bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
A novel multi-dimensional features fusion algorithm for the EEG signal recognition of brain's sensorimotor region activated tasks
Authors: Wei Minghua , Lin Feng
Published: June 2020

Purpose

Aiming at the shortcomings of EEG signals generated by brain's sensorimotor region activated tasks, such as poor performance, low efficiency and weak robustness, this paper proposes an EEG signals classification method based on multi-dimensional fusion features.

Design/methodology/approach

First, the improved Morlet wavelet is used to extract the spectrum feature maps from EEG signals. Then, the spatial-frequency features are extracted from the PSD maps by using the three-dimensional convolutional neural networks (3DCNNs) model. Finally, the spatial-frequency features are incorporated to the bidirectional gated recurrent units (Bi-GRUs) models to extract the spatial-frequency-sequential multi-dimensional fusion features for recognition of brain's sensorimotor region activated task.

Findings

In the comparative experiments, the data sets of motor imagery (MI)/action observation (AO)/action execution (AE) tasks are selected to test the classification performance and robustness of the proposed algorithm. In addition, the impact of extracted features on the sensorimotor region and the impact on the classification processing are also analyzed by visualization during experiments.

Originality/value

The experimental results show that the proposed algorithm extracts the corresponding brain activation features for different action related tasks, so as to achieve more stable classification performance in dealing with AO/MI/AE tasks, and has the best robustness on EEG signals of different subjects.
“I was trying to speak to their human side” coping responses of Belgium’s undocumented migrants to barriers in health-care access
Authors: Lafaut Dirk , Coene Gily
Published: June 2020

Purpose

Undocumented migrants experience major legal constraints in their health-care access. Little is known on how undocumented migrants cope with these limitations in health-care access as individuals. The purpose of this study is to explore the coping responses of undocumented migrants when they experience limited health-care access in face-to-face encounters with health-care providers.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors conducted multi-site ethnographic observations and 25 semi-structured in-depth interviews with undocumented migrants in Belgium. They combined the “candidacy model” of health-care access with models from coping literature on racism as a framework. The candidacy model allowed them to understand access to health care as a dynamic and interactive negotiation process between health-care workers and undocumented migrants.

Findings

Responses to impaired health-care access can be divided into four main strategies: (1) individuals can react with a self-protective response withdrawing from seeking further care; (2) they can get around the obstacle; (3) they can influence the health-care worker involved by deploying discursive or performative skills; or (4) they can seek to confront the source of the obstacle.

Research limitations/implications

These findings point to the importance of care relations and social networks, as well as discursive and performative skills of undocumented migrants when negotiating barriers in access to health care.

Originality/value

This study refines the candidacy model by highlighting how individuals respond on a micro-level to shifts towards exclusionary health policies and, by doing so dynamically, change provision of health-care services.
The changing fortunes of UK retired households, 1977–2017
Authors: Gilleard Chris
Published: June 2020

Purpose

This study aims to explore whether trends in the pattern of income inequality over the past 40 years apply equally to working and retirement age households in the UK, and if so, why this might be so.

Design/methodology/approach

Drawing on data from the Office of National Statistics, various indices of income inequality have been calculated among retired and working-age households for the period 1977–2017.

Findings

Despite a broadly similar trend towards increasing inequality during the 1980s and into the 1990s among both types of household, income inequality among UK retired households has always remained below than that of working-age households. For retired and working-age households alike, the fortunes of those in the upper half of the income distribution have seen themselves do better. Despite the temporal contiguity, different explanations for both sets of inequalities seem to be required, and likely different strategies needed to ameliorate their more negative effects.

Originality/value

Few studies have conducted comparisons of inequality between retirement and working-age households over four decades in any country. The present study's long view suggests that factors creating inequality in the upper half of the income distribution may differ in both their cause and impact, compared with inequalities in the lower half. Arguably, the greatest need is to improve access to benefits for those retired householders at the bottom of the income distribution.
Fostering valuable learning experiences by transforming current teaching practices: practical pedagogical approaches from online practitioners
Authors: Itow Rebecca Chiyoko
Published: June 2020

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to share lessons learned and tools developed that teachers can use to build pedagogically sound online courses. Transitioning to online instruction is not learning to teach all over again, and it does not have to feel that way either. Through the lens of three common questions new online teachers ask, the principal of a university-run online high school offers practical advice for transforming current pedagogical practices into effective online teaching. This transformation is structured with an innovative “multi-level” approach to assessment. This structure helps organize the transformation, letting teachers focus on building and/or maintaining crucial relationships and meaningful learning experiences with their students.

Design/methodology/approach

An innovative assessment lens structures the transformation of practices from brick-and-mortar to online settings, clearing the opacity of the online teaching context so that teachers can return their focus building relationships and meaningful learning experiences with their students.

