Suicide first aid guidelines for Sri Lanka: a Delphi consensus study

Background: Sri Lanka has one of the highest suicide rates in the world. Gatekeeper programs aimed at specific target groups could be a promising suicide prevention strategy in the country. The aim of this study was to develop guidelines that help members of the public to provide first aid to persons in Sri Lanka who are at risk of suicide. Methods: The Delphi method was used to elicit consensus on potential helping statements to include in the guidelines. These statements describe information members of the public should have and actions they can take to help a person who is experiencing suicidal thoughts. An expert panel, comprised of mental health and suicide experts in Sri Lanka, rated each statement. The panellists were encouraged to suggest any additional action that was not included in the original questionnaire and, in particular, to include items that were culturally appropriate or gender specific. Responses to open-ended questions were used to generate new items. These items were included in the subsequent Delphi rounds. Three Delphi rounds were carried out. Statements were accepted for inclusion in the guidelines if they were endorsed (rated as essential or important) by at least 80 % of the panel. Statements endorsed by 70–79 % of the panel were re-rated in the following round. Statements with less than 70 % endorsement, or re-rated items that did not receive 80 % or higher endorsement were rejected. Results: The output from the Delphi process was a set of endorsed statements. In the first round questionnaire 473 statements were presented to the panel and 58 new items were generated from responses to the open-ended questions. Of the total 531 statements presented, 304 were endorsed. These statements were used to develop the suicide first aid guidelines for Sri Lanka. Conclusion: By engaging Sri Lankans who are experts in the field of mental health or suicide this research developed culturally appropriate guidelines for providing mental health first aid to a person at risk of suicide in Sri Lanka. The guidelines may serve as a basis for developing training for members of the public to provide mental health first aid to persons at risk of suicide as part of Sri Lanka’s suicide prevention strategy

The electrostatics of a dusty plasma

The potential distribution in a plasma containing dust grains were derived where the Debye length can be larger or smaller than the average intergrain spacing. Three models were treated for the grain-plasma system, with the assumption that the system of dust and plasma is charge-neutral: a permeable grain model, an impermeable grain model, and a capacitor model that does not require the nearest neighbor approximation of the other two models. A gauge-invariant form of Poisson's equation was used which is linearized about the average potential in the system. The charging currents to a grain are functions of the difference between the grain potential and this average potential. Expressions were obtained for the equilibrium potential of the grain and for the gauge-invariant capacitance between the grain and the plasma. The charge on a grain is determined by the product of this capacitance and the grain-plasma potential difference

Eosinophils and Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma: A Short Review

The eosinophil cell has been related as a prognostic indicator for cancers. However, its exact function in tumour behaviour is still not clearly defined. In the oral cavity the presence of eosinophils can be a favourable prognostic indicator as well as it may be associated with a poor prognosis. In this short review, we briefly summarize the role of the eosinophils in the general context of immunoregulation and its relation to oral squamous cell carcinoma

The composition of heavy molecular ions inside the ionopause of Comet Halley

The RPA2-PICCA instrument aboard the Giotto spacecraft obtained 10-210 amu mass spectral of cold thermal molecular ions in the coma of Comet Halley. The dissociation products of the long chain formaldehyde polymer polyoxymethylene (POM) have recently been proposed as the dominant complex molecules in the coma of Comet Halley; however, POM alone cannot account for all of the features of the high resolution spectrum. An important component of the dust at Comet Halley is particles highly enriched in carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen relative to the composition of carbonaceous chondrites. Since this dust could be a source for the heavy molecules observed by PICCA, a search was conducted for other chemical species by determining all the molecules with mass between 20 and 120 amu which can be made from the relatively abundant C, H, O, and N, without regard to chemical structure

Effect of spiral spacing and concrete strength on behavior of GFRP-reinforced hollow concrete columns

Hollow concrete columns (HCCs) are one of the preferred construction systems for bridge piers, piles, and poles because they require less material and have a high strength-to-weight ratio. While spiral spacing and concrete compressive strength are two critical design parameters that control HCC behavior, the deterioration of steel reinforcement is becoming an issue for HCCs. This study explored the use of glass fiber-reinforced polymer (GFRP) bars as longitudinal and lateral reinforcement for hollow concrete columns and investigated the effect of various spiral spacing and different concrete compressive strengths (f′c). Seven HCCs with inner and outer diameters of 90 and 250 mm, respectively, and reinforced with six longitudinal GFRP bars, were prepared and tested. The spiral spacing was no spirals, 50, 100, and 150 mm; the f′c varied from 21 to 44 MPa. Test results show that reducing the spiral spacing resulted in increased HCC uniaxial compression capacity, ductility, and confined strength due to the high lateral confining efficiency. Increasing f′c, on the other hand, increased the axial-load capacity but reduced the ductility and confinement efficiency due to the brittle behavior of high compressive-strength concrete. The analytical models considering the axial load contribution of the GFRP bars and the confined concrete core accurately predicted the behavior of the HCCs after the spalling of the concrete cover or at the post-loading behavior

A historical criticism of the "Mahavamsa," Chapters I-XX.

