bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
FibroScan used in street‐based outreach for drug users is useful for hepatitis C virus screening and management: a prospective study
Authors: Foucher J. , Reiller B. , Jullien V. , Léal F. , Di Cesare E. S. , Merrouche W. , Delile J.‐M. , De Lédinghen V.
Published: January 2009

Summary.  Although hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection prevalence is high among drug users, they do not commonly receive regular care in academic centres. The aim of this prospective study was to assess the influence of FibroScan use on HCV screening and management in street‐based outreach. From January 2006 to January 2007, all consecutive drug users were offered noninvasive evaluation of liver fibrosis with FibroScan. After FibroScan, parameters were recorded with a structured, face‐to‐face questionnaire by outreach workers. All 298 subjects accepted FibroScan evaluation drug use was – ever injected heroin (69%), ever snorted or injected cocaine (89%), current chronic alcohol abuse (44%). The median FibroScan score was 5.3 kPa. Before blood sampling, 34% of subjects reported HCV positivity. HCV positivity was found in 83 cases. All these subjects had positive HCV‐RNA. Forty‐five subjects agreed to meet a hepatologist. By multivariate analysis, never snorted cocaine, consumed alcohol < 21 drinks per week, duration of injected heroin > 7 years, and FibroScan > 7.1 kPa were significantly associated with HCV positivity. Thus in a street‐based outreach service for drug users, the acceptance of FibroScan is excellent. FibroScan with a hospital‐based physician may facilitate screening and management of drug users for HCV infection.
Acute‐care surgical service: a change in culture
Authors: Parasyn Andrew D. , Truskett Philip G. , Bennett Michael , Lum Sharon , Barry Jennie , Haghighi Koroush , Crowe Philip J.
Published: January 2009

The provision of acute surgical care in the public sector is becoming increasingly difficult because of limitation of resources and the unpredictability of access to theatres during the working day. An acute‐care surgical service was developed at the Prince of Wales Hospital to provide acute surgery in a more timely and efficient manner. A roster of eight general surgeons provided on‐site service from 08.00 to 18.00 hours Monday to Friday and on‐call service in after‐hours for a 79‐week period. An acute‐care ward of four beds and an operating theatre were placed under the control of the rostered acute‐care surgeon (ACS). At the end of each ACS roster period all patients whose treatment was undefined or incomplete were handed over to the next rostered ACS. Patient data and theatre utilization data were prospectively collected and compared to the preceding 52‐week period. Emergency theatre utilization during the day increased from 57 to 69%. There was a 11% reduction in acute‐care operating after hours and 26% fewer emergency cases were handled between midnight and 08.00 hours. There was more efficient use of the entire theatre block, suggesting a significant cultural change. Staff satisfaction was high. On‐site consultant‐driven surgical leadership has provided significant positive change to the provision of acute surgical care in our institution. The paradigm shift in acute surgical care has improved patient and theatre management and stimulated a cultural change of efficiency.
Prognostic factors in the surgical treatment of patients with oral carcinoma
Authors: Patel Rajan S. , Clark Jonathan R. , Dirven Richard , Wyten Rebecca , Gao Kan , O’Brien Christopher J.
Published: January 2009

The aim of the study was to analyse the clinical outcome of patients treated surgically for oral carcinoma. A retrospective cohort study was undertaken of 356 patients with oral cavity cancer whose clinicopathological information had been collected prospectively onto a dedicated head and neck database. Disease recurrence and survival were assessed. Neck metastases occurred in 42% of patients. Tumour thickness (both 2 and 5 mm) predicted the presence of nodal metastases. Both pathological T stage (P < 0.001) and tumour thickness cut‐off of 5 mm (P = 0.03) were independent predictors of disease‐specific survival. With a median follow up of 41 months, overall survival at 5 years was 59% and disease‐specific survival was 73%. Patients with thick tumours have a high risk of nodal metastases and this supports the liberal use of elective selective neck dissection in patients with clinically negative necks.
Mutant p53 and cyclin A1 protein expression in primary laryngeal squamous cell carcinomas do not correlate to second primary tumours of the head and neck*
Authors: Farhadieh Ross D. , Smee Robert , Rees Charles G. G. , Salardini Arash , Eggleton Sarah , Yang Jia‐Lin , Russell Pamela J.
Published: January 2009

Background:  Field cancerization is a feature of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma. No biological marker in the index tumour has been correlated to the development of second primary tumours (SPT). Cyclin A1 is a cell cycle regulator and a downstream target of p53. This study assessed predictive correlation of cyclin A1 and mut‐p53 with clinicopathological parameters and occurrence of (SPT) 7in the head and neck.

Methods:  Using immunohistochemistry 106 patients treated for primary laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma were investigated for expression of cyclin A1 and mut‐p53.

Results:  Expression of cyclin A1 and mut‐p53 were noted in 83 of 106 (78.3%) and 25 of 106 (23.6%) patients. There was a weak but significant correlation between mut‐p53 and cyclin A1 (r = 0.301, P = 0.002) expression. During the follow‐up period (median 41.0 months (range 1–205 months)), 21 of 106 (19.8%) patients developed an SPT. There was no statistically significant correlation between the markers investigated and disease recurrence, SPT diagnosis or clinicopathological parameters.

