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Copyright of Revista de Derecho Politico is the property of Editorial UNED and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Einstein's razor, a corollary of Ockham's razor, is often paraphrased as follows: make everything as simple as possible, but not simpler. This rule of thumb describes the challenge that designers of a legal system face-to craft simple laws that produce desired ends, but not to pursue simplicity so far as to undermine those ends. Complexity, simplicity's inverse, taxes cognition and increases the likelihood of suboptimal decisions. In addition, unnecessary legal complexity can drive a misallocation of human capital toward comprehending and complying with legal rules and away from other productive ends. While many scholars have offered descriptive accounts or theoretical models of legal complexity, most empirical research to date has been limited to simple measures of size, such as the number of pages in a bill. No extant research rigorously applies a meaningful model to real data. As a consequence, we have no reliable means to determine whether a new bill, regulation, order, or precedent substantially effects legal complexity. In this paper, we begin to address this need by developing a proposed empirical framework for measuring relative legal complexity. This framework is based on 'knowledge acquisition', an approach at the intersection of psychology and computer science, which can take into account the structure, language, and interdependence of law. We then demonstrate the descriptive value of this framework by applying it to the U.S. Code's Titles, scoring and ranking them by their relative complexity. We measure various features of a title including its structural size, the net flow of its intra-title citations and its linguistic entropy. Our framework is flexible, intuitive, and transparent, and we offer this approach as a first step in developing a practical methodology for assessing legal complexity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explores the relationship between Europeanization and EU integration in the field of judicial politics. It claims that the process of Europeanization engenders contention which creates demands for increased supranational governance. To illustrate this duality, the article draws on the waves of reforms aiming to consolidate the independence of the judiciary in the new Member States of the EU. What is at stake from a political and normative point of view is the post-conditionality debate, the discussion around the Copenhagen dilemma and — conversely — the need to define at the EU level a set of effective mechanisms and instruments of compliance. Empirically, the article discloses the dead angles of Europeanization and reveals that policy implementation in the Copenhagen framework creates functional and political pressures for further integration. In the field of judicial politics, the power of the EU oscillates between spill-over and spill-back. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This article examines judicial reforms in the new member states of the EU in a comparative perspective. It explores the interactions between domestic and European actors in the Czech Republic, Poland, Hungary, Romania and Bulgaria and explains why the EU has had a differential impact on the way the principle of judicial independence has been implemented nationally. The differential impact of the EU is explained by considering both the nature of EU conditionality and the relationship between the judiciary and the political actors at the domestic level. The comparison reveals that the power of the EU is greater when tensions at the domestic level between judicial and political actors increase. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Earlier studies showed that dermal cells lose trichogenic capacity with passage, but studies on the effect of keratinocyte passage on human hair follicle neogenesis and graft quality have been hampered by the lack of a suitable model system. We recently documented human hair follicle neogenesis in grafted dermal-epidermal composites, and in the present study, we determined the effects of keratinocyte passage on hair follicle neogenesis. Dermal equivalents were made with cultured human dermal papilla cells and were overlaid with either primary or passaged human keratinocytes to form dermal-epidermal composites; these were then grafted onto immunodeficient mice. Superior hair follicle neogenesis was observed using early keratinocyte cultures. Characteristics such as formation of hair shafts and sebaceous glands, presence of hair follicles with features of anagen or telogen follicles, and reproducible hair and skin function parameters make this model a tool to study human hair follicle neogenesis and development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Unpredicted sudden death arising from hemangiopericytoma with massive intracranial hemorrhage is quite rare. We encountered a patient with recurrent infratentorial hemangiopericytoma presenting as life-threatening massive intracerebral hemorrhage. A 43-year-old man who had undergone craniotomy for total resection of an infratentorial hemangiopericytoma 17 months earlier presented with morning headache and generalized convulsions. Computed tomography revealed a massive hematoma in the right infratentorial region causing tonsillar herniation and emergency surgery was performed to evacuate the hematoma. Histological findings revealed hemangiopericytoma with hemorrhage. Neurological status remained unimproved and