HOPE Longitudinal Study: Year 2 Results

Abstract pending

Neuro-ophthalmology in the United Kingdom::providing a sustainable, safe and high-quality service for the future

Neuro-ophthalmologists play a major role in protecting vision and life [1–4]. Misdiagnosis prior to neuro-ophthalmology review may occur in up to 69% of cases [1] with a quarter coming to harm [2] due to inadequate history, examination, differential diagnosis, incorrect targeting and interpretation of investigations [2]. Studies also found that Neuro-ophthalmology review impacted on care in 99% and saved life or vision in 2% [2] however over one third of patients had a delay in their care [3]. These results suggest inadequacy of both access to neuro-ophthalmology services [5], and exposure to neuro-ophthalmology during general training

Managing ‘academic value’: the 360-degree perspective

The raison d'etre of all universities is to create and deliver ‘academic value’, which we define as the sum total of the contributions from the 360-degree ‘angles’ of the academic community, including all categories of staff, as well as external stakeholders (e.g. regulatory, commercial, professional and community interests). As a way to conceptualise these complex relationships, we present the ‘academic wheel’ to illustrate the structural nature of them. We then discuss the implications of the different – and sometimes difficult – perspectives of academic, professional and administrative groups in the context of a number of important social psychological processes. We ask whether it is possible to reconcile, what is sometimes perceived as, managerial Taylorism with the academic freedom of (Laurie) Taylorism. We conclude that recognition and active management of these processes are required for each university to optimise its own brand of core academic value

Molecular hydrogen emission in the interstellar medium of the Large Magellanic Cloud

We present the detection and analysis of molecular hydrogen emission toward ten interstellar regions in the Large Magellanic Cloud. We examined low-resolution infrared spectral maps of twelve regions obtained with the Spitzer infrared spectrograph (IRS). The pure rotational 0--0 transitions of H$_2$ at 28.2 and 17.1${\,\rm \mu m}$ are detected in the IRS spectra for ten regions. The higher level transitions are mostly upper limit measurements except for three regions, where a 3$\sigma$ detection threshold is achieved for lines at 12.2 and 8.6${\,\rm \mu m}$. The excitation diagrams of the detected H$_2$ transitions are used to determine the warm H$_2$ gas column density and temperature. The single-temperature fits through the lower transition lines give temperatures in the range $86-137\,{\rm K}$. The bulk of the excited H$_2$ gas is found at these temperatures and contributes $\sim$5-17% to the total gas mass. We find a tight correlation of the H$_2$ surface brightness with polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon and total infrared emission, which is a clear indication of photo-electric heating in photodissociation regions. We find the excitation of H$_2$ by this process is equally efficient in both atomic and molecular dominated regions. We also present the correlation of the warm H$_2$ physical conditions with dust properties. The warm H$_2$ mass fraction and excitation temperature show positive correlations with the average starlight intensity, again supporting H$_2$ excitation in photodissociation regions.Comment: Accepted for publication in MNRA

Utilization of Depression Screening in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus

Purpose/Background Type 2 diabetes is a chronic metabolic disorder affecting millions of individuals worldwide. Research has shown that individuals with diabetes are at a higher risk of developing depression in comparison to those of the general population. Depression affects the individual\u27s emotional well-being and has a significant impact on the management and outcomes of diabetes (Mather, 2022). This research study aims to investigate the feasibility and effectiveness of implementing the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9). The PHQ-9 is one the most effective assessment tools available to identify symptoms of depression (Celik, 2020). Methods In this retrospective chart review, at least 50 charts of patients that ranged ages 30 to 78 with a diagnosis of type 2 diabetes were screened for depression from September 18, 2023 to November 29, 2023. The reviewers were assessing whether or not the PHQ-9 was administered to assess for comorbid depression in patients with Type II Diabetes diagnosis. Results This protocol was approved by the University of Tennessee Health Sciences Center (UTHSC) internal board review. Data was collected from the University Clinical Health/UT Family medicine in Memphis, TN with the assistance of Laura Reed, DNP-FNP. Of the 29 charts reviewed, 16 of the patients that met the criteria were assessed with the PHQ-9, and 13 were not. The data revealed there was a possible decrease in the likelihood of administering the PHQ9 to patients as they get older. On average, women were screened higher in comparison to men. Implications This research study will contribute to understanding the prevalence and impact of depression in individuals with type 2 diabetes. The findings may inform healthcare providers about the importance of routine depression screens and its potential benefits of early intervention. Implementing the PHQ-9 as a screening tool within the diabetes population can facilitate the identification and management of depression which can potentially lead to improved overall health outcomes for patients with type 2 diabetes

Association of Changes in Neighborhood-Level Racial Residential Segregation With Changes in Blood Pressure Among Black Adults: The CARDIA Study

