School Autonomy in the Province of Buenos Aires, Argentina: Evidence from Two School Districts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Astiz, M. Fernanda

2006-01-01

This article provides empirical evidence of policy adoption, outcomes and consequences of decentralization and school autonomy initiatives enacted in Argentina during the 1990s. The study examines what school autonomy meant in Argentina and how it was adopted at the provincial and school levels. Using qualitative data on school districts of the…

Reprint of "Survey and first molecular characterization of Echinococcus granulosus sensu stricto (G1) in Pampas fox (Lycalopex gymnocercus) in Buenos Aires province, Argentina".

PubMed

Scioscia, Nathalia Paula; Petrigh, Romina Sandra; Beldomenico, Pablo Martín; Fugassa, Martín; Denegri, Guillermo María

2017-01-01

Echinococcosis is a zoonosis caused by tapeworms of the genus Echinococcus. Echinococcus granulosus sensu lato (s. l.) has a world-wide distribution and its transmission is primarily maintained in a synanthropic cycle with dogs as definitive hosts and livestock species as intermediate hosts. However, many wild canids also function as definitive hosts for E. granulosus s. l. Echinococcosis in humans is mainly caused by E. granulosus sensu stricto (s. s.) G1 genotype. In the present work, we expanded the epidemiological study on echinococcosis reported cases in Pampas fox (Lycalopex gymnocercus) to provide a prevalence estimate for rural areas of southern Buenos Aires province, Argentina. Ninety-five whole intestines were analyzed using the sedimentation and counting technique with a result of 83 foxes (87.37%) harboring at least one helminth species. E. granulosus s. l. adults were found in one Pampas fox (1.05%). These adult helminthes were E. granulosus s. s. (G1) according to the genotyping analysis of a 450-bp region of the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 (cox1) gene. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Assessment of the possible drought impact on farm production in the SE of the province of Buenos Aires, Argentina

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hartmann, Tomas; Di Bella, Carlos; Oricchio, Patricio

The extended drought situation in the southeast of Buenos Aires during the second half of year 2000 caused the government to invoke emergency laws. This action allowed farmers in the area to receive waivers for taxes and loans. The emergency laws remained in force during 2001, without further verification of environmental conditions for agriculture. Developing an assessment of the actual drought situation was relevant for taxing and national credit institutions. An assessment was performed of the actual drought situation of farms during the spring of 2001 in seven counties in Buenos Aires Province area. The assessment was done by comparing vegetation index values (NDVI)—as measured from NOAA-AVHRR satellite data—of September 2001 against NDVI time series values from previous years. Five categories were established to describe the relationship between the present index and the average of the time series. Farms within the area covered by the study were assigned to the appropriate category using GIS tools. It was confirmed that most of the area had NDVI values that were similar to the average values, or even higher. It was found that there were subareas where the vegetation index had decreased. For those cases, LANDSAT TM images of the area of September and October of 2001 were used for a detailed inspection. The study included rainfall data as well, confirming a normal regional situation. Both low and high-resolution satellite images were found to be useful tools for obtaining fast, economic, objective and conclusive results about the production capability of individual farms as well as the region as a whole.

Winter Crop Mapping for Improving Crop Production Estimates in Argentina Using Moderation Resolution Satellite Imagery

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Humber, M. L.; Copati, E.; Sanchez, A.; Sahajpal, R.; Puricelli, E.; Becker-Reshef, I.

2017-12-01

Accurate crop production data is fundamental for reducing uncertainly and volatility in the domestic and international agricultural markets. The Agricultural Estimates Department of the Buenos Aires Grain Exchange has worked since 2000 on the estimation of different crop production data. With this information, the Grain Exchange helps different actors of the agricultural chain, such as producers, traders, seed companies, market analyst, policy makers, into their day to day decision making. Since 2015/16 season, the Grain Exchange has worked on the development of a new earth observations-based method to identify winter crop planted area at a regional scale with the aim of improving crop production estimates. The objective of this new methodology is to create a reliable winter crop mask at moderate spatial resolution using Landsat-8 imagery by exploiting bi-temporal differences in the phenological stages of winter crops as compared to other landcover types. In collaboration with the University of Maryland, the map has been validated by photointerpretation of a stratified statistically random sample of independent ground truth data in the four largest producing provinces of Argentina: Buenos Aires, Cordoba, La Pampa, and Santa Fe. In situ measurements were also used to further investigate conditions in the Buenos Aires province. Preliminary results indicate that while there are some avenues for improvement, overall the classification accuracy of the cropland and non-cropland classes are sufficient to improve downstream production estimates. Continuing research will focus on improving the methodology for winter crop mapping exercises on a yearly basis as well as improving the sampling methodology to optimize collection of validation data in the future.

Dengue reemergence in Argentina.

PubMed Central

Avilés, G.; Rangeón, G.; Vorndam, V.; Briones, A.; Baroni, P.; Enria, D.; Sabattini, M. S.

1999-01-01

Aedes aegypti, eradicated from Argentina in 1963, has now reinfested the country as far south as Buenos Aires. In 1997, four persons with travel histories to Brazil, Ecuador, or Venezuela had confirmed dengue, and surveillance for indigenous transmission allowed the detection of 19 dengue cases in Salta Province. These cases of dengue are the first in Argentina since 1916 and represent a new southern extension of dengue virus. PMID:10460181

Genetic and phenotypic variability of iris color in Buenos Aires population

PubMed Central

Hohl, Diana María; Bezus, Brenda; Ratowiecki, Julia; Catanesi, Cecilia Inés

2018-01-01

Abstract The aim of this work was to describe the phenotypic and genotypic variability related to iris color for the population of Buenos Aires province (Argentina), and to assess the usefulness of current methods of analysis for this country. We studied five Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms (SNPs) included in the IrisPlex kit, in 118 individuals, and we quantified eye color with Digital Iris Analysis Tool. The markers fit Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium for the whole sample, but not for rs12913832 within the group of brown eyes (LR=8.429; p=0.004). We found a remarkable association of HERC2 rs12913832 GG with blue color (p < 0.01) but the other markers did not show any association with iris color. The results for the Buenos Aires population differ from those of other populations of the world for these polymorphisms (p < 0,01). The differences we found might respond to the admixed ethnic composition of Argentina; therefore, methods of analysis used in European populations should be carefully applied when studying the population of Argentina. These findings reaffirm the importance of this investigation in the Argentinian population for people identification based on iris color. PMID:29658972

Redescription of Austrodiplostomum compactum (Trematoda: Diplostomidae) from its Type Host and Locality in Venezuela, and of Austrodiplostomum mordax from Argentina.

PubMed

de Núñez, Margarita Ostrowski

2017-10-01

Austrodiplostomum compactum from Nannopterum brasilianus, and its metacercaria from Geophagus sp. and Oreochromis mossambicus captured (1979) at its type locality, Valencia Lake, Venezuela, by the author, are redescribed. The adult is characterized by its large body size, and an oral sucker smaller than the pharynx. The metacercaria has a similar body size as the adult, and the small genital primordia occupy 4.1-7.3% of body length. Experimental infections in chickens with metacercariae of Diplostomulum mordax from brains of Odonthestes bonariensis, captured (2015) at Dique Paso de las Piedras, near Bahia Blanca City, Buenos Aires Province, Argentina, resulted in 10 adults 5 days postexposure. These adults correspond to Austrodiplostomum mordax as described from N. brasilianus at Lacombe Lagoon, Buenos Aires Province, and differ from A. compactum in their smaller body size, and an oral sucker larger than the pharynx. The metacercaria has a similar body size as the adult and differs mainly in that the larger genital primordia occupy 11.6-13.8% of body length. The status of earlier published Austrodiplostomum species in the American continent is discussed in view of available morphological and molecular data. A lectotype of A. mordax is here designated, and Austrodiplostomum ostrowskiae is considered as a new synonym of A. compactum.

A Pleistocene (MIS 5e) mollusk assemblage from Ezeiza (Buenos Aires Province, Argentina)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Martínez, Sergio; Julia del Río, Claudia; Rojas, Alejandra

2016-10-01

A fossil assemblage collected around 3.5 m amsl from Ezeiza, Buenos Aires province, have AMS 14C ages of ca. 33,000 to ca. 40,000 yr BP, whereas in the literature is a report of a conventional 14C age of >43,000 yr BP. An OSL age from the overlying deposit corresponds to ca. 22,000 yr. The samples contain marine fossils: mollusks, balanids and corals (Astrangia). La Coronilla (Uruguay, attributed to MIS 5e) is the locality most related to Ezeiza faunistically, despite is not the nearest one. In consequence, the relationship should be addressed to a more similar age and environment than others. The fauna indicates a higher water temperature than today. In Ezeiza exclusively cold water taxa are absent, and we found seven warm taxa with their southern distribution limit displaced northwards today, plus other six at their southern distribution limit. Around 60% of all the species and more than 70% of the individuals are of warm-temperate waters. In sum, although prima facie the numerical ages would locate the deposit in MIS3, faunistic, temperature, and height evidences show that the Ezeiza mollusk assemblage belong to MIS5e. A stronger than presently Brazil warm current, reaching Southern latitudes, may explain the changes in geographical ranges.

Argentina: Political and Economic Conditions and U.S. Relations

DTIC Science & Technology

2006-10-12

left office six months before his six-year term ended, letting the winner of the 1989 election, Carlos Menem of the Justicialist Party (PJ, or the...Peronist Party), take office early. Menem transformed Argentina from a state-dominated protectionist economy to one committed to free market principles...term. Duhalde, who had been Vice President under Menem from 1989-1991, Governor of the Buenos Aires province, and the PJ’s 1999 presidential candidate

[Detection and Analysis of Human Parainfluenza Virus Infection in Hospitalized Adults with Acute Respiratory Tract Infections].

PubMed

Li, Xing-Qiao; Liu, Xue-Wei; Zhou, Tao; Pei, Xiao-Fang

2017-11-01

To investigate the prevalence and gene characteristics of different groups of human parainfluenza virus (HPIV) infection in hospitalized adults with acute respiratory tract infections (ARI). RT-PCR was used to detect HPIV hemagglutinin (HA) DNA,which was extracted from sputum samples of 1 039 adult patients with ARI from March,2014 to June,2016. The HA gene amplified from randomly selected positive samples were sequenced to analyze the homology and variation. 10.6% (110/1 039) of these samples were positive for HPIV,including 8 cases of HPIV-1,22 cases of HPIV-2,46 cases of HPIV-3 and 34 cases of HPIV-4. Detectable rate varied among different groups of HPIV according to seasons of the year and ages of patients. No significant differences were found between the positive samples and the reference sequences. Compared with different reference strains of different regions,the genetic distance of nucleotide is the smallest between the strains tested in this study and the reference strains of other provinces and cities in China. In Chengdu region,HPIV virus is highly detected in ARI,all subtypes were detected with HPIV-3 being the main subtype.

Earth Observations taken by Expedition 26 Crewmember

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-02-13

ISS026-E-026761 (13 Feb. 2011) --- Medano Blanco coastal dunes in Buenos Aires Province, Argentina are featured in this image photographed by an Expedition 26 crew member on the International Space Station. The Medano Blanco (White Dunes) are a well known recreational area 35 kilometers west of the twin cities of Nicochea-Quequen, one of the biggest ports in the province of Buenos Aires, central Argentina. The Medano Blanco dunes separate the Atlantic Ocean from intensive sunflower agricultural cropland, visible as the angular pattern of green and brown fields at left. The dune field extends 3.5 kilometers at its widest part. Narrow cordons of coastal dunes stretch along this part of Argentina’s coastline for hundreds of kilometers. Small streams, oriented towards the coast, cross the farmland at upper left. Water from these is dammed behind the dunes, and even within the dunes, where wetlands flourish. This is the drier southern part of Buenos Aires province near the more arid and windier border with Patagonia—one of the windiest places on Earth. The effect of strong westerly winds (blowing bottom to top in this slightly oblique image) can be seen everywhere in this detailed photograph. The dune sand is blown from local beaches onshore where it forms the dunes. The prominent dune ridge crests are oriented at right angles to the prevailing wind. Geologists suspect that erosion by wind has excavated numerous hollows which now dot the farmland as small shallow lakes. A stand of dark green trees has been planted on the upwind side of a health spa—located at the white dot (center left) which is the roof of a stately building—as a protective barrier against the wind. The white fringe along the seashore is formed from lines of breaking waves. Crossing swell trains can be seen offshore in the Atlantic Ocean. The curvature of the swell pattern offshore also shows the effect of the westerly wind, and indeed drives the local sea current in this area—slightly more prominent onshore swells approach the coast from the southeast. The light brown tint of seawater nearer the shore is the fine muddy fraction of the coastal sediment being washed seaward (after being stirred up by wave action) and then east by the current.

Distribution of IS900 restriction fragment length polymorphism types among animal Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis isolates from Argentina and Europe.

PubMed

Moreira, A R; Paolicchi, F; Morsella, C; Zumarraga, M; Cataldi, A; Fabiana, B; Alicia, A; Piet, O; van Soolingen, D; Isabel, R M

1999-12-01

Sixty-one Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis isolates from cattle and deer from the Buenos Aires province, an important livestock region in Argentina, were typed by restriction fragment length polymorphisms (RFLP) analysis based on IS900. Four different RFLP patterns (designated 'A', 'B', 'C' and 'E') were identified in BstEII digests of genomic DNA. The most frequently observed type, pattern 'A', was found in 46 isolates (75%). The second, pattern 'E', included 8 isolates (13%), while the third, pattern 'B', included 6 isolates (10%). Pattern 'C' was found for only one isolate. All of the deer isolates were classified as pattern 'A', while cattle isolates represented all four RFLP patterns. Twenty-one isolates representing the four different BstEII-RFLP patterns were digested with PstI. Twenty isolates showed identical PstI-RFLP pattern. BstEII-RFLP patterns from Argentine cattle and deer were compared with patterns found in cattle, goat, deer, rabbit, and human isolates from Europe. The most common pattern in Argentina, pattern 'A', was identical to a less frequently occurring pattern R9 (C17) from Europe. The other Argentine patterns 'B', 'C' and 'E', were not found in the Europe. These results indicate that the distribution of M. avium subsp. paratuberculosis genotypes in the Buenos Aires province of Argentina is different from that found in Europe.

[Fungal biomass estimation in soils from southwestern Buenos Aires province (Argentina) using calcofluor white stain].

PubMed

Vázquez, María B; Amodeo, Martín R; Bianchinotti, María V

Soil microorganisms are vital for ecosystem functioning because of the role they play in soil nutrient cycling. Agricultural practices and the intensification of land use have a negative effect on microbial activities and fungal biomass has been widely used as an indicator of soil health. The aim of this study was to analyze fungal biomass in soils from southwestern Buenos Aires province using direct fluorescent staining and to contribute to its use as an indicator of environmental changes in the ecosystem as well as to define its sensitivity to weather conditions. Soil samples were collected during two consecutive years. Soil smears were prepared and stained with two different concentrations of calcofluor, and the fungal biomass was estimated under an epifluorescence microscope. Soil fungal biomass varied between 2.23 and 26.89μg fungal C/g soil, being these values in the range expected for the studied soil type. The fungal biomass was positively related to temperature and precipitations. The methodology used was reliable, standardized and sensitive to weather conditions. The results of this study contribute information to evaluate fungal biomass in different soil types and support its use as an indicator of soil health for analyzing the impact of different agricultural practices. Copyright © 2016 Asociación Argentina de Microbiología. Publicado por Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.

Prediction of seasonal water-table fluctuations in La Pampa and Buenos Aires, Argentina

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tanco, Raúl; Kruse, Eduardo

2001-07-01

The fluctuation of the water table east of La Pampa province and northwest of Buenos Aires province, Argentina, influences agricultural production in the region because it is closely related to the alternation of dry and wet periods. Sea-surface temperature (SST) anomalies have been used as predictors to forecast atmospheric variables in different regions of the world. The objective of this work is to present a simple model to forecast seasonal rainfall using SST distribution in the Pacific Ocean as a predictor. Once the relationship between precipitation and water-table fluctuations was established, a methodology for the prediction of water-table fluctuations was developed. A good agreement between observed and predicted water-table fluctuations was found when estimating water-table fluctuations in the summer and autumn seasons. Résumé. Les fluctuations de la nappe à l'est de la province de La Pampa et au nord-ouest de la province de Buenos Aires (Argentine) influence la production agricole de la région parce qu'elle est étroitement liée à l'alternance de saisons sèches et humides. Les anomalies de la température de surface de l'océan (SST) ont été utilisées comme prédicteurs pour prévoir les variables atmosphériques dans différentes régions du monde. L'objectif de ce travail est de présenter un modèle simple de prévision des précipitations saisonnières en utilisant comme prédicteur la distribution des SST dans l'Océan Pacifique. Une fois que la relation entre les fluctuations des précipitations et celles de la nappe a été établie, une méthodologie de prédiction des variations de la nappe a été mise au point. Un bon accord entre les variations de la nappe observées et celles prédites a été trouvé pour les estimations des variations de nappe en été et en automne. Resumen. La fluctuación del nivel freático al este de la provincia de La Pampa y al nordeste de la de Buenos Aires (Argentina) repercute en la producción agrícola de la región, ya que está íntimamente relacionada con la alternancia de períodos secos y húmedos. Se ha utilizado las anomalías de la temperatura superficial del mar (TSM) para predecir las variables atmosféricas en diferentes áreas del mundo. El objetivo de este trabajo es presentar un modelo sencillo para pronosticar la precipitación estacional por medio de la distribución de TSM en el Océano Pacífico. Una vez establecida la relación entre la precipitación y las fluctuaciones del nivel freático, se desarrolló una metodología para predecir las fluctuaciones de éste. Se obtuvo un buen ajuste entre las fluctuaciones predichas y observadas del nivel freático en las estaciones de verano y otoño.

Binema bonaerensis n. sp. (Oxyurida: Thelastomatidae) parasite of Neocurtilla claraziana Saussure (Orthoptera: Gryllotalpidae) in Argentina.

PubMed

Camino, N B; Reboredo, G R

1999-01-01

The nematode Binema bonaerensis n. sp. (Oxyurida: Thelastomatidae) is described from the intestine of the mole cricket of Neocurtilla claraziana Saussure (Orthoptera: Gryllotalpidae) from Buenos Aires Province, Argentina. It is distinguished mainly by having a conical tail; three sclerotized arches in the buccal cavity; an excretory pore immediately posterior to the base of the esophagus and the presence of five pairs of male genital papillae with one pair preanal and four pairs postanal.

Biostratigraphy and biochronology of the Monte Hermoso Formation (early Pliocene) at its type locality, Buenos Aires Province, Argentina

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tomassini, Rodrigo L.; Montalvo, Claudia I.; Deschamps, Cecilia M.; Manera, Teresa

2013-12-01

The Monte Hermoso Formation, cropping out at its type locality of Farola Monte Hermoso (Buenos Aires Province), is a classical fossiliferous unit of the South American Neogene, highlighted by the abundance and diversity of its vertebrate remains. However, its biostratigraphy and age have been largely debated, and numerous discrepancies and controversies have been stated. In this regard, the result of the analysis of new materials recovered from the different levels of this formation, following a strict control of stratigraphic provenance, is here reported. As well, the provenance of specimens of previous collections has been evaluated. The studied assemblage consists of Osteichthyes, Amphibia, Reptilia, Aves and Mammalia. These latter are the most numerous and belong to the Didelphimorphia, Polydolopimorphia, Rodentia, Notoungulata, Litopterna and Xenarthra. The recorded taxa suggest no important faunistic variations among the different levels of the Monte Hermoso Formation that would imply significant chronological differences, and hence, justify the recognition of two biostratigraphic units. The analysis of the first and last records as well as the taxa considered as exclusive, does not support the validity of the biozones of Trigodon gaudryi and Neocavia depressidens previously proposed. On this basis, a new scheme for the Monte Hermoso Formation at its type locality is proposed, including a new single biostratigraphic unit. This unit is the Eumysops laeviplicatus Range Zone, which represents the biostratigraphic base for the Montehermosan Stage/Age of the early Pliocene.

Spatio-temporal variability of NDVI-precipitation over southernmost South America: possible linkages between climate signals and epidemics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tourre, Y. M.; Jarlan, L.; Lacaux, J.-P.; Rotela, C. H.; Lafaye, M.

2008-10-01

Climate-environment variability affects the rates of incidence of vector-borne and zoonotic diseases and is possibly associated with epidemics outbreaks. Over southernmost South America the joint spatio-temporal evolution of climate-environment is analyzed for the 1982-2004 period. Detailed mapping of normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) and rainfall variability are then compared to zones with preliminary epidemiological reports. A significant quasi-biennial signal (2.2- to 2.4-year periods, or QB) for joint NDVI-rainfall variability is revealed. From rotated EOFs, dominant NDVI patterns are partitioned according to their lead frequencies: (1) the 'QB group' (2.1-to 3-year periods) includes six modes over southern Brazil, Uruguay, northern-central Argentina (two modes), the southern Paraguay-northern Argentina border, and the Santa Cruz Province; (2) the QB1 (2.4- to 3-year periods) + quasi-quadrennial (QQ) mode over the Misiones Province; and (3) the QB2 (2.1- to 2.5-year periods) + QQ + inter-annual (IA) (3- to 7-year periods) two modes over south-eastern Argentina. Modes within the 'QB group' are positively correlated with global climate signals and SST. The Uruguayan mode is correlated with global ENSO (8-month lag) whilst the southern Entre-Rios/northern Buenos Aires provinces are correlated with central equatorial Pacific SSTs (3-month lag). The Santa Cruz (Patagonia) Province is most correlated with the Pacific South America (PSA) index and SST patterns (3-month lag) along the Antarctica circumpolar current. The spatial distribution of lead NDVI modes includes the Formosa, Misiones, Chaco and Buenos Aires provinces among others, known for being prone to vector-borne epidemics such as dengue fever, malaria, leishmaniasis (American cutaneous leishmaniasis or ACL), hantivirus, chagas and Argentine hemorrhagic fever (AHF). Some provinces also correspond to regions where lead NDVI PCs' modes are associated with high-frequency climate signals such as the quasi-biennial oscillation in northwest Argentina. The joint preliminary results (climate-environment-public health reports) presented here for the first time are meant: (1) to contribute to a better understanding of climate-environment-epidemics process-based and modeling studies and (2) to facilitate, in the long run, the implementation of local and regional health early warning systems (HEWS) over southernmost South America. The latter is becoming crucial with ever-increasing migration, urban sprawl (re-emergence of dengue fever epidemics since the late 1990s), all embedded in a climate change context.

Sea level oscillations in coastal waters of the Buenos Aires province, Argentina

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dragani, W. C.; Mazio, C. A.; Nuñez, M. N.

2002-03-01

Sea level oscillations, with periods ranging from a few minutes to almost 2 h, have been observed at various tide stations located on the coast of Buenos Aires. Simultaneous records of sea level elevation measured in Mar de Ajó, Pinamar and Mar del Plata during 1982 have been spectrally analyzed. Significant spectral energy has been detected between 0.85 and 4.69 cycles per hour (cph) and the most energetic peaks have frequencies between 1.17 and 1.49 cph. Spectra, coherence, and phase difference have been analyzed for the most energetic event of the year. During that event, the most intensive spectral peak is at 1.17 cph for Mar de Ajó and Pinamar, and at 1.49 cph for Mar del Plata. Simultaneous total energy peaks at Mar de Ajó, Pinamar and Mar del Plata, and the coherence function estimated between Mar de Ajó and Pinamar suggests that sea level oscillations could be a regional phenomenon. The analyzed data suggest that sea level oscillations could be forced by atmospheric gravity waves associated with frontal passages.

[Safe and family-centered maternity hospitals: organizational culture of maternity hospitals in the province of Buenos Aires].

PubMed

Ramos, Silvina; Romero, Mariana; Ortiz, Zulma; Brizuela, Vanessa

2015-12-01

In 2010, the Safe and Family-Centered Maternity Hospitals initiative was launched in order to transform large public maternity centers into settings where safe practices are implemented and the rights of women, newborn infants and families are warranted. As a result, the paradigm of perinatal care was modified. This article reports on the findings of organizational culture as a component for the implementation of the initiative. The sample was selected in a non-probabilistic way and was made up of 29 public hospitals located in the province of Buenos Aires that participated in the initiative. During 2011 and 2012, an anonymous, self-administered survey was completed by members of the Department of Neonatology and the Department of Obstetrics. The survey collected information on three dimensions of the organizational culture: organizational environment, safe practices, and facilitation of change. A total of 1828 surveys were collected; 51% of survey respondents stated that there is a need to improve communication by having more meetings, while 60% made a positive assessment of various aspects of leadership. Work overload was described as the main cause of conflicts by 60%. Approximately 25% agreed and showed commitment with the initiative of transforming maternity centers. Adherence to practices was dissimilar depending on the practice, but half of survey respondents reported that there were genuine reasons for change. The assessment of the organizational culture showed that commitment to the Safe and Family-Centered Maternity Hospitals initiative is yet to be consolidated, and the evaluation of leadership is not comprehensive. Work overload and communication failures are the main reasons for conflict.

Relationship between geohydrology and Upper Pleistocene-Holocene evolution of the eastern region of the Province of Buenos Aires, Argentina

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Capítulo, Leandro Rodrigues; Kruse, Eduardo E.

2017-07-01

The Upper Pleistocene-Holocene geological evolution, which is characterized by its landscape-forming energy and is related to geological and geomorphological complexity, has an impact on the groundwater dynamics of coastal aquifers. The geological configuration of a sector of the east coast of the Province of Buenos Aires was analyzed, as well as its connection with the geological and geomorphological history of the region during the Late Pleistocene and Holocene, and its influence on the regional and local geohydrological behaviour. This analysis was based on the application of the concept of hydrofacies. Boreholes were drilled and sampled (with depths of up to 40 m), and vertical electrical sounding, electrical tomography and pumping tests were undertaken. The description of the cutting samples by means of a stereo microscope, the interpretation of satellite images, and the construction of lithological and hydrogeological profiles and flow charts were carried out in the laboratory, and then integrated in a GIS. The identification of the lithological units and their distribution in the area allowed the construction of an evolutionary geological model for the Late Pleistocene and Holocene. Three aquifer units can be recognized: one of Late Pleistocene age (hydrofacies E) and the other two of Holocene age (hydrofacies A and C); their hydraulic connection depends on the occurrence and thickness variation of the aquitard units (hydrofacies B and D). The approach adopted allows the examination of the possibilities for groundwater exploitation and constitutes an applied conceptual framework to be taken into consideration when developing conceptual and numerical models at the local and regional scales.

A new species of Rhytidognathus (Carabidae, Migadopini) from Argentina

PubMed Central

Roig-Juñent, Sergio; Rouaux, Julia

2012-01-01

Abstract The Migadopini are a small tribe of Carabidae with 47 species that occur in South America, Australia, and New Zealand, in the sub-Antarctic areas. In South America, most of the genera inhabit areas related to sub-Antartic Nothofagus forest except two monogeneric genera, the Ecuadorian genus Aquilex Moret and the Pampean genus Rhytidognathus Chaudoir. These two genera are geographically isolated from the remaining five South American genera. New material of Rhytidognathus from the northeast of Buenos Aires province and from Entre Ríos province permits establishing that the previous records of Rhytidognathus ovalis (Dejean) for Argentina were erroneous and that it belongs to a new species. Based on external morphological characters and from male and female genitalia we describe Rhytidognathus platensis as a new species. In this contribution we provide illustrations, keys, habitat characteristics and some biogeographic considerations on the distribution of Rhytidognathus. PMID:23275755

A new species of Rhytidognathus (Carabidae, Migadopini) from Argentina.

PubMed

Roig-Juñent, Sergio; Rouaux, Julia

2012-01-01

The Migadopini are a small tribe of Carabidae with 47 species that occur in South America, Australia, and New Zealand, in the sub-Antarctic areas. In South America, most of the genera inhabit areas related to sub-Antartic Nothofagus forest except two monogeneric genera, the Ecuadorian genus Aquilex Moret and the Pampean genus Rhytidognathus Chaudoir. These two genera are geographically isolated from the remaining five South American genera. New material of Rhytidognathus from the northeast of Buenos Aires province and from Entre Ríos province permits establishing that the previous records of Rhytidognathus ovalis (Dejean) for Argentina were erroneous and that it belongs to a new species. Based on external morphological characters and from male and female genitalia we describe Rhytidognathus platensis as a new species. In this contribution we provide illustrations, keys, habitat characteristics and some biogeographic considerations on the distribution of Rhytidognathus.

A new species of Thelastomathidae (Nematoda) a parasite of Neocurtilla claraziana Saussure (Orthoptera, Gryllotalpidae) in Argentina.

PubMed

Camino, Nora B; Maiztegui, Bárbara

2002-07-01

Gryllophila cephalobulata n. sp. (Nematoda, Thelastomatidae) a parasite of the mole cricket Neocurtilla claraziana (Orthoptera, Gryllotalpidae) isolated in Buenos Aires Province, is described and illustrated. It is characterized by cuticle annulated all along the length of the body; the first ring has 4 lobules, the second one has 14 lobules, the others rings are simple, the stoma is short and has 4 small teeth, the genital papillae are arranged in 5 pairs, of which 3 pairs are preanal and 2 pairs are postanal. The tail appendage of the male is long and filiform.

Simulation of regional-scale groundwater flow in the Azul River basin, Buenos Aires Province, Argentina

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Varni, Marcelo R.; Usunoff, Eduardo J.

A three-dimensional modular model (MODFLOW) was used to simulate groundwater flow in the Azul River basin, Buenos Aires Province, Argentina, in order to assess the correctness of the conceptual model of the hydrogeological system. Simulated heads satisfactorily match observed heads in the regional water-table aquifer. Model results indicate that: (1) groundwater recharge is not uniform throughout the region but is best represented by three recharge rates, decreasing downgradient, similar to the distribution of soils and geomorphological characteristics; and (2) evapotranspiration rates are larger than previous estimates, which were made by using the Thornthwaite-Mather method. Evapotranspiration rates estimated by MODFLOW agree with results of independent studies of the region. Model results closely match historical surface-flow records, thereby suggesting that the model description of the aquifer-river relationship is correct. Résumé Un modèle modulaire tridimensionnel (MODFLOW) a été utilisé pour simuler les écoulements souterrains dans le bassin de la rivière Azul (Province de Buenos Aires, Argentine), dans le but d'évaluer la justesse du modèle conceptuel du système hydrogéologique. La piézométrie simulée s'ajuste de façon satisfaisante à celle observée pour l'ensemble de la nappe. Les résultats du modèle indiquent que: (1) la recharge de la nappe n'est pas uniforme sur toute la région, mais qu'elle est mieux approchée par trois valeurs différentes, décroissant vers l'aval-gradient, en suivant la même distribution que les sols et les caractéristiques géomorphologiques et (2) l'évapotranspiration est nettement plus importante que prévu initialement à partir de la méthode de Thornthwaite-Mather. Les valeurs d'évapotranspiration fournies par MODFLOW concordent bien avec les résultats d'autres études portant sur la région. Les résultats du modèle reproduisent convenablement les chroniques de débit des écoulements de surface, suggérant ainsi que la description par le modèle des relations rivière-nappe est correcte. Resumen Se ha utilizado el modelo MODFLOW, del Servicio Geológico de los Estados Unidos, para simular el flujo de agua subterránea en la cuenca del arroyo del Azul, Provincia de Buenos Aires, Argentina, con el objeto de evaluar el modelo hidrogeológico conceptual. Los niveles hidráulicos simulados ajustan satisfactoriamente con los niveles observados. Los resultados de la simulación indican que: (1) la recarga no es uniforme, sino que puede caracterizarse con tres zonas en las que sus valores decrecen en la medida en que decrece la pendiente, que guarda similitud con la distribución de suelos y características geomorfológicas y (2) la evapotranspiración sería mayor que la estimada en estudios previos, en los que se utilizó el método de Thornthwaite-Mather. La evapotranspiración estimada mediante la presente simulación concuerda con resultados de varios estudios independientes en la región. Respecto de la relación acuífero-río, existe un muy buen ajuste entre los aportes del acuífero al río simulados y los valores históricos de caudal base.

Epidemiologic Study and Genotyping of BK Virus in Renal Transplant Recipients.

PubMed

Cobos, M; Aquilia, L; Garay, E; Ochiuzzi, S; Alvarez, S; Flores, D; Raimondi, C

2018-03-01

BK virus (BKV) infection occurs during childhood and remains latent in the urinary tract. The virus is reactivated in immunosuppressed patients, particularly in those with cellular immunity deficiency, allowing its detection in urine and blood. Nephropathy caused by the virus in renal transplantation recipients may lead to graft failure. The purpose of this study is to know the prevalence of BKV variables in renal transplantation recipients and to evaluate their clinical evolution through molecular methods of "in house" development. Urine and peripheral blood samples from 66 renal transplantation recipients from the province of Buenos Aires, Argentina, were systematically analyzed every 3 months as well as when there was graft dysfunction. Renal biopsies, which were included in the BKV detection study, were performed on those patients with graft dysfunction. Genotyping of 24 BKVs was performed, and the following distribution was found: 21 (87.5%) belonged to subtype I, 3 (12.5%) to subtype II. BKV belonging to subtypes III or IV were not found. As regards subtype I subgroups, the following were identified: 1 (4.76%) from Ia, 10 (47.61%) from Ib1 and 10 (47.61%) from Ib2. Presence of subgroup Ic was not shown. Viremia presented in 33.33% of cases, whereas 75% corresponded to subgroup Ib 1. Genotype Ib1 is prevailing in Southeast Asia, while Ib2 is prominent in Europe. Although an important proportion of the inhabitants of the province of Buenos Aires are European descendants, the prevailing genotype is Ib1, the Asian type. Genotyping might be related to the evolution of the disease in the recipient. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Revision of the genera Pareuthria Strebel, 1905, Glypteuthria Strebel, 1905 and Meteuthria Thiele, 1912 (Gastropoda: Buccinulidae) with the description of three new genera and two new species from Southwestern Atlantic waters.

PubMed

Pastorino, Guido

2016-10-31

This revision of the buccinulid genera Pareuthria Strebel, 1905, Glypteuthria Strebel, 1905 and Meteuthria Thiele, 1912 includes all the reported nominal species and type specimens. A total of 13 valid species included in six genera are described and illustrated. All but one -P. fuscata- live in shallow waters around the Magellanic region and even reach lower latitudes including deeper waters off the Buenos Aires province. The genus Pareuthria includes P. fuscata (Bruguière, 1789), P. atrata (E. A. Smith, 1881) for which a lectotype is designated, and P. venustula Powell, 1951. P. fuscata is also confirmed to occur in New Zealand waters. Glypteuthria Strebel, 1905 includes only the type species G. meridionalis (E.A. Smith, 1881). Two species are included in the genus Meteuthria Thiele, 1912, the type species M. martensi (Strebel, 1905), for which a lectotype is designated, and M. batialis n. sp., which is described herein based on specimens from deep water off Buenos Aires province. Three new genera are described: Falsimacme n. gen. to include only the type species F. kobelti (Strebel, 1905) (formerly in the genus Meteuthria); Argeneuthria n. gen. to include A. cerealis (Rochebrune & Mabille, 1885), A. paessleri (Strebel, 1905), A. euthrioides (Melvill & Standen, 1898), A. philippii (Strebel, 1905) and A. varicosa new species; and Microdeuthria n. gen. to include only M. michaelseni (Strebel, 1905). In addition, "Anomacme" multituberculata Castellanos, Rolán & Bartolotta, 1987 included by Dell (1990) in Meteuthria is excluded from the latter genus based on the morphology of the radula.

Magnetic Characterization of Stream-Sediments From Buenos Aires Province, Argentina, Affected by Pollution

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chaparro, M. A.; Sinito, A. M.; Bidegain, J. C.; Gogorza, C. S.; Jurado, S.

2001-12-01

A wide urban area from Northeast of Buenos Aires Province is exposed to an important anthropogenic influence, mainly due to industrial activity. In this two water streams were chosen: one of them (Del Gato stream, G) next to La Plata City and the another one (El Pescado stream, P) on the outskirts of the city. Both streams have similar characteristics, although the first one (G) has a higher input of pollutants (fluvial effluents, fly ashes, solid wastes, etc.) than the last one (P). Sediments analyzed in this work are limes from continental origin of PostPampeano (Holocene). Although, some cores were affected by sandy-limy sediments with mollusc valves from Querandino Sea (Pleistocene - later Holocene) and limy sediments of chestnut color with calcareous concretions from the Ensenadense. Magnetic measurements and geochemical studies were carried out on the samples. Among the magnetic parameters, specific susceptibility (X), X frequency-dependence (Xfd%), X temperature-dependence, Natural Remanent Magnetization (NRM), Isothermal Remanent Magnetization (IRM), Saturation IRM (SIRM), coercivity of remanence (Bcr), S ratio and SIRM/X ratio, Anhysteric Remanent Magnetization (ARM), Magnetic and Thermal Demagnetization were studied. The magnetic characteristics for both sites indicate the predominance of magnetically soft minerals on G site and relatively hard minerals on P site. Magnetite is the main magnetic carrier, Pseudo Single Domain and Single Domain grains were found. Chemical studies show (in some cases) a high concentration for some heavy metals (Pb, Cu, Zn, Ni and Fe) on the upper 22-cm. Contents of heavy metals and ARM were correlated. Very good correlation (R> 0.81) is found for Cu, Zn, Ni, Fe and the sum (of Pb, Cu, Zn and Ni), and a weaker correlation for Pb.

Wind erosion risk in the southwest of Buenos Aires Province, Argentina, and its relationship to the productivity index

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Silenzi, Juan C.; Echeverría, Nora E.; Vallejos, Adrián G.; Bouza, Mariana E.; De Lucia, Martín P.

2012-01-01

Wind erosion risk (WER) for soils of each municipality in the southwest (SW) of Buenos Aires Province (10,491,172 ha) was determined using the wind erosion equation (WEQ) model. WER results from multiplying the soil erodibility index (" I") of the soil by the climatic factor ( C). WER (Mg ha -1 year -1) of each municipality was: Bahía Blanca: 22.4, Coronel Dorrego: 18.6, Coronel Pringles: 4.5, Coronel Rosales: 48.2, Coronel Suárez: 4.5, Guaminí: 3.0, Patagones: 104.6, Puan: 12.2, Saavedra: 3.0, Tornquist: 6.8, and Villarino: 31.7. The maximum weighted average of " I" (Mg ha -1 year -1) corresponded to Coronel Rosales (87.6), Patagones (87.2), Villarino (85.7), Puan (67.9); Guaminí (59.6), Coronel Dorrego (53.1), and Bahía Blanca (39.3); the remaining municipalities ranged between 34.9 and 32.1 Mg ha -1 year -1. The highest C (%) corresponded to Patagones (120), Bahía Blanca (57), Coronel Rosales (55), Villarino (37), Coronel Dorrego (35), Tornquist (21), and Puan (18); for the remaining municipalities it was 14%. The productivity index (PI) is known to establish a numerical value of the productive capacity of lands. The relationship between WER and PI, weighted averages, in all the studied municipalities was fitted by means of a linear model, WER (Mg ha -1 year -1) = 95.23 - 2.09 * PI (%) ( R2 = 66%), and a second-order polynomial model, WER (Mg ha -1 year -1) = 139.41 - 5.86 * PI (%) + 0.07 * PI 2 (%) ( R2 = 74%). No statistically significant relationship was found between WER and PI for each municipality.

Radiological and hyperfine characterization of soils from the Northeastern region of the Province of Buenos Aires, Argentina

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Montes, M. L.; Mercader, R. C.; Taylor, M. A.; Runco, J.; Imbellone, P.; Rivas, P. C.; Desimoni, J.

2011-11-01

The activity concentrations of both natural (238U and 232Th chains and 40K) and anthropogenic (137Cs) radionuclides down along the soil profile have been determined in soil samples collected from inland and coastal areas of the La Plata River, located in the Northeastern region of the Province of Buenos Aires, Argentina. These studies were complemented with 57Fe Mössbauer spectroscopy characterization, pH, texture and organic carbon content measurements. From Mössbauer results, the sample compositions differ from one area to the other. Spectra from both soil samples are dominated by the Fe3+ paramagnetic signal. For soil samples from the coastal area, the α-Fe2O3 contribution is lower, Fe3O4 was not detected, and the relative areas of each spectral contribution are nearly constant with depth. For samples from the inland area, the Fe3+ paramagnetic fraction increases up to 82%, mainly at the expense of the magnetically ordered phase. The main observed activity originates from the decay of 40K (540-750 Bq/kg), followed by 238U (60-92 Bq/kg) and 232Th (37-46 Bq/kg) chains. The activity of 235U was in all the cases lower than the detection limit (LD = 0.02 Bq/kg). The only determined anthropogenic nuclide was 137Cs, arising from the fallout of the Southern Hemisphere nuclear weapon tests. Three of the observed differences in the depth distributions can be described by the dispersion-convection model. A correlation between the natural nuclide activities and the Mössbauer relative fractions was found, whereas no correlation was found between the 137Cs profile and the relative fraction of Fe3O4 or with other iron species.

Natural infection in Pampas fox (Lycalopex gymnocercus) by Lagochilascaris major Leiper, 1910 (Nematoda: Ascarididae) in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

PubMed

Scioscia, Nathalia Paula; Olmos, Leandro; Gorosábel, Antonella; Bernad, Lucía; Pedrana, Julieta; Denegri, Guillermo María

2018-06-25

Lagochilascariosis is an emerging parasitic disease limited to the American continent, caused by nematodes of the genus Lagochilascaris. Its life cycle is heteroxenous, involving natural definitive hosts (wild carnivores), accidental hosts (domestic carnivores and humans), and intermediate hosts (rodents). Here we report, for the first time, the occurrence of Lagochilascaris major in female of a Pampas fox (Lycalopex gymnocercus) which was found in the Mar Chiquita basin, Buenos Aires province, Argentina. At necropsy, multiple Lagochilascaris larvae and several adults (1 female and 5 male) were observed inserted in the mucosa of the trachea and a male was also collected in the stomach. The diagnosis was made by observing the different stages with optical microscopy, by scanning electron microscopy of adult males and coproparasitological analysis. Although cases of lagochilascariosis have been reported in wildlife in different countries of the American continent, in Argentina, cases are really rare and were only found in domestic cats. Graphical abstract ᅟLagochilascariosis is an emerging parasitic disease limited to the American continent. In Argentina, sporadic cases of Lagochilascariosis were reported in domestic cats but this work represents the first record in a wild carnivore (L. gymnocercus) naturally infected with L. major.

Contribution to the knowledge of pathogenic fungi of spiders in Argentina. Southernmost record in the world.

PubMed

Manfrino, Romina G; González, Alda; Barneche, Jorge; Tornesello Galván, Julieta; Hywell-Jones, Nigel; López Lastra, Claudia C

The aim of this study was to identify entomopathogenic fungi infecting spiders (Araneae) in a protected area of Buenos Aires province, Argentina. The Araneae species identified was Stenoterommata platensis. The pathogens identified were Lecanicillium aphanocladii Zare & W. Gams, Purpureocillium lilacinum (Thom) Luangsa-ard, Houbraken, Hywel Jones & Samson and Ophiocordyceps caloceroides (Berk & M.A. Curtis). This study constitutes the southernmost records in the world and contributes to expanding the knowledge of the biodiversity of pathogenic fungi of spiders in Argentina. Copyright © 2016 Asociación Argentina de Microbiología. Publicado por Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.

Study design of a cluster-randomized controlled trial to evaluate a large-scale distribution of cook stoves and water filters in Western Province, Rwanda.

PubMed

Nagel, Corey L; Kirby, Miles A; Zambrano, Laura D; Rosa, Ghislane; Barstow, Christina K; Thomas, Evan A; Clasen, Thomas F

2016-12-15

In Rwanda, pneumonia and diarrhea are the first and second leading causes of death, respectively, among children under five. Household air pollution (HAP) resultant from cooking indoors with biomass fuels on traditional stoves is a significant risk factor for pneumonia, while consumption of contaminated drinking water is a primary cause of diarrheal disease. To date, there have been no large-scale effectiveness trials of programmatic efforts to provide either improved cookstoves or household water filters at scale in a low-income country. In this paper we describe the design of a cluster-randomized trial to evaluate the impact of a national-level program to distribute and promote the use of improved cookstoves and advanced water filters to the poorest quarter of households in Rwanda. We randomly allocated 72 sectors (administratively defined units) in Western Province to the intervention, with the remaining 24 sectors in the province serving as controls. In the intervention sectors, roughly 100,000 households received improved cookstoves and household water filters through a government-sponsored program targeting the poorest quarter of households nationally. The primary outcome measures are the incidence of acute respiratory infection (ARI) and diarrhea among children under five years of age. Over a one-year surveillance period, all cases of acute respiratory infection (ARI) and diarrhea identified by health workers in the study area will be extracted from records maintained at health facilities and by community health workers (CHW). In addition, we are conducting intensive, longitudinal data collection among a random sample of households in the study area for in-depth assessment of coverage, use, environmental exposures, and additional health measures. Although previous research has examined the impact of providing household water treatment and improved cookstoves on child health, there have been no studies of national-level programs to deliver these interventions at scale in a developing country. The results of this study, the first RCT of a large-scale programmatic cookstove or household water filter intervention, will inform global efforts to reduce childhood morbidity and mortality from diarrheal disease and pneumonia. This trial is registered at Clinicaltrials.gov (NCT02239250).

[Territorial mobility of women in Neuquina localities].

PubMed

Kloster, E E

1995-01-01

The Argentinean province of Neuquen, which has the second highest population growth rate in Argentina, has experienced a high degree of territorial mobility of both sexes since the 1970s. Census and survey data were used to study migratory movements since 1970 in three localities in western Neuquen that had high rates of female migration. One of them, San Martin de los Andes, had a 1991 population of 14,431 and an average annual rate of growth of 42/1000 between 1970 and 1991. Natives of Neuquen represented 54% of the population in 1970 and 60% in 1991. The proportion of migrants from other provinces was 30% in 1970 and 27.3% in 1991, while that of foreigners declined from 16.5% to 12.7%. The great majority of foreigners were from Chile. The proportion of women from other countries, although declining, exceeded that of men in 1970 and in 1991. Most of the population 0-19 years old was born in the province of Neuquen. In the age group 20-64, only about half were natives of the province. Comparison of the educational levels of female migrants from different places of origin showed significant differences. Tourism in San Martin de los Andes has generated employment, much of it seasonal. Female migrants from other provinces arrived after 1980 for the most part and were 20-40 years old. Most of the Chilean women arrived between 1970 and 1980 and had a greater age range. Women from other parts of Neuquen province were mostly over 40 and had the lowest educational level, with many not completing primary school. Migrants from metropolitan Buenos Aires and other nonneighboring provinces had the highest educational level, followed by the Chileans. Natives of San Martin de los Andes were more educated than those from other parts of Neuquen province, but less educated than the other groups. The women who migrated had many reasons for doing so, but the search for work was an important motivation.

Enhanced 2/3 four-ary modulation code using soft-decision Viterbi decoding for four-level holographic data storage systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kong, Gyuyeol; Choi, Sooyong

2017-09-01

An enhanced 2/3 four-ary modulation code using soft-decision Viterbi decoding is proposed for four-level holographic data storage systems. While the previous four-ary modulation codes focus on preventing maximum two-dimensional intersymbol interference patterns, the proposed four-ary modulation code aims at maximizing the coding gains for better bit error rate performances. For achieving significant coding gains from the four-ary modulation codes, we design a new 2/3 four-ary modulation code in order to enlarge the free distance on the trellis through extensive simulation. The free distance of the proposed four-ary modulation code is extended from 1.21 to 2.04 compared with that of the conventional four-ary modulation code. The simulation result shows that the proposed four-ary modulation code has more than 1 dB gains compared with the conventional four-ary modulation code.

Space Station logistic support by Aries

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cougnet, C.; Groepper, P.

1987-10-01

The architecture and functions of Aries, a low-cost expendable vehicle, are discussed. The Aries design is based on the Ariane 5 L5 and VEB. The major components of Aries are upgraded L5 and VEB and a payload adaptor; the design and operations of these components are described. The avionics and propulsion system for Aries are examined. Aries is to be employed for logistic support, assembly, and the placement of satellites. An example of a mission scenario and diagrams of Aries are provided.

[Immigrants from across the border in Tandil: Chileans and Bolivians in the 1990s].

PubMed

Almandoz, M G

1997-12-01

"This article deals with [the] settlement of immigrants from Chile and Bolivia in a town in the province of Buenos Aires [Argentina], far away from the borders and from the metropolitan area. Although underrepresented when compared with the overall percentage of immigrants from those two countries in Argentina, the interest of this case lies in the possibility of understanding settlement of new immigrants in dynamic areas of the country. Chilean immigrants live in Tandil in greater number than Bolivian immigrants, but are also older. Though a certain mobility is not unknown, they usually hold low skilled jobs and are only by exception granted social security and medical insurance." (EXCERPT)

Comments on Environmental and Sanitary Aspects of the Scorpionism by Tityus trivittatus in Buenos Aires City, Argentina

PubMed Central

de Roodt, Adolfo Rafael

2014-01-01

Deaths by venomous animals are medical emergencies that can lead to death and thus constitute sanitary problems in some regions of the world. In the South of America, the accidents by these animals are a common sanitary problem especially in warm, tropical or subtropical regions, related with rural work in several countries. Argentina is located in the extreme South of South America and a minor part of the continental surface is in tropical or subtropical regions, where most of the accidents by venomous animals happen. However, in the big cities in the center and South of the country, with no relation to rural work, scorpionism, mostly due to the synanthropic and facultative parthenogenetic scorpion Tityus trivittatus, has become a sanitary problem in the last few decades. This scorpion is present in the biggest cities of Argentina and in the last decades has killed over 20 children in provinces of the center and north of the country, mostly in big cities. In addition, it seems that this species is growing and spreading in new regions of the cities. In this revision, some characteristics of this scorpion regarding its habitat, spreading in Buenos Aires city, combat measures and available treatments are discussed. PMID:24759176

An evaluation of genotyping by sequencing (GBS) to map the Breviaristatum-e (ari-e) locus in cultivated barley.

PubMed

Liu, Hui; Bayer, Micha; Druka, Arnis; Russell, Joanne R; Hackett, Christine A; Poland, Jesse; Ramsay, Luke; Hedley, Pete E; Waugh, Robbie

2014-02-06

We explored the use of genotyping by sequencing (GBS) on a recombinant inbred line population (GPMx) derived from a cross between the two-rowed barley cultivar 'Golden Promise' (ari-e.GP/Vrs1) and the six-rowed cultivar 'Morex' (Ari-e/vrs1) to map plant height. We identified three Quantitative Trait Loci (QTL), the first in a region encompassing the spike architecture gene Vrs1 on chromosome 2H, the second in an uncharacterised centromeric region on chromosome 3H, and the third in a region of chromosome 5H coinciding with the previously described dwarfing gene Breviaristatum-e (Ari-e). Barley cultivars in North-western Europe largely contain either of two dwarfing genes; Denso on chromosome 3H, a presumed ortholog of the rice green revolution gene OsSd1, or Breviaristatum-e (ari-e) on chromosome 5H. A recessive mutant allele of the latter gene, ari-e.GP, was introduced into cultivation via the cv. 'Golden Promise' that was a favourite of the Scottish malt whisky industry for many years and is still used in agriculture today. Using GBS mapping data and phenotypic measurements we show that ari-e.GP maps to a small genetic interval on chromosome 5H and that alternative alleles at a region encompassing Vrs1 on 2H along with a region on chromosome 3H also influence plant height. The location of Ari-e is supported by analysis of near-isogenic lines containing different ari-e alleles. We explored use of the GBS to populate the region with sequence contigs from the recently released physically and genetically integrated barley genome sequence assembly as a step towards Ari-e gene identification. GBS was an effective and relatively low-cost approach to rapidly construct a genetic map of the GPMx population that was suitable for genetic analysis of row type and height traits, allowing us to precisely position ari-e.GP on chromosome 5H. Mapping resolution was lower than we anticipated. We found the GBS data more complex to analyse than other data types but it did directly provide linked SNP markers for subsequent higher resolution genetic analysis.

Solanum Tuber-bearing Species Resistance Behavior Against Nacobbus aberrans

PubMed Central

Chaves, Eliseo J.; Clausen, Andrea. M.; Franco, Javier

2009-01-01

Naccobus aberrans is a major pest of the potato crop in the Andean regions of Argentina, Bolivia, and Perú. It is endemic in northwest Argentina and is also found in lowlands. The resistance of eleven Andean potato landraces and three accessions of the wild tuber-bearing species Solanum acaule, S. infundibuliforme, and S. megistacrolobum were evaluated against a population of N. aberrans from Coctaca, Jujuy province, while Solanum tuberosum ssp. tuberosum ‘Spunta’, ‘Kennebec’, and ‘Frital INTA’ were evaluated against a population from the southeast of Buenos Aires province. The presence, the number of galls, and the number of individuals were recorded. In addition, a reproduction factor was calculated and races were determined. Results showed that the N. aberrans population from Coctaca corresponded to race 2 and the population from the lowlands belonged to the sugar beet group. Landrace Azul, one genotype of S. megistacrolobum, and two genotypes of S. acaule showed resistance towards the race from Coctaca while no infection was recorded in potato cultivars with the Naccobus race from the lowland area. PMID:22661771

Serum IFN-γ-induced protein 10 (IP-10) as a biomarker for severity of acute respiratory infection in healthy adults.

PubMed

Hayney, Mary S; Henriquez, Kelsey M; Barnet, Jodi H; Ewers, Tola; Champion, Heather M; Flannery, Sean; Barrett, Bruce

2017-05-01

The inflammatory chemokine, interferon-gamma inducible protein of 10kDa (IP-10), is a biomarker associated with several conditions. This study investigated serum concentrations of IP-10 in healthy individuals who developed acute respiratory infection (ARI). The hypothesis is that serum IP-10 concentrations correlate with ARI severity and detection of viral pathogens. Data come from a randomized controlled trial measuring the effects of mindfulness meditation or exercise on ARI (Clinical Trials ID: NCT01654289). Healthy adults ages 30-69 were followed for a single season for ARI incidence and severity. This trial is ongoing, and the investigators are still blinded. When a participant reported ARI symptoms, nasal swab and lavage for PCR-based viral identification and blood samples were collected within the first 72h of ARI symptoms. Serum IP-10 concentrations were measured by ELISA (R&D Systems, Inc., Quantikine ELISA, Minneapolis, MN). ARI severity was measured using the validated Wisconsin Upper Respiratory Symptom Survey (WURSS-24) until the ARI episode resolved. Serum IP-10 concentrations from 225 ARI episodes correlated with ARI global severity (rho 0.28 [95% CI: 0.15-0.39]; p<0.001). IP-10 concentrations were higher with an ARI in which a viral pathogen was detected compared to no viral pathogen detected (median 366pg/ml [IQR: 227-486] vs 163pg/ml [IQR: 127-295], p<0.0001). Influenza infections had higher IP-10 concentrations than coronavirus, enterovirus or rhinovirus, and paramyxovirus. Serum IP-10 concentration correlates with ARI global severity. Also, IP-10 concentration measured early in the course of the ARI correlates with the daily severity, duration, and illness symptoms. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

End to deficit of LPG. [Argentina] (in Spanish)

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Andrich, V.

1980-03-01

In the Buenos Aires province of Argentina, Gas de Estado is constructing the future heart of the petrochemical complex, Bahia Blanca. The complex contains 2 absorption-refrigeration plants, a gas compressing plant, equipment maintenance shops and an important operations base for the Argentine truck gas pipelines. This will be the largest LPG plant in Latin America. The General Cerri plant, under construction, is located in an area of 40,000 sq m with new installations to extract ethane and higher hydrocarbons. The design optimizes the extraction of hydrocarbons from the natural gas and recovers 76% of the ethane. Selection of the processmore » resulted from an investigation that compared the system with processes that use water cooling and absorption with refrigerated oil.« less

Natural Brucella infection in Argentine wild foxes*

PubMed Central

Szyfres, B.; Tomé, J. González

1966-01-01

In the course of an investigation in 1962-64 into the natural occurrence of brucellosis among grey foxes in Argentina, agglutination tests were performed on 728 sera of the foxes Dusicyon gymnocercus antiquus and D. griseus griseus, captured in the provinces of Buenos Aires and Rio Negro. Agglutination titres of from 1:25 to 1:800 were found in 173 (23.8%) of the foxes tested, 11.3% having titres of 1:100 or more. In bacteriological testing, eight cultures of Brucella abortus, biotype 1, were obtained. Discussing their findings, the authors point out that it cannot be stated definitely whether Brucella is naturally shed by foxes or to what extent infected foxes contribute to the dissemination of brucellosis. PMID:5296540

Diversity and Seasonal Dynamics of an Assemblage of Sarcophagid Diptera in a Gradient of Urbanization

PubMed Central

Mulieri, Pablo R.; Patitucci, Luciano D.; Schnack, Juan A; Mariluis, Juan C.

2011-01-01

Sarcophagid species inhabiting different locations in a rural-urban gradient were surveyed in the east central Argentine district of the Almirante Brown, Buenos Aires province. The main objectives of this research were to identify the most prevalent sarcophagid species and to describe community richness and diversity according to the degree of urbanization and the environmental variables measured in three locations within a rural-urban gradient sampled during two years from May 2005 to April 2007. Spatial and seasonal variations were the main factors involved in structuring the sarcophagid communities. Diversity was lower in urbanized areas than in rural ones. Bait and microhabitat preferences (sunny or shady places) and seasonal fluctuations were described for 17 sarcophagid species. PMID:21870984

Implementation of Alabama Resources Information System, ARIS

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Herring, B. E.

1978-01-01

Development of ARIS - Alabama Resources Information System is summarized. Development of data bases, system simplification for user access, and making information available to personnel having a need to use ARIS or in the process of developing ARIS type systems are discussed.

[Cultural representations about anaemia and supplement with iron].

PubMed

Sammartino, Gloria

2010-10-01

In Argentina, one third of pregnant women and infants suffer from anemia. However, the adherence to the treatment is very low. This study, that is qualitative in nature, tries to show the social representations regarding notions of anemia and the acceptance and reject of iron supplementation among health teams, mothers and pregnant women. Semi-structured and open interviews were applied to professionals and non professionals that worked in health centers, as well as mothers of small children and pregnant users. The 8 health centres that were visited are placed in the City of Buenos Aires and Great Buenos Aires, the provinces of Jujuy and Misiones. Information gathering took place between June 2007 and March 2008; 49 members of health teams and 40 mothers were interviewed. Data analysis was made with the software NUD*IST. The opposing attitudes of the professionals were emphasized. There was a group that did not visualize the anemia problem and that did not consider iron supplementation as necessary, there was another group that, even when considering it as problematic, found that the intake of food was the solution. Finally, there was a third group that had absolutely incorporated fighting and preventing the anemia, for whom iron supplementation had an important place. To follow-up the regulation for iron supplementation depends on the beliefs and the private wishes of health teams members.

[Traumatic childhood in a private male population of liberty events: prevalence study].

PubMed

Vallejo, Miguel; Bertone, Matias Salvador

2016-01-01

We have observed, in several studies, high rates of psychiatric disorders and traumatic childhood experiences in people who are deprived of their freedom in prison institutions. The aim of the study was to assess the prevalence of different types of adverse childhood experiences and the prevalence of psychiatric disorders in patient-internal male in a prison psychiatric institution. An epidemiological study was conducted between March and July 2011 in which 59 inmates-patients were evaluated in the observation room and Psychiatric Evaluation (SOEP) of the unit 20 in the Central Psychiatric Service Men, which was located on the campus of J.T. Borda Hospital of the City of Buenos Aires, in the province of Buenos Aires, Argentina. SCID I and II, and ACE (Adverse Experience Childhood) scales were used. 91% of participants had suffered any adverse experience in childhood. Physical (59%), emotional (54%), sexual (18%) and negligence (66%): a high rate of abuse in its various forms was found At the same time it was observed that all patients had a mental disorder. The most common diagnosis is personality disorder (69.4%). It was observed that most of the abuses were perpetrated by people in your household. high prevalence rates of adverse childhood experiences and psychiatric disorders private individuals of their liberty were observed to coincide with that shown in other studies in similar populations.

The cost of acute respiratory infections in Northern India: a multi-site study.

PubMed

Peasah, Samuel K; Purakayastha, Debjani Ram; Koul, Parvaiz A; Dawood, Fatima S; Saha, Siddhartha; Amarchand, Ritvik; Broor, Shobha; Rastogi, Vaibhab; Assad, Romana; Kaul, Kaisar Ahmed; Widdowson, Marc-Alain; Lal, Renu B; Krishnan, Anand

2015-04-07

Despite the high mortality and morbidity resulting from acute respiratory infections (ARI) globally, there are few data from low-income countries on costs of ARI to inform public health policy decisions We conducted a prospective survey to assess costs of ARI episodes in selected primary, secondary, and tertiary healthcare facilities in north India where no respiratory pathogen vaccine is routinely recommended. Face-to-face interviews were conducted among a purposive sample of patients with ARI from healthcare facilities. Data were collected on out-of-pocket costs of hospitalization, medical consultations, medications, diagnostics, transportation, lodging, and missed work days. Telephone surveys were conducted two weeks after medical encounters to ask about subsequent missed work and costs incurred. Costs of prescriptions and diagnostics in public facilities were supplemented with WHO-CHOICE estimates of hospital bed costs. Missed work days were assigned cost based on the national annual per capita income (US$1,104). Non-medically attended ARI cases were identified from an ongoing community-based ARI surveillance project in Faridabad. During September 2012-March 2013, 1766 patients with ARI were enrolled, including 451 hospitalized patients, 1056 outpatients, and 259 non-medically attended patients. The total direct cost of an ARI episode requiring outpatient care was US$4- $6 for public and $3-$10 for private institutions based on age groups. The total direct cost of an ARI episode requiring hospitalized care was $54-$120 in public and $135-$355 in private institutions. The cost of ARI among those hospitalized was highest among persons aged > = 65 years and lowest among children aged < 5 years. Indirect costs due to missed work days were 16-25% of total costs. The direct out-of-pocket cost of hospitalized ARI was 34% of annual per capita income. The cost of hospitalized ARI episodes in India is high relative to median per capita income. Data from this study can inform evaluations of the cost effectiveness of proven ARI prevention strategies such as vaccination.

Development of a Simulation Capability for the Space Station Active Rack Isolation System

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Johnson, Terry L.; Tolson, Robert H.

1998-01-01

To realize quality microgravity science on the International Space Station, many microgravity facilities will utilize the Active Rack Isolation System (ARIS). Simulation capabilities for ARIS will be needed to predict the microgravity environment. This paper discusses the development of a simulation model for use in predicting the performance of the ARIS in attenuating disturbances with frequency content between 0.01 Hz and 10 Hz. The derivation of the model utilizes an energy-based approach. The complete simulation includes the dynamic model of the ISPR integrated with the model for the ARIS controller so that the entire closed-loop system is simulated. Preliminary performance predictions are made for the ARIS in attenuating both off-board disturbances as well as disturbances from hardware mounted onboard the microgravity facility. These predictions suggest that the ARIS does eliminate resonant behavior detrimental to microgravity experimentation. A limited comparison is made between the simulation predictions of ARIS attenuation of off-board disturbances and results from the ARIS flight test. These comparisons show promise, but further tuning of the simulation is needed.

