Mercury-Arc Convertors and Cognate Problems

In this paper in addition to certain novel investigations the efficiency, power factor and voltage regulation of mercury-arc convertors are discussed and test results on a 6-kW set are given. These standard results are needed fro reference, etc. In practice many different rectifier circuits are employed, some of which operate in a complicated manner. Such circuits are avoided in the first part of this paper and the performance of one of the simplest arrangements is dealt with. Later some of the more complicated circuits are discussed

Adjunctive strategies in the management of resistant, 'undilatable' coronary lesions after successfully crossing a CTO with a guidewire.

Successful revascularisation of chronic total occlusions (CTOs) remains one of the greatest challenges in the era of contemporary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Such lesions are encountered with increasing frequency in current clinical practice. A predictable increase in the future burden of CTO management can be anticipated given the ageing population, increased rates of renal failure, graft failure and diabetes mellitus. Given recent advances and developments in CTO PCI management, successful recanalisation can be anticipated in the majority of procedures undertaken at high-volume centres when performed by expert operators. Despite advances in device technology, the management of resistant, calcific lesions remains one of the greatest challenges in successful CTO intervention. Established techniques to modify calcific lesions include the use of high-pressure non-compliant balloon dilation, cutting-balloons, anchor balloons and high speed rotational atherectomy (HSRA). Novel approaches have proven to be safe and technically feasible where standard approaches have failed. A step-wise progression of strategies is demonstrated, from well-recognised techniques to techniques that should only be considered when standard manoeuvres have proven unsuccessful. These methods will be described in the setting of clinical examples and include use of very high-pressure non-compliant balloon dilation, intentional balloon rupture with vessel dissection or balloon assisted micro-dissection (BAM), excimer coronary laser atherectomy (ECLA) and use of HSRA in various 'offlabel' settings

Telling partners about chlamydia: how acceptable are the new technologies?

BACKGROUND Partner notification is accepted as a vital component in the control of chlamydia. However, in reality, many sexual partners of individuals diagnosed with chlamydia are never informed of their risk. The newer technologies of email and SMS have been used as a means of improving partner notification rates. This study explored the use and acceptability of different partner notification methods to help inform the development of strategies and resources to increase the number of partners notified. METHODS Semi-structured telephone interviews were conducted with 40 people who were recently diagnosed with chlamydia from three sexual health centres and two general practices across three Australian jurisdictions. RESULTS Most participants chose to contact their partners either in person (56%) or by phone (44%). Only 17% chose email or SMS. Participants viewed face-to-face as the "gold standard" in partner notification because it demonstrated caring, respect and courage. Telephone contact, while considered insensitive by some, was often valued because it was quick, convenient and less confronting. Email was often seen as less personal while SMS was generally considered the least acceptable method for telling partners. There was also concern that emails and SMS could be misunderstood, not taken seriously or shown to others. Despite these, email and SMS were seen to be appropriate and useful in some circumstances. Letters, both from the patients or from their doctor, were viewed more favourably but were seldom used. CONCLUSION These findings suggest that many people diagnosed with chlamydia are reluctant to use the new technologies for partner notification, except in specific circumstances, and our efforts in developing partner notification resources may best be focused on giving patients the skills and confidence for personal interaction.The study was funded by the Australian Federal Government Department of Health and Ageing Chlamydia Pilot Program of Targeted Grants

What needs to change to increase chlamydia screening in general practice in Australia? The views of general practitioners

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Australia is considering implementing a chlamydia screening program in general practice. The views of general practitioners (GPs) are necessary to inform the design of the program. This paper aimed to investigate Australian GPs' views on how chlamydia screening could work in the Australian context.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>This project used both qualitative interviews and a quantitative questionnaire. GPs were randomly selected from a national database of medical practitioners for both the qualitative and quantitative components. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with GPs and a thematic analysis conducted. The results of the interviews were used to design a quantitative postal questionnaire for completion by a larger sample of GPs. Up to three reminders were sent to non-responders.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Twenty one GPs completed an interview and 255 completed the postal questionnaire. The results of the postal survey were in strong concordance with those of the interview. GPs identified a number of barriers to increased screening including lack of time, knowledge of GPs and the public about chlamydia, patient embarrassment and support for partner notification. GPs felt strongly that screening would be easier if there was a national program and if the public and GPs had a greater knowledge about chlamydia. Incentive payments and mechanisms for recall and reminders would facilitate screening. Greater support for contact tracing would be important if screening is to increase.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Chlamydia screening in general practice is acceptable to Australian GPs. If screening is to succeed, policy makers must consider the facilitators identified by GPs.</p

