bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Time to systemic treatment and prognosis in patients with recurrent and metastatic head and neck squamous cell cancer
Authors: Siano Marco , Espeli Vittoria , Joerger Markus
Published: November 2018

Background:

Delay of systemic treatment in recurrent/metastatic head and neck squamous cell cancer (r/mHNSCC) has never been assessed. Whether time span to start systemic treatment affects survival and whether referral to a medical oncologist is important has not been explored.

Methods:

We analyzed our head and neck database to assess the prognostic impact of time between diagnosis of r/mHNSCC and start of systemic treatment (time to treatment [TTT]). Secondarily, we assessed the prognostic impact of time to referral to a medical oncologist (referral time). For this purpose, we used pairwise correlation analysis and multivariate Cox regression analysis as statistical tests.

Results:

A total of 110 patients with r/mHNSCC were evaluable for analysis. TTT correlated significantly with OS from r/mHNSCC diagnosis ( R = 0.43, p < 0.0001). A nonsignificant, positive correlation was found between referral time and OS ( R = 0.17, p = 0.10).

Conclusions:

Results of this retrospective analysis suggest that longer TTT is not associated with worse prognosis. Referral time seems not to have an impact on prognosis.
Suture Button Versus Syndesmotic Screw for Syndesmosis Injuries: A Meta-analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials
Authors: Shimozono Yoshiharu , Hurley Eoghan T. , Myerson C. Lucas , Murawski Christopher D. , Kennedy John G.
Published: November 2018

Background:

Operative treatment is indicated for unstable syndesmosis injuries, and approximately 20% of all ankle fractures require operative fixation for syndesmosis injuries.

Purpose:

To perform a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials evaluating clinical outcomes between suture button (SB) and syndesmotic screw (SS) fixation techniques for syndesmosis injuries of the ankle.

Study Design:

Meta-analysis.

Methods:

A literature search was performed according to the PRISMA guidelines to identify randomized controlled trials comparing the SB and SS techniques for syndesmosis injuries. Level of evidence was assessed per the criteria of the Oxford Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine. Statistical analysis was performed with RevMan, and a P value ≤.05 was considered statistically significant.

Results:

Five clinical studies were identified, allowing comparison of 143 patients in the SB group with 142 patients in the SS group. Patients treated with the SB technique had a higher postoperative American Orthopaedic Foot & Ankle Society score at a mean 20.8 months (95.3 vs 86.7, P < .001). The SB group resulted in a lower rate of broken implants (0.0% vs 25.4%, P < .001), implant removal (6.0% vs 22.4%, P = .01), and joint malreduction (0.8% vs 11.5%, P = .05) as compared with the SS group.

Conclusion:

The SB technique results in improved functional outcomes as well as lower rates of broken implant and joint malreduction. Based on the findings of this meta-analysis, the SB technique warrants a grade A recommendation by comparison with the SS technique for the treatment of syndesmosis injuries.
On conducting an ongoing large staff group in a psychiatric hospital
Authors: Peleg Ido , Joffe Milstein Marit
Published: November 2018

A psychiatric hospital is an environment designed to help people to recover from a mental crisis. While an atmosphere of acceptance and open communication is conductive to that aim, institutional milieu is usually full of misunderstanding, conflict, projection and paranoia. An ongoing large analytic group, available to all hospital members of staff, can help to contain these tensions while facilitating an open dialogue and a reflective stance within the organization.

In this article, we present the development and principles of conducting such a group. It has been running for five years. It meets once a month and includes clinicians, administrators and management. Participation is voluntary. It is conducted by two co-conductors, one a member of the hospital staff, and the other not. Group dynamics including power relations, different professional languages and different worldviews are discussed. These include the dynamics of watching and being watched, displayed in the group and the two conductors.
The Dynamic Foundation: Harnessing Difference within the Matrix
Authors: Kent Jacinta
Published: November 2018

The world is awash with new technologies, increasing migration, and ever-expanding methods of communication—all of which are reflected in and around the groups we conduct. This article charts the evolution of Foulkes’ group matrix before critically examining the notion of a foundation matrix in order to address the relevance of a concept that was created when the world seemed to move at a much slower pace. A development is offered that attempts to incorporate the dynamic and evolving world in which we live, harnessing difference within the matrix for transformational change.
Therapeutic semi-safe space in group analysis
Authors: Berman Avi
Published: November 2018

People come to group analysis knowing that the group is not completely safe. They choose to join an unknown, and in many respects unpredictable and challenging, interpersonal environment. ‘Semi-Safe space’ in group analysis is a co-created, basically safe and mutually accepted infrastructure, with the mutually recognized challenge of being and communicating in an unexpected and not fully protected environment. The group’s semi-safe space represents one of the main advantages of group psychotherapy if handled professionally. Group analysis is a potential space in which minds may be created and develop through mutual interaction, which is sometimes inevitably turbulent and experienced as unsafe. On the other hand, excessive ‘unsafety’ might destroy the boundaries of the psychotherapeutic domain and become harmful or even traumatic. It is the conductor’s crucial responsibility to create initial safety in the group. He can contribute to the participants’ sense of safety by exercising some authority in stating those boundaries and opposing any deviation from them.

