bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Angioseal™ as a hemostatic device for direct carotid puncture during endovascular procedures
Authors: Cuellar Hugo , Guimaraens Leopoldo , Ambekar Sudheer , Vivas Elio , Theron Jacques
Published: May 2015

Introduction

Direct carotid artery puncture (DCP) is employed in patients with tortuous anatomy and peripheral vascular disease when the peripheral arteries are not available for vascular access. Manual compression is the only method of achieving hemostasis following DCP and, till date, the use of a closure device for DCP has been reported in only one patient. In this study we sought to analyze our experience with the use of closure device for DCP.

Methods

This is a retrospective study of patients in whom Angioseal™ was used following DCP for neuroendovascular procedures. Medical charts and imaging of these patients was reviewed for any abnormalities pertaining to the use of the closure device.

Results

A total of eight patients were included in the study. Angioseal™ was used in all the patients. There were no complications related to the use of the closure device in any of the eight patients. Immediate post-procedure angiography done in one patient did not show any structural or hemodynamic abnormalities within the carotid artery lumen. At 6 months follow-up imaging, there was no evidence stenosis or vascular wall abnormality in any of the patients. There were no adverse clinical reactions related to the use of closure device.

Conclusion

In our experience, Angioseal™ may be a safe and off-label effective closure device for patients undergoing DCP for neuroendovascular procedures. It obviates the need for manual compression without causing any structural or hemodynamic changes within the carotid artery. Larger studies with longer follow-up are required to establish its safety in patients undergoing DCP.
Safety of Abciximab injection during endovascular treatment of ruptured aneurysms
Authors: Gentric Jean-Christophe , Brisson Joelle , Batista André Lima , Ghostine Jimmy , Raymond Jean , Roy Daniel , Weill Alain
Published: May 2015

Background and purpose

We aimed to determine the safety of intra-arterial Abciximab injection in the management of thromboembolic complications during endovascular treatment of ruptured cerebral aneurysms.

Methods

In a monocentric consecutive series of endovascular treatment of 783 ruptured aneurysms, 42 (5.3%) patients received Abciximab after the aneurysm was secured. Bleeding complications were registered and dichotomized as follows: new intracranial hemorrhage and peripheral bleeding. For each patient, World Federation of Neurosurgery (WFNS) subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) grade, shunting, and clinical outcomes in the post-operative period and at 3–6 months were recorded.

Results

SAH WFNS grades were as follows: grade I n = 14, grade II n = 10, grade III n = 11, grade IV n = 4, grade V n = 3. Ten patients had intracranial hematoma additionally to the SAH prior to embolization. Four patients (9.5%) presented more blood on the post-embolization CT but only one suffered a new clinically relevant intracranial hemorrhage. Two patients (4.8%) experienced significant peripheral bleeding but none were associated with long-term disabilities. Fourteen patients had a shunt installed less than 24 h prior to Abciximab injection and one less than 48 h later. At 3–6-month follow-up, 31 patients (74%) achieved a modified Rankin Scale score (mRS) of 2 or less, six patients (14%) had a mRS of 3–5, three were dead (7%), and two were lost at follow-up.

Conclusion

When the aneurysm is secured, intra-arterial Abciximab injection is a low complication rate treatment modality for thromboembolic events during embolization of cerebral ruptured aneurysm.
Current trends in mini-invasive management of spine metastases
Authors: Guarnieri Gianluigi , Izzo Roberto , Muto Mario
Published: May 2015

The spine is a frequent localization of primary tumours or metastasis involving posterior arch, pedicles and vertebra body, and often causing unsustainable pain. The management of spinal metastasis remains complex, including medical therapy (corticosteroids, chemotherapy), radiotherapy and surgical treatment, or the recent percutaneous mini-invasive approach. The target of all these treatments is to improve the quality of life of patients affected by this type of lesion. Diagnosis of spinal metastasis and then its treatment should be based on the combination of different elements: clinical evaluation, CT, MRI and nuclear medicine patterns, considering the age of the patient, known primary tumour, location of the lesions, single/multiple lesions, pattern of morphology (border, matrix, expansile character, soft tissue extension), density or signal intensity, oncologic instability and expectancy of life. The percutaneous mini-invasive approach for patients affected by secondary lesions involving the spine has as treatment goal of: (1) pain relief improving the quality of life; (2) stability treatment re-establishing the spinal biomechanics, alterated by bone destruction or deformity, preventing pathological fracture; and (3) an anti-neoplastic effect. The aim of this paper is to provide a comprehensive diagnostic and percutaneous approach to the bone metastatic spine lesions, identifying which metamer should be treated to improve patient quality of life, showing the importance of a multi-disciplinary approach to this problem.
Retrograde leptomeningeal venous approach for dural arteriovenous fistulas at foramen magnum
Authors: Mendes George AC , Caire François , Saleme Suzana , Ponomarjova Sanita , Mounayer Charbel
Published: May 2015

A 72-year-old man presented with sudden right homonymous hemianopsia. Work-up imaging revealed a left occipital haematoma and an arteriovenous fistula supplied by the meningeal branches to the clivus from the left vertebral artery (VA) with a rostral venous reflux into cortical veins. A microcatheter was advanced through brainstem veins into the venous collector. A compliant balloon was placed in the left VA facing the origin of feeders. The balloon was inflated to protect the vertebrobasilar circulation from embolic migration. Onyx was injected by the transvenous catheter. Control angiogram revealed exclusion of the lesion.

