bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Doctor-patient communication: a review and a rationale for using an assessment framework
Authors: Belasen Ariel , Belasen Alan T.
Published: October 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore the extent to which improving doctor–patient communication (DPC) can address and alleviate many healthcare delivery inefficiencies.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors survey causes and costs of miscommunication including perceptual gaps between how physicians believe they perform their communicative duties vs how patients feel and highlight thresholds such as the Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPS) used by hospitals to identify health outcomes and improve DPC.

Findings

The authors find that DPC correlates with better and more accurate care as well as with more satisfied patients. The authors utilize an assessment framework, doctor–patient communication assessment (DPCA), empirically measuring the effectiveness of DPC. While patient care is sometimes viewed as purely technical, there is evidence that DPC strongly predicts clinical outcomes as well as patients’ overall ratings of hospitals.

Research limitations/implications

More research is needed to extend our understanding of the impact of the DPC on the overall HCAHPS ratings of hospitals. The authors think that researchers should adopt a qualitative method (e.g. content analysis) for analyzing DPC discourse.

Practical implications

When a sufficient amount of DPCA training is initiated, a norming procedure could be developed and a database may be employed to demonstrate training program’s efficacy, a critical factor in establishing the credibility of the measurement program and nurturing support for its use.

Originality/value

The authors highlight clinical and operational issues as well as costs associated with miscommunication and the need to use metrics such as HCAHPS that allow consumers to see how hospitals differ on specific characteristics.
Impression management for corporate brands over mobile media
Authors: Schniederjans Dara G. , Atlas Stephen A. , Starkey Christopher M.
Published: October 2018

Purpose

As organizations increasingly engage with consumers over mobile devices, there is a growing need to understand how consumers react to impression management over platforms with limited textual content. The purpose of this paper is to empirically assess how different impression management tactics can be used in mobile media to enhance consumer perception-attitude-intentions toward a corporate brand.

Design/methodology/approach

We surveyed 670 consumers and estimate structural equation models and repeated-measures ANOVAs to determine how short passages employing alternate impression management tactics influence consumers’ perceptions, attitudes and purchase intentions.

Findings

Results reveal that each impressions management tactic (i.e. ingratiation, intimidation, organizational promotion, supplication and exemplification) influences consumer perceptions, attitudes and intentions. The authors compare differences in how the impressions management tactics influence each stage of the perception-attitude-intentions model and find evidence that initial differences in perceptions favoring ingratiation and exemplification appeals become magnified for purchase intentions.

Research limitations/implications

Recent calls for research focus on an understanding of how consumers process information on reduced-content platforms of small-screened mobile devices. These results provide empirical evidence of the use of impression management and the difference between five impression management tactics on enhancing consumer perception-attitude-intentions model.

Practical implications

The results of this study will provide marketers with insights to optimize communications and corporate brands with consumers over mobile media.

Originality/value

This paper adds to the nascent yet vital literature on mobile marketing by focusing on how impression management tactics influence perceptions, attitudes and intentions through the short message characteristic of mobile platforms. The authors develop a framework for how corporate brand management can strategically use impressions management tactics in this novel domain.
Inflammatory gene expression analysis after prebiotic, probiotic and synbiotic supplementation in experimental nonalcoholic fatty liver disease
Authors: Carreira dos Santos Angelica , Ribeiro Daniel Araki , Ferreira Jessica Almeida da Cruz , Aguiar Odair , Waitzberg Dan Linetzky , Alves Claudia Cristina
Published: October 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effects of prebiotic, probiotic and synbiotic supplementation on liver histopathology and TLR-4, NFκB and TNF-α gene expression involved in the inflammatory cascade and pathogenesis of experimental nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD).

Design/methodology/approach

Wistar male adult rats (n = 40) were submitted to hypercholesterolemic conditions (60 days). On Day 30 of hypercholesterolemic conditions, rats were subdivided in five groups: negative control (NC), positive control (PC), prebiotic (PRE), probiotic (PRO) and synbiotic (SYN). All rats were sacrificed on Day 60. Liver tissue was used to verify histopathological changes and gene expression. Gene expression of TLR-4, TNF-α and NFκB was evaluated in liver tissue using RT-qPCR.

Findings

Histopathological analysis: PC showed more changes than NC, and PRE and SYN showed fewer alterations than PC. Gene expression analysis: PRE showed higher TLR-4, and NFκB and TNF-α compared to PC. Also, PRE showed higher TLR-4 when compared to PRO and SYN. SYN group revealed higher TLR-4 and NFκB expressions compared to PC. PRO group also showed higher NFκB expression compared to PC.

