Differences in Physical Activity and Built Environment Perceptions Between Younger and Older Adults Living in the Same Rural

This study examined associations between perceptions and physical activity of younger and older adults residing in the same rural/small town community. Thirty-two adults completed interviews about their community and their physical activity. Both groups perceived their neighborhood as pleasant and safe to be active. Fewer older adults perceived their neighborhood as having sidewalks. Younger adults reported being more vigorously active and they were more often utilizing private membership clubs for physical activity. Older adults utilized more public recreational facilities. These results suggest that higher perceived quality of the neighborhood built environment can enhance participation in moderate exercise in older adults

Validation of a revised form of the Dysfunctional Attitude Scale in a clinical population.

The Dysfunctional Attitude Scale (Weissman, 1979) is purported to measure the idiosyncratic cognitive schemas hypothesized by Beck (1967) to be involved in depression. Swan (1988) reduced this scale to develop a 20 item rapid assessment instrument (DAS-20). The purpose of the present study was to validate the DAS-20 in a clinical population. The DAS-20 was administered along with the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) and the Profile of Mood States (POMS) to three subject groups (Depressive Disorder patients, Panic Disorder patients, and normal controls). For clinical subjects, scores on the DAS-20 were found to be most highly related to depressive symptomatology, as measured by the BDI (r =.51). Control subjects\u27 DAS-20 scores were most highly related to the confusion scale of the POMS (r =.56). The DAS-20 discriminated between clinical and control groups, but not between the two clinical groups themselves. It was concluded that in clinical populations dysfunctional attitudes, as measured by the DAS-20, are primarily related to syndrome depression rather than nosological Depressive Disorders.Dept. of Psychology. Paper copy at Leddy Library: Theses & Major Papers - Basement, West Bldg. / Call Number: Thesis1990 .T933. Source: Masters Abstracts International, Volume: 30-03, page: 0892. Thesis (M.A.)--University of Windsor (Canada), 1989

Review of Chain Flail Delimbing-Debarking

Over 200 commercially built chain flail delimber-debarkers are now in operation worldwide. These units, teamed with in woods chippers, are producing chips acceptable for pulping from many species of hardwoods and softwoods. The flails can remove the bark as well as drum debarkers in the case of southern pine species. The chips produced by these portable operations have been shown to be equal in quality to the chips produced at mill and satellite wood yards. It has been estimated that the flail-chipper system will produce up to 2.9% more clean chips than are obtained with conventional longwood harvesting and handling systems. The flails have been used to remove rot, foliage, and charcoal in specialized applications. The rejects from the flail represent a readily recoverable source of energy material, but this debris must be reduced in size to facilitate handling. Developments for reducing the size of the rejects are ongoing, especially using modified agricultural tub grinders. Chains are a major cost in the operation of the flails. Strategies have been developed which can prolong the life of the chains, and tests are ongoing with improved materials in the manufacturing of the chains. The cost of delimbing and debarking with the portable flails has been estimated to be between $(US)0.60and$(US)3.30 per green tonne

Genome scale evolution of myxoma virus reveals host-pathogen adaptation and rapid geographic spread

The evolutionary interplay between myxoma virus (MYXV) and the European rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus) following release of the virus in Australia in 1950 as a biological control is a classic example of host-pathogen coevolution. We present a detailed genomic and phylogeographic analysis of 30 strains of MYXV, including the Australian progenitor strain Standard Laboratory Strain (SLS), 24 Australian viruses isolated from 1951 to 1999, and three isolates from the early radiation in Britain from 1954 and 1955. We show that in Australia MYXV has spread rapidly on a spatial scale, with multiple lineages cocirculating within individual localities, and that both highly virulent and attenuated viruses were still present in the field through the 1990s. In addition, the detection of closely related virus lineages at sites 1,000 km apart suggests that MYXV moves freely in geographic space, with mosquitoes, fleas, and rabbit migration all providing means of transport. Strikingly, despite multiple introductions, all modern viruses appear to be ultimately derived from the original introductions of SLS. The rapidity of MYXV evolution was also apparent at the genomic scale, with gene duplications documented in a number of viruses. Duplication of potential virulence genes may be important in increasing the expression of virulence proteins and provides the basis for the evolution of novel functions. Mutations leading to loss of open reading frames were surprisingly frequent and in some cases may explain attenuation, but no common mutations that correlated with virulence or attenuation were identified.This work was funded in part by grant R01 AI093804 from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health. E.C.H. is funded by an NHMRC Australia Fellowship. D.C.T. is funded by an ARC Future Fellowship

Catastrophic Cervical Spine Injuries in Contact Sports.

