Pain assessment and management in older adults: Conceptual issues and clinical challenges.

This article reviews clinical pain assessment and psychological pain management in older persons through the lens of a Communications Model of Pain (Craig, in press; Hadjistavropoulos & Craig, 2002; Hadjistavropoulos, Craig, & Fuchs-Lacelle, 2004; Prkachin & Craig, 1995). The Communications Model of Pain has the advantage of drawing attention to a variety of important factors that come into play when selecting assessment instruments and when making decisions concerning intervention. The authors examine a variety of assessment methodologies (including both self-report and observational approaches) that are suitable for older persons with and without dementia. The authors also review psychosocial pain management methods (e.g., cognitive behavior therapy and applications of behavioral approaches within long-term care facilities) that have potential applications with older persons. The role of psychological service providers is emphasized. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A Stochastic Model of the Apparel-retailing Process for Seasonal Apparel

A computer model is described that simulates the seasonal apparel-retailing process. The model is stochastic in nature and is designed to allow the investigation of the effects of improved retailing procedures on financial and other performance measures. Its principal value lies in the evaluation or Quick Response (QR) supply methodologies that allow frequent re-estimations of consumer demand and reorders of merchandise based on in-season point-of-sale (POS) data at the stock-keeping-unit (SKU) level.     

The effect of microgravity and space flight on the chemical senses

ABSTRACT: The effect of space flight and microgravity on the chemical senses is reviewed. Skylab-4 and Soyuz 30–31 studies revealed changes in taste thresholds while no effect was found in a Canadian investigation (41-G) and conflicting results were obtained on another Soyuz mission. Two simulated microgravity studies found no effect on taste or smell sensitivity; while 5 other studies found an effect. Microgravity induces physiological changes including an upward shift of body fluids toward the head, which may lead to an attenuation of the olfactory component in the flavor of foods. Chemosensory changes may also relate to space sickness, Shuttle atmosphere, stress, radiation, and psychological factors.     

PANIC: an integrated approach to the preservation of composite digital objects using Semantic Web services

To date, long-term preservation approaches have comprised of emulation, migration, normalization, and metadata – or some combination of these. Most existing work has focussed on applying these approaches to digital objects of a singular media type: text, HTML, images, video or audio. In this paper, we consider the preservation of composite, mixed-media digital objects, a rapidly growing class of resources. We describe an integrated, flexible system that we have developed, which leverages existing tools and services and assists organizations to dynamically discover the optimum preservation strategy as it is required. The system captures and periodically compares preservation metadata with software and format registries to determine those objects (or sub-objects) at risk. By making preservation software modules available as Web services and describing them semantically using a machine-processable ontology (OWL-S), the most appropriate preservation service(s) for each object (or sub-object) can then be dynamically discovered, composed and invoked by software agents (with optional human input at critical decision-making steps). The PANIC system successfully illustrates how the growing array of available preservation tools and services can be integrated to provide a sustainable, collaborative solution to the long-term preservation of large-scale collections of complex digital objects.     

Thin-film interference effects on the efficiency of a normal-incidence grating in the 100-350-A wavelength region

Thin-film interference effects were observed in the normal-incidence efficiency of a 2400-groove/mm replica grating. The efficiency was measured in the 100-350-A wavelength range and had an oscillatory behavior that resulted from the presence of a thin SiO(2) coating. The thicknesses of the SiO(2) and the underlying oxidized aluminum layers were inferred from computer modeling of the zero-order efficiency. The efficiencies in the diffracted orders were calculated with the modified integral approach and accounting for the multilayer coating and the groove profile derived from atomic force microscopy. The calculated and measured efficiencies were in good agreement.     

Mapping sky and surface luminance distribution using a flux mapper

A prototype, all-sky flux mapper has been developed at the Solar Energy Research Institute (SERI). The flux mapper is a video system which provides a rapid, real time processing of daylightning luminance data. The system uses an orthographic-projection fish-eye lens to project the entire image of a 180° field onto a vidicon target. The signal is then digitized and may be plotted as equal brightness comtours or recorded on tape for later analysis. The system has great potential for use in delineating illuminance distribution of the sky and of interior spaces.     

A randomized phase-II study of BB-10010 (macrophage inflammatory protein- 1alpha) in patients with advanced breast cancer receiving 5-fluorouracil, adriamycin, and cyclophosphamide chemotherapy

BB-10010 is a variant of the human form of macrophage inflammatory protein-1alpha (MIP-1alpha), which has been shown in mice to block the entry of hematopoietic stem cells into S-phase and to increase their self-renewal capacity during recovery from cytotoxic damage. Its use may constitute a novel approach for protecting the quality of the stem cell population and its capacity to regenerate after periods of cytotoxic treatment. Thirty patients with locally advanced or metastatic breast cancer were entered into the first randomized, parallel group controlled phase II study. This was designed to evaluate the potential myeloprotective effects of a 7-day regimen of BB-10010 administered to patients receiving six cycles of 5-fluorouracil (5-FU), adriamycin, and cyclophosphamide (FAC) chemotherapy. Patients were randomized, 10 receiving 100 microgram/kg BB-10010, 11 receiving 30 microgram/kg BB-10010, and nine control patients receiving no BB-10010. BB-10010 was well-tolerated in all patients with no severe adverse events related to the drug. Episodes of febrile neutropenia complicated only 4% of the treatment cycles and there was no difference in incidence between the treated and nontreated groups. Studies to assess the generation of progenitor cells in long-term bone marrow cultures were performed immediately preceding chemotherapy and at the end of six dosing cycles in 18 patients. Circulating neutrophils, platelets, CD 34(+) cells, and granulocyte/macrophage colony-forming cell (GM-CFC) levels were determined at serial time points in cycles 1, 3, and 6. The results showed similar hemoglobin and platelet kinetics in all three groups. On completion of the six treatment cycles, the average pretreatment neutrophil levels were reduced from 5.3 to 1.7 x 10(9)/L in the control patients and from 4.3 to 1.9 and 4.5 to 2.5 x 10(9)/L in the 30/100 microgram/kg BB-10010 groups, respectively. Relative to their pretreatment values, 50% of the patients receiving BB-10010 completed the treatment with neutrophil values significantly higher than any of the controls (P = .02). Mobilization of GM-CFC was enhanced by BB-10010 with an additional fivefold increase over that generated by chemotherapy alone, giving a maximal 25-fold increase over pretreatment values. Bone marrow progenitor assays before and after this standard regimen of chemotherapy indicated little long-term cumulative impairment to recovery from chemotherapy. Despite the limited cumulative damage to the bone marrow, which may have minimized the protective value of BB-10010 during this regimen of chemotherapy, better recovery of neutrophils in the later treatment cycles with BB-10010 was indicated in a number of patients.     

Risk factors for cognitive impairment in epilepsy.

The literature suggests that seizure disorders are associated with an increased likelihood of intellectual problems, prompting researchers to investigate risk factors of cognitive impairment in epileptic patients. This study examined the contribution of certain variables (age of seizure onset, duration, etiology, seizure location and laterality, sex, handedness, and cerebral speech pattern) to cognitive outcome in patients with medically refractory seizures. Seizure location (temporal or extratemporal), age of onset of seizures, and handedness proved to be the best indicators of general intellectual ability. There was a relatively diverse pattern of relationships when neuropsychological tests of language, visuospatial ability, and memory were considered individually. However, a factor analytic approach revealed a simpler pattern in which location of dysfunction, age at seizure onset, hand preference, cerebral speech dominance, and gender were relevant and independent indicators of verbal and nonverbal ability. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)