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Le problematiche mondiali di natura ambientale ed economica, investono anche il settore zootecnico, da sempre uno dei cardini dell’approvvigionamento alimentare per l’uomo. La gestione delle risorse, in primis l’acqua, e delle commodities agricole crea da un lato nuovi mercati (biocombustibili), dall’altro aumenta la pressione sullo sfruttamento dei terreni coltivati sottratti alla produzione alimentare. A livello aziendale, la gestione degli allevamenti comporta alcune problematiche concrete, ad esempio quella dei reflui, e lo sviluppo sostenibile comporta sfide di non poco conto per l’allevatore anche se eticamente “obbligate”.

El objetivo de este trabajo es identificar los factores que influyen principalmente a la hora de suscribir una póliza de seguro sobre los cultivos en Italia. Utilizando los datos de la muestra de la Red Contable Agraria Italiana (RICA) y un modelo logit para el análisis econométrico. La elevada concentración de las pólizas, sobre todo de las grandes empresas, invita a reflexionar sobre el papel de la intervención pública en la gestión del riesgo en la agricultura y a reconsiderar el valor “social†de la misma, por lo menos en su forma actual.

Dopo il forte aumento dei prezzi delle materie prime agricole nel corso del 2007, i mercati agricoli sembrano essere entrati nell'era di instabilità strutturale. Ci sono diversi motivi, come la crescita della domanda alimentare, la struttura dei mercati e le politiche commerciali. L’aumento della volatilità dei prezzi ha implicazioni per tutti gli attori della catena alimentare. Soprattutto per gli agricoltori, che sono affetti sia da problemi di potere mercato sia di trasmissione imperfetta dei prezzi lungo la filiera. Questo argomento è oggi al centro del dibattito europeo sul futuro della politica agricola comune (PAC). In particolare, dopo la crisi del settore lattiero-caseario del 2009 che ha avviato un ampio dibattito in Europa, il quale ha determinato il primo passo legislativo volto a rafforzare le prerogative dei produttori del settore primario. Il lavoro si propone di fornire sia una panoramica di questi fenomeni che delle implicazioni per i policy maker europei, attualmente impegnati nella riforma della PAC.

The records of 954 ambulatory children presenting for initial evaluation to a university developmental pediatrician were reviewed for the prevalence of persistent toe walking and associated tight heel cords. The incidence of persistent toe walking (20.1%) and tight heel cords (12.0%) were found to be higher in 324 children with an autistic spectrum disorder but lower (10.0%/3.0%) in 30 children with Asperger syndrome. These results confirm the previously reported high incidence of toe walking in children with autism and with language disorders and also raise the possibility of a secondary orthopedic deformity that can complicate long-term management of these patients.

L'instabilità dei mercati delle materie prime agricole e i picchi dei prezzi alimentari, la crescita demografica e la modificazione delle diete a livello globale, i vincoli ambientali alla produzione di cibo e le coseguenze del cambiamento climatico: sono tutti elementi che xcompongono uno scenario di nuova scarsità. Il cibo costerà di più per tutti, con un impatto che sarà più forte sulle fasce più povere della popolazione mondiale, ma che si farà sentire in modod diretto e indiretto anche nei paesi ricchi. La corsa alla terra delinea i contorni di un futuro in cui l'agricoltura sarà sempre di più un settore strategico e il controllo dei suoli fertili sarà sempre più cruciale per lo sviluppo mdelle nazioni.

Adults with mental retardation living in the community are marrying and having children. Many are experiencing significant problems in their role as parents. Legal, professional and programmatic supports for some adults lag behind need. This article reviews legal and ethical issues surrounding this growing population. The experience of a model pilot parenting program is presented. Finally, recommendations for future efforts in this area are presented.

