bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Prevalence of the Metabolic Syndrome in Severely Obese Patients Presenting for Bariatric Surgery
Authors: Aulinger Benedikt A. , To Viet Thuan , Waldmann Elisa , Parhofer Klaus G.
Published: November 2020

Objective: Although obesity is associated with metabolic changes, not all obese patients are characterized by the metabolic syndrome (MS). The goal of this study was to determine the prevalence of the MS, its characteristics, and the associated demographic factors in a large cohort of severely obese patients presenting for potential bariatric surgery. Methods: A total of 256 obese patients (68.7% female, 41.9 ± 11.6 years, BMI 49 ± 9.1 kg/m2) were evaluated using the harmonized criteria of the MS. Results: In this cohort, the prevalence of MS was 78.1% with no gender difference. The prevalence did not correlate with BMI, body weight, or waist circumference; however, the presence of MS and numbers of MS criteria met correlated with age. The prevalence of individual criteria varied considerably (central obesity [100%], hypertension [86.7%], elevated glucose (58.6%), low HDL-cholesterol [50%], and hypertriglyceridemia [43.7%]). On average, 3.4 ± 1.1 criteria were met, 3.5% fulfilled only one criterion (central obesity), and 16.4% met all 5 criteria. After adjusting for age and gender, hypertriglyceridemia and hypertension were more common in diabetic than in non-diabetic patients. Similarly, low HDL and elevated glucose were more common in hypertriglyceridemic individuals. Conclusion: In severely obese patients, the prevalence of the MS and the number of criteria met was high. However, over 20% of severely obese individuals have no MS and thus may be at lower risk for cardiovascular complications of obesity. It is currently unclear whether treatment strategies with respect to obesity should differ between severely obese individuals with and without the MS.
Incidence of Retinal Detachment in Germany: Results from the Gutenberg Health Study
Authors: Gerstenberger Eva , Stoffelns Bernhard , Nickels Stefan , Münzel Thomas , Wild Philipp S. , Beutel Manfred E. , Schmidtmann Irene , Lackner Karl J. , Pfeiffer Norbert , Schuster Alexander K.
Published: November 2020

Purpose: To investigate the incidence of retinal detachment in the German population and to assess potential risk factors. Methods: The Gutenberg Health Study is a population-based cohort study in Mainz, Germany, including subjects (n = 15,010) with an age range from 35 to 74 years at baseline examination. Study participants underwent a comprehensive ophthalmological examination including distant-corrected visual acuity, refraction and slit-lamp examination at baseline examination. A computer-assisted telephone interview was conducted after 2.5 and 5 years, and health events were recorded. The 5-year cumulative incidence of retinal detachment was computed for the study sample and stratified on age decades. Risk factors were analyzed using logistic regression including age, sex, spherical equivalent, pseudophakia and prior laser retinal therapy. Results: 13,416 participants (age 52.2 ± 10.7 years, 48.8% female) were included in this analysis. Twenty-eight subjects had a retinal detachment in one eye, no subject had a retinal detachment in both eyes. The 5-year cumulative incidence of retinal detachment was 0.21% (95% CI 0.14–0.31%), the incidence rate was 42/100,000 person-years. Risk factors were male sex (OR 4.16, p = 0.004), pseudophakia (OR 3.93, p = 0.045) and myopia (OR 1.31 per diopter myopia, p < 0.0001), but not prior retinal laser therapy or age. Conclusion: The incidence of retinal detachment in Germany at the age of 35–74 years is comparable to estimates from neighboring European countries. Risk factors are male sex, pseudophakia and myopia.
COVID-19 and Sepsis Are Associated With Different Abnormalities in Plasma Procoagulant and Fibrinolytic Activity
Authors: Bouck Emma G. , Denorme Frederik , Holle Lori A. , Middelton Elizabeth A. , Blair Antoinette M. , de Laat Bas , Schiffman Joshua D. , Yost Christian Con , Rondina Matthew T. , Wolberg Alisa S. , Campbell Robert A.
Published: November 2020

Objective:

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is associated with derangement in biomarkers of coagulation and endothelial function and has been likened to the coagulopathy of sepsis. However, clinical laboratory metrics suggest key differences in these pathologies. We sought to determine whether plasma coagulation and fibrinolytic potential in patients with COVID-19 differ compared with healthy donors and critically ill patients with sepsis.

Approach and Results:

We performed comparative studies on plasmas from a single-center, cross-sectional observational study of 99 hospitalized patients (46 with COVID-19 and 53 with sepsis) and 18 healthy donors. We measured biomarkers of endogenous coagulation and fibrinolytic activity by immunoassays, thrombin, and plasmin generation potential by fluorescence and fibrin formation and lysis by turbidity. Compared with healthy donors, patients with COVID-19 or sepsis both had elevated fibrinogen, d-dimer, soluble TM (thrombomodulin), and plasmin-antiplasmin complexes. Patients with COVID-19 had increased thrombin generation potential despite prophylactic anticoagulation, whereas patients with sepsis did not. Plasma from patients with COVID-19 also had increased endogenous plasmin potential, whereas patients with sepsis showed delayed plasmin generation. The collective perturbations in plasma thrombin and plasmin generation permitted enhanced fibrin formation in both COVID-19 and sepsis. Unexpectedly, the lag times to thrombin, plasmin, and fibrin formation were prolonged with increased disease severity in COVID-19, suggesting a loss of coagulation-initiating mechanisms accompanies severe COVID-19.

