Do dynamic ankle foot orthotics (DAFO) improve gait in pediatric patients with spastic diplegic cerebral palsy (CP)?

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this selective EBM review is to determine whether or not dynamic ankle foot orthotics (DAFO) improve gait in pediatric patients with spastic diplegic cerebral palsy (CP). STUDY DESIGN: Review of two randomized controlled trials with crossover from 2009 and 2015 and one blinded randomized controlled trial from 2006. DATA SOURCES: All articles were presented in English and were taken from peer reviewed sources using PubMed and Google Scholar. All articles were published between 2006-2016. OUTCOMES: Outcomes of investigation measured are quantitative walking velocity measured via gait analysis and functional ability during ambulation using the Gross Motor Function Measurement-88 scoring system. RESULTS: Wren et al found that there was a statistically significant increase in walking velocity while wearing DAFOs when compared to walking barefoot and also with different type of ankle foot orthoses. Bjornson et al found statistically significant improvements in the Gross Motor Function Measurement-88 scores when wearing DAFOs than when barefoot or wearing a simulated placebo device. Smith et al. found overall improvements in gait while wearing DAFOs and an increase in velocity after consistent month-long use of DAFOs, but the increase was not statistically significant. CONCLUSIONS: These three studies show that DAFOs provide tangible benefit to individuals with spastic diplegic cerebral palsy. All 3 studies showed overall gait or functional improvements in those wearing dynamic ankle foot orthotics when compared against either themselves or age-matched controls regardless of the length of time the devices were worn with 2 of the studies showing statistically significant results. Further research can help to further clarify the efficacy of DAFOs within the pediatric population as a whole

Pengunduhan Ilegal Musik Digital (Mp3) Melalui Jasa Layanan Internet Sebagai Dari Hak Cipta

Masalah pelanggaran hak cipta sampai sekarang masih marak terjadi. Salah satu contoh paling signifikan yang bisa kita temui zaman ini adalah pengunduhan illegal musik digital melalui layanan internet, dalam hal ini MP3 ( Motion Picture Layer III ) yang merupakan bukti perkembangan zaman yang semakin pesat. Semakin banyaknya konten gratis di internet yang memudahkan para pengguna internet bisa dengan mudah mengunduh MP3 tanpa melihat kerugian yang dialami oleh yang menciptakan lagu. Hukum hak cipta yang berlaku di berbagai Negara mencoba untuk melakukan tindakan preventif pengunduhan illegal yang semakin lama semakin meningkat. Di Indonesia sendiri, perbuatan pengunduhan illegal semakin meningkat seiring berjalannya waktu. Dalam satu detik, 92 lagu Indonesia diunduh secara ilegal. Dalam sebulan, sekitar 237 juta lagu yang diunduh secara ilegal. Adapun lagu yang diunduh secara legal dalam setahun hanya 15 juta lagu

Convex politopes and quantum separability

We advance a novel perspective of the entanglement issue that appeals to the Schlienz-Mahler measure [Phys. Rev. A 52, 4396 (1995)]. Related to it, we propose an criterium based on the consideration of convex subsets of quantum states. This criterium generalizes a property of product states to convex subsets (of the set of quantum-states) that is able to uncover a new geometrical property of the separability property

Idiosyncratic Responses of Seagrass Phenolic Production Following Sea Urchin Grazing

While chemical defenses can determine plant persistence in terrestrial ecosystems and some marine macroalgae, their role in determining seagrass persistence in areas of intense grazing is unknown. As a first step toward determining if concentrations of feeding deterrents in seagrasses increase following herbivore attacks, we conducted 4 experiments using a common macrograzer (sea urchin Lytechinus variegatus) and 2 phylogenetically divergent seagrass species (Thalassia testudinum and Halodule wrightii). Macrograzer impacts on production of phenolic acids and condensed tannins varied somewhat idiosyncratically with season, urchin density, and distance from urchin damage. In general, phenolic concentrations were higher in both turtlegrass and shoalgrass in summer than in fall. Grazing led to increased condensed tannin concentrations in T. testudinum but had few effects on turtlegrass phenolic acid concentrations. Turtlegrass p-hydroxybenzoic acid concentrations increased locally in the grazed area and in areas \u3e2 cm above grazing. Similarly, condensed tannins in grazed H. wrightii leaves increased with urchin density in summer but decreased in fall while having few predictable effects on phenolic acid concentrations. Shoalgrass gallic acid concentrations increased in the lowest portions of grazed leaves. In choice feeding experiments in which urchins were offered agar food made with nighand low-phenolic seagrass tissue, high phenolic concentrations did not reduce urchin feeding, suggesting that the increases in phenolic concentrations we saw in turtlegrass and shoalgrass did not protect these plants against future sea urchin herbivory but rather some other factor, such as mesograzer feeding or pathogenic infection

Seagrass Deterrence to Mesograzer Herbivory: Evidence from Mesocosm Experiments and Feeding Preference Trials

