Public Assistance, Drug Testing, and the Law: The Limits of Population-Based Legal Analysis

In Populations, Public Health and the Law, legal scholar Wendy Parmet urges courts to embrace population-based legal analysis, a public health inspired approach to legal reasoning. Parmet contends that population-based legal analysis offers a way to analyze legal issues—not unlike law and economics—as well as a set of values from which to critique contemporary legal discourse. Population-based analysis has been warmly embraced by the health law community as a bold new way of analyzing legal issues. Still, population-based analysis is not without its problems. At times, Parmet claims too much territory for the population perspective. Moreover, Parmet urges courts to recognize population health as an important norm in legal reasoning. What should we do when the insights of public health and conventional legal reasoning conflict? Still in its infancy, population-based analysis offers little in the way of answers to these questions. This Article applies population-based legal analysis to the constitutional problems that arise when states condition public assistance benefits on passing a drug test, thereby highlighting the strengths of the population perspective and exposing its weaknesses

Supersonic Retropropulsion Experimental Results from the NASA Langley Unitary Plan Wind Tunnel

A new supersonic retropropulsion experimental effort, intended to provide code validation data, was recently completed in the Langley Research Center Unitary Plan Wind Tunnel Test Section 2 over the Mach number range from 2.4 to 4.6. The experimental model was designed using insights gained from pre-test computations, which were instrumental for sizing and refining the model to minimize tunnel wall interference and internal flow separation concerns. A 5-in diameter 70-deg sphere-cone forebody with a roughly 10-in long cylindrical aftbody was the baseline configuration selected for this study. The forebody was designed to accommodate up to four 4:1 area ratio supersonic nozzles. Primary measurements for this model were a large number of surface pressures on the forebody and aftbody. Supplemental data included high-speed Schlieren video and internal pressures and temperatures. The run matrix was developed to allow for the quantification of various sources of experimental uncertainty, such as random errors due to run-to-run variations and bias errors due to flow field or model misalignments. Preliminary results and observations from the test are presented, while detailed data and uncertainty analyses are ongoing

Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis (BIA)-derived Phase Angle (PA) is a practical aid to nutritional assessment in hospital in-patients

Background: Nutritional status can be difficult to assess. Bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA)-derived phase angle (PA), and the plasma markers citrulline and transthyretin (pre-albumin) have the potential to assist, but the protocol of fasting and resting for BIA renders the investigation impractical for routine use, especially so in populations at high risk of malnutrition.  Aims: 1- To clarify whether starving and resting are necessary for reliable measurement of PA. 2- To identify whether PA, citrulline and transthyretin correlate with nutritional status.  Methods: Eighty consenting adult in-patients were recruited. Nutritional status was determined by subjective global assessment (SGA) used as gold standard. The Malnutrition Universal Screening Tool (MUST) was used and anthropometric measurements were performed. Serum was analysed for citrulline and transthyretin. PA was measured using Bodystat 4000. The PA was considered to define malnutrition when lower than reference ranges for sex and age, and severe malnutrition if more than 2 integers below the lower limit. Anthropometric measurements were categorised according to WHO reference centiles. Ordinal logistic regression estimated the strength of association of PA, citrulline and transthyretin with SGA. PA values in the different metabolic states were compared using paired t tests.  Results: All 80 subjects completed the BIA and the nutritional assessments in the 3 different states; 14 declined to provide blood samples for the biochemical assays. Malnutrition was identified in 32 cases, severe malnutrition in 14 cases, the remaining 34 cases were deemed not to be malnourished. PA was strongly inversely associated with SGA (Odds Ratio [OR] per unit increase = 0.21, CI 0.12-0.37, p < 0.001). PA was not influenced by exercise (p=0.134) or food intake (p=0.184). Transthyretin was inversely associated with malnourished/severely malnourished states (OR = 0.98, 95% CI 0.97 – 0.99, p = 0.001), but had poorer predictive values than PA. There was no significant association between citrulline concentration and SGA (OR = 1.01, 95% CI 0.99-1.04, p = 0.348).  Conclusions: The BIA-derived PA reliably identifies malnutrition. It is strongly associated with SGA but requires less skill and experience, and out-performs circulating transthyretin, rendering it a promising and less operator-dependent tool for assessing nutritional status in hospital patients. Our novel demonstration that fasting and bed-rest are unnecessary consolidates that position

Surveillance or self-surveillance? Behavioral cues can increase the rate of drivers' pro-environmental behavior at a long wait stop

By leaving their engines idling for long periods, drivers contribute unnecessarily to air pollution, waste fuel, and produce noise and fumes that harm the environment. Railway level crossings are sites where many cars idle, many times a day. In this research, testing two psychological theories of influence, we examine the potential to encourage drivers to switch off their ignition while waiting at rail crossings. Two field studies presented different signs at a busy rail crossing site with a 2-min average wait. Inducing public self-focus (via a “Watching Eyes” stimulus) was not effective, even when accompanied by a written behavioral instruction. Instead, cueing a private-self focus (“think of yourself”) was more effective, doubling the level of behavioral compliance. These findings confirm the need to engage the self when trying to instigate self-regulatory action, but that cues evoking self-surveillance may sometimes be more effective than cues that imply external surveillance

