Neurogenic bladder: etiology and assessment

A review of the various causes of neurologic impairment to the lower urinary tract in children was the aim of this presentation. The emphasis was on diagnosis, pathophysiology, and treatment that strive to maintain as normal a function as possible in order to achieve eventual urinary continence and health of the upper urinary tract. The latest principles based on the most up to date evidence are promulgated but with an eye towards historical prospective. The reader should gain an adequate understanding of various disorders that comprise this condition and feel comfortable with proposing options for management when faced with the responsibility of caring for an affected child

Impact of COVID-19 on cardiovascular testing in the United States versus the rest of the world

Objectives: This study sought to quantify and compare the decline in volumes of cardiovascular procedures between the United States and non-US institutions during the early phase of the coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted the care of many non-COVID-19 illnesses. Reductions in diagnostic cardiovascular testing around the world have led to concerns over the implications of reduced testing for cardiovascular disease (CVD) morbidity and mortality. Methods: Data were submitted to the INCAPS-COVID (International Atomic Energy Agency Non-Invasive Cardiology Protocols Study of COVID-19), a multinational registry comprising 909 institutions in 108 countries (including 155 facilities in 40 U.S. states), assessing the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on volumes of diagnostic cardiovascular procedures. Data were obtained for April 2020 and compared with volumes of baseline procedures from March 2019. We compared laboratory characteristics, practices, and procedure volumes between U.S. and non-U.S. facilities and between U.S. geographic regions and identified factors associated with volume reduction in the United States. Results: Reductions in the volumes of procedures in the United States were similar to those in non-U.S. facilities (68% vs. 63%, respectively; p = 0.237), although U.S. facilities reported greater reductions in invasive coronary angiography (69% vs. 53%, respectively; p < 0.001). Significantly more U.S. facilities reported increased use of telehealth and patient screening measures than non-U.S. facilities, such as temperature checks, symptom screenings, and COVID-19 testing. Reductions in volumes of procedures differed between U.S. regions, with larger declines observed in the Northeast (76%) and Midwest (74%) than in the South (62%) and West (44%). Prevalence of COVID-19, staff redeployments, outpatient centers, and urban centers were associated with greater reductions in volume in U.S. facilities in a multivariable analysis. Conclusions: We observed marked reductions in U.S. cardiovascular testing in the early phase of the pandemic and significant variability between U.S. regions. The association between reductions of volumes and COVID-19 prevalence in the United States highlighted the need for proactive efforts to maintain access to cardiovascular testing in areas most affected by outbreaks of COVID-19 infection

'Feminism rules! Now, where’s my swimsuit?' Re-evaluating Feminist Discourse in Print Media 1968-2008

More than forty years after the Second Wave feminist movement emerged in the Western world, it is frequently claimed that feminism is “dead” or redundant, and that we now live in a “postfeminist” society. Although such claims are regularly refuted by a range of academics and activists (Baumgardner and Richards, 2001; Lumby, 2011; McRobbie, 2007; National Organisation for Women, 2011; Smith, 2003; Redfern and Aune, 2010; Tasker and Negra, 2007; Thornham and Weissmann, forthcoming; Valenti, 2007; Walby, 2011; Walter, 2010), it is worthwhile interrogating the extent to which feminism is discussed in popular and political contexts. In light of the persistent and longstanding “backlash” against feminism in Britain and the United States (see Faludi, 1992; Author Removed, 2011a), is it reasonable to assume that discussions of feminism and discourses utilizing feminist concepts, language and critiques are absent? Furthermore, what does the presence – or erasure – of discourses of feminism tell us about its standing today, and how might such discourses have shifted over time? In answering these questions, this paper traces the emergence of, and changes in the ways feminism has been discursively constructed in British and American newspapers during two periods – 1968-82 which I define as the “height” of the Second Wave in both countries, and 2008, a period marking 40 years after the movement began gaining momentum. Through analysing four British (The Times, Daily Mirror, Daily Mail, The Guardian) and American (The New York Times, Washington Post, Chicago Tribune, Washington Times) newspapers, I argue that not only has there been an erasure of feminist activism from our newspapers over time, but that discourses of feminism have become both de-politicised and de-radicalised since the 1960s, and can now largely be considered neoliberal in nature – a problematic construction for those seeking collective social change