Two laboratory experiments documented the effects of mesograzers (i.e. the gastropod Crepidula ustulatulina and the isopod Paracerceis caudata) on phenolic acid and condensed tannin production in 2 regionally abundant seagrasses—Thalassia testudinum (turtlegrass) and Halodule wrightii (shoalgrass). Subsequent paired choice experiments tested the hypothesis that phenolic acids and condensed tannins produced by these seagrasses deter mesograzer feeding. At the scale of the shoot, grazing by gastropods and isopods led to ~40 to 50% decreases in concentrations of some phenolic acids and ~20% decreases in condensed tannins in turtlegrass leaves. At a more refined spatial scale, concentrations of 2 of these compounds increased by 25 to 85% in areas near tissues damaged by C. ustulatulina and P. caudata in turtlegrass. In contrast, isopod feeding increased the concentrations of some shoalgrass phenolic acids by ~30 to 50%, while gastropod grazing led to ~25 to 50% higher concentrations of condensed tannins in shoalgrass leaves, suggesting that grazer identity and seagrass species play important roles in seagrass deterrent production. Amphipods (Batea catharinensis) consistently preferred agar food made from seagrass leaves with low phenolic concentrations in choice feeding experiments, indicating that phenolics can act as feeding deterrents to these mesograzers

Theorizing Blue-Collar Response to Imposed Technological Change

A study was conducted at twelve manufacturing facilities. The data from this study indicated the response of blue-collar workers to imposed technological change can be conceptualized as having seven factors: Disgruntlement, Job-security concerns, Accommodation, Informal learning, Resistance, Discussion, and Formal learning. Cluster analysis of the data identified three types of blue collar workers: Complainers, Team players, and Loners. In this study, membership in the Team players cluster increased as a function of age

Canagliflozin for the Treatment of Diabetic Kidney Disease and Implications for Clinical Practice: A Narrative Review

Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) affects millions of people worldwide, elevating their risk of developing a range of complications, including chronic kidney disease (CKD). People with T2DM and CKD (i.e., diabetic kidney disease, DKD) have an increased risk of progressing to end-stage kidney disease (ESKD), experiencing cardiovascular complications, and premature death. Despite this, DKD is primarily addressed through management of risk factors, and there are few pharmaceutical treatments capable of reversing or delaying disease progression. Canagliflozin is a sodium glucose co-transporter 2 inhibitor that was initially developed as a blood glucose-lowering agent for people with T2DM. Evidence from clinical trials of canagliflozin in people with T2DM, as well as evidence from cardiovascular outcomes trials in people with T2DM and high cardiovascular risk, provided preliminary evidence suggesting that it may also have beneficial renal effects. The Canagliflozin and Renal Events in Diabetes with Established Nephropathy Clinical Evaluation (CREDENCE) trial was a dedicated renal outcomes trial of canagliflozin that assessed its renal effects in people with DKD. Overall, the CREDENCE trial demonstrated that canagliflozin improves renal outcomes and slows early disease progression in people with DKD. These data supported the approval of canagliflozin for the treatment DKD, the first new treatment in almost 20 years; therefore, it is important for clinicians to understand how to implement this treatment in their clinical practice

Collaborative user-centred textile design research for healthcare: improving wellbeing and increasing performance

It has been widely acknowledged that collaboration across disciplines is required in order to develop innovative, sustainable textile solutions that address complex societal problems (Kane & Philpott, 2013; Igoe, 2010). Potential to develop life-changing innovations in the field of advanced textiles for medical and healthcare has been identified as a key growth sector within Scotland, with collaborative cross- disciplinary user-focused design approaches recognised as central to developing new concepts that address human needs (Malins et al. 2012). This paper describes three feasibility studies undertaken by the Textiles programme at the University of Dundee between 2012–2014; collaborative design-led research projects that supported local medical and health care companies by providing key expertise in textile design, functional clothing design methodologies and user-centred processes for design-led innovation. Analysis and discussion focuses on understanding the challenges and benefits of collaborative research between academia and local enterprise to textile design innovation, local economy, society, and education

Transparent soil for imaging the rhizosphere

Understanding of soil processes is essential for addressing the global issues of food security, disease transmission and climate change. However, techniques for observing soil biology are lacking. We present a heterogeneous, porous, transparent substrate for in situ 3D imaging of living plants and root-associated microorganisms using particles of the transparent polymer, Nafion, and a solution with matching optical properties. Minerals and fluorescent dyes were adsorbed onto the Nafion particles for nutrient supply and imaging of pore size and geometry. Plant growth in transparent soil was similar to that in soil. We imaged colonization of lettuce roots by the human bacterial pathogen Escherichia coli O157:H7 showing micro-colony development. Micro-colonies may contribute to bacterial survival in soil. Transparent soil has applications in root biology, crop genetics and soil microbiology

Magnetic field effects in ∏-conjugated polymer-fullerene blends: evidence for multiple components

Journal ArticleWe studied magnetoconductance (MC) and magnetoelectroluminescence (MEL) in organic diodes from blends of ∏-conjugated polymers and fullerenes at various concentrations, c. The MC response is composed of several components that depend on the applied bias voltage and c. A dominant positive low-field (LF) component, which also governs the MEL response, dramatically decreases and broadens in the blends, thus unraveling a positive high-field and negative LF components. The positive MC components are caused by electrostatically bound e-h polaron pairs in unblended devices, and charge transfer pairs in the blends, which are dominated by two different field-induced spin sublevel mixing mechanisms. In contrast, the negative LF response is due to e-e and h-h pairs; this is confirmed by studying MC in electron- and hole-unipolar devices, which lack positive MC response