bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Multiparametric ultrasound findings in a patient with polyorchidism
Authors: Rafailidis Vasileios , Arvaniti Mary , Rafailidis Dimitrios , Sfoungaris Dimitrios
Published: January 2017

Polyorchidism is a rare condition usually incidentally discovered in young patients investigated with ultrasound for unrelated reasons. It is characterized by the presence of unilateral or, rarely, bilateral supernumerary testes which, depending on the type of polyorchidism, may have their own epididymis and vas deferens. Ultrasound, including B-mode and color Doppler technique, represents the primary imaging modality for the evaluation of scrotal diseases, including the characterization of supernumerary testes, which normally appear identical to the ipsilateral testicular parenchyma on every ultrasonographic technique performed. The role of MRI is thus limited to confirming ultrasonographic findings and excluding the presence of malignancy. Contrast-enhanced ultrasound is a recently introduced ultrasonographic technique providing detailed and sensitive visualization of the perfusion pattern of structures. It can thus be added to the conventional ultrasonographic examination in order to establish the diagnosis, negating the use of more expensive and time-consuming imaging modalities. We present a young patient with an incidentally found supernumerary testis, where new distinctive ultrasonographic findings, like the identification of transmediastinal vessels and a cystic appendage along with the perfusion pattern on contrast-enhanced ultrasound, established the diagnosis of polyorchidism.
Political economy of sport broadcasting: Assessing Indonesian PSB policy in sport broadcasting
Authors: Masduki
Published: January 2017

The increasing presence of sport broadcasting on public service broadcasters in Indonesia is driven by a mixture of interests. It may serve as a tool for education and entertainment as well as for increasing awareness of ‘symbolic nationalism’. Sport can also be used as a soft political campaign in the electoral system or even for pragmatic business purposes. This article assesses the sport broadcasting histories and policies of two Indonesian public service broadcasters: Radio of the Republic of Indonesia, and Television of the Republic of Indonesia. It assesses two political periods: the authoritarian period (1966–1998) and the transition towards a more liberal system (1998-present). Furthermore, this article critically examines both the political and economic interests behind the mediated sport policy. In addition, it intends to fill the gap in studies on sport policy, specifically public service broadcaster sport programming in transitional states. This study found that a change in the political structure resulted in unstable policies of sport broadcasting in Indonesian public broadcasters.
The effect of in-situ decompression on ulnar nerve stability: a cadaveric study
Authors: Butler B. , Peelman J. , Zhang L.-Q. , Kwasny M. , Nagle D.
Published: January 2017

Ten fresh frozen right cadaver arms were placed in a motorized jig and an in-situ ulnar nerve decompression was performed in 5 mm increments distally to the flexor carpi ulnaris (FCU) aponeurosis then proximally to the intermuscular septum. The elbows were ranged 0–135° after each incremental decompression and the ulnar nerve to medial epicodyle distance was measured to assess for nerve translation/subluxation compared with baseline (prerelease) values. None of the specimens had ulnar nerve subluxation (defined as anterior translation past the medial epicondyle) even after full decompression. Furthermore, there were no statistically significant ulnar nerve translations (defined as any difference in distance from ulnar nerve to medial epicondyle before and after each decompression) for any flexion angle or extent of decompression. This study provides biomechanical evidence that in situ ulnar nerve decompression from the FCU aponeurosis to the intermuscular septum does not result in significant ulnar nerve translation or subluxation.
The Impacts of Service Provider Name, Ethnicity, and Menu Information on Perceived Authenticity and Behaviors
Authors: Kim Kawon , Baker Melissa A.
Published: January 2017

Tangible cues are critical indicators of customer perceptions of authenticity and behavioral intentions. Few studies examine multiple dimensions of authenticity, the influence of language in service settings, and the effects of the service provider appearance. This research addresses these gaps by presenting two between-subjects experimental design studies, the first examines the tangible cues of menu presentation (menu item name and item description), and the second examines the tangible cues of the employee (ethnicity and name). Both measure customer perceptions of food, culture, and employee authenticity, customer revisit intentions, and willingness to pay more in an ethnic restaurant. Results find that using an ethnic menu name and possessing employees of referent ethnic origin have the largest impacts on customer perceptions of authenticity. Additionally, food authenticity has the largest impact on revisit intention and culture and employee authenticity have the largest impact on willingness to pay more.
Primary adrenal lymphoma causing hypoaldosteronism in a cat
Authors: Romine Jessica F , Kozicki Angela R , Elie Marc S
Published: January 2017

