bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The Involvement of miRNA in Carotid-Related Stroke
Authors: Maitrias Pierre , Metzinger-Le Meuth Valérie , Nader Joseph , Reix Thierry , Caus Thierry , Metzinger Laurent
Published: August 2017

Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of morbidity and mortality in developed countries. Stroke is associated with a marked disability burden and has a major economic impact; this is especially true for carotid artery stroke. Major advances in primary and secondary prevention during the last few decades have helped to tackle this public health problem. However, better knowledge of the physiopathology of stroke and its underlying genetic mechanisms is needed to improve diagnosis and therapy. miRNAs are an important, recently identified class of post-transcriptional regulators of gene expression and are known to be involved in cerebrovascular disease. These endogenous, small, noncoding RNAs may have applications as noninvasive biomarkers and therapeutic tools in practice. Here, we review the involvement of several miRNAs in cell-based and whole-animal models of stroke, with a focus on human miRNA profiling studies of carotid artery stroke. Lastly, we describe the miRNAs’ potential role as a biomarker of stroke.
Current Management of Hyponatremia in Acute Heart Failure: A Report From the Hyponatremia Registry for Patients With Euvolemic and Hypervolemic Hyponatremia (HN Registry)
Authors: Dunlap Mark E. , Hauptman Paul J. , Amin Alpesh N. , Chase Sandra L. , Chiodo Joseph A. , Chiong Jun R. , Dasta Joseph F.
Published: August 2017

Background

Hyponatremia (
HN
) occurs commonly in patients with acute heart failure and confers a worse prognosis. Current
HN
treatment varies widely, with no consensus. This study recorded treatment practices currently used for patients hospitalized with acute heart failure and
HN
.

Methods and Results

Data were collected prospectively from 146
US
sites on patients hospitalized with acute heart failure and
HN
(serum sodium concentration [Na
+
] ≤130 
mE
q/L) present at admission or developing in the hospital. Baseline variables,
HN
treatment, and laboratory values were recorded. Of 762 patients, median [Na
+
] was 126 
mE
q/L (interquartile range, 7) at baseline and increased to 130 mEq/L at discharge. Fluid restriction was the most commonly prescribed therapy (44%), followed by no specific
HN
treatment beyond therapy for congestion (23%), isotonic saline (5%), tolvaptan (4%), and hypertonic saline (2%). Median rate of change in [Na
+
] varied by treatment (0.5 [interquartile range, 1.0] to 2.3 [8.0] 
mE
q/L/d) and median treatment duration ranged from 1 (interquartile range, 1) to 6 (5) days. Fluid restriction and no specific
HN
treatment resulted in similar changes in [Na
+
], and were least effective in correcting
HN
. Few patients (19%) had [Na
+
] ≥135 
mE
q/L at discharge.

Conclusions

The most commonly used treatment approaches for
HN
(fluid restriction and no specific treatment) in acute heart failure increased [Na
+
] minimally, and most patients remained hyponatremic at discharge.
Emergency Coagulation Assessment During Treatment With Direct Oral Anticoagulants
Authors: Ebner Matthias , Birschmann Ingvild , Peter Andreas , Härtig Florian , Spencer Charlotte , Kuhn Joachim , Blumenstock Gunnar , Zuern Christine S. , Ziemann Ulf , Poli Sven
Published: August 2017

Background and Purpose—

In patients receiving direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs), emergency treatment like thrombolysis for acute ischemic stroke is complicated by insufficient availability of DOAC-specific coagulation tests. Conflicting recommendations have been published concerning the use of global coagulation assays for ruling out relevant DOAC-induced anticoagulation.

Methods—

Four hundred eighty-one samples from 96 DOAC-treated patients were tested using prothrombin time (PT), activated partial thromboplastin time (aPTT) and thrombin time (TT), DOAC-specific assays (anti-Xa activity, diluted TT), and liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry. Sensitivity and specificity of test results to identify DOAC concentrations <30 ng/mL were calculated. Receiver operating characteristic analyses were used to define reagent-specific cutoff values.

Results—

Normal PT and aPTT provide insufficient specificity to safely identify DOAC concentrations <30 ng/mL (rivaroxaban/PT: specificity, 77%/sensitivity, 94%; apixaban/PT: specificity, 13%/sensitivity, 94%, dabigatran/aPTT: specificity, 49%/sensitivity, 91%). Normal TT was 100% specific for dabigatran, but sensitivity was 26%. In contrast, reagent-specific PT and aPTT cutoffs provided >95% specificity and a specific TT cutoff enhanced sensitivity for dabigatran to 84%. For apixaban, no cutoffs could be established.

Conclusions—

Even if highly DOAC-reactive reagents are used, normal results of global coagulation tests are not suited to guide emergency treatment: whereas normal PT and aPTT lack specificity to rule out DOAC-induced anticoagulation, the low sensitivity of normal TT excludes the majority of eligible patients from treatment. However, reagent-specific cutoffs for global coagulation tests ensure high specificity and optimize sensitivity for safe emergency decision making in rivaroxaban- and dabigatran-treated patients.

