Prévalence et facteurs de risque de l'infection par Coxiella Burnettii chez les ruminants d'élevage au Québec

Coxiella burnetii est une bactérie zoonotique affectant un grand nombre d’espèces animales. Chez les ruminants domestiques, l’infection est généralement asymptomatique, mais parfois associée à des problèmes reproducteurs. Néanmoins, le cycle de transmission de l’infection chez ceux-ci demeure peu connu. Dans ce contexte, nous avons réalisé une étude auprès de fermes bovines, ovines et caprines dans deux régions administratives du Québec afin d’estimer les prévalences de cette infection et d’identifier les facteurs de risque, aux niveaux individuel et troupeau, associés à la positivité. Nous avons estimé une prévalence de positivité au niveau troupeau de 44.6 % (IC95%=33.0-56.6) chez les bovins, de 70.8 % (IC95% =48.9-87.4) chez les ovins et de 66.7 % (IC95% =22.3-95.7) chez les caprins. Une association a été observée chez les troupeaux bovins entre leur positivité et la densité de petits ruminants par kilomètre carré dans un rayon de cinq kilomètres entourant la ferme. Chez les petits ruminants, une association avec la positivité des troupeaux a été observée avec la taille des troupeaux et la présence d’un chien sur la ferme. Au niveau individuel, le nombre de jours en lait ainsi que l’âge des petits ruminants étaient associés à la positivité, et ce dernier facteur était modulé par l’accès des animaux au pâturage. Aucun agrégat spatial de fermes positives n’a été détecté chez aucune des trois espèces. L’infection par Coxiella burnetii est donc fréquente dans les troupeaux de ruminants domestiques québécois et semble associée à certaines pratiques de régie et à la présence, ou proximité, d’autres animaux domestiques.Coxiella burnetii is a zoonotic bacteria affecting a vast range of animal species. In domestic ruminants, the infection is usually asymptomatic, but sometimes linked with reproductive disorders. However, the transmission cycle of infection among them remains unclear. In that context, we conducted a study among dairy cattle, sheep and goats farms in two administrative regions of Québec to estimate the infection prevalence and identify the risk factors associated with farms and animals positivity. We estimated a herd prevalence of 44.6 % (95%CI=33.0 to 56.6) in dairy cattle, 70.8 % (95%CI=48.9 to 87.4) in sheep and 66.7 % (95%CI=22.3-95.7) in goats. On dairy cattle farms, we observed an association between their positivity and the density of small ruminants per square kilometer within a five kilometers radius around the farm. In small ruminants, at herd level, we observed an association with positivity and herd’s size and the presence of a dog on the farm. At the individual level, an association with positivity was found with the number of days in milk for small ruminants and their age, but the latter was also modulated by the individual’s previous access to pasture. No spatial cluster of positive farms was detected significant among dairy cattle nor small ruminants. The infection by Coxiella burnetii is therefore common on dodmestic ruminants’ farms in Québec and associated with some farm management practices and the presence, or proximity, of other domestic animals

Utilisation des services sociaux et insertion sociale de jeunes adultes avec antécédents de placement pour des motifs de protection

Mémoire numérisé par la Division de la gestion de documents et des archives de l'Université de Montréal

Vers une meilleure compréhension de la contribution des services sociaux à l’insertion sociale de jeunes adultes en difficulté

