Using Forums in Moodle to Provide Peer Feedback

In 2014, the Bloomsbury Learning Environment (BLE) Consortium initiated a wide-ranging, two-year-long research and dissemination project focusing on the use of technology in assessment and feedback. Our aim was to understand and improve processes, practices, opportunities and tools available to the institutional members of the BLE Consortium. From the project, we produced three research papers investigating current practice and 21 case studies describing both technology-enabled pedagogy and technical development. Now presented as a free ebook, co-edited by <strong>Leo Havemann</strong> and <strong>Sarah Sherman</strong>, we offer the flavour of the variety and breadth of the BLE’s activities relating to the project theme as a contribution to the education sector’s widening conversation about the interplay of assessment, feedback, pedagogy and technology

Ratio of C-Reactive Protein to Albumin Predicts Muscle Mass in Adult Patients Undergoing Hemodialysis

<div><p>Recent studies have indicated that the ratio of C-reactive protein to albumin (CRP–Alb ratio) is associated with clinical outcomes in patients with disease. We examined the predictive value of this ratio in patients undergoing hemodialysis (HD). In this cross-sectional study, 91 eligible adult HD patients were analyzed, and the correlation between the CRP–Alb ratio and skeletal muscle mass normalized for body weight (SMM/wt; estimated using a bioelectrical impedance analyzer) was investigated. The mean age of the study participants was 54.9 ± 6.6 years (ranging from 27 to 64 years); 43 (47.2%) were men. The mean values for the SMM/wt were 39.1% ± 5.4%. The CRP–Alb ratio was found to be negatively correlated with SMM/wt (r = −0.33, <i>P</i> = 0.002) and creatinine (r = −0.20, <i>P</i> = 0.056). All the univariate significant and nonsignificant relevant covariates were selected for multivariable stepwise regression analysis. We determined that the homeostasis model assessment-estimated insulin resistance and CRP–Alb ratio were independent risk determinants for SMM/wt (β_HOMA-IR = −0.18 and β_{CRP–Alb ratio} = −3.84, adjusted R² = 0.32). This study indicated that the CRP–Alb ratio may help clinicians in predicting muscle mass in adult patients undergoing HD.</p></div

Flowchart indicating patient enrollment and study procedure.

<p>Flowchart indicating patient enrollment and study procedure.</p

Comparison of data stratified by CRP–Alb ratio in 91 consecutive adult patients with HD¹^-³.

<p>Comparison of data stratified by CRP–Alb ratio in 91 consecutive adult patients with HD<a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0165403#t002fn002" target="_blank">¹</a>^-<a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0165403#t002fn004" target="_blank">³</a>.</p