Temporal variations in the potential hydrological performance of extensive green roof systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

De-Ville, Simon; Menon, Manoj; Stovin, Virginia

2018-03-01

Existing literature provides contradictory information about variation in potential green roof hydrological performance over time. This study has evaluated a long-term hydrological monitoring record from a series of extensive green roof test beds to identify long-term evolutions and sub-annual (seasonal) variations in potential hydrological performance. Monitoring of nine differently-configured extensive green roof test beds took place over a period of 6 years in Sheffield, UK. Long-term evolutions and sub-annual trends in maximum potential retention performance were identified through physical monitoring of substrate field capacity over time. An independent evaluation of temporal variations in detention performance was undertaken through the fitting of reservoir-routing model parameters. Aggregation of the resulting retention and detention variations permitted the prediction of extensive green roof hydrological performance in response to a 1-in-30-year 1-h summer design storm for Sheffield, UK, which facilitated the comparison of multi and sub-annual hydrological performance variations. Sub-annual (seasonal) variation was found to be significantly greater than long-term evolution. Potential retention performance increased by up to 12% after 5-years, whilst the maximum sub-annual variation in potential retention was 27%. For vegetated roof configurations, a 4% long-term improvement was observed for detention performance, compared to a maximum 63% sub-annual variation. Consistent long-term reductions in detention performance were observed in unvegetated roof configurations, with a non-standard expanded-clay substrate experiencing a 45% reduction in peak attenuation over 5-years. Conventional roof configurations exhibit stable long-term hydrological performance, but are nonetheless subject to sub-annual variation.

Improving Child Outcomes with Data-Based Decision Making: Graphing Data

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hojnoski, Robin L.; Gischlar, Karen L.; Missall, Kristen N.

2009-01-01

Child performance data collected frequently in natural settings are important for monitoring progress toward short-term and long-term goals and are an essential component of instruction designed to improve outcomes for children. Organizing child performance data into graphic displays can promote the systematic use of data in educational decision…

An integrated approach of AHP and DEMATEL methods in evaluating the criteria of auto spare parts industry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wu, Hsin-Hung; Tsai, Ya-Ning

2012-11-01

This study uses both analytic hierarchy process (AHP) and decision-making trial and evaluation laboratory (DEMATEL) methods to evaluate the criteria in auto spare parts industry in Taiwan. Traditionally, AHP does not consider indirect effects for each criterion and assumes that criteria are independent without further addressing the interdependence between or among the criteria. Thus, the importance computed by AHP can be viewed as short-term improvement opportunity. On the contrary, DEMATEL method not only evaluates the importance of criteria but also depicts the causal relations of criteria. By observing the causal diagrams, the improvement based on cause-oriented criteria might improve the performance effectively and efficiently for the long-term perspective. As a result, the major advantage of integrating AHP and DEMATEL methods is that the decision maker can continuously improve suppliers' performance from both short-term and long-term viewpoints.

Modelling of optimal training load patterns during the 11 weeks preceding major competition in elite swimmers.

PubMed

Hellard, Philippe; Scordia, Charlotte; Avalos, Marta; Mujika, Inigo; Pyne, David B

2017-10-01

Periodization of swim training in the final training phases prior to competition and its effect on performance have been poorly described. We modeled the relationships between the final 11 weeks of training and competition performance in 138 elite sprint, middle-distance, and long-distance swimmers over 20 competitive seasons. Total training load (TTL), strength training (ST), and low- to medium-intensity and high-intensity training variables were monitored. Training loads were scaled as a percentage of the maximal volume measured at each intensity level. Four training periods (meso-cycles) were defined: the taper (weeks 1 to 2 before competition), short-term (weeks 3 to 5), medium-term (weeks 6 to 8), and long-term (weeks 9 to 11). Mixed-effects models were used to analyze the association between training loads in each training meso-cycle and end-of-season major competition performance. For sprinters, a 10% increase between ∼20% and 70% of the TTL in medium- and long-term meso-cycles was associated with 0.07 s and 0.20 s faster performance in the 50 m and 100 m events, respectively (p < 0.01). For middle-distance swimmers, a higher TTL in short-, medium-, and long-term training yielded faster competition performance (e.g., a 10% increase in TTL was associated with improvements of 0.1-1.0 s in 200 m events and 0.3-1.6 s in 400 m freestyle, p < 0.01). For sprinters, a 60%-70% maximal ST load 6-8 weeks before competition induced the largest positive effects on performance (p < 0.01). An increase in TTL during the medium- and long-term preparation (6-11 weeks to competition) was associated with improved performance. Periodization plans should be adapted to the specialty of swimmers.

Forecasting stock return volatility: A comparison between the roles of short-term and long-term leverage effects

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pan, Zhiyuan; Liu, Li

2018-02-01

In this paper, we extend the GARCH-MIDAS model proposed by Engle et al. (2013) to account for the leverage effect in short-term and long-term volatility components. Our in-sample evidence suggests that both short-term and long-term negative returns can cause higher future volatility than positive returns. Out-of-sample results show that the predictive ability of GARCH-MIDAS is significantly improved after taking the leverage effect into account. The leverage effect for short-term volatility component plays more important role than the leverage effect for long-term volatility component in affecting out-of-sample forecasting performance.

The effects of refreshing and elaboration on working memory performance, and their contributions to long-term memory formation.

PubMed

Bartsch, Lea M; Singmann, Henrik; Oberauer, Klaus

2018-03-19

Refreshing and elaboration are cognitive processes assumed to underlie verbal working-memory maintenance and assumed to support long-term memory formation. Whereas refreshing refers to the attentional focussing on representations, elaboration refers to linking representations in working memory into existing semantic networks. We measured the impact of instructed refreshing and elaboration on working and long-term memory separately, and investigated to what extent both processes are distinct in their contributions to working as well as long-term memory. Compared with a no-processing baseline, immediate memory was improved by repeating the items, but not by refreshing them. There was no credible effect of elaboration on working memory, except when items were repeated at the same time. Long-term memory benefited from elaboration, but not from refreshing the words. The results replicate the long-term memory benefit for elaboration, but do not support its beneficial role for working memory. Further, refreshing preserves immediate memory, but does not improve it beyond the level achieved without any processing.

3D printed cellular solid outperforms traditional stochastic foam in long-term mechanical response

DOE PAGES

Maiti, A.; Small, W.; Lewicki, J.; ...

2016-04-27

3D printing of polymeric foams by direct-ink-write is a recent technological breakthrough that enables the creation of versatile compressible solids with programmable microstructure, customizable shapes, and tunable mechanical response including negative elastic modulus. However, in many applications the success of these 3D printed materials as a viable replacement for traditional stochastic foams critically depends on their mechanical performance and micro-architectural stability while deployed under long-term mechanical strain. To predict the long-term performance of the two types of foams we employed multi-year-long accelerated aging studies under compressive strain followed by a time-temperature-superposition analysis using a minimum-arc-length-based algorithm. The resulting master curvesmore » predict superior long-term performance of the 3D printed foam in terms of two different metrics, i.e., compression set and load retention. To gain deeper understanding, we imaged the microstructure of both foams using X-ray computed tomography, and performed finite-element analysis of the mechanical response within these microstructures. As a result, this indicates a wider stress variation in the stochastic foam with points of more extreme local stress as compared to the 3D printed material, which might explain the latter’s improved long-term stability and mechanical performance.« less

3D printed cellular solid outperforms traditional stochastic foam in long-term mechanical response

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

Maiti, A.; Small, W.; Lewicki, J.

3D printing of polymeric foams by direct-ink-write is a recent technological breakthrough that enables the creation of versatile compressible solids with programmable microstructure, customizable shapes, and tunable mechanical response including negative elastic modulus. However, in many applications the success of these 3D printed materials as a viable replacement for traditional stochastic foams critically depends on their mechanical performance and micro-architectural stability while deployed under long-term mechanical strain. To predict the long-term performance of the two types of foams we employed multi-year-long accelerated aging studies under compressive strain followed by a time-temperature-superposition analysis using a minimum-arc-length-based algorithm. The resulting master curvesmore » predict superior long-term performance of the 3D printed foam in terms of two different metrics, i.e., compression set and load retention. To gain deeper understanding, we imaged the microstructure of both foams using X-ray computed tomography, and performed finite-element analysis of the mechanical response within these microstructures. As a result, this indicates a wider stress variation in the stochastic foam with points of more extreme local stress as compared to the 3D printed material, which might explain the latter’s improved long-term stability and mechanical performance.« less

3D printed cellular solid outperforms traditional stochastic foam in long-term mechanical response

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Maiti, A.; Small, W.; Lewicki, J. P.; Weisgraber, T. H.; Duoss, E. B.; Chinn, S. C.; Pearson, M. A.; Spadaccini, C. M.; Maxwell, R. S.; Wilson, T. S.

2016-04-01

3D printing of polymeric foams by direct-ink-write is a recent technological breakthrough that enables the creation of versatile compressible solids with programmable microstructure, customizable shapes, and tunable mechanical response including negative elastic modulus. However, in many applications the success of these 3D printed materials as a viable replacement for traditional stochastic foams critically depends on their mechanical performance and micro-architectural stability while deployed under long-term mechanical strain. To predict the long-term performance of the two types of foams we employed multi-year-long accelerated aging studies under compressive strain followed by a time-temperature-superposition analysis using a minimum-arc-length-based algorithm. The resulting master curves predict superior long-term performance of the 3D printed foam in terms of two different metrics, i.e., compression set and load retention. To gain deeper understanding, we imaged the microstructure of both foams using X-ray computed tomography, and performed finite-element analysis of the mechanical response within these microstructures. This indicates a wider stress variation in the stochastic foam with points of more extreme local stress as compared to the 3D printed material, which might explain the latter’s improved long-term stability and mechanical performance.

3D printed cellular solid outperforms traditional stochastic foam in long-term mechanical response

PubMed Central

Maiti, A.; Small, W.; Lewicki, J. P.; Weisgraber, T. H.; Duoss, E. B.; Chinn, S. C.; Pearson, M. A.; Spadaccini, C. M.; Maxwell, R. S.; Wilson, T. S.

2016-01-01

3D printing of polymeric foams by direct-ink-write is a recent technological breakthrough that enables the creation of versatile compressible solids with programmable microstructure, customizable shapes, and tunable mechanical response including negative elastic modulus. However, in many applications the success of these 3D printed materials as a viable replacement for traditional stochastic foams critically depends on their mechanical performance and micro-architectural stability while deployed under long-term mechanical strain. To predict the long-term performance of the two types of foams we employed multi-year-long accelerated aging studies under compressive strain followed by a time-temperature-superposition analysis using a minimum-arc-length-based algorithm. The resulting master curves predict superior long-term performance of the 3D printed foam in terms of two different metrics, i.e., compression set and load retention. To gain deeper understanding, we imaged the microstructure of both foams using X-ray computed tomography, and performed finite-element analysis of the mechanical response within these microstructures. This indicates a wider stress variation in the stochastic foam with points of more extreme local stress as compared to the 3D printed material, which might explain the latter’s improved long-term stability and mechanical performance. PMID:27117858

Oxygen Therapy for Patients With COPD

PubMed Central

Stoller, James K.; Panos, Ralph J.; Krachman, Samuel; Doherty, Dennis E.

2010-01-01

Long-term use of supplemental oxygen improves survival in patients with COPD and severe resting hypoxemia. However, the role of oxygen in symptomatic patients with COPD and more moderate hypoxemia at rest and desaturation with activity is unclear. The few long-term reports of supplemental oxygen in this group have been of small size and insufficient to demonstrate a survival benefit. Short-term trials have suggested beneficial effects other than survival in patients with COPD and moderate hypoxemia at rest. In addition, supplemental oxygen appeared to improve exercise performance in small short-term investigations of patients with COPD and moderate hypoxemia at rest and desaturation with exercise, but long-term trials evaluating patient-reported outcomes are lacking. This article reviews the evidence for long-term use of supplemental oxygen therapy and provides a rationale for the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute Long-term Oxygen Treatment Trial. The trial plans to enroll subjects with COPD with moderate hypoxemia at rest or desaturation with exercise and compare tailored oxygen therapy to no oxygen therapy. PMID:20605816

Modeling framework for representing long-term effectiveness of best management practices in addressing hydrology and water quality problems: Framework development and demonstration using a Bayesian method

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Yaoze; Engel, Bernard A.; Flanagan, Dennis C.; Gitau, Margaret W.; McMillan, Sara K.; Chaubey, Indrajeet; Singh, Shweta

2018-05-01

Best management practices (BMPs) are popular approaches used to improve hydrology and water quality. Uncertainties in BMP effectiveness over time may result in overestimating long-term efficiency in watershed planning strategies. To represent varying long-term BMP effectiveness in hydrologic/water quality models, a high level and forward-looking modeling framework was developed. The components in the framework consist of establishment period efficiency, starting efficiency, efficiency for each storm event, efficiency between maintenance, and efficiency over the life cycle. Combined, they represent long-term efficiency for a specific type of practice and specific environmental concern (runoff/pollutant). An approach for possible implementation of the framework was discussed. The long-term impacts of grass buffer strips (agricultural BMP) and bioretention systems (urban BMP) in reducing total phosphorus were simulated to demonstrate the framework. Data gaps were captured in estimating the long-term performance of the BMPs. A Bayesian method was used to match the simulated distribution of long-term BMP efficiencies with the observed distribution with the assumption that the observed data represented long-term BMP efficiencies. The simulated distribution matched the observed distribution well with only small total predictive uncertainties. With additional data, the same method can be used to further improve the simulation results. The modeling framework and results of this study, which can be adopted in hydrologic/water quality models to better represent long-term BMP effectiveness, can help improve decision support systems for creating long-term stormwater management strategies for watershed management projects.

FHWA LTBP Bridge Performance Primer

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2014-02-01

This TechBrief defines bridge performance and discusses the importance of measuring performance and current practices for doing so. It identifies key issues to improving performance measures and the role the Long-Term Bridge Performance (LTBP) Progra...

An Opportunistic Routing Mechanism Combined with Long-Term and Short-Term Metrics for WMN

PubMed Central

Piao, Xianglan; Qiu, Tie

2014-01-01

WMN (wireless mesh network) is a useful wireless multihop network with tremendous research value. The routing strategy decides the performance of network and the quality of transmission. A good routing algorithm will use the whole bandwidth of network and assure the quality of service of traffic. Since the routing metric ETX (expected transmission count) does not assure good quality of wireless links, to improve the routing performance, an opportunistic routing mechanism combined with long-term and short-term metrics for WMN based on OLSR (optimized link state routing) and ETX is proposed in this paper. This mechanism always chooses the highest throughput links to improve the performance of routing over WMN and then reduces the energy consumption of mesh routers. The simulations and analyses show that the opportunistic routing mechanism is better than the mechanism with the metric of ETX. PMID:25250379

An opportunistic routing mechanism combined with long-term and short-term metrics for WMN.

PubMed

Sun, Weifeng; Wang, Haotian; Piao, Xianglan; Qiu, Tie

2014-01-01

WMN (wireless mesh network) is a useful wireless multihop network with tremendous research value. The routing strategy decides the performance of network and the quality of transmission. A good routing algorithm will use the whole bandwidth of network and assure the quality of service of traffic. Since the routing metric ETX (expected transmission count) does not assure good quality of wireless links, to improve the routing performance, an opportunistic routing mechanism combined with long-term and short-term metrics for WMN based on OLSR (optimized link state routing) and ETX is proposed in this paper. This mechanism always chooses the highest throughput links to improve the performance of routing over WMN and then reduces the energy consumption of mesh routers. The simulations and analyses show that the opportunistic routing mechanism is better than the mechanism with the metric of ETX.

Flight experience of Solar Mesosphere Explorer's two nickel-cadmium batteries

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Faber, J.

1985-01-01

The performance of the power system on the solar mesosphere explorer (SME) since launch is discussed. Predictions for continued operation for the rest of the project mission are also discussed. The SME satellite's power system was characterized by both insufficient loading and excessive battery charging during the first year of the mission. These conditions affected battery performance and jeopardized the long-term mission. Increased loading on selected orbits has improved battery performance. Long term projections indicate steadily increasing temperatures for the remainder of the mission.

Study of advanced techniques for determining the long-term performance of components

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1972-01-01

A study was conducted of techniques having the capability of determining the performance and reliability of components for spacecraft liquid propulsion applications for long term missions. The study utilized two major approaches; improvement in the existing technology, and the evolution of new technology. The criteria established and methods evolved are applicable to valve components. Primary emphasis was placed on the propellants oxygen difluoride and diborane combination. The investigation included analysis, fabrication, and tests of experimental equipment to provide data and performance criteria.

Effects of cathode electrolyte interfacial (CEI) layer on long term cycling of all-solid-state thin-film batteries

DOE PAGES

Wang, Ziying; Lee, Jungwoo Z.; Xin, Huolin L.; ...

2016-05-30

All-solid-state lithium-ion batteries have the potential to not only push the current limits of energy density by utilizing Li metal, but also improve safety by avoiding flammable organic electrolyte. However, understanding the role of solid electrolyte – electrode interfaces will be critical to improve performance. In this paper, we conducted long term cycling on commercially available lithium cobalt oxide (LCO)/lithium phosphorus oxynitride (LiPON)/lithium (Li) cells at elevated temperature to investigate the interfacial phenomena that lead to capacity decay. STEM-EELS analysis of samples revealed a previously unreported disordered layer between the LCO cathode and LiPON electrolyte. This electrochemically inactive layer grewmore » in thickness leading to loss of capacity and increase of interfacial resistance when cycled at 80 °C. Finally, the stabilization of this layer through interfacial engineering is crucial to improve the long term performance of thin-film batteries especially under thermal stress.« less

Reconciling change blindness with long-term memory for objects.

PubMed

Wood, Katherine; Simons, Daniel J

2017-02-01

How can we reconcile remarkably precise long-term memory for thousands of images with failures to detect changes to similar images? We explored whether people can use detailed, long-term memory to improve change detection performance. Subjects studied a set of images of objects and then performed recognition and change detection tasks with those images. Recognition memory performance exceeded change detection performance, even when a single familiar object in the postchange display consistently indicated the change location. In fact, participants were no better when a familiar object predicted the change location than when the displays consisted of unfamiliar objects. When given an explicit strategy to search for a familiar object as a way to improve performance on the change detection task, they performed no better than in a 6-alternative recognition memory task. Subjects only benefited from the presence of familiar objects in the change detection task when they had more time to view the prechange array before it switched. Once the cost to using the change detection information decreased, subjects made use of it in conjunction with memory to boost performance on the familiar-item change detection task. This suggests that even useful information will go unused if it is sufficiently difficult to extract.

Improvement of capabilities of the Distributed Electrochemistry Modeling Tool for investigating SOFC long term performance

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

Gonzalez Galdamez, Rinaldo A.; Recknagle, Kurtis P.

2012-04-30

This report provides an overview of the work performed for Solid Oxide Fuel Cell (SOFC) modeling during the 2012 Winter/Spring Science Undergraduate Laboratory Internship at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL). A brief introduction on the concept, operation basics and applications of fuel cells is given for the general audience. Further details are given regarding the modifications and improvements of the Distributed Electrochemistry (DEC) Modeling tool developed by PNNL engineers to model SOFC long term performance. Within this analysis, a literature review on anode degradation mechanisms is explained and future plans of implementing these into the DEC modeling tool are alsomore » proposed.« less

Using TSP to Improve Performance

DTIC Science & Technology

2008-11-13

Carnegie Mellon University Using TSP to Improve Performance 46 Work - Life Balance People are your most important resource. Finding and retaining good people...is critical to long-term success. Intuit found that TSP improved work - life balance , a key factor in job satisfaction. Source: Intuit © 2008 Carnegie...Mellon University Using TSP to Improve Performance 47 Intuit TSP Survey Results Improved work - life balance with TSP is reflected in job satisfaction

Performance limiting processes in room temperature thallium bromide radiation detectors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Datta, Amlan; Becla, Piotr; Moed, Demi; Motakef, Shariar

2015-09-01

Thallium Bromide (TlBr) is a promising room-temperature radiation detector candidate with excellent charge transport properties. However, several critical issues are needed to be addressed before deployment of this material for long-term field applications. In this paper, the relevance and, scientific and technological progress made towards solving these challenges for TlBr have been discussed. The possible research pathways to mitigate the concerns related to this material have been analyzed and clearly established. Findings from novel experiments performed at CapeSym have revealed that the most significant factors for achieving long-term performance stability for TlBr devices involve physical and chemical conditions of the surface, residual stress, and choice of metal contacts. Palladium electrodes on TlBr devices resulted in a 20-fold improvement in the device lifetime when compared to its Br-etched Pt counterpart. Electron and hole contributions towards the spectroscopic response of the TlBr detector significantly depend on the interaction position of the incoming radiation and was clearly observed in this study. TlBr device fabrication techniques need significant improvement in order to attain reliable, repeatable, and stable, long-term performance.

Advanced techniques for determining long term compatibility of materials with propellants

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Green, R. L.

1972-01-01

The search for advanced measurement techniques for determining long term compatibility of materials with propellants was conducted in several parts. A comprehensive survey of the existing measurement and testing technology for determining material-propellant interactions was performed. Selections were made from those existing techniques which were determined could meet or be made to meet the requirements. Areas of refinement or changes were recommended for improvement of others. Investigations were also performed to determine the feasibility and advantages of developing and using new techniques to achieve significant improvements over existing ones. The most interesting demonstration was that of the new technique, the volatile metal chelate analysis. Rivaling the neutron activation analysis in terms of sensitivity and specificity, the volatile metal chelate technique was fully demonstrated.

Evaluation of the Long-Term Stability and Temperature Coefficient of Dew-Point Hygrometers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Benyon, R.; Vicente, T.; Hernández, P.; De Rivas, L.; Conde, F.

2012-09-01

The continuous quest for improved specifications of optical dew-point hygrometers has raised customer expectations on the performance of these devices. In the absence of a long calibration history, users with a limited prior experience in the measurement of humidity, place reliance on manufacturer specifications to estimate long-term stability. While this might be reasonable in the case of measurement of electrical quantities, in humidity it can lead to optimistic estimations of uncertainty. This article reports a study of the long-term stability of some hygrometers and the analysis of their performance as monitored through regular calibration. The results of the investigations provide some typical, realistic uncertainties associated with the long-term stability of instruments used in calibration and testing laboratories. Together, these uncertainties can help in establishing initial contributions in uncertainty budgets, as well as in setting the minimum calibration requirements, based on the evaluation of dominant influence quantities.

Cost analysis and facility reimbursement in the long-term health care industry.

PubMed Central

Ullmann, S G

1984-01-01

This article examines costs and develops a system of prospective reimbursement for the industry committed to long-term health care. Together with estimates of average cost functions--for purposes of determining those factors affecting the costs of long-term health care, the author examines in depth the cost effects of patient mix and facility quality. Policy implications are indicated. The article estimates cost savings and predicted improvements in facility performance resulting from adoption of a prospective reimbursement system. PMID:6427138

Evaluating Internal Model Strength and Performance of Myoelectric Prosthesis Control Strategies.

PubMed

Shehata, Ahmed W; Scheme, Erik J; Sensinger, Jonathon W

2018-05-01

On-going developments in myoelectric prosthesis control have provided prosthesis users with an assortment of control strategies that vary in reliability and performance. Many studies have focused on improving performance by providing feedback to the user but have overlooked the effect of this feedback on internal model development, which is key to improve long-term performance. In this paper, the strength of internal models developed for two commonly used myoelectric control strategies: raw control with raw feedback (using a regression-based approach) and filtered control with filtered feedback (using a classifier-based approach), were evaluated using two psychometric measures: trial-by-trial adaptation and just-noticeable difference. The performance of both strategies was also evaluated using Schmidt's style target acquisition task. Results obtained from 24 able-bodied subjects showed that although filtered control with filtered feedback had better short-term performance in path efficiency ( ), raw control with raw feedback resulted in stronger internal model development ( ), which may lead to better long-term performance. Despite inherent noise in the control signals of the regression controller, these findings suggest that rich feedback associated with regression control may be used to improve human understanding of the myoelectric control system.

Effects of Intranasal Oxytocin on Long-Term Memory in Healthy Humans: A Systematic Review.

PubMed

Brambilla, Michela; Manenti, Rosa; de Girolamo, Giovanni; Adenzato, Mauro; Bocchio-Chiavetto, Luisella; Cotelli, Maria

2016-12-01

Preclinical Research The neuropeptide oxytocin (Oxt) is implicated in complex emotional and social behaviors and appears to play an important role in learning and memory. Animal studies have shown that the effects of exogenous Oxt on memory vary according to the timing of administration, context, gender, and dose and may improve the memory of social, but not nonsocial stimuli. Oxt is intimately involved in a broad array of neuropsychiatric functions and may therefore be a pharmacological target for several psychiatric disorders. This review summarizes the potential effects of Oxt on long-term memory processes in healthy humans based on a PubMed search over the period 1980-2016. The effects of intranasal Oxt on human memory are controversial and the studies included in this review have applied a variety of learning paradigms, in turn producing variable outcomes. Specifically, data on the long-term memory of nonemotional stimuli found no effect or even worsening in memory, while studies using emotional stimuli showed an improvement of long-term memory performance. In conclusion, this review identified a link between long-term memory performance and exogenous intranasal Oxt in humans, although these results still warrant further confirmation in large, multicenter randomized controlled trials. Drug Dev Res 77 : 479-488, 2016. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

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

Perrin, Tess E.; Davis, Robert G.; Wilkerson, Andrea M.

This GATEWAY project evaluated four field installations to better understand the long-term performance of a number of LED products, which can hopefully stimulate improvements in designing, manufacturing, specifying, procuring, and installing LED products. Field studies provide the opportunity to discover and investigate issues that cannot be simulated or uncovered in a laboratory, but the installed performance over time of commercially available LED products has not been well documented. Improving long-term performance can provide both direct energy savings by reducing the need to over-light to account for light loss and indirect energy savings through better market penetration due to SSL’s competitivemore » advantages over less-efficient light source technologies. The projects evaluated for this report illustrate that SSL use is often motivated by advantages other than energy savings, including maintenance savings, easier integration with control systems, and improved lighting quality.« less

Development of a Long-Life-Cycle, Highly Water-Resistant Solar Reflective Retrofit Roof Coating

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

Polyzos, Georgios; Hunter, Scott; Sharma, Jaswinder

2016-03-04

Highly water-resistant and solar-reflective coatings for low-slope roofs are potentially among the most economical retrofit approaches to thermal management of the building envelope. Therefore, they represent a key building technology research program within the Department of Energy. Research efforts in industry and the Department of Energy are currently under way to increase long-term solar reflectance on a number of fronts. These include new polymer coatings technologies to provide longer-lasting solar reflectivity and improved test methodologies to predict long-term soiling and microbial performance. The focus on long-term improvements in soiling and microbial resistance for maximum reflectance does not address the singlemore » most important factor impacting the long-term sustainability of low-slope roof coatings: excellent water resistance. The hydrophobic character of asphaltic roof products makes them uniquely suitable for water resistance, but their low albedo and poor exterior durability are disadvantages. A reflective coating that maintains very high water resistance with increased long-term resistance to soiling and microbial activity would provide additional energy savings and extend roof service life.« less

Outcomes related to effective nurse supervision in long-term care homes: an integrative review.

PubMed

McGilton, Katherine S; Chu, Charlene H; Shaw, Alexander C; Wong, Rosalind; Ploeg, Jenny

2016-11-01

The aim of this integrative review was to describe the organisational, unregulated nurse, and resident outcomes associated with effective supervisory performance of regulated nurses (registered nurses or registered practical nurses) in long-term care homes. While there are data on the influence of regulated nurse staffing levels on resident outcomes, the influence of effective supervisory performance of regulated nurses on resident and organisational outcomes, nursing assistant outcomes have yet to be comprehensively explored. A search of six databases was made for articles dating from 2000 to 2015. Twenty-four articles were selected and an integrative review was performed. Effective nurse supervision had statistically significant positive associations (P < 0.05, P < 0.000) with six different organisational, unregulated nurse and resident outcomes: nurse assistant job satisfaction, turnover/intention to leave, effectiveness, decision making, job stress and consumer satisfaction. Qualitative analyses corroborate these findings. There appear to be some associations between effective supervisory performance of regulated nurses with positive organisational, unregulated nursing and resident outcomes. Nursing managers and leaders in long-term care may promote improvements in effective nurse supervision performance as a way of reducing turnover and improving resident outcomes. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Alkaline anion exchange membrane water electrolysis: Effects of electrolyte feed method and electrode binder content

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cho, Min Kyung; Park, Hee-Young; Lee, Hye Jin; Kim, Hyoung-Juhn; Lim, Ahyoun; Henkensmeier, Dirk; Yoo, Sung Jong; Kim, Jin Young; Lee, So Young; Park, Hyun S.; Jang, Jong Hyun

2018-04-01

Herein, we investigate the effects of catholyte feed method and anode binder content on the characteristics of anion exchange membrane water electrolysis (AEMWE) to construct a high-performance electrolyzer, revealing that the initial AEMWE performance is significantly improved by pre-feeding 0.5 M aqueous KOH to the cathode. The highest long-term activity during repeated voltage cycling is observed for AEMWE operation in the dry cathode mode, for which the best long-term performance among membrane electrode assemblies (MEAs) featuring polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) binder-impregnated (5-20 wt%) anodes is detected for a PTFE content of 20 wt%. MEAs with low PTFE content (5 and 9 wt%) demonstrate high initial performance, rapid performance decay, and significant catalyst loss from the electrode during long-term operation, whereas the MEA with 20 wt% PTFE allows stable water electrolysis for over 1600 voltage cycles. Optimization of cell operating conditions (i.e., operation in dry cathode mode at an optimum anode binder content following an initial solution feed) achieves an enhanced water splitting current density (1.07 A cm-2 at 1.8 V) and stable long-term AEMWE performance (0.01% current density reduction per voltage cycle).

Mucosal Healing Is Associated With Improved Long-term Outcomes of Patients With Ulcerative Colitis: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.

PubMed

Shah, Shailja C; Colombel, Jean-Frederic; Sands, Bruce E; Narula, Neeraj

2016-09-01

The paradigm for treatment for ulcerative colitis (UC) is shifting from resolving symptoms toward objective measures such as mucosal healing (MH). However, it is unclear whether MH is associated with improved long-term outcomes. We performed a systematic review and meta-analysis to identify and analyze studies comparing long-term outcomes of patients with MH with those without MH. We performed a systematic search of 3 large databases to identify prospective studies of patients with active UC that included outcomes of patients found to have MH at the first endoscopic evaluation after initiation of UC therapy (MH1) compared with those without MH1. The primary outcome was clinical remission after at least 52 weeks. Secondary outcomes included proportions of patients who were free of colectomy or corticosteroids and rate of MH after at least 52 weeks. We analyzed 13 studies comprising 2073 patients with active UC. Patients with MH1 had pooled odds ratio of 4.50 for achieving long-term (after at least 52 weeks) clinical remission (95% confidence interval [CI], 2.12-9.52), 4.15 for remaining free of colectomy (95% CI, 2.53-6.81), 8.40 for achieving long-term MH (95% CI, 3.13-22.53), and 9.70 for achieving long-term corticosteroid-free clinical remission (95% CI, 0.94-99.67), compared with patients without MH1. We found no difference in outcomes if patients achieved MH1 while receiving biologic versus non-biologic therapy. In a meta-analysis, we associated MH with long-term clinical remission, avoidance of colectomy, and corticosteroid-free clinical remission. MH is therefore appropriate goal of UC therapy. Copyright © 2016 AGA Institute. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Beneficial effects of multisensory and cognitive stimulation on age-related cognitive decline in long-term-care institutions

PubMed Central

De Oliveira, Thaís Cristina Galdino; Soares, Fernanda Cabral; De Macedo, Liliane Dias E Dias; Diniz, Domingos Luiz Wanderley Picanço; Bento-Torres, Natáli Valim Oliver; Picanço-Diniz, Cristovam Wanderley

2014-01-01

The aim of the present report was to evaluate the effectiveness and impact of multisensory and cognitive stimulation on improving cognition in elderly persons living in long-term-care institutions (institutionalized [I]) or in communities with their families (noninstitutionalized [NI]). We compared neuropsychological performance using language and Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) test scores before and after 24 and 48 stimulation sessions. The two groups were matched by age and years of schooling. Small groups of ten or fewer volunteers underwent the stimulation program, twice a week, over 6 months (48 sessions in total). Sessions were based on language and memory exercises, as well as visual, olfactory, auditory, and ludic stimulation, including music, singing, and dance. Both groups were assessed at the beginning (before stimulation), in the middle (after 24 sessions), and at the end (after 48 sessions) of the stimulation program. Although the NI group showed higher performance in all tasks in all time windows compared with I subjects, both groups improved their performance after stimulation. In addition, the improvement was significantly higher in the I group than the NI group. Language tests seem to be more efficient than the MMSE to detect early changes in cognitive status. The results suggest the impoverished environment of long-term-care institutions may contribute to lower cognitive scores before stimulation and the higher improvement rate of this group after stimulation. In conclusion, language tests should be routinely adopted in the neuropsychological assessment of elderly subjects, and long-term-care institutions need to include regular sensorimotor, social, and cognitive stimulation as a public health policy for elderly persons. PMID:24600211

Differential effects of power rehabilitation on physical performance and higher-level functional capacity among community-dwelling older adults with a slight degree of frailty.

PubMed

Ota, Atsuhiko; Yasuda, Nobufumi; Horikawa, Shunichi; Fujimura, Takashi; Ohara, Hiroshi

2007-03-01

Evidence is still insufficient regarding the effects of Power Rehabilitation (PR) on physical performance and higher-level functional capacity of community-dwelling frail elderly people. This nonrandomized controlled interventional trial consisted of 46 community-dwelling elderly individuals with light levels of long-term care needs. They were allocated to the intervention (I-group, n = 24) and control (C-group, n = 22) groups. Of them, 32 persons (17 in the I-group; 15 in the C-group) (median age, 77 years; sex, 28% male) completed the study. The I-group subjects underwent PR twice a week for 12 weeks. The outcomes were physical performance (muscle strength, balance, flexibility, and mobility) and higher-level functional capacity as evaluated by the Tokyo Metropolitan Institute of Gerontology Index of Competence (TMIG-IC) and the level of long-term care need as certified by the public long-term care insurance. The I-group demonstrated a significant improvement in the measured value of the timed up-and-go test (median change, a decrease of 4.4 seconds versus a decrease of 0.2 seconds, p = 0.033) and the timed 10-meter walk (a decrease of 3.0 seconds versus an increase of 0.2 seconds, p = 0.007) in comparison with the C-group. No significant change was observed in the TMIG-IC scores or in the level of long-term care need in the I-group. PR improved mobility of community-dwelling frail elderly people; however, such improvement did not translate into higher-level functional capacity. Our findings demonstrate the difficulty in transferring the positive effects associated with PR into an improvement in higher-level functional capacity.

Tack Coat Performance and Materials Study

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2017-06-01

A good bond provided by a tack coat can improve performance of asphalt overlays. The objectives of this research were: (1) develop a method for testing the bond between pavement layers; (2) evaluate the bond performance and predict long-term performa...

Concrete overlays : an established technology with new applications

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2008-08-01

CPTP is an integrated, national effort to improve the long-term performance and cost-effectiveness of concrete pavements by implementing improved methods of design, construction, and rehabilitation and new technology. CPTP is an integrated, national ...

Effects of Short-Term Isokinetic Training on Standing Long-Jump Performance in Untrained Men.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Morriss, Calvin J.; Tolfrey, Keith; Coppack, Russell J.

2001-01-01

Evaluated the effects of a brief isokinetic training program on quadriceps and hamstring peak torque (PT) and standing long-jump performance. Tests on 12 untrained men indicated that the brief training program was at least as effective in improving quadriceps isokinetic (but not hamstring) PT. PT gains subsequent to isokinetic resistance training…

Nursing unit leaders' influence on the long-term sustainability of evidence-based practice improvements.

PubMed

Fleiszer, Andrea R; Semenic, Sonia E; Ritchie, Judith A; Richer, Marie-Claire; Denis, Jean-Louis

2016-04-01

To describe how actions of nursing unit leaders influenced the long-term sustainability of a best practice guidelines (BPG) program on inpatient units. Several factors influence the initial implementation of evidence-based practice improvements in nursing, with leadership recognized as essential. However, there is limited knowledge about enduring change, including how frontline nursing leaders influence the sustainability of practice improvements over the long term. A qualitative descriptive case study included 39 in-depth interviews, observations, and document reviews. Four embedded nursing unit subcases had differing levels of program sustainability at 7 years (average) following implementation. Higher levels of BPG sustainability occurred on units where formal leadership teams used an integrated set of strategies and activities. Two key strategies were maintaining priorities and reinforcing expectations. The coordinated use of six activities (e.g., discussing, evaluating, integrating) promoted the continuation of BPG practices among staff. These leadership processes, fostering exchange and learning, contributed to sustainability-promoting environments characterized by teamwork and accountability. Unit leaders are required to strategically orchestrate several overlapping and synergistic efforts to achieve long-term sustainability of BPG-based practice improvements. As part of managing overall unit performance, unit leaders may influence practice improvement sustainability by aligning vision, strategies, and activities. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Does unilateral single-event multilevel surgery improve gait in children with spastic hemiplegia? A retrospective analysis of a long-term follow-up.

PubMed

Schranz, Christian; Kruse, Annika; Kraus, Tanja; Steinwender, Gerhardt; Svehlik, Martin

2017-02-01

Single event multilevel surgery (SEMLS) has become a standard intervention for children with cerebral palsy (CP). SEMLS proved to improve the gait in bilateral spastic cerebral palsy and those improvements can be maintained in the long term. However there is no evidence on the long-term outcome of unilateral SEMLS in children with unilateral spastic cerebral palsy. The gait analyses and clinical data of 14 children (9 male/5 female, mean age 12.1) with unilateral CP (6 children Gross Motor Function Classification System Scale level I and 8 children level II) were retrospectively reviewed at four time-points: preoperatively, 1year, 3-5 years and approximately 10 years after unilateral SEMLS. The Gait Profile Score (GPS) of the affected leg was used as a main and the number of fine tuning procedures as well as complications rate (Clavien-Dindo classification) as secondary outcome measures. The gait improved postoperatively and the GPS of the affected leg significantly declined by 3.73° which is well above the minimal clinical important difference of 1.6°. No deterioration of GPS occurred throughout the follow-up period. Therefore the postoperative improvement was maintained long-term. However, additional fine-tuning procedures had to be performed during the follow-up in 5 children and three complications occurred (one level II and two level III). The results indicate that children with unilateral cerebral palsy benefit from unilateral SEMLS and maintain gait improvements long-term. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

An fMRI investigation of the effects of attempted naming on word retrieval in aphasia

PubMed Central

Heath, Shiree; McMahon, Katie L.; Nickels, Lyndsey A.; Angwin, Anthony; MacDonald, Anna D.; van Hees, Sophia; McKinnon, Eril; Johnson, Kori; Copland, David A.

2015-01-01

In healthy controls, picture naming performance can be facilitated by a single prior exposure to the same picture (“priming”). This priming phenomenon is utilized in the treatment of aphasia, which often includes repeated picture naming as part of a therapeutic task. The current study sought to determine whether single and/or multiple exposures facilitate subsequent naming in aphasia and whether such facilitatory effects act through normal priming mechanisms. A functional magnetic resonance imaging paradigm was employed to explore the beneficial effects of attempted naming in two individuals with aphasia and a control group. The timing and number of prior exposures was manipulated, with investigation of both short-term effects (single prior exposure over a period of minutes) and long-term effects (multiple presentations over a period of days). Following attempted naming, both short-term and long-term facilitated items showed improvement for controls, while only the long-term condition showed benefits at a behavioral level for the participants with aphasia. At a neural level, effects of long-term facilitation were noted in the left precuneus for one participant with aphasia, a result also identified for the equivalent contrast in controls. It appears that multiple attempts are required to improve naming performance in the presence of anomia and that for some individuals with aphasia the source of facilitation may be similar to unimpaired mechanisms engaged outside the language network. PMID:26074801

Diverging effects of nicotine on motor learning performance: Improvement in deprived smokers and attenuation in non-smokers.

PubMed

Grundey, J; Amu, R; Batsikadze, G; Paulus, W; Nitsche, M A

2017-11-01

Nicotine modulates cognition and neuroplasticity in smokers and non-smokers. A possible mechanism for its effect on learning and memory performance is its impact on long-term potentiation (LTP) and long-term depression (LTD). As neuroplasticity is closely connected to learning processes, we aimed to explore the effect of nicotine in healthy, young smokers and non-smokers on performance of the serial reaction time task (SRTT), a sequential motor learning paradigm. 20 nicotine-deprived smokers and 20 non-smokers participated in the study and were exposed to nicotine or placebo medication. Deprived smokers under placebo medication displayed reduced performance in terms of reaction time and error rates compared to the non-smoking group. After application of nicotine, performance in smokers improved while it deteriorated in non-smokers. These results indicate a restituting effect of nicotine in smokers in terms of cognitive parameters. This sheds further light on the proposed mechanism of nicotine on learning processes, which might be linked to the addictive component of nicotine, the probability of relapse and thus needs also be addressed in cessation treatment. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Bioterrorism Preparedness for Infectious Disease

DTIC Science & Technology

2005-01-01

outbreak. The PDC was asked to use its Geographical Information System (GIS) and Global Positioning System (GPS) technology and capabilities to perform data...improvements in the health system . For example, on May 10, 2002, the Hawaii State Department of Health unveiled plans for its long-term dengue fever...management strategy. The plan included a long-term dengue surveillance system statewide, a statewide mosquito population survey, and ongoing vector control

The JPSS CrIS Instrument and the Evolution of Space-Based Infrared Sounders

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Glumb, Ronald; Suwinski, Lawrence; Wells, Steven; Glumb, Anna; Malloy, Rebecca; Colton, Marie

2018-01-01

This paper will summarize the development of infrared sounders since the 1970s, describe the technological hurdles that were overcome to provide ever-increasing performance capabilities, and highlight the radiometric performance of the CrIS instrument on JPSS-1 (CrIS-JPSS1). This includes details of the CrIS-JPSS1 measured noise-equivalent spectral radiance (NEdN) performance, radiometric uncertainty performance utilizing a new and improved internal calibration target, short-term and long-term repeatability, spectral uncertainty, and spectral stability. In addition, the full-resolution operating modes for CrIS-JPSS1 will be reviewed, including a discussion of how these modes will be used during on-orbit characterization tests. We will provide a brief update of CrIS-SNPP on-obit performance and the production status of the CrIS instruments for JPSS-2 through JPSS-4. Current technological challenges will also be reviewed, including how ongoing research and development is enabling improvements to future sounders. The expanding usage of infrared sounding data will also be discussed, including demonstration of value via data assimilation, the roles of the public/private sector in communicating the importance of sounding data for long-term observations, and the long road to success from research to operational data products.

Evaluating and improving pressure ulcer care: the VA experience with administrative data.

PubMed

Berlowitz, D R; Halpern, J

1997-08-01

A number of state initiatives are using databases originally developed for nursing home reimbursements to assess the quality of care. Since 1991 the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA; Washington, DC) has been using a long term care administrative database to calculate facility-specific rates of pressure ulcer development. This information is disseminated to all 140 long term care facilities as part of a quality assessment and improvement program. Assessments are performed on all long term care residents on April 1 and October 1, as well as at the time of admission or transfer to a long term care unit. Approximately 18,000 long term care residents are evaluated in each six-month period; the VA rate of pressure ulcer development is approximately 3.5%. Reports of the rates of pressure ulcer development are then disseminated to all facilities, generally within two months of the assessment date. The VA's more than five years' experience in using administrative data to assess outcomes for long term care highlights several important issues that should be considered when using outcome measures based on administrative data. These include the importance of carefully selecting the outcome measure, the need to consider the structure of the database, the role of case-mix adjustment, strategies for reporting rates to small facilities, and methods for information dissemination. Attention to these issues will help ensure that results from administrative databases lead to improvements in the quality of care.

Gained insights from combined high-frequency and long-term water quality monitoring in agricultural catchments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jomaa, Seifeddine; Dupas, Rémi; Musolff, Andreas; Rozemeijer, Joachim; Borchardt, Dietrich; Rode, Michael

2017-04-01

Despite extensive efforts to reduce nitrate (NO3) transfer in agricultural areas, the NO3 concentration in rivers often changes little. To investigate the reasons for this limited response, NO3 dynamics in a 100 km2 agricultural catchment in eastern Germany was analysed from decadal to infra-hourly time scales. First, Dynamic Harmonic Regression (DHR) analysis of a 32-year (1982-2014) record of NO3 and discharge revealed that i) the long-term trend in NO3 concentration was closely related to that in discharge, suggesting that large-scale weather and climate patterns were masking the effect of improved nitrogen management on NO3 trends; ii) maximum winter and minimum summer concentrations had a persistent seasonal pattern, which was interpreted as a dynamic NO3 concentration from the soil and subsoil columns; and iii) the catchment progressively changed from chemodynamic to more chemostatic behaviour over the three decades of study, which is a sign of long-term homogenisation of NO3 concentrations in the profile. Second, infra-hourly (15 min time interval) analysis of storm-event dynamics during a typical hydrological year (2005-2006) was performed to identify periods of the year with high leaching risk and to link the latter to agricultural management practices in the catchment. Also, intra-hourly data was used to improve NO3 load estimation during storm events. An Event Response Reconstruction (ERR) model was built using NO3 concentration response descriptor variables and predictor variables deduced from discharge and precipitation records. The ERR approach significantly improved NO3 load estimates compared to linear interpolation of grab-sampling data (error was reduced from 10 to 1%). Finally, this study shows that detailed physical understanding of NO3 dynamics across time scales can be obtained only through combined analysis of long-term records and high-resolution sensor data. Hence, a joint effort is advocated between environmental authorities, who usually perform long-term monitoring, and scientific programmes, which usually perform high-resolution monitoring.

Weather related continuity and completeness on Deep Space Ka-band links: statistics and forecasting

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Shambayati, Shervin

2006-01-01

In this paper the concept of link 'stability' as means of measuring the continuity of the link is introduced and through it, along with the distributions of 'good' periods and 'bad' periods, the performance of the proposed Ka-band link design method using both forecasting and long-term statistics has been analyzed. The results indicate that the proposed link design method has relatively good continuity and completeness characteristics even when only long-term statistics are used and that the continuity performance further improves when forecasting is employed. .

A prescription for Lean healthcare.

PubMed

Wood, David

2014-01-01

The adoption of Lean in the healthcare industry has been an important advancement, and not just for healthcare management. Evidence suggests that Lean can improve labour and capital efficiencies, reduce the throughput time for patients and enhance the quality of care. However, the adoption of Lean has generated large variations in results and even wider-ranging suggestions on how to implement Lean in a healthcare setting. In this article, the author examines three very similar hospitals that implemented Lean in the emergency department during the same time. Through an examination of longitudinal data and a collection of unstructured interviews, the author found that implementation does make a substantial difference to long-term results. Although the presence of strong and persistent leadership can have favourable results on performance in the short term, these performance improvements are not sustainable. To have a long-term impact, healthcare providers need to engage all of the stakeholders in the healthcare system and create a culture that is continuously focused on the improvement of the patient healthcare experience. Copyright © 2014 Longwoods Publishing.

Effect of Aerobic Exercise Training on Mood in People With Traumatic Brain Injury: A Pilot Study.

PubMed

Weinstein, Ali A; Chin, Lisa M K; Collins, John; Goel, Divya; Keyser, Randall E; Chan, Leighton

Exercise training is associated with elevations in mood in patients with various chronic illnesses and disabilities. However, little is known regarding the effect of exercise training on short and long-term mood changes in those with traumatic brain injury (TBI). The purpose of this study was to examine the time course of mood alterations in response to a vigorous, 12-week aerobic exercise training regimen in ambulatory individuals with chronic TBI (>6 months postinjury). Short and long-term mood changes were measured using the Profile of Mood States-Short Form, before and after specific aerobic exercise bouts performed during the 12-week training regimen. Ten subjects with nonpenetrating TBI (6.6 ± 6.8 years after injury) completed the training regimen. A significant improvement in overall mood was observed following 12 weeks of aerobic exercise training (P = .04), with moderate to large effect sizes observed for short-term mood improvements following individual bouts of exercise. Specific improvements in long-term mood state and short-term mood responses following individual exercise sessions were observed in these individuals with TBI. The largest improvement in overall mood was observed at 12 weeks of exercise training, with improvements emerging as early as 4 weeks into the training regimen.

Long-term Vihangam Yoga meditation and scores on tests of attention.

PubMed

Prakash, Ravi; Dubey, Indu; Abhishek, Priyadarshee; Gupta, Sanjeev Kumar; Rastogi, Priyanka; Siddiqui, Shazia Veqar

2010-06-01

Although the literature indicates that meditation has beneficial effects on several aspects of human functioning, few studies have specifically investigated the effects of meditation on various domains of attention. This study was conducted to examine the differences in various domains of attention between long-term concentrative meditators versus matched controls. 15 practitioners of Vihangam Yoga (> 10 yr. experience) were enrolled in the study. Controls matched on age, sex, and years of education were recruited. Both groups were administered the Stroop, Trail-Making, and Digit Symbol Substitution tests as well as the Digit Forward and Digit Backward tests. The group of Vihangam Yogis had significantly better mean performance on all tests of attention. Long-term Vihangam Yoga meditation improves attention span, processing speed, attention alternation ability, and performance in interference tests.

The effects of short-term and long-term pulmonary rehabilitation on functional capacity, perceived dyspnea, and quality of life.

PubMed

Verrill, David; Barton, Cole; Beasley, Will; Lippard, W Michael

2005-08-01

The purposes of this study were as follows: (1) to determine whether physical performance, quality of life, and dyspnea with activities of daily living improved following both short-term and long-term pulmonary rehabilitation (PR) across multiple hospital outpatient programs; (2) to examine the differences in these parameters between men and women; and (3) to determine what relationships existed between the psychosocial parameters and the results of the 6-min walk (6MW) test performance across programs. Non-experimental, prospective, and comparative. Seven outpatient hospital PR programs from urban and rural settings across North Carolina. Three hundred nine women and 281 men who were 20 to 93 years of age (mean [+/- SD] age, 66.7 +/- 11.1 years) with chronic lung disease. All 6MW tests and health surveys were administered prior to and immediately following 12 and 24 weeks of supervised PR participation. Scores from the 6MW tests, the Ferrans and Powers quality of life index-pulmonary version III (QLI), the Medical Outcomes Study 36-item short form (SF-36), and the University of California at San Diego shortness of breath questionnaire (SOBQ) were compared at PR entry, at 12 weeks, and at 24 weeks for differences by gender with repeated-measures analysis of variance. The study entry and follow-up SF-36 physical and mental component summary scores, the QLI health/function and overall scores, and the SOBQ scores were also compared to the 6MW test scores with Pearson correlation coefficient analysis. The mean summary scores on the SF-36 and the QLI increased after 12 weeks of PR (p < 0.05), and improvements were maintained by 24 weeks of PR participation (p < 0.05). Scores on the SOBQ improved after 12 weeks (p < 0.001) among the short-term participants, but not until after 24 weeks among the long-term participants (p = 0.009). The 6MW test performance improved after 12 weeks (p < 0.001) and again from 12 to 24 weeks (p = 0.002) in the long-term participants. No relevant correlational relationships were found between 6MW scores and the summary scores of the administered surveys (r = -0.43 to 0.36). Physical performance, as measured by the 6MW test, continued to improve with up to 24 weeks of PR participation. Quality-of-life measures and the perception of dyspnea improved after 12 weeks of PR participation, with improvements maintained by 24 weeks of PR participation. It is recommended that PR patients participate in supervised PR for at least 24 weeks to gain and maintain optimal health benefits.

Rooftop applications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kern, E.

1982-01-01

Research on residential photovoltaic power systems based upon the experience of MIT-LL in implementing the DOE Residential Demonstration Project, especially the Northeast Residential Experiment Station (NE RES) is discussed. There is an immediate need for improved power-conditioner operational and reliability capabilities. Continuing evaluation of photovoltaic power systems is required to verify long-term performance, reliability, and utility interface effects. In the long term, the price of photovoltaic power systems must decrease, especially of modules.

The road to successful ITS software acquisition : executive summary

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1999-04-01

The Long Term Pavement Performance (LTPP) program was established to support a broad range of pavement performance analyses leading to improved engineering tools to design, construct, and manage pavements. Since 1989, LTPP has collected data on the p...

Brain Structure-Function Couplings: Year 2 Accomplishments and Programmatic Plans

DTIC Science & Technology

2013-06-01

performance through individual-specific neurotechnologies and enhance Soldier protection technologies to minimize neural injury. The long-term vision of this...envision pathways that enable our basic science accomplishments to foster development of revolutionary Soldier neurotechnologies and Soldier protection...improve Soldier-system performance with Soldier-specific neurotechnologies . We expect mid-term impact with models linking structure and function that can

Improved long-term outcomes after resection of pancreatic adenocarcinoma: a comparison between two time periods.

PubMed

Serrano, Pablo E; Cleary, Sean P; Dhani, Neesha; Kim, Peter T W; Greig, Paul D; Leung, Kenneth; Moulton, Carol-Anne; Gallinger, Steven; Wei, Alice C

2015-04-01

Despite reduced perioperative mortality and routine use of adjuvant therapy following pancreatectomy for pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC), improvement in long-term outcome has been difficult to ascertain. This study compares outcomes in patients undergoing resection for PDAC within a single, high-volume academic institution over two sequential time periods. Retrospective review of patients with resected PDAC, in two cohorts: period 1 (P1), 1991-2000; and period 2 (P2), 2001-2010. Univariate and multivariate analyses using the Cox proportional hazards model were performed to determine prognostic factors associated with long-term survival. Survival was evaluated using Kaplan-Meier analyses. A total of 179 pancreatectomies were performed during P1 and 310 during P2. Perioperative mortality was 6.7 % (12/179) in P1 and 1.6 % (5/310) in P2 (p = 0.003). P2 had a greater number of lymph nodes resected (17 [0-50] vs. 7 [0-31]; p < 0.001), and a higher lymph node positivity rate (69 % [215/310] vs. 58 % [104/179]; p = 0.021) compared with P1. The adjuvant therapy rate was 30 % (53/179) in P1 and 63 % (195/310) in P2 (p < 0.001). By multivariate analysis, node and margin status, tumor grade, adjuvant therapy, and time period of resection were independently associated with overall survival (OS) for both time periods. Median OS was 16 months (95 % confidence interval [CI] 14-20) in P1 and 27 months (95 % CI 24-30) in P2 (p < 0.001). Factors associated with improved long-term survival remain comparable over time. Short- and long-term survival for patients with resected PDAC has improved over time due to decreased perioperative mortality and increased use of adjuvant therapy, although the proportion of 5-year survivors remains small.

Long-term effects of stimulant treatment on ADHD symptoms, social-emotional functioning, and cognition.

PubMed

Schweren, Lizanne; Hoekstra, Pieter; van Lieshout, Marloes; Oosterlaan, Jaap; Lambregts-Rommelse, Nanda; Buitelaar, Jan; Franke, Barbara; Hartman, Catharina

2018-03-13

Methodological and ethical constraints have hampered studies into long-term lasting outcomes of stimulant treatment in individuals with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Lasting effects may be beneficial (i.e. improved functioning even when treatment is temporarily ceased) or detrimental (i.e. worse functioning while off medication), but both hypotheses currently lack empirical support. Here we investigate whether stimulant treatment history predicts long-term development of ADHD symptoms, social-emotional functioning or cognition, measured after medication wash-out. ADHD symptoms, social-emotional functioning and cognitive test performance were measured twice, 6 years apart, in two ADHD groups (stimulant-treated versus not stimulant-treated between baseline and follow-up). Groups were closely matched on baseline clinical and demographic variables (n = 148, 58% male, age = 11.1). A matched healthy control group was included for reference. All but two outcome measures (emotional problems and prosocial behaviour) improved between baseline and follow-up. Improvement over time in the stimulant-treated group did not differ from improvement in the not stimulant-treated group on any outcome measure. Stimulant treatment is not associated with the long-term developmental course of ADHD symptoms, social-emotional functioning, motor control, timing or verbal working memory. Adolescence is characterised by clinical improvement regardless of stimulant treatment during that time. These findings are an important source to inform the scientific and public debate.

Operational seasonal forecasting of crop performance.

PubMed

Stone, Roger C; Meinke, Holger

2005-11-29

Integrated, interdisciplinary crop performance forecasting systems, linked with appropriate decision and discussion support tools, could substantially improve operational decision making in agricultural management. Recent developments in connecting numerical weather prediction models and general circulation models with quantitative crop growth models offer the potential for development of integrated systems that incorporate components of long-term climate change. However, operational seasonal forecasting systems have little or no value unless they are able to change key management decisions. Changed decision making through incorporation of seasonal forecasting ultimately has to demonstrate improved long-term performance of the cropping enterprise. Simulation analyses conducted on specific production scenarios are especially useful in improving decisions, particularly if this is done in conjunction with development of decision-support systems and associated facilitated discussion groups. Improved management of the overall crop production system requires an interdisciplinary approach, where climate scientists, agricultural scientists and extension specialists are intimately linked with crop production managers in the development of targeted seasonal forecast systems. The same principle applies in developing improved operational management systems for commodity trading organizations, milling companies and agricultural marketing organizations. Application of seasonal forecast systems across the whole value chain in agricultural production offers considerable benefits in improving overall operational management of agricultural production.

Operational seasonal forecasting of crop performance

PubMed Central

Stone, Roger C; Meinke, Holger

2005-01-01

Integrated, interdisciplinary crop performance forecasting systems, linked with appropriate decision and discussion support tools, could substantially improve operational decision making in agricultural management. Recent developments in connecting numerical weather prediction models and general circulation models with quantitative crop growth models offer the potential for development of integrated systems that incorporate components of long-term climate change. However, operational seasonal forecasting systems have little or no value unless they are able to change key management decisions. Changed decision making through incorporation of seasonal forecasting ultimately has to demonstrate improved long-term performance of the cropping enterprise. Simulation analyses conducted on specific production scenarios are especially useful in improving decisions, particularly if this is done in conjunction with development of decision-support systems and associated facilitated discussion groups. Improved management of the overall crop production system requires an interdisciplinary approach, where climate scientists, agricultural scientists and extension specialists are intimately linked with crop production managers in the development of targeted seasonal forecast systems. The same principle applies in developing improved operational management systems for commodity trading organizations, milling companies and agricultural marketing organizations. Application of seasonal forecast systems across the whole value chain in agricultural production offers considerable benefits in improving overall operational management of agricultural production. PMID:16433097

Personalized query suggestion based on user behavior

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Wanyu; Hao, Zepeng; Shao, Taihua; Chen, Honghui

Query suggestions help users refine their queries after they input an initial query. Previous work mainly concentrated on similarity-based and context-based query suggestion approaches. However, models that focus on adapting to a specific user (personalization) can help to improve the probability of the user being satisfied. In this paper, we propose a personalized query suggestion model based on users’ search behavior (UB model), where we inject relevance between queries and users’ search behavior into a basic probabilistic model. For the relevance between queries, we consider their semantical similarity and co-occurrence which indicates the behavior information from other users in web search. Regarding the current user’s preference to a query, we combine the user’s short-term and long-term search behavior in a linear fashion and deal with the data sparse problem with Bayesian probabilistic matrix factorization (BPMF). In particular, we also investigate the impact of different personalization strategies (the combination of the user’s short-term and long-term search behavior) on the performance of query suggestion reranking. We quantify the improvement of our proposed UB model against a state-of-the-art baseline using the public AOL query logs and show that it beats the baseline in terms of metrics used in query suggestion reranking. The experimental results show that: (i) for personalized ranking, users’ behavioral information helps to improve query suggestion effectiveness; and (ii) given a query, merging information inferred from the short-term and long-term search behavior of a particular user can result in a better performance than both plain approaches.

The effects of higher strength and associated concrete properties on pavement performance

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2001-06-01

The major goal of this project was to develop recommendations for PCC properties and materials characteristics found in : higher strength JPCPs with improved long-term performance as determined by joint spalling and faulting, and transverse : slab...

The effects of higher strength and associated concrete properties on pavement performance.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2001-06-01

The major goal of this project was to develop recommendations for PCC properties and materials characteristics found : in higher strength JPCP's with improved long-term performance as determined by joint spalling and faulting, and : transverse slab c...

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

Wang, Ziying; Lee, Jungwoo Z.; Xin, Huolin L.

All-solid-state lithium-ion batteries have the potential to not only push the current limits of energy density by utilizing Li metal, but also improve safety by avoiding flammable organic electrolyte. However, understanding the role of solid electrolyte – electrode interfaces will be critical to improve performance. In this paper, we conducted long term cycling on commercially available lithium cobalt oxide (LCO)/lithium phosphorus oxynitride (LiPON)/lithium (Li) cells at elevated temperature to investigate the interfacial phenomena that lead to capacity decay. STEM-EELS analysis of samples revealed a previously unreported disordered layer between the LCO cathode and LiPON electrolyte. This electrochemically inactive layer grewmore » in thickness leading to loss of capacity and increase of interfacial resistance when cycled at 80 °C. Finally, the stabilization of this layer through interfacial engineering is crucial to improve the long term performance of thin-film batteries especially under thermal stress.« less

Short and long-term effects of sham-controlled prefrontal EEG-neurofeedback training in healthy subjects.

PubMed

Engelbregt, H J; Keeser, D; van Eijk, L; Suiker, E M; Eichhorn, D; Karch, S; Deijen, J B; Pogarell, O

2016-04-01

In this study we evaluated long-term effects of frontal beta EEG-neurofeedback training (E-NFT) on healthy subjects. We hypothesized that E-NFT can change frontal beta activity in the long-term and that changes in frontal beta EEG activity are accompanied by altered cognitive performance. 25 healthy subjects were included and randomly assigned to active or sham E-NFT. On average the subjects underwent 15 E-NFT training sessions with a training duration of 45 min. Resting-state EEG was recorded prior to E-NFT training (t1) and in a 3-year follow-up (t3). Compared to sham E-NFT, which was used for the control group, real E-NFT increased beta activity in a predictable way. This increase was maintained over a period of three years post training. However, E-NFT did not result in significantly improved cognitive performance. Based on our results, we conclude that EEG-NFT can selectively modify EEG beta activity both in short and long-term. This is a sham controlled EEG neurofeedback study demonstrating long-term effects in resting state EEG. Copyright © 2016 International Federation of Clinical Neurophysiology. Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Benchmark analysis of forecasted seasonal temperature over different climatic areas

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Giunta, G.; Salerno, R.; Ceppi, A.; Ercolani, G.; Mancini, M.

2015-12-01

From a long-term perspective, an improvement of seasonal forecasting, which is often exclusively based on climatology, could provide a new capability for the management of energy resources in a time scale of just a few months. This paper regards a benchmark analysis in relation to long-term temperature forecasts over Italy in the year 2010, comparing the eni-kassandra meteo forecast (e-kmf®) model, the Climate Forecast System-National Centers for Environmental Prediction (CFS-NCEP) model, and the climatological reference (based on 25-year data) with observations. Statistical indexes are used to understand the reliability of the prediction of 2-m monthly air temperatures with a perspective of 12 weeks ahead. The results show how the best performance is achieved by the e-kmf® system which improves the reliability for long-term forecasts compared to climatology and the CFS-NCEP model. By using the reliable high-performance forecast system, it is possible to optimize the natural gas portfolio and management operations, thereby obtaining a competitive advantage in the European energy market.

A business case for quality improvement in addiction treatment: evidence from the NIATx collaborative.

PubMed

Quanbeck, Andrew R; Madden, Lynn; Edmundson, Eldon; Ford, James H; McConnell, K John; McCarty, Dennis; Gustafson, David H

2012-01-01

The Network for the Improvement of Addiction Treatment (NIATx) promotes treatment access and retention through a customer-focused quality improvement model. This paper explores the issue of the "business case" for quality improvement in addiction treatment from the provider's perspective. The business case model developed in this paper is based on case examples of early NIATx participants coupled with a review of the literature. Process inefficiencies indicated by long waiting times, high no-show rates, and low continuation rates cause underutilization of capacity and prevent optimal financial performance. By adopting customer-focused practices aimed at removing barriers to treatment access and retention, providers may be able to improve financial performance, increase staff retention, and gain long-term strategic advantage.

Advanced composite structural concepts and materials technologies for primary aircraft structures: Advanced material concepts

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lau, Kreisler S. Y.; Landis, Abraham L.; Chow, Andrea W.; Hamlin, Richard D.

1993-01-01

To achieve acceptable performance and long-term durability at elevated temperatures (350 to 600 F) for high-speed transport systems, further improvements of the high-performance matrix materials will be necessary to achieve very long-term (60,000-120,000 service hours) retention of mechanical properties and damage tolerance. This report emphasizes isoimide modification as a complementary technique to semi-interpenetrating polymer networks (SIPN's) to achieve greater processibility, better curing dynamics, and possibly enhanced thermo-mechanical properties in composites. A key result is the demonstration of enhanced processibility of isoimide-modified linear and thermo-setting polyimide systems.

Frozen shoulder : long-term outcome following arthrographic distension.

PubMed

Clement, Rhys G E; Ray, Andrew G; Davidson, Colin; Robinson, C Mike; Perks, Fergus J

2013-08-01

Arthrographic distension of the glenohumeral joint was adopted as a mainstream treatment for frozen shoulder before any randomised controlled trials were performed. Interpretation of the effectiveness of this procedure rests mostly on data from cohort studies of which there are few of high quality. Papers reporting long-term results have either excluded diabetic patients or failed to report patient orientated outcomes. The authors present a long-term prospective cohort study of 51 patients (12 diabetics and 39 non-diabetics), with 53 frozen shoulders, who had an arthrographic distension performed by a single radiologist as a primary intervention. Oxford shoulder score (OSS), visual analogue pain score (VAS), and range of movement (ROM) were recorded pre-distension, at 2 days and 1 month post-distension. OSS and VAS were recorded again at a mean of 14 months post distension (range : 8-26 months). OSS improved from a pre-distension mean of 22.3 by 16.9 points at final follow-up (p < 0.001, 2 tailed paired samples t-test) whilst VAS improved from a mean pre-distension value of 7.1 by -3.5 (p < 0.001). ROM improved by a mean of 39.3 degrees in flexion, 55.2 degrees in abduction and 19.5 degrees in external rotation at one month (p < 0.001 for all). The outcome in diabetic patients was the same as in non-diabetic patients. Arthrographic distension is a safe and effective treatment for frozen shoulder; it is also effective in diabetic patients. It gives long-term improvement. The authors believe that the low number of patients requiring a secondary procedure makes arthrographic distension preferable to manipulation under anaesthesia.

Long-Term Paired Associative Stimulation Enhances Motor Output of the Tetraplegic Hand.

PubMed

Tolmacheva, Aleksandra; Savolainen, Sarianna; Kirveskari, Erika; Lioumis, Pantelis; Kuusela, Linda; Brandstack, Nina; Ylinen, Aarne; Mäkelä, Jyrki P; Shulga, Anastasia

2017-09-15

A large proportion of spinal cord injuries (SCI) are incomplete. Even in clinically complete injuries, silent non-functional connections can be present. Therapeutic approaches that can strengthen transmission in weak neural connections to improve motor performance are needed. Our aim was to determine whether long-term delivery of paired associative stimulation (PAS, a combination of transcranial magnetic stimulation [TMS] with peripheral nerve stimulation [PNS]) can enhance motor output in the hands of patients with chronic traumatic tetraplegia, and to compare this technique with long-term PNS. Five patients (4 males; age 38-68, mean 48) with no contraindications to TMS received 4 weeks (16 sessions) of stimulation. PAS was given to one hand and PNS combined with sham TMS to the other hand. Patients were blinded to the treatment. Hands were selected randomly. The patients were evaluated by a physiotherapist blinded to the treatment. The follow-up period was 1 month. Patients were evaluated with Daniels and Worthingham's Muscle Testing (0-5 scale) before the first stimulation session, after the last stimulation session, and 1 month after the last stimulation session. One month after the last stimulation session, the improvement in the PAS-treated hand was 1.02 ± 0.17 points (p < 0.0001, n = 100 muscles from 5 patients). The improvement was significantly higher in PAS-treated than in PNS-treated hands (176 ± 29%, p = 0.046, n = 5 patients). Long-term PAS might be an effective tool for improving motor performance in incomplete chronic SCI patients. Further studies on PAS in larger patient cohorts, with longer stimulation duration and at earlier stages after the injury, are warranted.

Effects of Anterior Capsulotomy on Decision Making in Patients with Refractory Obsessive–Compulsive Disorder

PubMed Central

Zhang, Chencheng; Chen, Yilin; Tian, Shuaiwei; Wang, Tao; Xie, Yile; Jin, Haiyan; Lin, Guozhen; Gong, Hengfen; Zeljic, Kristina; Sun, Bomin; Yang, Tianming; Zhan, Shikun

2017-01-01

Despite various lines of evidence implicating impaired decision-making ability in individuals with obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD), neuropsychological investigation has generated inconsistent findings. Although the cortico-striato-thalamo-cortical (CSTC) circuitry has been suggested, the involvement of the cortex has not yet been fully demonstrated. Moreover, it is unknown whether surgical intervention on the CSTC circuitry results in a predicted improvement of decision-making ability of OCD. Here we present a study of decision making based on the Iowa Gambling Task (IGT) to investigate decision making in a large sample of individuals with treatment-resistant OCD with and without anterior capsulotomy (AC). Task performance was evaluated in healthy subjects, individuals with OCD that had not undergone surgery, and postsurgical OCD patients with AC. The latter group was further divided into a short-term postsurgical group and a long-term postsurgical group. We found that the OCD patients without surgery performed significantly worse than the healthy controls on the IGT. There were no significant differences in decision-making between the presurgical OCD patients and those at the short-term postsurgical follow-up. Decision-making ability of the long-term postsurgical OCD patients was improved to the level comparable to that of healthy controls. All clinical symptoms (OCD, depression, and anxiety) assessed by psychiatric rating scales were significantly alleviated post-surgically, but exhibited no correlation with their IGT task performance. Our findings provide strong evidence that OCD is linked to impairments in decision-making ability; that impaired CSTC circuitry function is directly involved in the manifestation of OCD; and that AC related improvements in cognitive functions are caused by long-term plasticity in the brain circuitry. PMID:29089909

Effects of Anterior Capsulotomy on Decision Making in Patients with Refractory Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder.

