 patients with acute pancreatitis, 111 patients developed persistent OF: mean age was 54 years, and 75 (67.6%) were male. Forty-three patients had isolated OF: 17 (15.3%) renal, 25 (21.6%) respiratory, and 1 (0.9%) patient with cardiovascular failure. No differences in demographics, etiology of acute pancreatitis, systemic inflammatory response syndrome scores, or development of pancreatic necrosis were seen between patients with isolated RF vs isolated respiratory failure. Patients with isolated RF were less likely to require nutritional support (76.5% vs 96%, P = 0.001), ICU admission (58.8% vs 100%, P = 0.001), and had shorter mean ICU stay (2.4 d vs 15.7 d, P pancreatitis.

  11. NPP Krsko Severe Accident Management Guidelines Implementation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Basic, I.; Krajnc, B.; Bilic-Zabric, T.; Spiler, J.

    2002-01-01

    Severe Accident Management is a framework to identify and implement the Emergency Response Capabilities that can be used to prevent or mitigate severe accidents and their consequences. The USA NRC has indicated that the development of a licensee plant specific accident management program will be required in order to close out the severe accident regulatory issue (Ref. SECY-88-147). Generic Letter 88-20 ties the Accident management Program to IPE for each plant. The SECY-89-012 defines those actions taken during the course of an accident by the plant operating and technical staff to: 1) prevent core damage, 2) terminate the progress of core damage if it begins and retain the core within the reactor vessel, 3) maintain containment integrity as long as possible, and 4) minimize offsite releases. The subject of this paper is to document the severe accident management activities, which resulted in a plant specific Severe Accident Management Guidelines implementation. They have been developed based on the Krsko IPE (Individual Plant Examination) insights, Generic WOG SAMGs (Westinghouse Owners Group Severe Accident Management Guidances) and plant specific documents developed within this effort. Among the required plant specific actions the following are the most important ones: Identification and documentation of those Krsko plant specific severe accident management features (which also resulted from the IPE investigations). The development of the Krsko plant specific background documents (Severe Accident Plant Specific Strategies and SAMG Setpoint Calculation). Also, paper discusses effort done in the areas of NPP Krsko SAMG review (internal and external ), validation on Krsko Full Scope Simulator (Severe Accident sequences are simulated by MAAP4 in real time) and world 1st IAEA Review of Accident Management Programmes (RAMP). (author)

  12. Preventing knee injuries in adolescent female football players - design of a cluster randomized controlled trial [NCT00894595].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hägglund, Martin; Waldén, Markus; Atroshi, Isam

    2009-06-23

    Knee injuries in football are common regardless of age, gender or playing level, but adolescent females seem to have the highest risk. The consequences after severe knee injury, for example anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury, are well-known, but less is known about knee injury prevention. We have designed a cluster randomized controlled trial (RCT) to evaluate the effect of a warm-up program aimed at preventing acute knee injury in adolescent female football. In this cluster randomized trial 516 teams (309 clusters) in eight regional football districts in Sweden with female players aged 13-17 years were randomized into an intervention group (260 teams) or a control group (256 teams). The teams in the intervention group were instructed to do a structured warm-up program at two training sessions per week throughout the 2009 competitive season (April to October) and those in the control group were informed to train and play as usual. Sixty-eight sports physical therapists are assigned to the clubs to assist both groups in data collection and to examine the players' acute knee injuries during the study period. Three different forms are used in the trial: (1) baseline player data form collected at the start of the trial, (2) computer-based registration form collected every month, on which one of the coaches/team leaders documents individual player exposure, and (3) injury report form on which the study therapists report acute knee injuries resulting in time loss from training or match play. The primary outcome is the incidence of ACL injury and the secondary outcomes are the incidence of any acute knee injury (except contusion) and incidence of severe knee injury (defined as injury resulting in absence of more than 4 weeks). Outcome measures are assessed after the end of the 2009 season. Prevention of knee injury is beneficial for players, clubs, insurance companies, and society. If the warm-up program is proven to be effective in reducing the incidence of knee

  13. Should Magnesium Sulphate Prophylaxis be Used in all Cases of Severe Preeclampsia?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sohini Bhattacharya,

    2011-01-01

    Full Text Available A case control study, undertaken in the department of Obstetrics and Gynecology in a tertiary referral centre, was designed to administer standard dose of magnesium sulphate to 50 randomly selected severely preeclamptic women in labor (Group 1. 48 women who formed the control group did not receive the drug (Group 2. The admission – delivery interval, rate of Cesarean section showed no statistically significant difference. Four patients developed convulsions in Group 1 in contrast to twelve patients in Group 2. Efficacy of magnesium sulphate at preventing eclampsia was calculated as 68%. Mild respiratory depression occurred in two cases and oliguria in eight cases in Group 1. Both the conditions improved on suspending further doses of magnesium sulphate. No patient had post partum haemorrhage in Group 1 although 4% patients had it in Group 2. Neonatal outcome was comparable in both the groups. Hence magnesium sulphate may be regarded as a fairly safe and effective prophylactic agent for eclampsia when used in severe preeclampsia in labor.

  14. The management of severe accidents

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Pelce, J.; Brignon, P.

    1987-01-01

    In considering severe accidents in water power reactors, a major problem that arises is how to manage them in such a way that the situation can be controlled as well as possible, from the aspects both of preventing serious damage to the core of limiting the discharge of radioactivity. A number of countries have announced provisions in the field of accident management, some already set up, others planned, but these mainly apply to preventing damage to the core. Part of this report deals with this aspect, to show that there is a fairly wide consensus on how problems should be approached. Attitudes vary, on the other hand, in the approach to mitigate radioactive release. In fact, few countries have proposed concrete steps to manage severe accidents in the final stages when the core is seriously damaged. Since it is difficult to compare different approaches, only the French approach is described. This description is however very brief, because in the five or six years since it was defined, the approach has been presented many times. The stress is placed more on the comments which this type of approach suggests, to make the subsequent general discussion easier

  15. Forming Limits in Sheet Metal Forming for Non-Proportional Loading Conditions - Experimental and Theoretical Approach

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ofenheimer, Aldo; Buchmayr, Bruno; Kolleck, Ralf; Merklein, Marion

    2005-01-01

    The influence of strain paths (loading history) on material formability is well known in sheet forming processes. Sophisticated experimental methods are used to determine the entire shape of strain paths of forming limits for aluminum AA6016-T4 alloy. Forming limits for sheet metal in as-received condition as well as for different pre-deformation are presented. A theoretical approach based on Arrieux's intrinsic Forming Limit Stress Curve (FLSC) concept is employed to numerically predict the influence of loading history on forming severity. The detailed experimental strain paths are used in the theoretical study instead of any linear or bilinear simplified loading histories to demonstrate the predictive quality of forming limits in the state of stress

  16. Assessing severity of delirium by the Delirium Observation Screening Scale

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Scheffer, Alice C.; van Munster, Barbara C.; Schuurmans, Marieke J.; de Rooij, Sophia E.

    Objective: Delirium is the most common acute neuropsychiatric disorder in hospitalized elderly. Assessment of the severity of delirium is important for adjusting medication. The minimal dose of medication is preferable to prevent side effects. Only few nurse based severity measures are available.

  17. Clinical Trial Design for HIV Prevention Research: Determining Standards of Prevention.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dawson, Liza; Zwerski, Sheryl

    2015-06-01

    This article seeks to advance ethical dialogue on choosing standards of prevention in clinical trials testing improved biomedical prevention methods for HIV. The stakes in this area of research are high, given the continued high rates of infection in many countries and the budget limitations that have constrained efforts to expand treatment for all who are currently HIV-infected. New prevention methods are still needed; at the same time, some existing prevention and treatment interventions have been proven effective but are not yet widely available in the countries where they most urgently needed. The ethical tensions in this field of clinical research are well known and have been the subject of extensive debate. There is no single clinical trial design that can optimize all the ethically important goals and commitments involved in research. Several recent articles have described the current ethical difficulties in designing HIV prevention trials, especially in resource limited settings; however, there is no consensus on how to handle clinical trial design decisions, and existing international ethical guidelines offer conflicting advice. This article acknowledges these deep ethical dilemmas and moves beyond a simple descriptive approach to advance an organized method for considering what clinical trial designs will be ethically acceptable for HIV prevention trials, balancing the relevant criteria and providing justification for specific design decisions. Published 2014. This article is a U.S. Government work and is in the public domain in the USA.

  18. [Congenital toxoplasmosis: randomised comparison of strategies for retinochoroiditis prevention].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wallon, Martine; Kieffer, François; Binquet, Christine; Thulliez, Philippe; Garcia-Méric, Patricia; Dureau, Pascal; Franck, Jacqueline; Peyron, François; Bonnin, Alain; Villena, Isabelle; Bonithon-Kopp, Claire; Gouyon, Jean-Bernard; Masson, Sandrine; Félin, Alexandrin; Cornu, Catherine

    2011-01-01

    In France, children with confirmed congenital toxoplasmosis receive a treatment for a period of 12 to 24 months. Such prolonged treatment may generate potentially severe risks, in particular hematologic and cutaneous. Our objective is to compare the effectiveness of two therapeutic strategies on the prevention of retinochoroiditis by a randomized, non-inferiority, open-label, parallel study including 486 children, 3 to 6 months of age with a non-severe form of congenital toxoplasmosis. Following randomization, pyrimethamine-sulphonamide treatment is initiated for a period of three months, followed by a treatment with Fansidar(®) for 9 months, or therapeutic abstention. Follow-up visits during a two-year period will include an examination of the eye, a blood test, and questionnaires to evaluate the children's quality of life and their parents' anxiety. Confirming the non-inferiority of the effectiveness of a short-term treatment will improve the quality of life of parents and children. © 2011 Société Française de Pharmacologie et de Thérapeutique.

  19. New organic forms of preventive medicine and correction of neurotic and psichosomatic disorders for personnel of the Pripyat' and Spetsatom research and production joint enterprises

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tabachnikov, S.I.; Snizhenko, Yu.N.; Aleksandrovskij, Yu.A.; Kazakov, V.N.; Bebeshko, E.G.; Mecheret, E.L.; Rymar', I.B.; Cherenkov, V.P.; Roslyakov, V.S.; Titievskij, S.V.

    1992-01-01

    The differentiated harmonious system of new organizing forms and methods, as well as necessary preventive and medical measures, which is introduced in the MSCh-26 rehabilitation department is discussed. The Antitabak and Antibakhus programs are developed and introduced. Modifications of emotional-stress psychotherapy and tabacco dependence reflexotherapy are used. The system of rehabilitation-sanitation measures (RSM) includes 4 stage, which are: RSM organization directly in the Chernobyl' NPP dispensary (manual therapy, massage, psychotherapy reflexotherapy); RSM organization on the basis of medical-sanitary departments; RSM during interduty period at a place of residence; rehabilitation under conditions of special sanatoria

  20. 77 FR 37051 - Agency Forms Undergoing Paperwork Reduction Act Review

    Science.gov (United States)

    2012-06-20

    ... Year 1 and Year 2. Informed Consent Form... 4,404 1 2/60 Non-Responder Interview. 792 1 5/60 Kimberly S...] Agency Forms Undergoing Paperwork Reduction Act Review The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention...-minute interview will be conducted with a 10% sample of non-responders (up to 792 individuals). In order...

  1. Use of simulators in severe accident management

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Evans, R.C.

    1994-01-01

    The U.S. nuclear utility industry is moving in a deliberate fashion through a coordinated industry severe accident working group to study and augment, where appropriate, the existing utility organizational and emergency planning structure to address accident and severe accident management. Full-scope simulators are used extensively to train licensed operators for their initial license examinations and continually thereafter in licensed operator requalification training and yearly examinations. The goal of the training (both initial and requalification) is to ensure that operators possess adequate knowledge, skills and abilities to prevent an event from progressing to core damage. The use of full-scope simulators in severe accident management training is in large part viewed by the industry as being premature. The working group study has not progressed to the point where the decision to employ full-scope simulators can be logically considered. It is not however premature to consider part-task or work station simulators as invaluable research tools to support the industry's study. These simulators could be employed, subject to limitations in the current state of knowledge regarding severe accident progression and phenomenological responses, in the validation and verification (V and V) of severe accident models or codes as they are developed. The U.S. nuclear utility industry has made substantial strides in the past 12 years in the accident prevention, mitigation and management arena. These strides are a product of the industry's preference for a logical and systematic approach to change. (orig.)

  2. [Severe hypertension: definition and patients profiles].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mourad, Jean-Jacques

    2013-05-01

    Severe arterial hypertension gathers relatively different clinical situations explained by the heterogeneity of the definitions of this clinical setting. From a medical point of view, severe hypertension is a short course situation defined by very high values of blood pressure corresponding to grade 3 hypertension. In France, until 2011, the social security also included in the definition of severe HTA chronic situations characterized by moderate blood pressure values requiring at least triple anthihypertensive therapies associated with a clinical or infraclinical target organ damages. These clinical profiles, much more frequent than grade 3 hypertension, allowed the full reimbursement of care costs for these patients. In France, it is estimated that 10% of hypertensive patients present a severe form with an annual incidence of 50,000 patients. The patients with severe hypertension have an increased cardiovascular morbidity justifying a closer clinical monitoring. From an economic point of view, these severe forms of hypertension have a higher cost of care, explained primarily by a more frequent need of specialized referrals, radiological exams and hospitalizations. This excess cost justified the existence of a full coverage of induced costs by the social security, since the incidence of severe hypertension is more frequent in the low social categories, and in patients with economic fragility.

  3. Regulation Plans on Severe Accidents developed by KINS Severe Accident Regulation Preparation TFT

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kim, Kyun Tae; Chung, Ku Young; Na, Han Bee

    2016-01-01

    Some nuclear power plants in Fukushima Daiichi site had lost their emergency reactor cooling function for long-time so the fuels inside the reactors were molten, and the integrity of containment was damaged. Therefore, large amount of radioactive material was released to environment. Because the social and economic effects of severe accidents are enormous, Korean Government already issued 'Severe Accident Policy' in 2001 which requires nuclear power plant operators to set up 'Quantitative Safety Goal', to do 'Probabilistic Safety Analysis', to install 'Severe Accident Countermeasures' and to make 'Severe Accident Management Plan'. After the Fukushima disaster, a Special Safety Inspection was performed for all operating nuclear power plants of Korea. The inspection team from industry, academia, and research institutes assessed Korean NPPs capabilities to cope with or respond to severe accidents and emergency situation caused by natural disasters such as a large earthquake or tsunami. As a result of the special inspection, about 50 action items were identified to increase the capability to cope with natural disaster and severe accidents. Nuclear Safety Act has been amended to require NPP operators to submit Accident Management Plant as part of operating license application. The KINS Severe Accident Regulation Preparation TFT had first investigated oversea severe accident regulation trend before and after the Fukushima accident. Then, the TFT has developed regulation draft for severe accidents such as Severe accident Management Plans, the required design features for new NPPs to prevent severe accident against multiple failures and beyond-design external events, countermeasures to mitigate severe accident and to keep the integrity of containment, and assessment methodology on safety assessment plan and probabilistic safety assessment

  4. Proposal strategy and policy on nuclear safety for no-more severe accidents

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    2013-01-01

    Following the outspoken advice saying 'scientists and engineers concerning with nuclear power promotion and safety should be responsible for clarifying how preventable or what measures should be needed to prevent severe accidents occurring at Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plants (NPPs)', committee on prevention of severe accidents at NPPs was established by relevant nuclear scientists and engineers involved so as to discuss basic issues to be solved from scientific and technical viewpoints. Based on the review of 'defense in depth' concept and accident analysis at Fukushima nuclear accident, four major proposals and six supplements to be established were identified such as: (1) finding mechanism of beyond imagination events for natural disaster, terrorism, and internal events, (2) reform of comprehensive safety standards and guidelines with performance basis easy to reflect latest knowledge and technology as 'back-fitting', (3) severe accidents measures, their validation, and drilling on accident management to advance procedures and develop human resources, and (4) risk communications and public disclosure of information. This article described backgrounds of committee's proposals on nuclear safety for no-more severe accidents. (T. Tanaka)

  5. Severe accident prevention and mitigation: A utility perspective - EDF approach

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Vidard, M.

    1998-01-01

    Current plans have excellent safety records and are cost competitive. For future plants, excellence in safety will remain a prerequisite, as well as increased cost competitiveness. When contemplating solutions to Severe Accident challenges, cost effectiveness is essential in the decision making process. This cost effectiveness must be understood not only in terms of capital cost, but also of Operation and Maintenance costs as well as absence of additional risks to plant operators. Examples are given to illustrate the recommended approach

  6. Research-Based Strategies and Best Practices for Dropout Prevention

    Science.gov (United States)

    Smink, Jay

    2009-01-01

    The National Dropout Prevention Center (NDPC) at Clemson University has been at the forefront of identifying model dropout prevention programs and promoting the use of best practices to increase the graduation rates in schools since 1986. The structure for these varied interventions and solutions takes the form of effective strategies, model…

  7. Crystallization behavior of nuclear waste forms

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Rusin, J.M.; Lokken, R.O.; May, R.P.; Wald, J.W.

    1981-09-01

    Several waste form options have been or are being developed for the immobilization of high-level wastes. The final selection of a waste form must take into consideration both waste form product as well as process factors. Crystallization behavior has an important role in nuclear waste form technology. For glass or vitreous waste forms, crystallization is generally controlled to a minimum by appropriate glass formulation and heat treatment schedules. With glass ceramic waste forms, crystallization is essential to convert glass products to highly crystalline waste forms with a minimum residual glass content. In the case of ceramic waste forms, additives and controlled sintering schedules are used to contain the radionuclides in specific tailored crystalline phases

  8. Preventing knee injuries in adolescent female football players – design of a cluster randomized controlled trial [NCT00894595

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Waldén Markus

    2009-06-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Knee injuries in football are common regardless of age, gender or playing level, but adolescent females seem to have the highest risk. The consequences after severe knee injury, for example anterior cruciate ligament (ACL injury, are well-known, but less is known about knee injury prevention. We have designed a cluster randomized controlled trial (RCT to evaluate the effect of a warm-up program aimed at preventing acute knee injury in adolescent female football. Methods In this cluster randomized trial 516 teams (309 clusters in eight regional football districts in Sweden with female players aged 13–17 years were randomized into an intervention group (260 teams or a control group (256 teams. The teams in the intervention group were instructed to do a structured warm-up program at two training sessions per week throughout the 2009 competitive season (April to October and those in the control group were informed to train and play as usual. Sixty-eight sports physical therapists are assigned to the clubs to assist both groups in data collection and to examine the players' acute knee injuries during the study period. Three different forms are used in the trial: (1 baseline player data form collected at the start of the trial, (2 computer-based registration form collected every month, on which one of the coaches/team leaders documents individual player exposure, and (3 injury report form on which the study therapists report acute knee injuries resulting in time loss from training or match play. The primary outcome is the incidence of ACL injury and the secondary outcomes are the incidence of any acute knee injury (except contusion and incidence of severe knee injury (defined as injury resulting in absence of more than 4 weeks. Outcome measures are assessed after the end of the 2009 season. Discussion Prevention of knee injury is beneficial for players, clubs, insurance companies, and society. If the warm-up program is proven to

  9. Daily oral intake of theanine prevents the decline of 5-bromo-2′-deoxyuridine incorporation in hippocampal dentate gyrus with concomitant alleviation of behavioral abnormalities in adult mice with severe traumatic stress

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Takeshi Takarada

    2015-03-01

    Full Text Available Posttraumatic stress disorder is a long-lasting psychiatric disease with the consequence of hippocampal atrophy in humans exposed to severe fatal stress. We demonstrated a positive correlation between the transient decline of 5-bromo-2′-deoxyuridine (BrdU incorporation in the hippocampal dentate gyrus (DG and long-lasting behavioral abnormalities in mice with traumatic stress. Here, we investigated pharmacological properties of theanine on the declined BrdU incorporation and abnormal behaviors in mice with traumatic stress. Prior daily oral administration of theanine at 50–500 mg/kg for 5 days significantly prevented the decline of BrdU incorporation, while theanine significantly prevented the decline in the DG even when administered for 5 days after stress. Consecutive daily administration of theanine significantly inhibited the prolonged immobility in mice with stress in forced swimming test seen 14 days later. Although traumatic stress significantly increased spontaneous locomotor activity over 30 min even when determined 14 days later, the increased total locomotion was significantly ameliorated following the administration of theanine at 50 mg/kg for 14 days after stress. These results suggest that theanine alleviates behavioral abnormalities together with prevention of the transient decline of BrdU incorporation in the hippocampal DG in adult mice with severe traumatic stress.

  10. Application of Sodium Selenite in the Prevention and Treatment of Cancers

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Marek Kieliszek

    2017-10-01

    Full Text Available Selenium is an essential trace element that occurs in nature, in both inorganic and organic forms. This element participates in numerous biochemical processes, including antioxidant potential, but the mechanism of its anti-cancer action is still not well known. It should be noted that the anti-cancer properties of selenium depends on its chemical form, therapeutic doses, and the tumor type. Higher nutritional doses of selenium can stimulate human immune system. There are several hypotheses concerning the anticancer activity of selenium, including oxidation of sulfhydryl groups in proteins causing their conformational alterations. Conformational changes in proteins have the ability to weaken the activity of enzymes involved in the metabolism of cancer cells. In case of human fibrinogen sodium selenite, but not selenate, it inhibits protein disulfide exchange reactions, thus preventing formation of a hydrophobic polymer termed parafibrin, circulatory accumulation, of which is associated with numerous degenerative diseases. Parafibrin can specifically form a protein coat around tumor cells that is completely resistant to degradation induced with lymphocyte protease. In this way, cancer cells become protected against destruction by the organism’s immune system. Other possible mechanisms of anticancer action of selenium are being still investigated.

  11. Prevention of violence against women and girls: what does the evidence say?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ellsberg, Mary; Arango, Diana J; Morton, Matthew; Gennari, Floriza; Kiplesund, Sveinung; Contreras, Manuel; Watts, Charlotte

    2015-04-18

    In this Series paper, we review evidence for interventions to reduce the prevalence and incidence of violence against women and girls. Our reviewed studies cover a broad range of intervention models, and many forms of violence--ie, intimate partner violence, non-partner sexual assault, female genital mutilation, and child marriage. Evidence is highly skewed towards that from studies from high-income countries, with these evaluations mainly focusing on responses to violence. This evidence suggests that women-centred, advocacy, and home-visitation programmes can reduce a woman's risk of further victimisation, with less conclusive evidence for the preventive effect of programmes for perpetrators. In low-income and middle-income countries, there is a greater research focus on violence prevention, with promising evidence on the effect of group training for women and men, community mobilisation interventions, and combined livelihood and training interventions for women. Despite shortcomings in the evidence base, several studies show large effects in programmatic timeframes. Across different forms of violence, effective programmes are commonly participatory, engage multiple stakeholders, support critical discussion about gender relationships and the acceptability of violence, and support greater communication and shared decision making among family members, as well as non-violent behaviour. Further investment in intervention design and assessment is needed to address evidence gaps. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  12. Therapeutic and prevention strategies against human enterovirus 71 infection

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kok, Chee Choy

    2015-01-01

    Human enterovirus 71 (HEV71) is the cause of hand, foot and mouth disease and associated neurological complications in children under five years of age. There has been an increase in HEV71 epidemic activity throughout the Asia-Pacific region in the past decade, and it is predicted to replace poliovirus as the extant neurotropic enterovirus of highest global public health significance. To date there is no effective antiviral treatment and no vaccine is available to prevent HEV71 infection. The increase in prevalence, virulence and geographic spread of HEV71 infection over the past decade provides increasing incentive for the development of new therapeutic and prevention strategies against this emerging viral infection. The current review focuses on the potential, advantages and disadvantages of these strategies. Since the explosion of outbreaks leading to large epidemics in China, research in natural therapeutic products has identified several groups of compounds with anti-HEV71 activities. Concurrently, the search for effective synthetic antivirals has produced promising results. Other therapeutic strategies including immunotherapy and the use of oligonucleotides have also been explored. A sound prevention strategy is crucial in order to control the spread of HEV71. To this end the ultimate goal is the rapid development, regulatory approval and widespread implementation of a safe and effective vaccine. The various forms of HEV71 vaccine designs are highlighted in this review. Given the rapid progress of research in this area, eradication of the virus is likely to be achieved. PMID:25964873

  13. ACR-1000 design provisions for severe accidents

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Popov, N.K.; Santamaura, P.; Shapiro, H.; Snell, V.G.

    2006-01-01

    Atomic Energy of Canada Limited (AECL) developed the Advanced CANDU Reactor-700 (ACR-700) as an evolutionary advancement of the current CANDU 6 reactor. As a further advancement of the ACR design, AECL is currently developing the ACR-1000 for the Canadian and international market. The ACR-1000 is aimed at producing electrical power for a capital cost and a unit-energy cost significantly less than that of the current generation of operating nuclear plants, while achieving enhanced safety features, shorter construction schedule, high plant capacity factor, improved operations and maintenance, and increased operating life. The reference ACR-1000 plant design is based on an integrated two-unit plant, using enriched fuel and light-water coolant, with each unit having a nominal gross output of about 1200 MWe. The ACR-1000 design meets Canadian regulatory requirements and follows established international practice with respect to severe accident prevention and mitigation. This paper presents the ACR-1000 features that are designed to mitigate limited core damage and severe core damage states, including core retention within vessel, core damage termination, and containment integrity maintenance. While maintaining existing structures of CANDU reactors that provide inherent prevention and retention of core debris, the ACR-1000 design includes additional features for prevention and mitigation of severe accidents. Core retention within vessel in CANDU-type reactors includes both retention within fuel channels, and retention within the calandria vessel. The ACR-1000 calandria vessel design permits for passive rejection of decay heat from the moderator to the shield water. Also, the calandria vessel is designed for debris retention by minimizing penetrations at the bottom periphery and by accommodating thermal and weight loads of the core debris. The ACR-1000 containment is required to withstand external events such as earthquakes, tornados, floods and aircraft crashes

  14. Preschool Children’s Memory for Word Forms Remains Stable Over Several Days, but Gradually Decreases after Six Months

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Katherine Ruth Gordon

    2016-09-01

    Full Text Available Research on word learning has focused on children’s ability to identify a target object when given the word form after a minimal number of exposures to novel word-object pairings. However, relatively little research has focused on children’s ability to retrieve the word form when given the target object. The exceptions involve asking children to recall and produce forms, and children typically perform near floor on these measures. In the current study, 3- to 5-year-old children were administered a novel test of word form that allowed for recognition memory and manual responses. Specifically, when asked to label a previously trained object, children were given three forms to choose from: the target, a minimally different form, and a maximally different form. Children demonstrated memory for word forms at three post-training delays: 10 minutes (short-term, 2 to 3 days (long-term, and 6 months to 1 year (very long-term. However, children performed worse at the very long-term delay than the other time points, and the length of the very long-term delay was negatively related to performance. When in error, children were no more likely to select the minimally different form than the maximally different form at all time points. Overall, these results suggest that children remember word forms that are linked to objects over extended post-training intervals, but that their memory for the forms gradually decreases over time without further exposures. Furthermore, memory traces for word forms do not become less phonologically specific over time; rather children either identify the correct form, or they perform at chance.

  15. Effect of asthma severity on symptom perception in childhood asthma

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    A.L.B. Cabral

    2002-03-01

    Full Text Available Individual ability to perceive airway obstruction varies substantially. The factors influencing the perception of asthma are probably numerous and not well established in children. The present study was designed to examine the influence of asthma severity, use of preventive medication, age and gender on the association between respiratory symptoms (RS and peak expiratory flow (PEF rates in asthmatic children. We followed 92 asthmatic children, aged 6 to 16 years, for five months. Symptom scores were recorded daily and PEF was measured twice a day. The correlations among variables at the within-person level over time were analyzed for each child and for the pooled data by multivariate analysis. After pooling the data, there was a significant (P<0.05 correlation between each symptom and PEF; 60% of the children were accurate perceivers (defined by a statistically significant correlation between symptoms and PEF across time for diurnal symptoms and 37% for nocturnal symptoms. The accuracy of perception was independent of asthma severity, age, gender or the use of preventive medication. Symptom perception is inaccurate in a substantial number of asthmatic children, independently of clinical severity, age, gender or use of preventive medication. It is not clear why some asthmatic patients are capable of accurately perceiving the severity of airway obstruction while others are not.

  16. Equilibrium Temperature Profiles within Fission Product Waste Forms

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kaminski, Michael D. [Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States)

    2016-10-01

    We studied waste form strategies for advanced fuel cycle schemes. Several options were considered for three waste streams with the following fission products: cesium and strontium, transition metals, and lanthanides. These three waste streams may be combined or disposed separately. The decay of several isotopes will generate heat that must be accommodated by the waste form, and this heat will affect the waste loadings. To help make an informed decision on the best option, we present computational data on the equilibrium temperature of glass waste forms containing a combination of these three streams.

  17. Regulation Plans on Severe Accidents developed by KINS Severe Accident Regulation Preparation TFT

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kim, Kyun Tae; Chung, Ku Young; Na, Han Bee [KINS, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

    2016-05-15

    Some nuclear power plants in Fukushima Daiichi site had lost their emergency reactor cooling function for long-time so the fuels inside the reactors were molten, and the integrity of containment was damaged. Therefore, large amount of radioactive material was released to environment. Because the social and economic effects of severe accidents are enormous, Korean Government already issued 'Severe Accident Policy' in 2001 which requires nuclear power plant operators to set up 'Quantitative Safety Goal', to do 'Probabilistic Safety Analysis', to install 'Severe Accident Countermeasures' and to make 'Severe Accident Management Plan'. After the Fukushima disaster, a Special Safety Inspection was performed for all operating nuclear power plants of Korea. The inspection team from industry, academia, and research institutes assessed Korean NPPs capabilities to cope with or respond to severe accidents and emergency situation caused by natural disasters such as a large earthquake or tsunami. As a result of the special inspection, about 50 action items were identified to increase the capability to cope with natural disaster and severe accidents. Nuclear Safety Act has been amended to require NPP operators to submit Accident Management Plant as part of operating license application. The KINS Severe Accident Regulation Preparation TFT had first investigated oversea severe accident regulation trend before and after the Fukushima accident. Then, the TFT has developed regulation draft for severe accidents such as Severe accident Management Plans, the required design features for new NPPs to prevent severe accident against multiple failures and beyond-design external events, countermeasures to mitigate severe accident and to keep the integrity of containment, and assessment methodology on safety assessment plan and probabilistic safety assessment.

  18. Campania preventability assessment committee: a focus on the preventability of the contrast media adverse drug reactions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sessa, Maurizio; Rossi, Claudia; Rafaniello, Concetta; Mascolo, Annamaria; Cimmaruta, Daniela; Scavone, Cristina; Fiorentino, Sonia; Grassi, Enrico; Reginelli, Alfonso; Rotondo, Antonio; Sportiello, Liberata

    2016-12-01

    The current study aims to assess the preventability of the contrast media adverse drug reactions reported through the Campania spontaneous reporting system, identifying the possible limitations emerged in this type of evaluation. All the individual case safety reports validated by the Campania Pharmacovigilance Regional Centre from July 2012 to September 2015 were screened to select those that reported contrast media as suspected drug. Campania Preventability Assessment Committee, in collaboration with clinicians specialized in Radiology, assessed the preventability according to the P-Method, through a case-by-case approach. From July 2012 to September 2015, 13798 cases were inserted by pharmacovigilance managers in the Italian Pharmacovigilance Network database (in the geographical contest of the Campania Region), of which 67 reported contrast media as suspected drug. Five preventable cases were found. The most reported causes for preventability were the inappropriate drug use for the case clinical conditions and the absence of the preventive measure administrated prior to the contrast media administration. Several limitations were found in the evaluation of the critical criteria for the preventability assessment. Educational initiatives will be organized directly to the healthcare professionals involved in the contrast media administration, to promote an appropriate use of the contrast media.

  19. Effect of multiple forming tools on geometrical and mechanical properties in incremental sheet forming

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wernicke, S.; Dang, T.; Gies, S.; Tekkaya, A. E.

