Showing papers by "Suffolk University published in 2008"

Effectiveness of the diabetes education and self management for ongoing and newly diagnosed (DESMOND) programme for people with newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes: cluster randomised controlled trial

Abstract: Objective To evaluate the effectiveness of a structured group education programme on biomedical, psychosocial, and lifestyle measures in people with newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes Design Multicentre cluster randomised controlled trial in primary care with randomisation at practice level Setting 207 general practices in 13 primary care sites in the United Kingdom Participants 824 adults (55% men, mean age 595 years) Intervention A structured group education programme for six hours delivered in the community by two trained healthcare professional educators compared with usual care Main outcome measures Haemoglobin A 1c levels, blood pressure, weight, blood lipid levels, smoking status, physical activity, quality of life, beliefs about illness, depression, and emotional impact of diabetes at baseline and up to 12 months Main results Haemoglobin A 1c levels at 12 months had decreased by 149% in the intervention group compared with 121% in the control group After adjusting for baseline and cluster, the difference was not significant: 005% (95% confidence interval −010% to 020%) The intervention group showed a greater weight loss: −298 kg (95% confidence interval −354 to −241) compared with 186 kg (−244 to −128), P=0027 at 12 months The odds of not smoking were 356 (95% confidence interval 111 to 1145), P=0033 higher in the intervention group at 12 months The intervention group showed significantly greater changes in illness belief scores (P=0001); directions of change were positive indicating greater understanding of diabetes The intervention group had a lower depression score at 12 months: mean difference was −050 (95% confidence interval −096 to −004); P=0032 A positive association was found between change in perceived personal responsibility and weight loss at 12 months (β=012; P=0008) Conclusion A structured group education programme for patients with newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes resulted in greater improvements in weight loss and smoking cessation and positive improvements in beliefs about illness but no difference in haemoglobin A 1c levels up to 12 months after diagnosis Trial registration Current Controlled Trials ISRCTN17844016

Efficacy of an acceptance-based behavior therapy for generalized anxiety disorder: evaluation in a randomized controlled trial.

Abstract: Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) is a chronic anxiety disorder, associated with comorbidity and impairment in quality of life, for which improved psychosocial treatments are needed. GAD is also associated with reactivity to and avoidance of internal experiences. The current study examined the efficacy of an acceptance-based behavioral therapy aimed at increasing acceptance of internal experiences and encouraging action in valued domains for GAD. Clients were randomly assigned to immediate (n = 15) or delayed (n = 16) treatment. Acceptance-based behavior therapy led to statistically significant reductions in clinician-rated and self-reported GAD symptoms that were maintained at 3- and 9-month follow-up assessments; significant reductions in depressive symptoms were also observed. At posttreatment assessment 78% of treated participants no longer met criteria for GAD and 77% achieved high end-state functioning; these proportions stayed constant or increased over time. As predicted, treatment was associated with decreases in experiential avoidance and increases in mindfulness.

Policing crime and disorder hot spots: a randomized controlled trial*

Abstract: Dealing with physical and social disorder to prevent serious crime has become a central strategy for policing. This study evaluates the effects of policing disorder, within a problem-oriented policing framework, at crime and disorder hot spots in Lowell, Massachusetts. Thirty-four hot spots were matched into 17 pairs, and one member of each pair was allocated to treatment conditions in a randomized block field experiment. The officers engaged “shallow” problem solving and implemented a strategy that more closely resembled a general policing disorder strategy rather than carefully designed problem-oriented policing responses. Nevertheless, the impact evaluation revealed significant reductions in crime and disorder calls for service, and systematic observations of social and physical disorder at the treatment places relative to the control places uncovered no evidence of significant crime displacement. A mediation analysis of the isolated and exhaustive causal mechanisms that comprised the strategy revealed that the strongest crime-prevention gains were generated by situational prevention strategies rather than by misdemeanor arrests or social service strategies.