Informed consent was obtained from the patient.
Anatomical features of the vertebral artery for transbrachial direct cannulation of a guiding catheter to perform coil embolization of cerebral aneurysms in the posterior cerebral circulation
Authors: Iwata Tomonori , Mori Takahisa , Miyazaki Yuichi , Tanno Yuhei , Kasakura Shigen , Aoyagi Yoshinori
Published: May 2015

Background

Transbrachial approach is an alternative technique for coil embolization of posterior circulation aneurysms. The purpose of our study was to investigate the anatomical features of the vertebral artery (VA) for transbrachial direct VA cannulation of a guiding catheter (GC) to perform coil embolization of posterior circulation aneurysms.

Methods

Included in retrospective analysis were patients who underwent transbrachial coil embolization of cerebral aneurysms in the posterior cerebral circulation by direct VA cannulation of a GC from 2007 to 2013. Investigated were patient characteristics, preoperative sizes of aneurysms, aneurysms location, the angle formed by the target VA and the subclavian artery (AVS), and the VA diameter at the level of the fourth cervical vertebral body (VAD) in the side of the transbrachial access route.

Results

Thirty-one patients with 32 aneurysms met our criteria. The locations of aneurysms were the VA ( n = 16), basilar artery (BA) tip ( n = 10), BA trunk ( n = 3), BA superior cerebellar artery ( n = 1), BA anterior inferior cerebellar artery ( n = 1), and VA posterior inferior cerebellar artery ( n = 1). The right brachial artery was punctured in 27 cases with 28 aneurysms as transbrachial direct cannulation of a GC, and left was in 4 cases with 4 aneurysms. The average AVS, ranging from 45° to 95°, was 77°, and the average VAD, ranging from 3.18 to 4.45 mm, was 3.97 mm.

Conclusion

For transbrachial direct cannulation of a GC, it seems required that the AVS is about 45° or more and the VAD is about 3.18 mm or more.
Contemporary diagnosis and management of Fournier’s gangrene
Authors: Chennamsetty Avinash , Khourdaji Iyad , Burks Frank , Killinger Kim A.
Published: May 2015

Fournier’s gangrene, an obliterative endarteritis of the subcutaneous arteries resulting in gangrene of the overlying skin, is a rare but severe infective necrotizing fasciitis of the external genitalia. Mainly associated with men and those over the age of 50, Fournier’s gangrene has been shown to have a predilection for patients with diabetes as well as people who are long-term alcohol misusers. The nidus for the synergistic polymicrobial infection is usually located in the genitourinary tract, lower gastointestinal tract or skin. Early diagnosis remains imperative as rapid progression of the gangrene can lead to multiorgan failure and death. The diagnosis is often made clinically, although radiography can be helpful when the diagnosis or the extent of the disease is difficult to discern. The Laboratory Risk Indicator for Necrotizing Fasciitis score can be used to stratify patients into low, moderate or high risk and the Fournier’s Gangrene Severity Index (FGSI) can also be used to determine the severity and prognosis of Fournier’s gangrene. Mainstays of treatment include rapid and aggressive surgical debridement of necrotized tissue, hemodynamic support with urgent resuscitation with fluids, and broad-spectrum parental antibiotics. After initial radical debridement, open wounds are generally managed with sterile dressings and negative-pressure wound therapy. In cases of severe perineal involvement, colostomy has been used for fecal diversion or alternatively, the Flexi-Seal Fecal Management System can be utilized to prevent fecal contamination of the wound. After extensive debridement, many patients sustain significant defects of the skin and soft tissue, creating a need for reconstructive surgery for satisfactory functional and cosmetic results.
The Effects of a Mobile Phone Application on Quality of Life in Patients With Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus
Authors: Drion Iefke , Pameijer Loes R. , van Dijk Peter R. , Groenier Klaas H. , Kleefstra Nanne , Bilo Henk J. G.
Published: May 2015

Background:

The combination of an increasing prevalence of diabetes mellitus and more people having access to smartphones creates opportunities for patient care. This study aims to investigate whether the use of the Diabetes Under Control (DBEES) mobile phone application, a digital diabetes diary, results in a change in quality of life for patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) compared with the standard paper diary.

Methods:

In this randomized controlled open-label trial, 63 patients with T1DM having access to a smartphone were assigned to the intervention group using the DBEES application (n = 31) or the control group using the standard paper diary (n = 32). Primary outcome was the change in quality of life, as measured by the RAND-36 questionnaire, between both groups. Secondary outcomes included diabetes-related distress (PAID), HbA1c, frequency of self-monitoring blood glucose, and the usability of the diabetes application (SUS).