    2018-05-01

    The tendency to a higher variety of products requires economical manufacturing processes suitable for the production of prototypes and small batches. In the case of complex hollow-shaped parts, single point incremental forming (SPIF) represents a highly flexible process. The flexibility of this process comes along with a very long process time. To decrease the process time, a new incremental forming approach with multiple forming tools is investigated. The influence of two incremental forming tools on the resulting mechanical and geometrical component properties compared to SPIF is presented. Sheets made of EN AW-1050A were formed to frustums of a pyramid using different tool-path strategies. Furthermore, several variations of the tool-path strategy are analyzed. A time saving between 40% and 60% was observed depending on the tool-path and the radii of the forming tools while the mechanical properties remained unchanged. This knowledge can increase the cost efficiency of incremental forming processes.

  20. A Comparative Study Between Strain And Stress Based Forming Limit Analysis By Applying Several Phenomenological Yield Criteria

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Butuc, Marilena C.; Vincze, Gabriela T.; Gracio, Jose J.; Barata da Rocha, A.

    2005-01-01

    The present work aims at analyzing a comparative study between the strain-based forming limit criterion (FLD) and the stress-based forming limit criterion (FLSD), under linear and complex strain paths. The selected material is an AA5182-0 aluminium alloy. Some relevant remarks about stress-based forming limit criterion concept are presented

  1. Community asset mapping for violence prevention

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    opperwjj

    Responses to this violence take many forms, including various violence prevention and ... 2 SCRATCHMAPS: Spiritual Capacity and Religious Assets for Transforming Community Health by Mobilising Males for Peace and. Safety .... The asset mapping methodology and toolset were designed by the collaborative research.

  2. Analytic functions of several complex variables

    CERN Document Server

    Gunning, Robert C

    2009-01-01

    The theory of analytic functions of several complex variables enjoyed a period of remarkable development in the middle part of the twentieth century. After initial successes by Poincaré and others in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the theory encountered obstacles that prevented it from growing quickly into an analogue of the theory for functions of one complex variable. Beginning in the 1930s, initially through the work of Oka, then H. Cartan, and continuing with the work of Grauert, Remmert, and others, new tools were introduced into the theory of several complex variables that resol

  3. Topical betamethasone for prevention of radiation dermatitis

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Omidvari Shapour

    2007-01-01

    Full Text Available Background: Although acute radiation dermatitis (ARD is a common side-effect of radiotherapy (RT, currently there is no general consensus about its prevention or treatment of choice. Aims: The purpose of this study was to investigate whether prophylactic use of topical betamethasone 0.1% can prevent ARD caused by chest wall irradiation. Methods: Fifty-one patients who underwent modified radical mastectomy for breast cancer and were going to receive RT, were randomly assigned to receive topical betamethasone 0.1%, petrolatum or none during RT. The frequency and severity of ARD (measured using Radiation Therapy Oncology Group acute radiation morbidity scoring criteria were recorded at the end of each week during RT and two weeks after its completion. Clinical outcomes were analyzed by relevant statistical methods. Results: All patients developed some degree of ARD, the frequency and severity of which increased with time and reached the maximum at the end of the seventh week for all groups. Patients receiving betamethasone had less severe ARD than the other two groups throughout the course of the study, but this difference was significant only at the end of the third week (p =0.027. No significant difference was observed between the petrolatum and control arms. Conclusion: Prophylactic and ongoing use of topical betamethasone 0.1% during chest wall RT for breast cancer delays occurrence of ARD but does not prevent it. Petrolatum has no effect on the prevention of ARD in these patients.

  4. Topical betamethasone for prevention of radiation dermatitis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Omidvari, Shapour; Saboori, Hojjatollah; Mohammadianpanah, Mohammad; Mosalaei, Ahmad; Ahmadloo, Niloofar; Mosleh-Shirazi, Mohammad Amin; Jowkar, Farideh; Namaz, Soha

    2007-01-01

    Although acute radiation dermatitis (ARD) is a common side-effect of radiotherapy (RT), currently there is no general consensus about its prevention or treatment of choice. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether prophylactic use of topical betamethasone 0.1% can prevent ARD caused by chest wall irradiation. Fifty-one patients who underwent modified radical mastectomy for breast cancer and were going to receive RT, were randomly assigned to receive topical betamethasone 0.1%, petrolatum or none during RT. The frequency and severity of ARD (measured using Radiation Therapy Oncology Group acute radiation morbidity scoring criteria) were recorded at the end of each week during RT and two weeks after its completion. Clinical outcomes were analyzed by relevant statistical methods. All patients developed some degree of ARD, the frequency and severity of which increased with time and reached the maximum at the end of the seventh week for all groups. Patients receiving betamethasone had less severe ARD than the other two groups throughout the course of the study, but this difference was significant only at the end of the third week (p = 0.027). No significant difference was observed between the petrolatum and control arms. Prophylactic and ongoing use of topical betamethasone 0.1% during chest wall RT for breast cancer delays occurrence of ARD but does not prevent it. Petrolatum has no effect on the prevention of ARD in these patients.

  5. Decoupled Simulation Method For Incremental Sheet Metal Forming

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sebastiani, G.; Brosius, A.; Tekkaya, A. E.; Homberg, W.; Kleiner, M.

    2007-01-01

    Within the scope of this article a decoupling algorithm to reduce computing time in Finite Element Analyses of incremental forming processes will be investigated. Based on the given position of the small forming zone, the presented algorithm aims at separating a Finite Element Model in an elastic and an elasto-plastic deformation zone. Including the elastic response of the structure by means of model simplifications, the costly iteration in the elasto-plastic zone can be restricted to the small forming zone and to few supporting elements in order to reduce computation time. Since the forming zone moves along the specimen, an update of both, forming zone with elastic boundary and supporting structure, is needed after several increments.The presented paper discusses the algorithmic implementation of the approach and introduces several strategies to implement the denoted elastic boundary condition at the boundary of the plastic forming zone

  6. Epothilone D prevents binge methamphetamine-mediated loss of striatal dopaminergic markers.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Killinger, Bryan A; Moszczynska, Anna

    2016-02-01

    Exposure to binge methamphetamine (METH) can result in a permanent or transient loss of dopaminergic (DAergic) markers such as dopamine (DA), dopamine transporter, and tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) in the striatum. We hypothesized that the METH-induced loss of striatal DAergic markers was, in part, due to a destabilization of microtubules (MTs) in the nigrostriatal DA pathway that ultimately impedes anterograde axonal transport of these markers. To test this hypothesis, adult male Sprague-Dawley rats were treated with binge METH or saline in the presence or absence of epothilone D (EpoD), a MT-stabilizing compound, and assessed 3 days after the treatments for the levels of several DAergic markers as well as for the levels of tubulins and their post-translational modifications (PMTs). Binge METH induced a loss of stable long-lived MTs within the striatum but not within the substantia nigra pars compacta (SNpc). Treatment with a low dose of EpoD increased the levels of markers of stable MTs and prevented METH-mediated deficits in several DAergic markers in the striatum. In contrast, administration of a high dose of EpoD appeared to destabilize MTs and potentiated the METH-induced deficits in several DAergic markers. The low-dose EpoD also prevented the METH-induced increase in striatal DA turnover and increased behavioral stereotypy during METH treatment. Together, these results demonstrate that MT dynamics plays a role in the development of METH-induced losses of several DAergic markers in the striatum and may mediate METH-induced degeneration of terminals in the nigrostriatal DA pathway. Our study also demonstrates that MT-stabilizing drugs such as EpoD have a potential to serve as useful therapeutic agents to restore function of DAergic nerve terminals following METH exposure when administered at low doses. Administration of binge methamphetamine (METH) negatively impacts neurotransmission in the nigrostriatal dopamine (DA) system. The effects of METH include

  7. Acute electroconvulsive therapy followed by maintenance electroconvulsive therapy decreases hospital re-admission rates of older patients with severe mental illness.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shelef, Assaf; Mazeh, Doron; Berger, Uri; Baruch, Yehuda; Barak, Yoram

    2015-06-01

    Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is a highly effective treatment for patients with severe mental illness (SMI). Maintenance ECT (M-ECT) is required for many elderly patients experiencing severe recurrent forms of mood disorders, whereas M-ECT for schizophrenia patients is a poorly studied treatment. We report on the outcomes in aged patients with SMI: schizophrenia and severe affective disorders treated by M-ECT of varying duration to prevent relapse after a successful course of acute ECT. The study measured the effectiveness of M-ECT in preventing hospital readmissions and reducing admission days. A retrospective chart review of 42 consecutive patients comparing the number and length of psychiatric admissions before and after the start of M-ECT was used. We analyzed diagnoses, previous ECT treatments, number of ECT treatments, and number and length of psychiatric admissions before and after M-ECT. Mean age in our sample was 71.5 (6.9) years. Twenty-two (52%) patients experienced severe affective disorders and 20 (48%) experienced schizophrenia. Patients were administered 92.8 (85.9) M-ECT treatments. Average duration of the M-ECT course was 34 (29.8) months. There were on average 1.88 admissions before M-ECT and only 0.38 admissions in the M-ECT period (P < 0.001). Duration of mean hospitalization stay decreased from 215.9 to 12.4 days during the M-ECT (P < 0.01). Our findings suggest that acute ECT followed by M-ECT is highly effective in selected elderly patients with SMIs.

  8. Methodological aspects to elaborate the management and procedure guides of severe accidents

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gonzalez Gonzalez, F.; Jimenez Fernandez, A.

    1995-01-01

    The management guides in severe accidents are very important to know the procedures in these accidents. The present articles summarizes the methodological aspects to elaborate the management guides, in order to prevent the severe accidents

  9. Pastoral care and religious support as a part of treatment of religious patient with the severe form of osteoarthritis

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Đurović Aleksandar

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Introduction. Religious needs of patients are consistently being neglected in the clinical medicine. Pastoral care is a religious support which a religious patient receives from priests, chaplains, imams, rabbis or other religious authorities. Religious support, in terms of clinical medicine, is a spiritual support which religious patients obtain from religious and trained medical workers. The aim of this report was to present the effects of pastoral care and religious support in hospital treatment of a 73-year-old patient with the severe form of osteoarthritis. Case report. The 73- year-old, highly religious patient with severe form of osteoarthritis was admitted at the Clinic for Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Military Medical Academy in Belgrade, due to heterogeneous problems in the activities of daily living. The patient walked with difficulty using a stick, suffered pain, and was anxious and depressive. In order to objectively demonstrate effects of both pastoral care and religious support in this patient we performed multiple treatment with reversal design, in which the basic treatment consisting of hospital care, pharmacotherapy and physical therapy (the treatment A was alternatively changed with the treatment that included combination of the basic treatment and religious support provided by religious physiatrist and physiotherapist (the treatment B or combination of the basic treatment and pastoral care provided by military priest (the treatment C. The treatment A was applied three times and lasted two weeks, every time. Treatments B and C were applied once and lasted three weeks, each. The order of the treatments was: A→B→A→C→A. During the whole treatment period the patient’s condition was assessed by several measuring scale: the level of depression by The Hamilton Rang Scale for Depression and The Zung Self Rating Depression Scale; the level of anxiety by The Zung Self Rating Anxiety Scale; the functional capability of

  10. Pollution Prevention Information Network (PPIN) Grant Summaries for 2011 and 2013

    Science.gov (United States)

    The Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics is responsible for overseeing several grant programs for tribes and states which promote pollution prevention through source reduction and resource conservation.

  11. Severe hypertriglyceridemia-related acute pancreatitis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stefanutti, Claudia; Labbadia, Giancarlo; Morozzi, Claudia

    2013-04-01

    Acute pancreatitis is a potentially life-threatening complication of severe hypertriglyceridemia. In some cases, inborn errors of metabolism such as lipoprotein lipase deficiency, apoprotein C-II deficiency, and familial hypertriglyceridemia have been reported as causes of severe hypertriglyceridemia. More often, severe hypertriglyceridemia describes various clinical conditions characterized by high plasma levels of triglycerides (>1000 mg/dL), chylomicron remnants, or intermediate density lipoprotein like particles, and/or chylomicrons. International guidelines on the management of acute pancreatitis are currently available. Standard therapeutic measures are based on the use of lipid-lowering agents (fenofibrate, gemfibrozil, niacin, Ω-3 fatty acids), low molecular weight heparin, and insulin in diabetic patients. However, when standard medical therapies have failed, non-pharmacological approaches based upon the removal of triglycerides with therapeutic plasma exchange can also provide benefit to patients with severe hypertriglyceridemia and acute pancreatitis. Plasma exchange could be very helpful in reducing triglycerides levels during the acute phase of hyperlipidemic pancreatitis, and in the prevention of recurrence. The current evidence on management of acute pancreatitis and severe hypertriglyceridemia, focusing on symptoms, treatment and potential complications is reviewed herein. © 2013 The Authors. Therapeutic Apheresis and Dialysis © 2013 International Society for Apheresis.

  12. Postpartum haemorrhage: prevention and treatment.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sentilhes, Loïc; Merlot, Benjamin; Madar, Hugo; Sztark, François; Brun, Stéphanie; Deneux-Tharaux, Catherine

    2016-11-01

    Postpartum hemorrhage (PPH) is one of the leading causes of maternal death and severe maternal morbidity worldwide and strategies to prevent and treat PPH vary among international authorities. Areas covered: This review seeks to provide a global overview of PPH (incidence, causes, risk factors), prevention (active management of the third stage of labor and prohemostatic agents), treatment (first, second and third-line measures to control PPH), by also underlining recommendations elaborated by international authorities and using algorithms. Expert commentary: When available, oxytocin is considered the drug of first choice for both prevention and treatment of PPH, while peripartum hysterectomy remains the ultimate life-saving procedure if pharmacological and resuscitation measures fail. Nevertheless, the level of evidence for preventing and treating PPH is globally low. The emergency nature of PPH makes randomized controlled trials (RCT) logistically difficult. Population-based observational studies should be encouraged as they can usefully strengthen the evidence base, particularly for components of PPH treatment that are difficult or impossible to assess through RCT.

  13. Application of preventive maintenance planning in a parquet ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    STORAGESEVER

    2009-04-20

    Apr 20, 2009 ... Key words: Maintenance, preventive maintenance, enterprise, planning. INTRODUCTION .... There is machine introduction form on each machine. Moreover, ..... loy using total productive maintenance (TPM) approach. M.Sc.

  14. Effects of a Cancer Prevention Advertisement on Beliefs and Knowledge about Cancer Prevention.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kye, Su Yeon; Yoo, Jisu; Lee, Min Hee; Jun, Jae Kwan

    2015-01-01

    Outcome-expectation beliefs and knowledge may ultimately influence behavior for cancer prevention. The aims of this study were to measure changes in knowledge and beliefs about cancer prevention before and after viewing a television advertisement and identify the factors affecting receptivity to its messages. A one-group pretest-posttest design was used in this study of 1,000 individuals aged 20 to 65 years who were recruited online in November 2014. The outcome variables included cancer prevention beliefs based on the Health Belief Model (five items) and knowledge about risk factors for cancer (seven items). Perceived susceptibility, perceived benefits, and self-efficacy increased significantly and their perceived severity and perceived barriers decreased significantly, after participants viewed the television advertisement. Correct responses to questions about risk factors also increased significantly, except for smoking. The main factors affecting changes in the outcome variables were age, interest in cancer prevention, social network, satisfaction with the ad, and pretest scores. Television advertisements with positive frameworks can be an efficient channel of improving beliefs and knowledge about cancer prevention in a short period. The continuous development of intervention materials that consider the demographics, needs, and satisfaction of the target group will be necessary for future studies.

  15. Benefit-harm analysis and charts for individualized and preference-sensitive prevention: example of low dose aspirin for primary prevention of cardiovascular disease and cancer.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Puhan, Milo A; Yu, Tsung; Stegeman, Inge; Varadhan, Ravi; Singh, Sonal; Boyd, Cynthia M

    2015-10-01

    Clinical practice guidelines provide separate recommendations for different diseases that may be prevented or treated by the same intervention. Also, they commonly provide recommendations for entire populations but not for individuals. To address these two limitations, our aim was to conduct benefit-harm analyses for a wide range of individuals using the example of low dose aspirin for primary prevention of cardiovascular disease and cancer and to develop Benefit-Harm Charts that show the overall benefit-harm balance for individuals. We used quantitative benefit-harm modeling that included 16 outcomes to estimate the probability that low dose aspirin provides more benefits than harms for a wide range of men and women between 45 and 84 years of age and without a previous myocardial infarction, severe ischemic stroke, or cancer. We repeated the quantitative benefit-harm modeling for different combinations of age, sex, and outcome risks for severe ischemic and hemorrhagic stroke, myocardial infarction, cancers, and severe gastrointestinal bleeds. The analyses considered weights for the outcomes, statistical uncertainty of the effects of aspirin, and death as a competing risk. We constructed Benefit-Harm Charts that show the benefit-harm balance for different combinations of outcome risks. The Benefit-Harm Charts ( http://www.benefit-harm-balance.com ) we have created show that the benefit-harm balance differs largely across a primary prevention population. Low dose aspirin is likely to provide more benefits than harms in men, elderly people, and in those at low risk for severe gastrointestinal bleeds. Individual preferences have a major impact on the benefit-harm balance. If, for example, it is a high priority for individuals to prevent stroke and severe cancers while severe gastrointestinal bleeds are deemed to be of little importance, the benefit-harm balance is likely to favor low dose aspirin for most individuals. Instead, if severe gastrointestinal bleeds are

  16. A sheet metal forming simulation of automotive outer panels considering the behavior of air in die cavity

    Science.gov (United States)

    Choi, Kwang Yong; Kim, Yun Chang; Choi, Hee Kwan; Kang, Chul Ho; Kim, Heon Young

    2013-12-01

    During a sheet metal forming process of automotive outer panels, the air trapped between a blank sheet and a die tool can become highly compressed, ultimately influencing the blank deformation and the press force. To prevent this problem, vent holes are drilled into die tools and needs several tens to hundreds according to the model size. The design and the drilling of vent holes are based on expert's experience and try-out result and thus the process can be one of reasons increasing development cycle. Therefore the study on the size, the number, and the position of vent holes is demanded for reducing development cycle, but there is no simulation technology for analyzing forming defects, making numerical sheet metal forming process simulations that incorporate the fluid dynamics of air. This study presents a sheet metal forming simulation of automotive outer panels (a roof and a body side outer) that simultaneously simulates the behavior of air in a die cavity. Through CAE results, the effect of air behavior and vent holes to blank deformation was analyzed. For this study, the commercial software PAM-STAMP{trade mark, serif} and PAM-SAFE{trade mark, serif} was used.

  17. Practice of implementation of innovative means of teaching in forming of preventive thinking in students of higher medical educational establisments

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Biletska E.M.

    2017-05-01

    Full Text Available The problem of construction of a holistic methodological system of training future doctors considered in the article, is impossible outside the context of integration processes taking place in modern education and needs a careful study of international experience. The research aim is to develop a system of innovative means of education for the formation of preventive thinking in students of higher medical educational establishment, concerning professionally oriented undergraduate preparation of doctors. Analysis of the results allowed to determine the characteristic features of innovative means, forms and teaching methods, specificity of their use in interactive educational environment, this against the background of meticulous work of the teaching staff of the department of general hygiene of Dnepropetrovsk Medical Academy provides the efficiency of educational process which integrates personal, creative, social and educational purposes. The suggested innovative methods are involved in the general system of modern education in higher school being effectively used for providing a high level of professional training in teaching of academic subject area "Hygiene and Ecology".

  18. Surgical treatment of severe osteoporosis including new concept of advanced severe osteoporosis

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jin Hwan Kim

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available Severe osteoporosis is classified as those with a bone mineral density (BMD T-score of −2.5 or lower, and demonstrate one or more of osteoporotic, low-trauma, fragility fractures. According to the general principle of surgical approach, patients with severe osteoporosis require not only more thorough pre- and postoperative treatment plans, but improvements in surgical fixtures and techniques such as the concept of a locking plate to prevent bone deformity and maximizing the blood flow to the fracture site by using a minimally invasive plate osteosynthesis. Arthroplasty is often performed in cases of displaced femoral neck fracture. Otherwise internal fixation for the goal of bone union is the generally accepted option for intertrochanteric, subtrochanteric, and femoral shaft fractures. Most of osteoporotic spine fracture is stable compression fracture, but vertebroplasty or kyphoplasty may be performed some selective patients. If neurological paralysis, severe spinal instability, or kyphotic deformity occurs, open decompression or fusion surgery may be considered. In order to overcome shortcomings of the World Health Organization definition of osteoporosis, we proposed a concept of ‘advanced severe osteoporosis,’ which is defined by the presence of proximal femur fragility fracture or two or more fragility fractures in addition to BMD T-score of −2.5 or less. In conclusion, we need more meticulous approach for surgical treatment of severe osteoporosis who had fragility fracture. In cases of advanced severe osteoporosis, we recommend more aggressive managements using parathyroid hormone and receptor activator of nuclear factor kappa-B ligand monoclonal antibody.

  19. Cure therapeutics and strategic prevention: raising the bar for mental health research.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Insel, T R; Scolnick, E M

    2006-01-01

    Mental disorders cause more disability than any other class of medical illness in Americans between ages 15 and 44 years. The suicide rate is higher than the annual mortality from homicide, AIDS, and most forms of cancer. In contrast to nearly all communicable and most non-communicable diseases, there is little evidence that the morbidity and mortality from mental disorders have changed in the past several decades. Mental health advocates, including psychiatric researchers, have pointed to stigma as one of the reasons for the lack of progress with mental illnesses relative to other medical illnesses. This review considers how the expectations and goals of the research community have contributed to this relative lack of progress. In contrast to researchers in cancer and heart disease who have sought cures and preventions, biological psychiatrists in both academia and industry have set their sights on incremental and marketable advances, such as drugs with fewer adverse effects. This essay argues for approaches that can lead to cures and strategies for prevention of schizophrenia and mood disorders.

  20. Preventing running injuries. Practical approach for family doctors.

    OpenAIRE

    Johnston, C. A. M.; Taunton, J. E.; Lloyd-Smith, D. R.; McKenzie, D. C.

    2003-01-01

    OBJECTIVE: To present a practical approach for preventing running injuries. QUALITY OF EVIDENCE: Much of the research on running injuries is in the form of expert opinion and comparison trials. Recent systematic reviews have summarized research in orthotics, stretching before running, and interventions to prevent soft tissue injuries. MAIN MESSAGE: The most common factors implicated in running injuries are errors in training methods, inappropriate training surfaces and running shoes, malalign...

  1. MASSIVE VULVAR EDEMA IN A WOMAN WITH SEVERE ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    2010-06-11

    Jun 11, 2010 ... The biophysical profile was normal. The diagnosis of severe preeclampsia was made. Conservative treatment was initiated. This included bed rest, antihypertensive treatment with methyldopa and atenolol, and magnesium sulphate was administered for. 24hours to prevent convulsions. Steroids were also.

  2. A novel once daily microparticulate dosage form comprising lansoprazole to prevent nocturnal acid breakthrough in the case of gastro-esophageal reflux disease: preparation, pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic evaluation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Alai, Milind; Lin, Wen Jen

    2013-01-01

    The objective of this study was to formulate and evaluate the lansoprazole (LPZ)-loaded microparticles to prevent nocturnal acid breakthrough in the case of gastro-esophageal reflux disease (GERD). The microparticulate delivery system was prepared by solvent evaporation method using Eudragit RS100 as a matrix polymer followed by enteric coated with Eudragit S100 and hydroxypropyl methylcellulose phthalate HP55 using spray drying method. The enteric coated microparticles were stable in gastric pH condition. In vivo pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic studies in male Wistar rats demonstrated that enteric coated microparticles sustained release of LPZ and promoted ulcer healing activity. In other words, the microparticulate dosage form provided effective drug concentration for a longer period as compared to conventional extended release dosage form, and showed sufficient anti-acid secretion activity to treat acid related disorders including the enrichment of nocturnal acid breakthrough event based on a once daily administration.

  3. Prevalence of periodontal disease, its association with systemic diseases and prevention.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nazir, Muhammad Ashraf

    2017-01-01

    Periodontal diseases are prevalent both in developed and developing countries and affect about 20-50% of global population. High prevalence of periodontal disease in adolescents, adults, and older individuals makes it a public health concern. Several risk factors such as smoking, poor oral hygiene, diabetes, medication, age, hereditary, and stress are related to periodontal diseases. Robust evidence shows the association of periodontal diseases with systemic diseases such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and adverse pregnancy outcomes. Periodontal disease is likely to cause 19% increase in the risk of cardiovascular disease, and this increase in relative risk reaches to 44% among individuals aged 65 years and over. Type 2 diabetic individuals with severe form of periodontal disease have 3.2 times greater mortality risk compared with individuals with no or mild periodontitis. Periodontal therapy has been shown to improve glycemic control in type 2 diabetic subjects. Periodontitis is related to maternal infection, preterm birth, low birth weight, and preeclampsia. Oral disease prevention strategies should be incorporated in chronic systemic disease preventive initiatives to curtail the burden of disease in populations. The reduction in the incidence and prevalence of periodontal disease can reduce its associated systemic diseases and can also minimize their financial impact on the health-care systems. It is hoped that medical, dental practitioners, and other health-care professionals will get familiar with perio-systemic link and risk factors, and need to refer to the specialized dental or periodontal care.

  4. Bullying Prevention for the Public

    Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Podcasts

    This is the first podcast of a series to discuss the severity of bullying and provide resources for prevention efforts. CDC shares the most recent statistics and trends, provides valuable tips to implement in communities, and teaches individuals how to take action against bullying.

  5. A universal long-term flu vaccine may not prevent severe epidemics

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Blower Sally

    2010-04-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Recently, the promise of a new universal long-term flu vaccine has become more tangible than ever before. Such a vaccine would protect against very many seasonal and pandemic flu strains for many years, making annual vaccination unnecessary. However, due to complacency behavior, it remains unclear whether the introduction of such vaccines would maintain high and stable levels of vaccination coverage year after year. Findings To predict the impact of universal long-term flu vaccines on influenza epidemics we developed a mathematical model that linked human cognition and memory with the transmission dynamics of influenza. Our modeling shows that universal vaccines that provide short-term protection are likely to result in small frequent epidemics, whereas universal vaccines that provide long-term protection are likely to result in severe infrequent epidemics. Conclusions Influenza vaccines that provide short-term protection maintain risk awareness regarding influenza in the population and result in stable vaccination coverage. Vaccines that provide long-term protection could lead to substantial drops in vaccination coverage and should therefore include an annual epidemic risk awareness programs in order to minimize the risk of severe epidemics.

  6. Application Guidelines | Cancer Prevention Fellowship Program

    Science.gov (United States)

    Personal Statement of Research Goals In narrative form, describe your research interests and goals and how these relate to cancer prevention and control. Please also provide insight into your short- and long-term career goals, and explain how the CPFP will help you achieve those goals.

  7. Consideration of severe accident issues for the general electric BWR standard plant a status report

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Holtzclaw, K.W.

    1983-01-01

    In early 1982 the U.S. NRC proposed a policy to address severe accident rulemaking on future plants by utilizing standard plant licensing documentation. This paper, GE's submission, discusses the features of the design that prevent severe accidents from leading to core damage or that mitigate the effects of severe accidents should core damage occur. The quantification of the accident prevention and mitigation features, including those incorporated in the design since the accident at TMI, is provided by means of a comprehensive probabilistic risk assessment, which provides an analysis of the probability and consequences of postulated severe accidents

  8. Extended Erythropoietin Treatment Prevents Chronic Executive Functional and Microstructural Deficits Following Early Severe Traumatic Brain Injury in Rats

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Shenandoah Robinson

    2018-06-01

    Full Text Available Survivors of infant traumatic brain injury (TBI are prone to chronic neurological deficits that impose lifelong individual and societal burdens. Translation of novel interventions to clinical trials is hampered in part by the lack of truly representative preclinical tests of cognition and corresponding biomarkers of functional outcomes. To address this gap, the ability of a high-dose, extended, post-injury regimen of erythropoietin (EPO, 3000U/kg/dose × 6d to prevent chronic cognitive and imaging deficits was tested in a postnatal day 12 (P12 controlled-cortical impact (CCI model in rats, using touchscreen operant chambers and regional analysis of diffusion tensor imaging (DTI. Results indicate that EPO prevents functional injury and MRI injury after infant TBI. Specifically, subacute DTI at P30 revealed widespread microstructural damage that is prevented by EPO. Assessment of visual discrimination on a touchscreen operant chamber platform demonstrated that all groups can perform visual discrimination. However, CCI rats treated with vehicle failed to pass reversal learning, and perseverated, in contrast to sham and CCI-EPO rats. Chronic DTI at P90 showed EPO treatment prevented contralateral white matter and ipsilateral lateral prefrontal cortex damage. This DTI improvement correlated with cognitive performance. Taken together, extended EPO treatment restores executive function and prevents microstructural brain abnormalities in adult rats with cognitive deficits in a translational preclinical model of infant TBI. Sophisticated testing with touchscreen operant chambers and regional DTI analyses may expedite translation and effective yield of interventions from preclinical studies to clinical trials. Collectively, these data support the use of EPO in clinical trials for human infants with TBI.

  9. Cancer-preventive activities of tocopherols and tocotrienols.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ju, Jihyeung; Picinich, Sonia C; Yang, Zhihong; Zhao, Yang; Suh, Nanjoo; Kong, Ah-Ng; Yang, Chung S

    2010-04-01

    The cancer-preventive activity of vitamin E has been studied. Whereas some epidemiological studies have suggested a protective effect of vitamin E against cancer formation, many large-scale intervention studies with alpha-tocopherol (usually large doses) have not demonstrated a cancer-preventive effect. Studies on alpha-tocopherol in animal models also have not demonstrated robust cancer prevention effects. One possible explanation for the lack of demonstrable cancer-preventive effects is that high doses of alpha-tocopherol decrease the blood and tissue levels of delta-tocopherols. It has been suggested that gamma-tocopherol, due to its strong anti-inflammatory and other activities, may be the more effective form of vitamin E in cancer prevention. Our recent results have demonstrated that a gamma-tocopherol-rich mixture of tocopherols inhibits colon, prostate, mammary and lung tumorigenesis in animal models, suggesting that this mixture may have a high potential for applications in the prevention of human cancer. In this review, we discuss biochemical properties of tocopherols, results of possible cancer-preventive effects in humans and animal models and possible mechanisms involved in the inhibition of carcinogenesis. Based on this information, we propose that a gamma-tocopherol-rich mixture of tocopherols is a very promising cancer-preventive agent and warrants extensive future research.

  10. Implementing Statewide Severe Maternal Morbidity Review: The Illinois Experience.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Koch, Abigail R; Roesch, Pamela T; Garland, Caitlin E; Geller, Stacie E

    2018-03-07

    Severe maternal morbidity (SMM) rates in the United States more than doubled between 1998 and 2010. Advanced maternal age and chronic comorbidities do not completely explain the increase in SMM or how to effectively address it. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists have called for facility-level multidisciplinary review of SMM for potential preventability and have issued implementation guidelines. Within Illinois, SMM was identified as any intensive or critical care unit admission and/or 4 or more units of packed red blood cells transfused at any time from conception through 42 days postpartum. All cases meeting this definition were counted during statewide surveillance. Cases were selected for review on the basis of their potential to yield insights into factors contributing to preventable SMM or best practices preventing further morbidity or death. If the SMM review committee deemed a case potentially preventable, it identified specific factors associated with missed opportunities and made actionable recommendations for quality improvement. Approximately 1100 cases of SMM were identified from July 1, 2016, to June 30, 2017, yielding a rate of 76 SMM cases per 10 000 pregnancies. Reviews were conducted on 142 SMM cases. Most SMM cases occurred during delivery hospitalization and more than half were delivered by cesarean section. Hemorrhage was the primary cause of SMM (>50% of the cases). Facility-level SMM review was feasible and acceptable in statewide implementation. States that are planning SMM reviews across obstetric facilities should permit ample time for translation of recommendations to practice. Although continued maternal mortality reviews are valuable, they are not sufficient to address the increasing rates of SMM and maternal death. In-depth multidisciplinary review offers the potential to identify factors associated with SMM and interventions to prevent women from moving along the

  11. Forms of Approximate Radiation Transport

    CERN Document Server

    Brunner, G

    2002-01-01

    Photon radiation transport is described by the Boltzmann equation. Because this equation is difficult to solve, many different approximate forms have been implemented in computer codes. Several of the most common approximations are reviewed, and test problems illustrate the characteristics of each of the approximations. This document is designed as a tutorial so that code users can make an educated choice about which form of approximate radiation transport to use for their particular simulation.

  12. Preventing the Onset of Child Sexual Abuse by Targeting Young Adolescents With Universal Prevention Programming

    Science.gov (United States)

    Letourneau, Elizabeth J.; Schaeffer, Cindy M.; Bradshaw, Catherine P.; Feder, Kenneth A.

