bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The Association Between SYNTAX Score II and Carotid Artery Disease Severity in Patients Who Underwent Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting
Authors: Ermis Emrah , Yildirim Erkan , Ucar Hakan , Allahverdiyev Samir , Teskin Onder , Teker Melike Elif , Ereren Emrah , Cengiz Mahir
Published: August 2019

The SYNTAX score (SS) and SS II, which include additional clinical parameters, are widely used today for deciding revascularization following coronary angiography. We investigated the association between the presence and severity of carotid artery disease (CrAD) using the SS and SS II in 287 patients who underwent coronary artery bypass grafting. We based this investigation on the known association between coronary artery disease and CrAD. A significant association was observed between the groups with and without CrAD in terms of SS II values (28.4 ± 9.6 vs 21.4 ± 7.7, respectively; P < .001). A significant difference was also observed when stenosis was classified according to severity as <50%, 50% to 70%, and >70% ( P < .001). The results indicated a positive correlation between the presence and severity of CrAD as SS II increased ( r = 0.187, P = .005). According to the results of multivariate logistic regression analysis, the SS II was an independent predictor of CrAD.
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rray: A Novel, Essential Oil-Based Test Strongly Correlated with UPSIT and Subjective Outcome Measures
Authors: Villwock Jennifer A. , Li Jennifer , Moore Chelsea , Chiu Alexander G. , Sykes Kevin J.
Published: August 2019

Background:

Olfactory dysfunction is an important facet of numerous disease states ranging from sinonasal disease to neurocognitive disorders. Due to expense and/or logistical barriers, objective olfactory testing is not common. We describe the creation of a novel, essential oil-based smell test, Affordable Rapid Olfaction Measurement Array (AROMA), composed at 14 scents at different concentrations and demonstrate correlation of AROMA with the University of Pennsylvania Smell Identification Test (UPSIT), patient age, Sinonasal Outcomes Test (SNOT-22), and perceived loss of smell.

Methods:

AROMA was developed for point-of-care olfactory testing and compared to the UPSIT, as well as subjective outcome measures as noted above. About 37 healthy controls were prospectively recruited to assess the reliability of AROMA using a test–retest protocol. An additional cohort of 38 participants with sinonasal disease were prospectively recruited to complete the AROMA and UPSIT, and were compared with a cohort of 30 healthy controls. Spearman correlation correlated AROMA and UPSIT results, patient age, SNOT-22, and perceived loss of smell.

Results:

AROMA demonstrated good test–retest reliability ( r = 0.85, P < .001). Spearman’s rho correlation of AROMA to UPSIT was statistically significant at ρ = 0.75 ( P < .001). SNOT-22, age, and perceived sense of smell were all significantly correlated with both AROMA (ρ = −0.548, −0.557, −0.642, respectively) and UPSIT (ρ = −0.367, −0.460, −0.552, respectively).

Conclusion:

AROMA has a strong correlation with UPSIT and may be more strongly correlated with sinonasal outcomes. Additionally, AROMA is reusable; level of odorant is not static; and AROMA can test both odor detection and identification.

Level of evidence:

2b
Managing Cartels Through Patent Pools
Authors: Wu Weimin
Published: August 2019

This article addresses one aspect of patent pools that has not received much attention—a patent pool’s role in stabilizing a cartel of downstream producers. This article first reviews the problem of cartel cheating. Any potential mechanisms that a cartel can use to increase its stability face three main challenges: (1) the cost of management, (2) agency costs, and (3) the requirement of secrecy. This article argues that the vertical licensor–licensee relationship inherent to a patent pool would contribute to more effective monitoring of compliance with cartel agreements by licensees. It also argues that the aggregation of patents in a patent pool would better effectuate the punishment of cartel cheating. The article’s main finding that a patent pool is uniquely suited to manage a cartel is a reminder that an overly permissive view of patent pools can invite anticompetitive hazards.
The Easter Sunday Bombings and the Crisis Facing Sri Lanka’s Muslims
Authors: Imtiyaz A.R.M.
Published: August 2019

This paper primarily examines the Easter Sunday bombing plotted and executed by a group of Sri Lankan Muslims and post-war Sri Lankan conditions among Sri Lankan Muslims, also known as Moors. The article will attempt to argue that (a) the post-war violence and organized Islamophobia among non-Muslim communities in general and the Sinhalese in particular increased fears and distrust among Sri Lankan Muslims in general; and (b) state concessions to Muslim political leaders, who supported successive Sri Lankan ruling classes from independence through the defeat of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in 2009, have meant an isolation of the community from the other two main ethnic communities. The concessions that the Muslim community has won actively helped the Muslim community to be proactive in its religious practices and thus paved the way for exclusive social and political choices. The rise of Islamic movements and mosques in the post-1977 period galvanized Muslims. In time this isolation has been reinforced by socio-religious revival among Muslims whose ethnic identity has been constructed along the lines of the Islamic faith by Muslim elites. Despite this revival it has been clear that the Muslim community has been reluctant to use Islamic traditions and principles for peace building, which could have helped to ease tensions, brought about by the 30-year-old ethnic conflict. Finally, some pragmatic ways to ease tensions between Muslims and non-Muslims in the greater discipline of conflict resolution are explored using traditions within Islam.
Food Imports, Hunger and State Making in Zimbabwe, 2000–2009
Authors: Madimu Tapiwa
Published: August 2019