Findings

The paper offers immediately-implementable strategies for designing online courses that facilitate relationship building, meet curricular goals, and are pedagogically sound.

Practical implications

Teachers can adapt the tools, resources, and advice included in this paper to fit their unique teaching needs as they move to online teaching contexts.

Originality/value

This paper uses the pedagogical model and assessment lens developed by the university-run high school and its principal to offer unique, practically implementable strategies for transitioning from brick-and-mortar to online teaching in this tumultuous time.
Earnings management and the informational and disciplining role of debt: evidence from Iran
Authors: Ghorbani Arash , Salehi Mahdi
Published: June 2020

Purpose

The agency theory predicts that there are conflict of interests between managers and shareholders over free cash flow and major operating decisions. Earnings management can help managers hide and retain their private benefits of control. Given that, the purpose of this study is to investigate whether financial leverage reduces agency and information problems caused by earnings management.

Design/methodology/approach

The research uses a sample of annual data of 200 firms listed on the Tehran Stock Exchange during 2002-2016. The data required is obtained from the Rahavard Novin database. The research uses multivariate regression models that regress financial leverage on earnings management proxies and other determinants of capital structure.

Findings

The research documents that firms with higher income smoothing and the absolute value of discretionary accruals, as the proxies for earnings management, have higher financial leverage. The results suggest that a higher level of financial leverage can discipline managers and generate useful information about firm quality.

Originality/value

The study highlights the informational and disciplining role of debt in the presence of severe uncertainty about firm quality in a developing country.
Microfinance services and the productivity of cocoa family farms in Cameroon
Authors: Belek Alim , Jean-Marie Abega Ngono
Published: June 2020

Purpose

This study aims to assess the effects of microfinance institution (MFI) services on the productivity of family farms in Cameroon, in the region of Mbam and Kim. It will be a question, therefore, of determining the level and determiners of the outputs of family farms, in particular those concerned by the cultures of cocoa, beneficiaries of the agricultural services of MFIs.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors use the Blinder (1973) and Oaxaca (1973) model of decomposition of the productivity differential between beneficiaries and non-beneficiaries of agricultural credits on a sample of 130 cocoa farming households and four MFIs of the same area between 2008 and 2011.

Findings

The yield gap between beneficiaries and non-beneficiaries of agricultural credits is estimated at 0.19 tons per hectare. This gap is explained positively by the financial aid variable, the farm size variable, which is significant in the explanation of the beneficiaries' level of returns and the constant term. On the other hand, all the socio-economic variables of the farmers contribute to reduce this gap of productivity.

Research limitations/implications

This financial assistance from CVECA is essential to increase agricultural yields because it helps to cancel out some structural barriers. However, as this improvement in yields is only possible for large farms, the services of the MFIs would rather favor extensification policies. Nevertheless, the study results are limited by the negative effects of the socio-economic characteristics of the farmers on these yields, the study having been revealed without any selectivity bias.

Originality/value

This study seeks to reverse the trend that in rural areas, MFIs are financing agriculture to increase extensification rather than enhancing intensification in sub-Saharan Africa by challenging the role of MFI services in intensification.
Expert review and pretesting of behavioral supervision in higher education
Authors: Muda Habsah , Baba Zaharah Salwati , Awang Zainudin , Badrul Natasha Shazleen , Loganathan Nanthakumar , Ali Mass Hareeza
Published: June 2020

Purpose

The rationale for the postgraduate supervision measures for higher education by the call for universities to adopt a systematic practice in postgraduate supervision through new supervisors' exposure to creative ways of monitoring. This paper aims at understanding, improving and validating the content of behavioral supervision measures using the expert review and pretesting analysis.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors developed, modified and operationalized the items based on the developmental supervision theoretical concept by Glickman (1980) to measure the behavioral supervision of postgraduate in higher education. The authors obtain comments and verification from experts for content validity and criterion validity. Later, the authors do pretesting of face validity.

Findings

The result of the expert review and pretesting, analysis, provides measures (items) for the following seven stages (components) of postgraduate behavioral supervision: listening/clarifying; encouraging; presenting/demonstrating; negotiating/problem-solving; directing; standardizing and reinforcing.

Practical implications

The findings contribute to the rational development of supervision measures and functional transformation in the postgraduate supervision process in higher education at national and international contexts.

Social implications

These supervision measures, if practiced by the supervisors and postgraduates' students, will accelerate and achieve the aspiration initiative of the Ministry of Higher Education. In general, based on the needs identified, the positive impact of this study can improve national and international postgraduate program educational outcomes.

Originality/value

There is limited number of empirical research which resulted in postgraduate behavioral supervision measures in the context of higher education.
Cognitive and emotional factors contributing to green customer citizenship behaviours: a moderated mediation model
Authors: van Tonder Estelle , Fullerton Sam , de Beer Leon T.
Published: June 2020

Purpose

This study aims to provide novel insight into cognitive and emotional factors contributing to green customer citizenship behaviours, as mediated by green attitudes in general and moderated by culture.