Developments in breeding cereals for organic agriculture

Abstract: The need for increased sustainability of performance in cereal varieties, particularly in organic agriculture (OA), is limited by the lack of varieties adapted to organic conditions. Here, the needs for breeding are reviewed in the context of three major marketing types, global, regional, local, in European OA. Currently, the effort is determined, partly, by the outcomes from trials that compare varieties under OA and CA (conventional agriculture) conditions. The differences are sufficiently large and important to warrant an increase in appropriate breeding. The wide range of environments within OA and between years, underlines the need to try to select for specific adaptation in target environments. The difficulty of doing so can be helped by decentralised breeding with farmer participation and the use of crops buffered by variety mixtures or populations. Varieties for OA need efficient nutrient uptake and use and weed competition. These and other characters need to be considered in relation to the OA cropping system over the whole rotation. Positive interactions are needed, such as early crop vigour for nutrient uptake, weed competition and disease resistance. Incorporation of all characteristics into the crop can be helped by diversification within the crop, allowing complementation and compensation among plants. Although the problems of breeding cereals for organic farming systems are large, there is encouraging progress. This lies in applications of ecology to organic crop production, innovations in plant sciences, and the realisation that such progress is central to both OA and CA, because of climate change and the increasing costs of fossil fuels.

Reduction in diabetic amputations over 11 years in a defined U.K. population: benefits of multidisciplinary team work and continuous prospective audit.

Abstract: OBJECTIVE —To assess changes in diabetic lower-extremity amputation rates in a defined relatively static population over an 11-year period following the introduction of a multidisciplinary foot team. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS —All diabetic patients with foot problems admitted to Ipswich Hospital, a large district general hospital, were identified by twice-weekly surveillance of all relevant in-patient areas and outcomes including amputations recorded. RESULTS —The incidence of major amputations fell 62%, from 7.4 to 2.8 per 100,000 of the general population. Total amputation rates also decreased (40.3%) but to a lesser extent due to a small increase in minor amputations. Expressed as incidence per 10,000 people with diabetes, total amputations fell 70%, from 53.2 to 16.0, and major amputations fell 82%, from 36.4 to 6.7. CONCLUSIONS —Significant reductions in total and major amputation rates occurred over the 11-year period following improvements in foot care services including multidisciplinary team work.

Using an Attribute-Based Decision Support System for User-Customized Products Online: An Experimental Investigation

Abstract: In the decision support systems literature, most studies have concentrated on the direct effects of DSS use and design on decision outcomes and user performance in the workplace. Fewer DSS studies have integrated decision process variables, such as user beliefs and attitudes, in their models. In this paper, we examine the mediating role of decision process variables in the use of an online customer DSS. We do so through an experimental study of an alternative-based and an attribute-based DSS for product customization by online customers. Using cognitive fit and flow theories, we develop a theoretical model with four mediating decision process variables (perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, perceived enjoyment, and perceived control) and two of their antecedents: interface design (attribute-based versus alternative-based) and task complexity (choice set size). Our results show that the impact of DSS interface design on behavioral intentions is fully mediated by perceived usefulness and perceived enjoyment, although not by perceived control. Specifically, we verify that users of an attribute-based DSS express higher perceived usefulness and perceived enjoyment than users of an alternative-based one. In addition, we find that task complexity has an interesting relationship with usefulness and enjoyment, both of which follow an inverted U-shaped curve as choice set size increases. Finally, we find that for users of the alternative-based DSS, perceived ease of use and perceived control decrease as task complexity increases. However, the attribute-based DSS alleviates that decline for both variables. Among other contributions, our results indicate the importance of including decision process variables when studying DSS as well as the complex effect of task complexity on those variables. Our study also provides some important guidelines for online companies that provide customer DSS on their websites, especially the danger of providing too many product choice options that can overwhelm customers and harm their shopping experience.

