Diagnosis and management of a full thickness macular hole

Background: First stage macular holes are not always easily identified without the use of medical imagery. Differential diagnosis from other macular conditions is possible with a keen eye and the use of a binocular fundus lens. However, the advent of optical coherence tomography facilitates accurate diagnosis. Case Report: This report demonstrates a classical case of a full thickness macular hole. The clinical signs are not pathognomonic at first, but typical signs develop in the following weeks. The different stages of the disease are described, as well as current state of surgical treatment and possible outcomes. Conclusions: Early diagnosis allows quick visual recovery. Nevertheless, this condition can be treated up to one year after occurrence with significant improvement of visual function

Shell and glass beads from the tombs of Kindoki, Mbanza Nsundi, Lower Congo

The ancient Kingdom of Kongo originated in Central Africa in the 14th century. In the 15th century, the Portuguese organized tight contacts with the Bakongo. From then on European goods gained new significance in the local culture and even found their way into funerary rites. Among the most important grave goods in the Kingdom of Kongo were shell and glass beads. They occur in many tombs and symbolize wealth, status, or femininity. At the burial site of Kindoki, linked with the former capital of Kongo’s Nsundi province, a great number of shell and glass beads were found together with symbols of power in tombs attributed primarily to the first half of the 19th century. Determining the origin of these beads and their use in the Kongo Kingdom leads to interesting insights into the social and economic organization of the old Bakongo society, their beliefs, and the symbolic meaning of the beads

Les carences nutritionnelles dans les PVD

Un centre de réhydratation et de réhabilitation nutritionnelle a été implanté à Pikine, ville de 650000 habitants, située à 20 km de Dakar, afin de tester des techniques simples, efficaces et peu coûteuses pour traiter la diarrhée et la malnutrition chez les enfants de moins de 5 ans. La réhydratation par voie orale à l'aide d'une solution à base de farine de riz et la renutrition avec des mélanges nutritifs fabriqués localement associées à un traitement médicamenteux standard ont permis d'obtenir des résultats très encourageants. En effet pour les 233 enfants déshydratés et malnutris qui ont bénéficié de ce traitement le gain de poids a été en moyenne de 10 g/kg poids/jour. Ces résultats montrent donc qu'il est possible de traiter efficacement des enfants diarrhéiques et malnutris dans des structures de soint très simples et pour un faible prix de revient. Ces avantages devraient permettre l'installation de tels centres dans les régions les plus reculées et les plus défavorisées là ou ils sont le plus nécessaires. (Résumé d'auteur

Adequacy of child anthropometric indicators for measuring nutritional stress at population level: a study from Niakhar, Senegal

Abstract Objective To compare the responsiveness of different anthropometric indicators for measuring nutritional stress among children in developing countries. Design Growth was studied within 6-month intervals in a rural Senegalese community during one dry and two rainy (hungry) seasons. Responsiveness was defined as the change divided by the standard deviation of each anthropometric indicator. Contrast was defined as the difference in responsiveness between dry and rainy seasons. Setting The study was conducted in Niakhar, a rural area of Senegal under demographic surveillance, with contrasted food and morbidity situations between rainy and dry seasons. Subjects Some 5000 children under 5 years of age were monitored at 6-month intervals in 1983-1984. The present analysis was carried out on a sub-sample of children aged 6-23 months with complete measures, totalling 2803 children-intervals. Results In both univariate and multivariate analysis, mid-upper arm circumference was found to be more responsive to nutritional stress than the commonly used weight-for-height Z-score (contrast = −0·64 for mid-upper arm circumference v. −0·53 for weight-for-height Z-score). Other discriminant indicators were: muscle circumference, weight-for-height, BMI and triceps skinfold. Height, head circumference and subscapular skinfold had no discriminating power for measuring the net effect of nutritional stress during the rainy season. Conclusions The use of mid-upper arm circumference for assessing nutritional stress in community surveys should be considered and preferred to other nutritional indicators. Strict standardization procedures for measuring mid-upper arm circumference are required for optimal us

Modélisation des systèmes géothermiques à boucles horizontales pour chauffer les bâtiments et prévenir la fonte du pergélisol