The Mahavamsa is a Pali epic written about the sixth century A.D. in Ceylon. Its chief source was an old Sinhalese chronicle, which formed a part of the old Sinhalese commentaries on the Pali Canon. The Sinhalese chronicle seems to have been based on the older ballads in the Dipavamsa written by different persons during the early centuries of our era. These chronicles are indebted for some of their material to the Jatakas, the Asokavadana, some parts of the Pali Canon, and the Sinhalese commentaries on them. After the death of the Baddha his teachings and the rules he laid down were collected. They were amplified and added to as time passed. The first centre of Buddhism was Rajagaha, and then Vesali. Next it spread westwards to Kosambi, and from there north-west to Mathura and Kashmir and south-west to Vidisa and Ujjein. In course of time, though the continuity of the tradition was maintained. Buddhism in each new place became modified according to environment and influence of new teachers. Thus arose the different schools. The Theravadins, who went to Vidisa and Ujjein, reached Ceylon in the time of Asoka. They occupied caves at Mihintale, Vessagiri, Isurumuniya and other places. Before long the thupa built to the south of Anuradhapura and the Bo-tree in the Mahameghavana became centres of worship. The Vaddas, a tribe akin to the Irulas of South India were the first settlers in Ceylon then called Tambapanni. They retreated to the mountains when new peoples who spoke an Aryan dialect occupied the north-west, the south-east, and the territory watered by the Malwatte Oya and the Mahavaliganga. Many of the new-comers belonged to the Sinhala tribe, which gave its name to the people and then to the island Mantota was their chief port and Anuradhapura became their chief town. When Buddhism was brought to Ceylon the Sinhalese king was Tissa. He and his successor Uttiya supported the new religion

Flexural response of GFRP-reinforced geopolymer concrete beams

This study investigated the flexural response of glass fibre reinforced polymer-reinforced geopolymer concrete (GFRP-RGC) beams using a four-point static bending test. Three full-scale beams were cast and reinforced with nearly same amount of longitudinal GFRP reinforcements but of varying diameters at the bottom (4-12.7 mm, 3-15.9 mm, and 2-19.0 mm), two 12.7 mm GFRP bars at the top, and 9.5 mm GFRP stirrups spaced at 100 mm on-centre. The average compressive strength of the geopolymer concrete was 38.2 MPa. Based on the experimental results, all the tested beams showed nearly similar crack pattern, load-deflection response, bending-moment and deflection capacities, and strain readings, suggesting that the flexural response of a GFRP-RGC beam was not significantly influenced by the bar diameter; instead, by the properties of the geopolymer concrete. The 0.3Mu criterion suggested by Bischoff must be adapted in the serviceability design of a GFRP-RGC beam. The flexural capacities of the tested beams were generally higher than the predicted values from ACI 440.1R-06 and CSA S806-12 standards. Furthermore, the GFRP-RGC beams have higher strength compared with their GFRP-reinforced concrete counterparts. Thus, it can be concluded that the GFRP-RGC beams have structural properties that are suitable for civil infrastructure applications

Gap Junctions Link Regular-Spiking and Fast-Spiking Interneurons in Layer 5 Somatosensory Cortex

Gap junctions form electrical synapses that modulate neuronal activity by synchronizing action potential (AP) firing of cortical interneurons (INs). Gap junctions are thought to form predominantly within cortical INs of the same functional class and are therefore considered to act within discrete neuronal populations. Here, we challenge that view and show that the probability of electrical coupling is the same within and between regularspiking (RS) and fast-spiking (FS) cortical INs in 16-21 days old mice. Firing properties of these two populations were distinct from other INs types including neurogliaform and low-threshold spiking (LTS) cells. We also demonstrate that pre-junctional APs can depolarize post-junctional neurons and increase the probability of firing. Our findings of frequent gap junction coupling between functionally distinct IN subtypes suggest that cortical IN networks are much more extensive and heterogeneous than previously thought. This may have implications on mechanisms ranging from cognitive functions to modulation of pathological states in epilepsy and other neurological disorders.Peer reviewe

Pattern of Blood Pressure Indices among the Residents of a Rural Community in South East Nigeria

Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) are the main causes of death in industrialized countries, and are significant causes of morbidity and mortality in sub-Saharan Africa. Hypertension is the most common cardiovascular disease in Nigerians, and the risk of CVD associated with hypertension is independent of other risk factors. Despite the high level of awareness of its presence in the developed countries, the level of control is still poor. CVDs tend to be commoner in urban settlements, and it has been hypothesized that rural sub-Saharan Africa is at an early stage of epidemiological transition from communicable to non-communicable diseases (NCD) because of the gradual adoption of unhealthy lifestyles. This study aimed at describing the pattern of blood pressure indices among the hypertensive residents of a rural community in South East Nigeria. A total of 858 individuals comprising 247 males and 611 females took part in the study. 46.4% of the subjects had hypertension. Hypertension was commoner in the males (50.2% vs. 44.8%) (χ2(1) = 1.484; P = 0.223). The males were significantly older and heavier than the females while the females had higher mean values of BMI and WC. The prevalence of hypertension is becoming alarmingly high in the rural communities of sub-Saharan Africa