bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Pain thresholds and suprathreshold pain after sleep restriction in migraine – A blinded crossover study
Authors: Neverdahl Jan Petter , Uglem Martin , Matre Dagfinn , Hansen Johannes Orvin , Engstrøm Morten , Tronvik Erling , Stovner Lars Jacob , Sand Trond , Omland Petter Moe
Published: November 2021

Objective

There is an unexplained association between disturbed sleep and migraine. In this blinded crossover study, we investigate if experimental sleep restriction has a different effect on pain thresholds and suprathreshold pain in interictal migraineurs and controls.

Methods

Forearm heat pain thresholds and tolerance thresholds, and trapezius pressure pain thresholds and suprathreshold pain were measured in 39 interictal migraineurs and 31 healthy controls after two consecutive nights of partial sleep restriction and after habitual sleep.

Results

The effect of sleep restriction was not significantly different between interictal migraineurs and controls in the primary analyses. Pressure pain thresholds tended to be lower (i.e., increased pain sensitivity) after sleep restriction in interictal migraineurs compared to controls with a 48-hour preictal-interictal cut-off (p = 0.061). We found decreased pain thresholds after sleep restriction in two of seven migraine subgroup comparisons: heat pain thresholds decreased in migraineurs with lower pain intensity during attacks (p = 0.005) and pressure pain thresholds decreased in migraineurs with higher severity of photophobia during attacks (p = 0.031). Heat pain thresholds tended to decrease after sleep restriction in sleep-related migraine (p = 0.060). Sleep restriction did not affect suprathreshold pain measurements in either group.

Conclusion

This study could not provide strong evidence for an increased effect of sleep restriction on pain sensitivity in migraineurs compared to healthy controls. There might be a slightly increased effect of sleep restriction in migraineurs, detectable using large samples or more pronounced in certain migraine subgroups.
Outcomes of Autologous Osteochondral Transplantation With and Without Extracellular Matrix Cartilage Allograft Augmentation for Osteochondral Lesions of the Talus
Authors: Mercer Nathaniel P. , Samsonov Alan P. , Dankert John F. , Kennedy John G.
Published: November 2021

Background:

Autologous osteochondral transplantation (AOT) using a cylindrical graft in the treatment of osteochondral lesions of the talus (OLTs) is typically indicated for patients with larger lesions. However, with lesions that are irregular in shape, the AOT graft may not completely replace the lesion. For these lesions, we utilize extracellular matrix cartilage allograft (EMCA) augmentation in AOT to act as a physiologic grout at the host-graft interface.

Purpose:

To determine if the combination of EMCA with concentrated bone marrow aspirate (CBMA) would improve integration of the host-graft interface and subsequently reduce postoperative cyst formation after AOT. It was also hypothesized that EMCA in conjunction with CBMA would demonstrate improved MOCART (magnetic resonance observation of cartilage repair tissue) scores and functional outcome scores at a minimum 2 years after surgery.

Study Design:

Cohort study; Level of evidence, 3.

Methods:

A retrospective analysis was performed comparing patients treated with AOT/CBMA alone and AOT with CBMA/EMCA. Clinical outcomes were evaluated with the Foot and Ankle Outcome Score. Magnetic resonance imaging appearance was evaluated with the use of the MOCART (magnetic resonance observation of cartilage repair tissue) score. Cyst formation was also evaluated on postoperative magnetic resonance imaging.

Results:

A total of 26 patients were included in the AOT + CBMA/EMCA group (10 male, 16 female), and 34 patients were included in the AOT/CBMA group (17 male, 17 female). The mean Foot and Ankle Outcome Score significantly improved in both groups ( P < .001) across all subscales (symptoms, pain, activities of daily living, sports activities, and quality of life), but there was no significant difference between groups at final follow-up. There was no significant difference in mean MOCART scores between the groups ( P = .118). In the AOT/CBMA group, 3 patients (8.8%) complained of knee pain, and 1 (2.9%) required additional surgery (hardware removal). In the AOT + CBMA/EMCA group, 2 patients (7.7%) complained of knee pain, and 6 patients (23%) required additional surgery (3 hardware removals and 3 arthroscopic debridements of scar tissue in the ankle).

Conclusion:

We found that while EMCA with CBMA has benefit in regeneration and repair of OLT treated with bone marrow stimulation, there appears to be little benefit of EMCA over CBMA alone as a physiologic grout at the graft-host interface in OLT treated with AOT.
Screening Depression and Anxiety via Brief Measures of Psychological Inflexibility
Authors: Weeks Sean N. , Renshaw Tyler L. , Roberson Anthony J.
Published: November 2021

We evaluated the usefulness of scores from two transdiagnostic scales—the 8-item version of the Avoidance and Fusion Questionnaire for Youth and the second edition of the Avoidance and Action Questionnaire—for estimating symptom severity on two measures of depression and anxiety. Responses from 797 college students, who mostly identified as White and female, to both measures of psychological inflexibility were analyzed to determine how well scores estimated anxiety and depression above or below a given severity level and at specific categories of symptom severity. Findings indicated that scores from both measures were acceptable to excellent screeners of concurrent ratings of anxiety and depression. Results varied somewhat depending on the measure used, level of severity targeted, and scope of screening. By investigating the screening accuracy of these transdiagnostic measures and potential cut scores to ease in interpreting results, we hope these measures might prove useful for addressing barriers in public health screening endeavors.
Reflections on sociology of Irish diaspora
Authors: Hickman Mary J.
Published: November 2021