Conclusions:

Both COVID-19 and sepsis are associated with endogenous activation of coagulation and fibrinolysis, but these diseases differently impact plasma procoagulant and fibrinolytic potential. Dysregulation of procoagulant and fibrinolytic pathways may uniquely contribute to the pathophysiology of COVID-19 and sepsis.
Characteristics of Patients With Arrhythmogenic Left Ventricular Cardiomyopathy
Authors: Casella Michela , Gasperetti Alessio , Sicuso Rita , Conte Edoardo , Catto Valentina , Sommariva Elena , Bergonti Marco , Vettor Giulia , Rizzo Stefania , Pompilio Giulio , Andreini Daniele , Saguner Ardan Muammer , Duru Firat , Natale Andrea , Thiene Gaetano , Basso Cristina , Dello Russo Antonio , Tondo Claudio
Published: November 2020

Background:

Arrhythmogenic left ventricular cardiomyopathy (ALVC) is an under-characterized phenotype of arrhythmogenic cardiomyopathy involving the LV ab initio. ALVC was not included in the 2010 International Task Force Criteria for arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy diagnosis and data regarding this phenotype are scarce.

Methods:

Clinical characteristics were reported from all consecutive patients diagnosed with ALVC, defined as a LV isolated late gadolinium enhancement and fibro-fatty replacement at cardiac magnetic resonance plus genetic variants associated with arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy and of an endomyocardial biopsy showing fibro-fatty replacement complying with the 2010 International Task Force Criteria in the LV.

Results:

Twenty-five patients ALVC (53 [48–59] years, 60% male) were enrolled. T wave inversion in infero-lateral and left precordial leads were the most common ECG abnormalities. Overall arrhythmic burden at study inclusion was 56%. Cardiac magnetic resonance showed LV late gadolinium enhancement in the LV lateral and posterior basal segments in all patients. In 72% of the patients an invasive evaluation was performed, in which electroanatomical voltage mapping and electroanatomical voltage mapping-guided endomyocardial biopsy showed low endocardial voltages and fibro-fatty replacement in areas of late gadolinium enhancement presence. Genetic variants in desmosomal genes (desmoplakin and desmoglein-2) were identified in 12/25 of the cohort presenting pathogenic/likely pathogenic variants. A definite/borderline 2010 International Task Force Criteria arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy diagnosis was reached only in 11/25 patients.

Conclusions:

ALVC presents with a preferential involvement of the lateral and postero-lateral basal LV and is associated mostly with variants in desmoplakin and desmoglein-2 genes. An amendment to the current International Task Force Criteria is reasonable to better diagnose patients with ALVC.
Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension Dietary Intervention Improves Blood Pressure and Vascular Health in Youth With Elevated Blood Pressure
Authors: Couch Sarah C. , Saelens Brian E. , Khoury Philip R. , Dart Katherine B. , Hinn Kelli , Mitsnefes Mark M. , Daniels Stephen R. , Urbina Elaine M.
Published: November 2020

This randomized control trial assessed the post-intervention and 18-month follow-up effects of a 6-month dietary approaches to stop hypertension (DASH)-focused behavioral nutrition intervention, initiated in clinic with subsequent telephone and mail contact, on blood pressure (BP) and endothelial function in adolescents with elevated BP. Adolescents (n=159) 11 to 18 years of age with newly diagnosed elevated BP or stage 1 hypertension treated at a hospital-based clinic were randomized. DASH participants received a take-home manual plus 2 face-to-face counseling sessions at baseline and 3 months with a dietitian regarding the DASH diet, 6 monthly mailings, and 8 weekly and then 7 biweekly telephone calls focused on behavioral strategies to promote DASH adherence. Routine care participants received nutrition counseling with a dietitian consistent with pediatric guidelines established by the National High Blood Pressure Education Program. Outcomes, measured pre- and post-intervention and at 18-months follow-up, included change in BP, change in brachial artery flow-mediated dilation, and change in DASH score based on 3-day diet recalls. Adolescents in DASH versus routine care had a greater improvement in systolic BP (–2.7 mm Hg,
P
= 0.03, –0.3 z-score,
P
=0.03), flow-mediated dilation (2.5%,
P
=0.05), and DASH score (13.3 points,
P
<0.0001) from baseline to post-treatment and a greater improvement in flow-mediated dilation (3.1%,
P
=0.03) and DASH score (7.4 points,
P
=0.01) to 18 months. The DASH intervention proved more effective than routine care in initial systolic BP improvement and longer term improvement in endothelial function and diet quality in adolescents with elevated BP and hypertension.

