bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Cerebral Oxygen Metabolism During Total Body Flow and Antegrade Cerebral Perfusion at Deep and Moderate Hypothermia
Authors: Sasaki Takashi , Boni Lorenzo , Riemer R. Kirk , Yeung John T. , Ramamoorthy Chandra , Beckman Ryan , Gisner Carl , Shuttleworth Paul , Hanley Frank L. , Reddy V. Mohan
Published: November 2010

The aim of this study is to evaluate the effect of temperature on cerebral oxygen metabolism at total body flow bypass and antegrade cerebral perfusion (ACP). Neonatal piglets were put on cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) with the initial flow rate of 200 mL/kg/min. After cooling to 18°C (n = 6) or 25°C (n = 7), flow was reduced to 100 mL/kg/min (half‐flow, HF) for 15 min and ACP was initiated at 40 mL/kg/min for 45 min. Following rewarming, animals were weaned from bypass and survived for 4 h. At baseline, HF, ACP, and 4 h post‐CPB, cerebral blood flow (CBF) was measured using fluorescent microspheres. Cerebral oxygen extraction (CEO2) and cerebral metabolic rate of oxygen (CMRO2) were monitored. Regional cranial oxygen saturation (rSO2) was continuously recorded throughout the procedure using near‐infrared spectroscopy. At 18°C, CBF trended lower at HF and ACP and matched baseline after CPB. CEO2 trended lower at HF and ACP, and trended higher after CPB compared with baseline. CMRO2 at ACP matched that at HF. Cranial rSO2 was significantly greater at HF and ACP (P < 0.001, P < 0.001) and matched baseline after CPB. At 25°C, CBF trended lower at HF, rebounded and trended higher at ACP, and matched baseline after CPB. CEO2 was equal at HF and ACP and trended higher after CPB compared with baseline. CMRO2 at ACP was greater than that at HF (P = 0.001). Cranial rSO2 was significantly greater at HF (P = 0.01), equal at ACP, and lower after CPB (P = 0.03). Lactate was significantly higher at all time points (P = 0.036, P < 0.001, and P < 0.001). ACP provided sufficient oxygen to the brain at a total body flow rate of 100 mL/kg/min at deep hypothermia. Although ACP provided minimum oxygenation to the brain which met the oxygen requirement, oxygen metabolism was altered during ACP at moderate hypothermia. ACP strategy at moderate hypothermia needs further investigation.
Blood Transfusion in Pediatric Cardiac Surgery
Authors: Durandy Yves
Published: November 2010

The aim of the study is to measure the volume of homologous blood needed for one pediatric patient during his hospital stay. Over a 4‐month period, all the patients operated upon with a blood prime or requiring blood transfusion during their hospital stay were included in this study. The cardiopulmonary bypass protocol associates a miniaturized bypass circuit, vacuum‐assisted venous drainage, and microplegia. The volume of each blood product opened is known and the volume of blood product remaining, following the last transfusion, is measured. Data collected are as follows: patient weight; hemoglobin level before surgery, during bypass, and in intensive care after the last transfusion; time to extubation; and degree of inotropic support. Forty‐six patients weighing 5.1 ± 1.5 kg were included in this study. Cardiopulmonary bypass priming volume was 100 mL for patients up to 3.5 kg, 120 mL for patients between 3.6 and 7.5 kg, and 160 mL for patients between 7.6 and 8.6 kg. The volume of blood transfusion was 271 ± 112 mL, hemoglobin level before surgery was 10.3 ± 1.7 g/dL, hemoglobin level during surgery was 11.0 ± 1.5 g/dL, and hemoglobin level after the last transfusion was 12.3 ± 2.4 g/dL. Time to extubation was 12 ±  3.3 h, and inotropic support was enoximone in 37 patients, whereas 6 patients needed enoximone and epinephrine. No patient needed reexploration for bleeding and one patient received a platelet transfusion. The mean blood transfusion volume was equivalent to 60% of the patient's total blood volume (estimated to be 80 mL/kg).
Framework for Microbial Food‐Safety Risk Assessments Amenable to Bayesian Modeling
Authors: Williams Michael S. , Ebel Eric D. , Vose David
Published: November 2010

Regulatory agencies often perform microbial risk assessments to evaluate the change in the number of human illnesses as the result of a new policy that reduces the level of contamination in the food supply. These agencies generally have regulatory authority over the production and retail sectors of the farm‐to‐table continuum. Any predicted change in contamination that results from new policy that regulates production practices occurs many steps prior to consumption of the product. This study proposes a framework for conducting microbial food‐safety risk assessments; this framework can be used to quantitatively assess the annual effects of national regulatory policies. Advantages of the framework are that estimates of human illnesses are consistent with national disease surveillance data (which are usually summarized on an annual basis) and some of the modeling steps that occur between production and consumption can be collapsed or eliminated. The framework leads to probabilistic models that include uncertainty and variability in critical input parameters; these models can be solved using a number of different Bayesian methods. The Bayesian synthesis method performs well for this application and generates posterior distributions of parameters that are relevant to assessing the effect of implementing a new policy. An example, based on Campylobacter and chicken, estimates the annual number of illnesses avoided by a hypothetical policy; this output could be used to assess the economic benefits of a new policy. Empirical validation of the policy effect is also examined by estimating the annual change in the numbers of illnesses observed via disease surveillance systems.
Challenges in Development and Implementation of Health‐Risk‐Based Soil Quality Guidelines: Turkey's Experience
Authors: Kentel Elçin , Aksoy Ayşegül , Büyüker Beril , Dilek Filiz , Girgin Serkan , İpek Meltem H. , Polat Şener , Yetiş Ülkü , Ünlü Kahraman
Published: November 2010