This article reflects on the relatively small body of work that constitutes sociology of Irish diaspora. It argues that Irish diaspora should be an expanded and higher prioritized field of study for Irish sociology.
Subcutaneous Dihydrocodeine Tartrate: Compatibility in a Syringe Pump With Other Drugs Frequently Prescribed for the Management of Symptoms Associated With Brain Tumors
Authors: Isherwood Ruth , Forsyth Amy , Wilson Anne
Published: November 2021

Background

Dihydrocodeine can be more effective in the management of headache due to brain tumor than other opioids. It can be used as a subcutaneous infusion, but at present, there is little available data to support its use in combination with other medicines in a syringe pump.

Aim

This project aimed to establish physical stability data for the use of dihydrocodeine with other drugs when combined in a syringe pump. Design: Dihydrocodeine was combined in a syringe pump with either cyclizine, midazolam, or hyoscine butylbromide at different doses chosen to represent routine clinical practice. Each drug combination was repeated twice—with 0.9% sodium chloride and with water for injections. Setting: The project was conducted in an independent hospice after seeking appropriate approvals to use the drugs for this purpose.

Results

Dihydrocodeine and midazolam appear compatible at when 0.9% sodium chloride is used as the diluent. Dihydrocodeine and cyclizine appeared compatible when either 0.9% saline or water for injections was used as the diluent. Dihydrocodeine and hyoscine butylbromide appeared compatible with either diluent at 24 hours.

Conclusions

Physical stability data has been described that will support the use of dihydrocodeine and other drugs that are commonly used to manage symptoms due to brain tumors at the end of life. This information will benefit patients and ensure that one syringe pump can be used where possible. Future work could expand on this data and explore the physical stability of three drug combinations in each syringe.
Effect of inclination angle on bioconvection in porous square cavity containing gyrotactic microorganisms and nanofluid
Authors: Balla Chandra Shekar , Bodduna Jamuna , Kumari SVHN Krishna , Rashad Ahmed M.
Published: November 2021

The current article investigates the effect of inclination angle on thermo-bioconvection within the porous-square shaped cavity filled with gyrotactic type microorganisms and nanofluid. The Darcy law with Boussinesq estimation is used for the momentum equation in porous media. The transformed governing equations are solved by Galerkin’s method of finite elements. The effect of inclination angle in the square cavity is interpreted by varying the angle from [Formula: see text] to [Formula: see text]. The effect of inclination on different quantities, for instance, Rayleigh number, bioconvective Rayleigh number, Peclet number, Brownian motion, heat source/sink, and ratio of buoyancy, is discussed. Further, the mean quantities of Nusselt number [Formula: see text], Sherwood number [Formula: see text], and density number [Formula: see text] are analyzed at vertical walls. A quantitative outcome of the study is that the maximum values of [Formula: see text], [Formula: see text], and [Formula: see text] are found for the angle [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text].
Idarubicin-induced oxidative stress and apoptosis in cardiomyocytes: An in vitro molecular approach
Authors: Zhang Yang , Li Qi , Xu Dongsheng , Li Tengteng , Gu Zehui , Huang Peng , Ren Liqun
Published: November 2021

Idarubicin (IDA) is an anthracycline antibiotic, frequently used for the treatment of various human cancers. In vivo rodent model studies have identified a variety of possible adverse outcomes from IDA including heart effects like increased heart weights, myocardial histopathological injury, electrocardiogram abnormalities, and cardiac dysfunction. Despite significant investigations, the molecular mechanisms responsible for the cardiotoxicity of IDA have not been fully clarified. The aim of the current study was to investigate the effects of IDA on the HL-1 cardiac muscle cell. Different concentrations of IDA (10−6, 10−5, 10−4, and 10−3 M) were used at different time (6, 12, 24, and 48 h) periods, and the Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK-8); 2,7-dichlorodihydrofluorescein diacetate (DCFH-DA) probe method; and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) were used to detect the oxidative stress level. In addition, we used network analysis to predict IDA-induced cardiotoxicity. The TUNEL assay, qRT-PCR, ELISA assay, and Western blotting detection of related apoptotic factors including caspase family, Bax, and Bcl-2. Overall, we found that IDA was generally more toxic at high concentrations or extended durations of exposure. At the same time, IDA can increase the content of reactive oxygen species (ROS), malondialdehyde (MDA), and decrease the level of superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), and glutathione (GSH) in cells, and increase the content of lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) and nitric oxide synthase (NOS) in the medium. Network analysis showed that the apoptosis signaling pathway was activated; specifically, the caspase family was involved in the signal pathway. The results of the TUNEL assay, qRT-PCR, ELISA, and Western blot found that IDA can activate apoptotic factors. The mechanism may be related to the activation of apoptosis signaling pathway. These results indicate that the cardiotoxic effects of IDA are most likely associated with oxidative stress and ROS formation, which finally ends in apoptotic factors’ activation and induction of cell apoptosis.
Occupational Health and Safety Maintenance in Micro and Small Enterprises: A Study on Select Sectors of West Burdwan, West Bengal
Authors: DasGupta Manidipa , Sarkar Sourav
Published: November 2021

