Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A pilot study analyzing the effects of Chinese cupping as an adjunct treatment for patients with subacute low back pain on relieving pain, improving range of motion, and improving function.

BACKGROUND Cupping, a classic Chinese medicine treatment, is a technique that applies suction cups over soft tissue. Cupping is gaining popularity in physical medicine because of the simplicity in application, minimal adverse effects, and reduction in pain and muscle tenderness. These factors also make it a cost-effective intervention. For this study, cupping was used to treat low back pain (LBP). OBJECTIVE To evaluate the effectiveness of Chinese cupping in acutely reducing pain, decreasing tenderness to palpation, and improving range of motion for patients with subacute or chronic LBP. PATIENTS/SETTING Twenty-one patients who reported back pain for at least 8 weeks volunteered at a multidisciplinary holistic outpatient clinic. INTERVENTION After completion of a medical screening questionnaire and collection of baseline data, 4 glass cups were applied and pressurized over the lower erector spinae muscles. OUTCOME MEASUREMENTS Baseline data included demographic characteristics and the Oswestry Disability Questionnaire score. Pre- and postintervention data included perceived pain on a visual analog scale (VAS), lumbar spine range of motion, straight-leg raise test (SLR), and pain-pressure threshold (PPT) assessed with a digital force gauge. The data were analyzed by using a Wilcoxon signed-rank test and Spearman rho correlations. RESULTS Of the 17 patients who completed the study, there were significant post-treatment improvements in VAS scores (p=0.0001), SLR motion on the left (p=0.043), and lumbar flexion range of motion (p=0.016) and improvements in PPT at all 4 investigated points (p<0.007). Significant relationships were identified between the improvement in low back flexion with the improvement in PPT at bilateral lumbar paraspinal muscles at the L4 levels and at the left L2 level. CONCLUSIONS Chinese cupping may be a low-risk, therapeutic treatment for the prompt reduction of symptoms associated with subacute and chronic low back pain. Cupping may allow patients to progress to functional movement training in a timely manner by promptly reducing pain and muscle tenderness and improving range of motion.
Frecuencia de síntomas premonitorios en pacientes con epilepsia

Los sintomas premonitorios (SP), anteceden a la crisis epileptica (CE) y podrian proporcionar un sistema de alerta para el paciente con epilepsia. Al desconocer si el fenomeno se presenta en nuestra poblacion, decidimos abordar su investigacion. Objetivos: 1-Determinar frecuencia de sintomas premonitorios (SP). 2- Caracterizar los SP. 3-Determinar lapso de tiempo (t) que anteceden estos sintomas a la CE. Metodologia: Se realizo una investigacion observacional descriptiva, registrando el SP a traves de planilla ad hoc y calendario de crisis, en pacientes con epilepsia de dos hospitales y un centro ambulatorio. Resultados: De 104 pacientes atendidos, 19 (73,68%) con epilepsia focal, manifestaron SP (18,27%). Los SP se clasificaron en: 12 cefalea (41,3 %), 5 irritabilidad (17,24%), 8 ansiedad (27,59%), 2 depresion (6,89%), 2 otros (6,89%). El t que antecedieron a la CE fue 2-4 dias (36,84%), 1 dia (26,32%), 4-6 horas (15,79%) y 1-2 horas (15,79%). Conclusion: Los SP en la poblacion estudiada resultaron frecuentes (18,27%); observando cifras mayores en epilepsia focal, la que con mayor frecuencia se hace refractaria. La identificacion precoz de SP, podria plantear una nueva estrategia terapeutica, actuando sobre esta fase, evitando las CE y sus consecuencias: refractariedad, impacto sobre funcion cognoscitiva y calidad de vida.
Effects of Training on a Simulator of Pain Care on the Quality of Pain Care for Patients With Cancer‐Related Pain

