Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A Study of Smoking and Pregnancy with Special Reference to Fetal Growth

Abstract. A prospective study of the influence of smoking on pregnancy and its outcome was made of 5272 women in an urban community during 1974/75. Approximately 90 % of the pregnant women in the population took part in the programme. Ultrasonic measurements of the fetal biparietal diameter (BPD) were made from the 18‐20th week (early in the study the first BPD measurements were obtained at 28 weeks). Growth curves of BPD were constructed for each week, separately for the smoking groups (49 %) and the non‐smoking group (51 %) by compiling 5714 BPD measurements, only women subsequently delivered between 266 and 294 days after the last menstrual period were included to avoid erroneously skewed growth profiles. The BPD increased faster during gestation in the non‐smoking group, the difference from the smoking group being significantly apparent from the 28th week onwards and positively correlated to the average number of cigarettes smoked. There was a preponderance within the non‐smoking group for marriage, and preeclampsia; and within the smoking group for abruptio placentae, pre‐term delivery, low birth‐weight, short birth‐length, small head circumference, and small‐for‐gestational‐age. The low birth‐weights were independent of maternal prepregnant weight and weight gain. Compared with data obtained in a similar study in the same community, 1963/64, the prevalence of smoking among pregnant women had increased from 44 % to 49 %. The present study demonstrates the early onset of intrauterine growth retardation in pregnancies of smoking mothers. The results suggest that the fetal growth retardation is a direct pharmacological effect on the fetus rather than an influence resulting from nutritional deprivation and points to appearent inefficiency of the programme deterring women from smoking.
Revisiting the demand for money function: evidence from the random coefficients approach

This article employs second-generation random coefficient (RC) modeling to investigate the time-varying behavior and the predictability of the money demand function in Taiwan over the period from 1982Q1 to 2006Q4. The RC procedure deals with some of the limitations of previous studies, such as unknown functional forms, omitted variables, measurement errors, additive error terms, and the correlations between explanatory variables and their coefficients. Our main findings are as follows. First, the empirical results indicate that the values of the elasticities in the RC estimation are significantly different from those in other studies, because of the use of coefficient drivers. Second, by observing the time-varying behavior of the coefficients, we find some specific points in our time profile of coefficients; that is, we can make an association with real events occurring in Taiwan, such as the financial liberalization after 1989 and the Asian financial crisis of 1997–1998. Finally, we compare the predicted values via the time intervals and different specifications and find that we should adapt different specifications of the RC model to estimate each interval.
Higher prevalence of periodontitis in patients with refractory arterial hypertension: a case-control study.

OBJECTIVE The aim of this study was to assess the association of periodontitis with refractory arterial hypertension. STUDY DESIGN A total of 137 patients were examined. Seventy patients (mean age of 55.2 ± 9.2 years) were included in the case group, while 67 non-hypertensive subjects (mean age of 50.0 ± 7.2) served as a control group. Periodontal clinical examination included plaque index, bleeding on probing, probing pocket depth and clinical attachment loss (CAL). Patients with at least five sites with CAL ≥6 mm were considered as severe periodontitis, and with at least 30% of the sites with CAL ≥4 mm generalized chronic periodontitis. RESULTS The mean (±s.d.) number and percentage of sites with CAL ≥6 mm were 11 (±14) and 16.6 (±14) in the case group, and 5.7 (±9.5) and 5.8 (±9.7) in the control group (P < 0.05). The mean (±s.d.) percentage of sites with CAL ≥4 mm was 37 (±29.6) in the case group and 21.2 (±20) in the control group (P < 0.05). The significant associations with arterial hypertension were severe chronic periodontitis (OR = 4.04, 95% CI: 1.92; 8.49) and generalized chronic periodontitis (OR = 2.18, 95% CI: 1.04; 4.56). CONCLUSIONS Severe and generalized chronic periodontitis seem to play a role as risk indicators for hypertensive patients.
Does Immunosuppressive Treatment Ameliorate Morphology Changes in Encapsulating Peritoneal Sclerosis?

