bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
TLR4 and Caveolin‐1 in Monocytes Are Associated With Inflammatory Conditions in Diabetic Neuropathy
Authors: Zhu T , Meng Q , Ji J , Zhang L , Lou X
Published: December 2016

The purpose of this study was to investigate the expression of TLR4 and caveolin‐1 in monocytes among healthy volunteers as well as those with type‐2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN). Nineteen healthy control subjects, 18 patients with T2DM, and 20 patients with DPN were enrolled. Toll‐like receptor (TLR)4, caveolin‐1, MyD88, phosphorylated IκB, and plasma TNF‐α and interleukin (IL)‐6 were measured using real‐time polymerase chain reaction, Western blotting, and enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay. Compared with the other two groups, the DPN group had higher expression of TLR4, MyD88, phosphorylated IκB, TNF‐α, and IL‐6, but significantly lower levels of caveolin‐1 and total IκB in monocytes. Plasma concentrations of TNF‐α and IL‐6 were positively correlated with TLR4 and negatively correlated with caveolin‐1 in patients with DPN. Plasma concentration of TLR4 was negatively correlated with caveolin‐1 in patients with DPN. Reduced expression of caveolin‐1 in monocytes could aggravate the TLR4‐mediated inflammatory cascade.
Everyday Encounters with Art: Comparing Expert and Novice Experiences
Authors: Foreman‐Wernet Lois , Dervin Brenda
Published: December 2016

The study reported here looked at how two groups of people – one with art expertise and one without – made sense of their encounters with an exhibition of a single artist, the late Paul‐Henri Bourguignon. The study builds on previous research using Dervin's Sense‐Making Methodology to study how people interpret their arts experiences within the contexts of their everyday lives. Informants were asked to rank‐order their selections among the pieces on display according to which had the most impact for them (however they defined impact). Each informant then did a structured qualitative interview focusing on the work he or she chose as most impactful. The researchers looked at thematic elements and other patterns of similarity and difference that arose in the interviews and offer thoughts on how the results of this study may provide insight to those who work in museums.
The eye of the retriever: developing episodic memory mechanisms in preverbal infants assessed through pupil dilation
Authors: Hellmer Kahl , Söderlund Hedvig , Gredebäck Gustaf
Published: December 2016

Studying memory in infants can be challenging, as they cannot express their subjective recollection verbally. In this study we use a novel method with which we can assess episodic recognition memory through pupillometry, using identical procedures and stimuli for infants and adults. In three experiments of 4‐ and 7‐month‐old infants, and adults we show that the adult pupillary response is larger to previously seen than to never seen items (old/new effect). Pupil dilations index subjective memory experience in adults, producing distinct pupil dilations to items judged as remembered, familiar, and new, regardless of actual previous exposure (Experiment 1). Seven‐month‐old infants demonstrate a clear pupillary old/new effect, very similar to that of adults (Experiment 2), whereas 4‐month‐olds do not demonstrate such an effect (Experiment 3). Our findings suggest that the mnemonic mechanisms that serve infants' and adults' episodic recognition memory are more similar than previously asserted: they are not fully developed at 4 months of age but that there is contiguity in human episodic memory development from 7 months of age.
Speed or deliberation: a comparison of post‐disaster recovery in Japan, Turkey, and Chile
Authors: Platt Stephen , So Emily
Published: December 2016

This paper compares recovery in the wake of three recent earthquakes: the Great East Japan Earthquake in March 2011; the Van earthquake in Turkey in October 2011; and the Maule earthquake in Chile in February 2010. The authors visited all three locations approximately 12–18 months after the incidents and interviewed earthquake specialists, disaster managers, urban planners, and local authorities. A key challenge to post‐disaster recovery planning is balancing speed and deliberation. While affected communities must rebuild as quickly as possible, they must also seek to maximise the opportunities for improvement that disasters provide. The three case studies bring this dilemma into stark relief, as recovery was respectively slow, fast, and just right in the aftermath of the events: the Government of Japan adopted a deliberate approach to recovery and reconstruction; speed was of the essence in Turkey; and an effective balance between speed and deliberation was achieved in Chile.
Risk factors for long‐term post‐traumatic stress disorder among medical rescue workers appointed to the 2008 Wenchuan earthquake response in China
Authors: Schenk Ellen J. , Yuan Jun , Martel Lise D. , Shi Guo‐Qing , Han Ke , Gao Xing
Published: December 2016

This study aims to determine the risk factors for clinically‐significant post‐traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among Chinese medical rescue workers one year after the response to the Wenchuan earthquake on 12 May 2008. A sample of 337 medical workers who performed response work within the first three months of the event completed an online questionnaire, which included information on demographics, social support, the management and organisation of the disaster response, and an assessment of PTSD. Symptoms consistent with PTSD were prevalent in 17 per cent of the rescue workers. Those who developed PTSD symptoms were more likely to have been injured, experienced a water shortage, been disconnected from family and friends during the response, and have passive coping styles and neurotic personalities. Factors that cannot be changed easily, such as personality traits, should be evaluated prior to deployment to ensure that rescue workers at higher risk of PTSD are provided with adequate support before and during deployment.
MD‐Logic overnight type 1 diabetes control in home settings: A multicentre, multinational, single blind randomized trial
Authors: Nimri Revital , Bratina Natasa , Kordonouri Olga , Avbelj Stefanija Magdalena , Fath Maryam , Biester Torben , Muller Ido , Atlas Eran , Miller Shahar , Fogel Aviel , Phillip Moshe , Danne Thomas , Battelino Tadej
Published: December 2016

Aims

To evaluate the safety, efficacy and need for remote monitoring of the MD‐Logic closed‐loop system during short‐term overnight use at home.