Originality/value

NAFLD is a significant health concern, and it found that prebiotic, probiotic and synbiotic supplementation could have positive effects as a nonpharmacological approach to control this disease.
Anti-hypertensive, anti-diabetic, hypocholesterolemic and antioxidant properties of prickly pear nopalitos in type 2 diabetic rats fed a high-fat diet
Authors: Harrat Nour el Imane , Louala Sabrine , Bensalah Fatima , Affane Fouad , Chekkal Hadjera , Lamri-Senhadji Myriem
Published: October 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of prickly pear (Opuntia ficus indica(OFI)) nopalitos on body weight, food consumption, arterial blood pressure, glucidic homeostasis, cholesterol metabolic pathway and tissues redox status in type 2 diabetic (T2D) rats fed a high-fat diet (HFD).

Design/methodology/approach

Rats were fed by a HFD containing 30 per cent sheep fat for 10 weeks, after which they were rendered diabetic by an injection of a low dose of streptozotocin (STZ) (35 mg/kg). The diabetic rats were then divided into two groups. The first group consumed the HFD supplemented with 5 per cent (g/100 g diet) of freeze-driedOFInopalitos (HFD-OFI), and the second group received the HFD without supplementation (HFD).

Findings

OFInopalitos treatment decreased significantly arterial diastolic (−20%;p= 0.0001) and systolic (−16%;p= 0.0001) pressures, glycemia (−14%;p= 0.03), insulinemia (−50%;p= 0.04), glycated hemoglobin (−49%;p= 0.003), homeostasis model assessment insulin resistance (−67%;p= 0.03), cholesterolemia (−31%;p= 0.003), very-low and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (−38%;p= 0.002 and −63%p= 0.0002, respectively); thiobarbituric acid reactive substances and lipid hydroperoxide contents, respectively, in liver (−26%p= 0.02, −20%p= 0.02), adipose tissue (−30%p= 0.002, −25%p= 0.001), muscle (−29%p= 0.003, −25%p= 0.008) and kidney (lipid hydroperoxides only (−28%;p= 0.001) but increased high-density lipoprotein (HDL2) cholesteryl esters (+61%;p= 0.0001), serum lecithin: cholesterol acyltransferase activity (+21%;p= 0.006) and antioxidant enzymes activities (superoxide dismutase, glutathione peroxidase and catalase) of some tissues (liver, adipose tissue, muscle and kidney).

Originality/value

Freeze-driedOFInopalitos improves arterial blood pressure, glycemic control, metabolic pathway of cholesterol and redox status in T2D rats.
Is spatial orientation affected by Ramadan fasting?
Authors: Abdul Razzak Rima , Mohamed Mohamed Wael , Alshaiji Abdulla Faisal , Qareeballa Abdulrahman Ahmed , Bagust Jeff , Docherty Sharon
Published: October 2018

Purpose

Ramadan intermittent fasting (RIF) has produced heterogeneous and domain-specific effects on cognitive function. This study aims to investigate the effect of RIF on verticality perception or estimation of subjective visual vertical (SVV) in young adults. The significance of SVV is that it is essential for spatial orientation, upon which many daily activities depend.

Methodology

Verticality perception was assessed with a computerized rod and frame test (CRFT) in two visual conditions: without a surrounding frame and with a distracting tilted frame. The tilted frame condition measures level of visual dependence or reliance of visual cues for posture and orientation. In total, 39 young adult men were recruited at different stages of Ramadan fasting: 21 were tested at the end of the first week (Week 1) and 18 others at the end of the third week (Week 3) of Ramadan. Also, 39 participants were recruited to serve as a non-fasting control group. Factorial ANOVA analyses were conducted to identify the main effects of fasting status, time-of-day and the interaction between them on blood glucose levels, nocturnal sleep duration and vertical alignment errors.

Findings

The main effect of fasting status on glucose level was significant (p= 0.03). There was a significant time-of-day main effect on glucose levels (p= 0.007) and sleep duration (p= 0.004) only in fasting participants. Neither the main effects of fasting status nor time-of-day were significant for rod alignment errors in both visual conditions. The interaction of fasting status and time-of-day was not significant either. This may indicate that any negative effect of Ramadan fasting on activities that are critically dependent on verticality perception and spatial orientation, such as sports and driving, may not be due to verticality misperception.

Originality

The present study was the first to investigate the effect of Ramadan fasting on spatial orientation. It demonstrated robustness of verticality perception to fasting status and the point of fasting during Ramadan. Verticality perception was also unaffected by time-of-day effects in non-fasting and fasting groups at two different points of Ramadan. This study corroborates others reporting heterogeneous effects of Ramadan fasting on cognitive function.
Microscopic characterization of acidic paper manuscripts
Authors: Hamed Safa Abd El kader Mohamed , Ali Hassan Rushdya Rabee
Published: October 2018

Purpose

This paper aims to investigate the effect of acidity on the morphology of archeological paper, especially in the presence of colors and whether natural pigments play a role in the process of degradation.

Design/methodology/approach

The morphological changes in the cellulosic fibers of the manuscripts because of acidity were investigated using environmental scanning electron microscope (ESEM). Ten historical samples were collected from different manuscripts suffering from acidity. X-ray diffraction was used to identify the inks and pigments that were used in some samples. Additionally, Fourier transform infrared microscopy was used to identify the binding medium.

