Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Sleep disorders, immunizations, sports injuries, autism

Purpose of review The purpose of this article is to summarize and synthesize the recent literature in four very important areas for pediatric office practice: sleep disorders, new immunizations, sports injuries, and autism. Important articles in each area are highlighted. Recent findings The management of pediatric and adolescent sleep disorders is in the forefront of the pediatric literature. The most recent literature cautions practitioners on prescribing pharmacologic treatment for sleep problems in children and adolescents. Several new immunizations targeted for adolescents are on the horizon. The newest recommendations for their delivery are outlined here. Recent sports injury literature emphasizes the need of the practitioner to address sports injury prevention and to provide anticipatory guidance at pediatric office visits. Finally, the past year's literature demonstrates that there is significant interest in autism spectrum disorders, but the clinicians' challenge for making the correct diagnosis of these disorders remains. Summary The literature presented and summarized here will give the practicing pediatrician practical working knowledge of four important office-based pediatric topics: sleep disorders, new immunizations, sports injuries, and autism.
A Structural Analysis of the Effectiveness of Buying Firms' Strategies to Improve Supplier Performance

Many manufacturing firms have increased the amount of component parts and services they outsource, while refocusing on their core capabilities. Outsourcing parts and services to independent, external suppliers means that suppliers' performance is increasingly critical to the long-term success of these buying firms. Buying firms are increasingly using disparate supplier development strategies to improve supplier performance including supplier assessment, providing incentives for improved performance, instigating competition among suppliers, and direct involvement of the buying firm's personnel with suppliers through activities such as training of suppliers' personnel. Using resource-based theory, internalization theory, and structural equation modeling, we examine the impact of these supplier development strategies on performance. We conclude that direct involvement activities, where the buying firm internalizes a significant amount of the supplier development effort, play a critical role in performance improvement.
Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis: An Acupuncture Approach.

Background: Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is an adult onset neurodegenerative disorder that has no curative treatment and is usually fatal. Modern medicine treatment is mostly supportive. Acupuncture has much more to offer by way of symptomatic relief and improving quality of life (QoL). Useful points for the treatment of bulbar paralysis, paralysis of upper and lower extremities, and correction of underlying Disharmony Patterns are discussed and an illustrative case is presented to demonstrate the acupuncture approach for treating ALS. Case: A 55-year-old woman had weakness in her right arm and both legs for 4 months. She also had muscle cramps and clumsiness in the affected limbs, which rapidly progressed in the 4 months prior to presentation. She was diagnosed with ALS, given 50 mg of oral riluzole per day, and told that the condition was fatal. She sought acupuncture and was treated for two courses of 8 weeks each. Results: After acupuncture, this patient's symptomatic relief was near perfect in that she became free from disabling symptoms and is now leading a normal life. Conclusions: Acupuncture can be an effective modality of treatment for ALS, producing symptomatic relief and improving QoL.
Pituitary Surgery for the Management of Acromegaly

Active acromegaly is almost always the result of a benign growth hormone (GH)-secreting adenoma of the pituitary gland. Because the same pituitary stem cell can produce both GH and prolactin (PRL), many acromegalic patients also have hyperprolactinemia. The advantages of surgical excision of pituitary adenomas associated with acromegaly include: (1) prompt decrease in GH; (2) reliable and immediate relief of the mass effect from the tumor (decompression of the optic nerves and chiasm), and (3) the opportunity to obtain tumor tissue for characterization and investigative study. Currently, more than 97% of operations for removal of pituitary tumors associated with acromegaly are done using the transsphenoidal approach rather than craniotomy. Technical advances to make the surgery safer continue to evolve, and include endoscopic approaches, computer-guided image-based intraoperative visualization, and intraoperative magnetic resonance imaging. Criteria for satisfactory remission of acromegaly after surgery are the same as those used for medical management. They include normal insulin-like growth factor (IGF)-I and suppression of GH to undetectable levels (<1.0 ng/ml) during an oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT). Data from a recent series of 86 patients operated upon for acromegaly at the University of Virginia and followed for more than 1 year have been reviewed. In patients receiving surgery as the initial procedure, 67% had a normal IGF-I, and 52% suppressed to <1.0 ng/ml in an OGTT. There was one true recurrence of disease diagnosed 81 months after surgery. Results are best in patients with noninvasive microadenomas. Gamma knife radiosurgery has been a valuable adjunct in those patients who fail to achieve postoperative remission. Pathological evaluation of the tumors revealed that 16% expressed GH only, 25% stained for GH and glycoprotein hormones (follicle stimulating hormone, thyroid hormone, thyroid stimulating hormone, α-subunit), 21% for GH and PRL, and 33% for GH, PRL and glycoprotein hormones. There was one acidophil stem cell tumor and 10% had the mammosomatotroph subtype. This contemporary series was free of mortality or serious complications. One patient had a transient cerebrospinal fluid leak and 3 developed transient SIADH with hyponatremia. Surgical treatment remains an important aspect of the combined management of patients with acromegaly.
Gluten-Free Diet and Lipid Profile in Children With Celiac Disease: Comparison With General Population Standards

