Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The plasma levels of plasminogen activator inhibitor‐1 in subjects with white coat hypertension

High plasminogen activator inhibitor‐1 (PAI‐1) levels are potential risk factors for cardiovascular disease. The risk profile of white coat hypertension (WCHT) has not yet been completely clear. In this study, we aimed to determine the plasma levels of PAI‐1, markers of fibrinolysis and increased cardiovascular disease risk, in a group with WCHT and to obtain clinical results by comparing WCHT group with hypertensive and healthy groups. Age and sex matched 30 patients with WCHT, 30 patients with sustained hypertension, and 30 healthy subjects were included in the study. The plasma levels of PAI‐1 were significantly higher in sustained hypertension group than in WCHT group (p < 0.01). There were significantly higher levels in patients with WCHT than in control group (p < 0.01). Our data suggests one possible mechanism by which WCHT subjects may be at increased cardiovascular risk.
Molecular The BDNF Val 66 Met Polymorphism Impairs Synaptic Transmission and Plasticity in the Infralimbic Medial Prefrontal Cortex

Siobhan S. Pattwell,1 Kevin G. Bath,2 Rosalia Perez-Castro,3 Francis S. Lee,1 Moses V. Chao,3,4 and Ipe Ninan4 1Department of Psychiatry, Weill Cornell Medical College of Cornell University, New York, New York 10065, 2Department of Neuroscience, Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island 02912, 3Molecular Neurobiology Program, Skirball Institute, NYU School of Medicine, New York, New York 10016, and 4Department of Psychiatry, New York University Langone Medical Center, New York, New York 10016
Effects of various concentrations of carbohydrate mouth rinse on cycling performance in a fed state

Abstract The objective of this study was to identify the effects of mouth rinsing with a 6% and 16% carbohydrate solution (CHO) on time trial performance when compared to a 0% control (PLA) when in a fed state. Twelve recreationally active males underwent three trials by which they had to complete a set workload (600 ± 65 W) in a fed state. Throughout each trial, participants rinsed their mouths with a 25 ml bolus of a 0% PLA, 6% or 16% CHO (maltodextrin) for every 12.5% of work completed. Rating of perceived exertion (RPE) and heart rate were recorded every 12.5% of total work. Performance times and power output improved significantly when using the 6% and 16% CHO versus the PLA trial (6% versus PLA, p = .002 and 16% versus PLA, p = .001). When comparing the performance times of the 6% to 16% CHO, no significance was observed (p = .244). There was no significant difference between heart rate levels or RPE values across the three trials. In conclusion, mouth rinsing with a 6% or 16% CHO solution has a positive effect on a cycling time trial performance undertaken in a fed state.
Alleviation of Premenstrual Syndrome Symptoms With the Relaxation Response

During a 5-month study, we examined the effects of the relaxation response on premenstrual syndrome in 46 women who were randomly assigned to one of three groups: a charting group, a reading group, and a relaxation response group. The relaxation response group showed significantly greater improvement than the charting and the reading groups on physical symptoms (P < .025 for both comparisons). There was a significant group-by-severity effect for charting versus relaxation response and for reading versus relaxation response on symptoms measured daily (P < .01 for both comparisons), on emotional symptoms measured retrospectively (P < .001 and P < .025, respectively), and on symptoms of social withdrawal measured retrospectively (P < .01 and P < .025, respectively). Women with severe symptoms in the relaxation response group showed a 58.0% improvement, compared with a 27.2% improvement for the reading group and a 17.0% improvement for the charting group. We conclude that regular elicitation of the relaxation response is an effective treatment for physical and emotional premenstrual symptoms, and is most effective in women with severe symptoms. (Obstet Gynecol 75:649, 1990)
The Influence of the Parents' Educational Level on the Development of Executive Functions

