Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Child maltreatment: the Lebanese children's experiences.

BACKGROUND This study examined the prevalence, risk factors and consequences associated with child maltreatment in the home. METHODS The sample was 1028 (556 boys; 472 girls) Lebanese children aged 8-17 years (M = 11.89; SD = 1.67). Children were administered an interview questionnaire that included the International Child Abuse Screening Tool, the Trauma Symptom Checklist and the Family Functioning in Adolescence Questionnaire. RESULTS Approximately 30% of the children reported at least one incident of witnessing violence, 65% reported at least one incident of psychological abuse and 54% reported at least one incident of physical abuse over a 1-year period. The results showed an overlap between children's reports of witnessing violence in their homes and physical and psychological abuse that were associated with adolescents' trauma symptoms. Family-related variables significantly predicted three forms of child maltreatment. CONCLUSION These results highlight the importance of examining children's multiple experiences of violence in their homes in research designs, prevention efforts and policy mandates. However, it should be noted that estimates of prevalence (as opposed to estimates of the relation between variables which is relatively more robust to selection bias) are open to error because of the nature of our sample.
TRPV4 mutations and cytotoxic hypercalcemia in axonal Charcot-Marie-Tooth neuropathies

Objective: To improve understanding of TRPV4-associated axonal Charcot-Marie-Tooth (CMT) neuropathy phenotypes and their debated pathologic mechanism. Methods: A total of 17 CMT2C phenotypic families with vocal cord and diaphragmatic involvement and 36 clinically undifferentiated CMT2 subjects underwent sequencing analysis of the coding region of TRPV4. Functional studies of mutant proteins were performed using transiently transfected cells for TRPV4 subcellular localization, basal and stimulated Ca2+ channel analysis, and cell viability assay with or without channel blockade. Results: Two TRPV4 mutations R232C and R316H from 17 CMT2C families were identified in the ankyrin repeat domains. The R316H is a novel de novo mutation found in a patient with CMT2C phenotype. The family with R232C mutation had individuals with and without vocal cord and diaphragm involvement. Both mutant TRPV4 proteins had normal subcellular localization in HEK293 and HeLa cells. Cells transfected with R232C and R316H displayed increased intracellular Ca2+ levels and reversible cell death by the TRPV channel antagonist, ruthenium red. Conclusion: TRPV4 ankyrin domain alterations including a novel de novo mutation cause axonal CMT2. Individuals with the same mutation may have nondistinct CMT2 or have phenotypic CMT2C with vocal cord paresis. Reversible hypercalcemic gain-of-function of mutant TRPV4 instead of loss-of-function appears to be pathologically important. The reversibility of cell death by channel blockade provides an attractive area of investigation in consideration of treatable axonal degeneration.
IMPACT OF FOOD PREFERENCES ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF PATHOLOGICAL CHANGES IN THE MASTICATORY APPARATUS IN YOUNG PATIENTS

Food can have a mighty biological, therapeutic and preventive effect, yet its breakdown can provide the perfect setting for tooth decay and its implications, diseases of the periodontium and the oral mucosa. Due to the high incidence of periodontal and hard dental tissues pathologies among adolescents they have been ranked as socially significant diseases. A damaged dental-jaw apparatus may lead to forming unhealthy eating habits, more sensitive food preferences and nutritional deficiency. The objective was to explore the prevalence of those diseases and the dental hygiene among final year high school students as well as to seek any correlation with their eating habits and preferences. Materials and Methods: The study involved 121 students who underwent extraoral and intraoral examination in order to establish the state of the masticatory apparatus whereas the state of oral hygiene was measured as per Silness-Löe plaque index. A questionnaire filled out by the students provided data on the individual characteristics of the masticatory process, eating habits and frequency of consumption of certain cariogenic and anticariogenic foods and beverages. Results: The findings revealed unhealthy food preferences in the target group. The unsatisfactory oral hygiene habits and food preferences account for the high percentage of dental caries. Conclusion: Oral health of children and adolescents is problematic worldwide and can be resolved with the benefits of a balanced diet as well as personal and professional oral hygiene, etc. Teaching children the importance of proper oral care before reaching adolescence can build anticariogenic habits in them for a lifetime.
Complete or incomplete percutaneous coronary revascularization in patients with unstable angina in stent era: Are early and one‐year results different?

