LLukas22/scidocs huggingface dataset:
Single-aliquot, non-bronchoscopic bronchoalveolar lavage in the diagnosis of metastatic mammary tumours in dogs.

OBJECTIVE
To evaluate the use of bronchoalveolar lavage as an auxiliary tool for the diagnosis of neoplastic lung metastasis from mammary tumours in dogs.


METHODS
A single-institution prospective observational study including 20 healthy dogs and 30 with mammary tumours. Thoracic radiography and single-aliquot, non-bronchoscopic bronchoalveolar lavage with cytology interpretation was performed in all animals and the results compared between groups.


RESULTS
Dogs with mammary gland tumours and radiographic evidence of pulmonary metastasis had significantly higher relative neutrophil counts in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid than dogs with tumours without evidence of metastasis. In only one dog, in which thoracic radiographs were normal, were malignant cells identified in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid.


CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE
Inflammatory bronchoalveolar lavage fluid in dogs with mammary gland tumours may suggest metastatic disease. Bronchoalveolar lavage does not appear to be sensitive for identifying malignant cells.
Acquiring Linguistic Constructions

Constructions The most abstract constructions that English-speaking children use early in development have mostly been studied from an adult perspective—using constructions defined from an adult model. We follow suit here, but the truth is that many of the constructions listed here probably should be differentiated in a more fine-grained way (as families of subconstructions) once the necessary empirical work is done. Identificationals, Attributives, and Possessives Among the earliest utterance-level constructions used by many English-speaking children are those that serve to identify an object or to attribute to it some property, including a possessor or simple location (Lieven, Pine, & Dresner-Barnes, 1992). In adult language, these would almost invariably require some form of the coplua, to be, although children do not always supply it. Quite often, these constructions revolve around one or a few specific words. Most common for the identification function are such things as It’s a /the X; That’s a /the X; or This’s a /the X. Most common for the attributive function are such things as: Here’s a /the X; There’s a /the X. Most common for the possessive function are such things as: (It’s) X’s ; That’s X’s/my ; This is X’s/your . Clancy (2000) reports some very similar constructions for Korean-speaking children, and a perusal of the studies in Slobin’s cross-linguistic volumes reveals many other languages in which these are frequently used child constructions for focusing attention on, or attributing a property to, an external entity. Simple Transitives, Simple Intransitives, and Imperatives The simple transitive construction in English is used for depicting a variety of scenes that differ greatly from one another. The prototype is a scene in which dam2_c06.qxd 1/6/06 12:16 PM Page 271
An International Urogynecological Association (IUGA)/International Continence Society (ICS) joint report on the terminology for female pelvic floor dysfunction.

INTRODUCTION
Next to existing terminology of the lower urinary tract, due to its increasing complexity, the terminology for pelvic floor dysfunction in women may be better updated by a female-specific approach and clinically based consensus report.


METHODS
This report combines the input of members of the Standardization and Terminology Committees of two international organizations, the International Urogynecological Association (IUGA), and the International Continence Society (ICS), assisted at intervals by many external referees. Appropriate core clinical categories and a subclassification were developed to give an alphanumeric coding to each definition. An extensive process of 15 rounds of internal and external review was developed to exhaustively examine each definition, with decision-making by collective opinion (consensus).


RESULTS
A terminology report for female pelvic floor dysfunction, encompassing over 250 separate definitions, has been developed. It is clinically based with the six most common diagnoses defined. Clarity and user-friendliness have been key aims to make it interpretable by practitioners and trainees in all the different specialty groups involved in female pelvic floor dysfunction. Female-specific imaging (ultrasound, radiology, and MRI) has been a major addition while appropriate figures have been included to supplement and help clarify the text. Ongoing review is not only anticipated but will be required to keep the document updated and as widely acceptable as possible.


