Short Run Needs and Long Term Goals: A Dynamic Model of Thirst Management

Beverage consumption occurs many times a day in response to a variety of needs that change throughout the day. In making their choices, consumers self-regulate their consumption by managing short run needs (e.g., hydration and mood pickup) with long-term goals (e.g., health). Using unique intra-day beverage consumption, activity and psychological needs data, we develop and estimate a model of high frequency consumption choices that accounts for both intra-day changes in short run needs and individual level unobserved heterogeneity in the degree of self-regulation. A novel feature of the model is that it allows for dynamics of consumption and stockpiling at the level of product attributes. The model is used to evaluate introduction of new products in the beverage category and gain insight into the linkage between self-regulation and excess consumption. Broadly, the modeling framework of balancing short run needs with long-term goals has wide ranging applications in choices where long term effects are gradual (e.g., nutrition, exercise, smoking and preventive health care)

Prevention and management of secondary central nervous system lymphoma

Secondary central nervous system (CNS) lymphoma (SCNSL) is defined by the involvement of the CNS, either at the time of initial diagnosis of systemic lymphoma or in the setting of relapse, and can be either isolated or with synchronous systemic disease. The risk of CNS involvement in patients with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma is approximately 5%; however, certain clinical and biological features have been associated with a risk of up to 15%. There has been growing interest in improving the definition of patients at increased risk of CNS relapse, as well as identifying effective prophylactic strategies to prevent it. SCNSL often occurs within months of the initial diagnosis of lymphoma, suggesting the presence of occult disease at diagnosis in many cases. The differing presentations of SCNSL create the therapeutic challenge of controlling both the systemic disease and the CNS disease, which uniquely requires agents that penetrate the blood-brain barrier. Outcomes are generally poor with a median overall survival of approximately 6 months in retrospective series, particularly in those patients presenting with SCNSL after prior therapy. Prospective studies of intensive chemotherapy regimens containing high-dose methotrexate, followed by hematopoietic stem cell transplantation have shown the most favorable outcomes, especially for patients receiving thiotepa-based conditioning regimens. However, a proportion of patients will not respond to induction therapies or will subsequently relapse, indicating the need for more effective treatment strategies. In this review we focus on the identification of high-risk patients, prophylactic strategies and recent treatment approaches for SCNSL. The incorporation of novel agents in immunochemotherapy deserves further study in prospective trials

Global patterns and drivers of avian extinctions at the species and subspecies level

Birds have long fascinated scientists and travellers, so their distribution and abundance through time have been better documented than those of other organisms. Many bird species are known to have gone extinct, but information on subspecies extinctions has never been synthesised comprehensively. We reviewed the timing, spatial patterns, trends and causes of avian extinctions on a global scale, identifying 279 ultrataxa (141 monotypic species and 138 subspecies of polytypic species) that have gone extinct since 1500. Species extinctions peaked in the early 20th century, then fell until the mid 20th century, and have subsequently accelerated. However, extinctions of ultrataxa peaked in the second half of the 20th century. This trend reflects a consistent decline in the rate of extinctions on islands since the beginning of the 20th century, but an acceleration in the extinction rate on continents. Most losses (78.7% of species and 63.0% of subspecies) occurred on oceanic islands. Geographic foci of extinctions include the Hawaiian Islands (36 taxa), mainland Australia and islands (29 taxa), the Mascarene Islands (27 taxa), New Zealand (22 taxa) and French Polynesia (19 taxa). The major proximate drivers of extinction for both species and subspecies are invasive alien species (58.2% and 50.7% of species and subspecies, respectively), hunting (52.4% and 18.8%) and agriculture, including non-timber crops and livestock farming (14.9% and 31.9%). In general, the distribution and drivers of subspecific extinctions are similar to those for species extinctions. However, our finding that, when subspecies are considered, the extinction rate has accelerated in recent decades is both novel and alarming

