bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Proprostate‐specific antigen: Its usefulness in the era of multiple‐core prostate biopsy
Authors: Miyakubo Mai , Ito Kazuto , Yamamoto Takumi , Takechi Hiroyuki , Ohi Masaru , Suzuki Kazuhiro
Published: May 2009

Objective:  To investigate the clinical significance of prostate‐specific antigen (PSA)‐related markers, including the precursor form of PSA, using the full‐range area under the curve of receiver operating characteristics (AUC‐ROC), partial AUC‐ROC (pAUC‐ROC) and multiple logistic regression analyses.

Methods:  Participants consisted of 257 consecutive men (PSA range 4.1–20 ng/mL) undergoing transrectal ultrasonography‐guided age‐adjusted and prostate volume‐adjusted multiple‐core prostate biopsy at Gunma University Hospital between January 2003 and May 2005. Sensitivity, specificity, AUC‐ROC and pAUC‐ROC of the ratio of free PSA to total PSA (free/total PSA), PSA density (PSAD) and PSAD adjusted by transition zone volume, the ratio of [−7/−5] precursor forms of PSA (proPSA) to free PSA (pro/free PSA), the ratio of pro to total PSA and the ratio of pro to free/total PSA (pro/f/t ratio) were investigated. Multiple logistic regression analyses were also carried out to investigate the independency of selected clinical parameters.

Results:  According to pAUC‐ROC analyses, pro/free PSA and the pro/f/t ratio were the two best PSA‐related parameters in terms of maintaining high sensitivity and avoiding unnecessary biopsy. Multiple regression analyses revealed that not only pro/free PSA, but also age, findings on digital rectal examination and PSAD were independent parameters for predicting biopsy outcomes.

Conclusion:  Pro/free PSA and pro/f/t ratio may be excellent predictive markers for prostate cancer, allowing unnecessary biopsy to be avoided while maintaining high sensitivity at 90% or 95%, in the PSA range 4–20 ng/mL.
The clinical characteristics of renal cell carcinoma in female patients
Authors: Chen Jun , Shi Benkang , Zhang Dongqing , Jiang Xianzhou , Xu Zhishun
Published: May 2009

Objective:  To investigate the clinical characteristics of renal cell carcinoma (RCC) in female patients.

Methods:  The clinical characteristics including sex, age at diagnosis, histological tumor size, histological subtype, Fuhrman nuclear grade and pathological tumor–node–metastasis (TNM) stage of 881 consecutive patients treated with (partial) nephrectomy for RCC from 1998 to 2006 were analyzed. Characteristics of different gender groups and different female age groups were compared. The one‐way anova and t‐test were used to compare means. Pearson's χ2‐test and the likelihood ratio test were used to compare ratios.

Results:  Low‐grade tumors accounted for 79.3% of female patients and 64.1% of male patients (P < 0.001). The percentage of stage T1–2 was 76.6% in female patients while it was only 68.5% in male patients (P = 0.011). Also, female patients had more T1–2N0M0 tumors (73.0% vs 64.3%, P = 0.009). Once female patients were classified into three groups according to age diagnosis (≤40, 41–59 and ≥60 years) young female patients seemed to have more tumors with unfavorable histology (8.7% vs 5.1% vs 4.3%), Fuhrman grade 3–4 (23.9% vs 23.1% vs 17.7%) and stage T3–4 (28.3% vs 23.1% vs 22.0%).

Conclusion:  Compared with male patients, female patients had lower stage and grade tumors. However, younger female patients had more tumors with unfavorable histology, and higher stage and grade compared to older female patients.
Predicting Committed Behavior: Exchange Ideology and Pre‐entry Perceived Organisational Support
Authors: Pazy Asya , Ganzach Yoav
Published: May 2009

A longitudinal field study conducted in a military setting examined the effects of exchange ideology, pre‐entry Perceived Organisational Support, and their interaction, on initial and long‐term committed behavior. The effect of exchange ideology was compared to that of a solidly validated biodata score which was assessed with a structured interview. The sample consisted of 1,276 conscripts to military service. Results showed that exchange ideology had effects on both initial and long‐term committed behavior; these effects were stronger than those of pre‐entry Perceived Organisational Support, and comparable to those of the biodata structured interview.

Une recherche de terrain longitudinale conduite dans un contexte militaire a porté sur les effets de l'idéologie de l'échange, du soutien organisationnel perçu avant l'intégration et de leur interaction sur l'implication initiale et à long terme. Les retombées de l'idéologie de l'échange ont été comparées à celles d'un score biodata correctement validéévaluéà partir d'un entretien structuré. L'échantillon était constitué de 1276 conscrits. Les résultats montrent que l'idéologie de l'échange présente un impact à la fois sur l'implication initiale et à long terme, cet impact étant plus fort que celui du soutien organisationnel perçu avant l'intégration et comparable à celui de l'interview structuré portant sur les biodata.
Ontario's internationally educated nurses and waste in human capital
Authors: Kolawole B.
Published: May 2009

Aim:  To analyse critically the waste in human capital of Ontario's internationally educated nurses resulting from unemployment or underemployment.