brain death was confirmed postoperatively. Hemangiopericytoma presenting as massive hemorrhage is quite rare. Since the risk of life-threatening massive hemorrhage should be considered, careful postoperative long-term follow-up is very important to identify tumor recurrences, particularly in the posterior cranial fossa, even if the tumor is completely removed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As a general assumption, the presence of an independent, honest and competent judiciary' in the so-called rule-of-law countries benefits both the protection of citizens' rights and economic growth. This essay aims to give a definition of the judicial independence principle in the People's Republic of China. To this end the author describes the general understanding of the principle within the Western legal tradition, stressing the importance of different guarantees embraced within given societies. Due consideration is given to judicial tenure and the appointment and salaries of judges. After an historical introduction this understanding is used as a yardstick to gauge the Chinese system. Not surprisingly, the Chinese judiciary cannot be yet considered independent, notwithstanding the undeniable progress made in the last decades. The subsequent explanation of the achievements of the Chinese judicial reforms are therefore instrumental in explaining that, in the Chinese context, it would be more appropriate to refer to judicial impartiality than to judicial independence. Without political reform, the Chinese judiciary will always be dependent on the legislative, in accordance with Chinese traditions and the country's political structure. In conclusion, even if it is still not possible to use the term "judicial independence", as understood in the West, judges' professionalism appears to be a suitable tool for achieving a more reliable and impartial judiciary. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Direct tests for Clostridium difficile are 30-50 % more sensitive than tests for C. difficile toxins but the reasons for this discrepancy are incompletely understood. In addition to toxin degradation and strain differences, we hypothesized that C. difficile concentration could be important in determining whether toxins are detected in fecal samples. We performed standard curves on an FDA-approved real-time PCR test for the C. difficile tcdB gene (Xpert C. difficile/Epi, Cepheid) during a prospective comparison of a toxin immunoassay (Meridian Premier), PCR and toxigenic culture. Immunoassay-negative, PCR-positive samples were retested with a cell cytotoxin assay (TechLab). Among 107 PCR-positive samples, 46 (43.0 %) had toxins detected by immunoassay and an additional 18 (16.8 %) had toxin detected by the cytotoxin assay yielding 64 (59.8 %) toxin-positive and 43 (40.2 %) toxin-negative samples. Overall, toxin-negative samples with C. difficile had 10-10 fewer DNA copies than toxin-positive samples and most discrepancies between toxin tests and PCR were associated with a significant difference in C. difficile quantity. Of the toxin-positive samples, 95 % had ≥4.1 log C. difficile tcdB DNA copies/mL; 52 % of immunoassay-negative samples and 70 % of immunoassay and cytotoxin negative samples had <4.1 log C. difficile tcdB DNA copies/mL. These findings suggest that fecal C. difficile concentration is a major determinant of toxin detection and C. difficile quantitation may add to the diagnostic value of existing test methods. Future studies are needed to validate the utility of quantitation and determine the significance of low concentrations of C. difficile in the absence of detectable toxin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although platelet-activating factor (PAF) is a well-known acute inflammatory mediator, little is known regarding the role of PAF in chronic inflammation. Phorbol esters are known to stimulate PAF production. Moreover, the ability of repeated applications of phorbol esters to induce a sustained inflammatory response is crucial to their tumorigenic activity. We therefore examined whether PAF acts as a mediator of phorbol ester-induced inflammation and tumorigenesis. While PAF receptor knockout mice (PAFR (−/−)) showed an expected but modest reduction in the acute inflammatory response to phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA), these mice exhibited a surprising increase in inflammation following chronic PMA application. This increased inflammation was documented by a number of findings that included: increased skin thickness, increased myeloperoxidase activity and expression and increased expression of known inflammatory mediators. Interestingly, vehicle-treated PAFR(−/−) mice also exhibited modest increases in levels of inflammatory markers. This suggests that the platelet activating factor receptor (PAFR) acts to suppress chronic inflammation in response to other stimuli, such as barrier disruption. The idea that chronic PAFR activation is anti-inflammatory was documented by repetitive topical PAFR agonist administration that resulted in reduced myeloperoxidase activity in skin. We next utilized a 7,12-dimethylbenz(a)anthracene/PMA carcinogenesis protocol to demonstrate that PAFR (−/−) mice exhibit significantly increased tumor formation and malignant progression compared with wild-type control mice. These studies provide evidence for two important, unexpected and possibly interrelated pathological roles for the PAFR: first, the PAFR acts to suppress PMA-induced chronic inflammation; secondly, the PAFR acts to suppress neoplastic development in response to chemical carcinogens. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: By using a biologically relevant and sensitive three-dimensional model of human corneal epithelium and multiple endpoint analysis, assessment of the potential for eye irritation and long-term compatibility of four registered ophthalmological preparations, ie, Timolabak®, Timoptol®, Nyogel®, and Timogel®, was performed. This approach enables classification of the potential for irritation, discriminating between mildly irritant and non-irritant ocular substances. Methods: The exposure protocol included two time periods, ie, 24 hours (acute application) and 72 hours (repeated applications twice daily). This approach allows assessment of not only the acute reaction but also possible recovery, as well as mimicking the potential cumulative effects associated with long-term application. Using benzalkonium chloride (BAK) 0.01% as a positive control, the following parameters were quantified: cellular viability by MTT test, histological analysis by hematoxylin and eosin staining, passive release of interleukin-1α by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, and OCLN gene expression by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction. Results: Cell viability was reduced to under the 50% cutoff value after acute exposure (24 hours) to BAK 0.01%, and after repeated application (72 hours) of Timoptol and Nyogel. Histological analysis after acute exposure showed signs of superficial damage with all formulations, and severe changes after repeated applications of Timoptol, BAK 0.01%, and Nyogel. Timolabak and Timogel did not significantly alter the morphology of the human corneal epithelial cells after the different exposure times. Interleukin-1α release was greater than that for the negative control (>20 pg/mL) and the positive control (BAK 0.01%), Nyogel, and Timoptol treatments and not different after treatment with Timolabak and Timogel. Expression of OCLN, a sign of epithelial barrier impairment, was only significantly upregulated at 24 hours by BAK 0.01%, suggesting a toxic reaction at the ocular surface. OCLN was also overexpressed after repeated application of Nyogel and Timogel. Conclusion: Overall, the multiple endpoint analysis approach allows classification of these products according to decreasing order of irritation potential as follows: BAK 0.01%, Timoptol, Nyogel, Timogel, and Timolabak. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pancreatic cancer (PC) is among the deadliest cancers, with a median survival of six months. It is generally believed that infiltrating PC arises through the progression of early grade pancreatic intraepithelial lesions (PanINs). In one model of the disease, the K-ras mutation is an early molecular event during progression of pancreatic cancer; it is followed by the accumulation of additional genetic abnormalities. This model has been supported by animal studies in which activated K-ras and p53 mutations produced metastatic pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma in mice. According to this model, oncogenic K-ras induces PanIN formation but fails to promote the invasive stage. However, when these mice are subjected to caerulein treatment, which induces a chronic pancreatitis-like state and inflammatory response, PanINs rapidly progress to invasive carcinoma. These results are consistent with epidemiologic studies showing that patients with chronic pancreatitis have a much higher risk of developing PC. In line with these observations, recent studies have revealed elevated expression of the pro-inflammatory protein tissue transglutaminase (TG2) in early PanINs, and its expression increases even more as the disease progresses. In this review we discuss the implications of increased TG2 expression in initiation, progression, and pathogenesis of pancreatic cancer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Skin, the largest organ of the human body, is organized into an elaborate layered structure consisting mainly of the outermost epidermis and the underlying dermis. A subcutaneous adipose-storing hypodermis layer and various appendages such as hair follicles, sweat glands, sebaceous glands, nerves, lymphatics, and blood vessels are also present in the skin. These multiple components of the skin ensure survival by carrying out critical functions such as protection, thermoregulation, excretion, absorption, metabolic functions, sensation, evaporation management, and aesthetics. The study of how these biological functions are performed is critical to our understanding of basic skin biology such as regulation of pigmentation and wound repair. Impairment of any of these functions may lead to pathogenic alterations, including skin cancers. Therefore, the development of genetically controlled and well characterized skin models can have important implications, not only for scientists and physicians, but also for manufacturers, consumers, governing regulatory boards and animal welfare organizations. As cells making up human skin tissue grow within an organized three-dimensional (3D) matrix surrounded by neighboring cells, standard monolayer (2D) cell cultures do not recapitulate the physiological architecture of the skin. Several types of human skin recombinants, also called artificial skin, that provide this critical 3D structure have now been reconstructed in vitro. This review contemplates the use of these organotypic skin models in different applications, including substitutes to animal testing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of International Journal of Cosmetic Science