Results:

Patients had a median age (IQR) of 33 (21) years, diabetes duration of 17 (16) years, and an HbA1c of 62 ± 16 mmol/mol. No significant differences in the QOL, using the RAND-36, within and between both groups were observed after 3 months. Glycemic control, diabetes-related emotional distress, and frequency of self-monitoring of blood glucose remained within and between groups. Users reviewed the usability of DBEES with a 72 ± 20, on a range of 0-100.

Conclusions:

The use of the DBEES application in the management of patients with T1DM for 3 months yields no alterations in quality of life compared to the standard paper diary.
Functional Neuroimaging: Fundamental Principles and Clinical Applications
Authors: Khanna Nishanth , Altmeyer Wilson , Zhuo Jiachen , Steven Andrew
Published: May 2015

SUMMARY

Functional imaging modalities, such as functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), are rapidly changing the scope and practice of neuroradiology. While these modalities have long been used in research, they are increasingly being used in clinical practice to enable reliable identification of eloquent cortex and white matter tracts in order to guide treatment planning and to serve as a diagnostic supplement when traditional imaging fails. An understanding of the scientific principles underlying fMRI and DTI is necessary in current radiological practice. fMRI relies on a compensatory hemodynamic response seen in cortical activation and the intrinsic discrepant magnetic properties of deoxy- and oxyhemoglobin. Neuronal activity can be indirectly visualized based on a hemodynamic response, termed neurovascular coupling. fMRI demonstrates utility in identifying areas of cortical activation (i.e., task-based activation) and in discerning areas of neuronal connectivity when used during the resting state, termed resting state fMRI. While fMRI is limited to visualization of gray matter, DTI permits visualization of white matter tracts through diffusion restriction along different axes. We will discuss the physical, statistical and physiological principles underlying these functional imaging modalities and explore new promising clinical applications.
A Rare Association of Trigeminal Autonomic Cephalgia: Pontine Capillary Telangiectasia
Authors: Gocmen Rahsan , Kurt Erdal , Arslan Sabina , Unal-Cevik Isin , Karli Oguz Kader , Tezer F Irsel
Published: May 2015

This report describes a case of pontine capillary telangiectasia in a 43-year-old woman with a clinical diagnosis of trigeminal autonomic cephalgia. The possible association with pontine capillary telangiectasia and trigeminal autonomic cephalgia is discussed.
Parietal atretic cephalocele: Associated cerebral anomalies identified by CT and MR imaging
Authors: Siverino Rita Olivia Anna , Guarrera Vincenzo , Attinà Giancarlo , Chiaramonte Rita , Milone Pietro , Chiaramonte Ignazio
Published: May 2015

We describe a case of atretic cephalocele (AC) characterized by the presence of various cerebral anomalies of different midline structures. In our patient the presence of a parietal AC was associated with an embryonic position of the straight sinus, fenestration of the superior sagittal sinus, an abnormal insertion of the cerebellar tentorium with prominence of the superior cerebellar cistern and a septum pellucidum cyst. These findings, associated with AC, could lead to a worse prognosis with regard to neurodevelopmental milestones. This suggests that even if AC is a benign lesion, a complete evaluation of the brain structures should always be performed in these young patients.
Dural enhancement and thickening in acute mastoiditis
Authors: Shemesh Shay , Marom Tal , Raichman Dominique Ben Ami , Tamir Sharon Ovnat
Published: May 2015

Dural enhancement and thickening in imaging studies observed in acute mastoiditis patients is an uncommon phenomenon. It is infrequently seen in dural sinus thrombosis, and may be caused by infiltration of inflammatory cells and an increased number of thin-walled blood vessels. We present a three-year-old boy who presented with acute mastoiditis, complicated by subperiosteal abscess. Computerized tomography (CT) demonstrated subperiosteal abscess, and the child underwent mastoidectomy. Despite adequate treatment, symptoms worsened and neurological sequelae were suspected. CT and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) studies demonstrated an atypical dural enhancement at the sigmoid perisinus and suboccipital abscess. The child underwent revision mastoidectomy and drainage of the abscess. Following the second procedure, resolution of symptoms was noted. Follow-up MRI did not demonstrate any dural pathologies.
Is the gender citation gap in international relations driven by elite papers?
Authors: Zigerell LJ
Published: May 2015

This paper reanalyses data from a recent widely-discussed study reporting that female-authored papers published in top international relations journals received fewer citations than equivalent male-authored papers. The reanalysis indicated that the gender citation gap is largely limited to elite papers, defined either as papers in the right tail of the citation distribution or as papers published in the most familiar journals. Results suggest that the original study’s recommendation to consider the gender citation gap in promotion and review requires more data and a better understanding of the factors that influence whether a paper enters the discipline’s elite.
The UK immunisation schedule: changes to vaccine policy and practice in 2013/14
Authors: Atchison Christina J , Hassounah Sondus
Published: May 2015

