Neuropsychologic prediction of performance measures of daily living skills in geriatric patients.

The current study examined the capacity of an abbreviated neuropsychologic (NP) battery to predict performance-based activities of daily living (ADLs) in a psychogeriatric sample. Inpatients of a geriatric evaluation unit (34 men and 74 women), mean age 74, underwent neuropsychologic assessment and performance assessment of ADLs. Results revealed a strong overall relation between NP assessment and ADL performance. Multiple regressions were significant for 4 of 5 instrumental ADLs, with the NP battery accounting for 14% to 32% of the variance in ADL performance. Visuospatial ability was the best predictor of functional dependence across each ADL domain, followed by memory performance. The findings provide validation for the use of specific NP tests in making judgments about dependence in instrumental ADLs. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Selfhood at risk: Postmodern perils and the perils of postmodernism.

Various commentaries on the threats to personal well-being involved in contemporary Western middle-class life are examined, especially K. J. Gergen's (1991) treatment of the "saturated self." The version of postmodernism that Gergen advocated is criticized as representing an increasingly fashionable style of metatheory that reflects contemporary threats to selfhood but paralyzes endeavors to cope with them. A. Giddens's (1991) treatment of self and society in late modernity is selectively described as better fitted to a stance within which scientific and professional psychology can contribute to realistic hopefulness rather than to fin de siècle hopelessness. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Intraoperative autotransfusion: equipment, protocols, and guidelines

Blood obtained by intraoperative autotransfusion is: 1) readily available 2) sterile 3) compatible 4) normothermic 5) inexpensive and may be infused rapidly for volume support. We have made extensive modifications to commercially available equipment in order to provide a safe, effective IAT. The effects of IAT in our series of 85 patients are outlined below. Red Cell Mass is reduced after IAT because of irretrievable blood loss and hemolysis, and may be controlled by homologous transfusion when necessary. Red Cell Survival is normal after IAT. Hemolysis. Plasma free hemoglobin is consistently elevated after IAT, but clears within 24 hours. Platelets are normal for patients autotransfused less than 3,500 ml; micropore filters should not be used in cases where greater than 3,500 ml blood is expected to be reinfused; in cases where greater than 3,500 ml is reinfused, 10 units of platelets are recommended for every 3,000 ml of blood reinfused; IAT does effect platelets function; however, platelets circulating within the patient function normally. Coagulation. We use local ACD to eliminate extracorporeal surface clotting. Even with massive IAT we have never demonstrated any clinical or laboratory evidence of intravascular coagulopathy. "Dilutional coagulopathy" may be procuced when greater than 5,000 ml are reinfused, and may be controlled with fresh frozen plasma and platelet concentrates. Bilirubin levels were normal after IAT despite gross hemoglobinuria. Fat emboli were not noted after IAT. Air emboli must be a concern in IAT; HOWEVER, PROPER OPERATION AND EQUIPMENT MODIFICATION MAY ELIMINATE EMBOLI. Renal Failure was not noted after IAT. Alveolar-arterial Oxygen Difference and Blood Gases were normal after IAT. We feel IAT is not necessary if a blood loss less than 1,000 ml is expected. Also, if greater than 3,500 ml is expected additional backup (i.e. homologous transfusions, platelets, fresh frozen plasma) may be required. As banked donor blood reserves become more limited, IAT may become a routine part of general surgical procedures.     

Quantification of compaction-induced crystallinity reduction of a pharmaceutical solid using 19F solid-state NMR and powder X-ray diffraction

¹⁹F solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) was investigated as an analytical technique to quantify the amorphous phase in a fluorine-containing pharmaceutical candidate. The crystallinity of Compound 1 was calculated using two ¹⁹F T₁ relaxation-based methods. The first method employs both the pure amorphous and the crystalline reference standards while the second method is model independent and utilizes a single standard. The ¹⁹F solid-state NMR results were confirmed with powder X-ray diffraction methods. From X-ray diffraction data, two linear calibration curves were obtained from blends of crystalline and amorphous Compound 1: one is based on the total integrated intensity of selected diffraction peaks and the other on the total intensity of the amorphous halo at 2θ positions that have no interference from crystalline diffraction peaks. The crystallinity of Compound 1 after compaction calculated by both ¹⁹F solid-state NMR methods was in excellent agreement with the results from the X-ray calibration curves. ¹⁹F solid-state NMR was shown to be a powerful technique in determining the amount of amorphous phase present in a pharmaceutical solid.     

