Lowest Average Score Research Articles

Exploring Climate Disaster Resilience: Insight into City and Zone Levels of Southern Taiwan

While climate change is one of the greatest environmental threats the entire world faces today, rapid urbanization is making both the community and ecosystem more vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. Estimating urban resilience is thus one of the important processes to understanding the current and potential future risks of cities providing practical policies and qualified strategies to cope with climate change effects. This study presents a disaster risk analysis in Southern Taiwan at the municipal and zone levels using the Climate Disaster Resilience Index (CDRI). The index was estimated at both the zone and city scale of three coastal cities, namely Tainan, Kaohsiung, and Pingtung. The CDRI approach consists of five different dimensions (physical, social, economic, institutional, and natural), with several parameters and variables reflecting the abilities, strength, and threats of case study cities to cope with potential climate-related disasters. The findings show that, while the physical dimension has the highest resilience among cities, the lowest average scores and the least resilience belong to the natural dimension. The overall CDRI score for different cites also revealed various capabilities, shortcomings, drawbacks, and potential risks of neighbored cities in the same region. It is expected that the findings of this study shall serve as an urban planning tool to recognize the sectors within an urban context that are more or less resilient, enhance actions at the local level, and support future planning decisions.

PENYULUHAN PROTOKOL KESEHATAN PENCEGAHAN DAN PENGENDALIAN COVID-19 DI PANTI ASUHAN BAITUL ARIEF KOTA BANDUNG

The virus that causes COVID-19 is mainly transmitted through the droplets that are produced when an infected person coughs, sneezes, or exhales. We can be infected when we breathe the air containing the virus, we are too close to people who are already infected with COVID-19. Therefore, it is necessary to conduct outreach to the public regarding health protocols to prevent and control the transmission of covid-19. The Baitul Arief Orphanage, which is located in the middle of the city and a densely populated area, has 85 foster children who have activities both from foster children and activities from guests and donors who come and go. To prevent foster children from contracting COVID-19 by changing their lifestyle in accordance with government regulations, it is necessary to conduct Health Protocol Covid-19 Prevention and Control Counseling. The methods of implementing these activities include location surveys, presenting initiatives, implementing Covid-19 Health Protocol counseling, handing over hand washing equipment from the UBK community service team, 6-step hand washing practice with soap for, ordering the covid task force at an orphanage, and evaluation. Activities are documented and published through social media and mass media and journals. The results of education and evaluation of written tests increase children's knowledge and understanding as prevention and control of Covid-19. The lowest average score for foster children with elementary education level and the highest score for foster children with tertiary education. The existence of the Covid-19 Task Force in the form of an orphanage contributes to changes in behavior and builds self-awareness for foster children at the Baitul Arief orphanage in Bandung City.

Resident Training and the Assessment of Orthopaedic Surgical Skills.

Background:Medical knowledge and technical skills are foundations of surgical competency. The American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery (ABOS) and the Resident Review Committee for Orthopaedic Surgery recently mandated simulation training to improve surgical skills, listing 17 surgical skills modules to improve residents' technical skills. However, there is no established tool to measure the effectiveness of these modules. The Global Index for Technical Skills (GRITS) tool has been previously validated for evaluating general surgery residents. The aim of this study was to determine whether the GRITS tool is valid, practical, and reliable in evaluating the skills of orthopaedic residents in a simulation setting, whether the outcomes correlate to performance in the operating room, and to what extent these simulation modules are valued by residents.Methods:Simulation performance was assessed longitudinally on 5 residents using the GRITS assessment through postgraduate years (PGY) 1 to 5 (n = 25 evaluations) in a simulated volar forearm approach using cadaveric specimens. An additional 20 PGY-1 residents were evaluated cross-sectionally in this same time frame. Written, open-ended feedback on the simulation experience was sought and analyzed via a thematic analysis. For correlative data, evaluations (n = 65 evaluations) of a variety of authentic surgical procedures were compiled on PGY-2 through PGY-5 orthopaedic residents and compared with the simulated experiences.Results:GRITS scores were averaged for each group of residents, and validity and reliability were assessed using R-software. PGY-1 residents' mean GRITS evaluation score (expressed as a value from 1 to 5) was 3.4. Longitudinally, this mean score increased over the PGY years 2-5 to 4.4, 4.7, 4.9, and 4.8, respectively. Of the parameters measured by GRITS, the lowest average scores were “flow of operation” and “time and motion” across all levels, although these did improve over PGY years 2 to 5. Findings were consistent between simulation and “real-world” procedures. Open-ended responses evaluating the module were positive.Conclusions:Our study suggests that the GRITS tool shows promise as an effective and reliable method for assessing orthopaedic resident's technical skills based on an ABOS module system.

