Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The association between children's computer use and musculoskeletal discomfort.

UNLABELLED As American children spend more time working at computers, they may be putting themselves at risk for musculoskeletal disorders and other conditions that can result from overuse. There is little research that describes the home computer use of American middle school children or that describes the prevalence of musculoskeletal discomfort in this population. This study provides a general description of the computer set-up and home use of 152 6th grade children and looks at the association between overall musculoskeletal discomfort and various ergonomic variables. METHOD 152 6th grade children completed the Musculoskeletal Discomfort Questionnaire and a survey of home computer use. RESULTS More than half of the children reported some musculoskeletal discomfort within the last year. This pain could be made worse by computer use. Students reported that they had three computers in their house, and that they generally did not have furniture specifically designed for computer use. There was a significant association between the number of hours on the computer and overall musculoskeletal discomfort (r = 0.19, p = 0.05). The odds ratios between having furniture designed for the computer and touch typing and musculoskeletal discomfort were borderline significant, but suggested that students without proper furniture were more likely to have musculoskeletal discomfort (OR = 1.89, 95% CI = 0.94-3.84) and that those who could touch type were less likely to have musculoskeletal discomfort (OR = 0.54, 95%, CI = 0.26-1.10), OR). CONCLUSION American children are reporting moderate amounts of musculoskeletal discomfort and this discomfort can be associated with computer use. Risk factors associated with computer use and discomforts are similar to those reported in the adult literature. Further study is necessary to understand the similarities and differences between adult and children computer use and how to protect both from developing musculoskeletal discomfort.
Behavioral and Experiential Self-Regulations in Psychological Well-Being under Proximal and Distal Goal Conditions

This study examined the relationship of goal-related components of cybernetic, behavioral, and experiential self-regulations to psychological well-being under two types of conditions, the pursuit of intrinsic goals in general and specific intrinsic goals for the academic term. In an online survey, undergraduates (N = 186) completed global measures of psychological well-being, behavioral and experiential self-regulations, and rated themselves on goal-related self-regulatory components. Correlations indicated that most of the cybernetic, behavioral and experiential self-regulatory variables were associated with each other and with well-being. In terms of the goal-related self-regulatory components, when pursuing intrinsic goals more generally, the experiential self-regulatory component of enjoyment of the activity predicted well-being. However, when pursuing intrinsic term goals, the cybernetic self-regulatory component of perceived goal progress and the behavioral self-regulatory component of self-reinforcement for goal progress predicted well-being. The findings extend theoretical conceptualizations of psychological well-being by integrating compatibilities between cybernetic, behavioral, experiential self-regulatory processes and motivational conditions.
Effects of heat and moisture exchangers on minute ventilation, ventilatory drive, and work of breathing during pressure-support ventilation in acute respiratory failure.

OBJECTIVES To evaluate the effect of two commonly used heat and moisture exchangers on respiratory function and gas exchange in patients with acute respiratory failure during pressure-support ventilation. DESIGN Prospective, randomized trial. SETTING Intensive care unit of a university hospital. PATIENTS Fourteen patients with moderate acute respiratory failure, receiving pressure-support ventilation. INTERVENTIONS Patients were assigned randomly to two treatment groups, in which two different heat and moisture exchangers were used: Hygroster (DAR S.p.A., Mirandola, Italy) with higher deadspace and lower resistance (group 1, n = 7), and Hygrobac-S (DAR S.p.A.) with lower deadspace and higher resistance (group 2, n = 7). Patients were assessed at three pressure-support levels: a) baseline (10.3 +/- 2.4 cm H2O for group 1, 9.3 +/- 1.3 cm H2O for group 2); b) 5 cm H2O above baseline; and c) 5 cm H2O below baseline. Measurements obtained with the heat and moisture exchangers were compared with those values obtained using the standard heated hot water humidifier. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS At baseline pressure-support ventilation, the insertion of both heat and moisture exchangers induced in all patients a significant increase in the following parameters: minute ventilation (12.4 +/- 3.2 to 15.0 +/- 2.6 L/min for group 1, and 11.8 +/- 3.6 to 14.2 +/- 3.5 L/min for group 2); static intrinsic positive end-expiratory pressure (2.9 +/- 2.0 to 5.1 +/- 3.2 cm H2O for group 1, and 2.9 +/- 1.7 to 5.5 +/- 3.0 cm H2O for group 2); ventilatory drive, expressed as P41 (2.7 +/- 2.0 to 5.2 +/- 4.0 cm H2O for group 1, and 3.3 +/- 2.0 to 5.3 +/- 3.0 cm H2O for group 2); and work of breathing, expressed as either power (8.8 +/- 9.4 to 14.5 +/- 10.3 joule/ min for group 1, and 10.5 +/- 7.4 to 16.6 +/- 11.0 joule/min for group 2) or work per liter of ventilation (0.6 +/- 0.6 to 1.0 +/- 0.7 joule/L for group 1, and 0.8 +/- 0.4 to 1.1 +/- 0.5 joule/L. for group 2). These increases also occurred when pressure-support ventilation was both above and below the baseline level, although at high pressure support the increase in work of breathing with heat and moisture exchangers was less evident. Gas exchange was unaffected by heat and moisture exchangers, as minute ventilation increased to compensate for the higher deadspace produced in the circuit by the insertion of heat and moisture exchangers. CONCLUSIONS The tested heat and moisture exchangers should be used carefully in patients with acute respiratory failure during pressure-support ventilation, since these devices substantially increase minute ventilation, ventilatory drive, and work of breathing. However, an increase in pressure-support ventilation (5 to 10 cm H2O) may compensate for the increased work of breathing.
Disturbance adaptive control for an underactuated spherical robot based on hierarchical sliding-mode technology

