Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Etiology and Diagnosis of Permanent Hypoparathyroidism after Total Thyroidectomy

Postoperative parathyroid failure is the commonest adverse effect of total thyroidectomy, which is a widely used surgical procedure to treat both benign and malignant thyroid disorders. The present review focuses on the scientific gap and lack of data regarding the time period elapsed between the immediate postoperative period, when hypocalcemia is usually detected by the surgeon, and permanent hypoparathyroidism often seen by an endocrinologist months or years later. Parathyroid failure after thyroidectomy results from a combination of trauma, devascularization, inadvertent resection, and/or autotransplantation, all resulting in an early drop of iPTH (intact parathyroid hormone) requiring replacement therapy with calcium and calcitriol. There is very little or no role for other factors such as vitamin D deficiency, calcitonin, or magnesium. Recovery of the parathyroid function is a dynamic process evolving over months and cannot be predicted on the basis of early serum calcium and iPTH measurements; it depends on the number of parathyroid glands remaining in situ (PGRIS)—not autotransplanted nor inadvertently excised—and on early administration of full-dose replacement therapy to avoid hypocalcemia during the first days/weeks after thyroidectomy.
Four-hour swallow screening target for stroke – from guidelines to practice: A mixed methods knowledge translation study

Abstract Purpose: To conduct systematic analysis of compliance with swallow screening against a 4-hour target timeframe and determine barriers and facilitators to compliance. Method: Knowledge translation approach using mixed methods. Quantitative data from a medium sized metropolitan hospital was extracted from 12-months of medical records to review timing of swallow screening from stroke admission using descriptive and inferential statistics. Qualitative data involved 14 semi-structured interviews of speech-language pathologists, registered nurses and medical officers and were analysed using the Theoretical Domains Framework. Result: 74% of eligible patients (271/365) received a swallow screen by trained nursing staff; 189 (52%) were within the 4-hour target. Screening was facilitated by quality training of nurses, strong belief in the benefits for patients and availability of the specialist stroke nurse. Quantitative analysis, confirmed through participant interviews as barriers, revealed that the strongest predictors of not meeting the 4-hour target were overnight admissions and not being admitted to the dedicated stroke unit. Conclusion: 52% of swallow screenings were performed within the 4-hour target timeframe recommended as best practice in the Australian and UK stroke guidelines. Barriers identified may assist other institutions improve compliance with the 4-hour timeframe that will likely be adopted internationally.
Effects of multifocal transcranial direct current stimulation targeting the motor network during prolonged experimental pain

Antinociceptive effects of transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) over the primary motor cortex (M1) have been extensively studied in the past years. However, M1 does not work in isolation, but it rather interacts within a network, the so‐called resting‐state motor network.
Is video‐assisted thoracoscopic lobectomy associated with higher overall costs compared with open surgery? Results of best evidence topic analysis

Thoracoscopic lobectomy has become the preferred approach for surgical management of early stage lung cancer, but the potential higher operative costs limit its widespread use. Theoretically, higher direct costs may be significantly counterbalanced by lower indirect costs, resulting in lower overall costs for thoracoscopic than for open lobectomy. To support this hypothesis, we reviewed the literature until May 2020, analyzing all papers comparing the cost of thoracoscopic versus open lobectomy.A total of 20 studies provided the most applicable evidence to evaluate this issue. In all the studies apart from one, thoracoscopic lobectomy was associated with higher operative costs due to the increased use of disposable instruments, and prolonged operative time. By contrast, in 17 studies the increased operative costs were significantly offset by indirect costs which were lower in thoracoscopic than in open lobectomy due to fewer postoperative complications, faster recovery, and lower readmission rates. It translated into lower overall costs for thoracoscopic than for open lobectomy in 10 studies, similar costs in seven, and higher in three, despite the lower hospitalization costs. The low bed fees and high prices of disposable instruments in these three studies may explain the discordance. The careful use of disposable instruments, and the minimizing hospitalization costs can reduce the total costs of thoracoscopic lobectomy to levels similar or to below those of open lobectomy. The worry that video‐assisted thoracoscopic surgery lobectomy (VATSL) might be associated with an increased overal cost is thus not warranted, and should not be used as an excuse against the use of VATS in surgery for early stage lung cancers.
Experiences, distress and burden among neurologists in Norway during the COVID-19 pandemic

