Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Evaluation of the Role of the Puborectal Part of the Levator Ani Muscle in Anal Incontinence: A Prospective Study of 78 Female Patients With Anal Incontinence

BACKGROUND: Anal incontinence is most often linked with sphincter rupture and/or stretching the pudendal nerves. OBJECTIVE: The aim of our study was to investigate the involvement of the puborectal part of the levator ani muscle in anal incontinence. PATIENTS AND MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Seventy-eight female patients were studied by anorectal manometry, 3-dimensional ultrasound examination, and concentric needle electromyography of the external anal sphincter, puborectal muscle, and bulbocavernous muscles, completing with the evaluation of the pudendal nerve terminal motor latencies. Damage to the puborectal muscle was defined by an abnormal ultrasound and/or abnormal electromyography. RESULTS: Rupture of the anal sphincter apparatus and puborectal muscle was found in 23% and 3.8%. The EMG showed damage to the puborectal part in 39 cases: this was isolated in 4 cases and combined with external anal sphincter damage in 35 patients. Unilateral or bilateral increase in the terminal motor latencies of the pudendal nerves was found in 36% (28/78) of the patients. The frequency of peripheral neurogenic lesions varied from 36% to 90% according to the electromyographic tests used. There was no correlation between puborectal part damage and resting pressure, perception threshold, and maximum tolerable rectal volume. The mean Wexner index score was not increased by the existence of a defect involving the puborectal part found by echography or by damage to the puborectal part shown by the EMG. Investigating puborectal muscle lesions reduced the percentage of idiopathic anal incontinence to 2.5%. CONCLUSION: Our study confirms the feasibility and usefulness of combined electromyography and 3-dimensional ultrasound examination of the puborectal muscle in anal incontinence.
High Density Heat-Assisted Magnetic Recording Media and Advanced Characterization—Progress and Challenges

Heat-assisted magnetic recording (HAMR) is being developed as the next generation magnetic recording technology. Critical components of this technology, such as plasmonic near-field transducer (NFT) and high anisotropy granular FePt media, as well as the performance and reliability of fully integrated drives have been reported. This paper will focus on the progress and challenges of HAMR media, including microstructure and thermal design as well as the testing and characterization at high field and high temperature. Due to the importance of the Curie temperature distribution, σTC, for HAMR, we present a newly developed temperature-dependent complex ac susceptibility method to extract σTC for HAMR media. Such novel magnetic characterization methods have been used in combination with other high field magnetic metrology and spin-stand recording to provide feedback for continuous improvements of HAMR media. Together with NFT and write head design, the thermal design, σTC, and microstructure of the media are key factors to reduce the transition jitter below 2 nm as demonstrated in a previously reported 1 Tb/in2 HAMR demonstration. Here, we report the further improvements by significantly enabling higher linear density (>2500 kfci) HAMR and steady progress in areal density to 1.402 Tb/in2.
Trace Metals Levels in Inorganic Fertilizers Commercially Available in Nigeria

Aims: To investigate the concentrations of arsenic (As), cadmium (Cd), copper (Cu), lead (Pb), nickel (Ni), vanadium (V) and zinc (Zn) in commercially available inorganic fertilizers (calcium superphosphate and urea). Place and Duration of Study: Urea and superphosphate fertilizers were purchased from a local market in Uyo, Southern Nigeria. Methodology: A total of twenty seven fertilizer samples were randomly taken representing triplicate samples from three urea and six superphosphate original fertilizer bags. Each sample were digested and extracted using the ethylenediamine tetraacetic acid (EDTA) extraction technique. The elemental analysis was performed using an inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrophotometer (ICP-AES) (Optima 3000 – Perkin Elmer). Results: The analyses indicated the presence of trace metals in commercially available fertilizers sold in Nigeria. Cadmium was found in comparatively high concentrations. Zinc was found present in relatively high concentrations in both urea and phosphate fertilizer samples but As was found in low concentration. By comparison, the superphosphate
The Evolution of Kenya's Trade Policy

Background: This paper discusses the development of Kenya's trade policies have evolved through four major phases, namely, Import substitution period, The Period of SAPs and Export Promotion Schemes, The Period of Export Oriented Policies and Vision 2030&National Trade Policy. Method: This study, being qualitative and analytical in nature, shall employ various descriptive, theoretical and where feasible, simple statistical analytical tools to explain the facts as borne out by available data. The study sought to make valid discussions by going through various literature related to Kenya's trade policies. The data used was secondary data mostly from various issues of Kenya's Economic Surveys. Based on the data, calculations were made and tabulated to show relevance of various indicators. Results: Trade policies in Kenya have evolved through four distinct stages namely: 1) Import substitution period (1960s - 1980s), 2) The Period of SAPs and Export Promotion Schemes (1980s), 3) A Period of Export Oriented Policies (1990s) and 4) Vision 2030 and National Trade Policy (from 2004 to-date). Policies adopted in the 90s till now can be described as the way to go but not the only way if Kenya has to reach its potential as a global competitive and a prosperous nation by 2030. The new National Trade Policies which are drawn to help Kenya reach a higher potential internationally by 2030 are good. What is needed now is for the government to implement them and keep thinking of how to make them better in order to fit in the ever changing future. Conclusion: This is a simplified study of trade policies in Kenya and will help those seeking information on this topic as well as various stake holders to make vital policy changes.
A prospective evaluation of the value of repeat cranial computed tomography in patients with minimal head injury and an intracranial bleed.