    2017-01-01

    Child sexual abuse (CSA) is a serious public health problem that increases risk for physical and mental health problems across the life course. Young adolescents are responsible for a substantial portion of CSA offending, yet to our knowledge, no validated prevention programs that target CSA perpetration by youth exist. Most existing efforts to address CSA rely on reactive criminal justice policies or programs that teach children to protect themselves; neither approach is well validated. Given the high rates of desistance from sexual offending following a youth’s first CSA-related adjudication, it seems plausible that many youth could be prevented from engaging in their first offense. The goal of this article is to examine how school-based universal prevention programs might be used to prevent CSA perpetrated by adolescents. We review the literature on risk and protective factors for CSA perpetration and identify several promising factors to target in an intervention. We also summarize the literature on programs that have been effective at preventing adolescent dating violence and other serious problem behaviors. Finally, we describe a new CSA prevention program under development and early evaluation and make recommendations for program design characteristics, including unambiguous messaging, parental involvement, multisession dosage, skills practice, and bystander considerations. PMID:28413921

  13. Creep age forming of Al-Cu-Li alloy: Application to thick sheet forming of double curvature aircraft panel

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Younes Wael

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available Creep-age-forming of a thick Al-Cu-Li sheet is studied. An industrial stamping press is used to form a double curvature panel at a reduced scale. This forming, which includes several relaxation steps, is modelled using ABAQUS. A material model describing an elasto-viscoplastic behaviour with anisotropy effect has been identified and implemented in ABAQUS using Fortran subroutine. The numerical model is validated by comparing experiments and numerical results in terms of deformed shapes and an improved forming cycle is suggested.

  14. Forming Behaviour in Laser Shock Drawing

    OpenAIRE

    Schulze Niehoff, H.; Vollertsen, F.; Wielage, H.

    2008-01-01

    Through the continuing trend of miniaturization new cost efficient and fast methods for processing small parts are required. In this paper a new non-mechanical process for the forming process of micro deep drawing is presented. This new deep drawing process utilizes a laser initiated plasma shock wave at the target, which forms the sheet. Several pulses can be applied at one point and therefore high forming degrees can be reached without increasing the energy density. In this paper the pressu...

  15. The effectiveness of mindfulness-based relapse prevention on the prevention of relapse, craving and self-control in opiate-dependent individuals

    OpenAIRE

    alireza maredpour; Mahmmod Najafy; Farangiss amiri

    2015-01-01

    Abstract Objective: the aim of this study is to investigate the effectiveness of mindfulness-based relapse prevention on the prevention of relapse, craving and self-control in opiate-dependent individuals in Yasuj. Methodology: This quasi-experimental study applied pretest - posttest and a control group. The sample included 30 male patients with drug addiction in Yasuj who were chosen from addiction clinics based on criterion sampling. To collect the required data the short form of Self-Co...

  16. Risk factors associated with severe scrub typhus in Shandong, northern China

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Luyan Zhang

    2014-12-01

    Conclusions: This study indicates that improved diagnosis and timely treatment are important factors for the prevention of severe scrub typhus. When scrub typhus patients present with a rash, lymphadenopathy, or blood platelet count <100 × 109/l, clinicians should be alert to the appearance of severe complications.

  17. Oral Cryotherapy for Preventing Oral Mucositis in Patients Receiving Cancer Treatment.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Riley, Philip; McCabe, Martin G; Glenny, Anne-Marie

    2016-10-01

    In patients receiving treatment for cancer, does oral cryotherapy prevent oral mucositis? Oral cryotherapy is effective for the prevention of oral mucositis in adults receiving fluorouracil-based chemotherapy for solid cancers, and for the prevention of severe oral mucositis in adults receiving high-dose melphalan-based chemotherapy before hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT).

  18. Tank vent processing system having a corrosion preventive device

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ouchi, Shoichi; Sato, Hirofumi

    1987-01-01

    Purpose: To prevent corrosion of a tank vent processing device by injecting an oxygen gas. Constitution: Oxygen gas and phosphorous at high temperature are poured into a tank vent processing device and amorphous oxide layers optimum to the prevention of external corrosion are formed to the inner surface of the device. Since the corrosion preventive device using the oxygen gas injection can be constituted as a relatively simple device, it is more economical than constituting a relatively large tank vent processing device with corrosion resistant stainless steels. (Kamimura, M.)

  19. Alternative approaches to ventilator-associated pneumonia prevention.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Berra, L; Sampson, J; Fumagalli, J; Panigada, M; Kolobow, T

    2011-03-01

    Ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP), which develops in patients receiving mechanical ventilation, is the most common nosocomial infection in patients with acute respiratory failure. The major mechanism of lower respiratory tract colonization is aspiration of bacteria-colonized secretions from the oropharynx into the lower airways. The hydrostatic pressure of the secretions that collect in the subglottic space, which is the area above the endotracheal tube (ETT) cuff, or aerosolization of bacteria from the secretions collected within the respiratory tubing may facilitate the leakage into the lower airways. Ideally, the elimination of the mechanisms responsible for aspiration would decrease the incidence of VAP. Several preventive measures have been tested in clinical trials with little success.Here we present the results of our efforts to develop novel approaches for the prevention of VAP. Specifically, we found that keeping ventilated patients in a lateral position, which eliminates gravitational forces, is feasible and possibly advantageous. Additionally, several novel medical devices have been recently developed to prevent bacterial biofilm formation from the ETT and breathing tubing. These devices include coated ETTs, mucus shavers and mucus slurpers. Prevention of ETT bacterial colonization showed decreased bacterial colonization of the respiratory circuit and of the lower respiratory tract in laboratory studies and clinical trials. Future large studies should be designed to test the hypothesis that VAP can be prevented with these novel strategies. While there is a current focus on the use of respiratory devices to prevent biofilm formation and microaspiration, it is important to remember that lower respiratory tract colonization is multifactorial. Prevention of VAP cannot be achieved solely by eliminating bacterial biofilm on respiratory devices, and more comprehensive care of the intubated patient needs to be implemented.

  20. Perspectives toward oral mucositis prevention from parents and health care professionals in pediatric cancer.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ethier, Marie-Chantal; Regier, Dean A; Tomlinson, Deborah; Judd, Peter; Doyle, John; Gassas, Adam; Naqvi, Ahmed; Sung, Lillian

    2012-08-01

    The objectives of this study were: (1) to describe parents and health care professionals (HCPs) perceived importance of oral mucositis prevention in children with cancer; (2) To describe utilities and willingness-to-pay (WTP) to prevent mucositis. Respondents included parents of children receiving intensive chemotherapy for leukemia/lymphoma or undergoing stem cell transplantation and HCPs caring for children with cancer. Importance of mild and severe oral mucositis was estimated using a visual analogue scale (VAS). Mucositis-associated utilities were elicited using the time trade-off technique (TTO). WTP to avoid mucositis was obtained using contingent valuation. These techniques quantify how much time or money the participant is willing to relinquish in order to prevent mucositis. Eighty-two parents and 60 HCPs were included. Parents and HCPs believed mild mucositis to be of similar importance (median VAS 2.5 versus 3.6; P = 0.357) while parents considered severe mucositis less important than HCPs (median VAS 8.3 versus 9.0; P parent versus HCP responses were seen with TTO (mild or severe mucositis) and most parents were not willing to trade any survival time to prevent severe mucositis. Parents were willing to pay significantly more than HCPs to prevent mild mucositis (average median WTP $1,371 CAN vs. $684 CAN, P = 0.031). No differences were seen in WTP to prevent severe mucositis. Parents and HCP believe severe mucositis to be important, although it is more important to HCPs. Parents would not be willing to reduce life expectancy to eliminate mucositis.

  1. An Evidence-Based Framework for Strengthening Exercises to Prevent Hamstring Injury.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bourne, Matthew N; Timmins, Ryan G; Opar, David A; Pizzari, Tania; Ruddy, Joshua D; Sims, Casey; Williams, Morgan D; Shield, Anthony J

    2018-02-01

    Strength training is a valuable component of hamstring strain injury prevention programmes; however, in recent years a significant body of work has emerged to suggest that the acute responses and chronic adaptations to training with different exercises are heterogeneous. Unfortunately, these research findings do not appear to have uniformly influenced clinical guidelines for exercise selection in hamstring injury prevention or rehabilitation programmes. The purpose of this review was to provide the practitioner with an evidence-base from which to prescribe strengthening exercises to mitigate the risk of hamstring injury. Several studies have established that eccentric knee flexor conditioning reduces the risk of hamstring strain injury when compliance is adequate. The benefits of this type of training are likely to be at least partly mediated by increases in biceps femoris long head fascicle length and improvements in eccentric knee flexor strength. Therefore, selecting exercises with a proven benefit on these variables should form the basis of effective injury prevention protocols. In addition, a growing body of work suggests that the patterns of hamstring muscle activation diverge significantly between different exercises. Typically, relatively higher levels of biceps femoris long head and semimembranosus activity have been observed during hip extension-oriented movements, whereas preferential semitendinosus and biceps femoris short head activation have been reported during knee flexion-oriented movements. These findings may have implications for targeting specific muscles in injury prevention programmes. An evidence-based approach to strength training for the prevention of hamstring strain injury should consider the impact of exercise selection on muscle activation, and the effect of training interventions on hamstring muscle architecture, morphology and function. Most importantly, practitioners should consider the effect of a strength training programme on

  2. Consideration of severe accident issues for the General Electric BWR standard plant: Chapter 10

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Holtzclaw, K.W.

    1983-01-01

    In early 1982, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) proposed a policy to address severe accident rulemaking on future plants by utilizing standard plant licensing documentation. GE provided appendices to the licensing documentation of its standard plant design, GESSAR II, which address severe accidents for the GE BWR/6 Mark III 238 nuclear island design. The GE submittals discuss the features of the design that prevent severe accidents from leading to core damage or that mitigate the effects of severe accidents should core damage occur. The quantification of the accident prevention and mitigation features, including those incorporated in the design since the accident at Three Mile Island (TMI), is provided by means of a comprehensive probabilistic risk assessment, which provides an analysis of the probability and consequences of postulated severe accidents

  3. The prevention of injuries in contact flag football.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kaplan, Yonatan; Myklebust, Grethe; Nyska, Meir; Palmanovich, Ezequiel; Victor, Jan; Witvrouw, Erik

    2014-01-01

    American flag football is a non-tackle, contact sport with many moderate to severe contact-type injuries reported. A previous prospective injury surveillance study by the authors revealed a high incidence of injuries to the fingers, face, knee, shoulder and ankle. The objectives of the study were to conduct a pilot-prospective injury prevention study in an attempt to significantly reduce the incidence and the severity of injuries as compared to a historical cohort, as well as to provide recommendations for a future prospective injury prevention study. A prospective injury prevention study was conducted involving 724 amateur male (mean age: 20.0 ± 3.1 years) and 114 female (mean age: 21.2 ± 7.2 years) players. Four prevention measures were implemented: the no-pocket rule, self-fitting mouth guards, ankle braces (for those players with recurrent ankle sprains) and an injury treatment information brochure. An injury surveillance questionnaire was administered to record all time-loss injuries sustained in game sessions. There was a statistically significant reduction in the number of injured players, the number of finger/hand injuries, the incidence rate and the incidence proportion between the two cohorts (p football. Prevention strategies for a longer, prospective, randomised-controlled injury prevention study should include the strict enforcement of the no-pocket rule, appropriate head gear, the use of comfortable-fitting ankle braces and mouth guards, and changing the blocking rules of the game.

  4. Blindness and severe visual impairment in pupils at schools for the blind in Burundi.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ruhagaze, Patrick; Njuguna, Kahaki Kimani Margaret; Kandeke, Lévi; Courtright, Paul

    2013-01-01

    To determine the causes of childhood blindness and severe visual impairment in pupils attending schools for the blind in Burundi in order to assist planning for services in the country. All pupils attending three schools for the blind in Burundi were examined. A modified WHO/PBL eye examination record form for children with blindness and low vision was used to record the findings. Data was analyzed for those who became blind or severely visually impaired before the age of 16 years. Overall, 117 pupils who became visually impaired before 16 years of age were examined. Of these, 109 (93.2%) were blind or severely visually impaired. The major anatomical cause of blindness or severe visual impairment was cornea pathology/phthisis (23.9%), followed by lens pathology (18.3%), uveal lesions (14.7%) and optic nerve lesions (11.9%). In the majority of pupils with blindness or severe visual impairment, the underlying etiology of visual loss was unknown (74.3%). More than half of the pupils with lens related blindness had not had surgery; among those who had surgery, outcomes were generally poor. The causes identified indicate the importance of continuing preventive public health strategies, as well as the development of specialist pediatric ophthalmic services in the management of childhood blindness in Burundi. The geographic distribution of pupils at the schools for the blind indicates a need for community-based programs to identify and refer children in need of services.

  5. Combination HIV prevention for female sex workers: what is the evidence?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bekker, Linda-Gail; Johnson, Leigh; Cowan, Frances; Overs, Cheryl; Besada, Donela; Hillier, Sharon; Cates, Willard

    2015-01-03

    Sex work occurs in many forms and sex workers of all genders have been affected by HIV epidemics worldwide. The determinants of HIV risk associated with sex work occur at several levels, including individual biological and behavioural, dyadic and network, and community and social environmental levels. Evidence indicates that effective HIV prevention packages for sex workers should include combinations of biomedical, behavioural, and structural interventions tailored to local contexts, and be led and implemented by sex worker communities. A model simulation based on the South African heterosexual epidemic suggests that condom promotion and distribution programmes in South Africa have already reduced HIV incidence in sex workers and their clients by more than 70%. Under optimistic model assumptions, oral pre-exposure prophylaxis together with test and treat programmes could further reduce HIV incidence in South African sex workers and their clients by up to 40% over a 10-year period. Combining these biomedical approaches with a prevention package, including behavioural and structural components as part of a community-driven approach, will help to reduce HIV infection in sex workers in different settings worldwide. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  6. Obstacles to condom use: the combination of other forms of birth control and short-term monogamy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Critelli, J W; Suire, D M

    1998-03-01

    Two hundred thirty-seven college students involved in heterosexual relationships were surveyed to determine the effects of relationship type and use of forms of contraception other than condoms on condom use. Findings indicated that in the context of a short-term, monogamous relationship, the use of another form of birth control was associated with decreased condom use. In addition, 20% of the participants reported that they had wanted to use a condom for disease prevention on at least one occasion but had decided not to do so because they were using another form of contraception. Implications for preventive health are discussed.

  7. The Program for the Prevention of Childhood Asthma: a specialized care program for children with wheezing or asthma in Brazil.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Urrutia-Pereira, Marilyn; Avila, Jennifer; Solé, Dirceu

    2016-01-01

    To present the Programa Infantil de Prevenção de Asma (PIPA, Program for the Prevention of Childhood Asthma) and the characteristics of the patients followed in this program. Implemented in the city of Uruguaiana, Brazil, PIPA has as its target population children and adolescents ( 3 years of age, respectively. Physician-diagnosed asthma was reported in 26.5% and 82.2%, respectively. In the sample as a whole, the prevalence of passive smoking was high (> 36%), occurring during pregnancy in > 15%; > 40% of the patients had been born by cesarean section; and 30% had a mother who had had < 8 years of schooling. A prevention program for children with asthma is an effective strategy for controlling the disease. Knowledge of local epidemiological and environmental characteristics is essential to reducing the prevalence of the severe forms of asthma, to improving the use of health resources, and to preventing pulmonary changes that could lead to COPD in adulthood.

  8. The Program for the Prevention of Childhood Asthma: a specialized care program for children with wheezing or asthma in Brazil

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Marilyn Urrutia-Pereira

    2016-02-01

    Full Text Available Objective : To present the Programa Infantil de Prevenção de Asma (PIPA, Program for the Prevention of Childhood Asthma and the characteristics of the patients followed in this program. Methods : Implemented in the city of Uruguaiana, Brazil, PIPA has as its target population children and adolescents ( 3 years of age, respectively. Physician-diagnosed asthma was reported in 26.5% and 82.2%, respectively. In the sample as a whole, the prevalence of passive smoking was high (> 36%, occurring during pregnancy in > 15%; > 40% of the patients had been born by cesarean section; and 30% had a mother who had had < 8 years of schooling. Conclusions : A prevention program for children with asthma is an effective strategy for controlling the disease. Knowledge of local epidemiological and environmental characteristics is essential to reducing the prevalence of the severe forms of asthma, to improving the use of health resources, and to preventing pulmonary changes that could lead to COPD in adulthood.

  9. Methylene blue 1% solution on the prevention of intraperitoneal adhesion formation in a dog model

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Marco Augusto Machado Silva

    Full Text Available Intraperitoneal adhesions usually are formed after abdominal surgeries and may cause technical difficulties during surgical intervention, chronic abdominal pain and severe obstructions of the gastrointestinal tract. The current study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of methylene blue (MB 1% solution on the prevention of intraperitoneal postsurgical adhesion formation in a canine surgical trauma model. Twenty bitches were submitted to falciform ligament resection, omentectomy, ovariohysterectomy and scarification of a colonic segment. Prior to abdominal closure, 10 bitches received 1mg kg-1 MB intraperitoneally (MB group and 10 bitches received no treatment (control group, CT. On the 15th postoperative day the bitches were submitted to laparoscopy to assess adhesions. The mean adhesion scores were 13.9 (±5.6 for MB group and 20.5 (±6.4 for the CT group (P=0,043. In conclusion, the 1% MB solution was efficient on the prevention of intraperitoneal postoperative adhesion formation in bitches, especially those involving the colonic serosa.

  10. Multipurpose prevention technologies for sexual and reproductive health: mapping global needs for introduction of new preventive products.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schelar, Erin; Polis, Chelsea B; Essam, Timothy; Looker, Katharine J; Bruni, Laia; Chrisman, Cara J; Manning, Judy

    2016-01-01

    Worldwide, women face sexual and reproductive health (SRH) risks including unintended pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections (STIs) including HIV. Multipurpose prevention technologies (MPTs) combine protection against two or more SRH risks into one product. Male and female condoms are the only currently available MPT products, but several other forms of MPTs are in development. We examined the global distribution of selected SRH issues to determine where various risks have the greatest geographical overlap. We examined four indicators relevant to MPTs in development: HIV prevalence, herpes simplex virus type 2 prevalence (HSV-2), human papillomavirus prevalence (HPV) and the proportion of women with unmet need for modern contraception. Using ArcGIS Desktop, we mapped these indicators individually and in combination on choropleth and graduated symbol maps. We conducted a principal components analysis to reduce data and enable visual mapping of all four indicators on one graphic to identify overlap. Our findings document the greatest overlapping risks in Sub-Saharan Africa, and we specify countries in greatest need by specific MPT indication. These results can inform strategic planning for MPT introduction, market segmentation and demand generation; data limitations also highlight the need for improved (non-HIV) STI surveillance globally. MPTs are products in development with the potential to empower women to prevent two or more SRH risks. Geographic analysis of overlapping SRH risks demonstrates particularly high need in Sub-Saharan Africa. This study can help to inform strategic planning for MPT introduction, market segmentation and demand generation. Copyright © 2016 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  11. Pressure ulcers : predicting factors, prevention and costs

    OpenAIRE

    Demarré, Liesbet

    2014-01-01

    The research outline pursued with this thesis can be divided in three parts. In the first part, studies to compare the effectiveness of several interventions for the prevention of pressure ulcers were conducted. Pressure ulcer prevention focusses on the reduction of the amount and duration of pressure and shear. An alternating device intermittently removes pressure and shear from vulnerable areas. It provides pressure relief via cyclic inflating and deflating air cells. Systematic reviews an...

  12. Global cancer patterns: causes and prevention.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vineis, Paolo; Wild, Christopher P

    2014-02-08

    Cancer is a global and growing, but not uniform, problem. An increasing proportion of the burden is falling on low-income and middle-income countries because of not only demographic change but also a transition in risk factors, whereby the consequences of the globalisation of economies and behaviours are adding to an existing burden of cancers of infectious origin. We argue that primary prevention is a particularly effective way to fight cancer, with between a third and a half of cancers being preventable on the basis of present knowledge of risk factors. Primary prevention has several advantages: the effectiveness could have benefits for people other than those directly targeted, avoidance of exposure to carcinogenic agents is likely to prevent other non-communicable diseases, and the cause could be removed or reduced in the long term--eg, through regulatory measures against occupational or environmental exposures (ie, the preventive effort does not need to be renewed with every generation, which is especially important when resources are in short supply). Primary prevention must therefore be prioritised as an integral part of global cancer control. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  13. The Development of Severe and Chronic Violence Among Youth: The Role of Psychopathic Traits and Reward Processing.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Reidy, Dennis E; Krusemark, Elizabeth; Kosson, David S; Kearns, Megan C; Smith-Darden, Joanne; Kiehl, Kent A

    2017-12-01

    Psychopathic traits are a manifestation of a personality pathology that comprises a core affective-interpersonal dysfunction (callous-unemotional traits) and an impulsive-antisocial behavioral component. Of particular importance, psychopathic traits are associated with the perpetration of some of the most severe acts of violence, and they appear to indicate a subset of youth at risk for earlier onset, greater frequency, and persistence of violent offending. Although these youth represent a minority of the population, they commit a significant proportion of the violence in the general community. In our review, we highlight evidence of a unique neurobiological predisposition that underlies the core affective deficits and describe contemporary accounts for the developmental processes leading to the antisocial behavior associated with psychopathy. Current evidence suggests that, for this subset of youth, the structure and function of neural circuitry supporting emotion processing, reward learning, decision making, and the development of emotion related to empathy may be crucial to understanding why they are at risk for violence. In particular, a reward dominant pattern of neurobehavioral conditioning may explain how these youth progress to some of the most severe and persistent forms of violence. However, this pattern of conditioning may also be essential to the primary prevention of such deleterious behavior. We suspect that effective strategies to prevent such violence may ultimately be informed by understanding these affective and motivational mechanisms.

  14. Uncertainties and severe-accident management

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kastenberg, W.E.

    1991-01-01

    Severe-accident management can be defined as the use of existing and or alternative resources, systems, and actions to prevent or mitigate a core-melt accident. Together with risk management (e.g., changes in plant operation and/or addition of equipment) and emergency planning (off-site actions), accident management provides an extension of the defense-indepth safety philosophy for severe accidents. A significant number of probabilistic safety assessments have been completed, which yield the principal plant vulnerabilities, and can be categorized as (a) dominant sequences with respect to core-melt frequency, (b) dominant sequences with respect to various risk measures, (c) dominant threats that challenge safety functions, and (d) dominant threats with respect to failure of safety systems. Severe-accident management strategies can be generically classified as (a) use of alternative resources, (b) use of alternative equipment, and (c) use of alternative actions. For each sequence/threat and each combination of strategy, there may be several options available to the operator. Each strategy/option involves phenomenological and operational considerations regarding uncertainty. These include (a) uncertainty in key phenomena, (b) uncertainty in operator behavior, (c) uncertainty in system availability and behavior, and (d) uncertainty in information availability (i.e., instrumentation). This paper focuses on phenomenological uncertainties associated with severe-accident management strategies

  15. Nutrition economic evaluation of a probiotic in the prevention of antibiotic-associated diarrhea.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lenoir-Wijnkoop, Irene; Nuijten, Mark J C; Craig, Joyce; Butler, Christopher C

    2014-01-01

    Antibiotic-associated diarrhea (AAD) is common and frequently more severe in hospitalized elderly adults. It can lead to increased use of healthcare resources. We estimated the cost-effectiveness of a fermented milk (FM) with probiotic in preventing AAD and in particular Clostridium difficile-associated diarrhea (CDAD). Clinical effectiveness data and cost information were incorporated in a model to estimate the cost impact of administering a FM containing the probiotic Lactobacillus paracasei ssp paracasei CNCM I-1518 in a hospital setting. Preventing AAD by the consumption of the probiotic was compared to no preventive strategy. The probiotic intervention to prevent AAD generated estimated mean cost savings of £339 per hospitalized patient over the age of 65 years and treated with antibiotics, compared to no preventive probiotic. Estimated cost savings were sensitive to variation in the incidence of AAD, and to the proportion of patients who develop non-severe/severe AAD. However, probiotics remained cost saving in all sensitivity analyses. Use of the fermented dairy drink containing the probiotic L. paracasei CNCM I-1518 to prevent AAD in older hospitalized patients treated with antibiotics could lead to substantial cost savings.

  16. Nutrition economic evaluation of a probiotic in the prevention of antibiotic-associated diarrhea

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Irene eLenoir-Wijnkoop

    2014-02-01

    Full Text Available Introduction Antibiotic associated diarrhea (AAD is common and frequently more severe in hospitalised elderly adults. It can lead to increased use of healthcare resources. We estimated the cost-effectiveness of a fermented milk with probiotic in preventing AAD and in particular Clostridium difficile associated diarrhea. Methods Clinical effectiveness data and cost information were incorporated in a model to estimate the cost impact of administering a fermented milk containing the probiotic Lactobacillus paracasei ssp paracasei CNCM I-1518 in a hospital setting. Preventing AAD by the consumption of the probiotic was compared to no preventive strategy. Results The probiotic intervention to prevent AAD generated estimated mean cost savings of £339 per hospitalised patient over the age of 65 years and treated with antibiotics, compared to no preventive probiotic. Estimated cost savings were sensitive to variation in the incidence of AAD, and to the proportion of patients who develop non-severe/severe AAD. However, probiotics remained cost saving in all sensitivity analyses. Conclusion Use of the fermented dairy drink containing the probiotic L.paracasei CNCM I-1518 to prevent AAD in older hospitalised patients treated with antibiotics could lead to substantial cost savings.

  17. Crisis prevention and management during SARS outbreak, Singapore.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Quah, Stella R; Hin-Peng, Lee

    2004-02-01

    We discuss crisis prevention and management during the first 3 months of the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) outbreak in Singapore. Four public health issues were considered: prevention measures, self-health evaluation, SARS knowledge, and appraisal of crisis management. We conducted telephone interviews with a representative sample of 1,201 adults, > or = 21 years of age. We found that sex, age, and attitude (anxiety and perception of open communication with authorities) were associated with practicing preventive measures. Analysis of Singapore's outbreak improves our understanding of the social dimensions of infectious disease outbreaks.

  18. Waste forms for plutonium disposition

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Johnson, S.G.; O'Holleran, T.P.; Frank, S.M.; Meyer, M.K.; Hanson, M.; Staples, B.A.; Knecht, D.A.; Kong, P.C.

    1997-01-01

    The field of plutonium disposition is varied and of much importance, since the Department of Energy has decided on the hybrid option for disposing of the weapons materials. This consists of either placing the Pu into mixed oxide fuel for reactors or placing the material into a stable waste form such as glass. The waste form used for Pu disposition should exhibit certain qualities: (1) provide for a suitable deterrent to guard against proliferation; (2) be of minimal volume, i.e., maximize the loading; and (3) be reasonably durable under repository-like conditions. This paper will discuss several Pu waste forms that display promising characteristics

  19. Management of severe accidents

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jankowski, M.W.

    1987-01-01

    The definition and the multidimensionality aspects of accident management have been reviewed. The suggested elements in the development of a programme for severe accident management have been identified and discussed. The strategies concentrate on the two tiered approaches. Operative management utilizes the plant's equipment and operators capabilities. The recovery managment concevtrates on preserving the containment, or delaying its failure, inhibiting the release, and on strategies once there has been a release. The inspiration for this paper was an excellent overview report on perspectives on managing severe accidents in commercial nuclear power plants and extending plant operating procedures into the severe accident regime; and by the most recent publication of the International Nuclear Safety Advisory Group (INSAG) considering the question of risk reduction and source term reduction through accident prevention, management and mitigation. The latter document concludes that 'active development of accident management measures by plant personnel can lead to very large reductions in source terms and risk', and goes further in considering and formulating the key issue: 'The most fruitful path to follow in reducing risk even further is through the planning of accident management.' (author)

  20. Management of severe accidents

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jankowski, M.W.

    1988-01-01

    The definition and the multidimensionality aspects of accident management have been reviewed. The suggested elements in the development of a programme for severe accident management have been identified and discussed. The strategies concentrate on the two tiered approaches. Operative management utilizes the plant's equipment and operators capabilities. The recovery management concentrates on preserving the containment, or delaying its failure, inhibiting the release, and on strategies once there has been a release. The inspiration for this paper was an excellent overview report on perspectives on managing severe accidents in commercial nuclear power plants and extending plant operating procedures into the severe accident regime; and by the most recent publication of the International Nuclear Safety Advisory Group (INSAG) considering the question of risk reduction and source term reduction through accident prevention, management and mitigation. The latter document concludes that active development of accident management measures by plant personnel can lead to very large reductions in source terms and risk, and goes further in considering and formulating the key issue: The most fruitful path to follow in reducing risk even further is through the planning of accident management

  1. Geometric Form Drawing: A Perceptual-Motor Approach to Preventive Remediation (The Steiner Approach)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ogletree, Earl J.

    1975-01-01

    Provided is a rationale for geometric form drawing developed by Rudolf Steiner as a tool to develop motor coordination, perceptual skills, and cognition for mentally retarded and perceptually handicapped children. (Author/CL)

  2. Do evaporating black holes form photospheres?

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    MacGibbon, Jane H.; Carr, B. J.; Page, Don N.

    2008-01-01

    Several authors, most notably Heckler, have claimed that the observable Hawking emission from a microscopic black hole is significantly modified by the formation of a photosphere around the black hole due to QED or QCD interactions between the emitted particles. In this paper we analyze these claims and identify a number of physical and geometrical effects which invalidate these scenarios. We point out two key problems. First, the interacting particles must be causally connected to interact, and this condition is satisfied by only a small fraction of the emitted particles close to the black hole. Second, a scattered particle requires a distance ∼E/m e 2 for completing each bremsstrahlung interaction, with the consequence that it is improbable for there to be more than one complete bremsstrahlung interaction per particle near the black hole. These two effects have not been included in previous analyses. We conclude that the emitted particles do not interact sufficiently to form a QED photosphere. Similar arguments apply in the QCD case and prevent a QCD photosphere (chromosphere) from developing when the black hole temperature is much greater than Λ QCD , the threshold for QCD particle emission. Additional QCD phenomenological arguments rule out the development of a chromosphere around black hole temperatures of order Λ QCD . In all cases, the observational signatures of a cosmic or Galactic halo background of primordial black holes or an individual black hole remain essentially those of the standard Hawking model, with little change to the detection probability. We also consider the possibility, as proposed by Belyanin et al. and D. Cline et al., that plasma interactions between the emitted particles form a photosphere, and we conclude that this scenario too is not supported.

  3. Rotavirus infection in children: mono-and combines forms, especially clinics and course

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    N. B. Denisyuk

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available Analyzed 74 case histories of children under one year with rotavirus infection. The most commonly detected rotavirus gastroenteritis in the form of mono-and combined forms. Mono-infection in 78.3% of cases occurred in the moderate form with a leading syndrome in the form of gastroenteritis, severe dehydration proceeded with symptoms of varying severity. Mixed variants in 98.7% of cases are in the unfavorable premorbid background, in 42.8% of children were registered in the severe forms, and children younger than 6 months were erased within. The diagnosis of intestinal infection was confirmed by PCR, bacteriological and immunological methods.

  4. The Effectiveness of Fraud Prevention and Detection Methods at Universities in Indonesia

    OpenAIRE

    Zamzami, Faiz; Nusa, Nabella Duta; Timur, Rudi Prasetya

    2016-01-01

    Some cases of corruption have taken place in several universities in Indonesia. To prevent and handle the cases, internal auditors play pivotal roles in detecting and preventing fraud. Therefore, effective methods to detect and prevent fraud are needed. The methods are expected to set the appropriate measures to detect and prevent fraud effectively. This research proposed a question how the internal auditors perceive the effectiveness of fraud detection and prevention methods. The research ai...

