Perceived effectiveness of complementary medicine by mothers of infants with colic in Gauteng

Background: Infantile colic is a self-limiting condition, characterised by spasmodic, excessive and inconsolable crying without apparent cause. Although common, there is no widely accepted conventional treatment approach for colic. Complementary medicine is often promoted as an alternative therapeutic option for infantile colic; however, there is limited research available on its use, safety and effectiveness. Aim: The aim of this study was to determine the perceived effectiveness of complementary medicine by mothers of infants with colic by means of the Infantile Colic Questionnaire. Setting: Mothers of infants who had colic were recruited from complementary medicine pharmacies, schools, baby clinics and various businesses in Gauteng, South Africa. Methods: A quantitative-descriptive design was used whereby data was collected through a randomised, cross-sectional questionnaire. The research sample consisted of 152 participants (mothers), aged between 18 and 45 years, with one or more children who suffered from symptoms of infantile colic, who had used complementary medicine as a form of treatment. Results: Results indicated that most participants made use of both complementary and conventional medicines for their infant’s colic; the most commonly used complementary medicine products were homeopathic remedies, probiotics and herbal medicines. Some participants were, however, unfamiliar with the term ‘complementary medicine’, indicating a need for further patient education. Conclusions: The participants perceived complementary medicines as safe and effective forms of treatment for infantile colic. However, further, larger scale studies should be conducted to validate this finding

Measurement of B-0 -> D-s(*)D+*(-) branching fractions and B-0 -> D-s*D+*(-) polarization with a partial reconstruction technique RID C-2728-2008 RID C-5223-2009 RID C-5719-2008 RID D-1055-2009 RID A-2675-2009

We present a study of the decays B-0 --> D-s((*)) D*-, using 20.8 fb(-1) of e(+)e(-) annihilation data recorded with the BABAR detector. The analysis is conducted with a partial reconstruction technique, in which only the D-s((*)+) and the soft pion from the D*- decay are reconstructed. We measure the branching fractions B(B-0 --> Ds+D*-) = (1.03 +/- 0.14 +/- 0.13 +/- 0.26)% and B(B-0 --> D-s(*+) D*-) = (1.97 +/- 0.15 +/- 0.30+/- 0.49)%, where the first error is statistical, the second is systematic, and the third is the error due to the D-s(+) --> phipi(+) branching fraction uncertainty. From the B-0 --> D-s(*+) D*- angular distributions, we measure the fraction of longitudinal polarization Gamma(L)/Gamma = (51.9 +/- 5.0 +/- 2.8)%, which is consistent with theoretical predictions based on factorization

Simultaneous measurement of the B-0 meson lifetime and mixing frequency with B-0 -> D(*-)l(+)nu(l) decays RID C-2728-2008 RID C-5223-2009 RID C-5719-2008 RID D-1055-2009 RID A-2675-2009

We measure the B-0 lifetime tau(B)(0) and the B-0-(B) over bar (0) oscillation frequency Deltam(d) with a sample of approximately 14000 exclusively reconstructed B-0-->D(*-)l(+)nul signal events, selected from 23 million B (B) over bar pairs recorded at the Y(4S) resonance with the BABAR detector at the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center. The decay position of the other B is determined with the remaining tracks in the event, and its b-quark flavor at the time of decay is determined with a tagging algorithm that exploits the correlation between the flavor of the b quark and the charges of its decay products. The lifetime and oscillation frequencies are measured simultaneously with an unbinned maximum-likelihood fit that uses, for each event, the measured difference in decay times of the two B mesons (Deltat), the calculated uncertainty on Deltat, the signal and background probabilities, and b-quark tagging information for the other B. The results are tau(B)(0)=(1.523(-0.023)(+0.024)+/-0.022) ps and Deltam(d)=(0.492+/-0.018+/-0.013) ps(-1). The statistical correlation coefficient between tau(B)(0) and Deltam(d) is -0.22

Measurement of time-dependent CP asymmetries and the CP-odd fraction in the decay B-0 -> D*+D*- RID C-2728-2008 RID C-5223-2009 RID C-5719-2008 RID D-1055-2009 RID A-2675-2009