Prevalence of type 2 diabetes mellitus in rural population of India- a study from Western Uttar Pradesh

Background: Diabetes is a major challenge for a resource-limited country like India. Majority of the patients are diagnosed late in the course of illness with presence of complications. There is limited data on diabetes from rural India. Present study is an attempt to provide data on diabetes in rural India. The overall objective of present study was to estimate the prevalence of Type 2 diabetes mellitus in rural population above 25 years age in district Etawah and neighbouring areas of Uttar Pradesh, India.Methods: The study was planned to determine the prevalence of diabetes mellitus in rural community by health camp and door to door approach. Fasting capillary blood glucose was first determined using a glucose meter (SD check code free, SD biosensor Inc. Korea). All the adults were given 75gm of glucose dissolved in 200ml water which was drunk over a period of up to 5 minutes and the 2-hour post load capillary blood glucose was estimated. Diabetic status was confirmed by taking blood samples for fasting and postprandial blood sugar levels in a fluoride vacutainer. Fasting plasma glucose ≥126mg/dl and or 2-hour postprandial glucose ≥200mg/dl were taken as the diagnostic criteria for diagnosis.Results: Prevalence of type 2 diabetes in the rural population was found to be 8.03%. Prevalence was higher in female population (9.91%) as compared to males (6.79%). 19.74 % of participants over 70 yrs of age were diabetics while diabetes was present only in 2.95% of participants in the age group of 25-39 year. The maximum number of diabetes were in the age group of 50-59 years. 10.04 % of participants were diagnosed to be Prediabetics. 35.77% of the diabetics were newly diagnosed.Conclusions:Present study shows there is high prevalence of type 2 diabetes in rural area of western Uttar Pradesh, India.

Pattern of dyslipidaemia in human immunodeficiency virus infected patients- a study from rural tertiary care hospital in central India

Background: HIV/AIDS is a major health problem affecting the whole globe. With introduction of highly active antiretroviral therapy longevity of HIV patient have increased and they are subjected to high cardiovascular risk as age increases due to various risk factors. Of these dyslipidaemia is one of important risk factor and HIV patients have different degree of deranged lipid profile. Various studies have shown different lipid derangement in these patients but most of them were conducted in urban areas, so this study was conducted to look for lipid profile in HIV patients who are resident of rural areas. Methods: This study was conducted on 66 HIV infected or AIDS cases. Each case was subjected to history taking, through clinical examination and fasting lipid levels. Dyslipidaemia was a classified using NCEP/ATP III guideline.Results: Of total 66 cases, there were 39 male and 27 female with average age of 37 years. Hypercholesterolemia was present in 50% of patients, hypertriglyceridemia in 36.4%. LDL and VLDL were raised in 37.9% and 36.4% respectably while HDL was found below 40 mg/dl in 37.9% of the patients. S. total cholesterol, HDL and LDL was found to have positive correlation while S. TG and VLDL have no significant correlation with CD4 count.Conclusions: Present studies have shown high prevalence of dyslipidaemia in different WHO clinical stage with variable correlation with CD4 count

The effect of irrigating solutions on the hydration of tricalcium silicate cements: an in vitro study

