How accurately do adult sons and daughters report and perceive parental deaths from coronary disease?

<b>OBJECTIVES</b>: To describe how adult sons and daughters report and perceive parental deaths from heart disease <b>DESIGN</b>: Two generation family study. <b>SETTING</b>: West of Scotland. <b>SUBJECTS</b>: 1040 sons and 1298 daughters aged 30-59 from 1477 families, whose fathers and mothers were aged 45-64 in 1972-76 and have been followed up for mortality over 20 years. <b>OUTCOME</b> : Perception of a "family weakness" attributable to heart disease. RESULTS : 26% of sons and daughters had a parent who had died of coronary heart disease (CHD). The proportion was higher in older offspring (+18% per 10 year age difference) and in manual compared with non-manual groups (+37%). Eighty nine per cent of parental deaths from CHD were correctly reported by offspring. Only 23% of sons and 34% of daughters with at least one parent who had died of CHD considered that they had a family weakness attributable to heart disease. Perceptions of a family weakness were higher when one or both parents had died of CHD, when parental deaths occurred at a younger age, in daughters compared with sons and in offspring in non-manual compared with manual occupations. <b>CONCLUSIONS</b>: Only a minority of sons and daughters with experience of a parent having died from CHD perceive this in terms of a family weakness attributable to heart disease. Although men in manual occupations are most likely to develop CHD, they are least likely to interpret a parental death from CHD in terms of a family weakness. Health professionals giving advice to patients on their familial risks need to be aware of the difference between clinical definitions and lay perceptions of a family history of heart disease

Alien Registration- Upton, Byron C. (Monticello, Aroostook County)

https://digitalmaine.com/alien_docs/34025/thumbnail.jp

Developing an On-Line Interactive Health Psychology Module.

On-line teaching material in health psychology was developed which ensured a range of students could access appropriate material for their course and level of study. This material has been developed around the concept of smaller 'content chunks' which can be combined into whole units of learning (topics), and ultimately, a module. On the basis of the underlying philosophy that the medium is part of the message, we considered interactivity to be a key element in engaging the student with the material. Consequently, the key aim of this development was to stimulate and engage students, promoting better involvement with the academic material, and hence better learning. It was hoped that this was achieved through the development of material including linked programmes and supporting material, small Java Scripts and basic email, forms and HTML additions. This material is outlined as are some of the interactive activities introduced, and the preliminary student and tutor experience described

Generation of Toxicological Data on Chemicals in the U.S.A.

The paper reviews the current trends of toxicological testing of chemicals in the U.S.A. and the methods of data generation for risk assessment and regulatory purposes. The recent survey conducted by NAS/NRC revealed that only a small fraction of widely used chemicals have been tested toxicologically. In spite of developments in short-term toxicological tests, using non-mammalian test species continue to be indispensable.In evaluating carcinogenicity tests, the current approach is generally based on the assumption that there is not threshold.Under the regulation of the Toxic Substances Act 1977 (U.S.A.) the responsibility of providing toxicological data lies with the manufacturer. The National Toxicology Programme emerged as a new governmental agency for toxicological evaluation since 1978 integrating a number of pre-existing testing activities in U.S.A. A number of private testing laboratories which can provide test data on contract basis also have come into existence in U.S.A. The guidelines published for risk assessment by the Environmental Protection Agency is expected to provide standards for the conduct of toxicological tests used for regulatory purposes. The newly formed Board on Environmental Studies and Toxicology reviews and evaluates the toxicological issues

Term admissions to neonatal units in England: a role for transitional care? A retrospective cohort study

Objective To identify the primary reasons for term admissions to neonatal units in England, to determine risk factors for admissions for jaundice and to estimate the proportion who can be cared for in a transitional setting without separation of mother and baby. Design Retrospective observational study using neonatal unit admission data from the National Neonatal Research Database and data of live births in England from the Office for National Statistics. Setting All 163 neonatal units in England 2011–2013. Participants 133 691 term babies born ≥37 weeks gestational age and admitted to neonatal units in England. Primary and secondary outcomes Primary reasons for admission, term babies admitted for the primary reason of jaundice, patient characteristics, postnatal age at admission, total length of stay, phototherapy, intravenous fluids, exchange transfusion and kernicterus. Results Respiratory disease was the most common reason for admission overall, although jaundice was the most common reason for admission from home (22% home vs 5% hospital). Risk factors for admission for jaundice include male, born at 37 weeks gestation, Asian ethnicity and multiple birth. The majority of babies received only a brief period of phototherapy, and only a third received intravenous fluids, suggesting that some may be appropriately managed without separation of mother and baby. Admission from home was significantly later (3.9 days) compared with those admitted from elsewhere in the hospital (1.7 days) (p<0.001). Conclusion Around two-thirds of term admissions for jaundice may be appropriately managed in a transitional care setting, avoiding separation of mother and baby. Babies with risk factors may benefit from a community midwife postnatal visit around the third day of life to enable early referral if necessary. We recommend further work at the national level to examine provision and barriers to transitional care, referral pathways between primary and secondary care, and community postnatal care

OPTIMAL IRRIGATION PIVOT LOCATION ON IRREGULARLY SHAPED FIELDS

Although annual rainfall in the Southeast is adequate, its distribution is a potential constraint to agricultural production. Farmers require production information concerning efficient use of irrigation technology adapted to regional growing conditions. Selection of optimal position, size, and number of pivots in center pivot irrigation systems poses special problems on small, irregularly shaped fields. In the southeastern United States, field size and shape are often varied and irregular. A mixed integer programming model was constructed to assist in irrigation investment decisions. The model is illustrated using irrigated peanut production in southeast Alabama. Results indicate the importance of economic engineering considerations.Farm Management,

Measurement properties of the UK-English version of the Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory™ 4.0 (PedsQL™) generic core scales

Background Health related quality of life (HRQL) has been recognised as an important paediatric outcome measurement. One of the more promising measures to emerge in recent years is the Pediatric Quality Of Life Inventory (PedsQL™), developed in the US. Advantages of the PedsQL™ include brevity, availability of age appropriate versions and parallel forms for child and parent. This study developed a UK-English version of PedsQL™ generic module and assessed its performance in a group of UK children and their parents. Methods PedsQL™ was translated to UK-English. The psychometric properties of the UK version were then tested following administration to 1399 children and 970 of their parents. The sample included healthy children, children diagnosed with asthma, diabetes or inflammatory bowel disease and children in remission from cancer. Results Psychometric properties were similar to those reported for the original PedsQL™. Internal reliability exceeded 0.70 for all proxy and self-report sub-scales. Discriminant validity was established for proxy and self-report with higher HRQL being reported for healthy children than those with health problems. Sex differences were noted on the emotional functioning subscale, with females reporting lower HRQL than males. Proxy and self-report correlation was higher for children with health problems than for healthy children. Conclusion The UK-English version of PedsQL™ performed as well as the original PedsQL™ and is recommended for assessment of paediatric HRQL in the UK