Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Incidence and Mortality of Cardiac Events in Lumbar Spine Surgery

Study Design. Retrospective national database analysis. Objective. A population-based database was analyzed to characterize the incidence, mortality, and associated risk factors for cardiac events in lumbar spine surgery. Summary of Background Data. Cardiac events are a leading cause of perioperative mortality in spinal surgery. The incidence of these complications after lumbar surgery is not well characterized on a national level. Methods. Data from the Nationwide Inpatient Sample was obtained from 2002 to 2009. Patients undergoing lumbar decompression or lumbar fusion for degenerative etiologies were identified. Patient demographics, incidence of cardiac complications, comorbidities, and mortality were assessed. Statistical analysis was performed using Student t test for discrete variables and &khgr;2 test for categorical data. Logistic regression was used to identify independent predictors for cardiac complications. Results. A total of 578,457 lumbar spine procedures were identified in the Nationwide Inpatient Sample from 2002 to 2009. The overall incidence of cardiac complications was 6.7 per 1000 cases. Cardiac events occurred more frequently in the lumbar fusion group, with a rate of 9.3 per 1000 cases, than in the lumbar decompression group, with a rate of 4.0 per 1000 (P < 0.0005). Patients with cardiac events were significantly older than patients without complications by 9.4 years (P < 0.0005). Patients with cardiac complications had statistically increased hospitalizations, costs, and mortality when a cardiac event was present (P < 0.0005). Logistic regression analysis demonstrated independent predictors for cardiac events to include age 65 years or older, acute blood loss anemia, and several comorbidities. Conclusion. Our results demonstrated an overall incidence of 6.7 cardiac complications per 1000 lumbar spine surgical procedures from 2002 to 2009. Patients undergoing lumbar fusion were more likely to experience cardiac events than lumbar decompression patients. Cardiac events tend to occur in patients with noted risk factors and result in increased hospitalizations, costs, and mortality. On the basis of these findings, we think that patients with specified risk factors should be monitored closely and medically optimized in the perioperative period. Level of Evidence: 3
Lumbosacral epiduroscopy complicated by intravascular injection.

INTRAVASCULAR injection, either intraarterial or intravenous, is an undesired event that can occur during attempted epidural injections through needles and catheters. When it occurs, it is attributed to entry of the needle or catheter into a blood vessel. There are no reports in the literature of this being observed during epiduroscopy. We report two cases of intravascular appearance of radiopaque contrast material on fluoroscopy during injection through the working channel of an epiduroscope that we believe cannot be explained by entry of the epiduroscope tip into an epidural blood vessel. No previous reports of intravascular injections during epiduroscopy were found. Lumbosacral epiduroscopy is a relatively new technique used in the diagnosis and treatment of low back pain and/or radiculopathy involving the lower extremities. All available epiduroscopes transmit light to illuminate the epidural space and transmit images from the space back to an observer. Other features include a working channel through which saline, radiopaque contrast material, and drugs can be injected and instruments can be introduced, and a mechanism for steering the tip of the epiduroscope. The round tip of the flexible epiduroscope used for the cases reported here (Storz Epiduroscope, Karl Storz, Tuttlingen, Germany) is 2.8 mm in diameter, and the end is flat. The end has a 1-mm opening for the working channel plus a lens for light delivery and one for transmission of optical images. Epiduroscopes usually are inserted via access established through the sacral hiatus and advanced cephalad to areas of interest (usually not beyond L2). Fluoroscopy is used intermittently during epiduroscopy. Saline is infused to expand the epidural space and wash away extravascular blood and tissue debris to facilitate visual inspection. After a site of pathology is found and examined, treatment is begun, which usually consists of hyaluronidase injection and application of hydrostatic and/or mechanical forces to remove barriers to fluid flow, and local anesthetic and corticosteroid injection. Before and during treatment, radiopaque contrast material usually is injected to confirm that injected fluids (1) do not go intravascular and (2) distribute as intended in the epidural space and/or through a targeted intervertebral foramen.
Evaluation of Cytotoxic T-Lymphocyte Responses in Human and Nonhuman Primate Subjects Infected with Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type 1 or Simian/Human Immunodeficiency Virus

ABSTRACT Cytotoxic T-lymphocyte (CTL) responses have been implicated as playing an important role in control of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection. However, it is technically difficult to demonstrate CTL responses consistently in nonhuman primate and human subjects using traditional cytotoxicity assay methods. In this study, we systematically evaluated culture conditions that may affect the proliferation and expansion of CTL effector cells and presented a sensitive method for detection of cytotoxicity responses with bulk CTL cultures. We confirmed the sensitivity and specificity of this method by demonstration of vigorous CTL responses in a simian-HIV (SHIV)-infected rhesus macaque. The expansion of epitope-specific CTL effector cells was also measured quantitatively by CTL epitope-major histocompatibility complex tetramer complex staining. In addition, two new T-cell determinants in the SIV gag region are identified. Last, we showed the utility of this method for studying CTL responses in chimpanzee and human subjects.
The kinetics of quantal transmitter release from retinal amacrine cells.

