Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Magnetic Resonance Imaging and Clinical Evaluation of Patellar Resurfacing with Press-Fit Osteochondral Autograft Plugs

Background Autologous osteochondral transplantation (AOT) has been successfully used in the femoral condyle and trochlea and is an attractive treatment option for full-thickness patellar cartilage lesions. Hypothesis Patients treated with AOT for the repair of symptomatic, isolated patellar cartilage lesions will demonstrate improvement in functional outcomes and postoperative magnetic resonance imaging appearance. Study Design Case series; Level of evidence, 4. Methods Between 2002 and 2006, patients with focal patellar cartilage lesions treated with AOT were prospectively followed. The mean age at the time of surgery was 30 years. Clinical assessment was performed with the International Knee Documentation Committee (IKDC), activities of daily living of the Knee Outcome Survey (ADL), and Short Form-36 (SF-36) at baseline and most recent follow-up. Magnetic resonance imaging was used to evaluate the cartilage repair morphologic characteristics in 14 cases. Results Twenty-two patients met the study criteria with a mean follow-up of 28.7 months (range, 17.7–57.8 months). The mean Patellar lesion size was 165.6 ± 127.8 mm and the mean size of the donor plug was 9.7 ± 1.1 mm in diameter with 1.8 ± 1.4 Plugs/defect. The mean preoperative IKDC score was 47.2 ± 14.0 and improved to 74.4 ± 12.3 (P = .028). The mean preoperative ADL score was 60.1 ± 16.9 and increased to 84.7 ± 8.3 (P = .022). The mean SF-36 also demonstrated an improvement, from 64.0 ± 14.8 at baseline to 79.4 ± 15.4 (P = .059). Nine patients underwent concomitant distal realignment and demonstrated improvement between preoperative and postoperative outcomes scores, but these differences were not statistically significant. Magnetic resonance imaging appearance demonstrated that all plugs demonstrated good (67%–100%) cartilage fill, 64% with fissures <2 mm at the articular cartilage interface, 71 % with complete trabecular incorporation, and 71 % with flush plug appearance. Conclusion Patellar AOT is an effective treatment for focal patellar chondral lesions, with significant improvement in clinical follow-up. This study suggests that patients with patellar malalignment may represent a subset of patients who have a poor Prognostic outlook compared with patients with normal alignment.
Investigating the Impact of Service Quality Dimensions on Reputation and Brand Trust

Purpose - The objective of this study was to investigate the impact of service quality dimensions on brand reputation and brand trust in Iran's Saderat Bank. Design/methodology/approach: The present study is applied in terms of objective and results of study and correlational type of descriptive-survey in terms of nature and method of implementation. The Study Population included customers of Iran's Saderat Bank branches in Bushehr city. Since the population size was large, convenient sampling was used and 400 questionnaires were distributed among the customers of the bank. Structural equation modeling was used to analyze the data through Smart PLS software. Findings: The findings reveal that all dimensions of service quality (tangible factors, reliability, accountability, trustworthiness, and empathy) have a positive and significant impact on brand trust and brand reputation. Research limitations/implications: The population of the research was limited to Bushehr city (Iran). Other limitations relates to the data collection tool; the questionnaire has some disadvantages that can influence results. Therefore, we should be cautious in generalizing the findings. Originality/value: This research examines the impact of service quality dimensions and the level of impact of each dimension on brand reputation and trust, in order to identify the dimensions of service quality affecting brand reputation and trust, and to use them in branding. Thus, implementing the suggested actions to enhance the quality of services will have a positive impact on enhancing the brand reputation and brand trust in the banking industry.
Electrophysiological Changes in Diabetic Neuropathy: From Subclinical Alterations to Disabling Abnormalities

