bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Neuromuscular, cognitive and metabolic implications of McArdle Syndrome: a global overview
Authors: Vieira Lucas , Soares Rafaela , Felipe Stela , Moura Felipe , Pacheco Christina , Ceccatto VÃ¢nia , Soares Paula , Brito Gerly
Published: November 2015

Carbohydrates are the main source of body energy and they can be stored in the organism in form of glycogen and degraded when there is a need for energy. However, McArdle Syndrome patients exhibit problems to degrade glycogen due to a deficiency in myophosphorylase enzyme, making these patients intolerant to high intensity exercises because a lack of ATP available in muscle cells. It has been found muscular weakness and subsarcolemmal accumulation of glycogen in muscle fibers and in neuronal cells in McArdle Syndrome patients. In its later-onset form, it is associated to muscular dysmorphia, myoglobinuria and rhabdomyolisis. Analyzing the biochemical aspects, it is possible to notice that these patients have a low rate of ATP production due to a reduction in the availability of glucose, reducing oxidative phosphorylation. However, the metabolic â€œsecond windâ€ effect allows the use of other energy sources. Excessively decreased exercise-induced lactate is also characteristic of patients with McArdle Syndrome. Electromyography studies describe alterations in nerve conduction and the necessity of recruiting more motor units to contract muscle in these patients. McArdle Syndrome produces several metabolic changes in patients due to absence of myophophorylase activity. The practice of aerobic exercise acts positively in these patients probably by increasing mitochondrial metabolism.
Our Master’s Voice, the Practice of Melancholy, and Minor Sciences
Authors: Wolf-Meyer Matthew
Published: November 2015

How do scientists and experts in marginal scientific fields think about themselves, their knowledge production, and their practices in relation to dominant sciences? In this article, drawing on fieldwork with a group of Lacanian psychoanalysts, I argue that what motivates much of the training, practice, and thought of some contemporary psychoanalysts is their place as practicing a minor science in relation to dominant forms of psychiatry and neuroscience in the United States. They are exemplary marginalized experts who articulate themselves and their work against mainstream forms of neuroscientific and psychiatric expertise. I adopt the concept of minor sciences from Gilles Deleuze and Félix Guattari, who characterize them by their eminently political nature, their challenging of dominant sciences through intensive uses of language, and their disenfranchisement. Yet Deleuze and Guattari are relatively silent on the experiential qualities of practicing minor sciences. I turn to Sigmund Freud’s distinction of mourning and melancholia in relationship to lost objects, suggesting that one of the constituent components of minor sciences is a persistent state of melancholy related to the minor sciences’ struggling for relevance. Drawing on my fieldwork with a Lacanian community and their interest in who and what belongs to psychoanalytic thought, what threats endanger the status of psychoanalysis, and what is at stake in keeping psychoanalysis alive in the United States, I suggest that the power of melancholia proves vital to keeping minor sciences alive for marginalized experts.
Efficiency Of Technical And Tactical Approach To Teaching Minihandball Game Skills In Different Age Categories
Authors: Priklerová Silvia , Kucharik Ivan
Published: November 2015

The aim of the study was to verify the efficiency of a traditional (technical) approach and a tactical game based approach to teaching minihandball game skills the first- to fourth-grade elementary school pupils. The experimental design was two parallel-group trials. Experimental groups (EG) were taught by the tactical approach where modified and small-sided games comprised 80 % and drill-exercises 20 % of all the units. Control groups (CG) were taught by the technical approach where drill exercises comprised 70 % and modified and small-sided games 30 % of all the units. Two groups of first- and second-graders (EG n=16, CG n=17) and two groups of third- and fourth-graders (both EG and CG n=12) attending extracurricular activities oriented to minihandball participated in the study. The technique of offensive game skills (overarm pass, dribbling and shot) was evaluated by 1 to 5 scoring system. For statistical analysis, Wilcoxon’s T-test and Man-Whitney’s U-test were used and the level of significance was set to 5 %. Based on the results it can be stated that the tactical approach is as efficient as a technical approach on game skills’ technique acquirement. Results showed significant changes in the technique of game skills in both age categories (p<0.01). No significant differences between age categories were confirmed in game skill tests besides the dribbling test where the older experimental group (third- and fourth-graders) achieved better performance than the younger experimental group (first- and second-graders).
Modelling And Numerical Analysis Of Assembly System
Authors: Budniak Zbigniew
Published: November 2015

The present articles covers a concept of the creation and testing of assembly systems with the use of modern CAD and CAE systems on the example of an assembly system designed for joining parts with circular surfaces that are fitted with positive clearance. The numerical investigations were based on the constructed spatial skeleton pattern of the system. The purpose of the simulation tests was to determine the impact of the measurement and angular inaccuracies of all the elements of the assembly system as well as the inaccuracy of the positioning of the robot’s drives on the positioning accuracy of the parts joined taking into consideration the conditions of assembly in automatic assembly.
Antiplane Deformation Of A Bimaterial Containing An Interfacial Crack With The Account Of Friction 2. Repeating And Cyclic Loading
Authors: Sulym Heorhiy , Piskozub Lyubov , Piskozub Yosyf , Pasternak Iaroslav
Published: November 2015

