Purpose: Contact lens (CL) materials, modalities of wear and replacement, and care systems have changed considerably since the early studies of CL compliance were first conducted. Silicone hydrogel (SiHy) and daily disposable (DD) lenses are now the most popular lenses worn worldwide and the care systems that are currently available for them have been designed to be straightforward to use. The purpose of this research was to investigate patient knowledge of and compliance with the use of these contemporary CLs and care products, to determine whether non-compliant CL wearers experience ocular complications relating to lens wear more frequently and are more likely to discontinue lens wear, and to try to determine the factors that may constrain or enable patients to follow recommendations for appropriate lens wear and care. Methods: There are many ways in which compliance can be assessed in health care. Several different methodologies were employed during this research: A questionnaire was administered to just over 100 current lens wearers to determine whether photographic aids would help them to recognize which products they were using. More than 500 contact lens (CL) wearers were recruited by their eye care practitioners (ECPs) and mailed a questionnaire designed to evaluate their compliance with contact lens wear and care and to determine whether they had experienced any contact lens related complications which may have occurred as a result of non-compliance. Close to 5000 Current and lapsed CL wearers in Canada were recruited using Facebook to take part in an on line survey investigating CL wearing experiences during 2008 – 2010 and to establish the percentage of participants who temporarily and permanently discontinued CL wear during the period surveyed, the reasons for discontinuation and whether compliance with lens wear and care may have played a role. ECPs and patients independently completed more than 2000 linked questionnaires evaluating their contact lens wear and care. In addition the frequency with which patients attended their ECP’s office for eye examinations was assessed to determine whether there was a relationship between this and their patients’ compliance. More than 800 daily disposable contact lens (DDCL) wearers in four countries completed an online questionnaire designed to investigate how frequently they reused their lenses, the reasons for reuse and how the lenses were stored between uses. Quantitative (online questionnaire) and qualitative (focus groups) research methods were used to explore in detail the lens wear and care habits of adapted contact lens wearers in an attempt to seek a better understanding of what enables and constrains patient compliance with appropriate lens wear and lens care. Results: The rates of non-compliance with the wear of contemporary CLs were found to be similar to those previously reported. Non-compliance with recommendations for CL replacement was shown to be associated with a higher rate of CL related problems. CL wearers continue to “drop-out” for reasons of discomfort and dryness with their lenses but the drop out rates were not found to be different between compliant and non-compliant CL wearers. Patients who were non-compliant with lens replacement were found to attend their ECP’s offices less frequently. Wearers of DDCLs were the most compliant with lens replacement; however, some did report reusing these lenses and sleeping overnight in them. Focus group participants were able to provide a greater insight into why non-compliant behaviour occurs in CL wearers with the most frequently occurring themes identified as the “consequences” that may occur if patients are non-compliant with one or more aspects of their contact lens wear and the importance of receiving “instructions” regarding the most appropriate way to wear and care for their lenses. Most of the themes that emerged from this qualitative research study were both constraints to, and enablers of, compliance. Conclusions: Compliance with contemporary CLs and care products remains poor. Non-compliant behaviour can result in serious complications and patients may not always be aware of this. Careful counseling and education on the risks associated with CL wear is required to provide patients with a better lens wearing experience and continued successful contact lens wear. ECPs and the contact lens industry can hopefully apply this greater understanding of why patients fail to wear and care for their lenses as they should and to help them develop strategies and tools to aid compliance and success in contact lens wear.

