1,108 research outputs found
The parent play questionnaire: development of a parent questionnaire to assess parent–child play and digital media use
We introduce the Parent Play Questionnaire (PPQ), a parent-report measure designed to assess frequency of parent–infant play, parents’ attitudes towards play with their infant, and infants’ use of digital media. We describe measure development and empirical data across three samples of parent–infant dyads (total N = 414, offspring aged 0.3–2.5 years). Three latent factors explain the PPQ, corresponding with theoretically defined subscales. Summary scores showed good internal consistency and normally distributed results. Weak to moderate correlations were found between the frequency and attitude play scales, and with standardized measures of family social and emotional characteristics. Overall, frequency of digital media use was not correlated with play or broader family variables. Results suggest that the PPQ will be a useful tool for researchers interested in assessing parent–child play during early childhood
Study on the Influence of Polymer/Particle Properties on the Resilience of Superhydrophobic Coatings.
Enhancement in the resilience of superhydrophobic coatings is crucial for their future applicability. However, the progress in this aspect is currently limited due to the lack of a consistent resilience analysis methodology/protocol as well as the limited understanding of the influence of the materials components on the resultant coating performance. This study applies a quantitative analysis methodology involving image analysis and mass tracking and utilizes it to investigate how the properties of coating components can influence coating resilience. The factors examined were changing the molecular weight/tensile strength of poly(vinylchloride)/poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PVC/PDMS) polymers and changing the size of the roughening particles. In addition to the examination of resilience data to evaluate degradation patterns, three-dimensional (3D) mapping of the scratches was performed to obtain an insight into how material removal occurs during abrasion. The results can indicate preferential polymer selection (using higher-molecular-weight polymers for PVC) and optimal particle sizes (smaller particles) for maximizing coating resilience. The study, although focused on superhydrophobic materials, demonstrates wide applicability to a range of areas, particularly those focused on the development of high-strength coatings
Outcome reporting in therapeutic mammaplasty: a systematic review
Background Therapeutic mammaplasty (TM) is an oncological procedure which combines tumour resection with breast reduction and mastopexy techniques. Previous systematic reviews have demonstrated the oncological safety of TM but reporting of critically important outcomes such as quality of life, aesthetic and functional outcomes are limited, piecemeal or inconsistent. This systematic review aims to identify all outcomes reported in clinical studies of TM to facilitate development of a Core Outcome Set. Methods Medline, EMBASE, CINAHL and Web of Science were searched from inception to 5 August 2020. Included studies reported clinical outcomes following TM for adult women. Two authors independently screened articles for eligibility. Data was extracted regarding the outcome definition and classification type (e.g., oncologic, quality of life, etc), time of outcome reporting and measurement tools. Results Of 5709 de-duplicated records, 148 were included in the narrative synthesis. The majority of studies (n=102, 68.9 per cent) reported measures of survival and/or recurrence; approximately three-quarters (n=75, 73.5 per cent) had less than 5 years follow-up. Aesthetic outcome was reported in half of studies (n=75, 50.7 per cent) using mainly subjective, non-validated measurement tools. The time-point at which aesthetic assessment was conducted was highly variable, and only defined in 48 (64.0 per cent) studies and none included a pre-operative baseline for comparison. Few studies reported quality of life (n=30, 20.3 per cent), functional outcomes (n=5, 3.4 per cent) or resource use (n=28, 18.9 per cent). Conclusions Given the oncological equivalence of TM and mastectomy, treatment decisions are often driven by aesthetic and functional outcomes, which are infrequently and inconsistently reported with non-validated measurement tools. PROSPERO: CRD4202020036
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Eating Pattern Response to a Low-Fat Diet Intervention and Cardiovascular Outcomes in Normotensive Women: The Women's Health Initiative.