PubMed

Zhang, Chencheng; Chen, Yilin; Tian, Shuaiwei; Wang, Tao; Xie, Yile; Jin, Haiyan; Lin, Guozhen; Gong, Hengfen; Zeljic, Kristina; Sun, Bomin; Yang, Tianming; Zhan, Shikun

2017-01-01

Despite various lines of evidence implicating impaired decision-making ability in individuals with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), neuropsychological investigation has generated inconsistent findings. Although the cortico-striato-thalamo-cortical (CSTC) circuitry has been suggested, the involvement of the cortex has not yet been fully demonstrated. Moreover, it is unknown whether surgical intervention on the CSTC circuitry results in a predicted improvement of decision-making ability of OCD. Here we present a study of decision making based on the Iowa Gambling Task (IGT) to investigate decision making in a large sample of individuals with treatment-resistant OCD with and without anterior capsulotomy (AC). Task performance was evaluated in healthy subjects, individuals with OCD that had not undergone surgery, and postsurgical OCD patients with AC. The latter group was further divided into a short-term postsurgical group and a long-term postsurgical group. We found that the OCD patients without surgery performed significantly worse than the healthy controls on the IGT. There were no significant differences in decision-making between the presurgical OCD patients and those at the short-term postsurgical follow-up. Decision-making ability of the long-term postsurgical OCD patients was improved to the level comparable to that of healthy controls. All clinical symptoms (OCD, depression, and anxiety) assessed by psychiatric rating scales were significantly alleviated post-surgically, but exhibited no correlation with their IGT task performance. Our findings provide strong evidence that OCD is linked to impairments in decision-making ability; that impaired CSTC circuitry function is directly involved in the manifestation of OCD; and that AC related improvements in cognitive functions are caused by long-term plasticity in the brain circuitry.

Improving sneaky-sex in a low oxygen environment: reproductive and physiological responses of male mosquito fish to chronic hypoxia.

PubMed

Carter, Alecia J; Wilson, Robbie S

2006-12-01

Few studies have examined the adaptive significance of reversible acclimation responses. The aerobic performance and mating behaviour of the sexually coercive male eastern mosquito fish (Gambusia holbrooki) offers an excellent model system for testing the benefits of reversible acclimation responses to mating success. We exposed male mosquito fish to normoxic or hypoxic conditions for 4 weeks and tested their maximum sustained swimming performance and their ability to obtain coercive matings under both normoxic and hypoxic conditions. We predicted that hypoxia-acclimated males would possess greater swimming and mating performance in hypoxic conditions than normoxic-acclimated males, and vice versa when tested in normoxia. Supporting our predictions, we found the sustained swimming performance of male mosquito fish was greater in a hypoxic environment following long-term exposure to low partial pressures of oxygen. However, the benefits of acclimation responses to mating performance were dependent on whether they were tested in the presence or absence of male-male competition. In a non-competitive environment, male mosquito fish acclimated to hypoxic conditions spent a greater amount of time following females and obtained more copulations than normoxic-acclimated males when tested in low partial pressures of oxygen. When males were competed against each other for copulations, we found no influence of long-term exposure to different partial pressures of oxygen on mating behaviour. Thus, despite improvements in the aerobic capacity of male mosquito fish following long-term acclimation to hypoxic conditions, these benefits did not always manifest themselves in improved mating performance. This study represents one of the first experimental tests of the benefits of reversible acclimation responses, and indicates that the ecological significance of physiological plasticity may be more complicated than previously imagined.

Long-term musical training may improve different forms of visual attention ability.

PubMed

Rodrigues, Ana Carolina; Loureiro, Maurício Alves; Caramelli, Paulo

2013-08-01

Many studies have suggested that structural and functional cerebral neuroplastic processes result from long-term musical training, which in turn may produce cognitive differences between musicians and non-musicians. We aimed to investigate whether intensive, long-term musical practice is associated with improvements in three different forms of visual attention ability: selective, divided and sustained attention. Musicians from symphony orchestras (n=38) and non-musicians (n=38), who were comparable in age, gender and education, were submitted to three neuropsychological tests, measuring reaction time and accuracy. Musicians showed better performance relative to non-musicians on four variables of the three visual attention tests, and such an advantage could not solely be explained by better sensorimotor integration. Moreover, in the group of musicians, significant correlations were observed between the age at the commencement of musical studies and reaction time in all visual attention tests. The results suggest that musicians present augmented ability in different forms of visual attention, thus illustrating the possible cognitive benefits of long-term musical training. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Long-term stability of intra-oral maxillary distraction in unilateral cleft lip and palate: a case report.

PubMed

Nevzatoğlu, Sirin; Küçükkeleş, Nazan; Güzel, Zeki

2013-11-01

This case report presents short and long-term treatment results of a unilateral cleft lip and palate patient treated with a modified intra-oral tooth-bone borne distraction appliance. The chief complaints of a 16 year-old, unilateral cleft lip and palate patient were poor facial aesthetics, crowding and a fistula. Severe maxillary retrognathism was treated via distraction osteogenesis of the maxilla and performed using an intra-oral tooth-bone borne appliance. Treatment continued to completion with a multibracket system. At an eight-year review following the distraction procedure, the short and long-term results were determined cephalometrically. Following the distraction, A-point advanced 7 mm, 2 mm of which relapsed during fixed appliance treatment. At the end of the active treatment, the patient's skeletal and dental Class III relationship improved to Class I, which was preserved at the long-term review. The profile was markedly improved by the distraction osteogenesis. In cases of severe maxillary retrognathism as a result of a cleft lip and palate, maxillary distraction osteogenesis provides a viable alternative to orthognathic surgery.

Tropospheric Passive Remote Sensing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Keafer, L. S., Jr. (Editor)

1982-01-01

The long term role of airborne/spaceborne passive remote sensing systems for tropospheric air quality research and the identification of technology advances required to improve the performance of passive remote sensing systems were discussed.

Reward improves long-term retention of a motor memory through induction of offline memory gains.

PubMed

Abe, Mitsunari; Schambra, Heidi; Wassermann, Eric M; Luckenbaugh, Dave; Schweighofer, Nicolas; Cohen, Leonardo G

2011-04-12

In humans, training in which good performance is rewarded or bad performance punished results in transient behavioral improvements. The relative effects of reward and punishment on consolidation and long-term retention, critical behavioral stages for successful learning, are not known. Here, we investigated the effects of reward and punishment on these different stages of human motor skill learning. We studied healthy subjects who trained on a motor task under rewarded, punished, or neutral control conditions. Performance was tested before and immediately, 6 hr, 24 hr, and 30 days after training in the absence of reward or punishment. Performance improvements immediately after training were comparable in the three groups. At 6 hr, the rewarded group maintained performance gains, whereas the other two groups experienced significant forgetting. At 24 hr, the reward group showed significant offline (posttraining) improvements, whereas the other two groups did not. At 30 days, the rewarded group retained the gains identified at 24 hr, whereas the other two groups experienced significant forgetting. We conclude that training under rewarded conditions is more effective than training under punished or neutral conditions in eliciting lasting motor learning, an advantage driven by offline memory gains that persist over time. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Post-Training Intrahippocampal Injection of Synthetic Poly-Alpha-2,8-Sialic Acid-Neural Cell Adhesion Molecule Mimetic Peptide Improves Spatial Long-Term Performance in Mice

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Florian, Cedrick; Foltz, Jane; Norreel, Jean-Chretien; Rougon, Genevieve; Roullet, Pascal

2006-01-01

Several data have shown that the neural cell adhesion molecule (NCAM) is necessary for long-term memory formation and might play a role in the structural reorganization of synapses. The NCAM, encoded by a single gene, is represented by several isoforms that differ with regard to their content of alpha-2,8-linked sialic acid residues (PSA) on their…

Long Term Trend Analysis and Assessment of Water Quality in the Penchala River, Malaysia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chow, M. F.; Haris, H. B.; Mohd Sidek, L. B.

2014-12-01

Rapid urban expansion produces negative impacts on the natural environment, especially river water quality. Studies assessing long term changes of water quality have been recognized as a key tool for understanding ongoing processes in watersheds and for providing an essential background for evaluation of rapid changes within industrialized and populated urban areas. Unfortunately, only limited studies are available for developing countries such as Malaysia. Thus, a long term study was conducted to evaluate water quality trends at Pencala river basin that has undergone extensive land use changes related to industrial, agricultural and urban activities. Fifteen physical and chemical variables were analysed in river water samples collected every month over a period of 13 years, between 1997 and 2009. The trend study was performed using the Mann-Kendall Seasonal test and the Sen's Slope estimator. Results revealed that most water quality parameters showed a downward trend for yearly average concentration. The water quality index (WQI) for Pencala River was improved from Class V to Class IV, according to National Water Quality Standards for Malaysia. BOD, COD, NH3-N and SS show trends toward decreasing concentrations over time. The improvements seen in water quality appear to be the result of improved wastewater treatment and other water quality improvement efforts achieved through government initiative. Continued long-term and high frequency monitoring is necessary to establish plans and policies for effective water resources management.

Long-term effects of user preference-oriented recommendation method on the evolution of online system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shi, Xiaoyu; Shang, Ming-Sheng; Luo, Xin; Khushnood, Abbas; Li, Jian

2017-02-01

As the explosion growth of Internet economy, recommender system has become an important technology to solve the problem of information overload. However, recommenders are not one-size-fits-all, different recommenders have different virtues, making them be suitable for different users. In this paper, we propose a novel personalized recommender based on user preferences, which allows multiple recommenders to exist in E-commerce system simultaneously. We find that output of a recommender to each user is quite different when using different recommenders, the recommendation accuracy can be significantly improved if each user is assigned with his/her optimal personalized recommender. Furthermore, different from previous works focusing on short-term effects on recommender, we also evaluate the long-term effect of the proposed method by modeling the evolution of mutual feedback between user and online system. Finally, compared with single recommender running on the online system, the proposed method can improve the accuracy of recommendation significantly and get better trade-offs between short- and long-term performances of recommendation.

Effects of Resistance Training in Youth Athletes on Muscular Fitness and Athletic Performance: A Conceptual Model for Long-Term Athlete Development

PubMed Central

Granacher, Urs; Lesinski, Melanie; Büsch, Dirk; Muehlbauer, Thomas; Prieske, Olaf; Puta, Christian; Gollhofer, Albert; Behm, David G.

2016-01-01

During the stages of long-term athlete development (LTAD), resistance training (RT) is an important means for (i) stimulating athletic development, (ii) tolerating the demands of long-term training and competition, and (iii) inducing long-term health promoting effects that are robust over time and track into adulthood. However, there is a gap in the literature with regards to optimal RT methods during LTAD and how RT is linked to biological age. Thus, the aims of this scoping review were (i) to describe and discuss the effects of RT on muscular fitness and athletic performance in youth athletes, (ii) to introduce a conceptual model on how to appropriately implement different types of RT within LTAD stages, and (iii) to identify research gaps from the existing literature by deducing implications for future research. In general, RT produced small-to-moderate effects on muscular fitness and athletic performance in youth athletes with muscular strength showing the largest improvement. Free weight, complex, and plyometric training appear to be well-suited to improve muscular fitness and athletic performance. In addition, balance training appears to be an important preparatory (facilitating) training program during all stages of LTAD but particularly during the early stages. As youth athletes become more mature, specificity, and intensity of RT methods increase. This scoping review identified research gaps that are summarized in the following and that should be addressed in future studies: (i) to elucidate the influence of gender and biological age on the adaptive potential following RT in youth athletes (especially in females), (ii) to describe RT protocols in more detail (i.e., always report stress and strain-based parameters), and (iii) to examine neuromuscular and tendomuscular adaptations following RT in youth athletes. PMID:27242538

Federal motor carrier safety administration safety 2010 strategy and performance planning : project description

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2000-12-01

The Motor Carrier Safety Improvement Act (MCSIA) of 1999, Pub. L. 106-159, created the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) in January 2000. Section 104 of the Act requires the Secretary to develop a long-term strategy for improving co...

Patient Safety Policy in Long-Term Care: A Research Protocol to Assess Executive WalkRounds to Improve Management of Early Warning Signs for Patient Safety.

PubMed

van Dusseldorp, Loes; Hamers, Hub; van Achterberg, Theo; Schoonhoven, Lisette

2014-07-15

At many hospitals and long-term care organizations (such as nursing homes), executive board members have a responsibility to manage patient safety. Executive WalkRounds offer an opportunity for boards to build a trusting relationship with professionals and seem useful as a leadership tool to pick up on soft signals, which are indirect signals or early warnings that something is wrong. Because the majority of the research on WalkRounds has been performed in hospitals, it is unknown how board members of long-term care organizations develop their patient safety policy. Also, it is not clear if these board members use soft signals as a leadership tool and, if so, how this influences their patient safety policies. The objective of this study is to explore the added value and the feasibility of WalkRounds for patient safety management in long-term care. This study also aims to identify how executive board members of long-term care organizations manage patient safety and to describe the characteristics of boards. An explorative before-and-after study was conducted between April 2012 and February 2014 in 13 long-term care organizations in the Netherlands. After implementing the intervention in 6 organizations, data from 72 WalkRounds were gathered by observation and a reporting form. Before and after the intervention period, data collection included interviews, questionnaires, and studying reports of the executive boards. A mixed-method analysis is performed using descriptive statistics, t tests, and content analysis. Results are expected to be ready in mid 2014. It is a challenge to keep track of ongoing development and implementation of patient safety management tools in long-term care. By performing this study in cooperation with the participating long-term care organizations, insight into the potential added value and the feasibility of this method will increase.

Adenotonsillectomy for Obstructive Sleep Apnea and Quality of Life: Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.

PubMed

Todd, Cameron A; Bareiss, Anna K; McCoul, Edward D; Rodriguez, Kimsey H

2017-11-01

Objective To determine the impact of adenotonsillectomy on the quality of life of pediatric patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and to identify gaps in the current research. Data Sources The MEDLINE, EMBASE, and Cochrane databases were systematically searched via the Ovid portal on June 18, 2016, for English-language articles. Review Methods Full-text articles were selected that studied boys and girls <18 years of age who underwent adenotonsillectomy for OSA or sleep-disordered breathing and that recorded validated, quantitative quality-of-life outcomes. Studies that lacked such measures, performed adenotonsillectomy for indications other than OSA or sleep-disordered breathing, or grouped adenotonsillectomy with other procedures were excluded. Results Of the 328 articles initially identified, 37 were included for qualitative analysis. The level of evidence was generally low. All studies involving short-term follow-up (≤6 months) showed improvement in quality-of-life scores after adenotonsillectomy as compared with preoperative values. Studies involving long-term follow-up (>6 months) showed mixed results. Modifications to and concurrent procedures with conventional adenotonsillectomy were also identified that showed quality-of-life improvements. Three studies were identified for meta-analysis that compared pre- and postoperative Obstructive Sleep Apnea-18 scores. Short- and long-term follow-up versus preoperative scores showed significant improvement ( P < .001). Short- and long-term scores showed no significant difference. Conclusion This systematic review and meta-analysis demonstrate adenotonsillectomy's effectiveness in improving the quality of life of pediatric patients with OSA. This is well demonstrated in the short term and has strong indications in the long term.

Durable intermediate-to long-term outcomes after minimally invasive transiliac sacroiliac joint fusion using triangular titanium implants

PubMed Central

Sachs, Donald; Kovalsky, Don; Redmond, Andy; Limoni, Robert; Meyer, S Craig; Harvey, Charles; Kondrashov, Dimitriy

2016-01-01

Background Sacroiliac joint (SIJ) fusion (SIJF), first performed 95 years ago, has become an increasingly accepted surgical option for chronic SIJ dysfunction. Few studies have reported intermediate- or long-term outcomes after SIJF. Objective The objective of this study is to determine patient-based outcomes after SIJF for chronic SIJ dysfunction due to degenerative sacroiliitis or SIJ disruption at ≥3 years of follow-up. Methods Consecutive patients who underwent SIJF prior to December 2012 were contacted over phone or through email. Participants completed questionnaires in clinic, over phone or by email, regarding SIJ pain, activities related to SIJ dysfunction, and the Oswestry Disability Index. Charts were reviewed to extract baseline parameters and the clinical course of follow-up. Results One hundred seven patients were eligible and participated in this study. Mean (standard deviation) preoperative SIJ pain score was 7.5 (1.7). At mean follow-up of 3.7 years, the mean SIJ pain score was 2.6 (representing a 4.8-point improvement from baseline, P<0.0001) and the mean Oswestry Disability Index was 28.2. The ability to perform activities commonly impaired by SIJ dysfunction showed positive improvements in most patients. SIJ revision surgery was uncommon (five patients, 4.7%). Fourteen patients (13.1%) underwent contralateral SIJF during follow-up, 25.2% of patients had additional non-SIJ-related lumbar spine or hip surgeries during follow-up. Conclusion In intermediate- to long-term follow-up, minimally invasive transiliac SIJF was associated with improved pain, low disability scores, and improved ability to perform activities of daily living. PMID:27471413

RECENT ADVANCES IN HIGH TEMPERATURE ELECTROLYSIS AT IDAHO NATIONAL LABORATORY: STACK TESTS

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

X, Zhang; J. E. O'Brien; R. C. O'Brien

2012-07-01

High temperature steam electrolysis is a promising technology for efficient sustainable large-scale hydrogen production. Solid oxide electrolysis cells (SOECs) are able to utilize high temperature heat and electric power from advanced high-temperature nuclear reactors or renewable sources to generate carbon-free hydrogen at large scale. However, long term durability of SOECs needs to be improved significantly before commercialization of this technology. A degradation rate of 1%/khr or lower is proposed as a threshold value for commercialization of this technology. Solid oxide electrolysis stack tests have been conducted at Idaho National Laboratory to demonstrate recent improvements in long-term durability of SOECs. Electrolytesupportedmore » and electrode-supported SOEC stacks were provided by Ceramatec Inc., Materials and Systems Research Inc. (MSRI), and Saint Gobain Advanced Materials (St. Gobain), respectively for these tests. Long-term durability tests were generally operated for a duration of 1000 hours or more. Stack tests based on technology developed at Ceramatec and MSRI have shown significant improvement in durability in the electrolysis mode. Long-term degradation rates of 3.2%/khr and 4.6%/khr were observed for MSRI and Ceramatec stacks, respectively. One recent Ceramatec stack even showed negative degradation (performance improvement) over 1900 hours of operation. A three-cell short stack provided by St. Gobain, however, showed rapid degradation in the electrolysis mode. Improvements on electrode materials, interconnect coatings, and electrolyteelectrode interface microstructures contribute to better durability of SOEC stacks.« less

Long-Term Effects of Teacher Performance Pay: Experimental Evidence from India

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Muralidharan, Karthik

2012-01-01

While the idea of teacher performance-pay is increasingly making its way into policy, the evidence on the effectiveness of such programs is both limited and mixed. The central questions in the literature on teacher performance pay to date have been whether teacher performance pay based on test scores can improve student achievement, and whether…

Retrospective attention in short-term memory has a lasting effect on long-term memory across age.

PubMed

Strunk, Jonathan; Morgan, Lauren; Reaves, Sarah; Verhaeghen, Paul; Duarte, Audrey

2018-04-13

Declines in both short- and long-term memory are typical of healthy aging. Recent findings suggest that retrodictive attentional cues ("retro-cues") that indicate the location of to-be-probed items in short-term memory (STM) have a lasting impact on long-term memory (LTM) performance in young adults. Whether older adults can also use retro-cues to facilitate both STM and LTM is unknown. Young and older adults performed a visual STM task in which spatially informative retro-cues or non-informative neutral-cues were presented during STM maintenance of real-world objects. We tested participants' memory at both STM and LTM delays for objects that were previously cued with retrodictive or neutral cues during STM order to measure the lasting impact of retrospective attention on LTM. Older adults showed reduced STM and LTM capacity compared to young adults. However, they showed similar magnitude retro-cue memory benefits as young adults at both STM and LTM delays. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to investigate whether retro-cues in STM facilitate the encoding of objects into LTM such that they are more likely to be subsequently retrieved by older adults. Our results support the idea that retrospective attention can be an effective means by which older adults can improve their short and long-term memory performance, even in the context of reduced memory capacity.

A retrospective investigation of energy efficiency standards: Policies may have accelerated long term declines in appliance costs

DOE PAGES

Van Buskirk, R. D.; Kantner, C. L. S.; Gerke, B. F.; ...

2014-11-14

We perform a retrospective investigation of multi-decade trends in price and life-cycle cost (LCC) for home appliances in periods with and without energy efficiency (EE) standards and labeling polices. In contrast to the classical picture of the impact of efficiency standards, the introduction and updating of appliance standards is not associated with a long-term increase in purchase price; rather, quality-adjusted prices undergo a continued or accelerated long-term decline. In addition, long term trends in appliance LCCs—which include operating costs—consistently show an accelerated long term decline with EE policies. We also show that the incremental price of efficiency improvements has declinedmore » faster than the baseline product price for selected products. These observations are inconsistent with a view of EE standards that supposes a perfectly competitive market with static supply costs. These results suggest that EE policies may be associated with other forces at play, such as innovation and learning-by-doing in appliance production and design, that can affect long term trends in quality-adjusted prices and LCCs.« less

Year in review 2006

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2007-01-01

Improving the productivity and mobility of the national highway transportation system are key goals of the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA). During 2006, FHWA's Long-Term Pavement Performance (LTPP) program worked toward these goals through its ...

Year in review : 2005.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2006-01-01

Improving the productivity and mobility of the national highway transportation system are : key goals of the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA). During 2005, FHWAs : Long-Term Pavement Performance (LTPP) program continued to work toward these g...

Cognitive Motor Coordination Training Improves Mental Rotation Performance in Primary School-Aged Children

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pietsch, Stefanie; Böttcher, Caroline; Jansen, Petra

2017-01-01

The long-term physical activity in specific sport activities can change the quality of mental rotation performance. This study investigates the influence of "Life Kinetik"--a motion program with tasks of cognition and motor coordination--on mental rotation performance of 44 primary school-aged children. While the experimental group…

Progressive Resistance and Balance Training for Falls Prevention in Long-Term Residential Aged Care: A Cluster Randomized Trial of the Sunbeam Program.

PubMed

Hewitt, Jennifer; Goodall, Stephen; Clemson, Lindy; Henwood, Timothy; Refshauge, Kathryn

2018-04-01

Falls prevention is an international priority, and residents of long-term aged care fall approximately 3 times more often than community dwellers. There is a relative scarcity of published trials in this setting. Our objective was to undertake a randomized controlled trial to test the effect of published best practice exercise in long-term residential aged care. The trial was designed to determine if combined high level balance and moderate intensity progressive resistance training (the Sunbeam Program) is effective in reducing the rate of falls in residents of aged care facilities. A cluster randomized controlled trial of 16 residential aged care facilities and 221 participants was conducted. The broad inclusion criterion was permanent residents of aged care. Exclusions were diagnosed terminal illness, no medical clearance, permanent bed- or wheelchair-bound status, advanced Parkinson's disease, or insufficient cognition to participate in group exercise. Assessments were taken at baseline, after intervention, and at 12 months. Randomization was performed by computer-generated sequence to receive either the Sunbeam program or usual care. A cluster refers to an aged care facility. The program consisted of individually prescribed progressive resistance training plus balance exercise performed in a group setting for 50 hours over a 25-week period, followed by a maintenance period for 6 months. The primary outcome measure was the rate of falls (number of falls and days followed up). Secondary outcomes included physical performance (Short Physical Performance Battery), quality of life (36-item Short-Form Health Survey), functional mobility (University of Alabama Life Space Assessment), fear of falling (Falls Efficacy Scale International), and cognition (Addenbrooke's Cognitive Evaluation-revised). The rate of falls was reduced by 55% in the exercise group (incidence rate ratio = 0.45, 95% confidence interval 0.17-0.74); an improvement was also seen in physical performance (P = .02). There were no serious adverse events. The Sunbeam Program significantly reduced the rate of falls and improved physical performance in residents of aged care. This finding is important as prior work in this setting has returned inconsistent outcomes, resulting in best practice guidelines being cautious about recommending exercise in this setting. This work provides an opportunity to improve clinical practice and health outcomes for long-term care residents. Copyright © 2017 AMDA – The Society for Post-Acute and Long-Term Care Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Long-Term Outcomes of ADHD: A Systematic Review of Self-Esteem and Social Function.

PubMed

Harpin, V; Mazzone, L; Raynaud, J P; Kahle, J; Hodgkins, P

2016-04-01

To compare the long-term self-esteem and social function outcomes of individuals with untreated and treated ADHD across childhood, adolescence, and adulthood. A systematic search of 12 databases was performed to identify peer-reviewed, primary research articles, published January 1980 to December 2011, reporting long-term self-esteem and/or social function outcomes (≥2 years; life consequences distinct from symptoms) of individuals with untreated or treated ADHD. Overall, 127 studies reported 150 outcomes. Most outcomes were poorer in individuals with untreated ADHD versus non-ADHD controls (57% [13/23] for self-esteem; 73% [52/71] for social function). A beneficial response to treatment (pharmacological, nonpharmacological, and multimodal treatments) was reported for the majority of self-esteem (89% [8/9]) and social function (77% [17/22]) outcomes. Untreated ADHD was associated with poorer long-term self-esteem and social function outcomes compared with non-ADHD controls. Treatment for ADHD was associated with improvement in outcomes; however, further long-term outcome studies are needed. © The Author(s) 2013.

Factors Important to Success in the Volunteer Long-Term Care Ombudsman Role

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nelson, H. Wayne; Hooker, Karen; DeHart, Kimberly N.; Edwards, John A.; Lanning, Kevin

2004-01-01

This study found that the satisfaction of one state's largely older volunteers' altruistic, affiliation, and self-improvement motives corresponded to increased organizational loyalty and better performance across several dimensions. Younger volunteers served for shorter periods and were more highly motivated by the "self-improvement" need.…

Measuring Systematic Long-Term Trajectories of School Effectiveness Improvement

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Valenzuela, Juan Pablo; Bellei, Cristián; Allende, Claudio

2016-01-01

The objective of this study was to identify trajectories of school improvement experienced by Chilean elementary schools over the last decade. Using econometric analysis and controlling for potential confounding factors, we created an index of school performance combining outcome indicators focused on different school dimensions, and estimated the…

Year in review 2007

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2008-01-01

Improving mobility on our Nations highways is the mission of the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA). During 2007, FHWAs Long Term Pavement Performance (LTPP) program worked toward this mission through its efforts to provide answers to how...

Short-term high-altitude pre-exposure improves neurobehavioral ability

PubMed Central

Guo, Wenyun; Chen, Guozhu; Qin, Jun; Zhang, Jihang; Guo, Xubin; Yu, Jie; Song, Pan; Lu, Wei; Xu, Baida; Li, Jiabei; Ding, Xiaohan

2016-01-01

This study aims to evaluate the effect of the duration of high-altitude (HA) pre-exposure on human neurobehavioral parameters including mood states and cognitive performance at HA. One hundred and eleven healthy individuals (ranging in age from 18 to 35 years) were recruited to participate in this study. They were divided into two groups: a 4-day short-term HA pre-exposure group (n=57) and a 3-month long-term HA pre-exposure group (n=54). All participants lived in the area at 400 m altitude above sea level before pre-exposure to HA. They were then transported to 3700 m plateau for either a 4-day or a 3-month HA pre-exposure, and finally delivered to 4400 m plateau. On the last day of pre-exposure at 3700 m and on the 10th day at 4400 m, neurobehavioral parameters of the participants in the two groups were evaluated. At the end of pre-exposure and on the 10th day of HA exposure, participants in the short-term group had significantly lower negative mood states, better cognitive performance with higher sensorimotor, attention, and psychomotor abilities, and less acute mountain sickness in comparison with the participants in the long-term pre-exposure group. Our field study with large samples showed that in comparison with 3-month long-term pre-exposure, 4-day short-term HA pre-exposure at 3700 m has a better effect in improving human neurobehavioral parameters including mood states and cognitive performance and reducing acute mountain sickness when exposed to a HA at 4400 m. PMID:26966781

Merging bioreactor technology with 3D hepatocyte-fibroblast culturing approaches: Improved in vitro models for toxicological applications.

PubMed

Leite, Sofia B; Teixeira, Ana P; Miranda, Joana P; Tostões, Rui M; Clemente, João J; Sousa, Marcos F; Carrondo, Manuel J T; Alves, Paula M

2011-06-01

During the last years an increasing number of in vitro models have been developed for drug screening and toxicity testing. Primary cultures of hepatocytes are, by far, the model of choice for those high-throughput studies but their spontaneous dedifferentiation after some time in culture hinders long-term studies. Thus, novel cell culture systems allowing extended hepatocyte maintenance and more predictive long term in vitro studies are required. It has been shown that hepatocytes functionality can be improved and extended in time when cultured as 3D-cell aggregates in environmental controlled stirred bioreactors. In this work, aiming at further improving hepatocytes functionality in such 3D cellular structures, co-cultures with fibroblasts were performed. An inoculum concentration of 1.2×10(5) cell/mL and a 1:2 hepatocyte:mouse embryonic fibroblast ratio allowed to improve significantly the albumin secretion rate and both ECOD (phase I) and UGT (phase II) enzymatic activities in 3D co-cultures, as compared to the routinely used 2D hepatocyte monocultures. Significant improvements were also observed in relation to 3D monocultures of hepatocytes. Furthermore, hepatocytes were able to respond to the addition of beta-Naphtoflavone by increasing ECOD activity showing CYP1A inducibility. The dependence of CYP activity on oxygen concentration was also observed. In summary, the improved hepatocyte specific functions during long term incubation of 3D co-cultures of hepatocytes with fibroblasts indicate that this system is a promising in vitro model for long term toxicological studies. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Preliminary study of an exercise programme for reducing fatigue and improving sleep among long-term haemodialysis patients.

PubMed

Maniam, Radha; Subramanian, Pathmawathi; Singh, Surindar Kaur Surat; Lim, Soo Kun; Chinna, Karuthan; Rosli, Roshaslina

2014-09-01

Fatigue and quality of sleep are the main factors that contribute to a poor quality of life among patients on long-term haemodialysis. Studies have also emphasised the importance of exercise for improving the wellbeing of dialysis patients. This study aimed to determine the effectiveness of a predialysis low-to-moderate-intensity exercise programme for reducing fatigue and improving sleep disorders among long-term haemodialysis patients. In this quasi-experimental study, an exercise programme was conducted three times a week for 12 weeks before long-term haemodialysis patients underwent dialysis at two centres. The patients were categorised into either the exercise group (n = 28) or control group (n = 27). The latter was asked to maintain their current lifestyles. Assessments of fatigue and sleep disorder levels were performed for both groups using self-reported questionnaires at baseline and after intervention. The patients' perception of the exercise programme was also determined using self-reported questionnaires. Paired sample t-test indicated improvements in fatigue level in the exercise group (mean fatigue score: post-treatment 40.5 ± 7.9 vs. pre-treatment 30.0 ± 10.9). Improvements in sleep disorders were also observed in the exercise group (mean score: post-treatment 7.6 ± 3.3 vs. pre-treatment 10.1 ± 3.8). However, sleep quality deteriorated in the control group (mean score: post-treatment 10.7 ± 2.9 vs. pre-treatment 9.3 ± 2.9). Simple low-to-moderate-intensity exercise is effective for improving fatigue, sleep disorders and the overall quality of life among haemodialysis patients.

Radiofrequency Ablation Followed by Percutaneous Ethanol Ablation Leading to Long-Term Remission of Hyperparathyroidism

PubMed Central

Menon, Arun S.; Nazar, P. K.; Moorthy, Srikanth; Kumar, Harish; Nair, Vasantha; Pavithran, Praveen Valiyaparambil; Bhavani, Nisha; Menon, Vadayath Usha; Abraham, Nithya; Jayakumar, R. Vasukutty

2017-01-01

A 30-year-old male with cerebral palsy and motor impairment presented with right femur fracture. He had gradually worsening mobility and contractures of all extremities for the preceding 5 years. Evaluation showed multiple vertebral and femoral fractures, severe osteoporosis, a large parathyroid adenoma, and parathormone (PTH) exceeding 2500 pg/mL. Because of poor general health and high anesthetic risk, parathyroidectomy was deemed impractical. Ultrasound-guided radiofrequency ablation (RFA) helped achieve 50% size reduction and PTH levels with better control of hypercalcemia. Later, as calcium and PTH remained elevated, percutaneous ethanol ablation was performed with resultant normalization of PTH and substantial symptomatic improvement. Two years later, he still remains normocalcaemic with normal PTH levels. We propose that RFA and percutaneous ethanol ablation be considered as effective short-term options for surgically difficult cases, which could even help achieve long-term remission. Although not previously reported, our case illustrates that both RFA and percutaneous ethanol ablation could be safely performed successively achieving long-term remission. PMID:29264521

Free recall in Williams syndrome: is there a dissociation between short- and long-term memory?

PubMed

Brock, Jon; Brown, Gordon D A; Boucher, Jill

2006-04-01

Two experiments used the free recall paradigm to investigate verbal memory abilities in Williams syndrome (WS)--a rare genetic disorder. In an earlier free recall study, Vicari et al. (1996a) reported that, unlike TD controls, children with WS showed a recency effect but failed to show a primacy effect. These authors interpreted their findings as evidence for a dissociation between relatively strong verbal short-term memory and relatively impaired verbal long-term memory. In Experiment 1 of the current study, children with WS and TD controls showed comparable improvements in performance with repeated testing of the same material, indicating similar long-term learning of the test items. Neither group showed evidence of primacy effects. However, the extent of primacy effects in free recall is known to depend on the rehearsal strategy that participants adopt. In Experiment 2, therefore, participants were encouraged to engage in overt cumulative rehearsal. This manipulation resulted in significant and comparable primacy effects in both groups, although neither group demonstrated a significant change in overall performance. There was therefore no evidence from either experiment for a dissociation between short- and long-term verbal memory in WS.

Mission-based Scenario Research: Experimental Design And Analysis

DTIC Science & Technology

2012-01-01

neurotechnologies called Brain-Computer Interaction Technologies. 15. SUBJECT TERMS neuroimaging, EEG, task loading, neurotechnologies , ground... neurotechnologies called Brain-Computer Interaction Technologies. INTRODUCTION Imagine a system that can identify operator fatigue during a long-term...BCIT), a class of neurotechnologies , that aim to improve task performance by incorporating measures of brain activity to optimize the interactions

Intranasal insulin to improve developmental delay in children with 22q13 deletion syndrome: an exploratory clinical trial.

PubMed

Schmidt, H; Kern, W; Giese, R; Hallschmid, M; Enders, A

2009-04-01

The 22q13 deletion syndrome (Phelan-McDermid syndrome) is characterised by a global developmental delay, absent or delayed speech, generalised hypotonia, autistic behaviour and characteristic phenotypic features. Intranasal insulin has been shown to improve declarative memory in healthy adult subjects and in patients with Alzheimer disease. To assess if intranasal insulin is also able to improve the developmental delay in children with 22q13 deletion syndrome. We performed exploratory clinical trials in six children with 22q13 deletion syndrome who received intranasal insulin over a period of 1 year. Short-term (during the first 6 weeks) and long-term effects (after 12 months of treatment) on motor skills, cognitive functions, or autonomous functions, speech and communication, emotional state, social behaviour, behavioural disorders, independence in daily living and education were assessed. The children showed marked short-term improvements in gross and fine motor activities, cognitive functions and educational level. Positive long-term effects were found for fine and gross motor activities, nonverbal communication, cognitive functions and autonomy. Possible side effects were found in one patient who displayed changes in balance, extreme sensitivity to touch and general loss of interest. One patient complained of intermittent nose bleeding. We conclude that long-term administration of intranasal insulin may benefit motor development, cognitive functions and spontaneous activity in children with 22q13 deletion syndrome.

Unregulated provider perceptions of audit and feedback reports in long-term care: cross-sectional survey findings from a quality improvement intervention.

PubMed

Fraser, Kimberly D; O'Rourke, Hannah M; Baylon, Melba Andrea B; Boström, Anne-Marie; Sales, Anne E

2013-02-13

Audit with feedback is a moderately effective approach for improving professional practice in other health care settings. Although unregulated caregivers give the majority of direct care in long-term care settings, little is known about how they understand and perceive feedback reports because unregulated providers have not been directly targeted to receive audit with feedback in quality improvement interventions in long-term care. The purpose of this paper is to describe unregulated care providers' perceptions of usefulness of a feedback report in four Canadian long-term care facilities. We delivered monthly feedback reports to unregulated care providers for 13 months in 2009-2010. The feedback reports described a unit's performance in relation to falls, depression, and pain as compared to eight other units in the study. Follow-up surveys captured participant perceptions of the feedback report. We conducted descriptive analyses of the variables related to participant perceptions and multivariable logistic regression to assess the association between perceived usefulness of the feedback report and a set of independent variables. The vast majority (80%) of unregulated care providers (n = 171) who responded said they understood the reports. Those who discussed the report with others and were interested in other forms of data were more likely to find the feedback report useful for making changes in resident care. This work suggests that unregulated care providers can understand and feel positively about using audit with feedback reports to make changes to resident care. Further research should explore ways to promote fuller engagement of unregulated care providers in decision-making to improve quality of care in long-term care settings.

Unregulated provider perceptions of audit and feedback reports in long-term care: cross-sectional survey findings from a quality improvement intervention

PubMed Central

2013-01-01

Background Audit with feedback is a moderately effective approach for improving professional practice in other health care settings. Although unregulated caregivers give the majority of direct care in long-term care settings, little is known about how they understand and perceive feedback reports because unregulated providers have not been directly targeted to receive audit with feedback in quality improvement interventions in long-term care. The purpose of this paper is to describe unregulated care providers’ perceptions of usefulness of a feedback report in four Canadian long-term care facilities. Methods We delivered monthly feedback reports to unregulated care providers for 13 months in 2009–2010. The feedback reports described a unit’s performance in relation to falls, depression, and pain as compared to eight other units in the study. Follow-up surveys captured participant perceptions of the feedback report. We conducted descriptive analyses of the variables related to participant perceptions and multivariable logistic regression to assess the association between perceived usefulness of the feedback report and a set of independent variables. Results The vast majority (80%) of unregulated care providers (n = 171) who responded said they understood the reports. Those who discussed the report with others and were interested in other forms of data were more likely to find the feedback report useful for making changes in resident care. Conclusions This work suggests that unregulated care providers can understand and feel positively about using audit with feedback reports to make changes to resident care. Further research should explore ways to promote fuller engagement of unregulated care providers in decision-making to improve quality of care in long-term care settings. PMID:23402382

Long-Term Efficacy of Oxybutynin for Palmar and Plantar Hyperhidrosis in Children Younger than 14 Years.

PubMed

Wolosker, Nelson; Teivelis, Marcelo P; Krutman, Mariana; de Paula, Rafael P; Schvartsman, Claudio; Kauffman, Paulo; de Campos, José R M; Puech-Leão, Pedro

2015-01-01

Oxybutynin for treating hyperhidrosis in children has been evaluated only in short-term studies. We aimed to investigate the long-term effects of oxybutynin in treating children with palmar and plantar hyperhidrosis who had not undergone surgery and who were monitored for at least 6 months (median 19.6 mos). A cohort of 97 patients was evaluated retrospectively, with particular attention to 59 children (ages 4-14 yrs) who were treated for longer than 6 months. Their quality of life (QOL) was evaluated using a validated clinical questionnaire before and after 6 weeks of pharmacologic therapy. A self-assessment of hyperhidrosis was performed after 6 weeks and after the last consultation. By their final office visit, more than 91% of the children with hyperhidrosis treated with oxybutynin experienced moderate or great improvement in their level of sweating and 94.9% experienced improvement in QOL. More than 90% of children reported improvement of hyperhidrosis at other sites. Dry mouth was the most common side effect. Oxybutynin appears to be an effective treatment option for children with hyperhidrosis, and positive results are maintained over the long term (median 19.6 mos). © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Improved Durability of SOEC Stacks for High Temperature Electrolysis

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

James E. O'Brien; Robert C. O'Brien; Xiaoyu Zhang

2013-01-01

High temperature steam electrolysis is a promising technology for efficient and sustainable large-scale hydrogen production. Solid oxide electrolysis cells (SOECs) are able to utilize high temperature heat and electric power from advanced high-temperature nuclear reactors or renewable sources to generate carbon-free hydrogen at large scale. However, long term durability of SOECs needs to be improved significantly before commercialization of this technology can be realized. A degradation rate of 1%/khr or lower is proposed as a threshold value for commercialization of this technology. Solid oxide electrolysis stack tests have been conducted at Idaho National Laboratory to demonstrate recent improvements in long-termmore » durability of SOECs. Electrolyte-supported and electrode-supported SOEC stacks were provided by Ceramatec Inc. and Materials and Systems Research Inc. (MSRI), respectively, for these tests. Long-term durability tests were generally operated for a duration of 1000 hours or more. Stack tests based on technologies developed at Ceramatec and MSRI have shown significant improvement in durability in the electrolysis mode. Long-term degradation rates of 3.2%/khr and 4.6%/khr were observed for MSRI and Ceramatec stacks, espectively. One recent Ceramatec stack even showed negative degradation (performance improvement) over 1900 hours of operation. Optimization of electrode materials, interconnect coatings, and electrolyte-electrode interface microstructures contribute to better durability of SOEC stacks.« less

An overview of potential labor-saving and quality-improving innovations in long-term care for older people.

PubMed

Thoma-Lürken, Theresa; Bleijlevens, Michel H C; Lexis, Monique A S; Hamers, Jan P H; de Witte, Luc P

2015-06-01

Increasing demands in long-term care for older people and a decrease in workforce availability can be expected in the future. These developments challenge the sustainability and quality of long-term care for older people. To address these challenges, long-term care organizations are forced to innovate. The aim of this study is to provide an overview of potential labor-saving and quality-improving innovations long-term care organizations are working on and to assess the self-reported extent of effectiveness. This is a descriptive cross-sectional study. In total, 32 long-term care organizations in the region of Limburg in The Netherlands were invited to participate in the study. The inventory was performed by means of semistructured interviews with chief executive officers, managers, and staff members of the long-term care organizations. Based on the interview data, all innovations were described in a standardized form and subsequently checked by the participants. All innovations were clustered into product, process, organizational, and marketing innovations. In total, 26 long-term care organizations delivering home and/or institutional long-term care for older people participated in the study. Overall, 228 innovations were identified; some innovations were described in a similar way by different organizations. The majority of innovations were product innovations (n = 96), followed by organizational innovations (n = 75), and process innovations (n = 42). In addition to the main types, 15 other innovations incorporating characteristics of different types of innovations were detected. Little evidence about the effectiveness of the innovations was reported by the organizations. This study shows that a large number and a broad variety of innovations have been implemented or are currently being developed in long-term care organizations for older people. However, according to the organizations, there is relatively little (scientific) evidence confirming the effectiveness of these innovations. More research is needed to evaluate the effects of the innovations and to indicate whether they provide real solutions to future challenges. Copyright © 2015 AMDA - The Society for Post-Acute and Long-Term Care Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Historical Prediction Modeling Approach for Estimating Long-Term Concentrations of PM2.5 in Cohort Studies before the 1999 Implementation of Widespread Monitoring.

PubMed

Kim, Sun-Young; Olives, Casey; Sheppard, Lianne; Sampson, Paul D; Larson, Timothy V; Keller, Joshua P; Kaufman, Joel D

2017-01-01

Recent cohort studies have used exposure prediction models to estimate the association between long-term residential concentrations of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) and health. Because these prediction models rely on PM2.5 monitoring data, predictions for times before extensive spatial monitoring present a challenge to understanding long-term exposure effects. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Federal Reference Method (FRM) network for PM2.5 was established in 1999. We evaluated a novel statistical approach to produce high-quality exposure predictions from 1980 through 2010 in the continental United States for epidemiological applications. We developed spatio-temporal prediction models using geographic predictors and annual average PM2.5 data from 1999 through 2010 from the FRM and the Interagency Monitoring of Protected Visual Environments (IMPROVE) networks. Temporal trends before 1999 were estimated by using a) extrapolation based on PM2.5 data in FRM/IMPROVE, b) PM2.5 sulfate data in the Clean Air Status and Trends Network, and c) visibility data across the Weather Bureau Army Navy network. We validated the models using PM2.5 data collected before 1999 from IMPROVE, California Air Resources Board dichotomous sampler monitoring (CARB dichot), the Children's Health Study (CHS), and the Inhalable Particulate Network (IPN). In our validation using pre-1999 data, the prediction model performed well across three trend estimation approaches when validated using IMPROVE and CHS data (R2 = 0.84-0.91) with lower R2 values in early years. Model performance using CARB dichot and IPN data was worse (R2 = 0.00-0.85) most likely because of fewer monitoring sites and inconsistent sampling methods. Our prediction modeling approach will allow health effects estimation associated with long-term exposures to PM2.5 over extended time periods ≤ 30 years. Citation: Kim SY, Olives C, Sheppard L, Sampson PD, Larson TV, Keller JP, Kaufman JD. 2017. Historical prediction modeling approach for estimating long-term concentrations of PM2.5 in cohort studies before the 1999 implementation of widespread monitoring. Environ Health Perspect 125:38-46; http://dx.doi.org/10.1289/EHP131.

Glucose effects on long-term memory performance: duration and domain specificity.

PubMed

Owen, Lauren; Finnegan, Yvonne; Hu, Henglong; Scholey, Andrew B; Sünram-Lea, Sandra I

2010-08-01

Previous research has suggested that long-term verbal declarative memory is particularly sensitive to enhancement by glucose loading; however, investigation of glucose effects on certain memory domains has hitherto been neglected. Therefore, domain specificity of glucose effects merits further elucidation. The aim of the present research was to provide a more comprehensive investigation of the possible effects of glucose administration on different aspects of memory by 1) contrasting the effect of glucose administration on different memory domains (implicit/explicit memory; verbal/non-verbal memory, and recognition/familiarity processes), 2) investigating whether potential effects on memory domains differ depending on the dose of glucose administered (25 g versus 60 g), 3) exploring the duration of the glucose facilitation effect (assessment of memory performance 35 min and 1 week after encoding). A double-blind between-subjects design was used to test the effects of administration of 25 and 60 g glucose on memory performance. Implicit memory was improved following administration of 60 g of glucose. Glucose supplementation failed to improve face recognition performance but significantly improved performance of word recall and recognition following administration of 60 g of glucose. However, effects were not maintained 1 week following encoding. Improved implicit memory performance following glucose administration has not been reported before. Furthermore, the current data tentatively suggest that level of processing may determine the required glucose dosage to demonstrate memory improvement and that higher dosages may be able to exert effects on memory pertaining to both hippocampal and non-hippocampal brain regions.

Investigation of the effect of conservative interventions in thumb carpometacarpal osteoarthritis: systematic review and meta-analysis.

PubMed

Bertozzi, Lucia; Valdes, Kristin; Vanti, Carla; Negrini, Stefano; Pillastrini, Paolo; Villafañe, Jorge Hugo

2015-01-01

The purpose of this study was to conduct a current review of randomized controlled trials regarding the effect of conservative interventions on pain and function in people with thumb carpometacarpal (CMC) osteoarthritis (OA), perform a meta-analysis of the findings and summarize current knowledge. Data were obtained from MEDLINE, CINAHL, Embase, PEDro and CENTRAL databases from their inception to May 2014. Reference lists of relevant literature reviews were also searched. All published randomized trials without restrictions to time of publication or language were considered for inclusion. Study subjects were symptomatic adults with thumb CMC OA. Two reviewers independently selected studies, conducted quality assessment and extracted results. Data were pooled in a meta-analysis, when possible, using a random-effects model. Quality of the body evidence was assessed using GRADE approach. Sixteen RCTs involving 1145 participants met the inclusion criteria. Twelve were of high quality (PEDro score > 6). We found moderate quality evidence that manual therapy and therapeutic exercise combined with manual therapy improve pain in thumb CMC OA at short- and intermediate-term follow-up, and from low to moderate quality evidences that magneto therapy improves pain and function at short-term follow-up. Orthoses (splints) were found to improve function at long-term follow-up and pinch strength at short-term follow-up. Finally, we found from very low to low-quality evidence that other conservative interventions provide no significant improvement in pain and in function at short- and long-term follow-up. Some of the commonly performed conservative interventions performed in therapy have evidence to support their use to improve hand function and decrease hand pain. Additional research is required to determine the efficacy of other therapeutic interventions that are performed with patients with thumb CMC OA. Manual therapy and exercise are an effective means of improving pain and function at short-term follow-up by patients with thumb CMC OA. Magneto therapy, manual therapy, manual therapy and exercise and Orthoses (splints) were found to have clinically significant results. Very few of the included studies showed a clinically significant effect size in favor of treatment.

Contributions of the Long-Term Pavement Performance Program to Pavement Management System Improvements: Better Data and Performance Models

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2008-05-21

The United States interstate highways and other components of the national highway system are approaching the end of their effective service lives. Many segments of this network have already surpassed their design lives and require frequent repair. S...

Towards accurate localization: long- and short-term correlation filters for tracking

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Minglangjun; Tian, Chunna

2018-04-01

Visual tracking is a challenging problem, especially using a single model. In this paper, we propose a discriminative correlation filter (DCF) based tracking approach that exploits both the long-term and short-term information of the target, named LSTDCF, to improve the tracking performance. In addition to a long-term filter learned through the whole sequence, a short-term filter is trained using only features extracted from most recent frames. The long-term filter tends to capture more semantics of the target as more frames are used for training. However, since the target may undergo large appearance changes, features extracted around the target in non-recent frames prevent the long-term filter from locating the target in the current frame accurately. In contrast, the short-term filter learns more spatial details of the target from recent frames but gets over-fitting easily. Thus the short-term filter is less robust to handle cluttered background and prone to drift. We take the advantage of both filters and fuse their response maps to make the final estimation. We evaluate our approach on a widely-used benchmark with 100 image sequences and achieve state-of-the-art results.

Testing Memories of Personally Experienced Events: The Testing Effect Seems Not to Persist in Autobiographical Memory

PubMed Central

Emmerdinger, Kathrin J.; Kuhbandner, Christof

2018-01-01

Numerous studies have shown that retrieving contents from memory in a test improves long-term retention for those contents, even when compared to restudying (i.e., the “testing effect”). The beneficial effect of retrieval practice has been demonstrated for many different types of memory representations; however, one particularly important memory system has not been addressed in previous testing effect research: autobiographical memory. The aim of the present study was to examine the effect of retrieving memories for personally experienced events on long-term memory for those events. In an initial elicitation session, participants described memories for personally experienced events in response to a variety of cue words. In a retrieval practice/restudy session the following day, they repeatedly practiced retrieval for half of their memories by recalling and writing down the previously described events; the other half of memories was restudied by rereading and copying the event descriptions. Long-term retention of all previously collected memories was assessed at two different retention intervals (2 weeks and 13 weeks). In the retrieval practice session, a hypermnesic effect emerged, with memory performance increasing across the practice cycles. Long-term memory performance significantly dropped from the 2-weeks to the 13-weeks retention interval, but no significant difference in memory performance was observed between previously repeatedly retrieved and previously repeatedly restudied memories. Thus, in autobiographical memory, retrieval practice seems to be no more beneficial for long-term retention than repeated re-exposure. PMID:29881365

Testing Memories of Personally Experienced Events: The Testing Effect Seems Not to Persist in Autobiographical Memory.

PubMed

Emmerdinger, Kathrin J; Kuhbandner, Christof

2018-01-01

Numerous studies have shown that retrieving contents from memory in a test improves long-term retention for those contents, even when compared to restudying (i.e., the "testing effect"). The beneficial effect of retrieval practice has been demonstrated for many different types of memory representations; however, one particularly important memory system has not been addressed in previous testing effect research: autobiographical memory. The aim of the present study was to examine the effect of retrieving memories for personally experienced events on long-term memory for those events. In an initial elicitation session, participants described memories for personally experienced events in response to a variety of cue words. In a retrieval practice/restudy session the following day, they repeatedly practiced retrieval for half of their memories by recalling and writing down the previously described events; the other half of memories was restudied by rereading and copying the event descriptions. Long-term retention of all previously collected memories was assessed at two different retention intervals (2 weeks and 13 weeks). In the retrieval practice session, a hypermnesic effect emerged, with memory performance increasing across the practice cycles. Long-term memory performance significantly dropped from the 2-weeks to the 13-weeks retention interval, but no significant difference in memory performance was observed between previously repeatedly retrieved and previously repeatedly restudied memories. Thus, in autobiographical memory, retrieval practice seems to be no more beneficial for long-term retention than repeated re-exposure.

LTTP: 1999 Year in Review

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2002-12-13

Improving the productivity and mobility of the national highway transportation system is a key goal of the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA). During 1999, FHWA's Long Term Pavement Performance (LTPP) program continued to work toward these goals t...

Jump performance and augmented feedback: immediate benefits and long-term training effects.

PubMed

Keller, Martin; Lauber, Benedikt; Gehring, Dominic; Leukel, Christian; Taube, Wolfgang

2014-08-01

Drop jumps and their adaptations to training have been extensively investigated. However, the influence of augmented feedback (aF) on stretch-shortening cycle (SSC) was not scrutinized so far despite the well-known positive effects of aF on motor performance and motor learning. The aim of the present study was therefore to investigate the effects of aF by evaluating immediate within-session effects and long-term adaptations. 34 participants were assigned to three groups that trained drop jumps with different relative frequencies of aF about their jump height: 100%, 50%, or 0%. A significant within-session effect of aF on jump height was observed before and also after the training period (pre: +4.6%; post: +2.6%). In the long-term (comparing pre- to post-measurement), the 100% group showed the greatest increase in jump height (+14%), followed by the 50% (+10%) and the 0% group (+6%). The importance of aF on drop jumps is therefore twofold: (i) to immediately increase jump performance and (ii) to improve long-term training efficacy. In contrast to the proposition of the guidance hypothesis, high frequency of aF seems to be beneficial when maximizing SSC-performance. As jump height cannot be quantified without objective technical measures it is recommended to include them into daily training. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Application of micro-porous polycarbonate membranes in dye-sensitized solar cells: Cell performance and long-term stability

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lue, Shingjiang Jessie; Lo, Pei Wen; Hung, Ling-Yung; Tung, Yung Liang

This research investigates the cell performance and long-term stability of dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) containing micro-porous polycarbonate (PC) film as the frame work material to stabilize the electrolyte solution. The track-etched PC film has cylindrical pore geometry, which is beneficial for ion transport in the electrolyte trapped inside the PC film. The photovoltaic efficiency of the DSSC with 0.2-μm PC membrane is 5.75 ± 0.73% under irradiation of 100 mW cm -2, which is slightly lower than that (6.34 ± 0.44%) of cells without PC film. The differences in fill factor and open-circuit voltage between the DSSCs with and without PC film are not statistically significant. The long-term cell performance is carried out at continuous illumination of 100 mW cm -2 (1 sun) and in darkness at 60 °C for up to 1000 h. There is no significant efficiency difference between the cells with and without PC film in light soaking (4.33% vs. 4.52%) for 960 h. In darkness, however, the cells with PC film demonstrate much higher efficiency (at 2.37%) than cells without PC (0.85%) after 1000 h. The improved long-term efficiency data and the higher percentage of working cells confirm the superior lifetime and performance using the micro-porous PC film.

CFOs and strategists: forging a common framework.

PubMed

Rappaport, A

1992-01-01

Companies have become increasingly polarized into two divergent camps: those who consider shareholder value the key to managing the company and those who put their faith in gaining competitive advantage. Indeed, that age-old debate between investing for the long term and showing outstanding short-term results is back - only this time the camps are flying banners with the new buzzwords of corporate America: competitive advantage and shareholder value. In this article, Alfred Rappaport attempts to settle the debate once and for all, arguing forcefully that establishing competitive advantage and creating shareholder value both stem from a common economic framework. In fact, long-term productivity is the hinge from which both sustainable competitive advantage and consistent results for the shareholder hang. But many managers refuse to accept this theory and cling to the mistaken belief that the market does not actually value the long-term productivity of their company but judges it only by its short-term performance. They then jump to a second mistaken conclusion: assuming they must depart from the shareholder-value model to improve their competitive position. Rappaport attacks these mistaken beliefs, showing that the stock market does value the long-term productivity of a company and that it is not necessary to depart from the shareholder-value model to improve a company's competitive position. Maximum returns for current shareholders will materialize only when managers maximize long-term shareholder value and deliver interim results that attest credibly to sustainable competitive advantage.

Effect of metoprolol administration on renal sodium handling in experimental congestive heart failure.

PubMed

DiBona, G F; Sawin, L L

1999-07-06

Long-term metoprolol therapy improves cardiac performance and decreases mortality in patients with chronic congestive heart failure (CHF). This study examined the effect of long-term metoprolol therapy on renal sodium handling in an experimental rat model of CHF. Rats with left coronary ligation and myocardial infarction-induced CHF were treated with metoprolol (1.5 mg. kg-1. h-1) or vehicle for 3 weeks by osmotic minipump. They were then evaluated for their ability to excrete a short-term sodium load (5% body weight isotonic saline infusion over 30 minutes) and a long-term sodium load (change from low- to high-sodium diet over 8 days). All CHF rats had left ventricular end-diastolic pressure >10 mm Hg, and heart weight/body weight ratios averaged 0.68+/-0.02% (versus control of approximately 0.40%). Compared with vehicle CHF rats (n=19), metoprolol CHF rats (n=18) had lower basal values of mean arterial pressure (122+/-3 versus 112+/-3 mm Hg) and heart rate (373+/-14 versus 315+/-9 bpm) and decreased heart rate responses to intravenous doses of isoproterenol. During short-term isotonic saline volume loading, metoprolol CHF rats excreted 54+/-4% more of the sodium load than vehicle CHF rats. During long-term dietary sodium loading, metoprolol CHF rats retained 28+/-3% less sodium than vehicle CHF rats. Metoprolol treatment of rats with CHF results in an improved ability to excrete both short- and long-term sodium loads.

The JT9D Jet Engine Diagnostics Program

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Olsson, W. J.

1982-01-01

The various engine deterioration phenomena that affect JT9D performance retention were studied, and approaches to improve performance retention of engines were identified. The program included surveys of historical data, monitoring of in service engines, ground and flight testing of instrumented engines, analysis, and analytical modeling. Performance deterioration is made up of both short and long term modes, both of which are flight cycle related phenomena. Short term deterioration occurs primarily during airplane acceptance testing prior to delivery to the airline. This effect is caused by flight load and power induced clearance closures and engine deflections with resulting rubbing of airfoils and seals. Long term deterioration is caused by erosion of airfoils and gas path seals during ground operation and take off and by cyclic induced thermal distortion of the high pressure turbine airfoils. Studies of possible remedial approaches have shown that performance retention within 1 to 2 percent of initial revenue service performance can be achieved with a proper program of hot section and cold section maintenance.

Short- and long-term impact of subtotal parathyroidectomy on the achievement of bone and mineral parameters recommended by clinical practice guidelines in dialysis patients: a 12-year single-center experience.

PubMed

Tsai, Wan-Chuan; Peng, Yu-Sen; Yang, Ju-Yeh; Hsu, Shih-Ping; Wu, Hon-Yen; Pai, Mei-Fen; Chang, Jia-Feng; Chen, Hung-Yuan

2013-01-01

The short- and long-term impact of parathyroidectomy (PTX) on the parameters of mineral bone disease in dialysis patients with severe secondary hyperparathyroidism (HPT) remains unclear. A retrospective chart review of 401 consecutive dialysis patients who underwent subtotal PTX by one surgeon was performed. We checked serum levels of calcium (Ca), phosphorus (P), and intact parathyroid hormone (iPTH) for 3 consecutive days, and then monthly for Ca, P, and tri-monthly for iPTH postoperatively. Patients with available laboratory data within the 1st to 6th postoperative months were included in the short-term follow-up group and those with at least 6 months available data were in the long-term follow-up one. Patients (short-term group, n = 401, and long-term group, n = 94) had severely uncontrolled serum iPTH levels, Ca, P and Ca × P before PTX. In the short-term group, percentages of cases achieving K/DOQI targets for serum Ca, Ca × P, and iPTH and KDIGO ones for serum Ca, P, and iPTH after PTX, significantly improved compared with those before operation (all p < 0.05). In the long-term group (mean follow-up of 43 ± 29 months), the percentage of achieved targets for serum iPTH in both guidelines and for serum Ca and Ca × P in the K/DOQI recommendation also improved postoperatively (all p < 0.05). Achievements of K/DOQI recommended values for serum Ca, Ca × P, iPTH and KDIGO recommendations for iPTH can be successfully reached by subtotal PTX in medically refractory, secondary HPT in dialysis patients both during short- and long-term follow-ups. © 2013 S. Karger AG, Basel.

Are Performance-Based Accountability Systems Effective? Evidence from Five Sectors. Research Brief

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Leuschner, Kristin J.

2010-01-01

During the past two decades, performance-based accountability systems (PBASs), which link financial or other incentives to measured performance as a means of improving services, have gained popularity among policymakers. Although PBASs can vary widely across sectors, they share three main components: goals (i.e., one or more long-term outcomes to…

Polydimethylsiloxane Injection Laryngoplasty for Unilateral Vocal Fold Paralysis: Long-Term Results.

PubMed

Mattioli, Francesco; Bettini, Margherita; Botti, Cecilia; Busi, Giulia; Tassi, Sauro; Malagoli, Andrea; Molteni, Gabriele; Trebbi, Marco; Luppi, Maria Pia; Bergamini, Giuseppe; Presutti, Livio

2017-07-01

To analyze the long-term objective, perceptive, and subjective outcomes after endoscopic polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) injection laryngoplasty in unilateral vocal fold paralysis. A retrospective study carried out between January 2008 and January 2012. Head and Neck Department, University Hospital of Modena, Modena, Italy. This was a retrospective analysis of 26 patients with unilateral vocal fold paralysis who underwent endoscopic injection of PDMS under general anesthesia. A voice evaluation protocol was performed for all patients, which included videolaryngostroboscopy, maximum phonation time, fundamental frequency, analysis of the harmonic structure of the vowel /a/ and the word /aiuole/, Grade of Dysphonia, Instability, Roughness, Breathiness, Asthenia, and Strain scale, and Voice Handicap Index. The protocol was performed before surgery, in the immediate postoperative period, and at least 3 years after surgery. The mean follow-up period was 73 months (range 39-119 months). The statistical analysis showed a significant improvement (P < 0.01) for all of the objective, perceptive, and subjective parameters by comparison between the preoperative and long-term follow-up data; moreover, no statistically significant difference was found between the postoperative and long-term follow-up data. This indicates that injection laryngoplasty with PDMS guarantees long-lasting effects over time. No complications were reported in our series. Injection laryngoplasty with PDMS can be considered to be a minimally invasive and safe technique for the treatment of unilateral vocal fold paralysis. Moreover, it allows very good and stable results to be obtained over time, avoiding repeated treatments and improving the quality of life of the patients. Copyright © 2017 The Voice Foundation. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

School Improvement Should Rely on Reliable, Scientific Evidence. Why Did "No Child Left Behind" Leave Class Size Behind?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Achilles, C. M.; Krieger, Jean D.; Finn, J. D.; Sharp, Mark

Small classes in grades K-3 boost student academic performance in all subjects and in prosocial behavior. Results are both short- and long-term. One study explored the theory that a major cause behind improved academic achievement involves improved student behavior, which increases student engagement in the classroom. Two other studies provide…

A 2-year follow-up of a lifestyle physical activity versus a structured exercise intervention in older adults.

PubMed

Opdenacker, Joke; Delecluse, Christophe; Boen, Filip

2011-09-01

To evaluate the long-term effects of a lifestyle intervention and a structured exercise intervention on physical fitness and cardiovascular risk factors in older adults. Controlled trial with randomization between the intervention groups. Belgium, Vlaams-Brabant. One hundred eighty-six sedentary but healthy men and women aged 60 to 83. Participants in the lifestyle intervention were stimulated to integrate physical activity into their daily routines and received an individualized home-based program supported by telephone calls. The structured intervention consisted of three weekly supervised sessions in a fitness center. Both interventions lasted 11 months and focused on endurance, strength, flexibility, and postural and balance exercises. Cardiorespiratory fitness, muscular strength, functional performance, blood pressure, and body composition were measured before (pretest), at the end (11 months, posttest), and 1 year after the end (23 months, follow-up) of the interventions. The results from pretest to posttest have already been published. The current study analyzed the results from posttest to follow-up. There was a decrease in cardiorespiratory fitness, muscular fitness, and functional performance from posttest to follow-up in the structured intervention group but not in the control group or the lifestyle intervention group. At 23 months, participants in both groups still showed improvements in cardiorespiratory fitness. In addition, the structured group showed long-term improvements in muscular fitness, whereas the lifestyle group showed long-term improvements in functional performance. No long-term effects were found for blood pressure or body composition. These results highlight the potential of a structured fitness center-based intervention and a home-based lifestyle intervention in the battle against inactivity in older adults. Lifestyle programs are especially valuable because they require fewer resources and less time from health institutions and health practitioners. © 2011, Copyright the Authors. Journal compilation © 2011, The American Geriatrics Society.

Divergent short- and long-term effects of acute stress in object recognition memory are mediated by endogenous opioid system activation.

PubMed

Nava-Mesa, Mauricio O; Lamprea, Marisol R; Múnera, Alejandro

2013-11-01

Acute stress induces short-term object recognition memory impairment and elicits endogenous opioid system activation. The aim of this study was thus to evaluate whether opiate system activation mediates the acute stress-induced object recognition memory changes. Adult male Wistar rats were trained in an object recognition task designed to test both short- and long-term memory. Subjects were randomly assigned to receive an intraperitoneal injection of saline, 1 mg/kg naltrexone or 3 mg/kg naltrexone, four and a half hours before the sample trial. Five minutes after the injection, half the subjects were submitted to movement restraint during four hours while the other half remained in their home cages. Non-stressed subjects receiving saline (control) performed adequately during the short-term memory test, while stressed subjects receiving saline displayed impaired performance. Naltrexone prevented such deleterious effect, in spite of the fact that it had no intrinsic effect on short-term object recognition memory. Stressed subjects receiving saline and non-stressed subjects receiving naltrexone performed adequately during the long-term memory test; however, control subjects as well as stressed subjects receiving a high dose of naltrexone performed poorly. Control subjects' dissociated performance during both memory tests suggests that the short-term memory test induced a retroactive interference effect mediated through light opioid system activation; such effect was prevented either by low dose naltrexone administration or by strongly activating the opioid system through acute stress. Both short-term memory retrieval impairment and long-term memory improvement observed in stressed subjects may have been mediated through strong opioid system activation, since they were prevented by high dose naltrexone administration. Therefore, the activation of the opioid system plays a dual modulating role in object recognition memory. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Uterine artery embolization for treatment of leiomyomata: long-term outcomes from the FIBROID Registry.

PubMed

Goodwin, Scott C; Spies, James B; Worthington-Kirsch, Robert; Peterson, Eric; Pron, Gaylene; Li, Shuang; Myers, Evan R

2008-01-01

To assess long-term clinical outcomes of uterine artery embolization across a wide variety of practice settings in a large patient cohort. The Fibroid Registry for Outcomes Data (FIBROID) for Uterine Embolization was a 3-year, single-arm, prospective, multi-center longitudinal study of the short- and long-term outcomes of uterine artery embolization for leiomyomata. Two thousand one hundred twelve patients with symptomatic leiomyomata were eligible for long-term follow-up at 27 sites representing a geographically diverse set of practices, including academic centers, community hospitals, and closed-panel health maintenance organizations. At 36 months after treatment, 1,916 patients remained in the study, and of these, 1,278 patients completed the survey. The primary measures of outcome were the symptom and health-related quality-of-life scores from the Uterine Fibroid Symptom and Quality of Life questionnaire. Mean symptom scores improved 41.41 points (P<.001), and the quality of life scores improved 41.47 points (P<.001), both moving into the normal range for this questionnaire. The improvements were independent of practice setting. During the 3 years of the study, Kaplan-Meier estimates of hysterectomy, myomectomy, or repeat uterine artery embolization were 9.79%, 2.82%, and 1.83% of the patients, respectively. Uterine artery embolization results in a durable improvement in quality of life. These results are achievable when the procedure is performed in any experienced community or academic interventional radiology practice. III.

Lifestyle interventions are feasible in patients with colorectal cancer with potential short-term health benefits: a systematic review.

PubMed

Moug, Susan J; Bryce, Adam; Mutrie, Nanette; Anderson, Annie S

2017-06-01

Lifestyle interventions have been proposed to improve cancer survivorship in patients with colorectal cancer (CRC), but with treatment pathways becoming increasingly multi-modal and prolonged, opportunities for interventions may be limited. This systematic review assessed the evidence for the feasibility of performing lifestyle interventions in CRC patients and evaluated any short- and long-term health benefits. Using PRISMA Guidelines, selected keywords identified randomised controlled studies (RCTs) of lifestyle interventions [smoking, alcohol, physical activity (PA) and diet/excess body weight] in CRC patients. These electronic databases were searched in June 2015: Dynamed, Cochrane Database, OVID MEDLINE, OVID EMBASE, and PEDro. Fourteen RCTs were identified: PA RCTs (n = 10) consisted mainly of telephone-prompted walking or cycling interventions of varied durations, predominately in adjuvant setting; dietary/excess weight interventions RCTs (n = 4) focused on low-fat and/or high-fibre diets within a multi-modal lifestyle intervention. There were no reported RCTs in smoking or alcohol cessation/reduction. PA and/or dietary/excess weight interventions reported variable recruitment rates, but good adherence and retention/follow-up rates, leading to short-term improvements in dietary quality, physical, psychological and quality-of-life parameters. Only one study assessed long-term follow-up, finding significantly improved cancer-specific survival after dietary intervention. This is the first systematic review on lifestyle interventions in patients with CRC finding these interventions to be feasible with improvements in short-term health. Future work should focus on defining the optimal type of intervention (type, duration, timing and intensity) that not only leads to improved short-term outcomes but also assesses long-term survival.

Engineering data exchange.

PubMed

Moore, M

2001-11-01

Mount Clemens General Hospsital, Mount Clemens, Mich. performance anomalies due to multiple interfaces with separate systems. implementation of an interface engine. improved management of data exchange among disparate systems. up-front studies of vendor offerings, potential problems, and long-term needs.

