bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Anterior–Lateral Versus Anterior–Posterior Electrode Position for Cardioverting Atrial Fibrillation
Authors: Schmidt Anders Sjørslev , Lauridsen Kasper Glerup , Møller Dorthe Svenstrup , Christensen Per Dahl , Dodt Karen Kaae , Rickers Hans , Løfgren Bo , Albertsen Andi Eie
Published: November 2021

Background:

Smaller randomized studies have reported conflicting results regarding the optimal electrode position for cardioverting atrial fibrillation. However, anterior–posterior electrode positioning is widely used as a standard and believed to be superior to anterior–lateral electrode positioning. Therefore, we aimed to compare anterior–lateral and anterior–posterior electrode positioning for cardioverting atrial fibrillation in a multicenter randomized trial.

Methods:

In this multicenter, investigator-initiated, open-label trial, we randomly assigned patients with atrial fibrillation scheduled for elective cardioversion to either anterior–lateral or anterior–posterior electrode positioning. The primary outcome was the proportion of patients in sinus rhythm after the first shock. The secondary outcome was the proportion of patients in sinus rhythm after up to 4 shocks escalating to maximum energy. Safety outcomes were any cases of arrhythmia during or after cardioversion, skin redness, and patient-reported periprocedural pain.

Results:

We randomized 468 patients. The primary outcome occurred in 126 patients (54%) assigned to the anterior–lateral electrode position and in 77 patients (33%) assigned to the anterior–posterior electrode position (risk difference, 22 percentage points [95% CI, 13–30];
P
<0.001). The number of patients in sinus rhythm after the final cardioversion shock was 216 (93%) assigned to anterior–lateral electrode positioning and 200 (85%) assigned to anterior–posterior electrode positioning (risk difference, 7 percentage points [95% CI, 2–12]). There were no significant differences between groups in any safety outcomes.

Conclusions:

Anterior–lateral electrode positioning was more effective than anterior–posterior electrode positioning for biphasic cardioversion of atrial fibrillation. There were no significant differences in any safety outcome.

Registration:

URL:
https://www.clinicaltrials.gov
; Unique identifier: NCT03817372.
Association of Socioeconomic Status With Ideal Cardiovascular Health in Black Men
Authors: Azap Rosevine A. , Nolan Timiya S. , Gray Darrell M. , Lawson Kiwan , Gregory John , Capers Quinn , Odei James B. , Joseph Joshua J.
Published: November 2021

Background

Black men are burdened by high cardiovascular risk and the highest all‐cause mortality rate in the United States. Socioeconomic status (SES) is associated with improved cardiovascular risk factors in majority populations, but there is a paucity of data in Black men.

Methods and Results

We examined the association of SES measures including educational attainment, annual income, employment status, and health insurance status with an ideal cardiovascular health (ICH) score, which included blood pressure, glucose, cholesterol, body mass index, physical activity, and smoking in African American Male Wellness Walks. Six metrics of ICH were categorized into a 3‐tiered ICH score 0 to 2, 3 to 4, and 5 to 6. Multinomial logistic regression modeling was performed to examine the association of SES measures with ICH scores adjusted for age. Among 1444 men, 7% attained 5 to 6 ICH metrics. Annual income <$20 000 was associated with a 56% lower odds of attaining 3 to 4 versus 0 to 2 ICH components compared with ≥$75 000 (
P
=0.016). Medicare and no insurance were associated with a 39% and 35% lower odds of 3 to 4 versus 0 to 2 ICH components, respectively, compared with private insurance (all
P
<0.05). Education and employment status were not associated with higher attainment of ICH in Black men.

Conclusions

Among community‐dwelling Black men, higher attainment of measures of SES showed mixed associations with greater attainment of ICH. The lack of association of higher levels of educational attainment and employment status with ICH suggests that in order to address the long–standing health inequities that affect Black men, strategies to increase attainment of cardiovascular health may need to address additional components beyond SES.
Brain Kynurenine Pathway and Functional Outcome of Rats Resuscitated From Cardiac Arrest
Authors: Lucchetti Jacopo , Fumagalli Francesca , Olivari Davide , Affatato Roberta , Fracasso Claudia , De Giorgio Daria , Perego Carlo , Motta Francesca , Passoni Alice , Staszewsky Lidia , Novelli Deborah , Magliocca Aurora , Garattini Silvio , Latini Roberto , Ristagno Giuseppe , Gobbi Marco
Published: November 2021

Background

Brain injury and neurological deficit are consequences of cardiac arrest (CA), leading to high morbidity and mortality. Peripheral activation of the kynurenine pathway (KP), the main catabolic route of tryptophan metabolized at first into kynurenine, predicts poor neurological outcome in patients resuscitated after out‐of‐hospital CA. Here, we investigated KP activation in hippocampus and plasma of rats resuscitated from CA, evaluating the effect of KP modulation in preventing CA‐induced neurological deficit.