Information about the influence of educational variables on the development of executive functions is limited. The aim of this study was to analyze the relation of the parents' educational level and the type of school the child attended (private or public school) to children's executive functioning test performance. Six hundred twenty-two participants, ages 5 to 14 years (276 boys, 346 girls) were selected from Colombia and Mexico and grouped according to three variables: age (5-6, 7-8, 9-10, 11-12, and 13-14 years), gender (boys and girls), and school type (private and public). Eight executive functioning tests taken from the Evaluacion Neuropsicologica Infantil; Matute, Rosselli, Ardila, & Ostrosky, in press) were individually administered: Semantic Verbal Fluency, Phonemic Verbal Fluency, Semantic Graphic Fluency, Nonsemantic Graphic Fluency, Matrices, Similarities, Card Sorting, and the Mexican Pyramid. There was a significant effect of age on all the test scores and a significant effect of type of school attended on all but Semantic Verbal Fluency and Nonsemantic Graphic Fluency tests. Most children's test scores, particularly verbal test scores, significantly correlated with parents' educational level. Our results suggest that the differences in test scores between the public and private school children depended on some conditions existing outside the school, such as the parents' level of education. Implications of these findings for the understanding of the influence of environmental factors on the development of executive functions are presented.
Role of VEGF Inhibition in the Treatment of Retinopathy of Prematurity

ABSTRACT Retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) is a potentially blinding disease characterized by retinal neovascularization, which eventually can lead to tractional retinal detachment. Improvements have been made regarding the management of retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) since it was described in the Cryotherapy for Retinopathy of Prematurity study. A more appropriate time for therapeutic intervention was defined by the Early Treatment for Retinopathy of Prematurity (ETROP) trial. Advances in screening strategies with the use of digital imaging systems are now available. All of this and the use of laser photocoagulation and vitreoretinal surgery have contributed to significant increases in favorable outcomes and decreases in child blindness secondary to ROP. Recently the use of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) inhibitors has been introduced to the armamentarium for the treatment of ROP. The purpose of this review article is to evaluate the role of VEGF inhibition in the treatment of ROP.
First-principles theory of surface magnetocrystalline anisotropy and the diatomic-pair model.

The state-tracking method proposed recently is employed for the first-principles determination of the magnetocrystalline-anisotropy (MCA) energy. A close relationship of the MCA energy to the band structure is found for transition-metal monolayers that show the change of sign of the MCA with respect to the band filling (atomic species) to be determined mainly by the spin-orbit coupling within the spin-down bands. The Fe monolayer with the π-bonding band as the highest occupied band exhibits positive MCA (easy axis along the layer normal). However, the effect of strain on the MCA of the Fe monolayer demonstrates the effect of the spin-orbit coupling between opposite-spin states
Leptin mediates the parathyroid hormone-related protein paracrine stimulation of fetal lung maturation.

Developing rat lung lipofibroblasts express leptin beginning on embryonic day (E) 17, increasing 7- to 10-fold by E20. Leptin and its receptor are expressed mutually exclusively by fetal lung fibroblasts and type II cells, suggesting a paracrine signaling "loop. " This hypothesized mechanism is supported by the following experimental data: 1) leptin stimulates the de novo synthesis of surfactant phospholipid by both fetal rat type II cells (400% x 100 ng(-1) x ml(-1) x 24 h(-1)) and adult human airway epithelial cells (85% x 100 ng(-1) x 24 h(-1)); 2) leptin is secreted by lipofibroblasts in amounts that stimulate type II cell surfactant phospholipid synthesis in vitro; 3) epithelial cell secretions such as parathyroid hormone-related protein (PTHrP), PGE(2), and dexamethasone stimulate leptin expression by fetal rat lung fibroblasts; 4) PTHrP or leptin stimulate the de novo synthesis of surfactant phospholipid (2- to 2.5-fold/24 h) and the expression of surfactant protein B (SP-B; >25-fold/24 h) by fetal rat lung explants, an effect that is blocked by a leptin antibody; and 5) a PTHrP receptor antagonist inhibits the expression of leptin mRNA by explants but does not inhibit leptin stimulation of surfactant phospholipid or SP-B expression, indicating that PTHrP paracrine stimulation of type II cell maturation requires leptin expression by lipofibroblasts. This is the first demonstration of a paracrine loop that functionally cooperates to induce alveolar acinar lung development.
Management and prognosis of atrial fibrillation in the diabetic patient

The global burden of atrial fibrillation and diabetes mellitus (diabetes) is considerable, and prevalence rates are increasing. Diabetes is associated with an increased risk of developing atrial fibrillation; however, diabetes also influences the management and prognosis of atrial fibrillation. In the following article, the authors describe the association between diabetes and atrial fibrillation; specifically, the significance of diabetes on the risk of atrial fibrillation, ischemic stroke and bleeding complications associated with anticoagulation. In addition, the authors evaluate the risks and outcomes of heart failure and the success rates of both ablation and cardioversion in atrial fibrillation patients with diabetes. Finally, this article describes the association of HbA1c levels with the management and prognosis of atrial fibrillation patients.
Cardiovascular risk factors in an eastern Caribbean island: prevalence of non-communicable chronic diseases and associated lifestyle risk factors for cardiovascular morbidity and mortality in the British Virgin Islands.

