335 research outputs found
Extraction of thermal and electromagnetic properties in 45Ti
The level density and gamma-ray strength function of 45Ti have been
determined by use of the Oslo method. The particle-gamma coincidences from the
46Ti(p,d gamma)45Ti pick-up reaction with 32 MeV protons are utilized to obtain
gamma-ray spectra as function of excitation energy. The extracted level density
and strength function are compared with models, which are found to describe
these quantities satisfactorily. The data do not reveal any single-particle
energy gaps of the underlying doubly magic 40Ca core, probably due to the
strong quadruple deformation
Microcanonical entropies and radiative strength functions of V
The level densities and radiative strength functions (RSFs) of V
have been extracted using the (He,) and
(He,He) reactions, respectively. From the level
densities, microcanonical entropies are deduced. The high -energy part
of the RSF is described by the giant electric dipole resonance. A significant
enhancement over the predicted strength in the region of MeV is seen, which at present has no theoretical explanation.Comment: 16 pages including 9 figure
Nuclear level densities and gamma-ray strength functions in 44,45Sc
The scandium isotopes 44,45Sc have been studied with the 45Sc(3He,alpha
gamma)44Sc and 45Sc(3He,3He' gamma)45Sc reactions, respectively. The nuclear
level densities and gamma-ray strength functions have been extracted using the
Oslo method. The experimental level densities are compared to calculated level
densities obtained from a microscopic model based on BCS quasiparticles within
the Nilsson level scheme. This model also gives information about the parity
distribution and the number of broken Cooper pairs as a function of excitation
energy. The experimental gamma-ray strength functions are compared to
theoretical models of the E1, M1, and E2 strength, and to data from (gamma,n)
and (gamma,p) experiments. The strength functions show an enhancement at low
gamma energies that cannot be explained by the present, standard models.Comment: 21 pages, 13 figures. Published versio
ELM triggering conditions for the integrated modeling of H-mode plasmas
Recent advances in the integrated modeling of ELMy H-mode plasmas are
presented. A model for the H-mode pedestal and for the triggering of ELMs
predicts the height, width, and shape of the H-mode pedestal and the frequency
and width of ELMs. Formation of the pedestal and the L-H transition is the
direct result of ExB flow shear suppression of anomalous transport. The
periodic ELM crashes are triggered by either the ballooning or peeling MHD
instabilities. The BALOO, DCON, and ELITE ideal MHD stability codes are used to
derive a new parametric expression for the peeling-ballooning threshold. The
new dependence for the peeling-ballooning threshold is implemented in the ASTRA
transport code. Results of integrated modeling of DIII-D like discharges are
presented and compared with experimental observations. The results from the
ideal MHD stability codes are compared with results from the resistive MHD
stability code NIMROD.Comment: 12th International Congress on Plasma Physics, 25-29 October 2004,
Nice (France
Diabetes is a Risk Factor for Pulmonary Tuberculosis: A Case-Control Study from Mwanza, Tanzania.
Diabetes and TB are associated, and diabetes is increasingly common in low-income countries where tuberculosis (TB) is highly endemic. However, the role of diabetes for TB has not been assessed in populations where HIV is prevalent. A case-control study was conducted in an urban population in Tanzania among culture-confirmed pulmonary TB patients and non-TB neighbourhood controls. Participants were tested for diabetes according to WHO guidelines and serum concentrations of acute phase reactants were measured. The association between diabetes and TB, and the role of HIV as an effect modifier, were examined using logistic regression. Since blood glucose levels increase during the acute phase response, we adjusted for elevated serum acute phase reactants. Among 803 cases and 350 controls the mean (SD) age was 34.8 (11.9) and 33.8 (12.0) years, and the prevalence of diabetes was 16.7% (95% CI: 14.2; 19.4) and 9.4% (6.6; 13.0), respectively. Diabetes was associated with TB (OR 2.2, 95% CI: 1.5; 3.4, p<0.001). However, the association depended on HIV status (interaction, pâ=â0.01) due to a stronger association among HIV uninfected (OR 4.2, 95% CI: 1.5; 11.6, pâ=â0.01) compared to HIV infected (OR 0.1, 95% CI: 0.01; 1.8, pâ=â0.13) after adjusting for age, sex, demographic factors and elevated serum acute phase reactants. Diabetes is a risk factor for TB in HIV uninfected, whereas the association in HIV infected patients needs further study. The increasing diabetes prevalence may be a threat to TB control
Crossing the Dripline to 11N Using Elastic Resonance Scattering
The level structure of the unbound nucleus 11N has been studied by 10C+p
elastic resonance scattering in inverse geometry with the LISE3 spectrometer at
GANIL, using a 10C beam with an energy of 9.0 MeV/u. An additional measurement
was done at the A1200 spectrometer at MSU. The excitation function above the
10C+p threshold has been determined up to 5 MeV. A potential-model analysis
revealed three resonance states at energies 1.27 (+0.18-0.05) MeV (Gamma=1.44
+-0.2 MeV), 2.01(+0.15-0.05) MeV, (Gamma=0.84 +-$0.2 MeV) and 3.75(+-0.05) MeV,
(Gamma=0.60 +-0.05 MeV) with the spin-parity assignments I(pi) =1/2+, 1/2- and
5/2+, respectively. Hence, 11N is shown to have a ground state parity inversion
completely analogous to its mirror partner, 11Be. A narrow resonance in the
excitation function at 4.33 (+-0.05) MeV was also observed and assigned
spin-parity 3/2-.Comment: 14 pages, 9 figures, twocolumn Accepted for publication in PR
Impact of an Innovative Financing and Payment Model on Tuberculosis Patientsâ Financial Burden: is Tuberculosis Care More Affordable for the Poor?
