bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Impact of Aortomitral Continuity Calcification on Need for Permanent Pacemaker After Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement
Authors: Katchi Farhan , Bhatt Deep , Markowitz Steven M. , Szymonifka Jackie , Cheng Edward P. , Minutello Robert M. , Bergman Geoffrey W. , Wong S. Chiu , Salemi Arash , Truong Quynh A.
Published: December 2019

Background:

By virtue of its proximity to structures vital to cardiac conduction, aortomitral continuity calcification (AMCC) may help identify patients at highest risk for developing atrioventricular conduction disease requiring permanent pacemaker implantation (PPMI). We aim to determine the association of AMCC and need for PPMI after transcatheter aortic valve replacement.

Methods:

Of 614 patients who underwent transcatheter aortic valve replacement (11.8% PPMI rate), we included 136 patients (age 85±8 years, 47% male) without a preexisting intracardiac device or prior valve surgery who underwent preprocedural computed tomography. We analyzed for the presence of AMCC, aortic valve calcification, and mitral annular calcification as well as quantified AMCC and aortic valve calcification score using the Agatston method. We further stratified AMCC score into 3 categories: 0, 1 to 300, and >300. End point was PPMI at 1 month after transcatheter aortic valve replacement.

Results:

There were 51 (38%) new PPMIs (median time to PPMI, 5 days). Patients who underwent PPMI had a higher prevalence of AMCC than patients without PPMI (69% versus 32%;
P
<0.0001), as well as higher median AMCC score (263 versus 0;
P
<0.0001). There was no difference in aortic valve calcification and mitral annular calcification between patients with and without PPMI (all
P
≥0.09). Patients with AMCC had a 4-fold increase in odds for PPMI compared with those without (adjusted odds ratio, 4.0;
P
=0.0026). Compared with patients with an AMCC score of 0, patients with an AMCC score >300 had greater than a 5-fold increased odds for PPMI (adjusted odds ratio, 5.7;
P
=0.0016).

Conclusions:

Presence of AMCC, particularly with AMCC score >300, is associated with the need for PPMI after transcatheter aortic valve replacement.
Noncanonical Mechanisms for Direct Bone Marrow Generating Ang II (Angiotensin II) Predominate in CD68 Positive Myeloid Lineage Cells
Authors: Yamashita Tomohisa , Ahmad Sarfaraz , Wright Kendra N. , Roberts Drew J. , VonCannon Jessica L. , Wang Hao , Groban Leanne , Dell’Italia Louis J. , Ferrario Carlos M.
Published: December 2019

Bone marrow (BM) Ang II (angiotensin II) is a major participant in the regulation of hematopoiesis and immunity. The novel tissue substrate Ang-(1–12) [angiotensin-(1–12)] and its cleaving enzyme chymase are an essential source of Ang II production in cardiac tissue. We hypothesized this noncanonical chymase-mediated Ang II–producing mechanism exists in the BM tissue. Immunohistostaining and flow cytometry confirmed the presence of Ang-(1–12) immunoreaction in the BM of SD (Sprague Dawley) rats. Chymase-mediated Ang II–producing activity in BM was ≈1000-fold higher than ACE (angiotensin-converting enzyme)-mediated Ang II–producing activity (4531±137 and 4.2±0.3 fmol/min per mg, respectively; n=6;
P
<0.001) and 280-fold higher than chymase activity in the left ventricle of 16.3±1.7 fmol/min per mg (
P
<0.001). Adding a selective chymase inhibitor, TEI-F00806, eliminated almost all
125
I-Ang II production. Flow cytometry demonstrated that delta median fluorescence intensity of chymase in cluster of differentiation 68 positive cells was significantly higher than that in cluster of differentiation 68 negative cells (1546±157 and 222±48 arbitrary units, respectively;
P
=0.0021). Cluster of differentiation 68 positive and side scatter low subsets, considered to be myeloid progenitors, express the highest chymase fluorescence intensity in rat BM. Chymase activity and cellular expression was similar in both male and female rats. In conclusion, myeloid lineage cells, especially myeloid progenitors, have an extraordinary Ang II–producing activity by chymase in the BM.
Sex Differences in the Sympathetic Neural Recruitment and Hemodynamic Response to Head-Up Tilt in Older Hypertensives
Authors: Badrov Mark B. , Okada Yoshiyuki , Yoo Jeung-Ki , Vongpatanasin Wanpen , Shoemaker J. Kevin , Levine Benjamin D. , Fu Qi
Published: December 2019

