Individuals with Recurrent Low Back Pain Exhibit Significant Changes of Paraspinal Muscle Performance after Lumbar Multifidus Intramuscular Fine Wire Electrode Insertion

STUDY DESIGN: Case control study. BACKGROUND: Recurrent low back pain (RLBP) is associated with paraspinal muscle dysfunction. Intramuscular electromyography (EMG) is a common tool for studying activation of the deep lumbar paraspinal muscles such as multifidi muscles, but it is currently currently unclear how muscle performance and activation are affected by the pain and micro-injury associated with intramuscular fine-wire electrode (IFWE) insertion and how it interacts with the presence of RLBP. OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to examine how IFWE insertion into the lumbar multifidus affects paraspinal muscle strength and endurance in subjects with and without RLBP. METHODS: Forty subjects aged 18 - 40 were recruited; 20 subjects with a history of RLBP were compared with a group of 20 age-matched controls with no RLBP. Paraspinal extensor strength and endurance were measured under three conditions over three testing days. On Day 1, the baseline condition (BL), we obtained preliminary measures of discomfort, force production, endurance, and muscle activation. On Days 2 and 3, the participants randomly alternated between the two experimental conditions: (i) a wire-in condition (WI) in which the IFWE was inserted and remained within the muscle and (ii) a wire-out condition (WO) in which the IFWE was inserted and immediately removed. Participants were blinded to the order of the fine-wire conditions. Subjective pain levels were recorded via the Visual Analog Scale at specific time points throughout the testing protocol. RESULTS: Individuals with RLBP showed a significant decrease in strength in both conditions that involved IFWE insertion. Controls showed no significant difference in strength across conditions. Both groups exhibited similar performance in the endurance test. CONCLUSION: Our findings indicate IFWE insertion into lumbar multifidus may lead to reduced peak spinal extensor muscle force production in individuals with a history of RLBP compared to healthy controls

Is the Use of the Chinese Herbal Medicine, Ningdong granule, a Safe and Effective Alternative to Haloperidol for the Treatment of Tic Symptoms in Pediatric Patients with Tourette Syndrome (TS)?

OBJECTIVE The objective of this selective EBM review is to determine whether the Chinese herbal supplement, Ningdong granule, is a safe and effective alternative to haloperidol for the treatment of tic symptoms in pediatric patients with Tourette Syndrome. STUDY DESIGN Systematic review of three randomized controlled trials published in 2009, 2010, and 2012. DATA SOURCES Three randomized controlled trials were obtained using PubMed. OUTCOMES MEASURED Efficacy of Ningdong granule (NDG) as compared to control groups based on decrease in tic severity and frequency as reported by Yale Global Tic Severity Scale as well as safety, as evidenced by prevalence of adverse drug reactions (ADRs) as compared to control groups. RESULTS Li et al. (2009), Wang et al. (2012), and Zhao et al. (2010) all demonstrated improvement in a majority of the subjects’ tic symptoms while decreasing ADR’s from treatment with Ningdong granule compared to haloperidol. CONCLUSION Evidence to support the efficacy of Ningdong granule to safely treat tic symptoms in pediatric Tourette Syndrome patients is strong now, due to a relevant subject population, and consistent standard of measurement. The data strongly supports the efficacy of Ningdong granule as an alternative method of treating tic symptoms in pediatric patients suffering from Tourette Syndrome

The political classroom: Evidence and ethics in democratic education

Diana Hess and Paula McAvoy’s book, The Political Classroom: Evidence and Ethics in Democratic Education, succeeds in offering an ethical framework for the discussion of political topics in the classroom and provides practical insights both for educators who are new to in-class political discussions and for more experienced instructors who wish to revise/refine their pedagogical praxis. The authors argue that their book is unique because it “integrates social science research with philosophic thinking about ethical issues of teacher practice” (p. 9). This brief text contains a justification for the necessity of political classrooms, three case studies, and an ethical framework for democratic education. Their research and conclusions are compelling, but critics may find that Hess and McAvoy fail to adequately address issues of power and justice

Comparison and Analysis of the California Master Plan for Special Education Annual Evaluation Report and the United States Office of Special Education Program Administrative Review of California