The Impact of State Ownership on Performance Differences in Privately-Owned versus State-Owned Banks: An International Comparison

Abstract: This paper employs cash flow and accounting based measures to examine performance differences between privately-owned and state-owned banks in sixteen Far East countries from 1989 through 2004, a period including the 1997 Asian financial crisis. We find that state-owned banks operated less profitably, held less core capital, and had greater credit risk than privately-owned banks prior to 2001, and the performance differences are more significant in those countries with greater government involvement and political corruption in the banking system. In addition, from 1997 to 2000, the 4-year period after the beginning of the Asian financial crisis, the deterioration in the cash flow returns, core capital and credit quality of state-owned banks was significantly greater than that of privately-owned banks, and the contrast between the two types of banks during this period is especially sharp for the countries that were hardest hit by the Asian crisis. We also find that state-owned banks finance the government to a greater degree than do privately-owned banks in countries where the government is involved heavily in the banking system. However, state-owned banks closed the gap with privately-owned banks on cash flow returns, core capital, and nonperforming loans in the post-crisis period of 2001-2004. Taken together, our findings can best be explained by Shleifer and Vishny's (1997) corporate governance theory on government ownership of banks and Kane's (2000) life-cycle model of a regulation-induced banking crisis.

Asian Brands and the Shaping of a Transnational Imagined Community

Abstract: We investigate how brand managers create regional Asian brands and show how some of them are attempting to forge new webs of interconnectedness through the construction of a transnational, imagined Asian world. Some branding managers are creating regional brands that emphasize the common experience of globalization, evoke a generic, hyper-urban, and multicultural experience, and are infused with diverse cultural referents. These types of regional Asian brands contribute to the creation of an imagined Asia as urban, modern, and multicultural. Understanding this process helps one to appreciate the role of branding managers in constructing markets and places.

Using an attribute-based decision support system for user-customized products online: an experimental investigation

Abstract: In the decision support systems literature, most studies have concentrated on the direct effects of DSS use and design on decision outcomes and user performance in the workplace. Fewer DSS studies have integrated decision process variables, such as user beliefs and attitudes, in their models. In this paper, we examine the mediating role of decision process variables in the use of an online customer DSS. We do so through an experimental study of an alternative-based and an attribute-based DSS for product customization by online customers. Using cognitive fit and flow theories, we develop a theoretical model with four mediating decision process variables (perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, perceived enjoyment, and perceived control) and two of their antecedents: interface design (attribute-based versus alternative-based) and task complexity (choice set size). Our results show that the impact of DSS interface design on behavioral intentions is fully mediated by perceived usefulness and perceived enjoyment, although not by perceived control. Specifically, we verify that users of an attribute-based DSS express higher perceived usefulness and perceived enjoyment than users of an alternative-based one. In addition, we find that task complexity has an interesting relationship with usefulness and enjoyment, both of which follow an inverted U-shaped curve as choice set size increases. Finally, we find that for users of the alternative-based DSS, perceived ease of use and perceived control decrease as task complexity increases. However, the attribute-based DSS alleviates that decline for both variables. Among other contributions, our results indicate the importance of including decision process variables when studying DSS as well as the complex effect of task complexity on those variables. Our study also provides some important guidelines for online companies that provide customer DSS on their websites, especially the danger of providing too many product choice options that can overwhelm customers and harm their shopping experience.

The greenhouse gas and energy impacts of using wood instead of alternatives in residential construction in the United States

Abstract: Data developed by the Consortium for Research on Renewable Industrial Materials were used to estimate savings of greenhouse gas emissions and energy consumption associated with use of wood-based building materials in residential construction in the United States. Results indicate that houses with wood-based wall systems require 15–16% less total energy for non-heating/cooling purposes than thermally comparable houses employing alternative steel- or concrete-based building systems. Results for non-renewable energy consumption are essentially the same as those for total energy, reflecting the fact that most of the displaced energy is in fossil fuels. Over a 100-year period, net greenhouse gas emissions associated with wood-based houses are 20–50% lower than emissions associated with thermally comparable houses employing steel- or concrete-based building systems. Assuming 1.5 million single-family housing starts per year, the difference between wood and non-wood building systems represents about 9.6 Mt of CO 2 equivalents per year. The corresponding energy benefit associated with wood-based building materials is approximately 132 PJ year −1 . These estimates represent about 22% of embodied energy and 27% of embodied greenhouse gas emissions in the residential sector of the US economy. The results of the analysis are very sensitive to assumptions and uncertainties regarding the fate of forestland that is taken out of wood production due to reduced demand for wood, the continued production of co-products where demand for wood products is reduced, and the rate at which carbon accumulates in forests.