Methods

Seventy‐five patients (38 male; aged 10‐54 years; average A1c, 7.8% ± 0.7%, 61.8 ± 7.2 mmol/mol) were enrolled from 3 clinical sites. Patients were randomly assigned to participate in 2 overnight crossover periods, each including 4 consecutive nights, 1 under closed‐loop control and 1 under sensor‐augmented pump (SAP) therapy in the patient's home. Both study arms were supervised using a remote‐monitoring system in a blinded manner. Primary endpoints were time spent with glucose levels below 70 mg/dL and percentage of nights in which mean overnight glucose levels were within 90 to 140 mg/dL.

Results

The median [interquartile range] percentage of time spent in hypoglycaemia was significantly lower on nights when MD‐Logic was used, compared to SAP therapy (2.07 [0, 4.78] and 2.6 [0, 10.34], respectively; P = .004) and the percentage of individual nights with a mean overnight glucose level in target was significantly greater (75 [42, 75] and 50 [25,75], respectively; P = .008). The time spent in target range was increased by a median of 28% (P = .001), with the same amount of insulin (10.69 [7.28, 13.94] and 10.41[6.9, 14.07], respectively; P = .087). The remote monitoring triggered calls for hypoglycaemia at twice the rate during SAP therapy compared to closed‐loop control (62 and 29, respectively; P = .002).

Conclusions

The MD‐Logic system demonstrated a safe and efficient profile during overnight use by children, adolescents and adults with type 1 diabetes and, therefore, provides an effective means of mitigating the risk of nocturnal hypoglycaemia.
Immigration policy index
Authors: Vikhrov Dmytro
Published: December 2016

The immigration policy index is based on three types of entry visa restrictions: visa required, visa not required for short stays and visa not required. I identify country pairs which changed their visa regime during 2000–2010 and find that the weakening of visa policy is associated with a 10 percent increase in migrant stocks and a significant shift towards male and less skilled migration from policy affected source countries. In contrast, the tightening of visa policy is not related to a significant change in migrant stocks, their gender or skill composition. The result suggests the existence of immigration policy hysteresis.
Discourse, Justification, and Education: Jürgen Habermas on Moral Epistemology and Dialogical Conditions of Moral Justification and Rightness
Authors: Okshevsky Walter C.
Published: December 2016

In this essay Walter Okshevsky addresses the question of whether a certain form of dialogically derived agreement can function as an epistemic (universal and necessary) criterion of moral judgment and ground of moral authority. Okshevsky examines arguments for and against in the literature of educational philosophy and develops Jürgen Habermas's affirmative answer as presented in his discourse theory of morality. Habermas's position is articulated as a moral epistemology (“strong dialogicality”) and is developed through his critique of the “monologism” of certain aspects of Immanuel Kant's moral theory. Okshevsky concludes with a consideration of some educational implications of Habermas's position.
Education, Justice, and Discursive Agency: Toward an Educationally Responsive Discourse Ethics
Authors: Martin Christopher
Published: December 2016

Jürgen Habermas argues that principles of justice should be decided through rational agreement as opposed to force or coercion. Christopher Martin argues in this essay that the success of such a project presupposes sufficiently developed capacities for discursive agency equally distributed within a diverse public sphere. This epistemic presupposition is not explicitly recognized in Habermas's current formulation of his theory and as such the theory implicitly excludes the interest that future citizens have in the development of their own capacities for competent deliberative engagement. Martin argues that this omission is serious enough that Habermas's principle of universalization (U) should be modified, and he articulates this modification in terms of a prohibition against “developmental coercion.” Martin concludes by elaborating on the concept of developmental coercion, and he points to the implications of this addition to discourse ethics for the institutionalization of deliberative democracy.
Social Justice and Education as Discursive Initiation
Authors: Stojanov Krassimir
Published: December 2016

In this essay Krassimir Stojanov attempts first to reconstruct the “heart” of Jürgen Habermas's discourse ethics, namely the so‐called “principle of universalization” of ethical norms. This principle grounds Habermas's proceduralist account of social justice via equal access of all concerned to the practices of deliberative validation of norms. Stojanov claims with regard to this account that it could only be implemented if the social actors are involved in a process of education as discursive initiation. After using R. S. Peters's educational theory to distinguish discursive initiation from a traditionalist understanding of educative initiation, he discusses some central social prerequisites for the development of discursive skills in growing individuals; to identify these prerequisites, he draws on Axel Honneth's conception of the intersubjective origins of individuals' development of rational autonomy. In the final part of the essay, Stojanov briefly explores some implications of his elaborated account of discursive initiation and its social preconditions for schooling and pedagogy.
Did closures do any good? Labour productivity, mine dynamics, and rationalization in interwar Ruhr coal mining
Authors: Jopp Tobias A.
Published: December 2016

