Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Lumbar facet joint nerve blocks in managing chronic facet joint pain: one-year follow-up of a randomized, double-blind controlled trial: Clinical Trial NCT00355914.

BACKGROUND Lumbar facet joints have been implicated as the source of chronic pain in 15% to 45% of patients with chronic low back pain. Various therapeutic techniques including intraarticular injections, medial branch blocks, and radiofrequency neurotomy of lumbar facet joint nerves have been described in the alleviation of chronic low back pain of facet joint origin. OBJECTIVE The study was conducted to determine the clinical effectiveness of therapeutic local anesthetic lumbar facet joint nerve blocks with or without steroid in managing chronic function-limiting low back pain of facet joint origin. DESIGN A randomized, double-blind, controlled trial. SETTING An interventional pain management setting in the United States. METHODS This study included 60 patients in Group I with local anesthetic and 60 patients in Group II with local anesthetic and steroid. The inclusion criteria was based on the positive response to the diagnostic controlled comparative local anesthetic lumbar facet joint blocks. OUTCOME MEASURES Numeric pain scores, Oswestry Disability Index, opioid intake, and work status. All outcome assessments were performed at baseline, 3 months, 6 months, and 12 months. RESULTS Significant improvement with significant pain relief (> 50%) and functional improvement (> 40%) were observed in 82% and 85% in Group I, with significant pain relief in over 82% of the patients and improvement in functional status in 78% of the patients. Based on the results of the present study, it appears that patients may experience significant pain relief 44 to 45 weeks of 1 year, requiring approximately 3 to 4 treatments with an average relief of 15 weeks per episode of treatment. CONCLUSION Therapeutic lumbar facet joint nerve blocks, with or without steroid, may provide a management option for chronic function-limiting low back pain of facet joint origin.
PRENATAL DIAGNOSIS OF SANFILIPPO A SYNDROME: EXPERIENCE IN 35 PREGNANCIES AT RISK AND THE USE OF A NEW FLUOROGENIC SUBSTRATE FOR THE HEPARIN SULPHAMIDASE ASSAY

We have investigated the use of a 4‐methylumbelliferone (MU)‐derived artificial substrate, MU‐α‐d‐N‐sulphoglucosaminide, for the sulphamidase assay in chorionic villi and amniotic fluid cells. In the new two‐step enzyme assay, fluorescent MU is released by the successive action of endogenous sulphamidase and an added yeast enzyme preparation which hydrolyses the MU‐α‐glucosaminide intermediate. Optimal conditions for a sensitive, accurate, and convenient procedure for use in the prenatal diagnosis of Sanfilippo A syndrome are described. Previously, prenatal diagnosis of Sanfilippo A syndrome has been achieved by a radioactive sulphamidase assay in chorionic villi or in cultured amniocytes and by two‐dimensional electrophoresis of glycosaminoglycans in amniotic fluid. Our experience using these methods in 35 pregnancies at risk is reported. The feasibility of the new fluorogenic assay was evaluated by retrospective testing of stored homogenates of chorionic villi and amniotic fluid cells from 22 pregnancies at risk. Unequivocal assignment of the fetal status in five affected pregnancies and 17 pregnancies with a normal outcome confirms the reliability of the new sulphamidase assay, which is in every respect more convenient than the conventional method using 35S‐radiolabelled heparin.
Outcomes of Nonemergent Percutaneous Coronary Intervention With and Without On-site Surgical Backup: A Meta-Analysis

Despite major advances in percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) techniques, the current guidelines recommend against elective PCI at hospitals without on-site cardiac surgery backup. Nonetheless, an increasing number of hospitals without on-site cardiac surgery in the United States have developed programs for elective PCI. Studies evaluating outcome in this setting have yielded mixed results, leaving the question unanswered. Hence, a meta-analysis comparing outcomes of nonemergent PCI in hospitals with and without on-site surgical backup was performed. A systematic review of literature identified four studies involving 6817 patients. Three clinical end points were extracted from each study and included in-hospital death, myocardial infarction, and the need for emergency coronary artery bypass grafting. The studies were homogenous for each outcome studied. Therefore, the combined relative risks (RRs) across all the studies and the 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were computed using the Mantel-Haenszel fixed-effect model. A two-sided alpha error less than 0.05 was considered to be statistically significant. Compared with facilities with on-site surgical backup, the risk of in-hospital death (RR, 2.7; CI, 0.6-12.9; P = 0.18), nonfatal myocardial infarction (RR, 1.3; CI, 0.7- 2.2; P = 0.29), and need of emergent coronary artery bypass grafting (RR, 0.46; CI, 0.06- 3.1; P = 0.43) was similar in those lacking on-site surgical backup. The present meta-analysis suggests that there is no difference in the outcome with regard to risk of nonfatal myocardial infarction, need for emergency coronary artery bypass grafting, and the risk of death in patients undergoing elective PCI in hospitals with and without on-site cardiac surgery backup.
Recent findings with docetaxel in postoperative treatment for breast cancer

