bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Are Big-Time Sports a Threat to Student Achievement?
Authors: Lindo Jason M , Swensen Isaac D , Waddell Glen R
Published: September 2012

We consider the relationship between collegiate football success and non-athlete student performance. We find that the team's success significantly reduces male grades relative to female grades, and only in fall quarters, which coincides with the football season. Using survey data, we find that males are more likely than females to increase alcohol consumption, decrease studying, and increase partying in response to the success of the team. Yet, females also report that their behavior is affected by athletic success, suggesting that their performance is likely impaired but that this effect is masked by the practice of grade curving. (JEL I21, L83)
Estimating the Deterrent Effect of Incarceration Using Sentencing Enhancements
Authors: Abrams David S
Published: September 2012

Increasing criminal sanctions may reduce crime through two primary mechanisms: deterrence and incapacitation. Disentangling their effects is crucial for optimal policy setting. I use sentence enhancements due to the introduction of state add-on gun laws to isolate the deterrent effect of incarceration. Using cross-state variation in the timing of law passage dates, I find that the average add-on gun law results in a roughly 5 percent decline in gun robberies within the first 3 years. This result is robust to a number of specification tests and does not appear to be associated with large spillovers to other types of crime. (JEL K14, K42)
Can Compulsory Military Service Raise Civilian Wages? Evidence from the Peacetime Draft in Portugal
Authors: Card David , Cardoso Ana Rute
Published: September 2012

We provide new evidence on the long-term impacts of peacetime conscription, using longitudinal data for Portuguese men born in 1967. These men were inducted at age 21, allowing us to use pre-conscription wages to control for ability differences between conscripts and nonconscripts. We find a significant 4–5 percentage point impact of service on the wages of men with only primary education, coupled with a zero effect for men with higher education. The effect for less-educated men suggests that mandatory service can be a valuable experience for those who might otherwise spend their careers in low-level jobs. (JEL J24, J31, J45)
A liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry assay for plasma renin activity using online solid-phase extraction
Authors: Carter S , Owen L J , Kerstens M N , Dullaart R P F , Keevil B G
Published: September 2012

Background

The plasma renin activity (PRA) assay measures the ability of renin to generate angiotensin I (AngI) from angiotensinogen. It is used to monitor mineralocorticoid therapy and to screen hypertensive individuals for primary aldosteronism (PA).

Methods

Samples were incubated in the presence of protease inhibitors for 6.5 and 24 h. The reaction was stopped by the addition of 2% ammonium hydroxide. AngI was then quantified by liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry using online solid-phase extraction (XLC-MS/MS).

Results

This method requires a sample volume of 50 μL and has an inter-assay precision <14% across the working range. A 6.5-h incubation gave a lower limit of quantification (LLOQ) of 0.3 nmol/L/h and this can be reduced to 0.08 nmol/L/h using a 24-h incubation. Comparison to a radioimmunoassay revealed excellent correlation ( r2 = 0.98), but a 37% negative bias. We also found that renin is stable in whole blood for up to 24 h at room temperature. In contrast, storage at 4°C should be avoided as prorenin cryoactivation can affect the PRA result in some patient groups.

Conclusions

We have developed and fully validated a semi-automated XLC-MS/MS method for the measurement of PRA. In addition, a reference range specific to this assay has been defined. We have also demonstrated that renin is stable for up to 24 h at room temperature. This will enable this assay to be extended to samples taken in primary care, potentially increasing the number of hypertensive patients who can be screened for PA.
Investigation of cholesterol bias due to a matrix effect of external quality assurance samples: how true is your cholesterol method?
Authors: Pretorius Carel J , Klingberg Sandra , Johnson Leslie , Park Rodney , Wilgen Urs , Ungerer Jacobus P J
Published: September 2012

Background

Comparability of cholesterol measurement is clinically required and external quality assurance (EQA) programmes are important to verify the trueness of routine methods.

Methods

We developed a gas chromatography-isotope dilution mass spectrometry (GC-IDMS) total cholesterol assay to investigate the cause of a suspected matrix-related negative bias with the Beckman Coulter enzymatic method discovered in an EQA programme. The GC-IDMS method was calibrated with certified reference material and verified against a secondary reference method. Bias between the GC-IDMS and Beckman Coulter methods was estimated according to Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) protocol EP9-A2 with 40 clinical samples.

Results

At clinically important decision levels, no significant bias was demonstrated on patients' samples (all results within a ±3% limit). A matrix effect confined to the EQA material that affected the Beckman Coulter total cholesterol method was confirmed.

