What can I do with my small farm? : selecting an enterprise for small acreages

Often, when people buy a small farm they simply want someone to tell them what they can “do” with it. As strange as it might seem, this isn’t an easy question to answer. When landowners begin to make important decisions related to the use of their property, they might not recognize the complicated web of details involved. Before making decisions, you should consider these major factors that interact with and influence each otherPublished March 2001. A more recent revision exists. Facts and recommendations in this publication may no longer be valid. Please look for up-to-date information in the OSU Extension Catalog: http://extension.oregonstate.edu/catalo

Grow your own tomatoes and tomatillos

This publication is an extended revision of the previous edition. It describes how to grow tomatoes and tomatillos in the home garden. Topics include site and soil preparation, cultivar selection, propagation, planting and plant care, techniques for extending the growing season, pruning and training systems, and harvest and storage.Revised September 2014. Facts and recommendations in this publication may no longer be valid. Please look for up-to-date information in the OSU Extension Catalog: http://extension.oregonstate.edu/catalo

Early successful weaning from continuous positive airway pressure in infants <32 weeks of gestation: predictors of success

AimTo identify demographic and clinical variables predictive of early successful weaning in preterm infants weaned off continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP).MethodsSingle-center retrospective analysis of preterm infants &lt; 32 0/7 weeks gestational age (GA) weaned off CPAP according to a standardized protocol April 2013–March 2017. Infants were categorized into (1) early successfully weaned (Early-W) if weaned at the first attempt and (2) delayed weaned (Delayed-W) if more than one attempt was necessary. Potential predictor variables were predefined. Association with Early-W was analyzed by multivariable logistic regression with model selection using the Akaike information criterion (AIC). Model performance was evaluated using the area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC-AUC).Results145 infants [79 (54.5%) were Early-W and 66 (45.5%) Delayed-W] with complete data sets were included in the analysis. A model of higher GA [odds ratio (OR) 1.66; 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.39, 2.03; p &lt; 0.001], present patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) (OR 0.41, 95% CI 0.16, 1.04; p = 0.062) and higher median respiratory rate (RR) in the previous 12 h (OR 0.36; 95% CI 0.16, 0.74; p = 0.008) best predicted Early-W (ROC-AUC: 0.841).ConclusionThis study identified GA, PDA and median RR to predict early successful weaning in preterm infants weaned off CPAP. The predictive value of median RR in the 12 h prior to CPAP cessation is considered a novelty requiring further prospective investigation, with RR being a clinical parameter commonly employed in routine practice and practical for everyday application

Clinical manifestations and immunomodulatory treatment experiences in psychiatric patients with suspected autoimmune encephalitis: a case series of 91 patients from Germany

Autoimmune encephalitis (AE) can rarely manifest as a predominantly psychiatric syndrome without overt neurological symptoms. This study’s aim was to characterize psychiatric patients with AE; therefore, anonymized data on patients with suspected AE with predominantly or isolated psychiatric syndromes were retrospectively collected. Patients with readily detectable neurological symptoms suggestive of AE (e.g., epileptic seizures) were excluded. Patients were classified as “probable psychiatric AE (pAE),” if well-characterized neuronal IgG autoantibodies were detected or “possible pAE” (e.g., with detection of nonclassical neuronal autoantibodies or compatible cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) changes). Of the 91 patients included, 21 (23%) fulfilled our criteria for probable (autoantibody-defined) pAE and 70 (77%) those for possible pAE. Among patients with probable pAE, 90% had anti-NMDA receptor (NMDA-R) autoantibodies. Overall, most patients suffered from paranoid-hallucinatory syndromes (53%). Patients with probable pAE suffered more often from disorientation (p < 0.001) and impaired memory (p = 0.001) than patients with possible pAE. Immunotherapies were performed in 69% of all cases, mostly with high-dose corticosteroids. Altogether, 93% of the patients with probable pAE and 80% of patients with possible pAE reportedly benefited from immunotherapies (p = 0.251). In summary, this explorative, cross-sectional evaluation confirms that autoantibody-associated AE syndromes can predominantly manifest as psychiatric syndromes, especially in anti-NMDA-R encephalitis. However, in three out of four patients, diagnosis of possible pAE was based on nonspecific findings (e.g., slight CSF pleocytosis), and well-characterized neuronal autoantibodies were absent. As such, the spectrum of psychiatric syndromes potentially responding to immunotherapies seems not to be limited to currently known autoantibody-associated AE. Further trials are needed