UV-B induction of the E3 ligase ARIADNE12 depends on CONSTITUTIVELY PHOTOMORPHOGENIC 1

PubMed Central

Xie, Lisi; Lang-Mladek, Christina; Richter, Julia; Nigam, Neha; Hauser, Marie-Theres

2015-01-01

The UV-B inducible ARIADNE12 (ARI12) gene of Arabidopsis thaliana is a member of the RING-between-RING (RBR) family of E3 ubiquitin ligases for which a novel ubiquitination mechanism was identified in mammalian homologs. This RING-HECT hybrid mechanism needs a conserved cysteine which is replaced by serine in ARI12 and might affect the E3 ubiquitin ligase activity. We have shown that under photomorphogenic UV-B, ARI12 is a downstream target of the classical ultraviolet B (UV-B) UV RESISTANCE LOCUS 8 (UVR8) pathway. However, under high fluence rate of UV-B ARI12 was induced independently of UVR8 and the UV-A/blue light and red/far-red photoreceptors. A key component of several light signaling pathways is CONSTITUTIVELY PHOTOMORPHOGENIC 1 (COP1). Upon UV-B COP1 is trapped in the nucleus through interaction with UVR8 permitting the activation of genes that regulate the biosynthesis of UV-B protective metabolites and growth adaptations. To clarify the role of COP1 in the regulation of ARI12 mRNA expression and ARI12 protein stability, localization and interaction with COP1 was assessed with and without UV-B. We found that COP1 controls ARI12 in white light, low and high fluence rate of UV-B. Furthermore we show that ARI12 is indeed an E3 ubiquitin ligase which is mono-ubiquitinated, a prerequisite for the RING-HECT hybrid mechanism. Finally, genetic analyses with transgenes expressing a genomic pmARI12:ARI12-GFP construct confirm the epistatic interaction between COP1 and ARI12 in growth responses to high fluence rate UV-B. PMID:25817546

Acute respiratory infection in children from developing nations: a multi-level study.

PubMed

Pinzón-Rondón, Ángela María; Aguilera-Otalvaro, Paula; Zárate-Ardila, Carol; Hoyos-Martínez, Alfonso

2016-05-01

Worldwide, acute respiratory infections (ARI) are the leading cause of death of children under 5 years of age. To assess the accomplishment of the Millennium Development Goal on under-5 mortality particularly related to ARI in developing countries, and to explore the associations between country characteristics and ARI in children under 5 taking into account child, mother and household attributes. The study included a representative sample of 354,633 children under 5 years from 40 developing nations. A multilevel analysis of data from the Demographic and Health Surveys and the World Bank was conducted. The prevalence of ARI was 13%. Country inequalities were associated with the disease - GINI index (95% CI 1.01-1.04). The country's per capita gross domestic product (GDP) (95% CI 1.00-1.01) and health expenditure (95% CI 1.01-1.01) affected the relationship between immunization and ARI, while inequalities influenced the relationship between household wealth (95% CI 0.99-0.99) and the disease. Other factors positively associated with ARI were male gender, low birthweight, working mothers and a high-risk indoor environment. Factors associated with ARI reduction were older children, immunization, breastfeeding for more than 6 months, older maternal age, maternal education and planned pregnancy. In developing countries, public health campaigns to target ARI should consider the country's macro characteristics. At country level, inequalities but not health expenditure or GDP were associated with the disease and were independent of child, family and household characteristics. The effect of immunization on reducing ARI is greater in countries with a higher GDP and health expenditure. The effect of household wealth on ARI is less in countries with fewer inequalities. Reduction of inequalities is an important measure to decrease ARI in developing countries.

Impact of Home Environment Interventions on the Risk of Influenza-Associated ARI in Andean Children: Observations from a Prospective Household-Based Cohort Study

PubMed Central

Budge, Philip J.; Griffin, Marie R.; Edwards, Kathryn M.; Williams, John V.; Verastegui, Hector; Hartinger, Stella M.; Mäusezahl, Daniel; Johnson, Monika; Klemenc, Jennifer M.; Zhu, Yuwei; Gil, Ana I.; Lanata, Claudio F.; Grigalva, Carlos G.

2014-01-01

Background The Respiratory Infections in Andean Peruvian Children (RESPIRA-PERU) study enrolled children who participated in a community-cluster randomized trial of improved stoves, solar water disinfection, and kitchen sinks (IHIP trial) and children from additional Andean households. We quantified the burden of influenza-associated acute respiratory illness (ARI) in this household-based cohort. Methods From May 2009 to September 2011, we conducted active weekly ARI surveillance in 892 children age <3 years, of whom 272 (30.5%) had participated in the IHIP trial. We collected nasal swabs during ARI, tested for influenza and other respiratory viruses by RT-PCR, and determined influenza incidence and risk factors using mixed-effects regression models. Results The overall incidence of influenza-associated ARI was 36.6/100 child-years; incidence of influenza A, B, and C was 20.5, 8.7, and 5.2/100 child-years, respectively. Influenza C was associated with fewer days of subjective fever (median 1 vs. 2) and malaise (median 0 vs. 2) compared to influenza A. Non-influenza ARI also resulted in fewer days of fever and malaise, and fewer healthcare visits than influenza A-associated ARI. Influenza incidence varied by calendar year (80% occurred in the 2010 season) and IHIP trial participation. Among households that participated in the IHIP trial, influenza-associated ARI incidence was significantly lower in intervention than in control households (RR 0.40, 95% CI: 0.20–0.82). Conclusions Influenza burden is high among Andean children. ARI associated with influenza A and B had longer symptom duration and higher healthcare utilization than influenza C-associated ARI or non-influenza ARI. Environmental community interventions may reduce influenza morbidity. PMID:24622044

Impact of home environment interventions on the risk of influenza-associated ARI in Andean children: observations from a prospective household-based cohort study.

PubMed

Budge, Philip J; Griffin, Marie R; Edwards, Kathryn M; Williams, John V; Verastegui, Hector; Hartinger, Stella M; Mäusezahl, Daniel; Johnson, Monika; Klemenc, Jennifer M; Zhu, Yuwei; Gil, Ana I; Lanata, Claudio F; Grigalva, Carlos G

2014-01-01

The Respiratory Infections in Andean Peruvian Children (RESPIRA-PERU) study enrolled children who participated in a community-cluster randomized trial of improved stoves, solar water disinfection, and kitchen sinks (IHIP trial) and children from additional Andean households. We quantified the burden of influenza-associated acute respiratory illness (ARI) in this household-based cohort. From May 2009 to September 2011, we conducted active weekly ARI surveillance in 892 children age <3 years, of whom 272 (30.5%) had participated in the IHIP trial. We collected nasal swabs during ARI, tested for influenza and other respiratory viruses by RT-PCR, and determined influenza incidence and risk factors using mixed-effects regression models. The overall incidence of influenza-associated ARI was 36.6/100 child-years; incidence of influenza A, B, and C was 20.5, 8.7, and 5.2/100 child-years, respectively. Influenza C was associated with fewer days of subjective fever (median 1 vs. 2) and malaise (median 0 vs. 2) compared to influenza A. Non-influenza ARI also resulted in fewer days of fever and malaise, and fewer healthcare visits than influenza A-associated ARI. Influenza incidence varied by calendar year (80% occurred in the 2010 season) and IHIP trial participation. Among households that participated in the IHIP trial, influenza-associated ARI incidence was significantly lower in intervention than in control households (RR 0.40, 95% CI: 0.20-0.82). Influenza burden is high among Andean children. ARI associated with influenza A and B had longer symptom duration and higher healthcare utilization than influenza C-associated ARI or non-influenza ARI. Environmental community interventions may reduce influenza morbidity.

[Evaluation of a pedagogical proposal in teaching Medicine].

PubMed

Silberman, Martín Salvador; Silberman, Pedro; Pozzio, María

2012-01-01

In this article we discuss the role that medical schools play in the creation of a particular profile of health professionals. To this end, we analyze the impact of two field experiences carried out in 2006 and 2009 with students in the Epidemiology course of the Faculty of Medical Sciences in the Universidad Nacional de La Plata (in the province of Buenos Aires, Argentina). Using individual semistructured questionnaires applied to students as well as focus group strategies, the study sought to obtain information about the ideas and representations of the students before and after these educational experiences. The ability of students to reconsider the explicative models of the health-disease-care process and the weight of social problems in the phenomena of sickness and health is highlighted as one of the study's primary results.

Fusion Advanced Design Studies

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

El-Guebaly, Laila; Henderson, Douglass; Wilson, Paul

2017-03-24

During the January 1, 2013 – December 31, 2015 contract period, the UW Fusion Technology Institute personnel have actively participated in the ARIES-ACT and FESS-FNSF projects, led the nuclear and thermostructural tasks, attended several project meetings, and participated in all conference calls. The main areas of effort and technical achievements include updating and documenting the nuclear analysis for ARIES-ACT1, performing nuclear analysis for ARIES-ACT2, performing thermostructural analysis for ARIES divertor, performing disruption analysis for ARIES vacuum vessel, and developing blanket testing strategy and Materials Test Module for FNSF.

Potential impact of climate variability on respiratory diseases in infant and children in Semarang

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Budiyono; Rismawati; Jati, S. P.; Ginandjar, P.

2017-02-01

Temperature, humidity, and rainfall may influence respiratory disease, including acute respiratory infection (ARI) and pneumonia. In Semarang, the temperature and humidity has increased 0.1°C and 1.6% respectively during 2002-2011. ARI and pneumonia in children under 5 years had increased during 2012-2014. This study aimed to analyze the relationship of climate variability and ARI and pneumonia incidence. It was an ecological study. Subject consisted of patients visited primary health care of Bandarharjo from 2011 to 2015. Pneumonia was related to infants (<1-year-old) and children (1-4 years old), while ARI was related to children (≥5 years old). Data of climate was obtained from Agency for Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics (BMKG) Semarang. Pearson correlation (α=0.05) was used to analyse the correlation of the 60 samples. Mean of temperature was 27.96° C, relative humidity was 74.73%, and rainfall was 179.98 mm/month. The total of ARI was 38523 cases and pneumonia was 1558 cases. Temperature, humidity, and rainfall had no correlation to pneumonia. Humidity had a significant correlation to ARI on female children and total ARI (r=0.3 and r=0.26; p-value=0.02 and 0.04 respectively). Rainfall and temperature had no correlation to total ARI. This study concluded humidity has potential impact to ARI.

ARIES: Acquisition of Requirements and Incremental Evolution of Specifications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Roberts, Nancy A.

1993-01-01

This paper describes a requirements/specification environment specifically designed for large-scale software systems. This environment is called ARIES (Acquisition of Requirements and Incremental Evolution of Specifications). ARIES provides assistance to requirements analysts for developing operational specifications of systems. This development begins with the acquisition of informal system requirements. The requirements are then formalized and gradually elaborated (transformed) into formal and complete specifications. ARIES provides guidance to the user in validating formal requirements by translating them into natural language representations and graphical diagrams. ARIES also provides ways of analyzing the specification to ensure that it is correct, e.g., testing the specification against a running simulation of the system to be built. Another important ARIES feature, especially when developing large systems, is the sharing and reuse of requirements knowledge. This leads to much less duplication of effort. ARIES combines all of its features in a single environment that makes the process of capturing a formal specification quicker and easier.

Association Between Barracks Type and Acute Respiratory Infection in a Gender Integrated Army Basic Combat Training Population

PubMed Central

White, Duvel W.; Feigley, Charles E.; McKeown, Robert E.; Hout, Joseph J.; Hebert, James R.

2015-01-01

Background Acute respiratory infections (ARIs) are the leading cause of acute morbidity and lost work time in the United States. Few studies have looked at building design and transmission of ARIs. Objectives This study explores the association of ventilation design, room occupancy numbers, and training week with ARI rates in Army Basic Combat Training barracks. Methods This observational study captured the overall incidence of ARI in a cohort of 16,258 individuals attending basic combat training at Fort Jackson, South Carolina. Results ARI risk was higher among trainees living in the 60-person room barracks compared with those living in 8-person rooms, which increased rapidly for the first few weeks of training and then declined to baseline. Conclusions Findings support direct contact as primary ARI transmission mode in this study population based on observed lower ARI risk in smaller room barracks and similar risk in large room barracks despite heating, ventilation, and air conditioning system variability. PMID:21882781

Active Rack Isolation System Program and Technical Status

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bushnell, Glenn; Fialho, Ian; Allen, James; Quraishi, Naveed

2000-01-01

The Boeing Active Rack Isolation System (ARIS) is one of the means used to isolate acceleration-sensitive scientific experiments from structurally transmitted disturbances aboard the International Space Station. The presentation provides an overview of ARIS and technical issues associated with the development of the active control system. An overview of ARIS analytical models is presented along with recent isolation performance predictions made using these models. Issues associated with commanding and capturing ARIS data are discussed and possible future options based on the ARIS ISS Characterization Experiment (ICE) Payload On-orbit Processor (POP) are outlined. An overview of the ARIS-ICE experiment scheduled to fly on ISS Flight 6A is presented. The presentation concludes with a discussion of recent- developmental work that includes passive rack damping, umbilical redesigns and advanced multivariable control design methods.

Dengue Virus 1 Outbreak in Buenos Aires, Argentina, 2016.

PubMed

Tittarelli, Estefanía; Lusso, Silvina B; Goya, Stephanie; Rojo, Gabriel L; Natale, Mónica I; Viegas, Mariana; Mistchenko, Alicia S; Valinotto, Laura E

2017-10-01

The largest outbreak of dengue in Buenos Aires, Argentina, occurred during 2016. Phylogenetic, phylodynamic, and phylogeographic analyses of 82 samples from dengue patients revealed co-circulation of 2 genotype V dengue virus lineages, suggesting that this virus has become endemic to the Buenos Aires metropolitan area.

An evaluation of genotyping by sequencing (GBS) to map the Breviaristatum-e (ari-e) locus in cultivated barley

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

We explored the use of genotyping by sequencing (GBS) on a recombinant inbred line population (GPMx) derived from a cross between the two-rowed barley cultivar ‘Golden Promise’ (ari-e.GP/Vrs1) and the six-rowed cultivar ‘Morex’ (Ari-e/vrs1) to map plant height. We identified three Quantitative Trait...

The cost of community-managed viral respiratory illnesses in a cohort of healthy preschool-aged children

PubMed Central

Lambert, Stephen B; Allen, Kelly M; Carter, Robert C; Nolan, Terence M

2008-01-01

Background Acute respiratory illnesses (ARIs) during childhood are often caused by respiratory viruses, result in significant morbidity, and have associated costs for families and society. Despite their ubiquity, there is a lack of interdisciplinary epidemiologic and economic research that has collected primary impact data, particularly associated with indirect costs, from families during ARIs in children. Methods We conducted a 12-month cohort study in 234 preschool children with impact diary recording and PCR testing of nose-throat swabs for viruses during an ARI. We used applied values to estimate a virus-specific mean cost of ARIs. Results Impact diaries were available for 72% (523/725) of community-managed illnesses between January 2003 and January 2004. The mean cost of ARIs was AU$309 (95% confidence interval $263 to $354). Influenza illnesses had a mean cost of $904, compared with RSV, $304, the next most expensive single-virus illness, although confidence intervals overlapped. Mean carer time away from usual activity per day was two hours for influenza ARIs and between 30 and 45 minutes for all other ARI categories. Conclusion From a societal perspective, community-managed ARIs are a significant cost burden on families and society. The point estimate of the mean cost of community-managed influenza illnesses in healthy preschool aged children is three times greater than those illnesses caused by RSV and other respiratory viruses. Indirect costs, particularly carer time away from usual activity, are the key cost drivers for ARIs in children. The use of parent-collected specimens may enhance ARI surveillance and reduce any potential Hawthorne effect caused by compliance with study procedures. These findings reinforce the need for further integrated epidemiologic and economic research of ARIs in children to allow for comprehensive cost-effectiveness assessments of preventive and therapeutic options. PMID:18215329

Association between dietary habits, education, serum triglycerides and blood cholesterol among women of Cabildo, Buenos Aires.

PubMed

Schneider, Raul J; Barengo, Noel; Haapala, Irja; Tavella, Marcelo

2006-01-01

A cross sectional study of 107 women between 20 and 69 years old, living in the town of Cabildo, province of Buenos Aires, Argentina, which describes food intake and analyses its relation to their education, blood cholesterol and serum triglyceride levels. A food frequency questionnaire including questions regarding meal patterns and food use were completed by the participants. Questions regarding educational status were included. A nutritional risk score was created from nine food groups. Total blood cholesterol and serum triglyceride levels were determined. Average total blood cholesterol levels of the women who participated in the present study were higher (209 mg/dl) than those recommended by the National Cholesterol Education Program, while triglyceride values remained within the normal range (124 mg/dl). Total blood cholesterol levels increased with age. Bread, biscuits and cakes were consumed on a daily basis by 98% of the participants and dairy products by 92%, these being mainly full-fat. Meat and fast food intake were very high (96% and 100% respectively). Vegetable and fish intakes were higher among the more educated women. Mayonnaise (58%) and butter (43%) are popular as food dressings and bread spreads respectively, and sunflower oil was the most commonly used for cooking by 94% of the participants. Women with low educational levels (less than 7 years) had higher nutritional risk scores, and thus unhealthier dietary habits than those with more years of formal education. No statistically significant association was found between food groups and cholesterol or triglyceride levels.

Effects of 5-alpha reductase inhibitors on erectile function, sexual desire and ejaculation.

PubMed

Gur, Serap; Kadowitz, Philip J; Hellstrom, Wayne Jg

2013-01-01

Treatment with 5-alpha reductase inhibitors (5ARI) is commonly utilized for the treatment of benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). The true prevalence of sexual side effects with 5ARI treatment is currently unknown. The current article reviews the reported adverse effects of 5ARI in regard to erectile function, sexual desire and ejaculation. A PubMed search was performed of all articles from 1990 to present, which reported any sexual side effects with finasteride or dutasteride. Preference was given to more recent and human studies where available. Clinical trials with 5ARI report prevalence rates of de novo erectile dysfunction of 5 - 9%. Decreased circulating dihydrotestosterone (DHT) resulting from 5ARI use is associated with diminished sexual desire and/or orgasm. The presence of adverse sexual effects is associated with decreased self-esteem, quality of life and ability to maintain an intimate relationship. Inhibition of 5ARI additionally influences progesterone and deoxycorticosterone levels and may alter psychological functions, including increased depression, melancholy and loss of general well being. Ejaculatory dysfunction has not been well studied in patients using 5ARI. Patients receiving therapy with 5ARI should be counseled as to potential sexual and psychological adverse effects. Future clinical studies are needed to further investigate the sexual side effects associated with this class of drugs.

The ISS Increments 3 and 4 Test Report: For the Active Rack Isolation System ISS Characterization Experiment (ARIS-ICE)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Quraishi, Naveed; Allen, Jim; Bushnell, Glenn; Fialho, Ian

2003-01-01

The purpose of ARIS-ICE is to improve, optimize then operationally test and document the performance of the ARIS system on the International Space Station. The ICE program required testing across a full 3 increments (2 through 4). This paper represents the operational report summarizing our accomplishments through the third and fourth increment of testing. The main objectives and results of the increment two testing are discussed in The Increment two Operational Report. This report can be obtained from the ISS Payloads Office or from (http://iss-www.isc.nasa.gov/sslissapt/payofc/OZ3/ARIS.html). In summary these were to ensure the smooth and successful activation of the system and correct operational issues related to long term testing. Then the follow on increment 3 & 4 testing encompassed the majority of the on orbit performance assessments and improvements made to the ARIS system. The intent here is to report these preliminary results of the increment 3 & 4 ARIS-ICE testing as well as the ARIS system improvements made for our users and customers.

Pedro Gutierrez Bueno's Textbooks: Audiences, Teaching Practices and Chemical Revolution

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sanchez, Jose Ramon Bertomeu; Belmar, Antonio Garcia

2006-01-01

Pedro Gutierrez Bueno wrote two editions of a chemistry textbook between 1788 and 1802. The paper offers a comparative view of both editions taking into account Gutierrez Bueno's biography, his intended audience and the changes related to the so-called chemical revolution. Some conclusions are at odds with common images about scientific…

Buenos Aires - Toward Comprehensive Development and Sustainable Mobility

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kamrowska-Zaluska, Dorota

2017-10-01

This paper is introducing Buenos Aires’ achievements and challenges in implementing comprehensive development and integrating efficient and sustainable transport system within its urban structure. There are several important steps in this process starting from urban regeneration of Puerto Madero, the introduction and then implementation of a strategic plan Modelo territorial (2010) and of Buenos Aires’ Plan de Movilidad Sustentable (2013). The last one - Sustainable Mobility Plan helped Buenos Aires win several prestigious rewards for innovative approach to mobility and sustainable transport and leadership in combating climate change. Buenos Aires City government demonstrates strong leadership by implementing well-planned (Bus Rapid Transport) BRT solutions, stressing the importance of political will and support, flexibility and an open mind in listening to the points of view of all stakeholders involved. Buenos Aires has made a very important step toward sustainability by supporting development of more sustainable modes of transport, such as bicycle-sharing system and improving walkability of the city centre. The last initiative combined with strong focus on public spaces is adding to tourist attractiveness based on diversity of the capital of Argentina.

Blast furnace supervision and control system

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Remorino, M.; Lingiardi, O.; Zecchi, M.

1997-12-31

On December 1992, a group of companies headed by Techint, took over Somisa, the state-owned integrated steel plant located at San Nicolas, Province of Buenos Aires, Argentina, culminating an ambitious government privatization scheme. The blast furnace 2 went into a full reconstruction and relining in January 1995. After a 140 MU$ investment the new blast furnace 2 was started in September 1995. After more than one year of operation of the blast furnace the system has proven itself useful and reliable. The main reasons for the success of the system are: same use interface for all blast furnace areas --more » operation, process, maintenance and management, (full horizontal and vertical integration); and full accessibility to all information and process tools though some restrictions apply to field commands (people empowerment). The paper describes the central system.« less

Benthodytes violeta, a new species of a deep-sea holothuroid (Elasipodida: Psychropotidae) from Mar del Plata Canyon (south-western Atlantic Ocean).

PubMed

Martinez, Mariano I; Solís-Marín, Francisco A; Penchaszadeh, Pablo E

2014-01-30

A new species of elasipodid holothuroid, Benthodytes violeta sp. nov., is described from the Mar del Plata Canyon off Buenos Aires Province (around 38ºS-54ºW). It was taken at four locations at depths ranging from 1500 to 1950 m. This new species has a violet gelatinous body of up to 200 mm in length, with eight pairs of dorsal appendages, lateral festooned edges and four rows of tube feet ventrally. Body wall ossicles comprise rods and crosses with three or four arms and a central bipartite apophysis borne on the primary cross; tentacles and gonad deposits comprise rods and crosses with three and four arms. This is the first report of a holothuroid from the Mar del Plata Canyon area.

First record of Talaromyces udagawae in soil related to decomposing human remains in Argentina.

PubMed

Tranchida, María C; Centeno, Néstor D; Stenglein, Sebastián A; Cabello, Marta N

2016-01-01

The morphologic features of Talaromyces udagawae Stolk and Samson are here described and illustrated. This teleomorphic Ascomycota fungus was isolated from soil obtained in Buenos Aires province (Argentina) from beneath a human cadaver in an advanced state of decomposition. After washing and serial dilution of the soil along with moist-chamber techniques for fungal cultivation, T. udagawae formed very restricted colonies of bright yellow color on different growth media with 8-ascospored asci. The ascospores were ellipsoidal and ornamented. The anamorphic state was not observed. Molecular-genetic techniques identified the species. The present record is the first of the species in Argentina, pointing it as a tool to identify soils where cadaver decomposition occurs. Copyright © 2015 Asociación Argentina de Microbiología. Publicado por Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.

Mobility of Heavy Metals (Pb, Cd, Zn) in the Pampeano and Puelche Aquifers, Argentina: Partition and Retardation Coefficients.

PubMed

Jakomin, L M; Marbán, L; Grondona, S; Glok Galli, M; Martínez, D E

2015-09-01

The prediction about metals behaviour in soil requires knowledge on their solid-liquid partitioning. Usually it is expressed with an empirical distribution coefficient or Kd, which gives the ratio of the metal concentration in the solid phase to that in the solution. Kd values have been determined for Zn, Pb and Cd from samples representing the two most exploited aquifers in Argentina, Pampeano and Puelche, at three different locations in the province of Buenos Aires. The Pampeano aquifer presented higher Kd values than the Puelche aquifer. Comparing Kd values, different relationships could be observed: (a) Pampeano aquifer: Pb > Zn > Cd, and (b) Puelche aquifer: Pb > Cd > Zn. Kd for Cd seems to be linked to cationic exchange capacity, but solid phases precipitation can be more determining for Pb and Zn.

Novel surgical performance evaluation approximates Standardized Incidence Ratio with high accuracy at simple means.

PubMed

Gabbay, Itay E; Gabbay, Uri

2013-01-01

Excess adverse events may be attributable to poor surgical performance but also to case-mix, which is controlled through the Standardized Incidence Ratio (SIR). SIR calculations can be complicated, resource consuming, and unfeasible in some settings. This article suggests a novel method for SIR approximation. In order to evaluate a potential SIR surrogate measure we predefined acceptance criteria. We developed a new measure - Approximate Risk Index (ARI). "Number Needed for Event" (NNE) is the theoretical number of patients needed "to produce" one adverse event. ARI is defined as the quotient of the group of patients needed for no observed events Ge by total patients treated Ga. Our evaluation compared 2500 surgical units and over 3 million heterogeneous risk surgical patients that were induced through a computerized simulation. Surgical unit's data were computed for SIR and ARI to evaluate compliance with the predefined criteria. Approximation was evaluated by correlation analysis and performance prediction capability by Receiver Operating Characteristics (ROC) analysis. ARI strongly correlates with SIR (r(2) = 0.87, p < 0.05). ARI prediction of excessive risk revealed excellent ROC (Area Under the Curve > 0.9) 87% sensitivity and 91% specificity. ARI provides good approximation of SIR and excellent prediction capability. ARI is simple and cost-effective as it requires thorough risk evaluation of only the adverse events patients. ARI can provide a crucial screening and performance evaluation quality control tool. The ARI method may suit other clinical and epidemiological settings where relatively small fraction of the entire population is affected. Copyright © 2013 Surgical Associates Ltd. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Respiratory Viral Detections During Symptomatic and Asymptomatic Periods in Young Andean Children

PubMed Central

Howard, Leigh M.; Johnson, Monika; Williams, John V.; Zhu, Yuwei; Gil, Ana I.; Edwards, Kathryn M.; Griffin, Marie R.; Lanata, Claudio F.; Grijalva, Carlos G.

2015-01-01

Background Viruses are commonly detected in children with acute respiratory illnesses (ARI) and in asymptomatic children. Longitudinal studies of viral detections during asymptomatic periods surrounding ARI could facilitate interpretation of viral detections but are currently scant. Methods We used reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) to analyze respiratory samples from young Andean children for viruses during asymptomatic periods within 8-120 days of index ARI (cough or fever). We compared viral detections over time within children and explored RT-PCR cycle thresholds (CT) as surrogates for viral loads. Results At least one respiratory virus was detected in 367 (43%) of 859 samples collected during asymptomatic periods, with more frequent detections in periods with rhinorrhea (49%) than those without (34%, p<0.001). Relative to index ARI with human rhinovirus (HRV), adenovirus (AdV), respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), and parainfluenza virus (PIV) detected, the same virus was also detected during 32%, 22%, 10%, and 3% of asymptomatic periods, respectively. RSV was only detected 8-30 days after index RSV ARI, whereas HRV and AdV were detected throughout asymptomatic periods. Human metapneumovirus (MPV) and influenza were rarely detected during asymptomatic periods (<3%). No significant differences were observed in the CT for HRV or AdV during asymptomatic periods relative to ARI. For RSV, CT were significantly lower during ARI relative to the asymptomatic period (p=0.03). Conclusions These findings indicate that influenza, MPV, PIV, and RSV detections in children with ARI usually indicate a causal relationship. When HRV or AdV is detected during ARI, the causal relationship is less certain. PMID:26121205

Chaos M-ary modulation and demodulation method based on Hamilton oscillator and its application in communication.

PubMed

Fu, Yongqing; Li, Xingyuan; Li, Yanan; Yang, Wei; Song, Hailiang

2013-03-01

Chaotic communication has aroused general interests in recent years, but its communication effect is not ideal with the restriction of chaos synchronization. In this paper a new chaos M-ary digital modulation and demodulation method is proposed. By using region controllable characteristics of spatiotemporal chaos Hamilton map in phase plane and chaos unique characteristic, which is sensitive to initial value, zone mapping method is proposed. It establishes the map relationship between M-ary digital information and the region of Hamilton map phase plane, thus the M-ary information chaos modulation is realized. In addition, zone partition demodulation method is proposed based on the structure characteristic of Hamilton modulated information, which separates M-ary information from phase trajectory of chaotic Hamilton map, and the theory analysis of zone partition demodulator's boundary range is given. Finally, the communication system based on the two methods is constructed on the personal computer. The simulation shows that in high speed transmission communications and with no chaos synchronization circumstance, the proposed chaotic M-ary modulation and demodulation method has outperformed some conventional M-ary modulation methods, such as quadrature phase shift keying and M-ary pulse amplitude modulation in bit error rate. Besides, it has performance improvement in bandwidth efficiency, transmission efficiency and anti-noise performance, and the system complexity is low and chaos signal is easy to generate.

Deformation and Flexibility Equations for Idealized ARIS Umbilicals, Under Planar End-Loading Conditions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hampton, R. David; Quraishi, Naveed; Rupert, Jason K.

2000-01-01

The International Space Station (ISS) relies on the Active Rack Isolation System (ARIS) as the central component of an integrated, station-wide strategy to isolate microgravity space-science experiments. ARIS uses electromechanical actuators to isolate an International Standard Payload Rack (ISPR) from disturbances due to the motion of the ISS. Disturbances to microgravity experiments on ARIS-isolated racks are primarily transmitted via the ARIS power and vacuum umbilicals. Recent experimental tests indicate that these umbilicals resonate at frequencies outside the ARIS controller's bandwidth. at levels of potential concern for certain microgravity experiments. Reduction in the umbilical resonant frequencies could help to address this issue. This paper develops equations for the in-plane deflections and flexibilities of an idealized umbilical (thin, flexible, cantilever beam) under end-point, in-plane loading (inclined-force and moment). The effect of gravity is neglected due to the on:orbit application. The analysis assumes an initially straight. cantilevered umbilical with uniform cross-section. which undergoes large deflections with no plastic deformation, such that the umbilical terminus remains in a single quadrant and the umbilical slope changes monotonically. The analysis is applicable to the ARIS power and vacuum umbilicals. under the indicated assumptions.

Deformation and Flexibility Equations for ARIS Umbilicals Idealized as Planar Elastica

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hampton, R. David; Leamy, Michael J.; Bryant, Paul J.; Quraishi, Naveed

2005-01-01

The International Space Station relies on the active rack isolation system (ARIS) as the central component of an integrated, stationwide strategy to isolate microgravity space-science experiments. ARIS uses electromechanical actuators to isolate an international standard payload rack from disturbances due to the motion of the Space Station. Disturbances to microgravity experiments on ARIS isolated racks are transmitted primarily via the ARIS power and vacuum umbilicals. Experimental tests indicate that these umbilicals resonate at frequencies outside the ARIS controller s bandwidth at levels of potential concern for certain microgravity experiments. Reduction in the umbilical resonant frequencies could help to address this issue. This work documents the development and verification of equations for the in-plane deflections and flexibilities of an idealized umbilical (thin, flexible, inextensible, cantilever beam) under end-point, in-plane loading (inclined-force and moment). The effect of gravity is neglected due to the on-orbit application. The analysis assumes an initially curved (not necessarily circular), cantilevered umbilical with uniform cross-section, which undergoes large deflections with no plastic deformation, such that the umbilical slope changes monotonically. The treatment is applicable to the ARIS power and vacuum umbilicals under the indicated assumptions.

Learning Physical Science through Astronomy Activities: A Comparison between Constructivist and Traditional Approaches in Grades 3-6

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ward, R. Bruce; Sadler, Philip M.; Shapiro, Irwin I.

We report on an evaluation of the effectiveness of Project ARIES, an astronomy- based physical science curriculum for upper elementary and middle school children. ARIES students use innovative, simple, and affordable apparatus to carry out a wide range of indoor and outdoor hands-on, discovery- based activities. Student journals and comprehensive teacher materials aid in making the science content accessible to students based on their shared experiences and observations. Approximately 750 Grades 3 6 students in ARIES (or treatment) classrooms are compared with approximately 650 Grades 4 6 students in control classrooms through a series of open-ended assessment measures, using a pretest and posttest format. A detailed analysis by item measures the gain in treatment and control groups. We identify concepts where the ARIES approach is more effective, where both are equally effective, and where neither results in much learning. (The ARIES approach was never less effective.) Although learning is in evidence for both control and treatment groups, overall, the ARIES students achieve roughly four times the gain of their control counterparts. In particular, ARIES students had much greater gains for the concepts that the control students found most difficult.

Advanced Design Program (ARIES) Final Report

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Tillack, Mark

2016-02-16

Progress is reported for the ARIES 3-year research program at UC San Diego, including three main tasks: 1. Completion of ARIES research on PMI/PFC issues. 2. Detailed engineering design and analysis of divertors and first wall/blankets. 3. Mission & requirements of FNSF.

Toward a Model Based-Bayesian Theory for Estimating and Recognizing Parameterized 3-D Objects Using Two or More Images Taken from Different Positions

DTIC Science & Technology

1989-10-01

Aires, and Philips Laboratory at Briarcliff, NY. B. Cernuschi-Frias is with Facultad de Ingenieria , Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires... Ingenieria , Universidad de Buenos Aires, and from IBM (Thomas J. Watson Research Center). David B. Cooper (S’53-M’64) received the B.Sc. and Sc.M

Acute Respiratory Infection and Use of Nonsteroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs on Risk of Acute Myocardial Infarction: A Nationwide Case-Crossover Study.

PubMed

Wen, Yao-Chun; Hsiao, Fei-Yuan; Chan, K Arnold; Lin, Zhen-Fang; Shen, Li-Jiuan; Fang, Cheng-Chung

2017-02-15

Previous studies have suggested that acute respiratory infection (ARI) and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) use could trigger acute myocardial infarction (AMI). In some countries, physicians prescribe NSAIDs for patients with ARI for symptom relief. However, there is no research evaluating whether NSAIDs use during ARI episodes may increase the risk of AMI. We identified 9793 patients with an incident hospitalization of AMI (index date) between 2007 and 2011. Using case-crossover design, we compared the following exposure status between the case (1-7-day before index date) and matched control period (366-372-day before index date): NSAIDs use during ARI episodes, ARI episodes without NSAIDs use, NSAIDs use only, or no exposure. Multivariable conditional logistic regression models were used to estimate odds ratios adjusted for potential confounders. Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs use during ARI was associated with a 3.4-fold increased risk of AMI (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] = 3.41; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 2.80-4.16), ARI without NSAIDs use was associated with a 2.7-fold increased risk (aOR = 2.65; 95% CI = 2.29-3.06), and NSAIDs use only was associated with a 1.5-fold increased risk (aOR = 1.47; 95% CI = 1.33-1.62). Moreover, parenteral NSAIDs were associated with much higher risk in ARI patients (aOR = 7.22; 95% CI = 4.07-12.81). Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs use during ARI episodes, especially parenteral NSAIDs, was associated with a further increased risk of AMI. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press for the Infectious Diseases Society of America. All rights reserved. For permissions, e-mail journals.permissions@oup.com.

Community intervention to promote rational treatment of acute respiratory infection in rural Nepal.

PubMed

Holloway, Kathleen A; Karkee, Shiba B; Tamang, Ashalal; Gurung, Yam Bahadur; Kafle, Kumud K; Pradhan, Ramesh; Reeves, Barnaby C

2009-01-01

To evaluate a community education program about treatment of acute respiratory infection (ARI). First, community case definitions for severe and mild ARI were developed. The intervention was then evaluated using a controlled before-and-after design. Household surveys collected data about ARI treatment in 20 clusters, each based around a school and health facility. Treatment indicators included percentages of cases attending health facilities and receiving antibiotics. The intervention consisted of an education program in schools culminating in street theater performances, discussions with mothers after performances and training for community leaders and drug retailers by paramedics. The intervention was conducted in mid-2003. Indicators were measured before the intervention in Nov/Dec 2002 and again in Dec 2003/Jan 2004. Two thousand and seven hundred and nineteen households were surveyed and 3654 under-fives were identified, of whom 377 had severe ARI. After implementing the intervention, health post (HP) attendance rose by 13% in under-fives with severe ARI and fell by 9% in under-fives with mild ARI (test of interaction, P = 0.01). Use of prescribed antibiotics increased in under-fives with severe ARI by 21% but only by 1% in under-fives with mild ARI (test of interaction, P = 0.38). Irrespective of ARI severity, the use of non-prescribed antibiotics dropped by 5% (P = 0.002), and consultation with female community health volunteers (FCHVs)and use of safe home remedies increased by 6.7% (P not estimated) and 5.7% (P = 0.008) respectively. The intervention was implemented using local structures and in difficult circumstances, yet had a moderate impact. Thus it has the potential to effect large scale changes in behaviour and merits replication elsewhere.

[Present status of zoonotic hemorrhagic fevers of South America].

PubMed

Chastel, C

1993-01-01

Since 1958, the geographical distribution of Argentine hemorrhagic fever (AHF) has especially extended non only into the province of Buenos Aires but also towards the provinces of Santa Fe and Cordoba, leading to an estimated population at risk of about 1.2 M inhabitants. Recent epidemiological field studies has confirmed the major role of Calomys musculinus and C. laucha rodents in both transmission to man and conservation of Junin virus in nature. However, the human infection may result essentially from contacts with infected C. musculinus. Clinical condition of patients with AHF was greatly improved using AHF convalescent plasma and additional administration of vidarabin may still improve the results of treatment. A live attenuated vaccine, Candid No 1, is presently under evaluation in endemic foci of AHF. On the contrary Bolivian hemorrhagic fever (BHV) appears at present quite silent. A new disease resembling both AHF and BHF, the Venezuelan hemorrhagic fever, appeared in 1989 in the rural areas of central Llanos of Venezuela. The mortality was very high, reaching 23% or more among severely ill patients. The wild small rodents responsible for the disease were identified as Sigmodon alstoni and Zygotontomys brevicauda. Recent extension of agricultural practices and massive immigration may probably explain the recent emergence of this new viral zoonosis.

Clinical Features of Human Metapneumovirus Infection in Ambulatory Children Aged 5-13 Years.

PubMed

Howard, Leigh M; Edwards, Kathryn M; Zhu, Yuwei; Griffin, Marie R; Weinberg, Geoffrey A; Szilagyi, Peter G; Staat, Mary A; Payne, Daniel C; Williams, John V

2018-05-15

We detected human metapneumovirus (HMPV) in 54 (5%) of 1055 children aged 5 to 13 years with acute respiratory illness (ARI) identified by outpatient and emergency department surveillance between November and May 2003-2009. Its clinical features were similar to those of HMPV-negative ARI, except a diagnosis of pneumonia was more likely (13% vs 4%, respectively; P = .005) and a diagnosis of pharyngitis (7% vs 24%, respectively; P = .005) was less likely in patients with HMPV- positive ARI than those with HMPV-negative ARI.

Molecular Epidemiology of Rhinovirus Detections in Young Children

PubMed Central

Howard, Leigh M.; Johnson, Monika; Gil, Ana I.; Griffin, Marie R.; Edwards, Kathryn M.; Lanata, Claudio F.; Williams, John V.; Grijalva, Carlos G.

2016-01-01

Background. Human rhinoviruses (HRVs) are frequently detected in children with acute respiratory illnesses (ARIs) but also in asymptomatic children. We compared features of ARI with HRV species (A, B, C) and determined genotypes associated with repeated HRV detections within individuals. Methods. We used clinical data and respiratory samples obtained from children <3 years old during weekly active household-based surveillance. A random subset of samples in which HRV was detected from individuals during both ARI and an asymptomatic period within 120 days of the ARI were genotyped. Features of ARI were compared among HRV species. Concordance of genotype among repeated HRV detections within individuals was assessed. Results. Among 207 ARI samples sequenced, HRV-A, HRV-B, and HRV-C were detected in 104 (50%), 20 (10%), and 83 (40%), respectively. Presence of fever, decreased appetite, and malaise were significantly higher in children with HRV-B. When codetections with other viruses were excluded (n = 155), these trends persisted, but some did not reach statistical significance. When 58 paired sequential HRV detections during asymptomatic and ARI episodes were sequenced, only 9 (16%) were identical genotypes of HRV. Conclusions. Clinical features may differ among HRV species. Repeated HRV detections in young children frequently represented acquisition of new HRV strains. PMID:26900577

Maternal vitamin D supplementation during pregnancy and lactation to prevent acute respiratory infections in infancy in Dhaka, Bangladesh (MDARI trial): protocol for a prospective cohort study nested within a randomized controlled trial.

PubMed

Morris, Shaun K; Pell, Lisa G; Rahman, Mohammed Ziaur; Dimitris, Michelle C; Mahmud, Abdullah; Islam, M Munirul; Ahmed, Tahmeed; Pullenayegum, Eleanor; Kashem, Tahmid; Shanta, Shaila S; Gubbay, Jonathan; Papp, Eszter; Science, Michelle; Zlotkin, Stanley; Roth, Daniel E

2016-10-13

Early infancy is a high-risk period for severe acute respiratory infection (ARI), particularly in low-income countries with resource-limited health systems. Lower respiratory tract infection (LRTI) is commonly preceded by upper respiratory infection (URTI), and often caused by respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), influenza and other common community-acquired viral pathogens. Vitamin D status is a candidate modifiable early-life determinant of the host antiviral immune response and thus may influence the risk of ARI-associated morbidity in high-risk populations. In the Maternal Vitamin D for Infant Growth (MDIG) study in Dhaka, Bangladesh (NCT01924013), 1300 pregnant women are randomized to one of five groups: placebo, 4200 IU/week, 16,800 IU/week, or 28,000 IU/week from 2 nd trimester to delivery plus placebo from 0-6 months postpartum; or, 28,000 IU/week prenatal and until 6-months postpartum. In the Maternal Vitamin D for ARI in Infancy (MDARI) sub-study nested within the MDIG trial, trained personnel conduct weekly postnatal home visits to inquire about ARI symptoms and conduct a standardized clinical assessment. Supplementary home visits between surveillance visits are conducted when caregivers make phone notifications of new infant symptoms. Mid-turbinate nasal swab samples are obtained from infants who meet standardized clinical ARI criteria. Specimens are tested by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for 8 viruses (influenza A/B, parainfluenza 1/2/3, RSV, adenovirus, and human metapneumovirus), and nasal carriage density of Streptococcus pneumoniae. The primary outcome is the incidence rate of microbiologically-positive viral ARI, using incidence rate ratios to estimate between-group differences. We hypothesize that among infants 0-6 months of age, the incidence of microbiologically-confirmed viral ARI will be significantly lower in infants whose mothers received high-dose prenatal/postpartum vitamin D supplements versus placebo. Secondary outcomes include incidence of ARI associated with specific pathogens (influenza A or B, RSV), clinical ARI, and density of pneumococcal carriage. If shown to reduce the risk of viral ARI in infancy, integration of maternal prenatal/postpartum vitamin D supplementation into antenatal care programs in South Asia may be a feasible primary preventive strategy to reduce the burden of ARI-associated morbidity and mortality in young infants. NCT02388516 , registered March 9, 2015.

Earth Observation taken by the Expedition 14 crew

NASA Image and Video Library

2006-10-13

ISS014-E-05615 (14 Oct. 2006) --- Bahia Blanca, Buenos Aires Province, Argentina is featured in this image photographed by an Expedition 14 crewmember on the International Space Station. The port city of Bahia Blanca lies almost 600 kilometers southwest of Buenos Aires on the southern rim of the Argentine economic heartland. This small city of 275,000 people is captured in one frame which shows its position near the mouth of the Arroyo Naposta. The salt flats (gray) and wetlands bordering this estuary, characterized by twisting, light colored tidal channels and dark swamps, lie mainly on the south side of the river. The yellow tinge to the water surfaces arises from the partial sunglint reflection on this particular day. The name Bahia Blanca (White Bay) derives from the white color of the salt and was applied to the major bay--noted by Magellan as he probed the coast of South America for a passage to the Pacific Ocean in 1520--and then to the city at the head of this bay. Highways, airline routes and pipelines from oil and gas fields to the west and south all converge on Bahia Blanca. The city is a major cultural center and historically has acted as a gateway for immigration. Higher ground on the north side of the estuary affords stable ground for the growth of the city and for intensive agriculture, a mainstay of the Argentine economy. The city is set back from the waterfront where an industrial park, a petrochemical center, and dockyards (white ellipse) are located.

A comparison of the test-negative and the traditional case-control study designs for estimation of influenza vaccine effectiveness under nonrandom vaccination.

PubMed

Shi, Meng; An, Qian; Ainslie, Kylie E C; Haber, Michael; Orenstein, Walter A

2017-12-08

As annual influenza vaccination is recommended for all U.S. persons aged 6 months or older, it is unethical to conduct randomized clinical trials to estimate influenza vaccine effectiveness (VE). Observational studies are being increasingly used to estimate VE. We developed a probability model for comparing the bias and the precision of VE estimates from two case-control designs: the traditional case-control (TCC) design and the test-negative (TN) design. In both study designs, acute respiratory illness (ARI) patients seeking medical care testing positive for influenza infection are considered cases. In the TN design, ARI patients seeking medical care who test negative serve as controls, while in the TCC design, controls are randomly selected individuals from the community who did not contract an ARI. Our model assigns each study participant a covariate corresponding to the person's health status. The probabilities of vaccination and of contracting influenza and non-influenza ARI depend on health status. Hence, our model allows non-random vaccination and confounding. In addition, the probability of seeking care for ARI may depend on vaccination and health status. We consider two outcomes of interest: symptomatic influenza (SI) and medically-attended influenza (MAI). If vaccination does not affect the probability of non-influenza ARI, then VE estimates from TN studies usually have smaller bias than estimates from TCC studies. We also found that if vaccinated influenza ARI patients are less likely to seek medical care than unvaccinated patients because the vaccine reduces symptoms' severity, then estimates of VE from both types of studies may be severely biased when the outcome of interest is SI. The bias is not present when the outcome of interest is MAI. The TN design produces valid estimates of VE if (a) vaccination does not affect the probabilities of non-influenza ARI and of seeking care against influenza ARI, and (b) the confounding effects resulting from non-random vaccination are similar for influenza and non-influenza ARI. Since the bias of VE estimates depends on the outcome against which the vaccine is supposed to protect, it is important to specify the outcome of interest when evaluating the bias.

Preliminary Assessment of Legacy and Current-Use Pesticides in Franciscana Dolphins from Argentina.

PubMed

Romero, M B; Polizzi, P; Chiodi, L; Medici, S; Blando, M; Gerpe, M

2018-06-01

The change towards intensive agriculture has led to an increase in the use of pesticides. In addition, legacy pesticides, such as organochlorines are still present in the environment. Ten Franciscana dolphins were accidentally killed by netting in a coastal area of Argentina in Buenos Aires province. From these animals, organochlorine, organophosphate and pyrethroid pesticides were analyzed in liver, bubbler and melon tissues. The concentrations of Σendosulfan ranged from not detectable values (nd) to 3539 ng g -1 lw, with the maximum level in melon tissue. DDE was present in 60% of all samples at concentrations from nd to 6672 ng g -1 lw, indicating historical DDT contamination. The presence of endosulfan and heptachlor in a nursling calf indicated a transfer of these pesticides through lactational and placental transport. The concentrations of organophosphates and pyrethroids were below the limit of detection, reflecting the low persistence of these compounds.

[Pollen dispersion and reproductive success of four tree species of a xerophytic forest from Argentina].

PubMed

Torretta, Juan Pablo; Basilio, Alicia M

2009-01-01

The "talares" in eastern Buenos Aires province, Argentina, are coastal xerophitic forests structured by few arboreal species surrounded by a lower and moister soil matrix. We studied the reproductive parameters of the most representative arboreal species (Celtis tala, Scutia buxifolia, Jodina rhombifolia, and Schinus longifolia). Pollen dispersion was studied through floral visitor traps (biotic dispersion) and using gravimetric pollen collectors (abiotic dispersion). The reproductive success (fruit formation rate) of the focal species was studied by enclosing flowers with different mesh bags. The reproductive system varied among the different species. C. tala was anemophilous and selfcompatible. S. buxifolia was entomophilous and floral visitors dependant. J. rhombifolia was entomophylous, although spontaneous autogamy could favor reproduction in the absence of pollinators. Lastly, S. longifolia could be an ambophilous species (pollinated by insects and by the wind). This dual system may be the result of system flexibility mechanism or an evolutionary transition.

A new species of the Liolaemus alticolor-bibronii group (Iguania: Liolaemidae) from East-central Argentina.

PubMed

Vega, Laura Estela; Quinteros, AndrÉs sebastiÁn; Stellatelli, Oscar anÍbal; Bellagamba, Patricio Juan; Block, Carolina; Madrid, Enrique Alberto

2018-02-15

We describe a new species of Liolaemus of the L. alticolor-bibronii group of the subgenus Liolaemus sensu stricto. We studied meristic, morphometric and qualitative pattern characters. Statistical tests were performed in order to evaluate morphological differences among the candidate species and the most closely geographically distributed species. Molecular analyses of Cyt-b mitochondrial gene were performed in order to estimate the position of the new species in relation to other taxa. We also recorded natural history data such as habitat, behavior, reproductive state, diet, and body temperature. Liolaemus absconditus sp. nov. differs from other species of Liolaemus in presenting a distinct combination of morphological character states of lepidosis and color pattern, being phylogenetically close to Liolaemus tandiliensis, Liolaemus gracilis and Liolaemus saxatilis. The new species is a saxicolous and endemic lizard of the Tandilia Mountain Range System of Buenos Aires Province.

Mothers' knowledge, attitudes and practices regarding acute respiratory infections in children in Baringo District, Kenya.

PubMed

Simiyu, D E; Wafula, E M; Nduati, R W

2003-06-01

Control of acute respiratory infections (ARI) is a major public health problem in developing countries. Implementation of case management protocols requires participation of the community to reduce morbidity and mortality from ARI. Health education programmes can only be effective when designed to take into account the prevailing knowledge, attitudes and practices (KAP) of the community towards ARI in their children. To determine the KAP of mothers regarding ARI in their children aged less than five years. Community based cross-sectional survey. Baringo District, Kenya. Mothers with children aged 0-5 years were recruited following stratified random sampling in three areas of Baringo District to represent low, medium and high potential areas based on agricultural productivity. A mixed structured and unstructured questionnaire was administered to each of the respondent mothers by the investigator; with the help of an interpreter where necessary. A total of 309 mothers were interviewed. Their mean age was 31.5 years (range 16-51) and 34% had no formal education. Only 18% of mothers described pneumonia satisfactorily. 60.2% knew that measles is preventable by immunisation. 87.1% of the mothers said they would seek health centre services for severe ARI. Formal education had a positive influence on the KAP of the mothers. The study reveals that the mothers had good knowledge of mild forms of ARI but not the severe forms. Their attitude to ARI was appropriate but subsequent practices were not. Low utilisation of health services for moderate ARI may result in continued high mortality because of delayed identification of seriously ill children.

Evaluation of the antidepressant, anxiolytic and memory-improving efficacy of aripiprazole and fluoxetine in ethanol-treated rats.

PubMed

Burda-Malarz, Kinga; Kus, Krzysztof; Ratajczak, Piotr; Czubak, Anna; Hardyk, Szymon; Nowakowska, Elżbieta

2014-07-01

Some study results indicate a positive effect of aripiprazole (ARI) on impaired cognitive functions caused by brain damage resulting from chronic EtOH abuse. However, other research shows that to manifest itself, an ARI antidepressant effect requires a combined therapy with another selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor antidepressant, namely, fluoxetine (FLX). The aim of this article was to assess antidepressant and anxiolytic effects of ARI as well as its effect on spatial memory in ethanol-treated (alcoholized) rats. On the basis of alcohol consumption pattern, groups of (1) ethanol-preferring rats, with mean ethanol intake above 50%, and (2) ethanol-nonpreferring rats (EtNPRs), with mean ethanol intake below 50% of total daily fluid intake, were formed. The group of EtNPRs was used for this study, subdivided further into three groups administered ARI, FLX and a combination of both, respectively. Behavioral tests such as Porsolt's forced swimming test, the Morris water maze test and the two-compartment exploratory test were employed. Behavioral test results demonstrated (1) no antidepressant effect of ARI in EtNPRs in subchronic treatment and (2) no procognitive effect of ARI and FLX in EtNPRs in combined single administration. Combined administration of both drugs led to an anxiogenic effect and spatial memory deterioration in study animals. ARI had no antidepressant effect and failed to improve spatial memory in rats. However, potential antidepressant, anxiolytic and procognitive properties of the drug resulting from its mechanism of action encourage further research aimed at developing a dose of both ARI and FLX that will prove such effects in alcoholized EtNPRs.

Solid fuel in kitchen and acute respiratory tract infection among under five children: evidence from Nepal demographic and health survey 2011.

PubMed

Acharya, Pawan; Mishra, Shiva Raj; Berg-Beckhoff, Gabriele

2015-06-01

This study assessed the association between use of solid fuel in kitchen and ARI among under five children in Nepal. The latest data from the Nepal Demographic and Health Survey 2011 were used. A total of 4,802 under 5 de-jure children were included in this analysis. Cough accompanied by short/rapid breath and chest problem within 2 weeks before survey was considered as the symptoms of ARI. Logistic regression analysis was performed to calculate the odds of being suffered from ARI among the children from households using solid fuel in comparison to the children from households using cleaner fuel. About 84.6% of the families used solid fuel as a primary fuel. Approximately 4.5% children had symptoms of ARI within 2 weeks before the survey. About 3.4 and 4.9% of children from the families using cleaner fuel and solid fuel respectively had symptoms of ARI within 2 weeks preceding survey. After adjusting for age, sex, birth order, urban/rural residence, ecological zone, development region, economic status, number of family members, mother's smoking status and mother's education, odds of suffering from ARI was 1.79 times higher among the children from the households using solid fuel in comparison to the children from households using cleaner fuel (95% CI 1.02, 3.14). This study found the use of solid fuel in the kitchen has as a risk factor for ARI among under five children in Nepal. Longitudinal studies with direct measurement of indoor air pollution and clinical ARI cases can be future research priority.

Chronic Treatment With Aripiprazole Prevents Development of Dopamine Supersensitivity and Potentially Supersensitivity Psychosis

PubMed Central

Tadokoro, Shigenori; Okamura, Naoe; Sekine, Yoshimoto; Kanahara, Nobuhisa; Hashimoto, Kenji; Iyo, Masaomi

2012-01-01

Background: Long-term treatment of schizophrenia with antipsychotics is crucial for relapse prevention, but a prolonged blockade of D2 dopamine receptors may lead to the development of supersensitivity psychosis. We investigated the chronic effects of aripiprazole (ARI) on dopamine sensitivity. Methods: We administered ARI (1.5 mg/kg/d), haloperidol (HAL; 0.75 mg/kg/d), or vehicle (VEH) via minipump for 14 days to drug-naive rats or to rats pretreated with HAL (0.75 mg/kg/d) or VEH via minipump for 14 days. On the seventh day following treatment cessation, we examined the effects of the treatment conditions on the locomotor response to methamphetamine and on striatal D2 receptor density (N = 4-10/condition/experiment). Results: Chronic treatment with HAL led to significant increases in locomotor response and D2 receptor density, compared with the effects of chronic treatment with either VEH or ARI; there were no significant differences in either locomotor response or D2 density between the VEH- and ARI-treated groups. We also investigated the effects of chronic treatment with HAL, ARI, or VEH preceded by HAL or VEH treatment on locomotor response and D2 density. ANOVA analysis indicated that the rank ordering of groups for both locomotor response and D2 density was HAL-HAL > HAL-VEH > HAL-ARI > VEH-VEH. Conclusions: Chronic treatment with ARI prevents development of dopamine supersensitivity and potentially supersensitivity psychosis, suggesting that by reducing excessive sensitivity to dopamine and by stabilizing sensitivity for an extended period of time, ARI may be helpful for some patients with treatment-resistant schizophrenia. PMID:21402722

Antibiotic prescribing for respiratory infections at retail clinics, physician practices, and emergency departments.

PubMed

Mehrotra, Ateev; Gidengil, Courtney A; Setodji, Claude M; Burns, Rachel M; Linder, Jeffrey A

2015-04-01

To compare antibiotic prescribing among retail clinics, primary care practices, and emergency departments (EDs) for acute respiratory infections (ARIs): antibiotics-may-be-appropriate ARIs (eg, sinusitis) and antibiotics-never-appropriate ARIs (eg, acute bronchitis). We analyzed retail clinic data from the electronic health records of the 3 largest retail clinic chains in the United States, and data on visits to primary care practices and EDs from the nationally representative National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey and National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey. Using multivariate models, we estimated an adjusted antibiotic prescribing rate for each site of care, controlling for differences in patient characteristics and diagnosis. From 2007 to 2009 in the United States, there were 3 million, 167 million, and 29 million ARI visits at retail clinics, primary care practices, and EDs, respectively. For all ARI visits, the adjusted antibiotic prescribing rate at retail clinics (58%) was similar to the rate at primary care practices (62%; P=.09) and EDs (59%; P=.48). For antibiotics-may-be-appropriate ARI visits, the adjusted antibiotic prescribing rate (95%) at retail clinics was higher than at primary care practices (85%; P<.01) and EDs (83%; P<.01). For antibiotics-never-appropriate ARI visits, the adjusted antibiotic prescribing rate (34%) at retail clinics was lower than at primary care practices (51%; P<.01) and EDs (48%; P<.01). Compared with primary care practices and EDs, there was no difference at retail clinics in overall ARI antibiotic prescribing. At retail clinics, antibiotic prescribing was more diagnosis-appropriate.

Hepatitis C virus diversification in Argentina: comparative analysis between the large city of Buenos Aires and the small rural town of O'Brien.

PubMed

Golemba, Marcelo D; Culasso, Andrés C A; Villamil, Federico G; Bare, Patricia; Gadano, Adrián; Ridruejo, Ezequiel; Martinez, Alfredo; Di Lello, Federico A; Campos, Rodolfo H

2013-01-01

The estimated prevalence of HCV infection in Argentina is around 2%. However, higher rates of infection have been described in population studies of small urban and rural communities. The aim of this work was to compare the origin and diversification of HCV-1b in samples from two different epidemiological scenarios: Buenos Aires, a large cosmopolitan city, and O'Brien, a small rural town with a high prevalence of HCV infection. The E1/E2 and NS5B regions of the viral genome from 83 patients infected with HCV-1b were sequenced. Phylogenetic analysis and Bayesian Coalescent methods were used to study the origin and diversification of HCV-1b in both patient populations. Samples from Buenos Aires showed a polyphyletic behavior with a tMRCA around 1887-1900 and a time of spread of infection approximately 60 years ago. In contrast, samples from ÓBrien showed a monophyletic behavior with a tMRCA around 1950-1960 and a time of spread of infection more recent than in Buenos Aires, around 20-30 years ago. Phylogenetic and coalescence analysis revealed a different behavior in the epidemiological histories of Buenos Aires and ÓBrien. HCV infection in Buenos Aires shows a polyphyletic behavior and an exponential growth in two phases, whereas that in O'Brien shows a monophyletic cluster and an exponential growth in one single step with a more recent tMRCA. The polyphyletic origin and the probability of encountering susceptible individuals in a large cosmopolitan city like Buenos Aires are in agreement with a longer period of expansion. In contrast, in less populated areas such as O'Brien, the chances of HCV transmission are strongly restricted. Furthermore, the monophyletic character and the most recent time of emergence suggest that different HCV-1b ancestors (variants) that were in expansion in Buenos Aires had the opportunity to colonize and expand in O'Brien.

A m-ary linear feedback shift register with binary logic

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Perlman, M. (Inventor)

1973-01-01

A family of m-ary linear feedback shift registers with binary logic is disclosed. Each m-ary linear feedback shift register with binary logic generates a binary representation of a nonbinary recurring sequence, producible with a m-ary linear feedback shift register without binary logic in which m is greater than 2. The state table of a m-ary linear feedback shift register without binary logic, utilizing sum modulo m feedback, is first tubulated for a given initial state. The entries in the state table are coded in binary and the binary entries are used to set the initial states of the stages of a plurality of binary shift registers. A single feedback logic unit is employed which provides a separate feedback binary digit to each binary register as a function of the states of corresponding stages of the binary registers.

Current status of 5α-reductase inhibitors in prostate disease management.

PubMed

Kang, Dong Il; Chung, Jae Il

2013-04-01

The key enzyme in the androgen synthesis and androgen receptor pathways is 5α-reductase (5-AR), which occurs as three isoenzymes. Types I and II 5-ARs the most important clinically, and two different 5-AR inhibitors (5-ARIs), finasteride and dutasteride, have been developed. Several urology associations have recommended and upgraded the use of 5-ARIs for an enlarged prostate with lower urinary tract symptoms. In the Prostate Cancer Prevention Trial and the Reduction by Dutasteride of Prostate Cancer Events Trial, 5-ARIs reduced the incidence of low-grade prostate cancer. However, despite the documented reductions in the overall incidence of prostate cancer, 5-ARIs are at the center of a dispute. The American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) and the American Urology Association (AUA) presented clinical guidelines for the use of 5-ARIs for chemoprevention of prostate cancer in 2008. However, ASCO/AUA has eliminated these from the main "Clinical Guidelines" in 2012, because the U.S. Food and Drug Administration denied a supplemental New Drug Application for the use of dutasteride for prostate cancer chemoprevention. The 5-ARIs can also be used to manage hemospermia and prostatic hematuria, and to prevent intraoperative bleeding, although there is insufficient evidence for a standard strategy. This review summarizes the current use of 5-ARIs for prostate disease, including benign prostate hyperplasia, prostate cancer, prostate-related bleeding, and hemospermia.

Factors associated with acute respiratory infection in children under the age of 5 years: evidence from the 2011 Ethiopia Demographic and Health Survey.

PubMed

Geberetsadik, Achamyelesh; Worku, Alemayehu; Berhane, Yemane

2015-01-01

Acute respiratory tract infection (ARI) remains the major cause of child mortality in Sub-Saharan Africa. Various factors are associated with its occurrence and vary by context. However, available large-scale, population-based data are not fully exploited to identify locally relevant risk factors. The objective of this study was to identify factors associated with ARI in children under the age of 5 years in Ethiopia. Further analysis of the 2011 Ethiopia Demographic and Health Survey was carried out involving 11,645 children under the age of 5 years and their mothers. Information relevant to the current study was extracted from the main data set and a working data set was prepared. A complex survey logistic regression analysis was applied. Acute ARI in this study was associated with severe malnutrition. Children who were severely wasted were highly likely to develop ARI (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] 1.7; 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.1-2.5). ARI was less likely to occur in children from families with an educated father and professional mother (AOR 0.4; 95% CI 0.2-0.6 and AOR 0.1; 95% CI 0.01-0.6, respectively). Malnourished children from a lower socioeconomic category are more likely to suffer from ARI. Targeting disadvantaged children for effective interventions can help reduce the burden of morbidity and death due to ARI.