An adaptive hierarchical sliding mode control (AHSMC) scheme is presented for a spherical robot, whose inner suspension is in an underactuated state driven by the motor. In this scheme, the underactuated spherical robot system is divided into sphere rolling and inner suspension subsystems according to the movement. Then a first layer sliding surface is defined for each subsystem. Based on the first layer sliding surface, a second layer surface is introduced correspondingly. Considering the unavoidable disturbance and the dynamics of the unstructured environment, we adopt an adaptive control scheme to estimate the uncertain disturbance. The adaptive control method, which can drive the subsystems' states approaching to their sliding surface rapidly, is obtained by using Lyapunov stability theory. The simulation results demonstrate the controller's validity and adaptive ability.
Pointwise-recurrent dendrite maps

Abstract Let $D$ be a dendrite and $f:D\rightarrow D$ a continuous map. Denote by $E(D)$ and $B(D)$ the sets of endpoints and branch points of $D$, respectively. We show that if $E(D)$ is countable, then $f$ is pointwise-recurrent if and only if $f$ is a pointwise-periodic homeomorphism; also, if $B(D)$ is discrete, then $f$ is pointwise-recurrent if and only if every point in $D\backslash E(D)$is periodic.
An examination of individual differences in the relationship between interpersonal stress and disease activity among women with rheumatoid arthritis.

OBJECTIVE The effects of interpersonal stress on disease activity were examined for married women with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) who differ in the quality of their relationships with their spouses. METHODS Measures of interpersonal events were collected weekly for 12 weeks and related to disease activity through a comparison of clinician ratings and immune markers taken at baseline and during a highly stressful week for 20 RA patients. Individual differences in marital relationship variables and illness characteristics were used to predict group differences in how stress affected disease activity. RESULTS Significant elevations in total T cell activation (DR + CD3 cells), soluble interleukin-2 receptor (sIL-2R), and clinician's global ratings of disease activity were found during a week of significant interpersonal stress. However, women with better spousal relationships did not show increases in disease activity following an episode of interpersonal stress. In addition, patients taking low-dose prednisone showed greater reactivity to stress than patients not currently using glucocorticoid treatment. CONCLUSION The results are consistent with the hypothesis that disease activity in RA increases following increases in interpersonal stress and that women with stronger marital relationships were less vulnerable to those stressors.
No correlation between BRAFV600E mutation and clinicopathological features of papillary thyroid carcinomas in Taiwan

Objective Genetic alterations in four oncogenes, namely RAS point mutations, RET rearrangements (RET/PTC), NTRK1 rearrangements (TRK) and BRAF point mutations have been identified in human papillary thyroid carcinomas (PTCs). These oncogenes act along the RET/PTC(TRK)–RAS–BRAF–MEK–MAPK kinase pathway, mediating a number of cellular fates including growth, proliferation and survival in thyroid cells. In this study, we analysed mutations of BRAF in a cohort of PTCs.
Openness and internal conflict

