The Tangipahoa River and Natalbany River watersheds (Tangipahoa Parish/County) in the Lake Pontchartrain Basin (southeastern Louisiana) are experiencing rapid urbanization, particularly in the wake of the 2005 hurricane season. To document the impact of land use on water quality, thirty sites were monitored for surface water physiochemical, geochemical, and bacteriological parameters. Water quality data was compared to land use within four sub-watersheds of the Tangipahoa Watershed and three sub-watersheds of the Natalbany Watershed. Urbanization had the most profound impact on water quality of all land uses. In watersheds with little urban land cover (< 7% with the sub-watershed) waterbodies had low dissolved salt, nutrient, and fecal coliform concentrations and high dissolved oxygen levels. Waterbodies within the urban region (> 28% urban land cover within the sub-watershed) of the parish had significantly greater dissolved salt, nutrient, and fecal coliform concentrations and decreased dissolved oxygen concentrations. Specifically, nutrient and fecal coliform concentrations increased as streams flowed through urban areas. The specific conductance, fecal coliform counts, concentrations of sulfate, HCO3-C, sodium, and nutrients (NO3-N, NO2-N, NH4-N, and PO4-P), and the ratios of Na:Cl, Cl:Br, and SO4:Cl were shown to be the parameters most indicative of urban impacts. Many of the geochemical parameters correlated significantly with each other, particularly within the urban streams (the streams with the greatest concentrations). While fecal coliform counts were high within the urban streams, programs to address malfunctioning wastewater treatment plants (WWTP) appear to be working, with fecal coliform counts declining and dissolved oxygen levels rising during the course of the data collection. In contrast, sites undergoing rapid development showed an increase in turbidity levels and a decrease on dissolved oxygen levels (both going from healthy to unhealthy levels) during the 18-month course of the data collection. By understanding the impacts of urbanization on streams of the Gulf Coast, local and regional municipalities may be able to reduce the impacts in already urbanized areas or mitigate the impacts at the outset of development.

A avaliação dos níveis de estresse nos animais tem importância tanto na área médica, econômica e de bem-estar, assim estudos vem sendo cada vez mais difundidos neste quesito. Os gatos são animais de companhia que tem progressivamente conquistado espaço no mundo moderno, dessa forma vem sendo mais observados e estudados, demonstrando-se bem mais sociais do que anteriormente se acreditava. Zelar pela qualidade de vida dos mesmos é dever do veterinário, e não somente pela questão médica em si mas também pelo bem-estar, já que se sabe, por exemplo, que condições estressantes podem levar a alterações orgânicas deletérias. A mensuração do cortisol, ou de seus metabólitos, tem sido utilizada para avaliar de forma fisiológica o bem-estar dos animais, tanto domésticos quanto selvagens. As técnicas para tal mensuração também vem sendo aperfeiçoadas, buscando-se assim ensaios mais precisos, seguros e baratos. No presente trabalho pretendemos comparar quantitativamente e qualitativamente dois imunoensaios radioimétrico (radioimunoensaio) e enzimático (enzimaimunoensaio) - utilizando amostras fecais de gatos domiciliados que vivem sozinhos ou em pequenas colônias. Sua importância deve-se ao uso de uma nova técnica, mais barata e segura, porém ainda pouco difundida no nosso país. / Evaluation of stress levels among animals has both medical and welfare importance and studies regarding this matter have been increasingly published. Cats are companion animals achieving a special position within modern societies they have been carefully observed and studied thus demonstrating that they are much more social than previously thought. Taking care of cats´ life quality is a veterinarian duty not only because it constitutes a medical issue per se but also due to its welfare implications: it is well known, for instance, that stressful conditions can lead to deleterious organic diseases. Measurement of cortisol levels (or its metabolites) has been used as a physiological parameter for investigating the welfare of both domestic and wild animals. Laboratory techniques used for such measurements have been under improvement in order to achieve more precise, safe and cheap assays. In the present study we aim at comparing quantitatively two assays radioimmunoassay and enzyme immunoassay by using domestic cats faecal samples (single and in-group housed cats). The relevance of this study lays on the use of a pioneering technique, cheap and safe, besides the establishment of a scientific cooperation with a leading university´s laboratory one of the few existing which deals with faecal hormonal dosages.