Clinical spectrum of diabetic neuropathy is variable; it may be asymptomatic, but once established as polyneuropathy, it is irreversible and may finally be disabling. To estimate the prevalence of subclinical diabetic polyneuropathy in the UAE, we undertook a pilot study by means of nerve conduction study (NCS) of peroneal motor and sural sensory studies in 60 diabetics with no symptoms of neuropathy. Neurological examination revealed clinical abnormalities suggesting polyneuropathy in 26 patients, 43% of the patients. NCS revealed abnormal values in 63% of the whole patients. Abnormal NCS was confirmed in 88% of the positive sign group. As to the negative sign group 44% had abnormalities in NCS. Prolonged F-wave latency was seen in 29% in no sign group and in 66% of the patients with positive signs. We found close association between neurological deficit score and abnormalities in NCS. Among various parameter of systemic nerve conduction study in subclinical patients, prolonged F-wave latency seems the commonest abnormality suggesting morphological changes in subclinical diabetic nerve. Decrease in amplitude of compound sensory action potential of sural nerve is another earlier abnormality, which is, then, accompanied by a fall in motor amplitude of peroneal nerve in advanced patients. Recently, our own group of Hirosaki has demonstrated that somatosensory central conduction time (CCT) between the spinal cord entry time and the arrival time to the sensory cortex is prolonged in diabetics. This abnormality might be partly responsible for the irreversible sensory deficits of diabetic neuropathy.
Positive Periodic Solutions in Shifts δ ± for a Class of Dynamic Equations with Feedback Control on Time Scales

Let T ⊂ R be a periodic time scale in shifts δ± with period P ∈ (t0,∞)T and t0 ∈ T is nonnegative and fixed. By using a multiple fixed point theorem in cones, some criteria are established for the existence and multiplicity of positive solutions in shifts δ± for a class of higher-dimensional functional dynamic equations with feedback control on time scales of the following form: { x∆(t) = A(t)x(t) + b(t)f(t, x(τ(t)), u(t)), u∆(t) = −r(t)u(t) + g(t)x(t), t ∈ T, where A(t) = (aij(t))n×n is a nonsingular matrix with continuous real-valued functions as its elements. Finally, numerical examples are presented to illustrate the feasibility and effectiveness of the results. Key–Words: Periodic solution; Functional dynamic equation; feedback control; Shift operator; Time scale.
Are Family Firms Good Employers

Family firms employ about 60 percent of the global workforce. While it is widely assumed that they are good employers, data about their conduct is mixed. In this study, we extend stewardship and agency theories to test competing propositions about the impact of family on employment practices using data from 14,961 private Belgian firms over a 19-year period. Higher investments, lower dividend payout, and higher risk tolerance indicate that family firms are better financial stewards of their companies than nonfamily firms. However, family firms are worse organizational stewards than nonfamily firms: They offer lower compensation, invest less in employee training, and exhibit higher voluntary turnover and lower labor productivity. Further, and contrary to earlier research, we find that financial practices in private family firms do not change over time, and that the deleterious influence of family on employment practices rises with both firm age and with heightened family involvement. Together, our findings suggest that a more nuanced understanding of stewardship and agency theory is needed to understand the impact of family on the governance of private firms.
Seasonal Food Intake and Nutrient Distribution Patterns among Rural Rajput Children, Rajasthan, India

Patterns of food consumption are of interest to both nutritionists and anthropologiest. Intra-household food allocation follows norms which include assumptions about the quantity, type and quality of food to be given to men, women and children. At the simplest level, differential food allocation can be seen from the fact that in absolute terms most adults are given more to eat than small children". However, relative to recommended requirements, nutrient intake can vary enormously between age groups, with implications for nutritional health. In South Asian countries, women and children suffer relative to men because they rank low in distribution of nutrient rich foods.
Volatile constituents of Saussurea costus roots cultivated in Uttarakhand Himalayas, India

Background: Saussurea costus (Falc.) Lipschitz, syn Saussurea lappa C.B. Clarke, one of the best-known species within this genus, is commonly known as costus. Due to the remarkable biological activity of S. costus and its constituents it will have an appropriate place in various systems of medicines all over the globe. Objective: The main aim is to study the volatile constituents of S costus cultivated in Uttarakhand Himalayas. Material and Methods: The volatile constituents were isolated from the root of S costus cultivated in Chamoli district of Uttrarakhand by hydro distillation and were analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectroscopy (GC-MS). Results: A total 35 aroma compounds representing about 92.81% of the total composition were identified. Aldehyde like (7Z, 10Z, 13Z)-7, 10, 13-hexadecaterinal (25.5%) was found as a major compound including other ketones like dehydrocostus lactone (16.7%), alcohols like elemol (5.84%), γ-costol (1.80%), vulgarol B (3.14%), valerenol (4.20%), and terpinen-4-ol (1.60%), etc. Esters and acids were found to be completely absent in our samples. Conclusion: S. costus volatile oil constituents are superior in terms of total identified constituents. Where relative area quantum is higher in Uttarakhand Himalayas samples, when compared with those originated to China and Korea.
The Sequence of Service

