Identifying Implementation Drivers for Teen Sexual Health Education Curricula.

This article focuses on examining the implementation of evidence-based teen pregnancy prevention programming in a select school district. Results are presented based on the following implementation drivers: (1) actions taken by leadership to make decisions, provide guidance, and support how the school site and community-based organizations are functioning in support of implementation; (2) actions taken to ensure competent staff delivery of the curricula; and (3) actions taken to create and sustain a hospitable context in order to implement the interventions at the school site. The need for adolescent sexual health education is evident in this geographic location where Hispanic or Latino teens consistently have higher birth rates among race and ethnicities that are routinely reported. For 2018, when this project started, those rates were 40 births per 1,000 females aged 15 to 19 years. For 2018, the birth rates for African Americans was 31 and for Whites was 17 per 1,000 females aged 15 to 19 years. The project goals were to reduce teen birth rates by (1) providing evidence-based teen pregnancy prevention curricula to youth aged 11 to 19 years over the course of the 5-year project period, (2) training school staff and community members in the curricula, and (3) generating community support of youth access to reproductive health care and education. Despite a funding interruption to implementation of the project and the impact of COVD-19, educational programming was provided to 9,616 youth. The article details the key implementation strategies and solutions so that other practitioners can consider application of these implementation drivers in their own adolescent health education programming.

Catastrophizing and poor sleep quality in early adolescent females.

Catastrophizing about sleeplessness has been investigated in adults and children, but little is known about adolescents. This article aimed to (a) investigate whether early adolescent girls catastrophized about consequences of sleeplessness, (b) describe topics in catastrophizing sequences, (c) examine the association between sleep quality and catastrophizing, and (d) assess whether puberty moderated this association. Girls (n = 115) between 11 and 12 years old completed adapted versions of the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, the Pubertal Developmental Scale, and the Catastrophizing Interview. Twenty-four (21%) participants produced catastrophizing sequences, including concerns about school and mood. Sleep quality was associated with catastrophizing (ß = 0.19, p = .042); however, puberty did not moderate this association (ß = 0.15, p = .126). Findings highlight the importance of sleep-related cognitions in adolescent girls.

Frontomaxillary facial angle measurement in trisomy 21 and euploid fetuses: two- and three-dimensional assessment during routine first trimester screening.

OBJECTIVE: To assess 2D and 3D frontomaxillary facial angle (FMFA) measurements in euploid and trisomy 21 fetuses. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Over a 2-year period, women with singleton pregnancies attending a private prenatal screening and diagnosis practice in Sydney, Australia, were invited to participate in this study where 2D images and 3D volumes of the fetal face were collected during routine first trimester screening. In pregnancies where trisomy 21 was confirmed, FMFA measurements were performed in 2D and 3D and compared with those from a euploid cohort. RESULTS: Overall, 250 women carrying euploid and 22 women carrying trisomy 21 fetuses participated. Trisomy 21 fetuses had significantly larger FMFA measurements than euploid fetuses in both 2D and 3D assessments. 95% of 3D and 100% of 2D FMFA measurements for the trisomy 21 fetuses were above the mean FMFA measurement of the euploid fetuses. There was no relationship between increasing crown-rump length and FMFA measurement. CONCLUSION: 2D and 3D FMFA measurements in trisomy 21 fetuses are statistically greater (p < 0.001) than those in euploid fetuses. This supports FMFA as a possible additional marker for trisomy 21 for first trimester screening.

Frontomaxillary facial angle measurement at 11-14 weeks: assessment of interobserver and intraobserver agreement in 2D and 3D imaging.

INTRODUCTION: The primary aim of this study was to assess the interobserver and intraobserver reproducibility of the first-trimester frontomaxillary facial angle (FMFA) measurement using both 2D and 3D ultrasound. Assessment of the relationship between crown-to-rump length (CRL) and FMFA measurement was also reviewed. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Two experienced operators imaged the same 30 patients over a 1-month period collecting both 2D static images and 3D volumes during nuchal translucency assessment at 11-14 weeks' gestation. The operators were blinded to each other's images and results. RESULTS: The mean 2D FMFA measurement was 88.0° and 88.4° for observer 1 and 2, respectively; while the mean 3D FMFA measurement was 87.8° and 88.0°, respectively. Intraclass correlation suggests good intraobserver and interobserver agreement with no statistically significant difference between operators in either 2D (p = 0.14) or 3D (p = 0.11) measurements. The FMFA was unchanged with increasing CRL. DISCUSSION: Both 2D and 3D FMFA measurements have been demonstrated to be equivalent and reliable. Strict image acquisition criteria must be followed for accurate and reproducible FMFA measurements. There was no change demonstrated in FMFA measurement with increasing CRL.

A Raman spectroscopic and ab initio investigation of aqueous boron speciation under alkaline hydrothermal conditions: evidence for the structure and thermodynamic stability of the diborate ion.

