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PubMed2000

Metal levels in feathers of 12 species of seabirds from midway atoll in the northern Pacific Ocean.

Seabirds are excellent subjects for examination of heavy metals because they are long-lived, feed at different distances from land, and exhibit different trophic levels. In this paper we compare the levels of lead, cadmium, mercury arsenic, chromium, manganese, selenium, and tin in the feathers of birds nesting on Midway Atoll in the northern Pacific Ocean. We test the null hypothesis that there are no interspecific differences in the levels of metals in the feathers of the adult black-footed albatross (Diomedea nigripes), Laysan albatross (Diomedea immutabilis), red-footed booby (Sula sula), great frigatebird (Fregata minor), Bonin petrel (Pterodroma hypoleuca), Christmas shearwater (Puffinus nativitatis), red-tailed tropicbird (Phaethon rubricauda), wedge-tailed shearwater (Puffinus pacificus), brown noddy (Anous stolidus), sooty tern (Stema fuscata), grey-backed tern (Stema lunata), and white tern (Gygis alba), and young of some of these species. There were interspecific differences in the levels of all metals for adults. Christmas shearwater had the highest levels of lead, cadmium, selenium and manganese, but the second lowest levels of mercury. In general, metal levels were the lowest in the smallest species (white tern), but were not the highest in the largest species (black-footed albatross), except for manganese, arsenic and mercury. There was a high variance in metal levels among adults for some species, but not for others. White tern adults were variable for lead, while Christmas shearwaters were variable for lead and cadmium. Compared to the means for metals in other birds generally (after Burger, 1993), Christmas shearwaters had higher levels of lead, white terns, brown noddy, Christmas shearwater, frigatebirds and Laysan albatrosses had higher levels of cadmium, and bonin petrel, wedge-tailed shearwater, tropicbirds, frigatebirds, red-footed boobies, and both albatrosses had higher levels of mercury. Whereas the means for lead and cadmium were below the known effects levels, some individuals had levels high enough to cause adverse effects in the birds. The mean values for mercury in Bonin petrel, red-tailed tropicbird, and black-footed albatross were higher than the levels known to cause adverse reproductive and behavioral effects.

Age Factors↗
PubMed2003

Inter-island movements and population differentiation in a pelagic seabird.

We used mark-resight data and amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) markers to assess movements and gene flow between Central Pacific breeding colonies of the great frigatebird, Fregata minor. Of 715 adult frigatebirds marked on Tern Island and Johnston Atoll, 21.3% were resighted at other frigatebird colonies at least 582 km away. Mark-resight data indicated regular movement of males and females between Tern Island and Johnston Atoll (873 km apart), and less frequent movements to other islands; no birds marked on Tern or Johnston were seen on Christmas Island, but one was seen in the Philippines, 7627 km from where it was marked. Despite the regular occurrence of interisland movements, Bayesian analyses of AFLP data showed significant genetic differentiation between Tern Island and Johnston Atoll, and more pronounced differentiation between these two islands and the more distant Christmas Island. The AFLP profiles of three birds breeding on Tern Island fell within the profile-cluster typical for Christmas Island birds, both in a nonmetric multidimensional scaling analysis and in a population assignment test, suggesting dispersal events from Christmas Island to Tern Island. Several factors could explain the persistence of genetic structure despite frequent movements between colonies: many movements occurred during the nonbreeding season, many breeding-season movements did not involve mate-acquisition behaviours and individuals that do disperse may be selected against, as suggested by morphometric differences between colonies. The persistence of genetic structure among breeding colonies despite significant interisland movements suggests limits to the effectiveness of migration as a homogenizing force in this broadly distributed, extremely mobile species.

Animal Migration↗
PubMed2005

Changes in mortalities and hospital admissions associated with holidays and respiratory illness: implications for medical services.

