Online Counseling and Its Effectiveness

In this overview of recent research, the usage of online counseling is investigated. A variety of researchers sought to find the effectiveness of online counseling, to determine the clients most likely to utilize online counseling, and to investigate the ethical implications of the practice. Conclusive evidence illustrates that the predominant advantages of online counseling consist of the anonymity offered, the convenience of the practice, and the ability to reach clients who traditionally could not or would not attend a traditional therapy session. However, alarming disadvantages to online counseling include a poorly established therapeutic relationship, delivery of services by unqualified practitioners, and the limitations of confidentiality and privacy

Mental illness, co-occurring factors and aggression as examined in an American prison

This study examines the relationship between several factors which have been identified in previous research as co-occurring and risk relevant to aggressive behavior. Although many factors have been addressed independently for various reasons in other studies, this study looks at the unique combination of a select few of these variables and their relationship for propensity towards aggression. The results of this study show propensity towards aggression is significant for two specific mental health issues; anxiety, and history of severe head injury. Results also indicate that co-occurring factors are prevalent in this sample and those inmates with prior mental illness are likely to exhibit aggression. Significant correlations for co-occurring factors were also found. Inmates with co-occurring factors may benefit from more purposive treatment and risk assessment to identify and treat their aggressive behavior

Bearing Witness to the Personal Core of Teaching

Through a dynamic interplay of philosophical analysis and fine-tuned fieldwork, this dissertation seeks to bear witness to the presence and power of the personal core of teaching, a dimension of education that, I argue, is of utmost importance, but which remains largely undervalued by educational policymakers and underexamined by educational research. I first carry out a careful phenomenological analysis of teaching that illuminates the existence of teaching’s personal core, as well as its defining characteristics. Then, following the research orientation David Hansen (2021) names bearing witness, I render narratives drawn from 1,150 hours spent observing three different kinds of teachers: a high school history teacher, a collegiate cross country and track and field coach, and master chefs who work with adolescent apprentices. My philosophical analysis reveals that these three diverse modes of teaching share a common personal core and manifests the pedagogical import of this dimension of teaching for fostering students’ self-actualization. I conclude by drawing out implications of my study for teacher education and practice, and by offering recommendations for how teacher educators, administrators, and teachers can better recognize and respond to the reality of teaching’s personal core

Identifying digital dermatitis infection reservoirs in beef cattle and sheep

Digital dermatitis (DD) is a superficial infectious dermatitis of the digital skin of cattle and sheep that can be very painful, causing severe lameness in affected animals. Bovine digital dermatitis (BDD) in dairy cattle has now been reported in most countries they are farmed, and DD in sheep, known as contagious ovine digital dermatitis (CODD) is rapidly emerging as a severe infectious foot disease since first reports from the UK in 1997. Spirochaetes, of the genus Treponema have frequently been found in large numbers in BDD lesions and are now considered the primary causative bacteria of BDD. Three treponeme phylogroups are consistently isolated from dairy cattle BDD in the UK and the USA, which are known as Treponema medium- like, Treponema phagedenis- like spirochaetes and Treponema pedis. Over the past 40 years research has focused on dairy cattle BDD and overlooked whether the disease exists in beef cattle herds in the UK, and whether the same aetiological agents are causal. There is also limited information on the causative bacteriological agents of CODD. Furthermore, no definitive transmission routes or infection reservoirs of DD in either cattle or sheep had thus far been delineated, with only a single study finding a potential reservoir site of DD treponemes in the dairy cattle gastrointestinal (GI) tract. Using molecular bacteriological studies it was found that CODD and beef cattle BDD, as in dairy cattle BDD, show a high association with the three DD treponeme phylogroups. All CODD and beef BDD lesions investigated had at least one of the three DD treponeme phylogroups present in the lesions and these treponemes were also isolated from a high proportion of lesions. No DD treponemes were detected in healthy sheep or beef cattle foot tissue. Upon 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis all isolates showed a high similarity, if not 100% identity, to representatives of each treponeme phylogroup isolated from dairy cattle BDD lesions, indicating a shared aetiology between DD in all three animals. Additionally, the same treponeme bacteria were detected and isolated from a new undefined foot disease in dairy goats in the UK indicating that cross-species transmission of DD may have occurred causing DD infection in a previously unaffected domestic livestock species. To understand potential transmission routes and infection reservoirs of DD, the host GI tract and hoof trimming equipment were investigated. Of the sheep gingival (n= 40) and rectal tissues (n= 40), 1/40 gingival tissues were positive for DD- associated treponemes (T. pedis), and 3/40 rectal tissues (one containing T. medium- like and two tissues containing T. pedis). No DD- associated treponeme DNA was amplified from beef cattle rectal tissues (n= 40), however 4/40 beef gingival tissues were positive for DD- associated treponemes (all containing T. phagedenis- like). A T. phagedenis- like DD treponeme was isolated from the rectal tissue of a CODD symptomatic sheep. Beef cattle (n= 41) and sheep (n= 79) faeces failed to amplify DD- associated Treponema DNA. Twenty two treponemes were isolated from sheep faeces; however, upon phylogenetic analysis these clustered with considered non-pathogenic treponemes, which interestingly exhibited farm specific diversity in their 16S rRNA gene. Trimming equipment was tested after being used to trim cattle and sheep hooves, and subsequently after disinfection of equipment. Of the blades used to trim DD symptomatic animals (n= 26, cattle and sheep combined), 25/26 were found to be positive for at least one of the DD Treponema phylotypes. This figure was reduced to 10/26 (38%) after disinfection of the blades. Following culture of a swab, an isolate belonging to the T. phagedenis- like spirochaetes was isolated from a knife sample after trimming a DD positive cow. Beef cattle sera from DD positive and negative farms were investigated to understand whether beef cattle’s perceived lower prevalence of BDD in the UK is due to a lack of exposure to treponemes, or a protective immune response. Beef cattle from DD positive farms appeared to produce a strong immunological response to treponemes, compared with DD negative farm animal sera. Therefore the perceived lower prevalence of DD in beef cattle does not appear to be due to a protective response in these animals, but more likely due to a lack of exposure to DD treponemes. In conclusion, these studies have produced vital information describing DD in beef cattle and sheep and their respective aetiological agents allowing for more appropriate treatments in the future. Additionally, given the two potential transmission routes delineated from the data, effective actions can be taken to prevent the spread of DD within current hosts and to limit emergence into yet unknown additional host species