Throughout the late 1920s, German coal mining saw an exceptional surge in labour productivity, led by the performance of the Ruhr coal mines. It is commonly accepted in the relevant literature that the economy‐wide ‘rationalization boom’ explains that pattern. This study tests the related hypothesis that ‘negative rationalization’, in the form of a massive wave of mine closures over the period 1924–9, played a significant role in stimulating aggregate labour productivity in the Ruhr coal district. Using an original dataset for the totality of Ruhr coal mines, the causes of productivity change over the broader period 1913–38 are identified, using the decomposition method of Foster, Haltiwanger, and Krizan. Results suggest that labour productivity was driven largely by improvements at individual mines, attributable to the intensified mechanization of underground operations. In sharp contrast, turnover effects were marginal, overall, compared to the effects stemming from the producer dynamics among surviving mines. Thus, the practical productivity implications of mine closures during the rationalization boom are negligible and overrated in the literature. These findings indicate the necessity of testing the relative importance of ‘negative rationalization’ in the form of plant closures in other branches of the Weimar economy.
Shareholder rights and share capital: the effect of the 1901 Russian Corporation Reform, 1890–1905
Authors: Gregg Amanda G.
Published: December 2016

During the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, western European countries introduced general incorporation and additional flexible enterprise forms, but the Russian Empire left its concession system of incorporation in place. The Empire's only major corporation reform, the 1901 law, strengthened minority shareholder rights and removed bankers from boards of directors for certain corporations. The reform offers a rare opportunity to examine the financial effects of improving corporations’ principal–agent relationships through regulation, because the reform did not affect all corporations equally. Corporations affected by the reform had smaller total share capital, fewer shares, and higher par values for shares as observed in 1905. The new regulations may have increased the cost of having shareholders and hence disciplined corporations’ founders to be more conservative in raising capital by issuing stock. Removing bankers from boards of directors may have removed an important source of firms’ founding capital, though corporations could easily evade this provision. The results also show that, although the commercial code treated all corporations equally, there were two major groups of Russian corporations that behaved differently, and, despite the fact that corporate charters could grant individual exceptions to the commercial code, a revision in the commercial code changed corporations’ behaviour.
Cued memory reconsolidation in rats requires nitric oxide
Authors: Bal Natalia V. , Rysakova Mariia P. , Vinarskaya Alia Kh. , Ivanova Violetta , Zuzina Alena B. , Balaban Pavel M.
Published: December 2016

It is well‐known that the reactivation of consolidated fear memory under boundary conditions of novelty and protein synthesis blockade results in an impairment of memory, suggesting that the reactivated memory is destabilized and requires synthesis of new proteins for reconsolidation. We tested the hypothesis of nitric oxide (NO) involvement in memory destabilization during the reconsolidation process in rats using memory reactivation under different conditions. We report that administration of NO‐synthase selective blockers 3‐Br‐7‐NI or ARL in the conditions of reactivation of memory under a protein synthesis blockade prevented destabilization of fear memory to the conditioned stimulus. Obtained results support the role of NO signaling pathway in the destabilization of existing fear memory triggered by reactivation, and demonstrate that the disruption of this pathway during memory reconsolidation may prevent changes in long‐term memory.
First record of intersex in neotenic reproductives of the termite Cryptotermes brevis (Isoptera: Kalotermitidae)
Authors: Laranjo Lara Teixeira , Costa‐Leonardo Ana Maria
Published: December 2016

Drywood termites of the family Kalotermitidae present a very flexible developmental pattern, in which pseudergates are totipotent and may become reproductives. In this study, three colonies of Cryptotermes brevis headed by neotenic reproductives were used: (i) colony A, with a primary king and a neotenic queen; (ii) colony B, with a primary queen and a neotenic king; and (iii) colony C, with neotenic king and queen. The primary king from colony A and the neotenic king from colony B presented well‐developed reproductive systems, with conspicuous testicular lobes and cysts containing spermatozoa also observed in the seminal vesicles. The neotenic queen of colony A and the primary queen of colony B had ovaries with several oocytes in early developmental stages with some of them already vitellogenic and terminal, which suggests egg‐laying activity. Both of these queens presented the spermathecae lumen filled with spermatozoa. The queen of colony C had vitellogenic oocytes; however, the oocytes were not terminal and the lumen of spermathecae was devoid of spermatozoa and secretions. The seminal vesicles of colony C neotenic king have no spermatozoa. This king displayed a previtellogenic oocyte among its testicular lobes, which suggested that this individual was an intersex.
FOUCAULT'S ICONIC AFTERLIFE: THE POSTHUMOUS REACH OF WORDS AND THINGS
Authors: PARTNER NANCY
Published: December 2016

