Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Fine‐needle aspiration cytology of the thyroid: Ten years experience in a community teaching hospital

We present our experience of fine‐needle aspiration (FNA) cytology of the thyroid in a community hospital setting and discuss the cancer probability of the indeterminate FNA results. There were 1,621 FNAs, 401 of which have follow‐up thyroidectomies during a 10‐yr period. The initial FNA diagnoses of these 401 cases were benign non‐neoplastic (BNN) 159, malignant 34, atypical 33, suspicious 19, follicular neoplasm (FN) 88, follicular lesion (FL) 51, and inadequate 17. There were no false‐positive cases. Cancer was found in 11 cases diagnosed as BNN (7%), 6 cases were due to sampling errors (incidental microcarcinomas), and 5 cases were due to failure to identify focal atypia in the smears of a follicular variant of papillary carcinoma. The false‐negative rate was 3%, with the exclusion of cases of incidental microcarcinomas. Among the indeterminate FNA results, the follow‐up operations revealed malignant tumors in 16 of 33 (48%) cases of atypical, 13 of 19 (68%) cases of suspicious, 29 of 88 (33%) cases of FN, and 7 of 51 (14%) cases of FL. Malignant tumors were also found in 2 of 17 (12%) of inadequate specimens with follow‐up. When compared to the cancer rate (3%) for FNA diagnosis of BNN, the likelihood of finding cancer in the thyroidectomy is 5 times more for a FL, 11 times more for a FN, 16 times more for atypical, and 23 times more for suspicious. The sensitivity and specificity are 87 and 100%, respectively. Diagn. Cytopathol. 2006; 34:93–96. © 2006 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Comparing sound radiation from a loudspeaker with that from a flexible spherical cap on a rigid sphere

It has been suggested by Morse and Ingard that the sound radiation of a loudspeaker in a box is comparable to that of a spherical cap on a rigid sphere. This has been established recently by the present authors, who developed a computation scheme for the forward and inverse calculation of the pressure due to a harmonically excited, flexible cap on a rigid sphere with an axially symmetric velocity distribution. In this paper the comparison is made for other quantities relevant to audio engineers, namely, the baffle-step response, sound power and directivity, and the acoustic center of a radiator.
Effect of nitroglycerin on total and regional coronary blood flow in the normal and ischaemic canine myocardium.

The effect of nitroglycerin on total coronary flow and its regional distribution was determined in normal conditions and in myocardial ischaemia. In normal hearts, capillary flow was 9·5% higher in the inner than in the outer myocardial half. When partial occlusion of coronary arteries was followed by infusion of noradrenaline, subendocardial flow was less than capillary flow in subepicardial layers. In these conditions, the administration of nitroglycerin resulted in a redistribution of capillary flow towards normal.
Simple and Robust Realtime QRS Detection Algorithm Based on Spatiotemporal Characteristic of the QRS Complex

The purpose of this research is to develop an intuitive and robust realtime QRS detection algorithm based on the physiological characteristics of the electrocardiogram waveform. The proposed algorithm finds the QRS complex based on the dual criteria of the amplitude and duration of QRS complex. It consists of simple operations, such as a finite impulse response filter, differentiation or thresholding without complex and computational operations like a wavelet transformation. The QRS detection performance is evaluated by using both an MIT-BIH arrhythmia database and an AHA ECG database (a total of 435,700 beats). The sensitivity (SE) and positive predictivity value (PPV) were 99.85% and 99.86%, respectively. According to the database, the SE and PPV were 99.90% and 99.91% in the MIT-BIH database and 99.84% and 99.84% in the AHA database, respectively. The result of the noisy environment test using record 119 from the MIT-BIH database indicated that the proposed method was scarcely affected by noise above 5 dB SNR (SE = 100%, PPV > 98%) without the need for an additional de-noising or back searching process.
Dimensional analysis and dynamic response characterization of mammalian peripheral vestibular structures.