Effects of Cooking Fuels on Acute Respiratory Infections in Children in Tanzania

PubMed Central

Kilabuko, James H.; Nakai, Satoshi

2007-01-01

Biomass fuels, charcoal and kerosene are the most used cooking fuels in Tanzania. Biomass fuel use has been linked to Acute Respiratory Infections (ARI) in children. It is not clear whether the use of charcoal and kerosene has health advantage over biomass fuels. In this study, the effects of biomass fuels, charcoal/kerosene on ARI in children under five years old in Tanzania are quantified and compared based on data from Tanzania Demographic and Health survey conducted between 2004 and 2005. Approximately 85% and 15% of children were from biomass fuels and charcoal/kerosene using homes respectively. Average ARI prevalence was about 11%. The prevalence of ARI across various fuel types used for cooking did not vary much from the national prevalence. Odds ratio for ARI, adjusting for child’s sex, age and place of residence; mother’s education, mother’s age at child birth and household living standard, indicated that the effect of biomass fuels on ARI is the same as the effect of charcoal/kerosene (OR 1.01; 95% CI: 0.78–1.42). The findings suggest that to achieve meaningful reduction of ARI prevalence in Tanzania, a shift from the use of biomass fuels, charcoal and kerosene for cooking to clean fuels such as gas and electricity may be essential. Further studies, however, are needed for concrete policy recommendation. PMID:18180538

Preventive Effect of Korean Red Ginseng for Acute Respiratory Illness: A Randomized and Double-Blind Clinical Trial

PubMed Central

Lee, Ju-Hyung; Oh, Mira; Choi, Kyung-Min; Jeong, Mi Ran; Park, Jong-Dae; Kwon, Dae Young; Ha, Ki-Chan; Park, Eun-Ock; Lee, Nuri; Kim, Sun-Young; Choi, Eun-Kyung; Kim, Min-Gul; Chae, Soo-Wan

2012-01-01

Korean Red Ginseng (KRG) is a functional food and has been well known for keeping good health due to its anti-fatigue and immunomodulating activities. However, there is no data on Korean red ginseng for its preventive activity against acute respiratory illness (ARI). The study was conducted in a randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled trial in healthy volunteers (Clinical Trial Number: NCT01478009). Our primary efficacy end point was the number of ARI reported and secondary efficacy end point was severity of symptoms, number of symptoms, and duration of ARI. A total of 100 volunteers were enrolled in the study. Fewer subjects in the KRG group reported contracting at least 1 ARI than in the placebo group (12 [24.5%] vs 22 [44.9%], P = 0.034), the difference was statistically significant between the two groups. The symptom duration of the subjects who experienced the ARI, was similar between the two groups (KRG vs placebo; 5.2 ± 2.3 vs 6.3 ± 5.0, P = 0.475). The symptom scores were low tendency in KRG group (KRG vs placebo; 9.5 ± 4.5 vs 17.6 ± 23.1, P = 0.241). The study suggests that KRG may be effective in protecting subjects from contracting ARI, and may have the tendency to decrease the duration and scores of ARI symptoms. PMID:23255845

[Molecular epidemiological study on rubella virus strains isolated in Zhejiang province, China, 2005-2010].

PubMed

Feng, Yan; Zhong, Shu-ling; Xu, Chang-ping; Shi, Wen; Lu, Yi-yu

2011-09-01

To analyze the molecular epidemiological characteristic of rubella virus strains isolated in Zhejiang province from 2005 to 2010, to provide basic data for rubella prevention and control. Rubella virus strains were isolated on Vero cells from the suspected patients' specimens collected in Zhejiang province during 2005 to 2010. Partial fragments of the structural gene of Zhejiang rubella strains were amplified, using nested reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). The amplified products were sequences and analyzed. In total, 7 rubella strains were isolated from 52 clinical specimens, of which six were classified as genotype 1E and only one was characterized as genotype 2B. In the phylogenetic tree, the Zhejiang 1E genotype rubella strains were located in the same branches with Hongkong or Hainan isolates respectively, but the Zhejiang 2B genotype strain were located in the same branch with oversea strain BuenosAires. ARG/46.08. Through p-distance analysis, results also showed that the Zhejiang 2B genotype strain was closer to the 2B strains isolated from overseas (0.011) than those strains from other provinces of China (0.023). Compared with Chinese vaccine strain BRD II, the homology on three structural genes was C > E2 > E1, but the homology of deduced amino acid sequence was E1 > C > E2, with corresponding 3, 11 and 23 amino acid mutations. There was only one amino acid on E1 gene with entropy value higher than 0.600, but seven sites on E2 gene with entropy value appeared higher than 0.600 and one with entropy value higher than 1.000. Two genotypes of rubella virus had circulated in Zhejiang province during 2005 to 2010. Genotype 1E appeared to be the predominant genotype and 2B being an imported one. Amino acid sequence of E1 gene from Zhejiang rubella strains was comparatively conserved, but E2 gene was hypervariable. Study on rubella virus E2 and C gene should be conducted in the epidemiological surveillance program of rubella.

Fewer acute respiratory infection episodes among patients receiving treatment for gastroesophageal reflux disease

PubMed Central

Xirasagar, Sudha; Chung, Shiu-Dong; Tsai, Ming-Chieh; Chen, Chao-Hung

2017-01-01

Patients with gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) present with comorbid complications with implications for healthcare utilization. To date, little is known about the effects of GERD treatment with a proton-pump inhibitor (PPI) on patients’ subsequent healthcare utilization for acute respiratory infections (ARIs). This population-based study compared ARI episodes captured through outpatient visits, one year before and one year after GERD patients received PPI treatment. We used retrospective data from the Longitudinal Health Insurance Database 2005 in Taiwan, comparing 21,486 patients diagnosed with GERD from 2010 to 2012 with 21,486 age-sex matched comparison patients without GERD. Annual ARI episodes represented by ambulatory care visits for ARI (visits during a 7-day period bundled into one episode), were compared between the patient groups during the 1-year period before and after the index date (date of GERD diagnosis for study patients, first ambulatory visit in the same year for their matched comparison counterpart). Multiple regression analysis using a difference-in-difference approach was performed to estimate the adjusted association between GERD treatment and the subsequent annual ARI rate. We found that the mean annual ARI episode rate among GERD patients reduced by 11.4%, from 4.39 before PPI treatment, to 3.89 following treatment (mean change = -0.5 visit, 95% confidence interval (CI) = (-0.64, -0.36)). In Poisson regression analysis, GERD treatment showed an independent association with the annual ARI rate, showing a negative estimate (with p<0.001). The study suggests that GERD treatment with PPIs may help reduce healthcare visits for ARIs, highlighting the importance of treatment-seeking by GERD patients and compliance with treatment. PMID:28222168

Radiologic analysis of hindfoot alignment: Comparison of Méary, long axial, and hindfoot alignment views.

PubMed

Neri, T; Barthelemy, R; Tourné, Y

2017-12-01

Among radiographic views available for assessing hindfoot alignment, the antero-posterior weight-bearing view with metal cerclage of the hindfoot (Méary view) is the most widely used in France. Internationally, the long axial view (LAV) and hindfoot alignment view (HAV) are used also. The objective of this study was to compare the reliability of these three views. The Méary view with cerclage of the hindfoot is as reliable as the LAV and HAV for assessing hindfoot alignment. All three views were obtained in each of 22 prospectively included patients. Intra-observer and inter-observer reliabilities were assessed by having two observers collect the radiographic measurements then computing the intra-class correlation coefficients (ICCs). The intra-observer and inter-observer ICCs were 0.956 and 0.988 with the Méary view, 0.990 and 0.765 with the HAV, and 0.997 and 0.991 with the LAV, respectively. Correlations were far stronger between the LAV and HAV than between each of these and the Méary view. Compared to the LAV and HAV, the Méary view indicated a greater degree of hindfoot valgus. Intra-observer reliability was excellent with both the LAV and HAV, whereas inter-observer reliability was better with the LAV. Excellent reliability was also obtained with the Méary view. Combining the Méary view to obtain a radiographic image of the clinical deformity with the LAV to measure the angular deviation of the hindfoot axis may be useful when assessing hindfoot malalignment. A comparison of the three views in a larger population is needed before clinical recommendations can be made. II, prospective study. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

Effects of dopamine D2/D3 receptor ligands on food-cocaine choice in socially housed male cynomolgus monkeys.

PubMed

Czoty, Paul W; Nader, Michael A

2013-02-01

Dopamine D2/D3 receptor partial agonists have been suggested as medications for cocaine dependence. The present experiments examined the effect of acute and repeated administration of drugs with varying intrinsic efficacy at D2/D3 receptors on the relative reinforcing strength of cocaine. Use of socially housed cynomolgus monkeys permitted the assessment of whether social status, known to alter D2/D3 receptor availability, influenced the behavioral effects of D2/D3 receptor compounds. The high-efficacy agonist R(-)-norpropylapomorphine [(-)-NPA], low-efficacy agonist aripiprazole (ARI), and antagonist eticlopride (ETIC) were administered acutely to monkeys self-administering cocaine under a food-cocaine choice procedure in which a cocaine self-administration dose-effect curve was determined daily. The effects of 5-day treatment with ARI and (-)-NPA were characterized under conditions in which monkeys did (ARI) or did not [ARI and (-)-NPA] self-administer cocaine during treatment. When administered acutely, ARI and ETIC increased the choice of low cocaine doses, and only (-)-NPA decreased the choice of higher cocaine doses and cocaine intake; effects were similar across social ranks. When administered repeatedly while self administration occurred only on days 1 and 5 of treatment, ARI, but not (-)-NPA, decreased cocaine choice in dominant monkeys, whereas (-)-NPA, but not ARI, did so in subordinates. When dominant monkeys self-administered cocaine on all five days of ARI treatment, however, these effects were not observed. The results indicate that the behavioral effects of D2/D3 receptor agonists can differ according to intrinsic efficacy and subject characteristics. Moreover, these results suggest that exposure to cocaine during treatment can counteract treatment-induced reductions in the reinforcing effects of cocaine.

Incidences and Costs of Illness for Diarrhea and Acute Respiratory Infections for Children < 5 Years of Age in Rural Bangladesh.

PubMed

Halder, Amal K; Luby, Stephen P; Akhter, Shamima; Ghosh, Probir K; Johnston, Richard B; Unicomb, Leanne

2017-04-01

AbstractUnderstanding illness costs associated with diarrhea and acute respiratory infections (ARI) could guide prevention and treatment strategies. This study aimed to determine incidence of childhood diarrhea and ARI and costs of homecare, hospitalization, and outpatient treatment by practitioner type in rural Bangladesh. From each of 100 randomly selected population clusters we sampled 17 households with at least one child < 5 years of age. Childhood diarrhea incidence was 3,451 and ARI incidence was 5,849/1,000 child-years. For diarrhea and ARI outpatient care per 1,000 child-years, parents spent more on unqualified ($2,361 and $4,822) than qualified health-care practitioners ($113 and $947). For outpatient care, visits to unqualified health-care practitioners were at least five times more common than visits to qualified practitioners. Costs for outpatient care treatment by unqualified health-care practitioners per episode of illness were similar to those for qualified health-care practitioners. Homecare costs were similar for diarrhea and ARI ($0.16 and $0.24) as were similar hospitalization costs per episode of diarrhea and ARI ($35.40 and $37.76). On average, rural Bangladeshi households with children < 5 years of age spent 1.3% ($12 of $915) of their annual income managing diarrhea and ARI for those children. The majority of childhood illness management cost comprised visits to unqualified health-care practitioners. Policy makers should consider strategies to increase the skills of unqualified health-care practitioners, use community health workers to provide referral, and promote homecare for diarrhea and ARI. Incentives to motivate existing qualified physicians who are interested to work in rural Bangladesh could also be considered.

Incidences and Costs of Illness for Diarrhea and Acute Respiratory Infections for Children < 5 Years of Age in Rural Bangladesh

PubMed Central

Halder, Amal K.; Luby, Stephen P.; Akhter, Shamima; Ghosh, Probir K.; Johnston, Richard B.; Unicomb, Leanne

2017-01-01

Understanding illness costs associated with diarrhea and acute respiratory infections (ARI) could guide prevention and treatment strategies. This study aimed to determine incidence of childhood diarrhea and ARI and costs of homecare, hospitalization, and outpatient treatment by practitioner type in rural Bangladesh. From each of 100 randomly selected population clusters we sampled 17 households with at least one child < 5 years of age. Childhood diarrhea incidence was 3,451 and ARI incidence was 5,849/1,000 child-years. For diarrhea and ARI outpatient care per 1,000 child-years, parents spent more on unqualified ($2,361 and $4,822) than qualified health-care practitioners ($113 and $947). For outpatient care, visits to unqualified health-care practitioners were at least five times more common than visits to qualified practitioners. Costs for outpatient care treatment by unqualified health-care practitioners per episode of illness were similar to those for qualified health-care practitioners. Homecare costs were similar for diarrhea and ARI ($0.16 and $0.24) as were similar hospitalization costs per episode of diarrhea and ARI ($35.40 and $37.76). On average, rural Bangladeshi households with children < 5 years of age spent 1.3% ($12 of $915) of their annual income managing diarrhea and ARI for those children. The majority of childhood illness management cost comprised visits to unqualified health-care practitioners. Policy makers should consider strategies to increase the skills of unqualified health-care practitioners, use community health workers to provide referral, and promote homecare for diarrhea and ARI. Incentives to motivate existing qualified physicians who are interested to work in rural Bangladesh could also be considered. PMID:28167594

Aries

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Murdin, P.

2000-11-01

(the Ram; abbrev. Ari, gen. Arietis; area 441 sq. deg.) A northern zodiacal constellation that lies between Taurus and Pisces, and culminates at midnight in late October. It represents the ram in Greek mythology whose golden fleece was the quest of Jason and the Argonauts. Its brightest stars were cataloged by Ptolemy (c. AD 100-175) in the Almagest. In Ptolemy's day the Sun was in Aries at the v...

Proposed experiment to test fundamentally binary theories

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kleinmann, Matthias; Vértesi, Tamás; Cabello, Adán

2017-09-01

Fundamentally binary theories are nonsignaling theories in which measurements of many outcomes are constructed by selecting from binary measurements. They constitute a sensible alternative to quantum theory and have never been directly falsified by any experiment. Here we show that fundamentally binary theories are experimentally testable with current technology. For that, we identify a feasible Bell-type experiment on pairs of entangled qutrits. In addition, we prove that, for any n , quantum n -ary correlations are not fundamentally (n -1 ) -ary. For that, we introduce a family of inequalities that hold for fundamentally (n -1 ) -ary theories but are violated by quantum n -ary correlations.

Deformation and Flexibility Equations for Idealized ARIS Umbilicals, Under Planar End-Loading Conditions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hampton, R. David; Quraishi, Naveed (Technical Monitor)

2003-01-01

The International Space Station (ISS) relies on the Active Rack Isolation System (ARIS) as the central component of an integrated, station-wide strategy to isolate microgravity space-science experiments. ARIS uses electromechanical actuators to isolate an International Standard Payload Rack (ISPR) from disturbances due to the motion of the ISS. Disturbances to microgravity experiments on ARIS-isolated racks are primarily transmitted via the ARTS power and vacuum umbilicals. Recent experimental tests indicate that these umbilicals resonate at frequencies outside the ARIS controller's bandwidth, at levels of potential concern for certain microgravity experiments. Reduction in the umbilical resonant frequencies could help to address this issue. This report develops equations for the in-plane deflections and flexibilities of an idealized umbilical (thin, flexible, cantilever beam) under end-point, in-plane loading (inclined-force and moment). The effect of gravity is neglected due to the on-orbit application. The analysis assumes an initially straight, cantilevered umbilical with uniform cross-section, which undergoes large deflections with no plastic deformation, such that the umbilical terminus remains in a single quadrant and the umbilical slope changes monotonically. The analysis is applicable to the ARIS power and vacuum umbilicals, under the indicated assumptions.

Undergraduate Observations of Separation and Position Angle of Double Stars WDS J05460+2119AB (ARY 6AD and ARY 6 AE) at Manzanita Observatory (Abstract)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

HOffert, M. J.; Weise, E.; Clow, J.; Hirzel, J.; Leeder, B.; Molyneux, S.; Scutti, N.; Spartalis, S.; Takuhara, C.

2014-12-01

(Abstract only) Six beginning astronomy students, part of an undergraduate stellar astronomy course, one advanced undergraduate student assistant, and a professor measured the position angles and separations of Washington Double Stars (WDS) J05460+2119 (= WDS J05460+2119AB; also known as ARY 6 AD and ARY 6 AE). The measurements were made at the Manzanita Observatory (116º 20' 42" W, 32º 44' 5" N) of the Tierra Astronomical Institute on 10 Blackwood Road in Boulevard, California (www.youtube.com/watch?v=BHVdeMGBGDU), at an elevation of 4,500 ft. A Celestron 11-inch HD Edge telescope was used to measure the position angles and separations of ARY 6 AD and ARY 6 AE. The averages of our measurements are as follows: separation AD: trial 1 124.1 arcseconds and trial 2 124.5 arcseconds; separation AE: trial 1 73.3 arcseconds and trial 2 73.8 arcseconds. The averages of positon angle for AD: trial 1 159.9 degrees and trial 2 161.3 degrees, for AE: trial 1 232.6 degrees and trial 2 233.7 degrees.

Undergraduate Observations of Separation and Position Angle of Double Stars ARY 6 AD and ARY 6 AE at Manzanita Observatory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hoffert, Michael J.; Weise, Eric; Clow, Jenna; Hirzel, Jacquelyn; Leeder, Brett; Molyneux, Scott; Scutti, Nicholas; Spartalis, Sarah; Tokuhara, Corey

2014-05-01

Six beginning astronomy students, part of an undergraduate stellar astronomy course, one advanced undergraduate student assistant, and a professor measured the position angles and separations of Washington Double Stars (WDS) 05460 + 2119 (also known as ARY 6 AD and ARY 6 AE). The measurements were made at the Manzanita Observatory (116° 20'42" W, 32° 44' 5" N) of the Tierra Astronomical Institute on 10 Blackwood Rd. in Boulevard, California (www.youtube.com/watch?v=BHVdcMGBGDU), at an elevation of 4,500 ft. A Celestron 11" HD Edge telescope was used to measure the position angles and separations of ARY 6 AD and ARY 6 AE. The averages of our measurements are as follows: separation AD: trial 1 124.1 arcseconds and trial 2 124.5 arcseconds. The average of separation for AE: trial 1 73.3 arcseconds and trial 2 73.8 arcseconds. The averages of position angle for AD: trial 1 159.9 degrees and trial 2 161.3 degrees. The averages of position angle for AE: trial 1 232.6 degrees and trial 2 233.7 degrees.

Outbreak of influenza in an overseas student travel group--Taiwan 2008.

PubMed

Tsou, Tsung-Pei; Lin, Chien-Hui; Lo, Yi-Chun; Li, Yi-Syue; Chiu, Chan-Hsien

2010-05-01

Influenza is a frequent cause of acute respiratory illness (ARI). In July 2008, we conducted a retrospective cohort study to investigate an influenza outbreak occurring in an overland travel group of overseas students. ARI was defined as the presence of any respiratory symptom such as cough, rhinorrhoea, sore throat or stuffy nose. Influenza-like illness (ILI) was defined as ARI plus fever > or =38 degrees C. Throat swabs were taken from symptomatic participants and a real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) was performed. One hundred and seventy participants were interviewed. Forty-four (26%) had an ARI and 22 (13%) had an ILI. Of the 33 specimens collected, 18 (54%) were positive for influenza A/H3N2. Taiwanese group leaders had increased risk of acquiring both ARI and ILI (ARI relative risk (RR) 2.2, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.3-3.7 and ILI RR 2.8, 95% CI 1.2-6.3). Fifteen participants were vaccinated. The vaccine effectiveness was 52% for ILI (p = 0.70). The outbreak stopped after cohorting and the use of surgical masks. Vaccination appeared to be effective in preventing infection.

Prophylaxis of acute respiratory infections via improving the immune system in late preterm newborns with E. coli strain Nissle 1917: a controlled pilot trial.

PubMed

Aryayev, Mykola L; Senkivska, Liudmyla I; Bredeleva, Nataliya K; Talashova, Irina V

2018-01-01

Acute respiratory infections (ARIs), caused by the high level of immaturity of the immune system, are a major cause of morbidity in preterm newborns. The probiotic Escherichia coli strain Nissle 1917 (EcN) is well known for its immuno-modulatory properties and may therefore enhance the immune competence. Thus, EcN administration may provide a promising possibility to decrease the risk of ARIs in this vulnerable group of children. However, clinical data supporting or refuting this hypothesis are, to our knowledge, not available. Therefore, the aim of the presented pilot trial was to collect first data on the efficacy and safety of EcN treatment to prevent ARIs in late preterm newborns. Right after birth, 62 late preterm newborns were included into an open-labeled, controlled 4-week trial with two parallel groups and a follow-up phase until the age of 1 year. All children of the treatment group received an EcN suspension orally for 3 weeks, whereas the control group was only observed. Primary efficacy variable was the number of participants with at least one ARI during the first 28 days of life. Secondary efficacy variables were the number of ARIs and the number and duration of hospitalizations caused by ARIs during the first year of life. The number of participants with at least one ARI during the first 28 days of life was significantly lower in the group treated with EcN compared to that in the control group. Although only of exploratory nature, analyses of secondary efficacy variables suggest that EcN treatment may also reduce the average number of ARIs, the average number of hospitalizations caused by ARIs, and the mean duration of such hospitalizations. There is also some evidence that early EcN treatment may have long-term benefits on newborns' health status. The present pilot trial provides first evidence that EcN is able to reduce the incidence of ARIs in the neonatal period of late preterm newborns. Additionally, EcN is characterized by an excellent individual biocompatibility in the absence of adverse drug reactions. Limitations of the current trial are discussed and recommendations for future confirmatory studies are made. ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT01540162; retrospectively registered on 16 February 2012.

Evidence for a Common Origin of Blacksmiths and Cultivators in the Ethiopian Ari within the Last 4500 Years: Lessons for Clustering-Based Inference

PubMed Central

van Dorp, Lucy; Balding, David; Myers, Simon; Pagani, Luca; Tyler-Smith, Chris; Bekele, Endashaw; Tarekegn, Ayele; Thomas, Mark G.; Bradman, Neil; Hellenthal, Garrett

2015-01-01

The Ari peoples of Ethiopia are comprised of different occupational groups that can be distinguished genetically, with Ari Cultivators and the socially marginalised Ari Blacksmiths recently shown to have a similar level of genetic differentiation between them (F ST ≈ 0.023 − 0.04) as that observed among multiple ethnic groups sampled throughout Ethiopia. Anthropologists have proposed two competing theories to explain the origins of the Ari Blacksmiths as (i) remnants of a population that inhabited Ethiopia prior to the arrival of agriculturists (e.g. Cultivators), or (ii) relatively recently related to the Cultivators but presently marginalized in the community due to their trade. Two recent studies by different groups analysed genome-wide DNA from samples of Ari Blacksmiths and Cultivators and suggested that genetic patterns between the two groups were more consistent with model (i) and subsequent assimilation of the indigenous peoples into the expanding agriculturalist community. We analysed the same samples using approaches designed to attenuate signals of genetic differentiation that are attributable to allelic drift within a population. By doing so, we provide evidence that the genetic differences between Ari Blacksmiths and Cultivators can be entirely explained by bottleneck effects consistent with hypothesis (ii). This finding serves as both a cautionary tale about interpreting results from unsupervised clustering algorithms, and suggests that social constructions are contributing directly to genetic differentiation over a relatively short time period among previously genetically similar groups. PMID:26291793

Factors associated with acute respiratory infection in children under the age of 5 years: evidence from the 2011 Ethiopia Demographic and Health Survey

PubMed Central

Geberetsadik, Achamyelesh; Worku, Alemayehu; Berhane, Yemane

2015-01-01

Background Acute respiratory tract infection (ARI) remains the major cause of child mortality in Sub-Saharan Africa. Various factors are associated with its occurrence and vary by context. However, available large-scale, population-based data are not fully exploited to identify locally relevant risk factors. The objective of this study was to identify factors associated with ARI in children under the age of 5 years in Ethiopia. Methods Further analysis of the 2011 Ethiopia Demographic and Health Survey was carried out involving 11,645 children under the age of 5 years and their mothers. Information relevant to the current study was extracted from the main data set and a working data set was prepared. A complex survey logistic regression analysis was applied. Results Acute ARI in this study was associated with severe malnutrition. Children who were severely wasted were highly likely to develop ARI (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] 1.7; 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.1–2.5). ARI was less likely to occur in children from families with an educated father and professional mother (AOR 0.4; 95% CI 0.2–0.6 and AOR 0.1; 95% CI 0.01–0.6, respectively). Conclusion Malnourished children from a lower socioeconomic category are more likely to suffer from ARI. Targeting disadvantaged children for effective interventions can help reduce the burden of morbidity and death due to ARI. PMID:29388598

Pathological Gambling Associated With Aripiprazole or Dopamine Replacement Therapy

PubMed Central

Grall-Bronnec, Marie; Sauvaget, Anne; Perrouin, Fanny; Leboucher, Juliette; Etcheverrigaray, François; Challet-Bouju, Gaëlle; Gaboriau, Louise; Derkinderen, Pascal; Jolliet, Pascale; Victorri-Vigneau, Caroline

2016-01-01

Background In the last 10 years, dopamine replacement therapy (DRT) has become a well-known risk factor for developing an impulse control disorder, such as gambling disorder (GD). Another medication, aripiprazole (ARI), has been more recently identified as another risk factor. Dopamine replacement therapy and ARI share a dopamine agonist action. Our work aimed at comparing patients with PG according to their treatment with DRT or ARI. Methods Two methods were combined—a systematic review concentrated on case reports and the analysis of a French disordered gamblers cohort focused on patients using ARI or DRT at inclusion. Results We reported 48 cases of GD possibly due to DRT and 17 cases of GD possibly due to ARI. Because of their standardized assessment, only the EVALJEU patients could be compared. Two clinical patterns emerged. Patients in the ARI group were young, impulsive, and high novelty seekers and had a history of substance misuse. Their first gambling experience occurred during adolescence. Conversely, patients in the DRT group were old, and they began gambling late in life. They showed low levels of gambling-related cognition. Conclusions Patients in the ARI group seemed to be more severe pathological gamblers than patients in the DRT group. Aripiprazole is a partial D2 receptor agonist, whereas DRT includes full D2 receptor agonist. The trigger mechanism of PG development is complex and cannot only be attributed only to the pharmacodynamic effects of dopaminergic drugs. Indeed, individual vulnerability factors and environmental factors need to be considered. PMID:26658263

Crony Attack: Strategic Attack’s Silver Bullet

DTIC Science & Technology

2006-11-01

Politics. 1. Bueno de Mesquita et al ., “Policy Failure and Political Survival,” 14–1. 1. Ibid., 149. 19. Ibid., 0. 20. Kirschner, “Microfoundations of...fighting. Notes 1. See Bueno de Mesquita et al ., “Policy Failure and Political Survival,” 147–61. 2. For more discussion of leadership’s manipulation...accessed 2 April 2003). http://www.d-i.net/fcs/;ppt/ellis_ kosovo_aar.ppt#315,7,Short War Syndrome (accessed 14 July 2006). Bueno de Mesquita, Bruce, et al

Hepatitis C Virus Diversification in Argentina: Comparative Analysis between the Large City of Buenos Aires and the Small Rural Town of O'Brien

PubMed Central

Golemba, Marcelo D.; Culasso, Andrés C. A.; Villamil, Federico G.; Bare, Patricia; Gadano, Adrián; Ridruejo, Ezequiel; Martinez, Alfredo; Di Lello, Federico A.; Campos, Rodolfo H.

2013-01-01

Background The estimated prevalence of HCV infection in Argentina is around 2%. However, higher rates of infection have been described in population studies of small urban and rural communities. The aim of this work was to compare the origin and diversification of HCV-1b in samples from two different epidemiological scenarios: Buenos Aires, a large cosmopolitan city, and O'Brien, a small rural town with a high prevalence of HCV infection. Patients and Methods The E1/E2 and NS5B regions of the viral genome from 83 patients infected with HCV-1b were sequenced. Phylogenetic analysis and Bayesian Coalescent methods were used to study the origin and diversification of HCV-1b in both patient populations. Results Samples from Buenos Aires showed a polyphyletic behavior with a tMRCA around 1887–1900 and a time of spread of infection approximately 60 years ago. In contrast, samples from ÓBrien showed a monophyletic behavior with a tMRCA around 1950–1960 and a time of spread of infection more recent than in Buenos Aires, around 20–30 years ago. Conclusion Phylogenetic and coalescence analysis revealed a different behavior in the epidemiological histories of Buenos Aires and ÓBrien. HCV infection in Buenos Aires shows a polyphyletic behavior and an exponential growth in two phases, whereas that in O'Brien shows a monophyletic cluster and an exponential growth in one single step with a more recent tMRCA. The polyphyletic origin and the probability of encountering susceptible individuals in a large cosmopolitan city like Buenos Aires are in agreement with a longer period of expansion. In contrast, in less populated areas such as O'Brien, the chances of HCV transmission are strongly restricted. Furthermore, the monophyletic character and the most recent time of emergence suggest that different HCV-1b ancestors (variants) that were in expansion in Buenos Aires had the opportunity to colonize and expand in O’Brien. PMID:24386322

Paraná flood basalt volcanism primarily limited to 1 Myr beginning at 135 Ma: New 40Ar/39Ar ages for rocks from Rio Grande do Sul, and critical evaluation of published radiometric data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Baksi, Ajoy K.

2018-04-01

40Ar/39Ar step heating analyses were carried out on seven rocks (five basalts, an andesite and a rhyolite) from the southern Paraná Province ( 28°S-30°S); they yield plateau/isochron ages of 135-134 Ma, in good agreement with published step heating data on rocks from the same area. Critical review of laser spot isochron ages for rocks from the Province, ranging from 140 to 130 Ma, are shown to be unreliable estimates of crystallization ages, as the rocks were substantially altered; step heating results on three of these rocks thought to yield good plateau ages, are shown to be incorrect, as a result of a technicality in dating procedures followed. U-Pb ages on zircon and baddeleyite separated from a variety of rock types ( 30°S-23°S) fall in the range 135 to 134 Ma. All reliable 40Ar/39Ar and U-Pb ages indicate volcanism was sharply focused, initiated at 135 Ma, and 1 Myr in duration; no variation of age with either latitude or longitude is noted, Scrutiny of published 40Ar/39Ar ages on the Florianopolis dykes shows they cannot be used as reliable crystallization ages. U-Pb work shows that this dyke swarm was formed coevally with the main part of the Parana province. Most of the published 40Ar/39Ar ages on the Ponta Grossa dyke swarm are unreliable; a few ages appear reliable and suggest the magmatic event in this area, may have postdated the main Paraná pulse by 1-2 Myr. A single 40Ar/39Ar age from a high-Nb basalt in the southernmost part ( 34°S) of the Paraná at 135 Ma, highlights the need for further radiometric work on other areas of this flood basalt province. The Paraná Province postdates the time of the Jurassic-Cretaceous bound­ary by 10 Myr.

Using stable isotopes to associate migratory shorebirds with their wintering locations in Argentina

USGS Publications Warehouse

Farmer, A.H.; Abril, M.; Fernandez, M.; Torres, J.; Kester, C.; Bern, C.

2004-01-01

We are evaluating the use of stable isotopes to identify the wintering areas of Neotropical migratory shorebirds in Argentina. Our goal is to associate individual birds, captured on the breeding grounds or in migration with specific winter sites, thereby helping to identify distinct areas used by different subpopulations. In January and February 2002 and 2003, we collected flight feathers from shorebirds at 23 wintering sites distributed across seven province s in Argentina (n = 170). Feathers samples were pre- pared and analyzed for δ13C, δ15N, δ34S, δ18O and δD by continuous flow methods. A discriminant function based on deuterium alone was not an accurate predictor of a shorebird’s province of origin, ranging from 8% correct (Santiago del Estero) to 80% correct (San ta Cruz). When other isotopes were included, the prediction accuracy increased substantially (from 56% in Buenos Aires to 100% in Tucumán). The improvement in accuracy was due to C/N, which separated D-depleted sites in the Andes from those in the south, and the inclusion of S separated sites with respect to their distance from the Atlantic. We also were able to correctly discriminate shorebirds from among two closely spaced sites within the province of Tierra del Fuego. These results suggest the feasibility of identifying the origin of a shorebird at a provincial level of accuracy, as well as uniquely identifying birds from some closely spaced sites. There is a high degree of intra- and inter-bird variability, especially in the Pampas region, where there is wide variety of wetland/water conditions. In that important shorebird region, the variability itself may in fact be the “signature.” Future addition of trace elements to the analyses may improve predictions based solely on stable isotopes.

A Peculiar New Pampatheriidae (Mammalia: Xenarthra: Cingulata) from the Pleistocene of Argentina and Comments on Pampatheriidae Diversity

PubMed Central

Scillato-Yané, Gustavo Juan; Soibelzon, Esteban

2015-01-01

Pampatheriidae are a group of cingulates native to South American that are known from the middle Miocene to the lower Holocene. Two genera have been recognized between the lower Pleistocene and the lower Holocene: Pampatherium Gervais and Ameghino (Ensenadan, Bonaerian and Lujanian, lower Pleistocene–lower Holocene) and Holmesina Simpson (Blancan, Irvingtonian, upper Pliocene–lower Holocene). They have been mainly differentiated by their osteoderm morphology and cranio-dental characters. These taxa had a wide latitudinal distribution, extending from the southern part of South America (Península Valdés, Argentina) to North America (Florida, USA). In this contribution, we describe a new genus and species of Pampatheriidae for the lower and middle Pleistocene of Buenos Aires Province and for the upper Pleistocene of Santa Fe Province (Argentina).The new taxon is represented by disarticulated osteoderms, one skull element, two thoracic vertebrae and a right femur and patella. It has extremely complex osteoderm ornamentations and particular morphological characters of the cranial element and femur that are not found in any other species of the family. This new taxon, recorded in the lower–middle Pleistocene (Ensenadan Stage/Age) and in the upper Pleistocene–early Holocene (Lujanian Stage/Age), is incorporated to the Pleistocene mammal assemblage of South America. Finally, the Pampatheriidae diversity is greater during the Lujanian Stage/Age than the Ensenadan Stage/Age. PMID:26083486

AL-1576, an aldose reductase inhibitor (ARI), did not prevent the decrease of norepinephrine turnover in diabetic rats.

PubMed

Yen, T T; Fuller, R W; Broderick, C L; Hemrick-Luecke, S K; Perry, K W

1988-08-01

ONO-2235 [(E)-3-carboxymethyl-5-[(2E)-2-methyl-3-phenyl-propenylidene]rhodanine], an ARI, was reported to prevent significantly the decrease of norepinephrine (NE) turnover in three tissues of streptozotocin (STZ)-diabetic rats (1). To examine whether the partial restoration of NE turnover by ONO-2235 is related to its ARI activity, the effect of another ARI, AL-1576 [spiro(2,7-difluoro-9H-fluoren-9, 4'-imidazoline)-2'5'-dione], on NE turnover in STZ rats was investigated. STZ caused an accumulation of sorbitol in the lens and decreased NE turnover in interscapular brown adipose tissue (IBAT), heart and pancreas. AL-1576 totally prevented the accumulation of sorbitol in the lens but had no effect on the decreased NE turnover in all three tissues. These results suggest that the partial prevention of NE turnover decrease by ONO-2235 may not have been mediated by its ARI activity.

A Simplified Model of ARIS for Optimal Controller Design

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Beech, Geoffrey S.; Hampton, R. David; Kross, Denny (Technical Monitor)

2001-01-01

Many space-science experiments require active vibration isolation. Boeing's Active Rack Isolation System (ARIS) isolates experiments at the rack (vs. experiment or sub-experiment) level, with multi e experiments per rack. An ARIS-isolated rack typically employs eight actuators and thirteen umbilicals; the umbilicals provide services such as power, data transmission, and cooling. Hampton, et al., used "Kane's method" to develop an analytical, nonlinear, rigid-body model of ARIS that includes full actuator dynamics (inertias). This model, less the umbilicals, was first implemented for simulation by Beech and Hampton; they developed and tested their model using two commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) software packages. Rupert, et al., added umbilical-transmitted disturbances to this nonlinear model. Because the nonlinear model, even for the untethered system, is both exceedingly complex and "encapsulated" inside these COTS tools, it is largely inaccessible to ARIS controller designers. This paper shows that ISPR rattle-space constraints and small ARIS actuator masses permit considerable model simplification, without significant loss of fidelity. First, for various loading conditions, comparisons are made between the dynamic responses of the nonlinear model (untethered) and a truth model. Then comparisons are made among nonlinear, linearized, and linearized reduced-mass models. It is concluded that these three models all capture the significant system rigid-body dynamics, with the third being preferred due to its relative simplicity.

Modelling the Ecological Comorbidity of Acute Respiratory Infection, Diarrhoea and Stunting among Children Under the Age of 5 Years in Somalia.

PubMed

Kinyoki, Damaris K; Manda, Samuel O; Moloney, Grainne M; Odundo, Elijah O; Berkley, James A; Noor, Abdisalan M; Kandala, Ngianga-Bakwin

2017-04-01

The aim of this study was to assess spatial co-occurrence of acute respiratory infections (ARI), diarrhoea and stunting among children of the age between 6 and 59 months in Somalia. Data were obtained from routine biannual nutrition surveys conducted by the Food and Agriculture Organization 2007-2010. A Bayesian hierarchical geostatistical shared component model was fitted to the residual spatial components of the three health conditions. Risk maps of the common spatial effects at 1×1 km resolution were derived. The empirical correlations of the enumeration area proportion were 0.37, 0.63 and 0.66 for ARI and stunting, diarrhoea and stunting and ARI and diarrhoea, respectively. Spatially, the posterior residual effects ranged 0.03-20.98, 0.16-6.37 and 0.08-9.66 for shared component between ARI and stunting, diarrhoea and stunting and ARI and diarrhoea, respectively. The analysis showed clearly that the spatial shared component between ARI, diarrhoea and stunting was higher in the southern part of the country. Interventions aimed at controlling and mitigating the adverse effects of these three childhood health conditions should focus on their common putative risk factors, particularly in the South in Somalia.

A computerized education module improves patient knowledge and attitudes about appropriate antibiotic use for acute respiratory tract infections.

PubMed

Price, Erika Leemann; Mackenzie, Thomas D; Metlay, Joshua P; Camargo, Carlos A; Gonzales, Ralph

2011-12-01

Over-use of antibiotics for acute respiratory infections (ARIs) increases antimicrobial resistance, treatment costs, and side effects. Patient desire for antibiotics contributes to over-use. To explore whether a point-of-care interactive computerized education module increases patient knowledge and decreases desire for antibiotics. Bilingual (English/Spanish) interactive kiosks were available in 8 emergency departments as part of a multidimensional intervention to reduce antibiotic prescribing for ARIs. The symptom-tailored module included assessment of symptoms, knowledge about ARIs (3 items), and desire for antibiotics on a 10-point visual analog scale. Multivariable analysis assessed predictors of change in desire for antibiotics. Of 686 adults with ARI symptoms, 63% initially thought antibiotics might help. The proportion of patients with low (1-3 on the scale) desire for antibiotics increased from 22% pre-module to 49% post-module (p<.001). Self-report of "learning something new" was associated with decreased desire for antibiotics, after adjusting for baseline characteristics (p=.001). An interactive educational kiosk improved knowledge about antibiotics and ARIs. Learning correlated with changes in personal desire for antibiotics. By reducing desire for antibiotics, point-of-care interactive educational computer technology may help decrease inappropriate use for antibiotics for ARIs. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Transmission of respiratory and gastrointestinal infections in German households with children attending child care.

PubMed

Schlinkmann, K M; Bakuli, A; Karch, A; Meyer, F; Dreesman, J; Monazahian, M; Mikolajczyk, R

2018-04-01

Transmission of acute respiratory infections (ARI) and acute gastroenteritis (AGE) often occurs in households. The aim of this study was to assess which proportion of ARI and AGE is introduced and transmitted by children in German households with children attending child care. We recruited families with children aged 0-6 years in Braunschweig (Germany), for a 4 months prospective cohort study in the winter period 2014/2015. Every household member was included in a health diary and used nasal swabs for pathogen identification in case of ARI. We defined a transmission if two persons had overlapping periods with symptoms and used additional definitions for sensitivity analyses. In total, 77 households participated with 282 persons. We observed 277 transmission events for ARI and 23 for AGE. In most cases, the first infected person in a household was a child (ARI: 63%, AGE: 53%), and the risk of within-household transmission was two times higher when the index case was a child. In 26 ARI-transmission events, pathogens were detected for both cases; hereof in 35% (95% confidence interval (17-56%)) the pathogens were different. Thus, symptomatic infections in household members, apparently linked in time, were in 2/3 associated with the same pathogens.

A multilevel analysis of lifestyle variations in symptoms of acute respiratory infection among young children under five in Nigeria.

PubMed

Adesanya, Oluwafunmilade A; Chiao, Chi

2016-08-25

Nigeria has the second highest estimated number of deaths due to acute respiratory infection (ARI) among children under five in the world. A common hypothesis is that the inequitable distribution of socioeconomic resources shapes individual lifestyles and health behaviors, which leads to poorer health, including symptoms of ARI. This study examined whether lifestyle factors are associated with ARI risk among Nigerian children aged less than 5 years, taking individual-level and contextual-level risk factors into consideration. Data were obtained from the nationally representative 2013 Nigeria Demographic and Health Survey. A total of 28,596 surviving children aged 5 years or younger living in 896 communities were analyzed. We employed two-level multilevel logistic regressions to model the relationship between lifestyle factors and ARI symptoms. The multivariate results from multilevel regressions indicated that the odds of having ARI symptoms were increased by a number of lifestyle factors such as in-house biomass cooking (OR = 2.30; p < 0.01) and no hand-washing (OR = 1.66; p < 0.001). An increased risk of ARI symptoms was also significantly associated with living in the North West region and the community with a high proportion of orphaned/vulnerable children (OR = 1.74; p < 0.001). Our findings underscore the importance of Nigerian children's lifestyle within the neighborhoods where they reside above their individual characteristics. Program-based strategies that are aimed at reducing ARI symptoms should consider policies that embrace making available basic housing standards, providing improved cooking stoves and enhancing healthy behaviors.

Self-reported familiarity with acute respiratory infection guidelines and antibiotic prescribing in primary care.

PubMed

Linder, Jeffrey A; Schnipper, Jeffrey L; Tsurikova, Ruslana; Volk, Lynn A; Middleton, Blackford

2010-12-01

Familiarity with guidelines is generally thought to be associated with guideline implementation, adherence and improved quality of care. We sought to determine if self-reported familiarity with acute respiratory infection (ARI) antibiotic treatment guidelines was associated with reduced or more appropriate antibiotic prescribing for ARIs in primary care. and We surveyed primary care clinicians about their familiarity with ARI antibiotic treatment guidelines and linked responses to administrative diagnostic and prescribing data for non-pneumonia ARI visits. Sixty-five percent of clinicians responded to the survey question about guideline familiarity. There were 208 survey respondents who had ARI patient visits during the study period. Respondents reported being 'not at all' (7%), 'somewhat' (30%), 'moderately' (45%) or 'extremely' (18%) familiar with the guidelines. After dichotomizing responses, compared with clinicians who reported being less familiar with the guidelines, clinicians who reported being more familiar with the guidelines had higher rates of antibiotic prescribing for all ARIs combined (46% versus 38%; n = 11 164; P < 0.0001), for antibiotic-appropriate diagnoses (69% versus 59%; n = 3213; P < 0.0001) and for non-antibiotic appropriate diagnoses (38% versus 28%; n = 7951; P < 0.0001). After adjusting for potential confounders, self-reported guideline familiarity was an independent predictor of increased antibiotic prescribing (odds ratio, 1.36; 95% confidence interval, 1.25-1.48). Self-reported familiarity with an ARI antibiotic treatment guideline was, seemingly paradoxically, associated with increased antibiotic prescribing. Self-reported familiarity with guidelines should not be assumed to be associated with consistent guideline adherence or higher quality of care.

A Sustainable Strategy to Prevent Misuse of Antibiotics for Acute Respiratory Infections

PubMed Central

Rattinger, Gail B.; Mullins, C. Daniel; Zuckerman, Ilene H.; Onukwugha, Eberechukwu; Walker, Loreen D.; Gundlapalli, Adi; Samore, Matthew; DeLisle, Sylvain

2012-01-01

Backgrounds Over 50% of antibiotics prescriptions are for outpatients with acute respiratory infections (ARI). Many of them are not needed and thus contribute both avoidable adverse events and pressures toward the development of bacterial resistance. Could a clinical decision support system (CDSS), interposed at the time of electronic prescription, adjust antibiotics utilization toward consensus treatment guidelines for ARI? Methods This is a retrospective comparison of pre- (2002) and post-intervention (2003–2006) periods at two comprehensive health care systems (intervention and control). The intervention was a CDSS that targeted fluoroquinolone and azithromycin; other antibiotics remained unrestricted. 7000 outpatients visits flagged by an ARI case-finding algorithm were reviewed for congruence with the guidelines (antibiotic prescribed-when-warranted or not-prescribed-when-unwarranted). Results 3831 patients satisfied the case definitions for one or more ARI: pneumonia (537), bronchitis (2931), sinusitis (717) and non-specific ARI (145). All patients with pneumonia received antibiotics. The relative risk (RR) of congruent prescribing was 2.57 (95% CI = (1.865 to 3.540) in favor of the intervention site for the antibiotics targeted by the CDSS; congruence did not change for other antibiotics (adjusted RR = 1.18 (95% CI = (0.691 to 2.011)). The proportion of unwarranted prescriptions of the targeted antibiotics decreased from 22% to 3%, pre vs. post-intervention (p<0.0001). Conclusions A CDSS interposed at the time of e-prescription nearly extinguished unwarranted use targeted antibiotics for ARI for four years. This intervention highlights a path toward sustainable antibiotics stewardship for outpatients with ARI. PMID:23251440

The Role of Influenza and Parainfluenza Infections in Nasopharyngeal Pneumococcal Acquisition Among Young Children

PubMed Central

Grijalva, Carlos G.; Griffin, Marie R.; Edwards, Kathryn M.; Williams, John V.; Gil, Ana I.; Verastegui, Hector; Hartinger, Stella M.; Vidal, Jorge E.; Klugman, Keith P.; Lanata, Claudio F.

2014-01-01

Background. Animal models suggest that influenza infection favors nasopharyngeal acquisition of pneumococci. We assessed this relationship with influenza and other respiratory viruses in young children. Methods. A case-control study was nested within a prospective cohort study of acute respiratory illness (ARI) in Andean children <3 years of age (RESPIRA-PERU study). Weekly household visits were made to identify ARI and obtain nasal swabs for viral detection using real-time reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction. Monthly nasopharyngeal (NP) samples were obtained to assess pneumococcal colonization. We determined whether specific respiratory viral ARI episodes occurring within the interval between NP samples increased the risk of NP acquisition of new pneumococcal serotypes. Results. A total of 729 children contributed 2128 episodes of observation, including 681 pneumococcal acquisition episodes (new serotype, not detected in prior sample), 1029 nonacquisition episodes (no colonization or persistent colonization with the same serotype as the prior sample), and 418 indeterminate episodes. The risk of pneumococcal acquisition increased following influenza-ARI (adjusted odds ratio [AOR], 2.19; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.02–4.69) and parainfluenza-ARI (AOR, 1.86; 95% CI, 1.15–3.01), when compared with episodes without ARI. Other viral infections (respiratory syncytial virus, human metapneumovirus, human rhinovirus, and adenovirus) were not associated with acquisition. Conclusions. Influenza and parainfluenza ARIs appeared to facilitate pneumococcal acquisition among young children. As acquisition increases the risk of pneumococcal diseases, these observations are pivotal in our attempts to prevent pneumococcal disease. PMID:24621951

Effects of Dopamine D2/D3 Receptor Ligands on Food-Cocaine Choice in Socially Housed Male Cynomolgus Monkeys

PubMed Central

Czoty, Paul W.

2013-01-01

Dopamine D2/D3 receptor partial agonists have been suggested as medications for cocaine dependence. The present experiments examined the effect of acute and repeated administration of drugs with varying intrinsic efficacy at D2/D3 receptors on the relative reinforcing strength of cocaine. Use of socially housed cynomolgus monkeys permitted the assessment of whether social status, known to alter D2/D3 receptor availability, influenced the behavioral effects of D2/D3 receptor compounds. The high-efficacy agonist R(−)−norpropylapomorphine [(−)−NPA], low-efficacy agonist aripiprazole (ARI), and antagonist eticlopride (ETIC) were administered acutely to monkeys self-administering cocaine under a food-cocaine choice procedure in which a cocaine self-administration dose-effect curve was determined daily. The effects of 5-day treatment with ARI and (−)−NPA were characterized under conditions in which monkeys did (ARI) or did not [ARI and (−)−NPA] self-administer cocaine during treatment. When administered acutely, ARI and ETIC increased the choice of low cocaine doses, and only (−)−NPA decreased the choice of higher cocaine doses and cocaine intake; effects were similar across social ranks. When administered repeatedly while self administration occurred only on days 1 and 5 of treatment, ARI, but not (−)−NPA, decreased cocaine choice in dominant monkeys, whereas (−)−NPA, but not ARI, did so in subordinates. When dominant monkeys self-administered cocaine on all five days of ARI treatment, however, these effects were not observed. The results indicate that the behavioral effects of D2/D3 receptor agonists can differ according to intrinsic efficacy and subject characteristics. Moreover, these results suggest that exposure to cocaine during treatment can counteract treatment-induced reductions in the reinforcing effects of cocaine. PMID:23211363

Enhancement of PM2.5 Concentrations by Aerosol-Meteorology Interactions Over China

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Xin; Zhang, Qiang; Hong, Chaopeng; Zheng, Yixuan; Geng, Guannan; Tong, Dan; Zhang, Yuxuan; Zhang, Xiaoye

2018-01-01

Aerosol-meteorology interactions can change surface aerosol concentrations via different mechanisms such as altering radiation budget or cloud microphysics. However, few studies investigated the impacts of different mechanisms on temporal and spatial distribution of PM2.5 concentrations over China. Here we used the fully coupled Weather Research and Forecasting model with online chemistry (WRF-Chem) to quantify the enhancement of PM2.5 concentrations by aerosol-meteorology feedback in China in 2014 for different seasons and separate the relative impacts of aerosol radiation interactions (ARIs) and aerosol-cloud interactions (ACIs). We found that ARIs and ACIs could increase population-weighted annual mean PM2.5 concentration over China by 4.0 μg/m3 and 1.6 μg/m3, respectively. We found that ARIs play a dominant role in aerosol-meteorology interactions in winter, while the enhancement of PM2.5 concentration by ARIs and ACIs is comparable in other three seasons. ARIs reduced the wintertime monthly mean wind speed and planetary boundary layer (PBL) height by up to 0.1 m/s and 160 m, respectively, but increased the relative humidity by up to 4%, leading to accumulation of pollutants within PBL. Also, ARIs reduced dry deposition velocity of aerosols by up to 20%, resulting in an increase in PM2.5 lifetime and concentrations. ARIs can increase wintertime monthly mean surface PM2.5 concentration by a maximum of 30 μg/m3 in Sichuan Basin. ACIs can also increase PM2.5 concentration with more significant impacts in wet seasons via reduced wet scavenging and enhanced in-cloud chemistry. Dominant processes in PM2.5 enhancement are also clarified in different seasons. Results show that physical process is more important than chemical processes in winter in ARIs, while chemical process of secondary inorganic aerosols production may be crucial in wet seasons via ACIs.

Complete Mitochondrial Genome Sequences of Chinese Indigenous Sheep with Different Tail Types and an Analysis of Phylogenetic Evolution in Domestic Sheep.

PubMed

Fan, Hongying; Zhao, Fuping; Zhu, Caiye; Li, Fadi; Liu, Jidong; Zhang, Li; Wei, Caihong; Du, Lixin

2016-05-01

China has a long history of sheep (Ovis aries [O. aries]) breeding and an abundance of sheep genetic resources. Knowledge of the complete O. aries mitogenome should facilitate the study of the evolutionary history of the species. Therefore, the complete mitogenome of O. aries was sequenced and annotated. In order to characterize the mitogenomes of 3 Chinese sheep breeds (Altay sheep [AL], Shandong large-tailed sheep [SD], and small-tailed Hulun Buir sheep [sHL]), 19 sets of primers were employed to amplify contiguous, overlapping segments of the complete mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) sequence of each breed. The sizes of the complete mitochondrial genomes of the sHL, AL, and SD breeds were 16,617 bp, 16,613 bp, and 16,613 bp, respectively. The mitochondrial genomes were deposited in the GenBank database with accession numbers KP702285 (AL sheep), KP981378 (SD sheep), and KP981380 (sHL sheep) respectively. The organization of the 3 analyzed sheep mitochondrial genomes was similar, with each consisting of 22 tRNA genes, 2 rRNA genes (12S rRNA and 16S rRNA), 13 protein-coding genes, and 1 control region (D-loop). The NADH dehydrogenase subunit 6 (ND6) and 8 tRNA genes were encoded on the light strand, whereas the rest of the mitochondrial genes were encoded on the heavy strand. The nucleotide skewness of the coding strands of the 3 analyzed mitogenomes was biased toward A and T. We constructed a phylogenetic tree using the complete mitogenomes of each type of sheep to allow us to understand the genetic relationships between Chinese breeds of O. aries and those developed and utilized in other countries. Our findings provide important information regarding the O. aries mitogenome and the evolutionary history of O. aries inside and outside China. In addition, our results provide a foundation for further exploration of the taxonomic status of O. aries.

Complete Mitochondrial Genome Sequences of Chinese Indigenous Sheep with Different Tail Types and an Analysis of Phylogenetic Evolution in Domestic Sheep

PubMed Central

Fan, Hongying; Zhao, Fuping; Zhu, Caiye; Li, Fadi; Liu, Jidong; Zhang, Li; Wei, Caihong; Du, Lixin

2016-01-01

China has a long history of sheep (Ovis aries [O. aries]) breeding and an abundance of sheep genetic resources. Knowledge of the complete O. aries mitogenome should facilitate the study of the evolutionary history of the species. Therefore, the complete mitogenome of O. aries was sequenced and annotated. In order to characterize the mitogenomes of 3 Chinese sheep breeds (Altay sheep [AL], Shandong large-tailed sheep [SD], and small-tailed Hulun Buir sheep [sHL]), 19 sets of primers were employed to amplify contiguous, overlapping segments of the complete mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) sequence of each breed. The sizes of the complete mitochondrial genomes of the sHL, AL, and SD breeds were 16,617 bp, 16,613 bp, and 16,613 bp, respectively. The mitochondrial genomes were deposited in the GenBank database with accession numbers KP702285 (AL sheep), KP981378 (SD sheep), and KP981380 (sHL sheep) respectively. The organization of the 3 analyzed sheep mitochondrial genomes was similar, with each consisting of 22 tRNA genes, 2 rRNA genes (12S rRNA and 16S rRNA), 13 protein-coding genes, and 1 control region (D-loop). The NADH dehydrogenase subunit 6 (ND6) and 8 tRNA genes were encoded on the light strand, whereas the rest of the mitochondrial genes were encoded on the heavy strand. The nucleotide skewness of the coding strands of the 3 analyzed mitogenomes was biased toward A and T. We constructed a phylogenetic tree using the complete mitogenomes of each type of sheep to allow us to understand the genetic relationships between Chinese breeds of O. aries and those developed and utilized in other countries. Our findings provide important information regarding the O. aries mitogenome and the evolutionary history of O. aries inside and outside China. In addition, our results provide a foundation for further exploration of the taxonomic status of O. aries. PMID:26954183

USSR Report, International Affairs, The Working Class and the Contemporary World, Number 2, March-April 1986.

DTIC Science & Technology

1986-07-31

3. Ibid., p 36. 4. "Yearbook of Labor Statistics. 1984," Geneva, 1984, p 827; G. Farrel, "Mercado de trabajo urbano y el movimiento sindiecal...Frente de liberacion nacional y social," Buenos .Aires, 1984, p 51. 10. EL PERIODISTA DE BUENOS AIRES, Buenos Aires, 1985, No 61, p 6. 11. OPINION...documents of the 27th CPSU Congress correctly point out, has set difficult tasks "for the young and rapidly growing working class in Asia , Africa and

Visits to La Plata Observatory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Feinstein, A.

1985-03-01

La Plata Observatory will welcome visitors to ESO-La Silla that are willing to make a stop at Buenos Aires on their trip to Chile or on their way back. There is a nice guesthouse at the Observatory that can be used, for a couple of days or so, by astronomers interested in visiting the Observatory and delivering talks on their research work to the Argentine colleagues. No payments can, however, be made at present. La Plata is at 60 km from Buenos Aires. In the same area lie the Instituto de Astronomia y Fisica dei Espacio (IAFE), in Buenos Aires proper, and the Instituto Argentino de Radioastronomia (IAR). about 40 km from Buenos Aires on the way to La Plata. Those interested should contacl: Sr Decano Prof. Cesar A. Mondinalli, or Dr Alejandro Feinstein, Observatorio Astron6mico, Paseo dei Bosque, 1900 La Plata, Argentina. Telex: 31216 CESLA AR.

Abstracts of ARI Research Publications, FY 1979

DTIC Science & Technology

1980-11-01

Technical Report 483 ABSTRACTS OF ARI RESEARCH PUBLICATIONS FY 1979 -- C:) U. S . ArmyL.) LAa Research Institute for the Behavioral and Social...U. S . ARMY RESEARCH INSTITUTE FOR THE BEHAVIORAL AND SOCIAL SCIENCES A Field Operating Agency under the Jurisdiction of the Deputy Chief of Staff...PIEIT’S ATALOG NUMBER Technical Report 483 l L~,2 y. (-P- NUZE 4. TITLE (nd Subtfti.) S . TYPE OF REPORT & PERIOD COVERED ABSTRACTS OF ARI RESEARCH

Cohort profile: China respiratory illness surveillance among pregnant women (CRISP), 2015–2018

PubMed Central

Bao, Lin; Tan, Yayun; Sheng, Falin; Song, Ying; Zhang, Ran; Danielle Iuliano, A; Thompson, Mark G; Greene, Carolyn M; Zhang, Jun

2018-01-01

Purpose We established the China Respiratory Illness Surveillance among Pregnant women (CRISP) to conduct active surveillance for influenza-associated respiratory illness during pregnancy in China from 2015 to 2018. Among annual cohorts of pregnant women, we assess the incidence of acute respiratory illness (ARI), influenza-like illness (ILI), laboratory-confirmed influenza virus infection and the seroconversion proportion during the winter influenza season. We also plan to examine the effect of influenza virus infection on adverse pregnancy, delivery and infant health outcomes with cumulative data from the three annual cohorts. Participants Cohort nurses enrol pregnant women in different trimesters of pregnancy from prenatal care facilities in Suzhou, Jiangsu Province, eastern China. Pregnant women who plan to deliver in the study facilities are eligible. Pregnant women who are seeking care for anything other than routine prenatal care, such as confirmation of low progesterone and threatened miscarriage, are excluded. At enrolment, study nurses collect baseline information on demographics, education-level attained, underlying medical conditions, seasonal influenza vaccination receipt, risk factors for influenza infection, gravidity and parity and contact information. For each participant, cohort nurses conduct twice weekly follow-up contacts, one phone call and one WeChat message (free instant messaging), from the time of enrolment until delivery or termination of pregnancy. During follow-up, study nurses ask about symptoms, timing and characteristics of ARI, healthcare-seeking behaviour and medications taken for participants reporting respiratory illness since the last contact. In addition, we collect combined nasal and throat swabs for identified ARI to test for influenza viruses. We collect paired sera before and after the influenza season. Active respiratory illness surveillance and seroinfection data during pregnancy of participants are linked to their medical record and the Suzhou Maternal Child Information System for detailed information on clinical treatment for respiratory illness, pregnancy, delivery and infant health outcomes. Findings to date In 2015–2016, of 4915 pregnant women approached, 192 (4%) refused to participate, 91 (2%) were ineligible because they did not plan to deliver in one of the study hospitals or because their visit was for anything other than routine prenatal care and 4632 (94%) were enrolled, 46% during their first trimester of pregnancy (range 5–12 weeks), 48% during the second trimester (range 13–27 weeks) and 6% during the third trimester (range 28–37 weeks). The median age of the enrollees was 27 years (range 16–45) and two (0.04%, 95% CI 0.01% to 0.17%) reported influenza vaccination in the previous 12 months before pregnancy, while zero reported influenza vaccination in the previous 12 months during pregnancy. During the observation time of 648 518 person-days, 1355 ARI episodes were identified. Among 1127 swabs collected (for 83% of all ARIs), 68 (6%) tested positive for influenza virus, for a laboratory-confirmed influenza incidence of 0.31 (95% CI 0.25 to 0.40) per 100 person-months during pregnancy in the study cohort. Future plans Results will be used to describe influenza disease burden in this population to model potential numbers of influenza illnesses averted if influenza vaccination coverage were increased and to support enhanced influenza prevention and control strategies among pregnant women in China. We also plan to enrol and follow three cohorts of pregnant women over three influenza seasons during 2015–2018 which will allow an analysis of the effect of influenza virus infection during pregnancy on adverse pregnancy, delivery and infant outcomes. PMID:29705756

Beat-to-Beat Variability of Ventricular Action Potential Duration Oscillates at Low Frequency During Sympathetic Provocation in Humans

PubMed Central

Porter, Bradley; van Duijvenboden, Stefan; Bishop, Martin J.; Orini, Michele; Claridge, Simon; Gould, Justin; Sieniewicz, Benjamin J.; Sidhu, Baldeep; Razavi, Reza; Rinaldi, Christopher A.; Gill, Jaswinder S.; Taggart, Peter

2018-01-01

Background: The temporal pattern of ventricular repolarization is of critical importance in arrhythmogenesis. Enhanced beat-to-beat variability (BBV) of ventricular action potential duration (APD) is pro-arrhythmic and is increased during sympathetic provocation. Since sympathetic nerve activity characteristically exhibits burst patterning in the low frequency range, we hypothesized that physiologically enhanced sympathetic activity may not only increase BBV of left ventricular APD but also impose a low frequency oscillation which further increases repolarization instability in humans. Methods and Results: Heart failure patients with cardiac resynchronization therapy defibrillator devices (n = 11) had activation recovery intervals (ARI, surrogate for APD) recorded from left ventricular epicardial electrodes alongside simultaneous non-invasive blood pressure and respiratory recordings. Fixed cycle length was achieved by right ventricular pacing. Recordings took place during resting conditions and following an autonomic stimulus (Valsalva). The variability of ARI and the normalized variability of ARI showed significant increases post Valsalva when compared to control (p = 0.019 and p = 0.032, respectively). The oscillatory behavior was quantified by spectral analysis. Significant increases in low frequency (LF) power (p = 0.002) and normalized LF power (p = 0.019) of ARI were seen following Valsalva. The Valsalva did not induce changes in conduction variability nor the LF oscillatory behavior of conduction. However, increases in the LF power of ARI were accompanied by increases in the LF power of systolic blood pressure (SBP) and the rate of systolic pressure increase (dP/dtmax). Positive correlations were found between LF-SBP and LF-dP/dtmax (rs = 0.933, p < 0.001), LF-ARI and LF-SBP (rs = 0.681, p = 0.001) and between LF-ARI and LF-dP/dtmax (rs = 0.623, p = 0.004). There was a strong positive correlation between the variability of ARI and LF power of ARI (rs = 0.679, p < 0.001). Conclusions: In heart failure patients, physiological sympathetic provocation induced low frequency oscillation (~0.1 Hz) of left ventricular APD with a strong positive correlation between the LF power of APD and the BBV of APD. These findings may be of importance in mechanisms underlying stability/instability of repolarization and arrhythmogenesis in humans. PMID:29670531

Risk of Fractures and Falls during and after 5-α Reductase Inhibitor Use: A Nationwide Cohort Study

PubMed Central

Robinson, David; Garmo, Hans; Stattin, Pär; Michaëlsson, Karl

2015-01-01

Background Lower urinary tract symptoms are common among older men and 5-α reductase inhibitors (5-ARI) are a group of drugs recommended in treating these symptoms. The effect on prostate volume is mediated by a reduction in dihydrotestosterone; however, this reduction is counterbalanced by a 25% rise in serum testosterone levels. Therefore, 5-ARI use might have systemic effects and differentially affect bone mineral density, muscular mass and strength, as well as falls, all of which are major determinants of fractures in older men. Methods We conducted a nationwide cohort study of all Swedish men who used 5-ARI by comparing their risk of hip fracture, any type of fracture and of falls with matched control men randomly selected from the population and unexposed to 5-ARI. Results During 1 417 673 person-years of follow-up, 10 418 men had a hip fracture, 19 570 any type of fracture and 46 755 a fall requiring hospital care. Compared with unexposed men, current users of 5-ARI had an adjusted hazard ratio (HR) of 0.96 (95% CI 0.91–1.02) for hip fracture, an HR of 0.94 (95% CI 0.90–0.98) for all fracture and an HR of 0.99 (95% CI 0.96–1.02) for falls. Former users had an increased risk of hip fractures (HR 1.10, 95% CI 1.01–1.19). Conclusion 5-ARI is safe from a bone health perspective with an unaltered risk of fractures and falls during periods of use. After discontinuation of 5-ARI, there is a modest increase in the rate of fractures and falls. PMID:26469978

Acute respiratory infections in children and adolescents with acute lymphoblastic leukemia.