BackgroundWomen without cardiovascular disease (CVD) or hypertension at baseline assigned to intervention in the Women's Health Initiative Dietary Modification (DM) trial experienced 30% lower risk of coronary heart disease (CHD), whereas results in women with hypertension or prior CVD could have been confounded by postrandomization use of statins.ObjectivesIntervention participants reported various self-selected changes to achieve the 20% total fat goals. Reviewed are intervention compared with comparison group HRs for CHD, stroke, and total CVD in relation to specific dietary changes in normotensive participants.MethodsDietary change was assessed by comparing baseline with year 1 FFQ data in women (n = 10,371) without hypertension or CVD at baseline with intake of total fat above the median to minimize biases due to use of the FFQ in trial eligibility screening.ResultsIntervention participants self-reported compensating reduced energy intake from total fat by increasing carbohydrate and protein. Specifically they increased plant protein, with those in the upper quartile (increased total protein by ≥3.3% of energy) having a CHD HR of 0.39 (95% CI: 0.22, 0.71), compared with 0.92 (95% CI: 0.57, 1.48) for those in the lower quartile of change (decreased total protein ≥0.6% of energy), with P-trend of 0.04. CHD HR did not vary significantly with change in percentage energy from carbohydrate, and stroke HR did not vary significantly with any macronutrient changes. Scores reflecting adherence to recommended dietary patterns including the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension Trial and the Healthy Eating Index showed favorable changes in the intervention group.ConclusionsIntervention group total fat reduction replaced with increased carbohydrate and some protein, especially plant-based protein, was related to lower CHD risk in normotensive women without CVD who reported high baseline total fat intake. This trial was registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT00000611. Link to the WHI trial protocol: https://www.whi.org/about/SitePages/Dietary%20Trial.aspx
Categorization of slope failure in southern Malaysia using total estimated hazard (TEHD) method
Slope is a measure of steepness or the degree of inclination of a feature relative to the horizontal plane. One of the phenomenon or incidents of a slope was called as slope failure or landslide. Slope failure was a major natural disaster that had affected the country in terms of injuries, deaths, property damage, destruction of services, public inconvenience and economic as well as financial losses. Slope failure cases were very serious geologic hazard disaster that happened in many countries around the world. The aim of this paper is to determine the category of slope failure in the state of Johor based on Landslide Hazard Zonation (LHZ). Data were calculated by using Total Estimated Hazard (TEHD) value method which considered six factors effecting the slope failure, including lithology; slope steepness, topography, land use class, annual rainfall and type of soil. Data on the factors were collected from Malaysia Public Works Department (JKR) inspection form, website, and secondary data resource. After that weight for each factor were identified by referring to Landslide Hazard Evaluation Factor (LHEF) rating scheme. Then determination of LHZ was done according to TEHD values which have five hazard zones; (1) very low; (2) low; (3) medium; (4) high; and (5) very high. The results of this study found that out of total fifty two cases there were three medium hazard (MH), twenty seven high hazard (HH) and twenty two very high hazard (VHH). Comparison between actual data from JKR and total 52 locations of slope failure in Johor showed that 94% accuracy, TEHD equation could calculate potential slope failure hazards in Johor very well
Music Segmentation and Similarity Estimation Applied to a Gaze-Controlled Musical Interface
Assistive technology, especially gaze-controlled, can promote accessibility, health care, well-being and inclusion for impaired people, including musical activities that can be supported by interfaces controlled using eye tracking. Also, the Internet growth has allowed access to a huge digital music database, which can contribute to a new form of music creation. In this paper, we propose the application of Music Information Retrieval techniques for music segmentation and similarity identification, aiming at the development of a new form of musical creation using an automatic process and the optimization algorithm Harmony Search to combine segments. These techniques for segmentation and similarity of segments were implemented in an assistive musical interface controlled by eye movement to support musical creation and well-being. The experimental results can be found in [https://bit.ly/2Zl7KSC]
What Would I Know About Mercy? Faith and Optimistic Expectancies Among African Americans
A small body of research has begun to explore the association between faith and optimism among African Americans. However, missing from the extant work is an examination of the extent to which traditional indices of religious commitment work together with beliefs about God to shape optimism. The present study examines the utility of indices of social location, religious commitment (i.e., early and current religious service attendance, subjective religiosity), belief about the quality of one’s relationship with God (i.e., a belief that one is connected to a loving God), and beliefs about being the recipient of divine forgiveness for predicting dispositional optimism among a sample of community residing African American adults (N = 241). Age, subjective religiosity, and organizational religiosity were positively related to optimism in bivariate analyses. Hierarchical regression analyses demonstrated a significant association between age, subjective religiosity, and optimism; however, those associations were eliminated once relationship with God and belief in one’s forgiveness by God were entered into the model. Only belief in God’s love predicted optimism in multivariate analyses. Serial mediation analyses revealed that beliefs about the quality of one’s relationship with God and belief in divine forgiveness fully mediated the relationship between subjective religiosity and optimism, but that the relationship is driven largely by relationship with God. Implications of these findings are discussed
Orbital Embryonal Rhabdomyosarcomain Karachi (1998-2002)
Objective: To study the epidemiology of ocular Rhabdomyosarcoma (ORMS) in Karachi.
Methods: Incident ORMS cases resident of Karachi, registered at Karachi Cancer Registry (KCR) during 1st January 1998 to 31st December 2002 were included in the study. The data were classified using ICD-O2; computerized with Canreg-3, and analyzed using SPSS 10.0.
