Production and carcass quality of ten beef cattle breeds of the southwest of Europe

A sample of about 70 young bulls of each of ten beef cattle breeds reared in their typical production systems has been studied regarding growth and carcass quality traits. Breeds included were Asturiana de los Valles (AV), Asturiana de la Montaña (AM), Avileña-Negra Ibérica (A-NI), Bruna dels Pirineus (BP), Morucha (Mo), Pirenaica (Pi) and Retinta (Re) from Spain, and Aubrac (Au), Gasconne (Ga) and Salers (Sal) from France. There existed large differences between breeds and also within breeds. AV and Pi were the breeds with more muscle and less fat, whereas A-NI, Mo and Re were in the opposite side. BP and AM occupied an intermediate position. This allows to classify the Spanish breeds in three groups: AV and Pi would belong to the group of late maturity, A-NI, Mo and Re, would be early maturing breeds, whereas BP and AM, despite the small size of the last, will be of intermediate maturity. In the French populations, Au was the breed with the highest carcass weight and Ga exhibited the lowest. Sal occupied an intermediate position, showing the longer and thinner thigh. In a wide range of carcass weight, the general relationships among carcass traits have been confirmed. Animals with the better conformation were also the leaner and longer carcasses tended to be lowly associated with a poorer conformation and fatter carcasses. Bone content was clearly opposed to carcass conformation and muscle content and was associated with longer carcasses

Meat quality of ten cattle breeds of the Southwest of Europe

A sample of about 70 young bulls of each of ten beef cattle breeds reared in their typical production systems has been characterised with respect to meat quality traits. Breeds included were Asturiana de los Valles, Asturiana de la Montaña, Avileña-Negra Ibérica, Bruna dels Pirineus, Morucha, Pirenaica and Retinta from Spain, and Aubrac, Gasconne and Salers from France. As was previously showed regarding carcass traits, there exist large differences both between and within breed – systems. In general, rustic breeds tended to present darker and redder meats with higher haematin contents, whereas less precocious and more specialised breeds showed brighter meats with bigger water losses. Protein content was similar, whereas intramuscular fat presented the larger variations both between and within breeds. ICDH content was higher in the more rustic breeds, showing the predominantly oxidative character of their fibres. Texture measurements showed in general large within breed-system variations, the differences between breeds being less evident. Within breed-system, daily gain weight was positively associated with brighter and tender meats. In the range studied, increasing slaughter weight within breed did not have influence on meat quality. Conformation was related to lower water holding capacity and less dry matter and intramuscular fat, as well as to a lower haematin content giving brighter meats. The increase in fatness scores was related to an augment of toughness in meat specialised breeds, although in Avileña-Negra Ibérica breed fatness carcasses were related to more tender meats. Redness parameter a* was positively related to fatter animals and opposed to conformation, the opposite being true for the L* (lightness) parameter. There was a small trend of fatter carcasses to be related to oxidative fibres, whereas the muscular fibres of the more conformed carcasses were more glycolytic. Texture measurements maximum load, maximum stress and toughness were very closely related. Shear force was opposed to tenderness. Losses at cooking were opposed to juiciness, but only in the Spanish breeds. No consistent trends regarding relationships between carcass characteristics and tenderness could be observed. Overall acceptability was primarily related with tenderness and flavour, and later on juiciness.

