Intermittent and flexible work schedules and welfare mothers' employment : phase 2 /

Enrollees chosen for the project were mainly from WIN (Work Incentive Program).

Supervised stationary cycling versus supervised treadmill walking for patients with intermittent claudication: Preliminary results

Introduction: Walking programmes are recommended as part of the initial treatment for intermittent claudication (IC). However, for many patients factors such as frailty, the severe leg discomfort associated with walking and safety concerns about exercising in public areas reduce compliance to such prescription. Thus, there is a need to identify a mode of exercise that provides the same benefits as regular walking while also offering convenience and comfort for these patients. The present study aims to provide evidence for the first time of the efficacy of a supervised cycle training programme compared with a conventional walking programme for the treatment of IC. Methods: Thus far 33 patients have been randomized to: a treadmill-training group (n = 12); a cycle-training group (n = 11); or a control group (n = 10). Training groups participated in three sessions of supervised training per week for a period of 6 weeks. Control patients received no experimental intervention. Maximal incremental treadmill testing was performed at baseline and after the 6 weeks of training. Measures included pain-free (PFWT) and maximal walking time (MWT), continuous heart rate and gas-analysis recording, and ankle-brachial index assessment. Results: In the treadmill trained group MWT increased significantly from 1016.7 523.7 to 1255.2 432.2 s (P < 0.05). MWT tended to increase with cycle training (848.72 333.18 to 939.54 350.35 s, P = 0.14), and remained unchanged in the control group (1555.1 683.23 to 1534.7 689.87 s). For PFWT, there was a non-significant increase in the treadmill-training group from 414.4 262.3 to 592.9 381.9 s, while both the cycle training and control groups displayed no significant change in this time (226.7 147.1 s to 192.3 56.8 and 499.4 503.7 s to 466.0 526.1 s, respectively). Conclusions: These preliminary results might suggest that, unlike treadmill walking, cycling has no clear effect on walking performance in patients with IC. Thus the current recommendations promoting walking based programmes appear appropriate. The present study was funded by the National Heart Foundation of Australia.

Earcon for intermittent information in monitoring environments

In this paper we discuss the first of a series of experiments evaluating earcons for critical care environments. We examine peoples’ ability to monitor earcons conveying systolic and diastolic blood pressure while conducting a distractor task. The results showed that when a beacon is present prior to the earcon, participants’ judgment of pitch and duration information improved. The results of the study also indicated presence of historical information in the earcon may interfere with participants’ judgments. However, since participants felt more confident in their recall of previous values when the historical information was present, the results may reflect insufficient training.

Intermittent fasting:a dietary intervention for prevention of diabetes and cardiovascular disease?

Intermittent fasting, in which individuals fast on consecutive or alternate days, has been reported to facilitate weight loss and improve cardiovascular risk. This review evaluates the various approaches to intermittent fasting and examines the advantages and limitations for use of this approach in the treatment of obesity and type 2 diabetes. © The Author(s) 2013.

Intermittent self-pulsing in a fiber raman laser

We report on an experimental study of intermittent self-pulsing caused by the coupling of the first and second Stokes cascades in a fiber Raman laser © 2012 OSA.

Explaining intermittent exporting:exit and conditional re-entry in export markets

Intermittent exporting is something of a puzzle. In theory, exporting represents a major commitment, and is often the starting point for further internationalisation. However, intermittent exporters exit and subsequently re-enter exporting, sometimes frequently. We develop a conceptual model to explain how firm characteristics and market conditions interact to affect the decision to exit and re-enter exporting, and model this process using an extensive dataset of French manufacturing firms from 1997 to 2007. As anticipated, smaller and less productive firms are more likely to exit exporting, and react more strongly to changes in both domestic and foreign markets than larger firms. Exit and re-entry are closely linked. Firms with a low exit probability also have a high likelihood of re-entry, and vice versa. However, the way in which firms react to market conditions at the time of exit matters greatly in determining the likelihood of re-entry: thus re-entry depends crucially on the strategic rationale for exit. Our analysis helps explain the opportunistic and intermittent exporting of (mainly) small firms, the demand conditions under which intermittent exporting is most likely to occur, and the firm attributes most likely to give rise to such behavior.