Examining contemporary careers: A call for interdisciplinary inquiry

Abstract: This article describes an urgent need for interdisciplinary careers research in the emerging global knowledge economy. It begins by identifying a range of traditions in careers research, including both occupational and organizational research traditions from professional schools of education and management. It proceeds by offering a view on contemporary careers, and examining three directions for contemporary careers research — reflecting what organizational careers scholars see, what other organizational scholars see, and what is suggested by evidence on the knowledge economy — while leaving the door open for others to join the conversation by suggesting further research directions. The article then turns to propose three topics for future interdisciplinary research collaboration: a more accessible definition of career, application of contrasting methodologies and adoption of wider research agendas. The overall message is for careers scholars to become both more collaborative and more `imaginative' in th...

Development of Cognitive and Affective Trust in Teams A Longitudinal Study

Abstract: The present research examines the development of two dimensions of trust, cognitive and affective, in student project teams over the course of a semester. Empirical examination of the evolution of multidimensional trust and its unique antecedents was explored. The results show that early trust emerges as a one-dimensional factor early in the life span of a team; cognitive and affective trust emerge as separate components over time; unique and distinct predictors positively and negatively affect early trust, cognitive trust, and affective trust; and affective trust has a stronger positive relationship with team performance than cognitive trust.

Visual impairment following stroke: do stroke patients require vision assessment?

Abstract: Background: the types of visual impairment followings stroke are wide ranging and encompass low vision, eye movement and visual field abnormalities, and visual perceptual difficuilties. Objective: the purpose of this paper is to present a 1-year data set and identify the types of visual impairment occurring following stroke and their prevalence. Methods: a multi-centre prospective observation study was undertaken in 14 acute trust hospitals. Stroke survivors with a suspectedvisualdifficultywererecruited.Standardisedscreening/referralandinvestigationformswereemployedtodocument data on visual impairment specifically assessment of visual acuity, ocular pathology, eye alignment and movement, visual perception (including inattention) and visual field defects. Results: three hundred and twenty-three patients were recruited with a mean age of 69 years [standard deviation (SD) 15]. Sixty-eight per cent had eye alignment/movement impairment, 49% had visual field impairment, 26.5% had low vision and 20.5% had perceptual difficulties. Conclusions: of patients referred with a suspected visual difficulty, only 8% had normal vision status confirmed on examination. Ninety-two per cent had visual impairment of some form confirmed which is considerably higher than previous publications and probably relates to the prospective, standardised investigation offered by specialist orthoptists. However, under-ascertainment of visual problems cannot be ruled out.

Monitoring the fate of autologous and allogeneic mesenchymal progenitor cells injected into the superficial digital flexor tendon of horses: Preliminary study

Abstract: Autologous mesenchymal progenitor cells (MPCs) purified from bone marrow aspirates are being used in the treatment of superficial digital flexor tendon (SDFT) injuries in the horse with promising results. In this study the fate of autologous and allogeneic MPCs following injection into the SDFT was monitored by stable transfection of MPCs with green fluorescent protein (GFP). Small lesions were created manually in one forelimb SDFT of 2 horses and injected with autologous MPCs, allogeneic MPCs or bone marrow supernatant alone. Post mortem examinations performed after 10 or 34 days revealed GFP labelled cells located mainly within injected lesions, but with a small proportion integrated into the crimp pattern of adjacent healthy areas of tendon. Furthermore, there was no visible cell mediated immune response to allogeneic MPCs in either of the host horses.