Findings

The results confirmed that carbon ink, ultramarine, cinnabar and gold pigments were applied to some manuscripts with Arabic gum. As for ESEM investigation, the results proved that acidity badly affected the integrity of the cellulosic fibers resulting in their embrittlement. The micrographs showed differences in fiber degradation according to pH value. The presence of inks and pigments increased the degradation extent resulting from acidity.

Originality/value

This paper addresses a specific need to study the behavior of degradation in paper manuscripts, thus helping the conservators find solutions to the phenomenon.
Fundamentals of radiation heat transfer in AlSi10Mg powder bed during selective laser melting
Authors: Wei Pei , Wei Zhengying , Chen Zhne , Du Jun , He Yuyang , Li Junfeng
Published: October 2018

Purpose

This paper aims to study numerically the influence of the applied laser energy density and the porosity of the powder bed on the thermal behavior of the melt and the resultant instability of the liquid track.

Design/methodology/approach

A three-dimensional model was proposed to predict local powder melting process. The model accounts for heat transfer, melting, solidification and evaporation in granular system at particle scale. The proposed model has been proved to be a good approach for the simulation of the laser melting process.

Findings

The results shows that the applied laser energy density has a significantly influence on the shape of the molten pool and the local thermal properties. The relative low or high input laser energy density has the main negative impact on the stability of the scan track. Decreasing the porosity of the powder bed lowers the heat dissipation in the downward direction, resulting in a shallower melt pool, whereas pushing results in improvement in liquid track quality.

Originality/value

The randomly packed powder bed is calculated using discrete element method. The powder particle information including particle size distribution and packing density is taken into account in placement of individual particles. The effect of volumetric shrinkage and evaporation is considered in numerical model.
An updated quantitative analysis of Kerlin’s macro-institutional social enterprise framework
Authors: Coskun Muhammet Emre , Monroe-White Thema , Kerlin Janelle
Published: October 2018

Purpose

This paper aims to improve upon the initial quantitative assessment of Kerlin’s macro-institutional social enterprise (MISE) framework (Monroe-White et al., 2015) to test for the effect of country-level institutions on the social enterprise sector. Major improvements are the inclusion of the civil society variable and expansion of the culture component in the analysis.

Design/methodology/approach

By following Kerlin’s (2013) original work that draws on the theory of historical institutionalism, this paper employs multi-level regression analysis to test the effect of country-level institutional factors on organizational-level social enterprise across countries. This analysis uses new macro-level data specifically for civil society and culture components.

Findings

The initial assessment of the framework found that several country-level factors had a significant effect on the variance in the size of the social enterprise sector across countries. The analysis provided here additionally shows a significant positive influence of civil society on the size of the social enterprise sector and shows that formal institutions capture the effect of informal cultural institutions when included in the model together.

Practical/implications

This analysis provides policymakers, development actors and researchers with a better understanding of the influence of civil society on social enterprises and the interaction between formal and informal institutional underlying factors.

Originality/value

This paper’s significant contribution is the addition of civil society in the MISE analysis, which was not possible before owing to lack of data, and additional cultural analysis.
Family, institutional investors ownerships and corporate performance: the case of Indonesia
Authors: Musallam Sami R.M. , Fauzi Hasan , Nagu Nadhirah
Published: October 2018

Purpose

This paper aims to investigate the relationship between family and institutional ownerships and corporate performance.

Design/methodology/approach

Using a panel data of 139 nonfinancial companies listed on the Indonesian Stock Exchange from 2009 to 2013, this study used generalized least square model.

Findings

The results show that family ownership has a significant and positive impact on corporate performance, while institutional ownership has significantly and negatively influenced corporate performance. These results imply that family ownership leads to better corporate performance, while institutional ownership leads to lower corporate performance.

Research limitations/implications

Future research would extend to examine different ownership variables, e.g. domestic, foreign and black shareholders ownerships with different performance measures such as profit margin and return on investments (ROI). Then, their results could be compared to the result of this paper.

Practical implications

For shareholders and managers, the result of this study provides a base for shareholder on the importance to have the same understanding as management to improve return of capital invested by them (family capital) through firm’s long- and short-term business decision-making. It is possible for management for doing so because their interest is same. Therefore, this can be an interesting incentive for management. This result of this study also provides practical implication for investors (including international investors) with respect to their funds in the firm with family ownership share. By doing so, they will get better and stable ROI compared to nonfamily-owned business.

Originality/value

This study is original as studies on institutional and family ownerships and corporate performance are limited in the Indonesian context. The use of nonlinearity effect of family ownership and corporate performance in Indonesian case is the first attempt. Therefore, this study contributes to corporate governance literatures by investigating the relationship between family and institutional ownerships and market performance in Indonesian context using the improved methodology.
Modularized design of coal-mine paste filling station based on fuzzy theory
Authors: Wang Guimei , Yang Lijie , Zhang Yong Shuo
Published: October 2018

Purpose

This paper aims to study a modular method for designing a paste filling station (PFS) for a coal mine (CM) to reduce the PFS’s input cost and achieve reutilization.