This contract is based on reciprocity and exchange: protecting the safety of one participant in the group is equivalent to protecting the safety of the others. Mutual risk-taking produces safety while its lack intensifies doubt and fear.
The Pygmalion concept in group analysis: the conductor’s anti-group and the search for the group as a container
Authors: Papanastassiou Maria
Published: November 2018

The conductor’s identity as a group member, allied with the potential for the unconscious co-creation of anti-group forces is the centre-stage for the debate I herewith present. This is inextricable from, and central to, the complex inter-subjective group matrix. The conductor’s counter-transference as an inter-subjective group experience, lends powerful insights into feelings of hate in the group, and its resultant anti-group dynamics. How hate may be understood as a shared, co-created experience is examined. The conductor’s potential for narcissistic over-identification with the group and possible lack of containment, is explored, including the potential for anti-group contributions. The myth of Pygmalion illustrates the frustration encountered when the container fails to meet one’s needs. Suggestions are offered regarding the importance for conductors to work through potential contributions of anti-group forces and their own hate of the group.1
Valorisation of the organic fraction of municipal solid waste
Authors: De Medina-Salas Lorena , Castillo-González Eduardo , Giraldi-Díaz Mario Rafael , Jamed-Boza Luis Omar
Published: November 2018

The appropriate selection of treatment or final disposal for municipal solid waste generated by a population depends on multiple characteristics; decision-making becomes a challenge for those responsible for its integral management. Therefore, the objective of this research was to evaluate multi-scenarios of valorisation of the organic fraction of municipal solid waste. The methodology used included a sample of 421 houses to determine the generation and composition of the aforementioned municipal solid waste; this data served as input to be able to design four treatment and final disposal scenarios: current situation, composting, anaerobic digestion and landfill. The parameters of humidity, biochemical methane potential and biogas were used. In addition, organic fraction variability and treatment cost were considered. Data analysis included design of experiments with the uncertainty coefficient and predictive equations. The results showed that composting was the scenario that presented the highest coefficient of determination and therefore it would be the best choice to fit the particular conditions of the localities. It is concluded that this applied methodology can be used as a tool in the decision-making process regarding the valorisation of the organic fraction of municipal solid waste and can be replicated at a national and international level.
Race, Ethnicity, and Trial Avoidance: A Multilevel Analysis
Authors: Lee Jacqueline G. , Richardson Rebecca L.
Published: November 2018

Minority criminal defendants are more likely than White defendants to exercise their right to trial, which is concerning given that research also consistently finds trial sentences to be harsher than those obtained via pleas. However, guilty pleas are not the only disposition available for avoiding a trial; pretrial diversions and case dismissals also serve as mechanisms for trial avoidance. Using hierarchical linear modeling, we find that Black criminal defendants are more likely than Whites to go to trial rather than receive other case disposition. Relationships for Hispanic defendants are less consistent. Fewer county-level effects emerge than expected, providing little to no support for racial threat theory. Results suggest that Black defendants are less often able or willing to avoid a trial, a finding which highlights and perhaps helps to explain racial disparities in final sentencing outcomes.
Eat, Pray, Move: A Pilot Cluster Randomized Controlled Trial of a Multilevel Church-Based Intervention to Address Obesity Among African Americans and Latinos
Authors: Derose Kathryn P. , Williams Malcolm V. , Flórez Karen R. , Griffin Beth Ann , Payán Denise D. , Seelam Rachana , Branch Cheryl A. , Hawes-Dawson Jennifer , Mata Michael A. , Whitley Margaret D. , Wong Eunice C.
Published: November 2018

Purpose:

To implement a multilevel, church-based intervention with diverse disparity populations using community-based participatory research and evaluate feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary effectiveness in improving obesity-related outcomes.

Design:

Cluster randomized controlled trial (pilot).

Setting:

Two midsized (∼200 adults) African American baptist and 2 very large (∼2000) Latino Catholic churches in South Los Angeles, California.

Participants:

Adult (18+ years) congregants (n = 268 enrolled at baseline, ranging from 45 to 99 per church).

Intervention:

Various components were implemented over 5 months and included 2 sermons by pastor, educational handouts, church vegetable and fruit gardens, cooking and nutrition classes, daily mobile messaging, community mapping of food and physical activity environments, and identification of congregational policy changes to increase healthy meals.

Measures:

Outcomes included objectively measured body weight, body mass index (BMI), and systolic and diastolic blood pressure (BP), plus self-reported overall healthiness of diet and usual minutes spent in physical activity each week; control variables include sex, age, race–ethnicity, English proficiency, education, household income, and (for physical activity outcome) self-reported health status.

Analysis:

Multivariate linear regression models estimated the average effect size of the intervention, controlling for pair fixed effects, a main effect of the intervention, and baseline values of the outcomes.