Orientador: Lauro Tatsuo Kubota / Tese (doutorado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Instituto de Química / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-17T19:48:10Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Passos_RafaelaFernandaCarvalhal_D.pdf: 3256536 bytes, checksum: 0fc4c2467e2c741531641a57e7a10925 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2010 / Resumo: Este trabalho apresenta o esforço dispendido na construção e caracterização de transdutores eletroquímicos sobre poliéster e papel, e também demonstra o emprego destas células eletroquímicas descartáveis no desenvolvimento de um biossensor para análises rápidas de salicilato em sangue, bem como a criação de um dispositivo de separação associado à detecção eletroquímica em papel. Cada célula eletroquímica é composta por um conjunto de três eletrodos de filmes finos construídos em ouro sobre poliéster ou papel cromatográfico por meio das técnicas de sputtering e electron-beam, respectivamente. Foi realizada a caracterização voltamétrica dos sistemas eletródicos empregando sondas redox como hexacianoferrato(II) de potássio, hexacianoferrato(III) de potássio e ácido ferrocenomonocarboxílico em meio eletrolítico, a fim de verificar a eletroatividade dos mesmos. Foi possível verificar que mesmo apresentando maior área eletroativa, os eletrodos de filmes finos construídos sobre papel apresentam uma menor densidade de corrente para as sondas redox em comparação com a célula eletroquímica construída em poliéster. Isto se deve à retenção das espécies eletroativas na fibra de celulose, fato que diminui a disponibilidade da espécie na superfície eletródica. Foi desenvolvido um biossensor amperométrico para a determinação de salicilato em sangue. O biossensor se baseia no emprego da enzima Salicilato hidroxilase imobilizada sobre a célula eletroquímica plástica. As condições experimentais otimizadas consistem em utilizar uma solução eletrolítica de tampão fosfato em pH 7,6 com 0,5 mmol L de NADH e 300 mV vs. Au como potencial aplicado durante as medidas. O biossensor apresentou adequada sensibilidade (97,4 nA/mmol L de salicilato) e faixa linear de resposta para o analito (1,25 10 to 1,0 10 mol L). O desempenho do biossensor foi verificado na determinação de salicilato em amostras de sangue dopadas com o analito e os resultados foram estatisticamente equivalentes àqueles obtidos com o método espectrofotométrico de Trinder em um nível de confiança de 95%. O dispositivo de separação cromatográfica em papel associado à detecção eletroquímica foi desenvolvido empregando a célula eletroquímica plástica e a célula eletroquímica sobre papel. O desempenho dos dispositivos foi avaliado na separação e quantificação de ácido úrico e áscórbico presentes em mistura. O método desenvolvido é uma alternativa para a determinação de compostos eletroativos em que o baixo custo e a simplicidade são essenciais / Abstract: This paper presents the efforts to the construction and characterization of electrochemical transducers on polyester and paper, and also demonstrates the use of these disposable electrochemical cells in the development of a biosensor for rapid analysis of salicylate in blood as well as the creation of a separation device associated electrochemical detection on paper. Each electrochemical cell consists of a set of three electrodes made of gold thin films on polyester or chromatographic paper using sputtering and electron-beam techniques, respectively. The electrochemical characterization of the systems with redox probes as potassium hexacyanoferrate(II), potassium hexacyanoferrate(III) and ferrocene monocarboxylic acid was performed in the electrolyte solution in order to evaluate the electroactivity of them. It was verified that even with higher electroactive area, the electrodes of thin films built on paper have a lower current density for the redox probes in comparison with the electrochemical cell constructed on polyester. This is due to retention of electroactive species in the cellulose fiber, a fact that reduces the availability of those species on the transducer surface. We developed an amperometric biosensor for the determination of salicylate in blood. The biosensor is based on the use of the salicylate hydroxylase enzyme immobilized on plastic electrochemical cell. The determined optimized experimental conditions are: an electrolyte solution of phosphate buffer at pH 7.6 with 0.5 mmol L of NADH and 300 mV vs. Au as the applied potential during the measurements. The biosensor showed adequate sensitivity (97.4 nA / mmol L salicylate) and linear response range for the analyte (1.25 10 to 1.0 10 mol L). The performance of the biosensor was found in the determination of salicylate in blood samples spiked with the analyte and the results were statistically equivalent to those obtained with the Trinder¿s spectrophotometric method, with a 95% confidence level. Prototypes of microfluidic paper-based separation devices with amperometric detection were developed and evaluated. The chromatographic separation on paper associated with electrochemical detection was developed using the plastic electrochemical cell and the gold electrochemical cell on paper. The performance of both devices was evaluated for separation and quantification of uric acid and ascorbic acid presented in the mixtures. The method is an alternative for the determination of electroactive compounds when low cost and simplicity are essential / Doutorado / Quimica Analitica / Doutor em Ciências

