LLukas22/scidocs huggingface dataset:
Acral Lentiginous Melanoma - misdiagnosis, referral delay and 5 years specific survival according to site.

OBJECTIVES
Acral lentiginous melanoma (ALM) is a defined histopathological entity with peculiar clinical-pathological features and is the most common subtype of malignant melanoma in acral locations. The 5-year survival rate is lower than that for all cutaneous malignant melanoma overall (80.3% versus 91.3%). Controversy exists in the literature as to whether this worse prognosis is attributable to a more aggressive biological nature or to difficult-to-see sites and consequent advanced stage at the time of diagnosis. The main purpose of the study was to explore any prognostic difference according to upper limb or lower limb localizations, based on the hypothesis that upper limb localizations might receive attention sooner than lower limb localizations.


PATIENTS AND METHODS
A cohort longitudinal study was performed through a retrospective review of all patients consecutively referred to our Unit with histological confirmation of ALM. Data were collected from a 10 year period between 1996 and 2006 to allow determination of 5 year survival statistics.


RESULTS
Out of 87 patients included in the study, 32 were men (37%) and 55 were women 63%. The average number of months it took for patients to present was 62 months with a mode of 12 months. Overall 5 year survival was 80% and a multivariate analysis showed that the most reliable prognostic indicators are the Breslow's thickness and the margins of complete excision. When controlling the survival rates for Breslow thickness, the values were similar to the reported rates indicated in the recent literature for cutaneous malignant melanoma.


CONCLUSIONS
The higher aggressiveness of ALM was noticed to be attributable to a later stage and more advanced thickness at diagnosis. No significant difference was found between upper and lower limb localization in terms of prognosis.
Low skeletal muscle is associated with toxicity in patients included in phase I trials

Background Low muscle mass has been associated with chemotherapy toxicity. We conducted this prospective study to evaluate the effects of body composition on the occurrence of toxicity in phase I trials. Patients and Methods Patients were consecutively enrolled irrespective of the type of tumor or the type of drug. The Skeletal Muscle Index (SMIndex) and visceral and subcutaneous adipose tissue were assessed with computed tomography imaging by measuring cross-sectional areas of the tissues (cm2/m2). Dose-limiting toxicity (DLT) corresponded to toxicities occurring during the 1st cycle that necessitated dose reduction, postponement or interruption of drug administration and severe toxicity events (STE) corresponded to DLT or permanent treatment withdrawal due to toxicity. Results 93 patients were evaluated. Ten percent of patients experienced DLT and had a lower SMIndex: 40.8 ± 4.6 vs. 48.1 ± 9.6 cm2/m2 (p = 0.01). STE occurred in 14 % of the patients. The only factor associated with STE was a low SMIndex: 42.4 ± 5.8 vs. 48.4 ± 9.7 cm2/m2 (p = 0.02). STE were observed in 25.5 % of the patients when the SMIndex was below the median value compared to 6.5 % of patients with a high SMIndex (p = 0.02). Conclusion Muscle mass is a critical predictor of severe toxicity events in phase I patients, suggesting that sarcopenia may be considered in assessing patients for eligibility of phase-1 studies.
Multi-domain evaluation framework for named entity recognition tools

Extracting structured information from unstructured text is important for the qualitative data analysis. D31X X Leveraging NLP techniques for qualitative data analysis will effectively accelerate the annotation process, allow for large-scale analysis and provide more insights into the text to improve the performance. The first step for gaining insights from the text is Named Entity Recognition (NER). A significant challenge that directly impacts the performance of the NER process is the domain diversity in qualitative data. The represented text varies according to its domain in many aspects including taxonomies, length, formality and format. In this paper we discuss and analyse the performance of state-of-the-art tools across domains to elaborate their robustness and reliability. In order to do that, we developed a standard, expandable and flexible framework to analyse and test tools performance using corpora representing text across various domains. We performed extensive analysis and comparison of tools across various domains and from various perspectives. The resulting comparison and analysis are of significant importance for providing a holistic illustration of the state-of-the-art tools. 2016 Published by Elsevier Ltd.
A comparison of spinal anesthesia with small-dose lidocaine and general anesthesia with fentanyl and propofol for ambulatory prostate biopsy procedures in elderly patients.