Methods and Results

Early KP activation was first demonstrated in 28 rats subjected to electrically induced CA followed by cardiopulmonary resuscitation. Hippocampal levels of the neuroactive metabolites kynurenine, 3‐hydroxy‐anthranilic acid, and kynurenic acid were higher 2 hours after CA, as in plasma. Further, 36 rats were randomized to receive the inhibitor of the first step of KP, 1‐methyl‐DL‐tryptophan, or vehicle, before CA. No differences were observed in hemodynamics and myocardial function. The CA‐induced KP activation, sustained up to 96 hours in hippocampus (and plasma) of vehicle‐treated rats, was counteracted by the inhibitor as indicated by lower hippocampal (and plasmatic) kynurenine/tryptophan ratio and kynurenine levels. 1‐Methyl‐DL‐tryptophan reduced the CA‐induced neurological deficits, with a significant correlation between the neurological score and the individual kynurenine levels, as well as the kynurenine/tryptophan ratio, in plasma and hippocampus.

Conclusions

These data demonstrate the CA‐induced lasting activation of the first step of the KP in hippocampus, showing that this activation was involved in the evolving neurological deficit. The degree of peripheral activation of KP may predict neurological function after CA.
Incidence and Long‐Term Outcomes of Stroke in Patients Presenting With ST‐Segment Elevation–Myocardial Infarction: Insights From the Midwest STEMI Consortium
Authors: Megaly Michael , Yildiz Mehmet , Tannenbaum Edward , Okeson Brynn , Dworak Marshall W. , Garberich Ross , Sharkey Scott , Aguirre Frank , Tannenbaum Mark , Smith Timothy D. , Henry Timothy D. , Garcia Santiago
Published: November 2021

Background

Contemporary real‐world data on stroke in patients presenting with ST‐segment–elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) are scarce.

Methods and Results

We evaluated the incidence, trends, cause, and predictors of stroke from 2003 to 2019 in 4 large regional STEMI programs in the upper Midwest that use similar transfer and treatment protocols. We also evaluated the long‐term impact of stroke on 5‐year mortality. Multivariate logistic and Cox regression analysis was used to identify variables independently associated with stroke in patients presenting with STEMI and identify variables associated with 5‐year mortality. A total of 12 868 patients presented with STEMI during the study period. Stroke occurred in 98 patients (0.76%). The incidence of stroke remained stable over time (0.5% in 2003, 1.2% in 2019;
P
‐trend=0.22). Most (75%) of strokes were ischemic, with a median time to stroke symptoms of 14 hours after primary percutaneous coronary intervention (interquartile range, 4–72 hours), which led to a small minority (3%) receiving endovascular treatment and high in‐hospital mortality (18%). On multivariate regression analysis, age (increment of 10 years) (odds ratio [OR], 1.32; 95% CI, 1.10–1.58;
P
‐value=0.003) and preintervention cardiogenic shock (OR, 2.03; (95% CI, 1.03–3.78;
P
=0.032)) were associated with a higher risk of in‐hospital stroke. In‐hospital stroke was independently associated with increased risk of 5‐year mortality (hazard ratio, 2.01; 95% CI, 1.13–3.57;
P
=0.02).

Conclusions

In patients presenting with STEMI, the risk of stroke is low (0.76%). A stroke in patients presenting with STEMI is associated with significantly higher in‐hospital (18%) and long‐term mortality (35% at 5 years). Stroke was associated with double the risk of 5‐year death.
Interaction, Satisfaction, and the PCC
Authors: Deal Amy Rose
Published: November 2021

The Person-Case Constraint (PCC) is a family of restrictions on the relative person of the two objects of a ditransitive. PCC effects offer a testing ground for theories of Agree and of syntactic features, both those on nominals and those found on agreement probes. This article offers a new theory of PCC effects in an interaction/satisfaction theory of Agree (Deal 2015a) and shows the advantages of this framework in capturing PCC typology. On this model, probes are specified for interaction, determining which features will be copied to them, and for satisfaction, determining which features will cause probing to stop. Applied to the PCC, this theory (a) captures all four types of PCC effect recognized by Nevins (2007) under a unified notion of Agree; (b) captures the restriction of PCC effects to contexts of “Double Weakness” in many prominent examples (e.g., in Italian, Greek, and Basque, where PCC effects hold only when both objects are expressed with clitics); (c) naturally extends to PCC effects in syntactic environments without visible clitics or agreement for one or both objects, as well as to the absence of PCC effects in some languages with clitics or agreement for both objects. Two refinements of the interaction/ satisfaction theory are offered: a new notation for probes’ interaction and satisfaction specifications, clarifying the absence of uninterpretable/unvalued features as drivers of Agree; and a proposal for the way that probes’ behavior may change over the course of a derivation, dubbed dynamic interaction.
Lexically Aware Semi-Supervised Learning for OCR Post-Correction
Authors: Rijhwani Shruti , Rosenblum Daisy , Anastasopoulos Antonios , Neubig Graham
Published: November 2021

Much of the existing linguistic data in many languages of the world is locked away in non- digitized books and documents. Optical character recognition (OCR) can be used to produce digitized text, and previous work has demonstrated the utility of neural post-correction methods that improve the results of general- purpose OCR systems on recognition of less- well-resourced languages. However, these methods rely on manually curated post- correction data, which are relatively scarce compared to the non-annotated raw images that need to be digitized. In this paper, we present a semi-supervised learning method that makes it possible to utilize these raw images to improve performance, specifically through the use of self-training, a technique where a model is iteratively trained on its own outputs. In addition, to enforce consistency in the recognized vocabulary, we introduce a lexically aware decoding method that augments the neural post-correction model with a count-based language model constructed from the recognized texts, implemented using weighted finite-state automata (WFSA) for efficient and effective decoding. Results on four endangered languages demonstrate the utility of the proposed method, with relative error reductions of 15%–29%, where we find the combination of self-training and lexically aware decoding essential for achieving consistent improvements.1
РOSTGRADUATE STUDENT IN THE FIELD OF EDUCATION: ON THE QUESTION OF LIFE FEARS (BASED ON THE SURVEY MATERIALS)
Authors: Sobkin Vladimir S. , Smyslova Maria M. , Adamchuk Dmitriy V.
Published: November 2021

