Regional differences in childhood BMI data : the Malta childhood national body mass index study

Introduction: Obesity is a problem of major public health concern all over the world and Malta has high obesity prevalence rates. With over a third of Maltese children being overweight or obese, the Malta Childhood National Body Mass Index study was devised to quantify the extent of the problem precisely. This paper looks at regional differences in the BMI data obtained. Methods: Training in measurement was provided to physical education teachers and identical stadiometers were used. Data was processed using World Health Organisation cut-offs for underweight, overweight and obesity. Results: A total of 41,343 students from 145 schools were measured. Age range from 4.7 to 17 years. Approximately 40% of school-aged children in Malta were overweight or obese, with higher percentages of obesity than overweight being observed. Results show significant differences in BMI between children living in Northern and Southern regions of Malta. Conclusion: Results from this study further confirm the high levels of overweight and obesity in Maltese children. The North-South differences should help better target public health resources and should be further evaluated in more focussed research.peer-reviewe

Cities in Crisis 2009: Closing the Graduation Gap

Analyzes trends in high school graduation rates in the nation's fifty largest metropolitan areas, including improvements and the urban-suburban divide. Compares employment, income, and poverty levels by educational attainment in each metropolitan area

Building a Foundation for Family Economic Success

Describes how the Working Poor Families Project promotes policy change by positioning state-based nonprofits to support investments in working families. Highlights progress in increasing access to financial aid, education and skills, and better jobs

Local anesthetic infiltration vs. nervous blocks in face’s skin lesions: what’s new

Skin tumors are the most common type of cancer. They are localized throughout the body, more frequently in those regions chronically exposed to sun, like face, scalp and neck, compromising aesthetic appearance. The optimization of day hospital surgical procedures is mandatory, to avoid erroneous indications, insufficient intra operative comfort and prolonged recovery. New guidelines should be discussed and shared. Patients were divided in two groups: i. Group A of 50 patients, 21 male and 29 female, age 65 ±9, ASA I – III (10/19/21), weight 68±11 kg, height 160±8, with anesthetic Local Infiltration (LI); ii. Group B of 50 patients, 16 male, 34 female, age 68 ±10, ASA I – III (9/22/19), weight 64 ± 9 kg, height 158 ±11, with nerve block (NB). The purpose of our study is to evaluate the analgesia level, compliance and complication rate after LI or selective NB with alkalinised mepivacaine cloridrate 2%, Guardant®. Demographic data, ASA physical stauts, size of lesions, surgery, anesthesia durations and volume of LA injected were analyzed. Fisher’s exact test and Student’s t test were used; P ≤ 0.05 was considered statistically significant. No differences in age (65 ± 9 vs 68 ± 10 years), weight (68 ± 11 vs 64 ± 9), height (160 ± 8 vs 158 ± 11 cm), size of lesion (23 ± 11 vs 25 ± 14 mm), duration of surgery (47 ± 18 vs 51 ± 23 minutes) were detected in two groups (p > 0.05). Both anesthetic techniques ensured good analgesia, but only nerve’s blocks were be able to determine satisfactory intra operative patient’s comfort, a bloodless wound and weak risk for nervous lesions and toxic reaction to local anesthetic

Neoadjuvant Trastuzumab Emtansine and Pertuzumab in Human Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor 2-Positive Breast Cancer: Three-Year Outcomes From the Phase III KRISTINE Study.

PurposeThe KRISTINE study compared neoadjuvant trastuzumab emtansine plus pertuzumab (T-DM1+P) with docetaxel, carboplatin, trastuzumab plus P (TCH+P) for the treatment human epidermal growth factor receptor 2-positive stage II to III breast cancer. T-DM1+P led to a lower pathologic complete response rate (44.4% v 55.7%; P = .016), but fewer grade 3 or greater and serious adverse events (AEs). Here, we present 3-year outcomes from KRISTINE.MethodsPatients were randomly assigned to neoadjuvant T-DM1+P or TCH+P every 3 weeks for six cycles. Patients who received T-DM1+P continued adjuvant T-DM1+P, and patients who received TCH+P received adjuvant trastuzumab plus pertuzumab. Secondary end points included event-free survival (EFS), overall survival, patient-reported outcomes (measured from random assignment), and invasive disease-free survival (IDFS; measured from surgery).ResultsOf patients, 444 were randomly assigned (T-DM1+P, n = 223; TCH+P, n = 221). Median follow-up was 37 months. Risk of an EFS event was higher with TDM-1+P (hazard ratio [HR], 2.61 [95% CI, 1.36 to 4.98]) with more locoregional progression events before surgery (15 [6.7%] v 0). Risk of an IDFS event after surgery was similar between arms (HR, 1.11 [95% CI, 0.52 to 2.40]). Pathologic complete response was associated with a reduced risk of an IDFS event (HR, 0.24 [95% CI, 0.09 to 0.60]) regardless of treatment arm. Overall, grade 3 or greater AEs (31.8% v 67.7%) were less common with T-DM1+P. During adjuvant treatment, grade 3 or greater AEs (24.5% v 9.9%) and AEs leading to treatment discontinuation (18.4% v 3.8%) were more common with T-DM1+P. Patient-reported outcomes favored T-DM1+P during neoadjuvant treatment and were similar to trastuzumab plus pertuzumab during adjuvant treatment.ConclusionCompared with TCH+P, T-DM1+P resulted in a higher risk of an EFS event owing to locoregional progression events before surgery, a similar risk of an IDFS event, fewer grade 3 or greater AEs during neoadjuvant treatment, and more AEs leading to treatment discontinuation during adjuvant treatment

Dynamics of the U.S.-Canada Softwood Lumber Trade: Market and Welfare Effects of the 2006 Softwood Lumber Agreement

This article examines the effects of macroeconomic variables (i.e., housing starts, disposable income, and the exchange rate), market variables (i.e., lumber price and wage rate) and the 2006 Softwood Lumber Agreement (SLA06) on U.S. lumber imports from Canada. It also looks at the welfare consequences of the SLA06. Results suggest that macroeconomic variables are more important than lumber price in determining the bilateral trade in softwood lumber. It is also found that, although the SLA06 has a significant negative effect on lumber imports from Canada, the market and welfare impacts of the trade restriction are moderate.exchange rates, housing starts, softwood lumber trade, trade restrictions, U.S. import demand, Financial Economics, Industrial Organization, International Relations/Trade, Political Economy, Public Economics,

A review of the genus Megalographa Lafontaine and Poole (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae: Plusiinae) with the description of a new species from Costa Rica

The classification of the genus Megalographa Lafontaine and Poole, 1991, is reviewed and the five known species diagnosed. The genus is essentially restricted to the New World, although one species M. biloba (Stephens) is migratory and has occasionally straggled to western Europe. A new species (Megalographa talamanca Lafontaine and Sullivan) endemic to the Talamanca Mountain Range in Costa Rica is described. Adults and genitalia are illustrated

The Venezuelan Economy in the Chavez Years

This paper examines how Venezuela's economy has fared since President Hugo Chavez was elected in 1998. The paper looks at growth, employment, poverty, investment and other indicators, and considers the popular conception of whether the current economic expansion is an "oil boom headed for a bust.