The purpose of this study was to investigate the compliance and implementation levelsof special education services in California during the 1979-80 academic year. Data sources used for this study included (a) an analysis of 20 Northern California Monitor and Review (MAR) reports, (b) the descriptive state data contained in the 1979-80 California Master Plan Report, and (c) the evaluation data from the United States Office of Special Education Program Administrative Review (PAR) of California for 1979-80. A portion of the research objectives were answered through the development of an analysis methodology for the MAR reports compatible with the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS). The remaining research objectives were completed by the development and application of an analysis and comparison model utilizing a five-point rating scale. Since the State\u27s annual report is based in part on the MAR documents, the model was constructed to combine these two sources and compare them with data that was used to support the conclusions of the PAR report. This methodology was used to determine the compatibility of the two official reports describing the implementation and compliance status of special education in California during the 1979-80 academic year. The findings of this study in relation to data from the 20 MAR reports showed that on the average only 19% of the total number of items (196) from the state\u27s monitor and review instrument were found to be in the compliance category. Furthermore 39% of these items were in the non-compliance category, while 42% of the items were not assessed . Additional findings suggest an extensive variation in both the application of the state\u27s 196 item MAR instrument and the evaluation results for rural and urban areas. The findings of the first application of the analysis and comparison model five-point rating scale suggest that when state report information and MAR data are available they generally do not support the PAR material used to substantiate the PAR report findings. The results of the second application of the model found that the data supporting PAR conclusions could not be substantiated or when present in the state and MAR reports, the sources were not in agreement. Based on the findings of this study, this investigator concluded that (a) local education agencies are experiencing significant problems in implementing required special education services, (b) there are substantial problems with the consistent application of the state\u27s monitor and review instrument, (c) state and federal program evaluation systems lack a common philosophy and practical methodology to complement each other and avoid duplication, (d) portions of the support material used to justify PAR statements were based on isolated instances of observation, and (e) portions of the support material used to justify PAR statements were in conflict with state report and MAR data sources raising questions of PAR report accuracy and generalizability. Recommendations in relation to the findings of this study include the following: (a) the development of a uniform evaluation philosophy and practical methodology to assess special education services, (b) modification of the state\u27s 196 item MAR instrument and training procedures to obtain consistent and uniform data to accurately measure progress in the implementation of special education services, (3) completion of reliability and validity studies to support the continued use of the MAR evaluation instrument, and (d) replication of this study at five-year intervals to plot implementation progress of mandated changes within the field of special education

Selecting teachers for tenure in the East Whittier School District

Boards of education throughout the country are cognizant of the shortage of well qualified elementary school teachers. There has been considerable competition among school boards for the limited supply of teachers, so much so that teachers have been tempted to move from place to place, standards of teaching proficiency have been lowered, and little relief of the general shortage has been achieved. When a school system has succeeded in filling all teacher vacancies, too frequently complacency reigns until the beginning of another school year. When the quantitative shortage of teachers is compounded by a recognition of the persistent qualitative shortage, the situation becomes critical, and its solution is a challenge to the best professional and lay minds in the country. Boards of education and public school administrators have a major responsibility, one that they dare not ignore. Their chief business is to employ competent teachers and to create a favorable situation in which these capable teachers can work

Charged Higgs bosons from the 3-3-1 models and the R(D(∗))\mathcal{R}(D^{(*)}) anomalies

Several anomalies in the semileptonic B-meson decays such as $\mathcal{R}(D^{(*)})$ have been reported by $BABAR$, Belle, and LHCb collaborations recently. In this paper, we investigate the contributions of the charged Higgs bosons from the 3-3-1 models to the $\mathcal{R}(D^{(*)})$ anomalies. We find that, in a wide range of parameter space, the 3-3-1 models might give reasonable explanations to the $\mathcal{R}(D^{(*)})$ anomalies and other analogous anomalies of the B meson's semileptonic decays.Comment: Accpeted by Physical Review

Stable cycling in quasi-linkage equilibrium:fluctuating dynamics under gene conversion and selection

Genetic systems with multiple loci can have complex dynamics. For example, mean fitness need not always increase and stable cycling is possible. Here, we study the dynamics of a genetic system inspired by the molecular biology of recognition-dependent double strand breaks and repair as it happens in recombination hotspots. The model shows slow-fast dynamics in which the system converges to the quasi-linkage equilibrium (QLE) manifold. On this manifold, sustained cycling is possible as the dynamics approach a heteroclinic cycle, in which allele frequencies alternate between near extinction and near fixation. We find a closed-form approximation for the QLE manifold and use it to simplify the model. For the simplified model, we can analytically calculate the stability of the heteroclinic cycle. In the discrete-time model the cycle is always stable; in a continuous-time approximation, the cycle is always unstable. This demonstrates that complex dynamics are possible under quasi-linkage equilibrium.Comment: 35 pages, 6 figure

Is Martin Luther King or Malcom X the More Acceptable Face of Protest? High-Status Groups' Reactions to Low- Status Groups' Collective Action:High status groups’ reactions to low status groups’ collective action

Work on collective action focuses mainly on the perspective of disadvantaged groups. However, the dynamics of social change cannot be fully understood without taking into account the reactions of the members of advantaged groups to collective action by low-status groups. In 10 experiments conducted in 4 different intergroup contexts (N = 1349), we examine advantaged groups support for normative versus non-normative collective action by disadvantaged groups. Experiments 1a to 1e show that normative collective action is perceived as more likely to improve the disadvantaged group's position and that non-normative collective action is perceived as more damaging to the advantaged group's social image. Also, these differences are due to differences in perceptions of actions violating norms of protest and perceptions of protesters as blaming the advantaged group for the inequality. Experiments 2a to 3 show that high compared with low identified members of advantaged groups distinguish more between types of collective action, showing a greater preference for the normative type. Both a mediational design and an experimental-causal-chain design (Experiments 3 and 4) show that support among high identifiers depends more on whether collective action damages the high-status group's social image than on whether it actually reduces inequality. Findings suggest that high-status groups' support for collective action is not only shaped by the perceived likelihood of change but also by its potential damage to the image of the high-status ingroup