  5. Disparities in the use of preventive health care among children with disabilities in Taiwan.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tsai, Wen-Chen; Kung, Pei-Tseng; Wang, Jong-Yi

    2012-01-01

    Children with disabilities face more barriers accessing preventive health services. Prior research has documented disparities in the receipt of these services. However, most are limited to specific types of disability or care. This study investigates disparities in the use of preventive health care among children with disabilities in Taiwan. Three nationwide databases from the Ministry of the Interior, Bureau of Health Promotion, and National Health Research Institutes were linked to gather related information between 2006 and 2008. A total of 8572 children with disabilities aged 1-7 years were included in this study. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was conducted to adjust for covariates. Nationally, only 37.58% of children with disabilities received preventive health care in 2008. Children with severe and very severe disabilities were less likely to use preventive care than those with mild severity. Children with disabilities from the lowest income family were less likely to have preventive care than other income groups. Urbanization was strongly associated with the receipt of preventive health care. However, surprisingly, urban children with disabilities were less likely to receive preventive care than all others. Under universal health insurance coverage, the overall usage of preventive health care is still low among children with disabilities. The study also identified several disparities in their usage. Potential factors affecting the lack of use deserve additional research. Policymakers should target low socioeconomic brackets and foster education about the importance of preventive care. Mobile health services should be continually provided in those areas in need. Capitation reimbursement and other incentives should be considered in improving the utilization among children with disabilities. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  6. Online Series presents Cancer Prevention Through Immunomodulation. Does Diet Play a Role? | Division of Cancer Prevention

    Science.gov (United States)

    Scientists are increasingly harnessing the power of the immune system to prevent cancer. Nutrition provides an opportunity for a generalized immune activation and reduction of cancer risk in certain populations. Research on several foods and bioactive food components as immunologic modulators is showing promising results. |

  7. [Prevention of eating disorder: a review].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bauer, Stephanie; Kindermann, Sally Sophie; Moessner, Markus

    2017-09-01

    Eating disorders are severe mental illnesses that are challenging to treat and often follow a chronic course. They are associated with immense impairment on the psychological, physical, interpersonal, and social level as well as signifi cant direct and indirect cost. Therefore, prevention and early intervention are of utmost importance. Based on a qualitative literature review, we summarized the empirical evidence for the effi cacy of universal and selective prevention of eating disorders. Programs available in German and/or English were included in the review. In addition to research on effi cacy and effectiveness, the areas of implementation, dissemination, and reach were identifi ed as key issues for future studies. Furthermore, more research is needed on the relationship of cost, benefi t, and risks of eating disorder prevention.

  8. Severe falciparum malaria: A case report

    Science.gov (United States)

    Arcelia, F.; Asymida, F.; Lubis, N. F. M.; Pasaribu, A. P.

    2018-03-01

    Plasmodium parasites caused Malaria. Indonesia is one of the countries in Southeast Asia that endemic to malaria. The burden of malaria is more in the eastern part of Indonesia than the Western part as well as the endemicity. Some cases of malaria will develop to severe form. Usually, the manifestation of children and adult are different. We reported a severe case of malaria in a 14-year-old boy who develops several manifestations such as anemia, hypoglycemia, sepsis and black water fever. We successfully treated the patient with Artesunate intravenous and continued with Dihydroartemisinin-piperaquine.

  9. Measures for preventing and mitigating severe accidents of nuclear power plants

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lin Chengge

    1993-01-01

    Safety goals, integrity of the containment, accident management, functions of existing equipment and measures and emergency preparedness are discussed as technical basis for implementing the new safety code on the nuclear power plant safety design (HAF-0200(91)). The main quantitative safety goals are presented as core melt frequency -5 /ry for new plants and -4 /ry for existing or constructed plants, and 0.1% I, Cs release frequency -6 /ry. To keep the integrity of the containment, main efforts should be placed on the prevention of early failure of the containment and by pass or isolation failures. Should a late failure of the containment occur at a high probability, measures such as filtering vent should be considered. The leak rate of the containment could be higher than the previous 0.1-0.5 wt%/day, depending on the source term and dose results. But, a limiting leak rate of 1 wt%/day is defined. Accident management involves emergency operating procedures, training and retraining for the AM and adding some supporting equipment and display and diagnostic system for the AM. Those requirements are described. Emergency preparedness and measures can reduced the risk significantly. In the most case of accidents, sheltering is preferred as an effective protective actions

  10. Nurses' attitude and perceived barriers to pressure ulcer prevention.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Etafa, Werku; Argaw, Zeleke; Gemechu, Endalew; Melese, Belachew

    2018-01-01

    The presence or absence of pressure ulcers has been generally regarded as a performance measure of quality nursing care and overall patient health. The aim of this study- wasto explorenurses' attitude about pressure ulcer prevention'and to identify staff nurses' perceived barriers to pressure ulcer prevention public hospitals in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. A self-reported multi-center institutional based cross sectional study design was employed to collect data from staff nurses ( N  = 222) working in six (6) selected public hospitals in Addis Ababa, from April 01-28/2015. Majority of the nurses had ( n  = 116, 52.2%) negative attitude towards pressure ulcer prevention. The mean scores of the test for all participants was 3.09out of 11(SD =0.92, range = 1-5). Similarly, the study revealed several barriers need to be resolved to put in to practice the strategies of pressure ulcer prevention; Heavy workload and inadequate staff (lack of tie) (83.1%), shortage of resources/equipment (67.7%) and inadequate training (63.2%) were among the major barriers identified in the study. The study finding suggests that Addis Ababa nurses have negative attitude to pressure ulcer prevention. Also several barriers exist for implementing pressure ulcer prevention protocols in public hospitals in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Suggestion for improving this situation is attractive.

  11. Connecting the Dots: State Health Department Approaches to Addressing Shared Risk and Protective Factors Across Multiple Forms of Violence.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wilkins, Natalie; Myers, Lindsey; Kuehl, Tomei; Bauman, Alice; Hertz, Marci

    Violence takes many forms, including intimate partner violence, sexual violence, child abuse and neglect, bullying, suicidal behavior, and elder abuse and neglect. These forms of violence are interconnected and often share the same root causes. They can also co-occur together in families and communities and can happen at the same time or at different stages of life. Often, due to a variety of factors, separate, "siloed" approaches are used to address each form of violence. However, understanding and implementing approaches that prevent and address the overlapping root causes of violence (risk factors) and promote factors that increase the resilience of people and communities (protective factors) can help practitioners more effectively and efficiently use limited resources to prevent multiple forms of violence and save lives. This article presents approaches used by 2 state health departments, the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene and the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, to integrate a shared risk and protective factor approach into their violence prevention work and identifies key lessons learned that may serve to inform crosscutting violence prevention efforts in other states.

  12. Translating emotion theory and research into preventive interventions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Izard, Carroll E

    2002-09-01

    Scientific advances in the field of emotions suggest a framework for conceptualizing the emotion-related aspects of prevention programs that aim to enhance children's socioemotional competence and prevent the emergence of behavior problems and psychopathology. A conception of emotions as inherently adaptive and motivational and the related empirical evidence from several disciplines and specialities suggest 7 principles for developing preventive interventions: the utilization of positive and negative emotions, emotion modulation as a mediator of emotion utilization, emotion patterns in states and traits, different processes of emotion activation, emotion communication in early life, and the development of connections for the modular and relatively independent emotions and cognitive systems. Each principle's practical implications and application in current prevention programs are discussed.

  13. On preventive blood pressure self-monitoring at home

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Verdezoto, Nervo; Grönvall, Erik

    2015-01-01

    for self-measuring, the importance of interpretation, understanding and health awareness, sharing self-monitoring information for prevention, various motivational factors, the role of the doctor in prevention, and the home as a distributed information space. An awareness of these aspects can help designers......, to understand existing challenges, and uncover opportunities for self-monitoring technologies to support preventive healthcare activities among older adults. From our study, several important aspects emerged to consider when designing preventive self-monitoring technology, such as the complexity of guidelines...... how these aspects can both inform people engaged in Quantified Self activities and designers alike, and the tools and approaches that have sprung from the so-called Quantified Self movement...

  14. Silicon nitride-fabrication, forming and properties

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yehezkel, O.

    1983-01-01

    This article, which is a literature survey of the recent years, includes description of several methods for the formation of silicone nitride, and five methods of forming: Reaction-bonded silicon nitride, sintering, hot pressing, hot isostatic pressing and chemical vapour deposition. Herein are also included data about mechanical and physical properties of silicon nitride and the relationship between the forming method and the properties. (author)

  15. Contemporary management of moderate to severe plaque psoriasis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wu, Jashin J

    2017-12-01

    Psoriasis is a multisystem inflammatory disease that is often underdiagnosed, leaving many patients untreated. Plaque psoriasis, the most common form of the disease, affects approximately 80% to 90% of patients with psoriasis. Formulating a treatment plan can be complicated when various factors are considered. For example, type of therapy is dependent on the severity of the disease. Topical agents are preferred for mild disease, while phototherapy alone or in combination with systemic agents is recommended for the treatment of moderate to severe plaque psoriasis. Traditional systemic agents have the convenience of oral dosing; however, their toxicity profile can be a limiting factor. Newer biologic agents haven proven efficacious, if not superior to traditional oral agents, but their high cost can be a substantial disadvantage. Psoriasis has also been associated with increased risk of developing comorbidities, such as cardiovascular disease, obesity, and psoriatic arthritis, all of which increase the patient's overall mortality and further worsen their overall physical well-being. Management of these comorbidities is often overlooked. Moreover, psoriasis may affect a patient's psychological and social well-being. Patients with psoriasis are at a higher risk of developing clinical depression than patients without psoriasis. Inadequate management of comorbidities inevitably leads to poor outcomes, which increases the economic burden to the patient and society. Prevention and management of comorbidities, including cardiovascular and mental health, must be addressed as a part of a patient's overall treatment plan. Specialist coordination may be beneficial for patients with psoriasis. Improved patient care may lead to better clinical and economical outcomes.

  16. Seckel syndrome with severe sinus bradycardia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ramasamy, Chandramohan; Satheesh, Santhosh; Selvaraj, Raja

    2015-03-01

    Seckel syndrome is an uncommon form of microcephalic dwarfism. The authors report a young boy with Seckel syndrome who presented with severe sinus bradycardia with symptoms of syncope and presyncope. Implantation of a permanent pacemaker was necessary in view of the severe symptoms. Although uncommon, cardiac abnormalities have been rarely reported in Seckel syndrome. This is the one of the few reports of rhythm abnormalities in this condition.

  17. Severe complication of posterior nasal packing: Case Report

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Pinto, José Antônio

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available Introduction: Severe Epistaxis is common in patients with head trauma, especially when associated with multiple fractures of the face and skull base. Several methods of controlling bleeding that can be imposed. The anterior nasal tapenade associated with posterior Foley catheter is one of the most widespread, and the universal availability of necessary materials or their apparent ease of execution. Methods: Case report on control of severe epistaxis after severe TBI, with posterior nasal packing by Foley catheter and control tomography showing multiple fractures of the skull base and penetration of the probe into the brain parenchyma. Conclusion: This is a rare but possible complication in the treatment of severe nose bleeds associated with fracture of the skull base. This brief report highlights risks related to the method and suggests some care to prevent complications related through a brief literature review.

  18. Severe complication of posterior nasal packing: Case Report.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pinto, José Antônio; Cintra, Pedro Paulo Vivacqua da Cunha; Sônego, Thiago Branco; Leal, Carolina de Farias Aires; Artico, Marina Spadari; Soares, Josemar Dos Santos

    2012-10-01

    Severe Epistaxis is common in patients with head trauma, especially when associated with multiple fractures of the face and skull base. Several methods of controlling bleeding that can be imposed. The anterior nasal tapenade associated with posterior Foley catheter is one of the most widespread, and the universal availability of necessary materials or their apparent ease of execution.  Case report on control of severe epistaxis after severe TBI, with posterior nasal packing by Foley catheter and control tomography showing multiple fractures of the skull base and penetration of the probe into the brain parenchyma.  This is a rare but possible complication in the treatment of severe nose bleeds associated with fracture of the skull base. This brief report highlights risks related to the method and suggests some care to prevent complications related through a brief literature review.

  19. Crime prevention and Education

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Brønsted, Lone Bæk

    , street worker, social workers) by focusing on how welfare workers form, reform and transform interventions, and thereby instigate the structure of welfare work with social effects. Finally, the paper aims to examine how an inter-professional meeting outside the school environment produces understandings...... of such a preventive work aiming at creating trustful relations between the school and the children and focusing on children’s democracy understandings, experienced discrimination and peer pressure. Furthermore, the school are to activate children’s reflections on existential questions and their empathy with others...... a statutory duty for schools to have due regard to the need to prevent people from being drawn into terrorism. The school and education in general are seen as safe spaces. Notions like “safe space” and school as a “protection factor” reflect an educational discourse that reflect discoursive changes...

  20. Cardiometabolic Risks and Severity of Obesity in Children and Young Adults.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Skinner, Asheley C; Perrin, Eliana M; Moss, Leslie A; Skelton, Joseph A

    2015-10-01

    The prevalence of severe obesity among children and young adults has increased over the past decade. Although the prevalence of cardiometabolic risk factors is relatively low among children and young adults who are overweight or obese, those with more severe forms of obesity may be at greater risk. We performed a cross-sectional analysis of data from overweight or obese children and young adults 3 to 19 years of age who were included in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey from 1999 through 2012 to assess the prevalence of multiple cardiometabolic risk factors according to the severity of obesity. Weight status was classified on the basis of measured height and weight. We used standard definitions of abnormal values for total cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, triglycerides, blood pressure, glycated hemoglobin, and fasting glucose and report the prevalence of abnormal values in children and young adults according to weight status. Among 8579 children and young adults with a body-mass index at the 85th percentile or higher (according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention growth charts), 46.9% were overweight, 36.4% had class I obesity, 11.9% had class II obesity, and 4.8% had class III obesity. Mean values for some, but not all, cardiometabolic variables were higher with greater severity of obesity in both male and female participants, and the values were higher in male participants than in female participants; for HDL cholesterol, the mean values were lower with greater severity of obesity. Multivariable models that controlled for age, race or ethnic group, and sex showed that the greater the severity of obesity, the higher the risks of a low HDL cholesterol level, high systolic and diastolic blood pressures, and high triglyceride and glycated hemoglobin levels. Severe obesity in children and young adults was associated with an increased prevalence of cardiometabolic risk factors

  1. Selenium for the Prevention of Cutaneous Melanoma

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cassidy, Pamela B.; Fain, Heidi D.; Cassidy, James P.; Tran, Sally M.; Moos, Philip J.; Boucher, Kenneth M.; Gerads, Russell; Florell, Scott R.; Grossman, Douglas; Leachman, Sancy A.

    2013-01-01

    The role of selenium (Se) supplementation in cancer prevention is controversial; effects often depend on the nutritional status of the subject and on the chemical form in which Se is provided. We used a combination of in vitro and in vivo models to study two unique therapeutic windows for intervention in the process of cutaneous melanomagenisis, and to examine the utility of two different chemical forms of Se for prevention and treatment of melanoma. We studied the effects of Se in vitro on UV-induced oxidative stress in melanocytes, and on apoptosis and cell cycle progression in melanoma cells. In vivo, we used the HGF transgenic mouse model of UV-induced melanoma to demonstrate that topical treatment with l-selenomethionine results in a significant delay in the time required for UV-induced melanoma development, but also increases the rate of growth of those tumors once they appear. In a second mouse model, we found that oral administration of high dose methylseleninic acid significantly decreases the size of human melanoma xenografts. Our findings suggest that modestly elevation of selenium levels in the skin might risk acceleration of growth of incipient tumors. Additionally, certain Se compounds administered at very high doses could have utility for the treatment of fully-malignant tumors or prevention of recurrence. PMID:23470450

  2. Extending the accuracy of the SNAP interatomic potential form

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wood, Mitchell A.; Thompson, Aidan P.

    2018-06-01

    The Spectral Neighbor Analysis Potential (SNAP) is a classical interatomic potential that expresses the energy of each atom as a linear function of selected bispectrum components of the neighbor atoms. An extension of the SNAP form is proposed that includes quadratic terms in the bispectrum components. The extension is shown to provide a large increase in accuracy relative to the linear form, while incurring only a modest increase in computational cost. The mathematical structure of the quadratic SNAP form is similar to the embedded atom method (EAM), with the SNAP bispectrum components serving as counterparts to the two-body density functions in EAM. The effectiveness of the new form is demonstrated using an extensive set of training data for tantalum structures. Similar to artificial neural network potentials, the quadratic SNAP form requires substantially more training data in order to prevent overfitting. The quality of this new potential form is measured through a robust cross-validation analysis.

  3. [Postoperative recurrence of Crohn's disease, and its prevention].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lakatos, László; Lakatos, Péter László

    2010-05-23

    Crohn's disease is a chronic, progressive disabling condition ultimately leading to stricturing and/or penetrating complications. The need for surgery may be as high as 70% in patients with severe active disease or complications. However, relapse may develop in a significant proportion of the patients after surgery leading to frequent re-operations. Despite emerging data, postoperative prevention is still controversial. After careful evaluation of the individual risk a tailored therapy should be considered. In patients with small risk for relapse mesalazine or in selected cases no-treatment may be an option. In patients with a moderate-to-high risk azathioprine should be considered together with metronidazole in the three months. Follow-up ileocolonoscopy 6-12 months after the surgery is helpful in the determination of endoscopic severity and may assist in the optimization of the therapy. In most severe cases anti-TNF agents may be appropriate for postoperative prevention and therapy.

  4. A Proteomic Approach Identifies Candidate Early Biomarkers to Predict Severe Dengue in Children.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dang My Nhi

    2016-02-01

    Full Text Available Severe dengue with severe plasma leakage (SD-SPL is the most frequent of dengue severe form. Plasma biomarkers for early predictive diagnosis of SD-SPL are required in the primary clinics for the prevention of dengue death.Among 63 confirmed dengue pediatric patients recruited, hospital based longitudinal study detected six SD-SPL and ten dengue with warning sign (DWS. To identify the specific proteins increased or decreased in the SD-SPL plasma obtained 6-48 hours before the shock compared with the DWS, the isobaric tags for relative and absolute quantification (iTRAQ technology was performed using four patients each group. Validation was undertaken in 6 SD-SPL and 10 DWS patients.Nineteen plasma proteins exhibited significantly different relative concentrations (p<0.05, with five over-expressed and fourteen under-expressed in SD-SPL compared with DWS. The individual protein was classified to either blood coagulation, vascular regulation, cellular transport-related processes or immune response. The immunoblot quantification showed angiotensinogen and antithrombin III significantly increased in SD-SPL whole plasma of early stage compared with DWS subjects. Even using this small number of samples, antithrombin III predicted SD-SPL before shock occurrence with accuracy.Proteins identified here may serve as candidate predictive markers to diagnose SD-SPL for timely clinical management. Since the number of subjects are small, so further studies are needed to confirm all these biomarkers.

  5. 75 FR 68360 - Agency Forms Undergoing Paperwork Reduction Act Review

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-11-05

    ...] Agency Forms Undergoing Paperwork Reduction Act Review The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention... screener questionnaire will be used to determine participation eligibility and obtain oral consent. Approximately 7,000 individuals will be approached and screened (through a 2-minute interview) for eligibility...

  6. MODERN FORMS OF PARTNERSHIP IN BUSINESS

    OpenAIRE

    Markova V. D.; Trapeznikov I. S.

    2016-01-01

    The article examines tendencies of the development of new organizational forms of partnership and marks several problems of their usage in Russian conditions by the example of the Novosibirsk region. Modern forms of networking and partnership of commercial companies and universities, research institutes and other organizations, such as clusters, strategic alliances, technology platforms, business ecosystems and other, are focused on the development of new market opportunities and gaining comp...

  7. Prevention of Suicidal Behavior in Prisons

    Science.gov (United States)

    2016-01-01

    Abstract. Background: Worldwide, prisoners are at high risk of suicide. Research on near-lethal suicide attempts can provide important insights into risk and protective factors, and inform suicide prevention initiatives in prison. Aims: To synthesize findings of research on near-lethal attempts in prisons, and consider their implications for suicide prevention policies and practice, in the context of other research in custody and other settings. Method: We searched two bibliographic indexes for studies in any language on near-lethal and severe self-harm in prisoners, supplemented by targeted searches over the period 2000–2014. We extracted information on risk factors descriptively. Data were not meta-analyzed owing to heterogeneity of samples and methods. Results: We identified eight studies reporting associations between prisoner near-lethal attempts and specific factors. The latter included historical, prison-related, and clinical factors, including psychiatric morbidity and comorbidity, trauma, social isolation, and bullying. These factors were also identified as important in prisoners' own accounts of what may have contributed to their attempts (presented in four studies). Conclusion: Factors associated with prisoners' severe suicide attempts include a range of potentially modifiable clinical, psychosocial, and environmental factors. We make recommendations to address these factors in order to improve detection, management, and prevention of suicide risk in prisoners. PMID:27278569

  8. Gender differences in addiction severity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Díaz-Mesa, Eva M; García-Portilla, Paz; Fernández-Artamendi, Sergio; Sáiz, Pilar A; Bobes Bascarán, Teresa; Casares, María José; Fonseca, Eduardo; Al-Halabí, Susana; Bobes, Julio

    2016-06-14

    Gender has been associated with substance use disorders (SUD). However, there are few studies that have evaluated gender differences in a global and a standardized way, and with a large sample of patients with SUD. Our goal is to analyze the role of gender in addiction severity throughout multiple life domains, using the Addiction Severity Index-6 (ASI-6). A naturalistic, multicenter and prospective study was conducted. A total of 221 patients with SUD (80.1% men) were interviewed with the ASI-6. Our results indicate that the Recent Summary Scores (RSSs) of men and women are similar, with the exception of Psychiatric and Partner- Problems, where women showed higher severity (p = .017 and p = .013, respectively). Statistically significant gender differences were found in certain aspects of the ASI-6 domains: men have more problems of physical health, legal issues, and alcohol and other substance use; and woman score higher in problems of mental health, social network, subjective evaluations of SUD consequences, and treatment needs. These results should be taken into account to improve the identification, prevention, and treatment of SUD.

  9. [Severe depression : psychoanalysis].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bouvet de la Maisonneuve, O

    2009-12-01

    The indication for psychoanalysis in severe depression is not clear. And yet, demands for this type of intervention are increasing, despite the absence of any form of consensus on the subject. Freud considered depression as a failure of analytical efforts and, based on this observation, revised his theory, in particular to include the notions of narcissism and the death drive. Many analysts have been reluctant to follow his teachings on this last point and provide depressed patients with analytical-type therapies aimed at restoring narcissism. Melanie Klein pushed Freud's ideas about depression even further and brought such therapies back to the heart of analytical practice. Jacques Lacan took the debate to another level by proposing an overhaul of the principles on which analysis has been based. Today, while following certain precautionary rules, true psychoanalyses can be proposed to patients with severe depression, whether of the bipolar, recurring or even neurotic type that can reach this level of severity. Copyright 2009 L'Encéphale. Published by Elsevier Masson SAS.. All rights reserved.

  10. The journey from traffic offender to severe road trauma victim: destiny or preventive opportunity?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ho, Kwok M; Rao, Sudhakar; Burrell, Maxine; Weeramanthri, Tarun S

    2015-01-01

    Road trauma is a leading cause of death and injury in young people. Traffic offences are common, but their importance as a risk indicator for subsequent road trauma is unknown. This cohort study assessed whether severe road trauma could be predicted by a history of prior traffic offences. Clinical data of all adult road trauma patients admitted to the Western Australia (WA) State Trauma Centre between 1998 and 2013 were linked to traffic offences records at the WA Department of Transport. The primary outcomes were alcohol exposure prior to road trauma, severe trauma (defined by Injury Severity Score >15), and intensive care admission (ICU) or death, analyzed by logistic regression. Traffic offences directly leading to the road trauma admissions were excluded. Of the 10,330 patients included (median age 34 years-old, 78% male), 1955 (18.9%) had alcohol-exposure before road trauma, 2415 (23.4%) had severe trauma, 1360 (13.2%) required ICU admission, and 267 (2.6%) died. Prior traffic offences were recorded in 6269 (60.7%) patients. The number of prior traffic offences was significantly associated with alcohol-related road trauma (odds ratio [OR] per offence 1.03, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.02-1.05), severe trauma (OR 1.13, 95%CI 1.14-1.15), and ICU admission or death (OR 1.10, 95%CI 1.08-1.11). Drink-drinking, seat-belt, and use of handheld electronic device offences were specific offences strongly associated with road trauma leading to ICU admission or death--all in a 'dose-related' fashion. For those who recovered from road trauma after an ICU admission, there was a significant reduction in subsequent traffic offences (mean difference 1.8, 95%CI 1.5 to 2.0) and demerit points (mean difference 7.0, 95%CI 6.5 to 7.6) compared to before the trauma event. Previous traffic offences were a significant risk factor for alcohol-related road trauma and severe road trauma leading to ICU admission or death.

  11. The journey from traffic offender to severe road trauma victim: destiny or preventive opportunity?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kwok M Ho

    Full Text Available Road trauma is a leading cause of death and injury in young people. Traffic offences are common, but their importance as a risk indicator for subsequent road trauma is unknown. This cohort study assessed whether severe road trauma could be predicted by a history of prior traffic offences.Clinical data of all adult road trauma patients admitted to the Western Australia (WA State Trauma Centre between 1998 and 2013 were linked to traffic offences records at the WA Department of Transport. The primary outcomes were alcohol exposure prior to road trauma, severe trauma (defined by Injury Severity Score >15, and intensive care admission (ICU or death, analyzed by logistic regression. Traffic offences directly leading to the road trauma admissions were excluded. Of the 10,330 patients included (median age 34 years-old, 78% male, 1955 (18.9% had alcohol-exposure before road trauma, 2415 (23.4% had severe trauma, 1360 (13.2% required ICU admission, and 267 (2.6% died. Prior traffic offences were recorded in 6269 (60.7% patients. The number of prior traffic offences was significantly associated with alcohol-related road trauma (odds ratio [OR] per offence 1.03, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.02-1.05, severe trauma (OR 1.13, 95%CI 1.14-1.15, and ICU admission or death (OR 1.10, 95%CI 1.08-1.11. Drink-drinking, seat-belt, and use of handheld electronic device offences were specific offences strongly associated with road trauma leading to ICU admission or death--all in a 'dose-related' fashion. For those who recovered from road trauma after an ICU admission, there was a significant reduction in subsequent traffic offences (mean difference 1.8, 95%CI 1.5 to 2.0 and demerit points (mean difference 7.0, 95%CI 6.5 to 7.6 compared to before the trauma event.Previous traffic offences were a significant risk factor for alcohol-related road trauma and severe road trauma leading to ICU admission or death.

  12. Essentials of periodontal medicine in preventive medicine.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gulati, Minkle; Anand, Vishal; Jain, Nikil; Anand, Bhargavi; Bahuguna, Rohit; Govila, Vivek; Rastogi, Pavitra

    2013-09-01

    Influence of systemic disorders on periodontal diseases is well established. However, of growing interest is the effect of periodontal diseases on numerous systemic diseases or conditions like cardiovascular disease, cerebrovascular disease, diabetes, pre-term low birth weight babies, preeclampsia, respiratory infections and others including osteoporosis, cancer, rheumatoid arthritis, erectile dysfunction, Alzheimer's disease, gastrointestinal disease, prostatitis, renal diseases, which has also been scientifically validated. This side of the oral-systemic link has been termed Periodontal Medicine and is potentially of great public health significance, as periodontal disease is largely preventable and in many instances readily treatable, hence, providing many new opportunities for preventing and improving prognosis of several systemic pathologic conditions. This review article highlights the importance of prevention and treatment of periodontal diseases as an essential part of preventive medicine to circumvent its deleterious effects on general health.

  13. Essentials of periodontal medicine in preventive medicine

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Minkle Gulati

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available Influence of systemic disorders on periodontal diseases is well established. However, of growing interest is the effect of periodontal diseases on numerous systemic diseases or conditions like cardiovascular disease, cerebrovascular disease, diabetes, pre-term low birth weight babies, preeclampsia, respiratory infections and others including osteoporosis, cancer, rheumatoid arthritis, erectile dysfunction, Alzheimer′s disease, gastrointestinal disease, prostatitis, renal diseases, which has also been scientifically validated. This side of the oral-systemic link has been termed Periodontal Medicine and is potentially of great public health significance, as periodontal disease is largely preventable and in many instances readily treatable, hence, providing many new opportunities for preventing and improving prognosis of several systemic pathologic conditions. This review article highlights the importance of prevention and treatment of periodontal diseases as an essential part of preventive medicine to circumvent its deleterious effects on general health.

  14. Hotspots in clinical management of severe liver diseases

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    LYU Jiayu

    2017-09-01

    Full Text Available Severe liver diseases such as liver failure and acute decompensated cirrhosis have critical conditions and high mortality rates, and the prognosis of such patients is closely associated with early warning, timely dynamic assessment, and comprehensive and effective therapy. The patients require a series of effective clinical management measures for elimination of causative factors, organ support, and prevention and treatment of complications. Medical treatment-artificial liver-liver transplantation is an important modality for severe liver diseases. Granulocyte colony-stimulating factor, stem cell therapy, and bioartificial liver have a promising future, while there are still controversies over non-selective β-blocker. This article reviews the hotspots in the clinical management of severe liver diseases.

  15. Efficiency of two constructs called "fear of disease" and "perceived severity of disease" on the prevention of gastric cancer: Application of protection motivation theory.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Baghiani-Moghadam, Mohamad Hosein; Seyedi-Andi, Seyed Jalil; Shokri-Shirvani, Javad; Khafri, Sorayya; Ghadimi, Reza; Parsian, Hadi

    2015-01-01

    Among all cancers, malignancies of gastrointestinal tract are the most common cancer among Iranian population. Dietary behavior is thought to be the most important risk factor in gastric cancer. Fear and perceived severity are two important constructs of the protection motivation theory (PMT). Despite the evidence of the impact of these two constructs in modifying dietary habits against gastric cancer, their efficiency is not well established. Therefore, the present study was designed to determine the efficiency of the mentioned constructs. This cross-sectional study was performed on 360 participants (180 males and 180 females) aged over 30 years old who presented to health centers in Babol, Iran in 2014. They were selected by a cluster sampling method in a population covered by health centers in Babol. Data collection was done using a questionnaire with acceptable reliability and validity, designed by a researcher based on two constructs of protection motivation theory. The data were analyzed by SPSS Version 20 using descriptive and analytical statistics such as ANOVA, linear and logistic regression analysis. The participants who entered in the study achieved 38.6 and 69.7% of the scores of fear and perceived severity, respectively. There was a significant difference between perceived severity with level of education (pprotection motivation theory with predicting 38% of the variance of nutritional high risk behaviors had an effective role against gastric cancer and may help in the design and implementation of educational programs for the prevention of gastric cancer.

  16. Forms of Life

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Peter Hacker

    2015-10-01

    Full Text Available The phrase ‘Lebensform’ (form of life had a long and varied history prior to Wittgenstein’s use of it on a mere three occasions in the Philosophical Investigations. It is not a pivotal concept in Wittgenstein’s philosophy. But it is a minor signpost of a major reorientation of philosophy, philosophy of language and logic, and philosophy of mathematics that Wittgenstein instigated. For Wittgenstein sought to replace the conception of a language as a meaning calculus (Frege, Russell, the Tractatus by an anthropological or ethnological conception. A language is not a class of sentences that can be formed from a set of axioms (definitions, formation and transformation rules and the meanings of which is given by their truth-conditions, but an open-ended series of interlocking language-games constituting a form of life or way of living (a culture. Wittgenstein’s uses of ‘Lebensform’ and its cognates, both in the Investigations and in his Nachlass are severally analysed, and various exegetical misinterpretations are clarified.

  17. 75 FR 65489 - Agency Forms Undergoing Paperwork Reduction Act Review

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-10-25

    ... children. The three environmental chemicals, Bisphenol A (BPA), phthalates, and mercury have been selected...] Agency Forms Undergoing Paperwork Reduction Act Review The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) publishes a list of information collection requests under review by the Office of Management and...

  18. Prediction of Gas Leak Tightness of Superplastically Formed Products

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Snippe, Q.H.C.; Meinders, Vincent T.; Barlat, F; Moon, Y.H.; Lee, M.G.