The paper presents the exact solution of the antiplane problem for an inhomogeneous bimaterial with the interface crack exposed to the normal load and cyclic loading by a concentrated force in the longitudinal direction. Using discontinuity function method the problem is reduced to the solution of singular integral equations for the displacement and stress discontinuities at the domains with sliding friction. The paper provides the analysis of the effect of friction and loading parameters on the size of these zones. Hysteretic behaviour of the stress and displacement discontinuities in these domains is observed.
Smoking Habits of Children Institutionalized in Family Care Homes in Mures and Harghita County
Authors: Lorand Ferencz , Hajnal Finta , Lorand Schmidt , Iosif Balint , Valentin Nadasan , Zoltan Abram
Published: November 2015

Background: Smoking is a problem of the modern world and annually produces more victims, and due to ignorance and lack of health education in our country the disease diagnosis is made at an advanced stage. Many studies show that, young people aged between 10 and 18 are smokers and start smoking at an increasingly early age.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to assess the smoking habits of institutionalized children in family care homes from Harghita and Mures county.

Methods: The method chosen was a sociological survey based on questionnaires. Our study included 254 children institutionalized in family care homes in Mures county and 254 children from Harghita county. Statistical analysis was performed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences.

Results: A statistically significant difference was obtained analyzing the number of smokers from the group of children under 12 years in Mures compared to the Harghita county. More than half of children smoked their first cigarette after they entered in family care homes in both counties and the most common setting in which the children were smoking was when being together with their friends.

Conclusions: In Mures county the number of smokers under the age of 12 was significantly higher than in Harghita county. Despite the educational classes and institutional regulations of smoking, more than half of children smoke. The decisive role in testing of smoking are the friends. Due to the very high number of underage smokers, the prevention and education hours have an unquestionable importance.
Knee Arthroplasty: With or Without Patellar Component?
Authors: Árpád Sólyom , Ildikó Király , Csaba Benedek , Csongor Fülöp , Örs Nagy , Tiberiu Băţagă
Published: November 2015

Arthroplasty is used when there is irreversible damage to the articular cartilage of the knee. It involves implanting a bicompartimental (femoral and tibial components) or a tricompartimental (femoral, tibial and patellar components) prosthesis. It is a very invasive and costly operation, so our objective was to evaluate the necessity of the patellar component.

Material and methods: During our study we’ve included 39 patients: in 27 cases we used tricompartimental prosthesis, while the other 12 received only the bicompartimental components. Patients were evaluated preoperatively and postoperatively using the International Knee Documentation Comitee score. We’ve also compared our results with the results of other published authors.

Results: We’ve found that there is little to no difference between the two groups regarding mobility and complication, however patients with bicompartimentalarthroplasty complained of less pain.

Conclusion: We’ve found that bicompartimentalarthroplasty – being a less invasive procedure – is better not only in terms of pain management, but there is also less hemorrhaging, shorter intraoperative time is considered, revision is easier and also has financially advantages, both for the patient and for the medical facility.
Is There a Risk Factor More Responsible for Disaster?
Authors: Cosmin Carasca , Adrian Muresan Vasile , Ioan Tilea , Annamaria Magdas , Emilian Carasca , Alexandru Incze
Published: November 2015

Background: Risk factors for peripheral arterial disease are generally the same as those responsible for the ischemic heart disease and in both cases are overlapping risk factors involved in the etiology of atherosclerosis, such as smoking, dyslipidemia, diabetes and hypertension.

Case report: We present a case of a 61 years old male, whose ischemic peripheral symptoms began in 2003, at the age of 49, presenting as a Leriche syndrome. The patient was subjected to first revascularization procedure consisting in aortic-bifemoral grafting in the same year. General examination revealed no risk factors except smoking. Only a year after, he returns with critical right lower limb ischemia due to bypass thrombosis, therefore two thrombectomies were performed followed by a right side femoro-popliteal bypassing with Dacron prosthesis. The patient’s condition was good until 2008 when a femoro-popliteal bypass using inverted autologus saphenous vein was imposed due to occlusion of the previous graft. In 2013 the patient was readmitted to hospital with left lower limb critical ischemia. A femoro-popliteal bypass was performed, followed by two thrombectomies and the amputation of the left thigh. Up to this date, the patient kept smoking.

Discussions: Although our patient has a low/medium risk level of atherosclerosis by Framingham score and a minimum Prevent III score, all the surgical revascularization procedures were not able to avoid the amputation.

Conclusions: There are enough reasons to believe that smoking as a single risk factor can strongly influence the unfavorable progression to amputation in patients with peripheral arterial disease.
Clinical and Psychological Correlations between Job Loss and Depressive Experience
Authors: Melinda Ferencz , Elena-Ramona Irimia , Elena Buicu Gabriela , Theodor Moica , Cristian Gabos Grecu , Claudia Sabău Daniela , Iosif Gabos Grecu
Published: November 2015

Introduction: Stressful life events have a negative effect on mental health. Job loss is an event with a psychotraumatic character. Identification of the main sources of stress faced by the individual is essential in the management of depression.

Objective: The aim of this study was to identify the main risk factors that play a role in the onset and maintenance of depression.

Material and methods: we made a prosepctive study including 68 outpatients aged over 18, recently diagnosed with Major Depressive Disorder (MDD), without psychotic features, with initiated antidepressant treatment, being in evidence of First Clinic of Psychiatry Tirgu-Mures, between 01.01.2013-31.12.2013. To assess the severity of depression and to measure the antidepressant treatment efficacy we used Hamilton Depression Scale (HAM-D17) at study onset, respectively at endpoint. The parameters followed were: HAM-D17 score, response to treatment, the mean number of hospitalizations in a year.

