Systematic Review of Physiotherapy during Acute Exacerbations of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (AECOPD)

In COPD patients, acute exacerbations are important events. Reviews of studies investigating treatment during AECOPD focus on medical management, with little discussion of physiotherapy. Therefore a systematic review was undertaken of the studies pertaining to physiotherapy during AECOPD. Methods: Studies were identified by searching databases and scanning reference lists. Appropriate studies were reviewed by two independent investigators. Data were extracted using a standardized form. Where possible, a score was assigned using the PEDro scale for assessment of study quality. HIll, K., Patman, S., & Brooks, D. (2008). Systematic review of physiotherapy during Acute Exacerbations of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (AECOPD). American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, 177, Abstracts Issue, A137. ISSN: 1073-449

Instrumentation for Millimeter-wave Magnetoelectrodynamic Investigations of Low-Dimensional Conductors and Superconductors

We describe instrumentation for conducting high sensitivity millimeter-wave cavity perturbation measurements over a broad frequency range (40-200 GHz) and in the presence of strong magnetic fields (up to 33 tesla). A Millimeter-wave Vector Network Analyzer (MVNA) acts as a continuously tunable microwave source and phase sensitive detector (8-350 GHz), enabling simultaneous measurements of the complex cavity parameters (resonance frequency and Q-value) at a rapid repetition rate (approx. 10 kHz). We discuss the principal of operation of the MVNA and the construction of a probe for coupling the MVNA to various cylindrical resonator configurations which can easily be inserted into a high field magnet cryostat. We also present several experimental results which demonstrate the potential of the instrument for studies of low-dimensional conducting systems.Comment: 20 pages including fig

Do grandparents matter? : The impact of Grandparenting on the wellbeing of children

This timely and important report shows the immense value of grandparents in 21st century family life. It reveals a unique relationship that exists between the older generation and the youngest: a relationship of love and trust that enables the children to use their grandparents as confidantes and counsellors as well as playmates and cookery instructors. The report shows that children value the non-critical support, emotional advice and guidance that grandparents offer and enjoy the quality time their grandparents give them. It also found that the relationship has benefits for grandparents adding to their raison d’être and contributing to their health and longevity. The report also notes the change in the nature of family relationships in Britain throughout the 20th century, from the extended family to the nuclear family to the current variety of relationships, formal and informal, in which both the elderly and the young suffer neglect. With today’s increased incidence of divorce and family breakdown, grandparents can sometimes provide the only stable family relationship in a child’s life, and yet grandparents often lose contact with their grandchildren during or after a divorce or relationship breakup and have no legal rights through the Family Court to continue offering loving care and support to their grandchildren. The report concludes that there is need for much greater understanding of the role and function of grandparents in family life today.Final Published versio

Literacy Enhancement and Writing across the Curriculum: A Motivational Addendum

This thought piece supplements the preceding article with complementary information drawn from a national literacy project underwritten by the Ford Foundation. This project attempted to persuade teachers in all disciplines to become more proficient in the use of written exercises and to encourage an expanded conception of literacy as an essential cornerstone of education. As a part of the writing-across-the curriculum (WAC) efforts, this extensive project helped to organize these efforts by identifying the obstacles to enhanced literacy, specifying innumerable techniques for use in diverse contexts, and motivating faculty to intensify their work on this dimension of any curriculum. This paper serves to expand the more localized focus of Jensen and McQueeney\u27s article and to suggest some practical advice for implementing the goals of the WAC movement

Diclofenac and Ibuprofen in Rheumatoid Arthritis and Osteoarthritis

Forty patients with arthritis (26 rheumatoid and 14 osteoarthrosis) entered a five-week double-blind crossover trial of diclofenac and ibuprofen. Four patients failed to complete the 10-week trial. There was no statistically significant difference in parameters of disease activity for the rheumatoid arthritis patients, but patients with osteoarthrosis fared significantly better on diclofenac. There was a low incidence of side effects on both regimens

The outcome and cost-effectiveness of nurse-led care in the community for people with rheumatoid arthritis:a non-randomised pragmatic study

To determine the outcome and cost-effectiveness of nurse-led care in the community for people with rheumatoid arthritis (RA)

Quantum melting of the quasi-two-dimensional vortex lattice in kappa-(ET)2Cu(NCS)2

We report torque magnetization measurements in regions of the mixed state phase diagram (${\bf B}\sim\mu_o{\bf H}_{c2}$ and T$_c$/$10^3$) of the organic superconductor $\kappa-$(ET)$_2$Cu(NCS)$_2$ where quantum fluctuations are expected to dominate thermal effects. Over most of the field range below the irreversibility line (${\bf B}_{irr}$), magneto-thermal instabilities are observed in the form of flux jumps. The abrupt cessation of these instabilities just below ${\bf B}_{irr}$ indicates a quantum melting transition from a quasi-two-dimensional vortex lattice phase to a quantum liquid phase.Comment: 8 pages (inc. Figs), accepted for publication in Phys. Rev. Let

Lepton flavor violating processes li⟶ljνlνˉll_{i}\longrightarrow l_{j}\nu_{l}\bar{\nu}_{l} in topcolor-assisted technicolor models

We study the lepton flavor violating (LFV) processes $l_{i}\longrightarrow l_{j}\nu_{l}\bar{\nu}_{l}$ in the context of the topcolor-assisted technicolor (TC2) models. We find that the branching ratios $B_{r}(\tau\longrightarrow l_{j}\nu_{\tau}\bar{\nu}_{\tau})$ are larger than the branching ratios $B_{r}(\tau\longrightarrow l_{j}\nu_{l}\bar{\nu}_{l})$ in all of the parameter space. Over a wide range of parameter space, we have $B_{r}(\tau\longrightarrow l_{j}\nu_{\tau}\bar{\nu}_{\tau})\sim 10^{-6}$ and $B_{r}(\tau\longrightarrow l_{j}\nu_{l}\bar{\nu}_{l})\sim 10^{-9} (l=\mu$ or $e)$. Taking into account the bounds given by the experimental upper limit $Br^{exp}(\mu\longrightarrow3e)\leq1\times10^{-12}$ on the free parameters of TC2 models, we further give the upper limits of the LFV processes $l_{i}\longrightarrow l_{j}\nu_{l}\bar{\nu}_{l}$. We hope that the results may be useful to partly explain the data of the neutrino oscillations and the future neutrino experimental data might be used to test TC2 models.Comment: to be published in Phys. Lett.