Conclusion:  Second primary tumours are an intriguing problem in treatment of HNSCC and a predictive marker identifying those greatest at risk would be a leap forward.
Melanoma antigen‐1 mRNA combined with α‐fetoprotein mRNA levels in peripheral blood of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma: a predictor of postoperative recurrence or metastasis?
Authors: Zhang Yuqing , Song Tianqiang , Meng Lingxin , Wu Xiongzhi , Ba Yi , Li Qiang
Published: January 2009

Background:  The aim of the study was to identify whether melanoma antigen (MAGE)‐1 mRNA and α‐fetoprotein (AFP) mRNA expressed in peripheral blood could be used to predict the recurrence and metastasis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) after hepatectomy.

Methods:  One hundred and forty‐two HCC patients underwent hepatectomy. The control group includes 27 patients with chronic virus hepatitis and cirrhosis and 10 healthy volunteers. Peripheral blood samples were collected on the seventh day before operation, seventh day after operation and 30th day after operation. MAGE‐1 mRNA and AFP mRNA were tested by nested reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction. Median follow up was 25.5 months (range 4–40 months). Patient survival, disease‐free survival and clinicopathological features were compared between patients with positive and negative MAGE‐1 mRNA and/or AFP mRNA.

Results:  The expression of MAGE‐1 mRNA and/or AFP mRNA in peripheral blood was closely correlated to the pathological stage and the positive ratio of tumour cells in the peripheral blood (P < 0.01). There was recurrence and/or metastasis after operation in 55 of 142 HCC patients. Among the 55 patients who had recurrence or metastasis, MAGE‐1 mRNA and/or AFP mRNA in peripheral blood were persistently detected after operation in 38 patients and MAGE‐1 mRNA and AFP mRNA turned to positive after operation in 14 patients. In contrast, no recurrence was found in 62 patients whose MAGE‐1 mRNA and/or AFP mRNA turned to negative after operation. 88.1% (52 of 59) of patients with MAGE‐1 mRNA and/or AFP mRNA persistently positive after operation showed recurrence or metastasis, whereas only 3.6% patients (3 of 83) with the negative of MAGE‐1 mRNA and/or AFP mRNA after operation showed recurrence or metastasis (P < 0.001).

Conclusion:  Melanoma antigen‐1 mRNA combined with AFP mRNA in peripheral blood after hepatectomy is more sensitive and specific than AFP mRNA singly for predicting the recurrence and metastasis of the HCC patients, whereas preoperative transient detection is not.
Algorithmic War: Everyday Geographies of the War on Terror
Authors: Amoore Louise
Published: January 2009

Abstract: Technologies that deploy algorithmic calculation are becoming ubiquitous to the homeland securitization of the war on terror. From the surveillance networks of the city subway to the biometric identifiers of new forms of border control, the possibility to identify “association rules” between people, places, objects and events has brought the logic of pre‐emption into the most mundane and prosaic spaces. Yet, it is not the case that the turn to algorithmic calculation simplymilitarizessociety, nor even that we are witnessing strictly acommercializationof security. Rather, algorithmic war is one form of Foucault's sense of a “continuation of war by other means”, where the war‐like architectures of self/other, here/there, safe/risky, normal/suspicious are played out in the politics of daily life. This paper explores the situated interplay of algorithmic practices across commercial, security, and military spheres, revealing the violent geographies that are concealed in the glossy techno‐science of algorithmic calculation.
The Spaces of Parking: Mapping the Politics of Mobility in San Francisco
Authors: Henderson Jason
Published: January 2009

Abstract:  Recently a “mobility turn” has entered critical geographic discourse. This mobility turn recognizes that mobility is at once physical movement and contains social meanings that are manifested in a politics of mobility. In this paper I contribute to this emerging line of inquiry by exploring how the politics of mobility is manifested in localized urban processes. Mobility, as with the broader localized urban process, is political and ideological, and this is particularly true with contemporary debates about automobiles and parking in cities. I explore parking as an example of the broader contestation of urban space, using a case study of San Francisco, California. There are three broad factions in San Francisco's parking debates—progressives that advocate for less parking, neoliberals that advocate that market‐based pricing determine the amount of parking, and neoconservatives that advocate for more parking. Throughout the paper, I provide thoughts on the relationship between parking, space, ideology, and the broader urban process.
Civic Governmentality: The Politics of Inclusion in Beirut and Mumbai
Authors: Roy Ananya
Published: January 2009

Abstract:  This article is concerned with the politics of inclusion. It analyzes the institutionalization of participatory citizenship as the formation of regimes of “civic governmentality”. Through the study of key civil society organizations such as SPARC and Hezbollah, it studies three dimensions of civic governmentality: an infrastructure of populist mediation; technologies of governing (for example, knowledge production); and norms of self‐rule (for example, concepts of civility and civicness). However, such regimes of civic governmentality operate within frontiers of urban renewal and indeed often facilitate and manage such types of development. The article examines the limits and contradictions of the politics of inclusion in the context of the bourgeois city and also studies radical forms of citizenship that emerge to challenge these limits.
Radical Geography and its Critical Standpoints: Embracing the Normative
Authors: Olson Elizabeth , Sayer Andrew
Published: January 2009

