Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Against The Odds: Preschoolers, Like Adults, Predict Outcomes That Are Desirable But Unlikely

Adults’ expectations are often biased by their desires, a phenomenon known as the desirability bias. The current study was the first to investigate the desirability bias in 4- and 5-year-old children and adults. Participants predicted whether a critical card would be drawn from decks containing 10 cards. Decks contained one of five different ratios of critical to noncritical cards (1:9, 4:6, 5:5, 6:4, 9:1). For some decks, drawing a critical card resulted in gaining a reward and in other decks, it resulted in a loss. Results showed that children, like adults, exhibited a desirability bias by predicting critical cards more often when they were associated with a gain than when they were associated with a loss. Furthermore, children showed a stronger desirability bias than adults for both gains and losses. Children, but not adults, showed a desirability bias for potential losses. Adults tended to use a strategy that minimized losses by predicting an undesirable outcome to occur when there was a potential loss at stake. Future research should attempt to measure the desirability bias in infants, as well as older adults, in order to better understand the developmental trajectory of the bias throughout the lifespan.
DENGUE EPIDEMICS: KNOWLEDGE PERHAPS IS THE ONLY KEY TO SUCCESS.

BACKGROUND Dengue fever/dengue haemorrhagic fever is a re-emerging vector-borne viral illness that is endemic in Tropics and poses a major public health burden in many countries of South East Asia, The objectives of the study were to correlate the dengue fever knowledge and preventive practices with age, gender, education, occupation and marital status of people of Wah Cantt. and to determine the association between knowledge level and preventive practices. METHODS This cross-sectional Survey was done in Wah Cantt from July to Dec 2011. Three hundred and sixty-three participants were selected through Stratified Random Sampling. Data on the knowledge and practice of the participants was collected by using structured questionnaire by the researcher. Knowledge and preventive practices were given scores on each correct response and participants were categorized into different groups according to their scores, i.e., excellent, good, poor and negligible. Associations were computed using Chi-square and Bivariate Correlation. p-value < 0.05 was taken significant. RESULTS Mean age was 35.7 +/- 12.1 years. More participants were male (64.5%). Male sex, old age, employment without specific qualification and being parents had significant associations with both levels of knowledge and preventive practices. Level of knowledge was highly associated with levels of practice X2=79.1, df=9, p=0.000 and r=0.464 and p=0.000. CONCLUSION The knowledge and preventive practices of people are related to their gender, marital status, age and occupation. Unexpectedly education has no association with knowledge or better preventive behaviour. Preventive practices get better where knowledge levels are more, emphasizing the need of community education programmes.
Psychosocial Factors at Work and Blood-Borne Exposure among Nurses

Background: Exposure to human blood and body fluids is a common risk for nurses. Many factors can affect the prevalence and incidence of this occupational hazard. Psychosocial factors at work may be a risk factor for the exposure. Objective: To assess needle stick, sharp injury and mucus exposure to blood-borne pathogens among nurses in Iran and to determine the association between these exposures and psychosocial factors at work. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted on nurses in a public hospital, Tehran, Iran. 364 nurses received and 339 completed and returned a self-reported questionnaire containing demographic data, history of exposure to blood-borne pathogens at work during previous year and the General Nordic questionnaire for psychological and social factors at work (QPS Nordic 34+ Questionnaire). Results: Of 339 participants, 197 (58.1%) reported needle-stick injury, 186 (54.6%) reported another type of sharp injury, and 112 (33%) reported a mucous membrane exposure during the previous year. More than half of the participants who had history of exposure, had not reported it. Those with middle or high level of stress had higher crude and adjusted odds than those with lower stress for all kinds of exposure. Adjusted odds ratios for high stress group (ranging from 2.8 to 4.4) were statistically different from 1. Conclusion: There is a high prevalence of needle-stick and sharp injury and mucous membrane exposure to patients' blood or body fluids among studied nurses. There is a significant association between increasing psychosocial factors at work and exposure to blood-borne pathogens among this group of nurses.
Functional regeneration of recurrent laryngeal nerve injury during thyroid surgery using an asymmetrically porous nerve guide conduit in an animal model.

