Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Gender Differences in Bladder Cancer Treatment Decision Making

Purpose/Objectives: To explore gender differences in bladder cancer treatment decision making. Research Approach: Secondary qualitative analysis of interview transcripts. Setting: One multidisciplinary genitourinary oncology clinic (Dana‐Farber Cancer Institute) and two urology clinics (Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center) in Boston, MA. Participants: As part of the original study, 45 men and 15 women with bladder cancer participated in individual interviews. Participants were primarily Caucasian, and most had at least some college education. Methodologic Approach: Word frequency reports were used to identify thematic differences between the men’s and women’s statements. Line‐by‐line coding of constructs prevalent among women was then performed on all participants in NVivo 9. Coding results were compared between genders using matrix coding queries. Findings: The role of family in the decision‐making process was found to be a dominant theme for women but not for men. Women primarily described family members as facilitators of bladder cancer treatment‐related decisions, but men were more likely to describe family in a nonsupportive role. Conclusions: The results suggest that influences on the decision‐making process are different for men and women with bladder cancer. Family may play a particularly important role for women faced with bladder cancer treatment‐related decisions. Interpretation: Clinical nurses who care for individuals with bladder cancer should routinely assess patients’ support systems and desired level of family participation in decision making. For some people with bladder cancer, family may serve as a stressor. Nurses should support the decision‐making processes of all patients and be familiar with resources that can provide support to patients who do not receive it from family.
Look-Ahead Economic Dispatch With Adjustable Confidence Interval Based on a Truncated Versatile Distribution Model for Wind Power

Wind power representation is an integral part of stochastic economic dispatch (ED). Compared with the deterministic approach, stochastic ED allocates system reserves more effectively. This improved reserve strategy heavily relies on the wind power distribution boundary area that is not consistent with classical unbounded distribution models. To address this issue, this paper proposes a new probability distribution model named truncated versatile distribution (TVD) for wind power, which is bounded and more accurate than classical models. The fitting effect and mathematical analysis of TVD are thoroughly discussed. Then, we propose a novel look-ahead dynamic ED method with an adjustable confidence interval (ACI) based on TVD, which not only enables system operators to maintain an acceptable predefined level of risk, but also seeks the optimal level of risk to balance the system reserve strategy and risk of power unbalance. With ACI, TVD offers a reliable wind power representation to search for the optimal level of risk in the dispatch model. In addition, the employment of TVD can simplify the wind power uncertainties by its analytical forms. The results show that compared with other classical distribution models, the novel distribution is a more accurate representation of wind power. Moreover, the ED model results in improved economic performances by ACI compared with traditional ones.
Attitudes of Jordanian Adolescent Students Toward Overweight and Obesity

Background: Obesity is a serious public health problem especially among adolescents. Understanding adolescents’ attitudes toward obesity and healthy lifestyle is a crucial step to develop effective health programs to treat and prevent obesity. Objectives: To examine the attitudes toward overweight and obesity among Jordanian adolescent students and to identify the components of obesity prevention program that the students perceive as important. Methods: A sample of 1000 students in 8th to 10th grades was randomly selected from 16 schools in Irbid, Jordan. A self-reported questionnaire including attitude related questions was used in a descriptive, cross-sectional study. Results: Generally, the students expressed positive attitudes toward obesity; which means that their attitudes were consistent with societal norms in terms of health and social functioning (mean= 3.5, SD=0.39). Furthermore, the students expressed positive attitudes toward lifestyle; which means that their attitudes were consistent with healthy behaviors (mean=3.7, SD=0.58). However, boys had significantly more positive attitudes than girls (p=0.04). The prevalence of overweight and obesity was 23.8%, while obese and non-obese students had similar attitudes toward lifestyle and obesity. Finally, around 20% to 30% of students desired a prevention program out of school time shared with their families and friends and involves eating healthy food and getting more exercise. Conclusion: More efforts are needed to build effective obesity prevention programs that focus on eating healthy diet and getting more exercise considering gender differences.
Falling caesarean section rate and improving intra-partum outcomes: a prospective cohort study