Background:  Globalization of the nursing workforce is resulting in more and more internationally educated nurses migrating to Canada every year. In Ontario, internationally educated nurses represent 11% of the total nursing workforce but many are unable to become registered in Ontario. According to the College of Nurses of Ontario (CNO), 40% of internationally educated nurse applicants never complete the application process and thus never become Registered Nurses in Ontario. Systemic barriers that prevent registration in Ontario can result from any of the seven requirements for completing the application process. The inability of internationally educated nurses to become registered is significant, considering the national and global nursing shortage. In addition, the inability to become registered results in tremendous waste of human capital, especially in developing countries that have invested financially in educating nurses. Although several programmes have been implemented in Ontario for internationally educated nurses, barriers exist in the design and administration of these programmes, and these are described.

Data source:  An opinion piece of international interest and a human interest piece.

Conclusion:  Internationally educated nurses face significant barriers, which prevent their integration into the Ontario healthcare system. Several policy and management strategies are outlined that could be implemented to ease their integration into the Ontario healthcare system.
The education of Romany health and social assistants in the Czech Republic
Authors: Jarošová D. , Dušová B. , Vrublová Y.
Published: May 2009

Aim:  This paper presents the Czech national pilot project – the first educational course of Romany health and social assistants for community work with the Romany population in excluded communities.

Background:  The Romany people are the biggest minority in the Czech Republic. The number is ever increasing because of the migration from South‐East Europe. At the same time, the health and social problems of the Romany population are rising, too. To begin to address some of the health problems of this population, a pilot community project entitled Romany Health and Social Assistant was implemented in the years 2002–2004 in Ostrava. Ostrava is the third largest city and has the largest Romany population. Based on the outcomes of this project and as part of the national project SASTIPEN – Reduction of Health Inequalities in the Romany Community, the systematic education of selected Romany health and social assistants was carried out in 2005–2007.

Conclusions:  These trained Romany assistants are now working in the regions of the Czech Republic where inhabitants live in large Romany communities. The project evaluation was based on a questionnaire investigation of 170 clients living in Romany communities and on the statements of Romany health assistants. They found positive outcomes in several areas: obtaining information on health, motivation to healthy lifestyle, concrete changes in lifestyle and boosting trust towards doctors. Following the end of the project and its evaluation, an educational course will be accredited and certified, and the education of Romany assistants will be widespread across the whole country.
Developing a valid and reliable self‐efficacy in clinical performance scale
Authors: Cheraghi F. , Hassani P. , Yaghmaei F. , Alavi‐Majed H.
Published: May 2009

Aim:  This paper describes the development and testing of the Self‐Efficacy in Clinical Performance (SECP) instrument for nursing students.

Background:  Accurate measurement of self‐efficacy can be used to predict nursing students' clinical performance. The literature review indicated there is no existing self‐efficacy in clinical performance instrument for Iranian nursing students.

Methods:  To clarify the concept of self‐efficacy in clinical performance, 28 semi‐structured interviews and three focus groups were conducted. A self‐efficacy framework with well‐developed theoretical constructs was formed. A review of literature and content analysis of the interview transcripts identified subscales and items to be included in the instrument. Then, a methodological design was used. The SECP was developed into 69 Likert‐format items, which were evaluated by 20 nursing experts in the form of content validity index. The scale's validity and reliability were tested in a randomized sample of 207 final year nursing students.

Findings:  The final scale consists of four dimensions with 37 items. The overall scale internal reliability had α = 0.96; the dimensions Cronbach's α ranged from 0.90 to 0.92. Test–retest reliability with a 2‐week time interval was: r = 0.94. In addition, concurrent validity was obtained (r = 0.73, P = 0.01).

Conclusions:  The SECP has demonstrated evidence of content validity, construct validity, concurrent validity, internal consistency reliability and stability. Statistical analysis provided an objective tool for assessing nursing students' self‐efficacy in clinical performance. It may have been fruitful to further test the instrument with students from other years of their education.
Smoking prevalence among qualified nurses in the Republic of Ireland and their role in smoking cessation
Authors: O'Donovan Geraldine
Published: May 2009

Background:  Smoking is the leading preventable cause of premature mortality, killing approximately 6000 people in Ireland each year. On 29 March 2004, the Republic of Ireland became the first country in the world to ban smoking in all workplaces, including bars and restaurants. This study took place after the introduction of this smoking ban. An admission to hospital provides an opportunity to help people stop smoking. Nurses’ role and wide availability puts them in a prime position to encourage people to quit smoking.

Aim:  To examine the smoking prevalence among qualified nurses at a large university teaching hospital in Cork Southern Ireland and their role in smoking cessation.

Methods:  This was a descriptive cross‐sectional study using a calculated sample of 430 qualified nurses (with a 70% response rate). A structured questionnaire was used.