Assessment of LTPP Friction Data

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1998-03-01

A major goal of the Long-Term Pavement Performance (LTPP) study is the development of recommendations for improving the design and construction of new and rehabilitated pavements to make them longer lasting. As part of the condition monitoring of the...

INDIRECT MEASUREMENT OF BIOLOGICAL ACTIVITY TO MONITOR NATURAL ATTENUATION

EPA Science Inventory

The remediation of ground water contamination by natural attenuation, specifically biodegradation, requires continual monitoring. This research is aimed at improving methods for evaluating the long-term performance of Monitored Natural Attenuation (MNA), specifically changes in ...

A structured exercise programme during haemodialysis for patients with chronic kidney disease: clinical benefit and long-term adherence

PubMed Central

Anding, Kirsten; Bär, Thomas; Trojniak-Hennig, Joanna; Kuchinke, Simone; Krause, Rolfdieter; Rost, Jan M; Halle, Martin

2015-01-01

Objective Long-term studies regarding the effect of a structured physical exercise programme (SPEP) during haemodialysis (HD) assessing compliance and clinical benefit are scarce. Study design A single-centre clinical trial, non-randomised, investigating 46 patients with HD (63.2±16.3 years, male/female 24/22, dialysis vintage 4.4 years) performing an SPEP over 5 years. The SPEP (twice/week for 60 min during haemodialysis) consisted of a combined resistance (8 muscle groups) and endurance (supine bicycle ergometry) training. Exercise intensity was continuously adjusted to improvements of performance testing. Changes in endurance and resistance capacity, physical functioning and quality of life (QoL) were analysed over 1 year in addition to long-term adherence and economics of the programme over 5 years. Average power per training session, maximal strength tests (maximal exercise repetitions/min), three performance-based tests for physical function, SF36 for QoL were assessed in the beginning and every 6 months thereafter. Results 78% of the patients completed the programme after 1 year and 43% after 5 years. Participants were divided—according to adherence to the programme—into three groups: (1) high adherence group (HA, >80% of 104 training sessions within 12 months), (2) moderate adherence (MA, 60–80%), and 3. Low adherence group (LA, <60%)) with HA and MA evaluated quantitatively. One-year follow-up data revealed significant (p<0.05) improvement for both groups in all measured parameters: exercise capacity (HA: 55%, MA: 45%), strength (HA: >120%, MA: 40–50%), QoL in three scores of SF36 subscales and physical function in the three tests taken between 11% and 31%. Moreover, a quantitative correlation analysis revealed a close association (r=0.8) between large improvement of endurance capacity and weak physical condition (HA). Conclusions The exercise programme described improves physical function significantly and can be integrated into a HD routine with a high long-term adherence. PMID:26316654

A structured exercise programme during haemodialysis for patients with chronic kidney disease: clinical benefit and long-term adherence.

PubMed

Anding, Kirsten; Bär, Thomas; Trojniak-Hennig, Joanna; Kuchinke, Simone; Krause, Rolfdieter; Rost, Jan M; Halle, Martin

2015-08-27

Long-term studies regarding the effect of a structured physical exercise programme (SPEP) during haemodialysis (HD) assessing compliance and clinical benefit are scarce. A single-centre clinical trial, non-randomised, investigating 46 patients with HD (63.2 ± 16.3 years, male/female 24/22, dialysis vintage 4.4 years) performing an SPEP over 5 years. The SPEP (twice/week for 60 min during haemodialysis) consisted of a combined resistance (8 muscle groups) and endurance (supine bicycle ergometry) training. Exercise intensity was continuously adjusted to improvements of performance testing. Changes in endurance and resistance capacity, physical functioning and quality of life (QoL) were analysed over 1 year in addition to long-term adherence and economics of the programme over 5 years. Average power per training session, maximal strength tests (maximal exercise repetitions/min), three performance-based tests for physical function, SF36 for QoL were assessed in the beginning and every 6 months thereafter. 78% of the patients completed the programme after 1 year and 43% after 5 years. Participants were divided--according to adherence to the programme--into three groups: (1) high adherence group (HA, >80% of 104 training sessions within 12 months), (2) moderate adherence (MA, 60-80%), and 3. Low adherence group (LA, <60%)) with HA and MA evaluated quantitatively. One-year follow-up data revealed significant (p<0.05) improvement for both groups in all measured parameters: exercise capacity (HA: 55%, MA: 45%), strength (HA: >120%, MA: 40-50%), QoL in three scores of SF36 subscales and physical function in the three tests taken between 11% and 31%. Moreover, a quantitative correlation analysis revealed a close association (r=0.8) between large improvement of endurance capacity and weak physical condition (HA). The exercise programme described improves physical function significantly and can be integrated into a HD routine with a high long-term adherence. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://group.bmj.com/group/rights-licensing/permissions.

Preliminary study of an exercise programme for reducing fatigue and improving sleep among long-term haemodialysis patients

PubMed Central

Maniam, Radha; Subramanian, Pathmawathi; Singh, Surindar Kaur Surat; Lim, Soo Kun; Chinna, Karuthan; Rosli, Roshaslina

2014-01-01

INTRODUCTION Fatigue and quality of sleep are the main factors that contribute to a poor quality of life among patients on long-term haemodialysis. Studies have also emphasised the importance of exercise for improving the wellbeing of dialysis patients. This study aimed to determine the effectiveness of a predialysis low-to-moderate-intensity exercise programme for reducing fatigue and improving sleep disorders among long-term haemodialysis patients. METHODS In this quasi-experimental study, an exercise programme was conducted three times a week for 12 weeks before long-term haemodialysis patients underwent dialysis at two centres. The patients were categorised into either the exercise group (n = 28) or control group (n = 27). The latter was asked to maintain their current lifestyles. Assessments of fatigue and sleep disorder levels were performed for both groups using self-reported questionnaires at baseline and after intervention. The patients’ perception of the exercise programme was also determined using self-reported questionnaires. RESULTS Paired sample t-test indicated improvements in fatigue level in the exercise group (mean fatigue score: post-treatment 40.5 ± 7.9 vs. pre-treatment 30.0 ± 10.9). Improvements in sleep disorders were also observed in the exercise group (mean score: post-treatment 7.6 ± 3.3 vs. pre-treatment 10.1 ± 3.8). However, sleep quality deteriorated in the control group (mean score: post-treatment 10.7 ± 2.9 vs. pre-treatment 9.3 ± 2.9). CONCLUSION Simple low-to-moderate-intensity exercise is effective for improving fatigue, sleep disorders and the overall quality of life among haemodialysis patients. PMID:25273932

Long-term symptomatic, functional, and work outcomes of carpal tunnel syndrome among construction workers.

PubMed

Evanoff, Bradley; Gardner, Bethany T; Strickland, Jaime R; Buckner-Petty, Skye; Franzblau, Alfred; Dale, Ann Marie

2016-05-01

The long-term outcomes of carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) including symptoms, functional status, work disability, and economic impact are unknown. We conducted a retrospective study of 234 active construction workers with medical claims for CTS and 249 workers without CTS claims; non-cases were matched on age, trade, and insurance eligibility. We conducted telephone interviews with cases and non-cases and collected administrative data on work hours. Compared to non-cases, CTS cases were more likely to report recurrent hand symptoms, decreased work productivity/quality, decreased performance of physical work demands, and greater functional limitations. Surgical cases showed larger improvements on multiple outcomes than non-surgical cases. Minimal differences in paid work hours were seen between cases and non-cases in the years preceding and following CTS claims. Persistent symptoms and functional impairments were present several years after CTS diagnosis. Long-term functional limitations shown by this and other studies indicate the need for improved prevention and treatment. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Effects of social instability stress in adolescence on long-term, not short-term, spatial memory performance.

PubMed

Green, Matthew R; McCormick, Cheryl M

2013-11-01

There is evidence that exposure to stressors in adolescence leads to lasting deficits on hippocampal-dependent tasks, but whether medial prefrontal cortical function is also impaired is unknown. We previously found that rats exposed to social instability stress in adolescence (SS; daily 1h isolation and subsequent change of cage partner between postnatal days 30 and 45) had impaired memory performance on a Spatial Object Location test and in memory for fear conditioning context, tasks that depend on the integrity of the hippocampus. Here we investigated whether impaired performance would be evident after adolescent SS in male rats on a different test of hippocampal function, spatial learning and memory in the Morris water maze (MWM) and on a working memory task for which performance depends on the integrity of the medial prefrontal cortex, the Delayed Alternation task (DAT). During MWM testing, SS rats showed greater improvements in performance across trials within days compared to control (CTL) rats, but showed less retention of learning between days (48 h) compared to CTL rats. Similarly, SS rats had impaired long-term memory in the Spatial Object Location test after a long delay (240 min), but not after shorter delays (15 or 60 min) compared to CTL rats. No group differences were observed on the DAT, which assessed working memory across brief delays (5-90 s). Thus, deficits in memory performance after chronic social stress in adolescence may be limited to long-term memory. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Co-modification of nitrogen-doped graphene and carbon on Li3V2(PO4)3 particles with excellent long-term and high-rate performance for lithium storage

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ren, Manman; Yang, Mingzhi; Liu, Weiliang; Li, Mei; Su, Liwei; Wu, Xianbin; Wang, Yuanhao

2016-09-01

In this work, N-doped graphene and carbon co-modified Li3V2(PO4)3 composites (LVP/NGC) are successfully fabricated through a xerogel method for the first time. The obtained architecture combines two types of electronic contact with Li3V2(PO4)3 particles: the point-to-face contact of N-doped graphene and the face-to-face contact of N-doped carbon coating layers. Profiting from the favorable complex structure, graphene and carbon coating layers offer an extraordinary network for electron transfer and hence an excellent long-term and high-rate performance. Even tested at the rate of 40 C, the reversible capacity still maintains 86.9 mAh g-1 after 800 cycles without any fading. This work provides a promising route to improve the long-term and high-rate performance of cathodes for LIBs and enlightens us on exploring preferable strategies to develop advanced electrode materials for other energy storage devices.

Long-term quality of life in cervical dystonia after treatment with abobotulinum toxin A: a 2-year prospective study.

PubMed

Kongsaengdao, Subsai; Maneeton, Narong; Maneeton, Benchalak

2018-01-01

The short-term quality of life (QoL) in cervical dystonia (CD) after treating with abobotulinum toxin A (Abo-BTX A) and neubotulinum toxin A (Neu-BTX A) have been studied in Thai CD patients. However; the long-term study has not been published. The aim of the present study was to determine long-term improvement of the health-related quality of life (HRQoL) after eight injections of Abo-BTX A over 2 years in CD patients. A 2-year prospective study on the QoL of CD patients, as measured by HRQoL, before and after receiving eight injections of Abo-BTX A at 3-month intervals over a 2-year treatment period was performed. The disease-specific HRQoL was assessed before and after the treatment by using the Cervical Dystonia Impact Profile-58 (CDIP-58) questionnaire. The general HRQoL was assessed by using the Medical Outcomes 36-Item Short Form Health Survey (SF-36), while depressive disorder screening was assessed by using the Center of Epidemiologic Studies-Depression (CES-D) questionnaire. The SF-36 and CES-D questionnaire were administered before treatment and every 3 months before the next injection for a 2-year period. A total of 20 CD patients were enrolled from January 2013 to December 2015. CDIP-58 showed a significant improvement after long-term injections of Abo-BTX A in all domains ( P < 0.001). However, only vitality domain of SF-36, which assessed general HRQoL, showed a significant improvement after long-term injections ( P = 0.037). There was no prevalence of depressive disorder in all patients (CES-D score <20) in this study. The Abo-BTX A injections at 3-month intervals over a 2-year period improved the CDIP-58 scores, which assess disease-specific HRQoL, as well as an increased vitality domain of general HRQoL. No patient suffered from depression in this study.

Continuous real time measurement of pavement quality during construction.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2010-12-01

Intelligent Compaction has been investigated as a means of improving the quality of asphalt pavements during their : construction. The long term performance of an asphalt pavement is directly related to its load bearing capability and : is determined...

36 CFR 1206.32 - What type of proposal is eligible for a records grant?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... institutions and organizations in archival and records management; (3) Improving the knowledge, performance... individuals for: (1) Advancing the state of the art in archival and records management and in the long-term...

Latest performance of ArF immersion scanner NSR-S630D for high-volume manufacturing for 7nm node

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Funatsu, Takayuki; Uehara, Yusaku; Hikida, Yujiro; Hayakawa, Akira; Ishiyama, Satoshi; Hirayama, Toru; Kono, Hirotaka; Shirata, Yosuke; Shibazaki, Yuichi

2015-03-01

In order to achieve stable operation in cutting-edge semiconductor manufacturing, Nikon has developed NSR-S630D with extremely accurate overlay while maintaining throughput in various conditions resembling a real production environment. In addition, NSR-S630D has been equipped with enhanced capabilities to maintain long-term overlay stability and user interface improvement all due to our newly developed application software platform. In this paper, we describe the most recent S630D performance in various conditions similar to real productions. In a production environment, superior overlay accuracy with high dose conditions and high throughput are often required; therefore, we have performed several experiments with high dose conditions to demonstrate NSR's thermal aberration capabilities in order to achieve world class overlay performance. Furthermore, we will introduce our new software that enables long term overlay performance.

The Effects of Salt on Rheological Properties of Asphalt after Long-Term Aging

PubMed Central

Yu, Xin; Luo, Yilin; Yin, Long

2013-01-01

Limited studies in recent years have shown that asphalt pavement subject to seawater in coastal regions or deicing salt in cold regions may be seriously damaged after being soaked in saline water for a long time. However, there is limited research into the influence of salt on rheological properties of asphalt after long-term aging. In this study, rheological properties of unmodified and polymer-modified asphalt after long-term aging were tested after being soaked in different concentrations of salt (0.3%~5%) for different durations (1 day~30 days). Orthogonal array based on the Taguchi method was used for experimental design. The frequency sweep tests were performed on the specimens of aged asphalt after being soaked for complex modulus and phase angle master curves and ultimate fatigue temperature. BBR tests were performed for stiffness. The test results indicate that saline water appears to reduce low temperature properties and fatigue resistance properties and improved high temperature properties of aged asphalt, and it also affects the sensitivity of complex modulus and phase angles at low frequencies. PMID:24459450

The effects of salt on rheological properties of asphalt after long-term aging.

PubMed

Yu, Xin; Wang, Ying; Luo, Yilin; Yin, Long

2013-01-01

Limited studies in recent years have shown that asphalt pavement subject to seawater in coastal regions or deicing salt in cold regions may be seriously damaged after being soaked in saline water for a long time. However, there is limited research into the influence of salt on rheological properties of asphalt after long-term aging. In this study, rheological properties of unmodified and polymer-modified asphalt after long-term aging were tested after being soaked in different concentrations of salt (0.3%~5%) for different durations (1 day~30 days). Orthogonal array based on the Taguchi method was used for experimental design. The frequency sweep tests were performed on the specimens of aged asphalt after being soaked for complex modulus and phase angle master curves and ultimate fatigue temperature. BBR tests were performed for stiffness. The test results indicate that saline water appears to reduce low temperature properties and fatigue resistance properties and improved high temperature properties of aged asphalt, and it also affects the sensitivity of complex modulus and phase angles at low frequencies.

Long-term effects of three multicomponent exercise interventions on physical performance and fall-related psychological outcomes in community-dwelling older adults: a randomized controlled trial.

PubMed

Freiberger, Ellen; Häberle, Lothar; Spirduso, Waneen W; Zijlstra, G A Rixt

2012-03-01

To determine the long-term effects of three strength and balance exercise interventions on physical performance, fall-related psychological outcomes, and falls in older people. A single-blinded, four-group, randomized controlled trial. Community, Germany. Community-dwelling adults aged 70 to 90 who had fallen in the past 6 months or reported fear of falling. After baseline assessment, 280 participants were randomly assigned to the control group (CG; no intervention; n = 80) or one of three strength and balance exercise interventions (the strength and balance group (SBG; strength and balance only; n = 63), the fitness group (FG; strength and balance plus endurance training; n = 64), or the multifaceted group (MG; strength and balance plus fall risk education; n = 73). The interventions consisted of 32 one-hour group sessions in 16 weeks. Data on physical performance, fall-related psychological outcomes, and falls were collected for 24 months. Mixed-effects regression analyses showed improved short- and long-term (12 and 24 months, respectively) physical performance for the SBG and FG, particularly regarding mobility, balance, and walking speed (P < .05). The improvements in physical performance outcomes were most prominent in the FG. Fall-related psychological outcomes, number of falls, and injurious falls were not significantly different from in the control group. Training focusing on strength, balance, and endurance can enhance physical performance for up to 24 months in community-dwelling older adults. These findings did not translate to improved fall-related psychological outcomes or reduced incidence of falls. This demonstrates the need for a different approach (e.g., regarding intervention dose and components) to gain intervention benefits in the multiple domains that contribute to independence and well-being in older adults. © 2012, Copyright the Authors Journal compilation © 2012, The American Geriatrics Society.

Providing Extrinsic Reward for Test Performance Undermines Long-Term Memory Acquisition.

PubMed

Kuhbandner, Christof; Aslan, Alp; Emmerdinger, Kathrin; Murayama, Kou

2016-01-01

Based on numerous studies showing that testing studied material can improve long-term retention more than restudying the same material, it is often suggested that the number of tests in education should be increased to enhance knowledge acquisition. However, testing in real-life educational settings often entails a high degree of extrinsic motivation of learners due to the common practice of placing important consequences on the outcome of a test. Such an effect on the motivation of learners may undermine the beneficial effects of testing on long-term memory because it has been shown that extrinsic motivation can reduce the quality of learning. To examine this issue, participants learned foreign language vocabulary words, followed by an immediate test in which one-third of the words were tested and one-third restudied. To manipulate extrinsic motivation during immediate testing, participants received either monetary reward contingent on test performance or no reward. After 1 week, memory for all words was tested. In the immediate test, reward reduced correct recall and increased commission errors, indicating that reward reduced the number of items that can benefit from successful retrieval. The results in the delayed test revealed that reward additionally reduced the gain received from successful retrieval because memory for initially successfully retrieved words was lower in the reward condition. However, testing was still more effective than restudying under reward conditions because reward undermined long-term memory for concurrently restudied material as well. These findings indicate that providing performance-contingent reward in a test can undermine long-term knowledge acquisition.

Long-term associative learning predicts verbal short-term memory performance.

PubMed

Jones, Gary; Macken, Bill

2018-02-01

Studies using tests such as digit span and nonword repetition have implicated short-term memory across a range of developmental domains. Such tests ostensibly assess specialized processes for the short-term manipulation and maintenance of information that are often argued to enable long-term learning. However, there is considerable evidence for an influence of long-term linguistic learning on performance in short-term memory tasks that brings into question the role of a specialized short-term memory system separate from long-term knowledge. Using natural language corpora, we show experimentally and computationally that performance on three widely used measures of short-term memory (digit span, nonword repetition, and sentence recall) can be predicted from simple associative learning operating on the linguistic environment to which a typical child may have been exposed. The findings support the broad view that short-term verbal memory performance reflects the application of long-term language knowledge to the experimental setting.

Acquisition and long-term retention of spatial learning in the human immunodeficiency virus-1 transgenic rat: Effects of repeated nicotine treatment

PubMed Central

Vigorito, Michael; Cao, Junran; Li, Ming D.; Chang, Sulie L.

2013-01-01

The HIV-1 transgenic (HIV-1Tg) rat shows a deficit in learning to locate a submerged platform in a multiple-trial water maze task compared to transgenic littermate and F344 control rats (Vigorito et al. 2008; Lashomb et al. 2009). Nicotine is known to have neuroprotective effects possibly by minimizing cytotoxic effects of glutamate or by modulating a cholinergic anti-inflammatory pathway. Nicotine also improves performance in a variety of learning tasks by enhancing attention and short-term memory (STM). The purpose of this study was to determine if the learning deficit in HIV-1Tg is ameliorated by repeated nicotine treatment independent of its effects on STM. HIV-1Tg and F344 rats were treated (subcutaneous) with nicotine (0.25mg/kg/injection) or saline twice daily and tested in a single-trial-per-day procedure which precludes the impact of STM on the acquisition of the spatial learning task. HIV-1Tg rats showed a deficit in the acquisition of the task and in the long-term retention for the platform location in a probe test. Nicotine did not ameliorate the deficit in HIV-1Tg rats and slightly worsened performance during acquisition. Analysis of individual differences in performance during the probe test suggested that nicotine improved performance in some F344 rats but not in HIV-1Tg rats. These results indicate that a deficit in the consolidation of long-term memory (LTM) contributes to the acquisition deficit of HIV1-Tg rats. The results, however, do not provide any evidence of the amelioration of the learning deficit observed in this behavioral model at least with the nicotine dose tested. PMID:23456952

The Hebb repetition effect in simple and complex memory span.

PubMed

Oberauer, Klaus; Jones, Timothy; Lewandowsky, Stephan

2015-08-01

The Hebb repetition effect refers to the finding that immediate serial recall is improved over trials for memory lists that are surreptitiously repeated across trials, relative to new lists. We show in four experiments that the Hebb repetition effect is also observed with a complex-span task, in which encoding or retrieval of list items alternates with an unrelated processing task. The interruption of encoding or retrieval by the processing task did not reduce the size of the Hebb effect, demonstrating that incidental long-term learning forms integrated representations of lists, excluding the interleaved processing events. Contrary to the assumption that complex-span performance relies more on long-term memory than standard immediate serial recall (simple span), the Hebb effect was not larger in complex-span than in simple-span performance. The Hebb effect in complex span was also not modulated by the opportunity for refreshing list items, questioning a role of refreshing for the acquisition of the long-term memory representations underlying the effect.

Is Functional Independence Associated With Improved Long-Term Survival After Lung Transplantation?

PubMed

Osho, Asishana; Mulvihill, Michael; Lamba, Nayan; Hirji, Sameer; Yerokun, Babatunde; Bishawi, Muath; Spencer, Philip; Panda, Nikhil; Villavicencio, Mauricio; Hartwig, Matthew

2018-07-01

Existing research demonstrates superior short-term outcomes (length of stay, 1-year survival) after lung transplantation in patients with preoperative functional independence. The aim of this study was to determine whether advantages remain significant in the long-term. The United Network for Organ Sharing database was queried for adult, first-time, isolated lung transplantation records from January 2005 to December 2015. Stratification was performed based on Karnofsky Performance Status Score (3 groups) and on employment at the time of transplantation (2 groups). Kaplan-Meier and Cox analyses were performed to determine the association between these factors and survival in the long-term. Of 16,497 patients meeting criteria, 1,581 (9.6%) were almost completely independent at the time of transplant vs 5,662 (34.3%) who were disabled (completely reliant on others for activities of daily living). Cox models adjusting for recipient, donor, and transplant factors demonstrated a statistically significant association between disability at the time of transplant and long-term death (hazard ratio, 1.26; 95% confidence interval, 1.14 to 1.40; p < 0.001). There were 15,931 patients with available data on paid employment at the time of transplantation. Multivariable analysis demonstrated a statistically significant association between employment at the time of transplantation and death (hazard ratio, 0.86; 95% confidence interval, 0.75 to 0.91; p < 0.001). Preoperative functional independence and maintenance of employment are associated with superior long-term outcomes in lung recipients. The results highlight potential benefits of pretransplant functional rehabilitation for patients on the waiting list for lungs. Copyright © 2018 The Society of Thoracic Surgeons. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Effects of treadmill exercise intensity on spatial working memory and long-term memory in rats.

PubMed

Wang, Xiao-Qin; Wang, Gong-Wu

2016-03-15

Moderate exercise promotes learning and memory. Most studies mainly focused on memory exercise effects of in the ageing and patients. There is lack of quantitative research about effect of regular exercise intensity on different memory types in normal subjects. Present study investigated the effects of different intensities of treadmill exercise on working memory and long-term memory. Fifty female Wistar rats were trained by T-maze delayed spatial alternation (DSA) task with 3 delays (10s, 60s and 300s). Then they got a 30min treadmill exercise for 30days in 4 intensities (control, 0m/min; lower, 15m/min; middle, 20m/min, and higher, 30m/min). Then animals were tested in DSA, passive avoidance and Morris water maze tasks. 1. Exercise increased the neuronal density of hippocampal subregions (CA1, CA3 and dentate gyrus) vs. naïve/control. 2. In DSA task, all groups have similar baseline, lower intensity improved 10s delay accuracy vs. baseline/control; middle and higher intensities improved 300s delay accuracy vs. baseline/control. 3. In water maze learning, all groups successfully found the platform, but middle intensity improved platform field crossing times vs. control in test phase. Present results suggested that treadmill exercise can improve long-term spatial memory and working memory; lower intensity benefits to short-term delayed working memory, and middle or higher intensity benefits to long-term delayed working memory. There was an inverted U dose-effect relationship between exercise intensity and memory performance, but exercise -working memory effect was impacted by delay duration. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Advanced Environmental Barrier Coating Development for SiC/SiC Ceramic Matrix Composites: NASA's Perspectives

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zhu, Dongming

2016-01-01

This presentation reviews NASA environmental barrier coating (EBC) system development programs and the coating materials evolutions for protecting the SiC/SiC Ceramic Matrix Composites in order to meet the next generation engine performance requirements. The presentation focuses on several generations of NASA EBC systems, EBC-CMC component system technologies for SiC/SiC ceramic matrix composite combustors and turbine airfoils, highlighting the temperature capability and durability improvements in simulated engine high heat flux, high pressure, high velocity, and with mechanical creep and fatigue loading conditions. The current EBC development emphasis is placed on advanced NASA 2700F candidate environmental barrier coating systems for SiC/SiC CMCs, their performance benefits and design limitations in long-term operation and combustion environments. Major technical barriers in developing environmental barrier coating systems, the coating integrations with next generation CMCs having the improved environmental stability, erosion-impact resistance, and long-term fatigue-environment system durability performance are described. The research and development opportunities for advanced turbine airfoil environmental barrier coating systems by utilizing improved compositions, state-of-the-art processing methods, and simulated environment testing and durability modeling are discussed.

The effects of a song-singing programme on the affective speaking intonation of people with traumatic brain injury.

PubMed

Baker, F; Wigram, T; Gold, C

2005-07-01

To examine changes in the relationship between intonation, voice range and mood following music therapy programmes in people with traumatic brain injury. Data from four case studies were pooled and effect size, ANOVA and correlation calculations were performed to evaluate the effectiveness of treatment. Subjects sang three self-selected songs for 15 sessions. Speaking fundamental frequency, fundamental frequency variability, slope, voice range and mood were analysed pre- and post-session. Immediate treatment effects were not found. Long-term improvements in affective intonation were found in three subjects, especially in fundamental frequency. Voice range improved over time and was positively correlated with the three intonation components. Mood scale data showed that immediate effects were in the negative direction whereas there weres increases in positive mood state in the longer-term. Findings suggest that, in the long-term, song singing can improve vocal range and mood and enhance the affective intonation styles of people with TBI.

Ultrastable Silicon Cavity in a Continuously Operating Closed-Cycle Cryostat at 4 K

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, W.; Robinson, J. M.; Sonderhouse, L.; Oelker, E.; Benko, C.; Hall, J. L.; Legero, T.; Matei, D. G.; Riehle, F.; Sterr, U.; Ye, J.

2017-12-01

We report on a laser locked to a silicon cavity operating continuously at 4 K with 1 ×10-16 instability and a median linewidth of 17 mHz at 1542 nm. This is a tenfold improvement in short-term instability, and a 1 04 improvement in linewidth, over previous sub-10-K systems. Operating at low temperatures reduces the thermal noise floor and, thus, is advantageous toward reaching an instability of 10-18, a long-sought goal of the optical clock community. The performance of this system demonstrates the technical readiness for the development of the next generation of ultrastable lasers that operate with an ultranarrow linewidth and long-term stability without user intervention.

Improved Transparent Conducting Oxides for Photovoltaics: Final Research Report, 1 May 1999--31 December 2002

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

Mason, T. O.; Chang, R. P. H.; Marks, T. J.

2003-10-01

This subcontract focused on next-generation transparent conducting oxides (TCOs) for improved PV performance. More specifically, there were two research foci: (1) improved Sn-based, n-type TCOs aimed at enhanced CdTe PV cell performance, and (2) novel Cu-based, p-type TCOs applicable to a variety of PV designs. The objective of the research under this subcontract was to identify, explore, evaluate, and develop future generations of photovoltaic technologies that can meet the long-term goal of producing low-cost electricity from sunlight.

Preliminary evaluation and analysis of LTPP faulting data : final report.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2000-09-01

A major goal of the Long-Term Pavement Performance (LTPP) study is the development of recommendations for improving the design and construction of new and rehabilitated pavements to provide longer lasting pavements. As part of the condition monitorin...

Promoting ball skills in preschool-age girls.

PubMed

Veldman, Sanne L C; Palmer, Kara K; Okely, Anthony D; Robinson, Leah E

2017-01-01

Evidence supports that girls are less proficient than boys at performing ball skills. This study examined the immediate and long-term effects of a ball skill intervention on preschool-age girls' ball skill performance. Randomized controlled trial. Girls (M age =47.24±7.38 months) were randomly assigned to a high autonomy, mastery-based 9-week motor skill intervention (the Children's Health Activity Motor Program; CHAMP, 540min; n=38) or a control group (free-play; n=16). Ball skill proficiency was assessed at pretest, posttest, and retention test (after 9 weeks) using the object control subscale of the Test of Gross Motor Development - 2nd Edition. Treatment efficacy was examined using linear mixed models. Two models were fit: one for short-term changes (pretest to posttest) and one for long-term changes (pretest to retention). Linear mixed models revealed a significantly time*treatment interaction for both models. Post hoc analysis confirmed that girls in CHAMP experienced significant gains in ball skills from pretest to posttest (p<.001) and pretest to retention (p<.001). Moreover, girls in CHAMP were no different from the control group at pretest (p>.05) but had significantly higher ball skills scores at both posttest (p<.001) and retention (p<.001). This study demonstrates the positive effects of a ball skill intervention (i.e., CHAMP) on improving girls' ball skills both short- and long-term. Findings suggest that early childhood interventions that focus on the development of ball skills in young girls might be an avenue to improve girls' ball skill performance. Copyright © 2016 Sports Medicine Australia. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Advances in 193 nm excimer lasers for mass spectrometry applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Delmdahl, Ralph; Esser, Hans-Gerd; Bonati, Guido

2016-03-01

Ongoing progress in mass analysis applications such as laser ablation inductively coupled mass spectrometry of solid samples and ultraviolet photoionization mediated sequencing of peptides and proteins is to a large extent driven by ultrashort wavelength excimer lasers at 193 nm. This paper will introduce the latest improvements achieved in the development of compact high repetition rate excimer lasers and elaborate on the impact on mass spectrometry instrumentation. Various performance and lifetime measurements obtained in a long-term endurance test over the course of 18 months will be shown and discussed in view of the laser source requirements of different mass spectrometry tasks. These sampling type applications are served by excimer lasers delivering pulsed 193 nm output of several mJ as well as fast repetition rates which are already approaching one Kilohertz. In order to open up the pathway from the laboratory to broader market industrial use, sufficient component lifetimes and long-term stable performance behavior have to be ensured. The obtained long-term results which will be presented are based on diverse 193 nm excimer laser tube improvements aiming at e.g. optimizing the gas flow dynamics and have extended the operational life the laser tube for the first time over several billion pulses even under high duty-cycle conditions.

Urinary, sexual, and cosmetic results after puberty in hypospadias repair: current results and trends.

PubMed

Rynja, Sybren P; de Kort, Laetitia M O; de Jong, Tom P V M

2012-11-01

To give an overview of the recently published long-term outcomes of hypospadias surgery performed at childhood, of patients who have had multiple previous repairs, and results of surgery done to treat late complications following hypospadias repair. Urethral function after hypospadias repair is good, but cosmesis based on the patients' opinion, on the long term, was disappointing. Also erectile function was reported to be good, although persisting curvature and ejaculation disorders were mentioned, more evidently in patients with proximal hypospadias. Long-term results using buccal mucosa repairs in hypospadias cripples are good, but the use of tissue expanders may be a good alternative. Late complications of hypospadias repair, such as urethral strictures, are difficult to treat, and have a high failure rate compared to urethroplasty for other reasons. Functional results of hypospadias repair are generally satisfactory in the long term, although improvement must be pursued. Most adult men with a history of hypospadias present themselves with urinary tract symptoms. Cosmesis judged by patients remains rather poor in the long run and better techniques should be found. Preferably, assessment of long-term results should be done by validated test methods for better comparison.

Transcranial direct current stimulation improves long-term memory deficits in an animal model of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and modulates oxidative and inflammatory parameters.

PubMed

Leffa, Douglas Teixeira; Bellaver, Bruna; Salvi, Artur Alban; de Oliveira, Carla; Caumo, Wolnei; Grevet, Eugenio Horacio; Fregni, Felipe; Quincozes-Santos, André; Rohde, Luis Augusto; Torres, Iraci L S

2018-04-05

Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) is a technique that modulates neuronal activity and has been proposed as a potential therapeutic tool for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms. Although pilot studies have shown evidence of efficacy, its mechanism of action remains unclear. We evaluated the effects of tDCS on behavioral (working and long-term memory) and neurochemical (oxidative and inflammatory parameters) outcomes related to ADHD pathophysiology. We used the most widely accepted animal model of ADHD: spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR). The selected behavioral outcomes have been shown to be altered in both ADHD patients and animal models, and were chosen for their relation to the proposed mechanistic action of tDCS. Adult male SHR and their control, the Wistar Kyoto rats (WKY), were subjected to 20 min of bicephalic tDCS or sham stimulation for 8 consecutive days. Working memory, long-term memory, and neurochemical outcomes were evaluated. TDCS improved long-term memory deficits presented by the SHR. No change in working memory performance was observed. In the hippocampus, tDCS increased both the production of reactive oxygen species in SHR and the levels of the antioxidant molecule glutathione in both strains. TDCS also modulated inflammatory response in the brains of WKY by downregulating pro-inflammatory cytokines. TDCS had significant effects that were specific for strain, type of behavioral and neurochemical outcomes. The long-term memory improvement in the SHR may point to a possible therapeutic role of tDCS in ADHD that does not seem to be mediated by inflammatory markers. Additionally, the anti-inflammatory effects observed in the brain of WKY after tDCS needs to be further explored. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Surgery in elderly patients with intracranial meningioma: neuropsychological functioning during a long term follow-up.

PubMed

Di Cristofori, Andrea; Zarino, Barbara; Bertani, Giulio; Locatelli, Marco; Rampini, Paolo; Carrabba, Giorgio; Caroli, Manuela

2018-05-01

Surgical treatment of elderly patients with meningioma is has proved to be safe, especially when patients are selected using dedicated surgical scores. These scores take into account tumor size, edema, location and patient's co-morbidities. Neuropsychological functioning (NPF) of this kind of patients has been poorly studied in literature and it is not taken into account by these scores. Aim of our study was to describe the long-term outcome in terms of NPF of elderly patients undergoing surgery. Patients older than 70 years of age affected by intracranial meningioma and selected with the Clinical-Radiological Grading Score were included in our study. Neuropsychological testing was performed using a dedicated battery of tests before surgery, 3 and 12 months after surgery. Clinical, neurological and radiological outcomes were studied as well. Forty-one patients with a median age of 74 years were included in this study. Preoperatively only 1/41 patients showed a normal NPF with all tests scoring normally. Four out of 39 patients showed a complete neuropsychological recovery after 3 months; while 10/37 patients had a complete recovery after 12 months. NPF showed a trend of progressive improvement after surgery. Our study is the first experience reported in literature describing a long term follow-up in elderly patients after surgery for intracranial meningioma. In our series, surgery determined an improvement of NPF over time; especially with a low complication rate related to the selection of patients obtained through the CRGS. Further studies need to be performed in order to understand how brain edema, tumor size, volume and tumor location affect NPF in both short and long term.

Long-term performance of a 20-L continuous flow microbial fuel cell for treatment of brewery wastewater

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lu, Mengqian; Chen, Shing; Babanova, Sofia; Phadke, Sujal; Salvacion, Michael; Mirhosseini, Auvid; Chan, Shirley; Carpenter, Kayla; Cortese, Rachel; Bretschger, Orianna

2017-07-01

Microbial fuel cells (MFCs) have been shown as a promising technology for wastewater treatment. Integration of MFCs into current wastewater treatment plant have potential to reduce the operational cost and improve the treatment performance, and scaling up MFCs will be essential. However, only a few studies have reported successful scale up attempts. Fabrication cost, treatment performance and operational lifetime are critical factors to optimize before commercialization of MFCs. To test these factors, we constructed a 20 L MFC system containing two 10 L MFC reactors and operated the system with brewery wastewater for nearly one year. Several operational conditions were tested, including different flowrates, applied external resistors, and poised anodic potentials. The condition resulting in the highest chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal efficiency (94.6 ± 1.0%) was a flow rate of 1 mL min-1 (HRT = 313 h) and an applied resistor of 10 Ω across each MFC circuit. Results from each of the eight stages of operation (325 days total) indicate that MFCs can sustain treatment rates over a long-term period and are robust enough to sustain performance even after system perturbations. possible ways to improve MFC performance were discussed for future studies.

The Role of Apathy and Depression on Verbal Learning and Memory Performance After Stroke.

PubMed

Fishman, Keera N; Ashbaugh, Andrea R; Lanctôt, Krista L; Cayley, Megan L; Herrmann, Nathan; Murray, Brian J; Sicard, Michelle; Lien, Karen; Sahlas, Demetrios J; Swartz, Richard H

2018-05-18

Psychiatric symptoms, including depression and apathy, may significantly impede functional and cognitive capabilities following a cerebrovascular event. This study examined the role of apathy and depression on learning and memory performance in stroke patients. Stroke patients (n = 140 [119 ischemic, 21 hemorrhagic], mean age = 60.6 [SD = 15.1]) completed the Apathy Evaluation Scale (AES), the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D), and the California Verbal Learning Test-Second Edition (CVLT-II). Using a 2 × 2 MANOVA with depression (CESD ≥ 16) and apathy (AES ≥ 34) as the independent variables and cognitive performance (i.e., verbal acquisition, short-term free recall, and long-term free recall) as the dependent variables, we found a main effect for apathy (F[3,134] = 2.98, p = .034), such that apathetic stroke patients (n = 24) performed significantly worse on verbal acquisition (F[1,136] = 6.44; p = .012), short-term free recall (F[1,136] = 7.86; p = .006), and long-term free recall (F[1,136] = 8.37; p = .004) than nonapathetic stroke patients (n = 116). There was no main effect of depression on cognitive performance (F[1,136] = 1.72, p = .155). These results suggest that apathy, not depression, is related to verbal memory performance in stroke patients. Future research should explore whether treatment of apathy (e.g., improving motivation) could be a novel target for improving cognition after stroke. Researchers should also examine whether this model can be applied to other aspects of cognition, including executive function and other areas of memory including autobiographical and working memory.

Properties of PMR polyimide composites made with improved high strength graphite fibers

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Vannucci, R. D.

1980-01-01

Recent graphite fiber developments have resulted in high strength, intermediate modulus graphite fibers having improved thermo-oxidative resistance. These improved fibers, obtained from various commercial suppliers, were used to fabricate PMR-15 and PMR-11 polyimide composites. Studies were performed to investigate the effects of the improved high strength graphite fibers on composite properties after exposure in air at 600 F. The use of the more oxidatively resistant fibers did not result in improved performance at 600 F. Two of the improved fibers were found to have an adverse effect on the long-term performance of PMR composites. The influence of various factors such as fiber physical properties, surface morphology and chemical composition are also discussed.

The effect of long-term conventional physical therapy and independent predictive factors analysis in children with cerebral palsy.

PubMed

Chen, Yi-Nien; Liao, Su-Fen; Su, Li-Fei; Huang, Hsin-Ya; Lin, Chung-Che; Wei, Ta-Sen

2013-10-01

This study evaluated the effect of long-term conventional physical therapy (PT) on cerebral palsy (CP) children and to identify the predictors of therapy's response. We performed a retrospective review of CP children treated with PT, and their motor function was assessed every 3 months between 2008 and 2011. Fifty-six children with a mean age of 4.2 ± 2.8 years, gross motor function classification system (GMFCS) levels were level I (n = 14), level II (n = 20), level III (n = 5), level IV (n = 8), and level V (n = 9). In the generalized estimating equations model, there was a significant improvement in the Gross Motor Function Measure (GMFM-66) score (p < 0.001); the improvement was different in five GMFCS levels (p < 0.001) and GMFCS level II had faster progression. The younger CP children had better PT efficacy, and the GMFM-66 score continued improving until 8.4 years old in the older group. The long-term conventional PT is effective even in older CP children, and PT was most efficient in younger children and GMFCS level II.

Measure Guideline. Wood Window Repair, Rehabilitation, and Replacement

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

Baker, P.; Eng, P.

2012-12-01

This measure guideline provides information and guidance on rehabilitating, retrofitting, and replacing existing window assemblies in residential construction. The intent is to provide information regarding means and methods to improve the energy and comfort performance of existing wood window assemblies in a way that takes into consideration component durability, in-service operation, and long term performance of the strategies.

Measure Guideline: Window Repair, Rehabilitation, and Replacement

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

Baker, P.

2012-12-01

This measure guideline provides information and guidance on rehabilitating, retrofitting, and replacing existing window assemblies in residential construction. The intent is to provide information regarding means and methods to improve the energy and comfort performance of existing wood window assemblies in a way that takes into consideration component durability, in-service operation, and long term performance of the strategies.

A role for autophagy in long-term spatial memory formation in male rodents.

PubMed

Hylin, Michael J; Zhao, Jing; Tangavelou, Karthikeyan; Rozas, Natalia S; Hood, Kimberly N; MacGowan, Jacalyn S; Moore, Anthony N; Dash, Pramod K

2018-03-01

A hallmark of long-term memory formation is the requirement for protein synthesis. Administration of protein synthesis inhibitors impairs long-term memory formation without influencing short-term memory. Rapamycin is a specific inhibitor of target of rapamycin complex 1 (TORC1) that has been shown to block protein synthesis and impair long-term memory. In addition to regulating protein synthesis, TORC1 also phosphorylates Unc-51-like autophagy activating kinase-1 (Ulk-1) to suppress autophagy. As autophagy can be activated by rapamycin (and rapamycin inhibits long-term memory), our aim was to test the hypothesis that autophagy inhibitors would enhance long-term memory. To examine if learning alters autophagosome number, we used male reporter mice carrying the GFP-LC3 transgene. Using these mice, we observed that training in the Morris water maze task increases the number of autophagosomes, a finding contrary to our expectations. For learning and memory studies, male Long Evans rats were used due to their relatively larger size (compared to mice), making it easier to perform intrahippocampal infusions in awake, moving animals. When the autophagy inhibitors 3-methyladenine (3-MA) or Spautin-1 were administered bilaterally into the hippocampii prior to training in the Morris water maze task, the drugs did not alter learning. In contrast, when memory was tested 24 hours later by a probe trial, significant impairments were observed. In addition, intrahippocampal infusion of an autophagy activator peptide (TAT-Beclin-1) improved long-term memory. These results indicate that autophagy is not necessary for learning, but is required for long-term memory formation. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Long-Term Bridge Performance (LTBP) Program Protocols, Version 1

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2016-01-01

The Long-Term Bridge Performance (LTBP) Program is a long-term research effort to collect scientific performance data from a representative sample of bridges in the United States. Data will be collected for in-service bridges using a variety of techn...

Cognitive, physical, and mental health outcomes between long-term cannabis and tobacco users.

PubMed

Lovell, M E; Bruno, R; Johnston, J; Matthews, A; McGregor, I; Allsop, D J; Lintzeris, N

2018-04-01

Cannabis intoxication adversely affects health, yet persistent effects following short-term abstinence in long-term cannabis users are unclear. This matched-subjects, cross-sectional study compared health outcomes of long-term cannabis and long-term tobacco-only users, relative to population norms. Nineteen long-term (mean 32.3years of use, mean age 55.7years), abstinent (mean 15h) cannabis users and 16 long-term tobacco users (mean 37.1years of use, mean age 52.9years), matched for age, educational attainment, and lifetime tobacco consumption, were compared on measures of learning and memory, response inhibition, information-processing, sustained attention, executive control, and mental and physical health. Cannabis users exhibited poorer overall learning and delayed recall and greater interference and forgetting than tobacco users, and exhibited poorer recall than norms. Inhibition and executive control were similar between groups, but cannabis users had slower reaction times during information processing and sustained attention tasks. Cannabis users had superior health satisfaction and psychological, somatic, and general health than tobacco users and had similar mental and physical health to norms whilst tobacco users had greater stress, role limitations from emotional problems, and poorer health satisfaction. Long-term cannabis users may exhibit deficits in some cognitive domains despite short-term abstinence and may therefore benefit from interventions to improve cognitive performance. Tobacco alone may contribute to adverse mental and physical health outcomes, which requires appropriate control in future studies. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Improvement of tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) skin tumors during long-term treatment with oral sirolimus.

PubMed

Nathan, Neera; Wang, Ji-an; Li, Shaowei; Cowen, Edward W; Haughey, Mary; Moss, Joel; Darling, Thomas N

2015-11-01

Oral mechanistic target of rapamycin inhibitors have been shown to reduce visceral tumor volume in patients with tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC). We sought to evaluate the cutaneous response to oral sirolimus in patients with TSC and an indication for systemic treatment, including long-term effects. A retrospective analysis of 14 adult patients with TSC prescribed sirolimus to treat lymphangioleiomyomatosis was performed. Serial photographs of angiofibromas, shagreen patches, and ungual fibromas taken before, during, and after the treatment period were blinded, then assessed using the Physician Global Assessment of Clinical Condition (PGA). Microscopic and molecular studies were performed on skin tumors harvested before and during treatment. Sirolimus significantly improved angiofibromas (median treatment duration 12 months; median PGA score 4.5 [range 1.5-5]; Wilcoxon signed rank test, P = .018) and shagreen patches (median treatment duration 10 months; median PGA score 4.5 [range 3.5-5]; Wilcoxon signed rank test, P = .039), whereas ungual fibromas improved in some patients (median treatment duration 6.5 months; median PGA score 4.66 [range 2.75-5]; Wilcoxon signed rank test, P = .109). Clinical, immunohistochemical, or molecular evidence of resistance was not observed (range 5-64 months of treatment). This was a retrospective analysis limited to adult women with lymphangioleiomyomatosis. Oral sirolimus is an effective long-term therapy for TSC skin tumors, particularly angiofibromas, in patients for whom systemic treatment is indicated. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Ultra-low power wireless sensing for long-term structural health monitoring

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bilbao, Argenis; Hoover, Davis; Rice, Jennifer; Chapman, Jamie

2011-04-01

Researchers have made significant progress in recent years towards realizing long-term structural health monitoring (SHM) utilizing wireless smart sensor networks (WSSNs). These efforts have focused on improving the performance and robustness of such networks to achieve high quality data acquisition and in-network processing. One of the primary challenges still facing the use of smart sensors for long-term monitoring deployments is their limited power resources. Periodically accessing the sensor nodes to change batteries is not feasible or economical in many deployment cases. While energy harvesting techniques show promise for prolonging unattended network life, low-power design and operation are still critically important. This research presents a new, fully integrated ultra-low power wireless smart sensor node and a flexible base station, both designed for long-term SHM applications. The power consumption of the sensor nodes and base station has been minimized through careful hardware selection and the implementation of power-aware network software, without sacrificing flexibility and functionality.

Historical Prediction Modeling Approach for Estimating Long-Term Concentrations of PM2.5 in Cohort Studies before the 1999 Implementation of Widespread Monitoring

PubMed Central

Kim, Sun-Young; Olives, Casey; Sheppard, Lianne; Sampson, Paul D.; Larson, Timothy V.; Keller, Joshua P.; Kaufman, Joel D.

2016-01-01

Introduction: Recent cohort studies have used exposure prediction models to estimate the association between long-term residential concentrations of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) and health. Because these prediction models rely on PM2.5 monitoring data, predictions for times before extensive spatial monitoring present a challenge to understanding long-term exposure effects. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Federal Reference Method (FRM) network for PM2.5 was established in 1999. Objectives: We evaluated a novel statistical approach to produce high-quality exposure predictions from 1980 through 2010 in the continental United States for epidemiological applications. Methods: We developed spatio-temporal prediction models using geographic predictors and annual average PM2.5 data from 1999 through 2010 from the FRM and the Interagency Monitoring of Protected Visual Environments (IMPROVE) networks. Temporal trends before 1999 were estimated by using a) extrapolation based on PM2.5 data in FRM/IMPROVE, b) PM2.5 sulfate data in the Clean Air Status and Trends Network, and c) visibility data across the Weather Bureau Army Navy network. We validated the models using PM2.5 data collected before 1999 from IMPROVE, California Air Resources Board dichotomous sampler monitoring (CARB dichot), the Children’s Health Study (CHS), and the Inhalable Particulate Network (IPN). Results: In our validation using pre-1999 data, the prediction model performed well across three trend estimation approaches when validated using IMPROVE and CHS data (R2 = 0.84–0.91) with lower R2 values in early years. Model performance using CARB dichot and IPN data was worse (R2 = 0.00–0.85) most likely because of fewer monitoring sites and inconsistent sampling methods. Conclusions: Our prediction modeling approach will allow health effects estimation associated with long-term exposures to PM2.5 over extended time periods ≤ 30 years. Citation: Kim SY, Olives C, Sheppard L, Sampson PD, Larson TV, Keller JP, Kaufman JD. 2017. Historical prediction modeling approach for estimating long-term concentrations of PM2.5 in cohort studies before the 1999 implementation of widespread monitoring. Environ Health Perspect 125:38–46; http://dx.doi.org/10.1289/EHP131 PMID:27340825

[Pay for performance (P4P). Long-term effects and perspectives].

PubMed

Schrappe, M; Gültekin, N

2011-02-01

After 10 years of experience and research, a wide array of results on evaluation and long-term effects of pay for performance (P4P) programs have been published. These data do not only give insight into most of the problems of implementation, but also into aspects which, in part, may attenuate the high expectations at the beginning of the discussion. P4P programs exhibit a ceiling effect, some improvements are reversed after incentives are cancelled, and improvements show opportunity costs as absent improvements for indicators, which are not object to financial incentives (in some cases for the same disease). These observations can be explained by the hypothesis that P4P programs have characteristics of fee-for-service reimbursement, if symmetric information is available for insurance and provider. P4P programs are local instruments. While integration of healthcare is considered as an important issue, they should be combined with programs and incentives which foster further vertical and horizontal integration. For Germany, further research in the implementation and effects of P4P programs is necessary.

[Long-term oxygen therapy (LTOT)--what should physicians, homecare-providers and health insurance companies know?].

PubMed

Koehler, U; Hildebrandt, O; Jerrentrup, L; Koehler, K-I; Kianinejad, P; Sohrabi, K; Schäfer, H; Kenn, K

2014-03-01

Long-term oxygen treatment (LTOT) has been demonstrated to improve prognosis in patients with chronic respiratory insufficiency. In terms of pathogenesis, improved oxygenation, reduction of pulmonary artery pressure as well as reduction of respiratory work are important. Since there are considerable differences between the LTOT systems, individually tailored therapy is needed. In particular, the mobility aspects of the patients must be taken into consideration. It is important to distinguish between stationary/mobile devices with a liquid oxygen system and stationary/mobile devices with oxygen concentrator. Oxygen titration should be performed in relation to rest and activity phases (e. g. 6 minute walk test) as well as in relation to the sleep phase. Employing devices with demand-controlled valves should be critically examined. This can be undertaken only under physician orders and requires continuous monitoring. © Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.

Long-term neuromuscular training and ankle joint position sense.

PubMed

Kynsburg, A; Pánics, G; Halasi, T

2010-06-01

Preventive effect of proprioceptive training is proven by decreasing injury incidence, but its proprioceptive mechanism is not. Major hypothesis: the training has a positive long-term effect on ankle joint position sense in athletes of a high-risk sport (handball). Ten elite-level female handball-players represented the intervention group (training-group), 10 healthy athletes of other sports formed the control-group. Proprioceptive training was incorporated into the regular training regimen of the training-group. Ankle joint position sense function was measured with the "slope-box" test, first described by Robbins et al. Testing was performed one day before the intervention and 20 months later. Mean absolute estimate errors were processed for statistical analysis. Proprioceptive sensory function improved regarding all four directions with a high significance (p<0.0001; avg. mean estimate error improvement: 1.77 degrees). This was also highly significant (p< or =0.0002) in each single directions, with avg. mean estimate error improvement between 1.59 degrees (posterior) and 2.03 degrees (anterior). Mean absolute estimate errors at follow-up (2.24 degrees +/-0.88 degrees) were significantly lower than in uninjured controls (3.29 degrees +/-1.15 degrees) (p<0.0001). Long-term neuromuscular training has improved ankle joint position sense function in the investigated athletes. This joint position sense improvement can be one of the explanations for injury rate reduction effect of neuromuscular training.

Improving Mechanical Properties of Hot Mix Asphalt Using Fibres and Polymers in Developing Countries

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Preciado, Jaime; Martínez Arguelles, Gilberto; Dugarte, Margareth; Bonicelli, Alessandra; Cantero, Julio; Vega, Daniela; Barros, Yennis

2017-10-01

The enhancement of mechanical properties and long term performance of hot mix asphalt (HMA) should be considered as a goal in order to achieve a transport infrastructure really sustainable. However, this issue becomes a difficult task, if conventional HMA are used. In fact, performance of conventional HMA, usually presents poor long term performance and functional distresses related to high and low temperatures, which in turn implies higher maintenance costs and superior carbon footprints. To overcome this weaken, bitumen industry has been developing new polymer modifiers, additives to improve HMA behaviour. One of the techniques most used in developed countries to enhance HMA behaviour is the use of modified bitumen. Modifying the bitumen, and then producing modified HMA requires specific equipment and facilities that may be time-consuming, expensive and hard to manage. For instance, to warranty a successful modifying process, storage and handling of the modified bitumen are issues very complex to handle. On the other hand, producing a polymer modified HMA by adding polymers and additives directly during the bitumen/aggregate mixing process may offer very interesting advantages since the economical, production and sustainability standpoint. This paper aimed to determine the feasibility of the incorporation of fibres and plastomeric polymers into different types of HMA by means of the “dry process” (to add polymers during the mixing of aggregate and bitumen in the HMA plant) to produce polymer modified mixes. Thus, laboratory tests including Marshall Stability, Indirect Tensile Stiffness Modulus, repeated load test and Indirect Tensile Strength test were performed to assess the effect of the inclusion of fibres and plastomeric polymers on mechanical and volumetric properties of selected mixes. Results showed that the modification of bituminous mixtures following the “dry process” could be used to improve the performance and long term properties of HMA.

Ultrasound-Guided Cryoanalgesia of Peripheral Nerve Lesions.

PubMed

Djebbar, Sahlya; Rossi, Ignacio M; Adler, Ronald S

2016-11-01

The real-time nature of ultrasound makes it ideally suited to provide guidance for a variety of musculoskeletal interventional procedures involving peripheral nerves. Continuous observation of the needle ensures proper placement and allows continuous monitoring when performing localized ablative therapy and therefore more accurate positioning of a cryoprobe, use of smaller needles, as well as access to small structures. We describe our experience performing cryoablative procedures. Patients undergoing cryoneurolysis have largely reported varying degrees of long-term pain relief and improvement in function; no serious complications have yet been identified. Ultrasound-guided cryoneurolysis can provide a useful, safe alternative to other ablative techniques to achieve long-term analgesia from painful peripheral nerve lesions. Thieme Medical Publishers 333 Seventh Avenue, New York, NY 10001, USA.

Soil stabilization with recycled materials improves subgrade performance : research spotlight.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2016-02-29

The use of recycled materials for subgrade stabilization can provide the support needed for construction vehicle loading and more typical long-term traffic loading. This is a particular need in Michigan due to the prevalence of weak subgrade soils. U...

Successful peroral endoscopic myotomy performed in Endoscopy Department as a radical, long-term treatment for esophageal achalasia - the Greek experience.

PubMed

Eleftheriadis, Nikolas; Eleftheriadou, Eleni Damianos

2017-01-01

Peroral endoscopic myotomy (POEM) has been considered as a minimal-invasive, innovative technique for long-term treatment of all types of esophageal achalasia and other esophageal motility disorders. We report on 20 consecutive Greek patients with manometrically proved esophageal achalasia (14 patients with type I, 4 with type II, 2 with type III, and 4 with sigmoid esophagus), with an age range of 32-92 years, mean age 59 years, 12 males, successfully treated by POEM from 2013 to 2015. The Eckardt score was 7-12 (type III). Seventeen (85%) POEM procedures were performed in the Endoscopy Department, according to a previous study. During POEM, CO 2 insufflation was mandatory, while the Triangle Tip knife was the only knife used in all procedures. Eckardt score, esophagogram and manometry before and after performing POEM were used for evaluation of our results. The follow-up period was 6 months to 3 years. Selective circular myotomy, 10-13 cm in length, was successfully completed in all patients without severe acute or late complications. Three patients (15%) showed moderate pneumomediastinum and pneumoperitoneum, which was successfully managed by abdominal needle drainage during the procedure. One patient showed mild pleural collection, and in one patient the clip-endoloop technique was used to successfully close the mucosal entry after the completion of POEM. The outcome was uneventful without any further clinical consequences. No other short- or long-term serious complications were reported. Patients were discharged after 1-3 days of hospitalization. Six months to 3 years after the POEM procedure, all patients were alive; the majority (90%) had complete clinical improvement, while two patients with sigmoid-type achalasia showed moderate-to-significant clinical improvement. Erosive esophagitis was reported in 15%. Our results are in accordance with international data, and proved the safety and efficacy of the POEM technique for radical long-term treatment of all types of achalasia, including end-stage sigmoid-type achalasia, in the Endoscopy Department. However, long-term follow-up is necessary and awaited.

Missing Link: Integrated Individual Leadership Development, Employee Engagement, and Customer Value-Added Improvement

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Heldenbrand, Lois; Simms, Michael S.

2012-01-01

Long-term care is a key public issue that affects all of us in some way at some time of our lives. Nowhere is performance improvement and quality management more imperative. Through an 8-month field study and follow-up case study, we discuss how using an integrated approach to individual leadership development, employee engagement, and customer…

Getting Education Right for Long-term Growth in the Czech Republic. OECD Economics Department Working Papers, No. 497

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Goglio, Alessandro

2006-01-01

Widening the skills base and improving labour-market efficiency requires the support of good education. This paper describes the structure of the education system, identifies weaknesses and considers ways to improve performance in light of the ongoing rapidly expanding demand for tertiary level education. The paper discusses ways to modernise the…

Within-session spacing improves delayed recall in children.

PubMed

Zigterman, Jessica R; Simone, Patricia M; Bell, Matthew C

2015-01-01

Multiple retrievals of a memory over a spaced manner improve long-term memory performance in infants, children, younger and older adults; however, few studies have examined spacing effects with young school-age children. To expand the understanding of the spacing benefit in children, the current study presented weakly associated English word-pairs to children aged 7-11 and cued their recall two times immediately (massed), after a delay of 5 or 10 items (spaced) or not at all (control). After this encoding session with or without two retrievals, participants were tested two times for memory of all word-pairs: immediately and 30 minutes after the encoding session. Multiple retrievals significantly improved memory on the tests. However, words repeated in a spaced design were remembered at higher rates than those that were massed, while gap size between repetitions (5 or 10) did not differentially impact performance. The data show that a within-session spacing strategy can benefit children's ability to remember word-pairs after 30 minutes. Thus, asking students to recall what they have learned within a lesson is a technique that can be used in a classroom to improve long-term recall.

An Accurate Link Correlation Estimator for Improving Wireless Protocol Performance

PubMed Central

Zhao, Zhiwei; Xu, Xianghua; Dong, Wei; Bu, Jiajun

2015-01-01

Wireless link correlation has shown significant impact on the performance of various sensor network protocols. Many works have been devoted to exploiting link correlation for protocol improvements. However, the effectiveness of these designs heavily relies on the accuracy of link correlation measurement. In this paper, we investigate state-of-the-art link correlation measurement and analyze the limitations of existing works. We then propose a novel lightweight and accurate link correlation estimation (LACE) approach based on the reasoning of link correlation formation. LACE combines both long-term and short-term link behaviors for link correlation estimation. We implement LACE as a stand-alone interface in TinyOS and incorporate it into both routing and flooding protocols. Simulation and testbed results show that LACE: (1) achieves more accurate and lightweight link correlation measurements than the state-of-the-art work; and (2) greatly improves the performance of protocols exploiting link correlation. PMID:25686314

A multimodal high-value curriculum affects drivers of utilization and performance on the high-value care component of the internal medicine in-training exam.

PubMed

Chau, Tom; Loertscher, Laura

2018-01-01

Background : Teaching the practice of high-value care (HVC) is an increasingly important function of graduate medical education but best practices and long-term outcomes remain unknown. Objective : Whether a multimodal curriculum designed to address specific drivers of low-value care would affect resident attitudes, skills, and performance of HVC as tested by the Internal Medicine In-Training Exam (ITE). Methods : In 2012, we performed a baseline needs assessment among internal medicine residents at a community program regarding drivers of healthcare utilization. We then created a multimodal curriculum with online interactive worksheets, lectures, and faculty buy-in to target specific skills, knowledge, and culture deficiencies. Perceived drivers of care and performance on the Internal Medicine ITE were assessed yearly through 2016. Results : Fourteen of 27 (52%) residents completed the initial needs assessment while the curriculum was eventually seen by at least 24 of 27 (89%). The ITE was taken by every resident every year. Long-term, 3-year follow-up demonstrated persistent improvement in many drivers of utilization (patient requests, reliance on subspecialists, defensive medicine, and academic curiosity) and improvement with sustained high performance on the high-value component of the ITE. Conclusion : A multimodal curriculum targeting specific drivers of low-value care can change culture and lead to sustained improvement in the practice of HVC.

Cervical cancer survivorship: Long-term quality of life and social support

PubMed Central

Pfaendler, Krista S.; Wenzel, Lari; Mechanic, Mindy B.; Penner, Kristine R.

2015-01-01

Purpose Surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy are the mainstays of cervical cancer treatment. Many patients receive multiple treatment modalities, each with its own long-term effects. Given the high 5 year survival rate for cervical cancer patients, evaluation and improvement of long-term quality of life are essential. Methods Pertinent articles were identified through searches of PubMed for literature published from 1993-2014. We summarize quality of life data from long-term follow up studies of cervical cancer patients. We additionally summarize small group interviews of Hispanic and non-Hispanic cervical cancer survivors regarding social support and coping. Findings Data is varied in terms of the long term impact of treatment on quality of life but consistent in suggesting that patients who receive radiotherapy as part of their treatment have the highest risk of increased long term dysfunction of bladder and bowel, as well as sexual dysfunction and psychosocial consequences. Rigorous investigations regarding long-term consequences of treatment modalities are lacking. Implications Continued work to improve treatment outcomes and survival should also include a focus on reducing adverse long-term side effects. Providing supportive care during treatment, and evaluating the effects of supportive care, may reduce the prevalence and magnitude of long-term sequelae of cervical cancer, which will in turn improve quality of life and quality of care. PMID:25592090

[Genotype-dependent mice behavior in cognitive tasks. Effect of noopept].

PubMed

Bel'nik, A P; Ostrovskaia, R U; Poletaeva, I I

2007-01-01

The interstrain differences in performance of C57BL/6J, BALB/c and DBA/2J male mice in two cognitive tasks were found. Mice C57BL/6J showed good learning ability and preservation of memory traces tested 10 days after performance in a simplified version of Morris water maze. Mice BALB/c learned the task but, virtually, no long-term memory traces were revealed, whereas DBA/2J demonstrated poor learning. The effect of nootropic drug Noopept (GVS-111, N-phenil-acetyl-L-prolylglycin ethyl ether) was shown to be genotype-dependent. Its administration (0.5 mg/kg i.p., 15 min before learning) improved the long-term memory in Morris test in BALB/c mice but failed to produce any improvement in C57BL/6J. The ability of mice for extrapolation of the direction of stimulus movement differently changed after Noopept injections: the proportion of correct task solutions increased in C57BL/6J and BALB/c mice, whereas the performance of DBA/2J did not change.

Hydrogen-Treated Rutile TiO2 Shell in Graphite-Core Structure as a Negative Electrode for High-Performance Vanadium Redox Flow Batteries.

PubMed

Vázquez-Galván, Javier; Flox, Cristina; Fàbrega, Cristian; Ventosa, Edgar; Parra, Andres; Andreu, Teresa; Morante, Joan Ramón

2017-05-09

Hydrogen-treated TiO 2 as an electrocatalyst has shown to boost the capacity of high-performance all-vanadium redox flow batteries (VRFBs) as a simple and eco-friendly strategy. The graphite felt-based GF@TiO 2 :H electrode is able to inhibit the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER), which is a critical barrier for operating at high rate for long-term cycling in VRFBs. Significant improvements in charge/discharge and electron-transfer processes for the V 3+ /V 2+ reaction on the surface of reduced TiO 2 were achieved as a consequence of the formation of oxygen functional groups and oxygen vacancies in the lattice structure. Key performance indicators of VRFB have been improved, such as high capability rates and electrolyte-utilization ratios (82 % at 200 mA cm -2 ). Additionally, high coulombic efficiencies (ca. 100 % up to the 96th cycle, afterwards >97 %) were obtained, demonstrating the feasibility of achieving long-term stability. © 2017 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Positive effects of resistance training in frail elderly patients with dementia after long-term physical restraint.

PubMed

Cadore, Eduardo L; Moneo, Ana B Bays; Mensat, Marta Martinez; Muñoz, Andrea Rozas; Casas-Herrero, Alvaro; Rodriguez-Mañas, Leocadio; Izquierdo, Mikel

2014-04-01

This study investigated the effects of a multicomponent exercise intervention on muscle strength, incidence of falls and functional outcomes in frail elderly patients with dementia after long-term physical restraint, followed by 24 weeks of training cessation. Eighteen frail elderly patients with mild dementia (88.1 ± 5.1 years) performed a multicomponent exercise program, which consisted of 4 weeks of walking, balance and cognitive exercises, followed by 4 weeks of resistance exercise performed twice weekly [8-12 repetitions at 20-50 % of the one-repetition maximum (1RM)], combined with walking, balance and cognitive exercises. Before and after training, as well as after 24 weeks of training cessation, strength outcomes, Barthel Index, balance, gait ability, rise from a chair ability, dual task performance, incidence of falls and Mini-Mental State Examination were assessed. After the first 4 weeks of training, there was a significant improvement only in the balance test, whereas no additional changes were observed. However, after the second part of the training, the participants required significantly less time for the time-up-and-go test (P < 0.05), and improved the isometric hand grip, hip flexion and knee extension strength, as well as the leg press 1RM (P < 0.01). A significant reduction was also observed in the incidence of falls (P < 0.01). After 24 weeks of training cessation, abrupt decreases were observed in nearly all of the physical outcomes (P < 0.05). The exercise intervention improved strength, balance and gait ability in frail elderly patients with dementia after long-term physical restraint, and these benefits were lost after training cessation.

The mediating role of insight for long-term improvements in psychodynamic therapy.

PubMed

Johansson, Paul; Høglend, Per; Ulberg, Randi; Amlo, Svein; Marble, Alice; Bøgwald, Kjell-Petter; Sørbye, Oystein; Sjaastad, Mary Cosgrove; Heyerdahl, Oscar

2010-06-01

According to psychoanalytic theory, interpretation of transference leads to increased insight that again leads to improved interpersonal functioning over time. In this study, we performed a full mediational analysis to test whether insight gained during treatment mediates the long-term effects of transference interpretation in dynamic psychotherapy. This study is a randomized clinical trial with a dismantling design. One hundred outpatients seeking psychotherapy for depression, anxiety, personality disorders, and interpersonal problems were randomly assigned to 1 year of weekly sessions of dynamic psychotherapy with transference interpretation or to the same type and duration of treatment with the same therapists but without the use of transference interpretation. Interpersonal functioning and insight were measured pretreatment, posttreatment, and 1 year and 3 years after treatment termination. Contrary to common expectation, patients with a life-long pattern of low quality of object relations and personality disorder pathology profited more from therapy with transference interpretation than from therapy with no transference interpretation. This long-term effect was mediated by an increase in the level of insight during treatment. Insight seems to be a key mechanism of change in dynamic psychotherapy. Our results bridge the gap between clinical theory and empirical research.

Sports Activity after Low-contact-stress Total Knee Arthroplasty – A long term follow-up study

PubMed Central

Vielgut, Ines; Leitner, Lukas; Kastner, Norbert; Radl, Roman; Leithner, Andreas; Sadoghi, Patrick

2016-01-01

The purpose of this study was to provide comprehensive long-term data about sports activity levels in patients following total knee arthroplasty (TKA) and to determine the impact of pre-operative function, pain and specific performed sports on the results. 236 patients who have undergone TKA for severe osteoarthritis of the knee were asked to provide specific information regarding exercised types of sports before surgery and after at least 10 years following TKA. Pre- and postoperative function and pain were evaluated by the use of Tegner-, WOMAC- and VAS Score. After a mean of 14.9 years, a significant improvement regarding pain and function was observed. Pre-operative Tegner- and WOMAC scores revealed significant positive correlations with the post-operative Tegner-Score. Accordingly, a high percentage of patients (70.9%) stayed actively involved in sports. Nevertheless, the number of performing patients has decreased according to the sports impact. 71.3% continued practising low-impact-, 43.7% intermediate-impact sports whereas only 16.4% kept performing high impact sports. We conclude that TKA is highly effective in long-time pain reduction as well as improvement of function. Additionally, we found considerable sports activities preserved in the investigated series. However, sports activities in particular, seem to decrease according to the impact of sports. PMID:27090945

Sports Activity after Low-contact-stress Total Knee Arthroplasty - A long term follow-up study.

