DETERMINATION DE LA VITESSE D'ECOULEMENT D'UN MILIEU GRANULAIRE PAR LA METHODE DE GALERKINE

The difficulties bound to the transport of the granular materials in the industry brought numerous authors to propose some models in order to control the out-flow of these materials. The works of POLDERMAN permit to determine the field of velocity of the out-flow in mass of the unalterable granular materials from a mathematical model based on hypothesis according to which the angle ψ between the major main axis of the constraint and the half angle θ at the summit of a conical hopper is a linear function of θ with the following form: ψ = C1θ . For a given value of the ray r, he determines the out-flow velocity of the continuity equation by means of the unknown velocity for ψ = 0. Using the approached solution of the continuity equation calculated by the GALERKINE method, we determine the absolute error depending of the unknown velocity. With the given approximation precision the constraint on the unknown velocity is calculated

Grand Challenges: Improving HIV Treatment Outcomes by Integrating Interventions for Co-Morbid Mental Illness.

In the fourth article of a five-part series providing a global perspective on integrating mental health, Sylvia Kaaya and colleagues discuss the importance of integrating mental health interventions into HIV prevention and treatment platforms. Please see later in the article for the Editors' Summary

FREE ORAL COMMUNICATIONS 2: ALCOHOL AND LIVER—CLINICAL RESEARCHO2.1RAPID DECLINE OF LIVER STIFFNESS WITH ALCOHOL WITHDRAWAL IN HEAVY DRINKERS

Background and aims. Measurement of liver stiffness using real-time elastography appears as a promising tool to evaluate the severity of chronic liver diseases. Previous studies in patients with alcoholic liver disease have suggested that fibrosis was the only histological parameter to influence liver stiffness. To challenge this hypothesis, we have prospectively tested the short-term impact of alcohol withdrawal on liver stiffness value. Methods. All patients hospitalized for alcohol withdrawal in our Liver Unit between September 2008 and December 2010 had a liver stiffness determination (using a FibroScan® device) at entry (D0) and 7 days after alcohol withdrawal (D7). Stiffness values were compared using non-parametric test for paired-values. We compared (i) the 10 measures performed at D0 and at D7 for each patient; (ii) the variation of the median result of all patients (using Wilcoxon test in both cases). Results. A total of 138 patients were included in the study [median alcohol consumption: 150g/day (range: 40-400); hepatitis C: n=22 (15.9%); cirrhosis: n=29 (21.0%)]. From D0 to D7, the liver stiffness decreased significantly in 61 patients (44.2%) and increased significantly in 18 (13.0%). Considering all patients, median liver stiffness value decreased from 7.25 to kPa (P<0.001). The stage of fibrosis indicated by liver stiffness changed in 47 patients between D0 and D7 (decrease in 33 and increase in 14). Conclusion. Liver stiffness decreases significantly in nearly half of alcoholic patients after only 7 days of abstinence. This result strongly suggests that non-fibrotic lesions (such as inflammatory ones) may influence liver stiffness. From a practical point of view, it also shows that variation in alcohol consumption must be taken into account for the interpretation of liver stiffness valu

Maternal HIV Illness and its Impact on Children’s Well-being and Development in Haiti

Little is known about the impact of parental HIV illness on children’s well-being and development in the island nations of the Caribbean. Study objectives were to examine mothers’ experiences of impact of HIV illness on their children’s well-being and development in Haiti. Baseline interviews were conducted between 2006 and 2007 with 25 HIV-positive mothers as part of a larger study that examined the feasibility of a psychosocial support group intervention for HIV-affected youth and their caregivers in central Haiti. Interviews were transcribed verbatim and coded for topical themes by two investigators. Main themes related to impact of maternal HIV illness on children’s well-being were the lack of mothers’ physical strength to take care of their children, and their difficulties in providing housing and food for their children. Children’s school enrollment, attendance, and performance were also affected by their mother’s illness. Mothers reported that although their children were HIV-negative, children were distressed by HIV-related stigma that they and their mothers experienced. Findings suggest that children living in HIV-affected families in this region face disadvantages in nutritional, educational, and psychological outcomes. These considerations should be taken into account when designing interventions to support children living in HIV-affected families in this setting

Disclosure and Impact of Maternal HIV+ Serostatus on Mothers and Children in Rural Haiti

Mothers living with HIV (MLWHs) in the United States have reported that one of their main challenges is the decision to disclose their HIV serostatus to their children and the potential consequences of their disclosure. Little is known about the experiences of MLWHs regarding disclosing their HIV serostatus to their children and the impact of maternal HIV disclosure in the island nations of the Caribbean. Study objectives were to identify the factors influencing maternal HIV disclosure, examine the breadth of maternal HIV disclosure, and understand the impact of disclosure on mothers and the children

Mental Health Response in Haiti in the Aftermath of the 2010 Earthquake: A Case Study for Building Long-Term Solutions

