Does the Use of Varenicline for Smoking-Cessation Therapy Create or Increase Depression in Patients Without Existing Depressive Illness?

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this selective EBM review is to determine whether or not the use of varenicline for smoking-cessation therapy creates or increases depression in patients without existing depressive illness. STUDY DESIGN: Review of two randomized controlled trials published in 2011 and one observational cohort study published in 2009, all English language.DATA SOURCES: Two randomized, double-blind, controlled clinical trials comparing varenicline to placebo in smoking cessation, and one observational cohort study comparing varenicline use within subjects. All articles were found using PubMed and EBSCO. OUTCOMES MEASURED: Changes in depression was evaluated using the MontgomeryÅsberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS), and adverse events were recorded and classified into depression-related according to the Medical Dictionary for Regulatory Activities version 12 and, in the observational cohort study, the British Drug Safety Research Unit standards. RESULTS: Bollinger et al. and Garza et al. demonstrated a present but nonsignificant increase in depressive adverse events associated with varenicline use. Garza et al, reported a similarly small and nonsignificant worsening in MADRS score in the varenicline arm. Kasliwal et al. reported anonsignificant change in depressive adverse events. CONCLUSIONS: Results of the three studies show that there is inconclusive evidence regarding a link between varenicline and new-onset depression in smoking cessation. None of the studies demonstrated any significant relationship between varenicline and depression or depressiveadverse events, but limitations in study design prevent the results from convincingly addressing such a relationship. The results encourage further studies designed both to assess varenicline’s relationship with depression and to account for the varenicline’s higher quit rate as a possible source of depressive changes

A Predator-Prey Model with an Application to Lake Victoria Fisheries

Greater complexity in renewable resource models is achieved by acknowledging that species interact through a predator-prey relationship in which both species are harvested. The price of greater complexity is that traditional concepts, such as maximum sustained yield (MSY), have to be revised dramatically. Moreover, having chosen greater complexity, fishery biologists and other researchers must choose an explicit value for each fish, a rate of exchange of one species for every other species. Policy makers and social scientists in Tanzania, Kenya, and Uganda with a keen interest in Lake Victoria fisheries regard the resource as a tool for furthering socioeconomic goals, such as foreign exchange earnings, employment for women, and nutrition. Comparative analysis allows policy makers to understand the consequences of choosing these goals in addition to economically efficient resource use. Foreign exchange earnings, employment for women, and healthy people are other goals promulgated by Tanzania, Kenya, and Uganda in the management of Lake Victoria Fisheries. The conflicts among social goals are evident in the bioeconomic predator-prey model: a goal favoring a particular species reduces the sustainable harvest of another species. Data from Kenya are used to estimate the population dynamics equations.predator-prey, bioeconomic model, Lake Victoria, Resource /Energy Economics and Policy, Q22, Q28,

The Realities of Relevance: A Survey of Librarians\u27 Use of Library and Information Science Research

This article grew out the authors\u27 desire to explore the widely held notion that librarians disregard LIS research because they consider it irrelevant. For example, in the early stages of this project one colleague commented that librarianship is all practice and that LIS research has had no effect upon his own work. Editors of many LIS journals also question whether research exerts influence on practice. Peter Hernon and Candy Schwartz, editors of Library and Information Science Research, lament that “research has not penetrated the soul” of the library profession, and William Katz, former editor of Research Quarterly, notes that many authors have failed to show the implications of their research for practice. A survey of LIS scholars revealed that many researchers themselves doubt whether their findings affect practice. While many authors within the profession have thus agreed upon the existence of a research-practice gap in librarianship, they differ in regards to the gap\u27s causes. Some authors blame researchers; some blame practitioners; and some attribute the breakdown to deficiencies in LIS education or dissemination channels. This article examines the research-practice gap by discussing the results of a recent survey that measured the use of LIS research among Alabama’s academic reference librarians

A study of effective evaluation models and practices for technology supported physical learning spaces (JELS)

