Incidental capture in fisheries threatens many marine vertebrates, however, conservation cannot be effective without identifying major sources of mortality. For the critically endangered leatherback turtle (Dermochelys coriacea), a reliance on fisheries observer data and an absence of behavioural data sets corresponding to a large and diverse sample of animals have focused conservation efforts on a very limited part of the species marine habitat. Using the largest satellite telemetry data set for Atlantic leatherbacks, morphometrics from foraging animals and entanglement records, we show annual return migrations to key feeding areas by males, females and juveniles, and demonstrate the importance of northern latitudes to leatherbacks. We show that leatherbacks are vulnerable to entanglement in northern coastal and shelf waters, where turtle-fishery interactions represent a greater threat to this species than previously recognized. Unless conservation efforts expand to coastal and shelf areas, present efforts alone will not be sufficient to save the species.

Leatherback sea turtles, Dermochelys coriacea, undertake broad oceanic movements. While satellite telemetry has been used to investigate the post-nesting behaviour of female turtles tagged on tropical nesting beaches, long-term behavioural patterns of turtles of different sexes and sizes have not been described. Here we investigate behaviour for 25 subadult and adult male and female turtles satellite-tagged in temperate waters off Nova Scotia, Canada. Although sex and reproductive condition contributed to variation in migratory patterns, the migratory cycle of all turtles included movement between temperate and tropical waters. Marked changes in rates of travel, and diving and surfacing behaviour, accompanied southward movement away from northern foraging areas. As turtles approached higher latitudes the following spring and summer, they assumed behaviours consistent with regular foraging activity and eventually settled in coastal areas off Canada and the northeastern USA. Behavioural patterns corresponding to various phases of the migratory cycle were consistent across multiple animals and were repeated within individuals that completed return movements to northern waters. We consider the potential biological significance of these patterns, including how turtle behaviour relates to predator avoidance, thermoregulation and prey distribution.

In general, mammal species show geographic or social dispersal by one or both sexes. Long-term behavioural observations and genetic evidence have confirmed that fish-eating resident killer whales, Orcinus orca, are a rare exception. Female and male offspring travel with their mothers for their whole lives: this is natal group philopatry. It is suspected that pilot whales, Globicephala spp., also follow this social pattern, but longitudinal data on the social structure of live long-finned pilot whales, Globicephala melas, are rare. We observed G. melas through July and August of 1998–2000 off northern Nova Scotia, Canada. Estimated group sizes ranged from 2 to 135 (mean = 20, SD = 17, median = 15, n = 249). We distinguished 322 individuals on the basis of distinctive marks on the dorsal fin, with estimated mark rates of 0.336 (proportion) (SE = 0.041) and 0.352 (mean of estimates) (SE = 0.036). Permutation testing rejected the null hypothesis of random association between individuals (p < 0.0005). The best fit model of the standardized lagged association rate suggests short-term associations of individuals over hours to days and long-term associations with a subset of those individuals over years. When scaled according to mark rate, sets of long-term associates average approximately 11–12 individuals, a much lower estimate than that presented previously from drive-fishery data from the Faroe Islands. Genetic sampling of behaviourally studied individuals is recommended.

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Diel diving patterns have been widely documented among plankton-feeding marine vertebrates. In many cases, these patterns have been interpreted as a response to the diel vertical migrations of prey. The leatherback turtle, Dermochelys coriacea (Vandelli, 1761), is a large marine predator that exploits gelatinous plankton in disparate foraging areas. Individuals of this species spend extended periods at northern latitudes before moving southward through pelagic waters. To identify and compare potential diel patterns of diving behaviour in temperate areas, where foraging has been observed, versus during southward migration, 15 subadult and adult leatherbacks were equipped with satellite-linked time-depth recorders off Nova Scotia, Canada. We observed variation in nocturnal versus diurnal behaviour, both at northern latitudes and during migration; however, diel differences in both diving and surface activity were much less pronounced while leatherbacks were in the north. We interpret the difference in leatherback diel diving regimen to reflect a response to changing resource conditions at these times, with leatherbacks foraging throughout the day and night at high latitudes, then changing to a bimodal pattern of diving during southward migration, with generally longer, deeper diving occurring during the night versus during the day. By quantifying diel changes in leatherback behaviour, we provide the first surface time correction factors based on multiple individuals for use in estimating abundance from aerial surveys.Résumé : Les patrons journaliers de plongée chez les vertébrés marins planctonophages ont été bien étudiés. Souvent, les patrons sont interprétés comme des réactions aux migrations verticales journalières des proies. La tortue luth, Dermochelys coriacea (Vandelli, 1761), est un prédateur marin de grande taille qui exploite le plancton gélatineux dans des aires d'alimentation disparates. Les individus de cette espèce passent de longues périodes dans les latitudes nordiques avant de se dé-placer vers le sud dans les eaux pélagiques. Dans le but d'identifier et de comparer les patrons journaliers potentiels du comportement de plongée dans les zones tempérées où on observe de l'alimentation (par rapport aux patrons observés durant la migration vers le sud), nous avons muni 15 tortues subadultes et adultes d'enregistreurs de temps et de profondeur reliés à des satellites au large de la Nouvelle-É cosse, Canada. Nous avons observé une variation entre les comportements nocturne et diurne, tant dans les latitudes nordiques que durant la migration; les variations journalières d'activité en plongée et en surface sont, cependant, beaucoup moindres lorsque les tortues sont dans le nord. Nous interprétons les différen-ces dans le régime journalier de plongée des tortues luth comme des réactions aux conditions changeantes des ressources à ce moment; aux latitudes élevées, les tortues s'alimentent tout au long de la journée et de la nuit; durant la migration vers le sud, elles adoptent un patron bimodal de plongée, av...

