Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
National Rules for Drug–Drug Interactions: Are They Appropriate for Tertiary Hospitals?

The application of appropriate rules for drug–drug interactions (DDIs) could substantially reduce the number of adverse drug events. However, current implementations of such rules in tertiary hospitals are problematic as physicians are receiving too many alerts, causing high override rates and alert fatigue. We investigated the potential impact of Korean national DDI rules in a drug utilization review program in terms of their severity coverage and the clinical efficiency of how physicians respond to them. Using lists of high-priority DDIs developed with the support of the U.S. government, we evaluated 706 contraindicated DDI pairs released in May 2015. We evaluated clinical log data from one tertiary hospital and prescription data from two other tertiary hospitals. The measured parameters were national DDI rule coverage for high-priority DDIs, alert override rate, and number of prescription pairs. The coverage rates of national DDI rules were 80% and 3.0% at the class and drug levels, respectively. The analysis of the system log data showed an overall override rate of 79.6%. Only 0.3% of all of the alerts (n = 66) were high-priority DDI rules. These showed a lower override rate of 51.5%, which was much lower than for the overall DDI rules. We also found 342 and 80 unmatched high-priority DDI pairs which were absent in national rules in inpatient orders from the other two hospitals. The national DDI rules are not complete in terms of their coverage of severe DDIs. They also lack clinical efficiency in tertiary settings, suggesting improved systematic approaches are needed.
Emerging use of combination therapies for the management of type 2 diabetes – focus on saxagliptin and dapagliflozin

Aims The aim of this article is to review the safety and efficacy data of dapagliflozin, saxagliptin, and their combination in the management of patients with type 2 diabetes. Evidence for the use of the single-tablet combination formulation is also presented. Methods A nonsystematic literature review was performed using the Ovid, PubMed, and Google Scholar databases. Results The addition of dapagliflozin/saxagliptin to metformin can lower mean hemoglobin A1c by as much as 1.47% and lead to weight loss of 0.5–2.0 kg. The risk of genital infections with combination therapy is lower than observed with dapagliflozin alone, suggestive of a protective effect. Adverse event risk at 52-week follow-up was not increased beyond that seen with either monotherapy. Conclusion Dapagliflozin/saxagliptin combination is generally well tolerated and is an effective tool in helping patients with diabetes improve glycemic control.
Examining perceptions of academic stress and its sources among university students: The Perception of Academic Stress Scale

The development of a scale to measure perceived sources of academic stress among university students. Based on empirical evidence and recent literature review, we developed an 18-item scale to measure perceptions of academic stress and its sources. Experts (n = 12) participated in the content validation process of the instrument before it was administered to (n = 100) students. The developed instrument has internal consistency reliability of 0.7 (Cronbach’s alpha), there was evidence for content validity, and factor analysis resulted in four correlated and theoretically meaningful factors. We developed and tested a scale to measure academic stress and its sources. This scale takes 5 minutes to complete.
Human Capital for a Planned Economy Relations of Correspondence and Unintended Consequences in the Higher Education of Communist Romania

Abstract: Our main purpose was to look into the correspondence relation between the macro-level normative planning within higher education (implemented by the Romanian communist state) and the de facto micro-level occupational mobility of higher education graduates. We unraveled a consistent lack of correspondence between higher education graduates’ flows and economic production, split on different areas (i.e. industry, agriculture, services). In this light, the production of services significantly increased during communism, given an insignificant oscillation in the number of specialists in services, and in spite of the state’s priority to support industrial production by sustaining large numbers of technical higher education graduates. Identifying time series data on education, population and economy, we explored trends from cross national (i.e. Romania in the context of the Eastern Communist Block) and cross topic (i.e. education, demography and economy) perspectives. We used regression equations to estimate linear trends, the Dickey-Fuller test for stationary checking, and the original stationary variable differencing for oscillation comparative purposes. Our main finding was that the inflation of technical higher education graduates, triggered by the Romanian communist state to support the industry, backfired an informal individual occupational mobility towards urban areas that offered jobs in the service sector.
Neurological manifestations of hypothyroidism: a retrospective study of 29 dogs.

