The pendulum swings back to scoliosis screening: screening policies for early detection and treatment of idiopathic scoliosis - current concepts and recommendations

This editorial article initiates the school scoliosis screening thematic series of the Scoliosis journal. The various issues on screening policies are discussed; clinical and practical recommendations of setting up school screening programs are also described

A conceptual framework for understanding the social acceptance of energy infrastructure: insights from energy storage

Although social acceptance research has blossomed over the last decade, interdisciplinary studies combining market, socio-political and community aspects are scarce. We propose a novel integration of social science theory in which the belief systems or social representations held by key actors play a crucial role in fostering acceptance of novel technologies, and where a polycentric perspective places particular emphasis on ways that middle actors mediate processes of change between scales. We advance a methodological approach that combines qualitative and quantitative research methods and exemplify the framework by focusing on acceptance of renewable energy storage solutions to accommodate high levels of renewable energy deployment. A research agenda for the social acceptance of energy storage is proposed that sets out key research questions relating international, national and local levels. The outcome of such studies would not only lead to enhanced understanding of processes of social acceptance, but deliver important insights for policy and practice

Renormalization group scaling in nonrelativistic QCD

We discuss the matching conditions and renormalization group evolution of non-relativistic QCD. A variant of the conventional MS-bar scheme is proposed in which a subtraction velocity nu is used rather than a subtraction scale mu. We derive a novel renormalization group equation in velocity space which can be used to sum logarithms of v in the effective theory. We apply our method to several examples. In particular we show that our formulation correctly reproduces the two-loop anomalous dimension of the heavy quark production current near threshold.Comment: (27 pages, revtex

High Resolution OI (630 nm) Image Measurements of Fregion Depletion Drifts During the Guara Campaign

A high performance, all‐sky, imaging system has provided data on the evolution and drift motions of F‐region depletions above the magnetic dip equator at Alcântara, Brazil, (2.3°S, 44.5°W). Monochromatic images of depletions in the OI(630 nm) nightglow were recorded on eight nights during 1‐16 October, 1994, as part of the Guará campaign. The drift motions of the depletions were typically 80–100 m/s eastward prior to local midnight and reduced to a minimum of ∼30–50 m/s in the morning hours, in accord with previous observations. However, on October 2–3 and 12–13 the depletions were observed to reverse direction for ∼60–90 min, achieving westward speeds of ∼30 m/s before the motion reverted to eastward around 0100 LT and accelerated to 35–45 m/s near dawn. Magnetic activity and other evidence suggests that these reversals in the motion of the airglow depletions probably result from reversals in the F‐region dynamo rather than from shifts in the altitude of the shear in the nighttime F‐region plasma drift

AERO: Auroral Emission Radio Observer

Earth’s aurora has a deep complexity and richness that is of intense interest for our understanding of space physics, with many unknown or ill-defined features. Auroral radio emissions in the LF and HF frequency range allow radio remote sensing, leading to investigation of nonlinear wave processes and wave-particle interactions operating in a broad range of heliospheric, planetary and astrophysical plasmas. The Auroral Emission Radio Observer (AERO) is a one-year CubeSat mission in polar orbit that will significantly advance our knowledge by examining radio emissions from the auroral acceleration region in near-Earth space. AERO uses a unique electromagnetic vector sensor (VS) to study AKR at LF and HF frequencies (100 kHz – 5 MHz) with six orthogonal dipole and loop antennas giving angle of arrival and polarization information within a single unit. The mission will store many orbits of compressed data on board, then select download segments based either on summary spectrogram ground analysis or on automatic detection of bright auroral radio events. AERO is also a stepping stone to a novel spaceborne high capability remote sensing platform for diverse scientific targets such as radio emission from the solar corona and inner heliosphere, and anisotropic turbulence properties of interplanetary medium plasma

Telemetry-validated nitrogen stable isotope clocks identify ocean-to-estuarine habitat shifts in mobile organisms

