Use of Complementary and Alternative Therapies: A Pilot Survey

Meeting patient expectations in relation to pain management is an essential component of palliative and end-of-life care. However, previous research has demonstrated that pain is highly prevalent, especially during the four months prior to death. Poorly controlled pain contributes to cognitive failure, depression and an inability to complete daily activities. Unfortunately, pain and symptom management are often inadequate for patients placed in hospice care. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the perspectives of hospice nurses on complementary and alternative therapies to determine if there is an educational need in order to aide in the management of chronic pain in older adults. A survey was developed in order to determine the nursing perceptions of complementary and alternative therapies. A total of 24 participants were recruited. The survey targeted 28 complementary and alternative therapies most commonly used as defined by National Institute for Complementary and Alternative Medicines (NCCAM). Each therapy was ranked on several aspects including perceptions, personal experience, and present knowledge and training. After completing the survey it was found that all participants were either eager or open to use some complementary and alternative therapies in their workplace, in spite of having an educational barrier on how to implement them, and wanted these therapies to become available to patients, families, and staff

Feasibility Study of Slotted, Natural-Laminar-Flow Airfoils for High-Lift Applications

A computational fluid dynamics approach to evaluate the feasibility of a slotted, natural-laminar-flow airfoil designed for transonic applications, to perform as a high-lift system was developed. Reynolds-Averaged Navier-Stokes equations with a laminar-turbulent transition model for subsonic flow at representative flight conditions were used for this analysis. Baseline high-lift simulations were performed to understand the stall characteristics of the slotted, natural-laminar-flow airfoil. Maximum aerodynamic efficiency was observed with a constant slot-width. In addition, the effectiveness of the aft-element as a high-lift device was explored. Results indicate that a micro-flap is a viable option as a lift effector. These are most effective when combined with a Fowler-like motion. However, the maximum lift coefficient was limited, in part, by an early leading-edge stall largely due to the small nose radius required for supporting laminar flow. As a result, a drooped leading edge was added to the S207, the latest evolution of slotted, natural-laminar-flow airfoil technology. Morphing technology was also applied to mitigate abrupt wing-stall characteristics and further increase maximum lift. The use of morphing technology was observed to produce superior high-lift performance over hinged leading edge flap motions. However, off-body separation and narrow stall region in lift curves were observed for the S207\u27s high-lift system due to the aft-element position. The aft-element position was based on a previous study for the S204, a placeholder airfoil. Hence, an S207 aft-element optimized for high-lift was identified as the natural next step. A low-fidelity, slot-width sensitivity study was performed with the S207\u27s aft element in the form of a 9-point study. The focus of this study was to identify sensitivities of the slotted, natural-laminar-flow high-lift system to aft-element position variability. Three positioning boundaries were selected in reference to the stowed aft element and the gap between elements. Results show that the S207\u27s flap schedule should be dependent on the flap deflection angle and exit slot-width gap. Finally, a delayed-detached-eddy simulation was performed to improve confidence in the developed methodology. Strong agreement between RANS and DDES results was observed. These findings contribute novel knowledge to the state-of-the-art understanding of the revolutionary slotted, natural-laminar-flow airfoil technology

Diabetic retinopathy: could the alpha-1 antitrypsin be a therapeutic option?

Diabetic retinopathy is one of the most important causes of blindness. The underlying mechanisms of this disease include inflammatory changes and remodeling processes of the extracellular-matrix (ECM) leading to pericyte and vascular endothelial cell damage that affects the retinal circulation. In turn, this causes hypoxia leading to release of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) to induce the angiogenesis process. Alpha-1 antitrypsin (AAT) is the most important circulating inhibitor of serine proteases (SERPIN). Its targets include elastase, plasmin, thrombin, trypsin, chymotrypsin, proteinase 3 (PR-3) and plasminogen activator (PAI). AAT modulates the effect of protease-activated receptors (PARs) during inflammatory responses. Plasma levels of AAT can increase 4-fold during acute inflammation then is so-called acute phase protein (APPs). Individuals with low serum levels of AAT could develop disease in lung, liver and pancreas. AAT is involved in extracellular matrix remodeling and inflammation, particularly migration and chemotaxis of neutrophils. It can also suppress nitric oxide (NO) by nitric oxide sintase (NOS) inhibition. AAT binds their targets in an irreversible way resulting in product degradation. The aim of this review is to focus on the points of contact between multiple factors involved in diabetic retinopathy and AAT resembling pleiotropic effects that might be beneficial.Fil: Ortiz, Gustavo Alfredo. Universidad Austral. Facultad de Ciencias Biomédicas; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Salica, Juan Pablo. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidad Austral. Facultad de Ciencias Biomédicas; ArgentinaFil: Chuluyan, Hector Eduardo. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Medicina; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Gallo, Juan Eduardo Maria. Universidad Austral. Facultad de Ciencias Biomédicas; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentin

Psychosocial Predictors of Metabolic Syndrome among Latino Groups in the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA).