Summary

Vaccination programmes are implemented either as new vaccines become available or evidence about them accumulates, or in response to specific situations. In the United Kingdom, development and implementation of the national immunisation programme is centrally coordinated and funded by the Department of Health on behalf of England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. A number of significant changes were made to the UK immunisation schedule for 2013/2014. Three new vaccines were introduced: intranasal influenza and oral rotavirus for children and subcutaneous shingles for older adults. To ensure protection against meningococcal C infection into adulthood, there has been a change to the schedule for meningitis C vaccination. The temporary pertussis vaccination programme for pregnant women, set up in response to an increase in the number of cases of pertussis particularly among young babies, has been extended until further notice. Furthermore, in response to large outbreaks of measles in south Wales and other parts of the UK, a national measles, mumps and rubella catch-up campaign specifically targeted at unvaccinated children aged 10–16 years was launched to ensure that all children and young people have received two doses of measles, mumps and rubella vaccine. This review describes the rationale behind these policy changes.
Renal cell carcinoma presenting with malignant ascites
Authors: Jennison Erica , Wathuge Gayathri W , Gorard David A
Published: May 2015

Lesson

It is rare for renal cell carcinoma to involve the peritoneum and cause malignant ascites. Furthermore, it is uncommon for malignant ascites to be a presenting feature of this cancer. An unusual case of renal cell carcinoma presenting with malignant ascites is reported, and its response to sunitinib described.
The role of body image integrity and posttraumatic growth in kidney transplantation: A 3-year longitudinal study
Authors: Látos Melinda , Devecsery Ágnes , Lázár György , Horváth Zoltán , Szederkényi Edit , Szenohradszky Pál , Csabai Márta
Published: May 2015

The aim of this study was to explore the role of body image, posttraumatic growth, and emotional state in recovery after transplantation. A total of 53 kidney transplant patients were assessed using our Self-Test and Organ Drawing Test, the Spielberger Anxiety Inventory, the Beck Depression Inventory, and the Posttraumatic Growth Inventory in a 3-year follow-up. Logistic regression analysis showed that lower levels of integrity of the body image and posttraumatic growth, and higher pre-discharge serum creatinine levels were significant predictors of graft rejection. Our results suggest that the integrity of the body image and posttraumatic growth might contribute to better health outcomes in organ transplantation.
Networking, or What the Social Means in Social Media
Authors: Bucher Taina
Published: May 2015

This article questions the meaning of the social in social media. It does this by revisiting boyd and Ellison’s seminal paper and definition of social network sites. The article argues that social media are not so much about articulating or making an existing network visible. Rather, being social in the context of social media simply means creating connections within the boundaries of adaptive algorithmic architectures. Every click, share, like, and post creates a connection, initiates a relation. The network dynamically grows, evolves, becomes. The network networks. The social in social media is not a fact but a doing.
Social Media Is
Authors: Fenton Natalie
Published: May 2015

A crap poem.
Privacy 2.0
Authors: Papathanassopoulos Stylianos
Published: May 2015

We live in the era of change. In this world, privacy is not a static concept, but instead has a dynamic component. Overall, it becomes clear that the public and private are not defined in the same manner as in the past and as in the actual world, while our personal information has become a commodity that can raise our visibility in the social media driven world.
From Stripping Off to Holding Your Guns: Lessons Learned So Far
Authors: Siibak Andra
Published: May 2015

This short essay will try to capture some of the lessons social media users have come to learn during the existence of social media era. I will highlight the need to take responsibility of the posts one makes and shares on social media and thus emphasize the importance of one’s critical thinking and digital literacy skills.
Can Social Media be a Space for Democratic Inclusivity?
Authors: Schofield Clark Lynn
Published: May 2015

This think piece invites readers to imagine what it might be like to seek a technological solution regarding the problems inherent within participatory democracy. The piece suggests that such a process must begin by first identifying the constraints to participation that are structured into society in relation to privilege, and then imagining how social media could be designed to play a role in addressing these constraints in order to work toward a more equitable and participatory future.
Putting Social Media in Its Place: A Curatorial Theory for Media’s Noisy Social Worlds
Authors: Gray Mary L.
Published: May 2015

The quest to make sense of media’s impact—what it does to us—dominates communication theories and popular discourse about media. But the impulse to collar, cultivate, domesticate, or measure the impact of media on individuals and society can have pernicious effects, too. This essay calls for a set of new analytical models to account for media as messy instantiations of social interaction transforming before our very eyes. We need to shift from a media effects paradigm that narrowly focuses on the brightest signals of social media use and turn to what I will call here a curatorial theory of social media. This approach, inspired by research from several founding editors of Social Media + Society, focuses on media’s cultural work and myriad manifestations—from its technologies to the discourses that flow through and from them. Let us attend to the more elusive, noisy cultural and social forces that bring some aspects of media sharply into focus while obscuring others. And, above all, let us pay attention to the curatorial reworking of media that happens in particular places—nations, towns, bodies.
From Mass to Social Media? Advancing Accounts of Social Change
Authors: Livingstone Sonia
Published: May 2015