Results: Ten cases of ORMS were reported to KCR during 1998-2002. RMS originated in the orbit in eight cases, conjunctiva in one and eyelid in one. Nine cases presented with proptosis, associated with conjunctivitis in four cases. One case presented with eyelid swelling. The crude annual incidence rate was 0.13/100,000, the age standardized rate was 0.3/100,000. The mean age of childhood cases was 10.4 years (95% CI 4.0; 16.7); and adult cases was 24.8 years (95% CI 12.8; 36.7). At presentation, eight patients were older than 10 years and three were older than 20 years. Five cases were categorized as childhood malignancies. Tumors were a TNM stage III disease at presentation in eight cases; survival at the end of one year was 70%, and at the end of two years 20%. There were no survivors at the end of three years.
Conclusion: ORMS in Karachi is a disease with a dismal survival. It may reflect a late presentation, or shorter adult ORMS survival or a manifestation of a different genetic pattern, associated with rapid evolution and poor prognosis. Health education for the population, especially parents and health providers is essential for early ORMS diagnosis. Pediatricians, ophthalmologists and health professionals, can play a vital role. Healthcare planning should focus on capacity building for ophthalmologic screening. Cytogenetic studies are advised to determine the genetic pattern
Terapi Nutrisi pada Penyakit Kanker Pankreas
Kanker pankreas relatif jarang ditemukan, sekitar 2,5% dari seluruh jenis kanker di dunia. Namun, karena angka mortalitas yang tinggi dengan angka harapan hidup dalam 5 tahun <5% dan rata-rata harapan hidup 4,5 bulan (stage IV) dan 24,1 bulan (stage IA) sehingga kanker pankreas merupakan penyebab kematian kelima terbanyak di negara-negara maju termasuk Amerika Serikat dan Eropa. American Cancer Society memper-kirakan pada tahun 2017 terdapat 53.670 orang (27.970 pria dan 25.700 wanita) akan didiagnosis dengan kanker pankreas dan 43.090 orang (23.300 pria dan 20.790 wanita) akan meninggal karena kanker pankreas di Amerika Serikat (Bodmer 2012, American Cancer Society 2016). Kegagalan terapi konvensional kanker pankreas dibuktikan dengan dengan angka harapan hidup 18% dalam 1 tahun dan 4% dalam 5 tahun. Lebih dari 98% penderita kanker pankreas akan meninggal dunia dan sebagian besar pasien yang menderita kanker pankreas meninggal dalam enam bulan setelah diagnosis ditegakkan. Prognosis yang buruk ini karena ketidakmampuan mendiagnosis kanker pankreas pada stadium awal. Pankreas yang terletak jauh di dalam tubuh, sehingga tumor tidak dapat dilihat atau dirasakan oleh dokter selama pemeriksaan fisik rutin. Pasien biasanya tidak memiliki gejala sampai kanker telah menyebar ke organ lain. Keluhan dan gejala mulai timbul ketika kanker sudah dalam stadium lanjut dan metastasis ke nodus limfe regional dan organ-organ sekitar bahkan organ yang jauh (Thomson 2007, Steriti, Redlich 2003)
Characterization of chicken splenic-derived dendritic cells following vaccine and very virulent strains of infectious bursal disease virus infection
Studies have shown that infectious bursal disease virus (IBDV) infects lymphoid cells, mainly B cells and macrophages. This study was aimed to examine the involvement of chicken splenic-derived dendritic cells (ch-sDCs) in specific-pathogen-free chickens following inoculation with IBDV vaccine strain (D78) and a very virulent (vv) strain (UPM0081). Following IBDV infection, enriched activated ch-sDCs were collected by using the negative selection method and were examined based on morphology and immunophenotyping to confirm the isolation method for dendritic cells (DCs). The presence of IBDV on enriched activated ch-sDCs was analyzed based on the immunofluorescence antibody test (IFAT), flow cytometry, and quantitative real-time PCR (RT-qPCR) while the mRNAs of several cytokines were detected using RT-qPCR. The isolated ch-sDCs resembled typical DC morphologies found in mammals by having a veiled shape and they grew in clusters. Meanwhile, the expression of DC maturation markers, namely CD86 and MHCII, were increased at day 2 and day 3 following vvIBDV and vaccine strain inoculation, respectively, ranging from 10% to 40% compared to the control at 2.55% (P < 0.05). At day 3 postinfection, IBDV VP3 proteins colocalized with CD86 were readily detected via IFAT and flow cytometry in both vaccine and vvIBDV strains. In addition, enriched activated ch-sDCs were also detected as positive based on the VP4 gene by RT-qPCR; however, a higher viral load was detected on vvIBDV compared to the vaccine group. Infection with vaccine and vvIBDV strains induced the enriched activated ch-sDCs to produce proinflammatory cytokines and Th1-like cytokines from day 3 onward; however, the expressions were higher in the vvIBDV group (P < 0.05). These data collectively suggest that enriched activated ch-sDCs were permissive to IBDV infection and produced a strong inflammatory and Th1-like cytokine response following vvIBDV infection as compared to the vaccine strain
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