Background: Calcium silicate cements are hydraulic cements, routinely used for perforation repairs. During such repairs, these cements are invariably exposed to irrigating solutions. Aim: This study aimed to understand the effect of irrigating solutions on the hydration of calcium silicate cements.  Materials and Methods: Sixty extracted teeth were taken and horizontal sections of 2mm were obtained. These samples were randomly divided into two groups viz. Biodentine and BioMTA Plus groups later these cements were condensed into the canal spaces and allowed to set until their setting time. These samples were further subdivided and allowed to encounter three irrigating solutions viz. Normal saline, 17% EDTA, and 2% Chlorhexidine for 5 minutes. These were allowed to mature in an incubator for seven days and subjected to Scanning Electron Microscopy and Energy Dispersive X-ray analysis. Results: The SEM analysis of the Biodentine/control group displayed a petal-like appearance, with a Ca/Si ratio of 2. Whereas, the Biodentine/Normal saline, Biodentine/17% EDTA and Biodentine/2% Chlorhexidine group displayed crumbled paper-like appearance. The Ca/Si ratios for the Biodentine/Normal saline, Biodentine/17% EDTA and Biodentine/2% Chlorhexidine were 2.72, 1.6, and 4.21, respectively. In the BioMTA Plus group, all the SEM analyses displayed round crystalline structures in all groups. The Ca/Si ratio of BioMTA Plus/Control, BioMTA Plus/17% EDTA and BioMTA Plus/2% Chlorhexidine were 25.5, 17.42, 24.1, and 39.4, respectively. Conclusion: The study concluded that the irrigating solutions did not affect the hydration mechanism of Biodentine and BioMTA Plus despite the variations in the Ca/Si ratios and surface morphology

Prevalence of hypertension in rural population of Central India

Background: Hypertension is an important public health problem in both rural and urban areas of economically developed as well as developing nations. It is a chronic medical condition and is one of the most common life threatening non-communicable disease. It is an asymptomatic condition, symptoms do not arise unless the complications develop which result in delayed diagnosis and treatment especially among the uneducated and unexplained social groups such as rural population. Present study was an attempt to provide data on hypertension in rural area of central India. The objective of present study was to estimate the prevalence of hypertension in rural population above 18 years of age in Etawah and neighbouring districts of Uttar Pradesh, India.Methods: The study was planned to determine the prevalence of hypertension in rural community by health camp and door to door approach. BP measurements were made after the subject had rested for at least 5 minutes in a seated position using mercury sphygmomanometer. The first blood pressure measurement was taken after obtaining socio-demographic information from the study subject, while the second was recorded after 5 minutes.Results: The prevalence of hypertension was found to be 17%, which was observed to be higher among female i.e. 170 (18.3%) individuals than males 153 (15.8%) individuals. The prevalence of hypertension was observed to be higher among the older individuals. It was found to be 5.26 times higher in older (>50 years) than the younger (<30 years) age group. We found prehypertension in 65.74%, Stage I hypertension in 11.33% and stage II hypertension in 5.69% individuals.Conclusions: Present study showed that high prevalence of hypertension in rural area of Western Uttar Pradesh, Central India

Characterization of carbon monoxide, methane and nonmethane hydrocarbons in emerging cities of Saudi Arabia and Pakistan and in Singapore

We investigate the composition of 63 C2-C10 nonmethane hydrocarbons (NMHCs), methane (CH4) and carbon monoxide (CO), in Jeddah, Mecca, and Madina (Saudi Arabia), in Lahore, (Pakistan), and in Singapore. We established a database with which to compare and contrast NMHCs in regions where ambient levels and emissions are poorly characterized, but where conditions are favorable to the formation of tropospheric ozone, and where measurements are essential for improving emission inventories and modeling. This dataset will also serve as a base for further analysis of air pollution in Western Saudi Arabia including, but not limited to, the estimation of urban emissions and long range pollution transport from these regions. The measured species showed enhanced levels in all Saudi Arabian cities compared to the local background but were generally much lower than in Lahore. In Madina, vehicle exhaust was the dominant NMHC source, as indicated by enhanced levels of combustion products and by the good correlation between NMHCs and CO, while in Jeddah and Mecca a combination of sources needs to be considered. Very high NMHC levels were measured in Lahore, and elevated levels of CH4 in Lahore were attributed to natural gas. When we compared our results with 2010 emissions from the MACCity global inventory, we found discrepancies in the relative contribution of NMHCs between the measurements and the inventory. In all cities, alkenes (especially ethene and propene) dominated the hydroxyl radical (OH) reactivity (kOH) because of their great abundance and their relatively fast reaction rates with OH