The aim of our study was to evaluate the impact of a strategy of incomplete revascularization by PTCA, with or without stent implantation, on clinical outcome of 208 consecutive patients (171 men) with unstable angina and multivessel coronary artery disease. Mean age of the group was 63.8 ± 10.3 years (range, 31–91). Complete and incomplete revascularization was achieved in 49 and 159 patients, respectively. A total of 226 stents were implanted in 172 patients (1.31 ± 0.65 stent per patient), equally distributed between the two groups. Left ventricular ejection fraction < 40% and total chronic coronary occlusions were significantly more frequent in patients with incomplete revascularization than in those with complete (P = 0.014 and 0.001, respectively). In‐hospital MACE occurred in 10% and 7.5% of patients with complete and incomplete revascularization, respectively (P = NS). By multivariate analysis, multiple stent implantation (OR, 5.44; 95% CI, 1.21–24.3), presence of thrombus in the treated lesion (OR, 6.3; 95% CI, 1.53–25.9), Braunwald class III (OR, 4.74; 95% CI, 1.08–20.8), and ad hoc PTCA (OR 4.51; 95% CI, 1.11–18.3) were significantly related to in‐hospital outcome. At 1‐year follow‐up, 11.3% and 11.5% of patients with complete and incomplete revascularization, respectively, had MACE. In all patients, diabetes (OR, 3.40; 95% CI, 1.09–10.58) and presence of thrombus in the treated lesion (OR, 3.48; 95% CI, 1.12–10.84) were significant predictors of 1‐year outcome by multivariate analysis. These results indicate that the strategy of incomplete revascularization in unstable angina patients with multivessel coronary disease does not expose them to a higher risk of death or other major ischemic events in comparison to those undergoing complete revascularization. Cathet Cardiovasc Intervent 2001;54:448–453. © 2001 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Three-dimensional motion of the pelvis during human walking

The knowledge of the pelvis kinematics plays an important role in the equilibrium control during walking. The previous research technique on the pelvis locomotion is impractical in some fields such as clinic practice. This paper illustrates a new method based on a treadmill and three precise displacement-sensors. 20 healthy young adults of both sexes are instructed to naturally walk on a treadmill at different speeds. A model is presented to calculate the medial-lateral and vertical displacements of the pelvis during any able-bodied walking. The presented data and curves indicate that the medial-lateral and vertical displacements of the pelvis are cyclical and roughly sinusoidal during normal walking. The frequency is equal to the gait frequency in medial-lateral direction, and twice as much as that in vertical direction. In addition, the research subject's height and walking velocity have an effect on the amplitude of displacement of the pelvis. The presented data define the normal movement behavior of the pelvis during walking. As a result, it produces a standard to compare normal gait with pathological gait. The presented model may be useful in the position control of a patient's trunk for rehabilitation robot and the clinical evaluation of rehabilitation effect. In the field of humanoid robot, it is a necessary parameter for the path planning.
In vivo relevance of CD30 in atopic dermatitis