Background The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has caused rapid changes in the healthcare system. Workforce reorganization, reduced standard of care and a lack of personal protection equipment (PPE) for health care workers were among the concerns raised in the first wave of the pandemic. Our aim was to explore the experiences, distress and burden among Norwegian neurologists during the first weeks of the pandemic. Methods Hospital-based neurologists in Norway (n = 400) were invited to a web-based survey in April 2020. The study focused on patient management, organizational changes and personal stress during the first weeks of the pandemic lockdown. Work-home interface stress was assessed by the Cooper Job Stress Questionnaire. Results In total, 135 neurologists participated. Seventy-three% experienced a change in their personal work situation, and 67% examined patients with suspected COVID-19 infection and neurological disease. Changed access to resources, and the perception that medical follow-up was unsatisfactory, were associated with a high degree of burden and stress. Neurologists were also worried about the potential lack of PPE and the fear of spreading SARS CoV-2 to close family members. The mean score of work-home interface stress was 2.8 with no significant differences between gender or specialist status. Reduced standard of care was reported for all neurological conditions, and in particular for non-emergency treatments. Conclusion The vast majority of neurologists in Norway experienced a change in their personal work situation during the first phase of the pandemic. The fear of becoming infected and ill was not a major contributor to burden and stress.
Nonhuman Primates Satisfy Utility Maximization in Compliance with the Continuity Axiom of Expected Utility Theory

Expected Utility Theory (EUT), the first axiomatic theory of risky choice, describes choices as a utility maximization process: decision makers assign a subjective value (utility) to each choice option and choose the one with the highest utility. The continuity axiom, central to Expected Utility Theory and its modifications, is a necessary and sufficient condition for the definition of numerical utilities. The axiom requires decision makers to be indifferent between a gamble and a specific probabilistic combination of a more preferred and a less preferred gamble. While previous studies demonstrated that monkeys choose according to combinations of objective reward magnitude and probability, a concept-driven experimental approach for assessing the axiomatically defined conditions for maximizing utility by animals is missing. We experimentally tested the continuity axiom for a broad class of gamble types in 4 male rhesus macaque monkeys, showing that their choice behavior complied with the existence of a numerical utility measure as defined by the economic theory. We used the numerical quantity specified in the continuity axiom to characterize subjective preferences in a magnitude-probability space. This mapping highlighted a trade-off relation between reward magnitudes and probabilities, compatible with the existence of a utility function underlying subjective value computation. These results support the existence of a numerical utility function able to describe choices, allowing for the investigation of the neuronal substrates responsible for coding such rigorously defined quantity. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT A common assumption of several economic choice theories is that decisions result from the comparison of subjectively assigned values (utilities). This study demonstrated the compliance of monkey behavior with the continuity axiom of Expected Utility Theory, implying a subjective magnitude-probability trade-off relation, which supports the existence of numerical utility directly linked to the theoretical economic framework. We determined a numerical utility measure able to describe choices, which can serve as a correlate for the neuronal activity in the quest for brain structures and mechanisms guiding decisions.
Novel Regiospecific MDMO−PPV Copolymer with Improved Charge Transport for Bulk Heterojunction Solar Cells