Ice Slurry Ingestion Does Not Enhance Self-paced Intermittent Exercise in the Heat

This study aimed to determine if ice slurry ingestion improved self-paced intermittent exercise in the heat. After a familiarisation session, 12 moderately trained males (30.4 ± 3.4 year, 1.8 ± 0.1 cm, 73.5 ± 14.3 kg, inline imageO2max 58.5 ± 8.1 mL/kg/min) completed two separate 31 min self-paced intermittent protocols on a non-motorised treadmill in 30.9 ± 0.9 °C, 41.1 ± 4.0% RH. Thirty minutes prior to exercise, participants consumed either 7.5 g/kg ice slurry (0.1 ± 0.1 °C) (ICE) or 7.5 g/kg water (23.4 ± 0.9 °C) (CONTROL). Despite reductions in Tc (ΔTc: −0.51 ± 0.3 °C, P < 0.05) and thermal sensation prior to exercise, ICE did not enhance self-paced intermittent exercise compared to CONTROL. The average speed during the walk (CONTROL: 5.90 ± 1.0 km, ICE: 5.90 ± 1.0 km), jog (CONTROL: 8.89 ± 1.7 km, ICE: 9.11 ± 1.5 km), run (CONTROL: 12.15 ± 1.7 km, ICE: 12.54 ± 1.5 km) and sprint (CONTROL: 17.32 ± 1.3 km, ICE: 17.18 ± 1.4 km) was similar between conditions (P > 0.05). Mean Tsk, Tb, blood lactate, heart rate and RPE were similar between conditions (P > 0.05). The findings suggest that lowering Tc prior to self-paced intermittent exercise does not translate into an improved performance.

Le blocage androgénique intermittent versus continu dans le traitement du cancer de la prostate

L’administration du blocage androgénique de façon intermittente pourrait offrir plusieurs avantages dans le traitement du cancer de la prostate. Toutefois, ce mode d’administration demeure controversé. Nous avons donc effectué une revue systématique et méta-analyse d’essais cliniques randomisés afin de comparer l’efficacité et la tolérabilité du blocage androgénique intermittent versus continu. Une analyse de non-infériorité a été effectuée pour la survie avec un seuil préétabli de 1,15 pour la borne supérieure de l’intervalle de confiance (IC). Au total, 15 études étaient éligibles. Le blocage androgénique intermittent était non inférieur au blocage androgénique continu avec un hazard ratio de 1,02 (IC à 95%: 0,93-1,11). Il y avait peu de différence entre les deux groupes pour la qualité de vie globale. Toutefois, plusieurs études ont rapporté une meilleure fonction physique et sexuelle avec le traitement intermittent. Le blocage androgénique intermittent est une alternative thérapeutique acceptable dans le cancer de la prostate.

Multicomponent cognitive-behavioral therapy for intermittent explosive disorder by videoconferencing: a case study

Cognitive-behavioral Therapy (CBT) for the treatment of Intermittent Explosive Disorder (IED) has proved to be effective, with moderate to large effect sizes both in individual and group interventions. Videoconferencing has been used effectively to treat different mental disorders but its use for IED patients is as yet unknown. The aim of this study is to provide preliminary evidence of the possibility of treating IED by videoconference. We present a case-study experiment of a Spanish male, aged 33 years, living and working in China. After the intervention, the patient's aggressive episodes decreased dramatically, as well as his negative affect. In contrast, he showed an important increment in positive emotions and self-esteem. There were also positive changes in some personality dimensions and facets measured by NEO-PI-R, specifically in neuroticism, extraversion, and agreeableness. The benefits were maintained at 3-, 8- and 18-month follow-ups. These preliminary results reveal that CBT by videoconference oriented to increasing emotion regulation skills was effective when implemented in a case study of a person suffering from IED.

