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October 2009

Garden Chairs

An open park bench in al-Mahdi Park, Tehran. the bench seat is a traditional seat installed in automobiles, featuring a continuous pad running the full width of the cabin. a punishment bench is used to have a punishee lie (and often be tied) down on for the administration of a corporal punishment, after which it may be specifically named, e.g. caning bench.

Often benches are simply called after the place they are used, regardless whether this implies a specific design Garden benches are very similar to public park benches set outdoors, but the former offer usually only two or three -, the latter mostly up to five persons sitting places. Picnic tables, or catering buffet tables have long benches as well as a table. These tables may have table legs which are collapsible, in order to expedite transport and storage. Church pews inside places of worship are equipped with an additional kneeling bench.

Garden Chairs

Guidelines Urge Use of Erectile Dysfunction Drugs (HealthDay)

THURSDAY, Oct. 22 (HealthDay News) -- Doctors should prescribe
oral phosphodiesterase type 5 (PDE-5) inhibitor drugs, such as Viagra,
Cialis and Levitra, for men with erectile dysfunction, unless the patient
is on nitrate therapy, according to a clinical practice guideline issued
by the American College of Physicians.

The type of erectile dysfunction (ED) drug prescribed should be based
on the individual preferences of patients, including cost of medication,
ease of use and types of side effects, the authors noted.

"The evidence is insufficient to compare the effectiveness or adverse
effects of different PDE-5 inhibitors for the treatment of ED because
there were only a few head-to-head trials," guideline lead author Dr. Amir
Qaseem, senior medical associate with the ACP, said in a news release.

Qaseem and colleagues analyzed the findings of 130 studies that
evaluated PDE-5 inhibitors alone or combined. They found that treatment
with the drugs led to statistically significant and clinically relevant
improvements in sexual intercourse and erectile function in men with ED,
regardless of the cause (e.g., diabetes, depression, prostate cancer) or
ED severity at the start of the study.

Overall, PDE-5 inhibitors were relatively well-tolerated and associated
with only mild or moderate side effects, such as headaches, flushing,
upset stomach and runny nose, the authors found.

The guideline is published in the Oct. 20 issue of the journal
Annals of Internal Medicine.

Because there is no conclusive evidence about the effectiveness of
hormonal blood tests or treatment in patients with low testosterone
levels, the ACP doesn't recommend for or against routine use of the tests
in ED patients. The college says doctors should make decisions to measure
hormone levels based on an individual patient's clinical symptoms
(decreased libido, premature ejaculation, fatigue, etc.) and physical
signs (such as testicular or muscle atrophy) that suggest hormone
problems.

More information

The U.S. National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney
Diseases has more about erectile dysfunction.

Afghanistan gears up for final election result

KABUL (Reuters) –
A U.N.-backed fraud watchdog said Friday it was close to a verdict in its probe of Afghanistan's presidential election, which could force incumbent Hamid Karzai into a run-off against his main rival.

Afghanistan has been gripped by uncertainty since the August 20 election, marred by allegations of widespread fraud.

The bitter process has sparked tension between Karzai and his Western backers and helped delay a U.S. decision on sending extra troops to Afghanistan at a time when the Taliban insurgency is at its fiercest.

The U.N.-backed Electoral Complaints Commission (ECC) watchdog has been sifting through piles of dubious ballots to determine if Karzai is the outright winner or faces a second vote against former foreign minister Abdullah Abdullah.

"We are still working today," said Nellika Little, an ECC spokeswoman, adding that the commission was looking to issue its ruling around Saturday.

"We don't want to rush it. There is a lot of work to do."

Karzai won 54.6 percent of the vote, according to preliminary figures.

If enough votes were disqualified to push his total below 50 percent he would face Abdullah in a second round -- barring possible legal steps to invalidate the decision or an Abdullah decision to withdraw.

The Washington Post cited officials familiar with the results as saying the investigation had already cut Karzai's vote tally to about 47 percent, a result that would trigger a runoff.

The ECC said it was investigating fraud complaints and it was too early to speak about any numbers before the process is over. "We are not coming up with any figures," said Little.

Once it is done with its work, the ECC will send its verdict to the Afghan election commission.

If mandated, the second presidential vote would then be due within two weeks but the onset of the bitter Afghan winter, which makes much of the country impassable, could undermine the effort. Afghanistan's ambassador in Washington, Said Jawad, has said a second round of voting was "likely."

In the United States, the controversy surrounding the vote has been a major factor in the Obama administration's review of its Afghanistan strategy.

General Stanley McChrystal, the U.S. and NATO commander in Afghanistan, has recommended sending an additional 40,000 U.S. troops beyond the 68,000 due to be in place by the end of 2009.

Abdullah has signaled his openness to a possible compromise while calling for a second round.

"Should it go to the second round? My preference is going for the second round," he told reporters Thursday.

"We are ready and I have not dismantled the infrastructure for campaigning though the campaign will be different this time and (under) any circumstances I will pursue the agenda for change."

(Editing by Jerry Norton)