The relevance of the study of the socio-psychological well-being of graduate students (including such an indicator of social well-being as their assessment of the significance of various life fears and threats) is associated with the intensive changes taking place with the Institute of postgraduate studies in connection with the transition to the “economy of knowledge”, as well as with the socio-economic and socio-cultural processes that are transforming Russian society. Objectives. The study of socio-psychological features of life fears of graduate students depending on the influence of socio-demographic, socio-stratification and socio-psychological factors. Methods and selection. The article is based on the materials of an anonymous monitoring questionnaire conducted in 2019 by employees of the Information and analytical center of Russian Academy of education. The study involved students of post-graduate research organizations that train post-graduate students in the field of education Sciences, as well as pedagogical universities in Moscow and the regions of the Russian Federation. Empirical data were processed using mathematical statistics methods (statistical software packages SPSS and StatSoft Statistica). Results. The paper analyzes the influence of socio-demographic, socio-stratification and socio-psychological factors on the assessment of life fears and threats by graduate students. The relationship between the assessment of life fears by postgraduate students and the assessment of their life prospects, material and family status, the level of education of parents, and the presence of emigration plans is shown. The correlation analysis revealed a stable, age-independent structure of fears and threats for graduate students. Conclusions. Graduate students’ assessment of the importance of life fears is determined by the influence of a number of socio-demographic, socio-stratification and socio-psychological factors. The conducted special correlation analysis showed that the basis of the structure of graduate students ‘fears is a complex complex that includes six interrelated “centers”: “risk of losing health”, “economic failure”, “lack of professional prospects”, “lack of social protection”, “unemployment”, “tightening of the regime in the country”.
THE PROBLEM OF THE TRANSITION FROM “NAIVE” TO SCIENTIFIC CONCEPTS: CONCEPTUAL CHANGE APPROACH AND VYGOTSKY’S COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT THEORY
Authors: Kazanskaya Ksenia O. , Romashchuk Alexandr N.
Published: November 2021

The relevance of the paper — discussing an area of modern cognitive psychology, namely, conceptual change approach. It examines the origins of this approach: 1) the transition from «naïve» to «scientific» thinking in children as an applied task of primary and secondary school education; 2) the basic concepts and theoretical principles of this approach, such as «domain specificity» and «misconception». The goal. The study emphasizes the problems of implementation and theoretical analysis of the transition from one type of thinking to another, which the representatives of conceptual change approach/theory are faced with. Methods. The analysis of the «naive» concepts as integral systems («everyday theories») allows us to highlight the fundamental difference between the two strategies of analyzing the transition to scientific concepts described by L. Vygotsky. Results and conclusions. According to the first strategy, the scientific concepts supplant the everyday ones; the forms of everyday thinking (such as game) can be used to maintain weak original forms of scientific concepts. The opposite strategy, especially emphathized by L. Vygotsky, regards the process as not just a substitution, but a specific transformation of everyday theory. The closest approach to such transformation understanding is Elkonin-Davydov developmental education theory, which, nevertheless, implements this logic in a contradictory manner.
Memory, Re-memory and Post-memory
Authors: Bharucha Nilufer E.
Published: November 2021

For the Indian diaspora their new lives in the Imperial colonies became the present and the country left behind became memory. As the diasporics tried to recall the past, they dealt in what Toni Morrison has called the act of re-memory. Pheroze Nowrojee’s re-telling of the tale of his grandfather, who went from India to Kenya to run the trains on what was then called the Uganda Railways, is a case of re-memory, as the private memories of an earlier generation are etched into public and even national spaces of independent Kenya. There is also what Marianne Hirsch calls post-memory which can also be considered in the case of diasporic writing. While A Kenyan Journey (2014) tells the story of the author’s grandfather, it is much more than just a Parsi Zoroastrian family’s memoir. Intertwined in the grandfather’s story are the wider narratives of colonialism and old and new homelands.
Ceramics in Indian Ocean Trade
Authors: Nowrojee Villoo
Published: November 2021

Ceramics have been extensively imported on the East African Coast over many centuries. The principal sources have been Iran and China, the latter trans-shipped through the port of Malacca and the Indian ports of the western Indian Ocean. These ceramics were used to embellish the gates and mihrabs of mosques, and the exteriors of elaborate tombs. They were vessels in homes and decorations on buildings. In the last two centuries, the old ceramics came to be supplanted by imported ware more utilitarian in make and appearance. These came in mainly from Holland, England and Germany. These products of Western Europe were influenced by the Islamic markets they had entered, while in turn these plates became an important part of the East African Coast’s architecture and Swahili traditions and homes.
The Paris Agreement’s Article 6 Market Mechanisms and wto Law
Authors: Moon Gillian , Schwarte Christoph
Published: November 2021