Study Design Systematic review. Objectives To determine the incidence of catastrophic cervical spine injuries (CCSIs) among elite athletes participating in contact team sports and whether the incidence varies depending on the use of protective gear or by player position. Methods Electronic databases and reference lists of key articles published from January 1, 2000, to January 29, 2016, were searched. Results Fourteen studies were included that reported CCSI in rugby (n = 10), American football (n = 3), and Irish hurling (n = 1). Among Rugby Union players, incidence of CCSI was 4.1 per 100,000 player-hours. Among National Football League players, the CCSI rate was 0.6 per 100,000 player-exposures. At the collegiate level, the CCSI rate ranged from 1.1 to 4.7 per 100,000 player-years. Mixed populations of elite and recreational rugby players in four studies report a CCSI rate of 1.4 to 7.2 per 100,000 player-years. In this same population, the scrum accounted for 30 to 51% of total reported CCSIs in Rugby Union versus 0 to 4% in Rugby League. The tackle accounted for 29 to 39% of injuries in Rugby Union and 78 to 100% of injuries in Rugby League. Making a tackle was responsible for 29 to 80% of injuries in American football. Conclusion CCSIs are infrequent among elite athletes. There is insufficient evidence to determine the effect of protective gear (e.g., helmets, padding) on CCSI incidence. Scrum and tackle in rugby and tackling in American football account for the majority of CCSIs in each respective sport.This article is freely available via Open Access. Click on the Additional link above to access the full-text via the publisher's site.Published (Open Access

Percutaneous & Mini Invasive Achilles tendon repair

Rupture of the Achilles tendon is a considerable cause of morbidity with reduced function following injury. Recent studies have shown little difference in outcome between the techniques of open and non-operative treatment using an early active rehabilitation programme. Meta-analyses have shown that non-operative management has increased risk of re-rupture whereas surgical intervention has risks of complications related to the wound and iatrogenic nerve injury. Minimally invasive surgery has been adopted as a way of reducing infections rates and wound breakdown however avoiding iatrogenic nerve injury must be considered. We discuss the techniques and outcomes of percutaneous and minimally invasive repairs of the Achilles tendon

Critical evaluation of key evidence on the human health hazards of exposure to bisphenol A

Despite the fact that more than 5000 safety-related studies have been published on bisphenol A (BPA), there seems to be no resolution of the apparently deadlocked controversy as to whether exposure of the general population to BPA causes adverse effects due to its estrogenicity. Therefore, the Advisory Committee of the German Society of Toxicology reviewed the background and cutting-edge topics of this BPA controversy. The current tolerable daily intake value (TDI) of 0.05 mg/kg body weight [bw]/day, derived by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), is mainly based on body weight changes in two- and three-generation studies in mice and rats. Recently, these studies and the derivation of the TDI have been criticized. After having carefully considered all arguments, the Committee had to conclude that the criticism was scientifically not justified; moreover, recently published additional data further support the reliability of the two-and three-generation studies demonstrating a lack of estrogen-dependent effects at and below doses on which the current TDI is based. A frequently discussed topic is whether doses below 5 mg/ kg bw/day may cause adverse health effects in laboratory animals. Meanwhile, it has become clear that positive results from some explorative studies have not been confirmed in subsequent studies with higher numbers of animals or a priori defined hypotheses. Particularly relevant are some recent studies with negative outcomes that addressed effects of BPA on the brain, behavior, and the prostate in rodents for extrapolation to the human situation. The Committee came to the conclusion that rodent data can well be used as a basis for human risk evaluation. Currently published conjectures that rats are insensitive to estrogens compared to humans can be refuted. Data from toxicokinetics studies show that the half-life of BPA in adult human subjects is less than 2 hours and BPA is completely recovered in urine as BPA-conjugates. Tissue deconjugation of BPA-glucuronide and -sulfate may occur. Because of the extremely low quantities, it is only of minor relevance for BPA toxicity. Biomonitoring studies have been used to estimate human BPA exposure and show that the daily intake of BPA is far below the TDI for the general population. Further topics addressed in this article include reasons why some studies on BPA are not reproducible; the relevance of oral versus non-oral exposure routes; the degree to which newborns are at higher systemic BPA exposure; increased BPA exposure by infusions in intensive care units; mechanisms of action other than estrogen receptor activation; and the current regulatory status in Europe, as well as in the USA, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, and Australia. Overall, the Committee concluded that the current TDI for BPA is adequately justified and that the available evidence indicates that BPA exposure represents no noteworthy risk to the health of the human population, including newborns and babies