Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Effectiveness of Short Term Percutaneous Tibial Nerve Stimulation for Non-neurogenic Overactive Bladder Syndrome in Adults: A Meta-analysis.

AIM to evaluate the effectiveness of short-term PTNS for non-neurogenic OAB in adults systematically by comparing with sham procedure and other treatments. METHODS we performed a systematic review of cohort study. Data sources were MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, National Library for Health, Cochrane, and google scholar from 2005 through 2015. Meta-analysis was performed using the random effects model. Heterogeneity of effects was assessed by calculating I2 statistic. Statistical analysis was performed using Review Manager 5.3 for RCT meta-analysis. RESULTS we analized 11 randomised controlled trial (RCT) and five prospective non-comparative studies with variable success rate. Based on percentage of responders, the results were 37.3% - 81.8% in PTNS group, 0% - 20.9% in sham group, 54.8% in anti-muscarinic group, and 89.7% in multimodal group. The decrease of voiding symptoms episodes per day was found in PTNS (0.7-4.5), sham (0.3-1.5), and anti-muscarinic (0.6-2.9) groups. In meta-analysis of four RCTs, the results favour PTNS over sham procedure with overall risk ratio of 7.32 (95% CI of 1.69-32.16), p=0.09, I2=54%. CONCLUSION there is an evidence of effectiveness of short term PTNS in treatment of non-neurogenic OAB. PTNS is proven significantly better than sham procedure.
Minimally invasive application of a radial plate following placement of an ulnar rod in treating antebrachial fractures

Summary Objective: To describe a surgical technique for placement of a minimally invasive radial plate following application of an ulnar rod (MIPR) for treatment of antebrachial fractures. Methods: Medical records (November 2005-June 2009) were searched to identify dogs with diaphyseal radius and ulna fractures stabilised by MIPR. Data retrieved included signalment, weight, limb affected, cause of injury, open versus closed fracture, number of fragments, implant size, number of screws used and cortices engaged, number of open screw holes, operative time, rod removal, complications and time to radio-graphic healing. To be included, dogs had to have evidence of radiographic healing during follow-up. Results: Eight dogs with diaphyseal radius and ulna fractures treated with MIPR were included in the case series. All fractures were due to trauma and two fractures were open (grade 1). Rod loosening and osteomyelitis of the ulna occurred in one case which subsequently resolved with rod removal. Healing occurred in all cases with no implant failures. Median time to radiographic union was 10.5 weeks (mean ± SD = 17 ± 15 weeks range 4–52 weeks). Clinical relevance: Use of MIPR constructs on diaphyseal fractures of the radius and ulna is an effective technique for managing these fractures using principles of biological osteo-synthesis. An intramedullary rod in the ulna assists with fracture reduction and stabilisation and rod removal is recommended once fracture healing has occurred.
C677T and A1298C methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase gene polymorphisms in schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and depression: a meta-analysis of genetic association studies

A meta-analysis of the previous studies of allelic association between schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and depression with the C677T and A1298C polymorphisms of the methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) gene was carried out. Attention was paid to genetic differences in ancestral groups. Ten studies of the C677T MTHFR polymorphism and schizophrenia were included, along with four studies with the A1298C MTHFR polymorphism and schizophrenia. Four association studies of the C677T MTHFR polymorphism with bipolar disorder, and five studies of the C677T base pair change with depression were included. The studies contained Caucasian and east Asian samples. For schizophrenia, the main analysis for investigating the association of the C677T allele T and the risk of developing schizophrenia relative to the allele C showed lack of heterogeneity (P=0.22, I2=24%) between samples. In these samples, the fixed effects odds ratio was marginally significant [odds ratio 1.13 (95% confidence interval, 1.04–1.23)]. In an analysis of subgroups, the odds ratio were not significant for the Caucasian sample [random effects odds ratio 1.14 (0.95–1.36) and fixed effects odds ratio 1.13 (1.00–1.27)](P=0.14, I2=43%) and in Asians [random effects odds ratio 1.15 (0.98–1.35) and fixed effects odds ratio 1.15 (1.01–1.31)] (P=0.19, I2=37). The recessive model for allele T produced significant results in the main analysis [fixed effects odds ratio 1.32 (1.12–1.56)] in east Asians [fixed effects odds ratio 1.45 (1.13–1.85)] and female participants [fixed effects odds ratio 1.70 (1.07–2.71)], whereas for Caucasians the results were nonsignificant. For the A1298C polymorphism, in the main analysis the allele frequency difference between C and A, and the dominant model for allele C produced marginally significant associations [fixed effects odds ratio 1.16 (1.03–1.31) and fixed effects odds ratio 1.19 (1.02–1.40), respectively]. In bipolar disorder, overall, there was no significant association between either allele of the C677T polymorphism and the risk of developing bipolar disorder. Only in the east Asian population was the C677T association of marginal significance, with fixed effects odds ratio 1.23 (1.00–1.52). No sources of potential bias were found in the selected studies. The meta-analysis results suggested that east Asians have a greater genetic risk from the MTHFR gene in developing schizophrenia and depression, and that the genetic effects in bipolar disorder and depression are different. A further exploration of the involvement of the MTHFR gene in the susceptibility to schizophrenia and affective disorders, with a greater number of studies with larger sample sizes, however, are needed to fully establish the role of the MTHFR gene.
Will it be cloud or will it be fog? F2C, A novel flagship computing paradigm for highly demanding services