RATIONALE AND OBJECTIVES: To see whether net mortalities increase during and after reductions in medical services, either at average weekends, or at Christmas when pressure from illness is unusually high. METHODS: (1) Paired t-tests to compare mean daily deaths and hospital admissions during and after weekends (Saturday-Tuesday) with means for the week, in south-east England; (2) Linear regressions to see whether trends of daily deaths change when admissions are reduced at Christmas. RESULTS: Neither mean daily all-cause, respiratory or ischaemic heart deaths exceeded weekly averages during weekends, or during Saturday-Monday or Saturday-Tuesday, despite falls in daily elective and daily emergency hospital admissions at weekends that averaged 61-72% and 14-22%, respectively. During 19-24 December, daily deaths were above annual means, respiratory deaths by 49% (29, 1-58), but elective admissions fell and although emergency admissions tended to rise, total admissions rose only for respiratory disease, and only by 33% (376, -47 to 799). On Christmas Day (25 December), even emergency admissions fell sharply below previous trends, respiratory emergency admissions by 18% (P<0.01). Respiratory deaths alone then immediately increased (P<0.01) above trend, by 5.9% (5.8 deaths/day) on 26 December and by 12.9% (12.9) on 27 December. CONCLUSIONS: No adverse effect on mortality was apparent within 2 days from reduction in medical services at weekends. However, respiratory deaths accelerated sharply after reduction in elective and emergency admissions at Christmas, when rates of infection and mortality from respiratory disease were high. Implications for medical services during respiratory epidemics are discussed.

Cause of Death↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Mortality and morbidity of members of the British Nuclear Tests Veterans Association and the New Zealand Nuclear Tests Veterans Association and their families.

More than 20,000 British servicemen--many of them on their National Service, few of them volunteering for the tests, and most in their early twenties, some still boy soldiers in their teens--were required to 'participate' in the United Kingdom nuclear tests in Australia and Christmas Island in the 1950s and 1960s. 528 members of the New Zealand Navy were also present for one series of tests. There was also a Fijian Army contingent, which has been variously numbered between 100 and 500 men. An estimated 16,000 Australian servicemen and civilians were also involved in the tests at Maralinga and other sites. The men performed a wide range of duties, from highly technical preparations for the detonations to catering and clerical jobs. But whatever their role, they were all required to witness the detonations as part of their 'indoctrination' for the possibility of nuclear war. Most of them were required to line up on the beach, with their backs to the detonations and their hands over their eyes for the first minute or so. They were then allowed to turn around and look at the awesome sight as the mushroom cloud plumed thousands of feet into the air. Very few wore more than shorts and sandals during their time at the tests; only those who were thought to be at risk from radiation injury were issued with protective clothing and radiation dose badges. The UK government was sure that the troops, most of whom were standing within 20 km of the detonations and some of whom were present for 25 nuclear bomb blasts in as many weeks on Christmas Island, were not irradiated. The Ministry of Defence still routinely issues a document to nuclear veterans who feel that their illnesses were caused by the radiation they encountered when they were young men which states: The background [radiation] dose received by civilians and members of HM Forces serving at or off Christmas Island in the years 1956 to 1964 was only about 35% of that which they would have received on average had they remained, for that period of their lives, in the United Kingdom--that is, some 100 microsieverts per calendar month less at Christmas Island than in the United Kingdom. This sanguine view of the health burden borne by nuclear veterans and their families is not borne out by the data reported in this study of the health outcomes of the 2,500 men (2,200 UK, 238 New Zealand and 62 Fijian) on whom data are available to the present researcher. Thirty per cent of the men in this sample have already died, mostly in their fifties. Two-thirds of them died from cancers that are pensionable in the United States as presumptively radiogenic among nuclear veterans. About one in seven of the men in the sample of 1,014 who responded to the questionnaire circulated in late 1997 did not father any children after they returned from the weapons tests. Among the nearly 5,000 children and grandchildren of this group of more than a thousand veterans, there are 26 cases of spina bifida alone--more than five times the usual rate for live births in the UK. Nearly half the health problems among the offspring of the nuclear weapons tests veterans reported in this study consist of the same dermatological, musculoskeletal and gastrointestinal conditions from which many of the men have also suffered. Among the 2,261 children of 1,041 veterans, more than 200 skeletal abnormalities were reported, including more than 30 cases of short stature and 18 spinal problems, mostly curvature and scoliosis. More than 100 skin conditions were reported, mostly eczema and dermatitis, in many cases described as congenital. Over 50 of the children are already suffering from arthritis and similar conditions, although they are only now entering their thirties. Hip deformities were reported for 19 children and kneecap deformities for 14. More than 100 of the veterans' children reported reproductive difficulties; 24 women reported problems with their ovaries. This pattern of morbidity was repeated in the grandchildren, tho

