Memorial University of Newfoundland

About: Memorial University of Newfoundland is a education organization based out in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Context (language use). The organization has 13818 authors who have published 27785 publications receiving 743594 citations. The organization is also known as: Memorial University & Memorial University of Newfoundland and Labrador.

The association between osteoporotic fractures and health-related quality of life as measured by the Health Utilities Index in the Canadian Multicentre Osteoporosis Study (CaMos)

Abstract: Osteoporotic fractures can be a major cause of morbidity It is important to determine the impact of fractures on health-related quality of life (HRQL) A total of 3,394 women and 1,122 men 50 years of age and older, who were recruited for the Canadian Multicentre Osteoporosis Study (CaMos), participated in this cross-sectional study Minimal trauma fractures of the hip, pelvis, spine, lower body (included upper and lower leg, knee, ankle, and foot), upper body (included arm, elbow, sternum, shoulder, and clavicle), wrist and hand (included forearm, hand, and finger), and ribs were studied Participants with subclinical vertebral deformities were also examined The Health Utilities Index Mark II and III Systems were used to assess HRQL Past osteoporotic fractures varied in prevalence from 12% (pelvis) to 278% (lower body) in women and 03% (pelvis) to 293% (wrist) in men Multivariate linear regression analyses [parameter estimates and corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CI)] indicated that minimal trauma fractures were negatively associated with HRQL and that this relationship depends on fracture type and gender The multi-attribute scores for the Mark II system were negatively related to hip (−005; 95% CI: −009, −001), lower body (−002; 95% CI: −003, −0000), and subclinical vertebral fractures (−002; 95% CI: −003, −000) for women The multi-attribute scores for the Mark III system were negatively related to hip (−009; 95% CI: −014, −003) and rib fractures (−006; 95% CI: −011, −000) for women, and rib fractures (−006; 95% CI: −012, −000) for men In conclusion, this study demonstrates a negative association between osteoporotic fractures and quality of life in both women and men

The genetics of Graves' disease: HLA and disease susceptibility.

Abstract: To relate genetic variation in Graves' disease (GD) susceptibility to polymorphism at MHC loci, clinical and family studies were undertaken in eastern Hungary. Among 1980 relatives of 534 index patients, 2.9% of siblings, 2.7% of offspring, and 3.0% of parents had GD. HLA haplotype combinations in affected sibling pairs were determined in the present data and combined with data in the literature (12 sibling pairs from Farid 1981, 12 from Chan et al. 1980, and 15 from Sasazuki et al. 1983); 43, 23, and 1 affected sibling pairs shared, respectively, 2, 1, and 0 HLA haplotypes. This distribution is inconsistent with simple dominant inheritance, but is consistent with simple recessive inheritance of HLA-related susceptibility over a range of gene frequencies (0.2-0.4). A frequency of 0.3 gives the best fit and is consistent with penetrance of 7.1% for the recessive susceptibility genotype; the data, however, can accommodate penetrance values up to 16%. The distribution of HLA haplotypes in 33 families related disease susceptibility more strongly to DR than to other loci. The distribution of HLA-B8 genotypes in 256 patients was in close agreement with Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium proportions, also favoring recessive inheritance of MHC-related susceptibility. The probability that an individual will be affected with GD can be predicted, based on sex, HLA genotype, and family history. For example, 14.9% of DR3-positive women with an affected first degree relative are likely to be affected. These predictions can be tested as family data accumulate.

Key Future Directions For Research On Turbidity Currents and Their Deposits

Abstract: Turbidity currents, and other types of submarine sediment densityflow, redistribute more sediment acrossthe surface of the Earth than any other sediment flow process, yet their sediment concentration has never been measured directly in the deep ocean. The depositsof these flows are of societal importance asimperfect records of past earthquakes and tsunamogenic landslides and as the reservoir rocks for many deep-water petroleum accumulations. Key future research directions on these flows and their deposits were identified at an informal workshop in September 2013. This contribution summarizes conclusions from that workshop, and engages the wider community in this debate. International efforts are needed for an initiative to monitor and understand a series of test sites where flows occur frequently, which needs coordination to optimize sharing of equipment and interpretation of data. Direct monitoring observations should be combined with cores and seismic data to link flow and deposit character, whilst experimental and numerical models play a key role in understandingfield observations. Such an initiative may be timely and feasible, due to recent technological advances in monitoring sensors, moorings, and autonomous data recovery. This is illustrated here by recently collected data from the Squamish River delta, Monterey Canyon, Congo Canyon, and offshore SE Taiwan. A series of other key topics are then highlighted. Theoretical considerations suggest that supercritical flows may often occur on gradients of greater than , 0.6u. Trains of up-slope-migrating bedforms have recently been mapped in a wide range of marine and freshwater settings. They may result from repeated hydraulic jumps in supercritical flows, and dense (greater than approximately 10% volume) near-bed layers may need to be invoked to explain transport of heavy (25 to 1,000 kg) blocks. Future work needs to understand how sediment is transported in these bedforms, the internal structure and preservation potential of their deposits, and their use in facies prediction. Turbulence damping may be widespread and commonplace in submarine sediment density flows, particularly as flows decelerate, because it can occur at low ( , 0.1%) volume concentrations. This could have important implications for flow evolution and deposit geometries. Better quantitative constraints are needed on what controls flow capacity and competence, together with improved constraints on bed erosion and sediment resuspension. Recent advances in understanding dilute or mainly saline flows in submarine channels should be extended to explore how flow behavior changes as sediment concentrations increase. The petroleum industry requires predictive models of longer-term channel system behavior and resulting deposit architecture, and for these purposes it is important to distinguish between geomorphic and stratigraphic surfaces