BACKGROUND Vocal cord paralysis (VCP) caused by recurrent laryngeal nerve (RLN) damage during thyroidectomy commonly results in serious medico-legal problems. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the usefulness of an asymmetrically porous polycaprolactone (PCL)/Pluronic F127 nerve guide conduit (NGC) for functional regeneration in a RLN injury animal model. METHODS A biodegradable, asymmetrically porous PCL/F127 NGC with selective permeability was fabricated for use in this study. A 10-mm segment of left RLN was resected in 28 New Zealand white rabbits, and then an asymmetrically porous NGC or a nonporous silicone tube was interposed between both stumps and securely fixed. Vocal cord mobility was endoscopically evaluated at one, four, and eight weeks postoperatively. Nerve growth through NGCs was assessed by toluidine blue staining, and thyroarytenoid (TA) muscle atrophy was evaluated by hematoxylin and eosin staining. Immunohistochemical stainings for acetylcholinesterase (AchE), anti-neurofilament (NF), and anti-S100 protein were also conducted, and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) was used to evaluate functional nerve regeneration. RESULTS At eight weeks postoperatively, endoscopic evaluations showed significantly better recovery from VCP in the asymmetrically porous PCL/F127 NGC group (6 of 10 rabbits) than in the silicone tube group (1 of 10 rabbits). Continued nerve growth on the damaged nerve endings was observed with time in the asymmetrically porous PCL/F127 NGC-interposed RLNs. TA muscle dimensions and AchE expressions in TA muscle were significantly greater in the asymmetrically porous PCL/F127 NGC group than in the silicone tube group. Furthermore, immunohistochemical staining revealed the expression of NF and S100 protein in the regenerated nerves in the asymmetrically porous PCL/F127 NGC group at eight weeks postoperatively, and at this time, TEM imaging showed myelinated axons in the regenerated RLNs. CONCLUSION The study shows that asymmetrically porous PCL/F127 NGC provides a favorable environment for RLN regeneration and that it has therapeutic potential for the regeneration of RLN damage.
Anxiety disorders in cancer patients: their nature, associations, and relation to quality of life.

PURPOSE We aimed to estimate the prevalence and types of anxiety disorders diagnosed according to standardized criteria in cancer patients, to compare screening tools in detecting them, and to examine their demographic, oncologic, and psychosocial associations. METHODS In this cross-sectional observational study of 178 subjects with lymphoma, renal cell carcinoma, malignant melanoma, or plasma cell dyscrasia, we related responses to questionnaires (administered by computer touch-screen) measuring psychological symptoms, quality of life (QOL), and social support to standardized psychiatric interviews and cancer management. RESULTS Forty-eight percent of subjects reported sufficient anxiety for anxiety disorder to be considered. At subsequent diagnostic interview, 18% fulfilled International Classification of Disorders, 10th Revision criteria for anxiety disorder, including 6% of patients who reported low levels of anxiety by questionnaire. When subjects reported anxiety by questionnaire, if disruptive somatic anxiety was present, this increased the probability of diagnosable anxiety disorder from.31 to.7. The most accurate screening questionnaires were the trait scale of the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory and the Hospital Anxiety and Depression scale. Female sex and negative aspects of social support were associated with anxiety disorder in multivariate analyses. Anxiety disorder was independently associated with a deficit in QOL, particularly insomnia. CONCLUSION Anxiety symptoms are common in cancer patients. Screening by questionnaire seems to assess anxiety symptoms adequately but discriminates abnormal anxiety inadequately. To improve this, we may need to use criteria such as disruption from anxiety, as illustrated by the impact of anxiety disorders on QOL. There seem to be few oncologic variables that could target screening for anxiety disorders.
Identification of a factor VIII peptide, residues 2315–2330, which neutralizes human factor VIII C2 inhibitor alloantibodies: requirement of Cys2326 and Glu2327 for maximum effect