Design/methodology/approach

Modular design criteria for the PFS are proposed and a modular division (MDiv) model and an evaluation method are established. The correlation-strength matrix of the PFS parts expressed in the form of rough numbers is transformed into a fuzzy equivalent matrix. The theory of rough sets and the fuzzy clustering method are introduced for PFS MDiv. The evaluating method is established for the PFS MDiv scheme based on the principle of fuzzy comprehensive evaluation.

Findings

Taking a particular CM PFS as an example, the above method is used to modularize the PFS, and the optimal division of the PFS is finally determined via the above evaluation system. Applying this method solves the problem of high cost investment in the initial stage of PFS construction.

Originality/value

The theory of rough sets and the fuzzy clustering method are introduced for PFS MDiv. An evaluating method is established for the PFS MDiv scheme based on the principle of fuzzy comprehensive evaluation, thereby providing new ideas for PFS transformation and reutilization.
Analysis of aromatic hydrocarbon in medium- to high-sulfur coals from Fenxi, Shanxi Province
Authors: Yang Yanli , Zhao Qiaojing
Published: October 2018

Purpose

This study aims to investigate the compositional characteristics of aromatic hydrocarbons extracted from coals and to describe how the sulfur content influences the properties of coals and whether widely accepted maturity parameters are suitable for medium- to high-sulfur coal.

Design/methodology/approach

Four samples of medium- to high-sulfur coal were obtained from Fenxi, Shanxi Province, and studied using gas chromatography and gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC-MS).

Findings

The GC-MS results showed that there were five series of compounds were identified in the aromatic fractions: naphthalenes, phenanthrenes, oxygen-containing compounds, biphenyls and sulfur-containing compounds. The substituent group was mainly methyl. The content of dibenzothiophenes was high, which was attributed to their high thermodynamic stability. The presence of sulfur reduced the content of oxygen-containing compounds. A depositional environment that facilitated the formation of organic sulfur compounds led to a higher content of naphthalenes.

Originality/value

The development of methods for removing organic sulfur compounds would benefit from a study of their nature, which would be important for improving the use of coal.
Asĺ No (Not Like This): Resisting Postpolitics on Mexico City's Avenida Chapultepec
Authors: Gerlofs Ben A.
Published: October 2018

Building on roughly ten months of ethnographic and archival research, this article examines successful resistance to a planned redevelopment project along Avenida Chapultepec, one of Mexico City's historic boulevards. Local residents and their allies objected not only to the specifics of the project but also to its planning process, in which citizen input was foregrounded but extremely limited. This case illustrates the instantiation of a ‘postpolitical condition’ in Mexico City, a situation in which any opportunity for dissensus has been foreclosed and ironically replaced by a growing set of carefully managed participatory schemes and an ever‐greater rhetorical commitment to democratization. The public contest over the so‐called Corredor Cultural Chapultepec effectively demonstrates two claims I seek to advance in this article. The first is that strategic vulnerabilities of such political orders can be effectively sought in their conditions of emergence or the contextually specific ways that such orders consolidate political power. The second is that in seeking to elucidate and challenge these conditions, resistance must account for the ways in which certain ‘partition[ings] of the sensible’ (Rancière, ) operate at the quotidian level of attitudes, norms and routines to assign and continually reproduce the places and roles of urban citizens.
Electoral reforms, entry barriers and the structure of political markets: A comparative analysis
Authors: SEBŐK MIKLÓS , HORVÁTH ATTILA , M. BALÁZS ÁGNES
Published: October 2018

This article investigates the impact of electoral reforms on entry barriers in political markets. The discussion starts by delineating the theoretical boundaries of various political markets, such as those for participation, parties and government. By taking a cue from industrial organisation theory, the article offers an analysis of entry barriers, both hard and soft, along with their operationalisation for empirical research. Based on this theoretical framework, a single hypothesis is investigated. It posits that the modification of the entry barriers in the market for parties leads to changes in the concentration of the popular vote for party lists. An observable implication of this relationship would be if an electoral reform that raises entry barriers led to subsequent increases in the Herfindahl index (a measure of market concentration), and vice versa. This proposition is empirically tested by a comparative analysis of a new database covering Czechia, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia. The analysis offers support for the following proposition: in most cases the changes in the entry barriers led to a corresponding change of concentration in the market for parties.
Elite behaviour and citizen mobilisation
Authors: KOLSTAD IVAR , WIIG ARNE
Published: October 2018

This article studies the relation between self‐serving elite behaviour and citizen political participation. It uses a fixed effects approach to analyse the association between portfolio investment in tax havens and voter turnout, using data from 213 parliamentary elections in 65 countries for the period 1998–2014. For well‐functioning democracies a positive relation between the use of tax havens and voter turnout is found, suggesting that self‐serving elite behaviour is associated with citizen political mobilisation rather than voter apathy. The estimated relationship is stronger in the period after the 2008 economic crisis, when elite behaviour was a particularly salient issue.
Management by the Numbers: A Formal Approach to Deriving Informational and Distributional Properties of “Unmanaged” Earnings
Authors: HEMMER THOMAS , LABRO EVA
Published: October 2018

