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Background: No data exist at the population level on what tests are used to aid in the diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder in community practice. Objectives: To describe autism spectrum disorder testing practices to inform autism spectrum disorder identification efforts. Methods: Data are from the Autism and Developmental Disabilities Monitoring Network, a multi‐site surveillance system reporting prevalence estimates and characteristics of 8‐year‐old children with autism spectrum disorder. Percentages of children with autism spectrum disorder who received any autism spectrum disorder test or a 'gold standard' test were calculated by site, sex, race, median household income, and intellectual ability status. Risk ratios were calculated to compare group differences. Results: Of 5058 8‐year‐old children with autism spectrum disorder across 11 sites, 3236 (64.0%) had a record of any autism spectrum disorder test and 2136 (42.2%) had a 'gold standard' ADOS or ADI‐R test. Overall, 115 children (2.3%) had both the ADOS and ADI‐R in their records. Differences persisted across race, median household income, and intellectual ability status. Asian/Pacific Islander children had the highest percent receiving any ASD test (71.8%; other groups range: 57.4–66.0%) and White children had the highest percent receiving 'gold standard' tests (46.4%; other groups range: 35.6–43.2%). Children in low‐income neighbourhoods had a lower percent of any test (62.5%) and 'gold standard' tests (39.4%) compared to medium (70.2% and 47.5%, respectively) and high (69.6% and 46.8%, respectively) income neighbourhoods. Children with intellectual disability had a lower percent of any ASD test (81.7%) and 'gold standard' tests (52.6%) compared to children without intellectual disability (84.0% and 57.6%, respectively). Conclusions: Autism spectrum disorder testing practices vary widely by site and differ by race and presence of co‐occurring intellectual disability, suggesting opportunities to standardise and/or improve autism spectrum disorder identification practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cronobacter spp. are gram-negative bacteria mainly perceived to cause serious infections in infants (1). Cases are most common among newborns or young infants; estimated mortality rates are as high as [...]

Salmonellae are a common cause of foodborne disease worldwide. The World Health Organization (WHO) supports international foodborne disease surveillance through WHO Global Salm-Surv and other activities. WHO Global Salm-Surv members [...]

Salmonella enterica serotype Enteritidis emerged as an important illness during the 1980s. Investigations showed that consumption of undercooked eggs was the major risk factor for disease, and a variety of [...]

Campylobacter spp. are the most common cause of bacterial gastrointestinal illness in humans. C. jejuni is the most common species and accounts for >88% of reported cases in the United [...]

The effects of temperature, precipitation, relative humidity and hours of sunlight on Campylobacter incidence in humans and broiler flocks is examine by using lag dependence functions, locally fitted linear models and cross validation methods. The combined effects of temperature and sunlight or the combined effects of temperature and relative humidity predicted the incidence in human equally well.

A high school teacher describes a class project which replaced customary research papers. The high school seniors prepared a medieval banquet, a project which involved intensive research. Useful research sources on costumes, decorations, food, and general information for such a project are listed. (DB)

Background: Culture-independent diagnostic tests (CIDTs) are increasingly used to diagnose Campylobacter infection in the Foodborne Diseases Active Surveillance Network (FoodNet). Because CIDTs have different performance characteristics compared with culture, which has been used historically and is still used to diagnose campylobacteriosis, adjustment of cases diagnosed by CIDT is needed to compare with culture-confirmed cases for monitoring incidence trends.Methods: We identified the necessary parameters for CIDT adjustment using culture as the gold standard, and derived formulas to calculate positive predictive values (PPVs). We conducted a literature review and meta-analysis to examine the variability in CIDT performance and Campylobacter prevalence applicable to FoodNet sites. We then developed a Monte Carlo method to estimate test-type and site-specific PPVs with their associated uncertainties.Results: The uncertainty in our estimated PPVs was largely derived from uncertainty about the specificity of CIDTs and low prevalence of Campylobacter in tested samples. Stable CIDT-adjusted incidences of Campylobacter cases from 2012 to 2015 were observed compared with a decline in culture-confirmed incidence.Conclusions: We highlight the lack of data on the total numbers of tested samples as one of main limitations for CIDT adjustment. Our results demonstrate the importance of adjusting CIDTs for understanding trends in Campylobacter incidence in FoodNet. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines the role of the Irish co-operative movement in the early twentieth century and argues that it played a crucial role in shaping a popular understanding of the “Irish Question”. This mass-membership movement impacted upon the development of the Irish state and population. By taking this rural, social movement as a lens to analyse Irish society in the early twentieth century, social and economic issues re-emerge as central components to a contemporary understanding of Ireland's increasingly contested position within the Union. As the expectation of some kind of political resolution to demands for political independence grew during the First World War, radical nationalism absorbed a social and economic discourse that originated within the co-operative movement in its critique of the British state as it operated in Ireland. Irish co-operation represented a sophisticated form of political economy that provided an influential ideological platform for Irish nationalists as they anticipated some form of political independence. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The article discusses the results of the Foodborne Disease Active Surveillance Network's study of laboratory-confirmed infections caused by pathogens transmitted commonly through food in 2012. Incidence of foodborne infections were highest among children less than 5 years old and the percentage of persons hospitalized and who died were highest among those aged 65 years and above. Also discussed are the trends of foodborne diseases as public health problem since 1996.

The article offers information regarding a study which aimed to describe the development, internal consistency, and validity of the Capabilities of Upper Extremity Test (CUE-T) for persons with tetraplegia. It is mentioned that the CUE-T displays good internal consistency and excellent construct validity on preliminary testing. It is also mentioned that push and pull tests should be revised to increase difficulty.