Objectives: A gluten-free diet (GFD) may carry high energy and fat load. We verified lipid profile and dietary indicators cross-sectionally and prospectively in patients with celiac disease (CD). Methods: In any consecutive child receiving a GFD (group 1) or newly diagnosed as having CD (group 2), total cholesterol (TC), triglycerides (TG), high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, blood pressure (BP), anthropometric data, physical activity, and a 24-hour food diary were collected during follow-up visits (yearly in group 1 and during the first year of GFD in group 2). Results: In group 1 (132 girls, 73 boys, 10.7 ± 4.2 years), TC (P = 0.006), TG (P = 0.014), and HDL (P = 0.019) were significantly higher in girls than in boys. Compared with the general pediatric population, group 1 girls had higher TC, TG, HDL, and low-density lipoprotein; group 1 boys had lower TC, TG, and low-density lipoprotein and higher HDL. TC was significantly and positively affected by age, sex, and time receiving GFD, whereas HDL was significantly and positively affected by body mass index, diastolic BP, and sex; TG was negatively affected by diastolic BP. Compared with recommendations, group 1 children introduced less calories, iron, and calcium; one-third more sodium; similar amounts of fiber; and twice as many proteins. In group 2 (20 girls, 10 boys, 8.6 ± 3.55 years), TC did not change over time and TG diminished, whereas HDL, blood glucose, and body mass index increased; saturated fats and caloric intake were below recommendations, whereas proteins were excessively introduced. Fibers were optimal. HDL was inversely correlated to calories and saturated fat (R2 = 80, P = 0.011). Conclusions: Lipid profiles of children with CD differ across sexes and from reference population. GFD, being unexpectedly appropriate in fibers and fat proportion, may be a contributor.
"Autophagic flux" in normal mouse tissues: Focus on endogenous LC3A processing

Autophagy is a major intracellular pathway for the degradation and recycling of long-lived proteins, mature ribosomes and even entire organelles. The best studied autophagic marker is the LC3B and it is believed that only the amount of the LC3B-II correlates with the amount of the autophagic membranes. Whether the LC3A processing, aside to LC3B, is a valuable endogenous 'autophagic flux' marker is far less clear. The specificity of rabbit polyclonal antibodies to the LC3A and the LC3B was tested against the commercial available human recombinant proteins LC3A and LC3B. In order to measure 'autophagic flux' in mouse liver, lung, kidney and heart we used: i. a lysosomotropic reagent chloroquine, which inhibit the intra-lysosomal acidification or their fusion with autophagosome, ii. nutrient starvation as an autophagic stimulus and iii. ionizing radiation, which is known to destabilize lysosomes. According to the immunoblotting work the LC3A protein follows discrete patterns of LC3A-I and LC3A-II changes in liver, lung, kidney and heart tissues of mice, whereas the LC3B protein didn't follow the same pattern under stressor conditions. We conclude that the endogenous LC3A processing is a major marker of autophagy flux in mouse model. Fractionated samples (soluble vs. membrane fractions) should be used in immunobloting to allow discrimination between the LC3-I soluble and the LC3-II membrane protein and kinetics. Further, when dealing with in vivo models it is necessary to check the specificity of the antibodies used against the LC3A and LC3B proteins as their expression and responsiveness is not overlapping.
Pressure pain thresholds and tender point counts as predictors of new chronic widespread pain in somatising subjects

