Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Geographic and temporal trends in peritoneal dialysis services in the United States between 1995 and 2003.

BACKGROUND Peritoneal dialysis (PD) is the preferred dialysis modality for many patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) in the United States. However, in sharp contrast to the high rates of PD use in other industrialized countries, PD use in the United States is low and decreasing. PD availability is a necessary condition for PD use; however, little is known about the availability and geographic distribution of PD services. This study describes trends in the regional supply of PD services in dialysis facilities between 1995 and 2003. STUDY DESIGN Longitudinal cohort study. SETTING & PARTICIPANTS Nonfederal outpatient dialysis facilities treating patients with ESRD in the United States using data from the US Renal Data System. PREDICTORS Annual ESRD patient and dialysis facility composition in hospital referral regions. OUTCOME Annual proportion of dialysis facilities offering PD treatment services in hospital referral regions. RESULTS The average proportion of facilities offering PD services in hospital referral regions was 56% in 1996, which decreased to 47% in 2003. There was geographic variation in PD services, with greater PD availability in metropolitan cities (compared with rural regions) and the Northeast (relative to the South and Midwest). Variation in PD availability was not explained by disease trends or patient characteristics believed to be important for PD use. An increasing regional presence of chain-affiliated facilities was associated with less PD supply. LIMITATIONS Accuracy of patient registry data, inability to account for consolidation of PD services among chain providers, sensitivity of results to definition of regional markets. CONCLUSIONS The small and decreasing availability of PD therapy seems counterintuitive given its demonstrated appeal to patients and payers. Further research is needed to investigate dialysis facilities' role in the underuse of a potentially useful therapy.
Cerebro-Oculo-Facio-Skeletal Syndrome as a Human Example for Accelerated Cochlear Nerve Degeneration

Background Cerebro-oculo-facio-skeletal (COFS) syndrome is a rare autosomal-recessive disorder that includes microcephaly, severe mental retardation, and multiple congenital anomalies. Otologic findings are usually limited to descriptions of the auricles. Patient and Methods The authors report inner ear histopathologic findings of a deceased 13-year-old patient with COFS. A histologic study of the inner ear in COFS syndrome has not yet been described. This patient was documented as having a profound bilateral sensorineural hearing loss at the age of 2 years. Results Histologic evaluation revealed accelerated neural and neuronal degeneration at the cochlear and retrocochlear levels. Remaining myelinated nerve fibers, counted in the spiral lamina, had degenerated by up to 97% when compared with normal innervation densities. Afferent nerve fibers innervating inner hair cells were completely absent, whereas medial efferent fibers to outer hair cells were found. Vestibular nerve fibers were less affected. Conclusion The authors report inner ear findings that differ from animal models of primary cochlear neural degeneration and that resemble the pattern of hereditary cochlear nerve degeneration reported in Friedreich's ataxia.
CYP21 genotype, adult height, and pubertal development in 55 patients treated for 21-hydroxylase deficiency.

In a retrospective study we evaluated long-term growth, pubertal developmental patterns to final height (FH), and medication in 55 patients (35 females) affected by 21-hydroxylase deficiency. The patients were classified into 3 groups according to predicted mutation severity: group A (11 women and 9 men), homozygous or compound heterozygous for null or In2 splice mutations [residual enzymatic activity (RA), <1%]; group B (11 women and 4 men), homozygous for I172N or R341P or R426H mutations (RA, approximately 2-3%) or compound heterozygous with any of the group A or B mutations; and group C (13 women and 7 men), homozygous for P30L or V281L or P453S mutations (RA, >30%) or compound heterozygous with any of the group A, B, or C mutations. Three patients showed unclassifiable genotypes. FH was similar in the female groups, whereas male patients in group B were shorter than males in groups A and C. Fifty-five percent of patients in group A, 33% in group B, and 40% in group C reached an FH within 0.5 SD of target height. Four of the 7 patients diagnosed via neonatal screening achieved an FH equal to or above the target height. In the entire group, early diagnosis (<1 yr) improved height outcome. Early diagnosed CAH patients who received lower cortisol equivalent doses during the first year of life reached a better FH. Our results underline the importance of mineralocorticoid therapy, as CAH subjects in groups A and B who did not receive this treatment showed reduced FH. Early diagnosis, the use of more physiological cortisol equivalent dosages during the first year of life, and the extension of mineralocorticoid therapy to all classical patients are shown to improve the auxological outcome. Genotypic analysis helped to interpret the height results of our cases and prospectively may represent a useful tool for improving the therapeutic choice and the height outcome.
Early Identification of Hearing Impairment in Patients With Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus

Objective The aim of this study was to evaluate the cochlear micromechanics and central auditory function in patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus and to identify the site of possible dysfunction. Methods Cochlear activity was evaluated by recording distortion product otoacoustic emissions (DPOAEs). DPOAEs were performed using an ILO 92 Otodynamics Analyser. Functional changes in the retrocochlear auditory pathway were evaluated by auditory brainstem responses (ABRs). DPOAEs and ABRs were measured in 42 normally hearing patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus aged 21 to 42 years, and 33 age-and sex-matched nondiabetic control subjects. Results Both of the groups (diabetic and control) had normal and undifferentiated results in tonal and impedance audiometry. ABR peripheral transmission time (wave I) and central transmission time (interpeak latencies I–V) were significantly delayed in the diabetic compared with normal subjects, and the mean amplitudes of various DPOAEs were significantly reduced in the diabetic patients compared with the control subjects. Conclusions Combined use of different procedures for monitoring central and peripheral portions of the auditory pathway in diabetic patients showed alterations in cochlear micromechanics and the retrocochlear auditory pathway. Hearing impairment in diabetic patients is usually mild and subclinical, and can be detected early by accurate and objective audiometric methods.
THERMAL BOUNDARY RESISTANCE MEASUREMENTS USING A TRANSIENT THERMOREFLECTANCE TECHNIQUE

A transient thermoreflectance technique, using a 200-fs laser pulse, is demonstrated as a nondestructive method for measuring the thermal boundary resistance between a thin metallic film and dielectric substrate. Experimental results are presented for Au deposited on silicon and silicon dioxide substrates taken at room temperature and compared to a thermal model. The relevant thermal properties of the metal film and the substrate are known, leaving the thermal boundary resistance as the only free parameter in the least-squares fitting routine. It is shown that the sensitivity of this technique is related directly to the thermal diffusivity of the substrate. A comparison between the diffuse mismatch model, the phonon radiation limit, and the experimental results indicates that the phonon dispersion relations of the materials can be utilized to give a qualitative prediction of the thermal boundary resistance.
Placebo‐Controlled Trial of Venlafaxine for the Treatment of Major Depression

Results are presented of the first double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of a novel antidepressant venlafaxine, which preclinically has demonstrated serotonin, norepinephrine, and dopamine reuptake inhibiting effects. Sixty outpatients meeting DSM-III-R criteria for major depression were randomized to receive 6 weeks of treatment with one of three fixed doses of venlafaxine—25 mg three times a day, 75 mg three times a day, or 125 mg three times a day—or placebo. Significant improvement was observed in depression scores at all doses, with the high dose resulting in earlier improvement, by week 2. For the combined venlafaxine treatment groups, 68% achieved a moderate or marked improvement on the Clinical Global Impression scale, compared with only 31% for the placebo group. Venlafaxine was well tolerated, and nervousness, sweating, and nausea were the only adverse effects observed more frequently with drug compared with placebo.
Proventricular Dilatation Disease Associated with Avian Bornavirus in a Scarlet Macaw (Ara Macao)

