Radiation hardness qualification of PbWO_4 scintillation crystals for the CMS Electromagnetic Calorimeter

Ensuring the radiation hardness of PbWO_4 crystals was one of the main priorities during the construction of the electromagnetic calorimeter of the CMS experiment at CERN. The production on an industrial scale of radiation hard crystals and their certification over a period of several years represented a difficult challenge both for CMS and for the crystal suppliers. The present article reviews the related scientific and technological problems encountered

Opportunistic assessment of hearing in elderly inpatients

Objective: To determine the prevalence of occult hearing loss in elderly inpatients, to evaluate feasibility of opportunistic hearing screening and to determine subsequent provision of hearing aids. Materials and methods: Subjects (>65 years) were recruited from five elderly care wards. Hearing loss was detected by a ward-based hearing screen comprising patient-reported assessment of hearing disability and a whisper test. Subjects failing the whisper test or reporting hearing difficulties were offered formal audiological assessment. Results: Screening was performed on 51 patients aged between 70 and 95 years. Of the patients, 21 (41%) reported hearing loss and 16 (31%) failed the whisper test. A total of 37 patients (73%) were referred for audiological assessment with 17 (33%) found to have aidable hearing loss and 11 were fitted with hearing aids (22%). Discussion: This study highlights the high prevalence of occult hearing loss in elderly inpatients. Easy two-step screening can accurately identify patients with undiagnosed deafness resulting in significant proportions receiving hearing aids

Investigation of risk factors for Echinococcus coproantigen positivity in dogs in the Alay valley, Kyrgyzstan

Echinococcosis caused by the zoonotic cestodes Echinococcus granulosus (sensu lato) and Echinococcus multilocularis is highly endemic in the Central Asian Republic of Kyrgyzstan, and is increasingly being identified as public health problem especially amongst pastoral communities. As domestic dogs are considered to be the main source of human infection in these communities, the identification of potential transmission pathways can be of use when considering implementing a control scheme for echinococcosis. The current report describes the results of an analytic study of canine echinococcosis (based on the results of coproantigen ELISA testing) in the Alay valley of southern Kyrgyzstan prior to the commencement of a praziquantel dosing scheme amongst dogs. A logistic regression model using a form of Bayes modal estimation was used to identify possible risk factors for coproantigen positivity, and the output was interpreted in a Bayesian context (posterior distributions of the coefficients of interest). The study found that sheepdogs had lower odds of coproantigen positivity, as did households with donkeys, some knowledge of echinococcosis, and which did not engage in home slaughtering. There was no evidence of an association between free roaming or previous praziquantel dosing and coproantigen positivity, as has been found in previous studies. Possible reasons for these findings are discussed and suggestions made for further work

Prevalence and co-infection of Toxoplasma gondii and Neospora caninum in Apodemus sylvaticus in an area relatively free of cats

The protozoan parasite Toxoplasma gondii is prevalent worldwide and can infect a remarkably wide range of hosts despite felids being the only definitive host. As cats play a major role in transmission to secondary mammalian hosts, the interaction between cats and these hosts should be a major factor determining final prevalence in the secondary host. This study investigates the prevalence of T. gondii in a natural population of Apodemus sylvaticus collected from an area with low cat density (<2·5 cats/km2). A surprisingly high prevalence of 40·78% (95% CI: 34·07%–47·79%) was observed despite this. A comparable level of prevalence was observed in a previously published study using the same approaches where a prevalence of 59% (95% CI: 50·13%–67·87%) was observed in a natural population of Mus domesticus from an area with high cat density (>500 cats/km2). Detection of infected foetuses frompregnant dams in both populations suggests that congenital transmission may enable persistence of infection in the absence of cats. The prevalences of the related parasite, Neospora caninum were found to be low in both populations (A. sylvaticus: 3·39% (95% CI: 0·12%–6·66%); M. domesticus: 3·08% (95% CI: 0·11%–6·05%)). These results suggest that cat density may have a lower than expected effect on final prevalence in these ecosystems

