Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Association of Coronary Artery Disease with Psoriasis in a Group of Jordanian Patients

Objective: To study the association between psoriasis and coronary artery disease, and to compare the rate of coronary artery disease in a group of Jordanian patients with moderate to severe psoriasis to that in a group of non-psoriatic patients. Methods: This retrospective review was conducted at King Hussein Medical Center (AmmanJordan) and Prince Ali Bin Alhussein Hospital (Karak-Jordan). Data were collected from March 2008 to October 2012. Psoriasis group included 157 Jordanian patients with moderate to severe psoriasis, while control group included 183 non-psoriatic, Jordanian patients. Patients in both groups were matched by age, sex, and risk factors of coronary artery disease (smoking, hypertension, diabetes, hyperlipidemia, and family history of coronary artery disease). Rate of coronary artery disease in psoriasis group was compared to that in non-psoriasis group. Results: The rates and P-value of coronary artery disease risk factors in psoriasis group compared to controls were as follows: mean age (42.2 y, 37.6 y, 0.03), male gender (64.9%, 61.2%, 0.05), smoking (62.4%, 58.5%, 0.43), hypertension (39.5%, 41.5%, 0.27), diabetes (38.2%, 37.7%, 0.31), hyperlipidemia (18.4%, 17.5%, 0.44) and family history of coronary artery disease (33.1%, 31.1%, 0.04). After matching for these risk factors, the rate of coronary artery disease in psoriasis group, and in controls was 7.0%, and 1.6%, respectively, with P-value<0.001. Conclusion: Even after matching for other risk factors, the rate of coronary artery disease is still higher in patients with moderate to severe psoriasis than in patients without psoriasis. So, moderate to severe psoriasis is independently associated with coronary artery disease.
Participatory Epidemiological Investigation of Newcastle Disease in Local Chickens in the Federal Capital Territory, Nigeria -

A participatory epidemiological investigation of Newcastle disease in Nigeria local poultry was carried out between the months of April and June 2012 in four conveniently selected Area Councils of the Federal Capital Territory (Abuja) Nigeria, Forty informant groups/villages participated and the participatory epidemiological tools used include focus group discussions (FGDs), semi-structured interviews (SSIs), proportional piling, simple ranking, pair-wise ranking, matrix scoring, seasonal calendar, mapping and transect walk. This was done in order to determine the perception of livestock owners on the clinical manifestation and epidemiological features of the disease (Newcastle disease) in the study area. Some of the clinical signs mention by farmers includes; high mortality, greenish diarrhoea, bloody diarrhoea, incoordination and dyspnoea, and the outbreak of the disease occurs in the area between the months of October and March, and most of the traditional remedies they used for treatment include; red pepper (Capsicum frutenscens), gautakaji (Solanumnodiflorum) and oxytetracycline capsules though with limited success, further investigation shows that the estimated mean morbidity and case fatality rates due to ND in the study area were 71.38% and 74.5% respectively.
Prevalence of subjective health complaints in the Nordic European countries in 1993

Background: Subjectively reported health complaints account for approximately 50% of all long-term sickness compensation and permanent disability in Northern European countries. The prevalence of these complaints in the population at large was examined. Methods: Data from national surveys conducted in 1993 of 2, 030 men and 2, 016 women above 15 years of age in Denmark, Finland, Norway, and Sweden were analysed. Results: As many as 75% of our sample had at least some subjective health complaints for the previous 30 days. More than 50% had experienced tiredness, 42% headache, 37% worry, 35% low back pain and 33% pain in their arms or shoulders. The prevalence was higher in women than in men. In general, substantial muscle pain was more common in older subjects, but tiredness, headache, worry and depressive mood were more common in young subjects. Conclusion: The very high prevalence of these complaints in the general population should be taken into account whenever these complaints are reported to be due to any new environmental factor or disease.
EFFECT OF A HOME EXERCISE TRAINING-PROGRAM IN PATIENTS WITH CYSTIC-FIBROSIS

