Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Speech-language pathologists’ practices regarding assessment, analysis, target selection, intervention, and service delivery for children with speech sound disorders

Abstract A survey of 231 Australian speech-language pathologists (SLPs) was undertaken to describe practices regarding assessment, analysis, target selection, intervention, and service delivery for children with speech sound disorders (SSD). The participants typically worked in private practice, education, or community health settings and 67.6% had a waiting list for services. For each child, most of the SLPs spent 10–40 min in pre-assessment activities, 30–60 min undertaking face-to-face assessments, and 30–60 min completing paperwork after assessments. During an assessment SLPs typically conducted a parent interview, single-word speech sampling, collected a connected speech sample, and used informal tests. They also determined children’s stimulability and estimated intelligibility. With multilingual children, informal assessment procedures and English-only tests were commonly used and SLPs relied on family members or interpreters to assist. Common analysis techniques included determination of phonological processes, substitutions–omissions–distortions–additions (SODA), and phonetic inventory. Participants placed high priority on selecting target sounds that were stimulable, early developing, and in error across all word positions and 60.3% felt very confident or confident selecting an appropriate intervention approach. Eight intervention approaches were frequently used: auditory discrimination, minimal pairs, cued articulation, phonological awareness, traditional articulation therapy, auditory bombardment, Nuffield Centre Dyspraxia Programme, and core vocabulary. Children typically received individual therapy with an SLP in a clinic setting. Parents often observed and participated in sessions and SLPs typically included siblings and grandparents in intervention sessions. Parent training and home programs were more frequently used than the group therapy. Two-thirds kept up-to-date by reading journal articles monthly or every 6 months. There were many similarities with previously reported practices for children with SSD in the US, UK, and the Netherlands, with some (but not all) practices aligning with current research evidence.
Hematobiochemical and pathological alterations due to chronic chlorpyrifos intoxication in indigenous chicken

Objective: The present study investigates the effect of oral administration of chlorpyrifos (CPF) in indigenous chicken. Materials and Methods: The birds were divided into two groups I and II. Group I served as control and group II was treated with CPF (0.36 mg/kg) orally daily up to 12 weeks. Blood samples were assayed for hemoglobin (Hb), total erythrocyte count (TEC), total leukocyte count (TLC), differential leukocyte count, and biochemical constituents like alkaline phosphatase (ALP), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), cholinesterase (CHE), total protein and uric acid. Representative pieces of tissues from liver and kidney were collected weekly for histopathological examination. Results: A significant (P < 0.01) increase of Hb, TEC, TLC, and heterophil percent and decrease of lymphocyte percent was observed. Serum ALP, AST, ALT, and uric acid increased significantly and CHE values decreased significantly in CPF treated birds. The protein level remained similar. Uric acid level was found to be increased significantly in the treated group. The results indicate that chronic CPF intoxication produces hematological, biochemical, and pathological changes in treated birds.
A retrospective study of use of polyvalent anti-snake venom and risk factors for mortality from snake bite in a tertiary care setting

Aims: Envenomation with poisonous snakes is associated with considerable morbidity and mortality. The present study was undertaken with the objectives of assessing anti-snake venom (ASV) use, early adverse reactions to ASV, premedication and clinical outcomes in snake bite patients. Association of various risk factors (age, gender, dose of ASV, time gap between snake bite and ASV administration, use of mechanical ventilation and type of snake bite) with mortality was also assessed. Settings and Design: This retrospective study was conducted at two Tertiary Care Teaching Hospitals. Subjects and Methods: The medical records of 176 patients of snake bite with documented use of ASV were retrospectively analyzed to retrieve relevant data. Statistical Analysis: Descriptive statistics was used to express results about ASV use, early adverse reactions to ASV, premedication and clinical outcomes. Univariate and multivariate analysis was performed to find out significant risk factors associated with mortality. Results: The main indication for ASV was vasculotoxic snake bite (75%) followed by neurotoxic snake bite (16%). Mean dose of ASV was 18.63 ± 14.52 vials. Prophylactic premedication with corticosteroids alone or in combination with antihistaminic was used in more than 70% patients. Early adverse reactions to ASV were seen in 4% patients. Neurotoxic snake bite was a significant risk factor associated with mortality in multivariate analysis. Conclusions: Neurotoxic snake bite is an independent predictor of mortality in snake bite patients. Currently used polyvalent ASV may be less effective in treating neurotoxic snake bite.
Impact of the LSVT on vowel articulation and coarticulation in Parkinson’s disease