This article uses hunger as a lens to explore how the process of state making in Zimbabwe between 2000 and 2009 negatively affected the country’s food security. Using Eriksen’s concept of state making, the study demonstrates how the Zimbabwe African National Union – Patriotic Front (ZANU PF) ruling regime concentrated more on accumulation and power retention at a time when government was expected to address the serious food shortages that the country was facing. The development of a different kind of state that had repressive and accumulation tendencies was signified in 2000 by the Fast Track Land Reform Programme (FTLRP) which was intended to appease the regime’s various constituencies. Taken together with other populist measures, particularly price freezes, the policies destroyed the country’s capacity to produce and manufacture food and pushed citizens to rely almost entirely on food imports (mainly from South Africa). The paper thus contributes to the literature on the Zimbabwean crisis by offering a different dimension, not only on the process of state making and how it caused hunger, but also on the specifics of how ordinary citizens were literally starving except those who could afford to buy imported food (particularly maize meal) from South Africa.
Chiefs and the Politics of Land Reform in the North East District, Botswana, 2005–2008
Authors: Manatsha Boga Thura
Published: August 2019

The North East District has the most contentious land question in post-colonial Botswana. Most of its land was expropriated by a colonial syndicate called the Tati Concessions (Tati Company) in the 1880s. Chunks of said land are still held under freehold titles resulting in the district experiencing severe land scarcity, especially for communal use. In a continuous effort to address this problem, the government purchased 19 freehold farms between 2005 and 2008 (about 20000 hectares) for redistribution. The process was carried out under the leadership of the Tati Land Board and North East District Administration while the chiefs and their communities were marginalised. This oversight and marginalisation of traditional leaders and their communities undermine the Chieftainship Act, which mandates the chiefs to actively promote the welfare of their tribes, inform them about developments and government policies. Using the participatory democracy theory, the article examines this land reform from the point of view of the local chiefs. It concludes that the marginalisation of the chiefs amounted to ‘community exclusion’ rendering the reform anti-redistributive.
Findings in Search of a Controversy and in Need of More Data
Authors: Bunce Valerie , Wolchik Sharon L.
Published: August 2019

Based on their quantitative survey of democracy protests from 1989 to 2011, Dawn Brancati and Adrian Lucardi conclude that diffusion of such protests is the exception, not the rule; that domestic factors rather than international diffusion are key in determining if diffusion occurs and that their findings call into serious question the received wisdom about democratic diffusion. We have several problems with their analysis. First, no serious scholar of diffusion has claimed that the diffusion of subversive innovations supporting democracy is common or frequent, given the difficulties involved. Their conclusion that such diffusion is not common thus echoes, rather than challenges those of many scholars of diffusion. Second, their conclusion that domestic factors are primary in rejecting or sometimes supporting democratic change is also unsurprising. Virtually every empirical account and every theory of cross-national diffusion identify variation in domestic receptivity to change as a key element in determining if diffusion occurs, and its limits. Finally, we question the authors’ decision to limit their analysis of diffusion to protests. Innovative challenges to authoritarian rule have taken many additional forms, including roundtables and legal challenges, as well as voter registration and get out the vote drives, agreements among opposition parties, work by civil society organizations, and participation in transnational networks of democracy activists, in addition to protests. Democracy protests are in fact a small and perhaps unrepresentative part of challenges to authoritarian rule; they are likely the result of a series of innovative actions that are hard to quantify and hard to trace, and for this reason are missing from Brancatii and Lucardi’s analysis. Their analysis, therefore, does not challenge the accepted wisdom on diffusion, but, in fact, lends partial support to its conclusions, support that is limited by the kinds of data collected and the authors’ understanding of both innovation and diffusion.
E-Cigarette Use and Future Cigarette Initiation Among Never Smokers and Relapse Among Former Smokers in the PATH Study
Authors: McMillen Robert , Klein Jonathan D. , Wilson Karen , Winickoff Jonathan P. , Tanski Susanne
Published: August 2019

Objectives:

Any potential harm-reduction benefit of electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) could be offset by nonsmokers who initiate e-cigarette use and then smoke combustible cigarettes. We examined correlates of e-cigarette use at baseline with combustible cigarette smoking at 1-year follow-up among adult distant former combustible cigarette smokers (ie, quit smoking ≥5 years ago) and never smokers.

Methods:

The Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health Study, a nationally representative, longitudinal study, surveyed 26 446 US adults during 2 waves: 2013-2014 (baseline) and 2014-2015 (1-year follow-up). Participants completed an audio computer-assisted interview in English or Spanish. We compared combustible cigarette smoking at 1-year follow-up by e-cigarette use at baseline among distant former combustible cigarette smokers and never smokers.