Design/methodology/approach

The investigation was guided by the “value attitude behaviour hierarchy” and green customer emotions, which served as a framework for understanding the mediating effect of attitude on the relationships between cognitive and emotional factors (green consumption values and emotional affinity towards nature) and customer citizenship advocacy and feedback behaviours. Data was obtained from respondents in the USA and South Korea. Multi-group confirmatory factor analysis, structural equation modelling, bootstrapping and Wald tests were performed to conclude on the model and verify the moderating effect of culture on the indirect effects established.

Findings

In both countries, green consumption values and emotional affinity towards nature positively influence green attitudes and stimulate feedback behaviour. Green attitudes only predict advocacy in the USA. Culture moderates the majority of the indirect effects examined.

Research limitations/implications

The model presents a novel approach to stimulate green advocacy and feedback behaviours and may aid firms in closing the “green gap” and co-create value with customers. Firms could profit from customers advocating the benefits of green purchasing to other customers and providing feedback on interventions required that will convince reluctant customers to make a purchase.

Originality/value

This study offers a multicultural perspective on the connection between a novel set of cognitive and emotional factors and green customer citizenship advocacy and feedback behaviours that may directly and indirectly influence green purchasing, value co-creation and closing of the “green gap”.
Grey corruption issues in the public sector
Authors: Prenzler Tim
Published: June 2020

Purpose

This paper aims to identify key learnings around the concept of “grey corruption” by systematically reviewing the extant literature. The concept is addressed in terms of areas of alleged misconduct often considered “minor” or “borderline” in relation to “black corruption”. Common examples include favourable treatment of friends and relatives by public officials, receipt of gifts, excessive expenditures and pork barrelling, influence peddling through donations and lies and false promises. The focus of this study is on definitions, extent, public perspectives, explanations and evidence of promising prevention strategies.

Design/methodology/approach

Relevant sources were sought using systematic keyword searches of major criminological and political databases, a media database and relevant government and non-government websites, up to the end of December 2019.

Findings

The main findings were that there is no single accepted definition of grey corruption but that the concept remains useful, practice is often extensive, it is generally at odds with public opinion, opportunity is a key factor in its incidence and prevention requires the enactment and enforcement of clear principles.

Research limitations/implications

Media-reported cases were too numerous to analyse in detail for the present study.

Practical implications

Efforts to improve integrity in government need to take account of the concept. Rules require clarification and communication. Enforcement needs improvement. More experiments are needed in prevention.

Social implications

This paper captures a range of integrity issues of importance to the public but often downgraded or dismissed by politicians.

Originality/value

This paper is unique in reporting the results of a systematic search of the international literature on the topic.
The emerging roles of academic librarians in Kenya: apomediaries or infomediaries?
Authors: Nakitare Joel , Sawe Emily , Nyambala Joyce , Kwanya Tom
Published: June 2020

Purpose

The main purpose of this study was to investigate the emerging roles of academic librarians in Kenya, with a view to determining whether they perform better as apomediaries or infomediaries. The specific objectives were to: examine the characteristics of the changing information universe in which academic librarians in Kenya currently operate; analyse the information-seeking behaviour of academic library users in the new information universe and examine the emerging roles of academic librarians in Kenya.

Design/methodology/approach

This study adopted a descriptive research design and used an online survey research technique to collect data from practising academic librarians. This study targeted senior librarians from all the 67 private and public universities in Kenya. One senior librarian per university was purposefully selected to fill the questionnaire owing to their experience and expertise. 33 out of the 67 senior librarians responded to the survey. The collected data were descriptively analysed using SPSS, and as per the study objectives.

Findings

This study established that most library users are digital independent and access library resources remotely. Nonetheless, many users still borrow and utilize print books despite the ubiquity of digital platforms. The findings revealed that academic librarians to a great extent now play the role of apomediaries, going beyond information giving to empowering their users.

Practical implications

There is need for academic librarians in Kenya to not only be aware of the characteristics of their current users but also to continuously develop professionally so as to be able to adequately cater for the needs of their clients.

Originality/value

This paper contributes to the scholarship on librarians' roles in Kenya by demonstrating that most of them are transitioning to the apomediary roles.
Experiential value influences authentic happiness and behavioural intention: lessons from Taiwan’s tourism accommodation sector
Authors: Fu Yan-Kai , Wang Ya-Ju
Published: June 2020

Purpose

The main purpose of this study was to investigate how the experiential value of lodging tourists affected the relationship between authentic happiness and behavioural intention.