Management of contaminated sites is a critical environmental issue around the world due to the human health risk involved for many sites and scarcity of funding. Moreover, clean‐up costs of all contaminated sites to their background levels with existing engineering technologies may be financially infeasible and demand extended periods of operation time. Given these constraints, to achieve optimal utilization of available funds and prioritization of contaminated sites that need immediate attention, health‐risk‐based soil quality guidelines should be preferred over the traditional soil quality standards. For these reasons, traditional soil quality standards are being replaced by health‐risk‐based ones in many countries and in Turkey as well. The need for health‐risk‐based guidelines is clear, but developing these guidelines and implementation of them in contaminated site management is not a straightforward process. The goal of this study is to highlight the problems that are encountered at various stages of the development process of risk‐based soil quality guidelines for Turkey and how they are dealt with. Utilization of different definitions and methodologies at different countries, existence of inconsistent risk assessment tools, difficulties in accessing relevant documents and reports, and lack of specific data required for Turkey are among these problems. We believe that Turkey's experience may help other countries that are planning to develop health‐risk‐based guidelines achieve their goals in a more efficient manner.
Examining the Impact of Pre‐Implementation Expectations on Post‐Implementation Use of Enterprise Systems: A Longitudinal Study
Authors: Saeed Khawaja A. , Abdinnour Sue , Lengnick‐Hall Mark L. , Lengnick‐Hall Cynthia A.
Published: November 2010

This article builds upon the technology acceptance model and theories of technology sensemaking to explore pre‐enterprise system adoption expectations and post‐enterprise system adoption outcomes in a longitudinal setting. Building on the exploitation and exploration paradigm, we propose that task productivity and task innovation expectations are the key drivers of users’ pre‐adoption enterprise system usage intention. Further, we argue that the enterprise system facilitates generation of a common knowledge base that may encourage a more integrated organizational culture and promote shared understanding among employees. Considering the distinction between mandatory and voluntary contexts, we propose that user acceptance of the enterprise system at the pre‐ and post‐adoption stages will mediate these relationships in a mandatory context. The results show that the influence of pre‐adoption expectations regarding task productivity and task innovation on intention to use an enterprise system is mediated by user acceptance of the enterprise system. Intention to use an enterprise system is positively related to actual use. At the post‐adoption stage, the influence of actual use on shared understanding is mediated by user acceptance of an enterprise system and enterprise system use has a direct negative impact on task efficiency in the initial period after implementation. Overall, the results highlight that user acceptance at both pre‐ and post‐adoption stages are critical factors when usage is mandatory. These findings suggest a number of important implications for research and for managerial action.
Systems Collaboration and Strategic Collaboration: Their Impacts on Supply Chain Responsiveness and Market Performance*
Authors: Kim Daekwan , Lee Ruby P.
Published: November 2010

Recognizing the importance of interfirm collaboration and recent advancement of information technology (IT) to enhance joint decision making between firms, this study conceptualizes systems collaboration and strategic collaboration as two essential types of interfirm collaboration. The study then simultaneously examines the multiple roles of systems collaboration and strategic collaboration, and how they directly and indirectly influence a firm's supply chain responsiveness and market performance. Hypotheses are tested on survey data collected from 184 firms. Results suggest that the sequential relationships among IT competency, interfirm collaboration, and supply chain responsiveness have significant market performance implications.
Invisible Whispering: Restructuring Collaborative Decision Making with Instant Messaging
Authors: Dennis Alan R. , Rennecker Julie A. , Hansen Sean
Published: November 2010

Organizational decision making is dominated by teams. When an important decision is required, a team is often formed to make it or to advise the individual decision maker, because a team has more resources, knowledge, and political insight than any one individual working alone. As teams have become geographically distributed, collaboration technology has come to play an important role in such collective decision making efforts. Instant messaging (IM) is an increasingly prevalent workplace collaboration technology that enables near‐synchronous text exchanges on a variety of devices. We examined the use of IM during face‐to‐face, telephone, and computer‐mediated team meetings, a practice we call “invisible whispering.” We introduce Goffman's characterization of social interaction as dramatic performance, differentiable into “front stage” and “backstage” exchanges, to analyze how invisible whispering alters the socio‐spatial and temporal boundaries of team decision making. Using IM, workers were able to influence front stage decision making through backstage conversations, often participating in multiple backstage conversations simultaneously. This type of interaction would be either physically impossible or socially constrained without the use of IM. We examine how invisible whispering changes the processes of collaborative decision making and how these new processes may affect the efficiency and effectiveness of collaborative decision making, as well as participation, satisfaction, relationships among team members, and individual attention.
The Effect of Perceived Novelty on the Adoption of Information Technology Innovations: A Risk/Reward Perspective
Authors: Wells John D. , Campbell Damon E. , Valacich Joseph S. , Featherman Mauricio
Published: November 2010