Neuromuscular signs in association with hypothyroidism are described in 29 dogs. Eleven dogs had lower motor neuron signs, 9 had peripheral vestibular deficits, 4 had megaesophagus, and 5 had laryngeal paralysis. Primarily older (mean = 9.5 years), large-breed dogs were affected, and there was no sex or breed predisposition. Duration of clinical signs before presentation ranged from 2 to 8 weeks (mean = 5 weeks). The diagnosis was based on (1) results of neurological examination (29 dogs); (2) electromyographic abnormalities (18 dogs), including fibrillation potentials (n = 18), positive sharp waves (n = 15), and complex repetitive discharges (n = 4); (3) high serum cholesterol concentration (10 dogs; mean = 335 mg/dL); (4) low response to thyroid-stimulating hormone (29 dogs; mean T4 prestimulation concentration = 0.8 micrograms/dL; mean T4 poststimulation = 1.2 microgram/dL); and (5) good response to thyroxine supplementation (26 dogs). Dogs with vestibular deficits had abnormal brainstem auditory-evoked responses (BAER), including increased latencies of P1-P6 and decreased amplitude of P4,5-N5. Seven other dogs had similar BAER abnormalities without manifesting clinical signs of vestibular involvement. Three dogs with vestibular signs had fibrillation potentials and positive sharp waves without exhibiting lower motor neuron signs. All dogs were supplemented with levothyroxine (0.02 mg/kg PO bid). The follow-up period ranged between 6 and 30 months (mean, 14 months). Serum T4 concentrations were measured at least 3 times for each dog every 2 months (mean T4 concentration = 2.6 micrograms/dL). All but 1 dog with lower motor neuron signs and 1 dog with vestibular signs recovered after 2 months (mean, 57 days). (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Azorhizobium caulinodans PIIand GlnK Proteins Control Nitrogen Fixation and Ammonia Assimilation

ABSTRACT We herein report that Azorhizobium caulinodansPII and GlnK are not necessary for glutamine synthetase (GS) adenylylation whereas both proteins are required for complete GS deadenylylation. The disruption of both glnB andglnK resulted in a high level of GS adenylylation under the condition of nitrogen fixation, leading to ammonium excretion in the free-living state. PII and GlnK also controllednif gene expression because NifA activated nifHtranscription and nitrogenase activity was derepressed in glnB glnK double mutants, but not in wild-type bacteria, grown in the presence of ammonia.
Tamoxifen Resistant Breast Cancer and Autophagy

1.1 Tamoxifen for the treatment of breast cancer Tamoxifen was originally developed with the hope of becoming a “morning after” contraceptive. During the 1960s, studies showed that tamoxifen and other anti-estrogens have a profound impact on the fertility of laboratory rats and it was believed that tamoxifen could elicit the same effects in humans. Coincidently, in humans, anti-estrogens were found to improve fertility by inducing ovulation (Jordan, 2006). The use of tamoxifen for the treatment of breast cancer became apparent when early in vitro and in vivo studies found that tamoxifen inhibited estradiol (E2) binding to estrogen receptors (ERs) in breast tissue (Jordan, 1976; Jordan & Dowse, 1976; Jordan & Koerner, 1975; Nicholson & Golder, 1975). The inhibition of ERs proved to be a significant finding as the estrogen-stimulated growth and the ovarian dependence of some breast cancers had been known since the later part of the eighteenth century (Beatson, 1896). Prior to the 1970s, and the successful development of drug-based endocrine therapies, attempts to reduce estrogen-stimulated growth of breast cancer include the surgical removal of the ovaries and/or pituitary and adrenal glands (Kennedy, 1965). Unfortunately, for years it was not known which breast tumors would respond favorably to ablative surgery, where only 30% of patients would receive a benefit (Jensen et al., 1971; Kennedy, 1965). By examining proteins from breast tumor biopsies, Jensen et al. (1971) showed that if the estrogen receptor is present, tumors will respond to ablative surgical treatment, but if absent, the tumors fail to respond. Fortunately today, endocrine-based surgical procedures for breast cancer are not necessary for most women as drug-based endocrine therapies have advanced with the use of estrogen antagonists and aromatase inhibitors. Estrogen antagonists, such as tamoxifen or fulvestrant competitively inhibit estrogen binding to ERs. Aromatase inhibitors prevent estrogen production, by inhibiting the aromatase class of enzymes, impeding the conversion of androgens to estrogens and thus reducing the bioavailability of estrogen hormones (Jordan, 1994; Mokbel, 2002). Currently tamoxifen is typically used as an adjuvant treatment option for early and advanced ER-positive (ER+) breast cancer in preand post-menopausal women (Jordan, 1994). Adjuvant treatment with tamoxifen, has significantly improved disease-free survival and reduced the number of deaths from breast cancer (Early Breast Cancer Trialists' Collaborative, 2005). Tamoxifen may also be used in the neoadjuvant setting and as a
The long-term course of the schizophrenic psychoses

