Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Healing following surgical/non-surgical treatment of periodontal disease. A clinical study.

Abstract A clinical trial was undertaken to study the effect of one surgical and one non-surgical treatment modality in patients with advanced periodontal disease. Fifteen patients were selected for the study. Following a Baseline examination comprising assessments of oral hygiene status, gingival conditions, probing depths and attachment levels, all participants were subjected to treatment. In each patient, scaling and root planing were carried out in conjunction with the modified Widman flap procedure in two jaw quadrants while in the contralateral quadrants the treatment was restricted to scaling and root planing. During the phase of active treatment, i.e. the period between the first and last operation, and for the subsequent 6 months of healing, the patients were subjected to “professional toothcleaning” once every 2 weeks. From this time until the end of the trial which was 24 months after active treatment, the patients were recalled for prophylaxis once every 3 months. Reexaminations were performed 6, 12 and 24 months after the completion of active treatment. The results demonstrated that scaling and root planing used alone were almost equally effective as their use in combination with the modified Widman flap procedure in establishing clinically healthy gingiva and in preventing further loss of attachment. Both treatment modalities prevented recurrence of periodontal disease for the 24 months of observation. The analysis of the probing depth data revealed that both methods of treatment resulted in a high frequency of probing depths of <4 mm. The probing depth reduction was more pronounced in initially deep than in initially shallow pockets and, for initially deep pockets, more marked in sites subjected to surgery than in sites exposed to scaling and root planing alone. The measurements also showed that sites with initially deep pockets exhibited more pronounced gain of clinical attachment than sites with initially shallow pockets. Significant loss of attachment did not occur in sites treated with scaling and root planing alone while attachment loss was found following Widman flap surgery in sites with initial probing depth of <4 mm.
Social disparity in child morbidity and curative care: Investigating for determining factors from rural India

This Working paper is focused on illness prevalence as well as curative care for children under age of five years across different social groups in rural India, and India human development survey (IHDS) data is used to study these aspects. To capture differentials in illness, different demographic, HH economic and sanitation & hygiene indicators have been included whereas, for curative care, structural component of health care delivery is added. This was done mainly due to the fact that SC and ST are poor on both health outcome and also in accessing healthcare services. Univeriate and bivariate analysis have been used for estimation of IPR and their pattern across the social groups. Odds ratio estimates of Multinomial logistic regression has been used to observe differential in illness and curative care across the caste/social groups. The study reveals that social group having poor socio economic development level are poorly performing on reporting of morbidity/illness as well as on curative care behaviour. Availability of government healthcare facility and providers matters more for ST than any other social group. Poor utilization of government health facilities is still a major concern. There is need to create awareness about incidence illnesses, their possible symptoms & signs at community level mainly in the locality where poor and deprive people are living in rural India
A sensorimotor area in the songbird brain is required for production of vocalizations in the song learning period of development

Sensory feedback is essential for acquiring and maintaining complex motor behaviors, including birdsong. In zebra finches, auditory feedback reaches the song control circuits primarily through the nucleus interfacialis nidopalii (Nif), which provides excitatory input to HVC (proper name)—a premotor region essential for the production of learned vocalizations. Despite being one of the major inputs to the song control pathway, the role of Nif in generating vocalizations is not well understood. To address this, we transiently inactivated Nif in late juvenile zebra finches. Upon Nif inactivation (in both hemispheres or on one side only), birds went from singing stereotyped zebra finch song to uttering highly variable and unstructured vocalizations resembling sub‐song, an early juvenile song form driven by a basal ganglia circuit. Simultaneously inactivating Nif and LMAN (lateral magnocellular nucleus of the anterior nidopallium), the output nucleus of a basal ganglia circuit, inhibited song production altogether. These results suggest that Nif is required for generating the premotor drive for song. Permanent Nif lesions, in contrast, have only transient effects on vocal production, with song recovering within a day. The sensorimotor nucleus Nif thus produces a premotor drive to the motor pathway that is acutely required for generating learned vocalizations, but once permanently removed, the song system can compensate for its absence. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Develop Neurobiol 76: 1213–1225, 2016
Prescription opiate abuse in chronic pain patients: clinical criteria, incidence, and predictors.