PubMed

Hakim, Hana; Dallas, Ronald; Zhou, Yinmei; Pei, Dequing; Cheng, Cheng; Flynn, Patricia M; Pui, Ching-Hon; Jeha, Sima

2016-03-01

Knowledge regarding the incidence, clinical course, and impact of respiratory viral infections in children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) is limited. A retrospective cohort of patients with newly diagnosed ALL who were treated on the Total Therapy XVI protocol at St Jude Children's Research Hospital between 2007 and 2011 was evaluated. Of 223 children, 95 (43%) developed 133 episodes of viral acute respiratory illness (ARI) (incidence, 1.1 per 1000 patient-days). ARI without viral etiology was identified in 65 patients (29%) and no ARI was detected in 63 patients (28%). There were no significant associations noted between race, sex, age, or ALL risk group and the development of ARI. Children receiving induction chemotherapy were found to be at the highest risk of viral ARI (incidence, 2.3 per 1000 patient-days). Influenza virus was the most common virus (38%) followed by respiratory syncytial virus (33%). Of 133 episodes of viral ARI, 61% of patients were hospitalized, 26% experienced a complicated course, 80% had their chemotherapy delayed, and 0.7% of patients died. Twenty-four patients (18%) developed viral lower respiratory tract infections (LRTI), 5 of whom (21%) had complications. Patients with viral LRTI had a significantly lower nadir absolute lymphocyte count; were sicker at the time of presentation; and were more likely to have respiratory syncytial virus, to be hospitalized, and to have their chemotherapy delayed for longer compared with those with viral upper respiratory tract infections. Despite the low incidence of viral ARI in children with ALL, the associated morbidity, mortality, and delay in chemotherapy remain clinically significant. Viral LRTI was especially associated with high morbidity requiring intensive care-level support. Cancer 2016;122:798-805. © 2015 American Cancer Society. © 2015 American Cancer Society.

Incidence and etiology of hospitalized acute respiratory infections in the Egyptian Delta.

PubMed

Rowlinson, Emily; Dueger, Erica; Mansour, Adel; Azzazy, Nahed; Mansour, Hoda; Peters, Lisa; Rosenstock, Summer; Hamid, Sarah; Said, Mayar M; Geneidy, Mohamed; Abd Allah, Monier; Kandeel, Amr

2017-01-01

Acute Respiratory Infections (ARI) are responsible for nearly two million childhood deaths worldwide. A limited number of studies have been published on the epidemiology of viral respiratory pathogens in Egypt. A total of 6113 hospitalized patients >1 month of age with suspected ARI were enrolled between June 23, 2009 and December 31, 2013. Naso- and oropharyngeal specimens were collected and tested for influenza A and B, respiratory syncytial virus, human metapneumovirus, adenovirus, and parainfluenza viruses 1-3. Blood specimens from children 1-11 months were cultured and bacterial growth was identified by polymerase chain reaction. Results from a healthcare utilization survey on the proportion of persons seeking care for ARI was used to calculate adjusted ARI incidence rates in the surveillance population. The proportion of patients with a viral pathogen detected decreased with age from 67% in patients age 1-11 months to 19% in patients ≥65 years of age. Influenza was the dominant viral pathogen detected in patients ≥1 year of age (13.9%). The highest incidence rates for hospitalized ARI were observed in children 1-11 months (1757.9-5537.5/100 000 population) and RSV was the most commonly detected pathogen in this age group. In this study population, influenza is the largest viral contributor to hospitalized ARIs and children 1-11 months of age experience a high rate of ARI hospitalizations. This study highlights a need for surveillance of additional viral pathogens and alternative detection methods for bacterial pathogens, which may reveal a substantial proportion of as yet unidentified etiologies in adults. © 2016 The Authors. Influenza and Other Respiratory Viruses Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Increased Nasopharyngeal Density and Concurrent Carriage of Streptococcus pneumoniae, Haemophilus influenzae, and Moraxella catarrhalis Are Associated with Pneumonia in Febrile Children.

PubMed

Chochua, Sopio; D'Acremont, Valérie; Hanke, Christiane; Alfa, David; Shak, Joshua; Kilowoko, Mary; Kyungu, Esther; Kaiser, Laurent; Genton, Blaise; Klugman, Keith P; Vidal, Jorge E

2016-01-01

We assessed nasopharyngeal (NP) carriage of five pathogens in febrile children with and without acute respiratory infection (ARI) of the upper (URTI) or lower tract, attending health facilities in Tanzania. NP swabs collected from children (N = 960) aged 2 months to 10 years, and with a temperature ≥38°C, were utilized to quantify bacterial density of S. pneumoniae (Sp), H. influenzae (Hi), M. catarrhalis (Mc), S. aureus (Sa), and N. meningitidis (Nm). We determined associations between presence of individual species, densities, or concurrent carriage of all species combination with respiratory diseases including clinical pneumonia, pneumonia with normal chest radiography (CXR) and endpoint pneumonia. Individual carriage, and NP density, of Sp, Hi, or Mc, but not Sa, or Nm, was significantly associated with febrile ARI and clinical pneumonia when compared to febrile non-ARI episodes. Density was also significantly increased in severe pneumonia when compared to mild URTI (Sp, p<0.002; Hi p<0.001; Mc, p = 0.014). Accordingly, concurrent carriage of Sp+, Hi+, and Mc+, in the absence of Sa- and Nm-, was significantly more prevalent in children with ARI (p = 0.03), or clinical pneumonia (p<0.001) than non-ARI, and in children with clinical pneumonia (p = 0.0007) than URTI. Furthermore, Sp+, Hi+, and Mc+ differentiated children with pneumonia with normal CXR, or endpoint pneumonia, from those with URTI, and non-ARI cases. Concurrent NP carriage of Sp, Hi, and Mc was a predictor of clinical pneumonia and identified children with pneumonia with normal CXR and endpoint pneumonia from those with febrile URTI, or non-ARI episodes.

Increased Nasopharyngeal Density and Concurrent Carriage of Streptococcus pneumoniae, Haemophilus influenzae, and Moraxella catarrhalis Are Associated with Pneumonia in Febrile Children

PubMed Central

2016-01-01

Background We assessed nasopharyngeal (NP) carriage of five pathogens in febrile children with and without acute respiratory infection (ARI) of the upper (URTI) or lower tract, attending health facilities in Tanzania. Methods NP swabs collected from children (N = 960) aged 2 months to 10 years, and with a temperature ≥38°C, were utilized to quantify bacterial density of S. pneumoniae (Sp), H. influenzae (Hi), M. catarrhalis (Mc), S. aureus (Sa), and N. meningitidis (Nm). We determined associations between presence of individual species, densities, or concurrent carriage of all species combination with respiratory diseases including clinical pneumonia, pneumonia with normal chest radiography (CXR) and endpoint pneumonia. Results Individual carriage, and NP density, of Sp, Hi, or Mc, but not Sa, or Nm, was significantly associated with febrile ARI and clinical pneumonia when compared to febrile non-ARI episodes. Density was also significantly increased in severe pneumonia when compared to mild URTI (Sp, p<0.002; Hi p<0.001; Mc, p = 0.014). Accordingly, concurrent carriage of Sp+, Hi+, and Mc+, in the absence of Sa- and Nm-, was significantly more prevalent in children with ARI (p = 0.03), or clinical pneumonia (p<0.001) than non-ARI, and in children with clinical pneumonia (p = 0.0007) than URTI. Furthermore, Sp+, Hi+, and Mc+ differentiated children with pneumonia with normal CXR, or endpoint pneumonia, from those with URTI, and non-ARI cases. Conclusions Concurrent NP carriage of Sp, Hi, and Mc was a predictor of clinical pneumonia and identified children with pneumonia with normal CXR and endpoint pneumonia from those with febrile URTI, or non-ARI episodes. PMID:27907156

Spatial and Temporal Spread of Acute Viral Respiratory Infections in Young Children Living in High-Altitude Rural Communities: A Prospective Household-Based Study

PubMed Central

Cherry, Charlotte Buehler; Griffin, Marie R.; Edwards, Kathryn M.; Williams, John V.; Gil, Ana I.; Verastegui, Hector; Lanata, Claudio F.; Grijalva, Carlos G

2016-01-01

Background Few studies have described patterns of transmission of viral acute respiratory infections (ARI) in children in developing countries. We examined the spatial and temporal spread of viral ARI among young children in rural Peruvian highland communities. Previous work has described intense social interactions in those communities, which could influence the transmission of viral infections. Methods We enrolled and followed children <3 years of age for detection of ARI during the 2009–2011 respiratory seasons in a rural setting with relatively wide geographic dispersion of households and communities. Viruses detected included influenza, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), human metapneumovirus (MPV), and parainfluenza 2 and 3 viruses (PIV2; PIV3). We used geospatial analyses to identify specific viral infection hot spots with high ARI incidence. We also explored the local spread of ARI from index cases using standard deviational ellipses. Results Geospatial analyses revealed hot spots of high ARI incidence around the index cases of influenza outbreaks and RSV outbreak in 2010. Although PIV3 in 2009 and PIV2 in 2010 showed distinct spatial hot spots, clustering was not in proximity to their respective index cases. No significant aggregation around index cases was noted for other viruses. Standard deviational ellipse analyses suggested that influenza B and RSV in 2010, and MPV in 2011 spread temporally in alignment with the major road network. Conclusions Despite the geographic dispersion of communities in this rural setting, we observed a rapid spread of viral ARI among young children. Influenza strains and RSV in 2010 had distinctive outbreaks arising from their index cases. PMID:27404599

Program Management for Tank Crewman Skills Training Program.

DTIC Science & Technology

1979-11-01

RESEARCH PRODUCT 79-16 PROGRAM MANAGEMENT FOR TANK CREWMAN SKILLS TRAINING PROGRAM ARI Field Unit at Fort Knox, Kentucky f hadocumr-e r- has~ bean a4...40121, and monitored by Donald F . Haggard, Chief, ARI Field I - -Unit-Fort Knox. It. KEY WORDS (Continue on reverse side If necessary end identify by...TRAINING PROGRAM Richard E. O’Brien William J. Crum Human Resources Research Organization (HumRRO) Submitted by-. Donald F . Haggard, Chief ARI Field

Patient Attitudes and Beliefs and Provider Practices Regarding Antibiotic Use for Acute Respiratory Tract Infections in Minya, Egypt

PubMed Central

Kandeel, Amr; El-Shoubary, Waleed; Hicks, Lauri A.; Abdel Fattah, Mohamed; Dooling, Kathleen L.; Lohiniva, Anna Leena; Ragab, Omnia; Galal, Ramy; Talaat, Maha

2014-01-01

The inappropriate use of antibiotics in the community is one of the major causes of antimicrobial resistance. This study aimed to explore the physician prescribing pattern of antibiotics for acute respiratory infections (ARIs) and to explore the knowledge, attitudes, and practices of patients regarding antibiotic use for ARIs. The study was conducted in Upper Egypt and used quantitative and qualitative research techniques. Eligible patients exiting outpatient clinics with ARIs were invited to participate in the study. A qualitative study was conducted through 20 focus group discussions. Out of 350 encounters for patients with various ARIs, 292 (83%) had been prescribed at least one antibiotic. Factors significantly associated with antibiotic prescribing for adults included patient preference that an antibiotic be prescribed. For children younger than 18, presentation with fever, cough, loss of appetite, and sore throat, along with the caregiver’s antibiotic preference, were associated with an antibiotic prescription. Several misconceptions regarding antibiotic use among community members were stated, such as the strong belief of the curing and prophylactic power of antibiotics for the common cold. Interventions to promote proper antibiotic use for ARIs need to be piloted, targeting both physicians and the public. Educational programs for physicians and campaigns to raise public awareness regarding proper antibiotic use for ARIs need to be developed. PMID:27025759

Remote Sensing Applications for Antrim Shale Fracture Characterization, Michigan Basin

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kuuskraa, Vello

1997-01-01

Advanced Research International (ARI) sent seven staff members to the 1997 International Coalbed Methane Symposium, held in Tuscaloosa, Alabama from May 12-17. ARI gave a short course on risk reduction strategies, including remote fracture detection, for coalbed methane exploration and development that was attended by about 25 coalbed methane industry professionals; and presented a paper entitled 'Optimizing coalbed methane cavity completion operations with the application of a new discrete element model.' We met with many potential clients and discussed our fracture detection services. China has vast coalbed methane resources, but is still highly dependent on coal-and wood-burning. This workshop, sponsored by the United Nations, was intended to help China develop its less-polluting energy reserves. ARI is successfully finding new applications for its fracture detection services. Coalbed methane exploration became an important market in this quarter, with the inception of a joint industry/government collaboration between ARI, Texaco and DOE to use remote fracture detection to identify areas with good potential for coalbed methane production in the Ferron Coal Trend of central Utah. Geothermal energy exploration is another emerging market for ARI, where fracture detection is applied to identify pathways for groundwater recharge, movement, and the locations of potential geothermal reservoirs. Ari continued work on two industry/government collaborations to demonstrate fracture detection to potential clients. Also completed the technical content layout for multimedia CD-ROM that describes our remote fracture detection services.

The role of user representation and Arthritis and Rheumatism International.

PubMed

Johnstone, Robert

2003-08-01

Arthritis and Rheumatism International (ARi), founded in 1988, is an association of national lay organizations comprising mainly people whose lives are affected by arthritis and rheumatism. ARi's charter defines the organization's aims, including to raise awareness of the needs of people with arthritis/rheumatism, to improve the quality of their lives through education and self-management programs, and to support research into causes, management, prevention, and cure of arthritis. With the aid of a grant from the Pfizer Foundation in 2002, ARi has been able to further develop into a strong organization throughout the world, with a membership of 22 countries. Successful intitiatives include the People with Arthritis and Rheumatism in Europe Manifesto, which has served as a very effective focus for developing action plans, opening dialogues, building partnerships with other organizations, lobbying governments, and gaining media attention throughout Europe. The manifesto (website: www.PAREmanifesto.org) was developed by ARi working in conjunction with The International Organisation of Youth with Rheumatism and the EULAR Social League. These are examples of initiatives that ARi aims to promote on a global scale in the next few years.

HpARI Protein Secreted by a Helminth Parasite Suppresses Interleukin-33.

PubMed

Osbourn, Megan; Soares, Dinesh C; Vacca, Francesco; Cohen, E Suzanne; Scott, Ian C; Gregory, William F; Smyth, Danielle J; Toivakka, Matilda; Kemter, Andrea M; le Bihan, Thierry; Wear, Martin; Hoving, Dennis; Filbey, Kara J; Hewitson, James P; Henderson, Holly; Gonzàlez-Cìscar, Andrea; Errington, Claire; Vermeren, Sonja; Astier, Anne L; Wallace, William A; Schwarze, Jürgen; Ivens, Alasdair C; Maizels, Rick M; McSorley, Henry J

2017-10-17

Infection by helminth parasites is associated with amelioration of allergic reactivity, but mechanistic insights into this association are lacking. Products secreted by the mouse parasite Heligmosomoides polygyrus suppress type 2 (allergic) immune responses through interference in the interleukin-33 (IL-33) pathway. Here, we identified H. polygyrus Alarmin Release Inhibitor (HpARI), an IL-33-suppressive 26-kDa protein, containing three predicted complement control protein (CCP) modules. In vivo, recombinant HpARI abrogated IL-33, group 2 innate lymphoid cell (ILC2) and eosinophilic responses to Alternaria allergen administration, and diminished eosinophilic responses to Nippostrongylus brasiliensis, increasing parasite burden. HpARI bound directly to both mouse and human IL-33 (in the cytokine's activated state) and also to nuclear DNA via its N-terminal CCP module pair (CCP1/2), tethering active IL-33 within necrotic cells, preventing its release, and forestalling initiation of type 2 allergic responses. Thus, HpARI employs a novel molecular strategy to suppress type 2 immunity in both infection and allergy. Copyright © 2017 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The complete mitochondrial genome of domestic sheep, Ovis aries.

PubMed

Hu, Xiao-di; Gao, Li-zhi

2016-01-01

In this study, we report a complete mitochondrial (mt) genome sequence of the Texel ewe, Ovis aries. The total genome is 16,615 bp in length and its overall base composition was estimated to be 33.68% for A, 27.36% for T, 25.86% for C, and 13.10% for G indicating an AT-rich (61.04%) feature in the O. aries mtgenome. It contains a total of 13 protein-coding genes, 22 transfer RNA genes, 2 ribosomal RNA genes and a control region (D-loop region). Comparisons with other publicly available sheep mitogenomes revealed a bunch of nucleotide diversity. This complete mitgenome sequence would enlarge useful genomic information for further studies on sheep evolution and domestication that will enhance germplasm conservation and breeding programs of O. aries.

Soil fungi: their potential use as a forensic tool.

PubMed

Tranchida, María C; Centeno, Néstor D; Cabello, Marta N

2014-05-01

As a grave is an anomalous environment and differs from its surroundings, criminal investigators employ different techniques for locating, recovering, and analyzing clandestine graves. In this study were identified the fungi found in the soil under corpses in decomposition with an aim at relating the copresence of human remains and different fungal species. Were isolated the fungi in three ways: soil washing, serial dilutions, and moist chamber growth. Dichotomomyces cejpii, Talaromyces trachyspermus, Talaromyces flavus, and Talaromyces sp. were the representative species found--with those belonging to the ammonia group, whose fungi are the first in the succession of cadaver decomposition directly in the ground. The mycobiota found at the present study area clearly differs to mycobiota identified in control sample and from previously described species for other areas of Buenos Aires Province, Argentina. Further forensic examples of this type are needed to develop fully the detailed use of mycology as a forensic tool. © 2014 American Academy of Forensic Sciences.

Compliance with referral of sick children: a survey in five districts of Afghanistan.

PubMed

Newbrander, William; Ickx, Paul; Werner, Robert; Mujadidi, Farooq

2012-04-27

Recognition and referral of sick children to a facility where they can obtain appropriate treatment is critical for helping reduce child mortality. A well-functioning referral system and compliance by caretakers with referrals are essential. This paper examines referral patterns for sick children, and factors that influence caretakers' compliance with referral of sick children to higher-level health facilities in Afghanistan. The study was conducted in 5 rural districts of 5 Afghan provinces using interviews with parents or caretakers in 492 randomly selected households with a child from 0 to 2 years old who had been sick within the previous 2 weeks with diarrhea, acute respiratory infection (ARI), or fever. Data collectors from local nongovernmental organizations used a questionnaire to assess compliance with a referral recommendation and identify barriers to compliance. The number of referrals, 99 out of 492 cases, was reasonable. We found a high number of referrals by community health workers (CHWs), especially for ARI. Caretakers were more likely to comply with referral recommendations from community members (relative, friend, CHW, traditional healer) than with recommendations from health workers (at public clinics and hospitals or private clinics and pharmacies). Distance and transportation costs did not create barriers for most families of referred sick children. Although the average cost of transportation in a subsample of 75 cases was relatively high (US$11.28), most families (63%) who went to the referral site walked and hence paid nothing. Most caretakers (75%) complied with referral advice. Use of referral slips by health care providers was higher for urgent referrals, and receiving a referral slip significantly increased caretakers' compliance with referral. Use of referral slips is important to increase compliance with referral recommendations in rural Afghanistan.

Compliance with referral of sick children: a survey in five districts of Afghanistan

PubMed Central

2012-01-01

Background Recognition and referral of sick children to a facility where they can obtain appropriate treatment is critical for helping reduce child mortality. A well-functioning referral system and compliance by caretakers with referrals are essential. This paper examines referral patterns for sick children, and factors that influence caretakers’ compliance with referral of sick children to higher-level health facilities in Afghanistan. Methods The study was conducted in 5 rural districts of 5 Afghan provinces using interviews with parents or caretakers in 492 randomly selected households with a child from 0 to 2 years old who had been sick within the previous 2 weeks with diarrhea, acute respiratory infection (ARI), or fever. Data collectors from local nongovernmental organizations used a questionnaire to assess compliance with a referral recommendation and identify barriers to compliance. Results The number of referrals, 99 out of 492 cases, was reasonable. We found a high number of referrals by community health workers (CHWs), especially for ARI. Caretakers were more likely to comply with referral recommendations from community members (relative, friend, CHW, traditional healer) than with recommendations from health workers (at public clinics and hospitals or private clinics and pharmacies). Distance and transportation costs did not create barriers for most families of referred sick children. Although the average cost of transportation in a subsample of 75 cases was relatively high (US$11.28), most families (63%) who went to the referral site walked and hence paid nothing. Most caretakers (75%) complied with referral advice. Use of referral slips by health care providers was higher for urgent referrals, and receiving a referral slip significantly increased caretakers’ compliance with referral. Conclusions Use of referral slips is important to increase compliance with referral recommendations in rural Afghanistan. PMID:22540424

Analysis of risk factors for acute respiratory tract infections (ARI) of Toddlers in Ingin Jaya community health centre of Aceh Besar district

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Safitri, Faradilla; Hayati, Risna; Marniati

2017-09-01

Acute Respiratory Infections (ARI) is a disease in developing countries 25% that caused the death of children under five. In Aceh province disease is always on the list of 10 biggest disease each year which amounted to 47.258 cases. In Ingin Jaya Community Health Centre cases of acute respiratory tract infections in infants in 2014 were 112 cases, while in 2015 an increase of as many as 123 cases. Objective: To analyze the risk factors of acute respiratory diseases in health centers of Toddlers Ingin Jaya, Aceh Besar district. Analytical research the design of case control, case-control comparison of 1: 1 ie the sample of 60 cases and 60 control, retrieval of data taken from the register space IMCI Health Center. The study was conducted in 2016. Results: Factor toddler age (OR=11.811), gender (OR=3.512), birth weight (OR=8.805), immunization status (OR=4.846), exclusive breastfeeding (OR=2.529). Conclusions and Recommendations: Toddlers aged>2 years has the opportunity 11.811 times of acute respiratory tract infections. Male Toddler has a chance 3.512 times of acute respiratory tract infections. Toddlers are born with a normal weight does not have a chance of 8.805 times of acute respiratory tract infections. Toddlers who do not get complete immunization has the opportunity 4.846 times of acute respiratory tract infections. Toddlers who did not receive exclusive breastfeeding has 2,529 times greater chance of respiratory tract infections. Health workers and the Aceh Provincial Health Office can provide information through health education each month for each work area of health centers, or create a billboard on the causes of the ispa in infants.

On k-ary n-cubes: Theory and applications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mao, Weizhen; Nicol, David M.

1994-01-01

Many parallel processing networks can be viewed as graphs called k-ary n-cubes, whose special cases include rings, hypercubes and toruses. In this paper, combinatorial properties of k-ary n-cubes are explored. In particular, the problem of characterizing the subgraph of a given number of nodes with the maximum edge count is studied. These theoretical results are then used to compute a lower bounding function in branch-and-bound partitioning algorithms and to establish the optimality of some irregular partitions.

Aircraft Rollout Iterative Energy Simulation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kinoshita, L.

1986-01-01

Aircraft Rollout Iterative Energy Simulation (ARIES) program analyzes aircraft-brake performance during rollout. Simulates threedegree-of-freedom rollout after nose-gear touchdown. Amount of brake energy dissipated during aircraft landing determines life expectancy of brake pads. ARIES incorporates brake pressure, actual flight data, crosswinds, and runway characteristics to calculate following: brake energy during rollout for up to four independent brake systems; time profiles of rollout distance, velocity, deceleration, and lateral runway position; and all aerodynamic moments on aircraft. ARIES written in FORTRAN 77 for batch execution.

Incidence and Risk Factors for Respiratory Syncytial Virus and Human Metapneumovirus Infections among Children in the Remote Highlands of Peru

PubMed Central

Wu, Andrew; Budge, Philip J.; Williams, John; Griffin, Marie R.; Edwards, Kathryn M.; Johnson, Monika; Zhu, Yuwei; Hartinger, Stella; Verastegui, Hector; Gil, Ana I.; Lanata, Claudio F.; Grijalva, Carlos G.

2015-01-01

Introduction The disease burden and risk factors for respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and human metapneumovirus (MPV) infections among children living in remote, rural areas remain unclear. Materials and Methods We conducted a prospective, household-based cohort study of children aged <3 years living in remote rural highland communities in San Marcos, Cajamarca, Peru. Acute respiratory illnesses (ARI), including lower respiratory tract infection (LRTI), were monitored through weekly household visits from March 2009 through September 2011. Nasal swabs collected during ARI/LRTI were tested for RSV, MPV, and other respiratory viruses using real-time RT-PCR. Incidence rates and rate ratios were calculated using mixed effects Poisson regression. Results Among 892 enrolled children, incidence rates of RSV and MPV ARI were 30 and 17 episodes per 100 child-years, respectively. The proportions of RSV and MPV ARI that presented as LRTI were 12.5% and 8.9%, respectively. Clinic visits for ARI and hospitalizations were significantly more frequent (all p values <0.05) among children with RSV (clinic 41% and hospital 5.3%) and MPV ARI (38% and 3.5%) when compared with other viral infections (23% and 0.7%) and infections without virus detected (24% and 0.6%). In multivariable analysis, risk factors for RSV detection included younger age (RR 1.02, 95% CI: 1.00-1.03), the presence of a smoker in the house (RR 1.63, 95% CI: 1.12-2.38), residing at higher altitudes (RR 1.93, 95% CI: 1.25-3.00 for 2nd compared to 1st quartile residents; RR 1.98, 95% CI: 1.26-3.13 for 3rd compared to 1st quartile residents). Having an unemployed household head was significantly associated with MPV risk (RR 2.11, 95% CI: 1.12-4.01). Conclusion In rural high altitude communities in Peru, childhood ARI due to RSV or MPV were common and associated with higher morbidity than ARI due to other viruses or with no viral detections. The risk factors identified in this study may be considered for interventional studies to control infections by these viruses among young children from developing countries. PMID:26107630

Incidence and Risk Factors for Respiratory Syncytial Virus and Human Metapneumovirus Infections among Children in the Remote Highlands of Peru.

PubMed

Wu, Andrew; Budge, Philip J; Williams, John; Griffin, Marie R; Edwards, Kathryn M; Johnson, Monika; Zhu, Yuwei; Hartinger, Stella; Verastegui, Hector; Gil, Ana I; Lanata, Claudio F; Grijalva, Carlos G

2015-01-01

The disease burden and risk factors for respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and human metapneumovirus (MPV) infections among children living in remote, rural areas remain unclear. We conducted a prospective, household-based cohort study of children aged <3 years living in remote rural highland communities in San Marcos, Cajamarca, Peru. Acute respiratory illnesses (ARI), including lower respiratory tract infection (LRTI), were monitored through weekly household visits from March 2009 through September 2011. Nasal swabs collected during ARI/LRTI were tested for RSV, MPV, and other respiratory viruses using real-time RT-PCR. Incidence rates and rate ratios were calculated using mixed effects Poisson regression. Among 892 enrolled children, incidence rates of RSV and MPV ARI were 30 and 17 episodes per 100 child-years, respectively. The proportions of RSV and MPV ARI that presented as LRTI were 12.5% and 8.9%, respectively. Clinic visits for ARI and hospitalizations were significantly more frequent (all p values <0.05) among children with RSV (clinic 41% and hospital 5.3%) and MPV ARI (38% and 3.5%) when compared with other viral infections (23% and 0.7%) and infections without virus detected (24% and 0.6%). In multivariable analysis, risk factors for RSV detection included younger age (RR 1.02, 95% CI: 1.00-1.03), the presence of a smoker in the house (RR 1.63, 95% CI: 1.12-2.38), residing at higher altitudes (RR 1.93, 95% CI: 1.25-3.00 for 2nd compared to 1st quartile residents; RR 1.98, 95% CI: 1.26-3.13 for 3rd compared to 1st quartile residents). Having an unemployed household head was significantly associated with MPV risk (RR 2.11, 95% CI: 1.12-4.01). In rural high altitude communities in Peru, childhood ARI due to RSV or MPV were common and associated with higher morbidity than ARI due to other viruses or with no viral detections. The risk factors identified in this study may be considered for interventional studies to control infections by these viruses among young children from developing countries.

10 CFR 431.133 - Materials incorporated by reference.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

...-Conditioning and Refrigeration Institute (ARI) Standard 810-2003, “Performance Rating of Automatic Commercial... obtain a copy of ARI Standard 810-2003 from the Air-Conditioning and Refrigeration Institute, 4100 N...

10 CFR 431.133 - Materials incorporated by reference.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

...-Conditioning and Refrigeration Institute (ARI) Standard 810-2003, “Performance Rating of Automatic Commercial... obtain a copy of ARI Standard 810-2003 from the Air-Conditioning and Refrigeration Institute, 4100 N...

ARI's Views on ANSI S12.60-2002.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Darbeau, Michele

2003-01-01

States the position of the Air-Conditioning and Refrigeration Institute (ARI) toward ANSI Standard 12.60, which addresses classroom acoustics. Explains why it believes the standard creates an overly stringent requirement. (EV)

A "Kanes's Dynamics" Model for the Active Rack Isolation System

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hampton, R. David; Beech, Geoffrey

1999-01-01

Many microgravity space-science experiments require vibratory acceleration levels unachievable without active isolation. The Boeing Corporation's Active Rack Isolation System (ARIS) employs a novel combination of magnetic actuation and mechanical linkages, to address these isolation requirements on the International Space Station (ISS). ARIS provides isolation at the rack (international Standard Payload Rack, or ISPR) level. Effective model-based vibration isolation requires (1) an appropriate isolation device, (2) an adequate dynamic (i.e., mathematical) model of that isolator, and (3) a suitable, corresponding controller. ARIS provides the ISS response to the first requirement. This paper presents one response to the second, in a state-space framework intended to facilitate an optimal-controls approach to the third. The authors use "Kane's Dynamics" to develop an state-space, analytical (algebraic) set of linearized equations of motion for ARIS.

Human milk 90K (Mac-2 BP): possible protective effects against acute respiratory infections.

PubMed

Fornarini, B; Iacobelli, S; Tinari, N; Natoli, C; De Martino, M; Sabatino, G

1999-01-01

Eighty-six children fed human milk were followed prospectively from birth to 12 months of age to assess the effect of milk 90K, a secreted glycoprotein with immune-stimulatory properties, on development of acute respiratory infections (ARI). The level of human milk 90K was inversely related to episodes of ARI (r = - 0.34; P = 0.001). The average 90K level in human milk fed to children who did not develop ARI was significantly higher than in milk fed to children in whom infection occurred on multiple occasions (156.6 +/- 144.8 microg/ml versus 70.9 +/- 92.3 microg/ml; P = 0.001). These data suggest that the protective effects of human milk against ARI may be due in part to immune maturation effects by secreted 90K.

A "Kane's Dynamics" Model for the Active Rack Isolation System

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hampton, R. D.; Beech, G. S.; Rao, N. N. S.; Rupert, J. K.; Kim, Y. K.

2001-01-01

Many microgravity space science experiments require vibratory acceleration levels unachievable without active isolation. The Boeing Corporation's Active Rack Isolation System (ARIS) employs a novel combination of magnetic actuation and mechanical linkages to address these isolation requirements on the International Space Station (ISS). ARIS provides isolation at the rack (International Standard Payload Rack (ISPR)) level. Effective model-based vibration isolation requires: (1) an appropriate isolation device, (2) an adequate dynamic (i.e., mathematical) model of that isolator, and (3) a suitable, corresponding controller. ARIS provides the ISS response to the first requirement. This paper presents one response to the second, in a state space framework intended to facilitate an optimal-controls approach to the third. The authors use "Kane's Dynamics" to develop a state-space, analytical (algebraic) set of linearized equations of motion for ARIS.

A novel laser-induced fluorescence scheme for Ar-I in a plasma.

PubMed

Short, Zachary D; Siddiqui, M Umair; Henriquez, Miguel F; McKee, John S; Scime, Earl E

2016-01-01

Here we describe a novel infrared laser-induced fluorescence scheme for the 1s2 state of Ar-I using an 841.052 nm (vacuum) Sacher tunable diode laser oscillator and compare it to an established 667.913 nm (vacuum) 1s4-pumping Ar-I LIF scheme using a master oscillator power amplifier laser [A. M. Keesee et al. Rev. Sci. Instrum. 75, 4091 (2004)]. The novel scheme exhibits a significantly greater signal-to-noise ratio for a given injected laser power than the established scheme. We argue that this is caused by less intense spontaneous Ar-I radiation near the LIF emission wavelength for the 1s2 scheme as compared to the 1s4 scheme. In addition we present an updated iodine cell spectrum around the 1s4 LIF scheme pump wavelength.

The burden of acute respiratory infections in crisis-affected populations: a systematic review

PubMed Central

2010-01-01

Crises due to armed conflict, forced displacement and natural disasters result in excess morbidity and mortality due to infectious diseases. Historically, acute respiratory infections (ARIs) have received relatively little attention in the humanitarian sector. We performed a systematic review to generate evidence on the burden of ARI in crises, and inform prioritisation of relief interventions. We identified 36 studies published since 1980 reporting data on the burden (incidence, prevalence, proportional morbidity or mortality, case-fatality, attributable mortality rate) of ARI, as defined by the International Classification of Diseases, version 10 and as diagnosed by a clinician, in populations who at the time of the study were affected by natural disasters, armed conflict, forced displacement, and nutritional emergencies. We described studies and stratified data by age group, but did not do pooled analyses due to heterogeneity in case definitions. The published evidence, mainly from refugee camps and surveillance or patient record review studies, suggests very high excess morbidity and mortality (20-35% proportional mortality) and case-fatality (up to 30-35%) due to ARI. However, ARI disease burden comparisons with non-crisis settings are difficult because of non-comparability of data. Better epidemiological studies with clearer case definitions are needed to provide the evidence base for priority setting and programme impact assessments. Humanitarian agencies should include ARI prevention and control among infants, children and adults as priority activities in crises. Improved data collection, case management and vaccine strategies will help to reduce disease burden. PMID:20181220

Comparing Models of Spontaneous Variations, Maneuvers and Indexes to Assess Dynamic Cerebral Autoregulation.

PubMed

Chacón, Max; Noh, Sun-Ho; Landerretche, Jean; Jara, José L

2018-01-01

We analyzed the performance of linear and nonlinear models to assess dynamic cerebral autoregulation (dCA) from spontaneous variations in healthy subjects and compared it with the use of two known maneuvers to abruptly change arterial blood pressure (BP): thigh cuffs and sit-to-stand. Cerebral blood flow velocity and BP were measured simultaneously at rest and while the maneuvers were performed in 20 healthy subjects. To analyze the spontaneous variations, we implemented two types of models using support vector machine (SVM): linear and nonlinear finite impulse response models. The classic autoregulation index (ARI) and the more recently proposed model-free ARI (mfARI) were used as measures of dCA. An ANOVA analysis was applied to compare the different methods and the coefficient of variation was calculated to evaluate their variability. There are differences between indexes, but not between models and maneuvers. The mfARI index with the sit-to-stand maneuver shows the least variability. Support vector machine modeling of spontaneous variation with the mfARI index could be used for the assessment of dCA as an alternative to maneuvers to introduce large BP fluctuations.

Determination of soil degradation in argentine semi-arid environments from remote sensors: case department of patagones, province of buenos aires

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pezzola, Alejandro; Cacella, Alejandra; Enrique, Mario; Winschel, Cristina

2017-04-01

The continental territory of the Argentine Republic owns 75% of its surface under arid and semiarid conditions to the west of the meridian of 64°. Wind erosion is the main physical cause of desertification. In the Pampena area, studies showed that the sandy loam soils were more pronounced than the sandy loam with significant losses of organic matter, decreases in the cation exchange capacity and modification of the mineral composition of the very fine sand fraction (From 73 to 100 μm), with increases in the proportion of heavy minerals (magnetite) relative to light (quartz). In the Patagones department, Buenos Aires province, the soils with a sandy-loamy texture, which are transported by wind and deposited on calcium carbonate (tosca), with little moisture retention and susceptible to wind erosion. In the 1980s and 1990s, increases in rainfall above the historical average led to a shift of the isohytes towards the southwest, leading to agricultural intensification that caused greater pressure on the soil and native vegetation. This advance on the native vegetation within the Patagones produced a reduction between 1975 and 2009 of 432,280 ha, leaving only 31% of the area covered by native forest - shrub xerophyte today. Between 2005-2009, the call "agricultural drought" caused losses in crops, wheat - oats and natural pastures associated with the native forest, causing a significant deterioration of the soil, exposing them to wind erosion. Remote sensors represent a very valuable technology for the mapping and evaluation of soil erosion. The availability of multispectral images allows the mapping and monitoring of changes in the dynamics of the erosion process. The objective of this work was to make an expeditious diagnosis of the surface affected by wind erosion and to evaluate the degree to which the soils destined for agriculture and livestock were affected. For this purpose, Terra's MODIS (Moderate-Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer) sensor information was used with a temporal resolution of 1 to 2 days, 36 spectral bands, spatial resolution of 250m and Improved Vegetation Index (EVI). The period was covered from July 2007 to July 2009 by analyzing 47 images of the EVI product. The phenological curves of the soil cover were obtained. Of 1,360,717 ha it was estimated that there are a total of 393,511 hectares of eroded soils: 47,337 ha from mild to moderate, 219,204 ha moderate to severe and 126,970 ha severe to severe

77 FR 63419 - Unblocking of Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons Pursuant to the Foreign...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-10-16

..., Colombia; c/o COMERCIALIZADORA EL PROVEEDOR LTDA., Villavicencio, Colombia; c/o INVERSIONES BUENOS AIRES LTDA., Pereira, Colombia; c/o INVERSIONES Y DISTRIBUCIONES COLOMBIANAS EL OASIS LTDA., Villavicencio... LTDA.; Linked to: INVERSIONES BUENOS AIRES LTDA.; Linked to: INVERSIONES Y DISTRIBUCIONES COLOMBIANAS...

Earth Observations taken by Expedition 30 crewmember

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-11-22

ISS030-E-005118 (22 Nov. 2011) --- A dust plume over the Bahia Blanca, Argentina is featured in this image photographed by an Expedition 30 crew member on the International Space Station. This panoramic view of eastern Argentina and the Atlantic coastline is centered near Bahia Blanca, which is also highlighted by sun glint. The oblique view looks generally westward (and downwards) from the orbital position of the space station towards a large plume of dust blowing southeastward from the interior and over the open Atlantic Ocean. The only significant cloud cover was located offshore (upper left). Northwestern and central Argentina are subject to frequent dust storms where a combination of extensive late Pleistocene loess?fine sediments deposited by wind and typically associated with former continental glaciers?and strong, dry westerly winds descending from the Andes, known locally as the pampero sucio, combine to produce sudden and extensive clouds of the fine soil. The particular dust event illustrated by the image covers much of the province of Rio Negro and the southern parts of the provinces of La Pampa and Buenos Aires as well as the coastal waters between the Gulf of San Matias (upper left) and Bahia Blanca (center), located approximately 330 kilometers to the northeast. The area illustrated by the image includes the agriculturally productive southern Pampas plain region where it transitions to the drier, less productive low hills and valleys of northern Patagonia. A docked Russian Progress spacecraft is visible at upper right.

Analysis of admixture and genetic structure of two Native American groups of Southern Argentinean Patagonia.

PubMed

Sala, Andrea; Corach, Daniel

2014-03-01

Argentinean Patagonia is inhabited by people that live principally in urban areas and by small isolated groups of individuals that belong to indigenous aboriginal groups; this territory exhibits the lowest population density of the country. Mapuche and Tehuelche (Mapudungun linguistic branch), are the only extant Native American groups that inhabit the Argentinean Patagonian provinces of Río Negro and Chubut. Fifteen autosomal STRs, 17 Y-STRs, mtDNA full length control region sequence and two sets of Y and mtDNA-coding region SNPs were analyzed in a set of 434 unrelated individuals. The sample set included two aboriginal groups, a group of individuals whose family name included Native American linguistic root and urban samples from Chubut, Río Negro and Buenos Aires provinces of Argentina. Specific Y Amerindian haplogroup Q1 was found in 87.5% in Mapuche and 58.82% in Tehuelche, while the Amerindian mtDNA haplogroups were present in all the aboriginal sample contributors investigated. Admixture analysis performed by means of autosomal and Y-STRs showed the highest degree of admixture in individuals carrying Mapuche surnames, followed by urban populations, and finally by isolated Native American populations as less degree of admixture. The study provided novel genetic information about the Mapuche and Tehuelche people and allowed us to establish a genetic correlation among individuals with Mapudungun surnames that demonstrates not only a linguistic but also a genetic relationship to the isolated aboriginal communities, representing a suitable proxy indicator for assessing genealogical background.

Arsenic in the health of ecosystems: spatial distribution in water, sediment and aquatic biota of Pampean streams.

PubMed

Rodríguez Castro, M C; Marcó P, L; Ranieri, M C; Vázquez, C; Giorgi, A

2017-10-07

A survey of arsenic and phosphorus in Pampean streams of Buenos Aires province was performed. Nitrates and ammonia were also determined. Stream water was sampled as well as stream sediment and filamentous algae. Results show that 32 streams exceeded the arsenic recommended guidelines for human consumption of 10 μg L -1 and six exceeded recommended values for aquatic organisms' protection of 50 μg L -1 . The average concentration found was 36.54 μg L -1 and areas with more concentration of As are located in the southern region of the province, in streams that are tributaries of the Atlantic Ocean. Other regions with high As concentration are the Matanza River tributaries and the Arrecifes River tributaries. No differences of As concentration was found between stream sediments. Also, no seasonal pattern of As concentration was observed in one stream sampled during a year, but a positive correlation between As and the conductivity (p = 0.0002) and pH (p = 0.01) of the streams was found. Also, As bioaccumulation was detected for all the algae sampled, but no correlation between As accumulated and As in the stream water was found. Ammonia levels exceeded recommended guidelines for human consumption in the Argentinean law in 30 streams. The characterization performed in this study provides relevant information on the distribution of arsenic and its origin and mobility.

Dietary supplements and mortality in older women: the Iowa Women's Health Study

PubMed Central

Mursu, Jaakko; Robien, Kim; Harnack, Lisa J.; Park, Kyong; Jacobs, David R.

2014-01-01

Background Although dietary supplements are commonly taken to avoid chronic disease, long-term health consequences of many compounds are unknown. Methods We assessed the use of vitamin and mineral supplements in relation to total mortality in 38 772 older women in the Iowa Women's Health Study, mean age 61.6 years at baseline in 1986. Supplement use was self-reported in 1986, 1997 and 2004. Through December 31, 2008, 15 594 deaths (40.2%) were identified through the State Health Registry of Iowa and the National Death Index. Results In multivariable adjusted proportional hazards regression models, the use of multivitamins (Hazard Ratio (HR), 1.06 [95% CI, 1.02-1.10], Absolute Risk Increase (ARI), 2.4%), vitamin B6 (HR, 1.10 [95% CI, 1.01-1.21], ARI, 4.1%), folic acid (HR, 1.15 [95% CI, 1.00-1.32], ARI, 5.9%), iron (HR, 1.10 [95% CI, 1.03-1.17], ARI, 3.9%), magnesium (HR, 1.08 [95% CI, 1.01-1.15], ARI, 3.6%), zinc (HR, 1.08 [95% CI, 1.01-1.15], ARI, 3.0%) and copper (HR, 1.45 [95% CI, 1.20-1.75], ARI, 18.0%) were associated with increased risk of total mortality when compared with corresponding nonusers, while calcium was inversely related (HR, 0.91 [95% CI, 0.88-0.94], Absolute Risk Reduction (ARR), 3.8%). Findings for iron and calcium were replicated in separate shorter-term analyses (10-year, 6-year and 4-year follow-up) each with about 15% dead, starting in 1986, 1997, and 2004. Conclusion In older women several commonly used dietary vitamin and mineral supplements may be associated with increased total mortality risk, most strongly supplemental iron, while calcium, in contrast to many studies, was associated with decreased risk. PMID:21987192

ABSI (A Body Shape Index) and ARI (Anthropometric Risk Indicator) in Bariatric Surgery. First Application on a Bariatric Cohort and Possible Clinical Use.

PubMed

Consalvo, Vincenzo; Krakauer, Jesse C; Krakauer, Nir Y; Canero, Antonio; Romano, Mafalda; Salsano, Vincenzo

2018-07-01

BMI (body mass index) is used to identify candidates for bariatric surgery, with a criterion of BMI ≥ 40. For lesser degrees of obesity, BMI 35-39.9, comorbidities are also considered. A Body Shape Index (ABSI) was derived to correct WC (waist circumference) for BMI and height. ABSI has been shown to be a linear predictor of long-term mortality across the range of BMI. Anthropometric risk indicator (ARI) combines the complementary contributions of BMI and ABSI and further improves mortality hazard prediction. We report for the first time ABSI and ARI for a bariatric surgical cohort at baseline and with 3-year follow-up. ABSI and BMI were calculated for 101 subjects from our bariatric surgery center database at baseline and after 3 years of follow-up. Raw values for BMI and ABSI were converted to Z scores and ARI values based on sex- and age-specific normals and risk associations from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) III sample of the US general population. Baseline scores for the anthropometric variables BMI and ABSI and the corresponding ARI were all higher than for the NHANES population sample. At 3-year post surgery, all three measures decreased significantly. While baseline BMI did not predict the change in mortality risk by ARI, baseline ABSI did (r = - 0.73), as did baseline ARI (r = - 0.94). Sleeve gastrectomy lowers ABSI and the associated mortality risk estimated from population studies after 3 years of follow-up. Considering our results, bariatric surgical candidates with BMI in the range of 35 to 39.9 with an increased ABSI-related mortality risk may have considerable survival benefit from bariatric surgery, even in the absence of qualifying comorbidities. 2814.

Biophysical and Biochemical Mechanisms in Synaptic Transmitter Release.

DTIC Science & Technology

1992-01-31

vesicle is normally released per active zone Sci USA 83. 3032 (1986) pared (15, 19, 20). In fact, in squid, the quantum 8 0 Shimomura 8 Musicki. V Kisni...8217, AND R. LLINAS• *Instituto de Biologia Celular Facultad de Medicina. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Paraguay 2155. Buenos Aires 1121. Argentina: and

75 FR 79440 - Additional Designations, Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-12-20

...) [SDNTK] 2. DORIA CASTILLO, Danit Dario, c/o INVERSIONES MINERAS H.D. EMPRESA UNIPERSONAL, Caucasia...., Medellin, Colombia; c/o INVERSIONES BUENOS AIRES LTDA., Pereira, Colombia; DOB 28 Apr 1964; POB Bello...., Villavicencio, Colombia; c/o INVERSIONES BUENOS AIRES LTDA., Pereira, Colombia; c/o INVERSIONES Y DISTRIBUCIONES...

10 CFR 431.63 - Materials incorporated by reference.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... go to http://www.ansi.org: (1) ANSI /AHAM HRF-1-2004, Energy, Performance and Capacity of Household..., VA 22203, or http://www.ari.org/std/standards.html: (1) ARI Standard 1200-2006, Performance Rating of...

Gene Expression Signatures Diagnose Influenza and Other Symptomatic Respiratory Viral Infection in Humans

PubMed Central

Zaas, Aimee K.; Chen, Minhua; Varkey, Jay; Veldman, Timothy; Hero, Alfred O.; Lucas, Joseph; Huang, Yongsheng; Turner, Ronald; Gilbert, Anthony; Lambkin-Williams, Robert; Øien, N. Christine; Nicholson, Bradly; Kingsmore, Stephen; Carin, Lawrence; Woods, Christopher W.; Ginsburg, Geoffrey S.

2010-01-01

Summary Acute respiratory infections (ARI) are a common reason for seeking medical attention and the threat of pandemic influenza will likely add to these numbers. Using human viral challenge studies with live rhinovirus, respiratory syncytial virus, and influenza A, we developed peripheral blood gene expression signatures that distinguish individuals with symptomatic ARI from uninfected individuals with > 95% accuracy. We validated this “acute respiratory viral” signature - encompassing genes with a known role in host defense against viral infections - across each viral challenge. We also validated the signature in an independently acquired dataset for influenza A and classified infected individuals from healthy controls with 100% accuracy. In the same dataset, we could also distinguish viral from bacterial ARIs (93% accuracy). These results demonstrate that ARIs induce changes in human peripheral blood gene expression that can be used to diagnose a viral etiology of respiratory infection and triage symptomatic individuals. PMID:19664979

A novel laser-induced fluorescence scheme for Ar-I in a plasma

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Short, Zachary D., E-mail: zdshort@mix.wvu.edu; Siddiqui, M. Umair; Henriquez, Miguel F.

Here we describe a novel infrared laser-induced fluorescence scheme for the 1s{sub 2} state of Ar-I using an 841.052 nm (vacuum) Sacher tunable diode laser oscillator and compare it to an established 667.913 nm (vacuum) 1s{sub 4}-pumping Ar-I LIF scheme using a master oscillator power amplifier laser [A. M. Keesee et al. Rev. Sci. Instrum. 75, 4091 (2004)]. The novel scheme exhibits a significantly greater signal-to-noise ratio for a given injected laser power than the established scheme. We argue that this is caused by less intense spontaneous Ar-I radiation near the LIF emission wavelength for the 1s{sub 2} scheme asmore » compared to the 1s{sub 4} scheme. In addition we present an updated iodine cell spectrum around the 1s{sub 4} LIF scheme pump wavelength.« less

Effectiveness of seasonal trivalent influenza vaccine for preventing influenza virus illness among pregnant women: a population-based case-control study during the 2010-2011 and 2011-2012 influenza seasons.

PubMed

Thompson, Mark G; Li, De-Kun; Shifflett, Pat; Sokolow, Leslie Z; Ferber, Jeannette R; Kurosky, Samantha; Bozeman, Sam; Reynolds, Sue B; Odouli, Roxana; Henninger, Michelle L; Kauffman, Tia L; Avalos, Lyndsay A; Ball, Sarah; Williams, Jennifer L; Irving, Stephanie A; Shay, David K; Naleway, Allison L

2014-02-01

Although vaccination with trivalent inactivated influenza vaccine (TIV) is recommended for all pregnant women, no vaccine effectiveness (VE) studies of TIV in pregnant women have assessed laboratory-confirmed influenza outcomes. We conducted a case-control study over 2 influenza seasons (2010-2011 and 2011-2012) among Kaiser Permanente health plan members in 2 metropolitan areas in California and Oregon. We compared the proportion vaccinated among 100 influenza cases (confirmed by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction) with the proportions vaccinated among 192 controls with acute respiratory illness (ARI) who tested negative for influenza and 200 controls without ARI (matched by season, site, and trimester). Among influenza cases, 42% were vaccinated during the study season compared to 58% and 63% vaccinated among influenza-negative controls and matched ARI-negative controls, respectively. The adjusted VE of the current season vaccine against influenza A and B was 44% (95% confidence interval [CI], 5%-67%) using the influenza-negative controls and 53% (95% CI, 24%-72%) using the ARI-negative controls. Receipt of the prior season's vaccine, however, had an effect similar to receipt of the current season's vaccine. As such, vaccination in either or both seasons had statistically similar adjusted VE using influenza-negative controls (VE point estimates range = 51%-76%) and ARI-negative controls (48%-76%). Influenza vaccination reduced the risk of ARI associated with laboratory-confirmed influenza among pregnant women by about one-half, similar to VE observed among all adults during these seasons.

A comparative study of qualitative and quantitative methods for the assessment of adhesive remnant after bracket debonding.

PubMed

Cehreli, S Burcak; Polat-Ozsoy, Omur; Sar, Cagla; Cubukcu, H Evren; Cehreli, Zafer C

2012-04-01

The amount of the residual adhesive after bracket debonding is frequently assessed in a qualitative manner, utilizing the adhesive remnant index (ARI). This study aimed to investigate whether quantitative assessment of the adhesive remnant yields more precise results compared to qualitative methods utilizing the 4- and 5-point ARI scales. Twenty debonded brackets were selected. Evaluation and scoring of the adhesive remnant on bracket bases were made consecutively using: 1. qualitative assessment (visual scoring) and 2. quantitative measurement (image analysis) on digital photographs. Image analysis was made on scanning electron micrographs (SEM) and high-precision elemental maps of the adhesive remnant as determined by energy dispersed X-ray spectrometry. Evaluations were made in accordance with the original 4-point and the modified 5-point ARI scales. Intra-class correlation coefficients (ICCs) were calculated, and the data were evaluated using Friedman test followed by Wilcoxon signed ranks test with Bonferroni correction. ICC statistics indicated high levels of agreement for qualitative visual scoring among examiners. The 4-point ARI scale was compliant with the SEM assessments but indicated significantly less adhesive remnant compared to the results of quantitative elemental mapping. When the 5-point scale was used, both quantitative techniques yielded similar results with those obtained qualitatively. These results indicate that qualitative visual scoring using the ARI is capable of generating similar results with those assessed by quantitative image analysis techniques. In particular, visual scoring with the 5-point ARI scale can yield similar results with both the SEM analysis and elemental mapping.

The relationship between cardiac output and dynamic cerebral autoregulation in humans.

PubMed

Deegan, B M; Devine, E R; Geraghty, M C; Jones, E; Ólaighin, G; Serrador, J M

2010-11-01

Cerebral autoregulation adjusts cerebrovascular resistance in the face of changing perfusion pressures to maintain relatively constant flow. Results from several studies suggest that cardiac output may also play a role. We tested the hypothesis that cerebral blood flow would autoregulate independent of changes in cardiac output. Transient systemic hypotension was induced by thigh-cuff deflation in 19 healthy volunteers (7 women) in both supine and seated positions. Mean arterial pressure (Finapres), cerebral blood flow (transcranial Doppler) in the anterior (ACA) and middle cerebral artery (MCA), beat-by-beat cardiac output (echocardiography), and end-tidal Pco(2) were measured. Autoregulation was assessed using the autoregulatory index (ARI) defined by Tiecks et al. (Tiecks FP, Lam AM, Aaslid R, Newell DW. Stroke 26: 1014-1019, 1995). Cerebral autoregulation was better in the supine position in both the ACA [supine ARI: 5.0 ± 0.21 (mean ± SE), seated ARI: 3.9 ± 0.4, P = 0.01] and MCA (supine ARI: 5.0 ± 0.2, seated ARI: 3.8 ± 0.3, P = 0.004). In contrast, cardiac output responses were not different between positions and did not correlate with cerebral blood flow ARIs. In addition, women had better autoregulation in the ACA (P = 0.046), but not the MCA, despite having the same cardiac output response. These data demonstrate cardiac output does not appear to affect the dynamic cerebral autoregulatory response to sudden hypotension in healthy controls, regardless of posture. These results also highlight the importance of considering sex when studying cerebral autoregulation.

Low-complexity approximations to maximum likelihood MPSK modulation classification

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hamkins, Jon

2004-01-01

We present a new approximation to the maximum likelihood classifier to discriminate between M-ary and M'-ary phase-shift-keying transmitted on an additive white Gaussian noise (AWGN) channel and received noncoherentl, partially coherently, or coherently.

Use of behavioral economics and social psychology to improve treatment of acute respiratory infections (BEARI): rationale and design of a cluster randomized controlled trial [1RC4AG039115-01]--study protocol and baseline practice and provider characteristics.

PubMed

Persell, Stephen D; Friedberg, Mark W; Meeker, Daniella; Linder, Jeffrey A; Fox, Craig R; Goldstein, Noah J; Shah, Parth D; Knight, Tara K; Doctor, Jason N

2013-06-27

Inappropriate antibiotic prescribing for nonbacterial infections leads to increases in the costs of care, antibiotic resistance among bacteria, and adverse drug events. Acute respiratory infections (ARIs) are the most common reason for inappropriate antibiotic use. Most prior efforts to decrease inappropriate antibiotic prescribing for ARIs (e.g., educational or informational interventions) have relied on the implicit assumption that clinicians inappropriately prescribe antibiotics because they are unaware of guideline recommendations for ARIs. If lack of guideline awareness is not the reason for inappropriate prescribing, educational interventions may have limited impact on prescribing rates. Instead, interventions that apply social psychological and behavioral economic principles may be more effective in deterring inappropriate antibiotic prescribing for ARIs by well-informed clinicians. The Application of Behavioral Economics to Improve the Treatment of Acute Respiratory Infections (BEARI) Trial is a multisite, cluster-randomized controlled trial with practice as the unit of randomization. The primary aim is to test the ability of three interventions based on behavioral economic principles to reduce the rate of inappropriate antibiotic prescribing for ARIs. We randomized practices in a 2 × 2 × 2 factorial design to receive up to three interventions for non-antibiotic-appropriate diagnoses: 1) Accountable Justifications: When prescribing an antibiotic for an ARI, clinicians are prompted to record an explicit justification that appears in the patient electronic health record; 2) Suggested Alternatives: Through computerized clinical decision support, clinicians prescribing an antibiotic for an ARI receive a list of non-antibiotic treatment choices (including prescription options) prior to completing the antibiotic prescription; and 3) Peer Comparison: Each provider's rate of inappropriate antibiotic prescribing relative to top-performing peers is reported back to the provider periodically by email. We enrolled 269 clinicians (practicing attending physicians or advanced practice nurses) in 49 participating clinic sites and collected baseline data. The primary outcome is the antibiotic prescribing rate for office visits with non-antibiotic-appropriate ARI diagnoses. Secondary outcomes will examine antibiotic prescribing more broadly. The 18-month intervention period will be followed by a one year follow-up period to measure persistence of effects after interventions cease. The ongoing BEARI Trial will evaluate the effectiveness of behavioral economic strategies in reducing inappropriate prescribing of antibiotics. ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT01454947.

Second Line of Defense, Port of Buenos Aires and Exolgan Container Terminal Operational Testing and Evaluation Plan, Buenos Aires, Argentina

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Roberts, Bryan W.

2012-08-23

The Office of the Second Line of Defense (SLD) Megaports project team for Argentina will conduct operational testing and evaluation (OT&E) at Exolgan Container Terminal at the Port of Dock Sud from July 16-20, 2012; and at the Port of Buenos Aires from September 3-7, 2012. SLD is installing radiation detection equipment to screen export, import, and transshipment containers at these locations. The purpose of OT&E is to validate and baseline an operable system that meets the SLD mission and to ensure the system continues to perform as expected in an operational environment with Argentina Customs effectively adjudicating alarms.

The L2 Acquisition of Buenos Aires Spanish Intonation during a Study Abroad Semester

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Thornberry, Philip A.

2014-01-01

The present longitudinal study describes and categorizes the primary changes in L2 Spanish intonation over time by 11 learners studying abroad in Buenos Aires, Argentina for one academic semester. Via the autosegmental metrical model of analysis, this dissertation classifies intonational contours for absolute interrogatives and declarative…

Immigration and Educational Inclusion: Preliminary Evidence from Three Schools in Buenos Aires, Argentina

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Astiz, M. Fernanda

2015-01-01

This exploratory comparative case study examines three schools in the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires that have a considerable number of recent immigrant students. The article illustrates how these schools advance ideas of inclusiveness and pluralism through the curriculum and educational opportunities, as mandated by the national education law of…

Child feeding practices and household food insecurity among low-income mothers in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

PubMed

Lindsay, Ana Cristina; Ferarro, Mabel; Franchello, Alejandra; Barrera, Raul de La; Machado, Marcia Maria Tavares; Pfeiffer, Martha Erin; Peterson, Karen Eileen

2012-03-01

This qualitative study of low-income mothers in Buenos Aires, Argentina, examines the influence of socio-economic conditions, organizational structures, family relationships, and food insecurity on child feeding practices and weight status. Thirty-eight mothers of preschool children living in urban Buenos Aires participated in four focus group discussions. The results indicated that many mothers were aware that obesity may be detrimental to the child's health, but most of them are unclear about the specific consequences. Maternal employment, family pressures, food insecurity and financial worries seem to influence child feeding practices. These findings have important implications for developing strategies for nutritional assistance that could benefit the health of children and provide opportunities for educational programs that are directed to nutritional awareness in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The right to eat regularly and properly is an obligation of the State and must be implemented taking into account the notion of food sovereignty and respecting the importance of preserving the culture and eating habits of a country and its diverse population groups.

Androgen Receptor Splice Variants and Resistance to Taxane Chemotherapy

DTIC Science & Technology

2017-10-01

presence or absence of androgen. Citations (published journal articles): Xichun Liu, Elisa Ledet, Dongying Li, Ary Dotiwala, Allie Steinberger...paper was published: Xichun Liu, Elisa Ledet, Dongying Li, Ary Dotiwala, Allie Steinberger, Jianzhuo Li, Yanfeng Qi, Yan Dong, Jonathan Silberstein

Late Paleozoic transpression in Buenos Aires and northeast Patagonia ranges, Argentina

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rossello, E. A.; Massabie, A. C.; López-Gamundí, O. R.; Cobbold, P. R.; Gapais, D.

1997-12-01

Paleozoic sediments are present in three regions in eastern central Argentina: (1) the Sierras Australes of Buenos Aires, (2) Sierras Septentrionales of Buenos Aires and (3) Northeast Patagonia. All of these deposits share a common deformational imprint imparted by late Paleozoic Gondwanan deformation. Exposures of these rocks are scattered, variably deformed, and isolated by younger sediments deposited in basins related to the Mesozoic through Tertiary opening of the South Atlantic such as the offshore Colorado Basin. The Sierras Australes of Buenos Aires outcrops are the best preserved. They are mostly located along the Sierras Australes foldbelt, with minor outliers distributed in the adjacent Claromec-basin. The Tunas Formation (early-early late? Permian) is the uppermost unit of the Pillahuincó Group (late Carboniferous-Permian) and is crucial to the understanding of the tectono-sedimentary evolution of the region during the late Paleozoic. The underlying units of the Pillahuincó Group (Sauce Grande, Piedra Azul and Bonete Formations) exhibit a depositional and compositional history characterized by glaciomarine sedimentation and postglacial transgression. They are also characterized by rather uniform quartz-rich compositions indicative of a cratonic provenance from the La Plata craton to the NE. In contrast, the sandstone-rich Tunas Formation has low quartz contents, and abundant volcanic and metasedimentary fragments; paleocurrents are consistently from the SW. Glassrich tuffs are interbedded with sandstone in the upper half of the Tunas Formation. The age of the deformation in the Sierras Australes is Permian and early-middle Triassic. This is based on metamorphic events indicated by formation of illite at 282 ± 3 Ma, 273 ± 8 Ma, 265 ± 3 Ma, and 260 ± 3 Ma ( {K}/{Ar} illite) in the Silurian Curamalal Group. Evidence of syntectonic magmatism is provided by a radiometric date of 245 ± 12 Ma ( {K}/{Ar} hornblende) for the López Lecube Granite, immediately west of the Sierras Australes. In the Sierras Septentrionales of Buenos Aires, Precambrian through early Paleozoic deposits of La Tinta, Sierras Bayas, Las Aguilas and Balcarce Formations rest on Precambrian crystalline basement of the La Plata craton. These exposed rocks are affected by subordinate, right lateral wrench faulting; some thrusting indicates tectonic transport toward the NE. In northeast Patagonia (Sierra Grande region) synkinematic deformation of early Permian (261 ± 5 Ma, {Rb}/{Sr} whole rock) age has been identified in Silurian metasediments of the Sierra Grande Formation. Bands of deformation in Sierra Grande quartzites indicate right lateral wrenching in a N-S direction. Contraction in a NE-SW direction is evidenced by folding. Three stages of tectonic evolution can be discerned for the above regions: (1) Early Paleozoic platform sedimentation, punctuated by episodes of accelerated subsidence during the Silurian and early Devonian, as shown by transgressive episodes, (2) late Paleozoic sedimentation and deformation, and (3) Meso-Cenozoic extensional inversion due to the South Atlantic opening. The late Paleozoic sedimentation and deformation (stage 2) includes late Carboniferous-earliest Permian glacial deposits of the Sierras Australes and Colorado offshore basin, deposited during an initial phase of extension, and cratonward foreland subsidence triggered sedimentation of the synorogenic deposits of the Permian Tunas Formation. Tuffs are intercalated in the upper half of this unit. These tuffs are associated with the silicic volcanism along the Andes and Patagonia (Choiyoi magmatic province) that peaked between the late early Permian and late Permian. Likewise, the first widespread appearance of tuffs in the Karoo basin is in the Whitehill Formation, of late early Permian (260 Ma) age. The deformation described in this paper can be considered as part of a large scale intracontinental deformation in SW Gondwanaland inboard of an Andean-type compressive margin. This deformation is characterized by transpression (right lateral wrenching) combined with overthrusting to the NE and N-S horizontal contraction.

