bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Bayesian inference of a dynamical model evaluating Deltamethrin effect on Daphnia survival
Authors: Diouf Abdoulaye , Camara Baba Issa , Ngom Diene , Toumi Hela , Felten Vincent , Masfaraud Jean-François , Ferard Jean-François
Published: November 2018

The estimation of toxicokinetic and toxicodynamic (TK-TD) models parameters is a real problem in research. These models highlight a dynamics of  internalisation of a toxic compound and a dynamics of the damage that this contaminant will cause on an organism and of possible repairs on the latter. This coupling TK-TD makes it possible to connect these measurements at different times with the same set of parameters sometimes very important in number. In this paper, the focus is on assessing the long-term impact of deltamethrin effects on a sample of daphnia magna survival. For this purpose we fit our TK-TD model of deltamethrin bio-accumuluation and daphnia survival to our experimental data by using bayesian inference algorithm developed in the package deBinfer of R. This bayesian inference method allows estimate simultaneously all the parameters of deltamethrin bio-accumuluation and daphnia survival dynamical system. For the estimation of the environmental risks, our results show that whatever the concentration or duration of exposure, the concentration of bioaccumulated deltamerin should not exceed on average 6.188 ng/L, at the risk of observing the deadly effects
Leptomeningeal metastases of a well-differentiated neuroendocrine tumour: a rare entity
Authors: Versluis JM , Brandsma D , van den Berg JG , Tesselaar MET
Published: November 2018

A 73-year-old man, without any medical history, had presented with dark urine and pale stool without pain. Diagnostic imaging revealed a tumour in the pancreas with liver metastases. Histopathological examination showed a well-differentiated pancreatic neuroendocrine tumour. After a stable 2.5 years on everolimus, progression of the liver metastases was seen and a switch was made to chemotherapy. Three months later, he developed progressive spinal neurological symptoms. MRI of the spine and brain revealed leptomeningeal contrast-enhancing lesions. Cytopathological examination of the cerebrospinal fluid showed malignant epithelial cells compatible with well-differentiated neuroendocrine tumour. Epithelial cell-adhesion molecule-based flow cytometry of the cerebrospinal fluid confirmed the presence of epithelial tumour cells. Based on these results, the diagnosis of leptomeningeal metastases of an originally well-differentiated neuroendocrine tumour of the pancreas was made.
Delayed presentation of pulmonary artery perforation by an Amulet left atrial appendage closure device
Authors: Wang Edward , Lin Wah Wah , Xu Xiao Fang , Merry Chris
Published: November 2018

Left atrial appendage occlusion (LAAO) devices offer stroke prevention in atrial fibrillation for patients intolerant of anticoagulation. Device placement leading to bleeding and cardiac tamponade have been reported periprocedurally but delayed presentations have not been reported in the literature. We present the case of an Amulet LAAO device causing erosion and bleeding from the main pulmonary artery that presented with cardiac tamponade 6 months after device placement. The pulmonary artery defect was repaired primarily and buttressed with a pericardial patch with good result.
Perioperative application of dexmedetomidine for postoperative systemic inflammatory response syndrome in patients undergoing percutaneous nephrolithotomy lithotripsy: results of a randomised controlled trial
Authors: Deng Yingqing , Tan Fang , Gan Xiaoliang , Li Xiaoyun , Ge Mian , Gong Chulian , Hei Ziqing , Zhu Qianqian , Zhou Shaoli
Published: November 2018

Objective

Our previous retrospective study demonstrated that perioperative dexmedetomidine (Dex) administration was associated with low systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS) incidence. The present study was designed to investigate whether perioperative administration of Dex decreases the incidence of postpercutaneous nephrolithotomy lithotripsy (PCNL) SIRS in patients who undergo PCNL.

Design

A randomised controlled trial was designed.

Participants

A total of 190 patients were randomly assigned to receive Dex (DEX group, n=95) or saline control (CON group, n=95) and completed the study. In the DEX group, Dex was loaded (1 µg/kg) before anaesthesia induction and was infused (0.5 µg/kg/h) during surgery.

Outcomes

The incidences of postoperative SIRS were recorded. Serum interleukin-6 (IL-6) and tumour necrosis factor α(TNF-α) were measured.

Results

The incidence rates of SIRS were significantly lower in the DEX group than in the CON group (35.8% vs 50.5%, p=0.04). No patients developed sepsis in either group. These results might be attributed to inhibition of inflammatory responses and the resulting lower serum levels of IL-6 and TNF-α, caused by Dex administration. However, compared with the CON group, the lower incidence rate of SIRS in the DEX group did not result in better outcomes, such as shorter postoperative hospitalisation stays and lower costs.

Conclusion

The present study showed that Dex administration during PCNL might be beneficial for decreasing the incidence of SIRS through inhibiting the release of inflammatory mediators, but not clinical consequences such as postoperative hospitalisation duration and costs. Further effects of Dex administration on SIRS in patients who are scheduled for PCNL should be explored in future studies.