Results: The group included 82.35% women and 17.65% men, mostly from urban areas, aged between 35 and 68, with a HAM-D17 score between 24 and 27. The major stressful life events inventory shows that 20.58 % of the patients were unemployed. The observed effects were more extensive in men.

Conclusions: How stressful life events exert their influence on mood is complex. The onset of depression often seems to coincide with a stressful event, although sometimes the event is only the revelator of an episode ready to trigger. The findings indicate the need of prevention politics for relapse of the disease, which is a disadvantage regarding the re-employment.
Arylsulfatase A: An Important Metabolic Factor in Pathophysiology of Different Diseases
Authors: Zsolt Kovacs , Robert Tripon , Eniko Nemes Nagy , Victor Balogh Samarghitan , Mariana Tilinca , Orsolya Martha , Zita Fazakas
Published: November 2015

Arylsulfatase A (ARSA) is a lysosomal enzyme that plays an important role in catalysis of degradation of cerebrosidesulphate. The deficiency of this lysosomal enzyme causes an autosomal recessive disorder, called metachromatic leucodystrophy. However, a low ARSA activity can be observed in clinically healthy people, called ARSA pseudodeficiency. In our study we investigated the possible linkage between ARSA activity and sulfatide deficiency causing characteristic aspects of degenerative diseases, such as end stage kidney disease, type 2 Diabetes mellitus, Parkinson syndrome, prostate cancer and HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus) infection. We used a spectrophotometric method to determine the activity of ARSA. This method of enzyme dosage is based on a 4 hour long hydrolysis of the ARSA enzyme on 4-nitrocatechol sulfate (p-NCS) substrate. The unit of this measurement is nmol/ml/4h. Our findings show significant values in type 2 diabetes, Parkinson syndrome and chronic kidney disease. The importance of sulfatide in these diseases is well-known, thus presumably the variation of the ARSA’s activity might play an important role in the pathophysiology of these diseases, involving a vicious cycle between sulfatide degradation andthese diseases.
Is NAFLD a Risk Factor for Colorectal Polyps? An Analysis of Single Romanian Centre
Authors: Bela Kozma , Crina Pop , Madalina Petrut , Silvia Drasovean , Daniela Dobru
Published: November 2015

Background and Aim: Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is considered to be the most common of all liver disorders, and its prevalence is almost certainly increasing. Because of the presence of NAFLD in metabolic syndrome and of latter’s role in the appearance of colorectal polyps, many studies have tried to find a link between the liver disease and colorectal polyps. The aim of the study was to determine whether NAFLD is a risk factor for colorectal polyps.

Material and Methods: We examined 560 patients diagnosed with NAFLD who underwent colonoscopy at Mures County Hospital, between January 2011 and June 2014. Fatty liver disease was assessed by abdominal ultrasound, with NAFLD defined as fatty liver disease in the absence of alcohol use of > 40 g/week or other secondary causes. We divided the 560 patients into two groups, according to the presence or absence of polyps. Data were collected from patient’s history, physical exam, laboratory tests and abdominal ultrasound.

Results: The prevalence of colorectal polyps was 16.6% (93) in the NAFLD patients. 51 (54.8%) of them were female, and the Chi2 test identified a statistically significant association between the female gender and the appearance of polyps (p=0.028; OR=1.652; CI= 1.052-2.596). No statistical association was found between the smoking status and the development of colorectal polyps (p=0.245) and only 18 of 93 patients were smokers. Of 93 patients with polyps, 68 (73.1%) have associated diabetes mellitus, but without statistical correlation (p=0.214). According to family history of colorectal polyps none of the patients have data about a possible polyposis pathology.

Conclusions: Our study demonstrates a relationship between some characteristics of NAFLD and the development of colorectal polyps. Further studies are required to confirm whether NAFLD is a risk factor for the appearance of polyps.
First Study of the Prosthesis Indication Deafnesses in Mureș County
Authors: Gabriel Lostun , Alexandra Lostun , Klara Brînzaniuc
Published: November 2015

Objective: The aim of this study was to asses the frequency of the deafness pathology in the Ear, Nose and Throath Clinic of the Emergency County Hospital in Tîrgu Mureș and two other private institutions that have an ear linked profile, with a special interest on those with indication for prosthesis. This is a pilot study, being conceived as a part of a larger one used to measure the number of possible cochlear implant recipients nationwide.

Methods: We gathered data from the interval 2011-2013, including in the study all the patients for which an audiometry testing was performed in this time interval. This was followed by a process of selection/exclusion applied to the original group in order to obtain significant statistical data.

Results: The most important part of the study was to quantify the different types of hypoaccusia and the relative number of candidates for various prosthesys available these days.