I suggest that Social Media and Society will be substantially focused on questions of social change. Thus, I urge a historical perspective that avoids the temptation to consolidate the vision of mass media as concentrated, passively consumed, and unidirectional in influence by contrast with today’s supposedly more dispersed, participatory, globalized, peer-to-peer social media. I then observe that many diverse disciplines are interested in social media and express concern that while they have considerable expertise regarding the “social” and “society,” they too-often appear content to black-box “media.” This requires us to enter the fray to explain how the media part of the equation matters too. Since, I suggest, this matters whenever the material or symbolic dimensions of communication are important to or contested within the unfolding action, that is very often indeed. I then suggest some pressing questions to which I hope this journal will contribute. These concern (1) the wider ecology of communication within which, intriguingly, the dimensions that best characterize face-to-face communication are still used as the yardstick by which to judge social (and other) media; (2) the imperative to adopt a multi- and trans-cultural gaze as we grapple with (rather than presume we already know) the ethnographic diversity of social media “users” in all their complexity—including emerging social media literacy and its relation to social media legibility; and (3) larger questions of the theoretical framework by which to conceptualize power relations “at the interface”—of speakers and hearers, producers and audiences, or, today, affordances and users.
Researching the Ends of Identity: Birth and Death on Social Media
Authors: Leaver Tama
Published: May 2015

This paper argues that expanding the scope of social media studies to examine birth and early life at one end, and death and memorialisation at the other, demonstrates that social media is never just about an individual, but also the way individuals are always already joined together as families, groups, communities and more. Mapping these ends of identity also reveals more of the nuances of everyday social media use and its impact.
Social Media and Bullshit
Authors: Nielsen Rasmus Kleis
Published: May 2015

To understand the role of social media in society, we have to understand how social media are understood. We need to analyze how different actors and organizations see and think about technology, the forms of knowledge that people draw on as they make sense of, develop, and use social media. Central among these is bullshit. This short essay discusses bullshit as defined by the philosopher Harry Frankfurt as statements made with little or no concern for their truth-value or justification and argues that social media are accompanied by unusually large amounts of bullshit for two reasons. First, they confront us with epistemological problems and are hard to understand. Second, there is a large demand for knowledge about what they mean, a powerful political economy that generates a lot of statements about social media, including substantial amounts of bullshit. Given the rapid development of social media and their growing importance, this is unlikely to change in the near future. Bullshit is here to stay, and we need to take it seriously intellectually and analytically to understand social media.
When Machines Speak to Each Other: Unpacking the “Social” in “Social Media”
Authors: Shah Nishant
Published: May 2015

This manifesto offers three approaches to understand the “social” in “social media.” Drawing from emerging practices, discourses, architectures, and research, the manifesto argues that while it is important to look at how the emergence of digital media changes, regulates, and shapes the social structures of governance and inter-personal communication, it is also necessary to look at how sapient technologies communicate and talk to each other, thus creating a new sociality that emerges from machine architecture and interface design rather than human intention and social norms.
Reciprocity as a Key Concept for Social Media and Society
Authors: Lewis Seth C.
Published: May 2015

The concept of reciprocity, particularly in the pro-social sense of mutually beneficial exchange, presents an opportunity befitting the start of a new journal on social media. Namely, how might a concept of social exchange help us understand a mediascape increasingly dominated by social exchange—where the sharing, receiving, and recirculating of information “gifts” is central to the very social and technical frameworks on which these media function? In essence, what might reciprocity, analyzed more purposefully, reveal about social media and society? The case of “reciprocal journalism” briefly described here is but one of many avenues for studying social (media) interactions and their implications, whether positive or negative.
Power Plays on Social Media
Authors: Hermida Alfred
Published: May 2015

Authority and influence are negotiated through the interactions taking place in the sociotechnical architectures of social media. Established elites transfer their institutional power to social media. But they operate alongside emergent, networked-sourced nodes of influence as ad hoc publics elevate certain actors on specific issues at specific times, within specific contexts and domains. A greater understanding of what forms of power play out on social media is essential to illuminating processes of networked gatekeeping, networked framing, and networked sourcing.
Social Media: The Unbearable Lightness of Meaning
Authors: Postigo Hector
Published: May 2015

Milan Kundera, in his classic The Unbearable Lightness of Being undertook a consideration of the ephemeral. So I use it as a springboard for a brief consideration of social media and what is fixed and what is passing about its meaning to us as a self-aware species. Paradoxically that application of the concept slips into a conceptual tesseract as we attempt to hold social media to mean yet another contrivance for fixing our life experiences and then realize that who we were yesterday is not necessarily who we are today nor who we will be tomorrow, nor how we will be remembered once we’re gone. To hold its meaning still is to enter a self-referential paradox where the meaning of the thing contradicts the nature of that which it represents and vice versa. All that to say that while it is impossible to confirm whether social media are simulation or simulacra, it is possible to orient their meaning, through how we use them and design them, toward our better natures. If we succeed, it will fix not individuals but our common humanity, which may be the one thing about us that has never been ephemeral.
Infrastructures of Mobile Social Media
Authors: Farman Jason
Published: May 2015