Clinical Trial Registration—

URL:
http://www.clinicaltrials.gov
. Unique identifiers: NCT02371044 and NCT02371070.
Predictors for Cerebral Edema in Acute Ischemic Stroke Treated With Intravenous Thrombolysis
Authors: Thorén Magnus , Azevedo Elsa , Dawson Jesse , Egido Jose A. , Falcou Anne , Ford Gary A. , Holmin Staffan , Mikulik Robert , Ollikainen Jyrki , Wahlgren Nils , Ahmed Niaz
Published: August 2017

Background and Purpose—

Cerebral edema (CED) is a severe complication of acute ischemic stroke. There is uncertainty regarding the predictors for the development of CED after cerebral infarction. We aimed to determine which baseline clinical and radiological parameters predict development of CED in patients treated with intravenous thrombolysis.

Methods—

We used an image-based classification of CED with 3 degrees of severity (less severe CED 1 and most severe CED 3) on postintravenous thrombolysis imaging scans. We extracted data from 42 187 patients recorded in the SITS International Register (Safe Implementation of Treatments in Stroke) during 2002 to 2011. We did univariate comparisons of baseline data between patients with or without CED. We used backward logistic regression to select a set of predictors for each CED severity.

Results—

CED was detected in 9579/42 187 patients (22.7%: 12.5% CED 1, 4.9% CED 2, 5.3% CED 3). In patients with CED versus no CED, the baseline National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale score was higher (17 versus 10;
P
<0.001), signs of acute infarct was more common (27.9% versus 19.2%;
P
<0.001), hyperdense artery sign was more common (37.6% versus 14.6%;
P
<0.001), and blood glucose was higher (6.8 versus 6.4 mmol/L;
P
<0.001). Baseline National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale, hyperdense artery sign, blood glucose, impaired consciousness, and signs of acute infarct on imaging were independent predictors for all edema types.

Conclusions—

The most important baseline predictors for early CED are National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale, hyperdense artery sign, higher blood glucose, decreased level of consciousness, and signs of infarct at baseline. The findings can be used to improve selection and monitoring of patients for drug or surgical treatment.
The Two-Dimensional Gabor Function Adapted to Natural Image Statistics: A Model of Simple-Cell Receptive Fields and Sparse Structure in Images
Authors: Loxley P. N.
Published: August 2017

The two-dimensional Gabor function is adapted to natural image statistics, leading to a tractable probabilistic generative model that can be used to model simple cell receptive field profiles, or generate basis functions for sparse coding applications. Learning is found to be most pronounced in three Gabor function parameters representing the size and spatial frequency of the two-dimensional Gabor function and characterized by a nonuniform probability distribution with heavy tails. All three parameters are found to be strongly correlated, resulting in a basis of multiscale Gabor functions with similar aspect ratios and size-dependent spatial frequencies. A key finding is that the distribution of receptive-field sizes is scale invariant over a wide range of values, so there is no characteristic receptive field size selected by natural image statistics. The Gabor function aspect ratio is found to be approximately conserved by the learning rules and is therefore not well determined by natural image statistics. This allows for three distinct solutions: a basis of Gabor functions with sharp orientation resolution at the expense of spatial-frequency resolution, a basis of Gabor functions with sharp spatial-frequency resolution at the expense of orientation resolution, or a basis with unit aspect ratio. Arbitrary mixtures of all three cases are also possible. Two parameters controlling the shape of the marginal distributions in a probabilistic generative model fully account for all three solutions. The best-performing probabilistic generative model for sparse coding applications is found to be a gaussian copula with Pareto marginal probability density functions.
Memory States and Transitions between Them in Attractor Neural Networks
Authors: Recanatesi Stefano , Katkov Mikhail , Tsodyks Misha
Published: August 2017

Human memory is capable of retrieving similar memories to a just retrieved one. This associative ability is at the base of our everyday processing of information. Current models of memory have not been able to underpin the mechanism that the brain could use in order to actively exploit similarities between memories. The current idea is that to induce transitions in attractor neural networks, it is necessary to extinguish the current memory. We introduce a novel mechanism capable of inducing transitions between memories where similarities between memories are actively exploited by the neural dynamics to retrieve a new memory. Populations of neurons that are selective for multiple memories play a crucial role in this mechanism by becoming attractors on their own. The mechanism is based on the ability of the neural network to control the excitation-inhibition balance.
Rat Prefrontal Cortex Inactivations during Decision Making Are Explained by Bistable Attractor Dynamics
Authors: Piet Alex T. , Erlich Jeffrey C. , Kopec Charles D. , Brody Carlos D.
Published: August 2017