OBJECTIVES Opiates are commonly used to treat patients with chronic nonmalignant pain. There is much controversy over the definition, incidence, and risk factors of prescription opiate abuse in chronic pain treatment. The present study, done at the Seattle VA Medical Center, was designed to create opiate abuse criteria, test inter-rater reliability of the criteria, apply the criteria to a group of chronic pain patients, and correlate the risk of opiate abuse with the results of alcohol and drug testing. DESIGN/OUTCOME MEASURES A committee of experienced pain providers designed a five-point prescription opiate abuse checklist based on DSM-III-R parameters. The criteria were then applied to patients enrolled in the pain clinic. The reliability of the criteria were determined using two providers who were familiar with every patient in the clinic. Drug, alcohol, and psychosocial testing were correlated with the risk of opiate abuse. RESULTS A total of 19% (76/403) of all pain clinic patients were using chronic opiates. Thirty-four percent (26/76) met one, and 27.6% (21/76) met three or more of the abuse criteria. The criteria had an inter-rater reliability of > 0.9. There were no differences between chronic opiate users (n = 76) and opiate abusers (n = 21) for a history of drug or alcohol abuse or on psychosocial testing. CONCLUSIONS Prescription opiate abuse criteria for use in patients with chronic nonmalignant pain were designed. The criteria had good reliability and can be applied during normal clinic interactions. The percentage of chronic opiate users who become opiate abusers in pain treatment is within the range reported by others. Past opiate or alcohol abuse or psychosocial testing on clinic admission failed to predict who would become an opiate abuser. The criteria can be used to identify patients who will subsequently require more intensive treatment or intervention or can be used as an outcome to measure to test the effectiveness of treatment strategies.
Variation in the levels of volatile trace gases within three hospital environments: implications for clinical breath testing

Selected ion flow tube mass spectrometry, SIFT-MS, has been used to determine the levels of volatile trace gases in the room air of three clinical environments within a busy teaching hospital. The main aims of this study were to establish background levels of trace gases and to compare them to levels typically found within exhaled breath. Over a period of one month, room air samples were collected daily from an outpatient clinic, a hospital ward and an operating theatre, in either the morning or the evening. The concentrations of seven volatile compounds were compared between different locations and different times of the day. Having established the baseline levels for these compounds, breath was collected from healthy volunteers working within each of the three clinical locations. The concentrations of isoprene, acetone, hydrogen cyanide and ammonia within room air samples collected from at least one of the three clinical environments were less than 25% of levels typically found in human breath. Based on the recommendation of previous authors these compounds may therefore be suitable for use as exhaled markers of disease. In comparison high levels of ethanol, propanol and acetic acid within room air samples collected from each location may diminish confidence in their use as breath biomarkers.
Transmission of response to trauma? Second-generation Holocaust survivors' reaction to cancer.

OBJECTIVE Opinions differ about the effects of the Holocaust on the adult offspring of survivors. The authors studied cancer patients who were second-generation Holocaust survivors in an attempt to determine whether they react to their illness with the high distress found to be a characteristic of Holocaust survivors. METHOD In a study population of women with breast cancer, 106 second-generation Holocaust survivors were compared to 102 women whose parents were not in the Holocaust. Background information was obtained by interviews. In addition, all patients completed three self-reports: the Mental Attitude to Cancer Scale, the Brief Symptom Inventory, and the Impact of Event Scale. RESULTS The two groups had identical mean scores on the Mental Attitude to Cancer Scale. The offspring of Holocaust survivors had scores on the Brief Symptom Inventory and the Impact of Event Scale that were substantially and significantly higher and in the range of psychopathology. Within the group, married women and women whose mothers were still alive were even more distressed. Other independent variables shed little light on why the second-generation Holocaust survivors suffered from extreme distress. CONCLUSIONS Second-generation Holocaust survivors are particularly vulnerable to psychological distress and, when faced with a trauma such as breast cancer, react with extreme psychological distress.
The Role of Information and Communication Technology in Home Services: Telecare Does not Satisfy the Needs of the Elderly

Computer-based information and communication technology (ICT) is used in many service sectors. In home services, it has been considered whether it would be possible to support independent living of the elderly by using ICT; dependant on the needs of the elderly and whether those needs can be satisfied with ICT. In this study, the coping capabilities of 13 elderly clients of a Finnish home service office were assessed using the Finnish RaVa index. All the clients had severe dis abilities and needed help, e.g. to wash and dress. To satisfy such needs, telecare and the telemonitoring of homes are not enough; physical production and human labour are essential in the continuing absence of service robots. Thus, the major focus in organizing home services in the best possible way should be on the use of human labour, not on investing in ICT.
Cutaneous Tumors Cease CXCL9/Mig Production as a Result of IFN-γ–Mediated Immunoediting