Results:

Distant former combustible cigarette smokers who reported e-cigarette past 30-day use (9.3%) and ever use (6.7%) were significantly more likely than those who had never used e-cigarettes (1.3%) to have relapsed to current combustible cigarette smoking at follow-up ( P < .001). Never smokers who reported e-cigarette past 30-day use (25.6%) and ever use (13.9%) were significantly more likely than those who had never used e-cigarettes (2.1%) to have initiated combustible cigarette smoking ( P < .001). Adults who reported past 30-day e-cigarette use (7.0%) and ever e-cigarette use (1.7%) were more likely than those who had never used e-cigarettes (0.3%) to have transitioned from never smokers to current combustible cigarette smokers ( P < .001). E-cigarette use predicted combustible cigarette smoking in multivariable analyses controlling for covariates.

Conclusions:

Policies and counseling should consider the increased risk for nonsmokers of future combustible cigarette smoking use as a result of using e-cigarettes and any potential harm-reduction benefits e-cigarettes might bring to current combustible cigarette smokers.
Managing Customer Reviews for Value Co-creation: An Empowerment Theory Perspective
Authors: Shin Hakseung , Perdue Richard R. , Pandelaere Mario
Published: August 2019

Tourism provides myriad opportunities for customer engagement and value co-creation, especially in online communities. This research analyzed the role of empowerment in the tourist knowledge value co-creation process in online review contexts. Using scenario-based, between-subjects experimental designs, three studies were conducted using online consumer samples to examine the effects of hotel response personalization and online review valence on empowerment and intention to co-create knowledge value for both previous and prospective hotel guests. The studies find that online reviewers (previous guests) are more empowered when they receive a personalized response and when they have positive service experiences. The effect of hotel response personalization on empowerment is stronger in negative as compared to positive review scenarios. Empowerment mediates the effect of personalization on intentions to co-create knowledge value. The same effects exist for prospective guests who read online reviews and hotel responses. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.
Do callous-unemotional traits mediate the effect of family competence on bullying?
Authors: Nwafor Chidozie Edwin , Ibeagha Peace N , Anazonwu Charles Okechukwu , Obi-Nwosu Harry
Published: August 2019

One of the assumptions of the triadic reciprocal model is that the dynamic relationships between internal factors and environmental contexts may have a reciprocal influence on behaviour. Based on this assumption, this study examined whether callous-unemotional traits mediate the relationship between family competence and bullying among 256 selected senior secondary pupils (age = 14–16; M  = 15.5, SD  = 5.4; boys = 131 and girls = 125). Three self-report scales were used to collect data for bullying, family competence, and callous-unemotional traits. Mediated multiple regression was used to test the hypotheses. The result showed that callous-unemotional traits and family competence have a positive and negative linear relationship with bullying, respectively, B  = 0.13 and −0.20, p  < .01. Similarly, the indirect effect of family competence on bullying through callous-unemotional traits was significant, B = 0.04, p < .05. This indicated that callous-unemotional traits could regulate the effect of family competence on bullying. The results may have implications for understanding, planning, and designing programmes for preventing and intervention of school bullying.
The Influence of Familial Social Support on Physical Health During Reentry
Authors: Fahmy Chantal , Wallace Danielle
Published: August 2019

Recent sociological research has turned attention to the effects social support has on one’s overall health. However, the literature lacks specificity on how social interactions may be beneficial or detrimental to reentering citizens’ physical health. In addition, much of this literature does not examine the potentially damaging effects of negative familial interactions. From both a correctional and public health standpoint, elaborating on the impact social support and negative interactions with family have on returning prisoners is crucial to understanding positive reentry outcomes. Using three waves of the Serious and Violent Offender Reentry Initiative (SVORI) data set and a repeated measures ordinary least squares (OLS) model with a lagged dependent variable, this study examines how levels of and changes in family social support and negative interactions affect post-release physical health over time ( n = 2,435). The results suggest that social support has important repercussions on one’s physical health and thus success at reintegration.
A new approach to measuring legislators’ activity
Authors: Akirav Osnat
Published: August 2019

How do we measure the activity of legislators? I argue that, in addition to using measures such as how many bills they pass, we must also consider activities such as parliamentary questions, early day motions, motions for the agenda and one-minute speeches. One means for doing so is Akirav’s activity scale developed in Israel. I use this scale to measure legislators’ activity in two additional political systems – the United States and the United Kingdom. I also identify the characteristics shared by the most active legislators and the least active. The findings indicate that opposition, junior and committee chair legislators are more active than other representatives. While previous studies have investigated the cost–benefit analysis in which legislators engage regarding where and how to invest their time in their legislative work, this study is the first to conduct such an analysis about both their legislative and non-legislative activities. This more complete picture reveals their incentives for engaging fully in parliamentary work.
The Relationship Between Religion and Intergenerational Solidarity in Eastern and Western Germany
Authors: Steinbach Anja , Silverstein Merril
Published: August 2019