Encapsulating peritoneal sclerosis (EPS) is a clinical syndrome associated with ileus symptoms and irreversible sclerosis of the peritoneal membrane. Inflammation, fibrosis, and neoangiogenesis are the main features of the pathophysiology. No evidence-based therapy is currently available for EPS. In recent years, anti-inflammatory and immunosuppressive (IS) treatment modalities have become more popular. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effects of various IS treatment strategies—glucocorticosteroid (GC), azathiopurine (AZT), and cyclosporin (CsA)—on regression of EPS. We divided 52 nonuremic Wistar albino rats into six groups: Control group—2 mL isotonic saline injected intraperitoneally (IP) daily for 3 weeks; CG group—2 mL/200 g 0.1% chlorhexidine gluconate (CG) and 15% ethanol dissolved in saline injected IP daily for 3 weeks; Resting group—CG (weeks 1 – 3), plus peritoneal rest (weeks 4 – 6); Corticosteroid (GC) group—CG (weeks 1 – 3), plus 10 mg/L prednisolone in drinking water (weeks 4 – 6); AZT group—CG (weeks 1 – 3), plus 100 mg/L azathioprine in drinking water (weeks 4 – 6); and CsA group—CG (weeks 1 – 3), plus cyclosporin 7.5 mg/kg by subcutaneous injection daily (weeks 4 – 6). At the end of the study, under ketamine HCl anesthesia, the rats were humanely killed by bleeding. Parietal peritoneal samples were then taken from same location (away from the injection site) and changes of parietal peritoneum morphology were examined by a single pathologist. The CG severely disturbed parameters of peritoneal morphology, increasing peritoneal thickness, inflammatory activity, vascularity, and fibrosis score as compared with the Control group (p < 0.05). No benefit was observed for any parameter in the Resting group as compared withthose parameters in the CG group (p < 0.05). We observed a lower fibrosis score and less peritoneal thickness in the GC group as compared with the Resting group (p < 0.05). No beneficial effects of AZT on peritoneal morphology were observed as compared with the effects of peritoneal rest or corticosteroid therapy. Treatment with cyclosporin resulted in more fibrosis, vascularity, and inflammation than was seen with corticosteroid therapy (p < 0.05). Immunosuppressive therapies, especially those that are corticosteroid-based, may have therapeutic value in the management of EPS. Patients treated with cyclosporin may have a risk for developing EPS.
The Relative Effectiveness of Selected Active Labor Market Programs: An Empirical Investigation for Germany

For Germany, we estimate the relative effectiveness of training programs and job creation schemes. We pay particular attention to problems of common support that may arise in cross‐program comparisons. Furthermore, we show that the use of different outcome variables may lead to different conclusions. In particular, the group of participants in job creation schemes may be too different from training participants to conduct a reliable comparison. Participants in shorter training programs spend more time in employment than those in longer programs; this is mainly due to less lock‐in effects. However, at the end of our observation period participants in long retraining programs show the best relative performance.
Improving our understanding of the colicky infant: a prospective observational study.

AIM To investigate characteristics differentially associated with infants suffering from colicky-crying vs. other infants. BACKGROUND The crying baby is the most common presentation in every clinician's office in the first 16 weeks of life. As little agreement exists in the literature, attempts to establish differential diagnosis, aetiology, incidence, risk factors and natural progression in addition to appropriate intervention guidelines are urgently needed. DESIGN Prospective observational study. SUBJECTS Infants ≤ 12 months, 159 colicky and 27 non-colicky infants (n = 186) from whom complete data sets were collected. METHODS Parents of infants presented to the clinic completed questionnaires of their infant's characteristics. The data were analysed using logistic regression. RESULTS Symptoms supporting the diagnosis of colicky-crying infants included 'child flexes/curls legs', 'child has difficulty/discomfort on bowel movement', 'child is more irritable postfeeding', 'child is more irritable when put into cot', 'child appears in pain', 'child wants frequent cuddling', 'family allergy/asthma' and 'child changes from happy to crying in an instant'. A nomogram illustrated if a mother suggests colic as a diagnosis and the infant has the symptoms supporting the diagnosis, then the chances of being a colicky infant rise from the initial prevalence 85% to approximately 98%. If the symptoms are not present, the chances of being a colicky infant drop from 85% to around 3%. CONCLUSION Because the literature lacks consensus regarding a gold standard for the diagnosis of the colicky-crying infant, these findings may offer help to the health care practitioner when faced with an excessively crying infant. RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE It has been hypothesised that there may be multiple reasons for excessive crying in an infant. It is necessary to differentiate between the types of crying infants that present to the clinician to determine the best course of action.
Person re-identification based on CCN feature representations learning