To improve the quality of gastric cancer management, our findings suggest the need for clear, consistent guidelines for adequate gross margin resection length. Furthermore, there is a critical need for education aimed at closing the knowledge gap among practicing pathologists and surgeons regarding current recommended guidelines for LN assessment and adequate margin length.

Purpose: To analyze weekend physiotherapy services in acute-care community hospitals across Canada. Method: Questionnaires were mailed to acutecare community hospitals (institutions with >100 inpatient beds, excluding psychiatric, mental health, paediatric, rehabilitation, tertiary, and long-term care facilities) across Canada from January to April 2010. The questionnaire collected information on patient referral criteria, staffing, workload, and compensation for weekend physiotherapy services and on the availability of other rehabilitation health professionals. Results: Of 146 community hospitals deemed eligible, 104 (71%) responded. Weekend physiotherapy was offered at 69% of hospitals across Canada, but this rate varied: b75% in all regions except Quebec (30%). Hospitals with a high proportion of acute-care beds were more likely to offer weekend physiotherapy services (logistic regression, p ¼ 0.021). Services differed among Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays in terms of the numbers of both physiotherapists and physiotherapy assistants working (Kruskal-Wallis, p < 0.02 for each). Physiotherapists were predominantly compensated via time off in lieu. Of hospitals not offering weekend physiotherapy, 53% reported that it would benefit patients; most perceived staffing and financial barriers. Social-work services were offered on the weekend at 24% of hospitals and occupational therapy at 16%. Conclusions: Substantial regional variation exists in access to weekend physiotherapy services in acute-care community hospitals. To address the importance of this variation, research on the efficacy and cost-effectiveness of such services is required.Key Words: rehabilitation; hospitals, community; delivery of health care; health services research. RÉ SUMÉObjectif : Analyser les services de physiothé rapie offerts durant les fins de semaine dans les hô pitaux communautaires de soins de courte duré e d'un bout à l'autre du Canada. Mé thode : De janvier à avril 2010, des questionnaires ont é té posté s aux hô pitaux communautaires de soins de courte duré e (é tablissements comptant plus de 100 lits pour hospitalisation, excluant les lits en psychiatrie, en santé mentale, en pé diatrie, en ré adaptation, les soins tertiaires et les é tablissements de soins prolongé s) partout au Canada. Le questionnaire visait à recueillir de l'information sur les critè res justifiant le renvoi en consultation, le personnel, la charge de travail et la ré muné ration pour des services de physiothé rapie offerts les fins de semaine, et sur la disponibilité d'autres professionnels de la santé oeuvrant en ré adaptation. Ré sultats : Des 146 hô pitaux communautaires admissibles, 104 (71 %) ont ré pondu. Des services de physiothé rapie é taient offerts les fins de semaine dans 69 % des hô pitaux au Canada, mais cette proportion varie : b75 % dans toutes les ré gions, sauf au Qué bec (30 %). Il é tait plus probable que des services de physiothé rapie soient offerts les fins de semaine dans les hô pitaux qui disposent d'une forte proportion de li...

Kuwait mandated seat-belt use by drivers in 1976 and by front seat passengers in 1994. The study objectives were to identify and estimate current factors associated with seat-belt use and levels of potentially unsafe driving behaviours in Kuwait. In 2010, 741 adults were surveyed regarding driving habits and history. Only 41.6% of drivers reported always using a seat belt. Front seat passenger belt use was more common (30.5%) than rear seat belt use (6.5%). Distracted driving behaviours were common, including mobile phone use ('always' or 'almost always': 51.1%) and texting/SMS (32.4%). Logistic regression indicated that drivers who were young (18-19 years), male, Kuwaiti nationals or non-Kuwaiti Arabs, drove over the speed limit, had traffic violation tickets or >1 car crashes in the last year, were less likely to use seat belts. Targeted initiatives to increase public awareness and to enforce car-safety legislation, including use of seat belts, are necessary to decrease the health burden of car crashes in Kuwait.