The many moods of inter‐organizational imitation: A critical review

Abstract: The management literature is paying increasing attention to the phenomenon of imitation. However, there are several gaps in understanding what drives firms’ imitative behaviors. Furthermore, a fragmented array of disciplinary perspectives has investigated imitation phenomena in the past. This paper reviews the literature on imitation and offers a unifying framework to understand what theory has said about the predictors of imitative behaviors, in terms of purposes, driving forces and target. At the end of the review, two over-arching rationales for imitation seem to emerge: risk reduction and search for effectiveness. Next, the review distinguishes between what drives the general propensity for imitation of a firm and what makes a specific decision more likely to be imitated by the same firm. Implications and indications for future research are offered in the final section.

Somalia after state collapse: Chaos or improvement?

Abstract: Many people believe that Somalia's economy has been in chaos since the collapse of its national government in 1991. We take a comparative institutional approach to examine Somalia's performance relative to other African countries both when Somalia had a government and during its extended period of anarchy. We find that although Somalia is poor, its relative economic performance has improved during its period of statelessness. We describe how Somalia has provided basic law and order and a currency, enabling the country to achieve the coordination that has led to improvements in its standard of living.

Standardized Algorithms for Management of Anastomotic Leaks and Related Abdominal and Pelvic Abscesses After Colorectal Surgery

Abstract: Background The risk factors and incidence of anastomotic leak following colorectal surgery are well reported in the literature. However, the management of the multiple clinical scenarios that may be encountered has not been standardized.

Trauma in Transgender Populations: Risk, Resilience, and Clinical Care

Abstract: The transgender community is disproportionately affected by violence (Wilchins, Lombardi, Priesing, & Malouf, 1997). Transphobia—prejudice, discrimination, and gender-related violence due to negative attitudes toward transgender identity—may pose a risk factor for experiencing trauma in transgender individuals. Other risk and resiliency factors associated with experiencing traumatic violence among transgender populations are addressed in this article. Finally, culturally competent treatment suggestions are provided for clinicians working with transgender survivors of trauma in a clinical setting.

Mindfulness- and Acceptance-Based Behavioral Therapies in Practice

Abstract: Mindfulness- & acceptance- based behavioral therapies in practice , Mindfulness- & acceptance- based behavioral therapies in practice , کتابخانه مرکزی دانشگاه علوم پزشکی تهران

From servicescape to consumptionscape: a photo-elicitation study of Starbucks in the New China

Abstract: A servicescape can be viewed as the frozen potential of a consumptionscape, which is unleashed when consumers “twist” the resources of its built environment for their own purposes. In this paper we explore how young, urban Chinese consumers transform the iconic global brand Starbucks into a consumptionscape through their enactment of personally meaningful experiences, roles, and identities in the setting. We employ the qualitative research methodology of photo-elicitation by having consumers record their experience in a Starbucks in Beijing through photography and later using these images as probes in a depth interview. The implications for new global servicescapes in local markets are discussed.

Sugar beet contains a large CONSTANS-LIKE gene family including a CO homologue that is independent of the early-bolting (B) gene locus

Abstract: Floral transition in the obligate long-day (LD) plant sugar beet (Beta vulgaris ssp. vulgaris) is tightly linked to the B gene, a dominant early-bolting quantitative trait locus, the expression of which is positively regulated by LD photoperiod. Thus, photoperiod regulators like CONSTANS (CO) and CONSTANS-LIKE (COL) genes identified in many LD and short-day (SD)-responsive plants have long been considered constituents and/or candidates for the B gene. Until now, the photoperiod response pathway of sugar beet (a Caryophyllid), diverged from the Rosids and Asterids has not been identified. Here, evidence supporting the existence of a COL gene family is provided and the presence of Group I, II, and III COL genes in sugar beet, as characterized by different zinc-finger (B-box) and CCT (CO, CO-like, TOC) domains is demonstrated. BvCOL1 is identified as a close-homologue of Group 1a (AtCO, AtCOL1, AtCOL2) COL genes, hence a good candidate for flowering time control and it is shown that it maps to chromosome II but distant from the B gene locus. The late-flowering phenotype of A. thaliana co-2 mutants was rescued by over-expression of BvCOL1 thereby suggesting functional equivalence with AtCO, and it is shown that BvCOL1 interacts appropriately with the endogenous downstream genes, AtFT and AtSOC1 in the transgenic plants. Curiously, BvCOL1 has a dawn-phased diurnal pattern of transcription, mimicking that of AtCOL1 and AtCOL2 while contrasting with AtCO. Taken together, these data suggest that BvCOL1 plays an important role in the photoperiod response of sugar beet.

