Parental information needs in chronic renal failure and diabetes mellitus

The information needs of parents of children with end stage renal failure (ESRF) or with insulin dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM) were assessed by questionnaires over a 2-year period. Questionnaires were posted on seven occasions at 4-monthly intervals and were sent to both mothers and fathers. Most information needs were reported to be for detailed test results, for new information about the condition and about the child's future social development. Questions responsible for the three highest scores were concerned with the future: the child's fertility; their social, career and marriage prospects; and the hope for a new improved treatment. For the IDDM mothers, scores were significantly different depending on age of the child (P = 0.02). Change in treatment mode had no significant effect on the information needs of parents of children with ESRF (P = 0.81). Occupation was significantly associated with the mean general information needs scores for parents, with occupations of a lower socioeconomic status associated with higher information needs scores. There were no significant differences between the reported mean general information needs scores of parents of children with ESRF and of parents of children with IDDM (P = 0.69) or between mothers and fathers mean general information needs scores (P = 0.58). CONCLUSION: Multidisciplinary team members need to tailor information to the needs of the individual families and be sensitive to socioeconomic factors and communication issues.

Failure of steel gusset plates

This thesis examines the parameters associated with the failure of triangular steel gusset plates. Eighty two results are presented investigating the position of the applied load, the gusset plate height to length ratio, size, thickness, internal angle and the removal of the inside corner. The thickness of the loaded plate and its influence on the gusset plates failure is also investigated. Twenty two similar gusset plates were tested to investigate the welds connecting the gusset plate to the adjacent loaded and support edges. The experimental results are compared with existing methods, none of which cover all the variables tested. Some methods do not consider buckling and most of those that do are inadequate. Most of the methods do not accurately take account of the load position. An alternative method based on experimental observations is presented for design purposes. The method covers any combination of the variables tested. To test assumptions made in the theoretical work forty seven strut tests took place to investigate buckling characteristics and fifteen special gusset plates were also tested. The gusset plates were found to fail in an elastic-plastic buckling manner. A gusset plate has a specific moment of resistance capacity about it’s inside corner and the ultimate load that can be applied is dependent upon the position of the load relative to the supported edge. There is an optimum height to length ratio for strength and any increase in the internal angle from 90 degrees produces little change in moment capacity. The removal of small portions of the inside corner of a gusset plate has little effect upon its moment capacity. The loaded plate does not provide any significant moment of resistance to the applied load at failure. The main functions of the loaded and supported edge welds is to prevent the gusset plate from slipping from between the plates.

Quality control of pharmaceutical ingredients:developing a caking test for industry

Objectives - Powdered and granulated particulate materials make up most of the ingredients of pharmaceuticals and are often at risk of undergoing unwanted agglomeration, or caking, during transport or storage. This is particularly acute when bulk powders are exposed to extreme swings in temperature and relative humidity, which is now common as drugs are produced and administered in increasingly hostile climates and are stored for longer periods of time prior to use. This study explores the possibility of using a uniaxial unconfined compression test to compare the strength of caked agglomerates exposed to different temperatures and relative humidities. This is part of a longer-term study to construct a protocol to predict the caking tendency of a new bulk material from individual particle properties. The main challenge is to develop techniques that provide repeatable results yet are presented simply enough to be useful to a wide range of industries. Methods - Powdered sucrose, a major pharmaceutical ingredient, was poured into a split die and exposed to high and low relative humidity cycles at room temperature. The typical ranges were 20–30% for the lower value and 70–80% for the higher value. The outer die casing was then removed and the resultant agglomerate was subjected to an unconfined compression test using a plunger fitted to a Zwick compression tester. The force against displacement was logged so that the dynamics of failure as well as the failure load of the sample could be recorded. The experimental matrix included varying the number of cycles, the amount between the maximum and minimum relative humidity, the height and diameters of the samples, the number of cycles and the particle size. Results - Trends showed that the tensile strength of the agglomerates increased with the number of cycles and also with the more extreme swings in relative humidity. This agrees with previous work on alternative methods of measuring the tensile strength of sugar agglomerates formed from humidity cycling (Leaper et al 2003). Conclusions - The results show that at the very least the uniaxial tester is a good comparative tester to examine the caking tendency of powdered materials, with a simple arrangement and operation that are compatible with the requirements of industry. However, further work is required to continue to optimize the height/ diameter ratio during tests.

