LLukas22/scidocs huggingface dataset:
Connective tissue growth factor: a predictor of recurrence after catheter ablation in patients with nonparoxysmal atrial fibrillation.

BACKGROUND
Although catheter ablation can effectively eliminate atrial fibrillation (AF), the progression of atrial remodeling increases the risk of recurrence. We, therefore, examined the possibility of determining the postablation prognosis of patients with AF using biomarkers of atrial structural remodeling and serum connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) level, and measured its changes after catheter ablation.


METHODS
Subjects were 400 consecutive patients (308 with paroxysmal AF and 92 with nonparoxysmal AF [persistent and long-standing persistent AF]) who underwent catheter ablation for drug-resistant AF. Serum CTGF levels were measured before and 2 months after ablation.


RESULTS
During the follow-up period of 20.5 ± 6.9 (8-30) months, 61 patients (66%) with nonparoxysmal AF and 95 patients (31%) with paroxysmal AF had recurrence after catheter ablation. Recurrence was associated with higher "baseline CTGF level" in patients with nonparoxysmal AF (936.5 ± 93.1 ng/mL vs 746.3 ± 56.9 ng/mL, P = 0.007) instead of patients with paroxysmal AF (851.6 ± 97.6 ng/mL vs 807.6 ± 99.1 ng/mL, P = 0.921). In nonparoxysmal AF, the recurrence subgroup also had larger left atrial diameter (LAD; 47.1 ± 5.2 mm vs 39.5 ± 4.3 mm, P = 0.035) compared with the nonrecurrence subgroup, and "baseline serum CTGF" and LAD were shown to be independent predictors for postablation recurrence by a Cox proportional hazards model. However, the 2-month postablation elevations of CTGF in patients with recurrence were not significantly different from that in patients without recurrence in nonparoxysmal AF.


CONCLUSION
Our finding indicates that "baseline serum CTGF level" is an independent predictor for recurrence in patients with nonparoxysmal AF following catheter ablation. Two-month postablation elevation in CTGF has no association with recurrence.
Education and Work : Discourse Analysis of Liberal and Professional Programmes at the University

Education and Work : Discourse Analysis of Liberal and Professional Programmes at the University
The Impact of Anxiety-Inducing Distraction on Cognitive Performance: A Combined Brain Imaging and Personality Investigation

BACKGROUND
Previous investigations revealed that the impact of task-irrelevant emotional distraction on ongoing goal-oriented cognitive processing is linked to opposite patterns of activation in emotional and perceptual vs. cognitive control/executive brain regions. However, little is known about the role of individual variations in these responses. The present study investigated the effect of trait anxiety on the neural responses mediating the impact of transient anxiety-inducing task-irrelevant distraction on cognitive performance, and on the neural correlates of coping with such distraction. We investigated whether activity in the brain regions sensitive to emotional distraction would show dissociable patterns of co-variation with measures indexing individual variations in trait anxiety and cognitive performance.


METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS
Event-related fMRI data, recorded while healthy female participants performed a delayed-response working memory (WM) task with distraction, were investigated in conjunction with behavioural measures that assessed individual variations in both trait anxiety and WM performance. Consistent with increased sensitivity to emotional cues in high anxiety, specific perceptual areas (fusiform gyrus--FG) exhibited increased activity that was positively correlated with trait anxiety and negatively correlated with WM performance, whereas specific executive regions (right lateral prefrontal cortex--PFC) exhibited decreased activity that was negatively correlated with trait anxiety. The study also identified a role of the medial and left lateral PFC in coping with distraction, as opposed to reflecting a detrimental impact of emotional distraction.


