Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Classifying mobility recovery in children and youth with brain injury during hospital-based rehabilitation

Primary objective: This article describes mobility recovery for children and youth with traumatic and non-traumatic brain injury during hospital-based rehabilitation. Research design: A retrospective, descriptive pre-test/post-test design was used. Methods and procedures: One hundred and fifty-seven individuals with brain injury who were admitted for rehabilitation over a 5-year period were enrolled in this study. The Paediatric Evaluation of Disability Inventory (PEDI) was used to document functional mobility at admission and discharge from the rehabilitation programme. The PEDI mobility classification system consisting of seven discrete levels of mobility was developed to provide clinically relevant and succinct outcome information. Main outcomes and results: The majority of children with brain injury (69%) improved one or more mobility classification levels. Children in the traumatic brain injury group made greater changes ( p = 0.001) in mobility recovery than children in the non-traumatic group. Conclusions: Information about recovery using a well-defined functional classification system may assist with programme evaluation and facilitate optimal service delivery.
Comparison of Risk Factors for Human Metapneumovirus and Respiratory Syncytial Virus Disease Severity in Young Children

Abstract Background. Human metapneumovirus (hMPV) and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) are leading pediatric pathogens. However, risk factors for severe hMPV disease remain unknown. We comparatively assessed environmental, host, and viral determinants for severe hMPV and RSV infections. Methods. We studied a prospective cohort of >1000 children aged <3 years hospitalized in or presenting to a pediatric clinic for acute respiratory infection. We collected clinical data at enrollment and 1-month follow-up and tested nasopharyngeal secretions for respiratory viruses. Disease severity was defined as hospitalization and was also assessed with a severity score (1 point/variable) calculated on the basis of fraction of inhaled O2 ≥ 30%, hospitalization >5 days, and pediatric intensive care unit admission. Results. hMPV was identified in 58 of 305 outpatient children (19.0%) and 69 of 734 hospitalized children (9.4%), second only to RSV (48.2% and 63.6%, respectively). In multivariate regression analysis of hMPV cases, age <6 months and household crowding were associated with hospitalization. Among hospitalized patients, risk factors for severe hMPV disease were female sex, prematurity, and genotype B infection. Age <6 months, comorbidities, and household crowding were risk factors for RSV hospitalization; breast-feeding and viral coinfection were protective. Age <6 months and prematurity were associated with severe RSV cases among hospitalized children. Conclusions. hMPV and RSV severity risk factors may differ slightly. These findings will inform hMPV prevention strategies.
Generalized Discriminant Analysis Using a Kernel Approach

We present a new method that we call generalized discriminant analysis (GDA) to deal with nonlinear discriminant analysis using kernel function operator. The underlying theory is close to the support vector machines (SVM) insofar as the GDA method provides a mapping of the input vectors into high-dimensional feature space. In the transformed space, linear properties make it easy to extend and generalize the classical linear discriminant analysis (LDA) to nonlinear discriminant analysis. The formulation is expressed as an eigenvalue problem resolution. Using a different kernel, one can cover a wide class of nonlinearities. For both simulated data and alternate kernels, we give classification results, as well as the shape of the decision function. The results are confirmed using real data to perform seed classification.
Families and children in Britain: findings from the 2002 Families and Children Study (FACS)

The 2002 Families and Children Study (FACS) is the fourth in a series of annual surveys to investigate the circumstances of British families with dependent children. This report presents descriptive findings on the circumstances of all families with dependent children in 2002. The report is divided into a number of chapters, each of which looks at a distinct feature of family life. Some of the chapters focus on the circumstances of the family unit - such as housing, income, and material deprivation; some on the circumstances of the adults in the family - such as work and health; and some on the circumstances of children - such as schooling and behaviour.
Combined Use of Rosiglitazone and Fenofibrate in Patients With Type 2 Diabetes

Elevated plasma free fatty acid (FFA) levels are responsible for much of the insulin resistance in obese patients with type 2 diabetes. To lower plasma FFA levels effectively and long term, we have treated eight obese patients with type 2 diabetes for 2 months with placebo followed by 2 months of treatment with a combination of rosiglitazone (RGZ) (8 mg/day) and fenofibrate (FFB) (160 mg/day) in a single-blind placebo-controlled study design. Compared with placebo, RGZ/FFB lowered mean 24-h plasma FFA levels 30% (P < 0.03) and mean 24-h glucose levels 23% (P < 0.03) and increased insulin-stimulated glucose uptake (glucose rate of disappearance [GRd], determined using euglycemic-hyperinsulinemic clamp) 442% (P < 0.01), oral glucose tolerance (area under the curve for 3-h oral glucose tolerance test) 28% (P < 0.05), and plasma adiponectin levels 218% (P < 0.01). These RGZ/FFB results were compared with results obtained in five patients treated with RGZ alone. RGZ/FFB prevented the fluid retention usually associated with RGZ (−1.6 vs. 5.6%, P < 0.05), lowered fasting plasma FFA more effectively than RGZ alone (−22 vs. 5%, P < 0.05), and tended to be more effective than RGZ alone in lowering A1C (−0.9 vs. −0.4%) and triglyceride levels (−38 vs. −5%) and increasing GRd (442 vs. 330%). We conclude that RGZ/FFB is a promising new therapy for type 2 diabetes that lowers plasma FFA more than RGZ alone and in contrast to RGZ does not cause water retention and weight gain.
Is GABA Co-Released with Glutamate from Hippocampal Mossy Fiber Terminals?