This thesis focuses on deaf people’s educational attainment, position on the labour market and sources of revenue. These issues are interrelated, for instance a higher level of educational attainment seems to be associated with a lower unemployment rate and higher levels of income. The national context is Sweden and the Swedish welfare state in 2005. All studies in the thesis compare a deaf population, consisting of 2,144 persons born between 1941 and 1980 who have attended a school for the deaf in Sweden, with a general reference population, consisting of 100,000 randomly chosen persons from the total Swedish population born between 1941 and 1980. Data for all studies consisted of registered information about the persons in the year 2005. The results show that there are differences between the deaf and the reference population regarding level of educational attainment, position on the labour market and sources of revenue and disposable income, with the deaf population having a poorer position than the reference population in all areas. There are also differences between the workplaces of the deaf and the people in the reference population, and it is twice as common for people in the deaf population than for people in the reference population to have a higher level of educational attainment than is required for their occupation. These differences between the deaf and the reference population cannot be associated with differences in the independent factors, as for instance sex, age and immigration background, for which the results have been adjusted. This thesis shows that being part of the deaf population appears to be of importance. Factors in conjunction with deafness that can increase our understanding of the differences between the deaf and the reference populations in an educational context, labour market context and economic context are discussed in the thesis.

Consumer function is a standard instrument of quantitative economic analysis to examine the relationship between consumer expenditure and income or other influencing factors such as liquid assets, interest rates or various demographic and social factors. In this thesis are presented the most frequently used methods in econometric analysis of consumption function. Attention is paid to the hypothesis of absolute income, relative income, life cycle, permanent income, rational expectations and consumption function based on the error correction model. Furthermore, the suitability of individual models for the current economic situation in the Czech Republic is assessed. Subsequently an empirical model of consumption function for the Czech Republic is designed and tested. Furthermore, the estimates of each consumption function model for the period before and after economic crisis of 2008-2009 are performed and compared. Finally, a short-term prediction of the consumption of Czech households is made.

This thesis analyzes determinants of housing construction in regions in the Czech Republic. The main research question is the impact of standard of living on housing construction. The living standard is expressed in terms of net disposable income per capita and housing construction represents the number of housing starts. Other determinants included to the model estimation are rate of unemployment, housing price and number of mortgage. Analysis works with the panel data from period 2005- 2015 and all variables are used in the logarithmic form with one year lag. The model is estimated by random effects model. The assumption about positive impact of living standard on housing construction is not confirmed, because of the statistical insignificance of variable net disposable income. In case of other variables expected effects are confirm. The increases in rate of unemployment and housing prices have the negative impact on housing construction. And opposite the number of mortgage has positive impact on housing construction.

