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This paper provides a comprehensive description of the plutonic rocks of western Fiordland between Breaksea and Sutherland Sounds. The area is dominated by the Early cretaceous Western Fiordland Orthogneiss (WFO), but also includes smaller bodies of Paleozoic and cretaceous granitoid. Plutonic rocks of western Fiordland intrude metasediments of the Western Province, many of whose age and terrane affinities remain undefined. Paleozoic granitoids in western Fiordland include the Pandora Orthogneiss (c. 500 Ma) and widespread related sills within Paleozoic metasedimentary rocks; the All Round Pluton (c. 340 Ma); the Deas Cove Granite (c. 372 Ma); and possibly the Straight River Granite. The Pandora Orthogneiss is one of the oldest plutons yet found in the Median Batholith. Correlatives include the Jaquiery Granite Gneiss in central Fiordland and orthogneiss in Doubtful Sound. Plutonism of Ross/Delamarian age is therefore widespread in those parts of Fiordland where cambrian or older Western Province metasedimentary rocks form basement. The All Round Pluton and Deas Cove Granite are correlatives of the S-type Ridge and A/I-type Foulwind Suites, respectively. The c. 125-116 Ma WFO includes at least seven major dioritic and monzodioritic plutons in western Fiordland, one in central Fiordland, and one in central Stewart island. Plutons which compose the WFO are distinguished by differences in their age, petrography, structural and metamorphic histories, and geochemistry. The WFO in northern Fiordland and the correlative Walkers Pluton on Stewart island were emplaced in the mid crust (4-9 kbar) at depths comparable with some Separation Point Suite plutons of similar age. WFO plutons in southern Fiordland were emplaced at greater depths (10-18 kbar). WFO plutons have been variably recrystallised to eclogite; omphacite-, garnet-, two-pyroxene-, and hornblende-granulite; and hornblende-amphibolite facies assemblages, reflecting different PTX conditions during metamorphism of each body. Some parts of the WFO remain undeformed and unmetamorphosed. evidence of up to c. 6 kbar loading after emplacement is limited to WFO plutons in northern Fiordland and adjacent country rocks. extensional ductile shear zones previously shown to locally separate the WFO from adjacent rocks are discontinuous later features, commonly localised along earlier intrusive contacts between WFO plutons and metasedimentary country rocks. They do not form a regionally extensive detachment between the upper and lower plates of a metamorphic core complex. The WFO has previously been included in the Separation Point Suite since both units share a high Sr/Y (HiSY) chemistry and were emplaced at broadly the same time. However, the WFO and Separation Point Suite have distinct chemistries. Separation Point Suite rocks generally contain greater Sr, Na, and Al, and have lower Sr/Rb ratios, rare earth element and Y contents, than WFO rocks with comparable amounts of SiO2. Many aspects of the WFO chemistry (aside from its HiSY character) are similar to that of the older Darran Suite rather than the Separation Point Suite. This may reflect a greater amount of partial melting during generation of the SiO2-poor WFO than the SiO2-rich Separation Point Suite. Alternatively it may indicate derivation of the WFO and Separation Point Suite from different sources, albeit at depths greater than those where residual plagioclase is stable. Relatively large variations in the major element chemistry of the Separation Point Suite reflect fractionation and/or accumulation of plagioclase, whereas the more limited variability in the major element chemistry of the WFO reflects minor fractionation and/or accumulation of hornblende and/or clinopyroxene. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study was to describe breastfeeding practices, as well as what pregnant women know about breastfeeding and mother-to-child transmission (MTCT) of HIV, and explore factors associated with exclusive breastfeeding, especially in the presence of HIV/AIDS. A cross-sectional interview survey of 500 pregnant women was conducted in the Kilimanjaro region, supplemented by focus group discussions with pregnant women. Among the 309 mothers having previously breastfed, 85% had initiated breastfeeding within the first few hours postpartum, and 18% of newborns received some prelacteal food. Mean duration of breastfeeding was 23.7 months, but 46% of mothers had introduced other fluids early. Knowledge of HIV-transmission through breastfeeding was not associated with breastfeeding practices. Married women (odds ratio [OR] = .09, 95 % confidence interval [ CI] = .04-.24) and those having knowledge of exclusive breastfeeding (OR = .08, 95% CI = .02-.31) were the least likely to end exclusive breastfeeding early. Exclusive breastfeeding is a rare practice, and MTCT of HIV may further complicate recommendations with regard to this practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study was to investigate inhibin B and follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) secretion in a large group of oligozoospermic subjects affected by different degrees of testicular damage, before and after FSH treatment. A total of 135 oligozoospermic subjects (sperm count < 20 x 10(6)/ml) were evaluated for seminal parameters and FSH, luteinizing hormone (LH), testosterone and inhibin B plasma concentrations. Testicular structure was analysed with bilateral fine needle aspiration cytology. Inhibin B showed an inverse correlation with FSH, no correlation with sperm concentration and a significant relationship with intratesticular spermatid number, demonstrating that testicular spermatids play an important role in the control of inhibin B production. Twenty-five subjects with sperm counts < 10 x 10(6)/ml were