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As a generalization, harvested timber is extracted from forests either as trees or stems by skidders or as logs by forwarders. Coupled with harvesters, forwarders team up to form cut-to-length (CTL) systems that are often perceived to be more modern than full-tree (FT) and tree-length (TL) systems, based on feller bunchers and skidders. As a result, CTL machinery has been extensively studied in Europe, while little information is available on FT and TL machinery and especially skidders. Using all available documentation, and relying on national experts, this paper reports on a survey of skidders used for timber extraction in Europe. The survey identified a total of 8370 skidders, whereby the authors accept this to be a lower limit with potentially many other units not identified through the survey. Also, while the focus of the survey was purpose-built skidders, many modified farm tractors are also used to extract tree-length material. Of the 8370 skidders, 5500 were found in the Central European region with Germany and France dominating the market. The survey also indicated an overall low level of replacement, with fewer than 5% being from new sales annually. Although CTL systems are a dominant harvesting option, this survey has shown that skidders continue to be a common and viable extraction method. Given their high level of extraction efficiency that is often restricted by a limit of clear-fell operations, further large-scale damaging storm events in Europe may offer a clear opportunity for their expansion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Hypospadias is a common congenital malformation. The prevalence of hypospadias has a large geographical variation, and recent studies have reported both increasing and decreasing temporal trends. It is unclear whether hypospadias prevalence is associated with maternal age. Aim: To analyze the prevalence and trends of total hypospadias, isolated hypospadias, hypospadias with multiple congenital anomalies, hypospadias with a known cause, and hypospadias severity subtypes in Europe over a 10-year period and to investigate whether maternal age is associated with hypospadias. Methods: We included all children with hypospadias born from 2001 to 2010 who were registered in 23 EUROCAT registries. Information on the total number of births and maternal age distribution for the registry population was also provided. We analyzed the total prevalence of hypospadias and relative risks by maternal age. Results: From 2001 to 2010, 10,929 hypospadias cases were registered in 5,871,855 births, yielding a total prevalence of 18.61 per 10,000 births. Prevalence varied considerably between different registries, probably due to differences in ascertainment of hypospadias cases. No significant temporal trends were observed with the exceptions of an increasing trend for anterior and posterior hypospadias and a decreasing trend for unspecified hypospadias. After adjusting for registry effects, maternal age was not significantly associated with hypospadias. Conclusions: Total hypospadias prevalence was stable in 23 EUROCAT registries from 2001 to 2010 and was not significantly influenced by maternal age. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Phylogeographical research has revealed several paradigm patterns of postglacial range expansion from the Mediterranean peninsulas to more northern parts of Europe. These range expansions have consequences for the genetic constitution of populations. Although many studies have been performed in mainland Europe, the colonization history of the British Isles is relatively poorly studied; the genetic consequences of the last glacial readvances and the climate optimum conditions, as well as the implications of the recent climatic conditions on the population genetic structures, are little understood. Therefore, we selected the common blue butterfly Polyommatus icarus as a model species for understanding more generally the colonization patterns of the British Isles and the genetic dynamics on these islands. Allozyme analyses of this butterfly show a rather high genetic diversity over continental Europe without major genetic differentiation. The situation on the British Isles is completely different. Here, populations show a much lower genetic diversity compared to mainland Europe. The genetic constitution is well differentiated from that observed on the European mainland, and the genetic differentiation among populations in Britain is stronger than at the European scale. These results support the hypothesis that a relatively cold-tolerant species such as the common blue could have colonized the British Isles early during the late glacial period and survived the last glacial readvances in small refugia in the South. The retraction of this species in small isolated populations could have caused the genetic impoverishment found. The subsequent forest climax during the climate optimum possibly restricted further expansion of this early succession species to small pockets all over the British Isles, resulting in the genetic patchwork that is still observed. Additionally, the relatively cool and rainy conditions one these islands might have caused bottlenecks, possibly enforcing these genetic patterns. © 2012 The Linnean Society of London, Biological Journal of the Linnean Society, 2012, ••, ••-••. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reports on an analysis of palliative care developments in seven European countries which gave attention to early origins, patterns of provision, and structural and policy integration. Founding specialist hospice/palliative care services; Service provision by the late 1990s; Funding and reimbursement of palliative care services.

The COVID-19-pandemic forces hospitals to reorganize into a dual patient flow system. Healthcare professionals are forced to make decisions in patient prioritization throughout specialties. Most pediatric urology pathologies do not require immediate or urgent care, however, delay may compromise future renal function or fertility. Contact with patients and parents, either physical in safe conditions or by (video)telephone must continue. The Paediatric-Urology-Guidelines-panel of the EAU proposes recommendations on prioritization of care. Pediatric-Urology program directors must ensure education, safety and attention for mental health of staff. Upon resumption of care, adequate prioritization must ensure minimal impact on outcome., (Copyright © 2020 Journal of Pediatric Urology Company. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

A growing number of nursing subspecializations have been developed in recent decades. Topics of concern are that care is not tailored to cope with the growing number of patients with more than one chronic disease, there is an increase in co-ordination problems in the care that is provided for this group of complex patients, and the care for these complex patients is extremely fragmented. The assessment of health risks resulting in co-ordinated care with effective communication is vital for multimorbid patients. Our aim is to describe a systematic approach (the INTERMED [IM] method) to identify complex patients who are in need of integrated care and its applicability to the nursing process. We demonstrate the ability of the IM method to quantify, weigh, and classify the complexity of problems. The method is applied in Europe and will be started in the USA in a pharmacy program. The IM is presented as a decision-support system for multidisciplinary teams with nurse co-ordinators.

Objective: To compare the level of surgical training of French interns with that of interns in other European countries., Material and Methods: Between 2005 and 2006, an exhaustive questionnaire (www.esnz.net) was sent to 288 young urologists in 30 different European countries. Interns were classified into 3 groups: France (group 1, n = 28), Western Europe (group 2, n = 75) and Eastern Europe (group 3, n = 85). Items concerning surgical practice were analysed., Results: The mean age of the interns was 30.8 years (25.7-35.8), 34.6 years (27.4-48.0) and 31.3 years (25.3-51.3) in groups 1 to 3, respectively. The mean number of months of urology training was 28 months (6-60), 44 months (6-72) and 37 months (2-120), respectively. The mean of weekly working time was 70 hours (40-90), 60 hours (35-90) and 65 hours (40-100). French interns were technically more at ease than interns in groups 2 or 3 for all surgical procedures (open, laparoscopic, endourological). Certain criteria were significantly (p < 0.05) associated with a better level of technical skills: the number of weekly working hours, the small number of interns per department, the diversity of internships, the use of the intern record and the presence of an active tutor, Conclusion: French interns appear to learn urological surgical procedures more easily than other European interns. However the scientific training of interns must also be evaluated in order to propose a global assessment system of urology training in Europe.