Hyperinsulinemia is alleged to contribute to the pathogenesis of hypertension and dyslipidemia (hypertriglyceridemia) in the setting of insulin resistance. To assess the association among hyperinsulinemia, hypertension, and hypertriglyceridemia in the absence of insulin resistance, we determined their prevalence in a large cohort of patients with insulinoma (N = 250). In this retrospective case-control study, patients with insulinoma were matched by age, gender, race, and year of operation with 217 control patients admitted to the hospital for elective cholecystectomy. Mean preoperative blood pressure measurements were compared between study patients and control patients. In addition, age-, gender-, and race-specific percentiles of blood pressure were compared with data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey I, and those of triglycerides (N = 65) and cholesterol (N = 70) were compared with Mayo Clinic normal reference data. The study group consisted of 105 men and 145 women; the median age was 41 years (range, 8 to 82). The median duration of symptoms before operation was 1.9 years (range, 0.05 to 40 years). After adjustment for body mass index, no statistically significant differences in systolic and diastolic blood pressure were noted between patients with insulinoma and matched control patients (131 ± 19 versus 128 ± 18 mm Hg and 81 ± 11 versus 79 ± 9 mm Hg, respectively). No relationship was observed between duration of hyperinsulinemia (as long as 40 years) and blood pressure. The age- and gender-specific percentiles of systolic and diastolic blood pressure of the patients with insulinoma did not differ from the age- and gender-specific percentiles for the general white population. Furthermore, the prevalence of hypertension was similar for patients with insulinoma and matched control patients (34 versus 29%, respectively; P = 0.134) and did not exceed that expected for the general population. The age- and gender-specific percentiles of total plasma cholesterol concentrations among the patients with insulinoma were normal, whereas 21.5% of these patients had plasma triglyceride levels greater than the 95th age- and gender-specific percentile. Despite the increased triglyceride levels, no patient with insulinoma had a plasma triglyceride concentration that exceeded the criterion for hypertriglyceridemia—more than 250 mg/dl. We conclude that hyperinsulinemia, in the absence of insulin resistance, cannot be implicated in the genesis of hypertension or dyslipidemia.

Motor and tactile integration skills were sequentially assessed with academically average (N = 28) and academically disabled children (N = 17) over a 3-year period. The initial results demonstrated considerable differences between the groups. Analysis of variance and visual inspection of trends in the longitudinal data for the academically disabled group revealed a mixed pattern with catch-up in the motor areas and persistent delays in sensory areas. The results suggest different developmental patterns depending on the skill and group assessed. Right hand advantages were found across groups with motor speed whereas a left hand advantage was demonstrated on a stereognosis task. These right-left differences suggest an important developmental role for corpus callosum myelinization. The interpretation of soft neurological signs needs to be refined to allow for these sensory-motor, right-left parameters.

Of 614 children referred for an evaluation of hyperactivity and inattention, the 422 (68.7%) who qualified for a diagnosis of attention deficit disorder (ADD) were compared with the 192 (31.3%) who did not. The children with ADD had significantly higher full-scale IQ scores, verbal scores, and parental educational levels. They also had a significantly higher incidence of specific learning disabilities (73.7%). The absence of hyperactivity in children with ADD further exaggerated the differences in learning disability between the two groups. Cognitive limitation, severe parental psychopathology, and child neglect/abuse were significantly higher in the group without ADD. The two groups did not differ in the incidence of parental or child depressive symptomatology, motor diagnoses, language disorders, conduct disorders, and psychosomatic complaints. That only 29 children in whom ADD was absent (4.7% of all referrals) had been given a trial of stimulant medication does not support the presence of a major abuse of such drugs in the community.