Breast cancer is the most common cancer affecting women. A comparison of docetaxel and 5-fluorouracil in women with operable node-positive breast cancer, also taking doxorubicin and cyclophosphamide, was started in 1997. The primary end point was disease-free survival; the time from randomisation to clinical relapse, a second cancer, or death. In a median follow up of 55 months, fewer events had occurred in the docetaxel (172/745) than the 5-fluorouracil group (227/746). This suggests that docetaxel should replace 5-fluorouracil, and that docetaxel, doxorubicin and cyclophosphamide should become the standard treatment of operable node-positive breast cancer. Paclitaxel and docetaxel are approved for use in patients with metastatic breast cancer. In a head-to-head trial of paclitaxel with docetaxel in patients with metastatic breast cancer, despite previous chemotherapy including anthracycline, an overall response (complete and partial) was observed in more docetaxel than paclitaxel patients. This suggests that docetaxel should be preferred to paclitaxel in this group of patients.
Age-related changes in plasma lycopene concentrations, but not in vitamin E, are associated with fat mass

The aim of the present study was to assess the influence of age on plasma concentration of α-tocopherol, retinol and carotenoids with a special attention paid to natural differences in body composition. Forty healthy subjects were recruited: twenty were less than 35 years old and twenty above 60 years old. Males and females were equally represented in each age group. Subjects were kept in energy balance and received controlled diets for 36 h. Fat mass and fat-free mass were determined with the 180-enriched water dilution technique. Plasma vitamins A and E, and carotenoid levels were determined after 12 h fasting and were shown to be similar in women and men. Plasma α-tocopherol concentration increased with age (+44 % elderly v. young), and correlated with % fat mass and plasma cholesterol. After adjustment for plasma cholesterol, the effect of age and % fat mass disappeared. In contrast, plasma lycopene level was 2-fold lower in the elderly than in the young group, and was inversely correlated with fat mass. When lycopene values were adjusted for fat mass, the effect of age disappeared. These results suggest that plasma levels of vitamin E and lycopene differed in the two age groups and that differences in plasma cholesterol and fat mass might participate in such an effect. Short-term vitamin intake did not appear to influence plasma vitamin concentrations.
Incretin Therapies Do Not Expand &bgr;-Cell Mass or Alter Pancreatic Histology in Young Male Mice

The impact of incretins upon pancreatic β-cell expansion remains extremely controversial. Multiple studies indicate that incretin-based therapies can increase β-cell proliferation, and incretins have been hypothesized to expand β-cell mass. However, disagreement exists on whether incretins increase β-cell mass. Moreover, some reports indicate that incretins may cause metaplastic changes in pancreatic histology. To resolve these questions, we treated a large cohort of mice with incretin-based therapies and carried out a rigorous analysis of β-cell turnover and pancreatic histology using high-throughput imaging. Young mice received exenatide via osmotic pump, des-fluoro-sitagliptin, or glipizide compounded in diet for 2 weeks (short-term) on a low-fat diet (LFD) or 4.5 months (long-term) on a LFD or high-fat diet (HFD). Pancreata were quantified for β-cell turnover and mass. Slides were examined for gross anatomical and microscopic changes to exocrine pancreas. Short-term des-fluoro-sitagliptin increased serum insulin and induced modest β-cell proliferation but no change in β-cell mass. Long-term incretin therapy in HFD-fed mice resulted in reduced weight gain, improved glucose homeostasis, and abrogated β-cell mass expansion. No evidence for rapidly dividing progenitor cells was found in islets or pancreatic parenchyma, indicating that incretins do not induce islet neogenesis or pancreatic metaplasia. Contrasting prior reports, we found no evidence of β-cell mass expansion after acute or chronic incretin therapy. Chronic incretin administration was not associated with histological abnormalities in pancreatic parenchyma; mice did not develop tumors, pancreatitis, or ductal hyperplasia. We conclude that incretin therapies do not generate β-cells or alter pancreatic histology in young mice.
An unfamiliar social norm rapidly produces framing effects in an economic game

We framed trust games played by Americans with the concept of osotua, a Maasai label for a type of gift-giving relationship shaped by feelings of mutual respect, restraint, and responsibility. As a control, one third of the participants (N = 70) read a text unrelated to social life. The other two-thirds (N = 140) read about Maasai and osotua. Half of those who read about Maasai and osotua played unlabeled trust games, while the other half played trust games labeled "the Osotua game. " Results are similar to those previously obtained from trust games played by Kenyan Maasai with and without osotua framing. As in Kenya, transfers were lower in the oso- tua-framed games than in the games framed by the Maasai text but not the osotua label. As in Kenya, the relationships among transfers and expected returns in the games framed by the Maasai text but not the osotua label reflect the tit-for-tat logic of reciprocity, while osotua-framed games do not show that pattern. These findings have implications for the experimental game method and for the study of the relationship between culture, social norms, and social behavior.
Organizational Culture and Technology Use in a Developing Country: An Empirical Study

