The STAP-study: The (cost) effectiveness of custom made orthotic insoles in the treatment for plantar fasciopathy in general practice and sports medicine: Design of a randomized controlled trial

Background: Plantar fasciopathy is a common cause of foot pain, accounting for 11 to 15 % of all foot symptoms requiring professional care in adults. Although many patients have complete resolution of symptoms within 12 months, many patients wish to reduce this period as much as possible. Orthotic devices are a frequently applied option of treatment in daily practice, despite a lack of evidence on the effectiveness. Therefore, the objective is to study the (cost)-effectiveness of custom made insoles by a podiatrist, compared to placebo insoles and usual care in patients with plantar fasciopathy in general practice and sports medicine clinics. Method/design: This study is a multi-center three-armed participant and assessor-blinded randomized controlled trial with 6-months follow-up. Patients with plantar fasciopathy, with a minimum duration of complaints of 2 weeks and aged between 18 and 65, who visit their general practitioner or sport physician are eligible for inclusion. A total of 185 patients will be randomized into three parallel groups. One group will receive usual care by the general practitioner or sports physician alone, one group will be referred to a podiatrist and will receive a custom made insole, and one group will be referred to a podiatrist and will receive a placebo insole. The primary outcome will be the change from baseline to 12 weeks follow-up in pain severity at rest and during activity on a 0-10 numerical rating scale (NRS). Secondary outcomes include foot function (according to the F

Applications of electrified dust and dust devil electrodynamics to Martian atmospheric electricity

Atmospheric transport and suspension of dust frequently brings electrification, which may be substantial. Electric fields of 10 kVm-1 to 100 kVm-1 have been observed at the surface beneath suspended dust in the terrestrial atmosphere, and some electrification has been observed to persist in dust at levels to 5 km, as well as in volcanic plumes. The interaction between individual particles which causes the electrification is incompletely understood, and multiple processes are thought to be acting. A variation in particle charge with particle size, and the effect of gravitational separation explains to, some extent, the charge structures observed in terrestrial dust storms. More extensive flow-based modelling demonstrates that bulk electric fields in excess of 10 kV m-1 can be obtained rapidly (in less than 10 s) from rotating dust systems (dust devils) and that terrestrial breakdown fields can be obtained. Modelled profiles of electrical conductivity in the Martian atmosphere suggest the possibility of dust electrification, and dust devils have been suggested as a mechanism of charge separation able to maintain current flow between one region of the atmosphere and another, through a global circuit. Fundamental new understanding of Martian atmospheric electricity will result from the ExoMars mission, which carries the DREAMS (Dust characterization, Risk Assessment, and Environment Analyser on the Martian Surface)-MicroARES (Atmospheric Radiation and Electricity Sensor) instrumentation to Mars in 2016 for the first in situ measurements

A case-only study to identify genetic modifiers of breast cancer risk for BRCA1/BRCA2 mutation carriers

Breast cancer (BC) risk for BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutation carriers varies by genetic and familial factors. About 50 common variants have been shown to modify BC risk for mutation carriers. All but three, were identified in general population studies. Other mutation carrier-specific susceptibility variants may exist but studies of mutation carriers have so far been underpowered. We conduct a novel case-only genome-wide association study comparing genotype frequencies between 60,212 general population BC cases and 13,007 cases with BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutations. We identify robust novel associations for 2 variants with BC for BRCA1 and 3 for BRCA2 mutation carriers, P < 10−8, at 5 loci, which are not associated with risk in the general population. They include rs60882887 at 11p11.2 where MADD, SP11 and EIF1, genes previously implicated in BC biology, are predicted as potential targets. These findings will contribute towards customising BC polygenic risk scores for BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutation carriers

Neutron scattering cross sections for /sup 232/Th and /sup 238/U inferred from proton scattering and charge exchange measurements. [7 MeV, 26 and 27 MeV]

Differential cross sections for the (p,n) reactions to the isobaric analog states (IAS) of /sup 232/Th and /sup 238/U targets were measured at 26 and 27 MeV. The analysis of the data was done in conjunction with the proton elastic and inelastic (2/sup +/, 4/sup +/, 6/sup +/) differential cross sections measured at 26 MeV. Because collective effects are important in this mass region, deformed coupled-channels calculations were carried out for the simultaneous analysis of the proton and neutron outgoing channels. The sensitivity of the calculations was studied with respect to the optical model parameters used in the calculations, the shape of the nuclear charge distribution, the type of coupling scheme assumed among the levels, the magnitude of the deformation parameters, and the magnitude of the isovector potentials, V/sub 1/ and W/sub 1/. A Lane model-consistent analysis of the data was used to infer optical potential parameters for 6- to 7-MeV neutrons. The neutron elastic differential cross sections obtained from these calculations are compared with measurements available in the literature, and with results obtained using neutron parameters from global sets reported at these energies. 7 figures, 3 tables

Efficient algorithmic implementation of the Voigt/complex error function based on exponential series approximation

We show that a Fourier expansion of the exponential multiplier yields an exponential series that can compute high-accuracy values of the complex error function in a rapid algorithm. Numerical error analysis and computational test reveal that with essentially higher accuracy it is as fast as FFT-based Weideman’s algorithm at a regular size of the input array and considerably faster at an extended size of the input array. As this exponential series approximation is based only on elementary functions, the algorithm can be implemented utilizing freely available functions from the standard libraries of most programming languages. Due to its simplicity, rapidness, high-accuracy and coverage of the entire complex plane, the algorithm is efficient and practically convenient in numerical methods related to the spectral line broadening and other applications requiring error-function evaluation over extended input arrays