Adolescent↗
PubMed1999

Negotiating couplehood: the process of resolving the December dilemma among interfaith couples.

Christmas forces interfaith couples to address questions concerning holiday observances. The purpose of this investigation was to explore the experience of the "December dilemma," that is, the experience of Christmas and Hanukah among couples in which one partner is Jewish. A qualitative design based on the continuous comparison method of Grounded Theory analysis was used. Participants were solicited through interfaith couples' programs, referral, and snowballing. Unstructured interactive interviews of 22 couples were audiotaped, transcribed, and analyzed. The categories generated were: Ghosts of Christmas and Hanukah Past, Coming Together, and Holiday Observances as a Couple. The basic problem facing these couples was how to bridge religious backgrounds with differing holiday traditions in a way that integrated respect for each partner's needs, heritage, and identity. The basic social process of negotiating "couplehood," that is, moving from individuality to partnership emerged when mutual agreement could be reached to solve problems about how to celebrate the December holidays. The data indicated that exploration of the ways these couples managed the dilemmas created by the December holidays provided a window to how they negotiated other challenges in their relationships.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1999

Attempted suicide and major public holidays in Europe: findings from the WHO/EURO Multicentre Study on Parasuicide.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of the study was to examine the relationship between suicide attempts and major public holidays in Europe. METHOD: The analysis was based on data on 24 388 suicide attempts by persons aged 15 years or older in the period 1989-1996. Data from 13 centres (representing 11 countries) participating in the WHO/EURO Multicentre Study on Parasuicide were analysed. The analysis of the fluctuation of suicide attempts around public holidays was based on the daily number of suicide attempts for each centre. For each day in the period under examination a mean number of suicide attempts (mu) was calculated. The analysis was based on the assumption that the data followed a Poisson distribution. The observed number of daily suicide attempts was compared with the expected number of attempts. A multiplicative model for the expected number in each centre was developed. RESULTS: Before Christmas there were fewer suicide attempts than expected, and after Christmas there were approximately 40% more attempts than expected. In addition, more attempts than expected were registered on New Year's Day. In countries where people have the day off work on Whit Monday there were significantly fewer attempts during the 3 days before, but where Whit Monday is a normal working day significantly fewer attempts occurred on the Monday to Wednesday after Whit Sunday. CONCLUSION: There appears to be a transposition of a significant number of suicide attempts from before (and during) a major public holiday until after it. The division of holidays into non-working and working days showed that a 'holiday effect' could only be found around major public holidays, particularly Christmas, Easter and Whitsun. These findings support the theory of the 'broken-promise effect' for major public holidays.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1999

Winter planning. Quantity surveying.

During Christmas and new year 1999-2000 there will be eight bank holiday or weekend days. Emergency admissions are likely to be high during this period. A mathematical model can be used to calculate how many beds will need to be empty on Christmas day in order to cope with an increase in emergency admissions afterwards. In this study of a 781-bed acute hospital, a minimum of 209 beds--equivalent to seven wards--will need to be empty on Christmas day. This model is derived from information on the patient administration system and could be used by all hospitals to plan care.