Design/methodology/approach

A purposive sampling technique was adopted for Taiwanese tourists with lodging experience during the 2017 Taipei International Travel Fair; and utilises confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), and structural equation modelling (SEM) to validate the suitability of questionnaire items, model fit, and the proposed hypotheses.

Findings

The results demonstrated that experiential value significantly and positively influenced authentic happiness. The mediating effect of authentic happiness through which experiential value enhances behavioural intention of lodging tourists was also found to exist.

Originality/value

This study provides a novel approach which presents experiential value as the antecedent variable, authentic happiness as the mediator, and behavioural intention as the dependent variable, in order to better understand tourists’ lodging decision-making processes and behaviours and this approach is considered an advancement within the literature.
Mountain tourism and second home tourism as post COVID-19 lockdown placebo?
Authors: Seraphin Hugues , Dosquet Frederic
Published: June 2020

Purpose

The purpose of this study adopts a news media narrative approach to Yield insights on aspects of the COVID-19 impact.

Design/methodology/approach

This study adopts a news media narrative approach as this method can yield insights on aspects of the COVID-19 impact.

Findings

In the post-COVID-19 lockdown context, second-home tourism and mountain tourism could play the role of placebo. The dual dimension of second-home tourism and mountain tourism reflect the Janus-faced character of the tourism industry. Beyond the fact that this study has highlighted the placebo role that both forms of tourism are probably going to play, it makes the connection between mountain tourism and second-home tourism; highlights the Janus-faced character of both forms of tourism; and highlights the mutation impacts of COVID-19 on tourism trends.

Originality/value

COVID-19 is the current concern, and this paper offers a timely perspective on a topic of significant interest.
Traits link drought resistance with herbivore defence and plant economics in semi‐arid grasslands: The central roles of phenology and leaf dry matter content
Authors: Blumenthal Dana M. , Mueller Kevin E. , Kray Julie A. , Ocheltree Troy W. , Augustine David J. , Wilcox Kevin R.
Published: June 2020

Despite progress in trait‐based ecology, there is limited understanding of the plant traits that structure semi‐arid grasslands. In particular, it remains unclear how traits that enable plants to cope with water limitation are related to traits that influence other key functions such as herbivore defence and growth. The hypothesis that drought and herbivory exert convergent selection pressures is supported for morphological traits, but largely untested for structural, physiological and phenological traits. Drought and economic traits can also covary, but where and to what degree remains uncertain.

Here we address these uncertainties in semi‐arid shortgrass steppe and mixedgrass prairie, the largest remaining grasslands in North America. Using a broad selection of traits for 37 of the most common plant species in each ecosystem, we ask whether traits that confer drought tolerance, avoidance and escape covary with herbivore resistance traits and economic traits.

Results reveal that both drought tolerance and escape are coordinated with other functions, but in opposite fashion. Drought‐tolerant species (low leaf osmotic potential and high leaf dry matter content, LDMC) were also herbivore resistant (high leaf toughness and cellulose) and at the ‘slow’ end of the economic spectrum (low leaf nitrogen, leaf phosphorus and high stem density). Conversely, drought escape via early senescence was associated with lower drought tolerance, lower herbivore resistance and ‘fast’ economic traits. Drought avoidance, as indicated by thick leaves, may also be associated with lower drought tolerance (LDMC). Senescence date and LDMC appear to be key traits in these semi‐arid grasslands, differentiating species along multiple axes of function.

Synthesis. Covariation between drought, herbivory and economic traits means that, of the many potential trait combinations, few actually exist within these grasslands. Consequently, changes in land management and climate should have predictable effects on drought resistance, forage quality and productivity in the western Great Plains.
Does microcredit reduce the gender gap in employment? Evidence from Egypt
Authors: Arouri Mohamed , Cuong Nguyen Viet
Published: June 2020

In Egypt, there is a remarkable gap between men's and women's participation in the labour market. In this study, we examine the impact of microcredit on the labour supply of men and women and subsequently investigate whether microcredit can reduce the employment gap between men and women in Egypt. We find a negative effect of microcredit on men's employment, but a positive effect on the employment of women. Borrowing from a microcredit source increases the probability of women working by 8.5 percentage points and mainly affects self‐employed work. We also find a positive effect of microcredit on work in small businesses. This finding suggests that women can use microcredit to open small shops or household businesses. Finally, using decomposition analysis, we find that microcredit reduces the overall employment gap between men and women by 0.743%.
Testing the nexus between renewable energy consumption and environmental quality in Nigeria: The role of broad‐based financial development
Authors: Iorember Paul Terhemba , Goshit Gideon G. , Dabwor Dalis T.
Published: June 2020