A fundamental characteristic of any innovation is its novelty, the newness or freshness of the innovation in the eyes of the adopter. Past research has often considered novelty to be inherent to an information technology (IT) innovation, yet it is also likely that perceptions of novelty differ widely across individuals. Nevertheless, the role that the novelty of an IT innovation plays in adoption is not well understood. The primary goal of this research effort is to frame the perceived novelty of an IT innovation as a salient affective belief in the nomological network related to adoption. Further, we examine how perceived novelty influences the way individuals reconcile their perceptions of risk versus reward when considering the adoption of an IT innovation. Two empirical studies with 424 and 138 participants, respectively, examine the effect of perceived novelty on IT innovations from a risk/reward perspective. Results indicate that perceived novelty is a salient affective belief that plays a significant role in the adoption of IT innovations. Implications for both theory and organizational decision making are examined.
Consumer Effort in Promotional Incentives
Authors: Dogan Kutsal
Published: November 2010

Consumers need to exert effort to use the incentives provided in a promotion campaign. This effort is critical in the consumers’ decision process and for the success of the campaign. We develop a model of consumer redemption effort that is general in nature and is applicable to coupons, rebates, and other price‐discrimination devices. We find that the impact of redemption effort is quite intricate on a firm’s profit and consumers’ surplus. We find that there are cases where a firm would like to operate in a low redemption cost environment while consumers would be better off with higher costs. We identify cases where price can remain the same with or without the promotion. In these cases, it is possible that the surplus for each individual consumer is higher when a firm price discriminates and improves its profit. Our results indicate that a firm would rather have variation in consumer redemption costs than to have variation in consumer valuations. However, in a market with low valuation variability, consumer redemption cost variability is essential for an efficient promotion campaign. Therefore, the markets that naturally have a lot of variability in consumer valuations should be the ones targeted for online promotion programs that reduce consumer effort levels, not the markets with low variability.
Antiarrhythmic Effect of Reverse Electrical Remodeling Associated with Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy
Authors: TERESHCHENKO LARISA G. , HENRIKSON CHARLES A. , STEMPNIEWICZ PETER , HAN LICHY , BERGER RONALD D.
Published: November 2010

Background:

Antiarrhythmic and proarrhythmic effects of cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) remain controversial. We hypothesized that reverse electrical remodeling (RER) with CRT is associated with reduced frequency of ventricular tachyarrhythmias (VTs).

Methods:

The width of native and paced QRS was measured in lead II electrocardiogram before and 13 ± 7 months after implantation of a CRT defibrillator device in 69 patients (mean age 66.3 ± 13.9; 39 males [83%]) with bundle branch block (BBB) (41 patients with left BBB and three patients with bifascicular block) or nonspecific intraventricular conduction delay (25 patients, 36%), and New York Heart Association class III–IV heart failure. Biventricular pacing was inhibited for 10 seconds to record native QRS. RER was defined as a decrease in the native QRS duration ≥10 ms compared to preimplant. Patients were followed prospectively 24 ± 13 months after assessment for electrical remodeling.

Results:

RER was observed in 22 patients (32%), among whom QRS duration decreased by 30.9 ± 14.1 ms (P < 0.00001) with similar heart rate and QRS morphology. Native QRS duration increased by 10.3 ± 16.6 ms in the other 47 patients (68%) (P = 0.0001). Baseline mean ejection fraction did not differ between patients with and those without RER (24.9 ± 10.0 vs 24.2 ± 8.6%, NS). During 2 ± 1 years of further follow‐up, 19 patients had VTs and 12 patients died. RER was associated with a fourfold decrease in the risk of death or sustained VTs requiring appropriate implantable cardioverter‐defibrillator therapies, whichever came first (hazard ratio 0.25; 95% confidence interval 0.08–0.85; P = 0.026).

Conclusion:

RER of the native conduction with CRT is associated with decreased mortality and antiarrhythmic effect of CRT. (PACE 2011; 34:357–364)
Physiopathologic Correlates of Intrathoracic Impedance in Chronic Heart Failure Patients
Authors: TOMASI LUCA , ZANOTTO GABRIELE , ZANOLLA LUISA , GOLIA GIORGIO , OMETTO RENATO , BONANNO CARLO , VERGARA GIUSEPPE , MAINES MASSIMILIANO , LONARDI GABRIELE , VISENTIN EMANUELA , RAUHE WERNER , LATINA LOREDANA , PERRONE COSIMO , VARBARO ANNAMARIA , DE SANTO TIZIANA ,   for the IMPATTO (Studio osservazionale per la validazione dell’IMPedenzA Trans‐TOracica) Study group
Published: November 2010

Background: Increased plasma levels of amino‐terminal fraction of brain natriuretic peptide (NT‐proBNP) and alterations of diastolic filling as described by Doppler transmitral flow pattern are well‐known markers of decompensated heart failure (HF). Recently, some implantable defibrillators have allowed monitoring of intrathoracic impedance, which is related to lung water content, potentially indicating HF deterioration. The aim of this study was to assess the correlation between intrathoracic impedance and NT‐proBNP and echo‐Doppler transmitral flow indexes.