Extensive morphometric measurements were made on the vestibular system of the rabbit ( Oryctulagus cuniculus), the gerbil (Meriones unguiculatus), the chinchilla (Chinchilla laniger ), and the squirrel monkey (Saimiri sciureus) from serial sections of temporal bones. Additionally, a more limited set of measurements were also completed on the owl monkey (Aotus trivirgatus), the Capuchin monkey (Cebus sp.), the harp seal ( Pagophilus groenlandicus Erxleben , 1777), and the two-toed sloth ( Choloepus sp.). The following measurements were made: 1) radius of curvature (R) of each membranous semicircular canal (herein called semicircular duct-see nomenclature in Nomina Anatomica (1968) ), 2) cross-sectional diameter of the ducts and the osseous semicircular canals, and 3) some pertinent morphometrics of the cristae ampullares and the utricle. In all species studied 1) the radii of curvature of the three semicircular ducts are dissimilar, with that of the lateral duct being as small as, or smaller than, those of the anterior and posterior ducts; 2) R for the anterior duct is largest in the harp seal and the rabbit; 3) the canal and duct dimensions are largest in the Capuchin and squirrel monkeys, the two-toed sloth, and the harp seal, and smallest in the gerbil; 4) the proportion of otic fluid "space" that is occupied by endolymph shows a ranking of gerbil greater than rabbit greater than two-toed sloth greater than chinchilla = owl monkey greater than squirrel monkey greater than Capuchin monkey greater than harp seal; and 5) the gross ampullary and utricular dimensions are largest in the harp seal and smallest in the gerbil. These measurements were used for determining the time constants describing semicircular-canal dynamics in the Steinhausen (1931, 1933) and Oman -Marcus (1980) equations.
Early bilirubin response in acute-on-chronic hepatitis B liver failure patients treated with corticosteroids predicates a lower 3-month mortality

Corticosteroids have been used for acute-on-chronic hepatitis B liver failure (ACHBLF) patients to inhibit overactive immunological responses. Due to the severe side effects of long-term use of corticosteroids, early identification of responders is very important for clinicians. So we conducted this study to identify efficacious indicators for response to corticosteroids. A total of 74 ACHBLF patients treated with corticosteroids were enrolled. Baseline characteristics and change of liver functions at the 3rd, 7th, 10th, 14th, 21th day during the treatment period were analyzed. Data were collected retrospectively and 3-month survival was used as the primary endpoint. 3-month survival in ACHBLF patients treated with corticosteroids was 50.0% ± 5.9%. Survival patients tended to be younger, have lower serum TBIL, creatinine and MELD score, and higher platelet than non-survival patients. After using corticosteroids, there was a significant improvement in TBIL, PTA and MELD score in survival patients compared with non-survival patients. Area under the receiver operating curve (AUROC) indicated that early improvement of bilirubin level (EIBL) at the 7th day after using corticosteroids was an efficacious predictor for response to corticosteroids. Multivariate logistic regression model identified four independent prognostic factors, including age, INR, TBIL, and EIBL, with significantly higher prognostic accuracy than MELD score. Our findings suggest that early improvement of serum bilirubin level at the 7th day after using corticosteroids in ACHBLF patients can predicate responsiveness to corticosteroid therapy and can be use as a favorable prognostic predictor for 3-month mortality in ACHBLF patients treated with corticosteroids.
Mortality and Morbidity among Farmers, Nonfarming Rural Men, and Urban Referents: A Prospective Population-Based Study

Abstract A cohort of 1,220 farmers, 1,130 nonfarming rural men, and 1,087 urban referents from Sweden were monitored for 12 years. Farmers had lower mortality than urban referents for all causes of death (hazard ratio [HR] = 0.51; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.37–0.71), cancer (HR = 0.44; 95% CI, 0.24–0.78) and cardiovascular diseases (HR = 0.60; 95% CI, 0.36–0.99). Nonfarming rural men had lower mortality than urban referents for all causes of deaths (HR = 0.81; 95% CI, 0.70–0.94). Farmers and nonfarming rural men had significantly lower morbidity risks of cancer and of psychiatric disorders than urban referents. Farmers had significantly lower risk of endocrine disorders, cardiovascular disorders, and respiratory disorders. In general, morbidity was lower among nonfarming rural men compared with urban referents and was even lower among farmers. Urban referents had, however, significantly less musculoskeletal disorder morbidity. An urban–rural factor and a farming occupational or lifestyle factor results in lower mortality and morbidity rates except concerning musculoskeletal disorders.
Endoscopic resection for the treatment of gastric subepithelial tumors originated from the muscularis propria layer.