Exocytosis of transmitter at most synapses is a very fast process triggered by the entry of Ca2+ during an action potential. A reasonable expectation is that the fast step of exocytosis is followed by slow steps readying another vesicle for exocytosis but the identity and kinetics of these steps are presently unclear. By voltage clamping both pre- and postsynaptic neurons in an isolated pair of retinal amacrine cells, we have measured evoked synaptic currents and responses to single vesicles of transmitter (minis). From these currents, we have computed the rate of exocytosis during a sustained presynaptic depolarization. We show here that for these cells, release is consistent with a scheme of "fire and reload. " Large Ca2+ influx causes the rapid release of a small number of vesicles, typically approximately 10 per presynaptic neuron, likely corresponding to those vesicles already docked. After this spike of exocytosis whose peak is 150 quanta per release site per s, continued Ca2+ influx sustains release at only 22 quanta per release site per s, probably rate-limited by the docking of fresh vesicles.
Adaptive dynamic model particle filter for visual object tracking

One of the key issues related to object tracking is the representation of the object motion. It is a challenging problem because the object usually exhibits complex and rich dynamic behavior. In this paper, we propose an adaptive dynamic model to describe the dynamics/motion of the object and embed it into the particle filter framework for visual object tracking. The model characterize the object motion preciously by a switch-and-fusion strategy, which integrates both long period and short period motion information by the combination of multiple simple motion models. Experimental results demonstrate that, the proposed method achieves better results than the conventional particle filter, especially when the object moves quickly and changes the motion pattern drastically.
Never tear us apart – the importance of centrosome clustering

Summary The presence of more than two centrosomes (centrosome amplification) at the onset of mitosis has long been associated with multipolar spindle formation, and with the generation of genetic instability. However, in recent years, several studies have shown that a process termed ‘centrosome clustering’ actively contributes to bipolar division by promoting the gathering of extra centrosomes in two main poles. In this Commentary, we describe the main proteins that are involved in centriole duplication and discuss how centrosome amplification can be generated both in vitro and in vivo. We then summarize what is currently known about the processes that contribute to bipolar spindle formation when extra centrosomes are present, and which forces contribute to this process. Finally, we discuss how extra centrosomes might contribute to tumorigenesis, giving emphasis to the role of centrosome amplification in promoting genetic instability.
Spontaneous occurrence of scoliosis in the chicken.

Deformities of the spine have been attributed to a variety of causes: inappropriate diet and lack of exercise (5), inadequate breeding (1), and intense inbreeding (3). Scoliosis has occurred in chicks produced from embryos injected with insulin (8). More recently, a genetic mechanism has been considered to be the significant factor (9). Scoliosis was recently observed in 30% of a group of white Pekin ducks 40 days old and older (17). Segments of notochord were frequently present in the vertebrae and the interarticular spaces. Persistence of segments of the notochord was considered to be a significant factor in the pathogenesis of scoliosis in these ducks. A "persistent notochord" has been observed very rarely in
TFPIβ, a Second Product from the Mouse Tissue Factor Pathway Inhibitor (TFPI) Gene

Summary Tissue factor pathway inhibitor (TFPI) contains three Kunitz domains separated by two connecting regions. We have cloned another naturally occurring TFPI gene product from a mouse lung cDNA library which we have called TFPI β. TFPIβ is derived from alternative splicing of the TFPI gene. Analysis of the cDNA shows that mouse TFPIβ protein is identical to TFPI from the N’-terminus through the second connecting region. However, mouse TFPIβ possesses neither a third Kunitz domain nor an Arg, Lys-rich C’-terminus but instead has a completely different C’-terminal (β-domain) sequence which is not homologous to any known protein. Northern blot analyses show that the tissues for mouse TFPIβ synthesis are heart and lung; in contrast, TFPI appears in Northern blots of heart and spleen. Both TFPIβ and TFPI messages first appear in 7-day-old mouse embryos, but only the TFPI mRNA persists until 17 days. Purified recombinant TFPIβ shows an apparent molecular weight of 38 kDa. Kinetic studies indicate that mouse TFPIβ is a slow-binding enzyme inhibitor for human factor Xa. In addition, heparin does not enhance the inhibition of factor Xa by mouse TFPIβ although it does accelerate factor Xa inhibition by TFPI.
Invasive line placement in critically ill patients: do hemostatic defects matter?