Abstract:  This paper throws down a challenge to radical geography and invites a selection of leading geographers to respond. It proposes that radical or critical geography cannot escape normative foundations in terms of some conception of the human good or flourishing, and that this is not necessarily at odds with the descriptive and explanatory aims of social science. Various attempts to define and justify critical thought without such a conception are shown to be deficient, and incapable of distinguishing oppression from well‐being. Objections that such a project will be subjective, ethnocentric, essentialist and implicitly authoritarian are discussed and rejected. Normative thinking needs to go beyond liberal concern with freedom, to address what Sen and Nussbaum term “capabilities”—the range of things people need to be able to have and do to flourish. The power of this kind of normative thinking is illustrated by reference to examples from development studies. The paper concludes with some basic questions for radical geographers.
Hard globalization
Authors: Tappin Steve , Cave Andrew
Published: January 2009

Many companies aspire to be players in the global marketplace, but the challenges to succeed are now greater than ever. Steve Tappin and Andrew Cave spoke with the CEOs of strongly globalized companies to learn their secrets.
Uncommon common sense
Authors: Venohr Bernd , Meyer Klaus
Published: January 2009

Global competition is intense and often thought to be for big multinationals only. Yet, Bernd Venohr and Klaus Meyer believe that mid‐size firms can achieve global market leadership, as many German companies demonstrate. But, how do they do it?
Successful leadership — how would you know?
Authors: Likierman Andrew
Published: January 2009

Boardrooms and business school classrooms are equally preoccupied with leadership, and success is often assumed to be about profit or Total Shareholder Return. It's neither. For leaders wanting to measure their own success, for those who appoint leaders to know what they are aiming at and for outsiders assessing the quality of leadership, Andrew Likierman shows how to do it.
Managing consultants
Authors: Law Mark
Published: January 2009

As the consulting industry matures, its future is being shaped by concerns about standards of professionalism. Mark Law challenges clients, consultants and management scholars to work together to strengthen it.
Redshift: A radical change in the fabric of computing
Authors: Papadopoulos Greg , Schwartz Jonathan , Woods Jason
Published: January 2009

Some companies are boosting their computing power to massive scales. Should your company? That depends on whether your company's needs are blueshifting or redshifting. Greg Papadopoulos, Jonathan Schwartz and Jason Woods explain why these new business terms could define your company's future.
Blazing the new digital trail
Authors: Rosenberger Larry , Nash John , Graham Ann
Published: January 2009

More companies than ever before are keeping track of what their customers are asking for and buying. How do the best companies take data from millions of transactions and convert it to a successful business strategy?Larry Rosenberger, John Nash and Ann Graham have been exploring the new frontier of data, analytics, decisions and actions.
Factor Prices, Factor Substitution and Exporting in US Manufacturing Affiliates Abroad
Authors: Borga Maria , Lipsey Robert E.
Published: January 2009

This paper uses the unique matched individual parent and affiliate data from the foreign investment survey of the Bureau of Economic Analysis to examine how US firms of different industries and capital intensities at home adapt to lower costs of labour and other host‐country characteristics in their foreign production. We find that foreign affiliates of US multinationals carry their parent firms’ technology with them in producing abroad. That is, affiliates of capital‐intensive parents produce in a relatively capital‐intensive manner wherever they are located. Despite these resemblances to their parents, affiliates produce in a more labour‐intensive manner where labour is cheaper and also where the scale of production is small. We found no evidence that more labour‐intensive firms selected production locations where labour was cheaper. Labour costs dominated the methods of production but not its location. Affiliates that export are more responsive in their factor proportions to the labour costs where they produced than affiliates selling only in their host countries. The probability that an affiliate would export, however, did not seem to be much affected by factor proportions. It was much more closely related to the scale of the affiliate's operations; larger affiliates were more likely to be exporters.
Characterising Euro Area Multinationals
Authors: Geishecker Ingo , Görg Holger , Taglioni Daria
Published: January 2009

This study uses firm‐level data on a large sample of European manufacturing firms to investigate the links between opening up foreign affiliates and firms’ productivity. The analysis is guided by recent theoretical models of international trade with firm heterogeneity. The paper finds that while only a small share of euro area firms locate affiliates abroad, these firms account for over‐proportionally large shares of output, employment and profits in their home countries. They have higher survival rates and their productivity growth is also higher. The strongest contribution is by productivity growth of existing firms with a multinational status rather than entry into the multinational status. Finally, there are performance premia for multinationals with a large number of affiliates abroad relative to those with a small number.
Foreign Firms and Chinese Employment
Authors: Karlsson Sune , Lundin Nannan , Sjöholm Fredrik , He Ping
Published: January 2009