BACKGROUND/AIMS Endoscopic resection for pathologic diagnosis and complete eradication of subepithelial tumors (SETs) has offered less invasive alternatives to surgical resection. The aim of this study is to evaluate feasibility of endoscopic resection for the treatment of gastric SETs originated from the muscularis propria layer and to determine related factors in the success rate of endoscopic resection. METHODOLOGY In 25 patients with a well marginated tumor which was 2 to 5cm and showed an endoluminal growth pattern according to endoscopic ultrasound (EUS) findings, endoscopic resection with incisional enucleation method was attempted in those who's SETs originated in the muscularis propria. The success rate, causes of failure, complications, EUS findings and histopathologic findings were analyzed in this retrospective single-center study. RESULTS Complete endoscopic resection of SETs was successful in 64% (16/25 tumors). Mean tumor size was 28.7mm (range 20-50mm). The histological diagnosis was leiomyoma for thirteen lesions and gastrointestinal stromal tumor for three lesions. The successful resection rate of tumors which had underlying muscle layer was 93.8% (15/16), but that of tumors which did not show any under EUS was 11.1% (1/9) (p < 0.001). All three perforations occurred in the cases of tumors which did not show underlying muscle layer under EUS during dissection of the tumor base from surrounding tissue (p = 0.037), CONCLUSION Endoscopic resection for the treatment of SETs arose from the muscularis propria seems to be feasible and effective only in the well marginated tumors which showed underlying muscle layer under EUS.
Hematology and clinical chemistry parameters in the cat (Felis domesticus).

The domestic cat ( Felis domesticus ) has been used for many years as a research animal. As the number of cats as compan-ion animals increases, so will the demand for the development of new compounds that are well tolerated in cats. Tradition-ally, in the evaluation of new pharmaceutical products, apart from the evaluation of physical side effects such as vomiting, the measurement of hematology and clinical chemistry parameters has been used to indicate tolerance and dietary adequacy in cats (M. G. Murphy, unpublished observations).
Knowledge Attitude and Practice of Diet and Exercise among Diabetic Patients for Normal Plasma Glucose Level

Objective: Identify theKnowledge, Attitude and practice regarding diet and exercise for normal glucose level among diabetic patients. Method: A descriptive cross sectional study was conducted among diabetic patients of KPK in tertiary care hospitals of Peshawar. Participants were selected through convenient sampling technique. The data was collected through a semistructured questionnaire. The autonomy and confidentiality was assured through a well-defined informed consent. Result: Out of 60 participants the gender distribution was 50% each. The Mean knowledge level of patients regarding diet and exercise for normal plasma glucose control was 61.17%+ 27.62 %. Percentages of both Practice and positive attitude were also calculated . The Means and Standard deviations were 53.33% + 23.68% and 56.67% + 23.33% respectively. Gender and positive attitude has significant relation with P-value=0.026, knowledge was significant with practice through P-value=0.019. Conclusion: the result of the study shows deficit in Patients’ Knowledge and practice and also lack of positive attitude toward diabetic diet and exercise for maintaining normal plasma glucose level, so there is a great need of producing awareness among diabetic patients regarding the importance of both diet and exercise and to improve their compliance and changes their attitude.
NADPH Generating Enzymes in Leydig Cells from Diabetic Rats

Impaired testosterone biosynthesis in Leydig cells from streptozotocin treated rats is correlated with the reduced activity of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase, 6-phosphogluconate dehydrogenase and isocitrate dehydrogenase. The results shown demonstrate that in the diabetic state the activity of these enzymes is reduced by almost 50 to 59% from normal levels. Insulin treatment restored their activities to normal levels. The diminished supply of NADPH in diabetic interstitial tissue is not the unique factor in the control of steroidogenesis, since the availability of large amounts of exogenous NADPH in the incubations of Leydig cell did not reduce the differences in testosterone synthesis observed when compared with normal cells.
A factor analysis of parental attitudes of fathers.

Parental attitude research has tended to pay more attention to the childrearing attitudes of mothers than of fathers. This may be justified on the basis of the assumption that mothers' attitudes are likely to be more influential in determining the child's behavior since they typically spend more time with children than fathers. However, some recent research (2) has suggested that this may not necessarily be the case. Schaefer and Bell (3) and Zuckerman, Ribback, Monashkin, and Norton (8) have published factor analyses of parental attitudes of mothers measured by PARI, and Milton (i) has published a factor analysis of mothers' attitudes as assessed by interview. It was the purpose of this study to do a comparable analysis of fathers' attitudes for comparison purposes and to develop factor scales for the measurement of parental attitudes of fathers.
PI3‐K/Akt‐dependent activation of cAMP‐response element‐binding (CREB) protein in Jurkat T leukemia cells treated with TRAIL