Bed Occupancy↗
PubMed1993

Deliberate self-harm and public holidays: is there a link?

It has previously been reported [Davenport & Birtle, 1990] that there is a positive association between nonfatal deliberate self-harm in adolescents and emotionally charged festivals, such as St Valentine's Day and Christmas Day. We studied all cases of nonfatal deliberate self-harm presenting to three Central London hospitals on St Valentine's Day and Christmas Day and on two control dates, between 1983 and 1989. No association was found between cases of deliberate self-harm and St Valentine's Day, but a negative association was found with Christmas Day.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2004

Holidays, birthdays, and postponement of cancer death.

CONTEXT: Articles in the medical literature and lay press have supported a belief that individuals, including those dying of cancer, can temporarily postpone their death to survive a major holiday or other significant event, but results and effects have been variable. OBJECTIVE: To determine whether, for the patient dying of cancer, a "death takes a holiday" effect showing a reduction in deaths in the week before a significant event was associated with Christmas, the US holiday of Thanksgiving, or the date of the individual's birthday. DESIGN, SETTING, AND SUBJECTS: Analysis of death certificate data for all 1,269,474 persons dying in Ohio from 1989-2000, including 309,221 persons dying with cancer noted as the leading cause of death. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: We measured the total number of cancer deaths in the 2 weeks centered on the event of interest and the proportion of these deaths that occurred in the week before the event to determine whether this proportion was significantly different from 0.5 by using an exact binomial test. RESULTS: The proportion of persons dying of cancer in the week before Christmas, Thanksgiving, and the individual's birthday was not significantly different from the proportion dying in the week after the event (P = .52, .26, and .06, respectively). However, among black individuals there was an increase in cancer deaths in the week before Thanksgiving (P = .01), whereas women showed an increase in cancer deaths in the week before their birthday (P = .05). There was no statistically significant excess of deaths in the postevent week in any subgroup. CONCLUSION: We found no evidence, in contrast to previous studies, that cancer patients are able to postpone their deaths to survive significant religious, social, or personal events.

Anniversaries and Special Events↗
PubMed2006

A religious diversity tale: a multi-faith case study.

This article examines the creation of a network of diverse religious leadership in a Midwest suburb where the intersection of religion and national pride fomented a community-wide conflict. Activated during a heated controversy over displaying a Christmas tree in a public school, the Network became a laboratory for testing viable strategies for community healing. The case of a Jewish student suspended for fighting when taunted for not singing Christmas Carols became a catalyst for debating what is religious, what is secular, and what is culturally American. The interaction of the key players is noted; educators, religious leaders, students and their families, particularly the mothers who regularly interacted across religious boundaries. The article describes the Network's experiment with deploying resources that accommodated diverse experiences of religion and patriotism, historically and culturally, within an American context.

Christianity↗
PubMed2006

Does the periodic vegetarianism of Greek Orthodox Christians benefit blood pressure?

OBJECTIVE: The Greek Orthodox Christian (GOC) diet is a periodic vegetarian-type diet that shares all the characteristics of the Mediterranean diet. No study to date has investigated its impact on blood pressure (BP). METHODS: Thirty-eight devout Orthodox Christian fasters and 29 matched controls living in Crete, Greece, were followed for 1 year during 2001. BP data were gathered before (pre) and near completion (end) of the three major fasting periods of the Orthodox Christian calendar [Christmas (40 days)-Easter (48 days)-Assumption (15 days)] along with other information on their dietary and lifestyle habits, body measurements and blood samples. RESULTS: Throughout the study fasters had higher mean SBP and DBP than controls. No fasting period had a significant BP lowering effect on fasters. Fasters' prevalence of end-Christmas and end-Lent high-normal BP was significantly higher than that of the controls', while it was reduced during the Assumption and reached the very low levels of controls'. On the whole, compared to controls, fasters increased their fiber, magnesium and fruit and vegetable consumption during the fasting periods and decreased their sodium and calcium intake. BMI and blood lipids were significantly associated with SBP/DBP at almost all measurements. CONCLUSION: Religious adherence to a periodic vegetarian Mediterranean-style diet does not have an observable effect on BP. Further research is needed in order to establish conclusive evidence.

