Optical and FT Infrared spectral studies of vanadium ions in cadmium borate glass and effects of gamma irradiation.

Combined optical and infrared absorption spectra of V2O5-doped cadmium borate glasses were investigated before and after gamma irradiation with a dose of 8 Mrad (=8×10(4) Gy). The undoped base cadmium borate glass reveals a spectrum consisting of strong charge transfer UV absorption bands which are related to the presence of unavoidable contaminated trace iron impurities (mainly Fe(3+)). The V2O5-doped glasses reveal an extra band at 380nm and the high V2O5-content glass also shows a further band at about 420nm. The observed optical spectrum indicates the presence of vanadium ions mainly in the pentavalent state (d(0) configuration). The surplus band at 420nm shows that some trivalent vanadium ions are identified at high V2O5 content. The optical spectra of the glasses after gamma irradiation show small decrease of the intensity of the UV absorption which are interpreted by assuming the transformation of some Fe(3+) ions by photochemical reactions with the presence of high content (45mol%) of heavy massive CdO causing some shielding behavior. FT infrared absorption spectra of the glasses show vibrational bands due to collective presence of triangular and tetrahedral borate groups in their specific wavenumbers. The FTIR spectra are observed to be slightly affected by both the V2O5-dopants being present in modifying low percent or gamma irradiation due to the presence of high content heavy CdO.

A novel approach for adding smart functionalities to cellulosic fabrics.

A water soluble nanocomposite, based on Ag-nanoparticles (Ag-NPs) loaded on hyperbranched poly (amide-amine, HBPAA) was prepared, characterized and utilized in functional finishing as well as in combined reactive dyeing/and functional finishing of linen, cotton and viscose fabrics. Incorporation of the nanocomposite alone and in combination with reactive dyes in easy care finishing formulations brought about an outstanding antibacterial functionality of the finished and the dyed/finished fabrics even after 15 laundering cycles along with a slight negative impact on other performance properties. Improvement or decrement in the functional, comfort, and dyeing properties is governed by the type of cellulosic substrate.

Predicting patient visits to an urgent care clinic using calendar variables.

OBJECTIVE: To develop a prediction equation for the number of patients seeking urgent care. METHODS: In the first phase, daily patient volume from February 1998 to January 1999 was matched with calendar and weather variables, and stepwise linear regression analysis was performed. This model was used to match staffing to patient volume. The effects were measured through patient complaint and "left without being seen" rates. The second phase was undertaken to develop a model to account for the continual yearly increase in patient volume. For this phase daily patient volume from February 1998 to April 2000 was used; the patient volume from May 2000 to July 2000 was used as a validation set. RESULTS: First-phase prediction equation was: daily patient volume = 66.2 + 11.1 January + 4.56 winter + 47.2 Monday + 37.3 Tuesday + 35.6 Wednesday + 28.2 Thursday + 24.2 Friday + 7.96 Saturday + 10.1 day after a holiday. This equation accounted for 75.2% of daily patient volume (p<0.01). Inclusion of significant weather variables only minimally improved the predictive ability (r(2) = 0.786). The second-phase final model was: daily patient volume = 57.2 + 0.035 Newdate + 52.0 Monday + 44. 2 Tuesday + 39.2 Wednesday + 30.2 Thursday + 26.5 Friday + 10.9 Saturday + 12.2 February + 3.9 March, which accounted for 72.7% of the daily variation (p<0.01). The model predicted the patient volume in the validation set within +/-11%. When the first-phase model was used to predict patient volume and thus staffing, the percentage of patients who left without being seen decreased by 18. 5% and the number of patient complaints dropped by 30%. CONCLUSIONS: Use of a prediction equation allowed for improved accuracy in staffing patterns with associated improvement in measures of patient satisfaction.

Cervical cancer screening in the urgent care setting.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the feasibility of cervical cancer screening in an urgent care clinic. DESIGN: Prospective randomized trial. SETTING: Public teaching hospital. PATIENTS: Women presenting to the urgent care clinic whose evaluation necessitated a pelvic examination were eligible for participation. Women who had a hysterectomy, had a documented Pap test at our institution in the past year, did not speak English or Spanish, or had significant vaginal bleeding were excluded. Women presenting to the gynecology clinic for a scheduled Pap test were used as a comparison group for rates of follow-up, Pap smear adequacy, and Pap smear abnormalities. INTERVENTIONS: Women randomized to the intervention group had a Pap test performed as part of their pelvic examination, while women in the usual care group were encouraged to schedule an appointment in the gynecology clinic at a later date. The women in the two groups completed identical questionnaires regarding cervical cancer risk factors and demographic information. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: Ninety-four (84.7%) of 111 women in the intervention group received a Pap test, as compared with 25 (29%) of 86 in the usual care group (P <.01). However, only 5 (24%) of 21 women with abnormal Pap smears in the intervention group received follow-up compared with 6 (60%) of 10 women seen during the same time period in the gynecology clinic for self-referred, routine annual examinations (P =.11). Pap smears obtained in the urgent care clinic were similar to those in the gynecology clinic with regard to abnormality rate (22.3% vs 20%; P =.75, respectively) and specimen adequacy (67% vs 72%; P =.54, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: Urgent care clinic visits can be used as opportunities to perform Pap test screening in women who are unlikely to adhere to cervical cancer screening recommendations. However, to accrue the full potential benefit from this intervention, an improved process to ensure patient follow-up must be developed.

Primary care for those with severe and persistent mental illness.

Historically, the medical care of persons with severe and persistent mental illness (SPMI) has been suboptimal. In many communities, large gaps exist in the continuum of services necessary to meet the medical needs of those patients, and existing services are not well coordinated. The effect of the managed mental health care on patients with SPMI remains to be seen, but it does not bode well for patients who are already at risk for being undertreated. We initiated primary care clinics exclusively for patients with SPMI because of our belief that integrating primary care and mental health services offers the best hope of improving health care for those patients. Our experience to date is instructive for other health care systems.

Bulimia: a primary care approach.

More common than anorexia and less easily detected, bulimia typically begins as an effort to control weight. Although the prognosis is better than that for anorexia nervosa, a number of medical complications can arise related to the mode of purging. Some of these complications can have profound deleterious sequelae if not diagnosed and treated.

Quantitative dendritic and spine analyses of speech cortices: a case study.

The present case study documents an unprecedented opportunity for correlative investigation of brain structure and function by quantitatively investigating the basilar dendritic systems of supragranular pyramidal cells in several cortical areas from a subject who had undergone electrical stimulation mapping 2 years prior to death. Electrical stimulation mapping results provided valuable functional information about the cortical areas removed for postmortem histological analysis. Morphometric analyses distinguished between proximal (first, second, and third order) and ontogenetically later developing distal (fourth order and above) basilar dendritic branches. In general, perisylvian language association stimulation sites (classical Wernicke's and Broca's areas) were characterized by different dendritic patterns than motor strip sites. In primary motor strip tissue blocks, proximal segments were longer than distal segments. In "higher order" elaborative cortical zones, distal segments were longer than proximal segments. Proximal segments outnumbered distal segments in primary motor zones, but the numerical difference between proximal and distal segments was reduced in the association areas. Finally, fourth order segments had significantly more dendritic spines than third order segments in all sites. These dendritic findings suggest a somewhat later ontogenetic development in classical Broca's and Wernicke's areas than in primary motor cortex.