Two-node attractor networks are flexible models for neural activity during decision making. Depending on the network configuration, these networks can model distinct aspects of decisions including evidence integration, evidence categorization, and decision memory. Here, we use attractor networks to model recent causal perturbations of the frontal orienting fields (FOF) in rat cortex during a perceptual decision-making task (Erlich, Brunton, Duan, Hanks, & Brody, 2015 ). We focus on a striking feature of the perturbation results. Pharmacological silencing of the FOF resulted in a stimulus-independent bias. We fit several models to test whether integration, categorization, or decision memory could account for this bias and found that only the memory configuration successfully accounts for it. This memory model naturally accounts for optogenetic perturbations of FOF in the same task and correctly predicts a memory-duration-dependent deficit caused by silencing FOF in a different task. Our results provide mechanistic support for a “postcategorization” memory role of the FOF in upcoming choices.
Blind Nonnegative Source Separation Using Biological Neural Networks
Authors: Pehlevan Cengiz , Mohan Sreyas , Chklovskii Dmitri B.
Published: August 2017

Blind source separation—the extraction of independent sources from a mixture—is an important problem for both artificial and natural signal processing. Here, we address a special case of this problem when sources (but not the mixing matrix) are known to be nonnegative—for example, due to the physical nature of the sources. We search for the solution to this problem that can be implemented using biologically plausible neural networks. Specifically, we consider the online setting where the data set is streamed to a neural network. The novelty of our approach is that we formulate blind nonnegative source separation as a similarity matching problem and derive neural networks from the similarity matching objective. Importantly, synaptic weights in our networks are updated according to biologically plausible local learning rules.
Two new species and four new records of Aquilegia (Ranunculaceae) from China
Authors: ERST ANDREY S. , WANG WEI , YU SHENG-XIANG , XIANG KUNLI , WANG JIAN , SHAULO DMITRY N. , SMIRNOV SERGEY V. , KUSHUNINA MARIA , SUKHORUKOV ALEXANDER P. , NOBIS MARCIN
Published: August 2017

Two new species, Aquilegia xinjiangensis and A. hebeica from northern China, are here described and illustrated. Additionally four species, A. amurensis, A. flabellata, A. kamelinii and A. vicaria are recorded for the country for the first time. The identification key and diagnostic characters of all Aquilegia representatives from China including the newly described and recorded species are provided and discussed.
Three new species of Lauraceae from the Atlantic rainforest of Brazil
Authors: MORAES PEDRO LUÍS RODRIGUES DE , VERGNE MATHEUS CARVALHO , VAN DER WERFF HENK
Published: August 2017

Three South-American new species belonging to Cinnamomum, Mezilaurus, and Williamodendron, are described and illustrated from specimens collected in the Atlantic rainforest of Brazil. The new species are Cinnamomum baitelloanum, Mezilaurus sessiliflora, and Williamodendron itamarajuensis. Their putative relationships within the respective genus are discussed.
A new species of Gomphidius from Northeast China
Authors: QI LIANGLIANG , FU YONGPING , LANG NING , BAI XIANJIN , LI YU
Published: August 2017

Gomphidius albipes, a new species of Gomphidiaceae from the Greater Khingan Mountains, northeastern China, is described using morphological and phylogenetic data. It is morphologically similar to G. maculatus based on the orange pileus and thick gills but can be easily distinguished by the smooth stipe apex. Phylogenetic analysis of the internal transcribed spacer region rDNA data clearly supports G. albipes as a distinct taxon in the genus Gomphidius. The original biotope photographs, illustrations of microscopic characters and a phylogenetic tree of Gomphidius are provided.
Piper magen (Piperaceae), a new species from Yunnan, China
Authors: YANG JUN , WANG YUE-HU , LUO JI-FENG , LONG CHUN-LIN
Published: August 2017

Piper magen (Piperaceae) sp. nov. from Yunnan Province, China, is here described and illustrated. This species is similar to P. nudibaccatum, but the former can be distinguished by the following combination of characteristics: woody climbers with well-developed longitudinal ridges, these with obtuse, corky wings; leaves dimorph, mature leaves green at adult stage, elliptic or ovate with oblique leaf base, veins 7–9, pinnate, but leaves cordate, heterochromous at juvenile stage, with veins zone greyish white on the adaxial surface, veins 5–7, palmate; male spikes with sterile apical region ca. 1–3 mm long, glabrous, pale green; stamens 3; filaments very short and flat (with stereoscope); bracts suborbicular with dense, brownish red dots visible on adaxial surface, with dense cilium on abaxial surfaces (with stereoscope); stigmas 3 or 4, linear, reflexed, sparsely velutinous.
Modeling Microalgal Biosediment Formation Based on Attenuated Total Reflection Fourier Transform Infrared (ATR FT-IR) Monitoring
Authors: Ogburn Zachary L. , Vogt Frank
Published: August 2017

