Antimicrobial-Drug Prescription in Ambulatory Care Settings, United States, 1992–2000

During the 1990s, as antimicrobial resistance increased among pneumococci, many organizations promoted appropriate antimicrobial use to combat resistance. We analyzed data from the National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey, an annual sample survey of visits to office-based physicians, and the National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey, an annual sample survey of visits to hospital emergency and outpatient departments, to describe trends in antimicrobial prescribing from 1992 to 2000 in the United States. Approximately 1,100–1,900 physicians reported data from 21,000–37,000 visits; 200–300 outpatient departments reported data for 28,000–35,000 visits; ~400 emergency departments reported data for 21,000–36,000 visits each year. In that period, the population- and visit-based antimicrobial prescribing rates in ambulatory care settings decreased by 23% and 25%, respectively, driven largely by a decrease in prescribing by office-based physicians. Antimicrobial prescribing rates changed as follows: amoxicillin and ampicillin, –43%; cephalosporins, –28%; erythromycin, –76%; azithromycin and clarithromycin, +388%; quinolones, +78%; and amoxicillin/clavulanate, +72%. This increasing use of azithromycin, clarithromycin, and quinolones warrants concern as macrolide- and fluoroquinolone-resistant pneumococci are increasing

Scheme dependence of NLO corrections to exclusive processes

We apply the so-called conformal subtraction scheme to predict perturbatively exclusive processes beyond leading order. Taking into account evolution effects, we study the scheme dependence for the photon-to-pion transition form factor and the electromagnetic pion form factor at next-to-leading order for different pion distribution amplitudes. Relying on the conformally covariant operator product expansion and using the known higher order results for polarized deep inelastic scattering, we are able to predict perturbative corrections to the hard-scattering amplitude of the photon-to-pion transition form factor beyond next-to-leading order in the conformal scheme restricted to the conformal limit of the theory.Comment: RevTeX, 25 pages, 2 figures, 5 tables, minor changes, to be published in Phys. Rev.

Complete next-to-leading order perturbative QCD prediction for the pion electromagnetic form factor

We present the results of a complete leading-twist next-to-leading order (NLO) QCD analysis of the spacelike pion electromagnetic form factor at large momentum transfer Q. We have studied their dependence on the form of the pion distribution amplitude. For a given distribution amplitude, we have examined the sensitivity of the predictions to the choice of the renormalization and factorization scales. Theoretical uncertainty of the LO results related to the renormalization scale ambiguity has been significantly reduced by including the NLO corrections. Adopting the criteria according to which a NLO prediction is considered reliable if, both, the ratio of the NLO to LO contributions and the strong coupling constant are reasonably small, we find that reliable perturbative predictions for the pion electromagnetic form factor with all distribution amplitudes considered can already be made at a momentum transfer Q<10 GeV, with corrections to the LO results being typically of the order of ~ 20%. To check our predictions and to discriminate between the distribution amplitudes, it is necessary to obtain experimental data extending to higher values of Q.Comment: 39 pages, RevTex, 17 figures included; revised version (an error in the analytical expression for T_H corrected, numerical results correspondigly modified; presentation of the results modified to some extent and some points discussed in more detail after referees reports

Current challenges and opportunities in the care of patients with fibrodysplasia ossificans progressiva (FOP): an international, multi-stakeholder perspective

