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The southeastern United States is widely regarded as a leading region for intensively managed, short rotation pine forests. One drawback of this intensive approach is the production of more juvenile wood with lower quality properties that are less desirable for solid end uses. Improved construction sectors (e.g., housing) demand larger diameter sawtimbers. Delaying the final harvest allows for the production of larger diameter higher quality solid wood; however, this approach may incur additional costs to the landowner, which may disincentivize extending the rotation without additional monetary compensation. Sawmills are a primary consumer of pine sawtimber and exert a strong influence on stumpage prices. Therefore, understanding the importance of wood quality to sawmills is important for understanding price dynamics. To explore this aspect, we conducted a mail survey of softwood sawmills in the southeastern United States to determine willingness to pay price premiums for higher quality pine sawtimber. Most sawmills (57%) were willing to pay price premiums. The mean willingness to pay, estimated using a tobit regression, ranged from USD 4.22/ton to USD 12.98/ton. Sawlog size, procurement radius, sawlog grade, and the number of employees positively influenced sawmills' willingness to pay a price premium for higher quality sawtimber, while sawmills' processing capacity and the number of years in business had a negative impact. The results will be useful to landowners considering delaying the final harvest to grow large diameter sawtimber. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Intensive pine silviculture has become the dominant management paradigm in the southeastern United States. Although productivity has been substantially increased by the combination of cultural, silvicultural, and genetic advancements, wood quality is sometimes sacrificed in intensive silviculture. Extending the optimal rotation allows trees to grow more timber, which may result in the production of better quality sawtimber; however, landowners may require incentives to do so. We simulated loblolly, slash, shortleaf, and longleaf pine for growth and yield using the Forest Vegetation Simulator (FVS) to determine sawtimber price premiums landowners would require to offset the costs associated with delaying the final harvest by 10 to 30 years in even-aged systems. Required incentives increased with the length of harvesting delay beyond the financially optimal rotation age. On medium productivity sites, landowners would be willing to delay the final harvest by 10 years for sawtimber price premiums of $5.06/ton (20.47%) for loblolly, $5.34/ton (21.6%) for slash, $4.56/ton (18.45%) for longleaf, and $6.71/ton (27.14%) shortleaf pine, respectively. Harvest delays of 10 to 20 years were financially justifiable, whereas extensions exceeding 30 years were prohibitively costly for all species. Delaying the optimal harvest could benefit landowners by generating a premium price for their sawtimber while providing important ecosystem services. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Literature regarding trends of incidence, mortality, and complications of acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in the emergency departments (ED) is limited. What are trends of COPD exacerbation in ED? Data were obtained from the Nationwide Emergency Department Sample (NEDS) that constitutes a 20% sample of hospital-owned EDs and inpatient sample in the US. All ED encounters were included in the analysis. Complications of AECOPD were obtained by using ICD codes. Out of 1.082 billion ED encounters, 5,295,408 (mean age 63.31 ± 12.63 years, females 55%) presented with COPD exacerbation. Among these patients, 353,563(6.7%) had AECOPD-plus (features of pulmonary embolism, acute heart failure and/or pneumonia) while 4,941,845 (93.3%) had exacerbation without associated features or precipitating factors which we grouped as AECOPD. The AECOPD-plus group was associated with statistically significantly higher proportion of cardiovascular complications including AF (5.6% vs 3.5%; p < 0.001), VT/VF (0.14% vs 0.06%; p < 0.001), STEMI (0.22% vs 0.11%; p < 0.001) and NSTEMI (0.65% vs 0.2%; p < 0.001). The in-hospital mortality rates were greater in the AECOPD-plus population (0.7% vs 0.1%; p < 0.001). The incidence of both AECOPD and AECOPD-plus had worsened (p-trend 0.004 and 0.0003) and the trend of mortality had improved (p-trend 0.0055 and 0.003, respectively). The prevalence of smoking for among all COPD patients had increased (p-value 0.004), however, the prevalence trend of smoking among AECOPD groups was static over the years 2010–2018. There was an increasing trend of COPD exacerbation in conjunction with smoking; however, mortality trends improved significantly. Moreover, the rising burden of AECOPD would suggest improvement in diagnostics and policy making regarding management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to identify financial stress and the causes of financial stress for agricultural cooperatives and provide management recommendations to stakeholders including cooperatives' managers, boards of directors and lenders.Design/methodology/approach This research used the geometric mean of the real rate of return on equity to identify financially stressed agricultural cooperatives. The real rate of return on equity allows the allocation of total financial stress among the return on assets, leverage and interest rate issues.Findings This study found that financially non-stressed agricultural cooperatives had a higher rate of return on equity and rate of return on assets, but lower leverage ratios and interest rates than stressed agricultural cooperatives. Further, non-stressed cooperatives had higher total assets and sales compared to stressed cooperatives. This suggests that smaller cooperatives are more likely to face financial stress than larger cooperatives. The decomposition of the financial problem showed that a substantial percentage of financial stress was correlated with a low return on assets or profitability. A smaller percentage of financial stress was