Prevalence and correlates of low back pain among occupational therapy students in Northern Queensland

Background: Although low back pain (LBP) is an important issue for the health profession, few studies have examined LBP among occupational therapy students. Purpose. To investigate the prevalence and distribution of LBP, its adverse sequelae; and to identify potential risk factors.----------- Methods: In 2005, a self-reported questionnaire was administered to occupational therapy students in Northern Queensland.----------- Findings: The 12-month period-prevalence of LBP was 64.6%. Nearly half (46.9%) had experienced pain for over 2 days, 38.8% suffered LBP that affected their daily lives, and 24.5% had sought medical treatment. The prevalence of LBP ranged from 45.5 to 77.1% (p=0.004), while the prevalence of LBP symptoms persisting longer than two days was 34.1 to 62.5% (p=0.020). Logistic regression analysis indicated that year of study and weekly computer usage were statistically-significant LBP risk factors.----------- Implications: The occupational therapy profession will need to further investigate the high prevalence of student LBP identified in this study.

Risky driving or risky drivers? Exploring driving and crash histories of illegal street racing offenders

Illegal street racing has received increased attention in recent years from road safety professionals and the media as jurisdictions in Australia, Canada, and the United States have implemented laws to address the problem, which primarily involves young male drivers. Although some evidence suggests that the prevalence of illegal street racing is increasing, obtaining accurate estimates of the crash risk of this behavior is difficult because of limitations in official data sources. Although crash risk can be explored by examining the proportion of incidents of street racing that result in crashes, or the proportion of all crashes that involve street racing, this paper reports on the findings of a study that explored the riskiness of involved drivers. The driving histories of 183 male drivers with an illegal street racing conviction in Queensland, Australia, were compared with a random sample of 183 male Queensland drivers with the same age distribution. The offender group was found to have significantly more traffic infringements, license sanctions, and crashes than the comparison group. Drivers in the offender group were more likely than the comparison group to have committed infringements related to street racing, such as speeding, "hooning," and offenses related to vehicle defects or illegal modifications. Insufficient statistical capacity prevented full exploration of group differences in the type and nature of earlier crashes. It was concluded, however, that street racing offenders generally can be considered risky drivers who warrant attention and whose risky behavior cannot be explained by their youth alone.

Climate change-related corporate governance information : an explanation of the difference between the supply of and demand for such information

This study investigates the gap between the climate change-related corporate governance information being disclosed by companies, and the information sought by stakeholders. To accomplish this objective we utilised previous research on stakeholder demand for information, and we conducted in-depth interviews with six corporate representatives from major Australian emission-intensive companies. Having gained and documented a rich insight into the potential factors responsible for the current gap in disclosure we find that the existence of an expectations gap; the perceived cost of providing commercially sensitive information; the limited accountability being accepted by the corporate managers; and, a lack of stakeholder pressure together contribute to the lack of disclosure. In highlighting the gap in disclosure, this study suggests strategies to reduce the gap in climate change-related corporate governance disclosures.

Racial differences in physical activity among breast cancer survivors : implications for breast cancer care

Background: Physical activity after breast cancer diagnosis is associated with improved survival. This study examines levels of and changes in physical activity following breast cancer diagnosis, overall and by race. Methods: The Carolina Breast Cancer Study, Phase III, assessed pre- and post-diagnosis physical activity levels in a cohort of 1,735 women, aged 20-74, diagnosed with invasive breast cancer between 2008 and 2011 in 44 counties of North Carolina. Logistic regression and analysis of variance were used to examine whether demographic, behavioral and clinical characteristics were associated with activity levels. Results: Only 35% of breast cancer survivors met current physical activity guidelines post-diagnosis. A decrease in activity following diagnosis was reported by 59% of patients, with the average study participant reducing their activity by 230 minutes (95% CI: 190, 270). Following adjustment for potential confounders, when compared to white women, African-American women were less likely to meet national physical activity guidelines post-diagnosis (odds ratio: 1.38, 95% CI: 1.01, 1.88), reported less weekly post-diagnosis physical activity (182 vs. 215 minutes; p=0.13), and reported higher average reductions in pre- versus post-diagnosis weekly activity (262 vs. 230 minutes; p-value = 0.13). Conclusion: Despite compelling evidence demonstrating the benefits of physical activity post-breast cancer, it is clear that more work needs to be done to promote physical activity in breast cancer patients, especially among African-American women.

Develop added value uses of high anti-bacterial honey

Honey is valued for its medicinal properties. There interest from industry to develop a rapid method to detect the bioactivity of honey and also to develop value added products from high antibacterial honey.

Cointegration and causal relationships between energy consumption and output: Assessing the evidence from Australia

In this paper, we describe our investigation of the cointegration and causal relationships between energy consumption and economic output in Australia over a period of five decades. The framework used in this paper is the single-sector aggregate production function, which is the first comprehensive approach used in an Australian study of this type to include energy, capital and labour as separate inputs of production. The empirical evidence points to a cointegration relationship between energy and output and implies that energy is an important variable in the cointegration space, as are conventional inputs capital and labour. We also find some evidence of bidirectional causality between GDP and energy use. Although the evidence of causality from energy use to GDP was relatively weak when using the thermal aggregate of energy use, once energy consumption was adjusted for energy quality, we found strong evidence of Granger causality from energy use to GDP in Australia over the investigated period. The results are robust, irrespective of the assumptions of linear trends in the cointegration models, and are applicable for different econometric approaches.