Abstract Objective: To evaluate caesarean section (CS) rates and moderate to severe hypoxaemic ischaemic encephalopathy (HIE) rates with other core intra-partum outcomes following reconfiguration of maternity services in Cardiff, South Wales, UK. Design: Cohort study of births from 2006 to 2015. Settings: A University tertiary referral centre for foetal and maternal medicine with 6000 births/year, University Hospital of Wales, United Kingdom. Method: Data relating to births from 1 January 2006 to 31 December 2015 were extracted from the computerized maternity database on a yearly basis. Case notes of all mothers and babies for the same duration were hand searched for documentation of HIE. HIE data was also collected prospectively by neonatologist (SC) and obstetrician (PA). Main outcome measures: Incidence of caesarean section births, babies with moderate to severe HIE, instrumental vaginal births, obstetric anal sphincter injuries (OASIS) associated with instrumental delivery, and major post-partum haemorrhage (MPPH) of 2500 mL or more. Results: During this 10-year period, a downward trend in emergency CS rate was seen from 15.6% in 2006 to 10.5% in 2015, reducing total CS rate from 25.5% in 2006 to 21.2% in 2015. A downward trend in the incidence of moderate and severe HIE was seen over the same period. There was an increase in operative vaginal births (OVB) from 12.8% to 15%. The rate of spontaneous vaginal births (SVB) remained stable. The incidence of OASIS remained constant and MPPH rate has fallen. Conclusions: Following amalgamation of two medium sized obstetric units and the opening of a Midwifery Led Unit (MLU), core intrapartum outcomes have improved. Contributing factors are the introduction of regular multidisciplinary training with enhanced team working, compulsory education for obstetricians and midwives on cardiotocograph (CTG) interpretation, increased consultant presence on delivery suite, robust risk management systems and broad multidisciplinary agreement on clinical guidelines promoting vaginal birth.
#Egypt: Visualizing Islamist vs. secular tension on Twitter

We present a demo that shows Twitter hashtag usage in Egypt from the angle of Islamist vs. secular polarization. The demo not only provides insights about current events in Egypt, but also reveals differences in attitudes of the two political camps with respect to major events abroad. The demo is publicly accessible at http://sc1.qcri. org/twitter/egypt/weekly/.
Effect of subinhibitory concentrations of tigecycline and ciprofloxacin on the expression of biofilm-associated genes and biofilm structure of Staphylococcus epidermidis

Staphylococcus epidermidis is a leading cause of foreign body-associated infections. This is related to the bacterium's ability to form biofilms on synthetic materials. Bacteria within a biofilm may be exposed to subinhibitory concentrations (sub-MICs) of antibiotics because of an agent's limited penetration into the biofilm core. Here, we investigated the effect of sub-MICs of tigecycline and ciprofloxacin on the expression of biofilm-associated genes, i.e. icaA, altE and sigB, and the biofilm structure of five clinical isolates of S. epidermidis. For most tested isolates, the expression of these genes increased after exposure to 0.25 MIC and 0.5 MIC tigecycline. A slight decrease in icaAmRNA levels was observed only in two isolates in the presence of 0.25 MIC tigecycline. The effect of ciprofloxacin exposure was isolate-dependent. At 0.5 MIC, ciprofloxacin induced an increase of sigB and icaAmRNA levels in three of the five tested isolates. At the same time, expression of the altE gene increased in all isolates (from 1.3-fold to 42-fold, depending on the strain). Confocal laser scanning microscopy analysis indicated that sub-MIC ciprofloxacin decreased biofilm formation, whereas tigecycline stimulated this process. Our data suggest that sub-MIC tigecycline may have bearing on the outcome of infections.
Patients’ and Clinicians’ Views of the Psychological Components of Tinnitus Treatment That Could Inform Audiologists’ Usual Care: A Delphi Survey