Results:

Among those completing follow-up (68%), the intervention resulted in statistically significantly less weight gain and greater weight loss (−0.05 effect sizes; 95% confidence interval [CI] = −0.06 to −0.04), lower BMI (−0.08; 95% CI = −0.11 to −0.05), and healthier diet (−0.09; 95% CI = −0.17 to −0.00). There was no evidence of an intervention impact on BP or physical activity minutes per week.

Conclusion:

Implementing a multilevel intervention across diverse congregations resulted in small improvements in obesity outcomes. A longer time line is needed to fully implement and assess effects of community and congregation environmental strategies and to allow for potential larger impacts of the intervention.
Flue gas fine treatment by ejecting technology
Authors: Zhao Junyou , Liu Chongning , Dong Yafei , He Qingqiang , Wan Fawei , Friedrich Thibaud , Bi Xiaodong , Tian Yamin
Published: November 2018

PM2.5 refers to fine particles with a diameter of 2.5 µm or less in the air. With PM2.5 continuously impacting people's lives, researchers are starting to pay more attention on the treatment of flue gas emitted from coal-fired boilers. This paper introduces a treatment device for ejected fine flue gas. The device uses ejectors to effectively remove acid substances and large dust particles contained in flue gas, and uses air dynamic ultrasonic atomizer to eliminate micro dust particles effectively. The overall scheme of the flue gas processing device is designed, the principle and simulation results of the main components of the ejector are studied, and the optimal value of the ejector ratio is determined by experiments. Finally, the efficiency of processing dust and sulfur dioxide in the flue gas is tested during experiments on the industrial worksite. For the gas emissions from domestic small- and medium-sized coal-fired boilers, this device is more efficient and costs less energy.
A place called home: Encounters with libraries
Authors: Hudson John
Published: November 2018

Libraries exist the world over across diverse cultures and have been in existence since the dawn of civilisation. Libraries can be seen as a collection of marks, often representing sounds, made upon some kind of support, such as stone, papyrus, paper or magnetic discs, which require deciphering and interpretation to have significance. Whether tiny island libraries or huge national libraries, each offers resources that help define identity at a global, national, community and personal level. The library has many roles to play, one that cannot be measured by statistics alone; it embodies freedom of speech and the principles of democracy but can and has been a means of social control; it is often a spontaneous expression of community and conviviality, sharing viewpoints and knowledge or it can be an engineered, assertive national statement; it is often a mixture of all these. The library is more than the sum of its parts and is an expression of the relationship between the human and the mysterious universe we live in.
Methomyl induced effect on fortilin and S100A1 in serum and cardiac tissue: Potential biomarkers of toxicity
Authors: Nusair SD , Joukhan AN , Rashaid AH Bani , Rababa’h AM
Published: November 2018

Methomyl toxicity has been reported as a cause of several accidental and suicidal fatalities. The study is evaluating the effect of lethal methomyl toxicity on fortilin and S100A1 in serum and cardiac tissues. Adult 96 female Sprague-Dawley rats were divided equally into a control (euthanized by cervical dislocation) and a study group (overdosed with methomyl). The levels of fortilin and S100A1 in serum were measured antemortem (to establish the basal levels in serum) and postmortem (to evaluate changes after methomyl exposure) using enzyme-linked immunoassay. S100A1 was immunostained in sections from cardiac tissues. Both proteins in the control were not significantly different ( p > 0.05) compared with the antemortem levels. On the contrast, both biomarkers levels in the intoxicated group were remarkably higher ( p < 0.001) than the control and the antemortem levels. Ventricular tissues from the intoxicated rats presented depleted S100A1 immunostain in cardiomyocytes localized mainly in the epicardium with deeply stained adjacent cardiac fibroblasts. The cardiomyocytes were damaged with a prominent loss of striations compared to normal cardiac tissues from the control. The present outcomes explain to a certain degree the potential toxic effect of methomyl poisoning on the cardiac tissue. Both proteins could be added to the currently available battery of markers for assessing methomyl toxicity.
Exploring the role of excess fluoride in chronic kidney disease: A review
Authors: Dharmaratne RW
Published: November 2018

This review covers nearly 100 years of studies on the toxicity of fluoride on human and animal kidneys. These studies reveal that there are direct adverse effects on the kidneys by excess fluoride, leading to kidney damage and dysfunction. With the exception of the pineal gland, the kidney is exposed to higher concentrations of fluoride than all other soft tissues. Therefore, exposure to higher concentrations of fluoride could contribute to kidney damage, ultimately leading to chronic kidney disease (CKD). Among major adverse effects on the kidneys from excessive consumption of fluoride are immediate effects on the tubular area of the kidneys, inhibiting the tubular reabsorption; changes in urinary ion excretion by the kidneys disruption of collagen biosynthesis in the body, causing damages to the kidneys and other organs; and inhibition of kidney enzymes, affecting the functioning of enzyme pathways.