Physical training in patients with pulmonary diseases, including cystic fibrosis (CF), may improve exercise tolerance in these patients. Most training programs are performed in a clinical setting. Little information is available concerning the effect of home exercise training programs in CF patients. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of a home exercise training program in CF patients. Ten adolescent patients (seven male and three female) with CF, mean (SD) age 20.6 (6.5) years, participated in a home exercise training program for 3 months. Pretraining condition was assessed during a control period of 2 months in which patients were asked to continue their normal daily activities. Home exercise training consisted of cycle training of 15 min at a submaximal workload once a day and was supervised by a physiotherapist two times a week. A follow-up period of 1 month, in which the patients were advised to continue cycling at home without supervision, was included after the training program. Pulmonary function, bicycle exercise test performance, and the degree of limitation in activities of daily living (ADL) were measured. No significant differences were found between the two pretraining assessments. After the training period we found significant improvement in maximal exercise capacity (Wmax) (mean [SEM]: 126 [10] W before and 146 [11] W after; p = 0.004), maximal oxygen uptake (VO2max) (mean [SEM]: 31.4 [2.1] ml.kg-1.min-1 before and 36.5 [2.5] ml.kg-1.min-1 after; p = 0.008), oxygen pulse (VO2/HR) (mean [SEM]: 10.9 [0.66] ml before and 11.9 [0.74] ml after; p = 0.047), and degree of limitation in ADL (mean [SEM]: 2.4 [0.43] before and 1.5 [0.48] after; p = 0.019) as compared with the initial values. Since no significant differences were found between the posttraining values and the results at the end of the follow-up period, the patients were apparently able to maintain the training effects during the follow-up period. We conclude that in CF patients, a home exercise training program, after clinical assessment of exercise tolerance, is an effective and relatively simple treatment to improve physical performance and decrease limitation in ADL and should be included in the maintenance treatment in these patients.
Molecular epidemiology and vaccine matching study on foot-and-mouth disease virus circulating in Ethiopia

The study was conducted in three regional states of Ethiopia: Amhara, Oromia, and Addis Ababa with the aims of identifying the molecular epidemiology of Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) virus in Ethiopia and to determine the appropriate vaccine strains of FMD virus. From the total of 33 bovine epithelial tissue cultured samples, 19 (57.57%) samples were showed cytopatic effect for FMD virus. Of these, three samples were found serotype A and Africa topotype and 16 samples were found serotype O and East Africa-3 topotype. Certain FMD isolates were characterized by two dimensional virus neutralization test (2dmVNT) and liquid phase block ELISA (LPBE) in order to choose an appropriate vaccine strain found at World Reference Laboratory for FMD (WRLFMD). The result indicates that most vaccine strains found at WRLFMD can protect against serotype O of Ethiopian isolates, while serotype A has highest antigenic variation and only few vaccine strains found at WRLFMD can provide protection. Various strains of foot and mouth disease virus (FMDV) were isolated in Ethiopia and therefore, continuous monitoring of newly emerging strains is necessary to perform vaccine matching studies to support the efficacy of actual vaccine formulations.
Minimally invasive techniques for the diagnosis and staging of lung cancer

Abstract: Interventional pulmonology, lung cancer staging, and diagnostic algorithms are evolving. Endoscopic needle aspiration techniques (endobronchial ultrasound-guided transbronchial needle aspiration and endoscopic ultrasound-guided fine-needle aspiration [EUS]) have a key role to play in staging the mediastinum and offer potential advantages over surgical staging. They are less invasive, avoid hospital admission, and save costs. However, a negative endobronchial ultrasound-guided transbronchial needle aspiration or EUS result should still be clarified by surgical staging. EUS also offers the ability to diagnose M1 disease. Neck ultrasound-guided fine needle aspiration offers a minimally invasive method of diagnosing N3 or M1 disease, potentially avoiding endoscopic needle aspiration techniques as well as surgical staging in patients with suspected N2 or N3 disease or extrapulmonary inaccessible metastases. Local anesthetic video-assisted thoracoscopy offers a minimally invasive method to diagnose malignant pleural metastases more effectively than by traditional closed pleural biopsy techniques. It also allows drainage of the effusion and pleurodesis in one combined procedure while avoiding more invasive surgical thoracoscopy. Interventional pulmonology will continue to expand in the future and offer further benefits to patients with suspected lung cancer as well as potential cost savings to health care systems.
Validation of the English version of the Trust in Oncologist Scale (TiOS)