Registration:

URL:
https://www.clinicaltrials.gov
; Unique identifier: NCT00585832.
Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme Inhibitor or Angiotensin Receptor Blocker Use Among Hypertensive US Adults With Albuminuria
Authors: Chu Chi D. , Powe Neil R. , McCulloch Charles E. , Banerjee Tanushree , Crews Deidra C. , Saran Rajiv , Bragg-Gresham Jennifer , Morgenstern Hal , Pavkov Meda E. , Saydah Sharon H. , Tuot Delphine S. ,   on behalf of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Chronic Kidney Disease Surveillance Team
Published: November 2020

Since 2003, US hypertension guidelines have recommended ACE (angiotensin-converting enzyme) inhibitors or ARBs (angiotensin receptor blockers) as first-line antihypertensive therapy in the presence of albuminuria (urine albumin/creatinine ratio ≥300 mg/g). To examine national trends in guideline-concordant ACE inhibitor/ARB utilization, we studied adults participating in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys 2001 to 2018 with hypertension (defined by self-report of high blood pressure, systolic blood pressure ≥140 mm Hg or diastolic ≥90 mm Hg, or use of antihypertensive medications). Among 20 538 included adults, the prevalence of albuminuria ≥300 mg/g was 2.8% in 2001 to 2006, 2.8% in 2007 to 2012, and 3.2% in 2013 to 2018. Among those with albuminuria ≥300 mg/g, no consistent trends were observed for the proportion receiving ACE inhibitor/ARB treatment from 2001 to 2018 among persons with diabetes, without diabetes, or overall. In 2013 to 2018, ACE inhibitor/ARB usage in the setting of albuminuria ≥300 mg/g was 55.3% (95% CI, 46.8%–63.6%) among adults with diabetes and 33.4% (95% CI, 23.1%–45.5%) among those without diabetes. Based on US population counts, these estimates represent 1.6 million adults with albuminuria ≥300 mg/g currently not receiving ACE inhibitor/ARB therapy, nearly half of whom do not have diabetes. ACE inhibitor/ARB underutilization represents a significant gap in preventive care delivery for adults with hypertension and albuminuria that has not substantially changed over time.
Devětsil and Dada: A Poetics of Play in the Interwar Czech Avant-Garde
Authors: Forbes Meghan
Published: November 2020

In 1920, the Czech avant-group Devětsil, led by Karel Teige, put forth a leftist program that embraced a multimedial and transnational approach to art and poetry. This vision was articulated through the group's homegrown -ism, “Poetism,” which incorporated principles of Constructivism and Dada. While Poetism's affinities with the former is well-documented, this article introduces more fully Devětsil's engagement with Dada, in print and through performance and dance. It also positions such manifestations not merely as a reflection of Dada tendencies occurring elsewhere, but also as a useful category for thinking in new ways about some of Devětsil's own artistic production and theoretical formulations as related to Poetism. Through a consideration of theoretical texts and artistic production, platformed in Czech avant-garde print, this article both adds to our understanding of the ways in which Poetism was conceived and enacted, and makes explicit Devětsil's intersections with a more global Dada construct.
Bricolage Within the Imperial Divide: Introduction to Iftikhar Dadi and Elizabeth Dadi's Jugaad
Authors: Mufti Aamir R.
Published: November 2020

Jugaad continues Iftikhar and Elizabeth Dadi's extended artistic investigation of informality in the Global South, which arguably constitutes the majority experience of this vast region. Development became a central problematic for Africa and Asia in the wake of political decolonization of the mid twentieth century, encompassing the ambition for formal planning of large-scale infrastructure and state intervention in human development. But this project was always incomplete and resonated in complex ways with the tenacious growth of informal living and working arrangements whose legacies can be traced back to the colonial era. Informality is amplified in contemporary globalization that is often understood as a process in which transnational brands and lifestyles replace their local analogs. But this view overlooks globalization's shadows—the largely invisible processes of labor, production, and consumption that transpire in the vast informality of the Global South. This is a realm of exploitation, but also one of immense productive capacities, in which branding and intellectual property regimes are constantly challenged by those who seek to fashion and animate a world from affordable materials and inventive rubrics.
Metaphysics of Muhammad
Authors: Andani Khalil
Published: November 2020

This study analyzes the development of the theme of the “Light of Muḥammad” (al-nūr al-Muḥammadī) or the “Muḥammadan Reality” (al-ḥaqīqa al-Muḥammadiyya) among several Shiʿi and Sufi thinkers through the seventh/thirteenth century. These thinkers include Imam Jaʿfar al-Ṣādiq (d. 148/765), Sahl al-Tustarī (d. 283/896), the Ikhwān al-Ṣafāʾ (early to mid 4th/10th century), the Ismaili dāʿīs Abū Yaʿqūb al-Sijistānī (d. after 361/971) and Ḥamīd al-Dīn al-Kirmānī (d. after 411/1020), Abū Ḥāmid al-Ghazālī (d. 505/1111) and ʿAyn al-Quḍāt (d. 526/1131), Ibn al-ʿArabī (d. 638/1240), ʿAbd al-Karīm al-Shahrastānī (d. 548/1153), and Naṣīr al-Dīn al-Ṭūsī (d. 672/1274). I argue that the “Light of Muḥammad” as a theological and metaphysical idea evolved historically through three distinct but cumulative phases of conceptualization: mytho-cosmological narrative, Neoplatonization, and ontological theophanization. Through these developments, the theological status of the Light of Muḥammad underwent a gradual but decisive shift from being reckoned as the first spiritual creation of God in the early period to being revered as the ontological self-manifestation of God in later periods.
Analysis Hadith Al-Ṯurāyya Dan Kaitannya Dengan COVID-19
Authors: Ramle Muhamad Rozaimi , Mohamad Mohd Yusof
Published: November 2020

