Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Exploration of Physicians’ Recommendations for Activities in Chronic Low Back Pain

Study Design. A mailed survey of 142 practicing physicians (63 orthopedic spine surgeons and 79 family physicians) inquiring about their expertise and experience with chronic low back pain, their pain attitudes and beliefs, and recommendations about the appropriate level of function for chronic back pain patients. Objectives. To explore physicians’ recommendations for activity and work for patients with chronic low back pain and to determine factors that might influence these recommendations. Summary of Background Data. Physicians continuously are asked to recommend the appropriate level of activities and work for patients with chronic low back pain. Although these recommendations can have a significant impact on patients’ lives, little is known about the factors that shape recommendations. Methods. Mailed surveys included questions inquiring about the physicians’ demographics, training, and experience in low back pain, the Health Care Providers’ Pain and Impairment Relationship Scale, and three vignettes of work-disabled, chronic low back pain patients. After each vignette, physicians rated their perceptions of severity of symptoms and pathology and recommendations for work and daily activities through five graded responses. Three mailings were done within 4 weeks to maximize the response rate. The association of each variable with work and activity recommendations was statistically explored. To assess the influence of clinical expertise on recommendations, the responses of orthopedic spine surgeons were compared with those of family physicians. Test–retest reliability was assessed with a second mailing of the questionnaire to all initial responders. Results. Sixty-five percent of the orthopedic surgeons and 52% of the family physicians responded to the survey. Thirty-nine percent of the initial responders completed the reliability survey. The survey instrument demonstrated modest reliability, with identical recommendations for activities and work occurring 57% of the time. In general, a wide range of activities and work was recommended, with most physicians recommending avoidance of painful activities or greater restrictions. Orthopedic spine surgeons were slightly less restrictive in their activity recommendations compared with family physicians. Mostphysicians demonstrated some consistency in their pattern of recommendations when compared with their colleagues. Physicians’ pain attitudes and belief influenced their recommendations, as did their perception of the severity of the patients’ clinical symptoms. Conclusions. Physicians’ recommendations for activity and work to patients with chronic back pain vary widely and frequently are restrictive. These recommendations reflect personal attitudes of the physicians as well as factors related to the patients’ clinical symptoms.
Adsorption, complexation, and phytoavailability of copper as influenced by organic manure

Copper (Cu) is bound strongly to clay minerals and organic matter in soils, and forms both insoluble and soluble organic complexes with organic carbon. In this experiment, the effect of five manure composts (biosolid, farmyard manure, spent mushroom, pig manure, and poultry manure) on the adsorption and complexation of Cu in a mineral soil (Manawatu sandy soil, Palmerston North, New Zealand) low in organic matter content was examined. The effect of biosolid on the uptake of Cu from the soil, treated with various levels of Cu (0–400 mg/kg soil), was examined by using mustard (Brassica juncea L.) plants. The redistribution of the added Cu in soil was evaluated by a chemical fractionation scheme. Addition of manure compost increased the adsorption and complexation of Cu by the soil. At the same level of total organic carbon addition, a significant difference was found in the extent of Cu adsorption among the manure‐amended soils. However, less difference was found in the amount of Cu complexed among the manure‐amended soils. A significant inverse relationship was found between the extent of Cu adsorption and the dissolved organic carbon (DOC) in the manure‐amended samples, indicating that DOC formed soluble complexes with Cu. Increasing addition of Cu increased Cu concentration in plants, resulting in decreased plant growth at high levels of Cu (i.e., phytotoxicity). Addition of biosolid was found to be effective in reducing the phytotoxicity of Cu at high levels of Cu addition. Significant relationships were found between dry matter yield and total Cu or free Cu2+ concentration in soil solution. Addition of biosolid decreased the concentration of the soluble and exchangeable Cu fraction but increased the concentration of the organic‐bound Cu fraction in soil.
Canadian Stroke Best Practice Recommendations: Telestroke Best Practice Guidelines Update 2017