This chapter highlights the importance of considering affect-based customer evaluations of services specifically influenced by the sequence of moments or episodes within a service experience. Research from the behavioral sciences has offered many insights that shed light on how customers perceive a sequence of events and how customers make decisions. This chapter offers a comprehensive review of the foundational behavioral research related to the following service sequence effects: the peak event, peak placement, trend, spread, end, and duration. Knowledge of these sequence effects can be applied to enhance the design of customer experiences. Two examples of service design studies are presented to illustrate the impact of the sequence of service.
The Factors Influencing the Adoption of Wireless Application Protocols Banking in Saudi Arabia

Former studies, such as by Bhattacherjee (2001); Yuen (2013) have concluded that a 1% expansion of e-banking adoption should result in an 18% drop in bank’s operational costs. Consequently, the present paper aims to enhance banks’ abilities with regards to retaining and expanding e-banking usage among their customers, which can be achieved by advancing the existing understanding of the critical antecedents of e-banking acceptance behaviour of both current and potential customers. Accordingly, the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (UTAUT) has been adapted by this study as a reliable and validated theoretical framework to empirically assess possible elements that influence individuals to use wireless application protocols banking (WAPB). A survey was designed in accordance with the theoretical framework, then piloted and distributed to a sample of 336 e-banking users from the three largest cities in Saudi Arabia. It was found that effort expectancy accounts for the most influencing factor in users’ intentions to use WAPB, which is inconsistent with former studies such as (Venkatesh et al., 2003). Also, performance expectancy, social influence and facilitating conditions variables were observed to be impacting users’ intention to use WAPB, which is similar to previous studies (e.g. Mohammadi, 2015; Yu, 2012). The findings of this study represent the distinctiveness of the examined context (Saudi Arabia). This study is among the very early studies considering WAPB antecedents and employing the UTAUT framework. Keywords : Banking Apps, Mobile Banking, Innovation Adoption, Age, Gender, Saudi Arabia.
A pilot test of a new tool for remote blood pressure monitoring

We conducted a pilot trial of a remote blood pressure (BP) monitoring system, in which subjects measured their own BP at a primary healthcare centre. The data were wirelessly transmitted to the general practitioner. A total of 132 subjects with a new or prior diagnosis of hypertension were enrolled. Their mean age was 61 years and 77 were men (58%). They were followed for an average of 487 days (range 19–1110). The median number of BP measurements made was 6 per patient (range 2–49). The mean blood pressure decreased from 137/85 to 132/78 mmHg (P < 0.001) and the percentage of subjects with adequately controlled BP (defined as < 140/90 mmHg) increased from 47 to 66% (P < 0.01). Randomised trials are now required to confirm these findings.
Examining the Interoperability of PPP-AR Products

Integer ambiguity resolution of carrier-phase measurements from a single receiver can be implemented by applying additional satellite products to mitigate the unmodeled satellite hardware delay. Interoperability of different PPPAR products would allow the PPP user to transform independently generated PPP-AR products to obtain multiple fixed solutions of comparable precision and accuracy with limited changes required to the core PPP software. The ability to provide multiple solutions would increase the reliability of the solution for, e.g., real-time processing; if there were an outage in the generation of one set of PPPAR products, the user could instantly switch streams to a different provider. There are currently three main public providers of real-time products that enable PPP-AR. These included Scripps Institution of Oceanography, Natural Resources Canada and Centre national d'études spatiales. The research presented examines the PPP-AR products generated from the FCB (Fractional Cycle Bias) and IRC (Integer Receover Clock) model that have been transformed into the DC (Decoupled Clock) format and applied within the PPP user solution. The novelty of the research is the solution analysis using the transformed product. The convergence time (time to first fix and time to a pre-defined performance level), position precision (repeatability), position accuracy and solution outliers are examined. The temporal and spatial behaviour of these estimated terms are examined for the different products applied to understand the unmodeled effects that introduce incorrect solution fixes. Unlike the fixed solution using the DC products, instantaneous convergence was not attained in the horizontal and vertical component when the transformed IRC and FCB products were utilized. In the horizontal component, the transformed IRC product took 10 minutes to attain the predefined threshold while the FCB product took 31 minutes in the horizontal component. A steady state was never attained, as jumps in the solution occurred at frequent intervals. The transformed IRC product had solution jumps every 15 minutes and the transformed FCB products had jumps in the solution every 30 to 45 minutes. The unstable solution from both transformed products are attributed to the magnitude of transformed products, as they were subnanoseconds in magnitude, whereas the DC products were few nanoseconds in magnitude.
CERVICAL CORPECTOMY: COMPLICATIONS AND OUTCOMES

