The detection of oestrus in dairy cattle

A survey attempted to determine the extent to which cows are being inseminated when not in oestrus. The method used to check the farmers' diagnoses of oestrus was based on peripheral plasma progesterone concentrations analysed by radioimmunoassay. Of 141 cows examined in this way, a total of 30 (21-28 per cent) showed abnormalities of the progesterone levels. The fertility within this group was very poor with only two of the cows being known to have conceived to the service in question.     

Radiography as an aid in the diagnosis of traumatic reticuloperitonitis in cattle

Radiographs of the reticulum, the medical records and the surgical and post mortem findings for 151 cattle were evaluated, and the radiographic findings in animals which had no pathological changes in the cranioventral abdomen were compared with those in animals with traumatic reticuloperitonitis. Features that were found to be reliable in the diagnosis of the condition included atypically positioned foreign bodies, abnormal gas shadows in the region of the reticulum, and depressions in the cranioventral margin of the reticulum. In addition to the reticulum, the remainder of the cranioventral abdomen was also assessed radiographically. An accumulation of gas or a gas-fluid interface outside the gastrointestinal tract, and intra-abdominal masses were typical findings in cattle with traumatic reticuloperitonitis. Various parameters were used to determine the reliability of radiography of the reticulum in the diagnosis of the condition; its prevalence was 50 per cent, the sensitivity of the radiographic diagnosis was 76 per cent, the specificity was 93 per cent, the accuracy was 85 per cent, the positive predictive value was 92 per cent and the negative predictive value was 80 per cent.     

Chromosome painting in mammals as an approach to comparative genomics

Chromosome painting has become a routine tool in comparative cytogenetics. The utility of interspecies chromosome painting has been demonstrated in taxa characterized by highly rearranged karyotypes such as in rodents and lesser apes. Chromosome painting also provides a new level of precision in comparative genome analysis for eliminating errors of confounding convergence with homology. Recent results hold promise that molecular cytogenetics will make a significant contribution to the understanding of the major features of genome evolution.     

A rotary rasp as an aid in the foot care of cattle (author's transl)

The use of a rotary metal rasp, mounted on a right-angled, as in aid in the foot care of cattle is described. The results obtained with this instrument were satisfactory. This device will save a considerable amount of (physical) labour as well as time, especially in cattle with particular hard feet (such as A.I. bulls) or in mass foot care.     

Analogies as an aid to understanding and memory.

Analogies from near and far knowledge domains were presented with three different scientific passages. A no-analogy condition served as a control. Ss who read passages with a distant domain analogy listed more facts in free recall and cued recall tests, and answered correctly more questions that required inferences or comprehension of a novel analogy. Before or after placement of the analogy was a nonsignificant variable. There were no differences between near-domain analogies and the no-analogy control conditions. These results are interpreted as support for the concept of structure mapping as the underlying process in the use of analogies. Results suggest that analogies from far domains promote comprehension of and memory for scientific text. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Vancomycin susceptibility as an aid to the identification of lactobacilli

Malignant mesothelioma of tunica vaginalis testis is a rare tumour usually associated with hydrocele. Until now only one case has been documented, where a pre-operative diagnosis was made by cytological examination of hydrocele fluid. We report one more case with pre-operative diagnosis using hydrocele fluid cytology.     

The use of clays as an aid to water purification

The conditions under which cationic species will adsorb intensely onto silicate surfaces have been investigated with a view to specifying basic requirements for successful operation of a water purification process based on silicate/cation interactions. Zeta-potential measurements have been related to effectiveness of cation precipitation. It is shown that clay additions enhance ferric iron removal, optimum pH range being pH 9 to 10. Coal measures shale addition increases the rate of settling of precipitates several-fold. Electro-kinetic measurements show that clay additions also remove uncharged particles efficiently. The precipitation/clay adsorption process is reversible with respect to pH.     

Use of hypnosis as an aid to eyewitness memory.