Background: In response to the high financial burden of health services facing tuberculosis (TB) patients in China, the China-Gates TB project, Phase II, has implemented a new financing and payment model as an important component of the overall project in three cities in eastern, central and western China. The model focuses on increasing the reimbursement rate for TB patients and reforming provider payment methods by replacing fee-for-service with a case-based payment approach. This study investigated changes in out-of-pocket (OOP) health expenditure and the financial burden on TB patients before and after the interventions, with a focus on potential differential impacts on patients from different income groups
High use of private providers for first healthcare seeking by drug-resistant tuberculosis patients: a cross-sectional study in Yangon, Myanmar.
BACKGROUND: Drug resistance is a growing challenge to tuberculosis (TB) control worldwide, but particularly salient to countries such as Myanmar, where the health system is fragmented across the public and private sector. A recent systematic review has identified a critical lack of evidence for local policymaking, particularly in relation to drivers of drug-resistance that could be the target of preventative efforts. To address this gap from a health systems perspective, our study investigates the healthcare-seeking behavior and preferences of recently diagnosed patients with drug-resistant tuberculosis (DR-TB), focusing on the use of private versus public healthcare providers. METHODS: The study was conducted in ten townships across Yangon with high DR-TB burden. Patients newly-diagnosed with DR-TB by GeneXpert were enrolled, and data on healthcare-seeking behavior and socio-economic characteristics were collected from patient records and interviews. A descriptive analysis of healthcare-seeking behavior was followed by the investigation of relationships between socio-economic factors and type of provider visited upon first feeling unwell, through univariate logistic regressions. RESULTS: Of 202 participants, only 8% reported first seeking care at public facilities, while 88% reported seeking care at private facilities upon first feeling unwell. Participants aged 25-34 (Odds Ratioâ=â0.33 [0.12-0.95]) and males (Odds Ratioâ=â0.39 [0.20-0.75]) were less likely to visit a private clinic or hospital than those aged 18-24 and females, respectively. In contrast, participants with higher income were more likely to utilize private providers. Prior to DR-TB diagnosis, 86% of participants took medications from private providers. After DR-TB diagnosis, only 7% of participants continued to take medications from private providers. CONCLUSION: In urban Myanmar, most patients shifted to being managed exclusively in the public sector after being formally diagnosed with DR-TB. However, since the vast majority of DR-TB patients first visited private providers in the period leading to diagnosis, related issues such as unregulated quality of care, potential delays to diagnosis, and lack of care continuity may greatly influence the emergence of drug-resistance. A greater understanding of the health system and these healthcare-seeking behaviors may simultaneously strengthen TB control programmes and reduce government and out-of-pocket expenditures on the management of DR-TB
Periodic Active Case Finding for TB: When to Look?
OBJECTIVE: To investigate the factors influencing the performance and cost-efficacy of periodic rounds of active case finding (ACF) for TB. METHODS: A mathematical model of TB dynamics and periodic ACF (PACF) in the HIV era, simplified by assuming constant prevalence of latent TB infection, is analyzed for features that control intervention outcome, measured as cases averted and cases found. Explanatory variables include baseline TB incidence, interval between PACF rounds, and different routine and PACF case-detection rates among HIV-infected and uninfected TB cases. FINDINGS: PACF can be cost-saving over a 10 year time frame if the cost-per-round is lower than a threshold proportional to initial incidence and cost-per-case-treated. More cases are averted at higher baseline incidence rates, when more potent PACF strategies are used, intervals between PACF rounds are shorter, and when the ratio of HIV-negative to positive TB cases detected is higher. More costly approaches, e.g. radiographic screening, can be as cost-effective as less costly alternatives if PACF case-detection is higher and/or implementation less frequent. CONCLUSION: Periodic ACF can both improve control and save medium-term health care costs in high TB burden settings. Greater costs of highly effective PACF at frequent (e.g. yearly) intervals may be offset by higher numbers of cases averted in populations with high baseline TB incidence, higher prevalence of HIV-uninfected cases, higher costs per-case-treated, and more effective routine case-detection. Less intensive approaches may still be cost-neutral or cost-saving in populations lacking one or more of these key determinants
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