Every year, approximately 62,000 people with stroke and transient ischemic attack are treated in Canadian hospitals. The 2016 update of the Canadian Stroke Best Practice Recommendations Telestroke guideline is a comprehensive summary of current evidence-based and consensus-based recommendations appropriate for use by all healthcare providers and system planners who organize and provide care to patients following stroke across a broad range of settings. These recommendations focus on the use of telemedicine technologies to rapidly identify and treat appropriate patients with acute thrombolytic therapies in hospitals without stroke specialized expertise; select patients who require to immediate transfer to stroke centers for Endovascular Therapy; and for the patients who remain in community hospitals to facilitate their care on a stroke unit and provide remote access to stroke prevention and rehabilitation services. While these latter areas of Telestroke application are newer, they are rapidly developing, with new opportunities that are yet unrealized. Virtual rehabilitation therapies offer patients the opportunity to participate in rehabilitation therapies, supervised by physical and occupational therapists. While not without its limitations (e.g., access to telecommunications in remote areas, fragmentation of care), the evidence-to-date sets the foundation for improving access to care and management for patients during both the acute phase and now through post stroke recovery.
Prevalence and antimicrobial susceptibility profiles of Campylobacter jejuni and coli isolated from diarrheic and non-diarrheic goat faeces in Venda region, South Africa

A total of 200 freshly voided goat faeces samples were collected in the study and were examined for the presence of thermophilic Campylobacter spp. The samples were obtained randomly from 2 farm settlements in Venda region, South Africa in 2008 to 2009. All samples were analyzed with the mCCDA media with Campylobacte r supplement in microaerophilic condition provided by the Campygen gas envelope (Oxoid). Of the total 200 samples, the recovery rate was 29% (58 of 200) for all samples. Of the 200 samples, 155 (77.5%) were non-diarrheic and 45 (22.5%) were diarrheic faeces. From the 45 diarrheic faces, 41 (91.1%) were positive for campylobacters and of the 155 non-diarrheic faeces, 17 (11.1%) were positive for c ampylobacters . In all, 58 Campylobacter species comprising 33 (56.9%) Campylobacter jejuni and 8 (13.9%) Campylobacter coli strains were from diarrheic and 2 (3.4%) C. jejuni and 15 (25.9%) C. coli were from non-diarrheic faeces. There was no statistical correlation between the incidence of C. jejuni in diarrheic faeces and non-diarrheic faeces. Rate of resistance of C. jejuni and C. coli to six regularly used antibiotics in human and veterinary campylobacteriosis; ciprofloxacin, gentamycin, ampicillin, tetracycline, nalidixic acid and erythromycin were 40.0, 47.1%, 57.1, 43.5%, 48.6, 56.5%, 42.9, 43.5%, 34.3, 34.5% and 14.3, 17.4%, respectively. In comparison, a significantly higher frequency of resistance to gentamycin was recorded among the C. jejun i and C. coli isolates (57.1 versus 43.5%) respectively, at p < 0.005 from goats in all farms. Resistance to ciprofloxacin and kanamycin was higher among the C. coli than C. jejuni strains but the difference was not statistically significant. Comparable occurrences of resistance were observed among C. jejuni and C. col i to erythromycin and nalidixic acid. High prevalence of thermophilic Campylobacter spp. in goat could be of public health significance in the Venda region. The observed multi-drug resistance and especially resistance to macrolides and fluoroquinolones in this study pose a threat of transfer of antibiotic resistance to human pathogens because of the close contact between goats and man. Key words: Campylobacter jejuni, Campylobacter coli, microaerophilic, veterinary campylobacteriosis, fluoroquinolones, Venda region
All-Inside Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction

Abstract All-inside anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction has undergone a series of modifications over the past 20 years. Current techniques offer the advantages of improved cosmesis, less postoperative pain, decreased bone removal, and gracilis preservation. Few all-inside ACL reconstruction outcome studies are available; therefore, additional research is necessary to compare the results to conventional techniques. The purpose of this article is to review the evolution of all-inside ACL reconstruction, the advantages and disadvantages, our preferred technique, and clinical experience to date.
Novel 31-amino-acid-length endothelins cause constriction of vascular smooth muscle.

