Sketching as a solid modeling tool

Journal ArticleThis paper describes 'Quick-sketch', a 2-d and 3d modeling tool for pen based computers. Users of this system define a model by simple pen strokes drawn directly on the screen of a pen-based PC. Lines, circles, arcs, or B-spline curves are automatically distinguished and interpreted from these strokes. The system also automatically determines relations, such as right angles, tangencies, symmetry, and parallelism, from the sketch input. These relationships are then used to clean up the drawing by making the approximate relationships exact. Constraints are established to maintain the relationships during further editing. A constraint maintenance system, which is based on gestural manipulation and soft constraints, is employed in this system. Several techniques for sketch based definitions of 3d objects are provided as well, including extrusion, surface of revolution, ruled surfaces and sweep. Features can be sketched on the surface of a 3d object, using the same 2d and 3d techniques. This way, objects of medium complexity can be sketched in seconds. The system can be viewed as a front-end to more sophisticated modeling, rendering or animation environments, serving as a hand sketching tool in the preliminary design phase

Short-term effects of social stressors at work on rumination and physical symptoms in social workers

The present study focuses on social stressors at work and the development of physical symptoms in social workers on a daily basis. In a seven-day diary study it was anticipated that daily rumination functions as a mediator, linked to additional daily physical symptoms in individuals. Before and after work, 81 social workers completed daily questions on social stressors, rumination, and physical symptoms. Multilevel analyses of up to 391 daily measurements revealed that more intense social stressors predicted more rumination, as well as physical symptoms. Rumination anteceded higher physical symptoms. A test of the indirect effects showed a significant indirect path from social stressors at work via rumination to physical symptoms. Hence, it was found that social stressors and rumination contribute to the ongoing health crisis in the social work profession. These findings advance our understanding of the stress mechanisms in social work, as well as point to individual and organizational aspects that occupational health prevention programs should consider

The effect of patient, provider and financing regulations on the intensity of ambulatory physical therapy episodes: a multilevel analysis based on routinely available data.

BACKGROUND: Many studies have found considerable variations in the resource intensity of physical therapy episodes. Although they have identified several patient- and provider-related factors, few studies have examined their relative explanatory power. We sought to quantify the contribution of patients and providers to these differences and examine how effective Swiss regulations are (nine-session ceiling per prescription and bonus for first treatments). METHODS: Our sample consisted of 87,866 first physical therapy episodes performed by 3,365 physiotherapists based on referrals by 6,131 physicians. We modeled the number of visits per episode using a multilevel log linear regression with crossed random effects for physiotherapists and physicians and with fixed effects for cantons. The three-level explanatory variables were patient, physiotherapist and physician characteristics. RESULTS: The median number of sessions was nine (interquartile range 6-13). Physical therapy use increased with age, women, higher health care costs, lower deductibles, surgery and specific conditions. Use rose with the share of nine-session episodes among physiotherapists or physicians, but fell with the share of new treatments. Geographical area had no influence. Most of the variance was explained at the patient level, but the available factors explained only 4% thereof. Physiotherapists and physicians explained only 6% and 5% respectively of the variance, although the available factors explained most of this variance. Regulations were the most powerful factors. CONCLUSION: Against the backdrop of abundant physical therapy supply, Swiss financial regulations did not restrict utilization. Given that patient-related factors explained most of the variance, this group should be subject to closer scrutiny. Moreover, further research is needed on the determinants of patient demand

Comparing potentially avoidable hospitalization rates related to ambulatory care sensitive conditions in Switzerland: the need to refine the definition of health conditions and to adjust for population health status.