Raman spectra of aqueous sodium borate solutions, with and without excess NaOH, NaCl, and LiCl, have been obtained from perpendicular and parallel polarization measurements acquired using a custom-built sapphire flow cell over the temperature range 25 to 300 °C at 20 MPa. The solvent-corrected reduced isotropic spectra include a large well-defined band at 865 cm-1 which overlaps with the boric acid B(OH)3 band at 879 cm-1, and becomes increasingly intense at elevated temperatures. This band does not correspond to the spectrum of any other previously reported aqueous polyborate ions, all of which have symmetric stretching bands at frequencies below that of borate, [B(OH)4]-, at 745 cm-1. Based on the classic high-temperature potentiometric titration study by R. E. Mesmer, C. F. Baes and F. H. Sweeton, Acidity measurements at elevated temperatures. VI. Boric acid equilibriums, Inorg. Chem., 1972, 11, 537-543, the new band was postulated to arise from a diborate ion, [B2(OH)7]- or [B2O(OH)5]-. Ab initio density functional theory (DFT), together with chemical modelling studies, suggest that it is most likely [B2(OH)7]-. Thermodynamic formation quotients derived from the peak areas showed variations with ionic strength as well as charge-balance discrepancies, which suggest one or more unidentified minor equilibrium species may also be present. The most likely candidate is the divalent diborate species [B2O2(OH)4]2- which is also predicted to have a band near 865 cm-1 and is postulated to be present as a sodium ion pair. These are the first quantitative Raman spectra ever reported for borate-rich solutions under such conditions and provide the first spectroscopic evidence of a diborate species at PWR reactor coolant temperatures.

Dysfunctional beliefs and attitudes about sleep in children.

The objective of the study was to determine whether associations between dysfunctional beliefs and attitudes about sleep and sleep disturbance are evident in children. Cross-sectional data were collected from 123 children aged 8-10 years (49% boys). The participants came from ethnically diverse backgrounds from two inner-city schools in London, UK. Children completed the Sleep Self-Report (SSR) and the Dysfunctional Beliefs and Attitudes about Sleep (DBAS) questionnaire (which was adapted for use with children). Parents completed the Child Sleep Habits Questionnaire (CSHQ). The total DBAS score was associated with sleep disturbances defined as total SSR score (beta = 0.40, P < 0.001, r(2) = 0.15), the SSR insomnia items (beta = 0.29, P < 0.01, r(2) = 0.08) and the total CSHQ score (beta = 0.22, P < 0.05, r(2) = 0.04). Some dysfunctional beliefs about sleep predicted sleep disturbance to a greater extent than others. For example, when controlling for the other DBAS subscales, the 'control and predictability of sleep' subscale, but not the 'sleep requirements expectations' subscale, predicted total SSR score and SSR insomnia items. Given this preliminary evidence that dysfunctional beliefs and attitudes about sleep appear to be associated with sleep difficulties in children, future work is needed to further developmentally adapt a version of the DBAS appropriate for use with children.

Investigation of Uranyl Sulfate Complexation under Hydrothermal Conditions by Quantitative Raman Spectroscopy and Density Functional Theory.

Quantitative first and second formation constants of aqueous uranyl sulfate complexes were obtained from Raman spectra of solutions in fused silica capillary cells at 25 MPa, at temperatures ranging from 25 to 375 °C. Temperature-dependent values of the symmetric O-U-O vibrational frequencies of UO22+(aq), UO2SO40(aq), and UO2(SO4)22-(aq) were determined from the high-temperature spectra. Temperature-independent Raman scattering coefficients of UO22+(aq) were calculated directly from uranyl triflate spectra from 25 to 300 °C, while those of UO2SO40(aq) and UO2(SO4)22-(aq) were derived from spectroscopic data at 25 °C and concentrations calculated using the formation constants of Tian and Rao ( J. Chem. Thermodyn. 2009 , 41 , 569 - 574 ), together with the Specific Ion Interaction Theory (SIT) activity coefficient model. Chemical structures and vibrational frequencies predicted from Density Functional Theory (Gaussian 09) were employed to interpret the Raman spectra. Values of the cumulative formation constants ranged from log ß1 = 3.23 ± 0.08 and log ß2 = 4.22 ± 0.15 at 25 °C, to log ß1 = 12.35 ± 0.22 and log ß2 = 14.97 ± 0.02 at 350 °C. This is the first reported use of high-pressure fused silica capillary cells to determine formation constants of metal ligand complexes from their reduced isotropic Raman spectra under hydrothermal conditions.

National survey on the practice of radiation therapists in Australia.

INTRODUCTION: Radiation therapy (RT), like many allied health professions, has lacked professional practice clarity, which until 2008 had not been comprehensively investigated. This manuscript describes the first phase of a three-phase project investigating the current and future practices of radiation therapists (RTs) in Australia. The aim of phase 1 was to define the practice of RTs in Australia. METHODS: A quantitative approach was used to gain an understanding of RT practice. A national survey was distributed to RTs in Australia. Descriptive statistics and content analysis were used to analyse the data. RT practice was analysed in relation to core and non-core roles, where non-core roles were further divided into basic and advanced practices. RESULTS: The data from the national survey were representative of the Australian RT population (n = 525). The current practice of RTs is presented in summary tables for each area of work (treatment, planning, simulation, mould room and general). CONCLUSION: This study provided clarification of RT practice and indicated there was a desire to relinquish administrative roles to focus on RT-specific practice. There was evidence that some advanced roles were currently practiced in Australia; however, there was no structure to support these roles and they were based only on local need. This study identified that the profession needs to consider how they will maintain core RT practice, while encouraging the development of new roles, and whether some roles need to be relinquished.