The design and research of anti-color-noise chaos M-ary communication system

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Fu, Yongqing, E-mail: fuyongqing@hrbeu.edu.cn; Li, Xingyuan; Li, Yanan

Previously a novel chaos M-ary digital communication method based on spatiotemporal chaos Hamilton oscillator has been proposed. Without chaos synchronization circumstance, it has performance improvement in bandwidth efficiency, transmission efficiency and anti-white-noise performance compared with traditional communication method. In this paper, the channel noise influence on chaotic modulation signals and the construction problem of anti-color-noise chaotic M-ary communication system are studied. The formula of zone partition demodulator’s boundary in additive white Gaussian noise is derived, besides, the problem about how to determine the boundary of zone partition demodulator in additive color noise is deeply studied; Then an approach on constructingmore » anti-color-noise chaos M-ary communication system is proposed, in which a pre-distortion filter is added after the chaos baseband modulator in the transmitter and whitening filter is added before zone partition demodulator in the receiver. Finally, the chaos M-ary communication system based on Hamilton oscillator is constructed and simulated in different channel noise. The result shows that the proposed method in this paper can improve the anti-color-noise performance of the whole communication system compared with the former system, and it has better anti-fading and resisting disturbance performance than Quadrature Phase Shift Keying system.« less

Past Trends and Current Status of Self-Reported Incidence and Impact of Disease and Nonbattle Injury in Military Operations in Southwest Asia and the Middle East

PubMed Central

Tribble, David R.; Putnam, Shannon D.; Mostafa, Manal; Brown, Theodore R.; Letizia, Andrew; Armstrong, Adam W.; Sanders, John W.

2008-01-01

Objectives. To evaluate the evolutional changes in disease and nonbattle injury in a long-term deployment setting, we investigated trends of selected disease and nonbattle injury (NBI) incidence among US military personnel deployed in ongoing military operations in Southwest Asia and the Middle East. Methods. Participants completed an anonymous questionnaire concerning diarrhea, acute respiratory illness (ARI), and NBIs. We compared incidence, morbidity, and risk associations of disease and NBI incidence with historical data. We analyzed a clinic screening form to describe trends in diarrhea incidence over a 3-year period. Results. Between April 2006 and March 2007, 3374 troops completed deployment questionnaires. Incidence of diarrhea was higher than that of ARI and NBI (12.1, 7.1, and 2.5 episodes per 100 person-months, respectively), but ARI and NBI resulted in more-frequent health system utilization (both P < .001) and decreased work performance (P < .001 and P = .05, respectively) than did diarrhea. Compared with historical disease and NBI incidence rates, diarrhea and NBI incidence declined over a 4-year period, whereas ARI remained relatively constant. Conclusions. Diarrhea, ARI, and NBI are important health concerns among deployed military personnel. Public health and preventive measures are needed to mitigate this burden. PMID:18923114

Cochrane Acute Respiratory Infections Group's Stakeholder Engagement Project identified systematic review priority areas.

PubMed

Scott, Anna Mae; Clark, Justin; Dooley, Liz; Jones, Ann; Jones, Mark; Del Mar, Chris

2018-05-22

Cochrane Acute Respiratory Infections (ARI) Group conducts systematic reviews of the evidence for treatment and prevention of ARIs. We report the results of a prioritisation project, aiming to identify highest priority systematic review topics. The project consisted of 2 Phases. Phase 1 analysed the gap between existing RCTs and Cochrane Systematic Reviews (reported previously). Phase 2 (reported here) consisted of a two-round survey. In round 1, respondents prioritised 68 topics and suggested up to 10 additional topics; in Round 2, respondents prioritised top 25 topics from Round 1. Respondents included clinicians, researchers, systematic reviewers, allied health, patients, and carers, from 33 different countries. In Round 1, 154 respondents identified 20 priority topics, most commonly selecting topics in non-specific ARIs, influenza, and common cold. 50 respondents also collectively suggested 134 additional topics. In Round 2, 78 respondents prioritised top 25 topics, most commonly in the areas of non-specific ARIs, pneumonia and influenza. We generated a list of priority systematic review topics, to guide the Cochrane ARI Group's systematic review work for the next 24 months. Stakeholder involvement enhanced the transparency of the process, and will increase the usability and relevance of the Group's work to stakeholders. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

ARIES Oxide Production Program Annual Report - FY14

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Kelley, Evelyn A.; Dinehart, Steven Mark

A summary of the major accomplishments (September), milestones, financial summary, project performance and issues facing the ARIES Oxide Production Program at the close of FY14 is presented in this Executive Summary. Annual accomplishments are summarized in the body of the report.

Identification and Characterization of the miRNA Transcriptome of Ovis aries

PubMed Central

Wei, Caihong; Sheng, Xihui; Ren, Hangxing; Xu, Lingyang; Lu, Jian; Liu, Jiasen; Zhang, Li; Du, Lixin

2013-01-01

The discovery and identification of Ovis aries (sheep) miRNAs will further promote the study of miRNA functions and gene regulatory mechanisms. To explore the microRNAome (miRNAome) of sheep in depth, samples were collected that included eight developmental stages: the longissimus dorsi muscles of Texel fetuses at 70, 85, 100, 120, and 135 days, and the longissimus dorsi muscles of Ujumqin fetuses at 70, 85, 100, 120, and 135 d, and lambs at 0 (birth), 35, and 70 d. These samples covered all of the representative periods of Ovis aries growth and development throughout gestation (about 150 d) and 70 d after birth. Texel and Ujumqin libraries were separately subjected to Solexa deep sequencing; 35,700,772 raw reads were obtained overall. We used ACGT101-miR v4.2 to analyze the sequence data. Following meticulous comparisons with mammalian mature miRNAs, precursor hairpins (pre-miRNAs), and the latest sheep genome, we substantially extended the Ovis aries miRNAome. The list of pre-miRNAs was extended to 2,319, expressing 2,914 mature miRNAs. Among those, 1,879 were genome mapped to unique miRNAs, representing 2,436 genome locations, and 1,754 pre-miRNAs were mapped to chromosomes. Furthermore, the Ovis aries miRNAome was processed using an elaborate bioinformatic analysis that examined multiple end sequence variation in miRNAs, precursors, chromosomal localizations, species-specific expressions, and conservative properties. Taken together, this study provides the most comprehensive and accurate exploration of the sheep miRNAome, and draws conclusions about numerous characteristics of Ovis aries miRNAs, including miRNAs and isomiRs. PMID:23516575

EFFECTS OF A DIETARY SUPPLEMENT ON THE INCIDENCE OF ACUTE RESPIRATORY INFECTIONS IN SUSCEPTIBLE ADULTS: A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL.

PubMed

Bernal-Orozco, María Fernanda; Posada-Falomir, Margarita; Ortega-Orozco, Rafael; Silva-Villanueva, Elvia Elaonor; Macedo-Ojeda, Gabriela; Márquez-Sandoval, Yolanda Fabiola; Vizmanos-Lamotte, Barbara

2015-08-01

although supplementation of specific micronutrients may improve immunologic factors, few studies about the combination of micronutrients with plant extracts on the occurrence of acute respiratory infections (ARI) have been published. to assess the effect of a nutritional supplement with micronutrients and plant extracts on the incidence of ARI in susceptible adults between January and April, 2012. a randomized, double-blind, parallel, placebo- controlled clinical trial was performed. Participants were adults susceptible to ARI who were healthy at the time of evaluation, signed informed consent forms and were not taking medication. They completed a medical history; weight, height, vital signs and laboratory analyses were assessed. Subjects were randomly assigned for consumption of the supplement or a placebo, for a 90 days period. Subjects made daily diary entries indicating the presence ARI symptoms. Those who became ill notified researchers and the attending physician confirmed the presence of an infection. Fisher's exact test was used to compare the proportion of ill subjects between groups. Relative risk and risk difference were also calculated (p < 0.05 significant). of 59 included subjects, 45 (25 women) completed the study (21 in the supplemented group and 24 in the placebo group). There were no significant differences at baseline between groups. After the intervention, the supplemented group had a lower incidence of ARI compared with the placebo group (57.1% vs. 91.7%, p = 0.013, RR = 0.62, 95%CI 0.42, 0.92). the consumption of a supplement with vitamins, minerals and plant extracts may decrease the incidence of ARI in susceptible adults. Copyright AULA MEDICA EDICIONES 2014. Published by AULA MEDICA. All rights reserved.

Self Reported Incidence and Morbidity of Acute Respiratory Illness among Deployed U.S. Military in Iraq and Afghanistan

PubMed Central

Soltis, Bryony W.; Sanders, John W.; Putnam, Shannon D.; Tribble, David R.; Riddle, Mark S.

2009-01-01

Background Historically, respiratory infections have had a significant impact on U.S. military missions. Deployed troops are particularly at high risk due to close living conditions, stressful work environments and increased exposure to pathogens. To date, there are limited data available on acute respiratory illness (ARI) among troops deployed in support of ongoing military operations, specifically Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) and Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF). Methods Using self-report data from two sources collected from troops deployed to Iraq, Afghanistan and the surrounding region, we analyzed incidence and risk factors for ARI. Military personnel on mid-deployment Rest & Recuperation (R&R) or during redeployment were eligible to participate in the voluntary self-report survey. Results Overall, 39.5% reported having at least one ARI. Of these, 18.5% sought medical care and 33.8% reported having decreased job performance. The rate of self-reported ARI was 15 episodes per 100 person-months among those taking the voluntary survey, and 24.7 episodes per 100 person-months among those taking the clinic health questionnaire. Negative binomial regression analysis found female sex, Navy branch of service and lack of flush toilets to be independently associated with increased rates of ARI. Deployment to OIF, increasing age and higher rank were also positively associated with ARI risk. Conclusions The overall percentage of deployed military personnel reporting at least one acute respiratory illness decreased since earlier parts of OIF/OEF. However, the reported effect on job performance increased tremendously. The most important factors associated with increased respiratory infection are female sex, Navy branch of service, lack of improved latrine facilities, deployment to OIF, increasing age and higher rank. PMID:19584919

Multicenter Clinical Evaluation of the Luminex Aries Flu A/B & RSV Assay for Pediatric and Adult Respiratory Tract Specimens.

PubMed

Juretschko, Stefan; Mahony, James; Buller, Richard S; Manji, Ryhana; Dunbar, Sherry; Walker, Kimberly; Rao, Arundhati

2017-08-01

Influenza A and B viruses and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) are three common viruses implicated in seasonal respiratory tract infections and are a major cause of morbidity and mortality in adults and children worldwide. In recent years, an increasing number of commercial molecular tests have become available to diagnose respiratory viral infections. The Luminex Aries Flu A/B & RSV assay is a fully automated sample-to-answer molecular diagnostic assay for the detection of influenza A, influenza B, and RSV. The clinical performance of the Aries Flu A/B & RSV assay was prospectively evaluated in comparison to that of the Luminex xTAG respiratory viral panel (RVP) at four North American clinical institutions over a 2-year period. Of the 2,479 eligible nasopharyngeal swab specimens included in the prospective study, 2,371 gave concordant results between the assays. One hundred eight specimens generated results that were discordant with those from the xTAG RVP and were further analyzed by bidirectional sequencing. Final clinical sensitivity values of the Aries Flu A/B & RSV assay were 98.1% for influenza A virus, 98.0% for influenza B virus, and 97.7% for RSV. Final clinical specificities for all three pathogens ranged from 98.6% to 99.8%. Due to the low prevalence of influenza B, an additional 40 banked influenza B-positive specimens were tested at the participating clinical laboratories and were all accurately detected by the Aries Flu A/B & RSV assay. This study demonstrates that the Aries Flu A/B & RSV assay is a suitable method for rapid and accurate identification of these causative pathogens in respiratory infections. Copyright © 2017 Juretschko et al.

Local transmural action potential gradients are absent in the isolated, intact dog heart but present in the corresponding coronary-perfused wedge.

PubMed

Boukens, Bastiaan J; Meijborg, Veronique M F; Belterman, Charly N; Opthof, Tobias; Janse, Michiel J; Schuessler, Richard B; Coronel, Ruben; Efimov, Igor R

2017-05-01

The left ventricular (LV) coronary-perfused canine wedge preparation is a model commonly used for studying cardiac repolarization. In wedge studies, transmembrane potentials typically are recorded; whereas, extracellular electrical recordings are commonly used in intact hearts. We compared electrically measured activation recovery interval (ARI) patterns in the intact heart with those recorded at the same location in the LV wedge preparation. We also compared electrically recorded and optically obtained ARIs in the LV wedge preparation. Five Langendorff-perfused canine hearts were paced from the right atrium. Local activation and repolarization times were measured with eight transmural needle electrodes. Subsequently, left ventricular coronary-perfused wedge preparations were prepared from these hearts while the electrodes remained in place. Three electrodes remained at identical positions as in the intact heart. Both electrograms and optical action potentials were recorded (pacing cycle length 400-4000 msec) and activation and repolarization patterns were analyzed. ARIs found in the subepicardium were shorter than in the subendocardium in the LV wedge preparation but not in the intact heart. The transmural ARI gradient recorded at the cut surface of the wedge was not different from that recorded internally. ARIs recorded internally and at the cut surface in the LV wedge preparation, both correlated with optically recorded action potentials. ARI and RT gradients in the LV wedge preparation differed from those in the intact canine heart, implying that those observations in human LV wedge preparations also should be extrapolated to the intact human heart with caution. © 2017 The Authors. Physiological Reports published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of The Physiological Society and the American Physiological Society.

Focal myocardial infarction induces global remodeling of cardiac sympathetic innervation: neural remodeling in a spatial context

PubMed Central

Ajijola, Olujimi A.; Yagishita, Daigo; Patel, Krishan J.; Vaseghi, Marmar; Zhou, Wei; Yamakawa, Kentaro; So, Eileen; Lux, Robert L.; Mahajan, Aman

2013-01-01

Myocardial infarction (MI) induces neural and electrical remodeling at scar border zones. The impact of focal MI on global functional neural remodeling is not well understood. Sympathetic stimulation was performed in swine with anteroapical infarcts (MI; n = 9) and control swine (n = 9). A 56-electrode sock was placed over both ventricles to record electrograms at baseline and during left, right, and bilateral stellate ganglion stimulation. Activation recovery intervals (ARIs) were measured from electrograms. Global and regional ARI shortening, dispersion of repolarization, and activation propagation were assessed before and during sympathetic stimulation. At baseline, mean ARI was shorter in MI hearts than control hearts (365 ± 8 vs. 436 ± 9 ms, P < 0.0001), dispersion of repolarization was greater in MI versus control hearts (734 ± 123 vs. 362 ± 32 ms2, P = 0.02), and the infarcted region in MI hearts showed longer ARIs than noninfarcted regions (406 ± 14 vs. 365 ± 8 ms, P = 0.027). In control animals, percent ARI shortening was greater on anterior than posterior walls during right stellate ganglion stimulation (P = 0.0001), whereas left stellate ganglion stimulation showed the reverse (P = 0.0003). In infarcted animals, this pattern was completely lost. In 50% of the animals studied, sympathetic stimulation, compared with baseline, significantly altered the direction of activation propagation emanating from the intramyocardial scar during pacing. In conclusion, focal distal anterior MI alters regional and global pattern of sympathetic innervation, resulting in shorter ARIs in infarcted hearts, greater repolarization dispersion, and altered activation propagation. These conditions may underlie the mechanisms by which arrhythmias are initiated when sympathetic tone is enhanced. PMID:23893167

Value associated with mindfulness meditation and moderate exercise intervention in acute respiratory infection: The MEPARI Study

PubMed Central

2013-01-01

Background and objectives. Acute respiratory infection (ARI) is among the most common, debilitating and expensive human illnesses. The purpose of this study was to assess ARI-related costs and determine if mindfulness meditation or exercise can add value. Methods. One hundred and fifty-four adults ≥50 years from Madison, WI for the 2009–10 cold/flu season were randomized to (i) wait-list control (ii) meditation or (iii) moderate intensity exercise. ARI-related costs were assessed through self-reported medication use, number of missed work days and medical visits. Costs per subject were based on cost of generic medications, missed work days ($126.20) and clinic visits ($78.70). Monte Carlo bootstrap methods evaluated reduced costs of ARI episodes. Results. The total cost per subject for the control group was $214 (95% CI: $105–$358), exercise $136 (95% CI: $64–$232) and meditation $65 (95% CI: $34–$104). The majority of cost savings was through a reduction in missed days of work. Exercise had the highest medication costs at $16.60 compared with $5.90 for meditation (P = 0.004) and $7.20 for control (P = 0.046). Combining these cost benefits with the improved outcomes in incidence, duration and severity seen with the Meditation or Exercise for Preventing Acute Respiratory Infection study, meditation and exercise add value for ARI. Compared with control, meditation had the greatest cost benefit. This savings is offset by the cost of the intervention ($450/subject) that would negate the short-term but perhaps not long-term savings. Conclusions. Meditation and exercise add value to ARI-associated health-related costs with improved outcomes. Further research is needed to confirm results and inform policies on adding value to medical spending. PMID:23515373

Value associated with mindfulness meditation and moderate exercise intervention in acute respiratory infection: the MEPARI Study.

PubMed

Rakel, David; Mundt, Marlon; Ewers, Tola; Fortney, Luke; Zgierska, Aleksandra; Gassman, Michele; Barrett, Bruce

2013-08-01

Acute respiratory infection (ARI) is among the most common, debilitating and expensive human illnesses. The purpose of this study was to assess ARI-related costs and determine if mindfulness meditation or exercise can add value. One hundred and fifty-four adults ≥50 years from Madison, WI for the 2009-10 cold/flu season were randomized to (i) wait-list control (ii) meditation or (iii) moderate intensity exercise. ARI-related costs were assessed through self-reported medication use, number of missed work days and medical visits. Costs per subject were based on cost of generic medications, missed work days ($126.20) and clinic visits ($78.70). Monte Carlo bootstrap methods evaluated reduced costs of ARI episodes. The total cost per subject for the control group was $214 (95% CI: $105-$358), exercise $136 (95% CI: $64-$232) and meditation $65 (95% CI: $34-$104). The majority of cost savings was through a reduction in missed days of work. Exercise had the highest medication costs at $16.60 compared with $5.90 for meditation (P = 0.004) and $7.20 for control (P = 0.046). Combining these cost benefits with the improved outcomes in incidence, duration and severity seen with the Meditation or Exercise for Preventing Acute Respiratory Infection study, meditation and exercise add value for ARI. Compared with control, meditation had the greatest cost benefit. This savings is offset by the cost of the intervention ($450/subject) that would negate the short-term but perhaps not long-term savings. Meditation and exercise add value to ARI-associated health-related costs with improved outcomes. Further research is needed to confirm results and inform policies on adding value to medical spending.

The impact of selection bias on vaccine effectiveness estimates from test-negative studies.

PubMed

Jackson, Michael L; Phillips, C Hallie; Benoit, Joyce; Kiniry, Erika; Madziwa, Lawrence; Nelson, Jennifer C; Jackson, Lisa A

2018-01-29

Estimates of vaccine effectiveness (VE) from test-negative studies may be subject to selection bias. In the context of influenza VE, we used simulations to identify situations in which meaningful selection bias can occur. We also analyzed observational study data for evidence of selection bias. For the simulation study, we defined a hypothetical population whose members are at risk for acute respiratory illness (ARI) due to influenza and other pathogens. An unmeasured "healthcare seeking proclivity" affects both probability of vaccination and probability of seeking care for an ARI. We varied the direction and magnitude of these effects and identified situations where meaningful bias occurred. For the observational study, we reanalyzed data from the United States Influenza VE Network, an ongoing test-negative study. We compared "bias-naïve" VE estimates to bias-adjusted estimates, which used data from the source populations to correct for sampling bias. In the simulation study, an unmeasured care-seeking proclivity could create selection bias if persons with influenza ARI were more (or less) likely to seek care than persons with non-influenza ARI. However, selection bias was only meaningful when rates of care seeking between influenza ARI and non-influenza ARI were very different. In the observational study, the bias-naïve VE estimate of 55% (95% CI, 47--62%) was trivially different from the bias-adjusted VE estimate of 57% (95% CI, 49--63%). In combination, these studies suggest that while selection bias is possible in test-negative VE studies, this bias in unlikely to be meaningful under conditions likely to be encountered in practice. Researchers and public health officials can continue to rely on VE estimates from test-negative studies. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Human respiratory syncytial virus: prevalence, viral co-infections and risk factors for lower respiratory tract infections in children under 5 years of age at a general hospital in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

PubMed

Kabego, Landry; Balol'Ebwami, Serge; Kasengi, Joe Bwija; Miyanga, Serge; Bahati, Yvette Lufungulo; Kambale, Richard; de Beer, Corena

2018-04-01

This study aimed to determine the prevalence of human respiratory syncytial virus (HRSV) acute respiratory infection (ARI) in children under the age of 5 years at the Provincial General Hospital of Bukavu (PGHB), and to analyse factors associated with the risk of ARI being diagnosed as lower respiratory tract infection (LRTI). A total of 146 children under 5 years visiting the PGHB for ARI between August and December 2016 were recruited, and socio-demographic information, clinical data and nasopharyngeal swabs were collected. The samples were analysed by a multiplex reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction targeting 15 different viruses. Of 146 samples collected, 84 (57.5 %) displayed a positive result of at least one of the 15 viruses. The overall prevalence of HRSV was 21.2 %. HRSV A (30, 20.5 %) was the virus the most detected, followed by HRV (24, 16.4 %), PIV3 (20, 16.6) and ADV (7, 4.79 %). The other viruses were detected in three or fewer cases. There were only 11 (7.5 %) cases of co-infection. HRSV infection, malnutrition, younger age, rural settings, low income and mother illiteracy were associated with the risk of ARI being diagnosed as LRTI in bivariate analyses but, after adjusting for the confounding factors, only HRSV infection and younger age were independently associated with LRTI. The prevalence of HRSV is high among children visiting the PGHB for ARI. HRSV infection and lower age are independently associated with the risk of ARI being diagnosed as LRTI.

Restored Roots: "Muntu" as a Healing Agent in "Pelo bueno, Pelo malo" by Carmen Montañez

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Edison, Thomas Wayne

2017-01-01

Carmen Montañez's novel "Pelo bueno, pelo malo" acknowledges the struggle that some Caribbean individuals face in accepting their blackness. The novel integrates the union of ancestors with the living, thus reflecting the Bantu concept known as "Muntu". This Puerto Rican novel presents a deep social problem of internalized…

Earnings and Education in Argentina: An Analysis of the 1985 Buenos Aires Household Survey.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kugler, Bernardo; Psacharopoulos, George

1989-01-01

Using data from the 1985 Buenos Aires (Argentina) Household Survey of 4,500 employed individuals, earnings differences are explained by a set of individual human capital characteristics. Returns to education investments are then estimated for different levels and types of schooling. Secondary and higher education investments need to be retargeted.…

The Role of NFIB in Prostate Cancer Progression

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-09-01

Class:____Y____N____DNA Salvage Case after Radiation: ____Y ____N Hormones: Lupron/Casodex: ____Y ____N 5-ARI: Avodart/Proscar/ Propecia : ____Y ____N...Y____N____DNA Salvage Case after Radiation: ____Y ____N Hormones: Lupron/Casodex: ____Y ____N 5-ARI: Avodart/Proscar/ Propecia : ____Y ____N Additional

Adaptive Residual Interpolation for Color and Multispectral Image Demosaicking †

PubMed Central

Kiku, Daisuke; Okutomi, Masatoshi

2017-01-01

Color image demosaicking for the Bayer color filter array is an essential image processing operation for acquiring high-quality color images. Recently, residual interpolation (RI)-based algorithms have demonstrated superior demosaicking performance over conventional color difference interpolation-based algorithms. In this paper, we propose adaptive residual interpolation (ARI) that improves existing RI-based algorithms by adaptively combining two RI-based algorithms and selecting a suitable iteration number at each pixel. These are performed based on a unified criterion that evaluates the validity of an RI-based algorithm. Experimental comparisons using standard color image datasets demonstrate that ARI can improve existing RI-based algorithms by more than 0.6 dB in the color peak signal-to-noise ratio and can outperform state-of-the-art algorithms based on training images. We further extend ARI for a multispectral filter array, in which more than three spectral bands are arrayed, and demonstrate that ARI can achieve state-of-the-art performance also for the task of multispectral image demosaicking. PMID:29194407

Adaptive Residual Interpolation for Color and Multispectral Image Demosaicking.

PubMed

Monno, Yusuke; Kiku, Daisuke; Tanaka, Masayuki; Okutomi, Masatoshi

2017-12-01

Color image demosaicking for the Bayer color filter array is an essential image processing operation for acquiring high-quality color images. Recently, residual interpolation (RI)-based algorithms have demonstrated superior demosaicking performance over conventional color difference interpolation-based algorithms. In this paper, we propose adaptive residual interpolation (ARI) that improves existing RI-based algorithms by adaptively combining two RI-based algorithms and selecting a suitable iteration number at each pixel. These are performed based on a unified criterion that evaluates the validity of an RI-based algorithm. Experimental comparisons using standard color image datasets demonstrate that ARI can improve existing RI-based algorithms by more than 0.6 dB in the color peak signal-to-noise ratio and can outperform state-of-the-art algorithms based on training images. We further extend ARI for a multispectral filter array, in which more than three spectral bands are arrayed, and demonstrate that ARI can achieve state-of-the-art performance also for the task of multispectral image demosaicking.

Initial sediment transport model of the mining-affected Aries River Basin, Romania

USGS Publications Warehouse

Friedel, Michael J.; Linard, Joshua I.

2008-01-01

The Romanian government is interested in understanding the effects of existing and future mining activities on long-term dispersal, storage, and remobilization of sediment-associated metals. An initial Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) model was prepared using available data to evaluate hypothetical failure of the Valea Sesei tailings dam at the Rosia Poieni mine in the Aries River basin. Using the available data, the initial Aries River Basin SWAT model could not be manually calibrated to accurately reproduce monthly streamflow values observed at the Turda gage station. The poor simulation of the monthly streamflow is attributed to spatially limited soil and precipitation data, limited constraint information due to spatially and temporally limited streamflow measurements, and in ability to obtain optimal parameter values when using a manual calibration process. Suggestions to improve the Aries River basin sediment transport model include accounting for heterogeneity in model input, a two-tier nonlinear calibration strategy, and analysis of uncertainty in predictions.

Studies on the content of heavy metals in Aries River using ICP-MS

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Voica, Cezara, E-mail: Cezara.Voica@itim-cj.ro; Kovacs, Melinda, E-mail: Cezara.Voica@itim-cj.ro; Feher, Ioana, E-mail: Cezara.Voica@itim-cj.ro

2013-11-13

Among the industrial branches, the mining industry has always been an important source of environmental pollution, both aesthetically and chemically. Through this paper results of ICP-MS characterization of Aries River Basin are reported. Mining activities from this area has resulted in contamination of environment and its surrounding biota. This is clearly evidenced in analyzed water samples, especially from Baia de Aries site where increased amount of trace elements as Cr, Zn, As, Se, Cd, Pb and U were founded. Also in this site greater amount of rare earth elements was evidenced also. Through monitoring of Aries River from other non-miningmore » area it was observed that the quantitative content of heavy metals was below the maximum permissible levels which made us to conclude that the water table wasn't seriously affected (which possibly might be attributed to the cessation of mining activities in this area from a few years ago)« less

Development of a web-based CT dose calculator: WAZA-ARI.

PubMed

Ban, N; Takahashi, F; Sato, K; Endo, A; Ono, K; Hasegawa, T; Yoshitake, T; Katsunuma, Y; Kai, M

2011-09-01

A web-based computed tomography (CT) dose calculation system (WAZA-ARI) is being developed based on the modern techniques for the radiation transport simulation and for software implementation. Dose coefficients were calculated in a voxel-type Japanese adult male phantom (JM phantom), using the Particle and Heavy Ion Transport code System. In the Monte Carlo simulation, the phantom was irradiated with a 5-mm-thick, fan-shaped photon beam rotating in a plane normal to the body axis. The dose coefficients were integrated into the system, which runs as Java servlets within Apache Tomcat. Output of WAZA-ARI for GE LightSpeed 16 was compared with the dose values calculated similarly using MIRD and ICRP Adult Male phantoms. There are some differences due to the phantom configuration, demonstrating the significance of the dose calculation with appropriate phantoms. While the dose coefficients are currently available only for limited CT scanner models and scanning options, WAZA-ARI will be a useful tool in clinical practice when development is finalised.

Management of acute respiratory infections by community health volunteers: experience of Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee (BRAC).

PubMed Central

Hadi, Abdullahel

2003-01-01

OBJECTIVE: To assess the role of management practices for acute respiratory infections (ARIs) in improving the competency of community health volunteers in diagnosing and treating acute respiratory infections among children. METHODS: Data were collected by a group of research physicians who observed the performance of a sample of 120 health volunteers in 10 sub-districts in Bangladesh in which Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee (BRAC) had run a community-based ARI control programme since mid-1992. Standardized tests were conducted until the 95% interphysician reliability on the observation of clinical examination was achieved. FINDINGS:The sensitivity, specificity, and overall agreement rates in diagnosing and treating ARIs were significantly higher among the health volunteers who had basic training and were supervised routinely than among those who had not. CONCLUSION: Diagnosis and treatment of ARIs at the household level in developing countries are possible if intensive basic training and the close supervision of service providers are ensured. PMID:12764514

Risk of gynecomastia and breast cancer associated with the use of 5-alpha reductase inhibitors for benign prostatic hyperplasia

PubMed Central

Hagberg, Katrina Wilcox; Divan, Hozefa A; Fang, Shona C; Nickel, J Curtis; Jick, Susan S

2017-01-01

Background Clinical trial results suggest that 5-alpha reductase inhibitors (5ARIs) for the treatment of benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) may increase the risk of gynecomastia and male breast cancer, but epidemiological studies have been limited. Patients and methods We conducted a cohort study with nested case–control analyses using the UK Clinical Practice Research Datalink. We identified men diagnosed with BPH who were free from Klinefelter syndrome, prostate, genital or urinary cancer, prostatectomy or orchiectomy, or evidence of gynecomastia or breast cancer. Patients entered the cohort at age ≥40 years and at least 3 years after the start of their electronic medical record. We classified exposure as 5ARIs (alone or in combination with alpha blockers [ABs]), AB only, or unexposed to 5ARIs and ABs. Cases were men who had a first-time diagnosis of gynecomastia or breast cancer. Incidence rates and incidence rate ratios (IRRs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) in the gynecomastia analysis and crude and adjusted odds ratios (ORs) with 95% CIs in both analyses were calculated. Results Compared to no exposure, gynecomastia risk was elevated for users of 5ARIs (alone or in combination with ABs) in both the cohort (IRR=3.55, 95% CI 3.05–4.14) and case–control analyses (OR=3.31, 95% CI 2.66–4.10), whereas the risk was null for users of AB only. The increased risk of gynecomastia with the use of 5ARIs persisted regardless of the number of prescriptions, exposure timing, and presence or absence of concomitant prescriptions for drugs known to be associated with gynecomastia. The risk was higher for dutasteride than for finasteride. 5ARI users did not have an increased risk of breast cancer compared to unexposed men (OR=1.52, 95% CI 0.61–3.80). Conclusion In men with BPH, 5ARIs significantly increased the risk of gynecomastia, but not breast cancer, compared to AB use and no exposure. PMID:28228662

Heterogeneity in Genetic Admixture across Different Regions of Argentina

PubMed Central

Avena, Sergio; Via, Marc; Ziv, Elad; Pérez-Stable, Eliseo J.; Gignoux, Christopher R.; Dejean, Cristina; Huntsman, Scott; Torres-Mejía, Gabriela; Dutil, Julie; Matta, Jaime L.; Beckman, Kenneth; Burchard, Esteban González; Parolin, María Laura; Goicoechea, Alicia; Acreche, Noemí; Boquet, Mariel; Ríos Part, María Del Carmen; Fernández, Vanesa; Rey, Jorge; Stern, Mariana C.; Carnese, Raúl F.; Fejerman, Laura

2012-01-01

The population of Argentina is the result of the intermixing between several groups, including Indigenous American, European and African populations. Despite the commonly held idea that the population of Argentina is of mostly European origin, multiple studies have shown that this process of admixture had an impact in the entire Argentine population. In the present study we characterized the distribution of Indigenous American, European and African ancestry among individuals from different regions of Argentina and evaluated the level of discrepancy between self-reported grandparental origin and genetic ancestry estimates. A set of 99 autosomal ancestry informative markers (AIMs) was genotyped in a sample of 441 Argentine individuals to estimate genetic ancestry. We used non-parametric tests to evaluate statistical significance. The average ancestry for the Argentine sample overall was 65% European (95%CI: 63–68%), 31% Indigenous American (28–33%) and 4% African (3–4%). We observed statistically significant differences in European ancestry across Argentine regions [Buenos Aires province (BA) 76%, 95%CI: 73–79%; Northeast (NEA) 54%, 95%CI: 49–58%; Northwest (NWA) 33%, 95%CI: 21–41%; South 54%, 95%CI: 49–59%; p<0.0001] as well as between the capital and immediate suburbs of Buenos Aires city compared to more distant suburbs [80% (95%CI: 75–86%) versus 68% (95%CI: 58–77%), p = 0.01]. European ancestry among individuals that declared all grandparents born in Europe was 91% (95%CI: 88–94%) compared to 54% (95%CI: 51–57%) among those with no European grandparents (p<0.001). Our results demonstrate the range of variation in genetic ancestry among Argentine individuals from different regions in the country, highlighting the importance of taking this variation into account in genetic association and admixture mapping studies in this population. PMID:22506044

Study of fingerprints in Argentina population for application in personal identification.

PubMed

Rivaldería, Noemí; Gutiérrez-Redomero, Esperanza; Alonso-Rodríguez, Concepción; Dipierri, José E; Martín, Luis M

2017-05-01

The fingerprints of the Buenos Aires and Chubut provinces in Argentina have been studied, with the aim of knowing and quantifying the variability of these features, which are used in the identification process. The data studied for this research was obtained from 330 individuals, of both sexes, from two Argentinian population samples (170 individuals from Buenos Aires and 160 from Chubut), which amounts to a total of 3300 fingerprints. The different types of minutiae were located, identified, and visually quantified in four areas on the fingerprint. Two perpendicular axes were drawn whose intersection was located in the center of fingerprint. In addition, a circle was defined on these quadrants whose radius cut fifteen ridges. This method divides the fingerprints into four quadrants with two sectors apiece. The results obtained for both populations were compared statistically with those published previously for an Argentinian population sample, which had been collected using the same methodology. Therefore, Argentina becomes the country with the most information in this matter. For both populations, the highest frequencies were of ridge endings, followed by bifurcations and convergences. In this study of minutiae, statistically significant differences were found between the area of the fingerprint (inside and outside the circle), males and females, and types of main pattern for both samples. However, although the results show common patterns in the distribution of minutiae, there are also significant differences between populations. This reveals a significant ancestral and frequency effect of the minutiae, which would indicate that the minutiae are more genetically dependent than has been suspected so far. Furthermore, the non-equiprobability found for the frequency of the types of minutiae indicates that the weight provided by these characteristics is not the same when applied in identification processes, whether used quantitatively (numerical standard) or qualitatively (holistic method). Copyright © 2017 The Chartered Society of Forensic Sciences. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

24 CFR 3280.714 - Appliances, cooling.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... Systems § 3280.714 Appliances, cooling. (a) Every air conditioning unit or a combination air conditioning...) Mechanical air conditioners shall be rated in accordance with the ARI Standard 210/240-89 Unitary Air Conditioning and Air Source Unitary Heat Pump Equipment and certified by ARI or other nationally recognized...

24 CFR 3280.714 - Appliances, cooling.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... Systems § 3280.714 Appliances, cooling. (a) Every air conditioning unit or a combination air conditioning...) Mechanical air conditioners shall be rated in accordance with the ARI Standard 210/240-89 Unitary Air Conditioning and Air Source Unitary Heat Pump Equipment and certified by ARI or other nationally recognized...

Data Networks Reliability

DTIC Science & Technology

1988-10-03

full achievable region is achievable if there is only a bounded degree of asynchronism. E. Arikan , in a Ph.D. thesis [Ari85], extended sequential...real co-operation is required to reduce the number of transmissions to O(log log N). 14 REFERENCES [Ari85] E. Arikan , "Sequential Decoding for Multiple

Use of behavioral economics and social psychology to improve treatment of acute respiratory infections (BEARI): rationale and design of a cluster randomized controlled trial [1RC4AG039115-01] - study protocol and baseline practice and provider characteristics

PubMed Central

2013-01-01

Background Inappropriate antibiotic prescribing for nonbacterial infections leads to increases in the costs of care, antibiotic resistance among bacteria, and adverse drug events. Acute respiratory infections (ARIs) are the most common reason for inappropriate antibiotic use. Most prior efforts to decrease inappropriate antibiotic prescribing for ARIs (e.g., educational or informational interventions) have relied on the implicit assumption that clinicians inappropriately prescribe antibiotics because they are unaware of guideline recommendations for ARIs. If lack of guideline awareness is not the reason for inappropriate prescribing, educational interventions may have limited impact on prescribing rates. Instead, interventions that apply social psychological and behavioral economic principles may be more effective in deterring inappropriate antibiotic prescribing for ARIs by well-informed clinicians. Methods/design The Application of Behavioral Economics to Improve the Treatment of Acute Respiratory Infections (BEARI) Trial is a multisite, cluster-randomized controlled trial with practice as the unit of randomization. The primary aim is to test the ability of three interventions based on behavioral economic principles to reduce the rate of inappropriate antibiotic prescribing for ARIs. We randomized practices in a 2 × 2 × 2 factorial design to receive up to three interventions for non-antibiotic-appropriate diagnoses: 1) Accountable Justifications: When prescribing an antibiotic for an ARI, clinicians are prompted to record an explicit justification that appears in the patient electronic health record; 2) Suggested Alternatives: Through computerized clinical decision support, clinicians prescribing an antibiotic for an ARI receive a list of non-antibiotic treatment choices (including prescription options) prior to completing the antibiotic prescription; and 3) Peer Comparison: Each provider’s rate of inappropriate antibiotic prescribing relative to top-performing peers is reported back to the provider periodically by email. We enrolled 269 clinicians (practicing attending physicians or advanced practice nurses) in 49 participating clinic sites and collected baseline data. The primary outcome is the antibiotic prescribing rate for office visits with non-antibiotic-appropriate ARI diagnoses. Secondary outcomes will examine antibiotic prescribing more broadly. The 18-month intervention period will be followed by a one year follow-up period to measure persistence of effects after interventions cease. Discussion The ongoing BEARI Trial will evaluate the effectiveness of behavioral economic strategies in reducing inappropriate prescribing of antibiotics. Trials registration ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT01454947 PMID:23806017

Stereochemistry of Furfural Reduction by a Saccharomyces cerevisiae Aldehyde Reductase That Contributes to In Situ Furfural Detoxification▿

PubMed Central

Bowman, Michael J.; Jordan, Douglas B.; Vermillion, Karl E.; Braker, Jay D.; Moon, Jaewoong; Liu, Z. Lewis

2010-01-01

Ari1p from Saccharomyces cerevisiae, recently identified as an intermediate-subclass short-chain dehydrogenase/reductase, contributes in situ to the detoxification of furfural. Furfural inhibits efficient ethanol production by yeast, particularly when the carbon source is acid-treated lignocellulose, which contains furfural at a relatively high concentration. NADPH is Ari1p's best known hydride donor. Here we report the stereochemistry of the hydride transfer step, determined by using (4R)-[4-2H]NADPD and (4S)-[4-2H]NADPD and unlabeled furfural in Ari1p-catalyzed reactions and following the deuterium atom into products 2-furanmethanol or NADP+. Analysis of the products demonstrates unambiguously that Ari1p directs hydride transfer from the si face of NADPH to the re face of furfural. The singular orientation of substrates enables construction of a model of the Michaelis complex in the Ari1p active site. The model reveals hydrophobic residues near the furfural binding site that, upon mutation, may increase specificity for furfural and enhance enzyme performance. Using (4S)-[4-2H]NADPD and NADPH as substrates, primary deuterium kinetic isotope effects of 2.2 and 2.5 were determined for the steady-state parameters kcatNADPH and kcat/KmNADPH, respectively, indicating that hydride transfer is partially rate limiting to catalysis. PMID:20525870

A Cross-sectional Surveillance Study of the Frequency and Etiology of Acute Respiratory Illness Among Pregnant Women.

PubMed

Hause, Anne M; Avadhanula, Vasanthi; Maccato, Maurizio L; Pinell, Phillip M; Bond, Nanette; Santarcangelo, Patricia; Ferlic-Stark, Laura; Munoz, Flor M; Piedra, Pedro A

2018-05-05

Other than influenza, little is known about the consequences of viral acute respiratory illness (ARI) on pregnant women and fetuses. Our objectives were to determine the frequency of ARI due to respiratory viruses and the associated clinical outcomes during pregnancy. Pregnant women in their second or third trimester were enrolled if they reported having symptoms of ARI or were healthy within the preceding 2 weeks. Nasopharyngeal secretions were evaluated for respiratory viruses by molecular diagnostic assays. Clinical outcomes were evaluated at enrollment and via a follow-up telephone-based questionnaire 2 weeks later. There were 155 pregnant participants, with 81 ARI cases and 91 healthy controls. Acute lower respiratory tract illness (ALRTI) was identified in 29 cases (36%). Human rhinovirus (HRV), respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), and influenza virus accounted for 75% of virus-positive cases of ALRTI. Cases with ALRTI often reported a longer duration of illness, history of allergies, symptoms of wheezing, shortness of breath, or chest pain, and use of prescription medication. Two cases with ALRTI reported decreased fetal movement; a third case with ALRTI was hospitalized. In over one third of ARI cases, participants had symptoms consistent with ALRTI. Infection with HRV, RSV, or influenza virus was commonly detected in patients with ALRTI. Viral ALRTI during pregnancy appears to be common and is associated with significant morbidity.

Antitumor Effects of Epidrug/IFNα Combination Driven by Modulated Gene Signatures in Both Colorectal Cancer and Dendritic Cells.

PubMed

Fragale, Alessandra; Romagnoli, Giulia; Licursi, Valerio; Buoncervello, Maria; Del Vecchio, Giorgia; Giuliani, Caterina; Parlato, Stefania; Leone, Celeste; De Angelis, Marta; Canini, Irene; Toschi, Elena; Belardelli, Filippo; Negri, Rodolfo; Capone, Imerio; Presutti, Carlo; Gabriele, Lucia

2017-07-01

Colorectal cancer results from the progressive accumulation of genetic and epigenetic alterations. IFN signaling defects play an important role in the carcinogenesis process, in which the inability of IFN transcription regulatory factors (IRF) to access regulatory sequences in IFN-stimulated genes (ISG) in tumors and in immune cells may be pivotal. We reported that low-dose combination of two FDA-approved epidrugs, azacytidine (A) and romidepsin (R), with IFNα2 (ARI) hampers the aggressiveness of both colorectal cancer metastatic and stem cells in vivo and triggers immunogenic cell death signals that stimulate dendritic cell (DC) function. Here, we investigated the molecular signals induced by ARI treatment and found that this drug combination increased the accessibility to regulatory sequences of ISGs and IRFs that were epigenetically silenced in both colorectal cancer cells and DCs. Likewise, specific ARI-induced histone methylation and acetylation changes marked epigenetically affected ISG promoters in both metastatic cancer cells and DCs. Analysis by ChIP-seq confirmed such ARI-induced epigenetically regulated IFN signature. The activation of this signal endowed DCs with a marked migratory capability. Our results establish a direct correlation between reexpression of silenced ISGs by epigenetic control and ARI anticancer activity and provide new knowledge for the development of innovative combined therapeutic strategies for colorectal cancer. Cancer Immunol Res; 5(7); 604-16. ©2017 AACR . ©2017 American Association for Cancer Research.

Psychometric properties of the affective reactivity index in Australian adults and adolescents.

PubMed

Mulraney, Melissa A; Melvin, Glenn A; Tonge, Bruce J

2014-03-01

Irritable mood is implicated in a range of psychiatric conditions in both adults and adolescents. Research into appropriate measures of irritability, however, has been sparse. Recently, Stringaris et al. (2012) published the Affective Reactivity Index (ARI), a measure of chronic irritability with promising psychometric properties. This article presents psychometric properties of the ARI with Australian adolescents and, for the first time, with adults. The adolescent sample (n = 396) was recruited from 11 secondary schools in southeastern Australia. The adult sample (n = 221) was recruited through poster and online advertising. Both samples completed a battery of measures (including the ARI, Reynolds Adolescent Depression Scale-2, Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire, Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale, Generalized Anxiety Disorder Screen, and Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale) on a single occasion, and a subsample of adults (n = 32) completed the ARI a 2nd time after 1 week to establish test-retest reliability. Parent and self-report scales had excellent internal consistency and correlated well with each other. Test-retest reliability was also very good in the adult sample (intraclass correlation coefficient = .80). Convergent validity was demonstrated, as irritability was related to psychopathology in both adults and adolescents as expected. The ARI is a brief, easy-to-use scale to measure chronic irritability, with promising psychometric properties for use with Australian adults and adolescents. 2014 APA

Disease spectrum and management of children admitted with acute respiratory infection in Viet Nam.

PubMed

Nguyen, T K P; Nguyen, D V; Truong, T N H; Tran, M D; Graham, S M; Marais, B J

2017-06-01

To assess the acute respiratory infection (ARI) disease spectrum, duration of hospitalisation and outcome in children hospitalised with an ARI in Viet Nam. We conducted a retrospective descriptive study of ARI admissions to primary (Hoa Vang District Hospital), secondary (Da Nang Hospital for Women and Children) and tertiary (National Hospital of Paediatrics in Ha Noi) level hospitals in Viet Nam over 12 months (01/09/2015 to 31/08/2016). Acute respiratory infections accounted for 27.9% (37 436/134 061) of all paediatric admissions; nearly half (47.6%) of all children admitted to Hoa Vang District Hospital. Most (64.6%) of children hospitalised with an ARI were <2 years of age. Influenza/pneumonia accounted for 69.4% of admissions; tuberculosis for only 0.3%. Overall 284 (0.8%) children died; most deaths (269/284; 94.7%) occurred at the tertiary referral hospital. The average duration of hospitalisation was 7.6 days (median 7 days). The average direct hospitalisation cost per ARI admission was 157.5 USD in Da Nang Provincial Hospital. In total, 62.6% of admissions were covered by health insurance. Acute respiratory infection is a major cause of paediatric hospitalisation in Viet Nam, characterised by prolonged hospitalisation for relatively mild disease. There is huge potential to reduce unnecessary hospital admission and cost. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

A protocol for a systematic literature review: comparing the impact of seasonal and meteorological parameters on acute respiratory infections in Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples.

PubMed

Bishop-Williams, Katherine E; Sargeant, Jan M; Berrang-Ford, Lea; Edge, Victoria L; Cunsolo, Ashlee; Harper, Sherilee L

2017-01-26

Acute respiratory infections (ARI) are a leading cause of morbidity and mortality globally, and are often linked to seasonal and/or meteorological conditions. Globally, Indigenous peoples may experience a different burden of ARI compared to non-Indigenous peoples. This protocol outlines our process for conducting a systematic review to investigate whether associations between ARI and seasonal or meteorological parameters differ between Indigenous and non-Indigenous groups residing in the same geographical region. A search string will be used to search PubMed ® , CAB Abstracts/CAB Direct © , and Science Citation Index ® aggregator databases. Articles will be screened using inclusion/exclusion criteria applied first at the title and abstract level, and then at the full article level by two independent reviewers. Articles maintained after full article screening will undergo risk of bias assessment and data will be extracted. Heterogeneity tests, meta-analysis, and forest and funnel plots will be used to synthesize the results of eligible studies. This protocol paper describes our systematic review methods to identify and analyze relevant ARI, season, and meteorological literature with robust reporting. The results are intended to improve our understanding of potential associations between seasonal and meteorological parameters and ARI and, if identified, whether this association varies by place, population, or other characteristics. The protocol is registered in the PROSPERO database (#38051).

Talking to Strangers--A Sociolinguistic Experiment: Variation in Initial Dyadic Interactions between Spanish-Speakers in Early 21st Century Buenos Aires, Argentina

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dziugis, Mary Ann

2010-01-01

What are the chances of a dyad of Spanish-speaking strangers using informal address in casual, initial interactions in Buenos Aires, Argentina, today? To discover the pattern(s) of contemporary address, the Principal Investigator (PI) conducted a sociolinguistic experiment focusing on strangers' initial interactions to minimize the influence of…

Personalization and Competition in Elite Schools in Buenos Aires: School Strategies for the Production and Legitimization of Dominant Groups

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ziegler, Sandra

2017-01-01

This article analyses the strategies found in two elite secondary institutions in Buenos Aires designed to legitimise the selection of students aspiring to become members of the elite. The first are personalization strategies where teachers and students work together with the aim of facilitating success in examinations. The second are strategies…

The Sublime Corpse in Gertrudis Gomez de Avellaneda's Women's Journal "Album Cubano de lo Bueno y lo Bello" (1860)

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

LaGreca, Nancy

2009-01-01

This article examines Gertrudis Gomez de Avellaneda's choice to include articles depicting the advanced decay of cadavers, which are simultaneously horrible and awesome, in her women's periodical "Album Cubano de lo Bueno y lo Bello". Background on Avellaneda's biography, women's print culture, and theories of the sublime provide a frame for the…

Aquatic habitat modifications in La Plata River basin, Patagonia and associated marine areas.

PubMed

Mugetti, Ana Cristina; Calcagno, Alberto Tomás; Brieva, Carlos Alberto; Giangiobbe, María Silvia; Pagani, Andrea; Gonzalez, Silvia

2004-02-01

This paper describes the environmental characteristics and situation of aquatic habitats and communities in southern continental and maritime areas of southeastern South America (Patagonian Shelf GIWA Subregion), resulting from an overall assessment carried out within the framework of a GIWA project, mostly on the basis of publicly available data. The main focus of the analysis was on the current situation of transboundary water resources and anthropogenic impacts. In the inland waters, habitat and community modifications result, principally, from dams and reservoirs built in the main watercourses for hydroelectric power generation and other uses. The transformation of lotic environments into lentic ones have affected habitats and altered biotic communities. In the La Plata River basin, invasive exotic species have displaced native ones. Habitats in the ocean have been degraded, as their biodiversity becomes affected by overfishing and pollution. This article includes a discussion on the causal chain and the policy options elaborated for the Coastal Ecosystem of Buenos Aires province and the Argentinean-Uruguayan Common Fishing Zone, where fishing resources are shared by both countries.

Salinity dependent Na+-K+ATPase activity in gills of the euryhaline crab Chasmagnathus granulata.

PubMed

Schleich, C E; Goldemberg, L A; López Mañanes, A A

2001-09-01

The occurrence and response of Na+-K+ATPase specific activity to environmental salinity changes were studied in gill extracts of all of the gills of the euryhaline crab Chasmagnathus granulata from Mar Chiquita coastal lagoon (Buenos Aires Province, Argentina). All of the gills exhibited a salinity dependent Na+-K+ATPase activity, although the pattern of response to environmental salinity was different among gills. As described in other euryhaline crabs highest Na+-K+ATPase specific activity was found in posterior gills (6 to 8), which, with exception of gill 6, increased upon acclimation to reduced salinity. However, a high increase of activity also occurred in anterior gills (1 to 5) in diluted media. Furthermore, both short and long term differential changes of Na+-K+ATPase activity occurred among the gills after the transfer of crabs to reduced salinity. The fact that variations of Na+-K+ATPase activity in the gills were concomitant with the transition from osmoconformity to ionoregulation suggests that this enzyme is a component of the branchial ionoregulatory mechanisms at the biochemical level in this crab.

Microsatellite variation and genetic structuring in Mugil liza (Teleostei: Mugilidae) populations from Argentina and Brazil

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mai, Ana C. G.; Miño, Carolina I.; Marins, Luis F. F.; Monteiro-Neto, Cassiano; Miranda, Laura; Schwingel, Paulo R.; Lemos, Valéria M.; Gonzalez-Castro, Mariano; Castello, Jorge P.; Vieira, João P.

2014-08-01

The mullet Mugil liza is distributed along the Atlantic coast of South America, from Argentina to Venezuela, and it is heavily exploited in Brazil. We assessed patterns of distribution of neutral nuclear genetic variation in 250 samples from the Brazilian states of Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, Santa Catarina and Rio Grande do Sul (latitudinal range of 23-31°S) and from Buenos Aires Province in Argentina (36°S). Nine microsatellite loci revealed 131 total alleles, 3-23 alleles per locus, He: 0.69 and Ho: 0.67. Significant genetic differentiation was observed between Rio de Janeiro samples (23°S) and those from all other locations, as indicated by FST, hierarchical analyses of genetic structure, Bayesian cluster analyses and assignment tests. The presence of two different demographic clusters better explains the allelic diversity observed in mullets from the southernmost portion of the Atlantic coast of Brazil and from Argentina. This may be taken into account when designing fisheries management plans involving Brazilian, Uruguayan and Argentinean M. liza populations.

[Time trend study of firearm mortality in Argentina, 1980-2012].

PubMed

Spinelli, Hugo; Santoro, Adrián; Guevel, Carlos; Alazraqui, Marcio

2015-06-01

This work analyzes the impact of firearm mortality between 1980 and 2012 in Argentina. For this purpose a descriptive epidemiological time trend study was carried out including the following variables: sex, age group, intentionality and jurisdiction. Data was obtained from the Office of Health Statistics and Information of the Argentine Ministry of Health. A total of 87,671 deaths due to firearms were discovered, of which 85.7% occurred in men. The highest mortality rate due to firearms corresponded to the year 2002, reaching 21.2 deaths per 100,000 inhabitants. The age group concentrating the largest number of deaths due to firearms was that of 20-29 years, accounting for 25.6% of all deaths. The highest adjusted rates corresponded to the years 2000-2002, with values of 10.0 to 11.6 deaths per 100,000 inhabitants. This time period coincides with the institutional-economic crisis the country experienced. The province of Buenos Aires was the place of residence of 49.1% of the deceased. In the discussion, political-economic and ideological-cultural dimensions of the relations among firearms, violence, science and society are considered.

Marine debris in beaches of the Southwestern Atlantic: An assessment of their abundance and mass at different spatial scales in northern coastal Argentina.

PubMed

Becherucci, Maria Eugenia; Rosenthal, Alan Federico; Seco Pon, Juan Pablo

2017-06-15

Argentina is currently undergoing an intensive development of coastal-oriented tourism due to the temperate climate and coastal sceneries of the Southwestern Atlantic and particularly its wide ocean-open sandy beaches, which may turn into an important contributor of marine debris to the beaches. This study was designed to assess at four spatial scales (i) the variation of the abundance and mass of marine debris and (ii) the composition and sources of these items in sandy-tourist beaches of coastal zones of the province of Buenos Aires, in northern Argentina. The abundance and mass of marine debris shifted between sampling localities (separated by ~1.5×10 5 m) and beaches (~3×10 4 m). Debris was primarily from recreational and fishing activities and over 20mm in size. Tackling the complications associated with marine debris in northern Argentina may include intensive educational and advertising campaigns oriented chiefly to beach users and fisherman. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Isolation of saprophytic Leptospira spp. from a selected environmental water source of Argentina.

PubMed

Scialfa, Exequiel; Grune, Sylvia; Brihuega, Bibiana; Aguirre, Pablo; Rivero, Marina

2017-11-29

Ten Leptospira spp. strains were isolated from water samples from Nievas stream, Olavarría, Buenos Aires province (Argentina). The isolates showed the typical motility and morphology of the genus Leptospira under dark field microscopy, developing in liquid EMJH medium after eight days of incubation at 13°C and 30°C. All isolates were negative by the Multiple Locus Variable Number Tandem Repeat Analysis (MLVA). Molecular identification by 16S rRNA gene sequencing identified all isolates as nonpathogenic leptospires. Four isolates showed a genetic profile identical to that of the reference strain Leptospira biflexa serovar Patoc, and six isolates revealed sequence similarities within the 97-98% range, closely related to Leptospira yanagawae and Leptospira meyeri, respectively. Strains ScialfaASA42, ScialfaASA45, ScialfaASA44, ScialfaASA47, ScialfaASA49, ScialfaASA50 and ScialfaASA51 possibly represent a novel species of the genus Leptospira. Copyright © 2017 Asociación Argentina de Microbiología. Publicado por Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.

Test Report Emission Test Program EPA Information Collection Request for Delayed Coking Units 736 Coker Unit

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

ARI Environmental, Inc. (ARI) was retained by Houston Refining LP (HRO) to conduct an emission test program at their refinery located in Houston, Texas. The testing was conducted on on the 736 Delayed Coking Unit (DCU) in response to EPA's ICR.

Cohort profile: China respiratory illness surveillance among pregnant women (CRISP), 2015-2018.

PubMed

Chen, Liling; Zhou, Suizan; Zhang, Zhongwei; Wang, Yan; Bao, Lin; Tan, Yayun; Sheng, Falin; Song, Ying; Zhang, Ran; Danielle Iuliano, A; Thompson, Mark G; Greene, Carolyn M; Zhang, Jun

2018-04-28

We established the China Respiratory Illness Surveillance among Pregnant women (CRISP) to conduct active surveillance for influenza-associated respiratory illness during pregnancy in China from 2015 to 2018. Among annual cohorts of pregnant women, we assess the incidence of acute respiratory illness (ARI), influenza-like illness (ILI), laboratory-confirmed influenza virus infection and the seroconversion proportion during the winter influenza season. We also plan to examine the effect of influenza virus infection on adverse pregnancy, delivery and infant health outcomes with cumulative data from the three annual cohorts. Cohort nurses enrol pregnant women in different trimesters of pregnancy from prenatal care facilities in Suzhou, Jiangsu Province, eastern China. Pregnant women who plan to deliver in the study facilities are eligible. Pregnant women who are seeking care for anything other than routine prenatal care, such as confirmation of low progesterone and threatened miscarriage, are excluded. At enrolment, study nurses collect baseline information on demographics, education-level attained, underlying medical conditions, seasonal influenza vaccination receipt, risk factors for influenza infection, gravidity and parity and contact information. For each participant, cohort nurses conduct twice weekly follow-up contacts, one phone call and one WeChat message (free instant messaging), from the time of enrolment until delivery or termination of pregnancy. During follow-up, study nurses ask about symptoms, timing and characteristics of ARI, healthcare-seeking behaviour and medications taken for participants reporting respiratory illness since the last contact. In addition, we collect combined nasal and throat swabs for identified ARI to test for influenza viruses. We collect paired sera before and after the influenza season. Active respiratory illness surveillance and seroinfection data during pregnancy of participants are linked to their medical record and the Suzhou Maternal Child Information System for detailed information on clinical treatment for respiratory illness, pregnancy, delivery and infant health outcomes. In 2015-2016, of 4915 pregnant women approached, 192 (4%) refused to participate, 91 (2%) were ineligible because they did not plan to deliver in one of the study hospitals or because their visit was for anything other than routine prenatal care and 4632 (94%) were enrolled, 46% during their first trimester of pregnancy (range 5-12 weeks), 48% during the second trimester (range 13-27 weeks) and 6% during the third trimester (range 28-37 weeks). The median age of the enrollees was 27 years (range 16-45) and two (0.04%, 95% CI 0.01% to 0.17%) reported influenza vaccination in the previous 12 months before pregnancy, while zero reported influenza vaccination in the previous 12 months during pregnancy. During the observation time of 648 518 person-days, 1355 ARI episodes were identified. Among 1127 swabs collected (for 83% of all ARIs), 68 (6%) tested positive for influenza virus, for a laboratory-confirmed influenza incidence of 0.31 (95% CI 0.25 to 0.40) per 100 person-months during pregnancy in the study cohort. Results will be used to describe influenza disease burden in this population to model potential numbers of influenza illnesses averted if influenza vaccination coverage were increased and to support enhanced influenza prevention and control strategies among pregnant women in China. We also plan to enrol and follow three cohorts of pregnant women over three influenza seasons during 2015-2018 which will allow an analysis of the effect of influenza virus infection during pregnancy on adverse pregnancy, delivery and infant outcomes. © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2018. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.

In live interaction, does familiarity promote attraction or contempt? Reply to Norton, Frost, and Ariely (2011).

PubMed

Reis, Harry T; Maniaci, Michael R; Caprariello, Peter A; Eastwick, Paul W; Finkel, Eli J

2011-09-01

In this reply, we address and refute each of Norton, Frost, and Ariely's (see record 2011-18560-001) specific objections to the conclusion that, ceteris paribus, familiarity breeds liking in live interaction. In particular, we reiterate the importance of studying live interaction rather than decontextualized processes. These rebuttals notwithstanding, we concur with Norton et al.'s call for an integrative model that encompasses both Norton, Frost, and Ariely's (see record 2006-23056-008) results and ours (see record 2011-04644-001), and we point readers toward a description of a possible model presented in our original article. PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved.

Correlation of echo-Doppler aortic valve regurgitation index with angiographic aortic regurgitation severity.

PubMed

Chen, Ming; Luo, Huai; Miyamoto, Takashi; Atar, Shaul; Kobal, Sergio; Rahban, Masoud; Brasch, Andrea V; Makkar, Rajendra; Neuman, Yoram; Naqvi, Tasneem Z; Tolstrup, Kirsten; Siegel, Robert J

2003-09-01

We assessed aortic regurgitation (AR) severity by utilizing multiple echo-Doppler variables in comparison with AR severity by aortic root angiography. Patients were divided into 3 groups: mild, moderate, and severe. An AR index (ARI) was developed, comprising 5 echocardiographic parameters: ratio of color AR jet height to left ventricular outlet flow diameter, AR signal density from continuous-wave Doppler, pressure half-time, left ventricular end-diastolic diameter, and aortic root diameter. There was a strong correlation between AR severity by angiography and the calculated echo-Doppler ARI (r = 0.84, p = 0.0001). As validated by aortic angiography, the ARI is an accurate reflection of AR severity.