In recent years, growth of the Internet and the World Wide Web has had an impact on the way local, state and national governments work. Use of information electronically in government, popularly known as e-government, is on the rise. E-government is described as the use of technology to enhance the access to, and delivery of, government services to benefit citizens, business partners and employees (Turban, King, Lee, Warkentin, & Chung, 2002). Digital government or e-government, often used interchangeably, is not just putting public services on line – it is about government harnessing information technology in order to remain relevant in a more interactive and more informational era (Tapscott & Agnew, 1999). E-governance in broader perspective encompasses all the key factors in governance – better delivery of government services to citizens, improved interactions with business and industry, employee and citizen empowerment through access to information, and more efficient management, i.e., the use of Internet infrastructure to transform delivery of government services. Four perspectives are used to understand e-government initiatives: e-business perspective to understand how the information and communication technologies are used to increase government services offered; end user i.e. citizen perspective; understanding employees’ contributions to facilitate egovernment processes (knowledge perspective); and process perspective to understand how government service delivery can be made more efficient (Devadoss, Pan, & Huang, 2002).
Safety Criticality Analysis of Air Traffic Management Systems : A Compositional Bisimulation Approach

Detecting safety critical situations that may arise in the evolution of Air Traffic Management (ATM) systems is of primary importance in the analysis of their behavior. The inherent complexity of ATM systems, typically involving a large number of agents, makes this analysis prohibitive today. Compositionality has been an effective way of tackling this problem. We present a compositional framework to accurately describe the behavior of the agents operating in ATM scenarios and of their interaction. We then expose some results that reduce the computational effort required in detecting safety critical situations. Benefits from the use of this approach are illustrated on a future Terminal Manoeuvring Area operation design.
Energy Requirements for Growth in Relation to Sexual Size Dimorphism in Marsh Harrier Circus aeruginosus Nestlings

Food consumption was measured in six female and seven male hand-raised marsh harrier (Circus aeruginosus) nestlings. Females consumed on average 4,321 g and males consumed 3,571 g of food during the nestling stage from 0 to 36 d. Total consumption until 56 d was 6,960 g and 5,822 g for females and males, respectively. On the basis of Fisher's sex ratio theory, this food intake ratio of 0.46 (intake male/[intake male/female]) would explain the observed male-biased fledging sex ratio of 55% males in marsh harrier broods. Growth, gross energy intake, and metabolizable energy intake were measured, along with metabolism of the nestlings, enabling us to determine energy allocation. The assimilation quotient (Q = 0.72) did not differ systematically between the sexes. Differences in metabolic rates between males and females at 15 and 30 d of age were fully attributable to the difference in body mass. Sexual size dimorphism in marsh harriers (female body mass around 60 d of age is 1.28 times greater than male mass) did not fully explain the difference in food intake between male and female nestlings: an analysis of energy requirements for growth and body mass in 16 avian species shows that energy intake was less than proportional to the average body mass at release. The data presented in this study are in agreement with Fisher's theory of inverse proportionality between the sex-specific ratios of energy requirements for growth and of offspring numbers in the marsh harrier population.
High dietary concentrations of biotin did not prevent foot pad dermatitis in growing turkeys and external scores were poor indicators of histopathological lesions

1. A randomised block experiment was conducted to determine the effects of increasing dietary biotin supplementation (0, 200, 800 and 1600 µg/kg) on macroscopic and histological changes associated with the development of foot pad dermatitis (FPD) in growing turkeys. 2. Each treatment was replicated in 4 pens containing 36 birds at the start of the experiment. The birds were weighed and external foot pads were scored at 2-week intervals from 2 to 14 weeks of age. A blood sample was obtained at the same ages from two birds in each pen and tissue from one foot pad was processed for histological examination. Liver samples were obtained for determination of fat content. 3. Increasing dietary biotin supplementation was associated with higher initial plasma concentrations of biotin but there was no effect on external scores or histopathology of foot pad lesions. FPD increased rapidly from 2 to 6 weeks and remained similar thereafter. There was no effect of dietary biotin on liver fat content. 4. The correlations between external foot pad scores at different ages were all less than 0·4. The correlation between external and histopathological scores was 0·56 and the respective correlations with body weight were 0·52 and 0·65. There were no differences between the body weights of birds with different external scores but high histopathological scores were associated with lower body weights. 5. It was concluded that current recommendations for biotin in wheat–soy rations for growing turkeys are adequate for normal growth and development and that higher supplements of biotin in these experimental conditions did not prevent the occurrence of FPD.
A wireless multimedia LAN architecture using DCF with shortened contention window for QoS provisioning