Students’ scientific articles writing ability based on lacertilia inventory results in the conservation area Bengkulu University

Writing scientific articles is a problem for teachers especially in elementary, junior and high school levels. This study aimed to determine student ability to write scientific articles based on the results of lacertilia suborder inventory in the conservation area of Bengkulu University. This study used Research and Development method. Participants in this research was teachers who being students of graduated school of science education on 2018 academic year who enroll biology environment subject. Students in 7 groups has made 7 articles based on lacertilia inventory research. From the scientific articles writing, there are 7 indicators that indicate in good score, including the ability to write title, identity, article components, abstracts, introduction, results and discussion, and conclusions with highest average score as much as 3.42 in ability to write results and discussion, and lowest average score as much as 2,14 in ability to write method.

Hemşirelik Öğrencilerinde Diyabet Riski ve Sağlıklı Yaşam Biçimi Davranışlarının Belirlenmesi

Aim: This research was carried out descriptively to determine the risk level and healthy lifestyle behaviors of nursing students in terms of diabetes development. Material and Methods: The research population consisted of 392 students studying at the Faculty of Nursing of a public university in Istanbul, and 353 students who agreed to participate in the research. The Information Form, Type 2 Diabetes Risk Assessment Form- FINDRISC and Healthy Lifestyle Behaviors Scale-II (HLBS-II) were used to collect the data. Chi-square test, t test in independent groups, One-way ANOVA and pearson correlation analysis were used to evaluate the data. Results: The average age of the individuals participating in the study is 19.95±1.71 years, and 80.5% (n=284) of the women and body mass index (BMI) average is 21.94 kg/m2. 63.2% of the individuals participating in the study are low-risk in terms of diabetes, 29.5% of them are mildly risky, and the total score average of HLBS-II is 128.07±17.67. When the sub-dimension scores of the scale were examined, it was found that the highest average score was obtained from spiritual development (26.12±4.31), and the lowest average score was obtained from physical activity (17.30±4.62). In our study, it was found that those who exercised had a low risk of diabetes and had a mean total score of HLBS -II (t=0.746, p <0.001) better than those who did not. A weak and negative correlation was found between diabetes risk and healthy lifestyle behaviors (r =-0.112, p =0.035). Conclusion: It has been shown that approximately one-third of nursing students have a slight risk of diabetes, and students with a low score for healthy lifestyle behaviors have an increased risk of diabetes.

İlkokul Dördüncü Sınıf Öğrencilerinin Sözel ve Şekilsel Yaratıcılık Düzeylerinin İncelenmesi

Bu araştırma ilkokul dördüncü sınıf öğrencilerinin sözel ve şekilsel yaratıcılık düzeylerini incelemek amacıyla yapılmıştır. Araştırma, ilişkisel tarama modelinde betimsel bir çalışmadır. Veri toplama aracı olarak “ Yaratıcı Düşünme Testi Şekilsel Form A ve Sözel Form A” kullanılmıştır. Araştırma sonucunda, öğrencilerin sözel yaratıcılık açısından en yüksek puanı akıcılık, en düşük puanı ise orijinallik alt boyutlarında aldıkları görülmüştür. Şekilsel yaratıcılık testinde en yüksek puan ortalamasının akıcılık, en düşük puan ortalamasının ise başlıkların soyutluğu alt boyunda olduğu belirlenmiştir. Öğrencilerin sözel yaratıcılık puanları ile şekilsel yaratıcılık puanları arasında pozitif yönde ve anlamlı düzeyde bir ilişki vardır. Araştırma sonuçlarına bağlı olarak, eğitim programı ve öğretim bağlamında yaratıcı düşünme becerisinin geliştirilmesinin önemli bir amaç olarak yer alması ve özellikle yaratıcı düşünmenin esneklik ve orijinallik boyutlarını geliştirmeye yönelik olarak, okulda ve okul dışı ortamlarda eğitsel etkinliklerin yapılması önerilmiştir.

