522 research outputs found

    Mini High Velocity Clouds

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    Neutral hydrogen mapping of several small, very low column density High Velocity Clouds (HVC), using the Arecibo telescope, is reported. Some were found serendipitously superimposed at distinct velocities on largerHVCs; others were found to comprise the four most isolated low column density sources in the observations of Lockman et al. but proved to be individually much smaller than the Green Bank 140 Foot telescope beam. We call these clouds ``mini-HVC'' to distinguish them from the larger and denser Compact High Velocity Clouds (CHVC). Peak column densities are typically a few X 10^18 cm^-2 averaged over the Arecibo 3.2' beam, and diameters to our detection limit ~ 10^18 cm^-2 range from 9' to 35'. These column densities and angular diameters overlap with those for CHVC, but are typically smaller. We consider three possiblities: (1) that most mini-HVC are related to the Magellanic Stream, (2) that most mini-HVC are part of M31's retinue of CHVC, or (3) that the mini-HVC are simply the low column density tail of the distribution of CHVC. None of these possibilities can be rejected as yet, given the selection biases in our sample. We also discuss controversies about the amount of ionized hydrogen in CHVC and mini-HVC, which may be mainly ionized, and the implications of these small clouds for Lyman Limit Systems.Comment: Astronomical Journal, in pres

    In-home dementia caregiving is associated with greater psychological burden and poorer mental health than out-of-home caregiving: a cross-sectional study

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    Introduction: Caregivers who live with a person with dementia who receives care, compared with those who live elsewhere, are often considered to experience greater levels of psychological and affective burden. The evidence for this is, however, only limited to studies employing small sample sizes and that failed to examine caregivers’ psychological wellbeing. We address these issues in a large cohort of dementia caregivers. // Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study comparing caregivers living with a dementia care recipient (n = 240) to caregivers living elsewhere (n = 255) on caregivers’ burden, anxiety, and depression. // Results: We found that caregivers living with the care recipient relative to those living elsewhere showed significantly greater burden and depression, but we found no group difference in anxiety. // Conclusions: Our study adds to the evidence by showing that cohabiting with a care recipient with dementia is associated with greater burden and poorer psychological wellbeing. Strategies aiming to improve caregivers’ burden and psychological wellbeing should take account of caregivers’ living arrangements

    Cohort Profile: The Health Survey for England

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    To monitor the health of the public in England, UK, the Central Health Monitoring Unit within the UK Department of Health commissioned an annual health examination survey, which became known as the Health Survey for England (HSE). The first survey was completed in 1991. The HSE covers all of England and is a nationally representative sample of those residing at private residential addresses. Each survey year consists of a new sample of private residential addresses and people. The HSE collects detailed information on mental and physical health, health-related behaviour, and objective physical and biological measures in relation to demographic and socio-economic characteristics of people aged 16 years and over at private residential addresses. There are two parts to the HSE; an interviewer visit, to conduct an interview and measure height and weight, then a nurse visit, to carry out further measurements and take biological samples. Since 1994, survey participants aged 16 years and over have been asked for consent to follow-up through linkage to mortality and cancer registration data, and from 2003, to the Hospital Episode Statistics database, thus converting annual cross-sectional survey data into a longitudinal study. Annual survey data (1994–2009) are available through the UK Data Archive

    The Effects of a Web-Based Tool for Parents of Children With Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis: Randomized Controlled Trial

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    Background: Juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) is a group of autoinflammatory diseases that cause pain and disability if not controlled by treatment. Parenting a child with JIA is stressful for parents, who express concerns about their child’s treatment and may experience anxiety and powerlessness concerning their child’s illness. Parenting stress is greater in parents of children with chronic illness than in those with healthy children and is related to poorer psychological adjustment in both parents and children. It is therefore important to develop interventions to support parents. This paper reports the evaluation of a web-based tool that provides information and practical skills to help increase parents’ confidence in managing their child’s illness and reduce parenting stress. Objective: The aim of this study is to evaluate the benefits of a web-based tool (WebParC) for parents of children with recently diagnosed JIA. Methods: A multicentered randomized controlled trial was conducted at pediatric rheumatology centers in England. We recruited parents of children aged â‰Ī12 years who had been diagnosed with JIA within the previous 6 months. They were randomized to the intervention (WebParC access plus standard care) or the control (standard care alone) and followed up 4 months and 12 months after randomization. Where both parents participated, they were randomized by household to the same trial arm. The WebParC intervention consists of information about JIA and its treatment plus a toolkit, based on cognitive behavioral therapy, to help parents develop skills to manage JIA-related issues. The primary outcome was the self-report Pediatric Inventory for Parents measure of illness-related parenting stress. The secondary outcomes were parental mood, self-efficacy, coping, effectiveness of participation in their child’s health care, satisfaction with health care, and child’s health-related quality of life. Results: A total of 203 households comprising 220 parents were randomized to the intervention (100/203, 49.3%) or control (103/203, 50.7%) arm. Follow-up assessments were completed by 65.5% (133/203) of the households at 4 months (intervention 60/100, 60%, and control 73/103, 70.9%) and 61.1% (124/203) of the households at 12 months (intervention 58/100, 58%, and control 66/103, 64.1%). A main effect of the trial arm was found on the Pediatric Inventory for Parents: the intervention participants reported less frequency (subscales communication F1,120627=5.37; P=.02, and role function F1,27203=5.40; P=.02) and difficulty (subscales communication F1,2237=7.43; P=.006, medical care F1,2907=4.04; P=.04, and role function F1,821=4.37, P=.04) regarding illness-related stressful events than the control participants. Conclusions: The WebParC website for parents of children with JIA reduced illness-related parenting stress. This web-based intervention offers a feasible preventive approach for parents of children with JIA and potentially could be adapted and evaluated for parents of children with other chronic illnesses. Trial Registration: International Standard Randomized Controlled Trial Number (ISRCTN) 13159730; http://www.isrctn.com/ISRCTN1315973
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