In this paper, we propose a MAC architecture for IEEE 802.11-like WLANs supporting multimedia services. The main characteristics of the proposed MAC procedure are the period restriction and DCF/SC (distributed coordination function with shortened contention-windows) instead of the PCF (point coordination function) of the IEEE 802.11 standards. We investigate the performance of the proposed MAC mechanism in terms of utilization, throughput, latency and jitter under two multimedia network environments considered by the IEEE 802.11-task group E. These environments are home and enterprise. In the simulated performance, this novel approach, which preserves the traffic classification but increases the channel utilization, thus guarantees QoS (quality of service) of multimedia traffic.
A new class of g-modes in neutron stars

Because a neutron star is born hot, its internal composition is close to chemical equilibrium. In the fluid core, this implies that the ratio of the number densities of charged particles (protons and electrons) to neutrons, x ≡ n_c/n_n, is an increasing function of the mass density. This composition gradient stably stratifies the matter giving rise to a Brunt-Vaisala frequency N ~ (xg/2H)^(1/2) ~ 500 s^(-1), where g is the gravitational acceleration, and H is the density scale height. Consequently, a neutron star core provides a cavity that supports gravity modes (g-modes). These g-modes are distinct from those previously identified with the thermal stratification of the surface layers and the chemical stratification of the crust. We compute the lowest-order, quadrupolar, g-modes for cold, Newtonian, neutron star models with M/M_☉ = 0.581 and M/M_☉ = 1.405 and show that the crustal and core g-modes have similar periods. We also discuss damping mechanisms and estimate damping rates for the core g-modes. Particular attention is paid to damping due to the emission of gravitational radiation.
Risk management for information systems development

This paper considers the application of project risk management techniques, methods and approaches to information systems development. The paper reviews current thinking on risk as it relates to information systems, and the approaches to risk that have been adopted in IS projects. The paper considers, in the context of IS, the processes of risk identification, structuring, assessment, and aggregation, and the use of such risk analysis to inform the process of risk management. The paper analyses available risk management techniques, and then proceeds to develop a comprehensive decision support system to aid risk analysis.
Specific targeting of IL-6 signalling pathway: a new way to treat IBD?

More than 200 cytokines have been identified that bind to specific receptors expressed on the surface of the target cells. They are able to trigger intracellular signalling cascades leading to the control of gene expression involved in the cellular response. Although a lot of detailed information on the signalling cascade and effects of specific cytokines on various cells has accumulated over the past few years, our understanding of cytokine functions in vivo remains very poor. These uncertainties are particularly illustrated by the case of interleukin (IL)-6. The in vivo functions of this cytokine remain debated, IL-6 being considered alternatively as a pro- or anti-inflammatory cytokine,1 2 or sometimes as a key factor to polarise Th2 cells.3 Moreover, the IL-6 signalling is particular involving a phenomenon called trans signalling.4 Briefly, the receptor for IL-6 consists of two subunits: a ligand binding component (IL-6R) and a signal-transducing glycoprotein 130 (gp130) which is a member of the cytokine receptor superfamily (including also IL-11 and the leukaemia inhibitory factor). A soluble form of the ligand specific chain (sIL-6R), when complexed to IL-6, is capable of binding to the membrane bound gp130 and thus can elicit a signal-transduction involving STAT-3.5 This phenomenon called trans signalling introduced a novel aspect of cytokine action (fig 1). Figure 1 The receptor for IL-6 consists of the ligand binding component (IL-6R) and the signal-transducing gp130. The soluble form of the IL-6R may form a complex with IL-6 having the ability to bind gp130 (trans signaling) expressed by T cells and to activate the anti-apoptotic STAT-3 dependent genes bcl-2 and bcl-xl. In inflammatory diseases, targeting of IL-6 signaling pathway modulates inflammation at least in part through the regulation of T cell expansion and the expression of adhesion molecules. In …
Influence of model simplifications and parameters on dynamic performance of grid connected fixed speed wind turbines

With the rising penetration of wind power into electric power systems, more accurate and comprehensive studies are required to identify the interaction between wind farm(s) and power system. This requires accurate models of different types of wind turbine-generators. This paper describes modeling and small signal analysis of a grid connected fixed speed wind turbine generator (FSWTG). A complete model of FSWTG is derived and some reduced-order models are deduced. Eigenvalues and participation factors of the system for these models are calculated. Then, using the eigen analysis results, the models are compared and the simplifying assumptions which have been considered in the literatures are evaluated.