BACKGROUND Patients with minimal head injury (MHI) and intracranial bleed (ICB) detected on cranial computed tomography (CT) scan routinely undergo a repeat cranial CT within 24 hours after injury to assess for progression of intracranial injuries. While this is clearly beneficial in patients with a deteriorating neurologic status, it is of questionable value in patients with a normal neurologic examination. The goal of this study was to prospectively assess the value of a repeat cranial CT in patients with a MHI and an ICB who have a normal neurologic examination. METHODS A prospective analysis of all adult patients admitted to a Level I trauma center after blunt trauma causing a MHI (defined as the loss of consciousness or posttraumatic amnesia with a Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) score of greater or equal to 13) and an ICB on the initial cranial CT during a 12-month period (July 2002 through July 2003) was performed. All patients with MHI were prospectively evaluated and followed until discharge. Data collected included demographics, neurologic examination and findings on the initial and repeat cranial CT scan. Outcome data included neurologic deterioration, neurosurgical intervention, and Glasgow Outcome Scale (GOS) on discharge. RESULTS In all, 161 consecutive patients with MHI and a positive cranial CT scan were identified. The initial cranial CT lead to a neurosurgical intervention (1 craniotomy, 4 intracranial pressure monitors) in 4% of cases. The remaining 130 patients who met inclusion criteria, underwent a repeat cranial CT scan within 24 hours postadmission. Ninety nine (76%) patients had a normal neurologic examination at the time of their repeat cranial CT. After the repeat cranial CT none required immediate neurosurgical intervention or had delayed neurologic deterioration related to their head injury. Fifteen patients underwent additional neuroradiologic studies but none showed further progression of their ICB or lead to a change in management. One patient died from non-traumatic brain injury related causes and of the remaining 26 patients, 98% had an overall favorable GOS score (> 3) on discharge. In this group of patients with MHI and ICB, the negative predictive value of a normal neurologic examination was 100%. CONCLUSIONS Repeat cranial CT, in patients with a MHI and a normal neurologic examination, resulted in no change in management or neurosurgical intervention and is therefore not indicated. A multicenter prospective study would further validate these conclusions, reduce unnecessary CT scans, and likely improve our current standard of care in these patients.
Optimally porous and biomechanically compatible scaffolds for large-area bone regeneration.

Large-area or critical-sized bone defects pose a serious challenge in orthopedic surgery, as all current treatment options present with shortcomings. Bone tissue engineering offers a more promising alternative treatment strategy. However, this approach requires mechanically stable scaffolds that support homogenous bone formation throughout the scaffold thickness. Despite advances in scaffold fabrication, current scaffold-based techniques are unable to support uniform, three-dimensional bone regeneration, and are limited to only the scaffold surface in vitro and in vivo. This is mainly because of inadequate scaffold pore sizes (<200 μm) and accessible pore volume, and the associated limited oxygen diffusion and vascular invasion. In this study, we have adopted a method combining microsphere-sintering and porogen-leaching techniques to fabricate scaffolds with an increased accessible pore volume. Of the scaffolds developed, moderately porous poly(85 lactide-co-15 glycolide) (PLGA) microsphere scaffolds were selected as most advantageous, since they retain mechanical strength in the range of human cancellous bone and display a significantly higher accessible pore volume, which is attributed to an increased percentage of larger pores (i.e., size range 200-600 μm). Unlike control scaffolds with a limited pore size and an accessible pore volume, moderately porous scaffolds displayed increased oxygen diffusion, pre-osteoblast cell infiltration, proliferation, and survival throughout the entire scaffold. Furthermore, moderately porous PLGA microsphere scaffolds displayed enhanced and homogenous mineralization in vitro. Since these newly designed moderately porous scaffolds are weight bearing, are fully osteoconductive, and have the ability to support vascularization, they may serve as effective scaffolds for large-area bone defect repair/regeneration. In addition, this study demonstrates the ability to modulate scaffold porosity and, in turn, to develop oxygen tension-controlled matrices that are effective for large-area bone regeneration.
An optical platform based on fluorescence anisotropy for C — reactive protein assay

A novel optical platform for point of care testing application was developed. The core of the platform is a miniaturised polymethylmetacrylate (PMMA) chip through which the analysed sample flows. Thanks to the fluorescence anisotropy exhibited by any dipole emitting at a distance from a medium interface of the order of the emitted wavelength, a large fraction of the fluorescence emitted by the sensing layer immobilized onto the internal flow-channel travels along the thickness of the PMMA up to its end-face where it is collected by a plastic optical fibre connected to a spectrum analyser. The potentiality of the optical chip was investigated with a sandwich assay for the C-reactive protein, one of the markers for inflammatory diseases.
Prosthetic heart valves with silver-coated sewing cuff fabric: early morphological features in two patients.