Case summary

A 10-year-old, 5.1 kg (11.2 lb), male castrated cat was presented with signs of lethargy and decreased appetite at home after being previously healthy. Serum biochemical analysis identified normokalemia (5.1 mmol/l; reference interval [RI] 3.4–5.6 mmol/l) and severe hyponatremia (123 mmol/l; RI 145–158 mmol/l), with an Na/K ratio of 24 (RI 32–41). Baseline serum cortisol was low to normal, but serum aldosterone was markedly decreased with a pre-adrenocorticotropic hormone stimulation concentration of 13 pmol/l (RI 194–388 pmol/l) and post-adrenocorticotropic hormone stimulation concentration of 21 pmol/l (RI 277–721 pmol/l). Hematologic and biochemical analyses were otherwise unremarkable. Abdominal ultrasound revealed bilaterally enlarged adrenal glands with no other abnormalities noted; thoracic radiographs also did not identify any signs of metastasis. Fine-needle aspiration was strongly suggestive of lymphoma of the adrenal glands, and PCR for antigen receptor rearrangement was positive for B-cell clonal expansion; based on these findings, a diagnosis of primary adrenal B-cell lymphoma was made. Stable disease was achieved for a short period of time following vincristine, cyclophosphamide, prednisolone and fludrocortisone therapy, followed by progressive adrenal enlargement and electrolyte derangements that responded to neither doxorubicin nor adjustments in fludrocortisone dosage. Ultrasonographic metastasis was not identified at any time, and other organ derangements were not noted on hematologic or biochemical analyses. The cat was euthanized 55 days after initial presentation.

Relevance and novel information

This is the first report of primary adrenal lymphoma in a cat, with presenting signs compatible with hypoaldosteronism. Lymphoma should be a differential for cats presenting with adrenal enlargement or clinical signs and biochemical changes consistent with hypoaldosteronism or hypoadrenocorticism.
Comparison of continuous interscalene block and subacromial infusion of local anesthetic for postoperative analgesia after open shoulder surgery
Authors: Baskan Semih , Cankaya Deniz , Unal Hidayet , Yoldas Burak , Taspinar Vildan , Deveci Alper , Tabak Yalcin , Baydar Mustafa
Published: January 2017

Purpose:

This study compared the efficacy of continuous interscalene block (CISB) and subacromial infusion of local anesthetic (CSIA) for postoperative analgesia after open shoulder surgery.

Methods:

This randomized, prospective, double-blinded, single-center study included 40 adult patients undergoing open shoulder surgery. All patients received a standardized general anesthetic. The patients were separated into group CISB and group CSIA. A loading dose of 40 mL 0.25% bupivacaine was administered and patient-controlled analgesia was applied by catheter with 0.1% bupivacaine 5 mL/h throughout 24 h basal infusion, 2 mL bolus dose, and 20 min knocked time in both groups postoperatively. Visual analog scale (VAS) scores, additional analgesia need, local anesthetic consumption, complications, and side effects were recorded during the first 24 h postoperatively. The range of motion (ROM) score was recorded preoperatively and in the first and third weeks postoperatively.

Results:

A statistically significant difference was determined between the groups in respect of consumption of local anesthetic, VAS scores, additional analgesia consumption, complications, and side effects, with lower values recorded in the CISB group. There were no significant differences in ROM scoring in the preoperative and postoperative third week between the two groups but there were significant differences in ROM scoring in the postoperative first week, with higher ROM scoring values in the group CISB patients.

Conclusion:

The results of this study have shown that continuous interscalene infusion of bupivacaine is an effective and safe method of postoperative analgesia after open shoulder surgery.
Combined Spinal-Epidural for Vaginal Delivery in a Parturient With Takayasu’s Arteritis
Authors: Clifford Sean Patrick , Mick Paul Brian , Derhake Brian Matthew
Published: January 2017

Takayasu’s arteritis is a rare, progressive panendarteritis involving all layers of the arterial wall. This disease includes variable involvement of the aorta and its major branches. The most common complication with this condition is severe, uncontrolled hypertension, often leading to end organ dysfunction. We describe the management of a 27-year-old woman diagnosed with Takayasu’s arteritis that presented in labor with intense pain and underwent a combined spinal-epidural for anesthetic management. Per literature review, a combined spinal-epidural technique for planned vaginal delivery has not been described for a laboring Takayasu patient. Our technique, utilizing intrathecal opioids and a low-dose local anesthetic-opioid epidural infusion, provided adequate analgesia while maintaining hemodynamic stability throughout labor augmentation and successful vaginal delivery.
Return to Play and Prior Performance in Major League Baseball Pitchers After Repair of Superior Labral Anterior-Posterior Tears
Authors: Smith Ryan , Lombardo Daniel J. , Petersen-Fitts Graysen R. , Frank Charles , Tenbrunsel Troy , Curtis Gannon , Whaley James , Sabesan Vani J.
Published: January 2017

Background:

The published return-to-play (RTP) rates for Major League Baseball (MLB) pitchers who have undergone surgical repair of superior labrum anterior-posterior (SLAP) tears vary widely and are generally accepted to be lower in the subset of competitive throwers. The efficacy of surgical treatment for MLB players is largely unknown.

Purpose:

To examine the RTP rate and performance of MLB pitchers who have undergone SLAP tear repair between 2003 and 2010.

Study Design:

Descriptive epidemiological study.

Methods:

A retrospective review of MLB pitchers undergoing SLAP repair was performed using the MLB disabled list. Data collected included the following player statistics: earned run average (ERA), walks plus hits per inning pitched (WHIP), and innings pitched (IP). The mean values for performance variables both before and after surgery were compared. A definition of return to prior performance (RTPP) was established as an ERA within 2.00 and WHIP within 0.500 of preoperative values.