Findings:  It was found that 21% (n = 63) of nurses were smokers, 23% (n = 70) were ex‐smokers and 56% (n = 167) were non‐smokers. The highest prevalence of smokers was found in the age groups 20–25 years (28%, n = 17) and 26–30 years (34%, n = 21). Nurses working within psychiatric care (47.4%) and coronary care (33.3%) had the highest smoking prevalence among the nurses who smoked. The study found that there was a significant difference between the attitudes of smokers and non‐smokers, 89% (n = 211) of non‐smokers strongly agreed that cigarette smoke represents a major risk to health in comparison with only 65% (n = 41) of smokers. Only 14% (n = 43) of the nurses surveyed had received training in smoking cessation. Lack of time (74%) and lack of training (65%) were the two main reasons given by nurses for not giving smoking cessation advice to patients.

Conclusion:  Nurses’ potential in preventive health care has been largely under‐utilized. Lack of time and training are major factors inhibiting nurses’ role in smoking cessation with their patients.
Electronic theses and dissertations: a review of this valuable resource for nurse scholars worldwide
Authors: Goodfellow L. M.
Published: May 2009

Overview:  A worldwide repository of electronic theses and dissertations (ETDs) could provide worldwide access to the most up‐to‐date research generated by masters and doctoral students. Until that international repository is established, it is possible to access some of these valuable knowledge resources.

Background:  ETDs provide a technologically advanced medium with endless multimedia capabilities that far exceed the print and bound copies of theses and dissertations housed traditionally in individual university libraries.

Current use:  A growing trend exists for universities worldwide to require graduate students to submit theses or dissertations as electronic documents. However, nurse scholars underutilize ETDs, as evidenced by perusing bibliographic citation lists in many of the research journals.

Sources:  ETDs can be searched for and retrieved through several digital resources such as the Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations (http://www.ndltd.org), ProQuest Dissertations and Theses (http://www.umi.com), the Australasian Digital Theses Program (http://adt.caul.edu.au/) and through individual university web sites and online catalogues.

Benefits:  An international repository of ETDs benefits the community of nurse scholars in many ways. The ability to access recent graduate students' research electronically from anywhere in the world is advantageous. For scholars residing in developing countries, access to these ETDs may prove to be even more valuable.

Limitations:  In some cases, ETDs are not available for worldwide access and can only be accessed through the university library from which the student graduated. Public access to university library ETD collections is not always permitted.

Conclusions:  Nurse scholars from both developing and developed countries could benefit from ETDs.
Facilitators and barriers to adjustment of international nurses: an integrative review
Authors: Kawi J. , Xu Y.
Published: May 2009

Background:  There is a scarcity of research focusing on issues encountered by international nurses (INs) in their adjustment to foreign health‐care environments. Increasingly, INs are relied upon to address staffing shortages in many Western countries. As such, it is vital to identify what facilitates and what the barriers are to the successful adjustment in order to assist their integration into new workplace environments.

Aim:  This integrative review identifies facilitators and barriers encountered by INs as they adjust to foreign health‐care environments.

Method:  Based on Cooper's Five Stages of Integrative Research Review, a systematic search of eight electronic databases was conducted, combined with hand and ancestral searches. Two authors independently reviewed each qualified study for relevance and significance. Subsequently, facilitators and barriers were identified and categorized into themes and subthemes.

Findings:  Twenty‐nine studies conducted in Australia, Canada, Iceland, UK and the USA were included in this review. Findings indicated that positive work ethic, persistence, psychosocial and logistical support, learning to be assertive and continuous learning facilitated the adjustment of INs to their new workplace environments. In contrast, language and communication difficulties, differences in culture‐based lifeways, lack of support, inadequate orientation, differences in nursing practice and inequality were barriers.

Conclusion:  The review findings provide the basis for the development and testing of an evidence‐informed programme to facilitate the successful adjustment of INs to their new work environments.
Evaluating the impact of a new pay agreement on New Zealand nursing
Authors: Buchan J. , North N.
Published: May 2009

Aim:  This paper examines the labour market impact of a new national pay award for nurses implemented in New Zealand in 2004/5 – the Multi‐Employer Collective Agreement (MECA).

Background:  The health system in New Zealand is unusual in that, while retaining a public sector system, the focus of pay determination for nurses over the last 20 years has shifted first from national to local pay determination, and then more recently reversed this trend, moving back to a national level pay determination. The shift back to a national pay determination approach in 2004/5 is therefore worthy of examination, both in terms of its labour market impact, and as a case study in the use of national level pay determination.

Methods:  The research was conducted in 2007–8. A rapid appraisal method was used, based on key stakeholder interviews, a document and literature review and a review and analysis of available data on the New Zealand nurse labour market, and trends in application rates to schools of nursing were assessed. In addition, interviews with managers of two District Health Boards, and interviews with five non‐government employers of nurses, were conducted.

Results:  Indicators pointing to improvements included: steady (though not rapid) growth in staff numbers; reduced difficulty in recruiting; reduced vacancy rates; and increased application rates to schools of nursing. Managers interviewed in the study supported these positive indications, but some health‐care employers not covered by the pay award reported negative knock‐on effects (e.g. needing to match DHB rates, increased retention and recruitment difficulties).