    2010-01-01

    In some applications, in this case an aluminium box in a subatomic particle detector containing highly sensitive detecting devices, it is important that a formed sheet should show no gas leak from one side to the other. In order to prevent a trial-and-error procedure to make this leak tight box, a

  19. Prevention of homicidal violence in schools in Germany: the Berlin Leaking Project and the Networks Against School Shootings Project (NETWASS).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Leuschner, Vincenz; Bondü, Rebecca; Schroer-Hippel, Miriam; Panno, Jennifer; Neumetzler, Katharina; Fisch, Sarah; Scholl, Johanna; Scheithauer, Herbert

    2011-01-01

    Since 1999, Germany has experienced at least twelve serious cases of targeted school violence. This article describes two projects designed to fill the gap between universal prevention and emergency response in preventing severe forms of school violence in Germany. The Berlin Leaking Project examined the viability of preventive efforts based on early identification of leaking behavior that often precedes targeted school attacks. Leaking refers to any behavior or communication that indicates a student is preparing to carry out a violent attack. This would include explicit or implied threats of violence, apparent fascination with prior acts of violence such as Columbine, and any evidence of planning or preparation to carry out an attack. The NETWASS project will test a training program and intervention strategy based on those findings, examining the usefulness of a threat assessment approach to prevent violence by training teachers to recognize leaking behavior by students. This approach is extended by training teachers on a larger scale to identify leaking and then having a school-based team evaluate the student and initiate appropriate interventions, such as mental health services, and in some cases, law enforcement action. Copyright © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc., A Wiley Company.

  20. Early plasmapheresis in patients with severe hypertriglyceridemia induced acute pancreatitis

    OpenAIRE

    Nasa, Prashant; Alexander, George; Kulkarni, Amitabh; Juneja, Deven; Sehra, Sudhish; Agarwal, Rajesh; Koul, Kandy

    2015-01-01

    Hypertriglyceridemia can cause severe diseases such as acute pancreatitis (AP) and coronary artery disease. The routine management of hypertriglyceridemia is dietary restriction of fat and lipid-lowering medications to manage the secondary or precipitating causes of hypertriglyceridemia. However, in cases of AP with severe hypertriglyceridemia (SHTG) (triglycerides [TG] >1000 mg/dl) rapid reduction of TG levels to well below 1000 mg/dl can improve outcome and prevent further episodes of pancr...

  1. Annual Fasting; the Early Calories Restriction for Cancer Prevention

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Solat Eslami

    2012-12-01

    Full Text Available Essentially, people’s diet and nutritional status has been changed substantially worldwide and several lines of evidence suggest that these changes are to the detriment of their health. Additionally, it has been well documented that unhealthy diet especially the fast foods, untraditional foods or bad-eating-habits influence the human gut microbiome. The gut microbiota shapes immune responses during human life and affects his/her metabolomic profiles. Furthermore, many studies highlight the molecular pathways that mediate host and symbiont interactions that regulate proper immune function and prevention of cancer in the body. Intriguingly, if cancer forms in a human body due to the weakness of immune system in detriment of microbiome, the removal of cancer stem cells can be carried out through early Calories Restriction with Annual Fasting (AF before tumor development or progress. Besides, fasting can b balance the gut microbiome for enhancement of immune system against cancer formation.

  2. Dietary Protein in the Prevention of Diet-Induced Obesity and Co-Morbidities

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Tastesen, Hanne Sørup

    mice were fed obesity‐promoting diets with protein from different sources, in different forms and at different levels to evaluate the affect on development of obesity, glucose intolerance and dyslipidemia. Results: In the present study the dietary level of protein, 16 versus 32 percent energy from...... protein, was found to be negligible in development of obesity and co‐morbidities in mice. Seafood protein with high endogenous taurine and glycine contents was found to prevent diet‐induced adiposity and dyslipidemia, both in ad libitum and pair‐fed settings. The ability of seafood proteins to prevent...... that the source and form of protein has great impact on development and prevention of diet‐induced adiposity, dyslipidemia, hyperinsulinemia and impairment of glucose tolerance through modulations of voluntary locomotor activity, energy expenditure and energy substrate metabolism in mice...

  3. [Problem of motivation of the population to prevention and treatment dental diseases].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kochlashvili, L Sh; Gogilashvili, K T; Gerzmava, O Kh

    2012-10-01

    Dental health is an integral part of a normal state of a human body and, first of all, depends on knowledge of the population of bases of individual hygiene of an oral cavity and ability to use them in practical life. Numerous researches indicate low level of knowledge of the population in questions of prevention of dental diseases and individual hygiene of an oral cavity that testifies to existence of problems in the organization of sanitary education. Existing practice of hygienic training and education, in a certain measure, lags behind modern requirements, and some questions demand specification and optimization. For efficiency of sanitary and preventive actions it is necessary to study character and motivation structure to prevention and treatment of dental diseases and to develop an effective method of its increase. Therefore actual search of new forms of psycho hygiene and psycho prevention with use of modern information technologies which should provide high level of dental health of the military personnel is represented. The purpose of the real research was establishment of the factors forming motivation to prevention and treatment of the main dental diseases, and development of a psycho physiological method of its increase. The carried-out research allows to expand and systematize ideas necessary for the practical doctor of the major factors forming motivation to prevention and treatment of the main dental diseases. Development of an objective technique of a complex assessment of level of motivation of patients to prevention and treatment of dental pathology will allow to prove the new perspective direction of the sanitary educational work, allowing to reduce fobiya level, effectively to increase motivation of the patient to receiving the timely dental help. It especially is important if to consider that numerous programs of hygienic training and the education, applied in our country, didn't lead to change of hygienic skills of the population in expected

  4. Channel-forming activities in the glycosomal fraction from the bloodstream form of Trypanosoma brucei.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Melisa Gualdron-López

    Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Glycosomes are a specialized form of peroxisomes (microbodies present in unicellular eukaryotes that belong to the Kinetoplastea order, such as Trypanosoma and Leishmania species, parasitic protists causing severe diseases of livestock and humans in subtropical and tropical countries. The organelles harbour most enzymes of the glycolytic pathway that is responsible for substrate-level ATP production in the cell. Glycolysis is essential for bloodstream-form Trypanosoma brucei and enzymes comprising this pathway have been validated as drug targets. Glycosomes are surrounded by a single membrane. How glycolytic metabolites are transported across the glycosomal membrane is unclear. METHODS/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We hypothesized that glycosomal membrane, similarly to membranes of yeast and mammalian peroxisomes, contains channel-forming proteins involved in the selective transfer of metabolites. To verify this prediction, we isolated a glycosomal fraction from bloodstream-form T. brucei and reconstituted solubilized membrane proteins into planar lipid bilayers. The electrophysiological characteristics of the channels were studied using multiple channel recording and single channel analysis. Three main channel-forming activities were detected with current amplitudes 70-80 pA, 20-25 pA, and 8-11 pA, respectively (holding potential +10 mV and 3.0 M KCl as an electrolyte. All channels were in fully open state in a range of voltages ±150 mV and showed no sub-conductance transitions. The channel with current amplitude 20-25 pA is anion-selective (P(K+/P(Cl-∼0.31, while the other two types of channels are slightly selective for cations (P(K+/P(Cl- ratios ∼1.15 and ∼1.27 for the high- and low-conductance channels, respectively. The anion-selective channel showed an intrinsic current rectification that may suggest a functional asymmetry of the channel's pore. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: These results indicate that the membrane of glycosomes

  5. Several Items Comparisons of Intercultural Food Communication

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    刘智慧

    2011-01-01

    Introduction This paper is included seven parts,food culture introduction,forms and manners of western food,forms and manners of Chinese food,three main kinds of difference of foods,mergence,taboo and conclusion.I will divide it into several parts to analyze them.I adopt ~me examples and history stories.As all of my expressions,I hope you can enjoy my paper and have a good stomach.

  6. Severe exacerbations and decline in lung function in asthma

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    O'Byrne, Paul M; Pedersen, Søren; Lamm, Carl Johan

    2009-01-01

    RATIONALE: To evaluate the association between asthma exacerbations and the decline in lung function, as well as the potential effects of an inhaled corticosteroid, budesonide, on exacerbation-related decline in patients with asthma. OBJECTIVES: To determine whether severe asthma exacerbations...... with low-dose inhaled budesonide prevents severe asthma-related events (exacerbations requiring hospitalization or emergency treatment) and decline in lung function. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: There were 315 patients who experienced at least one severe asthma exacerbation, of which 305 were analyzable...... of reduction afforded by budesonide, in patients who experienced at least one severe asthma-related event compared with those who did not, was statistically significant (P = 0.042). CONCLUSIONS: Severe asthma exacerbations are associated with a more rapid decline in lung function. Treatment with low doses...

  7. Lightning and severe thunderstorms in event management.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Walsh, Katie M

    2012-01-01

    There are a few national position stands/guidelines that address environmental conditions in athletics, yet they do not govern all outdoor sports. Extreme heat and cold, lightning, and severe wind can all be fatal, yet the majority of outdoor sports have no published guidelines addressing these conditions in relation to activity. Available research on extreme heat and cold conditions in athletics provides prevention strategies, to include acclimatization. Lightning and severe wind are two environmental conditions to which humans cannot accommodate, and they both can be deadly. There are strong positions on extreme heat/cold and lightning safety in athletics, but none affiliated with severe winds. Medical personnel involved in planning large outdoor sporting events must know of the presence of nationally published weather-related documents and apply them to their event. In addition, research needs to be expanded in the realm of establishing guidelines for safety to participants and spectators in severe wind conditions.

  8. Connecting the Dots: State Health Department Approaches to Addressing Shared Risk and Protective Factors Across Multiple Forms of Violence

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wilkins, Natalie; Myers, Lindsey; Kuehl, Tomei; Bauman, Alice; Hertz, Marci

    2018-01-01

    Violence takes many forms, including intimate partner violence, sexual violence, child abuse and neglect, bullying, suicidal behavior, and elder abuse and neglect. These forms of violence are interconnected and often share the same root causes. They can also co-occur together in families and communities and can happen at the same time or at different stages of life. Often, due to a variety of factors, separate, “siloed” approaches are used to address each form of violence. However, understanding and implementing approaches that prevent and address the overlapping root causes of violence (risk factors) and promote factors that increase the resilience of people and communities (protective factors) can help practitioners more effectively and efficiently use limited resources to prevent multiple forms of violence and save lives. This article presents approaches used by 2 state health departments, the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene and the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, to integrate a shared risk and protective factor approach into their violence prevention work and identifies key lessons learned that may serve to inform crosscutting violence prevention efforts in other states. PMID:29189502

  9. Prevention of Periprosthetic Joint Infection

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Alisina Shahi

    2015-04-01

    Full Text Available Prosthetic joint infection (PJI is a calamitous complication with high morbidity and substantial cost. The reported incidence is low but it is probably underestimated due to the difficulty in diagnosis. PJI has challenged the orthopaedic community for several years and despite all the advances in this field, it is still a real concern with immense impact on patients, and the healthcare system. Eradication of infection can be very difficult. Therefore, prevention remains the ultimate goal. The medical community has executed many practices with the intention to prevent infection and treat it effectively when it encounters. Numerous factors can predispose patients to PJI. Identifying the host risk factors, patients’ health modification, proper wound care, and optimizing operative room environment remain some of the core fundamental steps that can help minimizing the overall incidence of infection. In this review we have summarized the effective prevention strategies along with the recommendations of a recent International Consensus Meeting on Surgical Site and Periprosthetic Joint Infection.

  10. Preventive arms control. Case study: plutonium disposition. Final report

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Liebert, W.

    2001-01-01

    Plutonium stored in separated form poses a severe threat of nuclear weapons proliferation. While options for the disposition of military plutonium stockpiles have been studied for several years, similar work has hardly been undertaken for plutonium stockpiles in the civilian sector. In the framework of this project, the various options to dispose of stockpiles of separated plutonium in the civilian sector were to be investigated. The project was embedded in the FONAS-project network on Preventive Arms Control, and the findings of this study were to be considered for the development of a concept of Preventive Arms Control. As a first step, the internationally available information on different options for plutonium disposition (MOX-use, immobilization together with radioactive wastes, elimination) were collected and compiled to allow further assessment of the different options. For some of the options, technical questions were examined in more detail. For this purpose, neutron transport and fuel burnup calculations were performed. In particular, the analysis focused on concepts for the elimination of plutonium by the use of uranium-free fuel in existing light-water reactors, since they are particularly attractive from the point of view of non-proliferation. The calculations were performed for a reference fuel based on yttrium-stabilized zirconia, with parameters like the initial plutonium content or the use of burnable neutron poisons varying. A systematic and complete analysis of the performed calculations, however, could not be undertaken due to project time restrictions. On the basis of assessment criteria for Preventive Arms Control developed by the project network, a specific set of criteria for the assessment of the pros and cons of different plutonium disposition methods has been defined. These criteria may then be used as part of a concept of prospective technology assessment. The project findings present a starting base for a comprehensive assessment of the

  11. The development of severe accident analysis technology

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kim, Heuy Dong; Cho, Sung Won; Kim, Sang Baek; Park, Jong Hwa; Lee, Kyu Jung; Park, Lae Joon; Hu, Hoh; Hong, Sung Wan [Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, Taejon (Korea, Republic of)

    1993-07-01

    The objective of the development of severe accident analysis technology is to understand the severe accident phenomena such as core melt progression and to provide a reliable analytical tool to assess severe accidents in a nuclear power plant. Furthermore, establishment of the accident management strategies for the prevention/mitigation of severe accidents is also the purpose of this research. The study may be categorized into three areas. For the first area, two specific issues were reviewed to identify the further research direction, that is the natural circulation in the reactor coolant system and the fuel-coolant interaction as an in-vessel and an ex-vessel phenomenological study. For the second area, the MELCOR and the CONTAIN codes have been upgraded, and a validation calculation of the MELCOR has been performed for the PHEBUS-B9+ experiment. Finally, the experimental program has been established for the in-vessel and the ex-vessel severe accident phenomena with the in-pile test loop in KMRR and the integral containment test facilities, respectively. (Author).

  12. Rifampin pharmacokinetics in children, with and without human immunodeficiency virus infection, hospitalized for the management of severe forms of tuberculosis

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    McIlleron Helen

    2009-04-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Rifampin is a key drug in antituberculosis chemotherapy because it rapidly kills the majority of bacilli in tuberculosis lesions, prevents relapse and thus enables 6-month short-course chemotherapy. Little is known about the pharmacokinetics of rifampin in children. The objective of this study was to evaluate the pharmacokinetics of rifampin in children with tuberculosis, both human immunodeficiency virus type-1-infected and human immunodeficiency virus-uninfected. Methods Fifty-four children, 21 human immunodeficiency virus-infected and 33 human immunodeficiency virus-uninfected, mean ages 3.73 and 4.05 years (P = 0.68, respectively, admitted to a tuberculosis hospital in Cape Town, South Africa with severe forms of tuberculosis were studied approximately 1 month and 4 months after commencing antituberculosis treatment. Blood specimens for analysis were drawn in the morning, 45 minutes, 1.5, 3.0, 4.0 and 6.0 hours after dosing. Rifampin concentrations were determined by liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry. For two sample comparisons of means, the Welch version of the t-test was used; associations between variables were examined by Pearson correlation and by multiple linear regression. Results The children received a mean rifampin dosage of 9.61 mg/kg (6.47 to 15.58 body weight at 1 month and 9.63 mg/kg (4.63 to 17.8 at 4 months after commencing treatment administered as part of a fixed-dose formulation designed for paediatric use. The mean rifampin area under the curve 0 to 6 hours after dosing was 14.9 and 18.1 μg/hour/ml (P = 0.25 1 month after starting treatment in human immunodeficiency virus-infected and human immunodeficiency virus-uninfected children, respectively, and 16.52 and 17.94 μg/hour/ml (P = 0.59 after 4 months of treatment. The mean calculated 2-hour rifampin concentrations in these human immunodeficiency virus-infected and human immunodeficiency virus-uninfected children were 3.9 and 4.8

  13. Simulation of root forms using cellular automata model

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Winarno, Nanang; Prima, Eka Cahya; Afifah, Ratih Mega Ayu

    2016-01-01

    This research aims to produce a simulation program for root forms using cellular automata model. Stephen Wolfram in his book entitled “A New Kind of Science” discusses the formation rules based on the statistical analysis. In accordance with Stephen Wolfram’s investigation, the research will develop a basic idea of computer program using Delphi 7 programming language. To best of our knowledge, there is no previous research developing a simulation describing root forms using the cellular automata model compared to the natural root form with the presence of stone addition as the disturbance. The result shows that (1) the simulation used four rules comparing results of the program towards the natural photographs and each rule had shown different root forms; (2) the stone disturbances prevent the root growth and the multiplication of root forms had been successfully modeled. Therefore, this research had added some stones, which have size of 120 cells placed randomly in the soil. Like in nature, stones cannot be penetrated by plant roots. The result showed that it is very likely to further develop the program of simulating root forms by 50 variations

  14. Simulation of root forms using cellular automata model

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Winarno, Nanang, E-mail: nanang-winarno@upi.edu; Prima, Eka Cahya [International Program on Science Education, Universitas Pendidikan Indonesia, Jl. Dr. Setiabudi no 229, Bandung40154 (Indonesia); Afifah, Ratih Mega Ayu [Department of Physics Education, Post Graduate School, Universitas Pendidikan Indonesia, Jl. Dr. Setiabudi no 229, Bandung40154 (Indonesia)

    2016-02-08

    This research aims to produce a simulation program for root forms using cellular automata model. Stephen Wolfram in his book entitled “A New Kind of Science” discusses the formation rules based on the statistical analysis. In accordance with Stephen Wolfram’s investigation, the research will develop a basic idea of computer program using Delphi 7 programming language. To best of our knowledge, there is no previous research developing a simulation describing root forms using the cellular automata model compared to the natural root form with the presence of stone addition as the disturbance. The result shows that (1) the simulation used four rules comparing results of the program towards the natural photographs and each rule had shown different root forms; (2) the stone disturbances prevent the root growth and the multiplication of root forms had been successfully modeled. Therefore, this research had added some stones, which have size of 120 cells placed randomly in the soil. Like in nature, stones cannot be penetrated by plant roots. The result showed that it is very likely to further develop the program of simulating root forms by 50 variations.

  15. Treatment and prevention of hepatic failure in acute biliary pancreatitis in patients with diabetes mellitus

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    S.I. Savoliuk

    2017-10-01

    the products of purine nucleotide catabolism (xanthine oxidase, xanthine dehydrogenase capable of producing reactive oxygen species, stimulating oxidative stress. Conclusions. The course of acute biliary pancreatitis in patients with diabetes mellitus is accompanied by regular changes in the markers of the syndrome of cytopathic hypoxia, the erythron system and iron metabolism, the severity of these disorders has a direct correlation with the area of morphological changes in the pancreas and the dynamics of markers of liver failure. Using the methods of protocol therapy, you can not carry out preventive correction of existing metabolic disorders that requires the inclusion into the standard conservative treatment for edema form of acute biliary pancreatitis of systemic multifunctional metabolic corrector (Berlithion® for systemic preventive correction of homeostasis and mechanisms of escalation of hepatic insufficiency manifestations, which, in the presence of necrotic forms, requires additional application of low molecular weight heparins (Zibor® for the restoration of hemorheological and hemocoalogulative disorders on the systemic and intraorganic levels.

  16. An overview of a knowledge based system for preventive maintenance support of nuclear power plants

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Terano, Takao; Nishiyama, Takuya; Yokoo, Takeshi

    1984-01-01

    In recent years, much interest has been paid to knowledge engineering techniques for new vehicles of advanced information processing. As a practical application in electric power industry, this report discusses a knowledge based system for supporting preventive maintenance of nuclear power plants. To support preventive maintenance tasks, the system must have facilities to reason failures and accidents of the plants, to evaluate their significance, to predict any possible troubles, and to indentify appropriate preventive countermeasures for them. This report describes the overview of the prototype system from a viewpoint of knowledge engineering. The results of the study are as follows: (1) The knowledge base of the prototype system consists of a data-base on plants and a rule-base derived from experts' knowledge. Using the information in the knowledge base, the system diagnoses the plant without real-time interaction with operational plants. (2) Expert's knowledge in the rule-base is represented in the non-procedural declarative forms. These rules are organized in some hierarchical structure so as to be used efficiently and used in conjunction with the corresponding set of plant information in the data-base. (3) The prototype system is incrementally developed with the rapid prototyping techniques, that is, the processes of design, implementation and evaluation are repeated several times. (author)

  17. Preventive home visits to elderly people in Denmark

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hendriksen, C; Vass, M

    2005-01-01

    During the last 20 years several randomised controlled trials have been published about preventive home visits to old people, but the benefit of the visits is still controversial and under debate. Based on a state law from the Ministry of Social Affairs in 1998, the municipalities in Denmark are ......, manageable and ongoing educational intervention towards professionals working with preventive home visits is feasible and improves older people's functional mobility.......During the last 20 years several randomised controlled trials have been published about preventive home visits to old people, but the benefit of the visits is still controversial and under debate. Based on a state law from the Ministry of Social Affairs in 1998, the municipalities in Denmark...... are obliged to offer home visits twice a year to all citizens 75 years and older. After six years with this law, there is still variation of how the law is managed and implemented. About 60% of the elderly people accept and receive the visits. Less than 50% of the municipalities have made specific guidelines...

  18. Comparative analysis of JKR Sarawak form of contract and Malaysia Standard form of building contract (PWD203A)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yunus, A. I. A.; Muhammad, W. M. N. W.; Saaid, M. N. F.

    2018-04-01

    Standard form of contract is normally being used in Malaysia construction industry in establishing legal relation between contracting parties. Generally, most of Malaysia federal government construction project used PWD203A which is a standard form of contract to be used where Bills of Quantities Form Part of the Contract and it is issued by Public Works Department (PWD/JKR). On the other hand in Sarawak, the largest state in Malaysia, the state government has issued their own standard form of contract namely JKR Sarawak Form of Contract 2006. Even both forms have been used widely in construction industry; there is still lack of understanding on both forms. The aim of this paper is to identify significant provision on both forms of contract. Document analysis has been adopted in conducting an in-depth review on both forms. It is found that, both forms of contracts have differences and similarities on several provisions specifically matters to definitions and general; execution of the works; payments, completion and final account; and delay, dispute resolution and determination.

  19. Alternative Forms of the Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test: A Review

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Keith A. Hawkins

    2004-01-01

    Full Text Available Practice effects in memory testing complicate the interpretation of score changes over repeated testings, particularly in clinical applications. Consequently, several alternative forms of the Auditory Verbal Learning Test (AVLT have been developed. Studies of these typically indicate that the forms examined are equivalent. However, the implication that the forms in the literature are interchangeable must be tempered by several caveats. Few studies of equivalence have been undertaken; most are restricted to the comparison of single pairs of forms, and the pairings vary across studies. These limitations are exacerbated by the minimal overlapping across studies in variables reported, or in the analyses of equivalence undertaken. The data generated by these studies are nonetheless valuable, as significant practice effects result from serial use of the same form. The available data on alternative AVLT forms are summarized, and recommendations regarding form development and the determination of form equivalence are offered.

  20. Selenium for the Prevention of Cutaneous Melanoma

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Douglas Grossman

    2013-03-01

    Full Text Available The role of selenium (Se supplementation in cancer prevention is controversial; effects often depend on the nutritional status of the subject and on the chemical form in which Se is provided. We used a combination of in vitro and in vivo models to study two unique therapeutic windows for intervention in the process of cutaneous melanomagenisis, and to examine the utility of two different chemical forms of Se for prevention and treatment of melanoma. We studied the effects of Se in vitro on UV-induced oxidative stress in melanocytes, and on apoptosis and cell cycle progression in melanoma cells. In vivo, we used the HGF transgenic mouse model of UV-induced melanoma to demonstrate that topical treatment with l-selenomethionine results in a significant delay in the time required for UV-induced melanoma development, but also increases the rate of growth of those tumors once they appear. In a second mouse model, we found that oral administration of high dose methylseleninic acid significantly decreases the size of human melanoma xenografts. Our findings suggest that modestly elevation of selenium levels in the skin might risk acceleration of growth of incipient tumors. Additionally, certain Se compounds administered at very high doses could have utility for the treatment of fully-malignant tumors or prevention of recurrence.

  1. Preventing compulsory admission to psychiatric inpatient care: Perceived coercion, empowerment and self-reported mental health functioning after 12 months of preventive monitoring

    OpenAIRE

    Barbara eLay; Barbara eLay; Thekla eDrack; Marco eBleiker; Silke eLengler; Christina eBlank; Wulf eRössler; Wulf eRössler; Wulf eRössler

    2015-01-01

    Objective: To evaluate effects of a preventive monitoring program targeted to reduce compulsory re-hospitalization and perceived coercion in patients with severe mental disorder. We analyze patient outcomes in terms of perceived coercion, empowerment and self-reported mental health functioning at 12 months. Methods: The program consists of individualized psycho-education, crisis cards and, after discharge from the psychiatric hospital, a 24-month preventive monitoring. In total, 238 psychiatr...

  2. Analyses of systems availability and operator actions to support the development of severe accident procedures

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lutz, R.J. Jr.; Scobel, J.H.

    1989-01-01

    This paper reports on traditional analyses of severe accidents, such as those presented in Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA) studies of nuclear power stations, that have generally been performed on the assumption that all means of cooling the reactor core are lost and that no operator actions to mitigate the consequences or progression of the severe accident are performed. The assumption to neglect the availability of safety systems and operator actions which do not prevent core melting can lead to erroneous conclusions regarding the plant severer accident profile. Recent work in severe accident management has identified the need to perform analyses which consider all systems availabilities and operator actions, irrespective of their contribution to the prevention of core melting. These new analyses indicate that the traditional analyses result in overfly pessimistic predictions of the time of core melting and the subsequent potential for recovery of core cooling prior to core melting. Additionally, since the traditional analyses do not model all of the operator actions which are prescribed, the impact of additional severe accident operator actions on the progression and consequences of the accident cannot be reliably identified. Further, the more detailed analysis can change the focus of the importance of various system to the prevention of core damage and the mitigation of severe accident consequences. Finally, the simplicity of the traditional analyses can have a considerable impact on severe accident decision making, particularly in the evaluation of alternate plant design features and the priorities for research studies

  3. 75 FR 6671 - Agency Forms Undergoing Paperwork Reduction Act Review

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-02-10

    ... Project Congenital Syphilis (CS) Case Investigation and Report Form (CDC73.126), OMB No. 0920-0128, (exp. 02/28/2010)--revision--National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD and TB Prevention (NCHHSTP... proposed revision is to continue data collection for congenital syphilis case investigations with a revised...

  4. Management of moderate to severe Alzheimer’s disease: Focus on memantine

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Evangelyn Dominguez

    2011-12-01

    Full Text Available Alzheimer’s disease (AD is the most common form of dementia, and one of the principal causes leading to death around the world. It is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder that still remains without definite cure. Memantine, a licensed AD drug, is an open-channel and partial trapping blocker that functions as a potent NMDA receptor antagonist, even at low concentrations. Aside from being uncompetitive, it also allows near-normal physiological NMDA receptor activity throughout the brain even with high glutamate concentrations, making it more reliable and tolerable than other AD-targeted drugs. It has also been found to be effective, safe, and well-tolerated in animal models as well as patients with moderate-to-severe AD. Aside from NMDA receptor antagonism, numerous studies have reported that memantine can also affect dopamine receptors, block excessive calcium influx and production of reactive oxygen species (ROS induced by Aβ oligomers, and inhibit the internal ribosome entry site (IRES, thus preventing the expression of the amyloid precursor and tau proteins which are considered as early indicators of Alzheimer's.

  5. Severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) in a paediatric cluster in Singapore

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Tsou, Ian Y.; Kaw, Gregory J.; Chee, Thomas S. [Department of Diagnostic Radiology, Tan Tock Seng Hospital, 11 Jalan Tan Tock Seng, 308433, Singapore (Singapore); Loh, Lik Eng; Chan, Irene [Department of Paediatric Medicine, KK Women' s and Children' s Hospital, 100 Bukit Timah Road, 229899, Singapore (Singapore)

    2004-01-01

    Severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) is a major infectious disease pandemic that occurred in early 2003, and one of the diagnostic criteria is the presence of chest radiographic findings. To describe the radiographic features of SARS in a cluster of affected children. The chest radiographs of four related children ranging in age from 18 months to 9 years diagnosed as having SARS were reviewed for the presence of air-space shadowing, air bronchograms, peribronchial thickening, interstitial disease, pleural effusion, pneumothorax, hilar lymphadenopathy and mediastinal widening. Ill-defined air-space shadowing was the common finding in all the children. The distribution was unifocal or multifocal. No other findings were seen on the radiographs. None of the children developed radiographic findings consistent with acute respiratory distress syndrome. All four children showed significant resolution of the radiographic findings 4-6 days after the initial radiograph. Early recognition of these features is important in implementing isolation and containment measures to prevent the spread of infection. SARS in children appears to manifest as a milder form of the disease as compared to adults. (orig.)

  6. Preventing Pneumonia (A Cup of Health with CDC)

    Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Podcasts

    Pneumonia is a lung infection that can result in severe illness and even death. Common symptoms include cough, fever, and difficulty breathing. In this podcast, Dr. Jennifer Farrar discusses ways to prevent pneumonia.

  7. Application of preventive maintenance planning in a parquet ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    In this study, the process of a parquet enterprise's transition to preventive maintenance which has been implementing maintenance technique in case of breakdown was investigated. During that transition process, follow up forms for maintenance–repair, breakdown and spare parts were prepared and the implementation ...

  8. Dilated cardiomyopathy and severe heart failure. An update for pediatricians.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Caviedes Bottner, Paola; Córdova Fernández, Tamara; Larraín Valenzuela, Marcos; Cruces Romero Presentación de Casos Clínicos, Pablo

    2018-06-01

    Dilated cardiomyopathy is the main cause of heart failure leading to heart transplant. Its prognosis is variable and depends on the etiology, the patient's age at onset, and the severity. The management of dilated cardiomyopathy is aimed at minimizing symptoms and preventing disease progression; it requires a comprehensive screening for comorbidities and the prevention of complications to improve the overall status of these children and mitigate their prognosis. Here we present a review oriented at the multidisciplinary management that pediatricians should consider when seeing these patients. Sociedad Argentina de Pediatría.

  9. Pressure ulcer prevention in frail older people.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Barry, Maree; Nugent, Linda

    2015-12-16

    Pressure ulcers are painful and cause discomfort, have a negative effect on quality of life, and are costly to treat. The incidence and severity of preventable pressure ulcers is an important indicator of quality of care; it is essential that healthcare providers monitor prevalence and incidence rates to ensure that care strategies implemented are effective. Frail older people are at increased risk of developing pressure ulcers. This article discusses the complexities of preventing pressure ulcers in frail older people and emphasises the importance of structured educational programmes that incorporate effective clinical leadership and multidisciplinary teamwork.

  10. Predicting severe injury using vehicle telemetry data.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ayoung-Chee, Patricia; Mack, Christopher D; Kaufman, Robert; Bulger, Eileen

    2013-01-01

    In 2010, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration standardized collision data collected by event data recorders, which may help determine appropriate emergency medical service (EMS) response. Previous models (e.g., General Motors ) predict severe injury (Injury Severity Score [ISS] > 15) using occupant demographics and collision data. Occupant information is not automatically available, and 12% of calls from advanced automatic collision notification providers are unanswered. To better inform EMS triage, our goal was to create a predictive model only using vehicle collision data. Using the National Automotive Sampling System Crashworthiness Data System data set, we included front-seat occupants in late-model vehicles (2000 and later) in nonrollover and rollover crashes in years 2000 to 2010. Telematic (change in velocity, direction of force, seat belt use, vehicle type and curb weight, as well as multiple impact) and nontelematic variables (maximum intrusion, narrow impact, and passenger ejection) were included. Missing data were multiply imputed. The University of Washington model was tested to predict severe injury before application of guidelines (Step 0) and for occupants who did not meet Steps 1 and 2 criteria (Step 3) of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Field Triage Guidelines. A probability threshold of 20% was chosen in accordance with Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommendations. There were 28,633 crashes, involving 33,956 vehicles and 52,033 occupants, of whom 9.9% had severe injury. At Step 0, the University of Washington model sensitivity was 40.0% and positive predictive value (PPV) was 20.7%. At Step 3, the sensitivity was 32.3 % and PPV was 10.1%. Model analysis excluding nontelematic variables decreased sensitivity and PPV. The sensitivity of the re-created General Motors model was 38.5% at Step 0 and 28.1% at Step 3. We designed a model using only vehicle collision data that was predictive of severe injury at

  11. Estrogen-associated severe hypertriglyceridemia with pancreatitis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Aljenedil, Sumayah; Hegele, Robert A; Genest, Jacques; Awan, Zuhier

    Estrogen, whether therapeutic or physiologic, can cause hypertriglyceridemia. Hypertriglyceridemia-induced pancreatitis is a rare complication. We report 2 women who developed estrogen-associated severe hypertriglyceridemia with pancreatitis. The first patient developed pancreatitis secondary to hypertriglyceridemia associated with in vitro fertilization cycles. Marked reduction in her triglyceride was achieved with dietary restrictions and fibrate. The second patient developed pancreatitis secondary to hypertriglyceridemia during her pregnancies. She was noncompliant with the treatment; therefore, her triglyceride remained high after delivery. In both patients, no hypertriglyceridemia-associated genes mutations were identified, although the second patient had strong polygenic susceptibility to hypertriglyceridemia. Estrogen-induced severe hypertriglyceridemia with pancreatitis can be a life-threatening condition. Screening in high-risk patients is crucial to prevent subsequent complications. Copyright © 2016 National Lipid Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  12. Alfred Adler, pioneer in prevention of mental disorders.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ansbacher, H L

    1990-09-01

    Alfred Adler (1870-1937) one of the four original members of what was to become the Vienna Psychoanalytic Society, was the first to accept a humanistic-educational model of man in contrast to Freud's medical model of man. This was in line with his deep involvement with prevention; in fact his original interest was in medical prevention. The present paper describes how his work touched on all the points of the contemporary field of psychological prevention. He developed a personality theory most suitable for application in prevention, education and brief psychotherapy. He identified various categories of children at risk. He advocated the right to abortion partly to prevent the birth of a child severely at risk by being unwanted. He considered the then existing dominance of the male sex to be damaging to both sexes. He engaged in practical prevention work by addressing general audiences and especially teachers and by the establishment of and participation in Educational Counseling Centers. He felt that the honest psychologist for reasons of prevention is bound to social advocacy, and that a true psychology of mental health merges into a corresponding world philosophy. These points are fully documented with quotations and references.