CD30 expression was evaluated by immunohistochemistry in lesional skin biopsies of eight patients with active atopic dermatitis (AD) and three patients with allergic contact (nickel‐induced) dermatitis (ACD). CD30 expression was also assessed in a large panel of CD4 + and CDS + T‐cell clones generated from the skin biopsies of four patients with AD. Finally, the levels of soluble CD30 (sCD30) were measured in the serum of 41 patients with AD, 19 patients with ACD, and 60 healthy controls. In all specimens of lesional AD skin, where the great majority of infiltrating cells were CD4+ T cells, remarkable numbers of cells were CD30+, whereas virtually no CD30 + cells were found in the skin of patients with ACD. In CD4+ T‐cell clones generated from the lesional AD skin, most of which produced both interleukin (IL)‐4 and interferon‐gamma (IFN‐γ) (Th0–like cells) or IL‐4 and 1L‐5, but not IFN‐γ (Th2–like cells), CD30 expression directly correlated with the ability to produce IL‐4 and IL‐5, but was inversely related to IFN‐γ production. High levels of sCD30 (correlated with disease activity: r= 0.618) were detected in the serum of most AD patients, whereas there was no increase of sCD30 levels in the serum of patients with ACD. These data support the view that Th0/Th2–type responses predominate in the skin of patients with AD and suggest that the presence of CD30 + T cells in tissues and/or increased levels of sCD30 in biologic fluids are indicative of Th2–dominated responses.
SURVEY OF SKIN LESIONS IN THE FILIPINO ELDERLY

One hundred elderly Filipino patients, aged 60 and over were surveyed to identify past and present skin complaints, and the dermatologic findings on a total cutaneous examination. All patients were consulting at the dermatology clinical of a teaching hospital in the Philippines. The elderly were keen to recall past hypersensitivity reactions because of their dramatic symptoms. The most common dermatologic problem prompting consultation was lichen simplex chronicus. Although the population size was limited, dermatoses in the Filipino elderly were not uncommon, and they were also subject to the stigmata of aging. Similarities and differences to two American surveys are noted.
Activity-driven sharpening of the retinotectal projection in goldfish: development under stroboscopic illumination prevents sharpening.

Blocking or synchronizing activity during regeneration of the retinotectal projection prevents both the sharpening of the retinotopic map recorded on tectum and the refinement of the structure of individual arbors within the plane of the map, and this refinement is triggered by N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors. We tested whether activity-driven refinement also occurs during development of the projection in larval and young adult goldfish. Shortly after hatching, larval goldfish were placed into tanks within light-tight chambers illuminated by a xenon strobe at 1 Hz for 14 h of each daily cycle. Fish were reared for 1.5-2 years, until large enough to record in our retinotectal mapping apparatus (6 cm length). Age- and size-matched controls had normal maps with multiunit receptive fields (MURFs) recorded at each tectal point of 10.8 degrees (0.16 S.E.M., n = 5), whereas the strobe-reared fish had only roughly retinotopic maps with much enlarged MURFs averaging 26.7 degrees (1.41 S.E.M., n = 5). This enlargement represents an abnormal convergence onto each tectal point, as the maps failed to sharpen during development. The arbors of individual retinal axons were stained with horseradish peroxidase (HRP) in larval fish and in adult strobe-reared and control fish. They were drawn with camera lucida from tectal whole mounts, and analyzed for spatial extent in the plane of the retinotopic map, order of branching, number of branch endings, depth of termination, and caliber of the parent axon. Arbors from larval fish (1-2 weeks) were small (approximately 50 x 40 microns) with less than 10 branches, occupied a single strata, and could not be separated into different classes by caliber of axon. The 87 arbors stained in control adult fish (6 cm long) were much like previously examined adult arbors, with those from fine, medium, and coarse axons averaging 115, 166, and 194 microns in extent, respectively, and having 17-24 branch endings. The 110 arbors from 12 strobe-reared fish were often abnormal. Although the fasciculation was normal, the extrafascicular routes were abnormal with reversing turns. The axons often had branches along their course, and these branches were scattered across a wider extent, rather than forming a distinct cluster. In contrast, neither the number of branches nor the depths of termination was significantly changed in any group. The coarse caliber arbors were most abnormal, being 64% longer and 30% wider than controls. The fine caliber arbors were also significantly larger by about 20%, but the medium caliber arbors were not enlarged. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)
Role of Glucocorticoids and “Caloric Stress” in Modulating the Effects of Caloric Restriction in Rodents a