Considérant qu’un allongement de la jeunesse et de la période de dépendance aux parents s’est opéré dans les dernières décennies, le passage à la vie adulte représente un défi particulier pour les jeunes sortant de milieux substituts, notamment parce que leur entourage s’avère souvent peu soutenant. Ces jeunes, qui présentent généralement des difficultés à s’insérer, font pourtant peu appel aux services sociaux en cas de besoin. Cette étude qualitative, réalisée en 2007 auprès de dix jeunes adultes issus de placements en milieu substitut recevant des services sociaux à Laval (Québec), vise à préciser leurs trajectoires d’insertion sociale et leurs rapports aux services sociaux, ainsi qu’à estimer la contribution du réseau de services sociaux à leur insertion sociale. Les résultats tendent à démontrer que les jeunes issus des milieux substituts, contrairement à ce que certains travaux suggèrent, ne s’engagent pas pour la plupart dans des trajectoires de désinsertion sociale au début de l’âge adulte. De plus, ils mettent en lumière une différence dans les stratégies d’insertion sociale des participants en fonction du genre. Alors que les jeunes hommes préfèrent pour la plupart évoluer à l’écart des services sociaux, les jeunes femmes misent davantage sur le rapport constructif à l’intervenant pour s’insérer. Il est toutefois nécessaire de souligner que le potentiel de généralisation des résultats est limité, notamment en raison du petit nombre de participants à l’étude (n = 10). Ces résultats demeurent donc à confirmer par d’autres recherches.While an extension of the period defining youth occurred in the last decades, and considering that young people now depend on their parents longer, transitioning to adulthood seems much more difficult for young people leaving care when compared to other youths, because they often lack positive support from family and friends. These youth, who often have difficulty to integrate themselves socially, tend not to ask for professional help in times of need. Within the framework of this qualitative study, which took place in Laval (Quebec) in 2007, ten young adults emancipated from the care system were interviewed. The objectives of the study were to clarify their social integration trajectories and their relationships with the social services network, and to assess the social services’ contribution to their social integration processes. Results tend to indicate that, unlike what some studies may suggest, most young adults who have formerly been placed in a substitute care setting are not heading for social exclusion as they enter adulthood. Besides, it appears that youths’ social integration strategies may vary according to gender. Thus, compared to young women, young men who participated in this study tend to rely less on social services professionals in order to move towards social integration. However, these results are not to be generalized to other populations and have to be interpretated with precaution, considering among other things the small number of youth who participated in this study (n=10).Teniendo en cuenta que en las últimas décadas se ha producido una prolongación de la juventud y del período de dependencia de los padres, el pasaje a la vida adulta representa un desafío particular para los jóvenes que finalizan su acogida en hogares sustitutos, en especial porque su entorno suele brindarles poco apoyo. Sin embargo, estos jóvenes, que generalmente presentan dificultades para insertarse, recurren a los servicios sociales en caso de necesidad. Este estudio cualitativo, que se llevó a cabo en 2007 con diez jóvenes adultos que habían finalizado su acogida en hogares sustitutos y que recibían servicios sociales en Laval (Québec), tiene como objetivo precisar sus trayectorias de inserción social y sus vínculos con los servicios sociales, además de calcular la contribución de la red de servicios sociales en su inserción social. Los resultados tienden a demostrar que los jóvenes provenientes de hogares sustitutos, a diferencia de lo que sugieren algunos trabajos de investigación, no forman parte, en su mayoría, de la falta de inserción social al comienzo de la edad adulta. Asimismo, ponen de manifiesto una diferencia en las estrategias de inserción social de los participantes según el género : mientras que los hombres jóvenes prefieren, en su mayoría, evolucionar sin la ayuda de los servicios sociales, las mujeres jóvenes se apoyan mucho más en el vínculo constructivo con los profesionales para insertarse. Sin embargo, es necesario destacar que el potencial de generalización de los resultados es limitado, especialmente en virtud de la pequeña cantidad de participantes en el estudio (n = 10). Por ello, estos resultados deben ser confirmados por otras investigaciones

A health at every size intervention improves intuitive eating and diet quality in Canadian women

Background & aims: Health at Every Size® (HAES®) interventions focus on healthy lifestyle by promoting behavioral changes related to diet and physical activity while emphasizing self-acceptance and well-being through an empowerment and intuitive approach. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of a HAES® program on intuitive eating and diet quality in women. Methods: The HAES® intervention, offered by professionals from Health and Social Services Centers in Quebec (Canada), was composed of thirteen 3-h weekly meetings and a 6-h intensive day. For this study, 216 women (1.9% normal-weight, 21.1% overweight, 77.0% obese) who took part to the HAES program were compared to 110 women (3.9% normal-weight, 23.3% overweight, 72.8% obese) from a control group (waiting list). Intuitive eating was assessed using the Intuitive Eating Scale and diet quality was evaluated through the calculation of the Healthy Eating Index (HEI) from a validated web-based self-administrated food frequency questionnaire. Measurements were performed at baseline, post-intervention, and at one-year follow-up. Results: Women who participated in the HAES® program significantly increased their intuitive eating score compared to women in the control group at post-intervention and at follow-up (group by time interaction, p = 0.0002). A significant improvement in diet quality was also observed in the HAES® group in comparison with the control group at post-intervention (group by time interaction, p = 0.0139). The intuitive eating score and the HEI score were positively associated in the HAES® group at post-intervention (r = 0.20, p = 0.0237) and one-year follow-up (r = 0.22, p = 0.0359), but no such associations were noted in the control group (post-intervention, r = 0.04, p = 0.70; one-year follow-up, r = -0.15, p = 0.30). Conclusions: The HAES® program seems effective in improving intuitive eating and also favours improvements in diet quality. However, the association between intuitive eating and diet quality remains unclear, being positive and significant only after the HAES® intervention