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An inquiry of knowledge, attitudes and practices against pandemic H1N1 influenza among Turkish health care workers: Experience of a single center in Southeast of Turkey

It is crucial to have a knowledge of pandemia. The aim of this study was to assess knowledge, attitude and behavioral responses of health care workers (HCWs) toward pandemic H1N1 influenza (PI). A cross-sectional study was performed in September 2009 in Diyarbakir, Turkey. All HCWs replied to a self-administered standardized, structured questionnaire. A total of 783 participated, with 31.55% having low knowledge and 22.98% having high level about PI. It was observed that HCWs sex was affecting knowledge level scores (p = 0.005). 26.44% had low knowledge about nosocomial preventive cautions, with 24.90% having high level of knowledge. The significant predictor for higher knowledge scores about preventive measures for nosocomial transmission was HCWs occupational status (p < 0.001). The study therefore reveals that, nosocomial transmission is a major problem during a pandemic and HCWs will be essential for effective working of the health system. Efforts should be targeted at educating HCWs to improve knowledge, attitude and behavioral responses in the current pandemia, as well as for future epidemics. Key words:
A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Trial of Systemically Administered Interferon-α, -β, or -γ in Combination with Cryotherapy for the Treatment of Condyloma Acuminatum

One hundred fifty-two patients were enrolled in a study to evaluate 3 interferon (IFN) preparations used in combination with cryotherapy for treatment of anogenital warts. Subjects received subcutaneous injections (2 x 10(6) units/m2) of IFN-alpha n1, -beta, -gamma or placebo 3 times a week for 6 weeks and cryotherapy with liquid nitrogen. Subjects were followed or = 12 weeks, two-thirds had a complete response. No significant differences in rates of complete response (P = .37) or reappearance of a wart at the initial site (P = .20) were noted among the treatment groups. However, patients who received IFN-beta or -gamma developed new warts at a significantly lower frequency (P = .02). IFN administration was associated with side effects but was well tolerated. IFN-beta was the least toxic of the 3 preparations and had the best therapeutic ratio.
An application of means‐end chain approach to consumers’ orientation to health and hedonic characteristics of foods

An adapted laddering technique was used to identify the way consumers perceive health and hedonic aspects of foods. In the interviews, respondents (N=47) first sorted 32 foods into four categories: (1) healthful and pleasure‐giving, (2) not healthful and pleasure‐giving, (3) healthful and not pleasure‐giving, (4) not healthful and not pleasure‐giving. Respondents then generated characteristics of foods in each category and answered questions regarding the attributes they considered to be important in terms of these foods. The laddering data were aggregated and interpreted by means of so‐called “hierarchical value maps”. The 425 terms elicited in the laddering interviews were coded into 59 categories, 22 for attributes and 37 for consequences. Several health characteristics of foods were found, such as: obtaining beneficial compounds, the importance of nutrients, reduced fat content and general health effects of foods. Essential hedonic characteristics were pleasure, taste and good sensory appeal in general. Similarities and differences among the four food categories in regard to attributes and consequences produced in the laddering interviews were analyzed by multiple correspondence analysis (MCA). Links between expressed beliefs and consequences can help to understand motivational structures underlying a choice of foods which are considered healthful or pleasure‐giving or both.
A survey to examine the clinical use of ultrasound, shortwave diathermy and laser in England