  13. Primary prevention of psychiatric illness in special populations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sajatovic, Martha; Sanders, Renata; Alexeenko, Lada; Madhusoodanan, Subramoniam

    2010-11-01

    Some populations appear to be particularly vulnerable to the development of psychiatric symptomatology related to life events and biologic or social/cultural factors. Such groups include individuals who have experienced traumatic events, military personnel, individuals with serious medical conditions, postpartum women, and immigrants. This study reviews the literature regarding primary prevention of psychiatric disorders in special populations and identifies a variety of universal, selective, and indicated prevention measures aimed at minimizing the psychiatric sequelae in these groups. The authors reviewed the literature regarding the prevention of psychiatric symptoms in trauma/abuse victims, individuals in the military, oncology patients, patients with diabetes, pregnant/postpartum women, and immigrants. The literature on primary prevention of psychiatric illness in the special populations identified is rather limited. Universal prevention may be beneficial in some instances through public awareness campaigns and disaster planning. In other instances, more specific and intensive interventions for individuals at high risk of psychiatric illness may improve outcomes, for example, crisis counseling for those who have experienced severe trauma. Primary prevention of psychiatric illness may be an attainable goal via implementation of specific universal, selected, and indicated primary prevention measures in special populations.

  14. The Prevention of Thalassemia

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cao, Antonio; Kan, Yuet Wai

    2013-01-01

    The thalassemias are among the most common inherited diseases worldwide, affecting individuals originating from the Mediterranean area, Middle East, Transcaucasia, Central Asia, Indian subcontinent, and Southeast Asia. As the diseases require long-term care, prevention of the homozygous state constitutes a major armament in the management. This article discusses the major prevention programs that are set up in many countries in Europe, Asia, and Australia, often drawing from the experience in Sardinia. These comprehensive programs involve carrier detections, molecular diagnostics, genetic counseling, and prenatal diagnosis. Variability of clinical severity can be attributable to interactions with α-thalassemia and mutations that increase fetal productions. Special methods taht are currently quite expensive and not widely applicable are preimplantation and preconception diagnosis. The recent successful studies of fetal DNA in maternal plasma may allow future prenatal diagnosis that is noninvasive for the fetus. PMID:23378598

  15. Fiscal policy to improve diets and prevent noncommunicable diseases: from recommendations to action.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Thow, Anne Marie; Downs, Shauna M; Mayes, Christopher; Trevena, Helen; Waqanivalu, Temo; Cawley, John

    2018-03-01

    The World Health Organization has recommended that Member States consider taxing energy-dense beverages and foods and/or subsidizing nutrient-rich foods to improve diets and prevent noncommunicable diseases. Numerous countries have either implemented taxes on energy-dense beverages and foods or are considering the implementation of such taxes. However, several major challenges to the implementation of fiscal policies to improve diets and prevent noncommunicable diseases remain. Some of these challenges relate to the cross-sectoral nature of the relevant interventions. For example, as health and economic policy-makers have different administrative concerns, performance indicators and priorities, they often consider different forms of evidence in their decision-making. In this paper, we describe the evidence base for diet-related interventions based on fiscal policies and consider the key questions that need to be asked by both health and economic policy-makers. From the health sector's perspective, there is most evidence for the impact of taxes and subsidies on diets, with less evidence on their impacts on body weight or health. We highlight the importance of scope, the role of industry, the use of revenue and regressive taxes in informing policy decisions.

  16. Preventive Activities of Preliminary Investigation Bodies in Respect of Crime Victims

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Svetlana A. Timko

    2017-05-01

    Full Text Available The article is devoted to the problems of the prevention of victimization by the investigation and inquiry divisions of the internal affairs bodies of the Russian Federation. It defines the main forms and methods of working with the victim during the investigation of a crime aimed at reducing the possibility of again becoming a victim of criminal assault. The organizational and legal directions of victimological prevention are analyzed, the necessity of developing effective mechanisms for assessing the activities of the units of internal affairs agencies in crime prevention is justified.

  17. Obesity and dissociable forms of impulsivity in young adults.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chamberlain, Samuel R; Derbyshire, Katherine L; Leppink, Eric; Grant, Jon E

    2015-10-01

    Obesity is one of the leading causes of preventable morbidity and mortality, and young people are increasingly affected. The aim of this study was to examine relationships between obesity and dissociable forms of impulsivity in young adults. A group of young adults (511) was recruited from city areas in the United States using media advertisements. These young adults were administered careful and extensive clinical and neurocognitive assessment in order to quantify different aspects of impulsivity (behavioral/phenomenological-, cognitive-, and personality-related measures). Associations between obesity and impulsivity were explored using multivariate analysis of variance and discriminant function analysis. 10.8% of the sample was obese, and 21.5% was overweight. Compared to controls, subjects with obesity showed significantly elevated rates of maladaptive gambling behaviors, monetary amounts lost to gambling, nicotine consumption, impulsive action (prolonged stop-signal reaction times in the Stop-Signal Test), and impulsive decision-making (reduced modulation of behavior as a function of risk in the Cambridge Gamble Test). Even accounting for potential confounding variables, obesity was significantly predicted by female gender, older age, more maladaptive gambling behaviors, and worse inhibitory control (stop-signal reaction times). Obesity is associated with several dissociable forms of impulsivity in young people, especially gambling and impulse dyscontrol. Family doctors should screen for gambling problems in obese young adults. Successful treatment of nicotine dependence in young obese people is likely to require intensive weight management support. Neuropsychological deficits relating to impulsivity occur in obese people in early adulthood, and may represent vulnerability markers rather than being due to chronic untoward metabolic effects on brain function.

  18. Early Prevention Toward Sexual Abuse on Children

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ira Paramastri

    2015-11-01

    Full Text Available Child sexual abuse is a worldwide problem. Although most studies on the longterm consequences of child sexual abuse have focused on women, sexual abuse of both boys and girls is common. Peer sexual abuse in schools was an often overlooked problem that contributes to a hostile school environment: one major study found that 85% of girls and 76% of boys reported experiencing some form of sexual abuse in school. 85% of child sexual abuse is committed by relatives, close family friend or an adult that the child knows and trusts. The childhood sexual abuse variables taken into account are commonly age of onset, duration, abuse forms and relationship between the child and the perpetrator. The objective of this study was to gather information or opinion about sexual abuse concept, methods and media of the elementary students, parents, teachers and experts. A qualitative study, involving one to one interviews, was conducted with 7 experts, focus group discussion with 40 elementary students, and with 40 parents in Yogyakarta district about child sexual abuse issues. Data were analysed according to Miles and Huberman’s data reduction, data display and conclusion verification process. These findings strongly indicate that boys and girls are vulnerable to this form of childhood sexual abuse ; the similarity in the likelihood for multiple behavioral, mental and social outcomes among men and women suggest the need to identify and treat all adults affected by child sexual abuse. Themes related to the child sexual abuse were: paperwork design, good facilitator, guidelines for students, parents and teachers. Students prefer media that can help them understand concept with komik paperwork as media for early prevention. Parents, teachers and experts prefer that this prevention program can run as soon. With careful paperwork design and evaluation of prevention program, the success of program implementation can be enhanced.

  19. Bacteriophage-Derived Peptidase CHAPK Eliminates and Prevents Staphylococcal Biofilms

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mark Fenton

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available New antibacterial agents are urgently needed for the elimination of biofilm-forming bacteria that are highly resistant to traditional antimicrobial agents. Proliferation of such bacteria can lead to significant economic losses in the agri-food sector. This study demonstrates the potential of the bacteriophage-derived peptidase, CHAPK, as a biocidal agent for the rapid disruption of biofilm-forming staphylococci, commonly associated with bovine mastitis. Purified CHAPK applied to biofilms of Staphylococcus aureus DPC5246 completely eliminated the staphylococcal biofilms within 4 h. In addition, CHAPK was able to prevent biofilm formation by this strain. The CHAPK lysin also reduced S. aureus in a skin decolonization model. Our data demonstrates the potential of CHAPK as a biocidal agent for prevention and treatment of biofilm-associated staphylococcal infections or as a decontaminating agent in the food and healthcare sectors.

  20. A Case of Severe and Recurrent Painless Thyroiditis Requiring Thyroidectomy

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ishii, Hiroaki; Takei, Masahiro; Sato, Yoshihiko; Ito, Tokiko; Ito, Ken-ichi; Sakai, Yasuhiro; Yumita, Wataru; Suzuki, Satoru; Komatsu, Mitsuhisa

    2013-01-01

    Objective To report a case of severe and recurrent painless thyroiditis requiring thyroidectomy. Clinical Presentation and Intervention A 47-year-old man who presented with severe thyrotoxicosis was found to have extremely low radioactive iodine uptake, negative TSH receptor antibodies, and normal C-reactive protein; these findings suggested a diagnosis of painless thyroiditis. Due to the severity and recurrence of thyrotoxicosis, surgical resection of the thyroid gland was performed to prevent a thyrotoxic storm. Histological examination revealed typical lymphoid infiltration of the thyroid gland. Conclusion This case illustrates that a patient with painless thyroiditis was successfully treated with surgery. PMID:23182952

  1. Preventing occupational injury among police officers: does motivation matter?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chan, D K C; Webb, D; Ryan, R M; Tang, T C W; Yang, S X; Ntoumanis, N; Hagger, M S

    2017-08-01

    Injury prevention is an important issue for police officers, but the effectiveness of prevention initiatives is dependent on officers' motivation toward, and adherence to, recommended health and safety guidelines. To understand effects of police officers' motivation to prevent occupational injury on beliefs about safety and adherence to injury prevention behaviours. Full-time police officers completed a survey comprising validated psychometric scales to assess autonomous, controlled and amotivated forms of motivation (Treatment Self-Regulation Questionnaire), behavioural adherence (Self-reported Treatment Adherence Scale) and beliefs (Safety Attitude Questionnaire) with respect to injury prevention behaviours. There were 207 participants; response rate was 87%. Hierarchical multiple regression analyses demonstrated that autonomous motivation was positively related to behavioural adherence, commitment to safety and prioritizing injury prevention. Controlled motivation was a positive predictor of safety communication barriers. Amotivation was positively associated with fatalism regarding injury prevention, safety violation and worry. These findings are consistent with the tenets of self-determination theory in that autonomous motivation was a positive predictor of adaptive safety beliefs and adherence to injury prevention behaviours. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society of Occupational Medicine. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com

  2. Corruption Early Prevention: Decision Support System for President of the Republic of Indonesia

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sasmoko; Widhoyoko, S. A.; Ariyanto, S.; Indrianti, Y.; Noerlina; Muqsith, A. M.; Alamsyah, M.

    2017-01-01

    Corruption is an extraordinary crime, and then the prevention must also be extraordinary, simultaneously (national) in the form of early warning that involves all elements; government, industry, and society. To realize it the system needs to be built which in this study is called the Corruption Early Prevention (CEP) as a Decision Support System for President of the Republic of Indonesia. This study aims to examine 1) how is the construct of the Corruption Early Prevention as a Decision Support System for President of the Republic of Indonesia?, and 2) how is the design form of the system of Corruption Early Prevention as a Decision Support System for President of Republic of Indonesia? The research method is using Neuro-Research which is the collaboration of qualitative and quantitative research methods and the model development of Information Technology (IT). The research found that: 1) the construct of CEP is theoretically feasible, valid and reliable by content to be developed in the context of the prevention of corruption in Indonesia as an early prevention system that diagnoses Indonesia simultaneously and in real time, and 2) the concept of system design and business process of CEP is predicted to be realized in the IT-based program.

  3. Quantitative measures of corrosion and prevention: application to corrosion in agriculture

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Schouten, J.C.; Gellings, P.J.

    1987-01-01

    The corrosion protection factor (c.p.f.) and the corrosion condition (c.c.) are simple instruments for the study and evaluation of the contribution and efficiency of several methods of corrosion prevention and control. The application of c.p.f. and c.c. to corrosion and prevention in agriculture in

  4. Preventive social activities with teenages from incomplete families

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ruslan Chubuk

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available This article foregrounds the importance of social prevention activities with adolescents from single-parent families, which aim at overcoming external social pressures and psychological discomfort as well as creating a system of mutual support and self-help for adolescents. The aim of this article is to highlight the forms and methods of work that constitute the set of traditional methods of professional influence on adolescents from single-parent families and their parents. The author proposes a work process cycle of social prevention activities (which defines the selection of apparatus, content, forms and methods of work to  186 carry out in a logical sequence of certain stages that are characteristic of work with any singleparent family. First (pre-preparatory stage consisted of a primary formulation of goal guidelines for social preventive specialists with the aim of determination of the search criterion for the conditions and social environment of single-parent families, acquaintance with the problems of the family and the adolescent. Second (organization and information stage consisted of gathering of information, its organization and analysis. In the third (determination and diagnosis stage, the methods of detailed investigation of both adolescent and family members’ problems were chosen. In the fourth (procedure and analytics stage, the methods of detailed research of single-family problems, determined by the programme, were implemented. In the fifth (correction and results stage stipulated for the socio-educational (correctional work (if necessary with members of single-parent families to create new or to restore damaged positive relationships of the adolescent with their family and enhance social responsibility of all family members for the future of the adolescent, etc. In the sixth (control and prevention stage social workers make monitor visits to the single-parent families during a certain period. Key words: stage, incomplete

  5. Severe asthma in childhood

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ciznar, P.

    2013-01-01

    Patients with severe asthma are clinically, physiologically and biologically a heterogeneous group. About half of children referred for medical examination for severe asthma have true severe, therapy resistant asthma. The rest of referred patients have difficult to treat asthma. Symptoms persist mostly due to drug non-compliance, inappropriate inhalation technique, persistent environmental exposures or co-morbid conditions. Compared with adults have children more frequently atopic form of severe asthma. This is associated with eosinophilia in peripheral blood and sensitization to inhaled allergens. The IgE levels are high. Therapy of co-morbidities and improvement of treatment compliance lead in most cases to full asthma control. Proportion of children will benefit from biologics like anti-IgE monoclonal antibody, administered by subcutaneous injections in 2 to 4 week intervals. By this therapy it is not only possible to suppress symptoms, but also decrease the total steroid dose and the risk of adverse effects associated with its long-term administration. By achieving a full asthma control we lower future risk of exacerbations and probably improve long-term prognosis of disease, frequently persisting for the rest of life. (author)

  6. Prevention of adolescent substance abuse through the development of personal and social competence.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Botvin, G J

    1983-01-01

    evidence for the feasibility of teaching these kinds of skills, but also provide guidelines concerning the most effective approaches to use. Similarly, several of the most successful smoking prevention programs have included components designed to increase adolescents' ability to resist the various pro-use social pressures, particularly pressure from their peers. Our own research has involved testing a broad-spectrum prevention strategy which focuses both on the enhancement of personal competence through the development of basic "life skills" and the acquisition of problem-specific skills and knowledge designed to increase adolescents' ability to resist the various forms of social pressure to engage in the use of one or more substances.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

  7. Prevention of hospital-onset Clostridium difficile infection in the New York metropolitan region using a collaborative intervention model.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Koll, Brian S; Ruiz, Rafael E; Calfee, David P; Jalon, Hillary S; Stricof, Rachel L; Adams, Audrey; Smith, Barbara A; Shin, Gina; Gase, Kathleen; Woods, Maria K; Sirtalan, Ismail

    2014-01-01

    The incidence, severity, and associated costs of Clostridium difficile (C. difficile) infection (CDI) have dramatically increased in hospitals over the past decade, indicating an urgent need for strategies to prevent transmission of C. difficile. This article describes a multifaceted collaborative approach to reduce hospital-onset CDI rates in 35 acute care hospitals in the New York metropolitan region. Hospitals participated in a comprehensive CDI reduction intervention and formed interdisciplinary teams to coordinate their efforts. Standardized clinical infection prevention and environmental cleaning protocols were implemented and monitored using checklists. Monthly data reports were provided to hospitals for facility-specific performance evaluation and comparison to aggregate data from all participants. Hospitals also participated in monthly teleconferences to review data and highlight successes, challenges, and strategies to reduce CDI. Incidence of hospital-onset CDI per 10,000 patient days was the primary outcome measure. Additionally, the incidence of nonhospital-associated, community-onset, hospital-associated, and recurrent CDIs were measured. The use of a collaborative model to implement a multifaceted infection prevention strategy was temporally associated with a significant reduction in hospital-onset CDI rates in participating New York metropolitan regional hospitals. © 2013 National Association for Healthcare Quality.

  8. Teaching Form as Form

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Keiding, Tina Bering

    2012-01-01

    understanding of form per se, or, to use an expression from this text, of form as form. This challenge can be reduced to one question: how can design teaching support students in achieving not only the ability to recognize and describe different form-related concepts in existing design (i.e. analytical...

  9. A study on the development of framework and supporting tools for severe accident management

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chang, Hyun Sop

    1996-02-01

    Through the extensive research on severe accidents, knowledge on severe accident phenomenology has constantly increased. Based upon such advance, probabilistic risk studies have been performed for some domestic plants to identify plant-specific vulnerabilities to severe accidents. Severe accident management is a program devised to cover such vulnerabilities, and leads to possible resolution of severe accident issues. This study aims at establishing severe accident management framework for domestic nuclear power plants where severe accident management program is not yet established. Emphasis is given to in-vessel and ex-vessel accident management strategies and instrumentation availability for severe accident management. Among the various strategies investigated, primary system depressurization is found to be the most effective means to prevent high pressure core melt scenarios. During low pressure core melt sequences, cooling of in-vessel molten corium through reactor cavity flooding is found to be effective. To prevent containment failure, containment filtered venting is found to be an effective measure to cope with long-term and gradual overpressurization, together with appropriate hydrogen control measure. Investigation of the availability of Yonggwang 3 and 4 instruments shows that most of instruments essential to severe accident management lose their desired functions during the early phase of severe accident progression, primarily due to the environmental condition exceeded ranges of instruments. To prevent instrument failure, a wider range of instruments are recommended to be used for some severe accident management strategies such as reactor cavity flooding. Severe accidents are generally known to accompany a number of complex phenomena and, therefore, it is very beneficial when severe accident management personnel is aided by appropriately designed supporting systems. In this study, a support system for severe accident management personnel is developed

  10. Trauma center maturity measured by an analysis of preventable and potentially preventable deaths: there is always something to be learned….

    Science.gov (United States)

    Matsumoto, Shokei; Jung, Kyoungwon; Smith, Alan; Coimbra, Raul

    2018-06-23

    To establish the preventable and potentially preventable death rates in a mature trauma center and to identify the causes of death and highlight the lessons learned from these cases. We analyzed data from a Level-1 Trauma Center Registry, collected over a 15-year period. Data on demographics, timing of death, and potential errors were collected. Deaths were judged as preventable (PD), potentially preventable (PPD), or non-preventable (NPD), following a strict external peer-review process. During the 15-year period, there were 874 deaths, 15 (1.7%) and 6 (0.7%) of which were considered PPDs and PDs, respectively. Patients in the PD and PPD groups were not sicker and had less severe head injury than those in the NPD group. The time-death distribution differed according to preventability. We identified 21 errors in the PD and PPD groups, but only 61 (7.3%) errors in the NPD group (n = 853). Errors in judgement accounted for the majority and for 90.5% of the PD and PPD group errors. Although the numbers of PDs and PPDs were low, denoting maturity of our trauma center, there are important lessons to be learned about how errors in judgment led to deaths that could have been prevented.

  11. 77 FR 30972 - Empowering Consumers to Prevent and Detect Billing for Unauthorized Charges (“Cramming...

    Science.gov (United States)

    2012-05-24

    .... 98-170; FCC 12-42] Empowering Consumers to Prevent and Detect Billing for Unauthorized Charges... (Commission or FCC) proposes additional rules to help consumers prevent and detect the placement of... ``cramming.'' Several commenters in this proceeding support additional measures to prevent cramming...

  12. [KIPKEL--an interdisciplinary ambulatory prevention project for children with mentally ill parents].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Staets, S; Hipp, M

    2001-09-01

    Children of psychiatrically ill parents up to now have hardly been perceived as a risk group. In order to prevent these children form becoming psychiatrically ill the practice for art-therapy and psychotherapy and the social psychiatric service of the city of Hilden have developed a programme for parents having children under 18 years of age in which at least one parent suffers from endogenous psychosis or severe personality disorder. The two initiators of the KIPKEL project describe the experiences they had during the preparatory phase and while securing the financial basis and building up solid structures of cooperation. The conceptual basis of the project and problems of practical realization are presented. Finally an example of a family who participated in the programme is given. It illustrates the complex arrangement of interpersonal relationship and the course of the carework.

  13. Factors affecting the dental erosion severity of patients with eating disorders.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Otsu, Mitsuhiro; Hamura, Akira; Ishikawa, Yuiko; Karibe, Hiroyuki; Ichijyo, Tomoyasu; Yoshinaga, Yoko

    2014-01-01

    Intraoral disease is a common occurrence in patients with eating disorders, particularly dental erosion, which frequently becomes severe and may hinder daily life. The severity varies from patient to patient. Understanding the underlying mechanisms may help prevent dental erosion in these patients. Accordingly, we investigated the relationship between the severity of erosion and the behavior of patients with eating disorders, with a focus on daily diet and vomiting behavior. A total 71 female eating disorder outpatients from the Clinical Center of Psychosomatic Dentistry of Nippon Dental University Hospital and the Psychosomatic Internal Medicine Department of Kudanzaka Hospital or who were hospitalized at Hasegawa Hospital were enrolled. Dental erosion severity and location were determined by oral examination. Patients who induced vomiting were queried on their behavior during vomiting and on routine diet habits. Patients with dental erosion were further divided into mild and severe groups based on the lesion severity and the groups compared. Dental erosion was observed in 43 of 50 subjects who induced vomiting. Dental erosion was most frequent on the palatal side of the anterior maxillary teeth, occurring in 81.3% of the subjects. There were significant differences observed between the mild and severe groups according to post-vomiting oral hygiene. Significantly more subjects in the mild group consumed large amounts of water before vomiting, and significantly more subjects in the severe group routinely consumed carbonated beverages or sweetened food. While self-induced vomiting is the main cause of dental erosion in eating disorder patients, the erosion severity may be affected by behavior when inducing vomiting or by routine consumption of certain foods and beverages. Addressing these factors may help prevent severe dental erosion in patients who chronically induce vomiting.

  14. Childhood obesity treatment and prevention. Psychological perspectives of clinical approaches

    OpenAIRE

    Maria Catena Quattropani; Teresa Buccheri

    2013-01-01

    Objective: This work focuses on clinical psychologist’ presence within childhood obesity prevention programmes in several countries. Method: The Authors collected articles considering psychological, biological and social aspects linked to childhood obesity. Results: Studies reveal that childhood obesity prevention programmes are based on biological, medical and educational aspects; clinical psychologists up until now have been engaged almost exclusively in the treatment of obesity. Conclusion...

  15. Disposal criticality analysis methodology for fissile waste forms

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Davis, J.W.; Gottlieb, P.

    1998-03-01

    A general methodology has been developed to evaluate the criticality potential of the wide range of waste forms planned for geologic disposal. The range of waste forms include commercial spent fuel, high level waste, DOE spent fuel (including highly enriched), MOX using weapons grade plutonium, and immobilized plutonium. The disposal of these waste forms will be in a container with sufficiently thick corrosion resistant barriers to prevent water penetration for up to 10,000 years. The criticality control for DOE spent fuel is primarily provided by neutron absorber material incorporated into the basket holding the individual assemblies. For the immobilized plutonium, the neutron absorber material is incorporated into the waste form itself. The disposal criticality analysis methodology includes the analysis of geochemical and physical processes that can breach the waste package and affect the waste forms within. The basic purpose of the methodology is to guide the criticality control features of the waste package design, and to demonstrate that the final design meets the criticality control licensing requirements. The methodology can also be extended to the analysis of criticality consequences (primarily increased radionuclide inventory), which will support the total performance assessment for the respository

  16. [Results of the use of pumpan preparation in the treatment of severe forms of angina pectoris].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Parshina, S S; Golovacheva, T V; Afanas'eva, T N; Panchenko, O V; Baldina, A A; Starostina, N V; Lial'chenko, I F; Egorova, L P

    2000-01-01

    To assess validity of adjuvant use of pumpan, a homeopathic compound, in patients with unstable angina pectoris and angina of effort (functional class III-IV) receiving conventional treatment. A direct open controlled trial for 15 months performed initially in hospital, then outpatiently, covered 49 patients with severe angina. Examination of the patients included evaluation of clinical condition and the disease course, lipid metabolism, hemostasis, blood plasma electrolytes, aminotransferases, echo-CG, bicycle exercise, rheoencephalography, ultrasonic dopplerography of head and neck vessels. Pumpan produced a positive effect total nonspecific systemic resistance improved, number of hospitalizations reduced, intracardiac hemodynamics improved in some cases with severe angina. Homeopathic compound pumpan can be recommended in the treatment of severe angina to reinforce antianginal effect, improve the disease clinical course, to obtain a hypocoagulative and hypocholesterolemic effect, to normalize intracardiac hemodynamics, to raise myocardial performance and intracoronary reserve as well as nonspecific resistance of the body.

  17. Human factors review for nuclear power plant severe accident sequence analysis

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Krois, P.A.; Haas, P.M.

    1985-01-01

    The paper discusses work conducted to: (1) support the severe accident sequence analysis of a nuclear power plant transient based on an assessment of operator actions, and (2) develop a descriptive model of operator severe accident management. Operator actions during the transient are assessed using qualitative and quantitative methods. A function-oriented accident management model provides a structure for developing technical operator guidance on mitigating core damage preventing radiological release

  18. Falls prevention for the elderly

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dagmar Lühmann

    2012-04-01

    difficulty to balance the rights to autonomous decision making and physical integrity. Discussion and conclusions: The assessment of clinical effectiveness of interventions for fall prevention is complicated by inherent methodological problems (esp. absence of blinding and meaningful clinical heterogeneity of available studies. Therefore meta-analyses are not appropriate, and single study results are difficult to interpret. Both problems also impair the informative value of economic analyses. With this background it has to be stated that current recommendations regarding fall prevention in the elderly are not fully supported by scientific evidence. In particular, for the generation of new recommendations the dependency of probable effects on specific characteristics of the target populations or care settings should be taken into consideration. This also applies to the variable factors influencing the willingness of the target population to take up and pursue preventive measures. In the planning of future studies equal weight should be placed on methodological rigour (freedom from biases and transferability of results into routine care. Economic analyses require input of German data, either in form of a “piggy back study“ or in form of a modelling study that reflects the structures of the German health care system and is based on German epidemiological and cost data.

  19. Guidance of reactor operators and TSC personnel with the severe accident management guidance under shutdown and low power conditions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Van Haesendonck, M.F.; Prior, R.P.

    2000-01-01

    The Westinghouse Owners Group Severe Accident Management Guidance (WOG SAMG) was developed between 1991 and 1994. The primary goals for severe accident management that form the basis of the WOG SAMG are to terminate any radioactive releases to the environment; to prevent failure of any containment fission product boundary and to return the plant to a controlled stable condition. The WOG SAMG is primarily a TSC tool for mitigation of low probability core damage events. The philosophy is that control room operators should remain focused on the prevention of core damage, whereas the TSC personnel should concentrate on the mitigation of the severe accident. The symptom based package is built up as a structured process for choosing appropriate actions based on actual plant conditions. No detailed knowledge of severe accident phenomena is required. The scope of the WOG SAMG is limited to severe accidents resulting from initiating events occurring during full power operation. However, a number of studies such as the EdF EPS 1300 Probabilistic Safety Assessment (PSA), the shutdown Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA) for Surry, the BERA shutdown PRA for Beznau, the EPRI/ Westinghouse ORAM methodology etc. have shown that the frequency of core damage (a severe accident) during shutdown and low power operation can be of the same order of magnitude as for full power operation. The at-power SAMG is viewed as the resolution of the severe accident issue. Similarly, it is expected that as shutdown PRAs mature, the final resolution of the severe accident issue will lie in SAMG for low power and shutdown operation. Therefore in resolution of this issue, Westinghouse has developed the Shutdown Severe Accident Management Guidance (SSAMG) which gives guidance for both control room and TSC personnel to mitigate a severe accident under shutdown or low power conditions. In the last few years, many LWR plants have been implementing SAMG. In the US, all plants have developed SAMG, and many

  20. Preventing urinary incontinence during pregnancy and postpartum

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Wesnes, Stian Langeland; Lose, Gunnar

    2013-01-01

    focus is on pelvic floor muscle training to prevent UI. However, several other modifiable risk factors are likely to contribute to prevention of UI during pregnancy and postpartum. This review investigated modifiable risk factors for UI during pregnancy and postpartum and also reviewed randomized...... (grade B) and postpartum (grade C). Women should be advised to perform pelvic floor muscle training during pregnancy and postpartum (grade A) and to use perineal warm packs during delivery (grade B). Cesarean section to prevent UI cannot be recommended (grade D). If lifestyle recommendations......: women should be advised not to smoke before or during pregnancy (grade B), aim at normal weight before pregnancy (grade B), and aim at regaining prepregnancy weight postpartum (grade B). Occasional low-intensity training should be advocated (grade B), and constipation should be avoided during pregnancy...

  1. Do All O Stars Form in Star Clusters?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Weidner, C.; Gvaramadze, V. V.; Kroupa, P.; Pflamm-Altenburg, J.

    The question whether or not massive stars can form in isolation or only in star clusters is of great importance for the theory of (massive) star formation as well as for the stellar initial mass function of whole galaxies (IGIMF-theory). While a seemingly easy question it is rather difficult to answer. Several physical processes (e.g. star-loss due to stellar dynamics or gas expulsion) and observational limitations (e.g. dust obscuration of young clusters, resolution) pose severe challenges to answer this question. In this contribution we will present the current arguments in favour and against the idea that all O stars form in clusters.

  2. Preventing nuclear terrorism: the report and papers of the International Task Force on Prevention of Nuclear Terrorism

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Leventhal, P.; Alexander, Y.

    1987-01-01

    The International Task Force on Prevention of Nuclear Terrorism, formed in 1985 under the Nuclear Control Institute, commissioned 26 studies and produced an extensive report on the problem and prevention of nuclear terrorism, Part I of this book is the full report, and part II contains the individual studies under two section: (A) Defining the Threat (8 studies); and (B) Strategies for Dealing with the Threat (18 studies). Detailed recommendations are made, in many of the studies, for better protection of nuclear weapons, materials, and facilities; greater cooperation among national intelligence agencies; tighter controls on nuclear transfers; more effective arms control initiatives; and emergency management programs. A separate abstract was prepared for the report and each of the 26 studies

  3. Severe Rotavirus gastroenteritis in a patient with infant leukemia

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hatice Uygun

    2011-03-01

    Full Text Available Rotavirus is the most common cause of severe gastroenteritis in infants and young children. Reports about the clinical relevance of rotavirus in immunocompromised children are rare. We herein presented a case of life-threatening Rotavirus gastroenteritis in an infant with acute myeloblastic leukemia which could be prevented by recently recommended Rotavirus vaccination.