The lasting influence of Michel Foucault's work is both instantly recognizable in that his very name can be invoked as a noun or adjective (“Foucauldian”), as a critical stance or attitude without further elaboration, and yet his signature concepts have been flattened, stretched, exaggerated, and thinned as they have been applied by his most enthusiastic followers. Although Foucault has entered the canon of philosophers, he also became iconic, most notably with the typographic icon, power/knowledge, a (possibly unwanted) achievement of recognition and compression virtually unknown to other philosophers. In this essay, I consider the Foucault of the philosophical canon, and I trace some of the main routes of the iconic Foucault into acceptance or nonacceptance by the academic disciplines, notably history and anthropology, and numerous other unexpected venues where variants of Foucault's ideas have found surprising homes. I also contemplate the meaning of the status of “iconicity” as it has been analyzed by sociologists, and the possibility that iconic misreadings of Foucault's concepts have been extraordinarily “good to think with” by his critics.
THE POLITICS OF THE ORDER OF THINGS: FOUCAULT, SARTRE, AND DELEUZE
Authors: GUTTING GARY
Published: December 2016

Foucault's histories are typically aimed at what he regarded as intolerable political consequences of knowledge‐based disciplines such as psychiatry and medicine. But The Order of Things is hard to fit into this pattern. What are the intolerable political consequences of the metaphysical and epistemological “humanism” the book attacks? To answer this question, I discuss Foucault's attitude toward Sartre and Deleuze, neither mentioned in The Order of Things but both of central importance for understanding its political significance. My conclusion is that the book fails as a political critique of Sartre (and political humanism in general) and instead expresses Foucault's personal ethical preference for Deleuzian limit experiences.
White‐headed Vulture Trigonoceps occipitalis shows visual field characteristics of hunting raptors
Authors: Portugal Steven J. , Murn Campbell P. , Martin Graham R.
Published: December 2016

The visual fields of the Aegypiinae vultures have been shown to be adapted primarily to meet two key perceptual challenges of their obligate carrion‐feeding behaviour: scanning the ground and preventing the sun's image falling upon the retina. However, field observations have shown that foraging White‐headed Vultures Trigonoceps occipitalis are not exclusively carrion‐feeders; they are also facultative predators of live prey. Such feeding is likely to present perceptual challenges that are additional to those posed by carrion‐feeding. Binocularity is the key component of all visual fields and in birds it is thought to function primarily in the accurate placement and time of contact of the talons and bill, especially in the location and seizure of food items. We determined visual fields in White‐headed Vultures and compared them with those of two species of carrion‐eating Gyps vultures. The visual field of White‐headed Vultures has more similarities with those of predatory raptors (e.g. accipitrid hawks) than with the taxonomically more closely related Gyps vultures. Maximum binocular field width in White‐headed Vultures (30°) is significantly wider than that in Gyps vultures (20°). The broader binocular fields in White‐headed Vultures probably facilitate accurate placement and timing of the talons when capturing evasive live prey.
Prevalence and nature of fungi in root canal infections: a systematic review and meta‐analysis
Authors: Persoon I. F. , Crielaard W. , Özok A. R.
Published: December 2016

The role of bacteria in causing apical periodontitis has been widely established, whilst the role of other microorganisms is studied less thoroughly. This systematic review and meta‐analysis reviewed the literature for the prevalence and diversity of fungi in root canal infections. An extensive literature search was carried out in the Cochrane databases, EMBASE, MEDLINE, LILACS, SciELO and Web of Science. Additional studies were identified from six endodontic journals, four main endodontic textbooks and references of relevant papers. Selected clinical studies included sampling of necrotic pulps in permanent teeth and microbial analysis of these samples. Studies were critically appraised using the Joanna Briggs Institute Prevalence Critical Appraisal Checklist. Meta‐analysis was performed using MetaXL. The screening of 1041 titles and abstracts and full‐text reading yielded 54 studies. The overall prevalence of fungi in root canal infections was 7.5% (CI 95%: 3.6–11.8%) in the inverse variance fixed effect heterogeneity model. Candida albicans was the most frequently isolated species. Significant heterogeneity was observed (P < 0.001, I2 = 85.04%). Subgroup analyses based on geographical location, period of publication, type of infection, state of general health, communication with the oral cavity, type of sample and identification method revealed no factor influencing the prevalence. Better standardized techniques and a comprehensive analysis will reveal a more detailed and accurate representation of the prevalence and nature of fungi in root canal infections.
Effect of simulated pulpal blood flow rate on the rise in pulp chamber temperature during direct fabrication of exothermic provisional restorations
Authors: Farah R. I.
Published: December 2016

Aim

To evaluate ex vivo the effect of several simulated pulpal blood flow rates on the change in pulp chamber temperature during direct fabrication of a provisional restoration using a polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) resin.

Methodology

Fifteen noncarious human premolars were prepared for complete coverage restorations. A curved needle connected to a peristaltic pump simulated the pulp blood flow. Two K‐type thermocouples connected to a digital thermometer were placed in the pulp chamber, and the assembly was placed in an incubator at 37 °C. Three provisional crowns were made for each specimen using no water flow (group 1), a 1‐mL min−1 flow rate (group 2) and a 0.5‐mL/min−1 flow rate (group 3). The pulp chamber temperature was recorded continuously during polymerization until the temperature increase peaked and started to decrease and reached the baseline temperature (37 °C). The temperature increase was measured for the three water flow conditions. Data were analysed statistically using descriptive statistics, repeated measures one‐way analysis of variance (anova) with Greenhouse–Geisser correction and Bonferroni tests. The level of significance was set at P < 0.05.