Conclusions

The GC-IDMS method is suitable as a higher order total cholesterol method in a routine clinical laboratory. Matrix effects defeat the objectives of EQA schemes by preventing the verification of trueness. Given the importance of obtaining a true cholesterol result without systematic error, we recommend that EQA material without matrix effects should be used.
Quantitative study on the hygroscopic expansion of spurr resin to obtain a high-resolution atlas of the mouse brain
Authors: Wang Qingdi , Li Anan , Gong Hui , Xu Dongli , Luo Qingming
Published: September 2012

Ultra-thin section-based microscopic imaging is considered one of the most realistic techniques for determining fine architectures of a brain-wide neural network. In this kind of method, the sample is usually embedded in resin and then immersed in water for sectioning and imaging. The effect of resin hygroscopic expansion on data accuracy and integrity is important as it may lead to inconsistent image qualities or degeneration of sectioning properties. But few studies have been conducted on this issue. Here, we have used surface profile measurements combined with sectioning and imaging by micro-optical sectioning tomography (MOST) to quantitatively study the sectioned surface expansion of spurr resin blocks as a result of water immersion for a short time period. The expansion effect on MOST imaging is also presented. The results revealed significant differences in the surface expansion of pure resin blocks with different immersion time durations ( P < 0.001). During an eight-minute immersion, the surface expansion of the experimental specimens exhibited an approximately linear increase with immersion duration, while MOST images suffered a correlated decrease in brightness. Expansion was restricted to the submicron level with immersion duration of four minutes or less, and the mean and standard deviation of the expansion measurements both reached a maximum at eight minutes. When the immersion duration exceeded eight minutes, the expansion value decreased, which was most likely related to the degeneration of mechanical properties of the resin material on the block surface. This study indicates that it is necessary to select a specific sectioning mode according to the hygroscopic expansion properties of resin materials for maintaining the accuracy and integrity of whole brain atlas data.
Cutaneous aspergillosis associated with HIV infection
Authors: Gedela K , Nelson M , Francis N , Mohabeer M , Jones R
Published: October 2012

Primary cutaneous aspergillosis is rare but has been described in immunosuppressed individuals. Cutaneous aspergillosis associated with HIV infection, to date, has primarily been described in hospitalized individuals with advanced HIV following skin trauma. We describe a case of primary cutaneous aspergillosis in a HIV-infected, antiretroviral therapy naïve patient with moderate immunosuppression.
Novel Insulin Delivery Technologies in Women with Pregestational Type 1 Diabetes: A Review of the Literature
Authors: Drever Erin , Feig Denice S
Published: September 2012

Pregnancy in the setting of type 1 diabetes is associated with an increased risk of adverse outcomes for both mother and fetus. Adequate glycaemic control has been shown to result in improved outcomes, but the strict glycaemic targets required in pregnancy are often difficult to achieve. The development of novel technologies for insulin delivery aim to assist in achieving excellent glycaemic control, while attempting to minimize the significant risk of hypoglycaemia that exists in pregnancy. This review will discuss the use of insulin pump therapy, continuous glucose monitoring and closed loop insulin delivery in the setting of pregestational diabetes, highlighting some of the potential advantages of these technologies. Novel insulin delivery devices have been shown to be safe in the setting of pregnancy, but proper randomized controlled trials are still needed to determine if they are superior to traditional insulin delivery mechanisms.
Egalitarianism, Cultural Distance, and Foreign Direct Investment: A New Approach
Authors: Siegel Jordan I. , Licht Amir N. , Schwartz Shalom H.
Published: September 2012

This study addresses an apparent impasse in the research on organizations’ responses to cultural distance. We posit that cross-country differences in egalitarianism—a cultural orientation manifested in intolerance for abuses of market and political power and support for protection of less powerful actors—affect multinational firms’ choices of destinations for foreign direct investment (FDI). Using historically motivated instrumental variables, we observe that egalitarianism distance has a negative causal impact on FDI flows. This effect is robust to a broad set of competing accounts, including the effects of other cultural dimensions, various features of the prevailing legal and regulatory regimes, other features of the institutional environment, economic development, and time-invariant unobserved characteristics of origin and host countries. We further show that egalitarianism correlates in a conceptually compatible way with an array of organizational practices pertinent to firms’ interactions with nonfinancial stakeholders, such that national differences in these egalitarianism-related features may affect firms’ international expansion decisions.
Why Put All Your Eggs in One Basket? A Competition-Based View of How Technological Uncertainty Affects a Firm’s Technological Specialization
Authors: Toh Puay Khoon , Kim Taekyu
Published: September 2012

Conventional wisdom suggests that when a firm faces technological uncertainty, it responds by becoming less technologically specialized so as to remain adaptable to subsequent resolution of this uncertainty. We adopt a competition-based view of technological uncertainty to identify an opposite effect in competitive settings: the firm may instead become more specialized when faced with greater technological uncertainty so as to focus on advancing its technologies against competition and influence the resolution of uncertainty in its favor over rivals. We propose that this effect is accentuated when the firm expects that it cannot easily adapt to rivals’ technologies subsequently, specifically when rivals are a greater deterrent through being litigious or innovative. Using U.S. government funding for fuel cell research as a policy shock, with stock option-implied volatilities to measure expected uncertainty, we find empirical support for our propositions among firms active in research and development in the U.S. communications equipment industry. Through these findings, we demonstrate that a competition-based view of uncertainty identifies an alternative path for the firm’s resource accumulation under uncertainty, and we stress that the resolution of uncertainty can be something the firm attempts to influence rather than adapt to.
Does Price Elasticity Vary with Economic Growth? A Cross-Category Analysis
Authors: Gordon Brett R. , Goldfarb Avi , Li Yang
Published: September 2012