  4. Obesity Revised. Chapter at "Periodontal Disease: Symptoms, Treatment and Prevention"

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Cinar, Ayse Basak

    2011-01-01

    Abstract: Obesity, diabetes and oral diseases (dental cariesand periodontal diseases), largely preventable chronic diseases, are described as global pandemic due their distribution and severe consequences. WHO has called for a global action for prevention and promotion of these diseases as a vital...... the likelihood of periodontitis which is one of the most common chronic diseases worldwide, described as pandemic, and closely related to DM2. Promoting good oral health is significantly essential for prevention and reducing the negative consequences of periodontal diseases, DM2 and obesity, and to maintain good...

  5. Dabigatran experience in primary and secondary prevention of cardioembolic stroke

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Maksim Alekseyevich Domashenko

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available The review of novel oral anticoagulants (dabigatran, rivaroxaban and apixaban in stroke prevention and also own data of administration of dabigatran in primary and secondary prevention of ischemic stroke in 45 patients with cerebrovascular diseases are presented. Most patients received dabigatran 14 days after the first stroke associated with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation. In other cases dabigatran was used for primary prevention of stroke in patients with chronic forms of cerebrovascular diseases and nonvalvular atrial fibrillation. Dabigatran shows good tolerability and efficacy. Recurrent strokes were diagnosed in 2 patients. The reasons for these events were arterial hypertension in one case and symptomatic atherosclerotic plaque in the other case.

  6. PPIB mutations cause severe osteogenesis imperfecta

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    van Dijk, Fleur S.; Nesbitt, Isabel M.; Zwikstra, Eline H.; Nikkels, Peter G. J.; Piersma, Sander R.; Fratantoni, Silvina A.; Jimenez, Connie R.; Huizer, Margriet; Morsman, Alice C.; Cobben, Jan M.; van Roij, Mirjam H. H.; Elting, Mariet W.; Verbeke, Jonathan I. M. L.; Wijnaendts, Liliane C. D.; Shaw, Nick J.; Högler, Wolfgang; McKeown, Carole; Sistermans, Erik A.; Dalton, Ann; Meijers-Heijboer, Hanne; Pals, Gerard

    2009-01-01

    Deficiency of cartilage-associated protein (CRTAP) or prolyl 3-hydroxylase 1(P3H1) has been reported in autosomal-recessive lethal or severe osteogenesis imperfecta (OI). CRTAP, P3H1, and cyclophilin B (CyPB) form an intracellular collagen-modifying complex that 3-hydroxylates proline at position

  7. Synroc tailored waste forms for actinide immobilization

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Gregg, Daniel J.; Vance, Eric R. [Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation, Kirrawee (Australia). ANSTOsynroc, Inst. of Materials Engineering

    2017-07-01

    Since the end of the 1970s, Synroc at the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation (ANSTO) has evolved from a focus on titanate ceramics directed at PUREX waste to a platform waste treatment technology to fabricate tailored glass-ceramic and ceramic waste forms for different types of actinide, high- and intermediate level wastes. The particular emphasis for Synroc is on wastes which are problematic for glass matrices or existing vitrification process technologies. In particular, nuclear wastes containing actinides, notably plutonium, pose a unique set of requirements for a waste form, which Synroc ceramic and glass-ceramic waste forms can be tailored to meet. Key aspects to waste form design include maximising the waste loading, producing a chemically durable product, maintaining flexibility to accommodate waste variations, a proliferation resistance to prevent theft and diversion, and appropriate process technology to produce waste forms that meet requirements for actinide waste streams. Synroc waste forms incorporate the actinides within mineral phases, producing products which are much more durable in water than baseline borosilicate glasses. Further, Synroc waste forms can incorporate neutron absorbers and {sup 238}U which provide criticality control both during processing and whilst within the repository. Synroc waste forms offer proliferation resistance advantages over baseline borosilicate glasses as it is much more difficult to retrieve the actinide and they can reduce the radiation dose to workers compared to borosilicate glasses. Major research and development into Synroc at ANSTO over the past 40 years has included the development of waste forms for excess weapons plutonium immobilization in collaboration with the US and for impure plutonium residues in collaboration with the UK, as examples. With a waste loading of 40-50 wt.%, Synroc would also be considered a strong candidate as an engineered waste form for used nuclear fuel and highly

  8. Exacerbations of asthma - A descriptive study of 425 severe exacerbations

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Tattersfield, AE; Postma, DS; Barnes, PJ; Svensson, K; Bauer, CA; O'Byrne, PM; Lofdahl, CG; Pauwels, RA; Ullman, A

    The identification, prevention, and prompt treatment of exacerbations are major objectives of asthma management. We looked at change in PEF, symptoms, and use of rescue p-agonists during the 425 severe exacerbations that occurred during a 12-mo parallel group study (FACET) in which low and high

  9. A framework for the assessment of severe accident management strategies

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kastenberg, W.E.; Apostolakis, G.; Dhir, V.K.

    1993-09-01

    Severe accident management can be defined as the use of existing and/or altemative resources, systems and actors to prevent or mitigate a core-melt accident. For each accident sequence and each combination of severe accident management strategies, there may be several options available to the operator, and each involves phenomenological and operational considerations regarding uncertainty. Operational uncertainties include operator, system and instrumentation behavior during an accident. A framework based on decision trees and influence diagrams has been developed which incorporates such criteria as feasibility, effectiveness, and adverse effects, for evaluating potential severe accident management strategies. The framework is also capable of propagating both data and model uncertainty. It is applied to several potential strategies including PWR cavity flooding, BWR drywell flooding, PWR depressurization and PWR feed and bleed

  10. A framework for the assessment of severe accident management strategies

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kastenberg, W.E. [ed.; Apostolakis, G.; Dhir, V.K. [California Univ., Los Angeles, CA (United States). Dept. of Mechanical, Aerospace and Nuclear Engineering] [and others

    1993-09-01

    Severe accident management can be defined as the use of existing and/or altemative resources, systems and actors to prevent or mitigate a core-melt accident. For each accident sequence and each combination of severe accident management strategies, there may be several options available to the operator, and each involves phenomenological and operational considerations regarding uncertainty. Operational uncertainties include operator, system and instrumentation behavior during an accident. A framework based on decision trees and influence diagrams has been developed which incorporates such criteria as feasibility, effectiveness, and adverse effects, for evaluating potential severe accident management strategies. The framework is also capable of propagating both data and model uncertainty. It is applied to several potential strategies including PWR cavity flooding, BWR drywell flooding, PWR depressurization and PWR feed and bleed.

  11. The present status of xeroderma pigmentosum in Japan and a tentative severity classification scale.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nakano, Eiji; Masaki, Taro; Kanda, Fumio; Ono, Ryusuke; Takeuchi, Seiji; Moriwaki, Shinichi; Nishigori, Chikako

    2016-08-01

    Xeroderma pigmentosum (XP) is a rare autosomal recessive hereditary disease. Patients with XP have severe hypersensitivity to sunlight, resulting in skin cancers, and some patients have neurological symptoms. In Japan, XP complementation group A (XP-A) is the most common form, and it is associated with severe neurological symptoms. We performed a nationwide survey on XP to determine the present status of XP in Japan. The distribution of complementation groups in Japan was considerably different from that in other countries, but there was a higher frequency in group A and the variant type, which is similar to previous reports in Japan. Basal cell carcinoma was the most frequent skin cancer that patients with XP developed, followed by squamous cell carcinoma and malignant melanoma. The frequency of these skin cancers in patients with XP-A has decreased, and these skin cancers have been occurring in much older people than those previously observed. Diagnosing XP in patients at younger ages seems to encourage patients and their parents to use sun protection, which helps prevent skin cancer. We also created a tentative scale for classifying the severity of XP, and we evaluated the neurological symptoms of XP-A using this severity scale. Our classification correlated well with patients' age, suggesting that it may be useful and feasible in clinical practice to assess the progression of symptoms of each patient with XP and evaluate the effects of treatment in the future. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  12. Multimorbidity and quality of preventive care in Swiss university primary care cohorts.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sven Streit

    Full Text Available Caring for patients with multimorbidity is common for generalists, although such patients are often excluded from clinical trials, and thus such trials lack of generalizability. Data on the association between multimorbidity and preventive care are limited. We aimed to assess whether comorbidity number, severity and type were associated with preventive care among patients receiving care in Swiss University primary care settings.We examined a retrospective cohort composed of a random sample of 1,002 patients aged 50-80 years attending four Swiss university primary care settings. Multimorbidity was defined according to the literature and the Charlson index. We assessed the quality of preventive care and cardiovascular preventive care with RAND's Quality Assessment Tool indicators. Aggregate scores of quality of provided care were calculated by taking into account the number of eligible patients for each indicator.Participants (mean age 63.5 years, 44% women had a mean of 2.6 (SD 1.9 comorbidities and 67.5% had 2 or more comorbidities. The mean Charlson index was 1.8 (SD 1.9. Overall, participants received 69% of recommended preventive care and 84% of cardiovascular preventive care. Quality of care was not associated with higher numbers of comorbidities, both for preventive care and for cardiovascular preventive care. Results were similar in analyses using the Charlson index and after adjusting for age, gender, occupation, center and number of visits. Some patients may receive less preventive care including those with dementia (47% and those with schizophrenia (35%.In Swiss university primary care settings, two thirds of patients had 2 or more comorbidities. The receipt of preventive and cardiovascular preventive care was not affected by comorbidity count or severity, although patients with certain comorbidities may receive lower levels of preventive care.

  13. Tomato Lycopene and Lung Cancer Prevention: From Experimental to Human Studies

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Palozza, Paola, E-mail: p.palozza@rm.unicatt.it; Simone, Rossella E.; Catalano, Assunta [Institute of General Pathology, School of Medicine, Catholic University, L. Go F. Vito, Rome 1 00168 (Italy); Mele, Maria Cristina [Institute of Biochemistry and Clinical Biochemistry, School of Medicine, Catholic University, L. Go F. Vito, Rome 1 00168 (Italy)

    2011-05-11

    Increasing evidence suggests that tomato lycopene may be preventive against the formation and the development of lung cancer. Experimental studies demonstrated that lycopene may inhibit the growth of several cultured lung cancer cells and prevent lung tumorigenesis in animal models through various mechanisms, including a modulation of redox status, cell cycle arrest and/or apoptosis induction, a regulation of growth factor signaling, changes in cell growth-related enzymes, an enhancement of gap junction communication and a prevention of smoke-induced inflammation. In addition, lycopene also inhibited cell invasion, angiogenesis, and metastasis. Several lycopene metabolites have been identified, raising the question as to whether the preventive effects of lycopene on cancer risk is, at least in part, due to its metabolites. Despite these promising reports, it is difficult at the moment to directly relate available experimental data to human pathophysiology. More well controlled clinical intervention trials are needed to further clarify the exact role of lycopene in the prevention of lung cancer cell growth. Such studies should take into consideration subject selection, specific markers of analysis, the levels of carotenoids being tested, metabolism and isomerization of lycopene, interaction with other bioactive food components. This article reviews data on the cancer preventive activities of lycopene, possible mechanisms involved, and the relationship between lycopene consumption and human cancer risk.

  14. Tomato Lycopene and Lung Cancer Prevention: From Experimental to Human Studies

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Palozza, Paola; Simone, Rossella E.; Catalano, Assunta; Mele, Maria Cristina

    2011-01-01

    Increasing evidence suggests that tomato lycopene may be preventive against the formation and the development of lung cancer. Experimental studies demonstrated that lycopene may inhibit the growth of several cultured lung cancer cells and prevent lung tumorigenesis in animal models through various mechanisms, including a modulation of redox status, cell cycle arrest and/or apoptosis induction, a regulation of growth factor signaling, changes in cell growth-related enzymes, an enhancement of gap junction communication and a prevention of smoke-induced inflammation. In addition, lycopene also inhibited cell invasion, angiogenesis, and metastasis. Several lycopene metabolites have been identified, raising the question as to whether the preventive effects of lycopene on cancer risk is, at least in part, due to its metabolites. Despite these promising reports, it is difficult at the moment to directly relate available experimental data to human pathophysiology. More well controlled clinical intervention trials are needed to further clarify the exact role of lycopene in the prevention of lung cancer cell growth. Such studies should take into consideration subject selection, specific markers of analysis, the levels of carotenoids being tested, metabolism and isomerization of lycopene, interaction with other bioactive food components. This article reviews data on the cancer preventive activities of lycopene, possible mechanisms involved, and the relationship between lycopene consumption and human cancer risk

  15. Tomato Lycopene and Lung Cancer Prevention: From Experimental to Human Studies

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Assunta Catalano

    2011-05-01

    Full Text Available Increasing evidence suggests that tomato lycopene may be preventive against the formation and the development of lung cancer. Experimental studies demonstrated that lycopene may inhibit the growth of several cultured lung cancer cells and prevent lung tumorigenesis in animal models through various mechanisms, including a modulation of redox status, cell cycle arrest and/or apoptosis induction, a regulation of growth factor signaling, changes in cell growth-related enzymes, an enhancement of gap junction communication and a prevention of smoke-induced inflammation. In addition, lycopene also inhibited cell invasion, angiogenesis, and metastasis. Several lycopene metabolites have been identified, raising the question as to whether the preventive effects of lycopene on cancer risk is, at least in part, due to its metabolites. Despite these promising reports, it is difficult at the moment to directly relate available experimental data to human pathophysiology. More well controlled clinical intervention trials are needed to further clarify the exact role of lycopene in the prevention of lung cancer cell growth. Such studies should take into consideration subject selection, specific markers of analysis, the levels of carotenoids being tested, metabolism and isomerization of lycopene, interaction with other bioactive food components. This article reviews data on the cancer preventive activities of lycopene, possible mechanisms involved, and the relationship between lycopene consumption and human cancer risk.

  16. Overproduction and secretion of a novel amino-terminal form of parathyroid hormone from a severe type of parathyroid hyperplasia in uremia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Arakawa, Toshio; D'Amour, Pierre; Rousseau, Louise; Brossard, Jean-Hugues; Sakai, Makoto; Kasumoto, Hiroomi; Igaki, Naoya; Goto, Takeo; Cantor, Tom; Fukagawa, Masafumi

    2006-05-01

    Measurement of bioactive parathyroid hormone (PTH) is essential for optimal management of bone abnormalities in dialysis patients. This can be accomplished by PTH measurements using third-generation PTH assays, which detect more or less of the first six amino acids of the PTH structure. Such assays do not detect non-(1-84) PTH fragments, such as human PTH (7-84), which are recognized by the second-generation PTH assays that use a detection antibody that recognizes an epitope within the 13-34 region of the PTH structure. Therefore, third-generation PTH results are expected to be lower than those that are obtained with second-generation PTH assays. Rare exceptions to this rule have been reported for patients with severe primary hyperparathyroidism or parathyroid cancer. Sera and gland extracts were analyzed from a dialysis patient with high bone turnover disease and with surprising higher PTH levels by a third-generation assay than by a second-generation assay. This finding normalized after the surgical removal of an enlarged gland with a single nodule, an advanced type of nodular hyperplasia. HPLC fractionation of sera and gland extracts revealed the overproduction and secretion of a PTH molecule with an intact amino-terminus structure distinct from (1-84) PTH. This form of PTH was readily detectable by third-generation PTH assays but was poorly reactive in second-generation PTH assays. Therefore, parathyroid glands with advanced uremic nodular hyperplasia may overproduce and secrete a novel, biologically active form of PTH with an intact 1-6 region but a presumably modified 12-18 region required for the detection in second-generation PTH assays.

  17. Students' Reports of Severe Violence in School as a Tool for Early Detection and Prevention

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yablon, Yaacov B.

    2017-01-01

    Early detection of severe violence is a significant challenge for many schools. Three studies were conducted on samples of 6th, 8th, and 10th graders (12-16 years old). The first study, based on paired reports of teachers and students (n = 130), showed that a high percentage of both victims and perpetrators of severe violence are not identified by…

  18. A novel methodology for in-process monitoring of flow forming

    Science.gov (United States)

    Appleby, Andrew; Conway, Alastair; Ion, William

    2017-10-01

    Flow forming (FF) is an incremental cold working process with near-net-shape forming capability. Failures by fracture due to high deformation can be unexpected and sometimes catastrophic, causing tool damage. If process failures can be identified in real time, an automatic cut-out could prevent costly tool damage. Sound and vibration monitoring is well established and commercially viable in the machining sector to detect current and incipient process failures, but not for FF. A broad-frequency microphone was used to record the sound signature of the manufacturing cycle for a series of FF parts. Parts were flow formed using single and multiple passes, and flaws were introduced into some of the parts to simulate the presence of spontaneously initiated cracks. The results show that this methodology is capable of identifying both introduced defects and spontaneous failures during flow forming. Further investigation is needed to categorise and identify different modes of failure and identify further potential applications in rotary forming.

  19. Addressing severe accidents in the CANDU 9 design

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Nijhawan, S.M.; Wight, A.L.; Snell, V.G.

    1998-01-01

    CANDU 9 is a single-unit evolutionary heavy-water reactor based on the Bruce/Darlington plants. Severe accident issues are being systematically addressed in CANDU 9, which includes a number of unique features for prevention and mitigation of severe accidents. A comprehensive severe accident program has been formulated with feedback from potential clients and the Canadian regulatory agency. Preliminary Probabilistic Safety Analyses have identified the sequences and frequency of system and human failures that may potentially lead to initial conditions indicating onset of severe core damage. Severe accident consequence analyses have used these sequences as a guide to assess passive heat sinks for the core, and containment performance. Estimates of the containment response to mass and energy injections typical of postulated severe accidents have been made and the results are presented. We find that inherent CANDU severe accident mitigation features, such as the presence of large water volumes near the fuel (moderator and shield tank), permit a relatively slow severe accident progression under most plant damage states, facilitate debris coolability and allow ample time for the operator to arrest the progression within, progressively, the fuel channels, calandria vessel or shield tank. The large-volume CANDU 9 containment design complements these features because of the long times to reach failure

  20. Research and development strategy on the behavior of containments during severe accidents

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lecomte, C.

    1990-06-01

    In case of an hypothetical severe accident leading to core melting, the last barrier preventing radionucleide release in the environnment is the containment of the main reactor building. The French research and development programmes aimed at understanding the containment behavior during severe accidents relate to several domains; some of them are: - assessment of hydrogen behavior - corium behavior and coolability - ultimate resistance of the containments and leaktightness - caracterization of filtered venting procedure. All these aspects are covered by code calculations and experimental developments

  1. It’s Not Just About Baby Teeth: Preventing Early Childhood Caries

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jennifer D. Zwicker

    2016-04-01

    Full Text Available Early Childhood Caries (ECC is a serious disease that is about much more than cavities on baby teeth. In Canada, it is a growing public health problem with adverse long-term effects on children's physical, emotional and intellectual well-being. The failure to invest in preventive care has resulted in reactive, rather than proactive, measures against this disease. These measures are expensive and a needless drain on costs in the public health-care system. Children with severe ECC end up in hospital; in fact, in Canada, this disease is the most common reason children undergo day surgery. From 2010 to 2012, one in 100 children under age five required day surgery for ECC, with approximately 19,000 of these surgeries performed each year on children under age six. Canadian hospital costs for ECC day surgery in children aged one to five ranged from $1,271 to $1,963 per child, totalling $21.2 million between 2010 and 2012. Children from low-income families, along with aboriginal, immigrant and refugee children are disproportionately affected by dental disease, with between 50 per cent and 90 per cent of suffering from some form of ECC. This compares to an average of 57 per cent of children affected in the general population. A recent Alberta study indicates that when municipalities cease fluoridating their water supplies, children suffer increased levels of tooth decay. This has reignited the discussion around whether municipalities should add fluoride to the drinking water, or reinstate it in places where the water used to be fluoridated. While fluoridation can be an effective prevention strategy, this study also shows that fluoride alone is not enough. To reduce the costs and developmental consequences associated with severe ECC and improve well-being, oral health policies focused on disease prevention and health promotion are still necessary. This briefing paper provides background on the etiology, risk factors and prevalence of ECC in Canada to

  2. Combined Waste Form Cost Trade Study

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gombert, Dirk; Piet, Steve; Trickel, Timothy; Carter, Joe; Vienna, John; Ebert, Bill; Matthern, Gretchen

    2008-01-01

    A new generation of aqueous nuclear fuel reprocessing, now in development under the auspices of the DOE Office of Nuclear Energy (NE), separates fuel into several fractions, thereby partitioning the wastes into groups of common chemistry. This technology advance enables development of waste management strategies that were not conceivable with simple PUREX reprocessing. Conventional wisdom suggests minimizing high level waste (HLW) volume is desirable, but logical extrapolation of this concept suggests that at some point the cost of reducing volume further will reach a point of diminishing return and may cease to be cost-effective. This report summarizes an evaluation considering three groupings of wastes in terms of cost-benefit for the reprocessing system. Internationally, the typical waste form for HLW from the PUREX process is borosilicate glass containing waste elements as oxides. Unfortunately several fission products (primarily Mo and the noble metals Ru, Rh, Pd) have limited solubility in glass, yielding relatively low waste loading, producing more glass, and greater disposal costs. Advanced separations allow matching the waste form to waste stream chemistry, allowing the disposal system to achieve more optimum waste loading with improved performance. Metals can be segregated from oxides and each can be stabilized in forms to minimize the HLW volume for repository disposal. Thus, a more efficient waste management system making the most effective use of advanced waste forms and disposal design for each waste is enabled by advanced separations and how the waste streams are combined. This trade-study was designed to juxtapose a combined waste form baseline waste treatment scheme with two options and to evaluate the cost-benefit using available data from the conceptual design studies supported by DOE-NE

  3. Root causes and impacts of severe accidents at large nuclear power plants.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Högberg, Lars

    2013-04-01

    The root causes and impacts of three severe accidents at large civilian nuclear power plants are reviewed: the Three Mile Island accident in 1979, the Chernobyl accident in 1986, and the Fukushima Daiichi accident in 2011. Impacts include health effects, evacuation of contaminated areas as well as cost estimates and impacts on energy policies and nuclear safety work in various countries. It is concluded that essential objectives for reactor safety work must be: (1) to prevent accidents from developing into severe core damage, even if they are initiated by very unlikely natural or man-made events, and, recognizing that accidents with severe core damage may nevertheless occur; (2) to prevent large-scale and long-lived ground contamination by limiting releases of radioactive nuclides such as cesium to less than about 100 TBq. To achieve these objectives the importance of maintaining high global standards of safety management and safety culture cannot be emphasized enough. All three severe accidents discussed in this paper had their root causes in system deficiencies indicative of poor safety management and poor safety culture in both the nuclear industry and government authorities.

  4. Root Causes and Impacts of Severe Accidents at Large Nuclear Power Plants

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hoegberg, Lars

    2013-01-01

    The root causes and impacts of three severe accidents at large civilian nuclear power plants are reviewed: the Three Mile Island accident in 1979, the Chernobyl accident in 1986, and the Fukushima Daiichi accident in 2011. Impacts include health effects, evacuation of contaminated areas as well as cost estimates and impacts on energy policies and nuclear safety work in various countries. It is concluded that essential objectives for reactor safety work must be: (1) to prevent accidents from developing into severe core damage, even if they are initiated by very unlikely natural or man-made events, and, recognizing that accidents with severe core damage may nevertheless occur; (2) to prevent large-scale and long lived ground contamination by limiting releases of radioactive nuclides such as cesium to less than about 100 TBq. To achieve these objectives the importance of maintaining high global standards of safety management and safety culture cannot be emphasized enough. All three severe accidents discussed in this paper had their root causes in system deficiencies indicative of poor safety management and poor safety culture in both the nuclear industry and government authorities

  5. Root Causes and Impacts of Severe Accidents at Large Nuclear Power Plants

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Hoegberg, Lars

    2013-04-15

    The root causes and impacts of three severe accidents at large civilian nuclear power plants are reviewed: the Three Mile Island accident in 1979, the Chernobyl accident in 1986, and the Fukushima Daiichi accident in 2011. Impacts include health effects, evacuation of contaminated areas as well as cost estimates and impacts on energy policies and nuclear safety work in various countries. It is concluded that essential objectives for reactor safety work must be: (1) to prevent accidents from developing into severe core damage, even if they are initiated by very unlikely natural or man-made events, and, recognizing that accidents with severe core damage may nevertheless occur; (2) to prevent large-scale and long lived ground contamination by limiting releases of radioactive nuclides such as cesium to less than about 100 TBq. To achieve these objectives the importance of maintaining high global standards of safety management and safety culture cannot be emphasized enough. All three severe accidents discussed in this paper had their root causes in system deficiencies indicative of poor safety management and poor safety culture in both the nuclear industry and government authorities.

  6. Morbidity and mortality risk among patients with screening-detected severe hypertension in the Malmö Preventive Project.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Westerdahl, Christina; Zöller, Bengt; Arslan, Eren; Erdine, Serap; Nilsson, Peter M

    2014-12-01

    Screening of hypertension has been advocated for early detection and treatment. Severe hypertension (grade 3 hypertension) is a strong predictor for cardiovascular disease. This study aimed to evaluate not only the risk factors for developing severe hypertension, but also the prospective morbidity and mortality risk associated with severe hypertension in a population-based screening and intervention programme. In all, 18,200 individuals from a population-based cohort underwent a baseline examination in 1972-1992 and were re-examined in 2002-2006 in Malmö, Sweden. In total, 300 (1.6%) patients with severe hypertension were identified at re-examination, and predictive risk factors from baseline were calculated. Total and cause-specific morbidity and mortality were followed in national registers in all severe hypertension patients, as well as in age and sex-matched normotensive controls. Cox analyses for hazard ratios were used. Men developing severe hypertension differed from matched controls in baseline variables associated with the metabolic syndrome, as well as paternal history of hypertension (P < 0.001). Women with later severe hypertension were characterized by elevated BMI and a positive maternal history for hypertension at baseline. The risk of mortality, coronary events, stroke and diabetes during follow-up was higher among severe hypertension patients compared to controls. For coronary events, the risk remained elevated adjusted for other risk factors [hazard ratio 2.31, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.22-4.40, P = 0.011]. Family history and variables associated with metabolic syndrome are predictors for severe hypertension after a long-term follow-up. Severe hypertension is associated with increased mortality, cardiovascular morbidity and incident diabetes in spite of treatment. This calls for improved risk factor control in patients with severe hypertension.

  7. Update on breast cancer risk prediction and prevention.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sestak, Ivana; Cuzick, Jack

    2015-02-01

    Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women worldwide. This review will focus on current prevention strategies for women at high risk. The identification of women who are at high risk of developing breast cancer is key to breast cancer prevention. Recent findings have shown that the inclusion of breast density and a panel of low-penetrance genetic polymorphisms can improve risk estimation compared with previous models. Preventive therapy with aromatase inhibitors has produced large reductions in breast cancer incidence in postmenopausal women. Tamoxifen confers long-term protection and is the only proven preventive treatment for premenopausal women. Several other agents, including metformin, bisphosphonates, aspirin and statins, have been found to be effective in nonrandomized settings. There are many options for the prevention of oestrogen-positive breast cancer, in postmenopausal women who can be given a selective oestrogen receptor modulator or an aromatase inhibitor. It still remains unclear how to prevent oestrogen-negative breast cancer, which occurs more often in premenopausal women. Identification of women at high risk of the disease is crucial, and the inclusion of breast density and a panel of genetic polymorphisms, which individually have low penetrance, can improve risk assessment.

  8. Enhancing work-focused supports for people with severe mental illnesses in australia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Contreras, Natalia; Rossell, Susan L; Castle, David J; Fossey, Ellie; Morgan, Dea; Crosse, Caroline; Harvey, Carol

    2012-01-01

    Persons with severe mental illness (SMI) have reduced workforce participation, which leads to significant economic and social disadvantage. This theoretical review introduces the strategies that have been implemented to address this issue. These include Individual Placement and Support (IPS) services, the most widely researched form of supported employment, to which cognitive remediation has more recently been recognised in the USA, as an intervention to improve employment outcomes by addressing the cognitive impairments often experienced by people with SMI. The authors review the international literature and discuss specifically the Australian context. They suggest that Australia is in a prime position to engage clients in such a dual intervention, having had recent success with increasing access to supported employment programs and workforce reentry, through implementation of the Health Optimisation Program for Employment (HOPE). Such programs assist with gaining and maintaining employment. However, they do not address the cognitive issues that often prevent persons with SMI from effectively participating in work. Thus, optimising current interventions, with work-focused cognitive skills development is critical to enhancing employment rates that remain low for persons with SMI.

  9. Swedish REGULATORY APPROACH TO SAFETY Assessment AND SEVERE ACCIDENT MANAGEMENT

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Frid, W.; Sandervaag, O.

    1997-01-01

    The Swedish regulatory approach to safety assessment and severe accident management is briefly described. The safety assessment program, which focuses on prevention of incidents and accidents, has three main components: periodic safety reviews, probabilistic safety analysis, and analysis of postulated disturbances and accident progression sequences. Management and man-technology-organisation issues, as well as inspections, play a key role in safety assessment. Basis for severe accident management were established by the Government decisions in 1981 and 1986. By the end of 1988, the severe accident mitigation systems and emergency operating procedures were implemented at all Swedish reactors. The severe accident research has continued after 1988 for further verification of the protection provided by the systems and reduction of remaining uncertainties in risk dominant phenomena

  10. Linking HIV-Negative Youth to Prevention Services in 12 U.S. Cities: Barriers and Facilitators to Implementing the HIV Prevention Continuum.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Doll, Mimi; Fortenberry, J Dennis; Roseland, Denise; McAuliff, Kathleen; Wilson, Craig M; Boyer, Cherrie B

    2018-04-01

    Linkage of HIV-negative youth to prevention services is increasingly important with the development of effective pre-exposure prophylaxis that complements behavioral and other prevention-focused interventions. However, effective infrastructure for delivery of prevention services does not exist, leaving many programs to address HIV prevention without data to guide program development/implementation. The objective of this study was to provide a qualitative description of barriers and facilitators of linkage to prevention services among high-risk, HIV-negative youth. Thematic analysis of structured interviews with staff implementing linkage to prevention services programs for youth aged 12-24 years. Twelve adolescent medicine HIV primary care programs as part of larger testing research program focused on young sexual minority men of color. The study included staff implementing linkage to prevention services programs along with community-based HIV testing programs. The main outcomes of the study were key barriers/facilitators to linkage to prevention services. Eight themes summarized perspectives on linkage to prevention services: (1) relationships with community partners, (2) trust between providers and youth, (3) youth capacity to navigate prevention services, (4) pre-exposure prophylaxis specific issues, (5) privacy issues, (6) gaps in health records preventing tailored services, (7) confidentiality of care for youth accessing services through parents'/caretakers' insurance, and (8) need for health-care institutions to keep pace with models that prioritize HIV prevention among at-risk youth. Themes are discussed in the context of factors that facilitated/challenged linkage to prevention services. Several evidence-based HIV prevention tools are available; infrastructures for coordinated service delivery to high-risk youth have not been developed. Implementation of such infrastructures requires attention to community-, provider-, and youth-related issues. Copyright

  11. Concrete under severe conditions. Environment and loading

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    2007-01-01

    The objective of the CONSEC Conferences is to focus on concrete infrastructures, either subjected to severe environment or severe loading, or any combination of severe conditions. Experience from the performance of existing concrete structures, and especially under severe environmental conditions, severe accidental loading or extended lifespan, has demonstrated the need for better integration of structural and durability design, new design concepts including reliability-based durability design, performance-based material requirements, structural robustness, and an improved basis for documentation of obtained construction quality and durability properties during concrete construction. An improved basis for operation and preventive maintenance of concrete structures including repairs and retrofitting is also very important. Premature corrosion of reinforcing steel, inadequate structural design for seismic or blast loading, are examples of reduced service life of concrete structures that not only represent technical and economical problems, but also a huge waste of natural resources and hence also, an environmental and ecological problem. Experience of structures effectively submitted to severe conditions represents a unique benchmark for quantifying the actual safety and durability margin of concrete structures. In fact for several reasons, most concrete design codes, job specifications and other requirements for concrete structures have frequently shown to yield insufficient and unsatisfactory results and ability to solve the above problems, as well as issues raised by specific very long-term or very severe requirements for nuclear and industrial waste management, or civil works of strategic relevance. Recently available high to ultra-high performance concrete may find rational and valuable application in such cases. It is very important, therefore, to bring people with different professional backgrounds together to exchange experience and develop multi

  12. Sleep apnoea: Finnish National guidelines for prevention and treatment 2002-2012.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Laitinen, L A; Anttalainen, U; Pietinalho, A; Hämäläinen, P; Koskela, K

    2003-04-01

    (1) After negotiations with the Finnish Ministry of Social Affairs and Health, a national programme to promote prevention, treatment and rehabilitation of sleep apnoea for the years 2002-2012 has been prepared by the Finnish Lung Health Association on the basis of extensive collaboration. The programme needs to be revised as necessary, because of the rapid development in medical knowledge, and in appliance therapy in particular. (2) Sleep apnoea deteriorates slowly. Its typical features are snoring, interruptions of breathing during sleep and daytime tiredness. Sleep apnoea affects roughly 3% of middle-aged men and 2% of women. In Finland, there are approx. 150,000 sleep apnea patients, of which 15,000 patients have a severe disease, 50,000 patients are moderate and 85,000 have a mild form of the disease. Children are also affected by sleep apnea. A typical sleep apnea patient is a middle-aged man or a postmenopausal woman. (3) The obstruction of upper airways is essential in the occurrence of sleep apnoea. The obstruction can be caused by structural and/or functional factors. As for structural factors, there are various methods of intervention, such as to secure children's nasal respiration, to remove redundant soft tissue, as well as to correct malocclusions. It is possible to have an effect on the functional factors by treating well diseases predisposing to sleep apnoea, by reducing smoking, the consumption of alcohol and the use of medicines impairing the central nervous system. The most important single risk factor for sleep apnoea is obesity. (4) Untreated sleep apnoea leads to an increase morbidity and mortality through heart circulatory diseases and through accidents by tiredness. Untreated or undertreated sleep apnoea deteriorates a person's quality of life and working capacity. (5) The goals of the Programme for the prevention and treatment of sleep apnoea are as follows: (1) to decrease the incidence of sleep apnoea, (2) to ensure that as many patients

  13. [State of the art diagnostic criteria of severe periodontitis].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ouyang, X Y

    2017-02-09

    Periodontitis could be categorized as mild, moderate, and severe according to the severity of the disease. This categorizing system could also be used together with other classification systems. The present article introduced the status about the case definition of severe periodontitis, including the standard of case definitions for surveillance of periodontitis reported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in partnership with the American Academy of Periodontology (AAP) and the consensus report on the definition of periodontitis case for use in risk factor research by Europe workshop. A consensus on the state of the art definition of severe periodontitis for use in clinical work was gained base on the expertise of Chinese Society of Periodontology, Chinese Association of Stomatology. The background of this consensus and the significance of the criteria for the case definition were discussed.