Results

All of the groups were associated with an increased pulp chamber temperature. Groups with flow rates at 1 and 0.5 mL min−1 had a significantly lower temperature rise when compared to the group without water flow (P < 0.001).

Conclusions

Direct fabrication of provisional restorations can cause a critical increase in pulp chamber temperature. However, in the presence of simulated pulpal blood flow rates of 1 or 0.5 mL min−1, the increase in pulp chamber temperature did not exceed the critical threshold (5.6 °C).
Evaluation of the Ca ion release, pH and surface apatite formation of a prototype tricalcium silicate cement
Authors: Yamamoto S. , Han L. , Noiri Y. , Okiji T.
Published: December 2016

Aim

To evaluate the Ca2+‐releasing, alkalizing and apatite‐like surface precipitate‐forming abilities of a prototype tricalcium silicate cement, which was mainly composed of synthetically prepared tricalcium silicate and zirconium oxide radiopacifier.

Methodology

The prototype tricalcium silicate cement, white ProRoot MTA (WMTA) and TheraCal LC (a light‐cured resin‐modified calcium silicate‐filled material) were examined. The chemical compositions were analysed with a wavelength‐dispersive X‐ray spectroscopy electron probe microanalyser with an image observation function (SEM‐EPMA). The pH and Ca2+ concentrations of water in which the set materials had been immersed were measured, and the latter was assessed with the EDTA titration method. The surface precipitates formed on the materials immersed in phosphate‐buffered saline (PBS) were analysed with SEM‐EPMA and X‐ray diffraction (XRD). Kruskal–Wallis tests followed by Mann–Whitney U‐test with Bonferroni correction were used for statistical analysis (α = 0.05).

Results

The prototype cement contained Ca, Si and Zr as major elemental constituents, whereas it did not contain some metal elements that were detected in the other materials. The Ca2+ concentrations and pH of the immersion water samples exhibited the following order: WMTA = prototype cement > TheraCal LC (P < 0.05). All three materials produced Ca‐ and P‐containing surface precipitates after PBS immersion, and the precipitates produced by TheraCal LC displayed lower Ca/P ratios than those formed by the other materials. XRD peaks corresponding to hydroxyapatite were detected in the precipitates produced by the prototype cement and WMTA.

Conclusion

The prototype tricalcium silicate cement exhibited similar Ca2+‐releasing, alkalizing and apatite‐like precipitate‐forming abilities to WMTA. The Ca2+‐releasing, alkalizing and apatite‐like precipitate‐forming abilities of TheraCal LC were lower than those of the other materials.
Fabrication and application of hollow ZnO nanospheres in antimicrobial casein‐based coatings
Authors: Liu Junli , Hui Aiping , Ma Jianzhong , Chen Zhuping , Peng Yi
Published: December 2016

ZnO hollow nanospheres with porous shells were prepared successfully via a simple hard‐template method and a calcination process. Then the obtained ZnO hollow nanospheres were encapsulated with mildew‐proof agent and modified by polydopamine. At last,antimicrobial casein‐based coatings were obtained by mixing the drug‐loaded ZnO and casein latex. Antimicrobial testing results revealed casein‐based hollow ZnO/mildew‐proof agent nanocomposite films displayed the better antimicrobial activities, and it still has antimicrobial properties after 1 year.
Comparison of abnormal cell flagging of the hematology analyzers Sysmex XN and Sysmex XE‐5000 in oncohematologic patients
Authors: Furundarena J. R. , Sainz M. , Uranga A. , Cuevas L. , Lopez I. , Zubicaray J. , Bizjak A. , Robado N. , Araiz M.
Published: December 2016

Introduction

Hematology analyzers should optimize flagging while minimizing false‐negative results and unnecessary microscopic reviews.

Methods

We compared flagging performance of Sysmex XE‐5000 and XN analyzers in oncohematologic patients. Differential counts were performed by Cellavision digital system (100 cells) and a hematologist (another 100 cells).

Results

First, we included 292 samples (86 with blasts): 28 acute lymphoblastic leukemia, 88 acute myeloid leukemia, 91 myelodysplastic syndromes, 45 chronic myeloproliferative neoplasms, and 40 chronic myelomonocytic leukemia. Sensitivity, specificity and efficiency to detect blasts were 59.3%, 88.3%, and 79.8% for XE‐5000 analyzer and 70.9%, 91.3%, and 85.2% for the XN analyzer. Then, we included 111 lymphoid malignancies. In 55 CLL XE‐5000 flagged for Abn Lympho/L_Blasts?, XN flagged for Abn Lympho?. In one‐third of 19 samples with splenic marginal lymphoma, none of the analyzers flagged. In 5 Sézary syndrome cases, XE‐5000 triggered the Abn Lympho/L_Blasts? flag while the flagging in XN was less consistent: Abn Lympho? Blasts? and Atypical Lympho?. In 5 hairy cell leukemias, both analyzers only flagged one sample. In 13 myelomas, XE‐5000 generated Atypical Lympho? flag; XN triggered more variable flags. In other lymphoid malignancies, flags were variable. XN analyzer generates less samples with false basophilia.

