New Psychoactive Substances in the Homeless Population: A Cross-Sectional Study in the United Kingdom

The last few years have seen the emergence of new psychoactive substance among the homeless population, specifically synthetic cannabinoid receptor agonists. The purpose of this study is to investigate the knowledge and experiences of new psychoactive substances amongst users from the homeless population. An explanatory research design was applied using a semi-structured questionnaire with the focus on gaining insights on the prevalence, motivations and effects. Participants were recruited through convenience sampling from support organisations and charities UK-wide. Descriptive statistics and logistic regression were applied to analyse the data obtained from participant surveys. A total of 105 participants met the inclusion criteria and were in the age range of 18 to 64 years old. Almost 70% consumed new psychoactive substance products, which “Spice” was the most prevalent substance. Homeless users had consumed new psychoactive substance to escape reality and to self-treat themselves and stopped consumption due to the adverse effects. Adverse events were reported from the majority of the participants and led to more than 20% of the participants requiring medical treatment following hospitalisation. Findings from this study can contribute to the development of guidelines and policies that specifically address the needs of the homeless population who use new psychoactive substances

Analysis of latent fingerprint constituents: A systematic review of quantitative studies

Abstract Fingermark identification has significance in forensic science, particularly in the processing of crime scene evidence. The majority of literature focused on physical interpretation of fingermarks with limited studies relating to chemical analysis. This systematic review investigated prospective studies dealing with the analysis of latent fingermark constituents. Studies included were those concerned with the analysis of intrinsic organic constituents present in latent fingerprints. Studies with no clear procedure were excluded. Data from the studies were exported into SPSS v22 (IBM, Armonk, NY, USA) where descriptive statistics were applied. The data extraction yielded 19 studies related to identification of lipids (n = 66) and/or amino acids (n =27) in latent fingermarks. The primary lipid identified was squalene and the major amino acids included: alanine, glycine, leucine, lysine, and serine. For identification of the aforementioned constituents both chromatographic and spectroscopic techniques of which the main technique was gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. Prior to analysis, the majority of studies involved collection of fingermarks from both hands at room temperature. Deposition was done on different substrates of which the main were glass, Mylar strips, aluminium sheets or paper. In conclusion, chemical analysis of latent fingermarks enabled identifying key biomarkers of individual that could serve as complementary evidence in crime scene investigation

New Psychoactive Substances in the Homeless Population: A Cross-Sectional Study in the United Kingdom

The last few years have seen the emergence of new psychoactive substance among the homeless population, specifically synthetic cannabinoid receptor agonists. The purpose of this study is to investigate the knowledge and experiences of new psychoactive substances amongst users from the homeless population. An explanatory research design was applied using a semi-structured questionnaire with the focus on gaining insights on the prevalence, motivations and effects. Participants were recruited through convenience sampling from support organisations and charities UK-wide. Descriptive statistics and logistic regression were applied to analyse the data obtained from participant surveys. A total of 105 participants met the inclusion criteria and were in the age range of 18 to 64 years old. Almost 70% consumed new psychoactive substance products, which “Spice” was the most prevalent substance. Homeless users had consumed new psychoactive substance to escape reality and to self-treat themselves and stopped consumption due to the adverse effects. Adverse events were reported from the majority of the participants and led to more than 20% of the participants requiring medical treatment following hospitalisation. Findings from this study can contribute to the development of guidelines and policies that specifically address the needs of the homeless population who use new psychoactive substances

Prevalence and risk factors for impaired kidney function in the district of Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka: a cross-sectional population-representative survey in those at risk of chronic kidney disease of unknown aetiology

BACKGROUND: Over the last 20 years there have been reports of a form of chronic kidney disease of unknown cause (CKDu) affecting rural communities in the North Central Province of Sri Lanka. Valid prevalence estimates, using a standardised methodology, are needed to assess the burden of disease, assess secular trends, and perform international comparisons. METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional representative population survey in five study areas with different expected prevalences of CKDu. We used a proxy definition of CKDu involving a single measure of impaired kidney function (eGFR< 60 mL/min/1.7m2, using the CKD-Epi formula) in the absence of hypertension, diabetes or heavy proteinuria. RESULTS: A total of 4803 participants (88.7%) took part in the study and 202 (6.0%; 95% CI 5.2-6.8) had a low eGFR in the absence of hypertension, diabetes and heavy proteinuria and hence met the criteria for proxy CKDu. The proportion of males (11.2%; 95% CI 9.2-13.1) were triple than the females (3.7%; 95% CI 2.9-4.5). Advancing age and history of CKD among parents or siblings were risk factors for low GFR among both males and females while smoking was found to be a risk factor among males. CONCLUSIONS: These data, collected using a standardised methodology demonstrate a high prevalence of impaired kidney function, not due to known causes of kidney disease, in the selected study areas of the Anuradhapura district of Sri Lanka. The aetiology of CKDu in Sri Lanka remains unclear and there is a need for longitudinal studies to describe the natural history and to better characterise risk factors for the decline in kidney function

Livelihood and vulnerability in the wake of Typhoon Yolanda: lessons of community and resilience