"Quien Sabe Mas Lucha Mejor": Adult Educators' Care of the Self Practices within Social Movements in Buenos Aires, Argentina

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

O'Donnell, Jennifer Lee

2014-01-01

This article looks at popular adult educators' care of the self practices within social movements in Buenos Aires, Argentina. It answers the following questions: How is popular adult education practiced amongst educators in social movements? What can studying popular adult educators' care of the self practices offer the field of adult education?…

"Zafar," So Good: Middle-Class Students, School Habitus and Secondary Schooling in the City of Buenos Aires (Argentina)

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Meo, Analia Ines

2011-01-01

This article examines how students from the "loser" sections of the middle class dealt with the game of secondary schooling in a "good" state school in the city of Buenos Aires (Argentina). It engages with Bourdieu's theory of social practice and, in particular, with its concepts of game, habitus and cultural capital. It argues…

National Labor Administration and Democracy in Argentina

DTIC Science & Technology

1987-08-01

accompany economic policy and the mdoernization of the productive apparatus; and promoting greater efficiency in the Ministerio de Trabajo y Seguridad Social...Carri, Sindicatos y Poder en la A-gentina. Buenos Aires: Editorial Sudestaba, 1967; R. Rotundaro, Realidad y Cambio en el Sindicalismo. Buenos Aires...Ministry (Ministerio de Trabajo y Sequridad Social) serves as O. lead agency in the national labor relations system, focus on these variables allows

Methodological and Ethical Dilemmas Encountered during Field Research of Family Violence Experienced by Adolescent Women in Buenos Aires

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Luxardo, Natalia; Colombo, Graciela; Iglesias, Gabriela

2011-01-01

The purpose of this article is to examine some obstacles and dilemmas related to methodological strategies and ethical considerations that arose during the fieldwork of research focused on family violence during the stages of pregnancy and childbirth in adolescent females in Buenos Aires during 2007. From this study, we are able to contribute some…

Pandemic (H1N1) 2009 Cases, Buenos Aires, Argentina

PubMed Central

Querci, Marcia; Marcone, Débora; Videla, Cristina; Martínez, Alfredo; Bonvehi, Pablo; Carballal, Guadalupe

2010-01-01

To determine clinical and virologic characteristics of pandemic (H1N1) 2009 in Buenos Aires, Argentina, we conducted real-time reverse transcription–PCR on samples from patients with influenza-like illness, June 11–30, 2009. Of 513 patients tested, 54% were positive for influenza virus subtype H1N1. Infection rate was lowest for patients ≥60 years of age. PMID:20113568

New q-ary quantum MDS codes with distances bigger than q/2

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

He, Xianmang; Xu, Liqing; Chen, Hao

2016-07-01

The construction of quantum MDS codes has been studied by many authors. We refer to the table in page 1482 of (IEEE Trans Inf Theory 61(3):1474-1484, 2015) for known constructions. However, there have been constructed only a few q-ary quantum MDS [[n,n-2d+2,d

Survival of bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis) commingled with domestic sheep (Ovis aries) in the absence of mycoplasma ovipneumoniae.

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

To test the hypothesis that Mycoplasma ovipneumoniae is an important agent of the bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis) pneumonia that has previously inevitably followed experimental commingling with domestic sheep (Ovis aries), we commingled M. ovipneumoniae–free domestic and bighorn sheep (n=4 each). On...

From Undersea to Outer Space: The STS-40 Jellyfish Experiment

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1994-01-01

This is an educational production featuring 'Ari', animated jellyfish who recounts his journey into space. Jellyfish were flown aboard the shuttle to study the effects of microgravity on living organisms. Topics Ari explores are: microgravity, life sciences, similarities between jellyfish and humans, and the life cycle and anatomy of a jellyfish.

The Idea of Infancy and Nineteenth-Century American Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Watras, Joseph

2012-01-01

Writing in 1962, Phillippe Aries argued that an initial step in the movement to establish schools for children in Europe took place during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries when moralists and artists began portraying children as different from adults. According to Aries, the portrayal of childhood as a unique period enabled the family and…

Automatic retinal interest evaluation system (ARIES).

PubMed

Yin, Fengshou; Wong, Damon Wing Kee; Yow, Ai Ping; Lee, Beng Hai; Quan, Ying; Zhang, Zhuo; Gopalakrishnan, Kavitha; Li, Ruoying; Liu, Jiang

2014-01-01

In recent years, there has been increasing interest in the use of automatic computer-based systems for the detection of eye diseases such as glaucoma, age-related macular degeneration and diabetic retinopathy. However, in practice, retinal image quality is a big concern as automatic systems without consideration of degraded image quality will likely generate unreliable results. In this paper, an automatic retinal image quality assessment system (ARIES) is introduced to assess both image quality of the whole image and focal regions of interest. ARIES achieves 99.54% accuracy in distinguishing fundus images from other types of images through a retinal image identification step in a dataset of 35342 images. The system employs high level image quality measures (HIQM) to perform image quality assessment, and achieves areas under curve (AUCs) of 0.958 and 0.987 for whole image and optic disk region respectively in a testing dataset of 370 images. ARIES acts as a form of automatic quality control which ensures good quality images are used for processing, and can also be used to alert operators of poor quality images at the time of acquisition.

Infection Risk for Persons Exposed to Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza A H5 Virus-Infected Birds, United States, December 2014-March 2015.

PubMed

Arriola, Carmen S; Nelson, Deborah I; Deliberto, Thomas J; Blanton, Lenee; Kniss, Krista; Levine, Min Z; Trock, Susan C; Finelli, Lyn; Jhung, Michael A

2015-12-01

Newly emerged highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) A H5 viruses have caused outbreaks among birds in the United States. These viruses differ genetically from HPAI H5 viruses that previously caused human illness, most notably in Asia and Africa. To assess the risk for animal-to-human HPAI H5 virus transmission in the United States, we determined the number of persons with self-reported exposure to infected birds, the number with an acute respiratory infection (ARI) during a 10-day postexposure period, and the number with ARI who tested positive for influenza by real-time reverse transcription PCR or serologic testing for each outbreak during December 15, 2014-March 31, 2015. During 60 outbreaks in 13 states, a total of 164 persons were exposed to infected birds. ARI developed in 5 of these persons within 10 days of exposure. H5 influenza virus infection was not identified in any persons with ARI, suggesting a low risk for animal-to-human HPAI H5 virus transmission.

Experimental evaluation of a new form of M-ary (M = 8) phase shift keying including design of the transmitter and receiver

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Thompson, G. E.

1984-12-01

For transmitting digital information over bandpass channels, M-ary Phase Shift Keying 8(PSK) schemes are used to conserve bandwidth at the expense of signal power. A block of k bits is used to change the phase of the carrier. These k bits represent M possible phase shifts since M = 2. Common forms of M-ary PSK use equally spaced phase angles. For example, if M = 8 and k=3, 8-ary PSK uses eight phase angles spaced 45 degrees apart. This thesis considers a hybrid form of PSK when M = 8 and k = 3. Each of eight blocks of data with three bits per block are represented by different phase shifts of the carrier. The phase angles are chosen to give an equal distance between states (symbols) when projected onto the sine axis and the cosine axis of a phasor diagram. Thus, when the three bits are recovered, using two coherent phase detectors, the separation of the decision regions (voltage levels) are equal.

Being Irrationally Funny as a Cognitive Psychologist: Interview With Dan Ariely.

PubMed

Ariely, Dan; Popescu, Beatrice

2015-11-01

The idea of interviewing Dan Ariely was somehow latent on my mind since I started being interested in cognitive psychology and cognitive behavior psychotherapy, but actually got more ardent ever since irrationality became a research topic for his team at Duke University. I picked him as an interviewee thinking not only at his exceptional skills as a researcher and as Kahnemann 'disciple', but mainly for his fantastic wit, true modesty and utmost interest in making people's lives easier and more comfortable, by creating awareness on a lot of topics otherwise neglected. Dan Ariely's very agreeable personality and humor would not let you think of him as a burnt casualty who, in his youth struggled to survive a personal drama, so well-documented in his paper "Painful lessons" posted on the MIT website (http://web.mit.edu/ariely/www/MIT/Papers/mypain.pdf). I think reading his paper and also this transcribed interview with him would be also comforting for people who found out about Bucharest fire incident that rocked our society and also for people who are personally related to this tragedy.

Changes in cerebral autoregulation in the second half of pregnancy and compared to non-pregnant controls.

PubMed

van Veen, Teelkien R; Panerai, Ronney B; Haeri, Sina; van den Berg, Paul P; Zeeman, Gerda G; Belfort, Michael A

2016-10-01

The mechanism by which pregnancy affects the cerebral circulation is unknown, but it has a central role in the development of neurological complications in preeclampsia, which is believed to be related to impaired autoregulation. We evaluated the cerebral autoregulation in the second half of pregnancy, and compared this with a control group of healthy, fertile non-pregnant women. In a prospective cohort analysis, cerebral blood flow velocity of the middle cerebral artery (determined by transcranial Doppler), blood pressure (noninvasive arterial volume clamping), and end-tidal carbon dioxide (EtCO2) were simultaneously collected for 7min. The autoregulation index (ARI) was calculated. ARI values of 0 and 9 indicated absent and perfect autoregulation, respectively. ANOVA and Pearson's correlation coefficient were used, with p<0.05 considered significant. A total of 76 pregnant and 18 non-pregnant women were included. The ARI did not change during pregnancy, but pregnant women had a significantly higher ARI than non-pregnant controls (ARI 6.7±0.9 vs. 5.3±1.4, p<0.001). This remained significant after adjusting for EtCO2 (p<0.001). Cerebral autoregulation functionality is enhanced in the second half of pregnancy, when compared to non-pregnant fertile women, even after controlling for EtCO2. The autoregulation does not change with advancing gestational age. Copyright © 2016 International Society for the Study of Hypertension in Pregnancy. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Predictive factors of overall functioning improvement in patients with chronic schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder treated with paliperidone palmitate and aripiprazole monohydrate.

PubMed

Girardi, Paolo; Del Casale, Antonio; Rapinesi, Chiara; Kotzalidis, Georgios D; Splendori, Francesca; Verzura, Claudio; Trovini, Giada; Sorice, Serena; Carrus, Dario; Mancinelli, Iginia; Comparelli, Anna; De Filippis, Sergio; Francomano, Antonio; Ballerini, Andrea; Marcellusi, Andrea; Mennini, Francesco S; Ducci, Giuseppe; Sani, Gabriele; Pompili, Maurizio; Brugnoli, Roberto

2018-05-01

Long-acting injectable (LAI) antipsychotics can improve medication adherence and reduce hospitalisation rates compared with oral treatments. Paliperidone palmitate (PAL) and aripiprazole monohydrate (ARI) LAI treatments were associated with improvements in global functioning in patients with schizophrenia. The objective of this study was to assess the predictive factors of better overall functioning in patients with chronic schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder treated with PAL and ARI. Enrolled were 143 (97 males, 46 females, mean age 38.24 years, SD = 12.65) patients with a diagnosis of schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder, whom we allocated in two groups (PAL and ARI treatments). We assessed global functioning, amount of oral medications, adherence to oral treatment, and number of hospitalisations before LAI introduction and at assessment time point. Longer treatment time with LAIs (p < .001), lower number of oral drugs (p < .001), and hospitalisations (p = .002) before LAI introduction, and shorter duration of illness (p = .038) predicted better Global Assessment of Functioning scores in the whole sample (R 2  = 0.337). Early administration and longer duration of ARI or PAL treatments could play a significant role in improving global functioning of patients with schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder. Better improvement in functioning could be achieved with ARI in young individuals with recent illness onset and PAL in patients at risk for recurrent hospitalisations. Copyright © 2018 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Aldose reductase enzyme and its implication to major health problems of the 21(st) century.

PubMed

Alexiou, Polyxeni; Pegklidou, Kyriaki; Chatzopoulou, Maria; Nicolaou, Ioannis; Demopoulos, Vassilis J

2009-01-01

Aldose reductase enzyme (ALR2) of the polyol metabolic pathway, apart from its role as detoxifying enzyme towards toxic aldehydes, osmoregulator in the kidney and regulator of sperm maturation, was first found to be implicated in the etiology of the long term diabetic complications. However, to date, emerging reports have suggested that under normal glucose concentration, ALR2 may be up-regulated by factors other than hyperglycemia and therefore be involved also in other pathological processes that have become major threats to human health in the 21(st) century. Such pathologies are a number of cardiac disorders, inflammation, mood disorders, renal insufficiency and ovarian abnormalities. In addition, ALR2 was found to be over-expressed in different human cancers such as liver, breast, ovarian, cervical and rectal cancers. Although several aldose reductase inhibitors (ARIs) have progressed to the clinical level, only one is currently on the market. Thus, attention is currently targeted to discover ARIs of distinct chemical structures, being neither hydantoin nor carboxylic acid derivatives. The present review focuses on the molecular mechanisms by which ALR2 is implicated in a number of pathologies, on various aspects concerning its catalytic mechanism and its active site, and on the main classes of ARIs that have been developed to date, as well as on reported (quantitive) structure-activity relationships. The presented data aim to support the notion that ARIs are of pharmacotherapeutic interest for the pharmaceutical community and highlight essential aspects for the development of efficient and potent ARIs.

Pitfalls in interpretation of CT-values of RT-PCR in children with acute respiratory tract infections.

PubMed

Wishaupt, Jérôme O; Ploeg, Tjeerd van der; Smeets, Leo C; Groot, Ronald de; Versteegh, Florens G A; Hartwig, Nico G

2017-05-01

The relation between viral load and disease severity in childhood acute respiratory tract infections (ARI) is not fully understood. To assess the clinical relevance of the relation between viral load, determined by cycle threshold (CT) value of real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction assays and disease severity in children with single- and multiple viral ARI. 582 children with ARI were prospectively followed and tested for 15 viruses. Correlations were calculated between CT values and clinical parameters. In single viral ARI, statistically significant correlations were found between viral loads of Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) and hospitalization and between viral loads of Human Coronavirus (HCoV) and a disease severity score. In multiple-viral ARI, statistically significant correlations between viral load and clinical parameters were found. In RSV-Rhinovirus (RV) multiple infections, a low viral load of RV was correlated with a high length of hospital stay and a high duration of extra oxygen use. The mean CT value for RV, HCoV and Parainfluenza virus was significantly lower in single- versus multiple infections. Although correlations between CT values and clinical parameters in patients with single and multiple viral infection were found, the clinical importance of these findings is limited because individual differences in host-, viral and laboratory factors complicate the interpretation of statistically significant findings. In multiple infections, viral load cannot be used to differentiate between disease causing virus and innocent bystanders. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Associations between presence of handwashing stations and soap in the home and diarrhoea and respiratory illness, in children less than five years old in rural western Kenya

PubMed Central

Kamm, K. B.; Feikin, D. R.; Bigogo, G. M.; Aol, G.; Audi, A.; Cohen, A. L.; Shah, M. M.; Yu, J.; Breiman, R. F.; Ram, P. K.

2015-01-01

OBJECTIVE We tested whether soap presence in the home or a designated handwashing station was associated with diarrhoea and respiratory illness in Kenya. METHODS In April 2009, we observed presence of a handwashing station and soap in households participating in a longitudinal health surveillance system in rural Kenya. Diarrhoea and acute respiratory illness (ARI) in children < 5 years old were identified using parent-reported syndromic surveillance collected January–April 2009. We used multivariate generalised linear regression to estimate differences in prevalence of illness between households with and without the presence of soap in the home and a handwashing station. RESULTS Among 2547 children, prevalence of diarrhoea and ARI was 2.3 and 11.4 days per 100 child-days, respectively. Soap was observed in 97% of households. Children in households with soap had 1.3 fewer days of diarrhoea/100 child-days (95% CI −2.6, −0.1) than children in households without soap. ARI prevalence was not associated with presence of soap. A handwashing station was identified in 1.4% of households and was not associated with a difference in diarrhoea or ARI prevalence. CONCLUSIONS Soap presence in the home was significantly associated with reduced diarrhoea, but not ARI, in children in rural western Kenya. Whereas most households had soap in the home, almost none had a designated handwashing station, which may prevent handwashing at key times of hand contamination. PMID:24405627

Infectious disease frequency among evacuees at shelters after the great eastern Japan earthquake and tsunami: a retrospective study.

PubMed

Kawano, Takahisa; Hasegawa, Kohei; Watase, Hiroko; Morita, Hiroshi; Yamamura, Osamu

2014-02-01

After the Great Eastern Japan Earthquake and tsunami, the World Health Organization cautioned that evacuees at shelters would be at increased risk of infectious disease transmission; however, the frequency that occurred in this population was not known. We reviewed medical charts of evacuees who visited medical clinics at 6 shelters from March 19, to April 8, 2011. Excluded were patients who did not reside within the shelters or whose medical records lacked a name or date. We investigated the frequency of and cumulative incidences of acute respiratory infection [ARI], acute gastroenteritis, acute jaundice syndrome, scabies, measles, pertussis, and tetanus. Of 1364 patients who visited 6 shelter clinics, 1167 patients (86.1%) were eligible for the study. The median total number of evacuees was 2545 (interquartile range [IQR], 2277-3009). ARI was the most common infectious disease; the median number of patients with ARI was 168.8 per week per 1000 evacuees (IQR, 64.5-186.1). Acute gastroenteritis was the second most common; the median number of patients was 23.7 per week per 1000 evacuees (IQR, 5.1-24.3). No other infectious diseases were observed. The median cumulative incidence of ARI per 1000 evacuees in each shelter was 13.1 person-days (IQR, 8.5-18.8). The median cumulative incidence of gastroenteritis was 1.6 person-days (IQR, 0.3-3.4). After the Great Eastern Japan Earthquake and tsunami, outbreaks of ARI and acute gastroenteritis occurred in evacuation shelters.

Associations between presence of handwashing stations and soap in the home and diarrhoea and respiratory illness, in children less than five years old in rural western Kenya.

PubMed

Kamm, K B; Feikin, D R; Bigogo, G M; Aol, G; Audi, A; Cohen, A L; Shah, M M; Yu, J; Breiman, R F; Ram, P K

2014-04-01

We tested whether soap presence in the home or a designated handwashing station was associated with diarrhoea and respiratory illness in Kenya. In April 2009, we observed presence of a handwashing station and soap in households participating in a longitudinal health surveillance system in rural Kenya. Diarrhoea and acute respiratory illness (ARI) in children < 5 years old were identified using parent-reported syndromic surveillance collected January-April 2009. We used multivariate generalised linear regression to estimate differences in prevalence of illness between households with and without the presence of soap in the home and a handwashing station. Among 2547 children, prevalence of diarrhoea and ARI was 2.3 and 11.4 days per 100 child-days, respectively. Soap was observed in 97% of households. Children in households with soap had 1.3 fewer days of diarrhoea/100 child-days (95% CI -2.6, -0.1) than children in households without soap. ARI prevalence was not associated with presence of soap. A handwashing station was identified in 1.4% of households and was not associated with a difference in diarrhoea or ARI prevalence. Soap presence in the home was significantly associated with reduced diarrhoea, but not ARI, in children in rural western Kenya. Whereas most households had soap in the home, almost none had a designated handwashing station, which may prevent handwashing at key times of hand contamination. © 2014 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Meditation or Exercise for Preventing Acute Respiratory Infection: A Randomized Controlled Trial

PubMed Central

Barrett, Bruce; Hayney, Mary S.; Muller, Daniel; Rakel, David; Ward, Ann; Obasi, Chidi N.; Brown, Roger; Zhang, Zhengjun; Zgierska, Aleksandra; Gern, James; West, Rebecca; Ewers, Tola; Barlow, Shari; Gassman, Michele; Coe, Christopher L.

2012-01-01

PURPOSE This study was designed to evaluate potential preventive effects of meditation or exercise on incidence, duration, and severity of acute respiratory infection (ARI) illness. METHODS Community-recruited adults aged 50 years and older were randomized to 1 of 3 study groups: 8-week training in mindfulness meditation, matched 8-week training in moderate-intensity sustained exercise, or observational control. The primary outcome was area-under-the-curve global illness severity during a single cold and influenza season, using the Wisconsin Upper Respiratory Symptom Survey (WURSS-24) to assess severity. Health care visits and days of missed work were counted. Nasal wash collected during ARI illness was assayed for neutrophils, interleukin-8, and viral nucleic acid. RESULTS Of 154 adults randomized into the study, 149 completed the trial (82% female, 94% white, mean age 59.3 ± 6.6 years). There were 27 ARI episodes and 257 days of ARI illness in the meditation group (n = 51), 26 episodes and 241 illness days in the exercise group (n = 47), and 40 episodes and 453 days in the control group (n = 51). Mean global severity was 144 for meditation, 248 for exercise, and 358 for control. Compared with control, global severity was significantly lower for meditation (P = .004). Both global severity and total days of illness (duration) trended toward being lower for the exercise group (P=.16 and P=.032, respectively), as did illness duration for the meditation group (P=.034). Adjusting for covariates using zero-inflated multivariate regression models gave similar results. There were 67 ARI-related days of-work missed in the control group, 32 in the exercise group (P = .041), and 16 in the meditation group (P <.001). Health care visits did not differ significantly. Viruses were identified in 54% of samples from meditation, 42% from exercise, and 54% from control groups. Neutrophil count and interleukin-8 levels were similar among intervention groups. CONCLUSIONS Training in meditation or exercise may be effective in reducing ARI illness burden. PMID:22778122

Does Measles Vaccination Reduce the Risk of Acute Respiratory Infection (ARI) and Diarrhea in Children: A Multi-Country Study?

PubMed

Bawankule, Rahul; Singh, Abhishek; Kumar, Kaushalendra; Shetye, Sadanand

2017-01-01

Pneumonia and diarrhea occur either as complications or secondary infections in measles affected children. So, the integrated Global Action Plan for Pneumonia and Diarrhea (GAPPD) by WHO and UNICEF includes measles vaccination as preventive measure in children. The objective of the study is to examine the effect of measles vaccination on Acute Respiratory Infection (ARI) and diarrhea in children in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, India, Nigeria, and Pakistan. We analyzed data from the most recent rounds of Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) in the selected countries. We included children age 12-59 months in the analysis. We used multivariable binary logistic regression to examine the effect of measles vaccination on ARI and diarrhea in children. We also estimated Vaccination Effectiveness (VE). More than 60 percent of the children age 12-59 months were given measles vaccine before the survey in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, India and Pakistan. Children who were given the measles vaccine were less likely to suffer from ARI than unvaccinated children in India and Pakistan. Children who were given the measles vaccine had a lower risk of diarrhea than those who did not receive it in all the selected countries except Ethiopia. Measles vaccination was associated with reduction in ARI cases by 15-30 percent in India and Pakistan, and diarrhea cases by 12-22 percent in the Democratic Republic of Congo, India, Nigeria and Pakistan. The receipt of the measles vaccine was associated with decrease in ARI and diarrhea in children. The immunization program must ensure that each child gets the recommended doses of measles vaccine at the appropriate age. The measles vaccination should be given more attention as a preventive intervention under the Global Action Plan for Pneumonia and Diarrhea (GAPPD) in all low and middle-income countries.

Automated processing, extraction and detection of herpes simplex virus types 1 and 2: A comparative evaluation of three commercial platforms using clinical specimens.

PubMed

Binnicker, Matthew J; Espy, Mark J; Duresko, Brian; Irish, Cole; Mandrekar, Jay

2017-04-01

Recently, automated platforms have been developed that can perform processing, extraction and testing for herpes simplex virus (HSV) nucleic acid on a single instrument. In this study, we compared three commercially-available systems; Aptima ® /Panther (Hologic, San Diego, CA), ARIES ® (Luminex Corporation, Austin, TX), and cobas ® 4800 (Roche Molecular Systems Inc, Pleasanton, CA) for the qualitative detection of HSV-1/2 in clinical samples. Two-hundred seventy-seven specimens (genital [n=193], dermal [n=84]) were submitted for routine HSV-1/2 real-time PCR by a laboratory developed test. Following routine testing, samples were also tested by the Aptima, ARIES, and cobas HSV-1/2 assays per the manufacturer's recommendations. Results were compared to a "consensus standard" defined as the result obtained from ≥3 of the 4 assays. Following testing of 277 specimens, the cobas and ARIES assays demonstrated a sensitivity of 100% for HSV-1 (61/61) and HSV-2 (55/55). The Aptima assays showed a sensitivity of 91.8% (56/61) for HSV-1 and 90.9% (50/55) for HSV-2. Percent specificities for HSV-1 were 96.2% (202/210) by cobas, 99.5% (209/210) by ARIES and 100% (236/236) by Aptima. For HSV-2, the specificities were 98.1% (211/215) by cobas, 99.5% (215/216) by ARIES and 100% (216/216) by Aptima. The turnaround time for testing 24 samples was 2.5h by the cobas 4800, 3.1h by Aptima/Panther, and 3.9h by ARIES. The three commercial systems can perform all current functions on a single platform, thereby improving workflow and potentially reducing errors associated with manual processing of samples. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Comparison of the prevalence of respiratory viruses in patients with acute respiratory infections at different hospital settings in North China, 2012-2015.

PubMed

Yu, Jianxing; Xie, Zhengde; Zhang, Tiegang; Lu, Yanqin; Fan, Hongwei; Yang, Donghong; Bénet, Thomas; Vanhems, Philippe; Shen, Kunling; Huang, Fang; Han, Jinxiang; Li, Taisheng; Gao, Zhancheng; Ren, Lili; Wang, Jianwei

2018-02-08

Acute respiratory infections (ARIs) are a great public health challenge globally. The prevalence of respiratory viruses in patients with ARIs attending at different hospital settings is fully undetermined. Laboratory-based surveillance for ARIs was conducted at inpatient and outpatient settings of 11 hospitals in North China. The first 2-5 patients with ARIs were recruited in each hospital weekly from 2012 through 2015. The presence of respiratory viruses was screened by PCR assays. The prevalence of respiratory viruses was determined and compared between patients at different hospital settings. A total of 3487 hospitalized cases and 6437 outpatients/Emergency Department (ED) patients were enrolled. The most commonly detected viruses in the hospitalized cases were respiratory syncytial virus (RSV, 33.3%) in children less than two years old, adenoviruses (13.0%) in patients 15-34 years old, and influenza viruses (IFVs, 9.6%) in patients ≥65 years. IFVs were the most common virus in outpatient/ED patients across all age groups (22.7%). After controlling for the confounders caused by other viruses and covariates, adenoviruses (adjusted odds ratio [aOR]: 3.97, 99% confidence interval [99% CI]: 2.19-7.20) and RSV (aOR: 2.04, 99% CI: 1.34-3.11) were independently associated with increased hospitalization in children, as well as adenoviruses in adults (aOR: 2.14, 99% CI: 1.19-3.85). Additionally, co-infection of RSV with IFVs was associated with increased hospitalization in children (aOR: 12.20, 99% CI: 2.65-56.18). A substantial proportion of ARIs was associated with respiratory viruses in North China. RSV, adenoviruses, and co-infection of RSV and IFVs were more frequent in hospitalized children (or adenoviruses in adults), which might predict the severity of ARIs. Attending clinicians should be more vigilant of these infections.

Characteristics and respiratory risk profile of children aged less than 5 years presenting to an urban, Aboriginal-friendly, comprehensive primary health practice in Australia.

PubMed

Hall, Kerry K; Chang, Anne B; Anderson, Jennie; Dunbar, Melissa; Arnold, Daniel; O'Grady, Kerry-Ann F

2017-07-01

There are no published data on factors impacting on acute respiratory illness (ARI) among urban Indigenous children. We describe the characteristics and respiratory risk profile of young urban Indigenous children attending an Aboriginal-friendly primary health-care practice. We conducted a cross-sectional analysis of data collected at baseline in a cohort study investigating ARI in urban Indigenous children aged less than 5 years registered with an Aboriginal primary health-care service. Descriptive analyses of epidemiological, clinical, environmental and cultural factors were performed. Logistic regression was undertaken to examine associations between child characteristics and the presence of ARI at baseline. Between February 2013 and October 2015, 180 Indigenous children were enrolled; the median age was 18.4 months (7.7-35), 51% were male. A total of 40 (22%) children presented for a cough-related illness; however, ARI was identified in 33% of all children at the time of enrolment. A total of 72% of children were exposed to environmental tobacco smoke. ARI at baseline was associated with low birthweight (adjusted odds ratio (aOR) 2.54, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.08-5.94), a history of eczema (aOR 2.67, 95% CI 1.00-7.15) and either having a family member from the Stolen Generation (aOR 3.47, 95% CI 1.33-9.03) or not knowing this family history (aOR 3.35, 95% CI 1.21-9.26). We identified an urban community of children of high socio-economic disadvantage and who have excessive exposure to environmental tobacco smoke. Connection to the Stolen Generation or not knowing the family history may be directly impacting on child health in this community. Further research is needed to understand the relationship between cultural factors and ARI. © 2017 Paediatrics and Child Health Division (The Royal Australasian College of Physicians).

The Moral Dimension of Class and Gender Identity-Making: Poverty and Aggression in a Secondary School in the City of Buenos Aires

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Meo, Analia Ines

2011-01-01

This paper presents some results of a qualitative study carried out in a secondary school in the city of Buenos Aires (Argentina). It examines how two students from poor families responded to, and viewed, aggression by peers at their school. This paper argues that the examination of students' narratives about aggression (based on classism and…

Reading for All; Proceedings of the IRA (International Reading Association) World Congress on Reading (4th, Buenos Aires, Argentina, August 3-5, 1972).

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Karlin, Robert, Ed.

This book contains papers presented at the Fourth International Reading Association World Congress on Reading in Buenos Aires, Argentina, in August 1972. The contents of the book are divided into three parts: "Literacy and Literature" includes papers on libraries, books, and reading by Jorge Borges, the future of reading by Theodore Harris, the…

[Comparison of the prevalence of molar incisor hypomineralization among children with different health care coverage in the cities of Buenos Aires (Argentina) and Montevideo (Uruguay)].

PubMed

López Jordi, María del Carmen; Cortese, Silvina G; Álvarez, Licet; Salveraglio, Inés; Ortolani, Andrea M; Biondi, Ana M

2014-08-01

The aim of this study was to compare the prevalence of molar incisor hypomineralization (MIH) among children with different health care coverage in Buenos Aires and Montevideo. An observational, cross-sectional and descriptive study was designed, considering children born from 1993-2003 who were seen in the Chairs of Comprehensive Children's Dentistry (Universidad de Buenos Aires) and of Pediatric Dentistry (Universidad de la República) and at five private dental offices between April and December 2010. Two groups were defined: A (Buenos Aires; n=1,090) and B (Montevideo; n=626). The clinical diagnosis was carried out with calibrated examiners (Kappa: 0.94) using the Mathu-Muju and Wright criteria. The prevalence of MIH was found to be 16.1% in A and 12.3% in B (p=0.03), with statistically significant differences between the public and private care sectors in both groups (A p=0.0008; B p=0.0004) and a positive correlation between MIH and year of birth (A p=0.001; B p=0.005). The results show that MIH is an emerging pathology and that MIH prevalence is related to year of birth and access to health care.

Digital Collaboration and Classroom Practice Educator Use of ARIS Connect. Technical Appendices

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Siman, Nina; Goldenberg, Shifra M.; Gold, Thomas

2014-01-01

A major focus of the booming education technology sector is on products that aim to help teachers improve classroom practice. For their part, districts must figure out which of these resources will be most useful to schools. In New York City, the Department of Education developed its own Achievement Reporting and Innovation System (ARIS), which…

Digital Collaboration and Classroom Practice: Educator Use of ARIS Connect. Brief

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Siman, Nina; Goldenberg, Shifra M.; Gold, Thomas

2014-01-01

A major focus of the booming education technology sector is on products that aim to help teachers improve classroom practice. For their part, districts must figure out which of these resources will be most useful to schools. In New York City, the Department of Education developed its own Achievement Reporting and Innovation System (ARIS), which…

Astronomy Resources for Intercurricular Elementary Science (ARIES): Exploring Motion and Forces. What Works Clearinghouse Intervention Report

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

What Works Clearinghouse, 2012

2012-01-01

"ARIES: Exploring Motion and Forces" is a physical science curriculum for students in grades 5-8 that employs 18 inquiry-centered, hands-on lessons called "explorations." The curriculum draws upon students' curiosity to explore phenomena, allowing for a discovery-based learning process. Group-centered lab work is designed to…

Operation ARIES!: Methods, Mystery, and Mixed Models: Discourse Features Predict Affect in a Serious Game

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Forsyth, Carol M.; Graesser, Arthur C.; Pavlik, Philip, Jr.; Cai, Zhiqiang; Butler, Heather; Halpern, Diane; Millis, Keith

2013-01-01

Operation ARIES! is an Intelligent Tutoring System that is designed to teach scientific methodology in a game-like atmosphere. A fundamental goal of this serious game is to engage students during learning through natural language tutorial conversations. A tight integration of cognition, discourse, motivation, and affect is desired to meet this…

Self-Collected Nasal Swabs for Respiratory Virus Surveillance

PubMed Central

Jackson, Michael L.; Nguyen, Matthew; Kirlin, Beth; Madziwa, Lawrence

2015-01-01

We tested whether 135 patients reporting acute respiratory illness (ARI) could self-collect nasal swab specimens and ship them for laboratory testing. Most subjects (78.2%) collected and shipped their specimens without errors; 10.5% excluded ≥1 packing components; 12.9% made ≥1 packing errors. Self-swabbing at home is feasible for confirming ARI etiology. PMID:26613095

Prosodic Transfer in Learner and Contact Varieties: Speech Rhythm and Intonation of Buenos Aires Spanish and L2 Castilian Spanish Produced by Italian Native Speakers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gabriel, Christoph; Kireva, Elena

2014-01-01

A remarkable example of Spanish-Italian contact is the Spanish variety spoken in Buenos Aires (Porteño), which is said to be prosodically "Italianized" due to migration-induced contact. The change in Porteño prosody has been interpreted as a result of transfer from the first language (L1) that occurred when Italian immigrants learned…

3D Neutronic Analysis in MHD Calculations at ARIES-ST Fusion Reactors Systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hançerliogulları, Aybaba; Cini, Mesut

2013-10-01

In this study, we developed new models for liquid wall (FW) state at ARIES-ST fusion reactor systems. ARIES-ST is a 1,000 MWe fusion reactor system based on a low aspect ratio ST plasma. In this article, we analyzed the characteristic properties of magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) and heat transfer conditions by using Monte-Carlo simulation methods (ARIES Team et al. in Fusion Eng Des 49-50:689-695, 2000; Tillack et al. in Fusion Eng Des 65:215-261, 2003) . In fusion applications, liquid metals are traditionally considered to be the best working fluids. The working liquid must be a lithium-containing medium in order to provide adequate tritium that the plasma is self-sustained and that the fusion is a renewable energy source. As for Flibe free surface flows, the MHD effects caused by interaction with the mean flow is negligible, while a fairly uniform flow of thick can be maintained throughout the reactor based on 3-D MHD calculations. In this study, neutronic parameters, that is to say, energy multiplication factor radiation, heat flux and fissile fuel breeding were researched for fusion reactor with various thorium and uranium molten salts. Sufficient tritium amount is needed for the reactor to work itself. In the tritium breeding ratio (TBR) >1.05 ARIES-ST fusion model TBR is >1.1 so that tritium self-sufficiency is maintained for DT fusion systems (Starke et al. in Fusion Energ Des 84:1794-1798, 2009; Najmabadi et al. in Fusion Energ Des 80:3-23, 2006).

Central vs. peripheral neuraxial sympathetic control of porcine ventricular electrophysiology

PubMed Central

Yamakawa, Kentaro; Howard-Quijano, Kimberly; Zhou, Wei; Rajendran, Pradeep; Yagishita, Daigo; Vaseghi, Marmar; Ajijola, Olujimi A.; Armour, J. Andrew; Shivkumar, Kalyanam; Ardell, Jeffrey L.

2015-01-01

Sympathoexcitation is associated with ventricular arrhythmogenesis. The aim of this study was to determine the role of thoracic dorsal root afferent neural inputs to the spinal cord in modulating ventricular sympathetic control of normal heart electrophysiology. We hypothesize that dorsal root afferent input tonically modulates basal and evoked efferent sympathetic control of the heart. A 56-electrode sock placed on the epicardial ventricle in anesthetized Yorkshire pigs (n = 17) recorded electrophysiological function, as well as activation recovery interval (ARI) and dispersion in ARI, at baseline conditions and during stellate ganglion electrical stimulation. Measures were compared between intact states and sequential unilateral T1–T4 dorsal root transection (DRTx), ipsilateral ventral root transection (VRTx), and contralateral dorsal and ventral root transections (DVRTx). Left or right DRTx decreased global basal ARI [Lt.DRTx: 369 ± 12 to 319 ± 13 ms (P < 0.01) and Rt.DRTx: 388 ± 19 to 356 ± 15 ms (P < 0.01)]. Subsequent unilateral VRTx followed by contralateral DRx+VRTx induced no further change. In intact states, left and right stellate ganglion stimulation shortened ARIs (6 ± 2% vs. 17 ± 3%), while increasing dispersion (+139% vs. +88%). There was no difference in magnitude of ARI or dispersion change with stellate stimulation following spinal root transections. Interruption of thoracic spinal afferent signaling results in enhanced basal cardiac sympathoexcitability without diminishing the sympathetic response to stellate ganglion stimulation. This suggests spinal dorsal root transection releases spinal cord-mediated tonic inhibitory control of efferent sympathetic tone, while maintaining intrathoracic cardiocentric neural networks. PMID:26661096

Phytochemical profile, aldose reductase inhibitory, and antioxidant activities of Indian traditional medicinal Coccinia grandis (L.) fruit extract.

PubMed

Kondhare, Dasharath; Lade, Harshad

2017-12-01

Coccinia grandis (L.) fruits (CGFs) are commonly used for culinary purposes and has several therapeutic applications in the Southeast Asia. The aim of this work was to evaluate phytochemical profile, aldose reductase inhibitory (ARI), and antioxidant activities of CGF extract. The CGFs were extracted with different solvents including petroleum ether, dichloromethane, acetone, methanol, and water. The highest yield of total extractable compounds (34.82%) and phenolic content (11.7 ± 0.43 mg of GAE/g dried extract) was found in methanol extract, whereas water extract showed the maximum content of total flavonoids (82.8 ± 7.8 mg QE/g dried extract). Gas chromatography-mass spectroscopy (GC-MS) analysis of methanol and water extract revealed the presence of flavonoids, phenolic compounds, alkaloids, and glycosides in the CGFs. Results of the in vitro ARI activity against partially purified bovine lens aldose reductase showed that methanol extract of CGFs exhibited 96.6% ARI activity at IC 50 value 6.12 µg/mL followed by water extract 89.1% with the IC 50 value 6.50 µg/mL. In addition, methanol and water extracts of CGF showed strong antioxidant activities including ABTS *+ scavenging, DPPH* scavenging, and hydroxyl radical scavenging. Our results suggest that high percentage of both flavonoids and phenolic contents in the CGFs are correlated with the ARI and antioxidant activities. The fruits of C. grandis are thus potential bifunctional agents with ARI and antioxidant activities that can be used for the prevention and management of DM and associated diseases.

Quantum displacement receiver for M-ary phase-shift-keyed coherent states

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Izumi, Shuro; Takeoka, Masahiro; Fujiwara, Mikio

2014-12-04

We propose quantum receivers for 3- and 4-ary phase-shift-keyed (PSK) coherent state signals to overcome the standard quantum limit (SQL). Our receiver, consisting of a displacement operation and on-off detectors with or without feedforward, provides an error probability performance beyond the SQL. We show feedforward operations can tolerate the requirement for the detector specifications.

Learning Physical Science through Astronomy Activities: A Comparison between Constructivist and Traditional Approaches in Grades 3-6

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ward, R. Bruce; Sadler, Philip M.; Shapiro, Irwin I.

2008-01-01

We report on an evaluation of the effectiveness of Project ARIES, an astronomy-based physical science curriculum for upper elementary and middle school children. ARIES students use innovative, simple, and affordable apparatus to carry out a wide range of indoor and outdoor hands-on, discovery-based activities. Student journals and comprehensive…

Impact of Infection Prevention and Control Initiatives on Acute Respiratory Infections in a Pediatric Long-Term Care Facility

PubMed Central

Murray, Meghan T.; Jackson, Olivia; Cohen, Bevin; Hutcheon, Gordon; Saiman, Lisa; Larson, Elaine; Neu, Natalie

2016-01-01

We evaluated the collective impact of several infection prevention and control initiatives aimed at reducing acute respiratory infections (ARIs) in a pediatric long-term care facility. ARIs did not decrease overall, though the proportion of infections associated with outbreaks and average number of cases per outbreak decreased. Influenza rates decreased significantly. PMID:27053088

Receiver Architecture for 12.5 Gb/s 16-ary Pulse Position Modulation (PPM) Signaling

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Mendez, A J; Gagliardi, R M; Hernandez, V J

2008-07-11

PPM is a signaling scheme that enables the transmission of multiple bits per symbol [1]. It has found favor in the regime of free space optical communications ('FSO' or 'Lasercom'); however, PPM has yet to be widely applied to fiber optic-based communications. Its limitation in fiber results from the exceedingly high bandwidth requirements needed to electronically process a directly detected pulse, especially as the symbol rate increases and the pulse width correspondingly decreases. As a solution, we introduced the concept of a virtual quadrant receiver for receiving 1.25 Gb/s 4-ary PPM, where photonic processing reduced the number of required electronicmore » components [2]. In this paper, we extend these photonic process techniques to a 16-ary, 12.5 Gb/s (10 Gb/s plus 8B/10B line coding) PPM communications system for fiber optic avionics, wherein much of the receiver processing is enabled by techniques based on planar lightwave circuits (PLCs). The architecture is applicable to higher input data rates and M-ary PPM. In the following, we present the PPM encoding and decoding architectures and numerically simulated results.« less

Evaluation of reliability modeling tools for advanced fault tolerant systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Baker, Robert; Scheper, Charlotte

1986-01-01

The Computer Aided Reliability Estimation (CARE III) and Automated Reliability Interactice Estimation System (ARIES 82) reliability tools for application to advanced fault tolerance aerospace systems were evaluated. To determine reliability modeling requirements, the evaluation focused on the Draper Laboratories' Advanced Information Processing System (AIPS) architecture as an example architecture for fault tolerance aerospace systems. Advantages and limitations were identified for each reliability evaluation tool. The CARE III program was designed primarily for analyzing ultrareliable flight control systems. The ARIES 82 program's primary use was to support university research and teaching. Both CARE III and ARIES 82 were not suited for determining the reliability of complex nodal networks of the type used to interconnect processing sites in the AIPS architecture. It was concluded that ARIES was not suitable for modeling advanced fault tolerant systems. It was further concluded that subject to some limitations (the difficulty in modeling systems with unpowered spare modules, systems where equipment maintenance must be considered, systems where failure depends on the sequence in which faults occurred, and systems where multiple faults greater than a double near coincident faults must be considered), CARE III is best suited for evaluating the reliability of advanced tolerant systems for air transport.

Optimal design of studies of influenza transmission in households. II: comparison between cohort and case-ascertained studies.

PubMed

Klick, B; Nishiura, H; Leung, G M; Cowling, B J

2014-04-01

Both case-ascertained household studies, in which households are recruited after an 'index case' is identified, and household cohort studies, where a household is enrolled before the start of the epidemic, may be used to test and estimate the protective effect of interventions used to prevent influenza transmission. A simulation approach parameterized with empirical data from household studies was used to evaluate and compare the statistical power of four study designs: a cohort study with routine virological testing of household contacts of infected index case, a cohort study where only household contacts with acute respiratory illness (ARI) are sampled for virological testing, a case-ascertained study with routine virological testing of household contacts, and a case-ascertained study where only household contacts with ARI are sampled for virological testing. We found that a case-ascertained study with ARI-triggered testing would be the most powerful design while a cohort design only testing household contacts with ARI was the least powerful. Sensitivity analysis demonstrated that these conclusions varied by model parameters including the serial interval and the risk of influenza virus infection from outside the household.

Seroepidemiologic Study of Pandemic (H1N1) 2009 during Outbreak in Boarding School, England

PubMed Central

Johnson, Sandra; Hardelid, Pia; Raphaely, Nika; Hoschler, Katja; Bermingham, Alison; Abid, Muhammad; Pebody, Richard; Bickler, Graham; Watson, John; O’Moore, Éamonn

2011-01-01

We conducted a seroepidemiologic study during an outbreak of pandemic (H1N1) 2009 in a boarding school in England. Overall, 353 (17%) of students and staff completed a questionnaire and provided a serum sample. The attack rate was 40.5% and 34.1% for self-reported acute respiratory infection (ARI). Staff were less likely to be seropositive than students 13–15 years of age (staff 20–49 years, adjusted odds ratio [AOR] 0.30; >50 years AOR 0.20). Teachers were more likely to be seropositive than other staff (AOR 7.47, 95% confidence interval [CI] 2.31–24.2). Of seropositive persons, 44.6% (95% CI 36.2%–53.3%) did not report ARI. Conversely, of 141 with ARI and 63 with influenza-like illness, 45.8% (95% CI 37.0%–54.0%) and 30.2% (95% CI 19.2%–43.0%) had negative test results, respectively. A weak association was found between seropositivity and a prophylactic dose of antiviral agents (AOR 0.55, 95% CI 0.30–0.99); prophylactic antiviral agents lowered the odds of ARI by 50%. PMID:21888793

A probability model for evaluating the bias and precision of influenza vaccine effectiveness estimates from case-control studies.

PubMed

Haber, M; An, Q; Foppa, I M; Shay, D K; Ferdinands, J M; Orenstein, W A

2015-05-01

As influenza vaccination is now widely recommended, randomized clinical trials are no longer ethical in many populations. Therefore, observational studies on patients seeking medical care for acute respiratory illnesses (ARIs) are a popular option for estimating influenza vaccine effectiveness (VE). We developed a probability model for evaluating and comparing bias and precision of estimates of VE against symptomatic influenza from two commonly used case-control study designs: the test-negative design and the traditional case-control design. We show that when vaccination does not affect the probability of developing non-influenza ARI then VE estimates from test-negative design studies are unbiased even if vaccinees and non-vaccinees have different probabilities of seeking medical care against ARI, as long as the ratio of these probabilities is the same for illnesses resulting from influenza and non-influenza infections. Our numerical results suggest that in general, estimates from the test-negative design have smaller bias compared to estimates from the traditional case-control design as long as the probability of non-influenza ARI is similar among vaccinated and unvaccinated individuals. We did not find consistent differences between the standard errors of the estimates from the two study designs.

Advection and Taylor-Aris dispersion in rivulet flow

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Al Mukahal, F. H. H.; Duffy, B. R.; Wilson, S. K.

2017-11-01

Motivated by the need for a better understanding of the transport of solutes in microfluidic flows with free surfaces, the advection and dispersion of a passive solute in steady unidirectional flow of a thin uniform rivulet on an inclined planar substrate driven by gravity and/or a uniform longitudinal surface shear stress are analysed. Firstly, we describe the short-time advection of both an initially semi-infinite and an initially finite slug of solute of uniform concentration. Secondly, we describe the long-time Taylor-Aris dispersion of an initially finite slug of solute. In particular, we obtain the general expression for the effective diffusivity for Taylor-Aris dispersion in such a rivulet, and discuss in detail its different interpretations in the special case of a rivulet on a vertical substrate.

Stable isotope hydrology in fractured and detritic aquifers at both sides of the South Atlantic Ocean: Mar del Plata (Argentina) and the Rawsonville and Sandspruit river catchment areas (South Africa)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Glok Galli, Melisa; Damons, Matthew E.; Siwawa, Sitembiso; Bocanegra, Emilia M.; Nel, Jacobus M.; Mazvimavi, Dominic; Martínez, Daniel E.

2017-01-01

The aim of this work is to characterize the isotope composition of water (2H and 18O) in order to establish the relationship between fractured and detritic aquifers in similar hydrological environments located at both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. The Mar del Plata zone, placed in the Argentine Buenos Aires province in South America, and the Rawsonville and Sandspruit river catchment areas, situated in the Western Cape province in South Africa were compared. Rainwater and groundwater samples from fractured and detritic aquifers were analyzed through laser spectroscopy. In both Argentina and South African study sites, stable isotopes data demonstrate an aquifers recharge source from rainfall. For the Mar del Plata region, two different groups of detritic aquifer's samples with distinct recharge processes can be identified due to the close relationship existing between the present hydrogeological environments, the aquifer's grain size sediments and the isotopes contents: one representing rapid infiltration in aquifer sediments of the creeks' palaeobeds and hills zones (sandy or silt sandy sediments) and the other with slow infiltration of evaporated water in plain zones with an aquitard behavior. In the last group, the evaporation process occurs previous infiltration or in the aquifer's non-saturated zone, because of the existence of very low topographic gradients and fine-grained sediments. The evaporation phenomenon is not evident in the Sandspruit river catchment site's detritic aquifer, because its sandy composition allows a faster infiltration rate than in the loess that compounds the Pampeano aquifer in the interfluves zones of the Argentinian study area.

Burden of Influenza and Respiratory Syncytial Virus Infection in Pregnant Women and Infants Under 6 Months in Mongolia: A Prospective Cohort Study

PubMed Central

Chaw, Liling; Kamigaki, Taro; Burmaa, Alexanderyn; Urtnasan, Chuluunbatiin; Od, Ishiin; Nyamaa, Gunregjaviin; Nymadawa, Pagbajabyn; Oshitani, Hitoshi

2016-01-01

Background Pregnant women and infants under 6 months are at risk of influenza-related complications. Limited information exists on their community burden of respiratory viruses. Methods and Findings This prospective, observational open cohort study was conducted in Baganuur district, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia during 2013/14 and 2014/15 influenza seasons. Influenza-like illness (ILI) and severe acute respiratory infection (sARI) were identified by follow-up calls twice a week. For those identified, influenza and respiratory syncytical virus (RSV) were tested by point-of-care test kits. We calculated overall and stratified (by trimester or age group) incidence rates (IR) and used Cox proportional hazard regression for risk factor analyses. Among 1260 unvaccinated pregnant women enrolled, overall IRs for ILI, sARI and influenza A were 11.8 (95% confidence interval (C.I):11.2–12.4), 0.1 (95%C.I:0.0–0.4), and 1.7 (95%C.I:1.5–1.9) per 1,000person-days, respectively. One sARI case was influenza A positive. IRs and adjusted hazard ratios (Adj.HR) for ILI and influenza A were lowest in the third trimester. Those with co-morbidity were 1.4 times more likely to develop ILI [Adj.HR:1.4 (95%C.I:1.1–1.9)]. Among 1304 infants enrolled, overall ILI and sARI IRs were 15.2 (95%C.I:14.5–15.8) and 20.5 (95%C.I:19.7–21.3) per 1,000person-days, respectively. From the tested ILI (77.6%) and sARI (30.6%) cases, the overall positivity rates were 6.3% (influenza A), 1.1% (influenza B) and 9.3% (RSV). Positivity rates of influenza A and RSV tend to increase with age. sARI cases were 1.4 times more likely to be male [Adj.HR:1.4 (95%C.I:1.1–1.8)]. Among all influenza A and RSV positive infants, 11.8% and 68.0% were respectively identified among sARI hospitalized cases. Conclusion We observed low overall influenza A burden in both groups, though underestimation was likely due to point-of-care tests used. For infants, RSV burden was more significant than influenza A. These findings would be useful for establishing control strategies for both viruses in Mongolia. PMID:26849042

Sexual dysfunction in subjects treated with inhibitors of 5α-reductase for benign prostatic hyperplasia: a comprehensive review and meta-analysis.

PubMed

Corona, G; Tirabassi, G; Santi, D; Maseroli, E; Gacci, M; Dicuio, M; Sforza, A; Mannucci, E; Maggi, M

2017-07-01

Despite their efficacy in the treatment of benign prostatic hyperplasia, the popularity of inhibitors of 5α-reductase (5ARIs) is limited by their association with adverse sexual side effects. The aim of this study was to review and meta-analyze currently available randomized clinical trials evaluating the rate of sexual side effects in men treated with 5ARIs. An extensive Medline Embase and Cochrane search was performed including the following words: 'finasteride', 'dutasteride', 'benign prostatic hyperplasia'. Only placebo-controlled randomized clinical trials evaluating the effect of 5ARI in subjects with benign prostatic hyperplasia were considered. Of 383 retrieved articles, 17 were included in this study. Randomized clinical trials enrolled 24,463 in the active and 22,270 patients in the placebo arms, respectively, with a mean follow-up of 99 weeks and mean age of 64.0 years. No difference was observed between trials using finasteride or dutasteride as the active arm considering age, trial duration, prostate volume or International Prostatic Symptoms Score at enrollment. Overall, 5ARIs determined an increased risk of hypoactive sexual desire [OR = 1.54 (1.29; 1.82); p < 0.0001] and erectile dysfunction [OR = 1.47 (1.29; 1.68); p < 0.0001]. No difference between finasteride and dutasteride regarding the risk of hypoactive sexual desire and erectile dysfunction was observed. Meta-regression analysis showed that the risk of hypoactive sexual desire and erectile dysfunction was higher in subjects with lower Q max at enrollment and decreased as a function of trial follow-up. Conversely, no effect of age, low urinary tract symptom or prostate volume at enrollment as well as Q max at end-point was observed. In conclusion, present data show that the use of 5ARI significantly increases the risk of erectile dysfunction and hypoactive sexual desire in subjects with benign prostatic hyperplasia. Patients should be adequately informed before 5ARIs are prescribed. © 2017 American Society of Andrology and European Academy of Andrology.

Pressure Autoregulation Measurement Techniques in Adult Traumatic Brain Injury, Part I: A Scoping Review of Intermittent/Semi-Intermittent Methods.

PubMed

Zeiler, Frederick A; Donnelly, Joseph; Calviello, Leanne; Menon, David K; Smielewski, Peter; Czosnyka, Marek

2017-12-01

The purpose of this study was to perform a systematic, scoping review of commonly described intermittent/semi-intermittent autoregulation measurement techniques in adult traumatic brain injury (TBI). Nine separate systematic reviews were conducted for each intermittent technique: computed tomographic perfusion (CTP)/Xenon-CT (Xe-CT), positron emission tomography (PET), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), arteriovenous difference in oxygen (AVDO 2 ) technique, thigh cuff deflation technique (TCDT), transient hyperemic response test (THRT), orthostatic hypotension test (OHT), mean flow index (Mx), and transfer function autoregulation index (TF-ARI). MEDLINE ® , BIOSIS, EMBASE, Global Health, Scopus, Cochrane Library (inception to December 2016), and reference lists of relevant articles were searched. A two tier filter of references was conducted. The total number of articles utilizing each of the nine searched techniques for intermittent/semi-intermittent autoregulation techniques in adult TBI were: CTP/Xe-CT (10), PET (6), MRI (0), AVDO 2 (10), ARI-based TCDT (9), THRT (6), OHT (3), Mx (17), and TF-ARI (6). The premise behind all of the intermittent techniques is manipulation of systemic blood pressure/blood volume via either chemical (such as vasopressors) or mechanical (such as thigh cuffs or carotid compression) means. Exceptionally, Mx and TF-ARI are based on spontaneous fluctuations of cerebral perfusion pressure (CPP) or mean arterial pressure (MAP). The method for assessing the cerebral circulation during these manipulations varies, with both imaging-based techniques and TCD utilized. Despite the limited literature for intermittent/semi-intermittent techniques in adult TBI (minus Mx), it is important to acknowledge the availability of such tests. They have provided fundamental insight into human autoregulatory capacity, leading to the development of continuous and more commonly applied techniques in the intensive care unit (ICU). Numerous methods of intermittent/semi-intermittent pressure autoregulation assessment in adult TBI exist, including: CTP/Xe-CT, PET, AVDO 2 technique, TCDT-based ARI, THRT, OHT, Mx, and TF-ARI. MRI-based techniques in adult TBI are yet to be described, with the main focus of MRI techniques on metabolic-based cerebrovascular reactivity (CVR) and not pressure-based autoregulation.

Etiology and Incidence of Viral and Bacterial Acute Respiratory Illness among Older Children and Adults in Rural Western Kenya, 2007–2010

PubMed Central

Feikin, Daniel R.; Njenga, M. Kariuki; Bigogo, Godfrey; Aura, Barrack; Aol, George; Audi, Allan; Jagero, Geoffrey; Muluare, Peter Ochieng; Gikunju, Stella; Nderitu, Leonard; Balish, Amanda; Winchell, Jonas; Schneider, Eileen; Erdman, Dean; Oberste, M. Steven; Katz, Mark A.; Breiman, Robert F.

2012-01-01

Background Few comprehensive data exist on disease incidence for specific etiologies of acute respiratory illness (ARI) in older children and adults in Africa. Methodology/Principal Findings From March 1, 2007, to February 28, 2010, among a surveillance population of 21,420 persons >5 years old in rural western Kenya, we collected blood for culture and malaria smears, nasopharyngeal and oropharyngeal swabs for quantitative real-time PCR for ten viruses and three atypical bacteria, and urine for pneumococcal antigen testing on outpatients and inpatients meeting a ARI case definition (cough or difficulty breathing or chest pain and temperature >38.0°C or oxygen saturation <90% or hospitalization). We also collected swabs from asymptomatic controls, from which we calculated pathogen-attributable fractions, adjusting for age, season, and HIV-status, in logistic regression. We calculated incidence by pathogen, adjusting for health-seeking for ARI and pathogen-attributable fractions. Among 3,406 ARI patients >5 years old (adjusted annual incidence 12.0 per 100 person-years), influenza A virus was the most common virus (22% overall; 11% inpatients, 27% outpatients) and Streptococcus pneumoniae was the most common bacteria (16% overall; 23% inpatients, 14% outpatients), yielding annual incidences of 2.6 and 1.7 episodes per 100 person-years, respectively. Influenza A virus, influenza B virus, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and human metapneumovirus were more prevalent in swabs among cases (22%, 6%, 8% and 5%, respectively) than controls. Adenovirus, parainfluenza viruses, rhinovirus/enterovirus, parechovirus, and Mycoplasma pneumoniae were not more prevalent among cases than controls. Pneumococcus and non-typhi Salmonella were more prevalent among HIV-infected adults, but prevalence of viruses was similar among HIV-infected and HIV-negative individuals. ARI incidence was highest during peak malaria season. Conclusions/Signficance Vaccination against influenza and pneumococcus (by potential herd immunity from childhood vaccination or of HIV-infected adults) might prevent much of the substantial ARI incidence among persons >5 years old in similar rural African settings. PMID:22937071

[Different species of human rhinovirus infection in children with acute respiratory tract infections in Beijing].

PubMed

Song, Ming-hui; Zhao, Lin-qing; Qian, Yuan; Zhu, Ru-nan; Deng, Jie; Wang, Fang; Sun, Yu; Tian, Run

2013-12-01

To understand the clinical characteristics of different groups human rhinovirus (HRV)-A, B and C infection in children with acute respiratory tract infections (ARI) in Beijing. Respiratory tract specimens (n = 1412) collected from children with ARI during Jan. 2011 to Dec. 2012 were tested for HRV by using semi-nested PCR. Gene fragments of VP4/VP2 capsid protein amplified from HRV positive specimens were sequenced for HRV genotype confirmation. Then epidemiological characteristics of these HRV-positive cases were analyzed. Among these 1412 specimens tested, 103 (7.3%) were HRV positive, including 54 (52.4%) positive for HRV-A, 14 (13.6%) for HRV-B, 35 (34.0%) for HRV-C determined by sequence analysis. The positive rates of HRV-A, B and C (2.5%, 16/638; 0.3%, 2/638 and 1.3%, 8/638) in children with acute upper respiratory tract infections (URI) were lower than those (5.8%, 36/623; 1.8%, 11/623 and 3.9%, 24/623) in children with acute lower respiratory tract infections (LRI) (P = 0.003, 0.011, 0.003). In children with LRI, the positive rates of HRV-A, C were similar to each other (P = 0.112), and both were higher than that of HRV-B (P = 0.000, P = 0.026). The severity of ARI among children positive for different groups HRV showed no significant difference evaluated by Kruskal-Wallis H test (Hc = 0.044, P > 0.05), as well as that between children co-infected with HRV and other viruses and those infected with HRV only evaluated by Wilcoxon rank sum test (Zc = 0.872, P > 0.05). HRV is one of important pathogens for children with ARI, especially LRI in Beijing. The positive rates of HRV-A and HRV-C are similar to each other, and both are higher than that of HRV-B. No significant difference was shown among children with different HRV genotypes by evaluation of the severity of ARI, and co-infections of HRV with other viruses do not significantly increase the severity of ARI.

Alpha-1 adrenergic antagonists, 5-alpha reductase inhibitors, phosphodiesterase type 5 inhibitors, and phytotherapic compounds in men with lower urinary tract symptoms suggestive of benign prostatic obstruction: A systematic review and meta-analysis of urodynamic studies.

PubMed

Fusco, Ferdinando; Creta, Massimiliano; De Nunzio, Cosimo; Gacci, Mauro; Li Marzi, Vincenzo; Finazzi Agrò, Enrico

2018-03-31

To perform a systematic review and meta-analysis of studies evaluating the urodynamic outcomes of alpha-1 adrenergic antagonists (ABs), 5-alpha reductase inhibitors (5-ARIs), phosphodiesterase type 5 inhibitors (PDE5is), and phytotherapic compounds in patients with lower urinary tract symptoms related to benign prostatic obstruction (LUTS/BPO). A systematic review of PubMed/Medline, ISI Web of Knowledge, and Scopus databases was performed in June 2017. We included full papers that met the following criteria: original research; English language; human studies; enrolling LUTS/BPO patients; reporting maximum urinary flow (Qmax), and detrusor pressure at maximum urinary flow (PdetQmax). The primary endpoint was variation in bladder outlet obstruction index (BOOI). Secondary endpoints were variations in Qmax and PdetQmax. Twenty-three studies involving 1044 patients were included in the final analysis. Eighteen, three, two, and one study evaluated the urodynamic outcomes of ABs, 5-ARIs, PDE5is, and phytotherapic compounds, respectively. BOOI, PdetQmax, and Qmax improved in a statistically significant manner in patients receiving ABs and in those receiving 5-ARIs. The overall pooled data showed a mean BOOI change of -15.40 (P < 0.00001) and of -10.55 (P = 0,004) for ABs and 5-ARIs, respectively. Mean PdetQmax and Qmax changes were:12.30 cm H 2 O (P < 0.00001) and +2.27 ml/s (P < 0.00001) for ABs and -9.63 cm H 2 O (P = 0.05), and +1.18 mL/s (P = 0.04) for 5-ARIs. PDE5is and phytotherapic compounds had no significant effects on urodynamic parameters. ABs and 5-ARIs efficiently improve BOOI in men with LUTS/BPO. Both treatments are associated with a clinically significant decrease in PdetQmax but only marginal improvements in Qmax. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Epidemiologic analysis of respiratory viral infections among Singapore military servicemen in 2016.

PubMed

Lau, Yuk-Fai; Koh, Wee-Hong Victor; Kan, Clement; Dua, Poh-Choo Alethea; Lim, Ai-Sim Elizabeth; Liaw, Chin-Wen Jasper; Gao, Qiu-Han; Chng, Jeremiah; Lee, Vernon J; Tan, Boon-Huan; Loh, Jin-Phang

2018-03-12

Respiratory illnesses have been identified as a significant factor leading to lost training time and morbidity among Singapore military recruits. A surveillance programme has been put in place to determine etiological agents responsible for febrile, as well as afebrile respiratory illnesses in a military camp. The goal of the study is to better understand the epidemiology of these diseases and identify potential countermeasures to protect military recruits against them. From Jan 2016 - Jan 2017, a total of 2647 respiratory cases were enrolled into the surveillance programme. The cases were further stratified into Febrile Respiratory Illness (FRI, with body temperature > 37.5 °C) or Acute Respiratory Illness (ARI, with body temperature < 37.5 °C). Nasal washes were collected and tested by multiplex PCR to detect 26 different pathogens. One thousand ninety five cases (41% of total cases) met the criteria of FRI in which 932 cases (85% of FRI cases) were screened positive for at least one virus. The most common etiological agents for FRI mono-infection cases were Adenovirus E and Rhinovirus. Recruits infected with H3N2 influenza, Influenza B and Adenovirus E viruses were most likely presented as FRI cases. Notably, H3N2 influenza resulted in the greatest rise in body temperature. The remaining 1552 cases (59% of total cases) met the criteria of ARI in which 1198 cases (77% of ARI cases) were screened positive for at least one virus. The most common etiological agent for ARI mono-infection was Rhinovirus. The distribution pattern for dual infections was different for ARI and FRI cases. Maximum number of pathogens detected in a sample was five for both groups. Previous studies on respiratory diseases in military focused largely on FRI cases. With the expanded surveillance to ARI cases, this study allows unbiased evaluation of the impact of respiratory disease pathogens among recruits in a military environment. The results show that several pathogens have a much bigger role in causing respiratory diseases in this cohort.