Context A computer simulator of pain care provided an environment for residents to learn to (1) rapidly induce pain relief; (2) measure pain scores at appropriate time intervals; (3) use induction doses to estimate, early in care, the long-acting pain medication requirements; and (4) escalate long-acting agents to ensure a smooth and nonvarying pain-control curve. We studied whether lessons learned on the simulator translated into improved pain control for patients with cancer-related pain crises. Study Design and Measures We compared pain scores for 48 hours in 2 groups: 20 patients admitted consecutively, solely because of an acute exacerbation of pain, prior to training our residents on a simulator and 20 patients post-training. Training at the beginning of an oncology rotation consisted of education about pain control followed by practice on simulated cases of patients with cancer-related pain crises. Outcome measures were average pain scores compared using linear regression and the frequency of using long-acting agents early in a patient's care. Results Pain control in the first 48 hours of care improved in the postintervention period; the slope of the pain scores actually increased in the preintervention period and declined in the postintervention period (P < .0005). Residents used long-acting agents early in patients' care in 35% (7/20) in the preperiod and 90% (18/20) in the postperiod (P < .001). Conclusions Residents developed pain care treatment skills on a computer-based simulator that translated into improved control of acute, cancer-related pain.
Patterns of harmony

There are two seemingly self-evident truths concerning the harmonic practices of popular music. The first, which finds clear expression in Adorno, is that such music's harmonic language is both detrimentally limited and static. The harmonic repertoire is considered to consist of a few formulae (Adorno deals with them in terms of standardisation: see Middleton 1990, p. 45ff.), by means of which song-writers string together their songs, uninfluenced by the song's content. For the expert listener, therefore, popular music should be uninteresting: it is only its psycho-economic dimension which makes it worthy of study. This tends also to be the conclusion of established musicology, except that there it is felt such ‘extra-musical’ speculation is best left to the sociologist. The second truth is that the differences between Afro-American-derived styles are material, since our identities are so strongly incorporated in the styles we use: We mark out the differences between genres and styles partly by reference to contrasts in the way this stock of techniques and sounds is used. (Middleton 1990, p. 88) Since harmony is not only at the forefront of traditional analytical investigation, but also forms an important initial focus for songwriters, it may well be assumed that it is therefore an important factor in enabling us to distinguish, for example, ‘rock’ from ‘pop’ from ‘soul’. However, the material reality behind these differences of style has rarely been subject to systematic investigation.
Impaired neurogenic and endothelium-mediated relaxation of penile smooth muscle from diabetic men with impotence.

Relaxation of the smooth muscle of the corpora cavernosa of the penis is necessary for penile erection. To determine the relation of impaired relaxation to impotence in diabetic patients, we performed an in vitro examination of corpus cavernosum tissue obtained at the time of implantation of a penile prosthesis in 21 diabetic and 42 nondiabetic men with impotence. Contraction was induced in isolated strips of corporal smooth muscle by norepinephrine; then relaxation was assessed with electrical stimulation of autonomic nerves and with the administration of three agents: acetylcholine, which is known to be mediated by endothelium-derived relaxing factor; papaverine; and sodium nitroprusside. The latter two act directly on smooth muscle (i.e., they are endothelium-independent). Autonomically mediated relaxation with electrical stimulation was less pronounced in the smooth muscle from diabetic men (n = 18) than in the smooth muscle from nondiabetic men (n = 24; P = 0.001). The degree of impairment increased with the duration of diabetes (r = 0.61, P = 0.007). Endothelium-dependent relaxation was also impaired, as evidenced by a lower degree of muscle relaxation after the administration of acetylcholine in the tissue from diabetic men (n = 16) than in that from nondiabetic men (n = 22; P = 0.001). The adverse effects of diabetes persisted after we controlled for smoking and hypertension. Endothelium-independent relaxation after the administration of nitroprusside and papaverine was similar in tissue from the diabetic and nondiabetic men. We conclude that diabetic men with impotence have impairment in both the autonomic and the endothelium-dependent mechanisms that mediate the relaxation of the smooth muscle of the corpora cavernosa. These findings may provide a rationale for the treatment of diabetic men with impotence by intracavernosal injection of vasodilators to induce endothelium-independent relaxation of the smooth muscle.
Eosinophils: an overlooked player in acute myocardial infarction?