We explore the theoretical relation between earnings and market returns as well as the properties of earnings frequency distributions under the assumption that managers use unbiased accounting information to sequentially decide on real options their firms have and report generated earnings truthfully, with the market pricing the firm based on those reported earnings. We generate benchmarks against which empirically observed earnings‐returns relations and aggregate earnings distributions can be evaluated. This parsimonious model shows a coherent set of results: reported losses are less persistent than reported gains, decision making diminishes the S‐shaped market response to earnings and earnings relate to returns asymmetrically in the way documented by Basu [1997]. Furthermore, the implied frequency distribution of aggregate earnings is neither symmetric nor necessarily single‐peaked. Instead, it may exhibit a kink at zero and look similar to the plots reported by Burgstahler and Dichev [1997]. However, within our model, none of these phenomena are due to reporting noise, bias, or some undesirable strategic managerial behavior. They are the natural consequences of using past earnings as the basis for value increasing managerial decision making that in turn generates the future earnings on which future decisions will be based.
Two New Species of Protocedroxylon Gothan (Pinaceae) from the Middle Jurassic of Eastern Inner Mongolia, NE China
Authors: ZHANG Yujin , TIAN Ning , ZHU Zhipeng , WANG Yongdong , WU Xinwei , ZHANG Zhibin , ZHANG Chao , SI Qiuliang , MA Yongfei
Published: October 2018

Two new coniferous wood taxa, Protocedroxylon zhangii sp. nov. and P. zhalantunense sp. nov., are described from the Middle Jurassic Wanbao Formation in Zhalantun City, Inner Mongolia, NE China. The new discovery represents the first record of petrified wood in the Wanbao Formation, and contributes to further understanding the floral composition, especially that of the forest, of the Wanbao Formation. Anatomically, the two new species are characterized by having a mixed type of radial pitting and Abietineentüpfelung. In extant conifers, Abietineentüpfelung is considered to be characteristic of the wood of Pinaceae. The new discovery further indicates that the first occurrence of Abietineentüpfelung in conifer‐like wood should be earlier than the Kimmeridgian. The palaeolatitudinal distribution pattern of Protocedroxylon indicates that the genus is a palaeobiogeographically consistent group, which was probably restricted to wetter and cooler temperate climates. In combination with distinct growth rings, the occurrence of Protocedroxylon suggests that a cool temperate and seasonal climate might have prevailed during the sedimentation period of the Wanbao Formation in eastern Inner Mongolia, NE China. Such a view is also in agreement with the palaeoclimatic conditions indicated by the plant megafossils of the Wanbao Formation.
Neoproterozoic–Early Paleozoic Tectonic Evolution of the South China Craton: New Insights from the Polyphase Deformation in the Southwestern Jiangnan Orogen
Authors: ZHAO Zhongbao , XU Zhiqin , MA Xuxuan , LIANG Fenghua , GUO Peng
Published: October 2018

A >1500–km–long northeast–southwest trending Neoproterozoic metamorphic belt in the South China Craton (SCC) consists of subduction mélange and extensional basin deposits. This belt is present under an unconformity of Devonian–Carboniferous sediments. Tectonic evolution of the Neoproterozoic rocks is crucial to determining the geology of the SCC and further influences the reconstruction of the Rodinia supercontinent. A subduction mélange unit enclosed ca.1000–850–Ma mafic blocks, which defined a Neoproterozoic ocean that existed within the SCC, is exposed at the bottom of the Jiangnan Orogen (JO) and experienced at least two phases deformation. Combined with new (detrital) zircon U–Pb ages from metasandstones, as well as igneous rocks within the metamorphic belt, we restrict the strongly deformed subduction mélange as younger than the minimum detrital age ca. 835 Ma and older than the ca. 815 Ma intruded granite. Unconformably overlying the subduction mélange and the intruded granite, an intra–continental rift basin developed <800 Ma that involved abundant mantle inputs, such as mafic dikes. This stratum only experienced one main phase deformation. According to our white mica 40Ar/30Ar data and previously documented thermochronology, both the Neoproterozoic mélange and younger strata were exhumed by a 490–400–Ma crustal–scale positive flower structure. This orogenic event probably induced the thick–skinned structures and was accompanied by crustal thickening, metamorphism and magmatism and led to the closure of the pre–existing rift basin. Integrating previously published data and our new results, we agree that the SCC was located on the periphery of the Rodinia supercontinent from the Neoproterozic until the Ordovician. Furthermore, we prefer that the convergence and dispersal of the SCC were primarily controlled by oceanic subduction forces that occurred within or periphery of the SCC.
Controls of Acid‐sensitive Minerals on Reservoir Sensitivity Testing: An Example from the Silurian Kepingtage Formation in Tazhong Area, Tarim Basin
Authors: HAN Denglin , WANG Qianqian , WANG Chenchen , OUYANG Chuanxiang , YUAN Wenfang
Published: October 2018