The article analyses the market-based approaches in Article 6 of the Paris Agreement with respect to their potential interaction with international trade law. It focuses on the international dimension of Article 6 and the tensions associated with international trading of mitigation outcomes (under paragraphs 2–3 of the Article) and emission-reduction units generated through the sustainable development mechanism (paragraphs 4–7). We find that while there are significant normative tensions and legal uncertainties in the relationship between the regimes, international cooperation across the two law- and policy-making arenas could also help to develop new approaches to aligning wto trade law with international climate objectives.
Current knowledge of the family Pompilidae (Hymenoptera: Vespoidea) in Mexico: diversity and geographical distribution
Authors: VANOYE-ELIGIO MAXIMILIANO , GÓMEZ-CAMAL MARÍA DEL CARMEN , MARTÍN-CANCHÉ BLANCA DEL ROSARIO , ROSAS-MEJÍA MADAI , HORTA-VEGA JORGE V. , VANOYE-ELIGIO VENANCIO
Published: November 2021

The family Pompilidae is a little-known insect group in Mexico, which comprises insects known as spider-hunting wasps. This study aimed to review and update the occurrence of pompilids in Mexico and provide information on their geographical distribution. A total of 305 species and 46 genera were compiled, of which 131 species and 11 genera were added to the Pompilidae species list in Mexico. Moreover, we provided data on the geographical distribution of 216 Pompilidae species and highlighted 126 species as registered only from this country, which accounted for 41 % of the total species. The nearctic portion in Mexico is the most studied area, with 203 species, whereas only 96 species are listed from the neotropical region of the country. Four subfamilies were represented: Pompilinae with 161 species, Pepsinae with 128 species, Ceropalinae with ten species, and Notocyphinae with six species. Anoplius was the most species-rich genus with 41 species, and Sericopompilus neotropicalis was the most widely distributed species. The analysis suggests a high diversity of the family Pompilidae and underlines the need to further explore southern areas of Mexico.
Космонимия в cлавянских переводах библейской Книги Иова
Authors: Фомина [Fomina] Людмила [Liudmila] Ф. [F.]
Published: November 2021

Cosmonymy in Slavic Translations of the Biblical Book of JobThis article explores the names of Venus, Pleiades, the Great Bear and Orion’s Belt in Slavic translations of the biblical Book of Job. The author proposes hypotheses about the etymology of Church Slavonic names for the following celestial objects: (1) the name денница for Venus originates from folk cosmonymy and was introduced into religious discourse by Apostle of the Slavs Constantine-Cyril; (2) the name власожелищи is etymologised as a merger of two nominations: South Slavic Власи ‘Pleiads’ and a hapax legomenon from the Book of Job *желищи ‘Great Bear’, from Hebrew Āsh or Aish ‘funeral convoy’; (3) the name кружилия for Orion is also connected with Hebrew cosmonymy and points to the mythical giant Nimrod, who was tied with a belt to the sky for his rebellion against God. Kosmonimia w słowiańskich tłumaczeniach biblijnej Księgi HiobaNiniejszy artykuł analizuje nazwy Wenus, Plejad, Wielkiej Niedźwiedzicy i Pasa Oriona w tłumaczeniach biblijnej Księgi Hioba na języki słowiańskie. Autorka przedstawia hipotezy dotyczące etymologii kilku cerkiewnosłowiańskich nazw obiektów kosmicznych: 1) nazwa planety Wenus денница została zapożyczona z kosmonimii ludowej i wprowadzona do dyskursu religijnego przez Apostoła Słowian Konstantyna-Cyryla; 2) nazwa власожелищи jest traktowana jako połączenie dwóch nazw: płd. słow. Власи ‘Plejady’ i hapaks legomenon z biblijnej Księgi Hioba *желищи ‘Wielka Niedźwiedzica’, od hebrajskiego Āsh lub Aish ʽkondukt pogrzebowyʼ; 3) nazwa Oriona кружилия rownież związana jest z kosmonimią hebrajską i wskazuje na mitycznego olbrzyma Nimroda, skazanego przez Boga na przywiązanie pasem do sklepienia niebieskiego.
The Sonority Sequencing Principle and the Structure of Slovak Consonant Clusters
Authors: Gregová Renáta
Published: November 2021

The Sonority Sequencing Principle and the Structure of Slovak Consonant ClustersIn line with the Sonority Sequencing Principle (SSP), the centre of the syllable is the most sonorous sound and the sonority of the other segments in the syllable drops towards the syllable edges. Nevertheless, in many languages, there are syllable onsets and codas that violate this principle of sonority. Following the functional approach proposed by Jerzy Kuryłowicz, types of word/syllable-initial and word/syllable-final clusters in standard Slovak were delimited. A sonority-based analysis of those clusters revealed that almost 40% of the common initial consonant sequences violate the SSP. The situation with the final clusters is similar. These findings indicate that the creation of consonant clusters in a language does not depend solely on the sonority of the individual segments but also follows other phonological and/or perceptual regularities connected with the process of communication. Zasada sekwencji sonorności a struktura zbitek spółgłoskowych w języku słowackimZgodnie z zasadą sekwencji sonorności (Sonority Sequencing Principle, SSP) jądro sylaby jest dźwiękiem o najwyższej sonorności, a sonorność pozostałych segmentów sylaby maleje wraz z odległością od jądra. Niemniej jednak w wielu językach występują nagłosy i wygłosy, które naruszają tę zasadę. Przyjmując podejście funkcjonalne zaproponowane przez Jerzego Kuryłowicza, wyróżniono typy zbitek w nagłosie i wygłosie w standardowym języku słowackim. Ich analiza pod względem sonorności wykazała, że prawie 40% sekwencji powszechnie występujących w nagłosie narusza zasadę sekwencji sonorności. W przypadku wygłosu wynik był podobny. Ustalenia te wskazują, że tworzenie zbitek spółgłoskowych nie zależy wyłącznie od sonorności poszczególnych segmentów, ale również od innych prawidłowości fonologicznych i/lub percepcyjnych związanych z procesem komunikacji.
Data Fusion of GEO FY-4A GIIRS and LEO Hyperspectral Infrared Sounders with Surface Observations: A Hong Kong Case Study
Authors: Maier Jessica , Knuteson Robert
Published: November 2021