EFFECT OF INTERMITTENT FRYING ON FATTY ACIDS, VITAMIN E, LIPID OXIDATION AND ACRYLAMIDE IN OILS AND PLANTAIN CHIPS COLLECTED FROM SMALL- SCALE PRODUCERS IN CAMEROON

Deep-fat frying is susceptible to induce the formation of undesirable products as lipid oxidation products and acrylamide in fried foods. Plantain chips produced by small-scale producers are sold to consumers without any control. The objective of this study was to evaluate the quality of plantain chips from local producers in relation to production process parameters and oils, and to identify the limiting factors for the production of acrylamide in plantain chips. Samples of frying oils and plantain chips prepared with either palm olein or soybean oil were collected from 10 producers in Yaoundé. Quality parameters determined in this study were: fatty acid composition of the oils, determined by gas chromatography (GC) of free acid methyl ester; trans fatty acids, determined by Fourier transform infra-red spectroscopy; Tocopherols and tocotrienols as markers of nutritional quality were analyzed by High Performance Liquid Chromatography in isocratic mode. Free fatty acids and acylglycerols as markers of lipid hydrolysis were analyzed by GC of trimethylsilyl derivatives of glycerides. Conjugated dienes, Anisidine value and viscosity as markers of lipid oxidation and thermal decomposition of the oils; acrylamide which is formed through Maillard reaction and identified as a toxic compound in various fried products. Asparagine content of the raw fresh plantain powder was also determined. Fatty acid composition of palm oleins was stable within a day of intermittent frying. In soybean oils, about 57% and 62.5% of linoleic and linolenic acids were lost but trans fatty acids were not detected. Soybean oils were partly hydrolysed leading to the formation of free fatty acids, monoacylglycerols and diacylglycerols. In both oils, tocopherols and tocotrienols contents decreased significantly by about 50%. Anisidine value (AV) and polymers contents increased slightly in fried palm oleins while conjugated hydroperoxides, AV and polymers greatly increased in soybean oils. Acrylamide was not detected in the chips. This is explained by the absence of asparagine in the raw plantains, the other acrylamide precursors being present. This study shows that the plantain chips prepared at the small-scale level in Yaounde with palm olein are of good quality regarding oxidation and hydrolysis parameters and the absence of acrylamide. In contrast, oxidation developed with soybean oil whose usage for frying should be questioned. Considering that asparagine is the limiting factor for the formation of acrylamide in plantain chips, its content depending on several factors such as production parameters and maturity stage should be explored.

Effect of intermittent feeding on growth in early juveniles of the crayfish Cherax quadricarinatus

Three experiments were conducted with juveniles of the crayfish Cherax quadricarinatus to investigate the effect of intermittent feeding regimes on growth and the ability to tolerate the shortage of food. In experiment 1, stage III juveniles were assigned to one of seven intermittent feeding groups (from FS1: 1 day fed/1 day non-fed to FS7: 7 days fed/7 days non-fed) and two control groups, continuously fed (CF) and continuously starved (CS) animals; this experiment comprised a short-term intermittent feeding period until the first molt, followed by a continuous feeding period. In the experiment 2, stage III juveniles were assigned to one of three intermittent feeding groups (FS2 to FS4) and one control group (CF); it consisted of a prolonged intermittent feeding period, until the end of the experiment In the experiment 3, stage VI and VII juveniles were assigned to one of three intermittent feeding groups (FS2 to FS4) and one control (CF); it also consisted of a prolonged intermittent feeding period. The red claw crayfish juveniles were able to tolerate periods of intermittent feeding and underwent compensatory growth after continuous feed was re-established. The ability of crayfish to tolerate intermittent feeding was influenced by developmental stage and duration of the intermittent feeding period. Stage III juveniles survived, but decreased growth, when subjected to prolonged intermittent feeding. However, they showed full compensatory growth when the intermittent feeding period was short and followed by continuous feeding. on the other hand, stage VI-VII tolerated 60 days of prolonged intermittent feeding without any change in growth and survival. The hepatosomatic index (based on wet weight) values of the treatments and the control were similar, suggesting that intermittent feeding may not be considered a nutritional stress condition. The relative pleon weight (based on wet weight) values of the treatments and control were similar suggesting low use of nutrients from the muscle to increase the chance for survival. The juveniles of C quadricarinatus can tolerate relatively long periods of low food availability and this is an important adaptation for their survival in changing/unpredictable environments and an attribute favorable for the production of the species. (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.