Patients as researchers - innovative experiences in UK National Health Service research

Consumer involvement is an established priority in UK health and social care service development and research. To date, little has been published describing the process of consumer involvement and assessing ‘consumers’ contributions to research. This paper provides a practical account of the effective incorporation of consumers into a research team, and outlines the extent to which they can enhance the research cycle; from project development and conduct, through data analysis and interpretation, to dissemination. Salient points are illustrated using the example of their collaboration in a research project. Of particular note were consumers’ contributions to the development of an ethically enhanced, more robust project design, and enriched data interpretation, which may not have resulted had consumers not been an integral part of the research team

Language support for immigrant children: a study of state schools in the UK and US

In recent decades, immigrants, refugees and asylum seekers have sought a new way of life in large numbers, often leaving their countries of origin behind in search of places that offer a better way of life. The purpose of this study was to investigate how elementary and middle school students in state schools in Reading, England (primarily speakers of Asian languages), and Richmond, Virginia (primarily speakers of Spanish), were supported academically, when most children’s first language was not English. The authors were interested in exploring whether or not there were cultural or structural differences in the way each country helped or hindered these students as they progressed through the school systems. Three UK schools in a district of approximately 100,000 and three US schools in a district of approximately 250,000 were the focus of this exploration from 2000 to 2003. Findings indicated that there were cultural and legislative differences and similarities. Teachers and administrators in both countries attempted to provide services with limited and sometimes diminishing resources. Community support varied based on resources, attitudes toward various ethnic groups, and the coping strategies adopted by these groups in their new environments. Marked differences appeared with regard to the manner in which assessments took place and how the results were made available to the public

Nucleon-nucleon elastic scattering analysis to 2.5 GeV

A partial-wave analysis of NN elastic scattering data has been completed. This analysis covers an expanded energy range, from threshold to a laboratory kinetic energy of 2.5 GeV, in order to include recent elastic pp scattering data from the EDDA collaboration. The results of both single-energy and energy-dependent analyses are described.Comment: 23 pages of text. Postscript files for the figures are available from ftp://clsaid.phys.vt.edu/pub/said/n

Modern Electronic Techniques Applied to Physics and Engineering

Contains reports on seven research projects.Office of Scientific Research and Development (OSRD) OEMsr-26

Female sex pheromone of the cone moth, dioryctria mendacella: Investigation of synergism between Type I and Type II pheromone components

Polyunsaturated hydrocarbons (Type II pheromone components) have been reported to be synergists for unsaturated acetates, alcohols or aldehydes (Type I components) in the sex pheromones of several species of Lepidoptera. However, there is some debate over whether the active components are the hydrocarbons themselves or more volatile degradation products. Extracts of pheromone glands of adult females of the cone moth, Dioryctria mendacella (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae), contain (Z,E)-9,11-tetradecadienyl acetate (ZE9,11-14:Ac) and at least ten times as much (Z,Z,Z,Z,Z)-3,6,9,12,15-pentacosapentaene (ZZZZZ3,6,9,12,15-25:H). The former elicits a strong electroantennogram response from males while no response could be recorded to the latter. In field trapping tests, both compounds were individually unattractive to male D. mendacella moths, but blends of the two compounds containing at least a 10:1 ratio of ZZZZZ3,6,9,12,15-25:H : ZE9,11-14:Ac were highly attractive. The relatively involatile hydrocarbon was shown to be released from the dispensers used and no significant degradation could be detected. Furthermore, blends of ZE9,11-14:Ac and analogs of ZZZZZ3,6,9,12,15-25:H with fewer carbons and/or double bonds that might be expected to produce similar degradation products to ZZZZZ3,6,9,12,15-25:H were unattractive. This indicated a specific response to the hydrocarbon itself, further substantiated by the observation that related hydrocarbons did not interfere with the activity of ZZZZZ3,6,9,12,15-25:H. Thus a three-step conversion of fish oil was used to produce a blend of unsaturated hydrocarbons containing ZZZZZ3,6,9,12,15-25:H as the major component, albeit only 30% of the total, and a blend of this material with ZE9,11-14:Ac was as attractive to male D. mendacella moths as blends with an equivalent amount of the purified material. This mixture of unsaturated hydrocarbons is much cheaper to produce than the pure pentaene, and may be useful in lures for other species using these compounds. Dioryctria mendacella is a major constraint to production of edible pine kernels throughout the Mediterranean region. Pheromone traps will provide a means to improve monitoring of seasonal flight patterns and changes in population abundance of this pest

Measurement of the D 0 → K - Π + Branching Fraction a

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/72296/1/j.1749-6632.1988.tb51529.x.pd

The prevalence of pain and disability one year post fracture of the distal radius in a UK population: A cross sectional survey

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>A fracture of the distal radius is a commonly occurring fracture and accounts for a third of all fractures in the elderly. Thus far, one year estimates of pain and disability following a fracture of the distal radius have been reported on Canadian populations. The primary aim of this study is to investigate the prevalence of pain and disability in a UK population one year post fracture of the distal radius.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A cross-sectional survey was undertaken, of all subjects suffering a fracture of the distal radius between October 2005 and February 2006 in Nottingham, UK. Primary outcomes used were the VAS for pain and the DASH for disability. Prevalence of pain and disability were calculated and odds ratios presented for associations between demographics, pain and disability.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>93/264 (35%) subjects responded to the questionnaire. 6 subjects did not fulfill the inclusion criteria and were excluded from further analysis. 11% of subjects reported moderate to very severe pain. 16% of subjects reported moderate to very severe disability. Statistically significant associations were found between pain medication usage for the wrist fracture and moderate to very severe pain (OR 11.20, 95% CI 2.05 – 61.23). Moderate to very severe disability was associated with older age (OR 6.53, 95%CI 1.65 – 25.90) and pain medication usage for the wrist fracture (OR 4.75, 95% CI 1.38 – 16.37). Working was associated with a reduction in risk of moderate to very severe disability (OR 0.14, 95% CI 0.03 – 0.67).</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>This study demonstrates that there are a small proportion of patients who are still suffering moderate to very severe pain and disability one year post fracture of the distal radius. The study also demonstrates that there are significant associations between characteristics of the patients and the level of pain and disability. This highlights the need for further research into the most appropriate management of these patients in order to reduce this burden of pain and disability, particularly as this is a predominantly elderly patient group.</p

Antimicrobial Peptides and Skin: A Paradigm of Translational Medicine

Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are small, cationic, amphiphilic peptides with broad-spectrum microbicidal activity against both bacteria and fungi. In mammals, AMPs form the first line of host defense against infections and generally play an important role as effector agents of the innate immune system. The AMP era was born more than 6 decades ago when the first cationic cyclic peptide antibiotics, namely polymyxins and tyrothricin, found their way into clinical use. Due to the good clinical experience in the treatment of, for example, infections of mucus membranes as well as the subsequent understanding of mode of action, AMPs are now considered for treatment of inflammatory skin diseases and for improving healing of infected wounds. Based on the preclinical findings, including pathobiochemistry and molecular medicine, targeted therapy strategies are developed and first results indicate that AMPs influence processes of diseased skin. Importantly, in contrast to other antibiotics, AMPs do not seem to propagate the development of antibiotic-resistant micro-organisms. Therefore, AMPs should be tested in clinical trials for their efficacy and tolerability in inflammatory skin diseases and chronic wounds. Apart from possible fields of application, these peptides appear suited as an example of the paradigm of translational medicine for skin diseases which is today seen as a `two-way road' - from bench to bedside and backwards from bedside to bench. Copyright (c) 2012 S. Karger AG, Base