COVID-19 has been declared as a global pandemic by World Health Organisation (WHO). Certain Muslims associated the emergence of Al-Ṯurāyya with the fading of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19). This article aimed to discuss the text and context of the Hadith Al-Ṯurāyya (الثُريَّـــــــــــا) and its link to the termination of COVID-19. Classical and contemporary scholars’ opinions were analysed in this study. The methodology used involved inductive and deductive supplemented with critical analysis determining the most appropriate opinion on this matter. Further empirical study of the visibility of Al-Ṯurāyya in the Islamic history were analysed using Stellarium Astronomy Software 0.20.0. The findings of the study revealed that the hadith refers to the disappearance of disease pertaining to fruits and crops and not to related to the end of any pandemic. Additionally, the rise of Al-Ṯurāyya showed no connection with pandemic termination in the Islamic history. In conclusion, the claim that COVID-19 will disappear with the emergence of Al-Ṯurāyya can be rejected.
Delicate and diverse: A taxonomic monograph with a phylogenetic analysis of the Neotropical genus Ghilianella Spinola (Hemiptera: Reduviidae: Emesinae)
Authors: CASTRO-HUERTAS VALENTINA , FORERO DIMITRI , GRAZIA JOCELIA
Published: November 2020

The Neotropical thread-legged bug genus Ghilianella Spinola, 1850 is the most diversified within Metapterini. A taxonomic revision of Ghilianella is presented, in which seventy seven species are recognized as valid, with twenty-one described as new: Ghilianella berengeri sp. nov.; Ghilianella bifurcata sp. nov.; Ghilianella bolivari sp. nov.; Ghilianella caldensis sp. nov.; Ghilianella dilatata sp. nov.; Ghilianella embera sp. nov.; Ghilianella fernandezi sp. nov.; Ghilianella ferruginosa sp. nov.; Ghilianella gilsantanai sp. nov.; Ghilianella goliath sp. nov.; Ghilianella gracilis sp. nov.; Ghilianella huaorani sp. nov.; Ghilianella jaguar sp. nov.; Ghilianella laticauda sp. nov.; Ghilianella maricruzae sp. nov.; Ghilianella quimbaya sp. nov.; Ghilianella scimitarra sp. nov.; Ghilianella tica sp. nov.; Ghilianella urbanoi sp. nov.; Ghilianella ventrimaculata sp. nov.; and Ghilianella weirauchae sp. nov. For the first time a female specimen is described for Ghilianella atriclava Bergroth, 1911, Ghilianella colona McAtee & Malloch, 1925 and Ghilianella pachitea McAtee & Malloch, 1925. Three new synonyms are recognized: Ghilianella bulbifera Champion, 1898 (=Ghilianella pendula McAtee & Malloch, 1925 syn. nov.; Ghilianella inflata Maldonado, 1981 syn. nov.) and Ghilianella strigata McAtee & Malloch, 1925 (=Ghilianella fenestrata Maldonado, 1960 syn. nov.). Eleven species are considered nomina dubia and one species nomen nudum. A key to species and digital images of the external morphology and genitalic structures for each species are provided. Additionally, we offer the first phylogenetic hypothesis of relationships within Ghilianella, using cladistic methods. Based on the phylogenetic results we dismiss all subgenera in Ghilianella and discuss the complex evolution of the abdominal expansions.
Land–Atmosphere Coupling Sensitivity to GCMs Resolution: A Multimodel Assessment of Local and Remote Processes in the Sahel Hot Spot
Authors: Müller Omar V. , Vidale Pier Luigi , Vannière Benoît , Schiemann Reinhard , Senan Retish , Haarsma Reindert J. , Jungclaus Johann H.
Published: November 2020

Land–atmosphere interactions are often interpreted as local effects, whereby the soil state drives local atmospheric conditions and feedbacks originate. However, nonlocal mechanisms can significantly modulate land–atmosphere exchanges and coupling. We make use of GCMs at different resolutions (low ~1° and high ~0.25°) to separate the two contributions to coupling: better represented local processes versus the influence of improved large-scale circulation. We use a two-legged metric, complemented by a process-based assessment of four CMIP6 GCMs. Our results show that weakening, strengthening, and relocation of coupling hot spots occur at high resolution globally. The northward expansion of the Sahel hot spot, driven by nonlocal mechanisms, is the most notable change. The African easterly jet’s horizontal wind shear is enhanced in JJA due to better resolved orography at high resolution. This effect, combined with enhanced easterly moisture flux, favors the development of African easterly waves over the Sahel. More precipitation and soil moisture recharge produce strengthening of the coupling, where evapotranspiration remains controlled by soil moisture, and weakening where evapotranspiration depends on atmospheric demand. In SON, the atmospheric influence is weaker, but soil memory helps to maintain the coupling between soil moisture and evapotranspiration and the relocation of the hot spot at high resolution. The multimodel agreement provides robust evidence that atmospheric dynamics determines the onset of land–atmosphere interactions, while the soil state modulates their duration. Comparison of precipitation, soil moisture, and evapotranspiration against satellite data reveals that the enhanced moistening at high resolution significantly reduces model biases, supporting the realism of the hot-spot relocation.
On the Upper-Ocean Vertical Eddy Heat Transport in the Kuroshio Extension. Part I: Variability and Dynamics
Authors: Yang Peiran , Jing Zhao , Sun Bingrong , Wu Lixin , Qiu Bo , Chang Ping , Ramachandran Sanjiv
Published: November 2020

