Bradford Scholars -how to deposit your paper Overview Copyright check• Check if your publisher allows submission to a repository.• Use the Sherpa RoMEO database if you are not sure about your publisher's position or email openaccess@bradford.ac.uk.

Psychosocial difficulties have been reported in head and neck cancer (HNC) patients, yet only few studies have assessed the impact of altered appearance following HNC treatment using theoretically selected measures of appearance-related distress. This study investigated appearance-related adjustment following HNC, and demographic and socio-cognitive predictors of adjustment. HNC patients (n=49) completed baseline questionnaires and a nine-month postal follow-up (n=20). Participants showed considerable variation in appearance-related adjustment, with females reporting higher levels of appearance-related distress (derriford appearance scale [DAS-24]) than females in the general population and male HNC survivors. Depression scores on the hospital anxiety and depression scale were higher than UK norms whilst anxiety was similar to UK norms. There were no significant differences between baseline and follow-up data. Fear of negative evaluation (a central feature of social anxiety) was a significant predictor of appearance-related adjustment at baseline, whilst dispositional optimism was a significant predictor of appearance-related adjustment at baseline and follow-up. Qualitative responses showed themes of appearance and disability, and coping strategies. Findings suggest that appearance-related adjustment post-HNC varies considerably and psychosocial services working with HNC patients should consider this broad pattern of response. Future research to examine the role of socio-cognitive predictors of appearance-related adjustment could progress development of effective psychological interventions.

Most interventions focussed on the delivery of asthma education to children, with the purpose of improving knowledge about asthma and disease management. There is limited evidence to suggest that interventions currently available are effective for significantly improving HRQOL amongst asthmatic children, adolescents, and their families. Most interventions lacked a theoretical basis and did not focus on family functioning variables. Multi-component interventions that incorporate asthma education along with strategies to assist families with implementing behaviour change towards improved asthma management are required. Future interventions should also attempt to address the wider context of family functioning likely to contribute to the family's ability to engage in successful asthma management in order to improve HRQOL.

Although parents of children with asthma show willingness to access web-based parenting support, further work is necessary to develop engaging websites and determine barriers to uptake, and adherence to online parenting interventions with this population.

Electron capture mass spectrometry of phenylsulfonyl-1,4-benzoquinone and some of its di-and trimethyl homologues and of 2-phenylsulfonyl-1,4-naphthoquinone, using CO 2 -buffered thermal electrons demonstrates the existence in the plasma of two competing processes: loss of C 6 H 4 , suggested to be benzyne, from the semiquinone anion radical, and loss of C 6 H 5 , as a phenyl radical, from the corresponding hydroquinone formed by concomitant reduction of the quinone in the source. Fragmentation to C 6 H 4 predominates when the 3-position (vicinal to phenylsulfonyl) of the quinone is unsubstituted. Similar fragmentations are observed for the corresponding phenylsulfonylhydroquinones, which are oxidized in situ to the quinones. Fragmentation mechanisms are suggested.

Negative ion electron capture mass spectrometry, using carbon dioxide‐buffered thermal electrons, of formyl‐, acetyl‐ and benzyol‐hydroquinones is shown to lead to the formation of the corresponding hydroquinone dimers, often to a significant extent; the dimer predominates for nitrohydroquinone. Mixed dimers can be formed from pairs of different substrates. For some of the hydroquinones, a major peak in the spectrum suggests that oxidation to the corresponding quinone occurs competitively. Tentative explanations of these phenomena are presented. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Negative ion electron capture mass spectrometry, using carbon dioxide-buffered thermal electrons, of formyl-, acetyl-and benzyol-hydroquinones is shown to lead to the formation of the corresponding hydroquinone dimers, often to a significant extent; the dimer predominates for nitrohydroquinone. Mixed dimers can be formed from pairs of different substrates. For some of the hydroquinones, a major peak in the spectrum suggests that oxidation to the corresponding quinone occurs competitively. Tentative explanations of these phenomena are presented. © 1997 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Received 13 November 1996; Revised 21 December 1996; Accepted 3 January 1997 Rapid. Commun. Mass Spectrom. 11, 749-752 (1997 Electron-capture negative ion mass spectrometry [1][2][3] using thermal electrons produced via collision of 70 eV electrons with a buffer gas 4,5 in a conventional ion source 6 is useful for generating molecular ions. Among suitable compounds are quinones 5,7 which have high electron affinities in the gas phase, 8 and thus produce anion radicals which are stabilized by extensive electron-delocalization, exemplified by the semiquinone 1 formed from 1,4-benzoquinone. The formation of such semiquinones is facilitated, 9 at least in solution, by the presence of intramolecularly hydrogen-bonded perihydroxy groups in the quinone, e.g. as 2, which can in principle lead to further stabilization of the semiquinone 3 via tautomerization with 4. Electron capture by simple aromatic aldehydes and ketones is less favoured, 3 and it was therefore of interest to establish whether intramolecular hydrogen bonding 10 to the carbonyl group of these compounds would also lead to stabilization of the molecular anion radical. We now report on the results which we have obtained using, predominantly, ortho-hydroxycarbonyl members of the hydroquinone series. EXPERIMENTALSome of the compounds used were of commercial origin (Aldrich Chemical Co., Gillingham, Dorset, UK), but most were from the reference collection of one of us (J. M. B.). The spectrometer was a Fisons (VG) Trio 2000 (Fisons Instruments, Wythenshawe, Manchester, UK) operating at 70 eV with a gold-plated electron ionization (EI)/chemical ionization (CI) source at 150°C. Single samples and mixtures were dissolved in redistilled dichloromethane, and introduced using an unheated solids probe. As an alternative for the formation of mixed dimers, individual components were applied separately to each of the two tips of a DCI probe from which the filament coil had been removed. Carbon dioxide (99.995%, BOC Gases, London, UK) was used as buffer gas, the pressure in the source (ca. 1 mBar) being optimized to maximize response at the detector. All of the compounds gave the expected spectra in EI + and CI + (NH 3 ) modes. RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONNegative ion results for a representative selection of the compounds studied are presented in Tables 1-4, for, respectively, 2,5-dihydroxybenzaldehydes, 2,5-dihydroxyacetophenones, 2,5-dihydroxybenzophenones and miscellaneous hydroquinones.For the al...