This study tested the hypothesis that older hypertensive women display augmented pressor responses and aberrant sympathetic neural discharge patterning in response to orthostatic stress versus older hypertensive men. We evaluated, in older hypertensive and normotensive men and women (n=12 each group), blood pressure, heart rate, cardiac index (acetylene rebreathing), total peripheral resistance, and muscle sympathetic nerve activity (microneurography) at baseline (supine; 3 minutes) and during graded head-up tilt (30° for 5 minutes and 60° for 20 minutes). Sympathetic action potential discharge patterns were studied using wavelet-based methodology. In the upright posture, systolic and diastolic blood pressure responses were greater in hypertensive women versus hypertensive men and normotensive women (
P
<0.05). No differences existed in the heart rate, stroke index, or cardiac index response between groups; however, the total peripheral resistance response throughout graded head-up tilt was markedly greater in hypertensive women (
P
<0.01). Yet, the increase in integrated muscle sympathetic nerve activity burst frequency and burst incidence were similar between hypertensive women and men in the supine and upright postures. However, the increase in the mean action potential content per integrated burst and recruitment of previously dormant, larger-sized action potentials during 60° head-up tilt was greater in hypertensive women versus hypertensive men and normotensive women (
P
<0.001). Therefore, total sympathetic action potential firing frequency was markedly greater in hypertensive women throughout 60° head-up tilt (
P
<0.001). In conclusion, older hypertensive women displayed exaggerated pressor and peripheral vasoconstrictor responses to orthostasis versus hypertensive men, under conditions of augmented and aberrant sympathetic neural recruitment, rather than increased burst frequency, in the upright posture.
Seed Shape Diversity in families of the Order Ranunculales

Authors: MARTÍN-GÓMEZ JOSÈ JAVIER , REWICZ AGNIESZKA , CERVANTES EMILIO
Published: December 2019

Seed shape in the order Ranunculales is described with the objective of characterizing the morphological seed types in the families of this order and to establish a correlation between seed shape, plant structure and life style.         Based on previous work in model plants (Arabidopsis thaliana, Lotus japonicus, Medicago truncatula), we have used the J index to estimate the percentage of similarity of the image of a seed with a geometric shape. The images of seeds of model plants resemble cardioid or cardioid-derived models, while seeds from other species with rapid life cycles resemble other, also simple geometrical figures. In general, seed shape may help establishing the relationships between taxonomic groups.         Three types of seed morphology are distinguished in the Ranunculales based on values of J index. In the first type, seeds in the Berberidaceae, Euptelaceae and Lardizabalaceae, adjust well to an oval. The second type, seeds in the Papaveraceae, adjust well to the cardioid model, and the third type, seeds in the Ranunculaceae, adjust well to diverse geometric shapes, including the oval, truncated cardioid, Fibonacci spiral and ellipse. In the Ranunculales, seed shape is varied and often related to geometrical figures.                The presence of cardioid derived models in the Papaveraceae supports our hypothesis that seeds resembling the cardioid are frequent in plants with rapid life cycles.Ranunculales
Kamalia indica, a new genus and species belonging to Diaporthales (Ascomycota, Fungi) described based on morphology and molecular phylogeny

Authors: RANA SHIWALI , SINGH SANJAY KUMAR
Published: December 2019

A fungal taxa isolated from leaf spots of Mallotus philippensis from Kangra district of North-Western Himalayan region of India is established as a new genus based on morphological characters of asexual-morphs, cultural characteristics and phylogenetic analyses of the partial nuclear ribosomal 28S large subunit (LSU) and internal transcribed spacer (ITS) rDNA sequence data. The generic placement of the genus has been determined based on DNA sequences from authenticated isolates. The present taxon has turned out to be distinct, showing nearly 90% identity with other known genera in Diaporthales based on nrDNA internal transcribed spacer region. The morphological description is provided for the new taxa and compared with the similar taxa belonging to the order Diaporthales. The culture was found to show heavy sporulation in all kind of media. The type specimen and ex type culture have been deposited in the Ajrekar Mycological Herbarium (AMH) and National Fungal Culture Collection of India (NFCCI-WDCM 932), respectively.
The disconnect between DNA and species names: lessons from reptile species in the NCBI taxonomy database
Authors: GARG AKHIL , LEIPE DETLEF , UETZ PETER
Published: December 2019

We compared the species names in the Reptile Database, a dedicated taxonomy database, with those in the NCBI taxonomy database, which provides the taxonomic backbone for the GenBank sequence database. About 67% of the known ~11,000 reptile species are represented with at least one DNA sequence and a binary species name in GenBank. However, a common problem arises through the submission of preliminary species names (such as “Pelomedusa sp. A CK-2014”) to GenBank and thus the NCBI taxonomy. These names cannot be assigned to any accepted species names and thus create a disconnect between DNA sequences and species. While these names of unknown taxonomic meaning sometimes get updated, often they remain in GenBank which now contains sequences from ~1,300 such “putative” reptile species tagged by informal names (~15% of its reptile names). We estimate that NCBI/GenBank probably contain tens of thousands of such “disconnected” entries. We encourage sequence submitters to update informal species names after they have been published, otherwise the disconnect will cause increasing confusion and possibly misleading taxonomic conclusions.
Periclimenella agattii sp. nov., a new Palaemonid shrimp (Crustacea, Decapoda, Palaemonidae) from Lakshadweep Islands, India
Authors: BHARATHI S. , PURUSHOTHAMAN P. , AKASH S. , JOSE SHEENA , MADHAVAN MANU , DHINAKARAN A. , SARAVANANE N. , KUMAR T.T. AJITH , LAL KULDEEP KUMAR
Published: December 2019