The nature and use of electrotherapy has changed considerably over recent years, with the introduction of new agents and modification of the old (see Vol 2(8) 1995, p. 423). This article reports the results of a questionnaire to a randomly selected population of physiotherapists to examine current use of ultrasound, shortwave and diathermy in the management of soft tissue lesions.
Authors’ reply: Feedback from modelling to surveillance of Ebola virus disease

To the editor: We appreciate the comments from Plachouras et al. on our article published in Eurosurveillance a week ago [1,2]. Overall we fully agree with them on both points, i.e., (i) in that there is a need to account for the geographic heterogeneity of the ongoing Ebola epidemic to better understand the transmission dynamics and guide intervention strategies and (ii) in that caution must be exercised to interpret time-dependent changes in the reported coverage of cases captured by the surveillance systems. Here we further highlight these issues by providing feedback from a mathematical modelling point of view.
HUMAN PAPILLOMAVIRUS (HPV) AND LIFESTYLE IN THE TRANSLATIONAL EPIDEMIOLOGY OF HEAD AND NECK CANCER

Head and neck squamous cell carcinomas (HNSCC) afflict 600,000 persons and cause 300,000 deaths annually worldwide. Recent changes in HNSCC epidemiology demonstrate the importance of disease heterogeneity in prevention and treatment. This research investigated heterogeneity in HNSCC pathobiology, etiology, and survival in three separate studies. In the first study, N=67 formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded HNSCC (27 human papillomavirus (HPV)-positive, 40 HPV-negative) were retrieved from storage and expression of three tumor angiogenesis markers--epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), and NOTCH receptor 1 (NOTCH1)--were compared according to HPV status using immunohistochemistry. HPV-positive tumors under-expressed EGFR relative to HPV-negative (P<0.01) but VEGF (P=0.82) and NOTCH1 (P=0.68) were unrelated to HPV status. EGFR-VEGF, and NOTCH1-VEGF associations were observed in HPV-negative tumors only; and the NOTCH1-EGFR association was observed in HPV-positive tumors only. HPV-positive HNSCC may be less angiogenic than HPV-negative HNSCC. The second study assessed the association between childhood passive smoke exposure (CPSE) and HNSCC using a case-control design (N=862 cases, N=806 frequency-matched controls). CPSE was associated with HNSCC (odds ratio (OR)=1.28, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.01-1.63) after controlling for adult smoking. Among never-adult-smokers (N=184 cases, N=415 controls) CPSE was associated with oropharyngeal cancer (which is typically HPV-related) more strongly than other HNSCC (OR=2.04, 95% CI: 1.02-4.08 vs. OR=1.08, 95% CI: 0.71-1.66; P-for-heterogeneity=0.08). Assuming a causal association, 16.9% (95% CI: 0.8%-29.4%) of HNSCC would not occur without CPSE. Limiting CPSE may reduce HNSCC risk. The third study assessed overall and disease-specific survival associated with metabolic enzyme genotype in N=159 HNSCC cases. After adjustment for tumor site and stage, N-acteyltransferase-2 (NAT2) fast acetylators had improved survival (vs. slow acetylators) when treated with surgery alone (hazard ratio (HR)=0.26; 95% CI: 0.10-0.66) but not chemoradiotherapy (HR=1.21; 95% CI: 0.54-2.73) or radiotherapy (HR=0.67; 95% CI: 0.31-1.59) (P-for-interaction=0.04). Reduced activity glutathione S-transferase pi-1 (GSTP1) was associated with improved disease-specific survival in men only (HR=0.12; 95% CI: 0.02-0.91; women: HR=2.29; 95% CI=0.41-12.69; P-for-interaction=0.02). Metabolic enzyme genotype modifies HNSCC survival. This research contributes to public health by demonstrating biological differences in HNSCC exploitable for therapy; encouraging public policy to reduce HNSCC incidence; and supporting individualized therapy.
Role of anti‐β 2 glycoprotein 1 antibodies in ESRD patients with antiphospholipid antibody syndrome

