Flight in insects can be long-range migratory flights, intermediate-range dispersal flights, or short-range host-seeking flights. Previous studies have shown that flight mills are valuable tools for the experimental study of insect flight behavior, allowing researchers to examine how factors such as age, host plants, or population source can influence an insects' propensity to disperse. Flight mills allow researchers to measure components of flight such as speed and distance flown. Lack of detailed information about how to build such a device can make their construction appear to be prohibitively complex. We present a simple and relatively inexpensive flight mill for the study of tethered flight in insects. Experimental insects can be tethered with non-toxic adhesives and revolve around an axis by means of a very low friction magnetic bearing. The mill is designed for the study of flight in controlled conditions as it can be used inside an incubator or environmental chamber. The strongest points are the very simple electronic circuitry, the design that allows sixteen insects to fly simultaneously allowing the collection and analysis of a large number of samples in a short time and the potential to use the device in a very limited workspace. This design is extremely flexible, and we have adjusted the mill to accommodate different species of insects of various sizes.

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How to manage acute pain in people taking an opioid antagonist

The objective of this study was to determine our institutional experience with cytoreductive nephrectomy alone or in conjunction with nephrectomy complete metastasectomy. Between July 1989 and September 2003, we queried our department's renal tumor database for patients undergoing cytoreductive nephrectomy alone or in conjunction with complete metastasectomy. Clinical and pathological factors analyzed included primary tumor size, stage and histological subtype, age, gender, Karnofsky Performance Status (KPS) prior to nephrectomy, number and location of metastatic sites, and the presence or absence of any systemic therapy. Preoperative laboratory values analyzed included hemoglobin (HGB), calcium (CA), albumin (ALB), lactose dehydrogenase (LDH), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), and corrected calcium. Corrected calcium was defined as follows: corrected calcium = total calcium - 0.707*(albumin - 3.4). During this time frame, 1628 patients underwent nephrectomy (partial or radical) for renal masses, 91 (5.6%) of whom had metastatic disease. In this group, 71% of patients were male, 88% of patients had a KPS of 80% or greater, and 92% had conventional clear cell histology. Sixty-four percent of patients had a single site of metastatic disease, with lung the most common, followed by bone, adrenal, brain, and liver. Sixty-one patients (67%) had nephrectomy with removal of all metastatic sites (nephrectomy/complete metastasectomy) and 30 (33%) had cytoreductive nephrectomy alone. Median survival for patients undergoing nephrectomy/complete metastasectomy was 30 months. Median survival for patients undergoing cytoreductive nephrectomy alone was 12 months. Perioperative complications occurred in 13% of patients and four patients died within 30 days of their operation. For patients with metastatic renal cell carcinoma, surgical resection of the primary tumor alone (cytoreductive nephrectomy) or in conjunction with metastasectomy can be accomplished with acceptable perioperative morbidity and mortality. This surgical experience provides a contemporary foundation as new targeted therapeutic agents are integrated into the neoadjuvant or adjuvant treatment of locally advanced and metastatic renal cancer.

Acute postoperative pain can be more effectively managed if it is prioritised and anticipated by a well-informed care team who are educated with regard to appropriate analgesic options and understand what the long-term benefits of pain relief are. The principles of RADAR provide structure to help with training and implementation of good practice, to achieve effective postoperative pain management.