Background. The Walking Index for Spinal Cord Injury II (WISCI II) is a hierarchical scale that measures improvements in walking following spinal cord injury (SCI). The WISCI II has good face validity, concurrent validity, and reliability following acute SCI; however, psychometric properties need to be determined for chronic SCI. Because prior studies have demonstrated a relationship between lower-extremity motor scores (LEMS) and walking, outcome measures for walking should demonstrate a linkage between the underlying impairment (weakness) and walking—convergent validity. Objective. To determine convergent validity and reproducibility of the WISCI II. Methods. Self-selected and maximum WISCI levels were assessed for 76 patients with chronic SCI (34 paraplegia, 42 tetraplegia); 10-m walking speeds were calculated. Convergent validity was assessed by correlating WISCI II levels to LEMS and walking speed. Reproducibility was assessed with the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) and the smallest real difference (SRD). Results. Convergent validity of the self-selected and maximum WISCI II with LEMS was moderate for paraplegia (ρ = 0.479 and ρ = 0.533) and strong for tetraplegia (ρ = 0.852 and ρ = 0.816). Tetraplegia, but not paraplegia, demonstrated convergent validity of walking speed at the self-selected and maximum WISCI levels with LEMS (ρ = 0.752 and ρ = 0.813). WISCI reproducibility was excellent (self-selected ICC = 0.994; maximum ICC = 0.995), resulting in SRDs of 0.785 (self-selected) and 0.597 (maximum), suggesting that a change of one WISCI level can be interpreted as real in a chronic patient. Conclusions. Results suggest that the WISCI II should be a very useful outcome measure for detecting changes in walking function following chronic SCI. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Riding in a shopping cart next to raw meat or poultry is a risk factor for Salmonella and Campylobacter infections in infants. To describe the frequency of, and factors associated with, this behavior, we surveyed parents of children aged younger than 3 years in Foodborne Disease Active Surveillance Network sites. We defined exposure as answering yes to one of a series of questions asking if packages of raw meat or poultry were near a child in a shopping cart, or if a child was in the cart basket at the same time as was raw meat or poultry. Among 1,273 respondents, 767 (60%) reported that their children visited a grocery store in the past week and rode in shopping carts. Among these children, 103 (13%) were exposed to raw products. Children who rode in the baskets were more likely to be exposed than were those who rode only in the seats (odds ratio [OR], 17.8; 95% confidence interval [CI], 11.0 to 28.9). In a multivariate model, riding in the basket (OR, 15.5; 95% CI, 9.2 to 26.11. income less than $55,000 (OR, 1.8: 95% CI, 1.0 to 3.1), and Hispanic ethnicity (OR, 2.3: 95% CI, 1.2 to 4.5) were associated with exposure. Our study shows that children can be exposed to raw meat and poultry products while riding in shopping carts. Parents should separate children from raw products and place children in the seats rather than in the baskets of the cart. Retailer use of leak-proof packaging, customer placement of product in a plastic bag and on the rack underneath the cart, use of hand sanitizers and wipes. and consumer education may also be helpful. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We examined the efficacy of recall notification and advertising in informing the public about a nationwide recall of hot dogs and deli meats. As part of an ongoing random population telephone survey, residents of seven states were interviewed. Data from the survey were weighted to account for the multistage sampling design. Overall. 307 (45%) of 633 knew about the recall. Knowledge was higher among persons older than 40 years (odds ratio = 2.1, 95% confidence interval 1.4 to 3.3) and persons interviewed after major newspaper notices about the recall. Among those who knew about the recall, 5% believed the products were safe to eat; 23% were not sure. Seventy percent learned about the recall through television. Our findings indicate that routine recall notifications failed to reach a large portion of the population and were not well understood. Messages to the public about recalled products should clearly describe the risks of consuming the recalled product. Supplemental advertising by manufacturers can be beneficial if the risks of consuming the recalled product and recommendations to consumers are clearly described. These policies, coupled with broader distribution through the television and print media, may help increase the proportion of the persons who receive the information they need from future product recalls. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Presents a letter to the editor in response to the article "Antimicrobial Growth Promoters and Salmonella spp., Campylobacter spp. in Poultry and Swine in Denmark," by M.C. Evans and H.C. Wegener.

Objectives: The study objectives were to examine the contents of individualized education programs (IEPs) of adolescents with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), including postsecondary transition goals, services, and changes in special education classification over time., Methods: This study involved a longitudinal population-based surveillance cohort from the Autism Developmental Disabilities Monitoring Network from 2002 to 2018 in 3 catchment areas in the United States. The sample included 322 adolescents who were born in 2002, identified with ASD, and had an IEP available for review at ages 15-16 years., Results: We found that 297 (92%) adolescents with ASD had an IEP including a transition plan. Those without intellectual disability (ID) were more likely to have postsecondary education and employment goals and have those goals be to pursue higher education or competitive employment compared with those with ID. Forty-one percent of adolescents with ASD had a postsecondary living arrangement goal. Although 28% of adolescents with ASD received school-based mental health services, none of these adolescents were Black; additionally, 15% of those with ID received mental health services compared with 34% without ID. The percentage of adolescents with ASD served under an autism classification increased from 44% at age 8 years to 62% by age 16., Conclusions: We identified gaps and disparities in school-based postsecondary transition planning. Working with education partners, families, and adolescents will be important to identify what challenges contribute to these findings and what supports are needed to improve the equity and quality of the transition planning process for adolescents with ASD so they are prepared for adulthood., (Copyright © 2023 by the American Academy of Pediatrics.)