Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Liver-FibroSTARD checklist and glossary: tools for standardized design and reporting of diagnostic accuracy studies of liver fibrosis tests

Auteur Guéchot, Jérôme [1], Boursier, Jérôme [2], de Ledinghen, Victor [3], Poynard, Thierry [4], Carrat, Fabrice [5], Leroy, Vincent [6], Wong, Grace Lai-Hung [7], Friedrich-Rust, Mireen [8], Fraquelli, Mirella [9], Plebani, Mario [10], Sebastiani, Giada [11], Myers, Robert [12], Angulo, Paul [13], Bertrais, Sandrine [14], Wendum, Dominique [15], Bricault, Ivan [16], Calès, Paul [17] Organisme Assocation française pour l'étude du foie [18] Pays pays multiples Editeur De Gruyter Ville Berlin, New-York Type Article scientifique dans une revue à comité de lecture Année 2015 Langue Anglais Date Juillet 2015 Numéro 8 Pagination 1135-1137 Volume 53 Titre de la revue Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory and Medicine ISSN 1437-4331
Disclosure and non-disclosure of concussion and concussion symptoms in athletes: Review and application of the socio-ecological framework

Abstract Primary objective: To summarize the factors associated with athletes’ disclosure—and non-disclosure—of sports-related concussion and concussion symptoms within the context of the socio-ecological framework and to identify research gaps in the current literature. Methods: Searches using electronic databases identified studies written in English, published through October 2013 and addressing some aspect of disclosure of concussion and concussion symptoms. The literature search aimed to be comprehensive and inclusive of all previous contributions. Main outcomes and results: Of the 30 identified studies, most originated from the US (n = 19) and sampled athletes (n = 21) and coaches (n = 10) from high school (n = 11) and college levels (n = 9). The identified reasons for non-disclosure were organized into four levels using the socio-ecological framework: intra-personal (e.g. lack of knowledge; internal pressure; sex; concussion history; n = 20 studies); inter-personal (e.g. others’ knowledge/attitudes; external pressure; external support; n = 15 studies); environment (e.g. access to concussion prevention materials; sports culture; n = 4 studies); and policy (e.g. concussion-related legislation; n = 3 studies). No study examined all four levels. Conclusions: Research gaps exist concerning factors influencing athletes’ disclosure of sports-related concussions and concussion symptoms. Notably, researchers have focused on intra-personal and inter-personal levels, placing less emphasis on the environment and policy levels.
Ethical issues in qualitative research at the end of life

This article discusses some of the ethical issues associated with the use of qualitative research methods in two doctoral studies conducted by nurses in a department of palliative medicine. These issues are of particular relevance with the increasing emphasis on evidence-based practice in palliative care. Both studies used multiple methods of data collection within a case study design. Study one (Seymour, 1997), an ethnography of death and dying in two critical care units, used participant observation, documentary analysis and semi-structured interviews to construct 14 detailed case studies. Each case consisted of the interactions and perceptions of those involved with a purposively selected series of critically ill individuals. Study two (Ingleton, 1997) was based on externally commissioned work and provided a longitudinal analysis of the evaluation of two palliative care services. Triangulated data from documentary analysis, structured and unstructured interviews, questionnaire surveys and observation w.
Moderate hypothermia treatment in adult patients with severe traumatic brain injury: A meta-analysis

Abstract Objectives: To evaluate the effect of moderate hypothermia treatment (MHT) in severe traumatic brain injury (sTBI) compared to normothermia management. Methods: PubMed, Medline, Springer, Elsevier Science Direct, Cochrane Library and Google scholar were searched up to December 2012. Pooled risk ratios (RRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for the mortality and clinical neurological outcome of the adult patients with sTBI were collected and calculated in a fixed-effects model or a random-effects model. Summary effect estimates were stratified by study design and ethnicity. Egger’s regression asymmetry tests were utilized for detecting the publication bias. Results: The overall estimates showed that MHT could reduce the mortality (hypothermia vs. normothermia, RR = 0.86, 95% CI = 0.73–1.01, p = 0.06) and unfavourable clinical neurological outcomes (RR = 1.21, 95% CI = 0.95–1.53, p = 0.12) for traumatic brain injured patients without statistical significance. Moreover, the further stratification sub-group analysis indicated that MHT presented a significant reduction (RR = 0.60, 95% CI = 0.44–0.83, p = 0.002) of mortality compared to the normothermia management in an Asian population. Surprisingly, American patients treated with moderate hypothermia showed an increasing mortality (RR = 1.07, 95% CI = 0.83–1.39, p = 0.61). Conclusions: MHT may be effective in reducing death and unfavourable clinical neurological outcomes, but this finding is not statistically significant, except for decreasing the mortality in Asian patients.
Analytical performances of the D-100TM hemoglobin testing system (Bio-Rad) for HbA1c assay