PubMed

Vielgut, Ines; Leitner, Lukas; Kastner, Norbert; Radl, Roman; Leithner, Andreas; Sadoghi, Patrick

2016-04-19

The purpose of this study was to provide comprehensive long-term data about sports activity levels in patients following total knee arthroplasty (TKA) and to determine the impact of pre-operative function, pain and specific performed sports on the results. 236 patients who have undergone TKA for severe osteoarthritis of the knee were asked to provide specific information regarding exercised types of sports before surgery and after at least 10 years following TKA. Pre- and postoperative function and pain were evaluated by the use of Tegner-, WOMAC- and VAS Score. After a mean of 14.9 years, a significant improvement regarding pain and function was observed. Pre-operative Tegner- and WOMAC scores revealed significant positive correlations with the post-operative Tegner-Score. Accordingly, a high percentage of patients (70.9%) stayed actively involved in sports. Nevertheless, the number of performing patients has decreased according to the sports impact. 71.3% continued practising low-impact-, 43.7% intermediate-impact sports whereas only 16.4% kept performing high impact sports. We conclude that TKA is highly effective in long-time pain reduction as well as improvement of function. Additionally, we found considerable sports activities preserved in the investigated series. However, sports activities in particular, seem to decrease according to the impact of sports.

Predictors of long-term renal outcome in lupus nephritis trials: lessons learned from the Euro-Lupus Nephritis cohort.

PubMed

Dall'Era, Maria; Cisternas, Miriam G; Smilek, Dawn E; Straub, Laura; Houssiau, Frédéric A; Cervera, Ricard; Rovin, Brad H; Mackay, Meggan

2015-05-01

There is a need to determine which response measures in lupus nephritis trials are most predictive of good long-term renal function. We used data from the Euro-Lupus Nephritis Trial to evaluate the performance of proteinuria, serum creatinine (Cr), and urinary red blood cells (RBCs) as predictors of good long-term renal outcome. Patients from the Euro-Lupus Nephritis Trial with proteinuria, serum Cr, and urinary RBC measurements at 3, 6, or 12 months and with a minimum of 7 years of followup were included (n = 76). We assessed the ability of these clinical biomarkers at 3, 6, and 12 months after randomization to predict good long-term renal outcome (defined as a serum Cr value ≤1.0 mg/dl) at 7 years. Receiver operating characteristic curves were generated to assess parameter performance at these time points and to select the best cutoff for individual parameters. Sensitivity and specificity were calculated for the parameters alone and in combination. A proteinuria value of <0.8 gm/day at 12 months after randomization was the single best predictor of good long-term renal function (sensitivity 81% and specificity 78%). The addition of serum Cr to proteinuria as a composite predictor did not improve the performance of the outcome measure; addition of urinary RBCs as a predictor significantly decreased the sensitivity to 47%. This study demonstrates that the level of proteinuria at 12 months is the individual best predictor of long-term renal outcome in patients with lupus nephritis. Inclusion of urinary RBCs as part of a composite outcome measure actually undermined the predictive value of the trial data. We therefore suggest that urinary RBCs should not be included as a component of clinical trial response criteria in lupus nephritis. © 2015, American College of Rheumatology.

A Single Bout of Moderate Aerobic Exercise Improves Motor Skill Acquisition.

PubMed

Statton, Matthew A; Encarnacion, Marysol; Celnik, Pablo; Bastian, Amy J

2015-01-01

Long-term exercise is associated with improved performance on a variety of cognitive tasks including attention, executive function, and long-term memory. Remarkably, recent studies have shown that even a single bout of aerobic exercise can lead to immediate improvements in declarative learning and memory, but less is known about the effect of exercise on motor learning. Here we sought to determine the effect of a single bout of moderate intensity aerobic exercise on motor skill learning. In experiment 1, we investigated the effect of moderate aerobic exercise on motor acquisition. 24 young, healthy adults performed a motor learning task either immediately after 30 minutes of moderate intensity running, after running followed by a long rest period, or after slow walking. Motor skill was assessed via a speed-accuracy tradeoff function to determine how exercise might differentially affect two distinct components of motor learning performance: movement speed and accuracy. In experiment 2, we investigated both acquisition and retention of motor skill across multiple days of training. 20 additional participants performed either a bout of running or slow walking immediately before motor learning on three consecutive days, and only motor learning (no exercise) on a fourth day. We found that moderate intensity running led to an immediate improvement in motor acquisition for both a single session and on multiple sessions across subsequent days, but had no effect on between-day retention. This effect was driven by improved movement accuracy, as opposed to speed. However, the benefit of exercise was dependent upon motor learning occurring immediately after exercise-resting for a period of one hour after exercise diminished the effect. These results demonstrate that moderate intensity exercise can prime the nervous system for the acquisition of new motor skills, and suggest that similar exercise protocols may be effective in improving the outcomes of movement rehabilitation programs.

A Single Bout of Moderate Aerobic Exercise Improves Motor Skill Acquisition

PubMed Central

Statton, Matthew A.; Encarnacion, Marysol; Celnik, Pablo; Bastian, Amy J.

2015-01-01

Long-term exercise is associated with improved performance on a variety of cognitive tasks including attention, executive function, and long-term memory. Remarkably, recent studies have shown that even a single bout of aerobic exercise can lead to immediate improvements in declarative learning and memory, but less is known about the effect of exercise on motor learning. Here we sought to determine the effect of a single bout of moderate intensity aerobic exercise on motor skill learning. In experiment 1, we investigated the effect of moderate aerobic exercise on motor acquisition. 24 young, healthy adults performed a motor learning task either immediately after 30 minutes of moderate intensity running, after running followed by a long rest period, or after slow walking. Motor skill was assessed via a speed-accuracy tradeoff function to determine how exercise might differentially affect two distinct components of motor learning performance: movement speed and accuracy. In experiment 2, we investigated both acquisition and retention of motor skill across multiple days of training. 20 additional participants performed either a bout of running or slow walking immediately before motor learning on three consecutive days, and only motor learning (no exercise) on a fourth day. We found that moderate intensity running led to an immediate improvement in motor acquisition for both a single session and on multiple sessions across subsequent days, but had no effect on between-day retention. This effect was driven by improved movement accuracy, as opposed to speed. However, the benefit of exercise was dependent upon motor learning occurring immediately after exercise–resting for a period of one hour after exercise diminished the effect. These results demonstrate that moderate intensity exercise can prime the nervous system for the acquisition of new motor skills, and suggest that similar exercise protocols may be effective in improving the outcomes of movement rehabilitation programs. PMID:26506413

Dynamics of Hippocampal Protein Expression During Long-term Spatial Memory Formation*

PubMed Central

Borovok, Natalia; Nesher, Elimelech; Levin, Yishai; Reichenstein, Michal; Pinhasov, Albert

2016-01-01

Spatial memory depends on the hippocampus, which is particularly vulnerable to aging. This vulnerability has implications for the impairment of navigation capacities in older people, who may show a marked drop in performance of spatial tasks with advancing age. Contemporary understanding of long-term memory formation relies on molecular mechanisms underlying long-term synaptic plasticity. With memory acquisition, activity-dependent changes occurring in synapses initiate multiple signal transduction pathways enhancing protein turnover. This enhancement facilitates de novo synthesis of plasticity related proteins, crucial factors for establishing persistent long-term synaptic plasticity and forming memory engrams. Extensive studies have been performed to elucidate molecular mechanisms of memory traces formation; however, the identity of plasticity related proteins is still evasive. In this study, we investigated protein turnover in mouse hippocampus during long-term spatial memory formation using the reference memory version of radial arm maze (RAM) paradigm. We identified 1592 proteins, which exhibited a complex picture of expression changes during spatial memory formation. Variable linear decomposition reduced significantly data dimensionality and enriched three principal factors responsible for variance of memory-related protein levels at (1) the initial phase of memory acquisition (165 proteins), (2) during the steep learning improvement (148 proteins), and (3) the final phase of the learning curve (123 proteins). Gene ontology and signaling pathways analysis revealed a clear correlation between memory improvement and learning phase-curbed expression profiles of proteins belonging to specific functional categories. We found differential enrichment of (1) neurotrophic factors signaling pathways, proteins regulating synaptic transmission, and actin microfilament during the first day of the learning curve; (2) transcription and translation machinery, protein trafficking, enhancement of metabolic activity, and Wnt signaling pathway during the steep phase of memory formation; and (3) cytoskeleton organization proteins. Taken together, this study clearly demonstrates dynamic assembly and disassembly of protein-protein interaction networks depending on the stage of memory formation engrams. PMID:26598641

Using environmental tracers and transient hydraulic heads to estimate groundwater recharge and conductivity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Erdal, Daniel; Cirpka, Olaf A.

2017-04-01

Regional groundwater flow strongly depends on groundwater recharge and hydraulic conductivity. While conductivity is a spatially variable field, recharge can vary in both space and time. None of the two fields can be reliably observed on larger scales, and their estimation from other sparse data sets is an open topic. Further, common hydraulic-head observations may not suffice to constrain both fields simultaneously. In the current work we use the Ensemble Kalman filter to estimate spatially variable conductivity, spatiotemporally variable recharge and porosity for a synthetic phreatic aquifer. We use transient hydraulic-head and one spatially distributed set of environmental tracer observations to constrain the estimation. As environmental tracers generally reside for a long time in an aquifer, they require long simulation times and carries a long memory that makes them highly unsuitable for use in a sequential framework. Therefore, in this work we use the environmental tracer information to precondition the initial ensemble of recharge and conductivities, before starting the sequential filter. Thereby, we aim at improving the performance of the sequential filter by limiting the range of the recharge to values similar to the long-term annual recharge means and by creating an initial ensemble of conductivities that show similar pattern and values to the true field. The sequential filter is then used to further improve the parameters and to estimate the short term temporal behavior as well as the temporally evolving head field needed for short term predictions within the aquifer. For a virtual reality covering a subsection of the river Neckar it is shown that the use of environmental tracers can improve the performance of the filter. Results using the EnKF with and without this preconditioned initial ensemble are evaluated and discussed.

Modelling diffusion feedbacks between technology performance, cost and consumer behaviour for future energy-transport systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tran, Martino; Brand, Christian; Banister, David

2014-04-01

Emerging technologies will have important impacts on sustainability objectives. Yet little is known about the explicit feedbacks between consumer behaviour and technological change, and the potential impact on mass market penetration. We use the UK as a case-study to explore the dynamic interactions between technology supply, performance, cost, and heterogeneous consumer behaviour and the resulting influence on long term market diffusion. Simulations of competing vehicle technologies indicate that petrol hybrids (HEVs) dominate the market over the long-term because they benefit from improved performance and are able to reach the steep part of the diffusion curve by 2025 while competing technologies remain in the early stages of growth and are easier to displace in the market. This is due to the cumulative build-up of stock and slow fleet turnover creating inertia in the technological system. Consequently, it will be difficult to displace incumbent technologies because of system inertia, cumulative growth in stock, long operational life, and consumer risk aversion to new unproven technologies. However, when accounting for both technological and behavioural change, simulations indicate that if investment can reach 30-40% per annum growth in supply, combined with steady technology improvements, and more sophisticated agent decision making such as accounting for full technology lifecycle cost and performance, full battery electric vehicles could displace the incumbent system by 2050.

Long-term tracking of budding yeast cells in brightfield microscopy: CellStar and the Evaluation Platform.

PubMed

Versari, Cristian; Stoma, Szymon; Batmanov, Kirill; Llamosi, Artémis; Mroz, Filip; Kaczmarek, Adam; Deyell, Matt; Lhoussaine, Cédric; Hersen, Pascal; Batt, Gregory

2017-02-01

With the continuous expansion of single cell biology, the observation of the behaviour of individual cells over extended durations and with high accuracy has become a problem of central importance. Surprisingly, even for yeast cells that have relatively regular shapes, no solution has been proposed that reaches the high quality required for long-term experiments for segmentation and tracking (S&T) based on brightfield images. Here, we present CellStar , a tool chain designed to achieve good performance in long-term experiments. The key features are the use of a new variant of parametrized active rays for segmentation, a neighbourhood-preserving criterion for tracking, and the use of an iterative approach that incrementally improves S&T quality. A graphical user interface enables manual corrections of S&T errors and their use for the automated correction of other, related errors and for parameter learning. We created a benchmark dataset with manually analysed images and compared CellStar with six other tools, showing its high performance, notably in long-term tracking. As a community effort, we set up a website, the Yeast Image Toolkit, with the benchmark and the Evaluation Platform to gather this and additional information provided by others. © 2017 The Authors.

Long-term tracking of budding yeast cells in brightfield microscopy: CellStar and the Evaluation Platform

PubMed Central

Versari, Cristian; Stoma, Szymon; Batmanov, Kirill; Llamosi, Artémis; Mroz, Filip; Kaczmarek, Adam; Deyell, Matt

2017-01-01

With the continuous expansion of single cell biology, the observation of the behaviour of individual cells over extended durations and with high accuracy has become a problem of central importance. Surprisingly, even for yeast cells that have relatively regular shapes, no solution has been proposed that reaches the high quality required for long-term experiments for segmentation and tracking (S&T) based on brightfield images. Here, we present CellStar, a tool chain designed to achieve good performance in long-term experiments. The key features are the use of a new variant of parametrized active rays for segmentation, a neighbourhood-preserving criterion for tracking, and the use of an iterative approach that incrementally improves S&T quality. A graphical user interface enables manual corrections of S&T errors and their use for the automated correction of other, related errors and for parameter learning. We created a benchmark dataset with manually analysed images and compared CellStar with six other tools, showing its high performance, notably in long-term tracking. As a community effort, we set up a website, the Yeast Image Toolkit, with the benchmark and the Evaluation Platform to gather this and additional information provided by others. PMID:28179544

A novel high pressure, high temperature vessel used to conduct long-term stability measurements of silicon MEMS pressure transducers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wisniewiski, David

2014-03-01

The need to quantify and to improve long-term stability of pressure transducers is a persistent requirement from the aerospace sector. Specifically, the incorporation of real-time pressure monitoring in aircraft landing gear, as exemplified in Tire Pressure Monitoring Systems (TPMS), has placed greater demand on the pressure transducer for improved performance and increased reliability which is manifested in low lifecycle cost and minimal maintenance downtime through fuel savings and increased life of the tire. Piezoresistive (PR) silicon MEMS pressure transducers are the primary choice as a transduction method for this measurement owing to their ability to be designed for the harsh environment seen in aircraft landing gear. However, these pressure transducers are only as valuable as the long-term stability they possess to ensure reliable, real-time monitoring over tens of years. The "heart" of the pressure transducer is the silicon MEMS element, and it is at this basic level where the long-term stability is established and needs to be quantified. A novel High Pressure, High Temperature (HPHT) vessel has been designed and constructed to facilitate this critical measurement of the silicon MEMS element directly through a process of mechanically "floating" the silicon MEMS element while being subjected to the extreme environments of pressure and temperature, simultaneously. Furthermore, the HPHT vessel is scalable to permit up to fifty specimens to be tested at one time to provide a statistically significant data population on which to draw reasonable conclusions on long-term stability. With the knowledge gained on the silicon MEMS element, higher level assembly to the pressure transducer envelope package can also be quantified as to the build-effects contribution to long-term stability in the same HPHT vessel due to its accommodating size. Accordingly, a HPHT vessel offering multiple levels of configurability and robustness in data measurement is presented, along with 10 year long-term stability results.

Improved guidance for users of the 1993 AASHTO flexible pavement design procedures : LTPP TechBrief

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1997-08-01

A key design challenge faced by engineers using the 1993 AASHTO Guide for Design of Pavement Structures (AASHTO Guide) is the determination of appropriate design parameters for the subgrade and pavement materials. The Long-Term Pavement Performance (...

Linking Competence Change and Organization Performance

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Boulay, David

2007-01-01

The notion of long term sustainable competitive advantage assumes that environment changes are engrained into organizations. Yet, the principles of continuous improvement suggest a shorter and shorter lifecycle of skills and knowledge that provides the sustainable advantage. Continuous change resulting from new ideas, practices, and technologies…

Power Source

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schooley, Michael L.

2010-01-01

Principals are powerful: They are the primary catalysts for creating a lasting foundation for learning, driving school and student performance, and shaping the long-term impact of school improvement efforts. Yet few principals would characterize themselves as powerful. Rather, they're self-effacing, adaptable, pragmatic, and quick to share credit…

Stress Induced Degradation Modes in CIGSS Minimodules (Presentation)

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

Kempe, M. D.; Terwilliger, K.; Tarrant, D.

2008-05-01

The experimental objectives of this report are: (1) compare the performance of modules exposed to high temperature and humidity; (2) determine the effects of different encapsulants on long term stability of CIGSS modules; and (3) analyze failure modes to determine areas in need of improvement.

A New Framework for Adptive Sampling and Analysis During Long-Term Monitoring and Remedial Action Management

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

Minsker, Barbara

2005-06-01

Yonas Demissie, a research assistant supported by the project, has successfully created artificial data and assimilated it into coupled Modflow and artificial neural network models. His initial findings show that the neural networks help correct errors in the Modflow models. Abhishek Singh has used test cases from the literature to show that performing model calibration with an interactive genetic algorithm results in significantly improved parameter values. Meghna Babbar, the third research assistant supported by the project, has found similar results when applying an interactive genetic algorithms to long-term monitoring design. She has also developed new types of interactive genetic algorithmsmore » that significantly improve performance. Gayathri Gopalakrishnan, the last research assistant who is partially supported by the project, has shown that sampling branches of phytoremediation trees is an accurate approach to estimating soil and groundwater contaminations in areas surrounding the trees at the Argonne 317/319 site.« less

Evaluating the Performance of Philadelphia's Charter Schools. Working Paper WR-550-WPF

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zimmer, Ron; Blanc, Suzanne; Gill, Brian; Christman, Jolley

2008-01-01

Plagued by long-term poor student outcomes, a number of reforms have been implemented within the Philadelphia School District to improve performance, including the use of charter schools. The number of charter schools in Philadelphia has risen from four to more than 60 over the past decade, and these schools now serve over 30,000 students. Debate…

Employee Post-Training Behaviour and Performance: Evaluating the Results of the Training Process

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Diamantidis, Anastasios D.; Chatzoglou, Prodromos D.

2014-01-01

Despite the fact that firms invest in training, there is considerable evidence to show that training programmes often fail to achieve the intended result of improving worker and organization performance. The purpose of this paper is to examine the medium- to long-term effects of training programmes on firms by means of an integrated research model…

Improvement of short-term memory performance in aged beagles by a nutraceutical supplement containing phosphatidylserine, Ginkgo biloba, vitamin E, and pyridoxine

PubMed Central

Araujo, Joseph A.; Landsberg, Gary M.; Milgram, Norton W.; Miolo, Alda

2008-01-01

Aged dogs demonstrate cognitive decline that is linked to brain aging. The purpose of the present study was to examine if a commercially available nutraceutical supplement that may be neuroprotective and contains phosphatidylserine, Ginkgo biloba, vitamin E, and pyridoxine could improve cognitive function in aged beagles. Nine aged beagles were tested on performance on a delayed-non-matching-to-position task, which is a neuropsychological test of short-term visuospatial memory. All subjects were tested on 5 baseline sessions; then, to assess the supplement, a crossover design was used in which 1 group received the supplement and the other a control substance in the 1st phase, with treatment conditions being reversed in the 2nd phase. Performance accuracy was significantly improved in supplemented dogs compared with control dogs and the effect was long lasting. These findings suggest that the nutraceutical supplement can improve memory in aged dogs. PMID:18481547

Short- and Long-Term Learning of Feedforward Control of a Myoelectric Prosthesis with Sensory Feedback by Amputees.

PubMed

Strbac, Matija; Isakovic, Milica; Belic, Minja; Popovic, Igor; Simanic, Igor; Farina, Dario; Keller, Thierry; Dosen, Strahinja

2017-11-01

Human motor control relies on a combination of feedback and feedforward strategies. The aim of this study was to longitudinally investigate artificial somatosensory feedback and feedforward control in the context of grasping with myoelectric prosthesis. Nine amputee subjects performed routine grasping trials, with the aim to produce four levels of force during four blocks of 60 trials across five days. The electrotactile force feedback was provided in the second and third block using multipad electrode and spatial coding. The first baseline and last validation block (open-loop control) evaluated the effects of long- (across sessions) and short-term (within session) learning, respectively. The outcome measures were the absolute error between the generated and target force, and the number of force saturations. The results demonstrated that the electrotactile feedback improved the performance both within and across sessions. In the validation block, the performance did not significantly decrease and the quality of open-loop control (baseline) improved across days, converging to the performance characterizing closed-loop control. This paper provides important insights into the feedback and feedforward processes in prosthesis control, contributing to the better understanding of the role and design of feedback in prosthetic systems.

Long-Term Memory Performance in Adult ADHD.

PubMed

Skodzik, Timo; Holling, Heinz; Pedersen, Anya

2017-02-01

Memory problems are a frequently reported symptom in adult ADHD, and it is well-documented that adults with ADHD perform poorly on long-term memory tests. However, the cause of this effect is still controversial. The present meta-analysis examined underlying mechanisms that may lead to long-term memory impairments in adult ADHD. We performed separate meta-analyses of measures of memory acquisition and long-term memory using both verbal and visual memory tests. In addition, the influence of potential moderator variables was examined. Adults with ADHD performed significantly worse than controls on verbal but not on visual long-term memory and memory acquisition subtests. The long-term memory deficit was strongly statistically related to the memory acquisition deficit. In contrast, no retrieval problems were observable. Our results suggest that memory deficits in adult ADHD reflect a learning deficit induced at the stage of encoding. Implications for clinical and research settings are presented.

Long-term safety concerns with proton pump inhibitors.

PubMed

Ali, Tauseef; Roberts, David Neil; Tierney, William M

2009-10-01

Proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) are among the most widely prescribed medications worldwide. Their use has resulted in dramatic improvements in treatment of peptic ulcer disease and gastroesophageal reflux disease. Despite an acceptable safety profile, mounting data demonstrate concerns about the long-term use of PPIs. To provide a comprehensive review regarding the concerns of long-term PPI use, a literature search was performed to identify pertinent original and review articles. Despite study shortcomings, the collective body of information overwhelmingly suggests an increased risk of infectious complications and nutritional deficiencies. Data regarding any increased risk in gastric or colon malignancy are less convincing. PPIs have revolutionized the management and complications of acid-related disorders with a high margin of safety; however, with the data available, efforts to reduce the dosing of or discontinue the use of PPIs must be reassessed frequently.

Durable crystalline Si photovoltaic modules based on silicone-sheet encapsulants

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hara, Kohjiro; Ohwada, Hiroto; Furihata, Tomoyoshi; Masuda, Atsushi

2018-02-01

Crystalline Si photovoltaic (PV) modules were fabricated with sheets of poly(dimethylsiloxane) (silicone) as an encapsulant. The long-term durability of the silicone-encapsulated PV modules was experimentally investigated. The silicone-based modules enhanced the long-term durability against potential-induced degradation (PID) and a damp-heat (DH) condition at 85 °C with 85% relative humidity (RH). In addition, we designed and fabricated substrate-type Si PV modules based on the silicone encapsulant and an Al-alloy plate as the substratum, which demonstrated high impact resistance and high incombustible performance. The high chemical stability, high volume resistivity, rubber-like elasticity, and incombustibility of the silicone encapsulant resulted in the high durability of the modules. Our results indicate that silicone is an attractive encapsulation material, as it improves the long-term durability of crystalline Si PV modules.

Poststimulation time interval-dependent effects of motor cortex anodal tDCS on reaction-time task performance.

PubMed

Molero-Chamizo, Andrés; Alameda Bailén, José R; Garrido Béjar, Tamara; García López, Macarena; Jaén Rodríguez, Inmaculada; Gutiérrez Lérida, Carolina; Pérez Panal, Silvia; González Ángel, Gloria; Lemus Corchero, Laura; Ruiz Vega, María J; Nitsche, Michael A; Rivera-Urbina, Guadalupe N

2018-02-01

Anodal transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) induces long-term potentiation-like plasticity, which is associated with long-lasting effects on different cognitive, emotional, and motor performances. Specifically, tDCS applied over the motor cortex is considered to improve reaction time in simple and complex tasks. The timing of tDCS relative to task performance could determine the efficacy of tDCS to modulate performance. The aim of this study was to compare the effects of a single session of anodal tDCS (1.5 mA, for 15 min) applied over the left primary motor cortex (M1) versus sham stimulation on performance of a go/no-go simple reaction-time task carried out at three different time points after tDCS-namely, 0, 30, or 60 min after stimulation. Performance zero min after anodal tDCS was improved during the whole course of the task. Performance 30 min after anodal tDCS was improved only in the last block of the reaction-time task. Performance 60 min after anodal tDCS was not significantly different throughout the entire task. These findings suggest that the motor cortex excitability changes induced by tDCS can improve motor responses, and these effects critically depend on the time interval between stimulation and task performance.

Population Differences in Postural Response Strategy Associated with Exposure to a Novel Continuous Perturbation Stimuli: Would Dancers Have Better Balance on a Boat?

PubMed

Duncan, Carolyn A; Ingram, Tony G J; Mansfield, Avril; Byrne, Jeannette M; McIlroy, William E

2016-01-01

Central or postural set theory suggests that the central nervous system uses short term, trial to trial adaptation associated with repeated exposure to a perturbation in order to improve postural responses and stability. It is not known if longer-term prior experiences requiring challenging balance control carryover as long-term adaptations that influence ability to react in response to novel stimuli. The purpose of this study was to determine if individuals who had long-term exposure to balance instability, such as those who train on specific skills that demand balance control, will have improved ability to adapt to complex continuous multidirectional perturbations. Healthy adults from three groups: 1) experienced maritime workers (n = 14), 2) novice individuals with no experience working in maritime environments (n = 12) and 3) individuals with training in dance (n = 13) participated in the study. All participants performed a stationary standing task while being exposed to five 6 degree of freedom motions designed to mimic the motions of a ship at sea. The balance reactions (change-in-support (CS) event occurrences and characteristics) were compared between groups. Results indicate dancers demonstrated significantly fewer CS events than novices during the first trial, but did not perform as well as those with offshore experience. Linear trend analyses revealed that short-term adaptation across all five trials was dependent on the nature of participant experience, with dancers achieving postural stability earlier than novices, but later than those with offshore experience. These results suggest that long term previous experiences also have a significant influence on the neural control of posture and balance in the development of compensatory responses.

Long short-term memory neural network for air pollutant concentration predictions: Method development and evaluation.

PubMed

Li, Xiang; Peng, Ling; Yao, Xiaojing; Cui, Shaolong; Hu, Yuan; You, Chengzeng; Chi, Tianhe

2017-12-01

Air pollutant concentration forecasting is an effective method of protecting public health by providing an early warning against harmful air pollutants. However, existing methods of air pollutant concentration prediction fail to effectively model long-term dependencies, and most neglect spatial correlations. In this paper, a novel long short-term memory neural network extended (LSTME) model that inherently considers spatiotemporal correlations is proposed for air pollutant concentration prediction. Long short-term memory (LSTM) layers were used to automatically extract inherent useful features from historical air pollutant data, and auxiliary data, including meteorological data and time stamp data, were merged into the proposed model to enhance the performance. Hourly PM 2.5 (particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter less than or equal to 2.5 μm) concentration data collected at 12 air quality monitoring stations in Beijing City from Jan/01/2014 to May/28/2016 were used to validate the effectiveness of the proposed LSTME model. Experiments were performed using the spatiotemporal deep learning (STDL) model, the time delay neural network (TDNN) model, the autoregressive moving average (ARMA) model, the support vector regression (SVR) model, and the traditional LSTM NN model, and a comparison of the results demonstrated that the LSTME model is superior to the other statistics-based models. Additionally, the use of auxiliary data improved model performance. For the one-hour prediction tasks, the proposed model performed well and exhibited a mean absolute percentage error (MAPE) of 11.93%. In addition, we conducted multiscale predictions over different time spans and achieved satisfactory performance, even for 13-24 h prediction tasks (MAPE = 31.47%). Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Meditation acutely improves psychomotor vigilance, and may decrease sleep need

PubMed Central

2010-01-01

Background A number of benefits from meditation have been claimed by those who practice various traditions, but few have been well tested in scientifically controlled studies. Among these claims are improved performance and decreased sleep need. Therefore, in these studies we assess whether meditation leads to an immediate performance improvement on a well validated psychomotor vigilance task (PVT), and second, whether longer bouts of meditation may alter sleep need. Methods The primary study assessed PVT reaction times before and after 40 minute periods of mediation, nap, or a control activity using a within subject cross-over design. This study utilized novice meditators who were current university students (n = 10). Novice meditators completed 40 minutes of meditation, nap, or control activities on six different days (two separate days for each condition), plus one night of total sleep deprivation on a different night, followed by 40 minutes of meditation. A second study examined sleep times in long term experienced meditators (n = 7) vs. non-meditators (n = 23). Experienced meditators and controls were age and sex matched and living in the Delhi region of India at the time of the study. Both groups continued their normal activities while monitoring their sleep and meditation times. Results Novice meditators were tested on the PVT before each activity, 10 minutes after each activity and one hour later. All ten novice meditators improved their PVT reaction times immediately following periods of meditation, and all but one got worse immediately following naps. Sleep deprivation produced a slower baseline reaction time (RT) on the PVT that still improved significantly following a period of meditation. In experiments with long-term experienced meditators, sleep duration was measured using both sleep journals and actigraphy. Sleep duration in these subjects was lower than control non-meditators and general population norms, with no apparent decrements in PVT scores. Conclusions These results suggest that meditation provides at least a short-term performance improvement even in novice meditators. In long term meditators, multiple hours spent in meditation are associated with a significant decrease in total sleep time when compared with age and sex matched controls who did not meditate. Whether meditation can actually replace a portion of sleep or pay-off sleep debt is under further investigation. PMID:20670413

[Psychosocial issues of long-term cancer survivors].

PubMed

Weis, J; Faller, H

2012-04-01

Although cancer incidence rates are increasing, recent statistical studies suggest that cancer patients are showing higher cure rates as well as improved overall survival rates for most cancer locations. These advances are explained by improved strategies in early diagnoses as well as improved cancer therapies. Therefore, the number of long-term cancer survivors has also increased, but only few studies, especially within the last years, have focused on psychosocial issues of this subgroup. Some studies show that overall quality of life of long-term cancer survivors is quite high and comparable to that of the normal population. Nevertheless, a substantial percentage of former patients shows reduced quality of life and suffers from various sequelae of cancer and its treatment. This review focuses on the most common psychosocial issue of long-term survivors such as reduced psychological wellbeing, neuropsychological deficits and cancer-related fatigue syndrome. Finally, recommendations for problem-oriented interventions as well as improvement of psychosocial care of long-term survivors are given.

An Account of Performance in Accessing Information Stored in Long-Term Memory. A Fixed-Links Model Approach

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Altmeyer, Michael; Schweizer, Karl; Reiss, Siegbert; Ren, Xuezhu; Schreiner, Michael

2013-01-01

Performance in working memory and short-term memory tasks was employed for predicting performance in a long-term memory task in order to find out about the underlying processes. The types of memory were represented by versions of the Posner Task, the Backward Counting Task and the Sternberg Task serving as measures of long-term memory, working…

Manipulation under anaesthesia post total knee replacement: long term follow up.

PubMed

Yeoh, David; Nicolaou, Nick; Goddard, Richard; Willmott, Henry; Miles, Kim; East, Debra; Hinves, Barry; Shepperd, John; Butler-Manuel, Adrian

2012-08-01

A reduced range of motion post total knee replacement (TKR) is a recognised problem. Manipulation under anaesthesia (MUA) is commonly performed in the stiff post-operative TKR. Long-term results are variable in the literature. We retrospectively reviewed, prospectively collected data on 48 patients followed up since 1996 from one centre, over an average of 7.5 years, (range 1 to 10 years) and report on the long-term results. During the study period 2.3% of TKRs underwent MUA. The mean time to MUA post TKR was 12.3 weeks (range 3 to 48). Pre MUA, the mean flexion was 53°. The mean immediate passive flexion post MUA was 97°, an improvement of 44° (Range 10° to 90°, p<0.05). By 1year, the mean flexion was 87°, an improvement of 34°, (range -15° to 70°, p<0.05). At 10 years the mean flexion was 86°, (range 55° to 100°, p<0.05). We found no difference in the gain in range of motion (ROM) between knees manipulated before or after 12 weeks. Additionally, the gain was no different in stiff knees with a pre TKR ROM <90°, compared to a pre TKR ROM >90°. There were no complications as a result of MUA. However, one patient was eventually revised at 2 years secondary to low grade infection. Our findings show that MUA is a safe and effective method at improving the ROM in a stiff post-operative TKR. The improvement is maintained in the long term irrespective of time to MUA and range of motion pre TKR. Crown Copyright © 2011. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Mid- and long-term runoff predictions by an improved phase-space reconstruction model.

PubMed

Hong, Mei; Wang, Dong; Wang, Yuankun; Zeng, Xiankui; Ge, Shanshan; Yan, Hengqian; Singh, Vijay P

2016-07-01

In recent years, the phase-space reconstruction method has usually been used for mid- and long-term runoff predictions. However, the traditional phase-space reconstruction method is still needs to be improved. Using the genetic algorithm to improve the phase-space reconstruction method, a new nonlinear model of monthly runoff is constructed. The new model does not rely heavily on embedding dimensions. Recognizing that the rainfall-runoff process is complex, affected by a number of factors, more variables (e.g. temperature and rainfall) are incorporated in the model. In order to detect the possible presence of chaos in the runoff dynamics, chaotic characteristics of the model are also analyzed, which shows the model can represent the nonlinear and chaotic characteristics of the runoff. The model is tested for its forecasting performance in four types of experiments using data from six hydrological stations on the Yellow River and the Yangtze River. Results show that the medium-and long-term runoff is satisfactorily forecasted at the hydrological stations. Not only is the forecasting trend accurate, but also the mean absolute percentage error is no more than 15%. Moreover, the forecast results of wet years and dry years are both good, which means that the improved model can overcome the traditional ''wet years and dry years predictability barrier,'' to some extent. The model forecasts for different regions are all good, showing the universality of the approach. Compared with selected conceptual and empirical methods, the model exhibits greater reliability and stability in the long-term runoff prediction. Our study provides a new thinking for research on the association between the monthly runoff and other hydrological factors, and also provides a new method for the prediction of the monthly runoff. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Near-Term Actions to Address Long-Term Climate Risk

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lempert, R. J.

2014-12-01

Addressing climate change requires effective long-term policy making, which occurs when reflecting on potential events decades or more in the future causes policy makers to choose near-term actions different than those they would otherwise pursue. Contrary to some expectations, policy makers do sometimes make such long-term decisions, but not as commonly and successfully as climate change may require. In recent years however, the new capabilities of analytic decision support tools, combined with improved understanding of cognitive and organizational behaviors, has significantly improved the methods available for organizations to manage longer-term climate risks. In particular, these tools allow decision makers to understand what near-term actions consistently contribute to achieving both short- and long-term societal goals, even in the face of deep uncertainty regarding the long-term future. This talk will describe applications of these approaches for infrastructure, water, and flood risk management planning, as well as studies of how near-term choices about policy architectures can affect long-term greenhouse gas emission reduction pathways.

Ni-MH storage test and cycle life test

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dell, R. Dan; Klein, Glenn C.; Schmidt, David F.

1994-01-01

Gates Aerospace Batteries is conducting two long term test programs to fully characterize the NiMH cell technology for aerospace applications. The first program analyzes the effects of long term storage upon cell performance. The second program analyzes cycle life testing and preliminary production lot testing. This paper summarizes these approaches to testing the NiMH couple and culminates with initial storage and testing recommendations. Long term storage presents challenges to deter the adverse condition of capacity fade in NiMH cells. Elevated but stabilized pressures and elevated but stabilized end-of-charge voltages also appear to be a characteristic phenomenon of long term storage modes. However, the performance degradation is dependent upon specific characteristics of the metal-hydride alloy. To date, there is no objective evidence with which to recommend the proper method for storage and handling of NiMH cells upon shipment. This is particularly critical due to limited data points that indicate open circuit storage at room temperature for 60 to 90 days will result in irrecoverable capacity loss. Accordingly a test plan was developed to determine what method of mid-term to long-term storage will prevent irrecoverable capacity loss. The explicit assumption is that trickle charging at some rate above the self-discharge rate will prevent the irreversible chemical changes to the negative electrode that result in the irrecoverable capacity loss. Another premise is that lower storage temperatures, typically 0 C for aerospace customers, will impede any negative chemical reactions. Three different trickle charge rates are expected to yield a fairly flat response with respect to recoverable capacity versus baseline cells in two different modes of open circuit. Specific attributes monitored include: end-of-charge voltage, end-of-charge pressure, mid-point discharge voltage, capacity, and end-of-discharge pressure. Cycle life testing and preliminary production lot testing continue to dominate the overall technology development effort at GAB. The cell life test program reflects continuing improvements in baseline cell designs. Performance improvements include lower and more stable charge voltages and pressures. The continuing review of production lot testing assures conformance to the design criteria and expectations. This is especially critical during this period of transferring technology from research and development status to production.

Effect of mergers and acquisitions on drug discovery: perspective from a case study of a Japanese pharmaceutical company.

PubMed

Shibayama, Sotaro; Tanikawa, Kunihiro; Fujimoto, Ryuhei; Kimura, Hiromichi

2008-01-01

The pharmaceutical industry has experienced intermittent waves of mergers and acquisitions (M&As) since the 1980s and recently appeared to be in yet another wave. Previous studies indicated rather negative impacts of consolidation on research and development, suggesting that they do not necessarily lead to long-term reinforcement of research capabilities, although they may enrich the drug pipeline in the short term. However, recent studies have implied a positive side in terms of knowledge-base transfer. Further micro-organizational studies suggested that scientists learned new knowledge and approaches from partner scientists and improved their performance and innovation. These findings imply that measures for the scientist-level integration after M&As would reinforce fundamental research capabilities in the long term.

Long-term quality of life in cervical dystonia after treatment with abobotulinum toxin A: a 2-year prospective study

PubMed Central

Kongsaengdao, Subsai; Maneeton, Narong; Maneeton, Benchalak

2018-01-01

Background The short-term quality of life (QoL) in cervical dystonia (CD) after treating with abobotulinum toxin A (Abo-BTX A) and neubotulinum toxin A (Neu-BTX A) have been studied in Thai CD patients. However; the long-term study has not been published. Objective The aim of the present study was to determine long-term improvement of the health-related quality of life (HRQoL) after eight injections of Abo-BTX A over 2 years in CD patients. Patients and methods A 2-year prospective study on the QoL of CD patients, as measured by HRQoL, before and after receiving eight injections of Abo-BTX A at 3-month intervals over a 2-year treatment period was performed. The disease-specific HRQoL was assessed before and after the treatment by using the Cervical Dystonia Impact Profile-58 (CDIP-58) questionnaire. The general HRQoL was assessed by using the Medical Outcomes 36-Item Short Form Health Survey (SF-36), while depressive disorder screening was assessed by using the Center of Epidemiologic Studies-Depression (CES-D) questionnaire. The SF-36 and CES-D questionnaire were administered before treatment and every 3 months before the next injection for a 2-year period. Results A total of 20 CD patients were enrolled from January 2013 to December 2015. CDIP-58 showed a significant improvement after long-term injections of Abo-BTX A in all domains (P < 0.001). However, only vitality domain of SF-36, which assessed general HRQoL, showed a significant improvement after long-term injections (P = 0.037). There was no prevalence of depressive disorder in all patients (CES-D score <20) in this study. Conclusion The Abo-BTX A injections at 3-month intervals over a 2-year period improved the CDIP-58 scores, which assess disease-specific HRQoL, as well as an increased vitality domain of general HRQoL. No patient suffered from depression in this study. PMID:29731634

[Posterior vitrectomy with gas endotamponade and retinal laser therapy in treatment of patients with macular complications of the optic disc pit].

PubMed

Cywiński, Adam; Kałużny, Jakub; Ferda, Daniela; Piwońska-Lobermajer, Anna

2015-01-01

Retrospective evaluation of functional and anatomical treatment outcomes in patients with macular cornplications of optic disc pit. 9 patients (eyes) underwent central posterior vitrectomy in conjunction with posterior vitreous detachment, retinal laser therapy to the optic disc pit area and endotamponade with expansile gas. It was followed by the patient's forced positioning (recommended for a few days especially at night), which ended the treatment protocol. Improved anatomical relationships, accompanied by functional improvement were achieved in each reported case. The resolution of macular lesions was slow, lasting even for several months. Too long delay in performing the surgery (over 5 months since the onset of visual impairment) was associated with the development of retinal complications, mainly macular hole formation, most likely caused by the long-term ischemia. The central posterior vitrectomy combined with posterior vitreous detachment, laser therapy, andd expansile gas tamponade offers good outcomes in patients with retinal complications of optic disc pit. Surgery performed shortly after the onset of visual dysfunction gives the best functional outcomes. Restoration of normal anatomical relationships is a long-term process. In some cases, though, these abnormalities may not resolve completely.

Development of human factors guidelines for advanced traveler information systems and commercial vehicle operations : literature review

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2000-09-01

A major goal of the Long-Term Pavement Performance (LTPP) study is the development of recommendations for improving the design and construction of new and rehabilitated pavements to provide longer lasting pavements. As part of the condition monitorin...

Efficacy and durability of robotic Heller myotomy for achalasia: patient symptoms and satisfaction at long-term follow-up.

PubMed

Perry, Kyle A; Kanji, Aliyah; Drosdeck, Joseph M; Linn, John G; Chan, Anthony; Muscarella, Peter; Melvin, W Scott

2014-11-01

Laparoscopic Heller myotomy (LHM) has become the standard treatment for achalasia in the USA. Robot-assisted Heller myotomy (RHM) has emerged as an alternative approach due to improved visualization and fine motor control, but long-term follow-up studies have not been reported. We sought to report the long-term outcomes of RHM and compare them to those of LHM. A retrospective cohort study was performed for patients who underwent laparoscopic or RHM between 1995 and 2006. Long-term follow-up was performed via mail or telephone questionnaire. The primary outcome measure was durable relief of dysphagia without need for further intervention. Secondary outcomes included gastroesophageal reflux symptoms, disease-specific quality of life, and patient satisfaction with their operation. Seventy-five patients underwent laparoscopic (n = 19) or robotic (n = 56) myotomy during the study period. Long-term follow-up was obtained in 53 (71 %) patients with a median interval of 9 years. RHM was associated with a decreased mucosal injury rate (0 vs. 16 %, p = 0.01) and median hospital stay (1 vs. 2 days, p < 0.01) compared to conventional laparoscopy. All patients reported initial dysphagia relief, and 80 % required no further intervention. This did not differ between groups. Sixty-two percent required medications to control reflux symptoms at long-term follow-up, including 56 % following robotic myotomy and 80 % after laparoscopic myotomy (p = 0.27). Overall, 95 % of patients were satisfied with their operation, and 91 % would choose surgery again given the benefit of hindsight. There is a dearth of long-term follow-up data to support the effectiveness of RHM. This study demonstrates durable dysphagia relief in the vast majority of patients with a high degree of patient satisfaction and a low rate of esophageal mucosal injury. While a significant proportion of patients report reflux symptoms, these symptoms are well controlled with medical acid suppression.

Operational improvements of long-term predicted ephemerides of the Tracking and Data Relay Satellites (TDRSs)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kostoff, J. L.; Ward, D. T.; Cuevas, O. O.; Beckman, R. M.

1995-01-01

Tracking and Data Relay Satellite (TDRS) orbit determination and prediction are supported by the Flight Dynamics Facility (FDF) of the Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) Flight Dynamics Division (FDD). TDRS System (TDRSS)-user satellites require predicted TDRS ephemerides that are up to 10 weeks in length. Previously, long-term ephemerides generated by the FDF included predictions from the White Sands Complex (WSC), which plans and executes TDRS maneuvers. TDRSs typically have monthly stationkeeping maneuvers, and predicted postmaneuver state vectors are received from WSC up to a month in advance. This paper presents the results of an analysis performed in the FDF to investigate more accurate and economical long-term ephemerides for the TDRSs. As a result of this analysis, two new methods for generating long-term TDRS ephemeris predictions have been implemented by the FDF. The Center-of-Box (COB) method models a TDRS as fixed at the center of its stationkeeping box. Using this method, long-term ephemeris updates are made semiannually instead of weekly. The impulse method is used to model more maneuvers. The impulse method yields better short-term accuracy than the COB method, especially for larger stationkeeping boxes. The accuracy of the impulse method depends primarily on the accuracy of maneuver date forecasting.

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

Won, Jong-Pil, E-mail: jpwon@konkuk.ac.kr; Hwang, Un-Jong; Lee, Su-Jin

This study evaluated the performance of shotcrete using high strength C{sub 12}A{sub 7} mineral-based accelerator that has been developed to improve the durability and long-term strength. Rebound, compressive strength and flexural strength were tested in the field. Test result showed that existing C{sub 12}A{sub 7} mineral-based accelerator exhibits better early strength than the high-strength C{sub 12}A{sub 7} mineral-based accelerator until the early age, but high-strength C{sub 12}A{sub 7} mineral-based accelerator shows about 29% higher at the long-term age of 28 days. Microstructural analysis such as scanning electron microscope (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and nitrogen adsorption method was evaluated to analyzemore » long-term strength development mechanism of high strength C{sub 12}A{sub 7} mineral-based accelerator. As analysis result, it had more dense structure due to the reaction product by adding material that used to enhanced strength. It had better resistance performance in chloride ion penetration, freezing–thawing and carbonation than shotcrete that used existing C{sub 12}A{sub 7} mineral-based accelerator.« less

Long-term Results of an Analytical Assessment of Student Compounded Preparations

PubMed Central

Roark, Angie M.; Anksorus, Heidi N.

2014-01-01

Objective. To investigate the long-term (ie, 6-year) impact of a required remake vs an optional remake on student performance in a compounding laboratory course in which students’ compounded preparations were analyzed. Methods. The analysis data for several preparations made by students were compared for differences in the analyzed content of the active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) and the number of students who successfully compounded the preparation on the first attempt. Results. There was a consistent statistical difference in the API amount or concentration in 4 of the preparations (diphenhydramine, ketoprofen, metoprolol, and progesterone) in each optional remake year compared to the required remake year. As the analysis requirement was continued, the outcome for each preparation approached and/or attained the expected API result. Two preparations required more than 1 year to demonstrate a statistical difference. Conclusion. The analytical assessment resulted in a consistent, long-term improvement in student performance during the 5-year period after the optional remake policy was instituted. Our assumption is that investment in such an assessment would result in a similar benefits at other colleges and schools of pharmacy. PMID:26056402

Long-term Results of an Analytical Assessment of Student Compounded Preparations.

PubMed

Roark, Angie M; Anksorus, Heidi N; Shrewsbury, Robert P

2014-11-15

To investigate the long-term (ie, 6-year) impact of a required remake vs an optional remake on student performance in a compounding laboratory course in which students' compounded preparations were analyzed. The analysis data for several preparations made by students were compared for differences in the analyzed content of the active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) and the number of students who successfully compounded the preparation on the first attempt. There was a consistent statistical difference in the API amount or concentration in 4 of the preparations (diphenhydramine, ketoprofen, metoprolol, and progesterone) in each optional remake year compared to the required remake year. As the analysis requirement was continued, the outcome for each preparation approached and/or attained the expected API result. Two preparations required more than 1 year to demonstrate a statistical difference. The analytical assessment resulted in a consistent, long-term improvement in student performance during the 5-year period after the optional remake policy was instituted. Our assumption is that investment in such an assessment would result in a similar benefits at other colleges and schools of pharmacy.

Enhancing long-term photostability of BiVO4 photoanodes for solar water splitting by tuning electrolyte composition

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lee, Dong Ki; Choi, Kyoung-Shin

2018-01-01

As the performance of photoelectrodes used for solar water splitting continues to improve, enhancing the long-term stability of the photoelectrodes becomes an increasingly crucial issue. In this study, we report that tuning the composition of the electrolyte can be used as a strategy to suppress photocorrosion during solar water splitting. Anodic photocorrosion of BiVO4 photoanodes involves the loss of V5+ from the BiVO4 lattice by dissolution. We demonstrate that the use of a V5+-saturated electrolyte, which inhibits the photooxidation-coupled dissolution of BiVO4, can serve as a simple yet effective method to suppress anodic photocorrosion of BiVO4. The V5+ species in the solution can also incorporate into the FeOOH/NiOOH oxygen-evolution catalyst layer present on the BiVO4 surface during water oxidation, further enhancing water-oxidation kinetics. The effect of the V5+ species in the electrolyte on both the long-term photostability of BiVO4 and the performance of the FeOOH/NiOOH oxygen-evolution catalyst layer is systematically elucidated.

Long-Term Treatment with Citicoline Prevents Cognitive Decline and Predicts a Better Quality of Life after a First Ischemic Stroke

PubMed Central

Alvarez-Sabín, Jose; Santamarina, Estevo; Maisterra, Olga; Jacas, Carlos; Molina, Carlos; Quintana, Manuel

2016-01-01

Stroke, as the leading cause of physical disability and cognitive impairment, has a very significant impact on patients’ quality of life (QoL). The objective of this study is to know the effect of citicoline treatment in Qol and cognitive performance in the long-term in patients with a first ischemic stroke. This is an open-label, randomized, parallel study of citicoline vs. usual treatment. All subjects were selected 6 weeks after suffering a first ischemic stroke and randomized into parallel arms. Neuropsychological evaluation was performed at 1 month, 6 months, 1 year and 2 years after stroke, and QoL was measured using the EuroQoL-5D questionnaire at 2 years. 163 patients were followed during 2 years. The mean age was 67.5 years-old, and 50.9% were women. Age and absence of citicoline treatment were independent predictors of both utility and poor quality of life. Patients with cognitive impairment had a poorer QoL at 2 years (0.55 vs. 0.66 in utility, p = 0.015). Citicoline treatment improved significantly cognitive status during follow-up (p = 0.005). In conclusion, treatment with long-term citicoline is associated with a better QoL and improves cognitive status 2 years after a first ischemic stroke. PMID:26999113

Garcinia kola aqueous suspension prevents cerebellar neurodegeneration in long-term diabetic rat - a type 1 diabetes mellitus model.

PubMed

Farahna, Mohammed; Seke Etet, Paul F; Osman, Sayed Y; Yurt, Kıymet K; Amir, Naheed; Vecchio, Lorella; Aydin, Isınsu; Aldebasi, Yousef H; Sheikh, Azimullah; Chijuka, John C; Kaplan, Süleyman; Adem, Abdu

2017-01-04

The development of compounds able to improve metabolic syndrome and mitigate complications caused by inappropriate glycemic control in type 1 diabetes mellitus is challenging. The medicinal plant with established hypoglycemic properties Garcinia kola Heckel might have the potential to mitigate diabetes mellitus metabolic syndrome and complications. We have investigated the neuroprotective properties of a suspension of G. kola seeds in long-term type 1 diabetes mellitus rat model. Wistar rats, made diabetic by single injection of streptozotocin were monitored for 8 months. Then, they were administered with distilled water or G. kola oral aqueous suspension daily for 30 days. Body weight and glycemia were determined before and after treatment. After sacrifice, cerebella were dissected out and processed for stereological quantification of Purkinje cells. Histopathological and immunohistochemical analyses of markers of neuroinflammation and neurodegeneration were performed. Purkinje cell counts were significantly increased, and histopathological signs of apoptosis and neuroinflammation decreased, in diabetic animals treated with G. kola compared to diabetic rats given distilled water. Glycemia was also markedly improved and body weight restored to non-diabetic control values, following G. kola treatment. These results suggest that G. kola treatment improved the general condition of long-term diabetic rats and protected Purkinje cells partly by improving the systemic glycemia and mitigating neuroinflammation. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Selective Arterial Clamping Versus Hilar Clamping for Minimally Invasive Partial Nephrectomy.

PubMed

Yezdani, Mona; Yu, Sue-Jean; Lee, David I

2016-05-01

Partial nephrectomy has become an accepted treatment of cT1 renal masses as it provides improved long-term renal function compared to radical nephrectomy (Campbell et al. J Urol. 182:1271-9, 2009). Hilar clamping is utilized to help reduce bleeding and improve visibility during tumor resection. However, concern over risk of kidney injury with hilar clamping has led to new techniques to reduce length of warm ischemia time (WIT) during partial nephrectomy. These techniques have progressed over the years starting with early hilar unclamping, controlled hypotension during tumor resection, selective arterial clamping, minimal margin techniques, and off-clamp procedures. Selective arterial clamping has progressed significantly over the years. The main question is what are the exact short- and long-term renal effects from increasing clamp time. Moreover, does it make sense to perform these more time-consuming or more complex procedures if there is no long-term preservation of kidney function? More recent studies have shown no difference in renal function 6 months from surgery when selective arterial clamping or even hilar clamping is employed, although there is short-term improved decline in estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) with selective clamping and off-clamp techniques (Komninos et al. BJU Int. 115:921-8, 2015; Shah et al. 117:293-9, 2015; Kallingal et al. BJU Int. doi: 10.1111/bju.13192, 2015). This paper reviews the progression of total hilar clamping to selective arterial clamping (SAC) and the possible difference its use makes on long-term renal function. SAC may be attempted based on surgeon's decision-making, but may be best used for more complex, larger, more central or hilar tumors and in patients who have renal insufficiency at baseline or a solitary kidney.

Long-Term Experience with First-Generation Implantable Neurostimulation Device in Central Sleep Apnea Treatment.

PubMed

Fox, Henrik; Bitter, Thomas; Horstkotte, Dieter; Oldenburg, Olaf; Gutleben, Klaus-Jürgen

2017-05-01

Sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) and Cheyne-Stokes respiration (CSR) are associated with shorter survival in patients with heart failure. A novel treatment method for this patient group is unilateral phrenic nerve stimulation by the remedē® system (Respicardia Inc., Minnetonka, MN, USA), a transvenously implantable neurostimulation device, which has recently been studied in a large randomized, controlled trial. Previous literature has shown efficacy and safety of the treatment with this first-generation device, but hardly any data are available on long-term clinical parameters, the remedē® device's battery lifetime, device exchangeability, lead position stability, surgical accessibility, and manageability. We performed remedē® device replacements in consecutive patients for battery depletion, and documented clinical parameters, longevity, operation procedure, complications, and difficulties. All patients were on neurostimulation treatment by phrenic nerve neurostimulation when device replacement became necessary. Apnea-hypopnea index (from 45 ± 4/h to 9 ± 4/h), oxygen-desaturation index (from 35 ± 7/h to 7 ± 6/h), and time spent with oxygen saturation of <90% (T < 90% from 5 ± 7% to 0 ± 0%) were improved and improvements remained constant throughout the 4-year follow-up. Mean battery life was 4.2 ± 0.2 years and mean replacement procedure time was 25 ± 5.1 minutes. Apart from conventional X-ray documentation of stable lead positions in a long-term setting, no radiation or contrast dye usage was needed and no major complications occurred. In addition, clinical exercise capacity and sleepiness symptoms improved. Novel remedē® device shows sustained therapy efficacy and safety in terms of stable lead positions over 4 years. Long-term phrenic nerve neurostimulation therapy for central SDB/CSR appears feasible in a clinical routine setting. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Long-term outcomes after Roux-en-Y gastric bypass: 10- to 13-year data.

PubMed

Obeid, Nabeel R; Malick, Waqas; Concors, Seth J; Fielding, George A; Kurian, Marina S; Ren-Fielding, Christine J

2016-01-01

Short- and mid-term data on Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB) indicate sustained weight loss and improvement in co-morbidities. Few long-term studies exist, some of which are outdated, based on open procedures or different techniques. To investigate long-term weight loss, co-morbidity remission, nutritional status, and complication rates among patients undergoing RYGB. An academic, university hospital in the United States. Between October 2000 and January 2004, patients who underwent RYGB≥10 years before study onset were eligible for chart review, office visits, and telephone interviews. Revisional surgery was an endpoint, ceasing eligibility for study follow-up. Outcomes included weight loss measures and rates of co-morbidity remission, complications, and nutritional deficiencies. RYGB was performed in 328 patients with a mean preoperative body mass index of 47.5 kg/m(2). Of 294 eligible patients, 134 (46%) were contacted for follow-up at ≥ 10 years (10+Year follow-up). Mean percentage excess weight loss (%EWL) was 58.9% at 10+Year. Higher %EWL was achieved by non-super-obese versus super-obese (61.3% versus 52.9%, P = .034). Blood pressure, lipid panel, and hemoglobin A1c improved significantly. At 10 years, remission of co-morbidities was 46% for hypertension and hyperlipidemia and 58% for diabetes mellitus. Thirty patients (9%) had revisional surgery for weight regain. Sixty-four patients (19.5%) had long-term complications requiring surgery. All-cause mortality was 2.7%. Nutritional deficiencies were seen in 87% of patients. Weight loss after RYGB appears to be significant and sustainable, especially in the non-super-obese. Co-morbidities are improved, with a substantial number in remission a decade later. Nutritional deficiencies are almost universal. Copyright © 2016 American Society for Bariatric Surgery. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Impact of Right Ventricular Performance in Patients Undergoing Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation Following Cardiac Surgery.

PubMed

Bartko, Philipp E; Wiedemann, Dominik; Schrutka, Lore; Binder, Christina; Santos-Gallego, Carlos G; Zuckermann, Andreas; Steinlechner, Barbara; Koinig, Herbert; Heinz, Gottfried; Niessner, Alexander; Zimpfer, Daniel; Laufer, Günther; Lang, Irene M; Distelmaier, Klaus; Goliasch, Georg

2017-07-28

Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation following cardiac surgery safeguards end-organ oxygenation but unfavorably alters cardiac hemodynamics. Along with the detrimental effects of cardiac surgery to the right heart, this might impact outcome, particularly in patients with preexisting right ventricular (RV) dysfunction. We sought to determine the prognostic impact of RV function and to improve established risk-prediction models in this vulnerable patient cohort. Of 240 patients undergoing extracorporeal membrane oxygenation support following cardiac surgery, 111 had echocardiographic examinations at our institution before implantation of extracorporeal membrane oxygenation and were thus included. Median age was 67 years (interquartile range 60-74), and 74 patients were male. During a median follow-up of 27 months (interquartile range 16-63), 75 patients died. Fifty-one patients died within 30 days, 75 during long-term follow-up (median follow-up 27 months, minimum 5 months, maximum 125 months). Metrics of RV function were the strongest predictors of outcome, even stronger than left ventricular function ( P <0.001 for receiver operating characteristics comparisons). Specifically, RV free-wall strain was a powerful predictor univariately and after adjustment for clinical variables, Simplified Acute Physiology Score-3, tricuspid regurgitation, surgery type and duration with adjusted hazard ratios of 0.41 (95%CI 0.24-0.68; P =0.001) for 30-day mortality and 0.48 (95%CI 0.33-0.71; P <0.001) for long-term mortality for a 1-SD (SD=-6%) change in RV free-wall strain. Combined assessment of the additive EuroSCORE and RV free-wall strain improved risk classification by a net reclassification improvement of 57% for 30-day mortality ( P =0.01) and 56% for long-term mortality ( P =0.02) compared with the additive EuroSCORE alone. RV function is strongly linked to mortality, even after adjustment for baseline variables and clinical risk scores. RV performance improves established risk prediction models for short- and long-term mortality. © 2017 The Authors. Published on behalf of the American Heart Association, Inc., by Wiley.

Innovative Strategy For Long Term Monitoring Of Metal And Radionuclide Plumes

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

Eddy-Dilek, Carol; Millings, Margaret R.; Looney, Brian B.

2014-01-08

Many government and private industry sites that were once contaminated with radioactive and chemical wastes cannot be cleaned up enough to permit unrestricted human access. The sites will require long term management, in some cases indefinitely, leaving site owners with the challenge of protecting human health and environmental quality at these "legacy" sites. Long-term monitoring of groundwater contamination is one of the largest projected costs in the life cycle of environmental management at the Savannah River Site, the larger DOE complex, and many large federal and private sites. There is a need to optimize the performance and manage the costmore » of long term surveillance and monitoring at their sites. Currently, SRNL is initiating a pilot field test using alternative protocols for long term monitoring of metals and radionuclides. A key component of the approach is that monitoring efforts are focused on measurement of low cost metrics related to hydrologic and chemical conditions that control contaminant migration. The strategy combines careful monitoring of hydrologic boundary conditions with measurement of master variables such as chemical surrogates along with a smaller number of standard well analyses. In plumes contaminated with metals, master variables control the chemistry of the groundwater system, and include redox variables (ORP, DO, chemicals), pH, specific conductivity, biological community (breakdown/decay products), and temperature. Significant changes in these variables will result in conditions whereby the plume may not be stable and therefore can be used to predict possible plume migration. Conversely, concentration measurements for all types of contaminants in groundwater are a lagging indicator plume movement - major changes contaminant concentrations indicate that contamination has migrated. An approach based on measurement of master variables and explicit monitoring of hydrologic boundary conditions combined with traditional metrics should lead to improved monitoring while simultaneously reducing costs. This paradigm is being tested at the SRS F-Area where an innovative passive remedial system is being monitored and evaluated over the long term prior to traditional regulatory closure. Contaminants being addressed at this site are uranium, strontium-90, iodine-129, and tritium. We believe that the proposed strategies will be more effective in early identification of potential risks; these strategies will also be cost effective because controlling variables are relatively simple to measure. These variables also directly reflect the evolution of the plume through time, so that the monitoring strategy can be modified as the plume 'ages'. This transformational long-term monitoring paradigm will generate large cost savings to DOE, other federal agencies and industry and will provide improved performance and leading indicators of environmental management performance.« less

Accessing long-term memory representations during visual change detection.

PubMed

Beck, Melissa R; van Lamsweerde, Amanda E

2011-04-01

In visual change detection tasks, providing a cue to the change location concurrent with the test image (post-cue) can improve performance, suggesting that, without a cue, not all encoded representations are automatically accessed. Our studies examined the possibility that post-cues can encourage the retrieval of representations stored in long-term memory (LTM). Participants detected changes in images composed of familiar objects. Performance was better when the cue directed attention to the post-change object. Supporting the role of LTM in the cue effect, the effect was similar regardless of whether the cue was presented during the inter-stimulus interval, concurrent with the onset of the test image, or after the onset of the test image. Furthermore, the post-cue effect and LTM performance were similarly influenced by encoding time. These findings demonstrate that monitoring the visual world for changes does not automatically engage LTM retrieval.

Outcome of gastro-oesophageal reflux-related respiratory manifestations after laparoscopic fundoplication.

PubMed

Adaba, Franklin; Ang, Chin W; Perry, Anthony; Wadley, Martin S; Robertson, Charles S

2014-01-01

Patients with refractory respiratory symptoms related to gastro-oesophageal reflux disease (GORD) such as asthma and cough are being referred for laparoscopic fundoplication (LFP), as recommended by the Society of American Gastrointestinal and Endoscopic Surgeons (SAGES). However there are limited data regarding symptomatic response to fundoplication in this group of patients. A 7 year retrospective review was performed to study the efficacy of LFP in the treatment of patients with respiratory manifestations of GORD. Patients were followed up from 4 to 6 weeks (short-term) to 6-12 months (long-term) post-operatively. Of 208 patients who underwent LFP, 73 (35%) patients were eligible for inclusion into the study. 55 (75%) patients had improved respiratory symptoms at short-term follow-up. At long-term follow-up, 7 of these patients had recurrence of respiratory symptoms, while 4 patients had improvement not initially apparent. No significant predictive factor for the success or failure of surgery was identified. 190 (91%) of 208 patients had symptomatic improvement in GORD at short-term follow-up. LFP is effective with the response rates over 75% in the control of respiratory manifestation of GORD, compared to over 91% response rate in the control GOR symptoms alone. More research is needed to identify factors to aid patient selection to improve response rate. Copyright © 2014 Surgical Associates Ltd. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Si-Sb-Te materials for phase change memory applications.

PubMed

Rao, Feng; Song, Zhitang; Ren, Kun; Zhou, Xilin; Cheng, Yan; Wu, Liangcai; Liu, Bo

2011-04-08

Si-Sb-Te materials including Te-rich Si₂Sb₂Te₆ and Si(x)Sb₂Te₃ with different Si contents have been systemically studied with the aim of finding the most suitable Si-Sb-Te composition for phase change random access memory (PCRAM) use. Si(x)Sb₂Te₃ shows better thermal stability than Ge₂Sb₂Te₅ or Si₂Sb₂Te₆ in that Si(x)Sb₂Te₃ does not have serious Te separation under high annealing temperature. As Si content increases, the data retention ability of Si(x)Sb₂Te₃ improves. The 10 years retention temperature for Si₃Sb₂Te₃ film is ~393 K, which meets the long-term data storage requirements of automotive electronics. In addition, Si richer Si(x)Sb₂Te₃ films also show improvement on thickness change upon annealing and adhesion on SiO₂ substrate compared to those of Ge₂Sb₂Te₅ or Si₂Sb₂Te₆ films. However, the electrical performance of PCRAM cells based on Si(x)Sb₂Te₃ films with x > 3.5 becomes worse in terms of stable and long-term operations. Si(x)Sb₂Te₃ materials with 3 < x < 3.5 are proved to be suitable for PCRAM use to ensure good overall performance.

Exercise as an anabolic intervention in patients with end-stage renal disease.

PubMed

Ikizler, T Alp

2011-01-01

Muscle wasting and accompanying structural derangements leading to abnormalities in muscle function, exercise performance, and physical activity are common in patients with end-stage renal disease. Therefore, several studies have been performed examining the effects of exercise in this particular patient population. Most of the studies have assessed the effects of cardiopulmonary fitness training, whereas a few have examined the role of resistance (i.e., strength) training. Despite the proven efficacy of resistance exercise as an anabolic intervention in the otherwise healthy elderly population and certain chronic disease states, recent studies in patients on maintenance hemodialysis have not been encouraging in terms of long-term improvements in markers of muscle mass. Preliminary studies indicated that a combination of simultaneous exercise and nutritional supplementation could augment the anabolic effects of exercise, at least in the acute setting. However, a recent randomized clinical trial failed to show further benefits of additional resistance exercise on long-term somatic protein accretion above and beyond nutritional supplementation alone. Further research is necessary to both understand the observed lack of obvious benefits and strategies to improve the exercise regimens in patients with end-stage renal disease. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Long-term bridge performance high priority bridge performance issues.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2014-10-01

Bridge performance is a multifaceted issue involving performance of materials and protective systems, : performance of individual components of the bridge, and performance of the structural system as a whole. The : Long-Term Bridge Performance (LTBP)...

Long term effect of selective muscle strengthening in athletes with patellofemoral pain syndrome.

PubMed

Ramazzina, Ileana; Pogliacomi, Francesco; Bertuletti, Silvia; Costantino, Cosimo

2016-04-15

The purpose of the study was to examine the long term effects of a selective muscle strengthening program in reducing pain and improving knee function and strength in athletes with Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome. A total of one hundred and thirty four athletes were enrolled in the study. All patients were evaluated with Isokinetic Test, Cincinnati Knee Rating System and Visual Analogue Scale. The selective muscle strengthening consisted of 8 weeks of exercises performed 3 times in the first 4 weeks and twice in the last 4 weeks. The muscle strengthening program was performed between 30-90° of knee flexion. During the first 4-weeks treatment we used closed kinetic chain exercises with 3 sets of 8 repetitions at 80% of maximum load. In the last 4-weeks we added open kinetic chain exercises at 70% of maximum load with 3 sets and 10 repetitions to improve the resistance. Analyzing data at the beginning and at the end of the treatment for Isokinetic test, Cincinnati and Visual Analogue Scale we observed a significant scores improvement. At 1 year follow-up the clinical improvements were maintained and everyone followed the recommended program because did not perform the maintenance program. At 2 years follow-up no athletes presented relapses; only four patients were excluded from program. We believe that our program of selective muscle strengthening should resolve pain and improve knee function and strength as results in obtained scores and could be critical to avoid painful relapses.

Separator development and testing of nickel-hydrogen cells

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gonzalez-Sanabria, O. D.; Manzo, M. A.

1984-01-01

The components, design, and operating characteristics of Ni-H2 cells batteries were improved. A separator development program was designed to develop a separator that is resistant to penetration by oxygen and loose active material from then nickel electrode, while retraining the required chemical and thermal stability, reservoir capability, and high ionic conductivity. The performance of the separators in terms of cell operating voltage was to at least match that of state-of-the-art separators while eliminating the separator problems. The separators were submitted to initial screening tests and those which successfully completed the tests were built into Ni-H2 cells for short term testing. The separators with the best performance are tested for long term performance and life.

Avoiding Surgical Skill Decay: A Systematic Review on the Spacing of Training Sessions.

PubMed

Cecilio-Fernandes, Dario; Cnossen, Fokie; Jaarsma, Debbie A D C; Tio, René A

Spreading training sessions over time instead of training in just 1 session leads to an improvement of long-term retention for factual knowledge. However, it is not clear whether this would also apply to surgical skills. Thus, we performed a systematic review to find out whether spacing training sessions would also improve long-term retention of surgical skills. We searched the Medline, PsycINFO, Embase, Eric, and Web of Science online databases. We only included articles that were randomized trials with a sample of medical trainees acquiring surgical motor skills in which the spacing effect was reported. The quality and bias of the articles were assessed using the Cochrane Collaboration's risk of bias assessment tool. With respect to the spacing effect, 1955 articles were retrieved. After removing duplicates and articles that did not meet the inclusion criteria, 11 articles remained. The overall quality of the experiments was "moderate." Trainees in the spaced condition scored higher in a retention test than students in the massed condition. Our systematic review showed evidence that spacing training sessions improves long-term surgical skills retention when compared to massed practice. However, the optimal gap between the re-study sessions is unclear. Copyright © 2017 Association of Program Directors in Surgery. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Effects of Botulinum Toxin-A and Goal-Directed Physiotherapy in Children with Cerebral Palsy GMFCS Levels I & II.

PubMed

Löwing, Kristina; Thews, Karin; Haglund-Åkerlind, Yvonne; Gutierrez-Farewik, Elena M

2017-08-01

To evaluate short and long-term effects of botulinum toxin-A combined with goal-directed physiotherapy in children with cerebral palsy (CP). A consecutive selection of 40 children, ages 4-12 years, diagnosed with unilateral or bilateral CP, and classified in GMFCS levels I-II. During the 24 months, 9 children received one BoNT-A injection, 10 children two injections, 11 children three injections, and 10 children received four injections. 3D gait analysis, goal-attainment scaling, and body function assessments were performed before and at 3, 12, and 24 months after initial injections. A significant but clinically small long-term improvement in gait was observed. Plantarflexor spasticity was reduced after three months and remained stable, while passive ankle dorsiflexion increased after 3 months but decreased slightly after 12 months. Goal-attainment gradually increased, reached the highest levels at 12 months, and levels were maintained at 24 months. The treatments' positive effect on spasticity reduction was identified, but did not relate to improvement in gait or goal-attainment. No long-term positive change in passive ankle dorsiflexion was observed. Goal attainment was achieved in all except four children. The clinical significance of the improved gait is unclear. Further studies are recommended to identify predictors for positive treatment outcome.

