LLukas22/scidocs huggingface dataset:
Sodium Alginate (Gaviscon®) does not reduce apnoeas related to gastro-oesophageal reflux in preterm infants.

BACKGROUND
Apnoea of prematurity (AOP) frequently recurs in preterm infants. We have previously shown that a significant but variable proportion of AOP is induced by gastro-oesophageal reflux (GOR).


AIM
The aim of this study is to evaluate the efficacy of sodium alginate in reducing the frequency of GOR-related AOP.


SUBJECTS
Twenty-eight preterm infants with AOP were studied by a six-hour recording of combined multichannel intraluminal impedance and pH monitoring and polysomnography, including two three-hour postprandial periods: sodium alginate was given after one single meal named as drug-given (DG) meal, while the other as drug-free (DF).


RESULTS
During 165h of registration, 715 apnoeas were recorded, 368 after-DG and 347 after-DF (p=.99); furthermore, 851 GOR episodes were detected, 315 after-DG and 536 after-DF (p=.001). No differences in the number of AOP were found between DG and DF. A significant reduction in the number of acid GORs and in acid exposure was found during DG, while the administration of sodium alginate didn't influence non-acid GOR indexes. The frequency of GOR-related apnoeas didn't differ between DG and DF.


DISCUSSION
Sodium alginate doesn't reduce the total number of AOP nor GOR-related apnoeas. On the other hand, it reduces acid GOR features, while it had no effect on non-acid GOR indexes.
The effect of t'ai chi exercise on autonomic nervous function of patients with coronary artery disease.

OBJECTIVE
The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of t'ai chi (TC) on heart rate variability (HRV) from baseline to 9 months in patients with coronary artery disease (CAD).


DESIGN
A comparative trial was undertaken comparing the acute and long-term effect of TC on HRV in patients with CAD.


PARTICIPANTS
Sixty-one (61) subjects with CAD undergoing percutaneous intervention or coronary bypass grafting for a period of more than 1 month were recruited from the clinics of cardiology and cardiovascular surgery at Chia-Yi Christian Hospital, Taiwan.


INTERVENTIONS
The experimental group (n = 22) practiced weekly 90-minute Yang's style TC for 9 months and the control group (n = 39) continued their normal daily physical activity.


MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES
HRV was recorded at baseline, 3 months, 6 months, and 9 months in the control group. Resting HRV was recorded before TC exercise and recovery HRV was recorded 30 minutes post TC at the same four time points in the experimental group.


RESULTS
The change in the normalized low-frequency power, normalized high-frequency power, and the low-/high-frequency power ratio between resting and post-TC was significantly different at 9 months when compared with those at baseline, 3, and 6 months. The mean difference in normalized low-frequency power and the low/high-frequency power ratio changed from positive values at baseline, 3, and 6 months to negative values at 9 months. However, there were no significant differences in resting HRV between the patients in TC and control groups in either time domain or frequency domain HRV indices.


CONCLUSIONS
The change in heart rate and HRV between resting and post-TC suggested that TC exercise could enhance vagal modulation. The potential beneficial effect of long-term regular TC exercise in patients with CAD merits further investigation.
Geochemical characteristics of naturally acid and alkaline saline lakes in southern Western Australia