Hyperspectral infrared satellite observations from geostationary platforms allow for the retrieval of temperature and water vapor measurements with higher temporal and vertical resolution than was previously available. The Chinese satellite Fengyun-4A (FY-4A) includes the Geostationary Interferometric Infrared Sounder (GIIRS), which has the ability to measure vertical profiles of temperature and water vapor from space at times when ground-based upper-air soundings are not available and can fill an important need in short-range weather prediction. In this study, convective available potential energy (CAPE) and lifted index (LI), which are used for forecasting atmospheric instability, were computed using the SHARPpy algorithm used by the NWS Storm Prediction Center. However, remote infrared and microwave sensing is lacking detailed information in the boundary layer, so the addition of the NOAA Meteorological Assimilation and Data Ingest System (MADIS) surface data may be necessary in order to get accurate temperature and moisture measurement near the surface. This study uses 10–16 May 2019 in the coastal region near Hong Kong for evaluating the use of hourly surface observations combined with satellite soundings from FY-4A GIIRS at 2-h intervals. The GIIRS plus MADIS surface-based CAPE and LI estimates are compared to estimates derived from low-Earth-orbiting (LEO) SNPP and NOAA-20 from NOAA, MetOp from EUMETSAT, NWP reanalysis, and local radiosondes. In the case study, the 2-h sampling interval of the GIIRS geostationary sounder was able to capture the rapid transition (16 h) from a stable to an unstable atmosphere in both CAPE and LI. The use of surface observations with satellite soundings gave mixed results, possibly due to the complex terrain near Hong Kong.
Implementing Hybrid Background Error Covariance into the LETKF with Attenuation-Based Localization: Experiments with a Simplified AGCM
Authors: Kotsuki Shunji , Bishop Craig H.
Published: November 2021

Recent numerical weather prediction systems have significantly improved medium-range forecasts by implementing hybrid background error covariance, for which climatological (static) and ensemble-based (flow-dependent) error covariance are combined. While the hybrid approach has been investigated mainly in variational systems, this study aims at exploring methods for implementing the hybrid approach for the local ensemble transform Kalman filter (LETKF). Following Kretschmer et al., the present study constructed hybrid background error covariance by adding collections of climatological perturbations to the forecast ensemble. In addition, this study proposes a new localization method that attenuates the ensemble perturbation (Z-localization) instead of inflating observation error variance (R-localization). A series of experiments with a simplified global atmospheric model revealed that the hybrid LETKF resulted in smaller forecast errors than the LETKF, especially in sparsely observed regions. Due to the larger ensemble enabled by the hybrid approach, optimal localization length scales for the hybrid LETKF were larger than those for the LETKF. With the LETKF, the Z-localization resulted in similar forecast errors as the R-localization. However, Z-localization has an advantage in enabling us to apply different localization scales for flow-dependent perturbation and climatological static perturbations with the hybrid LETKF. The optimal localization for climatological perturbations was slightly larger than that for flow-dependent perturbations. This study also proposes optimal eigendecomposition (OED) ETKF formulation to reduce computational costs. The computational expense of the OED ETKF formulation became significantly smaller than that of standard ETKF formulations as the number of climatological perturbations was increased beyond a few hundred.
Performance of 2020 Real-Time Atlantic Hurricane Forecasts from High-Resolution Global-Nested Hurricane Models: HAFS-globalnest and GFDL T-SHiELD
Authors: Hazelton Andrew , Gao Kun , Bender Morris , Cowan Levi , Alaka Ghassan J. , Kaltenbaugh Alex , Gramer Lew , Zhang Xuejin , Harris Lucas , Marchok Timothy , Morin Matt , Mehra Avichal , Zhang Zhan , Liu Bin , Marks Frank
Published: November 2021

The global-nested Hurricane Analysis and Forecast System (HAFS-globalnest) is one piece of NOAA’s Unified Forecast System (UFS) application for hurricanes. In this study, results are analyzed from 2020 real-time forecasts by HAFS-globalnest and a similar global-nested model, the Tropical Atlantic version of GFDL’s System for High‐resolution prediction on Earth‐to‐Local Domains (T-SHiELD). HAFS-globalnest produced the highest track forecast skill compared to several operational and experimental models, while T-SHiELD showed promising track skills as well. The intensity forecasts from HAFS-globalnest generally had a positive bias at longer lead times primarily due to the lack of ocean coupling, while T-SHiELD had a much smaller intensity bias particularly at longer forecast lead times. With the introduction of a modified planetary boundary layer scheme and an increased number of vertical levels, particularly in the boundary layer, HAFS forecasts of storm size had a smaller positive bias than occurred in the 2019 version of HAFS-globalnest. Despite track forecasts that were comparable to the operational GFS and HWRF, both HAFS-globalnest and T-SHiELD suffered from a persistent right-of-track bias in several cases at the 4–5-day forecast lead times. The reasons for this bias were related to the strength of the subtropical ridge over the western North Atlantic and are continuing to be investigated and diagnosed. A few key case studies from this very active hurricane season, including Hurricanes Laura and Delta, were examined.
Nationwide Readmissions Analysis of Minimally Invasive Versus Open Ventral Hernia Repair: A Retrospective Population-Based Study
Authors: Ayuso Sullivan A. , Katzen Michael M. , Aladegbami Bola G. , Nayak Raageswari B. , Augenstein Vedra A. , Heniford B Todd , Colavita Paul D.
Published: November 2021