How does price sensitivity change with the macroeconomic environment? The authors explore this question by measuring price elasticity using household-level data across 19 grocery categories over 24 quarters. For each category, they estimate a separate random coefficients logit model with quarter-specific price response parameters and control functions to address endogeneity. This specification yields a novel set of 456 elasticities across categories and time that are generated using the same method and therefore can be directly compared. On average, price sensitivity is countercyclical: It rises when the macroeconomy weakens. However, substantial variation exists, and a handful of categories exhibit procyclical price sensitivity. The authors show that the relationship between price sensitivity and macroeconomic growth correlates strongly with the average level of price sensitivity in a category. They examine several explanations for this result and conclude that a category's share of wallet is the more likely driver versus alternative explanations based on product perishability, substitution across consumption channels, or market power.
The Impact of Sampling and Network Topology on the Estimation of Social Intercorrelations
Authors: Chen Xinlei (Jack) , Chen Yuxin , Xiao Ping
Published: September 2012

With the growing popularity of online social networks, it is becoming more important for marketing researchers to understand and measure social intercorrelations among consumers. The authors show that the estimation of consumers' social intercorrelations can be significantly affected by the sampling method used in the study and the topology of the social network. Through a series of simulation studies using a spatial model, the authors find that the magnitude of social intercorrelations in consumer networks tends to be underestimated if samples of the networks are used (rather than using the entire population of the network). The authors further demonstrate that sampling methods that better preserve the network structure perform best in recovering the social intercorrelations. However, this advantage decreases in networks characterized by the scale-free power-law distribution for the number of connections of each member. The authors discuss the insights they glean from these findings and propose a method to obtain unbiased estimation of the magnitude of social intercorrelations.
Neuropsychological performance and menstrual cycle: a literature review
Authors: Souza Eliana Gonçalves V. , Ramos Melissa G. , Hara Cláudia , Stumpf Bárbara Perdigão , Rocha Fábio L.
Published: September 2012

Approximately 80% of all women of reproductive age experience psychological and physical changes associated with the premenstrual phase. Cognitive alterations are among the most common complaints. In this context, studies have assessed cognitive performance across the menstrual cycle in healthy women and also in women with premenstrual syndrome (PMS). The main objective of the present study was to review the literature on cognitive function in different phases of the menstrual cycle in women of reproductive age, both healthy and with PMS, in particular premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD). We searched MEDLINE and LILACS databases. A total of 27 studies were selected. The studies used heterogeneous methodologies. Most studies suggested that healthy women show small fluctuations in cognitive performance across the menstrual cycle, with low performance scores in the luteal phase for visuospatial and motor skills, attention and concentration, verbal memory, visual memory, working memory, and reaction time. Among women with PMS or PMDD, low performance scores for visuospatial and motor skills, attention and concentration, verbal memory, working memory, reaction time and impulsivity were also detected in the luteal phase. Symptoms observed in PMS/PMDD patients showed low intensity, but greater when compared with healthy women. Evidence indicates fluctuations in cognitive performance in the different phases of the menstrual cycle in healthy and PMS women, with worse performance for women with PMS/PMDD in the luteal phase. However, methodological limitations prevent us from drawing solid conclusions. Further studies are needed to investigate the impact of these cognitive fluctuations on patients' daily activities.
Bullying and associated factors in adolescents aged 11 to 15 years
Authors: Silva Ricardo Azevedo da , Cardoso Taiane de Azevedo , Jansen Karen , Souza Luciano Dias de Mattos , Godoy Russélia Vanila , Cruzeiro Ana Laura Sica , Horta Bernardo Lessa , Pinheiro Ricardo Tavares
Published: September 2012

INTRODUCTION: Bullying among adolescents has become the subject of extensive research due to its negative effects on attitude and behavior. However, Brazilian literature on the topic is scarce. OBJECTIVE: To assess bullying and associated factors among adolescents in a population-based sample in southern Brazil. METHOD: Population-based, cross-sectional study with adolescents aged 11 to 15 years living in the municipality of Pelotas, state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. RESULTS: A total of 1,145 adolescents were included. Bullying behaviors and attitudes were found to be associated with the following factors: intentionally skipping classes, failing at school, using alcohol, smoking cigarettes, using illegal drugs, having engaged in sexual intercourse, carrying a weapon, being involved in an accident/being run over by any vehicle, and being involved in fights with physical aggression. CONCLUSION: Bullying is associated with several behaviors that pose risk to the adolescents' physical and psychological health.
Revisiting competition in a classic model system using formal links between theory and data
Authors: Hart Simon P. , Burgin Jacqueline R. , Marshall Dustin J.
Published: September 2012

Formal links between theory and data are a critical goal for ecology. However, while our current understanding of competition provides the foundation for solving many derived ecological problems, this understanding is fractured because competition theory and data are rarely unified. Conclusions from seminal studies in space‐limited benthic marine systems, in particular, have been very influential for our general understanding of competition, but rely on traditional empirical methods with limited inferential power and compatibility with theory. Here we explicitly link mathematical theory with experimental field data to provide a more sophisticated understanding of competition in this classic model system. In contrast to predictions from conceptual models, our estimates of competition coefficients show that a dominant space competitor can be equally affected by interspecific competition with a poor competitor (traditionally defined) as it is by intraspecific competition. More generally, the often‐invoked competitive hierarchies and intransitivities in this system might be usefully revisited using more sophisticated empirical and analytical approaches.
The End of Neo-Kraepelinism
Authors: Jacobs David H. , Cohen David
Published: October 2012

