Remedial College Freshmen English Students: Description and Characteristics

This report is an analysis of the characteristics found among students in remedial, freshman English classes at a large, mid-south, regional university. At the end of the 1977 Spring Semester, 187 students from 13 remedial, freshman English classes were analyzed in terms of ability, motivation to attend classes and career choice (declared or undeclared majors). These variables were analyzed and compared to achievement levels (grades)

Improving the Quality of Care in Surgery: The Role of Guidelines, Protocols, Checklist and the Multidisciplinary Team

Today’s surgical environment is a complex multifaceted one that has eroded the traditional doctor patient relationship. Increasingly a discerning public expects surgery to be efficiently performed and be free of complications. Decisions about choosing a doctor are now data driven and the health system must adapt accordingly in order to attract patients. The streamlining of the patient: treatment: outcome continuum can be made better with the use of various standard operating procedures such as the use of guidelines, protocols and checklists with a multidisciplinary team where all stakeholders are actively engaged. This is especially important in developing countries for the potential savings in lives and finances. Still the need for individualization and good clinical judgment remains. The basis of all our decisions however must be evidence-based, and once applied in the best interest of the patient will benefit health care systems. There is good evidence that this is the case, and the only limitation currently is the lack of more widespread implementation

The relationship between clinical perfectionism and nonsuicidal self-injury: The roles of experiential avoidance, self-esteem, and locus of control

Objectives: Perfectionism is linked to nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI). Individuals with elevated perfectionism tend to avoid undesirable emotions and experience lower self-esteem, which are associated with NSSI. However, it is unclear if these mechanisms explain the link between clinical perfectionism and NSSI, and if locus of control is involved. We aimed to explore whether experiential avoidance and self-esteem would mediate the relationship between clinical perfectionism and NSSI, and if locus of control would moderate links between clinical perfectionism and both experiential avoidance and self-esteem. Method: As part of a larger study, 514 Australian university students (Mage = 21.15 years, SD = 2.40; 73.5% female) completed an online survey of NSSI, clinical perfectionism, experiential avoidance, self-esteem, and locus of control. Results: Clinical perfectionism was associated with NSSI history, but not with recent NSSI or past year NSSI frequency. Lower self-esteem, but not experiential avoidance, mediated links between clinical perfectionism and NSSI history, recent NSSI, and NSSI frequency. More external locus of control was associated with NSSI, experiential avoidance, and lower self-esteem, but locus of control did not moderate pathways between clinical perfectionism and experiential avoidance or self-esteem. Conclusion: University students reporting elevated clinical perfectionism may have a tendency to experience lower self-esteem which is associated with NSSI history, recency, and severity

Cognitive-emotional networks in students with and without a history of non-suicidal self-injury

Background: Contemporary models of non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) suggest that emotional vulnerabilities, negative self-schemas, and beliefs about NSSI work together to differentiate students who self-injure from those who do not. However, it is unclear how these mechanisms are differentially related among students with and without a history of NSSI. Considering this, we used a network analysis approach to explore how students with and without a history of NSSI vary in processing their emotional experiences in relation to their self-concepts and beliefs about NSSI. Method: A sample of 480 university students (Mage = 21.18, SD = 2.43; 73.5 % female) completed self-report measures about their perceived emotional experiences (e.g., emotional reactivity, emotion regulation difficulties), self-concepts (e.g., self-esteem, self-efficacy), and NSSI. Results: A network comparison test revealed that students with a history of NSSI perceived themselves to have difficulties regulating particularly intense, unwanted negative emotions. In light of this, students with a history of NSSI expected some benefits of NSSI (e.g., emotion regulation) regardless of potential barriers (e.g., pain). Conversely, for students without a history of NSSI, expecting NSSI to have aversive outcomes was tied to expecting NSSI to have few benefits. Limitations: The cross-sectional design limits inferences to be made about the network structures. Conclusions: Students with and without a history of NSSI appear to differ in their cognitive processing of negative emotions and strategies used to deal with these emotions

Cerebral metabolic effects of strict versus conventional glycaemic targets following severe traumatic brain injury.

Optimal glycaemic targets for patients with severe traumatic brain injury remain unclear. The primary objective of this microdialysis study was to compare cerebral metabolism between strict and conventional glycaemic control. Methods We performed a prospective single-centre randomised controlled within-subject crossover study in 20 adult patients admitted to an academic neurointensive care unit with severe traumatic brain injury. Patients underwent randomised, consecutive 24-hour periods of strict (4 - 7 mmol/L; 72 - 126 mg/dL) and conventional (<10 mmol/L; 180 mg/dL) glycaemic control with microdialysis measurements performed hourly. The first 12 hours of each study period was designated as ‘wash-out’ with the subsequent 12 hours being the period of interest. Results Cerebral glucose was lower during strict glycaemia compared to conventional control (1.05 (0.58, 1.51) mmol/L versus 1.28 (0.81, 1.74) mmol/L; P = 0.03) as was lactate (3.07 (2.44, 3.70) versus 3.56 (2.81, 4.30); P <0.001). There were no significant differences in pyruvate or the lactate/pyruvate ratio between treatment phases. Strict glycaemia increased the frequency of low cerebral glucose (<0.8 mmol/L), OR 1.91, 95% CI 1.01 – 3.65; P <0.05, however, there were no differences in the frequency of critically low glucose (<0.2 mmol/L) or critically elevated lactate/pyruvate ratio between phases. Conclusions Compared with conventional glycaemic targets, strict blood glucose control was associated with lower mean levels of cerebral glucose and an increased frequency of abnormally low glucose levels. These data support conventional glycaemic targets following TBI