Objectives: The aim of this study was to determine which components of psychological therapies are most important and appropriate to inform audiologists’ usual care for people with tinnitus. Design: A 39-member panel of patients, audiologists, hearing therapists, and psychologists completed a three-round Delphi survey to reach consensus on essential components of audiologist-delivered psychologically informed care for tinnitus. Results: Consensus (≥80% agreement) was reached on including 76 of 160 components. No components reached consensus for exclusion. The components reaching consensus were predominantly common therapeutic skills such as Socratic questioning and active listening, rather than specific techniques, for example, graded exposure therapy or cognitive restructuring. Consensus on educational components to include largely concerned psychological models of tinnitus rather than neurophysiological information. Conclusions: The results of this Delphi survey provide a tool to develop audiologists’ usual tinnitus care using components that both patients and clinicians agree are important and appropriate to be delivered by an audiologist for adults with tinnitus-related distress. Research is now necessary to test the added effects of these components when delivered by audiologists.
Immunosenescence and hurdles in the clinical management of older HIV-patients

ABSTRACT People living with HIV (PLWH) who are treated with effective highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) have a similar life expectancy to the general population. Moreover, an increasing proportion of new HIV diagnoses are made in people older than 50 y. The number of older HIV-infected patients is thus constantly growing and it is expected that by 2030 around 70% of PLWH will be more than 50 y old. On the other hand, HIV infection itself is responsible for accelerated immunosenescence, a progressive decline of immune system function in both the adaptive and the innate arm, which impairs the ability of an individual to respond to infections and to give rise to long-term immunity; furthermore, older patients tend to have a worse immunological response to HAART. In this review we focus on the pathogenesis of HIV-induced immunosenescence and on the clinical management of older HIV-infected patients.
Clinical Evaluation of an Unsintered Hydroxyapatite/Poly-L-Lactide Osteoconductive Composite Device for the Internal Fixation of Maxillofacial Fractures

Introduction:OSTEOTRANS MX (Takiron Co, Ltd, Osaka, Japan) is a resorbable osteosynthetic material composed of an unsintered hydroxyapatite/poly-L-lactide composite, and its osteoconductive capacity has been documented. The authors here report their clinical experience using OSTEOTRANS MX. Methods:The authors treated 35 patients (19 men, 16 women; age, 14–88 years; mean ± standard deviation, 38.4 ± 19.9 years) with maxillofacial fractures. The authors used standard surgery to stabilize fractures in all patients, fitting resorbable plates (thickness, 1.0 or 1.4 mm) and screws (diameter, 2 mm) according to Arbeitsgemeinschaft für Osteosynthesefragen/Association (AO) for the Study of Internal Fixation guidelines. Results:All patients eventually achieved satisfactory healing with favorable restoration of form and function without foreign body reaction. Complications occurred in 3 patients—plate exposure in 2 and discomfort in 1. However, fracture sites healed in all patients. Scanning electron microscopy revealed that the devices bonded directly to the bone without interposition of nonmineralized tissue. Conclusion:OSTEOTRANS MX is a useful material with few complications. Its osteoconductive bioactivity is advantageous for the early functional improvement of maxillofacial fractures.
Interactions between liquid slag and graphite during the reduction of metallic oxides

High global demand for metallic elements such as Fe, Cr, Ti, Mn leads to an intensive technological development of metal recovery. One of the ways is to recover metals from metallurgical slag. The sessile drop method was adopted in order to study the interactions between liquid slag and graphite. Steelmaking slag was used during this research. The slag used included converter slag and slag from chrome steel melting as well as their mixtures with other modifiers. The analysis covered six types of slag in the temperature ranging from 1100◦C to 1600◦C in the argon atmosphere. In the course of research mass spectrometry and scanning microscope were used. The following were set for the examined samples during the reduction process: liquidus temperature and the nature of interactions (wettability or its lack). It was observed that the volume of slag samples dynamically changed in the course of the reduction of metallic oxides.
Role of ERCC1 promoter hypermethylation in drug resistance to cisplatin in human gliomas