Conclusions: This study quantifies the rising need for hearing prosthesis and triggers a signal.
Identification of Unbalanced Aberrations in the Genome of Equine Sarcoid Cells Using CGH Technique
Authors: Bugno-Poniewierska Monika , Staroń Beata , Potocki Leszek , Gurgul Artur , Wnuk Maciej
Published: November 2015

Sarcoid is the most common skin cancer in horses. The etiology of the tumor is associated with BPV infection (BPV-1, -2, -13), which is an inducer of malignant transformation. The comparative genomic hybridization (CGH) technique identifying the unbalanced chromosome aberrations was used to analyze the genome of equine sarcoid cells and to diagnose the chromosome rearrangements involving large deletions or amplification. The results were based on the analysis of 100 metaphases and their karyograms as well as the diagram showing the average ratio of the intensity of the green to red fluorescence, using MetaSystems software (Isis). Based on a comparison of the fluorescence intensity ratios we found duplication in the subtelomeric regions of chromosome pairs 1, 4, 7, 8 and 23. Duplicated region of chromosome pair 1 also included the coding region of the rDNA. In the chromosome 23 next to the duplication occurring in the centromeric region of q arm (23q11) we also found the presence of deletions involving 23q18-23q19 region. For the chromosome pairs 25 to 31 and the X chromosome the software failed to generate CGH diagram, but on the individual karyograms we were able to observe fluorescence signals characteristic of duplication (red), in rDNA regions of chromosome pairs 28 and 31. The study showed that duplications of DNA present in the sarcoid cells are found mainly in the telomeric and rDNA regions. The presence of the duplication of telomeric regions is associated with increased activity of the telomerase enzyme, which is a hallmark of cancer cells, affecting the immortality of these cells. Accordingly, duplications of rDNA coding regions increase activity of nucleolar organizer region which is a tumor marker.
Muranów als Ruine: Zeitschichten der Erinnerung im Nachkriegs-Warschau
Authors: Meng Michael
Published: November 2015

In 1945, Warsaw’s prewar Jewish district, Muranów, lay in ruins. Almost no physical sites of Warsaw’s once rich Jewish history remained standing after the Holocaust. How have the residents of Warsaw – mostly non-Jews – dealt with the memories of this obliterated and ruined space? This article discusses from 1945 to the present several important attempts among largely non-Jewish Poles to remember and reflect upon the history of Warsaw’s Jewish past in the district of Muranów. Even though the tendency has in general been to forget, efforts to remember the Nazi past have surfaced during the last decades. The essay therefore suggests that the postwar history of memory in Warsaw may be thought of not in linear terms but rather in terms of multiple layers of memories that interact in complex ways over time.
The Home-Spun Memorial: Contemporary Commemorative Practices in the Netherlands
Authors: van Pelt Robert Jan
Published: November 2015

In den letzten Jahren haben sich in den Niederlanden neue Praktiken des Holocaust-Gedenkens etabliert. Dies gilt sowohl für die analoge als auch für die digitale Welt. Ein frühes derartiges Projekt war etwa das digitale »Denkmal der jüdischen Gemeinden in den Niederlanden«. Dabei handelt es sich um eine umfang reiche Datenbank mit Informationen zu Namen, den letzten Wohnorten sowie Daten der Verhaftung und Deportation der niederländischen Holocaust-Opfer. Um den Verlust sichtbar zu machen, wird am 4. Mai, dem jährlichen Gedenktag für die Toten des Zweiten Weltkrieges, an Häusern und Wohnungen mit Plakaten an die einstigen jüdischen Bewohner erinnert. In einigen Häusern finden Veranstaltungen statt, so berichten etwa Überlebende über das jüdische Leben von vor, während und nach dem Holocaust. Dieses Projekt wird als Ausdruck einer sich wandelnden Erinnerungskultur untersucht.
On the occurrence of three red algal species new to the Mediterranean Sea in Al-Hoceima National Park (Morocco)
Authors: Moussa Hanaa , Wynne Michael J. , Hassoun Mustapha , Salhi Ghizlane , Zbakh Hanaa , Kazzaz Mohamed , Riadi Hassane
Published: November 2015

The occurrence in Morocco of three species of red algae new to the Mediterranean Sea is reported: Polysiphonia havanensis sensu Børgesen (Ceramiales, Rhodomelaceae), Diplothamnion jolyi (Ceramiales, Wrangeliaceae), and Champia compressa (Rhodymeniales, Champiaceae). All were collected in Al-Hoceima National Park, a protected area of the Mediterranean coast of Morocco.
Going beyond motion events typology: The case of Basque as a verb-framed language
Authors: Ibarretxe-Antuñano Iraide
Published: November 2015

The concept of motion is present in all the world’s languages. However, the ways in which speakers of different languages codify motion do not seem to be so universal. Languages offer different types of structures to express motion, and speakers pay attention to different elements within the motion event. The goal of this paper is to examine in great detail how motion events are described and expressed in Basque oral and written narratives. This study focuses on three main areas: motion verbs, elaboration of Manner and elaboration of Path. Although Basque can be classified in Talmy’s terms as a verb-framed language, it is argued that it is not a prototypical example of this group with respect to the lexicalisation of Path. Unlike other verb-framed languages, the description of Path in Basque motion events is very frequent and detailed, not only in situations when it adds new information, but also in pleonastic cases. This characteristic seems to be related to Basque’s rich lexical resources for motion and space, as well as to its high tolerance for verb omission. On the basis of these data, the scope of Talmy’s binary typology is questioned. It is suggested that the verb- and satellite-framed language typology should be revised in order to account for these intra-typological differences.
The interaction of vowel quality and pharyngeals in Sephardic Modern Hebrew
Authors: Pariente Itsik
Published: November 2015