A novel regiospecific MDMO−PPV copolymer has been synthesized by the copolymerization of the mixture of 70 wt % 1-(chloromethyl)-5-[(3,7-dimethyloctyl)oxy]-2-methoxy-4-[(octylsulfoxy)methyl]benzene (monomer A) and 30 wt % 1-(chloromethyl)-2-[(3,7-dimethyloctyl)oxy]-5-methoxy-4-[(octylsulfoxy)methyl]benzene (monomer B) via the sulfinyl precoursor synthetic route. The hole mobility of the new regiospecific MDMO−PPV polymer (also called OC1C10−PPV) measured with a time-of-flight setup is found to be a factor of ∼3.5 higher at all measured electric fields at room temperature as compared to regiorandom MDMO−PPV. The electric field and temperature dependence of the hole mobility is discussed in the framework of disorder formalism. The improved charge transport properties of the novel regiospecific MDMO−PPV copolymer is attributed to the better interchain interactions facilitated by the more regular PPV backbone, which is also supported by the red shifted optical absorption and photoluminescence. Finally, the im.
Priming with a Seaweed Extract Strongly Improves Drought Tolerance in Arabidopsis

Drought represents a major threat to plants in natural ecosystems and agricultural settings. The biostimulant Super Fifty (SF), produced from the brown alga Ascophyllum nodosum, enables ecologically friendly stress mitigation. We investigated the physiological and whole-genome transcriptome responses of Arabidopsis thaliana to drought stress after a treatment with SF. SF strongly decreased drought-induced damage. Accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), which typically stifle plant growth during drought, was reduced in SF-primed plants. Relative water content remained high in SF-treated plants, whilst ion leakage, a measure of cell damage, was reduced compared to controls. Plant growth requires a functional shoot apical meristem (SAM). Expression of a stress-responsive negative growth regulator, RESPONSIVE TO DESICCATION 26 (RD26), was repressed by SF treatment at the SAM, consistent with the model that SF priming maintains the function of the SAM during drought stress. Accordingly, expression of the cell cycle marker gene HISTONE H4 (HIS4) was maintained at the SAMs of SF-primed plants, revealing active cell cycle progression after SF priming during drought. In accordance with this, CYCP2;1, which promotes meristem cell division, was repressed by drought but enhanced by SF. SF also positively affected stomatal behavior to support the tolerance to drought stress. Collectively, our data show that SF priming mitigates multiple cellular processes that otherwise impair plant growth under drought stress, thereby providing a knowledge basis for future research on crops.
Gut Microbiota at the Intersection of Alcohol, Brain, and the Liver

Over the last decade, increased research into the cognizance of the gut–liver–brain axis in medicine has yielded powerful evidence suggesting a strong association between alcoholic liver diseases (ALD) and the brain, including hepatic encephalopathy or other similar brain disorders. In the gut–brain axis, chronic, alcohol-drinking-induced, low-grade systemic inflammation is suggested to be the main pathophysiology of cognitive dysfunctions in patients with ALD. However, the role of gut microbiota and its metabolites have remained unclear. Eubiosis of the gut microbiome is crucial as dysbiosis between autochthonous bacteria and pathobionts leads to intestinal insult, liver injury, and neuroinflammation. Restoring dysbiosis using modulating factors such as alcohol abstinence, promoting commensal bacterial abundance, maintaining short-chain fatty acids in the gut, or vagus nerve stimulation could be beneficial in alleviating disease progression. In this review, we summarize the pathogenic mechanisms linked with the gut–liver–brain axis in the development and progression of brain disorders associated with ALD in both experimental models and humans. Further, we discuss the therapeutic potential and future research directions as they relate to the gut–liver–brain axis.
Why Don’t We Tube Feed Hip Fracture Patients? Findings from the Implementation of an Enteral Tube Feeding Decision Support Tool