The development of motor and sensory proficiency and the integration of soft signs were analyzed for 38 children with average achievement and 29 children achieving below grade level. Motor coordination, speed, and inhibition, as well as the development of sensory function, were evaluated at the time of entrance to kindergarten and again during the first grade. The performance of both groups progressed on tasks measuring motor speed and coordination as well as tactile integration. Although the children achieving below grade level continued to perform the majority of tasks poorly in comparison with the children performing at grade level, on most of the measures they evidenced definite catch-up or greater gain than the children performing at grade level. Their progress on the motor speed and coordination tasks supports the hypothesis of a developmental lag in these areas. Results of tests of motor inhibition were notable for an absence of progression. That children achieving below grade level did not advance in this area would argue against the hypothesis of a developmental lag for all soft signs. Although results of this longitudinal study are preliminary, findings to date would allow for the possibility that both deficits and lags are responsible for the differences between the academically normal and academically at-risk children.

We construct, for each n ( 4 ≤ n ≤ 9 ) n(4 \leq n \leq 9) , a matrix A n {A_n} which generates all the primitive Pythagorean n n -tuples ( x 1 , … , x n ) ({x_1}, \ldots ,{x_n}) with x n > 1 {x_n} > 1 \[ ( 1 ) x 1 2 + ⋯ + x n − 1 2 = x n 2 , gcd ( x 1 , … , x n ) = 1 (1)\quad x_1^2 + \cdots + x_{n - 1}^2 = x_n^2,\quad \gcd ({x_1}, \ldots ,{x_n}) = 1 \] from the single n n -tuple ( 1 , 0 , … , 0 , 1 ) (1,0, \ldots ,0,1) . Once a particular n n -tuple is generated, one permutes the first n − 1 n - 1 coordinates and/or changes some of their signs, and applies A n {A_n} to obtain another n n -tuple. This extends a result of Barning which presents an appropriate matrix A 3 {A_3} for the Pythagorean triples. One cannot so generate the Pythagorean n n -tuples if n ≥ 10 n \geq 10 ; in fact we show the Pythagorean n n -tuples fall into at least [ ( n + 6 ) / 8 ] [(n + 6)/8] distinct orbits under the automorphism group of (1).

The Capute Scales is a 100-item developmental assessment tool to quantitatively measure expressive and receptive language and nonverbal problem-solving skills in infants from birth to 3 years of age. The present multisite study standardized the instrument on a population of 1055 typically developing children balanced for age, sex, and race and generated normative tables to document the instrument's utility. There were no significant performance differences by race or sex. The achieved age levels for individual test items and for total scores were accurately predicted by the age levels assigned to the test items. The conversion of age levels to standard scores was found to be unnecessary because the developmental quotients derived from age ratios did not differ significantly from the derived scores. ( J Child Neurol 2004;19:967—972).

Health and social outcomes in children who have cerebral palsy (CP) depend on several factors, including the severity of the CP, medical interventions, and the child's environment. One of the hallmarks of cerebral palsy is its variability. Several formal methods of classifying persons with CP, such as the Gross Motor Function Classification System, have been developed to standardize that variability. Children and adults with CP must contend with increased mortality as well as many secondary conditions that can affect activities and participation in society. Predicting outcomes for children with CP, establishing realistic goals, and determining the best interventions to improve functioning are facilitated by applying research results to individual decisions. Many more such studies are needed--especially those performed with large representative samples. In addition, the childhood factors that affect outcomes in adults with CP still need to be elucidated.

Reviewers Donald A. Bergman, MD, FACP, FACE Jeffrey R. Garber, MD, FACE Carlos R. Hamilton, Jr., MD, FACE Yehuda Handelsman, MD, FACP, FACE Kalman E. Holdy, MD John S. Kukora, MD, FACS, FACE Philip Levy, MD, FACE Pasquale J. Palumbo, MD, MACE Steven M. Petak, MD, JD, FACE Leonid Poretsky, MD Philip Rabito, MD, FACE Herbert I. Rettinger, MD, FACE, MBA Helena W. Rodbard, MD, FACE F. John Service, MD, PhD, FACE, FACP, FRCPC Talla P. Shankar, MD, FACE