In 1980, the American Psychiatric Association asserted that its subject matter was straightforwardly medical and created a diagnostic manual—Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders(3rd ed.;DSM-III)—consisting of supposedly discrete and independent mental disorders based on what were meant to be low-inference, easily observed sets of symptoms. It was taken for granted that such mental disorders existed and that biological research over time would unearth their specific somatic causes. The idea was to purge psychiatric diagnosis of jargon and unverified and unverifiable psychosocial theories of etiology and thereby place psychiatry on the road to discoveries regarding somatic pathology and causation that has proven so fruitful in the rest of medicine. WhenDSM-5is published in 2013, however, biological information about the individual being diagnosed will play the same role as it did inDSM-III—namely, nothing. This article summarizes why adopting medicine as a model for conceptualizing personal distress and social difficulties was and is naïve and misguided. It is time for the mental health industry to stop pretending that psychological difficulties can be reduced to morbid physiology.
Can a Diagnosis Be Epidemic, With Therapeutic Efforts the Catastrophe?
Authors: Littrell Jill
Published: October 2012

The diagnosis of bipolar spectrum disorders (BSD) given for office visits has risen 40-fold for children and has risen dramatically for adults as well. Some of the growth may have been fueled by recategorization of individuals who would previously have received diagnoses of major depression along with the widening of diagnostic criteria for BSD. Concomitant with the rise in BSD diagnoses, the number of adults and children receiving atypical antipsychotics has increased dramatically. Recent evidence finds that atypical antipsychotics cause considerable reduction in brain volume. It is thus imperative to ensure that those with diagnoses comprising BSD—bipolar I, bipolar II, and bipolar not otherwise specified (BP-NOS)—actually share a common etiology and are being appropriately treated. This article reviews the history, evidentiary support, and implications associated with the expansion of the bipolar spectrum.
Relationship between GFR and Albuminuria in Stage 1 Hypertension
Authors: Palatini Paolo , Mos Lucio , Ballerini Pierferruccio , Mazzer Adriano , Saladini Francesca , Bortolazzi Alessandra , Cozzio Susanna , Casiglia Edoardo
Published: September 2012

Background and objectives

Whether glomerular hyperfiltration is implicated in the development of microalbuminuria in hypertension is not well known. This prospective study investigated the relationship between changes in GFR and microalbuminuria in hypertension.

Design, setting, participants, & measurements

This study assessed 534 stage 1 hypertensive participants from the Hypertension and Ambulatory Recording Venetia Study (n=386 men) without microalbuminuria at baseline, who were recruited from 1990 to 1995 and followed for a median of 8.5 years. Mean age was 33.9±8.6 years and mean BP was 146.6±10.5/94.0±5.0 mmHg. Creatinine clearance and 24-hour urinary albumin were measured at study entry and end. Participants were defined as normofilterers (normo) or hyperfilterers (hyper) according to whether GFR was <150 or ≥150 ml/min per 1.73 m2, respectively. Participants were divided into four groups based on GFR changes from baseline to follow-up end: normo→normo (n=395), normo→hyper (n=31), hyper→hyper (n=61), and hyper→normo (n=47).

Results

Microalbuminuria progressively increased across the four groups and was 5.3% in normo→normo, 9.7% in normo→hyper, 16.4% in hyper→hyper, and 36.2% in hyper→normo (P<0.001). This association held true in a multivariable logistic regression in which several confounders, ambulatory BP, and other risk factors were taken into account (P<0.001). In particular, hyperfilterers whose GFR decreased to normal at study end had an adjusted odds ratio of 7.8 (95% confidence interval, 3.3–18.2) for development of microalbuminuria compared with participants with normal GFR throughout the study.

Conclusions

These data support the hypothesis for a parabolic association between GFR and urinary albumin in the early stage of hypertension.
Management of Crush Victims in Mass Disasters
Authors: Sever Mehmet Sukru , Vanholder Raymond
Published: September 2012

Crush syndrome is the second most common cause of death after earthquakes (the first most common is direct trauma). Many logistic problems with the treatment of patients with crush syndrome are due to chaotic disaster circumstances; consequently, medical and logistic recommendations on the treatment of crush victims are needed. In a joint initiative of the Renal Disaster Relief Task Force of the International Society of Nephrology and European Renal Best Practice, a work group of nephrologists, intensivists, surgeons, and logisticians with disaster experience or experts in guideline preparation collaborated to provide comprehensive information and recommendations on the management of crush casualties considering their occurrence with “epidemic” dimensions after mass disasters. The result is the monograph “Recommendations for the Management of Crush Victims in Mass Disasters”, which may help provide effective health care to disaster victims with renal problems. This article discusses medical and logistic principles of the treatment of crush victims, both at the disaster field and on admission to hospitals, and guidance is described. The importance of early fluid administration even before extrication of the victims and avoidance of potassium-containing solutions during the treatment of crush victims is underlined. Also, the logistic problems in treating crush casualties are emphasized. The most important aspects of the recently published recommendations are highlighted.
Inhibitory effect of retinol acetate on horseradish peroxidase
Authors: Djuric Vladan , Deletic Nebojsa , Stankov-Jovanovic Vesna , Simonovic Ranko
Published: September 2012