Overexpression of ERCC1 mRNA is associated with drug resistance to cisplatin in human gliomas, but the role of the ERCC1 promoter in drug resistance has not been demonstrated. We have used sodium bisulfite sequencing to compare ERCC1 promoter methylation patterns in cisplatin‐sensitive and cisplatin‐resistant glioma cells. The levels of ERCC1 DNA methylation, mRNA and protein in 32 human glioma samples were examined by methylation specific PCR, real‐time RT‐PCR and immunohistochemistry, respectively. Meanwhile, cisplatin sensitivities to these human glioma samples were tested by histoculture drug response assay. Hypermethylation was observed in the upstream 5Kb region of the ERCC1 promoter of cisplatin‐sensitive glioma cell lines. ERCC1 DNA methylation levels were highly variable in 32 human glioma samples ranging from 0.1 to 0.87, which have shown significant difference between cisplatin‐sensitive samples and cisplatin‐resistant samples (p < 0.05). The relative expression levels of ERCC1 mRNA in 32 glioma samples were also variable from 0.01 to 5.71. No detectable or low expression of ERCC1 protein was shown in 7 glioma samples. ERCC1 promoter methylation was inversely correlated to mRNA expression (r = −0.903 p = 0.001) as well as protein expression (r = −0.884 p = 0.001). Moreover, ERCC1 mRNA expression was significantly associated with protein levels (r = 0.840 p = 0.001). In summary, the aberrant CpG island methylation in ERCC1 promoter region exists in human glioma cell lines as well as clinical glioma samples. ERCC1 DNA methylation could regulate the expression of downstream mRNA and protein, and was associated with cisplatin chemosensitivity.
Uncertainty Theory: A Powerful Approach to Understanding Psychiatric Disorder

Objective: The tendency over the years in the mental health field has been to cling in circular fashion to one single domain after another, biological, psychological, or social, to explain severe disorder and not even to consider the data from the domain of focus that came before. This report notes that attempts to explore more complex biopsychosocial explanations that integrate the diverse domains have been generally ignored or foundered on the problems posed by the complexities involved and suggests an approach for moving beyond these problems. Method: A case history using two different formats highlights the degree to which the single domain models ignore one or another area of data. Results: Uncertainty theory is suggested as providing an important basis for exploring the complexities of a biopsychosocial understanding of mental health problems. Conclusions: This approach can provide a possible orientation to promote improved research, training, and treatment.
The relationship between major depressive disorder and glucose parameters: A cross-sectional study in a Chinese population.

BACKGROUND Depressive symptoms have been linked with insulin resistance in middle-aged and elderly populations. A strong relationship between peripheral insulin resistance and glucose homeostasis imbalance has been well established in previous studies. The role of serum fructosamine and fasting blood glucose (FBG) in elevating glucose homeostasis has been documented in the literature. OBJECTIVES The aim of the study was to examine the association of serum fructosamine and FBG with major depressive disorder (MDD). MATERIAL AND METHODS The study analyzed the clinical characteristics and biochemical parameters of 305 patients with MDD and 312 healthy individuals. RESULTS Serum concentrations of lipoprotein-cholesterol (HDL-C), total protein (TP) and creatinine (Cr) were found to be significantly different between the two groups. Serum fructosamine and fasting blood glucose (FBG) concentrations were high in patients with MDD compared with healthy individuals (2.3 ± 0.26 vs. 2.1 ± 0.27, p = 0.018; 4.7 ± 0.45 vs. 4.5 ± 0.45, p < 0.001). The levels of serum fructosamine and FBG were also significantly higher in patients with MDD when all participants were stratified by gender. Age was found to be positively correlated with FBG, serum fructosamine and Cr (r = 0.203, p < 0.001; r = 0.129, p = 0.025; r = 0.129, p = 0.024), and negatively correlated with TP (r = -0.114, p = 0.047) in patients with MDD. However, there were no correlations between age and FBG, serum fructosamine or Cr in the healthy controls. In a multivariate logistic regression analysis, increased serum fructosamine and FBG concentrations were positively associated with MDD independently of age and gender, after adjustment for age and potential confounding factors (OR = 6.313, CI95 %:2.953-13.393, p < 0.001; OR = 2.251, CI95 %: 1.464-3.462, p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS The study results suggest that increased serum fructosamine and FBG concentrations are associated with depressive conditions, which may influence glucose metabolism and impair glucose homeostasis in patients with MDD.
Gender reassignment surgery in male-to-female transsexualism: A retrospective 3-month follow-up study with anatomical remarks.