CONCLUSION
A consensus-based terminology report for female pelvic floor dysfunction has been produced aimed at being a significant aid to clinical practice and a stimulus for research.
Data Structures for Range Minimum Queries in Multidimensional Arrays

Given a d-dimensional array A with N entries, the Range Minimum Query (RMQ) asks for the minimum element within a contiguous subarray of A. The 1D RMQ problem has been studied intensively because of its relevance to the Nearest Common Ancestor problem and its important use in stringology. If constant-time query answering is required, linear time and space preprocessing algorithms were known for the 1D case, but not for the higher dimensional cases. In this paper, we give the first linear-time preprocessing algorithm for arrays with fixed dimension, such that any range minimum query can be answered in constant time.
Buprenorphine implants for treatment of opioid dependence: a randomized controlled trial.

CONTEXT
Limitations of existing pharmacological treatments for opioid dependence include low adherence, medication diversion, and emergence of withdrawal symptoms.


OBJECTIVE
To determine the efficacy of buprenorphine implants that provide a low, steady level of buprenorphine over 6 months for the treatment of opioid dependence.


DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS
A randomized, placebo-controlled, 6-month trial conducted at 18 sites in the United States between April 2007 and June 2008. One hundred sixty-three adults, aged 18 to 65 years, diagnosed with opioid dependence. One hundred eight were randomized to receive buprenorphine implants and 55 to receive placebo implants.


INTERVENTION
After induction with sublingual buprenorphine-naloxone tablets, patients received either 4 buprenorphine implants (80 mg per implant) or 4 placebo implants. A fifth implant was available if a threshold for rescue use of sublingual buprenorphine-naloxone treatment was exceeded. Standardized individual drug counseling was provided to all patients.


MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE
The percentage of urine samples negative for illicit opioids for weeks 1 through 16 and for weeks 17 through 24.


RESULTS
The buprenorphine implant group had significantly more urine samples negative for illicit opioids during weeks 1 through 16 (P = .04). Patients with buprenorphine implants had a mean percentage of urine samples that tested negative for illicit opioids across weeks 1 through 16 of 40.4% (95% confidence interval [CI], 34.2%-46.7%) and a median of 40.7%; whereas those in the placebo group had a mean of 28.3% (95% CI, 20.3%-36.3%) and a median of 20.8%. A total of 71 of 108 patients (65.7%) who received buprenorphine implants completed the study vs 17 of 55 (30.9%) who received placebo implants (P < .001). Those who received buprenorphine implants also had fewer clinician-rated (P <.001) and patient-rated (P = .004) withdrawal symptoms, had lower patient ratings of craving (P <.001), and experienced a greater change on clinician global ratings of severity of opioid dependence (P<.001) and on the clinician global ratings of improvement (P < .001) than those who received placebo implants. Minor implant site reactions were the most common adverse events: 61 patients (56.5%) in the buprenorphine group and 29 (52.7%) in the placebo group.


CONCLUSION
Among persons with opioid dependence, the use of buprenorphine implants compared with placebo resulted in less opioid use over 16 weeks as assessed by urine samples.


TRIAL REGISTRATION
clinicaltrials.gov Identifier: NCT00447564.
Pilomyxoid astrocytoma: expanding the imaging spectrum.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE
Pilomyxoid astrocytoma (PMA) is a recently described variant of pilocytic astrocytoma (PA) with unique clinical and histopathologic characteristics. Because the histopathology of PMA is distinct from that of PA, we hypothesized that PMAs would display distinctive imaging characteristics. We retrospectively reviewed the imaging findings in a large number of patients with PMA to identify these characteristics.


MATERIALS AND METHODS
CT and MR images, pathology reports, and clinical information from 21 patients with pathology-confirmed PMA from 7 institutions were retrospectively reviewed. CT and MR imaging findings, including location, size, signal intensity, hemorrhage, and enhancement pattern, were tabulated.