The Silurian Kepingtage Formation in Tazhong area is regarded as an acid‐sensitive hydrocarbon reservoir. However, formation mechanism of acid‐sensitive of the reservoir cannot be interpreted by the existing acid‐sensitive evaluation criterion based on damage rate. The contents of acid ‐sensitive minerals illustrated by bulk‐rock XRD, scanning electron microscopy and clay mineral composition analysis exert the dominant control on acid‐sensitive flow testing of the reservoir. The iron‐ bearing minerals (including pyrite cements and chlorite cements) mainly deteriorate reservoir quality, while the iron‐free minerals (including calcite cements and dolomite cements) mainly improve permeability. The permeability variation of the tested samples is controlled by the relative content of two acid‐sensitive minerals. On the basis of newly established sensitivity mechanism and its influence on permeability, the corresponding ion (Fe2+) stabilizer was added to the acidizing fluids during the acidification reconstruction, which inhibited the negative factors of acid‐sensitive minerals and improved the target layer quality effectively.
Valuation Implications of Unconditional Accounting Conservatism: Evidence from Analysts' Target Prices
Authors: Kim Jae B. , Nekrasov Alexander , Shroff Pervin K. , Simon Andreas
Published: October 2018

We examine whether financial analysts understand the valuation implications of unconditional accounting conservatism when forecasting target prices. While accounting conservatism affects reported earnings, conservatism per se does not have an effect on the present value of future cash flows. We examine whether analysts adjust for the effect of conservatism included in their earnings forecasts when using these forecasts to estimate target prices. We find that signed target price errors (actual minus forecast) have a significant positive association with the degree of conservatism in forward earnings, suggesting that target prices are biased due to accounting conservatism. Cross‐sectional analysis suggests that more sophisticated analysts and superior long‐term forecasters adjust for conservatism to a greater extent than other analysts. In additional analyses, we explore the mechanism through which conservatism leads to bias in target prices. We first show that analysts' earnings forecasts are negatively associated with the degree of conservatism; that is, analysts include the effect of unconditional conservatism in their earnings forecasts. Based on alternative earnings‐based valuation models that analysts may use, our evidence suggests that analysts fail to appropriately adjust their valuation multiple for the effect of conservatism included in their earnings forecasts when using these forecasts to derive target prices. As a consequence, we find that, for extreme changes in conservatism, the bias in analysts' target prices due to conservatism leads to a distortion of market prices. The evidence highlights the concern that analysts may not appreciate the valuation implications of conservative accounting which could inhibit price discovery.
Fundamental Analysis: Combining the Search for Quality with the Search for Value
Authors: Li Kevin , Mohanram Partha
Published: October 2018

Using cross‐sectional forecasts, we combine fundamental analysis strategies based on quality, such as the FSCORE from Piotroski (2000) and the GSCORE from Mohanram (2005), with strategies based on value, such as the V/P ratio from Frankel and Lee (1998) and the PEG ratio. While all four strategies generate significant hedge returns, combining quality‐driven and value‐driven approaches substantially improves the efficacy of fundamental analysis. Our parsimonious two‐dimensional approach can be applied to a wide cross section of stocks and outperforms common practitioner approaches that require a lengthy time series of data. The improvements in hedge returns hold for a variety of partitions and are robust to controls for risk factors and other determinants of stock returns. While the efficacy of fundamental analysis has declined in recent years, this can partially be attributed to investors arbitraging away excess returns by investing in fundamental strategies.
The Human Responses and Nursing Diagnoses of Those Living With Infertility: A Qualitative Systematic Review
Authors: Romeiro Joana , Caldeira Sílvia
Published: October 2018

OBJECTIVE

To systematically retrieve, critique, and synthesize patients’ human responses about living with infertility and identify possible related nursing diagnoses according to NANDA‐I.

METHODS

Systematic review of qualitative nursing studies.

FINDINGS

A total of 39 papers were included, 49 human responses, and 77 potential infertility‐related nursing diagnoses were identified across three themes. Main foci matching nursing diagnosis were related to spiritual well‐being, spiritual distress, and resilience.

CONCLUSIONS

Patients respond to infertility in a variety of ways and this raises the need for a more effective, holistic, and accurate nursing diagnosis.

IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE

The accuracy of the nursing diagnosis is critical in raising the quality of the nursing process and in meeting infertile patients’ circumstances and care expectations.
CAD/CAM implant crowns in a digital workflow: Five‐year follow‐up of a prospective clinical trial
Authors: Joda Tim , Bragger Urs , Zitzmann Nicola U.
Published: October 2018

Background

Implant restorations became the first choice for single‐tooth replacement today.

Purpose

The prospective clinical trial aims to investigate computer‐aided‐design (CAD)/computer‐aided‐manufacturing (CAM)‐processed implant crowns after 5 years of loading.