This study investigates the nexus between renewable energy consumption and environmental quality in Nigeria, accounting for the role of financial development, and re‐examines the validity of the environmental Kuznet curve (EKC) hypothesis for Nigeria covering the period 1990 to 2016. To cover financial development more adequately, the current study uses the broad‐based financial development index constructed by the International Monetary Fund. The study employs second generation econometric approaches of Lee and Strazicich, and Bayer and Hanck combined cointegration tests to check for stationarity and cointegration among the variables, and then applies autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) and vector error correction model (VECM) Granger causality tests to explore the effect and causal relationship respectively. The results divulge that renewable energy consumption improves environmental quality, while financial development hurts the environment. Further, the results validate an inverted U‐shaped association between economic growth and environmental degradation in Nigeria. The VECM Granger causality results indicate a long‐run effect of the independent variables on CO2 emission, while the short‐run causality reveals a mixture of unidirectional and bidirectional causality among the variables. This study therefore recommends that policy makers consider the important roles of renewable energy and financial development in reforming energy policies to achieve environmental sustainability.
Lower serum albumin level is associated with increased risk of hospital admission and length of stay in hospital among incident hemodialysis patients by using overdispersed model
Authors: Uludag Koray , Boz Gulsah , Gunal Ali Ihsan
Published: June 2020

Serum albumin is a major determinant of hospitalization in patients with end‐stage renal disease (ESRD). Previous reports generally use the Poisson model to evaluate the relationships between outcome and response variables. However, hospitalization data are often overdispersed, and few studies using appropriate methods exist in the literature.This retrospective cohort study included 426 patients with ESRD receiving hemodialysis treatment between 2014 and 2018. Using a negative binomial regression model with hierarchical multivariable adjustments, we investigated the relationship between serum albumin, hospital admissions, and total hospitalization days. Mean age and mean baseline serum albumin levels were 64.7 ± 11 years and 3.5 ± 0.5 g/dL, respectively. At least one hospitalization was identified in 402 (94%) patients. The incidence rate was 1.48 (95% CI, 1.41‐1.56) admissions per patient‐year during the follow‐up period of 5 years. A negative linear association was observed between serum albumin and hospitalization frequency. Hospitalization rates (95% CI) were 1.81 (1.65‐1.98), 1.44 (1.3‐1.59), 1.36 (1.22‐1.51), and 1.33 (1.2‐1.48) per patient‐year in serum albumin levels ≤3, 3.1 to ≤3.3, 3.4 to ≤3.7, and ≥3.8 g/dL, respectively. Case mix‐adjusted incidence rate ratio was 0.82 (95% CI, 0.70‐0.94), while it was robust to further adjustments for malnutrition and inflammation markers. Similar results were observed in hospitalization days and time to the first hospitalization. These findings, which result from the negative binomial model using overdispersed data, suggest that lower serum albumin is related to increased hospitalization rates and hospital days in incident hemodialysis patients.
Thermal Regimes of Perennial Rivers and Streams in the Western United States
Authors: Isaak Daniel J. , Luce Charles H. , Horan Dona L. , Chandler Gwynne L. , Wollrab Sherry P. , Dubois William B. , Nagel David E.
Published: June 2020

Thermal regimes of rivers and streams profoundly affect aquatic ecosystems, but are poorly described and classified in many areas due to the limited availability of annual datasets from extensive and representative monitoring networks. By mining a new temperature database composed of >23,000 site records that spans the western United States (U.S.), we extract annual monitoring records at 578 sites on perennial streams to describe regimes in this diverse region. Records were summarized using 34 metrics that described regime aspects related to magnitude, variation, frequency, duration, and timing. The metrics were used in a multivariate cluster analysis to classify streams into seven distinct regime types and in a principal components analysis (PCA) to examine patterns of redundancy among metrics. The PCA indicated that 2–5 orthogonal PC axes accounted for 74%–89% of the variation in thermal regimes at the monitoring sites. Most of the variation in PC scores that defined the two dominant axes was in turn predictable from a suite of geospatial covariates in multiple linear regressions that included elevation, latitude, riparian canopy density, reach slope, precipitation, lake prevalence, and dam height. Our results have parallels to previous flow regime analyses that describe the utility of small numbers of PCs or allied metrics in regime characterization, and can be used to better understand and parsimoniously represent thermal regimes in the western U.S.
On the relationship of fractal geometry and tree–stand metrics on point clouds derived from terrestrial laser scanning
Authors: Guzmán Q. J. Antonio , Sharp Iain , Alencastro Felipe , Sánchez‐Azofeifa G. Arturo
Published: June 2020

Fractals have been widely used to determine bifurcation patterns in trees or to analyse the homeostasis of the development of plants to different environments. In a few instances, fractals have been used to predict tree or stand metrics. Here, we explore the use of fractal geometry based on the voxel‐counting method (VC) to predict tree and stands metrics on point clouds derived from terrestrial laser scanning. This was explored using 189 leaf‐on and leaf‐off point clouds from seven databases around the world.