This review proposes that there is a direct correlation between CKD and the consumption of excess amounts of fluoride. Studies particularly show immediate adverse effects on the tubular area of human and animal kidneys leading to CKD due to the consumption of excess fluoride. Therefore, it is very important to conduct more investigations on toxicity studies of excess fluoride on the human kidney, including experiments using human kidney enzymes, to study more in depth the impact of excess fluoride on the human kidney. Further, the interference of excess fluoride on collagen synthesis in human body and its effect on human kidney should also be further investigated.
Modelling of zero-inflation improves inference of metagenomic gene count data
Authors: Jonsson Viktor , Österlund Tobias , Nerman Olle , Kristiansson Erik
Published: November 2018

Metagenomics enables the study of gene abundances in complex mixtures of microorganisms and has become a standard methodology for the analysis of the human microbiome. However, gene abundance data is inherently noisy and contains high levels of biological and technical variability as well as an excess of zeros due to non-detected genes. This makes the statistical analysis challenging. In this study, we present a new hierarchical Bayesian model for inference of metagenomic gene abundance data. The model uses a zero-inflated overdispersed Poisson distribution which is able to simultaneously capture the high gene-specific variability as well as zero observations in the data. By analysis of three comprehensive datasets, we show that zero-inflation is common in metagenomic data from the human gut and, if not correctly modelled, it can lead to substantial reductions in statistical power. We also show, by using resampled metagenomic data, that our model has, compared to other methods, a higher and more stable performance for detecting differentially abundant genes. We conclude that proper modelling of the gene-specific variability, including the excess of zeros, is necessary to accurately describe gene abundances in metagenomic data. The proposed model will thus pave the way for new biological insights into the structure of microbial communities.
A GEE-type approach to untangle structural and random zeros in predictors
Authors: Ye Peng , Tang Wan , He Jiang , He Hua
Published: November 2018

Count outcomes with excessive zeros are common in behavioral and social studies, and zero-inflated count models such as zero-inflated Poisson (ZIP) and zero-inflated Negative Binomial (ZINB) can be applied when such zero-inflated count data are used as response variable. However, when the zero-inflated count data are used as predictors, ignoring the difference of structural and random zeros can result in biased estimates. In this paper, a generalized estimating equation (GEE)-type mixture model is proposed to jointly model the response of interest and the zero-inflated count predictors. Simulation studies show that the proposed method performs well for practical settings and is more robust for model misspecification than the likelihood-based approach. A case study is also provided for illustration.
Beta regression in the presence of outliers – A wieldy Bayesian solution
Authors: Niekerk Janet van , Bekker Andriette , Arashi Mohammad
Published: November 2018

Real phenomena often leads to challenges in data. One of these is outliers or influential values. Especially in a small sample, these values can have a major influence on the modeling process. In the beta regression framework, this issue has been addressed mainly in two ways: the assumption of a different response model and the application of a minimum density power divergence estimation (MDPDE) procedure. In this paper, however, we propose a simple hierarchical Bayesian methodology in the context of a varying dispersion beta response model that is robust to outliers, as shown through an extensive simulation study and analysis of two real data sets. To robustify Bayesian modeling, a heavy-tailed Student's t prior with uniform degrees of freedom is adopted for the regression coefficients. This proposal results in a wieldy implementation procedure which avails practical use of the approach.
Skilling and Its Histories: Labour Market, Technical Knowledge and the Making of Skilled Workers in Colonial India (1880–1910)
Authors: Kumar Arun
Published: November 2018

Written in the backdrop of the emerging official discourse around occupational skill training in contemporary India, this article returns to the past to explain how the meanings of skill and skill training were produced through the interaction of the colonial education system and industrial actors in modern India. Using archival records, it studies the history of the Lucknow Industrial School—one of the earliest government institutes to skill Indians in various industrial trades and for the local railway workshop. The article argues that industrial training institutions, while crucial in defining and legitimizing a discourse of skill and efficiency based on the scientific and technical knowledge of workers, were subjected to the competing political and training discourses of the shop floor, financial unwillingness of the British empire to create a large infrastructure of industrial and technical education for the colony, local caste politics and aspirations of students. All these forces shaped the nature of skill transference and produced unintended results which strained the relationship between the training institute and industries. Similar conflicts and issues surround the contemporary skill programme. A historical study of skill development during the colonial era allows a better understanding of the prospect and perils of the present-day Skill India Mission.
The US State-building in Afghanistan: An Offshore Balance?
Authors: Rahman Md. Mizanur
Published: November 2018

The US policy in Afghanistan in the context of 9/11, under the broader rubric of the War on Terror (WoT), primarily was to topple the Taliban regime. Because the regime disagreed to comply with the US administration’s demand to extradite Osama bin Laden, the alleged mastermind of the terrorist attack in the USA in 2001. However, the WoT project did not end with the collapse of the Taliban regime, but rather, it was transformed to a state-building project in Afghanistan. Why was the WoT project shifted to state-building, a project which has been in continuation for last 17 years? This article investigates the post-9/11 US policy in Afghanistan from the perspective of offensive realism. Particularly, it examines the causes behind the US policy shift in Afghanistan from the WoT to a state-building project and its continuity. The article argues that US state-building in Afghanistan has been driven by two major motivations: the first is to maximize security by securitizing itself from further terrorist attacks, and the second policy priority is to prevent other regional hegemons to emerge in South Asia. It further contends that through the Afghanistan policy, the US administration maintains an onshore balance against China and offshore balance against India.
Identification of Mycobacterium genavense natural infection in a domestic ferret
Authors: Dequéant Bérengère , Pascal Quentin , Bilbault Héloïse , Dagher Elie , Boschiroli Maria-Laura , Cordonnier Nathalie , Reyes-Gomez Edouard
Published: November 2018

A 6-y-old neutered male ferret ( Mustela putorius furo) was presented because of a 1-mo history of progressive weight loss, chronic cough, and hair loss. On clinical examination, the animal was coughing, slightly depressed, moderately hypothermic, and had bilateral epiphora. Thoracic radiography was suggestive of severe multinodular interstitial pneumonia. Abdominal ultrasound examination revealed hepatosplenomegaly and mesenteric and pancreaticoduodenal lymphadenopathy. Fine-needle aspiration of the pancreaticoduodenal lymph node, followed by routine Romanowsky and Ziehl–Neelsen stains, revealed numerous macrophages containing myriad acid-fast bacilli, leading to identification of mycobacteriosis. Autopsy and histologic examination confirmed the presence of disseminated, poorly defined, acid-fast, bacilli-rich granulomas in the pancreaticoduodenal and mesenteric lymph nodes, intestines, and lungs. Destaining of May-Grünwald/Giemsa–stained slides with alcohol, and then restaining with Ziehl–Neelsen, revealed acid-fast rods and avoided repeat tissue sampling without affecting the Ziehl–Neelsen stain quality and cytologic features. Tissue samples were submitted for a PCR assay targeting the heat shock protein gene ( hsp65) and revealed 100% homology with Mycobacterium genavense. We emphasize the use of special stains and PCR for identification of this potential zoonotic agent.
Autism Disparities: A Systematic Review and Meta-Ethnography of Qualitative Research
Authors: Singh Jennifer S. , Bunyak Garrett
Published: November 2018

Racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic disparities associated with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are evident across many service domains including access to early assessment, diagnosis, and therapeutic interventions. To better understand the complex social and structural factors contributing to these disparities, this article offers a systematic review of peer-reviewed qualitative research conducted from 2010 to 2016 in the United States that investigates autism disparities experienced by marginalized communities. Based on these criteria, we identified 24 qualitative research studies and conducted an analysis using meta-ethnography and an intersectional interpretive lens. We identified three interdependent themes contributing to autism disparities, including familial, cultural, and structural barriers. Omissions in the literature were also evident, including a lack of research on underserved adults with ASD and the gendered inequities of caregiving. We discuss the implications of our findings and offer new questions that take an intersectional approach using qualitative research to investigate autism disparities.
Suspicion of White-Collar Crime: A Case Study of Retaliation Against Whistle-Blowers
Authors: Gottschalk Petter
Published: November 2018

Norwegian law regulates and prohibits retaliation against whistle-blowers, but there is no conviction so far where a court passes a prison sentence because of such crime. Rather, victims of retaliation have to sue their employer for compensation if they suffer retaliation in the form of job loss or other consequences. This article starts by briefly reviewing literature on retaliation against whistle-blowers. Next, we distinguish between retaliation as concrete, individualized measures and retaliation as a coherent process over time. The process may start with ignorance, move into rejection, and finally sanctions. This article continues by presenting the case of two whistle-blowers in a Norwegian municipality who have experienced retaliation. Then, we apply incident-based and process-based retaliation measures by comparing classifications in groups and stages. This case study is a result of critical, provocative, and confrontational action research.
Shaming as a Form of Social Activism: Autoethnographic Stories
Authors: Faulkner Sandra L.
Published: November 2018

In this article, the author uses a poem and two vignettes to argue for the power of autoethnographic stories as a means for social activism and advances three propositions: (1) Autoethnographic stories can make people feel shame (pathos); (2a) Shame is one way to get those in power to act (ethos); (2b) Shame, fear, and rage are closely related; and (3) We can use autoethnography to shame those in power to do the right thing (logos). The author uses the metaphor of the vulnerable as a hamster killed by the family dog to highlight how we can move from fear to rage in order to shame those in power to address issues of sexual assault at the university.
Nominal Response Model Is Useful for Scoring Multiple-Choice Situational Judgment Tests
Authors: Zu Jiyun , Kyllonen Patrick C.
Published: November 2018