Abstract The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of the Lee Silverman Voice Treatment (LSVT®) on vowel articulation and consonant–vowel (C–V) coarticulation in dysarthric speakers with Parkinson’s disease (PD). Nine Quebec French speakers diagnosed with idiopathic PD underwent the LSVT®. Speech characteristics were compared before and after treatment. Vowel articulation was measured using acoustic vowel space and calculated with the first (F1) and second formant (F2) of the vowels /i/, /u/ and /a/. C–V coarticulation was measured using locus equations, an acoustic metric based on the F2 transitions within vowels in relation to the preceding consonant. The relationship between these variables, speech loudness and vowel duration was also analysed. Results showed that vowel contrast increased in F1/F2 acoustic space after administration of the LSVT®. This improvement was associated with the gain in speech loudness and longer vowel duration. C–V coarticulation patterns between consonant contexts showed greater distinctiveness after the treatment. This improvement was associated with the gain in speech loudness only. These results support the conclusions of previous studies investigating the relationship between the LSVT®, speech loudness and articulation in PD. These results expand clinical understanding of the treatment and indicate that loud speech changes C–V coarticulation patterns. Clinical applications and theoretical considerations are discussed.
A candidate liquid chromatography mass spectrometry reference method for the quantification of the cardiac marker 1-32 B-type natriuretic peptide

Abstract Background: B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP) is a 32 amino acid cardiac hormone routinely measured by immunoassays to diagnose heart failure. While it is reported that immunoassay results can vary up to 45%, no attempt of standardization and/or harmonization through the development of certified reference materials (CRMs) or reference measurement procedures (RMPs) has yet been carried out. Methods: B-type natriuretic peptide primary calibrator was quantified traceably to the International System of Units (SI) by both amino acid analysis and tryptic digestion. A method for the stabilization of BNP in plasma followed by protein precipitation, solid phase extraction (SPE) and liquid chromatography (LC) mass spectrometry (MS) was then developed and validated for the quantification of BNP at clinically relevant concentrations (15–150 fmol/g). Results: The candidate reference method was applied to the quantification of BNP in a number of samples from the UK NEQAS Cardiac Markers Scheme to demonstrate its applicability to generate reference values and to preliminary evaluate the commutability of a potential CRM. The results from the reference method were consistently lower than the immunoassay results and discrepancy between the immunoassays was observed confirming previous data. Conclusions: The application of the liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) method to the UK NEQAS samples and the correlation of the results with the immunoassay results shows the potential of the method to support external quality assessment schemes, to improve understanding of the bias of the assays and to establish RMPs for BNP measurements. Furthermore, the method has the potential to be multiplexed for monitoring circulating truncated forms of BNP.
Tongue displacement and durational characteristics of normal and disordered Brazilian Portuguese liquids

ABSTRACT The goal of the present study was to characterize normal and disordered Brazilian Portuguese liquids. The research hypotheses were that disordered liquid sounds would be characterized by (1) longer syllable and segment durations, (2) larger and more undifferentiated displacement of the tongue and (3) that the speech errors would show sub-phonemic differences depending on the target sound. The participants of this study were 11 children with phonological disorders and 9 control participants matched for age and educational background. The children’s tongue movement in the sagittal plane was recorded with ultrasound. The speech stimuli consisted of 3 repetitions of 5 words representing the four Brazilian Portuguese liquids /l/, /ʎ/, /ɾ/ and /ʀ/ in the context of the vowel /a/. A panel of four listeners transcribed each of the productions and classified them as correct or incorrect. The outcome measures were based on duration (syllable duration, ratio L/V) and tongue displacement (percentage average displacement, anterior displacement, posterior displacement). Based on mixed model analyses of variance, the first research hypothesis was confirmed for the /l/ and /ɾ/ targets, but not for the /ʀ/ and /ʎ/ targets. The second hypothesis was partially confirmed. The third hypothesis was confirmed. The research serves to illustrate the effects of phonological disorder on the phonetic realisation of Brazilian Portuguese liquid sounds.
Student evaluation of teaching and assessment methods in pharmacology