Four metrics were estimated at the tree level: height, diameter at breast height, crown area and tree volume. At the stand level, artificial stands were created by adding trees to a given plot, and then the basal area, stand volume and area coverage by crowns were estimated. The VC was applied to trees or stands creating voxels of different volumes (S) while counting the number of voxels (N) required to fill it. Log–log relationships between N and 1/S were used to estimate the fractal dimension (dMB) and the interceptMB.

At the tree level, the interceptMB shows a stronger relationship with metrics for leaf‐on (r2 = 0.26‒0.90) and leaf‐off point clouds (r2 = 0.18‒0.87) than dMB (r2 < 0.34); however, dMB seems to describe better the complexity embedded within leaf‐on/leaf‐off point clouds. The predictions by the interceptMB are affected by the presence/absence of leaves, but less affected by the random effects of the databases. At the stand level, both fractal geometry parameters (interceptMB and dMB) tend to predict the variability of stand metrics (r2 = 0.61‒0.98).

The estimation of tree and stand metrics based on fractal geometry equations can be considered a fast approach for predicting irregular structures. Using fractals on point clouds also allows us to understand the structural complexity of how trees or stands occupy their 3D space. This complexity can be further used as a structural trait of trees or forest ecosystems. Fractal geometry equations can also help towards the development of large‐scale biomass maps at different ecosystems.
Chronic Alcohol Consumption Exacerbates the Severity of Psoriasiform Dermatitis in Mice
Authors: Vasseur Philippe , Pohin Mathilde , Gisclard Coralie , Jégou Jean‐François , Morel Franck , Silvain Christine , Lecron Jean‐Claude
Published: June 2020

Background

A relationship between alcohol consumption and psoriasis has been reported, but it is unclear whether alcohol consumption aggravates psoriasis. Here, we studied the effect of chronic ethanol (EtOH) consumption in the murine model of Aldara‐induced psoriasiform dermatitis.

Methods

C57BL/6 mice received 5% EtOH in their drinking water for 10 weeks. Dermatitis was induced from weeks 9 to 10, by applying Aldara to the shaved patch of skin on the back. Inflammation was characterized by histological and transcriptomic analyses.

Results

EtOH consumption aggravated Aldara‐induced dermatitis. The scales were more severe, epidermal thickening was more pronounced, and cutaneous expression of Th17‐related cytokines was exacerbated. Control mice simply receiving EtOH displayed minimal cutaneous inflammation, characterized by epidermal infiltrates of T lymphocytes and the overexpression of IL‐17A and the Th17‐recruiting chemokine CCL20. In vitro studies showed that low concentrations of EtOH induce the expression of CCL20 by murine epidermal keratinocytes.

Conclusion

Alcohol consumption leads to subliminar skin inflammation, which is revealed by the exacerbation of Aldara‐induced experimental psoriasiform dermatitis, likely through Th17‐type minimal skin inflammation. These results favor the systematic management of alcohol consumption in psoriatic patients.
Trend and distribution of coronal dental caries in Australians adults
Authors: Peres Karen G , Ha Diep H , Christofis Sofia
Published: June 2020

Aims

To report the experience of coronal dental caries in the Australian adult population.

Methods

Dentate people aged 15 years and over were online or telephone interviewed, and dental examined (n = 5022). The number of decay, missing and filled surfaces (DMFS) were recorded. Independent variables were demographic, socioeconomic conditions and dental care characteristics. Proportions of DMFS >0, average DMFS and its components were calculated.

Results

Overall, 32.1% had decayed surfaces, with a higher proportion found in males (34.7%) and 40% higher in those living in remote areas than in those living in major city and regional areas. The prevalence of decayed surfaces varied from 37.4% (lowest income group) to 25.0% (highest income group). The mean number of decayed surfaces was three times higher in the lowest income group compared to the highest one. Uninsured people had a higher prevalence of decayed surfaces and lower mean of filling surfaces than insured group. Participants with an unfavourable pattern of dental visiting had two times higher prevalence of decay than their counterparts. Overall, three quarters (77.4%) had at least one filling in their permanent dentition. This percentage increased from 61.6% among 15–34 year olds, to 88.0% among those aged 55–74 years.

Conclusion

Socioeconomic inequalities in caries experience persist in Australia.
Effects of bleaching gel containing TiO2 and chitosan on tooth surface roughness, microhardness and colour
Authors: Kolsuz Ozcetin H , Surmelioglu D
Published: June 2020

Background

This study aimed to evaluate the effects of an experimental bleaching gel made with TiO2 and chitosan, along with the Opalescence Boost PF and Philips Zoom bleaching agents, on tooth surface roughness, microhardness and colour.