Abundant shallow saline lakes on the Archean Yilgarn Craton in southern Western Australia exhibit a rare spectrum of geochemical conditions. Here the field geochemistry over three seasons (pH, salinity, and temperature), as well as major ions, trace elements, and H, O, and S stable isotopes of surface waters and shallow groundwaters from 59 ephemeral lakes in southern Western Australia (WA) are reported. Approximately 40% of the lakes and 84% of the measured groundwaters in WA are extremely acidic (pH < 4) and pHs are observed as low as 1.7. The salinity of lake waters and groundwaters ranges from rare freshwaters to common saline waters and brines with total dissolved solids >28%. The fluids are typically Na–Cl to Na–Mg–Cl–SO4 brines with variable yet locally high amounts of Ca, K, Al, Fe, Si, and Br. The acid brine fluid compositions are unusual. For example, in some fluids the amount of Al Ca, the amount of Br > K, and comparison of total S to SO 4 values suggest the presence of other uncommon S-bearing species. Trends in dO and dH illustrate the separation between surface lake water and shallow groundwaters, and indicate the contribution of meteoric waters to the lakes. The chemical and isotopic compositions of these fluids indicate a spatially and temporally dynamic, yet regionally consistent, history of brine evolution that is fundamentally different from most other terrestrial closed basin brines. The WA lake brines do not evolve from surface evaporation of dilute inflow waters, but rather are fed by highly evolved regionally acid saline groundwaters. The lake waters then diversify with locally varying surface and near-surface processes such as meteoric dilution by flooding, evapoconcentration, mineral precipitation and dissolution, and fluid mixing. The WA lake waters and groundwaters are somewhat similar to those in an entirely different geologic setting in northeastern Victoria, illustrating the potential for different geochemical pathways to lead to the formation of similar lacustrine acid brines. Although these types of environments are rare in modern settings, ancient ephemeral acid saline lake deposits have been recognized in the geologic record on Earth and on Mars, indicating that natural evolution of acid saline waters may be more ubiquitous than previously recognized. 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
A hybrid evolutionary dynamic neural network for stock market trend analysis and prediction using unscented Kalman filter

Dynamic neural network (DNN) models provide an excellent means for forecasting and prediction of nonstationary time series. A neural network architecture, known as locally recurrent neural network ((LRNN) [71], is preferred to the traditional multilayer perceptron (MLP) because the time varying nature of a stock time series can be better represented using LRNN. The use of LRNN has demonstrated superiority in comparison to the widely used neural networks like the multilayered perceptron (MLP) network, radial basis function (RBF) neural network, and wavelet neural networks (WNN), etc. in predicting highly fluctuating time series databases like electrical load, electricity price, and financial markets.
Active video games to promote physical activity in children and youth: a systematic review.

OBJECTIVES
To systematically review levels of metabolic expenditure and changes in activity patterns associated with active video game (AVG) play in children and to provide directions for future research efforts.


DATA SOURCES
A review of the English-language literature (January 1, 1998, to January 1, 2010) via ISI Web of Knowledge, PubMed, and Scholars Portal using the following keywords: video game, exergame, physical activity, fitness, exercise, energy metabolism, energy expenditure, heart rate, disability, injury, musculoskeletal, enjoyment, adherence, and motivation.


STUDY SELECTION
Only studies involving youth (< or = 21 years) and reporting measures of energy expenditure, activity patterns, physiological risks and benefits, and enjoyment and motivation associated with mainstream AVGs were included. Eighteen studies met the inclusion criteria. Articles were reviewed and data were extracted and synthesized by 2 independent reviewers. MAIN OUTCOME EXPOSURES: Energy expenditure during AVG play compared with rest (12 studies) and activity associated with AVG exposure (6 studies).


MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES
Percentage increase in energy expenditure and heart rate (from rest).


RESULTS
Activity levels during AVG play were highly variable, with mean (SD) percentage increases of 222% (100%) in energy expenditure and 64% (20%) in heart rate. Energy expenditure was significantly lower for games played primarily through upper body movements compared with those that engaged the lower body (difference, -148%; 95% confidence interval, -231% to -66%; P = .001).


CONCLUSIONS
The AVGs enable light to moderate physical activity. Limited evidence is available to draw conclusions on the long-term efficacy of AVGs for physical activity promotion.
Integrating Physical Constraints in Statistical Inference by 11-Month-Old Infants

Much research on cognitive development focuses either on early-emerging domain-specific knowledge or domain-general learning mechanisms. However, little research examines how these sources of knowledge interact. Previous research suggests that young infants can make inferences from samples to populations (Xu & Garcia, 2008) and 11- to 12.5-month-old infants can integrate psychological and physical knowledge in probabilistic reasoning (Teglas, Girotto, Gonzalez, & Bonatti, 2007; Xu & Denison, 2009). Here, we ask whether infants can integrate a physical constraint of immobility into a statistical inference mechanism. Results from three experiments suggest that, first, infants were able to use domain-specific knowledge to override statistical information, reasoning that sometimes a physical constraint is more informative than probabilistic information. Second, we provide the first evidence that infants are capable of applying domain-specific knowledge in probabilistic reasoning by using a physical constraint to exclude one set of objects while computing probabilities over the remaining sets.
An American in Zurich: Jerry Schnoor as an Ambassador for U.S. Environmental Science and Engineering.