Background: : Tender points are a general measure of distress both in the community and in clinic subjects. It has been suggested that multiple tender points should be regarded as the early stages of somatisation of distress. Similarly, recent evidence suggests that chronic widespread pain (CWP) is one manifestation of the somatisation of distress. Objective: Given that a high tender point count and CWP are clinical hallmarks of the fibromyalgia syndrome, it was hypothesised that in somatising subjects, a high tender point count or a low pain threshold would predict the development of CWP in the future. Methods: In this population-based prospective study, 245 adults aged 25–65 years, free of CWP, were identified on the basis of a detailed questionnaire on pain and a psychosocial questionnaire comprising the Somatic Symptom Checklist and the Illness Behaviour subscale of the Illness Attitude Scales. These subjects took part in a pain threshold examination with a Fischer pressure algometer. Tender point counts were computed by including all areas with a pain threshold <4 kg/cm2. Individuals were followed up at 15 months, at which time 231 (93% of subjects still living at their baseline address) provided data on pain status, using the same instruments. Results: At follow-up, 26 (11%) subjects developed new CWP. Although subjects with a low baseline pain threshold were not at increased risk of developing symptoms, a high tender point count, adjusted for age, sex, baseline pain status and other confounding factors, predicted the development of new CWP. Conclusion: Subjects free of CWP are at an increased risk of its development if they have a high tender point count. However, a low-pressure pain threshold does not predict the onset of symptoms. Data from this population-based prospective study suggest that a low pain threshold in subjects with CWP is likely to be a secondary phenomenon as a result of pain or associated distress rather than the antecedent of symptoms.
A qualitative study of migrant-related stressors, psychosocial outcomes and HIV risk behaviour among truck drivers in Zambia

Truck drivers are part of mobile populations which have been noted as a key population at risk of HIV in Zambia. This study was aimed at: (1) determining potentially traumatic events (PTEs), labour migrant-related stressors, psychosocial problems and HIV risk behaviours among truck drivers in Zambia; and (2) examining the relationship between PTEs, migrant-related stressors, psychosocial outcomes and HIV sexual risk behaviour among truck drivers in Zambia. We conducted 15 semi-structured interviews with purposively sampled male truck drivers at trucking companies in Lusaka, Zambia. Findings indicate that truck drivers experience multiple stressors and potentially traumatic incidences, including delays and long waiting hours at borders, exposure to crime and violence, poverty, stress related to resisting temptation of sexual interactions with sex workers or migrant women, and job-related safety concerns. Multiple psychosocial problems such as intimate partner violence, loneliness, anxiety and depression-like symptoms were noted. Transactional sex, coupled with inconsistent condom use, were identified as HIV sexual risk behaviours. Findings suggest the critical need to develop HIV-prevention interventions which account for mobility, potentially traumatic events, psychosocial problems, and the extreme fear of HIV testing among this key population.
Towards Robot Moderators: Understanding Goal-Directed Multi-Party Interactions

Introduction Socially Assistive Robotics (SAR) is a growing field dedicated to developing models and algorithms that enable robots to help people achieve goals through social interaction (? ). Prior work in this field has focused on one-on-one interactions, but there is interest in extending this work to multi-party interactions. We contribute to the study of multiparty SAR by defining the role of moderator, an agent that is responsible for directing an interaction, but is not necessarily directly participating in the task. We present a computational formalization of the task of moderation as the process by which a goal-directed multi-party interaction is regulated via manipulation of interaction resources, including both physical resources, such as an object or a tool, and social resources, such as the conversational floor or participants’ attention. Finally, we present preliminary results of an analysis of self-moderated multi-party human-human interaction that support several of the underlying assumptions of this formalization.
HCV iatrogenic and intrafamilial transmission in Greater Cairo, Egypt

