Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Architectural properties of the neuromuscular compartments in selected forearm skeletal muscles

The purposes f this study were to (i) explore the possibility of splitting the selected forearm muscles into separate compartments in human subjects; (ii) quantify the architectural properties of each neuromuscular compartment; and (iii) discuss the implication of these properties in split tendon transfer procedures. Twenty upper limbs from 10 fresh human cadavers were used in this study. Ten limbs of five cadavers were used for intramuscular nerve study by modified Sihler's staining technique, which confirmed the neuromuscular compartments. The other 10 limbs were included for architectural analysis of neuromuscular compartments. The architectural features of the compartments including muscle weight, muscle length, fiber length, pennation angle, and sarcomere length were determined. Physiological cross‐sectional area and fiber length/muscle length ratio were calculated. Five of the selected forearm muscles were ideal candidates for splitting, including flexor carpi ulnaris, flexor carpi radials, extensor carpi radialis brevis, extensor carpi ulnaris and pronator teres. The humeral head of pronator teres contained the longest fiber length (6.23 ± 0.31 cm), and the radial compartment of extensor carpi ulnaris contained the shortest (2.90 ± 0.28 cm). The ulnar compartment of flexor carpi ulnaris had the largest physiological cross‐sectional area (5.17 ± 0.59 cm2), and the ulnar head of pronator teres had the smallest (0.67 ± 0.06 cm2). Fiber length/muscle length ratios of the neuromuscular compartments were relatively low (average 0.27 ± 0.09, range 0.18–0.39) except for the ulnar head of pronator teres, which had the highest one (0.72 ± 0.05). Using modified Sihler's technique, this research demonstrated that each compartment of these selected forearm muscles has its own neurovascular supply after being split along its central tendon. Data of the architectural properties of each neuromuscular compartment provide insight into the ‘design’ of their functional capability. In addition to improving our understanding of muscle anatomy and function, elucidation of forearm neuromuscular compartments architecture may ultimately provide information useful for selection of muscle subdivisions used in tendon transfer.
Common and Rare Ocular Side-effects of the Dexamethasone Implant

ABSTRACT Purpose: Expanding indications for use, and overall increased use of the slow–release dexamethasone (DEX) implant yields an opportunity to study the reported ocular side–effects and adverse events associated with this drug. Methods: A PubMed.gov (US National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health) review of literature for the search terms, “Ozurdex and complication,” through December 2015. Results: Ocular hypertension and cataract are the main long-term sequelae identified in large, randomized clinical trials. Case reports have emerged regarding implant migration, complications with implantation, infection, and posterior segment sequelae, including vitreomacular traction. Conclusion: DEX implant overall is well–tolerated and, with careful monitoring, can be a useful adjunct to treating macular edema associated with diabetes, retinal vein occlusion, and chronic uveitis.
A Recent Literature Review on Corporate Political Connections

It has always been an interesting issue deliberating the connectedness between corporation and political power. There have been a substantial number of papers in the academic literature empirically studying what so call “corporate political connections” over the last 17 years. Using 81 papers published in 2010-2017 in finance, economics, accounting, management and other journals, in this present paper, I provide a recent literature review on firm political connections particularly with respect to the empirical studies discussing the impact of being politically connected firms. A number of issues related to the effect of political connections on corporate strategy, behaviors and outcomes have been addressed. Few other papers provide different perspective by looking at the antecedents of corporate political connections and the contingency role of such connections. Little is found on the development of new measures of corporate political connections. Finally, it could be suggested that the interaction between political connections and the technological-based business innovation would be an interesting issue to study. Info Article History Article: Received August 2017 Approved August 2017 Published September 2017
Financial Development and Economic Growth: Do Outliers Matter?

ABSTRACT This study examines the effect of outliers on causal relationship between financial development and economic growth using 48 countries from 1988 to 2014. The dynamic panel model of Levine, Loayza, and Beck (2000) is used to examine this issue. We propose a novel approach by combining the least square dummy variable correction method (LSDVC) to remove the estimates bias in the dynamic panel model and the least trimmed squares (LTS) to control outlier influence. The combination of these two methods is referred to as LSDVC + LTS. Our results show a counter-intuitive evidence that bank development negatively affects economic growth when the outlier influence is ignored. This counter-intuitive evidence holds even when the conventional winsorization method is used to control the outliers. However, bank development exhibits a positive influence on economic growth once the proposed approach LSDVC + LTS is adopted. Also, stock market development exhibits a positive effect on economic growth regardless of the outliers.
Obstacles and opportunities in meta-analysis of genetic association studies

