Problematic Approaches in Communication Towards People with Disabilities

Through this video essay, I am hoping to draw attention to the problematic approaches in communication towards people with disabilities, but specifically invisible disabilities. In this video essay, I talk about the harmful effects of using war metaphors when talking about chronic illnesses, why inspiration porn is problematic, and how COVID-19 has impacted the rhetoric when talking about disabilities and chronic illnesses. We should all be working towards creating an environment that doesn\u27t negatively impact or burden those suffering with chronic illnesses or disabilities and I hope this video essay is just the start of the research you do to better support your chronically ill and disabled loved ones

Development of instrumentation and techniques for preclinical image guided microirradiation

Title from PDF of title page (University of Missouri--Columbia, viewed on June 11, 2014).Radiation therapy accounts for more than half of cancer treatments in the US, and in order to provide the most effective treatment to patients, new developments are implemented each year. Before a novel radiation therapy device or technique can be used to treat patients in the clinic, it must first undergo testing. One of the most effective testing methods is preclinical small animal testing, because the testing environment provides a large sample population on which treatment variations can be tested for efficacy and possible side effects. To improve the effectiveness of preclinical testing, the devices and methods used on small animals should closely resemble those used in the clinic. These include irradiators, fractionation schedules, repeatability methods, and results characterization. Results characterization will provide a translational pathway between the preclinical and clinical environments of a small animal irradiation and human treatments to account for variation in treatment beams and subject size between preclinical and clinical irradiations. The Biomedical Physics Laboratory at Washington University in St. Louis, with whom I was working, developed a preclinical small animal image guided microirradiator, the microIGRT, and we characterized the device using clinical methods, such as those used for machine acceptance and quality assurance. In order to provide treatment verification and subject positioning repeatability, we designed, developed, and characterized a micro electronic portal imaging device (μEPID), similar to the portal devices used on clinical linear accelerators. Using the microIGRT and the μEPID, we developed treatments for small animal brain, lung, liver, and spinal tumors using clinical treatment planning methodologies translated to preclinical small animal models. We characterized the treatment results with several metrics and compared these to clinical treatments. The metrics were compared, side by side, and conclusions were drawn for the efficacy of the small animal treatment to establish the first steps for a pathway to translate preclinical results to clinical trials. Considering the difficulties of dosimetry for small fields commonly used in small animal irradiations, we also designed and developed a fiber scintillating microdosimeter. This dosimeter allowed for more accurate orthovoltage beam characterization, thus improving treatment planning and translational treatments

Self and peer-ratings of self-esteem and cardiovascular reactivity to laboratory stressors in cadets

Past research has indicated that self-esteem has multiple dimensions. It has been suggested that defensive high self-esteem makes one vulnerable to ego-threat and might be reflected in discrepancies between peer- and self-ratings. The purpose of this study was to observe how self- and peer-rated self-esteem affect cardiovascular reactivity to ego-threatening stressors (cold pressor and toughness-challenging interview) in nineteen military college cadets. High/low groups of self-esteem were formed based on peer- and self-ratings. Cadets in the low self-rating group showed evidence of a mixed (myocardial and vascular) response; cadets in the high peer-rating group showed higher myocardial and lower vascular reactivity. Cadets with high peer- /low self-ratings (defensive high self-esteem) had a greater blood pressure increase during interview preparation than participants with high peer-/high self-ratings. The present findings suggest that secure high self-esteem, as reflected by agreement between self- and peer-ratings, may be the only way to ensure low vulnerability to stress

Grass-Eating Behaviour in the Domestic Dog, "Canis familiaris"