RESULTS
Patients ranged in age from 9 months to 46 years at initial diagnosis. Sex ratio was 12:9 (M/F). Twelve of 21 (57%) tumors were located in the hypothalamic/chiasmatic/third ventricular region. Nine (43%) occurred in other locations, including the parietal lobe (2/21), temporal lobe (2/21), cerebellum (2/21), basal ganglia (2/21), and fourth ventricle (1/21). Ten (48%) tumors showed heterogeneous rim enhancement, 9 (43%) showed uniform enhancement, and 2 (9%) showed no enhancement. Five (24%) masses demonstrated intratumoral hemorrhage.


CONCLUSION
This series expands the clinical and imaging spectrum of PMA and identifies characteristics that should suggest consideration of this uncommon diagnosis. One third of patients were older children and adults. Almost half of all tumors were located outside the typical hypothalamic/chiasmatic region. Intratumoral hemorrhage occurred in one quarter of patients. PMA remains a histologic diagnosis without definitive imaging findings that distinguish it from PA.
Mobile screen transition animations

Mobile devices have limitations compared to PCs due to their inferior computing power and small screens, but a successful design of animated transitions can hide processing delays and make the user experience smoother. In this paper, we describe the design of animated transitions and present a user study on how they are perceived.
Non-Functional Requirements in Software Engineering

HURTS HELPS HURTS HELPS Data Type [Target System] Implicit HELPS HURTS HURTS BREAKS ? Invocation [Target System] Pipe & HELPS BREAKS BREAKS HELPS Filter WHEN [Target condl System] condl: size of data in domain is huge Figure 13.4. A generic Correlation Catalogue, based on [Garlan93]. Figure 13.3 shows a method which decomposes the topic on process, including algorithms as used in [Garlan93]. Decomposition methods for processes are also described in [Nixon93, 94a, 97a], drawing on implementations of processes [Chung84, 88]. These two method definitions are unparameterized. A fuller catalogue would include parameterized definitions too. Operationalization methods, which organize knowledge about satisficing NFR softgoals, are embedded in architectural designs when selected. For example, an ImplicitFunctionlnvocationRegime (based on [Garlan93]' architecture 3) can be used to hide implementation details in order to make an architectural 358 NON-FUNCTIONAL REQUIREMENTS IN SOFTWARE ENGINEERING design more extensible, thus contributing to one of the softgoals in the above decomposition. Argumentation methods and templates are used to organize principles and guidelines for making design rationale for or against design decisions (Cf. [J. Lee91]).
Management of the pediatric plunging ranula: results of 15 years' clinical experience.

OBJECTIVE
This study was designed to evaluate the diagnosis and surgical treatment of the plunging ranula in children.


STUDY DESIGN
A retrospective study of 129 pediatric patients with a clinical diagnosis of plunging ranula was conducted. All children underwent clinical assessment and fine needle aspiration cytology. Cytologic diagnosis was considered to be definitive, and radiologic investigations were not conducted. Intraoral excision of the ipsilateral sublingual gland and partial pseudocyst was performed for all patients.


RESULTS
The preoperative diagnosis was consistent with postoperative and histopathologic analyses in all cases. There were no recurrences at 36 months' follow-up. There were no long-term complications as of writing this report.


CONCLUSIONS
Fine needle aspiration cytology can be used as the routine method to reach a diagnosis for plunging ranula, especially in the absence of floor of mouth involvement. Intraoral excision of the ipsilateral sublingual gland and partial pseudocyst is an effective and safe method for the treatment of the plunging ranula in the pediatric population, with absence of recurrence and low morbidity.
Learning to Exploit Proximal Force Sensing: A Comparison Approach

We present an evaluation of different techniques for the estimation of forces and torques measured by a single six-axis force/torque sensor placed along the kinematic chain of a humanoid robot arm. In order to retrieve the external forces and detect possible contact situations, the internal forces must be estimated. The prediction performance of an analytically derived dynamic model as well as two supervised machine learning techniques, namely Least Squares Support Vector Machines and Neural Networks, are investigated on this problem. The performance are evaluated on the normalized mean square error (NMSE) and the comparison is made with respect to the dimension of the training set, the information contained in the input space and, finally, using a Euclidean subsampling strategy.
Advancing wireless link signatures for location distinction

