BACKGROUND: Gowers' sign is a screening test for muscle weakness, typically seen in Duchenne muscular dystrophy but also seen in numerous other conditions. The mildest presentations and the variations of Gowers' sign are poorly described in the literature but are important to recognize to help with early diagnosis of a ...

Our objective was to examine the impact of a videobooklet patient decision aid supplemented by an interactive values clarification exercise on decisional conflict in patients with knee osteoarthritis (OA) considering total knee arthroplasy. 208 patients participated in the study (mean age 63 years; 68% female; 66% White). Participants were randomized ...

Abstract Objectives: To assess the compliance of endourologists with radiation safety measures and to determine the prevalence of orthopedic complaints among practicing endourologists. Methods: An Internet-based survey was sent to all members of the Endourological Society. Baseline characteristics on practice patterns (geographical region, age, years of practice, days per week ...

OBJECTIVE: To explore how effectively information presentation formats used in a patient decision aid communicated the ability of a disease modifying anti-rheumatic drug to slow the rate of progression of rheumatoid arthritis related structural joint damage (SJD). METHODS: 91 first year psychology students and 91 RA patients participated in a ...

Scapulothoracic arthroscopy is an established method for evaluating the articulation between the thoracic cage and the scapula. The "chicken-wing" position is often used to enhance visualization of the scapulothoracic space. There are situations in which the chicken-wing position is not feasible or practical, such as in simultaneous arthroscopy of both ...

Trapezio-metacarpal arthritis is the most common arthritic problem of the hand for which patients seek surgical treatment. The current article reviews the etio-pathogenesis, epidemiology, classification and management of this widespread problem. The anatomy and unique biomechanics of this joint are also reviewed. In addition, the article provides a detailed description ...

Wild and Scenic Rivers provide a host of psychological, social, ecological, and economic benefits to local communities. In this study, we use data collected from recreational users of two Wild and Scenic Rivers to examine perceptions of the benefits provided by the rivers to local communities. Our purposes are (1) ...

Condom use errors and problems were compared for anal and vaginal intercourse among a convenience sample of heterosexual men aged 18-66 years (n = 757). Men completed an online questionnaire for the last male condom use event for penile-anal (10.4%) or penile-vaginal (89.6%) intercourse. The prevalence of condom use errors ...

OBJECTIVE: To investigate whether the level of professional satisfaction of Australian general practitioners varies according to community size and location. DESIGN, SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS: Cross-sectional, population-level national survey using results for a cohort of 3906 GPs (36% were "rural" participants) from the first wave of a longitudinal study of the ...

Successful psychotherapy with rural fundamentalist Christians requires psychologists to understand the clients' culture and worldview. They often rely heavily on religious authorities, interpret Scriptures literally, adhere to strict moral codes of behavior, and believe that they should evangelize those around them. Common therapeutic challenges include: spiritualizing problems, relational conflicts related ...

This paper reviews how Nicaragua has recovered from Hurricane Mitch of October 1998. In particular, it examines how the assumptions and claims that were made during initial recovery planning have proven relevant in light of subsequent development. One must consider the response to Hurricane Mitch from the perspective of the ...

HIV/AIDS prevention efforts in Cambodia have largely focussed on urban populations. This focus, however, has diverted attention from the impact of the disease on rural communities, where poverty and a lack of basic infrastructure forced many to migrate to urban areas. Rural communities thus play a crucial part in the ...

BACKGROUND & OBJECTIVES: Investigations were conducted to obtain key entomological indices of Anopheles gambiae s.l. at Igbo-Ora, a rural community in south-west Nigeria. METHODS: Mosquitoes were caught daily for a week from rooms where tenants had slept the previous night in each of the four months June, July (2001), and ...

OBJECTIVES: Although there has been an overall decline in the rates of driving under the influence (DUI) over the past two decades, this decrease has not occurred uniformly across all groups of DUI offenders. For example, the proportion of female DUI offenders has significantly increased. Furthermore, DUI arrest rates remain ...

The Western Forest Complex (WEFCOM) of Thailand is comprised of many protected areas and has one of the highest wildlife populations in the country. Populations of wildlife in the WEFCOM have decreased dramatically over recent years. Rapid economic development has resulted in the conversion of forest into agricultural and pastoral ...

With the growing population, infrastructure elements previously the exclusive province of urban and suburban communities are pushing their way into rural settings. In their wake comes increased noise nuisance and the need for context-sensitive community noise standards and guidelines. Major differences between urban and rural soundscapes make difficult the stretching ...