Abstract Background: Glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) is widely used for the monitoring of glycemic balance in diabetic patients and has also been proposed as a tool for the diagnostic of diabetes mellitus. Accordingly, HbA1c quantification must be performed using robust, reliable and efficient methods. Here are reported the results of the evaluation of a new high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) system for HbA1c quantification, the D-100TM system from Bio-Rad Laboratories. Methods: The analytical performances of the method as well as the influence of the most frequent interferences regarding HbA1c assays (e.g., labile HbA1c, carbamylated hemoglobin, high HbF) have been tested. Results: Intra- and between-assay CVs were respectively lower than 0.93% and 1.46% (HbA1c results expressed in NGSP units) and lower than 1.67% and 2.27% (HbA1c results expressed in IFCC units). The linearity proved to be excellent from 15 mmol/mol (3.5%) to 184 mmol/mol (19.0%) (r=0.999). The results were well correlated with those obtained by another HPLC method (VARIANTTM II Hemoglobin A1c Program reorder pack 270-2101NU-Bio-Rad): HbA1c[VARIANTTM II, mmol/mol]=1.013×HbA1c[D-100TM, mmol/mol]+0.637 (r=0.993, n=2000). The D-100TM system provided results consistent with IFCC-assigned external quality control samples and the presence of labile HbA1c, carbamylated hemoglobin and HbF did not interfere with HbA1c measurement. Conclusions: The D-100 TM system proved to be a robust and reliable method for HbA1c measurement suitable for routine practice in clinical chemistry laboratories.
How Many Sides Does a Coin Have? A Phenomenology of Filipino Nurses' Motivation and Attitudes Toward Geriatric Care

Nurses play a significant role in geriatric care. However, as the aging population and demand for geriatric nurses increase worldwide, shortages of nurses seem to arise. This creates the need to assess and address the motivation and attitudes of nurses toward geriatric care. The intent of this qualitative study is to surface the essence or the “lebenswelt” that describe the motivation and attitudes of a selected group of Filipino nurses toward geriatric care. A total of six registered nurses who had experienced taking care of elderly patients voluntarily participated as respondents of this study. A two-part instrument developed by the researchers was made to elicit necessary data and information. The first part comprised of the robotfoto intended to establish the baseline characteristics of nurses under study. The second part consisted of a semistructured individual in-depth interview using “aide memoire” to probe into the motivation and attitudes of the nurse respondents. Field texts were phenomenologically reduced via repertory grid. Two distinct and interesting themes, namely Geriatric Service Motivation Typology and the Yin-Yang of Geriatric Attitudes emerged. The first theme includes the Single Loop and Double Loop type of motivation The former involves a transactional and unidirectional process, while the latter constitutes a two-way relational and transformational process. The second theme consists of a harmonious combination of the two sides of the nurses' attitudes toward geriatric care. Through this study, the human side of nursing is seen and captured, thus increasing the awareness and knowledge of nurses, improving provision of optimum geriatric care, and inspiring nurses to pursue geriatric nursing with a yearning to serve the elderly with and from the heart.
A case study of magnetic resonance imaging of cerebrovascular reactivity: A powerful imaging marker for mild traumatic brain injury