Thrombus formation over a ruptured or eroded plaque is the major cause of acute myocardial infarction. Disruption of the endothelium exposes platelets to collagen and plasma coagulation factors, which facilitate their activation and aggregation, which further propagate thrombus formation. Whereas platelet and fibrin/red cell aggregates are well-recognized cellular components of thrombi in acute myocardial infarction, interactions with other blood components and their role in the process of arterial thrombosis remain less clear. In this issue of Coronary Artery Disease, Jiang et al. [1] provide evidence that eosinophils are commonly found in arterial thrombi retrieved from patients suffering from acute myocardial infarction, whereas peripheral eosinophil counts are lower in cases in which the infarction (as measured by troponin I levels) is greater. The authors conclude that eosinophils may play an important role in myocardial infarction and that peripheral eosinophil counts might be useful in identifying patients with more myocardial damage.
A model for evaluating talker echo and sidetone in a telephone transmission network

An objective evaluation model called OPINE (overall performance index model for network evaluation) which is being studied for telephone transmission quality is described. The model estimates an MOS (mean opinion score) by summing psychological values on independent psychological factors, given the physical values of fundamental listening factors such as loss and noise. For the model to incorporate new talking factors such as talker echo and sidestone, evaluation characteristics are studied when both listening and talking factors are present in a telephone transmission system. The interaction of the listening and talking factors is discussed, and it is shown experimentally that these factors are independent of fundamental listening factors. From these results, an extended OPINE is proposed by establishing new psychological factors: talker echo and sidestone. The estimated MOS for composite conditions of listening and talking factors agrees well within the confidence interval of subjective MOS deviation. >
The mechanisms linking health literacy to behavior and health status.

OBJECTIVE To examine the mechanisms linking health literacy to physical activity and self-reported health. METHODS From 2005-2007, patients (N = 330) with hypertension were recruited from safety net clinics. Pathanalytic models tested the pathways linking health literacy to physical activity and self-reported health. RESULTS There were significant paths from health literacy to knowledge (r = 0.22, P < 0.001), knowledge to self-efficacy (r = 0.13, P < 0.01), self-efficacy to physical activity (r = 0.17, P < 0.01), and physical activity to health status (r = 0.17, P < 0.01). CONCLUSIONS Health education interventions should be literacy sensitive and aim to enhance patient health knowledge and self-efficacy to promote self-care behavior and desirable health outcomes.
Measurements of extreme orientation-dependent temperature increase around an irradiated gold nanorod

When irradiated at its resonance frequency, a metallic nanoparticle efficiently converts the absorbed energy into heat which is locally dissipated. This effect can be used in photothermal treatments, e.g., of cancer cells. However, to fully exploit the functionality of metallic nanoparticles as nanoscopic heat transducers, it is essential to know how the photothermal efficiency depends on parameters like size and shape. Here we present the measurements of the temperature profile around single irradiated gold nanorods and nanospheres placed on a biologically relevant matrix, a lipid bilayer. [1] We developed a novel assay based on molecular partitioning between two coexisting phases, the gel and fluid phase, within the bilayer. [2, 3] This assay allows for a direct measurement of local temperature gradients, an assay which does not necessitate any pre-assumptions about this system and is generally applicable to any irradiated nanoparticle system. The nanorods are irradiated with a tightly focused laser beam at a wavelength of 1064 nm where biological matter exhibits a minimum in absorption. By controlling the polarization of the laser light we show that the absorption of light by the nanorod and the corresponding dissipated heat strongly depends on the orientation of the nanorod with respect to the polarization. Finally, by comparing to spherical gold nanoparticles, we demonstrate how a change in shape, from spherical to rod like, leads to a dramatic enhancement of heating when using near infrared light.
The Tick Salivary Protein, Salp15, Inhibits the Development of Experimental Asthma1