Caloric restriction (i.e., the balanced reduction of the protein, carbohydrate and fat content of the diet without reduction of its micronutrient content) has been shown, in rodents, to be an extremely powerful modulator of a broad spectrum of age-associated degenerative diseases as well as life span. ’-5 Caloric restriction has been found to delay the occurrence of many age-associated neoplastic diseases or to slow their progression, often to such an extent that the clinical expression of the diseases is eliminated. * Since reducing individual dietary components such as protein or fat without reducing the overall caloric intake is less effective in increasing longevity or suppressing neoplasia than caloric restriction by itself, it is reasonable to assume that the observed effects of caloric restriction are primarily dependent upon a specific reduction in calories and not specific dietary compon e n t ~ . ~ ~ ’ The multiple actions of caloric restriction suggest that it may influence primary aging processes themselves; however, recent examination of pathological data suggests that caloric restriction delays different age-dependent pathological conditions at different rates.8 This observation would argue against the modulation by caloric restriction of a simple fundamental process of cellular aging, but rather, it implies that caloric restriction modifies the organism’s homeostatic set-point to one that is less susceptible to some but not all pathologies. Unfortunately, such theories on the nature of the caloric restriction effect will remain merely speculatory until the precise molecular and biochemical mechanisms by which caloric restriction influences the processes of aging and disease are fully elucidated.
TECHNOLOGY ASSESSMENT IN HOSPITALS: LESSONS LEARNED FROM AN EMPIRICAL EXPERIMENT

Objectives: Hospital Based Health Technology Assessment (HBHTA) practices, to inform decision making at the hospital level, emerged as urgent priority for policy makers, hospital managers, and professionals. The present study crystallized the results achieved by the testing of an original framework for HBHTA, developed within Lombardy Region: the IMPlementation of A Quick hospital-based HTA (IMPAQHTA). The study tested: (i) the HBHTA framework efficiency, (ii) feasibility, (iii) the tool utility and completeness, considering dimensions and sub-dimensions. Methods: The IMPAQHTA framework deployed the Regional HTA program, activated in 2008 in Lombardy, at the hospital level. The relevance and feasibility of the framework were tested over a 3-year period through a large-scale empirical experiment, involving seventy-four healthcare professionals organized in different HBHTA teams for assessing thirty-two different technologies within twenty-two different hospitals. Semi-structured interviews and self-reported questionnaires were used to collect data regarding the relevance and feasibility of the IMPAQHTA framework. Results: The proposed HBHTA framework proved to be suitable for application at the hospital level, in the Italian context, permitting a quick assessment (11 working days) and providing hospital decision makers with relevant and quantitative information. Performances in terms of feasibility, utility, completeness, and easiness proved to be satisfactory. Conclusions: The IMPAQHTA was considered to be a complete and feasible HBHTA framework, as well as being replicable to different technologies within any hospital settings, thus demonstrating the capability of a hospital to develop a complete HTA, if supported by adequate and well defined tools and quantitative metrics.
IS Value at Individual Level: Analyzing Role of the Nature of IS Use

Value of information systems at the organizational and process levels has been addressed by many IS researchers. However, value-addition of IS at the individual level has not been studied extensively. In this paper, we build on the rich research tradition of linking behavioral antecedents of IS use and extend it to study IS value-addition at individual level. Our study focuses on the antecedents of IS-enabled individual productivity. We conceptualize IS-enabled productivity as a process output which is co-determined by behavioral antecedents and the nature of IS use. We tested our research model by surveying 482 individuals and collected data across two IS applications. Our research model is validated both at the aggregate level and across the two individual IS applications. The study results confirm our proposition that the quality of the use process is as important as the extent or duration of use of an information system while determining IS enabled productivity. Based on study findings, we provide theoretical and managerial implications of the relationship between productivity and IS use.
Clinical aspects of stereotactic thalamotomy in the human. Part I. The treatment of chronic severe pain.