This article investigated the relationship between religiosity and intergenerational solidarity in Germany, with a focus on differences between eastern and western regions that have maintained unique religious profiles that trace back to before unification. Based on data from Wave 6 (2013-2014) of the German Family Panel ( pairfam), 8,637 reports from 4,622 adult children about their relationships with mothers and fathers were analyzed. Using an index comprising four dimensions of the intergenerational solidarity model (distance, contact, closeness, and support), hierarchical linear regression demonstrated general support for the hypothesis that having a religious denomination is positively associated with the strength of intergenerational relations in Germany. However, this positive association is stronger in the more religious western part of Germany than in the highly secularized eastern part. These results emphasize the importance of taking social context and political history into account when studying core institutions of religion and families.
Pneumopericardium in the neonate: a case report
Authors: Kataria-Hale Jasmeet , Fernandes Caraciolo J , Speer Michael E
Published: August 2019

A term infant with cardiorespiratory failure treated with veno-venous extracorporeal membrane oxygenation developed pneumopericardium with cardiac tamponade while on the extracorporeal membrane oxygenation circuit. The patient was converted to veno-arterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation and managed conservatively with spontaneous resolution of the air leak.
Roots, rhizomes and resistance: remembering the Sir George Williams student uprising
Authors: Greenidge Adaeze , Gahman Levi
Published: August 2019

This article is a critical reflection, half a century on and offered from the Caribbean, about allegations of racial discrimination on the part of a professor that prompted the 1969 Sir George Williams affair in Montreal. It provides an overview of the factors that instigated the student uprising; details the response and aftermath that ensued; offers a focus on the role Black women played in the direct action; and illustrates how the incident was influenced by and had links to the West Indies. In addition, it historicises 1960s–1970s Trinidad and Tobago to explain how the political convictions and demonstration of the students inspired movements and galvanised solidarity for transformative change in the country post-independence. It highlights the translocal connections and metaphorical rhizomes that exist not only in the Caribbean diaspora, but across student protests, youth mobilisations and revolutionary struggles globally. The article is an act of diasporic remembrance on the uprising’s fiftieth anniversary, as well as a recognition of the significance it continues to have in the West Indies today, particularly in Trinidad and Tobago.
Do You Like What You See? How Nonprofit Campaigns With Output, Outcome, and Impact Effectiveness Indicators Influence Charitable Behavior
Authors: Bodem-Schrötgens Jutta , Becker Annika
Published: August 2019

This study contributes to recent discussions on voluntary disclosure as a signaling approach among nonprofit organizations and its effects on stakeholders’ decision-making. Focusing on nonprofit program effectiveness, we test how nonprofit campaigns providing information on three effectiveness indicators—outputs, outcomes, and impacts (as part of the logic framework)—influence donation and lending behavior. An online survey experiment ( N = 271) reveals that donors value outcome and impact indicators more than output information, without any differences between the two. Moreover, the three indicators have no statistical influences on lending behavior. We also consider the moderating role of reflective decision-making and find no influence on either donation or lending behavior.
Location Determinants of Indian Multinationals: A Multilevel Analysis
Authors: Saikia Munmi
Published: August 2019

The study investigates a simultaneous act of country-level determinants and firm-level heterogeneity on location distribution of the new wave of outward foreign direct investment (OFDI) from India. Indian firms are nested within host countries. Therefore, the current study employs mixed multilevel linear regression model to analyse multilevel and longitudinal data. Using firm-to-destination data, the study finds that location distribution of Indian multinationals is simultaneously driven by firm-level heterogeneity and country-level determinants. The study shows that location determinants of the recent wave of OFDI of Indian firms are significantly different from the past wave.
Carbon Dioxide Emissions and Economic Growth: A Bivariate Co-integration Analysis for Two Emerging Markets of India and China
Authors: Shahani Rakesh , Raghuvansi Kamya
Published: August 2019

The article investigates the co-integrating relation between carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions and economic growth of India and China: the two emerging markets of Asia. The article also tries to test the functional form of EKC as applicable to India and China. The study takes annual data for the 55 year period from 1960–2014 and the variables included are GDP per capita (a proxy for economic growth) and CO2 emissions per capita (a proxy for the environmental degradation). The co-integrating relation has been tested using Johansen (1988) co-integration test which is supplemented with VAR-VECM Model at p-1 lags with error correction mechanism showing adjustment between short- and long-run equilibrium. The diagnostics include stationarity, parameter stability and structural breaks (using Chow breakeven test & CUSUM plots) and serial correlation (using VEC-LM test). The empirical results showed long-term co-integration between GDP and CO2 emissions for India but not for China with lagged ECM term for India with a value of 0.0466 showed that the 4 per cent of the dis-equilibrium be corrected in same year itself. The stationary test showed that both our variables were stationary either at I(1) or I(2) but none of these were at levels. The null of serial correlation showed no serial correlation. The Chow and Stability tests revealed that for CO2 emissions in India, there was a break in 2009. VEC Granger causality tests showed that there was uni-directional causality for India flowing from GDP to CO2 emissions. EKC functional form of Cubic representation was proved for China where the curve was found to be ‘N’ shaped but EKC could not be proved in case of India.
The effectiveness of clinical risk factors on determining delayed traumatic intracranial pathology in the treatment of mild head trauma
Authors: Sert Ekrem Taha , Mutlu Hüseyin , Kokulu Kamil
Published: August 2019

Background:

Currently, a large burden of hospital admissions is related to minor head trauma and its related imaging studies. One of the challenging issues for emergency physicians is head computed tomography scan.