Trial registration number

ChiCTR-ICR-15006167.
Developing a dynamic model of anomalous experiences and function in young people with or without psychosis: a cross-sectional and longitudinal study protocol
Authors: Wright Abigail C , Fowler David , Greenwood Kathryn E
Published: November 2018

Introduction

Anomalous experiences are common within the general population, but the frequency and intensity is increased in young people with psychosis. Studies have demonstrated that perceptual biases towards noticing these phenomena plays a role, but the way one thinks about one’s experience (metacognition) may also be relevant. While poor metacognitive function has been theoretically associated with anomalous experiences, this relationship is currently unclear. However, metacognition may work along a continuum with various metacognitive levels, many of which have been demonstrated as impaired in psychosis. These metacognitive components may interact via processes that maintain poor metacognition across levels, and that potentially impact both what people do in their everyday lives (functional outcome) and how people feel about their everyday lives (subjective recovery outcome) in young people with psychosis compared with healthy control participants.

Methods and analysis

This study will investigate the association and contribution of metacognition to anomalous experiences and outcome measures cross-sectionally and longitudinally in a 36-month follow-up. First, young people with psychosis will be compared with healthy control participants on selected measures of anomalous experience, metacognition, and function, using analysis of covariance to identify group differences. Next, the relationship between metacognitive components and processes will be explored, including processes connecting the different components, using regression analyses. Finally, mediation analyses will be used to assess the predictive value of metacognitive measures on outcome measures, both cross-sectionally and longitudinally at 36 months, while controlling for symptoms and cognition.

Ethics and dissemination

Ethical and Health Research Authority approval has been obtained through Camberwell St. Giles Research Ethics Committee (reference number: 17/LO/0055). This research project will be reported within a PhD thesis and submitted for journal publication. Once key predictive components of poor outcome in psychosis are identified, this study will develop a series of dynamic models to understand influences on outcome for young people with psychosis.
Protocol for a randomised controlled trial of continuous infusions of vancomycin to improve the attainment of target vancomycin levels in young infants: The VANC trial
Authors: Gwee Amanda , Cranswick Noel , Donath Susan M , Hunt Rodney , Curtis Nigel
Published: November 2018

Introduction

Vancomycin is frequently used in the treatment of late-onset sepsis in young infants and is routinely administered as intermittent infusions (IIV); however, existing IIV dosing guidelines achieve target vancomycin levels in less than half of infants. Continuous infusions of vancomycin (CIV) are an attractive alternative as adult studies report a higher attainment of target vancomycin levels, simpler drug monitoring and fewer drug side effects.

Methods

This is a multicentre, randomised controlled trial in which 200 young infants (aged 0–90 days) requiring vancomycin will be randomised to CIV or IIV for a duration determined by the treating clinician. Vancomycin levels will be measured immediately after the first dose in both arms. Trough and peak levels will be determined in the IIV arm and steady-state levels 18–30 hours after commencement of infusion will be measured in the CIV arm. Full blood count, urea and electrolytes, and C reactive protein level will be monitored throughout treatment. For all Gram-positive bacteria isolated from blood culture, a vancomycin Etest will be done to determine the minimum inhibitory concentration of the bacterium.

Analysis

Primary outcome: the proportion of infants with levels within target range at their first steady-state concentration. Secondary outcomes: (1) the proportion of drug-related adverse effects; (2) the time to achieve target levels in the blood; (3) the pharmacodynamics of vancomycin (using non-linear mixed effect modelling).

Ethics and dissemination

The study has been approved by The Royal Children’s Hospital Melbourne Human Research Ethics Committee (HREC) (No. 34030) and the South Eastern Sydney Local Health District HREC (SSA 16/G/335). Results will be published in a peer-reviewed journal.

Trial registration number

NCT02210169.
Team talk and team decision processes: a qualitative discourse analytical approach to 10 real-life medical emergency team encounters
Authors: Gundrosen Stine , Thomassen Gøril , Wisborg Torben , Aadahl Petter
Published: November 2018

Objectives

Explore the function of three specific modes of talk (discourse types) in decision-making processes.

Design

Ten real-life admissions of patients with critical illness were audio/video recorded and transcribed. Activity-type analysis (a qualitative discourse analytical method) was applied.

Setting

Interdisciplinary emergency teams admitting patients with critical illness in a Norwegian university hospital emergency department (ED).

Participants

All emergency teams consisted of at least two internal medicine physicians, two ED nurses, one anaesthetist and one nurse anaesthetist. The number of healthcare professionals involved in each emergency team varied between 11 and 20, and some individuals were involved with more than one team.

Results

The three discourse types played significant roles in team decision-making processes when negotiating meaning. Online commentaries (ONC) and metacommentaries (MC) created progression while offline commentaries (OFC) temporarily placed decisions on hold. Both ONC and MC triggered action and distributed tasks, resources and responsibility in the team. OFC sought mutual understanding and created a broader base for decisions.