Due to variations in pose, angle and illumination condition, a person's appearance is significantly different in two different views, which makes person re-identification(re-id) intrinsically difficult. In this paper, we propose a person re-id method which learns Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs) feature representations from joint-dataset learning. The CNN features extracted from all levels of the deep Convolutional Neural Network can preserve robust and generic feature representations. Experimental results show that our proposed method is effective, which outperforms other state-of-the-art methods on VIPeR, PRID 2011, CUHK01, CUHK03 and i-LIDS datasets by large margins.
Can the Score for Neonatal Acute Physiology II (SNAPII) Predict Morbidity and Mortality in Neonates with Sepsis

Objective: We investigated whether Score for Neonatal Acute Physiology II (SNAP II) score can predict mortality and or Organ Dysfunction (OD) in neonatal sepsis. Methods: Eighty Egyptian newborns hospitalized for neonatal sepsis were investigated through a multicenter observational prospective study to determine whether SNAP II applied in the 1st 12 hours of admission would predict mortality and or OD. Results: The median SNAP II was significantly higher in babies who died or developed OD versus those who survived and improved (P=0.003 and P=0.001 respectively). Individual parameters of the SNAP II didn’t contribute equally to the risk of death, low mean arterial blood pressure and lowest blood pH were significantly associated with OD and death (P=0.002). ROC curves for the SNAP II score ≥ 40 showed moderate predictive accuracy and 90.4% and 88.9% sensitivity for OD and death, respectively. Conclusion: SNAP II score can predict mortality and OD in neonatal sepsis.
Panic Rooms: The Rise of Defensive Homeownership

This paper documents how and attempts to explain why homeowners have adopted an increasingly strategic approach to the defence of the home and the progressively vengeful pursuit of those who invade the home. This approach has been articulated via the political process as well as through a media ‘conversation’ that form a milieu within which defensive homeownership has emerged. It is suggested that a threshold has been crossed marking a transformative moment in which left-leaning calls for understanding have been supplanted by a call for the increasingly vicious defence of home territories. In a broader context of neo-liberalism the transition toward increased privatism, freedom of choice and unfettered agency now closely correspond to the position of homeowners as ‘consumer sovereigns’. Defensive homeownership therefore appears not only as the aspiration of homeowners for safety but also as a result of a complex interrelationship between political, media and ideological systems that have generated strong impressions of risk and victimisation. The paper documents the powerful socio-legal and political discourses which have reinforced territorial instincts while generating a broader culture of fear played out through celebrated cases in the public domain. In conclusion, it is argued that defensive homeownership expresses an aggressive aspect of the socio-political constitution of that tenure and a broader need for the deployment of cathartic public policies in defence of embattled home territories.
Improvement in GOS and GOSE scores 6 and 12 months after severe traumatic brain injury