In any developing country like India, Micro and Small Enterprises (MSEs) showed its best effort in improving the mass standard of living by ensuring employment generation. Thus the grass root people who otherwise might not get entered into the formal sector due to lack of technical skill and education could get their employment there easily. But the lack of technical know-how of the participants of MSEs may not allow them to have awareness of occupational hazards. This calls for a severe problem in Health and Safety related issues in MSEs for those individuals. The present study, therefore, takes its objectives to highlight on the maintenance of Occupational Health and Safety (OH&S) related issues in MSEs where the perceptions of the participants play an important role. To fulfil these objectives, the study takes its attempt to pursue a primary survey on 95 randomly selected participants out of 24 registered MSEs of select sectors of West Burdwan, an industrially developed district of West Bengal. The sectors are selected purposively based on their significant presence in West Burdwan. The data have been collected through questionnaire and non-parametric tests has been used for further assessment. It is found that creating cozy atmosphere, privacy, artificial lighting conditions, ventilation, facilities for rest and meals, and so on are the factors to be maintained under OH&S in MSEs. The responses of the participants are found as sector specific and socio-demographic characteristics specific. In this issue, while the young male members like ‘facilities for rest and meals’, the female members prefer ‘privacy’ as the factor to be maintained for OH&S in MSEs. Thus the paper in its policy implication exhibited the sector-wise and socio-demography wise preferences of the participants on OH&S related issues.
Developmental Pathways to Intercultural Competence in College Students
Authors: Peifer Janelle S. , Meyer-Lee Elaine , Taasoobshirazi Gita
Published: November 2021

Despite travel restrictions, U.S. colleges invest in students’ global learning, to prepare graduates to thrive in today's interdependent society and world. This multi-method longitudinal study applies a constructive developmental and intersectional lens to examine the impact of travel and non-travel based global learning on intercultural competence and change in social diversity, also assessing the pathways that connect these variables. Our pilot findings suggest a greater contribution of on-campus global learning to development of intercultural competence compared to travel-based experiences, such as study abroad. Furthermore, on-campus global learning also contributes significantly to increases in the diversity of students’ peer relationships, and that diversity then connects to intercultural competence. Somewhat surprisingly, these patterns remain consistent for those with historically dominant and marginalized identities.
Diarised Reflections on COVID-19 and Bereavement: Disruptions and Affordances
Authors: West Karen , Rumble Hannah , Shaw Rachel , Cameron Ailsa , Roleston Caity
Published: November 2021

COVID-19 lockdown and social distancing measures have restricted funerals and memorial events and have limited the face-to-face social networks that grieving people might normally be able to draw upon for emotional support. However, while there is considerable expert informed speculation about the impacts of grief and “COVID bereavement”, detailed accounts of experiences of bereavement and bereavement support during the pandemic have the potential to enrich and provide nuance and subtlety to the evidence base. This paper draws on diary accounts of bereavement support volunteers in the UK, who have been providing support for the bereaved through these challenging times. These reveal layers of complexity to the experiences of loss, grief and bereavement during these extraordinary times. However, they also point to a number of additional themes that lend a more positive valence to the suspension of normal social expectations and memorial practices associated with the pandemic, which, we argue should be reflected upon for their potential to address the discontents of contemporary governance of end of life and bereavement.
Effects of Oral Stimulation and Supplemental Nursing System on the Transition Time to Full Breast of Mother and Sucking Success in Preterm Infants: A Randomized Controlled Trial
Authors: Çelik Fikriye , Sen Selma , Karayagiz Muslu Gonca
Published: November 2021

This study aimed to investigate the effect of oral stimulation and a supplemental nursing system on the time to full maternal breastfeeding and sucking success in preterm infants. The sample consisted of 70 preterm babies. Oral motor stimulation and a supplemental nursing system were applied to the preterm infants in the experimental group, while no intervention was applied to those in the control group. Significant differences were found between the two groups concerning transition time to oral feeding, transition weight, transition time to full maternal breast, discharge age, duration, and weight, LATCH mean scores, continuing to suck in the first month after discharge, and weight averages. Oral stimulation and a supplemental nursing system shortened the transition period to oral feeding and full breastfeeding, increased breastfeeding rates and the sustainability of breastfeeding, and did not affect the period of discharge and vital signs during feeding in preterm babies.
Six-year Burden of Care for Nonsyndromic Unilateral Cleft Lip and Palate Patients: A Comparison Between Cleft Centers and Noncleft Centers
Authors: Janssen Pierce L. , Ghosh Kanad , Klein Gabriel M. , Hou Wei , Bellber Christopher S. , Dagum Alexander B.
Published: November 2021

Objective

To determine differences in burden of care between nonsyndromic patients with unilateral cleft lip and palate undergoing treatment at American Cleft Palate-Craniofacial Association (ACPA)-accredited centers and nonaccredited centers in New York State.

