Individual patient data meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials of community occupational therapy for stroke patients

<p><b>Background and Purpose:</b> Trials of occupational therapy for stroke patients living in the community have varied in their findings. It is unclear why these discrepancies have occurred.</p> <p><b>Methods:</b> Trials were identified from searches of the Cochrane Library and other sources. The primary outcome measure was the Nottingham Extended Activities of Daily Living (NEADL) score at the end of intervention. Secondary outcome measures included the Barthel Index or the Rivermead ADL (Personal ADL), General Health Questionnaire (GHQ), Nottingham Leisure Questionnaire (NLQ), and death. Data were analyzed using linear or logistic regression with a random effect for trial and adjustment for age, gender, baseline dependency, and method of follow-up. Subgroup analyses compared any occupational therapy intervention with control.</p> <p><b>Results:</b> We included 8 single-blind randomized controlled trials incorporating 1143 patients. Occupational therapy was associated with higher NEADL scores at the end of intervention (weighted mean difference [WMD], 1.30 points, 95% confidence intervals [CI], 0.47 to 2.13) and higher leisure scores at the end of intervention (WMD, 1.51 points; 95% CI, 0.24 to 2.79). Occupational therapy emphasizing activities of daily living (ADL) was associated with improved end of intervention NEADL (WMD, 1.61 points; 95% CI, 0.72 to 2.49) and personal activities of daily living (odds ratio [OR], 0.65; 95% CI, 0.46 to 0.91), but not NLQ. Leisure-based occupational therapy improved end of intervention NLQ (WMD, 1.96 points; 95% CI, 0.27 to 3.66) but not NEADL or PADL.</p> <p><b>Conclusions:</b> Community occupational therapy significantly improved personal and extended activities of daily living and leisure activity in patients with stroke. Better outcomes were found with targeted interventions.</p&gt

Factors associated with smoking cessation in early and late pregnancy in the smoking, nicotine, and pregnancy trial: a trial of nicotine replacement therapy

Introduction: Previous studies have found partners’ smoking status, multiparity, and nicotine dependence to be associated with smoking cessation in pregnancy. However, no studies have investigated influences on cessation among women using nicotine replacement therapy (NRT). We analyzed data from a trial of NRT in pregnancy to determine factors associated with shorter- and longer-term cessation. Methods: Data were collected at baseline, 1 month, and delivery from 1,050 pregnant women. Two multivariable logistic models for validated cessation at 1 month and delivery were created with a systematic strategy for selection of included factors. Results: All findings are from multivariable analyses. At 1 month, odds of cessation were greater among those who completed full time education at >16 years of age (odds ratio [OR] = 1.82, 95% confidence interval CI = 1.24–2.67, p = .002) but they were lower in women with higher baseline cotinine levels (OR = 0.93, 95% CI = 0.90–0.95, p 16 years of age (OR = 1.89, 95% CI = 1.16–3.07, p = 0.010) but were inversely associated with higher baseline cotinine levels (OR = 0.96, 95% CI = 0.92–0.99, p = .010). Conclusions: Women who are better educated and have lower pretreatment cotinine concentrations had higher odds of stopping smoking and factors associated with shorter and longer term cessation were similar

Multitask feature selection within structural datasets

Population-based structural health monitoring (PBSHM) systems use data from multiple structures to make inferences of health states. An area of PBSHM that has recently been recognized for potential development is the use of multitask learning (MTL) algorithms that differ from traditional single-task learning. This study presents an application of the MTL approach, Joint Feature Selection with LASSO, to provide automatic feature selection. The algorithm is applied to two structural datasets. The first dataset covers a binary classification between the port and starboard side of an aircraft tailplane, for samples from two aircraft of the same model. The second dataset covers normal and damaged conditions for pre- and postrepair of the same aircraft wing. Both case studies demonstrate that the MTL results are interpretable, highlighting features that relate to structural differences by considering the patterns shared between tasks. This is opposed to single-task learning, which improved accuracy at the cost of interpretability and selected features, which failed to generalize in previously unobserved experiments

Light--like Wilson loops and gauge invariance of Yang--Mills theory in 1+1 dimensions

A light-like Wilson loop is computed in perturbation theory up to ${\cal O} (g^4)$ for pure Yang--Mills theory in 1+1 dimensions, using Feynman and light--cone gauges to check its gauge invariance. After dimensional regularization in intermediate steps, a finite gauge invariant result is obtained, which however does not exhibit abelian exponentiation. Our result is at variance with the common belief that pure Yang--Mills theory is free in 1+1 dimensions, apart perhaps from topological effects.Comment: 10 pages, plain TeX, DFPD 94/TH/

Hydrolysable tannin-based diet rich in gallotannins has a minimal impact on pig performance but significantly reduces salivary and bulbo-urethral gland size

