Does angiotensin-1 converting enzyme genotype influence motor or cognitive development after pre-term birth?

BACKGROUND: Raised activity of the renin-angiotensin system (RAS) may both amplify inflammatory and free radical responses and decrease tissue metabolic efficiency and thus enhance cerebral injury in the preterm infant. The angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) DD genotype is associated with raised ACE and RAS activity as well as potentially adverse stimuli such as inflammation. The DD genotype has been associated with neurological impairments in the elderly, and thus may be also associated with poorer motor or cognitive development amongst children born preterm prematurely. METHODS: The association of DD genotype with developmental progress amongst 176 Caucasian children born at less than 33 weeks gestation (median birthweight 1475 g, range 645–2480 g; gestation 30 weeks, range 22–32; 108 male) was examined at 2 and 5 1/2 years of age. Measured neuro-cognitive outcomes were cranial ultrasound abnormalities, cerebral palsy, disability, Griffiths Developmental Quotient [DQ] at 2 yrs, and General Cognitive Ability [British Ability Scales-11] and motor performance [ABC Movement], both performed at 5 1/2 yrs. All outcomes were correlated with ACE genotype. RESULTS: The DD genotype was not associated with lower developmental quotients even after accounting for important social variables. CONCLUSION: These data do not support either a role for ACE in the development of cognitive or motor function in surviving infants born preterm or inhibition of ACE as a neuroprotective therapy

The Utilization of Communication Technologies by Study Abroad Participants

This pilot project was designed to evaluate study abroad participants\u27 degree of homesickness and use of communication channels, specifically telephone and email. A questionnaire was developed to assess several dimensions involved with studying abroad, including degree of culture shock and homesickness, and frequency and methods of communicating home. Respondents were 14 study abroad participants from a medium-sized southern university, including 4 males and 10 females. Based on the findings of this study, homesickness and degree of culture shock were related as measured by the items of strain, helpless, missing, accepted, escape, and shock. As hypothesized, students who reported being homesick were also more likely to utilize communication technologies. In addition, those students reporting higher levels of homesickness also reported that phone contacts back home helped them overcome feelings of homesickness. While frequency of use of email and phone were strongly related, only talking with family and friends back home was reported to significantly help with feelings of homesickness. Limitations and future research directions were also discussed

Integrating Technology to Achieve a Measurable Level of Learning

The purpose of this paper is to detail the barriers to the integration of technology in US school systems. The harriers experienced by both individual teachers and to school systems as a whole are discussed. Student barriers, such as computer skill levels or poverty, are also discussed. In addition, this paper explains how technology should be used and the measurable benefits of doing so. Measurable benefits reported in the literature include increased performance on measures of reading comprehension, writing, components of IQ, transfer to novel tasks, and grade point average. Closing comments focus on how technology integration must be an ongoing process in order to become a successful endeavor

An Examination of Web Site Accessibility Issues

The Web is becoming more important for communication andfor data access. Unfortunately, not all Web sites are accessible for all users. Web accessibility is concerned with overcoming the barriers that users with disabilities face when they try to access information on Web sites. Currently, for disabled users, the Web presents many barriers that make it dijfiult to use. These barriers can be addressed by organizational commitment and by improved development techniques. This paper examines how Web accessibility standards and legal mandates are affecting the design of corporate and governmental Web sites, and how the rate of adoption can be improved through increased awareness and education. In addition. It discusses the current need to create a methodology to assess the accessibility skills of information systems developers

Whole-body magnetic resonance imaging in paediatric Hodgkin lymphoma - evaluation of quantitative magnetic resonance metrics for nodal staging

Background Whole-body MRI is used for staging paediatric Hodgkin lymphoma, commonly using size thresholds, which fail to detect disease in normal-size lymph nodes. Objective To investigate quantitative whole-body MRI metrics for nodal characterisation. Materials and methods Thirty-seven children with Hodgkin lymphoma underwent 1.5-tesla (T) whole-body MRI using short tau inversion recovery (STIR) half-Fourier-acquisition single-shot turbo-spin-echo and diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI). 18Flourine-2-fluoro-2-deoxyglucose (FDG) positron emission tomography (PET)/CT was acquired as the reference standard. Two independent readers assessed 11 nodal sites. The readers measured short-axis-diameter, apparent diffusion coefficient, (ADC) and normalised T2-signal intensity of the largest lymph node at each site. We used receiver operating characteristics (ROC)/area-under-the-curve (AUC) analysis for each MRI metric and derived sensitivity and specificity for nodes with short-axis diameter ≥10 mm. Sub-analysis of sensitivity and specificity was performed with application of ADC cut-off values (<0.77, <1.15 and <1.79×10−3 mm2 s −1 ) to 5- to 9-mm nodes. Results ROC/AUC values for reader 1/reader 2 were 0.80/0.80 and 0.81/0.81 for short-axis-diameter measured using DWI and STIR half-Fourier-acquisition single-shot turbo spin echo, respectively; 0.67/0.72 for normalised T2 signal intensity and 0.74/0.67 for ADC. Sensitivity and specificity for a short-axis diameter ≥10 mm were 84.2% and 66.7% for Reader 1 and 82.9% and 68.9% for Reader 2. Applying a short-axis-diameter ≥10-mm threshold followed by ADC cut-offs to normal-size 5- to 9-mm nodes resulted in sensitivity and specificity for Reader 1 of 88.8% and 60%, 92.1% and 56.7%, and 100% and 16.7%; and for Reader 2, 86.1% and 67.2%, 95.3% and 65.6%, and 100% and 19.7%; and ADC thresholds of <0.77, <1.15, and <1.79×10−3 mm2 s −1 , respectively. Conclusion Nodal size measurement provides the best single classifier for nodal disease status in paediatric Hodgkin lymphoma. Combined short-axis diameter and ADC thresholds marginally improve sensitivity and drop specificity compared with size classification alone