Management of pediatric patients with refractory constipation who fail cecostomy.

PubMed

Bonilla, Silvana F; Flores, Alejandro; Jackson, Carl-Christian A; Chwals, Walter J; Orkin, Bruce A

2013-09-01

Antegrade continence enema (ACE) is a recognized therapeutic option in the management of pediatric refractory constipation. Data on the long-term outcome of patients who fail to improve after an ACE-procedure are lacking. To describe the rate of ACE bowel management failure in pediatric refractory constipation, and the management and long term outcome of these patients. Retrospective analysis of a cohort of patients that underwent ACE-procedure and had at least 3-year-follow-up. Detailed analysis of subsequent treatment and outcome of those patients with a poor functional outcome was performed. 76 patients were included. 12 (16%) failed successful bowel management after ACE requiring additional intervention. Mean follow-up was 66.3 (range 35-95 months) after ACE-procedure. Colonic motility studies demonstrated colonic neuropathy in 7 patients (58%); abnormal motility in 4 patients (33%), and abnormal left-sided colonic motility in 1 patient (9%). All 12 patients were ultimately treated surgically. Nine patients (75%) had marked clinical improvement, whereas 3 patients (25%) continued to have poor function issues at long term follow-up. Colonic resection, either segmental or total, led to improvement or resolution of symptoms in the majority of patients who failed cecostomy. However, this is a complex and heterogeneous group and some patients will have continued issues. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Long-Term Treatment with Paroxetine Increases Verbal Declarative Memory and Hippocampal Volume in Posttraumatic Stress Disorder

PubMed Central

Vermetten, Eric; Vythilingam, Meena; Southwick, Steven M.; Charney, Dennis S.; Bremner, J. Douglas

2011-01-01

Background Animal studies have shown that stress is associated with damage to the hippocampus, inhibition of neurogenesis, and deficits in hippocampal-based memory dysfunction. Studies in patients with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) found deficits in hippocampal-based declarative verbal memory and smaller hippocampal volume, as measured with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Recent preclinical evidence has shown that selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors promote neurogenesis and reverse the effects of stress on hippocampal atrophy. This study assessed the effects of long-term treatment with paroxetine on hippocampal volume and declarative memory performance in PTSD. Methods Declarative memory was assessed with the Wechsler Memory Scale–Revised and Selective Reminding Test before and after 9–12 months of treatment with paroxetine in PTSD. Hippocampal volume was measured with MRI. Of the 28 patients who started the protocol, 23 completed the full course of treatment and neuropsychological testing. Twenty patients were able to complete MRI imaging. Results Patients with PTSD showed a significant improvement in PTSD symptoms with treatment. Treatment resulted in significant improvements in verbal declarative memory and a 4.6% increase in mean hippocampal volume. Conclusions These findings suggest that long-term treatment with paroxetine is associated with improvement of verbal declarative memory deficits and an increase in hippocampal volume in PTSD. PMID:14512209

Long-term follow-up study of radial forearm free flap reconstruction after hemiglossectomy.

PubMed

Akashi, Masaya; Hashikawa, Kazunobu; Sakakibara, Akiko; Komori, Takahide; Terashi, Hiroto

2015-01-01

Previous studies on postoperative long-term results in patients who underwent reconstructive free flap transfer following hemiglossectomy had some issues, including the heterogeneity of the patient population and the observation period. The present study aimed to evaluate changes of reconstructed tongues in patients who underwent radial forearm free flap (RFFF) after hemiglossectomy with long-term follow-up. We enrolled 23 patients who underwent RFFF after hemiglossectomy with a postoperative follow-up of 5 years or more. Postoperative status (eating, speech, sensation function) was assessed by concise medical inquiries. Morphological changes of flaps were evaluated by reviewing clinical photographs. Hemiglossectomy involving the base of the tongue was performed in 4 cases (17.4%) and was limited to the mobile tongue in 19 cases (82.6%). The mean follow-up was 85.4 months (range, 60-122 months). All patients experienced gradually improved postoperative status. The most significant improvement was found between 1 and 5 years after surgery (P = 0.007), but not between 1 and 3 years (P = 0.075) or between 3 and 5 years (P = 0.530). In almost all of the flaps, there were few morphological changes throughout the follow-up period. Postoperative status in patients who underwent reconstructive RFFF following hemiglossectomy improved sequentially.

Long-term alpha-tocopherol supplements may improve mental development in extremely low birthweight infants.

PubMed

Kitajima, Hiroyuki; Kanazawa, Tadahiro; Mori, Rintaro; Hirano, Shinya; Ogihara, Tohru; Fujimura, Masanori

2015-02-01

Methods to improve the mental development of extremely low birthweight (ELBW) children are currently lacking. We assessed the effects of long-term supplementation of alpha-tocopherol on the neurological development of 259 school-aged ELBW children. Extremely low birthweight participants were divided into three groups: group A with no alpha-tocopherol supplementation (n = 121); group B with the supplementation for <6 months (n = 104) and group C with the supplementation for more than 6 months (n = 34). We analysed the participants' data at birth and between the ages of one-and-a-half to 8 years and evaluated potential factors associated with intellectual disabilities. Children from group C had the best outcome. The groups' mean gestational weeks and mean ventilator days were as follows: 27.5 weeks, 16.1 days (group A); 25.7 weeks, 41.7 days (group B); and 25.1 weeks, 75.5 days (group C). Multivariate regression analysis revealed that the odds ratios for impaired mental development at 8 years were 1.5 in group B and 0.19 (p = 0.017) in group C, compared with 1.0 in group A. The association between the duration of alpha-tocopherol administration and performance intelligence quotient (IQ) was dose dependent (p = 0.03). Long-term supplementation of alpha-tocopherol appeared to improve mental development, in particular, performance IQ, in school-aged ELBW children. ©2014 Foundation Acta Paediatrica. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Effect and sustainability of part-time occlusion therapy for patients with anisometropic amblyopia aged > or =8 years.

PubMed

Hwang, D J; Kim, Y J; Lee, J Y

2010-09-01

To study the effect and long-term sustainability of part-time occlusion therapy for anisometropic amblyopia after 8 years of age. A total of 41 anisometropic amblyopes aged > or =8 years were analysed. In six patients, best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) of amblyopic eye improved more than two lines within 2 weeks of full-time spectacle wear. The remaining patients were assigned to perform part-time patching during out-of-school hours. Long-term results were assessed in patients who were observed over 1 year after the end of the treatment. Among 35 patients, four dropped out, refusing further treatment, and one changed to atropine penalisation. The part-time patching schedule was completed in 30 patients. 90% of patients (27/30) complied well. Mean BCVA in the amblyopic eye improved significantly (p<0.001), and 96.7% of patients (29/30) achieved the final BCVA of 0.1 logMAR or better. In long-term results, 87% preserved the BCVA of 0.1 logMAR or better. None of four dropouts achieved the BCVA of 0.1 logMAR or better in long-term results even on the continuous spectacle wear. The part-time occlusion treatment in school-aged amblyopes, which had been carried out after school hours, was successful and the effect was sustained in most cases.

Aqua/Aura Updated Inclination Adjust Maneuver Performance Prediction Model

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Boone, Spencer

2017-01-01

This presentation will discuss the updated Inclination Adjust Maneuver (IAM) performance prediction model that was developed for Aqua and Aura following the 2017 IAM series. This updated model uses statistical regression methods to identify potential long-term trends in maneuver parameters, yielding improved predictions when re-planning past maneuvers. The presentation has been reviewed and approved by Eric Moyer, ESMO Deputy Project Manager.

Does early change predict long-term (6 months) improvements in subjects who receive manual therapy for low back pain?

PubMed

Cook, Chad; Petersen, Shannon; Donaldson, Megan; Wilhelm, Mark; Learman, Ken

2017-09-01

Early change is commonly assessed for manual therapy interventions and has been used to determine treatment appropriateness. However, current studies have only explored the relationship of between or within-session changes and short-/medium-term outcomes. The goal of this study was to determine whether pain changes after two weeks of pragmatic manual therapy could predict those participants with chronic low back pain who demonstrate continued improvements at 6-month follow-up. This study was a retrospective observational design. Univariate logistic regression analyses were performed using a 33% and a 50% pain change to predict improvement. Those who experienced a ≥33% pain reduction by 2 weeks had 6.98 (95% CI = 1.29, 37.53) times higher odds of 50% improvement on the GRoC and 4.74 (95% CI = 1.31, 17.17) times higher odds of 50% improvement on the ODI (at 6 months). Subjects who reported a ≥50% pain reduction at 2 weeks had 5.98 (95% CI = 1.56, 22.88) times higher odds of a 50% improvement in the GRoC and 3.99 (95% CI = 1.23, 12.88) times higher odds of a 50% improvement in the ODI (at 6 months). Future studies may investigate whether a change in plan of care is beneficial for patients who are not showing early improvement predictive of a good long-term outcome.

Community Schools: It Takes a Village

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Garrett, Kristi

2012-01-01

Lately educators are hearing more about full-service community schools, which pair schools with other community resources in pursuit of the long-term goal of improving academic performance. (These full-service schools are differentiated from the community day schools that serve expelled students.) The focus on academics is what makes today's…

Cold in-place recycling using solventless emulsion - phase IV (emulsion qualification and long-term field performance).

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2016-05-01

This report looks into how a successful Cold In-Place solventless emulsion behaves and how the emulsion : break test developed in Phase III of this project demonstrates that behavior. Modifications to the test have been : made to improve the consiste...

The Effects of Compensatory Scanning Training on Mobility in Patients with Homonymous Visual Field Defects: Further Support, Predictive Variables and Follow-Up

PubMed Central

Melis-Dankers, Bart J. M.; Brouwer, Wiebo H.; Tucha, Oliver; Heutink, Joost

2016-01-01

Introduction People with homonymous visual field defects (HVFD) often report difficulty detecting obstacles in the periphery on their blind side in time when moving around. Recently, a randomized controlled trial showed that the InSight-Hemianopia Compensatory Scanning Training (IH-CST) specifically improved detection of peripheral stimuli and avoiding obstacles when moving around, especially in dual task situations. Method The within-group training effects of the previously reported IH-CST are examined in an extended patient group. Performance of patients with HVFD on a pre-assessment, post-assessment and follow-up assessment and performance of a healthy control group are compared. Furthermore, it is examined whether training effects can be predicted by demographic characteristics, variables related to the visual disorder, and neuropsychological test results. Results Performance on both subjective and objective measures of mobility-related scanning was improved after training, while no evidence was found for improvement in visual functions (including visual fields), reading, visual search and dot counting. Self-reported improvement did not correlate with improvement in objective mobility performance. According to the participants, the positive effects were still present six to ten months after training. No demographic characteristics, variables related to the visual disorder, and neuropsychological test results were found to predict the size of training effect, although some inconclusive evidence was found for more improvement in patients with left-sided HVFD than in patients with right-sided HFVD. Conclusion Further support was found for a positive effect of IH-CST on detection of visual stimuli during mobility-related activities specifically. Based on the reports given by patients, these effects appear to be long-term effects. However, no conclusions can be drawn on the objective long-term training effects. PMID:27935973

Post-Training Intrahippocampal Inhibition of Class I Histone Deacetylases Enhances Long-Term Object-Location Memory

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hawk, Joshua D.; Florian, Cedrick; Abel, Ted

2011-01-01

Long-term memory formation involves covalent modification of the histone proteins that package DNA. Reducing histone acetylation by mutating histone acetyltransferases impairs long-term memory, and enhancing histone acetylation by inhibiting histone deacetylases (HDACs) improves long-term memory. Previous studies using HDAC inhibitors to enhance…

Oxygen transfer dynamics and activated sludge floc structure under different sludge retention times at low dissolved oxygen concentrations.

PubMed

Fan, Haitao; Liu, Xiuhong; Wang, Hao; Han, Yunping; Qi, Lu; Wang, Hongchen

2017-02-01

In activated sludge systems, the aeration process consumes the most energy. The energy cost can be dramatically reduced by decreasing the operating dissolved oxygen (DO) concentration. However, low DO may lead to incomplete nitrification and poor settling performance of activated sludge flocs (ASFs). This study investigates oxygen transfer dynamics and settling performances of activated sludge under different sludge retention times (SRTs) and DO conditions using microelectrodes and microscopic techniques. Our experimental results showed that with longer SRTs, treatment capacity and settling performances of activated sludge improved due to smaller floc size and less extracellular polymeric substances (EPS). Long-term low DO conditions produced larger flocs and more EPS per unit sludge, which produced a more extensive anoxic area and led to low oxygen diffusion performance in flocs. Long SRTs mitigated the adverse effects of low DO. According to the microelectrode analysis and fractal dimension determination, smaller floc size and less EPS in the long SRT system led to high oxygen diffusion property and more compact floc structure that caused a drop in the sludge volume index (SVI). In summary, our results suggested that long SRTs of activated sludge can improve the operating performance under low DO conditions. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Evaluating the performance of infectious disease forecasts: A comparison of climate-driven and seasonal dengue forecasts for Mexico.

PubMed

Johansson, Michael A; Reich, Nicholas G; Hota, Aditi; Brownstein, John S; Santillana, Mauricio

2016-09-26

Dengue viruses, which infect millions of people per year worldwide, cause large epidemics that strain healthcare systems. Despite diverse efforts to develop forecasting tools including autoregressive time series, climate-driven statistical, and mechanistic biological models, little work has been done to understand the contribution of different components to improved prediction. We developed a framework to assess and compare dengue forecasts produced from different types of models and evaluated the performance of seasonal autoregressive models with and without climate variables for forecasting dengue incidence in Mexico. Climate data did not significantly improve the predictive power of seasonal autoregressive models. Short-term and seasonal autocorrelation were key to improving short-term and long-term forecasts, respectively. Seasonal autoregressive models captured a substantial amount of dengue variability, but better models are needed to improve dengue forecasting. This framework contributes to the sparse literature of infectious disease prediction model evaluation, using state-of-the-art validation techniques such as out-of-sample testing and comparison to an appropriate reference model.

Evaluating the performance of infectious disease forecasts: A comparison of climate-driven and seasonal dengue forecasts for Mexico

PubMed Central

Johansson, Michael A.; Reich, Nicholas G.; Hota, Aditi; Brownstein, John S.; Santillana, Mauricio

2016-01-01

Dengue viruses, which infect millions of people per year worldwide, cause large epidemics that strain healthcare systems. Despite diverse efforts to develop forecasting tools including autoregressive time series, climate-driven statistical, and mechanistic biological models, little work has been done to understand the contribution of different components to improved prediction. We developed a framework to assess and compare dengue forecasts produced from different types of models and evaluated the performance of seasonal autoregressive models with and without climate variables for forecasting dengue incidence in Mexico. Climate data did not significantly improve the predictive power of seasonal autoregressive models. Short-term and seasonal autocorrelation were key to improving short-term and long-term forecasts, respectively. Seasonal autoregressive models captured a substantial amount of dengue variability, but better models are needed to improve dengue forecasting. This framework contributes to the sparse literature of infectious disease prediction model evaluation, using state-of-the-art validation techniques such as out-of-sample testing and comparison to an appropriate reference model. PMID:27665707

[Use of natural physical factors in the rehabilitative treatment of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases].

PubMed

Rassulova, M A; Razumov, A N; Aĭrapetova, N S

2007-01-01

The paper presents the results of using sylvinite speleotherapy, general salt baths and their combination in 120 patients with Stages I-II chronic obstructive pulmonary disease at a damped exacerbation and remission. It is shown that in the patients with this disease treated by the above procedures, the inflammatory process regresses, bronchial patency, central hemodynamics, exercise performance, and psychoemotional background improves and, during a long-term followup, the progression of the disease becomes slower, remissions prolong, exercise performance increases, and social adaptation improves.

Through the Eyes of Nurse Managers in Long-Term Care: Identifying Perceived Competencies and Skills.

PubMed

Dever, Kathleen H

2018-05-01

Nurse managers (NMs) in long-term care supervise health care services for individuals with high acuity levels and numerous comorbidities. There is minimal research identifying NMs' skills and competencies as unit leaders within the long-term care environment. The current mixed-methods study identified NMs' leadership skills and competencies. Nineteen NMs with ≥5 years' long-term care management experience completed the Nurse Manager Inventory Tool and were individually interviewed. They rated their clinical skills at the competent level and their financial/strategic management skills at the novice level. All other skill categories, including leadership reflective practice, diversity, human resource leadership/management, relationship management, performance improvement, and problem solving, were rated at a competent level. Emergent interview qualitative themes included their visibility on the unit, trial and error learning, a sense of "aloneness" due to the absence of other RNs, NM position being a tough job, need for peer support, role modeling, and importance of supporting the resident through their "final journey." [Journal of Gerontological Nursing, 44(5), 32-38.]. Copyright 2018, SLACK Incorporated.

The Effects of Clickers and Online Homework on Students' Achievement in General Chemistry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gebru, Misganaw T.

Retention of an introductory general chemistry course material is vital for student success in future chemistry and chemistry-related courses. This study investigated the effects of clickers versus online homework on students' long-term content retention, examined the effectiveness of online homework versus no graded homework on students' achievement in a first-semester general chemistry course, and assessed students' attitudes toward the use of online homework. Students' data from the yearlong American Chemical Society General Chemistry (ACS GC97) exam, teacher-prepared final exams, and online surveys were analyzed to measure the effects of clickers and online homework on students' long-term content retention and performance, and to capture students' attitudes. A variety of methods including Welch ANOVA, independent samples t -test (Welch), Pearson's correlation, test of proportions, and Pearson's Chi-square test were used to analyze the data. The analyses indicated that the use of clickers or online homework did not significantly improve students' long-term content retention of general chemistry course material, that the use of online homework was more beneficial than, or at least as effective as no graded homework in improving students' performance, and students valued the fact that online homework provided immediate feedback. Additionally, results of this study revealed that greater numbers of students were retained in clicker and online homework classes than non-clicker, non-online homework classes and that various types of online homework systems used in general chemistry could impact student performance differently. Implications of the findings and future research directions were presented.

Update: Non-Invasive Positive Pressure Ventilation in Chronic Respiratory Failure Due to COPD.

PubMed

Altintas, Nejat

2016-01-01

Long-term non-invasive positive pressure ventilation (NPPV) has widely been accepted to treat chronic hypercapnic respiratory failure arising from different etiologies. Although the survival benefits provided by long-term NPPV in individuals with restrictive thoracic disorders or stable, slowly-progressing neuromuscular disorders are overwhelming, the benefits provided by long-term NPPV in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) remain under question, due to a lack of convincing evidence in the literature. In addition, long-term NPPV reportedly failed in the classic trials to improve important physiological parameters such as arterial blood gases, which might serve as an explanation as to why long-term NPPV has not been shown to substantially impact on survival. However, high intensity NPPV (HI-NPPV) using controlled NPPV with the highest possible inspiratory pressures tolerated by the patient has recently been described as a new and promising approach that is well-tolerated and is also capable of improving important physiological parameters such as arterial blood gases and lung function. This clearly contrasts with the conventional approach of low-intensity NPPV (LI-NPPV) that uses considerably lower inspiratory pressures with assisted forms of NPPV. Importantly, HI-NPPV was very recently shown to be superior to LI-NPPV in terms of improved overnight blood gases, and was also better tolerated than LI-NPPV. Furthermore, HI-NPPV, but not LI-NPPV, improved dyspnea, lung function and disease-specific aspects of health-related quality of life. A recent study showed that long-term treatment with NPPV with increased ventilatory pressures that reduced hypercapnia was associated with significant and sustained improvements in overall mortality. Thus, long-term NPPV seems to offer important benefits in this patient group, but the treatment success might be dependent on effective ventilatory strategies.

One hundred and fifty years of sprint and distance running – Past trends and future prospects

PubMed Central

Weiss, Martin; Newman, Alexandra; Whitmore, Ceri; Weiss, Stephan

2016-01-01

Abstract Sprint and distance running have experienced remarkable performance improvements over the past century. Attempts to forecast running performances share an almost similarly long history but have relied so far on relatively short data series. Here, we compile a comprehensive set of season-best performances for eight Olympically contested running events. With this data set, we conduct (1) an exponential time series analysis and (2) a power-law experience curve analysis to quantify the rate of past performance improvements and to forecast future performances until the year 2100. We find that the sprint and distance running performances of women and men improve exponentially with time and converge at yearly rates of 4% ± 3% and 2% ± 2%, respectively, towards their asymptotic limits. Running performances can also be modelled with the experience curve approach, yielding learning rates of 3% ± 1% and 6% ± 2% for the women's and men's events, respectively. Long-term trends suggest that: (1) women will continue to run 10–20% slower than men, (2) 9.50 s over 100 m dash may only be broken at the end of this century and (3) several middle- and long-distance records may be broken within the next two to three decades. The prospects of witnessing a sub-2 hour marathon before 2100 remain inconclusive. Our results should be interpreted cautiously as forecasting human behaviour is intrinsically uncertain. The future season-best sprint and distance running performances will continue to scatter around the trends identified here and may yield unexpected improvements of standing world records. PMID:26088705

Providing Extrinsic Reward for Test Performance Undermines Long-Term Memory Acquisition

PubMed Central

Kuhbandner, Christof; Aslan, Alp; Emmerdinger, Kathrin; Murayama, Kou

2016-01-01

Based on numerous studies showing that testing studied material can improve long-term retention more than restudying the same material, it is often suggested that the number of tests in education should be increased to enhance knowledge acquisition. However, testing in real-life educational settings often entails a high degree of extrinsic motivation of learners due to the common practice of placing important consequences on the outcome of a test. Such an effect on the motivation of learners may undermine the beneficial effects of testing on long-term memory because it has been shown that extrinsic motivation can reduce the quality of learning. To examine this issue, participants learned foreign language vocabulary words, followed by an immediate test in which one-third of the words were tested and one-third restudied. To manipulate extrinsic motivation during immediate testing, participants received either monetary reward contingent on test performance or no reward. After 1 week, memory for all words was tested. In the immediate test, reward reduced correct recall and increased commission errors, indicating that reward reduced the number of items that can benefit from successful retrieval. The results in the delayed test revealed that reward additionally reduced the gain received from successful retrieval because memory for initially successfully retrieved words was lower in the reward condition. However, testing was still more effective than restudying under reward conditions because reward undermined long-term memory for concurrently restudied material as well. These findings indicate that providing performance–contingent reward in a test can undermine long-term knowledge acquisition. PMID:26869978

Long-term Effectiveness of Online Anaphylaxis Education for Pharmacists

PubMed Central

Vale, Sandra; Sanfilippo, Frank M; Loh, Richard; Clifford, Rhonda M

2014-01-01

Objective. To evaluate the long-term effectiveness of an Australasian Society of Clinical Immunology and Allergy (ASCIA) anaphylaxis e-learning program compared to lectures or no training. Design. A controlled interrupted-time-series study of Australian pharmacists and pharmacy students who completed ASCIA anaphylaxis e-learning or lecture programs was conducted during 2011-2013. Effectiveness was measured using a validated test administered pretraining, posttraining, and 3 and 7 months after training. Assessment. All learning groups performed significantly better on all posttests compared to the pretest, and compared to a control group (p<0.001). The proportion of e-learners achieving the minimum standard for anaphylaxis knowledge improved from 45% at pretest to 87% at 7 months. Conclusion. The ASCIA e-learning program significantly increased anaphylaxis knowledge. The high proportion of participants achieving the minimum standard at 7 months indicates long-term knowledge change. PMID:25258441

Sharpened cortical tuning and enhanced cortico-cortical communication contribute to the long-term neural mechanisms of visual motion perceptual learning.

PubMed

Chen, Nihong; Bi, Taiyong; Zhou, Tiangang; Li, Sheng; Liu, Zili; Fang, Fang

2015-07-15

Much has been debated about whether the neural plasticity mediating perceptual learning takes place at the sensory or decision-making stage in the brain. To investigate this, we trained human subjects in a visual motion direction discrimination task. Behavioral performance and BOLD signals were measured before, immediately after, and two weeks after training. Parallel to subjects' long-lasting behavioral improvement, the neural selectivity in V3A and the effective connectivity from V3A to IPS (intraparietal sulcus, a motion decision-making area) exhibited a persistent increase for the trained direction. Moreover, the improvement was well explained by a linear combination of the selectivity and connectivity increases. These findings suggest that the long-term neural mechanisms of motion perceptual learning are implemented by sharpening cortical tuning to trained stimuli at the sensory processing stage, as well as by optimizing the connections between sensory and decision-making areas in the brain. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Anterior Cervical Discectomy and Fusion Outcomes over 10 Years: A Prospective Study.

PubMed

Buttermann, Glenn R

2018-02-01

Prospective cohort study with >10-year follow-up. To assess the long-term, >10-year clinical outcomes of anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF) and to compare outcomes based on primary diagnosis of disc herniation, stenosis or advanced degenerative disc disease (DDD), number of levels treated, and preexisting adjacent level degeneration. ACDF is a proven treatment for patients with stenosis and disc herniation and results in significantly improved short- and intermediate-term outcomes. Motion preservation treatments may result in improved long-term outcomes but need to be compared to long-term ACDF outcomes reference. Patients who had disc herniation, stenosis, and DDD and underwent ACDF with or without decompression were prospectively enrolled and followed for a minimum of 10 years with outcome assessment at various intervals. All 159 consecutive patients had autogenous tricortical iliac crest bone graft and plate instrumentation used. Outcomes included visual analog scale for neck and arm pain. pain drawing, Oswestry Disability Index, and self-assessment of procedure success. Preoperative adjacent-level disc degeneration, pseudarthrosis, and secondary operations were analyzed. For all diagnostic groups, significant outcomes improvement was seen at all follow-up periods for all scales relative to preoperative scores. Outcomes were not related to age, gender, number of levels treated, and minimally to preexisting degeneration at the adjacent level. The use of narcotic pain medication decreased substantially. Neurological deficits almost all resolved. Patient self-reported success ranged from 85% to 95%. Over the long term, additional surgery for pseudarthrosis (10%) occurred in the early follow-up period, and for adjacent segment degeneration (21%), which occurred linearly during the >10-year follow-up period. ACDF leads to significantly improved outcomes for all primary diagnoses and was sustained for >10 years' follow-up. Secondary surgeries were performed for pseudarthrosis repair and for symptomatic adjacent-level degeneration. 2.

[Epidural aspergillosis secondary to lung aspergilloma despite long-term itraconazole treatment].

PubMed

Jeanrot, C; Guigui, P; Groussard, O; Deburge, A

2001-10-01

A 58-year-old man developed spinal cord compression at the T2-T3 level due to an Aspergillus epidural abscess. This presumably immunocompetent patient had been treated for two years by oral itraconazole (200 mg/day) for a lung aspergilloma that occurred seven years after removal of a lung adenocarcinoma. Surgical debridement was performed via a wide posterior approach associated with high-dose amphotericin B. Five months later, the patient's neurological deficit had not improved and the patient died from respiratory failure. Despite a long-term treatment with itraconazole, the infection spread locally from a lung aspergilloma to the epidural space.

Effectiveness of Essence of Chicken in Improving Cognitive Function in Young People Under Work-Related Stress

PubMed Central

Chan, Lung; Wang, Hsuan-Min; Chen, Kuan-Yu; Lin, Ying-Chin; Wu, Pei-Jung; Hsieh, Wan-Lin; Chen, Ying-Ru; Liu, Cheung-Pin; Tsai, Han-Yin; Chen, Yun-Ru; Chang, Hsiu-Hui; Hsieh, Yi-Chen; Hu, Chaur-Jong

2016-01-01

Abstract Work-related stress (WS) can result in considerable and extensive changes in physiological and psychological performance. WS beyond the optimal levels induces anxiety, confusion, exhaustion, and burnout. Chronic WS affects neurocognitive performance, particularly attention and visuospatial memory. Essence of chicken (EC) has been reported to improve neurocognitive function after mental stress. To investigate the beneficial effects of EC in improving neurocognitive performance under WS, we conducted a randomized, double blind trial. Total 102 young workers in New Taipei City with high WS, evaluated using the Individual Subjective Perception Job Stress Scale scores (>36 for job leaders and 33 for nonleaders) were recruited. Fifty-one participants received 70 mL of EC and 51 received a placebo daily for 2 weeks. Blood tests and neurocognitive assessment were performed before treatment, at the end of treatment, and 2 weeks after treatment. EC improved the performance of participants with high depression scores in the form-color associative memory test, used for assessing short-term memory. Although creatinine and glutamic-pyruvic transaminase (GPT) levels increased in week 2, but the levels returned to the baseline in week 4. Blood urea nitrogen (BUN) levels decreased in week 4. EC significantly improved short-term memory in participants with high WS and concomitant depressive mood, although it slightly increased GPT and creatinine levels and reduced BUN levels. The long-term treatment effects of EC warrant further investigation. PMID:27175681

Effectiveness of Essence of Chicken in Improving Cognitive Function in Young People Under Work-Related Stress: A Randomized Double-Blind Trial.

PubMed

Chan, Lung; Wang, Hsuan-Min; Chen, Kuan-Yu; Lin, Ying-Chin; Wu, Pei-Jung; Hsieh, Wan-Lin; Chen, Ying-Ru; Liu, Cheung-Pin; Tsai, Han-Yin; Chen, Yun-Ru; Chang, Hsiu-Hui; Hsieh, Yi-Chen; Hu, Chaur-Jong

2016-05-01

Work-related stress (WS) can result in considerable and extensive changes in physiological and psychological performance. WS beyond the optimal levels induces anxiety, confusion, exhaustion, and burnout. Chronic WS affects neurocognitive performance, particularly attention and visuospatial memory. Essence of chicken (EC) has been reported to improve neurocognitive function after mental stress.To investigate the beneficial effects of EC in improving neurocognitive performance under WS, we conducted a randomized, double blind trial. Total 102 young workers in New Taipei City with high WS, evaluated using the Individual Subjective Perception Job Stress Scale scores (>36 for job leaders and 33 for nonleaders) were recruited. Fifty-one participants received 70 mL of EC and 51 received a placebo daily for 2 weeks. Blood tests and neurocognitive assessment were performed before treatment, at the end of treatment, and 2 weeks after treatment.EC improved the performance of participants with high depression scores in the form-color associative memory test, used for assessing short-term memory. Although creatinine and glutamic-pyruvic transaminase (GPT) levels increased in week 2, but the levels returned to the baseline in week 4. Blood urea nitrogen (BUN) levels decreased in week 4.EC significantly improved short-term memory in participants with high WS and concomitant depressive mood, although it slightly increased GPT and creatinine levels and reduced BUN levels. The long-term treatment effects of EC warrant further investigation.

Effectiveness of a Video-Feedback and Questioning Programme to Develop Cognitive Expertise in Sport

PubMed Central

García-González, Luis; Moreno, M. Perla; Moreno, Alberto; Gil, Alexander; del Villar, Fernando

2013-01-01

The importance within sport expertise of cognitive factors has been emphasised in many research studies. Adaptations that take place in athletes’ long-term memories are going to condition their decision-making and performance, and training programmes must be developed that improve these adaptations. In our study, we provide a tactical-cognitive training programme based on video-feedback and questioning in order to improve tactical knowledge in tennis players and verify its effect when transferred to athletes’ decision-making. 11 intermediate tennis players participated in this study (12.9±0.7 years old), distributed into two groups (experimental, n = 5; control, n = 6). Tactical knowledge was measured by problem representation and strategy planning with a verbal protocol. Decision-making was measured by a systematic observation instrument. Results confirm the effectiveness of a combination of video-feedback and questioning on cognitive expertise, developing adaptations in long-term memory that produce an improvement in the quality of tactical knowledge (content, sophistication and structure). This, in turn, is transferred to the athletes’ decision-making capacity, leading to a higher percentage of successful decisions made during game play. Finally, we emphasise the need to develop effective programmes to develop cognitive expertise and improve athletes' performance, and include it in athletes’ formative stages. PMID:24340012

The Effect of Technical Performance on Patient Outcomes in Surgery: A Systematic Review.

PubMed

Fecso, Andras B; Szasz, Peter; Kerezov, Georgi; Grantcharov, Teodor P

2017-03-01

Systematic review of the effect of intraoperative technical performance on patient outcomes. The operating room is a high-stakes, high-risk environment. As a result, the quality of surgical interventions affecting patient outcomes has been the subject of discussion and research for years. MEDLINE, EMBASE, PsycINFO, and Cochrane databases were searched. All surgical specialties were eligible for inclusion. Data were reviewed in regards to the methods by which technical performance was measured, what patient outcomes were assessed, and how intraoperative technical performance affected patient outcomes. Quality of evidence was assessed using the Medical Education Research Study Quality Instrument (MERSQI). Of the 12,758 studies initially identified, 24 articles (7775 total participants) were ultimately included in this review. Seventeen studies assessed the performance of the faculty alone, 2 assessed both the faculty and trainees, 1 assessed trainees alone, and in 4 studies, the level of the operating surgeon was not specified. In 18 studies, a performance assessment tool was used. Patient outcomes were evaluated using intraoperative complications, short-term morbidity, long-term morbidity, short-term mortality, and long-term mortality. The average MERSQI score was 11.67 (range 9.5-14.5). Twenty-one studies demonstrated that superior technical performance was related to improved patient outcomes. The results of this systematic review demonstrated that superior technical performance positively affects patient outcomes. Despite this initial evidence, more robust research is needed to directly assess intraoperative technical performance and its effect on postoperative patient outcomes using meaningful assessment instruments and reliable processes.

Solid organ allograft survival improvement in the United States: the long-term does not mirror the dramatic short-term success.

PubMed

Lodhi, S A; Lamb, K E; Meier-Kriesche, H U

2011-06-01

Organ survival in the short-term period post-transplant has improved dramatically over the past few decades. Whether this has translated to a long-term survival benefit remains unclear. This study quantifies the progression of nonrenal solid organ transplant outcomes from 1989 to 2009 in liver, lung, heart, intestine and pancreas transplants. Long-term graft survival was analyzed using data on adult solid organ transplant recipients from the UNOS/SRTR database and is reported as organ half-life and yearly attrition rates. Liver, lung, heart, intestine and pancreas half-lives have improved from 5.8 to 8.5, 1.7 to 5.2, 8.8 to 11, 2.1 to 3.6 and 10.5 to 16.7 years, respectively. Long-term attrition rates have not shown the same consistent improvement, with the yearly attrition rate 5-10 years post-transplant for liver, lung, heart and pancreas changing from 4.7 to 4.3, 10.9 to 10.1, 6.4 to 5.1 and 3.3 to 4.2, respectively. Attrition rates for intestine and pancreas transplantation alone display more variability due to smaller sample size but exhibit similar trends of improved first-year attrition and relatively stagnant long-term attrition rates. With first-year survival and attrition rates almost at a pinnacle, further progress in long-term survival will come from targeting endpoints beyond first-year rejection and survival rates. ©2011 The Authors Journal compilation©2011 The American Society of Transplantation and the American Society of Transplant Surgeons.

Progress towards computer simulation of NiH2 battery performance over life

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zimmerman, Albert H.; Quinzio, M. V.

1995-01-01

The long-term performance of rechargeable battery cells has traditionally been verified through life-testing, a procedure that generally requires significant commitments of funding and test resources. In the situation of nickel hydrogen battery cells, which have the capability of providing extremely long cycle life, the time and cost required to conduct even accelerated testing has become a serious impediment to transitioning technology improvements into spacecraft applications. The utilization of computer simulations to indicate the changes in performance to be expected in response to design or operating changes in nickel hydrogen cells is therefore a particularly attractive tool in advanced battery development, as well as for verifying performance in different applications. Computer-based simulations of the long-term performance of rechargeable battery cells have typically had very limited success in the past. There are a number of reasons for the lack in progress in this area. First, and probably most important, all battery cells are relatively complex electrochemical systems, in which performance is dictated by a large number of interacting physical and chemical processes. While the complexity alone is a significant part of the problem, in many instances the fundamental chemical and physical processes underlying long-term degradation and its effects on performance have not even been understood. Second, while specific chemical and physical changes within cell components have been associated with degradation, there has been no generalized simulation architecture that enables the chemical and physical structure (and changes therein) to be translated into cell performance. For the nickel hydrogen battery cell, our knowledge of the underlying reactions that control the performance of this cell has progressed to where it clearly is possible to model them. The recent development of a relative generalized cell modelling approach provides the framework for translating the chemical and physical structure of the components inside a cell into its performance characteristics over its entire cycle life. This report describes our approach to this task in terms of defining those processes deemed critical in controlling performance over life, and the model architecture required to translate the fundamental cell processes into performance profiles.

Very low birth weight piglets show improved cognitive performance in the spatial cognitive holeboard task.

PubMed

Antonides, Alexandra; Schoonderwoerd, Anne C; Nordquist, Rebecca E; van der Staay, Franz Josef

2015-01-01

Low birth weight (LBW) is common in humans and has been found to cause lasting cognitive and developmental deficits later in life. It is thought that the primary cause is intra-uterine growth restriction (IUGR) due to a shortage of oxygen and supply of nutrients to the fetus. Pigs appear to be a good model animal to investigate long-term cognitive effects of LBW, as LBW is common in commercially farmed breeds of pigs. Moreover, pigs are developmentally similar to humans and can be trained to perform complex tasks. In this study, we trained ten very low birth weight (vLBW) piglets and their ten normal birth weight (NBW) siblings in a spatial cognitive holeboard task in order to investigate long-term cognitive effects of LBW. In this task, four out of sixteen holes contain a hidden food reward, which allows measuring working memory (WM) (short-term memory) and reference memory (RM) (long-term memory) in parallel. Piglets were trained for 46-54 trials during the acquisition phase, followed by a 20-trial reversal phase in which a different set of four holes was baited. Both groups acquired the task and improved their performance over time. A mixed model repeated measures ANOVA revealed that vLBW piglets showed better RM performance than NBW piglets in both the acquisition and reversal phase. Additionally, WM scores in the vLBW were less disrupted than in the NBW animals when switched to the reversal phase. These findings are contrary to findings in humans. Moreover, vLBW pigs had lower hair cortisol concentrations (HCCs) than NBW pigs in flank hair at 12 weeks of age. These results could indicate that restricted intra-uterine growth causes compensatory mechanisms to arise in early development that result in beneficial effects for vLBW piglets, increasing their low survival chances in early-life competition.

Tuning Monotonic Basin Hopping: Improving the Efficiency of Stochastic Search as Applied to Low-Thrust Trajectory Optimization

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Englander, Jacob; Englander, Arnold

2014-01-01

Trajectory optimization methods using MBH have become well developed during the past decade. An essential component of MBH is a controlled random search through the multi-dimensional space of possible solutions. Historically, the randomness has been generated by drawing RVs from a uniform probability distribution. Here, we investigate the generating the randomness by drawing the RVs from Cauchy and Pareto distributions, chosen because of their characteristic long tails. We demonstrate that using Cauchy distributions (as first suggested by Englander significantly improves MBH performance, and that Pareto distributions provide even greater improvements. Improved performance is defined in terms of efficiency and robustness, where efficiency is finding better solutions in less time, and robustness is efficiency that is undiminished by (a) the boundary conditions and internal constraints of the optimization problem being solved, and (b) by variations in the parameters of the probability distribution. Robustness is important for achieving performance improvements that are not problem specific. In this work we show that the performance improvements are the result of how these long-tailed distributions enable MBH to search the solution space faster and more thoroughly. In developing this explanation, we use the concepts of sub-diffusive, normally-diffusive, and super-diffusive RWs originally developed in the field of statistical physics.

Insight and Treatment Outcomes in Schizophrenia: Post-hoc Analysis of a Long-term, Double-blind Study Comparing Lurasidone and Quetiapine XR.

PubMed

Harvey, Philip D; Siu, Cynthia O; Loebel, Antony D

2017-12-01

Objective: The objective of this post-hoc analysis was to evaluate the effect of lurasidone and quetiapine extended-release (XR) on insight and judgment and assess the longitudinal relationships between improvement in insight and cognitive performance, functional capacity, quality of well-being, and depressive symptoms in patients with schizophrenia. Design: Clinically unstable patients with schizophrenia (N=488) were randomized to once-daily, fixed-dose treatment with lurasidone 80mg, lurasidone 160mg, quetiapine XR 600mg, or placebo, followed by a long-term, double-blind, flexible-dose continuation study involving these agents. Results: Significantly greater improvement in insight and judgment (assessed by the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale G12 item) for the lurasidone and quetiapine XR groups, compared to the placebo group, was observed at Week 6. Over a subsequent six-month continuation period, the flexible dose lurasidone group showed significantly greater improvement in insight from acute phase baseline compared to the flexible-dose quetiapine XR group (QXR-QXR) (p=0.032). Improvement in insight was significantly correlated with improvement in cognition ( p =0.014), functional capacity (p=0.006, UPSA-B), quality of well-being ( p =0.033, QWB), and depressive symptoms ( p =0.05, Montgomery-Åsberg Depression Rating Scale [MADRS] score) across treatment groups and study periods. Conclusion: In this post-hoc analysis, flexibly dosed lurasidone 40 to 160mg/d was found to be associated with significantly greater improvement in insight compared to flexibly dosed quetiapine XR 200 to 800mg/d over long-term treatment in patients with schizophrenia. Across treatment groups, improvement in insight and judgment was significantly associated with improvement in cognition, functional capacity, quality of well-being, and depressive symptoms over time.

Long short-term memory for speaker generalization in supervised speech separation

PubMed Central

Chen, Jitong; Wang, DeLiang

2017-01-01

Speech separation can be formulated as learning to estimate a time-frequency mask from acoustic features extracted from noisy speech. For supervised speech separation, generalization to unseen noises and unseen speakers is a critical issue. Although deep neural networks (DNNs) have been successful in noise-independent speech separation, DNNs are limited in modeling a large number of speakers. To improve speaker generalization, a separation model based on long short-term memory (LSTM) is proposed, which naturally accounts for temporal dynamics of speech. Systematic evaluation shows that the proposed model substantially outperforms a DNN-based model on unseen speakers and unseen noises in terms of objective speech intelligibility. Analyzing LSTM internal representations reveals that LSTM captures long-term speech contexts. It is also found that the LSTM model is more advantageous for low-latency speech separation and it, without future frames, performs better than the DNN model with future frames. The proposed model represents an effective approach for speaker- and noise-independent speech separation. PMID:28679261

Short- and Long-Term Effects of Balance Training on Physical Activity in Older Adults With Osteoporosis: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

PubMed

Dohrn, Ing-Mari; Hagströmer, Maria; Hellénius, Mai-Lis; Ståhle, Agneta

We have developed a 12-week balance training program for older adults shown to improve fall-related concerns, gait speed, balance performance, and physical function. We hypothesized that this balance training would also contribute to higher habitual physical activity (PA) levels and improved health-related quality of life (HRQoL). The primary aim was to evaluate short- and long-term effects of the balance training program on objectively measured habitual PA in older adults with osteoporosis. Secondary aims were to assess the effects of the balance training on HRQoL, and to study whether any effects on PA were associated with changes in HRQoL, gait speed, balance performance, fall-related concerns, and physical function. A randomized controlled trial with follow-up at 3, 9, and 15 months, including 91 participants with osteoporosis (75.6 ± 5.4 years), compared a balance training group (n = 61) with a control group (n = 30). The primary outcome was effect on habitual PA measured as steps/day, dichotomized into less than 5000 or 5000 or more steps/day. Physical activity was assessed with pedometers (Yamax) and accelerometers (Actigraph), HRQoL with the Short Form-36 (SF-36), gait with a GAITRite walkway, balance performance with Modified-Figure-Eight test and one-leg stance, fall-related concerns with Falls Efficacy Scale International, and physical function with the advanced lower extremity subscale of the questionnaire Late Life Function and Disability Instrument. Statistical methods used were multivariate logistic regression and logistic generalized estimating equation. Sixty-eight participants completed the short-term follow-up at 3 months, and 53 participants completed the long-term follow-up at 15 months. Per-protocol analysis (n = 68) showed that the odds ratio for having a daily step count of 5000 or more at 3 months was 6.17 (95% confidence interval, 1.23-30.91), P = .027, for the intervention group compared with the control group. The longitudinal analysis (n = 91) showed that the odds ratio for having a daily step count of 5000 or more at 15 months was 2.02 (95% confidence interval, 0.88-4.64), P = .096, for the intervention group compared with the control group. The mental component sum of the SF-36 improved significantly from baseline to 3 months in the intervention group, and the physical component sum improved in both groups, but no statistically significant differences were found between groups. No associations were found between PA and changes in covariates. The short-term evaluation showed that balance training increased habitual PA in community-dwelling older adults with osteoporosis. A significantly higher proportion of participants in the intervention group reached a level of 5000 or more steps/day, which is important for overall health. This effect was not associated with improvements in HRQoL, gait speed, balance performance, or fall-related concerns, and did not persist through the long-term follow-up. To accomplish a sustained PA change, a prolonged intervention or more support regarding habitual PA may be required, such as reinforcement with personalized behavior change counseling or PA on prescription.

The stability of liquid-filled matrix ionization chamber electronic portal imaging devices for dosimetry purposes.

PubMed

Louwe, R J W; Tielenburg, R; van Ingen, K M; Mijnheer, B J; van Herk, M B

2004-04-01

This study was performed to determine the stability of liquid-filled matrix ionization chamber (LiFi-type) electronic portal imaging devices (EPID) for dosimetric purposes. The short- and long-term stability of the response was investigated, as well as the importance of factors influencing the response (e.g., temperature fluctuations, radiation damage, and the performance of the electronic hardware). It was shown that testing the performance of the electronic hardware as well as the short-term stability of the imagers may reveal the cause of a poor long-term stability of the imager response. In addition, the short-term stability was measured to verify the validity of the fitted dose-response curve immediately after beam startup. The long-term stability of these imagers could be considerably improved by correcting for room temperature fluctuations and gradual changes in response due to radiation damage. As a result, the reproducibility was better than 1% (1 SD) over a period of two years. The results of this study were used to formulate recommendations for a quality control program for portal dosimetry. The effect of such a program was assessed by comparing the results of portal dosimetry and in vivo dosimetry using diodes during the treatment of 31 prostate patients. The improvement of the results for portal dosimetry was consistent with the deviations observed with the reproducibility tests in that particular period. After a correction for the variation in response of the imager, the average difference between the measured and prescribed dose during the treatment of prostate patients was -0.7%+/-1.5% (1 SD), and -0.6%+/-1.1% (1 SD) for EPID and diode in vivo dosimetry, respectively. It can be concluded that a high stability of the response can be achieved for this type of EPID by applying a rigorous quality control program.

Long-term follow-up of patients undergoing autologous noncultured melanocyte-keratinocyte transplantation for vitiligo and other leukodermas.

PubMed

Silpa-Archa, Narumol; Griffith, James L; Huggins, Richard H; Henderson, Marsha D; Kerr, Holly A; Jacobsen, Gordon; Mulekar, Sanjeev V; Lim, Henry W; Hamzavi, Iltefat H

2017-08-01

Persistence of pigmentation after a melanocyte-keratinocyte transplantation procedure (MKTP) is an important consideration for efficacy. We sought to determine long-term repigmentation of MKTP in vitiligo and other leukodermas. A retrospective review of electronic medical records was conducted for all MKTPs performed at Henry Ford Hospital between January 2009 and April 2014. Repigmentation was assessed by a 5-point grading scale (poor to excellent) and Vitiligo Area Scoring Index (VASI). One hundred patients had MKTP performed at 236 anatomically-based lesions (ABLs); 63 patients with 157 ABLs had long-term data available (12-72 months; median, 24 months). Segmental vitiligo, nonsegmental vitiligo, and physical leukoderma demonstrated improvement in VASI scores: -75.6 ± 24.6%, -59.2 ± 36.6%, and -32.4 ± 33.5%, respectively. In vitiligo, at 24, 48, and 72 months after MKTP, 53%, 64%, and 53% of ABLs, respectively, maintained >75% repigmentation. Skin phototype, age, and anatomic location of ABLs had no significant effect on the outcome of treatment. Limitations of the study include the retrospective design with uncontrolled, postoperative adjuvant treatments and inconsistent compliance to scheduled follow-up evaluations. MKTP provides satisfactory long-term repigmentation in the majority of appropriately selected patients with leukoderma. MKTP can maintain repigmentation for at least 72 months. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Inc.

In-Vivo Characterization of Glassy Carbon Micro-Electrode Arrays for Neural Applications and Histological Analysis of the Brain Tissue

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vomero, Maria

The aim of this work is to fabricate and characterize glassy carbon Microelectrode Arrays (MEAs) for sensing and stimulating neural activity, and conduct histological analysis of the brain tissue after the implant to determine long-term performance. Neural applications often require robust electrical and electrochemical response over a long period of time, and for those applications we propose to replace the commonly used noble metals like platinum, gold and iridium with glassy carbon. We submit that such material has the potential to improve the performances of traditional neural prostheses, thanks to better charge transfer capabilities and higher electrochemical stability. Great interest and attention is given in this work, in particular, to the investigation of tissue response after several weeks of implants in rodents' brain motor cortex and the associated materials degradation. As part of this work, a new set of devices for Electrocorticography (ECoG) has been designed and fabricated to improve durability and quality of the previous generation of devices, designed and manufactured by the same research group in 2014. In-vivo long-term impedance measurements and brain activity recordings were performed to test the functionality of the neural devices. In-vitro electrical characterization of the carbon electrodes, as well as the study of the adhesion mechanisms between glassy carbon and different substrates is also part of the research described in this book.

Modified Multivisceral Transplantation with Native Spleen Removal in Rats.

PubMed

Stringa, Pablo; Arreola, Nidia Monserrat; Moreno, Ane M Andres; Largo, Carlota; Rumbo, Martín; Hernandez, Francisco

2018-02-23

 Modified multivisceral transplantation (MMVTx) refers to the use of a graft that includes all abdominal organs except the liver. The use of this type of transplant in children and adults expanded over the last years with good results. However, long-term survival in experimental models has not been reported. Our aim is to describe in detail some technical modifications of MMVTx to obtain long-term survival.  Syngeneic (Lewis-Lewis) heterotopic MMVTx was performed in 16 male rats (180-250 g). All procedures were performed under isoflurane anesthesia. The graft consisted of stomach, duodenopancreatic axis, spleen, and small bowel. The vascular pedicle consisted of a conduit of aorta, including the celiac trunk and the superior mesenteric artery (SMA), and the portal vein (PV). The engraftment was performed by end-to-side anastomosis to the infra-renal cava vein and aorta. After reperfusion, the graft was accommodated in the right side of the abdomen, and a terminal ileostomy performed. The native spleen was removed.  Donor and recipient time was 39 ± 4.4 minutes and 69 ± 7 minutes, respectively; venous and arterial anastomosis time was 14 ± 1 minutes and 12.3 ± 1 minutes, respectively. Total ischemia time was 77.2 ± 7.9 minutes. Survival was 75% (12/16), six were sacrificed after 2 hours, and six were kept alive for long-term evaluation (more than 1 week).  Long-term survival is reported after heterotopic MMVTx in rats. The heterotopic MMVTx with native spleen removal would potentially improve the existent models for transplant research. The usefulness of this model warrants further confirmation in allogeneic experiments. Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.

DIVERGT screening procedure predicts general cognitive functioning in adult long-term survivors of pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia: A PETALE study.

PubMed

Boulet-Craig, Aubree; Robaey, Philippe; Laniel, Julie; Bertout, Laurence; Drouin, Simon; Krajinovic, Maja; Laverdière, Caroline; Sinnett, Daniel; Sultan, Serge; Lippé, Sarah

2018-05-24

Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) is the most common cancer in children. Because of major improvements in treatment protocols, the survival rate now exceeds 80%. However, ALL treatments can cause long-term neurocognitive sequelae, which negatively impact academic achievement and quality of life. Therefore, cognitive sequelae need to be carefully evaluated. The DIVERGT is a battery of tests proposed as a screening tool, sensitive to executive function impairments in children and adolescent cancer survivors. Our study aimed at verifying the predictive value of the DIVERGT on general cognitive functioning in adult long-term survivors of ALL. ALL survivors completed the DIVERGT 13.4 years, on average, after remission (N = 247). In addition, 49 of these survivors (equally selected amongst those with low, average, and high DIVERGT scores) as well as 29 controls completed a more comprehensive neuropsychological evaluation within a 3-year period from DIVERGT administration. Multivariate regression analysis was used to assess the predictive value of the DIVERGT on general intelligence, mathematics, verbal memory, and working memory. As a follow-up analysis, three performance groups were created based on the DIVERGT results. Multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) assessed neuropsychological differences between groups. The DIVERGT accurately predicted General Ability Index (GAI) (P < 0.0001), mathematics (P < 0.0001) and verbal memory (P = 0.045). Moreover, the low-performance group consistently had poorer performance than the high-performance and control groups on the neuropsychological tests. The DIVERGT is a useful, time-effective screening battery for broader neurocognitive impairments identification in long-term adult ALL survivors. It could be implemented as routine examination in cancer follow-up clinics. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Early crisis nontechnical skill teaching in residency leads to long-term skill retention and improved performance during crises: A prospective, nonrandomized controlled study.

PubMed

Doumouras, Aristithes G; Engels, Paul T

2017-07-01

Medical error is common in crises, and the majority of observed errors are nontechnical in nature. The long-term impact of teaching crisis nontechnical skills to residents has not been evaluated. The objective of this study was to determine the effect of simulation-based teaching of crisis nontechnical skills compared to controls one year after initial teaching. This was a prospective study using both historical controls and a before-and-after methodology to evaluate the effect of a high-fidelity simulation curriculum that used crisis resource management principles to teach nontechnical skills. Postgraduate year 2 and 3 residents were invited to take part in a prospective training course over 2 years. The primary outcome was leader performance evaluated by expert raters using the previously validated 7-point Ottawa Global Rating Scale. Overall, 23 residents performed 30 simulations over the 2 years with the intervention group of 7 residents being assessed in both years. After adjustment, the postgraduate year 3 intervention group who received training the previous year had significantly higher overall performance scores than all postgraduate year 2 scores (1.09 95% confidence interval 0.70-1.47, P < .001) and the historical postgraduate year 3 cohort who received no prior training (1.20, 95% confidence interval 0.37-2.03, P = .005). There was no decay of skills noted over the course of the study. Postgraduate year 3 residents who had prior training had significantly improved crisis performance compared to historical postgraduate year 3 controls and untrained postgraduate year 2 residents. There were no significant differences between the crisis performance of postgraduate year 2 residents and the untrained postgraduate year 3 controls. This confirms the beneficial effect and long-term retention after crisis nontechnical skill training. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Latest improvements on long wave p on n HgCdTe technology at Sofradir

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rubaldo, Laurent; Taalat, Rachid; Berthoz, Jocelyn; Maillard, Magalie; Péré-Laperne, Nicolas; Brunner, Alexandre; Guinedor, Pierre; Dargent, L.; Manissadjian, A.; Reibel, Y.; Kerlain, A.

2017-02-01

SOFRADIR is the worldwide leader on the cooled IR detector market for high-performance space, military and security applications thanks to a well mastered Mercury Cadmium Telluride (MCT) technology, and recently thanks to the acquisition of III-V technology: InSb, InGaAs, and QWIP quantum detectors. As a result, strong and continuous development efforts are deployed to deliver cutting edge products with improved performances in terms of spatial and thermal resolution, dark current, quantum efficiency, low excess noise and high operability. The actual trend in quantum IR detector development is the design of very small pixel, with the higher achievable operating temperature whatever the spectral band. Moreover maintaining the detector operability and image quality at higher temperature moreover for long wavelength is a major issue. This paper presents the recent developments achieved at Sofradir to meet this challenge for LW band MCT extrinsic p on n technology with a cut-off wavelength of 9.3μm at 90K. State of the art performances will be presented in terms of dark current, operability and NETD temperature dependency, quantum efficiency, MTF, and RFPN (Residual Fixed Pattern Noise) stability up to 100K.

Hippocampal CA1 Kindling but Not Long-Term Potentiation Disrupts Spatial Memory Performance

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Leung, L. Stan; Shen, Bixia

2006-01-01

Long-term synaptic enhancement in the hippocampus has been suggested to cause deficits in spatial performance. Synaptic enhancement has been reported after hippocampal kindling that induced repeated electrographic seizures or afterdischarges (ADs) and after long-term potentiation (LTP) defined as synaptic enhancement without ADs. We studied…

Hybrid FRP-concrete bridge deck system final report II : long term performance of hybrid FRP-concrete bridge deck system.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2009-06-01

This report describes the investigation of the long term structural performance of a : hybrid FRP-concrete (HFRPC) bridge deck on steel girders. The study aimed at : assessing three long term aspects pertaining to the HFRPC bridge deck: (1) creep : c...

Long-Term Orientation and Educational Performance. Working Paper 174

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Figlio, David; Giuliano, Paola; Özek, Umut; Sapienza, Paola

2017-01-01

We use remarkable population-level administrative education and birth records from Florida to study the role of Long-Term Orientation on the educational attainment of immigrant students living in the US. Controlling for the quality of schools and individual characteristics, students from countries with long-term oriented attitudes perform better…

Relating Brain Damage to Brain Plasticity in Patients With Multiple Sclerosis

PubMed Central

Tomassini, Valentina; Johansen-Berg, Heidi; Jbabdi, Saad; Wise, Richard G.; Pozzilli, Carlo; Palace, Jacqueline; Matthews, Paul M.

2013-01-01

Background Failure of adaptive plasticity with increasing pathology is suggested to contribute to progression of disability in multiple sclerosis (MS). However, functional impairments can be reduced with practice, suggesting that brain plasticity is preserved even in patients with substantial damage. Objective Here, functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) was used to probe systems-level mechanisms of brain plasticity associated with improvements in visuomotor performance in MS patients and related to measures of microstructural damage. Methods 23 MS patients and 12 healthy controls underwent brain fMRI during the first practice session of a visuomotor task (short-term practice) and after 2 weeks of daily practice with the same task (longer-term practice). Participants also underwent a structural brain MRI scan. Results Patients performed more poorly than controls at baseline. Nonetheless, with practice, patients showed performance improvements similar to controls and independent of the extent of MRI measures of brain pathology. Different relationships between performance improvements and activations were found between groups: greater short-term improvements were associated with lower activation in the sensorimotor, posterior cingulate, and parahippocampal cortices for patients, whereas greater long-term improvements correlated with smaller activation reductions in the visual cortex of controls. Conclusions Brain plasticity for visuomotor practice is preserved in MS patients despite a high burden of cerebral pathology. Cognitive systems different from those acting in controls contribute to this plasticity in patients. These findings challenge the notion that increasing pathology is accompanied by an outright failure of adaptive plasticity, supporting a neuroscientific rationale for recovery-oriented strategies even in chronically disabled patients. PMID:22328685

Properties of PMR Polyimide composites made with improved high strength graphite fibers

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Vannucci, R. D.

1980-01-01

High strength, intermediate modulus graphite fibers were obtained from various commercial suppliers, and were used to fabricate PMR-15 and PMR-2 polyimide composites. The effects of the improved high strength graphite fibers on composite properties after exposure in air at 600 F were investigated. Two of the improved fibers were found to have an adverse effect on the long term performance of PMR composites. The influence of various factors such as fiber physical properties, surface morphology and chemical composition were also examined.

Pre-Primary Education and Long-Term Education Performance: Evidence from Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) Thailand

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pholphirul, Piriya

2017-01-01

Several research papers have assessed the long-term benefits of pre-primary education in terms of academic performance and labor market outcomes. This study analyzes data obtained from the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) to estimate the effects of preschool enrollment of Thai students on producing long-term benefits in their…

Graphene-Armored Aluminum Foil with Enhanced Anticorrosion Performance as Current Collectors for Lithium-Ion Battery.

PubMed

Wang, Mingzhan; Tang, Miao; Chen, Shulin; Ci, Haina; Wang, Kexin; Shi, Liurong; Lin, Li; Ren, Huaying; Shan, Jingyuan; Gao, Peng; Liu, Zhongfan; Peng, Hailin

2017-12-01

Aluminum (Al) foil, as the most accepted cathode current collector for lithium-ion batteries (LIBs), is susceptible to local anodic corrosions during long-term operations. Such corrosions could lead to the deterioration or even premature failure of the batteries and are generally believed to be a bottleneck for next-generation 5 V LIBs. Here, it is demonstrated that Al foil armored by conformal graphene coating exhibits significantly reinforced anodic corrosion resistance in both LiPF 6 and lithium bis(trifluoromethanesulphonyl) imide (LiTFSI) based electrolytes. Moreover, LiMn 2 O 4 cells using graphene-armored Al foil as current collectors (LMO/GA) demonstrate enhanced electrochemical performance in comparison with those using pristine Al foil (LMO/PA). The long-term discharge capacity retention of LMO/GA cell after ≈950 h straight operations at low rate (0.5 C) reaches up to 91%, remarkably superior to LMO/PA cell (75%). The self-discharge propensity of LMO/GA is clearly relieved and the rate/power performance is also improved with graphene mediations. This work not only contributes to the long-term stable operations of LIBs but also might catalyze the deployment of 5 V LIBs in the future. © 2017 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Long-term outcomes of urinary tract reconstruction in patients with neurogenic urinary tract dysfunction

PubMed Central

Johnson, E. U.; Singh, Gurpreet

2013-01-01

The advent of specialized spinal units and better understanding of the pathophysiology of neurogenic urinary tract dysfunction has made long-term survival of these patients a reality. This has, in turn, led to an increase in quality and choice of management modalities offered to these patients including complex anatomic urinary tract reconstructive procedures tailored to the unique needs of each individual with variable outcomes. We performed a literature review evaluating the long-term outcomes of these reconstructive procedures. To achieve this, we conducted a world-wide electronic literature search of long-term outcomes published in English. As the premise of this review is long-term outcomes, we have focused on pathologies where evidence of long-term outcome is available such as patients with spinal injuries and spina bifida. Therapeutic success following urinary tract reconstruction is usually measured by preservation of renal function, improvement in quality-of-life, the satisfactory achievement of agreed outcomes and the prevention of serious complications. Prognostic factors include neuropathic detrusor overactivity; sphincter dyssynergia; bladder over distension; high pressure storage and high leak point pressures; vesicoureteric reflex, stone formation and urinary tract infections. Although, the past decade has witnessed a reduction in the total number of bladder reconstructive surgeries in the UK, these procedures are essentially safe and effective; but require long-term clinical and functional follow-up/monitoring. Until tissue engineering and gene therapy becomes more mainstream, we feel there is still a place for urinary tract reconstruction in patients with neurogenic lower urinary tract dysfunction. PMID:24235796

Improvement of long-term outcomes in pancreatic cancer and its associated factors within the gemcitabine era: a collaborative retrospective multicenter clinical review of 1,082 patients.

PubMed

Kuroda, Taira; Kumagi, Teru; Yokota, Tomoyuki; Seike, Hirotaka; Nishiyama, Mari; Imai, Yusuke; Inada, Nobu; Shibata, Naozumi; Imamine, Satoshi; Okada, Shin-ichi; Koizumi, Mitsuhito; Yamanishi, Hirofumi; Azemoto, Nobuaki; Miyaike, Jiro; Tanaka, Yoshinori; Tatsukawa, Haruka; Utsunomiya, Hiroki; Ohno, Yoshinori; Miyake, Teruki; Hirooka, Masashi; Furukawa, Shinya; Abe, Masanori; Ikeda, Yoshiou; Matsuura, Bunzo; Hiasa, Yoichi; Onji, Morikazu

2013-08-31

Although the outcomes of pancreatic cancer have been improved by gemcitabine, the changes in its characteristics and long-term outcomes within the gemcitabine era remain unclear. This study was conducted to identify clinical characteristics of pancreatic cancer patients within the gemcitabine era. A retrospective chart review was performed at 10 centers for 1,248 consecutive patients who were ever considered to have a diagnosis of pancreatic cancer between 2001 and 2010. Data collected included demographics, diagnosis date, clinical stage, treatment, and outcome 1,082 patients met the inclusion criteria and were analyzed further. The chi-square test, Student's t-test, and Mann-Whitney U-test were used for statistical analysis. Outcomes were analyzed using the Kaplan-Meier method and Cox proportional hazards regression. Differences in survival analyses were determined using the log-rank test. The distribution of clinical stages was: I, 2.2% II, 3.4% III, 13% IVa, 27% and IVb, 55%. Chemotherapy alone was administered to 42% of patients and 17% underwent resection. The 1-, 3-, and 5-year survival rates were 39%, 13%, and 6.9%, respectively. The median survival time was 257 days, but differed considerably among treatments and clinical stages. Demographics, distribution of clinical stage, and cause of death did not differ between groups A (2001-2005, n=406) and B (2006-2010, n=676). However, group B included more patients who underwent chemotherapy (P<0.0001) and fewer treated with best supportive care (P=0.0004), mirroring improvements in this group's long-term outcomes (P=0.0063). Finally, factors associated with long-term outcomes derived from multivariate analysis were clinical stage (P<0.0001), location of the tumor (P=0.0294) and treatments (surgery, chemotherapy) (<0.0001). Long-term outcomes in pancreatic cancer has improved even within the gemcitabine era, suggesting the importance of offering chemotherapy to patients previously only considered for best supportive care. Most patients are still diagnosed at an advanced stage, making clinical strategy development for diagnosing pancreatic cancer at earlier stages essential.

Calcium homeostasis and protein kinase/phosphatase balance participate in nicotine-induced memory improvement in passive avoidance task in mice.

PubMed

Michalak, Agnieszka; Biala, Grazyna

2017-01-15

Long-term potentiation (LTP) and long-term depression (LTD) depend on specific postsynaptic Ca 2+ /calmodulin concentration. LTP results from Ca 2+ influx through the activated NMDA receptors or voltage-gated calcium channels (VGCCs) and is linked with activation of protein kinases including mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK). Weaker synaptic stimulation, as a result of low Ca 2+ influx, leads to activation of Ca 2+ /calmodulin-dependent phosphatase (calcineurin - CaN) and triggers LTD. Interestingly, both memory formation and drug addiction share similar neuroplastic changes. Nicotine, which is one of the most common addictive drugs, manifests its memory effects through nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs). Because nAChRs may also gate Ca 2+ , it is suggested that calcium signaling pathways are involved in nicotine-induced memory effects. Within the scope of the study was to evaluate the importance of calcium homeostasis and protein kinase/phosphatase balance in nicotine-induced short- and long-term memory effects. To assess memory function in mice passive avoidance test was used. The presented results confirm that acute nicotine (0.1mg/kg) improves short- and long-term memory. Pretreatment with L-type VGCC blockers (amlodipine, nicardipine verapamil) increased nicotine-induced memory improvement in the context of short- and long-term memory. Pretreatment with FK-506 (a potent CaN inhibitor) enhanced short- but not long-term memory effects of nicotine, while SL-327 (a selective MAPK/ERK kinase inhibitor) attenuated both nicotine-induced short- and long-term memory improvement. Acute nicotine enhances both types of memory via L-type VGCC blockade and via ERK1/2 activation. Only short- but not long-term memory enhancement induced by nicotine is dependent on CaN inhibition. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Summary report for CF6 jet engine diagnostics program

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Fasching, W. A.; Stricklin, R.

1982-01-01

Cockpit cruise recordings and test cell data in conjunction with hardware inspection results from airline overhaul shops were analyzed to define the extent and magnitude of performance deterioration of the General Electric CF6 high bypass turbofan engines. The magnitude of Short Term deterioration from the Long Term was isolated and the individual damage mechanisms that were the cause for the majority of the performance deterioration were identified. A potential for reduction in compressor clearance and a potential for improvement in turbine roundness, which corresponds to cruise SFC reductions of 0.38 and 0.36 percent, respectively, were identified.

Smoking and Soldier Performance: A Literature Review

DTIC Science & Technology

1986-06-01

should improve soldier performance and *military operations. On the other hand, the effects of smoking ron endurance and health appear to be primarily bad...from smoking may provide much of the "reinforcement" that causes people to continue to smoke in the face of indisputable deleterious effects on health ... health and behavior are fairly well understood. Although there are contradictory findings related to both long-term and immediate effects of smoking

Long-term high-solids anaerobic digestion of food waste: Effects of ammonia on process performance and microbial community.

PubMed

Peng, Xuya; Zhang, ShangYi; Li, Lei; Zhao, Xiaofei; Ma, Yao; Shi, Dezhi

2018-04-22

A long-term high solids anaerobic digestion of food waste was conducted to identify microbial mechanisms of ammonia inhibition during digestion and to clarify correlations between ammonia accumulation, microbial community dynamics (diversity, composition, and interactions), and process stability. Results show that the effects of ammonia on process performance and microbial community were indirectly caused by volatile fatty acid accumulation. Excess free ammonia blocked acetate metabolism, leading to process instability. Accumulated acetate caused feedback inhibition at the acetogenesis stage, which resulted in considerable accumulation of propionate, valerate, and other long-chain fatty acids. This high concentration of volatile fatty acids reduced the abundance of syntrophic acetogenic bacteria and allowed hydrolytic fermentative bacteria to dominate. The normally interactive and orderly metabolic network was broken, which further exacerbated the process instability. These results improve the understanding of microbial mechanisms which contribute to process instability and provide guidance for the microbial management of anaerobic digesters. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Improving productivity and firm performance with enterprise resource planning

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Beheshti, Hooshang M.; Beheshti, Cyrus M.

2010-11-01

Productivity is generally considered to be the efficient utilisation of organisational resources and is measured in terms of the efficiency of a worker, company or nation. Focusing on efficiency alone, however, can be harmful to the organisation's long-term success and competitiveness. The full benefits of productivity improvement measures are realised when productivity is examined from two perspectives: operational efficiency (output/input) of an individual worker or a business unit as well as performance (effectiveness) with regard to end user or customer satisfaction. Over the years, corporations have adopted new technology to integrate business activities in order to achieve both effectiveness and efficiency in their operations. In recent years, many firms have invested in enterprise resource planning (ERP) in order to integrate all business activities into a uniform system. The implementation of ERP enables the firm to reduce the transaction costs of the business and improve its productivity, customer satisfaction and profitability.