Conclusions:  Available nurse labour market data provide an incomplete but compelling picture of the positive impacts of the MECA in a period of a very tight labour market. While much of the content of the 2004/5 agreement could be characterized as a ‘normal’ pay bargaining contract, there were also issues that differentiated it from the norm. In particular, it included an agreement to establish a safe staffing commission to assess the impact and implications of low staffing levels, nursing workload, and to establish guidelines on safe staffing and healthy workplaces.
Consequences of Pragmatic Conceptualism: On the Methodology Problem in Jurisprudence
Authors: CANALE DAMIANO
Published: May 2009

Abstract.  The purpose of this paper is to address some of the main issues of contemporary jurisprudential methodology by considering the contribution of Jules Coleman to this subject. After a description of Coleman's methodological approach and a clarification of its philosophical background, the paper focuses on some related problems, such as the relation between linguistic meaning and conceptual content, the nature of legal concepts, the different aspects of the normativity of content, and the revisability of conceptual truths.
The Difference between Obedience Assumed and Obedience Accepted*
Authors: DAHLMAN CHRISTIAN
Published: May 2009

Abstract. The analysis of legal statements that are made from an “internal point of view” must distinguish statements where legal obedience is accepted from statements where legal obedience is only assumed. Statements that are based on accepted obedience supply reasons for action, but statements where obedience is merely assumed can never provide reasons for action. It is argued in this paper that John Searle neglects this distinction. Searle claims that a statement from the internal point of view provides the speaker with reasons for actions that are “self‐sufficient” in the sense that they are independent of the speaker's beliefs and desires. This claim is mistaken. A statement that is based on assumed obedience is self‐sufficient, but does not give reasons for action. A statement that is based on accepted obedience gives reasons for action, but these reasons are not self‐sufficient.
Secret Law and the Value of Publicity*
Authors: KUTZ CHRISTOPHER
Published: May 2009

Abstract.  Revelations in the United States of secret legal opinions by the Department of Justice, dramatically altering the conventional interpretations of laws governing torture, interrogation, and surveillance, have made the issue of “secret law” newly prominent. The dangers of secret law from the perspective of democratic accountability are clear, and need no elaboration. But distaste for secret law goes beyond questions of democracy. Since Plato, and continuing through such non‐democratic thinkers as Bodin and Hobbes, secret law has been seen as a mark of tyranny, inconsistent with the notion of law itself. This raises both theoretical and practical questions. The theoretical questions involve the consistency of secret law with positivist legal theory. In principle, while a legal system as a whole could not be secret, publicity need not be part of the validity criteria for particular laws. The practical questions arise from the fact that secret laws, and secret governmental operations, are a common and often well‐accepted aspect of governmental power. This paper argues that the flaw of secret law goes beyond accountability and beyond efficiency to the role that law plays, and can only play, in situating subjects’ understanding of themselves in relation to the state. Secret law, as such, is inconsistent with this fundamental claim of the law to orient us in moral and political space, and undermines the claim to legitimacy of the state's rulers.
Torture and Democratic Violence
Authors: KAHN PAUL W.
Published: May 2009

Abstract.  To understand the problem of torture in a democratic society, we have to take up a political‐theological perspective. We must ask how violence creates political meaning. Torture is no more destructive and no more illiberal than other forms of political violence. The turn away from torture was not a turn away from violence, but a change in the locus of sacrifice: from scaffold to battlefield. Torture had been a ritual of mediation between sovereign and subject. Once sovereignty is located in the people, it no longer makes sense to speak of being sacrificed for the sovereign. Instead, sovereign presence is now realized in an act of self‐sacrifice. The wars of modern nation‐states have been acts of reciprocal self‐sacrifice. Terror invokes torture in response because both speak a primitive language of political sacrifice, denying the enemy the privilege of self‐sacrifice.
Children Who Choose Not to Eat Meat: A Study of Early Moral Decision‐making
Authors: Hussar Karen M. , Harris Paul L.
Published: May 2009

Can young children frame their own choices in terms of moral considerations, particularly when those choices do not match the practices of immediate authority figures? To answer this question, we studied 6‐ to 10‐year‐old independent vegetarians—children who have elected to become vegetarians, despite being raised in non‐vegetarian families. In Study 1, these children were asked about their reasons for not eating meat; their replies were compared with those made by vegetarian children from vegetarian families (family vegetarians) and non‐vegetarian children from non‐vegetarian families (non‐vegetarians). Unlike the other two groups, independent vegetarians universally focused on the suffering that meat eating implies for animals but, surprisingly, they did not condemn others for meat eating. Study 2 attempted to explain this tolerance by examining if children focus on whether an individual has made a commitment to not eating meat. All three groups of children condemned meat eating by morally committed vegetarians, but not by those who have made no such commitment. The two studies show that independent vegetarians are committed to not eating meat on moral grounds and judge that it would be wrong to break that commitment. Nevertheless, like non‐vegetarian children, they remain tolerant toward people who have made no such commitment.
Digging their Own Graves: Unexpected Consequences of Institutional Design and Welfare State Changes
Authors: Asiskovitch Sharon
Published: May 2009