This paper examines the complex interactions between pharyngeals and vowel quality in Sephardic Modern Hebrew. Phonetically similar to low vowels, gutturals in general and pharyngeals in particular tend to trigger vowel lowering and epenthesis of low vowels. Sephardic Modern Hebrew exhibits multiple strategies in order to avoid the proximity of non-low vowels to pharyngeals. The language processes take into account several factors, including the syllabic position of the pharyngeal (onset or coda), prosody (stress) and lexical category (nouns vs. verbs).
Lycian nasalized preterites revisited
Authors: Adiego Ignasi-Xavier
Published: November 2015

A new hypothesis for the distribution of nasalized and non-nasalized preterites in Lycian is proposed. This hypothesis allows us to trace, in a straightforward way, the appearance of the nasalized preterites.
Germanic goblins and the Indo-European fireplace
Authors: Kerkhof Peter Alexander
Published: November 2015

In this article the etymology of the Modern German word Kobold ‘house spirit’ and its cognates is revised. It is argued that the Germanic root *kub- meaning ‘hut, small chamber’ which consitutes the first element of Modern German Kobold, is a loan from the Latin/Romance group of words deriving from Lat. cubīle, cubīculum. This Romance element may have replaced an earlier PGm. *gub- meaning ‘fire’, attested in Old Norse gufa ‘vapour, steam’, which goes back to the PIE root *ghu̯obh-. This theory is supported by French gobelin where the initial *g- is easily explained from Germanic *g-. The second element of the compound should be identified with the source of Finnish haltija ‘house spirit’ which derives from Gm. *haldija-. The compound was therefore Gm. *gub-haldija- and referred to the house spirit as the keeper of the fire, a concept well-known from Northern European folklore.
Strengthening emotional and social competence: undergraduate health professions students / Stärkung emotionaler und sozialer Kompetenzen bei Bachelorstudierenden in Gesundheitsberufen
Authors: Waite Roberta , McKinney Nicole , Sahl Michelle , Nguyen Phi , Fox Alecia Schneider
Published: November 2015

Emotional and social competencies are important skills to cultivate in developing leaders. This study examined pre-post findings from the Hay Group Emotional and Social Competence Inventory among 18 undergraduate students enrolled in a leadership programme while they concurrently completed their traditional academic courses. Correlations and paired t-tests were conducted using Statistical Package of Social Sciences 20.0 for data analysis. Statistical significance was found in students’ self-assessed functional behaviour in a number of competencies - emotional self-awareness, positive outlook, empathy, organisational awareness, coach and mentor, systems thinking, and pattern recognition. Pedagogical strategies that intentionally focus on development of emotional and social competencies aid in students’ abilities to understand, internalise, and make use of skills essential to a variety of leadership roles, specifically, how they are able to relate effectively with others. Graduating students who are better prepared to serve in leadership roles - on teams and in the community are an investment in the future of healthcare.
Manipulation in Spanish and American pre-election political debates: The Rajoy–Rubalcaba vs. Obama–McCain debates
Authors: Cabrejas-Peñuelas Ana B.
Published: November 2015

In this paper, we make a comparative analysis of two pre-electoral debates belonging to two different traditions – the 2011 Rajoy–Rubalcaba debate and the first 2008 Obama–McCain debate – in terms of the manipulative processes used. For that purpose, we compare the similarities and differences in the use of the genre contributing to manipulation in the two debate traditions. Also, we identify the manipulative devices employed following
The Role of Catheter Ablation of Ventricular Tachycardias in the Treatment of Patients with Electrical Storm
Authors: Hendriks Astrid , Szili-Török Tamás
Published: November 2015

Electrical storm due to the development of repetitive sustained ventricular tachycardias (VT) is a potentially life-threatening clinical entity. Acute catheter ablation can be lifesaving. Electrical storm (ES) can be characterized as a period of severe cardiac electrical instability manifested by recurrent ventricular arrhythmias. ES adversely affects short and long term prognosis. The highest mortality risk is in the first 3 months after the occurrence of the index event as shown by the AVID trial. The appearance of a ventricular tachycardia (VT) storm is associated with a rather high mortality despite the presence of an internal cardioverter defibrillator. Catheter ablation (CA) in VT storm is evolving as a standard of care therapy. The increased utilization of CA is partly driven by data suggesting that ICD shocks may be associated with increased mortality, partly due to the limited possibilities and adverse events of medical therapy. The aim of this review is to summarize recent advances in CA of VTs in emergency setting.
The Value of Angio CT Multislice for Pre-operative Assessment and Prediction of Post PCI Successful Intervention in Acute Coronary Syndromes Associated by Left Main Disease
Authors: Blendea Ciprian , Kovács István , Bărcan Andreea , Nyulas Tiberiu , Chițu Monica
Published: November 2015

Introduction: The location of culprit lesions on the left main is associated with an increased procedural risk in acute coronary syndromes. Our study aims to evaluate the utility of CT angiography determined Syntax score (CCTA) in comparison with the classical angiographic Syntax score for predicting the procedural success in percutaneous coronary interventions (PCI) of left main lesions.