BACKGROUND: Regional rates of hospitalization for ambulatory care sensitive conditions (ACSC) are used to compare the availability and quality of ambulatory care but the risk adjustment for population health status is often minimal. The objectives of the study was to examine the impact of more extensive risk adjustment on regional comparisons and to investigate the relationship between various area-level factors and the properly adjusted rates. METHODS: Our study is an observational study based on routine data of 2 million anonymous insured in 26 Swiss cantons followed over one or two years. A binomial negative regression was modeled with increasingly detailed information on health status (age and gender only, inpatient diagnoses, outpatient conditions inferred from dispensed drugs and frequency of physician visits). Hospitalizations for ACSC were identified from principal diagnoses detecting 19 conditions, with an updated list of ICD-10 diagnostic codes. Co-morbidities and surgical procedures were used as exclusion criteria to improve the specificity of the detection of potentially avoidable hospitalizations. The impact of the adjustment approaches was measured by changes in the standardized ratios calculated with and without other data besides age and gender. RESULTS: 25% of cases identified by inpatient main diagnoses were removed by applying exclusion criteria. Cantonal ACSC hospitalizations rates varied from to 1.4 to 8.9 per 1,000 insured, per year. Morbidity inferred from diagnoses and drugs dramatically increased the predictive performance, the greatest effect found for conditions linked to an ACSC. More visits were associated with fewer PAH although very high users were at greater risk and subjects who had not consulted at negligible risk. By maximizing health status adjustment, two thirds of the cantons changed their adjusted ratio by more than 10 percent. Cantonal variations remained substantial but unexplained by supply or demand. CONCLUSION: Additional adjustment for health status is required when using ACSC to monitor ambulatory care. Drug-inferred morbidities are a promising approach

Influence of High BMI on Functional Outcome After Total Hip Arthroplasty

Background: High body mass index (BMI) is associated with diseases of the hip joint and subsequent total hip arthroplasty (THA). Less is known about the effects of BMI on the functional postoperative status after THA in obese patients. The purpose of this study was therefore to quantify the role of high preoperative BMI on long-term pain status and functional outcome after THA. Methods: In a multi-center cohort, study data of 20,553 primary THAs (18,968 patients) and 43,562 postoperative clinical examinations were analyzed for a follow-up period of up to 15years. Patients were classified into three BMI groups (normal weight <25kg/m2, overweight 25 to <30kg/m2, and obese ≥30kg/m2), and pain status and functional outcome were compared accordingly. Results: High preoperative BMI is associated to an almost perfect dose-effect relationship with decreased ambulation during a follow-up period of 15years, but pain relief of THA is equally efficient for all BMI groups. Conclusion: Overweight and obesity are modifiable risk factors that may warrant physicians giving recommendations to patients before or after THA, to improve postoperative functional outcome qualit

Determinants of new drugs prescription in the Swiss healthcare market.

Drug markets are very complex and, while many new drugs are registered each year, little is known about what drives the prescription of these new drugs. This study attempts to lift the veil from this important subject by analyzing simultaneously the impact of several variables on the prescription of novelty. Data provided by four Swiss sickness funds were analyzed. These data included information about more than 470,000 insured, notably their drug intake. Outcome variable that captured novelty was the age of the drug prescribed. The overall variance in novelty was partitioned across five levels (substitutable drug market, patient, physician, region, and prescription) and the influence of several variables measured at each of these levels was assessed using a non-hierarchical multilevel model estimated by Bayesian Markov Chain Monte Carlo methods. More than 92% of the variation in novelty was explained at the substitutable drug market-level and at the prescription-level. Newer drugs were prescribed in markets that were costlier, less concentrated, included more insured, provided more drugs and included more active substances. Over-the-counter drugs were on average 12.5 years older while generic drugs were more than 15 years older than non-generics. Regional disparities in terms of age of prescribed drugs could reach 2.8 years. Regulation of the demand has low impact, with little variation explained at the patient-level and physician-level. In contrary, the market structure (e.g. end of patent with generic apparition, concurrence among producers) had a strong contribution to the variation of drugs ages

Characterization of a 14 kDa oocyst wall protein of Eimeria tenella and E. acervulina

We have extracted a protein of 14 kDa from purified oocyst walls of several Eimeria species. Polyclonal antibodies were raised in rats against the 14 kDa proteins of E. acervulina and E. tenella. On immunoblots these antisera reacted in a highly specific manner with the homologous 14 kDa antigens, but not with heterologous antigens. In addition, specific binding of the two antisera to oocyst wall fragments of E. acervulina and E. tenella was demonstrated by immunofluorescence. Partial amino-terminal sequences comprising 20 amino acid residues were obtained from the 14 kDa oocyst wall proteins of E. acervulina and E. tenella. They are characterized by an abundance of amino acids containing hydroxyl groups in their side chains (serine, tyrosine, threonine). Binding of the oocyst wall protein of E. tenella by peanut agglutinin indicates the presence of O-linked carbohydrate

L'exercice des droits politiques des membres de la Cinquième Suisse : quelles différences avec les Suisses de l'intérieur ?