Methods: Data were collected from 111 HF patients, in six Italian centers. All patients were on optimal medical therapy. Device diagnostics, echographic data, NT‐proBNP determination, and clinical status as assessed by the Heart Failure Score (HFS) were registered at baseline, at bimonthly visits, and at unscheduled examinations due to HF decompensation or device alerts.

Results: Over a median follow‐up of 413 days, 955 examinations were performed. Intrathoracic impedance was significantly correlated with NT‐proBNP (P = 0.013) and with mitral E‐wave deceleration time (DtE) (P = 0.017), but not with HFS. At the time of confirmed alert events, NT‐proBNP was significantly higher than during confirmed nonalert event examinations; DtE did not differ, whereas impedance was significantly lower.

Conclusion: A decrease in intrathoracic impedance is inversely correlated with NT‐proBNP and directly correlated with DtE. Intrathoracic impedance monitoring therefore has the physiologic basis for being a useful tool to identify early HF decompensation. (PACE 2011; 34:407–413)
Ablation of Atrioventricular Nodal Reentrant Tachycardia in a Patient with Tricuspid Atresia Guided by Electroanatomic Mapping
Authors: ARANA‐RUEDA EDUARDO , PEDROTE ALONSO , SÁNCHEZ‐BROTONS JUAN‐ANTONIO , FRUTOS‐LÓPEZ MANUEL , DURÁN‐GUERRERO MANUEL
Published: November 2010

We describe a case of ablation of atrioventricular nodal reentrant tachycardia in a patient with tricuspid atresia and L‐malposition of great vessels using an electroanatomical mapping system integrated with cardiac magnetic resonance imaging. Atrial activation mapping during tachycardia identified the retrograde fast pathway proximal to the His bundle, observed in the left interatrial septum. Ablation was successfully completed below this area. Map integration with the patient's anatomy allowed a safe, individualized procedure. (PACE 2012; 35:e293–e295)
Encounters with Sorcery: An Ethnographer's Account
Authors: Fotiou Evgenia
Published: November 2010

Drawing from data collected during fieldwork from Westerners participating in ayahuasca ceremonies in the Peruvian Amazon, I discuss the ways they make contact with spirits. I particularly focus on the issue of sorcery, illustrating differences in the ways it is perceived by Westerners and Peruvians. I argue that although it is possible that both populations have the same or very similar experiences with ayahuasca, their subjective interpretations and metanarratives are quite different because of the very different cultural paradigms to which they have been exposed. In the Amazonian cultural framework, local ayahuasca users tend to interpret any negative or dark experiences during ceremonies as attacks, by malevolent shamans, hired by other members of their community. The more individualistic Western cultural framework leads Westerners to interpret these experiences as part of their own psychic processes. I found, however, this pattern to be challenged, in that Western shamanic apprentices have integrated the concepts of sorcery and shamanic warfare into their worldview. I discovered that, in many ways, a shamanic apprenticeship for a Westerner involves a radical shift in interpretations of shamanic experience. Certain personal experiences during my fieldwork, which I discuss in this article, challenged my own faith in the dominant anthropological paradigm—that shamanic experiences are culturally defined—as well as my largely secular worldview.
Bread in the Economy of Qualities: The Creative Reconstitution of the Canada‐UK Commodity Chain for Wheat
Authors: Magnan André
Published: November 2010

Abstract

This article traces the creative reconstitution of the Canada‐UK wheat‐bread commodity chain since the 1990s. In the mid‐1990s, the Canadian Wheat Board (CWB) and a British bakery, Warburtons, pioneered an innovative identity‐preserved sourcing relationship that ties contracted prairie wheat growers to consumers of premium bread in the United Kingdom. The CWB‐Warburtons contract is emblematic of the increasing importance of quality claims, traceability, and private standards in the reorganization of agrifood supply chains. Yet the case is unique in two important ways. First, in the context of supermarket leadership in the coordination of quality chains, the program was established by two unlikely actors—a state marketing agency and a branded food manufacturer. Second, the quality chain centers on a semifresh, manufactured food staple (bread), whereas most quality chains are organized around fresh produce, meat, and dairy products. The CWB‐Warburtons story thus provides evidence of diversity and complexity in the shift toward the supermarket‐driven “economy of qualities.” I interpret these changes by locating them in broader processes of historical change. Led by the CWB and Warburtons, the shift toward quality in commodity chains for wheat bread is reconfiguring relations among key social actors in the prairie wheat economy as well as the UK bread market.
CCR7 Mediates Directed Growth of Melanomas Towards Lymphatics
Authors: EMMETT MAXINE S. , LANATI SILVIA , DUNN DARRYL B.A. , STONE OLIVER A. , BATES DAVID O.
Published: November 2010

Please cite this paper as: Emmett, Lanati, Dunn, Stone and Bates (2011). CCR7 Mediates Directed Growth of Melanomas Towards Lymphatics. Microcirculation 18(3), 172–182.

Objective:  To determine whether chemotactic‐metastasis, the preferential growth of melanomas towards areas of high lymphatic density, is CCL21/CCR7 dependent in vivo. Lymphatic endothelial cells (LECs) produce the chemokine CCL21. Metastatic melanoma cells express CCR7, its receptor, and exhibit chemotactic‐metastasis, whereby metastatic cells recognise and grow towards areas of higher lymphatic density.