This paper examines the effect of foreign direct investment (FDI) on employment in the Chinese manufacturing sector. As one of the world's largest recipients of FDI, China has arguably benefited from foreign multinational enterprises in various respects. However, one of the main challenges for China, and other developing countries, is job creation, and the effect of FDI on employment is uncertain. The effect depends on the amount of jobs created within foreign firms as well as the effect of FDI on employment in domestic firms. We analyse FDI and employment in China using a large sample of manufacturing firms for the period 1998–2004. Our results show that FDI has positive effects on employment growth. The relatively high employment growth in foreign firms is associated with their firm characteristics and their high survival rate. Employment growth is also relatively high in private domestic Chinese firms. There also seems to be a positive indirect effect of FDI on employment in private domestically‐owned firms, presumably caused by spillovers.
ON THE IMPACT OF LABOR MARKET MATCHING ON REGIONAL DISPARITIES*
Authors: Tharakan Joe , Tropeano Jean‐Philippe
Published: January 2009

ABSTRACT We propose a model where imperfect matching between firms and workers on local labor markets leads to incentives for spatial agglomeration. We show that the occurrence of spatial agglomeration depends on initial size differences in terms of both number of workers and firms. Allowing for dynamics of workers' and firms' location choices, we show that the spatial outcome depends crucially on different dimensions of agents' mobility. The effect of a higher level of human capital on regional disparities depends on whether it makes workers more mobile or more specialized on the labor market.
Poles Apart? EU Enlargement and the Labour Market Outcomes of Immigrants in the United Kingdom
Authors: Drinkwater Stephen , Eade John , Garapich Michal
Published: January 2009

The United Kingdom was one of only three countries to allow migrants from accession countries to enter their labour markets more or less without restriction following European Union enlargement in May 2004. Therefore, it is important to establish the characteristics and labour market performance of migrants from these countries who have subsequently entered the United Kingdom. We principally analyse Labour Force Survey data to compare the labour market outcomes of recent migrants from Poland and other accession countries to those of earlier migrant cohorts from these countries as well as to those of other recent migrants to the United Kingdom. We find that the majority of post‐enlargement migrants from the new member states have found employment in low paying jobs, despite some (especially Poles) possessing relatively high levels of education. It follows that recent Polish migrants typically have lower returns to their education than other recent arrivals. Migrants from the new member states who arrived immediately prior to enlargement have similar characteristics and labour market outcomes, apart from displaying a higher propensity to be self‐employed. These results are discussed in the context of policy changes, migration strategies, assimilation effects and possible impacts on the sending countries.
The Integration of Immigrants in Northern Sweden: A Case Study of the Municipality of Strömsund
Authors: Cvetkovic Anita
Published: January 2009

The aim of this study was to examine the integration process with regard to an integration and voluntary re‐settlement project in a rural area in northern Sweden. The project was an attempt to use existing resources in the municipality to attract people with an immigrant background to move from segregated urban environments to a rural municipality. Potential settlers were also recruited abroad. The empirical data were based on eight group interviews with recently arrived immigrant families, and eleven individual interviews with people who played an active role in the project organisation. The results showed that the new families had been integrated into the community to the extent promised by the local authority. The process was facilitated by the resources provided by both parties, but it did not involve significant costs. The immigrants were motivated to move because they wanted a new lifestyle, while the local community was motivated to provide a supportive structure for the new inhabitants because of an awareness of the imminent demographic crisis facing the community due to depopulation. The integration process was strongly influenced by the implicit criteria on which the newcomers were recruited.
Including trace gas fluxes in estimates of the carbon mitigation potential of UK agricultural land
Authors: Smith P. , Goulding K.W.T. , Smith K.A. , Powlson D.S. , Smith J.U. , Falloon P. , Coleman K.
Published: January 2009

Abstract. A number of changes in agricultural land‐management show some potential as carbon mitigation options. However, research has focused on CO2‐carbon mitigation and has largely ignored potential effects of land management change on trace gas fluxes. In this paper, we attempt for the first time, to assess the impact of these changes on fluxes of the important agricultural greenhouse gases, methane and nitrous oxide, in the UK.

The estimates presented here are based on limited evidence and have a great (unquantifiable) uncertainty associated with them, but they show that the relative importance of trace gas fluxes varies enormously among the scenarlos. In some, such as the application of sewage sludge, woodland regeneration and bioenergy production scenarios, the inclusion of estimates for trace gas fluxes makes only a small (<10%) difference to the CO2‐C mitigation potential. In the animal manure and agricultural extensification scenarios, including estimates of trace gas fluxes has a large impact, increasing the CO2‐C mitigation potential by up to 50%. In the no‐till scenario, the carbon mitigation potential decreases significantly due to a sharp increase in N2O emissions under no‐till.