Conclusion

XN analyzer has improved blast detection in oncohematologic patients. Operators cannot rely on the blast flag alone but have to consider other flags and hemogram data. In lymphoproliferative disorders, XN analyzer yields less samples with pseudobasophilia. Both analyzers must improve flagging for hairy cell leukemia.
Frequencies and phenotypic consequences of association of α‐ and β‐thalassemia alleles with sickle‐cell disease in Bahrain
Authors: Abuamer S. , Shome D. K. , Jaradat A. , Radhi A. , Bapat J. P. , Sharif K. A. , Al‐Touq J. , Al‐Asheeri A. , Al‐Ajami A.
Published: December 2016

Introduction

Bahrain has high prevalence rates of sickle cell and thalassemia in the population. This study reports the frequencies and phenotypic characteristics of α‐ and/or β‐thalassemia associated with sickle‐cell disease (SCD) in a tertiary care hospital.

Methods

Adult SCD patients (n = 200) were screened for the common α‐ and β‐thalassemia alleles prevalent in the region using molecular techniques. Results of CBC, hemoglobin analysis, and average annual frequencies of severe pain episodes and numbers of transfused red cell units were documented.

Results

Patients were grouped on the basis of molecular studies as sickle‐cell anemia (SS, n = 131), SS/α‐thalassemia with three normal genes (n = 27), SS/α‐thalassemia with two normal genes (n = 11), sickle–β‐thalassemia (Sβ, n = 23), and Sβ with co‐inherited α‐thalassemia (n = 8). Identified α‐thalassemia determinants were −α3.7 (n = 52), −α4.2 (n = 4), αT‐Saudiα (n = 1), and αHphα (n = 1). All β‐thalassemia alleles were β0 defects. Sickle–thalassemia association resulted in higher hemoglobin, hematocrit, and erythrocyte counts with reduced MCV and reticulocytes. Significant clinical associations were as follows: increased severe pain frequency with α‐thalassemia (three‐gene group); red cell transfusion with β‐thalassemia alleles and female gender.

Conclusion

One‐third of patients with SCD co‐inherited α‐ and/or β‐thalassemia alleles and these associations explained some of the observed phenotypic variability. A low prevalence of nondeletion α‐thalassemia alleles was observed in these patients. The most significant disease amelioration occurred in SCD associated with two α‐thalassemia alleles.
Diagnosis of common hemoglobinopathies among South East Asian population using capillary isoelectric focusing system
Authors: Srivorakun H. , Fucharoen G. , Sanchaisuriya K. , Fucharoen S.
Published: December 2016

Introduction

We have evaluated an automated capillary isoelectric focusing (cIEF)‐based Hb analyzer in diagnosis of hemoglobinopathies commonly found among South East Asian population.

Methods

Study was performed on a cohort of 665 adult Thai subjects and 13 fetal blood specimens obtained at routine thalassemia diagnostic laboratory. Hb analysis was performed using the cIEF system. Thalassemia genotypes were defined by DNA analysis.

Results

The system revealed satisfactorily within‐run and between‐run precision for quantitation of Hb A2 and Hb E (CV: 0.02–0.09%). The reference ranges of Hb A2 and Hb E were 2.6–4.0% and 25.7–33.1%, respectively. The system identified the cases of β‐thalassemia and Hb E disorders correctly. Several thalassemia genotypes and Hb variants were identifiable. However, Hb Constant Spring was separated closely to Hb A2 and Hbs Bart's and H were relatively difficult to be reported due to interfering peaks separating at the same regions. Prenatal diagnosis by fetal blood analysis was found to be accurate for Hb Bart's hydrops fetalis and Hb E‐β0‐thalassemia disease.

Conclusions

The cIEF system could accurately diagnose β‐thalassemia and Hb E carriers and demonstrate many Hb variants found in the region. The system cannot report Hb A2 in the presence of Hb E whereas Hbs Lepore and F are comigrated. Diagnosis of α‐thalassemia disease based on Hb H and Hb Bart's might be difficult.
The Informal Sector: A Review and Agenda for Management Research
Authors: Darbi William Phanuel Kofi , Hall C. Michael , Knott Paul
Published: December 2016

Despite its connotations of non‐compliance, illegality, social exploitation and marginality, the informal sector is a substantial contributor to economic life in developing countries and, increasingly, in more technologically advanced activities. Its prevalence in developed economies has also become more widely recognized. In light of its significance, this paper reviews research on the informal sector from a management and organization scholarship perspective, rather than from an entrepreneurship view, as has been the focus until now. It sets out the atypical management practices that are inherent in the sector, explores the under‐researched relationship between formal and informal firms, and highlights definitional, conceptual and other limitations in extant research. As a step in resolving these issues, the authors present a conceptual model of formality and informality in a three‐dimensional framework that highlights an organizational infrastructure dimension, a view of firms operating along a continuum, and a multi‐level analytical context. Building on this, the authors detail opportunities for enhanced appreciation of in situ management and organizational practices in the informal sector and outline tools for pursuing a management and organization scholarship agenda. Overall, the authors argue that management scholarship has great potential to improve understanding of the informal sector, and that the informal sector provides opportunities to advance management theory, research and practice.
From medical student to clinician‐scientist: where is the pathway in Australia?
Authors: Eley D. S. , Benham H.
Published: December 2016

