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Copyright of Avian Diseases is the property of American Association of Avian Pathologists, Inc. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The mechanism of alkali-carbonate reaction (ACR) is still controversial. ACR distress in concrete has been described as an increase in volume caused by the crystallization of brucite following dedolomitization. In this study, the cause of concrete distress in reported ACR-damaged concrete pavements was investigated, and it was determined that alkali-silica reaction (ASR) was the cause of the damage. Optical microscopy and scanning electron microscopy with energy-dispersive spectroscopy (SEM-EDS) analyses identified ASR gel extending from reactive aggregates into the paste, X-ray elemental mapping confirmed the composition of the gel, and EDS determined the amount of each element in the ASR gel spectra. Silica in the form of cryptocrystalline-microcrystalline quartz was found in the matrix of reactive aggregates and was the source of reactive silica. The test results confirmed that ASR caused the damage to the primary concrete pavements and present the first case ever reported in the United States in which ASR is the main cause of concrete damage in concrete made from carbonate aggregate exhibiting a classic texture and composition cited for ACR. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Durability and long-term performance of concrete exposed to deleterious ions and environmental conditions are major concerns. The rapid chloride permeability (RCP) test is commonly used in specifications in the United States to evaluate the permeability of concrete. To evaluate the critical factors that control the service life of structures, the investigation of various concrete mixtures is required. In this paper, the performance of 54 concrete mixtures containing three types of water-reducing admixtures, two types of aggregates, and two levels of cement contents are evaluated in the RCP and freezing-and-thawing tests and the air void structure of selected mixtures are analyzed. It was found that the use of supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs) significantly enhances the performance of concrete mixtures in the RCP test. In addition, mixtures containing up to 30% of Class C fly ash and 50% slag content achieved exceptional durability performance in both RCP and freezing-and-thawing (F-T) tests. The "very-low" RCP values were found for mixtures containing Class F fly ash and polycarboxylate ether (PCE) admixture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Existing literature suggests that acculturation and integration processes for immigrant youth from East Africa are complicated by family values, interaction styles, and social roles that are in conflict with those of the US host culture. The purpose of this study was to explore first-generation female Ugandan immigrant youth perceptions, beliefs and attitudes toward self-development and identify factors among their social contexts that impact their development and adjustment. This study utilized dimensional analysis, an approach to the generation of grounded theory. Data collection included over 100 h of community participatory observation and 28 interviews in total. Participants included 20 English speaking Ugandan females aged 16-25 years who immigrated to the US after age of eight. Participants' adaptations and adjustments led to an altered developmental path, including their beliefs about gender, ethnic and racial identities, and how they balanced and integrated US culture into their existing understandings and cultural awareness. Conditions that impacted the identity development process include timing of their immigration, the contexts of reception, media, the Ugandan Community, the school social setting, the perceived value of Ugandan cultural maintenance vs. the value of adopting certain American traits, and experiences of prejudice and discrimination vs. new future opportunities. The findings represent an in-depth consideration of the cultural, linguistic, religious, racial, and social attributes of the female Ugandan immigrant youth population and can therefore be seen as an important step in the direction of developing an understanding of the developmental assets and risk/protective factors that characterize this young immigrant population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Seabirds are marine top predators and accumulate high levels of metals and metalloids in their tissues. Contamination by metals in the highly productive offshore region has become a matter of public concern. It is home to 80% of the seabird population in the U.S.A., 95% of northern fur seals (Callorhinus ursinus), and major populations of Steller sea lions (Eumetopias jubatus), walruses (Odobenus rosmarus) and whales. Here, the concentrations of eight heavy metals (Hg, Cd, Cr, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn and Pb) and a metalloid (As) in the liver and kidneys of the northern fulmar (Fulmarus glacialis), thick-billed murre (Uria lomvia), short-tailed shearwater (Puffinus tenuirostris), tufted puffin (Fratercula cirrhata) and horned puffin (Fratercula corniculata) collected in the Bering Sea were measured. As proxies of trophic level and habitat, nitrogen (d15N) and carbon (d13C) stable isotope ratios of breast muscles were also measured. Hepatic Hg concentration was high in northern fulmar, whereas Cd level was high in tufted puffin and northern fulmar. The Hg concentration and d15N value were positively correlated across individual birds, suggesting that Hg uptake was linked to the trophic status of consumed prey. Furthermore, Hg concentration in our study was higher than those of the same species of seabirds collected in 1990. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND As ages at first birth have steadily risen in the industrial west over the last several decades, the phenomenon of ‘delayed childbearing’ has come under research scrutiny by demographers, medical specialists and social scientists. In this study, we specifically explore the perceived advantages and disadvantages of postponed conception as well as participants’ retrospective opinions on the ‘optimal age’ for parenting. METHODS To this end, we examined a cohort purposely chosen to epitomize delayed childbearing, i.e. men and women who used IVF to conceive at the very end of their reproductive capability. In-depth qualitative interviews were conducted between 2009 and 2011 with 46 couples and 15 individual self-selected US women and men who had used IVF to conceive their first child when the woman was aged 40 or older at the time of delivery. Although the demographics of this cohort were consistent with others who use IVF in the USA, their median income was 3–4 times higher than that of the average US family, which may bias their largely positive parenting experiences. RESULTS Most women and men believed that childbearing later in life resulted in advantages for themselves and their families. These included having established careers with financial security and career-time flexibility, enhanced emotional preparedness, committed co-parenting relationships and a positive overall family experience. The main disadvantage was the unexpected difficulty in conceiving that culminated in the use of IVF and resulted in a smaller family than desired, although many expressed feeling ‘lucky’ to have children at all. Other disadvantages were lack of energy for parenting, less available lifetime to spend with children and anticipated stigma as older parents. CONCLUSIONS These disadvantages appear to have influenced conception and parenting experiences so that in hindsight the majority of participants identified the optimal age for first-time parenting as 5–10 years earlier than they had conceived. This age range was imagined to maximize the financial and emotional advantages of later parenting while minimizing the impact of age-related infertility, diminished energy, anticipated health issues and the social stigma of appearing too old to parent. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Examines the immigration of Filipino American veterans who were awarded United States citizenship based on their military service during World War II. Motivation for immigration in late life; Collection of financial benefits of citizenship and recognition and status; Uncertainty about their future; Maintenance of independence in old age; Study in globalization.

Introduction Oxygen therapy is a mainstream treatment for many cardiopulmonary disease processes in the United States with COPD being most common. Despite various warnings against smoking on oxygen therapy, some patients continue to smoke on oxygen and sustain burn-related injuries. These patients are frequently intubated due to concern for inhalation injury. We aim to characterize the injury patterns, morbidities, and mortalities associated with burns sustained while on oxygen therapy at home. We hypothesize that the prevalence of these injuries is underrecognized. Methods We performed a retrospective review of all patients ≥45 years of age admitted to our regional burn center from 10/2018-4/2019. Injuries related to smoking on home oxygen were isolated and patient and injury characteristics are described. Results A total of 143 patients were included in this review, 20 patients (15%) had injuries related to smoking on home oxygen. Patient and injury characteristics are described in Table 1. Notably, 25% of patients were intubated and none of those patients had an inhalation injury documented on bronchoscopy. Four patients were extubated within a day of admission & one patient was extubated on hospital day 2. No patient died in the hospital. Nine patients (45%) required an escalation of care in the post-acute care period. Conclusions Smoking on home oxygen is an underrated problem and better education is needed for both patients receiving the therapy and providers prescribing the therapy. Due to the mechanism, inhalation injury is rare though a significant percentage of patients continue to receive prophylactic intubation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Quantitative flow ratio (QFR) is a technology to evaluate the coronary stenosis significance on 3-dimensional quantitative coronary angiography. The aim of this study is to evaluate and compare the QFR versus fractional flow reserve (FFR) and/or instantaneous free-wave ratio (iFR) in a US population with a fair African American population representation.Methods and Results: This was a retrospective, observational and single-center study that enrolled 100 patients who underwent coronary angiography. The diagnostic performance of QFR in terms of sensitivity was 0.80 (95%CI 0.64-0.97) and specificity was 0.95 (95% CI 0.90-1.00), the positive predictive value (PPV) was 0.83 (0.68-0.98), while the negative predictive value (NPV) was 0.94 (0.88-0.99). The overall accuracy was 0.91 and area under the curve (AUC) was 0.92 (95% CI 0.87-0.97). The R-squared was 0.54 and the Bland-Altman plot showed a bias of 0.0016 (SD 0.063) and limits of agreement (LOA): Upper LOA 0.13 and Lower LOA -0.12. In African Americans (n = 33), accuracy, AUC, sensitivity, specificity (94%; 0.90 [0.80-1.00]; 0.90 [0.71-1.00]; 0.96 [0.87-1.00], respectively) were better than those for the overall population.Conclusions: In a US-based representative population, vessel QFR accuracy and agreement with FFR as reference is high. Diagnostic performance of QFR in African Americans is also excellent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The incidence of diarrheal disease due to Entamoeba histolytica and Giardia lamblia in the United States Embassy American population was recorded over a 25 month period. Overall case rates of 4.2/100 person-months for amoebiasis and 3.3/100 person-months for giardiasis were distinguished by wide variations based on age group and rainfall. In some circumstances, gender and prior living in Africa also correlated with disease incidence. Practitioners should look for these entities in American expatriates in Addis Ababa, especially during the dry season.