The aim of the JELS project was to identify and review the tools, methods and frameworks used to evaluate technology supported or enhanced physical learning spaces. A key objective was to develop the sector knowledgebase on innovation and emerging practice in the evaluation of learning spaces, identifying innovative methods and approaches beyond traditional post-occupancy evaluations and surveys that have dominated this area to date. The intention was that the frameworks and guidelines discovered or developed from this study could inform all stages of the process of implementing a technology supported physical learning space. The study was primarily targeted at the UK HE sector and the FE sector where appropriate, and ran from September 2008 to March 2009

Orthodontists’ and Orthodontic Residents’ Education in Treating Underserved Patients: Effects on Professional Attitudes and Behavior

Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/153711/1/jddj002203372009735tb04730x.pd

Respiratory syncytial virus--the unrecognised cause of health and economic burden among young children in Australia.

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) presents very similar to influenza and is the principle cause of bronchiolitis in infants and young children worldwide. Yet, there is no systematic monitoring of RSV activity in Australia. This study uses existing published data sources to estimate incidence, hospitalisation rates, and associated costs of RSV among young children in Australia. Published reports from the Laboratory Virology and Serology Reporting Scheme, a passive voluntary surveillance system, and the National Hospital Morbidity Dataset were used to estimate RSV-related age-specific hospitalisation rates in New South Wales and Australia. These estimates and national USA estimates of RSV-related hospitalisation rates were applied to Australian population data to estimate RSV incidence in Australia. Direct economic burden was estimated by applying cost estimates used to derive economic cost associated with the influenza virus. The estimated RSV-related hospitalisation rates ranged from 2.2-4.5 per 1,000 among children less than 5 years of age to 8.7-17.4 per 1,000 among infants. Incidence ranged from 110.0-226.5 per 1,000 among the under five age group to 435.0-869.0 per 1,000 among infants. The total annual direct healthcare cost was estimated to be between $24 million and$50 million. Comparison with the health burdens attributed to the influenza virus and rotavirus suggests that the disease burden caused by RSV is potentially much higher. The limitations associated with using a passive surveillance system to estimate disease burden, and the need to explore further assessments and to monitor RSV activity are discussed

Electrochemical Study of Biotin-Modified Self-Assembled Monolayers: Recommendations for Robust Preparation

The development of the underpinning methodology for the production of robust, well-formed, and densely packed biotin-HPDP functionalised gold surfaces, the crucial first step in immobilising bimolecules on surfaces, is described. Self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) with biotin end-groups were prepared on polycrystalline gold surfaces according to a published method. The layers formed were studied using cyclic voltammetry to determine the composition of the layer and its quality. Crystal impedance spectroscopy was also applied as a complimentary indicator of the composition of the layer.For the first time, the effect of assembly time on the properties of the layer was studied along with the composition of the layer and the ability of the precursor molecule to self-assemble by oxidative addition

Synergistic Performance of Lithium Difluoro(oxalato)borate and Fluoroethylene Carbonate in Carbonate Electrolytes for Lithium Metal Anodes

There is significant interest in the development of rechargeable high-energy density batteries which utilize lithium metal anodes. Recently, fluoroethylene carbonate (FEC) and lithium difluoro(oxalato)borate (LiDFOB) have been reported to significantly improve the electrochemical performance of lithium metal anodes. This investigation focuses on exploring the synergy between LiDFOB and FEC in carbonate electrolytes for lithium metal anodes. In ethylene carbonate (EC) electrolytes, LiDFOB is optimal when used in high salt concentrations, such as 1.0 M, to improve the electrochemistry of the lithium metal anode in Cu||LiFePO4 cells. However, in FEC electrolytes, LiDFOB is optimal when used in lower concentrations, such as 0.05–0.10 M. From surface analysis, LiDFOB is observed to favorably react on the surface of lithium metal to improve the performance of the lithium metal anode, in both EC and FEC-based electrolytes. This research demonstrates progress toward developing feasible high-energy density lithium-based batteries

Early Child Development in Social Context: A Chartbook

Reviews more than 30 key indicators of health and development for children up to age 6, as well as social factors in families and communities that affect these outcomes. Offers practical suggestions for health practitioners and parents