With increasing amounts of anthropogenic pollutants being released into ecosystems, it becomes ever more important to understand their fate and interactions with living organisms. Microalgae play an important ecological role as they are ubiquitous in marine environments and sequester inorganic pollutants which they transform into organic biomass. Of particular interest in this study is their role as a sink for atmospheric CO2, a greenhouse gas, and nitrate, one cause of harmful algal blooms. Novel chemometric hard-modeling methodologies have been developed for interpreting phytoplankton’s chemical and physiological adaptations to changes in their growing environment. These methodologies will facilitate investigations of environmental impacts of anthropogenic pollutants on chemical and physiological properties of marine microalgae (here: Nannochloropsis oculata). It has been demonstrated that attenuated total reflection Fourier transform infrared (ATR FT-IR) spectroscopy can gain insights into both and this study only focuses on the latter. From time-series of spectra, the rate of microalgal biomass settling on top of a horizontal ATR element is derived which reflects several of phytoplankton’s physiological parameters such as growth rate, cell concentrations, cell size, and buoyancy. In order to assess environmental impacts on such parameters, microalgae cultures were grown under 25 different chemical scenarios covering 200–600 ppm atmospheric CO2 and 0.35–0.75 mM dissolved NO3−. After recording time-series of ATR FT-IR spectra, a multivariate curve resolution–alternating least squares (MCR-ALS) algorithm extracted spectroscopic and time profiles from each data set. From the time profiles, it was found that in the considered concentration ranges only NO3− has an impact on the cells’ physiological properties. In particular, the cultures’ growth rate has been influenced by the ambient chemical conditions. Thus, the presented spectroscopic + chemometric methodology enables investigating the link between chemical conditions in a marine ecosystem and their consequences for phytoplankton living in it.
CASP – An intervention by community volunteers to reduce suicidal behaviour among refugees
Authors: Vijayakumar Lakshmi , Mohanraj Rani , Kumar Shuba , Jeyaseelan Visalakshi , Sriram Savitha , Shanmugam Madhumathi
Published: August 2017

Background:

Refugees are at risk of psychiatric morbidity because of forced migration, traumatic events and resettlement in unfamiliar environments. Many live in low- and middle-income countries (LAMIC) under stressful conditions contributing to increased suicide risk.

Aims:

This study assessed the feasibility of regular contact and use of safety planning cards (CASP) by community volunteers (CVs) in reducing suicidal behaviour among Sri Lankan refugees residing in camps in Tamil Nadu, South India.

Methods:

A household survey was carried out on consenting adults in two refugee camps – one intervention and one control – randomly selected using lottery method. The primary outcome was reduction in suicidal behaviour. Experience of trauma during war and migration, depression, post-traumatic stress and alcohol use were documented. Individuals scoring >16 on Centre for Epidemiological Studies Depression (CESD) or >30 on Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) or with active/passive suicidal ideation or a history of previous suicidal attempts were considered as high risk. CVs were trained to deliver CASP intervention to high-risk individuals. Change from baseline to follow-up was computed for intervention and control groups, and the difference between changes in suicide rates was compared using proportion test.

Results:

In total, 639 refugees from intervention and 664 from control camps participated. Of the 288 high-risk refugees in intervention camp, 139 completed the intervention. In the control camp, 187 were categorised as high risk. Prevalence of suicide attempts was 6.1%. Following intervention, differences between sites in changes in combined suicide (attempted suicides and suicides) rates per 100,000 per year were 519 (95% confidence interval (CI): 136–902; p < .01).

Conclusion:

CASP, an intervention involving contact by CVs and use of safety planning cards, is feasible to implement and can reduce suicidal behaviour among refugees. Its replication in more settings will enhance validity.
DNA testing in homicide investigations
Authors: Prahlow Joseph A , Cameron Thomas , Arendt Alexander , Cornelis Kenneth , Bontrager Anthony , Suth Michael S , Black Lisa , Tobey Rebbecca , Pollock Sharon , Stur Shawn , Cotter Kenneth , Gabrielse Joel
Published: August 2017

Objectives

With the widespread use of DNA testing, police, death investigators, and attorneys need to be aware of the capabilities of this technology. This review provides an overview of scenarios where DNA evidence has played a major role in homicide investigations in order to highlight important educational issues for police, death investigators, forensic pathologists, and attorneys.

Methods

This was a nonrandom, observational, retrospective study. Data were obtained from the collective files of the authors from casework during a 15-year period, from 2000 through 2014.

Results

A series of nine scenarios, encompassing 11 deaths, is presented from the standpoint of the police and death investigation, the forensic pathology autopsy performance, the subsequent DNA testing of evidence, and, ultimately, the final adjudication of cases. Details of each case are presented, along with a discussion that focuses on important aspects of sample collection for potential DNA testing, especially at the crime scene and the autopsy. The presentation highlights the diversity of case and evidence types in which DNA testing played a valuable role in the successful prosecution of the case.