What predicts regression from pre-diabetes to normal glucose regulation following a primary care nurse-delivered dietary intervention? A study protocol for a prospective cohort study

Introduction Pre-diabetes is a high-risk state for the development of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and cardiovascular disease. Regression to normoglycaemia, even if transient, significantly reduces the risk of developing T2DM. The primary aim of this mixed-methods study is to determine if there are clinically relevant differences among those with pre-diabetes and excess weight who regress to normoglycaemia, those who have persistent pre-diabetes and those who progress to T2DM following participation in a 6-month primary care nurse-delivered pre-diabetes dietary intervention. Incidence of T2DM at 2 years will be examined. Methods and analysis Four hundred participants with pre-diabetes (New Zealand definition glycated haemoglobin 41–49 mmol/mol) and a body mass index \u3e25 kg/m2 will be recruited through eight primary care practices in Hawke’s Bay, New Zealand. Trained primary care nurses will deliver a 6-month structured dietary intervention, followed by quarterly reviews for 18 months post-intervention. Clinical data, data on lifestyle factors and health-related quality of life (HR-QoL) and blood samples will be collected at baseline, 6 months, 12 months and 24 months. Sixty participants purposefully selected will complete a semi-structured interview following the 6-month intervention. Poisson regression with robust standard errors and clustered by practice will be used to identify predictors of regression or progression at 6 months, and risk factors for developing T2DM at 2 years. Qualitative data will be analysed thematically. Changes in HR-QoL will be described and potential cost savings will be estimated from a funder’s perspective at 2 years. Ethics and dissemination This study was approved by the Northern A Health and Disability Ethics Committee, New Zealand (Ethics Reference: 17/NTA/24). Study results will be presented to participants, published in peer-reviewed journals and presented at relevant conferences. Trial registration number ACTRN12617000591358; Pre-results

Current Exchanges and Unconstrained Higher Spins

The (Fang-)Fronsdal formulation for free fully symmetric (spinor-) tensors rests on (gamma-)trace constraints on gauge fields and parameters. When these are relaxed, glimpses of the underlying geometry emerge: the field equations extend to non-local expressions involving the higher-spin curvatures, and with only a pair of additional fields an equivalent ``minimal'' local formulation is also possible. In this paper we complete the discussion of the ``minimal'' formulation for fully symmetric (spinor-) tensors, constructing one-parameter families of Lagrangians and extending them to (A)dS backgrounds. We then turn on external currents, that in this setting are subject to conventional conservation laws and, by a close scrutiny of current exchanges in the various formulations, we clarify the precise link between the local and non-local versions of the theory. To this end, we first show the equivalence of the constrained and unconstrained local formulations, and then identify a unique set of non-local Lagrangian equations which behave in exactly the same fashion in current exchanges.Comment: 37 pages, Latex. Typos corrected, note and references added. Final version to appear in Nucl. Phys.

