bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Tumori superficiali della vescica: Presentazione di uno studio comparativo tra la sola resezione endoscopica e I'uso di BCG, epirubicina o mitomicina C adiuvanti
Authors: Iantorno R. , Ballone E. , Nicolai M. , Passamonti M. , Mastroprimiano G. , Cipollone G. , Lombardi G. , Cataudo C. , Tenaglia R.
Published: July 2019

A retrospective clinical study was carried out to compare results obtained with just endoscopic resection and with adjuvant use of the Bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG), epirubicin and mitomycin C after TURB in patients with superficial bladder tumour (stage pTa/1 grade 1-3). At an average follow-up of 44 months, a decrease in the percentage of recurrences was noted in all the adjuvant therapy groups compared to that in the group subjected to TURB only. The risk of recurrence for the BCG group was 0.427, for the epirubicin group 0.609 and for the mitomycin C group 0.668. There was progression of the disease in: 5.6% of the TURB, 9.1% of the BCG, 5% epirubicin and 3.6% mitomycin C, for a total of 26 patients (7.3%). Twenty-four cystectomies were performed and 2 patients died due to progression of the disease. At 44 months average follow-up, 353 (98.6%) patients are alive and 329 (93.2%) still have their own bladder.
La pielonefrite xantogranulomatosa: Presentazione di un caso e revisione della Letteratura
Authors: Di Giovanni M. , Verani R. , Isaia N. , Santini L.
Published: July 2019

The authors report a case of xanthogranulomatous pyelonephritis discovered casually following diagnostic tests for an episode of hematuria. The anatomo-pathological characteristics are described followed by possible symptoms and indicated therapy. The latter generally consists of radical and rarely conservative surgery in localised forms.
Un raro caso di leiomioma renale
Authors: Butti A. , Invernizzi S. , Cappoli S. , Locatelli G. , Librizzi A. , Pozza D. , Zuccoli E. , Piatti M.
Published: July 2019

Benign solid tumours of the kidney are rare and their anatomo-pathological features are given according to Lakey's classification. Although reports of such tumours are few (0.24%) in a wide study using abdominal echography, some post-mortem data assign an incidence of 5.2% to renal leiomyomas. The authors report a case of right kidney leiomyoma in a 69-year-old man who had undergone right radical nephrectomy. Diagnosis was only possible after the histological examination.
Adenocarcinoma ureterale primitivo di tipo intestinale. Caso clinico
Authors: Schiavon L. , Bondavalli C. , Pegoraro C. , Dall'oglio B. , Luciano M. , Canclini L. , Fante R. , Parma A.
Published: July 2019

Intestinal type primitive ureteral adenocarcinoma is an uncommon neoplasm of the upper urinary tract, where the normal urothelium is replaced by an intestinal type glandular metaplastic epithelium. Our case concerns a 55-year-old man who 10 years ago had his left kidney and ureteral stump removed up to the junction with the iliac vessels due to a lumbar ureter filling defect. The ureter presented a 2 cm oedematous area with papillary vegetation. Histology revealed T1 adenocarcinoma with safe resection margin. Transurethral prostatectomy was performed and resectioning of a tumefaction of the left ostium, which proved to be an intestinal type of adenocarcinoma infiltrating the prostate. The patient underwent radical cystoprostatectomy with urinary diversion. The onset of primitive adenocarcinoma of the ureter may pass unnoticed in a chronically irritated urothelium. This case may be considered a multicentric, probably metachronous tumour and maximum surgical radicality is indicated as therapy.
Trattamento di cistocele con o senza IUS mediante chirurgia mininvasiva con “Vesica kit” modificato
Authors: Pierini P. , Croci A. , Bertolin R.
Published: July 2019

Urinary stress incontinence is often related to cystocele, hence treatment cannot exclude correction of the latter. The authors have treated 2nd-3rd grade cystocele secondary to central impairment using a mininvasive technique consisting of a vaginal flap suspended anteriorly to the pubic tubercles, according to the traditional “Vesica kit” procedure, and posteriorly to the iliopubic branches in line with the Cooper ligaments using “Vesica kit” screws inserted through the abdominal wall under videolaparoscopy after creating a pneumo-Retzius space. Whenever a pneumo-Retzius cannot be created due to previous pelvic surgery, the same operation may be performed either through a small sovrapubic incision or by inserting 4 screws in line with the pubis. After 1 year the 20 operated patients show satisfying results with good prospects, but a longer follow-up is necessary to confirm these results. The aim of this study is to describe a mininvasive surgical technique for treating 2nd-3rd grade cystocele, associated or not with urinary stress incontinence.
Surrenectomia laparoscopica: Nostra esperienza
Authors: Porpiglia F. , Morino M. , Garrone C. , Terzolo M. , Morra I. , Rocca A. , Fontana D.
Published: July 2019