Activation of Th2 CD4+ T cells is necessary and sufficient to elicit allergic airway disease, a mouse model with many features of human allergic asthma. Effectively controlling the activities of these cells could be a panacea for asthma therapy. Blood-feeding parasites have devised remarkable strategies to effectively evade the immune response. For example, ticks such as Ixodes scapularis, which must remain on the host for up to 7 days to feed to repletion, secrete immunosuppressive proteins. Included among these proteins is the 15-kDa salivary protein Salp15, which inhibits T cell activation and IL-2 production. Our objective for these studies was to evaluate the T cell inhibitory properties of Salp15 in a mouse model of allergic asthma. BALB/cJ mice were Ag sensitized by i.p. injection of OVA in aluminum hydroxide, with or without 50 μg of Salp15, on days 0 and 7. All mice were challenged with aerosolized OVA on days 14–16 and were studied on day 18. Compared with control mice sensitized with Ag, mice sensitized with Ag and Salp15 displayed significantly reduced airway hyperresponsiveness, eosinophilia, Ag-specific IgG1 and IgE, mucus cell metaplasia, and Th2 cytokine secretion in vivo and by CD4+ T cells restimulated with Ag in vitro. Our results demonstrate that Salp15 can effectively prevent the generation of a Th2 immune response and the development of experimental asthma. These studies, and those of others, support the notion that a lack of ectoparasitism may contribute to the increasing prevalence of allergic asthma.
A Measurement Study on Achieving Imperceptible Latency in Mobile Cloud Gaming

Cloud gaming is a relatively new paradigm in which the game is rendered in the cloud and is streamed to an end-user device through a thin client. Latency is a key challenge for cloud gaming. In order to optimize the end-to-end latency, it is first necessary to understand how the end-to-end latency builds up from the mobile device to the cloud gaming server. In this paper we dissect the delays occurring in the mobile device and measure access delays in various networks and network conditions. We also perform a Europe-wide latency measurement study to find the optimal server locations and see how the number of server locations affects the network delay. The results are compared to limits found for perceivable delays in recent human-computer interaction studies. We show that the limits can be achieved only with the latest mobile devices with specific control methods. In addition, we study the expected latency reduction by near future technological development and show that its potential impact is bigger on the end-to-end latency than that of replication of the service and server placement optimization.
The Calcium Sensing Receptor and Its Alternatively Spliced Form in Keratinocyte Differentiation*

We have recently reported the presence of the calcium sensing receptor (CaR) in keratinocytes and suggested that it signaled calcium-induced differentiation of these cells. cDNA clones encoding the full-length CaR were isolated from human keratinocytes. In addition, an alternatively spliced form that lacks exon 5, encoding a portion of the extracellular domain, also was found. The in frame deletion of 231 nucleotides of exon 5 resulted in the loss of function of the CaR as measured by calcium-stimulated production of inositol phosphates when transfected into HEK293 cells or keratinocytes. This variant produced a smaller CaR protein with an altered glycosylation pattern compared with the full-length CaR. Coexpression of the spliced variant with the full-length CaR reduced the function of the full-length CaR. The full-length CaR was expressed in undifferentiated keratinocytes consistent with their greater response to elevated extracellular calcium in terms of increased intracellular free calcium and production of inositol phosphates. The full-length CaR decreased as the keratinocytes differentiated with an increase in the ratio of the spliced variant to the full-length form. The relative proportions of these two forms of CaR may regulate the calcium responsiveness of keratinocytes during their differentiation.
ACUTE TOXICITY OF PYRITHIONE PHOTODEGRADATION PRODUCTS TO SOME MARINE ORGANISMS

We evaluated the acute toxicity of zinc pyrithione and copper pyrithione, used as antifouling booster biocides, and their six main photodegradation products to three marine organisms, representing three trophic levels: an alga (Skeletonema costatum), a crustacean (Tigriopus japonicus), and a fish (Pagrus major). The acute toxicity values of the pyrithiones for S. costatum, T. japonicus, and P. major were 1.5–1.6, 23–280 and 9.3–98.2 μg L, respectively. The acute toxicity values of photodegradation products of the pyrithiones such as 2-mercaptopyridine-N-oxide and 2,2′-dithio-bis-pyridine-N-oxide for S. costatum were similar to those of the pyrithiones. These results suggest the necessity of risk assessments for not only the pyrithiones but also their photodegradation products.
Induced potential effect on pipelines nearby grounding systems