Methods:  We used two in vivo models of directional growth towards depots of LECs of melanoma cells over‐expressing CCR7. Injected LEC were tracked by intravital fluorescence microscopy, and melanoma growth by bioluminescence.

Results:  Over‐expression of the chemokine receptor CCR7 enables non‐metastatic tumor cells to recognise and grow towards LECs (3.9 fold compared with control), but not blood endothelial cells (0.9 fold), in vitro and in vivo in the absence of increased lymphatic clearance. Chemotactic metastasis was inhibited by a CCL21 neutralising antibody (4–17% of control). Furthermore, CCR7 expression in mouse B16 melanomas resulted in in‐transit metastasis (50–100% of mice) that was less often seen with control tumors (0–50%) in vivo.

Conclusion:  These results suggest that recognition of LEC by tumors expressing receptors for lymphatic specific ligands contributes towards the identification and invasion of lymphatics by melanoma cells and provides further evidence for a chemotactic metastasis model of tumor spread.
“Babylon Makes the Rules”: Compliance, Fear, and Self‐Discipline in the Quest for Official NGO Status
Authors: Alvaré Bretton T.
Published: November 2010

As untrained social agents endeavor to create new, grassroots nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), they quickly discover that in order for their nascent organizations to gain official status, and thus enjoy the benefits that come with it, they must first do the compliance necessary to register with the government agency or agencies responsible for regulating and monitoring their practices. Although it may not be regarded as such, the official registration process is more than just a means to an end; it has the power to produce new subjectivities that organize and constrain the social experience of NGO activism. As discontented citizens attempt to realize their unique visions of social justice by entering the field of NGO‐based social activism, they “fall into” a habitus that disposes them to certain patterns of thought and behavior while rendering other patterns undesirable. This article uses ethnographic accounts of the evolution of a local development NGO founded and administered by Rastafari elders in Trinidad, West Indies, to illustrate how this habitus, a product of the iterative experiences surrounding the establishment and maintenance of an official NGO, structures the way grassroots social activists, with little or no prior administrative experience, understand, and respond to the problems and situations they encounter as they attempt to create their own NGOs.
Audit Culture and Grassroots Participation in Rural Haitian Development
Authors: Vannier Christian N.
Published: November 2010

When implementing development projects and programs in the global south, nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) seek to maximize project success and sustainability through the practical management of risk. In southern rural Haiti, efforts by NGOs and the Haitian state to minimize the corruption and political opportunism that pervade and jeopardize development activities have resulted in the implementation of an “audit culture,” in which community‐based organizations (CBOs) must engage before partnering with NGOs in bringing development to their communities. Conjoined with neoliberal governmentality and known locally as the process of legalizasyon (legalization), the processes of audit culture represent techniques by which the objects of development and governance–local communities and the organizations that represent them–are made knowable and accountable to local government and transnational development authorities. Assumed to reduce the risks posed to development projects by local social environments, legalization shapes the meaning of “participation” and “bottom‐up development” for actors engaged in development practice. Efforts to limit political opportunism and corruption in development result in the implicit depoliticizing of grassroots organizations, because NGOs avoid local groups whose “audits” reveal any “political” activity. This article concludes that the implementation of an audit culture in development represents a transition in government authoritative power from direct control and supervision to indirect power relations premised on new forms of bureaucracy.
CHILD HUNGER: ITS PREVALENCE AND ASSOCIATION WITH BODY MASS INDEX AND DIETARY INTAKE AMONG SOMALI REFUGEE CHILDREN IN THE UNITED STATES
Authors: Dharod Jigna M. , Croom Jamar E.
Published: November 2010

The primary objectives of the study were to estimate the prevalence of child hunger and its relationship to dietary intake and body mass index (BMI) among Somali refugee children. This article also examined the sociodemographic risk factors of child hunger in Somali households. Somali refugee mothers and children twelve years old or younger (n = 195) were recruited to participate in a cross‐sectional survey. During the survey, children's height and weight were measured to calculate BMI while their mothers were interviewed to collect information on sociodemographics, food insecurity, and children's dietary habits. Results indicated that 23 percent of households experienced child hunger. Overall, underweight or BMI < 5th percentile was significantly higher in children who experienced hunger. In terms of dietary intake, compared to food secure or mild to moderate food insecure households, intake of green leafy vegetables was significantly lower (OR: .32; CI: .15–.68; p = .003) while intake of eggs was higher (OR: 23.65; CI: 9.57–58.45; p < .000) among children experiencing hunger. Logistic regression showed that acculturation indicators such as poor English proficiency (OR: 17.76; CI: 1.50–20.14; p = .022) and shorter length of stay in the United States (OR: 3.27; CI: 1.26–8.47; p = .015) increased the likelihood of child hunger.
WHAT'S ON THE TABLE: NUTRITION PROGRAMMING FOR REFUGEES IN THE UNITED STATES
Authors: Trapp Micah
Published: November 2010