We have reported that human chymase specifically cleaves big endothelins (ETs) at the Try31-Gly32 bond, and produces novel trachea-constricting 31-amino-acid-length ETs, ETs(1-31). In this study, we investigated the effect of synthetic ETs(1-31) on the contractile activity toward porcine coronary arteries and rat aortae. Although ETs(1-31) exhibited less potent vasoconstrictile activity in these tissues than 21-amino-acid-length ETs(1-21), or a similar extent, ET-1(1-31) caused significantly slower-developing and longer-lasting contraction than ETs(1-21). The ETA receptor antagonist, BQ485, completely inhibited the activity of ET-1(1-31). The ETB receptor antagonist, BQ788, also inhibited the activity of ET-1(1-31) toward rat aortae more efficiently than that ET-1(1-21). Therefore, trachea-constricting peptides ETs(1-31) play roles as vasoconstrictors in a different manner from ETs(1-21).
Isolation and Characterization of Mycoplasma and Acholeplasma from Apparently Healthy and Diseased (Infectious Sinusitis) Turkeys

Investigation of 136 turkeys (24 manifesting infra‐orbital sinusitis, 112 apparently healthy) resulted in isolation of 79 strains of Mycoplasma and 4 of Acholeplasma. By the disc growth inhibition test with 16 reference antisera of avian serogroups, 55 strains were identified serologically and 28 remained unidentified. Thirteen strains of Mycoplasma gallisepticum, 1 of M. meleagridis, and 2 of Acholeplasma laidlawii were isolated from turkey sinusitis whereas serogroups C (2), D (19), F (8), M. meleagridis (4), M. anatis (4), A. laidlawii (2), and 28 unidentified strains were isolated from apparently healthy turkeys. Three patterns were recognized on the basis of glucose, maltose, and sucrose, fermentation. The most frequent, pattern I, included 13 M. gallisepticum strains whereas 5 M. meleagridis strains belonged to fermentation pattern III. Isolates were also studied for reduction of tetrazolium, methylene blue, potassium tellurite, resistance to methylene blue and sodium taurocholate, and production of arginine deiminase and “film and spots. ” Inoculation of selected isolates into developing chick embryos revealed that 2 A. laidlawii strains were nonpathogenic and 13 M. gallisepticum, 1 serogroup D and 2 serogroup F strains were pathogenic, causing 50–100% mortality. In vitro antibiotic disc sensitivity tests indicated that rovamycin (solubilized spiramycin) may be recommended for turkey mycoplasmosis. Isolation of 2 A. laidlawii strains from turkey sinusitis and 4 M. anatis strains from apparently healthy turkeys appears interesting.
Gender equality, resilience to climate change, and the design of livestock projects for rural livelihoods

Currently, there is growing interest in how livestock projects can contribute to resilience to the effects of climate change. In this article we recommend a shift away from gross productivity to sustainability, via the use of thrifty local breeds, with an additional emphasis on improving survival of young animals. These animals, due to their local adaptations, are more likely to be resilient to climate change. There is a gender dimension to these proposals, since smaller animals and local breeds are more likely to be perceived by communities as suitable for husbandry by women. We recommend a re-orientation towards an explicit gender-equality focus for these projects.
Postmarketing surveillance of tocilizumab for rheumatoid arthritis in Japan: interim analysis of 3881 patients

Objective An interim analysis of an all-patient postmarketing surveillance programme in Japan to investigate the safety of tocilizumab for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) in the real world. Methods This analysis included 3881 patients. Patients received 8 mg/kg of tocilizumab every 4 weeks, and were observed for 28 weeks. Data on baseline characteristics and adverse events (AE) were collected. Results Total and serious AE were reported as 167 and 27 events/100 patient-years, respectively. The most frequent AE and serious AE were infections. Logistic regression analysis identified the following risk factors for the development of serious infection: concurrent or medical history of respiratory disorders; prednisolone dose at baseline ≥5 mg/day; and age ≥65 years. Twenty-five patients died, and the standardised mortality ratio, with the Japanese general population in 2008 as reference, was 1.66, similar to the results from the Japanese cohort study for RA patients. Conclusions Tocilizumab is acceptably safe in the real clinical setting. Tocilizumab needs to be used with consideration of the benefit–risk balance to avoid serious infections in elderly patients and those on high doses of corticosteroids or with a concurrent or medical history of respiratory disorders.
Building domain-specific embedded languages