Location distinction is the ability to determine when a device has changed its position. We explore the opportunity to use sophisticated PHY-layer measurements in wireless networking systems for location distinction. We first compare two existing location distinction methods - one based on channel gains of multi-tonal probes, and another on channel impulse response. Next, we combine the benefits of these two methods to develop a new link measurement that we call the complex temporal signature. We use a 2.4 GHz link measurement data set, obtained from CRAWDAD [10], to evaluate the three location distinction methods. We find that the complex temporal signature method performs significantly better compared to the existing methods. We also perform new measurements to understand and model the temporal behavior of link signatures over time. We integrate our model in our location distinction mechanism and significantly reduce the probability of false alarms due to temporal variations of link signatures.
Some computer science issues in ubiquitous computing

m U biquitous computing enhances computer use by making many computers available throughout the physical environment, while making them effectively invisible to the user. This article explains what is new and different about the computer science involved in ubiquitous computing. First, it provides a brief overview of ubiquitous computing, then elaborates through a series of examples drawn from various subdisciplines of computer science: hardware components (e.g., chips), network protocols, interaction substrates (e.g., software for screens and pens), applications, privacy, and computational methods. Ubiquitous computing offers a framework for new and exciting research across the spectrum of computer science. Since we started this work at Xerox Palo Alto Research Center (PARC) in 1988 a few places have begun work on this possible next-generation computing environment in which each person is continually interacting with hundreds of nearby wirelessly interconnected computers. The goal is to achieve the most effective kind of technology, that which is essentially invisible to the user. To bring computers to this point while retaining their power will require radically new kinds of computers of all sizes and shapes to be available to each person. I call this future world "Ubiquitous Comput ing" (Ubicomp) [27]. The research method for ubiquitous computing is standard experimental computer science: the construction of working prototypes of the necessai-y infrastructure in sufficient quantity to debug the viability of the systems in everyday use; ourselves and a few colleagues serving as guinea pigs. This is
Inhibition of hepatitis C virus replication by herbal extract: Phyllanthus amarus as potent natural source.

Hepatitis C virus infection is a major health problem worldwide. Developing effective antiviral therapy for HCV is the need of the hour. The viral enzymes NS3 protease and NS5B RNA dependent RNA polymerase are essential enzymes for polyprotein processing and viral RNA replication and thus can be potential targets for screening anti-HCV compounds. A large number of phytochemicals are present in plants, which are found to be promising antiviral agents. In this study, we have screened inhibitory effect of different plant extracts against the NS3 and NS5B enzymes of hepatitis C virus. Methanolic extracts were prepared from various plant materials and their inhibitory effects on the viral enzymes were determined by in vitro enzyme assays. Effect on viral RNA replication was investigated by using TaqMan Real time RT-PCR. Interestingly, Phyllanthus amarus root (PAR) extract showed significant inhibition of HCV-NS3 protease enzyme; whereas P. amarus leaf (PAL) extract showed considerable inhibition of NS5B in the in vitro assays. Further, the PAR and PAL extracts significantly inhibited replication of HCV monocistronic replicon RNA and HCV H77S viral RNA in HCV cell culture system. However, both PAR and PAL extracts did not show cytotoxicity in Huh7 cells in the MTT assay. Furthermore, addition of PAR together with IFN-α showed additive effect in the inhibition of HCV RNA replication. Results suggest the possible molecular basis of the inhibitory activity of PA extract against HCV which would help in optimization and subsequent development of specific antiviral agent using P. amarus as potent natural source.
Evaluating the effect of innovative motivation and supervision approaches on community health worker performance and retention in Uganda and Mozambique: study protocol for a randomised controlled trial

BACKGROUND
If trained, equipped and utilised, community health workers (CHWs) delivering integrated community case management for sick children can potentially reduce child deaths by 60%. However, it is essential to maintain CHW motivation and performance. The inSCALE project aims to evaluate, using a cluster randomised controlled trial, the effect of interventions to increase CHW supervision and performance on the coverage of appropriate treatment for children with diarrhoea, pneumonia and malaria.


