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This study investigated pretreatment variables associated with depression severity in adolescents following maintenance treatment for major depressive disorder (MDD). Data was derived from the Treatment for Adolescents with Depression Study (TADS). Participants received one of three treatments: cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), fluoxetine (FLX), or combined CBT and fluoxetine (COMB). Participants received 12 weeks of acute treatment, 6 weeks of consolidation treatment, and 18 weeks of maintenance treatment (N = 327, M age = 14.62 yrs). Outcome was measured by the Children’s Depression Rating Scale-Revised. Results showed adolescents with shorter depressive episodes, better global functioning, less suicidal ideation, better health/social functioning, and greater expectancy of positive treatment response were more likely to have lower depression severity following 36 weeks of treatment, regardless of modality. Adolescents with lower initial depression demonstrated lower depression severity if treated with CBT. FLX was more effective in reducing depression severity in adolescents with severe baseline depression than for those with mild or moderate depression. Adolescents with higher family incomes were more likely to have lower depression severity if they received CBT only. In conclusion, adolescents with shorter depressive episodes, better health, social, and global functioning, less suicidal ideation, and greater expectancy for treatment at baseline respond equally well to CBT, fluoxetine, and combined treatment. Adolescents who are more severely depressed at baseline may have a better treatment response if they are treated with FLX; whereas adolescents of higher income are more likely to have a better response if they receive CBT only.

Most research exploring possible differences in the prevalence of mental and behavioral health¹ (MBH) problems between urban and rural areas has indicated that there are no differences. Unfortunately, most of this research has measured urbanness-ruralness as a 2-level or dichotomous construct only (i.e., an area is either urban or rural), and researchers have used inconsistent (and sometimes conflicting) definitions for what constitutes an "urban" or "rural" area. In this study, urbanness-ruralness is conceptualized as an expanded categorical construct with the addition of a 3rd point: The frontier area. Surveys were completed by 259 MBH professionals across the urban, rural, and frontier counties of a U.S. state in the intermountain west. Survey items asked about a number of issues related to MBH, including what the professionals perceived to be the most-prevalent MBH problems in their areas. Anxiety was perceived to be a significantly more prevalent problem in urban areas, and substance abuse and domestic violence were perceived to be significantly more prevalent problems in frontier areas. These results suggest that when urbanness-ruralness is conceptualized as an expanded categorical construct (rather than simply a dichotomous one), differences in the perceived prevalence of MBH problems may be found. Language: en

The Workers' Compensation Board of British Columbia requested a retrospective analysis of all fishermen's deaths from immersion in water in British Columbia.To identify the underlying cause of drowning and make recommendations to improve safety in the fishing industry.Eighty-nine inshore and offshore fishing accidents were analysed. Where possible, deaths were classified into the four stages of cold-water immersion: cold shock, swimming failure, hypothermia and post-rescue collapse. Other factors that led up to the drowning were also identified.One hundred and thirty fishermen died from immersion between 1976 and 2002. One hundred and twenty-eight drownings were certified by the coroner as drowning or drowning/hypothermia and two were certified as cardiac event after immersion. The underlying causes of drownings were reclassified as: cold shock (5.4%), swimming failure (5.4%), hypothermia (5.4%), post-rescue collapse (0.8%), cardiac event (0.8%) and drowning/other (10%). In the remaining 72.2% of deaths, there was insufficient information to determine an underlying cause. All deaths occurred in water below 17.5 degrees C but 95% were in water less than 15 degrees C.Immersion in water below 15 degrees C is dangerous and this should be emphasized on marine survival courses. Accident investigators, coroners and pathologists need a common checklist to record vital data. A recommended format is included as Supplementary data available at Occupational Medicine Online. Fishermen should be educated about the dangers of sudden, unexpected immersion in cold water. Consideration should be given to making marine survival courses mandatory for fishermen.

Engineering Statics at North Carolina State University is taught to both distance-education and on-campus sections simultaneously. Statics has been remodeled to include online and in-class tools to encourage all students to stay actively engaged with the material. Seven online tools which have been incorporated into the redesigned course are presented and discussed: review modules, reading introductions and quizzes, class notes with video example problems, recorded lectures, skills quizzes, synchronous office hours and asynchronous message boards, and clickers. Results indicate students come to class consistently, are more likely to complete readings, and appreciate the just-in-time online resources. One faculty member can now supervise larger numbers of students and homework grading has been cut in half.Copyright © 2010 by ASME

Objective: The prevalence of cleft lip and/or palate (CL/P) in Northern Ireland (NI) was last reported for 1980 through 1990. This study was undertaken to update the prevalence of CL/P in NI for the 20-year period 1981 to 2000, to determine the pattern of prevalence, and to report the proportion of different cleft types and sex distribution. Design: Retrospective, population-based analysis. Patients/participants: All live born children with CL/P in NI from 1981 to 2000 were included. A total of 750 cases were identified. Resident births outside NI, stillbirths, abortuses, and children born with atypical orofacial clefts were excluded. Those with syndromes and submucous clefts were included in the study. Results: The overall prevalence of children born with CL/P within NI for the period 1981 to 2000 was 1.47 per 1000 live births, or 1:682. This was consistent with the findings reported by other U.K. studies. There were no significant changes in the prevalence rates over any 5-year period. No significant seasonality trends were noted. Clefts of the palate only were always in the majority. More boys than girls were affected by cleft lip with or without cleft palate. There was a significant left-sided predilection for unilateral clefting of the lip. Conclusions: There have been no significant changes in the birth prevalence of children born with CL/P or the distribution or laterality of cleft type in the NI population during the past 20 years.