STUDY OBJECTIVE
To compare operating conditions, intraoperative adverse events, recovery profiles, postoperative adverse effects, patient satisfaction, and costs of small-dose lidocaine spinal anesthesia with those of general anesthesia using fentanyl and propofol for elderly outpatient prostate biopsy.


DESIGN
Prospective, randomized, blind study.


SETTING
Outpatient anesthesia unit at a municipal hospital.


PATIENTS
80 ASA physical status I and II patients, aged 65 to 80 years, scheduled for outpatient prostate biopsy.


INTERVENTIONS
Patients were assigned to receive either spinal anesthesia with 10 mg of hyperbaric 1% lidocaine (L group, n=40) or anesthetic induction with fentanyl 1 microg.kg-1 IV and 1.0 mg.kg-1 propofol injected at 90 mg.kg-1.h-1, followed by continuous infusion at 6 mg.kg-1.h-1 (F/P group, n=40).


MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS
Both anesthetic techniques provided acceptable operating conditions for the surgeon. However, a significantly higher frequency of intraoperative hypotension was found in the F/P group than in the L group (P<0.05). Time to home readiness was shorter in the F/P group (P<0.05). Both techniques had no major postoperative adverse effects and resulted in a high rate of patient satisfaction. Total costs were significantly lower in the L group than in the F/P group (P<0.01).


CONCLUSIONS
Spinal anesthesia with 10 mg of hyperbaric 1% lidocaine may be a more suitable alternative to general anesthesia with fentanyl and propofol for ambulatory elderly prostate biopsy in terms of safety and costs.
2017 Update of ESC/EAS Task Force on practical clinical guidance for proprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin type 9 inhibition in patients with atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease or in familial hypercholesterolaemia.

Department of Cardiology, Charite Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Berlin Institute of Health (BIH), German Center of Cardiovascular Research (DZHK), Hindenburgdamm 30, 12203 Berlin, Germany; National Institute for Health and Medical Research (INSERM), University of Pierre and Marie Curie, Pitié-Salpêtrière Hospital, Paris, France; European Atherosclerosis Society, Gothenburg, Sweden; Paris-Diderot-Sorbonne University and Department of Neurology and Stroke Centre, Bichat Hospital, Paris, France; Institute of Cardiovascular Research, Ninewells Hospital and Medical School, Dundee, UK; Department of Molecular and Clinical Medicine, University of Gothenburg and Sahlgrenska University Hospital, and Wallenberg Laboratory, Sahlgrenska University Hospital, Gothenburg, Sweden; Lipid Clinic, Point Medical, and Department of Cardiology, CHU DijonBourgogne, Dijon, France; Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, Division of Translational Research and Clinical Epidemiology, Wayne State University School of Medicine, Detroit, MI, USA; Department of Internal Medicine III, Martin-Luther-University Halle/Wittenberg, University Hospital, Halle/Saale, Germany; Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland; Julius Center for Health Sciences and Primary Care, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands; Department of Vascular Medicine, Academic Medical Center, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, the Netherlands; University Heart Center, Department of Cardiology, University Hospital Zurich, and Center for Molecular Cardiology, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland; Heart Failure Unit, Cardiac Department, G Da Saliceto Hospital, Piacenza, Italy; Imperial Centre for Cardiovascular Disease Prevention, Department of Primary Care and Public Health, School of Public Health, Imperial College, London, UK; Sahlgrenska University Hospital, Gothenburg, Sweden; Department of Cardiology, Swiss Cardiovascular Center Bern, Bern University Hospital, Bern, Switzerland; Department of Cardiology, University Hospital Ramón y Cajal, Madrid, Spain; Cardiology Department, CCUL, CAML, Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade de Lisboa, Portugal; Department of Cardiology, Hacettepe University, Ankara, Turkey; Department of Cardiology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, the Netherlands; and Department of Pharmacological and Biomolecular Sciences, University of Milan and Multimedica IRCSS Milano, Italy
Ultra wideband CPW bow-tie antenna

A novel UWB slot bow-tie antenna fed by CPW is proposed in this paper. This antenna has been demonstrated to provide a wideband with return loss less than −10 dB throughout the entire bands. The antenna has also omnidirectional radiation characteristics and reasonable gain values over the same frequency band.
Adult talk in the NICU with preterm infants and developmental outcomes.