When these land‐management options are combined for the whole agricultural land area of the UK, including trace gases has an impact on estimated mitigation potentials, and depending upon assumptions for the animal manure scenario, the total mitigation potential either decreases by about 10% or increases by about 30%, potentially shifting the mitigation potential of the scenario closer to the EU's 8% Kyoto target for reduction of CO2‐carbon emissions (12.52 Tg C yr−1 for the UK).
Nitrogen requirement of wide‐spaced row crops in the presence of starter fertilizer
Authors: Stone D.A.
Published: January 2009

Abstract. There is a need to develop sustainable nitrogen (N) management systems that minimize environmental losses by maximizing the use efficiency of applied fertilizers, particularly with wide‐row annual crops that are often poor at utilizing N. A key approach is to match nitrogen supply with crop demand using improved methods of fertilizer application and timing. One technique is to target liquid ‘starter’ fertilizers close to the seed, or around the roots of transplants, and to omit or reduce conventional broadcast applications. This paper examines the effects of starter fertilizer combined with various rates of seedbed and/or top‐dressed N on the growth and yield of bulb onion (Allium cepa L.), crisp lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.), forage maize (Zea mays Bonaf.) and sugarbeet (Beta vulgaris L.). Starter fertilizer improved early growth and, in combination with reduced rates of supplementary N, gave yields comparable with higher rates of base N with each crop, except sugarbeet. The use of top‐dressed N was as effective as base N in supplementing starter fertilizer and had the benefit that it allowed a top‐dressing requirement to be estimated accurately using a simple nitrogen balance equation. These results, taken with earlier work, show that starter fertilizers offer clear opportunities for reducing N inputs, while maintaining yield and quality of these crops.
Revised estimates of the carbon mitigation potential of UK agricultural land
Authors: Smith P. , Milne R. , Powlson D.S. , Smith J.U. , Falloon P. , Coleman K.
Published: January 2009

Abstract. The soil sequestration components of recent estimates of the carbon mitigation potential of UK agricultural land were calculated on the basis of a percentage change to the soil carbon stock present in the soil. Recent data suggest that the carbon stock of soil in UK arable land has been overestimated, meaning that potential soil carbon sequestration rates were also overestimated. Here, we present a new estimate of the carbon stock in UK arable land, and present revised estimates for the carbon mitigation potential of UK agricultural land. The stock of soil organic carbon in UK arable land (0–30 cm) is estimated to be 562 Tg, about half of the previous estimate. Consequently, the soil carbon sequestration component of each mitigation option is reduced by about half of previously published values. Since above‐ground carbon accumulation and fossil fuel carbon savings remain unchanged by these new soil carbon data, options with a significant non‐soil carbon mitigation component are reduced by less than those resulting from soil carbon sequestration alone. The best single mitigation option (bioenergy crop production on surplus arable land) accounts for 3.5 Tg C yr−1, (2.2% of the UK's 1990 CO2‐carbon emissions), whilst an optimal combined land‐use mitigation option accounts for 6.1 Tg C yr−1 (3.9% of the UK's 1990 CO2‐carbon emissions). These revised figures suggest that through manipulation of arable land, the UK could, at best, meet 49% of its contribution to the EU's overall Kyoto CO2‐carbon emission reduction target (8% of 1990 emissions), and 31% of the greater target accepted by the UK (12.5%). Even these reduced estimates show a significant carbon mitigation potential for UK arable land.
Has the Boom in Incapacity Benefit Claimant Numbers Passed Its Peak?*
Authors: Anyadike‐Danes Michael , McVicar Duncan
Published: January 2009

Just over 2.5 million people of working age were on the incapacity benefit register in Great Britain in 2006, twice as many as 15 years earlier, and we explore the factors contributing to that huge growth. Using a simple model linking ‘inflow’ to the size of the register via a pair of persistence parameters (‘short’ and ‘long’ term), we show that the principal driver of numbers up to the mid‐1990s was inflow, but since then it has been the steep rise in ‘average duration’ from below four to more than six years. For women the lengthening time on the register mainly reflects a rise in short‐term persistence (survival on the register from one to two years), whilst for men the increase in long‐term persistence (survival on the register after two years) was more important. We also use the model to discuss the likelihood that the British government will achieve its target of reducing incapacity benefit numbers by 1 million by 2016.
Fiscal Decentralisation and Empowerment: Evolving Concepts and Alternative Measures*
Authors: Boex Jameson , Simatupang Renata R.
Published: January 2009

Decentralisation reforms are among the most common and significant public sector reforms, particularly in developing and transitional countries around the world. Despite the importance of the topic to policy practitioners and academic researchers alike and the extensive empirical research on the topic, there is consensus in the literature that the measures of decentralisation that are currently used are unsatisfactory. In response, we propose an alternative measure of fiscal decentralisation based on the notion that decentralisation is more than simply the inverse of centralisation. Following Bahl (2005), we consider fiscal decentralisation as ‘the empowerment of people by the [fiscal] empowerment of their local governments’. Accordingly, we develop a measure of fiscal empowerment that allows us to quantify fiscal decentralisation as the gain in empowerment due to devolution and we analyse the proposed measures of empowerment and decentralisation for a cross‐section of developing, transitional and industrialised countries.
Keeping up or Falling behind? The Impact of Benefit and Tax Uprating on Incomes and Poverty*
Authors: Sutherland Holly , Hancock Ruth , Hills John , Zantomio Francesca
Published: January 2009