This article examines the relationship between economic openness and internal conflict. The article first discusses different theoretical perspectives on how openness affects a country’s internal stability and how internal conflict affects openness. Next, empirical estimates of the relationship between conflict and openness are presented, where conflict is measured with both a civil war dummy variable and an events dataset. The correlation between openness and conflict in the data is negative: more open countries have less internal conflict by some measures. However, internal conflict affects the level of openness, which suggests that openness should be treated as an endogenous variable. When the effect of openness on conflict is estimated using instrumental variables or full information maximum likelihood to control for endogeneity, openness does not significantly reduce internal conflict. There is robust evidence, on the other hand, that conflict within a country reduces its international trade. Together, these results suggest that the negative correlation between openness and conflict emerges because stability facilitates international trade rather than because trade flows reduce internal conflict.
Anti-Phospholipase A2 Receptor Antibodies in Membranous Nephropathy:from Bench to the Patient

Membranous Nephropathy (MN) is the leading cause of nephrotic syndrome in adults. Primary or idiopathic Membranous Nephropathy (iMN) has been considered as an organ-specific autoimmune disease with an unknown aetiology. By contrast, secondary membranous nephropathy has been described as the expression of a systemic autoimmune response to malignancy or bacterial/viral infections. In the majority of iMN cases, glomerular lesions are determined by autoantibodies against a podocyte membrane protein, the M-type of phospholipase A2 receptor 1 (PLA2R1). Several studies have suggested that the detection of anti-PLA2R1 in patients sera with nephrotic syndrome may be pathognomonic of iMN, thus obviating the need for a diagnostic renal biopsy and an extensive workup for underlying causes. Many authors inferred that the measurement of anti-PLA2R1 may change the diagnostic algorithm in patients with nephrotic syndrome and guide treatment decisions in patients with iMN. Measurement of anti-PLA2R1 antibodies is now possible through an easy to use, commercially available assay. The aim of this review is to describe the clinical relevance of anti-PLA2R1 assessment in patients with MN, and to extensively discuss the biotechnological methods available to measure them.
Short communication. Effects of type and level of supplementation with dietary n-3 fatty acids on yolk fat composition and n-3 fatty acid retention in hen eggs

A marine algal oil (MAO) with a high docosahexaenoic acid content (46.7%) was evaluated for the production of n-3 fatty acid (FA) enriched eggs. To determine its effects, laying hens were fed one of two diets containing different amounts of MAO, or a control diet containing marine fish oil (MFO). The efficiency of retention of total n-3 FA in the yolk fat depended both on the type and level of dietary n-3 substrate. Per unit weight of dietary oil added, MAO was better than MFO in terms of total n-3 FA retention by the yolk fat. However, the efficiency of retention of total n-3 FA, expressed as g FA retained per g of FA intake, was higher for MFO than for MAO. Additional key words: layers, n-3 retention efficiency, n-3 sources, yolk fatty acid composition.
HHV‐8 infection status of AIDS‐unrelated and AIDS‐associated multicentric Castleman's disease

Multicentric Castleman's disease (MCD) is a clinicopathologically defined entity characterized by systemic lymphadenopathy with unique pathomorphology such as angiosclerosis, blood vessel proliferation in and around follicles, and plasmacytosis. While its pathogenesis has remained unclarified for many years, identification of the human herpesvirus 8 (HHV‐8) in at least some MCD cases has opened new perspectives in this field. Because previous reports have described many inconsistencies regarding HHV‐8 positivity in MCD, we intended to clarify this issue by the introduction of more convincing methodologies. For this investigation, we introduced two antibodies produced in our laboratories that recognize a latent gene product ORF73 and a lytic gene product ORF59, together with two well‐recognized methods, in situ hybridization for the detection of lytic phase transcript T1.1/nut‐1, and genomic polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Eighty‐two cases of MCD were collected from Japan (n= 75) and France (n= 7). In three cases, the patients were suffering from acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). Immunohistochemistry and in situ hybridization showed identical results: only three out of 82 cases were positively stained, and all the positive cases were found to be the patients with AIDS. Genomic PCR was done in 43 cases, and only one case produced positive results: the only AIDS case among the 43 cases studied by genomic PCR. Histopathologically, the HHV‐8‐positive cases showed the highest intensity of angiosclerosis and germinal center / perifollicular vascular proliferation, while plasmacytosis was not severe in the HHV‐8‐positive cases. Some of the HHV‐8‐negative MCD cases displayed similar histopathology, but at a far less intense level, except for the plasmacytosis. These results suggest that: (i) all three of the HHV‐8‐positive MCD patients in the present group are the patients with AIDS; and (ii) HHV‐8‐positive MCD patients develop typical but marked angiosclerosis and vascular proliferation that might be differentiated from HHV‐8‐negative MCD patients, who showed far less intense changes.
IDENTIFICATION OF A JET-DRIVEN SUPERNOVA REMNANT IN THE SMALL MAGELLANIC CLOUD: POSSIBLE EVIDENCE FOR THE ENHANCEMENT OF BIPOLAR EXPLOSIONS AT LOW METALLICITY