BACKGROUND The epidemiological transition has seen a trend from communicable to non-communicable diseases in developing countries. At the pinnacle of these chronic diseases is hypertension, pre-hypertension, diabetes and obesity. This leads to increased cardiovascular morbidity and mortality worldwide. In addition, environmental and behavioural changes such as lifestyle habits represent modifiable risk factors for the development of cardiovascular diseases. The Caribbean is not immune to this trend. METHODS This was a cross-sectional survey conducted between June and September 2009 and involved individuals 15-74 years of age. Age-gender was weighted to get as close a representative sample of the general population living in the British Virgin Islands (BVI) for more than two years to a total of 301 (n = 301, M: 144, F: 157; CI 95% +/- error 5%). The study was carried out using a handout questionnaire that included variables on age, gender socio-economic status (SES), income level, cigarette smoking, physical activity, weight, height, body mass index (BMI), blood pressure, fasting blood glucose and cholesterol. RESULTS This study shows a prevalence of hypertension of 16.6%, pre-hypertension--29.9%, diabetes mellitus--10.0% [M: 5.6%, F: 14%, p < 0.01], impaired fasting glucose (IFG)--16.9% [M: 13.9%, F: 19.7%, p < 0.01], overweight--25.6% (M: 19.4%, F: 31.2%, p < 0.001), obesity (body mass index > 30)--23.6% (M: 17.4%, F: 29.3%, p < 0.001) [all significantly higher in women], smoking habits--16.6% and alcohol--51.2% [significantly higher in men: 22.5% and 56.7%, respectively]. Of the respondents, 43.2% had a low/inactive physical activity level. Clustering of greater than one risk factor was more pronounced for women than for men 29.6% (M: 27.1%, F: 31.8%, p < 0.05). Sedentary lifestyle (low/inactive physical activity) and obesity were the only risk factors that had a positive correlation with all four chronic diseases (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION The above results indicate that a national strategy needs to be implemented to control cardiovascular diseases, educate the population and promote healthy lifestyle habits with particular attention to low physical inactivity and obesity.
Influence of ruminal protozoa on site and extent of starch digestion and ruminal fermentation.

Eight ruminally, duodenally, and ileally fistulated sheep were used to study the effects of protozoa on ruminal fermentation and starch digestion in the rumen and intestines. The experimental diet (75% grain DM basis) was based on a mixture of 67% high-moisture corn (HMC) and 33% dry-rolled grain sorghum (DRGS). Protozoa were reduced from 51,286 to 13,987 organisms/mL of ruminal fluid by feeding a diet (13 d) containing 9% tallow and monensin at 27 mg/kg (DM basis). Three sheep were defaunated by intraruminal infusions of lactic acid (20 to 30 g/d) and one sheep by washing the rumen and heating ruminal contents (60 degrees C for 20 min). No differences were observed in DM or starch intake, ruminal fluid pH, lactate concentration, or total tract starch digestibility. Molar proportion of acetate was reduced (48.6 vs 58.3%; P < .01) and propionate was increased (32.2 vs 23.4%; P < .03) by defaunation. Total VFA tended (P = .20) to be lower in faunated sheep (118.5 vs 139.2 mM). In situ rate of starch digestion of HMC (22.3 vs 14.7 %/h; P < .02) and DRGS (5.1 vs 3.3 %/h; P < .009) was increased by defaunation. Starch digestibility (percentage of intake) in the rumen was increased (P < .001) by defaunation (84.2 vs 93.7%) and was reduced (P < .002) in the small intestine (5.2 vs 13.6%). Defaunation increased (P < .03) amylolytic activity (.40 vs .17 units/mg of protein; P < .03) and osmotic pressure (321 vs 245 mOsm/kg; P < .006). (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Efficacy of major general surgery performed by non-physician clinicians at a central hospital in Malawi