Green information systems use in social enterprise: the case of a community-led eco-localization website in the West Midlands region of the UK

This study examines the intention of environmentally-oriented social enterprises to continue using Green IS (an eco-localization website here) in Herefordshire located in the West Midlands region of the United Kingdom. The Herefordshire Greenlinks (HGL) Association is a local business community that operates primarily through the HGL Website in order to help local social enterprises find and trade local eco-friendly goods and services. It is an example of a “market-based” approach to solving social and environmental issues that is inspired by a bottom-up view of community development and eco-localization. Based on the theory of uses and gratification of media use and the new environmental paradigm, we propose a research model that outlines the various factors contributing to intention to continue using an eco-localization website. The research model and its associated hypotheses were empirically tested using a dataset generated from a survey of 83 small social enterprises. The results demonstrate the importance of three different types of gratification – content, social and performance gratification as well as users’ environmental concerns in determining the intention to continue using an eco-localization website. This study contributes to the Green IS literature by extending research to the social sector environment, and it also provides practical insight for designers of such community-led eco-localization websites.     

Alcohol- or drug-use disorders and motor vehicle accident mortality: A retrospective cohort study

A large body of research has linked alcohol consumption and motor vehicle accidents (MVAs), but far fewer studies have estimated the risk of MVA fatality among drug users. Our study addresses this gap. We identified cohorts of individuals hospitalized in California from 1990 to 2005 with ICD-9 diagnoses of methamphetamine- (n = 74,170), alcohol- (n = 592,406), opioids- (n = 68,066), cannabis- (n = 47,048), cocaine- (n = 48,949), or polydrug-related disorders (n = 411,175), and these groups were followed for up to 16 years. Age-, sex-, and race-adjusted standardized mortality rates (SMRs) for deaths due to MVAs were generated in relation to the California general population. Standardized MVA mortality ratios were elevated across all drug cohorts: alcohol (4.5, 95% CI, 4.1–4.9), cocaine (3.8, 95% CI, 2.3–5.3), opioids (2.8, 95% CI, 2.1–3.5), methamphetamine (2.6, 95% CI, 2–3.1), cannabis (2.3, 95% CI, 1.5–3.2) and polydrug (2.6, 95% CI, 2.4–2.9). Males and females had similar MVA SMRs. Our large, population-based study found elevated risk of MVA mortality across all cohorts of individuals with alcohol- or drug-use disorders. Given that illicit drug users are often unaware of or misperceive the impacts of drug use on safe driving, it may be important for health-service or public-health interventions to address such biases and improve road safety.     

Multiphoton Lithography of Unconstrained Three‐Dimensional Protein Microstructures

Multiphoton lithography (MPL) is a highly versatile strategy for creating 3D microscale objects with complex geometrical arrangements, including nested boxes, interlocking blocks, and braided threads. Of the various chemistries used to produce solid forms in MPL, protein photocrosslinking has been of particular value in biological applications, yielding materials with high porosity, tunable elasticity, and a diverse set of chemical and biochemical properties. Unfortunately, the potential for object drift, and consequent distortion, during this direct‐write process has required that microforms be constructed in integral contact with an immobile surface, precluding fabrication of protein‐based objects that retain rotational and translational degrees of freedom. Here, the development of a high‐viscosity protein‐based reagent that can be used to fabricate complex 3D microstructures that are not adhered to a surface, including chains of Möbius strips, paddlewheels, and unconstrained (free‐floating) probes for bacterial motility, is reported.     

Men's work and family lives in India: The daily organization of time and emotion.

This article examines daily patterns of work and family life for a sample of middle-class men in northern India. One hundred fathers of 8th graders provided information on their hour-to-hour time use and subjective states, by means of the experience sampling method. They reported little time spent on family work but substantial amounts of time with their children and thinking about their families. At their jobs, they reported high levels of attention but more negative emotion. By contrast, the home sphere elicited lower attention, more favorable affect, and more feeling of choice. Unlike for American samples, little relationship was found between experience at work and home, including little influence of men's work emotions on the family in the evening. These findings reflect how strong traditional family roles in India shape men's daily lives. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)