Validation of the IMPACT-III quality of life questionnaire in Swiss children with inflammatory bowel disease.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) frequently manifests during childhood and adolescence. For providing and understanding a comprehensive picture of a patients' health status, health-related quality of life (HRQoL) instruments are an essential complement to clinical symptoms and functional limitations. Currently, the IMPACT-III questionnaire is one of the most frequently used disease-specific HRQoL instrument among patients with IBD. However, there is a lack of studies examining the validation and reliability of this instrument. METHODS: 146 paediatric IBD patients from the multicenter Swiss IBD paediatric cohort study database were included in the study. Medical and laboratory data were extracted from the hospital records. HRQoL data were assessed by means of standardized questionnaires filled out by the patients in a face-to-face interview. RESULTS: The original six IMPACT-III domain scales could not be replicated in the current sample. A principal component analysis with the extraction of four factor scores revealed the most robust solution. The four factors indicated good internal reliability (Cronbach's alpha=.64-.86), good concurrent validity measured by correlations with the generic KIDSCREEN-27 scales and excellent discriminant validity for the dimension of physical functioning measured by HRQoL differences for active and inactive severity groups (p<.001, d=1.04). CONCLUSIONS: This study with Swiss children with IBD indicates good validity and reliability for the IMPACT-III questionnaire. However, our findings suggest a slightly different factor structure than originally proposed. The IMPACT-III questionnaire can be recommended for its use in clinical practice. The factor structure should be further examined in other samples.

A follow-up study on the quality of alcohol dependence-related information on the web.

ABSTRACT: In order to evaluate the one-year evolution of web-based information on alcohol dependence, we re-assessed alcohol-related sites in July 2007 with the same evaluating tool that had been used to assess these sites in June 2006. Websites were assessed with a standardized form designed to rate sites on the basis of accountability, presentation, interactivity, readability, and content quality. The DISCERN scale was also used, which aimed to assist persons without content expertise in assessing the quality of written health publications. Scores were highly stable for all components of the form one year later (r = .77 to .95, p &lt; .01). Analysis of variance for repeated measures showed no time effect, no interaction between time and scale, no interaction between time and group (affiliation categories), and no interaction between time, group, and scale. The study highlights lack of change of alcohol-dependence-related web pages across one year.

Class-size Reduction Policies and the Quality of Entering Teachers

State-wide class-size reduction (CSR) policies have typically failed to produce large achievement gains. One explanation is that the introduction of such policies forces schools to hire relatively low-quality teachers. This paper uses data from an anonymous state to explore whether teacher quality suff ered from the introduction of CSR. We find that it did, but not nearly enough to explain the small achievement effects of CSR. The combined fall in achievement due to hiring lower quality teachers and more inexperienced teachers is small relative to the unrealized gains. Furthermore, between-school diff erences in the quality of incoming teachers cannot explain the poor estimated CSR performance from previous quasi-experimental treatment-control comparisons.

Relationship between Health-Related Quality of Life, Pain, and Functional Disability in Neuropathic Pain Patients with Failed Back Surgery Syndrome.

ABSTRACT Objectives: Patients with failed back surgery syndrome (FBSS) and chronic neuropathic pain experience levels of health-related quality of life (HRQoL) that are considerably lower than those reported in other areas of chronic pain. The aim of this article was to quantify the extent to which reductions in (leg and back) pain and disability over time translate into improvements in generic HRQoL as measured by the EuroQoL-5D and SF-36 instruments. Methods: Using data from the multinational Prospective, Randomized, Controlled, Multicenter Study of Patients with Failed Back Surgery Syndrome trial, we explore the relationship between generic HRQoL-assessed using two instruments often used in clinical trials (i.e., the SF-36 and EuroQol-5D)-and disease-specific outcome measures (i.e., Oswestry disability index [ODI], leg and back pain visual analog scale [VAS]) in neuropathic patients with FBSS. Results: In our sample of 100 FBSS patients, generic HRQoL was moderately associated with ODI (correlation coefficient: -0.462 to -0.638) and mildly associated with leg pain VAS (correlation coefficient: -0.165 to -0.436). The multilevel regression analysis results indicate that functional ability (as measured by the ODI) is significantly associated with HRQoL, regardless of the generic HRQoL instrument used. On the other hand, changes over time in leg pain were significantly associated with changes in the EuroQoL-5D and physical component summary scores, but not with the mental component summary score. Conclusions: Reduction in leg pain and functional disability is statistically significantly associated with improvements in generic HRQoL. This is the first study to investigate the longitudinal relationship between generic and disease-specific HRQoL of neuropathic pain patients with FBSS, using multinational data.

