bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Life-Threatening Hypercalcemia During Prodrome of Pneumocystis jiroveci Pneumonia in an Immunocompetent Infant
Authors: VanSickle Judith Sebestyen , Srivastava Tarak , Alon Uri S.
Published: May 2017

Severe hypercalcemia in infants is usually attributed to genetic etiologies and less commonly to acquired ones. An 8-week-old girl presented with failure to thrive, mild respiratory distress, and life-threatening hypercalcemia (23.5 mg/dL). Serum 1,25(OH)2-vitamin D (1,25(OH)2-D) level was elevated and parathyroid hormone undetectable. Evaluation for genetic mutations and malignant etiologies of hypercalcemia was negative. Treatment with intravenous hydration, loop diuretic, and calcitonin failed to correct the hypercalcemia, which was subsequently controlled with bisphosphonate therapy. Due to progressive respiratory deterioration, a bronchopulmonary lavage was done on day 17 of her hospitalization disclosing Pneumocystis jiroveci infection. The subsequent immunological investigation showed no abnormalities. She was treated with trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole resulting in gradual clearing of her lungs and normalization of serum 1,25(OH)2-D level. A year later, she remains healthy with normal biochemical parameters of mineral metabolism. We conclude that in a child with hypercalcemia with suppressed parathyroid hormone and elevated 1,25(OH)2-D, once the genetic etiology for elevated 1,25(OH)2-D and malignancy are ruled out, one should investigate closely for a chronic granulomatous disease. Among the latter Pneumocystis jiroveci pneumonia infection should be considered even in an immunocompetent child.
ERS technical standard on bronchial challenge testing: general considerations and performance of methacholine challenge tests
Authors: Coates Allan L. , Wanger Jack , Cockcroft Donald W. , Culver Bruce H. ,   the Bronchoprovocation Testing Task Force, Carlsen Kai-Håkon , Diamant Zuzana , Gauvreau Gail , Hall Graham L. , Hallstrand Teal S. , Horvath Ildiko , de Jongh Frans H.C. , Joos Guy , Kaminsky David A. , Laube Beth L. , Leuppi Joerg D. , Sterk Peter J.
Published: May 2017

This international task force report updates general considerations for bronchial challenge testing and the performance of the methacholine challenge test. There are notable changes from prior recommendations in order to accommodate newer delivery devices. Rather than basing the test result upon a methacholine concentration (provocative concentration (PC20) causing a 20% fall in forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV1)), the new recommendations base the result upon the delivered dose of methacholine causing a 20% fall in FEV1(provocative dose (PD20)). This end-point allows comparable results from different devices or protocols, thus any suitable nebuliser or dosimeter may be used, so long as the delivery characteristics are known. Inhalation may be by tidal breathing using a breath-actuated or continuous nebuliser for 1 min (or more), or by a dosimeter with a suitable breath count. Tests requiring maximal inhalations to total lung capacity are not recommended because the bronchoprotective effect of a deep breath reduces the sensitivity of the test.
Breastfeeding, maternal asthma and wheezing in the first year of life: a longitudinal birth cohort study
Authors: Azad Meghan B. , Vehling Lorena , Lu Zihang , Dai David , Subbarao Padmaja , Becker Allan B. , Mandhane Piushkumar J. , Turvey Stuart E. , Lefebvre Diana L. , Sears Malcolm R.
Published: May 2017

The impact of breastfeeding on respiratory health is uncertain, particularly when the mother has asthma. We examined the association of breastfeeding and wheezing in the first year of life.

We studied 2773 infants from the Canadian Healthy Infant Longitudinal Development (CHILD) birth cohort. Caregivers reported on infant feeding and wheezing episodes at 3, 6 and 12 months. Breastfeeding was classified as exclusive, partial (supplemented with formula or complementary foods) or none.