In some sub-Saharan African countries non-physician clinicians have to perform major general surgery without medical officers and surgeons. The safety of this practice has not been established. The aim of this study was to evaluate the contribution of clinical officers (COs) to major general surgery at Zomba Central Hospital. We performed a retrospective five-year period study during 2003–2007. The perioperative outcome for three procedures was analysed. During the study 2931 major general surgical procedures were performed: 1437 (49%) by surgeons; 366 (12.5%) by COs assisted by surgeons; and 1128 (38.5%) by COs alone. COs performed 50% of prostatectomies, ventriculo-peritoneal-shuntings and strangulated hernia repairs with bowel resection alone. Baseline parameters and perioperative outcomes of the patients who underwent operations with surgeons present (as operator or assistant, ‘surgeon group’) or patients operated by COs alone (‘CO group’) were similar. COs can safely perform major general surgery when adequate training and supervision are provided.
In Vivo Confocal Microscopy of Bleb-like Disorder in Epithelial Basement Membrane Dystrophy

Purpose: To report the confocal microscopic appearance of bleb-like disorder in epithelial basement membrane dystrophy (EBMD). Methods: Two subjects with bleb-like disorder in EBMD were examined with slit-lamp biomicroscopy and in vivo confocal microscopy using the Heidelberg Retina Tomograph II/Rostock Cornea Module. A sample obtained from epithelial debridement from 1 subject provided histologic correlation. Results: Confocal microscopy showed areas of circular and irregular hyporeflectivity ranging from 30 to 150 μm in diameter at the level of the basal epithelium and Bowman layer, with apparent fragmentation of the subbasal nerve plexus. The stroma, Descemet membrane, and corneal endothelium appeared normal. The epithelial biopsy results revealed subepithelial deposits of material anterior to the Bowman layer that stained positively with periodic acid–Schiff (PAS). Conclusions: This clinicopathologic correlation of bleb-like disorder in EBMD using confocal microscopy demonstrates the distinctive morphology of this disorder. It provides additional information to help with the interpretation of confocal images.
Theory and simulations of the scaling of magnetic reconnection with symmetric shear flow

The scaling of magnetic reconnection in the presence of an oppositely directed sub-Alfvénic shear flow parallel to the reconnecting magnetic field is studied using analytical scaling arguments and two-dimensional two-fluid numerical simulations of collisionless (Hall) reconnection. Previous studies noted that the reconnection rate falls and the current sheet tilts with increasing flow speed, but no quantitative theory was presented. This study presents a physical model of the effect of shear flow on reconnection, resulting in expressions for the scaling of properties such as the reconnection rate, outflow speed, and thickness and length of the dissipation region, which are verified numerically. Differences between Hall and Sweet-Parker reconnection are pointed out. The tilting of the current sheet is explained physically and a quantitative prediction is presented and verified. VC 2011 American Institute of Physics. [doi:10.1063/1.3602859]
STUDENT SATISFACTION with High‐Fidelity Simulation: Does It Correlate with Learning Styles?

&NA; The purpose of this study was to explore how learning styles correlate with student satisfacation when high‐fidelity human simulation is used in a baccalaureate nursing program. Seventy‐eight undergraduate students enrolled in an advanced medical‐surgical course completed the Student Satisfaction and Self‐Confidence in Learning scale after participating in an experiental learning lab activity that included high‐fidelity human simulation‐enhanced cardiac case scenarios. Data were then correlated with learning styles identified by a nurse entrance test. Analyses of the data revealed positive relationships between the social and solitary learning styles and student satisfaction with simulation.
Delivery as a Traumatic Event: Prevalence, Risk Factors, and Treatment for Postnatal Posttraumatic Stress Disorder

