Publications by authors named "Darr A"

Palliative care strives to improve the quality of life of patients experiencing life-limiting conditions by providing personalised holistic care. Head and neck cancer patients may require palliation at different stages of their disease, thus timely recognition and management is vital when considering supportive care. This study assesses the awareness, perceived confidence, and knowledge of palliative care management of UK-based oral and maxillofacial surgery (OMFS) head and neck surgeons.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Magnetic insulation of electrons prevents losses and can be applied to generating radiation or electron sources for high current and high power applications. Ion emission from the anode may degrade magnetic insulation. We develop equilibrium theory, self-consistently coupling magnetically insulated electron flow with free-flowing injected ions.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Introduction: Military service members (SMs) with mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI or concussion) frequently report cognitive and behavioral difficulties. Currently, military clinical guidelines recommend clinician-run, manualized cognitive rehabilitation (CR) to treat these symptoms; however, it is unclear whether this approach adequately addresses the unique needs of warfighters. Computerized cognitive training (CCT) programs represent an innovative, promising approach to treating cognitive difficulties; however, whether these programs can effectively remediate cognitive impairment in individuals with mTBI remains unclear.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

To maintain or enhance biodiversity and sea floor integrity, mapping benthic habitats is a mandatory requirement in compliance with the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD). The EU Commission Decision distinguishes between Broad Habitat Types (BHTs) and Other Habitat Types (OHTs). At the regional level, biotopes in the Baltic Sea region are classified according to the HELCOM underwater biotope and habitat classification (HUB).

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Multiple electron emission mechanisms often contribute in electron devices, motivating theoretical studies characterizing the transitions between them. Previous studies unified thermionic and field emission, defined by the Richardson-Laue-Dushman (RLD) and Fowler-Nordheim (FN) equations, respectively, with the Child-Langmuir (CL) law for vacuum space-charge limited current (SCLC); another study unified FN and CL with the Mott-Gurney (MG) law for collisional SCLC. However, thermionic emission, which introduces a nonzero injection velocity, may also occur in gas, motivating this analysis to unify RLD, FN, CL, and MG.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Many studies show that habitat complexity or habitat diversity plays a major role in biodiversity throughout different spatial scales: as structural heterogeneity increases, so does the number of available (micro-) habitats for the potential species inventory. The capability of housing species (even rare species) increases rapidly with increasing habitat heterogeneity. However, habitat complexity is not easy to measure in marine sublittoral sediments.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Objective: Idiopathic sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSNHL) is typically treated with systematic or intratympanic corticosteroids. Current ENT-UK guidelines suggest treatment with a dose of oral prednisolone 1mg/kg/day for 7 days then tapered over a further 5 days. However, there is no consensus on the effectiveness of corticosteroids for idiopathic SSNHL and no universally accepted optimal regime.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The success of the endoscopic endonasal approach (EEA) to surgically manage clival chordomas (CC) relies on robust repair methods to reduce complications, such as cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) leaks. Our study aims to evaluate the existing literature to assess reconstructive techniques utilised and post-operative CSF leak rates in this cohort. A systematic review and analysis was performed of all published data related to CC patients managed with an EEA.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Understanding space-charge-limited current density (SCLCD) is fundamentally and practically important for characterizing many high-power and high-current vacuum devices. Despite this, no analytic equations for SCLCD with nonzero monoenergetic initial velocity have been derived for nonplanar diodes from first principles. Obtaining analytic equations for SCLCD for nonplanar geometries is often complicated by the nonlinearity of the problem and over constrained boundary conditions.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Health professions education (HPE) has witnessed a dramatic increase in the use of extended reality (XR), but there is limited evidence that conceptual frameworks are being effectively employed in the design and implementation of XR. This paper introduces commonly utilized conceptual frameworks that can support the integration of XR into the learning process and design principles that can be helpful for the development and evaluation of XR educational applications. Each framework and design principle is summarized briefly, followed by a description of its applicability to XR for HPE and an example of such application.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Cardiometabolic disease is a leading complication of spinal cord injury (SCI) that contributes to premature all-cause cardiovascular morbidity and early death. Despite widespread reports that cardioendocrine disorders are more prevalent in individuals with SCI than those without disability, a well-defined pathophysiology has not been established. Autonomic dysfunction accompanying disruption of autonomic spinal tracts may contribute to dysregulation of energy metabolism via uncoupling of integrated hunger and satiation signals.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Posterior nasal nerve neurectomy (PNNN) is a surgical option for the treatment of refractory chronic rhinitis. It can be performed by surgical dissection, cryotherapy, or laser ablation. This systematic review aimed to assess the effect of PNNN on Total Nasal Symptom Score (TNSS) in adults with chronic rhinitis.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Objectives The use of autologous grafts is a key aspect of contemporary septorhinoplasty. When septal cartilage is deficient, auricular cartilage serves as a biocompatible, readily accessible alternative. Our study aimed to assess donor site patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) where auricular cartilage has been harvested for use in septorhinoplasty, adding to the limited existing literature on this topic.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