A case of proventricular dilatation disease is described in a scarlet macaw(Ara macao) from clinical presentation to diagnosis with molecular methods. The initial clinical signs were depression progressing to head pressing over several days. A leukocytosis with toxic heterophil changes, hypoalbuminemia, and increased serum activity of aspartate aminotransferase and creatine kinase were present. Lead and zinc assays were within reference ranges, and results from Chlamydophila and polyomavirus testing were negative. Contrast-enhanced fluoroscopy revealed normal gastrointestinal transit times and motility as well as the presence of 2 small metallic foreign bodies in the ventriculus. The macaw was treated with antimicrobials, analgesics, vitamins E and B complex, force-feeding, and fluid administration with little improvement. Euthanasia was elected, and histologic examination of brain tissue revealed a perivascular lymphoplasmacytic infiltration, while the lungs had evidence of a fungal pneumonia. Tissue samples from the brain and proventriculus tested positive for the presence of Avian bornavirus genotype 2, while serology confirmed Avian bornavirus infection.
Bell's theorem from Moore's theorem

It is shown that the restrictions of what can be inferred from classically recorded observational outcomes that are imposed by the no-cloning theorem, the Kochen–Specker theorem and Bell's theorem also follow from restrictions on inferences from observations formulated within classical automata theory. Similarities between the assumptions underlying classical automata theory and those underlying universally unitary quantum theory are discussed.
Low-loss silica-based optical film waveguides deposited by helicon-activated reactive evaporation

Planar silica-based optical waveguides have been deposited by a plasma helicon-activated reactive evaporation system, at a low temperature and with reduced hydrogen contamination, on thermally oxidized silicon wafers. The transmission loss of the rib waveguides, formed on the deposited films by etching with hydrofluoric acid, is determined to be lower than 0.1 and 0.7 dB/cm at wavelengths of 1310 and 1510 nm, respectively, for TE polarization. The influence of substrate leakage on propagation loss is determined numerically and compared with experimental results for TE and TM polarizations. The presence of the OH vibrational overtone band in the fabricated waveguides, at a wavelength of around 1385 nm, is discussed in terms of the waveguide structure.
Monosialoganglioside 1 may alleviate neurotoxicity induced by propofol combined with remifentanil in neural stem cells

Monosialoganglioside 1 (GM1) is the main ganglioside subtype and has neuroprotective properties in the central nervous system. In this study, we aimed to determine whether GM1 alleviates neurotoxicity induced by moderate and high concentrations of propofol combined with remifentanil in the immature central nervous system. Hippocampal neural stem cells were isolated from newborn Sprague-Dawley rats and treated with remifentanil (5, 10, 20 ng/mL) and propofol (1.0, 2.5, 5.0 μg/mL), and/or GM1 (12.5, 25, 50 μg/mL). GM1 reversed combined propofol and remifentanil-induced decreases in the percentage of 5-bromodeoxyuridine(+) cells and also reversed the increase in apoptotic cell percentage during neural stem cell proliferation and differentiation. However, GM1 with combined propofol and remifentanil did not affect β-tubulin(+) or glial fibrillary acidic protein(+) cell percentage during neural stem cell differentiation. In conclusion, we show that GM1 alleviates the damaging effects of propofol combined with remifentanil at moderate and high exposure concentrations in neural stem cells in vitro, and exerts protective effects on the immature central nervous system.
Growth charts and obesity prevalence among Lebanese private schools adolescents.

INTRODUCTION The objectives of this study were to establish weight, height and body mass index curves and to calculate the prevalence of obesity by sex and age groups in Lebanese adolescents of private schools. MATERIAL AND METHODS Body weight, height and body mass index (BMI) were measured among 12299 adolescents aged 10 to 18 years from Lebanese private schools. Adolescents' growth charts were established. Obesity and at risk of obesity individuals were identified according to International Obesity Taskforce thresholds, and our numbers were compared to those of other countries. RESULTS Curves of weight, height and BMI were drawn. In boys, 10.1% were obese and 28.8% at risk of obesity. In girls, 4.2% were obese and 19.0% were at risk of obesity. CONCLUSION Lebanese private schools adolescents, particularly boys, present high prevalences of obesity and risk of obesity. Pediatricians should identify early adolescents at greater risk, in order to achieve a more favorable prognosis.
Matthew’s anti-Paulinism: A neglected feature of Matthean studies