Det här examensarbetet består i ett produktutvecklingsprojekt som utfördes i samarbete med Liquid Biopsy AB. Syftet med arbetet var att utveckla ett engångskassettsbaserat produktsystem baserat på företagets patentsökta metod för isolering av cancer celler i suspension, inklusive cirkulerande tumörceller. Liquid Biopsy AB är ett svenskt utvecklingsbolag som baserat på ny och unik teknik, är oberoende av proteinmarkörer, använder cirkulerande tumörceller och andra suspenderade tumörceller för att möjliggöra bättre och billigare cancerdiagnostik. Examensarbetet har fokuserat på utvecklingen av engångskassetten, men parallellt arbete har även utförts med tillhörande basenhet. Ulrich och Eppingers produktutvecklingsprocess har utgjort grunden för den process som följts i arbetet, dock med ökat fokus på testning och utvärdering. För att få en bredare kunskapsbas inleddes arbetet med en marknads- och omvärldsanalys samt informationsinsamling om utmaningar och medicintekniska krav. För att tydligt definiera produktvisionen utfördes även undersökningar med potentiella användarna, om företagets patentsökta metod och befintliga prototyper samt framtida förbättringspotential. Det kassettkoncept som utvecklats bygger på användning av provrör av existerande standard, få tillverkningsprocesser och god användarvänlighet, något som samtliga varit av hög prioritet under arbetet. För att säkerställa att produktens flödessystem fungerar som tänkt utfördes tester under prototypframtagningen. Testningen visade att konceptet fungerar i stort sett som tänkt med avseende på flöden, dock förekom vissa toleransproblem som följd av den valda prototypframtagningsprocessen, och vissa andra viktiga egenskaper återstår att testa. Resultatet av utvecklingsprocessen är en första fysisk prototyp av engångskassetten och en funktionell partiell prototyp av basenheten, motsvarande gränssnittet mot engångkassetten, för att möjliggöra testning av engångskassetten. Slutsatsen av arbetet är att det framtagna produktsystemet har tydliga fördelar gentemot företagets befintliga prototyper: inklusive att en engångskassett framtagits, att denna kan utgöra underlag för en produkt, och att denna bland annat har väsentligt kortare processväg vilken i sin tur borde kunna leda till förkortad processtid. Utförd finansiell analys visar även att framtaget produktsystem kan säljas till konkurrenskraftiga priser och med en betydligt lägre instegskostnad än dagens konkurrerande produkter. / This thesis consists of a product development project conducted in collaboration with Liquid Biopsy AB. The purpose of this work was to develop a disposable cartridge-based product system based on the company’s patent-pending method for isolation of circulating tumor cells and other suspended tumor cells. Liquid Biopsy AB is a Swedish medical technology research company with a unique new rheological technology, that is independent of protein markers, using suspended cancer cells, including circulating tumor cells, allows better and cheaper cancer diagnostics than today. The thesis work has focused on the development of the disposable cassette, but parallel work has also been performed with the associated base unit. Ulrich and Eppingers product development process has made up the basis for the process being followed in the thesis work, with increased focus on testing and evaluation. The work began with a market analysis and information gathering on challenges and medical requirements. Several activities were also carried out in order to clearly define the product vision, including user-surveys, analysis of the company's existing prototypes, as well as potential for future improvements. The developed cartridge concept is based on the use of standard test tubes, few manufacturing processes and user-friendliness which all have been high priorities in this work. The cartridge concept consists essentially of various plastic materials and is adapted for manufacturing by injection molding. To ensure that the product’s flow system was operating as intended, tests were conducted during the prototype phase. Testing showed that the concept design flows largely as intended, yet with some tolerance problems as a result of the selected rapid prototyping process, while other essential properties remain to be tested. The result of the development process is a first physical prototype of the disposable cartridge and a partial functional prototype of the base unit to allow testing with the disposable cartridge. The conclusion of this thesis work is that the developed product system has strong advantages over the company’s existing prototypes, including a first version of a disposable cassette that has potential to form the basis of a mass-producible product, significantly shorter processing route which in turn should allow a reduction of the processing time. Financial analysis also indicates that the designed product systems can be sold at competitive prices and with a significantly lower entry cost than today's rivaling products.

Denna studie undersöker olika faktorer som påverkar livestreaming ur mottagare-, sändare- samt teoretiskt perspektiv. För att därigenom skapa en ökad kunskap gällande dess användande och engagemang. Under processen har grundad teori använts som forskningsperspektiv och både kvalitativa intervjuer och fokusgrupper har genomförts. Resultatet visar att där är viktiga steg för att skapa engagemang. Medvetenhet, där mottagaren görs medveten om företaget via spridning. Intresse, där ett intresse skapas med hjälp av innehållet men där vaksamhet bör tas gällande Fear of Missing out respektive Video-On-Demand och dess inverkan på mottagaren. Interaktion och engagemang, där en dialog skapas med mottagaren och en gemenskap byggs upp där publiken är deltagande. Dessa steg leder till lojalitet och förespråkare som är villiga att sprida företaget och dess innehåll vidare. Slutsatsen konstaterar att dessa steg borde ses som en cirkel istället för en trappa. Vilket betyder att alla är lika viktiga delar i att skapa ett engagemang. De bygger även vidare på varandra och det sista steget är inte slutresultatet utan bör ses som en pågående process som leder oss tillbaka till första steget. / This study seeks to explore the motives behind livestreaming from a sender-, receiver- and theoretical perspective. With the aim to create a better understanding for receiver engagement and sender usage. During the process, grounded theory was used as research method and both qualitative interviews and focus groups were implied. The results show that there are important steps to create engagement. Aware, where you make the receiver know about you through coverage. Interest, where you create an interest with the content your making but also watch out for the impact Fear of Missing out and Video-On-Demand might have on the receiver. Interaction and engagement, where you create a dialogue with the receiver and build a community where the audience is participating. These steps lead to loyalty and advocates who are willing to spread you and your content further. In conclusion, these steps are to be approached as a circle rather than a ladder. Meaning that they are all important components of creating engagement. They build on each other and the last step is not the end result but an ongoing progress leading us back to step one.