There is a paucity of information on grass eating in the domestic dog, "Canis familiaris". Various explanations have been proposed for grass-eating behaviour including grass as an emetic, laxative, or as self-medication of gastrointestinal distress. In addition, grass-related commercial products are marketed as digestive aids for dogs. However, there is no known explanation for grass-eating behaviour as there have been no controlled experiments that investigate it. Several aspects and theories of grass eating were explored in a series of five studies for the current thesis. Grass-eating behaviour was common among dogs observed in their home environment and dogs observed throughout the controlled studies: 95 of the 99 dogs that were observed ate grass. There were 2,769 observed grass-eating events during 1,444 minutes (24.1 hours) of time spent eating grass. It was found that grass eating is an innate behaviour that can be influenced in 5- to 7-week-old puppies by their mother’s grass eating habits. Two self-medication theories were investigated and dogs in the current project did not eat grass to self-medicate a naturally harboured nematode burden or to moderate a mild gastrointestinal disturbance. The high frequency of grass eating compared with the very low incidence of vomiting also did not support the theory that dogs eat grass as an emetic. However, the prevalence of grass-eating behaviour in wolves, puppies, and adult dogs suggests a possible biological purpose. Grass may be seen as a food source as dogs were less likely to eat grass when satiated. Similarly, dogs spent more time eating grass the longer it had been since their daily meal. Further research could investigate the chemical composition of grass and the putative laxative effects of grass or its various components

The Influence of Novel Feeding Systems on the Behaviour of Captive Female Common Marmosets, 'Callithrix jacchus'

The influence of novel feeding systems on the behaviour of eight female captive common marmosets, 'Callithrix jacchus', was determined through a series of experiments. Captive environments are often impoverished when compared to the richness of natural habitats and so can usually be found lacking in terms of choice, complexity, and change. Therefore, the welfare of animals kept in captive environments may be compromised. Environmental enrichment is used to improve welfare by emulating natural environments within captive environments so captive animals are provided with the surroundings and stimulation considered likely to promote species-typical behavioural repertoires. The University of New England marmosets have rotating free access, via a runway system, to another room that is four times larger than their home cages. This room is furnished similarly to the home cage with a proportionally larger number of furnishings, such as perches, platforms, nest boxes, tubes, tunnels, tyres, and hanging objects. The female marmoset subjects do voluntarily enter the room and utilize the different areas, but they choose to spend significantly more time in the home cages. Therefore, the added room space may not be as useable as the home cages. Since foraging enrichment is relatively inexpensive, easily implemented, and addresses some of the marked differences between captive and wild marmoset foraging strategies, foraging feeders were used in the present study. The current project examines the effects of four food distributions on the welfare of captive common marmosets: food centrally located in a stationary bowl, food in a bowl that changes location each day, hidden food in a clustered food source (cluster feeder), and hidden food in dispersed food sources (dispersed feeders). These four distributions were examined in four conditions with three intermediate conditions during which no additions were made to the typical room contents. These 'empty room' conditions were used to check possible order effects. The current study determined the behavioural effects of the four food distributions on activity, food apparatus use, eating, and self-directed and affiliative behaviours. The current study also determined whether food distribution altered the space use of the subjects in the short- and long-term

Performance characteristics of five triage tools for major incidents involving traumatic injuries to children

Context Triage tools are an essential component of the emergency response to a major incident. Although fortunately rare, mass casualty incidents involving children are possible which mandate reliable triage tools to determine the priority of treatment. Objective To determine the performance characteristics of five major incident triage tools amongst paediatric casualties who have sustained traumatic injuries. Design, setting, participants Retrospective observational cohort study using data from 31,292 patients aged less than 16 years who sustained a traumatic injury. Data were obtained from the UK Trauma Audit and Research Network (TARN) database. Interventions Statistical evaluation of five triage tools (JumpSTART, START, CareFlight, Paediatric Triage Tape/Sieve and Triage Sort) to predict death or severe traumatic injury (injury severity score >15). Main outcome measures Performance characteristics of triage tools (sensitivity, specificity and level of agreement between triage tools) to identify patients at high risk of death or severe injury. Results Of the 31,292 cases, 1029 died (3.3%), 6842 (21.9%) had major trauma (defined by an injury severity score >15) and 14,711 (47%) were aged 8 years or younger. There was variation in the performance accuracy of the tools to predict major trauma or death (sensitivities ranging between 36.4 and 96.2%; specificities 66.0–89.8%). Performance characteristics varied with the age of the child. CareFlight had the best overall performance at predicting death, with the following sensitivity and specificity (95% CI) respectively: 95.3% (93.8–96.8) and 80.4% (80.0–80.9). JumpSTART was superior for the triaging of children under 8 years; sensitivity and specificity (95% CI) respectively: 86.3% (83.1–89.5) and 84.8% (84.2–85.5). The triage tools were generally better at identifying patients who would die than those with non-fatal severe injury. Conclusion This statistical evaluation has demonstrated variability in the accuracy of triage tools at predicting outcomes for children who sustain traumatic injuries. No single tool performed consistently well across all evaluated scenarios

