Self-monitoring among non-insulin treated patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus: Patients' behavioural responses to readings and associations with glycaemic control

Aim: To investigate self-monitoring of blood glucose (SMBG) behaviour among non-insulin treated patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus, and to evaluate associations with glycaemic control. Methods: Eligible patients in 23 GP practices in Tayside, Scotland, were identified (18-75 years, no insulin treatment, SMBG reagent strips dispensed in 2009). Consenting patients were administered questionnaires addressing SMBG behavior: these primary data were record-linked to clinical data (including HbA1c) from a validated population-based diabetes clinical information system, then anonymised. Results: Among 629 eligible patients, 207 were interviewed and analysed. Mean SMBG reagent strips dispensed in 12 months was 268. Eighty (38.8%) patients took no action in response to perceived high test results, or simply checked later. Most (61.3%) did not know what action to take. 126 (61.2%) patients took action, including dietary (n=101), physical activity (n=12) or medication (n=10) changes, or making a HCP appointment (n=12). High score on a Diabetes Knowledge Test was a statistically significant predictor of taking action (odds ratio: 2.07). However, neither taking action nor increased SMBG frequency were associated with improved glycaemic control. Conclusions: Responding to SMBG test results and increased testing frequency were not associated with improved glycaemic control in the short-term. There is a lack of knowledge surrounding SMBG in non-insulin treated patients

Divorcing Romance, Rights and Radicalism: Beyond Pro and Anti in the Lesbian and Gay Marriage Debate

In this article about 'For Better or Worse? Lesbian and Gay Marriage' (Feminism & Psychology, 141) we focus on the contributions to the special feature, the commentaries provided by Ellen Lewin (2004), Sheila Jeffreys (2004) and Sue Wise and Liz Stanley (2004), and on wider debates about lesbian and gay marriage and partnership recognition. We agree that 'there is a lot of confusion/assumptions made about what it (i.e. marriage) is' (Wise and Stanley, 2004: 333). Thus, when talking about same-sex partnership recognition we are concerned with civil marriage (or civil union, or civil partnership), and not religious marriage. Our emphasis is on the public not on the private sphere; we are less interested with the personal aspects of relationships (such as intimacy or commitment) than with their public function in, for instance, obtaining 'rights and responsibilities'

Mechanical tensioning of high-strength aluminum alloy friction stir welds

The extent to which in-situ global mechanical tensioning (GMT) can be used to modify the residual stress state in friction stir (FS) welds is investigated in this article. Residual stress distributions have been determined by synchrotron X-ray and neutron diffraction for four sets of FS welds in high-strength AA7449-W51 and lithium containing AA2199-T8 aerospace aluminum alloys subjected to a systematic range of GMT levels. For the cases studied, the results indicate that the level of residual stresses present in the as-welded state is a function of the alloy. The rate of residual stress reduction brought about by GMT, however, is basically alloy independent; indeed, it is essentially linear with respect to the GMT load, so that the tensioning required to reduce the weld stresses to zero can be calculated directly from the stresses present in the untensioned case. For thin plates, proximity to the yield stress in the hot-softened zone means that a guideline rule is that 1 MPa of tensioning during welding reduces the tensile stress by approximately 1 MPa. The GMT was found to be less effective at greater depths in thick plates. Furthermore, a reduction in bending distortion and an increase in angular distortion was observed with increased GMT, while no effects on the weld microstructure and hardness were observed