Laparoscopy has been described as an alternative approach for performing adrenalectomy. From January ‘96 to April ‘97, 14 laparoscopie adrenalectomies were performed in our Division. Patient age ranged from 33 to 64 years. The clinical diagnosis included 5 Conn's syndrome, 3 pheochromocytoma, 3 Cushing's syndrome, 1 Cushing's disease and 3 incidentalomas. Average operating time was 70’ and 90’ for right and left adrenalectomy respectively. The average estimated blood loss was 70 ml. All the patients resumed oral intake antalgic therapy with Ketorolac in the first 12 post-operative hours. The patients resumed oral intake within 1 day. Two patients received 500 ml of autologous blood in the post-operative period. The average hospital stay was 3.5 days. These results suggest that laparoscopie adrenalectomy is a minimally invasive alternative to traditional open adrenalectomy.
Danni microvascolari nell'impotenza erettile di “origine psicogena”
Authors: Albergati F. , Lattarulo P. , Curri S.B. , Jallous H. , Marandola C. , Marandola P.
Published: July 2019

Erectile impotence is one of the major reasons for uro-andrological consultation. Countless experimental and clinical data are by now available regarding the importance of the pathologies of penile microcirculation as primitive cause of erectile dysfunction with the result that microangiological evaluation in andrology is being used more and more. Up to the present, however, there has been a lack of data related to the action of penile manipulation “in itself (necessary for correct topical application of substances with microvasculokinetic action) on the contractile activity of the arterioles examined by Laser-Doppler Flow. This report gives the results of a clinical study on 400 patients with erectile dysfunction treated with topically administered microvasculokinetic therapies. All the patients underwent a complete microangiological assessment to detect the presence of microcirculatory pathologies responsible for the erectile dysfunction. In a double blind study three different substances were used topically: two proved to nave microvasculokinetic activity with a different duration of action, while the third was totally inert. The first two increased the penile arteriolar contractile capacity in all the patients, while the third had no effect, showing that manipulation “in itself has no effect which helps increase penile arteriolar sphygmic activity. Furthermore, the different duration of action between the two substances acting on the microcirculation highlights the importance of using suitably complexed molecules for crossing the cutaneous barrier and reaching the site of action in patients who respond positively to the microvasculokinesis test.
Abdominal operations for stress incontinence
Authors: Caschetto S. , Leanza V. , Di Leo S.
Published: July 2019

Among the surgical procedures with abdominal approach (Burch colposuspension, Marshall-Marchetti-Krantz operation, Richardson paravaginal repair) used to correct genuine stress incontinence (GSI), the Burch colposuspension is both easy to perform and very effective. The purpose of the operation is to reposition the cervicourethral complex in a fixed retropubic space. Since anterior replacement of the vaginal axis may cause iatrogenic enterocele or increase a posterior cystocele or a previous rectocele, other complementary operations (Douglas obliteration, anterior or posterior vaginal repair) are necessary. The authors report that in 256 patients with type I and II genuine stress incontinence, the recovery rate after Burch colposuspension associated with gynecological procedures has been 81.25% in a 1 to 5-year follow-up.
Surgery by vaginal approach in stress urinary incontinence: Lahodny bladder suspension
Authors: Pennisi M.
Published: July 2019

Urogenital prolapse and urinary incontinence secondary to multiple defects of the pelvic floor (cystocele caused by lateral and central defect of the pubocervical fascia, hysterocele, rectocele) may also be successfully treated by vaginal approach only. From October ‘95 to September ‘97, 78 women underwent colpohysterectomy, Lahodny bladder suspension and perineoplasty and in 15 of them the vaginal cupola was anchored to the right sacrospinous ligament. In another 3 women Lahodny's procedure was associated with just perineoplasty, since there was a cystocele caused by lateral and central defect of the pubocervical fascia and a rectocele, while the uterus was fixed in place. Prior to operation the 81 patients underwent a colpocytological exam, pelvic ultrasound, a urodynamic exam with flow pressure study and assessment of the leak pressure with Valsalva manoeuvre, and in the cases of constipation or fecal incontinence, coloproctological investigation. The suprapubic catheter that was always positioned at the end of the operation was on average removed on the 10th day, upon the disappearance of significant post-micturitional residue. There is no micturitional difficulty in any patient. Given the short follow-up, the results are given of the 44 women observed for at least one year, 40 of whom are continent. Recurrent prolapse was found in 8 cases, 2 involving the anterior, 40 the rear and 2 the central wall. No patient has had a return of stress incontinence.
Multiple renal tumours: Co-existence of renal adenocarcinoma, transitional cell carcinoma and leiomyosarcoma in the same kidney. Case report
Authors: Randazzo G. , Tripi M. , Pappa P. , Yang W. , Rizzo M. , Aragona F. , Melloni D.
Published: July 2019

We report the case of a 73-year-old man admitted to our department with a history of hematuria, right flank pain and increasing weight loss. Ultrasound and excretory urography showed a right upper pole renal mass considered at first as a heteroplastic process. These findings were subsequently confirmed by a CT scan, which also showed another neoplasm with parenchymatous density in front of the first. The patient underwent radical nephrectomy and the histologic examination showed the simultaneous presence in the same kidney of a renal adenocarcinoma, a transitional cell carcinoma and a leiomyosarcoma of the pelvis.
Immunotherapeutic treatment of superficial bladder tumours using BCG. Preliminary results
Authors: Nisticò C. , Abate F. , Amuso G. , Bartolotta S. , Caizzone F. , Morana C. , Salvia G.
Published: July 2019