Oceanic eddies play a crucial role in transporting heat from the subsurface to surface ocean. However, dynamics responsible for the vertical eddy heat transport QT have not been systematically understood, especially in the mixed layer of western boundary current extensions characterized by the coincidence of strong eddy activities and air–sea interactions. In this paper, the winter (December–March) QT in the Kuroshio Extension is simulated using a 1-km regional ocean model. An omega equation based on the geostrophic momentum approximation and generalized to include the viscous and diabatic effects is derived and used to decompose the contribution of QT from different dynamics. The simulated QT exhibits a pronounced positive peak around the center of the mixed layer (~60 m). The value of QT there exhibits multi-time-scale variations with irregularly occurring extreme events superimposed on a slowly varying seasonal cycle. The proposed omega equation shows good skills in reproducing QT, capturing its spatial and temporal variations. Geostrophic deformation and vertical mixing of momentum are found to be the two major processes generating QT in the mixed layer with the former and the latter accounting for its seasonal variation and extreme events, respectively. The mixed layer instability and the net effect of frontogenesis/frontolysis contribute comparably to the geostrophic deformation induced QT. The contribution of QT from vertical mixing of momentum can be understood on the basis of turbulent thermal wind balance.
Aortic Distensibility Can Predict Events in Patients With Premature Coronary Artery Disease: A Cardiac Magnetic Resonance Study
Authors: Razik Nady A. , Kishk Y. T. , Essa Mohammed , Ghany Mohamed Abdel
Published: November 2020

Noninvasive assessment of aortic distensibility (AD) is feasible with cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR). We investigated the relationship between AD (assessed by CMR) and coronary artery disease (CAD) severity (assessed by the SYNTAX score) in patients with premature CAD. We recruited 125 patients with CAD confirmed by coronary angiography (males were <55 years old and females <65 years old). We excluded patients with significant aortic disease or contraindications to CMR. We also recruited 25 age- and sex-matched healthy patients as controls. One-year follow-up was also carried out. Aortic distensibility at the aortic root (AR) and descending aorta (DA) was significantly ( P < .001 for both) lower in the patient group. There was a significant negative correlation between SYNTAX score and AD at the AR (r = −0.56; P < .001) and DA (r = −0.34; P < .001), but insignificant correlation with distensibility at the ascending aorta (AA; r = −0.03; P = .81). AR, AA, and DA distensibility, as well as left ventricular ejection fraction were predictors of adverse events. The severity of CAD in young patients is associated with decreased AD, especially at the level of the AR. Aortic distensibility can predict adverse events in these patients.
Does Perceived Cultural Discrimination Influence Immigrants’ Perceptions of the Police? Evidence from Married Immigrant Women Living in South Korea
Authors: Choi Jaeyong , Kruis Nathan E. , Cho Sanghyun
Published: November 2020

Although policing scholars have discussed possible relationships between discrimination and perceptions of the police, assessing the impact of perceived cultural discrimination on perceptions of the police among immigrants is virtually non-existent and deserving of empirical scrutiny. The current study addresses this gap in the literature by examining the effect of perceived cultural discrimination on perceptions of the police using a sample of 1,272 married immigrant women living in South Korea. Our results show that perceived cultural discrimination is negatively and significantly associated with perceptions of the police, supporting the expressive nature of perceptions of the police among immigrants.
Trust in the military in post-authoritarian societies
Authors: Solar Carlos
Published: November 2020

Why does the military remain one of the most trusted institutions despite, in some cases, their history of violence, corporate abuses and bloody interventions to overthrow the state and punish parts of society? This article analyses the interaction between individual factors and support for the armed forces in Argentina, Brazil and Chile to understand current forms of opinion and trust-shifts in post-authoritarian societies. It explores whether in these three democracies, support for the military is explained by the extent to which citizens support other political institutions, democracy, partisan ideologies, and novel military missions, such as the armed forces combating crime. The empirical results suggest that trust in congress and the police are statistically significant factors explaining variance in the outcome in the three case studies. The findings then vary by country. Support for democracy is positively correlated with trust in the military in Brazil but negatively associated with confidence in the military in Chile, where support for military intervention when there are increasing levels of crime is also statistically significant with confidence in the armed forces. In both Brazil and Chile, individuals supporting the armed forces are more likely to support the military participating in countering crime. These findings have important implications for the study of military sociology and politics.
A Comparison of Label Switching Algorithms in the Context of Growth Mixture Models
Authors: Cassiday Kristina R. , Cho Youngmi , Harring Jeffrey R.
Published: November 2020

Simulation studies involving mixture models inevitably aggregate parameter estimates and other output across numerous replications. A primary issue that arises in these methodological investigations is label switching. The current study compares several label switching corrections that are commonly used when dealing with mixture models. A growth mixture model is used in this simulation study, and the design crosses three manipulated variables—number of latent classes, latent class probabilities, and class separation, yielding a total of 18 conditions. Within each of these conditions, the accuracy of a priori identifiability constraints, a priori training of the algorithm, and four post hoc algorithms developed by Tueller et al.; Cho; Stephens; and Rodriguez and Walker are tested to determine their classification accuracy. Findings reveal that, of all a priori methods, training of the algorithm leads to the most accurate classification under all conditions. In a case where an a priori algorithm is not selected, Rodriguez and Walker’s algorithm is an excellent choice if interested specifically in aggregating class output without consideration as to whether the classes are accurately ordered. Using any of the post hoc algorithms tested yields improvement over baseline accuracy and is most effective under two-class models when class separation is high. This study found that if the class constraint algorithm was used a priori, it should be combined with a post hoc algorithm for accurate classification.
The Effect of Enhanced Milieu Teaching on Vocabulary Acquisition for Korean American Children With Down Syndrome
Authors: Kim Sunyoung , Kang Veronica Y.
Published: November 2020