Made available in DSpace on 2019-03-29T23:59:37Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2014-12-16 / Fecal incontinence is the involuntary loss of rectal content (liquid, gas or solid) through the anal canal. It can be functional or organic origin. Is a problem gastroenterologic with deep personal and family impacts. Children afflicted by incontinence have lower quality of life and develop behavioral and emotional problems and present poor performance at school and home environment compromised. The objective of analyzing the directions assigned to Fecal Incontinence in childhood from the narrative of mothers of children with IF. Study with a qualitative approach, whose scenario was the outpatient treatment of fecal incontinence of a public health facility in the State network, specialized in rendering services to the health of the child, located in the city of Fortaleza-Ceará. Participants were 29 mothers of children with fecal incontinence, attended the service, chosen randomly. The data were collected in the months of January to April 2014, the technique employed was the narrative. For data analysis, we used the method of interpretation of meanings. Were presented four directions that reflect the feelings of the mother in relation to fecal incontinence: the suffering, stigma, loss of independence and resigns. There is suffering caused by physical and emotional wear and tear to which they are exposed child and family. The mother waives the family, to work and to personal life, devoting himself to care for the child incontinent. The stigma is so overwhelming, compromising the social and family life being responsible for social exclusion of children and families. The care required to care for the child incontinent leads to mother losing their financial independence and personal. It is proposed the creation of technologies to be used by professionals who serve children with IF; the expansion of services where the service to children with IF is carried out fully, by multidisciplinary team, and the Organization of support groups for the purpose of fostering the exchange of experiences between participants, exploring new ideas and provide positive support for incontinent children and their families. / A incontinência fecal é a perda involuntária do conteúdo retal (líquido, gás ou sólido) através do canal anal. Pode ser de origem funcional ou orgânica. É um problema gastroenterológico com profundos impactos pessoais e familiares. As crianças acometidas pela incontinência têm mais baixa qualidade de vida e desenvolvem problemas de ordem comportamental e emocional além de apresentarem desempenho ruim na escola e ambiente familiar comprometido. Objetivou-se analisar os sentidos atribuídos à Incontinência Fecal na Infância a partir da narrativa de mães de crianças com IF. Estudo com abordagem qualitativa, cujo cenário foi o ambulatório de tratamento da incontinência fecal de um hospital público da rede estadual, especializado no atendimento à saúde da criança, localizado no município de Fortaleza - Ceará. Os participantes foram 29 mães de crianças com incontinência fecal, atendidas no serviço, escolhidas aleatoriamente. A coleta de dados foi realizada nos meses de janeiro a abril de 2014, a técnica empregada foi a narrativa. Para análise dos dados, utilizou-se o método de interpretação de sentidos. Foram apresentados quatro sentidos que traduzem os sentimentos da mãe em relação à incontinência fecal: o sofrimento, o estigma, a perda da independência e a renuncia. Há sofrimento causado pelo desgaste físico e emocional a que são expostos criança e familiares. A mãe renuncia à família, ao trabalho e aos projetos de vida pessoal, dedicando-se a cuidar da criança incontinente. O estigma surge de forma avassaladora, comprometendo a vida social e familiar sendo responsável pela exclusão social de criança e familiares. Os cuidados exigidos para cuidar da criança incontinente levam a mãe a perder sua independência financeira e pessoal. Propõe-se a criação de tecnologias a serem utilizadas pelos profissionais que atendem crianças com IF; a expansão de serviços onde o atendimento a crianças com IF seja realizado de forma integral, por equipe multiprofissional, e a organização de grupos de apoio com a finalidade de fomentar a troca de experiências entre os participantes, explorar novas ideias positivas e proporcionar apoio a crianças incontinentes e seus familiares.