Cloud computing has been lately extended by fog computing. The main aim of fog computing is to shift computing resources to the edge of the network, hence generating proximate rich infrastructures highly matching common latency and privacy requirements for IoT services. Recently, fog computing and cloud computing have been merged in a collaborative computing model referred to as Fog-to-Cloud computing (F2C). F2C's aim is to make the most out of the set of distributed and heterogeneous resources found at fog and cloud premises, hence building a global stack of resources, offered for an optimized service performance. The F2C paradigm is then based on providing services with those resources best matching their demands. In this paper, we illustrate how F2C may be used for a particular ehealth scenario with specific constraints in mobility, also including future research lines in the area.
Querying Web-Scale Knowledge Graphs Through Effective Pruning of Search Space

Web-scale knowledge graphs containing billions of entities are common nowadays. Querying these graphs can be modeled as a subgraph matching problem. Since knowledge graphs are incomplete and noisy in nature, it is important to discover answers matching exactly as well as answers similar to queries. Existing graph matching algorithms usually use graph indices to accelerate query processing. For billion-node graphs, it may be infeasible to build the graph indices due to the amount of work and the memory/storage required. In this paper, we propose an efficient algorithm for finding the best <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$k$</tex-math><alternatives> <inline-graphic xlink:href="jin-ieq1-2665478.gif"/></alternatives></inline-formula> answers for a given query without precomputing graph indices. An answer’s quality is measured by a matching score that is computed online. To accelerate query processing, we propose a novel technique for bounding the matching scores during the computation. By using bounds, the low quality answers can be efficiently pruned. The bounding technique can be implemented in a distributed environment, allowing our approach to efficiently query web-scale knowledge graphs. We evaluate the effectiveness and the efficiency of our approach on real-world datasets. The result shows that our bounding technique can reduce the running time up to two orders of magnitude comparing to an approach without using bounds.
High Incidence of Asymptomatic Syphilis in HIV-Infected MSM Justifies Routine Screening

Background: Recently, the incidence of syphilis has risen, mainly among men having sex with men (MSM), many of whom are coinfected with HIV. Current guidelines recommend at least yearly syphilis testing in this group. In this study, we assessed the yield of routine syphilis screening in outpatient HIV-patients. Methods: From March through June 2003, syphilis serology was routinely performed in HIV-infected patients visiting our outpatient clinic. Serology was repeated six months later. Positive test results of the first episode were compared to historical test results (retrospective analysis). Test results of the second episode were compared to test results from the first episode (prospective analysis). Case records of all patients with a new infection were reviewed for symptomatic disease or testing because of syphilis contacts, versus asymptomatic disease. Results: In the retrospective analysis, 1,105 patients were included. In 68 patients, 81 syphilis infections were identified, of which 33% asymptomatic. 77/81 infections were acquired between 2000 and 2003, resulting in a total incidence of 2.7/100 person years (PY) of follow-up, and 0.9/100 PY for asymptomatic disease. In MSM, the incidence rate was 4.6/100 and 1.5/100 PY respectively. In the prospective analysis, 1,010 patients were included. Seventeen patients, all MSM, had a new or recurrent syphilis infection, of whom 4 asymptomatic, accounting for a total event rate of 3.5/100 PY. In MSM, the event rate was 6.2/100 PY, with an incidence of asymptomatic disease of 1.4/100 PY. Conclusion: Routine screening for syphilis identifies significant numbers of asymptomatic syphilis infection in HIV-infected MSM.
Invasion Pathways and Malaria Severity in Kenyan Plasmodium falciparum Clinical Isolates