Vaidya S, Daller J, Gugliuzza K. Role of anti‐β 2 glycoprotein 1 antibodies in ESRD patients with antiphospholipid antibody syndrome. Clin Transplant 2002: 16: 362–367. © Blackwell Munksgaard, 2002
Urological malignancies: one-year audit from a tertiary referral centre

Objective: To study the clinicopathological characteristics of urological malignancies. Patients and Method: Newly diagnosed patients with urological malignancies in the year 2009 in a single urological unit of a tertiary referral centre were included in this retrospective study. Results: During the study period there were 35 patients with carcinoma of the bladder; 17 patients with carcinoma of the prostate; 9 patients with renal malignancy; 1 patient with synchronous transitional cell carcinoma of the bladder and upper urinary tract; 1 patient with seminoma of the testis. Median age of the patients with primary bladder carcinoma was 65 years (range 46-82 years). Majority of the patients with primary bladder cancer were males (3.1:1) and had non-muscle invasive bladder cancer (72.7%). All patients with primary bladder cancer except one had transitional cell carcinoma (97%). Median age of the patients with carcinoma of the prostate was 70 years (range 60-81 years). All patients with carcinoma of the prostate had advanced disease at presentation. Median age of the patients with renal cell carcinoma (RCC) was 65 years (range 53-72 years). There is a 1.3:1 predominance of men over women. 85% of renal cell carcinomas were conventional renal cell carcinomas. Conclusion: Multicentre long-term studies are required to ascertain the actual clinicopathological characteristics of urological malignancies. DOI: 10.4038/slju.v10i1. 2414 Sri Lanka Journal of Urology , 2009, 10, 24-27
An audit of a stimulant clinic: changes in drug use, drug beliefs, and motivational ratings

Aim: To evaluate the effectiveness of a specialist stimulant clinic in terms of changes in stimulant use, motivation, and drug beliefs at post‐treatment, and describe patients' experience of the clinic. Design and participants: A retrospective review of 122 past patients' case files and a cross‐sectional semi‐structured interview with five current patients. Measurements: Data was collected on demographic characteristics; stimulant and other drug use history, drug belief scores, motivational ratings, and patients' experience of the treatment service. Findings: On exit from treatment, patients reduced their drug use, were more motivated to change their drug‐related behaviours and had less dysfunctional drug beliefs. All five current patients reported a positive experience of the treatment service. Conclusion: This study provides the first direct evidence for the effectiveness of the specialist stimulant clinic in terms of positive treatment outcomes. These findings are very encouraging and demonstrate that stimulant services, which provide psychological interventions, can be effective in ‘typical’ clinical settings.
Unique hue stimulus choice: A constraint on hue category formation

Berlin & Kay hue-related basic color categories are compared with the ISCC-NBS system of object color categorization. Though independently derived, categories of the former form a small subset of the latter. A conjecture is proposed that explains the absence of yellow-green and blue-green basic hue categories and the potential for a violet category as the result of constraints on primitive hue category formation due to considerable variation in stimuli selected by color-normal observers as representing for them unique hues.
The Efficiency of Stress Management Skills Training in Reducing Aggression

Background and purpose: The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficiency of stress management skills training in reducing aggression among university students. Material and methods: This experimental study was done with pretest-posttest and control group design. The subjects included 45 students who were randomly selected and assigned to either experimental or control group (experimental group: n = 23, control group: n = 22). The Buss and Perry aggression questionnaire was used to collect the data and analysis of covariance was performed. Results: Significant differences was seen in per- and post- test scores for all aggression components in experimental group (P<0.001). Conclusion: According to this study stress management skills training was found helpful in reducing aggression. Hence, this method could be of great benefit in reducing aggression, thereby improving the mental health state among university students.