BACKGROUND The current generation of prosthetic heart valves are excellent examples of engineering that work well, for long periods of time. Unfortunately, host-related problems and consequent valve failure continue to occur, including infective endocarditis. St Jude Medical Inc introduced a new model of mechanical heart valve prosthesis with silver-treated fabric to try to reduce the incidence of infective endocarditis. Two cases of failure of this prosthesis, with a clinical diagnosis of infective endocarditis, are presented. MATERIALS AND METHODS Of the 176 St Jude Medical Silzone-coated prostheses implanted, two were explanted in the first half of 1998. The clinical status of the patients was reviewed, and a detailed gross, histological and stereomicroscopic examination of the prosthetic valves was undertaken. RESULTS Clinically, both patients developed symptoms of infective endocarditis. The first patient developed features of a stroke and two months later underwent a second valve replacement. The prosthesis showed pannus and thrombus. A paravalvular leak was revealed in the second patient, who underwent a second valve replacement six months after the initial surgery. Blood and tissue cultures were negative in both cases. CONCLUSIONS The new model St Jude Medical Silzone mechanical heart valve prosthesis, designed to prevent infective endocarditis, was associated with clinical features of endocarditis in these two cases. Significant pannus and thrombus were seen on both prostheses, which likely led to emboli and stroke in the first case. The cause of the paravalvular abscess in the second case has not yet been established. The early failure of these prostheses suggests that patients with this prosthesis be followed up carefully.
Recurrent NNRTI-Induced Hepatotoxicity in an HIV-HCV-Coinfected Patient

suggest that cryopreserved alteplase solutions maintain bioactivity for at least six months.7 Given the in vitro bioactivity data, preparation of 50 doses of 1 mg/mL would further reduce the cost and further offset any preparation costs. This report describes our initial experiences in a small number of patients treated with unit-dose cryopreserved alteplase at a dose of 1 mg/mL for central catheter thrombosis. The 1-mg dose needs further evaluation since none of the catheters treated had radiographic confirmation of thrombosis. Restoring patency of thrombosed central catheters with unit-dose alteplase has been suggested with continued efficacy up to 26 days after initial cryopreservation. Strict adherence to aseptic technique during compounding is critical.
Information and Under-Provision of Local Public Goods

We present an electoral theory on the public provision of local public goods to an imperfectly informed electorate. We show that electoral incentives lead to the efficient provision of local public goods only if the electorate is not well informed. An informed electorate induces candidates to under-provide local public goods, deviating from socially optimal allocations in order to target funds only to specific constituencies. Information generates an efficiency loss.
A phase II trial of Ribavirin (Virazole®) in patients with genital infection caused by human papillomaviruses

BACKGROUND: Human papillomaviruses (HPV) are widely spread all over the world, particularly in young, sexually active persons. Diseases caused by them are highly contagious. Latent period can vary from several months to several years. A larger number of HPV (22 types) infect mucous membranes of the genital tract and due to their high oncogenic potential, the presence of these viruses in the genital tract represents a medium for developing premalignant and malignant lesions. Different treatments were used in the therapy of HPV infections: chemical, ablative and immunotherapy. This study was conducted in order to evaluate efficacy and predict the response rate to ribavirin (Virazole®) in patients with genital infection caused by HPV, types 6 and 11, as well as to determine the tolerance of this drug in the study group. METHODS: During the single-center, open-label controlled study 50 eligible patients were treated with ribavirin (Virazole®) 7.5% cream, applied in a thin layer on each HPV lesion 3 times a day, during 28 days. Patients were considered eligible according to the presence of the clinical and subclinical forms of HPV (types 6 and 11) changes, detected on the skin and mucous membrane of the lower genital tract. These changes had been clinically and/or colposcopically confirmed before the treatment, as well as virologically verified (HPV DNA in situ hybridization technique). RESULTS: Partial clinical and/or laboratory response to treatment was detected in 96% patients. The onset of the total lesion area regression occurred after day 14 of the treatment. After the end of treatment, virological analysis showed decreased positiveness of HPV types 6 and 11 results, however this was not statistically significant. Local symptoms relief began to appear after 8 days of treatment. After 14 days of treatment, 96% of patients responded to therapy, and after 21 days, all patients were without symptoms. CONCLUSION: This study is a good basis for further research in treatment of HPV genital infection by ribavirin.
PHARMACOGNOSTICAL EVALUATION AND QUALITATIVE ANALYSIS OF SACCHARUM SPONTANEUM (L.) ROOT