Materials and Methods

The experimental gel, containing 6% hydrogen peroxide (HP), was evaluated against the two existing treatments, which incorporate 40% and 25% HP. For colour evaluation, 36 human premolar teeth were divided into three groups (n = 12). For surface roughness and microhardness evaluation, 72 bovine incisor samples were divided into six groups (n = 12). Data on colour alteration were analysed with the CIEDE2000 formula. Surface roughness was measured using a profilometer, and microhardness was measured with a Vickers hardness tester. ANOVA was used for statistical analysis.

Results

There were no statistically significant differences among the groups for surface roughness, microhardness values or colour change after bleaching (P > 0.05). The lowest bleaching efficacy was observed for the 40% HP agent, and the highest efficacy was observed for the 25% HP agent (P < 0.05).

Conclusions

An experimental 6% HP gel containing TiO2 and chitosan provided effective bleaching without adverse effects on tooth surface roughness or microhardness. The use of TiO2 with chitosan can provide clinicians with positive results.
The Dutch well child language screening protocol for 2‐year‐old children was valid for detecting current and later language problems
Authors: Visser‐Bochane Margot , Luinge Margreet , Dieleman Liesbeth , van der Schans Cees , Reijneveld Sijmen
Published: June 2020

Aim

A little is known about predictive validity of and professionals' adherence to language screening protocols. This study assessed the concurrent and predictive validity of the Dutch well child language screening protocol for 2‐year‐old children and the effects of protocol deviations by professionals.

Methods

A prospective cohort study of 124 children recruited and tested between October 2013 and December 2015. Children were recruited from four well child clinics in urban and rural areas. To validate the screening, we assessed children's language ability with standardised language tests following the 2‐year screening and 1 year later. We assessed the concurrent and predictive validity of the screening and of protocol deviations.

Results

At 2 years, the sensitivity and specificity of the language screening were 0.79 and 0.86, and at 3 years 0.82 and 0.74, respectively. Protocol deviations by professionals were rare (7%) and did not significantly affect the validity of the screening.

Conclusion

The language screening protocol was valid for detecting current and later language problems. Deviations from the protocol by professionals were rare and did not affect the concurrent nor predictive validity of the protocol. The 2‐year language screening supports professionals working in preventive child health care and deserves wider implementation in well child care.
Ibuprofen in needle procedures in children with cancer—A feasibility and pilot study
Authors: Kamsvåg Tove , Hedén Lena , von Essen Louise , Ljungman Gustaf
Published: June 2020

Aim

To investigate the feasibility, and perform a pilot study, of a randomised clinical trial, investigating whether children experience less pain, fear and/or distress when they receive oral ibuprofen vs placebo before a needle is inserted in a subcutaneously implanted intravenous port.

Methods

Twenty‐three children were included consecutively and randomised to either oral ibuprofen (n = 12) 7.5 mg/kg body weight or placebo (n = 11). The child's pain, fear and distress were reported by parents, nurses and the children (if ≥7 years of age). Feasibility criteria were defined as (a) ≥4 children included/month, (b) ≥80% of eligible patients agreed to participate, (c) >90% treated according to protocol, (d) <5% missing data, (e) s‐cortisol samples analysed in ≥90% of the children.

Results

All feasibility criteria were met except recruitment and consent. Parents, nurses and children reported no trend of benefit of oral ibuprofen with regard to pain, fear and distress compared with placebo.

Conclusion

The study failed to meet important feasibility criteria and was closed due to low recruitment rate and absence of trend of effect. From this data, we cannot state that ibuprofen is not helpful in needle procedures but that it seems unlikely.
All‐cause and cause‐specific mortality in microscopic colitis: a Danish nationwide matched cohort study
Authors: Nyboe Andersen Nynne , Munck Lars Kristian , Hansen Susanne , Jess Tine , Wildt Signe
Published: June 2020

Background

The long‐term natural history of microscopic colitis remains uncertain.

Aim

To describe the mortality in a large unselected cohort of patients with microscopic colitis.

Methods

All Danish patients above 18 years with an incident diagnosis of microscopic colitis from 2001 to 2018 were identified from nationwide registries and compared to age‐ and sex‐matched controls (variable 1:10 ratio). Patients were categorised according to subtypes: lymphocytic colitis and collagenous colitis. The relative risk of death by any cause was analysed with Cox regression models estimating both crude and comorbidity‐adjusted hazard ratios (HRs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Cause‐specific death was evaluated with cumulative incidence functions. An E‐value was calculated to address the impact of unmeasured confounding.

