Background
Theileria orientalis infection causes a clinical syndrome in cattle characterised by weakness, reluctance to walk, anaemia, jaundice and death in peri‐parturient cows and young calves, ...referred to as bovine anaemia caused by Theileria orientalis group (BATOG). Abortions in pregnant cows are also reported. Pallor, pyrexia and elevated heart and respiratory rates are typical findings on physical examination.
Case Report
A syndrome of abortions, lethargy, inappetence, jaundice and deaths in beef cattle on two separate properties and a separate cluster of three properties within 15 km west of the town of Denmark in Western Australia was associated with the presence of severe regenerative anaemia and the presence of Theileria orientalis Ikeda genotype in blood samples taken from affected cattle and their cohorts. A diagnosis of bovine anaemia caused by the T. orientalis group was based on consistent clinical, haematological, biochemical and PCR findings. Conventional PCR testing detected only the T. orientalis Ikeda type. On the two properties where it was investigated, quantitative PCR testing for parasite load was suggestive of recent infections. Sequencing of T. orientalis major piroplasm surface protein gene PCR products demonstrated that they were identical to those from similar bovine cases in New South Wales.
Conclusion
The clinical history of affected cattle and the biochemical, haematological and PCR findings were consistent with bovine anaemia caused by the T. orientalis Ikeda genotype. This clinical syndrome had not been recognised in Western Australia before this series of cases.
OBJECTIVE: To determine the specificity and sensitivity of a commercial copro‐antigen ELISA for the detection of Fasciola hepatica infection in cattle and sheep and to assess the suitability of the ...test for use in horses. METHODS: Testing was done on more than 100 negative faecal samples from each of sheep, cattle and horses and on at least 40 positive faecal samples from each species. Positive samples were selected based on a positive sedimentation test for liver fluke eggs. Faecal samples of animals from Western Australia, which is free of liver fluke infection, served as negative controls. Specificity and sensitivity were assessed for each species using the recommended kit cut‐off and also custom cut‐offs specific for each species based on the mean plus 3‐fold standard deviation of the mean of the negative samples for each species. RESULTS: Using the cut‐off recommended by the kit manufacturer, the specificity was 100% for all species and the sensitivity was 88%, 80% and 9% for sheep, cattle and horses, respectively. Using the lower custom cut‐offs for each species improved the sensitivity to 100% for sheep, 87% for cattle and 28% for horses, while maintaining the specificity above 99% for all species. CONCLUSIONS: The sensitivity of the commercial copro‐antigen ELISA can be improved by using custom cut‐off values for each species. With this modification, it is a suitable alternative screening test to the currently used sedimentation test for border control of sheep and cattle movement. The test is not suitable for use in horses.
Case report
Six Gilbert's potoroos (Potorous gilbertii) in a captive colony, five of which were closely related, died or were euthanased with severe renal disease. Clinical signs were mostly ...non‐specific. Renal calculi were seen on ultrasound of two affected potoroos and oxalate crystalluria was seen in two of three affected potoroos that had urine samples examined. Necropsies revealed extensive severe renal oxalosis in all affected potoroos. These findings and markedly increased concentrations of glycolate in the urine of the four affected potoroos for which it was measured, confirmed a disorder of oxalate metabolism and suggested a condition similar to primary hyperoxaluria type 1 in humans. Liver alanine : glyoxylate aminotransferase activity and intracellular location were assessed as normal in one affected potoroo, which is inconsistent with human primary hyperoxaluria type 1. Although a condition similar to human primary hyperoxaluria type 2 or 3 was not ruled out, other clinicopathological findings were not consistent with those seen in humans with these conditions. A lack of faecal oxalate‐degrading activity was observed in two affected potoroos in which it was measured, whereas oxalate‐degrading activity was variably present in healthy captive and wild potoroos.
Conclusion
Although the pathogenesis of renal oxalosis in these cases was not clear, the biochemical findings of elevated urinary oxalate and glycolate excretion indicate an abnormality of oxalate metabolism. The familial pattern of disease suggests it could be an inherited condition.
Urinary incontinence (UI) affects between 40 and 60% of people in hospital after stroke, but is often poorly managed in stroke units.
To inform an exploratory trial by three methods: identifying the ...organisational context for embedding the SVP; exploring health professionals’ views around embedding the SVP and measuring presence/absence of UI and frequency of UI episodes at baseline and six weeks post-stroke.
A mixed methods single case study included analysis of organisational context using interviews with clinical leaders analysed with soft systems methodology, a process evaluation using interviews with staff delivering the intervention and analysed with Normalisation Process Theory, and outcome evaluation using data from patients receiving the SVP and analysed using descriptive statistics.
An 18 bed acute stroke unit in a large Foundation Trust (a ‘not for profit’ privately controlled entity not accountable to the UK Department of Health) serving a population of 370,000.
Health professionals and clinical leaders with a role in either delivering the SVP or linking with it in any capacity were recruited following informed consent. Patients were recruited meeting the following inclusion criteria: aged 18 or over with a diagnosis of stroke; urinary incontinence (UI) as defined by the International Continence Society; conscious; medically stable as judged by the clinical team and with incontinence classified as stress, urge, mixed or ‘functional’.
All patients admitted to the unit during the intervention period were screened for eligibility; informed consent to collect baseline and outcome data was sought from all eligible patients.