Reference EPFL-ARTICLE-221712doi:10.1021/acs.est.5b06233View record in Web of Science Record created on 2016-10-18, modified on 2016-11-02
Trade Costs and Gravity for Gross and Value Added Trade ∗

Cross-border production fragmentation enables countries to export domestic value added not only directly in the form of gross exports of final goods, but also indirectly by participating in global supply chains. This paper studies the determinants of trade in value added. I incorporate the global input-output structure into an international trade model to derive an approximate gravity equation for bilateral value added exports. I quantify the effects of trade costs using the dataset constructed in Johnson and Noguera (2012), covering 42 countries over 1970-2009. I show that the bilateral trade cost elasticity of value added exports is about two-thirds of that for gross exports. Moreover, bilateral value added exports depend not only on bilateral trade costs but also on trade costs with third countries through which value added transits en route from source to destination. I show that the relative importance of these indirect effects varies significantly across countries and types of trade costs, and has increased over time alongside the rise in production fragmentation. ∗I am grateful to Donald Davis, Pierre-Olivier Gourinchas, Rob Johnson, Amit Khandelwal, Maury Obstfeld, Andrés Rodŕıguez-Clare, Jonathan Rose, Jonathan Vogel, Shang-Jin Wei, and David Weinstein for helpful discussions and comments. †Email: gnoguera@columbia.edu.
Gender differences in IgE-mediated allergic asthma in the epidemiology and natural history of asthma: Outcomes and Treatment Regimens (TENOR) study.

BACKGROUND
The TENOR study consists of a large cohort of subjects with severe or difficult-to-treat asthma. The objective of this analysis was to evaluate demographic and clinical characteristics of subjects 12 years of age or older with immunoglobulin E (IgE)-mediated allergic asthma (skin test positive with an IgE level = 30 to =700 IU/mL), and specifically, to assess gender differences in this cohort.


METHODS
A total of 4,756 subjects were enrolled by 283 US study sites between January and October 2001. Of those subjects 12 years or older at baseline with an IgE measure and who were skin tested (n = 2,843), 1,783 (63%) were skin test positive and had an IgE level between = 30 to = 700 IU/mL.


RESULTS
Compared to males, females reported significantly greater healthcare utilization (steroid bursts in previous 3 months: 50% vs 42%, p < 0.001; unscheduled office visits in previous 3 months: 50% vs 36%, p < 0.0001; missed 1+ days of work/school in previous 2 weeks: 14% vs 10%, p < 0.01). Females also reported significantly more asthma control problems and lower asthma-related quality of life (4.6 +/- 1.3 vs 5.2 +/- 1.2; p < 0.0001); the difference was clinically meaningful. Asthma triggers and allergic comorbidities, such as allergic rhinitis and atopic dermatitis, were more common in female subjects. Despite their overall worse health outcomes, female subjects demonstrated better lung function, had similar treatment patterns, and showed no differences in physician-assessed asthma severity when compared with males.


CONCLUSIONS
The reasons for these gender differences in subjects with IgE-mediated allergic asthma are complex, but results from this analysis suggest that detailed evaluations of asthma patients, including symptom-related questions and asthma-related healthcare utilization, are needed to accurately assess asthma severity and control.
Permanent hypopigmentation after triamcinolone injection for tennis elbow

A 52-year-old Latino male without significant medical history reported 1 month of left lateral elbow pain that worsened with repetitive movement of his wrist. He was diagnosed with lateral epicondylitis (tennis elbow) and initially treated with non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and rest. Due to lack of improvement, he received a local triamcinolone injection with symptoms relieved after a few days. Approximately 6 weeks after the procedure, he noticed discoloration of the skin in the treated area (see image); at this time, this hypopigmentation has remained unchanged for 2 years (Fig. 1). Injection of inflamed joints and soft tissues is a very common practice in the primary care office and is preferred over oral therapy due to high local efficacy and less systemic side effects. Among reported side effects, dermatological conditions are infrequent but can include irritation, perilymphatic atrophy, soft tissue calcification, sterile abscess, ecchymosis, allergic rash, and transitory or permanent hypopigmentation (1). Previously, case reports have documented local skin hypopigmentation after intralesional or intraarticular injection of steroids in different sites (2, 3). Hypopigmentation usually develops after a few weeks and, in the majority of cases, resolves after a few months (3, 4). The exact mechanism that causes this type of lesion is unknown, but a previous report indicated that melanocytes are intact, so it has been theorized that steroids potentially impair some of the functions of these cells (4, 5). The reports are more frequently in dark-skinned individuals and can present with a linear pattern due to possible lymphogenous or vascular spread of the corticosteroid (6). Triamcinolone is one of the preferred steroids for these injections due to specific pharmacologic properties that increase the duration of action. However, as a macromolecule with suspended crystals, it can spread along lymphatic channels in the superficial skin tissues and has been noted to cause hypopigmentation more frequently than other commonly used steroids, such as methylprednisolone and hydrocortisone (7, 8).
Hyperbolicity is dense in the real quadratic family