Adult↗
PubMed1975

International outbreak of Salmonella Eastbourne infection traced to contaminated chocolate.

Between Dec. 4, 1973, and Feb. 15, 1974, 80 cases of infection due to Salmonella eastbourne, previously a rare isolated serotype in the United States, were reported from twenty-three States. An additional 39 cases were reported from seven Provinces in Canada during a similar period. A telephone case-control study implicated Christmas-wrapped chocolate balls manufactured by a Canadian company as the vehicle of transmission. S. eastbourne was subsequently isolated from several samples of leftover chocolate balls obtained from homes where cases occurred. Investigation of the factory revealed that the contaminated Christmas and Easter chocolates, and a few chocolate items for year-round sale, had been produced between May and October, 1973. Bacteriological testing of samples taken at the plant implicated cocoa beans as the probable source of the salmonella organisms which, in the low-moisture chocolate, were able to survive heating during production. This outbreak and the finding of salmonella of other serotypes in chocolates produced by another manufacturer suggest that chocolate-related salmonellosis may be a significant public-health problem.

Cacao↗
PubMed1994

Emergency department patterns in psychiatric visits during the holiday season.

STUDY OBJECTIVE: To determine the prevalence of psychopathology during the holiday season and which subpopulations are at greatest risk for holiday decompensation. DESIGN: A retrospective analysis of emergency department records. SETTING: ED of a university-affiliated hospital located in a mixed urban-agricultural catchment area in North Carolina. PARTICIPANTS: Eight thousand seven hundred fifty-six patient visits to the ED, with subsequent triage for psychiatric evaluation, for a 6-year period (1987 to 1993), were analyzed. RESULTS: We observed seasonal patterns in visits, with a general decrease in visits preceding holidays followed by an increase afterward. Substance abusers, men, and black patients were more likely to visit the ED than expected, particularly during the weeks surrounding Christmas. CONCLUSION: These results support the existence of a "Christmas effect" on ED visitations by patients with psychiatric symptoms. Understanding of these patterns may help emergency physicians predict the seasonal variation of such patient visits and apply preventive measures accordingly.

Emergency Service, Hospital↗
PubMed2001

A simulation study of the winter bed crisis.

The winter bed crisis is a cyclical phenomenon which appears in British hospitals every year, two or three weeks after Christmas. The crisis is usually attributed to factors such as the bad weather, influenza, older people, geriatricians, lack of cash or nurse shortages. However, a possible alternative explanation could be that beds within the hospital are blocked because of lack of social services for discharge of hospital patients during the Christmas period. Adopting this explanation of why the bed crisis occurs, the problem was considered as a queuing system and discrete event simulation was employed to evaluate the model numerically. The model shows that stopping discharges of rehabilitating patients for 21 days accompanied by a cessation of planned patients for 14 days precipitate a bed crisis when the planned admissions recommence. The extensive "what-if" capabilities of such models could be proved to be crucial to the designing and implementation of possible solutions to the problem.

Aged↗
PubMed1999

Understanding the use of a community-based drive-home service after alcohol consumption among young adults.

To know and understand the intention of young adults to use, during the Christmas and New Year's period, the community drive-home service after drinking alcohol, that is, to phone for oneself when they are the driver or when they are the passenger to suggest to a friend who is the driver to phone for the service. This study was conducted in the Province of Quebec, Canada, among a representative sample of 544 young adults aged 18 to 24 years. Self-administered questionnaires were completed by mail. Young adults showed a very good knowledge of the drive home service and had a very positive attitude toward its use. Among those who reported having experienced drinking too much alcohol during the Christmas and New Year's period, 17 percent had phoned when they were the driver and 36 percent had, when they were a passenger, suggested to a friend who was the driver to phone the community drive-home service. Nonetheless, more than half of them intended to use or to recommend its use to a friend in the future. Several factors identified in this study might be useful for increasing this drive-home service and therefore, contribute to lowering the risk of injury related to alcohol-impaired driving among young adults.