Conclusion

A discourse analytical perspective on team talk in medical emergencies illuminates both the dynamics and complexity of teamwork. Here, we draw attention to the way specific modes of talk function in negotiating mutual understanding and distributing tasks and responsibilities in non-algorithm-driven activities. The analysis uncovers a need for an enhanced focus on how language can trigger safe team practice and integrate this knowledge in teamwork training to improve communication skills in ad hoc emergency teams.
Haematological profile of chronic kidney disease in a mixed-ancestry South African population: a cross-sectional study
Authors: George Cindy , Matsha Tandi E , Erasmus Rajiv T , Kengne Andre P
Published: November 2018

Objectives

The objectives were to characterise the haematological profile of screen-detected chronic kidney disease (CKD) participants and to correlate the complete blood count measures with the commonly advocated kidney function estimators.

Methods

The current cross-sectional study used data, collected between February 2015 and November 2016, of 1564 adults of mixed-ancestry, who participated in the Cape Town Vascular and Metabolic Health study. Kidney function was estimated using the Modification of Diet in Renal Disease (MDRD) and Chronic Kidney Disease Epidemiology Collaboration (CKD-EPI) equations. CKD was defined as estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) <60 mL/min/1.73 m2, and anaemia as haemoglobin level <13.5 g/dL (men) and <12 g/dL (women).

Results

Based on the MDRD and CKD-EPI equations, the crude prevalence of CKD was 6% and 3%. Irrespective of the equation used, median red blood cell (RBC) indices were consistently lower in those with CKD compared with those without CKD (all p<0.0001). Despite not showing any significant difference in total white blood cell (WBC) count between the two groups, the number of lymphocytes were lower (p=0.0001 and p<0.0001 for MDRD and CKD-EPI, respectively) and neutrophil count (both p<0.0297) and the ratio of lymphocytes to neutrophil (both p<0.0001) higher in the CKD group compared with those without CKD; with the remaining WBC indices similar in the two groups. The platelet count was similar in both groups. Of the screen-detected CKD participants, 45.5% (MDRD) and 57.8% (CKD-EPI) were anaemic, with the prevalence increasing with increasing severity of CKD, from 37.2% (stage 3) to 82.4% (stages 4–5). Furthermore, CKD-EPI-estimated kidney function, but not MDRD, was positively associated with RBC indices.

Conclusion

Though it remains unclear whether common kidney function estimators provide accurate estimates of CKD in Africans, the correlation of their estimates with deteriorating RBC profile, suggests that advocated estimators, to some extent approximate kidney function in African populations.
Protocol for a feasibility study of an Indigenous Medication Review Service (IMeRSe) in Australia
Authors: Wheeler Amanda J , Spinks Jean , Kelly Fiona , Ware Robert S , Vowles Erica , Stephens Mike , Scuffham Paul A , Miller Adrian
Published: November 2018

Introduction

The age-adjusted rate of potentially preventable hospitalisations for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people is almost five times the rate of other Australians. Quality use of medicines has an important role in alleviating these differences. This requires strengthening existing medication reviewing services through collaboration between community pharmacists and health workers, and ensuring services are culturally appropriate. This Indigenous Medication Review Service (IMeRSe) study aims to develop and evaluate the feasibility of a culturally appropriate medication management service delivered by community pharmacists in collaboration with Aboriginal health workers.

Methods and analysis

This study will be conducted in nine Aboriginal health services (AHSs) and their associated community pharmacies in three Australian states over 12 months. Community pharmacists will be trained to improve their awareness and understanding of Indigenous health and cultural issues, to communicate the quality use of medicines effectively, and to strengthen interprofessional relationships with AHSs and their staff. Sixty consumers (with a chronic condition/pregnant/within 2 years post partum and at risk of medication-related problems (MRPs) per site will be recruited, with data collection at baseline and 6 months. The primary outcome is the difference in cumulative incidence of serious MRPs in the 6 months after IMeRSe introduction compared with the 6 months prior. Secondary outcomes include potentially preventable medication-related hospitalisations, medication adherence, total MRPs, psychological and social empowerment, beliefs about medication, treatment satisfaction and health expenditure.

Ethics and dissemination

The protocol received approval from Griffith University (HREC/2018/251), Queensland Health Metro South (HREC/18/QPAH/109), Aboriginal Health and Medical Research Council of New South Wales (1381/18), Far North Queensland (HREC/18/QCH/86-1256) and the Central Australian HREC (CA-18-3090). Dissemination to Indigenous people and communities will be a priority. Results will be available on the Australian Sixth Community Pharmacy Agreement website and published in peer-reviewed journals.