OBJECTIVE
The goal of this study was to test the association of mean adult word counts at 32 and 36 weeks' postmenstrual age in the NICU with Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development, 3rd Edition (Bayley-III), cognitive and language scores. It was hypothesized that preterm infants exposed to higher word counts would have higher cognitive and language scores at 7 and 18 months' corrected age.


METHODS
This prospective cohort study included 36 preterm infants with a birth weight ≤1250 g. Sixteen-hour recordings were made in the NICU by using a digital language processor at 32 and 36 weeks' postmenstrual age. Regression analyses were performed on adult word count per hour, with Bayley-III measures correcting for birth weight.


RESULTS
Adult word counts in the NICU were positively correlated with 7- and 18-month Bayley-III scores. For the 32-week recording, in regression analyses adjusting for birth weight, adult word count per hour independently accounted for 12% of the variance in language composite scores (P = .04) and 20% of the variance in expressive communication scores at 18 months (P = .008). For the 36-week recording, adult word count per hour independently accounted for 26% of the variance in cognitive composite scores at 7 months (P = .0049).


CONCLUSIONS
Increased amount of parent talk with preterm infants in the NICU was associated with higher 7- and 18-month corrected age Bayley-III language and cognitive scores. These findings offer an opportunity for language intervention starting in the NICU.
A Secure Cyclic Steganographic Technique for Color Images using Randomization

There are five different types of steganography based on the carrier object that is used for embedding the secret information. The carrier object may be images, text, videos, audios or network protocol packets. If the image is used as a carrier, it is called image steganography. Similarly if video is used for hiding secret messages, we call it video steganography and so on[1, 5]. The diagrammatic representation of different types of steganography is shown in Fig. 1.The types of steganography are: a. Audio Steganography b. Image Steganography c. Video Steganography d. Text Steganography e. Network Steganography Fig. 1. Types of Steganography w.r.t carrier object 1.2 Types of Steganography w.r.t Key Exchange To make the steganographic algorithm more robust against different fraudulent behaviors, the idea of using secret key and public key was introduced. When secret key and public keys are used in steganography, a mechanism should be there via which these keys can be securely exchanged. Usually one or two keys are used in the process of steganography; public key that is used to embed secret information into the carrier object and secret or private key that has a mathematical relationship with public key and is used for extraction of secret data from stego object [6]. On the basis of exchange of keys, there are three types of steganography as shown in Fig. 2. 57 Abstract-Information Security is a major concern in today's modern era. Almost all the communicating bodies want the security, confidentiality and integrity of their personal data. But this security goal cannot be achieved easily when we are using an open network like Internet. Steganography provides one of the best solutions to this problem. This paper represents a new Cyclic Steganographic Technique (CST) based on Least Significant Bit (LSB) for true color (RGB) images. The proposed method hides the secret data in the LSBs of cover image pixels in a randomized cyclic manner. The proposed technique is evaluated using both subjective and objective analysis using histograms changeability, Peak Signal-to-Noise Ratio (PSNR) and Mean Square Error (MSE). Experimentally it is found that the proposed method gives promising results in terms of security, imperceptibility and robustness as compared to some existent methods and vindicates this new algorithm.
Randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial for evaluating the efficacy of fractional CO2 laser compared with topical estriol in the treatment of vaginal atrophy in postmenopausal women.

OBJECTIVE
The aim of the study was to evaluate efficacy of fractional CO2 vaginal laser treatment (Laser, L) and compare it to local estrogen therapy (Estriol, E) and the combination of both treatments (Laser + Estriol, LE) in the treatment of vulvovaginal atrophy (VVA).


