Comorbid depressive disorders in ADHD. the role of ADHD severity, subtypes and familial psychiatric disorders

ObjectiveaaTo evaluate the presence of Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) and Dysthymic Disorder (DD) in a sample of Italian children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and to explore specific features of comorbid depressive disorders in ADHD. MethodsaaThree hundred and sixty-six consecutive, drug-naïve Caucasian Italian outpatients with ADHD were recruited and comorbid disorders were evaluated using DSM-IV-TR criteria. To evaluate ADHD severity, parents of all children filled out the ADHD Rating Scale. Thirty-seven children with comorbid MDD or DD were compared with 118 children with comorbid conduct disorder and 122 without comorbidity for age, sex, IQ level, family psychiatric history, and ADHD subtypes and severity. Resultsaa42 of the ADHD children displayed comorbid depressive disorders: 16 exhibited MDD, 21 DD, and 5 both MDD and DD. The frequency of hyperactive-impulsive subtypes was significantly lower in ADHD children with depressive disorders, than in those without any comorbidity. ADHD children with depressive disorders showed a higher number of familial psychiatric disorders and higher score in the Inattentive scale of the ADHD Rating Scale, than children without any comorbidity. No differences were found for age, sex and IQ level between the three groups. Conclusions: Consistent with previous studies in other countries, depressive disorders affect a significant proportion of ADHD children in Italy. Patient assessment and subsequent treatment should take into consideration the possible presence of this comorbidity, which could specifically increase the severity of ADHD attention problems

Impact of deep convection in the tropical tropopause layer in West Africa: in-situ observations and mesoscale modelling

We present the analysis of the impact of convection on the composition of the tropical tropopause layer region (TTL) in West-Africa during the AMMA-SCOUT campaign. Geophysica M55 aircraft observations of water vapor, ozone, aerosol and CO2 show perturbed values at altitudes ranging from 14 km to 17 km (above the main convective outflow) and satellite data indicates that air detrainment is likely originated from convective cloud east of the flight. Simulations of the BOLAM mesoscale model, nudged with infrared radiance temperatures, are used to estimate the convective impact in the upper troposphere and to assess the fraction of air processed by convection. The analysis shows that BOLAM correctly reproduces the location and the vertical structure of convective outflow. Model-aided analysis indicates that in the outflow of a large convective system, deep convection can largely modify chemical composition and aerosol distribution up to the tropical tropopause. Model analysis also shows that, on average, deep convection occurring in the entire Sahelian transect (up to 2000 km E of the measurement area) has a non negligible role in determining TTL composition

Morphology of the tropopause layer and lower stratosphere above a tropical cyclone : a case study on cyclone Davina (1999)

During the APE-THESEO mission in the Indian Ocean the Myasishchev Design Bureau stratospheric research aircraft M55 Geophysica performed a flight over and within the inner core region of tropical cyclone Davina. Measurements of total water, water vapour, temperature, aerosol backscattering, ozone and tracers were made and are discussed here in comparison with the averages of those quantities acquired during the campaign time frame. Temperature anomalies in the tropical tropopause layer (TTL), warmer than average in the lower part and colder than average in the upper TTL were observed. Ozone was strongly reduced compared to its average value, and thick cirrus decks were present up to the cold point, sometimes topped by a layer of very dry air. Evidence for meridional transport of trace gases in the stratosphere above the cyclone was observed and perturbed water distribution in the TTL was documented. The paper discuss possible processes of dehydration induced by the cirrus forming above the cyclone, and change in the chemical tracer and water distribution in the lower stratosphere 400–430 K due to meridional transport from the mid-latitudes and link with Davina. Moreover it compares the data prior and after the cyclone passage to discuss its actual impact on the atmospheric chemistry and thermodynamics

Italian cardiovascular mortality charts of the CUORE Project: are they comparable with the SCORE charts?

Background The aim of this study was to build risk charts for the assessment of cardiovascular mortality of the CUORE project, an Italian longitudinal study, and to compare them with the systematic coronary risk evaluation (SCORE) project charts for low risk European countries. Design Random population samples enrolled in the 1980s and 1990s in Italy were included in the analysis: 7520 men and 13 127 women aged 35-69 years without previous cardiovascular events and with a mean follow-up period of 10 years for cardiovascular disease. ICD-9 codes of death certificates similar to those of the SCORE project were considered when they appear as first cause of death. Methods Sex-stratified Cox proportional hazard model including age, systolic blood pressure, ratio between total and HDL cholesterol, and smoking habit as risk factors was used to assess cardiovascular mortality. Results Analysis showed that all risk factors included in the model were statistically significant. The corresponding area under the receiver operating characteristic curve was 0.825 (95% confidence interval: 0.803-0.846) for men and 0.850 (0.823-0.877) for women. The CUORE project charts yielded similar results to the corresponding charts of the SCORE project: Lin's coefficient was 0.929 for men and 0.935 for women. Conclusion The comparison between CUORE and SCORE mortality risk charts shows that SCORE charts reflect quite well the Italian cardiovascular mortality and, correspondingly, Italian cohorts of the CUORE project are quite representative of European countries at low risk for cardiovascular mortality

Sem evaluation of endosequence bc sealer hiflow in different environmental conditions

The aim of the present study is to evaluate the setting and sealant ability of two different bioceramic sealers in two different environmental conditions: humid and wet environment. Ex vivo root canal treatment was performed on 24 freshly extracted teeth. Irrigation was performed with Niclor NaOCl 5% and EDTA 17%, then obturated with a bioceramic sealer in the two different environmental conditions listed above. Furthermore, scanning electron microscope (SEM) investigation was performed to verify the presence of gaps and the setting ability of the two sealers in two different environmental conditions was evaluated. While presence of gaps was found mainly in the wet specimens, on the other hand, regarding the setting ability, there is no statistically significant difference between the two different samples. Therefore, even if humid conditions represent the gold standard in terms of lower gaps dimension, since there is no methodology standardizing the drying procedure of the root canal, it is compulsory to investigate the sealing ability of the bioceramic sealers, even in wet conditions. Thanks to the findings shown in the present study, it is demonstrated that even in wet conditions the ability of the sealer to set does not change and such clinical situation could affect the bioceramic sealer protocol

The influence of thermomechanical compaction on the marginal adaptation of 4 different hydraulic sealers: a comparative ex vivo study

Since there are no data in the literature regarding the comparison of the marginal adaptation of hydraulic sealers when used with a single-cone technique or through thermomechanical compaction, this study aimed to evaluate the behavior of four different endodontic sealers used with the two above-mentioned obturation techniques by evaluating the marginal gap existing between the obturation materials and the dentinal walls through scanning electron microscopy. Given this objective, a total of 104 single-rooted, straight canal teeth were selected and divided into four subgroups according to the selected endodontic sealer ((AH) Plus Bioceramic Sealer (AHP), EndoSequence BC Sealer HiFlow (ES), C-Root SP (CR), and GuttaFlow Bioseal (GF)). Each tooth was decoronated and instrumented with the HyFlex EDM/CM systematics up to 30.04. After irrigation procedures, the teeth of each subgroup were divided into two groups and obturated according to two different obturation techniques: the single-cone technique (SC) and the thermomechanical compaction technique (TC). After the required sealer setting time, each tooth was sectioned in three parts at 3, 6, and 9 mm from the apex, and each section was observed with a scanning electron microscope. The marginal gap of each sample was measured using G* Power Software v3.1, and the statistical analysis was performed using the Kruskal–Wallis test, followed by a post hoc Dunn’s test. Results showed that there were not any statistically significant differences in terms of the marginal gap between the two different above-mentioned obturation techniques for each sealer, except for the middle third of root canals, where a statistically significant difference was found for AHP, ES, and GF sealers. In conclusion, the thermomechanical compaction of hydraulic sealers and gutta-percha guarantees better sealing than the single-cone technique when the root canal shape is not rounded

Impact of deep convection in the tropical tropopause layer in West Africa: in-situ observations and mesoscale modelling

We present the analysis of the impact of convection on the composition of the tropical tropopause layer region (TTL) in West-Africa during the AMMA-SCOUT campaign. Geophysica M55 aircraft observations of water vapor, ozone, aerosol and CO<sub>2</sub> during August 2006 show perturbed values at altitudes ranging from 14 km to 17 km (above the main convective outflow) and satellite data indicates that air detrainment is likely to have originated from convective cloud east of the flights. Simulations of the BOLAM mesoscale model, nudged with infrared radiance temperatures, are used to estimate the convective impact in the upper troposphere and to assess the fraction of air processed by convection. The analysis shows that BOLAM correctly reproduces the location and the vertical structure of convective outflow. Model-aided analysis indicates that convection can influence the composition of the upper troposphere above the level of main outflow for an event of deep convection close to the observation site. Model analysis also shows that deep convection occurring in the entire Sahelian transect (up to 2000 km E of the measurement area) has a non negligible role in determining TTL composition

Food Leftover Practices among Consumers in Selected Countries in Europe, South and North America