Primary objective: To assess improvements in Glasgow Outcome Scale (GOS) and GOS extended (GOSE) scores between 6 months and 1 year following severe traumatic brain injury (TBI). Methods and procedures: One studied 214 adult patients with severe TBI with Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) <9 admitted to Intensive Care Unit (ICU). GOS scores were obtained 6 and 12 months after injury in 195 subjects. Patients were predominantly male (84%) and median age was 35 years. Main outcomes and results: Outcome (GOS and GOSE at 6 months and 1 year) was better in the high GCS score at admission (6–8) group than in the low score group (3–5). The improvement in GOS scores between 6 months and 1 year was greater in the high GCS score at admission group than in the low score group. At 6 months, 75 patients had died and 120 survived. None died between the 6–12-month assessments; at 12 months, 36% had improved GOS score. Conclusions: GOS scores improved between 6–12 months after severe TBI in 36% of survivors and it is concluded that the expectancy of improvement is incomplete at 6 months. This improvement was greater in patients with better GCS scores (6–8) at admission than in those with worse GCS scores (3–5).
Molecular epidemiology and genotyping of TT virus isolated from Saudi blood donors and hepatitis patients

BACKGROUND In Saudi Arabia, the epidemiology and clinical significnance of Torque Teno virus (TTV) infection alone and in patients with hepatitis virus infections have not been determined in a single study. In this paper, we molecularly investigated the rate and genotypes of TTV infection among Saudi Arabian blood donors and patients with viral hepatitis. The effect of TTV coinfection on viral hepatitis was also examined. SUBJECTS AND METHODS DNA was extracted from the sera of 200 healthy blood volunteers, 45 hepatitis B virus patients, 100 hepatitis C virus patients, 19 hepatitis G virus patients, and 56 non-A-G hepatitis patients. TTV DNA was amplified using primers derived from the ORF1 and 5′UTR regions. The alanine aminotransferase (ALT) level was determined for each specimen. Sequencing of ORF1 amplicons was carried out to investigate TTV genotypes. RESULTS Using primers derived from ORF1 and 5′UTR, TTV DNA was detected in 5.5% and 50.5%, respectively, of healthy blood donors, in 2.2% and 88.8% in hepatitis B patients, in 2.0% and 70% of hepatitis C patients, in 15.8% and 100% of hepatitis G patients, in 5.4% and 12.5% of non-A-G hepatitis patients and in 4.8% and 56.4% overall. No detrimental effect of TTV coinfection in viral hepatitis patients was noted. An overall prevalence of 4.8% and 56.4% was established. Phylogenetic analysis indicated that the most common genotype of TTV among Saudis is 2c. CONCLUSION The rate of TTV infection among Saudi Arabians seems to be lower than that stated in previous reports on Saudi Arabia and in some other countries. The virus does not seem to worsen the status of those who are suffering from viral hepatitis infection.
Intraday behavior of market depth in a competitive dealer market: A note

This study is the first to examine the intraday behavior of quoted depth in a competitive dealer market. In sharp contrast to previous research that focuses on specialist markets, quoted depth is lowest at the open of trading, plateaus around the middle of the day, and then dramatically increases in the final hours of trading, peaking at the close. This peak in quoted depth coincides with a narrowing in bid-ask spreads, and is contrary to intraday patterns documented for specialist markets. The authors conclude that the increase in depth and narrowing of bid-ask spreads at the close is driven by dealers rebalancing inventories to achieve target inventory levels in a competitive market. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Jrl Fut Mark 28:294–307, 2008
Luring Others into Climate Action: Coalition Formation Games with Threshold and Spillover Effects

We study the effect of leadership in an experimental threshold public ‘bad’ game, where we manipulate both the relative returns of two investments (the more productive of which causes a negative externality) and the extent to which the gains from leadership diffuse to the group. The game tradeoffs mimic those faced by countries choosing to what degree and when to transition from incumbent polluting technologies to cleaner alternatives, with the overall commitment dictating whether they manage to avert dangerous environmental thresholds. Leading countries, by agreeing on a shared effort, may be pivotal in triggering emission reductions in non-signatories countries. In addition, the leaders’ coalition might also work as innovation and technology adoption catalyzer, thus producing a public good (knowledge) that benefits all countries. In our game, players can choose to tie their hands to a cooperative strategy by signing up to a coalition of first movers. The game is setup such that as long as the leading group reaches a pivotal size, its early investment in the externality-free project may catalyze cooperation by non-signatories. We find that the likelihood of reaching the pivotal size is higher when the benefits of early cooperation are completely appropriated by the coalition members, less so when these benefits spillover to the non-signatories. On the other hand, spillovers have the potential to entice second movers into adopting the ‘clean’ technology.
Phaco‐microtrabeculectomy: technique and intraocular pressure control in comparison with microtrabeculectomy