The everyday impact of dentine sensitivity: personal and functional aspects

Research into oral health status and the impact of oral conditions on everyday life has been developed over the last 30 years. To date it is not clear the degr ee to which these measures can be applied to the pr oblems and impacts associated with dentine sensitivity. Th ere has been very little research on the everyday i mpact of dentine sensitivity. The aim of this study was t o explore the everyday experiences of dentine sensi tivity; in particular we were interested in the personal and f unctional aspects of living with the condition. Par ticipants were purposively recruited from a general populatio n to secure a range of experiences and views about the everyday impact of dentine sensitivity. Participant s were adults (≥18) currently experiencing dentine sensitiv - ity and were initially recruited using the research team’s contacts and snowball sampling. Data were a nalysed through a framework induced from the data and infor med by the literature on chronic illness, coping, i llness beliefs along with the general literature on the bi opsychosocial impact of oral health. Data analysis focussed on detailing the range of impacts associated with t he condition. Twenty three interviews were conducte d with 15 females and 8 males. The principal impacts on ev eryday life were described as pain, impacts on func tional status and everyday activities such as eating, drin king, talking, tooth brushing and social interactio n in gen - eral. Impacts appeared to be related to a range of individual and environmental inluences. The data in dicate the depth and complexity of the pain experiences as sociated with dentine sensitivity. The length of a partici - pant’s illness career appeared to be related to the ir degree of control over the condition. These indi ngs are compatible with the psychological literature on pai n and conirm that there are signiicant impacts asso ciated with dentine sensitivity in everyday life. Further research into the everyday nature of dentine sensit ive pain would be beneicial

A systematic review of the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of peer education and peer support in prisons.

BACKGROUND: Prisoners experience significantly worse health than the general population. This review examines the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of peer interventions in prison settings. METHODS: A mixed methods systematic review of effectiveness and cost-effectiveness studies, including qualitative and quantitative synthesis was conducted. In addition to grey literature identified and searches of websites, nineteen electronic databases were searched from 1985 to 2012. Study selection criteria were: Population: Prisoners resident in adult prisons and children resident in Young Offender Institutions (YOIs). INTERVENTION: Peer-based interventions Comparators: Review questions 3 and 4 compared peer and professionally led approaches. OUTCOMES: Prisoner health or determinants of health; organisational/ process outcomes; views of prison populations. STUDY DESIGNS: Quantitative, qualitative and mixed method evaluations. RESULTS: Fifty-seven studies were included in the effectiveness review and one study in the cost-effectiveness review; most were of poor methodological quality. Evidence suggested that peer education interventions are effective at reducing risky behaviours, and that peer support services are acceptable within the prison environment and have a positive effect on recipients, practically or emotionally. Consistent evidence from many, predominantly qualitative, studies, suggested that being a peer deliverer was associated with positive effects. There was little evidence on cost-effectiveness of peer-based interventions. CONCLUSIONS: There is consistent evidence from a large number of studies that being a peer worker is associated with positive health; peer support services are also an acceptable source of help within the prison environment and can have a positive effect on recipients. Research into cost-effectiveness is sparse. SYSTEMATIC REVIEW REGISTRATION: PROSPERO ref: CRD42012002349

Programmable in situ amplification for multiplexed imaging of mRNA expression

In situ hybridization methods enable the mapping of mRNA expression within intact biological samples. With current approaches, it is challenging to simultaneously map multiple target mRNAs within whole-mount vertebrate embryos, representing a significant limitation in attempting to study interacting regulatory elements in systems most relevant to human development and disease. Here, we report a multiplexed fluorescent in situ hybridization method based on orthogonal amplification with hybridization chain reactions (HCR). With this approach, RNA probes complementary to mRNA targets trigger chain reactions in which fluorophore-labeled RNA hairpins self-assemble into tethered fluorescent amplification polymers. The programmability and sequence specificity of these amplification cascades enable multiple HCR amplifiers to operate orthogonally at the same time in the same sample. Robust performance is achieved when imaging five target mRNAs simultaneously in fixed whole-mount and sectioned zebrafish embryos. HCR amplifiers exhibit deep sample penetration, high signal-to-background ratios and sharp signal localization

Women, resettlement and desistance

With the numbers of women imprisoned increasing across Western jurisdictions over the last 15 or so years, so too have the numbers of women returning to the community following a period in custody. Despite increasing policy attention in the UK and elsewhere to prisoner resettlement, women’s experiences on release from prison have received limited empirical and policy attention. Drawing upon interviews with women leaving prison in Victoria, Australia, this article discusses the resettlement challenges faced by the women and highlights their similarity to the experiences of women leaving prison in other jurisdictions. Women had mixed (and predominantly negative) experiences and views of accessing services and supports following release, though experiences of parole supervision by community corrections officers were often positive, especially if women felt valued and supported by workers who demonstrated genuine concern. Analysis of factors associated with further offending and with desistance, points to the critical role of flexible, tailored and women-centred post-release support building, and, where possible, upon relationships established with women while they are still in prison

Potency analysis of cellular therapies: the emerging role of molecular assays

Potency testing is an important part of the evaluation of cellular therapy products. Potency assays are quantitative measures of a product-specific biological activity that is linked to a relevant biological property and, ideally, a product's in vivo mechanism of action. Both in vivo and in vitro assays can be used for potency testing. Since there is often a limited period of time between the completion of production and the release from the laboratory for administration to the patient, in vitro assays such are flow cytometry, ELISA, and cytotoxicity are typically used. Better potency assays are needed to assess the complex and multiple functions of cellular therapy products, some of which are not well understood. Gene expression profiling using microarray technology has been widely and effectively used to assess changes of cells in response to stimuli and to classify cancers. Preliminary studies have shown that the expression of noncoding microRNA which play an important role in cellular development, differentiation, metabolism and signal transduction can distinguish different types of stem cells and leukocytes. Both gene and microRNA expression profiling have the potential to be important tools for testing the potency of cellular therapies. Potency testing, the complexities associated with potency testing of cellular therapies, and the potential role of gene and microRNA expression microarrays in potency testing of cellular therapies is discussed