Development of a Cat Behaviour Issues Assessment Scale (CABIAS) Assessing Problem Behaviours in Cats.

Problem behaviours in cats, such as urine marking, scratching, fear, and problems of cohabitation between cats, can present a potential welfare problem for those affected cats and have a negative impact on the human-animal bond. The aim of this study was to develop a Cat Behaviour Issues Assessment Scale (CABIAS) for caregivers to assess these common problem behaviours in cats, and to investigate aspects of the validity and reliability of the CABIAS. The CABIAS uses an index score as a scoring system combining aspects of the frequency and intensity of the problem behaviour. An electronic survey was developed, and 384 households, each with two participants able to observe the cat's behaviour, were recruited for the study. The participants were asked to record their cat's behaviour independently at weekly intervals over a 6-week period. A FELIWAY Optimum diffuser (containing a commercial feline pheromone complex) was provided to half of the participants, to be used during part of the study. The participants were subdivided into four groups according to whether a problem behaviour was present (or not) and whether the pheromone diffuser was provided (or not). The results demonstrated that the index scores for each problem behaviour had very high inter-rater reliability. There was a high correlation between the index scores and the impact the problem behaviours had on the caregivers. In those cats with a declared problem behaviour where the product was used, a reduction in index scores was observed over the duration of the study. The CABIAS was shown to exhibit satisfactory validity, reliability, and sensitivity to change in the current study, suggesting that it may be valuable as a tool for assessing and monitoring scratching, inter-cat cohabitation, urine marking, and fear in cats. The CABIAS could be used by veterinarians and behaviourists to assess these problem behaviours in individual cats and monitor responses to treatment. The CABIAS could also be considered as a research tool to assess the efficacy of interventions aimed at improving these problems.

Conflict and affiliative behavior frequency between cats in multi-cat households: a survey-based study.

OBJECTIVES: The objective of this study was to collect information from cat owners about the frequency of conflict and affiliative signs in their households in order to: (1) assess correlations with the owners' ratings of household cat-cat harmony; and (2) determine if relationships exist between household variables, cat population variables and behavior frequencies. METHODS: Responses to an online survey of adult residents of the USA who were the primary caregiver of 2-4 indoor or indoor-outdoor cats were included in the analysis. Spearman's correlations and χ2 tests were used to compare behavior frequencies with household and cat population variables. RESULTS: Of 2492 owners of multiple cats, 73.3% noted conflict signs from the very beginning when introducing the cats. The more cats in the house, the more frequent the conflict signs. Staring was the most frequently observed conflict sign, occurring at least daily in 44.9% of households, followed, in order of decreasing frequency, by chasing, stalking, fleeing, tail twitching, hissing and wailing/screaming. Hissing occurred at least daily in 18% of households. Affiliative signs were observed more frequently than conflict signs. Physical contact between cats was observed at least daily in around half of the multi-cat households. Higher harmony scores were correlated with less frequent conflict signs and more frequent affiliative signs. No household or cat population variable, including home size or numerically adequate resources provision, was strongly predictive of the frequency of conflict or affiliative signs. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: This is the first large-scale online survey to obtain frequencies of conflict and affiliative behaviors and compare them with factors linked to the cats or the home settings. The study confirmed that feline relationships are correlated with the owner's perceived impression of the initial introduction, but other household factors and cat population variables included in the study were not strongly predictive of the frequency of conflict or affiliative signs.

Treatment of experimentally induced bovine respiratory disease in young calves with a single administration of a combination of florfenicol and meloxicam.

This study was designed to evaluate the efficacy of a new florfenicol/meloxicam combination (FMC) in calves with bovine respiratory disease. A total of 90 young calves were challenged via intratracheal deposition of 108 colony-forming units of Mannheimia haemolytica Data for 84 calves demonstrating a rectal temperature (RT) above 39.5°C and a combined total clinical score (TCS) greater than or equal to 3 were included. Calves were then randomly allocated to one of the three study groups (FMC; florfenicol/flunixin combination (FFC); or saline) and promptly treated. RT and TCS of calves treated with an FMC or FFC were consistently lower than RT and TCS of calves belonging to the control group (P<0.001). Moreover, at the end of the study, a high clinical cure rate was observed in calves treated with FMC (100 per cent) or FFC (96.6 per cent) whereas cure was limited for calves receiving saline (29.6 per cent). Interestingly, calves treated with FMC were cured without relapse more rapidly compared with calves treated with FFC (HR=1.76, P<0.05) and with a lower percentage of clinical relapse due to fever (P=0.05). These results underline the high efficacy of the FMC and are in line with the pharmacokinetic properties of florfenicol and meloxicam.

Process evaluation of a school-based overweight and obesity screening strategy in adolescents.