Front Solutions for Bistable Differential-Difference Equations with Inhomogeneous Diffusion

This is the published version, also available here: http://dx.doi.org/10.1137/100807156.We consider a bistable differential-difference equation with inhomogeneous diffusion. Employing a piecewise linear nonlinearity, often referred to as McKean's caricature of the cubic, we construct front solutions which correspond, in the case of homogeneous diffusion, to monotone traveling front solutions or, in the case of propagation failure, to stationary front solutions. A general form for these fronts is given for essentially arbitrary inhomogeneous discrete diffusion, and conditions are given for the existence of solutions to the original discrete Nagumo equation. The specific case of one defect is considered in depth, giving a complete understanding of propagation failure and a grasp on changes in wave speed. Insight into the dynamic behavior of these front solutions as a function of the magnitude and relative position of the defects is obtained with the assistance of numerical results

Virtual Canine Lameness: the development of a training tool

Lameness is commonly encountered in veterinary practice, however precise visual lameness detection requires experience. This skill is challenging to teach: exposure of students to many patients is needed to learn the necessary perceptual skills; however patients might not be readily available. Video recordings of patients can be useful, but depend on the quality of recording and variety of cases available. They are limited to two dimensional views which don’t fully replicate a real-life three dimensional examination. Following on the success of an equine lameness training tool (www.lamenesstrainer.com) developed at the Royal Veterinary College; a 3D virtual canine lameness tool is being developed to teach students to reliably recognize canine lameness. We collected 3D motion capture data from 10 non-lame Labrador retrievers at walk and trot on a treadmill. Data were captured using eight Oqus7 cameras (Qualisys, Sweden). The movement of these dogs was recorded based on 32 reflective markers positioned over key anatomical locations. Marker positions for twenty steady strides for one dog were averaged to drive the skeleton movement of a matching 3D dog model in Autodesk MotionBuilder. The final clips were rendered to show a realistic-looking shaded wireframe of the dog model at normal walk and trot. Varying types and degrees of lameness were then introduced to this animation based on previous kinematic studies. Next stages of work will involve the inclusion of this model in a tool to enable it to be used for veterinary education; once validated it will be released as an Open Educational Resource

Front Solutions for Bistable Differential-Difference Equations with Inhomogeneous Diffusion

We consider a bistable differential-difference equation with inhomogeneous diffusion. Employing a piecewise linear nonlinearity, often referred to as McKean\u27s caricature of the cubic, we construct front solutions which correspond, in the case of homogeneous diffusion, to monotone traveling front solutions or, in the case of propagation failure, to stationary front solutions. A general form for these fronts is given for essentially arbitrary inhomogeneous discrete diffusion, and conditions are given for the existence of solutions to the original discrete Nagumo equation. The specific case of one defect is considered in depth, giving a complete understanding of propagation failure and a grasp on changes in wave speed. Insight into the dynamic behavior of these front solutions as a function of the magnitude and relative position of the defects is obtained with the assistance of numerical results

Chinese Whispers: A brief history of eponymous orthopaedic examinations

Eponymous orthopaedic examinations frequently appear in modern clinical examinations, yet their original description and cause for change are often omitted from medical education today. This is important to appreciate in order to understand their diagnostic relevance in modern medicine and subsequent interpretation of results by fellow clinicians. This article reviews the original description of these tests by their namesakes, how they have evolved over time and their relevance in orthopaedics today. An online literature review (PubMed) was conducted of the original descriptions and other published literature detailing their history, evolution, sensitivity and specificity. While elements of these tests have been lost naturally over time to the ‘Chinese Whispers’ effect, most have evolved positively secondary to a deepening anatomical and pathological understanding of their target conditions. They retain some usefulness in clinical medicine, however it is recognized that their diagnostic value is invariably supplanted by improvements in diagnostic imaging