Each year, the government decides how much to raise benefits and tax allowances. In the UK, the basis for these upratings is rarely debated, yet has major long‐term consequences for the relative living standards of different groups as well as for the public finances. This paper considers the medium‐term implications of present uprating policies, which vary across parameters of the tax–benefit system. Continuing these policies for 20 years, other things staying the same, would result in a near doubling of the child poverty rate alongside a substantial gain to the public finances. At the same time, pensioners are largely protected by the earnings indexation of pensioner benefits including, in time, the basic state pension. We show how difficult it will be to meet the UK child poverty targets unless the greater inequality inherent in the current regime for uprating payments and allowances is redressed.
Attitudes towards Tax Levels: A Multi‐Tax Comparison*
Authors: Hammar Henrik , Jagers Sverker C. , Nordblom Katarina
Published: January 2009

We analyse Swedes' opinions about the levels of 11 different taxes to see which taxes people are most averse to and why. The most unpopular tax is the real estate tax, while the corporate tax is the least unpopular. We find a strong self‐interest effect in tax attitudes and that knowledge and education increase support for corrective taxes.
Análisis del desnivel salarial entre hombres y mujeres con un modelo de equilibrio
Authors: CHICHILNISKY Graciela , HERMANN FREDERIKSEN Elisabeth
Published: January 2009

Según un modelo de equilibrio generalde dos esferas (hogary mercado), la productividad de la mujer en el trabajo remunerado disminuye cuantas más tareas desempeña en el hogar. Partiendo del supuesto de que las aportaciones de hombres y mujeres a las labores domésticas son complementarias, las autoras comprueban que hay múltiples equilibrios posibles. En algunos, ellosy ellas asumen estas tareas por igualy ganan salarios iguales; en otros, se las reparten de manera dispar y ganan salarios diferentes. Por otraparte, los estereotipos acerca de la productividad de las mujeres perpetúan la desigualdad. Las autoras, valiéndose de ejemplos numéricos, demuestran que hay mayor bienestar cuando los cónyuges se reparten el trabajo a partes iguales. Para terminar, exponen algunas conclusiones.
Early prediction of neurological outcome by term neurological examination and cranial ultrasound in very preterm infants
Authors: Amess P , McFerran C , Khan Y , Rabe H
Published: January 2009

Aim: To assess the value of term neurological examination and cranial ultrasound in the early prediction of neurological outcome at 12 months corrected age in a cohort of very preterm infants.

Methods: A cohort of 102 preterm infants born at <32 weeks gestation or with a birth weight of <1500 g were assessed using the Hammersmith Term Neurological Examination. They underwent cranial ultrasound examinations according to local guidelines. The Hammersmith Infant Neurological Examination was performed at 12 months corrected age. Scores for the term examinations were compared with scores derived from healthy infants born at term and with scores from low‐risk preterm infants at term equivalent age. Term neurological scores and cranial ultrasound findings were compared in the prediction of 12‐month neurological outcome.

Results: Seventy‐eight (76.5%) preterm infants had suboptimal total neurological scores at term when compared to healthy infants born at term. However, most went on to have optimal neurological scores at 12 months corrected age. When our cohort was compared with low‐risk preterm infants at term equivalent age only 14 (13.7%) scored outside the normal range. Neither system of scoring predicted neurological outcome at 12 months corrected age as reliably as cranial ultrasound (sensitivity 0.83, specificity 0.87).

Conclusion: Neurological examination of preterm babies at term may be unreliable in the prediction of neurological outcome at 12 months corrected age. For early prediction of neurological outcome cranial ultrasound examination was found to be more reliable.
Self‐esteem in children and adolescents with mobility impairment: impact on well‐being and coping strategies
Authors: Jemtå L , Fugl‐Meyer K S , Öberg K , Dahl M
Published: January 2009

Aim: The first aim was to investigate dimension‐specific and global self‐esteem in children and adolescents with mobility impairment and to analyse the relation between self‐esteem and demographic data and disability characteristics. The second aim was to identify the impact of five self‐esteem dimensions on well‐being and coping strategies.

Methods: A total of 138 children and adolescents aged 7–18 years with mobility impairment took part in a semi‐structured interview. Demographic and disability characteristics were recorded and motor function was assessed. Self‐esteem was measured by the ‘I think I am’ inventory. Perceived overall well‐being was measured by a nine‐grade visual scale, the Snoopy scale, and coping strategies by the Children's Coping Strategies Checklist.

Results: Although a majority estimated a relatively high level of dimension‐specific and global self‐esteem, several demographic and disability factors for lower self‐esteem were identified. Those who estimated their ‘physical characteristics’ lower used the coping strategy ‘distraction’ more often. Three out of five dimensions of self‐esteem were positively associated with perceived overall well‐being: ‘physical characteristics’, ‘psychological well‐being’ and ‘relationships with others’.

Conclusion: Awareness of vulnerability factors for lower self‐esteem in children and adolescents with mobility impairment offer health care professionals specific opportunities to enhance self‐esteem in this group.
Imaging patterns of brain injury in term‐birth asphyxia
Authors: Swarte Renate , Lequin Maarten , Cherian Perumpillichira , Zecic Alexandra , Van Goudoever Johannes , Govaert Paul
Published: January 2009

Aim: To develop an extended asphyxia‐score based on cerebral ultrasound (US) and MRI in order to gain further insight into the pathophysiology of asphyxia.