Design

A retrospective review of the New York Statewide Planning and Research Cooperative System database from January 2001 to December 2014 was performed using ICD-9 and CPT coding.

Patients, participants

This study included patients with unilateral cleft lip and palate who underwent both lip and palate repairs during their first  6 years of life. Exclusion criteria included orofacial cleft syndromes, follow-up under  6 years, and one-stage combined cleft lip and palate repairs.

Results

Eighty-eight patients were treated at cleft centers, and 29 patients at nonaccredited centers (   n = 117). Age at primary palatoplasty (13.0 months vs 18.1 months;    p = .019), total number of cleft operations (2.3 vs 2.7;    p = .012), and total number of primary cleft-specific procedures (2.2 vs 2.5;    p = .0049) were significantly lower for patients treated in cleft centers. Age at primary cheiloplasty (4.8 months vs 4.6 months;    p = .865), post-cheiloplasty length of stay (1.2 days vs 1.2 days;    p = .673), post-palatoplasty length of stay (1.5 days vs 1.9 days;    p = .211), average hospital admissions (2.2 vs 2.3; p = 0.161), and total complication rates (34.1% vs 21.1%; p = 0.517) did not differ significantly between cleft centers and noncenters.

Conclusions

This data demonstrates some significant differences in overall 6 year burden of care for nonsyndromic patients with unilateral cleft lip and palate treated at ACPA-accredited cleft centers versus nonaccredited centers.
Defining Age-related OSA Features in Robin Sequence Using Polysomnographic-based Analyses of Respiratory Arousal Responses and Gas-exchange Parameters
Authors: Nino Gustavo , Aziz Julia , Weiss Miriam , Allen Michelle , Lew Jenny , Manrique Monica , Mantilla-Rivas Esperanza , McGrath Jennifer L. , Rogers Gary F. , Oh Albert K.
Published: November 2021

Introduction

Robin sequence (RS) is a leading cause of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) in newborns. Most studies have focused on understanding anatomic factors leading to OSA and changes in apnea–hypopnea index (AHI) on polysomnography (PSG) beyond the neonatal period. This study aims to define age-related OSA features between patients with RS, without RS and healthy controls using PSG-based analyses of respiratory arousal responses and gas-exchange parameters.

Design

Retrospective comparison of PSG features in a total of 48 children encompassing three groups: (a) infants with RS (n = 24, <1-year old), (b) non-RS older children (1-2 years old) with severe OSA (obstructive AHI (OAHI) of ≥10 events; n = 12), and (c) control infants and children (0-2 years old) without sleep apnea (OAHI ≤1.5/h, n = 12). We examined OSA sleep-stage specific and position-specific indexes, and the relationship between OSA severity and respiratory arousal indexes (OAHI/respiratory arousal indexes).

Results

OSA sleep-stage specific indexes (rapid eye movement [REM] vs non-REM[NREM]) as well as position-specific indexes (supine vs nonsupine) were similar in individuals with and without RS. Relative to the non-RS groups, infants with RS have more sustained hypoxemia (time with SpO2 < 90%) and reduced arousal responses to OSA demonstrated by higher OAHI/respiratory arousal indexes. OAHI/respiratory arousal indexes significantly correlated with the severity of hypoxemia in infants with RS.

Conclusion

Infants with RS and OSA show reduced arousal responses to apneic events, which correlates with higher hypoxemia severity. OAHI/respiratory arousal indexes in RS may identify high-risk individuals with upper airway obstruction and reduced arousal protective responses.
Morphological Presentation of Orofacial Clefts: An Epidemiological Study of 5004 Patients in a Tertiary Care Hospital of Central India
Authors: Chauhan Jaideep Singh , Sharma Sarwpriya
Published: November 2021

To analyse the morphological presentation of orofacial clefts, gender, syndromes and systemic anomalies associated with them.

This was an epidemiological study performed in the patients who were registered for cleft lip and palate surgeries in our centre. The data was evaluated both retrospectively as well as prospectively.

The patients registered from November 2006 to April 2021 were studied. Out of 5276 patients, data of 5004 cases were analysed, rest 272 patients were excluded due to lack of information. Statistical analysis and Chi square test were applied.

Cleft deformities were more common in males than females. Cleft lip with palate was the commonest phenotype (52.2%). It was followed by isolated cleft lip (22.9%), isolated cleft palate (22.1%), rare clefts (1.62%) and syndromic clefts (1.18%). Unilateral variants were more frequent than bilateral. In unilateral, left side was more common than the right side. Among bilateral, most of the cases had premaxillary protrusion. In the present study, 3.46% of all the patients had associated anomalies affecting their other organs. Less common cleft phenotypes like microform cleft lip and submucous cleft palate ± bifid uvula showed frequency of 0.62% and 0.64% respectively.