I have believed for a very long time that abstraction is the most important factor in writing good software. As programming language researchers we design, and as software engineers we are trained to use, a variety of abstraction mechanisms: abstract data types, higher-order functions, monads, continuations, modules, classes, objects, etc. Particular languages support some of these mechanisms well, others not so well. An important point about these mechanisms is that they are fairly general|for example, most algorithmic strategies and computational structures can be implemented using either functional or object-oriented abstraction techniques. Although generality is good, we might ask what the \ideal" abstraction for a particular application is. In my opinion, it is a programming language that is designed precisely for that application: one in which a person can quickly and eeectively develop a complete software system. It is not general at all; it should capture precisely the semantics of the application domain|no more and no less. In my opinion, a domain-speciic language is the \ultimate abstraction. " But we know all too well how diicult designing and implementing languages is, and we can be pretty sure that we won't get it right the rst time; it will evolve, and we will experience all of the diiculties associated with that evolution. So in fact the notion of a domain speciic language might not be very practical. Or is it? In this position paper I will outline several techniques that I believe can lead to the eeective use of this methodology. It begins with the assumption that we really don't want to build a programming language from scratch. Better, let's inherit the infrastructure of some other language|tailoring it in special ways to the domain of interest|thus yielding a domain-speciic embedded language (DSEL). Building on this base, we can then concentrate on semantical issues: viz. the interpreter of the language. Interestingly, we'll see that abstraction now kicks in at this leta-level: we can use abstraction techniques to build interpreters that are themselves easy to understand, highly modular, and straightforward to evolve. In the remainder of this paper I will describe the results of using the functional language Haskell to build DSELs. Haskell has several features that make it particularly suitable for this, but other languages could also be used. On the other hand, there are features that don't exist in any language (to my knowledge) that would make things even easier; there is much …
Antiarrhythmic and Proarrhythmic Properties of QT-Prolonging Antianginal Drugs

In recent years there has been a major reorientation of drug therapy for cardiac arrhythmias, its changing role, and above all, a radical change in the class of arrhythmia drugs because of their impact on mortality. The decline in the use of sodium-channel blockers has led to an expanding use of β-blockers and simple or complex class III agents for controlling cardiac arrhythmias. Success with these agents in the context of their side effects has spurred the development of compounds with simpler ion-channel blocking properties that have less complex adverse reactions. The resulting so-called pure class III agents, such as dofetilide or ibutilide, were found to have antifibrillatory effects in atrial fibrillation and flutter and in ventricular tachyarrhythmias. Such agents are effective and have diversity, but they have come into therapeutics with a price: the sometimes-fatal torsades de pointes. The drug amiodarone, a complex compound that was synthesized as an antianginal agent, has been an exception in this regard. Its therapeutic use is associated with a negligibly low incidence of torsades de pointes, even though the drug produces significant bradycardia and QT lengthening to 500 to 700 msec. Recent electrophysiologic studies suggest that this paradox is likely due to the differential block of ion channels in endocardium, epicardium, midmyocardial (M) cells, and Purkinje fibers in the ventricular myocardium. There is also clinical evidence suggesting that amiodarone reduces the “torsadogenic” effects of pure class III agents. Ranolazine was also synthesized for the development of antianginal properties that stem from a partial inhibition of fatty acid oxidation; it too has been found to have electrophysioloigic properties. These are somewhat similar to those of amiodarone on ion channels in endocardium, epicardium, M cells, and Purkinje fibers in the ventricular myocardium, but the drug does not prolong the QT interval to the same extent as amiodarone does. Thus, the drug produces modest increases in repolarization as judged by its effects on the action potential duration (APD) without the potential for the development of torsades de pointes. By virtue of its suppressant action on early afterdepolarizations and triggered activity in Purkinje fibers and M cells, the drug appears to have a powerful potential for reducing the torsadogenic proclivity of conventional class III antiarrhythmic compounds. The rationale for the therapeutic niche for amiodarone, and especially in the case of ranolazine, in the prevention of drug-induced torsades de pointes is discussed.
Randomized phase III study of gemcitabine plus S-1, S-1 alone, or gemcitabine alone in patients with locally advanced and metastatic pancreatic cancer in Japan and Taiwan: GEST study.