Results:

Twenty-four MLB players met inclusion criteria, of which 62.5% were able to RTP at the MLB level after SLAP repair surgery. Of those able to RTP, 86.7% were able to RTPP. However, the overall rate of RTPP, including those unable to RTP, was 54.2%. Mean performance analysis of the RTP group revealed a statistically significant decrease in IP for MLB pitchers throwing a mean 101.8 innings before injury and 65.53 innings after injury ( P = .004).

Conclusion:

Of those pitchers able to RTP, chances of a full recovery were good (86.7%). Our results indicate the need for future research aimed at proper surgical selection of who will return to play, as they will likely achieve full recovery. We believe this information can help surgeons advise high-level overhead-throwing athletes about expected outcomes for surgical treatment of SLAP tears.
Predictive Surgical Reasons for Failure After Coracoid Process Transfers
Authors: Gasbarro Gregory , Giugale Juan Marcelo , Walch Gilles , Lin Albert
Published: January 2017

Background:

Recurrent anterior shoulder instability after coracoid process transfers may be caused by trauma, sports injury, or technical failure of the index procedure. Surgical techniques vary with regard to graft orientation and positioning and number of screws utilized for fixation.

Purpose:

To identify surgical and patient-related factors associated with failure, defined as the need for revision surgery. We hypothesized that failures will occur more commonly with single-screw fixation and graft malposition.

Study Design:

Case series; Level of evidence, 4.

Methods:

Eighty-three patients (mean age, 24 years) who underwent an Eden-Hybinette operation as a revision procedure for recurrent anterior instability after primary coracoid process transfer between 1977 and 2010 were retrospectively reviewed. Preoperative medical records were queried for demographic data, failure event, and physical examination. Two fellowship-trained shoulder surgeons reviewed radiographs to identify for graft positioning, nonunion, and hardware failure. Descriptive analysis was used to assess reasons for failure.

Results:

Seventy-five percent of patients sustained a redislocation event after primary coracoid process transfer. Revisions were performed on average 50.3 months after the index procedure, most commonly on males, with two-thirds of recurrent instability occurring during sports. Among all patients, single-screw methods for fixation and inferior graft malposition during index bone block transfer were the most common. Hardware failure and graft nonunion were more frequent with the single-screw technique.

Conclusion:

In our series, recurrent anterior shoulder instability after primary coracoid process transfer was more likely to occur during sports in young, male patients. The most common technical errors leading to revision were placing the graft inferior to the 5-o’clock position on the glenoid face or relying on single-screw fixation.
Between the Family and Politics: Female Politicians as Media Objects in Bollywood Films
Authors: Rasul Azmat
Published: January 2017

Of late, researchers have examined the stereotyping of female politicians in entertainment media as a serious problem in several democratic societies. Despite chauvinism and stereotyping, the entertainment industries find female politicians attractive content producers, which guarantee tangible profit, as audiences are interested in learning about the life stories of female politicians. This article employs feminist political economy of communication to analyse exposé of female politicians in three Bollywood chick flick movies featuring lead characters in important political positions. This study finds that chick flicks—movies centred on attractive female lead characters and typically marketed to women—serve as a mechanism to sell commercial entertainment products to both female and male audiences. I argue that Bollywood’s political movies are marketed through a focus on bodily attributes of female politicians that helps perpetuate patriarchal ideology in which women are passive homemakers and effectively domesticated and excluded from public sphere.
Adult T-cell leukemia: molecular basis for clonal expansion and transformation of HTLV-1–infected T cells
Authors: Watanabe Toshiki
Published: January 2017

Adult T-cell leukemia (ATL) is an aggressive T-cell malignancy caused by human T-cell leukemia virus type 1 (HTLV-1) that develops through a multistep carcinogenesis process involving 5 or more genetic events. We provide a comprehensive overview of recently uncovered information on the molecular basis of leukemogenesis in ATL. Broadly, the landscape of genetic abnormalities in ATL that include alterations highly enriched in genes for T-cell receptor–NF-κB signaling such as PLCG1, PRKCB, and CARD11 and gain-of function mutations in CCR4 and CCR7. Conversely, the epigenetic landscape of ATL can be summarized as polycomb repressive complex 2 hyperactivation with genome-wide H3K27 me3 accumulation as the basis of the unique transcriptome of ATL cells. Expression of H3K27 methyltransferase enhancer of zeste 2 was shown to be induced by HTLV-1 Tax and NF-κB. Furthermore, provirus integration site analysis with high-throughput sequencing enabled the analysis of clonal composition and cell number of each clone in vivo, whereas multicolor flow cytometric analysis with CD7 and cell adhesion molecule 1 enabled the identification of HTLV-1–infected CD4+ T cells in vivo. Sorted immortalized but untransformed cells displayed epigenetic changes closely overlapping those observed in terminally transformed ATL cells, suggesting that epigenetic abnormalities are likely earlier events in leukemogenesis. These new findings broaden the scope of conceptualization of the molecular mechanisms of leukemogenesis, dissecting them into immortalization and clonal progression. These recent findings also open a new direction of drug development for ATL prevention and treatment because epigenetic marks can be reprogrammed. Mechanisms underlying initial immortalization and progressive accumulation of these abnormalities remain to be elucidated.
Exploring the role of values and norms towards consumers’ intentions to patronize retail apparel brands engaged in corporate social responsibility (CSR)
Authors: Diddi Sonali , Niehm Linda S.
Published: January 2017

