Variability of SCC mec in the Zurich area

A periodic survey of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in Zurich in 2004 and 2006 revealed a consistently low prevalence of MRSA. SCCmec and ccr typing showed fluctuations in the proportions of SCCmec types and in the carriage of mobile virulence determinants. Together with the presence of variant SCCmecs these findings suggest a high clonal diversity and level of SCCmec recombination. The prevalence of a local "drug clone", associated with low-level methicillin resistance and rapid growth, significantly decreased. This clone had spread among intraveneous drug users, steadily increasing from 1994 to 2001 and was dominant in 2001. Apparently, changes in the management of the Zurich drug scene have restricted the spread of this clon

Career Longevity and Performance Following Shoulder Instability in National Football League Athletes

Purpose: To investigate the career longevity, game utilization and performance of National Football League (NFL) athletes following glenohumeral instability events treated operatively versus nonoperatively. Methods: Public resources identified NFL players who sustained a shoulder instability event from 2000-2019. Players with prior shoulder instability, without NFL experience before injury, or who did not return to play (RTP) after injury were excluded. Demographic information, utilization (games and seasons), and season approximate value (SAV) statistics were recorded one year prior to injury and three years following return to play (RTP). Statistical analysis compared utilization and SAV following RTP for athletes managed operatively versus nonoperatively. Results: Ninety-seven NFL players who sustained their first instability event while playing in the NFL were identified, 91 of whom RTP (93.8%). Quarterbacks were significantly more likely to undergo immediate surgical management compared to other positions (P=.023). Final analysis included 58 players managed operatively and 33 players managed nonoperatively by the end of the index season. Players treated operatively played in significantly more seasons following RTP during their remaining career (4.1±2.7 vs. 2.8±2.5 seasons; P=.015). There were no differences in games played or started, offensive or defensive snap count percentage, or performance (SAV) before and after injury when compared between cohorts (P\u3e.05). Following surgical stabilization, time to RTP (36.62±10.32 vs. 5.43±12.33 weeks, P Conclusions: Athletes who RTP in the NFL following a shoulder instability injury do so with similar workload and performance irrespective of surgical or non-surgical management. While nonoperative treatment is associated with faster return to play, operative management is associated with fewer recurrent instability events, greater time between recurrent instability events, and greater career longevit

Variability of SCCmec in the Zurich area

A periodic survey of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in Zurich in 2004 and 2006 revealed a consistently low prevalence of MRSA. SCCmec and ccr typing showed fluctuations in the proportions of SCCmec types and in the carriage of mobile virulence determinants. Together with the presence of variant SCCmecs these findings suggest a high clonal diversity and level of SCCmec recombination. The prevalence of a local "drug clone", associated with low-level methicillin resistance and rapid growth, significantly decreased. This clone had spread among intraveneous drug users, steadily increasing from 1994 to 2001 and was dominant in 2001. Apparently, changes in the management of the Zurich drug scene have restricted the spread of this clone

Career Longevity and Performance After Shoulder Instability in National Football League Athletes

PURPOSE: To investigate the career longevity, game utilization, and performance of National Football League (NFL) athletes after glenohumeral instability events treated operatively versus nonoperatively. METHODS: Using public resources, we identified NFL players who sustained a shoulder instability event from September 2000 to February 2019. Players with prior shoulder instability, without NFL experience before injury, or who did not return to play (RTP) after injury were excluded. Demographic information, utilization (games and seasons), and season approximate value (SAV) statistics were recorded 1 year prior to injury and 3 years after RTP. Statistical analysis compared utilization and the SAV after RTP for athletes managed operatively versus nonoperatively. RESULTS: We identified 97 NFL players who sustained their first instability event while playing in the NFL, 91 of whom returned to play (93.8%). Quarterbacks were significantly more likely to undergo immediate surgical management compared with players in other positions (P = .023). The final analysis included 58 players managed operatively and 33 managed nonoperatively by the end of the index season. Players treated operatively played in significantly more seasons after RTP during their remaining careers (4.1 ± 2.7 seasons vs 2.8 ± 2.5 seasons, P = .015). There were no differences in games played or started, offensive or defensive snap count percentage, or performance (SAV) before and after injury when compared between cohorts (P \u3e .05). After surgical stabilization, time to RTP (36.62 ± 10.32 weeks vs 5.43 ± 12.33 weeks, P \u3c .05) and time interval before recurrent instability (105.7 ± 100.1 weeks vs 24.7 ± 40.6 weeks, P \u3c .001) were significantly longer than with nonoperative treatment. Additionally, the operative cohort experienced less recurrent instability (27% vs 50%, P = .035). CONCLUSIONS: Athletes who RTP in the NFL after a shoulder instability injury do so with a similar workload and performance irrespective of surgical or nonsurgical management. Whereas nonoperative treatment is associated with faster RTP, operative management is associated with fewer recurrent instability events, greater time between recurrent instability events, and greater career longevity. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Level III, retrospective case-control study

The intersection of gender and generation in Albanian migration, remittances and transnational care

The Albanian case represents the most dramatic instance of post-communist migration: about one million Albanians, a quarter of the country's total population, are now living abroad, most of them in Greece and Italy, with the UK becoming increasingly popular since the late 1990s. This paper draws on three research projects based on fieldwork in Italy, Greece, the UK and Albania. These projects have involved in-depth interviews with Albanian migrants in several cities, as well as with migrant-sending households in different parts of Albania. In this paper we draw out those findings which shed light on the intersections of gender and generations in three aspects of the migration process: the emigration itself, the sending and receiving of remittances, and the care of family members (mainly the migrants' elderly parents) who remain in Albania. Theoretically, we draw on the notion of `gendered geographies of power and on how spatial change and separation through migration reshapes gender and generational relations. We find that, at all stages of the migration, Albanian migrants are faced with conflicting and confusing models of gender, behavioural and generational norms, as well as unresolved questions about their legal status and the likely economic, social and political developments in Albania, which make their future life plans uncertain. Legal barriers often prevent migrants and their families from enjoying the kinds of transnational family lives they would like

Collateral reports and cross-informant agreement about adult psychopathology in 14 societies

To advance international mental health assessment, instruments that have been internationally validated are needed. To this end, we analyzed ratings from 14 societies on the Adult Behavior Checklist (ABCL), a collateral-report form parallel to the Adult Self-Report (ASR; Achenbach and Rescorla 2003) for ages 18 to 59. Both the ABCL and the ASR assess problems, personal strengths, and adaptive functioning. For a sample of 8322 see note below collaterals, we found strong consistency across societies regarding which ABCL problem items tended to obtain relatively low, medium, or high ratings. Most societal effect sizes (ESs) for problem scale scores were small to medium (< 13.9 %), but the ES for the ABCL Personal Strengths scale was 25 %. For most of the same participants (N = 8,302), we analyzed cross-informant agreement between self-reports on the ASR and collateral reports on the ABCL. Cross-informant correlations for problem scale scores averaged.47, with considerable societal variation. Problem score means were higher on the ASR than the ABCL in every society, but the size of the difference varied across societies. Mean item ratings on the ABCL and ASR were highly correlated within every society (mean r = .92), but within-dyad item rating agreement varied widely in every society (mean r = .39). In all societies, non-corroboration of self-reported deviance and of collateral-reported deviance was common. Overall findings indicated considerable similarity but also some important differences in collateral-reported problems and adaptive functioning across 14 societies.Department of Applied Social Science