Children with Down syndrome (DS) often exhibit delays in cognitive and linguistic development. In response to the increasing number of culturally and linguistically diverse populations with disabilities in the United States and need for evidence-based interventions with cultural adaptations, this study examined the effects of enhanced milieu teaching on targeted vocabulary acquisitions of four Korean American children with DS. Each child’s language preference, linguistic developmental trajectory, and preferred play themes/toys were considered as core methods of cultural adaptation. The results indicated that the use of targeted vocabularies increased among all children with DS and were maintained at higher levels than baseline. Implications for teaching language skills to culturally and linguistically diverse children with DS are discussed.
ProCAD: Looking at a Fuller Picture of the Teacher Candidate
Authors: Laughter Judson C. , Brown Amelia A. , Neu Lynnette W.
Published: November 2020

Definitions of effective teaching focus on three primary areas: performances, essential knowledge, and critical dispositions. While no one measure provides a complete picture of teacher effectiveness, empirical inquiry into critical dispositions lags behind what is known about essential knowledge and performances. We found this underdevelopment true in our own educator preparation program at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, which led to the development, testing, and implementation of the Professional Competencies, Attitudes, and Dispositions (ProCAD) assessment. In this article, we introduce the ProCAD assessment, describing each piece of the ProCAD framework and its alignment with InTASC critical disposition substandards. We present findings from the analysis of ProCAD data and close with implications for better understanding effective teaching and future research.
Driving While Black and Brown in Vermont: Can Race Data Analysis Contribute to Reform?
Authors: Seguino Stephanie , Brooks Nancy
Published: November 2020

Many states now require law enforcement to collect race data on traffic stops, but there has been little research on the use of that data to inform public policy or reform efforts at the agency level. This article addresses that lacuna by presenting results from the first statewide analysis of Vermont traffic stop data. Racial threat theory, a subset of stratification theory, would predict that policing in a predominantly white state like Vermont would exhibit lower racial disparities than states with a more racially diverse population because the “threat” to white dominance is less. The results contradict that prediction. Vermont, despite its reputation as a liberal state, is not different from other states in exhibiting wide racial disparities in policing. And yet, analysis and dissemination of race data in policing, by providing an evidentiary basis for citizen claims of racial bias, contributed to action on the part of the state legislature and government to address racial discrimination not only in policing but also in the broader criminal justice system. We report on those reform efforts and on the actions taken by three reform-minded law enforcement agencies to reduce and eliminate unjustifiable racial disparities in policing.
Valid for What? On the Very Idea of Unconditional Validity
Authors: Larroulet Philippi Cristian
Published: November 2020

What is a valid measuring instrument? Recent philosophy has attended to logic of justification of measures, such as construct validation, but not to the question of what it means for an instrument to be a valid measure of a construct. A prominent approach grounds validity in the existence of a causal link between the attribute and its detectable manifestations. Some of its proponents claim that, therefore, validity does not depend on pragmatics and research context. In this paper, I cast doubt on the possibility of a context-independent causal account of validity (what I call unconditional validity). I assess several versions, arguing that all of them fail to judge the validity of measuring instruments correctly. Because different research purposes require different properties from measuring instruments, no account of validity succeeds without referring to the specific research purpose that creates the need for measurement in the first place.
Constitutional Text, Authorial Intentions and Implied Rights: A Response to Allan and Arcioni
Authors: Crowe Jonathan
Published: November 2020

Jim Allan contends in a recent issue of the Federal Law Review that the High Court’s implied rights jurisprudence is illegitimate, because it is not adequately moored in the constitutional text and the historical intentions of its authors. Elisa Arcioni’s response accepts that constitutional doctrines should be grounded in the text and authorial intentions but argues that the implied rights cases meet this standard. Arcioni is correct, but more can usefully be said about the precise interpretive basis for the implied rights reasoning. A faithful attempt to give effect to the framers’ intentions, as I have shown in detail elsewhere, must sometimes ask not only what they had in mind when the text was written but also what those intentions entail in a contemporary setting. This involves placing both the constitutional text and authorial intentions within a broader context of legal and social institutions. The High Court’s implied rights jurisprudence, viewed in this light, is a legitimate attempt to identify and apply the Constitution’s intended meaning.
Foucault as Translator of Binswanger and von Weizsäcker
Authors: Elden Stuart
Published: November 2020

Foucault’s Introduction to a translation of Ludwig Binswanger’s essay ‘Dream and Existence’ was published in late 1954. The translation was credited to Jacqueline Verdeaux, with Foucault acknowledged for the notes. Yet Verdeaux herself indicates the intensely collaborative nature of their working process and the translation. In 1958, Victor von Weizsäcker’s Der Gestaltkreis was published in French as Le Cycle de la structure, translated by Foucault and Daniel Rocher. Foucault went on to translate and introduce Immanuel Kant’s Anthropology as his secondary doctoral thesis. His engagement with Kant and Binswanger’s ideas has been discussed in the literature, but his role as translator has generally been neglected. His engagement with von Weizsäcker is almost never mentioned. This article critically discusses Foucault’s role in the Binswanger and von Weizsäcker translations, comparing the German originals with the French texts, and showing how this is a useful additional element to the story of the early Foucault.
Foucault and the History of Anthropology: Man, before the ‘Death of Man’
Authors: Sforzini Arianna
Published: November 2020