SYSNOPSIS Results of studies of a large number of long-standing schizophrenic illnesses are discussed. On an average, schizophrenia showed no further change for the worse after a duration of five years, but rather a tendency to improve. The success and limitations of modern therapy were statistically determined. Many recovered schizophrenics continued to do well even without medication and social care. As a rule, schizophrenics had no endocrine pathology and endocrine patients were not schizophrenic. Neither a broken home in childhood nor an upbringing by a schizophrenic parent resulted in any important association with schizophrenia. However, a disturbed relationship with relatives and loved persons was more frequent in the anamnesis of schizophrenic women than of schizophrenic men. Most schizophrenics who had been schizoid before their psychosis had lived in miserable familial conditions.
Retention of a resin-based sealant and a glass ionomer used as a fissure sealant in children with special needs

Objectives: The aim of this research is to evaluate the retention of sealants of resin and resin-modified ionomeric glass pits and fissures, on first permanent molars of special patients. Material and Methods: The sample was comprised by 32 children. The ages were between 7 and 18 years. The sealing procedure was made with the relative isolation of the molars to be sealed, through the use of cotton rolls. Two molars were sealed with Clinpro Sealant 3M Dental and the others with Vitremer. Checking of the sealants was made after 3 and 6 months of their placement, evaluating with 3 values: TR: Totally Restrained; PR: Partially Restrained; and CL: Completely Lost. Results: 67.18% of the resinous sealants, and 70.31% of the glass ionomer sealants were successful after three months. After six months, 57.81% of the resin-based sealants and 51.56% of the glass ionomer sealants were successful. When performing the Chi-square statistical analysis (P<0.05) no statistical significance was observed after 6 months. Conclusions: The retention of the resin sealant was similar to that of the glass ionomer cement at the end of six months and the retention of sealants on maxillary teeth was higher than on mandibular teeth. Key words:Sealant, glass ionomer, retention, caries, special needs.
Rapid shifts in plant distribution with recent climate change

A change in climate would be expected to shift plant distribution as species expand in newly favorable areas and decline in increasingly hostile locations. We compared surveys of plant cover that were made in 1977 and 2006–2007 along a 2,314-m elevation gradient in Southern California's Santa Rosa Mountains. Southern California's climate warmed at the surface, the precipitation variability increased, and the amount of snow decreased during the 30-year period preceding the second survey. We found that the average elevation of the dominant plant species rose by ≈65 m between the surveys. This shift cannot be attributed to changes in air pollution or fire frequency and appears to be a consequence of changes in regional climate.
A linear time algorithm for optimal tree sibling partitioning and approximation algorithms in Natix