Primary role of peroxidase enzyme is to decompose endogenous hydrogen
peroxide, when oxygen radical is being replaced by a less potent radical,
which is its cosubstrates oxidized form. During this study, catalytic
activity of horseradish peroxidase has been observed in the presence of
antioxidants from vitamin group, such as C, E and A, i.e. their water-soluble
forms. It was found that vitamin E showed no effect on the enzyme activity
and fate of cosubstrate radicals from the group of benzidine derivatives.
Vitamin C proceeds enzymatic reaction showing its antioxidative character,
and absorbs electrons from radicals, bringing cosubstrate back to its relaxed
state. On the other hand, vitamin A plays a role of uncompetitive peroxidase
inhibitor, which is visible through decreasing initial rate of catalytic
reaction, and is reflected as virtual decrease of enzyme concentration.
Furthermore, it prolongs life of endogenous hydrogen peroxide, which could
potentially lead to oxidative stress of cells. This inhibitory effect can be
used in analytical purpose, for determination of retinol acetate content in a
sample.
Modern Friedel-Crafts chemistry: Part 36. Facile synthesis of some new pyrido[3,2,1-jk]carbazoles via Friedel-Crafts cyclialkylations
Authors: El-Aal Abd , Khalaf Ali
Published: September 2012

An efficient methodology for the synthesis of novel substituted
pyrido[3,2,1-jk]carbazole via Friedel-Crafts cyclialkylations is reported.
The methodology was realized by three-step protocol involved the addition of
carbazole to 3-methylcrotononitrile. The resulted nitrile was hydrolyzed to
desired ester, followed by addition of Grignard reagents to afford tertiary
alcohols and/or reacted directly with different Grignard reagent to form the
desired ketones. The later ketones were converted to both secondary and
tertiary alcohols by reduction with LAH and addition of Grignard reagents
respectively. These carbinols were cyclialkylated under Friedel-Crafts
conditions catalyzed by AlCl3/CH3NO2, PTSA and PPA to give tri-and
tetrasubstituted pyrido[3,2,1-jk]carbazole.
Theoretical study on the nucleophilic fluoroalkylation of propylene oxide with fluorinated sulfones
Authors: Han Ling-Li , Liu Tao
Published: September 2012

The path of nucleophilic fluoroalkylation reaction of propylene oxide with
PhSO2CYF- (Y=F,H, and PhSO2, respectively) in gas phase and in Et2O
solvent were studied theoretically. The nucleophilic fluoroalkylation of
propylene oxide with fluorinated carbanions was probed by the reactivity
comparison between (benzenesulfonyl)monofluoromethyl anion (PhSO2CHF-),
(benzenesulfonyl) difluoromethyl anion (PhSO2CF2-), and
bis(benzenesul-fonyl) monofluoromethyl anion ((PhSO2)2CF-). The
nucleophilicity reactivity order of PhSO2CYF- (Y = F, H, and PhSO2) is
[(PhSO2)2CF-] > PhSO2CHF- > PhSO2CF2-, which indicates that introducing
another electron-withdrawing benzenesulfonyl group is an effective way to
significantly increase the nucleophilicity of the fluorinate carbanions. For
comparison, we also studied the nucleophilic addition reactions of propylene
oxide with chlorine substituted carbanion PhSO2CHCl-. The calculated results
show that the nucleophilicity of PhSO2CYF- is better than that of PhSO2CHCl-
for the ring opening reaction with propylene oxide. The calculated results
are in good agreement with the available experiments.
The role of confocal scanning laser ophthalmoscopy in stereometric differentiation of eye papilla in ocular hypertension, normal tension glaucoma and primary open-angle glaucoma
Authors: Gvozdenovic Ranko , Risovic Dusica , Marjanovic Ivan , Stamenkovic Miroslav , Jokovic Zorica , Abazi Zihret
Published: September 2012

Background/Aim. Primary open angle glaucoma (POAG) and normal tension
glaucoma (NTG) demonstrate the same structural changes in the optic disc
along with visual field defects but only POAG includes an abnormal elevation
of intraocular pressure. Heidelberg retina tomograph based on confocal
scanning laser ophthalmoscopy (HRT) and Moorfields regression analysis (MRA)
have been employed to quantitatively assess the topography of eye papilla. We
measured stereographic parameters of eye papilla in patients with POAG, NTG,
and ocular hypertension (OH) using an HRT in order to determine whether HRT
topographic parameters can be used to differentiate those conditions.
Methods. The results of 145 eyes of 145 patients with OH, NTG and POAG were
analyzed by age, refractive error, quality of HRT images, stereometric and
MRA parameters. Results. Significant differences were found between NTG and
other two groups for a majority of the HRT parameters, and also no
differences between OH and POAG patients for a majority of the investigated
parameters, except thickness of retinal nerve fiber layer. By reading the MRA
no differences were found in the distribution of mostly damaged and mostly
preserved neuroretinal rim sectors between NTG and POAG patients, and also
all sectors of the neuroretinal rim in OH patients were preserved.
Conclusion. HRT stereometric parameters are useful to differentiate patients
with OH and NTG, and also for differentiation between NTG and POAG patients,
but most of parameters showed no difference between OH and POAG patients. MRA
may serve to confirm the diagnosis of OH, but not for precise distinction
between NTG and POAG.
Histopathological study of endometrium in abnormal uterine bleeding
Authors: Bhatta S , Sinha AK
Published: September 2012