Enjeux relatifs au passage à la vie adulte de jeunes autochtones : vers une meilleure compréhension de la particularité du contexte de communauté algonquines de l'Abitibi-Témiscamingue

Centre national de prévention du crime (CNPC); Centre jeunesse de l'Abitibi-TémiscamingueREMERCIEMENTS; AVANT PROPOS: MISE EN CONTEXTE DU PROJET DE RECHERCHE; 1. INTRODUCTION; REVUE DE LITTÉRATURE; 3. VERS DES QUESTIONS DE RECHERCHE PERMETTANT D'APPRÉHENDER LE DEVENIR ADULTE DES JEUNES AUTOCHTONES AU SORTIR D'UN MILIEU SUBSTITUT; 4. MÉTHODOLOGIE DE LA RECHERCHE; 5. ÉTAT DE SITUATION DES JEUNES ALGONQUINS EN TERMES D’INSERTION SOCIALE; 6. ENJEUX SPÉCIFIQUES ENTOURANT LE PASSAGE À LA VIE ADULTE EN CONTEXTE AUTOCHTONE; 7. PISTES POUR L’INTERVENTION; 8. EN CONCLUSION; 9. BIBLIOGRAPHI

Prevalence of shedding and antibody to Coxiella burnetii in post-partum dairy cows and its association with reproductive tract diseases and performance : a pilot study

The bacterium Coxiella burnetii has been associated with reproduction disorders in dairy cattle. A cross-sectional study was conducted in Québec, Canada, to estimate the prevalence of C. burnetii in dairy cows from C. burnetii RT-PCR-positive and/or ELISA-positive herds. As a secondary objective, the associations between C. burnetii-positivity and three reproductive outcomes (purulent vaginal discharge, cytological endometritis, and success at first service) were assessed. A total of 202 post-parturient dairy cows from nine herds were sampled at 35 ± 7 days in milk. Vaginal mucus and composite milk were collected from each cow and screened for the presence of C. burnetii by real-time PCR (RT-PCR) and ELISA, respectively. Purulent vaginal discharge and cytological endometritis were evaluated using a Metricheck device and a modified cytobrush, respectively. The first insemination postpartum was done following an ovulation synchronization protocol around 70 days in milk, and success at first service was recorded. Multilevel logistic regressions adjusted for parity were used to model purulent vaginal discharge, cytological endometritis and success at first service according to C. burnetii cow status. All 202 RT-PCR-assayed vaginal samples were C. burnetii-negative. A positive result for anti-C. burnetii antibodies detection in composite milk was obtained in 25/202 samples and a doubtful result in 4/202 samples. After adjustment for sampling weights, the 202 ELISA-assayed composite milk samples gave an estimated overall prevalence of C. burnetii positive cows of 12.9 % (CI = 6.1–19.6 %) and of doubtful cows of 1.4 % (CI = 0.0–3.3 %). The proportion of ELISA-positive cows was lower in first parity (0%) compared to second (17.1 %) or third parity cows (20.0 %). The associations between ELISA positivity and reproductive outcomes were not statistically significant, perhaps due to the limited sample size, but could be used as pilot estimate for large-scale studies investigating the impact of C. burnetii infection on reproduction disorders in dairy cattle

Epidemiological study of Coxiella burnetii in dairy cattle and small ruminants in Québec, Canada