Expanding the indications of pancreas transplantation alone.

PubMed

Mehrabi, Arianeb; Golriz, Mohammad; Adili-Aghdam, Fatemeh; Hafezi, Mohammadreza; Ashrafi, Maryam; Morath, Christian; Zeier, Martin; Hackert, Thilo; Schemmer, Peter

2014-11-01

Total pancreatectomy (TP) is associated with postoperative endocrine and exocrine insufficiency. Especially, insulin therapy reduces quality of life and may lead to long-term complications. We review the literature with regard to the potential option of pancreas transplantation alone (PTA) after TP in patients with chronic pancreatitis or benign tumors. A MEDLINE search (1958-2013) using the terminologies pancreas transplantation, pancreas transplantation alone, total pancreatectomy, morbidity, mortality, insulin therapy, and quality of life was performed. In addition, the current book and congress publications were reviewed. Total pancreatectomy after benign and borderline tumors as well as chronic pancreatitis is continuously increasing. Despite improvement of exogenous insulin therapy, more than 50% of these patients experience severe glucose control problems, which cause up to 50% long-term mortality. Pancreas transplantation alone can cure both endocrine and exocrine insufficiency and reduce the associated risks. The 3-year graft and patient survival rates after PTA are up to 73% and 100%, respectively. Pancreas transplantation alone after TP in patients with pancreatitis or benign tumors improves the recipient's quality of life and reduces long-term mortality. Considering the amount of available organs and potential candidates, PTA can be a treatment option for patients after TP with chronic pancreatitis or benign tumors.

Long term results of balloon-occluded retrograde transvenous obliteration for portosystemic shunt encephalopathy in patients with liver cirrhosis and portal hypertension.

PubMed

Inoue, Hiroto; Emori, Keigo; Toyonaga, Atsushi; Oho, Kazuhiko; Kumamoto, Masafumi; Haruta, Tsuyoshi; Mitsuyama, Keiichi; Tsuruta, Osamu; Sata, Michio

2014-01-01

This study examined 19 patients with portosystemic shunt encephalopathy caused by a splenorenal shunt (SRS), which was treated with balloon-occluded retrograde transvenous obliteration (B-RTO). Long-term treatment outcomes were evaluated based on hepatic functional reserve and vital prognosis. Encephalopathy improved in all patients after shunt embolization and closure. Albumin, serum ammonia, and the Child-Pugh score, a measure of liver function, were significantly improved 3 years after B-RTO, and exacerbation of damage to liver function was avoided (p<0.01). During the follow-up period, three patients died from liver failure and two patients from hepatocellular carcinoma. Patients had a poor prognosis if their albumin levels were less than 2.8 mg / dL before B-RTO (p<0.05). Encephalopathy patients had complete response to B-RTO, but long-term prognosis was affected by hepatic functional reserve before B-RTO and by concurrent hepatocellular carcinoma. The results of this study suggest that in patients with SRS, it is important to perform B-RTO at an early stage when the hepatic functional reserve is still satisfactory.

Space Technology for the New Century

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1998-01-01

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is responsible for developing advanced space technologies that will lower the cost and improve the performance of existing space activities and enable new ones. Although NASA has recently proved adept at incorporating modern technologies into its spacecraft, the agency currently supports relatively little work in long-term space technology development. To enable ambitious future space activities and to achieve its long-term goals, NASA needs to engage in space research and technology development (R&T) in critical areas for the long term. NASA requested that the National Research Council (NRC) examine the nation's space technology needs in the post-2000 time frame and identify high-risk, high-payoff technology that could improve the capabilities and reduce the costs fo NASA, other government, and commercial space programs. The NRC was also asked to suggest how NASA can work more effectively with industry and universities to develop these technologies. To accomplish these ends, the Committee on Advanced Space Technology, under the auspices of the Aeronautics and Space Engineering Board, undertook a systematic process of information gathering and technology assessment. Six key technologies that the committee believes NASA should support are presented.

Improving forecasting accuracy of medium and long-term runoff using artificial neural network based on EEMD decomposition.

PubMed

Wang, Wen-chuan; Chau, Kwok-wing; Qiu, Lin; Chen, Yang-bo

2015-05-01

Hydrological time series forecasting is one of the most important applications in modern hydrology, especially for the effective reservoir management. In this research, an artificial neural network (ANN) model coupled with the ensemble empirical mode decomposition (EEMD) is presented for forecasting medium and long-term runoff time series. First, the original runoff time series is decomposed into a finite and often small number of intrinsic mode functions (IMFs) and a residual series using EEMD technique for attaining deeper insight into the data characteristics. Then all IMF components and residue are predicted, respectively, through appropriate ANN models. Finally, the forecasted results of the modeled IMFs and residual series are summed to formulate an ensemble forecast for the original annual runoff series. Two annual reservoir runoff time series from Biuliuhe and Mopanshan in China, are investigated using the developed model based on four performance evaluation measures (RMSE, MAPE, R and NSEC). The results obtained in this work indicate that EEMD can effectively enhance forecasting accuracy and the proposed EEMD-ANN model can attain significant improvement over ANN approach in medium and long-term runoff time series forecasting. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Effectiveness of psychological interventions to improve quality of life in people with long-term conditions: rapid systematic review of randomised controlled trials.

PubMed

Anderson, Niall; Ozakinci, Gozde

2018-03-27

Long-term conditions may negatively impact multiple aspects of quality of life including physical functioning and mental wellbeing. The rapid systematic review aimed to examine the effectiveness of psychological interventions to improve quality of life in people with long-term conditions to inform future healthcare provision and research. EBSCOhost and OVID were used to search four databases (PsychInfo, PBSC, Medline and Embase). Relevant papers were systematically extracted by one researcher using the predefined inclusion/exclusion criteria based on titles, abstracts, and full texts. Randomized controlled trial psychological interventions conducted between 2006 and February 2016 to directly target and assess people with long-term conditions in order to improve quality of life were included. Interventions without long-term condition populations, psychological intervention and/or patient-assessed quality of life were excluded. From 2223 citations identified, 6 satisfied the inclusion/exclusion criteria. All 6 studies significantly improved at least one quality of life outcome immediately post-intervention. Significant quality of life improvements were maintained at 12-months follow-up in one out of two studies for each of the short- (0-3 months), medium- (3-12 months), and long-term (≥ 12 months) study duration categories. All 6 psychological intervention studies significantly improved at least one quality of life outcome immediately post-intervention, with three out of six studies maintaining effects up to 12-months post-intervention. Future studies should seek to assess the efficacy of tailored psychological interventions using different formats, durations and facilitators to supplement healthcare provision and practice.

Long-term mortality rates (>8-year) improve as compared to the general and obese population following bariatric surgery.

PubMed

Telem, Dana A; Talamini, Mark; Shroyer, A Laurie; Yang, Jie; Altieri, Maria; Zhang, Qiao; Gracia, Gerald; Pryor, Aurora D

2015-03-01

Sparse data are available on long-term patient mortality following bariatric surgery as compared to the general population. The purpose of this study was to assess long-term mortality rates and identify risk factors for all-cause mortality following bariatric surgery. New York State (NYS) Planning and Research Cooperative System (SPARCS) longitudinal administrative data were used to identify 7,862 adult patients who underwent a primary laparoscopic bariatric surgery from 1999 to 2005. The Social Security Death Index database identified >30-day mortalities. Risk factors for mortality were screened using a univariate Cox proportional hazard (PH) model and analyzed using a multiple PH model. Based on age, gender, and race/ethnicity, actuarial projections for NYS mortality rates obtained from Centers of Disease Control were compared to the actual post-bariatric surgery mortality rates observed. The mean bariatric mortality rate was 2.5 % with 8-14 years of follow-up. Mean time to death ranged from 4 to 6 year and did not differ by operation (p = 0.073). From 1999 to 2010, the actuarial mortality rate predicted for the general NYS population was 2.1 % versus the observed 1.5 % for the bariatric surgery population (p = 0.005). Extrapolating to 2013, demonstrated the actuarial mortality predictions at 3.1 % versus the bariatric surgery patients' observed morality rate of 2.5 % (p = 0.01). Risk factors associated with an earlier time to death included: age, male gender, Medicare/Medicaid insurance, congestive heart failure, rheumatoid arthritis, pulmonary circulation disorders, and diabetes. No procedure-specific or perioperative complication impact for time-to-death was found. Long-term mortality rate of patients undergoing bariatric surgery significantly improves as compared to the general population regardless of bariatric operation performed. Additionally, perioperative complications do not increase long-term mortality risk. This study did identify specific patient risk factors for long-term mortality. Special attention and consideration should be given to these "at risk" patient sub-populations.

Treatment timing for functional jaw orthopaedics followed by fixed appliances: a controlled long-term study.

PubMed

Pavoni, Chiara; Lombardo, Elisabetta Cretella; Lione, Roberta; Faltin, Kurt; McNamara, James A; Cozza, Paola; Franchi, Lorenzo

2017-11-01

To evaluate the role of treatment timing on long-term dentoskeletal effects of Class II treatment with removable functional appliances followed by full-fixed appliance therapy. A group of 46 patients (23 females and 23 males) with Class II malocclusion treated consecutively with either Bionator or Activator, followed by fixed appliances was compared with a matched control group of 31 subjects (16 females and 15 males) with untreated Class II malocclusion. The treated sample was evaluated at T1, start of treatment (mean age: 9.9 ± 1.3 years); T2, end of functional treatment and prior to fixed appliances (mean age: 11.9 ± 1.3 years); and T3, long-term observation (mean age: 18.3 ± 2.1 years). The treated and the control samples were divided into pre-pubertal and pubertal groups according to skeletal maturity observed at the start of treatment. Statistical comparisons were performed with independent sample t-tests. When treatment was initiated before puberty, Class II correction was mostly confined to the dentoalveolar changes, with significant improvements of both overjet and molar relationships. On the other hand, treatment with the outset at puberty produced significant long-term improvement of sagittal skeletal relationships, which were mainly sustained by mandibular changes. Treatment with removable functional appliances (Bionator or Activator) followed by full-fixed appliances produced significant skeletal long-term changes when it begins at puberty. Prepubertal Class II treatment results primarily in dentoalveolar changes. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Orthodontic Society. All rights reserved. For permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com

Sensors Enable Plants to Text Message Farmers

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2013-01-01

Long-term human spaceflight means long-term menu planning. Since every pound of cargo comes with a steep price tag, NASA has long researched technologies and techniques to allow astronauts to grow their own food, both on the journey and in some cases at their destination. Sustainable food technologies designed for space have resulted in spinoffs that improve the nutrition, safety, and durability of food on Earth. There are of course tradeoffs involved in making astronauts part-time farmers. Any time spent tending plants is time that can t be spent elsewhere: collecting data, exploring, performing routine maintenance, or sleeping. And as scarce as time is for astronauts, resources are even more limited. It is highly practical, therefore, to ensure that farming in space is as automated and precise as possible.

Effects of long-term balance training with vibrotactile sensory augmentation among community-dwelling healthy older adults: a randomized preliminary study.

PubMed

Bao, Tian; Carender, Wendy J; Kinnaird, Catherine; Barone, Vincent J; Peethambaran, Geeta; Whitney, Susan L; Kabeto, Mohammed; Seidler, Rachael D; Sienko, Kathleen H

2018-01-18

Sensory augmentation has been shown to improve postural stability during real-time balance applications. Limited long-term controlled studies have examined retention of balance improvements in healthy older adults after training with sensory augmentation has ceased. This pilot study aimed to assess the efficacy of long-term balance training with and without sensory augmentation among community-dwelling healthy older adults. Twelve participants (four males, eight females; 75.6 ± 4.9 yrs) were randomly assigned to the experimental group (n = 6) or control group (n = 6). Participants trained in their homes for eight weeks, completing three 45-min exercise sessions per week using smart phone balance trainers that provided written, graphic, and video guidance, and monitored trunk sway. During each session, participants performed six repetitions of six exercises selected from five categories (static standing, compliant surface standing, weight shifting, modified center of gravity, and gait). The experimental group received vibrotactile sensory augmentation for four of the six repetitions per exercise via the smart phone balance trainers, while the control group performed exercises without sensory augmentation. The smart phone balance trainers sent exercise performance data to a physical therapist, who recommended exercises on a weekly basis. Balance performance was assessed using a battery of clinical balance tests (Activity Balance Confidence Scale, Sensory Organization Test, Mini Balance Evaluation Systems Test, Five Times Sit to Stand Test, Four Square Step Test, Functional Reach Test, Gait Speed Test, Timed Up and Go, and Timed Up and Go with Cognitive Task) before training, after four weeks of training, and after eight weeks of training. Participants in the experimental group were able to use vibrotactile sensory augmentation independently in their homes. After training, the experimental group had significantly greater improvements in Sensory Organization Test and Mini Balance Evaluation Systems Test scores than the control group. Significant improvement was also observed for Five Times Sit to Stand Test duration within the experimental group, but not in the control group. No significant improvements between the two groups were observed in the remaining clinical outcome measures. The findings of this study support the use of sensory augmentation devices by community-dwelling healthy older adults as balance rehabilitation tools, and indicate feasibility of telerehabilitation therapy with reduced input from clinicians.

Making Mathematics Matter: Professional Development Improving Outcomes in High-Poverty Environments

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Siebers, Carolyn A.

2012-01-01

This research study is a mixed-methods quantitative and qualitative study that analyzed data from an intensive, long-term professional development project named, "Project: Making Mathematics Matter. (PM[superscript 3])" carried out in two low-performing, high-poverty districts. Two of the districts served as treatment districts and ALL…

A Preliminary Qualitative Evaluation of the Virginia Gold Quality Improvement Program

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Craver, Gerald A.; Burkett, Amy K.

2012-01-01

Certified nursing assistants (CNAs) perform an important role in the long-term care system because they provide the majority of paid care to nursing facility residents. Unfortunately, annual CNA turnover often exceeds 100 percent nationally. Many factors account for this, including stressful working conditions, low pay, and limited benefits. The…

Development of a smart timber bridge girder with fiber optic sensors

Treesearch

James Wacker; Ursula Deza; Brent M. Phares; Terry J. Wipf

2010-01-01

Past timber bridge evaluation and maintenance efforts in the USA have principally focused on the internal integrity of timber components using various non-destructive evaluation tools to supplement visual inspection data. This project is part of a comprehensive effort to develop smart structure concepts for improving the long-term performance, maintenance, and...

Ten-year responses of oak regeneration to prescribed fire

Treesearch

Erik Berg; Barry Clinton; Jim Vose; Wayne Swank

2011-01-01

Prescribed fire has proven effective in controlling vegetative competition of oak regeneration across many sites in the southeastern US most fire investigations have been performed in the Piedmont and Coastal Plain. Land managers lake definitive knowledge on how to use prescribed fire to improve long-term oak regeneration success in the southern Appalachians. Several...

Questioning Needs Assessment: Some Limitations and Positive Alternatives

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hannum, Wallace

2013-01-01

This article raises questions about the use of needs assessment by those seeking to improve the performance of organizations and individuals. While the discrepancy model of needs assessment has enjoyed a long history and is widely accepted, the author states that it has several undesirable consequences in terms of its impact. This article offers…

Aeronautics and Space Report of the President: 1977 Activities.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Washington, DC.

The national programs in aeronautics and space made steady progress in 1977 toward their long-term objectives. In aeronautics the goals were improved performance, energy efficiency, and safety in aircraft. In space the goals were: (1) better remote sensing systems to generate more sophisticated information about the Earth's environment; (2)…

Specific adaptation and genetic progress for grain yield in Great Plains hard winter wheats, 1987-2010

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Meeting the food demands of a growing world population will become increasingly difficult should the rate of genetic improvement in grain yield of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) and other grain crops decelerate. Data from USDA-ARS coordinated long-term regional performance nurseries was used to exami...

Long term clinical and neurophysiological effects of cerebellar transcranial direct current stimulation in patients with neurodegenerative ataxia.

PubMed

Benussi, Alberto; Dell'Era, Valentina; Cotelli, Maria Sofia; Turla, Marinella; Casali, Carlo; Padovani, Alessandro; Borroni, Barbara

Neurodegenerative cerebellar ataxias represent a group of disabling disorders for which we currently lack effective therapies. Cerebellar transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) is a non-invasive technique, which has been demonstrated to modulate cerebellar excitability and improve symptoms in patients with cerebellar ataxias. The present study investigated whether a two-weeks' treatment with cerebellar anodal tDCS could improve symptoms in patients with neurodegenerative cerebellar ataxia and could modulate cerebello-motor connectivity, at short and long term. We performed a double-blind, randomized, sham controlled trial with cerebellar tDCS (5 days/week for 2 weeks) in twenty patients with ataxia. Each patient underwent a clinical evaluation pre- and post-anodal tDCS or sham stimulation. A follow-up evaluation was performed at one and three months. Cerebello-motor connectivity was evaluated using transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) at baseline and at follow-up. Patients who underwent anodal tDCS showed a significant improvement in all performance scores (scale for the assessment and rating of ataxia, international cooperative ataxia rating scale, 9-hole peg test, 8-m walking time) and in cerebellar brain inhibition compared to patients who underwent sham stimulation. A two-weeks' treatment with anodal cerebellar tDCS improves symptoms in patients with ataxia and restores physiological cerebellar brain inhibition pathways. Cerebellar tDCS might represent a promising future therapeutic and rehabilitative approach in patients with neurodegenerative ataxia. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Beyond the short term : transportation asset management for long-term sustainability, accountability and performance

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2010-01-01

Transportation Asset Management (TAM) has long been recognized as a sound, long-term approach to managing infrastructure. It provides decision makers with a rational, long-term systematic process for making difficult and complex decisions about how t...

Efficacy and safety of Meriva®, a curcumin-phosphatidylcholine complex, during extended administration in osteoarthritis patients.

PubMed

Belcaro, Gianni; Cesarone, Maria Rosaria; Dugall, Mark; Pellegrini, Luciano; Ledda, Andrea; Grossi, Maria Giovanna; Togni, Stefano; Appendino, Giovanni

2010-12-01

In a previous three-month study of Meriva, a proprietary curcumin-phosphatidylcholine phytosome complex, decreased joint pain and improvement in joint function were observed in 50 osteoarthritis (OA) patients. Since OA is a chronic condition requiring prolonged treatment, the long-term efficacy and safety of Meriva were investigated in a longer (eight months) study involving 100 OA patients. The clinical end points (Western Ontario and McMaster Universities [WOMAC] score, Karnofsky Performance Scale Index, and treadmill walking performance) were complemented by the evaluation of a series of inflammatory markers (interleukin [IL]-1beta, IL-6, soluble CD40 ligand [sCD40L], soluble vascular cell adhesion molecule (sVCAM)-1, and erythrocyte sedimentation rate [ESR]). This represents the most ambitious attempt, to date, to evaluate the clinical efficacy and safety of curcumin as an anti-inflammatory agent. Significant improvements of both the clinical and biochemical end points were observed for Meriva compared to the control group. This, coupled with an excellent tolerability, suggests that Meriva is worth considering for the long-term complementary management of osteoarthritis.

Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program Annual Report: Oct. 1, 1989 through Sept. 30. 1990.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Oklahoma State Dept. of Human Services, Oklahoma City.

This annual report of the Long-Term Care Ombudsmen Program of the Oklahoma Department of Human Services begins by stating the purpose of the program: to improve the quality of life and the quality of care of older residents of long-term care facilities in Oklahoma. It is noted that the Long-Term Care Ombudsman advocates for the rights of long-term…

Tricuspid valve replacement with mechanical prostheses: Short and long-term outcomes.

PubMed

Rossello, Xavier; Muñoz-Guijosa, Christian; Mena, Elisabet; Camprecios, Marta; Mendez, Ana B; Borras, Xavier; Padro, Josep M

2017-09-01

Tricuspid valve replacement has been associated with high mortality and poor long-term outcomes. We report the preoperative risk factors associated with short and long-term outcomes following tricuspid valve replacement with mechanical prostheses. In 62 patients who underwent mechanical tricuspid valve replacement, clinical, laboratory, and echocardiographic findings were analyzed using both univariate and multivariate analyses to describe operative and long-term mortality. In our population (mean age 59 ± 9.7 years, 82.3% female), most common causes of tricuspid valve disease were rheumatic fever (69.4%) and functional regurgitation (19.4%). Operative and long-term mortality were 17.7 and 33.9%, respectively. Age, diabetes mellitus, and coronary artery disease were independently associated with increased long-term mortality. New York Heart Association (NYHA) class and right heart failure symptoms significantly improved during follow-up. In this series of mechanical tricuspid valve replacements in patients with predominately rheumatic heart disease, operative and long-term mortality were increased; however, survivors had significant improvement in their NYHA class and freedom from right heart failure symptoms. Three preoperative factors (age, diabetes mellitus, and coronary artery disease) were independently associated with long-term mortality. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Long term performance of membranes in an anaerobic membrane bioreactor treating municipal wastewater.

PubMed

Dong, Qirong; Parker, Wayne; Dagnew, Martha

2016-02-01

The long term impact of SRT (100-40 days) and recovery cleaning on membrane performance of an AnMBR treating authentic municipal wastewater in a large pilot plant was assessed. Successful operation of the pilot plant at a flux of 17 LMH was maintained for a period of 536 days during which the longest period of operation without recovery cleaning or membrane replacement was 178 days. Lower SRT (40 days) reduced the fouling propensity of the mixed liquor in terms of TSS concentration and the dewaterability indicators including colloidal COD (cCOD) concentration and capillary suction time (CST). Critical fluxes ranged from 21 to 23 LMH to 25-27 LMH for SRTs of 70 and 40 days respectively and this was consistent with the reduced concentrations of TSS and improved dewaterability under the latter conditions. Recovery cleaning was found to result in substantial reduction of resistance as indicated by both pilot plant operation and clean water flux tests. The long-term fouling rate was observed to be higher with cleaned membranes as compared to virgin membranes. The lower membrane fouling with virgin membranes suggested that accumulation of foulants, which were resistant to cleaning, caused the higher fouling rates for the cleaned membranes. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Long-term follow-up of amitriptyline treatment for idiopathic cough.

PubMed

Ryan, Marisa A; Cohen, Seth M

2016-12-01

To evaluate short- and long-term treatment outcomes of amitriptyline for idiopathic cough. Retrospective chart review and anonymous survey of a patient cohort. We evaluated a cohort of adults treated for cough at the Duke Voice Care Center with amitriptyline over a 2- to 3-year period. We characterized demographics, symptoms, treatment variability, and treatment effects from chart review and survey responses. We performed univariate analysis comparing cough improvement to age, gender, symptoms of throat irritation, cough duration, concurrent speech therapy, and dosage. Eighty-nine percent were taking the medication at the first clinical follow-up at a mean 2.6 months, and overall, 67% reported ≥50% improvement. No statistically significant predictors of cough improvement with medication were identified. At follow-up 2 to 3 years later, overall, 53% reported ≥50% improvement, with only 34% of patients still taking amitriptyline. After 2 to 3 years, 65% of patients had titrated the medication to effect, and 33% restarted the medication. Occurrence of side effects was the most frequent reason for stopping the medication. Amitriptyline can be an effective and well-tolerated part of short- and long-term management of idiopathic cough in adults. Titrating the dose and restarting are often necessary. Larger studies and randomized control trials are needed to better understand the outcomes of using amitriptyline to treat idiopathic cough. 4 Laryngoscope, 126:2758-2763, 2016. © 2016 The American Laryngological, Rhinological and Otological Society, Inc.

Short-term and long-term effects of GDP on traffic deaths in 18 OECD countries, 1960-2011.

PubMed

Dadgar, Iman; Norström, Thor

2017-02-01

Research suggests that increases in gross domestic product (GDP) lead to increases in traffic deaths plausibly due to the increased road traffic induced by an expanding economy. However, there also seems to exist a long-term effect of economic growth that is manifested in improved traffic safety and reduced rates of traffic deaths. Previous studies focus on either the short-term, procyclical effect, or the long-term, protective effect. The aim of the present study is to estimate the short-term and long-term effects jointly in order to assess the net impact of GDP on traffic mortality. We extracted traffic death rates for the period 1960-2011 from the WHO Mortality Database for 18 OECD countries. Data on GDP/capita were obtained from the Maddison Project. We performed error correction modelling to estimate the short-term and long-term effects of GDP on the traffic death rates. The estimates from the error correction modelling for the entire study period suggested that a one-unit increase (US$1000) in GDP/capita yields an instantaneous short-term increase in the traffic death rate by 0.58 (p<0.001), and a long-term decrease equal to -1.59 (p<0.001). However, period-specific analyses revealed a structural break implying that the procyclical effect outweighs the protective effect in the period prior to 1976, whereas the reverse is true for the period 1976-2011. An increase in GDP leads to an immediate increase in traffic deaths. However, after the mid-1970s this short-term effect is more than outweighed by a markedly stronger protective long-term effect, whereas the reverse is true for the period before the mid-1970s. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/.

Long-Term Effects of Tetanus Toxoid Inoculation on the Demography and Life Expectancy of the Cayo Santiago Rhesus Macaques

PubMed Central

KESSLER, MATTHEW J.; PACHECO, RAISA HERNÁNDEZ; RAWLINS, RICHARD G.; RUIZ-LAMBRIDES, ANGELINA; DELGADO, DIANA L.; SABAT, ALBERTO M.

2014-01-01

Tetanus was a major cause of mortality in the free-ranging population of rhesus monkeys on Cayo Santiago prior to 1985 when the entire colony was given its first dose of tetanus toxoid. The immediate reduction in mortality that followed tetanus toxoid inoculation (TTI) has been documented, but the long-term demographic effects of eliminating tetanus infections have not. This study uses the Cayo Santiago demographic database to construct comparative life tables 12 years before, and 12 years after, TTI. Life tables and matrix projection models are used to test for differences in: (i) survival among all individuals as well as among social groups, (ii) long-term fitness of the population, (iii) age distribution, (iv) reproductive value, and (v) life expectancy. A retrospective life table response experiment (LTRE) was performed to determine which life cycle transition contributed most to observed changes in long-term fitness of the population post-TTI. Elimination of clinical tetanus infections through mass inoculation improved the health and well-being of the monkeys. It also profoundly affected the population by increasing survivorship and long-term fitness, decreasing the differences in survival rates among social groups, shifting the population’s age distribution towards older individuals, and increasing reproductive value and life expectancy. These findings are significant because they demonstrate the long-term effects of eradicating a major cause of mortality at a single point in time on survival, reproduction, and overall demography of a naturalistic population of primates. PMID:25230585

The effects of cockpit environment on long-term pilot performance

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Stave, A. M.

1977-01-01

A fixed-base helicopter simulator was used to examine pilot performance as influenced by noise, vibration, and fatigue. Subjects flew the simulator for periods ranging between three and eight hours while exposed to vibrations (at 17 Hz) ranging from 0.1 to 0.3 g, and noise stimuli varying between 74 (ambient) and 100 dB. Despite reports of extreme fatigue on these long flights, subject performance did not degrade. Within the limits of this study, performance tended to improve as environmental stress increased. However, subjects did suffer from lapses resulting in abnormally poor performance. These lapses are probably of short duration (seconds) and occur at unpredictable times. If such lapses occur in actual flight, they could provide an explanation for many so-called 'pilot error' accidents.

Application of Mössbauer spectroscopy on corrosion products of NPP

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dekan, J.; Lipka, J.; Slugeň, V.

2013-04-01

Steam generator (SG) is generally one of the most important components at all nuclear power plants (NPP) with close impact to safe and long-term operation. Material degradation and corrosion/erosion processes are serious risks for long-term reliable operation. Steam generators of four VVER-440 units at nuclear power plants V-1 and V-2 in Jaslovske Bohunice (Slovakia) were gradually changed by new original "Bohunice" design in period 1994-1998, in order to improve corrosion resistance of SGs. Corrosion processes before and after these design and material changes in Bohunice secondary circuit were studied using Mössbauer spectroscopy during last 25 years. Innovations in the feed water pipeline design as well as material composition improvements were evaluated positively. Mössbauer spectroscopy studies of phase composition of corrosion products were performed on real specimens scrapped from water pipelines or in form of filters deposits. Newest results in our long-term corrosion study confirm good operational experiences and suitable chemical regimes (reduction environment) which results mostly in creation of magnetite (on the level 70 % or higher) and small portions of hematite, goethite or hydrooxides. Regular observation of corrosion/erosion processes is essential for keeping NPP operation on high safety level. The output from performed material analyses influences the optimisation of operating chemical regimes and it can be used in optimisation of regimes at decontamination and passivation of pipelines or secondary circuit components. It can be concluded that a longer passivation time leads more to magnetite fraction in the corrosion products composition.

Long-term on-farm participatory maize breeding by stratified mass selection retains molecular diversity while improving agronomic performance.

PubMed

Alves, Mara Lisa; Belo, Maria; Carbas, Bruna; Brites, Cláudia; Paulo, Manuel; Mendes-Moreira, Pedro; Brites, Carla; Bronze, Maria do Rosário; Šatović, Zlatko; Vaz Patto, Maria Carlota

2018-02-01

Modern maize breeding programs gave rise to genetically uniform varieties that can affect maize's capacity to cope with increasing climate unpredictability. Maize populations, genetically more heterogeneous, can evolve and better adapt to a broader range of edaphic-climatic conditions. These populations usually suffer from low yields; it is therefore desirable to improve their agronomic performance while maintaining their valuable diversity levels. With this objective, a long-term participatory breeding/on-farm conservation program was established in Portugal. In this program, maize populations were subject to stratified mass selection. This work aimed to estimate the effect of on-farm stratified mass selection on the agronomic performance, quality, and molecular diversity of two historical maize populations. Multilocation field trials, comparing the initial populations with the derived selection cycles, showed that this selection methodology led to agronomic improvement for one of the populations. The molecular diversity analysis, using microsatellites, revealed that overall genetic diversity in both populations was maintained throughout selection. The comparison of quality parameters between the initial populations and the derived selection cycles was made using kernel from a common-garden experiment. This analysis showed that the majority of the quality traits evaluated progressed erratically over time. In conclusion, this breeding approach, through simple and low-cost methodologies, proved to be an alternative strategy for genetic resources' on-farm conservation.

Upregulation of CREB-mediated transcription enhances both short- and long-term memory.

PubMed

Suzuki, Akinobu; Fukushima, Hotaka; Mukawa, Takuya; Toyoda, Hiroki; Wu, Long-Jun; Zhao, Ming-Gao; Xu, Hui; Shang, Yuze; Endoh, Kengo; Iwamoto, Taku; Mamiya, Nori; Okano, Emiko; Hasegawa, Shunsuke; Mercaldo, Valentina; Zhang, Yue; Maeda, Ryouta; Ohta, Miho; Josselyn, Sheena A; Zhuo, Min; Kida, Satoshi

2011-06-15

Unraveling the mechanisms by which the molecular manipulation of genes of interest enhances cognitive function is important to establish genetic therapies for cognitive disorders. Although CREB is thought to positively regulate formation of long-term memory (LTM), gain-of-function effects of CREB remain poorly understood, especially at the behavioral level. To address this, we generated four lines of transgenic mice expressing dominant active CREB mutants (CREB-Y134F or CREB-DIEDML) in the forebrain that exhibited moderate upregulation of CREB activity. These transgenic lines improved not only LTM but also long-lasting long-term potentiation in the CA1 area in the hippocampus. However, we also observed enhanced short-term memory (STM) in contextual fear-conditioning and social recognition tasks. Enhanced LTM and STM could be dissociated behaviorally in these four lines of transgenic mice, suggesting that the underlying mechanism for enhanced STM and LTM are distinct. LTM enhancement seems to be attributable to the improvement of memory consolidation by the upregulation of CREB transcriptional activity, whereas higher basal levels of BDNF, a CREB target gene, predicted enhanced shorter-term memory. The importance of BDNF in STM was verified by microinfusing BDNF or BDNF inhibitors into the hippocampus of wild-type or transgenic mice. Additionally, increasing BDNF further enhanced LTM in one of the lines of transgenic mice that displayed a normal BDNF level but enhanced LTM, suggesting that upregulation of BDNF and CREB activity cooperatively enhances LTM formation. Our findings suggest that CREB positively regulates memory consolidation and affects memory performance by regulating BDNF expression.

Surgical and Functional Outcomes Following Buried Penis Repair With Limited Panniculectomy and Split-thickness Skin Graft.

PubMed

Hampson, Lindsay A; Muncey, Wade; Chung, Paul H; Ma, C C; Friedrich, Jeffrey; Wessells, Hunter; Voelzke, Bryan B

2017-12-01

To report surgical and functional outcomes of buried penis surgery. Outcomes following buried penis surgery at the University of Washington were assessed from June 1, 2005 to June 1, 2016. Patient demographic and surgical data were abstracted from a retrospective chart review. All patients were attempted to be contacted by phone for long-term follow-up. Uni- and multivariate analysis was performed to evaluate for association with any complication. A total of 42 men underwent buried penis repair surgery (mean short-term follow-up 8.1 months). There was an overall 33% 90-day complication rate (21 events). In univariate analysis, body mass index (BMI; P = .02) and no history of gastric bypass (P = .03) were significant predictors of any complication. In multivariate analysis, only BMI remained significant (odds ratio 1.1 for each increase in unit of BMI, 95% confidence interval 1.01-1.27). Twenty-seven patients were reached for long-term follow-up (mean 39 months). Patients reported improvements in every functional domain that was assessed. Of the patients, 85% reported they would undergo buried penis surgery again, 74% that surgery led to a positive change in their lives, and 85% that the surgery had remained a long-term success. Surgical correction of buried penis with penile split-thickness skin graft and limited panniculectomy is well tolerated and results in functional, long-term improvements. BMI is associated with an increased likelihood of a complication following surgery. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Endoscopic laser thyroarytenoid myoneurectomy in patients with adductor spasmodic dysphonia: a pilot study on long-term outcome on voice quality.

PubMed

Tsuji, Domingos Hiroshi; Takahashi, Marystella Tomoe; Imamura, Rui; Hachiya, Adriana; Sennes, Luiz Ubirajara

2012-09-01

Adductor spasmodic dysphonia (ADSD) is a focal laryngeal dystonia, which compromises greatly the quality of life of the patients involved. It is a severe vocal disorder characterized by spasms of laryngeal muscles during speech, producing phonatory breaks, forced, strained and strangled voice. Its symptoms result from involuntary and intermittent contractions of thyroarytenoid muscle during speech, which causes vocal fold to strain, pressing each vocal fold against the other and increasing glottic resistance. Botulinum toxin injection remains the gold-standard treatment. However, as injections should be repeated periodically leading to voice quality instability, a more definitive procedure would be desirable. In this pilot study we report the long-term vocal quality results of endoscopic laser thyroarytenoid myoneurectomy. Prospective study. Surgery was performed in 15 patients (11 females and four males), aged between 29 and 73 years, diagnosed with ADSD. Voice Handicap Index (VHI) was obtained before and after surgery (median 31 months postoperatively). A significant improvement in VHI was observed after surgery, as compared with baseline values (P=0.001). The median and interquartile range for preoperative VHI was 99 and 13, respectively and 24 and 42, for postoperative VHI. Subjective improvement of voice as assessed by the patients showed median improvement of 80%. Because long-term follow-up showed significant improvement of voice quality, this innovative surgical technique seems a satisfactory alternative treatment of ADSD patients who seek a definite improvement of their condition. Copyright © 2012 The Voice Foundation. Published by Mosby, Inc. All rights reserved.

Changes in auditory memory performance following the use of frequency-modulated system in children with suspected auditory processing disorders.

PubMed

Umat, Cila; Mukari, Siti Z; Ezan, Nurul F; Din, Normah C

2011-08-01

To examine the changes in the short-term auditory memory following the use of frequency-modulated (FM) system in children with suspected auditory processing disorders (APDs), and also to compare the advantages of bilateral over unilateral FM fitting. This longitudinal study involved 53 children from Sekolah Kebangsaan Jalan Kuantan 2, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia who fulfilled the inclusion criteria. The study was conducted from September 2007 to October 2008 in the Department of Audiology and Speech Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The children's age was between 7-10 years old, and they were assigned into 3 groups: 15 in the control group (not fitted with FM); 19 in the unilateral; and 19 in the bilateral FM-fitting group. Subjects wore the FM system during school time for 12 weeks. Their working memory (WM), best learning (BL), and retention of information (ROI) were measured using the Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test at pre-fitting, post (after 12 weeks of FM usage), and at long term (one year after the usage of FM system ended). There were significant differences in the mean WM (p=0.001), BL (p=0.019), and ROI (p=0.005) scores at the different measurement times, in which the mean scores at long-term were consistently higher than at pre-fitting, despite similar performances at the baseline (p>0.05). There was no significant difference in performance between unilateral- and bilateral-fitting groups. The use of FM might give a long-term effect on improving selected short-term auditory memories of some children with suspected APDs. One may not need to use 2 FM receivers to receive advantages on auditory memory performance.

Long-term prehypertension treatment with losartan effectively prevents brain damage and stroke in stroke-prone spontaneously hypertensive rats.

PubMed

He, De-Hua; Zhang, Liang-Min; Lin, Li-Ming; Ning, Ruo-Bing; Wang, Hua-Jun; Xu, Chang-Sheng; Lin, Jin-Xiu

2014-02-01

Prehypertension has been associated with adverse cerebrovascular events and brain damage. The aims of this study were to investigate ⅰ) whether short‑ and long-term treatments with losartan or amlodipine for prehypertension were able to prevent blood pressure (BP)-linked brain damage, and ⅱ) whether there is a difference in the effectiveness of treatment with losartan and amlodipine in protecting BP-linked brain damage. In the present study, prehypertensive treatment with losartan and amlodipine (6 and 16 weeks treatment with each drug) was performed on 4-week‑old stroke-prone spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHRSP). The results showed that long-term (16 weeks) treatment with losartan is the most effective in lowering systolic blood pressure in the long term (up to 40 weeks follow-up). Additionally, compared with the amlodipine treatment groups, the short‑ and long-term losartan treatments protected SHRSP from stroke and improved their brains structurally and functionally more effectively, with the long-term treatment having more benefits. Mechanistically, the short‑ and long-term treatments with losartan reduced the activity of the local renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system (RAAS) in a time-dependent manner and more effectively than their respective counterpart amlodipine treatment group mainly by decreasing AT1R levels and increasing AT2R levels in the cerebral cortex. By contrast, the amlodipine treatment groups inhibited brain cell apoptosis more effectively as compared with the losartan treatment groups mainly through the suppression of local oxidative stress. Taken together, the results suggest that long-term losartan treatment for prehypertension effectively protects SHRSP from stroke-induced brain damage, and this protection is associated with reduced local RAAS activity than with brain cell apoptosis. Thus, the AT1R receptor blocker losartan is a good candidate drug that may be used in the clinic for long-term treatment on prehypertensive populations in order to prevent BP-linked brain damage.

Neonatal intensive care unit phthalate exposure and preterm infant neurobehavioral performance.

PubMed

Stroustrup, Annemarie; Bragg, Jennifer B; Andra, Syam S; Curtin, Paul C; Spear, Emily A; Sison, Denise B; Just, Allan C; Arora, Manish; Gennings, Chris

2018-01-01

Every year in the United States, more than 300,000 infants are admitted to neonatal intensive care units (NICU) where they are exposed to a chemical-intensive hospital environment during a developmentally vulnerable period. The neurodevelopmental impact of environmental exposure to phthalates during the NICU stay is unknown. As phthalate exposure during the third trimester developmental window has been implicated in neurobehavioral deficits in term-born children that are strikingly similar to a phenotype of neurobehavioral morbidity common among children born premature, the role of early-life phthalate exposure on the neurodevelopmental trajectory of premature infants may be clinically important. In this study, premature newborns with birth weight <1500g were recruited to participate in a prospective environmental health cohort study, NICU-HEALTH (Hospital Exposures and Long-Term Health), part of the DINE (Developmental Impact of NICU Exposures) cohort of the ECHO (Environmental influences on Child Health Outcomes) program. Seventy-six percent of eligible infants enrolled in the study. Sixty-four of 81 infants survived and are included in this analysis. 164 urine specimens were analyzed for phthalate metabolites using high-performance liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry. The NICU Network Neurobehavioral Scale (NNNS) was performed prior to NICU discharge. Linear and weighted quantile sum regression quantified associations between phthalate biomarkers and NNNS performance, and between phthalate biomarkers and intensity of medical intervention. The sum of di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate metabolites (∑DEHP) was associated with improved performance on the Attention and Regulation scales. Specific mixtures of phthalate biomarkers were also associated with improved NNNS performance. More intense medical intervention was associated with higher ∑DEHP exposure. NICU-based exposure to phthalates mixtures was associated with improved attention and social response. This suggests that the impact of phthalate exposure on neurodevelopment may follow a non-linear trajectory, perhaps accelerating the development of certain neural networks. The long-term neurodevelopmental impact of NICU-based phthalate exposure needs to be evaluated.

Roux-En Y Gastric Bypass Results in Long-Term Remission of Hepatocyte Apoptosis and Hepatic Histological Features of Non-alcoholic Steatohepatitis.

PubMed

Schneck, Anne-Sophie; Anty, Rodolphe; Patouraux, Stéphanie; Bonnafous, Stéphanie; Rousseau, Déborah; Lebeaupin, Cynthia; Bailly-Maitre, Beatrice; Sans, Arnaud; Tran, Albert; Gugenheim, Jean; Iannelli, Antonio; Gual, Philippe

2016-01-01

The long-term effects of bariatric surgery on non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), focusing on liver injury and hepatocyte apoptosis, are not well-established. We here performed a longitudinal study with paired liver biopsies of nine morbidly obese women (median BMI: 42 [38.7; 45.1] kg/m(2)) with NASH with a median follow-up of 55 [44; 75] months after laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (LRYGB) surgery. LRYGB surgery was associated with significant weight loss (median BMI loss -13.7 [-16.4; -9.5] kg/m(2)), improved hepatic steatosis in all patients (55.5% with total resolution), and resolution of hepatic inflammation and hepatocyte ballooning in 100 and 88.8% of cases, respectively. Alanine aminotransferase levels dropped to normal values while hepatic activated cleaved caspase-3 levels strongly decreased after a median follow-up of 55 months. Hepatocyte apoptosis, as evaluated by serum caspase-generated keratin-18 fragment, improved within the first year following LRYGB and these improvements persisted for at least 55 months. LRYGB in morbidly obese patients with NASH is thus associated with a long-lasting beneficial impact on hepatic steatohepatitis and hepatocyte death.

Standard object recognition memory and "what" and "where" components: Improvement by post-training epinephrine in highly habituated rats.

PubMed

Jurado-Berbel, Patricia; Costa-Miserachs, David; Torras-Garcia, Meritxell; Coll-Andreu, Margalida; Portell-Cortés, Isabel

2010-02-11

The present work examined whether post-training systemic epinephrine (EPI) is able to modulate short-term (3h) and long-term (24 h and 48 h) memory of standard object recognition, as well as long-term (24 h) memory of separate "what" (object identity) and "where" (object location) components of object recognition. Although object recognition training is associated to low arousal levels, all the animals received habituation to the training box in order to further reduce emotional arousal. Post-training EPI improved long-term (24 h and 48 h), but not short-term (3 h), memory in the standard object recognition task, as well as 24 h memory for both object identity and object location. These data indicate that post-training epinephrine: (1) facilitates long-term memory for standard object recognition; (2) exerts separate facilitatory effects on "what" (object identity) and "where" (object location) components of object recognition; and (3) is capable of improving memory for a low arousing task even in highly habituated rats.

Mindfulness Enhances Episodic Memory Performance: Evidence from a Multimethod Investigation

PubMed Central

Goodman, Robert J.; Ryan, Richard M.; Anālayo, Bhikkhu

2016-01-01

Training in mindfulness, classically described as a receptive attentiveness to present events and experiences, has been shown to improve attention and working memory. Both are key to long-term memory formation, and the present three-study series used multiple methods to examine whether mindfulness would enhance episodic memory, a key form of long-term memory. In Study 1 (N = 143), a self-reported state of mindful attention predicted better recognition performance in the Remember-Know (R-K) paradigm. In Study 2 (N = 93), very brief training in a focused attention form of mindfulness also produced better recognition memory performance on the R-K task relative to a randomized, well-matched active control condition. Study 3 (N = 57) extended these findings by showing that relative to randomized active and inactive control conditions the effect of very brief mindfulness training generalized to free-recall memory performance. This study also found evidence for mediation of the mindfulness training—episodic memory relation by intrinsic motivation. These findings indicate that mindful attention can beneficially impact motivation and episodic memory, with potential implications for educational and occupational performance. PMID:27115491

Mindfulness Enhances Episodic Memory Performance: Evidence from a Multimethod Investigation.

PubMed

Brown, Kirk Warren; Goodman, Robert J; Ryan, Richard M; Anālayo, Bhikkhu

2016-01-01

Training in mindfulness, classically described as a receptive attentiveness to present events and experiences, has been shown to improve attention and working memory. Both are key to long-term memory formation, and the present three-study series used multiple methods to examine whether mindfulness would enhance episodic memory, a key form of long-term memory. In Study 1 (N = 143), a self-reported state of mindful attention predicted better recognition performance in the Remember-Know (R-K) paradigm. In Study 2 (N = 93), very brief training in a focused attention form of mindfulness also produced better recognition memory performance on the R-K task relative to a randomized, well-matched active control condition. Study 3 (N = 57) extended these findings by showing that relative to randomized active and inactive control conditions the effect of very brief mindfulness training generalized to free-recall memory performance. This study also found evidence for mediation of the mindfulness training-episodic memory relation by intrinsic motivation. These findings indicate that mindful attention can beneficially impact motivation and episodic memory, with potential implications for educational and occupational performance.

Science on Stage: Engaging and teaching scientific content through performance art

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Posner, Esther

2016-04-01

Engaging teaching material through performance art and music can improve the long-term retention of scientific content. Additionally, the development of effective performance skills are a powerful tool to communicate scientific concepts and information to a broader audience that can have many positive benefits in terms of career development and the delivery of professional presentations. While arts integration has been shown to increase student engagement and achievement, relevant artistic materials are still required for use as supplemental activities in STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) courses. I will present an original performance poem, "Tectonic Petrameter: A Journey Through Earth History," with instructions for its implementation as a play in pre-university and undergraduate geoscience classrooms. "Tectonic Petrameter" uses a dynamic combination of rhythm and rhyme to teach the geological time scale, fundamental concepts in geology and important events in Earth history. I propose that using performance arts, such as "Tectonic Petrameter" and other creative art forms, may be an avenue for breaking down barriers related to teaching students and the broader non-scientific community about Earth's long and complex history.

Running throughout middle-age improves memory function, hippocampal neurogenesis and BDNF levels in female C57Bl/6J mice

PubMed Central

Marlatt, Michael W.; Potter, Michelle C.; Lucassen, Paul J.; van Praag, Henriette

2012-01-01

Age-related memory loss is considered to commence at middle-age and coincides with reduced adult hippocampal neurogenesis and neurotrophin levels. Consistent physical activity at midlife may preserve brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) levels, new cell genesis and learning. In the present study, 9-month-old female C57Bl/6J mice were housed with or without a running wheel and injected with bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU) to label newborn cells. Morris water maze learning, open field activity and rotarod behavior were tested 1 and 6 months after exercise onset. Here we show that long-term running improved retention of spatial memory and modestly enhanced rotarod performance at 15 months of age. Both hippocampal neurogenesis and mature BDNF peptide levels were elevated after long-term running. Thus, regular exercise from the onset and during middle-age may maintain brain function. PMID:22252978

Long-term safety and efficacy of autologous platelet lysate drops for treatment of ocular GvHD.

PubMed

Pezzotta, S; Del Fante, C; Scudeller, L; Rossi, G C; Perotti, C; Bianchi, P E; Antoniazzi, E

2017-01-01

Current ocular GvHD (oGvHD) treatments are suboptimal. We investigated the safety and efficacy of long-term continuous treatment with autologous platelet lysate (PL) drops in patients with oGvHD Dry Eye Syndrome (DES) score 2-3 refractory to topical conventional therapy. Ophthalmic evaluation was performed at 6 month intervals. Symptoms were assessed using the Glaucoma Symptom Scale (GSS). Patients were defined 'responders' when showing a reduction at least one grade on National Institutes of Health Eye Score from baseline at the 6 month visit. Thirty-one patients were included, and 16 (51%) completed 36 months of follow-up (range 6.5-72.7). At 6 months all patients were classified as responders: median GSS symptom score decreased from 70 to 41 (33 at 36 months), median GSS function score reduced from 68 to 46 (33 at 36 months) (all P<0.001). Median Tear Break Up Time improved from 3 to 6 s after 6 months and was maintained over time. All signs improved at 6 and 36 months (clinical and statistical significance). No severe adverse events occurred. Long-term treatment with PL drops is secure and effective for oGvHD and can be an efficient therapy option from initial stages of oGvHD to prevent permanent ocular impairment and improving quality of life.

Aniracetam tested in chronic psychosyndrome after long-term exposure to organic solvents. A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled cross-over study with neuropsychological tests.

PubMed

Somnier, F E; Ostergaard, M S; Boysen, G; Bruhn, P; Mikkelsen, B O

1990-01-01

In order to examine if the nootropic drug, aniracetam, was capable of improving cognitive performance, 44 subjects suffering from chronic psychosyndrome after long-term exposure to organic solvents were included in a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, cross-over study. The treatment periods were 3 months with aniracetam 1 g daily and 3 months with placebo. Neuropsychological tests as well as a physical and neurological examination were performed at entry into the study and after each treatment period, together with an evaluation of the subjects' overall condition. Neither the doctors' nor the subjects' own assessment of the overall condition indicated that the trial medication had had any effect. No significant changes in neuropsychological symptoms were observed. A statistically significant difference in favour of antiracetam was found in only 1 of the 19 neuropsychological test measures, namely a test for constructional ability. However, in another test on visuo-spatial function, a statistically significant result was found in favour of placebo. Thus, aniracetam was found to be ineffective in the treatment of subjects suffering from chronic psychosyndrome after long-term exposure to organic solvents.

Human Albumin Improves Long-Term Behavioral Sequelae After Subarachnoid Hemorrhage Through Neurovascular Remodeling.

PubMed

Xie, Yi; Liu, Wenhua; Zhang, Xiaohao; Wang, Liumin; Xu, Lili; Xiong, Yunyun; Yang, Lian; Sang, Hongfei; Ye, Ruidong; Liu, Xinfeng

2015-10-01

Subarachnoid hemorrhage results in significant long-lasting neurologic sequelae. Here, we investigated whether human albumin improves long-term outcomes in experimental subarachnoid hemorrhage and whether neurovascular remodeling is involved in the protection of albumin. Laboratory investigation. Hospital research laboratory. Male Sprague-Dawley rats. Rats underwent subarachnoid hemorrhage by endovascular perforation. Albumin of either 0.63 or 1.25 g/kg was injected IV immediately after the surgery. Modified Garcia test, beam-walking test, novel object recognition, and Morris water maze were employed to determine the behavioral deficits. The effects of albumin on early neurovascular dysfunction and chronic synaptic plasticity were also studied. Both doses of albumin significantly improved the sensorimotor scores (F = 31.277; p = 0.001) and cognitive performance (F = 7.982; p = 0.001 in novel object recognition test; and F = 3.431; p = 0.026 in the latency analysis of Morris water maze test) for at least 40 days after subarachnoid hemorrhage. There were remarkable microvasculature hypoperfusion, intracranial pressure rise, early vasoconstriction, neural apoptosis, and degeneration in subarachnoid hemorrhage rats, with albumin significantly attenuating such neurovascular dysfunction. Furthermore, albumin markedly prevented blood-brain barrier disruption, as indicated by less blood-brain barrier leakage, preserved blood-brain barrier-related proteins, and dampened gelatinase activities. The expressions of key synaptic elements were up-regulated with albumin supplementation in both acute and chronic phases. Accordingly, a higher dendritic spine density was observed in the prefrontal and hippocampal areas of albumin-treated subarachnoid hemorrhage animals. Albumin at low-to-moderate doses markedly improves long-term neurobehavioral sequelae after subarachnoid hemorrhage, which may involve an integrated process of neurovascular remodeling.

Performance improvement: one model to reduce length of stay.

PubMed

Chisari, E; Mele, J A

1994-01-01

Dedicated quality professionals are tired of quick fixes, Band-Aids, and other first-aid strategies that offer only temporary relief of nagging problems rather than a long-term cure. Implementing strategies that can produce permanent solutions to crucial problems is a challenge confronted by organizations striving for continuous performance improvement. One vehicle, driven by data and customer requirements, that can help to solve problems and sustain success over time is the storyboard. This article illustrates the use of the storyboard as the framework for reducing length of stay--one of the most important problems facing healthcare organizations today.

Binding oneself to the mast: stimulating frontopolar cortex enhances precommitment

PubMed Central

Ugazio, Giuseppe; Crockett, Molly J.; Ruff, Christian C.; Kalenscher, Tobias; Tobler, Philippe N.

2017-01-01

Abstract Humans often give in to temptations that are in conflict with valuable long-term goals like health or saving for the future. Such willpower failures represent a prevalent problem in everyday life and in many psychiatric disorders. Strategies that increase resistance to temptations could therefore improve overall societal well-being. One important strategy is to voluntarily precommit, i.e. to restrict one’s future action space by removing the tempting short-term option from the choice set, thereby leaving only the long-term option for implementation. The neural mechanisms necessary to implement precommitment have remained unknown. Here, we test whether anodal transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) over the frontopolar cortex (FPC) can improve precommitment. Participants performed a self-control task in which they could precommit to obtain a delayed larger reward by removing an immediately available smaller reward from the future choice options. We found that anodal stimulation over FPC selectively increased the propensity to precommit. In contrast, tDCS had no effects on non-binding decisions, impulse control or reward preference. Our data establish a causal role for the FPC in the implementation of precommitment, revealing a novel route to improving resistance against temptations. PMID:28170049

Improvements of PKU PMECRIS for continuous hundred hours CW proton beam operation

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

Peng, S. X., E-mail: sxpeng@pku.edu.cn; Ren, H. T.; Zhang, T.

2016-02-15

In order to improve the source stability, a long term continuous wave (CW) proton beam experiment has been carried out with Peking University compact permanent magnet 2.45 GHz ECR ion source (PKU PMECRIS). Before such an experiment a lot of improvements and modifications were completed on the source body, the Faraday cup and the PKU ion source test bench. At the beginning of 2015, a continuous operation of PKU PMECRIS for 306 h with more than 50 mA CW beam was carried out after success of many short term tests. No plasma generator failure or high voltage breakdown was observedmore » during that running period and the proton source reliability is near 100%. Total beam availability, which is defined as 35-keV beam-on time divided by elapsed time, was higher than 99% [S. X. Peng et al., Chin. Phys. B 24(7), 075203 (2015)]. A re-inspection was performed after another additional 100 h operation (counting time) and no obvious sign of component failure was observed. Counting the previous source testing time together, this PMECRs longevity is now demonstrated to be greater than 460 h. This paper is mainly concentrated on the improvements for this long term experiment.« less

Benign tracheobronchial stenoses: changes in short-term and long-term pulmonary function testing after expandable metallic stent placement.

PubMed

Gotway, Michael B; Golden, Jeffrey A; LaBerge, Jeanne M; Webb, W Richard; Reddy, Gautham P; Wilson, Mark W; Kerlan, Robert K; Gordon, Roy L

2002-01-01

To determine the short- and long-term improvement in airflow dynamics in patients undergoing tracheobronchial stent placement for benign airway stenoses. Twenty-two patients underwent 34 tracheal and/or bronchial stent placement procedures for benign airway stenoses and had the results of pulmonary function tests available. Stent placement indications included bronchomalacia after lung transplantation (n = 11), postintubation stenoses (n = 6), relapsing polychondritis (n = 2), and 1 each of tracheomalacia, tracheal compression, and histoplasmosis. Six patients underwent more than one stent placement procedure (range: 2-7 procedures). The mean forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV(1) ), forced expiratory flow rate in the midportion of the forced vital capacity curve (FEF(25-75) ), forced vital capacity, and peak flow (PF) rate obtained before stent placement were compared with those immediately after stent placement and with those measurements most remote from stent placement using the paired two-tailed test. All patients reported improved respiratory function immediately after stent placement. The mean FEV(1), FEF(25-75), and PF rate improved significantly (p < 0.001, p = 0.002, and p = 0.009, respectively) after stent placement. On long-term follow-up averaging 15 months after stent placement, these parameters declined despite patients' subjective sense of improvement. Segregating the population into transplant and nontransplant airway stenosis etiologies, however, FEF(25-75) and PF rate remained significantly improved (p = 0.045, p = 0.027, respectively), over the long term for the latter. FEV increased after subsequent stent placements for patients receiving multiple stents. Stent placement for benign tracheobronchial stenoses provides significant immediate improvement in airflow dynamics. Long-term improvement in airflow obstruction may be expected, and additional stent placements may further improve pulmonary function.

Computer Assistance in Information Work. Part I: Conceptual Framework for Improving the Computer/User Interface in Information Work. Part II: Catalog of Acceleration, Augmentation, and Delegation Functions in Information Work.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Paisley, William; Butler, Matilda

This study of the computer/user interface investigated the role of the computer in performing information tasks that users now perform without computer assistance. Users' perceptual/cognitive processes are to be accelerated or augmented by the computer; a long term goal is to delegate information tasks entirely to the computer. Cybernetic and…

Development of advanced fuel cell system, phase 2

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Handley, L. M.; Meyer, A. P.; Bell, W. F.

1973-01-01

A multiple task research and development program was performed to improve the weight, life, and performance characteristics of hydrogen-oxygen alkaline fuel cells for advanced power systems. Development and characterization of a very stable gold alloy catalyst was continued from Phase I of the program. A polymer material for fabrication of cell structural components was identified and its long term compatibility with the fuel cell environment was demonstrated in cell tests. Full scale partial cell stacks, with advanced design closed cycle evaporative coolers, were tested. The characteristics demonstrated in these tests verified the feasibility of developing the engineering model system concept into an advanced lightweight long life powerplant.

Long-term efficacy of Internet-based cognitive behavior therapy for obsessive-compulsive disorder with or without booster: a randomized controlled trial.

PubMed

Andersson, E; Steneby, S; Karlsson, K; Ljótsson, B; Hedman, E; Enander, J; Kaldo, V; Andersson, G; Lindefors, N; Rück, C

2014-10-01

As relapse after completed cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) for obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is common, many treatment protocols include booster programs to improve the long-term effects. However, the effects of booster programs are not well studied. In this study, we investigated the long-term efficacy of Internet-based CBT (ICBT) with therapist support for OCD with or without an Internet-based booster program. A total of 101 participants were included in the long-term follow-up analysis of ICBT. Of these, 93 were randomized to a booster program or no booster program. Outcome assessments were collected at 4, 7, 12 and 24 months after receiving ICBT. The entire sample had sustained long-term effects from pre-treatment to all follow-up assessments, with large within-group effect sizes (Cohen's d = 1.58-2.09). The booster group had a significant mean reduction in OCD symptoms compared to the control condition from booster baseline (4 months) to 7 months, but not at 12 or 24 months. Participants in the booster group improved significantly in terms of general functioning at 7, 12 and 24 months, and had fewer relapses. Kaplan-Meier analysis also indicated a significantly slower relapse rate in the booster group. The results suggest that ICBT has sustained long-term effects and that adding an Internet-based booster program can further improve long-term outcome and prevent relapse for some OCD patients.

Role of socioeconomic status measures in long-term mortality risk prediction after myocardial infarction.

PubMed

Molshatzki, Noa; Drory, Yaacov; Myers, Vicki; Goldbourt, Uri; Benyamini, Yael; Steinberg, David M; Gerber, Yariv

2011-07-01

The relationship of risk factors to outcomes has traditionally been assessed by measures of association such as odds ratio or hazard ratio and their statistical significance from an adjusted model. However, a strong, highly significant association does not guarantee a gain in stratification capacity. Using recently developed model performance indices, we evaluated the incremental discriminatory power of individual and neighborhood socioeconomic status (SES) measures after myocardial infarction (MI). Consecutive patients aged ≤65 years (N=1178) discharged from 8 hospitals in central Israel after incident MI in 1992 to 1993 were followed-up through 2005. A basic model (demographic variables, traditional cardiovascular risk factors, and disease severity indicators) was compared with an extended model including SES measures (education, income, employment, living with a steady partner, and neighborhood SES) in terms of Harrell c statistic, integrated discrimination improvement (IDI), and net reclassification improvement (NRI). During the 13-year follow-up, 326 (28%) patients died. Cox proportional hazards models showed that all SES measures were significantly and independently associated with mortality. Furthermore, compared with the basic model, the extended model yielded substantial gains (all P<0.001) in c statistic (0.723 to 0.757), NRI (15.2%), IDI (5.9%), and relative IDI (32%). Improvement was observed both for sensitivity (classification of events) and specificity (classification of nonevents). This study illustrates the additional insights that can be gained from considering the IDI and NRI measures of model performance and suggests that, among community patients with incident MI, incorporating SES measures into a clinical-based model substantially improves long-term mortality risk prediction.

The benefits of cholinergic enhancement during perceptual learning are long-lasting

PubMed Central

Rokem, Ariel; Silver, Michael A.

2013-01-01

The neurotransmitter acetylcholine (ACh) regulates many aspects of cognition, including attention and memory. Previous research in animal models has shown that plasticity in sensory systems often depends on the behavioral relevance of a stimulus and/or task. However, experimentally increasing ACh release in the cortex can result in experience-dependent plasticity, even in the absence of behavioral relevance. In humans, the pharmacological enhancement of ACh transmission by administration of the cholinesterase inhibitor donepezil during performance of a perceptual task increases the magnitude of perceptual learning (PL) and its specificity to physical parameters of the stimuli used for training. Behavioral effects of PL have previously been shown to persist for many months. In the present study, we tested whether enhancement of PL by donepezil is also long-lasting. Healthy human subjects were trained on a motion direction discrimination task during cholinergic enhancement, and follow-up testing was performed 5–15 months after the end of training and without additional drug administration. Increases in performance associated with training under donepezil were evident in follow-up retesting, indicating that cholinergic enhancement has beneficial long-term effects on PL. These findings suggest that cholinergic enhancement of training procedures used to treat clinical disorders should improve long-term outcomes of these procedures. PMID:23755006

Modulation of working memory updating: Does long-term memory lexical association matter?

PubMed

Artuso, Caterina; Palladino, Paola

2016-02-01

The aim of the present study was to investigate how working memory updating for verbal material is modulated by enduring properties of long-term memory. Two coexisting perspectives that account for the relation between long-term representation and short-term performance were addressed. First, evidence suggests that performance is more closely linked to lexical properties, that is, co-occurrences within the language. Conversely, other evidence suggests that performance is linked more to long-term representations which do not entail lexical/linguistic representations. Our aim was to investigate how these two kinds of long-term memory associations (i.e., lexical or nonlexical) modulate ongoing working memory activity. Therefore, we manipulated (between participants) the strength of the association in letters based on either frequency of co-occurrences (lexical) or contiguity along the sequence of the alphabet (nonlexical). Results showed a cost in working memory updating for strongly lexically associated stimuli only. Our findings advance knowledge of how lexical long-term memory associations between consonants affect working memory updating and, in turn, contribute to the study of factors which impact the updating process across memory systems.

Coach mid-season replacement and team performance in professional soccer.

PubMed

Lago-Peñas, Carlos

2011-06-01

The coaching carousel or turnover is an extreme but frequently occurring phenomenon in soccer. Among the reasons for firing a coach, the most common is the existence of a shock-effect: a new coach would be able to motivate the players better and therefore to improve results. Using data from the Spanish Soccer League during the seasons from 1997-1998 to 2006-2007, this paper investigates the relationship between team performance and coach change over time. The empirical analysis shows that the shock effect of a turnover has a positive impact on team performance in the short term. Results reveal no impact of coach turnover in the long term. The favourable short-term impact on team performance of a coach turnover is followed by continued gradual worsening of results. The turnover effect is nonexistent when the comparison between the new coach and the old coach is done over 10, 15 or 20 matches before and after termination.

Pain physiology education improves health status and endogenous pain inhibition in fibromyalgia: a double-blind randomized controlled trial.

PubMed

Van Oosterwijck, Jessica; Meeus, Mira; Paul, Lorna; De Schryver, Mieke; Pascal, Aurelie; Lambrecht, Luc; Nijs, Jo

2013-10-01

There is evidence that education on pain physiology can have positive effects on pain, disability, and catastrophization in patients with chronic musculoskeletal pain disorders. A double-blind randomized controlled trial (RCT) was performed to examine whether intensive pain physiology education is also effective in fibromyalgia (FM) patients, and whether it is able to influence the impaired endogenous pain inhibition of these patients. Thirty FM patients were randomly allocated to either the experimental (receiving pain physiology education) or the control group (receiving pacing self-management education). The primary outcome was the efficacy of the pain inhibitory mechanisms, which was evaluated by spatially accumulating thermal nociceptive stimuli. Secondary outcome measures included pressure pain threshold measurements and questionnaires assessing pain cognitions, behavior, and health status. Assessments were performed at baseline, 2 weeks, and 3 months follow-up. Repeated measures ANOVAS were used to reveal possible therapy effects and effect sizes were calculated. After the intervention the experimental group had improved knowledge of pain neurophysiology (P<0.001). Patients from this group worried less about their pain in the short term (P=0.004). Long-term improvements in physical functioning (P=0.046), vitality (P=0.047), mental health (P<0.001), and general health perceptions (P<0.001) were observed. In addition, the intervention group reported lower pain scores and showed improved endogenous pain inhibition (P=0.041) compared with the control group. These results suggest that FM patients are able to understand and remember the complex material about pain physiology. Pain physiology education seems to be a useful component in the treatment of FM patients as it improves health status and endogenous pain inhibition in the long term.

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

Hong, Mei; Wang, Dong, E-mail: wangdong@nju.edu.cn; Wang, Yuankun

In recent years, the phase-space reconstruction method has usually been used for mid- and long-term runoff predictions. However, the traditional phase-space reconstruction method is still needs to be improved. Using the genetic algorithm to improve the phase-space reconstruction method, a new nonlinear model of monthly runoff is constructed. The new model does not rely heavily on embedding dimensions. Recognizing that the rainfall–runoff process is complex, affected by a number of factors, more variables (e.g. temperature and rainfall) are incorporated in the model. In order to detect the possible presence of chaos in the runoff dynamics, chaotic characteristics of the modelmore » are also analyzed, which shows the model can represent the nonlinear and chaotic characteristics of the runoff. The model is tested for its forecasting performance in four types of experiments using data from six hydrological stations on the Yellow River and the Yangtze River. Results show that the medium-and long-term runoff is satisfactorily forecasted at the hydrological stations. Not only is the forecasting trend accurate, but also the mean absolute percentage error is no more than 15%. Moreover, the forecast results of wet years and dry years are both good, which means that the improved model can overcome the traditional ‘‘wet years and dry years predictability barrier,’’ to some extent. The model forecasts for different regions are all good, showing the universality of the approach. Compared with selected conceptual and empirical methods, the model exhibits greater reliability and stability in the long-term runoff prediction. Our study provides a new thinking for research on the association between the monthly runoff and other hydrological factors, and also provides a new method for the prediction of the monthly runoff. - Highlights: • The improved phase-space reconstruction model of monthly runoff is established. • Two variables (temperature and rainfall) are incorporated in the model. • Chaotic characteristics of the model are also analyzed. • The forecast results of the mid and long-term runoff in six stations are accurate.« less

Associative learning versus fear habituation as predictors of long-term extinction retention.

PubMed

Brown, Lily A; LeBeau, Richard T; Chat, Ka Yi; Craske, Michelle G

2017-06-01

Violation of unconditioned stimulus (US) expectancy during extinction training may enhance associative learning and result in improved long-term extinction retention compared to within-session habituation. This experiment examines variation in US expectancy (i.e., expectancy violation) as a predictor of long-term extinction retention. It also examines within-session habituation of fear-potentiated startle (electromyography, EMG) and fear of conditioned stimuli (CS) throughout extinction training as predictors of extinction retention. Participants (n = 63) underwent fear conditioning, extinction and retention and provided continuous ratings of US expectancy and EMG, as well as CS fear ratings before and after each phase. Variation in US expectancy throughout extinction and habituation of EMG and fear was entered into a regression as predictors of retention and reinstatement of levels of expectancy and fear. Greater variation in US expectancy throughout extinction training was significantly predictive of enhanced extinction performance measured at retention test, although not after reinstatement test. Slope of EMG and CS fear during extinction did not predict retention of extinction. Within-session habituation of EMG and self-reported fear is not sufficient for long-term retention of extinction learning, and models emphasizing expectation violation may result in enhanced outcomes.

Long-Term Visual Training Increases Visual Acuity and Long-Term Monocular Deprivation Promotes Ocular Dominance Plasticity in Adult Standard Cage-Raised Mice.

PubMed

Hosang, Leon; Yusifov, Rashad; Löwel, Siegrid

2018-01-01

For routine behavioral tasks, mice predominantly rely on olfactory cues and tactile information. In contrast, their visual capabilities appear rather restricted, raising the question whether they can improve if vision gets more behaviorally relevant. We therefore performed long-term training using the visual water task (VWT): adult standard cage (SC)-raised mice were trained to swim toward a rewarded grating stimulus so that using visual information avoided excessive swimming toward nonrewarded stimuli. Indeed, and in contrast to old mice raised in a generally enriched environment (Greifzu et al., 2016), long-term VWT training increased visual acuity (VA) on average by more than 30% to 0.82 cycles per degree (cyc/deg). In an individual animal, VA even increased to 1.49 cyc/deg, i.e., beyond the rat range of VAs. Since visual experience enhances the spatial frequency threshold of the optomotor (OPT) reflex of the open eye after monocular deprivation (MD), we also quantified monocular vision after VWT training. Monocular VA did not increase reliably, and eye reopening did not initiate a decline to pre-MD values as observed by optomotry; VA values rather increased by continued VWT training. Thus, optomotry and VWT measure different parameters of mouse spatial vision. Finally, we tested whether long-term MD induced ocular dominance (OD) plasticity in the visual cortex of adult [postnatal day (P)162-P182] SC-raised mice. This was indeed the case: 40-50 days of MD induced OD shifts toward the open eye in both VWT-trained and, surprisingly, also in age-matched mice without VWT training. These data indicate that (1) long-term VWT training increases adult mouse VA, and (2) long-term MD induces OD shifts also in adult SC-raised mice.