Reduced quality of life associated adverse events in intermediate hepatocellular carcinoma patients treated with PRECISION TACE with drug eluting beads: Results from the PRECISION V randomized trial : B-241

Purpose: To evaluate the extent of quality of life (QoL) associated adverse events (AEs) following PRECISION TACE with DC Bead compared with conventional transarterial chemoembolisation (cTACE). Methods and Materials: 201 intermediate HCC patients were treated with DC Bead (PRECISION TACE) or conventional TACE (cTACE) with doxorubicin in the PRECISION V clinical study. 93 patients were treated with DC Bead and 108 Patients with cTACE every 2 months and followed up for 6 months. AEs were classified according to the South West Oncology Group criteria. QoL associated AEs were defined as alopecia, constipation, nausea, vomiting, pyrexia, chills, asthenia, fatigue, and headache. Results: The biggest difference in QoL associated AEs was for alopecia: 2 patients (2.2%) for DC-Bead versus 21 patients (19.4%) for cTACE. For other clinical symptoms, constipation (n=10; 10.8% vs. n=13; 12%), vomiting (n=10; 10.8% vs. n=14; 13.0%), pyrexia (n=16; 17.2% vs. n=26; 24.1%), chills (n=1; 1.1% vs. n=5; 4.6%), and headache (n=2; 2.2% vs. n=8; 7.4%) showed lower incidence in the DC Bead group versus cTACE. Nausea, n= 15; 13.9% (n=15; 16.1%) and fatigue, n=6; 5.6% (n=13; 14.0%) were lower for cTACE. Total dose of doxorubicin was on average 35% higher in the DC Bead group. Conclusion: Although patients in the DC Bead group received a higher doxorubicin dose, less QoL associated AEs were reported for this group. Alopecia, the most obvious outward sign of toxicity, was only reported in a tenth of DC Bead patients. Thus, PRECISION TACE with DC Bead improves quality of life associated adverse events.

Family physician involvement in cancer care and lung cancer patient emotional distress and quality of life.

PURPOSE: This study aims to describe emotional distress and quality of life (QoL) of patients at different phases of their lung cancer and the association with their family physician (FP) involvement. METHODS: A prospective study on patients with lung cancer was conducted in three regions of Quebec, Canada. Patients completed, at baseline, several validated questionnaires regarding their psychosocial characteristics and their perceived level of FP involvement. Emotional distress [profile of mood states (POMS)] and QoL [European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Core 30 (EORTC QLQ-C30)] were reassessed every 3-6 months, whether patients had metastasis or not, up to 18 months. Results were regrouped according to cancer phase. Mixed models with repeated measurements were performed to identify variation in distress and QoL. RESULTS: In this cohort of 395 patients, distress was low at diagnosis (0.79 ± 0.7 on a 0-4 scale), raising to 1.36 ± 0.8 at the advance phase (p < 0.0001). Patient's global QoL scores significantly decreased from the diagnosis to the advance phase (from 66 to 45 on a 0-100 scale; p < 0.0001). At all phases of cancer, FP involvement was significantly associated with patients' distress (p = 0.0004) and their global perception of QoL (p = 0.0080). These associations remained statistically significant even after controlling for age, gender, and presence of metastases. CONCLUSIONS: This study provides new knowledge on patients' emotional distress and QoL with cancer evolution and, particularly, their association with FP involvement. Other studies should be conducted to further explore FP role in cancer supportive care.