Organisational context: 18 health professionals took part in four group interviews. Findings suggest an environment not conducive to therapeutic continence management and a focus on containment of UI. Embedding the SVP into practice: 21 nursing staff took part in six group interviews. Initial confusion gave way to embedding of processes facilitated by new routines and procedures. Patient outcome: 43 patients were recruited; 28 of these commenced the SVP. Of these, 6/28 (21%) were continent at six weeks post-stroke or discharge.
It was possible to embed the SVP into practice despite an organisational context not conducive to therapeutic continence care. Recommendations are made for introducing the SVP in a trial context.
Various structures for n-in-p planar pixel sensors have been developed at KEK in order to cope with the huge particle fluence in the upcoming LHC upgrades. Performances of the sensors with different ...structures have been evaluated with testbeam. The n-in-p devices were connected by bump-bonding to the ATLAS Pixel front-end chip (FE-I4A) and characterized before and after the irradiation to 1×1016 1MeV neq/cm2. Results of measurements with 120GeV/c momentum pion beam at the CERN Super Proton Synchrotron (SPS) in September 2012 are presented.
•Pixel sensors with two biasing and two isolation structures were evaluated.•Overall hit efficiency of 97.6% was confirmed at −1200V after 1×1016neq/cm2.•Inefficiency regions were observed in non-irradiated samples with P-spray isolation.•Inefficiency regions after high irradiation were observed under bias rail and PolySi.•The potential of the surface structure is thought to affect the charge collection.
The role of supine positioning after acute stroke in improving cerebral blood flow and the countervailing risk of aspiration pneumonia have led to variation in head positioning in clinical practice. ...We wanted to determine whether outcomes in patients with acute ischemic stroke could be improved by positioning the patient to be lying flat (i.e., fully supine with the back horizontal and the face upwards) during treatment to increase cerebral perfusion.
In a pragmatic, cluster-randomized, crossover trial conducted in nine countries, we assigned 11,093 patients with acute stroke (85% of the strokes were ischemic) to receive care in either a lying-flat position or a sitting-up position with the head elevated to at least 30 degrees, according to the randomization assignment of the hospital to which they were admitted; the designated position was initiated soon after hospital admission and was maintained for 24 hours. The primary outcome was degree of disability at 90 days, as assessed with the use of the modified Rankin scale (scores range from 0 to 6, with higher scores indicating greater disability and a score of 6 indicating death).
The median interval between the onset of stroke symptoms and the initiation of the assigned position was 14 hours (interquartile range, 5 to 35). Patients in the lying-flat group were less likely than patients in the sitting-up group to maintain the position for 24 hours (87% vs. 95%, P<0.001). In a proportional-odds model, there was no significant shift in the distribution of 90-day disability outcomes on the global modified Rankin scale between patients in the lying-flat group and patients in the sitting-up group (unadjusted odds ratio for a difference in the distribution of scores on the modified Rankin scale in the lying-flat group, 1.01; 95% confidence interval, 0.92 to 1.10; P=0.84). Mortality within 90 days was 7.3% among the patients in the lying-flat group and 7.4% among the patients in the sitting-up group (P=0.83). There were no significant between-group differences in the rates of serious adverse events, including pneumonia.
Disability outcomes after acute stroke did not differ significantly between patients assigned to a lying-flat position for 24 hours and patients assigned to a sitting-up position with the head elevated to at least 30 degrees for 24 hours. (Funded by the National Health and Medical Research Council of Australia; HeadPoST ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT02162017 .).
A new type of n-in-p planar pixel sensors have been developed at KEK/HPK in order to cope with the maximum particle fluence of 1–3×1016 1MeV equivalent neutrons per square centimeter (neq/cm2) in the ...upcoming LHC upgrades. Four n-in-p devices were connected by bump-bonding to the new ATLAS Pixel front-end chip (FE-I4A) and characterized before and after the irradiation to 2×1015neq/cm2. These planar sensors are 150μm thick, using biasing structures made out of polysilicon or punch-through dot and isolation structures of common or individual p-stop. Results of measurements with radioactive 90Sr source and with a 120GeV/c momentum pion beam at the CERN Super Proton Synchrotron (SPS) are presented. The common p-stop isolation structure shows a better performance than the individual p-stop design, after the irradiation. The flat distribution of the collected charge in the depth direction after the irradiation implies that the effect of charge trapping is small, at the fluence, with the bias voltage well above the full depletion voltage.
Responding to the TRC's Calls to Action and Indigenous scholars' repeated calls for non-Indigenous people to engage in decolonial efforts (Kovach, 2009; Pete, 2016; Pidgeon, 2016; Wilson, 2008), the ...Kodaly Society of Canada facilitated a series of virtual gatherings in 2021-22 grounded in the principles of respect, responsibility, relationship, and reciprocity (Wilson, 2008). Organized to encourage and support members in their reconciliation efforts, the gatherings were also an opportunity for the organization to consider what steps need to be taken in addressing systems and operations that are deeply embedded in colonial constructs. Pour donner suite aux appels a l'action de la CVR et aux multiples demandes d'universitaires autochtones pour que les non-Autochtones participent aux efforts de decolonisation (Kovach, 2009; Pete, 2016; Pidgeon, 2016; Wilson, 2008), la Societe Kodaly du Canada a organise, en 2021 et 2022, une serie de rencontres virtuelles portant sur les principes de respect, de responsabilite, de liaison et de reciprocite (Wilson, 2008). Ces rencontres, qui visaient a encourager et a soutenir les initiatives de reconciliation des membres, ont aussi permis a l'association de reflechir aux mesures a prendre pour corriger les pratiques et les systemes profondement ancres dans des concepts coloniaux.
PDF