It is shown that for non-hyperbolic real quadratic polynomials topological and qua-sisymmetric conjugacy classes are the same. By quasiconformal rigidity, each class has only one representative in the quadratic family, which proves that hyperbolic maps are dense. Statement of the results. Dense Hyperbolicity Theorem In the real quadratic family f a (x) = ax(1 − x) , 0 < a ≤ 4 the mapping f a has an attracting cycle, and thus is hyperbolic on its Julia set, for an open and dense set of parameters a. What we actually prove is this: Main Theorem Let f andˆf be two real quadratic polynomials with a bounded forward critical orbit and no attracting or indifferent cycles. Then, if they are topologically conjugate, the conjugacy extends to a quasiconformal conjugacy between their analytic continuations to the complex plane. Derivation of the Dense Hyperbolicity Theorem. We show that the Main Theorem implies the Dense Hyperbolicity Theorem. Quasiconformal conjugacy classes of normalized complex quadratic polynomials are known to be either points or open (see [21].) We remind the reader, see [25], that the kneading sequence is aperiodic for a real quadratic polynomial precisely when this polynomial has no attracting or indifferent periodic orbits. Therefore, by the Main Theorem, topological conjugacy classes of real quadratic polynomials with aperiodic kneading sequences are either points or open in the space of real parameters a. On the other hand, it is an elementary observation that the set of polynomials with the same aperiodic kneading sequence in the real quadratic family is also closed. So, for every aperiodic kneading sequence there is at most one polynomial in the real quadratic family with this kneading sequence. Next, between two parameter values a 1 and a 2 for which different kneading sequences occur, there is a parameter a so that f a has a periodic kneading sequence. So, the only way the Dense Hyperbolicity Theorem could fail is if there were an interval filled with polynomials without attracting periodic orbits and yet with periodic kneading sequences. Such polynomials would all have to be parabolic (have indifferent periodic orbits). It well-known, however, by the work of [6], that there are only countably many such polynomials. The Dense Hyperbolicity Theorem follows. Consequences of the theorems. The Dense Hyperbolicity Conjecture had a long history. In a paper from 1920, see [7], Fatou expressed the belief that " general " (generic in today's language?) rational …
Naturally occurring nanoparticles from English ivy: an alternative to metal-based nanoparticles for UV protection

BACKGROUND
Over the last decade safety concerns have arisen about the use of metal-based nanoparticles in the cosmetics field. Metal-based nanoparticles have been linked to both environmental and animal toxicity in a variety of studies. Perhaps the greatest concern involves the large amounts of TiO2 nanoparticles that are used in commercial sunscreens. As an alternative to using these potentially hazardous metal-based nanoparticles, we have isolated organic nanoparticles from English ivy (Hedera helix). In this study, ivy nanoparticles were evaluated for their potential use in sunscreens based on four criteria: 1) ability to absorb and scatter ultraviolet light, 2) toxicity to mammalian cells, 3) biodegradability, and 4) potential for diffusion through skin.


RESULTS
Purified ivy nanoparticles were first tested for their UV protective effects using a standard spectrophotometric assay. Next the cell toxicity of the ivy nanoparticles was compared to TiO2 nanoparticles using HeLa cells. The biodegradability of these nanoparticles was also determined through several digestion techniques. Finally, a mathematical model was developed to determine the potential for ivy nanoparticles to penetrate through human skin. The results indicated that the ivy nanoparticles were more efficient in blocking UV light, less toxic to mammalian cells, easily biodegradable, and had a limited potential to penetrate through human skin. When compared to TiO2 nanoparticles, the ivy nanoparticles showed decreased cell toxicity, and were easily degradable, indicating that they provided a safer alternative to these nanoparticles.