This article proposes a theoretical mechanism for explaining why various components of a welfare state may develop differently, given similar economic, political and ideological contexts. Evaluating welfare state plans as products of political processes, the article looks at the role of political actors and their mistakes, considering how these mistakes shape future social policy‐making. The article identifies ‘unexpected consequences’ of institutional design: situations where the decisions of powerful actors lead to the empowerment of their rivals, which in turn may change policies to their advantage. Drawing on a case study from the Israeli welfare state, namely, the introduction and then abolishment of income testing in the Children's Insurance Plan, the article demonstrates how this mechanism may have allowed certain political actors to protect welfare state plans in the face of neo‐liberal pressures. It discusses how other political actors can take advantage of similar situations and notes the conditions needed for success.
Social Capital, Social Funds and Poor Communities: An Exploratory Analysis
Authors: Bowen Glenn A.
Published: May 2009

Social capital has captured the attention of social policy‐makers and development administrators, with its emphasis on social relationships, civic participation, collaborative action and norms of reciprocity. Social funds support small‐scale community‐based development projects aimed primarily at reducing poverty. This article synthesizes the relevant literature and explores the nexus between social capital and social funds in relation to poor communities. Drawing upon primary research in Jamaica, the article reports the outcomes of eight social fund sub‐projects that involved local organizations in community‐driven development processes. It analyses the role of social networks and the influence of community power structures in social capital creation. Social policy implications of the findings are discussed.
Is Evidence‐Based Organizational Innovation in the NHS a Chimaera – Or Just Elusive?
Authors: Sheaff Rod , Pickard Susan , Dowling Bernard
Published: May 2009

Evidence‐based adoption of organizational innovations requires explicit definition of the outcomes the innovations are intended to produce. Implementation theory, however, suggests that organizational innovations are often politicized in the sense that the prospect of implementing them provokes conflicts of interests among the parties affected. Then the intended outcomes of the innovation are liable to be formulated ambiguously, misleadingly or not at all, which makes evidence‐based organizational innovation unattainable. Analysis of 61 organizational innovations in nine English NHS primary care trusts suggests that while the majority of innovations were not politicized in this way, a substantial minority were. Innovations whose adoption is motivated by evidence can therefore be differentiated from politicized innovations whose adoption is not so motivated, even when they nevertheless do have evidential support.
On Certain Light Verbs in Spanish: The Case of TemporalTenerandLlevar
Authors: Fernández‐Soriano Olga , Rigau Gemma
Published: May 2009

Abstract. In this paper we analyze the behavior of some temporal constructions in two varieties of Spanish: those with the verbllevar ‘to carry’, used in the standard variety, and those withtener ‘to have’, which are characteristic of some American dialects. Our purpose is twofold: on the one hand, we try to account for the argument structure of these constructions, and on the other, we seek to give an analysis of the aspectual restrictions they show. These restrictions will be related to the fact that both verbs are light verbs incorporating an abstract preposition, allative in the case ofllevarand of central coincidence in the case oftener. The paper constitutes a further application of Hale and Keyser’s framework to a new set of data. Some related constructions involving movement verbs will be described and discussed as well.
Seeing Jurisdiction: Some Jurisprudential Issues Arising from Law Being “. . . All Over”
Authors: BRIGHAM JOHN
Published: May 2009

This article asks, “If law is all over, why don't we see it?” It takes seriously the fact that we see law in lawyers and buildings and police, but that there is more law out there. In this sense law is like religion, politics, and economics. It is an activity where various senses come into play. With law, we can learn to see more than we do. Jurisdiction is one of the easier areas of law to see. The article develops some of the distinctive ways we see jurisdiction and some of the ways seeing jurisdiction allows for more widespread participation in lawmaking. The article argues against our tendency to trivialize the law that we see.
An evaluation of extracts of five traditional medicinal plants from Iran on the inhibition of mushroom tyrosinase activity and scavenging of free radicals
Authors: Khazaeli P. , Goldoozian R. , Sharififar F.
Published: May 2009

Synopsis

This study aimed to evaluate the free radical scavenging and inhibition properties of five medicinal plants, including Quercus infectoria Olive., Terminalia chebula Retz., Lavendula stoechas L., Mentha longifolia L., Rheum palmatum L., toward the activity of mushroom tyrosinase using l‐tyrosine and l‐3,4‐dihydroxyphenylalanine (l‐DOPA) as the substrate. The methanol extracts of Q. infectoria and T. chebula showed strong radical scavenging effect in 2,2′‐dipheny l‐1‐picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) assay (IC50 = 15.3 and 82.2 μg mL−1 respectively). These plants also showed inhibitory effects against the activity of mushroom tyrosinase in hydroxylation of l‐tyrosine (85.9% and 82.2% inhibition, respectively). These two plants also inhibited the oxidation of l‐DOPA similar to kojic acid as positive control (IC50 = 102.8 and 192.6 μg mL−1 respectively). In general Q. infectoria and T. chebula significantly inhibited tyrosinase activity and DPPH radical. Both activities were concentration‐dependant but not in linear manner. It is needed to study the cytotoxicity of these plant extracts in pigment cell culture before further evaluation and moving to in vivo conditions.
Electrometric assessment of the effect of a zinc oxide paste in diaper dermatitis
Authors: Xhauflaire‐Uhoda E. , Henry F. , Piérard‐Franchimont C. , Piérard G. E.
Published: May 2009