Chemotherapy using drugs such as mitomycin C or epirubicin is well known in the treatment of superficial bladder tumours, while use of BCG (Bacillus Calmette-Guérin) in the same pathology is more recent. The first authors to test the BCG were Co? and Feldman, then Zbar fixed the criteria for correct use in the treatment of superficial bladder tumours. First results encouraged the preparation of a drug that could reduce the toxic effects without reducing demonstrated efficacy. Our experience started recently with the introduction onto the market of the Connaught strain, which we prefer to use due to its low toxic effects. We wish to evaluate the tolerability of BCG in a short follow-up period (six months) with cystoscopic controls.
Uncommon case of urothelial disease of the whole upper urinary tract
Authors: Cosentino V. , Dammino S. , Morana F. , Tricoli D.
Published: July 2019

Urothelioma of the upper urinary tract secondary to bladder cancer is rare. In this clinical case the entire excretory tree was involved so that the therapeutic approach had to be highly aggressive and consisted of total cystectomy with right ureterocutaneostomy and subsequent left nephroureterectomy due to the serious decrease in kidney function.
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma: A urological case with retroperitoneal localisation. Retrospective study and literature review
Authors: Morana F. , Cosentino V. , Dammino S. , Vacirca F.
Published: July 2019

Urological involvement by a non-Hodgkin lymphoma, once rare, is becoming more frequent. A clinical case is described where the urological onset was a volumetric increase in the lumbar-aortic lymph nodes and functional exclusion of the left kidney. Having ascertained the lymphomatous nature of the mass, chemotherapy cycles were carried out (CVP) and ureteral stenting to conserve renal function.
PSA and prostatic biopsies
Authors: Bartolotta S. , Amuso G. , D'alessandro M. , Paradiso A.M. , Savoca F. , Salvia G. , Nicolosi D.
Published: July 2019

High PSA concentrations are often, but not always, a sign of prostatic carcinoma and it is therefore necessary to correlate the PSA values with the increase in prostate size. Increases in PSA up to 10 ng/ml in relation to large prostatic adenomas may be an expression of benign prostatic hyperplasia instead of prostatic carcinoma. In clinical practice it is important to correlate the PSA value with the digital rectal examination and the transrectal ultrasound: only when two of these three data are positive is there a high probability of prostatic carcinoma. The aim of this study was to compare PSA serum concentration values with the ultrasound-guided perineal prostatic biopsy in order to check the sensitivity and specificity of PSA, in particular when ambiguous values were obtained.
Decision-making: The roots of therapeutic protocols
Authors: Corvaja E.
Published: July 2019

The decisions taken in medicine every day cover a vast field, stretching from prescriptions and biohumoral and instrumental examinations to the choice of nutritional, pharmacological or surgical therapy. The decision communicated to the patient is both the end result of the individual cultural and clinical preparation of the therapist and the start of a technical and scientific programme aimed at improving the conditions (and quality of life) of the patient. Scientific application of a decisional analysis study tends to guarantee the possibility of ensuring the most suitable treatment on the basis of available resources and thereby introduces a further pharmaco-economic instrument of assessment. Moreover, if this method is programmed for rationalising the operating methods of several teams which operate on the same type of patients, decisional analysis becomes the first step in setting up ‘therapeutic protocols”, systematic and scientific distribution of professional activity over the territory. An experimental study is therefore presented regarding a recurrent urologic pathology, which starting from an analysis of life expectation, quality of life and cost of applied resources, aims at constructing an operating routine and the formation of a therapeutic protocol.
Role of sonography in diagnosing anterior urethral stenoses. Personal experience
Authors: Magno C. , Inferrera A. , Bruschetta S. , Anastasi G. , Barbera A. , Famulari C.
Published: July 2019

Ultrasonography was used on 15 patients with clinical suspicion of urethral stenosis documented by retrograde urethrography. With respect to site, length and number of the stenoses, ultrasound gave the same results as the technique using contrast, with the advantage of not exposing the gonads to radiation. It also provided further data on the degree of infiltration of the spongeous body, which is a decisive factor in choosing the most rational therapeutic option and to predict recurrence.
Stenosis of the bladder neck secondary to TURP: Our experience
Authors: Paola Q. , Barbera M. , Cammarata C. , Panarisi S. , Solazzo G. , Curto F. , Curto G.
Published: July 2019

The authors report their experience on stenosis of the bladder neck secondary to TURP, referred to a period of 5 years (1992/97). There has been a decrease in incidence, particularly in the last year, in concomitance with replacement of the electric lancet, which is therefore considered one of the causes (iatrogenic) of the incidence of stenosis of the bladder neck after TURP.
Neurologically impaired patients at urologica/ risk: Social-health aspects of the problem in our territory
Authors: Spasari A. , Apollini L. , Lanza T. , Zagordi A. , Pirritano D. , Falvo F. , Scalfari A.
Published: July 2019