Introduction Our group has taken the ventral posterior thalamus as an initial target for stereotactic surgical intervention in the treatment of chronic severe pain. We have done this for several reasons. Clinically, we were often faced with the problem of treating terminal cancer patients with subjective head and neck pain in areas supplied by several cranial and upper cervical nerves. These patients, if not relieved by narcotic medication, often required a section of multiple posterior roots. We felt that any less drastic operative procedure, such as a stereotactic surgical maneuver which could effectively relieve chronic pain, would be a welcome addition to the surgical armamentarium. From a research point of view, the sensory relay nucleus of the thalamus offered us a unique opportunity to check the accuracy of our stereotactic method. We were able to stimulate peripherally and record evoked thalamic potentials; we also stimulated with intrathalamic electrodes in the
Microfilaments are involved in renal cell responses to sustained hydrostatic pressure.

PURPOSE Increased pressures within renal interstitial fluid, as associated with a number of renal pathologies, could affect cell function and gene expression. The long-term objective of this research is to elucidate kidney cell responses to pathological hydrostatic pressures. MATERIALS AND METHODS In vitro studies were performed in 2 kidney cell lines (cortical tubular and medullary) to determine changes in cell numbers and cytoskeletal (specifically microfilament, microtubule and intermediate filament) arrangement following exposure to pathological (60 cm H2O) pressures. A novel pressure system was used to apply pressure to renal cells for up to 7 days. Cell counts and fluorescent staining were performed to determine alterations in response to pressure. RESULTS Exposure to pressures of 60 cm H2O resulted in increased renal cell numbers and rearrangement in individual microfilament structures after 7 days. CONCLUSIONS These results prove that hydrostatic pressure alters the function of renal cells. In the future such knowledge of renal cell responses to pressure along with an understanding of the mechanisms involved will aid in the design of novel, targeted drug therapies for treating kidney pathologies.
Different endothelial mechanisms involved in coronary responses to known vasodilators.

The role of the endothelium in mediating flow responses to acetylcholine (ACh), bradykinin (BK), adenosine (Ado), and the poorly hydrolyzable ATP-derivative beta,gamma-methylene-ATP (MeATP) was evaluated in the intact coronary system of the isolated perfused guinea pig heart. In the presence of superoxide anions, known to inactivate the endothelium-derived relaxing factor nitric oxide (NO), only steady-state dilatation induced by ACh (1 microM) was fully inhibited and that of BK (0.1 nM) attenuated. Similar effects were obtained with methylene blue and N omega-nitro-L-arginine; however, the latter also reduced the actions of Ado (0.1 microM) and MeATP (0.5 microM). Conversely, perfusion with the NO precursor L-arginine (10 microM) resulted in a potentiated relaxation by ACh, whereas steady-state responses to BK and Ado remained unchanged. Pretreatment of hearts with hydroxyl radicals (.OH) elevated vascular permeability. Under this condition, flow increases induced by ACh, BK, and Ado were enhanced by 130, 89, and 47%, respectively, whereas the effect of MeATP (0.5 microM) was reduced by 45%. Preexposure of hearts to the oxidant hypochlorous acid (HOCl) prevented dilatations by ACh, BK, MeATP and Ado (0.1 microM), and the response to Ado (5 microM) was reduced by 68%; postischemic hyperemia was attenuated. Glyburide, an inhibitor of ATP-sensitive K+ channels, halved the flow response to infused Ado (0.1 and 5 microM), inhibited MeATP, and abolished reactive hyperemia. We conclude that in the guinea pig coronary system ACh, BK, MeATP, and Ado (0.1 microM) induce endothelium-dependent vasodilatation, some step(s) of the signal transmission being vulnerable to oxidative attack by HOCl. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Thoughts on uncitedness: Nobel laureates and Fields medalists as case studies

Contrary to what one might expect, Nobel laureates and Fields medalists have a rather large fraction (10% or more) of uncited publications. This is the case for (in total) 75 examined researchers from the fields of mathematics (Fields medalists), physics, chemistry, and physiology or medicine (Nobel laureates). We study several indicators for these researchers, including the h-index, total number of publications, average number of citations per publication, the number (and fraction) of uncited publications, and their interrelations. The most remarkable result is a positive correlation between the h-index and the number of uncited articles. We also present a Lotkaian model, which partially explains the empirically found regularities. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.