Throughout their life history, many animals transition among heterogeneous environments to facilitate behaviours such as reproduction, foraging and predator avoidance. The dynamic environmental and biological conditions experienced by mobile species are integrated in the chemical composition of their tissues, providing retrospective insight into movement. Here, we present a unique application of nitrogen stable isotope clocks (‘isotopic clocks’), which integrate tissue turnover rates, consumer stable isotope ratios and habitat-specific isotope baselines to predict time-since-immigration and the timing of habitat shifts in a migratory species. Nitrogen stable isotope values of blood plasma collected from juvenile sand tiger sharks Carcharias taurus, a species known to undertake seasonal movements between ocean and estuarine environments, were used to derive estimates of time-since-immigration and the timing of seasonal habitat shifts undertaken by this species. Nitrogen isotopic clocks estimated for 65 juvenile sand tiger sharks sampled across 6 years indicated that individual sharks predominantly arrived to estuarine habitats between June and July, with some individuals arriving as early as mid-May. These estimates were validated by comparing isotope-derived estuarine arrival times with those from acoustically tracked individuals. The median estuarine arrival day estimates from our isotopic approach aligned with estimates from acoustic telemetry for each sampling population. Sensitivity analyses indicated that isotopically inferred time-since-immigration and estuarine arrival estimates were robust to variation in isotopic turnover rate and diet tissue discrimination factors under multiple modelling scenarios. This suggests that parameterization of the nitrogen isotopic clock provides reliable estimates of time-since-immigration and day of arrival into new habitats if isotopic variation exists between origin and new locations. Our study presents a unique application of telemetry-validated isotope clocks to derive retrospective estimates of time-since-immigration and timing of habitat shifts for animals that seasonally traverse heterogeneous environments. This approach can be readily applied across many temporal and spatial scales, and to other species and ecosystems, to facilitate rapid assessment of changes in animal habitat use and broader ecosystem structure

Reliability and development of a new classification of lumbosacral spondylolisthesis

A classification of lumbosacral spondylolisthesis has been proposed recently. This classification describes eight distinct types of spondylolisthesis based on the slip grade, the degree of dysplasia, and the sagittal sacro-pelvic balance. The objectives of this study are to assess the reliability of this classification and to propose a new and refined classification. Standing posteroanterior and lateral radiographs of the spine and pelvis of 40 subjects (22 low-grade, 18 high-grade) with lumbosacral spondylolisthesis were reviewed twice by six spine surgeons. Each radiograph was classified based on the slip grade, the degree of dysplasia, and the sagittal sacro-pelvic balance. No measurements from the radiographs were allowed. Intra- and inter-observer reliability was assessed using kappa coefficients. A refined classification is proposed based on the reliability study. All eight types of spondylolisthesis described in the original classification were identified. Overall intra- and inter-observer agreement was respectively 76.7% (kappa: 0.72) and 57.0% (kappa: 0.49). The specific intra-observer agreement was 97.1% (kappa: 0.94), 85.0% (kappa: 0.69) and 88.8% (kappa: 0.85) with respect to the slip grade, the degree of dysplasia, and the sacro-pelvic balance, respectively. The specific inter-observer agreement was 95.2% (kappa: 0.90), 72.2% (kappa: 0.43) and 77.2% (kappa: 0.69) with respect to the slip grade, the degree of dysplasia, and the sacro-pelvic balance, respectively. This study confirmed that surgeons can classify radiographic findings into all eight types of spondylolisthesis. The intra-observer reliability was substantial, while the inter-observer reliability was moderate mainly due to the difficulty in distinguishing between low- and high-dysplasia. A refined classification excluding the assessment of dysplasia, while incorporating the assessment of the slip grade, sacro-pelvic balance and global spino-pelvic balance is proposed, and now includes five types of lumbosacral spondylolisthesis

Severe axial vertebral rotation treated with a modified Boston brace: a case report

We report the case of a 13-year-old Caucasian girl suffering from severe axial rotation of the T5 to L4 vertebrae. The patient (initially examined during a school screening study) was at first considered to be suspicious of suffering from scoliosis due to a highly positive Adam's forward bending test. However, her radiographic evaluation revealed the existence of axial rotation in 12 of her vertebrae, without inclination in the sagittal and coronal planes. After an observation period of 12 months and due to the fact that both her physical appearance and the measured vertebral rotation deteriorated, the patient was given a modified thoracolumbar Boston brace that had an immediate positive derotational effect on all but two vertebrae. Twenty four months later, the progress of the vertebral rotation(s) seems to have been halted and most affected vertebrae appear to be stabilized in their new, 'post-brace', reduced position, with better results shown when the Boston brace is worn. The patient remains under constant medical observation. The application of a modified Boston brace seems to have served well (so far) a useful purpose for reducing and stabilizing this case of severe axial vertebral rotation, providing less deformity and (possibly) offering a better final cosmetic result

Wasting Breath in Hamlet

This is the final version. Available on open access from Palgrave via the DOI in this recordThis chapter draws on instances of disordered breathing in Hamlet in order to examine the cultural signifcance of sighs in the early modern period, as well as in the context of current work in the feld of medical humanities. Tracing the medical history of sighing in ancient and early modern treatises of the passions, the chapter argues that sighs, in the text and the performance of the tragedy, exceed their conventional interpretation as symptoms of pain and disrupt meaning on the page and on stage. In the light of New Materialist theory, the air circulating in Hamlet is shown to dismantle narratives of representation, posing new questions for the future of medical humanities