Conclusions

By highlighting homicides where DNA testing contributed to the successful adjudication of cases, police, death investigators, forensic pathologists, and attorneys will be better informed regarding the types of evidence and situations where such testing is of potential value.
Tasting the Little Scroll: A Sensory Analysis of Divine Interaction in Revelation 10.8-101
Authors: Warren Meredith J.C.
Published: August 2017

The ingestion of the scroll in Rev. 10.8-10 is a key element of how John experiences God’s revelation and transmits it to others. Using sensory analysis, I propose that the scroll’s ingestion represents a shared understanding of how the consumption of otherworldly food in narrative grants access to the divine realm and thereby transmits divine knowledge. The privacy of taste (as opposed to the shared senses of sight or hearing) suggests that participants in this kind of eating experience God in the most intimate way. The special way that John accesses these divine revelations – through consuming the little scroll – shows that he is granted privileged access to God’s knowledge, which, when translated into visions, allows others to participate in this intimacy.
The Relationship Between Sleep Duration and Glycemic Control Among Hispanic Adults With Uncontrolled Type 2 Diabetes
Authors: Full Kelsie M. , Schmied Emily A. , Parada Humberto , Cherrington Andrea , Horton Lucy A. , Ayala Guadalupe X.
Published: August 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between sleep duration and glycemic control in adult Hispanic patients with uncontrolled type 2 diabetes.

Methods

This cross-sectional study used baseline data from 317 Hispanic adults with uncontrolled type 2 diabetes who participated in a randomized controlled trial testing a peer support intervention to improve diabetes control. To be eligible, participants had to be 18 years or older and have A1C >7% in the 3 months prior to randomization. Glycemic control was assessed by A1C ascertained through medical chart review; higher A1C levels reflected poorer glycemic control. Sleep duration (hours/night), diabetes control behaviors, and demographics were obtained by interviewer-administered questionnaire. We used multivariable generalized linear models to estimate the association between sleep duration and glycemic control.

Results

Forty-three percent of participants reported sleeping fewer than 7 hours per night. Sleep duration (hours/night) was inversely associated with A1C levels; however, the relationship was no longer statistically significant after adjusting for insulin status.

Conclusions

Sleep duration was not significantly associated with glycemic control in this sample of Hispanic adults with uncontrolled type 2 diabetes when adjusting for insulin. Future research should continue to explore this relationship among Hispanic adults with diabetes using an objective measure of sleep duration and a larger sample of Hispanic adults with both controlled and uncontrolled type 2 diabetes to determine if these results hold true.
The Faces of Group Members Share Physical Resemblance
Authors: Hehman Eric , Flake Jessica K. , Freeman Jonathan B.
Published: August 2017

Perceivers form strong inferences of disposition from others’ facial appearance, and these inferences guide a wide variety of important behaviors. The current research examines the possibility that similar-looking individuals are more likely to form groups with one another. We do so by testing a necessary downstream consequence of this process, examining whether the faces of individuals within groups more physically resemble one another than those in other groups. Across six studies, we demonstrate that individuals’ group membership can be accurately classified both from ratings of members’ faces, and from direct measurement of members’ faces. Results provide insight into how affiliative groups initially form and maintain membership over time, as well as the perception of homogeneity of groups.
The effects of the research excellence framework research impact agenda on early- and mid-career researchers in library and information science
Authors: Marcella Rita , Lockerbie Hayley , Bloice Lyndsay , Hood Caroline , Barton Flora
Published: August 2017

Early- and mid-career researchers will shape the future of library and information science (LIS) research and it is crucial they be well placed to engage with the research impact agenda. Their understanding of research impact may influence their capacity to be returned to research excellence framework (REF), the UK’s research quality assessment tool, as well as their ability to access research funding. This article reports the findings of a qualitative study exploring how the research impact agenda is influencing early- and mid-career researcher behaviour. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 14 early- and mid-career researchers. While enthusiastic about creating lasting impact, participants lack effective institutional support to maximise their own research impact. Participants demonstrate uncertainty about what REF impact is. The authors conclude that while there is evidence LIS academics engage with practice to maximise impact, they lack support in building impact and the discipline needs to do more to create opportunities for the academy and the profession to coalesce to identify objects for and deliver impactful research.
Do the welfare benefits weaken the economic vote? A cross-national analysis of the welfare state and economic voting
Authors: Park Brandon Beomseob , Shin Jungsub
Published: August 2017

Comparative economic voting studies have found great instability in economic voting across countries and over time. In explaining this instability, we highlight the role of welfare systems because strong welfare protection attenuates voters’ incentives to base their vote on government economic performance. By analyzing 174 legislature elections in 31 Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries from 1980 to 2010 and by taking into account clarity of responsibility, we find that welfare protection weakens the linkage between macroeconomic outcomes and incumbent electoral fortunes. This result implies that strong welfare protection enables politicians to avoid blame for economic failures.
Tension pneumopericardium in a multiply injured child
Authors: Rupprecht Holger , Gaab Katharina
Published: August 2017

Tension pneumopericardium is a rare disease that is very difficult to diagnose. A 3-year old child was run over by a minibus. Computed tomography showed bilateral pneumothorax, multiple rib fractures on both sides, and a hepatic laceration. The massive blunt thoracic trauma caused entrapped air in the pericardium, and a tension pneumoprecordium developed abruptly. We report this unique case of tension pneumopericardium in a child, and the subsequent emergency surgery and damage control measures.
Long-term results of a randomized, controlled, double-blind study of low-level laser therapy before exercises in knee osteoarthritis: laser and exercises in knee osteoarthritis
Authors: Alfredo Patrícia Pereira , Bjordal Jan Magnus , Junior Washington Steagall , Lopes-Martins Rodrigo Álvaro Brandão , Stausholm Martin B , Casarotto Raquel Aparecida , Marques Amélia Pasqual , Joensen Jon
Published: August 2017

Objectives:

To assess the long-term effects of low-level laser therapy (LLLT), in combination with strengthening exercises in patients with osteoarthritis of the knee.