Trial registration number

ACTRN12618000188235; Pre-results.
Are extreme conditioning programmes effective and safe? A narrative review of high-intensity functional training methods research paradigms and findings
Authors: Tibana Ramires Alsamir , Sousa Nuno Manuel Frade de
Published: November 2018

Extreme conditioning programmes (ECPs, eg , CrossFit, Insanity and Gym Jones) are a growing fitness regimen characterised by functional movements performed at high-intensity and with constantly varying movements. While the popularity and number of practitioners of ECPs are growing, a debate has been established between what is observed in the scientific literature and anecdotal reports from athletes, coaches and physicians about safety (incidence and prevalence of injuries and rhabdomyolysis) and benefits (physical and mental health). In this article, we review the prevalence and incidence of injuries, rhabdomyolysis, physiological responses and chronic adaptations to ECPs. The majority of the available evidence confirm that the estimated injury rate among athletes participating in ECPs is similar to that in weightlifting and most other recreational activities. Additionally, ECP sessions resulted in increased acute oxidative, metabolic and cardiovascular stress, and depending on the stimulus (intensity, duration and non-usual exercise) and training status of the practitioner, an ECP session may precipitate rhabdomyolysis. In the scientific literature, the current chronic effects of ECPs showed little or no effects on body composition and improvements in physical fitness and psychological parameters; however, further studies are important.
Light-by-light scattering in a photon–photon collider
Authors: Takahashi T. , An G. , Chen Y. , Chou W. , Huang Y. , Liu W. , Lu W. , Lv J. , Pei G. , Pei S. , Shen C. P. , Sun B. , Zhang C. , Zhang C.
Published: November 2018

We studied the feasibility of observing light-by-light scattering in a photon–photon collider based on an existing accelerator complex and a commercially available laser system. We investigated the statistical significance of the signal over the QED backgrounds through a Monte Carlo simulation with a detector model. The study showed that light-by-light scattering can be observed with a statistical significance of eight to ten sigma in a year of operation, depending on the operating conditions.
People and Machines: A Look at the Evolving Relationship between Capital and Skill in Manufacturing, 1860–1930, Using Immigration Shocks
Authors: Lafortune Jeanne , Lewis Ethan , Tessada José
Published: November 2018

This paper estimates the elasticity of substitution between capital and skill in manufacturing using immigration-induced variation in skill mix across U.S. counties between 1860 and 1930. We find that capital initially complemented both high- and low-skill labor (determined by literacy) and, unlike today, was more complementary with low-skill labor. Around 1890, capital increased its relative complementarity with high-skill labor. Simulations calibrated to our estimates imply the level of capital-skill complementarity after 1890 allowed the manufacturing sector to absorb the large wave of Eastern and Southern European immigrants with only a modest decline in less-skilled relative wages. This would not have been possible under the older production technology.
The Reverse Matthew Effect: Consequences of Retraction in Scientific Teams
Authors: Jin Ginger Zhe , Jones Benjamin , Lu Susan Feng , Uzzi Brian
Published: November 2018

Teamwork pervades modern production, yet teamwork can make individual roles difficult to ascertain. The Matthew effect suggests that communities reward eminent team members for great outcomes at the expense of less eminent team members. We study this phenomenon in reverse, investigating credit sharing after damaging events. Our context is article retractions in the sciences. We find that retractions impose little citation penalty on the prior work of eminent coauthors, but less eminent coauthors experience substantial citation declines, especially when teamed with eminent authors. These findings suggest a reverse Matthew effect for team-produced negative events. A Bayesian model provides a candidate interpretation.
Family Types and Intimate Partner Violence: A Historical Perspective
Authors: Tur-Prats Ana
Published: November 2018

This paper examines the long-term determinants of intimate partner violence (IPV) by analyzing its relationship with traditional family structures: stem families in which one child stays in the parental household and nuclear families in which all children leave the household upon marriage. My hypothesis is that coresidence with a mother-in-law increases a wife's contribution to nondomestic work, which may decrease the level of violence. I find that areas where stem families were socially predominant in the past currently have a lower IPV rate, and use differences in inheritance laws in medieval times as an instrument for the different family types.
Education, Decision Making, and Economic Rationality
Authors: Banks James , Carvalho Leandro S. , Perez-Arce Francisco
Published: November 2018

This paper studies the causal effect of education on decision making. In 1972, England raised its minimum school-leaving age from 15 to 16 for students born after September 1, 1957. An online survey was conducted with 2,700 individuals born in a 36-month window on either side of this date. Participants made 25 incentivized risk choices that allow us to measure multiple dimensions of decision making. Despite the policy having effects on education, educational qualifications, and income, we find no effects of the policy on decision making or decision-making quality.
Welfare Activation and Youth Crime
Authors: Bratsberg Bernt , Hernæs Øystein , Markussen Simen , Raaum Oddbjørn , Røed Knut
Published: November 2018