CONCLUSIONS
With the data collected from this study, we have demonstrated the great potential of ivy nanoparticles as a sunscreen protective agent, and their increased safety over commonly used metal oxide nanoparticles.
Nasopharyngeal cysts.

INTRODUCTION
Nasopharyngeal cysts are uncommon, and are mostly asymptomatic. However, these lesions are infrequently found during routine endoscopies and imaging studies. In even more rare cases, they may be the source for unexplained sinonasal symptoms, such as CSF rhinorrhea, visual disturbances and nasal obstruction.


PURPOSE OF REVIEW
This presentation systematically reviews the different nasopharyngeal cysts encountered in children, emphasizing the current knowledge on pathophysiology, recent advances in molecular biology and prenatal diagnosis, clinical presentation, imaging and treatment options.


SUMMARY
With the advent of flexible and rigid fiber-optic technology and modern imaging techniques, and in particularly prenatal diagnostic techniques, nasopharyngeal cysts recognition is more common than previous times and requires an appropriate consideration. Familiarity with these lesions is essential for the pediatric otolaryngologist.
The effects of the Mulligan Sustained Natural Apophyseal Glide (SNAG) mobilisation in the lumbar flexion range of asymptomatic subjects as measured by the Zebris CMS20 3-D motion analysis system

BACKGROUND
Mulligan's mobilisation techniques are thought to increase the range of movement (ROM) in patients with low back pain. The primary aim of this study was to investigate the application of the Mulligan's Sustained Natural Apophyseal Glide (SNAG) technique on lumbar flexion ROM. The secondary aim was to measure the intra- and inter-day reliability of lumbar ROM employing the same procedure.


METHODS
49 asymptomatic volunteers participated in this double-blinded study. Subjects were randomly assigned to receive either SNAG mobilisation (n = 25), or a sham mobilisation (n = 24). The SNAG technique was applied at the L3and L4 spinal levels with active flexion in sitting by an experienced manual therapist. Three sets of 10 repetitions at each of the two spinal levels were performed. The sham mobilisation was similar to the SNAG but did not apply the appropriate direction or force. Lumbar ROM was measured by a three dimensional electronic goniometer (Zebris CMS20), before and after each technique. For the reliability, five measurements in two different days (one week apart) were performed in 20 healthy subjects.


RESULTS
When both interventions were compared, independent t tests yielded no statistically significant results in ROM between groups (p = 0.673). Furthermore no significant within group differences were observed: SNAG (p = 0.842), sham (p = 0.169). Intra- and inter-day reliability of flexion measurements was high (ICC(1,1) > 0.82, SEM < 4.0 degrees , SDD<16.3%) indicating acceptable clinical applicability.


CONCLUSION
While the Zebris proved to be a reliable device for measuring lumbar flexion ROM, SNAG mobilisation did not demonstrate significant differences in flexion ROM when compared to sham mobilisation.


TRIAL REGISTRATION
Current Controlled Trials NCT00678093.
Long-term outcomes of the Ajust® Adjustable Single-Incision Sling for the treatment of stress urinary incontinence

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness and overall safety of the Ajust® Adjustable Single-Incision Sling in the treatment of female stress urinary incontinence. This was a prospective, multicenter study conducted in women diagnosed with stress urinary incontinence. The Ajust® Sling was implanted and patients were followed postoperatively for up to 29 months. Evaluations were performed to assess postoperative rate of continence, complications, and patient quality of life (QOL). From November 2008 through May 2009, 52 patients were enrolled and underwent a procedure to implant the Ajust® Sling. Overall, 86.3 % of the patients who successfully received the Ajust® Sling demonstrated total restoration or improvement of continence at the last study visit. QOL scores related to global bladder feeling and lifestyle improved. Only one patient reported the occurrence of mild pain which resolved without treatment or sequelae. In long-term follow-up, the Ajust® Sling was safe and effective, restoring or improving continence in 86.3 % of patients.