A geometric analysis of hallux valgus: correlation with clinical assessment of severity

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Application of plane geometry to the study of bunion deformity may represent an interesting and novel approach in the research field of hallux valgus. For the purpose of contributing to development of a different perspective in the assessment of hallux valgus, this study was conducted with three objectives: a) to determine the position on the intersection point of the perpendicular bisectors of the longitudinal axes of the first metatarsal and proximal phalanx (IP), b) to correlate the location of this point with hallux valgus deformity according to angular measurements and according to visual assessment of the severity carried out by three independent observers, and c) to assess whether this IP correlated with the radius of the first metatarsophalangeal arc circumference.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Measurements evaluated were intermetatarsal angle (IMA), hallux valgus angle (HVA), and proximal phalangeal articular angle (PPAA). The Autocad^®program computed the location of the IP inside or outside of the foot. Three independent observers rated the severity of hallux valgus in photographs using a 100-mm visual analogue scale (VAS).</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Measurements of all angles except PPAA showed significantly lower values when the IP was located out of the foot more distantly and vice versa, significantly higher values for severe deformities in which the IP was found inside the foot (<it>p </it>< 0.001). The IP correlated significantly with VAS scores and with the length of the radius of the circle that included the first metatarsophalangeal arc circumference (<it>p </it>< 0.001)</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The IP is a useful indicator of hallux valgus deformity because correlated significantly with IMA and HVA measurements, VAS scores obtained by visual inspection of the degree of deformity, and location of the center of the first metatarsophalangeal arc circumference.</p

Measurement of the Higgs boson width and evidence of its off-shell contributions to ZZ production

Since the discovery of the Higgs boson in 2012, detailed studies of its properties have been ongoing. Besides its mass, its width—related to its lifetime—is an important parameter. One way to determine this quantity is to measure its off-shell production, where the Higgs boson mass is far away from its nominal value, and relating it to its on-shell production, where the mass is close to the nominal value. Here we report evidence for such off-shell contributions to the production cross-section of two Z bosons with data from the CMS experiment at the CERN Large Hadron Collider. We constrain the total rate of the off-shell Higgs boson contribution beyond the Z boson pair production threshold, relative to its standard model expectation, to the interval [0.0061, 2.0] at the 95% confidence level. The scenario with no off-shell contribution is excluded at a p-value of 0.0003 (3.6 standard deviations). We measure the width of the Higgs boson as ΓH=3.2+2.4−1.7MeV, in agreement with the standard model expectation of 4.1 MeV. In addition, we set constraints on anomalous Higgs boson couplings to W and Z boson pairs

Does Living in a Fatherless Household Compromise Educational Success? A Comparative Study of Cognitive and Non-cognitive Skills

This study addresses the relationship between various family forms and the level of cognitive and non-cognitive skills among 15- to 16-year-old students. We measure cognitive skills using standardized scores in mathematics; non-cognitive abilities are captured by a composite measure of internal locus of control related to mathematics. A particular focus lies on father absence although we also examine the role played by co-residence with siblings and grandparents. We use cross-nationally comparable data on students participating in the Programme for International Student Assessment's release for 2012. By mapping inequalities by family forms across 33 developed countries, this study provides robust cross-country comparable evidence on the relationship of household structure with both cognitive and non-cognitive skills. The study produces three key results: first, the absence of fathers from the household as well as co-residence with grandparents is associated with adverse outcomes for children in virtually all developed countries. Second, this is generally true in terms of both cognitive and non-cognitive skills, although the disadvantage connected to both family forms is notably stronger in the former than in the latter domain. Finally, there is marked cross-national diversity in the effects associated with the presence in the household of siblings and especially grandparents which furthermore differs across the two outcomes considered