This study is designed to remedy the tendency of existing studies to analyze online marketplaces as either sites of work or trading arenas. We argue that the theoretical notion of "social infrastructure" is particularly apt to offer a comprehensive framework that captures the unique intersection of work and trade in online marketplaces. We study the social infrastructure of an online marketplace: the institutions, conditions and forms, and the horizontal and vertical ties between actors that organize work and enable trading.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Button battery (BB) impaction in the ear, nose and throat can result in significant morbidity. Advanced nurse practitioners (ANPs) are increasingly responsible for initial patient assessment and prompt escalation to otolaryngologists for definitive management.

Aim: Our novel national study aimed to assess ANPs' knowledge with respect to the assessment and management of patients with BBs in the ear, nose and throat.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Objective: Management of head and neck cancer patients provides unique challenges. Palliation serves to optimise quality-of-life by alleviating suffering and maintaining dignity. Prompt recognition and management of suffering is paramount to achieving this.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Efficient and effective instructional materials designed for asynchronous learning are increasingly important in health professions curricula. Video microlectures are an effective instructional method, but many faculty lack training in applying best-practice multimedia principles to development of their own recorded microlectures. Here we report a rubric designed for use in a peer-review process to evaluate and improve microlectures.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Introduction Button battery ingestion (BBI) carries a significant risk of morbidity and mortality. We conducted a regional analysis following an NHS England national patient safety alert to evaluate the knowledge base in the emergency management of BBI amongst emergency practitioners. Methods A ten-point questionnaire was distributed electronically and in hardcopy formats to emergency departments across 15 hospitals within the West Midlands, United Kingdom.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Introduction: Superior canal dehiscence syndrome (SCDS) is a rare disorder characterized by an array of audiovestibular symptoms due to a dehiscence of bone overlying the superior semicircular canal (SSC). In the presence of debilitating symptoms, surgical management, to plug or resurface the SCC is performed. Although computed tomography (CT) may overestimate the size or presence of a dehiscence due to a partial volume effect, it remains an invaluable diagnostic tool.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Granulomatosis with polyangiitis (GPA, formerly Wegener's) is a rare form of vasculitis, commonly affecting the upper and lower respiratory tract with simultaneous glomerulonephritis. Ear, nose and throat (ENT) manifestations account for the majority of presentations. The presence of antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody is a recognized hallmark of GPA, but clinicians should remain cautious of false negative results.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Anecdotal evidence suggests learners experience fatigue and burnout from multiple hours on virtual platforms. We compared summative exam performance data of second year preclinical medical students in a medical neuroscience course over consecutive years in which interactive synchronous activities occurred in-person (2019) or entirely online (2020). Exam items that assessed interactive, synchronously delivered content in 2020 had mean scores that were significantly lower than 2019.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

To compare academic performance in and students' perceptions of an outpatient pharmacy practice laboratory course taught in a traditional laboratory setting vs by virtual facilitation. An outpatient pharmacy practice laboratory course was taught in a traditional live laboratory setting to 69 students on two campuses in 2016. A year later, the same course was taught via synchronous virtual (ie, remote) facilitation using an internet-based video and chat conference room for communication across two campuses to 91 students.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF