bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The Relationship between Plasma Soluble Tnf-like Weak Inducer of Apoptosis Level and Inflammatory Markers in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus
Authors: Yamak M. , Demir S. , Gursu M. , Ozturk S. , Sumnu A. , Cebeci E. , Ozkan O. , Karadag S. , Sakci E. , Kural A. , Koldas M. , Sar F.
Published: January 2017

Soluble TNF-like weak inducer of apoptosis (sTWEAK) is a member of the TNF super family with many biological activities. There is a limited number of studies on the role of sTWEAK in chronic kidney disease. We aimed in this study to examine the relation of sTWEAK with albuminuria and inflammatory markers in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM). One hundred and eighteen diabetic patients with varying levels of albuminuria were included. Group 1 comprised patients with albuminuria less than 30 mg/day, while Group 2 and Group 3 were composed of patients with albuminuria between 30–300 mg/day or more than 300 mg/day, respectively. Groups were compared for sTWEAK levels besides demographic, clinical and biochemical data. There was no difference between groups regarding sTWEAK and TNF-α levels. IL-1 levels in Group 1 were higher than in Group 3. hsCRP levels were significantly higher in Group 3 compared to other groups. Use of a renin angiotensin system blocker did not have any effect on sTWEAK, TNF-α and hsCRP levels, while IL-1 level was significantly lower in patients using a renin angiotensin blocker. A statistically significant positive correlation was detected between sTWEAK and IL-1 levels (r=0.245; p=0.008). The groups were found to be similar regarding sTWEAK and TNF-α level. This finding may be interpreted as there being no effect of proteinuria on sTWEAK levels. But the close correlation between proteinuria and IL-1, and between IL-1 and sTWEAK may be a clue for an indirect relationship. Lack of difference between groups regarding sTWEAK levels may be due to involvement of patients with GFR more than 60 ml/minute only.
Efficacy and Tolerability of a New Pharmaceutical Form of Betamethasone Valerate in the Prevention of Hypertrophic Scars following Anterior Trunk Plastic Surgery: A Preliminary Exploratory Study
Authors: Bonavita M. , Soresina M. , Boccanera D. , Bianchi F.
Published: January 2017

Hypertrophic scars are fibroproliferative diseases of the skin. Many treatment options are now available, but none is completely effective. The primary objective of this study was to compare the efficacy of a betamethasone valerate (BMV) 2.25 mg plaster versus no treatment in the prevention of hypertrophic scars after anterior trunk plastic surgery. An exploratory, open, prospective, controlled study was carried out on 16 consecutive patients with postoperative wounds. A 12-week daily treatment was initiated after wounds cicatrisation. The effect of a daily application of the plaster was compared to no treatment by dividing the wound into 2–4 parts. The wound evaluation was performed during the treatment period at 2, 4, 8 and 12 weeks, and 6 months after the end of the treatment. A total of 60 wounds was evaluated. Pain and itching improved in both groups after 12 weeks. However, only the wounds treated with BMV plaster showed a significantly greater and more rapid improvement as compared with the non-treated wounds after 4 and 8 weeks of treatment in all the evaluated parameters (p<0.0001). The efficacy and tolerability of BMV plaster in the prevention of hypertrophic scar development is promising.
Clostridium perfringens sepsis complicated by right ventricular cardiogenic shock
Authors: Balan Cosmin , Barker Graham , Garry David
Published: January 2017

Clostridium perfringens sepsis has been ascribed a dismal prognosis when associated with massive intravascular haemolysis. We present a 71-year-old woman’s fatal case which was compounded by isolated right ventricular cardiogenic shock. In this context, combined use of transthoracic echocardiography and pulmonary artery catheter monitoring is able to yield an individualized hemodynamic resuscitation. We discuss key aspects related to right and left heart mechanical efficiency, hypothesize as to the pulmonary hypertension mechanism of our case and set to emphasize a physiologically based framework for right ventricular failure hemodynamic management.
Exploring the Frequency Domain of Continuous Glucose Monitoring Signals to Improve Characterization of Glucose Variability and of Diabetic Profiles
Authors: Fico Giuseppe , Hernández Liss , Cancela Jorge , Isabel Miguel María , Facchinetti Andrea , Fabris Chiara , Gabriel Rafael , Cobelli Claudio , Arredondo Waldmeyer María Teresa
Published: January 2017

Background:

Continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) devices measure interstitial glucose concentrations (normally every 5 minutes), allowing observation of glucose variability (GV) patterns during the whole day. This information could be used to improve prescription of treatments and of insulin dosages for people suffering diabetes. Previous efforts have been focused on proposing indices of GV either in time or glucose domains, while the frequency domain has been explored only partially. The aim of this work is to explore the CGM signal in the frequency domain to understand if new indexes or features could be identified and contribute to a better characterization of glucose variability.

Methods:

The direct fast Fourier transform (FFT) and the Welch method were used to analyze CGM signals from three different profiles: people at risk of developing type 2 diabetes (P@R), T2D patients, and type 1 diabetes (T1D) patients.

Results:

The results suggests that features extracted from the FFT (ie, the localization and power of the maximum peak of the power spectrum and the bandwidth at 3 dB) are able to provide a characterization for all the three populations under study compared with the Welch approach.

Conclusions:

Such preliminary results can represent a good insight for futures investigations with the possibility of building and using new indexes of glucose variability based on the frequency features.
Not Merely a Matter of Drawing Arrows: The Empirical Consequences of Measurement Model Specification and Recommendations for Practice
Authors: Chan Elisa K. , Sturman Michael , Park Sanghee , Vanderpool Chelsea
Published: January 2017

Understanding measurement model specification is especially important for hospitality research due to its cross-disciplinary nature and the prevalence of measures used in the field which are often central to the formative versus reflective debate (e.g., SERVQUAL, socioeconomic status). The current study contributes to this topic by providing empirically based prescriptive advice to drive better measurement model specification. Specifically, the decision-making procedures developed by this study can complement theoretical reasons for a model choice as well as help determine a correct model choice when theories are equivocal or non-existent. This study combines actual and simulated data to show that model fit statistics alone cannot determine which model specification is correct, but also that a correct measurement model will generate more accurate predictions within a model which in turn will offer more accurate managerial recommendations.
Breast Cancer Care in California and Ontario: Primary Care Protections Greatest Among the Most Socioeconomically Vulnerable Women Living in the Most Underserved Places
Authors: Gorey Kevin M. , Hamm Caroline , Luginaah Isaac N. , Zou Guangyong , Holowaty Eric J.
Published: January 2017

Background: Better health care among Canada’s socioeconomically vulnerable versus America’s has not been fully explained. We examined the effects of poverty, health insurance and the supply of primary care physicians on breast cancer care. Methods: We analyzed breast cancer data in Ontario (n = 950) and California (n = 6300) between 1996 and 2000 and followed until 2014. We obtained socioeconomic data from censuses, oversampling the poor. We obtained data on the supply of physicians, primary care and specialists. The optimal care criterion was being diagnosed early with node negative disease and received breast conserving surgery followed by adjuvant radiation therapy. Results: Women in Ontario received more optimal care in communities well supplied by primary care physicians. They were particularly advantaged in the most disadvantaged places: high poverty neighborhoods (rate ratio = 1.65) and communities lacking specialist physicians (rate ratio = 1.33). Canadian advantages were explained by better health insurance coverage and greater primary care access. Conclusions: Policy makers ought to ensure that the newly insured are adequately insured. The Medicaid program should be expanded, as intended, across all 50 states. Strengthening America’s system of primary care will probably be the best way to ensure that the Affordable Care Act’s full benefits are realized.
The Importance of Documenting and Including Traditional Wisdom in Community-Based Ecotourism Planning
Authors: Đukić Vesna , Volić Ivana
Published: January 2017

This article accords to the theory of community-based tourism, which represents a concept that respects natural and cultural resources of a particular community and encourages participation of its members in the process of tourist product creation. The article operates in the planning phase and aims to give insights into the process of establishing the groundwork for community-based tourism. The key element is documenting and illustrating everything that could be a part of what is known as “traditional wisdom,” namely, the skills and knowledge of traditional life practices. The methods of case study, content analysis, and observation of the village of Omoljica, Serbia, were used. The positive aspect of this locality is reflected in the existing short-term initiatives of organizations and individuals engaging in preserving traditional practices, but without systematic, long-term planning and management of community-based tourism, these individual efforts to revalue traditional life practices would stay unrecognizable and invisible for visitors and stakeholders. Thus, the main goal of this article is to understand the relation between short-term bottom-up initiatives and long-term top-down strategic planning of specific ecotourism destinations, one that would embrace the traditional ways of rural community life. The contribution of this study, in addition to documenting and illustrating “traditional wisdom” of the specific rural community placed in the protected area which encompasses a particular local social system, will be reflected in the creation of a set of guidelines for sustainable, rural, community-based ecotourism as a soft-driver development of protected areas near big cities of the postsocialist countries.
Bad Enough Ergonomics
Authors: Peteri Virve
Published: January 2017

The article analyzes ergonomics as a social and cultural phenomenon, as something that is formulated and described by speakers in a specific social context; in a company that is specialized in producing ergonomic office furniture. Through a case study of an office chair, the article examines how ergonomics and its association with the vision of the potential users and their working spaces are constructed by the relevant actors in project meetings and individual interviews during the manufacturing process. The article is concerned with how, in the process of producing an office chair, the chair gains an identity of an aesthetic design object and how this comes to mean the reformulation of the idea of ergonomics. The empirical analysis also provides insight into how the somewhat grand discourses of soft capitalism or aesthetic economy are not abstract, but very much grounded in everyday practices of an organization. The article establishes how the vision shared by all the relevant actors invites active, flexible, and cooperative end-users and how the vision also has potential material effects. The research is an ethnographically inspired case study that draws ideas from discursive psychology.
The Effect of Work Shift and Sleep Duration on Various Aspects of Police Officers' Health
Authors: Ramey Sandra L. , Perkhounkova Yelena , Moon Mikyung , Budde Laura , Tseng Hui-Chen , Clark M. Kathleen
Published: January 2017

Police officers are prone to cardiovascular disease, overweight, and obesity. Because night-shift work affects sleep, a modifiable risk factor linked to chronic disease, the researchers explored the relationship among shift work, sleep, and wellness for police officers. Sleep, C-reactive protein (CRP) levels, stress, fatigue, and body mass index were used to compare officers who worked primarily day shifts to those who worked primarily evening or night shifts, and officers who slept less than 6 hours per day to those who slept at least 6 hours per day. A cross-sectional study of 85 male officers, 20 to 63 years old, was completed at three Midwestern police departments. The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index was used to assess sleep. A questionnaire was used to collect officer demographics and work hours. Other measurements included serum CRP, height, weight, perceived stress, and vital exhaustion. The relative risk of sleeping less than 6 hours per day for officers who primarily worked non-day shifts, compared to those who worked day shifts, was 14.27 (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.98–102.95, p < .001), and the relative risk of overall poor sleep quality for officers who slept less than 6 hours per day, compared to those who slept more hours, was 2.44 (95% CI, 1.15–5.20, p = .027). CRP was not associated with shift or sleep duration, even when adjusted for officers' ages.
Pesticide Exposure and Child Neurodevelopment
Authors: Liu Jianghong , Schelar Erin
Published: January 2017

Widely used around the world, pesticides play an important role in protecting health, crops, and property. However, pesticides may also have detrimental effects on human health, with young children among the particularly vulnerable. Recent research suggests that even low levels of pesticide exposure can affect young children's neurological and behavioral development. Evidence shows a link between pesticides and neonatal reflexes, psychomotor and mental development, and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder. Implications include a need for improved risk assessment and health histories by clinicians, greater education at all levels, more common use of integrated pest management, and continued policy and regulatory strategies to mitigate the effects of and the need for pesticides.
Slip, Trip, and Fall Injuries among Nursing Care Facility Workers
Authors: Bell Jennifer L. , Collins James W. , Tiesman Hope M. , Ridenour Marilyn , Konda Srinivas , Wolf Laurie , Evanoff Bradley
Published: January 2017

The objective of this research was to describe the slip, trip, and fall injury experience and trends in a population of nursing home workers, identify risk factors for slip, trip, and fall injuries, and develop prevention strategies for slip, trip, and fall hazards. Workers' compensation injury claims data and payroll data from 1996 through 2003 were obtained from six nursing homes and used to calculate injury incidence rates. Narrative information was used to describe details of slip, trip, and fall events. A total of 86 slip, trip, and fall-related workers' compensation claims were filed during the 8-year period. Slip, trip, and fall claim rates showed a nonsignificant increase during the 8-year period. Most slips, trips, and falls were attributed to hazards that can be mitigated (e.g., water on the floor or loose cords in a walkway). Nursing home workers experience more slip, trip, and fall-related injury claims than workers in other industries. Preventive programs should be implemented and evaluated in this industry.
An Analysis of OSHA Inspections Assessing Contaminant Exposures in General Medical and Surgical Hospitals
Authors: Knight Jordan L. , Sleeth Darrah K. , Larson Rodney R. , Pahler Leon F.
Published: January 2017

This study analyzed data from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration's (OSHA) Chemical Exposure Health Database to assess contaminant exposures in general medical and surgical hospitals. Seventy-five inspections conducted in these hospitals from 2005 through 2009 were identified. Five categories of inspections were conducted, the three most common being complaint-based, planned, and referral-based inspections. Complaint-based inspections comprised the majority of inspections—55 (73%) of the 75 conducted. The overall violation rate for all inspection types was 68%. This finding was compared to the violation rates of planned inspections (100%), referral-based inspections (83%), and complaint-based inspections (62%). Asbestos was the hazardous substance most commonly sampled and cited by OSHA in hospitals, with 127 samples collected during 24 inspections; 31% of the total 75 inspections resulting in one or more violations were due to asbestos.
Selecting Health-Related Apps
Authors: Randolph Susan A.
Published: January 2017

Although many apps exist, occupational and environmental health nurses should only recommend apps that deliver credible content and safeguard user data.
Hospital Violence and the Role of the Occupational Health Nurse
Authors: Brown Bethany G. , Burns Candace
Published: January 2017

Between 1993 and 1999, an average of 1.7 million violent workplace incidents were recorded per year. Of the nonfatal injuries and lost days due to occupational violence, 32% occur in the health care setting. The annual incidence rate for violence against nurses is 22 incidents per 1,000 nurses. When an occupational health professional analyzes an exposure, engineering controls, administrative controls, and personal protective equipment policies are drafted to ensure the future safety of employees. This literature review identifies best practice controls used to protect health care workers from violence in the workplace.
Self-Care and Yoga—Academic—Practice Collaboration for Occupational Health
Authors: Alexander Gina
Published: January 2017

High rates of stress and burnout among nurses and other health care providers justify the exploration of innovative interventions designed to reduce stress and promote self-care among this population. A growing body of evidence supports the physical and psychosocial benefits of yoga and suggests the potential for yoga to support self-care and reduce stress among health care providers. This article describes the formation of an academic—practice collaboration to use yoga as a model for occupational health and wellness among nurses employed at a tax-supported urban health system. In addition, recommendations for program sustainability over time are discussed.
Planning for Older Workers
Authors: Randolph Susan A.
Published: January 2017

Occupational and environmental health nurses can improve planning for an aging workforce by reviewing existing programs and services and adding aging and multi-generational workforce issues to ongoing training.
From Whiteness to Colorblindness in Public Policies
Authors: Saito Leland
Published: January 2017

In the contemporary era, as U.S. society attempts to move toward racial equality, there is major disagreement among scholars regarding the degree to which public policies contribute to inequality. Discussion of a postracial society and colorblind ideology suggests that racial discrimination has been greatly reduced, while research on whiteness and systemic racism asserts that racial discrimination remains deeply imbedded in institutions. Using three case studies involving development in Southern California, I contribute to this debate by documenting and analyzing shifts in public views toward race within the context of colorblind ideology, how those views affect public discussions and are translated into public policies, and the racial effects of those policies. The case studies demonstrate that while systemic racism continues, in the context of colorblindness, local perspectives, strategies, and policies regarding race vary widely. The cases also show how racialized space operates through the distribution of resources and struggles over exclusion. In the first case, deliberate racism and exclusion operate covertly under the cover of colorblindness. In the second case, an attempt to implement race-neutral policies generates results that favor whites because of the unrecognized racial practices embedded in institutional practices. Grassroots mobilization successfully challenges these policies through political action. In the third case, I suggest that activists take into account the influence of colorblind ideology and strategically frame their objectives and political actions in nonracial social justice terms to craft policies that take race into account because of the relationship between race and space.
Racism, the Immigration Enforcement Regime, and the Implications for Racial Inequality in the Lives of Undocumented Young Adults
Authors: Aranda Elizabeth , Vaquera Elizabeth
Published: January 2017

The current immigration enforcement regime embodies a colorblind racial project of the state rooted in the racial structure of society and resulting in racism toward immigrants. Approaching racism from structural and social process perspectives, we seek to understand the social consequences of enforcement practices in the lives of undocumented immigrant young adults who moved to the United States as minors. Findings indicate that although legal discourse regarding immigration enforcement theoretically purports colorblindness, racial practices such as profiling subject immigrants to arrest, detention, and deportation and, in effect, criminalize them. Further, enforcement practices produce distress, vulnerability, and anxiety in the lives of young immigrants and their families, often resulting in legitimate fears of detention and deportation since enforcement measures disproportionately affect Latinos and other racialized immigrant groups in U.S. society. We conclude that policies and programs that exclude, segregate, detain, and physically remove immigrants from the country reproduce racial inequalities in other areas of social life through spillover effects that result in dire consequences for these immigrants and their kin. We argue that immigrant enforcement practices reflect the nation’s racial policy of our times.
More than Prejudice
Authors: Bonilla-Silva Eduardo
Published: January 2017

Racism has always been “more than prejudice,” but mainstream social analysts have mostly framed race matters as organized by the logic of prejudice. In this paper, I do four things. First, I restate my criticism of the dominant approach to race matters and emphasize the need to ground our racial analysis materially, that is, understanding that racism is systemic and rooted in differences in power between the races. Second, I reflect critically on my own theorization on race (the racialized social system approach) and acknowledge that I should have explained better the role of culture and ideology in the making and remaking of race. Third, I describe some of the work I have done since this early work. Fourth, I advance several new directions for research and theory in the field of race stratification.
More Than a Knapsack
Authors: Strmic-Pawl Hephzibah V.
Published: January 2017

This article suggests that White supremacy versus White privilege provides a clearer and more accurate conceptual understanding of how racism operates, evolves, and sustains itself. This article suggests a specific model for teaching White supremacy, the White supremacy flower, and describes the application and benefits of the model.
Podoplanin expression in primary brain tumors induces platelet aggregation and increases risk of venous thromboembolism
Authors: Riedl Julia , Preusser Matthias , Nazari Pegah Mir Seyed , Posch Florian , Panzer Simon , Marosi Christine , Birner Peter , Thaler Johannes , Brostjan Christine , Lötsch Daniela , Berger Walter , Hainfellner Johannes A. , Pabinger Ingrid , Ay Cihan
Published: January 2017

Key Points

Brain tumor patients have a very high risk of VTE. Podoplanin expression by primary brain tumors induces platelet aggregation and is associated with hypercoagulability and a high risk of VTE.
Proteolytic properties of single-chain factor XII: a mechanism for triggering contact activation
Authors: Ivanov Ivan , Matafonov Anton , Sun Mao-fu , Cheng Qiufang , Dickeson S. Kent , Verhamme Ingrid M. , Emsley Jonas , Gailani David
Published: January 2017

Key Points

The single-chain form of FXII, a component of the plasma contact system, has proteolytic activity. Single-chain FXII activity suggests a mechanism of contact activation initiation when blood is exposed to physiologic/artificial surfaces.
Effect of transcutaneous electrical acupoint stimulation combined with palonosetron on chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting: a single-blind, randomized, controlled trial
Authors: Xie Jing , Chen Lei-Hua , Ning Zhou-Yu , Zhang Chen-Yue , Chen Hao , Chen Zhen , Meng Zhi-Qiang , Zhu Xiao-Yan
Published: January 2017

Background

Chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting adversely affects the quality of life of patients who receive chemotherapy via intravenous infusion or transcatheter arterial chemoembolization (TACE). This study aimed to investigate the clinical effects of transcutaneous electrical acupoint stimulation (TEAS) on nausea and vomiting after TACE.

Methods

A total of 142 patients who received TACE with cisplatin for primary or metastatic liver cancer were assigned to the active-acupuncture (n = 72) or placebo-acupuncture (n = 70) groups using a covariate-adaptive randomization at a ratio of 1:1. The acupoints Hegu (LI4), Neiguan (P6), and Zusanli (ST36) were stimulated twice daily for 6 days. The effects of TEAS on nausea and vomiting were assessed by using occurrence rate and severity of these symptoms. Anorexia scale and M. D. Anderson Symptom Inventory (MDASI) scores were secondary endpoints and were used to assess the effect of TEAS on patient appetite and quality of life. The safety of the treatments was also monitored.

Results

Between the two groups, the differences in occurrence rates and severities of nausea and vomiting after TACE were not significant (all P > 0.05). From the second day after TACE, anorexia scores were significantly lower in the active-acupuncture group than in the placebo-acupuncture group and continued to decrease over time with treatment (all P values less than 0.01). On days 0, 1, and 2, the mean MDASI scores for the active-acupuncture group were slightly lower than those for the placebo-acupuncture group, but the differences were not statistically significant (all P > 0.05). No significant differences were found between the two groups in the occurrence rate of any adverse event (P > 0.05).

Conclusion

TEAS appears to be a safe and effective therapy to relieve patients’ gastrointestinal discomfort after chemotherapy.

Trial registration NCT01895010. Registered 21 June 2013
Analysis of the Fgfr2C342Y mouse model shows condensation defects due to misregulation of Sox9 expression in prechondrocytic mesenchyme
Authors: Peskett Emma , Kumar Samin , Baird William , Jaiswal Janhvi , Li Ming , Patel Priyanca , Britto Jonathan A. , Pauws Erwin
Published: January 2017

Syndromic craniosynostosis caused by mutations in FGFR2 is characterised by developmental pathology in both endochondral and membranous skeletogenesis. Detailed phenotypic characterisation of features in the membranous calvarium, the endochondral cranial base and other structures in the axial and appendicular skeleton has not been performed at embryonic stages. We investigated bone development in the Crouzon mouse model (Fgfr2C342Y) at pre- and post-ossification stages to improve understanding of the underlying pathogenesis.

Phenotypic analysis was performed by whole mount skeletal staining (Alcian Blue/Alizarin Red) and histological staining of sections of CD1 wild-type (WT), Fgfr2C342Y/+ heterozygous (HET) and Fgfr2C342Y/C342Y homozygous (HOM) mouse embryos from E12.5-E17.5 stages. Gene expression (Sox9, Shh, Fgf10, and Runx2) was studied by in situ hybridisation and protein expression (COL2A1) by immunohistochemistry.

Our analysis has identified severely decreased osteogenesis in parts of the craniofacial skeleton together with increased chondrogenesis in parts of the endochondral and cartilaginous skeleton in HOM embryos. The Sox9 expression domain in tracheal and basi-cranial chondrocytic precursors at E13.5 in HOM embryos is increased and expanded, correlating with the phenotypic observations which suggests FGFR2 signalling regulates Sox9 expression. Combined with abnormal staining of type II collagen in pre-chondrocytic mesenchyme, this is indicative of a mesenchymal condensation defect.

An expanded spectrum of phenotypic features observed in the Fgfr2C342Y/C342Y mouse embryo paves the way towards better understanding the clinical attributes of human Crouzon-Pfeiffer syndrome. FGFR2 mutation results in impaired skeletogenesis, however our findings suggest that many phenotypic aberrations stem from a primary failure of pre-chondrogenic/osteogenic mesenchymal condensation and links FGFR2 to SOX9, a principal regulator of skeletogenesis.
Vasotocin receptor blockade disrupts maternal care of offspring in a viviparous snake,Sistrurus miliarius
Authors: Lind Craig M. , Birky Nikolette K. , Porth Anita M. , Farrell Terence M.
Published: January 2017

Parental care is a complex social behavior that is widespread among vertebrates. The neuroendocrine regulation of parent-offspring social behavior has been well-described in mammals, and, to a lesser extent, birds and fish. However, little is known regarding the underlying mechanisms that mediate the expression of care behaviors in squamate reptiles. In mammalian model species and humans, posterior pituitary hormones of the oxytocin and vasopressin families mediate parental care behaviors. To test the hypothesis that the regulatory role of posterior pituitary neuropeptides is conserved in a viviparous squamate reptile, we pharmacologically blocked the vasotocin receptor in postparturient pigmy rattlesnakes, Sistrurus miliarius, and monitored the spatial relationship between mothers and offspring relative to controls. Mothers in the control group demonstrated spatial aggregation with offspring, with mothers having greater postparturient energy stores aggregating more closely with their offspring. Blockade of vasotocin receptors eliminated evidence of spatial aggregation between mothers and offspring and eliminated the relationship between maternal energetic status and spatial aggregation. Our results are the first to implicate posterior pituitary neuropeptides in the regulation of maternal behavior in a squamate reptile and are consistent with the hypothesis that the neuroendocrine mechanisms underlying social behaviors are broadly conserved among vertebrates.
Migraine with Aura or Sports-Related Concussion: Case Report, Pathophysiology, and Multidisciplinary Approach to Management
Authors: Ellis Michael J. , Cordingley Dean , Girardin Richard , Ritchie Lesley , Johnston Janine
Published: January 2017

The evaluation and management of athletes presenting with clinical features of migraine headache with aura in the setting of sports-related head trauma is challenging. We present a case report of a 15-yr-old boy with a history of migraine with visual aura that developed acute visual disturbance and headache after a head injury during an ice hockey game. The patient underwent comprehensive assessment at a multidisciplinary concussion program, including neuro-ophthalmological examination, neurocognitive testing, and graded aerobic treadmill testing. Clinical history and multidisciplinary assessment was consistent with the diagnosis of coexisting sports-related concussion and migraine with brainstem aura. The authors discuss the pearls and pitfalls of managing patients who develop migraine headache with visual aura after sports-related head injury and the value of a comprehensive multidisciplinary approach to this unique patient population.
Uncomplicated Carotid Endarterectomy: Factors Contributing to Blood Pressure Instability Precluding Safe Early Discharge
Authors: Posner Steven P. , Boxer Leslie , Proctor Mary , Upchurch Gilbert R. , Stanley James C. , Henke Peter K.
Published: January 2017

This study was undertaken to identify preoperative and intraoperative factors that correlate with the need for postoperative vasoactive medication (VM) use. Clinical data from 100 carotid endarterectomies (CEAs) performed in 93 patients were reviewed. Baseline comorbidities, medications, perioperative physiologic data, and operative technique were evaluated for their association with the need for postoperative VM use. Statistical analysis included univariate and multivariate logistic regression with odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) reported. Hemodynamic instability affected 43 patients, of whom 32 had VM started in the postanesthesia care unit (PACU). No patient who was hemodynamically stable in the PACU later required VM. The only preoperative factor associated with a need for postoperative VM was a prior stroke (OR 4.5; 95% CI 1.2–16.2; p = .02). Intraoperative factors associated with the need for postoperative VM included use of a shunt (OR 5.1; 95% CI 1.2–22.2; p = .03) and a peak intraoperative systolic blood pressure greater than 200 mm Hg (OR 5.1; 95% CI 1.2–22.2; p = .03). The number and type of preoperative blood pressure medications, preoperative hypertension, comorbidities, symptomatic presentation, and intraoperative use of VM did not correlate with postoperative VM use. There were two strokes and no deaths. Patients undergoing CEA who are hemodynamically stable in the PACU appear to be reasonable candidates for same-day discharge and warrant further prospective study.
Multichannel Monitoring of Cerebral Circulatory and Oxygenation Status Using Optical Topography during Deep Hypothermic Retrograde Cerebral Perfusion
Authors: Ueno Katsuhito , Takamoto Shinichi , Miyairi Takeshi , Morota Tetsuro , Shibata Ko , Murakami Arata , Kotsuka Yutaka
Published: January 2017

In this study, we evaluated changes in the cerebral circulatory and oxygenation status during deep hypothermic total circulatory arrest (TCA) and retrograde cerebral perfusion (RCP) using optical topography, a form of multichannel near-infrared spectrophotometry, to monitor the broad area perfused by the middle cerebral artery. Seven patients underwent thoracic aortic surgery with TCA and RCP via the superior vena cava. Pressure-regulated RCP was performed under pH-stat. No postoperative neurologic complications occurred. Using optical topography, the relative changes in oxy-, deoxy-, and total hemoglobin (oxy-Hb, deoxy-Hb, total Hb) were simultaneously measured from 24 points in both hemispheres. Deoxy-Hb was used for evaluating the regional oxygenation status under RCP. The values of deoxy-Hb at the beginning of RCP were regarded as the basal values, and the rate of increase in deoxy-Hb per minute was calculated at each site. Deoxy-Hb/min during TCA was also calculated. In every case, both oxy-Hb and total Hb decreased and deoxy-Hb increased during TCA. When RCP was initiated, the decrease in oxy-Hb and the increase in deoxy-Hb were attenuated. The deoxy-Hb/min was significantly lower under RCP than during TCA in all portions. There was no significant difference of deoxy-Hb/min between any portions during RCP. Our results showed that the status of circulation and oxygenation might be uniform in the brain during RCP and better than that under TCA.
False Lumen Thrombectomy of the Superior Mesenteric Artery Followed by Iliomesenteric Bypass after Stanford Type B Aortic Dissection
Authors: Linsen Matteus A. M. , Avontuur Jurgen A. , Floris Vos A. W. , Rauwerda Jan A. , Wisselink Willem
Published: January 2017

A 55-year-old man with an acute Stanford type B aortic dissection presented with clinical signs of mesenteric ischemia. Computed tomography (CT) revealed a thrombosed false lumen in the superior mesenteric artery. At laparotomy, the dissection was found to be extending into the jejunal branches and medial colic artery. Thrombus was removed from the false lumen, and perfusion was restored with an iliomesenteric bypass, with the dissected layers tacked together in the suture line. A postoperative CT scan showed a stable diameter of the thoracoabdominal aorta and a patent iliomesenteric bypass.
Trialling the use of Google Apps together with online marking to enhance collaborative learning and provide effective feedback
Authors: Slee Nicky J. D. , Jacobs Marty H.
Published: January 2017

This paper describes a new approach to an ecology practical in which 76 Level 4 students were divided into four groups (n = 20 +/-2) to collect data. Each group studied a different habitat and was further divided into seven subgroups (n = 2 or 3) to collect field data. Each of the four groups collaborated through Google Drive on descriptions and images of the habitat site, and also collaborated at the subgroup level on their own habitat data. The four groups then shared habitat descriptions with the aim to provide enough information to enable everyone to understand the entire data set.

The three-stage assignment was assessed and feedback issued at group and individual level via the University’s online submission service (FASER), with some additional feedback given via Moodle, the University’s Virtual Learning Environment. Two separate submissions were made to FASER, the first was the group and subgroup work (stage 1), and the second included the peer assessment task (stage 2) and the individual evaluation of the habitats (stage 3). Feedback was given after the second submission had been uploaded to FASER and again when the assessment for the second submission was complete. The group and subgroup data sets were provided to all students via Moodle, so that individuals could carry out their own analysis of all four habitats. The use of Google Drive and Google Apps helped to improve the digital literacy of the staff and students involved.

All three stages of the assignment were successful; over 85% of students passed the first two stages, and 82.9% passed stage 3. The collaborative work enabled students to produce high quality descriptive ecology documents valuable for the subsequent stages of the assignment. The peer assessment encouraged students to gain information on expected Undergraduate Minimum Standards, and gave students the opportunity to study multiple habitats. The final stage was open ended and challenged students to make sense of large ecological data sets. There was a positive correlation between levels of success at stages 1 and 3 for students who achieved less than 65% for the independent work, i.e. they benefited from carrying out group work.

This collaborative, three-stage approach is recommended especially as it helps lower ability students gain subject knowledge and improve their presentation skills. However, some modifications are recommended: 1) simplifying the sample and data collection, and 2) providing more guidance for the peer assessment task and individual analysis. Learner autonomy enabled self-directed learning to take place and enriched large scale teaching as it encouraged student-student interaction. Significant differences between gender and ability are discussed.
Competence of Educational Specialists in the Field of Education for Sustainable Development
Authors: �������  , Ermakov Dmitriy
Published: January 2017

Based on the analysis of international and domestic documents, we have shown an importance of the role of educators (teachers, trainers, other

educational specialists) in the education for sustainable development, the need for their adequate training, professional retraining and life-long

professional development. We present the results of the 2011�2015 survey, in which 359 teachers from 10 regions of the Russian Federation participated.

The majority of respondents knows about the necessity of education for sustainable development, and appreciates the need for it. However, only 9.7

% of specialists� estimated the level of their own methodological skills as suffi cient for implementation of education for sustainable development; and

77.4 % would like to improve their skills. We have done a comparative analysis of foreign models of educators� competences in the fi eld of education

for sustainable development and the requirements of national education (general, higher education) and professional standards; we have found the

signifi cant incompleteness of the second compare to the fi rst. Based on international recommendations, we have formulated practical suggestions for

strengthening the capacity of educators in education for sustainable development.
Environmental Monitoring of Water Ecosystems Based on a New Microbiological Method
Authors: Мошарова  , Mosharova I. , Ильинский  , Ilinskiy Vladimir , Корсак  , Korsak M.
Published: January 2017

One of water ecosystems’ main components is heterotrophic bacterial plankton, carrying out processes of organic substance

destruction that provides water ecosystems self-cleaning. The tasks facing modern environmental monitoring of water

ecosystems demand the account not only the total number and number of separate physiological groups of bacteria, but also

determination of quantity for microorganisms which are actively functioning during this time period. Now it is obvious that

the results of bacterial plankton number and biomass determination received by direct account’s traditional methods don’t

reflect quantity of the microorganisms which are really functioning and participating in biogeochemical cycles. The methods

allowing carry out such researches based on use of special fluorescent dyes which are used as biochemical markers of various

physiological processes proceeding in a bacterial cage. Results for application of a method for accounting of bacterial cages

with active metabolism for marine and fresh-water ecosystems’ environmental monitoring have been presented. This method

has been applied at researches of the microbial population in river, lake, estuarial, shelf marine ecosystems, and also in deepwater

sea hollows for the purpose of actively functioning bacteria’ number determination. Respiratory activity markers use

has shown that only an insignificant share (generally from 0.1 to 30 %, and in some cases — to 90 % of cages in the bacterial

plankton’s total number) possesses the active metabolism and provides processes of organic substance destruction in water

ecosystems. The received results testify to prospects for application of this microbiological method within environmental

monitoring of water ecosystems for accounting of the bacterial plankton possessing active metabolism.
Increase in Reliability for Injurious Effects Forecasting on Fire- and Explosion Hazardous Facilities
Authors: Арефьева  , Arefeva E. , Рыбаков  , Rybakov A.
Published: January 2017

A method for increasing of technogenic emergencies’ characteristics forecasting reliability has been developed. The possibility for accuracy increase of a cumulative forecasting for impacts of several injurious effects in the presence of limiting resources is used. The forecasting process is considered as a managed system. Monitoring system’s sensors, measurements parameters, calculation methods and models, forecast decisions’ information and computing support are considered as control actions.
Technical Regulation of Industrial Facilities’ Safety: Hazard Analysis
Authors: Грановский  , Granovskiy E.
Published: January 2017

The problems of hazard identification in the structure of technological systems’ risk analysis are considered. Various methods

of brainstorming used in the danger analysis are presented. It has been demonstrated that HAZOP investigation is the most

structured brainstorming method for identification of system hazards. Roles, tasks and requirements for expert group’s leader and

participants are considered. It has been demonstrated that experts’ competence needed for the hazard analysis does not meet

the requirements to the competence for qualitative risk assessment. Decisions needed to achieve sufficient system safety must be

taken after a quantitative risk assessment.
Power-Generating Boilers Diagnostics As Factor for Providing of Safe Service Conditions (Technical and Legal Aspects)
Authors: Попова  , Popova Olga , Костенко  , Kostenko M. , Сербиновский  , Serbinovskiy Mikhail
Published: January 2017

Relevance of development and deployment of automated systems for diagnostics of technical condition of power-generating

boilers as systems providing safe and effective operation for high-risk facilities has been proved. On the example of an

automated system for boilers technical diagnostics, developed by OJSC “The Taganrog Boiler-Making Works “Krasny

Kotel’schik” and OJSC “EMAl’yans”, have been considered the purposes, such systems’ implementation ideology, ways of

their technical enhancement. It has been shown that implementation of automated systems for diagnostics will allow move

to a new safety level related to operation of such high-risk facilities as boilers. Engineering and organizational problems

related to widespread implementation of diagnostic systems for high-risk facilities have been analyzed, both on the side

of systems developers and producers, and on the side of operating entities. Legal problems related to diagnostics systems

implementation have been separately allocated. Ways for solutions of designated problems as base which shall provide a

possibility for enhancement of systems themselves and their priority implementation at energy entities have been offered.
Calculation and Forecasting of Individual Death Risk for Industrial Region’s Population
Authors: Сугак  , Sugak E. , Бельская  , Belskaya Бельская , Бразговка  , Brazgovka O.
Published: January 2017

In this work a posteriori assessment of individual risk and its distribution on causes of death for the population of Krasnoyarsk city and Krasnoyarsk Krai has been carried out. The comparative analysis of mortality causes for the population at working-age has shown that, besides blood circulatory system diseases the mortality was caused by malignant neoplasms, respiratory diseases and the external causes (unnatural). A method of forecasting for individual death risk of the industrial region’s population based on neural network technologies has been offered as well. The NeuroPro package was used for neural network model construction. Official data on dynamics of the population’s natural movement, disability-adjusted life expectancy and disease incidence have been accepted as main indicators of the population health. Results of work showed good comparability to statistical data that demonstrates that use of neural network technologies for the solution of the tasks connected with forecasting of individual risk is a perspective direction. The offered method can be introduced in environmental monitoring practice, and “overtraining” of neural network model will allow adapt it for any other territory.