Thorough examination of cleft deformity should be done as it may appear as an isolated deformity or part of a syndrome and have associated systemic anomalies. This may help us to deliver comprehensive care to the patients and can prevent potential operative complications.
Evolution of bone tissue based on angiogenesis as a crucial factor: New mathematical attempt
Authors: Bednarczyk Ewa , Lekszycki Tomasz
Published: November 2021

In this paper, we present a novel theoretical model of bone evolution. The model takes into account growth of the blood vessels network as a real issue during the process. The stimulation of this growth is controlled by the signals from overloaded dying cells. A system of integro-differential equations describes changes in the density of blood vessels, bone cells and Young modulus, all of which define how the bone tissue evolves over time. The model considers several biomechanical signals such as changes in the density of elastic strain energy and nutrients. Two examples of changing bone tissue were examined to test the model: bone healing around a tooth implant and formation of osteophytes during osteoarthritis. In both cases, the effects of mechanical loading in the bone tissue evolution which are in agreement with the medical observations can be observed.
Orbital metastasis from neuroendocrine tumour: Case report and literature review
Authors: Albanese Giorgio , Harieaswar Sreemathi , Sampath Raghavan
Published: November 2021

Orbital metastases from neuroendocrine tumour are rare entities. An incidental finding of orbital metastasis originating from neuroendocrine tumour is presented in the context of a comprehensive review of all case reports and series published to date. Demographics, clinical features, diagnostic work-up, treatment and prognostic data from the published literature are discussed. Ninety-five patients with orbital metastases from neuroendocrine tumours have been reported so far. Average age at presentation is 63.8 years (range 25–86), with no significant gender predominance. Gastrointestinal tract is the most common site of primary neuroendocrine tumours (62–85%). Typical presentation includes proptosis (80–85%) and diplopia (27–62%) in patients with known primary neuroendocrine tumour elsewhere. Histological subtype and presence of metastases seem to be important prognostic factors. Incidental finding of neuroendocrine tumour mestastases in asymptomatic patients with unknown primary disease is uncommon. In such cases, orbital biopsy and structural and functional imaging are essential to establish a diagnosis and stage the disease.
Talking punishment: How victim perceptions of punishment change when they communicate with offenders
Authors: Batchelor Diana
Published: November 2021

The myth that restorative justice is the opposite of retributive justice persists, despite a long history of rhetorical challenges. Only empirical evidence can advance the debate, so this article investigates the relationship between punishment and victim–offender communication from the victim’s perspective. Interviews with 40 victims of crime established that some victims saw victim–offender communication and punishment as alternatives, and others saw them as independent. However, more than half the participants expected that communicating with the offender would increase their satisfaction with the offender’s punishment or reported afterwards that this was in fact the case, suggesting that some victims fulfil punishment objectives through communication with the offender. The changes occurred when victims received information about the offender’s punishment, received feedback from the offender or used communication with the offender to impose a mild punishment of their own. Victims were not excessively punitive, but this study demonstrates the existence of an association between punishment and victim–offender communication from at least some victims’ perspectives. This article argues that we should not ignore or attempt to eliminate this relationship. Rather, acknowledging and examining the existence of punishment within victim–offender communication would improve practice and generate better outcomes for victims, offenders and society.
‘Silencing’ the border as a strategy to conceal the ‘other’ side: the case of the Curonian Spit
Authors: Kudžmaitė Gintarė
Published: November 2021

Borders do not have to be visible to be effective. However, the ways they are marked in the landscape, and the relation of these manifestations to broader border regimes and practices are questioned by border researchers and other scholars. Building physical barriers is often used to conceal the ‘other’ side, while reducing border manifestations mostly reveals the other. In this article, a hybrid border management strategy of ‘silencing’ the border (reducing border manifestations) to conceal the other side is discussed, drawing on the case study conducted at the borderland in the Curonian Spit (Russia–Lithuania). Based on a mixed method approach, but especially focussing on the visual data, this study investigates how the border splitting the peninsula in half, is latent in the landscape and in the narratives of the locals. It proposes that the border is silenced and the other is concealed on both sides because of the lack of cross-border coordination of the shared landscape and heritage. This resonates with the experiences and understandings of borderland inhabitants, this research shows. It proposes a view on border hybridity, which challenges the dominant ways of understanding borders, their functions and impact on space and on different borderland actors.
‘Nothing to practice’: Julius Eastman, queer composition, and Black sonic geographies
Authors: Liebman Alexander
Published: November 2021