Genetic association studies have the potential to advance our understanding of genotype-phenotype relationships, especially for common, complex diseases where other approaches, such as linkage, are less powerful. Unfortunately, many reported studies are not replicated or corroborated. This lack of reproducibility has many potential causes, relating to study design, sample size, and power issues, and from sources of true variability among populations. Genetic association studies can be considered as more similar to randomized trials than other types of observational epidemiological studies because of “Mendelian randomization” (Mendel's second law). The rationale and methodology for synthesizing randomized trials is highly relevant to the meta-analysis of genetic association studies. Nevertheless, there are a number of obstacles to overcome when performing such meta-analyses. In this review, the impacts of Type I error, lack of power, and publication and reporting biases are explored, and the role of multiple testing is discussed. A number of special features of association studies are especially pertinent, because they may lead to true variability among study results. These include population dynamics and structure, linkage disequilibrium, conformity to Hardy-Weinberg Equilibrium, bias, population stratification, statistical heterogeneity, epistatic and environmental interactions, and the choice of statistical models used in the analysis. Approaches to dealing with these issues are outlined. The supreme importance of complete and consistent study reporting and of making data readily available is also highlighted as a prerequisite for sound meta-analysis. We believe that systematic review and meta-analysis has an important role to play in understanding genetic association studies and should help us to separate the wheat from the chaff.
Psychosocial stressors at work and musculoskeletal problems.

OBJECTIVES This paper examines the relationship between work stressors and the following health indicators: psychosomatic complaints, health behavior, and musculoskeletal problems. METHODS Secondary analyses were performed on data from the National Work and Living Condition Survey, which provides a representative sample of the working population in The Netherlands. The survey was made in 1977, 1983, and 1986 by The Netherlands Central Bureau of Statistics. By means of factor analysis the following three risk dimensions were identified in the survey: work pace, intellectual discretion, and physical stressors. RESULTS High work pace, low intellectual discretion, and physical stressors were associated with increased health complaints (both psychosomatic and musculoskeletal) and musculoskeletal disorders after adjustment for gender, age, education, and sports participation. Low intellectual discretion, but not high work pace, was associated with poor general health and health behavior indicative of poor health. Physical stressors were associated with general health as well, but not with health behavior, except for reported absenteeism. CONCLUSIONS Psychosocial stressors are not only associated with psychosomatic complaints and health indicators, but also with musculoskeletal problems, both acute and chronic. Especially the relation between intellectual discretion and musculoskeletal problems can be partly attributed to physical load. Even after adjustment for physical stressors and moderating personal characteristics, the relationships between the psychosocial stressors and musculoskeletal problems remained significant and comparable in strength to the relationship between psychosocial stressors and several other health outcomes, such as psychosomatic complaints.
The Effect of Constitutional Commitment to Social Security on Social Expenditure Schemes

Abstract This paper studies the effect of constitutional commitment to social security (CCSS) on different categories of social expenditure. For this purpose, we use a pooled cross sectional database for 17 EU-countries from 1990 till 2012. We run OLS models, 2SLS regression models and the Heckman two step model, using the rigidity of the constitution as instrumental variable to correct for possible endogeneity. A positive effect of constitutional commitment to social security is found on total social expenditure and on all four categories of social security spending: old age and survivor, incapacity, unemployment and active labor market policies (ALMPs). The largest effect sizes, expressed as a percentage of average spending, are found for expenditure on unemployment and ALMPs. This shows that constitutional commitment to social security has the largest effect on social expenditure schemes targeted at people who are perceived as less deserving by the public opinion.
Positive externalities of CEO delta

Increases in delta incentives are dramatic for a small group of firms (leader firms) but negligible for the majority. We show that leader firms have larger market capitalization and higher irreversibility, and are in industries with negative shocks. When leader firms experience substantial growth in delta incentives, industry peers experience positive abnormal returns and abnormal improvement in fundamentals despite no significant change in delta. Further, we provide evidence that abnormal returns are induced by peer CEOs’ extra efforts in response to the increasing competitive pressure caused by leader firms. To mitigate their competitive pressure and turnover threat, peer CEOs allocate their extra efforts to firms’ operating efficiency and product differentiation.
Ethical competence

Background: Exploring the concept of ethical competence in the context of healthcare is essential as it pertains to better quality of care. The concept still lacks a comprehensive definition covering the aspects of ethical expertise, ethical knowledge and action of a health professional. Objective: This article aims to report an analysis of the concept of ethical competence. Method: A modified strategy suggested by Walker and Avant was used to analyse the concept. Results: As a result, the concept of ethical competence can be defined in terms of character strength, ethical awareness, moral judgement skills and willingness to do good. Virtuous professional, experience of a professional, human communication, ethical knowledge and supporting surroundings in the organisation can be seen as prerequisites for ethical competence. Ethical competence results in the best possible solutions for the patient, reduced moral distress at work and development and democratisation of society. Conclusion: The results of the analysis establish a basis for an instrument to evaluate health professionals’ ethical competence. It will guide educators, as well as managers in healthcare, to support the development of ethical conduct in healthcare.
Air stacking and chest compression increase peak cough flow in patients with Duchenne muscular dystrophy.