We evaluated the use of the nominal response model (NRM) to score multiple-choice (also known as “select the best option”) situational judgment tests (SJTs). Using data from two large studies, we compared the reliability and correlations of NRM scores with those from various classical and item response theory (IRT) scoring methods. The SJTs measured emotional management (Study 1) and teamwork and collaboration (Study 2). In Study 1 the NRM scoring method was shown to be superior in reliability and in yielding higher correlations with external measures to three classical test theory–based and four other IRT-based methods. In Study 2, only slight differences between scoring methods were observed. An explanation for the discrepancy in findings is that in cases where item keys are ambiguous (as in Study 1), the NRM accommodates that ambiguity, but in cases where item keys are clear (as in Study 2), different methods provide interchangeable scores. We characterize ambiguous and clear keys using category response curves based on parameter estimates of the NRM and discuss the relationships between our findings and those from the wisdom-of-the-crowd literature.
A Rare Primary Tumor of the Thyroid Gland: A New Case of Leiomyoma and Literature Review
Authors: Zhang Yanling , Tang Heng , Hu Huaiyuan , Yong Xiang
Published: November 2018

Primary leiomyomas of the thyroid are very rare. We here report a case of a 53-year-old woman with a painless mass at the right thyroid, revealed by physical examination. The patient underwent a lobectomy. Frozen sections showed a spindle cell tumor of the thyroid gland. The nuclei of some of the tumor cells were obviously enlarged and deeply stained. Pseudocapsule invasion was observed in small foci. Samples showed neither mitosis nor necrosis and the nature of the tumor was difficult to determine. Paraffin sections showed a well-circumscribed nodular composed of intersecting fascicles of spindled to slightly epithelioid cells with eosinophilic cytoplasm and blunt-ended, cigar-shaped nuclei. We observed no significant nuclear atypia, mitotsis, or necrosis. Immunohistochemical staining showed the tumor cells to be positive for α-smooth muscle actin and h-caldesmon but negative for TG, TTF1, PAX8, S-100, CT, CK, and CD34. The ki-67 index was very low (<1%). Primary thyroid leiomyoma is rare and difficult to diagnose using frozen sections. Diagnosis requires immunohistochemical staining. Leiomyoma may be mistaken for other thyroid tumors also characterized by spindle cells.
Disposability and gendered control in labor migration: Limiting women’s mobility through cultural and institutional norms
Authors: Grossman-Thompson Barbara H.
Published: November 2018

In this article, I draw upon interviews with 30 Nepali returned women migrant workers to elucidate how the gendered institutional logics of both the Nepali state and for-profit manpower companies synergistically function to constrain women’s mobility. In particular, I focus on women migrant workers who migrate illegally to Gulf countries to work as domestic laborers, as this constitutes one of the largest channels of women’s labor migration from Nepal. To illuminate the particulars of Nepali women migrant workers’ experiences, I employ two theoretical frameworks, both developed by feminist political economists within the context of feminized workplaces broadly and global factory floors specifically. The first framework presents a logic of female disposability as shaping the feminized workforce of the global South. The second framework presents a logic of gendered control as doing the same. In this article, I show how these dual logics can be applied to women’s foreign labor migration in Nepal, and argue that these logics operate simultaneously through the various institutions that Nepali women navigate during migration. The Nepali case shows how both logics serve ultimately to limit women’s mobility and bolster the authority of institutions and organizations historically controlled by men—for example, the family, the state, transnational corporations—over women migrants. By bringing these two logics to bear on a case of women domestic workers’ migration from the global South, this article offers new insights into the functioning of institutions central to this large-scale, transnational movement of people.
Learning to Listen: Exploring the Idioms of Childhood
Authors: Nolas Sevasti-Melissa , Aruldoss Vinnarasan , Varvantakis Christos
Published: November 2018

How do we recognise children’s participation and their relationships with public life? Drawing on evidence from ethnographic fieldwork conducted between 2014 and 2016 for the ERC funded Connectors Study on the relationship between childhood and public life, this article explores the ways in which children communicate their encounters with public life. The contemporary phenomenon of listening without hearing is discussed as this relates to the call for listening to children and the simultaneous failure to hear what they say. Idioms are introduced as an ‘instrument’ for thinking through what it means and feels like to encounter and make sense of childhood and children’s practices of relating to public life. The analysis focuses on three emblematic encounters with six- to eight-year-old children living in Athens, Hyderabad, and London. We argue that dominant understandings of listening to children rely heavily on cognitive, conceptual, and rational models of idealised and largely verbal forms of communication that ignore the affective, embodied, and lived dimensions of making meaning. Through ethnographic thick description, we trouble what it means to tune into children’s worlds and to ‘properly hear’, and in doing so demonstrate the ways in which idioms support an understanding of what matters to children.
Rate of Anastomotic Leakage After Rectal Anastomosis Depends on the Definition: Pelvic Abscesses are Significant
Authors: Olsen B. C. , Sakkestad S. T. , Pfeffer F. , Karliczek A.
Published: November 2018

Background and Aims:

The International Study Group of Rectal Cancer has proposed that a pelvic abscess in the proximity of the anastomosis is considered an anastomotic leak, whether or not its point of origin is detectable. This study describes how the inclusion of pelvic abscesses alters the leakage rate.