72 hypnotically susceptible undergraduates observed a videotape of a simulated bank robbery. One week later, Ss were interviewed in 1 of 3 conditions: hypnotized, relaxed, or waking. Half of the Ss in each of these groups received imagery instructions; the remainder were given guided memory instructions. Each S answered 47 questions, including 5 misleading ones, about both the video event and the context of the viewing room. Ss also were offered a photo identification task. Results show that overall recall accuracy for both the video and live events was high. Hypnosis had no positive effect on recall, nor were hypnotized witnesses more susceptible to misleading information. The type of memory instruction interacted with recall condition. This interaction differed for the video and live aspects of the event. Rated confidence on photo choice was positively related to both accuracy of choice and amount recalled. (39 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Sex therapy as an aid to marital and family therapy

The treatment by a qualified sex therapist of a sexually dysfunctional couple referred by a family or marital therapist often significantly factilitates the overall therapeutic progress. When "successful," relevant effects of sex therapy include a better dyadic relationship, optimism about therapy in general, and greater willingness to change, beneficial ripple effects on other family members often occur. Resistance by partners or other family members is considered, as is the use of "unsuccessful" sex therapy as a diagnostic tool. Questions as to whether sex therapy should follow, interrupt, or proceed concurrently with family/marital therapy are discussed.     

The cuffed oropharyngeal airway as an aid to fibreoptic intubation

OBJECTIVE: To determine if a structured encounter form for well-child care improves documentation of well-child care. DESIGN: Retrospective medical record review of a before-and-after trial. SETTING: Family practice residency clinic serving a primarily low-socioeconomic urban population. PATIENTS: Children younger than 6 years receiving well-child care visits. INTERVENTION: Detailed checklists were developed and implemented in 1994 for each of 12 well-child examinations for the assessment of children aged 2 weeks to 5 years based on recommendations from the American Academy of Pediatrics and the US Preventive Services Task Force. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Documentation of multiple aspects of well-child care, including developmental assessment, safety and nutrition counseling, and laboratory tests for 6-month periods in 1993 and 1994, before and after implementation of the structured encounter form. RESULTS: A total of 842 well-child visits were reviewed. Documentation improved significantly with the use of the encounter form for 19 of the 23 aspects of well-child care that were studied. Screening test rates were less than optimal despite the encounter form. CONCLUSIONS: The structured encounter form was very effective in improving documentation of almost all aspects of well-child care. However, effective communication is needed among physicians, nurses, and parents to ensure optimal screening test rates.     

Evaluation of autofluorescence as an aid to diagnosis of cerebrocortical necrosis

A series of brains from sheep, cattle, goats and pigs was examined histopathologically and illuminated by ultraviolet light to test the specificity of autofluorescence in the diagnosis of cerebrocortical necrosis. Fluorescence was seen in only four cases of porcine encephalopathy. In the ruminant brains it occurred in seven out of eight cases of cerebral oedema of lambs; otherwise it was confined to cases of cerebrocortical necrosis, although a few false negative cases were encountered. Ovine cerebral oedema is a disease of unweaned lambs which is unlikely to be confused with cerebrocortical necrosis. Thus bright cerebrocortical autofluorescence in a naturally occurring disease of cattle, sheep and goats is a likely indicator of cerebrocortical necrosis; however, a small proportion of cases will escape detection by this method.     

Trimethylaminuria: the use of choline as an aid to diagnosis

Trimethylamine metabolism can be studied by means of choline loading. The value and some limitations of the method are illustrated by results obtained in normal subjects, a patient with the Fish Odour syndrome and his kindred.     

Mechano-content analysis as an aid to predicting effects of advertising microcommunications.

Performed a regression analysis of 204 posters to predict the percentage of respondents who remembered seeing an outdoor advertising message. The independent variables were 21 mechanical and 6 content elements; the dependent variables were recognition scores. The predictive validity of 20 equations was too low to be of value to advertising communicators. The correlations between predicted and actual scores were low (.30-.41, p     

Colorimetric determination of creatine phosphokinase isoenzymes: detection in tissues and serum, and usefulness as an aid to diagnosis of myocardial infarction

1. A colorimetric procedure for creatine phosphokinase (E.C.2.7.3.2.) isoenzymes suitable for routine laboratory use its described. The method utilizes a commercial product for visualization of CK isoenzymes in both serum and tissues. 2. The technic has been applied as an aid to the diagnosis of acute myocardial infarction. An intermediate migrating isoenzyme band (CK-MB) was detected in sera of 19 patients with clinical evidence of myocardial infarction and two patients with myocardial ischemia. The CK(MB) was absent in three patients presenting with symptoms suspect of, but not clinically confirmed as having myocardial infarction.