Design:

Follow-up results at three and six months in a previously published randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial.

Setting:

Specialist Rehabilitation Services.

Subjects:

Forty participants of both genders, aged 50–75 years with knee osteoarthritis grade 2–4 on Kellgren–Lawrence scale.

Intervention:

The LLLT group received 10 LLLT treatments with invisible infrared laser (904 nm, 3 Joules/point) over three weeks followed by an eight-week supervised strengthening exercise program. The placebo LLLT group received identical treatment, but the infrared laser output was disabled.

Main measures:

Pain on a visual analogue scale, paracetamol consumption, and osteoarthritis severity measured by the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC) and Lequesne Index.

Results:

The new data obtained during the follow-up period showed that all outcomes remained stable and there were no significant differences between the groups at three and six months. However, daily consumption of rescue analgesics (paracetamol) was significantly lower in the LLLT group throughout the follow-up period, ending at a group difference of 0.45 vs. 3.40 units ( P < 0.001) at six months follow-up. We conclude that within the limitations of this small study, the previously reported improvement after LLLT plus exercise was maintained for a period of six months.

Conclusion:

We find that the immediate post-intervention improvements from LLLT plus strengthening exercises were maintained for six months.
Smartphone-Based Health Technologies for Dementia Care: Opportunities, Challenges, and Current Practices
Authors: Brown Ellen Leslie , Ruggiano Nicole , Li Juanjuan , Clarke Peter J. , Kay Emma S. , Hristidis Vagelis
Published: August 2017

Most of the 5.4 million people affected by Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia (AD) are noninstitutionalized, receiving care by unpaid family caregivers and medically managed by a primary care provider (PCP). Health Information Technology has been recognized for its potential in improving efficiency and quality of AD care and support for AD caregivers. Simultaneously, smartphone technologies have become an increasingly common way to deliver physical and behavioral health care. However, little is known about how smartphone technologies have been used to support AD caregiving and care. This article highlights the current need for smartphone-based interventions for AD and systematically identified and appraised current smartphone apps targeting and available for AD caregivers. Findings indicate that individual available apps have limited functions (compared with the complex needs of caregivers) and little has been done to extend AD caregiving apps to Hispanic populations. Implications for research, practice, and policy are discussed.
Extending the Comfort Zone: Building Resilience in Older People With Long-Term Conditions
Authors: Robinson Mark , Hanna Esmée , Raine Gary , Robertson Steve
Published: August 2017

This article examines how a 6-week mental health resilience course for people with long-term conditions (LTCs; diabetes, heart disease, and arthritis) increased perceived resilience of older participants. This article examines how peer support assisted participants to develop resilience, considers gender issues, examines the importance of course activities, and explores how resilience enhances quality of life. A mixed methods approach was used. A before-and-after questionnaire was administered 3 times, including 3-month follow-up. Interviews were held with 24 program participants, aged 45 to 80 years. Diaries were kept by participants over 3 months. Survey findings showed significant gains in perceived resilience, at the end of the course, with no significant drop-off after 3 months. Interview and diary narratives highlighted positive experiences around well-being, condition management, and social engagement. Peer support was key to effective processes. Challenges concern ongoing support in communities, and considering age and gender variables when researching what improved resilience means to older people with LTCs.
Upper Limb Function, Kinematic Analysis, and Dystonia Assessment in Children With Spastic Diplegic Cerebral Palsy and Periventricular Leukomalacia
Authors: Pons Roser , Vanezis Athanasios , Skouteli Helen , Papavasiliou Antigoni , Tziomaki Magda , Syrengelas Dimitris , Darras Nikolaos
Published: August 2017

Assessment of upper limb function, kinematic analysis, and dystonia in patients with spastic diplegia cerebral palsy and periventricular leukomalacia. Seven children with spastic diplegia cerebral palsy and 8 controls underwent upper limb kinematics. Movement duration, average and maximum linear velocity, index of curvature, index of dystonia, and target accuracy and stability were analyzed. In the patients with spastic diplegia, Gross Motor Function and Manual Ability Classification Systems were determined, and spasticity and dystonia were rated using the Modified Ashworth and the Burke-Fahn-Marsden Dystonia scales respectively. Children with spastic diplegia demonstrated a tendency toward higher index of dystonia reflecting overflow, higher index of curvature, lower velocities, and poor target accuracy and stability. All patients showed clinical evidence of dystonia in the upper limbs. Dystonia scores correlated with the Manual Ability Classification System (r = 0.86, P = .01) and with the index of dystonia (r = 0.82, P = .02). Children with spastic diplegia cerebral palsy present dystonia in the upper limbs. This is functionally relevant and can be measured with kinematic analysis.
Do Voluntary Associations Show Their Bright or Dark Side Under Adverse Societal Shocks? Evidence From 9/11
Authors: Geys Benny
Published: August 2017