Methods: We included 23 patients presenting to the Cardiology Clinic with an acute coronary syndrome. All patients underwent coronary angiography ± angio CT multisclice for assessment of the target lesion, defined as a significant (>50%) left main disease. Patient population consisted in: group 1 – 13 patients (56.52%), in whom revascularization indication was based on lesion severity assessment by CCTA score correlated with the angio Syntax score (SS), and group 2 – 10 patients (43.48%), in whom revascularization indication was based only on angio SS. According to the SS, the study population was divided into subgroup A – low SS (<22), subgroup B – intermediate SS (23–32) and subgroup C –high SS (>32). All patients were followed for 1 year.

Results: Despite similar SS in both groups (35.38 in group 1 vs. 32.4 in group 2), the use of Angio CT multislice increased the rate of PCI indication – 76.92% PCI in group 1 versus 50% PCI in group 2. In patients with high SS, PCI rate was 66.66% in group 1 compared with 50% in group 2 (p<0.05). High calcium score >100 was recorded in 50% of patients in the low SS subgroup (<22), 50% in the medium SS subgroup (23–32) and 22.22% in the high SS (>33) subgroup. One-year follow-up showed an overall mortality of 8.69%, slightly higher in group 2 (10%), as compared to group 1 (mortality of 7.69%).

Conclusions: Additional evaluation by angio CT of culprit left main stenoses in acute coronary syndromes provides more information about the complexity of atherosclerotic plaques in this location, and could be extremely useful in establishing the indication for PCI in high risk stenoses, showing a predictive significance for post-procedural 1 year follow up mortality.
Effect of Artemisia annua L. essential oil on toxicity, enzyme activities, and energy reserves of cotton bollworm Helicoverpa armigera (Hübner) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae)
Authors: Mojarab-Mahboubkar Malahat , Sendi Jalal Jalali , Aliakbar Alireza
Published: November 2015

The essential oil of Artemisia annua L., a weed collected from northern Iran, was studied for its toxicity and physiological aspects on 4th instar larva of the cotton bollworm Helicoverpa armigera Hübner in controlled conditions (26±1°C, 65±10% RH and 16 L : : 8 D h). The artificial diet was used as a medium for investigating the toxicity and the effect of LC10, LC30, LC50, and LC90on the feeding efficiency of 4th instar larva. The essential oil in doses of LC10, LC30, LC50, and LC90were estimated to be 2.01%, 3.86%, 6.07%, and 18.34%, respectively. The activity of α-amylase, protease, lipase, general esterases, and glutathione S-transferase and protein, triglyceride, glucose for treated larva were measured. The results showed that all of these parameters were decreased compared with the control. Hence, A. annua essential oil is suggested as a botanical for controlling this important pest of field crops.
Exploratory Study: Stress, Coping and Support among Parents of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders
Authors: Nolcheva Meri , Trajkovski Vladimir
Published: November 2015

: Each year more families are confronted with unique challenges related to raising a child with ASD. Parenting stress is a significant aspect of fulfilling the role as a parent, and having a child with ASD greatly influences the experienced stress. The literature review indicates that parenting stress is inversely proportional to family support and coping mechanisms.

Appraising the stress level among parents of children with ASD, the coping mechanisms and the level of family support, in comparison with parents of children diagnosed with ID.

: A group of parents of children with ASD (N=35) and a second group of children with ID (N=35) completed four question-nnaires: PSI-SF, Brief COPE, FSS and demographic questionnaire. The data was analyzed using t-test for comparison, Chi-square test for comparing frequency distributions and Pearson coefficient for correlation, with

: Parenting stress did not differ between the two groups. The coping mechanisms used by the parents of children with ASD showed that increased usage of distraction (

: There are no differences in the level of stress, coping mechanisms and the level of support comparing parents of children with ASD and ID.
Data-Driven Reversible Jump for QTL Mapping
Authors: Zuanetti Daiane Aparecida , Milan Luis Aparecido
Published: November 2015

We propose a birth–death–merge data-driven reversible jump (DDRJ) for multiple-QTL mapping where the phenotypic trait is modeled as a linear function of the additive and dominance effects of the unknown QTL genotypes. We compare the performance of the proposed methodology, usual reversible jump (RJ) and multiple-interval mapping (MIM), using simulated and real data sets. Compared with RJ, DDRJ shows a better performance to estimate the number of QTLs and their locations on the genome mainly when the QTLs effect is moderate, basically as a result of better mixing for transdimensional moves. The inclusion of a merge step of consecutive QTLs in DDRJ is efficient, under tested conditions, to avoid the split of true QTL’s effects between false QTLs and, consequently, selection of the wrong model. DDRJ is also more precise to estimate the QTLs location than MIM in which the number of QTLs need to be specified in advance. As DDRJ is more efficient to identify and characterize QTLs with smaller effect, this method also appears to be useful and brings contributions to identifying single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) that usually have a small effect on phenotype.
A floristic survey of angiosperm species occurring at three landscapes of the Central Amazon várzea, Brazil
Authors: Luize Bruno Garcia , Venticinque Eduardo Martins , Silva Thiago Sanna Freire , Novo Evlyn Marcia Leão de Moraes
Published: November 2015