Background: Histopathological evaluation of endometrial samples is essential in the workup of abnormal uterine bleeding. This study was carried out to evaluate patterns of endometrial histological findings in women with abnormal uterine bleeding and to correlate histopathological findings with clinical features.Materials and Methods: One hundred and twenty two patients with diagnosis of abnormal uterine bleeding underwent endometrial sampling. The slides stained with Hematoxylin and Eosin stain were studied.Results: The predominant endometrial histopathological finding was proliferative endometrium 32 cases (26.23%) followed by simple hyperplasia without atypia 22 cases (18.03%). Malignant lesions were more common in patients more than 40 years of age and comprised of 7 cases (5.74%) of all cases. Atrophic endometrium was most common finding in postmenopausal bleeding 8 cases (28.6%) followed by endometrial carcinoma 5 cases (17.9%).Conclusion: Histopathological examination of endometrium should be done generously in women presenting with abnormal uterine bleeding especially after the age of 40 years to rule out malignant pathology.Journal of Pathology of Nepal (2012) Vol. 2, 297-300DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3126/jpn.v2i4.6882
Ibsen’sJohn Gabriel Borkmanand Time
Authors: Sørensen Eli Park
Published: September 2012

ABSTRACT:

This article discusses Henrik Ibsen’s John Gabriel Borkman and the play’s engagement with the difficulties of reconciling dramatic time and prosaic or subjective time. I argue that John Gabriel Borkman can be read as a meta-fictional text that explores the time after traditional drama has come to an end. The actual drama (or what would have been the drama had the playwright adopted a traditional dramatic form) has been displaced to the past and replaced by a present that is characterized by an undramatic, prosaic, or subjective temporality. At the same time, this is, of course, the drama of John Gabriel Borkman, and thus, the play meta-fictionally explores a split temporality. Ibsen’s penultimate play explores with painstaking insistence dramatic time’s lateness, a lateness that, on the one hand, displaces everything; while on the other hand, it renders all the unresolved issues of the past meaningless, insignificant.
The Canonization of Christopher Shinn: A Modest Proposal on Ethics
Authors: Bottoms Stephen
Published: September 2012

ABSTRACT:

This article represents the first sustained critique of the work of contemporary American dramatist, Christopher Shinn. Beginning with an anecdote about the exclusion of one of Shinn's plays from a prospective new play anthology, apparently because he is not yet ‘canonical’ enough, the article begs questions about how dramatic canons are constituted and policed. Through an analysis of three selected plays – Where Do We Live (2002), Dying City (2006) , and Now or Later (2008) – the essay then argues for the distinctive political valency of Shinn’s work, reading it in particular through the work of contemporary philosopher Alain Badiou, and his thinking on both ethics and theatre. Shinn’s work, though clearly rooted in his experience as a gay man, functions to problematize familiar categorizations such as a gay/straight, liberal/conservative, West/East. Questions of difference and sameness are explored through the quotidian lives of Shinn’s characters, but also in relation to the major public events (9/11, the invasion of Iraq, the 2008 presidential election) to which the plays respond.
“Drowned in Rabelaisian Laughter”: Germans as Grotesque Comic Figures in the Plays of Tennessee Williams
Authors: Saddik Annette J.
Published: September 2012

ABSTRACT:

By the time he wrote The Night of the Iguana, in 1961, Tennessee Williams was increasingly favouring “fantastic” modes of presenting reality, relying on the more expressionistic and “plastic” kind of theatre that he had called for, as early as 1944, in his production notes to The Glass Menagerie. Williams’s interest in the fantastic modes of representation characteristic of German expressionism, in particular, along with his exaggerated, grotesque, and dream-like portrayal of Germans as symbolic characters in Iguana and several plays that would follow, shows that he was beginning to engage more fully a German sensibility that he would continue to develop in his later work. In The Gnädiges Fräulein (1966), A Lovely Sunday for Creve Coeur (1979), and Kirche, Küche, Kinder (1979), for example, Germans also function as grotesque comic figures: perverse, darkly humorous, excessive, and bawdy. The German characters in Williams’s plays are inspired by an aesthetic rooted in the traditions of German expressionism and Romanticism that influenced his writing, as he fused these styles with related sensibilities – the carnivalesque, the grotesque, camp – that are associated with the resistance and rebellion typical of his late plays.
The Philadelphia Harlem Story: Langston Hughes’s Screwy Play Little Ham
Authors: Emery Sharyn
Published: September 2012

ABSTRACT:

Langston Hughes’s 1935 play Little Ham was a genre-bending moment, influenced by screwball comedies on the 1930s movie screen and by Hughes’s own love of African-American vernacular culture. By using this lens to examine the play, a rich picture of the Harlem Renaissance emerges, highlighting the difficult task of representation and engagement with cultural forms at a time when the spectre of minstrelsy still haunted the African-American stage. Hughes’s project with Little Ham was, at once, ludic and critical, creating a classic comedy that deserves a closer look.
A London Legacy of Ira Aldridge: Henry Francis Downing and the Paratheatrical Poetics of Plot and Cast(e)
Authors: Roberts Brian Russell
Published: September 2012