Paravertebral Spinal Injection for the Treatment of Patients with Degenerative Facet Osteoarthropathy: Evidence of Motor Performance Improvements based on Objective Assessments

PubMed Central

Toosizadeh, Nima; Harati, Homayoon; Yen, Tzu-Chuan; Fastje, Cindy; Mohler, Jane; Najafi, Bijan; Dohm, Michael

2016-01-01

Background This study examined short- and long-term improvements in motor performance, quantified using wearable sensors, in response to facet spine injection in degenerative facet osteoarthropathy patients. Methods Adults with confirmed degenerative facet osteoarthropathy were recruited and were treated with medial or intermediate branch block injection. Self-report pain, health condition, and disability (Oswestry), as well as objective motor performance measures (gait, balance, and timed-up-and-go) were obtained in five sessions: pre-surgery (baseline), immediately after the injection, one-month, three-month, and 12-month follow-ups. Baseline motor performance parameters were compared with 10 healthy controls. Findings Thirty patients (age=50(14) years) and 10 controls (age=46(15) years) were recruited. All motor performance parameters were significantly different between groups. Results showed that average pain and Oswestry scores improved by 51% and 24%, respectively among patients, only one month after injection. Similarly, improvement in motor performance was most noticeable in one-month post-injection measurements; most improvements were observed in gait speed (14% normal walking, P<0.02), hip sway within balance tests (63% eyes-open P<0.01), and turning velocity within the timed-up-and-go test (28%, P<0.02). Better baseline motor performance led to better outcomes in terms of pain relief; baseline turning velocity was 18% faster among the responsive compared to the non-responsive patients. Interpretations Spinal injection can temporarily (one to three months) improve motor performance in degenerative facet osteoarthropathy patients. Successful pain relief in response to treatment is independent of demographic characteristics and initial pain but dependent on baseline motor performance. Immediate self-reported pain relief is unrelated to magnitude of gradual improvement in motor performance. PMID:27744005

Tuning Monotonic Basin Hopping: Improving the Efficiency of Stochastic Search as Applied to Low-Thrust Trajectory Optimization

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Englander, Jacob A.; Englander, Arnold C.

2014-01-01

Trajectory optimization methods using monotonic basin hopping (MBH) have become well developed during the past decade [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6]. An essential component of MBH is a controlled random search through the multi-dimensional space of possible solutions. Historically, the randomness has been generated by drawing random variable (RV)s from a uniform probability distribution. Here, we investigate the generating the randomness by drawing the RVs from Cauchy and Pareto distributions, chosen because of their characteristic long tails. We demonstrate that using Cauchy distributions (as first suggested by J. Englander [3, 6]) significantly improves monotonic basin hopping (MBH) performance, and that Pareto distributions provide even greater improvements. Improved performance is defined in terms of efficiency and robustness. Efficiency is finding better solutions in less time. Robustness is efficiency that is undiminished by (a) the boundary conditions and internal constraints of the optimization problem being solved, and (b) by variations in the parameters of the probability distribution. Robustness is important for achieving performance improvements that are not problem specific. In this work we show that the performance improvements are the result of how these long-tailed distributions enable MBH to search the solution space faster and more thoroughly. In developing this explanation, we use the concepts of sub-diffusive, normally-diffusive, and super-diffusive random walks (RWs) originally developed in the field of statistical physics.

Renal Salvage with Renal Artery Stenting Improves Long-term Survival.

PubMed

Modrall, J Gregory; Trimmer, Clayton; Tsai, Shirling; Kirkwood, Melissa L; Ali, Mujtaba; Rectenwald, John E; Timaran, Carlos H; Rosero, Eric B

2017-11-01

The Cardiovascular Outcomes in Renal Atherosclerotic Lesions (CORAL) Trial cast doubt on the benefits of renal artery stenting (RAS). However, the outcomes for patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) were not analyzed separately in the CORAL Trial. We hypothesized that patients who experienced a significant improvement in renal function after RAS would have improved long-term survival, compared with patients whose renal function was not improved by stenting. This single-center retrospective study included 60 patients with stage 3 or worse CKD and renal artery occlusive disease who were treated with RAS for renal salvage. Patients were categorized as "responders" or "nonresponders" based on postoperative changes in estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) after RAS. "Responders" were those patients with an improvement of at least 20% in eGFR over baseline; all others were categorized as "nonresponders." Survival was analyzed using the Kaplan-Meier method. Cox proportional hazards regression was used to identify predictors of long-term survival. The median age of the cohort was 66 years (interquartile range [IQR], 60-73). Median preoperative eGFR was 34 mL/min/1.73 m 2 (IQR, 24-45). At late follow-up (median 35 months, IQR, 22-97 months), 16 of 60 patients (26.7%) were categorized as "responders" with a median increase in postoperative eGFR of 40% (IQR, 21-67). Long-term survival was superior for responders, compared with nonresponders (P = 0.046 by log-rank test). Cox proportional hazards regression identified improved renal function after RAS as the only significant predictor of increased long-term survival (hazard ratio = 0.235, 95% confidence interval = 0.075-0.733; P = 0.0126 for improved versus worsened renal function after RAS). Successful salvage of renal function by RAS is associated with improved long-term survival. These data provide an important counter argument to the prior negative clinical trials that found no benefit to RAS. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Long-term outcome of patients with dysthymia and panic disorder: a naturalistic 9-year follow-up study.

PubMed

Svanborg, Cecilia; Wistedt, Anna Aberg; Svanborg, Pär

2008-01-01

The highly prevalent psychiatric disorders dysthymia and panic disorder have often a chronic or recurrent course with superimposed major depression. The prominent comorbidity between these diagnoses constitutes a confounding factor in the study of long-term outcome. We performed a 9-year follow-up of 38 patients with "pure" diagnoses, i.e. without comorbid dysthymia and panic disorder, selected from two 2-year naturalistic treatment studies with psychotherapy and antidepressant medication. The aims of the present study were to investigate 1) the stability of change, and 2) the impact of comorbid personality disorders (PDs) on long-term outcome. Patients were reassessed with SCID-I and SCID-II interviews, SCL-90/BSI and a detailed, modified life-charting interview, investigating course and treatment over time. About 50% of patients showed substantial improvement, of whom about half were in remission. Comorbid PD was a negative prognostic factor independently of Axis I diagnosis. Although patients with panic disorder had a lower frequency of comorbid PD, later onset, shorter duration of illness and better outcome after the original studies, there was no difference in the long-term outcome. The less stable outcome among panic patients suggests that standard treatments are not resulting in enduring remission. In order to achieve remission, it is necessary to 1) address comorbid PDs, 2) perform careful assessments of all comorbid diagnoses, and 3) build routines for the follow-up and augmentation of treatments.

Effects of intrahippocampal aniracetam treatment on Y-maze avoidance learning performance and behavioral long-term potentiation in dentate gyrus in rat.

PubMed

Rao, Y; Xiao, P; Xu, S

2001-02-09

Effects of intrahippocampal treatment of aniracetam, a selective agonist for DL-alpha-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazoleproionic acid (AMPA) receptors, on Y-maze avoidance learning task and behavioral long-term potentiation (LTP) in perforant path-dentate gyrus were studied in freely moving rats by using in vivo electrophysiology combined with behavioral tests. The results were as follows: (1) intrahippocampal treatment of aniracetam reversibly enhanced basal synaptic transmission in perforant path to dentate gyrus in a dosage dependent manner; (2) aniracetam produced improvement in Y-maze learning performance when administration occurred 5 min prior to maze learning; (3) aniracetam administration significantly facilitated behavioral LTP in dentate gyrus, while the maximal amplitude of LTP has no significant difference when compared to saline group. The present results indicate that hippocampal AMPA receptors are involved in learning and memory.

Age at treatment and long-term performance results in medulloblastoma

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

Chin, H.W.; Maruyama, Y.

1984-05-01

Medulloblastoma is highly radioresponsive, and recent treatment results have improved greatly since the introduction of megavoltage machine in 1960s. There is increasing evidence for the potential cure of medulloblastoma if properly treated in its early stages. The curable group represents approximately 75% of diagnosed patients. Long-term treatment effects were examined in this study. The study reveals age-dependent late effects in learning ability; the patients less than 4-years-old at treatment had major learning problems; patients of 5 to 7 years old performed at satisfactory-to-low passing levels in school work; patients older than 8 years old had no major intellectual impairment. Shortmore » stature was common when growth potential was present at the time of therapy, but endocrine tests were generally negative. These observations indicate special educational requirement needs, especially for children treated at a young age.« less

Time-Dependent Topology of Railway Prestressed Concrete Sleepers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Dan; Ngamkhanong, Chayut; Kaewunruen, Sakdirat

2017-10-01

The railway sleepers are very important component of railway track structure. The sleepers can be manufactured by using timber, concrete, steel or other engineered materials. Nowadays, prestressed concrete has become most commonly used type of sleepers. Prestressed concrete sleepers have longer life-cycle and lower maintenance cost than reinforced concrete sleepers. They are expected to withstand high dynamic loads and harsh environments. However, durability and long-term performance of prestressed concrete sleepers are largely dependent on creep and shrinkage responses. This study investigates the long-term behaviours of prestressed concrete sleepers and proposes the shortening and deflection diagrams. Comparison between design codes of Eurocode 2 and AS3600-2009 provides the insight into the time-dependent performance of prestressed concrete sleepers. The outcome of this paper will improve the rail maintenance and inspection criteria in order to establish appropriate sensible remote track condition monitor network in practice.

Enhancing managerial effectiveness in dietetics.

PubMed

Hoover, L W

1983-01-01

Environmental pressures from such sources as economic conditions, the government, third-party payers, and inter-institutional competition create managerial challenges. Although cost-containment has received considerable attention, long-term cost-effectiveness is probably the significant issue. Dietitians must become more cost-conscious and effective in resource management to attain desired performance outcomes. Some of the skills and characteristics essential to managerial effectiveness are a marketing orientation, systems design skill, quantitative operations management techniques, financial expertise, and leadership. These abilities facilitate decision-making and achievement of long-term cost-effectiveness. Curriculum enhancement and continuing education are two strategies for improving managerial competency in the dietetics profession. In dietetics education, study of management topics should be enhanced to provide more advanced coverage of management theories and quantitative models so that managerial performance can be at a higher level of sophistication and competency. To assure the viability of the dietetics profession, the emphasis on management must be more comprehensive and rigorous.

Long-term variability in sugarcane bagasse feedstock compositional methods: Sources and magnitude of analytical variability

DOE PAGES

Templeton, David W.; Sluiter, Justin B.; Sluiter, Amie; ...

2016-10-18

In an effort to find economical, carbon-neutral transportation fuels, biomass feedstock compositional analysis methods are used to monitor, compare, and improve biofuel conversion processes. These methods are empirical, and the analytical variability seen in the feedstock compositional data propagates into variability in the conversion yields, component balances, mass balances, and ultimately the minimum ethanol selling price (MESP). We report the average composition and standard deviations of 119 individually extracted National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) bagasse [Reference Material (RM) 8491] run by seven analysts over 7 years. Two additional datasets, using bulk-extracted bagasse (containing 58 and 291 replicates each),more » were examined to separate out the effects of batch, analyst, sugar recovery standard calculation method, and extractions from the total analytical variability seen in the individually extracted dataset. We believe this is the world's largest NIST bagasse compositional analysis dataset and it provides unique insight into the long-term analytical variability. Understanding the long-term variability of the feedstock analysis will help determine the minimum difference that can be detected in yield, mass balance, and efficiency calculations. The long-term data show consistent bagasse component values through time and by different analysts. This suggests that the standard compositional analysis methods were performed consistently and that the bagasse RM itself remained unchanged during this time period. The long-term variability seen here is generally higher than short-term variabilities. It is worth noting that the effect of short-term or long-term feedstock compositional variability on MESP is small, about $0.03 per gallon. The long-term analysis variabilities reported here are plausible minimum values for these methods, though not necessarily average or expected variabilities. We must emphasize the importance of training and good analytical procedures needed to generate this data. As a result, when combined with a robust QA/QC oversight protocol, these empirical methods can be relied upon to generate high-quality data over a long period of time.« less

Long-term variability in sugarcane bagasse feedstock compositional methods: Sources and magnitude of analytical variability

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

Templeton, David W.; Sluiter, Justin B.; Sluiter, Amie

In an effort to find economical, carbon-neutral transportation fuels, biomass feedstock compositional analysis methods are used to monitor, compare, and improve biofuel conversion processes. These methods are empirical, and the analytical variability seen in the feedstock compositional data propagates into variability in the conversion yields, component balances, mass balances, and ultimately the minimum ethanol selling price (MESP). We report the average composition and standard deviations of 119 individually extracted National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) bagasse [Reference Material (RM) 8491] run by seven analysts over 7 years. Two additional datasets, using bulk-extracted bagasse (containing 58 and 291 replicates each),more » were examined to separate out the effects of batch, analyst, sugar recovery standard calculation method, and extractions from the total analytical variability seen in the individually extracted dataset. We believe this is the world's largest NIST bagasse compositional analysis dataset and it provides unique insight into the long-term analytical variability. Understanding the long-term variability of the feedstock analysis will help determine the minimum difference that can be detected in yield, mass balance, and efficiency calculations. The long-term data show consistent bagasse component values through time and by different analysts. This suggests that the standard compositional analysis methods were performed consistently and that the bagasse RM itself remained unchanged during this time period. The long-term variability seen here is generally higher than short-term variabilities. It is worth noting that the effect of short-term or long-term feedstock compositional variability on MESP is small, about $0.03 per gallon. The long-term analysis variabilities reported here are plausible minimum values for these methods, though not necessarily average or expected variabilities. We must emphasize the importance of training and good analytical procedures needed to generate this data. As a result, when combined with a robust QA/QC oversight protocol, these empirical methods can be relied upon to generate high-quality data over a long period of time.« less

The Worksite Heart Health Improvement Project (WHHIP): feasibility and efficacy.

PubMed

Flannery, Kelly; Resnick, Barbara; Galik, Elizabeth; Lipscomb, Jane; McPhaul, Kathleen; Shaughnessy, Marianne

2012-01-01

Test the feasibility and efficacy of the Worksite Heart Health Improvement Project (WHHIP). The WHHIP was a quasi-experimental 6-month pilot performed in 2 long-term care facilities. Thirty-nine female minority nursing assistants participated in this study with a mean age of 42.39 (SD = 12.79) years. Measures were collected at baseline, 3, and 6 months and included blood pressure, lipid panel, body mass index, physical activity levels, diet behaviors, depressive symptoms, and self-efficacy outcomes. The 3-month WHHIP intervention included 3 components: environmental and policy assessment; education; and on-going motivation. The control site received education only. Subject participation averaged 47% and 58% in exercise and diet related activities, respectively. Generalized estimating equations showed the treatment group showed significant improvements in depressive symptoms (p = .012), systolic blood pressure (p = .028), total cholesterol (p = .002) and triglycerides (p = .011) over time. The treatment group also showed trends for improvement in diet behaviors (p = .069) and diastolic blood pressure (p = .073). This study provided feasibility evidence for the WHHIP and preliminary evidence that the WHHIP can improve heart healthy behaviors and subsequent outcomes among nursing assistants in long-term care settings. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Novel ZnO:Al contacts to CdZnTe for X- and gamma-ray detectors

PubMed Central

Roy, U. N.; Mundle, R. M.; Camarda, G. S.; Cui, Y.; Gul, R.; Hossain, A.; Yang, G.; Pradhan, A. K.; James, R. B.

2016-01-01

CdZnTe (CZT) has made a significant impact as a material for room-temperature nuclear-radiation detectors due to its potential impact in applications related to nonproliferation, homeland security, medical imaging, and gamma-ray telescopes. In all such applications, common metals, such as gold, platinum and indium, have been used as electrodes for fabricating the detectors. Because of the large mismatch in the thermal-expansion coefficient between the metal contacts and CZT, the contacts can undergo stress and mechanical degradation, which is the main cause for device instability over the long term. Here, we report for the first time on our use of Al-doped ZnO as the preferred electrode for such detectors. The material was selected because of its better contact properties compared to those of the metals commonly used today. Comparisons were conducted for the detector properties using different contacts, and improvements in the performances of ZnO:Al-coated detectors are described in this paper. These studies show that Al:ZnO contacts to CZT radiation detectors offer the potential of becoming a transformative replacement for the common metallic contacts due to the dramatic improvements in the performance of detectors and improved long-term stability. PMID:27216387

Corticospinal tract integrity and lesion volume play different roles in chronic hemiparesis and its improvement through motor practice.

PubMed

Sterr, Annette; Dean, Phil J A; Szameitat, Andre J; Conforto, Adriana Bastos; Shen, Shan

2014-05-01

Initial evidence suggests that the integrity of the ipsilesional corticospinal tract (CST) after stroke is strongly related to motor function in the chronic state but not the treatment gain induced by motor rehabilitation. We examined the association of motor status and treatment benefit by testing patients with a wide range of severity of hemiparesis of the left and right upper extremity. Diffusion tensor imaging was performed in 22 patients beyond 12 months after onset of stroke with severe to moderate hemiparesis. Motor function was tested before and after 2 weeks of modified constraint-induced movement therapy. CST integrity, but not lesion volume, correlated with the motor ability measures of the Wolf Motor Function Test and the Motor Activity Log. No differences were found between left and right hemiparesis. Motor performance improved significantly with the treatment regime, and did so equally for patients with left and right arm paresis. However, treatment benefit was not associated with either CST integrity or lesion volume. CST integrity correlated best in this small trial with chronic long-term status but not treatment-induced improvements. The CST may play a different role in the mechanisms mediating long-term outcome compared to those underlying practice-induced gains after a chronic plateau in motor function.

Time on androgen deprivation therapy and adaptations to exercise: secondary analysis from a 12-month randomized controlled trial in men with prostate cancer.

PubMed

Taaffe, Dennis R; Buffart, Laurien M; Newton, Robert U; Spry, Nigel; Denham, James; Joseph, David; Lamb, David; Chambers, Suzanne K; Galvão, Daniel A

2018-02-01

To explore if duration of previous exposure to androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) in men with prostate cancer (PCa) undertaking a year-long exercise programme moderates the exercise response with regard to body composition and muscle performance, and also to explore the moderator effects of baseline testosterone, time since ADT, and baseline value of the outcome. In a multicentre randomized controlled trial, 100 men who had previously undergone either 6 months (short-term) or 18 months (long-term) of ADT in combination with radiotherapy, as part of the TROG 03.04 RADAR trial, were randomized to 6 months supervised exercise, followed by a 6-month home-based maintenance programme, or to printed physical activity educational material for 12 months across 13 university-affiliated exercise clinics in Australia and New Zealand. The participants were long-term survivors of PCa with a mean age of 71.7 ± 6.4 years, and were assessed for lower extremity performance (repeated chair rise), with a subset of men (n = 57) undergoing additional measures for upper and lower body muscle strength and body composition (lean mass, fat mass, appendicular skeletal muscle [ASM]) by dual X-ray absorptiometry. Data were analysed using generalized estimating equations. Time on ADT significantly moderated the exercise effects on chair rise (β interaction = -1.3 s, 95% confidence interval [CI] -2.6 to 0.0), whole-body lean mass (β interaction = 1194 g, 95% CI 234 to 2153) and ASM mass (β interaction = 562 g, 95% CI 49 to 1075), and approached significance for fat mass (β interaction = -1107 g, 95% CI -2346 to 132), with greater benefits for men previously on long-term ADT. At 6 months, the intervention effects on chair rise time -1.5 s (95% CI -2.5 to -0.5), whole-body lean mass 824 g (95% CI 8 to 1640), ASM mass 709 g (95% CI 260 to 1158), and fat mass -1377 g (95% CI -2156 to -598) were significant for men previously on long-term ADT, but not for men on short-term ADT. At 12 months, the intervention effects for men on long-term ADT remained significant for the chair rise, with improved performance (-2.0 s, 95% CI -3.0 to -1.0) and increased ASM (537 g, 95% CI 153 to 921). Time on ADT did not moderate the exercise effects on muscle strength, nor did time since ADT cessation moderate any intervention effects. Similarly, testosterone and baseline values of the outcome had negligible moderator effects. Men with PCa previously treated long-term with ADT respond more favourably to exercise in terms of lower body muscle performance and body composition (lean and fat mass, and ASM) than those with short-term ADT exposure. As a result, men who were formerly on long-term androgen suppression regimens should be especially prescribed exercise medicine interventions to alleviate residual treatment-related adverse effects. © 2017 The Authors. BJU International.

End-task versus in-task feedback to increase procedural learning retention during spinal anaesthesia training of novices.

PubMed

Lean, Lyn Li; Hong, Ryan Yee Shiun; Ti, Lian Kah

2017-08-01

Communication of feedback during teaching of practical procedures is a fine balance of structure and timing. We investigate if continuous in-task (IT) or end-task feedback (ET) is more effective in teaching spinal anaesthesia to medical students. End-task feedback was hypothesized to improve both short-term and long-term procedural learning retention as experiential learning promotes active learning after encountering errors during practice. Upon exposure to a 5-min instructional video, students randomized to IT or ET feedbacks were trained using a spinal simulator mannequin. A blinded expert tested the students using a spinal anaesthesia checklist in the short term (immediate) and long-term (average 4 months). Sixty-five students completed the training and testing. There were no differences in demographics of age or gender within IT or ET distributions. Both short-term and long-term learning retention of spinal anaesthesia ET feedback proved to be better (P < 0.01) than IT feedback. The time taken for ET students was shorter at long-term testing. End-task feedback improves both short-term and long-term procedural learning retention.

Short- and Long-Term Effects of Balance Training on Physical Activity in Older Adults With Osteoporosis: A Randomized Controlled Trial

PubMed Central

Hagströmer, Maria; Hellénius, Mai-Lis; Ståhle, Agneta

2017-01-01

Background and Purpose: We have developed a 12-week balance training program for older adults shown to improve fall-related concerns, gait speed, balance performance, and physical function. We hypothesized that this balance training would also contribute to higher habitual physical activity (PA) levels and improved health-related quality of life (HRQoL). The primary aim was to evaluate short- and long-term effects of the balance training program on objectively measured habitual PA in older adults with osteoporosis. Secondary aims were to assess the effects of the balance training on HRQoL, and to study whether any effects on PA were associated with changes in HRQoL, gait speed, balance performance, fall-related concerns, and physical function. Methods: A randomized controlled trial with follow-up at 3, 9, and 15 months, including 91 participants with osteoporosis (75.6 ± 5.4 years), compared a balance training group (n = 61) with a control group (n = 30). The primary outcome was effect on habitual PA measured as steps/day, dichotomized into less than 5000 or 5000 or more steps/day. Physical activity was assessed with pedometers (Yamax) and accelerometers (Actigraph), HRQoL with the Short Form-36 (SF-36), gait with a GAITRite walkway, balance performance with Modified-Figure-Eight test and one-leg stance, fall-related concerns with Falls Efficacy Scale International, and physical function with the advanced lower extremity subscale of the questionnaire Late Life Function and Disability Instrument. Statistical methods used were multivariate logistic regression and logistic generalized estimating equation. Results: Sixty-eight participants completed the short-term follow-up at 3 months, and 53 participants completed the long-term follow-up at 15 months. Per-protocol analysis (n = 68) showed that the odds ratio for having a daily step count of 5000 or more at 3 months was 6.17 (95% confidence interval, 1.23-30.91), P = .027, for the intervention group compared with the control group. The longitudinal analysis (n = 91) showed that the odds ratio for having a daily step count of 5000 or more at 15 months was 2.02 (95% confidence interval, 0.88-4.64), P = .096, for the intervention group compared with the control group. The mental component sum of the SF-36 improved significantly from baseline to 3 months in the intervention group, and the physical component sum improved in both groups, but no statistically significant differences were found between groups. No associations were found between PA and changes in covariates. Discussion and Conclusions: The short-term evaluation showed that balance training increased habitual PA in community-dwelling older adults with osteoporosis. A significantly higher proportion of participants in the intervention group reached a level of 5000 or more steps/day, which is important for overall health. This effect was not associated with improvements in HRQoL, gait speed, balance performance, or fall-related concerns, and did not persist through the long-term follow-up. To accomplish a sustained PA change, a prolonged intervention or more support regarding habitual PA may be required, such as reinforcement with personalized behavior change counseling or PA on prescription. PMID:26859463

Performance oriented guidance for Mississippi chip seals - volume II.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2013-12-01

A laboratory and field study was conducted related to long term chip seal performance. This reports primary : objective was to initiate development of a long term performance (LTP) test protocol for chip seals focused on : aggregate retention. Key...

Distress identification manual for the long-term pavement performance program (Fifth revised edition)

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2014-05-01

Accurate, consistent, and repeatable distress evaluation surveys can be performed by using the Distress Identification Manual for the Long-Term Pavement Performance Program. Color photographs and drawings illustrate the distresses found in three basi...

Cognitive effects of pregabalin in the treatment of long-term benzodiazepine-use and dependence.

PubMed

Oulis, Panagiotis; Kalogerakou, Stamatina; Anyfandi, Eleni; Konstantakopoulos, George; Papakosta, Vassiliki-Maria; Masdrakis, Vasilios; Tsaltas, Eleftheria

2014-05-01

Long-term benzodiazepine (BDZ) use and dependence affect cognitive functioning adversely and partly irreversibly. Emerging evidence suggests that pregabalin (PGB) might be a safe and efficacious treatment of long-term BDZ use. The aim of the present study was to investigate the changes in several core cognitive functions after successful treatment of long-term BDZ use and dependence with PGB. Fourteen patients with long-term BDZ use (mean duration >15 years) underwent neuropsychological assessment with the mini-mental state examination and four tests from the Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery (CANTAB) battery before the initiation of PGB treatment and at a two months follow-up after the cessation of BDZs. Patients' CANTAB percentile score distributions were compared with normative CANTAB data. Patients improved on cognitive measures of global cognitive functioning, time orientation, psychomotor speed, and visuospatial memory and learning with strong effect sizes. By contrast, they failed to improve on measures of attentional flexibility. Despite their significant improvement, patients' scores on most tests remained still at the lower percentiles of CANTAB normative scores. Although preliminary, our findings suggest that successful treatment of long-term BDZ use with PGB is associated with a substantial, though only partial, recovery of BDZ-compromised neuropsychological functioning, at least at a 2-month follow-up. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Long-term outcomes and social independence level after arterial switch operation.

PubMed

Yamazaki, Akira; Yamamoto, Noboru; Sakamoto, Takahiko; Ishihara, Kazuaki; Iwata, Yusuke; Matsumura, Goki; Kurosawa, Hiromi

2008-02-01

Various issues regarding the long-term survivors of arterial switch operation (ASO) have been clarified according to the improvement of surgical mortality. We reviewed the long-term results and social independence level after ASO. Two hundred and four (204) patients who had undergone ASO more than 15 years ago were studied retrospectively. ASO was performed as a primary operation (group I, n=99) or as a secondary operation (group II, n=105). Lecompte procedure was performed in 197 patients, modified Aubert procedure in 5, and original Jatene procedure in 2. There were 11 late deaths. Kaplan-Meier survival rate (not including operative deaths) was 94.9% at 10 years and 94.9% at 15 years in group I, and 96.9% at 10 years and 94.4% at 15 years in group II. Forty-eight reoperations were performed (aortic valve replacement in 6, aortic valvoplasty in 2, Konno procedure in 1, double valve replacement in 1, right ventricular outflow tract reconstruction in 35). The reoperation-free rate including late death was 82.2% at 10 years and 75.7% at 15 years in group I, and 88.2% at 10 years and 78.1% at 15 years in group II. One hundred and seventy-eight patients were classified as NYHA class I and 7 patients as class II. All the patients except those with mental disorder (1) or neurodevelopmental impairment (3) were attending school or working. There was no significant difference in left ventricular function between group I and II, both showing values within the normal range. The long-term (>15 years) outcome of ASO survivors was satisfactory. Most patients showed excellent cardiac function and were socially independent.

Increased neuromuscular consistency in gait and balance after partnered, dance-based rehabilitation in Parkinson's disease.

PubMed

Allen, Jessica L; McKay, J Lucas; Sawers, Andrew; Hackney, Madeleine E; Ting, Lena H

2017-07-01

Here we examined changes in muscle coordination associated with improved motor performance after partnered, dance-based rehabilitation in individuals with mild to moderate idiopathic Parkinson's disease. Using motor module (a.k.a. muscle synergy) analysis, we identified changes in the modular control of overground walking and standing reactive balance that accompanied clinically meaningful improvements in behavioral measures of balance, gait, and disease symptoms after 3 wk of daily Adapted Tango classes. In contrast to previous studies that revealed a positive association between motor module number and motor performance, none of the six participants in this pilot study increased motor module number despite improvements in behavioral measures of balance and gait performance. Instead, motor modules were more consistently recruited and distinctly organized immediately after rehabilitation, suggesting more reliable motor output. Furthermore, the pool of motor modules shared between walking and reactive balance increased after rehabilitation, suggesting greater generalizability of motor module function across tasks. Our work is the first to show that motor module distinctness, consistency, and generalizability are more sensitive to improvements in gait and balance function after short-term rehabilitation than motor module number. Moreover, as similar differences in motor module distinctness, consistency, and generalizability have been demonstrated previously in healthy young adults with and without long-term motor training, our work suggests commonalities in the structure of muscle coordination associated with differences in motor performance across the spectrum from motor impairment to expertise. NEW & NOTEWORTHY We demonstrate changes in neuromuscular control of gait and balance in individuals with Parkinson's disease after short-term, dance-based rehabilitation. Our work is the first to show that motor module distinctness, consistency, and generalizability across gait and balance are more sensitive than motor module number to improvements in motor performance following short-term rehabilitation. Our results indicate commonalities in muscle coordination improvements associated with motor skill reacquisition due to rehabilitation and motor skill acquisition in healthy individuals. Copyright © 2017 the American Physiological Society.

Functional performance following selective posterior rhizotomy: long-term results determined using a validated evaluative measure.

PubMed

Mittal, Sandeep; Farmer, Jean-Pierre; Al-Atassi, Borhan; Montpetit, Kathleen; Gervais, Nathalie; Poulin, Chantal; Benaroch, Thierry E; Cantin, Marie-André

2002-09-01

Selective posterior rhizotomy (SPR) may result in considerable benefit for children with spastic cerebral palsy. To date, however, there have been few studies in which validated functional outcome measures have been used to report surgical results beyond 3 years. The authors analyzed data obtained from the McGill Rhizotomy Database to determine long-term functional performance outcomes in patients who underwent lumbosacral dorsal rhizotomy performed using intraoperative electrophysiological monitoring. The study population was composed of children with debilitating spasticity who underwent SPR and were evaluated by a multidisciplinary team preoperatively and at 6 months and 1 year postoperatively. Quantitative standardized assessments of activities of daily living (ADL) were obtained using the Pediatric Evaluation of Disability Inventory (PEDI). Of 57 patients who met the entry criteria for the study, 41 completed the 3-year assessments and 30 completed the 5-year assessments. Statistical analysis demonstrated significant improvement in the mobility and self-care domains of the functional skills dimension at 1 year after SPR. The preoperative and 1-, 3-, and 5-year postoperative scaled scores for the mobility domain were 56, 64, 77.2, and 77.8, respectively. The scaled score for the self-care domain increased from 59 presurgery to 67.9, 81.6, and 82.4 at the 1-, 3-, and 5-year postoperative assessments, respectively. The results of this study support the presence of significant improvements in functional performance, based on PEDI scores obtained 1 year after SPR. The improvements persisted at the 3- and 5-year follow-up examinations. The authors conclude that SPR performed using intraoperative stimulation is valuable in the augmentation of motor function and self-care skills essential to the performance of ADL.

Long-term bed degradation in Maryland streams (phase 2) : Blue Ridge and Western Piedmont provinces.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2012-03-01

Estimation of potential long-term down-cutting of the stream bed is necessary for evaluation and design of bridges for scour and culverts for fish passage. The purpose of this study has been to improve predictions of this potential long-term bed degr...

The Deep Space Network in the Common Platform Era: A Prototype Implementation at DSS-13

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Davarian, F.

2013-01-01

To enhance NASA's Deep Space Network (DSN), an effort is underway to improve network performance and simplify its operation and maintenance. This endeavor, known as the "Common Platform," has both short- and long-term objectives. The long-term work has not begun yet; however, the activity to realize the short-term goals has started. There are three goals for the long-term objective: 1. Convert the DSN into a digital network where signals are digitized at the output of the down converters at the antennas and are distributed via a digital IF switch to the processing platforms. 2. Employ a set of common hardware for signal processing applications, e.g., telemetry, tracking, radio science and Very Long Baseline Interferometry (VLBI). 3. Minimize in-house developments in favor of purchasing commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) equipment. The short-term goal is to develop a prototype of the above at NASA's experimental station known as DSS-13. This station consists of a 34m beam waveguide antenna with cryogenically cooled amplifiers capable of handling deep space research frequencies at S-, X-, and Ka-bands. Without the effort at DSS-13, the implementation of the long-term goal can potentially be risky because embarking on the modification of an operational network without prior preparations can, among other things, result in unwanted service interruptions. Not only are there technical challenges to address, full network implementation of the Common Platform concept includes significant cost uncertainties. Therefore, a limited implementation at DSS-13 will contribute to risk reduction. The benefits of employing common platforms for the DSN are lower cost and improved operations resulting from ease of maintenance and reduced number of spare parts. Increased flexibility for the user is another potential benefit. This paper will present the plans for DSS-13 implementation. It will discuss key issues such as the Common Platform architecture, choice of COTS equipment, and the standard for radio frequency (RF) to digital interface.

Novel chip coating approaches to improve white LED technology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hartmann, Paul; Schweighart, Marko; Sommer, Christian; Wenzl, Franz-P.; Zinterl, Ernst; Hoschopf, Hans; Pachler, Peter; Tasch, Stefan

2008-02-01

Key market requirements for white LEDs, especially in the general lighting and automotive headlamp segments call for improved concepts and performance of white LEDs based on phosphor conversion. Major challenges are small emission areas, highest possible intensities, long-term color stability, and spatial homogeneity of color coordinates. On the other hand, the increasingly high radiation power of the blue LEDs poses problems for all involved materials. Various thick film coating technologies are widely used for applying the color conversion layer to the semiconductor chip. We present novel concepts based on Silicate phosphors with high performance in terms of spatial homogeneity of the emission and variability of the color temperature. Numerical calculation of the optical properties with the help of state-of-the-art simulation tools was used as a basis for the practical optimization of the layer geometries.

Customer assessment of long-term care pharmacy provider services.

PubMed

Clark, Thomas R

2008-09-01

Assess performance of long-term care pharmacy providers on key services offered to nursing facilities. Cross-sectional; nursing facility team. Random phone survey of nursing facility team members. 485 nursing facility team members (practicing in nursing facilities, interacting with > or = 1 consultant pharmacist); 46 members excluded, unable to identify facility's pharmacy provider. Directors of nursing, medical directors, and administrators were asked to rate long-term care pharmacy provider performance of eight commonly offered pharmacy services. All groups evaluated pharmacy provider performance of these services using a five-point scale. Results are broken down by employer type. Average rating for eight pharmacy services was 3.64. Top two services: "Labeling medications accurately" ranked in top 1-2 services for all groups (combined rating of 3.97) and "Provides medication administration system" ranked in top 1-3 services for all groups (combined rating of 3.95). One service, "Provides educational inservices," ranked lowest for all groups (combined rating of 3.54). In general, when looking at the eight services in combination for all providers, all services were ranked between Good and Very Good (average score of 3.64). Therefore, while the pharmacy provider is performing above average for these services, there is room for improvement in all of these services. These results can be used as a benchmark. Detailed data results and sample surveys are available online at www.ascp.com/supplements. These surveys can be used by the pharmacy provider to solicit assessments from their own facilities on these services.

Long-term Results for the BacJac Interspinous Device in Lumbar Spine Degenerative Disease.

PubMed

Spallone, Aldo; Lavorato, Luigi; Belvisi, Daniele

2018-05-14

 To evaluate the long-term results of using the BacJac interspinous device (Pioneer Surgical Technology Inc.) in a series of patients with degenerative lumbar spine disease.  Forty-one patients undergoing lumbar surgery with implantation of a BacJac device from 2009 to 2012 were enrolled in the present study. Patients were evaluated using the Oswestry Disability Scale (ODI).  Although all patients showed a significant improvement of the ODI score immediately after surgery, only 41% of patients showed a satisfactory outcome. We observed worse results in the patients operated on at the L3-L4 level and in whom the device was implanted in a segment different from the one where surgical decompression had been performed. Weight gain in the months after surgery was also a poor outcome-influencing factor.  This study confirms what is already suggested in the relevant literature regarding the long-term inefficacy of the so-called dynamic stabilization devices. Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.

Assessment of the usefulness of semipermeable membrane devices for long-term watershed monitoring in an urban slough system

USGS Publications Warehouse

McCarthy, K.

2006-01-01

Semipermeable membrane devices (SPMDs) were deployed at eight sites within the Buffalo Slough, near Portland, Oregon, to (1) measure the spatial and seasonal distribution of dissolved polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) and organochlorine (OC) compounds in the slough, (2) assess the usefulness of SPMDs as a tool for investigating and monitoring hydrophobic compounds throughout the Columbia Slough system, and (3) evaluate the utility of SPMDs as a tool for measuring the long-term effects of watershed improvement activities. Data from the SPMDs revealed clear spatial and seasonal differences in water quality within the slough and indicate that for hydrophobic compounds, this time-integrated passive-sampling technique is a useful tool for long-term watershed monitoring. In addition, the data suggest that a spiking rate of 2-5 ??g/SPMD of permeability/performance reference compounds, including at least one compound that is not susceptible to photodegradation, may be optimum for the conditions encountered here. ?? Springer Science + Business Media, Inc. 2006.

Development of new EVA formulations for improved performance at NREL

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

Pern, F.J.

1997-02-01

We review in chronological order the research stages and fundamental concepts involved in developing modified and new EVA formulations for improved performance against photo-induced degradation and discoloration. The new NREL EVA formulations use additives totally different from the present commercial formulations (EVA A9918 and EVA 15295). Validation of their long-term photostability and thermostability is presently under way. Together with UV-absorbing glass superstrates, they may offer better success in achieving a more reliable module performance and longer service life without significant EVA discoloration problems, which are commonly experienced with EVA A9918 and, at a lesser rate, EVA 15295. {copyright} {ital 1997more » American Institute of Physics.}« less

Reliability improvements in tunable Pb1-xSnxSe diode lasers

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Linden, K. J.; Butler, J. F.; Nill, K. W.; Reeder, R. E.

1980-01-01

Recent developments in the technology of Pb-salt diode lasers which have led to significant improvements in reliability and lifetime, and to improved operation at very long wavelengths are described. A combination of packaging and contacting-metallurgy improvements has led to diode lasers that are stable both in terms of temperature cycling and shelf-storage time. Lasers cycled over 500 times between 77 K and 300 K have exhibited no measurable changes in either electrical contact resistance or threshold current. Utilizing metallurgical contacting process, both lasers and experimental n-type and p-type bulk materials are shown to have electrical contact resistance values that are stable for shelf storage periods well in excess of one year. Problems and experiments which have led to devices with improved performance stability are discussed. Stable device configurations achieved for material compositions yielding lasers which operate continuously at wavelengths as long as 30.3 micrometers are described.

A critical reappraisal of bilateral adrenalectomy for ACTH-dependent Cushing's syndrome.

PubMed

Reincke, Martin; Ritzel, Katrin; Oßwald, Andrea; Berr, Christina; Stalla, Günter; Hallfeldt, Klaus; Reisch, Nicole; Schopohl, Jochen; Beuschlein, Felix

2015-10-01

Our aim was to review short- and long-term outcomes of patients treated with bilateral adrenalectomy (BADx) in ACTH-dependent Cushing's syndrome. We reviewed the literature and analysed our experience with 53 patients treated with BADx since 1990 in our institution. BADx is considered if ACTH-dependent Cushing's syndrome is refractory to other treatment modalities. In Cushing's disease (CD), BADx is mainly used as an ultima ratio after transsphenoidal surgery and medical therapies have failed. In these cases, the time span between the first diagnosis of CD and treatment with BADx is relatively long (median 44 months). In ectopic Cushing's syndrome, the time from diagnosis to BADx is shorter (median 2 months), and BADx is often performed as an emergency procedure because of life-threatening complications of severe hypercortisolism. In both situations, BADx is relatively safe (median surgical morbidity 15%; median surgical mortality 3%) and provides excellent control of hypercortisolism; Cushing's-associated signs and symptoms are rapidly corrected, and co-morbidities are stabilised. In CD, the quality of life following BADx is rapidly improving, and long-term mortality is low. Specific long-term complications include the development of adrenal crisis and Nelson's syndrome. In ectopic Cushing's syndrome, long-term mortality is high but is mostly dependent on the prognosis of the underlying malignant neuroendocrine tumour. BADx is a relatively safe and highly effective treatment, and it provides adequate control of long-term co-morbidities associated with hypercortisolism. © 2015 European Society of Endocrinology.

Gender differences in learning physical science concepts: Does computer animation help equalize them?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jacek, Laura Lee

This dissertation details an experiment designed to identify gender differences in learning using three experimental treatments: animation, static graphics, and verbal instruction alone. Three learning presentations were used in testing of 332 university students. Statistical analysis was performed using ANOVA, binomial tests for differences of proportion, and descriptive statistics. Results showed that animation significantly improved women's long-term learning over static graphics (p = 0.067), but didn't significantly improve men's long-term learning over static graphics. In all cases, women's scores improved with animation over both other forms of instruction for long-term testing, indicating that future research should not abandon the study of animation as a tool that may promote gender equity in science. Short-term test differences were smaller, and not statistically significant. Variation present in short-term scores was related more to presentation topic than treatment. This research also details characteristics of each of the three presentations, to identify variables (e.g. level of abstraction in presentation) affecting score differences within treatments. Differences between men's and women's scores were non-standard between presentations, but these differences were not statistically significant (long-term p = 0.2961, short-term p = 0.2893). In future research, experiments might be better designed to test these presentational variables in isolation, possibly yielding more distinctive differences between presentational scores. Differences in confidence interval overlaps between presentations suggested that treatment superiority may be somewhat dependent on the design or topic of the learning presentation. Confidence intervals greatly overlap in all situations. This undercut, to some degree, the surety of conclusions indicating superiority of one treatment type over the others. However, confidence intervals for animation were smaller, overlapped nearly completely for men and women (there was less overlap between the genders for the other two treatments), and centered around slightly higher means, lending further support to the conclusion that animation helped equalize men's and women's learning. The most important conclusion identified in this research is that gender is an important variable experimental populations testing animation as a learning device. Averages indicated that both men and women prefer to work with animation over either static graphics or verbal instruction alone.

A Prototype Performance Assessment Model for Generic Deep Borehole Repository for High-Level Nuclear Waste - 12132

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

Lee, Joon H.; Arnold, Bill W.; Swift, Peter N.

2012-07-01

A deep borehole repository is one of the four geologic disposal system options currently under study by the U.S. DOE to support the development of a long-term strategy for geologic disposal of commercial used nuclear fuel (UNF) and high-level radioactive waste (HLW). The immediate goal of the generic deep borehole repository study is to develop the necessary modeling tools to evaluate and improve the understanding of the repository system response and processes relevant to long-term disposal of UNF and HLW in a deep borehole. A prototype performance assessment model for a generic deep borehole repository has been developed using themore » approach for a mined geological repository. The preliminary results from the simplified deep borehole generic repository performance assessment indicate that soluble, non-sorbing (or weakly sorbing) fission product radionuclides, such as I-129, Se-79 and Cl-36, are the likely major dose contributors, and that the annual radiation doses to hypothetical future humans associated with those releases may be extremely small. While much work needs to be done to validate the model assumptions and parameters, these preliminary results highlight the importance of a robust seal design in assuring long-term isolation, and suggest that deep boreholes may be a viable alternative to mined repositories for disposal of both HLW and UNF. (authors)« less

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

Mayer, J.

The U. S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Office of Environmental Management (EM) has the responsibility for cleaning up 60 sites in 22 states that were associated with the legacy of the nation's nuclear weapons program and other research and development activities. These sites are unique and many of the technologies needed to successfully disposition the associated wastes have yet to be developed or would require significant re-engineering to be adapted for future EM cleanup efforts. In 2008, the DOE-EM Engineering and Technology Program (EM-22) released the Engineering and Technology Roadmap in response to Congressional direction and the need to focusmore » on longer term activities required for the completion of the aforementioned cleanup program. One of the strategic initiatives included in the Roadmap was to enhance long term performance monitoring as defined by 'Develop and deploy cost effective long-term strategies and technologies to monitor closure sites (including soil, groundwater, and surface water) with multiple contaminants (organics, metals and radionuclides) to verify integrated long-term cleanup performance'. To support this long-term monitoring (LTM) strategic initiative, EM 22 and the Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL) organized and held an interactive symposia, known as the 2009 DOE-EM Long-Term Monitoring Technical Forum, to define and prioritize LTM improvement strategies and products that could be realized within a 3 to 5 year investment time frame. This near-term focus on fundamental research would then be used as a foundation for development of applied programs to improve the closure and long-term performance of EM's legacy waste sites. The Technical Forum was held in Atlanta, GA on February 11-12, 2009, and attended by 57 professionals with a focus on identifying those areas of opportunity that would most effectively advance the transition of the current practices to a more effective strategy for the LTM paradigm. The meeting format encompassed three break-out sessions, which focused on needs and opportunities associated with the following LTM technical areas: (1) Performance Monitoring Tools, (2) Systems, and (3) Information Management. The specific objectives of the Technical Forum were to identify: (1) technical targets for reducing EM costs for life-cycle monitoring; (2) cost-effective approaches and tools to support the transition from active to passive remedies at EM waste sites; and (3) specific goals and objectives associated with the lifecycle monitoring initiatives outlined within the Roadmap. The first Breakout Session on LTM performance measurement tools focused on the integration and improvement of LTM performance measurement and monitoring tools that deal with parameters such as ecosystems, boundary conditions, geophysics, remote sensing, biomarkers, ecological indicators and other types of data used in LTM configurations. Although specific tools were discussed, it was recognized that the Breakout Session could not comprehensively discuss all monitoring technologies in the time provided. Attendees provided key references where other organizations have assessed monitoring tools. Three investment sectors were developed in this Breakout Session. The second Breakout Session was on LTM systems. The focus of this session was to identify new and inventive LTM systems addressing the framework for interactive parameters such as infrastructure, sensors, diagnostic features, field screening tools, state of the art characterization monitoring systems/concepts, and ecosystem approaches to site conditions and evolution. LTM systems consist of the combination of data acquisition and management efforts, data processing and analysis efforts and reporting tools. The objective of the LTM systems workgroup was to provide a vision and path towards novel and innovative LTM systems, which should be able to provide relevant, actionable information on system performance in a cost-effective manner. Two investment sectors were developed in this Breakout Session. The last Breakout Session of the Technical Forum was on LTM information management. The session focus was on the development and implementation of novel information management systems for LTM including techniques to address data issues such as: efficient management of large and diverse datasets; consistency and comparability in data management and incorporation of accurate historical information; data interpretation and information synthesis including statistical methods, modeling, and visualization; and linage of data to site management objectives and leveraging information to forge consensus among stakeholders. One investment sector was developed in this Breakout Session.« less

Is MRI-based CFD able to improve clinical treatment of coarctations of aorta?

PubMed

Goubergrits, L; Riesenkampff, E; Yevtushenko, P; Schaller, J; Kertzscher, U; Berger, F; Kuehne, T

2015-01-01

Pressure drop associated with coarctation of the aorta (CoA) can be successfully treated surgically or by stent placement. However, a decreased life expectancy associated with altered aortic hemodynamics was found in long-term studies. Image-based computational fluid dynamics (CFD) is intended to support particular diagnoses, to help in choosing between treatment options, and to improve performance of treatment procedures. This study aimed to prove the ability of CFD to improve aortic hemodynamics in CoA patients. In 13 patients (6 males, 7 females; mean age 25 ± 14 years), we compared pre- and post-treatment peak systole hemodynamics [pressure drops and wall shear stress (WSS)] vs. virtual treatment as proposed by biomedical engineers. Anatomy and flow data for CFD were based on MRI and angiography. Segmentation, geometry reconstruction and virtual treatment geometry were performed using the software ZIBAmira, whereas peak systole flow conditions were simulated with the software ANSYS(®) Fluent(®). Virtual treatment significantly reduced pressure drop compared to post-treatment values by a mean of 2.8 ± 3.15 mmHg, which significantly reduced mean WSS by 3.8 Pa. Thus, CFD has the potential to improve post-treatment hemodynamics associated with poor long-term prognosis of patients with coarctation of the aorta. MRI-based CFD has a huge potential to allow the slight reduction of post-treatment pressure drop, which causes significant improvement (reduction) of the WSS at the stenosis segment.

Enhanced performance of graphite anode materials by AlF3 coating for lithium-ion batteries

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

Ding, Fei; Xu, Wu; Choi, Daiwon

2012-04-27

In order to form the stable surface film and to further enhance the long-term cycling stability of the graphite anodes of lithium-ion batteries, the surface of graphite powders has been modified by AlF3 coating through chemical precipitation method. The AlF3-coated graphite shows no evident changes in the bulk structure and a thin AlF3-coating layer of about 2 nm thick is found to uniformly cover the graphite particles with 2 wt% AlF3 content. However, it delivers a higher initial discharge capacity and largely improved rate performances compared to the pristine graphite. Remarkably, AlF3 coated graphite demonstrated a much better cycle life.more » After 300 cycles, AlF3 coated graphite and uncoated graphite show capacity retention of 92% and 81%, respectively. XPS measurement shows that a more conductive solid electrode interface (SEI) layer was formed on AlF3 coated graphite as compared to uncoated graphite. SEM monograph also reveals that the AlF3-coated graphite particles have a much more stable surface morphology after long-term cycling. Therefore, the improved electrochemical performance of AlF3 coated graphite can be attributed to a more stable and conductive SEI formed on coated graphite anode during cycling process.« less

Working memory, long-term memory, and medial temporal lobe function

PubMed Central

Jeneson, Annette; Squire, Larry R.

2012-01-01

Early studies of memory-impaired patients with medial temporal lobe (MTL) damage led to the view that the hippocampus and related MTL structures are involved in the formation of long-term memory and that immediate memory and working memory are independent of these structures. This traditional idea has recently been revisited. Impaired performance in patients with MTL lesions on tasks with short retention intervals, or no retention interval, and neuroimaging findings with similar tasks have been interpreted to mean that the MTL is sometimes needed for working memory and possibly even for visual perception itself. We present a reappraisal of this interpretation. Our main conclusion is that, if the material to be learned exceeds working memory capacity, if the material is difficult to rehearse, or if attention is diverted, performance depends on long-term memory even when the retention interval is brief. This fundamental notion is better captured by the terms subspan memory and supraspan memory than by the terms short-term memory and long-term memory. We propose methods for determining when performance on short-delay tasks must depend on long-term (supraspan) memory and suggest that MTL lesions impair performance only when immediate memory and working memory are insufficient to support performance. In neuroimaging studies, MTL activity during encoding is influenced by the memory load and correlates positively with long-term retention of the material that was presented. The most parsimonious and consistent interpretation of all the data is that subspan memoranda are supported by immediate memory and working memory and are independent of the MTL. PMID:22180053

Word embeddings and recurrent neural networks based on Long-Short Term Memory nodes in supervised biomedical word sense disambiguation.

PubMed

Jimeno Yepes, Antonio

2017-09-01

Word sense disambiguation helps identifying the proper sense of ambiguous words in text. With large terminologies such as the UMLS Metathesaurus ambiguities appear and highly effective disambiguation methods are required. Supervised learning algorithm methods are used as one of the approaches to perform disambiguation. Features extracted from the context of an ambiguous word are used to identify the proper sense of such a word. The type of features have an impact on machine learning methods, thus affect disambiguation performance. In this work, we have evaluated several types of features derived from the context of the ambiguous word and we have explored as well more global features derived from MEDLINE using word embeddings. Results show that word embeddings improve the performance of more traditional features and allow as well using recurrent neural network classifiers based on Long-Short Term Memory (LSTM) nodes. The combination of unigrams and word embeddings with an SVM sets a new state of the art performance with a macro accuracy of 95.97 in the MSH WSD data set. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Ambulatory Voice Biofeedback: Relative Frequency and Summary Feedback Effects on Performance and Retention of Reduced Vocal Intensity in the Daily Lives of Participants With Normal Voices

PubMed Central

Mehta, Daryush D.; Sternad, Dagmar; Petit, Robert; Hillman, Robert E.

2017-01-01

Purpose Ambulatory voice biofeedback has the potential to significantly improve voice therapy effectiveness by targeting carryover of desired behaviors outside the therapy session (i.e., retention). This study applies motor learning concepts (reduced frequency and delayed, summary feedback) that demonstrate increased retention to ambulatory voice monitoring for training nurses to talk softer during work hours. Method Forty-eight nurses with normal voices wore the Voice Health Monitor (Mehta, Zañartu, Feng, Cheyne, & Hillman, 2012) for 6 days: 3 baseline days, 1 biofeedback day, 1 short-term retention day, and 1 long-term retention day. Participants were block-randomized into 3 different biofeedback groups: 100%, 25%, and Summary. Performance was measured in terms of compliance time below a participant-specific vocal intensity threshold. Results All participants exhibited a significant increase in compliance time (Cohen's d = 4.5) during biofeedback days compared with baseline days. The Summary feedback group exhibited statistically smaller performance reduction during both short-term (d = 1.14) and long-term (d = 1.04) retention days compared with the 100% feedback group. Conclusions These findings suggest that modifications in feedback frequency and timing affect retention of a modified vocal behavior in daily life. Future work calls for studying the potential beneficial impact of ambulatory voice biofeedback in participants with behaviorally based voice disorders. PMID:28329366

Metrological properties of {CO 2}/{OsO 4} optical frequency standard

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Acef, O.

1997-02-01

Recent progress on the metrological performance of the BNM-LPTF {CO 2}/{OsO 4} frequency standards in the {28}/{29}THz range, using OsO 4 molecular transitions as a frequency reference is reported. Significant improvements in terms of both short-term stability ( {6.6×10 -14}/{τup to τ=300s }) and long-term stability (4 × 10 -15 up to τ = 1 000 s, Δν ˜ 0.1 Hz) are obtained. Long term reproducibility (over more than 18 months) of about 3 × 10 -13 has been achieved. This high level enables the transfer, in terms of absolute frequency at the 3 × 10 -13 level of uncertainty, from primary frequency standards in the microwave domain to near infrared and visible domains, using frequency chains with {CO 2}/{OsO 4} as a transfer frequency standard. Preliminary estimates of the main effects which may shift the OsO 4 center line are reported.

Long-term monitoring of Sacramento Shade program trees: tree survival, growth and energy-saving performance

Treesearch

Yekang Ko; Jun-Hak Lee; E. Gregory McPherson; Lara A. Roman

2015-01-01

Long-term survival and growth of urban forests are critical to achieve the targeted benefits of urban tree planting programs, such as building energy savings from tree shade. However, little is known about how trees perform in the long-term, especially in residential areas. Given this gap in the literature, we monitored 22-years of post-planting survival, growth, and...

Measuring client experiences in long-term care in the Netherlands: a pilot study with the Consumer Quality Index Long-term Care.

PubMed

Triemstra, Mattanja; Winters, Sjenny; Kool, Rudolf B; Wiegers, Therese A

2010-04-12

This study aims to describe the development, testing and optimization of a new standard instrument, the Consumer Quality Index (CQ-index) Long-term Care, for measuring client experiences with long-term care in the Netherlands. Three versions of the CQ-index questionnaires and protocols for study sampling and data collection were developed, designed for interviews with residents of nursing or residential care homes and postal surveys among representatives of psychogeriatric residents and homecare clients. From July to November 2006 a pilot study was conducted among 2,697 clients of 68 nursing or residential care homes, 2,164 representatives of clients in 57 psychogeriatric care institutions, and 1,462 clients of 19 homecare organizations. We performed psychometric analyses and descriptive analyses, and evaluated the pilot study. The pilot study showed the feasibility and usability of the instruments, supported the multidimensionality of the questionnaires and showed first findings on client experiences and possibilities for quality improvement. Nine scales applied to all care settings: shared decision making, attitude and courtesy, information, body care, competence and safety of care, activities, autonomy, mental well-being, and availability of personnel. The pilot resulted in three optimized questionnaires and recommendations for nationwide implementation. The CQ-index Long-term Care provides a good basis to investigate the quality of nursing homes, residential care homes and homecare from the clients' perspective. This standardized instrument enables a nationwide comparison of the quality of long-term care for the purpose of transparency and quality assurance.

Long-term effects of tetanus toxoid inoculation on the demography and life expectancy of the Cayo Santiago rhesus macaques.

PubMed

Kessler, Matthew J; Hernández Pacheco, Raisa; Rawlins, Richard G; Ruiz-Lambrides, Angelina; Delgado, Diana L; Sabat, Alberto M

2015-02-01

Tetanus was a major cause of mortality in the free-ranging population of rhesus monkeys on Cayo Santiago prior to 1985 when the entire colony was given its first dose of tetanus toxoid. The immediate reduction in mortality that followed tetanus toxoid inoculation (TTI) has been documented, but the long-term demographic effects of eliminating tetanus infections have not. This study uses the Cayo Santiago demographic database to construct comparative life tables 12 years before, and 12 years after, TTI. Life tables and matrix projection models are used to test for differences in: (i) survival among all individuals as well as among social groups, (ii) long-term fitness of the population, (iii) age distribution, (iv) reproductive value, and (v) life expectancy. A retrospective life table response experiment (LTRE) was performed to determine which life cycle transition contributed most to observed changes in long-term fitness of the population post-TTI. Elimination of clinical tetanus infections through mass inoculation improved the health and well-being of the monkeys. It also profoundly affected the population by increasing survivorship and long-term fitness, decreasing the differences in survival rates among social groups, shifting the population's age distribution towards older individuals, and increasing reproductive value and life expectancy. These findings are significant because they demonstrate the long-term effects of eradicating a major cause of mortality at a single point in time on survival, reproduction, and overall demography of a naturalistic population of primates. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Anticorrosive performance of waterborne epoxy coatings containing water-dispersible hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) nanosheets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cui, Mingjun; Ren, Siming; Chen, Jia; Liu, Shuan; Zhang, Guangan; Zhao, Haichao; Wang, Liping; Xue, Qunji

2017-03-01

Homogenous dispersion of hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) nanosheets in solvents or in the polymer matrix is crucial to initiate their many applications. Here, homogeneous dispersion of hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) in epoxy matrix was achieved with a water-soluble carboxylated aniline trimer derivative (CAT-) as a dispersant, which was attributed to the strong π-π interaction between h-BN and CAT-, as proved by Raman and UV-vis spectra. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) analysis confirmed a random dispersion of h-BN nanosheets in the waterborne epoxy coatings. The deterioration process of water-borne epoxy coating with and without h-BN nanosheets during the long-term immersion in 3.5 wt% NaCl solution was investigated by electrochemical measurements and water absorption test. Results implied that the introduction of well dispersed h-BN nanosheets into waterborne epoxy system remarkably improved the corrosion protection performance to substrate. Moreover, 1 wt% BN/EP composite coated substrate exhibited higher impedance modulus (1.3 × 106 Ω cm2) and lower water absorption (4%) than those of pure waterborne epoxy coating coated electrode after long-term immersion in 3.5 wt% NaCl solution, demonstrating its superior anticorrosive performance. This enhanced anticorrosive performance was mainly ascribed to the improved water barrier property of epoxy coating via incorporating homogeneously dispersed h-BN nanosheets.

The Development of 2700-3000 F Environmental Barrier Coatings for SiC/SiC Ceramic Matrix Composites: Challenges and Opportunities

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zhu, Dongming

2015-01-01

Environmental barrier coatings (EBCs) and SiCSiC ceramic matrix composites (CMCs) systems will play a crucial role in future turbine engines for hot-section component applications because of their ability to significantly increase engine operating temperatures, reduce engine weight and cooling requirements. The development of prime-reliant environmental barrier coatings is a key to enable the applications of the envisioned 2700-3000F EBC - CMC systems to help achieve next generation engine performance and durability goals. This paper will primarily address the performance requirements and design considerations of environmental barrier coatings for turbine engine applications. The emphasis is placed on current NASA candidate environmental barrier coating systems for SiCSiC CMCs, their performance benefits and design limitations in long-term operation and combustion environments. The efforts have been also directed to developing prime-reliant, self-healing 2700F EBC bond coat; and high stability, lower thermal conductivity, and durable EBC top coats. Major technical barriers in developing environmental barrier coating systems, the coating integrations with next generation CMCs having the improved environmental stability, cyclic durability, erosion-impact resistance, and long-term system performance will be described. The research and development opportunities for turbine engine environmental barrier coating systems by utilizing improved compositions, state-of-the-art processing methods, and simulated environment testing and durability modeling will be discussed.

Public strategies for improving eHealth integration and long-term sustainability in public health care systems: Findings from an Italian case study.

PubMed

De Rosis, Sabina; Nuti, Sabina

2018-01-01

eHealth is expected to contribute in tackling challenges for health care systems. However, it also imposes challenges. Financing strategies adopted at national as well regional levels widely affect eHealth long-term sustainability. In a public health care system, the public actor is among the main "buyers" eHealth. However, public interventions have been increasingly focused on cost containment. How to match these 2 aspects? This article explores some central issues, mainly related to financial aspects, in the development of effective and valuable eHealth strategies in a public health care system: How can the public health care system (as a "buyer") improve long-term success and sustainability of eHealth solutions? What levers are available to match in the long period different interests of different stakeholders in the eHealth field? A case study was performed in the Region of Tuscany, Italy. According to our results, win-win strategies should be followed. Investments should take into account the need to long-term finance solutions, for sustaining changes in health care organizations for obtaining benefits. To solve the interoperability issues, the concept of the "platform approach" emerged, based on collaboration within and between organizations. Private sector as well as beneficiaries and final users of the eHealth solutions should participate in their design, provision, and monitoring. For creating value for all, the evidence gap and the financial needs could be addressed with a pull mechanism of funding, aimed at paying according to the outcomes produced by the eHealth solution, on the base of an ongoing monitoring, measurement, and evaluation of the outcomes. © 2017 The Authors. The International Journal of Health Planning and Management published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Outcome after decompressive craniectomy for the treatment of severe traumatic brain injury.

PubMed

Howard, Jerry Lee; Cipolle, Mark D; Anderson, Meredith; Sabella, Victoria; Shollenberger, Daniele; Li, P Mark; Pasquale, Michael D

2008-08-01

Using decompressive craniectomy as part of the treatment regimen for severe traumatic brain injury (STBI) has become more common at our Level I trauma center. This study was designed to examine this practice with particular attention to long-term functional outcome. A retrospective review of prospectively collected data was performed for patients with STBI admitted from January 1, 2003 to December 31, 2005. Our institution manages patients using the Brain Trauma Foundation Guidelines. Data collected from patients undergoing decompressive craniectomy included: age, Injury Severity Score, admission and follow-up Glasgow Coma Score, timing of, and indication for decompressive craniectomy, and procedure-related complications. The Extended Glasgow Outcome Scale (GOSE) was performed by a experienced trauma clinical research coordinator using a structured phone interview to assess long-term outcome in the survivors. Student's t test and chi2 were used to examine differences between groups. Forty STBI patients were treated with decompressive craniectomy; 24 were performed primarily in conjunction with urgent evacuation of extra-axial hemorrhage and 16 were performed primarily in response to increased intracranial pressure with 4 of these after an initial craniotomy. Decompressive craniectomy was very effective at lowering intracranial pressure in these 16 patients (35.0 mm Hg +/- 13.5 mm Hg to 14.6 mm Hg +/- 8.7 mm Hg, p = 0.005). Twenty-two decompressive craniectomy patients did not survive to hospital discharge, whereas admission Glasgow Coma Score and admission pupil size and reactivity correlated with outcome, age, and Injury Severity Score did not. At a mean of 11 months (range, 3-26 months) after decompressive craniectomy, 6 survivors had a poor functional outcome (GOSE 1-4), whereas 12 survivors had a good outcome (GOSE 5-8). Therefore, 70% of these patients had an unfavorable outcome (death or severe disability), and 30% had a favorable long-term functional outcome. Fifteen of 18 survivors went on to cranioplasty, whereas 4 of 18 had cerebrospinal infection. The majority of survivors after decompressive craniectomy have a good functional outcome as analyzed by GOSE. Overall, 30% of patients with STBI who underwent decompressive craniectomy had a favorable long-term outcome. Improving patient selection and optimizing timing of this procedure may further improve outcome in these very severely brain injured patients.

Long-Term Pavement Performance Program: Pavement Performance Measures and Forecasting and the Effects of Maintenance and Rehabilitation Strategy on Treatment Effectiveness [Tech Brief

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2016-08-01

This document is a technical summary of the Federal Highway Administration Long-Term Pavement Performance Program report, Pavement Performance Measures and Forecasting and the Effects of Maintenance and Rehabilitation Strategy on Treatment Effectiven...

Long-term Outcomes of Bariatric Surgery: A National Institutes of Health Symposium

PubMed Central

Courcoulas, Anita P.; Yanovski, Susan Z.; Bonds, Denise; Eggerman, Thomas L.; Horlick, Mary; Staten, Myrlene A.; Arterburn, David E.

2017-01-01

Importance The clinical evidence base demonstrating bariatric surgery’s health benefits is much larger than it was when the NIH last held a Consensus Panel in 1991. Still, it remains unclear whether ongoing studies will address critical questions about long-term complication rates and the sustainability of weight loss and comorbidity control. Objective The National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) and the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) convened a multidisciplinary workshop in May 2013 to summarize the current state of knowledge of bariatric surgery, review research findings on the long-term outcomes of bariatric surgery, and establish priorities for future research directions. Evidence Review The evidence presented at the workshop was selected by the planning committee for both its quality and duration of follow up. The data review emphasized RCTs and large observational studies with long-term follow up, with or without a control group. Findings Several small RCTs showed greater weight loss and T2DM remission compared to non-surgical treatments within the first 2 years of follow-up after bariatric surgery. Large, long-term observational studies show durable (>5 years) weight loss, diabetes and lipid improvements with bariatric surgery. Still unclear are predictors of outcomes, long-term complications, long-term survival, micro- and macro-vascular events, mental health outcomes, and costs. The studies needed to address these knowledge gaps would be expensive and logistically difficult to perform. Conclusions and Relevance High-quality evidence shows that bariatric surgical procedures result in greater weight loss than non-surgical treatments and are more effective at inducing initial T2DM remission in obese patients. More information is needed about the long term durability of comorbidity control and complications after bariatric procedures and this evidence will most likely come from carefully designed observational studies. PMID:25271405

Long-Term Effects of the Family Check-Up in Public Secondary School on Diagnosed Major Depressive Disorder in Adulthood.

PubMed

Connell, Arin M; Dishion, Thomas J

2017-03-01

Given the public health importance of depression, the identification of prevention programs with long-term effects on reducing the rate of depression is of critical importance, as is the examination of factors that may moderate the magnitude of such prevention effects. This study examines the impact of the Family Check-Up, delivered in public secondary schools beginning in sixth grade, on the development of major depression in adulthood (aged 28-30). The multilevel intervention program included (a) a universal classroom-based intervention focused on problem solving and peer relationship skills, (b) the Family Check-Up (selected), a brief assessment-based intervention designed to motivate parents to improve aspects of family functioning when warranted, and (c) family management treatment (indicated), focused on improving parenting skills. Demographic (gender and ethnicity) and baseline risk factors (family conflict, academic problems, antisocial behavior, and peer deviance) were examined as possible moderators in logistic regression analyses. Intervention effects on depression were moderated by baseline family conflict and academic performance, with stronger intervention effects for youth with low grade point averages and from low-conflict families at baseline. Such findings extend the emerging literature on prevention programs with long-term effects on depression, and highlight directions for future research to enhance such effects.

Effect of mesogenic ligands on short and long-term spectral stability of CdSe/ZnS quantum dots

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Amaral, Jose; Betady, Edwin; Quint, Makiko; Martin, Denzal; Riahinasab, Sheida; Hirst, Linda; Ghosh, Sayantani

Surface modification of chemically synthesized CdSe/ZnS quantum dots (QDs) by performing a ligand-exchange can improve the optical properties, including short- and long-term photo-stability. Using a custom-designed mesogenic ligand, we significantly and advantageously alter the photophysical properties of CdSe/ZnS core-shell QDs. Our investigation is two-fold, as we follow the effect of ligand exchange on (1) the static and dynamic photoluminescence (PL) properties of QDs under continuous illumination, and (2) the temperature dependence of PL. We find that a reduction in Forster resonance energy transfer due to the ligand exchange process results in stabilizing both recombination lifetimes and emission intensity for over an hour of high power photo-excitation. Our temperature-dependent PL studies indicate thermally activated PL recovery at higher temperatures, and a lack of emission enhancement at low temperatures resulting from greater charge separation by the mesogenic ligands. We conclude that this process improves photoluminescence stability and sample longevity of QD films whose applications require long term resistance to photobleaching. This research was supported by funds from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Grant No. NNX15AQ01A, UCMEXUS-CONACYT, and National Science Foundation (NSF) Grants No. DMR-1056860, DMR-1359406 and CBET-1507551.

Long-term changes in neurocognition and behavior following treatment of sleep disordered breathing in school-aged children.