I trace the musical performances and life of Black, queer composer Julius Eastman, considering Eastman’s oeuvre as a heterotopia defined by both revolutionary freedom and tragic capture. Eastman lived on the margins of 1970s and 1980s avant-garde minimalist music scenes unable and unwilling to comport to white norms of esthetic innovation and cultural acceptability. Eastman’s infusion of camp performativity with minimalist music and his Blackness and queerness challenged (and ultimately nullified) the avant-garde esthetic claims made by white composers. Whereas the white avant-garde insisted upon a tabula rasa, a separation from history to create (supposedly) new sonic forms, Eastman’s melding of genres, provocative song titles, playful disposition to the world, and his very presence in concert halls and university auditoriums challenged the racialized norms embedded within minimalist music. Eastman ruptured assumed codes of composition and performance yet was punished for these transgressions, barred from work and ultimately dying alone and homeless at the age of 49. Pursuing a creative life encased by erasure exemplifies the ways in which Blackness is parantological, constantly escaping from the fixity of racial ontologies that erase Blackness in the name of white supremacy. Examining Eastman’s artistic work and conflict with minimalist music prefigures the contemporary moment in which efforts to prioritize materiality, affective reality, and being over culture, signification, and discourse often belie white racialized standpoints. Intertwined with these theoretical concerns, I sketch how Eastman disrupts overwrought notions of scale, direction, rigidity, and intent through what Camilla Hawthorne calls ‘everyday practices of Black space-making’.
Burden of cancer trial participation: A qualitative sub-study of the INTERIM feasibility RCT
Authors: Nwolise Chidiebere , Corrie Pippa , Fitzpatrick Ray , Gupta Avinash , Jenkinson Crispin , Middleton Mark , Matin Rubeta
Published: November 2021

Objective

A qualitative sub-study was carried out within a larger phase II feasibility trial, to identify and describe the burden experienced by advanced melanoma patients participating in a clinical trial and the factors affecting their capacity to cope with the burden.

Methods

Semi-structured interviews were conducted with fourteen patients with advanced melanoma recruited from National Health Service hospitals in the United Kingdom. Qualitative analysis was undertaken using a framework analysis approach. Normalisation process theory was applied to the concept of research participation burden in order to interpret and categorise findings.

Results

Burdens of participation were identified as arising from making sense of the trial and treatment; arranging transport, appointment and prescriptions; enacting management strategies and enduring side effects; reflecting on trial documents and treatment efficacy, and emotional and mental effects of randomisation and treatment side effects. Factors reported as influencing capacity include personal attributes and skills, physical and cognitive abilities and support network.

Discussion

This is the first study to highlight the substantial burden faced by patients with advanced melanoma in a clinical trial and factors that may lessen or worsen the burden. Consideration of identified burdens during trial design and execution will reduce the burden experienced by research participants.
Deadly serious: Humor and the politics of aesthetic transgression
Authors: Gerlofs Ben A.
Published: November 2021

This essay examines the political utility of humor using a framework developed in recent geopolitical scholarship read through Jacques Rancière's theorization of the politics of aesthetics and applied to everyday political life in contemporary Mexico City. Geopolitics here offers a unique lens through which to understand the spatiality of humor and its effects on the aesthetic and affective processes by which urban identities are constructed and contested. Building on roughly 14 months of ethnographic fieldwork, I argue that humor's subversive potential allows for simultaneous or co-constitutive aesthetic effects, such as the simultaneous disruption of political norms and the genesis of a more inclusive spatial imaginary of urban citizenship. This argument extends previous work on humor by emphasizing the complex, mutable, and multifarious nature of humor effects in practice, perhaps most especially in subversive modes. I demonstrate the strategic political value of humor through the exploration of three ethnographically derived examples: an episode of a popular satirical video series, a newly christened popular saint said to protect residents of an historic neighborhood from gentrification, and a humorous tirade against the city's mayor at a local neighborhood meeting.
Cultivating Creativity of Graphic Design and Multimedia Students: The Perceptions of Arab Faculty and Experts
Authors: Elkilany Elsayed Abdelwahed , Yousef Wael
Published: November 2021

While a consensus has emerged on the importance of creativity in graphic design and multimedia field, little systematic research has attempted to understand its facilitators or inhibitors in the graphic and multimedia education across colleges and universities. The current investigation surveys a sample of experts as well as professors teaching across the Arab World concerning their perceptions on the most significant correlates of creative thinking among students. Results point to the importance of: (1) instructors’ engagement; (2) appropriate use of instructional strategies, tools, and resources; (3) institutional support; (4) peer support; and (5) the removal of red-tape regulatory frameworks. Most importantly, this research highlights the need to move away from the rigid higher education creativity model assuming perfection, precision, accuracy, and optimal effectiveness to a more flexible creativity framework. The Multi-Layered Autonomous Phases Model (MLAPM) is proposed as an alternative approach to cultivating creativity at the higher education level. The MLAPM applies to all levels beginning with the students and the instructor in the classroom and all instructional tools applied, moving upward to the institutional administration levels. The model offers cost-effective, flexible, dynamic, and effective practices that improve levels of creativity and creative thinking among students without the need to invest in new costly equipment, tools, curriculum, or instructional programs.
The Effect of Employing Temporary Workers on Efficiency: Evidence From a Meta-Frontier Analysis
Authors: Choi Koangsung , Choe Chung , Lee Daeho
Published: November 2021

This study examines the impact of employing temporary workers on technical efficiency (TE) by employing stochastic frontier analysis (SFA) and meta-frontier analysis (MFA). These two statistical methods yield slightly different, yet empirically meaningful, results. SFA—the more conventional methodology for conducting efficiency analysis—confirms that firms with temporary workers show a somewhat lower level of TE; while MFA, which allows a comparison of TE across groups with heterogeneous technologies, reveals that firms hiring temporary workers are technologically less efficient and have a more pronounced relative gap in efficiency. With the application of MFA, it was observed that firms hiring only temporary workers come farther to the meta-frontier than their counterparts.
Huni kuin: Yube Baitana - An anthropological game adventure
Authors: Marin Nadja
Published: November 2021