Background Fibrodysplasia ossificans progressiva (FOP) is an ultra-rare, disabling genetic disorder characterized by congenital malformations of the great toes and progressive heterotopic ossification of soft and connective tissues. Assiduous attention to the unmet needs of this patient community is crucial to prevent potential iatrogenic harm and optimize care for individuals with FOP. Objective To gather international expert opinion and real-world experience on the key challenges for individuals with FOP and their families, highlight critical gaps in care, communication, and research, and provide recommendations for improvement. Methods An international group of expert clinicians, patients and patient advocates, caregivers and representatives from the international FOP community participated in a virtual, half-day meeting on 22 March 2021 to discuss the key unmet needs of individuals with FOP. Results Individuals with FOP often face the frustration of long diagnostic journeys, the burden of self-advocacy and the navigation of novel care pathways. Globally, patients with FOP are also confronted with inequities in access to diagnosis and specialist care, and consequently, unequal access to registries, clinical trials, and essential support from patient associations. Organizations such as the International FOP Association, the International Clinical Council on FOP, and national FOP organizations work to provide information, facilitate access to expert clinical guidance, nurture patient empowerment, fund FOP research and/or foster meaningful collaborations with the research community. The non-profit Tin Soldiers Global FOP Patient Search program aims to identify and provide a pathway to diagnosis and care for individuals with FOP, particularly in underserved communities. Such global initiatives and the increasingly widespread use of telemedicine and digital platforms offer opportunities to improve vital access to care and research. Conclusions This multi-stakeholder perspective highlights some of the unmet needs of individuals with FOP and their families. Regional and international organizations play an important role in improving the quality of life of those they reach in the global FOP community. However, globally, fundamental issues remain around raising awareness of FOP among healthcare professionals, identifying individuals with FOP, reducing time to diagnosis, and ensuring access to best practice in care, support, and clinical research. Medical writing support was industry-sponsored

Emission of volatile halogenated compounds, speciation and localization of bromine and iodine in the brown algal genome model Ectocarpus siliculosus

This study explores key features of bromine and iodine metabolism in the filamentous brown alga and genomics model Ectocarpus siliculosus. Both elements are accumulated in Ectocarpus, albeit at much lower concentration factors (2-3 orders of magnitude for iodine, and < 1 order of magnitude for bromine) than e.g. in the kelp Laminaria digitata. Iodide competitively reduces the accumulation of bromide. Both iodide and bromide are accumulated in the cell wall (apoplast) of Ectocarpus, with minor amounts of bromine also detectable in the cytosol. Ectocarpus emits a range of volatile halogenated compounds, the most prominent of which by far is methyl iodide. Interestingly, biosynthesis of this compound cannot be accounted for by vanadium haloperoxidase since the latter have not been found to catalyze direct halogenation of an unactivated methyl group or hydrocarbon so a methyl halide transferase-type production mechanism is proposed

Limit on Bs0B^0_s oscillation using a jet charge method

A lower limit is set on the B_{s}^{0} meson oscillation parameter \Delta m_{s} using data collected from 1991 to 1994 by the ALEPH detector. Events with a high transverse momentum lepton and a reconstructed secondary vertex are used. The high transverse momentum leptons are produced mainly by b hadron decays, and the sign of the lepton indicates the particle/antiparticle final state in decays of neutral B mesons. The initial state is determined by a jet charge technique using both sides of the event. A maximum likelihood method is used to set a lower limit of \, \Delta m_{s}. The 95\% confidence level lower limit on \Delta m_s ranges between 5.2 and 6.5(\hbar/c^{2})~ps^{-1} when the fraction of b quarks from Z^0 decays that form B_{s}^{0} mesons is varied from 8\% to 16\%. Assuming that the B_{s}^{0} fraction is 12\%, the lower limit would be \Delta m_{s} 6.1(\hbar/c^{2})~ps^{-1} at 95\% confidence level. For x_s = \Delta m_s \, \tau_{B_s}, this limit also gives x_s 8.8 using the B_{s}^{0} lifetime of \tau_{B_s} = 1.55 \pm 0.11~ps and shifting the central value of \tau_{B_s} down by 1\sigma

Measurement of the Bs0^0_s lifetime and production rate with Ds−l+^-_s l^+ combinations in Z decays

The lifetime of the \bs meson is measured in approximately 3 million hadronic Z decays accumulated using the ALEPH detector at LEP from 1991 to 1994. Seven different \ds decay modes were reconstructed and combined with an opposite sign lepton as evidence of semileptonic \bs decays. Two hundred and eight \dsl candidates satisfy selection criteria designed to ensure precise proper time reconstruction and yield a measured \bs lifetime of \mbox{\result .} Using a larger, less constrained sample of events, the product branching ratio is measured to be \mbox{\pbrresult