We evaluate the impact on youth crime of a welfare reform that tightened activation requirements for social assistance clients. The evaluation strategy exploits administrative individual data in combination with geographically differentiated implementation of the reform. We find that the reform reduced crime among teenage boys from economically disadvantaged families. Stronger reform effects on weekday versus weekend crime, reduced school dropout, and favorable long-run outcomes in terms of crime and educational attainment point to both incapacitation and human capital accumulation as key mechanisms. Despite lowered social assistance take-up, we uncover no indication that loss of income support pushed youth into crime.
Beauty, Job Tasks, and Wages: A New Conclusion about Employer Taste-Based Discrimination
Authors: Stinebrickner Ralph , Stinebrickner Todd , Sullivan Paul
Published: November 2018

Using novel data from the Berea Panel Study, we show that the beauty wage premium for college graduates exists only in jobs where attractiveness is plausibly a productive characteristic. A large premium exists in jobs with substantial amounts of interpersonal interaction but not in jobs that require working with information. This finding is inconsistent with employer taste-based discrimination, which would favor attractive workers in all jobs. Unique task data address concerns that measurement error in the importance of interpersonal tasks may bias empirical work toward finding employer discrimination. Our conclusions are in stark contrast to the findings of existing research.
Does Home Production Replace Consumption Spending? Evidence from Shocks in Housing Wealth in the Great Recession
Authors: Been Jim , Rohwedder Susann , Hurd Michael
Published: November 2018

Becker's theory of home production suggests substitutability between consumption spending and home production. Using panel data with detailed information on spending and time use, we analyze households' ability to replace consumption spending by home-produced counterparts. Keeping wages fixed and changing lifetime resources by the shock to housing wealth during the Great Recession, we estimate an elasticity of substitution that is consistent with a life cycle Becker model. However, we estimate that only about 11% of total spending is replaceable by home production, which, in contrast to prior literature, makes it unlikely that home production fully mitigates the consequences of wealth shocks to well-being.
Most of Africa's Nutritionally Deprived Women and Children Are Not Found in Poor Households
Authors: Brown Caitlin , Ravallion Martin , van de Walle Dominique
Published: November 2018

Policymakers often assume that targeting observably poor households suffices in reaching nutritionally deprived individuals. We question that assumption. Our comprehensive assessment for sub-Saharan Africa reveals that undernourished women and children are spread widely across the household wealth and consumption distributions. Roughly three-quarters of underweight women and undernourished children are not found in the poorest 20% of households, and around half are not found in the poorest 40%. Countries with higher undernutrition tend to have higher shares of undernourished individuals in nonpoor households. Intrahousehold inequality accounts in part for our results, but other factors appear to be important, including common health risks.
“The emotional housekeeping of the world”: Affect in Alice Munro’s and A. L. Kennedy’s post-millennial short stories
Authors: Somacarrera Pilar
Published: November 2018

In his introduction to Scottish Literature and Postcolonial Literature, Michael Gardiner argues for bringing together these two separate bodies of texts which are intimately joined. Within the context of the “‘postcolonial’ spaces of Scotland and Canada” (Gittings, 1995: 135), in this article I offer a comparative reading from the standpoint of Sara Ahmed’s affect theory of the post-millennial short stories of A. L. Kennedy and Alice Munro, based on their shared belief in a transatlantic new humanism which privileges emotions.
Chief executive officer participative leadership and the performance of new venture teams
Authors: Eva Nathan , Newman Alexander , Miao Qing , Cooper Brian , Herbert Kendall
Published: November 2018

In this article, we examine the mediating role played by affective and cognitive trust in chief executive officer (CEO) and intra-group trust, on the relationship between CEO participative leadership and the performance of the top management team (TMT) and its members within entrepreneurial new ventures. Drawing on four waves of multilevel, multi-source data, our study extends social exchange theory by teasing out the trust-based social exchange mechanisms linking CEO participative leadership to performance outcomes. Specifically, the data analysis revealed that intra-group trust mediated the relationship between CEO participative leadership and TMT performance, while affective trust mediated the relationship between CEO participative leadership and performance of TMT members. However, cognitive trust did not mediate this relationship. This suggests that it is important for CEOs of new ventures to use participative leadership to create strong levels of affective trust with TMT members and intra-group trust within the TMT.
Inferior vena cava stenosis after heart transplant: a rare cause of venoarterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation weaning failure
Authors: Portran Philippe , Lavigne Flavie , Jacquet-Lagreze Matthias , Fellahi Jean-Luc
Published: November 2018

Introduction:

The discontinuation of venoarterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (VA ECMO) is a critical step in patient recovery. To reduce risks, weaning trials must be performed to buttress this important decision. However, a successful weaning trial does not preclude the possibility of complications.

Case report:

Here, we report a case of sudden multiple organ failure in a heart transplant patient, occurring after a successful ECMO weaning trial. We finally diagnosed a rare post-surgical complication of bicaval orthotopic heart transplantation, a severe stenosis of the inferior vena cava (IVC) that had been masked by the post-operative ECMO.