Depression and Motivation

Among the characteristic features of depression is a diminishment in or lack of action and motivation. In this paper, I consider a dominant philosophical account which purports to explain this lack of action or motivation. This approach comes in different versions but a common theme is, I argue, an over reliance on psychologistic assumptions about action–explanation and the nature of motivation. As a corrective I consider an alternative view that gives a prominent place to the body in motivation. Central to the experience of depression are changes to how a person is motivated to act and, also as central, are changes to bodily feelings and capacities. I argue that broadly characterizing motivation in terms of bodily capacities can, in particular, provide a more compelling account of depressive motivational pathology

Open-label study comparing the efficacy and tolerability of aripiprazole and haloperidol in the treatment of pediatric tic disorders

Due to its unique pharmacodynamic properties of dopamine partial agonist activity, and its association with few and mild side effects, aripiprazole is a candidate atypical antipsychotic for patients with tic disorders. This open-label study compared the efficacy and tolerability of aripiprazole with haloperidol, a typical antipsychotic widely used to treat patients with tic disorders. Forty-eight children and adolescents with tic disorders were recruited from the outpatient clinic at South Korea and treated with aripiprazole (initial dose, 5.0 mg/d; maximum dose 20 mg/d) or haloperidol (initial dose, 0.75 mg/d; maximum dose, 4.5 mg/d) for 8 weeks. Treatment efficacy was measured using the yale global tic severity scale (YGTSS), and tolerability was measured using the extrapyramidal symptom rating scale (ESRS) and an adverse effects checklist. Total tic scores as measured by the YGTSS decreased over time in both groups (p < 0.001) without any significant differences between groups. ESRS scores were significantly higher in the haloperidol group during the 4 weeks after commencement of medication (p < 0.05). These results indicate that aripiprazole may be a promising drug in the treatment of children and adolescents with tic disorders. Further controlled studies are needed to determine the efficacy and tolerability of aripiprazole in these patients

European clinical guidelines for Tourette syndrome and other tic disorders. Part II: pharmacological treatment

To develop a European guideline on pharmacologic treatment of Tourette syndrome (TS) the available literature was thoroughly screened and extensively discussed by a working group of the European Society for the Study of Tourette syndrome (ESSTS). Although there are many more studies on pharmacotherapy of TS than on behavioral treatment options, only a limited number of studies meets rigorous quality criteria. Therefore, we have devised a two-stage approach. First, we present the highest level of evidence by reporting the findings of existing Cochrane reviews in this field. Subsequently, we provide the first comprehensive overview of all reports on pharmacological treatment options for TS through a MEDLINE, PubMed, and EMBASE search for all studies that document the effect of pharmacological treatment of TS and other tic disorders between 1970 and November 2010. We present a summary of the current consensus on pharmacological treatment options for TS in Europe to guide the clinician in daily practice. This summary is, however, rather a status quo of a clinically helpful but merely low evidence guideline, mainly driven by expert experience and opinion, since rigorous experimental studies are scarce

Freiburg Questionnaire of linguistic pragmatics (FQLP): psychometric properties based on a psychiatric sample

BACKGROUND: Asperger’s Syndrome (AS) is an autism spectrum disorder that is characterized by significant difficulties in social interaction and nonverbal communication, and restricted and repetitive patterns of behavior and interests. Difficulties with respect to pragmatic speech, reading emotional and social cues, differentiating between fact and fiction, and taking into account the influence of context on a statement are commonly described features. However, hitherto established questionnaires did not focus on these symptoms. METHODS: In this study we present a short (11 questions) questionnaire which focuses on self-rated pragmatic speech abilities, the Freiburg Questionnaire of linguistic pragmatics (FQLP). Psychometric properties of the questionnaire were explored in a sample of 57 patients with Asperger’s Syndrome, 66 patients with other psychiatric disorders, and a convenience sample of 56 people. RESULTS: Reliability analysis showed a high Cronbach’s α. Strong correlations could be demonstrated for the FQLP with the Autism Quotient and the Empathy Quotient. Concerning divergent validity a moderate correlation was found between the FQLP and self-rated symptoms of personality disorders. No significant correlation was found between the FQLP and the vocabulary skills. The receiver operating characteristics curve showed an excellent diagnostic accuracy of the FQLP (.97). CONCLUSIONS: As the control group consisted of people without mental disorder and patients with different psychiatric disorders, the results indicate that the construct examined by the FQLP is quite specific to the peculiarities of AS. The FQLP is a reliable, brief and valid instrument. First results regarding sensitivity and specificity are highly promising. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12888-014-0374-9) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users