Objective:

The aim of this study was to determine whether there are clinical risk factors that may reveal the intracranial pathology occurring after discharge in adult patients who underwent computerized tomography because of mild/minor head traumas. We aimed to evaluate the prevalence of abnormal computerized tomography in these patients.

Methods:

Between January 2013 and December 2017 medical records and imaging findings of patients over 18 years of age who had undergone computerized tomography examination in the emergency department of our hospital were evaluated retrospectively. Patients were divided into groups according to age, sex, symptoms and physical examination findings. The relationship between these findings and abnormal computerized tomography findings was evaluated statistically.

Results:

A total of 619 patients who were admitted to the emergency department for the second time because of the same head trauma and underwent control head computerized tomography were included in the study. Abnormal head computerized tomography findings were found in 7.6% (47) of the patients. Clinical risk factors; Glasgow Coma Scale score, vomiting, loss of consciousness, dangerous trauma mechanism and anticoagulant drug use were significantly correlated with the presence of pathology on head CT(p<0.05).

Conclusion:

Patients who are readmitted to the emergency department due to worsening symptoms after the injury and who undergo control head computerized tomography have the risk of traumatic brain injury as much as those who are admitted for the first time. A very early computerized tomography may cause to miss an evolving bleeding. The presence of one or more of the identified risk factors will help clinicians to decide which patient requires computerized tomography.
Drawing Out Democracy: The Role of Sortition in Preventing and Overcoming Organizational Degeneration in Worker-Owned Firms
Authors: Pek Simon
Published: August 2019

Fostering sustainable worker ownership and control of their organizations has long been an aspiration for many. Yet, the growth of worker-owned firms (WOFs) is often accompanied by organizational degeneration: the tendency for a small oligarchy of unrepresentative workers to control democratic structures at the expense of the participation of everyday workers. Prior research suggests that organizational degeneration occurs naturally as WOFs become larger and more complex. Building on and departing from this work, I argue in this essay that an important cause is likely to be current practice around how worker representatives are selected—specifically, the near-universal reliance on elections. As an alternative, I argue that the application of sortition—the use of lotteries—to select worker representatives in major decision-making bodies such as boards of directors and councils could help prevent and overcome organizational degeneration, while also offering additional social and business benefits for workers and their organizations.
A robust policy bootstrapping algorithm for multi-objective reinforcement learning in non-stationary environments
Authors: Abdelfattah Sherif , Kasmarik Kathryn , Hu Jiankun
Published: August 2019

Multi-objective Markov decision processes are a special kind of multi-objective optimization problem that involves sequential decision making while satisfying the Markov property of stochastic processes. Multi-objective reinforcement learning methods address this kind of problem by fusing the reinforcement learning paradigm with multi-objective optimization techniques. One major drawback of these methods is the lack of adaptability to non-stationary dynamics in the environment. This is because they adopt optimization procedures that assume stationarity in order to evolve a coverage set of policies that can solve the problem. This article introduces a developmental optimization approach that can evolve the policy coverage set while exploring the preference space over the defined objectives in an online manner. We propose a novel multi-objective reinforcement learning algorithm that can robustly evolve a convex coverage set of policies in an online manner in non-stationary environments. We compare the proposed algorithm with two state-of-the-art multi-objective reinforcement learning algorithms in stationary and non-stationary environments. Results showed that the proposed algorithm significantly outperforms the existing algorithms in non-stationary environments while achieving comparable results in stationary environments.
Doravirine: A Return of the NNRTI Class?
Authors: Blevins Sarah R. , Hester E. Kelly , Chastain Daniel B. , Cluck David B.
Published: August 2019

Objective: To compare and contrast doravirine (DOR) with other agents in the nonnucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor (NNRTI) class, review safety and efficacy data from both completed and ongoing clinical trials, and outline the potential place in therapy of DOR. Data Sources: A literature search using the PubMed database (inception to June 2019) was conducted using the search terms HIV, doravirine, non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor, NNRTI, and MK-1439. Study Selection and Data Extraction: Clinical data were limited to those published in the English language from phase 2 or 3 clinical trials. Ongoing trials were identified through ClinicalTrials.gov. Data Synthesis: DOR was approved by the US Food and Drug Administration on the strength of 2 phase 3 randomized, double-blind, noninferiority clinical trials with additional studies currently underway examining its utility in other clinical scenarios. Relevance to Patient Care and Clinical Practice: The role of NNRTIs as part of antiretroviral (ARV) therapy has diminished in recent years given the introduction of more tolerable individual ARV agents and regimens. Despite this, new agents are still needed in the therapeutic arena because treatment failure as well as intolerance can still occur with many first-line therapies. The optimal place in therapy of DOR remains to be defined. Conclusions: DOR is a new NNRTI that represents a potential treatment option for treatment-naïve patients, without many of the previously described untoward effects of the NNRTI class.
Assessing the Rate of Antipsychotic Use in Ambulatory Care Patients With a Venous Thromboembolism
Authors: Rarrick Christine , Saccone Nicole , Hebbard Amy , Jones Brittany
Published: August 2019