International consensus on terminology to be used in the field of echinococcoses

Echinococcoses require the involvement of specialists from nearly all disciplines; standardization of the terminology used in the field is thus crucial. To harmonize echinococcosis terminology on sound scientific and linguistic grounds, the World Association of Echinococcosis launched a Formal Consensus process. Under the coordination of a Steering and Writing Group (SWG), a Consultation and Rating Group (CRG) had the main missions of (1) providing input on the list of terms drafted by the SWG, taking into account the available literature and the participants' experience; and (2) providing independent rating on all debated terms submitted to vote. The mission of the Reading and Review Group (RRG) was to give an opinion about the recommendation paper in terms of readability, acceptability and applicability. The main achievements of this process were: (1) an update of the current nomenclature of Echinococcus spp.; (2) an agreement on three names of diseases due to Echinococcus spp.: Cystic Echinococcosis (CE), Alveolar Echinococcosis (AE) and Neotropical Echinococcosis (NE), and the exclusion of all other names; (3) an agreement on the restricted use of the adjective "hydatid" to refer to the cyst and fluid due to E. granulosus sensu lato; and (4) an agreement on a standardized description of the surgical operations for CE, according to the "Approach, cyst Opening, Resection, and Completeness" (AORC) framework. In addition, 95 "approved" and 60 "rejected" terms were listed. The recommendations provided in this paper will be applicable to scientific publications in English and communication with professionals. They will be used for translation into other languages spoken in endemic countries. [Abstract copyright: © D.A. Vuitton et al., published by EDP Sciences, 2020.

Dog ownership, dog behaviour and transmission of Echinococcus spp. in the Alay Valley, southern Kyrgyzstan

Echinococcosis is a re-emerging zoonotic disease in Kyrgyzstan, and the incidence of human infection has increased substantially since the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. Domestic dogs are hosts of Echinococcus spp. and play an important role in the transmission of these parasites. The demography, ecology and behaviour of dogs are therefore relevant in studying Echinococcus spp. transmission. Dog demographics, roles of dogs, dog movements and faecal environmental contamination were assessed in four rural communities in the Alay Valley, southern Kyrgyzstan. Arecoline purge data revealed for the first time that E. granulosus, E. canadensis and E. multilocularis were present in domestic dogs in the Alay Valley. Surveys revealed that many households had dogs and that dogs played various roles in the communities, as pets, guard dogs or sheep dogs. Almost all dogs were free to roam, and GPS data revealed that many moved outside their communities, thus being able to scavenge offal and consume rodents. Faecal environmental contamination was high, presenting a significant infection risk to the local communitie

The Interpersonal Style and Complementarity Between Crisis Negotiators and Forensic Inpatients

Previous negotiation research has explored the interaction and communication between crisis negotiators and perpetrators. A crisis negotiator attempts to resolve a critical incident through negotiation with an individual, or group of persons in crisis. The purpose of this study was to establish the interpersonal style of crisis negotiators and complementarity of the interpersonal interaction between them and forensic inpatients. Crisis negotiators, clinical workers and students (n = 90) used the Check List of Interpersonal Transactions-Revised (CLOIT-R) to identify interpersonal style, along with eight vignettes detailing interpersonal styles. Crisis negotiators were most likely to have a friendly interpersonal style compared to the other non-trained groups. Complementarity theory was not exclusively supported as submissive individuals did not show optimistic judgments in working with dominant forensic inpatients and vice versa. Exploratory analysis revealed that dominant crisis negotiators were optimistic in working with forensic inpatients with a dominant interpersonal style. This study provides insight into the area of interpersonal complementarity of crisis negotiators and forensic inpatients. Whilst further research is required, a potential new finding was established, with significant ‘similarity’ found when dominant crisis negotiators are asked to work with dominant forensic inpatients

Technology requirements of exploration beyond Neptune by solar sail propulsion

This paper provides a set of requirements for the technology development of a solar sail propelled Interstellar Heliopause Probe mission. The mission is placed in the context of other outer solar systems missions, ranging from a Kuiper Belt mission through to an Oort cloud mission. Mission requirements are defined and a detailed parametric trajectory analysis and launch date scan performed. Through analysis of the complete mission trade space a set of critical technology development requirements are identified which include an advanced lightweight composite High-Gain Antenna, a high-efficiency Ka-band travelling-wave tube amplifier and a radioisotope thermoelectric generator with power density of approximately 12 W/kg. It is also shown that the Interstellar Heliopause Probe mission necessitates the use of a spinning sail, limiting the direct application of current hardware development activities. A Kuiper Belt mission is then considered as a pre-curser to the Interstellar Heliopause Probe, while it is also shown through study of an Oort cloud mission that the Interstellar Heliopause Probe mission is the likely end-goal of any future solar sail technology development program. As such, the technology requirements identified to enable the Interstellar Heliopause Probe must be enabled through all prior missions, with each mission acting as an enabling facilitator towards the next

Environmental threats to the health of children: the Asian perspective.

Environmental Health Perspectives10810989-992EVHP