3D FEM Simulations of a shape rolling process

A finite element model has been developed for the simulation of the shape rolling of stator\ud vanes. These simulations should support the design of rolling tools for new vane types. For the time being\ud only straight vanes (vanes with a constant cross-section over the length) are studied. In that case the rolling\ud process can be considered stationary and an ALE formulation is suitable to calculate the steady state. Results\ud of simulations and experiments for a symmetrical straight vane are presente

Theater als contactmethode in de psychogeriatrische zorg: effecten op gedrag, stemming en kwaliteit van leven van mensen met dementie

Achtergrond: Recent deed een nieuwe communicatiemethode zijn intrede in de intramurale dementiezorg. Deze zogenoemde Veder Methode, ontwikkeld door acteurs met ervaring in de zorg, combineert bestaande bewezen effectieve communicatiemethoden, zoals reminiscentie, met theatrale prikkels, zoals zang en poëzie. De methode wordt toegepast in theatervoorstellingen en huiskamervoorstellingen. In dit exploratieve onderzoek werd de meerwaarde van een huiskamervoorstelling volgens de Veder Methode ten opzichte van een gewone reminiscentiegroepsactiviteit onderzocht. Methode: In een quasi-experimentele onderzoeksopzet werden drie groepen verpleeghuisbewoners met dementie vergeleken: experimentele groep 1 (E1; N=64) nam deel aan een huiskamervoorstelling uitgevoerd door getrainde zorgverleners; experimentele groep 2 (E2; N=31) bezocht een ‘huiskamervoorstelling’ door professionele acteurs; een controlegroep (C1; N=52) ontving een reminiscentiegroepsactiviteit. Gedrag, stemming en aspecten van kwaliteit van leven werden voor (T1), tijdens (T2) en na de interventie (T3) gemeten met gestandaardiseerde observatielijsten. Resultaten: Tijdens en na de interventie werden positieve effecten op gedrag (o.m. lachen, herinneringen ophalen), stemming (o.m. vrolijk/ tevreden) en kwaliteit van leven (o.m. sociale betrokkenheid en zich thuisvoelen) gevonden bij groep E2. Conclusie: Een huiskamervoorstelling volgens de Veder Methode heeft, indien zij wordt uitgevoerd door professionele acteurs, een positievere uitwerking op verpleeghuisbewoners met dementie dan een gewone reminiscentie-groepsactiviteit

The demand for corporate financial reporting: A survey among financial analysts

Abstract: We examine financial analysts’ views on corporate financial reporting issues by means of a survey among 306 analysts and interviews among 21 analysts and compare their views with that of CFOs. Since CFOs believe that meeting or beating analysts’ forecasts and managing earnings to achieve this benchmark can enhance firm value, examining analysts’ perspectives on these actions improves our understanding on whether CFOs’ beliefs are rational or heuristic. Our findings suggest that CFOs’ beliefs tend to be rational regarding their focus on earnings and their views on earnings management and smoothing. The main reason is that analysts have difficulty in unraveling certain types of earnings management in a specific firm even though they anticipate earnings management in general. Yet, CFOs are heuristic in their optimism about the consequences of managing earnings, which potentially has negative implications for the value of their firm

LOOK MUMMY, NO HANDS! THE EFFECT OF TRUNK MOTION ON FORWARD WHEELCHAIR PROPULSION

Wheelchair and trunk-mounted IMUs provide a powerful and easy to use method for measuring wheelchair mobility performance. Yet, to develop more specific outcome measures, additional equipment can aid in gaining more insight. A new pushrim hit detection (RhIDE) method was used to investigate forward propulsion measured by frame acceleration in push and recovery phase. Four subjects sprinted at different intensities, while wheelchair velocity, acceleration, trunk movement and push phases were measured. Results show that 25-30% of the total forward propulsion per push (61 to 91 N∙s) was performed after hand release. This explorative study shows the significance of propulsion due to trunk movement in the recovery phase. Future research with this measurement setup and daily wheelchair users could help unravel the true share of trunk motion in forward propulsion, and its timing

Referral care paths for non-alcoholic fatty liver disease-Gearing up for an ever more prevalent and severe liver disease

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is an increasingly prevalent and potentially severe liver disease, emphasizing the need for implementation of widely supported care paths for patients at risk for advanced stages of NAFLD. In particular, the distinction of patients with a progressive and/or advanced, fibrotic NAFLD from those with simple steatosis requires improvement, as well as the awareness for NAFLD among health care professionals. Broad acceptance and implementation of interdisciplinary care paths in the near future will bring enhanced identification of those patients that benefit from surveillance, intensive lifestyle management, and empirical or investigational pharmacotherapy and enhance our epidemiological grasp of NAFLD in relation to lifestyle, genetic background, and cardiometabolic comorbidities related to NAFLD.Cellular mechanisms in basic and clinical gastroenterology and hepatolog

Decision making around living and deceased donor kidney transplantation: a qualitative study exploring the importance of expected relationship changes

Transplant surger

Decision aids can decrease decisional conflict in patients with hip or knee osteoarthritis: randomized controlled trial

BACKGROUNDThe interest in shared decision making has increased considerably over the last couple of decades. Decision aids (DAs) can help in shared decision making. Especially when there is more than one reasonable option and outcomes between treatments are comparable.AIMTo investigate if the use of DAs decreases decisional conflict in patients when choosing treatment for knee or hip osteoarthritis (OA).METHODSIn this multi-center unblinded randomized controlled trial of patients with knee or hip OA were included from four secondary and tertiary referral centers. One-hundred-thirty-one patients who consulted an orthopedic surgeon for the first time with knee or hip OA were included between December 2014 and January 2016. After the first consultation, patients were randomly assigned by a computer to the control group which was treated according to standard care, or to the intervention group which was treated with standard care and provided with a DA. After the first consultation, patients were asked to complete questionnaires about decisional conflict (DCS), satisfaction, anxiety (PASS-20), gained knowledge, stage of decision making and preferred treatment. Follow-up was carried out after 26 wk and evaluated decisional conflict, satisfaction, anxiety, health outcomes (HOOS/KOOS), quality of life (EQ5D) and chosen treatment.RESULTSAfter the first consultation, patients in the intervention group (mean DCS: 25 out of 100, SD: 13) had significantly (P value: 0.00) less decisional conflict compared to patients in the control group (mean DCS: 39 out of 100, SD 11). The mean satisfaction score for the given information (7.6 out of 10, SD: 1.8 vs 8.6 out of 10, SD: 1.1) (P value: 0.00), mean satisfaction score with the physician (8.3 out of 10, SD: 1.7 vs 8.9 out of 10, SD: 0.9) (P value: 0.01) and the mean knowledge score (3.3 out of 4, SD: 0.9 vs 3.7 out of, SD: 0.6) (P value: 0.01) were all significantly higher in the intervention group. At 26-wk follow-up, only 75 of 131 patients (57%) were available for analysis. This sample is too small for meaningful analysis.CONCLUSIONProviding patients with an additional DA may have a positive effect on decisional conflict after the first consultation. Due to loss to follow-up we are unsure if this effect remains over time.Orthopaedics, Trauma Surgery and Rehabilitatio