  14. NPP Krsko Severe Accident Management Guidelines Upgrade

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mihalina, Mario; Spalj, Srdjan; Glaser, Bruno; Jalovec, Robi; Jankovic, Gordan

    2014-01-01

    Nuclear Power Plant Krsko (NEK) has decided to take steps for upgrade of safety measures to prevent severe accidents, and to improve the means to successfully mitigate their consequences. The content of the program for the NEK Safety Upgrade is consistent with the nuclear industry response to Fukushima accident, which revealed many new insights into severe accidents. Therefore, new strategies and usage of new systems and components should be integrated into current NEK Severe Accident Management Guidelines (SAMG's). SAMG's are developed to arrest the progression of a core damage accident and to limit the extent of resulting releases of fission products. NEK new SAMG's revision major changes are made due to: replacement of Electrical Recombiners by Passive Autocatalytic Recombiners (PARs) and the installation of Passive Containment Filtered Vent System (PCFV); to handle a fuel damage situation in Spent Fuel Pool (SFP) and to assess risk of core damage situation during shutdown operation. (authors)

  15. Myo-inositol soft gel capsules may prevent the risk of coffee-induced neural tube defects.

    Science.gov (United States)

    De Grazia, Sara; Carlomagno, Gianfranco; Unfer, Vittorio; Cavalli, Pietro

    2012-09-01

    Neural tube defects (NTDs) are classified as folate sensitive (about 70%) and folate resistant (about 30%); although folic acid is able to prevent the former, several data have shown that inositol may prevent the latter. It has recently been proposed that coffee intake might represent a risk factor for NTD, likely by interfering with the inositol signaling. In the present study, we tested the hypothesis that, beside affecting the inositol signaling pathway, coffee also interferes with inositol absorption. In order to evaluate coffee possible negative effects on inositol gastrointestinal absorption, a single-dose bioavailability trial was conducted. Pharmacokinetics (PK) parameters of myo-inositol (MI) powder and MI soft gelatin capsules swallowed with water and with a single 'espresso' were compared. PK profiles were obtained by analysis of MI plasma concentration, and the respective MI bioavailability was compared. Myo-inositol powder administration was negatively affected by coffee intake, thus suggesting an additional explanation to the interference between inositol deficiency and coffee consumption. On the contrary, the concomitant single 'espresso' consumption did not affect MI absorption following MI soft gelatin capsules administration. Furthermore, it was observed that MI soft gelatin capsule administration resulted in improved bioavailability compared to the MI powder form. Myo-inositol soft gelatin capsules should be considered for the preventive treatment of NTDs in folate-resistant subjects due to their higher bioavailability and to the capability to reduce espresso interference.

  16. Successful Treatment of Severe Carbon Monoxide Poisoning and Refractory Shock Using Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Teerapuncharoen, Krittika; Sharma, Nirmal S; Barker, Andrew B; Wille, Keith M; Diaz-Guzman, Enrique

    2015-09-01

    Carbon monoxide (CO) is the most common cause of poisoning and poisoning-related death in the United States. It is a tasteless and odorless poisonous gas produced from incomplete combustion of hydrocarbons, such as those produced by cars and heating systems. CO rapidly binds to hemoglobin to form carboxyhemoglobin, leading to tissue hypoxia, multiple-organ failure, and cardiovascular collapse. CO also binds to myocardial myoglobin, preventing oxidative phosphorylation in cardiac mitochondria and resulting in cardiac ischemia or stunning and cardiogenic pulmonary edema. Treatment of CO poisoning is mainly supportive, and supplemental oxygen remains the cornerstone of therapy, whereas hyperbaric oxygen therapy is considered for patients with evidence of neurological and myocardial injury. Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) has been utilized effectively in patients with respiratory failure and hemodynamic instability, but its use has rarely been reported in patients with CO poisoning. We report the successful use of venoarterial ECMO in a patient with severe CO poisoning and multiple-organ failure. Copyright © 2015 by Daedalus Enterprises.

  17. Preventive Detention: A Necessity

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jaya Mishra

    2017-08-01

    Full Text Available State, ever since, its emergence, has been concerned with the maintenance of law and order and protecting people from external aggression and internal threats, thereby, ensuring safety and security to its inhabitants. The authority to maintain law and order empowers the state to use coercive power. It also emanates from various laws that are enacted from time to time. More often than not, coercive laws are self-contradictory because on the one hand they guarantee rights to people and on the other hand, they take away the right of a person or persons. Therefore, it is not wrong to say that modern states are repository of contradictions and India is no exception. There are several undemocratic provisions in the Indian Constitution; preventive detention is one of them. It seeks to detain a person to prevent him/her from indulging in any activity which is likely to pose a threat to the security of the State. In Britain and America this provision was used during World War II while, in India it can be used even in peacetime. This provision has been extensively used against the political dissidents during the post-colonial period. Justice Mahajan of the Supreme Court of India has held that ‘preventive detention laws are repugnant to democratic constitution and they cannot be found to exist in any of the democratic countries of the world’. The question that one can ask at this juncture is that why did the Government of ‘independent’ India retain preventive detention laws? And further, framed new ones. This research contribution examines the circumstances which compelled the Government to frame ‘preventive detention’ laws, and its use during national emergency and peace time.

  18. The Peru cervical cancer prevention study (PERCAPS): community-based participatory research in Manchay, Peru.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Levinson, Kimberly L; Abuelo, Carolina; Chyung, Eunice; Salmeron, Jorge; Belinson, Suzanne E; Sologuren, Carlos Vallejos; Ortiz, Carlos Santos; Vallejos, Maria Jose; Belinson, Jerome L

    2013-01-01

    Cervical cancer is a preventable disease which causes significant morbidity and mortality, particularly in developing countries. Although technology for early detection continues to improve, prevention programs suffer from significant barriers. Community-based participatory research is an approach to research which focuses on collaboration with the community to surmount these barriers. The objective of this study was to evaluate the utility of community-based participatory research techniques in a mother-child screen/treat and vaccinate program for cervical cancer prevention in Manchay, Peru. Human papillomavirus (HPV) self-sampling and cryotherapy were used for the screen/treat intervention, and the Gardasil vaccine was used for the vaccine intervention. Community health workers from Manchay participated in a 3-day educational course, designed by the research team. The community health workers then decided how to implement the interventions in their community. The success of the program was measured by (1) the ability of the community health workers to determine an implementation plan, (2) the successful use of research forms provided, (3) participation and retention rates, and (4) satisfaction of the participants. (1) The community health workers used a door-to-door approach through which participants were successfully registered and both interventions were successfully carried out; (2) registration forms, consent forms, and result forms were used correctly with minimal error; (3) screen/treat intervention: 97% of registered participants gave an HPV sample, 94% of HPV-positive women were treated, and 90% returned for 6-month follow-up; vaccine intervention: 95% of registered girls received the first vaccine, 97% of those received the second vaccine, and 93% the third; (4) 96% of participants in the screen/treat intervention reported high satisfaction. Community-based participatory research techniques successfully helped to implement a screen/treat and vaccinate

  19. Vision-Related Functional Burden of Diabetic Retinopathy Across Severity Levels in the United States.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Willis, Jeffrey R; Doan, Quan V; Gleeson, Michelle; Haskova, Zdenka; Ramulu, Pradeep; Morse, Lawrence; Cantrell, Ronald A

    2017-09-01

    % CI, 1.29-10.05; P = .02). Those with severe NPDR or PDR did not have a statistically significant greater odds of vision-related functional burden than did those with mild or moderate NPDR (aOR, 2.70; 95% CI, 0.93-7.78; P = .07). Among US adults with diabetes, approximately half of those with severe NPDR or PDR had difficulty with at least one visual function task. Moreover, vision-related functional burden was significantly greater among those with severe NPDR or PDR than among those with no retinopathy. These data suggest the importance of preventing severe forms of DR to mitigate the vision-related functional burden among US adults with diabetes. Future studies should complement our study by assessing the association of worsening retinopathy with objectively measured functional outcomes.

  20. Severe hypertriglyceridemia with pancreatitis: thirteen years' treatment with lomitapide.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sacks, Frank M; Stanesa, Maxine; Hegele, Robert A

    2014-03-01

    Recurrent pancreatitis is a potentially fatal complication of severe hypertriglyceridemia. Genetic defects and lifestyle risk factors may render this condition unresponsive to current treatments. We report this first case of long-term management of intractable near-fatal recurrent pancreatitis secondary to severe hypertriglyceridemia by a novel use of lomitapide, an inhibitor of microsomal triglyceride transfer protein, recently approved for treatment of familial homozygous hypercholesterolemia. The patient had been hospitalized many times for pancreatitis since age 15 years. Her serum triglyceride level averaged 3900 mg/dL while she received therapy with approved lipid drugs. She is homozygous for a coding mutation (P234L) in lipoprotein lipase, leaving her unable to metabolize triglycerides in chylomicrons and very low density lipoproteins (VLDL). Lomitapide reduces the secretion of chylomicrons and VLDL. Lomitapide, which was started when she was 44 years old after near-fatal pancreatitis, lowered her fasting triglyceride level from greater than 3000 mg/dL to a mean (SD) of 903 (870) mg/dL while she received 30 mg/d and to 524 (265) mg/dL while she received 40 mg/d; eliminated chronic abdominal pain; and prevented pancreatitis. However, fatty liver, present before treatment, progressed to steatohepatitis and fibrosis after 12 to 13 years. Lomitapide prevented pancreatitis in severe intractable hypertriglyceridemia but at a potential long-term cost of hepatotoxicity.

  1. Triplex-forming ability of modified oligonucleotides

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Højland, Torben; Babu, Bolle Ravindra; Bryld, Torsten

    2007-01-01

    We present our studies on the ability of several different nucleotide analogs as triplex-forming oligonucleotides. The modifications tested include 4'-C-hydroxymethyl, LNA, 2'-amino-LNA and N2'-functionalized 2'-amino-LNA. Triplexes containing monomers of N2'-glycyl-functionalized 2'-amino-LNA ar...

  2. Strategies for preventing respiratory syncytial virus.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Forbes, Michael

    2008-12-01

    Prevention of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) infection-crucial for decreasing the burden associated with this disease-is discussed. Predictable outbreaks of RSV occur annually throughout the U.S. During these outbreaks, RSV infection spreads readily among children through close contact with infected individuals or contact with contaminated surfaces or objects. RSV is the leading cause of infant hospitalization and is associated with life-changing and life-threatening complications. Prevention is important for reducing the associated morbidity and mortality. The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) has outlined ways to prevent RSV transmission. According to the AAP, frequent hand washing is the most important strategy for reducing the burden of RSV disease. Other methods for controlling nosocomial spread of RSV include the use of gloves, frequent glove changes, and isolating or cohorting patients. General prevention measures that can be undertaken by family members include smoking cessation, breastfeeding, and avoiding situations, whenever possible, where exposure to RSV cannot be controlled. Passive immunoprophylaxis with palivizumab, the only agent approved by the FDA, reduces hospitalization in high-risk children. Palivizumab is currently the only agent approved by the FDA for the prevention of RSV infections in high-risk children. Not every child is equally at risk for serious RSV disease, and immunoprophylaxis is indicated only for certain high-risk children. The AAP has issued specific guidelines for RSV immunoprophylaxis with palivizumab. Other therapies are emerging for the prevention of RSV, including a new, enhanced-potency, humanized RSV monoclonal antibody and several different types of vaccines. RSV causes an annual, predictable epidemic. Treatment remains exclusively supportive. Prevention remains the cornerstone of disease management. The AAP has issued guidelines to protect those at high risk.

  3. State Options for Supporting Delinquency Prevention: A Working Paper.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Croan, Gerald M.; And Others

    A supplement to the related document "Delinquency Prevention: Theories and Strategies," this paper analyzes the options for state agencies (particularly state planning agencies participating in the Law Enforcement Assistance Administration formula grant program) to promote and support program forms recommended in the companion document.…

  4. The main issues preventing Kosovo’s economic development

    OpenAIRE

    Demir Lima

    2017-01-01

    This study provides an analysis of several problematic factors preventing Kosovo’s economic development. Several sectors that could have been the main pillars of economic development, such as manufacturing, energy, mines and minerals, and other economic sectors have been neglected from the development by domestic institutions or were used clandestinely by certain interest groups, whose focus was not in the development of the country but rather their personal gain. Trade remained the preferred...

  5. Geriatric falls: prevention strategies for the staff.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brady, R; Chester, F R; Pierce, L L; Salter, J P; Schreck, S; Radziewicz, R

    1993-09-01

    1. Multiple falls and injuries are more prevalent among elderly over the age of 75 and are the second leading cause of accidental death in the elderly. The risk for falling is noted to be significantly greater in the hospitalized elderly. 2. Review of retrospective quality improvement chart audits revealed that peak fall times were associated with the patient's need for toileting, rest, and obtaining nutrition and hydration. 3. The MetroHealth Falls Prevention Program is based on simple proactive measures to prevent falls in the elderly. 4. An effective falls prevention program has several implications for gerontological nursing practice, including less restraint use, increased patient autonomy, and decreased loss of self-esteem. There is also a sense of increased nursing control over patient safety and time management, as well as implications for further nursing research.

  6. Pigeon fancier’s lung – An under-diagnosed cause of severely debilitating and chronic breathlessness

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Vishal Chopra

    2017-07-01

    Full Text Available Pigeon fanciers lung or Bird fanciers lung (BFL is one of the common and preventable causes of hypersensitivity pneumonitis. It is an under diagnosed cause of severe incapacitating breathlessness and can be acute, sub-acute or chronic. We report a case of 53 year old female who presented with severe chronic breathlessness due to regular exposure to pigeons for last 35 years. Clinicians should take a detailed history of exposure in patients with unexplained breathlessness as the avoidance of exposure to the antigens can reverse the disease preventing the morbidity and mortality of the patient.

  7. Quantifying the economic benefits of prevention in a healthcare setting with severe financial constraints: the case of hypertension control.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Athanasakis, Kostas; Kyriopoulos, Ilias-Ioannis; Boubouchairopoulou, Nadia; Stergiou, George S; Kyriopoulos, John

    2015-01-01

    Hypertension significantly contributes to the increased cardiovascular morbidity and mortality, thus leading to rising healthcare costs. The objective of this study was to quantify the clinical and economic benefits of optimal systolic blood pressure (SBP), in a setting under severe financial constraints, as in the case of Greece. Hence, a Markov model projecting 10-year outcomes and costs was adopted, in order to compare two scenarios. The first one depicted the "current setting", where all hypertensives in Greece presented an average SBP of 164 mmHg, while the second scenario namely "optimal SBP control" represented a hypothesis in which the whole population of hypertensives would achieve optimal SBP (i.e. perspective (discounted at a 3% annual rate). Findings showed that compared to the "current setting", universal "optimal SBP control" could, within a 10-year period, reduce the occurrence of non-fatal events and deaths, by 80 and 61 cases/1000 male smokers; 59 and 37 cases/1000 men non-smokers; whereas the respective figures for women were 69 and 57 cases/1000 women smokers; and accordingly, 52 and 28 cases/1000 women non-smokers. Considering health expenditures, they could be reduced by approximately €83 million per year. Therefore, prevention of cardiovascular events through BP control could result in reduced morbidity, thereby in substantial cost savings. Based on clinical and economic outcomes, interventions that promote BP control should be a health policy priority.

  8. Enhanced 911/global position system wizard: a telemedicine application for the prevention of severe hypoglycemia--monitor, alert, and locate.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dassau, Eyal; Jovanovic, Lois; Doyle, Francis J; Zisser, Howard C

    2009-11-01

    Intensive insulin therapy has an inherent risk of hypoglycemia that can lead to loss of consciousness, cardiac arrhythmia, seizure, and death ("dead-in-bed syndrome"). This risk of hypoglycemia is a major concern for patients, families, and physicians. The need for an automated system that can alert in the event of severe hypoglycemia is evident. In engineering systems, where there is a risk of malfunction of the primary control system, alert and safety mechanisms are implemented in layers of protection. This concept has been adopted in the proposed system that integrates a hypoglycemia prediction algorithm with a global position system (GPS) locator and short message service such that the current glucose value with the rate of change (ROC) and the location of the subject can be communicated to a predefined list. Furthermore, if the system is linked to the insulin pump, it can suspend the pump or decrease the basal insulin infusion rate to prevent the pending event. The system was evaluated on clinical datasets of glucose tracings from the DexCom Seven system. Glucose tracings were analyzed for hypoglycemia events and then a text message was broadcast to a predefined list of people who were notified with the glucose value, ROC, GPS coordinates, and a Google map of the location. In addition to providing a safety layer to a future artificial pancreas, this system also can be easily implemented in current continuous glucose monitors to help provide information and alerts to people with diabetes.

  9. Abdominal cavity balloon for preventing a patient's bleeding

    OpenAIRE

    Naber, E.E.H.; Rutten, H.J.T.; Jakimowicz, J.J.; Goossens, R.H.M.; Moes, C.C.M.; Buzink, S.N.

    2007-01-01

    The invention relates to an abdominal cavity balloon for preventing a haemorrhage in a patient's pelvic region, comprising an inflatable balloon, wherein the balloon is pro vided with a smooth surface and with a strip that is flex- urally stiff and formed to follow the balloon's shape for po sitioning the balloon.

  10. The DOE technology development programme on severe accident management

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Neuhold, R.J.; Moore, R.A.; Theofanous, T.G.

    1998-01-01

    The US Department of Energy (DOE) is sponsoring a programme in technology development aimed at resolving the technical issues in severe accident management strategies for advanced and evolutionary light water reactors (LWRs). The key objective of this effort is to achieve a robust defense-in-depth at the interface between prevention and mitigation of severe accidents. The approach taken towards this goal is based on the Risk Oriented Accident Analysis Methodology (ROAAM). Applications of ROAAM to the severe accident management strategy for the US AP600 advanced LWR have been effective both in enhancing the design and in achieving acceptance of the conclusions and base technology developed in the course of the work. This paper presents an overview of that effort and its key technical elements

  11. Implementing hospital-based surveillance for severe acute respiratory infections caused by influenza and other respiratory pathogens in New Zealand

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Q Sue Huang

    2014-05-01

    Full Text Available Background: Recent experience with pandemic influenza A(H1N1pdm09 highlighted the importance of global surveillance for severe respiratory disease to support pandemic preparedness and seasonal influenza control. Improved surveillance in the southern hemisphere is needed to provide critical data on influenza epidemiology, disease burden, circulating strains and effectiveness of influenza prevention and control measures. Hospital-based surveillance for severe acute respiratory infection (SARI cases was established in New Zealand on 30 April 2012. The aims were to measure incidence, prevalence, risk factors, clinical spectrum and outcomes for SARI and associated influenza and other respiratory pathogen cases as well as to understand influenza contribution to patients not meeting SARI case definition. Methods/Design: All inpatients with suspected respiratory infections who were admitted overnight to the study hospitals were screened daily. If a patient met the World Health Organization’s SARI case definition, a respiratory specimen was tested for influenza and other respiratory pathogens. A case report form captured demographics, history of presenting illness, co-morbidities, disease course and outcome and risk factors. These data were supplemented from electronic clinical records and other linked data sources. Discussion: Hospital-based SARI surveillance has been implemented and is fully functioning in New Zealand. Active, prospective, continuous, hospital-based SARI surveillance is useful in supporting pandemic preparedness for emerging influenza A(H7N9 virus infections and seasonal influenza prevention and control.

  12. Design consideration on severe accident for future LWR

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Omoto, A.

    1998-01-01

    Utilities' Severe Accident Management strategies, selected based on Individual Plant Examination, are in the process of implementation for each operating plant. Activities for the next generation LWR design are going on by Utilities, NSSS vendors and Research Institutes. The proposed new designs vary from evolutionary design to revolutionary design such as the supercritical LWR. Discussion on the consideration of Severe Accident in the design of next generation LWR is being held to establish the industry's self-regulatory document on containment design and its performance, which ABWR-IER (Improved Evolutionary Reactor) on the part of BWR and Evolutionary APWR and New PWR21 on the part of PWR are expected to comply. Conceptual design study for ABWR-IER will illustrate an example of design approach for the prevention and mitigation of Severe Accident and its impact on capital cost

  13. Plasmapheresis for Preventing Complication of Hypertriglyceridemia: A Case Report and Review of Literature.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Costantini, Nicoletta; Mameli, Antonella; Marongiu, Francesco

    2016-01-01

    Severe hypertriglyceridemia is a common indication for the need of plasma exchange in treatment of hypertriglyceridemic-induced pancreatitis when normal therapies fail to garner a response. Application of plasmapheresis to prevent complication of hypertriglyceridemia is limited because of its cost and availability. We present a case of a 44-year-old man with metabolic syndrome and a medical history of secondary polycythemia in obesity hypoventilation syndrome, whose laboratory tests revealed a triglycerides value of 3965 mg/dL. To prevent the complication of pancreatitis due to hypertriglyceridemia, we performed plasma exchange 3 times when conventional treatments did not sufficiently reduce the high level of triglycerides. A review of the current available literature was therefore conducted to provide an overview of the present data on apheretic treatment for patients with severe hypertriglyceridemia. Several case reports and case series have used plasmapheresis in acute treatment of hypertriglyceridemia pancreatitis related. In our case, the choice of plasmapheresis was applied in prevention of possible complications of hypertriglyceridemia.

  14. Chemicals and excess materials disposition during deactivation as a means of pollution prevention

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Godfrey, S.D.

    1998-01-01

    This paper presents several innovative and common sense approaches to pollution prevention that have been employed during facility deactivation at the Hanford Site in South Central Washington. It also presents several pollution prevention principles applicable to other projects. Innovative pollution prevention ideas employed at the Hanford site during facility deactivation included: (1) Recycling more than 185,000 gallons of radioactively contaminated nitric acid by sending it to an operating nuclear fuels reprocessing facility in England; (2) Recycling millions of pounds of chemicals and excess materials to other industries for reuse; (3) Evaporating flush water at a low rate and discharging it into the facility exhaust air stream to avoid discharging thousands of gallons of liquid to the soil column; and (4) Decontaminating and disposing of thousands of gallons of radioactively contaminated organic solvent waste to a RCRA licensed, power-producing, commercial incinerator. Common sense pollution prevention ideas that were employed include recycling office furniture, recycling paper from office files, and redeploying tools and miscellaneous process equipment. Additional pollution prevention occurred as the facility liquid and gaseous discharge streams were deactivated. From the facilities deactivation experiences at Hanford and the ensuing efforts to disposition excess chemicals and materials, several key pollution prevention principles should be considered at other projects and facilities, especially during the operational periods of the facility's mission. These principles include: Institute pollution prevention as a fundamental requirement early in the planning stage of a project or during the operational phase of a facility's mission; Promote recognition and implementation of pollution prevention initiatives; Instill pollution prevention as a value in all participants in the project or facility work scope; Minimize the amount of chemical products and materials

  15. Severe dyspnea due to a giant antrochoanal polyp

    OpenAIRE

    Coloma-Milano M; Gil-Carcedo-Sañudo E; Gil-Carcedo-García LM.; Martín-Batista S; Madrigal-Revuelta M; Vallejo-Valdezate LA

    2012-01-01

    SummaryIntroduction: The antrochoanal polyp is a prevalent pathology in teenagers and young adults. It usually presents with nasal obstruction.Patient and method: Case report: An 80-year-old male with alcoholic encephalopathy, chronic bronchial disease of unknown etiology and polypoid chronic rhinosinusitis came to the emergency service with severe dyspnea without laryngeal features.Anterior rhinoscopy showed a polypoid mass in left nostril that prevented the visualization with nasal endoscop...

  16. Bullying escolar: a justiça restaurativa como forma de enfrentar e prevenir violências - School bullying: a restorative justice as face of form and prevent violence

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Cristiane Penning Pauli de Menezes

    2015-10-01

    Full Text Available Resumo A interdisciplinaridade entre Direito e Educação permeia o presente artigo ao ligar o tema do bullying com o conceito da Justiça Restaurativa, analisada como um instrumento que pode auxiliar na prevenção dos conflitos que envolvam o bullying no interior das escolas. Assim, o presente artigo tem por objetivo entrelaçar a Justiça Restaurativa aos conflitos de bullying, que atualmente ganham novas roupagens, tendo em vista que as agressões quando não são tratadas com seriedade no ambiente escolar acabam por trazer nas relações interpessoais dos estudantes. Por mais que os debates sobre o tema tenham avançado, novas investigações sobre o tema são imprescindíveis para buscar alternativas de resolução e prevenção destes conflitos, no sentido de preparar os profissionais da comunidade escolar para que possam lidar com esta realidade presente no âmbito escolar. Palavras-chave: bullying, justiça restaurativa, conflitos escolares. SCHOOL BULLYING: A RESTORATIVE JUSTICE AS FACE OF FORM AND PREVENT VIOLENCE Abstract The interdisciplinary Law and Education permeates this item to connect the bullying theme, with the concept of Restorative Justice, as analyzed as a tool that can prevent conflicts involving bullying within schools. Thus, this research paper aims to weave Restorative Justice to bullying conflicts, which currently gets new look, considering that the attacks when they are not treated seriously in the school environment just bring reflexes are striking in interpersonal relationships among students. As much as the debates on the subject have advanced, new research on the subject are essential to seek alternative means of resolution and prevention of conflicts, to prepare professionals in the school community. Key-words: bullying, restorative justice, school conflicts.

  17. The role of health centers in preventive care provision

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Shemetova G.N.

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available Aim: to assess the importance of the Centers of Health in the organization and provision of preventive care to the population, in the early detection of risk factors for the development of chronic non-communicable diseases and the development of a healthy lifestyle. Material and Methods. On the basis of the Health Center of Engels Center for Medical Prevention in the Saratov Region, the detection of risk factors for 2011-2015 was analyzed according to statistical reporting (form No. 68 and health cards (form025-CZ/y of 207 patients. To assess the satisfaction of visitors with the work of the Center, a specially developed questionnaire was conducted, which included 22 questions that characterize the patient profile, his attitude to the organization and the results of the survey, and the motivation to modify the way of life. Results. The study confirmed the important role of the Centers of Health in the organization and provision of preventive care to the population, the formation of a healthy lifestyle and the early detection of diseases and risk factors for their development. Conclusion. Only joint efforts of medical institutions, authorities, educational organizations, mass media can lead to the formation of the population's responsibility for their health and readiness to modify the way of life.

  18. Improving Effectiveness of Capabilities in EU Conflict Prevention

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Rodt, Annemarie Peen

    severely challenging the Union’s current capabilities as an international security provider. The urgency of improving conflict preventive and crisis management measures is particularly pertinent in Africa, where the numbers affected by conflicts across the continent are staggering. This contribution sets...... out to answer whether – and if so how – EU responses to African conflicts have made a meaningful contribution to preventing (further) conflict. The Union’s efforts in Libya, South Sudan, Democratic Republic of Congo and Central African Republic are critically examined in a comparative case study...

  19. Primary prevention of periodontitis: managing gingivitis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chapple, Iain L C; Van der Weijden, Fridus; Doerfer, Christof; Herrera, David; Shapira, Lior; Polak, David; Madianos, Phoebus; Louropoulou, Anna; Machtei, Eli; Donos, Nikos; Greenwell, Henry; Van Winkelhoff, Ari J; Eren Kuru, Bahar; Arweiler, Nicole; Teughels, Wim; Aimetti, Mario; Molina, Ana; Montero, Eduardo; Graziani, Filippo

    2015-04-01

    Periodontitis is a ubiquitous and irreversible inflammatory condition and represents a significant public health burden. Severe periodontitis affects over 11% of adults, is a major cause of tooth loss impacting negatively upon speech, nutrition, quality of life and self-esteem, and has systemic inflammatory consequences. Periodontitis is preventable and treatment leads to reduced rates of tooth loss and improved quality of life. However, successful treatment necessitates behaviour change in patients to address lifestyle risk factors (e.g. smoking) and, most importantly, to attain and sustain high standards of daily plaque removal, lifelong. While mechanical plaque removal remains the bedrock of successful periodontal disease management, in high-risk patients it appears that the critical threshold for plaque accumulation to trigger periodontitis is low, and such patients may benefit from adjunctive agents for primary prevention of periodontitis. The aims of this working group were to systematically review the evidence for primary prevention of periodontitis by preventing gingivitis via four approaches: 1) the efficacy of mechanical self-administered plaque control regimes; 2) the efficacy of self-administered inter-dental mechanical plaque control; 3) the efficacy of adjunctive chemical plaque control; and 4) anti-inflammatory (sole or adjunctive) approaches. Two meta-reviews (mechanical plaque removal) and two traditional systematic reviews (chemical plaque control/anti-inflammatory agents) formed the basis of this consensus. Data support the belief that professionally administered plaque control significantly improves gingival inflammation and lowers plaque scores, with some evidence that reinforcement of oral hygiene provides further benefit. Re-chargeable power toothbrushes provide small but statistically significant additional reductions in gingival inflammation and plaque levels. Flossing cannot be recommended other than for sites of gingival and periodontal

  20. Waste Minimization and Pollution Prevention Awareness Plan

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1992-01-01

    The purpose of this plan is to document the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) Waste Minimization and Pollution Prevention Awareness Program. The plan specifies those activities and methods that are or will be employed to reduce the quantity and toxicity of wastes generated at the site. It is intended to satisfy Department of Energy (DOE) and other legal requirements that are discussed in Section C, below. The Pollution Prevention Awareness Program is included with the Waste Minimization Program as suggested by DOE Order 5400.1. The intent of this plan is to respond to and comply with the Department's policy and guidelines concerning the need for pollution prevention. The Plan is composed of a LLNL Waste Minimization and Pollution Prevention Awareness Program Plan and, as attachments, Directorate-, Program- and Department-specific waste minimization plans. This format reflects the fact that waste minimization is considered a line management responsibility and is to be addressed by each of the Directorates, Programs and Departments. Several Directorates have been reorganized, necessitating changes in the Directorate plans that were published in 1991