During growth in the host, tumor cells are subjected to the stresses of innate and adaptive immunity (immunoediting), which provoke epigenetic changes in the tumor and increase tumor resistance to these immune responses. Our recent studies in methylcholanthrene-induced fibrosarcomas have indicated the appearance and rapid growth of tumor variants deficient in producing the T cell chemoattractant chemokine CXCL9/Mig, an important component of antitumor immunity. In the current report, we demonstrate that highly tumorigenic Mig-deficient tumor variants arise in both cutaneous fibrosarcoma and melanoma as a result of immune stress imposed by IFN-γ and T cells. The consequence of the loss of tumor-derived Mig expression is the increased resistance of Mig-deficient tumors to T cell-mediated immunity, which promotes the accelerated growth of these tumor variants. Remarkably, the ability of Mig-deficient tumor cells to express another CXCR3 ligand, CXCL10/IFN-γ–inducible protein, does not compensate for the absent antitumor functions of Mig, suggesting a nonredundant role for this chemokine in the suppression of tumor growth. To our knowledge, these studies report for the first time that IFN-γ–mediated stress leads to the loss of specific chemokine expression by tumor cells, which in turn promotes tumor growth and evasion of the immune response.
Randomized trial of procarbazine, lomustine, and vincristine in the adjuvant treatment of high-grade astrocytoma: a Medical Research Council trial.

PURPOSE Meta-analyses of the published literature suggest a survival benefit to adjuvant chemotherapy for high-grade astrocytoma, which individual small trials have been unable to demonstrate reliably. The Medical Research Council Brain Tumour Working Party initiated the largest randomized trial of adjuvant chemotherapy for glioma in an attempt to provide a definitive answer. PATIENTS AND METHODS After surgery, patients aged < or = 70 years, with World Health Organization grade 3 or 4 astrocytoma, were randomized to radiotherapy alone (RT) or RT plus procarbazine, lomustine, and vincristine (PCV) chemotherapy (RT-PCV) given at 6-week intervals to a maximum of 12 courses (procarbazine 100 mg/m2 days 1 to 10, lomustine 100 mg/m2 day 1, and vincristine 1.5 mg/m2 (max 2 mg) day 1). A neuropathology panel independently reviewed all cases. To reliably detect a 10% increase in 2-year survival (from 15% to 25%), 600 patients were required. RESULTS Between September 1988 and May 1997, 15 United Kingdom centers randomized 674 patients (RT = 339 patients; RT-PCV = 335 patients). With a median follow-up for survivors of 3 years, 617 patients have died, (RT = 310 patients; RT-PCV = 307 patients). Median survival was 9.5 months for RT and 10 months for RT-PCV (hazard ratio = 0.95; 95% confidence interval, 0.81 to 1.11; log-rank P = .50). Tests for interaction revealed no significant differences in treatment effect according to tumor grade, age, performance status, or extent of neurosurgery. CONCLUSION This trial shows no benefit to PCV chemotherapy, and current data exclude an increase in median survival of more than 10 weeks and in a 1- or 2-year survival rate of more than 7% to 8%. This suggests that no-chemotherapy control arms remain ethical in randomized trials in high-grade astrocytoma.
Improving the Efficiency of University Management: Teacher’s Performance Monitoring as a Tool to Promote the Quality of Education

This study aims to examine the essence of education monitoring, its place in the higher education management system and the practical implementation of teacherâ€™s performance monitoring as a tool to promote the quality of education.The article considers theoretical aspects of monitoring as a tool to promote the quality of education, assesses the performance of the university departments, research and teaching staff and discusses the results and suggestions on how to improve monitoring activities in higher education.Based on their research and findings, the authors claimed that the monitoring of the performance of the university research and teaching staff on the base of an indicator system in terms of education, methodology, research, organization and counselling services would lead to valid conclusions as to the effective performance of both individual researchers and teachers and university departments, in general.
Poly n-butylcyanoacrylate (PNBCA) nanocapsules as a carrier for NSAIDs: in vitro release and in vivo skin penetration.

PURPOSE The aim of this work was to prepare poly n-butylcyanoacrylate (PNBCA) nanocapsules loaded with indomethacin and to evaluate the ability of this carrier system to deliver the drug systemically after its topical application. METHODS Poly n-butylcyanoacrylate (PNBCA) nanocapsules of indomethacin were prepared by interfacial polymerization. The physicochemical characterization of the PNBCA nanocapsules was performed by measuring the drug content by HPLC and analyzing the particle size using scanning electron microscopy. The in vitro permeation of indomethacin through excised rat skin and an artificial membrane was determined for PNBCA nanocapsules in pH 7.4 phosphate buffer (I), and in PLF-127 gel (II) and were compared against indomethacin incorporated into 25%w/w PLF-127 gel alone (III). The in vivo percutaneous absorption of indomethacin following the application of the PNBCA nanocapsules and a 25%w/w Pluronic F-127 (PLF-127) gel (III) was monitored by the determination of drug plasma levels in rats. RESULTS The drug loading results indicated that approximately 76.6% of indomethacin was loaded onto the PNBCA nanocapsules; the average particle size was 188 nm. The in vitro results indicated a rank order for the three formulations (I, II and III) in both the flux at steady state and the cumulative amounts permeated at 8 hrs. The higher drug plasma levels over 6 hrs of indomethacin PNBCA nanocapsules are in agreement with the determined in vitro permeation results. CONCLUSION The presented data show that indomethacin loaded PNBCA nanocapsules can improve the transdermal delivery of indomethacin compared to a conventional gel formulation using Pluronic F-127. This might be due to their ultra fine particle size and their hydrophilic and hydrophobic surface characteristics.
Regulatory T Cells Prevent Control of Experimental African Trypanosomiasis1