In the age of mobile media, social interactions prioritize proximity and depend on our material engagement with the world. As such, the study of social media in the mobile era must look beyond the interface. Studies in this field must go beyond what takes place on the screens of devices to contextualize those interactions with what is happening around those devices. Moving beyond the interface, the study of social mobile media must then take into account the various infrastructures that make these practices possible (including fiber optic cables that run along the paths laid by railroad tracks, the mobile switching centers run by mobile providers that route data, the Internet data centers and peering points, and the servers that connect people and data). As social media scholarship turns toward the various levels of invisibility and visibility of the infrastructures required for mobile social media to work, it becomes clear that practices of social media are one node among a massive network of materiality.
A Snapshot of Social Media: Camera Phone Practices
Authors: Hjorth Larissa , Hendry Natalie
Published: May 2015

This paper provides a short summary on some of the key debates emerging around visual social media. In particular we discuss the role of camera phones in issues of intimacy and co-presence.
Mixing in Social Media
Authors: Hogan Bernie
Published: May 2015

This essay draws upon the social life of vinyl records as a means to consider social media as a set of many-to-many affordances rather than a suite of technologies. It defines affordances and draws upon their earlier history from cognitive science.
Studying Normal, Everyday Social Media
Authors: Brabham Daren C.
Published: May 2015

Social media research has tended to focus on stand-out cases and has made use of big data methods to make claims about human experience and sociality. This commentary urges researchers to consider the everyday, normal experiences of most social media users, to consider the place of social media in a broader social context, and to consider marrying big data approaches with interviews and surveys of users.
Social Media as Conversation: A Manifesto
Authors: Kavada Anastasia
Published: May 2015

This short essay discusses social media as spaces of conversation, ritual and prefiguration.
The Social Industry
Authors: Sandvig Christian
Published: May 2015

Historical mass media and contemporary social media are typically seen as opposites. “The culture industry” was the term used by the Frankfurt School in the 1940s to explain the emerging commercial mass media. The culture industry was portrayed as a semi-fascist apparatus of indoctrination. It selected cultural products and made them popular based on obscure determinations of economic value. In contrast, the common view of contemporary social media is that it is more democratic. Using voting algorithms and human voting, social media can finally realize widespread participation that was denied to the passive audiences of the mass media system. Social media appear to remove the bottleneck of the mass media system, allowing everyone to aspire to celebrity, or at least popularity. However, despite these appearances, social media have also now evolved into an elaborate system that selects social products and makes them popular based on obscure determinations of economic value. Social media platforms filter, censor, control, and train—and they may do so without the user’s awareness. Advances in computation now make a social media industry possible that is based on individual difference and action rather than sameness and passivity. But in other respects, the social industry resembles the culture industry: the co-option of culture has been superseded by the co-option of sociality. The word “social” may then be the biggest challenge facing those who study social media. Our task is to rescue genuine sociality from the emerging social industry.
House prices and business cycles: The case of the UK
Authors: Kim Jan R. , Chung Keunsuk
Published: May 2015

This paper investigates the role of house prices in UK business cycles since the mid-1950s. First a Markov-switching common factor model is constructed to capture business cycle co-movements and the inherently different regimes across expansion and recession phases. Then house-price variables are incorporated into the baseline model to evaluate their importance in fluctuations of real economic activity. When house prices are introduced into the model as direct determinants of the evolution of individual macroeconomic indicators, only their declines have nontrivial effects on the movements of the macro variables and consequently on business cycles. Alternatively, when house prices are incorporated as factors affecting transition probabilities, strong evidence is found that house prices significantly affect the transitions of the UK economy between periods of expansion and recession. It is confirmed again that declines in house prices are more significant than their increases in house-price growth rates as factors affecting the business cycles. Finally, the importance of house price decreases is found robust to the inclusion of financial variables in the model and to the use of a different house price index.
Comparison of Simple Versus Performance-Based Fall Prediction Models
Authors: Gadkaree Shekhar K. , Sun Daniel Q. , Huang Jin , Varadhan Ravi , Agrawal Yuri
Published: May 2015

Objective: To compare the predictive ability of standard falls prediction models based on physical performance assessments with more parsimonious prediction models based on self-reported data. Design: We developed a series of fall prediction models progressing in complexity and compared area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) across models. Setting: National Health and Aging Trends Study (NHATS), which surveyed a nationally representative sample of Medicare enrollees (age ≥65) at baseline (Round 1: 2011-2012) and 1-year follow-up (Round 2: 2012-2013). Participants: In all, 6,056 community-dwelling individuals participated in Rounds 1 and 2 of NHATS. Measurements: Primary outcomes were 1-year incidence of “ any fall” and “ recurrent falls.” Prediction models were compared and validated in development and validation sets, respectively. Results: A prediction model that included demographic information, self-reported problems with balance and coordination, and previous fall history was the most parsimonious model that optimized AUC for both any fall (AUC = 0.69, 95% confidence interval [CI] = [0.67, 0.71]) and recurrent falls (AUC = 0.77, 95% CI = [0.74, 0.79]) in the development set. Physical performance testing provided a marginal additional predictive value. Conclusion: A simple clinical prediction model that does not include physical performance testing could facilitate routine, widespread falls risk screening in the ambulatory care setting.
Effect of retained austenite on wear resistance of nanostructured dual phase steels
Authors: Hu F. , Wu K. M. , Hodgson P. D.
Published: May 2015