Material and Methods:

Risk factors and postoperative complications in patients with visible anastomotic leakage (“direct leakage”), pelvic abscesses alone in the vicinity of a visibly intact anastomosis (“abscess leakage”), and no leakage were retrospectively evaluated.

Results:

In total, 341 patients operated with anterior resections and who received an anastomosis within 15 cm as measured from the anal verge were included. A total of 37 patients (10.9%) had direct leakage, 13 (3.8%) had abscess leakage, and 291 (85.3%) had no leakage. The overall anastomotic leakage rate was 14.7% (50 patients). In accordance with the grading system outlined by International Study Group of Rectal Cancer, 7 patients (2.1%) experienced Grade A leakage, 19 (5.6%) Grade B, and 24 (7.0%) Grade C. Direct leak patients had more often a reoperation due to anastomotic complications (odds ratio = 19.7, p = 0.001), a permanent stoma (odds ratio = 28.5, p = 0.001), and a longer hospital stay than abscess leak patients (29.0 vs 15.5 days, p = 0.030).

Conclusion:

Abscess leakage accounted for over one-fourth of the overall leakage rate, raising the leakage rate. Direct leak patients were at a higher risk of requiring a reoperation, permanent stoma, and longer hospital stay than abscess leak patients. Abscess leak patients were at a greater risk for a urinary tract infection, wound infection, and postoperative intestinal obstruction than non-leak patients.
Complications following 250 cemented modular hip hemiarthroplasties
Authors: Ekman E. , Nurmi H. , Reito A. , Paloneva J.
Published: November 2018

Background and Aims:

Hemiarthroplasty is a common method of treating displaced femoral neck fractures, especially among elderly non-active patients with frailty syndrome. Complications arising from the use of a modern, modular hemiendoprosthesis via a posterior approach have been poorly reported in this population. The aim of this study was to evaluate complications and mortality associated with the use of Lubinus sp II cemented, unipolar hemiarthroplasty prosthesis and posterior approach during a 9-year follow-up.

Material and Methods:

All patients (244) who received hemiarthroplasty due to an acute fracture of the femoral neck in Central Finland Hospital, Jyvaskyla, Finland, during 2007 and 2008 were included. Patient records were retrospectively reviewed for intraoperative and postoperative complications.

Results and Conclusion:

Women composed 70% (n = 171) of the study population. Mean age was 83 years for women and 80 years for men. A total of 31 (12%) complications were found in 30 patients. These were 12 dislocations (5% of all patients), 5 (2%) periprosthetic fractures, 2 (0.8%) superficial and 5 (2%) deep infections, 1 (0.4%) protrusion of the prosthesis, 2 (0.8%) intraoperative fractures, and 2 (0.8%) partial sciatic nerve palsies. Conversion to total hip replacement was performed in 9 cases (4%) and a reoperation was required in 15 (6%) cases. Mortality rate at 9 years was 78% (95% confidence interval = 72%–83%). The overall rate of complications was acceptable although mortality was high in this comorbid patient population. The need for conversion to total hip arthroplasty and reoperation is low.
De-constructing risk, therapeutic needs and the dangerous personality disordered subject
Authors: O’Loughlin Ailbhe
Published: November 2018

The focus of this article is on the Dangerous and Severe Personality Disorder Programme and its successor, the Offender Personality Disorder Pathway: two initiatives in England and Wales with the aim of protecting the public from dangerous offenders through a combination of preventive detention and therapeutic intervention in prisons and psychiatric hospitals. In this article, I first explore how the dangerous yet potentially redeemable dangerous and severe personality disordered subject was constructed by policymakers before turning to examine how the risks this group posed were translated into therapeutic needs under the Dangerous and Severe Personality Disorder Programme. In so doing, I contend that prisoners’ mental health needs are not only targeted for humane reasons but also as a means of facilitating the cost-effective management of difficult and disruptive individuals. Furthermore, meeting these needs can serve as an intermediate step towards drawing difficult prisoners into mainstream offending behaviour programmes explicitly targeting criminogenic risk factors. Ultimately, I conclude that, given that meeting prisoners’ mental health needs is contingent on the compatibility of therapeutic regimes with the priorities of the prison, treatment programmes will ultimately yield to the overriding concerns of security and control in the event of conflict.
Intercultural communication competencies in the Indian Information Technology industry
Authors: Kumari Priyanka , Nirban Virendra Singh
Published: November 2018

Low employment rate, owing to lack of aptly skilled workforce, is one of the major concerns of the Indian Information Technology (IT) sector. The study employed ranking-type Delphi method with an aim to identify those communication competencies which the employers of the Indian IT industry deem crucial for intercultural business interactions. A panel of 10 experts was created, and a total of 3 iterations were administered to achieve a satisfactory level of consensus among experts regarding the most important intercultural communication competencies (ICCs) for the Indian IT industry. Initially, a list of 25 competencies, identified through literature review, was sent to experts to be ranked. After the third iteration, the study provided a set of 10 ICCs for which there was strong agreement among the experts. Challenges and limitations have been discussed in brief.
How Twitter is changing the meaning of scholarly impact and engagement: Implications for qualitative social work research
Authors: Burns Victoria F , Blumenthal Anne , Sitter Kathleen C
Published: November 2018