Triatoma guasayana (Wygodzinsky & Abalos), a sylvatic vector of Chagas' disease, occurs in natural and peridomestic habitats of the dry Chaco region of Argentina, Bolivia and Paraguay. Ten-year retrospective spatial analyses of peridomestic T. guasayana abundance in the rural community of Amamá were expanded to the neighbouring community of Trinidad ...

This paper on the urban and rural healthcare expenditures gap examines common explanations for why the gap exists. The rural communities have consistently had lower healthcare expenditures than that of the urban communities. Over the years the gap has decreased, but not by a significant amount. According to a 2003 ...

The present article examines the relationship between community forest management policies on the one hand, and income and unemployment in rural areas of Nepal on the other, by modeling the effect of forest management constraints on community forest use. Current government policy dictates the use of all community forestland for ...

BACKGROUND: Little information is available regarding the perceived need, previous acquisition, use and willingness to pay for spectacles in Fiji, on which to base spectacle provision services. METHODS: Using a rapid appraisal technique, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 174 urban and rural households in Fiji's Central Province to assist in ...

The author describes her fieldwork studying a population of Mackinders eagle owls that live adjacent to small-scale farms in rural Kenya. Her study investigated the effects of farming practices on the diet and breeding ecology of the owls. She documented local people's attitudes toward owls since owls are taboo throughout ...

Some 52 per cent of Africa’s population are expected to live in towns and cities by 2025. There is generally an unequivocal correlation between urbanisation and economic development and growth, but in Africa this appears not to apply owing to ‘distorted incentives’. Urban areas play a significant role in the ...

Measles elimination in Europe is hindered by recurrent outbreaks, typically in non-immunised specific sub-populations. In 2003 and 2004, two measles outbreaks occurred in Jewish ultra-orthodox communities in Jerusalem, Israel. In 2007, another measles outbreak emerged in Jerusalem. Epidemiological investigation and control activities were initiated. Three measles cases (15 years old, ...

Beach waste and litter composition and evolution on popular urban (located in the main nucleus of the municipality) and urbanized (located in residential areas outside the main nucleus) beaches of the Costa Brava (Catalan coast) were assessed during the bathing season. Waste and litter production (amount and composition) were affected ...

Graduation date: 2001

CONTEXT: HIV/AIDS is occurring with increasing frequency in rural areas of the United States, and people living with HIV/AIDS in rural communities report higher levels of perceived stigma than their more urban counterparts. The extent to which stigmatized individuals perceive stigma could be influenced, in part, by prevailing community attitudes. ...

We genotyped Chlamydia trachomatis strains from 45 women or men living in either a rural indigenous community or in urban heterosexual communities. We found six different C. trachomatis serovars: E (n = 22; 48.9%), F (n = 10; 22.2%), J/Ja (n = 5; 11.1%), D/Da (n = 4; 8.9%), G ...

Major disasters like Hurricane Katrina cause severe damage. Often the bulk of the attention and aid is given to larger urban areas. Rural areas with its mix of poor and wealthy are often given far less attention or help is slower to arrive. These rural areas-where less is present before ...

OBJECTIVE: To assess the influence of orphanhood due to AIDS on children's nutritional status, psychological well-being and life quality, and to explore appropriate intervention strategies in China. METHODS: In 2005, 186 children aged 8-15 years (93 AIDS orphans and 93 non-orphans) from a rural area of Henan Province were surveyed ...

This study was carried out to determine the prevalence of malnutrition in a rural Nigerian community. Using the modified Wellcome Classification, the prevalence of protein energy malnutrition (PEM) was 20.5%. The prevalence of underweight, wasting and stunting were 23.1%t, 9% and 26.7%, respectively. The low prevalence of PEM in this ...

BACKGROUND: Despite national declines in smoking prevalence, disparities that pose challenges to tobacco control efforts exist among rural manufacturing populations. This community case study sought to better understand the dynamics and nuances that facilitate or impede capacity-building efforts in rural communities. CONTEXT: Two rural manufacturing communities in Wisconsin with similar ...

Ambient noise interferes with the propagation of acoustic signals through the environment from sender to receiver. Over the past few centuries, urbanization and the development of busy transport networks have led to dramatic increases in the levels of ambient noise with which animal acoustic communications must compete. Here we show ...

OBJECTIVES: To describe the sexual structure, including numbers and distribution of female sex workers (FSWs) and male sexual behaviours in the Bagalkot district of the state of Karnataka in south India. METHODS: Village health workers and peer educators enumerated FSWs in each village by interviewing key informants and FSWs. Urban ...