Background: The students are in the best position to comment on the effectiveness of any teaching system and they may be regarded as the best judges to assess the teaching and evaluation methods. Objective: This study was designed to obtain student feedback on teaching and assessment methods in the subject of pharmacology and use it for improvement. Materials and Methods: Based on student feedback from batch 2006, innovative strategies were implemented. To know the effect of these strategies feedback was obtained from subsequent batch 2007 using a written validated questionnaire covering various aspects of teaching and assessment methods. Results: Students were satisfied with all teaching methods except lecture, seminars and pharmacy exercises. Majority of the students showed preference for tutorials, short answer questions and revision classes. All students felt that there should be more time for clinical pharmacology and bedside teaching. The performance score of the students (batch 2007) indicated improvement in their scores (12%) when earlier feedback suggestions were implemented. The pass percentage of the subsequent batch in university examinations improved from 90 to 100%. Conclusion: The implementation of suggestions obtained from students resulted in improvement in their performance. Hence, it is very essential to synchronize teaching and evaluation methods with special requirements of medical students.
Effect of saturated fatty acid-rich dietary vegetable oils on lipid profile, antioxidant enzymes and glucose tolerance in diabetic rats

Objective: To study the effect of saturated fatty acid (SFA)-rich dietary vegetable oils on the lipid profile, endogenous antioxidant enzymes and glucose tolerance in type 2 diabetic rats. Materials and Methods: Type 2 diabetes was induced by administering streptozotocin (90 mg/kg, i.p.) in neonatal rats. Twenty-eight-day-old normal (N) and diabetic (D) male Wistar rats were fed for 45 days with a fat-enriched special diet (10%) prepared with coconut oil (CO) – lauric acid-rich SFA, palm oil (PO) – palmitic acid-rich SFA and groundnut oil (GNO) – control (N and D). Lipid profile, endogenous antioxidant enzymes and oral glucose tolerance tests were monitored. Results: D rats fed with CO (D + CO) exhibited a significant decrease in the total cholesterol and non-high-density lipoprotein cholesterol. Besides, they also showed a trend toward improving antioxidant enzymes and glucose tolerance as compared to the D + GNO group, whereas D + PO treatment aggravated the dyslipidemic condition while causing a significant decrease in the superoxide dismutase levels when compared to N rats fed with GNO (N + GNO). D + PO treatment also impaired the glucose tolerance when compared to N + GNO and D + GNO. Conclusion: The type of FA in the dietary oil determines its deleterious or beneficial effects. Lauric acid present in CO may protect against diabetes-induced dyslipidemia.
Advanced lipoprotein testing for cardiovascular diseases risk assessment: a review of the novel approaches in lipoprotein profiling

Abstract With the increasing prevalence of cardiovascular diseases (CVD) worldwide, finding reliable and clinically relevant biomarkers to predict acute cardiovascular events has been a major aim of the scientific and medical community. Improvements of the understanding of the pathophysiological pathways of the disease highlighted the major role of lipoprotein particles, and these past decades have seen the emergence of a number of new methodologies to separate, measure and quantitate lipoproteins. Those methods, also known as advanced lipoprotein testing methods (ALT), have gained acceptance in the field of CVD risk assessment and have proven their clinical relevance. In the context of worldwide standardization and harmonization of biological assays, efforts have been initiated toward standardization of ALT methods. However, the complexity of lipoprotein particles and the multiple approaches and methodologies reported to quantify them have rendered these initiatives a critical issue. In this context and to better understand these challenges, this review presents a summary of the major methods available for ALT with the aim to point out the major differences in terms of procedures and quantities actually measured and to discuss the resulting comparability issues.
Traumatic amputation — a contemporary approach