Quality of web-based information on bipolar disorder

Rapport de synthèse : Introduction : Internet est une source importante d'information sur la santé mentale. Le trouble bipolaire est communément associé à un handicap, des comorbidités, un faible taux d'introspection et une mauvaise compliance au traitement. Le fardeau de la maladie, de par les épisodes dépressifs et maniaques, peut conduire les personnes (dont le diagnostic de trouble bipolaire a été déjà posé ou non), ainsi que leur famille à rechercher des informations sur Internet. De ce fait, il est important que les sites Web traitant du sujet contiennent de l'information de haute qualité, basée sur les évidences scientifiques. Objectif.: évaluer la qualité des informations consultables sur Internat au sujet du trouble bipolaire et identifier des indicateurs de qualité. Méthode: deux mots-clés : « bipolar disorder » et « manic depressive illness » ont été introduits dans les moteurs de recherche les plus souvent utilisés sur Internet. Les sites Internet ont été évalués avec un formulaire standard conçu pour noter les sites sur la base de l'auteur (privé, université, entreprise,...), la présentation, l'interactivité, la lisibilité et la qualité du contenu. Le label de qualité « Health On the Net» (HON), et l'outil DISCERN ont été utilisés pour vérifier leur efficacité comme indicateurs de la qualité. Résultats: sur les 80 sites identifiés, 34 ont été inclus. Sur la base de la mesure des résultats, la qualité du contenu des sites s'est avérée être bonne. La qualité du contenu des sites Web qui traitent du trouble bipolaire est expliquée de manière significative par la lisibilité, la responsabilité et l'interactivité aussi bien que par un score global. Conclusions: dans l'ensemble, la qualité du contenu de l'étude des sites Web traitant du trouble bipolaire est de bonne qualité.

Quality of life: a potentially useful measure to indicate subclinical flares in Crohn disease.

Background:  While quality of life (QoL) is a well-recognised outcome measure of Crohn disease (CD) activity, its influence on other outcome measures, including exacerbation of CD is poorly understood. If QoL measures were to be associated with intestinal inflammatory activity, they might be useful for early detection of subclinical flares. Aims:  We hypothesised that low QoL might be associated with subsequent CD flares. Methods:  A cohort of 318 adult CD patients was observed for 1 year after assessment of baseline characteristics. Data were collected in Swiss university hospitals, regional hospitals and private practices. At inclusion, patients completed the Inflammatory Bowel Disease QoL Questionnaire (gastrointestinal QoL; range: 32 to 224 points) and the Short Form-36 Health Survey (general QoL; range: 35 to 145 points). During follow up, flares were recorded. Binary logistic regression was performed to estimate the relation between QoL and the odds of subsequent flares. Results:  A twofold decrease in the odds of flares (99% CI: 1.1; 4.0) per standard deviation of gastrointestinal QoL and a threefold decrease (99% CI: 1.5; 6.2) per standard deviation of general QoL were observed. Conclusions:  The close association between QoL and subsequent flares suggests that QoL measures might be useful in detecting upcoming flares before they become clinically apparent.

Early mother-child interaction and later quality of attachment in infants with an orofacial cleft compared to infants without cleft.

Objective : The main objective of this study was to assess mother-child patterns of interaction in relation to later quality of attachment in a group of children with an orofacial cleft compared with children without cleft. Design : Families were contacted when the child was 2 months old for a direct assessment of mother-child interaction and then at 12 months for a direct assessment of the child's attachment. Data concerning socioeconomical information and posttraumatic stress symptoms in mothers were collected at the first appointment. Participants : Forty families of children with a cleft and 45 families of children without cleft were included in the study. Families were recruited at birth in the University Hospital of Lausanne. Results : Results showed that children with a cleft were more difficult and less cooperative during interaction at 2 months of age with their mother compared with children without a cleft. No significant differences were found in mothers or in dyadic interactive styles. Concerning the child's attachment at 12 months old, no differences were found in attachment security. However, secure children with a cleft were significantly more avoidant with their mother during the reunion episodes than secure children without cleft. Conclusion : Despite the facial disfigurement and the stress engendered by treatment during the first months of the infant's life, children with cleft and their mothers are doing as well as families without cleft with regard to the mothers' mental health, mother-child relationships, and later quality of attachment. A potential contribution for this absence of difference may be the pluridisciplinary support that families of children with cleft benefit from in Lausanne.