Objectives To document hepatitis C virus (HCV) intrafamilial transmission and assess its relative importance in comparison to other current modes of transmission in the country with the largest HCV epidemic in the world. HCV intrafamilial transmission was defined as HCV transmission among relatives living in the same household. Design Case–control study. Cases were adult patients with acute hepatitis C diagnosed in two ‘fever hospitals’ of Cairo. Controls were adult patients with acute hepatitis A diagnosed in the same two hospitals, and family members of cases. All consenting household members of cases provided blood for HCV serological and RNA testing. Homology of viral sequences (NS5b region) within households was used to ascertain HCV intrafamilial transmission. Exposures at risk for HCV during the 1–6 months previous to onset of symptoms were assessed in all cases and controls. Results From April 2002 to June 2007, 100 cases with acute hepatitis C, and 678 controls (416 household members and 262 patients with acute hepatitis A) were recruited in the study. Factors independently associated with HCV infection and their attributable fractions (AFs) were the following: having had a catheter (OR=5.0, 95% CI=1.4 to 17.8; AF=6.7%), an intravenous perfusion (OR=5.8, 95% CI=2.5 to 13.3; AF=20.1%), stitches (OR=2.0, 95% CI=1.3 to 6.6; AF=10.7%), gum treatment (OR=3.7, 95% CI=1.1 to 11.9; AF=3.8%) and being illiterate (OR=2.4, 95% CI=1.4 to 4.4). Of the 100 cases, 18 had viraemic HCV-infected household members. Three long-married (>15 years) couples were infected with virtually identical sequences and none of the three index patients reported any exposure at risk, suggesting HCV intra-familial transmission. Conclusion While three new HCV infections out of 100 could be linked to intra-familial transmission, parenteral iatrogenic transmission (dental care included) was accountable for 34.6% of these new infections. Thus, the relative contribution of intrafamilial transmission to HCV spread seems to be limited.
Digestive absorption of silicon, supplemented as orthosilicic acid-vanillin complex.

SCOPE Silicon (Si) is an abundant element on earth. It is found naturally in water in the form of orthosilicic acid (OSA), however this form is not stable under certain conditions such as in highly concentrated and non-neutral pH solutions, which lead to its polymerization and reduced bioavailability. This study aimed to assess the bioavailability of Si from OSA stabilized by vanillin (OSA-VC). METHODS AND RESULTS This was a single-center, double-blind, cross-over randomized controlled trial. Fourteen healthy subjects were recruited and consumed either OSA-VC or a placebo on two separate occasions. Blood and urine samples were collected during 6 h following ingestion and analyzed to determine Si absorption and excretion. Plasma Si area under the curve (0-6 h) was significantly higher after OSA-VC ingestion compared to placebo ingestion (p = 0.0002). Significantly higher urinary Si excretion was also reported over the 6-h period after OSA-VC ingestion compared to placebo (p<0.0001). Approximately 21% of ingested Si was excreted in urine during this period. CONCLUSION Although many studies have investigated the metabolism and bioavailability of Si supplemented in foods or as a food ingredient, this was the first to investigate and demonstrate the digestibility of OSA administered in a complex form with vanillin.
Pfaffians, hafnians and products of real linear functionals

We prove pfaffian and hafnian versions of Lieb's inequalities on determinants and permanents of positive semi-definite matrices. We use the hafnian inequality to improve the lower bound of R\'ev\'esz and Sarantopoulos on the norm of a product of linear functionals on a real Euclidean space (this subject is sometimes called the `real linear polarization constant' problem).
Renal response to L-arginine in salt-sensitive patients with essential hypertension.