In the unpublished manuscript of a lecture course probably given by Foucault at the École normale supérieure of Paris in 1954–5 (‘On Anthropology’; the dating is still uncertain), Foucault undertakes an erudite and detailed reconstruction of the history of anthropological knowledge, from modernity (Descartes and Malebranche) to 20th-century Nietzschean commentaries (Jaspers and Heidegger), including analyses by Kant, Feuerbach, and Dilthey, among others. My article explores this lecture course to emphasize the importance of anthropological criticism for the young Foucault, addressing in particular the anti-anthropological significance of the encounter with Nietzsche’s philosophy, which becomes an output power ( puissance de sortie) both of the figure of man and the notion of truth in which he was involved. These unpublished manuscripts will therefore allow me to find a common thread in Foucault’s work in the 1950s and 1960s (and even beyond): the exploration of new potentialities for thought opened by ‘the death of man’.
Romantic alternative monitoring increases ahead of infidelity and break-up
Authors: Ritchie Lane L. , Stanley Scott M. , Rhoades Galena K. , Markman Howard J.
Published: November 2020

Monitoring alternative partners may be associated with engaging in behaviors that undermine relationship fidelity and/or stability. For example, paying attention to romantic alternatives has been shown to be associated with lower relationship quality. Studies have investigated the association between alternative monitoring and relationship outcomes, but with significant methodological limitations. This study aims to longitudinally explore whether and how alternative monitoring is associated with infidelity and break-up. Participants were 779 individuals drawn from a longitudinal sample of individuals in unmarried different-sex relationships. As hypothesized, alternative monitoring was higher for those who broke up and for those who reported infidelity, compared to those who remained together without infidelity. Additionally, consistent with predictions, increases in alternative monitoring preceded break-up, and particularly large increases in alternative monitoring preceded infidelity, compared to trajectories for those who remained together and did not report infidelity. Results highlight the importance of measuring change in alternative monitoring over time, rather than only considering mean differences at a single timepoint. Clinical implications and future directions are discussed.
Progression of Epiphyseal Cartilage and Bone Pathology in Surgically Treated Cases of Osteochondritis Dissecans of the Elbow
Authors: Takahara Masatoshi , Maruyama Masahiro , Uno Tomohiro , Harada Mikio , Satake Hiroshi , Takahara Daiichiro , Takagi Michiaki
Published: November 2020

Background:

Although a variety of pathologic conditions associated with osteochondritis dissecans (OCD) have been reported, the pathological progression has remained unclear.

Hypothesis:

Separation of the immature epiphyseal cartilage is an early event in OCD, and osteonecrosis in the articular fragment is a late event.

Study Design:

Case Series; Level of evidence, 4.

Methods:

The participants were 26 boys (mean age, 13.8 years; mean skeletal age score for the elbow, 24.6 points) with capitellar OCD who underwent osteochondral autograft transplantation. A total of 28 cylindrical osteochondral plugs, including the articular fragment, an intermediate layer, and proximal epiphyseal bone, were harvested from the central area of the capitellum and were examined histologically. The articular fragments of OCD were independently assessed by 5 observers and divided into 4 pathological variations: IA, nearly normal-cartilaginous; IB, deteriorated-cartilaginous; IIA, cartilage-ossifying; and IIB, cartilage-osteonecrotic. The reliability of assessment and the correlation of the pathological variations with the clinical data were examined.

Results:

The reliability of the assessment among 5 observers was almost perfect (Cohen kappa value = 0.91). OCD variations of IA, IB, IIA, and IIB were evident in 5, 10, 5, and 6 patients, respectively. OCD-I (cartilaginous) and OCD-II (osteochondral) corresponded significantly to radiographic stage I (radiolucency or slight calcification with open physis) and stage II (delayed ossification or bony fragment), respectively (Cohen kappa value = 0.79; percentage agreement = 81%). The pathological OCD variations were significantly correlated with the clinical data, including the period from symptom onset to surgery, patient age, and the skeletal age score ( P < .01, in each).

Conclusion:

The present study has revealed that the pathological variations correspond to the progression of OCD, thus proving our hypothesis. OCD-IA was shown to be an early lesion caused by separation of the immature epiphyseal cartilage. OCD-IB appeared to result from ossification arrest over a prolonged period from the onset of OCD-IA, whereas OCD-IIA showed delayed ossification in the epiphyseal cartilage where vascularization from the surrounding bone had been established. Osteonecrosis in OCD-IIB was shown to be a late pathological event caused by disruption of the vascular supply to OCD-IIA.
Accuracy analysis and optimization of an extendible support structure with joint clearances
Authors: Ding Jianzhong , Wang Chunjie
Published: November 2020