The PRALIMAP (PRomotion de l'ALIMentation et de l'Activité Physique) trial highlights the effectiveness of implementing a screening strategy in high schools to prevent overweight/obesity among adolescents. The strategy comprises three steps: i) body measurements to detect overweight/obese adolescents, ii) a medical interview with each adolescent identified to discuss the findings, and iii) an adapted care management consisting of seven group educational sessions. A process evaluation was conducted in the PRALIMAP trial to assess the effective implementation of the screening strategy activities, and the participation of adolescents and school professionals in them, from a qualitative and a quantitative point of view. The present paper describes the process and the implementation of the screening strategy as performed in the PRALIMAP trial, and discusses the feasibility of such an intervention in high school settings. The ability of nurses to explain the screening results improved with the addition of specialist support. The ability of adolescents to take part in the screening strategy improved when the adapted care management was conducted inside schools and could be increased even further if the waiting time between the three steps could be minimised.

Overweight and obesity prevention for adolescents: a cluster randomized controlled trial in a school setting.

BACKGROUND: Given the increasing prevalence of obesity among youth over the past decade, prevention has become an international public health priority. PURPOSE: To evaluate the 2-year effectiveness of three strategies aimed at preventing overweight and obesity among adolescents in a high school setting. DESIGN: PRomotion de l'ALIMentation et de l'Activité Physique (PRALIMAP) is a school-based RCT. Each study high school was assigned to receive or not, over a 2-year period (Grades 10 and 11), each of three prevention strategies according to a 2 × 2 × 2 factorial school randomization. Data were collected in 2006-2009 and analyzed in 2009-2011. SETTING/PARTICIPANTS: A total of 3538 adolescents (aged 15.6±0.7 years at baseline) in 24 public high schools in Lorraine (northeastern France) completed the PRALIMAP trial. INTERVENTIONS: The prevention strategies were education (development of nutritional knowledge and skills); environment (creation of a favorable environment by improving availability of "healthy" dietary items and physical activity); and screening and care (detection of overweight/obesity and, if necessary, adapted care management). MAIN OUTCOMES MEASURES: The main outcome of interest was BMI; BMI z-score and prevalence of overweight/obesity were considered as secondary outcomes. RESULTS: Adolescents who completed the PRALIMAP trial were younger, less often suspected of having eating disorders and depression, and came from a higher socioeconomic class than those who did not. The 2-year change of outcomes was more favorable in the 12 screening and care high schools compared to the no-screening ones: a 0.11 lower increase in BMI (p=0.0303); a 0.04 greater decrease in BMI z-score (p=0.0173); and a 1.71% greater decrease in overweight/obesity prevalence (p=0.0386). Education and environment strategies were not more effective than no strategy intervention. CONCLUSIONS: Although the screening and care strategy is an effective way to prevent, at 2 years, overweight and obesity among adolescents in a high school setting, its effects over and above no strategy intervention were small. TRIAL REGISTRATION: This study is registered at www.clinicaltrials.govNCT00814554.

Intervention dose estimation in health promotion programmes: a framework and a tool. Application to the diet and physical activity promotion PRALIMAP trial.

BACKGROUND: Although the outcomes of health promotion and prevention programmes may depend on the level of intervention, studies and trials often fail to take it into account. The objective of this work was to develop a framework within which to consider the implementation of interventions, and to propose a tool with which to measure the quantity and the quality of activities, whether planned or not, relevant to the intervention under investigation. The framework and the tool were applied to data from the diet and physical activity promotion PRALIMAP trial. METHODS: A framework allowing for calculation of an intervention dose in any health promotion programme was developed. A literature reviews revealed several relevant concepts that were considered in greater detail by a multidisciplinary working group. A method was devised with which to calculate the dose of intervention planned and that is actually received (programme-driven activities dose), as well as the amount of non-planned intervention (non-programme-driven activities dose). RESULTS: Indicators cover the roles of all those involved (supervisors, anchor personnel as receivers and providers, targets), in each intervention-related groups (IRG: basic setting in which a given intervention is planned by the programme and may differ in implementation level) and for every intervention period. All indicators are described according to two domains (delivery, participation) in two declensions (quantity and quality). Application to PRALIMAP data revealed important inter- and intra-IRG variability in intervention dose. CONCLUSIONS: A literature analysis shows that the terminology in this area is not yet consolidated and that research is ongoing. The present work provides a methodological framework by specifying concepts, by defining new constructs and by developing multiple information synthesis methods which must be introduced from the programme's conception. Application to PRALIMAP underlined the feasibility of measuring the implementation level. The framework and the tool can be used in any complex programme evaluation. The intervention doses obtained could be particularly useful in comparative trials. TRIAL REGISTRATION: PRALIMAP is registered at ClinicalTrials.gov under NCT00814554.