is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The role electrical charge plays in determining glomerular permeability to macromolecules remains unclear. If the glomerular basement membrane (GBM) has any significant role in permselectivity, physical principles would suggest a negatively charged GBM would reject similarly charged more than neutral species. However, recent in vivo studies with negative and neutral glomerular probes showed the opposite. Whether this observation is due to unique characteristics of the probes used or is a general physiological phenomenon remains to be seen. The goal of this study was to use the basement membrane deposited by Madin-Darby canine kidney epithelial cells as a simple model of a biologically derived, negatively charged filter to evaluate size- and charge-based sieving properties. Fluorescein isothiocyanate-labeled carboxymethylated Ficoll 400 (FITC-CM Ficoll 400) and amino-4-methyl-coumarin-labeled Ficoll 400 (AMC Ficoll 400) were used as negatively charged and neutral tracer molecules, respectively, during pressure-driven filtration. Streaming potential measurement indicated the presence of fixed, negative charge in the basal lamina. The sieving coefficient for neutral Ficoll 400 decreased by ~0.0013 for each 1-Å increment in solute radius, compared with a decrease of 0.0023 per Å for the anionic Ficoll 400. In this system, molecular charge played a significant role in determining the sieving characteristics of the membrane, pointing to solute charge as a potential contributor to GBM permselectivity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – The paper aims to examine the profound transformations engendered by the information revolution in order to determine aspects of what should be visible or invisible in human affairs. It seeks to explore the meaning of invisibility via an interdisciplinary approach, including computer science, law, and ethics. Design/methodology/approach – The method draws on both theoretical and empirical material so as to scrutinise the ways in which today's information revolution is recasting the boundaries between visibility and invisibility. Findings – The degrees of exposure to public notice can be understood as a matter of balance between access and control over information in a specific context, as well as a function of the ontological friction in a given region of the environment. Originality/value – The originality of the case study on a new kind of recommender system is enhanced because of the procedural approach which is suggested to further develop the distinction between "good" and "evil" as anything that enriches, or damages, the informational complexity of the environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines some of the most relevant issues concerning P2P systems so as to take sides in today's strongly polarized debate. The idea is to integrate a context-based perspective with an ontological representation of informational norms; thanks to a procedural outlook which is presented in terms of burden of proof. More particularly, we examine three 'roads.' First, the topological approach to complex social networks allows us to comprehend the laws according to which information is distributed through P2P systems and how a 'short route' has joined, and sometimes replaced, the traditional 'long route' between creator, business, and the public. The second road is the context-based perspective elaborated by Helen Nissenbaum, and developed by Francis Grodzinsky and Herman Tavani: The goal is to determine the norms that govern such an informational flow as norms of appropriateness and distribution. The final road is the informational viewpoint on ethics proposed by Luciano Floridi with the idea that standard ethical theories cannot easily be adapted to deal with the new informational issues emerging with digital technology. While empirical evidence on the impact of P2P systems is still quite controversial, it is crucial to determine on whom the burden of proof falls in a given context, on censors or advocates, by singling out both the default norms and exceptions in the use and development of P2P software. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

I shall compare two views of legal concepts: as nodes in inferential nets and as categories in an ontology (a conceptual architecture). Firstly, I shall introduce the inferential approach, consider its implications, and distinguish the mere possession of an inferentially defined concept from the belief in the concept’s applicability, which also involves the acceptance of the concept’s constitutive inferences. For making this distinction, the inferential and eliminative analysis of legal concepts proposed by Alf Ross will be connected to the views on theoretical concepts in science advanced by Frank Ramsey and Rudolf Carnap. Consequently, the mere comprehension of a legal concept will be distinguished from the application of the concept to a particular legal system, since application presupposes a doctrinal commitment, namely, the belief that the inferences constituting the concept hold in that system. Then, I shall consider how concepts can be characterised by defining the corresponding terms and placing them within an ontology. Finally, I shall argue that there is a tension between the inferential and the ontological approach, but that both need to be taken into account, to capture the meaning and the cognitive function of legal concepts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the postcommunist countries' candidate to the European membership, the EU and the Council of Europe exercised a heavy pressure on domestic elite to promote the adoption of institutional guarantees of judicial independence and judicial capacity. Relying on a wide set of interviews with the key actors of the European and domestic institutions, this article will discuss the logic of action of the judicial reforms adopted in Poland, Czech Republic, and Hungary in two policy subfields: the governance of the judicial branch and the governance of the court. The empirical evidence confirms that the processes of reform have been deeply influenced by the national actors who had been empowered during the democratic transition. They have been able to fully exploit the resources provided by the EU. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