Synopsis

Diaper dermatitis affects nearly 50% of infants as well as some bed‐ridden adults particularly in the elderly people. This condition is induced by irritation and maceration, and may be further exacerbated by Candida sp. colonization and infection. A key factor in the pathogenesis is the alteration in both the barrier function and the water‐holding capacity of the stratum corneum. The purpose of this study was to assess the effects of an unmedicated zinc oxide–petrolatum paste and to observe for possible shielding and restoring effects on the water‐holding capacity of the stratum corneum altered by diaper dermatitis. The paste appeared to load the hollow skin microrelief. It was inferred that this effect was responsible for a reticulated shielding effect. Compared with healthy skin and untreated diaper dermatitis, the application of the anhydrous paste resulted in a trend to normalize electrometric properties of skin reflecting the combination of transepidermal water loss and the water‐holding capacity of the stratum corneum.
Child–therapist alliance and clinical outcomes in cognitive behavioral therapy for child anxiety disorders
Authors: Chiu Angela W. , McLeod Bryce D. , Har Kim , Wood Jeffrey J.
Published: May 2009

Background:  Few studies have examined the link between child–therapist alliance and outcome in manual‐guided cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) for children diagnosed with anxiety disorders. This study sought to clarify the nature and strength of this relation.

Methods:  The Therapy Process Observational Coding System for Child Psychotherapy – Alliance scale (TPOCS‐A; McLeod, 2005) was used to assess the quality of the child–therapist alliance. Coders independently rated 123 CBT therapy sessions conducted with 34 children (aged 6–13 years) diagnosed with anxiety disorders. Parents reported on children’s symptomatology at pre‐ mid‐, and post‐treatment.

Results:  A stronger child–therapist alliance early in treatment predicted greater improvement in parent‐reported outcomes at mid‐treatment but not post‐treatment. However, improvement in the child–therapist alliance over the course of treatment predicted better post‐treatment outcomes.

Conclusions:  The quality of the child–therapist alliance assessed early in treatment may be differentially associated with symptom reduction at mid‐ and post‐treatment. Results underscore the importance of assessing the relation between alliance and outcome over the course of therapy to clarify the role the child–therapist alliance plays in child psychotherapy.
Neurosteroids differentially modulate P2X4ATP‐gated channels through non‐genomic interactions
Authors: Codocedo Juan Francisco , Rodríguez Felipe E. , Huidobro‐Toro Juan Pablo
Published: May 2009

As neuroactive steroids modulate several ionotropic receptors, we assessed whether the ATP‐gated currents elicited by P2X4receptors are modulated by these compounds. We transfected HEK293 cells or injectedXenopus laevisoocytes with the cDNA coding for rat P2X4receptor. Application of 0.1–10 μM alfaxolone potentiated within 60‐s the 1 μM ATP‐evoked currents with a maximal potentiation of 1.8 and 2.6‐fold in HEK293 or oocytes cells respectively. Allopregnalolone or 3α, 21‐dihydroxy‐5α‐pregnan‐20‐one (THDOC) also potentiated the ATP‐gated currents but with a maximal effect only averaging 1.25 and 1.35‐fold respectively. In contrast, 0.3–10 μM pregnanolone, but not its sulfated derivative, inhibited the ATP‐gated currents; the maximal inhibition reached 40% in both cell types. THDOC, but not other neurosteroids increased significantly the τoffof the ATP‐evoked currents, revealing another mode of neurosteroid modulation. Sexual steroids such as 17β‐estradiol or progesterone were inactive revealing explicit structural requirements. Alfaxolone or THDOC at concentrations 30‐ to 100‐fold larger than required to modulate the receptor, gated the P2X4receptor eliciting ATP‐like currents that were reduced with suramin or brilliant blue G, but potentiated the P2X4receptor more than 10‐fold by 10 μM zinc. In conclusion, neurosteroids rapidly modulate via non‐genomic mechanisms and with nanomolar potencies, the P2X4 receptor interacting likely at distinct modulator sites.
Calpain activation is not required for AIF translocation in PARP‐1‐dependent cell death (parthanatos)
Authors: Wang Yingfei , Kim No S. , Li Xiaoling , Greer Peter A. , Koehler Raymond C. , Dawson Valina L. , Dawson Ted M.
Published: May 2009

Apoptosis‐inducing factor (AIF) is critical for poly(ADP‐ribose) polymerase‐1 (PARP‐1)‐dependent cell death (parthanatos). The molecular mechanism of mitochondrial AIF release to the nucleus remains obscure, although a possible role of calpain I has been suggested. Here we show that calpain is not required for mitochondrial AIF release in parthanatos. Although calpain I cleaved recombinant AIF in a cell‐free system in intact cells under conditions where endogenous calpain was activated by either NMDA or N‐methyl‐N′‐nitro‐N‐nitrosoguanidine (MNNG) administration, AIF was not cleaved, and it was released from mitochondria to the nucleus in its 62‐kDa uncleaved form. Moreover, NMDA administration under conditions that failed to activate calpain still robustly induced AIF nuclear translocation. Inhibition of calpain with calpastatin or genetic knockout of the regulatory subunit of calpain failed to prevent NMDA‐ or MNNG‐induced AIF nuclear translocation and subsequent cell death, respectively, which was markedly prevented by the PARP‐1 inhibitor, 3,4‐dihydro‐5‐[4‐(1‐piperidinyl)butoxyl]‐1(2H)‐iso‐quinolinone. Our study clearly shows that calpain activation is not required for AIF release during parthanatos, suggesting that other mechanisms rather than calpain are involved in mitochondrial AIF release in parthanatos.
The meaning of hope in nursing research: a meta‐synthesis
Authors: Hammer Kristianna , Mogensen Ole , Hall Elisabeth O. C.
Published: May 2009