Factor VIII (FVIII) inhibitor alloantibodies react with combinations of the A2, C2 and A3‐C1 domains of the FVIII molecule. Some inhibitors block binding of FVIII to both von Willebrand factor (VWF) and phospholipid, and recognize a C2 domain epitope which overlaps both binding sites. In order to determine the essential binding regions for alloantibodies inhibitory for FVIII activity, we have performed inhibitor neutralization assays and competitive inhibition assays using 10 overlapping synthetic peptides spanning the carboxy‐terminal region of the C2 domain (residues 2288–2332). We found one peptide (2315–2330, L9) which neutralized the anti‐FVIII activity of four out of five different C2 alloantibodies by 50%, 39%, 47% and 57%, respectively. Neutralization of these alloantibodies by recombinant C2 domain (residues 2173–2332) was 68%, 50%, 59%, 86% and >95%, respectively. The inhibitor which was not neutralized by L9 peptide and reacted by immunoblotting with peptide 2218–2307, did not prevent binding of FVIII to VWF and only partially inhibited binding of FVIII to phosphatidylserine. Mutants of the L9 peptide were prepared in which each residue from 2315–2330 was sequentially substituted by glycine. Inhibitor neutralization experiments using these peptides demonstrated that Arg2320 and Cys2326 or Glu2327 are important for the effect of L9 peptide, since their substitution by glycine reduced its neutralizing effect by 60% to >90%, suggesting that they are crucial for formation of the one of the C2 inhibitor epitopes.
The effects of juvenile hormone analogues on the embryonic development of silkworms.

Recent studies suggest that juvenile hormone can block the embryonic development of insects. ' In the experiments in question, freshly laid eggs of the "linden bug" (Pyrrhocoris apterus) were brought into contact with the so-called "paper factor"-a juvenile hormone analogue known to be extremely effective in preventing the postembryonic metamorphosis of the Pyrrhocoridae.2-4 After exposure to the hormonally active material, the eggs initiated embryonic development in an apparently normal manner; then, at some stage after the formation of the germ band, development stopped with the still-living embryo short of completion. In additional experiments,5 the same phenomenon was duplicated by treating Pyrrhocoris eggs with a potent synthetic juvenile hormone material described by Law et al.6 These findings provide the first indication that embryonic development is subject to inhibition by the very same hormonally active materials which are effective in blocking the metamorphosis of postembryonic insects.2-8 In the present investigation this proposition has been re-examined in experiments performed on two species of silkworms. Materials and Methods. -Experimental animals: Eggs were collected from Hyalophora cecropia and Antheraea pernyi by placing mated female moths in individual paper bags or in glass jars containing discs of Whatman's filter paper. Over a period of several days the moths deposited their eggs, the ventral surface of each egg being cemented to the paper by a brownish glue. The eggs, still attached to the paper, were collected at 0.5or 12-hour intervals, placed in Petri dishes, and incubated at 25 i 0.50C and 60 ± 5 per cent humidity under 11 hours of daily illumination. Untreated "control" eggs behaved as follows: 90-95 per cent of cecropia eggs hatched in 9.5-10 days; 96-99 per cent of pernyi eggs, in 8.5-9.5 days. Hormonal materials: Since silkworms are completely insensitive to the paper factor,2' I we tested two materials known to be highly effective in blocking the metamorphosis of silkworms-cecropia oil extracted with ether from the abdomens of male cecropia moths7 and the synthetic juvenile hormone described by Law et al.6 The specific formulations were as follows: (1) Crude cecropia oil was used without dilution; 5 mg gave a 3 + reaction in the standardized polyphemus assay for juvenile hormone.8 (2) Chromatographed ceropia oil was used without dilution; 0.1 mg gave a 3 + assay. (3) Crude synthetic hormone; 0.025 mg gave a 3 + assay. The material was dissolved in methanol. (4) Preparations of synthetic hormone dissolved in crude or purified cecropia oil. Moths were injected just below a spiracle of the second abdominal segment by means of a 27-gauge hypodermic needle in conjunction with a 1-ml Agla micrometer syringe (Burroughs Wellcome Co.). For topical application onto the dorsal surface of eggs, droplets (0.16-0.32 ,ul) were dispensed from a 30-gauge
Study of the Multipactor Effect in Bandpass Wedge-Shaped Waveguide Filters