Results

The final cohort consisted of 14 024 patients with microscopic colitis. The mean follow‐up was 5.8 (standard deviation SD, 2.9) years and the mean age at diagnosis was 61.1 (SD 13.9) years, 70% were women and 41% were diagnosed with lymphocytic colitis. The main results showed a 25% increased risk of all‐cause death in patients with microscopic colitis; however, the relative risk was attenuated to 9% when adjusting for comorbidities (95% CI, 1.05‐1.14). The E‐value indicates that unmeasured confounding could explain the residual observed increased all‐cause mortality. Mortality was significantly increased in patients with both lymphocytic colitis (HR 1.15; 95% CI, 1.08‐1.23) and collagenous colitis (HR 1.06; 95% CI, 1.01‐1.12) in fully adjusted analyses. The absolute difference in death between patients with microscopic colitis and matches was 0.9% at 1 year, 2.8% at 5 years, 5.0% at 10 years and 3.0% at 15 years. Cumulative incidence functions showed that patients with microscopic colitis were more likely to die due to smoking‐related diseases including ischemic heart and lung diseases, but had a significant decreased risk of death due to colorectal cancers (P < 0.0001).

Conclusion

In an unselected large nationwide cohort of patients with microscopic colitis, the risk of death was significantly increased compared to the background population. However, the increased mortality seemed to be associated to a high burden of comorbidities and unmeasured life‐style factors including smoking and not microscopic colitis per se.
Short‐term outcome of adrenalectomy in dogs with adrenal gland tumours that did not receive pre‐operative medical management
Authors: Appelgrein C , Hosgood G , Drynan E , Nesbitt A
Published: June 2020

Objective

Review medical records of dogs that underwent adrenalectomy without pre‐operative medical management, to examine the peri‐operative morbidity and mortality.

Design

Case series of 65 dogs.

Methods

Medical records were reviewed. Features recorded included the histologic diagnosis, intra‐operative hypertension or tachycardia, requirement for cavotomy, administration of intra‐ and post‐operative corticosteroids, performance of additional surgery and the occurrence of peri‐operative complications. Dogs requiring emergency surgery were excluded.

Results

Of the 65 dogs, 49 had adrenocortical tumours (11 bilateral), 13 had pheochromocytomas (one bilateral) and three dogs had tumours in both adrenal glands of a different tumour type. Five dogs had caudal vena cava invasion and 33 had additional procedures performed at the same time. Mortality occurred in 1/65 dogs (1.5%; 95% CI 0.03%–8.2%), major complications were identified in 1/65 dogs (1.5%; 95% CI 0.03%–8.2%) and minor complications occurred in 10/53 dogs (15%; 95% CI 8.6%–26%).

Conclusion

Based on the limited peri‐operative complications and low mortality in this pre‐operatively untreated cohort, and based on critique of the available literature, the added value afforded by pre‐operative treatment is questioned. With appropriate management, adrenal tumours can be removed with few peri‐operative complications and low mortality.
‘Distancers’ and ‘non‐distancers’? The potential social psychological impact of moralizing COVID‐19 mitigating practices on sustained behaviour change
Authors: Prosser Annayah M. B. , Judge Madeline , Bolderdijk Jan Willem , Blackwood Leda , Kurz Tim
Published: June 2020

COVID‐19 mitigating practices such as ‘hand‐washing’, ‘social distancing’, or ‘social isolating’ are constructed as ‘moral imperatives’, required to avert harm to oneself and others. Adherence to COVID‐19 mitigating practices is presently high among the general public, and stringent lockdown measures supported by legal and policy intervention have facilitated this. In the coming months, however, as rules are being relaxed and individuals become less strict, and thus, the ambiguity in policy increases, the maintenance of recommended social distancing norms will rely on more informal social interactional processes. We argue that the moralization of these practices, twinned with relaxations of policy, may likely cause interactional tension between those individuals who do vs. those who do not uphold social distancing in the coming months: that is, derogation of those who adhere strictly to COVID‐19 mitigating practices and group polarization between ‘distancers’ and ‘non‐distancers’. In this paper, we explore how and why these processes might come to pass, their impact on an overall societal response to COVID‐19, and the need to factor such processes into decisions regarding how to lift restrictions.
Collective resilience in times of crisis: Lessons from the literature for socially effective responses to the pandemic
Authors: Elcheroth Guy , Drury John
Published: June 2020

Most countries worldwide have taken restrictive measures and called on their population to adopt social distancing behaviours to contain the spread of the COVID‐19 pandemic. At a time when several European countries are releasing their lockdown measures, new uncertainties arise regarding the further evolution of a crisis becoming multifaceted, as well as the durability of public determination to face and contain it. In this context, the sustained social efficacy of public health measures will depend more than ever on the level of acceptance across populations called on to temporarily sacrifice daily freedoms, while economic insecurity grows and social inequalities become more blatant. We seek to develop a framework for analysing how the requirements of ‘social distancing’ can be reconciled with the conditions that allow for the maintaining, or even strengthening, of social cohesion, mutual solidarity, and a sense of collective efficacy, throughout the crisis. To reach this goal, we propose a summary of relevant findings and pragmatic policy principles derived from them.