In this article, we reassess the relation between association membership and individuals’ feelings about immigrants, thereby focusing on possible shifts in this relation in the wake of negative societal shocks (i.e., the 9/11 terrorist attacks). That is, do such events tighten or loosen the connection between association membership and immigrant intolerance? Using repeated survey data from Flanders (Belgium), our results indicate that there is at best a weak overall connection between association membership and immigrant intolerance. The exception lies with members of socially embedded (or “connected”) associations, which tend to be significantly more tolerant toward immigrants. Interestingly, we find no significant change in the relationship between voluntary association membership and immigrant intolerance in the immediate aftermath of 9/11. This suggests that negative societal shocks have little direct impact on the membership-attitudes relation. The analysis contributes to discussions on the potential “bright” and “dark” sides of civic engagement.
Psychoanalytic sociology and the traumas of history
Authors: ffytche Matt
Published: August 2017

This article examines the way aspects of recent history were excluded in key studies emerging from psychoanalytic social psychology of the mid-20th century. It draws on work by Erikson, Marcuse and Fromm, but focuses in particular on Alexander Mitscherlich. Mitscherlich, a social psychologist associated with the later Frankfurt School, was also the most important psychoanalytic figure in postwar Germany. This makes his work significant for tracing ways in which historical experience of the war and Nazism was filtered out of psychosocial narratives in this period, in favour of more structural analyses of the dynamics of social authority. Mitscherlich’s 1967 work The Inability to Mourn, co-authored with Margarete Mitscherlich, is often cited as the point at which the ‘missing’ historical experience flooded back into psychoanalytic accounts of society. I argue that this landmark publication does not hail the shift towards the psychoanalysis of historical experience with which it is often associated. These more sociological writers of the mid-century were writing before the impact of several trends occurring in the 1980s–90s which decisively shifted psychoanalytic attention away from the investigation of social authority and towards a focus on historical trauma. Ultimately this is also a narrative about the transformations which occur when psychoanalysis moves across disciplines.
An investigation of lateral-directional departure behavior based on yawing–rolling coupled wind tunnel tests
Authors: Shen Lin , Huang Da , Wu Genxing
Published: August 2017

The traditional aerodynamic model based on the dynamic derivative tests and the [Formula: see text] model based on the yawing–rolling coupled motion tests are compared with respect to aerodynamic data, prediction of lateral-directional departure, and flight simulation. The study shows that the traditional model cannot fully reveal the unsteady aerodynamic characteristics and predict completely the departure behavior due to yaw–roll coupling. On the other hand, the [Formula: see text] model can reveal the departure behavior of an aircraft at some specific coupling ratios when the angle of attack reaches a critical value or more, using the aerodynamic data obtained from the yawing–rolling coupled wind tunnel tests. The comparison of flight simulation results shows that the lateral-directional departure is closely related to the coupling ratios, and for the investigated aircraft, the departure is mainly caused by the unsteady yawing and rolling moments at the coupling ratios showing unstable features.
Internet recruitment for sexually transmitted infection screening among men who have sex with men in Eastern Europe
Authors: Mangine Cara , Kukk Aigi , Noormets Helen , Jänes Jaak , Rüütel Kristi
Published: August 2017

Men who have sex with men (MSM) face negative health outcomes such as sexually transmitted infections (STIs) at disproportionate rates. Nonetheless, infections may be underestimated due to limited uptake in testing. To increase testing, screening interventions have been utilized in the past; however, some have resulted in limitations such as poor recruitment. To increase recruitment for screening of MSM in Estonia, two different recruitment strategies were examined. Recruitment was separated into two promotional periods: passive and active. Passive consisted of banners on gay-related sites, while active also placed banners on websites to the general public such as Facebook linked to specific thematic pages and users self-identifying as men. More men were recruited during the active period of five weeks (n = 134) than the passive period of 46 weeks (n = 126). Active promotion was so successful in that the number of home sampling kit orders far exceeded what was projected, forcing promotion to the general public to be closed after 13 days. Recruiting MSM through a combination of general public and gay-related websites and applications has the ability to quickly recruit for testing interventions. This method can recruit a large number in a short amount of time; therefore, a budget must be planned accordingly to support testing for all that participate.
Women’s Occupational Health: Resisting When We Can: Santé des femmes au travail: mobiliser quand c’est encore possible
Authors: Riel Jessica , Saint-Charles Johanne , Messing Karen
Published: August 2017

The continuing worldwide struggle for decent working conditions is under intense economic, social, and political pressures. Women are particularly affected by these pressures because of their still-tenuous position in the service sector, in lowprestige, low-paid occupations. In addition, their occupational health issues are often overlooked or minimized. Nevertheless, women continue to struggle, as individuals and collectively. This issue describes a number of instances where women in the Québec labor movement have attempted to reconcile equality concerns with protecting their own health. There are successes, failures, and puzzles.