Overall, 21% of mothers had asthma, 46% breastfed for at least 12 months and 21% of infants experienced wheezing. Among mothers with asthma, breastfeeding was inversely associated with infant wheezing, independent of maternal smoking, education and other risk factors (adjusted rate ratio (aRR) 0.52; 95% CI 0.35–0.77 for ≥12versus<6 months breastfeeding). Compared with no breastfeeding at 6 months, wheezing was reduced by 62% with exclusive breastfeeding (aRR 0.38; 95% CI 0.20–0.71) and by 37% with partial breastfeeding supplemented with complementary foods (aRR 0.63; 95% CI 0.43–0.93); however, breastfeeding was not significantly protective when supplemented with formula (aRR 0.89; 95% CI 0.61–1.30). Associations were not significant in the absence of maternal asthma (p-value for interaction <0.01).

Breastfeeding appears to confer protection against wheezing in a dose-dependent manner among infants born to mothers with asthma.
Asthma and smoking-induced airway disease without spirometric COPD
Authors: Thomson Neil C.
Published: May 2017

Due to the high prevalence rates of cigarette smoking and asthma, current and ex-smokers frequently develop chronic airway disease without spirometric evidence of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), either alone or associated with asthma. This review considers the classification, clinical outcomes, inflammatory and imaging variables, phenotypes, and management of current and ex-smokers with airway disease without COPD, focusing on overlaps in those with and without asthma. These individuals have more respiratory symptoms, worse quality of life, increased exacerbation rates, reduced lung function and more comorbidities than never-smokers with asthma or healthy never-smokers. As well as clinical features, airway inflammatory and structural changes in smoking-induced airway disease without COPD overlap with those found in smokers with asthma. Cigarette smoking is associated with worse clinical outcomes in some phenotypes of asthma. Management involves public health measures to control exposure to tobacco smoke, personal advice on smoking cessation and the use of appropriate targeted therapies, although evidence is limited on their effectiveness. Understanding the mechanisms, natural history and management of current and ex-smokers with asthma and smoking-induced airway disease without COPD is a priority for future research.
IL-5 and IL-6 are increased in the frontal recess of eosinophilic chronic rhinosinusitis patients
Authors: Kubota Kazunori , Takeno Sachio , Taruya Takayuki , Sasaki Atsushi , Ishino Takashi , Hirakawa Katsuhiro
Published: May 2017

Background

Eosinophilic chronic frontal sinusitis is difficult to treat compared with non-eosinophilic sinusitis because of recurring inflammation and polyp formation in the frontal recess after the post-operative follow-up period. Studying inflammatory mediators in the frontal recess of eosinophilic chronic rhinosinusitis (ECRS) patients and non-eosinophilic chronic rhinosinusitis (non-ECRS) patients may lead to a better understanding of the pathogenesis of chronic frontal sinusitis.

Methods

Homogenates of sinonasal mucosa from 20 non-ECRS patients and 36 ECRS patients were measured for levels of transforming growth factor (TGF)-β, interleukin (IL)-5, IL-6, and inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) using real-time RT-PCR and TaqMan gene expression assays. Sinonasal mucosal specimens were obtained from the frontal recess, ethmoid sinus, and nasal polyp separately.

Results

The expression of IL-5 was significantly elevated in all sinonasal regions tested in the ECRS group, but absent in non-ECRS patients. Furthermore, the ECRS patients showed significantly increased levels of IL-5 in the frontal recess mucosa compared with ethmoid sinus mucosa. IL-6 was also significantly increased in the frontal recess mucosa compared with ethmoid sinus mucosa and nasal polyps in these patients. There were no significant differences in the levels of TGF-β or iNOS between the ECRS and non-ECRS groups in any sinonasal region tested.

Conclusions

This study is the first to characterize the cytokine milieu in the frontal recess of ECRS patients. We should keep these cytokine profiles in mind when we treat ECRS patients with frontal sinusitis.
An environmental transfer hub for multimodal atom probe tomography
Authors: Perea Daniel E. , Gerstl Stephan S. A. , Chin Jackson , Hirschi Blake , Evans James. E.
Published: May 2017