This article examines how nutrition outreach efforts address changing food practices among refugee populations resettled in the United States. Qualitative, ethnographic data for the article is drawn from the author's work with the Food and Nutrition Outreach program for resettled refugees and includes the perspectives of practitioners and refugees. Drawing on anthropological theories on the interplay between social meanings and structures of the political economy, the article examines how social meanings and socioeconomic processes facilitate changes in food practices. Findings on the topics of assessing nutritional needs, defining healthy eating, as well as the social organization and meaning of food practices illustrate the importance of going beyond dietary guidelines to incorporate discussion‐based nutrition education between service providers and refugees. The article concludes with both practical and structural suggestions for next steps in nutrition programming for refugees.
Congruence Between the Target in Need and the Recipient of Aid: The One‐Among‐Others Effect
Authors: Oceja Luis , Stocks Eric , Lishner David
Published: November 2010

We tested the hypothesis that people are more likely to offer aid when the beneficiary of help is congruent with the entity that initiates prosocial action. In 2 experiments conducted in 2 different countries, participants were approached in naturalistic settings with an appeal for help. The target in need (individual vs. individual among others with the same need) and the beneficiary of potential help (individual vs. group) were manipulated. Results revealed that participants were more likely to offer aid when the target in need and beneficiary of help were congruent. The present research offers insight into perceptual factors that affect prosocial behavior in situations involving more than one victim.
Fetomaternal hemorrhage in women undergoing elective cesarean section
Authors: PERSLEV ANETTE , JØRGENSEN FINN STENER , NIELSEN LEIF KOFOED , BERKOWICZ ADELA , DZIEGIEL MORTEN HANEFELD
Published: November 2010

Objective. To investigate the degree of fetomaternal hemorrhage (FMH) caused by elective cesarean section. Design. Descriptive study. Settings. University Hospitals in Copenhagen, Denmark. Population. Women scheduled for elective cesarean section, in the period September 2007 to January 2009, at the Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, Hvidovre Hospital, University of Copenhagen, Denmark. Methods. Two maternal blood samples were taken, the first before cesarean section and the second immediately after. Both samples were analyzed at the Blood Bank, Rigshospitalet, Copenhagen, for the presence of fetal red blood cells (fRBCs) using flow cytometry. FMH associated with cesarean section was defined as the difference between the volumes of fRBCs in the two samples. Main Outcome Measures. The frequency and volume of FMH caused by elective cesarean section. Results. 207 women were included in the study. FMH was detected in 38 cases (18.4%). Of these, 22 women (10.6%) had FMH of less than 1 ml fRBCs, 13 women (6.3%) had FMH between 1 and 4 ml fRBCs, and three women (1.4%) had FMH above 4 ml fRBCs. Conclusions. We found no evidence for recommending general screening for FMH in connection with elective cesarean section, provided guidelines such as the current Danish guidelines for Rhesus prophylaxis are followed.
Morbidity with total laparoscopic and laparoscopically assisted vaginal hysterectomy
Authors: AL‐TALIB AYMAN , SHEIZAF BOAZ , ALMOG BENNY , DAWOOD ASHRAF , KRISHNAMURTHY SRINIVASAN , TULANDI TOGAS
Published: November 2010

We evaluated the operative and postoperative morbidity among 103 women who underwent total laparoscopic hysterectomy and 107 others who underwent laparoscopically assisted vaginal hysterectomy. Blood loss was significantly greater in the assisted vaginal hysterectomy group (178.0 ± 12.1 ml) than in the total hysterectomy group (130.2 ± 10.7 ml) (p < 0.001). Despite higher uterine weight in the total hysterectomy group, the operative time of both techniques was similar. The complications of both hysterectomies were also comparable. The results from our study suggest that the complication rates of laparoscopically assisted vaginal hysterectomy and total hysterectomy are similar. However, laparoscopically assisted vaginal hysterectomy is associated with increased blood loss.
Gingival crevicular fluid alkaline phosphatase activity as a non‐invasive biomarker of skeletal maturation
Authors: Perinetti G , Baccetti T , Contardo L , Di Lenarda R
Published: November 2010

To cite this article:
 Perinetti G, Baccetti T, Contardo L, Di Lenarda R: Gingival crevicular fluid alkaline phosphatase activity as a non‐invasive biomarker of skeletal maturation Orthod Craniofac Res 2011;14:44–50

Structured Abstract

Authors –  Perinetti G, Baccetti T, Contardo L, Di Lenarda R

Objectives –  To evaluate the gingival crevicular fluid (GCF) alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity in growing subjects in relation to the stages of individual skeletal maturation.

Setting and Sample Population –  The Department of Biomedicine, University of Trieste. Seventy‐two healthy growing subjects (45 women and 27 men; range, 7.8–17.7 years).

Materials and Methods –  Double‐blind, prospective, cross‐sectional design. Samples of GCF were collected from each subject at the mesial and distal sites of both of the central incisors, in the maxilla and mandible. Skeletal maturation phase was assessed through the cervical vertebral maturation (CVM) method. Enzymatic activity was determined spectrophotometrically.

Results –  The relationship between GCF ALP activity and CVM stages was significant. In particular, a twofold peak in enzyme activity was seen at the CS3 and CS4 pubertal stages, compared to the pre‐pubertal stages (CS1 and CS2) and post‐pubertal stages (CS5 and CS6), at both the maxillary and mandibular sites. No differences were seen between the maxillary and mandibular sites, or between the sexes.