Exploring the failure to protect the rights of the Roma child in Romania

An important test of the progress of development management is its contribution to human rights, especially in transition economies. This article explores the failure to protect the rights of the Roma child in Romania, who are particularly vulnerable to abandonment and institutionalisation. 2008 witnessed the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and several other related celebrations. Nevertheless, within EU borders, minority populations can still lead dismal lives. It is argued that although both the EU and the Romanian government made the Roma's social inclusion a top priority, they failed to bring about substantial improvement. The first contribution of the article is to reinforce the trend within development management of linking policy implementation to the specific needs of the local context. Contemporary policy reports and early empirical results from an exploratory study in Galati, mainly in the area of education, suggest several inter-related causes of poor implementation, including the national political context, specific issues affecting the Roma and local implementation capacity. The second contribution suggests that ideas from business and management, specifically the notion of organisational receptivity to change, could increase the pace of change. Receptivity provides a framework for understanding local issues and how to manage them. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

A study of fatigue failure in vulcanized rubber

Some aspects of fatigue failure in rubbers have been examined. Scanning electron micrographs of the surface exposed by the failure confirm the incremental, crack-propagation nature, of the fatigue process. Many other features of the failure surface have been identified and related to this process. The complicating effect of a reinforcing filler has also been investigated. The fatigue resistance of rubber test-pieces deformed in simple tension was measured as a function of frequency and temperature. This showed that an increase in frequency was equivalent to a decrease in temperature; for an amorphous unfilled rubber the time and temperature effects of crystallisation and fillers on the validity of this transformation is considered. This transformation indicates that hysteresis plays an important part in the fatigue process. Torsional pendulum measurements were used to demonstrate the dependence of the fatigue life on the mechanical damping. An apparatus was developed to measure the hysteresial energy loss directly at deformations, rates of deformation and temperatures consistent with a typical fatigue test. Measurements made with this apparatus are compared with fatigue values and a quantitative relationship is suggested describing fatigue, in terms of the energy lost per unit energy input in a cycle of a fatigue test.

Serrated yielding and the localized shear failure mode in aluminium alloys

A study has been made of serrated yielding in two commercial Al-Zn-Mg alloys in the as-quenched condition. The different serration types produced in the two alloys and the shear failure mechanism observed in both notched-bend and tensile testing are related to the mechanisms of dynamic strain ageing occurring during the test. An estimate of 19.7 kJ/mole for the activation energy for exchange of a solute atom and a vacancy in Al-6.2 wt% Zn, 2.5 wt% Mg has been made. © 1981.

Abnormal systemic and ocular vascular response to temperature provocation in primary open-angle glaucoma patients:a case for autonomic failure?

PURPOSE. To assess systemic and ocular vascular reactivity in response to warm and cold provocation in untreated patients with primary open-angle glaucoma and normal control subjects. METHODS. Twenty-four patients with primary open-angle glaucoma and 22 normal control subjects were subjected to a modified cold pressor test involving immersion of the right hand in 40°C warm water followed by 4°C cold water exposure, and finger and ocular blood flow were assessed by means of peripheral laser Doppler flowmetry and retinal flowmetry, respectively. Finger and body temperature as well as intraocular pressure, systemic blood pressure, systemic pulse pressure, heart rate, and ocular perfusion pressure were also monitored. RESULTS. The patients with glaucoma demonstrated an increase in diastolic blood pressure (P = 0.023), heart rate (P = 0.010), and mean ocular perfusion pressure (P = 0.039) during immersion of the tested hand in 40°C water. During cold provocation, the patients demonstrated a significant decrease in finger (P = 0.0003) and ocular blood flow (the parameter velocity measured at the temporal neuroretinal rim area; P = 0.021). Normal subjects did not demonstrate any blood flow or finger temperature changes during immersion of the tested hand in 40°C water (P > 0.05); however, they exhibited increases in systolic blood pressure (P = 0.034) and pulse pressure (P = 0.0009) and a decrease in finger blood flow (P = 0.0001) during cold provocation. In normal subjects, the ocular blood flow was unchanged during high- and low-temperature challenge. CONCLUSIONS. Cold provocation elicits a different blood pressure, and ocular blood flow response in patients with primary open-angle glaucoma compared with control subjects. These findings suggest a systemic autonomic failure and ocular vascular dysregulation in POAG patients.