Assessing the quality of alternative energy sources: Energy Return On the Investment (EROI), the metabolic pattern of societies and energy statistics

This paper presents an initial challenge to tackle the every so "tricky" points encountered when dealing with energy accounting, and thereafter illustrates how such a system of accounting can be used when assessing for the metabolic changes in societies. The paper is divided in four main sections. The first three, present a general discussion on the main issues encountered when conducting energy analyses. The last section, subsequently, combines this heuristic approach to the actual formalization of it, in quantitative terms, for the analysis of possible energy scenarios. Section one covers the broader issue of how to account for the relevant categories used when accounting for Joules of energy; emphasizing on the clear distinction between Primary Energy Sources (PES) (which are the physical exploited entities that are used to derive useable energy forms (energy carriers)) and Energy Carriers (EC) (the actual useful energy that is transmitted for the appropriate end uses within a society). Section two sheds light on the concept of Energy Return on Investment (EROI). Here, it is emphasized that, there must already be a certain amount of energy carriers available to be able to extract/exploit Primary Energy Sources to thereafter generate a net supply of energy carriers. It is pointed out that this current trend of intense energy supply has only been possible to the great use and dependence on fossil energy. Section three follows up on the discussion of EROI, indicating that a single numeric indicator such as an output/input ratio is not sufficient in assessing for the performance of energetic systems. Rather an integrated approach that incorporates (i) how big the net supply of Joules of EC can be, given an amount of extracted PES (the external constraints); (ii) how much EC needs to be invested to extract an amount of PES; and (iii) the power level that it takes for both processes to succeed, is underlined. Section four, ultimately, puts the theoretical concepts at play, assessing for how the metabolic performances of societies can be accounted for within this analytical framework.

Effect of magnesium sulphate and L-tryptophan and genotype on the feed intake, behaviour and meat quality of pigs

Sixty-nine entire male pigs with different halothane genotype (homozygous halothane positive – nn –, n=36; and homozygous halothane negative – NN-, n=33) were fed with a supplementation of magnesium sulphate (Mg) and/or L-tryptophan (Trp) in the diet for 5 days before slaughter. Animals were housed individually and were submitted to stressful ante mortem conditions (mixed in the lorry according to treatments and transported 1 hour on rough roads). Individual feed intake was recorded during the 5-d treatment. At the abattoir, pig behaviour was assessed in the raceway to the stunning system and during the stunning period by exposure to CO2. Muscle pH, colour, water holding capacity, texture and cathepsin activities were determined to assess meat quality. The number of pigs with an individual feed intake lower than 2 kg/d was significantly different among diets (P&0.05; Control: 8.7 %; Mg&Trp: 43.5 %; Trp: 17.4 %) and they were considered to have inadequate supplement intake. During the ante mortem period, 15.2 % of pigs included in the experiment died, and this percentage decreased to 8.7 % in those pigs with a feed intake & 2kg/day, all of them from the stress-sensitive pigs (nn). In general, no differences were observed in the behaviour of pigs along the corridor leading to the stunning system and inside the CO2 stunning system. During the stunning procedure, Trp diet showed shorter periods of muscular excitation than control and Mg&Trp diets. The combination of a stressful ante mortem treatment and Mg&Trp supplementation led to carcasses with high incidence of severe skin lesions. Different meat quality results were found when considering all pigs or considering only those with adequate supplement intake. In this later case, Trp increased pH45 (6.15) vs Control diet (5.96) in the Longissimus thoracis (LT) muscle (P&0.05) and pH at 24h (Trp: 5.59 vs C: 5.47) led to a higher incidence of dark, firm and exudative (DFD) traits in SM muscle (P&0.05). Genotype affected negatively all the meat quality traits. Seventy-five percent of LT and 60.0 % of the SM muscles from nn pigs were classified as pale, soft and exudative (PSE), while none of the NN pigs showed these traits (P&0.0001). No significant differences were found between genotypes on the incidence of DFD meat. Due to the negative effects observed in the Mg&Trp group in feed intake and carcass quality, the utilization of a mixture of magnesium sulphate and tryptophan is not recommended.