Surveying bovine digital dermatitis and non-healing bovine foot lesions for the presence of Fusobacterium necrophorum, Porphyromonas endodontalis and Treponema pallidum.

BACKGROUND:Non-healing bovine foot lesions, including non-healing white line disease, non-healing sole ulcer and toe necrosis, are an increasingly important cause of chronic lameness that are poorly responsive to treatment. Recent studies have demonstrated a high-level association between these non-healing lesions and the Treponema phylogroups implicated in bovine digital dermatitis (BDD). However, a polymicrobial aetiology involving other gram-stain-negative anaerobes is suspected. METHODS:A PCR-based bacteriological survey of uncomplicated BDD lesions (n=10) and non-healing bovine foot lesions (n=10) targeting Fusobacterium necrophorum, Porphyromonas endodontalis, Dichelobacter nodosus and Treponema pallidum/T. paraluiscuniculi was performed. RESULTS:P. endodontalis DNA was detected in 80.0% of the non-healing lesion biopsies (p=<0.001) but was entirely absent from uncomplicated BDD lesion biopsies. When compared to the BDD lesions, F. necrophorum was detected at a higher frequency in the non-healing lesions (33.3% vs 70.0%, respectively), whereas D. nodosus was detected at a lower frequency (55.5% vs 20.0%, respectively). Conversely, T. pallidum/T. paraluiscuniculi DNA was not detected in either lesion type. CONCLUSION:The data from this pilot study suggest that P. endodontalis and F. necrophorum should be further investigated as potential aetiological agents of non-healing bovine foot lesions. A failure to detect syphilis treponemes in either lesion type is reassuring given the potential public health implications such an infection would present

Cytoplasmic “ciliary inclusions” in isolation are not sufficient for the diagnosis of primary ciliary dyskinesia

Background: The diagnosis of primary ciliary dyskinesia (PCD) is difficult and requires a combination of clinical features, nasal nitric oxide testing, cilia ultrastructural analysis by electron microscopy (EM), and genetics. A recently described cytoplasmic ultrastructural change termed “ciliary inclusions” was reported to be diagnostic of PCD; however, no supporting evidence of PCD was provided. In this study, we sought to confirm, or refute, the diagnosis of PCD in subjects with “ciliary inclusions” on EM. Methods: Six subjects from five families with previous lab reports of “ciliary inclusions” on EMs of ciliated cells were identified and evaluated at a Genetic Disorders of Mucociliary Clearance Consortium site. We performed a detailed clinical history, nasal nitric oxide measurement, genetic testing including whole-exome sequencing (WES), and when possible, repeat ciliary EM study. Results: Only one of six subjects had multiple and persistent clinical features congruent with PCD. No subject had situs inversus. Only one of six subjects had a very low nasal nitric oxide level. No “ciliary inclusions” were found in three subjects who had a repeat ciliary EM, and ciliary axonemal ultrastructures were normal. Genetic testing, including WES, was negative for PCD-causing genes, and for pathogenic variants in gene pathways that might cause “ciliary inclusions,” such as ciliary biogenesis. Conclusion: “Ciliary Inclusions”, in isolation, are not sufficient to diagnosis PCD. If seen, additional studies should be done to pursue an accurate diagnosis

On Conformal, SL(4,R) and Sp(8,R) Symmetries of 4d Massless Fields

The $sp(8, R)$ invariant formulation of free field equations of massless fields of all spins in $AdS_4$ available previously in terms of gauge invariant field strengths is extended to gauge potentials. As a by-product, free field equations for a massless gauge field are shown to possess both $su(2,2)\sim o(4,2)$ and $sl(4,R)\sim o(3,3)$ symmetry. The proposed formulation is well-defined in the $AdS_4$ background but experiences certain degeneracy in the flat limit that does not allow conformal invariant field equations for spin $s>1$ gauge fields in Minkowski space. The basis model involves the doubled set of fields of all spins. It is manifestly invariant under U(1) electric-magnetic duality extended to higher spins. Reduction to a single massless field contains the equations that relate its electric and magnetic potentials which are mixed by the conformal transformations for s>1. We use the unfolded formulation approach recalled in the paper with some emphasis on the role of Chevalley-Eilenberg cohomology of a Lie algebra $g$ in $g$-invariant field equations. This method makes it easy to guess a form of the 4d $sp(8, R)$ invariant massless field equations and then to extend them to the ten dimensional $sp(8,R)$ invariant space-time. Dynamical content of the field equations is analyzed in terms of $\sigma_-$ cohomology.Comment: 66 pages, V2: minor corrections, references and acknowledgments added, coefficients and typos corrected, V3: typos corrected, version to appear in Nucl. Phys.