3D Joint Kinematic and 2D Quality of Movement Comparison Between Lateral and Forward Step Downs

Step down assessments are frequently used in clinical settings with the lateral step-down (LSD) and forward step-down (FSD) two common variations. The LSD and FSD are both reliable and are commonly used for the assessment of lower extremity pathologies such as patellofemoral pain, anterior ligament reconstruction, and femoral acetabular impingement (1-7). Step down kinematics can be influenced by reduced dorsiflexion mobility (8). Previous studies have demonstrated altered movement quality in those with pathology during either the LSD or FSD (4,7). However, no studies have directly compared the lower extremity movement patterns of the FSD and LSD, using either 3-dimensional (3D) joint angle analysis or 2-dimensional (2D) assessment of faulty movement patterns.https://ecommons.udayton.edu/grad_showcase/1004/thumbnail.jp

Characteristics of patients making serious inhaler errors with a dry powder inhaler and association with asthma-related events in a primary care setting

Acknowledgements The iHARP database was funded by unrestricted grants from Mundipharma International Ltd and Research in Real-Life Ltd; these analyses were funded by an unrestricted grant from Teva Pharmaceuticals. Mundipharma and Teva played no role in study conduct or analysis and did not modify or approve the manuscript. The authors wish to direct a special appreciation to all the participants of the iHARP group who contributed data to this study and to Mundipharma, sponsors of the iHARP group. In addition, we thank Julie von Ziegenweidt for assistance with data extraction and Anna Gilchrist and Valerie L. Ashton, PhD, for editorial assistance. Elizabeth V. Hillyer, DVM, provided editorial and writing support, funded by Research in Real-Life, Ltd.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Modular and predictable assembly of porous organic molecular crystals

Nanoporous molecular frameworks are important in applications such as separation, storage and catalysis. Empirical rules exist for their assembly but it is still challenging to place and segregate functionality in three-dimensional porous solids in a predictable way. Indeed, recent studies of mixed crystalline frameworks suggest a preference for the statistical distribution of functionalities throughout the pores rather than, for example, the functional group localization found in the reactive sites of enzymes. This is a potential limitation for 'one-pot' chemical syntheses of porous frameworks from simple starting materials. An alternative strategy is to prepare porous solids from synthetically preorganized molecular pores. In principle, functional organic pore modules could be covalently prefabricated and then assembled to produce materials with specific properties. However, this vision of mix-and-match assembly is far from being realized, not least because of the challenge in reliably predicting three-dimensional structures for molecular crystals, which lack the strong directional bonding found in networks. Here we show that highly porous crystalline solids can be produced by mixing different organic cage modules that self-assemble by means of chiral recognition. The structures of the resulting materials can be predicted computationally, allowing in silico materials design strategies. The constituent pore modules are synthesized in high yields on gram scales in a one-step reaction. Assembly of the porous co-crystals is as simple as combining the modules in solution and removing the solvent. In some cases, the chiral recognition between modules can be exploited to produce porous organic nanoparticles. We show that the method is valid for four different cage modules and can in principle be generalized in a computationally predictable manner based on a lock-and-key assembly between modules