ABSTRACT:

Situating Henry Francis Downing as an important if traditionally overlooked black playwright of America, Britain, and the Atlantic world, this article brings focus to Downing’s 1914 drama Incentives, which evinces Downing’s indebtedness to nineteenthcentury black dramatist Ira Aldridge even as it conceives of the world (during the months immediately preceding the First World War) as interconnected by sinews of capital, empire, and transnational alliance. As Incentives weaves its settings, back-stories, and spheres of concern through Britain, the American West, New York City, continental Europe, and European empires throughout the world, the drama’s preoccupations with the theatrical conventions of plot and cast contribute to Downing’s larger legacy as a playwright attempting to use drama to alter representations of diasporic blackness within a version of the world that envisions transnational capitalism as usurping the hegemony of nation-states. Downing’s current status as a little-known playwright should cause critical reflection on the ways in which scholars have pursued questions of diaspora and the black Atlantic.
Ocular neuromyotonia treated by microvascular decompression: usefulness of preoperative 3D imaging
Authors: Inoue Takuro , Hirai Hisao , Shimizu Toshiki , Tsuji Masayuki , Shima Ayako , Suzuki Fumio , Matsuda Masayuki
Published: September 2012

Ocular neuromyotonia is a rare ocular motility disorder characterized by involuntary contraction of extraocular muscles resulting in paroxysmal diplopia. Although ocular neuromyotonia is reported as a rare complication after radiation therapy, there are a few cases of ocular neuromyotonia in the absence of irradiation. In the reported cases the possibility of vascular compression has been suggested on radiological imaging. The authors report a case of ocular neuromyotonia treated by microvascular decompression of the third cranial nerve, supporting the hypothesis that neurovascular compression may play a role in its pathogenesis. The usefulness of preoperative 3D imaging for microvascular decompression is also discussed.
From the Desk of Editor-in-Chief
Authors: Uddin A K M Rafique
Published: September 2012

Not available   DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/jemc.v2i1.11914   J Enam Med Col Vol 2 No 1
Association of High Density Lipoprotein Cholesterol with Renal Function in Type 2 Diabetic Subjects in a Bangladeshi Population
Authors: Saiedullah Muhammad , Rahman Muhammad Rezwanur , Begum Shahnaj , Hayat Shoma , Khan Md Aminul Haque
Published: September 2012

Background: Abnormalities in lipid metabolism are associated with renal diseases. Association of serum lipid parameters with renal function is less studied in subjects with type 2 diabetes in Bangladeshi population. Objective: To assess the correlation of high density  lipoprotein cholesterol with glomerular filtration rate (GFR) in type 2 diabetic subjects.Materials and Methods: One thousand three hundred thirty confirmed diabetic subjects advised for HbA1c, serum creatinine, serum total cholesterol, serum triglycerides, serum HDL cholesterol and LDL cholesterol were included in the study. Serum total cholesterol, HDL cholesterol, triglyceride, serum creatinine, HbA1c were measured by standard methods and serum LDL cholesterol was calculated by Friedewalds formula. GFR was calculated by MDRD4 variables prediction equation. Total subjects were grouped according to sex; both males and females were subdivided into three subgroups depending on GFR values. Results of lipid parameters were compared by one-way ANOVA among different groups and correlation of lipid parameters with GFR were expressed by Pearson r.Results: HDL cholesterol was significantly different among different GFR groups (p<0.05) and positively correlated with GFR (r = 0.1386, p<0.001) in males. Total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol showed feeble positive correlation with GFR (r = 0.0789, p<0.05 for total cholesterol and r = 0.0768, p<0.05 for LDL cholesterol), but are not significantly different among GFR groups (p>0.05) in males. Total cholesterol, HDL cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, non-HDL cholesterol and LDLC/HDL-C were significantly different among three different GFR groups (p<0.01) and only HDL cholesterol and LDL-C/HDL-C showed weak correlation with GFR (r = 0.0770, p<0.05 for HDL cholesterol and r = -0.0803, p<0.05 for LDL-C/HDL-C) in females.Conclusion: The study revealed that HDL cholesterol was significantly and positively correlated with glomerular filtration rate in both male and female diabetic subjects and assessment of lipid parameters might be a helpful tool to prevent or delay the progression of renal insufficiency. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/jemc.v2i1.11916 J Enam Med Col 2012; 2(1): 15-19
Cat Scratch Disease
Authors: Bhattacharjee Swapna , Bhattacharjee Shekhar , Montasir Ahmed Al
Published: September 2012

We report a case of cat scratch disease in a young boy who presented in the outpatient department of Enam Medical College Hospital, Savar, Dhaka with history of cat scratch and regional painful lymphadenopathy. The diagnosis was made on the basis of history, physical examination and common investigations including lymph node aspiration cytology DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/jemc.v2i1.11928 J Enam Med Col 2012; 2(1): 40-42
Chronic Calcific Pancreatitis in a 9-Year-Old Boy
Authors: Das Debasish , Paul Dev Prosad , Iqbal Kazi Sohel
Published: September 2012