Background: Evidence regarding the use of antipsychotics and associated venous thromboembolism (VTE) risk is inconclusive. Studies finding a relationship lack in-depth analysis; thus, the VTE risk among those treated with antipsychotic remains largely unknown. Objectives: The primary objective of this investigation was to compare the incidence of antipsychotic use in patients who developed a VTE versus those who did not. Methods: Data were collected via retrospective chart review from an ambulatory care clinic between January 2012 and August 2017. All active clinic patients within the study period were included unless they met the following criteria: age <18 years, pregnancy within the study period, and/or current or historical malignancy. The odds ratio (OR) of developing a VTE was determined using multivariate regression analysis controlling for age, gender, obesity, and smoking. Secondary end points were reviewed for participants who were exposed to an antipsychotic and subsequently developed a VTE within the study period. Results: A total of 7079 patients were included in the analysis, of whom 314 developed a VTE. Of these, 45 were exposed to an antipsychotic prior to VTE development. Nearly 25% of patients receiving an antipsychotic did not have a primary psychiatric diagnosis. Results suggest that antipsychotic use was significantly associated with increased risk of VTE development (OR = 1.481 [95% CI = 1.067 to 2.055]). Conclusion and Relevance: The results of this study suggest an association between antipsychotic use and VTE development. This association should be considered when prescribing antipsychotics and treating patients who develop a VTE after antipsychotic exposure.
What Do Pedagogies Produce? Thinking/Teaching Qualitative Inquiry
Authors: Ulmer Jasmine Brooke , Kuby Candace R. , Christ Rebecca C.
Published: August 2019

Teaching matters. And there are many ways to teach, particularly when it comes to qualitative inquiry. Accordingly, we consider how qualitative pedagogical practices can attend to the ways in which we live and learn in our more-than-human world. To keep within a pedagogical frame, we write this introductory article through a pedagogical lens. We hope we make transparent why we conceptualized this special issue, how we envision pedagogies individually and collectively, how we approached each step through a pedagogical lens, and what we’ve learned since. Along the way, we ask the following: What are pedagogies? When and where do they happen in qualitative research? Moreover, what do they produce? These are among the questions that—as qualitative teachers, learners, scholars, and guest editors—we offer an invitation for readers to explore.
Qualitative Inquiry in the Making: A Minor Pedagogy
Authors: Mazzei Lisa A. , Smithers Laura E.
Published: August 2019

This article builds on Mazzei’s concept of minor inquiry to advance the concept of a minor pedagogy. We do so by folding poststructural theory into the evidence of experience, spotlighting a collective enunciation of the pedagogical event among individuated concepts, speakers, and moments. These pedagogical events are at once quotidian and more than one. In this spacetime individuation falls away, and the production of qualitative research expertise becomes a function of the entanglement of human and more-than-human pedagogues. At the level of the everyday, we recount our experiences in a doctoral program as professor and advisor (Lisa) and student and advisee (Laura). These experiences are selections from our (continuing) joint encounters with qualitative inquiry instruction. Enfolding these everyday pedagogical-theoretical practices of qualitative inquiry produces minor pedagogy, and minor pedagogy produces these folds. As such, minor pedagogy is a pedagogy of the ontological turn.
A lateral approach to the feline cerebellar fossa: case report and identification of an external landmark for the tentorium ossium
Authors: Kent Marc , Glass Eric N , Schachar Jordan
Published: August 2019

Objectives

The aim of this study was to describe the use of an external landmark that defines the attachment of the tentorium ossium for planning a craniectomy to access the cerebellar fossa. The external landmark was defined by a line where the caudal aspect of the convexity of the cranium transitions to a flat surface in the caudal aspect of the temporal fossa. We also aimed to determine if this external landmark was present and readily visualized, and to establish its relationship to the nuchal crest using three-dimensional (3D) volume-rendered CT reconstructions created from cats with normal cranial morphology.

Methods

First, a case is presented for the description of an approach in a cat with a meningioma located dorsolateral to the cerebellum. Second, CT studies of five cats with normal cranial morphology were selected. Regions of interest (ROIs) were drawn at the attachment of the tentorium ossium to the cranium and nuchal crest. Three-dimensional reconstructions were developed with colored ROI overlays. The external landmark defined the tentorial attachment on all 3D reconstructions. Additionally, using the postoperative CT of the clinical case described herein, ROIs of the tentorial attachment and nuchal crest along with a third ROI, the craniectomy, were drawn and overlaid on the 3D reconstruction to illustrate the position of the craniectomy in relation to the tentorium ossium attachment and nuchal crest.

Results

The use of the external landmark provided for a craniectomy that enabled adequate visualization for excision of a meningioma. On all 3D reconstructions, the external landmark was present and readily visualized.