Conclusions –  As an adjunct to standard methods based upon radiographic parameters, the GCF ALP may be a candidate as a non‐invasive clinical biomarker for the identification of the pubertal growth spurt in periodontally healthy subjects scheduled for orthodontic treatment.
Potential of sucrose‐induced analgesia to relieve pain in male adults: A preliminary study
Authors: KAKEDA Takahiro
Published: November 2010

Aim:  Sucrose‐induced analgesia frequently has been investigated for pain relief during invasive procedures in neonates. This analgesic mechanism is thought to be mediated by the endogenous opioid system, taking advantage of sweet taste. However, few studies have examined the effects of sucrose‐induced analgesia in adults. Therefore, this preliminary study examines the analgesic efficacy of a sucrose stimulus on experimentally induced pain in male adults.

Methods:  A randomized, single‐masked, cross‐over study was conducted to examine the analgesic effect of a sucrose stimulus in male adults. Experimental pain was induced with the cold pressor test. Prior to and during the cold pressor test, the participants held either a 24% sucrose solution or distilled water as a control in their mouth. The analgesic efficacy was evaluated by using the pain threshold, pain tolerance, Profile of Mood State, and two visual analogue scales of pain intensity and taste pleasantness.

Results:  The sucrose stimulus reduced the pain response of the participants. The mean threshold increased significantly when using the 24% sucrose solution, compared with distilled water. The mean tolerance also increased under the sucrose condition. In addition, the taste pleasantness score was significantly higher under the sucrose condition than with distilled water. However, neither condition showed a significant difference in the scores of the visual analogue scales for pain.

Conclusions:  These findings suggest that sucrose stimuli might induce the antinociceptive effects on pain in male adults. More trials are needed to further elucidate these effects before this analgesic method can be used for clinical pain in adults.
How Willing are Men Who Have Sex with Men in China to Be Circumcised for the Sake of Protecting His Female Sex Partner?
Authors: Lau Joseph T.F. , Yan Hongjing , Lin Chunqing , Zhang Jun , Choi Kai-Chow , Wang Zhijun , Hao Chun , Huan Xiping , Yang Haitao
Published: November 2010

Introduction

The HIV prevalence among men who have sex with men (MSM) is increasing sharply in China. Many MSM have female sexual partners, representing a bridge of transmitting HIV to the general population. Circumcision reduces the risk of HIV prevention via heterosexual intercourse.

Aim

The study investigated the prevalence and factors related to willingness to undergo circumcision when MSM were informed that circumcision could reduce risk of heterosexual HIV transmission.

Methods

An anonymous cross-sectional survey was conducted in Jiangsu, China. A total of 157 MSM with bisexual behaviors in the last six months were recruited using snowball sampling.

Main Outcome Measures

Self-reported circumcision status and foreskin conditions were recorded. HIV-related knowledge, risk perceptions, risky sexual behaviors, cognitive and behavioral intention factors regarding circumcision were assessed.

Results

Among all respondents, 5.7% were circumcised. In the uncircumcised subsample, the willingness to be circumcised increased from 8.1% to 35.1% after they were informed about the 50% risk reduction effect of circumcision regarding heterosexual HIV transmission. Risk behaviors, uncertainty about the prevalence of HIV among MSM, perception of overly long foreskin, peer’s suggestion, disagreement with the statements “MSM in general are not willing to be circumcised” and “circumcisions are for children, not for adults” and self-efficacy for circumcision were significantly associated with willingness for circumcision given the hypothetical risk reduction effect (OR = 2.37 and 3.11, respectively, P < 0.05). Perception of overly long foreskin, self-efficacy, and having used a condom in the last episode of sex with a woman remained significantly associated with the conditional willingness for circumcision in the multivariate analysis (OR = 3.03, 2.84 and 2.42, respectively, P < 0.05).

Conclusions

Interventions promoting circumcision among bisexual MSM, based on the risk reduction effect on heterosexual HIV transmission, are likely to be successful. Such programs should focus on increasing self-efficacy and may consider utilizing a peer educator approach.
Sexual Function During Long-Term Duloxetine Treatment in Patients with Recurrent Major Depressive Disorder
Authors: Montejo Angel-Luis , Perahia David G.S. , Spann Melissa E. , Wang Fujun , Walker Daniel J. , Yang Charles R. , Detke Michael J.
Published: November 2010

Introduction

Sexual dysfunction (SD) is frequently associated with major depressive disorder (MDD) in the untreated state and may be worsened by antidepressant treatment.

Aim

We evaluated SD in duloxetine-treated patients during an MDD recurrence prevention study.

Methods

Patients (N = 514) received open-label duloxetine 60–120 mg/day for up to 34 weeks. Responders (N = 288) were randomly assigned to duloxetine or placebo during a further 52-week double-blind maintenance phase.

Main Outcome Measures

The Arizona Sexual Experience Scale (ASEX) was used to assess sexual functioning.