Persepsi Mahasiswa Tentang Penggunaan Aplikasi Turnitin Untuk Mencegah Tindak Plagiarisme di Perpustakaan Universitas Bina Darma Palembang

This research aims to determine the perseptions of 2015-2016 class students about the use of the Turnitin aplication to prevent plagiarism in the Library Universitas Bina Darma Palembang and to find out what aspect need to be improved. The type of research used is descriptive with a quantitative approach. The sample in this research were 365 respondents. The main data collections method is a questionnaire with a Likert Scale. Test the validity of the instrument using the Product Moment, while the realibility test used Cronbach Alpha, with calculations using SPSS 22.0 For Windows. The analysis data in this research used the Mean and Grand Mean formula. The result of the research be conclude that perseptions of 2015-2016 class students about the use of the Turnitin aplications to prevent plagiarism in the Bina Darma University Library in Palembang is a “Very High” category with a total average value of (4,20), and are at interval 4,20-5,0. While the aspect that must be improved is the aspect of affection (attitude), with the lowest average score (4,14) compared to other aspects.

Abstract PO-070: Knowledge, attitudes, beliefs, practices regarding human papillomavirus (HPV), and barriers to vaccination against HPV infection: A cross-sectional survey of Guam residents

Abstract Background Human papillomavirus (HPV) is the most common sexually transmitted infection in the United States and is linked to cervical, anal, vaginal, vulvar, penile, and oropharyngeal cancers. In the U.S. territory of Guam, the incidence of cervical cancer is six times higher in Micronesians and over three times higher for CHamorus than the U.S. population. Though nasopharyngeal cancer has other contributing factors beyond HPV infection such as smoking and drinking, the CHamorus, who are the Indigenous people of Guam, have an incidence rate of nasopharyngeal cancer 20 times that of the U.S. population. In Guam, HPV vaccination rate is sub-optimally short of the National Healthy People 2020 goal to have at least 80% of females and males between the ages 13-15 years complete the HPV vaccine series. In 2016, 55.8% females and 33.2% males completed the HPV vaccination. Objective Our study sought to analyze a representative sample of Guam residents to examine their knowledge, attitudes, beliefs, practices regarding HPV, and barriers to HPV vaccination. Methods The cross-sectional survey of 776 respondents included 38% males and 62% females. The three major ethnic groups in the sample were CHamoru (48%), Filipino (26%), and Micronesians (11%). Sixty-eight percent of the respondents had at least one child. The aggregated scores were calculated for the following scale items: attitude (A), knowledge (K), subjective norms (SN), and perceived behavioral control (PBC) regarding HPV. Results Almost 45% of respondents admitted that they do not have enough knowledge to have their children vaccinated. However, 88% of those respondents stated that they would have their children vaccinated if the doctor told them. Women had significantly higher mean scores than men for A, K, and PBC/SN. Participants with more than high school education and higher incomes have significantly higher mean scores for all three measures. There were significant differences among different ethnic groups, with Micronesians having the lowest average score for all three measures. There were no significant differences between participants who had their children vaccinated and those who did not. Only 48% of respondents with children reported having their children vaccinated. Only ethnicity and having insurance were significant predictors of HPV vaccination. The respondents with medical insurance were almost three times as likely to have their children vaccinated for HPV (OR=2.8; 95% CI: 1.4, 5.2) Conclusions The results highlighted the significance of the physician’s role in having the HPV vaccination. Our results will serve as a guide to implement effective strategies for the development of targeted behavioral interventions and to develop appropriate interventions to increase the HPV vaccination uptake on Guam. Citation Format: Ana Joy Mendez, Lilnabeth Somera, Grazyna Badowski, Angelina Mummert, Lucy Castro, Angrenilda Antolin. Knowledge, attitudes, beliefs, practices regarding human papillomavirus (HPV), and barriers to vaccination against HPV infection: A cross-sectional survey of Guam residents [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR Virtual Conference: Thirteenth AACR Conference on the Science of Cancer Health Disparities in Racial/Ethnic Minorities and the Medically Underserved; 2020 Oct 2-4. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2020;29(12 Suppl):Abstract nr PO-070.