The aim of this study was to develop a meta‐synthesis of nursing research about hope as perceived by people during sickness and by healthy people. A meta‐synthesis does not intend to cover all studies about hope; rather it tries to synthesize qualitative findings from different contexts, cultures and times to provide a global picture of the phenomenon under study. Noblit and Hare’s meta‐ethnographic approach was used. The approach is a systematic comparison of studies where each study is translated into the other. Data were 15 qualitative studies published in nursing or allied health journals and conducted in USA, Great Britain, Canada, Australia, Norway, Sweden and Finland. The meta‐synthesis resulted in six metaphors that illustrate dimensions of hope. These metaphors permeated the experiences of hope regardless of whether the human being was healthy, chronically or terminally ill. They comprise the complexity of hope and were: living in hope, hoping for something, hope as a light on the horizon, hope as a human‐to‐human relationship, hope vs. hopelessness and fear: two sides of the same coin, and hope as weathering a storm. Knowing the multidimensionality of hope and what hope means from the patient’s perspective might help nurses and other healthcare professionals to inspire hope as Florence Nightingale did when she walked with the lamp through the dark corridors and spread hope and light to the patients. We suggest that nurses working with patients with serious conditions such as cancer reflect on the meaning of the metaphors.
Being a nurse in nursing home for patients on the edge of life
Authors: Hov Reidun , Athlin Elsy , Hedelin Birgitta
Published: May 2009

Nurses in nursing homes care for patients with complex health problems that need to be followed up by medical treatment. Most patients benefit from the treatment, but for some the treatment seems only to lengthen their death process. Sometimes questions are raised as to whether life‐sustaining treatment should be withheld/withdrawn. Decisions related to such questions are difficult to make as some patients are ‘on the edge of life’, which is understood as a transition between living and dying with an unpredictable outcome, whether the illness will lead to recovery or dying. The aim of this study was to acquire a deeper understanding of what it is to be a nurse in a nursing home for patients on the edge of life. The research design was qualitative, based on hermeneutic phenomenology. Fourteen nurses at two nursing homes were interviewed twice. The result shows that when facing a patient on the edge of life, the nurses were challenged as professionals and as human beings. Two main themes were identified, which included two sub‐themes each. The first main theme: ‘striving to do right and good for everyone’ included the sub‐themes ‘feeling certain, but accompanied by uncertainty’ and ‘being caught between too much responsibility and too little formal power’. The second main theme: ‘being a vulnerable helper – the prize and the price’, contained the sub‐themes ‘needing emotional protection in professional commitment’ and ‘feeling undervalued in spite of professional pride’. The essence was: ‘being a lonely and enduring struggler between opposite poles’. The findings revealed paradoxes in nurses’ work which might threaten nurses’ professional identity and put heavy demands on their professional performance. There is a need for formal involvement in end‐of‐life decisions from nurses, further education and support to nurses related to patients on the edge of life.
Cytological lymph node evaluation in dogs with mast cell tumours: association with grade and survival*
Authors: Krick E. L. , Billings A. P. , Shofer F. S. , Watanabe S. , Sorenmo K. U.
Published: May 2009

The purpose of this retrospective cohort study is to describe the association of cytological assessment of lymph node metastasis with survival and tumour grade in dogs with mast cell tumours. Regional lymph node aspirates of 152 dogs diagnosed with a mast cell tumour were reviewed and classified according to specific cytological criteria for staging. 97 dogs (63.8%) had stage I tumours, and 55 (36.2%) had stage II tumours. Stage II dogs had a significantly shorter survival time than dogs with stage I disease (0.8 and 6.2 years, respectively;P< 0.0001). Dogs with grade III mast cell tumours were more likely to have stage II disease (P= 0.004). These results suggest that cytological evaluation of lymph nodes in dogs with mast cell tumours provides useful and valuable clinical information, and the results correlate with tumour grade and outcome thus providing a practical and non‐invasive method for staging.
Long‐term survival in dogs with localized histiocytic sarcoma treated with CCNU as an adjuvant to local therapy*
Authors: Skorupski K. A. , Rodriguez C. O. , Krick E. L. , Clifford C. A. , Ward R. , Kent M. S.
Published: May 2009