This urban thesis proposes the restructuring of a small railroad town that concentrates on vertical growth, publicly shared urban spaces, and the distinction between town and country. A new organization of building types reflects the modern lifestyle of the town which focuses on the integration of school and community activities. ...

BACKGROUND: Areca nut is the fourth main psychoactive substance in the world. In India, tobacco is added to the quid and the commercially manufactured nonperishable forms of betel quid (pan masala or gutkha) are on the rise in the market. OBJECTIVE: To find out the prevalence of areca nut among ...

BACKGROUND: As the public sector and civil society develop intervention programs to deal with the HIV/ AIDS epidemic, there has been an increasing emphasis on the relationship between nutrition and the disease. Drug interventions may be ineffective, and the progression from HIV infection to full-blown AIDS may be accelerated without ...

The paper is an overview and state of the art of sociolinguistic studies and dialect studies on Arabic urban vernaculars. It focuses on the issues of religious and communal variation as well as on the impact of migration upon Arabic urban vernaculars. It presents a preliminary typology of Arabic urban ...

This study examines how livelihood struggles push rural Malawians into AIDS-risky sexual behavior. The study involved in-depth interviews of 59 household guardians, four key informant group discussions, and after work observations and interviews of 19 people working, traveling, or running businesses. Findings reveal that circular migration has become a livelihood ...

This paper describes the entire picture of the mobility of indigenous people (the Iban) of Sarawak, Malaysia, between rural and urban areas, and tries to redefine the meaning of 'rural' and 'urban' for mobile people. While the Iban villages have been experiencing significant out-migration over the previous few decades, most ...

We examined the outcomes of a World Health Organization (WHO) recommended programme offering cotrimoxazole (CTM) prophylaxis to 908 HIV-positive individuals in rural Zimbabwe, who accepted enrolment in the treatment programme. Outcomes included duration in programme, time between visits, relationship and marital status. Mean duration of participation in the programme was ...

Land use change resulted in land degradation is a focus of research on global environmental changes and plays a significant role in the stability and economic development of oases in arid regions of China. Jinta Oasis, a typical oasis of temperate arid zone in northwestern China, was investigated to assess ...

The population density of Phlebotomus papatasi Scopoli (Diptera: Psychodidae), vector of Leishmania major Yakimoff & Schokhor (Kinetoplastida: Trypanosomatidae), the etiologic agent of zoonotic cutaneous leishmaniasis (ZCL), was assessed May-November 2005 in central Tunisia by using sticky traps. The densities of P. papatasi were found to peak in early spring and ...

Water pollution from small rural industries is a serious problem throughout China. Over half of all river sections monitored for water quality are rated as being unsafe for human contact, and this pollution is estimated to cost several per cent of GDP. While China has some of the toughest environmental ...

Watershed urbanization causes decreased diversity in aquatic insect communities. Recent studies have focused on effects to aquatic life stages without consideration of impacts to adult terrestrial stages. Here, I review the potential impacts of urbanization on adult aquatic insects. The review suggests that urbanization may limit adult dispersal, limit taxa ...

This paper draws from experience in many countries, but focuses in detail on protected areas in parts of Kenya, South Africa, and the Californias (a binational region that includes parts of Mexico and the USA). Brief notes illustrate special problems and/or innovative solutions from Australia, Brazil, Cape Verde, China, and ...

AIDS has been reported in Africa to push households into poverty and chronic food insecurity. At the same time there are reports of significant household resilience to AIDS. This study explored how a mature epidemic in rural Uganda has affected rural farming households. It focused on gender differences in the ...

Typhoid fever is a serious public health problem in Egypt. Effective prevention strategies include the promotion of handwashing. This study explores factors that influence handwashing practices in the Egyptian setting and makes recommendations on how to use this information in a handwashing campaign. In addition to key informant interviews, 16 ...

This paper critiques the approach taken by the Ghanaian Government to address mercury pollution in the artisanal and small-scale gold mining sector. Unmonitored releases of mercury-used in the gold-amalgamation process-have caused numerous environmental complications throughout rural Ghana. Certain policy, technological and educational initiatives taken to address the mounting problem, however, ...

Household solid waste management is a severe problem in big cities of developing countries. Mismanaged solid waste dumpsites produce bad sanitary, ecological and economic consequences for the whole population, especially for the poorest urban inhabitants. Dealing with this problem, this paper utilizes field data collected in the urban community of ...

In Arequipa, Peru, vectorborne transmission of Chagas disease by Triatoma infestans has become an urban problem. We conducted an entomologic survey in a periurban community of Arequipa to identify risk factors for triatomine infestation and determinants of vector population densities. Of 374 households surveyed, triatomines were collected from 194 (52%), ...