This study provides understanding of factors that affect US consumers’ intentions to patronize retail apparel brands engaged in corporate social responsibility (CSR). The study utilizes a dual theoretical framework comprised of the theory of reasoned action (TRA) and Schwartz’s value theory. Data were collected via a web-based survey from a national sample of 407 US consumers. Findings revealed that moral norms, subjective norms, and attitudes were all important predictors of US consumers’ intentions to patronize retail apparel brands engaged in CSR. Overall, the results of this study provide important theoretical implications for extending the TRA to include measures of self-transcendent values (universalism and benevolence) and moral norms in the context of consumers’ ethical decision making. The findings also provide important practical implications for retail apparel brands planning to incorporate CSR policies in their corporate agenda. It is proposed that retail apparel brands should integrate CSR related information in their strategic marketing activities to increase consumer awareness of its socially responsible business practices, which in turn may enhance brand image.
Cloth(ing) for the dead: case study of three designers’ green burial practices
Authors: Michel Gwendolyn M. , Lee Young-A
Published: January 2017

The aim of this study was to explore the current green burial clothing movement by examining three designers’ work using a multi-case study approach. Green burial incorporates a sustainability concept into funeral practices. Cradle-to-cradle, as opposed to cradle-to-grave, is a model for sustainability practices that plan for the product lifecycle to continue after consumer use of the product has concluded. The works of Mark Mitchell, Jae Rhim Lee and Pia Interlandi were selected for the three cases of green burial practices in the context of cradle-to-cradle design using the five steps to eco-effectiveness. They used natural fibers in their clothing designed for green burial, and created clothing intended to be non-toxic to the soil and groundwater when buried with the body. Jae Rhim Lee’s designs included a mushroom culture to aid in decomposition of the body and remediation of toxins found in the body, resulting in compostable soil. In addition to the multi-case study, this study also examined a wide variety of primary and secondary research literature from the fields of forensics, archaeology, and textile science to identify current purchase options for green burial clothing and to inform suggestions for future development of green burial apparel within the context of cradle-to-cradle design. This study also urged the importance of consumer awareness in terms of the choice of burial clothing if considering the full implementation of the cradle-to-cradle design principles into green burial clothing practices. The findings of this study call for further research on sustainability in burial clothing.
Perceived ease of use and usefulness of sustainability labels on apparel products: application of the technology acceptance model
Authors: Ma Yoon Jin , Gam Hae Jin , Banning Jennifer
Published: January 2017

This study explores consumers’ perceptions of sustainability labels on apparel products and examines sustainability labels as an effective means of determining consumers’ purchase intentions, using the technology acceptance model (TAM) as the foundation. Data were collected via self-administered web-based surveys from 903 randomly selected shoppers throughout the United States (U.S.). Findings validated that perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness, attitudes, and purchase intention were associated with consumers’ use of sustainability labels. Within those four variables, sustainability label users exhibited significantly higher scores than non-label users, though the path relationships among those variables were not different between the two groups. This study is one of the first to use TAM to understand how consumers perceive and use sustainability labels for apparel products. Through this application, label reading behaviour is viewed similarly to how consumers use new informational sources for their decision making process. The findings provide practical implications for business marketers and managers of sustainability apparel products. As this study focused on sustainability labels and apparel product shopping among U.S. consumers, it may be limited to apply findings to other product categories and may be limited to consumers outside the U.S.
Fast inversion of triaxial induction data in dipping crossbedded formations
Authors: Wang Gong Li , Barber Tom , Wu Peter , Allen David , Abubakar Aria
Published: January 2017

The tensor type measurements acquired by triaxial induction tools greatly expand the data sensitivity to formation properties, enabling the extraction of not only the resistivity but also the resistivity anisotropy and dip of the formation. The first and most popular anisotropic resistivity model for the interpretation of triaxial induction data is the transversely isotropic (TI) model in which the lamination planes are assumed to be parallel to the bedding planes. Image data and outcrops indicate that crossbedding occurs in multiple depositional environments. Modeling results have shown that the presence of crossbedding can have a considerable effect on the response of triaxial induction. Therefore, using the TI model in crossbedded formations can cause large errors in the estimation of the formation resistivity and dip. However, the strong effect suggests the possibility of performing a crossbed interpretation with triaxial induction data. We have developed an inversion method based on a fast forward solver for a crossbedded formation to automatically determine the anisotropy dip and azimuth in addition to the horizontal and vertical resistivities for each bed in the formation. The high speed and low memory requirement of the 2D Fourier transform-based forward solver allow for a pixel-based parameterization in the inversion. A weighted [Formula: see text]-norm regularization method is developed to enhance the resolution of the reconstructed model and suppress the effect of noise. The Hessian matrix is used to dynamically determine the weights of the stabilizers for the horizontal and vertical resistivities and the anisotropy dip and azimuth. The inversion delivers one bedding dip and multiple bed-to-bed anisotropy dips over the zone of interest. The method is tested on synthetic models and field data sets. Results indicate that in the presence of crossbedding, the method is able to distinguish between bedding dip and anisotropy dip, and it provides better resistivity and dip estimations.
Determining formation S-wave transverse isotropy from borehole flexural-wave dispersion data
Authors: Xu Song , Tang Xiao-Ming , Su Yuan-Da , Lee Sheng-Qing , Zhuang Chun-Xi
Published: January 2017