Accidents, Traffic↗
PubMed1982

Molecular cloning of the gene for human anti-haemophilic factor IX.

A functional deficiency of factor IX, one of the coagulation factors involved in blood clotting, leads to the bleeding disorder known as Christmas disease, or haemophilia B. Both this disease and haemophilia A (factor VIII (C) deficiency) are X chromosome-linked and together occur at a frequency of approximately 1 in 10,000 males. The molecular basis for the functional alteration of factor IX in Christmas disease is not clearly understood. As a first step towards the elucidation of the molecular events involved, we have attempted molecular cloning of the factor IX gene. We used a bovine factor IX cDNA clone, isolated using synthetic oligonucleotides as probes, to screen a cloned human gene library. Here we report the isolation and partial characterization of a lambda recombinant phage containing the human factor IX gene.

Bacteriophage lambda↗
PubMed2003

Decreased heroin availability in Sydney in early 2001.

AIM: To examine the veracity of reports of a substantial decrease in the availability of heroin in Sydney in January 2001. DESIGN: Cross-sectional survey. SETTING: Sydney, Australia. PARTICIPANTS: Forty-one injecting drug users (IDUs) and 10 key informants (KIs). FINDINGS: Almost all IDUs (93%) reported that heroin was harder to obtain at the time of interview (mid-February 2001) than it was before Christmas 2000 and KIs concurred. IDUs (83%) and KIs (70%) also reported that the price of heroin had increased since Christmas, and that the purity of heroin had decreased (IDUs 73%; KIs 80%). Almost all IDUs reported a reduction in their heroin use and a subsequent increase in other drug use, particularly cocaine, benzodiazepines and cannabis. Similar reports about IDUs came from nine of the 10 KIs. Over half the KIs reported an increase in both property and violent crime as a result of the heroin shortage. This crime was reportedly occurring mainly between heroin suppliers and/or IDUs. Reports from other Australian jurisdictions suggest that the shortage was not specific to Sydney. CONCLUSIONS: The reduction in the availability of heroin provides a unique opportunity to investigate the impact of supply reduction.

Adolescent↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Digestive strategies in two species of leaf-eating land crabs (Brachyura: Gecarcinidae) in a rain forest.

Two species of herbivorous land crabs from Christmas Island, Cardisoma hirtipes and Gecarcoidea natalis, overlap in both diet and distribution. This study compared the dietary preferences and digestive capabilities of these two species on a diet of leaf litter to establish the digestive strategies each adopts and the likely degree of competition for food. C. hirtipes preferred green to yellow or brown leaves of Ficus macrophylla in short-term food-choice experiments. Brown leaves were least favoured. G. natalis showed no preference for the different leaf types and in the field ate chiefly brown and decomposing leaf litter. When fed green leaves, C. hirtipes had a low food intake (4.5+/-0.36 g kg-1 d-1) and a short retention time for food, and the readily digestible components of the diet constituted greater than 84% of the dry matter assimilated. When fed brown leaves, the intake was increased 3.3 times, but retention time remained short, and assimilation coefficients for all nutrients were low. The readily digestible fraction of the diet made the chief contribution to dry matter assimilation (69%), and hemicellulose (19%) and cellulose (21%) were also significantly used. This pattern of food intake and assimilation contrasts with that for G. natalis, which had a low intake of brown leaves and a longer retention time associated with higher nutrient assimilation, particularly of complex polysaccharides. It is suggested that through their feeding preferences and habits, these two sympatric species use opposite ends of the leaf litter quality spectrum on Christmas Island.

Animals↗