The recent collection of Palaemonid shrimps from Agatti Island, Lakshadweep, Arabian Sea, have provided further additions to the Indian marine fauna. In the manuscript, a new species, Periclimenella agattii sp. nov. is described and illustrated. The new species is morphologically most similar to P. spinifera among other congeners, but it strongly differs from that species by having upper the antennular flagellum with 14–16 segments, short free ramus with 12–13 segments, lower antennal flagellum thin and bearing 35–37 segments; 4 minute lateral spines on basal segment of 3rd maxilliped; male palm:carpus ratio of second pereopod higher than in female, propodus of 3rd pereopod with 7–8 ventral spines and hepatic spine with groove. Genetic analysis using the mitochondrial COI and 16S rRNA genes sequences proved that, the new species is significantly distinct from the closed related species.
Study on bioactive molecules involved in extracellular biosynthesis of silver nanoparticles by Penicillium aculeatum Su1
Authors: Ma Liang , Lv Shuting , Tang Jianxin , Liu Jianxin , Li Wen , Deng Jing , Deng Yan , Du Jingjing , Liu Xueying , Zeng Xiaoxi
Published: December 2019

In this paper, the biosynthesis of high-stable and biocompatible silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) was implemented by employing cell-free filtrate of Penicillium aculeatum Su1. The compositions analysis of reducing biomolecules in reaction system before and after AgNPs synthesis suggested
that proteins were mainly involved in the biosynthesis process of AgNPs. Polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) analysis displayed that two main protein bands with molecular weights ranging from 66.2 to 116 KDa and 35 to 45 KDa were capped on the surface of AgNPs. The further identification
of these protein bands by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) analysis indicated that actin as a major protein component was responsible for stabilization of prepared AgNPs. The activity of nitrate reductase secreted by P. aculeatum Su1 was 73.73 ± 3.89 μg/(g
· h). Furthermore, the dialysis assay showed that small molecular components had significant impacts on yield and particle size of biosynthesized AgNPs. Reduced nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide or reduced nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADH or NADPH)-dependent nitrate
reductases and other types of reductases or non-enzymatic bioactive molecules (≥ 3.5 KDa) might simultaneously participate in the biosynthesis process of AgNPs mediated by P. aculeatum Su1.
Facile synthesis of TiO2 film on glass for the photocatalytic removal of rhodamine B and tetracycline hydrochloride
Authors: Li Jiaxin , Chen Zhi , Fang Jianfei , Yang Qian , Yang Xiuru , Zhao Wan , Zhou Dantong , Qian Xiaoxiao , Liu Chunxi , Shao Jianzhong
Published: December 2019

Photocatalysis is one of the efficient approaches for pollution control in water. However, the traditional photocatalysts used for the removal of organic pollutants are in powder form, which makes it difficult to recover them from the suspended reaction system. On the contrary, thin
film photocatalyst is easy to be retrieved and possesses unique feature for practical application. In present work, stable TiO2 sol suspension was prepared and amorphous TiO2 thin film was then immobilized upon glass substrate through facile spin coating method. The thickness
of film could be simply controlled by changing the number of coatings, and anatase TiO2 film could be formed after calcination. The prepared thin films were characterized with X-ray diffraction (XRD), ultravioletvisible spectrophotometry (UV-vis), scanning electron microscopy (SEM)
and atomic force microscopy (AFM). The photodegradations of organic pollutants including colored dye and colorless antibiotic were tested and found to be thickness-dependent. Additionally, the prepared film photocatalst has good stability and may have potential applications in wastewater treatment.
On-demand drug release and re-absorption from pirarubicin loaded Fe3O4@ZnO core–shell nanoparticles for targeting infusion chemotherapy for urethral carcinoma
Authors: Yu Zhihai , Guo Yaochun , Dai Hong , Zeng Baofu , Zheng Xi , Yi Caixia , Jiang Nian , Liu Yun , Huang Xiao
Published: December 2019

Although standard treatment recommendations for urethral carcinoma are lacking due to its rare incidence, urethral infusion chemotherapy can be a good choice for urethral carcinoma therapy which minimizes damage to patients compared to radical cystourethrectomy and radiation therapy.
In this work, pirarubicin loaded Fe3O4@ZnO core–shell nanoparticles have been successfully synthesized. They can magnetically position in a tubular structure at will and realized on-demand pirarubicin release and re-absorption under UV radiation and darkness. As
a result, they can strongly inhibit the human urethral squamous carcinoma cells during infusion chemotherapy and give nearly no damage to normal cells after infusion chemotherapy. Overall, such nanoparticles are highly possible to be a new approach for urethral carcinoma infusion chemotherapy,
with satisfactory efficacy and slight side effects.
High-Resolution Temperature Mapping by Geostatistical Kriging with External Drift from Large-Eddy Simulations
Authors: Varentsov Mikhail , Esau Igor , Wolf Tobias
Published: December 2019