Materials and Methods

Twenty patients were included for cement‐retained crowns in posterior sites. Radiographic analysis of bone levels was performed after delivery and follow‐up. The Functional Implant Prosthodontic Score (FIPS) was assessed at the final follow‐up. Wilcoxon signed‐rank tests were used with a level of significance set at α = 0.05.

Results

One implant was lost, resulting in a success rate of 95% at 5 years. For 19 crowns, neither technical complications nor biological complications were observed. The mean marginal bone level was 0.6 ± 0.26 mm (range: 0.18‐1.12) mesially, and 0.79 ± 0.36 mm (range: 0.23‐1.36) distally at 5 years. During the observation period, mean radiographic bone levels increased significantly by 0.23 mm at mesial and by 0.17 mm at distal sites (P < .0001) indicating minor additional bone loss. The mean total FIPS score was 8.2 ± 1.0 (range: 7‐10) with the high score of 2.0 ± 0.0 for the variable “bone.”

Conclusions

CAD/CAM‐processed implant crowns demonstrated promising radiographic and clinical outcomes after 5 years in function. Future large‐scale trials are crucial to confirm these initial results in the field of digital implant processing.
Diverse knowledge systems reveal social–ecological dynamics that inform species conservation status
Authors: Lee Lynn Chi , Thorley Joe , Watson Jane , Reid Mike , Salomon Anne Katherine
Published: October 2018

Understanding changes over historical timescales is essential to gauge conservation status of a species. Modern ecological data typically neglect past magnitudes of change, which fortunately can be evaluated by bridging disparate knowledge sources. We synthesized zooarchaeological, historical, traditional, and western science knowledge to document changes in relative abundance of key species in Canada's northern abalone social–ecological system (SES) from the Holocene to present. Integrated models fit to traditional and western science data revealed 3.7% annual population decline from 1940s to 2010s for large abalone, although traditional knowledge density estimates were 9.5× higher than those derived from western science. Abalone are presently scarce compared to the mid‐1900s, but more abundant than before the early 1800s, calling their endangered status into question. Linking multiple knowledge sources can build SES understanding, facilitate power sharing, and support ecologically sustainable and socially just conservation outcomes.
First assessment of interferon gamma release assay results among healthcare workers at a general hospital in China
Authors: Guo Li Ping , Jiang Yan , Liu Ying Mei , Cao Bin
Published: October 2018

Introduction

China has a very high tuberculosis (TB) burden. The interferon‐gamma release assay (IGRA) is more specific for the diagnosis of latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI) than the tuberculin skin test, especially among populations with a high degree of coverage by the BCG vaccine.

Objectives

To evaluate the first screening of healthcare workers (HCW) for LTBI using the IGRA at a general hospital in Beijing.

Methods

A pilot screening program for LTBI was triggered by accidental contact between HCW and two patients with active TB in the emergency department (ED). Given the necessity of estimating the overall LTBI prevalence in the institution, a sample of 518 HCW was enrolled in our cross‐sectional study. The second IGRA was repeated with 43 of the 121 HCW in the ED after exposure to index TB cases. Data on putative risk factors were collected with a self‐administered questionnaire.

Results

The prevalence of LTBI in the targeted population was 21.8%. Differences in the prevalence of LTBI were significantly related to age, employment duration, and history of occupational exposure. A lack of childhood BCG vaccination was independently associated with the prevalence of LTBI (adjusted OR: 1.686, 95% CI: 1.045‐2.723, P = .0325). No new LTBI was diagnosed 12 weeks postexposure. No HCW adopted the preventive treatment for LTBI.

Conclusions

Considering the high morbidity of LTBI among HCW even in general hospitals, it is essential to formulate government policies and institutional operation protocols for the systematic screening, registration, and administration of prophylaxes for the control of LTBI.
Merkel cells in extraocular sebaceous carcinoma
Authors: Fernandez‐Flores Angel , Cassarino David S.
Published: October 2018

Introduction

Mature sebaceous glands do not contain Merkel cells. Neither do sebaceous tumors in the vast majority of cases. Recently, however, it was showed that rare sebaceous adenomas with a carcinoid‐like or labyrinthine pattern can contain intratumoral Merkel cells. Our purpose in this study is to examine for the presence of Merkel cells in extraocular sebaceous carcinomas.

Methods

Nineteen cases of extraocular sebaceous carcinoma were retrospectively studied with cytokeratin 20.

Results

One out of 19 cases (5.3%) contained Merkel cells in the basal layers of the tumoral nests of a sebaceous carcinoma from the cheek of a 76‐year‐old woman.