Nanostructured super bainitic and quenching–partitioning (Q&P) martensitic steels with a significant amount of retained austenite obtained by low temperature bainitic transformation and Q&P respectively were studied to explore the effect of retained austenite on stirring wear resistance. The results suggest that the Q&P martensitic steel significantly enhanced the hardness of the worn surface (from 674 to 762 HV1) and increased the thickness of the deformed layer (∼3.3 μm), compared to the nanostructured bainitic steel. The underlying reason is that the Q&P martensitic steel has a higher stability of retained austenite thereby providing a superior transformation induced plasticity effect to increase surface hardness and reduce wear rate during the wear process.
Deformation induced martensitic transformation and strong workhardening behaviours in nanostructured Zr–Cu–Al alloys
Authors: Qiu F. , Shan L. -Y. , Bao J. -M. , Chu J. -G. , He Y. , Jiang Q. -C.
Published: May 2015

The bulk as cast Zr50Cu50 − xAlx alloys with various microstructural phase constituents were prepared by copper mould casting. It is found that the mechanical properties and workhardening behaviours of Zr50Cu50 − xAlx alloys strongly depend on the microstructural phase constituents. The Zr50Cu44Al6 glassy composites constituted by ZrCu(B2) austenite and ZrCu martensite are able to achieve high strength and large plastic deformation together with pronounced workhardening. The ZrCu martensitic alloys show plastic deformation and workhardening. The Zr50Cu47Al3 diphase alloy constituted by ZrCu (B2) austenite and ZrCu martensite provides ultrahigh workhardening ability ( Hc = 3.21) as expected for a deformation induced martensitic transformation. For the alloy containing ZrCu (B2) austenite phase, the deformation induced martensitic transformation is believed to cause a strong workhardening and contribute to a large compression deformability.
Effect of nanosilica and montmorillonite nanoclay particles on cement hydration and microstructure
Authors: Papatzani S.
Published: May 2015

The need to produce sustainable cements has driven research towards nanotechnology. The main cement hydration product, calcium silicate hydrate, is nanosized; hence, the addition of nanoparticles to blended Portland cement formulations can remarkably modify mechanical strength, porosity and durability. The present paper discusses the material aspects of two different nanoparticles, nanosilica and montmorillonite nanoclay, the complications that arise from their addition to cement pastes and ways to mitigate these limitations. It is deduced that nanosilica solids in blended cement pastes should be limited to 0.5, whereas nanoclay solids to almost 1 mass- binder. Competitive reactivity of nanoparticles with other constituents is expected, and the possible pozzolanic activity is critically addressed. Notwithstanding progress made, there are significant potentials related to inorganic nanoclays.
Properties of Al doped CdZnTe film by aluminium induced crystallisation
Authors: Zeng D. , Mu Y. , Meng J. , Liu W. , Chen F. , Zhou H.
Published: May 2015

Al doped CdZnTe film was prepared by radio frequency magnetron sputtering with aluminium induced crystallisation. Structural and electric properties of Al doped CdZnTe film were studied. Al doped CdZnTe film has a preferred [111] orientation with uniform pebble-like grain structure, and the leakage current is 2·3 × 10− 8 A. Current conduction mechanism in Al doped CdZnTe film has been investigated and analysed. Space charge limited current emission is found to be the dominant mechanism in Al doped CdZnTe film, which was associated with trapping process of Cd vacancies.
Pulse electrocodeposition of Ni/MWCNT nanocomposite coatings
Authors: Kartal M. , Uysal M. , Gul H. , Alp A. , Akbulut H.
Published: May 2015

Nickel/multiwalled carbon nanotube (MWCNT) metal matrix composite coatings were deposited by pulse electrocodeposition method from a Watt's type electrolyte. The influence of peak current density on the particle codeposition and distribution, the surface morphology, microstructure, microhardness and wear resistance of nanocomposite coatings were studied. Copper substrates were used for electrocodeposition and MWCNTs with the diameter of 50–60 nm and length of 10 μm used as reinforcements. The electrodeposited Ni matrix coatings were characterised by scanning electron microscopy, Raman spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction analysis.
Platelet geometry sensing spatially regulates α-granule secretion to enable matrix self-deposition
Authors: Sakurai Yumiko , Fitch-Tewfik Jennifer L. , Qiu Yongzhi , Ahn Byungwook , Myers David R. , Tran Reginald , Fay Meredith E. , Ding Lingmei , Spearman Paul W. , Michelson Alan D. , Flaumenhaft Robert , Lam Wilbur A.
Published: May 2015