RÉSUMÉ Dans les r´egions nordiques et dans un contexte de changements climatiques, l’augmentation accrue de la temp´erature moyenne annuelle de l’air a pour cons´equence d’augmenter la profondeur `a laquelle le sol gel´e en permanence (perg´elisol) se trouve. Cette fonte cause l’instabilit ´e du sol et donc, celle des bˆatiments et des structures de tranports s’y appuyant. De plus, ces r´egions d´ependent grandement des combustibles fossiles pour chauffer les bˆatiments et produire l’´electricit´e. Une solution `a ces probl`emes est pr´esent´ee dans ce m´emoire. Il s’agit d’utiliser un ´echangeur g´eothermique horizontal coupl´e `a une pompe `a chaleur pour `a la fois chauffer un bˆatiment et conserver l’int´egrit´e du perg´elisol sous celui-ci. Un nouveau mod`ele analytique pour boucle horizontale bas´e sur la m´ethode de la source lin´eique finie est pr´esent´e. Ce mod`ele est l’extension au cas transitoire dans le sol, et pour n’importe quelle disposition de tuyaux en s´erie, du mod`ele en r´egime permanent pour tuyaux parall`eles de Claesson et Dunand (1983). Il permet d’avoir une variation de flux le long de l’´echangeur g´eothermique. Le mod`ele analytique ne peut pas tenir compte du changement de phase de l’eau souterraine ´etant donn´e la complexit´e du ph´enom`ene. Lorsqu’il n’y a pas de changement de phase, le mod`ele analytique est valid´e par un mod`ele num´erique d’´el´ements finis 3D. Une comparaison entre un mod`ele num´erique tenant compte du changement de phase et le mod`ele analytique utilisant les param`etres thermiques d’un sol gel´e en permanence a ´et´e faite. Les r´esultats de cette comparaison ont d´emontr´e que lemod`ele analytique procure toujours une bonne approximation de la temp´erature du sol pendant la p´eriode annuelle de chauffage intensif et par le fait mˆeme, il permet de bien estimer la quantit´e d’´energie retir´ee du sol par l’´echangeur g´eothermique souterrain (EGS). En ´et´e, la temp´erature du sol et l’´epaisseur du mollisol sont surestim´es par le mod`ele analytique ce qui fait que le mod`ele analytique donne des r´esultats conservateurs.----------ABSTRACT In northern regions, due to climate change, the increase in the annual mean air temperature increases the depth at which the permanently frozen ground (permafrost) is located. This melting causes soil instability and therefore, the instability of the buildings and transport structures above it. These regions are highly dependent on fossil fuels as a large quantity is used to heat buildings and generate electricity. A solution to these problems is presented in this memoir. It involves using a heat exchanger coupled to a horizontal geothermal heat pump for both heating a building and maintaining the integrity of the permafrost beneath it. A new analytical model for horizontal ground heat exchanger based on the finite line source is presented. This model extends to the transient case in the soil and to any desired pipe layout the steady state results for parallel horizontal pipes of Claesson et Dunand (1983). The heat transfer ratio can change along the pipe. The analytical model can not account for the groundwater phase change given the complexity of the phenomenon. When there is no phase change the analytical model is validated by a 3D finite element numerical model. When the phase change is accounted for in the numerical model, for weather data from northern regions, the analytical model still provides good approximations to the ground temperature during the intensive heating season, hence allowing to compute the heat extracted by the ground heat exchanger (GHE). However, summer ground temperature and thaw depth are overestimated by the analytical model, so that the analytical model gives conservative results

New Teachers’ Career Intentions: Factors Influencing New Teachers’ Decisions to Stay or to Leave the Profession

This study examines the relationship between the reported career intentions and perceptions of preparedness of graduating secondary teachers in Quebec, across a two- year period, in an effort to identify factors which contribute to growing attrition rates among beginning teachers. The study reveals that those beginning teachers most concerned with their lack of preparation in the areas of classroom management and assessment of students’ learning are more likely to consider leaving the profession. While evidence suggests that beginning teachers do develop increasing confidence in terms of classroom management in their second year of teaching, their challenges with effectively assessing student learning endure through the first two years of teaching. Findings from this mixed method study suggest that both initial teacher education and employers have a shared responsibility to give greater attention to the ways in which teachers are introduced to and have experience with strategies for the assessment of student learning. Cette étude porte sur le rapport entre les intentions de carrière et les perceptions qu’ont les finissants en enseignement secondaire au Québec quant à leur niveau de préparation. La recherche s’est étalée sur deux ans et visait à identifier les facteurs qui contribuent au taux grandissant d’attrition chez les enseignants débutants. L’étude a révélé que les enseignants débutants qui sont les plus préoccupés par leur manque de préparation en matière de gestion de classe et en évaluation des apprentissages sont également susceptibles de penser à quitter la profession. Bien que les résultats montrent que les enseignants débutants tendent à devenir plus confiants en gestion de classe pendant leur deuxième année d’enseignement, leur défis quant à l’évaluation des apprentissages persistent tout au long de leur deuxième année d’enseignement. Les résultats de cette étude qui reposent sur une méthode mixte indiquent également que, tant la formation initiale des enseignants que les employeurs, doivent porter attention à la présentation des notions relatives à l’évaluation des apprentissages et aux expériences qui sont offertes aux enseignants en début de carrière

Risques de décès associés à différents états nutritionnels chez l'enfant d'âge préscolaire

Cette étude à pour but de déterminer le risque de décès associé à différents états nutritionnels chez l'enfant d'âge préscolaire (0-5 ans), au Sénégal, plus précisemment dans la région de Niakhar. Les principales données de l'étude, ainsi que les détails de la méthodologie du travail sur le terrain, sont ainsi rendus disponibles pour l'usage des chercheurs et des responsables de santé publique. (VRL

Most Modern Supercapacitor Designs Advanced Electrolyte and Interface

Electrolyte plays a key and significant role in supercapacitors. The interaction of an electrode and a chosen electrolyte has a significant effect on the parameters., i.e., ionic conductivity, stable potential range, and charge transfer coefficient, therefore determining the corresponding performance. The captivating interface between electrode and electrolyte is also pushing the intensive research. In this chapter, we focus on two kinds of electrolytes, including water-in-salt electrolytes and redox-ionic liquid. Water-in-salt electrolyte is drawing continuous attention thanks to the formed hydrophobic layer on the positive electrode and solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) on the negative side, preventing water splitting. On the other side, redox-ionic liquid, taking advantage of the broad and stable working window, on the interface, the redox shuttle passes and targets the suitable electrode bulk, leading to redox reactions to highlight capacitance and energy

Proposal of primitive polynomials for Linux kernel PRNG

The polynomials defining the LFSRs of the linux Kernel PRNG are irreducible but not primitive. As a result, the space of numbers generated by these LFSRs does not fill all the space. We propose in this paper more optimal polynomials which increase by a factor of 3 the space of the random numbers generated by these LFSRs. The polynomials used in the current implementation of the PRNG and the point presented here, do not conclude a practical attack on the PRNG