due to financing decisions.Originality/value This study provides value by measuring the impact of profitability, leverage and interest rate on the financial performance of agricultural cooperatives. Results showed that a substantial proportion of financial stress was associated with a low return on assets. This indicates that profitability is a problem for agricultural cooperatives. This study also examines profitability during a period of volatile returns in production agriculture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Unusual clinical course. Background: The elderly population in the United States and the world is rapidly increasing. With aging, immunity and kidney function decrease, thus predisposing people to viral illnesses for which there is no effective prophylaxis. Herpes zoster afflicts the elderly and other immunocompromised patients, like those with end-stage renal disease, transplant recipients, and cancer patients, causing significant morbidity and sometimes mortality. Treating herpes zoster becomes problematic when the regular pharmacokinetics of the antiviral drugs are disturbed. Case Report: An 83-year-old African American man with end-stage kidney disease (ESRD) and on chronic peritoneal dialysis (PD) developed herpes zoster, for which he received the manufacturer-recommended intravenous dose of acyclovir. Shortly after taking the medication, he developed confusion, disorientation, and visual hallucinations. He was switched from PD to hemodialysis (HD), with successful recovery. Examination of the cerebrospinal fluid for meningitis and imaging studies of the head were negative. Serum levels of acyclovir were elevated. Conclusions: Even when the acyclovir dose is properly adjusted for kidney function based on the current manufacturer's recommendations, it can cause neurotoxicity. Here, we discuss the pharmacokinetics of acyclovir and make some recommendations with regard to dose adjustment in patients with ESRD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We study the effect of the minimum wage on labor market outcomes for young workers using US county-level panel data from the first quarter of 2000 to the first quarter of 2009. We go beyond the usual estimates of earnings and employment effects to consider how differences across states in the minimum wage affect worker turnover via separations and accessions and job turnover through new job creation and job losses. We find that a higher minimum wage level is associated with higher earnings, lower employment and reduced worker turnover for those in the 14-18 age group. For workers aged 19-21 and 22-24, we find less consistent evidence of minimum wage effects on earnings and employment. But, even for these age groups, a higher minimum wage is found to reduce accessions, separations and the turnover rate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses a study by on the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) refusals of food imports during the period between 1998 and 2004 due to FDA law violations. The FDA rules cover issues including product adulteration and misbranding. The research is aimed at examining food import growth in the country and the relationship between import refusals and economic development of exporting countries.

Self-objectification (Fredrickson and Roberts ) has been related to negative psychological consequences in U.S. women. However, little cross-cultural research has been done. We compared convenience samples of American and Nepali women on two measures of self-objectification. Pairs of Nepali mothers and daughters ( N = 23) and pairs of U.S. mothers and daughters ( N = 24) completed a quantitative and a qualitative measure of self-objectification. Cultural and generational differences were found. Nepali women engaged in less self-surveillance than U.S. women. Older women engaged in less self-surveillance than younger women. Women in both cultures had high beliefs in their ability to control the body. An additional dimension of body consciousness, termed Functionality, was particularly important to younger Nepali women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The authors explored the basis of the self-concepts of young children from impoverished villages high in the mountains of Nepal by having them respond to the How I See Myself questionnaire (A. Juhasz, 1985). The participants were 101 children, 7 to 14 years old, from the Sherpa and Tamang ethnic groups. The results provide evidence for questioning the appropriateness of the content of Western self-esteem instruments for such children. The authors argue that items about satisfying basic physical needs may be most appropriate for assessing the self-esteem of such children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Low-risk perceptions of cannabis use, cigarette smoking, and alcohol consumption were identified as pathways between poor mental health and current cannabis use among high school seniors. • Prevention and treatment approaches are needed to address perceptions of the safety of cannabis for both recreational and medicinal use among high school seniors. • Culturally adapted evidence-based interventions should be implemented to prevent substance use and the consequences of cannabis use among high school seniors. • Clinical mental health treatment efforts are needed to improve mental health symptoms and provide a buffer for potential substance use. Cannabis use among adolescents is prevalent in the U.S. Few studies have investigated the ties between adolescents' perceived risk of cannabis use, other substance use, and mental health. The current study fills this gap by identifying a pathway of factors associated with cannabis use among high school seniors. Data were extracted from a nationally representative survey, Monitoring the Future (N = 617). Ordered logistic regression was used to examine the association between demographic characteristics, perceived risk of cannabis use, substance use behaviors, and mental health with current cannabis use. SEM analysis was conducted to identify the pathways of problematic mental health, substance use, and perceived risk to current cannabis use. This study