We recently demonstrated the activation of phosphatidylinositol 3‐kinase (PI3‐K/Akt) survival pathway in Jurkat T leukemia cells known for their sensitivity to the tumor necrosis factor (TNF)‐related apoptosis‐inducing ligand (TRAIL)/Apo2L cytotoxic action. The present investigation was done to elucidate the role of cAMP‐response element‐binding (CREB) protein in this system. Jurkat T cells were treated with 100–1,000 ng/ml TRAIL for time intervals up to 24 h in the presence or absence of selective pharmacologic inhibitors of PI3‐K/Akt (LY294002) or p38 MAPK (SB253580) pathways. Upon TRAIL treatment, a dose‐dependent increase in the percentage of apoptotic cells as well as in caspase‐3 activity was observed. A further enhancement of apoptotic cell death was obtained with the use of CREB1 siRNA technology, as demonstrated by flow cytometry. Western blot analysis showed a high constitutive level of CREB phosphorylation at Ser133 in Jurkat T cells under normal serum culture conditions. Under low serum culture conditions, an early (within 1 h) and transient increase in CREB phosphorylation was detected in response to both TRAIL doses and reduced upon pre‐treatment with LY294002 or SB253580, demonstrating the PI3‐K/Akt‐ and p38 MAPK‐dependency of this effect. The parallel analysis in immune fluorescence demonstrated the nuclear translocation of the phosphorylated form upon treatment with 100 ng/ml TRAIL, whereas the immune labeling was mainly detectable in the cytoplasm compartment upon the higher more cytotoxic dose. These results let us hypothesize that CREB activation can be an important player in the complex cross‐talk among pro‐ and anti‐apoptotic pathways in this peculiar cell model. J. Cell. Physiol. 214:192–200, 2008. © 2007 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Annexin A2 and its downstream IL-6 and HB-EGF as secretory biomarkers in the differential diagnosis of Her-2 negative breast cancer

Background AnnexinA2 (AnxA2) membrane deposition has a critical role in HB-EGF shedding as well as IL-6 secretion in breast cancer cells. This autocrine cycle has a major role in cancer cell proliferation, migration and metastasis. The objective of the study is to demonstrate annexinA2-mediated autocrine regulation via HB-EGF and IL-6 in Her-2 negative breast cancer progression. Methods Secretory annexinA2, HB-EGF and IL-6 were analysed in the peripheral blood sample of Her-2 negative (n = 20) and positive breast cancer patients (n = 16). Simultaneously, tissue expression was analysed by immunohistochemistry. The membrane deposition of these secretory ligands and their autocrine regulation was demonstrated using triple-negative breast cancer cell line model. Results Annexina2 and HB-EGF expression are inversely correlated with Her-2, whereas IL-6 expression is seen in both Her-2 negative and positive breast cancer cells. RNA interference studies and upregulation of annexinA2 proved that annexinA2 is the upstream of this autocrine pathway. Abundant soluble serum annexinA2 is secreted in Her-2 negative breast cancer (359.28 ± 63.73 ng/mL) compared with normal (286.10 ± 70.04 ng/mL, P < 0.01) and Her-2 positive cases (217.75 ± 60.59 ng/mL, P < 0.0001). In Her-2 negative cases, the HB-EGF concentrations (179.16 ± 118.81 pg/mL) were highly significant compared with normal (14.92 ± 17.33 pg/mL, P < 0.001). IL-6 concentrations were increased significantly in both the breast cancer phenotypes as compared with normal (P < 0.001). Conclusion The specific expression pattern of annexinA2 and HB-EGF in triple-negative breast cancer tissues, increased secretion compared with normal cells, and their major role in the regulation of EGFR downstream signalling makes these molecules as a potential tissue and serum biomarker and an excellent therapeutic target in Her-2 negative breast cancer.
Biologic and immunologic comparison of nephritogenic and nonnephritogenic strains of group A, M-type 12 Streptococcus.