Conclusions

Merkel cells are rarely evident in extraocular sebaceous carcinoma, and therefore, their evidence does not exclude this diagnosis.
The ups and downs of low‐carbohydrate diets in the management of Type 1 diabetes: a review of clinical outcomes
Authors: Seckold R. , Fisher E. , de Bock M. , King B. R. , Smart C. E.
Published: October 2018

Dietary management has been a mainstay of care in Type 1 diabetes since before the discovery of insulin when severe carbohydrate restriction was advocated. The use of insulin facilitated re‐introduction of carbohydrate into the diet. Current management guidelines focus on a healthy and varied diet with consideration of glycaemic load, protein and fat. As a result of frustration with glycaemic outcomes, low‐carbohydrate diets have seen a resurgence in popularity. To date, low‐carbohydrate diets have not been well studied in the management of Type 1 diabetes. Studies looking at glycaemic outcomes from low‐carbohydrate diets have largely been cross‐sectional, without validated dietary data and with a lack of control groups. The participants have been highly motivated self‐selected individuals who follow intensive insulin management practices, including frequent blood glucose monitoring and additional insulin corrections with tight glycaemic targets. These confounders limit the ability to determine the extent of the impact of dietary carbohydrate restriction on glycaemic outcomes. Carbohydrate‐containing foods including grains, fruit and milk are important sources of nutrients. Hence, low‐carbohydrate diets require attention to vitamin and energy intake to avoid micronutrient deficiencies and growth issues. Adherence to restricted diets is challenging and can have an impact on social normalcy. In individuals with Type 1 diabetes, adverse health risks such as diabetic ketoacidosis, hypoglycaemia, dyslipidaemia and glycogen depletion remain clinical concerns. In the present paper, we review studies published to date and provide clinical recommendations for ongoing monitoring and support for individuals who choose to adopt a low‐carbohydrate diet. Strategies to optimize postprandial glycaemia without carbohydrate restriction are presented.
Stem cell therapies for Type 1 diabetes: current status and proposed road map to guide successful clinical trials
Authors: Senior P. A. , Pettus J. H.
Published: October 2018

Many people with Type 1 diabetes struggle with the burden of self‐management and are unable to achieve optimal glycaemic control without risk of hypoglycaemia. Future therapies with the potential to reduce the risk for short‐ and long‐term complications while simultaneously reducing the burden of diabetes are therefore attractive. β‐cell replacement is one strategy which might achieve this. Islet transplantation is limited by organ supply and the risks of long‐term immunosuppression. Encapsulated stem‐cell‐derived β cells have the potential to address both of these issues and phase I/II clinical trials of encapsulated pancreatic progenitors have begun. A significant risk associated with the translation of stem‐cell science to the clinical management of Type 1 diabetes is an underestimation of the complexity of the process and a mismatch between the hype and the expectations of both people with Type 1 diabetes and the public. We provide an update on progress in clinical trials of encapsulated stem‐cell‐derived β cells and propose a road map for the design and conduct of future trials to facilitate the translation of this exciting science to clinical care.
Day‐to‐day fasting self‐monitored blood glucose variability is associated with risk of hypoglycaemia in insulin‐treated patients with type 1 and type 2 diabetes: A post hoc analysis of the SWITCH Trials
Authors: DeVries J. Hans , Bailey Timothy S. , Bhargava Anuj , Gerety Gregg , Gumprecht Janusz , Heller Simon , Lane Wendy , Wysham Carol H. , Zinman Bernard , Bak Britta A. , Hachmann‐Nielsen Elise , Philis‐Tsimikas Athena
Published: October 2018

Aims

To investigate the association between day‐to‐day fasting self‐monitored blood glucose (SMBG) variability and risk of hypoglycaemia in type 1 (T1D) and type 2 diabetes (T2D), and to compare day‐to‐day fasting SMBG variability between treatments with insulin degludec (degludec) and insulin glargine 100 units/mL (glargine U100).

Materials and Methods

Data were retrieved from two double‐blind, randomized, treat‐to‐target, two‐period (32 weeks each) crossover trials of degludec vs glargine U100 in T1D (SWITCH 1, n = 501) and T2D (SWITCH 2, n = 720). Available fasting SMBGs were used to determine the standard deviation (SD) of day‐to‐day fasting SMBG variability for each patient and the treatment combination. The association between day‐to‐day fasting SMBG variability and overall symptomatic, nocturnal symptomatic and severe hypoglycaemia was analysed for the pooled population using linear regression, with fasting SMBG variability included as a three‐level factor defined by population tertiles. Finally, day‐to‐day fasting SMBG variability was compared between treatments.

Results

Linear regression showed that day‐to‐day fasting SMBG variability was significantly associated with overall symptomatic, nocturnal symptomatic and severe hypoglycaemia risk in T1D and T2D (P < 0.05). Day‐to‐day fasting SMBG variability was significantly associated (P < 0.01) with all categories of hypoglycaemia risk, with the exception of severe hypoglycaemia in T2D when analysed within tertiles. Degludec was associated with 4% lower day‐to‐day fasting SMBG variability than glargine U100 in T1D (P = 0.0082) and with 10% lower day‐to‐day fasting SMBG variability in T2D (P < 0.0001).

Conclusions

Higher day‐to‐day fasting SMBG variability is associated with an increased risk of overall symptomatic, nocturnal symptomatic and severe hypoglycaemia. Degludec has significantly lower day‐to‐day fasting SMBG variability vs glargine U100.