Document insertion into a native XML Data Store (XDS) requires to partition the document tree into a number of storage units with limited capacity, such as records on disk pages. As intra partition navigation is much faster than navigation between partitions, minimizing the number of partitions has a beneficial effect on query performance.We present a linear time algorithm to optimally partition an ordered, labeled, weighted tree such that each partition does not exceed a fixed weight limit. Whereas traditionally tree partitioning algorithms only allow child nodes to share a partition with their parent node (i.e. a partition corresponds to a subtree), our algorithm also considers partitions containing several subtrees as long as their roots are adjacent siblings. We call this sibling partitioning.Based on our study of the optimal algorithm, we further introduce two novel, near-optimal heuristics. They are easier to implement, do not need to hold the whole document instance in memory, and require much less runtime than the optimal algorithm.Finally, we provide an experimental study comparing our novel and existing algorithms. One important finding is that compared to partitioning that exclusively considers parent-child partitions, including sibling partitioning as well can decrease the total number of partitions by more than 90%, and improve query performance by more than a factor of two.
Multi-biometric continuous authentication: A trust model for an asynchronous system

Biometric technologies are used to grant specific users access to services and data. The access control is usually performed at the start of a session that spans over a period of time. Continuous authentication aims at insuring the identity of the user over this period of time, and not only at its start. Multi-biometrics aims at increasing the accuracy, robustness and usability of biometrics systems. This work presents a multi-biometric continuous authentication solution that includes information from the face images and the keystroke dynamics of the user. A database representing a realistic scenario was collected to develop and evaluate the presented solution. A multi-biometric trust model was designed to cope with the asynchronous nature induced by the different biometric characteristics. A set of performance metrics are discussed and a comparison is presented between the performances of the single characteristic solutions and the fused solution.
Motivated to Seek Help: Masculine Norms and Self-Regulated Motivation in Self-Help Groups

Endorsement of masculine norms has been identified as a factor contributing to men’s lower rates of seeking professional help for physical and emotional distress, compared with women. To better understand the mechanisms for men’s help seeking, in the present study, we applied the framework of self-determination theory (SDT), a theory of development and motivation, (Ryan & Deci, 2000b) to the domain of self-help groups (SHGs). To the SDT framework, we incorporated endorsement of the masculine norms for self-reliance and emotional control as predictors of motivation for help seeking. Data came from surveys completed by 160 attendees of SHGs hosted by the Self-Help and Recovery Exchange (SHARE! ) of Los Angeles County. Structural equation analysis supported a model illuminating the links between endorsement of self-reliance and emotional control, autonomous self-regulation for help seeking, fulfillment of basic psychological needs, and well-being in the domain of SHGs.
A Method for Collaborative Argumentation in Merging Individual Ontologies

This paper proposes a framework of the negotiation process for solving divergences in the collaborative ontology development. Such framework is obtained through the use of philosophical principles deriving from the theories of essence, identity, unity and dependence (preconized by the OntoClean methodology) as to justify part of the argumentation used in the negotiation process among the participants, besides helping reach a consensus and reduce the conceptual gap among models. The evaluation of the experiments conducted with the use of the proposed method suggests the feasibility and implementability of our approach in practice.
Behaviour of the Contact Phase of Blood Coagulation in the Adult Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS)

Summary In order to assess the role of the kallikrein-kinin (K-K) system in the pathogenesis of the adult respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) we have prospectively determined coagulation contact phase, blood gas and hemodynamic parameters in patients with ARDS at 0, 36 and 72 h from diagnosis. Compared to normal values, significantly lower mean levels of factor XII (71.4 ± 9.8%, p <0.0005), prekallikrein (PPK) (52 ± 5.7%, p <0.0005), high molecular weight kininogen (HMWK) (73 ± 2%, p <0.0005) and α2-macroglobulin (α2-M) (51 ± 7.1%, p <0.0005) were found in ARDS patients. The functional kallikrein inhibitory activity (KKI) and Cr esterase inhibitor antigenic (CIINH) were significantly higher in these patients (113.2 ± 5, p <0.005 and 124.7 ± 7.6, p <0.0005 respectively) compared with normal values during the entire study period. The KKI/CIINH ratio decreased significantly in our ARDS patients at 0, 36 and 72 h (p <0.025; p <0.05 and p <0.005 respectively). We found a significant correlation between PPK levels and oxigenation index (r = 0.69, p <0.001), PPK and the static thoracic compliance values (r = 0.64, p <0.001). There was also a significant correlation between PPK levels and Qs/Qt (r = -0.89, p <0.001). ARDS patients that survived presented a stability in the PPK values in successive tests. Nevertheless non-survivors showed a progressive decrease in PPK levels during the follow-up period. Our results suggest that the plasma kallikrein system becomes activated during ARDS and that this activation might increase the lung vessels’ permeability. In addition, PPK levels are in our opinion a useful prognostic parameter in predicting the outcome of ARDS patients.
Edge Weighted Spatio-Temporal Search for Error Concealment