Various biologic properties and certain physical and immunologic characteristics of acid-extracted M protein from nephritogenic and nonnephritogenic strains of group A, M-type 12 Streptococcus were studied. Assessments of colonial morphology, patterns of hemolysis, production of growth-inhibiting substances, resistance to antimicrobials, accumulation of starch, and M and T proteins failed to discriminate between strains isolated from patients with post-streptococcal glomerulonephritis and those from patients without this disease. In addition, two distinctly different forms of type 12 M protein were studied by the acrylamide gel electrophoresis technique. One pattern was characterized by a dominant double band with an R1 of 0.42, and the other pattern was distinguished by a proximal, densely stained, broad band. When the latter form of M protein was subjected to immunoelectrophoresis against absorbed type-specific antisera, an additional bidirectional precipitin arc was observed.
Hospital and out‐of‐hospital mortality in 670 hypertensive emergencies and urgencies

Long‐term mortality in patients with acute severe hypertension is unclear. The authors aimed to compare short‐term (hospital) and long‐term (12 months) mortality in these patients. A total of 670 adults presenting for acute severe hypertension between January 1, 2015, and December 31, 2015, were included. A total of 57.5% were hypertensive emergencies and 66.1% were hospitalized: 98% and 23.2% of those with hypertensive emergencies and urgencies, respectively (P = .001). Hospital mortality was 7.9% and was significantly higher for hypertensive emergencies (12.5% vs 1.8%, P = .001). At 12 months, 106 patients died (29.4%), mainly from hypertensive emergencies (38.9% vs 8.9%, P = .001). Median survival was 14 days for neurovascular emergencies and 50 days for cardiovascular emergencies. Patients with hypertensive emergencies or urgencies had bad long‐term prognosis. Short‐term mortality is mainly caused by neurovascular emergencies, but cardiovascular emergencies are severe, with high mortality at 12 months. These results justify better follow‐up and treatment for these patients.
Notes : Finite-length Protograph-based Spatially Coupled LDPC Codes

The finite-length performance of multi-edge spatially coupled low-density parity-check (SC-LDPC) codes is analyzed over the binary erasure channel (BEC). Existing scaling laws are extended to arbitrary protograph base matrices including puncturing patterns and multiple edges between nodes. Compared to more involved rate-1/2 structures proposed to improve the threshold to minimum distance trade-off, constructions based on regular (4, 8) protograph LDPC block codes work suprisingly well in the waterfall region. We design codes using scaling laws and estimate the block length an SC-LDPC code to match the performance of another given code. We also estimate the performance degradation if the chain length varies.
Autonomic Complications Following Central Nervous System Injury

Severe sympathetic overactivity occurs in several conditions that are recognized as medical emergencies. Following central nervous system injury, a small proportion of individuals develop severe paroxysmal sympathetic and motor overactivity. These individuals have a high attendant risk of unnecessary secondary morbidity. Following acquired brain injury, the syndrome is known by a number of names including dysautonomia and sympathetic storm. Dysautonomia is currently a diagnosis of exclusion and often goes unrecognized. The evidence base for management is almost entirely anecdotal in nature; there has been little structured or prospective research. In contrast, the evidence base for autonomic dysreflexia following spinal cord injury is much stronger, with level 1 evidence for many treatment interventions. This review presents a current understanding of each condition and suggests simple management protocols. With the marked disparity in the literature for the two conditions, the main focus is on the literature for dysautonomia. The similarity between these two conditions and the other autonomic emergency conditions is discussed.
La perception du débit en langue seconde

Abstract Non-native speakers of a second language often report that the speech ratein that language is faster than the rate in their own language. So as to comparespeech rate perception by native (French) and non-native (Swiss German) speakers,and to determine if rate estimation by non-native speakers is correlated withtheir level of comprehension, we asked two groups of 96 participants, native andnon-native speakers of French, to listen to short stories read at slow, medium andfast rates. They were asked to answer a few comprehension questions and to givean estimate of the speech rate. The results obtained show that there is indeed adifference between the two groups: the faster the physical speech rate, the greaterthe impression of speed in the non-native speakers as compared with the nativespeakers. In addition, when speech rate is slow and normal, there is a significantnegative correlation between oral comprehension and perceived rate: the lowerthe comprehension, the higher the estimated rate.
Secondary prevention with folic acid: results of the Goes extension study

A 68 year old male smoker, who was hypertensive, diabetic, and dyslipidaemic, with renal dysfunction (blood urea nitrogen 19 mg/dl, serum creatinine 1.6 mg/dl) and recent troponin T negative unstable angina, underwent a coronary angiogram. A non-ionic contrast agent …