Background: This study aimed to report (i) the prevalence of enteral tube feeding (ETF), (ii) investigate whether implementing a decision support tool influenced ETF rates, and (iii) understand reasons influencing decisions to offer ETF. Methods: A pre/post evaluation included consecutive patients admitted to a hip fracture unit. Following baseline data collection, a published ETF Decision Support Tool was implemented by the multidisciplinary team to determine the necessity and influencing reasons for offering ETF. Results: Pre-post groups (n = 90,86) were well matched for age (83 vs. 84.5 years; p = 0.304) and gender (females 57 vs. 57; p = 0.683). ETF rates remained low across groups (pre/post n = 4,2; p = 0.683) despite high malnutrition prevalence (41.6% vs. 50.6%; p = 0.238). Diverse and conflicting reasons were identified regarding decisions to offer ETF. Conclusion: A complex interplay of factors influences the team decision-making process to offer ETF to nutritionally vulnerable patients. These demands are individualised, rather than algorithmic, involving shared decision-making and informed consent processes.
The comparative effects of intensive glucose lowering in diabetes patients aged below or above 65 years: Results from the ADVANCE trial

For relatively old patients with diabetes, current guidelines recommend adjustment of glycaemic goals based on patients' cognitive function, or coexisting chronic illnesses. However, the evidence which supports the efficacy and safety of intensive glucose lowering in older patients with diabetes is scarce. The objective of the present study was to compare the efficacy and safety of intensive glucose lowering in patients with type 2 diabetes stratified by age (<65 and ≥ 65 years), and examine whether the effects differ according to patients’ characteristics in the older patient group.
Produção de milho em plantio direto com adubação nitrogenada e cobertura do solo na pré-safra

A utilizacao de plantas de cobertura de solo em pre-safra e uma alternativa para fornecer nitrogenio (N) ao milho e viabilizar o sistema plantio direto nas Regioes Sudeste, Centro-Oeste, Norte e Nordeste, com inverno seco. Este estudo teve o objetivo de avaliar o efeito de doses de N e de especies de plantas de cobertura, cultivadas em pre-safra, no fornecimento de N e na produtividade de milho em plantio direto. O delineamento experimental foi de blocos ao acaso, com parcelas subdivididas e quatro repeticoes. O estudo foi desenvolvido de 2000 a 2003. Os tratamentos principais foram constituidos de quatro sistemas de uso e manejo: milho em plantio direto apos crotalaria (PDcrot); milho em plantio direto apos braquiaria no primeiro ano e lablab nos dois ultimos (PDlab); milho em plantio direto apos milheto (PDmil); milho em plantio convencional apos pousio (PC); e os secundarios de tres doses de N em cobertura para o milho (0, 60 e 120 kg ha-1). Foram avaliados, no milho, massa da materia seca da parte aerea, produtividade de graos, N acumulado e eficiencia de utilizacao do N. A maior eficiencia de utilizacao do N pelas plantas de milho ocorreu nos sistemas de plantio direto e crotalaria em pre-safra e plantio convencional apos pousio, que nao diferiu entre os dois sistemas e foram superiores a dos sistemas de plantio direto em que foram utilizados lablab e milheto em pre-safra, que tambem nao diferiram entre si. A maxima produtividade de graos de milho foi de 7.259; 7.234; 6.723 e 6.461 kg ha-1, nas doses de N de 97,1; 120,0; 87,8 e 96,1 kg ha-1 nos sistemas plantio direto e crotalaria, plantio convencional, plantio direto e lablab, e plantio direto e milheto em pre-safra, respectivamente (media dos tres anos). No cultivo de milho em sistema de plantio direto a utilizacao de crotalaria proporcionou maior produtividade em relacao ao milheto e lablab em pre-safra.
Hydrophobic interactions control the self-assembly of DNA and cellulose

Abstract Desoxyribosenucleic acid, DNA, and cellulose molecules self-assemble in aqueous systems. This aggregation is the basis of the important functions of these biological macromolecules. Both DNA and cellulose have significant polar and nonpolar parts and there is a delicate balance between hydrophilic and hydrophobic interactions. The hydrophilic interactions related to net charges have been thoroughly studied and are well understood. On the other hand, the detailed roles of hydrogen bonding and hydrophobic interactions have remained controversial. It is found that the contributions of hydrophobic interactions in driving important processes, like the double-helix formation of DNA and the aqueous dissolution of cellulose, are dominating whereas the net contribution from hydrogen bonding is small. In reviewing the roles of different interactions for DNA and cellulose it is useful to compare with the self-assembly features of surfactants, the simplest case of amphiphilic molecules. Pertinent information on the amphiphilic character of cellulose and DNA can be obtained from the association with surfactants, as well as on modifying the hydrophobic interactions by additives.
Improving the performance of multisubject motor imagery-based BCIs using twin cascaded softmax CNNs