The Implementation of Clustering Method With K-Means Algorithm In Grouping Data of Students’ Course Scores at Universitas Muhammadiyah Yogyakarta

Student grades can be a reference. A large number of student grade data in a university causes data accumulation; thus, data are grouped with data mining. This study aims to classify student grade data in the second semester. Grouping student grade data was performed using the clustering method with the K-means algorithm. The research data were derived from the database of Universitas Muhammadiyah Yogyakarta. The data were students’ grades in the academic years of 2010/2011, 2011/2012, 2012/2013, 2013/2014, and 2014/2015. The analysis process was carried out using WEKA software, SQL Server 2014 Management Studio and Microsoft Excel. The clustering method could be applied to group student grade data. Clustering with K-means formed three clusters, with cluster 0 comprising 72 students, cluster 1 consisting of 190 students, and cluster 2 totaling 133 students. A cluster with the lowest average score could be used as a consideration in updating the learning methods to optimize students’ score acquisition.

A Study on Medication Adherence and Quality of Life in Patients with Chronic Kidney Disease

Back ground: Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) is the most common health related problem. Poor long term adherence is the major clinical issue in the management of CKD. Therefore good medication adherence is important to obtain desired therapeutic outcome which in turn improves the quality of life of the patient. The aim of the study is to carry out a study on medication adherence and to improve health related quality of life in patients with CKD.&#x0D; Objectives: To evaluate medication adherence and to assess the factors associated with non adherence and to provide patient counselling to improve medication adherence and to improve their quality of life.&#x0D; Methods: A prospective study conducted for a period of six months in NU Hospitals Bengaluru. A total of 140 patients (62 were undergoing hemodialysis, 66 were CKD stage 3-5 and 12 were post-transplant patients) were enrolled for the study. Patient’s adherence to medication was assessed with the help of Modified Morisky, Green, Levine Medication Adherence Scale and Quality of life was assessed with the help of Kidney Disease Quality of Life-Short Form 36 questionnaire. One to one follow up was done after 3 months of initial data collection.&#x0D; Results: During the study 140 patients were enrolled for the study with 103 males and 37 females. Patient with low and medium adherence during the first visit were 7 (5%) and 21 (45%) respectively and patients with high adherence during baseline visit were 80%, which later improved to 85.7% in the final review after patient counselling. Quality of life is decreased in patients with CKD. The domain with highest average score was emotional well being (8.4) and lowest average score was role limitation due to physical health (4.12). There was a slight improvement in Quality of Life of the patients after patient counselling.&#x0D; Conclusion: Study suggests that patient counselling by clinical pharmacists can improve the medication adherence by improving awareness about medication which in turn helps them to achieve a better quality of life.

MODEL IDEAL PROBLEM SOLVING UNTUK MENINGKATKAN KEMAMPUAN KREATIVITAS SISWA KELAS X MIA MAN 1 KOTA TERNATE PADA KONSEP GERAK LURUS DENGAN KECEPATAN DAN PERCEPATAN KONSTAN

The Ideal Problem Solving model is designed to help to identify and understand the problem solving to practice the ability of creativity to describe the systematic procedure of the word “Ideal” and is used to guide teachers to help students how to identify problems, define goals, explore exploration strategies, anticipate the results and act and see and learn. This research is experimental. This research aims to find out the increase in students 'creativity ability in learning straight-motion material with constant speed and acceleration and find out the consistency of increasing students' creative ability. The research subjects were 62 students MIA-1 and MIA-2 Madrasah Aliyah Negeri 1 Ternate. This research is quantitative descriptive research methods with One Group Pre-Test and Post-Test design, the variables used in this study were independent namely the Ideal Problem Solving Model, and the dependent variable increase students ' creative ability. The Technique of collecting data in this research is the observation of student activities, Creativity Tests, and questionnaires. The instruments are in the form of essay questions, consist of 7 items that have been tested, the N-Gain formula was used to calculate students' creative abilities, through the Pre-test with the lowest average score is 27 in the MIA-1 class and the Post-test with an average score is 70, for the MIA-2 class through the Pre-test with the lowest average score is 30 and through the Post-test with an average score is 72. Research results show that an increase in students' creative abilities after applying the IDEAL Problem Solve learning model with N-Gain 62% for MIA-1 and 61% for MIA-2 moderate category, after an increase in creativity is observed, it is tested using the Cooperative Test or the two-party Test (t) to see the consistency of differences, the results of the study showed that t-count &lt;t-table or 0.09 &lt;2,000 and there is no consistent difference in increasing the ability of creativity after applying the IDEAL Problem Solving model.