An expert system was developed to assist in the selection and proper use of spray nozzle tips. The expert system selected up to three appropriate nozzles for a user-specified application, identifying one selection as a “Best Choice” and two selections as optional “Good Choices”. The performance of the expert system on an IBM-PC XTTM was evaluated against the manual selections of five upper-division agricultural mechanization undergraduates. Whereas the expert system rapidly made correct recommendations in less than 6 sec, the students required an average of 30 min. Fifty percent of the students’ selections were either incorrect, or an incorrect operating procedure was specified. The results of the students’ manual selection tests demonstrated the initial complexity of correct nozzle selection for the novice or infrequent user. Although the manual selection process is not difficult for a person possessing a moderate amount of mathematical skills, the process requires familiarity. This complexity may lead to the introduction of errors if manual nozzle selection is infrequent.

The symposium on Design and Application of CLSM (Flowable Fill) was held in St. Louis, Missouri on June 19--20, 1997. The purpose of this symposium was to present new design procedures, new applications, and installation innovations to help assess the need for new or improved standards on flowable fill. The symposium was divided into five parts to cover the wide range of new developments in the use of CLSM as follows: (1) Ingredients, (2) Properties of CLSM, (3) Test Methods, Standards, and Specifications, (4) Case Histories, and (5) Pipeline Applications. Eight papers were processed for inclusion on the database.

The objective of the BeefCheque extension programme is to provide producers with the skills to grow and use more pasture, produce more beef and make more money. A pilot programme operated in Gippsland (in Australia’s South East) from 1995 to 2000 using 15 beef producer groups, each centred on a focus farm, and consisted of monthly farm walks and other ‘dirty boots’ activities. Each BeefCheque group progressed through a series of activities planned by the group and their facilitator. A total of 420 producers participated, with 250 producers participating at any one point in time (9% of Gippsland beef producers and 19% of cattle produced in Gippsland). Project success was evaluated using Bennett’s hierarchy as a framework. In a survey at the end of the first 5 years, 94% of respondents had tried one or more new grazing management practices, and 54% had tried at least 11 new grazing management practices. This had increased from 2 years previously when the median number of practices learnt was 9 or more. An analysis of a small percentage of farms involved in benchmarking over 4 years (10–21% of producers involved in BeefCheque) showed significant increases in total liveweight output (kg/ha), saleyard price ($/kg beef liveweight), gross farm income ($/ha), net income ($/ha) and farm operating surplus ($/ha). These results matched or exceeded the goals set for the first 5 years and were achieved despite 3 years of exceptionally dry conditions. The success of BeefCheque has been attributed to its use of practical on-farm demonstrations, farm walks and rigorous discussions leading to trialing and use of grazing management practices that increase pasture utilisation and, ultimately, profitability. This led to the overall conclusion that the ‘dirty boots’ activities and approach are important for developing skills and achieving significant change at all levels of farm management.

Utilization of soybean oil (SBO) in swine starter diets and the effect of an adaptation period to SBO on performance was studied in two 4-wk experiments with pigs initially 4 to 5 wk of age. One trial was extended an additional 4 wk and apparent DE was measured during the 4th wk postweaning. Corn-soybean meal-based diets were used in which SBO was substituted for cornstarch at 2, 4 and 6% of the diet in Exp. 1 and at 3 and 6% of the diet in Exp. 2. In Exp. 2, SBO was added either initially (adaptation) or after 2 wk (no adaptation). In Exp. 1 daily gain and efficiency of feed utilization were improved (P less than .05) by adding SBO during wk 3 and 4, but not earlier. Feed intake was not affected by treatment. In Exp. 2, for the initial 4-wk postweaning period, there was no effect of SBO addition on growth rate; feed intake was depressed (P less than .05) when SBO was added at wk 3, and efficiency of feed utilization was improved (P less than .05) for pigs fed SBO without an adaptation period. The primary improvements in performance occurred in the 3rd and 4th wk postweaning, with a tendency for pigs to perform better without an adaptation period. During wk 4, pigs adapted to SBO consumed more (P less than .05) feed but tended to be less efficient (P less than .10) than nonadapted pigs. With or without adaptation, apparent DE was unaffected by SBO additions. Regardless of adaptation period, SBO additions depressed feed intake (P less than .05) and improved efficiency of feed utilization (P less than .01) for the 5- to 8-wk growing phase. In conclusion, adding SBO the first 2 wk postweaning did not improve performance; an adaptation period was not necessary for a performance response from added SBO.

The whole-body flux and protein-synthesis rates were determined in two groups of adult males aged 20-30 years who were matched for height and weight. [15N]Glycine was used as a tracer. Flux and synthesis rates were calculated from the urinary ammonia 15N excretion enrichment. Group I consisted of international competition level oarsmen, while Group II engaged in no exercise program. Measurement of the urinary nitrogen excretion rate showed that the oarsmen excreted more than twice as much nitrogen as the control group (P less than 0.05).flux and synthesis were 21.3 +/- 3.2 gN/9 hr and 188.7 +/- 59.9 g protein/day for the oarsmen and 16.4 +/- 2.1 g N/9 hr and 201.7 +/- 33.0 g protein/day for the controls. Data are +/- 1 SD for the eight oarsmen and eight controls. The flux values were different at the P less than 0.05 level. We concluded that (i) an exercise program does not lead to an increase in the basal protein turnover rate in adequately nourished individuals.