Introduction

Minimally invasive ventral hernia repair (MISVHR) has been performed for almost 30 years; recently, there has been an accelerated adoption of the robotic platform leading to renewed comparisons to open ventral hernia repair (OVHR). The present study evaluates patterns and outcomes of readmissions for MISVHR and OVHR patients.

Methods

The Nationwide Readmissions Database (NRD) was queried for patients undergoing OVHR and MISVHR from 2016 to 2018. Demographic characteristics, complications, and 90-day readmissions were determined. A subgroup analysis was performed to compare robotic ventral hernia repair (RVHR) vs laparoscopic hernia repair (LVHR). Standard statistical methods and logistic regression were used.

Results

Over the 3-year period, there were 25 795 MISVHR and 180 635 OVHR admissions. Minimally invasive ventral hernia repair was associated with a lower rate of 90-day readmission (11.3% vs 17.3%, P < .01), length of stay (LOS) (4.0 vs 7.9 days, P < .01), and hospital charges ($68,240 ± 75 680 vs $87,701 ± 73 165, P < .01), which remained true when elective and non-elective repairs were evaluated independently. Postoperative infection was the most common reason for readmission but was less common in the MISVHR group (8.4% vs 16.8%, P < .01). Robotic ventral hernia repair increased over the 3-year period and was associated with decreased LOS (3.7 vs 4.1 days, P < .01) and comparable readmissions (11.3% vs 11.2%, P = .74) to LVHR, but was nearly $20,000 more expensive. In logistic regression, OVHR, non-elective operation, urban-teaching hospital, increased LOS, comorbidities, and payer type were predictive of readmission.

Conclusions

Open ventral hernia repair was associated with increased LOS and increased readmissions compared to MISVHR. Robotic ventral hernia repair had comparable readmissions and decreased LOS to LVHR, but it was more expensive.
Risk Factors for Reoperation Following Radical Gastrectomy in Gastric Cancer Patients
Authors: Kim Dong-Hwan , Park Ji-Ho , Kim Tae Han , Jung Eun-Jung , Jeong Chi-Young , Ju Young-Tae , Kim Ju-Yeon , Park Tae-Jin , Lee Young-Joon , Jeong Sang-Ho
Published: November 2021

Background

Reoperation due to elective surgery complications is very mentally, physically, and economically detrimental to patients. This study investigated the potential risk factors associated with early reoperation after radical gastrectomy in gastric cancer patients and included an in-depth analysis of these risk factors.

Methods

This retrospective study reviewed 1568 patients with gastric cancer. Grade 3 or greater complications were defined as severe. Any factors related to reoperation after radical gastrectomy were analyzed in patients with severe local complications.

Results

Among 1537 patients undergoing radical gastrectomy, 115 (7.5%) patients had severe postoperative complications, 98 (6.38%) of whom experienced severe local complications. The most common local complication was anastomotic leakage (31, 2.02%), followed by intra-abdominal abscess (30, 1.95%), pancreatic leakage (22, 1.43%), duodenal stump leakage (18, 1.17%), intra-abdominal bleeding (12, .78%), intraluminal bleeding (8, .52%), small bowel obstruction (5, .32%), and chyle leakage (3, .19%). Of these patients, 26 (1.69%) underwent reoperation, and 6 (.39%) died. In the univariate analysis of clinical factors related to reoperation, intra-abdominal bleeding and small bowel obstruction were risk factors for reoperation, and intra-abdominal bleeding (odds ratio [OR] = 9.57, confidence interval [CI] = 2.65-40.20, P < .001) and small bowel obstruction (OR = 19.14, CI = 2.60-390.13, P = .011) were independent risk factors associated with reoperation in the multivariate analysis.

Conclusion

Intra-abdominal bleeding and small bowel obstruction are independent risk factors for reoperation following radical gastrectomy. Patients with postoperative intra-abdominal bleeding and small bowel obstruction need to be warned about reoperation.
Does the accessibility of a farmer predict the delivery of extension services? Evidence from Rwanda
Authors: Kabirigi Michel
Published: November 2021

To determine whether a farmer’s accessibility predicts the delivery of extension services, this study used banana Xanthomonas wilt (BXW) disease-management advisory as a typical case with which to collect extension-delivery information from 690 farmers, distinguished by their respective accessibility. Cost–distance analysis was applied to define each farmer’s accessibility. The results revealed that a farmer’s accessibility does not predict extension delivery to that farmer in all forms of the examined extension parameters. Significant factors contributing to the delivery of extension services included BXW incidence and membership in Twigire Muhinzi groups. Given the results of this paper, I argue that the nature of the advisory and the type of farmers’ networks are more predictive factors than physical proximity. The findings of this study support the argument that the group-based extension approach is more effective; therefore, the Twigire Muhinzi initiative is recommended as a suitable model for delivering agricultural advisory services. The absence of a significant association between extension delivery and distance (accessibility) suggests that extension agents do not follow the first-reached, first-served rule but instead follow the problem-solving-based approach.
Researches on the numerical simulation of the dust pollution characteristics and the optimal dust suppression wind-speed on fully mechanised caving face
Authors: Mo Jinming , Ma Wei
Published: November 2021