Made available in DSpace on 2019-03-30T00:14:39Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2016-12-16 / When she fell ill, the child does not go through this alone situation, the fact is reflected in the family causing different levels of impact on each family according to the degree of kinship with it. The research investigated the conception that mothers have about fecal incontinence after their child's treatment, as well as uncovered the main changes in the routine of the family after the treatment of the FI, to understand the main obstacles found after treatment and thus add Knowledge and experience that enable parents to empower themselves over the situation to which they are inserted from a humanized point of view.Qualitative study, whose scenario was the fecal incontinence treatment ward of a public hospital of the state, specializing in health care of children, located in the city of Fortaleza - Ceará. Participants were 25 mothers of children with fecal incontinence, attended the service, chosen at random. Data collection was conducted from June to August 2016, the technique was applied a semi-structured interview. For data analysis, we used the Bardin method. After reading in search of validation of the data, the central themes were identified emerging categories "Incontinence, what?", "Feelings experienced" and "difficult start". On the facts evidenced in this study, it would be of paramount importance to offer comprehensive care, watching not only the child in the biomedical model, but including parents in the care, as well as providing support for incontinent children and their families, especially families from the interior because the constant displacements can derail the success of the treatment. / Ao adoecer, a criança não passa por essa situação sozinha, o fato reflete-se na família causando impactos de níveis diferenciados em cada familiar de acordo com o grau de parentesco com a mesma. A pesquisa investigou a concepção que as mães têm a respeito da IF após o tratamento de seu filho, assim como desvelou as principais mudanças na rotina da família nesse período, para compreender os principais obstáculos encontrados e dessa forma agregar saberes e vivência que possibilitem aos pais o empoderamento sobre a situação a qual estão inseridos sob a ótica humanizada. Estudo com abordagem qualitativa, cujo cenário foi o ambulatório de tratamento da incontinência fecal de um hospital público da rede estadual, especializado no atendimento à saúde da criança, localizado no município de Fortaleza - Ceará. Os participantes foram vinte e cinco, mães de crianças com incontinência fecal, atendidas no serviço, escolhidas aleatoriamente. A coleta de dados foi realizada nos meses de junho a agosto de 2016, a técnica empregada foi aplicação de entrevista semi-estruturada. Para análise dos dados, utilizou-se o método de Bardin. Após leitura em busca de validação dos dados, foram identificados os núcleos temáticos, surgindo as categorias ¿Incontinência, o quê?¿, ¿Sentimentos Vivenciados¿ e ¿Começo difícil¿. Diante dos fatos evidenciados nesse estudo, seria de suma relevância oferecer uma assistência integral, assistindo não apenas a criança no modelo biomédico, mas incluindo os pais no cuidado, assim como proporcionar apoio a crianças incontinentes e seus familiares, em especial as famílias provenientes do interior, pois os constantes deslocamentos podem inviabilizar o êxito do tratamento.

No description available.

