Defining the key wintering habitats in the Sahel for declining African-Eurasian migrants using expert assessment

SummaryThe Sahel in West Africa is a major wintering area for many western Palearctic migrants. The breeding populations of many of these have declined over the past 50 years. However, there have been few intensive field studies on migrant ecology in the Sahel and these were generally within a very restricted area. Consequently our knowledge of the distribution of species within this extensive area and the habitat associations of these species is limited. Understanding these habitat associations is essential for the effective conservation management of populations. We brought together a group of experts and consulted a wider group by email to assess the main Sahelian habitat types used by 68 African-Eurasian migrant bird species. Those species that showed strongest declines during 1970–1990 were associated with more open habitats than those newly declining during 1990–2000, when declining species were associated with habitats with more shrubs and trees. Populations of species that winter in the Sahel are generally stable or increasing now as rainfall has increased and is now near the long-term average for the Sahel. Those which use the Sahel only as a staging area are, in many cases, in rapid decline at present.We would like to thank Andy Clements, Paul Donald, Lincoln Fishpool and Mike Mortimore for contributing to the workshop and Peter Jones, Ian Newton, Volker Salewski, Tim Wacher, Eddy Wymenga and Leo Zwarts for useful comments by email on draft habitat importance scores. This study was funded by the Newton Trust and the Cambridge Conservation Initiative Collaborative Fund, supported by Arcadia. WJS is funded by Arcadia.This is the accepted manuscript of a paper published in Bird Conservation International, Volume 24, Issue 04, December 2014, pp 477-491, DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/S0959270913000531, Published online: 24 February 201

The NeuroDante Project: Neurometric measurements of participant’s reaction to literary auditory stimuli from dante’s “divina commedia”

Neurodante. Progetto di analisi neurometrica di alcuni brani della Commedi

Therapy refractory hypertension in adults: aortic coarctation has to be ruled out

In patients with unexplained hypertension, especially in combination with a cardiac murmur, the presence of an aortic coarctation should always be ruled out given the high morbidity and mortality. However, particularly patients with an isolated coarctation often remain asymptomatic for years and the defect may be unnoticed even until the fifth or sixth decade of life. In the present article, we describe two patients with late detected coarctation to illustrate the clinical consequences, diagnostic clues for earlier detection and current therapeutic options to achieve optimal treatment. The key sign of an aortic coarctation, a difference in arterial blood pressure measured between the upper and lower extremities, should always be examined, followed by echocardiography. We conclude that even in case of a late detected severe coarctation, surgical or percutaneous repair has proven to be feasible and substantially effective, improving quality of life and lowering the risk of further hypertension-associated problems

Towards a Human-Centered Approach for VRET Systems: Case Study for Acrophobia

This paper presents a human-centered methodology for designing and developing Virtual Reality Exposure Therapy (VRET) systems. By following the steps proposed by the methodology – Users analysis, Domain Analysis, Task Analysis and Representational Analysis, we developed a system for acrophobia therapy composed of 9 functional, interrelated modules which are responsible for patients, scenes, audio and graphics management, as well as with physiological monitoring and event triggering. The therapist visualizes in real time the patient’s biophysical signals and adapts the exposure scenario accordingly, as. he can lower or increase the level of exposure. There are 3 scenes in the game, depicting a ride by cable car, one by ski lift and a walk by foot in a mountain landscape. A reward system is implemented and emotion dimension ratings are collected at predefined points in the scenario. They will be stored and later used for constructing an automatic machine learning emotion recognition and exposure adaptation modul

Treatment delay among tuberculosis patients in Tanzania: Data from the FIDELIS Initiative

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Several FIDELIS projects (Fund for Innovative DOTS Expansion through Local Initiatives to Stop TB) in Tanzania were conducted by the National Tuberculosis and Leprosy Programme (NTLP) during the years 2004-2008 to strengthen diagnostic and treatment services. These projects collected information on <it>treatment delay </it>and some of it was available for research purposes. With this database our objective was to assess the duration and determinants of treatment delay among new smear positive pulmonary tuberculosis (TB) patients in FIDELIS projects, and to compare delay according to provider visited prior to diagnosis.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Treatment delay among new smear positive TB patients was recorded for each patient at treatment initiation and this information was available and fairly complete in 6 out of 57 districts with FIDELIS projects enrolling patients between 2004 and 2007; other districts had discarded their forms at the time of analysis. It was analysed as a cross sectional study.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>We included 1161 cases, 10% of all patients recruited in the FIDELIS projects in Tanzania. Median delay was 12 weeks. The median duration of cough, weight loss and haemoptysis was 12, 8 and 3 weeks, respectively. Compared to Hai district Handeni had patients with longer delays and Mbozi had patients with shorter delays. Urban and rural patients reported similar delays. Patients aged 15-24 years and patients of 65 years or older had longer delays. Patients reporting contact with traditional healers before diagnosis had a median delay of 15 weeks compared to 12 weeks among those who did not. Patients with dyspnoea and with diarrhoea had longer delays.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>In this patient sample in Tanzania half of the new smear positive pulmonary tuberculosis patients had a treatment delay longer than 12 weeks. Delay was similar in men and women and among urban and rural patients, but longer in the young and older age groups. Patients using traditional healers had a 25% longer median delay.</p

Study of intrinsic risk factors for falls in institutionalized elderly people

Esta pesquisa teve como objetivo identificar a presença de fatores intrínsecos que predispõem a quedas em idosos moradores em instituições de longa permanência na cidade de Goiânia (GO). Trata-se de estudo descritivo transversal realizado em seis instituições de longa permanência para idosos existentes na cidade de Goiânia. A amostra da investigação constou de 95 idosos que atenderam aos critérios de inclusão e exclusão. Utilizou-se um questionário contendo dados clínicos relacionados às condições de saúde-doença; dados cognitivos; avaliação da capacidade para as atividades básicas de vida diária e avaliação do equilíbrio e marcha. Os idosos avaliados, no geral, apresentam vários fatores de risco, apontados pela literatura, para quedas, tais como: relato de dificuldade motora em membros inferiores (90%), déficit visual (81,1%), uso de três ou mais medicamentos (59,7%), suspeita de depressão (37,9%), falta de equilíbrio em apoio unipodal (37,9%) e altura do passo anormalmente diminuída (32,6%). As informações obtidas nos permitem apontar condições determinantes que aumentam a possibilidade dos eventos queda acontecerem na amostra estudada, sinalizando à necessidade de que estratégias de promoção de saúde, prevenção de agravos e reabilitação devam ser tomadas. _________________________________________________________________________________________ ABSTRACTThe objective of this research was to identify intrinsic risk factors that predispose elderly people living in long-term institutions in the city of Goiânia (GO) to falls. The present descriptive transversal study was carried out in six long-term institutions for seniors in the city of Goiânia. The investigated sample consisted of 95 elderly that fitted the inclusion and exclusion criteria. A questionnaire was used for collecting clinical data related to health-disease conditions; cognitive data; capacity to develop basic daily life activities and equilibrium and gait. In general terms, as pointed out the literature, the examined elderly presented different fall risk factors such as: motor difficulty in lower limbs (90%), visual deficit (81,1%), use of 3 or more kinds of medicines (59,7%), suspected depression (37,9%), lack of equilibrium/unstable unipodal support (37,9%) abnormally decreased height in step (32,6%). The obtained data allow us to set indicators for the increase in falls among the studied sample, demonstrating the need for creating strategies for health promotion, prevention of injuries and rehabilitation

The effect of high tibial osteotomy on the results of total knee arthroplasty: a matched case control study

BACKGROUND: We performed a matched case control study to assess the effect of prior high tibia valgus producing osteotomy on results and complications of total knee arthroplasty (TKA). METHODS: From 1996 until 2003 356 patients underwent all cemented primary total knee replacement in our institution. Twelve patients with a history of 14 HTO were identified and matched to a control group of 12 patients with 14 primary TKA without previous HTO. The match was made for gender, age, date of surgery, body mass index, aetiology and type of prosthesis. Clinical and radiographic outcome were evaluated after a median duration of follow-up of 3.7 years (minimum, 2.3 years). The SPSS program was used for statistical analyses. RESULTS: The index group had more perioperative blood loss and exposure difficulties with one tibial tuberosity osteotomy and three patients with lateral retinacular releases. No such procedures were needed in the control group. Mid-term HSS, KSS and WOMAC scores were less favourable for the index group, but these differences were not significant. The tibial slope of patients with prior HTO was significantly decreased after this procedure. The tibial posterior inclination angle was corrected during knee replacement but posterior inclination was significantly less compared to the control group. No deep infection or knee component loosening were seen in the group with prior HTO. CONCLUSION: We conclude that TKA after HTO seems to be technically more demanding than a primary knee arthroplasty, but clinical outcome was almost identical to a matched group that had no HTO previously