CONCLUSIONS
These findings provide initial evidence concerning the neural mechanisms sensitive to individual variations in trait anxiety and WM performance, which dissociate the detrimental impact of emotion distraction and the engagement of mechanisms to cope with distracting emotions. Our study sheds light on the neural correlates of emotion-cognition interactions in normal behaviour, which has implications for understanding factors that may influence susceptibility to affective disorders, in general, and to anxiety disorders, in particular.
Pajek - Analysis and Visualization of Large Networks

American Library Association /ALA/ American Library Directory bibliographic record bibliography binding blanket order
Supervised aerobic exercise is more effective than home aerobic exercise in female chinese patients with rheumatoid arthritis.

OBJECTIVE
To compare the effectiveness and safety of supervised aerobic exercise and home aerobic exercise in female Chinese patients with rheumatoid arthritis.


DESIGN
Single-blind randomized controlled trial.


SUBJECTS
Thirty female Chinese patients with rheumatoid arthritis were assigned to either supervised aerobic exercise or home aerobic exercise groups.


METHODS
The supervised aerobic exercise programme was supervised by a physical therapist, while the home aerobic exercise programme was performed at home after one session of exercise instruction. Each programme consisted of 1 h of aerobic exercise conducted 3 times per week for 8 weeks. Aerobic capacity and disease-related variables, including pain intensity, functional ability, psychological status and joint function, were measured.


RESULTS
Significant difference in changed score between pre- and post-exercise data was observed between the supervised aerobic exercise and home aerobic exercise groups regarding aerobic capacity (p < 0.0001). Pre- and post-exercise within-group comparisons showed significant improvement (20%) in aerobic capacity only in the supervised aerobic exercise group. Pre- and post-exercise within-group comparison showed significant improvement in 5 and 3 items of disease-related variables in supervised aerobic exercise and home aerobic exercise groups, respectively.


CONCLUSION
An 8-week supervised aerobic exercise programme induced significant improvement in the aerobic capacity of female Chinese patients with rheumatoid arthritis, and was superior to a home aerobic exercise programme. Both programmes of aerobic exercise were safe for female Chinese patients with rheumatoid arthritis.
AC 2012-5292: ADVISING ENGINEERING STUDENTS TO THE BEST PROGRAM: PERSPECTIVE, APPROACHES, AND TOOLS

Narciso F. Macia is an Associate Professor in the Department of Engineering Technology, at Arizona State University, Polytechnic campus. Prior to accepting his present position with ASU, he founded Control Systems Innovation, Inc., an engineering consulting and product development firm, in which he continues to be active. Macia received his B.S. and M.S. degrees in mechanical engineering in 1974 and 1976 from the University of Texas, Arlington, and his Ph.D. in electrical engineering from Arizona State University in 1988. He is a registered Professional Engineer in the state of Arizona. He is a member of ASME and ASEE. He is the holder of three patents and more than 36 publications. He has co-authored a book on modeling and control of dynamic systems.
Mu and Beta Rhythm Topographies During Motor Imagery and Actual Movements

People can learn to control the 8-12 Hz mu rhythm and/or the 18-25 Hz beta rhythm in the EEG recorded over sensorimotor cortex and use it to control a cursor on a video screen. Subjects often report using motor imagery to control cursor movement, particularly early in training. We compared in untrained subjects the EEG topographies associated with actual hand movement to those associated with imagined hand movement. Sixty-four EEG channels were recorded while each of 33 adults moved left- or right-hand or imagined doing so. Frequency-specific differences between movement or imagery and rest, and between right- and left-hand movement or imagery, were evaluated by scalp topographies of voltage and r spectra, and principal component analysis. Both movement and imagery were associated with mu and beta rhythm desynchronization. The mu topographies showed bilateral foci of desynchronization over sensorimotor cortices, while the beta topographies showed peak desynchronization over the vertex. Both mu and beta rhythm left/right differences showed bilateral central foci that were stronger on the right side. The independence of mu and beta rhythms was demonstrated by differences for movement and imagery for the subjects as a group and by principal components analysis. The results indicated that the effects of imagery were not simply an attenuated version of the effects of movement. They supply evidence that motor imagery could play an important role in EEG-based communication, and suggest that mu and beta rhythms might provide independent control signals.
Protection planning and system design to reduce arc flash incident energy in a multi-voltage level distribution system to 8 CAL/CM2 (HRC 2) or less – part II: Analysis