Interventions for increasing chlamydia screening in primary care: a review

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Despite guidelines recommending opportunistic chlamydia screening of younger women, screening rates in some countries remain low. Our aim was to review the evidence for specific interventions aimed at increasing chlamydia screening rates in primary care.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A Medline search was conducted for controlled trials that assessed the effectiveness of interventions aimed at improving chlamydia screening rates in primary health care settings. The Medline search was done for studies in English published prior to December 2005 using the following key words: chlamydia, screening, intervention, primary care and GPs. In addition, the references cited in the articles were reviewed. Studies in English published prior to December 2005 were reviewed.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Four controlled studies met the inclusion criteria – 3 were randomized studies and one was not. Strategies to increase screening rates included the use of educational packages targeting primary care physicians and the correction of barriers to screening within clinic systems. In 3 studies, the intervention was associated with an increase in screening rates of between 100% and 276% (p < 0.04). In the fourth study, the intervention was associated with a significant attenuation in declining screening rates over time (4% versus 34% decline, p = 0.04).</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>There are only a limited number of randomized or controlled studies that demonstrate improved chlamydia screening of younger women in primary care.</p

Gebruik van aanvullend onderwijs op basisschool niet ongelijk verdeeld

Hervorming Sociale Regelgevin

NEXAFS and XPS of p-Aminobenzoic Acid Polymorphs: The Influence of Local Environment

Nitrogen K-edge XPS and NEXAFS of the two polymorphic forms of para- aminobenzoic acid (PABA) are significantly different reflecting variation in hydrogen bonding. Alteration in hydrogen bonding at the amino group leads to a shift to high energy for both the XPS N 1s core level and the 3π* NEXAFS resonance with β-PABA. Participation of the amine group in the aromatic system causes the 1π* resonance to be sensitive to the nature of the intermolecular bonding at the para-carboxylic acid group, and a shift to low energy for α- PABA is observed due to hydrogen-bonded carboxylic acid dimer formation. FEFF calculations also successfully reproduce both the energy and intensity variations observed for the σ* shape resonance associated with the C-N bond, with the majority of the decrease in energy observed for b-PABA arising from the longer C-N bond

HIGH-LEVEL APPLICATION FRAMEWORK FOR LCLS*

each other easily. Also, many components such as Help, A framework for high level accelerator application Search, Cut, Copy and Paste are seamlessly integrated software is being developed for the Linac Coherent Light through the Eclipse framework. Source (LCLS). The framework is based on plug-in technology developed by an open source project, Eclipse. Many existing functionalities provided by Eclipse are available to high-level applications written within this framework. The framework also contains static data storage configuration and dynamic data connectivity. Because the framework is Eclipse-based, it is highly compatible with any other Eclipse plug-ins. The entire infrastructure of the software framework will be presented. Planned applications and plug-ins based on the framework are also presented

Estimation of the impact of changing drug-use trend on HIV, hepatitis C and syphilis epidemics among people who use synthetic drug-only, polydrug and heroin-only during 2005-2035 in China: Modelling study

Objective The rapid expansion of the recreational drug market becomes a global health concern. It is worrying that the bacterial and viral infection epidemics linking to drug use may worsen accordingly. This study aimed to estimate the impacts of changing trend and behaviours of using heroin only, synthetic drug (SD) only and polydrug (using SD and heroin concurrently) on HIV, hepatitis C virus (HCV) and syphilis epidemics among people who use drugs in China by 2035. Methods We constructed a compartmental model to estimate HIV, HCV and syphilis epidemics in the dynamic drug-use trend by three scenarios: SD-only use, heroin-only use and polydrug use based on Monte Carlo simulations. The parameters for the model were collected from a comprehensive literature search. Results Our model estimated that polydrug use led to the highest HIV and HCV prevalence among three drug-use patterns. The prevalences were projected to increase from 10.9% (95% CI 10.2% to 11.5%) and 61.7% (95% CI 59.4% to 62.5%) in 2005 to 19.0% (95% CI 17.3% to 20.7%) and 69.1% (95% CI 67.3% to 69.5%), respectively, in 2035 among people using polydrug. Similarly, HIV and HCV prevalence in the SD-only group were projected to increase from 0.4% (95% CI 0.3% to 0.4%) and 19.5% (95% CI 19.4% to 21.7%) to 1.8% (95% CI 1.4 to 2.1%) and 33.7% (95% CI 33.2% to 34.9%) in 2005-2035. Conversely, HIV prevalence in the heroin-only group was projected to decrease from 8.0% (95% CI 7.6% to 8.1%) to 2.2% (95% CI 2.0% to 2.3%) in 2005-2035. Syphilis prevalence was estimated to remain unchanged in all population groups within this time frame. It was projected that the proportion of HIV transmitted by sexual transmission will increase compared with unsafe injection transmission in all people who use drugs from 2005 to 2035. Conclusion Our modelling suggests that polydrug use is projected to lead to the highest HIV and HCV disease burden by 2035, and the proportion of HIV transmitted by sexual transmission will increase. Current HIV intervention among people using heroin seems effective according to our estimation