Clinician‐scientists are a valuable resource and are crucial to ensuring that high‐quality health and medical research is undertaken and translated to patients. Although the literature notes the global decline in clinician‐scientists and infers the worldwide similarity in the challenges to reverse this decline, Australia continues to lag behind in establishing an infrastructure to address the dilemma.
Lyme disease: why the controversy?
Authors: Beaman M. H.
Published: December 2016

Some Australians have become convinced of the existence of locally acquired Lyme disease (LD). The history ofLD, since its recognition in the early 1970s, is reviewed as a model for investigative approaches to unknown syndromes. Australian Management Guidelines forLDinclude the requirement for diagnostic testing by National Association of Testing Authorities‐accredited laboratories using Therapeutic Goods Administration‐licensed tests, which result in the efficient diagnosis ofLDin overseas travellers. Despite this, patients who have not left Australia pay many thousands of dollars for non‐specialist consultations and testing at overseas laboratories. Unproven long‐term therapy with multiple antibiotics has resulted in serious complications, including allergies, line sepsis, pancreatitis and pseudomembranous colitis. Studies have shown thatLDvectors are not found in Australia, and Lyme Borrelia has not been found in Australian vectors, animals or patients with autochthonous illnesses. I propose that (i) A non‐controversial name for the chronic syndrome should be adopted, ‘Australian Multisystem Disorder’. (ii) Research funding should enable the development of a consensus case definition and studies of the epidemiology of this syndrome with laboratory investigations to identify an aetiology and surrogate markers of disease. Prospective, randomised treatment studies could then be undertaken using ethical protocols.
Over‐imaging in uncomplicated low back pain: a 12‐month audit of a general medical unit
Authors: Rego M. H. , Nagiah S.
Published: December 2016

Low back pain is frequently encountered in hospitals and is a leading cause of disability, often involving costly imaging that exposes a patient to radiation. A retrospective 12‐month audit at a South Australian tertiary hospital aimed to evaluate the frequency, modality and appropriateness of imaging in patients with low back pain. Results showed that the general medical unit was unnecessarily ordering imaging in 40% of patients who exhibited no indications warranting such a procedure. A standardised protocol is required to preventing clinicians from requesting imaging solely for the purposes of self‐reassurance, patient reassurance or fear of litigation.
What does mental health nursing contribute to improving the physical health of service users with severe mental illness? A thematic analysis
Authors: Gray Richard , Brown Eleanor
Published: December 2016

Authors have generally reported that mental health nurses (MHNs) have positive attitudes to providing physical health care to service users with severe mental illness. In the present study, we aimed to explore if this positive attitude translates to enhanced clinical practice by interviewing MHNs and the service users they work with. Semistructured interviews were completed with 15 service users and 18 MHNs from acute, rehabilitation, and community services. These were then transcribed and analysed using thematic analysis. Six themes emerged: (i) not the work of MHNs; (ii) the physical effects of psychiatric drugs are ignored; (iii) the need to upskill; (iv) keeping busy; (v) horrible hospital food/living on takeaways; and (vi) motivation to change. Our overarching meta‐theme was of unmet physical health need among service users.
Lived experience of working with female patients in a high‐secure mental health setting
Authors: Beryl Rachel , Davies Jason , Völlm Birgit
Published: December 2016

Women's secure hospitals are often considered to be stressful and demanding places to work, with these environments characterized as challenging and violent. However, the staff experience of working in this environment is not well represented in the literature. The present study is the first to examine the ‘lived experience’ of seven nurses working in the National High Secure Healthcare Service for Women. Interview transcripts were analysed with the use of interpretative phenomenological analysis, and the findings presented within four superordinate themes ‘horror’, ‘balancing acts’, ‘emotional hard labour’, and ‘the ward as a community’. These themes all depict the challenges that participants experience in their work, the ways in which they cope with these challenges, and how they make sense of these experiences. A meta‐theme of ‘making sense by understanding why’ is also presented, which represents the importance for participants to attempt to make sense of the tensions and challenges by formulating a fuller meaning. The findings suggest the importance of workforce development in terms of allowing sufficient protected time for reflection and formulation (e.g. within the format of group supervision or reflective practice), and for staff‐support mechanisms (e.g. clinical supervision, counselling, debriefs) to be inbuilt into the ethos of a service, so as to provide proactive support for staff ‘on the frontline’.
Forensic mental health clinician's experiences with and assessment of alliance regarding the patient's readiness to be released from mechanical restraint
Authors: Nielsen Lea Deichmann , Gildberg Frederik Alkier , Bech Per , Lange Dalgaard Jane , Munksgaard Gitte , Hounsgaard Lise
Published: December 2016