Half a century ago, S G F Brandon argued that the Gospel of Matthew was an antiPauline text. Brandon’s case was not especially convincing and his hypothesis was quickly consigned to the scholarly scrap heap. But in recent times Matthean scholarship has been moving towards a position whereby Brandon’s basic insights can and should be resurrected. This study argues that the view that Matthew was an anti-Pauline text is completely in line with current understandings of this Gospel and its underlying community, and can be restated in a more detailed and much more convincing fashion.
Efficacy of a support group intervention on psychopathological characteristics among caregivers of psychotic patients

Background: Families of individuals with psychotic disorders are playing a major role in the care of their relatives, but report poorer physical competence, elevated symptoms of psychological distress and more psychopathological characteristics. Aim: To compare psychopathological characteristics demonstrated by caregivers of psychotic patients in Greece who participated in support groups organized by non-governmental mental health organizations (NGOMH) compared to caregivers who did not. Methods: Participants were caregivers of a psychotic patient assigned to either the intervention group (n = 165) or the non-intervention group (n = 345) according to specific criteria. Participants were assessed for psychopathological characteristics through clinical interviews and with the Symptom Checklist 90–Revised (SCL-90-R). Results: Participants who did not take part in the support groups had higher levels of psychopathological characteristics on the dimensions of interpersonal sensitivity (t = −2.065, p = .003), depression (t = 1.043, p = .007), anxiety (t = 1.001, p = .010), hostility (t = −4.345, p < .001), phobic anxiety (t = −2.845, p < .001) and paranoid ideation (t = −1.091, p < .001). Psychotic relatives of participating caregivers show higher compliance rates in taking their medications, and female caregivers tend to be more involved in the support groups. Conclusion: Participation in support groups and sharing of emotional expression, thoughts and ideas help the caregivers deal with their physical and psychological demands related to the caregiver load. As such, intervention strategies offered to caregivers in the support groups appear to positively contribute to the family with a psychotic patient and improve the quality of life of both patients and their main caregivers.
Gambling as an Executive Function Task

The Iowa Gambling Task (IGT; Bechara, Damasio, Damasio, & Anderson, 1994) was investigated in relation to fluid intelligence and two conventional executive function tasks: letter fluency and the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test. Fifty-one children aged 8-10 years and a heterogeneous group of 40 adults served as participants. Adults outperformed children on all measures except one; this was the number of good cards selected in the IGT. Intercorrelations among executive function tasks were low. The number of good cards in the IGT appeared to be lower than in previous studies. Reasons for poor performance are discussed. The IGT may possess some shortcomings, which should be investigated in future studies. In clinical usage, the IGT may best serve as a complementary tool to the executive functions test battery.
A Goal-Based Model of Product Evaluation and Choice

The authors propose a goal-based model of product evaluation and choice. The model is intended to account for the role of momentary goal activations in relatively straightforward product evaluation and choice processes. It contributes by (a) providing a coherent and consistent account for goal-based product evaluations/choices, (b) providing a theory of the way goal activation influences product evaluation and choice, and (c) generating predictions about novel phenomena, moderators, and boundary conditions in the area of goal-based product evaluations and choices.
Cross and Delta-Hedges: Regression Versus Price-Based Hedge Ratios

In implementing a variance-minimizing cross or delta hedge, the regression coefficient is often estimated using data from the past, but one could also use estimators that are suggested by the random-walk or unbiased-expectations models and require just a single price. We compare the performances of various hedge ratios for three-month currency exposures, and find that the price-based hedge ratios generally perform better than the regression-based ones. Specifically, all our regressions do systematically worse in the case of a delta hedge, and seem to beat the price-based hedge ratios only in the case of cross- or cross-and-delta problems where the two currencies are so distantly related-like, e.g., the ITL/USD and the JPY/USD-that no risk manager would even consider them as hedges of each other. The results are robust to observation frequency in the regressions, sample period, percentage vs. dollar returns, and OLS versus IV. Nor can the poor performance of the regressions be attributed to errors-in-variables bias because we correct the futures prices for synchronization noise, bid-ask bounce, and changing time to maturity. One reason why price-based methods do better is that they provide immediate adjustment to breaks in the data (like EMS realignments, which get incorporated into rolling regression coefficients only very slowly, as time elapses) or other events that change the relationship between the regressor and regressand. For cross or cross-and-delta hedges between European currencies, regressions also have difficulties in capturing cross-correlations between exchange rates.
Characterization of the Insulin‐Like Growth Factor Axis in the Human Thymus