[Therapeutic patient education in health centers in the Lorraine region of France - an EPATEL study]. / Activités d'éducation thérapeutique proposées par les établissements de santé de la Région Lorraine - enquête EPATEL.

The purpose of this paper is to map out the Therapeutic Patient Education activities of health centers in the Lorraine region of France in the months leading up to the promulgation of the HPST law (reform of the French Public Hospital system) defining and regulating TPE. A self-administered survey and interviews were conducted to identify the educational activities offered by the program (structure, training of professionals, links with general practitioners, etc.) and to quantify them (number of patients, classes, etc.). All health centers in Lorraine were contacted (193 centers in total). 93 centers responded and 48?reported TPE activities, with 131 functional TPE courses (or structured activities) and 40 projects. An analysis based on 8 quality criteria was carried out. The study found that 49 centers met at least 6 quality criteria and were close to the required quality standards. The study also found that the geographical distribution of TPE provision is unbalanced. The number of TPE beneficiaries in a given semester varies between 0 and 24 patients per 1,000 inhabitants (according to the health area), which amounts to 5% of chronically ill people in the Lorraine region.

Health-related quality of life in French adolescents and adults: norms for the DUKE Health Profile.

BACKGROUND: The continual monitoring of population health-related quality of life (HRQoL) with validated instruments helps public health agencies assess, protect, and promote population health. This study aimed to determine norms for the French adolescent and adult general population for the Duke Health Profile (DUKE) questionnaire in a large representative community sample. METHODS: We randomly selected 17,733 French people aged 12 to 75 years old in 2 steps, by households and individuals, from the National Health Barometer 2005, a periodic population study by the French National Institute for Prevention and Health Education. Quality of life and other data were collected by computer-assisted telephone interview. RESULTS: Normative data for the French population were analyzed by age, gender and self-reported chronic disease. Globally, function scores (best HRQoL=100) for physical, mental, social, and general health, as well as perceived health and self-esteem, were 72.3 (SEM 0.2), 74.6 (0.2), 66.8 (0.1), 71.3 (0.1), 71.3 (0.3), 76.5 (0.1), respectively. Dysfunction scores (worst HRQoL=100) for anxiety, depression, pain and disability domains were 30.9 (0.1), 27.6 (0.2), 34.3 (0.3), 3.1 (0.1), respectively. CONCLUSION: The French norms for adolescents and adults for the DUKE could be used as a reference for other studies assessing HRQoL, for specific illnesses, in France and for international comparisons.

PRALIMAP: study protocol for a high school-based, factorial cluster randomised interventional trial of three overweight and obesity prevention strategies.

BACKGROUND: Given the increase in overweight and obesity prevalence in adolescents in the last decade, effective prevention strategies for these conditions in adolescents are urgently needed. The PRALIMAP (Promotion de l'ALImentation et de l'Activité Physique) trial aims to evaluate the effectiveness for these conditions of 3 health promotion strategies--educational, screening and environmental--applied singly or in combination in high schools over a 2-year intervention period. METHODS: PRALIMAP is a stratified 2 × 2 × 2 factorial cluster randomised controlled trial including 24 state high schools in Lorraine, northeastern France, in 2 waves: 8 schools in 2006 (wave 1) and 16 in 2007 (wave 2). Students entering the selected high schools in the 4 academic years from 2006 to 2009 are eligible for data collection. Interventional strategies are organized over 2 academic years. The follow-up consists of 3 visits: at the entry of grade 10 (T0), grade 11 (T1) and grade 12 (T2). At T0, 5,458 (85.7%) adolescents participated. The educational strategy consists of nutritional lessons, working groups and a final party. The screening strategy consists in detecting overweight/obesity and eating disorders in adolescents and proposing, if necessary, an adapted care management program of 7 group educational sessions. The environmental strategy consists in improving dietary and physical activity offerings in high schools and facilities, especially catering. The main outcomes are body size evolution over time, nutritional behaviour and knowledge, health and quality of life. An evaluation process documents how each intervention strategy is implemented in the schools and estimates the dose of the intervention, allowing for a per protocol analysis after the main intention-to-treat analysis. DISCUSSION: PRALIMAP aims at improving the prevention and management of overweight and obesity in adolescents by translating current evidence into public health practice. Particular attention is paid to clustering, multiple factorials and long-term duration to address common pitfalls in health promotion trials. The results should inform how best to implement, in a school environment, effective nutrition prevention programs targeting adolescents who are at a point their lives when they develop responsibilities and empowerment for health attitude behaviours. TRIAL REGISTRATION: This trial is registered at ClinicalTrials.gov under NCT00814554.