Neurodevelopmental markers that are present early in childhood may identify children at risk for later developmental disabilities. This paper attempts to clarify the relationship between one such proposed marker, toe walking, and language development in a general pediatric population. One hundred sixty-three children being seen for well-child visits were included in the study. Information from each child's caretaker was obtained for language development and a history of toe walking; observation of toe walking during the visit was also included. The frequency of toe walking was 24%. Language quotients were calculated and compared for toe walkers (n=39) and non-toe walkers (n=127). The mean language quotient for toe walkers tended to be consistently lower than that for non-toe walkers. The specificity of toe walking for low language scores was 85% but had a sensitivity of only 32%. Although an association between toe walking and language delay is supported by the present data, the association does not appear to be clinically significant.

Autism is a common disorder of childhood, affecting 1 in 500 children. Yet, it often remains unrecognized and undiagnosed until or after late preschool age because appropriate tools for routine developmental screening and screening specifically for autism have not been available. Early identification of children with autism and intensive, early intervention during the toddler and preschool years improves outcome for most young children with autism. This practice parameter reviews the available empirical evidence and gives specific recommendations for the identification of children with autism. This approach requires a dual process: 1) routine developmental surveillance and screening specifically for autism to be performed on all children to first identify those at risk for any type of atypical development, and to identify those specifically at risk for autism; and 2) to diagnose and evaluate autism, to differentiate autism from other developmental disorders.

Significant educational delays, even in the absence of cognitive-processing deficits, can be attributed to the inability to sustain attention. The relation between dyslexia and attention deficits is well established. Although research on the relation between dyscalculia and attention deficits is limited, evidence is mounting for a pivotal relation between these two disorders. Indeed, attention deficits may be more strongly associated with dyscalculia than with dyslexia.

Retrospective history of middle ear disease was compared with developmental diagnosis in 507 consecutively referred school-age children. History of major ear problems was positively associated with discrepancies between the performance and verbal IQ on the WISC-R. History of major ear problems was positively associated with the presence of articulation disorders for children in the low social class, hyperactivity in the middle social class, and language problems in the high social class. A history of significant middle ear disease in early childhood should raise concerns for articulation difficulties and possible language problems in children presenting to clinicians with school problems.

Retrospective maternal report of fetal activity level was compared with developmental diagnosis in 608 consecutively referred children. Maternal history of fetal activity level was also obtained from 140 unmatched well children in a general pediatric clinic. Fetal hyperactivity was positively associated with a diagnosis of child hyperactivity, and fetal hypoactivity was positively associated with a diagnosis of mental retardation in the children. Maternal histories of fetal activity level in the control group weakened the strength of the association between fetal hyperactivity and child hyperactivity but did not affect the association between fetal hypoactivity and mental retardation in children.

Summary The above evaluation for minor dysmorphic features might perhaps be referred to as medical or scientific physiognomy. Physiognomy was never supposed to be limited to the study of the face, but in its better versions includes the face, the palms, the somatotype, as well as the gait and other movement patterns. Medical physiognomy therefore approximates the modern approach to syndrome identification but remains somewhat broader. The above and similar dysmorphic features may contribute to the identification of a specific chromosomal, genetic, or teratogenic syndrome diagnosis. However, the presence of several (usually taken as more than 3 or 4) of these minor malformations in the absence of a specific syndrome still suggests either a genetic influence (perhaps a constellation of familial features) or some adverse impact on the developing fetus occurring in the first trimester. The absence of a syndrome and the presence of a familial pattern of dysmorphology does not rule out an association with developmental disorders; rather they recommend a more in-depth review of the family history for the presence of subtle developmental abnormalities. In the presence of a developmental diagnosis, dysmorphic features support the need for a more detailed genetic investigation and strongly favor a prenatal as opposed to postnatal cause for the disorder. With a suspicious but nondiagnostic developmental delay, the presence of dysmorphic features favors increasing the seriousness with which an otherwise mild degree of delay is interpreted.