Chronic pancreatitis is defined as continuing inflammatory disease of pancreas, characterised  by irreversible morphological changes leading to pancreatic insufficiency. Chronic pancreatic  insufficiency without pancreatitis is also seen in children suffering from cystic fibrosis which is  a disease with congenital enzyme deficiency. Mean age of chronic pancreatitis is about 40  years. We present a case of a 9-year-old boy who was diagnosed as a case of chronic calcific  pancreatitis. He was admitted with the complaints of paraumbilical pain and vomiting and  was found diabetic. Diagnosis was established by X-ray, USG and CT scan of abdomen and  ERCP. He was treated surgically in the form of lateral pancreaticojejunostomy (Puestows  procedure). DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/jemc.v2i1.11929 J Enam Med Col 2012; 2(1): 43-45
Socio-Economic Impact of Presentation and Progression of Chronic GLomerulonephritis
Authors: Hossain SM Murad , El Nahas A Meguid
Published: September 2012

Medicine Today 2011 Volume 23 Number 01 Page 5-12 DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/medtoday.v23i1.11937
Prevalence and Pattern of Hearing Loss
Authors: Islam Md. Azharul , Islam Mohammed Shafiqul , Sattar Mohammed Abdus , Ali Mohammad Idrish
Published: September 2012

Medicine Today 2011 Volume 23 Number 01 Page 18-21 DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/medtoday.v23i1.11939
Study of Right Ventricular Involvement in Acute Inferior Myocardial Infarction in Hospitalised Patients
Authors: Uddin M Faruque , Akhtaruzzaman KM , Kundu AK , Basak SK , Dey SR
Published: September 2012

Medicine Today 2011 Volume 23 Number 01 Page 22-26 DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/medtoday.v23i1.11940
Leprosy - An Overview
Authors: Shahiduzzaman GKM , Kamal SM , Ahad Md. Abdul , Islam Rafiqul
Published: September 2012

Medicine Today 2011 Volume 23 Number 01 Page 44-50 DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/medtoday.v23i1.11946
Uncontrolled Diabetic Subject With No HbA1c Value - A Case Report
Authors: Saiedullah Muhammad , Rahman Muhammad Rezwanur , Khan Md. Aminul Haque
Published: September 2012

Medicine Today 2011 Volume 23 Number 01 Page 60-62 DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/medtoday.v23i1.11950
Pet Ownership and Evacuation Prior to Hurricane Irene
Authors: Hunt Melissa G. , Bogue Kelsey , Rohrbaugh Nick
Published: October 2012

Pet ownership has historically been one of the biggest risk factors for evacuation failure prior to natural disasters. The forced abandonment of pets during Hurricane Katrina in 2005 made national headlines and led to the passage of the Pet Evacuation and Transportation Standards Act (PETS, 2006) which mandated local authorities to plan for companion animal evacuation. Hurricane Irene hit the East Coast of the United States in 2011, providing an excellent opportunity to examine the impact of the PETS legislation on frequency and ease of evacuation among pet owners and non-pet owners. Ninety pet owners and 27 non-pet owners who lived in mandatory evacuation zones completed questionnaires assessing their experiences during the hurricane and symptoms of depression, PTSD, dissociative experiences, and acute stress. Pet ownership was not found to be a statistical risk factor for evacuation failure. However, many pet owners who failed to evacuate continue to cite pet related reasons.
Functional and Structural Brain Changes Associated with Methamphetamine Abuse
Authors: Jan Reem K. , Kydd Rob R. , Russell Bruce R.
Published: October 2012

Methamphetamine (MA) is a potent psychostimulant drug whose abuse has become a global epidemic in recent years. Firstly, this review article briefly discusses the epidemiology and clinical pharmacology of methamphetamine dependence. Secondly, the article reviews relevant animal literature modeling methamphetamine dependence and discusses possible mechanisms of methamphetamine-induced neurotoxicity. Thirdly, it provides a critical review of functional and structural neuroimaging studies in human MA abusers; including positron emission tomography (PET) and functional and structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). The effect of abstinence from methamphetamine, both short- and long-term within the context of these studies is also reviewed.
Protection and Reinforcement of Tooth Structures by Dental Coating Materials
Authors: Nikaido Toru , Takahashi Rena , Ariyoshi Meu , Sadr Alireza , Tagami Junji
Published: October 2012

It has been proposed that a resin coating can serve as a means to protect dental structure after preparation of the tooth for indirect restorations, sealing the exposed dentin. The resin coating is applied on the cut surfaces immediately after tooth preparation and before making an impression by assembling a dentin bonding system and a flowable composite. Resin coatings minimize pulp irritation and improve the bond strength between a resin cement and tooth when bonding the restoration to tooth. Recently, thin-film coating dental materials based on all-in-one adhesive technology were introduced for resin coating of indirect restorations. The thin coating materials are applied in a single clinical step and create a barrier-like film layer on the prepared dentin. The thin coatings play an important role in protecting the dentin from physical, chemical, and biological irritation. In addition, these thin-film coating materials reportedly prevent marginal leakage beneath inlays or crown restorations. In light of the many benefits provided by such a protective layer, these all-in-one adhesive materials may therefore also have the potential to cover exposed root dentin surfaces and prevent caries formation. In this paper, recent progress of the dental coating materials and their clinical applications are reviewed.