This paper proposes a numerical method to calculate the induced potential and current in pipelines installed near a horizontal grounding electrode subjected to lightning discharge using the transmission line approach. The effect of this induced potential on the pipeline metal corrosion has been highlighted in term of mass loss for different soil resistivities and separation distances between pipeline and grounding system. Simulation results show that the induced potential is significant, indicating a serious problem for the pipe metal corrosion, especially for short separation distance between both systems and in more conductive soils. In such conditions, it is necessary to restrain the electromagnetic field by means of building insulating system between the grounding system and the pipelines.
Experience with an organ procurement organization‐based non‐directed living kidney donation programme

Abstract: The organ procurement organization (OPO)‐based non‐directed living kidney donation programme was developed to decrease wait times for kidney transplants, and to meet the community's desire for altruistic living donation. Community awareness was encouraged through information about non‐directed living kidney donation on the state donor registry Web site, and through the media. The OPO received all inquiries and responded with phone calls, e‐mails, printed information, medical/social history questionnaires, interviews, and referrals to the transplant centres. Kidneys were allocated according to the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) wait list for the evaluating transplant centre. Between March 2002 and 23 September 2005, there were 608 inquiries to the OPO about non‐directed living kidney donation. In 41 months, 20 transplants occurred with kidneys from non‐directed donors. The donor registry and OPO‐sponsored publicity led to 578 of the 608 inquiries and 15 of the 20 transplants. OPO screening saved transplant centre resources by ruling out 523 inquiries, referring 76 to transplant centres for complete evaluations. Optional donor/recipient meetings appeared to be beneficial to those participating. OPO‐based non‐directed living donor programmes can be effective and efficient. Standardization of evaluation, allocation, and follow‐up will allow for better data collection and more widespread implementation.
Low-risk persistent gestational trophoblastic disease: outcome after initial treatment with low-dose methotrexate and folinic acid from 1992 to 2000.

PURPOSE We have simplified the treatment of gestational trophoblastic disease (GTD) in order to reduce the number of patients exposed to potentially carcinogenic chemotherapy. Patients who score 0 to 8 on the Charing Cross scoring system are classified as low-risk and receive methotrexate (MTX) and folinic acid (FA), whereas those who score higher than 8 are classified as high-risk and receive the etoposide, methotrexate, and dactinomycin (EMA)/cyclophosphamide and vincristine (CO) regimen. PATIENTS AND METHODS Between 1992 and 2000, 485 women with GTD were commenced on MTX/FA at Charing Cross Hospital, London, United Kingdom. If patients developed MTX resistance or toxicity, treatment was altered according to the level of beta human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG). If serum hCG was < or = 100 IU/L, patients received dactinomycin; if hCG was greater than 100 IU/L, patients received EMA/CO. RESULTS The median duration of follow-up was 4.7 years. Overall survival was 100% and the relapse rate was 3.3% (16 of 485 patients). hCG values normalized in 324 (66.8%) of 485 patients with MTX alone, whereas 161 (33.2%) of 485 patients required a change in treatment, 11 because of MTX toxicity and 150 because of MTX resistance. Sixty-seven patients changed to dactinomycin, of whom 58 achieved normal hCG values, and nine required third-line chemotherapy with EMA/CO. hCG values normalized in 93 (98.9%) of 94 patients who changed directly to EMA/CO from MTX. CONCLUSION Single-agent dactinomycin has activity in patients with low-risk GTD who develop MTX resistance and whose hCG is low. Simplifying the stratification of GTD into two classes (low- and high-risk) does not compromise overall outcome and may reduce the risk of second tumors.