identified low-risk perceptions of cannabis use, cigarette smoking, and alcohol consumption as pathways between poor mental health and current cannabis use among high school seniors. Factors associated with current cannabis use were being an African American/Black, metropolitan residence, more drinking to intoxication, more smoking cigarettes, and lower perceived risk of cannabis use as addictive and criminal. These findings highlight the need for prevention and intervention efforts among adolescents with low perceived cannabis use risk, mental health symptoms, and substance use histories, especially among marginalized populations. Preventative strategies should be considered to reduce polysubstance use including cannabis use and to promote well-being among adolescents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The global burden of rheumatic heart disease continues to be significant although it is largely limited to poor and marginalized populations. In most endemic regions, affected patients present with heart failure. This statement will seek to examine the current state-of-the-art recommendations and to identify gaps in diagnosis and treatment globally that can inform strategies for reducing disease burden. Echocardiography screening based on World Heart Federation echocardiographic criteria holds promise to identify patients earlier, when prophylaxis is more likely to be effective; however, several important questions need to be answered before this can translate into public policy. Population-based registries effectively enable optimal care and secondary penicillin prophylaxis within available resources. Benzathine penicillin injections remain the cornerstone of secondary prevention. Challenges with penicillin procurement and concern with adverse reactions in patients with advanced disease remain important issues. Heart failure management, prevention, early diagnosis and treatment of endocarditis, oral anticoagulation for atrial fibrillation, and prosthetic valves are vital therapeutic adjuncts. Management of health of women with unoperated and operated rheumatic heart disease before, during, and after pregnancy is a significant challenge that requires a multidisciplinary team effort. Patients with isolated mitral stenosis often benefit from percutaneous balloon mitral valvuloplasty. Timely heart valve surgery can mitigate the progression to heart failure, disability, and death. Valve repair is preferable over replacement for rheumatic mitral regurgitation but is not available to the vast majority of patients in endemic regions. This body of work forms a foundation on which a companion document on advocacy for rheumatic heart disease has been developed. Ultimately, the combination of expanded treatment options, research, and advocacy built on existing knowledge and science provides the best opportunity to address the burden of rheumatic heart disease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Both dermatopathology and dermatology are highly visual medical specialties. We performed a bibliometric literature survey of the visual arts in reference to either discipline to better understand how medical literature approaches art within the context of the two specialties., Materials and Methods: We performed a bibliometric analysis of publications found via multiple medical search engines and selected keywords meant to capture art-related publications in dermatopathology and dermatology. Keywords (art, portrait, painting, dermatology, dermatopathology) and keyword combinations were entered into the search engines PubMed, Google Scholar, Science Direct, Pubs Hub, and Scopus. Topics of articles, years of publication, countries of origin, and contributing journals were compiled and analyzed., Results: Eighty publications were retrieved between January 1903 and August 2021. The highest number of articles were found in both PubMed and Google Scholar (n = 55), and the top publication year was 2020 (n = 11). Geographically, the United States of America (n = 38) had the greatest number of articles. The dermatology and art keyword combination yielded the most journal articles (n = 36), and the maximum number of publications were retrieved from JAMA Dermatology (n = 14) followed by the American Journal of Dermatopathology (n = 10)., Conclusion: Our survey showed an increasing number of publications related to the visual arts and dermatopathology/dermatology during the examined period, and a transition from observational case studies (often relating to art history) to articles examining the incorporation of the visual arts into medical training programs or professional societies., (© 2023 The Authors. Journal of Cutaneous Pathology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

Objective: To examine global food demand patterns and how changing diets may stimulate demand for and trade of Mediterranean diet products., Design: Literature review. Trends in global and US food consumption patterns are examined and trade data are reviewed to evaluate the impact of changing diets on trade of Mediterranean diet products. Market access issues are also addressed briefly to highlight the role of policy in the trade of Mediterranean diet products., Results: Diets are shifting towards higher-value products such as meats, fruits and vegetables, and a wider array of packaged food products. Trade in these products has also grown in the past two decades, with several non-traditional importers and exporters becoming increasingly active in the global market., Conclusions: Income-driven demands for quality and variety are likely to increase the demand for Mediterranean diet products globally. While the middle-income countries appear to be the best growth prospects, the USA remains a potential growth market if these products can meet the growing consumer demand for variety, quality and convenience. Although consumer trends globally indicate growth in demand for Mediterranean diet products, the additional demand may not be reflected by a corresponding growth in trade. Trade in Mediterranean diet products continues to be hampered by higher than average trade barriers and high transportation costs for perishables.