INTRODUCTION Greater acceptance of sexual minorities has enabled people with transsexualism access to adequate treatment and social integration. Gender reassignment surgery is a complex phase in the care of transsexual patients. In response to a greater volume of patients, surgical techniques have evolved and the outcome in patients with male-to-female transsexualism is now a very accurate imitation of female genitalia, enabling sexual intercourse with orgasm. AIM To evaluate the results of surgical reassignment of genitalia in male-to-female transsexuals. METHODS A retrospective 3-month follow-up study of patients' opinions following gender reassignment surgery in 129 patients having a primary procedure (eight of whom had later sigmoideocolpoplasty) and five patients undergoing reoperation following an initial unsuccessful procedure at other units. All patients were male transsexuals. The surgical techniques are described in detail. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Sexual functions and complications 3 months after surgery. RESULTS All patients were satisfied with the first phase operation. Thirteen patients (9.7%) underwent successful sigmoideocolpoplasty. Main complications were as follows: rectal lesions developing during preparation of the vaginal canal (1.5%); bleeding from the stump of the shortened urethra in the first 48 hours postoperatively requiring secondary suturing (4.5%); temporary urinary retention requiring repeated insertion of urinary catheters for up to 6 days (5.2%); and healing of the suture between the perineum and the posterior aspect of the vaginal introitus healing by secondary intention (5.2%). The neoclitoris had erogenous sensitivity in 93.9% of patients and 65.3% reached orgasm in the first 3 months. CONCLUSIONS Surgical conversion of the genitalia is a safe and important phase of the treatment of male-to-female transsexuals.
Tedizolid and Linezolid for Treatment of Acute Bacterial Skin and Skin Structure Infections of the Lower Extremity versus Non-Lower-Extremity InfectionsPooled Analysis of Two Phase 3 Trials.

BACKGROUND Tedizolid phosphate, the prodrug of the oxazolidinone tedizolid, has been approved in a number of countries, including the United States, those in the European Union, and Canada, for treatment of patients with acute bacterial skin and skin structure infections (ABSSSI). Two phase 3 trials demonstrated the noninferior efficacy of tedizolid (200 mg once daily for 6 days) to linezolid (600 mg twice daily for 10 days) in patients with ABSSSI. Because of the challenges of treating lower-extremity ABSSSI, the efficacy and safety of tedizolid and linezolid for treating lower-extremity versus non-lower-extremity infections were compared. METHODS This was a post hoc analysis of pooled data from patients with lower-extremity infections enrolled in two phase 3 studies, ESTABLISH-1 (NCT01170221) and ESTABLISH-2 (NCT01421511), comparing tedizolid to linezolid in patients with ABSSSI. RESULTS Lower-extremity ABSSSI were present in 40.7% of tedizolid-treated and 42.2% of linezolid-treated patients. Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) was present in 34.7% of all patients with a baseline causative pathogen. Early clinical responses at 48 to 72 hours and investigator-assessed responses at the post-therapy evaluation were similar between tedizolid and linezolid, regardless of ABSSSI type. With both treatments, the early clinical response was slightly higher in patients with non-lower-extremity infection than in those with lower-extremity ABSSSI (tedizolid, 84.8% versus 77.0%; linezolid, 81.4% versus 76.6%, respectively); however, by the post-therapy evaluation visit, response rates were similar (tedizolid, 87.1% versus 86.3%; linezolid, 86.6% versus 87.2%, respectively). Gastrointestinal adverse events and low platelet counts were observed more frequently with linezolid treatment. CONCLUSIONS Post-therapy evaluations showed that the clinical response of lower-extremity ABSSSI to tedizolid and linezolid was comparable to that of ABSSSI in other locations. A short 6-day course of once-daily tedizolid was as effective as a 10-day course of twice-daily linezolid in treating patients with lower-extremity ABSSSI.