A questionnaire study on the acceptability of self-sampling versus screening by clinicians for Group B Streptococcus

BACKGROUND: Group B Streptococcus (GBS) is a leading cause of neonatal morbidity and mortality. In an effort to reduce the impact of this serious affliction, universal screening for GBS has been adopted in many countries. The objective of this study was to examine the acceptability of self-collected GBS swabs in a local population in Hong Kong. METHODS: This study is a cross-sectional questionnaire survey conducted in a tertiary teaching hospital. A total of 327 pregnant women who attended the antenatal clinic for GBS screening from April 2012 to May 2012 were included in our study. The acceptability of GBS self-screening and its associated factors were analyzed. RESULTS: Of these women, 200/320 (62.5%) participants preferred screening by healthcare workers, whereas only 18/320 (5.6%) preferred self-screening. The most common reasons why some participants preferred to be screened by clinicians were that professionals had greater knowledge, and the added worry about the accuracy of self-screening. 22/320 (69.4%) and 195/320 (60.9%) women believed that they felt comfortable enough to self-perform the vaginal swab and rectal swab respectively. Previous use of tampons was associated with higher perceived capability of self-performing the vaginal swab. Perceived capability to self-perform the rectovaginal swabs was associated with a willingness to self-perform the swabs (p < 0.001). The majority of women, 303/320 (94.7%), found the current practice of an additional clinic visit for GBS screening acceptable. However, 218/320 (68.1%) participants would like to undertake self-screening if they were given the chance to do so in the next pregnancy, and 187/320 (58.4%) would recommend others have self-screening for GBS as well. CONCLUSION: Most women in the local population still preferred physician-collected samples for GBS screening, but they welcomed the option of self-screening in future pregnancies. Improved health education about the importance of GBS screening may improve the willingness of women to perform self-screening.published_or_final_versio

Effects of a deformable striking ship's bow on the structural crashworthiness in ship–ship collisions

Ship–ship collision accidents continue to occur regardless of the continuous efforts to prevent them, and they essentially involve highly nonlinear problems associated with structural crashworthiness due to crushing and fracture. The nonlinear finite-element method is one of the most powerful techniques to solve the problems. In industry practice, the bow structure of a striking ship is often modelled as a rigid body as it is usually much stiffer than the side structure of a struck ship. However, reality is that the initial kinetic energy in a ship–ship collision accident can be absorbed by the damages of not only the struck ship's side structures but also the striking ship's bow structures because the striking ship bow structure is actually deformable. The aim of the present study is to examine the effects of a deformable striking ship's bow on the structural crashworthiness in ship–ship collisions. In the present study, two scenarios are considered where the side structure of a VLCC class double hull oil tanker is collided by the bow structure of a VLCC class double hull oil tanker or a SUEZMAX class double hull oil tanker. All of the ships considered are real ships in operation. The structural crashworthiness in terms of the collision force–penetration relation and the collision energy–penetration relation is then studied with two cases in which the striking ship's bow structures are either rigid or deformable. It is concluded that the striking ship's bow may be modelled as a rigid body in minor collisions at a collision angle of about 90° where the initial kinetic energy is entirely consumed before the inner hull structure is ruptured, but it should be modelled as a deformable body in a major collision accident or at an inclined collision angle where the maximum penetration can be greater than the double side breadth

Drug Quality Control in Kenya: Observation in Drug Analysis and Research Unit during the Period 1996-2000

The Drug Analysis and Research Unit received and analyzed 261 drug samples over a five-year period, 1996 to 2000. Samples were received from regulatory authorities, local industry, non-governmental organizations, hospitals and private practitioners. The samples analyzed constituted 59.8 % locally manufactured and 40.2 % imported products. The overall rate of failure to comply with quality specifications set out in the respective monographs was 21.1 %. This represents 24.6 % and 16.2 % of the locally manufactured and imported drugs, respectively. Key Words: Quality control, active pharmaceutical ingredient content, dissolution. East and Central African Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences Vol.5(2) 2002: 28-3

Quality of Antiretroviral Drugs Analyzed in the Drug Analysis and Research Unit During 2000-2003

During the period 2000-2003 the Drug Analysis and Research Unit received and analyzed 33 samples of antiretroviral drugs. Locally manufactured products accounted for 57.6 % of the samples, while the imported drugs constituted 42.4 %. The drugs consisted of single, double and triple component preparations. They were subjected to the identity, assay and dissolution tests. 30 samples (90.9 %) complied with compedial specifications for these tests, while 3 failed. The results obtained show that manufacture of quality generic antiretroviral drugs is achievable. Key Words: Antiretroviral, assay, dissolution, nucleoside reverse-transcriptase inhibitor East & Central African Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences Vol.6(1) 2003: 20-2

Case Report: Pneumomediastinum and Subcutaneous Emphysema Complicating Acute Exacerbation of Bronchial Asthma

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Drug Quality Control in Kenya: Observation in the Drug Analysis and Research Unit During the Period 2001-2005

During the five-year period January 2001 to December 2005, the Drug Analysis and Research Unit received and analyzed 394 drug samples. Samples were received from regulatory authorities, local industry, non-governmental organizations, hospitals and private practitioners. The samples analyzed constituted 37.8 % locally manufactured and 62.2 % imported products. In contrast to previous years when failure rates of over 20 % were recorded, the overall rate of failure to comply with compendial quality specifications was 6.1 %, comprising of 8.7 % locally manufactured and 4.5 % imported drugs

A practical method to determine the dynamic fracture strain for the nonlinear finite element analysis of structural crashworthiness in ship–ship collisions

Ship–ship collisions continue to occur regardless of efforts to prevent them. The collisions involve highly nonlinear characteristics associated with structural crashworthiness, including crushing and fracture as well as buckling and plastic collapse. When applying nonlinear finite element analysis (NLFEA) to solve these problems, a reliable critical fracture strain accounting for strain-rate effects due to collision speed must be implemented. This study proposes a practical method to estimate the dynamic fracture strain to be used for the structural crashworthiness analysis associated with the collisions. For this purpose, the strain-rate characteristics in struck ship were investigated by NLFEA, in which the striking vessel was assigned various velocities in the range of practical ship speeds. Based on computations, an empirical formula was developed to calculate the strain rate at a given collision speed, allowing for a practical estimation of the dynamic fracture strain. The formula is validated by a comparison with experiment

Apocrine Hidradenocarcinoma of the Scalp: A Classification Conundrum

Introduction The classification of malignant sweat gland lesions is complex. Traditionally, cutaneous sweat gland tumors have been classified by either eccrine or apocrine features. Methods A case report of a 33-year-old Hispanic man with a left scalp mass diagnosed as a malignancy of adnexal origin preoperatively is discussed. After presentation at our multidisciplinary tumor board, excision with ipsilateral neck dissection was undertaken. Results Final pathology revealed an apocrine hidradenocarcinoma. The classification and behavior of this entity are discussed in this report. Conclusion Apocrine hidradenocarcinoma can be viewed as an aggressive malignant lesion of cutaneous sweat glands on a spectrum that involves both eccrine and apoeccrine lesions

CD44+ cancer stem-like cells in EBV-associated nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

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