Matter-antimatter rearrangements using the R-matrix method

Funding The contribution of EK was supported by the Ada Lovelace Centre, UK Science and Technology Facilities Council. MP’s work made use of support by CoSeC, the Computational Science Centre for Research Communities, through Collaborative Computational Project Q and High-End-Consortium (HEC) UK-AMOR. Acknowledgments We are grateful for helpful discussions with Jonathan Tennyson and Mike Charlton. The bound-state calculations were performed using the Maxwell High Performance Computing Cluster of the University of Aberdeen IT Service.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Glycaemic control targets after traumatic brain injury: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Optimal glycaemic targets in traumatic brain injury (TBI) remain unclear. We performed a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials (RCTs) comparing intensive with conventional glycaemic control in TBI requiring admission to an intensive care unit (ICU). METHODS: We systematically searched MEDLINE, EMBASE and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials to November 2016. Outcomes of interest included ICU and in-hospital mortality, poor neurological outcome, the incidence of hypoglycaemia and infective complications. Data were analysed by pairwise random effects models with secondary analysis of differing levels of conventional glycaemic control. RESULTS: Ten RCTs, involving 1066 TBI patients were included. Three studies were conducted exclusively in a TBI population, whereas in seven trials, the TBI population was a sub-cohort of a mixed neurocritical or general ICU population. Glycaemic targets with intensive control ranged from 4.4 to 6.7 mmol/L, while conventional targets aimed to keep glucose levels below thresholds of 8.4-12 mmol/L. Conventional versus intensive control showed no association with ICU or hospital mortality (relative risk (RR) (95% CI) 0.93 (0.68-1.27), P = 0.64 and 1.07 (0.84-1.36), P = 0.62, respectively). The risk of a poor neurological outcome was higher with conventional control (RR (95% CI) = 1.10 (1.001-1.24), P = 0.047). However, severe hypoglycaemia occurred less frequently with conventional control (RR (95% CI) = 0.22 (0.09-0.52), P = 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: This meta-analysis of intensive glycaemic control shows no association with reduced mortality in TBI. Intensive glucose control showed a borderline significant reduction in the risk of poor neurological outcome, but markedly increased the risk of hypoglycaemia. These contradictory findings should motivate further research

Clostridium difficile pilot study: effects of probiotic supplementation on the incidence of C. difficile diarrhoea

Colonic infection with Clostridium difficile, leading to pseudomembranous colitis, is a common complication of antibiotic therapy, especially in elderly patients. It has been suggested that non-pathogenic probiotic bacteria might prevent the development and recurrence of C. difficile infection. This double-blind, placebo-controlled study examines the role of probiotic administration in the prevention of C. difficile-associated diarrhoea (CDAD) in elderly patients receiving antibiotic therapy. Consecutive patients (150) receiving antibiotic therapy were randomised to receive either a probiotic containing both Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium or placebo for 20 days. Upon admission to hospital, bowel habit was recorded and a faecal sample taken. Trial probiotic or placebo was taken within 72 h of prescription of antibiotics, and a second stool sample was taken in the event of development of diarrhoea during hospitalisation or after discharge. Of the randomised patients, 138 completed the study, 69 with probiotics in conjunction with antibiotics and 69 with antibiotics alone. On the basis of development of diarrhoea, the incidence of samples positive for C. difficile-associated toxins was 2.9% in the probiotic group compared with 7.25% in the placebo-control group. When samples from all patients were tested (rather than just those developing diarrhoea) 46% of probiotic patients were toxin-positive compared with 78% of the placebo group. [Int Microbiol 2004; 7(1):59–62

Absolute Stability Analysis of a Phase Plane Controlled Spacecraft

Many aerospace attitude control systems utilize phase plane control schemes that include nonlinear elements such as dead zone and ideal relay. To evaluate phase plane control robustness, stability margin prediction methods must be developed. Absolute stability is extended to predict stability margins and to define an abort condition. A constrained optimization approach is also used to design flex filters for roll control. The design goal is to optimize vehicle tracking performance while maintaining adequate stability margins. Absolute stability is shown to provide satisfactory stability constraints for the optimization