Under the Clean Water Act (CWA) program the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) listed 110 stream segments with pathogenic bacteria impairment in 2000. The current study was conducted to characterize the watersheds associated with the impaired waterbodies. The main characteristics considered for the classification of waterbodies were designated use of the waterbody, land use distribution, density of stream network, average distance of a land of a particular use to the closest stream, household population, density of on-site sewage facilities (OSSF), bacterial loading due to the presence of different types of farm animals and wildlife, and average climatic conditions. The availability of observed in-stream fecal coliform bacteria concentration data was evaluated to obtain subgroups of data-rich and data-poor watersheds within a group. The climatic data and observed in-stream fecal coliform bacteria concentrations were analyzed to find out seasonal variability of the water quality. The watershed characteristics were analyzed using the multivariate statistical analysis techniques such as factor analysis/principal component analysis, cluster analysis, and discriminant analysis. Six groups of watersheds were formed as result of the statistical analysis. The main factors that differentiate the clusters were found to be bacterial contribution from farm animals and wildlife, density of OSSF, density of households connected to public sewers, and the land use distribution. Two watersheds were selected each from two groups of watersheds. Hydrological Simulation Program-FORTRAN (HSPF) model was calibrated for one watershed within each group and tested for the other watershed in the same group to study the similarity in the parameter sets due to the similarity in watershed characteristics. The study showed that the watersheds within a given cluster formed during the multivariate statistical analysis showed similar watershed characteristics and yielded similar model results for similar model input parameters. The effect of parameter uncertainty on the in-stream bacterial concentration predictions by HSPF was evaluated for the watershed of Salado Creek, in Bexar County. The parameters that control the HSPF model hydrology contributed the most variance in the in-stream fecal coliform bacterial concentrations corresponding to a simulation period between 1 January 1995 and 31 December 2000.

Animals that live in a social group are often organized in a hierarchy with rank determining access to resources. Maintaining a dominant position requires a high rate of energetically expensive aggressive displays and physical exertion. Lab based winnerloser studies, often conducted with individuals from non-social species, have shown that subordinates have higher stress hormone levels than dominant individuals (subordinatestress hypothesis). However, in carnivorous animals that are cooperative breeders, displays of aggression are associated with elevated stress hormone levels (dominancestress hypothesis). The effect of reproductive state on dominance and stress is not addressed within either of these hypotheses. The purpose of this study was to examine stress level in relation to dominance rank and reproductive state in a non-cooperative breeder and herbivore, the domestic horse. As rank and reproductive state can affect behavior, I examined activity budgets, behavioral patterns, and social interactions, as well as the proximity and identity of neighbors in the social group. At two facilities in Kentucky, I recorded the social interactions and measured fecal glucocorticoids in pastured, female horses that were either lactating or non-lactating. While fecal glucocorticoid level did not differ between reproductive state and rank, activity behavior demonstrated significant differences between reproductive states. Higher energetic requirements of lactation were reflected in significantly longer bouts of eating and significantly less time spent alert and socializing. The non-cooperative social nature of horses does not limit their reproduction or resource acquisition based upon rank, and therefore does not fit with the dominance-stress hypothesis or subordinate-stress hypothesis and instead offers the alternative of an independent-stress hypothesi

Reduced availability of high energy-content prey (nutritional stress) is a predominant hypothesis to explain the decline of Steller sea lion (Eumetopias jubatus) populations in western Alaska from the late 1970'€™s to the late 1990'™s. Animals may physiologically respond to consuming insufficient prey by increasing stress levels and decreasing metabolic rates. It may thus be possible to identify nutritional stress by measuring concentrations of glucocorticoids (stress) and thyroid hormones (metabolism) shed in feces. However, techniques to measure thyroid hormone concentrations from Steller sea lion feces have not been developed. We quantified variation of triiodothyronine (T3) and thyroxine (T4) concentrations in Steller sea lion feces following injections of thyrotropin (TSH) into four captive animals. Glucocorticoids (GC) were also assayed to examine any relationship to stimulated thyroid hormone secretion. We found that fecal T3 peaked 48 h post-injection and increased 25-57% in three sea lions (all animals, p=0.03). Pre-injection GC increases indicated stress from isolation for baseline fecal collections, but post-injection increases could not be confirmed as a response to TSH injections or as a product of the study design. The results demonstrated that pre- and post-injection changes in fecal GC and T3 concentrations were consistent with predictions of an increased stress response and metabolic rate within the animals. We then measured T3 and GC concentrations in 834 Steller sea lion fecal samples collected in 2005 and 2006 from 15 sites (haulouts and rookeries) between British Columbia and the Central Aleutian Islands. Overall, GC concentrations did not differ between haulout populations (western 2006 pre-pupping and eastern 2005 post-pupping). Fecal hard-part analyses revealed a lower energy-content diet in the western population, suggesting that diet quality is a relevant hypothesis to explain slightly higher GC concentrations found in the western population, specifically the Aleutian Islands region. However, nutritional stress could not be substantiated through T3 concentrations. The rookeries possessed the highest energy-content diets, but also exhibited a nutritional stress response with a significantly higher GC and lower T3 concentration than either haulout population (possibly related to lactation or decreased foraging opportunities), but T3 comparisons performed at scales of site and region were inconclusive.