Patterns of complementary and alternative medicine use amongst outpatients in Tokyo, Japan.

Abstract: The use of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) has been increasing rapidly throughout the world during the past decade. The use of CAM in the general Japanese population has been previously reported to be as high as 76%. This study aims to investigate the patterns of CAM use, perceived effectiveness and disclosure of CAM use to orthodox medical practitioners amongst patients attending typical primary and secondary care clinics in a busy district general hospital in Tokyo, Japan. The authors analysed data collected during March 2002 on patients attending general outpatient clinics held at Shiseikai Daini Hospital in Tokyo, Japan. Data was collected by use of self-completed questionnaires distributed to patients in the outpatient clinics waiting area. Statistical analysis was performed using chi-square tests of independence. 515 adults were approached to participate in this study and the overall response rate was 96% (n = 496). 50% of the patients were using or have used at least 1 CAM therapy within the last 12 months. The 5 most commonly used therapies were massage (n = 106, 43%), vitamins (n = 85, 35%), health foods including dietary supplements (n = 56, 23%), acupressure (n = 51, 21%) and kampo (n = 46, 19%). The majority of CAM users (75%, n = 145) found their CAM treatment to be effective (95% CI = 68–81%). Patients who were more likely to use CAM were females (p = 0.003) and those with a high number of medical conditions (p = < 0.0001). Only a small proportion of patients reported their CAM use to their physician (42%, n = 74). There was no significant difference in CAM use for the different age groups (p = 0.85), education level (p = 0.30) and financial status (p = 0.82). Patterns of CAM usage in the sample surveyed was high (50%). Despite this high prevalence rate and presumed acceptance of CAM in Japan, the reporting of CAM use by patients to their physicians was low (42%). It is therefore important that physicians are aware of the possibility that their patients may be using CAM and also increase their knowledge and understanding of these treatments.

Thermohaline circulation of shallow tidal seas

Abstract: The mechanisms controlling the temperature and salinity structure of shallow continental shelf seas have been understood for over thirty years, yet knowledge of what drives their large-scale circulation has remained relatively unknown Here we describe a decade long programme of measurements, using satellite-tracked drifting buoys on the northwest European shelf, to draw attention to a striking picture of highly organised thermohaline circulation consisting of narrow, near surface, fast flowing jets These are ubiquitous above sharp horizontal gradients in bottom temperatures and/or salinities The circulation phenomena we describe are likely to be prevalent on all similar, wide, tidally energetic continental shelves including those off north-eastern China, Argentina and parts of the Arctic The robust, repeatable observation of the key role of jets above bottom fronts results in a fundamental reassessment of how we view the dynamics of shelf seas

Conflict in the Classroom: Gender Differences in the Teacher-Child Relationship.

Abstract: Research Findings: Current research regarding gender differences in educational settings at all socioeconomic levels suggests that young males are at high risk for developing academic, social, and emotional difficulties, resulting in increased disconnection from self and society. This study examined gender differences in the teacher–child relationship as reported by teachers. Two specific constructs of relationship were examined: closeness and conflict. The second goal of the study was to determine whether children's reports of the relationship differed from the perspectives of teachers. Six hundred and ninety-eight children ranging from kindergarten to fourth grade (333 boys and 365 girls) from a small suburb in the n ortheastern United States and 35 teachers completed the Student–Teacher Relationship Scale; 52 first- and second- grade students were asked to complete a c hild-r eport pilot version of the Student–Teacher Relationship Scale (Koepke, unpublished data) to assess their perceptions of the teac...

Context adaptation of fuzzy systems through a multi-objective evolutionary approach based on a novel interpretability index

Abstract: Context adaptation (CA) based on evolutionary algorithms is certainly a promising approach to the development of fuzzy rule-based systems (FRBSs). In CA, a context-free model is instantiated to a context-adapted FRBS so as to increase accuracy. A typical requirement in CA is that the context-adapted system maintains the same interpretability as the context-free model, a challenging constraint given that accuracy and interpretability are often conflicting objectives. Furthermore, interpretability is difficult to quantify because of its very nature of being a qualitative concept. In this paper, we first introduce a novel index based on fuzzy ordering relations in order to provide a measure of interpretability. Then, we use the proposed index and the mean square error as goals of a multi-objective evolutionary algorithm aimed at generating a set of Pareto-optimum context-adapted Mamdani-type FRBSs with different trade-offs between accuracy and interpretability. CA is obtained through the use of specifically designed operators that adjust the universe of the input and output variables, and modify the core, the support and the shape of fuzzy sets characterizing the partitions of these universes. Finally, we show results obtained by using our approach on synthetic and real data sets.

Heart murmurs and valvular regurgitation in thoroughbred racehorses: epidemiology and associations with athletic performance.

Abstract: Background: Cardiac murmurs associated with valvular regurgitation occur commonly in conditioned performance horses, but their association with athletic performance is unknown. Hypothesis: Cardiac valvular regurgitation has a negative association with race performance. Animals: Five hundred and twenty-six “race fit” Thoroughbred racehorses engaged in either flat (race distance 1,000–2,500 m) or jump racing (race distance 3,200–6,400 m). Methods: Cardiac auscultation and color flow Doppler (CFD) echocardiography were performed on 777 occasions. The associations between the presence and severity of either an audible cardiac murmur or valvular regurgitation assessed by CFD, and published, objective measures of race performance were determined using a standard regression approach. Results: The prevalence of murmurs and of regurgitation varied significantly between racetypes (P<.02), generally increasing from 2-year olds to chasers. There were no consistent associations between racing performance and either grade of murmur or regurgitation, whether the presence or absence of regurgitation or murmur, or only murmurs ≥3/6 or regurgitation ≥6/9, were considered. Conclusions and Clinical Importance: There were differences in prevalence and severity of murmurs of atrioventricular and aortic valve regurgitation between racehorses in different disciplines. Data also showed that neither regurgitation nor murmurs were negatively associated with Timeform rating, an index of UK racehorse quality, in any of the groups of racehorses studied.

Mapping the spawning grounds of North Sea cod (Gadus morhua) by direct and indirect means

Abstract: Despite recent evidence for sub-stock structuring, North Sea cod are assessed as a single unit. As a consequence, knowledge of sub-stock trends is poor. In particular, there are no recent evaluations of which spawning grounds are active. Here we report results from the first ichthyoplankton survey to cover the whole North Sea. Also, this survey, conducted in 2004, was the first to make extensive use of DNA-based molecular methods to unambiguously identify early developmental stage cod eggs. We compare the findings from the plankton survey with estimated egg production inferred from the distribution of mature cod in contemporaneous trawl surveys. Results from both approaches were in general agreement and showed hot spots of egg production around the southern and eastern edges of the Dogger Bank, in the German Bight, the Moray Firth and to the east of the Shetlands. These areas broadly coincide with known spawning locations from the period 1940 to 1970. We were, however, unable to directly detect significant numbers of cod eggs at the historic spawning ground off Flamborough (northeast coast of England). The results demonstrate that most of the major spawning grounds of cod in the North Sea are still active but that some localized populations may have been reduced to the point where it is now difficult to detect the presence of eggs in the plankton.