Results

At study entry, 73.4% of patients met ASEX criteria for SD. After open-label duloxetine treatment, the probability of continued SD was 77.9% for nonresponders and 53.2% for responders. In patients without SD at study entry, the probability of emergent SD was 49.6% (nonresponders) and 33.2% (responders). In the double-blind maintenance phase, there was no significant difference (P = 0.105) in the probability of emergent SD between placebo-treated (49.2%) and duloxetine-treated (27.9%) patients without SD at baseline, with no significant treatment-by-gender interaction. In patients with a recurrence of MDD, the probability of emergent SD was similar between placebo- (71.3%) and duloxetine-treated (82.7%) patients. However, in patients with no recurrence of MDD, the probability of emergent SD in placebo patients (40.0%) was numerically higher than in duloxetine patients (12.9%). Spontaneous reports of adverse events related to sexual function were infrequent and no patients discontinued due to these events.

Conclusions

In patients with MDD, the probability of continued or emergent SD after up to 34 weeks of open-label duloxetine treatment was associated with the response status of the patients. In patients who responded to duloxetine treatment, after up to a further 52 weeks of double-blind treatment either with duloxetine or placebo, the probability of continued or emergent SD appeared to be more related to MDD itself than the treatments that the patients received.
Circulating Sex Hormones Play No Role in the Association Between Sexual Activity and the Risk of Prostate Cancer
Authors: Ahmadi Hamed , Allameh Farzad , Baradaran Nima , Montaser-Kouhsari Laleh , Bazargan-Hejazi Shahrzad , Salem Sepehr , Mehrsai Abdolrasoul , Pourmand Gholamreza
Published: November 2010

Introduction

High sexual activity (SA) has been reported to reduce the risk of prostate cancer (PC). The role of sex hormones (SHs) in this regard remains controversial.

Aims

To determine the impact of SA and SHs on PC development.

Methods

In a multicentric hospital-based case–control study, 194 newly diagnosed PC patients along with 317 age-matched controls were studied. Sociodemographic and medical characteristics of participants were recorded. History of vasectomy and sexually transmitted infection (STI), marital status, age at first intercourse, premarital sex, and the current frequency of sexual intercourses per month (SPM) were evaluated. Total testosterone (TT), free testosterone (FT), estradiol (ES), sex hormone binding globulin, and albumin were also measured. Logistic regression model was used to identify independent risk factors for PC.

Main Outcome Measures

(i) The association between SA, SHs, and the risk of PC; (ii) The correlation between SHs and SA; (iii) The interaction between SHs and SA and established risk factors for PC and erectile dysfunction in determining the risk of PC; and (iv) The correlation between SHs and SA in determining the risk of PC in different decades of life.

Results

Vasectomy, STI, and marital status did not differ significantly between two cohorts. Controls reported premarital sex more commonly than cases (P < 0.001). Cases had the first intercourse at older age (P = 0.03) and had less SPM (P < 0.001). TT, FT, and ES were higher in controls (P < 0.001). In multivariate analysis, TT, calculated FT, SPM >4, and age at time of marriage <24 were protective against PC. The protective effect of high SA and SHs increased as patients’ age increased.

Conclusions

High SA as well as TT and FT were protective against PC. Their protective role enhances by each decade of increasing age. The protective effect of high SA was independent from circulating levels of SHs.
Real-Time PCR Study of Ang1, Ang2, Tie-2, VEGF, and KDR Expression in Human Erectile Tissue During Aging
Authors: Figueiredo António , Cordeiro Ana Lúcia , Tomada Nuno , Tomada Inês , Rodrigues Adriana , Gouveia Alexandra , Neves Delminda
Published: November 2010

Introduction

Aging is a recognized risk factor for erectile dysfunction (ED), contributing independently to vascular damage of penile tissue. Vascular maintenance depends on angiogenic balance in tissues. Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is a modulator of endothelial cells functions, after engagement to specific receptor kinase domain region (KDR). Other factors, such as angiopoietins, cross talk with VEGF, modulating its effects. Angiopoietin-1 (Ang1) and angiopoietin-2 (Ang2) compete for binding to Tie-2 and, while Ang1 promotes vascular stabilization, Ang2 acts as a partial agonist or antagonist of Ang1 signaling, depending on VEGF bioavailability.

Aims

To quantify the expression of Ang1, Ang2, Tie-2, VEGF, and KDR by real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) in human corpus cavernosum (CC) from young and aged healthy individuals.

Methods

Human CC fragments were obtained from organ donors without known risk factors to ED and divided in two groups: young (16–35 years) and aged (59–74 years). RNA was extracted and converted to cDNA. Real-time PCR reactions employed appropriate primers. KDR, Tie-2, Akt, and phospho-Akt protein levels were also assessed by Western blotting (WB). Computer-assisted evaluation of vascular areas was performed.

Main Outcome Measures

Study of angiopoietins-Tie-2 and VEGF-KDR systems in human CC during aging by real-time PCR and WB. The ratios Ang1/Tie-2 and VEGF/KDR and Akt levels were also determined.

Results

Real-time PCR results showed a sixfold significant reduction in the Ang1/Tie-2 ratio during aging. Ang2, VEGF, and KDR expression results were highly variable. Nevertheless, the ratio VEGF/KDR was significantly higher in the aged individuals. Akt and phospho-Akt levels were similar in both groups. Immunohistological evaluation revealed a significant decrease in vascular areas and endothelial surface in CC with aging, despite no differences found in vessel number.

Conclusions

The obtained results suggest an aging-associated downregulation of angiopoietins/Tie-2 system and an apparent compensatory upregulation of the VEGF/KDR system.