OBJECTIVE To evaluate cough efficiency using two manually-assisted cough techniques. METHODS We selected 28 patients with Duchenne muscular dystrophy. The patients were receiving noninvasive nocturnal ventilatory support and presented FVC values < 60% of predicted. Peak cough flow (PCF) was measured, with the patient seated, at four time points: at baseline, during a spontaneous maximal expiratory effort (MEE); during an MEE while receiving chest compression; during an MEE after air stacking with a manual resuscitation bag; and during an MEE with air stacking and compression (combined technique). The last three measurements were conducted in random order. The results were compared using Pearson's correlation test and ANOVA with repeated measures, followed by Tukey's post-hoc test (p < 0.05). RESULTS The mean age of the patients was 20 + or - 4 years, and the mean FVC was 29 + or - 12%. Mean PCF at baseline, with chest compression, after air stacking and with the use of the combined technique was 171 + or - 67, 231 + or - 81, 225 + or - 80, and 292 + or - 86 L/min, respectively. The results obtained with the use of the combined technique were significantly better than were those obtained with the use of either technique alone (F[3.69] = 67.07; p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS Both chest compression and air stacking techniques were efficient in increasing PCF. However, the combination of these two techniques had a significant additional effect (p < 0.0001).
Post-Crisis Regulatory Reform in Banking: Address Insolvency Risk, Not Illiquidity!

Abstract An extensive review of the evidence related to the 2007–09 crisis reveals that it was an insolvency risk crisis, not a liquidity crisis. The appropriate post-crisis regulatory reform should therefore focus on increasing capital requirements. The Basel III liquidity requirements do not serve a useful economic purpose in dealing with the root causes of the stresses that led to the 2007–09 crisis, and unnecessarily constrain the asset transformation and liquidity creation roles of banks to the detriment of economic growth.
Capital Flows and Financial Stability in Emerging Economies

There is mixed evidence for the impact of international capital flows on financial sector's stability. This paper investigates the relationship between components of gross capital flows and various financial stability indicators for 16 emerging and newly industrialized economies. Departing from panel data methods, for each financial stability proxy, we employ systems of seemingly unrelated regression estimators to allow variation in the estimated relationship across countries, while permitting crossequation restrictions to be imposed within a country. The findings suggest that, after controlling for macroeconomic factors, there are significant effects of different gross capital flow measures on the financial stability proxies. However, the effects are not homogeneous across our sample economies and across flows. Country-specific financial and macroeconomic characteristics help to explain some of these differences.
Exhaustive Exercise Modifies Oxidative Stress in Smoking Subjects

Background:Exhaustive exercise is associated with increased metabolic rate and accelerated generation of reactive oxygen species. Cigarette smoke also contains oxidants that may participate in the development of atherosclerosis. However, data on the association between exercise and smoking are sparse. Methods:A homogenous group of 30 young men (15 smokers and 15 nonsmokers; mean age, 23.7 ± 2.6 years), healthy, trained subjects, were assessed before and after a standard maximal exercise test. Results:Exercise led to increased protein oxidation (carbonyl assay) in both smokers (+17.7%, P < 0.001) and nonsmokers (+19.1%, P < 0.05), elevation in plasma conjugated dienes (+ 157%, P < 0.04), and plasma lipid peroxides (+14%, P < 0.059) in smokers versus nonsmokers after exercise. Plasma antioxidants levels were significantly lower in the smoking group, with reduction in total carotenoids (–36.5%, P < 0.001), vitamin A (–80%, P < 0.001), and vitamin E (–64%, P < 0.002), compared with nonsmokers. A significant rise in leakage of muscle enzymes (CPK, LDH) and urine proteins (microalbumin and myoglobin) occurred in all subjects after exercise. CRP levels were higher in smokers compared with nonsmokers before and after exercise. Conclusions:Our results suggest that unnoticed interaction exists between smoking and intense exercise, which indicates that smokers are more susceptible to oxidative insults probably due to lower antioxidant capacity.
Do questions about lead exposure predict elevated lead levels?