Systematic Review of Evidence-Based Guidelines for Prehospital Care

Introduction: Multiple national organizations have identified a need to incorporate more evidence-based medicine in emergency medical services (EMS) through the creation of evidence-based guidelines (EBGs). Tools like the Appraisal of Guidelines for Research and Evaluation (AGREE) II and criteria outlined by the National Academy of Medicine (NAM) have established concrete recommendations for the development of high-quality guidelines. While many guidelines have been created that address topics within EMS medicine, neither the quantity nor quality of prehospital EBGs have been previously reported. Objectives: To perform a systematic review to identify existing EBGs related to prehospital care and evaluate the quality of these guidelines using the AGREE II tool and criteria for clinical guidelines described by the NAM. Methods: We performed a systematic search of the literature in MEDLINE, EMBASE, PubMED, Trip, and guidelines.gov, through September 2018. Guideline topics were categorized based on the 2019 Core Content of EMS Medicine. Two independent reviewers screened titles for relevance and then abstracts for essential guideline features. Included guidelines were appraised with the AGREE II tool across 6 domains by 3 independent reviewers and scores averaged. Two additional reviewers determined if each guideline reported the key elements of clinical practice guidelines recommended by the NAM via consensus. Results: We identified 71 guidelines, of which 89% addressed clinical aspects of EMS medicine. Only 9 guidelines scored >75% across AGREE II domains and most (63%) scored between 50 and 75%. Domain 4 (Clarity of Presentation) had the highest (79.7%) and domain 5 (Applicability) had the lowest average score across EMS guidelines. Only 38% of EMS guidelines included a reporting of all criteria identified by the NAM for clinical practice guidelines, with elements of a systematic review of the literature most commonly missing. Conclusions: EBGs exist addressing a variety of topics in EMS medicine. This systematic review and appraisal of EMS guidelines identified a wide range in the quality of these guidelines and variable reporting of key elements of clinical guidelines. Future guideline developers should consider established methodological and reporting recommendations to improve the quality of EMS guidelines.

Determining the Obstacles of Type 2 Diabetes Patients

Objective: This study was carried out to identify the obstacles faced by Type 2 diabetes patients.Methods: The study was conducted in the descriptive type and included 112 patients hospitalized in the internal medicine clinics of the Ondokuz Mayıs University Health Practices and Research Hospital. The descriptive form and the "Diabetes Obstacles Questionnaire in Type-2 Diabetes Patients" were used in the study. As the average score obtained in the subscales of the questionnaire rises, the level of obstacles related to that area felt by patients increases.Results: Of the patients who participated in the study, 60.7% were women, 53.6% were housewives, 48.2% were primary school graduates, 27.7% lived in districts and 92% reported the presence of at least one chronic disease other than diabetes. It was identified that 54.5% of the patients had been diagnosed with diabetes for 11 years and longer, 50.9% had received diabetes education, 72.3% had relatives with diabetes, 64.3% used oral antidiabetics and 72.3% received insulin treatment. Among the patients, 35.7% stated that the hardest aspect of diabetes was "following a diabetic diet". Among the subscales of the Diabetes Obstacles Questionnaire, the lowest average score was -0.34 in the obstacles in "receiving advice and support" subscale, and the highest average score was 0.34 in the "obstacles in coping with diabetes" subscaleConclusion: The fact that 7 of the 8 subscales of the diabetes obstacles questionnaire had negative averages in the study indicates that the patients’ perception of obstacles in these areas was low. The only subscale with a positive average was the "barriers in coping with diabetes" subscale and the patients’ perception of obstacles related to this area was higher. Based on the findings, it is recommended to increase the accessibility of diabetes education and the rate of receiving diabetes education, and that educated patients be re-evaluated periodically by the diabetes education nurse.