Social media technologies continue to change the academic landscape. Twitter has become particularly popular in research arenas including social work and is being used for fieldwork, knowledge mobilization activities, advocacy, and professional networking. Although there has been some consideration of the benefits and risks of using social media in academia, little has been written from a qualitative social work perspective. Drawing on the example of Twitter, this article redresses this gap in the literature, by exploring how social media is changing the way research is conducted and promoted in relation to (1) measuring scholarly impact via altmetrics; (2) engaging with research participants; (3) networking and making collegial connections; and (4) advocating for social issues in the public realm. As we highlight tensions in each of these four areas, a key concern is how and for whom social media is contributing to the changing meaning of scholarly impact and engagement in research communities. We draw specific attention to how the inequalities that exist in academia writ large may be amplified on social media thus affecting overall engagement and perceived impact for researchers from marginalized social locations (e.g. gender, race, sexual orientation). We conclude by discussing specific implications of using social media in qualitative social work research and provide suggestions for future areas of inquiry.
Televisual Emotional Pedagogy: AIDS, Affect, and Activism on Vito Russo’s Our Time
Authors: Herold Lauren
Published: November 2018

Starting in New York City in the 1970s, gay men and lesbians created public access television programs to shine a spotlight on their experiences, communities, concerns, and businesses. This article asks, “How did public access programming provide an emerging televisual forum for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) people to circulate community affects, experiences, and activism?” Looking to the “AIDS” episode of the 1983 cable access series Our Time, this article traces emerging affective responses to the AIDS epidemic, fear and anger in particular, present in the episode. This article argues that the content and aesthetics of the episode produce a televisual emotional pedagogy about AIDS, making sense of the rising panic to channel these feelings toward collective action. While little research has explored gay and lesbian public access programming, this article reveals that it provides a significant contribution to television history and to mediated archives of feelings in response to AIDS.
(Re)Thinking and (Re)Imagining Social(ing) With a More-Than-Human Ontology Given the Limits of (Re)(Con)Straining Language
Authors: Kuby Candace R.
Published: November 2018

The aim of this manuscript is to (re)think and (re)imagine social as we work with(in) a more-than-human ontology so something(s) different can be thought/done. Language is limiting, (re)(con)straining, and yet we are still bound to it especially in academic publishing. However, I hope to at least open the conversation about social in a move toward overturning the normalized ways we have conceptualized and used the term. I propose socialing, which animates the lively relations of human, nonhuman, and more-than-humans producing socials. The article ends by discussing how and why it matters that researchers (re)conceptualize the notion of social.
Factors Affecting Inferior Vena Cava Filter Retrieval: A Review
Authors: Crumley Kristen D. , Hyatt Eddie , Kalva Sanjeeva P. , Shah Hriday
Published: November 2018

Objective:

Over the last 2 decades, there has been an exponential rise in placement of retrievable inferior vena cava (IVC) filters, while the retrieval rate has remained steadily low. Approaches to increasing filter retrieval rates have been extensively studied.

Conclusion:

This review presents an up-to-date review of reported data-driven variables that affect retrieval rates of IVC filters, with a focus on clinical, technical, and process factors.
Auditory P300 as a Neurophysiological Correlate of Symptomatic Improvement by Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation in Patients With Schizophrenia: A Pilot Study
Authors: Kim Minah , Lee Tak Hyung , Hwang Wu Jeong , Lee Tae Young , Kwon Jun Soo
Published: November 2018

Background. The reduced amplitude, prolonged latency, and increased intertrial variability of auditory P300 have been consistently reported in relation to the symptomatic severity of schizophrenia. This study investigated whether auditory P300 event-related potentials can be used as an objective indicator of symptomatic improvement by transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) in patients with schizophrenia. Methods. Ten patients with schizophrenia received 20 minutes of 2-mA tDCS twice a day for 5 consecutive weekdays. The anode was placed over the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, and the cathode was placed over the left temporo-parietal cortex. The Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) and the auditory P300 were measured for each participant at baseline and after the completion of the tDCS applications. Results. The participants showed significant improvement in the positive and negative symptoms as indexed by change in the PANSS scores by the tDCS. The P300 amplitude, latency, and intertrial variability did not statistically significantly differ after the tDCS application. However, a significant association was observed between the reduced P300 intertrial variability and improvement in the positive symptoms by tDCS. In addition, the changes in both the P300 latency and intertrial variability were significantly correlated with reduced negative symptoms after the tDCS application. Conclusions. Although this pilot study is limited by the small sample size and lack of a sham control, the results suggest that auditory P300 may be a putative marker reflecting the effect of tDCS on the positive and negative symptoms of schizophrenia.