The acceptability and validity of self-collected nasal swabs for detection of influenza virus infection among older adults in Thailand.

PubMed

Goyal, Sonal; Prasert, Kriengkrai; Praphasiri, Prabda; Chittaganpitch, Malinee; Waicharoen, Sunthareeya; Ditsungnoen, Darunee; Jaichuang, Siriluk; Lindblade, Kim A

2017-09-01

Self-collection of nasal swabs could improve the timeliness of influenza virus detection in older adults. Measure the acceptability, adequacy, timeliness, and validity of self-collected nasal swabs among adults >65 years in Thailand. Our evaluation consisted of two parts: a one-month study among randomly selected, community-dwelling older adults to simulate community-based surveillance for acute respiratory infections (ARI); and a clinic study of older adults with ARI to evaluate the sensitivity and specificity of self-collected nasal swabs for influenza virus infection compared with healthcare worker (HCW)-collected nasal and nasopharyngeal swabs. In the community study, 24% of participants experienced an ARI during the observation period. All (100%) participants with an ARI self-collected nasal swabs within 72 hours of symptom onset of which 92% were considered adequate samples. In the clinic study, 45% of patients with ARI presented within 72 hours of symptom onset. The sensitivity of self-collected nasal swabs for detection of influenza virus infection was 78% (95% CI 40-97) compared to nasopharyngeal and 88% (95% CI 47-100) compared to nasal swabs collected by HCWs. Specificity was 100% (95% CI 97-100) compared to both methods. Self-collection of nasal swabs was found acceptable by 99% of participants in both studies. Self-collection of nasal swabs was acceptable to older adults in Thailand who were able to take adequate samples. Self-collection of nasal swabs may improve the timeliness of sample collection but lower sensitivity will need to be considered. © 2017 The Authors. Influenza and Other Respiratory Viruses Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Etiology of Acute Respiratory Infections in Infants: A Prospective Birth Cohort Study.

PubMed

Kumar, Prawin; Medigeshi, Guruprasad R; Mishra, Vishnu S; Islam, Mojahidul; Randev, Shivani; Mukherjee, Aparna; Chaudhry, Rama; Kapil, Arti; Ram Jat, Kana; Lodha, Rakesh; Kabra, Sushil K

2017-01-01

There is paucity of studies on etiology of acute respiratory infections (ARI) in infants. The objective of this study is to document incidence and etiology of ARI in infants, their seasonal variability and association of clinical profile with etiology. A birth cohort was followed for the first year of life; for each episode of ARI, nasopharyngeal aspirates were collected to identify the causative respiratory virus(es) using multiplex real-time polymerase chain reaction assay. For lower respiratory tract infections blood culture, serum procalcitonin, serum antibodies to Mycoplasma and Chlamydia and urinary Streptococcus pneumoniae antigen were also assayed. A total of 503 ARI episodes were documented in 310 infants for an incidence rate of 1.8 episodes per infant per year. Of these, samples were processed in 395 episodes (upper respiratory tract infection: 377; lower respiratory tract infection: 18). One or more viruses were detected in 250 (63.3%) episodes and viral coinfections in 72 (18.2%) episodes. Rhinovirus was the most common virus [105 (42%)] followed by respiratory syncytial virus [50 (20%)], parainfluenza virus [42 (16.8%)] and coronavirus [44 (17.6%)]. In lower respiratory tract infections, viral infections were detected in 12 (66.7%) episodes, bacterial infections in 17 (94.4%) episodes and mixed bacterial-viral infections in 8 (44.4%) episodes. Peak incidence of viruses was observed during February-March and September-November. There was no significant difference in symptom duration with virus types. In this cohort of infants, ARI incidence was 1.8 episodes per year per infant; 95% were upper respiratory tract infections. Viruses were identified in 63.3% episodes, and the most common viruses detected were rhinovirus, respiratory syncytial virus and parainfluenza virus.

Clinical and virological factors associated with gastrointestinal symptoms in patients with acute respiratory infection: a two-year prospective study in general practice medicine.

PubMed

Minodier, Laetitia; Masse, Shirley; Capai, Lisandru; Blanchon, Thierry; Ceccaldi, Pierre-Emmanuel; van der Werf, Sylvie; Hanslik, Thomas; Charrel, Remi; Falchi, Alessandra

2017-11-22

Gastrointestinal (GI) symptoms, such as diarrhea, vomiting, abdominal pain and nausea are not an uncommon manifestation of an acute respiratory infection (ARI). We therefore evaluated clinical and microbiological factors associated with the presence of GI symptoms in patients consulting a general practitioner (GP) for ARI. Nasopharyngeal swabs, stool specimens and clinical data from patients presenting to GPs with an ARI were prospectively collected during two winter seasons (2014-2016). Samples were tested by quantitative real-time PCR for 12 respiratory pathogen groups and for 12 enteric pathogens. Two hundred and four of 331 included patients (61.6%) were positive for at least one respiratory pathogen. Sixty-nine stools (20.8%) were positive for at least one pathogen (respiratory and/or enteric). GI symptoms were more likely declared in case of laboratory confirmed-enteric infection (adjusted odds ratio (aOR) = 3.2; 95% confidence interval [CI] [1.2-9.9]; p = 0.02) or human coronavirus (HCoV) infection (aOR = 2.7; [1.2-6.8]; p = 0.02). Consumption of antipyretic medication before the consultation seemed to reduce the risk of developing GI symptoms for patients with laboratory-confirmed influenza (aOR = 0.3; [0.1-0.6]; p = 0.002). The presence of GI symptoms in ARI patients could not be explained by the detection of respiratory pathogens in stools. However, the detection of enteric pathogens in stool samples could explained by the presence of GI symptoms in some of ARI cases. The biological mechanisms explaining the association between the presence of HCoVs in nasopharynx and GI symptoms need to be explored.

Effect of influenza-like illness and other wintertime respiratory illnesses on worker productivity: The child and household influenza-illness and employee function (CHIEF) study.

PubMed

Palmer, Liisa A; Rousculp, Matthew D; Johnston, Stephen S; Mahadevia, Parthiv J; Nichol, Kristin L

2010-07-12

Acute respiratory illnesses (ARI), comprising influenza-like illness (ILI) and other wintertime respiratory illnesses (ORI), impose substantial health and economic burdens on the United States. Little is known about the impact of ILI among household members (HHM), particularly children, on employees' productivity. To quantify the impact of employee and HHM-ILI and ARI on employee productivity, a prospective, observational cohort study was conducted among employees from three large US companies. Employees who had at least one child living at home (N=2013) completed a monthly survey during the 2007-2008 influenza season, reporting the number of days missed from work and hours of presenteeism due to: (1) personal ILI, (2) HHM-ILI, and (3) personal and HHM-ARI. Employee ILI ranged from 4.8% (April) to 13.5% (February). Employees reporting ILI reported more absences than employees not reporting ILI (72% vs 30%, respectively; P<0.001). Overall, 61.2% of employees surveyed had at least one child with an ILI; these employees missed more days of work due to HHM illness than employees without an ARI-ill child (0.9 days vs 0.3 days, respectively; P<0.001). Employees with ILI were less productive, on average, for 4.8h each day that they worked while sick, 2.5h of which was attributable to ILI. HHM illnesses accounted for 17.7% (1389/7868 days) of employee absenteeism, over half of which was due to HHM-ARI. ILI causes a significant amount of employee absence. Household members, particularly children, comprise a sizable proportion of general illness and injury-related employee absences. Copyright 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Nudging guideline-concordant antibiotic prescribing: a randomized clinical trial.

PubMed

Meeker, Daniella; Knight, Tara K; Friedberg, Mark W; Linder, Jeffrey A; Goldstein, Noah J; Fox, Craig R; Rothfeld, Alan; Diaz, Guillermo; Doctor, Jason N

2014-03-01

"Nudges" that influence decision making through subtle cognitive mechanisms have been shown to be highly effective in a wide range of applications, but there have been few experiments to improve clinical practice. To investigate the use of a behavioral "nudge" based on the principle of public commitment in encouraging the judicious use of antibiotics for acute respiratory infections (ARIs). Randomized clinical trial in 5 outpatient primary care clinics. A total of 954 adults had ARI visits during the study timeframe: 449 patients were treated by clinicians randomized to the posted commitment letter (335 in the baseline period, 114 in the intervention period); 505 patients were treated by clinicians randomized to standard practice control (384 baseline, 121 intervention). The intervention consisted of displaying poster-sized commitment letters in examination rooms for 12 weeks. These letters, featuring clinician photographs and signatures, stated their commitment to avoid inappropriate antibiotic prescribing for ARIs. Antibiotic prescribing rates for antibiotic-inappropriate ARI diagnoses in baseline and intervention periods, adjusted for patient age, sex, and insurance status. Baseline rates were 43.5% and 42.8% for control and poster, respectively. During the intervention period, inappropriate prescribing rates increased to 52.7% for controls but decreased to 33.7% in the posted commitment letter condition. Controlling for baseline prescribing rates, we found that the posted commitment letter resulted in a 19.7 absolute percentage reduction in inappropriate antibiotic prescribing rate relative to control (P = .02). There was no evidence of diagnostic coding shift, and rates of appropriate antibiotic prescriptions did not diminish over time. Displaying poster-sized commitment letters in examination rooms decreased inappropriate antibiotic prescribing for ARIs. The effect of this simple, low-cost intervention is comparable in magnitude to costlier, more intensive quality-improvement efforts. clinicaltrials.gov identifier: NCT01767064.

Influenza B outbreak on a cruise ship off the São Paulo Coast, Brazil.

PubMed

Fernandes, Eder G; de Souza, Priscila B; de Oliveira, Maria Emília B; Lima, Gisele D F; Pellini, Alessandra Cristina G; Ribeiro, Manoel Carlos S A; Sato, Helena K; Ribeiro, Ana F; Yu, Ana Lucia F

2014-01-01

In February 2012, crew and passengers of a cruise ship sailing off the coast of São Paulo, Brazil, were hospitalized for acute respiratory illness (ARI). A field investigation was performed to identify the disease involved and factors associated. Information on passengers and crew with ARI was obtained from the medical records of hospitalized individuals. Active case finding was performed onboard the ship. ARI was defined as the presence of one nonspecific symptom (fever, chills, myalgia, arthralgia, headache, or malaise) and one respiratory symptom (cough, nasal congestion, sore throat, or dyspnea). A case-control study was conducted among the crew. The cases were crew members with symptoms of influenza-like illness (ILI) (fever and one of the following symptoms: cough, sore throat, and dyspnea) in February 2012. The controls were asymptomatic crew members. The study identified 104 ARI cases: 54 (51.9%) crew members and 50 (49.1%) passengers. Among 11 ARI hospitalized cases, 6 had influenza B virus isolated in nasopharyngeal swab. One mortality among these patients was caused by postinfluenza Staphylococcus aureus pneumonia. The crew members housed in the two lower decks and those belonging to the 18- to 32-year-old age group were more likely to develop ILI [odds ratio (OR) = 2.39, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.09-5.25 and OR = 3.72, CI 1.25-11.16, respectively]. In February 2012, an influenza B outbreak occurred onboard a cruise ship. Among crew members, ILI was associated with lower cabin location and younger age group. This was the first influenza outbreak detected by Brazilian public health authorities in a vessel cruising in South American waters. © 2014 International Society of Travel Medicine.

Risks and Benefits Associated With Antibiotic Use for Acute Respiratory Infections: A Cohort Study

PubMed Central

Meropol, Sharon B.; Localio, A. Russell; Metlay, Joshua P.

2013-01-01

PURPOSE Antibiotics are frequently prescribed for acute nonspecific respiratory infections (ARIs), presumably to avoid small risks of progression to serious bacterial illness. However, even low risks of associated adverse drug events could result in many such events at the population level. Our objective was to assess the risks and benefits of antibiotic use in a cohort of patients with ARIs, comparing outcomes of patients who were prescribed antibiotics with outcomes of patients not receiving antibiotics. METHODS We used a June 1986 to August 2006 cohort of adult patients with ARI visits from a UK primary care database. Exposure was an antibiotic prescribed with the visit. Primary outcomes were hospitalization within 15 days for (1) severe adverse drug events (hypersensitivity, diarrhea, seizure, arrhythmia, hepatic or renal failure), and (2) community-acquired pneumonia. RESULTS The cohort included 1,531,019 visits with an ARI diagnosis; prescriptions for antibiotics were given in 65% of cases. The adjusted risk difference for treated vs untreated patients per 100,000 visits was 1.07 fewer adverse events (95% CI, −4.52 to 2.38; P = .54) and 8.16 fewer pneumonia hospitalizations (95% CI, −13.24 to −3.08; P = .002). The number needed to treat to prevent 1 hospitalization for pneumonia was 12,255. CONCLUSIONS Compared with patients with ARI who were not treated with antibiotics, patients who were treated with antibiotics were not at increased risk of severe adverse drug events and had a small decreased risk of pneumonia hospitalization. This small benefit from antibiotics for a common ambulatory diagnosis creates persistent tension; at the societal level, physicians are compelled to reduce antibiotic prescribing, thus minimizing future resistance, whereas at the encounter level, they are compelled to optimize the benefit-risk balance for that patient. PMID:23508604

Risks and benefits associated with antibiotic use for acute respiratory infections: a cohort study.

PubMed

Meropol, Sharon B; Localio, A Russell; Metlay, Joshua P

2013-01-01

Antibiotics are frequently prescribed for acute nonspecific respiratory infections (ARIs), presumably to avoid small risks of progression to serious bacterial illness. However, even low risks of associated adverse drug events could result in many such events at the population level. Our objective was to assess the risks and benefits of antibiotic use in a cohort of patients with ARIs, comparing outcomes of patients who were prescribed antibiotics with outcomes of patients not receiving antibiotics. We used a June 1986 to August 2006 cohort of adult patients with ARI visits from a UK primary care database. Exposure was an antibiotic prescribed with the visit. Primary outcomes were hospitalization within 15 days for (1) severe adverse drug events (hypersensitivity, diarrhea, seizure, arrhythmia, hepatic or renal failure), and (2) community-acquired pneumonia. The cohort included 1,531,019 visits with an ARI diagnosis; prescriptions for antibiotics were given in 65% of cases. The adjusted risk difference for treated vs untreated patients per 100,000 visits was 1.07 fewer adverse events (95% CI, -4.52 to 2.38; P = .54) and 8.16 fewer pneumonia hospitalizations (95% CI, -13.24 to -3.08; P = .002). The number needed to treat to prevent 1 hospitalization for pneumonia was 12,255. Compared with patients with ARI who were not treated with antibiotics, patients who were treated with antibiotics were not at increased risk of severe adverse drug events and had a small decreased risk of pneumonia hospitalization. This small benefit from antibiotics for a common ambulatory diagnosis creates persistent tension; at the societal level, physicians are compelled to reduce antibiotic prescribing, thus minimizing future resistance, whereas at the encounter level, they are compelled to optimize the benefit-risk balance for that patient.

DOE Asset Revitalization: Sustainability and Waste Management Aspects - 12120

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Robinson, Sharon M.

2012-07-01

In February 2011 Secretary of Energy Steven Chu established a Task Force on Asset Revitalization to facilitate a discussion among the Department of Energy (DOE), communities around DOE sites, non-profits, tribal governments, the private sector, and other stakeholders to identify reuse approaches as environmental cleanup efforts at DOE sites reach completion. The Task Force was charged with exploring opportunities to reuse DOE site assets for beneficial purposes and making recommendations to the Under Secretaries of Energy, Science, and Nuclear Security on the formation of an Asset Revitalization Initiative (ARI). The ARI is a Department-wide effort to advance the beneficial reusemore » of the DOE's unique and diverse mix of assets including land, facilities, infrastructure, equipment, technologies, natural resources, and a highly skilled workforce. The ARI will encourage collaboration between the public and private sectors in order to achieve energy and environmental goals as well as to stimulate and diversify regional economies. The recommendations of the ARI Task Force are summarized below, focusing on the sustainability and waste management aspects. DOE's ongoing completion of cleanup efforts and modernization efforts is creating opportunities to transition under-used or excess assets to future beneficial use. The FY 2011 DOE ARI Task Force determined that DOE's assets could be reused for beneficial purposes such as clean energy production, industrial manufacturing, recreational and conversation use, and other economic development initiatives. Asset revitalization has the potential to both help achieve DOE's energy and environmental goals and diversify regional economies where the sites are located, including providing the support needed to implement large-scale projects that achieve green sustainability goals. Asset revitalization efforts could be accelerated by effectively incorporating future use plans into environmental management and remediation efforts. (authors)« less

Changes in weight and weight-related quality of life in a multicentre, randomized trial of aripiprazole versus standard of care.

PubMed

Kolotkin, Ronette L; Corey-Lisle, Patricia K; Crosby, Ross D; Kan, Hong J; McQuade, Robert D

2008-12-01

This is a secondary analysis of clinical trial data collected in 12 European countries. We examined changes in weight and weight-related quality of life among community patients with schizophrenia treated with aripiprazole (ARI) versus standard of care (SOC), consisting of other marketed atypical antipsychotics (olanzapine, quetiapine, and risperidone). Five-hundred and fifty-five patients whose clinical symptoms were not optimally controlled and/or experienced tolerability problems with current medication were randomized to ARI (10-30 mg/day) or SOC. Weight and weight-related quality of life (using the IWQOL-Lite) were assessed at baseline, and weeks 8, 18 and 26. Random regression analysis across all time points using all available data was used to compare groups on changes in weight and IWQOL-Lite. Meaningful change from baseline was also assessed. Participants were 59.7% male, with a mean age of 38.5 years (SD 10.9) and mean baseline body mass index of 27.2 (SD 5.1). ARI participants lost an average of 1.7% of baseline weight in comparison to a gain of 2.1% by SOC participants (p<0.0001) at 26 weeks. ARI participants experienced significantly greater increases in physical function, self-esteem, sexual life, and IWQOL-Lite total score. At 26 weeks, 20.7% of ARI participants experienced meaningful improvements in IWQOL-Lite score, versus 13.5% of SOC participants. A clinically meaningful change in weight was also associated with a meaningful change in quality of life (p<0.001). A potential limitation of this study was its funding by a pharmaceutical company. Compared to standard of care, patients with schizophrenia treated with aripiprazole experienced decreased weight and improved weight-related quality of life over 26 weeks. These changes were both statistically and clinically significant.

A pan-inhibitor of DASH family enzymes induces immune-mediated regression of murine sarcoma and is a potent adjuvant to dendritic cell vaccination and adoptive T-cell therapy.

PubMed

Duncan, Brynn B; Highfill, Steven L; Qin, Haiying; Bouchkouj, Najat; Larabee, Shannon; Zhao, Peng; Woznica, Iwona; Liu, Yuxin; Li, Youhua; Wu, Wengen; Lai, Jack H; Jones, Barry; Mackall, Crystal L; Bachovchin, William W; Fry, Terry J

2013-10-01

Multimodality therapy consisting of surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation will fail in approximately 40% of patients with pediatric sarcomas and result in substantial long-term morbidity in those who are cured. Immunotherapeutic regimens for the treatment of solid tumors typically generate antigen-specific responses too weak to overcome considerable tumor burden and tumor suppressive mechanisms and are in need of adjuvant assistance. Previous work suggests that inhibitors of DASH (dipeptidyl peptidase IV activity and/or structural homologs) enzymes can mediate tumor regression by immune-mediated mechanisms. Herein, we demonstrate that the DASH inhibitor, ARI-4175, can induce regression and eradication of well-established solid tumors, both as a single agent and as an adjuvant to a dendritic cell (DC) vaccine and adoptive cell therapy (ACT) in mice implanted with the M3-9-M rhabdomyosarcoma cell line. Treatment with effective doses of ARI-4175 correlated with recruitment of myeloid (CD11b) cells, particularly myeloid DCs, to secondary lymphoid tissues and with reduced frequency of intratumoral monocytic (CD11bLy6-CLy6-G) myeloid-derived suppressor cells. In immunocompetent mice, combining ARI-4175 with a DC vaccine or ACT with tumor-primed T cells produced significant improvements in tumor responses against well-established M3-9-M tumors. In M3-9-M-bearing immunodeficient (Rag1) mice, ACT combined with ARI-4175 produced greater tumor responses and significantly improved survival compared with either treatment alone. These studies warrant the clinical investigation of ARI-4175 for treatment of sarcomas and other malignancies, particularly as an adjuvant to tumor vaccines and ACT.

Enamel shear bond strength of two orthodontic self-etching bonding systems compared to Transbond™ XT.

PubMed

Hellak, Andreas; Rusdea, Patrick; Schauseil, Michael; Stein, Steffen; Korbmacher-Steiner, Heike Maria

2016-11-01

The aim of this in vitro study was to compare the shear bond strength (SBS) and Adhesive Remnant Index (ARI) scores of two self-etching no-mix adhesives (Prompt L-Pop™ and Scotchbond™) for orthodontic appliances to the commonly used total etch system Transbond XT™ (in combination with phosphoric acid). In all, 60 human premolars were randomly divided into three groups of 20 specimens each. In group 1 (control), brackets were bonded with Transbond™ XT primer. Prompt L-Pop™ (group 2) and Scotchbond™ Universal (group 3) were used in the experimental groups. Lower premolar brackets were bonded by light curing the adhesive. After 24 h of storage, the shear bond strength (SBS) was measured using a Zwicki 1120 testing machine. The adhesive remnant index (ARI) was determined under 10× magnification. The Kruskal-Wallis test was used to statistically compare the SBS and the ARI scores. No significant differences in the SBS between any of the experimental groups were detected (group 1: 15.49 ± 3.28 MPa; group 2: 13.89 ± 4.95 MPa; group 3: 14.35 ± 3.56 MPa; p = 0.489), nor were there any significant differences in the ARI scores (p = 0.368). Using the two self-etching no-mix adhesives (Prompt L-Pop™ and Scotchbond™) for orthodontic appliances does not affect either the SBS or ARI scores in comparison with the commonly used total-etch system Transbond™ XT. In addition, Scotchbond™ Universal supports bonding on all types of surfaces (enamel, metal, composite, and porcelain) with no need for additional primers. It might therefore be helpful for simplifying bonding in orthodontic procedures.

Observations of TT Ari requested in support of MOST observations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Waagen, Elizabeth O.

2012-08-01

Dr. Nikolaus Vogt (Universidad de Valparaiso, Chile) requested simultaneous photometry and spectroscopy of the novalike (VY Scl subtype) cataclysmic variable TT Ari in support of upcoming observations with the Canadian Microvariability and Oscillations of Stars (MOST) satellite 2012 September 13 through October 20. The Departamento de Fisica y Astronomia of the Valparaiso University will carry out photometry with small telescopes in central Chile but the assistance of other observers, particularly in other latitudes and longitudes, is requested. The observations are being carried out to study superhump behavior, which is still not well understood despite the amount of research done in all classes of cataclysmic variables. TT Ari exibits superhumps - both positive (the superhump period is longer than the orbital period) and negative (the superhump period is shorter than the orbital period). While positive superhumps are thought probably to be the result of an eccentric configuration in the accretion disk, the mechanism for negative superhumps is not yet understood except that it may be related to the disk's being warped out of the orbital plane, leading to complex torque phenomena. TT Ari, one of the brightest cataclysmic variables, exhibits occasional fadings of several magnitudes, from its usual high-state (maximum) magnitude of ~10.5V to a low-state magnitude as faint as 16V. These fadings occur every 20-25 years, and last between 500 and 1000 days. According to observations in the AAVSO International Database, TT Ari is currently magnitude 10.5V. Finder charts with sequence may be created using the AAVSO Variable Star Plotter (http://www.aavso.org/vsp). Observations should be submitted to the AAVSO International Database. See full Alert Notice for more details, particularly regarding goals of the campaign, and observing instructions.

Cardiac memory in patients with Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome: noninvasive imaging of activation and repolarization before and after catheter ablation.

PubMed

Ghosh, Subham; Rhee, Edward K; Avari, Jennifer N; Woodard, Pamela K; Rudy, Yoram

2008-08-26

Cardiac memory refers to a change in ventricular repolarization induced by and persisting for minutes to months after cessation of a period of altered ventricular activation (eg, resulting from pacing or preexcitation in patients with Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome). ECG imaging (ECGI) is a novel imaging modality for noninvasive electroanatomic mapping of epicardial activation and repolarization. Fourteen pediatric patients with Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome and no other congenital disease, were imaged with ECGI a day before and 45 minutes, 1 week, and 1 month after successful catheter ablation. ECGI determined that preexcitation sites were consistent with sites of successful ablation in all cases to within a 1-hour arc of each atrioventricular annulus. In the preexcited rhythm, activation-recovery interval (ARI) was the longest (349+/-6 ms) in the area of preexcitation leading to high average base-to-apex ARI dispersion of 95+/-9 ms (normal is approximately 40 ms). The ARI dispersion remained the same 45 minutes after ablation, although the activation sequence was restored to normal. ARI dispersion was still high (79+/-9 ms) 1 week later and returned to normal (45+/-6 ms) 1 month after ablation. The study demonstrates that ECGI can noninvasively localize ventricular insertion sites of accessory pathways to guide ablation and evaluate its outcome in pediatric patients with Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome. Wolff-Parkinson-White is associated with high ARI dispersion in the preexcited rhythm that persists after ablation and gradually returns to normal over a period of 1 month, demonstrating the presence of cardiac memory. The 1-month time course is consistent with transcriptional reprogramming and remodeling of ion channels.

Probing the central engine and environment of AGN using ARIES 1.3-m and 3.6-m telescopes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chand, Hum; Rakshit, Suvendu; Jalan, Priyanka; Ojha, Vineet; Srianand, Raghunathan; Vivek, Mariappan; Mishra, Sapna; Omar, Amitesh; Kumar, Parveen; Joshi, Ravi; Gopal-Krishna; Kumar, Rathna

2018-04-01

We discuss three long term observational programmes to probe the central engine and environment of active galactic nuclei (AGN) using the recently installed ARIES 1.3-m and 3.6-m telescopes. The first programme is on the photometric reverberation mapping of low luminosity AGN by mainly using the ARIES 1.3-m telescope. The major impact of this programme other than to estimate the black hole mass will be to extend the broad line region (BLR) radius-luminosity (RBLR-LAGN) relation to the unexplored low luminosity regime, and to constrain the AGN broad line region geometry. The second programme is to use long slit spectroscopy on the ARIES 3.6-m telescope to discover new high redshift quasar pairs with angular separation less than 1-arcmin. Here, the background QSOs sight-line will be used to probe the environment of the foreground QSOs at kpc-Mpc scales. The major impact of this programme will be on the discovery of new pairs which have been missed in the SDSS survey due to fiber collision below 1-arcmin separation, and use them to understand about any excess overdensity around the QSO, any anisotropic emission of QSOs, and/or any episodic activity of QSOs. The third programme is related to spectral variability studies of the C IV broad absorption line (BAL) QSOs, based on low resolution spectroscopy using the ARIES 3.6-m telescope. Here, those most interesting cases will be monitored, where the BAL flow emerges afresh or disappears completely in the C IV trough of BAL QSOs sample as seen in SDSS multi-epoch observations. Continuous monitoring of such a sample will be important for our understanding of the nature and origin of the flow, along with their stability and dynamical evolution.

A one-year community study of under-fives in rural Ethiopia: patterns of morbidity and public health risk factors.

PubMed

Muhe, L; Byass, P; Freij, L; Sandström, A; Wall, S

1995-03-01

A prospective weekly home surveillance study was undertaken to determine morbidity patterns within the Butajira Rural Health project in central Ethiopia. Overall prevalence of illness was 5.8% in 1216 person-years observed among rural Ethiopian children aged under 5 years. Acute respiratory infections (ARI) (prevalence 2.8%) and acute diarrhoea (2.4%) were the commonest conditions. Episodes of illness were distributed unequally among children, with a mean of 2.34 episodes per child. These included an average of 1.13 episodes of ARI (of which 0.16 had lower respiratory symptoms [ALRI]) and 1.17 episodes of acute diarrhoea. Sanitation factors were the principal risks for gastroenteritis, while living in rural areas predisposed children to ARI. Parental factors such as illiteracy were also linked to morbidity.

Isolation and characterization of onion degrading bacteria from onion waste produced in South Buenos Aires province, Argentina.

PubMed

Rinland, María Emilia; Gómez, Marisa Anahí

2015-03-01

Onion production in Argentina generates a significant amount of waste. Finding an effective method to recycle it is a matter of environmental concern. Among organic waste reuse techniques, anaerobic digestion could be a valuable alternative to current practices. Substrate inoculation with appropriate bacterial strains enhances the rate-limiting step (hydrolysis) of anaerobic digestion of biomass wastes. Selection of indigenous bacteria with the ability to degrade onion waste could be a good approach to find a suitable bioaugmentation or pretreatment agent. We isolated bacterial strains from onion waste in different degradation stages and from different localities. In order to characterize and select the best candidates, we analyzed the growth patterns of the isolates in a medium prepared with onion juice as the main source of nutrients and we evaluated carbon source utilization. Nine strains were selected to test their ability to grow using onion tissue and the five most remarkable ones were identified by 16S rRNA gene sequencing. Strains belonged to the genera Pseudoxanthomonas, Bacillus, Micrococcus and Pseudomonas. Two strains, Bacillus subtilis subsp. subtillis MB2-62 and Pseudomonas poae VE-74 have characteristics that make them promising candidates for bioaugmentation or pretreatment purposes.

Papers Selected for Presentation at the International Symposium on Remote Sensing of Environment (16th) Held at Buenos Aires, Argentina on 2-9 June 1982. Volume 1.

DTIC Science & Technology

1982-06-01

Subsurface Water Parameters Using Radiance Measurements from Space. POOP 022 Limnological Study of the Coastal Lagoon ’Coyuca de Benitez, Guerrero...unlimited. ORGANIZED BY Comisi6n Nacional de Investigaciones Espaciales Buenos Aires, Argentina Environmental Research Institute of Michigan Ann Arbor...Michigan, USA SPONSORED, IN PART, BY ARGENTINA Comando en Jefe de la Fuerza Aerea Argentina Secretarla de Planeamiento de la Presidencia de la Naci6n

[The seventieth anniversary of Medicina (Buenos Aires)].

PubMed

Kantor, Isabel N; Kotsias, Basilio A

2010-01-01

The historical trajectory of Medicina (Buenos Aires) and the current challenges accompanying its seventieth birthday are briefly described. The initial objectives at its foundation were to contribute to the advance of medicine, and support both clinical and experimental research in Argentina. These objectives continue to be valid. The editorial presence of the journal continues to be necessary. It is published following the international quality standards, the peer review system, and it is indexed in the main international data bases for scientific journals.

Impact of Infection Prevention and Control Initiatives on Acute Respiratory Infections in a Pediatric Long-Term Care Facility.

PubMed

Murray, Meghan T; Jackson, Olivia; Cohen, Bevin; Hutcheon, Gordon; Saiman, Lisa; Larson, Elaine; Neu, Natalie

2016-07-01

We evaluated the collective impact of several infection prevention and control initiatives aimed at reducing acute respiratory infections (ARIs) in a pediatric long-term care facility. ARIs did not decrease overall, though the proportion of infections associated with outbreaks and average number of cases per outbreak decreased. Influenza rates decreased significantly. Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol 2016;37:859-862.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

None

AvalonBay Communities, which is a large multifamily developer, was developing a three-building complex in Elmsford, New York. The buildings were planned to be certified to the ENERGY STAR® Homes Version 3 program. This plan led to AvalonBay partnering with the Advanced Residential Integrated Solutions (ARIES) collaborative, which is a U.S. Department of Energy Building America team. ARIES worked with AvalonBay to redesign the project to comply with Zero Energy Ready Home (ZERH) criteria.

Self-Learning Among Army Noncommissioned Officers: Experiences, Attitudes, and Preferred Strategies

DTIC Science & Technology

2012-09-01

Sciences, ATTN: DAPE-ARI-ZXM, 6000 6th Street (Bldg. 1464 / Mail Stop 5610), Ft. Belvoir, VA 22060-5610. FINAL DISPOSITION: Destroy this Research...6000 6th Street (Building 1464 / Mail Stop 5610) Fort Belvoir, VA 22060-5610 8. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION REPORT NUMBER Research Report... Street (Building 1464 / Mail Stop 5610) Fort Belvoir, VA 22060-5610 10. MONITOR ACRONYM ARI 11. MONITOR REPORT NUMBER Research Report 1961

Equal Opportunity Leadership Training for Company-Level Chain of Command

DTIC Science & Technology

1981-01-01

Relations/ Equal Opportunity Training in USAREUR, ARI Technical Report TR-78-B10, Alexandria, Va.: US. Army Research Institute for the Behavioral and Social ...Behavioral and Social Sciences, 1978. Marcia A. Gilbert and Peter G. Nordlie, An Analysis of Race Relations/ Equal Opportunity Training in USAREUR, ARI...Technical Report 534 - EQUAL OPPORTUNITY LEADERSHIP TRAINING FOR COMPANY-LEVEL CHAIN OF COMMAND Dale K. Brown, Silas J. White, Exequiel R. Sevilla

Dental Hygiene and Orthodontics: Effect of Ultrasonic Instrumentation on Bonding Efficacy of Different Lingual Orthodontic Brackets.

PubMed

Scribante, Andrea; Sfondrini, Maria Francesca; Collesano, Vittorio; Tovt, Gaia; Bernardinelli, Luisa; Gandini, Paola

2017-01-01

Dental hygienists are often faced with patients wearing lingual orthodontic therapy, as ultrasonic instrumentation (UI) is crucial for oral health. As the application of external forces can lead to premature bonding failure, the aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of UI on shear bond strength (SBS) and on adhesive remnant index (ARI) of different lingual orthodontic brackets. 200 bovine incisors were divided into 10 groups. Four different lingual (STB, Ormco; TTR, Rocky Mountain Orthodontics; Idea, Leone; 2D, Forestadent) and vestibular control (Victory, 3M) brackets were bonded. UI was performed in half of specimens, whereas the other half did not receive any treatment. All groups were tested with a universal testing machine. SBS and ARI values were recorded. Statistical analysis was performed (significance: P = 0.05). TTR, Idea, and 2D lingual brackets significantly lowered SBS after UI, whereas for other braces no effect was recorded. Appliances with lower mesh area significantly reduced their adhesion capacity after UI. Moreover groups subjected to UI showed higher ARI scores than controls. UI lowered SBS of lingual appliances of small dimensions so particular care should be posed avoiding prolonged instrumentation around bracket base during plaque removal. Moreover, UI influenced also ARI scores.

Dental Hygiene and Orthodontics: Effect of Ultrasonic Instrumentation on Bonding Efficacy of Different Lingual Orthodontic Brackets

PubMed Central

Collesano, Vittorio; Tovt, Gaia; Bernardinelli, Luisa; Gandini, Paola

2017-01-01

Dental hygienists are often faced with patients wearing lingual orthodontic therapy, as ultrasonic instrumentation (UI) is crucial for oral health. As the application of external forces can lead to premature bonding failure, the aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of UI on shear bond strength (SBS) and on adhesive remnant index (ARI) of different lingual orthodontic brackets. 200 bovine incisors were divided into 10 groups. Four different lingual (STB, Ormco; TTR, Rocky Mountain Orthodontics; Idea, Leone; 2D, Forestadent) and vestibular control (Victory, 3M) brackets were bonded. UI was performed in half of specimens, whereas the other half did not receive any treatment. All groups were tested with a universal testing machine. SBS and ARI values were recorded. Statistical analysis was performed (significance: P = 0.05). TTR, Idea, and 2D lingual brackets significantly lowered SBS after UI, whereas for other braces no effect was recorded. Appliances with lower mesh area significantly reduced their adhesion capacity after UI. Moreover groups subjected to UI showed higher ARI scores than controls. UI lowered SBS of lingual appliances of small dimensions so particular care should be posed avoiding prolonged instrumentation around bracket base during plaque removal. Moreover, UI influenced also ARI scores. PMID:28904955

Empirical Study on the Impact of a Tactical Biosurveillance Information Visualization on Users' Situational Awareness.

PubMed

Kettelhut, Valeriya V; Vanschooneveld, Trevor C; McClay, James C; Mercer, David F; Fruhling, Ann; Meza, Jane L

2017-03-01

Decisions on antibiotic-resistant infection (ARI) prevention in dynamic health care settings should be agile and target the right process at the right time. Health information technologies can aid the recognition of high-risk situations for ARI transmission and timely facilitate operators' situational awareness (SA) in various military and civilian health care locations or transport platforms. High SA is one of the significant predictors of better performance. The objective of this study was to evaluate the impact of the developed health information visualization (VIZ) on the users' SA regarding situations when risks of ARI transmission and exposure are high. The enrolled 19 subjects assessed the proposed VIZ artifacts representing 1 scenario, compared the VIZ effectiveness against the currently employed local methods, and reported their SA (perception and comprehension) with the use of a pre- and post-self-rating questionnaire. The results showed that the VIZ significantly increased SA in the study subjects and revealed the importance of communicating the risk of exposure to ARIs. The VIZ enabled the participants to quickly acknowledge the high-risk individuals (super-spreaders), locations (hot spots), and biosafety (deficient infection prevention). The study concluded that SA-oriented technologies may be promising for promoting better infection prevention practices. Reprint & Copyright © 2017 Association of Military Surgeons of the U.S.

Melanie Klein in Buenos Aires: beginnings and developments.

PubMed

Etchegoyen, R Horacio; Zysman, Samuel

2005-06-01

In the first decades of the 20th century, Freud was known and quoted in Latin America by an elite of enlightened minds. In the 1940s a convergence took place in Buenos Aires of European exiles with local pioneers, and thus the Argentine Psychoanalytical Association was founded in 1942. Since then psychoanalysis has grown steadily and has spread into hospitals and universities, influencing culture at large. The socioeconomic situation of that time permitted this phenomenon to develop, to the astonishment of observers. In this paper the authors study the strong influence of Kleinian thought during the first 30 years of this development. The original works of local thinkers constitute the intellectual capital that sustains the idea of an 'Argentine psychoanalytic school'. During the 1970s, both society and psychoanalysis endured deep and complex changes. Lacan's teachings gained support and Klein's influence began to decline. At present the Buenos Aires Kleinians keep working, while their relationship with Lacanians and other schools is calmer. Respectful discussions became thus possible, oriented to strictly scientific differences.

[Past and present of Medicina (Buenos Aires)].

PubMed

Pasqualini, C D; Kotsias, B A

2000-01-01

To celebrate the 60th anniversary of Medicina (Buenos Aires) an International Symposium was held at the National Academy of Medicine of Buenos Aires on the 6-7th of October 1999, under the title of Clinical investigation in the next millennium. This meeting was a success as evidenced by the 376 registered attendants. Sixty years of uninterrupted publication is an uncommon feat in our midst and this could be achieved on the basis of a number of factors which include, the initiative of those who founded the journal, the unfailing motivation and dedication of the Editorial Board and primarily the authors who have trusted us with their manuscripts. Of the many important papers published, we have selected a few which proved to be milestones in the development of Argentine biomedicine. It is to be hoped that the future will bring an increase in our impact index through more and even better papers eventually reflecting the authentic scientific value of our country.

Human Factors Research in Aircrew Performance and Training

DTIC Science & Technology

1986-11-01

at Fort Devens , Massachusetts. During the evaluation, the project director observed the techniques used by the team members to assess specific...Szabo, Editors Anacapa Sciences, Inc. for ARI Field Unit at Fort Rucker, Alabama Charles A. Gainer, Chief 4-. TRAINING RESEARCH LABORATORY Jack H...DATE ARI Field Unit at Fort Rucker, Alabama November 1986 P.O. Box 489; Fort Rucker, AL 36362 22. NUMBEROrPAGES 2,2 14. MONITORING AGENCY NAME & ADDRESS

Review of Interventions for Reducing Enlisted Attrition in the U.S. Military: An Update

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-06-01

by ARI. Please address correspondence concerning distribution of reports to: U.S. Research Institute for the Behavioral and Social Sciences, Attn...DAPE-ARI-ZXM, 2511 Jefferson Davis Highway, Arlington, Virginia 22202-3926 FINAL DISPOSITION: This Technical Report may be destroyed when it...this Technical Report are not to be construed as an official Department of the Army position, unless so designated by other authorized documents. i

Influenza-like Illness Surveillance on the California-Mexico Border, 2004-2009

DTIC Science & Technology

2011-01-01

common in all age groups, causing both hospital- and community - acquired epidemics. AdV probably accounts for 3% of the infections in the civilian...enterovirus, herpes simplex virus, Streptococcus pneumoniae , and Streptococcus pyogenes. Conclusions The US-Mexico border is one of the busiest in...countries where ARIs are the cause of up to 25% of all pediatric deaths.3 In Mexico, ARIs are the leading cause of disease (http://www.dged

CR@BaSO4: an acid rain-indicating material.

PubMed

Gao, Hong-Wen; Xu, Xin-Hui

2011-12-28

The CR@BaSO(4) hybrid was synthesized, characterized and used as an acid rain-indicating (ARI) material. A painted ARI umbrella was discolored after exposure to simulated acid rain of pH 5 or less and returned to the initial color after the rain stopped. Such a functionalized material may make acid rain visual to remind people in real-time. This journal is © The Royal Society of Chemistry 2011

Cloning and sequencing of the Thermoanaerobacterium saccharolyticum B6A-RI apu gene and purification and characterization of the amylopullulanase from Escherichia coli.

PubMed

Ramesh, M V; Podkovyrov, S M; Lowe, S E; Zeikus, J G

1994-01-01

The amylopullulanase gene (apu) of the thermophilic anaerobic bacterium Thermoanaerobacterium saccharolyticum B6A-RI was cloned into Escherichia coli. The complete nucleotide sequence of the gene was determined. It encoded a protein consisting of 1,288 amino acids with a signal peptide of 35 amino acids. The enzyme purified from E. coli was a monomer with an M(r) of 142,000 +/- 2,000 and had same the catalytic and thermal characteristics as the native glycoprotein from T. saccharolyticum B6A. Linear alignment and the hydrophobic cluster analysis were used to compare this amylopullulanase with other amylolytic enzymes. Both methods revealed strictly conserved amino acid residues among these enzymes, and it is proposed that Asp-594, Asp-700, and Glu-623 are a putative catalytic triad of the T. saccharolyticum B6A-RI amylopullulanase.

Cloning and sequencing of the Thermoanaerobacterium saccharolyticum B6A-RI apu gene and purification and characterization of the amylopullulanase from Escherichia coli.

PubMed Central

Ramesh, M V; Podkovyrov, S M; Lowe, S E; Zeikus, J G

1994-01-01

The amylopullulanase gene (apu) of the thermophilic anaerobic bacterium Thermoanaerobacterium saccharolyticum B6A-RI was cloned into Escherichia coli. The complete nucleotide sequence of the gene was determined. It encoded a protein consisting of 1,288 amino acids with a signal peptide of 35 amino acids. The enzyme purified from E. coli was a monomer with an M(r) of 142,000 +/- 2,000 and had same the catalytic and thermal characteristics as the native glycoprotein from T. saccharolyticum B6A. Linear alignment and the hydrophobic cluster analysis were used to compare this amylopullulanase with other amylolytic enzymes. Both methods revealed strictly conserved amino acid residues among these enzymes, and it is proposed that Asp-594, Asp-700, and Glu-623 are a putative catalytic triad of the T. saccharolyticum B6A-RI amylopullulanase. Images PMID:8117096

Automated Detection of Diabetic Retinopathy using Deep Learning.

PubMed

Lam, Carson; Yi, Darvin; Guo, Margaret; Lindsey, Tony

2018-01-01

Diabetic retinopathy is a leading cause of blindness among working-age adults. Early detection of this condition is critical for good prognosis. In this paper, we demonstrate the use of convolutional neural networks (CNNs) on color fundus images for the recognition task of diabetic retinopathy staging. Our network models achieved test metric performance comparable to baseline literature results, with validation sensitivity of 95%. We additionally explored multinomial classification models, and demonstrate that errors primarily occur in the misclassification of mild disease as normal due to the CNNs inability to detect subtle disease features. We discovered that preprocessing with contrast limited adaptive histogram equalization and ensuring dataset fidelity by expert verification of class labels improves recognition of subtle features. Transfer learning on pretrained GoogLeNet and AlexNet models from ImageNet improved peak test set accuracies to 74.5%, 68.8%, and 57.2% on 2-ary, 3-ary, and 4-ary classification models, respectively.

Outcomes of a pilot hand hygiene randomized cluster trial to reduce communicable infections among US office-based employees.

PubMed

Stedman-Smith, Maggie; DuBois, Cathy L Z; Grey, Scott F; Kingsbury, Diana M; Shakya, Sunita; Scofield, Jennifer; Slenkovich, Ken

2015-04-01

To determine the effectiveness of an office-based multimodal hand hygiene improvement intervention in reducing self-reported communicable infections and work-related absence. A randomized cluster trial including an electronic training video, hand sanitizer, and educational posters (n = 131, intervention; n = 193, control). Primary outcomes include (1) self-reported acute respiratory infections (ARIs)/influenza-like illness (ILI) and/or gastrointestinal (GI) infections during the prior 30 days; and (2) related lost work days. Incidence rate ratios calculated using generalized linear mixed models with a Poisson distribution, adjusted for confounders and random cluster effects. A 31% relative reduction in self-reported combined ARI-ILI/GI infections (incidence rate ratio: 0.69; 95% confidence interval, 0.49 to 0.98). A 21% nonsignificant relative reduction in lost work days. An office-based multimodal hand hygiene improvement intervention demonstrated a substantive reduction in self-reported combined ARI-ILI/GI infections.

Copernicus observations of Ly-alpha and Mg II emission from HR 1099 /V711 Tauri/ and UX Ari

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Weiler, E. J.

1978-01-01

Ultraviolet observations of two RS CVn binaries obtained with Copernicus are described. High-resolution (0.05 A) U1 observations indicate that both HR 1099 and UX Ari display broad Ly-alpha emission. The Ly-alpha emission strength from HR 1099 is variable and seems to be correlated with orbital phase, while the UX Ari results indicate no significant variation. Moderate resolution (0.51 A) V2 scans of both systems show variable Mg II h and k emission-line profiles which usually matched the velocity of the more active star in each binary. Additionally, displaced emission components were seen at velocities of up to + or - 250 km/s, indicative of high-velocity gas motions. The radial velocities of these emission features from HR 1099 are marginally correlated with orbital phase. Highly active and variable chromospheric phenomena are found to be the most consistent explanation of these results.

New quantum codes derived from a family of antiprimitive BCH codes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Yang; Li, Ruihu; Lü, Liangdong; Guo, Luobin

The Bose-Chaudhuri-Hocquenghem (BCH) codes have been studied for more than 57 years and have found wide application in classical communication system and quantum information theory. In this paper, we study the construction of quantum codes from a family of q2-ary BCH codes with length n=q2m+1 (also called antiprimitive BCH codes in the literature), where q≥4 is a power of 2 and m≥2. By a detailed analysis of some useful properties about q2-ary cyclotomic cosets modulo n, Hermitian dual-containing conditions for a family of non-narrow-sense antiprimitive BCH codes are presented, which are similar to those of q2-ary primitive BCH codes. Consequently, via Hermitian Construction, a family of new quantum codes can be derived from these dual-containing BCH codes. Some of these new antiprimitive quantum BCH codes are comparable with those derived from primitive BCH codes.

A search for Potential Impact Sites in Southern Argentina

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rocca, M. C. L.

The Southern part of Argentina is composed of five Provinces; Tierra del Fuego, Santa Cruz, Chubut, Rio Negro and Neuquen. A search for potential impact sites was performed by the author through the examination of 76 color LANDSAT satellite images ( 1:250,000 - resolution = 250 meters ) at the Instituto Geografico Militar ( IGM ) of Buenos Aires city. When a potential candidate was found a more detailed study of the site was done. If available the radar X-SAR satellite images of the Deutsche Forschungsanstalt fur Luft-und Raumfahrt, (DLR), Berlin, Germany , were also examined. The final step was to perform a review of the available published geologic information of each site at the Servicio Geologico y Minero Argentino ( SEGEMAR ), ( =Geological Survey of Argentina ), in Buenos Aires. The resulting catalogue contains information about sites where possible simple crater or complex impact structures could be present. Each case demands future detailed and `in situ' research by an impact cratering specialist. --Tierra del Fuego: TF1 ) Ushuaia 5569-II, No 218. Cerro Taarsh, Estancia San Justo. Possible complex structure. Semi-circular area of concentric low ridges. Estimated diameter : 12 km. Probably very eroded. --Santa Cruz: SC1 ) Gobernador Gregores 4969-I, No 127. Estancia La Aragonesa Possible eroded complex structure. Circular area of low ridges, estimated diameter: 10 km.. Bull's eye like morphology. SC2 ) Gobernador Gregores 4969-I, No 127. Gran Altiplanicie Central. Possible simple crater in basalts. Diameter: 1 km.. SC3 ) Tres Lagos 4972-IV, No 106. Meseta del Bagual Chico. Possible perfectly circular simple crater in basalts. Diameter: 1.0 km.. SC4 )Paso Rio Bote 5172-II, No 20. Rio Pelque, Ruta Provincial No 5. A circular bowl-shaped structure is present on fluvial deposits of pleistocenic age. Diameter: 3.5 km.. SC5 ) Caleta Olivia 4769-II, No 28. North of Cerro Doce Grande. Possible complex structure of concentric circular rings of ridges. SC6 ) Caleta Olivia 4769-II, No 28. NW shore of Laguna Sirven. Possible simple crater of 2.5 km. Most probably, the circular crater is a basaltic caldera of upper Miocene's age. SC7 ) Destacamento La Maria 4769-II, No 188. Estancia Los Mellizos, Ruta Provincial No 39. Possible eroded and covered complex structure. In this site there is a semi-circular feature of ridges and low hills. Diameter: 15 km. Topographic map shows the same pattern. The DLR's X-SAR images show a clear semi-circular feature of ridges and hills in this site. SC8 ) Hipolito Irigoyen 4772-IV, No 116. Meseta del Lago Buenos Aires. Possible perfectly circular simple crater of 1 Km. Neuquen: N1 ) Picun Leufu 3969-III No 14. Meseta de la Barda Negra. Nice perfectly circular possible simple crater in black Miocene's ( 14-10 Ma ) basaltic plateau. Diameter: 1.5 km.. Possible raised rim. Fresh aspect. No visible lava flows .

Internal living environment and respiratory disease in children: findings from the Growing Up in New Zealand longitudinal child cohort study.

PubMed

Tin Tin, Sandar; Woodward, Alistair; Saraf, Rajneeta; Berry, Sarah; Atatoa Carr, Polly; Morton, Susan M B; Grant, Cameron C

2016-12-08

The incidence of early childhood acute respiratory infections (ARIs) has been associated with aspects of the indoor environment. In recent years, public awareness about some of these environmental issues has increased, including new laws and subsequent changes in occupant behaviours. This New Zealand study investigated current exposures to specific risk factors in the home during the first five years of life and provided updated evidence on the links between the home environment and childhood ARI hospitalisation. Pregnant women (n = 6822) were recruited in 2009 and 2010, and their 6853 children created a child cohort that was representative of New Zealand births from 2007-10. Longitudinal data were collected through face-to-face interviews and linkage to routinely collected national datasets. Incidence rates with Poisson distribution confidence intervals were computed and Cox regression modelling for repeated events was performed. Living in a rented dwelling (48%), household crowding (22%) or dampness (20%); and, in the child's room, heavy condensation (20%) or mould or mildew on walls or ceilings (13%) were prevalent. In 14% of the households, the mother smoked cigarettes and in 30%, other household members smoked. Electric heaters were commonly used, followed by wood, flued gas and unflued portable gas heaters. The incidence of ARI hospitalisation before age five years was 33/1000 person-years. The risk of ARI hospitalisation was higher for children living in households where there was a gas heater in the child's bedroom: hazard ratio for flued gas heater 1.69 (95% CI: 1.21-2.36); and for unflued gas heater 1.68 (95% CI: 1.12-2.53); and where a gas heater was the sole type of household heating (hazard ratio: 1.64 (95% CI: 1.29-2.09)). The risk was reduced in households that used electric heaters (Hazard ratio: 0.74 (95% CI: 0.61-0.89)) or wood burners (hazard ratio: 0.79 (95% CI: 0.66-0.93)) as a form of household heating. The associations with other risk factors were not significant. The risk of early childhood ARI hospitalisation is increased by gas heater usage, specifically in the child's bedroom. Use of non-gas forms of heating may reduce the risk of early childhood ARI hospitalisation.

Trellis Coding of Non-coherent Multiple Symbol Full Response M-ary CPFSK with Modulation Index 1/M

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lee, H.; Divsalar, D.; Weber, C.

1994-01-01

This paper introduces a trellis coded modulation (TCM) scheme for non-coherent multiple full response M-ary CPFSK with modulation index 1/M. A proper branch metric for the trellis decoder is obtained by employing a simple approximation of the modified Bessel function for large signal to noise ratio (SNR). Pairwise error probability of coded sequences is evaluated by applying a linear approximation to the Rician random variable.

Design Guidelines and Criteria for User/Operator Transactions with Battlefield Automated Systems. Volume 5. Background Literature

DTIC Science & Technology

1981-02-01

the machine . ARI’s efforts in this area focus on human perfor- mance problems related to interactions with command and control centers, and on issues...improvement of the user- machine interface. Lacking consistent design principles, current practice results in a fragmented and unsystematic approach to system...complexity in the user- machine interface of BAS, ARI supported this effort for develop- me:nt of an online language for Army tactical intelligence

U.S. Army Research Institute for the Behavioral and Social Sciences 1940-2015: 75 years of Science and Innovation

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-09-01

allegedly designed to im- prove human performance (such as neurolinguistic programming , para- psychology techniques, and super learning programs ), Gen...Integration program today. 5 Diversity and Integration of the Force From the 1970s through today, ARI has been central in providing the Army with...the 1980s, ARI worked with TRADOC and USAREC to establish and enhance the Army’s recruitment program , including develop- ing recruiter training

Passive transfer in domestic and bighorn lambs Total IgG in ewe sera and colostrum and serum IgG kinetics in lambs following colostrum ingestion are similar in domestic sheep and bighorn sheep (ovis aries and ovis canadensis)

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Pneumonia is a population-limiting disease of bighorn sheep (BHS; Ovis canadensis) and a recognized disease entity in domestic sheep (DS; Ovis aries) worldwide. Respiratory disease in BHS lambs can persist for years after all-age outbreaks, resulting in suppressed lamb recruitment. It has been sugge...

Development of Alabama Resources Information System (ARIS)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Herring, B. E.; Vachon, R. I.

1976-01-01

A formal, organized set of information concerning the development status of the Alabama Resources Information System (ARIS) as of September 1976 is provided. A series of computer source language programs, and flow charts related to each of the computer programs to provide greater ease in performing future change are presented. Listings of the variable names, and their meanings, used in the various source code programs, and copies of the various user manuals which were prepared through this time are given.

[Detection of hydrodynamically operative tissue in the substantia spongiosa of the femoral head in Bos taurus and Ovis aries].

PubMed

Copf, F; Czarnetzki, A; Lierse, W; Dolenc, A

1990-12-01

The authors show the presence of CC-Tensulae in Bos taurus and Ovis aries. They define CC-Tensulae as tense membranes in openings between the trabeculae of spongy bone. These structures were interpreted in man as a hydrodynamic subsystem which serves the flow and the impulses of mechanical forces. The authors point especially to the similarity that exists between their findings and what has been seen in man.

A photometric study of the nova-like variable TT Arietis with the MOST satellite

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vogt, N.; Chené, A.-N.; Moffat, A. F. J.; Matthews, J. M.; Kuschnig, R.; Guenther, D. B.; Rowe, J. F.; Rucinski, S. M.; Sasselov, D.; Weiss, W. W.

2013-12-01

Variability on all time scales between seconds and decades is typical for cataclysmic variables (CVs). One of the brightest and best studied CVs is TT Ari, a nova-like variable which belongs to the VY Scl subclass, characterized by occasional low states in their light curves. It is also known as a permanent superhumper at high state, revealing ``positive'' (PS> P0) as well as ``negative'' (PS< P0) superhumps, where PS is the period of the superhump and P0 the orbital period. TT Ari was observed by the Canadian space telescope MOST for about 230 hours nearly continuously in 2007, with a time resolution of 48 seconds. Here we analyze these data, obtaining a dominant ``negative'' superhump signal with a period PS = 0.1331 days and a mean amplitude of 0.09 mag. Strong flickering with amplitudes up to 0.2 mag and peak-to-peak time scales of 15-20 minutes is superimposed on the periodic variations. We found no indications for significant quasi-periodic oscillations with periods around 15 minutes, reported by other authors. We discuss the known superhump behaviour of TT Ari during the last five decades and conclude that our period value is at the upper limit of all hitherto determined ``negative'' superhump periods of TT Ari, before and after the MOST run.

Numerical Analysis of Organ Doses Delivered During Computed Tomography Examinations Using Japanese Adult Phantoms with the WAZA-ARI Dosimetry System.

PubMed

Takahashi, Fumiaki; Sato, Kaoru; Endo, Akira; Ono, Koji; Ban, Nobuhiko; Hasegawa, Takayuki; Katsunuma, Yasushi; Yoshitake, Takayasu; Kai, Michiaki

2015-08-01

A dosimetry system for computed tomography (CT) examinations, named WAZA-ARI, is being developed to accurately assess radiation doses to patients in Japan. For dose calculations in WAZA-ARI, organ doses were numerically analyzed using average adult Japanese male (JM) and female (JF) phantoms with the Particle and Heavy Ion Transport code System (PHITS). Experimental studies clarified the photon energy distribution of emitted photons and dose profiles on the table for some multi-detector row CT (MDCT) devices. Numerical analyses using a source model in PHITS could specifically take into account emissions of x rays from the tube to the table with attenuation of photons through a beam-shaping filter for each MDCT device based on the experiment results. The source model was validated by measuring the CT dose index (CTDI). Numerical analyses with PHITS revealed a concordance of organ doses with body sizes of the JM and JF phantoms. The organ doses in the JM phantoms were compared with data obtained using previously developed systems. In addition, the dose calculations in WAZA-ARI were verified with previously reported results by realistic NUBAS phantoms and radiation dose measurement using a physical Japanese model (THRA1 phantom). The results imply that numerical analyses using the Japanese phantoms and specified source models can give reasonable estimates of dose for MDCT devices for typical Japanese adults.

Clinical and epidemiological characteristics of acute respiratory virus infections in Vietnamese children.

PubMed

Tran, D N; Trinh, Q D; Pham, N T K; Vu, M P; Ha, M T; Nguyen, T Q N; Okitsu, S; Hayakawa, S; Mizuguchi, M; Ushijima, H

2016-02-01

Information about viral acute respiratory infections (ARIs) is essential for prevention, diagnosis and treatment, but it is limited in tropical developing countries. This study described the clinical and epidemiological characteristics of ARIs in children hospitalized in Vietnam. Nasopharyngeal samples were collected from children with ARIs at Ho Chi Minh City Children's Hospital 2 between April 2010 and May 2011 in order to detect respiratory viruses by polymerase chain reaction. Viruses were found in 64% of 1082 patients, with 12% being co-infections. The leading detected viruses were human rhinovirus (HRV; 30%), respiratory syncytial virus (RSV; 23·8%), and human bocavirus (HBoV; 7·2%). HRV was detected all year round, while RSV epidemics occurred mainly in the rainy season. Influenza A (FluA) was found in both seasons. The other viruses were predominant in the dry season. HRV was identified in children of all age groups. RSV, parainfluenza virus (PIV) 1, PIV3 and HBoV, and FluA were detected predominantly in children aged 24 months, respectively. Significant associations were found between PIV1 with croup (P < 0·005) and RSV with bronchiolitis (P < 0·005). HBoV and HRV were associated with hypoxia (P < 0·05) and RSV with retraction (P < 0·05). HRV, RSV, and HBoV were detected most frequently and they may increase the severity of ARIs in children.

Aerosol properties and meteorological conditions in the city of Buenos Aires, Argentina, during the resuspension of volcanic ash from the Puyehue-Cordón Caulle eruption

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Graciela Ulke, Ana; Torres Brizuela, Marcela M.; Raga, Graciela B.; Baumgardner, Darrel

2016-09-01

The eruption in June 2011 of the Puyehue-Cordón Caulle Volcanic Complex in Chile impacted air traffic around the Southern Hemisphere for several months after the initial ash emissions. The ash deposited in vast areas of the Patagonian Steppe was subjected to the strong wind conditions prevalent during the austral winter and spring experiencing resuspension over various regions of Argentina. In this study we analyze the meteorological conditions that led to the episode of volcanic ash resuspension which impacted the city of Buenos Aires and resulted in the closure of the two main airports in Buenos Aires area (Ezeiza and Aeroparque) on 16 October 2011. A relevant result is that resuspended material (volcanic ash plus dust) imprints a distinguishable feature within the atmospheric thermodynamic vertical profiles. The thermodynamic soundings show the signature of "pulses of drying" in layers associated with the presence of hygroscopic ash in the atmosphere that has already been reported in similar episodes after volcanic eruptions in other parts of the world. This particular footprint can be used to detect the probable existence of volcanic ash layers. This study also illustrates the utility of ceilometers to detect not only cloud base at airports but also volcanic ash plumes at the boundary layer and up to 7 km altitude. Aerosol properties measured in the city during the resuspension episode indicate the presence of enhanced concentrations of aerosol particles in the boundary layer along with spectral signatures in the measurements at the Buenos Aires AERONET site typical of ash plus dust advected towards the city. The mandatory aviation reports from the National Weather Service about airborne and deposited volcanic ash at the airport near the measurement site (Aeroparque) correlate in time with the enhanced concentrations. The presence of the resuspended material was detected by the CALIOP lidar overpassing the region. Since the dynamics of ash resuspension and recirculation are similar to the dynamics of dust storms, we use the HYSPLIT model with the dust storm module to simulate the episode that affected Buenos Aires. The results of the modeling agree qualitatively with satellite lidar measurements.

Effects of enamel sealing on shear bond strength and the adhesive remnant index : Study of three fluoride-releasing adhesives in combination with metal and ceramic brackets.

PubMed

Hofmann, Elisabeth; Elsner, Laura; Hirschfelder, Ursula; Ebert, Thomas; Hanke, Sebastian

2017-01-01

Selected combinations of materials were used to create tooth-adhesive-bracket complexes to evaluate shear bond strength (SBS) and the adhesive remnant index (ARI) with regard to enamel sealing. Four adhesive systems also appropriate for use as enamel sealants were combined with four bracket types, resulting in 16 adhesive-bracket combinations, each of which was tested on 15 permanent bovine incisors. Sealant-adhesives included two recently introduced fluoride-releasing systems (Riva bond LC ® and go! ® ), one established primer (Opal ® Seal™), and one commonly used adhesive as control (Transbond™ XT). Brackets included two metal (discovery ® by Dentaurum and Sprint ® ) and two ceramic (discovery ® pearl and GLAM ® ) systems. After embedding the bovine teeth, bonding the brackets to their surface, and storing the resultant samples as per DIN 13990-2 with modifications, an SBS test was performed by applying the shear force directly at the bracket base in an incisocervical direction. Then the ARI scores were determined. Discovery ®  + Transbond™ XT yielded the highest (47.2 MPa) and GLAM ®  + go! ® the lowest (17.0 MPa) mean SBS values. Significant differences (p < 0.0001) were found between metal and ceramic brackets of the same manufacturers (Dentaurum and Forestadent). Our ratings of the failure modes upon debonding predominantly yielded ARI 0 or 1. The high SBS values and low ARI scores observed with discovery ®  + Transbond XT™ were reflected in a high rate of enamel fracture, which occurred on 11 of the 15 tooth specimens in this group. All sealant-bracket combinations were found to yield levels of SBS adequate for clinical application. SBS values and ARI scores varied significantly depending on which sealant-brackets were used.