Conclusions and relevance

Between the attachment of the tentorium ossium and nuchal crest exists an area adequately sized for a craniectomy in cats. Clinicians can use an identifiable external landmark on the lateral aspect of the cranium to plan the rostral boundary for a craniectomy to access the cerebellar fossa in cats.
Imaging features of discospondylitis in cats
Authors: Gomes Sergio A , Behr Sebastien , Garosi Laurent S , Carrera Ines , Targett Mike , Lowrie Mark
Published: August 2019

Objectives

This study describes the imaging features of feline discospondylitis on MRI, comparing them with CT and radiographic findings where available.

Methods

The medical records of cats diagnosed with discospondylitis, presented to three referring institutions, were reviewed. MRI, CT and radiographic features were assessed by two of the authors independently.

Results

Fourteen sites of discospondylitis were retrospectively identified in 13 cats. The L7–S1 intervertebral disc space (IVDS) was affected in 7/14 (50%) cases. Characteristic MRI features included a hyperintense nucleus pulposus signal on T2-weighted (T2W) imaging (n = 10/14 [71%]) and short tau inversion recovery (STIR) imaging (n = 11/13 [85%]), with contrast enhancement in all (n = 11/11); involvement of adjacent vertebral endplates (n = 11/14 [79%]) and hyperintense neighbouring soft tissue on T2W (n = 11/14 [79%]) and STIR (n = 10/13 [77%]), with contrast enhancement in all (n = 11/11); and the presence of spondylosis deformans (n = 10/14 [71%]). Other features included narrowed or collapsed IVDS (n = 8/14 [57%]), contrast enhancement of vertebral bodies (n = 5/11 [46%]), epidural space involvement (n = 5/14 [36%]), compression of the spinal cord or nerve roots (n = 5/14 [36%]), paraspinal abscessation (n = 3/14 [21%]) and meningeal signal intensity abnormalities with contrast enhancement (n = 5/6 [83%]). These latter findings may indicate secondary focal meningitis. Radiographs were available covering five sites (in four cats) and CT covering three sites (in two cats). The most common radiological features were collapse or narrowing of the affected IVDS (80%) and endplate erosion (60%). No changes suggestive of discospondylitis were identifiable on radiography or CT in two sites (one cat), despite being identifiable on MRI. Repeated radiography in one case did not reveal complete radiological resolution following 9 months of treatment.

Conclusions and relevance

The results of this study indicate consistent MRI features of feline discospondylitis that should be considered in the diagnosis of this condition.
The Effect of Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation on Inflammation in Older Adults With Knee Osteoarthritis: A Bayesian Residual Change Analysis
Authors: Suchting Robert , Colpo Gabriela D. , Rocha Natalia P. , Ahn Hyochol
Published: August 2019

Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) has demonstrated effectiveness in reducing clinical and experimental measures of pain in patients with chronic pain; however, research examining the mechanisms of action for the effects of tDCS has been lacking. The present study investigated the effect of active tDCS on measures of inflammation and stress. Older adults (aged 50–70 years) with knee osteoarthritis (OA) were randomly assigned to receive daily 20-min sessions of either tDCS ( n = 20) or sham tDCS ( n = 20) for 5 consecutive days. Participants provided blood samples at baseline and the end of treatment. The following measures of immune function and stress were collected: interleukin (IL)-6 and 10, tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), C-reactive protein, cortisol, and β-endorphin. Generalized linear modeling evaluated each posttreatment measure as a function of tDCS group, controlling for baseline (measuring residual change, analogous to analysis of covariance). Bayesian statistical inference was used to directly quantify the probability of the effect of active tDCS. IL-6, IL-10, TNF-α, and β-endorphin demonstrated lower levels of stress and inflammation in the active tDCS group. These findings provide preliminary evidence that active (relative to sham) tDCS is associated with reduced levels of inflammation.
Comparing Ease of Programming in C++, Go, and Java for Implementing a Next-Generation Sequencing Tool
Authors: Costanza Pascal , Herzeel Charlotte , Verachtert Wilfried
Published: August 2019

elPrep is an extensible multithreaded software framework for efficiently processing Sequence Alignment/Map (SAM)/Binary Alignment/Map (BAM) files in next-generation sequencing pipelines. Similar to other SAM/BAM tools, a key challenge in elPrep is memory management, as such programs need to manipulate large amounts of data. We therefore investigated 3 programming languages with support for assisted or automated memory management for implementing elPrep, namely C++, Go, and Java. We implemented a nontrivial subset of elPrep in all 3 programming languages and compared them by benchmarking their runtime performance and memory use to determine the best language in terms of computational performance. In a previous article, we motivated why, based on these results, we eventually selected Go as our implementation language. In this article, we discuss the difficulty of achieving the best performance in each language in terms of programming language constructs and standard library support. While benchmarks are easy to objectively measure and evaluate, this is less obvious for assessing ease of programming. However, because we expect elPrep to be regularly modified and extended, this is an equally important aspect. We illustrate representative examples of challenges in all 3 languages, and give our opinion why we think that Go is a reasonable choice also in this light.
Predicting Dropout from Inpatient Substance Use Disorder Treatment: A Prospective Validation Study of the OQ-Analyst
Authors: Brorson Hanne H , Arnevik Espen Ajo , Rand Kim
Published: August 2019

Background and Aims:

There is an urgent need for tools allowing therapists to identify patients at risk of dropout. The OQ-Analyst, an increasingly popular computer-based system, is used to track patient progress and predict dropout. However, we have been unable to find empirical documentation regarding the ability of OQ-Analyst to predict dropout. The aim of the present study was to perform the first direct test of the ability of the OQ-Analyst to predict dropout.