Abstract Primary objective: To use breath-hold functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to localize the brain regions with impaired cerebrovascular reactivity (CVR) in a female patient diagnosed with mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI). The extent of impaired CVR was evaluated 2 months after concussion. Follow-up scan was performed 1 year post-mTBI using the same breath-hold fMRI technique. Research design: Case report. Methods and procedures: fMRI blood oxygenation dependent level (BOLD) signals were measured under breath-hold challenge in a female mTBI patient 2 months after concussion followed by a second fMRI with breath-hold challenge 1 year later. CVR was expressed as the percentage change of BOLD signals per unit time of breath-hold. Main outcomes: In comparison with CVR measurement of normal control subjects, statistical maps of CVR revealed substantial neurovascular deficits and hemispheric asymmetry within grey and white matter in the initial breath-hold fMRI scan. Follow-up breath-hold fMRI performed 1 year post-mTBI demonstrated normalization of CVR accompanied with symptomatic recovery. Conclusions: CVR may serve as an imaging biomarker to detect subtle deficits in both grey and white matter for individual diagnosis of mTBI. The findings encourage further investigation of hypercapnic fMRI as a diagnostic tool for mTBI.
Flexibilidade anterior do tronco no adolecente após o pico da velocidade de crescimento em estatura

Trunk anterior flexibility (TAF) is a major component of clinical and physical ability tests and it is used as an indicative of vertebral function. The most used test for its quantification is the seat-and-reach (SRT), which considers hands touching feet as normality standard, with analysis criteria and parameters that are independent of variables. In this study, TAF was investigated in teenagers, after the occurrence of the height growth speed peak compared to gender, performance speed, and anthropometric data. Rates were provided as centimeters; body weight in kg. One hundred two adolescents took part of the study, being 45 females and 57 males, with ages between 16 and 20 years. The results suggest that gender factor, anthropometric data, and test performance speed influence flexibility rates; the evaluation of vertebral function cannot have SRT for reaching feet as a normality criterion, and that fast speeds lead to better results. In brief, results suggest that touching feet is a criterion ruling out a normal vertebral function in approximately 50% of the adolescents. Thus, the criterion used for making a decision regarding referring a teenager to recover higher flexibility rates must be reviewed.
A cross-sectional study of biomarkers of exposure and effect in smokers and moist snuff consumers

Abstract Background: Cigarette smoking is a major risk factor for several chronic diseases. Epidemiological data indicate the use of smokeless tobacco (ST) is associated with significantly lower risk for smoking-related diseases compared to cigarettes. Several biomarkers of exposure (BioExp) and effect (BioEff) associated with smoking and use of moist snuff (ST) were evaluated. Methods: A single site, cross-sectional clinical study enrolled three groups of generally healthy male smokers (SMK), moist snuff consumers (MSC), and non-tobacco consumers (NTC), and several BioExp and BioEff were evaluated. Results: Blood and urinary BioExp, including total nicotine equivalents and tobacco-specific nitrosamines, were higher in MSC compared to SMK. Biomarkers of combustion-related toxicants and cadmium were elevated in SMK. Elevated levels of some BioEff associated with oxidative stress (urinary isoprostanes and leukotriene E4), inflammation (white blood cell count), platelet activation (thromboxane metabolites), and lipid metabolism (apolipoprotein B100 and oxidized low-density lipoprotein) were observed in SMK relative to NTC and MSC (all p<0.05). The non-smoking groups (MSC and NTC) showed similar levels of combustion-related BioExp and BioEff. Conclusions: Higher levels of exposure to nicotine and some N′-nitrosamines may be observed in MSC, and SMK are exposed to higher levels of combustion-related toxicants. Changes in BioEff consistent with some aspects of inflammation, oxidative stress, and altered lipid metabolism were detected in SMK compared to the non-smoking groups. The biomarker data further improve our understanding of pathophysiological changes and the risk continuum associated with various tobacco products, and could be useful components of future assessments of tobacco products.
Exploration of a new tool for assessing emotional inferencing after traumatic brain injury