Many earth formations are characterized as transversely isotropic (TI) media. In acoustic logging through a vertical borehole, the S-wave TI property has traditionally been determined from borehole monopole Stoneley-wave measurements, but the feasibility of shear-TI estimation from dipole flexural waves has not been fully investigated. We have developed a methodology to determine the TI parameters from borehole dipole-flexural wave data. Our analysis shows that the Stoneley wave is sensitive to the TI property mainly in an acoustically slow formation, and the sensitivity diminishes when the formation becomes faster. The advantage of the flexural wave over the Stoneley wave is that the former wave is sensitive to the TI property in the slow and fast formations, provided the wave measurement is made in a broad frequency range in which the flexural-wave dispersion characteristics from low to high frequencies can be used. By calculating the theoretical flexural-wave dispersion curve for the TI formation and using it to fit the measured wave dispersion data, we can simultaneously determine the vertical and horizontal S-wave velocities, from which the S-wave TI parameter is obtained. Application of our methodology to field data processing shows that the TI parameter estimated from the flexural wave is almost identical to that from the Stoneley wave for a slow formation. For a fast formation, the flexural-wave result is more accurate and reliable compared with the Stoneley-wave result. Our study, thus, introduces a novel application of dipole acoustic logging.
Role of adjuvant radiotherapy for localized extrahepatic bile duct cancer
Authors: Kim Yi-Jun , Kim Kyubo , Min Seog Ki , Nam Eun Mi
Published: January 2017

Objective:

To evaluate the benefit of adjuvant radiotherapy (RT) after surgical resection for extrahepatic bile duct (EHBD) cancer.

Methods:

From 1997 to 2015, 59 patients with EHBD cancer were the subject of this study; 36 patients not undergoing adjuvant treatment after surgery (observation group) and 23 patients receiving adjuvant RT (RT group) were compared. Microscopic residual disease (R1) was in 9 (25%) patients and 5 (22%) patients, and macroscopic residual disease (R2) was in 2 (6%) patients and 6 (26%) patients in the observation and RT groups, respectively. Adjuvant RT was delivered to the tumour bed and regional lymph nodes up to 50.4 Gy (range, 45–61 Gy).

Results:

With a median follow-up of 19 months, local recurrence was observed in 10 (28%) patients and 2 (9%) patients in the observation and RT groups, respectively. On univariate analysis, the 5-year local recurrence-free survival (LRFS) rates were 50% in the observation group and 54% in the RT group (p = 0.401). The 5-year overall survival (OS) rates were 29.3% in the observation group and 26.3% in the RT group (p = 0.602). On multivariable analysis, however, adjuvant RT significantly improved LRFS [hazard ratio (HR), 0.310; 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.100–0.963; p = 0.043] and had a trend towards increased OS (HR, 0.491; 95% CI, 0.219–1.102; p = 0.085). Resection margin (RM) status was also correlated with LRFS (HR for R1 6.134, 95% CI 2.051–18.344; and HR for R2 18.551, 95% CI 3.680–93.520; p < 0.001) and OS (HR for R1 1.816, 95% CI 0.853–3.867; and HR for R2 3.564, 95% CI 1.175–10.809; p = 0.054).

Conclusion:

RM status was a significant prognosticator of EHBD cancer, and adjuvant RT improved local control rate; thereby, survival rate might be increased.

Advances in knowledge:

The benefit of adjuvant RT in EHBD cancer was demonstrated via comparison with observation group.
Portal Annular Pancreas: A Rare and Overlooked Anomaly
Authors: Mittal Puneet , Gupta Ranjana , Mittal Amit , Ahmed Arshad
Published: January 2017

Background: Portal annular pancreas is a rare pancreatic developmental anomaly which is often overlooked at imaging, and often diagnosed retrospectively when it is detected incidentally at the time of surgery. Although the anomaly itself is asymptomatic, it becomes important in cases where pancreatic resection/anastomosis is planned, because of varying ductal anatomy, risk of ductal injury and increased risk of postoperative pancreatic fistula formation.

Case Report: We present imaging findings in a case of portal annular pancreas in a 45-year-old male patient.

Conclusions: Portal annular pancreas is a rare and often neglected pancreatic anomaly due to a lack of awareness of this entity. With the advent of MDCT and MRI, accurate preoperative diagnosis of this condition is possible.
Comment on the “TrialsTracker: Automated ongoing monitoring of failure to share clinical trial results by all major companies and research institutions”
Authors: Coens Corneel , Bogaerts Jan , Collette Laurence
Published: January 2017

The purpose of this correspondence is to discuss the TrialsTracker, presented by Powell-Smith and Goldacre in their article ‘TrialsTracker: Automated ongoing monitoring of failure to share clinical trial results by all major companies and research institutions’ (2016)  as a tool to discover publication bias in clinical trial results. The findings from one specific organization (European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer; EORTC) are compared with the actual publication history of the trials in question. We also present shortcomings of the method being used and suggestions for improvement to the proposed algorithm.
Serum nitric oxide and pediatric sepsis outcomes
Authors: Chandra Ronald , Mandei Jose M. , Manoppo Jeanette I. Ch. , Wilar Rocky , Runtunuwu Ari L. , Liana Phey
Published: January 2017