ObjectiveWe sought to determine the contribution of psychological variables to risk for metabolic syndrome (MetS) among Latinos enrolled in the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA), and to investigate whether social support moderates these associations, and whether inflammatory markers mediate the association between psychological variables and MetS.Research design and methodsCross-sectional analyses at study baseline were conducted with a national Latino cohort (n = 1,388) that included Mexican Americans, Dominican Americans, Puerto Rican Americans and Central/South Americans. Hierarchical logistic regression analyses were conducted to test the effects of psychosocial variables (chronic stress, depressive symptoms, and social support) on MetS. In addition, separate subgroup-specific models, controlling for nationality, age, gender, socioeconomic position, language spoken at home, exercise, smoking and drinking status, and testing for the effects of chronic stress, depressive symptoms and inflammation (IL-6, CRP, fibrinogen) in predicting risk for MetS were conducted.ResultsIn the overall sample, high chronic stress independently predicted risk for MetS, however this association was found to be significant only in Mexican Americans and Puerto Rican Americans. Social support did not moderate the associations between chronic stress and MetS for any group. Chronic stress was not associated with inflammatory markers in either the overall sample or in each group.ConclusionsOur results suggest a differential contribution of chronic stress to the prevalence of MetS by national groups

Rendimiento en la Escuela Básica y su relación con algunas variables del proceso Enseñanza - Aprendizaje

El presente trabajo, dirigido en especial a los profesores de 1° a 4° año de la Enseñanza Básica, destaca la necesidad de ordenar el trabajo docente de acuerdo a algunos fundamentos entregados por una base científica de la Enseñanza. Se examinan las conclusiones de un importante grupo de investigaciones correlacionales sobre rendimiento. También se pone énfasis en la Enseñanza Directa, destacando que este modelo ha demostrado correlacionarse con buenos resultados escolares en comunidades educacionales de estratos socioeconómicos deprimidos. Finalmente, se insiste en la necesidad de que el profesor descubra, en la sala de clases, los estímulos claves que conducen al aprendizaje del alumno

Collaborative participatory research as a learning process: the case of CIP and CARE in Peru

Participatory research (PR) has been analyzed and documented from different points of view, but particularly taking into consideration the benefits that this process generates for farmers. Studies of the benefits of PR for other actors such as field staff, researchers and organizations have been limited, with organizational learning receiving the least attention. This paper analyzes the interaction between the International Potato Center (CIP) and CARE in Peru and makes the case that PR can also contribute to creating a collaborative learning environment that generates important lessons for the individuals and organizations involved. The paper describes the evolution of the collaborative environment of these two institutions for more than a decade. Three interactive learning periods are presented, namely the “information transfer period” (1993 –1996) the “action-learning period” (1997-2002), and the “social learning period” (on-going). Several lessons from each period, as well as changes in institutional contexts and perceptions, are described. The CIP-CARE case shows that research and developmentoriented organizations can interact fruitfully using PR as a mechanism to promote learning, as well as flexibility in interaction and innovativeness, and that a process of osmosis of information occurs between groups that use PR in a specific case to other groups within the organizations, influencing behavior. However, the paper also indicates that institutional learning should be promoted more specifically in order to extract guidelines from the lessons, which can influence the way organizations plan and implement their projects in a constantly changing environment

La mercantilización de la afectividad en el capitalismo digital. Aportes para reflexionar sobre las nuevas dinámicas económicas en el entramado tecnocultural contemporáneo

En los últimos años han proliferado conceptos como los de economía de plataformas, economía de trabajo temporal, economía compartida, economía de la vigilancia y economía de la atención. Dichos conceptos pretenden explicar las nuevas formas de producción basadas en la extracción y el uso particular de un nuevo tipo de materia prima: los datos. Estas nuevas dinámicas económicas se edifican sobre la base de una infraestructura técnica con el poder de modular la información compartida por los usuarios. Dentro de estas dinámicas, las redes sociales operan como máquinas con la capacidad de generar un tipo específico de producto: la afectividad. Este trabajo tiene como objetivo identificar algunos desplazamientos epistémicos en el entramado tecnosocial contemporáneo que han posibilitado estas nuevas dinámicas económicas. A modo de conjetura proponemos que la mercantilización de la afectividad emerge a partir de dos desplazamientos sociotécnicos en la cultura occidental.  El primero se refiere al comercio de la vida sensible: el desplazamiento de una fenomenotécnica natural hacia una fenomenotécnica artificial. El segundo se vincula al comercio de lo ya sentido: el desplazamiento del cuerpo máquina al cuerpo sin órganos. Consideramos que identificar los efectos de estos desplazamientos nos permitirá comprender las nuevas formas de explotación del capitalismo digital