Objective. Motor imagery (MI) EEG signals vary greatly among subjects, so scholarly research on motor imagery-based brain–computer interfaces (BCIs) has mainly focused on single-subject systems or subject-dependent systems. However, the single-subject model is applicable only to the target subject, and the small sample number greatly limits the performance of the model. This paper aims to study a convolutional neural network to achieve an adaptable MI-BCI that is applicable to multiple subjects. Approach. In this paper, a twin cascaded softmax convolutional neural network (TCSCNN) is proposed for multisubject MI-BCIs. The proposed TCSCNN is independent and can be applied to any single-subject MI classification convolutional neural network (CNN) model. First, to reduce the influence of individual differences, subject recognition and MI recognition are accomplished simultaneously. A cascaded softmax structure consisting of two softmax layers, related to subject recognition and MI recognition, is subsequently applied. Second, to improve the MI classification precision, a twin network structure is proposed on the basis of ensemble learning. TCSCNN is built by combining a cascaded softmax structure and twin network structure. Main results. Experiments were conducted on three popular CNN models (EEGNet and Shallow ConvNet and Deep ConvNet from EEGDecoding) and three public datasets (BCI Competition IV datasets 2a and 2b and the high-gamma dataset) to verify the performance of the proposed TCSCNN. The results show that compared with the state-of-the-art CNN model, the proposed TCSCNN obviously improves the precision and convergence of multisubject MI recognition. Significance. This study provides a promising scheme for multisubject MI-BCI, reflecting the progress made in the development and application of MI-BCIs.
COVID-19 Lockdown and Self-Perceived Changes of Food Choice, Waste, Impulse Buying and Their Determinants in Italy: QuarantEat, a Cross-Sectional Study

Data about self-perceived food choice (FC) changes and their determinants during COVID-19 lockdowns are limited. This study investigated how the Italian lockdown affected self-perceived food purchases (FP), occurrence of impulse buying (IB), household food waste production (HFWP) and their determinants. A web-based cross-sectional survey was distributed in May 2020, collecting an opportunistic sample of the Italian population. A total of 1865 (70% females) people were enrolled, the median age was 29 (IQR 16.0). Most of the sample increased overall FP (53.4%), food consumption (43.4%), reduced HFWP (53.7%) and halved the prevalence of IB (20.9%) compared to the period before the lockdown (42.5%). Baking ingredients, fresh vegetables, fresh fruit and chocolate had the largest sales increase by individuals, while bakery products, fresh fish and salted snacks purchases highly decreased. Increased FP was associated with the occurrence of IB (adjOR 2.48, p < 0.001) and inversely associated with not having worked during lockdown (adjOR 0.71, p = 0.003). Multivariable logistic regressions revealed occurrence of IB was associated with low perceived dietary quality (adjOR 2.22, p < 0.001), resulting at risk, according to the Emotional Overeating Questionnaire (EOQ, adjOR 1.68, p < 0.001), and inversely associated with decreased HFWP (adjOR 0.73, p < 0.012). Reduced HFWP was associated with higher perceived dietary quality (adjOR 2.27, p < 0.001) and negatively associated with low score at WHO-5 Well-Being Index (adjOR 0.72, p = 0.002). The Italian lockdown highly affected FC behaviours, leading to positive and sustainable habits towards food purchase and consumption. Public health interventions are needed to keep these new positive effects and avoid negative consequences in case of future lockdowns.