Detailed temperature maps are required in various applications. Any temperature interpolation over complex terrain must account for differences in land cover and elevation. Local circulations and other small-scale factors can also perturb the temperature. This study considers the surface air temperature T mapping with geostatistical kriging. The kriging methods are implemented for both T and temperature anomalies ΔT, defined as difference between T at a given location and T at the same elevation in the free atmosphere. The study explores the parallelized atmospheric large-eddy simulation (LES) model (PALM) as a source for variogram and external drift in the kriging methods. Ten kriging methods for the temperature mapping have been considered: ordinary kriging (OK) of T and ΔT with variogram derived from the observations (methods 1 and 2, correspondingly); OK of T and ΔT with variogram derived from LES data (3 and 4); universal kriging with external drift (KED) that utilizes the LES data (5 and 6); a weighted combination of KED of T and ΔT (method 7); and methods 5, 6, and 7 enhanced with additional “virtual” points in remote areas (methods 8, 9, and 10). These 10 methods are evaluated for eight typical weather situations observed in Bergen, Norway. Our results demonstrate considerable added value of the LES information for the detailed meteorological temperature mapping. The LES data improve both the variogram and the resulting temperature maps, especially in the remote mountain parts of the domain and along the coast.
Occupational Repertoire Development Measure – Parent (ORDM-P): Face validity, comprehensiveness, and internal consistency
Authors: Njelesani Janet , Davis Jane A , Pontes Tatiana
Published: December 2019

Introduction

An occupational repertoire is the array of occupations that an individual has the perceived capacity to perform at a specific point in time. The Occupational Repertoire Development Measure – Parent is a new tool that uses parent report to identify the occupations children can and do perform and their interests in and opportunities for doing them. This study aimed to test the face validity, comprehensiveness, and internal consistency of the Occupational Repertoire Development Measure – Parent as a tool to measure the occupational repertoire of children aged between 2 and 12 years.

Method

Twenty-nine occupational therapists completed an online questionnaire about the Occupational Repertoire Development Measure – Parent, and 27 parents completed it and then provided feedback via a structured interview. Descriptive statistics, content analysis, and the content validity index guided data analysis.

Results

Participants view the Occupational Repertoire Development Measure – Parent as practical, simple, and supportive of occupation-centred practice to optimize children’s development of a meaningful repertoire. Overall, self-care occupations were rated highly relevant. Lower-scoring occupations were those perceived as performed only by older children, nonessential for children with disabilities, or culturally unimportant.

Conclusion

Results indicate value in the further development of the Occupational Repertoire Development Measure – Parent and validate that it asks relevant questions to understand a child’s performance, engagement, and opportunities, leading to optimal repertoire development.
Political geography III: Bounding the International
Authors: Kuus Merje
Published: December 2019

This report focuses on the imaginaries and practices that demarcate space at the international and supranational scale. I will first review political geographic scholarship on region-making and regionalism, using the studies of Europe and the Belt and Road Initiative as examples, and I will then highlight some central themes in the current research on international borders. The report highlights the flexibility of bounding practices and the polymorphic character of borders. It underscores the resilience of state power and the transformations of sovereignty currently under way. It concludes by underscoring the interdisciplinary character of the relevant work.
Wars of excess: Georges Bataille, solar economy, and the accident in the age of precision war
Authors: Meiches Benjamin
Published: December 2019

Both classical and critical studies of warfare often comment on the relationship between war and excess. However, even in richly theoretical work, this connection is unanalyzed. This article focuses on the link between excess and war, and seeks to deepen our understanding of why excess reappears so frequently in the study of armed conflict and security studies. Specifically, the article turns to the work of Georges Bataille, an overlooked figure in the critical tradition, who extensively theorized linkages between excess and war. In Bataille’s thought, excess is a key term for explicating the design, mobilization, and transformation of war. Moreover, Bataille sees the exposure to excess as playing a key part in social attachments to violence and armed conflict. The article unpacks how Bataille theorizes excess and applies his insights to the context of precision warfare. Using the case of the accident in the era of precision war, it reveals how Bataille anticipates many of the dynamics that structure late warfare through his understanding of excess. The article concludes by describing how Bataille’s vision of excess would challenge critical war and security studies literatures in relation to the problems of war experience, relationships to death, and scholarship.
Everyday secrecy: Oral history and the social life of a top-secret weapons research establishment during the Cold War
Authors: Walters William
Published: December 2019

Despite the welcome turn within security studies towards a more material- and practice-oriented understanding of state secrecy, the ways in which security actors experience, practise and negotiate secrecy in their everyday work lives has been rather overlooked. To counter this neglect the article calls for attention to everyday secrecy. Focusing on a former top-secret weapons research facility in the UK called Orford Ness, it uses oral history to give an account of ex-employees’ memories, experiences and practices concerning secrecy. Such a focus reveals that subjects make sense of procedures and rules of secrecy in ways that are sometimes surprising and unexpected. Ultimately this perspective emphasizes that secrecy is not just what governments and organizations prescribe and proscribe; it is also shaped by subjects who negotiate these rules. Everyday secrecy matters: as a perspective it shows that secrecy is not simply imposed by states and organizations from ‘above’; it is also made from ‘below’, albeit very asymmetrically.
Housing Choice as a Function of Risks Confronting Low-income Households
Authors: Sahasranaman Anand , Prasad Vishnu , Balachander Aditi
Published: December 2019