ABSTRACT: Commercial swab transport systems are used for collection and transporting of fecal and other microbiological samples. This system must maintain viability and contribute to survival of microorganisms during transport to the laboratory. Four swab transport systems have been compared, eSwab, Σ- Transwab and fecalSwab, all three with flocked swabs, and Copan Venturi Transystem with rayon swabs. The study followed the recommendations from the Clinical Laboratory Standard Institute; document M40-A for recovery of Samonella, Shigella, Yersinia and Neisseria gonorrhoeae after storage for 0, 6, 24, 48 and 72 h at room- (22-25°C) and refrigerated (2-8ºC) temperature. A fecal sample has also been inoculated with Salmonella or Shigella to simulate a fecal sample positive for Salmonella or Shigella. Recovery of all strains was higher with eSwab, Σ- Transwab and fecalswab than with Copan Venturi Transystem stored at both temperatures. A heavy growth was observed with all transport systems after storage for 24, 48 and 72 h at room temperature, except for Neisseria gonorrhoeae, and Shigella. The number of CFU for all strains was constant up to 72 h at refrigerated temperature with Copan Venturi Transystem. In the experiment with fecal sample recovery of Salmonella and Shigella was best with fecalSwab at both storage temperatures. ESwab, Σ- Transwab and fecalSwab are equivalent and can be used as an alternative to Copan Venturi Transystem with better survival of enteric pathogens and Neisseria gonorrhoeae. Fecal samples should be refrigerated in order to avoid heavy overgrowth of fecal flora.

Under the Clean Water Act (CWA) program the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) listed 110 stream segments with pathogenic bacteria impairment in 2000. The current study was conducted to characterize the watersheds associated with the impaired waterbodies. The main characteristics considered for the classification of waterbodies were designated use of the waterbody, land use distribution, density of stream network, average distance of a land of a particular use to the closest stream, household population, density of on-site sewage facilities (OSSF), bacterial loading due to the presence of different types of farm animals and wildlife, and average climatic conditions. The availability of observed in-stream fecal coliform bacteria concentration data was evaluated to obtain subgroups of data-rich and data-poor watersheds within a group. The climatic data and observed in-stream fecal coliform bacteria concentrations were analyzed to find out seasonal variability of the water quality. The watershed characteristics were analyzed using the multivariate statistical analysis techniques such as factor analysis/principal component analysis, cluster analysis, and discriminant analysis. Six groups of watersheds were formed as result of the statistical analysis. The main factors that differentiate the clusters were found to be bacterial contribution from farm animals and wildlife, density of OSSF, density of households connected to public sewers, and the land use distribution. Two watersheds were selected each from two groups of watersheds. Hydrological Simulation Program-FORTRAN (HSPF) model was calibrated for one watershed within each group and tested for the other watershed in the same group to study the similarity in the parameter sets due to the similarity in watershed characteristics. The study showed that the watersheds within a given cluster formed during the multivariate statistical analysis showed similar watershed characteristics and yielded similar model results for similar model input parameters. The effect of parameter uncertainty on the in-stream bacterial concentration predictions by HSPF was evaluated for the watershed of Salado Creek, in Bexar County. The parameters that control the HSPF model hydrology contributed the most variance in the in-stream fecal coliform bacterial concentrations corresponding to a simulation period between 1 January 1995 and 31 December 2000.