OBJECTIVE Previously, information on cervical corpectomy complication rates has been obtained from retrospective analysis of single-institution data. The aim of this study was to report 30-day mortality and complication rates after cervical corpectomy using multicenter prospective data from the Veterans Affairs National Surgical Quality Improvement Program database. METHODS The National Surgical Quality Improvement Program database was used to identify 1560 patients who underwent cervical corpectomy in United States Veterans Affairs hospitals from 1997 to 2006. Multivariate analysis was performed to analyze the effects of patient and hospital characteristics on morbidity and mortality rates. RESULTS A total of 1560 patients underwent corpectomy, with an overall in-hospital mortality rate of 1.6%, a complication rate of 18.4%, and a mean length of stay of 6 days. Multivariate analysis identified age older than 80 years (odds ratio [OR], 21.24), history of Type 1 diabetes (OR, 2.36), American Society of Anesthesiologists class greater than 3 (OR, 6.93), and dependent functional status (OR, 3.17) as the most significant preoperative predictors of complications. Three or more corpectomy levels (OR, 2.46) and operative duration longer than 6 hours (OR, 3.45) were also found to be significant predictors of postoperative complications. Patients who underwent 3 or more levels of corpectomy had a return-to-operating room rate of 17.9% and a graft/instrumentation failure rate of 5.4% compared with those who underwent single-level corpectomy, who had rates of 6.2 and 1.87%, respectively. Patients who were returned to the operating room had significantly higher mortality rates (7.0 versus 1.2%) and accounted for 39.9% of the total number of complications. Multivariate analysis identified age, American Society of Anesthesiologists class, history of disseminated cancer, and diabetes as the most significant predictors of mortality. Patients with Type 1 diabetes had 4-fold higher mortality rates compared with patients with no history of diabetes or diet-controlled diabetes. CONCLUSION We have analyzed the morbidity and mortality data on the largest series of corpectomy reported to date. We have demonstrated the impact of age, American Society of Anesthesiologists class, and number of operated levels on complication rates. Type 1 diabetes was established as a strong risk factor for 30-day mortality after cervical corpectomy.
Malaria diagnosis and treatment under the strategy of the integrated management of childhood illness (IMCI): relevance of laboratory support from the rapid immunochromatographic tests of ICT Malaria P.f/P.v and OptiMal.