Background Sepsis is the complex pathophysiologic responsesof the host against systemic infection. Sepsis can cause severeconditions such as septic shock and multiple organ failure.Although we have a better understanding of the molecular basisof sepsis as well as aggressive therapy, the mortality rate remainshigh, between 20-80%. Nitric oxide (NO) is one of the mediatorsassociated with cardiovascular failure, apoptosis and organdysfunction in sepsis.Objective To evaluate for a possible correlation between NOlevels and outcomes in pediatric sepsis.Methods A prospective cohort study was conducted at thepediatric intensive care unit (PICU) of Prof. Dr. R.D. KandouGeneral Hospital in Manado, from June to November 2012. Fortychildren aged one month to five year old, fulfilled the InternationalPediatrics Sepsis Consensus Conference 2 005 criteria were recruited.Nitrite oxide metabolites (nitrite and nitrate) levels were measuredusing a calorimetric assay kit (Cayman®, Catalog No.780001)from venous blood specimens collected at admission. All patientsreceived antibiotics empirically within an hour of the diagnosis.Outcomes of patients recorded were survivor or died, and lengthof stay in PICU.Results Mann-Whitney U test revealed a significant differencebetween median serum NO levels ins urvivors and those who died(18.60 vs. 36.50 fLM/L, respectively; P= 0.016).Conclusion Serum NO concentration is higher in those whodied than in survivors of pediatric sepsis. Specific NO inhibitionmay be beneficial in decreasing morbidity and mortality in thiscondition.
Utility of hemoglobin A1c to screen for impaired glucose tolerance
Authors: Ginting Edy K. , Aditiawati Aditiawati , Irfanuddin Irfanuddin
Published: January 2017

Background Childhood obesity is associated with an increasedlikelihood for having impaired glucose tolerance, dyslipidemia,and diabetes. Hemoglobin Ale (HbAl c) h as emerged as arecommended diagnostic tool for identifying diabetes and personsat risk for the disease. This recommendation was based on datain adults, showing the relationship between HbAl C and thefuture development of diabetes . However, studies in the pediatricpopulation have been limited and no stan dard values of HbAlclevels in children have been established.Objective To evaluate HbAlc as a test for impaired glucosetolerance in obese children and adolescents and to identify theoptimal HbAlc thresh old level (cut off poin t).Methods We studied 65 obese and 4 overweight children (BMI 2::+ 2 SD for age and gender) aged 10-15 years in Palembang. Allsubjects underwent HbAlc and oral glucose tolerance tests.Results Nineteen out of 69 subjects (28%) had impaired glucosetolerance. Based on the receiver operating characteristic curve,the optimal cut off point of HbAlc related to impaired glucosetolerance as diagnosed by oral glucose tolerance test was found tobe 5.25%, with 63% sensitivity and 64% specificity, 40% positivepredictive value, and 82% negative predictive value. The areaunder the receiver operating ch aracteristic curve was O .68 7(95%CI 0.541-0.833; P < 0.00 1).Conclusion A HbAlc cut off value of 5.25% may be used as ascreening tool to identify children and adolescents with impairedglucose tolerance.
Activation of coagulation system and d-dimer levels in children with acute leukemia
Authors: Wijaya Harun , Chozie Novie Amelia , Hegar Badriul
Published: January 2017

Background D-dimer is a molecule as result of breaking downof excessive fibrin formation from the activation of coagulationsystem. There is evidence of increased activation of coagulation inpatients with acute leukemia which was showed by the incrementof d-dimer levels.Objective To evaluate the incidence of activation of coagulationsys tem in children with acute leukemia before receivingchemotherapy.Method This cross-sectional study was performed at Dr. CiptoMangunkusumo Hospital. All newly-diagnosed children with acuteleukemia were included in this study, prior to their receiving anychemotherapy treatment. Blast count, prothrombin time (PTI),activated partial thromboplastin time (APTf), and D-dimer levelswere examined after the diagnosis was confirmed by morphology andimmunophenotyping studies on bone marrow specimens.Results Out of 22 subjects, 13 subjects had increased D-dimervalues. The median D-dimer level of this elevated group was 1,000(range 500-14, 700) n gfmL. In the acute myeloblastic leukemia(AML) patients, activation of coagulation was found in 7 out of 8subjects. The median D-dimer levels was 950 (range 100-14, 700)ng/mL. In the acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL) patients, 6 outof 14 subjects had increased activation of coagulation with medianD-dimer level of 300 (range 100-3,800) ngfmL. Nine out of 10subjects with blast cells on peripheral blood smear had a medianD-dimer level of 1,000 (range 500-3,800) ng/mL. Both PT andAPTT were found normal in all subjects.Conclusion Activation of coagulation sys tem occurs at thetime of diagnosis as shown by increased D-dimer levels. Thecharacteristics of activation of coagulation system are differentbetween ALL and AML subjects, as well as between subj ects withpositive and negative blast counts on peripheral blood smears.Despite the increased activation of coagulation, PT and APTfremain normal.
Cow’s milk exposure and atopic dermatitis after six months of age
Authors: Kadek Surya Jayanti , Ketut Dewi Kumara Wati , Putu Gede Karyana
Published: January 2017