Tannins have long been considered ‘anti-nutritional’ factors in monogastric nutrition, shown to reduce feed intake and palatability. However, recent studies revealed that compared to condensed tannins, hydrolysable tannins (HT) appear to have far less impact on growth performance but may be inhibitory to the total activity of caecal bacteria. This in turn could reduce microbial synthesis of skatole and indole in the hindgut of entire males (EM). Thus, the objective of this study was to determine the impact of a group of dietary HT on growth performance, carcass traits and boar taint compounds of group housed EM. For the study, 36 Swiss Large White boars were assigned within litter to three treatment groups. Boars were offered ad libitum one of three finisher diets supplemented with 0 (C), 15 (T15) or 30 g/kg (T30) of HT from d 105 to 165 of age. Growth performance, carcass characteristics, boar taint compounds in the adipose tissue and CYP2E1, CYP1A2, and CYP2A19 gene expression in the liver was assessed. Compared to C, feed efficiency but not daily gain and daily feed intake was lower (P < 0.05) in T15 and T30 boars. Except for the percent carcass weight loss during cooling, which tended (P < 0.10) to be greater in T30 than C and T15, carcass characteristics were not affected by the diets. In line with the numerically lower androstenone level, bulbo-urethral and salivary glands of T30 boars were lighter (P < 0.05) than of T15 with intermediate values for C. Indole level was lower (P < 0.05) in the adipose tissue of T30 than C pigs with intermediate levels in T15. Skatole levels tended (P < 0.10) to be lower in T30 and C than T15 pigs. Hepatic gene expression of CYP isoenzymes did not differ between treatment groups but was negatively correlated (P < 0.05) with androstenone (CYP2E1 and CYP1A2), skatole (CYP2E1, CYP2A) and indole (CYP2A) level. In line with the numerically highest androstenone and skatole concentrations, boar taint odour but not flavour was detected by the panelists in loins from T15 compared with loins from C and T30 boars. These results provide evidence that HT affected metabolism of indolic compounds and androstenone and that they affected the development of accessory sex glands. However, the effects were too small to be detected by sensory evaluation

Researching Intimacies and New Media:Methodological Opportunities and Challenges

Researching intimacies and new media encompasses a wide variety of intersecting practices and relationships. This special issue presents contributions from researchers who are investigating practices of intimacy mediated either wholly or in part through new media in which a variety of different methodological opportunities and challenges are highlighted and discussed. Existing research has addressed different combinations of new media, intimacy, and methodology, but there remains space for a dedicated focus on the ways in which these areas are interrelated and entangled. The articles in this special issue build up a conversation around this particular intersection from a range of directions, from reflections on specific technological devices/apps and their promotion of particular forms of intimacies that may lead to (dis)comfort and (dis)connection, to the intimate—and sometimes risky—investments in research processes and fieldwork, as well as the ethical frameworks and decision-making processes guiding the research

Antibiotics resistance of Vibrio spp. isolated from diseased seabass and tilapia in cage culture

Vibriosis has become one of the most important bacterial diseases in marine cultured organisms in recent years. This study was focusing on isolation and identification of Vibrio spp. isolated from diseased seabass (Lates calcarifer), tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) and seawater from Sri Tujuh lagoon in East Coast of Malaysia; also determination of antibiotic resistance patterns among Vibrio spp. Vibrio species isolated from diseased seabass in Pantai Sri Tujuh, Tumpat, Kelantan were screened for their antibiotic sensitivity patterns by Kirby-Bauer method. A total of 47 isolates belonging to three different species were identified which are V. parahaemolyticus, V. vulnificus, and V. alginolyticus. In this study, high incidence of erythromycin, chloramphenicol and sulfamethoxazole resistance was observed among the Vibrio isolates, whereas all isolates were susceptible to oxytetracycline. Vibrio isolates were 96% resistant to one or more different classes of antibiotic, and 17 different resistance patterns were identified. The MAR index of 0.4 indicating the Vibrio spp. in these farmed fish might have been indiscriminately and continuously exposed to those antibiotics during culturing stages of the fish. This study showed that multidrug-resistant Vibrio spp. were common in diseased seabass and tilapia cultured at Sri Tujuh lagoon. These essential findings suggested involvement of seafood in transmission of these pathogen to human. In addition, oxytetracycline can be used as a treatment to combat vibriosis in diseased seabass and tilapia

Effect of Silicon Content on Carbide Precipitation and Low-Temperature Toughness of Pressure Vessel Steels

Cr – Mn – Mo – Ni pressure vessel steels containing 0.54 and 1.55% Si are studied. Metallographic and fractographic analyses of the steels after tempering at 650 and 700°C are performed. The impact toughness at – 30°C and the hardness of the steels are determined. The mass fraction of the carbide phase in the steels is computed with the help of the J-MatPro 4.0 software

The type and frequency of interactions that occur between staff and children outside in Early Years Foundation Stage settings during a fixed playtime period when there are tricycles available

This study reports on an investigation into adult and child interactions observed in the outdoor play environment in four Local Authority early years foundation stage settings in England. In this instance the common two features across the settings were the presence of tricycles and a timetabled outdoor play period. In total, across the four schools, there were 204 children. The study aimed to gain an understanding of the nature of the dialogues between staff and children, that is, the types of exchange that occurred when either the child approached an adult or the adult approached a child. The most frequent type of utterance was also analysed. The study concludes that adults in these settings spoke more than children and the greatest type of utterance was that of the adult about domestic matters. When the child initiated the conversation there were more extended child utterances than domestic utterances. This may suggest that children wish to be involved in conversations of depth and meaning and that staff need to become aware of how to develop this conversational language with children