The design of housing solutions for low-income populations has been one of the most pressing policy concerns in developing countries like India. In this work, we explore the effect of risks confronting low-income households—unemployment, health and mortality—on their choice of housing arrangements. We use simulations to study the evolution of long-term wealth of a stylised low-income household faced with these risks and find that, on average, rental housing significantly reduces the risk of undesirable wealth fluctuations over time. From a policy perspective, this means greater focus and incentives for the development of low-income rental markets using strategies such as provision of rental vouchers, rent-to-own models or long-term leases, in addition to the traditional ownership-based housing strategies. The development of housing solutions encompassing a range of rental and ownership models will be critical to ensuring the availability of safe and affordable housing for all urban residents.

JEL Codes: C63, O18
Insights into the displacement field in magnetoelectric composites
Authors: Youssef George , Newacheck Scott , Yousuf Louay S
Published: December 2019

The performance of strain-mediated magnetoelectric composite multiferroics hinges on the interface condition in both direct and converse coupling paradigms. The objective of this article is to report experimentally validated computational models of composite cylinder structure consisting of an outer piezoelectric cylinder mechanically attached to an inner magnetostrictive layer. Three contact conditions were computationally investigated, including bonding, no separation, and standard definitions from the used finite element package. The simulations were used to extract the harmonic, modal, and transient responses of the composite cylinder structure, which were compared to experimental work. Under the influence of an AC electric field, the in-plane and out-of-plane displacement maps were simultaneously measured using a noncontact interferometric technique. Results from the harmonic analysis were used to tune the material properties and boundary conditions used in all subsequent simulations, whereas the resonance frequency was in excellent agreement with the experiment. The modal analysis was validated by comparing a subset of the experimental and computational vibrational modes. Finally, the transient analysis was found to be in reasonable agreement with the experimental results with a focus on the response at the excitation frequency. The validated analysis framework can be used in the development of sensors and actuators based on composite multiferroics cylinder structures.
Adolescent Dating Violence Among Nicaraguan Youth
Authors: Litz Kelly , Holvoet Nathalie
Published: December 2019

This study examines the rates of victimization and perpetration of physical, sexual, and psychological dating violence among a sample of 193 ever-partnered Nicaraguan adolescents. Findings reveal high levels of partner violence, with 20% of students experiencing physical violence, 27% experiencing sexual violence, and 45–83% experiencing different types of psychological violence. For both victimization and perpetration, physical and sexual abuse were found to be positively correlated with psychological abuse, most notably for girl victims. We analyze the gender dynamics of the findings, contextualize them in a sociocultural analysis, and provide directions for prevention and future research.
Using Electronic Confederates for Experimental Research in Organizational Science
Authors: Leavitt Keith , Qiu Feng , Shapiro Debra L.
Published: December 2019

Organizational scholars frequently rely on experiments using human confederates or descriptions of vignette characters to study a range of phenomena. Although experiments with confederates allow for realism and rigor, human confederates have several critical limitations. We present a novel and efficient alternative: the use of responsive electronic confederates for manipulating constructs in dyadic, group, and team contexts. Specifically, we (a) define electronic confederates in an organizational research context, identify their optimal qualities, and review studies that have used them; (b) discuss challenges of utilizing human confederates and how electronic confederates may address these; (c) identify boundary conditions around using electronic confederates and, within these conditions, identify the many types of inquiry that can be aided by electronic confederates; (d) discuss validation strategies for electronic confederates, while increasing their believability to study participants; (e) provide materials for two versions of an adaptable research platform involving electronic confederates; and (f) identify future opportunities for developing novel tools for behavioral research. Our article thus provides a toolkit for organizational researchers that empowers them to utilize electronic confederates in their own research.
Enhancing Employee Innovation Through Customer Engagement: The Role of Customer Interactivity, Employee Affect, and Motivations
Authors: Xu Feng Zeng , Wang Ying
Published: December 2019

Customer engagement involves customers’ interactive experiences with a brand or service provider. Focusing on the hotel industry, this study investigates the role of customer interactivity, positive affect, and employee motivations in enhancing employees’ innovative behaviors under the S-O-R (stimulus–organism–response) framework. Using data collected via a mixed-mode quantitative survey of 830 Chinese hotel employees, the authors developed and tested a structural model. The findings suggest that customer interactivity, positive affect, and motivations as influential factors affect employee innovative behavior. Specifically, customer interactivity influences employee innovative behavior directly and indirectly through positive affect and intrinsic and extrinsic motivations. Theoretically, the study clarifies the mechanisms underpinning the effect of customer interactivity on employees’ innovative behaviors and extends the S-O-R model by applying it in the organizational behavior domain. Practically, the results highlight a need for reward systems to incorporate measures of employee performance in relation to fostering customer interactivity and engagement.
Tranexamic acid use in high-risk blood transfusion patients undergoing total hip replacement: a randomised controlled trial
Authors: Kimura Osamu S , Freitas Emílio HCA , Duarte Maria EL , Cavalcanti Amanda S , Fernandes Marco BC
Published: December 2019

Introduction:

We hypothesised that a single preoperative intravenous dose of tranexamic acid (TXA) is effective in patients who undergo total hip arthroplasty (THA) and are at high risk of blood transfusion (preoperative haemoglobin level <13.0 g/dL).