Nudging Guideline-Concordant Antibiotic Prescribing

PubMed Central

Meeker, Daniella; Knight, Tara K.; Friedberg, Mark W.; Linder, Jeffrey A.; Goldstein, Noah J.; Fox, Craig R.; Rothfeld, Alan; Diaz, Guillermo; Doctor, Jason N.

2015-01-01

IMPORTANCE “Nudges” that influence decision making through subtle cognitive mechanisms have been shown to be highly effective in a wide range of applications, but there have been few experiments to improve clinical practice. OBJECTIVE To investigate the use of a behavioral “nudge” based on the principle of public commitment in encouraging the judicious use of antibiotics for acute respiratory infections (ARIs). DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS Randomized clinical trial in 5 outpatient primary care clinics. A total of 954 adults had ARI visits during the study timeframe: 449 patients were treated by clinicians randomized to the posted commitment letter (335 in the baseline period, 114 in the intervention period); 505 patients were treated by clinicians randomized to standard practice control (384 baseline, 121 intervention). INTERVENTIONS The intervention consisted of displaying poster-sized commitment letters in examination rooms for 12 weeks. These letters, featuring clinician photographs and signatures, stated their commitment to avoid inappropriate antibiotic prescribing for ARIs. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES Antibiotic prescribing rates for antibiotic-inappropriate ARI diagnoses in baseline and intervention periods, adjusted for patient age, sex, and insurance status. RESULTS Baseline rates were 43.5% and 42.8% for control and poster, respectively. During the intervention period, inappropriate prescribing rates increased to 52.7% for controls but decreased to 33.7% in the posted commitment letter condition. Controlling for baseline prescribing rates, we found that the posted commitment letter resulted in a 19.7 absolute percentage reduction in inappropriate antibiotic prescribing rate relative to control (P = .02). There was no evidence of diagnostic coding shift, and rates of appropriate antibiotic prescriptions did not diminish over time. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE Displaying poster-sized commitment letters in examination rooms decreased inappropriate antibiotic prescribing for ARIs. The effect of this simple, low-cost intervention is comparable in magnitude to costlier, more intensive quality-improvement efforts. TRIAL REGISTRATION clinicaltrials.gov identifier: NCT01767064 PMID:24474434

Comparative epidemiology of human metapneumovirus- and respiratory syncytial virus-associated hospitalizations in Guatemala

PubMed Central

McCracken, John P; Arvelo, Wences; Ortíz, José; Reyes, Lissette; Gray, Jennifer; Estevez, Alejandra; Castañeda, Oscar; Langley, Gayle; Lindblade, Kim A

2014-01-01

Background Human metapneumovirus (HMPV) is an important cause of acute respiratory infections (ARI), but little is known about how it compares with respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) in Central America. Objectives In this study, we describe hospitalized cases of HMPV- and RSV-ARI in Guatemala. Methods We conducted surveillance at three hospitals (November 2007–December 2012) and tested nasopharyngeal and oropharyngeal swab specimens for HMPV and RSV using real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction. We calculated incidence rates, and compared the epidemiology and outcomes of HMPV-positive versus RSV-positive and RSV-HMPV-negative cases. Results We enrolled and tested specimens from 6288 ARI cases; 596 (9%) were HMPV-positive and 1485 (24%) were RSV-positive. We observed a seasonal pattern of RSV but not HMPV. The proportion HMPV-positive was low (3%) and RSV-positive high (41%) for age <1 month, whereas these proportions were similar (∼20%) by age 2 years. The annual incidence of hospitalized HMPV-ARI was 102/100 000 children aged <5 years [95% confidence interval (CI): 75–178], 2·6/100 000 persons aged 5–17 years (95%CI: 1·2–5·0), and 2·6/100 000 persons aged ≥18 years (95%CI: 1·5–4·9). Among children aged <5 years, HMPV-positive cases were less severe than HMPV-RSV-negative cases after adjustment for confounders [odds ratio (OR) for intensive care = 0·63, 95% CI 0·47–0·84]; OR for death = 0·46, 95% CI 0·23–0·92). Conclusions Human metapneumovirus is a substantial contributor to ARI hospitalization in Guatemala, but HMPV hospitalizations are less frequent than RSV and, in young children, less severe than other etiologies. Preventive interventions should take into account the wide variation in incidence by age and unpredictable timing of incidence peaks. PMID:24761765

Neorickettsia risticii, Rickettsia sp. and Bartonella sp. in Tadarida brasiliensis bats from Buenos Aires, Argentina.

PubMed

Cicuttin, Gabriel L; De Salvo, María N; La Rosa, Isabel; Dohmen, Federico E Gury

2017-06-01

Bats are potential reservoirs of many vector-borne bacterial pathogens. The aim of the present study was to detect species of Anaplasma, Ehrlichia, Neorickettsia, Rickettsia, Borrelia and Bartonella in Brazilian free-tailed bats (Tadarida brasiliensis, Molossidae) from Buenos Aires city, Argentina. Between 2012 and 2013, 61 T. brasiliensis from urban areas of Buenos Aires city were studied. The samples were molecularly screened by PCR and sequencing. Five bats (8.2%) were positive to Neorickettsia risticii, one (1.6%) was positive to Rickettsia sp. and three bats (4.9%) to Bartonella sp. For molecular characterization, the positive samples were subjected to amplification and sequencing of a fragment of p51 gene for N. risticii, a fragment of citrate synthase gene (gltA) for Rickettsia genus and a fragment of gltA for Bartonella genus. Phylogenetic tree was constructed using the maximum-likelihood method. Phylogenetic analysis of N. risticii detect in our study revealed that it relates to findings in the USA West Coast; Rickettsia sp. detected is phylogenetically within R. bellii group, which also includes many other Rickettsia endosymbionts of insects; and Bartonella sp. found is related to various Bartonella spp. described in Vespertilionidae bats, which are phylogenetically related to Molossidae. Our results are in accordance to previous findings, which demonstrate that insectivorous bats could be infected with vector-borne bacteria representing a potential risk to public health. Future research is necessary to clarify the circulation of these pathogens in bats from Buenos Aires. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The 1986 ARI Survey of U.S. Army Recruits: Codebook for Army Reserve/ National Guard Survey Respondents

DTIC Science & Technology

1987-04-01

NA NA NA YES 89 THE 1986 ARI SURVEY OF ARMY RECRUITS: CODEBOOK FOR SUMMER 86 USAR 6 ARNG SURVEY RESPONDENTS SSN WHAT IS YOUR SOCIAL SECURITY... Social Sciences Approved (of public relcise distribution unlimited U. S. ARMY RESEARCH INSTITUTE FOR THE BEHAVIORAL AND SOCIAL SCIENCES A Field...RtMirch Institut* for tn« Behavioral and Social Sciancas. NOTE: ThU Rasaarch Product Is not to ba construad as an olflclal Dapartmant of tha Army

Mobile radio interferometric geodetic systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Macdoran, P. F.; Niell, A. E.; Ong, K. M.; Resch, G. M.; Morabito, D. D.; Claflin, E. S.; Lockhart, T. G.

1978-01-01

Operation of the Astronomical Radio Interferometric Earth Surveying (ARIES) in a proof of concept mode is discussed. Accuracy demonstrations over a short baseline, a 180 km baseline, and a 380 km baseline are documented. Use of ARIES in the Sea Slope Experiment of the National Geodetic Survey to study the apparent differences between oceanographic and geodetic leveling determinations of the sea surface along the Pacific Coast is described. Intergration of the NAVSTAR Global Positioning System and a concept called SERIES (Satellite Emission Radio Interferometric Earth Surveying) is briefly reviewed.

Pilot Comparisons of Temporary Open Revascularization Using Stent Grafts vs. Standard Shunts in a Sheep (Ovis aries) Model

DTIC Science & Technology

2016-03-14

using stent grafts vs. standard shunts in a sheep (Ovis aries) model." PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR (Pl) I TRAINING COORDINATOR (TC): Lt Col James Sampson...Objectives: Pilot study and development of an experimental model to test and compare the performance of endovascular stent -graft as an arterial shunt...FDG2015001 OA 2 Results: Exposure and placement of vascular stent -grafts and shunts into the common carotid artery was feasible. Stent -graft and

Military Standard Transportation and Movement Procedures. Volume 1. Change 5

DTIC Science & Technology

1994-08-12

ANATA AMT JUNEAU JNU ANNAROO ANY KETCHIKAN INTL AIRPORT KTN ANDAMOOKA ADO KING SALMON AKN ANGUS DOWNS ANZ KODIAK ADQ ARARAT ARY KOTZEBUE OTZ ARGYLE DOWNS...ARX ASBURY PARK, NJ AUA ARUBA, ARUBA ARY ARARAT , AUSTRALIA AUB ITAUBA, BRAZIL ARZ N’ZETO, ANGOLA AUC ARAUCA, COLOMBIA F4-22 C5 DoD 4500.32-R Vol. I...CAYMAN, WEST INDIES MCI KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI-INTL. USA LYC LYCKSELE, SWEDEN MCK MCCOOK, NEBRASKA, USA LYE LYNEHAM, UNITED KINGDOM M04 MONTE CARLO

Updates of ARI Databases for Tracking Army and College Fund (ACF), Montgomery GI Bill (MGIB) Usage for 2012-2013, and Post-9/11 GI Bill Benefit Usage for 2015

DTIC Science & Technology

2017-01-02

Research Note 2017-03 Updates of ARI Databases for Tracking Army and College Fund (ACF), Montgomery GI Bill (MGIB) Usage for 2012-2013...and Post-9/11 GI Bill Benefit Usage for 2015 Winnie Young Human Resources Research Organization Personnel...Assessment Research Unit Tonia Heffner, Chief January 2017 United States Army Research Institute for the Behavioral and Social Sciences

Understanding Airpower: Bonfire of the Fallacies

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-03-01

Isaiah Berlin, The Hedgehog and the Fox: An Essay on Tolstoy’s View of History (New York: Mentor Books, 957), 24–25. 2. Carl H. Builder, The Masks of...University, December 2007), –3, http://www.aupress.au.af.mil/ ARI_Papers/GrayARI2.pdf. 62 0. Isaiah Berlin, The Hedgehog and the Fox, presents an...potential for disaster has always been severe for these elite troops. 54. See Richard B. Andres, “Deep Attack against Iraq,” in Thomas G. Mahnken

Viral diagnostic criteria for Feline immunodeficiency virus and Feline leukemia virus infections in domestic cats from Buenos Aires, Argentina.

PubMed

Galdo Novo, Sabrina; Bucafusco, Danilo; Diaz, Leandro M; Bratanich, Ana Cristina

A cross-sectional study was carried out on cats attending the Small Animal Hospital at the Faculty of Veterinary Sciences of the University of Buenos Aires to assess the prevalence and associated risk factors of Feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) and Feline leukemia virus (FeLV) in the city of Buenos Aires, Argentina. Blood samples from 255 cats with symptoms compatible with FIV or FeLV infection, collected between 2009 and 2013 were analyzed by serology (immunochromatography, IA) and by hemi-nested PCR (n-PCR). The IA and n-PCR assays showed similar percentages of positivity for FIV while the n-PCR test was more sensitive for FeLV. Differences between the diagnostic tests and their choice according to the age of the animal are discussed. The clinical histories of ninety of the 255 cats showed blood profiles similar to others previously reported and revealed a higher risk of infection in male adult cats with outdoor access. Copyright © 2016 Asociación Argentina de Microbiología. Publicado por Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.

Satellite and ground detection of very dense smoke clouds produced on the islands of the Paraná river delta that affected a large region in Central Argentina

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ipiña, A.; Salum, G. M.; Crinó, E.; Piacentini, R. D.

2012-03-01

Intense fires were produced on the Paraná river delta islands, Argentina, during most part of 2008, by a combination of an exceptionally dry period and the farmers' use of a fire land-cleaning technique. In April 2008, those fires significantly affected the nearby regions and their inhabitants, from Rosario city to Buenos Aires mega-city. In this work we present satellite as well as ground Aerosol Optical Depth (AOD) at 550 nm data obtained during the propagation of pollution clouds to the central zone of Argentina. The highest value (1.18) was registered at Buenos Aires by atmospheric remote sensing, using the satellite instrument MODIS/Terra on April 18th 2008 at 10:35 local time (= UT - 3 h). On the same day, ground air quality detectors also measured in this city the highest Total Suspended Particle (TSP) value of the month, 2.02 mg/m3. The AOD(550) daily variation at Rosario Astronomical Observatory, which is located near the Paraná riverside, was derived by combining solar ultraviolet erythemal irradiance data (measured with a YES biometre) with model calculations. On April 25th 2008, from 12:00 to 15:30 local time, a rather high and constant AOD(550) value was registered, with a mean value of (0.90 ± 0.21). Cities located on the side of the Rosario-Buenos Aires highway (San Nicolás, Baradero and San Pedro) were also affected, showing a mean AOD(550) between the Rosario and Buenos Aires values. The particulate matter was collected with gridded samplers placed on the Paraná river islands as well as at the Rosario Observatory. They were analysed with a Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) and mainly showed a biological origin. Even if normally large particles travel small distances from the source, organic aerosol in the range of 40-100 μm and complex asymmetric structures were registered several kilometres away from the aerosol sources on the islands. Another event of intense UV index attenuation (98.6%) occurred on September 18th 2008, due to very dense smoke clouds that extended over the Rosario area for several hours. The clouds were driven away from the fires by East-northeast and East-southeast winds. The minimum value of this index measured around noon allows to derive a maximum AOD(550)max = (3.65 ± 0.90) at 12:45 local time. Soot clouds extended over the Paraná river, transporting Burned Biomass Debris (BBD) that deposited on Rosario. In particular, burned leaves and small branches with dimensions of 1-20 cm were collected. The mean (BBD) particles deposited on the ground from 7:00 to 19:00 local time were (0.92 ± 0.20) BBD/(m2 h).The main purpose of the present work is to contribute to the understanding and quantification of the impact of very dense smoke clouds and BBD that directly and indirectly affected a densely populated area. All the events originated in a very particular and fragile region such as a river delta (with its specific native plants) were registered by using a multi-instrument approach (satellite as well as ground based devices).The analysis of these events, as detailed in this manuscript, was used as a scientific reference for the judicial claim made at the Supreme Court of Justice of Argentina by the National University of Rosario, against the authorities of the Entre Rios Province where the islands of the Paraná river are placed, in order to take the necessary measures for the suspension of the biomass burning in these islands.

Lack of linear correlation between dynamic and steady-state cerebral autoregulation.

PubMed

de Jong, Daan L K; Tarumi, Takashi; Liu, Jie; Zhang, Rong; Claassen, Jurgen A H R

2017-08-15

For correct application and interpretation of cerebral autoregulation (CA) measurements in research and in clinical care, it is essential to understand differences and similarities between dynamic and steady-state CA. The present study found no correlation between dynamic and steady-state CA indices in healthy older adults. There was variability between individuals in all (steady-state and dynamic) autoregulatory indices, ranging from low (almost absent) to highly efficient CA in this healthy population. These findings challenge the assumption that assessment of a single CA parameter or a single set of parameters can be generalized to overall CA functioning. Therefore, depending on specific research purposes, the choice for either steady-state or dynamic measures or both should be weighed carefully. The present study aimed to investigate the relationship between dynamic (dCA) and steady-state cerebral autoregulation (sCA). In 28 healthy older adults, sCA was quantified by a linear regression slope of proportionate (%) changes in cerebrovascular resistance (CVR) in response to proportionate (%) changes in mean blood pressure (BP) induced by stepwise sodium nitroprusside (SNP) and phenylephrine (PhE) infusion. Cerebral blood flow (CBF) was measured at the internal carotid artery (ICA) and vertebral artery (VA) and CBF velocity at the middle cerebral artery (MCA). With CVR = BP/CBF, Slope-CVR ICA , Slope-CVR VA and Slope-CVRi MCA were derived. dCA was assessed (i) in supine rest, analysed with transfer function analysis (gain and phase) and autoregulatory index (ARI) fit from spontaneous oscillations (ARI Baseline ), and (ii) with transient changes in BP using a bolus injection of SNP (ARI SNP ) and PhE (ARI PhE ). Comparison of sCA and dCA parameters (using Pearson's r for continuous and Spearman's ρ for ordinal parameters) demonstrated a lack of linear correlations between sCA and dCA measures. However, comparisons of parameters within dCA and within sCA were correlated. For sCA slope-CVR VA with Slope-CVRi MCA (r = 0.45, P < 0.03); for dCA ARI SNP with ARI PhE (ρ = 0.50, P = 0.03), ARI Baseline (ρ = 0.57, P = 0.03) and Phase LF (ρ = 0.48, P = 0.03); and for Gain VLF with Gain LF (r = 0.51, P = 0.01). By contrast to the commonly held assumption based on an earlier study, there were no linear correlations between sCA and dCA. As an additional observation, there was strong inter-individual variability, both in dCA and sCA, in this healthy group of elderly, in a range from low to high CA efficiency. © 2017 The Authors. The Journal of Physiology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of The Physiological Society.

Urban political ecologies of informal recyclers׳ health in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

PubMed

Parizeau, Kate

2015-05-01

Buenos Aires׳ informal recyclers (cartoneros) confront multiple health hazards in their work. Based in a survey with (n=397) informal recyclers, this study establishes that these workers experience uneven health landscapes as evidenced through their health outcomes, the social determinants of their health, and their living and working environments. I argue that the analytical framework of urban political ecology can provide insights to the ways that the urban environments where cartoneros live and work are socially-constructed phenomena, drawing on concepts of crisis, metabolism, and multi-scalar analyses. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Influence of physician factors on the effectiveness of a continuing medical education intervention.

PubMed

Flores, Sergio; Reyes, Hortensia; Perez-Cuevas, Ricardo

2006-01-01

Continuing medical education (CME) is essential for improving the quality of care in primary health care settings. This study's objective was to determine how the characteristics of family physicians influenced the effectiveness of a multifaceted CME intervention to improve the management of acute respiratory infection (ARI) or type 2 diabetes (DM2). A secondary analysis was conducted based on data from 121 family physicians, who participated in the educational intervention study. The outcome variable was positive change in physician's performance for treatment of ARI or DM2. The exposure variable was multifaceted CME intervention. Independent variables were professional physicians and organizational characteristics. Analysis included log binomial regression modeling. Factors influencing positive change included, for ARI, participation in the CME intervention and medical director interested in that condition and for DM2, participation in the CME intervention, medical director interested in DM2, and being a teacher. Physicians' characteristics and organizational environment influence the effectiveness of educational intervention and are therefore relevant to the implementation of CME strategies.

Unique Roll-Off Roof for Housing 1.3 m Telescope at Devasthal, Nainital

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bangia, Tarun

2017-06-01

Aryabhatta Research Institute of Observational Sciences (ARIES) had set up a 1.3 m telescope at Devasthal, Nainital, India in the year 2010. Country's largest roll-off roof was indigenously designed, fabricated and installed on top of a building (17 × 8 m) for housing 1.3 m telescope. Telescope was supplied by M/s DFM Engineering Inc., USA to ARIES and was installed in the building with unique roll-off roof to protect it from external environment. Roll-off roof was designed and fabricated considering various parameters and available manpower and resources at ARIES. This paper presents mechanical development work, simple but distinct design approach and innovative selection of materials to economically manufacture roll-off roof of large size (8 × 8 × 4 m) at hilly remote site of Devasthal situated in Central Himalayan region. All operations in the roof viz. opening of shutters and rolling of roof were motorized to facilitate observers during night observations.

Whale shark economics: a valuation of wildlife tourism in South Ari Atoll, Maldives.

PubMed

Cagua, Edgar Fernando; Collins, Neal; Hancock, James; Rees, Richard

2014-01-01

Whale sharks attract large numbers of tourists, divers and snorkelers each year to South Ari Atoll in the Republic of Maldives. Yet without information regarding the use and economic extent of the attraction, it is difficult to prioritize conservation or implement effective management plans. We used empirical recreational data and generalized mixed statistical models to conduct the first economic valuation (with direct spend as the primary proxy) of whale shark tourism in Maldives. We estimated that direct expenditures for whale shark focused tourism in the South Ari Marine Protected Area for 2012 and 2013 accounted for US$7.6 and $9.4 million respectively. These expenditures are based on an estimate of 72,000-78,000 tourists who are involved in whale shark excursions annually. That substantial amount of income to resort owners and operators, and tourism businesses in a relatively small area highlights the need to implement regulations and management that safeguard the sustainability of the industry through ensuring guest satisfaction and whale shark conservation.

Continuous phase and amplitude holographic elements

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Maker, Paul D. (Inventor); Muller, Richard E. (Inventor)

1995-01-01

A method for producing a phase hologram using e-beam lithography provides n-ary levels of phase and amplitude by first producing an amplitude hologram on a transparent substrate by e-beam exposure of a resist over a film of metal by exposing n is less than or equal to m x m spots of an array of spots for each pixel, where the spots are randomly selected in proportion to the amplitude assigned to each pixel, and then after developing and etching the metal film producing a phase hologram by e-beam lithography using a low contrast resist, such as PMMA, and n-ary levels of low doses less than approximately 200 micro-C/sq cm and preferably in the range of 20-200 micro-C/sq cm, and aggressive development using pure acetone for an empirically determined time (about 6 s) controlled to within 1/10 s to produce partial development of each pixel in proportion to the n-ary level of dose assigned to it.

Outcomes of a Pilot Hand Hygiene Randomized Cluster Trial to Reduce Communicable Infections Among US Office-Based Employees

PubMed Central

DuBois, Cathy L.Z.; Grey, Scott F.; Kingsbury, Diana M.; Shakya, Sunita; Scofield, Jennifer; Slenkovich, Ken

2015-01-01

Objective: To determine the effectiveness of an office-based multimodal hand hygiene improvement intervention in reducing self-reported communicable infections and work-related absence. Methods: A randomized cluster trial including an electronic training video, hand sanitizer, and educational posters (n = 131, intervention; n = 193, control). Primary outcomes include (1) self-reported acute respiratory infections (ARIs)/influenza-like illness (ILI) and/or gastrointestinal (GI) infections during the prior 30 days; and (2) related lost work days. Incidence rate ratios calculated using generalized linear mixed models with a Poisson distribution, adjusted for confounders and random cluster effects. Results: A 31% relative reduction in self-reported combined ARI-ILI/GI infections (incidence rate ratio: 0.69; 95% confidence interval, 0.49 to 0.98). A 21% nonsignificant relative reduction in lost work days. Conclusions: An office-based multimodal hand hygiene improvement intervention demonstrated a substantive reduction in self-reported combined ARI-ILI/GI infections. PMID:25719534

Whale shark economics: a valuation of wildlife tourism in South Ari Atoll, Maldives

PubMed Central

Collins, Neal; Hancock, James; Rees, Richard

2014-01-01

Whale sharks attract large numbers of tourists, divers and snorkelers each year to South Ari Atoll in the Republic of Maldives. Yet without information regarding the use and economic extent of the attraction, it is difficult to prioritize conservation or implement effective management plans. We used empirical recreational data and generalized mixed statistical models to conduct the first economic valuation (with direct spend as the primary proxy) of whale shark tourism in Maldives. We estimated that direct expenditures for whale shark focused tourism in the South Ari Marine Protected Area for 2012 and 2013 accounted for US$7.6 and $9.4 million respectively. These expenditures are based on an estimate of 72,000–78,000 tourists who are involved in whale shark excursions annually. That substantial amount of income to resort owners and operators, and tourism businesses in a relatively small area highlights the need to implement regulations and management that safeguard the sustainability of the industry through ensuring guest satisfaction and whale shark conservation. PMID:25165629

Medical treatment of lower urinary tract symptoms/benign prostatic hyperplasia: anything new in 2015.

PubMed

Schauer, Ingrid; Madersbacher, Stephan

2015-01-01

The purpose of this study is to provide an update on recent developments regarding the medical management of male lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS). Silodosin improves storage/voiding symptoms and nocturia and is effective within the framework of a trial without a catheter. 5α-reductase inhibitors (5ARIs) are not associated with male breast cancer development. Alcohol consumption seems to increase the risk of high-grade prostate cancer under 5ARIs. The combination of α-blocker and 5ARIs remains a well established concept for benign prostatic hyperplasia/LUTS patients with an enhanced risk of disease progression. Tadalafil 5 mg/day monotherapy is a valid option particularly for men with LUTS and erectile dysfunction; the combination of Tadalafil 5 mg/day with a 5ARI is an interesting approach. The fixed-dose combination of α-blocker and antimuscarinic provides advantages regarding storage symptom improvement. This approach is currently primarily recommended as an add-on strategy. Mirabegron opens new horizons in the management of male LUTS and has no negative (but also no positive) urodynamic effects. Several encouraging novel approaches are currently in the experimental phase and might enhance our therapeutic armamentarium in the near future. The recent literature refines our knowledge on current therapeutic options and provides further evidence for an individualized, risk-adapted approach for male LUTS mainly depending on symptoms status, comorbidities (i.e. erectile dysfunction) and risk of disease progression.

Optical flare events on the RS Canum Venaticorum star UX Arietis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cao, Dong-Tao; Gu, Sheng-Hong

2017-05-01

Based on long-term high-resolution spectroscopic observations obtained during five observing runs from 2001 to 2004, we study optical flare events and chromospheric activity variability of the very active RS CVn star UX Ari. By means of the spectral subtraction technique, several optical chromospheric activity indicators (including the He i D3, Na i D1, D2 doublet, Hα and Ca ii IRT lines) covered in our echelle spectra were analyzed. Four large optical flare events were detected on UX Ari during our observations, which show prominent He i D3 line emission together with great enhancement in emission of the Hα and Ca ii IRT lines and strong filled-in or emission reversal features in the Na i D1, D2 doublet lines. The newly detected flares are much more energetic than previous discoveries, especially for the flare identified during the 2002 December observing run. Optical flare events on UX Ari are more likely to be observed around two quadratures of the system, except for our optical flares detected during the 2004 November observing run. Moreover, we have found rotational modulation of chromospheric activity in the Hα and Ca ii IRT lines, which suggests the presence of chromospherically active longitudes over the surface of UX Ari. The change in chromospherically active longitudes among our observing runs, as well as the variation in chromospheric activity level from 2001 to 2004, indicates a long-term evolution of active regions.

Tissue-specific effects of aldose reductase inhibition on fluorescence and cross-linking of extracellular matrix in chronic galactosemia. Relationship to pentosidine cross-links.

PubMed

Richard, S; Tamas, C; Sell, D R; Monnier, V M

1991-08-01

Chronic experimental hyperglycemia mediated by galactose has been shown to induce browning and cross-linking of rat tail tendon collagen that could be duplicated in vitro by nonenzymatic galactosylation. To investigate the nature of these changes, Sprague-Dawley rats were placed on a 33% galactose diet without and with sorbinil for 6 and 12 mo. Collagen-linked fluorescence and pentosidine cross-links increased with age and galactosemia in tail tendons (P less than 0.001) and skin but were essentially unresponsive to aldose reductase inhibition (ARI). In contrast, tendon breaking time in urea, a likely parameter of cross-linking, was markedly improved (P less than 0.001) by ARI. Fluorescence that was inhibited by sorbinil treatment was increased in pepsin and proteinase K digest of aortic tissue from galactosemic rats (P less than 0.001), but impaired enzymatic digestibility was not observed. Systolic blood pressure as potential consequence of aortic stiffening was not increased in galactosemia. These data suggest that fluorescence in skin and tendon might be in part due to advanced glycosylation and pentosidine formation because these were not decreased by ARI. However, they also suggest that nonfluorescent cross-links may also be forming because, in contrast to fluorescence, tail tendon breaking time was partly corrected by ARI. Thus, it appears that extracellular matrix changes in chronic galactosemia are complex, being partly attributable to advanced glycosylation and partly to polyol-pathway activation.

Acute viral respiratory infections among children in MERS-endemic Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, 2012-2013.

PubMed

Fagbo, Shamsudeen F; Garbati, Musa A; Hasan, Rami; AlShahrani, Dayel; Al-Shehri, Mohamed; AlFawaz, Tariq; Hakawi, Ahmed; Wani, Tariq Ahmad; Skakni, Leila

2017-02-01

The emergence of the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) in Saudi Arabia has intensified focus on Acute Respiratory Infections [ARIs]. This study sought to identify respiratory viruses (RVs) associated with ARIs in children presenting at a tertiary hospital. Children (aged ≤13) presenting with ARI between January 2012 and December 2013 tested for 15 RVs using the Seeplex R RV15 kit were retrospectively included. Epidemiological data was retrieved from patient records. Of the 2235 children tested, 61.5% were ≤1 year with a male: female ratio of 3:2. Viruses were detected in 1364 (61.02%) children, 233 (10.4%) having dual infections: these viruses include respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) (24%), human rhinovirus (hRV) (19.7%), adenovirus (5.7%), influenza virus (5.3%), and parainfluenzavirus-3 (4.6%). Children, aged 9-11 months, were most infected (60.9%). Lower respiratory tract infections (55.4%) were significantly more than upper respiratory tract infection (45.3%) (P < 0.001). Seasonal variation of RV was directly and inversely proportional to relative humidity and temperature, respectively, for non MERS coronaviruses (NL63, 229E, and OC43). The study confirms community-acquired RV associated with ARI in children and suggests modulating roles for abiotic factors in RV epidemiology. However, community-based studies are needed to elucidate how these factors locally influence RV epidemiology. J. Med. Virol. 89:195-201, 2017. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Feasibility of using optical coherence tomography to detect acute radiation-induced esophageal damage in small animal models

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jelvehgaran, Pouya; de Bruin, Daniel Martijn; Salguero, F. Javier; Borst, Gerben Roelof; Song, Ji-Ying; van Leeuwen, Ton G.; de Boer, Johannes F.; Alderliesten, Tanja; van Herk, Marcel

2018-04-01

Lung cancer survival is poor, and radiation therapy patients often suffer serious treatment side effects. The esophagus is particularly sensitive leading to acute radiation-induced esophageal damage (ARIED). We investigated the feasibility of optical coherence tomography (OCT) for minimally invasive imaging of the esophagus with high resolution (10 μm) to detect ARIED in mice. Thirty mice underwent cone-beam computed tomography imaging for initial setup assessment and dose planning followed by a single-dose delivery of 4.0, 10.0, 16.0, and 20.0 Gy on 5.0-mm spots, spaced 10.0 mm apart in the esophagus. They were repeatedly imaged using OCT up to three months postirradiation. We compared OCT findings with histopathology obtained three months postirradiation qualitatively and quantitatively using the contrast-to-background-noise ratio (CNR). Histopathology mostly showed inflammatory infiltration and edema at higher doses; OCT findings were in agreement with most of the histopathological reports. We were able to identify the ARIED on OCT as a change in tissue scattering and layer thickness. Our statistical analysis showed significant difference between the CNR values of healthy tissue, edema, and inflammatory infiltration. Overall, the average CNR for inflammatory infiltration and edema damages was 1.6-fold higher and 1.6-fold lower than for the healthy esophageal wall, respectively. Our results showed the potential role of OCT to detect and monitor the ARIED in mice, which may translate to humans.

Antibiotic treatment of acute respiratory infections in acute care settings.

PubMed

Gonzales, Ralph; Camargo, Carlos A; MacKenzie, Thomas; Kersey, Ayanna S; Maselli, Judith; Levin, Sara K; McCulloch, Charles E; Metlay, Joshua P

2006-03-01

To examine the patterns of antibiotic use for acute respiratory tract infections (ARIs) in acute care settings. Chart reviews were performed retrospectively on a random sample of adult ARI visits to seven Veterans Affairs (VA) and seven non-VA emergency departments (EDs) for the period of November 2003 to February 2004. Visits were limited to those discharged to home and those with primary diagnoses of antibiotic-responsive (pneumonia, acute exacerbation of chronic bronchitis, pharyngitis, sinusitis) and antibiotic-nonresponsive conditions (acute bronchitis, nonspecific upper respiratory tract infection [URI]). Results are expressed as adjusted odds ratios with 95% confidence intervals. Of 2,270 ARI visits, 62% were for antibiotic-nonresponsive diagnoses. Seventy-two percent of acute bronchitis and 38% of URI visits were treated with antibiotics (p < 0.001). Stratified analyses show that antibiotic prescription rates were similar among attending-only and housestaff-associated visits for antibiotic-responsive diagnoses (p = 0.11), and acute bronchitis (76% vs. 59%; p = 0.31). However, the antibiotic prescription rate for URIs was greater for attending-only visits compared with housestaff-associated visits (48% vs. 15%; p = 0.01). Antibiotic prescription rates for total ARIs varied between sites, ranging from 42% to 89%. Patient age, gender, race and ethnicity, smoking status, comorbidities, and clinical setting (VA vs. non-VA) were not independently associated with antibiotic prescribing. Acute care settings are important targets for reducing inappropriate antibiotic prescribing. The mechanisms accounting for lower antibiotic prescription rates observed with housestaff-associated visits merit further study.

Validation of a "Kane's Dynamics" Model for the Active Rack Isolation System

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Beech, Geoffrey S.; Hampton, R. David

2000-01-01

Many microgravity space-science experiments require vibratory acceleration levels unachievable without active isolation. The Boeing Corporation's Active Rack Isolation System (ARIS) employs a novel combination of magnetic actuation and mechanical linkages, to address these isolation requirements on the International Space Station (ISS). ARIS provides isolation at the rack (international Standard Payload Rack, or ISPR) level. Effective model-based vibration isolation requires (1) an isolation device, (2) an adequate dynamic (i.e., mathematical) model of that isolator, and (3) a suitable, corresponding controller, ARIS provides the ISS response to the first requirement. In November 1999, the authors presented a response to the second ("A 'Kane's Dynamics' model for the Active Rack Isolation System", Hampton and Beech) intended to facilitate an optimal-controls approach to the third. This paper documents the validation of that high-fidelity dynamic model of ARIS. As before, this model contains the full actuator dynamics, however, the umbilical models are not included in this presentation. The validation of this dynamics model was achieved by utilizing two Commercial Off the Shelf (COTS) software tools: Deneb's ENVISION, and Online Dynamics' AUTOLEV. ENVISION is a robotics software package developed for the automotive industry that employs 3-dimensional (3-D) Computer Aided Design (CAD) models to facilitate both forward and inverse kinematics analyses. AUTOLEV is a DOS based interpreter that is designed in general to solve vector based mathematical problems and specifically to solve Dynamics problems using Kane's method.

Paleoecological reconstruction of hominin-bearing middle Pliocene localities at Woranso-Mille, Ethiopia.

PubMed

Curran, Sabrina C; Haile-Selassie, Yohannes

2016-07-01

Woranso-Mille is a paleoanthropological site in Ethiopia sampling an important and under-represented time period in human evolution (3.8-3.6 million years ago). Specimens of cf. Australopithecus anamensis, Australopithecus afarensis, and the recently named Australopithecus deyiremeda have been recovered from this site. Using multiple habitat proxies, this study provides a paleoecological reconstruction of two fossiliferous collection areas from Woranso-Mille, Aralee Issie (ARI) and Mesgid Dora (MSD). Previous reconstructions based on faunal assemblages have pointed, due to the presence of aepycerotins, alcelaphins, and proboscideans, to the existence of open habitats as well as more closed ones, based on the occurrence of cercopithecids, giraffids, and traglephins. Results from community structure analysis (proportions of locomotor and dietary adaptations) at ARI and MSD indicated a predominance of open habitats, such as shrublands. Mesowear analysis revealed that ungulates of all dietary types (grazers, leaf and fruit browsers, and mixed feeders) were present in nearly equal proportions. Ecomorphological analyses using linear measurements of the astragalus and phalanges indicated that bovids utilizing locomotor behaviors associated with all habitat types were present, though the intermediate-cover habitat bovids were best represented in the sample (Heavy cover at ARI and Light cover at MSD). Together, these results suggest that the ARI and MSD localities were heterogeneous habitats (mosaics), likely with densely vegetated areas along a paleo-river and more open regions (woodlands, grasslands) available away from the river. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Impact of cleaner fuel use and improved stoves on acute respiratory infections: evidence from India.

PubMed

Lamichhane, Prabhat; Sharma, Anurag; Mahal, Ajay

2017-11-01

The use of cleaner fuel and improved stoves has been promoted as a means to lower harmful emissions from solid fuels. However, little is known about how exclusive use of cleaner fuels, mixed fuel use and improved stoves influences children's health. We compared the impact of using liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) exclusively with mixed fuel use (LPG plus polluting fuels) and with exclusive use of polluting fuels on acute respiratory infections (ARI) among 16 157 children 0-4 years of age from households in the 2012 Indian Human Development Survey. Inverse probability weighting (IPW) procedures for multiple treatments were used for this evaluation. Children from households using LPG had a 5.0% lower probability of reporting ARI relative to exclusive users of polluting fuels, with larger effects (10.7%) in rural households. The probability of ARI in households using improved stoves and mixed fuel use was also lower in rural households, by 2.9% and 2.8%, respectively. The magnitude of effect varied across population subgroups, with the highest effects for children living in households living in kachha (low quality material) houses households identified as poor. Use of LPG and improved stoves lowered the probability of ARI among children younger than 5 years. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

VizieR Online Data Catalog: The Initial Gaia Source List (IGSL) (Smart, 2013)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Smart, R. L.; Nicastro, L.

2013-11-01

The IGSL is a compilation catalog produced for the Gaia mission. We have combined data from the following catalogs or datasets to produce a homogenous list of positons, proper motions, photometry in a blue and red band and estimates of the magnitudes in the Gaia G and G_RVS bands. Included Catalogs: Tycho2, LQRF, UCAC4, SDSS-DR9, PPMXL, GSC23, GEPC, OGLE, Sky2000, 2MASS. Note that in compiling the various entries we did not consider the individual flags. Overall, we think this catalog is reliable but there will be errors, mismatches and duplicates. The user should use this catalog with that in mind, it is fine for statistical studies that has some way to remove obviously incorrect entries but it should only be used with care for individual objects. The source catalogs used to produce the IGSL are: * The Gaia Ecliptic Pole Catalog, version 3.0 (GEPC) Altmann & Bastian 2009, "Ecliptic Poles Catalogue Version 1.1" ESA Document GAIA-C3-TN-ARI-MA-002 URL http://www.rssd.esa.int/llink/livelink/open/2885828 * GSC2.3: GSC2 version 2.3, Lasker et al. 2008AJ....136..735L (I/305) * an excerpt of the 4th version of the Gaia Initial QSO Catalog (GIQC) as compiled by the GWP-S-335-13000, formed by Alexandre H. Andrei, Christophe Barache, Dario N. da Silva Neto, Francois Taris, Geraldine Bourda, Jean-Francois Le Campion, Jean Souchay, J.J. Pereira Osorio, Julio I. Bueno de Camargo, Marcelo Assafin, Roberto Vieira Martins, Sebastien Bouquillon, Sebastien Lambert, Sonia Anton, Patrick Charlot * OGLE: Optical Gravitational Lensing Experiment version III (Szymaski et al., 2011, Cat. J/AcA/61/83) * PPMXL: Positions and Proper Motions "Extra Large" Catalog, Roeser et al. (2010, Cat. I/317) * SDSS: Sloan Digital Sky Survey data release 9, Cat. V/139 * UCAC4: Zacharias et al., 2012, Cat. I/322 * Tycho-2, Hoeg et al., 2000, Cat. I/259 (1 data file).

The need for youth-oriented policies and programmes on responsible sexuality in Argentina.

PubMed

Mercer, R; Ramos, S; Szulik, D; Zamberlin, N

2001-05-01

Since the mid-1990s, several provincial bills have been passed in Argentina mandating the creation of programmes for family planning and sexual health services and education. A National Plan for Integrated Health Care for Adolescents was also passed but resources and actual programmes remain limited. The policy process has been fraught with difficulties, owing to a strong alliance between the State and the Catholic church. Provision of contraceptives to adolescents has been one of the most contentious issues, as adolescents are legally minors and need parental permission to use family planning. NGOs are working with young people to help them to voice their perspectives and demands. The Programme for Responsible Sexuality was launched by the Province of Buenos Aires in 1999, in response to concrete demands on the part of poor communities for sexual and reproductive health services, including for young people. This Programme came to an abrupt end with the change of governor in that same year, illustrating the complexity of the policy-making process. These experiences demonstrate the urgency to develop strategies and set up task forces for effective advocacy of health and social programmes, and to make political leaders more aware of the social costs of refusing to support these.

Data for decision making: strategic information tools for hospital management during a pandemic.

PubMed

Farias, Daniel R; Raffo, Lucrecia; Bacigalupo, Silvia; Cremaschi, Maria; Vence, Liliana; Ramos, Susana; Salguero, Ana; Claudio, Martin; Meites, Elissa; Cubito, Alejandro

2010-10-01

During the 2009 influenza A (H1N1) pandemic, Argentina's Hospital Nacional Profesor Alejandro Posadas, a referral center in the capital province of Buenos Aires, treated a large urban patient population. Beginning in April, after severe influenza had been reported in North America but before any suspected cases of H1N1 had been reported in Argentina, the authors formed a pandemic planning committee to direct our hospital's response. An important strategy of the management team was to create a single daily monitoring tool that could integrate multiple information sources. We describe our pandemic planning strategy so that it may serve as a template for other hospitals. We describe our integrated data management system and the indicators it measured. We also describe the iterative process used to develop these tools and the current versions we use in surveillance for possible new waves of pandemic influenza. We present 3 examples of strategic decision making applied to data from our integrated information system. Daily pandemic surveillance data motivated the planning committee to reallocate hospital resources to care for patients during the peak pandemic period. This report illustrates the importance of pandemic planning and advanced integrated information tools for management of a health care facility during a pandemic.

[Immunodiagnosis of endemic mycoses and bronchopulmonary aspergillosis: a multicenter study in Argentina].

PubMed

Canteros, C E; Rivas, M C; Soria, M; Lee, W; Perrotta, D; Rodero, L; Davel, G

2004-01-01

In order to contribute to the knowledge of the relative frequency of chronic fungal diseases and assess the performance of diagnostic laboratories in Argentina, a multicenter study was performed with the participation of 25 medical centers located in 12 different provinces and Buenos Aires City. Between 04-01-2000 and 03-30-2001, 965 serum specimens from patients clinically suspected of having histoplasmosis (HP), paracoccidioidomycosis (PCM), coccidioidomycosis (CM) or aspergilosis were analyzed. Agar immunodiffusion tests (IDD) were done locally. All positive and 35% of negative sera were retested in the reference center. Results of laboratories of origin showed 98.8% concordance with those of reference center. Antibodies against any of the etiological agents were detected in 120 specimens from 98 patients. Endemic mycoses (HP, PCM and CM) were diagnosed in 70 patients (71.4%) and aspergilosis in 28 (28.6%). The frequencies of the different mycoses in decreasing order were PCM 47 patients (47.9%), aspergilosis 28 patients (28.6%), HP 13 patients (13.3%) and CM 10 patients (10.2%). The study was carried out on a voluntary basis and some areas of the country were not represented. However, the frequencies were in range with the expected rates in the population under study.

Immunological Profile of the Yellow Clam Mesodesma mactroides (Mesodesmatidae) from the Southern Coast of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil.

PubMed

Silva Santos, Juan Jethro; Carvalho, Yuri Bovi; de Alcantara Lopes, Diogo Luiz; Romano, Luis Alberto

2016-03-01

The yellow clam Mesodesma mactroides (Mesodesmatidae) is a sandy beach bivalve that is distributed from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, to the south of Buenos Aires province, Argentina. The yellow clam population has been declining in recent decades. To increase our understanding of this species, we evaluated the immunological status of yellow clams collected during different seasons from various areas in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. We characterized the hemocytes, determined the differential hemocyte counts (DHCs), calculated the apoptotic index, and evaluated the incidence of parasites in yellow clams through histological analysis. We identified two types of hemocyte (hyaline and granular) that showed significant variation in DHCs among sampling areas during the summer and winter. The apoptotic index only exhibited significant variation during the summer. Histopathological analysis results did not significantly differ among sampling areas. This work demonstrated that environmental variation (e.g., temperature and salinity) associated with anthropogenic actions may be affecting the immune system of yellow clams. However, more studies are needed to determine the full influence of these factors on the yellow clam's immune system and thus contribute to future management and aquaculture of the species. Received May 10, 2015; accepted October 28, 2015.

Ecotoxicity in the Reconquista River, province of Buenos Aires, Argentina: a preliminary study.

PubMed

Herkovits, J; Perez-Coll, C S; Herkovits, F D

1996-02-01

The Reconquista River in Argentina is considered a "supercritical" river basin due to environmental degradation. Within its valley of 1.547 km2, there are more than 3 million inhabitants and 12,000 industries. Using early-life-stage toxicity tests with Bufo arenarum embryos (the most sensitive of three native species), we determined the water quality at six sampling stations of the river valley and expressed the results as acute and chronic toxicity units. Along most of the river, the toxicity was higher than the allowable level of whole industrial effluent toxicity recommended by U.S. EPA. In a tributary stream, Arroyo Moron, the water was about 10 times more toxic than the criteria maximum concentration (CMC) recommended by U.S. EPA for industrial effluents. Similar degradation of the water quality was found taking as a reference value an upstream sampling station. In all places where the water quality was worse than the CMC, no macroorganisms were found, and in one of these places, a large number of dead fishes was observed. Our study points out that amphibian early-life-stage toxicity tests could be appropriate for assessing water contamination and water quality, which is essential for diagnosis, protection of environmental services, monitoring, and restoration purposes.

Genetic structuring in a relictual population of screaming hairy armadillo (Chaetophractus vellerosus) in Argentina revealed by a set of novel microsatellite loci.

PubMed

Nardelli, Maximiliano; Ibáñez, Ezequiel Alejandro; Dobler, Dara; Justy, Fabienne; Delsuc, Frédéric; Abba, Agustín Manuel; Cassini, Marcelo Hernán; Túnez, Juan Ignacio

2016-08-01

The screaming hairy armadillo (Chaetophractus vellerosus) is a mammal species containing disjunct and isolated populations. In order to assess the effect of habitat fragmentation and geographic isolation, we developed seven new microsatellite loci isolated from low-coverage genome shotgun sequencing data for this species. Among these loci, six microsatellites were found to be polymorphic with 8-26 alleles per locus detected across 69 samples analyzed from a relictual population of the species located in the northeast of the Buenos Aires Province (Argentina). Mean allelic richness and polymorphic information content were 15 and 0.75, with observed and expected heterozygosities ranging from 0.40 to 0.67 and 0.58 to 0.90, respectively. All loci showed departures from Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium. The analysis of population structure in this relictual population revealed three groups of individuals that are genetically differentiated. These newly developed microsatellites will constitute a very useful tool for the estimation of genetic diversity and structure, population dynamics, social structure, parentage and mating system in this little-studied armadillo species. Such genetic data will be particularly helpful for the development of conservation strategies for this isolated population and also for the endangered Bolivian populations previously recognized as a distinct species (Chaetophractus nationi).

Dactylogyrid monogeneans parasitising Cyphocharax voga (Hensel) (Teleostei: Curimatidae) from the Pampas region, Argentina: new and previously described species.

PubMed

Rossin, María Alejandra; Timi, Juan Tomás

2016-09-01

Most studies on dactylogyrid monogeneans in Argentina have been carried out during 1980s and 1990s. Many of these species have been later synonymised and other remain under a confusing taxonomic status, particularly those parasitising Cyphocharax voga (Hensel) (Teleostei: Curimatidae). In order to clarify the identity of dactylogyrids, new material was collected from fishes in Lake Chascomús, Buenos Aires Province, Argentina. A total of four species was found in the gills of C. voga. Two known species, Curvianchoratus singularis (Suriano, 1980) Suriano, 1986 and Palombitrema triangulum (Suriano, 1981) Suriano, 1997, are redescribed and their generic and specific status discussed, and two new species are described. Urocleidoides surianoae n. sp. can be distinguished from its congeners by having an anterior medial projection in the ventral bar and a laminar ligament connecting the base of the male copulatory organ and accessory piece. Annulotrematoides bonaerensis n. sp. differs from its congeners principally by having a ventral bar with an anterior medial projection. The diversity of dactylogyrids harboured by C. voga indicates the need of further studies in the Pampas region, which will provide interesting and valuable sources of evidence for future zoogeographical and evolutionary research on dactylogyrids in the Neotropics.

Habitat use and demography of Mus musculus in a rural landscape of Argentina.

PubMed

León, Vanina A; Fraschina, Jimena; Guidobono, Juan S; Busch, Maria

2013-04-01

The main goal of the paper was to determine the habitat distribution of the house mouse (Mus musculus) within a rural landscape of Buenos Aires province, Argentina. We also studied the seasonal variation in abundance and reproductive activity. The habitats studied were poultry farms, human houses in a small village, cropfields, pastures, cropfield and pasture edges, riparian habitats (streams), railway embankments and woodlots. We captured 817 M. musculus and 690 individuals of 5 native rodent species. M. musculus was captured in poultry farms, houses, riparian habitats, cropfield and borders, but it showed a significantly higher abundance in poultry farms compared to the other habitats. Its presence outside poultry farms was significantly related to the distance to streams and poultry farms. The mean trapping success index of M. musculus did not show significant variations between periods, but the proportion of active males was significantly higher in the spring-summer period than in the autumn-winter period. All captures of M. musculus in cropfields, borders and riparian habitats occurred in the spring-summer period. The capture of M. musculus in many types of habitats suggests that it can disperse outside poultry farms, and streams may be used as corridors. © 2012 Wiley Publishing Asia Pty Ltd, ISZS and IOZ/CAS.

Chronic urticaria in a health maintenance organization of Buenos Aires, Argentina - new data that increase global knowledge of this disease*

PubMed Central

Parisi, Claudio Alberto; Ritchie, Carla; Petriz, Natalia; Torres, Christian Morelo; Gimenez-Arnau, Ana

2018-01-01

Background In spite of the frequency of chronic urticaria, there are no epidemiological studies on its prevalence in Argentina. Objective The objective of this study was to define the prevalence and epidemiological characteristics of chronic urticaria patients in Buenos Aires. Methods The population studied were the members of the Italian Hospital Medical Care Program, a prepaid health maintenance organization located in the urban areas around the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, Argentina. All patients with diagnosis of chronic urticaria members of the Italian Hospital Medical Care Program, and with at least 12 months of follow up were included in the study. All medical records obtained between January 1st, 2012 and December 31, 2014 were analyzed. The prevalence ratio for chronic urticaria per 100,000 population with 95% CI for December 31, 2014 was calculated. The prevalence rate for the entire population and then discriminated for adults and pediatric patients (less than 18 years old at diagnosis) was assessed. Results 158,926 members were analyzed. A total of 463 cases of chronic urticaria were identified on prevalence date (68 in pediatrics, 395 in adults), yielding a crude point prevalence ratio of 0.29% (CI 95% 0.26-0.31%). The observed prevalence of chronic urticaria in the adult population was 0.34 % (95% CI 0.31-0.38%), while in pediatrics it was 0.15 % (95% CI 0.11-0.20%). Study limitations the main weakness is that the results were obtained from an HMO and therefore the possibility of selection bias. Conclusions chronic urticaria is a global condition. Its prevalence in Buenos Aires is comparable with other countries. PMID:29641702

Chronic urticaria in a health maintenance organization of Buenos Aires, Argentina - new data that increase global knowledge of this disease.

PubMed

Parisi, Claudio Alberto; Ritchie, Carla; Petriz, Natalia; Torres, Christian Morelo; Gimenez-Arnau, Ana

2018-01-01

In spite of the frequency of chronic urticaria, there are no epidemiological studies on its prevalence in Argentina. The objective of this study was to define the prevalence and epidemiological characteristics of chronic urticaria patients in Buenos Aires. The population studied were the members of the Italian Hospital Medical Care Program, a prepaid health maintenance organization located in the urban areas around the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, Argentina. All patients with diagnosis of chronic urticaria members of the Italian Hospital Medical Care Program, and with at least 12 months of follow up were included in the study. All medical records obtained between January 1st, 2012 and December 31, 2014 were analyzed. The prevalence ratio for chronic urticaria per 100,000 population with 95% CI for December 31, 2014 was calculated. The prevalence rate for the entire population and then discriminated for adults and pediatric patients (less than 18 years old at diagnosis) was assessed. 158,926 members were analyzed. A total of 463 cases of chronic urticaria were identified on prevalence date (68 in pediatrics, 395 in adults), yielding a crude point prevalence ratio of 0.29% (CI 95% 0.26-0.31%). The observed prevalence of chronic urticaria in the adult population was 0.34 % (95% CI 0.31-0.38%), while in pediatrics it was 0.15 % (95% CI 0.11-0.20%). the main weakness is that the results were obtained from an HMO and therefore the possibility of selection bias. chronic urticaria is a global condition. Its prevalence in Buenos Aires is comparable with other countries.

[Recurrent wheezing: prevalence and associated factors in infants from Buenos Aires City, Argentina].

PubMed

Szulman, Gabriela Aída; Freilij, Héctor; Behrends, Ilse; Gentile, Ángela; Mallol, Javier

The episodes of bronchial obstruction at early age constitute a frequent problem in Pediatrics. The aim of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of recurrent wheezing in infants in Buenos Aires City, as well as to identify any associated factors. Cross-sectional study performed from 2011 to 2012 in the Children Hospital Ricardo Gutiérrez, Buenos Aires City, as part of the International Study of Wheezing in Infants. A validated questionnaire was applied to parents of infants aged between 12 and 15 months. The prevalence of wheezing, mostly the recurrent episodes (three or more), and their probable associated factors were evaluated. Data were statistically analyzed with χ 2 , Fisher's test, binary and logistics multiple regression analysis. The significance level was 0.05. Over 1063 infants, 58.9% (confidence interval (CI) 95% 55.9-61.9) presented at least one episode of wheezing and 26.3% (CI95% 23.8-29.9) three or more episodes (recurrent wheezing). Risk factors associated to wheezing were male gender (p=0.001), six or more episodes of cold during the first year of life (p <0.0001), age at first cold <4 months (p <0.0001); pneumonia (p <0.0001) and smoking during pregnancy (tobacco) (p=0.01). For recurrent wheezing, risk factors we considered as six or more episodes of cold during the first year of life (p <0.0001), early (< 4 month of age) onset wheezing (p <0.0001) and nocturnal wheezing (p <0.0001). The prevalence of recurrent wheezing among infants in Buenos Aires Ciy was high (26.3%). Some identified associated factors can be preventable. Copyright © 2017 Hospital Infantil de México Federico Gómez. Publicado por Masson Doyma México S.A. All rights reserved.

Genotypic diversity of Mycobacterium tuberculosis in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

PubMed

Monteserin, Johana; Paul, Roxana; Gravina, Elida; Reniero, Ana; Hernandez, Teresa; Mazzeo, Eduardo; Togneri, Ana; Simboli, Norberto; López, Beatriz; Couvin, David; Rastogi, Nalin; Ritacco, Viviana

2018-04-06

Buenos Aires is an overpopulated port city historically inhabited by people of European descent. Together with its broader metropolitan area, the city exhibits medium tuberculosis rates, and receives migrants, mainly from tuberculosis highly endemic areas of Argentina and neighboring countries. This work was aimed to gain insight into the Mycobacterium tuberculosis population structure in two suburban districts of Buenos Aires which are illustrative of the overall situation of tuberculosis in Argentina. The Lineage 4 Euro-American accounted for >99% of the 816 isolates analyzed (one per patient). Frequencies of spoligotype families were T 35.9%, LAM 33.2%, Haarlem 19.5%, S 3.2%, X 1.5%, Ural 0.7%, BOV 0.2%, Beijing 0.2%, and Cameroon 0.2%. Unknown signatures accounted for 5.3% isolates. Of 55 spoligotypes not matching any extant shared international type (SIT) in SITVIT database, 22 fitted into 15 newly-issued SITs. Certain autochthonous South American genotypes were found to be actively evolving. LAM3, which is wild type for RD rio , was the predominant LAM subfamily in both districts and the RD rio signature was rare among autochthonous, newly created, SITs and orphan patterns. Two genotypes that are rarely observed in neighboring countries ̶ SIT2/H2 and SIT159/T1 Tuscany ̶ were conspicuously represented in Argentina. The infrequent Beijing patterns belonged to Peruvian patients. We conclude that the genotype diversity observed reflects the influence of the Hispanic colonization and more recent immigration waves from Mediterranean and neighboring countries. Unlike in Brazil, the RD rio type does not play a major role in the tuberculosis epidemic in Buenos Aires. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Synchronization techniques for all digital 16-ary QAM receivers operating over land mobile satellite links

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Fines, P.; Aghvami, A. H.

1990-01-01

The performance of a low bit rate (64 Kb/s) all digital 16-ary Differentially Encoded Quadrature Amplitude Modulation (16-DEQAM) demodulator operating over a mobile satellite channel, is considered. The synchronization and detection techniques employed to overcome the Rician channel impairments, are described. The acquisition and steady state performance of this modem, are evaluated by computer simulation over AWGN and RICIAN channels. The results verify the suitability of the 16-DEQAM transmission over slowly faded and/or mildly faded channels.

Sheep (Ovis aries) as a Model for Cardiovascular Surgery and Management before, during, and after Cardiopulmonary Bypass

PubMed Central

DiVincenti, Louis; Westcott, Robin; Lee, Candice

2014-01-01

Because of its similarity to humans in important respects, sheep (Ovis aries) are a common animal model for translational research in cardiovascular surgery. However, some unique aspects of sheep anatomy and physiology present challenges to its use in these complicated experiments. In this review, we discuss relevant anatomy and physiology of sheep and discuss management before, during, and after procedures requiring cardiopulmonary bypass to provide a concise source of information for veterinarians, technicians, and researchers developing and implementing protocols with this model. PMID:25255065

Contract for Manpower and Personnel Research and Studies (COMPRS) for the U.S. Army Research Institute for the Behavioral and Social Sciences (ARI) - Final Annual Report: Year Five

DTIC Science & Technology

1998-07-01

Communications Objectives Measurement System (ACOMS)." The utility of the Fishbein and Ajzen theories of reasoned action within the context of military...conceptual model that applied the Fishbein and Ajzen concepts to enlistment intentions and behaviors, through an exploratory analysis of the variables...first-term Army enlisted attrition. In support of this long-term effort, ASA M &RA sponsored Phase I of a research program modeled after ARI’s broad

A class of nonideal solutions. 1: Definition and properties

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zeleznik, F. J.

1983-01-01

A class of nonideal solutions is defined by constructing a function to represent the composition dependence of thermodynamic properties for members of the class, and some properties of these solutions are studied. The constructed function has several useful features: (1) its parameters occur linearly; (2) it contains a logarithmic singularity in the dilute solution region and contains ideal solutions and regular solutions as special cases; and (3) it is applicable to N-ary systems and reduces to M-ary systems (M or = N) in a form-invariant manner.

MITLL 2015 Language Recognition Evaluation System Description

DTIC Science & Technology

2016-01-27

912 8.18 qsl-rus Russian 2021 37.80 ara-ary Maghrebi 919 46.91 spa-car Carib. Spa. 194 30.59 ara-arz Egyptian 440 97.27 spa-eur Eur. Spa. 366 8.55...qsl-pol Polish 695 32.14 ara-arb MSA 912 8.18 qsl-rus Russian 2021 37.80 ara-ary Maghrebi 919 46.91 spa-car Carib. Spa. 194 30.59 ara-arz Egyptian ...BOTTLENECK I-VECTOR SYSTEM (BNF1) The Deep Neural Network architecture that we used for this system was composed of seven hidden layers. The sixth

Doing gender in a toxic world. Women and freebase cocaine in the city of Buenos Aires (Argentina).

PubMed

Romo-Avilés, Nuria; Camarotti, Ana Clara; Tarragona, Alicia; Touris, Cecilia

2015-04-01

Consumption of freebase cocaine in Argentina has been investigated among males but not females. This qualitative study focuses on the complexity of relationships between gender identity and the use of drugs, investigating freebase cocaine as an example in the Metropolitan Area of Buenos Aires, Argentina. In-depth interviews were conducted with female consumers in 2010. The results reveal the different ways in which female identity is constructed in the context of social vulnerability. We identify ways of doing gender and feeling like a woman in a man's world that are associated with a higher risk of violence and exclusion for being female.

Meeting Report of the XIV International Small Bowel Transplant Symposium: Summary of Presentations, Workshops, and Debates From a Comprehensive Meeting on Intestinal Failure, Rehabilitation, and Transplantation, Buenos Aires, Argentina, June 10-13, 2015.

PubMed

Gondolesi, Gabriel E; Fernandez, Adriana; Burghardt, Karolina M; Nowakowski, Scott; Kaufman, Stuart S; Pascher, Andreas; Florescu, Diana; Ruiz, Phillip; Vianna, Rodrigo; Clarke, Sara; Oltean, Mihai; Rumbo, Martin; Mazariegos, George; Sudan, Debra L; Farmer, Douglas G

2017-04-01

The 2015 meeting of the Intestinal Transplant Association was held in Buenos Aires, Argentina. This was the 14th International Small Bowel Transplant Symposium, and it was the first meeting organized as a joint venture of the Transplantation Society, the Intestinal Transplant Association, and the Argentinean Transplant Society (Sociedad Argentina de Trasplantes). Innovative aspects of the classic meeting format included workshops sessions, debates, and multicenter studies. This report highlights the most prominent scientific contributions and results of the first such symposium in a Latin American country.

Glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase Buenos Aires: a novel de novo missense mutation associated with severe enzyme deficiency.

PubMed

Minucci, Angelo; Concolino, Paola; Vendittelli, Francesca; Giardina, Bruno; Zuppi, Cecilia; Capoluongo, Ettore

2008-06-01

: Glucose 6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) catalyzes the first committed steps in the pentose phosphate pathway: the generation of NADPH by this enzyme is essential for protection against oxidative stress. The human enzyme is in a dimer<-->tetramer equilibrium and its stability depends on NADP(+) concentration. Herein, we report a case of a symptomatic baby affected by severe deficiency of G6PD activity due to a novel de novo genetic mutation (g1465C>T) in the thirteenth exon of its gene. : Clinical, biochemical and genetic evaluations of the affected baby and his mother were performed. : We found the g1465C>T novel mutation, in the thirteenth exon of G6PD gene (named "G6PD Buenos Aires variant"). This g1465C>T mutation produce a P489S substitution at protein level. The P489S mutation was absent in his mother, suggesting that G6PD Buenos Aires resulted from a de novo mutation. : The absence of mosaicism in the baby's DNA (from saliva and blood samples) suggests that a de novo mutation event may occur in the very early stages in embryogenesis or in the mother's germ cell lines.

["Medical Deputies": clinics and politics in the dispute for public resources in Buenos Aires (1906-1917)].

PubMed

Souza, P; Hurtado, D

2008-01-01

In June 1906, the conservative deputy and doctor Eliseo Cantón submitted in the Argentinian Parliament the project of a , which would take up four blocks, would be located in front of the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Buenos Aires and would be made up by 20 institutes with a capacity for 80 beds each. The dispute over this huge project, which lasted until 1917, placed in the middle of the scene, a group of "medical deputies" who used the political platform as a space to define the main aspects of the hospital system. The controversy went beyond the Parliament reaching the public sphere. The lavishness of the project on the eve of the Centenary public festivities or the opulence of a Buenos Aires which inspired to be like Paris were related, in a symbolic view, to the progress of local medicine and its aspirations to be included in the international medical arena. The analysed case helps understand how an essentially political controversy - which led to economical, ethical and cognitive discussions - intervened in the process of building up a socio-professional space of the hospital medical practice.