In view of the lack of spinal units in Calabria and Institutes from which information can be obtained on the conditions of patients with injuries to the spinal cord, we researched such patients (approx. 500,000) with urological risk in our territory. We included in our study 81 patients, 62 men and 19 women, aged between 18 and 78 years. Significant uro-andrological problems were found in 42 patients. It is to be hoped that the survey contributes to improving the poor assistance at present provided for persons with injuries to the spinal cord in Calabria.
Tuberculosis epidemiology
Authors: Fontana D. , Porpiglia F. , Morra I. , Boario L. , Destefanis P. , Cristaldi G.
Published: July 2019

A gradual return of tuberculosis has been noted in industrialised countries since the late eighties. The real world-wide trend of the disease is, however, still widely underrated, as shown by the discrepancy between the number of cases reported to the WHO and those estimated by the same on the basis of the annual risk of tuberculotic infections (ARTI). According to these calculations, it is forecast that by the year 2000 approx. 13,000,000 persons world-wide will have the disease. Also in Italy the disease has been on the increase since the late eighties and in 1995 the incidence rate estimated by the WHO was 18/100,000. In the last decade, however, the increase has been different for the various forms: 13% and 35% for pulmonary and extrapulmonary tuberculosis respectively. The causes contributing to this increase in western countries may be attributed to the decline in control programmes, migration from areas of high incidence and the spread of AIDS.
Imaging features
Authors: Bellina M. , Porpiglia F. , Morra I. , Boario L , Allasia M. , Fontana D.
Published: July 2019

Diagnosis of urogenital tuberculosis is traditionally based on urography, but the last few decades have seen the contribution of new methods such as ultrasound, CT scan and NMR. In the authors’ experience urography is still first choice for diagnosing urogenital tuberculosis; ultrasound is a useful complement in assessing renal parenchymal lesions and is indispensable in defining lesions in the prostate and the epididymus. With regard to the CT scan, the authors consider it gives a better definition of anatomical ratios than ultrasound, being particularly useful with extensive lesions. The role of NMR is not yet well-defined, although it does not seem to offer any particular advantages compared to CT.
A New Factor Solution for the Domestic Violence–Related Financial Issues Scale (DV-FI)
Authors: Hartley Carolyn Copps , Renner Lynette M. , Ward Caitlin
Published: July 2019

Economic abuse is a distinct form of intimate partner violence (IPV); yet, few measures of economic or financial factors exist. Weaver, Sanders, Campbell, and Schnabel’s Domestic Violence–Related Financial Issues Scale (DV-FI) was developed to assess the role of financial-related issues in an individual’s experiences of IPV as well as perceptions of financial self-efficacy and the future role that financial issues will play in one’s sense of financial security. Despite its relevance to research focused on IPV, only portions of the DV-FI have been used in a handful of studies. The original factor analysis of the DV-FI identified five subscales within a shelter-based sample of impoverished, predominantly African American women. The DV-FI demonstrated good psychometric properties at the time of development; yet, to our knowledge, the factor structure of this measure has not been evaluated with another sample. Given the importance of identifying economic abuse and financial self-efficacy among women who experience IPV, it is essential to have a reliable and valid measure of these constructs. In this article, we describe the results of a confirmatory and exploratory factor analysis of the DV-FI using a community sample of 150 predominantly White, low-income women seeking civil legal services. We identified a four-factor solution of the DV-FI. Our findings provide support for the Financial Self-Efficacy subscale as a domain-specific measure of financial self-efficacy among women who experience IPV, but further validation is needed to explain the divergent findings for the remaining factors.
The Multidimensional Benefits of University Student Volunteering: Psychological Contract, Expectations, and Outcomes
Authors: Haski-Leventhal Debbie , Paull Megan , Young Susan , MacCallum Judith , Holmes Kirsten , Omari Maryam , Scott Rowena , Alony Irit
Published: July 2019

Student volunteering has many benefits for students, universities, and nonprofit organizations (NPOs), but research on these from a multistakeholder perspective is scant. Using psychological contract theory, this article compares outcomes to expectations of students, universities, and NPOs, proposing a model of the benefits of volunteering to all three stakeholder groups. Based on a large-scale qualitative research with over 60 interviews in six Australian universities, the article offers an in-depth analysis of student volunteering benefits, surprises (benefits exceeding expectations), and disappointments (unmet expectations) for each stakeholder group. Some of these benefits align with existing literature, while others contribute new knowledge on the outcomes of student volunteering. The results show that training, preparation, and management of expectations have the potential to build positive benefits for all. It concludes with implications for universities and NPOs and directions for future research on student volunteering.
Shared factory: A new production node for social manufacturing in the context of sharing economy
Authors: Jiang Pingyu , Li Pulin
Published: July 2019