PURPOSE The present phase III study was designed to investigate the noninferiority of S-1 alone and superiority of gemcitabine plus S-1 compared with gemcitabine alone with respect to overall survival. PATIENTS AND METHODS The participants were chemotherapy-naive patients with locally advanced or metastatic pancreatic cancer. Patients were randomly assigned to receive only gemcitabine (1,000 mg/m(2) on days 1, 8, and 15 of a 28-day cycle), only S-1 (80, 100, or 120 mg/d according to body-surface area on days 1 through 28 of a 42-day cycle), or gemcitabine plus S-1 (gemcitabine 1,000 mg/m(2) on days 1 and 8 plus S-1 60, 80, or 100 mg/d according to body-surface area on days 1 through 14 of a 21-day cycle). RESULTS In the total of 834 enrolled patients, median overall survival was 8.8 months in the gemcitabine group, 9.7 months in the S-1 group, and 10.1 months in the gemcitabine plus S-1 group. The noninferiority of S-1 to gemcitabine was demonstrated (hazard ratio, 0.96; 97.5% CI, 0.78 to 1.18; P < .001 for noninferiority), whereas the superiority of gemcitabine plus S-1 was not (hazard ratio, 0.88; 97.5% CI, 0.71 to 1.08; P = .15). All treatments were generally well tolerated, although hematologic and GI toxicities were more severe in the gemcitabine plus S-1 group than in the gemcitabine group. CONCLUSION Monotherapy with S-1 demonstrated noninferiority to gemcitabine in overall survival with good tolerability and presents a convenient oral alternative for locally advanced and metastatic pancreatic cancer.
Long-term lithium treatment in the prevention of suicidal behavior in bipolar disorder patients

Abstract We reviewed available research findings, including meta-analyses on effects of lithium-treatment associated with rates of suicidal behavior in bipolar disorder or unipolar major depressive disorder patients, and for comparisons of lithium to mood-stabilizing anticonvulsants. Data from meta-analyses consistently indicate marked reductions of suicidal behavior and mortality during long-term treatment with lithium salts in bipolar disorder patients, and possibly also in unipolar, recurrent major depressive, perhaps even more effectively than with anticonvulsants proposed as mood-stabilizers. Suicidal risk is frequently associated with dysphoric-agitated symptoms, anger, aggression, and impulsivity-all of which may respond better to treatment with lithium or other mood-stabilizing medicines than to antidepressants. In these conditions, antidepressant treatment may not provide a beneficial effect on risk of suicidal thoughts and perhaps attempts, particularly in juveniles, whereas, lithium, perhaps even more than anticonvulsants, seems to be remarkably effective in the preventing suicidal behavior. The mechanism of action is not well defined and may be associated with either a prevention of mood recurrences or a more specific “antisuicidal” activity. Declaration of Interest: Dr. Tondo has received research support from Janssen and Eli Lilly Corporations and has served as a consultant to Glaxo-SmithKline and Merck Corporations. Dr. Baldessarini has recently been a consultant or investigator-initiated research collaborator with: AstraZeneca, Auritec, Biotrofix, Janssen, JDS-Noven, Lilly, Luitpold, NeuroHealing, Novartis, Pfizer, and SK-BioPharmaceutical Corporations. Neither author is a member of pharmaceutical speakers’ bureaus, nor do they or any family member hold equity positions in biomedical or pharmaceutical corporations.
Chlamydia trachomatis Infection Induces Cleavage of the Mitotic Cyclin B1

ABSTRACT The obligate intracellular pathogen Chlamydia trachomatis interferes with a number of host cell processes, including cytoskeletal organization, vesicular trafficking, and apoptosis. In this study we report that C. trachomatis-infected cells proliferate more slowly than uninfected cells, suggesting that C. trachomatis may also manipulate the eukaryotic cell cycle. We further demonstrate that C. trachomatis infection destabilizes specific cell cycle proteins involved in the G2/M transition. C. trachomatis-infected cells, compared to uninfected cells, have lower levels of cyclin-dependent kinase 1. Additionally, C. trachomatis infection induces an N-terminal truncation of the mitotic cyclin B1. Manipulation of the host cell cycle may represent a strategy used by C. trachomatis to ensure a stable environment conducive to bacterial growth and replication.