Key Points

The geometric orientation of the underlying matrix regulates platelet α-granule secretion. On geometrically constrained matrices, platelets self-deposit additional matrix, providing more cell membrane to extend spreading.
The diagnosis of right heart thrombus by focused cardiac ultrasound in a critically ill patient in compensated shock
Authors: Jammal Mansour , Milano Peter , Cardenas Renzo , Mailhot Thomas , Mandavia Diku , Perera Phillips
Published: May 2015

Right heart thrombus (RHT) is a life-threatening diagnosis that is rarely made in the emergency department (ED), but with the increasing use of focused cardiac ultrasound (FocUS), more of these cases may be identified in a timely fashion. We present a case of an ill-appearing patient who had an immediate change in management due to the visualization of RHT soon after arrival to the ED. The diagnosis was confirmed after a cardiology-performed ultrasound (US). This case illustrates the value of the recognition of RHT on FocUS and how US protocols designed for the evaluation of shock and shortness of breath may potentially be expanded to patients in a ‘compensated’ or ‘pre-shock’ state to expedite the correct diagnosis and to facilitate more timely management.
Racial and Ethnic Differences in Breast Cancer Survival: Mediating Effect of Tumor Characteristics and Sociodemographic and Treatment Factors
Authors: Warner Erica T. , Tamimi Rulla M. , Hughes Melissa E. , Ottesen Rebecca A. , Wong Yu-Ning , Edge Stephen B. , Theriault Richard L. , Blayney Douglas W. , Niland Joyce C. , Winer Eric P. , Weeks Jane C. , Partridge Ann H.
Published: May 2015

Purpose

To evaluate the relationship between race/ethnicity and breast cancer–specific survival according to subtype and explore mediating factors.

Patients and Methods

Participants were women presenting with stage I to III breast cancer between January 2000 and December 2007 at National Comprehensive Cancer Network centers with survival follow-up through December 2009. Cox proportional hazards regression was used to compare breast cancer–specific survival among Asians (n = 533), Hispanics (n = 1,122), and blacks (n = 1,345) with that among whites (n = 14,268), overall and stratified by subtype (luminal A like, luminal B like, human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 type, and triple negative). Model estimates were used to derive mediation proportion and 95% CI for selected risk factors.

Results

In multivariable adjusted models, overall, blacks had 21% higher risk of breast cancer–specific death (hazard ratio [HR], 1.21; 95% CI, 1.00 to 1.45). For estrogen receptor–positive tumors, black and white survival differences were greatest within 2 years of diagnosis (years 0 to 2: HR, 2.65; 95% CI, 1.34 to 5.24; year 2 to end of follow-up: HR, 1.50; 95% CI, 1.12 to 2.00). Blacks were 76% and 56% more likely to die as a result of luminal A–like and luminal B–like tumors, respectively. No disparities were observed for triple-negative or human epidermal growth factor receptor 2–type tumors. Asians and Hispanics were less likely to die as a result of breast cancer compared with whites (Asians: HR, 0.56; 95% CI, 0.37 to 0.85; Hispanics: HR, 0.74; 95% CI, 0.58 to 0.95). For blacks, tumor characteristics and stage at diagnosis were significant disparity mediators. Body mass index was an important mediator for blacks and Asians.

Conclusion

Racial disparities in breast cancer survival vary by tumor subtype. Interventions are needed to reduce disparities, particularly in the first 2 years after diagnosis among black women with estrogen receptor–positive tumors.
Weight Lifting and Physical Function Among Survivors of Breast Cancer: A Post Hoc Analysis of a Randomized Controlled Trial
Authors: Brown Justin C. , Schmitz Kathryn H.
Published: May 2015

Purpose

Survivors of breast cancer may experience deterioration of physical function. This is important because poor physical function may be associated with premature mortality, injurious falls, bone fracture, and disability. We conducted a post hoc analysis to explore the potential efficacy of slowly progressive weight lifting to reduce the incidence of physical function deterioration among survivors of breast cancer.

Methods

Between October 2005 and August 2008, we conducted a single-blind, 12-month, randomized controlled trial of twice-per-week slowly progressive weight lifting or standard care among 295 survivors of nonmetastatic breast cancer. In this post hoc analysis of data from the Physical Activity and Lymphedema Trial, we examined incident deterioration of physical function after 12 months, defined as a ≥ 10-point decrease in the physical function subscale of the Medical Outcomes Short-Form 36-item questionnaire.

Results

The proportion of participants who experienced incident physical function deterioration after 12 months was 16.3% (24/147) in the control group and 8.1% (12/148) in the weight lifting group (relative risk, 0.49; 95% CI, 0.25 to 0.96; P = .04). No serious or unexpected adverse events occurred that were related to weight lifting.

Conclusion

Slowly progressive weight lifting compared with standard care reduced the incidence of physical function deterioration among survivors of breast cancer. These data are hypothesis generating. Future studies should directly compare the efficacy of weight lifting with other modalities of exercise, such as brisk walking, to appropriately inform the development of a confirmatory study designed to preserve physical function among survivors of breast cancer.