Manufacturing industry is heading towards socialization, interconnection and platformization. Motivated by the infiltration of sharing economy usage in manufacturing, this article addresses a new factory model – shared factory, and provides a theoretical architecture and some actual cases for manufacturing sharing. Concepts related to three kinds of shared factories which deal, respectively, with sharing production-orders, manufacturing-resources and manufacturing-capabilities are defined accordingly. These three kinds of shared factory modes can be used for building correspondent sharing manufacturing ecosystems. On the basis of sharing economic analysis, we identify feasible key-enabled technologies for configuring and running a shared factory. At the same time, opportunities and challenges of enabling the shared factory are also analysed in detail. In fact, shared factory, as a new production node, enhances the sharing nature of social manufacturing paradigm, fits the needs of light assets and gives us a new chance to use socialized manufacturing resources. It can be drawn that implementing a shared factory would reach a ‘win-win’ way through production value-added transformation and social innovation.
Preheating and thermal behaviour of a rotating cylindrical workpiece in laser-assisted machining
Authors: Nadim Nima , Shams Ouf A , Chandratilleke Tilak T , Pramanik Alokesh
Published: July 2019

Laser-assisted machining is a widely used technique for preheating workpiece to reduce cutting forces and promote machinability in metal machining, thereby enhancing manufacturing quality and productivity. In setting laser-assisted machining parameters, the current practice typically relies on trial-and-error approaches. The uncertainties thereof could lead to adverse outcomes in product manufacturing, thus negating the potential benefits of this machining method. A clear understanding of workpiece thermal behaviour under laser spot heating is pivotal to developing a systematic basis for determining required preheating levels and optimised cutting variables for laser-assisted machining. In achieving this, the experimental methods are recognised to be largely impractical, if not tedious, due to instrument limitations and practicality of suitable non-intrusive measuring methods. Conversely, numerical methodologies do provide precise, flexible and cost-effective analytical options, warranting potential for insightful understanding on the transient thermal impact from laser preheating on rotating workpiece. Presenting such an investigation, this article presents a finite volume-based numerical simulation that examines and analyses the thermal response imparted by laser spot preheating on a rotating cylinder surface. On a rotating frame of reference using the ANSYS Fluent solver, the numerical model is formulated, accounting for transient heat conduction into the cylinder body and the combined convection and radiation loses from the cylinder surface. The model is comprehensively validated to ascertaining its high predictive accuracy and the applicability under reported laser-assisted machining operating conditions. The extensive parametric analyses carried out deliver clear insight into the dynamics of thermal penetration occurring within the workpiece due to laser spot preheating. This facilitates appropriate consideration of laser preheating intensity in relation to other operating variables to achieve necessary material softening depth at the workpiece surface prior to setting out on the subsequent machining process. Building upon the data generated, a practically simpler and cost-effective preheating parametric predictor is synthesised for laser-assisted machining using neural network principles incorporating the Levenberg–Marquardt algorithm. This predictive tool is trained and verified as a practical preheating guide for laser-assisted machining for a range of operating conditions.
Enhanced intelligent proportional-integral-like fuzzy knowledge–based controller using chaos-enhanced accelerated particle swarm optimization algorithm for transient calibration of air–fuel ratio control system
Authors: Li Ziyang , Zhou Quan , Zhang Yunfan , Li Ji , Xu Hongming
Published: July 2019

The self-adaptive and highly robust proportional-integral-like fuzzy knowledge–based controller has been developed to regulate air–fuel ratio for gasoline direct injection engines, in order to improve the transient response behaviour and reduce the effort to be spent on calibration of parameter settings. However, even though the proportional-integral-like fuzzy knowledge–based controller can automatically correct the initially calibrated proportional and integral parameters, a more appropriate selection of controller parameter settings will lead to better transient performance. Thus, this article proposes an enhanced intelligent proportional-integral-like fuzzy knowledge–based controller using chaos-enhanced accelerated particle swarm optimization algorithm to automatically define the most optimal parameter settings. An alternative time-domain objective function is applied for the transient calibration programme without the need for prior selection of the search-domain. The real-time transient performance of the enhanced controller is investigated on the air–fuel ratio control system of a gasoline direct injection engine. The experimental results show that the enhanced proportional-integral-like fuzzy knowledge–based controller based on chaos-enhanced accelerated particle swarm optimization is able to damp out the oscillations with less settling time (up to 75% reduction) and less integral of absolute error (up to 64.07% reduction) compared with the conventional self-adaptive proportional-integral-like fuzzy knowledge–based controller. Repeatability tests indicate that the chaos-enhanced accelerated particle swarm optimization algorithm–based proportional-integral-like fuzzy knowledge–based controller is also able to reduce the mean value of objective function by up to 10.61% reduction and the standard deviation of the objective function by up to 28.29% reduction, compared with the conventional accelerated particle swarm optimization algorithm–based proportional-integral-like fuzzy knowledge–based controller.
The structuration of a sporting social system? Northern Ireland fans, Football for All and the creation of the Green and White Army
Authors: Bell John , Somerville Ian , Hargie Owen
Published: July 2019