The bacterium Coxiella burnetii (C. burnetii) can infect a wide range of animals, most notably ruminants where it causes mainly asymptomatic infections and, when clinical, it is associated with reproductive disorders such as abortion. It is also the etiological agent of Q fever in humans, a zoonosis of increasingly important public health concern. A cross-sectional study was performed to estimate the apparent prevalence and spatial distribution of C. burnetii positivity in dairy cattle and small ruminant herds of two regions of Québec, Canada, and identify potential risk factors associated with positivity at animal and herd levels. In dairy cattle herds, individual fecal samples and repeated bulk tank milk samples (BTM) were collected. In small ruminant herds, serum and feces were sampled in individual animals. ELISA analyses were performed on serum and BTM samples. Real-time quantitative PCR (qPCR) was done on fecal and BTM samples. An animal was considered C. burnetii-positive when at least one sample was revealed positive by ELISA and/or qPCR, while a herd was considered C. burnetii-positive when at least one animal inside that herd was revealed positive. None of the 155 cows had a qPCR-positive fecal sample, whereas 37.2 % (95 % CI = 25.3–49.1) of the 341 sheep and 49.2 % (95 % CI = 25.6–72.7) of the 75 goats were C. burnetii-positive. The apparent prevalence of C. burnetii-positive herds was 47.3 % (95 % CI = 35.6–59.3) in dairy cattle herds (n = 74), 69.6 % (95 % CI = 47.1–86.8) in sheep flocks (n = 23) and 66.7 % (95 % CI = 22.3–95.7) in goat herds (n = 6). No spatial cluster of positive herds was detected. At the individual level, the only significant association with positivity in multivariable regressions was higher parity number in small ruminants. At the herd level, the use of calving group pen, the distance to the closest positive bovine herd, and small ruminant herd density in a 5 km radius were associated with dairy cattle herd positivity, whereas small ruminant herds with more than 100 animals and with a dog on the farm had greater odds of C. burnetii positivity. Our study shows that the infection is frequent on dairy cattle and small ruminant herds from the two studied regions and that some farm and animal characteristics might influence the transmission dynamics of the C. burnetii infection

Prevalence of Coxiella burnetii seropositivity and shedding in farm, pet and feral cats and associated risk factors in farm cats in Quebec, Canada

Cats represent a potential source of Coxiella burnetii, the aetiological agent of Q fever in humans. The prevalence and risk factors of C. burnetii infection in farm, pet and feral cats were studied in Quebec, Canada, using a cross-sectional study. Serum samples were tested using a specific enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for the presence of antibodies against C. burnetii, whereas rectal swabs were assayed using real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) for the molecular detection of the bacteria. Potential risk factors for farm cats were investigated using clinical examinations, questionnaires and results from a concurrent study on C. burnetii farm status. A total of 184 cats were tested: 59 from ruminant farms, 73 pets and 52 feral cats. Among farm cats, 2/59 (3.4%) were ELISA-positive, 3/59 (5.1%) were ELISA-doubtful and 1/59 (1.7%) was qPCR-positive. All pets and feral cats were negative to C. burnetii ELISA and qPCR. Farm cat positivity was associated with a positive C. burnetii status on the ruminant farm (prevalence ratio = 7.6, P = 0.03). Our results suggest that although pet and feral cats do not seem to pose a great C. burnetii risk to public health, more active care should be taken when in contact with cats from ruminant farms

Vers une meilleure compréhension de la contribution des services sociaux à l’insertion sociale de jeunes adultes en difficulté

While an extension of the period defining youth occurred in the last decades, and considering that young people now depend on their parents longer, transitioning to adulthood seems much more difficult for young people leaving care when compared to other youths, because they often lack positive support from family and friends. These youth, who often have difficulty to integrate themselves socially, tend not to ask for professional help in times of need. Within the framework of this qualitative study, which took place in Laval (Quebec) in 2007, ten young adults emancipated from the care system were interviewed. The objectives of the study were to clarify their social integration trajectories and their relationships with the social services network, and to assess the social services’ contribution to their social integration processes. Results tend to indicate that, unlike what some studies may suggest, most young adults who have formerly been placed in a substitute care setting are not heading for social exclusion as they enter adulthood. Besides, it appears that youths’ social integration strategies may vary according to gender. Thus, compared to young women, young men who participated in this study tend to rely less on social services professionals in order to move towards social integration. However, these results are not to be generalized to other populations and have to be interpretated with precaution, considering among other things the small number of youth who participated in this study (n=10)

Adopting a strengths perspective in social work practice with families in difficulty : from theory to practice

There is a growing trend in social work practice to use a strengths perspective with families in difficulty. Beginning with a description of the characteristics of the strengths-based approach, this article then moves on to examine the interventions of practitioners working in Youth Centers (YCs) and in Centres Local de Services Communautaires (Local Community Services Centers, or CLSCs). A qualitative analysis of the practitioners’ personal practice descriptions and a quantitative study, based on a questionnaire measuring professional behaviors of the practitioners’ work with 118 families, were done. Most of the practitioners concentrated on the personal weaknesses of the parents and accorded little or no importance to their strengths. The results also show that the organizational context influences the emphasis put on the parents’ strengths by the practitioners