Patients and Methods: First week cerebral US and MRI of 80 asphyxiated term infants were scored according to a new scoring system based on separate grading of injury to deep grey matter and to (sub)cortical/white matter. Our findings were compared with published scoring systems.

Results: Six patterns of brain injury were derived: deep grey matter injury with either limited or extensive cortical involvement, damage to deep grey matter with watershed injury, isolated watershed injury, isolated white matter injury (leukomalacia) and isolated cortical necrosis. The mortality rate was considerable in patterns with extensive cortical injury.

Conclusion: Six patterns of brain injury, following term‐birth asphyxia were found using a new imaging score.
School Injury Among Ottawa‐Area Children: A Population‐Based Study
Authors: Josse Jonathan M. , MacKay Morag , Osmond Martin H. , MacPherson Alison K.
Published: January 2009

BACKGROUND:  Injuries are the leading cause of death among Canadian children and are responsible for a substantial proportion of hospitalizations and emergency department visits. This investigation sought to identify the factors associated with the likelihood of sustaining an injury at school among Ottawa‐area children.

METHODS:  Children presenting to Ottawa‐area hospitals and urgent care clinics from January to December 2002 (n = 24,074) were included for analysis. The frequency of school injuries by sex, age group, type of injury, and hospitalization was analyzed. Multivariate logistic regression was used to assess the factors associated with sustaining an injury at school. The school activities most associated with injury and the most frequent types of school injuries were assessed.

RESULTS:  A total of 4287 Ottawa‐area children were injured at school in 2002, representing 18% of all injuries. Children aged 5‐9 years and 10‐14 years were more likely to have school injuries than older children (aged 15‐19 years) (OR = 3.07, 95% CI = 2.77‐3.40 and OR = 3.10, 95% CI = 2.83‐3.37, respectively). The most frequently encountered school injuries were fractures (n = 1132) and musculoskeletal injury (n = 907). The most frequent mechanisms of school injuries were “playing” (n = 1004) and “informal sports” (n = 1503).

CONCLUSIONS:  Many children get hurt at school, particularly during informal recreation activities. Environmental modification and increased supervision are strategies that may reduce school injuries.
A Study of Smoking Disparity and Factors Associated With Children Smoking Behavior in the Mountain and City Schools in Taiwan
Authors: Huang Hsiao‐Ling , Chen Ted , Chen Fu‐Li , Magnus Jeanette , Rice Janet , Yen Yea‐Yin , Hsu Chih‐Cheng
Published: January 2009

BACKGROUND:  While higher smoking prevalences have been better described for adults and adolescents in the mountainous areas than in the plain area in Taiwan, no studies have previously examined whether this disparity begins with children in elementary schools. The purpose of this study was thus designed to explore clustering in smoking behavior among elementary school children attending mountain schools compared to those attending city schools.

METHODS:  This study analyzed data obtained by a survey on smoking behavior collected during the School Smoking Survey Project performed in 13 elementary schools of Taoyuan County, Taiwan. Overall, 1585 third and fourth graders (mean age 8.9 years) participated in the study. A multilevel logistic regression analysis was performed to explore the effects of school location on individual smoking behavior among elementary school children while controlling for individual‐level characteristics.

RESULTS:  Overall, 34.9% of the elementary school students in the mountain schools reported having tried cigarette smoking compared to only 9.6% of students from city schools. Students attending mountain schools had a greater likelihood of reporting smoking than students attending city schools after controlling for individual‐level characteristics (OR = 2.57, 95% CI = 1.10‐5.99).

CONCLUSIONS:  A significant individual clustering in smoking behavior was found among third‐ and fourth‐grade children attending mountain schools. The new findings suggest that the adult geographic smoking disparity begins in elementary school. Interventions aimed at reducing smoking disparity in adults need to target elementary schools in high‐risk locations.
Racial, Ethnic, and Sex Differences in the Associations Between Violence and Self‐Reported Health Among US High School Students
Authors: Bossarte Robert M. , Swahn Monica H. , Breiding Matt
Published: January 2009

BACKGROUND:  Involvement in interpersonal violence or suicidal behaviors can have a significant impact on an adolescent’s physical health. Similarly, previous research has suggested that lived experiences, more than the presence or absence of physical ailments, can significantly influence self‐assessed health status among adolescents. The purpose of this study was to examine the cross‐sectional associations between involvement in violence and poor or fair self‐reported health among US high school students.

METHODS:  Data were obtained from the 2005 national Youth Risk Behavior Survey (n = 13,953). Logistic regression analyses were conducted to determine the associations between violence‐related measures and self‐reported health while controlling for demographic characteristics and potential confounders. Analyses are presented for students overall and stratified by sex and race/ethnicity.