Recent evidence has suggested that the supernova remnant (SNR) 0104−72.3 in the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC) may be the result of a “prompt” Type Ia SN on the basis of enhanced iron abundances and its association with a star-forming region. In this paper, we present evidence that SNR 0104−72.3 arose from a jet-driven bipolar core-collapse (CC) SN. Specifically, we use serendipitous Chandra data of SNR 0104−72.3 taken because of its proximity to the calibration source SNR E0102−72.3. We analyze 56 Advanced CCD Imaging Spectrometer (ACIS) observations of SNR 0104−72.3 to produce imaging and spectra with an effective exposure of 528.6 ks. We demonstrate that SNR 0104−72.3 is highly elliptical relative to other nearby young SNRs, suggesting a CC SN origin. Furthermore, we compare ejecta abundances derived from spectral fits to nucleosynthetic yields of Type Ia and CC SNe, and we find that the iron, neon, and silicon abundances are consistent with either a spherical CC SN of a 18–20 M☉ progenitor or an aspherical CC SN of a 25 M☉ progenitor. We show that the star formation history at the site of SNR 0104−72.3 is also consistent with a CC origin. Given the bipolar morphology of the SNR, we favor the aspherical CC SN scenario. This result may suggest jet-driven SNe occur frequently in the low-metallicity environment of the SMC, consistent with the observational and theoretical work on broad-line Type Ic SNe and long-duration gamma-ray bursts.
Specific lymphocyte blastogenic responses in children with cytomegalovirus and herpes simplex virus infections acquired early in infancy

Cell-mediated immune responses in 27 infants and children with cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection acquired between birth and 1 year of age were compared with responses in 13 children who had neonatal herpes simplex virus (HSV) infection. Infection was asymptomatic in 25 of 27 CMV-infected children; the 13 patients with HSV infection were all ill as newborns. The median age when studied was 46 months for children infected with CMV and 24 months for those infected with HSV. We measured lymphocyte transformation responses (LTRs) to CMV antigens in the former group and to HSV type 1 (HSV-1) (and in six cases to HSV-2) in the latter group, with the results expressed as a stimulation index. Based on the results in seropositive and seronegative adult control subjects, stimulation indexes of greater than or equal to 3 were considered indicative of a positive LTR. Among the CMV-infected children, a positive LTR was observed in 0 to 13 assays performed before 1 year of age, 3 of 8 assays performed between 1 and 4 years of age, and 9 of 15 assays performed over 4 years of age. In contrast, a positive LTR to HSV-1 was seen in 15 to 18 assays performed in children under 1 year of age and in 14 of 16 assays performed in survivors of neonatal HSV infection older than 1 year. Six HSV-2-infected patients were tested simultaneously 13 times with HSV-1 and HSV-2 antigens. Those patients under 6 months of age responded similarly to each antigen, whereas those who were older had significantly higher LTRs to HSV-2. Children with CMV infection that was acquired early had persistently diminished specific LTRs. In contrast, after neonatal HSV infection, LTRs to HSV were present even in infancy and became more specific for the infecting type with increasing age.
Postoperative EEG and Electrocorticography: Relation to Clinical Outcome in Patients with Temporal Lobe Surgery

