The association between church attendance and psychological health in Northern Ireland : a national representative survey among adults allowing for sex differences and denominational difference

This study extends previous research concerning the association between religion and psychological health in six ways: (1) by focusing clearly on religious attendance (church attendance); (2) by employing a robust measure of psychological distress (GHQ-12); (3) by studying a highly religious culture (Northern Ireland); (4) by taking sex differences into account (male or female); (5) by taking denominational differences into account (Catholic or Protestant); (6) and by obtaining a national representative sample (N = 4,281 adults aged 16 and above). Results from a 2 (sex) by 2 (denomination) ANCOVA demonstrated that Catholics recorded significantly lower levels of psychological health compared to Protestants, and that females showed significantly lower levels of psychological health compared to males. In addition, females reported higher frequency of religious service attendance than males, and Catholics reported higher attendance rates than Protestants. A significant positive association was found between frequency of religious attendance and GHQ-12 scores, and this association was moderated by sex and denomination. In conclusion, the results suggest that there may be sex and denominational differences in further understanding the relationship between frequency of religious attendance and psychological health

Anthropometric study to update minimum aircraft seating standards

This study was initiated by the Joint Aviation Authorities (JAA) under UK Civil Aviation Authority funding. The study was undertaken against a background trend of generally increasing body dimensions within the European population. This trend, when combined with an increasing number of longer duration flights and high density seating, prompted the need for a wide-ranging review of published anthropometric data that would guide JAA when considering the need for any regulation in this area. It should be noted that this report concentrates on the safety issues associated with seating arrangements. The specific aim is to ensure that seating standards are such that passengers would be able to quickly evacuate an aircraft in the event of an emergency. Thus, the study considers seating accommodation against expected population body dimensions. Software modelling has been used to make an initial assessment of the relationship between seating dimensions and evacuation difficulties. The health implications of aircraft seating are also considered. However, the comfort aspects of aircraft seating did not form part of the research study

Serum Cystatin C as an Early Marker of Neutrophil Gelatinase‐associated Lipocalin‐positive Acute Kidney Injury Resulting from Cardiopulmonary Bypass in Infants with Congenital Heart Disease

ObjectiveAcute kidney injury (AKI) is a common complication resulting from cardiopulmonary bypass in infants. Urinary neutrophil gelatinase‐associated lipocalin (NGAL) is a sensitive and specific marker of such injury. In this study, we compared the performance of serum cystatin C (Cys C) and serum creatinine (Cr) as early markers of renal dysfunction in infants undergoing cardiac surgery under bypass.Study Design, Setting, and PatientsThe study was designed as a prospective observational study. The study was conducted in the cardiac intensive care unit (ICU) of a tertiary, academic children's hospital in the United States. Infants (age <1 year) undergoing cardiac surgery under cardiopulmonary bypass were included in the study.Outcome MeasureAcute kidney injury was defined based on postoperative urinary NGAL.ResultsA total of 17 infants were included in the study, and five of them developed AKI. Serum Cys C and Cr levels were measured postoperatively on days 1, 2, and 3, and compared with baseline levels. On postoperative day 2, infants with AKI showed significant change from baseline in serum Cys C levels compared with non‐AKI infants (28% vs. −9%, P = .03). The two groups did not show significant differences with respect to rise in serum Cr on any of the 3 postoperative days. Serum Cr on days 1 and 2 showed nonspecific increases in both AKI and non‐AKI groups. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve for day 2 Cys C was 0.87 (95% CI 0.67–1.00) in recognizing NGAL‐positive AKI.ConclusionsPostoperative serum Cys C appears to be a more specific and sensitive biomarker for NGAL‐positive AKI resulting from cardiopulmonary bypass surgery in infants undergoing cardiac surgery.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/113151/1/chd12253.pd

Evaluating the selection, training, and support of peer support workers in the United Kingdom

This article describes the preparation, selection, training, and support of a group of people with lived experience of mental distress/illness and mental health service use to work as peer support workers (PSWs). The PSWs were recruited to provide support alongside conventional aftercare to service users discharged from acute psychiatric units in London, England. Training was delivered over 12 weekly, 1-day sessions from April to July 2010. Supervision and support were provided by a peer support coordinator and a training facilitator. The overall view of the training by those who went on to work as PSWs was that it was a valuable, challenging, yet positive experience that provided them with a good preparation for the role. A key area for improvement concerned the strength of emotional involvement and feelings PSWs had for their peers, especially in regard to ending the support relationship. Skilled, sensitive supervision and support is essential for the success of such roles

Hierarchical complexity of the macro-scale neonatal brain

The human adult structural connectome has a rich nodal hierarchy, with highly diverse connectivity patterns aligned to the diverse range of functional specializations in the brain. The emergence of this hierarchical complexity in human development is unknown. Here, we substantiate the hierarchical tiers and hierarchical complexity of brain networks in the newborn period, assess correspondences with hierarchical complexity in adulthood, and investigate the effect of preterm birth, a leading cause of atypical brain development and later neurocognitive impairment, on hierarchical complexity. We report that neonatal and adult structural connectomes are both composed of distinct hierarchical tiers and that hierarchical complexity is greater in term born neonates than in preterms. This is due to diversity of connectivity patterns of regions within the intermediate tiers, which consist of regions that underlie sensorimotor processing and its integration with cognitive information. For neonates and adults, the highest tier (hub regions) is ordered, rather than complex, with more homogeneous connectivity patterns in structural hubs. This suggests that the brain develops first a more rigid structure in hub regions allowing for the development of greater and more diverse functional specialization in lower level regions, while connectivity underpinning this diversity is dysmature in infants born preterm