ABSTRACT The invasion of erythrocytes by Plasmodium falciparum occurs through multiple pathways that can be studied in vitro by examining the invasion of erythrocytes treated with enzymes such as neuraminidase, trypsin, and chymotrypsin. We have studied the invasion pathways used by 31 Kenyan P. falciparum isolates from children with uncomplicated or severe malaria. Six distinct invasion profiles were detected, out of eight possible profiles. The majority of isolates (23 of 31) showed neuraminidase-resistant, trypsin-sensitive invasion, characteristic of the pathway mediated by an unknown parasite ligand and erythrocyte receptor “X. ” The neuraminidase-sensitive, trypsin-sensitive phenotype consistent with invasion mediated by the binding of parasite ligand erythrocyte binding antigen 175 to glycophorin A, the most common invasion profile in a previous study of Gambian field isolates, was seen in only 3 of 31 Kenyan isolates. No particular invasion profile was associated with severe P. falciparum malaria, and there was no significant difference in the levels of inhibition by the various enzyme treatments between isolates from children with severe malaria and those from children with uncomplicated malaria (P, >0.1 for all enzymes; Mann-Whitney U test). These results do not support the hypothesis that differences in invasion phenotypes play an important role in malaria virulence and indicate that considerable gaps remain in our knowledge of the molecular basis of invasion pathways in natural P. falciparum infections.
Thromboembolic complications after perioperative chemotherapy in women with early breast cancer: a European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Breast Cancer Cooperative Group study.

PURPOSE AND METHODS Data from a randomized phase III trial in early breast cancer, comparing surgery followed by one short intensive course of perioperative fluorouracil, doxorubicin, and cyclophosphamide (FAC) versus surgery alone, were analyzed for the occurrence of thromboembolic complications within 6 weeks after surgery. RESULTS Twenty-seven of 1,292 patients assigned to the perioperative chemotherapy treatment arm (2.1%) and 10 of 1,332 patients on observation (0.8%) developed thromboembolic events (P = .004). The frequency of thromboembolic complications was higher among postmenopausal women compared with premenopausal women (2.0% v 0.6%, P = .003). Patients who had mastectomy had a higher frequency of thromboembolic disease than those who had tumorectomy (2.3% v 0.7%, P < .001). Three deaths occurred after pulmonary embolism, all of them in the perioperative chemotherapy treatment arm. CONCLUSION These results suggest a contributing role of perioperative chemotherapy to thromboembolic disease, especially in postmenopausal women and women undergoing mastectomy. Antithrombosis prophylaxis should be considered in the case of adjuvant perioperative chemotherapy.
Insulin-induced Skeletal Abnormalities in Developing Chickens*

share in moulding, need not feel ashamed if he continues to cherish and to advocate his ideals. Only such an ideal of humanism as I have sketched, with its emphasis upon practical wisdom, and such reflections upon the nature of our activities as I have so imperfectly put before you, can save the loss of our traditional values and keep us aware of the nature of what we are thinking and doing. Yet, whatever be true of the latter, there can be no doubting that the practice of medicine flourishes most when doctors think most highly of their functions; when they remember that prudence governs the employment of science, and that in the last resort they are concerned with the ultimate particular thing, the human person, whom science by itself is inadequate to comprehend.
Trajectories of brain loss in aging and the development of cognitive impairment

Background: The use of volumetric MRI as a biomarker for assessing transitions to dementia presumes that more rapid brain loss marks the clinical transition from benign aging to mild cognitive impairment (MCI). The trajectory of this volume loss relative to the timing of the clinical transition to dementia has not been established. Methods: The authors annually evaluated 79 healthy elderly subjects for up to 15 consecutive years with standardized clinical examinations and volumetric brain MRI assessments of ventricular volume. During the study period, 37 subjects developed MCI. A mixed effects model with a change point modeled the pattern of brain volume loss in healthy aging compared with subjects diagnosed with MCI. Results: The brain loss trajectory of subjects developing MCI during follow-up differed from healthy aging in a two-phase process. First, the annual rate of expansion of ventricular volume decreased with age; however, the annual rates of expansion were greater in those who developed cognitive impairment during follow-up compared with those who did not. Further, subjects who developed MCI had an acceleration of ventricular volume expansion approximately 2.3 years prior to clinical diagnosis of MCI. Conclusions: Ventricular expansion is faster in those developing mild cognitive impairment years prior to clinical symptoms, and eventually a more rapid expansion occurs approximately 24 months prior to the emergence of clinical symptoms. These differential rates of preclinical atrophy suggest that there are specific windows for optimal timing of introduction of dementia prevention therapies in the future. GLOSSARY: AD = Alzheimer disease; BMI = body mass index; CDR = Clinical Dementia Rating Scale; MCI = mild cognitive impairment; MMSE = Mini-Mental State Examination.
Relict or reintroduction? Genetic population assignment of three Tasmanian devils (Sarcophilus harrisii) recovered on mainland Australia

Today, the Tasmanian devil (Sarcophilus harrisii) is found only on the island of Tasmania, despite once being widespread across mainland Australia. While the devil is thought to have become extinct on the mainland approximately 3000 years ago, three specimens were collected in Victoria (south-eastern Australia) between 1912 and 1991, raising the possibility that a relict mainland population survived in the area. Alternatively, these devils may have escaped captivity or were deliberately released after being transported from Tasmania, a practice that has been strictly controlled since the onset of devil facial tumour disease in the early 1990s. Such quarantine regimes are important to protect disease-free, ‘insurance populations’ in zoos on the mainland. To test whether the three Victorian devils were members of a relict mainland population or had been recently transported from Tasmania we identified seven single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the mitochondrial genome that can distinguish between Tasmanian and ancient mainland populations. The three Victorian devil specimens have the same seven SNPs diagnostic of modern Tasmanian devils, confirming that they were most likely transported from Tasmania and do not represent a remnant population of mainland devils.
Effects of the Putative Transcriptional Regulator IclR on Francisella tularensis Pathogenesis

ABSTRACT Francisella tularensis is a highly virulent Gram-negative bacterium and is the etiological agent of the disease tularemia. IclR, a presumed transcriptional regulator, is required for full virulence of the animal pathogen, F. tularensis subspecies novicida U112 (53). In this study, we investigated the contribution of IclR to the intracellular growth, virulence, and gene regulation of human pathogenic F. tularensis subspecies. Deletion of iclR from the live vaccine strain (LVS) and SchuS4 strain of F. tularensis subsp. holarctica and F. tularensis subsp. tularensis, respectively, did not affect their abilities to replicate within macrophages or epithelial cells. In contrast to F. tularensis subsp. novicida iclR mutants, LVS and SchuS4 ΔiclR strains were as virulent as their wild-type parental strains in intranasal inoculation mouse models of tularemia. Furthermore, wild-type LVS and LVSΔiclR were equally cytotoxic and induced equivalent levels of interleukin-1β expression by infected bone marrow-derived macrophages. Microarray analysis revealed that the relative expression of a limited number of genes differed significantly between LVS wild-type and ΔiclR strains. Interestingly, many of the identified genes were disrupted in LVS and SchuS4 but not in their corresponding F. tularensis subsp. novicida U112 homologs. Thus, despite the impact of iclR deletion on gene expression, and in contrast to the effects of iclR deletion on F. tularensis subsp. novicida virulence, IclR does not contribute significantly to the virulence or pathogenesis of F. tularensis LVS or SchuS4.
Computational predictions of the site of metabolism of cytochrome P450 2D6 substrates: comparative analysis, molecular docking, bioactivation and toxicological implications