This study examined whether disturbances in nitric oxide formation contribute to renal dysfunction in salt-sensitive essential hypertensive patients. We evaluated the effects of intravenous administration of L-arginine (500 mg/kg given over 30 minutes) on systemic and renal hemodynamics in 23 patients with mild essential hypertension during 1 week of a low NaCl diet (50 mmol/d) followed by 1 week of a high NaCl diet (340 mmol/d). Patients were classified as salt sensitive (n=10) or salt resistant (n=13) based on salt-induced changes in their blood pressures. Salt loading increased renal vascular resistance but not renal plasma flow in salt-sensitive patients. The L-arginine-induced renovascular relaxation was significantly reduced by a high NaCl diet (renal vascular resistance: low NaCl -12.4 +/- 2.3% versus high NaCl -7.1 +/- 1.8%, P < .001) in salt-sensitive patients, whereas it was unchanged in salt-resistant patients. The increase in plasma cGMP in response to L-arginine was also reduced by a high NaCl diet in the salt-sensitive patients (low NaCl 49 +/- 7% versus high NaCl 36 +/- 8%, P < .05) but not in the salt-resistant patients (low NaCl 51 +/- 6% versus high NaCl 58 +/- 6%). These findings suggest that NaCl loading in salt-sensitive patients with mild essential hypertension reduces the ability of L-arginine to produce nitric oxide in the endothelium of the renal vasculature.
Suicidal Intent in Self-Injury

Summary The difficulties in measuring suicidal intent in cases of self-injury are discussed, and a scale is described to measure this intent. This scale has been used in 500 cases of self-injury. It is practical and reliable. Results show that the scores derived from it are closely related to the similar Beck Scale; they are also related to age, sex, social isolation, method of self-injury, previous history of self-injury or of psychiatric treatment, physical health at the time of self-injury and alcohol abuse. These results are discussed with particular reference to suicide prediction and the future validation of the scale by long-term follow-up.
Improvement of Bare Soil Semi-Empirical Radar Backscattering Models (Oh and Dubois) with SAR Multi-Spectral Satellite Data (X-, C- and L-Bands)

The objective of this study is to improve the performance of semi-empirical radar backscatter models, which are mainly used in microwave remote sensing (Oh 1992, Oh 2004 and Dubois). The study is based on satellite and ground data collected on bare soil surfaces during the Multispectral Crop Monitoring experimental campaign of the CESBIO laboratory in 2010 over an agricultural region in southwestern France. The dataset covers a wide range of soil (viewing top soil moisture, surface roughness and texture) and satellite (at different frequencies: X-, C- and L-bands, and different incidence angles: 24.3° to 53.3°) configurations. The proposed methodology consists in identifying and correcting the residues of the models, depending on the surface properties (roughness, moisture, texture) and/or sensor characteristics (frequency, incidence angle). Finally, one model has been retained for each frequency domain. Results show that the enhancements of the models significantly increase the simulation performances. The coefficient of correlation increases of 23% in mean and the simulation errors (RMSE) are reduced to below 2 dB (at the X and C-bands) and to 1 dB at the L-band, compared to the initial models. At the X- and C-bands, the best performances of the modified models are provided by Dubois, whereas Oh 2004 is more suitable for the L-band (r is equal to 0.69, 0.65 and 0.85). Moreover, the modified models of Oh 1992 and 2004 and Dubois, developed in this study, offer a wider domain of validity than the initial formalism and increase the capabilities of retrieving the backscattering signal in view of applications of such approaches to stronglycontrasted agricultural surface states.
Treatment patterns and prognosis in patients with human immunodeficiency virus and primary central system lymphoma

The incidence of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-associated primary central nervous system lymphoma (PCNSL) has decreased in the era of highly active anti-retroviral therapy, but PCNSL continues to be a prominent AIDS-defining illness. Using surveillance epidemiology and end results, cancer registry data linked with Medicare, we identified PCNSL cases diagnosed from 1994 to 2002. The effects of comorbidity, year of diagnosis, and sociodemographic characteristics on the odds of receiving treatment were assessed. One hundred and eighty-four patients with both HIV and PCNSL were identified. Forty-six per cent were treated with radiation therapy (RT) alone, 10% received RT and chemotherapy, 4% received chemotherapy alone, and 40% received no treatment. No time trends in treatment patterns were observed, and no sociodemographic factors were associated with receipt of treatment. Median survival was 2 months. Age did not impact survival. Survival was improved for patients diagnosed with PCNSL after 1996 (p = 0.028). Despite improved treatment for both diseases over the past decade, survival remains dismal in this cohort of Medicare/Medicaid beneficiaries with HIV-related PCNSL. These results may not apply to the general HIV population.