The algorithm developed for the integrated management of childhood illness (IMCI) provides guidelines for the treatment of paediatric malaria. In areas where malaria is endemic, for example, the IMCI strategy may indicate that children who present with fever, a recent history of fever and/or pallor should receive antimalarial chemotherapy. In many holo-endemic areas, it is unclear whether laboratory tests to confirm that such signs are the result of malaria would be very relevant or useful. Children from a holo-endemic region of Tanzania were therefore checked for malarial parasites by microscopy and by using two rapid immunochromatographic tests (RIT) for the diagnosis of malaria (ICT Malaria P.f/P.v and OptiMal. At the time they were tested, each of these children had been targeted for antimalarial treatment (following the IMCI strategy) because of fever and/or pallor. Only 70% of the 395 children classified to receive antimalarial drugs by the IMCI algorithm had malarial parasitaemias (68.4% had Plasmodium falciparum trophozoites, 1.3% only P. falciparum gametocytes, 0.3% P. ovale and 0.3% P. malariae). As indicators of P. falciparum trophozoites in the peripheral blood, fever had a sensitivity of 93.0% and a specificity of 15.5% whereas pallor had a sensitivity of 72.2% and a specificity of 50.8%. The RIT both had very high corresponding sensitivities (of 100.0% for the ICT and 94.0% for OptiMal) but the specificity of the ICT (74.0%) was significantly lower than that for OptiMal (100.0%). Fever and pallor were significantly associated with the P. falciparum asexual parasitaemias that equalled or exceeded the threshold intensity (2000/microl) that has the optimum sensitivity and specificity for the definition of a malarial episode. Diagnostic likelihood ratios (DLR) showed that a positive result in the OptiMal test (DLR = infinity) was a better indication of malaria than a positive result in the ICT (DLR = 3.85). In fact, OptiMal had diagnostic reliability (0.93) which approached that of an ideal test and, since it only detects live parasites, OptiMal is superior to the ICT in monitoring therapeutic responses. Although the RIT may seem attractive for use in primary health facilities because relatively inexperienced staff can perform them, the high cost of these tests is prohibitive. In holo-endemic areas, use of RIT or microscopical examination of bloodsmears may only be relevant when malaria needs to be excluded as a cause of illness (e.g. prior to treatment with toxic or expensive drugs, or during malaria epidemics). Wherever the effective drugs for the first-line treatment of malaria are cheap (e.g. chloroquine and Fansidar), treatment based on clinical diagnosis alone should prove cost-saving in health facilities without microscopy.
Season of birth and childhood intelligence : Findings from the Aberdeen Children of the 1950 s cohort study

Background. In this study, 2 main hypotheses have been put forward to explain the variation in childhood intelligence or school performance by season of birth. In the first hypothesis, it is suggested that it is due to school policy concerning school entry, whereas the second suggests that a seasonally patterned exposure such as temperature, maternal nutrition, or infection during critical periods of brain development have a lasting effect on intelligence.
Time density curve analysis for C-arm FDCT PBV imaging

Introduction Parenchymal blood volume (PBV) estimation using C-arm flat detector computed tomography (FDCT) assumes a steady-state contrast concentration in cerebral vasculature for the scan duration. Using time density curve (TDC) analysis, we explored if the steady-state assumption is met for C-arm CT PBV scans, and how consistent the contrast-material dynamics in cerebral vasculature are across patients. Methods Thirty C-arm FDCT datasets of 26 patients with aneurysmal-SAH, acquired as part of a prospective study comparing C-arm CT PBV with MR-PWI, were analysed. TDCs were extracted from the 2D rotational projections. Goodness-of-fit of TDCs to a steady-state horizontal-line-model and the statistical similarity among the individual TDCs were tested. Influence of the differences in TDC characteristics on the agreement of resulting PBV measurements with MR-CBV was calculated. Results Despite identical scan parameters and contrast-injection-protocol, the individual TDCs were statistically non-identical (p < 0.01). Using Dunn's multiple comparisons test, of the total 435 individual comparisons among the 30 TDCs, 330 comparisons (62%) reached statistical significance for difference. All TDCs deviated significantly (p < 0.01) from the steady-state horizontal-line-model. PBV values of those datasets for which the TDCs showed largest deviations from the steady-state model demonstrated poor agreement and correlation with MR-CBV, compared with the PBV values of those datasets for which the TDCs were closer to steady-state. Conclusion For clinical C-arm CT PBV examinations, the administered contrast material does not reach the assumed ‘ideal steady-state’ for the duration of scan. Using a prolonged injection protocol, the degree to which the TDCs approximate the ideal steady-state influences the agreement of resulting PBV measurements with MR-CBV.
Competitive strategies adopted by savings and credit cooperatives in Mombasa County in Kenya

xii C H A P T E R ONE: INTRODUCTION 1 1.1 Background 1 1.1.1 Competitive Strategies 2 1.1.2 Saccos in Mombasa County 3 1.2 Statement of the Problem 5 1.3 Research Objectives 6 1.4 Significance of the Study 7 C H A P T E R T W O : L I T E R A T U R E REVIEW 8 2.1 Concept of Strategy 8