Methods:

A prospective, randomised controlled study of 308 patients who underwent primary THA was conducted. 256 participants remained in the study and were divided into 2 major groups: high-risk group comprising 116 patients with preoperative Hb < 13.0 g/dL (57 of whom were treated with a 15 mg/kg intravenous bolus of TXA, and 59 of whom did not receive the medication) and low-risk group comprising 140 patients with Hb ⩾ 13.0 g/dL (71 of whom received the same dose of TXA, and 69 of whom did not). Participants were followed up at 3 weeks, 3 months, 6 months, and 1 year after surgery.

Results:

The use of TXA in both groups of patients significantly increased the levels of postoperative Hb and Ht. TXA protected high-risk patients from blood loss and from transfusion. In low-risk patients the use of TXA reduced blood loss but did not protect from blood transfusion. The median length of stay was significantly affected for high-risk patients. No thromboembolic event was recorded in either group.

Conclusions:

TXA reduces intra- and postoperative bleeding, transfusion rates, and the length of hospital stays in patients with low preoperative Hb. The use of TXA in patients with normal preoperative Hb reduces blood loss but does not affect the transfusion rate. ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT03019198
Strategic decision concerning tourist origins portfolio: A decision process based on the ELECTRE method and applied to French Polynesia
Authors: Botti Laurent , Petit Sylvain , Zhang Linjia
Published: December 2019

This article presents a two-step framework for the selection of the optimal tourist origins portfolio for a particular destination. The article applies this decision-making process to French Polynesia. The first step of the framework is based on a mean–variance optimization procedure and proposes the subset of portfolios among which the decision-maker must limit her/his choice. Second, the multicriteria ELECTRE method is employed to rank all the portfolios considered on the basis of decision-makers’ preferences exposed in the parameters of the algorithm. Three decision-maker profiles are proposed from a risk-averse profile to a risk-lover profile. This article contributes to the dedicated literature by presenting ELECTRE III as an alternative to the utility function approach used by previous studies. Results of our application to French Polynesia’s tourist attendance data (from 2014 to 2017) highlight the usefulness of the framework exhibited and empirically underline the economic perspectives offered by Chinese tourists. The French Polynesian application follows a clear presentation permitting consideration of applications to other destinations.
A longitudinal study of the stress of poor glucose control and diabetes distress
Authors: Marengo Christina M , Aronson Benjamin D , Sittner Kelley J , Walls Melissa L
Published: December 2019

Poor glucose control can be viewed as a stressor, possibly promulgating diabetes distress. We examined the relationship between perceived blood glucose control and diabetes distress over time using a partially controlled cross-lagged path analysis model. After controlling for demographics, control at 6 months was directly related to change in distress at 12 months. Subsequently, distress at 12 months was directly related to change in control at 18 months. Both 6-month control and distress had significant indirect effects on 18-month control and distress. This demonstrates the nuanced bi-directional relationship between the stress of poor perceived control and diabetes distress.
Exploring engagement with digital screens for collecting patient feedback in clinical waiting rooms: The role of touch and place
Authors: Ong Bie Nio , Sanders Caroline
Published: December 2019

Health service settings are increasingly installing digital devices to enable people to engage digitally with multiple processes, including automated ‘check-in’, as well as collecting feedback on experiences of care. In addition, policy is increasingly driving digital agendas to promote patient engagement with online services, management of health records and routine monitoring. While this tendency towards widespread digital diffusion has been viewed as a means of enabling greater empowerment of patients and improved responsiveness of services to ‘patient voice’, social scientists have provided critical insights on the use of digital technologies in practice. However, there remains limited understanding of the mechanisms and contexts for digital engagement. In particular, there is a need for further research on the sensory and spatial aspects of engagement that are integral to everyday use (or non-use) of technology in practice. This article reports new insights from detailed qualitative case studies utilising in-depth interviews with patients, carers and staff, in addition to ethnographic observations of different digital modalities and their usage in specific health care contexts. A sociomaterial approach and concepts of affective atmosphere and technogeography are drawn upon to analyse the role of touch and place in the collection of digital feedback in multiple waiting room settings for people with physical and mental health long-term conditions. The findings highlight how barriers to engagement varied by context such as particular concerns about privacy for those with mental health problems and physical and sensory barriers for those with physical impairments. The findings demonstrate how digital inequalities can play out in practice and have implications for the design and development of digital innovations and tackling inequalities that may be associated with implementation of new digital technologies in healthcare.
Divorce and conversational difficulties with parents: Impact on adolescent health and self-esteem
Authors: Meland Eivind , Breidablik Hans Johan , Thuen Frode
Published: December 2019