The paper demonstrates that in a multi-voltage level (medium and low-voltages) distribution system the incident energy can be reduced to 8 cal/cm2, or even less, (Hazard risk category, HRC 2), so that a PPE outfit of greater than 2 is not required. This is achieved with the current state of the art equipment and protective devices. It is recognized that in the existing distribution systems, not specifically designed with this objective, it may not be possible to reduce arc flash hazard to this low level, unless major changes in the system design and protection are made. A typical industrial distribution system is analyzed, and tables and time coordination plots are provided to support the analysis. Unit protection schemes and practical guidelines for arc flash reduction are provided. The methodology of IEEE 1584 [1] is used for the analyses.
Low plasma eicosapentaenoic acid and depressive symptomatology are independent predictors of dementia risk.

BACKGROUND
The potential preventive role of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) in Alzheimer disease has aroused increasing interest. Plasma n-3 PUFAs have been shown to be inversely related to the risk of dementia and to depression, which is frequently associated with dementia.


OBJECTIVE
The objective was to ascertain whether plasma PUFAs predict the risk of incident dementia in a cohort of older persons, independently of their depressive status.


DESIGN
Of 1214 nondemented participants in the Three-City Study from Bordeaux (France) who were followed up for 4 y, 65 developed dementia. The association between the proportion of plasma fatty acids at baseline and the risk of incident dementia was assessed by multivariate proportional hazard models, taking into account depressive status assessed on the basis of the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression scale.


RESULTS
A higher plasma eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) concentration was associated with a lower incidence of dementia [hazard ratio (HR) for 1 SD = 0.69; 95% CI: 0.48, 0.98], independently of depressive status and after adjustment for age, education, apolipoprotein E epsilon4 allele, diabetes, and baseline plasma vitamin E and triacylglycerol. The relations between docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), total n-3 PUFAs, and incident dementia did not remain significant in multivariate models. Higher ratios of arachidonic acid (AA) to DHA and of n-6 to n-3 fatty acids were related to an increased risk of dementia, particularly in depressive subjects (n = 90): ratio of AA to DHA (HR: 2.65; 95% CI: 1.07, 6.56) and ratio of n-6 to n-3 (HR: 1.61; 95% CI: 1.04, 2.47).


CONCLUSIONS
A high plasma EPA concentration may decrease the risk of dementia, whereas high ratios of n-6 to n-3 fatty acids and of AA to DHA may increase the risk of dementia, especially in depressed older persons. The role of EPA in dementia warrants further research.
Comparison of loss in lung volume with open versus in-line catheter endotracheal suctioning.

OBJECTIVE
Disconnecting the endotracheal tube from the ventilator causes significant loss in lung volume, which is further exacerbated by suctioning. In-line catheter suction systems have putative benefits over open catheter suction by maintaining positive pressure, thereby minimizing hypoxemia and hemodynamic instability. However, there is a theoretical risk of generating large negative airway pressures and auto-cycling of the ventilator with in-line catheter suction systems. We studied the effects on lung volume with both these techniques.


DESIGN
Open, randomized, crossover, clinical trial.


SETTING
Pediatric critical care unit.


PATIENTS
Fourteen paralyzed patients, age 6 days to 13 yrs.


INTERVENTIONS
Each patient, acting as his or her own control, was suctioned with an in-line catheter suction system and open catheter suction. Each suction maneuver was standardized. Changes in lung volume were measured by inductance plethysmography. Heart rate, blood pressure, and oxygen saturation were continuously monitored.


MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS
Total lung volume loss was greater with open catheter suction compared with in-line catheter suction systems (p = .008). The most significant amount of lung volume loss associated with open catheter suction appears to be related to ventilator disconnection, rather than actual suctioning. Patients with decreased pulmonary compliance (< 0.8 mL/cm H2O/kg) demonstrated a greater loss in lung volume, both absolute and relative, as a result of ventilator disconnection (p = .038 and .006, respectively). Patients suctioned with open catheter suction desaturated to a greater extent than patients suctioned with in-line catheter suction (p = .026). There was evidence of ventilator triggering during the actual suction maneuver in all patients during in-line catheter suctions.


CONCLUSIONS
The most significant loss in lung volume during suctioning occurs primarily during ventilator disconnection. Hence, open catheter suction results in greater lung volume loss when compared with in-line catheter suction. We suggest that in-line catheter suction is preferable, especially in patients with significant lung disease and who require high positive end-expiratory pressures, to avoid alveolar derecruitment and exacerbating hypoxemia during endotracheal tube suctioning.
Pathoanatomy and Associated Injuries of Posterior Malleolus Fracture of the Ankle.

BACKGROUND
We present a classification system that progresses in severity, indicates the pathomechanics that cause the fracture and therefore guides the surgeon to what fixation will be necessary by which approach.


METHODS
The primary posterior malleolar fracture fragments were characterized into 3 groups. A type 1 fracture was described as a small extra-articular posterior malleolar primary fragment. Type 2 fractures consisted of a primary fragment of the posterolateral triangle of the tibia (Volkmann area). A type 3 primary fragment was characterized by a coronal plane fracture line involving the whole posterior plafond.


RESULTS
In type 1 fractures, the syndesmosis was disrupted in 100% of cases, although a proportion only involved the posterior syndesmosis. In type 2 posterior malleolar fractures, there was a variable medial injury with mixed avulsion/impaction etiology. In type 3 posterior malleolar fractures, most fibular fractures were either a high fracture or a long oblique fracture in the same fracture alignment as the posterior shear tibia fragment. Most medial injuries were Y-type or posterior oblique fractures. This fracture pattern had a low incidence of syndesmotic injury.


CONCLUSION
The value of this approach was that by following the pathomechanism through the ankle, it demonstrated which other structures were likely to be damaged by the path of the kinetic energy. With an understanding of the pattern of associated injuries for each category, a surgeon may be able to avoid some pitfalls in treatment of these injuries.


LEVEL OF EVIDENCE
Level III, retrospective comparative series.
Lost in Translation: Authorship Attribution using Frame Semantics

We investigate authorship attribution using classifiers based on frame semantics. The purpose is to discover whether adding semantic information to lexical and syntactic methods for authorship attribution will improve them, specifically to address the difficult problem of authorship attribution of translated texts. Our results suggest (i) that frame-based classifiers are usable for author attribution of both translated and untranslated texts; (ii) that framebased classifiers generally perform worse than the baseline classifiers for untranslated texts, but (iii) perform as well as, or superior to the baseline classifiers on translated texts; (iv) that—contrary to current belief—naïve classifiers based on lexical markers may perform tolerably on translated texts if the combination of author and translator is present in the training set of a classifier.
Accurate calibration for a cameraprojector measurement system based on structured light projection

The accurate calibration for a camera–projector measurement system based on structured light projection is important to the system measurement accuracy. This study proposes an improved systematic calibration method focusing on three key factors: calibration model, calibration artifact and calibration procedures. The calibration model better describes the camera and projector imaging process by considering higher to fourth order radial and tangential lens distortion. The calibration artifact provides a sufficient number of accurate 3D reference points uniformly distributed in a common world coordinate system. And the calibration procedures calibrate the camera and projector simultaneously based on the same reference points to eliminate the influences of the camera calibration error on the projector calibration. The experiments demonstrate that our calibration method can improve the measurement accuracy by 47%. r 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Performance Evaluation of MIMO in IEEE802.16e/WiMAX