The management of patients with loss or near loss of a limb secondary to high-energy trauma is particularly challenging. Management consists of an acute phase of resuscitation and initial surgery, followed by a longer chronic phase, consisting of rehabilitation, fitting of a prosthesis and stump care. Acute assessment by the full trauma team along standard 〈C〉ABCDE guidelines should not conflict with early stemming of on-going stump or limb haemorrhage as required. Patients with traumatic limb loss are likely to be shocked and have traumatic coagulopathy; initial and on-going resuscitation should satisfy the need to replace blood with packed cells and plasma in a 1 : 1 ratio consistent with the concept of `Damage Control Resuscitation'. The surgical goal is to tailor surgery to the patients' physiological state, removing dead and unviable tissue, restoring perfusion to live tissue, stabilising fractured bone and addressing the loss of soft tissues. The imperative to preserve length should not outweigh the need to leave the patient with a stump that will heal in a timely fashion. Lifelong prosthetic preventive maintenance is paramount as residual limbs change in volume with muscle atrophy and changes inpatient weight. Replacement may also be indicated as improved designs appear from time to time. Early rehabilitation and prosthetic fitting also improves routine prosthetic use, which has been found to positively affect return to work.
Longitudinal Changes in Peak Aerobic and Anaerobic Mechanical Power of Circumpubertal Boys

A mixed cross-sectional longitudinal design was used to study the effect of growth and physical maturation on peak aerobic and anaerobic mechanical power. Subjects were divided into three groups based on Tanner staging: 16 prepubertal (PP, Stage 1), 15 midpubertal (MP, Stages 2, 3, 4), and 5 late pubertal (LP, Stage 5). Aerobic and anaerobic power were observed every 6 months for IS months. Peak mechanical aerobic power and peak oxygen consumption were determined using a progressive cycle ergometer test. Anaerobic power indices were derived from the Wingate Anaerobic Test. There was no difference in peak mechanical aerobic power (in W · kg−1) among the maturation groups, nor with chronological age. There was a significant difference in peak and mean anaerobic power (in W · kg−1) among maturation groups, but the increase with chronological age was not statistically significant. There was a significant correlation between aerobic and anaerobic power (in Watt) during each session among the PP and MP boys but.
Results of the first external quality assessment scheme (EQA) for isolation and analysis of circulating tumour DNA (ctDNA)

Abstract Background: Circulating tumour DNA (ctDNA) is considered to have a high potential for future management of malignancies. This pilot external quality assessment (EQA) scheme aimed to address issues of analytical quality in this new area of laboratory diagnostics. Methods: The EQA scheme consisted of three 2-mL EDTA-plasma samples spiked with fragmented genomic DNA with a mutant allele frequency ranging from 0% to 10% dedicated to the analysis of nine known sequence variations in KRAS codon 12/13 and of BRAF V600E. Laboratories reported: (1) time elapsed for processing, (2) storage temperatures, (3) methods for extraction and quantification, (4) genotyping methodologies and (5) results. Results: Specimens were sent to 42 laboratories from 10 European countries; 72.3% reported to isolate cell-free DNA (cfDNA) manually, 62.5% used the entire plasma volume for cfDNA isolation and 38.5% used >10% of cfDNA extracted for downstream genotyping. Of the methods used for quantification, PicoGreen demonstrated the lowest coefficient of variation (33.7%). For genotyping, 11 different methods were reported with the highest error rate observed for Sanger sequencing and the lowest for highly sensitive approaches like digital PCR. In total, 197 genotypes were determined with an overall error rate of 6.09%. Conclusions: This pilot EQA scheme illustrates the current variability in multiple phases of cfDNA processing and analysis of ctDNA resulting in an overall error rate of 6.09%. The areas with the greatest variance and clinical impact included specimen volume, cfDNA quantification method, and preference of genotyping platform. Regarding quality assurance, there is an urgent need for harmonisation of procedures and workflows.
Oxidative Stress Markers in Patients with Primary Open-Angle Glaucoma