In terms of the extant literature to date on sport and fandom in the divided society of Northern Ireland, academic attention has focused almost exclusively on its apparently contentious nature. However, until now, there has been a dearth of actual empirical data to inform such analyses. This article is designed to help rectify this deficit by drawing upon interviews with Northern Ireland football supporters and Irish Football Association staff to explore their co-creation of the Football for All campaign, which aimed to challenge sectarian fan behaviour within the national stadium. This resulted in the previously variegated Northern Ireland fan base becoming the Green and White Army, an informal collective identity for supporters. In continually (re)producing the Green and White Army as a ‘social system’, it is argued that fans are knowledgeable actors who continually draw upon what Giddens refers to as practical and discursive consciousness. Informed by Giddens’ structuration theory, the article argues that in relation to the current policies of the Union of European Football Associations and the Fédération Internationale de Football Association to close stadiums in the event of ‘discriminatory’ fan behaviour, priority should instead be given to supporting fan activism to effectively challenge such behaviour at matches; particularly given the potential for social control over supporters in a situated geographical space.
Stages in the Development and Validation of a Belgian Dutch Outcome Tool for the Perceptual Evaluation of Speech in Patients With Cleft Palate
Authors: Bruneel Laura , Bettens Kim , De Bodt Marc , D’haeseleer Evelien , Thijs Zoë , Roche Nathalie , Van Lierde Kristiane
Published: July 2019

Objective:

To develop and validate a Belgian Dutch outcome tool for the perceptual evaluation of speech in patients with cleft palate.

Setting:

Cleft palate team in a tertiary university hospital.

Methods:

The tool was based on the Cleft Audit Protocol for Speech–Augmented (John et al., 2006; Sell et al., 2009), with adaptations to some of the speech variables and the structured listening protocol. Following a preliminary listening experiment in phase 1, the tool was optimized. In the second phase, a listening experiment with 4 experienced listeners was set up to assess face validity, inter- and intrarater reliability and criterion validity.

Results:

Results of phase 1 indicated good to very good inter- and intrarater reliability for the majority of the speech variables, good discriminant validity, and varying sensitivity and specificity based on a comparison with nasalance values and the Nasality Severity Index 2.0 (criterion validity). Results of phase 2 showed good to very good interrater reliability for 5 of the 14 variables and good intrarater reliability in 3 of the 4 experienced listeners. Sensitivity and specificity were sufficient, except the specificity of the hypernasality judgments in comparison with the nasalance values of the oral text. Overall, listeners positively judged the face validity of the tool.

Conclusion:

The 2-phase evaluation indicated varying validity and reliability results. Future studies will aim to optimize validity and reliability of the developed tool based on adaptations to the listening protocol, the addition of speech variables, and the inclusion of a more elaborate training.
Swedish School Nurses’ Experiences of Child Abuse
Authors: Sundler Annelie J. , Whilson Marie , Darcy Laura , Larsson Margaretha
Published: July 2019

Child abuse recognition and the protection of children is a global concern. In Sweden, the role of the school nurse (SN) is to promote schoolchildren’s health and development and to identify and prevent harm. The aim of this study was to describe Swedish SN experiences of suspecting, identifying, and reporting child abuse and to compare them with respect to (a) years of experience as SN, (b) age of SN, and (c) pupil population size. A descriptive design was used. Two-hundred and thirty-three SNs completed a survey detailing their experiences. Most SNs (96%) reported having suspected a child suffering from physical or psychological abuse. Approximately half of them reported occurrences of honor-related violence (54%) and of child sexual abuse (57%). SNs with less nursing experience reported significantly less recognition and reporting of child abuse. The findings indicate that experiences of child abuse are common. Thus, it is vital that SNs have the necessary competency and support to identify and report suspected child abuse.
Why Low Levels of Democracy Promote Corruption and High Levels Diminish It
Authors: McMann Kelly M. , Seim Brigitte , Teorell Jan , Lindberg Staffan
Published: July 2019

Theory predicts democracy should reduce corruption. Yet, scholars have found that while corruption is low at high levels of democracy, it is high at modest levels, as well as low when democracy is absent. A weakness of studies that aim to explain this inverted curvilinear relationship is that they do not disaggregate the complex concepts of democracy and corruption. By contrast, this paper disaggregates both. We demonstrate that the curvilinear relationship results from the collective impact of different components of democracy on different types of corruption. Using Varieties of Democracy data, we examine 173 countries from 1900 to 2015, and we find freedom of expression and freedom of association each exhibit an inverted curvilinear relationship with corruption—both overall corruption and four different types. The introduction of elections and the quality of elections each act in a linear fashion—positively and negatively with corruption, respectively—but jointly form a curvilinear relationship with both overall corruption and many of its types. Judicial and legislative constraints exhibit a negative linear relationship with executive corruption. We offer a framework that suggests how these components affect costs and benefits of engaging in different types of corruption and, therefore, the level of corruption overall.
Personality Congruence Among Brands, Recruiters, and Applicants During the Anticipatory Socialization Process
Authors: Kang Alice Yeonjung , Legendre Tiffany S. , Cartier Elizabeth A.
Published: July 2019

