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Background The timely publication of findings in peer-reviewed journals is a primary goal of clinical research. In clinical trials, the processes leading to publication can be complex from choice and prioritization of analytic topics through to journal submission and revisions. As little literature exists on the publication process for multicenter trials, we describe the development, implementation, and effectiveness of such a process in a multicenter trial. Methods The Hepatitis C Antiviral Long-Term Treatment against Cirrhosis (HALT-C) trial included a data coordinating center (DCC) and clinical centers that recruited and followed more than 1,000 patients. Publication guidelines were approved by the steering committee, and the publications committee monitored the publication process from selection of topics to publication. Results A total of 73 manuscripts were published in 23 peer-reviewed journals. When manuscripts were closely tracked, the median time for analyses and drafting of manuscripts was 8 months. The median time for data analyses was 5 months and the median time for manuscript drafting was 3 months. The median time for publications committee review, submission, and journal acceptance was 7 months, and the median time from analytic start to journal acceptance was 18 months. Conclusions Effective publication guidelines must be comprehensive, implemented early in a trial, and require active management by study investigators. Successful collaboration, such as in the HALT-C trial, can serve as a model for others involved in multidisciplinary and multicenter research programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A method is proposed to relate essentially instantaneous roadside measurements of vehicle exhaust emissions, with emission results generated over a type approval driving cycle. An urban remote sensing data set collected in 2008 is used to define the dynamic relationship between vehicle specific power and exhaust emissions, across a range of vehicle ages, engine capacities, and fuel types. The New European Driving Cycle is synthesized from the remote sensing data using vehicle specific power to characterize engine load, and the results compared with official published emissions data from vehicle type approval tests over the same driving cycle. Mean carbon monoxide emissions from gasoline-powered cars ≤3 years old measured using remote sensing are found to be 1.3 times higher than published original type approval test values; this factor increases to 2.2 for cars 4-8 years old, and 6.4 for cars 9-12 years old. The corresponding factors for diesel cars are 1.1, 1.4, and 1.2, respectively. Results for nitric oxide, hydrocarbons, and particulate matter are also reported. The findings have potential implications for the design of traffic management interventions aimed at reducing emissions, fleet inspection and maintenance programs, and the specification of vehicle emission models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Background: The NHLBI-sponsored Sickle Cell Disease Clinical Research Network (SCDCRN) conducted a multi-center, acute intervention randomized clinical trial of two methods of Patient Controlled Analgesia for acute pain. This trial was terminated early due to low enrollment. We analyzed the perceived barriers and recruitment difficulties as reported by the coordinators and principal investigators. Methods: Participating sites completed a missed eligibility log of subjects admitted in pain crisis throughout the study and a survey at the end of the trial. The survey covered site-specific factors, policies, and procedures in study implementation, recruitment strategies, and eligibility factors. The New England Research Institutes (NERI) collected de-identified surveys from 31 respondents at 29 of 31 participating sites. Results: From December 2009 to June 2010, 1116 patient encounters for SCD and pain occurred at participating institutions: 38 subjects were enrolled (14 pediatric and 24 adults) and 34 completed the trial, below the projected 278 subjects. Fourteen sites enrolled subjects and seventeen did not. Recruitment barriers included insufficient staff, subject ineligibility or in too much pain to consent, competing protocols, and concerns regarding pain control. Recruitment methods were referrals from urgent care, SCD clinics and in house databases. No use of media or outside physicians was reported. Conclusion: We identified multiple barriers to patient accrual including short duration of enrollment period, protocol design, complex dosing schedule, requirement for staff availability during week-end and after hours, multiple departments'' involvement, protocol acceptance, eligibility criteria, competing protocols, and limited staff. Each of these areas should be targeted for intervention in order to plan and conduct successful future clinical trials. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

This paper provides an assessment of the tools required to fulfil the air quality management role now expected of local authorities within the UK. The use of a range of pollution monitoring tools in assessing air quality is discussed and illustrated with evidence from a number of previous studies of urban background and roadside pollution monitoring in Leicester. A number of approaches to pollution modelling currently available for deployment are examined. Subsequently, the modelling and monitoring tools are assessed against the requirements of local authorities establishing air quality management areas. Whilst the paper examines UK-based policy, the study is of wider international interest. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The timely publication of findings in peer-reviewed journals is a primary goal of clinical research. In clinical trials, the processes leading to publication can be complex from choice and prioritization of analytic topics through to journal submission and revisions. As little literature exists on the publication process for multicenter trials, we describe the development, implementation, and effectiveness of such a process in a multicenter trial.Methods: The Hepatitis C Antiviral Long-Term Treatment against Cirrhosis (HALT-C) trial included a data coordinating center (DCC) and clinical centers that recruited and followed more than 1,000 patients. Publication guidelines were approved by the steering committee, and the publications committee monitored the publication process from selection of topics to publication.Results: A total of 73 manuscripts were published in 23 peer-reviewed journals. When manuscripts were closely tracked, the median time for analyses and drafting of manuscripts was 8 months. The median time for data analyses was 5 months and the median time for manuscript drafting was 3 months. The median time for publications committee review, submission, and journal acceptance was 7 months, and the median time from analytic start to journal acceptance was 18 months.Conclusions: Effective publication guidelines must be comprehensive, implemented early in a trial, and require active management by study investigators. Successful collaboration, such as in the HALT-C trial, can serve as a model for others involved in multidisciplinary and multicenter research programs.Trial Registration: The HALT-C Trial was registered with clinicaltrials.gov (NCT00006164). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Current signal systems for managing road traffic in many urban areas around the world lack a coordinated approach to detecting the spatial and temporal evolution of congestion across control regions within city networks. This severely inhibits these systems’ ability to detect reliably, on a strategic level, the onset of congestion and implement effective preventative action. As traffic is a time-dependent and non-linear system, Chaos Theory is a prime candidate for application to Urban Traffic Control (UTC) to improve congestion and pollution management. Previous applications have been restricted to relatively uncomplicated motorway and inter-urban networks, arguably where the associated problems of congestion and vehicle emissions are less severe, due to a general unavailability of high-resolution temporal and spatial data that preserve the variability in short-term traffic patterns required for Chaos Theory to work to its full potential. This paper argues that this restriction can now be overcome due to the emergence of new sources of high-resolution data and large data storage capabilities. Consequently, this opens up the real possibility for a new generation of UTC systems that are better able to detect the dynamic states of traffic and therefore more effectively prevent the onset of traffic congestion in urban areas worldwide. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In London, the recent analysis of ambient measurements has shown that directly emitted (primary) nitrogen dioxide has increasehttp://bkstrm. Epnet. Com:8080/ai/images/save. GifSaved as a fraction of total nitrogen oxides from road transport sources. These increases appear to be mostly due to certain after-treatment devices, such as oxidation catalysts and particle filters fitted to diesel vehicles. This study uses a constrained simple chemical model to predict hourly concentrations of at a busy roadside site in central London to investigate the dependence of peak hourly concentrations of on the level of assumed primary emitted by road vehicles. The model performance is shown to be good across the full range of hourly and concentrations over seven years. Monte Carlo simulations are used to predict future hourly concentrations and the probability of exceeding the EU hourly limit value for by considering the model errors, uncertainties in future trends and the inter-annual variability of meteorology. It is shown that if the emission ratio of 22. 0% by volume, as calculated at the end of 2004, is sustained into the future, it is likely that the hourly EU limit value will not be met. However, the probability of not meeting the limit value in 2010 depends strongly on the meteorological year and varies from 16% to 88% depending on the year considered. This work shows that further increases in the ratio beyond those observed at the end of 2004 would considerably increase the probability of the EU hourly limit for being exceeded. Additionally, the analysis of road network emissions in London shows that many other roads are likely to be at risk from exceeding the hourly limit value. Further work is required to improve the quantification of in vehicle exhausts to determine the likely future risks of exceeding the hourly limit value in other European cities. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

An 8-year (1998–2005), hourly data set of measurements of NOx, NO2, PM10, PM2.5, and PMcoarse (defined as PM2.5–10) from a busy roadside location in central London has been analyzed to identify important change-points in the time series using a cumulative sum (CUSUM) technique. Randomization methods were used to estimate the uncertainty level associated with the change-points with uncertainty intervals derived using a bootstrap approach. The results show that there is a clear change-point increase for NO2 coinciding with the introduction of the London congestion-charging in February 2003 (95% confidence interval from January–March 2003). At this time there was both an increase in bus numbers and buses fitted with catalyzed diesel particulate filters, which increase direct emissions of NO2. A highly statistically significant change-point was also observed for PMcoarse (95% confidence interval from December 2002–February 2003), which also occurred close to the time of the congestion charge introduction and is most closely related to the increase in bus flows. The increase in PMcoarse at this time has largely compensated for reductions in the concentration of PM2.5, such that the concentration of PM10 has remained almost constant. Comparing the 2 years before and after the introduction of congestion charging, the increment in NO2 above background increased from 22 to 34 ppb and PMcoarse increased from 4 to 9 μg m-3. These results could have important implications for meeting European air quality standards that currently set limits for PM10 rather than PM2.5. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Introduction: In general, priority junctions are converted into roundabouts to increase capacity and reduce vehicle accidents. However, previous research has indicated that roundabouts are dangerous for vulnerable users, especially cyclists. Method: This paper investigates which design factors influence cyclist casualty severity at give way (non-signalized) roundabouts with mixed traffic, using the UK STATS19 National dataset of cyclist casualties. First, the correlation matrix was generated to observe the relationship between variables. Second, dimension reduction was applied to geometric design variables in order to reduce the number of variables and generate the factors. Finally, the binary logistic regression method, with serious and slight casualties as dependent variables, was applied in three steps. The first Binary Logistic Regression Model (BLRM) included speed limit, sociodemographic, and meteorological conditions. The variables in the second BLRM consisted of geometric design variables. The third BLRM included the factors that were generated by dimension reduction. Results: The correlation matrix revealed that the number of lanes on approach and half width on approach were statistically significantly correlated, while the variables, such as geometric design (entry path radius, number of arms, number of flare lanes on approach, type of roundabout and number of circulating lanes), sociodemographic (casualty gender and age), speed limit and meteorologically related factors (daylight, weather and road surface condition), did not show any statistical significance. From the dimension reduction process, two main factors were identified, including Approach Capacity (Factor 1) and Size of Roundabout (Factor 2), and they were subsequently used as independent variables in the logistic regression analysis. The subsequent BLRMs showed that a higher speed limit reduces the safety for cyclists at roundabouts. The probability of a serious casualty increases by approximately five times (odds ratio 4.97) for each additional number of lanes on approach and by 4% (odds ratio 1.04) with a higher entry path radius. It was also found that Factor 2 (Approach Capacity) increases the casualty severity (odds ratio 1.86) for cyclists at roundabouts. Practical applications: While this research studied roundabouts in the UK, the methodological approach and statistical analysis techniques are applicable to other countries and the findings are likely to be of value to decision makers worldwide. Highlights The conclusions of this paper can be summarized as five key messages: • A higher speed limit makes roundabouts less safe for cyclists; • Sociodemographic and meteorological factors were not found to influence cyclist casualty severity at the roundabouts considered in this study; • The probability of a serious casualty increases by approximately five times (odds ratio 4.97) for each additional number of lanes on approach; • Higher entry path radius (propensity to increase speed into the roundabout) increases the probability of a serious casualty in 4% (odds ratio 1.04); and finally, • The factor 'approach capacity' (also a proxy for the propensity to increase speed into the roundabout), generated from the dimension reduction process, increases the probability of casualty severity of a cyclist (odds ratio 1.86). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Plans to build a third runway at London Heathrow (LHR) airport have been held back because of concerns that the development would lead to annual mean concentrations of nitrogen dioxide (NO2) in excess of the EU Directive limit value, which must be met by 2010. The dominant effect of other sources of NO x close to the airport, primarily from road traffic, makes it difficult to detect and quantify the contribution made by the airport to local NO x and NO2 concentrations. This work presents approaches that aim to detect and quantify the airport contribution to NO x concentrations for a network of seven measurement sites close to the airport. Two principal approaches are used. First, a graphical technique using bivariate polar plots that develops the idea of a pollution rose is used to help discriminate between different source types. The sampling uncertainties associated with the technique have been calculated through a randomised re-sampling approach. Second, the unique pattern of aircraft activity at LHR enables data filtering techniques to be used to statistically verify the presence of aircraft sources. It is shown that aircraft NO x sources can be detected to at least 2.6km from the airport, even though the airport contribution at that distance is very small. Using these approaches, estimates have been made of the airport contribution to long-term mean concentrations of NO x and NO2. At the airfield boundary we estimate that approximately 27% of the annual mean NO x and NO2 is due to airport operations. At background locations 2–3km downwind of the airport we estimate that the upper limit of the airport contribution to be less than 15% (<10μgm−3). This work also provides approaches that would help validate and refine dispersion modelling studies used for airport assessments. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]