Design:

Patients were consecutively enlisted in a naturalistic, prospective, longitudinal clinical trial. As interventions based on feedback from the OQ-Analyst could alter the outcome and potentially render the prediction wrong, feedback was withheld from patients and therapists.

Setting:

The study was carried out during 2011–2013 in an inpatient substance use disorder clinic in Oslo, Norway.

Participants:

Patients aged 18 to 28 years who met criteria for a principal diagnosis of mental or behavioural disorder due to psychoactive substance use (ICD 10; F10.2–F19.2).

Measurements:

Red signal (predictions of high risk) from the Norwegian version of the OQ-Analyst were compared with dropouts identified using patient medical records as the standard for predictive accuracy.

Findings:

A total of 40 patients completed 647 OQ assessments resulting in 46 red signals. There were 27 observed dropouts, only one of which followed after a red signal. Patients indicated by the OQ-Analyst as being at high risk of dropping out were no more likely to do so than those indicated as being at low risk. Random intercept logistic regression predicting dropout from a red signal was statistically nonsignificant. Bayes factor supports no association.

Conclusions:

The study does not support the predictive ability of the OQ-Analyst for the present patient population. In the absence of empirical evidence of predictive ability, it may be better not to assume such ability.
A Further Analysis and Commentary on: Profiling Changes in Cortical Astroglial Cells Following Chronic Stress
Authors: Coppola Gianfilippo , Rurak Gareth M , Simard Stephanie , Salmaso Natalina
Published: August 2019

The neuroplasticity hypothesis of depression proposes that major depressive disorders are related to decreased hippocampal and cortical neural plasticity, which is reversed by antidepressant treatment. Astroglial cells have emerged as key mediators of neural plasticity and are involved in the cause and treatment of depression and anxiety-like behaviors. One of the ways that astroglia modulate neuroplasticity is through the formation and maintenance of perineuronal nets (PNNs). Perineuronal nets are important extracellular matrix components that respond to stress and are implicated in anxiety-like behaviors. Normally, astroglial cells continuously turnover PNNs by degrading and donating PNN proteins; however, chronic stress slows PNN protein degradation and increases cortical PNN expression overall. In this report, we used weighted gene co-expression network analysis and eigengene analysis to further delineate the pathways and key regulators involved in the astroglial-PNN relationship following chronic stress. Our analyses indicate that chronic variable stress induces the expression of PNNs through inhibition of trophic pathways and key transcription factors in astroglial cells. These data further support the integral role of astroglial cells in the neuroplasticity hypothesis of depression through their modulation of anxiety-like behaviors and PNNs.
Microstructural fronto-striatal and temporo-insular alterations are associated with fatigue in patients with multiple sclerosis independent of white matter lesion load and depression
Authors: Palotai Miklos , Cavallari Michele , Koubiyr Ismail , Morales Pinzon Alfredo , Nazeri Aria , Healy Brian C , Glanz Bonnie , Weiner Howard L , Chitnis Tanuja , Guttmann Charles RG
Published: August 2019

Background:

Fatigue in multiple sclerosis (MS) has been inconsistently associated with disruption of specific brain circuitries. Temporal fluctuations of fatigue have not been considered.

Objective:

The aim of this study was to investigate the association of fatigue with brain diffusion abnormalities, using robust criteria for patient stratification based on longitudinal patterns of fatigue.

Methods:

Patient stratification: (1) sustained fatigue (SF, n = 26): latest two Modified Fatigue Impact Scale (MFIS) ⩾ 38; (2) reversible fatigue (RF, n = 25): latest MFIS < 38 and minimum one previous MFIS ⩾ 38; and (3) never fatigued (NF, n = 42): MFIS always < 38 (five assessments minimum). 3T brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was used to perform voxel-wise comparison of fractional anisotropy (FA) between the groups controlling for age, sex, disease duration, physical disability, white matter lesion load (T2LV), and depression.

Results:

SF and, to a lesser extent, RF patients showed lower FA in multiple brain regions compared to NF patients, independent of age, sex, disease duration, and physical disability. In cingulo-postcommissural-striato-thalamic regions, the differences in FA between SF and NF (but not between RF and NF or SF) patients were independent of T2LV, and in ventromedial prefronto-precommissuro-striatal and temporo-insular areas, independent of T2LV and depression.

Conclusion:

Damage to ventromedial prefronto-precommissuro-striatal and temporo-insular pathways appears to be a specific substrate of SF in MS.