Penguasaan Keterampilan Dasar Mengajar Mahasiswa Program Studi Pendidikan Bahasa Arab di Universitas Negeri Jakarta

This study aims to get a clear description of the basic teaching skills for students of the Arabic Language Education Study Program, Faculty of Languages and Arts, Universitas Negeri Jakarta. The research method used in this study is a mixed-method which is a combination of quantitative research methods and qualitative research methods. The research location is in one of the Universitas Negeri Jakarta classrooms and the research subjects consisted of 45 students class of 2016 in the Arabic Language Education Study Program who took Micro Teaching course. Data collection techniques using observation and documentation instruments. The percentage of the highest to lowest average scores in basic teaching skills mastered by students on the exam, small groups and individuals, with a value of 89.42% in the very good category, and skills of reinforcement obtained an average value of 85.00% with enough category. With this research, researchers gain an understanding of basic teaching skills as well as data related to teaching skills in the Arabic Language Education Study Program, Universitas Negeri Jakarta. This research also can be used as a guideline for other researchers regarding basic teaching skills.

Perspectives of health workers on annual performance appraisal: A study in primary health care

ABSTRACT Introduction: Fair and effective performance appraisal can improve employee performance and healthcare quality. We aimed to examine the perspectives of health workers on the annual performance appraisal in the primary health care (PHC) setting of Hamadan, Iran. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted on 185 health workers. Data were collected using the questionnaire developed based on an extensive literature review. The validity and reliability of which were confirmed. Statistical analysis was performed using descriptive statistics, analysis of variance (ANOVA), t test, and Pearson's correlation coefficient test. Results: Health workers’ average score on the performance appraisal was 2.65 out of 5. The highest average score (3.15) was attributed to organizational context, while performance feedback had the lowest average score (2.21). There was a significant positive correlation between the overall score on the performance appraisal and job satisfaction (P < 0.001). Conclusion: Health workers’ performance appraisal is facing a number of challenges, including ineffectiveness of appraisal data for performance improvement, lack of immediate and constructive feedback and unfair performance appraisal. As the ultimate goal of appraisal systems is to motivate employees for better health outcomes and performance improvement, these systems should be reviewed and revised.

Rapid assessment checklist for green roof ecosystem services in Bangkok, Thailand

BackgroundA green roof is a man-made ecosystem created when a rooftop is covered with substrate and vegetation. Although green roof ecosystems (GREs) are able to provide ecosystem services, there is currently no assessment tool available to specifically evaluate this. Therefore, the aim of this study was to develop a rapid assessment checklist (RAC) to assess GRE services (GRES), which was developed and tested on 10 green roofs in Bangkok, Thailand.ResultsThe RAC consisted of 46 proxy indicators (33 qualitative and 13 quantitative indicators) encompassing various aspects of GRESs. The GRES values or scores varied according to structural differences in the green roofs. The average score (from a maximum of 100) of total ecosystem services was 61 ± 7, which could be inferred as a good performance in ecosystem service provision. The highest scores were obtained from the regulating services at 68 ± 7. The lowest average score was 53 ± 11 from the provisioning services.ConclusionsThe RAC was able to evaluate the levels of GRES provided by the selected green roofs, enabling the meaningful comparison of their potential capability to provide GRES. Therefore, this RAC could be an innovative tool for evaluation of four categories of GRES.

Evaluation of learning resource rooms in public schools in Ajloun governorate according to teachers point of view: تقييم غرف مصادر التعلم في المدارس الحكومية في محافظة عجلون من وجهة نظر معلميها

This study aims at identifying the evaluation of learning resources rooms in public schools in Ajloun governorate from the point of view of their teachers. The study was based on the descriptive analytical method. The study population consisted of (107) male and female teachers. random. The study reached a set of results, The most important: The arithmetic averages of the responses of the study sample to evaluate the room of learning resources as a whole came with a high degree, with an average of (3.63) and the field of parents with a high degree, and an arithmetic average (3.92), followed by the teacher field, with an average (3.66). ), Then the student field, with an average (3.64), while the resource room field, the lowest average score, with an average (3.40), The results also showed that there is no statistically significant difference according to sex and educational qualification, and that there are statistically significant difference for the job experience variable for (11 years and above). To disseminate the experience of forming a support committee to all departments, institutions and programs working with people with special needs in the local community.