The coexistence and co-release of different neurotransmitters from the same fiber has been well documented in several brain structures, including the retina, the spinal cord, and the auditory system ([Hnasko and Edwards, 2012][1]). Although mossy fibers (MFs), the axons of dentate gyrus granule
Antecedents and Consequences of KMS Usage in Chunghwa Telecom Company

The knowledge management system (KMS) has attracted significant attention from researchers and practitioners as a facilitator of better employee performance. However, although companies have implemented KMS, empirical research findings offer inconsistent correlation between employee performance and KMS usage. Thus, the purpose of this study is to determine the antecedent factors influencing the KMS usage which might lead to better employee satisfaction and performance. Specifically, a research model based on the Technology Acceptance Model for testing the influence of KMS usage is proposed. A number of hypotheses are thus developed and were empirically tested using survey data obtained from employees in Chunghwa Telecom Company. The PLS software solutions wre seleted to validate the measurements and the structuralproperties of the proposed research model. The results suggest that employee performance is affected by employee satisfaction and extent of KMS usage, which are in turn jointly determined by knowledge maps fit, perceived usefulness, and perceived ease of use.
The current status of phlebotomine sand flies in Albania and incrimination of Phlebotomus neglectus (Diptera, Psychodidae) as the main vector of Leishmania infantum

The incidence of visceral leishmaniasis (VL) in Albania is higher than in other countries of southern Europe, however the role of local sand fly species in the transmission of Leishmania infantum was not addressed conclusively. In 2006, a country-wide collection of sand flies performed in 14 sites selected based on recent occurrence of VL cases showed that Phlebotomus neglectus was by far the most prevalent species (95.6%). Furthermore, 15% of pools made from 422 P. neglectus females tested positive for Leishmania sp. genomic DNA. In the same year, Culicoides trapping was performed for bluetongue disease surveillance in 91 sites of southern Albania, targeting livestock farms regardless recent occurrence of VL in the surveyed areas. In 35 sites where sand flies were collected along with midges, Phlebotomus perfiliewi was the most prevalent among the Phlebotomus species identified, however search for leishmanial DNA in females of this species was unsuccessful. In 2011, sand flies were trapped in 4 sites of north Albania characterized by high VL incidence, and females were dissected to search for Leishmania infections. Both P. neglectus and P. tobbi were collected at high densities. Two positive specimens were detected from a sample of 64 P. neglectus trapped in one site (3.1%). Parasites were successfully cultured from one specimen and characterized as belonging to Leishmania infantum zymodeme MON-1, the only zymodeme so far identified as the agent of human and canine leishmaniasis in the country. Altogether our studies indicate that P. neglectus is the main leishmaniasis vector in Albania.
Poaceae vs. Abiotic Stress: Focus on Drought and Salt Stress, Recent Insights and Perspectives

Poaceae represent the most important group of crops susceptible to abiotic stress. This large family of monocotyledonous plants, commonly known as grasses, counts several important cultivated species, namely wheat (Triticum aestivum), rice (Oryza sativa), maize (Zea mays), and barley (Hordeum vulgare). These crops, notably, show different behaviors under abiotic stress conditions: wheat and rice are considered sensitive, showing serious yield reduction upon water scarcity and soil salinity, while barley presents a natural drought and salt tolerance. During the green revolution (1940–1960), cereal breeding was very successful in developing high-yield crops varieties; however, these cultivars were maximized for highest yield under optimal conditions, and did not present suitable traits for tolerance under unfavorable conditions. The improvement of crop abiotic stress tolerance requires a deep knowledge of the phenomena underlying tolerance, to devise novel approaches and decipher the key components of agricultural production systems. Approaches to improve food production combining both enhanced water use efficiency (WUE) and acceptable yields are critical to create a sustainable agriculture in the future. This paper analyzes the latest results on abiotic stress tolerance in Poaceae. In particular, the focus will be directed toward various aspects of water deprivation and salinity response efficiency in Poaceae. Aspects related to cell wall metabolism will be covered, given the importance of the plant cell wall in sensing environmental constraints and in mediating a response; the role of silicon (Si), an important element for monocots' normal growth and development, will also be discussed, since it activates a broad-spectrum response to different exogenous stresses. Perspectives valorizing studies on landraces conclude the survey, as they help identify key traits for breeding purposes.
After the fall: assessing the impact of the great prison experiment on future crime control policy