The article presents the development process of the video game Huni Kuin: Yube Baitana (The ways of the boa constrictor) created by a group of Brazilian anthropologists with a Huni Kuin indigenous community from Acre, Brazil. Understood from a perspective in which video games must be taken seriously, a reflection is made on how the game Huni Kuin: Yube Baitana is inserted in the discussions and productions arising from multimodal anthropology.
Clinical utility of diagnostic biomarkers in malignant pleural mesothelioma: a systematic review and meta-analysis
Authors: Schillebeeckx Eline , van Meerbeeck Jan P. , Lamote Kevin
Published: November 2021

Malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) is characterised by late-stage diagnosis and poor prognosis. Currently, no screening tool is advocated and diagnosis is based on invasive techniques, which are not well tolerated. Non-invasive diagnostic biomarkers have shown potential and could have a huge clinical benefit. However, despite extensive research, there is no consensus yet on their clinical use, with many articles reporting contradicting results, limiting their clinical implementation. The aim of this systematic review is therefore to explore the different semi- and non-invasive diagnostic markers in several human matrices and identify those that might clinically be relevant. A total of 100 articles were selected through Web of Science and PubMed, with 56 articles included in the quantitative analysis. Although many studies have reported on the diagnostic accuracy of MPM biomarkers such as serum mesothelin and high-mobility group box protein 1 and plasma fibulin-3, none have resulted in a validated test for early detection. Future research should focus on external validation, combinations into biomarker panels, the inclusion of early stage MPM patients and a combination of different biomarker matrices, as well as new markers.
Sex and gender in asthma
Authors: Chowdhury Nowrin U. , Guntur Vamsi P. , Newcomb Dawn C. , Wechsler Michael E.
Published: November 2021

Asthma is a heterogenous disease, and its prevalence and severity are different in malesversusfemales through various ages. As children, boys have an increased prevalence of asthma. As adults, women have an increased prevalence and severity of asthma. Sex hormones, genetic and epigenetic variations, social and environmental factors, and responses to asthma therapeutics are important factors in the sex differences observed in asthma incidence, prevalence and severity. For women, fluctuations in sex hormone levels during puberty, the menstrual cycle and pregnancy are associated with asthma pathogenesis. Further, sex differences in gene expression and epigenetic modifications and responses to environmental factors, including SARS-CoV-2 infections, are associated with differences in asthma incidence, prevalence and symptoms. We review the role of sex hormones, genetics and epigenetics, and their interactions with the environment in the clinical manifestations and therapeutic response of asthma.
Aspergillus-related lung disease in people with cystic fibrosis: can imaging help us to diagnose disease?
Authors: Lv Qianting , Elders Bernadette B.L.J. , Warris Adilia , Caudri Daan , Ciet Pierluigi , Tiddens Harm A.W.M.
Published: November 2021

In people with cystic fibrosis (PwCF), viscous sputum and dysfunction of the mucociliary escalator leads to early and chronic infections. The prevalence ofAspergillus fumigatusin sputum is high in PwCF and the contribution ofA. fumigatusto the progression of structural lung disease has been reported. However, overall, relatively little is known about the contribution ofA. fumigatusto CF lung disease. More knowledge is needed to aid clinical decisions on whether to start antifungal treatment. In this review, we give an overview ofA. fumigatuscolonisation and infection in PwCF and the different types of pulmonary disease caused by it.Furthermore, we discuss the current evidence for structural lung damage associated withA. fumigatusin PwCF on chest computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging. We conclude that radiological outcomes to identify disease caused byA. fumigatuscan be important for clinical studies and management.
Sex and gender in interstitial lung diseases
Authors: Kawano-Dourado Leticia , Glassberg Marilyn K. , Assayag Deborah , Borie Raphaël , Johannson Kerri A.
Published: November 2021

Sex and gender differences influence key domains of research, lung health, healthcare access and healthcare delivery. In interstitial lung diseases (ILDs), mouse models of pulmonary fibrosis are clearly influenced by sex hormones. Additionally, short telomeres, a biomarker of telomere regulation gene mutations, are impacted by sex, while heritability unexplained by genetic variation may be attributable to gendered environmental factors that drive epigenetic control. Diseases like idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, hypersensitivity pneumonitis, occupational ILDs, connective tissue-associated ILDs and lymphangioleiomyomatosis have different prevalence and prognosis between men and women. These differences arise from a complex interplay between biological sex and sociocultural gender influencing genetics, epigenomic modifiers, hormones, immune function, response to treatment and interaction with healthcare systems. Much work remains to be done to systematically integrate sex and gender analysis into relevant domains of science and clinical care in ILD, from strategic considerations for establishing research priorities to guidelines for establishing best clinical practices. Accounting for sex and gender in ILD is essential to the practice of individualised, patient-centred medicine.
Discordant diagnostic criteria for pneumonia in COPD trials: a review
Authors: Wise Robert A. , Bafadhel Mona , Crim Courtney , Criner Gerard J. , Day Nicola C. , Halpin David M.G. , Han MeiLan K. , Lange Peter , Lipson David A. , Martinez Fernando J. , Maselli Diego J. , Midwinter Dawn , Singh Dave , Zysman Maeva , Dransfield Mark T. , Russell Richard E.K.
Published: November 2021