Dust removal by ventilation is a commonly used dust control strategy. This study analyses the characteristics of airflow transport and dust pollution on a fully mechanised top-coal caving face at different inlet wind velocities by using a numerical simulation experiment, and the best wind velocity for dust suppression is obtained. When the inlet wind velocity fluctuates in the range of 0.5 to 3.0 m/s, the overall dust mass concentration on the working face initially increases and then remains stable, but in the range of 2.5 to 3.0 m/s, the changes in the overall dust mass concentration and dust mass concentration of the respiratory zone on the working face are not significant. The dust pollution in the respiratory zone produced by the hydraulic support lowering pillar and moving frame on the working face is quantitatively analysed at different inlet wind velocities of 2.5 to 3.0 m/s to determine the optimum wind velocity for dust suppression on the working face. The optimum wind speed for dust suppression is 2.6 m/s. This study lays a foundation for the ventilation design and dust control in the early stage of a mine and for the establishment of a clean and green production mine.
Effects of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Pediatric Nasal Fractures
Authors: Firat Koca Cigdem , Celik Turgut , Aydin Sukru , Kelles Mehmet , Yasar Seyma
Published: November 2021

Objectives

Nasal bone fracture is a frequent entity consulted to the otolaryngologists, approximately accounting for 39% of all facial bone fractures. The most frequent mechanisms of injury consist of assault, sport-related injuries, falls, and motor vehicle accidents. In this study, we examined the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on pediatric nasal fractures.

Methods

Children with nasal fracture who applied to Malatya Training and Research Hospital during the year before the first case and the following year were included in this study. Data of 172 patients for the pre-pandemic period and 79 patients for pandemic were available and included in the study. Demographic information, clinical features, nasal fracture etiology, nasal fracture type, type and time of intervention, and other accompanying pathologies were recorded.

Results

While falls was the leading cause of fracture etiology before the pandemic (64 patients [37.21%]), assault seems to be the leading cause during the pandemic period (27 children [34.18%]). In the pre-pandemic period, the intervention for patients with nasal fractures was performed on an average of 5 days, while this period was calculated as an average of 6 days during the pandemic period. When the 2 groups are compared in terms of nasal fracture intervention time, it was seen that the intervention time was statistically significantly later in the pandemic period ( P < .001). According to the results of the analysis, the most cases in the pandemic period were seen in the fourth month, which indicated a-month period between 11 June and 11 July.

Conclusions

In conclusion, our number of nasal fracture cases was decreased during the pandemic period compared to the 1-year period before the pandemic. We observed the most common type IIA nasal fracture. We gave outpatient treatment to most of the patients. Our most common cause of fracture was assault. We intervened in our cases in an average of 6 days and preferred closed reduction most frequently. We could not find any study on the same subject in the literature, and we aimed to contribute to the literature with this study.
Association Between Serum Amyloid A Expression and Disease Control after Endoscopic Sinus Surgery in Patients With Chronic Rhinosinusitis With Nasal Polyps
Authors: Lu Hangui , Liu Haiyan , Wang Kanghua , Shi Jianbo , Sun Yueqi
Published: November 2021

Objective

Our previous study revealed that serum amyloid A (SAA) levels in polyp tissues could serve as a biomarker for the prediction of corticosteroid insensitivity in patients with chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyps (CRSwNP). However, their association with disease control status in the patients after endoscopic sinus surgery remains to be assessed.

Methods

Polyp tissues and control uncinate process mucosa were collected from 48 patients with CRSwNP and 10 healthy control subjects. SAA expression was examined using immunohistochemistry and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were performed to determine the predictive value of SAA in nasal polyps. The clinical characteristics of 2 CRSwNP subtypes (SAAhigh and SAAlow) were evaluated.

Results

The SAA expression levels in polyp tissues were significantly elevated both in non-eosinophilic and eosinophilic CRSwNP as compared to the healthy controls. In patients with CRSwNP, the tissue SAA level was significantly higher in the disease-controlled patients than those of the partly controlled and uncontrolled. ROC curve analysis revealed that a cut-off value of 114.9 ng/mL for the tissue SAA level predicted the patients with disease-controlled status with 93.33% sensitivity and 63.64% specificity (AUC = .8727, P < .001). Furthermore, The SAAhigh subgroup showed higher tissue eosinophil numbers and percentage of the disease-controlled patients compared to the SAAlow subgroup.

Conclusions

Our findings suggest that measurements of SAA in polyp tissues may provide useful information for evaluating CRSwNP conditions, especially identifying the CRSwNP patients with disease-controlled status after endoscopic sinus surgery.
Promoting Readiness of Minors in Supplemental Security Income (PROMISE): Early Impacts from a Multi-Site Random Assignment Evaluation
Authors: Patnaik Ankita , Levere Michael , Livermore Gina , Mamun Arif , Hemmeter Jeffrey
Published: November 2021

Background

PROMISE was a federal initiative to support youth receiving Supplemental Security Income (SSI) during the transition to adulthood.