For the past years, there has been an absence of economic crisis on a global level. The unexpected COVID-19 pandemic caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus led to a significant disruption in economies across the globe, followed by a decrease in economic activity. The decline in economic activity caused market shocks which eventually increased unemployment. This paper aims to analyse unemployment between the years 2018 to 2021 to measure pre- and post-pandemic unemployment rate among Swedish municipalities. The research question is, was the COVID-19 affected significantly related to an increase in unemployment rates across the 290 municipalities in Sweden? Data collection is from several agencies, including the Swedish Public Employment Service (Arbetsförmedlingen), The Public Health Agency of Sweden (Folkhälsomyndigheten), and Statistic Sweden (SCB). The regression model used to analyse the variables are series of fixed effects regression. The aim of this paper is to contribute to the understanding of the pandemic and economic downturn. By examining variables such as COVID-19 affected, immigrants, education, and disposable income in municipalities, this paper was able to conclude that COVID-19 affected are significantly related to unemployment increase in all 290 municipalities.

This study examines whether macroeconomic variables, such as household disposableincome, financial assets and total debt affect household consumption by applying Panel dataon The fixed effects model. The data included 13 European OECD countries that are membersof EMU between the years 2009-2019. The test showed that disposable income is the onlyvariable with statistically significant effect on household consumption. The life cyclehypothesis as well as The permanent income hypothesis, states that individuals strive forsmooth consumption by distributing their resources relatively evenly. That way they are ableto maintain a certain standard of living. According to The Ricardian equivalence theorem,neither changes in saving nor indebtedness increase private consumption, if the initial wealthremains unchanged. These theories are included in the theoretical reference which, togetherwith previous studies, constitutes the starting point for this paper.

In recent months, there have been debates and discussions in Sweden regarding rents for rented apartments. Landlords want sharp rent increases due to high inflation and increased operating costs, while tenants and the tenant association are strongly against such a proposal. They mean that households with limited income can be hardly impacted by a sharp increase in their accommodation expenses. This thesis will analyze what external factors affect the rental compensation for rented apartments in Sweden for the time period 2018-2021. The result is based on a panel data analysis with collected data from 279 of Sweden’s 290 municipalities and is reported through a regression model. The outcome shows that disposable income, population and the number of completed rental apartments per 10 000 citizens, have a positive impact on the rent for rental housing. The result, however, does not show what effect the floating mortgage interest rate has, but is shown to have a positive impact as well based on previous studies on the subject. All the variables included in the model thus have an explanatory effect on the rent, but additional variables - for example, the location, condition and standard - can be included to get an even better result. / Under de senaste månaderna har det varit debatter och diskussioner i Sverige angående hyran för hyresrätter. Hyresvärdar vill ha kraftiga hyreshöjningar på grund av den höga inflationen och ökade driftskostnader, medan hyresgästerna och hyresgästföreningen är starkt emot ett sådant förslag. De menar att hushåll med begränsad inkomst kan bli hårt drabbade av en markant höjning i deras boendeutgifter. Denna uppsats kommer att analysera vilka externa faktorer som påverkar hyressättningen i Sverige under perioden 2018-2021. Resultatet utgår från en paneldataanalys med insamlad data från 279 av Sveriges 290 kommuner, och redovisas genom en regressionsmodell. Utfallet visar att disponibel inkomst, befolkningsmängd samt antalet färdigställda hyreslägenheter per 10 000 invånare har en positiv inverkan på hyran för hyresbostäder. Resultatet visar däremot inte vilken effekt den rörliga bolåneräntan har, men påvisas ha en positiv inverkan utifrån tidigare studier i ämnet. Samtliga variabler inkluderade i modellen har således en förklarande effekt på hyressättningen men ytterligare variabler - exempelvis läget, skick och standard - kan inkluderas för att få ett ännu bättre resultat.