Inhaled corticosteroids (ICS) have a class effect of increasing pneumonia risk in patients with COPD. However, pneumonia incidence varies widely across clinical trials of ICS use in COPD. This review clarifies methodological differences in defining and recording pneumonia events in these trials and discusses factors that could contribute to the varying pneumonia incidence. Literature searches and screening yielded 40 relevant references for inclusion. Methods used to capture pneumonia events in these studies included investigator-reported pneumonia adverse events, standardised list of signs or symptoms, radiographic confirmation of suspected cases and/or confirmation by an independent clinical end-point committee. In general, more stringent pneumonia diagnosis criteria led to lower reported pneumonia incidence rates. In addition, studies varied in design and population characteristics, including exacerbation history and lung function, factors that probably contribute to the varying pneumonia incidence. As such, cross-trial comparisons are problematic. A minimal set of standardised criteria for diagnosis and reporting of pneumonia should be used in COPD studies, as well as reporting of patients’ pneumonia history at baseline, to allow comparison of pneumonia rates between trials. Currently, within-trial comparison of ICS-containingversusnon-ICS-containing treatments is the appropriate method to assess the influence of ICS on pneumonia incidence.
Analytical validation of a multi-biomarker algorithmic test for prediction of progressive kidney function decline in patients with early-stage kidney disease
Authors: Connolly Patricia , Stapleton Sharon , Mosoyan Gohar , Fligelman Ilya , Tonar Ya-Chen , Fleming Fergus , Donovan Michael J.
Published: November 2021

Background

The KidneyIntelX™ test applies a machine learning algorithm that incorporates plasma biomarkers and clinical variables to produce a composite risk score to predict a progressive decline in kidney function in patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D) and early-stage chronic kidney disease (CKD). The following studies describe the analytical validation of the KidneyIntelX assay including impact of observed methodologic variability on the composite risk score.

Methods

Analytical performance studies of sensitivity, precision, and linearity were performed on three biomarkers assayed in multiplexed format: kidney injury molecule-1 (KIM-1), soluble tumor necrosis factor receptor-1 (sTNFR-1) and soluble tumor necrosis factor receptor-2 (sTNFR-2) based on Clinical Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) guidelines. Analytical variability across twenty (20) experiments across multiple days, operators, and reagent lots was assessed to examine the impact on the reproducibility of the composite risk score. Analysis of cross-reactivity and interfering substances was also performed.

Results

Assays for KIM-1, sTNFR-1 and sTNFR-2 demonstrated acceptable sensitivity. Mean within-laboratory imprecision coefficient of variation (CV) was established as less than 9% across all assays in a multi-lot study. The linear range of the assays was determined as 12–5807 pg/mL, 969–23,806 pg/mL and 4256–68,087 pg/mL for KIM-1, sTNFR-1 and sTNFR-2, respectively. The average risk score CV% was less than 5%, with 98% concordance observed for assignment of risk categories. Cross-reactivity between critical assay components in a multiplexed format did not exceed 1.1%.

Conclusions

The set of analytical validation studies demonstrated robust analytical performance across all three biomarkers contributing to the KidneyIntelX risk score, meeting or exceeding specifications established during characterization studies. Notably, reproducibility of the composite risk score demonstrated that expected analytical laboratory variation did not impact the assigned risk category, and therefore, the clinical validity of the reported results.
Clinicopathology of non-infectious choroiditis: evolution of its appraisal during the last 2–3 decades from “white dot syndromes” to precise classification
Authors: Herbort Carl P. , Neri Piergiorgio , Papasavvas Ioannis
Published: November 2021

Choroidal imaging investigation techniques were very limited until 2–3 decades ago.

Fluorescein angiography (FA) was not suited for the analysis of the choroidal compartment and B-scan ultrasonography did not provide enough accuracy. It was on this background that a purely phenomenological approach was attempted to classify these choroiditis diseases by regrouping them under the vague potpourri term of “white dot syndromes”. With the availability of precise investigational modalities of choroidal inflammation or choroiditis-induced lesions, such as indocyanine green angiography (ICGA), spectral domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT) and enhanced depth imaging optical coherence tomography (EDI-OCT) it became possible to better classify these diseases based on clinico-pathological mechanisms rather than on purely phenomenological observation.

Recently OCT-angiography has implemented the armamentarium of diagnostic techniques possibly also contributing to the classification of choroidal inflammatory diseases.

Based on pioneering pragmatism, the aim of this article was to give a clear classification of non-infectious choroiditis. Thanks to new imaging investigations of the choroid, it is now possible to classify and understand the diverse clinicopathological mechanisms in the group of non-infectious choroiditis entities.