METHODS
A total of 45 postmenopausal women meeting inclusion criteria were randomized in L, E, or LE groups. Assessments at baseline, 8 and 20 weeks, were conducted using Vaginal Health Index (VHI), Visual Analog Scale for VVA symptoms (dyspareunia, dryness, and burning), Female Sexual Function Index, and maturation value (MV) of Meisels.


RESULTS
Forty-five women were included and 3 women were lost to follow-up. VHI average score was significantly higher at weeks 8 and 20 in all study arms. At week 20, the LE arm also showed incremental improvement of VHI score (P = 0.01). L and LE groups showed a significant improvement of dyspareunia, burning, and dryness, and the E arm only of dryness (P < 0.001). LE group presented significant improvement of total Female Sex Function Index (FSFI) score (P = 0.02) and individual domains of pain, desire, and lubrication. In contrast, the L group showed significant worsening of pain domain in FSFI (P = 0.04), but FSFI total scores were comparable in all treatment arms at week 20.


CONCLUSIONS
CO2 vaginal laser alone or in combination with topical estriol is a good treatment option for VVA symptoms. Sexual-related pain with vaginal laser treatment might be of concern.
Contraceptive method switching in the United States.

CONTEXT
Switching among contraceptive method types is the primary determinant of the prevalence of use of specific contraceptive methods, and it has direct implications for women's ability to avoid unintended pregnancies. Yet, method switching among U.S. women has received little attention from researchers.


METHODS
Data from the 1995 National Survey of Family Growth were used to construct multiple-decrement life tables to explore the gross switching rates of married and unmarried women. Within each group, discrete-time hazard models were estimated to determine how women's characteristics affect their switching behavior.


RESULTS
Overall rates of method switching are high among both married and unmarried women (40% and 61%, respectively). Married women's two-year switching rates vary from 30% among women who use the implant, injectable, IUD or other reversible methods to 43% among nonusers, while unmarried women's rates vary from 33% among women who use the implant, injectable or IUD to 70% among nonusers. Multivariate analyses of method switching according to women's characteristics indicate that among married women, women without children are less likely than other women to adopt sterilization or a long-term reversible contraceptive (the implant, injectable or IUD). Older married women have a higher rate than their younger counterparts of switching to sterilization, but are also more likely to continue using no method. Among unmarried women, younger and more highly educated women have high rates of switching to the condom and to dual methods.


CONCLUSIONS
Women's method switching decisions may be driven primarily by concerns related to level and duration of contraceptive effectiveness, health risks associated with contraceptive use and, among single women, sexually transmitted disease prevention.
Helicobacter pylori Eradication Lowers Serum Asymmetric Dimethylarginine Levels

INTRODUCTION
Microbial pathogens, one of them is Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori), have frequently been implicated in the atherogenesis. Endothelium-derived nitric oxide (NO) is synthesized from L-arginine by nitric oxide synthase (NOS) and plays a pivotal role in the regulation of vascular tone. Asymmetric dimethylarginine (ADMA) is the most potent endogenous NOS inhibitor. Elevated levels of ADMA have been reported in many circumstances associated with a high cardiovascular risk. The aim of the present study was to investigate whether the eradication of H. pylori infection affects serum ADMA levels.


MATERIALS AND METHODS
Forty-two H. pylori-positive patients were enrolled in the study. Triple therapy for 14 days were given to all patients. Serum ADMA levels were measured at baseline and 2 months after therapy.


RESULTS
Eradication was achieved in 34 (81%) patients. The mean serum ADMA levels before and after therapy were 1, 77 ± 0, 30 and 1, 67 ± 0, 29 ng/mL in the group with H. pylori eradicated and 1, 63 ± 0, 28 and 1, 56 ± 0, 32 ng/mL in the noneradicated, respectively. We detected statistically significant decreased serum ADMA levels after therapy in H. pylori eradicated group.