We present a measurement of time-dependent CP asymmetries and an updated determination of the CP-odd fraction in the decay B-0-->D*+D*- using a data sample of 88x10(6)B (B) over bar pairs collected by the BABAR detector at the PEP-II B Factory at SLAC. We determine the CP-odd fraction to be 0.063+/-0.055(stat)+/-0.009(syst). The time-dependent CP asymmetry parameters Im(lambda(+)) and \lambda(+)\ are determined to be 0.05+/-0.29(stat)+/-0.10(syst) and 0.75+/-0.19(stat)+/-0.02(syst), respectively. The standard model predicts these parameters to be -sin2beta and 1, respectively, in the absence of penguin diagram contributions

Measurement of the CKM matrix element |V(ub)| with B ---> rho e nu decays

We present a measurement of the branching fraction for the rare decays B->rho e nu and extract a value for the magnitude of Vub, one of the smallest elements of the Cabibbo-Kobayashi-Maskawa quark-mixing matrix. The results are given for five different calculations of form factors used to parametrize the hadronic current in semileptonic decays. Using a sample of 55 million BBbar meson pairs recorded with the BABAR detector at the PEP-II e+e- storage ring, we obtain Br(B0->rho- e+ nu)=(3.29 +-0.42 +-0.47 +-0.60) x 10^-4 and |Vub|=(3.64 +-0.22 +-0.25 +0.39-0.56)x10^-3, where the uncertainties are statistical, systematic, and theoretical, respectively.Comment: Submitted to Phys. Rev. Let

Measurement of B0 ---> D(*)+ D*- branching fractions and B0 ---> D*+(s) D*- polarization with a partial reconstruction technique

We present a study of the decays B0->D_s(*)+D*-, using 20.8 fb-1 of e+e- annihilation data recorded with the BABAR detector. The analysis is conducted with a partial reconstruction technique, in which only the D_s(*)+ and the soft pion from the D*- decay are reconstructed. We measure the branching fractions BR(B0->D_s+D*-) = (1.03 +/- 0.14 +/- 0.13 +/- 0.26)% and BR(B0->D_s*+D*-) = (1.97 +/- 0.15 +/- 0.30 +/- 0.49)%, where the first error is statistical, the second is systematic, and the third is the error due to the D_s+->phi pi+ branching fraction uncertainty. From the B0->D_s*+D*- angular distributions, we measure the fraction of longitudinal polarization Gamma_L/Gamma = (51.9 +/- 5.0 +/- 2.8)%, which is consistent with theoretical predictions based on factorization.Comment: 9 pages, 4 postscript figues, submitted to Physical Review D (Rapid Communications

Observation of a narrow meson state decaying to D-s(+)pi(0) at a mass of 2.32 GeV/c(2) RID C-2728-2008 RID C-5223-2009 RID C-5719-2008 RID D-1055-2009 RID A-2675-2009

We have observed a narrow state near 2.32 GeV/c(2) in the inclusive D(s)(+)pi(0) invariant mass distribution from e(+)e(-) annihilation data at energies near 10.6 GeV. The observed width is consistent with the experimental resolution. The small intrinsic width and the quantum numbers of the final state indicate that the decay violates isospin conservation. The state has natural spin-parity and the low mass suggests a J(P)=0(+) assignment. The data sample corresponds to an integrated luminosity of 91 fb(-1) recorded by the BABAR detector at the SLAC PEP-II asymmetric-energy e(+)e(-) storage ring

Measurement of the branching fraction and CP violating asymmetries in neutral B decays to D*+- D-+

We present measurements of the branching fraction and CP-violating asymmetries for neutral B decays to D*+-D-+. The measurement uses a data sample of approximately 88 million Y(4S) --> B Bbar decays collected with the BABAR detector at the SLAC PEP-II asymmetric-energy B factory. We measure the branching fraction to be (8.8 +- 1.0 +- 1.3) x 10^-4 and the time-integrated CP-violating asymmetry between the rates to D*+D- and D*-D+ to be A = -0.03 +- 0.11 +- 0.05. We also measure the time-dependent CP-violating asymmetry parameters to be S-+ = -0.24 +- 0.69 +- 0.12, C-+ = -0.22 +- 0.37 +- 0.10 for B --> D*-D+ and S+- = -0.82 +- 0.75 +- 0.14$, C+- = -0.47 +- 0.40 +- 0.12 for B --> D*+D-. In each case the first error is statistical and the second error is systematic.Comment: 7 pages, 3 figures, published as Phys. Rev. Lett 90 (2003) 22180