Recently developed high-power radio-frequency discharges prediction tools have suggested that wedge-shaped waveguides are more resistent to multipactor effects than the equivalent rectangular waveguides. As a result of several research activities performed in cooperation with the European Space Research and Technology Centre of the European Space Agency, a filter structure based on wedge-shaped cavities is designed and manufactured, thus proving the previous theoretical results with a passive device widely used in the output (high-power) stage of satellite payloads. Experimental results are presented that confirm the developed prediction models. Finally, a discussion of advantages and potential limitations of this new filter topology is included, and further improvements for this waveguide topology are also suggested.
What Are the Consistent Predictors of Generic and Specific Post-Stroke Health-Related Quality of Life?

Background: In order to improve post-stroke health-related quality of life (HRQOL), it is crucial to focus scarce health care and research resources towards its consistent determinants. Disparities in reported determinants of post-stroke HRQOL may be due to the use of different instruments (generic or specific) in different populations. This is the first study to identify factors which consistently influenced both generic and specific post-stroke HRQOL in the same study population. Methods: One hundred consecutive consenting stroke survivors were assessed using the stroke levity scale (SLS), modified Rankin scale (mRS), SF-36 and HRQOL in stroke patients (HRQOLISP) measure. Employing multiple regression analysis (R2 = 0.63), potential predictors were sought among age, gender, socioeconomic class (SEC), aphasia, post-stroke duration, side, type and number of strokes, SLS, mRS, social support and Likert scale-graded responses to laughter and negative-feeling frequency. Results: Gender, SEC and stroke type had no significant impact on HRQOL. The consistent independent statistical predictors of several facets of generic and stroke-specific HRQOL were stroke severity, disability, laughter and negative-feeling frequencies. Conclusions: While stroke severity, a component of physical health, impaired psychological health, psychological dysfunction in turn negatively influenced physical and other domains of health, thereby creating a vicious cycle. These multidirectional interactions may involve neural, social and existential mechanisms which remain to be confirmed, elucidated and exploited.
NEIGHBOURHOODS OF UNIVALENT FUNCTIONS

Abstract The main result shows that a small perturbation of a univalent function is again a univalent function, hence a univalent function has a neighbourhood consisting entirely of univalent functions. For the particular choice of a linear function in the hypothesis of the main theorem, we obtain a corollary which is equivalent to the classical Noshiro–Warschawski–Wolff univalence criterion. We also present an application of the main result in terms of Taylor series, and we show that the hypothesis of our main result is sharp.
Mitral annular calcification and incident atrial fibrillation in the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis.

AIMS The associations of mitral annular calcification (MAC) with atrial fibrillation (AF) risk factors and related outcomes suggest a possible association between MAC and AF. The aim of this study was to examine the association between MAC and AF in a racially and ethnically diverse population. METHODS AND RESULTS This analysis included 6641 participants (mean age 62 ± 10 years; 53% women; 27% Blacks; 22% Hispanics; 12% Chinese-Americans) from the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA) who were free of clinical cardiovascular disease and AF at baseline. The presence of MAC was defined by cardiac computed tomography (CT) as an Agatston score >0. Atrial fibrillation was ascertained by hospital discharge records and from Medicare claims data until 31 December 2010. Cox regression was used to compute hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs) for the association between MAC and AF. At baseline, 619 (9.3%) participants had MAC. Over a median follow-up of 8.5 years, 308 (4.6%) participants developed AF. In a multivariable adjusted model, MAC was associated with an increased risk of AF (HR = 1.9, 95% CI = 1.5, 2.5). This association was consistent across subgroups of age, sex, race/ethnicity (Whites vs. non-Whites), hypertension, diabetes, and left atrial enlargement. The addition of MAC to the Framingham Heart Study and CHARGE AF risk scores for AF improved the C-statistics from 0.769 to 0.776 (P = 0.038) and 0.788 to 0.792 (P = 0.089), respectively. CONCLUSION The presence of MAC was predictive of incident AF in MESA. Potentially, these findings suggest a usefulness of cardiac CT to identify individuals at risk for AF.
Is There a Difference Between Simultaneous or Staged Decompressions for Combined Cervical and Lumbar Stenosis?