Specific immunoneutralization of FSH leads to apoptotic cell death of the pachytene spermatocytes and spermatogonial cells in the rat

Although requirement for follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) in the initiation of spermatogenesis is well documented, its role in adult spermatogenesis is still debated. In the present communication, we have investigated the effect of specific immunoneutralization of FSH on apoptotic cell death in the testicular germ cells both in immature and adult rats. The germ cells of control animals showed predominantly high molecular weight DNA while the antiserum (a/s) treated group showed DNA fragmentation characteristic of apoptosis. The pattern could be detected within 24 hours of a/s treatment, and became more pronounced after 48 hours. The germ cells were purified from FSH a/s treated rats by centrifugal elutriation and vulnerability of each cell type to undergo apoptosis on FSH neutralization was investigated. The pachytene spermatocytes were found to be most sensitive to absence of FSH, even in the adult animals suggesting the involvement of FSH in spermatogenesis. The in situ analysis of DNA strand breakage following FSH a/s treatment showed fragmentation of the DNA of the pachytene spermatocytes confirming this observation. The in situ analysis also showed that the spermatogonia undergo apoptosis in addition to the pachytene spermatocytes. These data clearly demonstrate the role of FSH in the adult rat spermatogenesis.

Interdiffusion study in binary gold-tin system

Solid state reactive diffusion in binary Au-Sn system has been studied using the diffusion couple consisting of pure elements Au and Sn annealed in the temperature range of 180-100 degrees C for 25 h Interdiffusion zone consists of four intermetallic phases Au5Sn, AuSn, AuSn2, and AuSn4 Activation energy for parabolic growth constant and integrated diffusivity for each phase has been calculated to indicate about the possible mechanism for diffusion controlled growth process Parabolic growth constant of individual phases has also been compared Kirkendall marker plane position has been indicated in the interdiffusion zone and furthermore the ratio of intrinsic diffusivities of species has also been determined. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Efecto de seis tratamientos nitrogenados bajo riego localizado de 2.81 de agua/metro lineal/día en la producción de chilote en el cultivo del maíz (Zea Mays L.), variedad NB-S, a una densidad poblacional de 125,000 ptas ha-1

El presente trabajo de investigación se llevó a cabo en la época seca que va del 28 de Febrero al 9 de Mayo del año 2012, en los terrenos de la Universidad Nacional Agraria, ubicada en el municipio de Managua kilómetro 12 ½ carretera norte del departamento de Managua, teniendo su ubicación geográfica correspondiente 12º08 ́56.52 ́ ́ latitud norte y 86º09 ́36.02 ́ ́ longitud oeste y a una altura de 56 metros sobre el nivel del mar (m.s.n.m.), presentando temperaturas promedios de 28 ºC, precipitacion es promedios de 950 mm anuales y una humedad relativa promedio de 71 %. El propósito del experimento fue evaluar el efecto de seis tratamientos nitrogenados (A:50 kg ha-1 de Nitrógeno, aplicados a los 21 ddg; B:50 kg ha-1 de Nitrógeno, aplicado el 50 % de la dosis a los 21 ddg y 50 % aplicado a los 41 ddg; C: 50 kg ha-1 de Nitrógeno, aplicado el 100 % de la dosis a los 41 ddg; D: 100 kg ha-1 de Nitrógeno, aplicados a los 21 ddg; E: 100 kg ha-1 de Nitrógeno,aplicados 50 % de la dosis a los 21 ddg y 50 % de la dosis a los 41 ddg; F: 100 kg ha-1 de nitrógeno, aplicado 100 % de la dosis a los 41 ddg) bajo riego localizado (utilizado como herramienta para la mejor disolución de los nutrientes aplicados) de 2.8 litros de agua por metro lineal por día en la producción de chilote en el cultivo del maíz (Zea mays L.), variedad NB-S, a una densidad poblacional de 125 000 ptas ha-1. Aplicando una fertilización base con completo 10-30-10 (194 kg ha-1). El ensayo se estableció con un diseño experimental de bloques completos al azar (BCA), unifactorial, con 6 tratamientos y 4 repeticiones. Las variables evaluadas durante el crecimiento fueron: Altura de planta (cm), diámetro del tallo (cm), número de hojas por plantas y al momento de la cosecha del chilote fueron: Altura de la primera y segunda inserción del chilote, peso del chilote con y sin brácteas (kg), longitud del chilote con y sin brácteas (cm), diámetro del chilote con y sin bráctea en cm, y rendimiento de chilote con bráctea (Kg ha-1).A cada una de las variables evaluadas se sometió a un análisis de varianza (ANDEVA) y separación de medias por la prueba de rangos múltiples de Duncan al 5 % de confiabilidad, el análisis se ejecutó utilizando el software estadístico Infostat. De los 6 tratamientos evaluados, el tratamiento E indujo al mayor rendimiento de chilote, con una producción de 4,029.29 kg ha-1 con un beneficio neto de 16,395.89 C$ ha-1 y una tasa de retorno marginal del 317.26 por ciento.

Projeto de lei que conceda dedução do imposto de renda para as pessoas jurídicas que investirem na área da educação

Consultoria Legislativa - Área III - Tributação, Direito Tributário.

Cruise Report 72-S-7: Crab

(PDF contains 5 pages.)