Drawing on congruence theory, this study aims to examine the impact of internal brand management, perceived level of job opportunities, and their interaction effects on job applicants during the anticipatory socialization process in the hospitality industry. Data were collected from students and job seekers in the hospitality industry with qualitative (focus group interview) and quantitative approaches (2 × 2 and 2 × 2 × 2 between-subjects quasi-experimental design). The findings indicate that recruiters who receive internal brand management have a positive impact on applicants’ congruence perception toward the brand. Furthermore, this effect becomes stronger when candidates perceive employment opportunities as abundant, which increases job attraction and job pursuit intentions.
Defining the core components of Family Navigation for autism spectrum disorder
Authors: Broder-Fingert Sarabeth , Stadnick Nicole A , Hickey Emily , Goupil Julia , Diaz Lindhart Yaminette , Feinberg Emily
Published: July 2019

This study aimed to define the core components of Family Navigation for autism spectrum disorder, a promising intervention to reduce disparities in care for this population. Teams from four trials of Family Navigation for autism spectrum disorder completed the Template for Intervention Description and Replication checklist to outline intervention components. Through intervention component analysis and qualitative synthesis, we identified 11 core components across three domains: Training and Supervision, Navigator Tools, and Navigator Activities. We discuss the importance of identifying these core components and implications for future research and practice.
Performance and emission characteristics of conventional diesel combustion/partially premixed charge compression ignition combustion mode switching of biodiesel-fueled engine
Authors: Singh Akhilendra Pratap , Agarwal Avinash Kumar
Published: July 2019

In this experimental study, a production grade engine was modified to operate in two combustion modes, namely conventional diesel combustion (CDC) and premixed charge compression ignition (PCCI) combustion, depending on the engine load. For mode switching, an open electronic control unit was programmed to operate the engine in PCCI combustion mode up to medium engine loads and then automatically switching it to CDC mode at higher engine loads, by varying the fuel injection parameters and the exhaust gas recirculation rate. For performance and emission characterization in the entire load range (idling-to-full load) of the test engine, a test cycle of 300 s was used, which included CDC mode, PCCI combustion mode, and transition between these two modes. Results showed that both mineral diesel and B20 (20% biodiesel blended with mineral diesel, v/v) fueled PCCI combustion resulted in significantly lower NOx and particulate emissions compared to baseline CDC. Relatively lower exhaust gas temperature in PCCI combustion mode led to slightly inferior engine performance and higher concentration of unregulated emission species such as SO2, HCHO, and so on. B20-fueled engine resulted in relatively lower unregulated emission species and particulates compared to the mineral diesel–fueled engine in both the combustion modes. In CDC mode, contributions of accumulation mode particles were significantly higher compared to nucleation mode particles. Relatively lower emission of aromatic compounds in PCCI combustion mode compared to CDC mode was another important finding of this study; however, B20-fueled engines resulted in slightly higher emissions of aromatic compounds.
Passive acoustic damage detection of structural cavities using flow-induced acoustic excitations
Authors: Beale Christopher , Willis David J , Niezrecki Christopher , Inalpolat Murat
Published: July 2019

Cavities with different geometries represent the internal volumes of various engineering applications such as cabins of passenger cars, fuselages and wings of aircraft, and internal compartments of wind turbine blades. Transmissibility of acoustic excitation to and from these cavities is affected by material and cross-sectional properties of the structural cavity, as well as potential damage incurred. A new structural damage detection methodology that relies on the detectability of the changes in acoustic transmissibility across the boundaries of structural cavities is proposed. The methodology is described with a specific focus on the passive damage detection approach applied to cavity internal acoustic pressure responses under external flow-induced acoustic excitations. The approach is realized through a test plan that considers a wind turbine blade section subject to various damage types, severity levels, and locations, as well as wind speeds tested in a subsonic wind tunnel. A number of statistics-based metrics, including power spectral density estimates, band power differences from a known baseline, and the sum of absolute difference, were used to detect damage. The results obtained from the test campaign indicated that the passive acoustic damage detection approach was able to detect all considered hole-type damages as small as 0.32 cm in diameter and crack-type damages 1.27 cm in length. In general, the ability to distinguish damage from the baseline state improved as the damage increased in severity. Damage type, damage location, and flow speed influenced the ability to detect damage, but were not significant enough to prevent detection. This article serves as an overall proof of concept of the passive-based damage detection approach using flow-induced acoustic excitations on structural cavities of a wind turbine blade. The laboratory-scale results reveal that acoustic-based monitoring has great potential to be used as a new structural health monitoring technique for utility-scale wind turbine blades.
Surface modification of nettle fibers by grafting to improve oil sorption capacity
Authors: Viju S , Brindha R , Thilagavathi G
Published: July 2019

In this study, an attempt was made to enhance the oil sorption capacity of nettle fibers by grafting of butyl acrylate. Box–Behnken experimental design was used to study the effect of parameters such as reaction time, reaction temperature and monomer concentration-to-fiber ratio on graft add-on (%) and oil sorption capacity. At 4-h reaction time, 70℃ temperature and 2% monomer concentration-to-fiber ratio, highest graft add-on (%) and oil sorption were attained. Maximum oil sorption capacity of grafted nettle was 36.60 g/g and 25.56 g/g against crude oil and vegetable oil, respectively. Grafted nettle fibers were also subjected to characterization by Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy and contact angle tests. Reusability test results showed that grafted nettle exhibited better oil sorption capacity than unmodified nettle even after seven sorption–desorption cycles. It is also observed that the oil sorption capacity of grafted nettle was higher than that of commercial polypropylene material. Based on these results, it is concluded that functionalized nettle prepared by grafting technique can be a potential material for oil spill treatment.
Emotional Expressions Reconsidered: Challenges to Inferring Emotion From Human Facial Movements
Authors: Barrett Lisa Feldman , Adolphs Ralph , Marsella Stacy , Martinez Aleix M. , Pollak Seth D.
Published: July 2019