Study Design We evaluated 43 patients diagnosed with tandem spinal stenosis (TSS) from 1999 to 2005 in an academic hospital. Objective The purpose of this study is to compare outcomes after simultaneous decompression of the cervical and lumbar spine versus staged operations. Summary of Background Data TSS is a rare degenerative disease affecting multiple spinal levels with limited research describing operative management. Methods Of our patients, 21 underwent simultaneous decompression of both the cervical and lumbar spine and 22 underwent staged decompression of the cervical spine followed by the lumbar spine at a later date. Medical records were reviewed for patient demographics, type and duration of symptoms, operative time, combined blood loss, cervical myelopathy modified Japan Orthopaedic Association Score, Oswestry Disability Index (ODI), major and minor complications, and average length of follow up. Each category was evaluated by Pearson correlations and unpaired Student t tests. Results With a mean follow-up of 7 years, both groups improved in JOA and ODI without a significant difference between the 2 operative groups in terms of major or minor complications, JOA, or ODI. Independent of the surgical algorithm, age above 68 years, estimated blood loss ≥400 mL, and operative time ≥150 minutes significantly increased the number of complications. Conclusions These results indicate that TSS can be effectively managed by either surgical intervention, simultaneous, or staged decompressions. However, patient age, blood loss, and operative time do significantly impact outcomes. Therefore, operative management should be tailored to the patient's age and the option which will limit blood loss and operative time, whether that is by simultaneous or staged procedures.
Antitoxin responses in the elderly to tetanus-diphtheria (TD) immunization.

A high per centage of reported cases of tetanus and diphtheria in the United States occurs in persons over 60 years old. The sera of 69 elderly persons, mean age 80 years, were tested for prevalence of tetanus and diphtheria antibodies, and only 51% and 59%, respectively, had protective levels (greater than or equal to .01 AU/ml). In a prospective study 27 elderly volunteers were given 0.5 ml tetanus-diphtheria (Td) toxoid twice, seven months apart. Before toxoid 26% and 59% of persons had protective antitoxin levels against tetanus and diphtheria. After one dose the per cent protected rose to 42 and 88. After the second dose all persons immunized had protective levels. No subjects had significant side effects after either dose. These data demonstrate that many elderly persons lack protection against tetanus and diphtheria and document that two doses of Td toxoid would confer immunity to virtually all such persons.
Expression of estrogen receptor isoforms alpha and beta messenger RNA in vaginal tissue of premenopausal and postmenopausal women.

OBJECTIVE To determine the messenger RNA expression patterns of estrogen receptor (ER)alpha and ER beta in human vaginal tissue. STUDY DESIGN Reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction was performed on tissue samples of 75 patients having anterior colporrhaphy (25 premenopausal, 25 postmenopausal receiving estrogen replacement therapy [ERT], 25 postmenopausal not receiving ERT). Levels of mRNA were normalized and ratios were calculated to assess relative levels of expression. RESULTS All samples showed expression of the ER alpha isoform. Significant differences existed in ER alpha expression among the 3 cohorts (P =.023). Greater differences (P <.001) existed in ER beta expression. For both isoforms, the premenopausal group had the highest level, and the postmenopausal group receiving ERT had the lowest level. No significant difference in ER beta expression existed between postmenopausal groups. CONCLUSION Significant differences exist between premenopausal and postmenopausal women in presence and expression of ER alpha and ER beta in vaginal tissue. Expression of ER beta markedly declines in menopause, regardless of ERT use.