The methodology used to evaluate the performance of the various MIMO schemes in orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) WiMAXWiMAX stands for Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access. systems is described. The per-tone signal-to-noise plus interference ratio (SINR) of a MIMO OFDM system is derived in a multi user, multicell and multisector communication system. The sector average spectral efficiency for a coded MIMO OFDM system is evaluated under a single frequency reuse deployment scenario. It is shown that the second antenna at the subscriber station receiver provides significant gains over single transmit single receive antenna (SISO) systems. The rate 2 spatial multiplexing MIMO scheme on the downlink improves the sector spectral efficiency by 10% over single transmit and two receive antenna (SIMO) system in a single frequency reuse deployment. It is also shown that in a time-division duplex (TDD) WiMAX system, the gain in downlink spectral efficiency from beamforming can be very large if the delay between the uplink channel estimate and the downlink beamforming is small compared to the coherence time of the channel. On the uplink, it is shown that the collaborative spatial multiplexing increases the spectral efficiency by 9% over a SIMO system with the same number of receive antennas at the base station (BS). Significant gains in uplink spectral efficiency are seen with more antennas at the BS and by using uplink beamforming as compared to SISO.
Hayekian evolution reconsidered: a response to Caldwell

Caldwell (2001. Hodgson on Hayek: a critique, Cambridge Journal of Economics, vol. 25, 541--55) raises a number of criticisms of Hodgson's (1993. Economics and Evolution: Bringing Life Back into Economics, Cambridge, UK and Ann Arbor, MI, Polity Press and University of Michigan Press) analysis of Hayek. This reply acknowledges the passages in The Constitution of Liberty where Hayek discusses evolutionary ideas. It is also agreed that the description in the secondary literature of Hayek as a 'methodological individualist' is misleading or flawed. However, it is argued that Hayek's neglect of Malthus remains real and problematic. This neglect is connected to Hayek's underestimation of the scale of the Darwinian intellectual revolution. It is also argued here that Caldwell's attempt to justify Hayek's analytical assumption of the given individual is unconvincing. Copyright 2004, Oxford University Press.
Hippotherapy--an intervention to habilitate balance deficits in children with movement disorders: a clinical trial.

BACKGROUND
Clinical observations have suggested that hippotherapy may be an effective strategy for habilitating balance deficits in children with movement disorders. However, there is limited research to support this notion.


OBJECTIVE
The purposes of this study were to assess the effectiveness of hippotherapy for the management of postural instability in children with mild to moderate balance problems and to determine whether there is a correlation between balance and function.


DESIGN
A repeated-measures design for a cohort of children with documented balance deficits was used.


METHODS
Sixteen children (9 boys and 7 girls) who were 5 to 16 years of age and had documented balance problems participated in this study. Intervention consisted of 45-minute hippotherapy sessions twice per week for 6 weeks. Two baseline assessments and 1 postintervention assessment of balance, as measured with the Pediatric Balance Scale (PBS), and of function, as measured with the Activities Scale for Kids-Performance (ASKp), were performed.


RESULTS
With the Friedman analysis of variance, the PBS and the ASKp were found to be statistically significant across all measurements (P<.0001 for both measures). Post hoc analysis revealed a statistical difference between baseline and postintervention measures (P≤.017). This degree of difference resulted in large effect sizes for PBS (d=1.59) and ASKp (d=1.51) scores after hippotherapy. A Spearman rho correlation of .700 indicated a statistical association between PBS and ASKp postintervention scores (P=.003). There was no correlation between the change in PBS scores and the change in ASKp scores (r(s)=.13, P>.05).


LIMITATIONS
Lack of a control group and the short duration between baseline assessments are study limitations.


CONCLUSIONS
The findings suggest that hippotherapy may be a viable strategy for reducing balance deficits and improving the performance of daily life skills in children with mild to moderate balance problems.
European projects for support of mechatronic fields at Brno University of Technology

This paper deals with two European projects of a mechatronic team at Brno University of Technology. These European projects “Knowledge and Skills in Mechatronics - Innovations Transfer to Practice” and “MINOS” provide opportunity for knowledge improvement and advancement of the mechatronic team and students of mechatronics at Faculty of Mechanical Engineering.