Purpose: To describe a modified technique for combined cataract and glaucoma drainage surgery involving a small flap (micro) trabeculectomy combined with phaco‐emulsification (PMT). To assess the level of intraocular pressure (IOP) control achieved by this procedure in comparison with microtrabeculectomy (MT) alone.
Nanofilamentary resistive switching in binary oxide system; a review on the present status and outlook

This review article summarized the recent understanding of resistance switching (RS) behavior in several binary oxide thin film systems. Among the various RS materials and mechanisms, TiO2 and NiO thin films in unipolar thermo-chemical switching mode are primarily dealt with. To facilitate the discussions, the RS was divided into three parts; electroforming, set and reset steps. After short discussions on the electrochemistry of ‘electrolytic’ oxide materials, the general and peculiar aspects of these RS systems and mechanism are elaborated. Although the RS behaviors and characteristics of these materials are primarily dependent on the repeated formation and rupture of the conducting filaments (CFs) at the nanoscale at a localized position, this mechanism appears to offer a basis for the understanding of other RS mechanisms which were originally considered to be irrelevant to the localized events. The electroforming and set switching phenomena were understood as the process of CF formation and rejuvenation, respectively, which are mainly driven by the thermally assisted electromigration and percolation (or even local phase transition) of defects, while the reset process was understood as the process of CF rupture where the thermal energy plays a more crucial role. This review also contains several remarks on the outlook of these resistance change devices as a semiconductor memory.
Quantitative determination of allicin in garlic: supercritical fluid extraction and standard addition of alliin.

A quantitative method is described for the determination of allicin (2-propene-1-sulfinothioic acid S-2-propenyl ester) in garlic, using standard additions of alliin (l-(+)-S-allylcysteine sulfoxide) in conjunction with supercritical fluid extraction (SFE) and high performance liquid chromatography analysis with UV-vis absorbance detection. Optimum CO(2)-SFE conditions provided 96% recovery for allicin with precision of 3% (RSD) for repeat samples. The incorporation of an internal standard (allyl phenyl sulfone) in the SFE step resulted in a modest improvement in recovery (99%) and precision (2% RSD). Standard additions of alliin were converted to allicin in situ by endogenous alliinase (l-(+)-S-alk(en)ylcysteine sulfoxide lyase, EC 4.4. 1.4). Complete conversion of the spiked alliin to allicin was achieved by making additions after homogenization-induced conversion of the naturally occurring cysteine sulfoxides to thiosulfinates had taken place, thus eliminating the likelihood of competing reactions. Concentration values for allicin determined in samples of fresh garlic (Allium sativum L. and Allium ampeloprasum) and commercially available garlic powders (Allium sativum L.) by standard addition of alliin were found in all cases to be in statistical agreement (95% confidence interval) with values determined using a secondary allicin standard (concentration determined using published extinction coefficients). This method provides a convenient alternative for assessing the amount of allicin present in fresh and powdered garlic, as alliin is a far more stable and commercially prevalent compound than allicin and is thus more amenable for use as a standard for routine analysis.
Design of Three-Phase Autonomous PV Residential Systems With Improved Power Quality

During the last decade, autonomous residential photovoltaic (PV) systems have been widely installed, especially in remote areas (islands, rural territories, etc.), in an effort to produce electrical energy in a reliable and inexpensive manner. The appropriate design of a PV system and the compatibility of its power quality indices with national and international standards are crucial for efficient and economical autonomous operation of the system. To this direction, the critical parameters of a three-phase autonomous PV residential system are properly determined. Moreover, a new design methodology that meets the demanded standards and improves further the power quality is also introduced. Finally, an optimization algorithm is designed utilizing artificial intelligence techniques. The analytical results are corroborated by extensive simulation results and insightful discussions are provided demonstrating the efficiency of our proposed design.