Abstract Cytochrome P450 2D6 (CYP2D6) is a polymorphic enzyme responsible for metabolizing approximately 25% of all drugs. CYP2D6 is highly expressed in the brain and plays a role as the major CYP in the metabolism of numerous brain-penetrant drugs, including antipsychotics and antidepressants. CYP2D6 activity and inhibition have been associated with numerous undesirable effects in patients, such as bioactivation, drug-associated suicidality and prolongation of the QTc interval. Several in silico tools have been developed in recent years to assist safety assessment scientists in predicting the structural identity of CYP2D6-derived metabolites. The first goal of this study was to perform a comparative evaluation on the ability of four commonly used in silico tools (MetaSite, StarDrop, SMARTCyp and RS-WebPredictor) to correctly predict the CYP2D6-derived site of metabolism (SOM) for 141 compounds, including 10 derived from the Genentech small molecule library. The second goal was to evaluate if a bioactivation prediction model, based on an indicator of chemical reactivity (ELUMO–EHOMO) and electrostatic potential, could correctly predict five representative compounds known to be bioactivated by CYP2D6. Such a model would be of great utility in safety assessment since unforeseen toxicities of CYP2D6 substrates may in part be due to bioactivation mechanisms. The third and final goal was to investigate whether molecular docking, using the crystal structure of human CYP2D6, had the potential to compliment or improve the results obtained from the four SOM in silico programs.
Silicone intubation and endoscopic dacryocystorhinostomy: a meta-analysis.

OBJECTIVES during endoscopic dacryocystorhinostomy (En-DCR), bicanalicular insertion of silicone tubing into the lacrimal duct is the most common procedure to prevent the closure of the rhinostomy. It has been claimed that silicone tubing would improve the surgical outcomes of En-DCR. However, many reports revealed that without silicone intubation in En-DCR, the surgical success rate was equally high. The benefit of silicone intubation in En-DCR is controversial. Therefore, the aims of this study were to evaluate the outcome with or without the use of lacrimal silicone tubes in En-DCR and to identify whether silicone tubes after primary En-DCR are necessary. METHODS MEDLINE, EMBASE, Cochrane Library, and manual searches were conducted to identify all studies published in English between January 1, 1990, and October 30, 2009, on En-DCR with or without silicone intubation. Search terms included "endoscopic dacryocystorhinostomy" and "silicone intubation/intubing. " We also reviewed references from all retrieved articles and performed a meta-analysis of the literature. RESULTS of four retrieved trials from the electronic database, two trials involving 84 patients met our inclusion criteria. There was no statistically significant heterogeneity between the studies. In the fixed-effects models, the pooled risk ratio was 0.85 and the 95% confidence interval was 0.71 to approximately 1.02. CONCLUSION the use of silicone tubes after primary En-DCR is not necessary.
First-episode acute and transient psychotic disorder in Latvia: A 6-year follow-up study

Abstract Background: Acute and transient psychotic disorder (ATPD; F23, ICD-10) is an acute, short-lived psychosis, which has variable prevalence worldwide and has not been extensively studied. Aims: To explore the first episode of ATPD in patients in Latvia by describing the clinical features, analyzing the longitudinal changes of diagnosis and associated socio-demographic characteristics. Material and Methods: Retrospective chart review of all first-time hospitalized patients fulfilling the ICD-10 criteria for ATPD treated at the Riga Centre of Psychiatry and Addiction Disorders, Latvia, during a 3-year period. Patients were followed-up and assessed using standardized instruments. Results: During a 3-year period, 294 patients were first-time hospitalized with a ATPD diagnosis; 54% were women. The average age at first psychotic episode was 35.7 ± 12.3 years for women, and 30.0 ± 10.8 years for men (P < 0.0001). Over an average of 5.6 years follow-up period, 51% of patients were not re-hospitalized. Later diagnosis was changed to schizophrenia in 73% of the re-hospitalized patients, mostly within the first 2 years of illness. The overall stability rate of ATPD diagnosis reached 58%. Typical polymorphic symptomatology, abrupt onset (i.e. within 48 h), less frequent anxiety, but more frequent hallucinations were observed in ATPD patients that later developed schizophrenia (P < 0.05). Stressful life events in the 6 months prior to the first episode were found in 44% of patients. Conclusions: Combining these assessments from first-episode ATPD patients in Latvia, with data from other countries may help to predict the development of disease and provide the possible basis for potential changes to ICD-11.