I will argue that the concept of (valid) law is a normative notion, irreducible to any factual description. Its conceptual function is that of relating certain (alternative sets of) properties a norm may possess to the conclusion that the norm is legally binding, namely, that it deserves to be endorsed and applied in legal reasoning. Legal validity has to be distinguished from other, more demanding, normative ideas, such as moral bindingness or legal optimality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines the importance of ‘pull’ and ‘push’ factors in self-employment drawing upon the experience of post-socialist Estonia, where self-employment has risen sharply from a negligible level since 1989. Drawing on quantitative data, and also qualitative data, the article identifies a range of different types of self-employment in Estonia and explores the reasons for their different levels of success. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Changing the property rights arrangements to land and buildings is a fundamental step in the transformation process underway in Eastern and Central Europe and elsewhere. The concept of property hinges on the choice of property conventions adopted by each society. Defining what property means is a complex and controversial task, especially when the scope of change in transition countries is so dramatic. Restitution is often a first step in acknowledging a latent property rights paradigm in these nations. Since property rights form the foundation of how and why economies function, it is important to identify the theoretical and empirical evidence relating property rules to economic outcomes. In this paper, we investigate why restitution is implemented in some countries but not in others. Further, if restitution is adopted, how is it implemented? We speculate that the choice of restitution as a property institution may be a proxy for the development of future institutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explores a number of issues concerning the appropriate role for the law to play in the restructuring and reform of land relations and land tenure in Africa. Given current (external) donor tendencies, and (internal) pressures for reform from within, this is a particularly topical issue: in seeking to explore it, the author draws on his own experiences and involvement in land law reform, as well as other sources of information, concentrating on countries and events in Eastern and Southern Africa. After examining various models and country experiences, the article concludes that, while there is no single 'right way' to tackle land tenure reform in Africa, there are a number of factors which may be crucial to success, and in which the law -- and lawyers -- can play a vital role. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The use of animals for scientific research is increasingly restricted by legislation, increasing the demand for human skin models. These constructs present comparable bulk lipid content to human skin. However, their permeability is significantly higher, limiting their applicability as models of barrier function, although the molecular origins of this reduced barrier function remain unclear. This study analyses the stratum corneum ( SC) of one such commercially available reconstructed skin model ( RSM) compared with human SC by spectroscopic imaging and chromatographic profiling. Total lipid composition was compared by chromatographic analysis ( HPLC). Raman spectroscopy was used to evaluate the conformational order, lateral packing and distribution of lipids in the surface and skin/ RSM sections. Although HPLC indicates that all SC lipid classes are present, significant differences are observed in ceramide profiles. Raman imaging demonstrated that the RSM lipids are distributed in a non-continuous matrix, providing a better understanding of the limited barrier function. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Severe burn injuries remain a major health problem due to high rates of mortality, residual morbidity, and/or aesthetic damages. To find new therapies aimed at promoting a harmonious healing of skin burns, it is important to develop models which take into account the unique properties of the human skin. Based on previously described models of burn injury performed on human skin explants, we hypothesized that maintaining explants under constant tension forces would allow to more closely reproduce the pathophysiological processes of skin remodeling. We thus. Here, we set up and characterized an improved model of deep second-degree burn injury on ex vivo cultured human skin explants at air-liquid interface and maintained under conditions of constant tension forces. A spontaneous re-epithelialization of the lesion was observed 8 to 9 days post burn and was found to rely on the proliferation of basal keratinocytes at the wound edges. Collagen VII at the dermo-epidermal junction reformed along with the progression of re-epithelializatio and a synthesis of procollagen III was observed in the dermis at the wound site. These findings indicate that our model is suitable for the assessment of clinically-relevant therapies aimed at modulating the kinetics of re-epithelialization and/or the activation of fibroblasts following skin burn injuries. In this regard, we evaluated the use of a thermoreversible poloxamer hydrogel as a vehicle for topically-testable therapeutic molecules. Our data showed that, although useful for drug formulation, the p407/p188 poloxamer hydrogel induces a delay of skin re-epithelialization in humans skin explants submitted to experimental burn injury. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Vaginal infections usually caused by Candida sp, organisms responsible for bacterial vaginosis and Trichomonas vaginalis are associated with considerable discomfort and adverse outcomes during pregnancy and child birth. The study determined the prevalence of vulvovaginal candidiasis (VVC), bacterial vaginosis (BV) and trichomoniasis (TV) in pregnant women attending antenatal clinic at the Kintampo Municipal Hospital.Methods: A study adopted a cross sectional design and recruited 589 pregnant women after seeking their informed consent from September, 2014 to March, 2015. Semi-structured questionnaire were administered to participants and vaginal swabs were collected. The samples were analysed using wet mount method and Gram stain (Nugent criteria) for vaginal infection. Univariate and multivariate analysis were used to investigate association of risk factors to vaginal infections.Results: The overall prevalence of at least one vaginal infection was 56.4%. The prevalence of vulvovaginal candidiasis, bacterial vaginosis and trichomoniasis were 36.5, 30.9 and 1.4% respectively. Women with more than four previous pregnancies (OR: 0.27, 95% CI: 0.13-0.58) and those in the third trimester of pregnancy (OR: 0.54, CI: 0.30-0.96) were associated with a lower risk of bacterial vaginosis. Douching and antibiotic use were neither associated with VVC or BV.Conclusion: The prevalence of vaginal infections was high among pregnant women in the Kintampo area. There is the need for interventions such as adequate investigations and early treatment of vaginal infections to reduce the disease burden to avoid associated complications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Bacterial vaginosis (BV) is a common reproductive tract disorder in women of child bearing age, accounting for one third of vaginal infections. It is characterized by an increase in vaginal pH, decreased Lactobacilli, and overgrowth of facultative and anaerobic bacteria. Studies have consistently shown BV to be a risk factor for adverse obstetric and gynecological outcomes. BV is believed to play a critical role in the transmission of sexually transmitted infections. Its aetiology and risk factors are poorly understood. This study determined the prevalence and risk factors for BV among pregnant women in Kumba Health District (KHD) Cameroon to generate findings that could guide the design of interventions for prevention of infection and associated poor pregnancy outcomes.Methods: A structured questionnaire was administered to 309 women seeking antenatal care (ANC) in three health facilities in KHD between May to July 2016, to capture data on demographic, gynecological and obstetric characteristics, and hygiene behavior. High vaginal swabs (HVS) collected from these women were gram stained, examined under a microscope and BV evaluated by Nugent scoring. Chi square (χ2) test was used to determine the relationship between BV and factors investigated. Statistical significance was set at p < 0.05.Results: The prevalence of BV was 26.2%. Nine point 1 % of participants had a mixed infection with Candida. BV was higher (29.5%) in participants from the rural area (χ2 = 8.609. P = 0.014), those who did not use antibiotics (31.9%) prior to the study (χ2 = 12.893, P = 0.002) and women with no history of a genital tract infection (χ2 = 18.154, P = 0.001). There was a significant difference in prevalence with respect to gestation age (χ2 = 13.959, P = 0.007) with the highest occurring in women in the second trimester (31.7%). Women who practiced douching (χ2 = 23.935, P = 0.000) and those who did not wash pants with disinfectant (χ2 = 7.253, P = 0.027) had a high prevalence.Conclusion: BV could be a health concern among pregnant women in study area. BV prevalence was affected by some hygiene behaviors, socio-demographic and clinical factors. Screening and treatment of positive cases during antenatal visits to prevent adverse outcomes, as well as education of women on vaginal hygiene is highly recommended. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents a case study of a 47-year-old plumber who accidentally submerged his hands into a solution of sodium hydroxide with pH 12.5. He was treated with prophylactic treatment with Fusidin after experiencing bleeding, ulcerations, palmar scaling, and onycholysis. He passed through patch testing after hyperkeratotic dermatitis occurred on his palms and the dorsal sides of fingers distal to the proximal interphalangeal joints.

Presents a listing of publications produced in the field of international law. Book titled 'Peace Through Law,' by Hans Kelsen; 'The Law of the Sea and Northeast Asia: A Challenge for Cooperation,' by Park Hee Kwon; 'Human Rights and Peace Agreements,' by Christine Bell.