Livelihood strategies that are crafted in ‘extra-ordinary’ post-disaster conditions should also be able to function once some semblance of normalcy has resumed. This article aims to show that the vulnerability experienced in relation to Typhoon Yolanda was, and continues to be, directly linked to inadequate livelihood assets and opportunities. We examine the extent to which various livelihood strategies lessened vulnerability post-Typhoon Yolanda and argue that creating conditions under which disaster survivors have the freedom to pursue sustainable livelihood is essential in order to foster resilience and reduce vulnerability against future disasters. We offer suggestions to improve future relief efforts, including suggestions made by the survivors themselves. We caution against rehabilitation strategies that knowingly or unknowingly, resurrect pre-disaster vulnerability. Strategies that foster dependency, fail to appreciate local political or ecological conditions or undermine cooperation and cohesion in already vulnerable communities will be bound to fail. Some of the livelihood strategies that we observed post-Typhoon Yolanda failed on some or all of these points. It is important for future policy that these failings are addressed

Delivery of chlamydia screening to young women requesting emergency hormonal contraception at pharmacies in Manchester, UK: a prospective study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>More women are requesting Emergency Hormonal Contraception (EHC) at pharmacies where screening for <it>Chlamydia trachomatis </it>is not routinely offered. The objective of this study was to assess the uptake of free postal chlamydia screening by women under 25 years who requested EHC at pharmacies in Manchester, UK.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Six Primary Care Trusts (PCTs) that had contracted with pharmacies to provide free EHC, requested the largest EHC providers (≥ 40 doses annually) to also offer these clients a coded chlamydia home testing kit. Pharmacies kept records of the ages and numbers of women who accepted or refused chlamydia kits. Women sent urine samples directly to the laboratory for testing and positive cases were notified. Audit data on EHC coverage was obtained from PCTs to assess the proportion of clients eligible for screening and to verify the uptake rate.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>33 pharmacies participated. Audit data for 131 pharmacy months indicated that only 24.8% (675/2718) of women provided EHC were also offered chlamydia screening. Based on tracking forms provided by pharmacies for the whole of the study, 1348/2904 EHC clients (46.4%) who had been offered screening accepted a screening kit. 264 (17.6%) of those who accepted a kit returned a sample, of whom 24 (9.1%) were chlamydia-positive. There was an increase in chlamydia positivity with age (OR: 1.2 per year; 1.04 to 1.44; p = 0.015).</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Chlamydia screening for EHC pharmacy clients is warranted but failure of pharmacists to target all EHC clients represented a missed opportunity for treating a well defined high-risk group.</p

Chlamydia trachomatis Incidence and Re-Infection among Young Women – Behavioural and Microbiological Characteristics

This study aimed to estimate rates of chlamydia incidence and re-infection and to investigate the dynamics of chlamydia organism load in prevalent, incident and re-infections among young Australian women.1,116 women aged 16 to 25 years were recruited from primary care clinics in Australia. Vaginal swabs were collected at 3 to 6 month intervals for chlamydia testing. Chlamydia organism load was measured by quantitative PCR.There were 47 incident cases of chlamydia diagnosed and 1,056.34 person years of follow up with a rate of 4.4 per 100 person years (95% CI: 3.3, 5.9). Incident infection was associated with being aged 16 to 20 years [RR = 3.7 (95%CI: 1.9, 7.1)], being employed [RR = 2.4 (95%CI: 1.1, 4.9)] and having two or more new sex partners [RR = 5.5 (95%CI: 2.6, 11.7)]. Recent antibiotic use was associated with a reduced incidence [RR:0.1 (95%CI: 0.0, 0.5)]. There were 14 re-infections with a rate of 22.3 per 100 person years (95%CI: 13.2, 37.6). The median time to re-infection was 4.6 months. Organism load was higher for prevalent than incident infections (p<0.01) and for prevalent than re-infections (p<0.01).Chlamydia is common among young women and a high proportion of women are re-infected within a short period of time, highlighting the need for effective partner treatment and repeat testing. The difference in organism load between prevalent and incident infections suggests prevalent infection may be more important for ongoing transmission of chlamydia

Microbial community structure elucidates performance of Glyceria maxima plant microbial fuel cell

The plant microbial fuel cell (PMFC) is a technology in which living plant roots provide electron donor, via rhizodeposition, to a mixed microbial community to generate electricity in a microbial fuel cell. Analysis and localisation of the microbial community is necessary for gaining insight into the competition for electron donor in a PMFC. This paper characterises the anode–rhizosphere bacterial community of a Glyceria maxima (reed mannagrass) PMFC. Electrochemically active bacteria (EAB) were located on the root surfaces, but they were more abundant colonising the graphite granular electrode. Anaerobic cellulolytic bacteria dominated the area where most of the EAB were found, indicating that the current was probably generated via the hydrolysis of cellulose. Due to the presence of oxygen and nitrate, short-chain fatty acid-utilising denitrifiers were the major competitors for the electron donor. Acetate-utilising methanogens played a minor role in the competition for electron donor, probably due to the availability of graphite granules as electron acceptors