Comparison of weight in middle age, weight at 18 years, and weight change between, in predicting subsequent 14 year mortality and coronary events: Caerphilly Prospective Study

Objective-The prevalence of obesity is increasing in many European countries and in the United States. This report examines the mortality and morbidity associated with being overweight and obese in the Caerphilly Prospective Study and the relative effects of weight in middle age and self reported weight at 18 years.

Proton ordering energetics in ice phases

Results from first-principles calculations on the subtle energetics of proton ordering in ice phases are shown only to depend on the electrostatic components of the total energy. Proton ordered ice phases can therefore be predicted using electronic structure methods or a tailored potential model. However, analysis of the electron density reveals that high order multipole components, up to hexadecapole, are needed to adequately capture total energy differences between proton ordered and disordered phases. This suggests that current potential models may be unable to reproduce the position of proton ordered ice phases in the phase diagram without extensions to describe high order electrostatics. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Intensive diabetes therapy and glomerular filtration rate in type 1 diabetes

An impaired glomerular filtration rate (GFR) leads to end-stage renal disease and increases the risks of cardiovascular disease and death. Persons with type 1 diabetes are at high risk for kidney disease, but there are no interventions that have been proved to prevent impairment of the GFR in this population.

Combination of CFD and DOE to analyze and improve the mass flow rate in urinary catheters

The urinary catheter is a thin plastic tube that has been designed to empty the bladder artificially, effortlessly, and with minimum discomfort. The current CH14 male catheter design was examined with a view to optimizing the mass flow rate. The literature imposed constraints to the analysis of the urinary catheter to ensure that a compromise between optimal flow, patient comfort, and everyday practicality from manufacture to use was achieved in the new design. As a result a total of six design characteristics were examined. The input variables in question were the length and width of eyelets 1 and 2 (four variables), the distance between the eyelets, and the angle of rotation between the eyelets. Due to the high number of possible input combinations a structured approach to the analysis of data was necessary. A combination of computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and design of experiments (DOE) has been used to evaluate the "optimal configuration." The use of CFD couple with DOE is a novel concept, which harnesses the computational power of CFD in the most efficient manner for prediction of the mass flow rate in the catheter. Copyright © 2009 by ASME.

Multi-Dimensional Deprivation in Ireland Among 9-Year-Olds in Ireland:An Analysis of the Growing Up in Ireland Survey’

In this paper we make use of the 9-year old wave of the Growing Up in Ireland study to analyse multidimensional deprivation in Ireland. The Alkire and Foster adjusted head count ratio approach (AHCR; 2007, 2011a, 2011b) applied here constitutes a significant improvement on union and intersection approaches and allows for the decomposition of multidimensional poverty in terms of dimensions and sub-groups. The approach involves a censoring of data such that deprivations count only for those above the specified multidimensional threshold leading to a stronger set of interrelationships between deprivation dimensions. Our analysis shows that the composition of the adjusted head ratio is influenced by a range of socio-economic factors. For less-favoured socio-economic groups dimensions relating to material deprivation are disproportionately represented while for the more advantaged groups, those relating to behavioral and emotional issues and social interaction play a greater role. Notwithstanding such variation in composition, our analysis showed that the AHCR varied systematically across categories of household type, and the social class, education and age group of the primary care giver. Furthermore, these variables combined in a cumulative manner. The most systematic variation was in relation to the head count of those above the multidimensional threshold rather than intensity, conditional on being above that cut-off point. Without seeking to arbitrate on the relative value of composite indices versus disaggregated profiles, our analysis demonstrates that there is much to be gained from adopting an approach with clearly understood axiomatic properties. Doing so allows one to evaluate the consequences of the measurement strategy employed for the understanding of levels of multidimensional deprivation, the nature of such deprivation profiles and socio-economic risk patterns. Ultimately it permits an informed assessment of the strengths and weaknesses of the particular choices made.