IN THE FOLLOWING article, I summarize the available research on the impact of the increased use of incarceration on crime rates and identify the effects of incarceration on individual offenders (specific deterrence, rehabilitation effects) and on communities, cities, states, regions, and nations (incapacitation, general deterrence effects). The crime reduction effects of incarceration-focused strategies are then compared to other criminal justice-focused strategies (more policing or more correctional treatment) and to a range of non-criminal justice-focused strategies, such as community-level improvements in poverty, education, treatment services, and health care. Based on this review of the available research evidence, I then examine policy implications regarding more effective uses of both criminal justice-focused and non-criminal justice-focused strategies and consider the prospects for future crime control policies that result in improved individual and community-level outcomes.
Speculative computation with multi-agent belief revision

In multi-agent system, we often face incompleteness of information due to communication failure or other agent's suspension of decisions. To solve the incompleteness, we previously proposed speculative computation using abduction in the context of matter-slave multi-agent systems and gave a procedure in abductive logic programming [14]. In the work, a master agent prepares a default value for a question in advance and it performs speculative computation using the default without waiting for a reply for the question. This computation is effective unless the contradictory reply with the default is returned. However, we find that this mechanism is not sufficient for speculative computation in more general multi-agent systems such that replies can be revised according to other agents' speculative computation. In this paper, we formalize speculative computation with multi-agent belief revision and propose a correct procedure for such computation.
The HDSL Environment

This paper presents a tutorial on the physical environment in which high bit-rate digital subscriber line (HDSL) transceivers will have to evolve and succeed. Special attention is given to the most damaging impairments that are encountered in subscriber lines, such as propagation loss, linear distortion, crosstalk, bridged taps, and impulse noise. Somewhat less important impairments, such as change of gauge, temperature variation, and thermal noise, are also briefly described. Finally, the paper concludes with a discussion of the capacity of a twisted-pair channel in a crosstalk-dominated environment.
Using a Nursing Minimum Data Set with older patients with dementia in an acute care setting.

BACKGROUND Many older people with dementia are admitted to acute care settings suffering from comorbidities. These and their treatments can lead to confusion in these patients, adding to their existing cognitive deficits, and this may not be recognized by care staff. The care of such patients is complex and requires multidisciplinary team input. The purposes of the Nursing Minimum Data Set are to describe the nursing care of patients in a variety of settings and to establish comparability of nursing data across clinical populations, settings and time. AIMS This paper reports a study to describe the characteristics of hospitalized older patients with dementia and nursing diagnoses and nursing interventions for these patients, and to identify trends in the nursing care provided over a 3-year period using a Nursing Minimum Data Set from a community hospital in the United States of America. METHODS Secondary data analysis was conducted in 2000 on a large clinical discharge data set containing Nursing Minimum Data Set elements. The sample included 597 elders with dementia among a total of 7772 older patients who were discharged between 1996 and 1998. RESULTS The most common comorbidity was hypertension (n = 123, 21%), followed by cardiac dysrhythmias (n = 80, 13%). The most frequent nursing diagnoses were altered health maintenance (n = 419, 84%), knowledge deficit (n = 357, 71%), potential for injury (n = 242, 48%), potential for infection (n = 230, 46%), pain (n = 184, 37%), impaired physical mobility (n = 169, 34%), and altered thought process (n = 144, 29%). The most frequent interventions were discharge planning (n = 340, 68%), surveillance safety (n = 195, 39%), fall prevention (n = 175, 35%), teaching: disease process (n = 166, 33%), learning facilitation (n = 148, 30%), and infection protection (n = 147, 29%). CONCLUSIONS The results provide a description of nursing diagnoses and interventions for elders with dementia in an acute care setting using the Nursing Minimum Data Set framework. They identify the need to develop staff education programmes for individualized care of older patients with dementia. In addition, they support the need for continued work on linkage of the nursing care elements of the Nursing Minimum Data Set, including nursing diagnoses, nursing interventions, and nursing-sensitive outcomes.
Muscle damage and muscle remodeling: no pain, no gain?