Abstract Objective: To explore validity of an assessment tool under development—the Emotional Inferencing from Stories Test (EIST). This measure is being designed to assess the ability of people with traumatic brain injury (TBI) to make inferences about the emotional state of others solely from contextual cues. Methods and procedures: Study 1: 25 stories were presented to 40 healthy young adults. From this data, two versions of the EIST (EIST-1; EIST-2) were created. Study 2: Each version was administered to a group of participants with moderate-to-severe TBI—EIST 1 group: 77 participants; EIST-2 group: 126 participants. Participants also completed a facial affect recognition (DANVA2-AF) test. Participants with facial affect recognition impairment returned 2 weeks later and were re-administered both tests. Main outcomes: Participants with TBI scored significantly lower than the healthy group mean for EIST-1, F(1,114) = 68.49, p < 0.001, and EIST-2, F(1,163) = 177.39, p < 0.001. EIST scores in the EIST-2 group were significantly lower than the EIST-1 group, t = 4.47, p < 0.001. DANVA2-AF scores significantly correlated with EIST scores, EIST-1: r = 0.50, p < 0.001; EIST-2: r = 0.31, p < 0.001. Test–re-test reliability scores for the EIST were adequate. Conclusions: Both versions of the EIST were found to be sensitive to deficits in emotional inferencing. After further development, the EIST may provide clinicians valuable information for intervention planning.
Monitoring multiple myeloma patients treated with daratumumab: teasing out monoclonal antibody interference

Abstract Background: Monoclonal antibodies are promising anti-myeloma treatments. As immunoglobulins, monoclonal antibodies have the potential to be identified by serum protein electrophoresis (SPE) and immunofixation electrophoresis (IFE). Therapeutic antibody interference with standard clinical SPE and IFE can confound the use of these tests for response assessment in clinical trials and disease monitoring. Methods: To discriminate between endogenous myeloma protein and daratumumab, a daratumumab-specific immunofixation electrophoresis reflex assay (DIRA) was developed using a mouse anti-daratumumab antibody. To evaluate whether anti-daratumumab bound to and shifted the migration pattern of daratumumab, it was spiked into daratumumab-containing serum and resolved by IFE/SPE. The presence (DIRA positive) or absence (DIRA negative) of residual M-protein in daratumumab-treated patient samples was evaluated using predetermined assessment criteria. DIRA was evaluated for specificity, limit of sensitivity, and reproducibility. Results: In all of the tested samples, DIRA distinguished between daratumumab and residual M-protein in commercial serum samples spiked with daratumumab and in daratumumab-treated patient samples. The DIRA limit of sensitivity was 0.2 g/L daratumumab, using spiking experiments. Results from DIRA were reproducible over multiple days, operators, and assays. The anti-daratumumab antibody was highly specific for daratumumab and did not shift endogenous M-protein. Conclusions: As the treatment of myeloma evolves to incorporate novel monoclonal antibodies, additional solutions will be needed for clinical monitoring of patient responses to therapeutic regimens. In the interim, assays such as DIRA can inform clinical outcomes by distinguishing daratumumab from endogenous M-protein by IFE.
Finding the right partner

PARTNERSHIPS and sole principal businesses are probably still the most common trading structures for veterinary practices, although some have adopted one of the more commercial entities, such as a limited company. However, partnerships are not always successful and may eventually break down. The chances of this happening could be greatly reduced with some forethought and planning. To ensure a successful working relationship, it is important to be clear from the outset of the reasons for taking on a new partner and of the type of person who will fit that role, as Christine Stobbs explains.
Vowel confusion patterns in adults during initial 4 years of implant use

This study investigated adult cochlear implant users' (n = 39) vowel recognition and confusions by an open-set syllable test during 4 years of implant use, in a prospective repeated-measures design. Subjects' responses were coded for phoneme errors and estimated by the generalized mixed model. Improvement in overall vowel recognition was highest during the first 6 months, showing statistically significant change until 4 years, especially for the mediocre performers. The best performers improved statistically significantly until 18 months. The poorest performers improved until 12 months and exhibited more vowel confusions. No differences were found in overall vowel recognition between Nucleus24M/24R and Med-ElC40+ device users (matched comparison), but certain vowels showed statistically significant differences. Vowel confusions between adjacent vowels were evident, probably due to the implant users' inability to discriminate formant frequencies. Vowel confusions were also dominated by vowels whose average F1 and/or F2 frequencies were higher than the target vowel, indicating a basalward shift in the confusions.
miRNA assays in the clinical laboratory: workflow, detection technologies and automation aspects