Résumé

La lutte mondiale pour des conditions de travail décentes subit d’intenses pressions économiques, sociales et politiques. Les femmes sont particulièrement touchées par ces pressions à cause de leur situation encore fragile dans le secteur des services, dans des professions de faible prestige et salaire. De plus, leurs besoins en santé au travail sont souvent minimisés ou ignorés. Toutefois, les femmes continuent à résister, individuellement et collectivement. Ce numéro décrit un certain nombre d’exemples où des travailleuses militantes ont tenté de concilier leurs revendications d’égalité et d’accès au travail avec leur besoin de protéger leur santé.
Epidemiology and Synergistic Hepatopathology of Malaria and Hepatitis C Virus Coinfection
Authors: Nasir Idris Abdullahi , Yakubu Sa’adatu , Mustapha Jelili Olaide
Published: August 2017

Malaria and hepatitis C virus (HCV) infections are very common causes of human suffering with overlapping global geographic distributions. With the growing incidence of HCV infections in malaria-endemic zones and malaria in areas with exceptionally high HCV prevalence, coinfections and syndemism of both pathogens are likely to occur. However, studies of malaria and HCV coinfections are very rare despite the fact that liver-stage plasmodiasis and hepatitis C develop in hepatocytes which may synergistically interact. The fact that both pathogens share similar entry molecules or receptors in early invasive steps of hepatocytes further makes hepatopathologic investigations of coinfected hosts greatly important. This review sought to emphasize the public health significance of malaria/HCV coinfections and elucidate the mechanisms of pathogens’ entrance and invasion of susceptible host to improve on existing or develop antiplasmodial drugs and hepatitis C therapeutics that can intervene at appropriate stages of pathogens’ life cycles.
Closed-form solutions to the optimization of dynamic vibration absorber attached to multi-degrees-of-freedom damped linear systems under torsional excitation using the fixed-point theory
Authors: Vu Xuan-Truong , Nguyen Duy-Chinh , Khong Doan-Dien , Tong Van-Canh
Published: August 2017

Traditional design optimization of the Voigt-type dynamic vibration absorber often solved for the vertical or lateral vibration problems. However, for the damped primary system under torsional excitation, to the best of our knowledge, there is no study to solve this problem by algebraic approaches. This paper presents the analytical solutions to the optimization of dynamic vibration absorber, which is used to suppress torsional vibration of multi-degrees-of-freedom damped linear systems. The parameters considered in optimizing are dimensionless natural frequency of dynamic vibration absorber and viscous damping of absorber. First, the system equations of motion for shaft–dynamic vibration absorber system subjected to time-varying torsional moment were established. Then, closed-form formulae of optimized parameters were derived using the fixed-point theory. The obtained formulae provide exact solution for the proposed problem. To confirm the effectiveness of the obtained formulae, parametric studies on torsional vibration were performed for several sample multi-degrees-of-freedom systems with and without optimal dynamic vibration absorber. Numerical results showed that torsional vibrations of the primary system attached with optimal dynamic vibration absorber are effectively suppressed, even in the resonant conditions.
Building community, benefiting neighbors: “Buying local” by people who do not fit the mold for “ethical consumers”
Authors: Schoolman Ethan D.
Published: August 2017

According to nearly all studies, ethical consumption is a regular practice mainly of people who are well educated and politically active in conventional ways. Buying local has also recently been portrayed as part of an “eco-habitus” associated with ecological thinking, cultural capital, and the desire for more “authentic” things. In this article, I challenge both these notions. Specifically, drawing on Holt’s model of the relationship between cultural capital and consumption, I make two arguments. First, while relatively few people have access to robust local food systems, buying local by supporting businesses in general, and not just food producers, seen as rooted in regional economic and civic life, may be widespread even among people lacking in cultural capital, economic capital, or interest in conventional politics. Second, buying local among people who do not fit the mold of the “typical” ethical consumer is not consciously connected to concern for environmental problems. Rather, the buying local practiced by this understudied group is motivated by the desire to directly benefit community members and secure public goods such as good jobs, and safe streets. The findings of this article matter first for how social scientists understand who engages in buying local, as a form of ethical consumption. But this article also raises the question of what the real-world impacts of buying local might be, when some practitioners are relatively unguided by signals from social movement organizations and other entities that might establish firm criteria for what counts as “local” and what does not.
Fitness to drive in early dementia: A clinical ethics case
Authors: Hyslop Brent
Published: August 2017

A 90-year-old man is diagnosed with early dementia. There are concerns about whether he is still fit to drive his car safely, but he is determined to continue driving. In this case, the clinician finds that this decision on fitness to drive is essentially evaluative and normative. Given the conflict of interests involved, how should the clinician attempt to manage this challenging ethical dilemma? This increasingly common clinical ethics scenario warrants further attention. After presenting the case, this analysis will consider the relevant issues in three dimensions: an ethical dilemma, a clinician–patient interaction, and a broader context. This analysis provides a potential framework for clinicians making decisions on fitness to drive in early dementia.