Importance: Despite cross-sectional evidence linking racial residential segregation to hypertension prevalence among non-Hispanic blacks, it remains unclear how changes in exposure to neighborhood segregation may be associated with changes in blood pressure. Objective: To examine the association of changes in neighborhood-level racial residential segregation with changes in systolic and diastolic blood pressure over a 25-year period. Design, Setting, and Participants: This observational study examined longitudinal data of 2280 black participants of the Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults (CARDIA) study, a prospective investigation of adults aged 18 to 30 years who underwent baseline examinations in field centers in 4 US locations from March 25, 1985, to June 7, 1986, and then were re-examined for the next 25 years. Racial residential segregation was assessed using the Getis-Ord Gi* statistic, a measure of SD between the neighborhood\u27s racial composition (ie, percentage of black residents) and the surrounding area\u27s racial composition. Segregation was categorized as high (Gi* \u3e 1.96), medium (Gi* 0-1.96), and low (Gi* \u3c 0). Fixed-effects linear regression modeling was used to estimate the associations of within-person change in exposure to segregation and within-person change in blood pressure while tightly controlling for time-invariant confounders. Data analyses were performed between August 4, 2016, and February 9, 2017. Main Outcomes and Measures: Within-person changes in systolic and diastolic blood pressure across 6 examinations over 25 years. Results: Of the 2280 participants at baseline, 974 (42.7%) were men and 1306 (57.3%) were women. Of these, 1861 (81.6%) were living in a high-segregation neighborhood; 278 (12.2%), a medium-segregation neighborhood; and 141 (6.2%), a low-segregation neighborhood. Systolic blood pressure increased by a mean of 0.16 (95% CI, 0.06-0.26) mm Hg with each 1-SD increase in segregation score after adjusting for interactions of time with age, sex, and field center. Of the 1861 participants (81.6%) who lived in high-segregation neighborhoods at baseline, reductions in exposure to segregation were associated with reductions in systolic blood pressure. Mean differences in systolic blood pressure were -1.33 (95% CI, -2.26 to -0.40) mm Hg when comparing high-segregation with medium-segregation neighborhoods and -1.19 (95% CI, -2.08 to -0.31) mm Hg when comparing high-segregation with low-segregation neighborhoods after adjustment for time and interactions of time with baseline age, sex, and field center. Changes in segregation were not associated with changes in diastolic blood pressure. Conclusions and Relevance: Decreases in exposure to racial residential segregation are associated with reductions in systolic blood pressure. This study adds to the small but growing body of evidence that policies that reduce segregation may have meaningful health benefits

Giving Voice to the Voiceless: The Use of Digital Technologies by Marginalized Groups

This paper reports on a workshop hosted at the University of Massachusetts Amherst in September, 2018. The workshop, called “Giving Voice to the Voiceless: The Use of Digital Technologies by Marginalized Groups”, focused on discussing how marginalized groups use digital technologies to raise their voices. At the workshop, a diverse group of scholars and doctoral students presented research projects and perspectives on the role that digital technologies have in activist projects that represent marginalized groups that have gained momentum in the last few years. The studies and viewpoints presented shed light on four areas in which IS research can expand our understanding about how marginalized groups use digital technologies to address societal challenges: 1) the rise of cyberactivism, 2) resource mobilization for cyberactivism, 3) cyberactivism by and with marginalized groups, and 4) research methods for examining how marginalized groups use digital technologies

Cultivating Agricultural Literacy: Challenge for the Liberal Arts

A review and analysis of 11 pacesetting experiments funded by the W. K. Kellogg Foundation to generate greater awareness among liberal arts students and faculty about the role and importance ofthe agriculture enterprise to the nation

Dust and gas in the magellanic clouds from the heritage Herschel Key Project. I. Dust properties and insights into the origin of the submillimeter excess emission

The dust properties in the Large and Small Magellanic clouds (LMC/SMC) are studied using the HERITAGE Herschel Key Project photometric data in five bands from 100 to 500 μm. Three simple models of dust emission were fit to the observations: a single temperature blackbody modified by a power-law emissivity (SMBB), a single temperature blackbody modified by a broken power-law emissivity (BEMBB), and two blackbodies with different temperatures, both modified by the same power-law emissivity (TTMBB). Using these models, we investigate the origin of the submillimeter excess, defined as the submillimeter emission above that expected from SMBB models fit to observations <200 μm. We find that the BEMBB model produces the lowest fit residuals with pixel-averaged 500 μm submillimeter excesses of 27% and 43% for the LMC and SMC, respectively. Adopting gas masses from previous works, the gas-to-dust ratios calculated from our fitting results show that the TTMBB fits require significantly more dust than are available even if all the metals present in the interstellarmedium (ISM) were condensed into dust. This indicates that the submillimeter excess ismore likely to be due to emissivity variations than a second population of colder dust. We derive integrated dust masses of (7.3 ± 1.7) × 105 and (8.3 ± 2.1) × 104 M⊙ for the LMC and SMC, respectively. We find significant correlations between the submillimeter excess and other dust properties; further work is needed to determine the relative contributions of fitting noise and ISM physics to the correlation