Evaluation of molecular sieves based on zeolite X for the separation of an effluent from the Oxidative Coupling of Methane (OCM) process

ilustraciones, graficasLos procesos industriales actuales para la obtención de olefinas de alta pureza generalmente involucran el uso de destilación criogénica a alta presión en la separación de olefinas y parafinas. Sin embargo, este proceso consume una gran cantidad energía y requiere grandes costos de capital y operativos. Para reducir el consumo de energía y mejorar el potencial económico del proceso, se requieren nuevas técnicas de separación. Entre las diferentes alternativas con potencial para implementar en la industria se destaca la adsorción selectiva con variación de presión, la cual permite la remoción selectiva de etileno de la mezcla de gases. A pesar de que el proceso es bien conocido, es necesario el desarrollo de materiales cada vez más selectivos y adecuados para la operación industrial. La mayoría de los esfuerzos de investigación en este tema se han centrado en el uso de carbones activados y silicatos cristalinos (zeolitas). Teniendo en cuenta lo anterior, se sintetizó una zeolita tipo Na-X mediante tratamiento hidrotermal. La síntesis se llevó a cabo en reactores discontinuos a diferentes composiciones de gel, temperaturas y tiempos de cristalización. El diseño experimental siguió un método Box Behnken utilizando como meta la cristalinidad del material adsorbente (caracterizado por XRD). Posteriormente, el material sintetizado se sometió a un proceso de intercambio iónico con calcio, con el fin de mejorar el rendimiento y la selectividad para la adsorción de etileno. Una vez obtenida, la zeolita Ca-X, se sometió a un proceso de aglomeración para obtener tamices moleculares granulados (aprox. 3 mm de diámetro). Las partículas obtenidas se caracterizaron midiendo el área superficial, distribución de poros, capacidad de adsorción e isotermas de adsorción con gases OCM. Los resultados indican que el material es adecuado para ser utilizado como adsorbente en sistemas de separación por oscilación de presión para gases OCM. (Texto tomado de la fuente)Current industrial processes for the isolation of high purity olefins generally involve high pressure cryogenic distillation of olefins and paraffins. This process consumes a large amount of energy and requires large capital and operating costs. To reduce energy consumption and improve the economic potential of the process, new separation techniques are required. Among the different alternatives, selective adsorption and pressure variation can be used for the selective removal of ethylene from the gas mixture. Although the process is well known, it is necessary to develop more selective materials suitable for industrial operation. Most research efforts on this topic have focused on the use of activated carbons and crystalline silicates (zeolites). Considering the above, a Na-X type zeolite was synthesized by hydrothermal treatment. The synthesis was carried out in batch reactors at different gel compositions, temperatures, and crystallization times. The experimental design followed a Box Behnken method using the crystallinity of the adsorbent material (characterized by XRD) as a goal. Subsequently, the synthesized material was subjected to an ion exchange process with calcium, to improve the performance and selectivity for the adsorption of ethylene. Once obtained, the Ca-X zeolite was subjected to an agglomeration process to obtain granulated molecular sieves (approx. 3 mm in diameter). The particles obtained were characterized by measuring the surface area, pore distribution, adsorption capacity and adsorption isotherms with OCM gases. The results indicate that the material is suitable for use as an adsorbent in pressure swing separation systems for OCM gases.MaestríaMagíster en Ingeniería - Ingeniería QuímicaMateriales y tecnologías de separació

Espíritu enciclopédico y mentalidad técnica

Este trabajo tiene como propósito aportar algunos elementos para una reflexión sobre los procesos de industrialización en la provincia de Catamarca - Argentina en la segunda mitad del siglo XIX. Para orientarnos en esta dirección partiremos del proyecto de una enciclopedia genética propuesta por el filósofo Gilbert Simondon cómo propuesta de abordaje. Luego analizaremos el espíritu enciclopédico presente en los escritos económicos de Federico Schickendantz y Samuel Lafone Quevedo estructurados como máquinas de enseñar. Por último, presentaremos la descripción de dos objetos técnicos creados por el D. Mardoqueo Molina y Bazán elaborada en estos escritos. Consideramos que estos objetos técnico aportaron un paradigma de inteligibilidad para la construcción de ciertas imágenes del porvenir de la actividad industrial en la provincia de Catamarca en estos escritos. Desde nuestra perspectiva, la falta de una estado metaestable a nivel social, necesario para amplificar estas imágenes del provenir, impidieron el desarrollo de una mentalidad técnica