Abstract microRNAs (miRNAs) are short non-coding RNA molecules that regulate gene expression in eukaryotes. Their differential abundance is indicative or even causative for a variety of pathological processes including cancer or cardiovascular disorders. Due to their important biological function, miRNAs represent a promising class of novel biomarkers that may be used to diagnose life-threatening diseases, and to monitor disease progression. Further, they may guide treatment selection or dosage of drugs. miRNAs from blood or derived fractions are particularly interesting candidates for routine laboratory applications, as they can be measured in most clinical laboratories already today. This assures a good accessibility of respective tests. Albeit their great potential, miRNA-based diagnostic tests have not made their way yet into the clinical routine, and hence no standardized workflows have been established to measure miRNAs for patients’ benefit. In this review we summarize the detection technologies and workflow options that exist to measure miRNAs, and we describe the advantages and disadvantages of each of these options. Moreover, we also provide a perspective on data analysis aspects that are vital for translation of raw data into actionable diagnostic test results.
Language and ageing – exploring propositional density in written language – stability over time

This study investigated the stability of propositional density (PD) in written texts, as this aspect of language shows promise as an indicator and as a predictor of language decline with ageing. This descriptive longitudinal study analysed written texts obtained from the Australian Longitudinal Study of Women's Health in which participants were invited to respond to an open-ended question about their health. The 635 texts used for this study were taken from 127 middle-aged women who responded to this question on each of the five surveys conducted at 3-year intervals over a 16-year period. The study made use of an automated PD rater (CPIDR-3) for the analysis. PD was found to be a stable measure over time when comparing the grouped data, but there was between- and within-subject variation over time. Further research is needed to explore the valid use of this measure in research into language and ageing.
Children's recognition of their own recorded voice: influence of age and phonological impairment

Children with phonological impairment (PI) often have difficulties perceiving insufficiencies in their own speech. The use of recordings has been suggested as a way of directing the child's attention toward his/her own speech, despite a lack of evidence that children actually recognize their recorded voice as their own. We present two studies of children's self-voice identification, one exploring developmental aspects, and one exploring potential effects of having a PI. The results indicate that children from 4 to 8 years recognize their recorded voice well (around 80% accuracy), regardless of whether they have a PI or not. A subtle change in this ability from 4 to 8 years is observed that could be linked to a development in short-term memory. Clinically, one can indeed expect an advantage of using recordings in therapy; this could constitute an intermediate step toward the more challenging task of online self-monitoring.
Programs for Riemann's zeta function

In this note I will present programs to compute ζ(s) and some related functions that I have implemented, and are now part of the free software mpmath, a Python library for multiprecision floating-point arithmetic. mpmath provides an extensive set of transcendental functions, unlimited exponent sizes, complex numbers, interval arithmetic, numerical integration and differentiation, root-finding, linear algebra, and much more. It can be used from within Sage, in which case some of the functions run faster than running them only in mpmath. The need for implementing these functions must be sought in my drawings in [1]. The computations needed for these drawings were done with the commercial software Mathematica. But the computed values of the zeta function given by Mathematica may not be well supported by theory. Although the Riemann-Siegel formula is known to be valid for values off the critical line, there were no published bounds available for the error, similar to those of Gabcke [7] for the critical line.
The interactional organization of aphasia naming testing

Abstract In this article, Conversation Analysis (CA) is used to investigate the nature of aphasia naming tests in terms of their properties as a specialized form of social interaction. The basic test-item sequence which occurs in these tests is shown to be made up of a three-part sequential structure consisting of (1) a testing prompt, (2) a proffered answer by the testee, and (3) an acceptance or declining of that proffered answer by the tester. A declining prompts a further answer to be proffered, and this cycle continues until either an answer is accepted by the tester or until the participants treat the testee as being unable to produce the relevant picture name. It is suggested that the results of the analysis have implications for understanding naming tests as instruments which generate theoretical and clinical findings through particular talk-in-interaction practices.