En quoi la participation à la vie démocratique des citoyens de la Cinquième Suisse se distingue-t-elle des citoyens suisses ? Cette publication montre l'évolution démographique, la répartition spatiale et la structure de la Cinquième Suisse. Ce travail s'intéresse également à identifier les dissimilitudes entre l'étendue des droits politiques des citoyens de la Cinquième Suisse et de la Suisse, les dissemblances dans les canaux de vote et dans la procédure pour accéder à l'exercice du droit de vote. Sur la base des résultats des votations fédérales de 2004 à 2010 et des résultats des élections du Conseil national 2007, cette publication met également en lumière les différences des résultats entre le comportement politique des Suisses de l'étranger et de leurs compatriotes résidant en Suisse. La participation, la force des partis, le vote électronique, les mots d'ordre des partis et la thématique des votations sont des thèmes abordés dans cette analyse empirique. Worin unterscheidet sich die Beteiligung am demokratischen Leben der Bürgerinnen und Bürger der Fünften Schweiz von demjenigen der Schweizer Staatsbürgerinnen und Bürger ? Diese Publikation zeigt die demografische Entwicklung sowie die räumliche Verteilung und Struktur der Fünften Schweiz auf. Im Rahmen der Arbeit werden auch das unterschiedliche Ausmass der politischen Rechte, welche die Bürgerinnen und Bürger der Fünften Schweiz und diejenigen der Schweiz ausüben, und die Unterschiede bei den Abstimmungskanälen sowie im Verfahren zur Ausübung des Stimmrechts aufgezeigt. Auf die Resultate der Eidgenössischen Abstimmungen von 2004 bis 2010 und die Resultate der Nationalratswahlen 2007 gestützt, befasst sich diese Publikation zudem mit den unterschiedlichen Resultaten bezüglich des politischen Verhaltens der Auslandschweizerinnen und Auslandschweizer und ihrer in der Schweizlebenden Landsleute. Die Beteiligung, die Stärke der Parteien, das elektronische Abstimmen, die Parteilosungen und die Abstimmungsthematiken sind Themen, die im Rahmen dieser empirischen Analyse behandelt werden

First Blood Vessels in the Avian Neural Tube Are Formed by a Combination of Dorsal Angioblast Immigration and Ventral Sprouting of Endothelial Cells

AbstractWe studied the early pattern of neural tube (NT) vascularization in quail embryos and chick–quail chimeras. Angioblasts appeared first in the dorsal third at Hamburger and Hamilton (HH) stage 19 as single, migrating cells. Their distribution did not correspond to a segmental pattern. After this initial dorsal immigration, endothelial sprouts invaded the NT on either side of the floor plate (HH stage 21). These cells remained continuous with their arterial vascular sources, connected to the venous perineural vascular plexus at HH-stage 22, and formed the first perfused vessels of the NT at HH-stage 23. The same pattern of angiotrophic vascularization was observed in a craniocaudal sequence starting caudal to the rhombencephalic NT. Extremely long filopodia were observed on sprouting cells, extending toward the central canal and the mantle layer. The exclusively extraneuroectodermal origin of angioblastic cells was demonstrated with chick–quail chimeras. Following replacement of quail NT by chick NT graft, angioblast and sprout distribution in chimeras was the same as in controls. We conclude that the NT receives its first blood vessels by a combination of two different processes, dorsal immigration of isolated migrating angioblastic cells and ventral sprouting of endothelial cells, which derive from perfused vessels. The dorsal invasive angioblasts contribute to the developing intraneural vascular plexus after having traversed the neural tube. The initial distribution of blood vessels within the neuroepithelium corresponds to intrinsic random motility of angioblastic cells; a more regular pattern is seen later. The floor plate apparently prohibits connections between sprouts in both NT sides, whereas in the dorsal NT, such a separating effect on the migrating angioblasts does not exist