The components of the insulin‐like growth factor (IGF) axis have been investigated in the normal human thymus. Using ribonuclease protection assays (RPA), IGF‐II transcripts were detected in the normal human thymus. By reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT‐PCR) analyses, promoters P3 and P4 were found to be active in the transcription of IGF2 gene within human thymic epithelial cells (TEC). No IGF‐II mRNA could be detected in human lymphoid Jurkat T cells with 30 cycles of RT‐PCR. By Northern blot analyses, IGFBP‐2 to ‐6 (but not IGFBP‐1) were found to be expressed in TEC with a predominance of IGFBP‐4. Interestingly, Jurkat T cells only express IGFBP‐2 but at high levels. The type 1 IGF receptor was detected in Jurkat T cells but not in human TEC. The identification of the components of the IGF axis within separate compartments of the human thymus adds further evidence for a role of this axis in the control of T‐cell development. The precise influence of thymic IGF axis upon T‐cell differentiation and immunological self‐tolerance however needs to be further investigated.
Increased prevalence of subclinical hypothyroidism in common bile duct stone patients.

CONTEXT Earlier, we have shown an increased prevalence of previously diagnosed hypothyroidism in common bile duct (CBD) stone patients and a delayed emptying of the biliary tract in hypothyroidism, explained partly by the missing prorelaxing effect of T(4) on the sphincter of Oddi contractility. OBJECTIVE In this study, the prevalence of previously undiagnosed subclinical hypothyroidism in CBD stone patients was compared with nongallstone controls. PATIENTS All patients were clinically euthyreotic and without a history of thyroid function abnormalities. CBD stones were diagnosed at endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (group 1; n = 303) or ruled out by previous medical history, liver function tests, and ultrasonography (control group II; n = 142). MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Serum free FT(4) and TSH (S-TSH) were analyzed; S-TSH above the normal range (>6.0 mU/liter) was considered as subclinical and S-TSH 5.0-6.0 mU/liter as borderline-subclinical hypothyroidism. RESULTS A total of 5.3 and 5.0% (total 10.2%; 31 of 303) of the CBD stone patients were diagnosed to have subclinical and borderline-subclinical hypothyroidism, compared with 1.4% (P = 0.05) and 1.4% (total 2.8%, four of 142; P = 0.026) in the control group, respectively. In women older than 60 yr, the prevalence of subclinical hypothyroidism was 11.4% in CBD stone and 1.8% in control patients (P = 0.032) and subclinical plus borderline-subclinical hypothyroidism 23.8% in CBD stone and 1.8% in control patients (P = 0.012). CONCLUSION Subclinical hypothyroidism is more common in the CBD stone patients, compared with nongallstone controls, supporting our hypothesis that hypothyroidism might play a role in the forming of CBD stones. At minimum, women older than 60 yr with CBD stones should be screened for borderline or overt subclinical hypothyroidism.
In Vitro Activities of BMS-284756 against Chlamydia trachomatis and Recent Clinical Isolates of Chlamydia pneumoniae

ABSTRACT The in vitro activities of BMS-284756 (a novel des-fluoroquinolone), levofloxacin, moxifloxacin, and clarithromycin were tested against 5 strains of Chlamydia trachomatis and 20 isolates of Chlamydia pneumoniae. The MIC at which 90% of the isolates were inhibited and the minimal bactericidal concentration at which 90% of the isolates were killed by BMS-284756 for all isolates of C. pneumoniae and C. trachomatis was 0.015 μg/ml (range, 0.015 to 0.03 μg/ml). BMS-284756 was the most active quinolone tested.