Background: Blood components are often given prophylactically before the placement of invasive lines in patients with coagulation defects. Little, however, is known about the epidemiology of defects in these patients. The purpose of this study is to ascertain what proportion of intensive care patients who receive invasive lines have hemostatic defects, what actions are taken by physicians to correct these abnormalities before invasive line insertion, and what the incidence is of bleeding complications after invasive line placement.
An efficient technique for positive filtering of linear systems

This work considers the problem of designing a reduced-order positive filter to estimate an unmeasured signal of a linear system. The objective is to minimize the H1 norm of the error transfer function. The contribution is to propose a set of techniques to deal with this problem, in particular an improved Nelder-Mead algorithm is put forward. Comparisons will be drawn compared to the last proposed technique in the literature, which uses an iterati ve linear matrix inequalities algorithm leading to suboptimal solutions in terms of the H1 performance level. The method proposed here has good practical value, being easy to implement and to adapt to many objectives even by non-expert users. Furthermore it often provides locally optimal solutions, h ow often depending on the non-smoothness of the objective function. A numerical simulation illustrate s the effectiveness of the proposed method and of some alternatives.
Clinical characteristics of patients in Peru with human T cell lymphotropic virus type 1-associated tropical spastic paraparesis.

BACKGROUND Human T cell lymphotropic virus type 1 (HTLV-1) is associated with tropical spastic paraparesis (TSP). Peru is an area of endemicity for HTLV-1. METHODS All patients with suspected cases of TSP referred to our institute (Institute of Tropical Medicine Alexander von Humboldt, Lima, Peru) from 1989 through 2002 were interviewed and tested for HTLV-1. All patients with positive results were evaluated by an expert physician. Disease progression was defined as "rapid" if the time between TSP onset and inability to walk unaided was <2 years. RESULTS Among 165 patients enrolled, the symptoms and signs most frequently found were spasticity (in 97.5% of patients), hyperreflexia (95.4%), lower limb paresthesia (90.2%), pyramidal signs (82.6%), urinary complaints (82.0%), and lumbar pain (79.0%). Rapid progression was present in 21.5% of patients; mean age at TSP onset was higher among these patients than among slow progressors (P<.001). Severe spasticity, diminished vibratory sensation, and tremor were found more frequently among rapid progressors, compared with slow progressors. CONCLUSIONS HTLV-1--associated TSP is frequently diagnosed in areas of HTLV-1-endemicity. A subgroup of patients experiences rapid disease progression.
Microsatellites in Portuguese autochthonous horse breeds: usefulness for parentage testing

The use of DNA technology for parentage testing is increasing every day. Most laboratories have improved their exclusion probabilities (PE) by the addition of DNA microsatellite loci to standard blood-typing results. The efficacy of each locus depends on the number of alleles detected and their frequencies in the breeds tested. Here we analyzed the usefulness of six microsatellites for routine parentage testing in three Portuguese autochthonous horse breeds: Lusitano, Sorraia and Garrano. The DNA loci analyzed - ASB2, HMS3, HMS7, HTG4, HTG10, and VHL20 - were chosen based upon the polymorphism detected in other breeds with Iberian horse influence. The estimated probability of exclusion of wrongly named parents (PE) was high, with values ranging from 88.5% to 99.6%.
Molecular characterization of a patient with 3p deletion syndrome and a review of the literature

3p deletion syndrome is a rare disorder involving developmental delay, dysmorphic physical features, and growth retardation. Molecular mapping of several cases in the literature have identified a critical region on chromosome 3p26. We present a child patient with characteristic features of 3p deletion syndrome and a de novo unbalanced translocation involving chromosomes 3 and 13. Fine mapping of this rearrangement using fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) and array‐based comparative genomic hybridization (aCGH) revealed an unbalanced abnormality including a 4.5 Mb terminal deletion of chromosome 3p, telomeric to ITPR1 on 3p26.2, which was not previously identified with routine cytogenetic analysis. In addition, these investigations confirmed and refined the boundaries of a 26.5 Mb deletion of chromosome 13. This study confirms the minimal candidate region for 3p deletion syndrome, provides further evidence implicating haploinsufficiency of CNTN4 in the disorder, and demonstrates the utility of high‐resolution investigations of rare chromosomal rearrangements. © 2008 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Multivariable Servomechanism Controller for Autonomous Operation of a Distributed Generation Unit: Design and Performance Evaluation

A linear time-invariant (LTI) robust servomechanism controller for islanded (autonomous) operation of a distributed generation (DG) unit and its local load is proposed. The DG unit utilizes a voltage-sourced converter (VSC) as the interface medium. The controller design is obtained by introducing a new optimal controller design procedure, in conjunction with a proposed non-conservative robustness constraint. The proposed controller utilizes 1) an internal oscillator for frequency control and 2) a robust servomechanism controller (RSC) to regulate the island voltage. Despite uncertainty of the load parameters, the proposed controller guarantees robust stability and pre-specified performance criteria, e.g., fast transient response and zero steady-state error. The theoretical aspects of the proposed robust servomechanism controller including the existence conditions, design of the controller, and robust stability analysis of the closed-loop system are studied. Moreover, the performance of the robust servomechanism controller based on 1) simulation studies in the MATLAB software environment, and 2) experiments in a laboratory-scale setup, is presented in this paper. In particular, reference signal tracking and robustness of the closed-loop system with respect to the load parameter uncertainty are investigated. Both computer simulation studies and experimental results confirm that the proposed robust controller provides the specified performance characteristics of the closed-loop system.
Disulfiram hepatotoxicity.