Background About 60% of individuals with atopic dermatitis (AD) develop their first manifestation during infancy. Cow’s milk (CM) exposure is considered to be a risk factor for AD.Objective To evaluate for an association between cow’s milk exposure and atopic dermatitis in infants > 6 months of age.  Methods This cross-sectional study consisted of subjects from a previous study and new subjects recruited in order to meet the minimum required number of subjects. Our study population comprised 120 infants, born between 1 February and 30 November, 2012 in Sanglah Hospital, Denpasar. Subjects were divided into CM and non-CM groups and analyzed for their risk of AD. Subjects were included to CM group if they were fed with cow’s milk/formula  and included to non-CM group if they were breastfeed exclusively in the first six months of life. Other possible risk factors were assessed by multivariate analysis. Results One hundred twenty subjects were enrolled and analyzed (59 in the CM and 61 in the non-CM groups). The prevalence of AD was 30%. Multiple logistic regression analysis revealed a significant association between CM exposure and AD, with odds ratio (OR) 2.37 (95%CI 1.036 to 5.420; P=0.04). In addition, maternal diet including eggs and/or cow’s milk during the breastfeeding period was significantly associated with AD in infants (OR 3.18; 95%CI 1.073 to 9.427; P=0.04).Conclusion Cow’s milk exposure is significantly associated with atopic dermatitis in infants  > six months of age.
Calculation of lightning surges on the high voltage lines. Case of 220 kV line: Ngo -Brazzaville in Congo
Authors: Gomba Rodolphe , Omboua Alphonse
Published: January 2017

The importance of line Ngo-Brazzaville (220 kV, 207 km) requires operators to avoid cuts that can increase the risk of instability. We see it is quite rare that a storm that occurs in areas crossed by this line will not cause triggering. Note that due to lightning discharges are the main causes of unscheduled outages of Congo's power lines; we ignore this during the peak values of voltage wave forms that result. In regions with high level keraunic like Congo, reducing insulation failures due to lightning is a concern in the management of overheads lines. This article clarifies the peak values of the voltages that can be achieved on the network in order to build the operators as to the precautions on the insulation coordination of protective equipment related to lightning. For these calculations surge of atmospheric origin (case of lightning), we considered the bi-exponential function and Heidler function for modeling the wave of the lightning current. This methodology led us to specially treat the effects of direct lightning strikes that constitute the worst case because they generate most destructive shock wave that indirect lightning strikes.
Cohort query processing
Authors: Jiang Dawei , Cai Qingchao , Chen Gang , Jagadish H. V. , Ooi Beng Chin , Tan Kian-Lee , Tung Anthony K. H.
Published: January 2017

Modern Internet applications often produce a large volume of user activity records. Data analysts are interested in cohort analysis, or finding unusual user behavioral trends, in these large tables of activity records. In a traditional database system, cohort analysis queries are both painful to specify and expensive to evaluate. We propose to extend database systems to support cohort analysis. We do so by extending SQL with three new operators. We devise three different evaluation schemes for cohort query processing. Two of them adopt a non-intrusive approach. The third approach employs a columnar based evaluation scheme with optimizations specifically designed for cohort query processing. Our experimental results confirm the performance benefits of our proposed columnar database system, compared against the two non-intrusive approaches that implement cohort queries on top of regular relational databases.
IL-miner
Authors: George Lars , Cadonna Bruno , Weidlich Matthias
Published: January 2017

Complex event processing (CEP) matches patterns over a continuous stream of events to detect situations of interest. Yet, the definition of an event pattern that precisely characterises a particular situation is challenging: there are manifold dimensions to correlate events, including time windows and value predicates. In the presence of historic event data that is labelled with the situation to detect, event patterns can be learned automatically. To cope with the combinatorial explosion of pattern candidates, existing approaches work on a type-level and discover patterns based on predefined event abstractions, aka event types. Hence, discovery is limited to patterns of a fixed granularity and users face the burden to manually select appropriate event abstractions.

We present IL-M
iner
, a system that discovers event patterns by genuinely working on the instance-level, not assuming a priori knowledge on event abstractions. In a multi-phase process, IL-M
iner
first identifies relevant abstractions for the construction of event patterns. The set of events explored for pattern discovery is thereby reduced, while still providing formal guarantees on correctness, minimality, and completeness of the discovery result. Experiments using real-world datasets from diverse domains show that IL-M
iner
discovers a much broader range of event patterns compared to the state-of-the-art in the field.
Toward high-performance distributed stream processing via approximate fault tolerance
Authors: Huang Qun , Lee Patrick P. C.
Published: January 2017