Significant challenges exist in providing safe, effective, and culturally sound mental health and psychosocial services when an unforeseen disaster strikes in a low-resource setting. We present here a case study describing the experience of a transnational team in expanding mental health and psychosocial services delivered by two health care organizations, one local (Zanmi Lasante) and one international (Partners in Health), acting collaboratively as part of the emergency response to the 2010 Haiti earthquake. In the year and a half following the earthquake, Zanmi Lasante and Partners in Health provided 20,000 documented individual and group appointments for mental health and psychosocial needs. During the delivery of disaster response services, the collaboration led to the development of a model to guide the expansion and scaling up of community-based mental health services in the Zanmi Lasante health care system over the long-term, with potential for broader scale-up in Haiti. This model identifies key skill packages and implementation rules for developing evidence-based pathways and algorithms for treating common mental disorders. Throughout the collaboration, efforts were made to coordinate planning with multiple organizations interested in supporting the development of mental health programs following the disaster, including national governmental bodies, nongovernmental organizations, universities, foreign academic medical centers, and corporations. The collaborative interventions are framed here in terms of four overarching categories of action: direct service delivery, research, training, and advocacy. This case study exemplifies the role of psychiatrists working in low-resource settings as public health program implementers and as members of multidisciplinary teams. (Harv Rev Psychiatry 2012;20:68–77.

Impaired decision-making and brain shrinkage in alcoholism

Alcohol-dependent individuals usually favor instant gratification of alcohol use and ignore its long-term negative consequences, reflecting impaired decision-making. According to the somatic marker hypothesis, decision-making abilities are subtended by an extended brain network. As chronic alcohol consumption is known to be associated with brain shrinkage in this network, the present study investigated relationships between brain shrinkage and decision-making impairments in alcohol-dependent individuals early in abstinence using voxel-based morphometry. Thirty patients performed the Iowa Gambling Task and underwent a magnetic resonance imaging investigation (1.5T). Decision-making performances and brain data were compared with those of age-matched healthy controls. In the alcoholic group, a multiple regression analysis was conducted with two predictors (gray matter [GM] volume and decision-making measure) and two covariates (number of withdrawals and duration of alcoholism). Compared with controls, alcoholics had impaired decision-making and widespread reduced gray matter volume, especially in regions involved in decision-making. The regression analysis revealed links between high GM volume in the ventromedial prefrontal cortex, dorsal anterior cingulate cortex and right hippocampal formation, and high decision-making scores (P&lt;0.001, uncorrected). Decision-making deficits in alcoholism may result from impairment of both emotional and cognitive networks

Classic and recent advances in understanding amnesia

Neurological amnesia has been and remains the focus of intense study, motivated by the drive to understand typical and atypical memory function and the underlying brain basis that is involved. There is now a consensus that amnesia associated with hippocampal (and, in many cases, broader medial temporal lobe) damage results in deficits in episodic memory, delayed recall, and recollective experience. However, debate continues regarding the patterns of preservation and impairment across a range of abilities, including semantic memory and learning, delayed recognition, working memory, and imagination. This brief review highlights some of the influential and recent advances in these debates and what they may tell us about the amnesic condition and hippocampal function

Motor Agency: A New and Highly Sensitive Measure to Reveal Agency Disturbances in Early Psychosis

Background: Early diagnosis of young adults at risk of schizophrenia is essential for preventive approaches of the illness. Nevertheless, classic screening instruments are difficult to use because of the non-specific nature of the signs at this preonset phase of illness. The objective of the present contribution was to propose an innovating test that can probe the more specific symptom of psychosis, i.e., the sense of agency, which is defined as being the immediate experience of oneself as the cause of an action. More specifically, we tested whether motor agency is abnormal in early psychosis. Methods: Thirty-two young symptomatic patients and their age-matched controls participated in the study. 15 of these patients were at ultra high-risk for developing psychosis (UHR), and 17 patients were suffering from first-episode psychosis (FEP). Patients ’ neurocognitive capacities were assessed through the use of seven neuropsychological tests. A motor agency task was also introduced to obtain an objective indicator of the degree of sense of agency, by contrasting force levels applied during other and self-produced collisions between a hand-held objet and a pendulum. Results: As reported in the literature for adult controls, healthy adolescents used more efficient force levels in self than in other-imposed collisions. For both UHR and FEP patients, abnormally high levels of grip force were used for self-produced collisions, leading to an absence of difference between self and other. The normalized results revealed that motor agency differentiated patients from controls with a higher level of sensitivity than the more classic neuropsychological test battery

Parallel assessment of male reproductive function in workers and wild rats exposed to pesticides in banana plantations in Guadeloupe

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>There is increasing evidence that reproductive abnormalities are increasing in frequency in both human population and among wild fauna. This increase is probably related to exposure to toxic contaminants in the environment. The use of sentinel species to raise alarms relating to human reproductive health has been strongly recommended. However, no simultaneous studies at the same site have been carried out in recent decades to evaluate the utility of wild animals for monitoring human reproductive disorders. We carried out a joint study in Guadeloupe assessing the reproductive function of workers exposed to pesticides in banana plantations and of male wild rats living in these plantations.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A cross-sectional study was performed to assess semen quality and reproductive hormones in banana workers and in men working in non-agricultural sectors. These reproductive parameters were also assessed in wild rats captured in the plantations and were compared with those in rats from areas not directly polluted by humans.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>No significant difference in sperm characteristics and/or hormones was found between workers exposed and not exposed to pesticide. By contrast, rats captured in the banana plantations had lower testosterone levels and gonadosomatic indices than control rats.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Wild rats seem to be more sensitive than humans to the effects of pesticide exposure on reproductive health. We conclude that the concept of sentinel species must be carefully validated as the actual nature of exposure may varies between human and wild species as well as the vulnerable time period of exposure and various ecological factors.</p