It is commonly assumed that a person’s emotional state can be readily inferred from his or her facial movements, typically called emotional expressions or facial expressions. This assumption influences legal judgments, policy decisions, national security protocols, and educational practices; guides the diagnosis and treatment of psychiatric illness, as well as the development of commercial applications; and pervades everyday social interactions as well as research in other scientific fields such as artificial intelligence, neuroscience, and computer vision. In this article, we survey examples of this widespread assumption, which we refer to as the common view, and we then examine the scientific evidence that tests this view, focusing on the six most popular emotion categories used by consumers of emotion research: anger, disgust, fear, happiness, sadness, and surprise. The available scientific evidence suggests that people do sometimes smile when happy, frown when sad, scowl when angry, and so on, as proposed by the common view, more than what would be expected by chance. Yet how people communicate anger, disgust, fear, happiness, sadness, and surprise varies substantially across cultures, situations, and even across people within a single situation. Furthermore, similar configurations of facial movements variably express instances of more than one emotion category. In fact, a given configuration of facial movements, such as a scowl, often communicates something other than an emotional state. Scientists agree that facial movements convey a range of information and are important for social communication, emotional or otherwise. But our review suggests an urgent need for research that examines how people actually move their faces to express emotions and other social information in the variety of contexts that make up everyday life, as well as careful study of the mechanisms by which people perceive instances of emotion in one another. We make specific research recommendations that will yield a more valid picture of how people move their faces to express emotions and how they infer emotional meaning from facial movements in situations of everyday life. This research is crucial to provide consumers of emotion research with the translational information they require.
Investigation of the Effects of Biochemical Parameters on Alzheimer’s Disease
Authors: Gokce Mustafa , Bektay Muhammed Yunus , Selvitop Rabia , Toprak Ali , Yildiz Gulsen Babacan
Published: July 2019

Background:

The most common type of dementia is an Alzheimer’s disease which is a major concern in growing chronic diseases in the geriatric society, and its connection with biochemistry has not been sufficiently understood.

Objective:

This study aims to evaluate the effects of blood biochemistry on Alzheimer’s disease.

Method:

Eight participants aged 55+ with Alzheimer’s disease were analyzed. A cross-sectional work has conducted. Eighty patients have been divided into 2 groups as group A and group B according to laboratory findings including glycosylated hemoglobin, high-density lipoprotein (HDL), low-density lipoprotein (LDL), total cholesterol (TC), triglycerides (TGA), vitamin D, folic acid, and vitamin B12. Mean Mini-Mental State Examination scores between these different 2 groups have been compared.

Results:

High levels of HDL, vitamin D, and folic acid correlate with cognitive scores, whereas high levels of total cholesterol, HbA1c, LDL show a negative effect on cognition scores.

Conclusion:

High-density lipoprotein, vitamin D, folic acid, cholesterol, HgA1c, and LDL have an effect on dementia.
Individualized, Single Session Yoga Therapy to Reduce Physical and Emotional Symptoms in Hospitalized Hematological Cancer Patients
Authors: Mascaro Jennifer S. , Waller Alessia V. , Wright Laurie , Leonard Terri , Haack Carla , Waller Edmund K.
Published: July 2019

Objective: Inpatient treatment of hematological cancer is among the most physically and mentally arduous cancer treatments, and it is associated with a number of common physical, emotional, and social symptoms that can negatively affect quality of life (QOL) for years following treatment. While treating symptoms during hospitalization holds promise for improving long-term QOL, successful approaches likely require multidisciplinary interventions. In this article, we describe a 4-year effort in program enhancement that incorporated an adjunctive single yoga therapy session during treatment for hematological malignancies. Methods: Hospitalized patients receiving treatment for hematological cancer (N = 486) were provided a 40-minute individualized yoga therapy session. We evaluated feasibility and acceptance by quantifying the percentage of patients who discontinued the yoga session due to pain, discomfort, or another reason, and by comparing the intervention population to the demographic makeup of the unit more generally. Patient-reported symptoms were obtained before and after each session, and we evaluated acute symptom change for the entire sample and in subsamples that are less likely to use mindfulness-based interventions such as yoga. Results: The majority of sessions (87%) were completed, and the majority of unfinished sessions were interrupted by a medical procedure or because the patient fell asleep. No session was stopped early due to patients’ reported pain. Significant decreases were reported in all symptoms, with the greatest decrease in fatigue and anxiety. Conclusions: Yoga therapy was a feasible and effective nondrug adjunct intervention for hospitalized patients receiving treatment for hematological cancer, including bone marrow transplantation.