An extendible support structure (ESS) used for unfolding and supporting the antenna array of the Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) satellite is reviewed and modeled in this paper. The structure is parameterized by calibrating 12 independent parameters, and following which, angular accuracy of the ESS with joint clearances is modeled. The maximum angular error is obtained by the particle swarm optimization (PSO) and validated by the Monte Carlo simulation. A novel error reduction method is then proposed to improve the accuracy of the structure. In the proposed method, the uncertainty of the joint clearance is eliminated using force constraints by adding small torsional springs. Various joint clearance models with force constraints are proposed to obtain the optimal spring allocation, and based on which, the angular error is further reduced by optimizing the structure of the ESS. The Quasi-Monte-Carlo-based Sobol method for global sensitivity analysis is used to select the design parameters for optimization. Finally, the angular error is greatly reduced.
Systemic lupus erythematosus during pregnancy is not associated with school performance in offspring – A Danish population-based study
Authors: Knudsen Signe S , Simard Julia F , Knudsen Jakob S , Christensen Jakob , Laursen Thomas M , Deleuran Bent W , Bech Bodil H
Published: November 2020

Introduction

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) in pregnancy is considered a risk factor for a range of adverse outcomes in the offspring. Studies have indicated increased risk of neurodevelopmental disorders such as autism spectrum disorders, dyslexia and ADHD. However, the overall long-term cognitive development of children born to women with SLE has scarcely been examined. In this study, we compare test scores from the Danish National School Tests of children born to women SLE with children of the background population.

Methods

We included all singleton children born in Denmark between 1995 and 2008, who were listed in the Danish National School Test Register (n=738,862). Children born to women with SLE were identified through linkage of national healthcare registers. We assessed the children’s performance in the national school tests between 2nd and 8th grade, in reading and mathematics. Information on the mothers’ redeemed prescriptions in pregnancy was included in stratified analyses. Differences of mean test scores were derived from linear regressions and compared according to maternal SLE status, and predefined categories of medication exposures.

Results

In total, 312 (0.04%) children were born to mothers with SLE. There were no differences in performance in neither reading nor mathematics tests between those born to mothers with SLE and children born to mothers without SLE. When stratifying on medication exposures among children whose mothers had SLE, there was a non-significant tendency towards poorer results among those exposed to hydroxychloroquine and/or immunosuppressants (n=31), compared to those not exposed to these medications. A similar tendency was not observed among children whose mothers received hydroxychloroquine for non-SLE reasons (n=1,235)

Conclusion

This study indicates no major harmful effect on the child’s neurocognitive development from exposure in utero to SLE, hydroxychloroquine and/or immunosuppressants, as measured by school performance.
Family vulnerability for sick older adults: An empirical ethics study
Authors: Zou Xiang , Nie Jing-Bao
Published: November 2020

Background:

In China, the conventional family-based ageing care model is under pressure from social transitions, raising the question of whether and to what extent families are still capable of dealing with the care of the aged.

Objective:

This article examines the vulnerability and inadequacy of families to bear responsibility for the care of the aged against a backdrop of socioeconomic transformation and diminishing institutional support in rural China.

Research design:

This article adopts an empirical ethical approach that integrates empirical investigation with ethical inquiry.

Participants and research context:

The empirical component of this article focuses on the lived experiences of caring for a wife and mother with dementia in one rural Chinese family, collected from a 6-month fieldwork study conducted at one primary hospital.

Ethical considerations:

Approval was obtained from the university ethics committee.

Findings:

The empirical study highlights a conflicted family process of managing and negotiating care that indicates the inadequacies and limited ability of families to deal with aged care tasks. In addition, inadequate structures and institutional deficiencies exacerbate the vulnerability of rural families and their inability to offer adequate care.

Conclusion:

Acknowledging the vulnerability of families as ageing care providers, this article calls for a socially supported family care model for rural older people in China and also proposes policy recommendations.
Evaluation of platelet function in cats with and without kidney disease: a pilot study
Authors: Benson Kellyi K , Quimby Jessica M , Shropshire Sarah B , Summers Stacie C , Dowers Kristy L
Published: November 2020

Objectives

The aims of this study were to determine if stable chronic kidney disease (CKD) cats and uremic crisis cats have altered platelet function, and to determine the prevalence of positive fecal occult blood in CKD cats.

Methods

Platelet function in normal cats, clinically stable International Renal Interest Society (IRIS) stage 2–4 CKD cats and CKD cats experiencing a uremic crisis were evaluated using impedance aggregometry. Area under the curve (AUC) at 6 mins was calculated for saline, adenosine diphosphate (AUCADP) and arachidonic acid (AUCASPI). The AUC in addition to hematocrit, platelet count and mean platelet volume (MPV) were compared between groups using the Kruskal–Wallis test followed by Dunn’s post-hoc analysis. Guaiac fecal occult blood tests were performed on fecal samples and results were compared between groups using a χ2 for trend test.

Results

AUCADP ( P = 0.04) and AUCASPI ( P = 0.05) were significantly higher in uremic crisis cats compared with normal cats at 6 mins. Hematocrit was significantly higher in normal cats when compared with IRIS stage 3 and 4 ( P = 0.002) and uremic crisis ( P = 0.0008) cats, with no difference among groups for platelet count or MPV. The proportion of cats with positive fecal occult blood samples was significantly different between groups ( P = 0.0017); 50% uremic crisis cats, 33% IRIS stage 3 and 4 cats, and 10% IRIS stage 2 cats were positive, while no normal cats were positive. The proportion of cats with platelet clumping was significantly different between groups ( P = 0.03).

Conclusions and relevance

Platelet hyper-reactivity may be occurring in CKD cats experiencing a uremic crisis. The etiology of positive fecal occult blood samples in CKD cats is unclear and did not appear to be related to decreased platelet function as measured in this study and requires further investigation.