SUMMARY Skeletal muscle is a dynamic tissue that responds adaptively to both the nature and intensity of muscle use. This phenotypic plasticity ensures that muscle structure is linked to patterns of muscle use throughout the lifetime of an animal. The cascade of events that result in muscle restructuring – for example, in response to resistance exercise training – is often thought to be initiated by muscle damage. We designed this study to test the hypothesis that symptomatic (i.e. detectable) damage is a necessary precursor for muscle remodeling. Subjects were divided into two experimental populations: pre-trained (PT) and naive (NA). Demonstrable muscle damage was avoided in the PT group by a three-week gradual ‘ramp-up’ protocol. By contrast, the NA group was subjected to an initial damaging bout of exercise. Both groups participated in an eight-week high-force eccentric-cycle ergometry program (20 min, three times per week) designed to equate the total work done during training between the groups. The NA group experienced signs of damage, absent in the PT group, as indicated by greater than five times higher levels of plasma creatine kinase (CK) and self-reporting of initial perceived soreness and exertion, yet muscle size and strength gains were not different for the two groups. RT-PCR analysis revealed similar increases in levels of the growth factor IGF-1Ea mRNA in both groups. Likewise, the significant (P<0.01) increases in mean cross-sectional area (and total muscle volume) were equal in both groups. Finally, strength increases were identical for both groups (PT=25% and NA=26% improvement). The results of this study suggest that muscle rebuilding – for example, hypertrophy – can be initiated independent of any discernible damage to the muscle.
Imaging , Diagnosis , Prognosis Prognostic and Predictive Values of the Immunoscore in Patients with Rectal Cancer

Purpose: To determine whether the tumor immune infiltrate, as recently evaluated with the Immunoscore methodology, could be a useful prognostic marker in patients with rectal cancers. Experimental design: The influence of the immune infiltrate on patient’s outcome was investigated in patients with or without preoperative chemoradiation therapy (pCRT). The density of total (CD3þ) and cytotoxic (CD8þ) T lymphocytes was evaluated by immunohistochemistry and quantified by a dedicated image analysis software in surgical specimens of patients with rectal cancer (n 1⁄4 111) who did not receive pCRT and in tumor biopsies performedbefore pCRT fromadditional 55patients. The resultswere correlated with tumor recurrence, patient’s survival, and response to pCRT. Results: The densities of CD3þ and CD8þ lymphocytes and the associated Immunoscore (from I0 to I4) were significantly correlated with differences in disease-free and overall survival (HR, 1.81 and 1.72, respectively; all P < 0.005). Coxmultivariate analysis supports the advantage of the Immunoscore compared with the tumor–node–metastasis (TNM) staging inpredicting recurrence and survival (allP<0.001). Lymph node ratio added information in a prognostic model (all P < 0.05). In addition, high infiltration of CD3þ andCD8þ lymphocytes in tumor biopsies was associated with downstaging of the tumor after pCRT (CD3þ cells; Fisher exact test P 1⁄4 0.01). Conclusions:The Immunoscore couldbe auseful prognosticmarker in patientswith rectal cancer treated by primary surgery. The determination of the immune infiltrate in biopsies before treatment could be a valuable information for the prediction of response to pCRT.Clin Cancer Res; 20(7); 1891–9. 2014 AACR.
Adopting and questioning strategy: exploring the roles of cynicism and dissent

This paper explores organizational cynicism and dissent and their possible links to the adoption and implementation of strategy. The research is motivated by recent discussion on organizational identity, its centrality to organizational change, and the concepts of cynicism and dissent as potential indications of perceived identity gaps. We look at two kinds of cynicism: the strategic cynicism (SC) and general organizational cynicism (GOC). Relevant literature is introduced, methodology explained and findings presented from a qualitative research study with a sample of 298 interviews in 12 knowledge-intensive organizations.
Should Central Obesity Be an Optional or Essential Component of the Metabolic Syndrome?

OBJECTIVE—The International Diabetes Federation (IDF) proposes that central obesity is an “essential” component of the metabolic syndrome, while the American Heart Association/National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (AHA/NHLBI) proposes that central obesity is an “optional” component. This study examines the effect of the metabolic syndrome with and without central obesity in an Asian population with ischemic heart disease (IHD). RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS—From the population-based cohort study (baseline 1992–1995), 4,334 healthy individuals were grouped by the presence or absence of the metabolic syndrome and central obesity and followed up for an average of 9.6 years by linkage with three national registries. Cox’s proportional hazards model was used to obtain adjusted hazard ratios (HRs) for risk of a first IHD event. RESULTS—The prevalence of metabolic syndrome was 17.7% by IDF criteria and 26.2% by AHA/NHLBI criteria using Asian waist circumference cutoff points for central obesity. Asian Indians had higher rates than Chinese and Malays. There were 135 first IHD events. Compared with individuals without metabolic syndrome, those with central obesity/metabolic syndrome and no central obesity/metabolic syndrome were at significantly increased risk of IHD, with adjusted HRs of 2.8 (95% CI 1.8–4.2) and 2.5 (1.5–4.0), respectively. CONCLUSIONS—Having metabolic syndrome either with or without central obesity confers IHD risk. However, having central obesity as an “optional” rather than “essential” criterion identifies more individuals at risk of IHD in this Asian cohort.