Discussion and conclusion:

Our case report should serve as a cautionary tale: it may be of interest to add a search for complications at the vascular anastomoses to the weaning trial procedure and to keep an eye out for them in the following days.
Aortic valve replacement with or without myocardial revascularization in octogenarians. Can minimally invasive extracorporeal circuits improve the outcome?
Authors: El-Essawi Aschraf , Breitenbach Ingo , Haupt Benjamin , Brouwer Rene , Morjan Mohammed , Harringer Wolfgang
Published: November 2018

Objective:

The positive impact of minimally invasive extracorporeal circuits (MiECC) on patient outcome is expected to be most evident in patients with limited physiologic reserves. Nevertheless, most studies have limited their use to low-risk patients undergoing myocardial revascularization. As such, there is little evidence to their benefit outside this patient population. We, therefore, set out to explore their potential benefit in octogenarians undergoing aortic valve replacement (AVR) with or without concomitant myocardial revascularization.

Methods:

Based on the type of the utilized ECC, we performed a retrospective propensity score-matched comparison among all octogenarians (n = 218) who received a primary AVR with or without concomitant coronary artery bypass grafting in our institution between 2003 and 2010.

Results:

A MiECC was utilized in 32% of the patients. The propensity score matching yielded 52 matched pairs. The 30-day postoperative mortality (2% vs. 10%; p=0.2), the incidence of low cardiac output (0% vs. 6%; p=0.2) and the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) stay (2.5 ± 2.6 vs. 3.8 ± 4.7 days; p=0.06) were all in favour of the MiECC group, but failed to reach statistical significance while the 90-day postoperative mortality did (2% vs. 16%; p=0.02).

Conclusion:

MiECCs have a positive influence on the outcome of octogenarians undergoing AVR with or without concomitant coronary artery bypass grafting. Their use should, therefore, be extended beyond isolated coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery.
The effectiveness of narrative writing on the moral distress of intensive care nurses
Authors: Saeedi Smat , Jouybari Leila , Sanagoo Akram , Vakili Mohammad Ali
Published: November 2018

Background:

Nursing is a profession that has always been accompanied with common ethical concerns. There are some evidences which indicate that narrative writing on traumatic experiences may improve an individual’s emotional health.

Objective:

This study aimed to determine the effectiveness of narrative writing on moral distress of nurses working in intensive care unit.

Research design:

This study was a clinical trial with pre- and post-test design. The frequency and intensity of moral distress was measured by a valid and reliable questionnaire (Corely) at baseline and after 8 weeks. The intervention group was asked to write about their deepest emotions and stressful experiences in the intensive care unit for 8 weeks.

Participants and research context:

Using consensus sampling, 120 nurses of intensive care unit and neonatal intensive care unit of the teaching hospitals (in Iran) were invited to and were randomly allocated into the intervention and control groups.

Ethical considerations:

Participation was voluntary, data were anonymized, and the confidentiality of the participating nurses and their institutions maintained. The ethical approval was obtained from an IRB or research ethics committee.

Findings:

In total, 106 nurses completed the trial consisting of 87.75% females. The mean work experience of nurses in the intervention and control groups was 7.21 ± 4.96 and 8.28 ± 5.45 years, respectively. Independent t-test showed no statistical difference neither in the intensity of moral distress ( P = 0.8), nor in its frequency ( P = 0.5) between the two groups.

Discussion:

As nurses constantly face ethical tensions, moral distress is a phenomenon that results from the different situations of critical care units. Their concern about receiving negative feedback from the managerial level may have influenced the outcome of the intervention.

Conclusion:

Narratives writing by the nurses showed no effect on reducing the intensity and frequency of moral distress. It seems that due to the intensity of moral distress in clinical settings, we need to test variety solutions to reduce the problem.
Adaptive base isolation system to achieve structural resiliency under both short- and long-period earthquake ground motions
Authors: Rabiee Ramin , Chae Yunbyeong
Published: November 2018

Base isolation system is widely used to protect important and essential buildings from seismic hazards. The use of high damping is effective in reducing the resonance effect under long-period earthquake ground motions. However, high damping increases the acceleration demand under short-period ground motions, leading to a higher risk of damage of nonstructural components. Actually, low damping is beneficial to reduce the acceleration demand under short-period ground motions, suggesting the use of adaptive damping control, that is, high damping under long-period motions and low damping under short-period motions. In order to implement this concept, a semi-actively controlled base isolation system is provided in this article along with a new control law based on the transmissibility theory. Unlike existing studies, the proposed method enables a systematic design procedure for base isolated structures with semi-active dampers, which is called the simplified design procedure in this article. The performance of the proposed system is evaluated with numerical simulations for a base isolated three-story building with magneto-rheological dampers. It was shown that the proposed system achieves a high level of performance under long-period ground motions, while maintaining the exceptional performance of a conventional base isolation system with low damping under short-period ground motions.
User Engagement in Public Discourse on Genetically Modified Organisms: The Role of Opinion Leaders on Social Media
Authors: Xu Qian , Yu Nan , Song Yunya
Published: November 2018

