530 research outputs found

    Community and the production of everyday narratives : newspaper journalists and their readers in a Spanish city.

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    SIGLEAvailable from British Library Document Supply Centre- DSC:DX182544 / BLDSC - British Library Document Supply CentreGBUnited Kingdo

    Examining the benefit of graduated compression stockings in the prevention of hospital-associated venous thromboembolism in low-risk surgical patients: a multicentre cluster randomised controlled trial (PETS trial)

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    Introduction Hospital-acquired thrombosis (HAT) is defined as any venous thromboembolism (VTE)-related event during a hospital admission or occurring up to 90 days post discharge, and is associated with significant morbidity, mortality and healthcare-associated costs. Although surgery is an established risk factor for VTE, operations with a short hospital stay (<48 hours) and that permit early ambulation are associated with a low risk of VTE. Many patients undergoing short-stay surgical procedures and who are at low risk of VTE are treated with graduated compression stockings (GCS). However, evidence for the use of GCS in VTE prevention for this cohort is poor. Methods and analysis A multicentre, cluster randomised controlled trial which aims to determine whether GCS are superior in comparison to no GCS in the prevention of VTE for surgical patients undergoing short-stay procedures assessed to be at low risk of VTE. A total of 50 sites (21 472 participants) will be randomised to either intervention (GCS) or control (no GCS). Adult participants (18–59 years) who undergo short-stay surgical procedures and are assessed as low risk of VTE will be included in the study. Participants will provide consent to be contacted for follow-up at 7-days and 90-days postsurgical procedure. The primary outcome is the rate of symptomatic VTE, that is, deep vein thrombosis or pulmonary embolism during admission or within 90 days. Secondary outcomes include healthcare costs and changes in quality of life. The main analysis will be according to the intention-to- treat principle and will compare the rates of VTE at 90 days, measured at an individual level, using hierarchical (multilevel) logistic regression.National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) NIHR13377

    Comparing Statistical Models to Predict Dengue Fever Notifications

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    Dengue fever (DF) is a serious public health problem in many parts of the world, and, in the absence of a vaccine, disease surveillance and mosquito vector eradication are important in controlling the spread of the disease. DF is primarily transmitted by the female Aedes aegypti mosquito. We compared two statistical models that can be used in the surveillance and forecast of notifiable infectious diseases, namely, the Autoregressive Integrated Moving Average (ARIMA) model and the Knorr-Held two-component (K-H) model. The Mean Absolute Percentage Error (MAPE) was used to compare models. We developed the models using used data on DF notifications in Singapore from January 2001 till December 2006 and then validated the models with data from January 2007 till June 2008. The K-H model resulted in a slightly lower MAPE value of 17.21 as compared to the ARIMA model. We conclude that the models' performances are similar, but we found that the K-H model was relatively more difficult to fit in terms of the specification of the prior parameters and the relatively longer time taken to run the models

    Low Velocity Airdrop Tests of an X-38 Backup Parachute Design

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    The NASA Johnson Space Center's X-38 program designed a new backup parachute system to recover the 25,000 lb X-38 prototype for the Crew Return Vehicle spacecraft. Due to weight and cost constraints, the main backup parachute design incorporated rapid and low cost fabrication techniques using off-the-shelf materials. Near the vent, the canopy was constructed of continuous ribbons, to provide more damage tolerance. The remainder of the canopy was a constructed with a continuous ringslot design. After cancellation of the X-38 program, the parachute design was resized, built, and drop tested for Natick Soldiers Center's Low Velocity Air Drop (LVAD) program to deliver cargo loads up to 22,000 lbs from altitudes as low as 500 feet above the ground. Drop tests results showed that the 500-foot LVAD parachute deployment conditions cause severe skirt inversion and inflation problems for large parachutes. The bag strip occurred at a high angle of attack, causing skirt inversion before the parachute could inflate. The addition of a short reefing line prevented the skirt inversion. Using a lower porosity in the vent area, than is normally used in large parachutes, improved inflation. The drop testing demonstrated that the parachute design could be refined to meet the requirements for the 500-foot LVAD mission
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