One of the main reasons for prolonged duration of mechanical restraint is patient behaviour in relation to the clinician‐patient alliance. This article reports on the forensic mental health clinicians experiences of the clinician‐patient alliance during mechanical restraint, and their assessment of parameters of alliance regarding the patient's readiness to be released from restraint. We used a qualitative, descriptive approach and conducted focus group interviews with nurses, nurse assistants and social and healthcare assistants. The results show that a pre‐established personal clinician‐patient alliance formed the basis for entering into, and weighing the quality of, the alliance during mechanical restraint. In consideration of the patient's psychiatric condition, the clinicians observed and assessed two quality parameters for the alliance: ‘the patient's insight into or understanding of present situation’ (e.g. the reasons for mechanical restraint and the behaviour required of the patient to discontinue restraint) and ‘the patient's ability to have good and stable contact and cooperation with and across clinicians. These assessments were included, as a total picture of the quality of the alliance with the patient', in the overall team assessment of the patient's readiness to be released from mechanical restraint. The results contribute to inform the development of a short‐term risk assessment instrument, with the aim of reducing the duration of mechanical restraint.
Concept analysis: lack of anonymity
Authors: Swan Marilyn A. , Hobbs Barbara B.
Published: December 2016

Aim

To re‐examine and expand understanding of the concept ‘lack of anonymity’ as a component of rural nursing theory.

Background

Early healthcare literature reports lack of anonymity as part of social and working environments, particularly rural nursing. Rural nursing theory included the first published concept analysis on lack of anonymity but lacked empirical referents. Workforce, societal and rural healthcare changes support an updated analysis. To further understand lack of anonymity, its present day use and applicability to diverse environments, research from multiple disciplines was reviewed.

Design

Concept analysis.

Data sources

A literature search using eight terms in eleven databases was conducted of literature published between 2008–2013.

Method

Walker and Avant's concept analysis methodology guided the analysis.

Results

The previous concept analysis is supported in part by current literature. The defining attributes, ‘identifiable’, ‘establishing boundaries for public and private self and interconnectedness’ in a community were updated. Updated antecedents include: (i) environmental context; (ii) opportunities to become visible; (iii) developing relationships and (iv) unconscious or limited awareness of public or personal privacy. Consequences are: (i) familiarity; (ii) visibility; (iii) awareness of privacy and (iv) manage or balance of lack of anonymity. Cases were constructed and empirical referents identified.

Conclusion

The concept of lack of anonymity was updated; portions of the original definition remain unchanged. Empirical referents reveal the defining attributes in daily life and may guide future research on the effect of lack of anonymity on nursing practice. This analysis advances the conceptual understanding of rural nursing theory.
Motives for choosing and resigning from nursing by men and the definition of masculinity: a qualitative study
Authors: Kluczyńska Urszula
Published: December 2016

Aim

The aim of the study is to establish the main motives for choosing nursing by men in Poland and the results for leaving the profession.

Background

Nursing is a profession less frequently chosen by men. On average, one person in ten working in nursing is a man, but in Poland this percentage is especially low, amounting to 1·8%.

Design

Qualitative research with a grounded theory approach.

Method

Individual semi‐structured interviews were used for data collection. The study included 17 licensed male nurses. Data were collected between January 2014–June 2015.

Results

The study revealed the most common motives for choosing nursing as declared by men: vocation, interest in medicine, accident and pragmatic motivation. The men for whom hegemonic masculinity constitutes the point of reference more frequently emphasize their interest in medicine and the pragmatic reasons for choosing nursing; they also more frequently try to gain managerial positions and higher income. The most common reason for men leaving the nursing profession was low income.

Conclusions

Despite the common stereotype, men also choose nursing because of vocation and/or their willingness to help others, but they more frequently declare that chance was the direct reason for their choice of nursing, which helps reduce the dissonance associated with choosing a non‐traditional male career path. Leaving the profession was associated with beliefs about its feminine dimension, but it seems that in Poland low income is a much more important reason for such a decision.
Kidney volume and ambulatory blood pressure in children
Authors: Gurusinghe Shari , Palvanov Arkadiy , Bittman Mark E. , Singer Pamela , Frank Rachel , Chorny Nataliya , Infante Lulette , Sethna Christine B.
Published: December 2016

Low nephron number has been shown to be a risk factor for hypertension (HTN) in adulthood. Kidney volume may serve as a surrogate marker for nephron mass. The relationship between kidney volume and ambulatory blood pressure (BP) in the pediatric population is not known. A retrospective chart review of children younger than 21 years who were evaluated for HTN was performed. Twenty‐four‐hour BP and ultrasonography data were obtained. Multiple regression was used to examine associations between BP and kidney volume. Of 84 children (mean age 13.87 years, 72.6% males), 54 had HTN. Systolic BP index during the awake, sleep, and 24‐hour periods (all P≤.05) was found to be positively correlated with total kidney volume. Greater total kidney volume was found to be a positive predictor of 24‐hour and sleep systolic index (P≤.05). It failed to serve as a predictor of HTN, pre‐HTN, or white‐coat HTN. Contrary to expectation, total kidney volume was positively associated with systolic BP indices.