This study adopted a quantitative content analysis to examine how source attributes of opinion leaders and their message framing influenced user engagement in the public discourse of genetically modified organism (GMO) on Chinese social media. The findings showed that different source attributes and message frames used by opinion leaders varied in their respective influences on three dimensions of user engagement—reposts, comments, and likes. The attribute of account verification only predicted surface-level engagement (i.e., liking), whereas account type significantly influenced in-depth engagement (i.e., reposting and commenting). The fact, opportunity, pro-GMO, and international frames positively predicted user engagement.
From White Lab Coats and Crazy Hair to Actual Scientists: Exploring the Impact of Researcher Interaction and Performing Arts on Students’ Perceptions and Motivation for Science
Authors: Ruiz-Mallén Isabel , Gallois Sandrine , Heras María
Published: November 2018

We examine the impact of researchers’ interaction and drama-based techniques when learning science on students’ views of scientists and motivations for studying science. We do so through mixed-methods in five secondary schools in three countries. Students changed their perception of scientists toward a less stereotyped image, particularly where their interaction with researchers was higher. Pupils’ interest for scientific careers significantly increased where drama-based techniques were more inserted into the pedagogical approach. Promoting long-term interaction with scientists in school settings combined with embedded drama-based methods in science learning/teaching can contribute to reconstructing students’ views on who can be engaged in science.
Bringing Science to Bars: A Strategy for Effective Science Communication
Authors: Tan Shawn Zheng Kai , Perucho Jose Angelo Udal
Published: November 2018

It is well accepted that it is part of a scientist’s duty to communicate science, yet most practicing scientists lack the training and opportunity to do so. In this article, we use the framework of science talks in bars to highlight the importance of locality and environment. We propose that science communication programs should be developed around the locales of the target community as an effective strategy to counter the rising mistrust in science and scientists.
Aporetic and Productive Undecidedness of (Data in) Neoliberalism
Authors: Koro-Ljungberg Mirka , Tesar Marek , Carlson David Lee , Montana Anna , Gong Byoung-gyu
Published: November 2018

In diverging from a follow-the-heard idealism that has scholars spinning in paradox, this article opens the possibility that neoliberal data can ground themselves in the reality of being in the world via a search for the immanent other, friend, concept, or practice. This article is not concerned with a search for ultimate (data) truth, but rather aporia and the intimate act of parrhesia, or truth-telling, as it is communicated in the context of life. We hover over whether data-as-friendship can be unplanned and unrehearsed as parrhesia, and not just part of the neoliberal networking scheme to gather more data, or follow regulations of “rigor” and “rightness.” We also ponder ways in which free and deregulated data (in all friendship forms) can enable complex, creative, and critical engagements with inquiry, participants, and our environments.
Waste as scats: For an organizational engagement with waste
Authors: Corvellec Hervé
Published: November 2018

This article coins the term ‘scatolic’ to suggest a new way for organizations to think about and engage with waste. Scatolic engagement draws on Reno’s analogy of waste as scats and of scats as signs for enabling interspecies communication. This analogy stresses the impossibility for waste producers to dissociate themselves from their waste and emphasizes the contingent, multiple, and transient value of waste. Correspondingly, the article suggests that organizations grow a semiotic competence at reading waste and develop a sense of responsibility for materials. Adopting a scatolic approach to waste is featured as a way for organizations to deal with waste in the Anthropocene.
Reconsidering context: Six underlying features of context to improve learning from evaluation
Authors: Coldwell Mike
Published: November 2018

This article considers the role of context in ‘theory-based’ evaluations, particularly those that use chain-type path or logic models. Reflecting on the use of causal models in the school professional development field, a set of underlying features of context is developed: the article proposes that context can be dynamic, agentic, relational, historically located, immanent and complex. These features are applied to a consideration of a commonly observed contextual factor: senior leader support for an intervention. The article argues that actively considering these underlying features can allow for a more sophisticated approach to context and concludes with a set of related interrogatory questions for evaluators, aiming to improve learning in future evaluation.
Social robots to support children’s well-being under medical treatment: A systematic state-of-the-art review
Authors: Moerman Clara J , van der Heide Loek , Heerink Marcel
Published: November 2018