PubMed

Biggs, Sarah N; Vlahandonis, Anna; Anderson, Vicki; Bourke, Robert; Nixon, Gillian M; Davey, Margot J; Horne, Rosemary S C

2014-01-01

Sleep disordered breathing (SDB) in children is associated with detrimental neurocognitive and behavioral consequences. The long term impact of treatment on these outcomes is unknown. This study examined the long-term effect of treatment of SDB on neurocognition, academic ability, and behavior in a cohort of school-aged children. Four-year longitudinal study. Children originally diagnosed with SDB and healthy non-snoring controls underwent repeat polysomnography and age-standardized neurocognitive and behavioral assessment 4y following initial testing. Melbourne Children's Sleep Centre, Melbourne, Australia. Children 12-16 years of age, originally assessed at 7-12 years, were categorized into Treated (N = 12), Untreated (N = 26), and Control (N = 18) groups. Adenotonsillectomy, Tonsillectomy, Nasal Steroids. Decision to treat was independent of this study. Changes in sleep and respiratory parameters over time were assessed. A decrease in obstructive apnea hypopnea index (OAHI) from Time 1 to Time 2 was seen in 63% and 100% of the Untreated and Treated groups, respectively. The predictive relationship between change in OAHI and standardized neurocognitive, academic, and behavioral scores over time was examined. Improvements in OAHI were predictive of improvements in Performance IQ, but not Verbal IQ or academic measures. Initial group differences in behavioral assessment on the Child Behavior Checklist did not change over time. Children with SDB at baseline continued to exhibit significantly poorer behavior than Controls at follow-up, irrespective of treatment. After four years, improvements in SDB are concomitant with improvements in some areas of neurocognition, but not academic ability or behavior in school-aged children.

Regional analgesia for improvement of long-term functional outcome after elective large joint replacement.

PubMed

Atchabahian, Arthur; Schwartz, Gary; Hall, Charles B; Lajam, Claudette M; Andreae, Michael H

2015-08-13

Regional analgesia is more effective than conventional analgesia for controlling pain and may facilitate rehabilitation after large joint replacement in the short term. It remains unclear if regional anaesthesia improves functional outcomes after joint replacement beyond three months after surgery. To assess the effects of regional anaesthesia and analgesia on long-term functional outcomes 3, 6 and 12 months after elective major joint (knee, shoulder and hip) replacement surgery. We performed an electronic search of several databases (CENTRAL, MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL), and handsearched reference lists and conference abstracts. We updated our search in June 2015. We included randomized controlled trials (RCTs) comparing regional analgesia versus conventional analgesia in patients undergoing total shoulder, hip or knee replacement. We included studies that reported a functional outcome with a follow-up of at least three months after surgery. We used standard methodological procedures expected by Cochrane. We contacted study authors for additional information. We included six studies with 350 participants followed for at least three months. All of these studies enrolled participants undergoing total knee replacement. Studies were at least partially blinded. Three studies had a high risk of performance bias and one a high risk of attrition bias, but the risk of bias was otherwise unclear or low.Only one study assessed joint function using a global score. Due to heterogeneity in outcome and reporting, we could only pool three out of six RCTs, with range of motion assessed at three months after surgery used as a surrogate for joint function. All studies had a high risk of detection bias. Using the random-effects model, there was no statistically significant difference between the experimental and control groups (mean difference 3.99 degrees, 95% confidence interval (CI) - 2.23 to 10.21; P value = 0.21, 3 studies, 140 participants, very low quality evidence).We did not perform further analyses because immediate adverse effects were not part of the explicit outcomes of any of these typically small studies, and long-term adverse events after regional anaesthesia are rare.None of the included studies elicited or reported long-term adverse effects like persistent nerve damage. More high-quality studies are needed to establish the effects of regional analgesia on function after major joint replacement, as well as on the risk of adverse events (falls).

Cognitive Coping as a Mechanism of Change in Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for Fear of Flying: A Longitudinal Study With 3-Year Follow-Up.

PubMed

Busscher, Bert; Spinhoven, Philip

2017-09-01

To examine the predictive value of cognitive coping strategies at pretreatment and the value of changes in these strategies during cognitive-behavioral treatment for aviophobia for long-term therapy results. Data from baseline, after therapy at 2 months, short-term follow-up at 5 months, and long-term follow-up at 41 months were analyzed (N = 59). Participants were in a long-term process of change, which continued positively after therapy for maladaptive cognitive coping strategies. The use of cognitive coping strategies at baseline was not predictive of long-term outcome. However, a greater increase in the use of adaptive coping strategies, and more importantly, a greater decrease in the use of maladaptive coping strategies were predictive of improvements indicated in self-report of flight anxiety and actual flight behavior at long-term follow-up. Improvement of maladaptive cognitive coping strategies is possibly a key mechanism of change in cognitive-behavioral therapy for aviophobia. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Long-Term Pavement Performance Bind Online [Product Brief

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2017-02-23

This Product Brief introduces the reader to the Long-Term Pavement Performance Bind (LTPPBind) Online Web-based tool for selecting asphalt binder performance grades (PGs).(1) It explains what the tool is, who can benefit from its use, what its main f...

The Impact of Feedback Frequency on Performance in a Novel Speech Motor Learning Task.

PubMed

Lowe, Mara Steinberg; Buchwald, Adam

2017-06-22

This study investigated whether whole nonword accuracy, phoneme accuracy, and acoustic duration measures were influenced by the amount of feedback speakers without impairment received during a novel speech motor learning task. Thirty-two native English speakers completed a nonword production task across 3 time points: practice, short-term retention, and long-term retention. During practice, participants received knowledge of results feedback according to a randomly assigned schedule (100%, 50%, 20%, or 0%). Changes in nonword accuracy, phoneme accuracy, nonword duration, and initial-cluster duration were compared among feedback groups, sessions, and stimulus properties. All participants improved phoneme and whole nonword accuracy at short-term and long-term retention time points. Participants also refined productions of nonwords, as indicated by a decrease in nonword duration across sessions. The 50% group exhibited the largest reduction in duration between practice and long-term retention for nonwords with native and nonnative clusters. All speakers, regardless of feedback schedule, learned new speech motor behaviors quickly with a high degree of accuracy and refined their speech motor skills for perceptually accurate productions. Acoustic measurements may capture more subtle, subperceptual changes that may occur during speech motor learning. https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.5116324.

Long-term bed degradation in Maryland streams (phase 3, part I) : urban streams in the Piedmont Plateau province.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2014-05-01

Estimation of potential long-term down-cutting of the stream bed is necessary for evaluation and design of bridges for scour and culverts for fish passage. The purpose of this study has been to improve predictions of this potential long-term bed degr...

Environmental Barrier Coating Development for SiC/SiC Ceramic Matrix Composites: Recent Advances and Future Directions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zhu, Dongming

2016-01-01

This presentation briefly reviews the SiC/SiC major environmental and environment-fatigue degradations encountered in simulated turbine combustion environments, and thus NASA environmental barrier coating system evolution for protecting the SiC/SiC Ceramic Matrix Composites for meeting the engine performance requirements. The presentation will review several generations of NASA EBC materials systems, EBC-CMC component system technologies for SiC/SiC ceramic matrix composite combustors and turbine airfoils, highlighting the temperature capability and durability improvements in simulated engine high heat flux, high pressure, high velocity, and with mechanical creep and fatigue loading conditions. This paper will also focus on the performance requirements and design considerations of environmental barrier coatings for next generation turbine engine applications. The current development emphasis is placed on advanced NASA candidate environmental barrier coating systems for SiC/SiC CMCs, their performance benefits and design limitations in long-term operation and combustion environments. The efforts have been also directed to developing prime-reliant, self-healing 2700F EBC bond coat; and high stability, lower thermal conductivity, and durable EBC top coats. Major technical barriers in developing environmental barrier coating systems, the coating integrations with next generation CMCs having the improved environmental stability, erosion-impact resistance, and long-term fatigue-environment system durability performance will be described. The research and development opportunities for turbine engine environmental barrier coating systems by utilizing improved compositions, state-of-the-art processing methods, and simulated environment testing and durability modeling will be briefly discussed.

Intertrial interval duration and learning in autistic children.

PubMed Central

Koegel, R L; Dunlap, G; Dyer, K

1980-01-01

This study investigated the influence of intertrial interval duration on the performance of autistic children during teaching situations. The children were taught under the same conditions existing in their regular programs, except that the length of time between trials was systematically manipulated. With both multiple baseline and repeated reversal designs, two lengths of intertrial interval were employed; short intervals with the SD for any given trial presented approximately one second following the reinforcer for the previous trial versus long intervals with the SD presented four or more seconds following the reinforcer for the previous trial. The results showed that: (1) the short intertrial intervals always produced higher levels of correct responding than the long intervals; and (2) there were improving trends in performance and rapid acquisition with the short intertrial intervals, in contrast to minimal or no change with the long intervals. The results are discussed in terms of utilizing information about child and task characteristics in terms of selecting optimal intervals. The data suggest that manipulations made between trials have a large influence on autistic children's learning. PMID:7364701

Long-Term Clinical and Histological Effects of a Bipolar Fractional Radiofrequency System in the Treatment of Facial Atrophic Acne Scars and Acne Vulgaris in Japanese Patients: A Series of Eight Cases.

PubMed

Kaminaka, Chikako; Furukawa, Fukumi; Yamamoto, Yuki

2016-12-01

This retrospective case series was designed to compare the long-term safety and efficacy of bipolar fractional radiofrequency (FRF) therapy as a treatment for atrophic acne scars (ASs) and acne vulgaris. Few clinical and histological studies have examined the long-term utility of bipolar FRF therapy as a treatment for ASs and acne in people with darker skin. Eight Japanese patients with ASs and mild-to-severe acne on both cheeks were treated with a bipolar FRF system (eMatrix; Syneron). Five treatment sessions with the same settings (coverage rate: 10%; peak energy: 62 mJ/pin; two passes) were carried out at 1-month intervals, and the patients were followed up for at least 1 year after the final treatment. Assessments of ASs and acne severity were performed and samples were removed for histological examination. We demonstrated that mild ASs responded better than moderate and severe ASs, and at least 50% improvement in scar severity was seen in 50% of patients after the final treatment. Six patients remained disease free at 1.5 years without the use of any additional therapies. The biopsy specimens showed a marked improvement characterized by a decrease in dermal pilosebaceous units and perivascular inflammatory cell infiltrates with an increase in elastin content and collagen deposition in the upper dermis. Bipolar FRF treatment showed long-term effectiveness against mild ASs and acne in Asian patients and had minimal side effects.

Career Performance Trajectories in Track and Field Jumping Events from Youth to Senior Success: The Importance of Learning and Development.

PubMed

Boccia, Gennaro; Moisè, Paolo; Franceschi, Alberto; Trova, Francesco; Panero, Davide; La Torre, Antonio; Rainoldi, Alberto; Schena, Federico; Cardinale, Marco

2017-01-01

The idea that early sport success can be detrimental for long-term sport performance is still under debate. Therefore, the aims of this study were to examine the career trajectories of Italian high and long jumpers to provide a better understanding of performance development in jumping events. The official long-jump and high-jump rankings of the Italian Track and Field Federation were collected from the age of 12 to career termination, for both genders from the year 1994 to 2014. Top-level athletes were identified as those with a percentile of their personal best performance between 97 and 100. The age of entering competitions of top-level athletes was not different than the rest of the athletic population, whereas top-level athletes performed their personal best later than the rest of the athletes. Top-level athletes showed an overall higher rate of improvement in performance from the age of 13 to the age of 18 years when compared to all other individuals. Only 10-25% of the top-level adult athletes were top-level at the age of 16. Around 60% of the top-level young at the age of 16 did not maintain the same level of performance in adulthood. Female high-jump represented an exception from this trend since in this group most top-level young become top-level adult athletes. These findings suggest that performance before the age of 16 is not a good predictor of adult performance in long and high jump. The annual rate of improvements from 13 to 18 years should be included as a predictor of success rather than performance per se. Coaches should be careful about predicting future success based on performances obtained during youth in jumping events.

Improving the Navys Passive Underwater Acoustic Monitoring of Marine Mammal Populations

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-09-30

DISTRIBUTION STATEMENT A: Distribution approved for public release; distribution is unlimited. Improving the Navy’s Passive Underwater Acoustic...mpl.ucsd.edu LONG-TERM GOALS The long-term goals of this research effort are to improve the Navy’s passive underwater acoustic monitoring of marine...research of a graduate student in marine bioacoustics and ocean acoustics at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography. OBJECTIVES The

Per-oral endoscopic myotomy (POEM) for esophageal achalasia.

PubMed

Pescarus, Radu; Shlomovitz, Eran; Swanstrom, Lee L

2014-01-01

Per-oral endoscopic myotomy (POEM) is a new minimally invasive endoscopic treatment for achalasia. Since the first modern human cases were published in 2008, around 2,000 cases have been performed worldwide. This technique requires advanced endoscopic skills and a learning curve of at least 20 cases. POEM is highly successful with over 90 % improvement in dysphagia while offering patients the advantage of a low impact endoscopic access. The main long-term complication is gastroesophageal reflux (GER) with an estimated incidence of 35 %, similar to the incidence of GER post-laparoscopic Heller with fundoplication. Although POEM represents a paradigm shift in the treatment of achalasia, more long-term data are clearly needed to further define its role in the treatment algorithm of this rare disease.

The Sepsis Early Recognition and Response Initiative (SERRI)

PubMed Central

Jones, Stephen L.; Ashton, Carol M.; Kiehne, Lisa; Gigliotti, Elizabeth; Bell-Gordon, Charyl; Pinn, Teresa T.; Tran, Shirley K.; Nicolas, Juan C.; Rose, Alexis L.; Shirkey, Beverly A.; Disbot, Maureen; Masud, Faisal; Wray, Nelda P.

2016-01-01

Duration of Initiative 48 months and currently ongoing. Setting The Houston Methodist Hospital System and affiliated hospitals (3 facilities with 2 hospital-run skilled nursing facilities in and around Houston), St. Joseph’s Regional Health Center (1 acute care hospital and 2 skilled nursing facilities in Bryan, Texas), Hospital Corporation of America (2 acute care facilities in Houston, 1 acute care facility in McAllen, Texas [Rio Grande Valley]), Kindred Healthcare (2 long term acute care facilities in Houston), Select Medical Specialty Hospitals (2 long term acute care facilities in Houston). Whom This Should Concern Hospital administrators, quality and safety officers, performance improvement and patient safety professionals, clinic managers, infection control and prevention staff, and other physicians, nurses, and clinical staff. PMID:26892701

Learning representations for the early detection of sepsis with deep neural networks.

PubMed

Kam, Hye Jin; Kim, Ha Young

2017-10-01

Sepsis is one of the leading causes of death in intensive care unit patients. Early detection of sepsis is vital because mortality increases as the sepsis stage worsens. This study aimed to develop detection models for the early stage of sepsis using deep learning methodologies, and to compare the feasibility and performance of the new deep learning methodology with those of the regression method with conventional temporal feature extraction. Study group selection adhered to the InSight model. The results of the deep learning-based models and the InSight model were compared. With deep feedforward networks, the area under the ROC curve (AUC) of the models were 0.887 and 0.915 for the InSight and the new feature sets, respectively. For the model with the combined feature set, the AUC was the same as that of the basic feature set (0.915). For the long short-term memory model, only the basic feature set was applied and the AUC improved to 0.929 compared with the existing 0.887 of the InSight model. The contributions of this paper can be summarized in three ways: (i) improved performance without feature extraction using domain knowledge, (ii) verification of feature extraction capability of deep neural networks through comparison with reference features, and (iii) improved performance with feedforward neural networks using long short-term memory, a neural network architecture that can learn sequential patterns. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Improvement Plans of Fermilab’s Proton Accelerator Complex

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shiltsev, Vladimir

2017-09-01

The flagship of Fermilab’s long term research program is the Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment (DUNE), located Sanford Underground Research Facility (SURF) in Lead, South Dakota, which will study neutrino oscillations with a baseline of 1300 km. The neutrinos will be produced in the Long Baseline Neutrino Facility (LBNF), a proposed new beam line from Fermilab’s Main Injector. The physics goals of the DUNE require a proton beam with a power of some 2.4 MW at 120 GeV, which is roughly four times the current maximum power. Here I discuss current performance of the Fermilab proton accelerator complex, our plans for construction of the SRF proton linac as key part of the Proton Improvement Plan-II (PIP-II), outline the main challenges toward multi-MW beam power operation of the Fermilab accelerator complex and the staged plan to achieve the required performance over the next 15 years.

Acute Exercise Improves Motor Memory Consolidation in Preadolescent Children

PubMed Central

Lundbye-Jensen, Jesper; Skriver, Kasper; Nielsen, Jens B.; Roig, Marc

2017-01-01

Objective: The ability to acquire new motor skills is essential both during childhood and later in life. Recent studies have demonstrated that an acute bout of exercise can improve motor memory consolidation in adults. The objective of the present study was to investigate whether acute exercise protocols following motor skill practice in a school setting can also improve long-term retention of motor memory in preadolescent children. Methods: Seventy-seven pre-adolescent children (age 10.5 ± 0.75 (SD)) participated in the study. Prior to the main experiment age, BMI, fitness status and general physical activity level was assessed in all children and they were then randomly allocated to three groups. All children practiced a visuomotor tracking task followed by 20 min of rest (CON), high intensity intermittent floorball (FLB) or running (RUN) with comparable exercise intensity and duration for exercise groups. Delayed retention of motor memory was assessed 1 h, 24 h and 7 days after motor skill acquisition. Results: During skill acquisition, motor performance improved significantly to the immediate retention test with no differences between groups. One hour following skill acquisition, motor performance decreased significantly for RUN. Twenty-four hours following skill acquisition there was a tendency towards improved performance for FLB but no significant effects. Seven days after motor practice however, both FLB and RUN performed better when compared to their immediate retention test indicating significant offline gains. This effect was not observed for CON. In contrast, 7 days after motor practice, retention of motor memory was significantly better for FLB and RUN compared to CON. No differences were observed when comparing FLB and RUN. Conclusions: Acute intense intermittent exercise performed immediately after motor skill acquisition facilitates long-term motor memory in pre-adolescent children, presumably by promoting memory consolidation. The results also demonstrate that the effects can be accomplished in a school setting. The positive effect of both a team game (i.e., FLB) and running indicates that the observed memory improvements are determined to a larger extent by physiological factors rather than the types of movements performed during the exercise protocol. PMID:28473761

Creatine Use in Sports.

PubMed

Butts, Jessica; Jacobs, Bret; Silvis, Matthew

The use of creatine as a dietary supplement has become increasingly popular over the past several decades. Despite the popularity of creatine, questions remain with regard to dosing, effects on sports performance, and safety. PubMed was searched for articles published between 1980 and January 2017 using the terms creatine, creatine supplementation, sports performance, and dietary supplements. An additional Google search was performed to capture National Collegiate Athletic Association-specific creatine usage data and US dietary supplement and creatine sales. Clinical review. Level 4. Short-term use of creatine is considered safe and without significant adverse effects, although caution should be advised as the number of long-term studies is limited. Suggested dosing is variable, with many different regimens showing benefits. The safety of creatine supplementation has not been studied in children and adolescents. Currently, the scientific literature best supports creatine supplementation for increased performance in short-duration, maximal-intensity resistance training. While creatine appears to be safe and effective for particular settings, whether creatine supplementation leads to improved performance on the field of play remains unknown.

Intervention Program for Long-Term English Learners: A Study of Long-Term English Learners' Literacy Performance in a Reading Intervention Program at Falcon School District

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ayala, Erika

2016-01-01

The purpose of this sequential explanatory embedded mixed methods study was to: (a) investigate and describe the academic performance of eighth grade students in the Falcon School District (FSD) who were designated as Long Term English Learners (LTELs) and participants in FSD's reading intervention program during their fourth through eighth grade…

Design of the DISCovery project: tailored work-oriented interventions to improve employee health, well-being, and performance-related outcomes in hospital care

PubMed Central

2013-01-01

Background It is well-known that health care workers in today’s general hospitals have to deal with high levels of job demands, which could have negative effects on their health, well-being, and job performance. A way to reduce job-related stress reactions and to optimize positive work-related outcomes is to raise the level of specific job resources and opportunities to recover from work. However, the question remains how to translate the optimization of the balance between job demands, job resources, and recovery opportunities into effective workplace interventions. The aim of the DISCovery project is to develop and implement tailored work-oriented interventions to improve health, well-being, and performance of health care personnel. Methods/Design A quasi-experimental field study with a non-equivalent control group pretest-posttest design will be conducted in a top general hospital. Four existing organizational departments will provide both an intervention and a comparison group. Two types of research methods are used: (1) a longitudinal web-based survey study, and (2) a longitudinal daily diary study. After base-line measures of both methods, existing and yet to be developed interventions will be implemented within the experimental groups. Follow-up measurements will be taken one and two years after the base-line measures to analyze short-term and long-term effects of the interventions. Additionally, a process evaluation and a cost-effectiveness analysis will be carried out. Discussion The DISCovery project fulfills a strong need for theory-driven and scientifically well-performed research on job stress and performance interventions. It will provide insight into (1) how a balance between job demands, job resources, and recovery from work can be optimized, (2) the short-term and long-term effects of tailored work-oriented effects, and (3) indicators for successful or unsuccessful implementation of interventions. PMID:23421647

Design of the DISCovery project: tailored work-oriented interventions to improve employee health, well-being, and performance-related outcomes in hospital care.

PubMed

Niks, Irene M W; de Jonge, Jan; Gevers, Josette M P; Houtman, Irene L D

2013-02-19

It is well-known that health care workers in today's general hospitals have to deal with high levels of job demands, which could have negative effects on their health, well-being, and job performance. A way to reduce job-related stress reactions and to optimize positive work-related outcomes is to raise the level of specific job resources and opportunities to recover from work. However, the question remains how to translate the optimization of the balance between job demands, job resources, and recovery opportunities into effective workplace interventions. The aim of the DISCovery project is to develop and implement tailored work-oriented interventions to improve health, well-being, and performance of health care personnel. A quasi-experimental field study with a non-equivalent control group pretest-posttest design will be conducted in a top general hospital. Four existing organizational departments will provide both an intervention and a comparison group. Two types of research methods are used: (1) a longitudinal web-based survey study, and (2) a longitudinal daily diary study. After base-line measures of both methods, existing and yet to be developed interventions will be implemented within the experimental groups. Follow-up measurements will be taken one and two years after the base-line measures to analyze short-term and long-term effects of the interventions. Additionally, a process evaluation and a cost-effectiveness analysis will be carried out. The DISCovery project fulfills a strong need for theory-driven and scientifically well-performed research on job stress and performance interventions. It will provide insight into (1) how a balance between job demands, job resources, and recovery from work can be optimized, (2) the short-term and long-term effects of tailored work-oriented effects, and (3) indicators for successful or unsuccessful implementation of interventions.

Neurorehabilitation in Parkinson's Disease: A Critical Review of Cognitive Rehabilitation Effects on Cognition and Brain.

PubMed

Díez-Cirarda, María; Ibarretxe-Bilbao, Naroa; Peña, Javier; Ojeda, Natalia

2018-01-01

Parkinson's disease (PD) patients experience cognitive impairment which has been related to reduced quality of life and functional disability. These symptoms usually progress until dementia occurs. Some studies have been published assessing the efficacy of cognitive treatments on improving cognition, functional outcome, and producing changes in brain activity. A critical review was performed to present up-to-date neurorehabilitation effects of cognitive rehabilitation in PD, with special emphasis on the efficacy on cognition, quality of life aspects, brain changes, and the longitudinal maintenance of these changes. After exclusions, 13 studies were reviewed, including 6 randomized controlled trials for the efficacy on cognition, 2 randomized controlled trials regarding the brain changes after cognitive training, and 5 studies which evaluated the long-term effects of cognitive treatments. Cognitive rehabilitation programs have demonstrated to be effective on improving cognitive functions, but more research is needed focusing on the efficacy on improving behavioral aspects and producing brain changes in patients with PD. Moreover, there is a need of randomized controlled trials with long-term follow-up periods.

Quantification of smoothness index differences related to long-term pavement performance equipment type

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2005-09-01

The Long-Term Pavement Performance (LTPP) program was designed as a 20-year study of pavement performance. A major data collection effort at LTPP test sections is the collection of longitudinal profile data using inertial profilers. Three types of in...

Fiscal Performance and U.S. International Influence

DTIC Science & Technology

2013-01-01

33 4.7. Shares of Cross-Border Bank Deposits Held in 16 Major Markets ...few years have not been ordinary times in financial markets . With short-term interest rates already near zero, the Federal Reserve launched a concerted...conditions in U.S. labor markets improved. And in December 2012, QE4 brought new Federal Reserve purchases of long-dated Treasury securities

"Knowing Is Not Enough; We Must Apply": Reflections on a Failed Action Learning Application

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Reese, Simon

2015-01-01

This paper reflects upon a sub-optimal action learning application with a strategic business re-design project. The objective of the project was to improve the long-term business performance of a subsidiary business and build the strategic plan. Action learning was introduced to aid the group in expanding their view of the real problems…

ATS-5 millimeter wave propagation measurements

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ippolito, L. J.

1973-01-01

Long term experimental measurements to determine the propagation characteristics of 15 and 32 GHz earth-space links and to evaluate performance characteristics of operational millimeter wave systems are reported. The ATS 5 millimeter wave experimental link experienced attenuation and fading characteristics as a function of rainfall rate and other meteorological parameters. A method of site selection for the lowest attenuation rainfall rate improved reception tremendously.

Effects of Online Sensory Feedback Restriction during the Training on Immediate and Long-Term Learning on a Finger Opposition Tapping Task

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Piemonte, Maria Elisa Pimentel; Kopczynski, Marcos Cammarosano; Voos, Mariana Callil; Miranda, Camila Souza; Oliveira, Tatiana de Paula

2015-01-01

Background: Online sensory feedback has been considered fundamental for motor learning. The sensory inputs experienced in previous attempts can be processed and compared to allow the online refinement of subsequent attempts, resulting on performance improvement. However, numerous studies have provided direct and indirect evidence that learning new…

Differential modulation of host plant delta13C and delta18O by native and nonnative arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi in a semiarid environment.

PubMed

Querejeta, J I; Allen, M F; Caravaca, F; Roldán, A

2006-01-01

Native, drought-adapted arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) often improve host-plant performance to a greater extent than nonnative AMF in dry environments. However, little is known about the physiological basis for this differential plant response. Seedlings of Olea europaea and Rhamnus lycioides were inoculated with either a mixture of eight native Glomus species or with the nonnative Glomus claroideum before field transplanting in a semiarid area. Inoculation with native AMF produced the greatest improvement in nutrient and water status as well as in long-term growth for both Olea and Rhamnus. Foliar delta18O measurements indicated that native AMF enhanced stomatal conductance to a greater extent than nonnative AMF in Olea and Rhamnus.delta13C data showed that intrinsic water-use efficiency in Olea was differentially stimulated by native AMF compared with nonnative AMF. Our results suggest that modulation of leaf gas exchange by native, drought-adapted AMF is critical to the long-term performance of host plants in semiarid environments. delta18O can provide a time-integrated measure of the effect of mycorrhizal infection on host-plant water relations.

NDT evaluation of long-term bond durability of CFRP-structural systems applied to RC highway bridges

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Crawford, Kenneth C.

2016-06-01

The long-term durability of CFRP structural systems applied to reinforced-concrete (RC) highway bridges is a function of the system bond behavior over time. The sustained structural load performance of strengthened bridges depends on the carbon fiber-reinforced polymer (CFRP) laminates remaining 100 % bonded to concrete bridge members. Periodic testing of the CFRP-concrete bond condition is necessary to sustain load performance. The objective of this paper is to present a non-destructive testing (NDT) method designed to evaluate the bond condition and long-term durability of CFRP laminate (plate) systems applied to RC highway bridges. Using the impact-echo principle, a mobile mechanical device using light impact hammers moving along the length of a bonded CFRP plate produces unique acoustic frequencies which are a function of existing CFRP plate-concrete bond conditions. The purpose of this method is to test and locate CFRP plates de-bonded from bridge structural members to identify associated deterioration in bridge load performance. Laboratory tests of this NDT device on a CFRP plate bonded to concrete with staged voids (de-laminations) produced different frequencies for bonded and de-bonded areas of the plate. The spectra (bands) of frequencies obtained in these tests show a correlation to the CFRP-concrete bond condition and identify bonded and de-bonded areas of the plate. The results of these tests indicate that this NDT impact machine, with design improvements, can potentially provide bridge engineers a means to rapidly evaluate long lengths of CFRP laminates applied to multiple highway bridges within a national transportation infrastructure.

Computer game-based and traditional learning method: a comparison regarding students' knowledge retention.

PubMed

Rondon, Silmara; Sassi, Fernanda Chiarion; Furquim de Andrade, Claudia Regina

2013-02-25

Educational computer games are examples of computer-assisted learning objects, representing an educational strategy of growing interest. Given the changes in the digital world over the last decades, students of the current generation expect technology to be used in advancing their learning requiring a need to change traditional passive learning methodologies to an active multisensory experimental learning methodology. The objective of this study was to compare a computer game-based learning method with a traditional learning method, regarding learning gains and knowledge retention, as means of teaching head and neck Anatomy and Physiology to Speech-Language and Hearing pathology undergraduate students. Students were randomized to participate to one of the learning methods and the data analyst was blinded to which method of learning the students had received. Students' prior knowledge (i.e. before undergoing the learning method), short-term knowledge retention and long-term knowledge retention (i.e. six months after undergoing the learning method) were assessed with a multiple choice questionnaire. Students' performance was compared considering the three moments of assessment for both for the mean total score and for separated mean scores for Anatomy questions and for Physiology questions. Students that received the game-based method performed better in the pos-test assessment only when considering the Anatomy questions section. Students that received the traditional lecture performed better in both post-test and long-term post-test when considering the Anatomy and Physiology questions. The game-based learning method is comparable to the traditional learning method in general and in short-term gains, while the traditional lecture still seems to be more effective to improve students' short and long-term knowledge retention.

Computer game-based and traditional learning method: a comparison regarding students’ knowledge retention

PubMed Central

2013-01-01

Background Educational computer games are examples of computer-assisted learning objects, representing an educational strategy of growing interest. Given the changes in the digital world over the last decades, students of the current generation expect technology to be used in advancing their learning requiring a need to change traditional passive learning methodologies to an active multisensory experimental learning methodology. The objective of this study was to compare a computer game-based learning method with a traditional learning method, regarding learning gains and knowledge retention, as means of teaching head and neck Anatomy and Physiology to Speech-Language and Hearing pathology undergraduate students. Methods Students were randomized to participate to one of the learning methods and the data analyst was blinded to which method of learning the students had received. Students’ prior knowledge (i.e. before undergoing the learning method), short-term knowledge retention and long-term knowledge retention (i.e. six months after undergoing the learning method) were assessed with a multiple choice questionnaire. Students’ performance was compared considering the three moments of assessment for both for the mean total score and for separated mean scores for Anatomy questions and for Physiology questions. Results Students that received the game-based method performed better in the pos-test assessment only when considering the Anatomy questions section. Students that received the traditional lecture performed better in both post-test and long-term post-test when considering the Anatomy and Physiology questions. Conclusions The game-based learning method is comparable to the traditional learning method in general and in short-term gains, while the traditional lecture still seems to be more effective to improve students’ short and long-term knowledge retention. PMID:23442203

Fish passage through retrofitted culverts : final report.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2004-11-01

Long term and short term studies of fish movement were conducted at several retrofitted culverts within Oregon. This was done to assess the effectiveness of retrofitting culverts with baffles to improve fish passage. The long term results showed that...

A Novel Unsupervised Adaptive Learning Method for Long-Term Electromyography (EMG) Pattern Recognition

PubMed Central

Huang, Qi; Yang, Dapeng; Jiang, Li; Zhang, Huajie; Liu, Hong; Kotani, Kiyoshi

2017-01-01

Performance degradation will be caused by a variety of interfering factors for pattern recognition-based myoelectric control methods in the long term. This paper proposes an adaptive learning method with low computational cost to mitigate the effect in unsupervised adaptive learning scenarios. We presents a particle adaptive classifier (PAC), by constructing a particle adaptive learning strategy and universal incremental least square support vector classifier (LS-SVC). We compared PAC performance with incremental support vector classifier (ISVC) and non-adapting SVC (NSVC) in a long-term pattern recognition task in both unsupervised and supervised adaptive learning scenarios. Retraining time cost and recognition accuracy were compared by validating the classification performance on both simulated and realistic long-term EMG data. The classification results of realistic long-term EMG data showed that the PAC significantly decreased the performance degradation in unsupervised adaptive learning scenarios compared with NSVC (9.03% ± 2.23%, p < 0.05) and ISVC (13.38% ± 2.62%, p = 0.001), and reduced the retraining time cost compared with ISVC (2 ms per updating cycle vs. 50 ms per updating cycle). PMID:28608824

A Novel Unsupervised Adaptive Learning Method for Long-Term Electromyography (EMG) Pattern Recognition.

PubMed

Huang, Qi; Yang, Dapeng; Jiang, Li; Zhang, Huajie; Liu, Hong; Kotani, Kiyoshi

2017-06-13

Performance degradation will be caused by a variety of interfering factors for pattern recognition-based myoelectric control methods in the long term. This paper proposes an adaptive learning method with low computational cost to mitigate the effect in unsupervised adaptive learning scenarios. We presents a particle adaptive classifier (PAC), by constructing a particle adaptive learning strategy and universal incremental least square support vector classifier (LS-SVC). We compared PAC performance with incremental support vector classifier (ISVC) and non-adapting SVC (NSVC) in a long-term pattern recognition task in both unsupervised and supervised adaptive learning scenarios. Retraining time cost and recognition accuracy were compared by validating the classification performance on both simulated and realistic long-term EMG data. The classification results of realistic long-term EMG data showed that the PAC significantly decreased the performance degradation in unsupervised adaptive learning scenarios compared with NSVC (9.03% ± 2.23%, p < 0.05) and ISVC (13.38% ± 2.62%, p = 0.001), and reduced the retraining time cost compared with ISVC (2 ms per updating cycle vs. 50 ms per updating cycle).

Perceived physical exertion during healthcare work and prognosis for recovery from long-term pain in different body regions: Prospective cohort study.

PubMed

Andersen, Lars L; Clausen, Thomas; Persson, Roger; Holtermann, Andreas

2012-12-19

The prevalence of musculoskeletal pain is high among healthcare workers. Knowledge about risk factors at work is needed to efficiently target preventive strategies. This study estimates the prognosis for recovery from long-term musculoskeletal pain in different body regions among healthcare workers with different levels of perceived physical exertion during healthcare work. Prospective cohort study among 4,977 Danish female healthcare workers responding to a baseline and follow-up questionnaire in 2005 and 2006, respectively. We defined long-term pain, short-term pain and pain-free as > 30, 1-30 and 0 days with pain during the last year, and included in the analyses only those with long-term pain at baseline in the low back (N=1,089), neck/shoulder (N=1,400) and knees (N = 579), respectively. Using cumulative logistic regression analysis, the prognosis for recovering from long-term pain at baseline to short-term pain or pain-free at follow-up in the respective body regions when experiencing moderate or light (reference: strenuous) physical exertion during healthcare work was modeled. Among those with long-term pain at baseline 34% (low back), 29% (neck/shoulders), and 29% (knees) recovered to short-term pain at follow-up and 7% (low back), 8% (neck/shoulders), and 17% (knees) recovered to being pain-free. After adjusting for potential confounders (age, BMI, tenure, smoking status, leisure physical activity and psychosocial work conditions), light perceived physical exertion during healthcare work was associated with improved prognosis for recovery from long-term pain in the low back (OR 1.42, 95% CI 1.01 - 1.99) and neck/shoulders (OR 1.89, 95% CI 1.43 - 2.50), but not in the knees. Moderate physical exertion was not associated with improved prognosis for recovery from long-term pain for any of the body regions. In the present study, healthcare workers with light perceived physical exertion during healthcare work had the best prognosis for recovery from long-term pain in the low back and neck/shoulders. This suggests that efforts to reduce perceived exertion during work may improve recovery from chronic pain.

In vitro corrosion resistance of porous NiTi intervertebral fusion devices

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schrooten, Jan; Assad, Michel; Van Humbeeck, Jan; Leroux, Michel A.

2007-02-01

Porous titanium-nickel (PTN) intervertebral fusion devices, produced by self-propagating high-temperature synthesis, represent an alternative to traditional long-term implants in the orthopaedic field. PTN promotes tissue ingrowth and has succeeded short-term and long-term biocompatibility in vivo testing. In this in vitro study, the PTN morphology was characterized using microfocus computer tomography (μCT) in order to calculate the active PTN surface. Potentiodynamic polarization testing was then performed to evaluate the in vitro corrosion resistance of PTN devices in Hanks' based salt solution. Direct coupling experiments of PTN with Ti6Al4V were also performed in order to establish the galvanic corrosion resistance of PTN intervertebral implants in the presence of potential Ti6Al4V supplemental fixation devices. Compared to the behaviour of other orthopaedic biomaterials and solid NiTi devices, PTN devices showed a level of corrosion resistance that is comparable to other NiTi devices and acceptable for the intended orthopaedic application. Further improvement of the corrosion resistance is still possible by specific electrochemical surface treatments.

Advanced moisture modeling of polymer composites.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2014-04-01

Long term moisture exposure has been shown to affect the mechanical performance of polymeric composite structures. This reduction : in mechanical performance must be considered during product design in order to ensure long term structure survival. In...

Long-term pavement performance ancillary information management system (AIMS) reference guide.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2012-11-01

This document provides information on the Long-Term Pavement Performance (LTPP) program ancillary information. : Ancillary information includes data, images, reference materials, resource documents, and other information that : support and extend the...

Long-Term Pavement Performance Automated Faulting Measurement

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2015-02-01

This study focused on identifying transverse joint locations on jointed plain concrete pavements using an automated joint detection algorithm and computing faulting at these locations using Long-Term Pavement Performance (LTPP) Program profile data c...

Changes in cortical, cerebellar and basal ganglia representation after comprehensive long term unilateral hand motor training.

PubMed

Walz, A D; Doppl, K; Kaza, E; Roschka, S; Platz, T; Lotze, M

2015-02-01

We were interested in motor performance gain after unilateral hand motor training and associated changes of cerebral and cerebellar movement representation tested with functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) before and after training. Therefore, we trained the left hand of strongly right-handed healthy participants with a comprehensive training (arm ability training, AAT) over two weeks. Motor performance was tested for the trained and non-trained hand before and after the training period. Functional imaging was performed for the trained and the non-trained hand separately and comprised force modulation with the fist, sequential finger movements and a fast writing task. After the training period the performance gain of tapping movements was comparable for both hand sides, whereas the motor performance for writing showed a higher training effect for the trained hand. fMRI showed a reduction of activation in supplementary motor, dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, parietal cortical areas and lateral cerebellar areas during sequential finger movements over time. During left hand writing lateral cerebellar hemisphere also showed reduced activation, while activation of the anterior cerebellar hemisphere was increased. An initially high anterior cerebellar activation magnitude was a predictive value for high training outcome of finger tapping and visual guided movements. During the force modulation task we found increased activation in the striate. Overall, a comprehensive long-term training of the less skillful hand in healthy participants resulted in relevant motor performance improvements, as well as an intermanual learning transfer differently pronounced for the type of movement tested. Whereas cortical motor area activation decreased over time, cerebellar anterior hemisphere and striatum activity seem to represent increasing resources after long-term motor training. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Effect of Treatment Modality on Long-Term Outcomes in Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder: A Systematic Review

PubMed Central

Arnold, L. Eugene; Hodgkins, Paul; Caci, Hervé; Kahle, Jennifer; Young, Susan

2015-01-01

Background Evaluation of treatments for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) previously focused on symptom control, but attention has shifted to functional outcomes. The effect of different ADHD treatment periods and modalities (pharmacological, non-pharmacological, and combination) on long-term outcomes needs to be more comprehensively understood. Methods A systematic search of 12 literature databases using Cochrane’s guidelines yielded 403 English-language peer-reviewed, primary studies reporting long-term outcomes (≥2 years). We evaluated relative effects of treatment modalities and durations and effect sizes of outcomes reported as statistically significantly improved with treatment. Results The highest proportion of improved outcomes was reported with combination treatment (83% of outcomes). Among significantly improved outcomes, the largest effect sizes were found for combination treatment. The greatest improvements were associated with academic, self-esteem, or social function outcomes. A majority of outcomes improved regardless of age of treatment initiation (60%–75%) or treatment duration (62%–72%). Studies with short treatment duration had shorter follow-up times (mean 3.2 years total study length) than those with longer treatment durations (mean 7.1 years total study length). Studies with follow-up times <3 years reported benefit with treatment for 93% of outcomes, whereas those with follow-up times ≥3 years reported treatment benefit for 57% of outcomes. Post-hoc analysis indicated that this result was related to the measurement of outcomes at longer periods (3.2 versus 0.4 years) after treatment cessation in studies with longer total study length. Conclusions While the majority of long-term outcomes of ADHD improve with all treatment modalities, the combination of pharmacological and non-pharmacological treatment was most consistently associated with improved long-term outcomes and large effect sizes. Older treatment initiation age or longer durations did not markedly affect proportion of improved outcomes reported, but measurement of outcomes long periods after treatment cessation may attenuate results. PMID:25714373

Does improvement in self-management skills predict improvement in quality of life and depressive symptoms? A prospective study in patients with heart failure up to one year after self-management education.

PubMed

Musekamp, Gunda; Schuler, Michael; Seekatz, Bettina; Bengel, Jürgen; Faller, Hermann; Meng, Karin

2017-02-15

Heart failure (HF) patient education aims to foster patients' self-management skills. These are assumed to bring about, in turn, improvements in distal outcomes such as quality of life. The purpose of this study was to test the hypothesis that change in self-reported self-management skills observed after participation in self-management education predicts changes in physical and mental quality of life and depressive symptoms up to one year thereafter. The sample comprised 342 patients with chronic heart failure, treated in inpatient rehabilitation clinics, who received a heart failure self-management education program. Latent change modelling was used to analyze relationships between both short-term (during inpatient rehabilitation) and intermediate-term (after six months) changes in self-reported self-management skills and both intermediate-term and long-term (after twelve months) changes in physical and mental quality of life and depressive symptoms. Short-term changes in self-reported self-management skills predicted intermediate-term changes in mental quality of life and long-term changes in physical quality of life. Intermediate-term changes in self-reported self-management skills predicted long-term changes in all outcomes. These findings support the assumption that improvements in self-management skills may foster improvements in distal outcomes.

The effects of DHEA, 3beta-hydroxy-5alpha-androstane-6,17-dione, and 7-amino-DHEA analogues on short term and long term memory in the mouse.

PubMed

Bazin, Marc-Antoine; El Kihel, Laïla; Boulouard, Michel; Bouët, Valentine; Rault, Sylvain

2009-11-01

Neurosteroids have been reported to modulate memory processes in rodents. Three analogues of dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), two of them previously described (7beta-aminoDHEA and 7beta-amino-17-ethylenedioxy-DHEA), and a new one (3beta-hydroxy-5alpha-androstane-6,17-dione) were synthesized, and their effects were evaluated on memory. This study examined their effects on long term and short term memory in male (6 weeks old) NMRI mice in comparison with the reference drug. Long term memory was assessed using the passive avoidance task and short term memory (spatial working memory) using the spontaneous alternation task in a Y maze. Moreover, the effects of DHEA and its analogues on spontaneous locomotion were measured. In all tests, DHEA and analogues were injected at three equimolar doses (0.300-1.350-6.075 microM/kg). DHEA and its three analogues administered immediately post-training at the highest doses (6.075 microM/kg, s.c.) improved retention in passive avoidance test. Without effect per se in the spatial working memory task, the four compounds failed to reverse scopolamine (1mg/kg, i.p.)-induced deficit in spontaneous alternation. These data suggested an action of DHEA and analogues in consolidation of long term memory particularly when emotional components are implied. Moreover, data indicated that pharmacological modulation of DHEA as performed in this study provides derivatives giving the same mnemonic profile than reference molecule.

Application of long-term microdialysis in circadian rhythm research

PubMed Central

Borjigin, Jimo; Liu, Tiecheng

2008-01-01

Our laboratory has pioneered long-term microdialysis to monitor pineal melatonin secretion in living animals across multiple circadian cycles. There are numerous advantages of this approach for rhythm analysis: (1) we can precisely define melatonin onset and offset phases; (2) melatonin is a reliable and stable neuroendocrine output of the circadian clock (versus behavioral output which is sensitive to stress or other factors); (3) melatonin measurements can be performed extremely frequently, permitting high temporal resolution (10 min sampling intervals), which allows detection of slight changes in phase; (4) the measurements can be performed for more than four weeks, allowing perturbations of the circadian clock to be followed long-term in the same animals; (5) this is an automated process (microdialysis coupled with on-line HPLC analysis), which increases accuracy and bypasses the labor-intensive and error-prone manual handling of dialysis samples; and (6) our approach allows real-time investigation of circadian rhythm function and permits appropriate timely adjustments of experimental conditions. The longevity of microdialysis probes, the key to the success of this approach, depends at least in part on the methods of the construction and implantation of dialysis probes. In this article, we have detailed the procedures of construction and surgical implantation of microdialysis probes used currently in our laboratory, which are significantly improved from our previous methods. PMID:18045670

Native kidney function following liver transplantation using calcineurin inhibitors: single-center analysis with 20 years of follow-up.

PubMed

LaMattina, John C; Mezrich, Joshua D; Fernandez, Luis A; D'Alessandro, Anthony M; Djamali, Arjang; Musat, Alexandru I; Pirsch, John D; Foley, David P

2013-01-01

The incidence of chronic kidney disease (CKD) in liver transplant recipients has been estimated to be from 18% to 28% at 10 yr after transplantation. As outcomes from liver transplantation continue to improve, long-term native kidney function in these recipients becomes more critical to patient survival. We analyzed 1151 adult, deceased-donor, single-organ primary liver transplantations performed at our center between 7/17/84 and 12/31/07. Analysis of renal function was performed on 972 patients with liver allograft survival >1 yr. Kaplan-Meier analysis revealed that 3%, 7%, and 18% of liver transplant recipients with allograft survival >1 yr developed end-stage renal disease (ESRD) at five, 10, and 20 yr, respectively. Significant independent risk factors for ESRD included dialysis during the transplant hospitalization, the stage of CKD at one yr, hypercholesterolemia, non-Caucasian race, and hepatitis C as the primary indication for liver transplantation. The initial immunosuppression of essentially all recipients was a calcineurin inhibitor-based regimen. Close, long-term follow-up of liver transplant recipients permits optimal management of liver allograft and native renal function and can lead to excellent long-term outcomes despite a calcineurin inhibitor-based immunosuppressive regimen. © 2013 John Wiley & Sons A/S.

Long-Term Resolution of Severe Ankle Contractures Using Botulinum Toxin, Serial Casting, Splinting, and Motor Retraining.

PubMed

Leung, Joan; Stroud, Katarina

2018-01-01

Purpose: Serial casting for ankle contractures is traditionally performed in prone, a position that patients may not easily tolerate. Also, although serial casting is effective in correcting contracture, its effect dissipates quickly. This case report describes a procedure for performing casting for ankle contractures in a supine or sitting position. It also describes a process that enables the effect of serial casting to be maintained long term. Client Description: The client was an adult who had suffered traumatic brain injury and severe bilateral ankle contractures. Intervention: He received botulinum toxin and serial casting for his bilateral ankle contractures, one ankle at 8 months and the other at 13 months after the injury. He then underwent a programme of splinting and motor training. Measures and Outcome: The client gained more than 40° dorsiflexion for both ankles after receiving botulinum toxin injections and serial casting. The improvement in ankle range enabled him to progress to walking practice. Ankle splinting was gradually reduced. On discharge at 25 months post-injury, the ankle joint range was maintained. Implications: The use of botulinum toxin and serial casting, followed by an intensive programme of splinting and motor training, may be an option to consider for effective long-term resolution of severe contractures after acquired brain injury.

Data Homogenization of the NOAA Long-Term Ozonesonde Records

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Johnson, B.; Cullis, P.; Sterling, C. W.; Jordan, A. F.; Hall, E. G.; Petropavlovskikh, I. V.; Oltmans, S. J.; Mcconville, G.

2015-12-01

The NOAA long term balloon-borne ozonesonde sites at Boulder, Colorado; Hilo, Hawaii; and South Pole Station, Antarctica have measured weekly ozone profiles for more than 3 decades. The ozonesonde consists of an electrochemical concentration cell (ECC) sensor interfaced with a weather radiosonde which transmits high resolution ozone and meteorological data during ascent from the surface to 30-35 km altitude. During this 30 year time period there have been several model changes in the commercially available ECC ozonesondes and radiosondes as well as three adjustments in the ozone sensor solution composition at NOAA. These changes were aimed at optimizing the ozonesonde performance. Organized intercomparison campaigns conducted at the environmental simulation facility at the Research Centre Juelich, Germany and international field site testing have been the primary process for assessing new designs, instruments, or sensor solution changes and developing standard operating procedures. NOAA has also performed in-house laboratory tests and launched 28 dual ozonesondes at various sites since 1994 to provide further comparison data to determine the optimum homogenized data set. The final homogenization effort involved reviewing and editing several thousand individual ozonesonde profiles followed by applying the optimum correction algorithms for changes in type of sensor solution composition. The results of improved data sets will be shown with long term trends and uncertainties at various altitude levels.

Long-Term Post-CABG Survival: Performance of Clinical Risk Models Versus Actuarial Predictions.

PubMed

Carr, Brendan M; Romeiser, Jamie; Ruan, Joyce; Gupta, Sandeep; Seifert, Frank C; Zhu, Wei; Shroyer, A Laurie

2016-01-01

Clinical risk models are commonly used to predict short-term coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) mortality but are less commonly used to predict long-term mortality. The added value of long-term mortality clinical risk models over traditional actuarial models has not been evaluated. To address this, the predictive performance of a long-term clinical risk model was compared with that of an actuarial model to identify the clinical variable(s) most responsible for any differences observed. Long-term mortality for 1028 CABG patients was estimated using the Hannan New York State clinical risk model and an actuarial model (based on age, gender, and race/ethnicity). Vital status was assessed using the Social Security Death Index. Observed/expected (O/E) ratios were calculated, and the models' predictive performances were compared using a nested c-index approach. Linear regression analyses identified the subgroup of risk factors driving the differences observed. Mortality rates were 3%, 9%, and 17% at one-, three-, and five years, respectively (median follow-up: five years). The clinical risk model provided more accurate predictions. Greater divergence between model estimates occurred with increasing long-term mortality risk, with baseline renal dysfunction identified as a particularly important driver of these differences. Long-term mortality clinical risk models provide enhanced predictive power compared to actuarial models. Using the Hannan risk model, a patient's long-term mortality risk can be accurately assessed and subgroups of higher-risk patients can be identified for enhanced follow-up care. More research appears warranted to refine long-term CABG clinical risk models. © 2015 The Authors. Journal of Cardiac Surgery Published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

The effects of for-profit multihospital system ownership on hospital financial and operating performance.

PubMed

Lynch, J R; McCue, M J

1990-11-01

The financial and operating performance of independent not-for-profit hospitals acquired by US for-profit multi-hospital systems in 10 Southern states between the years 1978 and 1982 was explored. The impact of system ownership on acquired hospitals was investigated by comparing the average financial performance of hospitals in the two years immediately prior to acquisition to the average for 1984 and 1985 and by comparing changes in the performance of acquired hospitals with changes in matched independent facilities. Findings suggest that for-profit multi-hospital systems were able to improve many of the financial and operating problems of acquired facilities. In comparison to independent not-for-profit hospitals, acquired hospitals were found to increase access to long-term debt, make improvements to plant and equipment, improve profitability, and increase efficiency to a greater extent. Prices in acquired hospitals rose more than those in independents and liquidity decreased to a greater extent.

Structure-function study of Poly(sulfobetaine 3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PSBEDOT) and its derivatives.

PubMed

Lee, Chen-Jung; Wang, Huifang; Young, Megan; Li, Shengxi; Cheng, Fang; Cong, Hongbo; Cheng, Gang

2018-06-04

Poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT) has been widely studied in recent decades due to its high stability, biocompatibility, low redox potential, moderate band gap, and optical transparency in its conducting state. However, for its long-term in vivo applications, the biocompatibility of PEDOT still need to be improved. To address this challenge, zwitterionic Poly(sulfobetaine 3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PSBEDOT) that contains EDOT backbone with sulfobetaine functional side chains were developed in our previous study. Although PSBEDOT showed great resistance to proteins, cells, and bacteria, it is still not clear how the zwitterionic sulfobetaine side chain affects the electrochemical properties of the polymer and reactivity of the monomer. To have better understanding on the structure-function relationship of zwitterionic conducting polymer, we synthesized two derivatives of PSBEDOT, PSBEDOT-4 and PSBEDOT-5, by introducing the alkoxyl spacer between EDOT and sulfobetaine. The interfacial impedance of PSBEDOT-4 and PSBEDOT-5 was examined by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and showed significant improvement which is about 20 times lower than PSBEDOT on both gold and indium tin oxide substrates at 1 Hz. In the protein adsorption test, PSBEDOT, PSBEDOT-4 and PSBEDOT-5 exhibited comparable resistance to the fibrinogen solution. All three polymers had low protein adsorption around 3%-5% comparing to the control sample, PEDOT, which was normalized to 100%. Additionally, the morphology of PSBEDOT, PSBEDOT-4 and PSBEDOT-5 with different synthesis parameter have been investigated by scanning electron microscope. We believe that these stable and biocompatible materials can be good candidates for developing long-term bioelectronics devices. To address the challenges associated existing conducting materials for bioelectronics, we developed a versatile and high performance zwitterionic conducting material platform with excellent stability, electrochemical, antifouling and controllable antimicrobial/antifouling properties. In this work, we developed two high-performance conducting polymers and systematically investigated how its structure affect their properties. Our study shows we can accurately tune the molecular structure of the monomer to dramatically improve the performance of zwitterionic conducting polymer. This zwitterionic conducting polymer platform may dramatically increase the performance and service life of electrochemical devices for many long-term applications, such as implantable biosensing, tissue engineering, wound healing, robotic prostheses, biofuel cell etc., which all require high performance conducting materials with excellent antifouling/biocompatibility at complex biointerfaces. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Disbonding effects on elastic wave generation and reception by bonded piezoelectric sensor systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Blackshire, James L.; Martin, Steven A.; Na, Jeong K.

2007-04-01

Durable integrated sensor systems are needed for long-term health monitoring evaluations of aerospace systems. For legacy aircraft the primary means of implementing a sensor system will be through surface mounting or bonding of the sensors to the structure. Previous work has shown that the performance of surface-bonded piezo sensors can degrade due to environmental effects such as vibrations, temperature fluctuations, and substrate flexure motions. This performance degradation included sensor cracking, disbonding, and general loss of efficiency over time. In this research effort, the bonding state of a piezo sensor system was systematically studied to understand and improve the long-term durability and survivability of the sensor system. Analytic and computational models were developed and used to understand elastic wave generation and reception performance for various states of sensor disbond. Experimental studies were also conducted using scanning laser vibrometry, pitch-catch ultrasound, and pulse-echo ultrasound methods to understand elastic wave propagation effects in thin plate materials. Significant performance loss was observed for increasing levels of sensor disbond as well as characteristic frequency signatures which may be useful in understanding sensor performance levels for future structural health monitoring systems.

Degradation modeling of high temperature proton exchange membrane fuel cells using dual time scale simulation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pohl, E.; Maximini, M.; Bauschulte, A.; vom Schloß, J.; Hermanns, R. T. E.

2015-02-01

HT-PEM fuel cells suffer from performance losses due to degradation effects. Therefore, the durability of HT-PEM is currently an important factor of research and development. In this paper a novel approach is presented for an integrated short term and long term simulation of HT-PEM accelerated lifetime testing. The physical phenomena of short term and long term effects are commonly modeled separately due to the different time scales. However, in accelerated lifetime testing, long term degradation effects have a crucial impact on the short term dynamics. Our approach addresses this problem by applying a novel method for dual time scale simulation. A transient system simulation is performed for an open voltage cycle test on a HT-PEM fuel cell for a physical time of 35 days. The analysis describes the system dynamics by numerical electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. Furthermore, a performance assessment is performed in order to demonstrate the efficiency of the approach. The presented approach reduces the simulation time by approximately 73% compared to conventional simulation approach without losing too much accuracy. The approach promises a comprehensive perspective considering short term dynamic behavior and long term degradation effects.

Assessment of the effectiveness of biofeedback in children with dyssynergic defecation and recalcitrant constipation/encopresis: does home biofeedback improve long-term outcomes.

PubMed

Croffie, Joseph M; Ammar, M Samer; Pfefferkorn, Marian D; Horn, Debra; Klipsch, Ann; Fitzgerald, Joseph F; Gupta, Sandeep K; Molleston, Jean P; Corkins, Mark R

2005-01-01

The purpose of this study was to determine whether biofeedback benefits children with dyssynergic defecation and constipation/encopresis, and whether home biofeedback improves long-term outcomes. Thirty-six patients with chronic constipation who had failed at least 6 months of conventional treatment and demonstrated dyssynergic defecation at anorectal manometry were randomized to biofeedback in the laboratory alone (group 1, n=24) or in the laboratory and at home (group 2, n=12) and followed up at 2, 4, and a mean of 44 months. Thirty patients were available for long-term follow-up. Bowel movements increased in all from a mean of 1.4/week to 5.1, 5.8, and 5.1 per week at 2 months, 4 months, and long-term, respectively (p < or = 0.001). Soiling decreased in all from a mean of 5.5/week to 0.6, 0.1, and 1 per week at 2 months, 4 months, and long-term, respectively (p < or = 0.001). Laxative use decreased from a mean of 4.1 days/week to 0.6, 0.3, and 0.7 per week at 2 months, 4 months, and long-term, respectively (p < or = 0.001). Twenty-seven of 30 parents ranked their satisfaction a mean of 2.2 (range 1-excellent to 3-good). There were no significant differences in outcomes between the laboratory alone group and the laboratory plus home group. Biofeedback is beneficial for some children with chronic constipation and dyssynergic defecation. Supplemental home biofeedback does not improve long-term outcomes.

PERMEABLE REACTIVE BARRIER PERFORMANCE MONITORING: LONG-TERM TRENDS IN GEOCHEMICAL PARAMETERS AT TWO SITES

EPA Science Inventory

A major goal of research on the long-term performance of subsurface reactive barriers is to identify standard ground water monitoring parameters that may be useful indicators of declining performance or impending system failure. Results are presented from ground water monitoring ...

PERMEABLE REACTIVE BARRIER PERFORMANCE MONITORING: LONG-TERM TRENDS IN GEOCHEMICAL PARAMETERS AT TWO SITES

EPA Science Inventory

A major goal of research on the long-term performance of subsurface reactive barriers is to identify standard ground-water monitoring parameters that may be useful indicators of declining performance or impending system failure. Results are presented from studies conducted over ...

Non-invasive detection and monitoring of experimental hydrocephalus with distortion product otoacoustic emissions.

PubMed

Ezerarslan, Hande; Beriat, Güçlü Kaan; Nurhat, Raziye Handan; Kazancı, Burak; Çelikkan, Ferda Topal; Sabuncuoğlu, Bizden; Sabuncuoğlu, Hakan

2016-08-01

We aimed to find out the effects of short term and long term hydrocephalus and intracranial ventricular volume changes on cochlear functions by using distortion product otoacoustic emission (DPOAE) in experimental hydrocephalus rat models for the first time in literature. This study was performed with 48 healthy, adult (8 weeks old), Sprague-Dawley rats which weighed between 200 and 240g. Six groups were formed in this study: short term control, short term sham, short term hydrocephalus, long term control, long term sham and long term hydrocephalus groups. Each group contained eight rats. Short term period was 4 weeks and long term period was 8 weeks after the study started. At the end of these periods, DPOAE measurements were performed and then rats were sacrificed to determine ventricular volumes. DPOAE values at all frequencies were significantly decreased in the short term hydrocephalus group when compared to the short term control and short term sham groups. DPOAE values at all frequencies were significantly decreased in the long term hydrocephalus group when compared to the long term control and long term sham groups. Besides, long term sham group which had higher ventricular volumes than long term control group also had lower DPOAE measurements. Significant associations were present between DPOAE measurements and ventricular volumes in hydrocephalus models. The functional disturbances in cochlear functions due to hydrocephalus have been demonstrated with DPOAE measurements in this study. DPOAE measurements may be thought as an easily applicable non-invasive method in detection and follow-up of patients with hydrocephalus. Our findings should be supported with clinical studies in humans. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Medium-/long-term effects of a specific exercise protocol combined with patient education on spine mobility, chronic fatigue, pain, aerobic fitness and level of disability in fibromyalgia.

PubMed

Giannotti, Erika; Koutsikos, Konstantinos; Pigatto, Maurizia; Rampudda, Maria Elisa; Doria, Andrea; Masiero, Stefano

2014-01-01

To propose a rehabilitation protocol able to produce immediate and long-term beneficial effects on level of disability and overall performance in ADLs. Forty-one FM patients were randomized to an exercise and educational-behavioral programme group (experimental group, EG = 21) or to a control group (CG = 20). Each subject was evaluated before, at the end (T1), and after 6 months (T6) from the conclusion of the rehabilitation treatment using the Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire (FIQ), the visual analogue scale (VAS), the Health Assessment Questionnaire (HAQ), the fatigue severity scale (FSS), the 6-minute walking test (6MWT), tender points count (TPC), and spinal active range of motion. The exercise protocol included 20 sessions consisting in self-awareness, stretching, strengthening, spine flexibility, and aerobic exercises, which patients were subsequently educated to perform at home. The two groups were comparable at baseline. At T1, the EG showed a positive trend in FIQ, VAS, HAQ, and FSS scales and significant improvement in 6MWT and in most spinal active range of motion measurements (P between 0.001 and 0.04). The positive results were maintained at the follow-up. The proposed programme was well tolerated and produced immediate and medium-term beneficial effects improving function and strain endurance. This trial is registered with DRKS00005071 on DRKS.

Active video gaming to improve balance in the elderly.

PubMed

Lamoth, Claudine J C; Caljouw, Simone R; Postema, Klaas

2011-01-01

The combination of active video gaming and exercise (exergaming) is suggested to improve elderly people's balance, thereby decreasing fall risk. Exergaming has been shown to increase motivation during exercise therapy, due to the enjoyable and challenging nature, which could support long-term adherence for exercising balance. However, scarce evidence is available of the direct effects of exergaming on postural control. Therefore, the aim of the study was to assess the effect of a six-week videogame-based exercise program aimed at improving balance in elderly people. Task performance and postural control were examined using an interrupted time series design. Results of multilevel analyses showed that performance on the dot task improved within the first two weeks of training. Postural control improved during the intervention. After the intervention period task performance and balance were better than before the intervention. Results of this study show that healthy elderly can benefit from a videogame-based exercise program to improve balance and that all subjects were highly motivated to exercise balance because they found gaming challenging and enjoyable.

Correcting the use of the term "power" in the strength and conditioning literature.

PubMed

Knudson, Duane V

2009-09-01

Many strength and conditioning papers have incorrectly adopted the colloquial use of the term "power" as a measure of short-term, high-intensity muscular performance despite a long history of research and editorials critical of this practice. This has lead to confusion, incorrect interpretations, and conflicting results in the literature. This paper summarizes the scientific evidence on external mechanical power as a short-term, high-intensity neuromuscular (anaerobic) performance or training variable. Many problems in the measurement and use of power in strength and conditioning research were identified, as well as problems in the use of the vertical jump as a field test of power. A critical review of the biomechanics, measurement, and training research does not support this colloquial use of the term "power." More research is needed that improves our understanding of the domains of muscular strength or neuromuscular performance, as well as partial correlation and multiple regression analyses to document the unique associations between these domains, biomechanical variables, training effects, and sport performance. Strength and conditioning research should limit the use of the term power to the true mechanical definition and provide several specific and measurement details on this measurement.

Metrological features of the rubidium two-photon standards of the BNM-LPTF and Kastler Brossel Laboratories

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hilico, L.; Felder, R.; Touahri, D.; Acef, O.; Clairon, A.; Biraben, F.

1998-11-01

We have built three optical frequency standards based on the two-photon transition of rubidium at 778nm, and analysed their performance over a period of more than three years. We discuss some systematic effects that could lead to the reproducibility we observe, and point out the possible improvements of the devices. We also examine the short and long term stabilities of the systems, and show that we have reached their ultimate performances.

Long-term bed degradation in Maryland streams (Phase III Part 2) : urban streams in the Piedmont Plateau Province : research report : final report.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2017-02-01

Estimation of potential long-term down-cutting of the stream bed is necessary for evaluation and design of bridges for scour and culverts for fish passage. The purpose of this study has been to improve predictions of this potential long-term bed degr...

A new image for long-term care.

PubMed

Wager, Richard; Creelman, William

2004-04-01

To counter widely held negative images of long-term care, managers in the industry should implement quality-improvement initiatives that include six key strategies: Manage the expectations of residents and their families. Address customers' concerns early. Build long-term customer satisfaction. Allocate resources to achieve exceptional outcomes in key areas. Respond to adverse events with compassion. Reinforce the facility's credibility.

Perinatal exercise improves glucose homeostasis in adult offspring

PubMed Central

Carter, Lindsay G.; Lewis, Kaitlyn N.; Wilkerson, Donald C.; Tobia, Christine M.; Ngo Tenlep, Sara Y.; Shridas, Preetha; Garcia-Cazarin, Mary L.; Wolff, Gretchen; Andrade, Francisco H.; Charnigo, Richard J.; Esser, Karyn A.; Egan, Josephine M.; de Cabo, Rafael

2012-01-01

Emerging research has shown that subtle factors during pregnancy and gestation can influence long-term health in offspring. In an attempt to be proactive, we set out to explore whether a nonpharmacological intervention, perinatal exercise, might improve offspring health. Female mice were separated into sedentary or exercise cohorts, with the exercise cohort having voluntary access to a running wheel prior to mating and during pregnancy and nursing. Offspring were weaned, and analyses were performed on the mature offspring that did not have access to running wheels during any portion of their lives. Perinatal exercise caused improved glucose disposal following an oral glucose challenge in both female and male adult offspring (P < 0.05 for both). Blood glucose concentrations were reduced to lower values in response to an intraperitoneal insulin tolerance test for both female and male adult offspring of parents with access to running wheels (P < 0.05 and P < 0.01, respectively). Male offspring from exercised dams showed increased percent lean mass and decreased fat mass percent compared with male offspring from sedentary dams (P < 0.01 for both), but these parameters were unchanged in female offspring. These data suggest that short-term maternal voluntary exercise prior to and during healthy pregnancy and nursing can enhance long-term glucose homeostasis in offspring. PMID:22932781

Oxygen therapy devices and portable ventilators for improved physical activity in daily life in patients with chronic respiratory disease.

PubMed

Furlanetto, Karina Couto; Pitta, Fabio

2017-02-01

Patients with hypoxemia and chronic respiratory failure may need to use oxygen therapy to correct hypoxemia and to use ventilatory support to augment alveolar ventilation, reverse abnormalities in blood gases (in particular hypercapnia) and reduce the work of breathing. Areas covered: This narrative review provides an overview on the use of oxygen therapy devices or portable ventilators for improved physical activity in daily life (PADL) as well as discusses the issue of lower mobility in daily life among stable patients with chronic respiratory disease who present indication for long-term oxygen therapy (LTOT) or home-based noninvasive ventilation (NIV). A literature review of these concepts was performed by using all related search terms. Expert commentary: Technological advances led to the development of light and small oxygen therapy devices and portable ventilators which aim to facilitate patients' mobility and ambulation. However, the day-by-day dependence of a device may reduce mobility and partially impair patients' PADL. Nocturnal NIV implementation in hypercapnic patients seems promising to improve PADL. The magnitude of their equipment-related physical inactivity is underexplored up to this moment and more long-term randomized clinical trials and meta-analysis examining the effects of ambulatory oxygen and NIV on PADL are required.

Psychosocial issues in long-term space flight: overview

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Palinkas, L. A.

2001-01-01

Anecdotal evidence of the individual and interpersonal problems that occurred during the Shuttle-Mir Space Program (SMSP) and other long-duration Russian/Soviet missions, and studies of personnel in other isolated and confined extreme (ICE) environments suggest that psychosocial elements of behavior and performance are likely to have a significant impact on the outcome of long-duration missions in space. This impact may range from individual decrements in performance, health and well being, to catastrophic mission failure. This paper reviews our current understanding of the psychosocial issues related to long duration space missions according to three different domains of behavior: the individual domain, the interpersonal domain and the organizational domain. Individual issues include: personality characteristics that predict successful performance, stress due to isolation and confinement and its effect on emotions and cognitive performance, adaptive and maladaptive coping styles and strategies, and requirements for the psychological support of astronauts and their families during the mission. Interpersonal issues include: impact of crew diversity and leadership styles on small group dynamics, adaptive and maladaptive features of ground-crew interactions, and processes of crew cohesion, tension and conflict. Organizational issues include: the influence of organizational culture and mission duration on individual and group performance, and managerial requirements for long duration missions. Improved screening and selection of astronaut candidates, leadership, coping and interpersonal skills training of personnel, and organizational change are key elements in the prevention of performance decrements on long-duration missions.

Feeling lucky? Using search engines to assess perceptions of urban sustainability

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

Keirstead, James

2009-02-15

The sustainability of urban environments is an important issue at both local and international scales. Indicators are frequently used by decision-makers seeking to improve urban performance but these metrics can be dependent on sparse quantitative data. This paper explores the potential of an alternative approach, using an internet search engine to quickly gather qualitative data on the key attributes of cities. The method is applied to 21 world cities and the results indicate that, while the technique does shed light on direct and indirect aspects of sustainability, the validity of derived metrics as objective indicators of long-term sustainability is questionable.more » However the method's ability to provide subjective short-term assessments is more promising and it could therefore play an important role in participatory policy exercises such as public consultations. A number of promising technical improvements to the method's performance are also highlighted.« less

Long-term pavement performance project laboratory materials testing and handling guide

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2007-09-01

The Long Term Pavement Performance (LTPP) Laboratory Material Testing Guide was originally prepared for laboratory material handling and testing of material specimens and samples of asphalt materials, portland cement concrete, aggregates, and soils u...

Long term pavement performance program protocol for calibrating traffic data collection equipment

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1998-05-10

This document describes the procedures that the Long Term Pavement Performance (LTPP) program recommends for ensuring that traffic data collection equipment used for LTPP traffic monitoring efforts operates correctly and collects valid data.

GATEWAY Demonstrations: Long-Term Evaluation of SSL Field Performance in Select Interior Projects

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

Davis, Tess E.; Davis, Robert G.; Wilkerson, Andrea M.

The GATEWAY program evaluated the long-term performance characteristics (chromaticity change, maintained illuminance, and operations and maintenance) of LED lighting systems in four field installations previously documented in separate DOE GATEWAY reports.