Menthol Cigarettes and Smoking Cessation among Adult Smokers in the US.

Objectives: In this study, we identified differences in cessation, nicotine dependence, and quit attempts between smokers using non-menthol cigarettes and smokers using menthol cigarettes differing in menthol delivery method (eg, menthol in the tobacco only, crushable capsules only or both). Methods: We analyzed data from the Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health Study, Waves 1 and 2 (W1 and W2), to determine associations of delivery method of menthol with cessation, nicotine dependence, and quit attempts among current adult cigarette smokers. Results: Nearly 40% of US smokers reported using a mentholated cigarette product with most using a product mentholated in the tobacco only. Smokers included in this analysis had a moderate to low heaviness of smoking index score. The lowest average score was among those using products mentholated in a filter capsule only (1.3, SE = .10), and the highest among those using non-mentholated products (2.4, SE = .03). About 12% of smokers quit between W1 and W2. Cessation, nicotine dependence, and quit attempts at W2 were not associated with delivery method of menthol at W1. Conclusions: Method of menthol delivery did not impact cessation, nicotine dependence, and quit attempts.

Calidad de vida relacionada a la salud de las personas con esclerosis múltiple en la Región de Magallanes, Chile

Introducción: La esclerosis múltiple (EM) es una enfermedad autoinmune, crónica, inflamatoria&#x0D; y desmielinizante que afecta al sistema nervioso central (SNC) y la calidad de vida de las personas afectadas. Este último aspecto tiene especial relevancia por su impacto, ya que afecta a individuos jóvenes en etapa productiva. Objetivo: Describir las características demográficas y calidad de vida relacionada a la salud de personas con diagnóstico de EM de la región de Magallanes y Antártica Chilena. Materiales y métodos: Mediante un estudio descriptivo de pacientes con diagnóstico de EM, se registraron los antecedentes demográficos y se evaluó la Calidad de Vida Relacionada a la Salud (CVRS) con el cuestionario de salud SF-36 v.2. &#x0D; Resultados: Se evaluaron 40 pacientes entre 21 y 65 años de edad (57,5% mujeres) con una evolución de EM de 7,59 ± 7,38 años. En la SF-36 v.2, los menores puntajes promedios fueron en las dimensiones Vitalidad (53,75 puntos) y Salud General (61,00 puntos), y los mayores fueron en las dimensiones Función Social (72,50 puntos) y Función Física (71,63 puntos). No hubo diferencias en la calidad de vida de las personas según el sexo. Conclusión: La EM deteriora de manera gradual y diversa diferentes funciones neurológicas; esto determina una disminución de la calidad de vida, principalmente en las dimensiones de Vitalidad y Concepción General del estado de salud.

Flowering phenology of apricot cultivars in the Belgrade region

The phenology of flowering was studied in 50 apricot cultivars in the Belgrade region over a period of eight years (2009-2016). Within the flowering phenophase, three sub-phases were registered: the beginning of flowering, full flowering and the end of flowering. In addition, the duration and abundance of flowering were examined. The average date of the beginning of flowering for all cultivars was March 22, of full flowering - March 25, and of the end of flowering - April 1. The average duration of flowering was 9.7 days, with a range among cultivars between 7.5 days ('Gergana') and 12 days ('Ninfa ' and 'Radka'). The lowest average score (3.0) for flowering intensity was obtained in 'Hungarian Best' cultivar, and the highest score (4.6) in 'Harcot' and 'Leskora' cultivars. In years with higher temperatures during the flowering, a smaller range in flowering time among cultivars was recorded, as well as shorter duration of flowering. Based on the beginning of flowering, the tested cultivars were classified into three groups: early-flowering (14 cultivars), medium-flowering (21 cultivars) and late-flowering (15 cultivars). Meteorological factors (air temperature) had a greater influence on the course and duration of the flowering phenophase than the genetic traits of the cultivars.