The Amazonian floodplains harbor highly diverse wetland forests, with angiosperms adapted to survive extreme floods and droughts. About 14% of the Amazon Basin is covered by floodplains, which are fundamental to river productivity, biogeochemical cycling and trophic flow, and have been subject to human occupation since Pre-Colombian times. The botanical knowledge about these forests is still incomplete, and current forest degradation rates are much higher than the rate of new botanical surveys. Herein we report the results of three years of botanical surveys in floodplain forests of the Central Amazon. This checklist contains 432 tree species comprising 193 genera and 57 families. The most represented families are Fabaceae, Myrtaceae, Lauraceae, Sapotaceae, Annonaceae, and Moraceae representing 53% of the identified species. This checklist also documents the occurrence of approximately 236 species that have been rarely recorded as occurring in white-water floodplain forests.
Auditory speaker discrimination by forensic phoneticians and naive listeners in voiced and whispered speech
Authors: Bartle Anna , Dellwo Volker
Published: November 2015

In whispered speech some important cues to a speaker's identity (e.g. fundamental frequency, intonation) are inevitably absent. In the present study we investigated listeners’ ability to discriminate between speakers in short utterances in voiced and whispered speech. The performances of a group of 11 forensic phoneticians and a group of 22 naive listeners were compared in a binary forced-choice speaker discrimination task, with 48 same-speaker and 60 different-speaker pairs of short speech samples (? 3 s) in each test. Listeners were asked to say whether the two voice samples in each pair were produced by the same or different speakers, and to give a certainty rating. The results showed that speaker discrimination is more difficult in whispered than in voiced speech, and that while the phoneticians were only slightly better than the naive listeners in voiced speech, the gap widened in whispered speech. Phoneticians were more cautious in their responses, but also more accurate than naive listeners. When unsure, the phoneticians tended to say two utterances came from different speakers, whereas naive listeners tended to say two utterances came from the same speaker. Results support the view that trained phoneticians may have an advantage over naive listeners in auditory speaker discrimination when the signal is degraded.
Muti Music - In search of suspicion
Authors: Pavlicevic Mercédès , Cripps Charlotte
Published: November 2015

Our playful title, "Muti Music", emblematises our stance of deliberate and cultivated suspicion towards medical ethnomusicology, for this special issue. Positioned within and between music therapy, medical anthropology and ethnomusicology, this paper considers how these disciplinary discourses and practices might engage with Medical Ethnomusicology, and what that prism might offer music therapy in particular. Muti Music proposes messy hybridity, which we suggest reflects the social-cultural and cosmological fusions necessary for contemporary practices whether in, or of, the South, East, North or West. Straddling the South and the Global North, we propose that Western (and at times bio-medically informed) healing and health practices might well consider reclaiming and re-sourcing their own, and other, traditional and indigenous healing cosmologies, whatever their respective and situated ideologies and ontologies. Despite apparent (and possibly intellectual and ideological) segmentations and separations of disciplines by Western scholarship and economics, we propose that "the ancestors" and "the aspirin" need to embrace rather than view one another with suspicion. Just possibly, each might become enriched (and discomforted) by the silenced coincidences of one another’s desires to know and experience our common humanity through music.
Music Healing Rituals in Thailand
Authors: Binson Bussakorn
Published: November 2015

This paper discusses the music healing rituals from North, Northeast and Southern Thailand. In general, these healing rituals bring together supportive elements from the family, the community and spiritual entities with the shaman as a conductor. Shaman utilizes music in corporate the community as a whole including elicits the support from the spiritual entitles. Traditional music healing process played the role as enticement to recruit spirits, distract the patients from experiencing unpleasant in their body. Even in today’s modern society these healing rituals have persisted, as they are inseparable from these regions’ animistic beliefs system.
Rotational assessment of distal femur and its relevance in total knee arthroplasty: analysis by magnetic resonance imaging
Authors: Loures Fabricio Bolpato , Furtado Neto Sebastião , Pinto Robson de Lima , Kinder André , Labronici Pedro José , Góes Rogério Franco de Araújo , Marchiori Edson
Published: November 2015

AbstractObjective:To define the distal femur rotation pattern in a Brazilian population, correlating such pattern with the one suggested by the arthroplasty instruments, and analyzing the variability of each anatomic parameter.Materials and Methods:A series of 101 magnetic resonance imaging studies were evaluated in the period between April and June 2012. The epidemiological data collection was performed with the aid of the institution's computed imaging system, and the sample included 52 male and 49 female patients. The measurements were made in the axial plane, with subsequent correlation and triangulation with the other plans. The posterior condylar line was used as a reference for angle measurements. Subsequently, the anatomical and surgical transepicondylar axes and the anteroposterior trochlear line were specified. The angles between the reference line and the studied lines were calculated with the aid of the institution's software.Results:The mean angle between the anatomical transepicondylar axis and the posterior condylar line was found to be 6.89°, ranging from 0.25° to 12°. For the surgical transepicondylar axis, the mean value was 2.89°, ranging from –2.23° (internal rotation) to 7.86°, and for the axis perpendicular to the anteroposterior trochlear line, the mean value was 4.77°, ranging from –2.09° to 12.2°.Conclusion:The anatomical transepicondylar angle showed mean values corresponding to the measurement observed in the Caucasian population. The utilized instruments are appropriate, but no anatomical parameter proved to be steady enough to be used in isolation.
Readjustment of abdominal computed tomography protocols in a university hospital: impact on radiation dose
Authors: Romano Ricardo Francisco Tavares , Salvadori Priscila Silveira , Torres Lucas Rios , Bretas Elisa Almeida Sathler , Bekhor Daniel , Caldana Rogério Pedreschi , Medeiros Regina Bitelli , D'Ippolito Giuseppe
Published: November 2015