METHODS/DESIGN
Participatory methods were used to identify best practices and innovative solutions. Quantitative community based baseline surveys were conducted to allow restricted randomisation of clusters into intervention and control arms. Individual informed consent was obtained from all respondents. Following formative research and stakeholder consultations, two intervention packages were developed in Uganda and one in Mozambique. In Uganda, approximately 3,500 CHWs in 39 clusters were randomised into a mobile health (mHealth) arm, a participatory community engagement arm and a control arm. In Mozambique, 275 CHWs in 12 clusters were randomised into a mHealth arm and a control arm. The mHealth interventions encompass three components: 1) free phone communication between users; 2) data submission using phones with automated feedback, messages to supervisors for targeted supervision, and online data access for district statisticians; and 3) motivational messages. The community engagement arm in Uganda established village health clubs seeking to 1) improve the status and standing of CHWs, 2) increase demand for health services and 3) communicate that CHWs' work is important. Process evaluation was conducted after 10 months and end-line surveys will establish impact after 12 months in Uganda and 18 months in Mozambique. Main outcomes include proportion of sick children appropriately treated, CHW performance and motivation, and cost effectiveness of interventions.


DISCUSSION
Study strengths include a user-centred design to the innovations, while weaknesses include the lack of a robust measurement of coverage of appropriate treatment. Evidence of cost-effective innovations that increase motivation and performance of CHWs can potentially increase sustainable coverage of iCCM at scale.


TRIAL REGISTRATION
(identifier NCT01972321 ) on 22 April 22 2013.
Long-term cardiovascular effects of insulin sensitizer troglitazone on non-diabetic individuals with insulin resistance: double blind, prospective randomized study.

OBJECTIVES
The study was undertaken to assess the long-term cardiovascular effects of troglitazone on non-diabetic individuals with insulin resistance.


BACKGROUND
It has been suggested that treatment with troglitazone or similar insulin-sensitizing agents may prevent cardiovascular complications in non-diabetic individuals with insulin resistance. However, the long-term cardiovascular effects of these agents on non-diabetic individuals remain to be defined.


METHODS
A total of 137 African-American offspring of type 2 diabetic parents, with normal glucose tolerance and insulin resistance, were randomly divided to receive troglitazone 200 mg/day (n = 40), or placebo (n = 97) for 24 months. Brachial artery blood pressure (sphygmomanometry); aortic pulse wave velocity (carotid to femoral artery, Doppler), left ventricular diameters and mass (echocardiography); ascending and abdominal aortic distensibility (echocardiography, blood pressure); and metabolic and lipid profile were assessed at baseline, 12, and 24 months after randomization (delta 12, delta 24 respectively).


RESULTS
The pulse wave velocity increased significantly in the troglitazone group compared to placebo group (p < 0.05). Changes from baseline in the troglitazone group were significant (delta 12 = 1.09 +/- 0.36 m/sec, delta 24 = 2.08 +/- 0.45 m/sec, ANOVA p < 0.001), while pulse wave velocity remained unchanged in the placebo group. This increase in pulse wave velocity is consistent with a decrease in the elastic properties of the aorta.


CONCLUSIONS
Long-term administration of troglitazone to non-diabetic African-Americans with insulin resistance was associated with a decrease in the elastic properties of the aorta. Long-term therapy with troglitazone or similar agents for the prevention of cardiovascular complications in non-diabetic individuals with insulin resistance has to be critically evaluated.