treated with FSH; 11 of these had basal FSH and inhibin B plasma concentrations in the normal range (group A), while in seven subjects FSH was elevated (> 7 IU/l) with normal inhibin B (group B), and in seven patients FSH was high and inhibin B reduced (< 80 pg/ml) (group C). During treatment, in group A patients inhibin B plasma concentrations increased significantly after 2, 3 and 4 weeks of FSH administration and declined thereafter to pre-treatment concentrations. Groups B and C did not show any modification during the treatment. In the same period, in group A FSH increased significantly after 2, 3 and 4 weeks and subsequently declined. In groups B and C, FSH increased significantly after 2 weeks and remained elevated during the following period. The results of the present study confirm the significant inverse correlation between inhibin B and FSH plasma concentrations in subjects with disturbed spermatogenesis, and demonstrate that inhibin B reflects Sertoli cell function and their interaction with spermatids. FSH and inhibin B concentrations are an expression of the spermatogenic status of seminiferous tubules. FSH treatment seems to modify inhibin B plasma concentrations only in subjects with normal basal FSH and inhibin B, independently from the effects of this therapy on sperm production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study was to evaluate the level of physical capacity in a female hospital population of Paris and its suburbs. A total of 1505 women working in the selected departments filled in a questionnaire concerning their working conditions, life habits and health and also attended a medical examination. The effort test performed consisted in flexing the legs 20 times with the chest held straigt, in 40 s. The heart rates were measured for the first, the second and the third minutes of recovery (first 15 s multiplied by 4). The blood pressure was measured just after the heart rate, for the first and the third minute. Recovery indices have been constituted from the results. The respective weights of anthropometric and sociodemographic risk factors for recovery indices were studied in multiple logistic regression models. The classification enables us to consider about 25%-30% of our population as having a satisfactory physical capacity, about 26%-27% as having an acceptable capacit, and about 24%-27% as having a weak capacity. About 21% of the population presented an excessive pressure reaction and 44% a questionable pressure reaction. Our results concerning the level of physical capacity of the female nursing staff should be taken into account especially in the future planning of work loads and architectural choices, which must avoid excessive physical burdens in relation to this level. An improvement in the level of physical capacity could be envisaged as well. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The relations between working conditions and various aspects of health among female hospital workers were studied in 26 departments of large hospitals in the Paris area in 1986; 90% of the workers of these departments filled in a questionnaire about their working conditions, sociodemographic characteristics and health in the previous 12 months and attended a medical examination. The study sample included 1505 women. The main cause of sick leave was musculo-skeletal disorders and affected 16% of the women. Back pain was described by 47% of the women, and treatment for musculo-skeletal disorders by 28%. Three working conditions were considered to characterize the posture at work: standing more than six hours a day, bending over more than ten times per hour, and maintaining an uncomfortable posture. A cumulative posture index was constructed by adding for each worker the number of the working conditions to which she had been exposed. A cumulative lifting index was constructed in a similar way from the four following characteristics: lifting weights of more than 15 kg, lifting patients more than ten times a day, making beds normally or often, and pushing beds or trolleys more than ten minutes a day. A mixed index was then constructed associating the two previous ones. The relations between these indexes and musculo-skeletal disorders (MSD) were studied after adjustment for potential confounders such as age, obesity, number of children, travel duration, sport practice, occupational level, number of years in the occupation, previous attack of back pain, and mental health (assessed by the score to the general health questionnaire). The logistic regressions of MSD indicators on the mixed index and other risk factors showed that MSD was about twice as frequent among women with a maximal load in posture and/or in lifting than among women with no more than one medium index (tiring posture or lifting). These facts support the necessity for improvement of the work load in hospitals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We study the long time existence of the solutions of the Cauchy problem for a class of nonlinear fourth order hyperbolic equations, in which the principal part is given by the composition of two waves operators with different propagation speeds. The presence of these two speeds makes this problem essentially different from the correspondent one for the second order wave equation. In fact, in the present case, we cannot apply the approach of S. Klainerman, based on the invariance of the D'Alembertian operator under the complete Lorentz group. Furthermore, even the alternative method used by F. John and S. Klainerman, only for the wave equation in three space dimensions, does not seem directly applicable. Nevertheless, thanks to the special structure of the equations, we are able to show the almost global existence of the solutions to the related Cauchy problem. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]