AbstractObjective:To assess the reduction of estimated radiation dose in abdominal computed tomography following the implementation of new scan protocols on the basis of clinical suspicion and of adjusted images acquisition parameters.Materials and Methods:Retrospective and prospective review of reports on radiation dose from abdominal CT scans performed three months before (group A – 551 studies) and three months after (group B – 788 studies) implementation of new scan protocols proposed as a function of clinical indications. Also, the images acquisition parameters were adjusted to reduce the radiation dose at each scan phase. The groups were compared for mean number of acquisition phases, mean CTDIvol per phase, mean DLP per phase, and mean DLP per scan.Results:A significant reduction was observed for group B as regards all the analyzed aspects, as follows: 33.9%, 25.0%, 27.0% and 52.5%, respectively for number of acquisition phases, CTDIvol per phase, DLP per phase and DLP per scan (p < 0.001).Conclusion:The rational use of abdominal computed tomography scan phases based on the clinical suspicion in conjunction with the adjusted images acquisition parameters allows for a 50% reduction in the radiation dose from abdominal computed tomography scans.
Sonographic diagnosis of carpal tunnel syndrome: a study in 200 hospital workers
Authors: Castro Adham do Amaral e , Skare Thelma Larocca , Nassif Paulo Afonso Nunes , Sakuma Alexandre Kaue , Barros Wagner Haese
Published: November 2015

AbstractObjective:To describe the prevalence of carpal tunnel syndrome in a sample of 200 healthy hospital workers, establishing the respective epidemiological associations.Materials and Methods:Two hundred individuals were submitted to wrist ultrasonography to measure the median nerve area. They were questioned and examined for epidemiological data, body mass index, carpal tunnel syndrome signs and symptoms, and submitted to the Boston carpal tunnel questionnaire (BCTQ) to evaluate the carpal tunnel syndrome severity. A median nerve area ≥ 9 mm2 was considered to be diagnostic of carpal tunnel syndrome.Results:Carpal tunnel syndrome was diagnosed by ultrasonography in 34% of the sample. It was observed the association of carpal tunnel syndrome with age (p < 0.0001), paresthesia (p < 0.0001), Tinel's test (p < 0.0001), Phalen's test (p< 0.0001), BCTQ score (p < 0.0001), and years of formal education (p < 0.0001). Years of formal education was the only variable identified as an independent risk factor for carpal tunnel syndrome (95% CI = 1.03 to 1.24).Conclusion:The prevalence of carpal tunnel syndrome in a population of hospital workers was of 34%. The number of years of formal education was the only independent risk factor for carpal tunnel syndrome.
Radiological findings of pulmonary tuberculosis in indigenous patients in Dourados, MS, Brazil
Authors: Lachi Tatiana , Nakayama Mauro
Published: November 2015

AbstractObjective:To describe the radiological findings of pulmonary tuberculosis in indigenous patients from the city of Dourados, MS, Brazil, according to age and sex.Materials and Methods:Chest radiographic images of 81 patients with pulmonary tuberculosis, acquired in the period from 2007 to 2010, were retrospectively analyzed by two radiologists in consensus for the presence or absence of changes. The findings in abnormal radiographs were classified according to the changes observed and they were correlated to age and sex. The data were submitted to statistical analysis.Results:The individuals' ages ranged from 1 to 97 years (mean: 36 years). Heterogeneous consolidations, nodules, pleural involvement and cavities were the most frequent imaging findings. Most patients (55/81 or 67.9%) were male, and upper lung and right lung were the most affected regions. Fibrosis, heterogeneous consolidations and involvement of the left lung apex were significantly more frequent in males (p < 0.05). Presence of a single type of finding at radiography was most frequent in children (p < 0.05).Conclusion:Based on the hypothesis that indigenous patients represent a population without genetically determined resistance to tuberculosis, the present study may enhance the knowledge about how the pulmonary form of this disease manifests in susceptible individuals.
Associações entre Sinais Precoces de Autismo, Atenção Compartilhada e Atrasos no Desenvolvimento Infantil
Authors: Zaqueu Livia da Conceição Costa , Teixeira Maria Cristina Triguero Veloz , Alckmin-Carvalho Felipe , Paula Cristiane Silvestre de
Published: November 2015

RESUMOOs Transtornos do Espectro do Autismo (TEA) costumam comprometer o funcionamento adaptativo e desenvolvimento psicossocial na infância. O objetivo deste estudo foi buscar associações entre: sinais precoces dos TEA, falhas na atenção compartilhada-AC e atrasos de desenvolvimento. Participaram do estudo 92 crianças (16-24 meses) de cinco creches de Barueri-SP. Instrumentos utilizados: Development Screening Test-DENVER-II (desenvolvimento neuropsicomotor), Modified Checklist for Autism in Toddlers-M-CHAT (sinais precoces de TEA), Pictorial Infant Communication Scales-PICS(comunicação social). Identificou-se 28,3% de atrasos no desenvolvimento neuropsicomotor. Cinco crianças apresentaram sinais precoces dos TEA; todas falharam nas provas de AC (PICS). Nas crianças que apresentaram sinais indicativos de TEA, os déficits mais comuns foram relacionados à atenção compartilhada, área que deve ser privilegiada em avaliações precoces.