RESULTS:  Overall, 7.2% of students reported fair or poor self‐rated health. Having been in a physical fight, having been injured in a physical fight, having attempted suicide, and having not gone to school because of safety concerns were significantly associated with fair or poor self‐rated health after controlling for demographic characteristics and other potential confounders. Differences associated with race/ethnicity and sex are identified.

CONCLUSIONS:  Four of the 5 violence‐related measures included in these analyses were significantly associated with fair or poor self‐rated health. Future studies should consider the impact of involvement in violent behaviors and perceptions of both physical and mental well‐being.
Emotional/Behavioral Difficulties and Mental Health Service Contacts of Students in Special Education for Non–Mental Health Problems
Authors: Pastor Patricia N. , Reuben Cynthia A.
Published: January 2009

BACKGROUND: Emotional/behavioral difficulties and mental health (MH) service contacts of 3 groups of youth were compared: students in special education for non‐MH problems, students in special education for MH problems, and youth not in special education.

METHODS: Parents reported the characteristics, special education placement, emotional/behavioral difficulties, and MH service contacts of 25,122 youth aged 6‐17 years in the National Health Interview Survey.

RESULTS: Two thirds of students in special education received special education services for non‐MH problems. Among students in special education for non‐MH problems, 17% had serious emotional/behavioral difficulties compared with 51% of students in special education for MH problems and 4% of youth not in special education. MH service contacts were examined only for youth whose difficulties significantly interfered with their ability to function in or out of school. Among youth with serious difficulties, the percentage of youth without a recent MH service contact was greater for students in special education for non‐MH problems (40%) and youth not in special education (47%) compared with students in special education for MH problems (13%).

CONCLUSIONS: Compared with youth not in special education, students in special education for non‐MH problems were 4 times more likely to have serious emotional/behavioral difficulties but were just as likely as youth not in special education to lack a recent MH service contact. Study findings provide a national context for considering the MH screening/evaluation needs of students receiving special education for non‐MH problems.
The Case for Stabilizing China's Exchange Rate: Setting the Stage for Fiscal Expansion
Authors: McKinnon Ronald , Schnabl Gunther
Published: January 2009

China's financial conundrum arises from two sources. First, its large saving (trade) surplus results in a currency mismatch because it is an immature creditor that cannot lend in its own currency. Instead, foreign currency claims (largely US dollars) build up within domestic financial institutions. Second, economists, both American and Chinese, mistakenly attribute the surpluses to an undervalued RMB. To placate the USA, the result was a gradual and predictable appreciation of the RMB against the dollar of 6 percent or more per year from July 2005 to July 2008. Together with the fall in US interest rates since mid‐2007, this oneway bet in the foreign exchanges markets not only attracted hot money inflows but inhibited private capital outflows from financing China's huge trade surplus. Therefore, the People's Bank of China had to intervene heavily to prevent the RMB from ratcheting upwards, and so became the country's sole international financial intermediary as official exchange reserves exploded. Because of the currency mismatch, floating the RMB is neither feasible nor desirable, and a higher RMB would not reduce China's trade surplus. Instead, monetary control and normal private‐sector finance for the trade surplus require a return to a credibly fixed nominal RMB/USD rate similar to that which existed between 1995 and 2004. However, for any newly reset RMB/USD rate to be credible as a monetary anchor, foreign “China bashing” to get the RMB up must end. Then the stage would be set for fiscal expansion to both stimulate the economy and reduce its trade surplus.
Why Are Chinese Exports Not So Special?
Authors: Yao Shunli
Published: January 2009

Applying a commonly used index for export sophistication in a cross‐country study, Rodrik finds that the technological content of Chinese exports over the past decade has been so high that it cannot be explained simply by the economic fundamentals of a low‐income country abundant with unskilled labor. Question has been raised for the empirical robustness of the index. I am also doubtful with Rodrik's analysis but develop my argument from a different perspective. This paper briefly reviews Rodrik's methodology and identifies other factors his empirical results potentially hinge on. Based on this, it elaborates on China's unique processing trade regime, the uneven distribution of its exports across Chinese regions and the limitation of HS codes in terms of identifying differentiated products, in an attempt to show that these factors also contribute to higher estimations of China's export sophistication level. Finally, it organizes trade data to reveal the trade patterns that are indeed consistent with the country's comparative advantage.
Trading Land Development Rights under a Planned Land Use System: The “Zhejiang Model”
Authors: Wang Hui , Tao Ran , Tong Juer
Published: January 2009

China's state planned land use system, including regulations such as setting planned quotas for land use, basic cropland preservation, and pursuing a balance between the conversion of arable land into non‐agricultural use and the supplement of new agricultural land, has substantially constrained the economic growth of industrial provinces in China. This article explores the innovative reforms adopted by Zhejiang Province through land development rights (LDR) transfer within a locality and LDR trading across localities. We argue that there is a “Zhejiang model of LDR transferring and trading,” which, we believe, has significant implications not only for fostering an efficiency‐enhancing market for land development rights and agricultural land preservation, but also for optimal use of land and a more balanced regional development. One important policy issue relating to China's rural land system is that under China's land requisition system, farmers are usually under compensated for urban land‐taking.