African trypanosomes are single-cell, extra-cellular blood parasites causing profound immunosuppression. Susceptible BALB/c mice infected s.c. into a footpad with 104 Trypanosoma congolense die with fulminating parasitemia within 10 days. We injected BALB/c mice 2 days before such an infection with different doses of a depleting mAb specific for CD25, a surface marker of regulatory T cells (Tregs). Pretreatment with a low, optimal dose of anti-CD25 resulted in a dramatic effect, in that the infected mice did not develop parasitemia, as well as eliminated all parasites and showed no signs of disease. Their spleens showed a 100% reduction of CD4+CD25high T cells and overall a 70% reduction of CD4+CD25+Foxp3+ T cells 7 days postinfection. The protective effect of treatment with an optimal dose of anti-CD25 could be reversed by administration of l-N6-(1-imminoethyl) lysine, a specific inhibitor of inducible NO synthase or administration of anti-CD8 Ab. Analysis of the cytokine patterns and cell surface marker in infected mice pretreated with anti-CD25 Abs pointed to a potential NKT cell response. We then conducted infections in CD1d−/− mice. From our observations, we conclude that CD4+CD25highFoxp3+ Tregs prevent, in normal infected susceptible mice, an early protective response mediated by CD8+ NKT cell-dependent activation of macrophages to kill parasites by production of NO. Our results also indicate that different populations of NKT cells have protective or suppressive effects. Our observations lead us to propose a hypothesis of cross-regulation of NKT cells and Tregs in trypanosome infections.
Tumor necrosis factor alpha -238 and -308 polymorphisms do not associate with insulin resistance in hypertensive subjects.

It is well established that, as a group, patients with essential hypertension are characterized by insulin resistance. Previous studies have shown that a biallelic polymorphism in the tumor necrosis factor (TNF)alpha promoter position -308 and -238 might be involved in the insulin resistance state in diabetic and/or nondiabetic subjects. We determined these polymorphisms in 235 nondiabetic hypertensive subjects and 246 unrelated normotensive controls. Fasting plasma glucose, insulin, lipoprotein, leptin, and TNFalpha concentrations were measured, in addition to plasma glucose and insulin responses to a 75-g oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT). Insulin sensitivity was also determined by an insulin suppression test in 69 hypertensive and 76 normotensive individuals. The results showed no association of these genotypic distributions between hypertensive and normotensive individuals both at -308 (GG, GA, and AA were 80.9%, 17.9%, and 1.3% in hypertensives, 84.2%, 15.4%, and 0.4% in normotensives, chi(2) = 1.68, P =. 432) and at -238 (GG, GA, and AA were 98.3%, 1.7%, and 0% in hypertensives, 96.7%, 3.3%, and 0% in normotensives, chi(2) = 1.19, P =. 276) sites. These results did not change even after adjustment for values of age and body mass index (BMI). Anthropometric measurements, fasting plasma glucose, insulin, lipoprotein concentrations, glucose, and insulin responses to OGTT, TNFalpha, and leptin concentrations were similar between the genotype at the -308 site both in hypertensive and normotensive groups. Insulin sensitivity, either measured by an insulin suppression test or homeostasis model assessment (HOMA) index, did not differ between the genotype at the -308 site in subjects with hypertension or normotension. Fasting plasma TNFalpha (10.2 alpha 0.5 pg/mL v 10.1 +/- 0.5 pg/mL, P =.928) concentrations did not differ between hypertensive and normotensive subjects even after adjustment for body fat and BMI values. We conclude that TNFalpha promoter gene polymorphisms at position -238 and -308 do not play a major role in the pathogenesis of insulin resistance in Chinese subjects with or without hypertension.
European cloud-to-ground lightning characteristics

Cloud-to-ground (CG) lightning data from the European Cooperation for Lightning Detection (EUCLID) network over the period 2006-2012 are explored. Mean CG flash densities vary over the European continent, with the highest density of about 7 km-2yr-1 found at the triple point between Austria, Italy and Slovenia. The majority of lightning activity takes place between May and September, accounting for 85% of the total observed CG activity. Furthermore, the thunderstorm season reaches its highest activity in July, while the diurnal cycle peaks around 1500 UTC. A difference between CG flashes over land and sea becomes apparent when looking at the peak current estimates. It is found that flashes with higher peak currents occur in greater numbers over sea than over land.