Summary: To evaluate the role of different EEG methods with respect to postoperative clinical follow‐up, 32 non‐lesionary epilepsy patients who had undergone temporal lobectomy were studied preoperatively and at 2‐week, 3‐month, and 1‐year postoperative follow‐up. Routine, sleep, and sphenoidal EEG recordings as well as intraoperative electrocorticography (ECoG) were made for all patients. At 1‐year follow‐up, the EEGs with sphenoidal electrodes and with sleep deprivation procedure provided important prognostic information; the appearance of seizures was associated with the presence of interictal epileptiform abnormalities in EEG. In the postresection ECoG, however, epileptiform abnormalities were not associated with clinical outcome or with postoperative epileptiform EEG at 1 year. Routine EEG reliably reflects clinical outcome after temporal lobectomy; with sphenoidal electrodes as well as with sleep deprivation procedure, the diagnostic yield can be further improved.
Assessing pharmacist-led annual wellness visits: Interventions made and patient and physician satisfaction.

OBJECTIVES To quantify the nature and frequency of interventions made by pharmacists during a Medicare annual wellness visit (AWV), to determine the association between the number of medications taken and the interventions made, and to assess patient and physician satisfaction with pharmacist-led AWVs. SETTING Large, teaching, multidisciplinary family medicine practice in North Carolina. PRACTICE DESCRIPTION Mountain Area Health Education Center (MAHEC) is a large academic practice that serves rural, western North Carolina. There is a heavy emphasis on team-based care. PRACTICE INNOVATION Pharmacist-led AWV. EVALUATION Between April 2012 and January 2013, the following were evaluated for 69 patients: the nature and frequency of interventions made, the association between the number of medications taken and the interventions made, and patient and physician satisfaction scores. RESULTS A total of 247 medication-related interventions and 342 nonmedication interventions were made during the pharmacist-led AWVs. The majority of medication interventions (69.6%) involved correcting medication list discrepancies. The number of medications taken was positively associated with the total number of medication interventions (r = 0.37, P <0.01). On a 5-point Likert scale, patients strongly agreed that the AWV is important for their overall health (mean 4.8, median 5) and that they would like to see the same provider next year (mean 4.8, median 5). Physicians strongly disagreed that they would prefer to do the visit themselves (mean 1.5, median 1) and strongly agreed that their patients benefited from a pharmacist-led AWV (mean 5, median 4.9). CONCLUSION Pharmacists addressed both medication and nonmedication interventions during AWVs. Patients taking a greater number of medications required more medication interventions than patients taking fewer medications. Patients and physicians reported satisfaction with the pharmacist-led AWV.
Phases of Aβ-deposition in the human brain and its relevance for the development of AD

Background: The deposition of the amyloid β protein (Aβ) is a histopathologic hallmark of AD. The regions of the medial temporal lobe (MTL) are hierarchically involved in Aβ-deposition. Objective: To clarify whether there is a hierarchical involvement of the regions of the entire brain as well and whether there are differences in the expansion of Aβ-pathology between clinically proven AD cases and nondemented cases with AD-related pathology, the authors investigated 47 brains from demented and nondemented patients with AD-related pathology covering all phases of β-amyloidosis in the MTL (AβMTL phases) and four control brains without any AD-related pathology. Methods: Aβ deposits were detected by the use of the Campbell-Switzer silver technique and by immunohistochemistry in sections covering all brain regions and brainstem nuclei. It was analyzed how often distinct regions exhibited Aβ deposits. Results: In the first of five phases in the evolution of β-amyloidosis Aβ deposits are found exclusively in the neocortex. The second phase is characterized by the additional involvement of allocortical brain regions. In phase 3, diencephalic nuclei, the striatum, and the cholinergic nuclei of the basal forebrain exhibit Aβ deposits as well. Several brainstem nuclei become additionally involved in phase 4. Phase 5, finally, is characterized by cerebellar Aβ-deposition. The 17 clinically proven AD cases exhibit Aβ-phases 3, 4, or 5. The nine nondemented cases with AD-related Aβ pathology show Aβ-phases 1, 2, or 3. Conclusions: Aβ-deposition in the entire brain follows a distinct sequence in which the regions are hierarchically involved. Aβ-deposition, thereby, expands anterogradely into regions that receive neuronal projections from regions already exhibiting Aβ. There are also indications that clinically proven AD cases with full-blown β-amyloidosis may be preceded in early stages by nondemented cases exhibiting AD-related Aβ pathology.