CONCLUSION
These findings have indicated that eradication of H. pylori infection may decrease the risk of atherosclerosis and cardiovascular events.
Nearshore sandbar migration predicted by an eddy-diffusive boundary layer model

[1] We simulated the erosion and accretion of a natural beach using a wave-resolving eddy-diffusive model of water and suspended sediment motion in the bottom boundary layer. Nonlinear advection was included in this one-dimensional (vertical profile) model by assuming that waves propagated almost without change of form. Flows were forced by fluctuating pressure gradients chosen to reproduce the velocity time series measured during the Duck94 field experiment. The cross-shore flux of suspended sediment beneath each field-deployed current meter was estimated, and beach erosion (accretion) was calculated from the divergence (convergence) of this flux. Horizontal pressure forces on sediment particles were neglected. The model successfully predicted two bar migration events (one shoreward bar migration and one seaward) but failed to predict a third (seaward migration) event. Simulated seaward sediment transport was due to seaward mean currents. Simulated shoreward sediment transport was due to covariance between wave-frequency fluctuations in velocity and sediment concentration and was mostly confined to the wave boundary layer. Predicted seaward (shoreward) bar migration was driven by a maximum in the current-generated (wave-generated) flux over the sandbar. A wave-generated downward flux of shoreward momentum into the wave boundary layer contributed to shoreward sediment transport and often had a local maximum over the bar crest. Second-order nonlinear advection of sediment, mostly representing shoreward advection by the Stokes drift, also often had a local maximum over the bar crest. Together, wave-generated momentum fluxes and the Stokes drift substantially increased shoreward transport and were essential to predictions of shoreward bar migration.
A system for exploring open issues in VR-based education

Virtual Reality (VR) has been shown to be an effective way of teaching difficult concepts to students. However, a number of important questions related to immersion, collaboration and realism remain to be answered before truly efficient virtual learning environments can be designed. We present CyberMath, an avatar-based shared virtual environment for mathematics education that allows further study of these issues. In addition, CyberMath is easily integrated into school environments and can be used to teach a wide range of mathematical subjects. Figure 1. A CyberMath exhibition on focal surfaces.
ENVIRONMENTAL ACCOUNTING AS PERSPECTIVE FOR HOTEL SUSTAINABILITY : LITERATURE REVIEW

Purpose – Competitive environment and numerous stakeholders’ pressures are forcing hotels to comply their operations with the principles of sustainable development, especially in the field of environmental responsibility. Therefore, more and more of them incorporate environmental objectives in their business policies and strategies. The fulfilment of the environmental objectives requires the hotel to develop and implement environmentally sustainable business practices, as well as to implement reliable tools to assess environmental impact, of which environmental accounting and reporting are particularly emphasized. The purpose of this paper is to determine the development of hotel environmental accounting practices, based on previous research and literature review. Approach – This paper provides an overview of current research in the field of hotel environmental accounting and reporting, based on established knowledge about hotel environmental responsibility. The research has been done according to the review of articles in academic journals. Conclusions about the requirements for achieving hotel long-term sustainability have been drawn. Findings – Previous studies have shown that environmental accounting and reporting practice in hotel business is weaker when compared to other activities, and that most hotels still insufficiently use the abovementioned instruments of environmental management to reduce their environmental footprint and to improve their relationship with stakeholders. The paper draws conclusions about possible perspectives that environmental accounting has in ensuring hotel sustainability. Originality – The study provides insights into the problem of environmental responsibility of hotels, from the standpoint of environmental accounting and reporting, as tools for assessing hotel impact on the environment and for improving its environmentally sustainable business practice. The ideas for improving hotel environmental efficiency are shaped based on previous findings.
Option pricing with mean reversion and stochastic volatility

Many underlying assets of option contracts, such as currenc ies, ommodities, energy, temperature and even some stocks, exhibi t both mean reversion and stochastic volatility. This paper investigate s the valuation of options when the underlying asset follows a mean-reverting lo gnormal process with stochastic volatility. A closed-form solution is deri ved for European options by means of Fourier transform. The proposed model al lows the option pricing formula to capture both the term structure of fu tures prices and the market implied volatility smile within a unified framewo rk. A bivariate trinomial lattice approach is introduced to value path-dep endent options with the proposed model. Numerical examples using European opti ons, American options and barrier options demonstrate the use of the mo del and the quality of the numerical scheme.