OBJECTIVE To assess the usefulness of the lead poisoning questionnaire developed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as a screening tool for elevated lead levels. METHODS This descriptive study used a five-question questionnaire at our hospital-based general pediatric clinic and in two local private practices. We obtained venous lead levels from 485 children aged 9 months to 6 years who were brought for health supervision visits. The questionnaire was completed by a primary caretaker of 330 patients (68%). Contingency tables were used to compare lead levels with the responses on the questionnaire. RESULTS Lead levels of > or = 10 micrograms/dL were found in 23 (7%) of 330 who completed the questionnaire. Caretakers of children with elevated lead levels were more likely to answer yes to questions about chipping paint and home remodeling than those whose children had levels < 10 (P = .0001). These questions had sensitivities for detecting elevated lead levels of 70% and 74% with negative predictive values of 97% and 98%, respectively. Questions about known contacts with lead poisoning and job or industrial exposure to lead each had sensitivities of < 10%. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's definition of high risk for lead poisoning (one or more positive responses) was nearly 90% sensitive for detecting elevated lead levels with a negative predictive value of 99%. CONCLUSION This risk assessment questionnaire is an effective screening method for elevated lead levels in our population. Questions about the home environment were more sensitive indicators of elevated lead levels than other standard high-risk questions.
Genomic analysis of prostate carcinoma specimens obtained via ultrasound‐guided needle biopsy may be of use in preoperative decision‐making

The widespread use of prostate‐specific antigen (PSA) testing to screen for prostate carcinoma has led to significant overdiagnosis, due to the frequent detection of indolent malignancies on PSA screening. The detection of abnormal PSA levels typically is followed by ultrasound‐guided needle biopsy. Therefore, in an effort to identify genetic markers that augment the information provided by standard histopathologic classification, the authors tested the feasibility of using these minute biopsy samples for genomic profiling via chromosome banding analysis and comparative genomic hybridization (CGH).
Internal contributions to initiating corporate social responsibility in sport organizations

The purpose of this paper is to highlight the role that employees play in helping embed a corporate social responsibility (CSR)-advocated culture into their organizations through a voice behavior. This study examines: first, the effect of employees’ negative perceptions (i.e. persuasion knowledge (PK)) of CSR on voice behavior; second, the influence of employees’ motivational dispositions regarding goals (i.e. promotion focus) on voice behavior; and third, the positive moderating effect of promotion focus in the negative relationship between PK and voice behavior. ,Data were gathered from 168 employees representing all five Korean professional sport organizations at an inaugural sport marketing workshop, a moderated multiple regression analysis was performed to test the hypotheses. ,The results indicated a marginal negative effect of PK on voice behavior and a significant positive effect of promotion focus on voice behavior. Further, it was found that promotion focus played a positive moderating role in the negative relationship between PK and voice behavior. ,Although employees bear much of the burden of and responsibility for enacting ethical and competitive CSR practices, a paucity of the research has addressed their contributions to CSR as internal promoters of the activities. The present study contributes to the CSR literature by focusing on the role of employees in voicing CSR and empirically examining how promotion focus played a positive role in the relationship between PK and voice behavior.
Impact of the presence of women on public sector and private corporations in Quebec: what may be learned from the multiple discourses of board members?

This study presents a qualitative research conducted with boards of directors in large organisations from various sectors of the Quebec economy. From a critical perspective, this research documents element related to the perceived impact of the presence of women on boards through the members discourse and the boards practices. The results show that the two types of discourse mentioned in the literature - competence and individual gendered - are present among board members. The results reveal the presence of a discourse on diversity distinct from the other two. Perceived as a catalyst for change, that discourse attaches importance to the significant impact of mixing men and women. However, in the respondents diversity discourse, few tangible changes in gender dynamic within boards are observed. This study highlights the relevance of examining the presence and impact of women on boards from a new angle with a perspective that goes beyond statistical data and multiple discourses.
The Role of Mood States Underlying Sex Differences in the Perception and Tolerance of Pain

Abstract: While sex differences in pain reporting are frequently observed, the reasons underlying these differences remain unclear. The present study examined sex differences in self‐report and physiological measures of pain threshold and tolerance following the administration of two laboratory pain‐induction tasks. The primary study aim centered on determining whether repeated exposure to such tasks would yield sex differences in terms of pain threshold and tolerance. In addition, it was hypothesized that if such differences did exist, negative mood states might account for changes in pain ratings, threshold, and/or tolerance in subsequent exposure to noxious stimuli. Recruited from a convenience sample, 66 participants (44 female and 22 male) were exposed to both thermal and cold noxious stimuli at three separate times, while psychophysiological and self‐report data were collected. Because women outnumbered men 2:1, Fisher z transformations were performed to determine whether the observed associations between mood states and pain ratings differed. We found stronger associations between fatigue and thermal‐heat pain ratings for men at their first and third exposure to the pain task compared to women (z = 2.11, P < 0.05; z = 3.14, P < 0.001, respectively). Results indicated that women evidenced greater pain tolerance than men on both a behavioral and physiological level; however, they reported greater pain severity than men. Fatigue was also found to be particularly important to reports of pain severity in men and pain tolerance in response to noxious stimuli for women. Possible pathways in which mood states influenced these endpoints are discussed.