Background: Divorce experience (DE) may cause health and self-conceptual problems, but these consequences might also be caused by conflicts and lack of conversational confidence (CC) with one or both parents. We investigated how DE impacted CC and how DE and CC impacted health complaints and self-esteem in a two-year longitudinal cohort study. Methods: The study was performed between 2011 and 2013 among 1225 students in junior high school (aged 11 and 13 years in 2011). We used binary logistic analyses to account for how DE impacted CC, and linear regression analyses to examine how DE and CC impacted on subjective health and self-esteem in 2013. Results: The study revealed that former and recent DEs impacted CC with fathers only. The impact was most evident for the more severe forms of conversational difficulties. DE in itself predicted only self-esteem, and CC with parents mediated this association. CC with both mothers and fathers had strong temporal causal associations with the outcomes two years later. Only CC with fathers impacted changes of the health complaints and self-esteem in full-model residual change analyses. Conclusions: The study proves a sex-specific effect on loss of CC between fathers and children after divorce. The impairment of CC has predictive repercussions on the health and self-conception of adolescents in their middle teenage years. From a public-health perspective, preserving the relation and the confidence between children and their fathers after divorce seems an important task.
How social policy travels: A refined model of diffusion
Authors: Kuhlmann Johanna , González de Reufels Delia , Schlichte Klaus , Nullmeier Frank
Published: December 2019

Building on a critical engagement with the diffusion literature, this article introduces a refined model of diffusion that sheds light on crucial but so far neglected aspects of the diffusion process. First, by introducing four analytically distinct constellations of diffusion, we highlight important differences between the participating units of a diffusion process. Therefore, the model also allows for analysing very early developments of social policy under the conditions of colonialism and relations between states of equal or different economic strength, and under conditions of continuing post-colonial ties. Second, we conceptualize diffusion as consisting of three stages which involve different actors from both units: the stage of perception and translation, the stage of cooperation and conflict and the stage of collective decision-making. Third, we argue that the dominant focus of diffusion research on the macro-level obscures that people, money and procedures are key promoters of diffusion. From this refined model of diffusion, it becomes possible to analyse diffusion processes in a more detailed way. We demonstrate the added value of our model by analysing the development of education policy in Chile and Argentina in the 19th century, and the establishment of project funding for social policy purposes under conditions of colonialism in the British Empire in the mid-20th century.
Animating the subjugated past: digital greeting cards as a form of counter-memory
Authors: Makhortykh Mykola , Sydorova Maryna
Published: December 2019

This article discusses how popular culture products – digital greeting cards – interact with hegemonic historical narratives in the context of war remembrance. It employs the Foucauldian concept of counter-memory to analyse how user-generated mnemonic content interacts with historical power relations. Using content analysis to examine a sample of amateur greeting cards, the authors investigate how these cultural products engage with official and counter-official memory practices in Russia related to the Soviet victory in the Second World War. Specifically, the article explores how different visual elements are employed to (de)construct specific narratives about the Soviet victory and it discusses how the use of computer graphics, in particular animation, influences the potential role of greeting cards as a means of resurrecting the subjugated past.
Connectors, Horizon Stretchers, Outsiders: Youth Justice Practitioners in Rural England
Authors: Marshall Hannah , Harvey Joel , Lanskey Caroline
Published: December 2019

This article advances research on the practice of youth justice in rural contexts. Drawing on Ingold’s dwelling perspective, and empirical research with youth justice practitioners in rural England, we explore how practitioners develop their practice through their relationships to their rural working environments. We find that through these relationships, practitioners develop themselves as ‘connectors’, aiming to reduce the impact of Fordshire’s remoteness and isolation on young people; as ‘horizon stretchers’, seeking to raise aspirations and broaden imaginations; but often find themselves to be ‘outsiders’ in relation to rural communities. Accordingly, we argue that youth justice work is infused with the lived realities of the contexts in which it is practised and that ongoing debates over the localization of youth justice must take this into account.
Guided wave sensitivity prediction for part and through-thickness crack-like defects
Authors: Fromme Paul
Published: December 2019