In temporal error concealment (EC), the sum of absolute difference (SAD) is commonly used to identify the best replacement macroblock. Even though the use of SAD ensures spatial continuity and produces visually good results, it is insufficient to ensure edge alignment. Other distortion criteria based solely on structural alignment may also perform poorly in the absence of strong edges. In this paper, we propose a spatio-temporal EC search algorithm using an edge weighted SAD distortion criterion. This distortion criterion ensures both edge alignment and spatial continuity. We assume the loss of motion information and use zero motion vector as the starting search point. We show that the proposed algorithm outperforms the use of unweighted SAD in general. Most importantly, the perceptual quality of EC is improved due to edge alignment while ensuring spatial continuity.
Computational cost analysis and implementation of accelerated iterative shrinkage smoothing

In this paper, we present a computational cost analysis result of accelerated iterative shrinkage smoothing algorithm, which is one of promising image smoothing algorithms with sufficient smoothing quality results and reduced processing time. The main motivation of this cost analysis is to provide a base for efficient hardware implementation. We implemented it in a lower-level programming language with OpenCV library as opposed to the MATLAB implementation. The resolution dependency of the processing time is also illustrated.
Effects of Common Antitussive Drugs on the hERG Potassium Channel Current

A common over-the-counter (OTC) non-opioid antitussive drug, clobutinol, was recently withdrawn from the market due to its potential to induce cardiac arrhythmias by a blockade of the potassium channel coded by the human ether-à-go-go-related gene (hERG). In this study, we investigated the effects of a number of antitussive compounds on the hERG ion channel current using patch-clamp electrophysiology, and compared the effects to that of clobutinol. The compounds clobutinol, pentoxyverine, dextromethorphan, and codeine inhibited the outward current in hERG transfected cells with half-maximal inhibition concentrations (IC50) of 1.9 μM, 3.0 μM, 5.1 μM, and 97 μM, respectively. For theobromine, no significant effect on the hERG current at a concentration up to 100 μM was detected. Safety margins between the effects of the drugs on the hERG ion channel current and their calculated maximal free therapeutic plasma concentration were calculated. These results were compared to assess potential risks of the compounds to induce torsade de pointes-type arrhythmias.
The Relation Between Electromyographic Measurements and Subjective Reports of Muscular Relaxation

&NA; Electromyogram tracings of the flexor and extensor muscles were made on a series of 37 patients with psychiatric and neurological diseases and on 10 normal control subjects while closing and opening the fist at the rate of one fist, every one, two and three seconds. The greatest relaxation values were obtained by measurement of the tracing when the time interval between the discrete movements was three seconds. One‐half of the subjects reported that they felt relaxed in their arms and fingers in response to a questionnaire. All of the control subjects were in this group. A correlation (biserial) of . 69 was found between the average relaxation values of flexors and extensors of the forearm and answers to the questions dealing with muscular relaxation in the arms and fingers. Biserial correlations of . 58 and . 54 and . 64 were found between the relaxation values of the extensors, the flexors, the lowest relaxation values for either flexors or extensors and the answers to the same questions. Distribution curves of the results showed that the selectivity of the test was greater for subjects reporting muscular relaxation than for those reporting muscular tension.