Purpose: To investigate the levels of antioxidant enzymes catalase (CAT), glutathione peroxidase (GPO), superoxide dismutase (SOD), and malondialdehyde (MDA) in human eyes with primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG) and to correlate their concentrations with severity of glaucoma. Design: A prospective cases control study. Patients and Methods: Thirty patients with primary open-angle glaucoma and twenty-five patients with senile cataracts of matched age and gender were included in the study prospectively. Aqueous humor samples were obtained by paracentesis at the time of elective surgery for glaucomatous and cataractous patients. Aqueous humor were analyzed for CAT, GPO, SOD, and MDA status. Results: GPO, SOD, and MDA enzyme levels revealed a high significant increase in aqueous humor of POAG patients with respect to the comparative group of cataract patients (P < 0.001). No significant difference in the activity of CAT enzyme in aqueous humor of POAG and cataract patient (P = 0.201). Significant correlation was found between the MDA enzyme level and severe visual field loss (P < 0.001) in POAG patients. Conclusion: Increased levels of aqueous humor GPO, SOD, and MDA may be associated with POAG. In addition, they may be useful antioxidant enzyme levels in aqueous humor of POAG patients as a result of glaucoma disease and not a cause.
Reasons for and Management of Postvitrectomy Vitreous Hemorrhage in Proliferative Diabetic Retinopathy

Objective: To analyze the reasons for postvitrectomy vitreous hemorrhage in proliferative diabetic retinopathy (PDR), and to evaluate the effects of retreatment. Design: Retrospective, nonrandomized, observational case series. Methods: Three hundred and fifteen eyes of 302 consecutive patients underwent primary standard three-port vitrectomy with 20-gauge instruments for complications of PDR from 2000 to 2006. One hundred and forty-two patients were male, and 160 were female. The age ranged from 38 to 72 years with a mean of 56 years. There were 32 eyes which developed postvitrectomy vitreous hemorrhage during follow-up. The mean follow-up was 12 months with a range from 3 to 48 months. Results: Of 315 eyes with PDR and receiving pars plana vitrectomy, 32 eyes had postvitrectomy vitreous hemorrhage. The onset of recurrent vitreous hemorrhage ranged from 1 to 210 days with an average of 51 days. The reasons for postvitrectomy vitreous hemorrhage in PDR mainly included fibrovascular ingrowth at sclerotomy sites (9 eyes), residual or recurrent neovascular membrane on the optic nerve (6 eyes), insufficient retinal photocoagulation (7 eyes), residual and recurrent epiretinal proliferative membrane (3 eyes), retinal vein occlusion (2 eyes), postoperative low intraocular pressure (2 eyes), and ocular trauma (3 eyes). The visual acuity increased in 31 eyes (96.88%), and decreased in 1 eye (3.12%) after retreatment. The postoperative complications following the treatment of recurrent vitreous hemorrhage mainly included posterior synechia of the iris (3 eyes), nucleus sclerosis (18 eyes), and delayed healing of corneal epithelium (3 eyes). Conclusion: Vitrectomy is a safe and effective method for treating PDR. Appropriate and complete analysis of postvitrectomy vitreous hemorrhage can significantly improve the primary treatment effects for PDR.
Hair testing of GHB: an everlasting issue in forensic toxicology

Abstract Background: In this paper, the authors present a critical review of different studies regarding hair testing of endogenous γ-hydroxybutyrate (GHB), concentrations in chronic users, and values measured after a single GHB exposure in drug facilitated sexual assault (DFSA) cases together with the role of a recently identified GHB metabolite, GHB-glucuronide. Content: The following databases (up to March 2017) PubMed, Scopus and Web of Science were used, searching the following key words: γ-hydroxybutyrate, GHB, GHB glucuronide, hair. The main key words “GHB” and “γ-hydroxybutyrate” were searched singularly and then associated individually to each of the other keywords. Summary: Of the 2304 sources found, only 20 were considered appropriate for the purpose of this paper. Summing up all the studies investigating endogenous GHB concentration in hair, a very broad concentration range from 0 to 12 ng/mg was found. In order to detect a single GHB dose in hair it is necessary to commonly wait 1 month for collecting hair and a segmental analysis of 3 or 5 mm fragments and the calculation of a ratio between the targeted segment and the others represent a reliable method to detect a single GHB intake considering that the ratios presently proposed vary from 3 and 10. The only two studies so far performed, investigating GHB-Glucuronide in hair, show that the latter does not seem to provide any diagnostic information regarding GHB exposure. Outlook: A practical operative protocol is proposed to be applied in all suspected cases of GHB-facilitated sexual assault (GHB-FSA).