Guided waves allow for the efficient structural health monitoring of large structures using phased or distributed arrays of sensors. The sensitivity for specific defects can be improved by accounting for the angular scattering pattern. The scattering of the fundamental anti-symmetric guided wave mode (A0 Lamb mode) at through-thickness and part-through crack-like defects was studied experimentally and from three-dimensional finite element simulations. Experimentally, the scattered field around manufactured notches of different depths and lengths in an aluminium plate was measured using a laser interferometer. The scattered field was extracted by taking the complex difference in the frequency domain between baseline measurement and measurements around the defect. Good agreement was found between measurements and three-dimensional finite element simulations, and the amplitude and directionality pattern of the scattered field can be predicted accurately. The angular directionality pattern of the scattered field depending on the direction of the incident wave relative to the crack-like defect orientation, depth and length relative to the wavelength was investigated. For short and part-thickness defects, the main scattering effect is a reduction of the (forward) wave propagating past the defect with very limited backscattered amplitude. Significant energy scattered back towards the incident wave direction was only found for perpendicular incidence on long and deep defects. Even for large defects, almost no energy is scattered in certain directions from the defect, possibly complicating defect detection. Based on the predicted amplitude and angular dependency of the scattered guided waves, the sensitivity for defect detection using localized and distributed structural health monitoring sensor array systems can be quantified.
‘Building a better picture’: Practitioners’ views of using a listening approach with young disabled children
Authors: Rix Jonathan , Parry John , Malibha-Pinchbeck Memory
Published: December 2019

This article reports on a study of practitioners’ use of In-the-Picture – a reflective, observational approach – when delivering early intervention programmes to young disabled children. To date, In-the-Picture has been used mainly by researchers to study interactions and learning between young children, practitioners and the children’s parents in home and early childhood settings. Practitioners involved in this early research had expressed an interest in using the tool themselves. This project aimed to engage such potential users, support them in using the approach and gain evidence of its impact upon their practice. In-the-Picture facilitates listening and communication between adults and children with learning disabilities. It is based upon a sociocultural understanding of learning, seeing the parents, children and practitioners as agents participating in an emerging teaching and learning process. It derives from a qualitative grounded research method which enables the researcher to consider the child’s perspective, through the use of first-person narrative observation, photography of the child’s focus of attention and reflective discussion with the child, practitioners and family. This study involved 10 Portage services in England, who provide weekly home visits with a focus on supporting play and communication with their child. Training was delivered to over 80 Portage Home Visitors across these 10 services. A selected sample of 20 practitioners, 2 from each service, was interviewed after 6 weeks and again within focus groups after 3 months. All interviewees used the approach in their own way and identified challenges in its use, but In-the-Picture was seen as relevant and valuable by all the participants, producing changes in thinking and practice, while proving flexible and simple to use. The study also exemplified how current early-intervention working practices in England limit the opportunity to engage with the child’s perspective and how practitioners value having the opportunity to do so.
Endovascular Repair Using a 7-Branch Stent-Graft for a Thoracoabdominal Aortic Aneurysm With Variant Renovisceral Artery Anatomy
Authors: Eleshra Ahmed , Spanos Konstantinos , Panuccio Giuseppe , Gronert Catharina , Rohlffs Fiona , Kölbel Tilo
Published: December 2019

Purpose: To present a case of endovascular repair using a custom-made 7-branch stent-graft for a thoracoabdominal aortic aneurysm (TAAA) in a patient with variations in the renovisceral artery anatomy. Case Report: A 70-year-old asymptomatic man presented with a 60-mm-diameter type IV TAAA. Due to severe coronary artery disease, an endovascular approach was elected. In the preoperative computed tomography angiography (CTA) scans, variations in the renovisceral artery anatomy included the common hepatic and splenic arteries deriving separately from the aorta and bilateral double renal arteries (RAs). A custom-made 7-branch stent-graft was manufactured to preserve all renovisceral arteries. The 7 branches were catheterized and connected with a steerable sheath from a femoral access. All branches were bridged to the target vessel (TV) with a self-expanding covered stent; 4 TVs also had balloon-expandable covered stents implanted. Final angiography and predischarge CTA showed patency of all 7 target vessels and corresponding visceral organs, with no endoleak. The patient was discharged on postoperative day 8 without complications. Six-month follow-up CTA demonstrated exclusion of the TAAA and patency of all 7 target vessels. Conclusion: Successful treatment of a TAAA in a patient with multiple variant renovisceral arteries was feasible with a custom-made 7-branch stent-graft, achieving a good early outcome.
High-resolution 3D tractography of fibrous tissue based on polarization-sensitive optical coherence tomography
Authors: Yao Gang , Duan Dongsheng
Published: December 2019

Fibrous tissues play important roles in many parts of the body. Their highly organized directional structure is essential in achieving their normal biomechanical and physiological functions. Disruption of the typical fiber organization in these tissues is often linked to pathological changes and disease progression. Tractography is a specialized imaging method that can reveal the detailed fiber architecture. Here, we review recent developments in high-resolution optical tractography using Jones matrix polarization-sensitive optical coherence tomography. We also illustrate the use of this new tractography technology for visualizing depth-resolved, three-dimensional fibrous structures and quantifying tissue damages in several major fibrous tissues.

Impact statement

Organized fiber structure plays an essential role in realizing normal biological functions in fibrous tissues. A thorough understanding of the structure–function relationship in these tissues is crucial for developing effective technology to diagnose and treat diseases. Tractography imaging is an effective tool in visualizing and quantifying fiber architecture in fibrous tissues. This review describes a recently developed tractography technology that has shown great promise for fast image of 3D fiber organization with microscopic details.