Saccharum spontaneum L. known as Kasa (Family: Poaceae) is a traditional herb, it has excellence medicinal value; has been advocated in the treatment gynaecological troubles, respiratory disease. Roots are used as galactagogue and diuretic and in ayurveda system roots are also used as astringent, emollient, refrigerant, diuretic, purgative, tonic, aphrodisiac and useful in treatment of dyspepsia, burning sensation, piles and sexual weakness. Various parameters like macroscopy, microscopy, fluorescence analysis as well as extractive value and quantitative phytochemical screening of different extractives were studied. The major components of the extractives like total phenolic, total flavonoids were also estimated respectively. The characteristic of microscopy, physicochemical, fluorescence analysis and quantitative chemical screening were performed in root extractives of the plant material as a mean of authentication.
Contracting Frictions, Regulation, and the Structure of CPA Firms

The prominence of management consulting services in the largest CPA firms leaves little doubt that there are economies of scope between auditing and at least some types of consulting. The source of these economies of scope has been conjectured to be the result of information produced as a by-product of performing audit work (e.g., Simunic [1984]). This information may be about the benefits to a client from a certain type of consulting project, or it may be about how best to produce desired consulting services and thereby reduce the cost of supplying these services. The purpose of this paper is to explore theoretically another potential source of economies of scope: contracting frictions. The particular contracting frictions we study arise from the CPA firm's private information about the costs of performing auditing and consulting for a particular client. We show such private information may give rise to economies of scope, in the sense that the client is better off purchasing auditing and consulting from the same CPA firm as opposed to separate sourcing of the two
Do skills matter for wage inequality

Policymakers in many OECD countries are increasingly concerned about high and rising inequality. Much of the evidence (as far back as Adam Smith’s The Wealth of Nations) points to the importance of skills in tackling wage inequality. Yet a recent strand of the research argues that (cognitive) skills explain little of the cross-country differences in wage inequality. Does this challenge the received wisdom on the relationship between skills and wage inequality? No, because this recent research fails to account for the fact that the price of skill (and thus wage inequality) is determined to a large extent by the match of skill supply and demand.
The epidermal growth factor receptor ligands at a glance

The epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) regulates key processes of cell biology, including proliferation, survival, and differentiation during development, tissue homeostasis, and tumorigenesis. Canonical EGFR activation involves the binding of seven peptide growth factors. These ligands are synthesized as transmembrane proteins comprising an N‐terminal extension, the EGF module, a short juxtamembrane stalk, a hydrophobic transmembrane domain, and a carboxy‐terminal fragment. The central structural and functional feature is the EGF module, a sequence containing six cysteines in a conserved spacement which is responsible for binding to the EGFR. While the membrane‐anchored peptide can be biologically active by juxtacrine signaling, in most cases the EGF module is proteolytically cleaved (a process termed ectodomain shedding) to release the soluble growth factor, which may act in an endocrine, paracrine, or autocrine fashion. This review summarizes the structural and functional properties of these fascinating molecules and presents selected examples to illustrate their roles in development, physiology, and pathology. J. Cell. Physiol. 218: 460–466, 2009. © 2008 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Vision-Based Estimation of Airborne Target Pseudobearing Rate using Hidden Markov Model Filters

The problem of estimating pseudobearing rate information of an airborne target based on measurements from a vision sensor is considered. Novel image speed and heading angle estimators are presented that exploit image morphology, hidden Markov model (HMM) filtering, and relative entropy rate (RER) concepts to allow pseudobearing rate information to be determined before (or whilst) the target track is being estimated from vision information.
Futures versus Stocks: A Stochastic Dominance Study in Malaysian Markets

This paper applies stochastic dominance (SD) tests to examine the dominance relationship between the futures and spot markets in Malaysia, the preferences for the risk-averse and risk-seekers in these markets, the existence of arbitrage opportunities, and whether the markets are efficient and rational. Our results show that there is no arbitrage opportunity in the Malaysian markets and that the Malaysian stock and futures markets can be considered efficient and rational. We find that the spot dominates the futures market on the downside risk, whereas futures dominate spot on the upside profits. In addition, we find that for the risk-averse, spot dominates futures under second-order SD (SSD), while for risk-seekers, futures dominate spot under SSD. This implies that the risk-averse prefer to buy indexed stocks, while risk-seekers are attracted to long index futures to maximize their expected utilities, but not their wealth. Based on our findings, the SSD relationship becomes stronger in the post-Mahathir sub-period.