Histiocytic sarcoma (HS) is associated with a poor prognosis owing to the presence of metastasis at the time of diagnosis in most dogs. Improved outcome has been reported in several dogs with localized HS following local therapy, however, distant metastasis occurs in 70–91% of dogs suggesting that adjuvant systemic therapy is necessary. The purpose of this retrospective study was to describe clinical characteristics and outcome in dogs with localized HS treated with aggressive local therapy plus adjuvant CCNU chemotherapy. Data from 16 dogs were evaluated. The median disease‐free interval was 243 days. Two dogs had local recurrence and eight dogs developed metastatic disease with a median time to relapse of 201 days in these 10 dogs. The median survival time for all 16 dogs was 568 days. These results support the recommendation for aggressive local therapy combined with adjuvant CCNU chemotherapy in dogs with localized HS.
What is behind the presence of anti‐neutrophil cytoplasmatic antibodies in chronic liver disease?
Authors: Valentina De Riva , Marilena Celadin , Marina Pittoni , Mario Plebani , Angeli Paolo
Published: May 2009

Background: Anti‐neutrophil cytoplasm antibodies (ANCA) have been detected in serum from patients affected by autoimmune CLD, and to a lesser extent, in serum of patients affected by non autoimmune CLD. The clinical significance of ANCA in these disorders is still unclear.

Aims: To explore the clinical and diagnostic significance of ANCA in CLD.

Materials and methods: Forty‐five sera from patients affected by HCV‐ and HBV‐related CLD (group 1), 29 sera from patients affected by alcohol‐related CLD (Group 2) and 33 sera from patients affected by autoimmune‐related liver diseases including chronic autoimmune hepatitis (AIH), primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) and primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC), (Group 3) have been studied by using IIF and ELISA.

Results: A low correspondence between the ANCA positivity obtained by IFI and ELISA was observed. The positivity for at least one ANCA antigen was observed in 60,0% of Group 1, in 44,8% of Group 2 and in 72,7% of Group 3. The relation between the aetiology of the disease and the number of positive ANCA tests in ELISA was not significant. The relation between the MELD score and the number of ANCA positivity in patients with cirrhosis in the autoimmune‐related CLD and in the viral‐related CLD has been investigated. In both Groups a significant worsening of MELD at increasing number of ANCA positivity was found. Moreover in patients without cirrhosis in Group 3 an increase in the ALT and AST activity in patients with at least one ANCA positivity was observed.

Conclusions: These data suggest that the finding of ANCA by ELISA is common not only in autoimmune CLD but, also in viral‐related CLD. Patients with autoimmune‐related CLD express more frequently a multiple antigen reactivity as compared to those with viral‐related CLD. The positivity for ANCA might have a prognostic value in patients with viral‐related as well as autoimmune‐related cirrhosis since it is associated with worse MELD score.
A detailed pollen record of vegetation and climate changes in Central China during the past 16 000 years
Authors: ZHU CHENG , MA CHUNMEI , YU SHI‐YONG , TANG LINGYU , ZHANG WENQING , LU XUEFENG
Published: May 2009

Zhu, C., Ma, C., Yu, S.‐Y., Tang, L., Zhang, W. & Lu, X. 2009: A detailed pollen record of vegetation and climate changes in Central China during the past 16 000 years. Boreas, 10.1111/j.1502‐3885.2009.00098.x. ISSN 0300‐9483.

Detailed pollen analyses, along with magnetic and loss‐on‐ignition (LOI) measurements, were conducted on a 3 m long peat sequence recovered from the Dajiuhu Basin, the Shennongjia Mountains in Central China. Ten AMS 14C dates provide a firm age control on this pollen record in terms of vegetation changes governed essentially by the rise and fall of the Asian summer monsoon during the past 16 000 years. Between 16 000 and 12 700 cal. yr BP, pollen assemblages were dominated by coniferous and broad‐leaved trees, indicating a mixed forest landscape corresponding to the initial establishment of the monsoonal climate after the Last Glaciation. The progressive increases in percentages of evergreen tree pollen after 12 700 cal. yr BP point to a steady enhancement of the summer monsoon, which was episodically weakened during the Younger Dryas stadial. From 11 000 to 6000 cal. yr BP, values of coniferous and deciduous tree pollen decreased, while evergreen broad‐leaved tree pollen increased substantially, implying a stronger than normal monsoonal climate condition corresponding to the Holocene Hypsithermal Interval. A great reduction in the values of evergreen tree pollen at about 4000 cal. yr BP indicates a sudden retreat of the summer monsoon from this area.
Daily Changes in Fed Funds Futures Prices
Authors: HAMILTON JAMES D.
Published: May 2009

This paper explores the properties of daily changes in the prices for near‐term fed funds futures contracts. The paper finds these contracts to be excellent predictors of the fed funds rate, and shows that the claim of a nonzero term premium in the short‐horizon contracts is more sensitive to outliers than previous research appears to have recognized. I find some statistically significant evidence of serial correlation in the daily changes, but this accounts for only a tiny part of the 1‐day movements and there is essentially zero predictability for horizons longer than 1 day. Settlement futures prices for each day appear to incorporate the information embodied in that day's term structure of longer‐horizon Treasury securities. Previous employment growth makes a statistically significant contribution to predicting futures price changes, though again this could only account for a tiny part of the daily variance. The paper concludes that futures prices provide a very useful measure of the daily changes in the market's expectation of near‐term changes in Fed policy.