Hospitalization is a stressful experience for children. Socially assistive robots (SARs), designed to interact with humans, might be a means to mitigate a child’s stress and support its well-being. A systematic state-of-the-art review was performed to inventorize the use of SARs in hospital to support children’s well-being and what the effects are. We searched five databases (Cinahl, Medline, Embase, PsycInfo, IEEE), combining terms for ‘distress’, ‘relaxation’ and ‘well-being’ with terms for social robot and child, and did an additional hand search. Ten publications (on eight studies) out of 563 unique titles were considered relevant. Six different robots were used (one humanoid, five pet-like) for distraction during medical procedure, emotional support for dealing with a disease or support of well-being during hospital stay. Positive effects on the children were noted, such as experiencing distraction and engagement, and less stress or pain, more relaxation, smiling and openness or better communication. On a psychiatric ward some youngsters felt unsafe with the robot. The outcomes suggest that SARs may have a potentially positive influence on a child’s well-being. Further research is needed to determine the effect of using SARs and how to integrate the use in the working routines of health personnel.
The sociology of the limit: Reformulating the question of migration through Van Gennep
Authors: Gazit Orit
Published: November 2018

This article situates Van Gennep’s Rites de passage in the contemporary field of migration studies, arguing that his second and third chapters allow us to reformulate how we conceptualize contemporary migratory encounters. Rather than reading Van Gennep’s classical text through the prevalent Turnerian lens of “liminality” in migration, I reread it as offering a conceptualization of migration as deriving from society’s establishment on a delimited piece of earth, constituting itself against and in relation to its own limits. Society’s limit then becomes the center of social inquiry, while the strangers at the gate are seen as an integral part of these fundamental relations between a social grouping and the delimited space it occupies. The article further suggests that Van Gennep’s sociology of the limit offers the field of migration studies three practical analytical contributions: (a) its notion of the multiplicity of limits and sublimits emerging throughout the migratory encounter; (b) its emphasis on the sanctification of the limit, which opens up the possibility of analyzing the relations between migration and emotions; and (c) its pointing to the potential cycle of dread elicited by this sanctification—a notion highly relevant to analyzing contemporary migratory encounters.
On social rhythm: A renewed assessment of Van Gennep’s Rites of Passage
Authors: Hochner Nicole
Published: November 2018

Contrary to most readers who have emphasized the notions of passage or liminality, I demonstrate in this study that Van Gennep’s Rites de passage is articulated around the four notions of sequences, margins, passages, and schema. Subsequently, the main claim of this article is to propose the idea of social kinesis—or social rhythm—as the crux of Van Gennep’s theory. Such a fresh reappraisal of Van Gennep is also an opportunity to show how Pierre Bourdieu sought for social laws and regularities in a rather deterministic fashion, and completely overlooked Van Gennep’s idea of motion. More importantly, this article is an invitation to reconsider Van Gennep’s epistemological approach as a bridge between the social and the life sciences. Indeed, Van Gennep’s so-called méthode des séquences emerges from a dialogue between the social sciences and biology on the one hand, and with cosmology on the other. Indeed, I illuminate how Van Gennep investigated the enigmas of social life and dynamics within the framework of his understanding of metabolism and regenerative processes.
Repetition and reintegration: Van Gennep’s structure and routinized warfare
Authors: Rothem Nitzan
Published: November 2018

This article presents Arnold Van Gennep’s dynamic structure, suggesting that it depicts phenomena that are both linear and recurring. I elucidate Van Gennep’s structure by closely reading Rites de passage’s penultimate chapter. This chapter, which might seem a mere collection of “leftover” materials, is where Van Gennep’s conceptualization subverts perceptions of structure as a rigid social organization. Here, he does not envision a delimited order, bound by distinct phases of separation, liminality, and aggregation, but rather complexifies these three phases. Van Gennep portrays these phases as repeated beats and pulses, which attain modification and revitalization during events of differentiation and reintegration. This article continues to examine the utility of Van Gennep’s concepts for studying current warfare’s lingering and routinized nature, as an alternative to the study of war through the binary poles of peace and war, order and chaos, and structure and anti-structure. By discussing the 2015 Strategy Doctrine of the Israeli military, I suggest that Rites de passage’s unique formulation of structure allows considering the lingering, cyclical, and ambiguous aspects of current warfare.
Reconsidering Arnold Van Gennep’s Les rites de passage from the perspective of ‘Performance Studies’
Authors: Abeliovich Ruthie
Published: November 2018

This article probes into the performative dimensions embedded in Arnold Van Gennep’s book Les rites de passage. Focusing on the tripartite structure of Van Gennep’s ritual scheme, I argue that its current reigning interpretations underestimate what “Performance Studies” heightens: not the ritual and its consequences, but the dynamic passage—the durational procession—delineates the affiliation of the individual to society and outlines the transformative actions a community must undergo in order to secure its survival through time. Thus, rather than focusing on liminality as the pivot of rites of passage, this article addresses the agency of the passage between the three phases of Van Gennep’s ritual model. I offer three central dimensions essential to Performance Studies, through which performativity in Les rites de passage is re-examined: the incursion of the fictional into the social sphere, compulsive repetition, and embodied dynamics are inextricably interrelated dimensions of the processual formation of a tightly knit community through rituals.