Total episodes . 609 6 7 5501 60 5 2984 32 8 9094 100 Episodes with yeast infectiont . 26 4 3 382 6-9 1054 35 3 1462 16-1 Episodes with yeast infection alone+ 15 57 7 263 68 8 617 58 5 895 61 2 Yeast infection and one other disease+: STD . 8 30-8 17 44 123 117 148 10-1 NSTD . 1 0 3 2 0.2 3 0-2 NSGI . 2 7 7 86 22-5 268 25-4 356 24-4 Other . 8 2-1 21 2-0 29 2-0 Yeast infection and two of above diseases . 1 3-8 7 19 23 2 2 31 2-1 Total yeast infections and any other disease+ . 1 42-3 119 31 2 437 41 5 567 38 8
Ultrastructural and chemical changes in spores of Bacillus cereus after action of disinfectants.

Spores of Bacillus cereus subjected to 5% NaOH at 50° and 0.25% NaOCl at 20° undergo a 99% loss in viability in 11 and 19.5 min, respectively. Kinetic studies show that the release of Ca2+ and dipicolinic acid occur at different rates and that extensive loss of both ribonucleic and deoxyribonucleic acids occur under these conditions of disinfection. Electron micrographic studies reveal a progressive degradation of the spore integuments. Both chemical and ultrastructural observations made in this study lead to the conclusion that the primary lethal effect of either disinfectant is the modification of outer spore coats leading to a disruption of normal permeability barriers.
Can Microscale Chemical Patches Persist in the Sea? Microelectrode Study of Marine Snow, Fecal Pellets

Microelectrode studies demonstrate the existence of persistent oxygen and pH gradients around flocculent, macroscopic marine particles known as marine snow. Oxygen is partially, but continuously, depleted within and around marine snow in the dark and can be completely depleted within large fecal pellets. Boundary layers hundreds of micrometers thick are maintained despite advection of fluid past the particles. The existence of chemical microhabitats on the scale of millimeters around macroscopic particles in the pelagic zone may significantly influence the distribution and activity of marine microorganisms and permit processes requiring low oxygen, including denitrification.
Patient-centered outcome criteria for successful treatment of facial pain and fibromyalgia.

AIMS To define treatment success from the facial pain and fibromyalgia pain patient perspective across four domains (pain, fatigue, emotional distress, interference with daily activities) through the use of the Patient-Centered Outcomes (PCO) Questionnaire. METHODS Participants included 53 facial pain (46 women, seven men) and 52 fibromyalgia (49 women, three men) patients who completed the PCO Questionnaire. The PCO assesses four relevant domains of chronic pain: pain, fatigue, distress, and interference in daily activities. Participants rated their usual levels, expected levels, levels they considered successful improvements, and how important improvements were in each of the four domains following treatment. Repeated-measures analyses of variance were performed to determine whether differences existed across domains and across pain groups. RESULTS Both groups of participants defined treatment success as a substantial decrease in their pain, fatigue, distress, and interference ratings (all approximately 60%). Fibromyalgia participants reported high levels of pain (mean = 7.08, SD = 2.04), fatigue (mean = 7.82, SD = 1.71), distress (mean = 6.35, SD = 2.46), and interference (mean = 7.35, SD = 2.21). Facial pain participants' ratings of these domains were significantly lower for pain (mean = 5.62, SD = 2.38), fatigue (mean = 5.28, SD = 2.64), distress (mean = 4.34, SD = 2.78), and interference (mean = 4.10, SD = 3.06). CONCLUSION These results demonstrate the high expectations of individuals with facial pain and fibromyalgia regarding treatment of their symptoms. Health care providers should incorporate these expectations into their treatment plans and discuss realistic treatment goals with their pain patients.
Tuna comparative physiology

SUMMARY Thunniform swimming, the capacity to conserve metabolic heat in red muscle and other body regions (regional endothermy), an elevated metabolic rate and other physiological rate functions, and a frequency-modulated cardiac output distinguish tunas from most other fishes. These specializations support continuous, relatively fast swimming by tunas and minimize thermal barriers to habitat exploitation, permitting niche expansion into high latitudes and to ocean depths heretofore regarded as beyond their range.