This review looks at the evidence for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) after birth. Postnatal traumatic stress responses are divided into appraisal of birth as traumatic, traumatic stress responses (severe symptoms of intrusions and avoidance that do not fulfill all the criteria for PTSD), and PTSD. Evidence is examined for the prevalence of these types of responses after birth and for prenatal, perinatal, and postnatal vulnerability and risk factors. Screening tools that could be used are outlined and possible intervention and treatment approaches considered. Various conceptual and methodological issues are also raised. It is concluded that up to 10% of women have severe traumatic stress responses to birth, although only 1% to 2% of women actually develop chronic postnatal PTSD. The limited research available suggests that a history of psychiatric problems, mode of delivery, and low support during labor put women at increased risk of postnatal PTSD, although there is unlikely to be a simple relationship between mode of delivery and traumatic stress responses. A model of the possible pathways between vulnerability/risk factors and postnatal PTSD is proCorrespondence: Susan Ayers, PhD, C.Psychol. , Psychology Department, University of Sussex, Brighton, BN1 9QH, UK. E-mail: S.Ayers@sussex.ac. uk CLINICAL OBSTETRICS AND GYNECOLOGY Volume 47, Number 3, 552–567 © 2004, Lippincott Williams & Wilkins
Respiratory Syncytial Virus Engineered To Express the Cystic Fibrosis Transmembrane Conductance Regulator Corrects the Bioelectric Phenotype of Human Cystic Fibrosis Airway Epithelium In Vitro

ABSTRACT Cystic fibrosis (CF) is the most common lethal recessive genetic disease in the Caucasian population. It is caused by mutations in the CF transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) gene that is normally expressed in ciliated airway epithelial cells and the submucosal glands of the lung. Since the CFTR gene was first characterized in 1989, a major goal has been to develop an effective gene therapy for CF lung disease, which has the potential to ameliorate morbidity and mortality. Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) naturally infects the ciliated cells in the human airway epithelium. In addition, the immune response mounted against an RSV infection does not prevent subsequent infections, suggesting that an RSV-based vector might be effectively readministered. To test whether the large 4.5-kb CFTR gene could be expressed by a recombinant RSV and whether infectious virus could be used to deliver CFTR to ciliated airway epithelium derived from CF patients, we inserted the CFTR gene into four sites in a recombinant green fluorescent protein-expressing RSV (rgRSV) genome to generate virus expressing four different levels of CFTR protein. Two of these four rgRSV-CFTR vectors were capable of expressing CFTR with little effect on viral replication. rgRSV-CFTR infection of primary human airway epithelial cultures derived from CF patients resulted in expression of CFTR protein that was properly localized at the luminal surface and corrected the chloride ion channel defect in these cells.
A randomised placebo‐controlled trial of ursodeoxycholic acid and S‐adenosylmethionine in the treatment of intrahepatic cholestasis of pregnancy

A randomised placebo controlled study was performed in 32 women with intrdhepatic cholestasis of pregnancy. The population was divided into four groups: for 20 days each group was treated only with ursodeoxycholic acid, or S‐adenosylmethionine, or a combination of both drugs, or a placebo (vitamin). Itching, standard liver function tests and serum total bile acids were measured before, during, and after treatment. Itching improved in all the women as well as the biochemical abnormalities. No side‐effects in the mother or in the infant were recorded during and after therapy. A combination of ursodeoxycholic acid and S‐adenosylmethionine is more effective than placebo and than either drug alone.
Childhood bullous pemphigoid: clinical and immunological findings in a series of 4 cases.

BACKGROUND Bullous pemphigoid (BP) is an autoimmune blistering disease that is rare in childhood. As in adult BP, antibodies against the 180-kDa antigen (BP180) seem to be involved in the pathogenesis of the disease, but, to date, only a small number of children with the disease have been examined immunologically. OBSERVATIONS We report the cases of 4 infants with BP aged 5 to 12 months. All of them had involvement of the hands and feet, and they all achieved a complete remission in less than 6 months when treated with oral prednisolone stearoyl glycolate. Three patients could be examined using antigen characterization techniques. Autoantibodies against the NC16A domain of BP180 were found by immunoblot assay in all 3 and by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay in 2 of them. Interestingly, although IgA autoantibodies were detected in only 1 of them by indirect immunofluorescence, all of them had IgA autoantibodies, and 2 of the 3 had IgG autoantibodies against NC16A as detected by immunoblot assay. One patient also had IgG autoantibodies against the carboxyterminal domain of BP180. CONCLUSIONS IgA-specific antibodies against BP180 were detected in all our patients. These findings further raise the question about the relationship between BP and linear IgA bullous dermatosis, the most common autoimmune blistering disorder in children.