Fault tolerance is critical for distributed stream processing systems, yet achieving error-free fault tolerance often incurs substantial performance overhead. We present
AF-Stream
, a distributed stream processing system that addresses the trade-off between performance and accuracy in fault tolerance. AF-Stream builds on a notion called
approximate fault tolerance
, whose idea is to mitigate backup overhead by adaptively issuing backups, while ensuring that the errors upon failures are bounded with theoretical guarantees. Our AF-Stream design provides an extensible programming model for incorporating general streaming algorithms, and also exports only few threshold parameters for configuring approximation fault tolerance. Experiments on Amazon EC2 show that AF-Stream maintains high performance (compared to no fault tolerance) and high accuracy after multiple failures (compared to no failures) under various streaming algorithms.
Path cost distribution estimation using trajectory data
Authors: Dai Jian , Yang Bin , Guo Chenjuan , Jensen Christian S. , Hu Jilin
Published: January 2017

With the growing volumes of vehicle trajectory data, it becomes increasingly possible to capture time-varying and uncertain travel costs in a road network, including travel time and fuel consumption. The current paradigm represents a road network as a weighted graph; it blasts trajectories into small fragments that fit the under-lying edges to assign weights to edges; and it then applies a routing algorithm to the resulting graph. We propose a new paradigm, the
hybrid graph
, that targets more accurate and more efficient path cost distribution estimation. The new paradigm avoids blasting trajectories into small fragments and instead assigns weights to paths rather than simply to the edges.

We show how to compute path weights using trajectory data while taking into account the travel cost dependencies among the edges in the paths. Given a departure time and a query path, we show how to select an optimal set of weights with associated paths that cover the query path and such that the weights enable the most accurate joint cost distribution estimation for the query path. The cost distribution of the query path is then computed accurately using the joint distribution. Finally, we show how the resulting method for computing cost distributions of paths can be integrated into existing routing algorithms. Empirical studies with substantial trajectory data from two different cities offer insight into the design properties of the proposed method and confirm that the method is effective in real-world settings.
Fast hierarchy construction for dense subgraphs
Authors: Sariyüce Ahmet Erdem , Pinar Ali
Published: January 2017

Discovering dense subgraphs and understanding the relations among them is a fundamental problem in graph mining. We want to not only identify dense subgraphs, but also build a hierarchy among them (e.g., larger but sparser subgraphs formed by two smaller dense subgraphs). Peeling algorithms (
k
-core,
k
-truss, and nucleus decomposition) have been effective to locate many dense subgraphs. However, constructing a hierarchical representation of density structure, even correctly computing the connected
k
-cores and
k
-trusses, have been mostly overlooked. Keeping track of connected components during peeling requires an additional traversal operation, which is as expensive as the peeling process. In this paper, we start with a thorough survey and point to nuances in problem formulations that lead to significant differences in runtimes. We then propose efficient and generic algorithms to construct the hierarchy of dense subgraphs for
k
-core,
k
-truss, or any nucleus decomposition. Our algorithms leverage the disjoint-set forest data structure to efficiently construct the hierarchy during traversal. Furthermore, we introduce a new idea to avoid traversal. We construct the subgraphs while visiting neighborhoods in the peeling process, and build the relations to previously constructed subgraphs. We also consider an existing idea to find the
k
-core hierarchy and adapt for our objectives efficiently. Experiments on different types of large scale real-world networks show significant speedups over naive algorithms and existing alternatives. Our algorithms also outperform the hypothetical limits of any possible traversal-based solution.
Multi-query optimization for subgraph isomorphism search
Authors: Ren Xuguang , Wang Junhu
Published: January 2017

Existing work on subgraph isomorphism search mainly focuses on
a-query-at-a-time
approaches: optimizing and answering each query separately. When multiple queries arrive at the same time, sequential processing is not always the most efficient. In this paper, we study multi-query optimization for subgraph isomorphism search. We first propose a novel method for efficiently detecting useful common sub-graphs and a data structure to organize them. Then we propose a heuristic algorithm based on the data structure to compute a query execution order so that cached intermediate results can be effectively utilized. To balance memory usage and the time for cached results retrieval, we present a novel structure for caching the intermediate results. We provide strategies to revise existing single-query subgraph isomorphism algorithms to seamlessly utilize the cached results, which leads to significant performance improvement. Extensive experiments verified the effectiveness of our solution.
A declarative query processing system for nowcasting
Authors: Antenucci Dolan , Anderson Michael R. , Cafarella Michael
Published: January 2017

Nowcasting
is the practice of using social media data to quantify ongoing real-world phenomena. It has been used by researchers to measure flu activity, unemployment behavior, and more. However, the typical nowcasting workflow requires either slow and tedious manual searching of relevant social media messages or automated statistical approaches that are prone to spurious and low-quality results.

In this paper, we propose a method for declaratively specifying a nowcasting model; this method involves processing a user query over a very large social media database, which can take hours. Due to the human-in-the-loop nature of constructing nowcasting models, slow runtimes place an extreme burden on the user. Thus we also propose a novel set of query optimization techniques, which allow users to quickly construct nowcasting models over very large datasets. Further, we propose a novel query quality alarm that helps users estimate phenomena even when historical ground truth data is not available. These contributions allow us to build a
declarative nowcasting data management system,
R
accoon
DB, which yields high-quality results in interactive time.

We evaluate R
accoon
DB using 40 billion tweets collected over five years. We show that our automated system saves work over traditional manual approaches while improving result quality---57% more accurate in our user study---and that its query optimizations yield a 424x speedup, allowing it to process queries 123x faster than a 300-core Spark cluster, using only 10% of the computational resources.