Objectives

This article presents estimates of the impacts of the six PROMISE projects on youth and family outcomes as of 18 months after enrolling in PROMISE.

Research Design

The study uses a randomized controlled trial design.

Subjects

The six PROMISE projects each enrolled a minimum of 2000 treatment and control youth (and their parents) residing in their service areas who were aged 14 to 16 and receiving SSI.

Measures

We estimated impacts on outcomes related to youth and family service use, school enrollment, training, employment, earnings, and federal disability program participation using survey and administrative data.

Results

The projects succeeded in connecting more youth to transition services and more families to support services during the 18 months after enrollment, and most increased the likelihood that youth applied for state vocational rehabilitation services. On average, there was no impact on youth’s school enrollment, but there were favorable impacts on youth’s receipt of job-related training, employment, earnings, and total income. The projects did not affect parents’ employment, earnings, or income, on average. For most outcomes PROMISE affected, the impacts varied substantially across the projects.

Conclusions

The positive short-term impacts of PROMISE on youth’s use of transition services, youth employment, and families’ use of services are consistent with the program logic model and suggest there might be potential for longer-term favorable impacts on youth and family outcomes.
The association between binge eating disorder and weight management in overweight and obese adults: A systematic literature review
Authors: Kantilafti Maria , Chrysostomou Stavri , Yannakoulia Mary , Giannakou Konstantinos
Published: November 2021

Aim: Weight loss is shown to improve obesity-related health problems as long as it is maintained for a long term. The purpose of this systematic review was to investigate the association between binge eating disorder and weight management in overweight and obese adults. Methods: A systematic search following the preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses guidelines was conducted across PubMed, Ebsco and Cochrane Library from inception through December 2020 to identify studies that assessed the association between binge eating disorder and weight management (e.g., weight loss, weight gain and weight loss maintenance) in overweight and obese adults. We included studies that examined adults (≥18 years old) being overweight and obese with and without binge eating behaviour. Two authors independently screened and evaluated studies for methodological quality. Results: Nine articles were selected, including 3685 participants. Three of the included studies were randomised control trials and the remaining were observational studies. The majority of the studies included support that people who have binge eating disorder may have an additional barrier maintaining their weight loss compared to people who do not suffer from binge eating disorder. Conclusion: Our systematic review revealed that binge eating disorder may have a negative association with weight loss maintenance. Further well-conducted prospective cohort studies and randomised clinical trials are required to investigate the possible mechanisms and whether any such mechanisms are modifiable. These will lead us to more efficient strategies targeting weight management.
The Development and Evaluation of Brain and Heart Cell Lines from a Marine Fish for Use in Xenobiotic-Induced Cytotoxicity Testing
Authors: Avalos-Soriano Anaguiven , García-Gasca Alejandra , Yáñez-Rivera Beatriz
Published: November 2021

Two cell lines derived from the brain and heart of a Pacific white snook specimen ( Centropomus viridis) were developed and evaluated in terms of their responsiveness to glyphosate-induced cytotoxicity. The cells were grown in Leibovitz-15 (L-15) medium supplemented with 10% fetal bovine serum (FBS) and were passaged 36 times. Growth was tested at different concentrations of FBS (5, 10 and 20%) at 27°C. The cell lines were cryopreserved at different passages and were successfully thawed, with a survival rate greater than 80% without detectable contamination. At passage 36, the cells were used to assess the deleterious effects of glyphosate, and cell proliferation was measured by direct counting and with the MTT assay. Similar LC50 values were obtained with both methods. Although the principles behind these two assessment methods differ, our results show that both are suitable for evaluating glyphosate toxicity. In addition, heart- and brain-derived cells showed similar sensitivity, suggesting that the same mode of action might be responsible for the toxicity of glyphosate at the cellular level. The newly developed Pacific white snook brain and heart cell lines could be useful to investigate cellular and molecular mechanisms of toxicity, satisfying the need to reduce the use of animals in experiments. Glyphosate-related toxicological data obtained in the present study will allow us to continue investigating the effects of this herbicide directly on brain and heart fish cells since similar studies have only been carried out on either live organisms or on human cell lines such as neuroblastoma, which are immortalised by oncogenes or similar.
Exploring models for the management of indigenous knowledge in academic libraries of Ghana
Authors: Asamoah Catherine , Ngulube Patrick
Published: November 2021

The need to manage indigenous knowledge (IK) as a key knowledge base of society has become vital in the era of information society. The lack of representation of IK is partly blamed on its exclusion from academia because IK is not primarily the core focus of academic library's collection. The study sought to explore existing models and develop a framework for the management of indigenous knowledge in academic libraries in Ghana. The qualitative methodology using content analysis was adopted for the purpose of the study. Data was analysed using themes developed from the documents and literature. It was evident that the library services and programmes did not reflect on the African content of knowledge management. For an integrated indigenous knowledge management system, stakeholder's partnership, policy guidelines and integration of IK into library's collection is instrumental. Transformation of knowledge systems was identified as the starting point of integration. Social inclusion of marginalised knowledge, equality, sustainable development was identified and recommended in the effort to integrate indigenous knowledge management systems into the library's collection. A proposed framework has been developed for the management of indigenous knowledge in academic libraries as a blueprint for any integration effort.