Citation: Koppel, K., Higa, F., Godwin, S., Gutierrez, N., Shalimov, R., Cardinal, P., . . . Chambers, E. (2016). Food Leftover Practices among Consumers in Selected Countries in Europe, South and North America. Foods, 5(3), 14. doi:10.3390/foods5030066Foodborne illnesses may be related to many food production factors with home practices of consumers playing an important role in food safety. Consumer behavior for handling food leftovers has been studied, however little work on comparisons among countries has been published. The objective of this study was to investigate home food leftover practices of people from North American, South American, and European countries. Surveys were conducted with approximately 100 or more consumers in Argentina, Colombia, the United States, Estonia, Italy, Russia, and Spain. The participants responded to questions related to the length of time different types of food leftovers; such as meat, fresh salads, or restaurant dishes would be kept refrigerated or would be left at room temperature before refrigeration. Researchers also investigated how consumers would determine if the food was still safe for consumption. Potentially risky behaviors were observed in all seven countries. For instance, 55.8% of Estonians, 25% of Russians and 25.8% of Argentinean participants left food out at room temperature for several hours before storing in the refrigerator. Furthermore, 25%-29% of Colombian, Estonian, and Spanish consumers would look, smell, and taste leftovers to determine its probable safety. Correct handling of leftovers is an important aspect of consumer food safety. Although the surveys cannot be representative of all consumers in each country, they do provide an initial overview of comparative practices for handling leftovers among different countries. This provides government and educators with information on potential universal and unique consumer food safety issues related to handling leftover foods among various countries

In situ measurements of tropical cloud properties in the West African Monsoon: upper tropospheric ice clouds, Mesoscale Convective System outflow, and subvisual cirrus

In situ measurements of ice crystal size distributions in tropical upper troposphere/lower stratosphere (UT/LS) clouds were performed during the SCOUT-AMMA campaign over West Africa in August 2006. The cloud properties were measured with a Forward Scattering Spectrometer Probe (FSSP-100) and a Cloud Imaging Probe (CIP) operated aboard the Russian high altitude research aircraft M-55 Geophysica with the mission base in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso. A total of 117 ice particle size distributions were obtained from the measurements in the vicinity of Mesoscale Convective Systems (MCS). Two to four modal lognormal size distributions were fitted to the average size distributions for different potential temperature bins. The measurements showed proportionately more large ice particles compared to former measurements above maritime regions. With the help of trace gas measurements of NO, NOy, CO2, CO, and O3 and satellite images, clouds in young and aged MCS outflow were identified. These events were observed at altitudes of 11.0 km to 14.2 km corresponding to potential temperature levels of 346 K to 356 K. In a young outflow from a developing MCS ice crystal number concentrations of up to (8.3 ± 1.6) cm−3 and rimed ice particles with maximum dimensions exceeding 1.5 mm were found. A maximum ice water content of 0.05 g m−3 was observed and an effective radius of about 90 μm. In contrast the aged outflow events were more diluted and showed a maximum number concentration of 0.03 cm−3, an ice water content of 2.3 × 10−4 g m−3, an effective radius of about 18 μm, while the largest particles had a maximum dimension of 61 μm. Close to the tropopause subvisual cirrus were encountered four times at altitudes of 15 km to 16.4 km. The mean ice particle number concentration of these encounters was 0.01 cm−3 with maximum particle sizes of 130 μm, and the mean ice water content was about 1.4 × 10−4 g m−3. All known in situ measurements of subvisual tropopause cirrus are compared and an exponential fit on the size distributions is established for modelling purposes. A comparison of aerosol to ice crystal number concentrations, in order to obtain an estimate on how many ice particles may result from activation of the present aerosol, yielded low ratios for the subvisual cirrus cases of roughly one cloud particle per 30 000 aerosol particles, while for the MCS outflow cases this resulted in a high ratio of one cloud particle per 300 aerosol particles

Comparison of vertical aerosol extinction coefficients from in-situ and LIDAR measurements

Vertical profiles of aerosol optical properties were explored in a case study near the San Pietro Capofiume (SPC) ground station during the PEGASOS Po Valley campaign in the summer of 2012. A Zeppelin NT airship was employed to investigate the effect of the dynamics of the planetary boundary layer at altitudes between ~ 50–800 m above ground. Determined properties included the aerosol size distribution, the hygroscopic growth factor, the effective index of refraction and the light absorption coefficient. The first three parameters were used to retrieve the light scattering coefficient. Simultaneously, direct measurements of both the scattering and absorption coefficient were carried out at the SPC ground station. Additionally, a LIDAR system provided aerosol extinction coefficients for a vertically resolved comparison between in-situ and remote sensing results. First, the airborne results at low altitudes were validated with the ground measurements. Agreement within approximately ±25 and ±20% was found for the dry scattering and absorption coefficient, respectively. The single scattering albedo, ranged between 0.83 to 0.95, indicating the importance of the absorbing particles in the Po Valley region. A clear layering of the atmosphere was observed during the beginning of the flight (until ~ 10 local time) before the mixed layer (ML) was fully developed. Highest extinction coefficients were found at low altitudes, in the new ML, while values in the residual layer, which could be probed at the beginning of the flight at elevated altitudes, were lower. At the end of the flight (after ~ 12 local time) the ML was fully developed, resulting in constant extinction coefficients at all altitudes measured on the Zeppelin NT. LIDAR results captured these dynamic features well and good agreement was found for the extinction coefficients compared to the in-situ results, using fixed LIDAR ratios (LR) between 30 and 70 sr for the altitudes probed with the Zeppelin. These LR are consistent with values for continental aerosol particles that can be expected in this region