Adolescents at the skatepark: identifying design features and youth behaviours that pose risk for falls.

BACKGROUND: Skateboarding is an increasingly popular leisure activity for youth, yet injuries due to falls are common. This study aimed to identify the features at skateparks and tricks performed by youth that pose an increased risk of falls in skateboarders. METHOD: Video recordings were unobtrusively taken at a large skatepark of youth designated as young (11-15 years) or old (16-20 years). Videos were coded to identify the popular skatepark features used and tricks performed, and to assign a fall severity outcome rating for each feature and each type of trick attempted. RESULTS: The results identify features and tricks that pose increased risk of falling for youth at skateparks. CONCLUSIONS: Implications for injury prevention are discussed, including a consideration of environmental (skatepark design) and individual (youth behaviour) factors relevant to reducing skateboarding injuries due to falls among youth.

Design, synthesis, and characterization of novel, nonquaternary reactivators of GF-inhibited human acetylcholinesterase.

The goal of this research was to identify structurally novel, non-quaternarypyridinium reactivators of GF (cyclosarin)-inhibited hAChE that possess the capacity to mediate in vitro reactivation of GF-inhibited human acetylcholinesterase (hAChE). New compounds were designed, synthesized and assessed in GF-inhibited hAChE assays. Structure activity relationships for AChE binding and reactivation of GF-inhibited hAChE were developed. Lead compounds from two different chemical series, represented by compounds 17 and 38, displayed proficient in vitro reactivation of GF-inhibited hAChE, while also possessing low inhibition of native enzyme.

A measure that relates to elementary school children's risk of injury: the supervision attributes and risk-taking questionnaire (SARTQ).

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to examine the psychometric properties of the supervision attributes and risk-taking questionnaire (SARTQ), which is a new measure of caregiver supervision and child risk-taking that applies to elementary school children 7-10 years of age. METHODS: Using a prospective design, scores on the SARTQ were related to children's recent and long-term history of injuries and to parents' supervision scores that were derived based on measuring their home supervision practices over 8 weeks. RESULTS: Subscale scores on the SARTQ related differentially to measures of supervision and child injury scores, providing support for the criterion validity of this new measure. CONCLUSION: Results from this initial test of the SARTQ suggest that it holds promise as a measure that is relevant to understanding injury risk for elementary school children.

Examining how different measurement approaches impact safety outcomes in child pedestrian research: Implications for research and prevention.

There has been a great deal of research aimed at understanding the causes of child pedestrian injury. Many different methods have been employed with the goal of designing simulations that produce rigorous assessment of children's behaviors without putting children at risk of actual pedestrian injury. Most research has assessed children's pre-crossing decision making and extrapolated crossing outcome measures from estimates of mean walking speed. This study explores the nature and extent of measurement bias that is introduced when average walking speed is used to produce estimates of outcomes versus measuring actual in-road behavior directly. Using a within-subjects design and a fully immersive virtual reality pedestrian simulator, both measures were taken. Comparisons based on regression models revealed the extent of differences in results produced by measurement bias. Results indicated that measurement bias is produced when average walking speed is used such that hits and high risk crossings are overestimated and missed opportunities are underestimated, resulting in an overall overestimate of children's risk for pedestrian injury. The discussion highlights how these two measurement approaches emphasize different underlying processes as determinants of child pedestrian injury risk.

Examining parents' behaviors and supervision of their children in the presence of an unfamiliar dog: does The Blue Dog intervention improve parent practices?

OBJECTIVES: Young children are at particular risk for dog bite injuries. This study examined parents' supervision of and reactions to their children in the vicinity of an unfamiliar dog. METHODS: A pre/post intervention/control group randomized design assessed whether exposure to The Blue Dog, a dog bite prevention and education program, positively impacted parent behaviors. RESULTS: No group differences in pre or post-intervention measures emerged, indicating that The Blue Dog did not evoke improvements in parents' behaviors. Generally, parents showed risky reactions and encouraged children to interact with the dog, even though they knew very little about the dog's safety or disposition. Supervision measures (proximity, watching) remained unchanged (watching) or more lax (proximity) across sessions. CONCLUSIONS: The results highlight the importance of targeting parent behavior, not just child behavior, in programs that aim to reduce risk of childhood dog bites. The Blue Dog did not effectively change parent behavior.