Environmental control during transfer between instruments is required for samples sensitive to air or thermal exposure to prevent morphological or chemical changes prior to analysis. Atom probe tomography is a rapidly expanding technique for three-dimensional structural and chemical analysis, but commercial instruments remain limited to loading specimens under ambient conditions. In this study, we describe a multifunctional environmental transfer hub allowing controlled cryogenic or room-temperature transfer of specimens under atmospheric or vacuum pressure conditions between an atom probe and other instruments or reaction chambers. The utility of the environmental transfer hub is demonstrated through the acquisition of previously unavailable mass spectral analysis of an intact organic molecule made possible via controlled cryogenic transfer into the atom probe using the hub. The ability to prepare and transfer specimens in precise environments promises a means to access new science across many disciplines from untainted samples and allow downstream time-resolved in situ atom probe studies.
ACLAS — A method to define geologically significant lineaments from potential-field data
Authors: Cascone Lorenzo , Green Chris , Campbell Simon , Salem Ahmed , Fairhead Derek
Published: May 2017

Geologic features, such as faults, dikes, and contacts appear as lineaments in gravity and magnetic data. The automated coherent lineament analysis and selection (ACLAS) method is a new approach to automatically compare and combine sets of lineaments or edges derived from two or more existing enhancement techniques applied to the same gravity or magnetic data set. ACLAS can be applied to the results of any edge-detection algorithms and overcomes discrepancies between techniques to generate a coherent set of detected lineaments, which can be more reliably incorporated into geologic interpretation. We have determined that the method increases spatial accuracy, removes artifacts not related to real edges, increases stability, and is quick to implement and execute. The direction of lower density or susceptibility can also be automatically determined, representing, for example, the downthrown side of a fault. We have evaluated ACLAS on magnetic anomalies calculated from a simple slab model and from a synthetic continental margin model with noise added to the result. The approach helps us to identify and discount artifacts of the different techniques, although the success of the combination is limited by the appropriateness of the individual techniques and their inherent assumptions. ACLAS has been applied separately to gravity and magnetic data from the Australian North West Shelf; displaying results from the two data sets together helps in the appreciation of similarities and differences between gravity and magnetic results and indicates the application of the new approach to large-scale structural mapping. Future developments could include refinement of depth estimates for ACLAS lineaments.
Overburden 4D time shifts — Indicating undrained areas and fault transmissibility in the reservoir
Authors: R⊘ste Thomas , Ke Ganpan
Published: May 2017

Production-induced geomechanical stress changes cause velocity changes in the overburden that might be detected as 4D seismic time shifts. The strength of the velocity changes depends on the degree of pressure changes and the elastic properties of the reservoir and overburden layers. Even small velocity changes (less than 1%) might accumulate into detectable seismic time shifts at the top reservoir, since the overburden thickness typically ranges from one to several kilometers. Reservoir pressure changes inducing seismic time shifts are observed in the overburden of the Snorre, Heidrun, and Statfjord fields, all located on the Norwegian Continental Shelf. The strong correlation between overburden time shifts, geomechanics, and reservoir pressure changes is used to indicate undrained areas and transmissibility across faults, which is useful information for increased oil recovery, well planning, and reservoir model updating. 4D geomechanical models are built with input from simulated reservoir pressures. Geomechanical strain and velocity changes are linked through a “dilation” factor, R. The Snorre, Heidrun, and Statfjord fields indicate an average R value of about 15 for the overburden, when combining modeled vertical strain with observed seismic time shifts. However, this study also shows strong vertical variation in R, implying that R might be layer dependent. For the Statfjord Field, seabed subsidence measurements from gravity and GPS monitoring are used to calibrate the geomechanical model. The Snorre Field results show that both reservoir pressure depletion and pressure buildup can be identified by the use of overburden time shifts. The properties of the reservoir formations and surrounding layers of the investigated fields are typical for many fields on the Norwegian Continental Shelf. This implies that pressure-induced time shifts might be expected for many producing fields, not only chalk or high-pressure, high-temperature reservoirs but also sandstone reservoirs close to hydrostatic pressure.
Kaleidoscope
Authors: Tracy Derek K. , Joyce Dan W. , Shergill Sukhwinder S.
Published: May 2017

Deprivation in early life is associated with childhood psychiatric disorders, but the developmental trajectories of these are not well understood. An intriguing study by Sonuga-Barke et al followed up long-term outcomes (to ages 22–25) of children who had suffered severe deprivation, from birth until 4 years of age, in Romanian institutions before being adopted into the UK. Their plight, including partial starvation and a lack of human contact and care under Ceauşescu's regime has been well reported, as has the fact that many showed a remarkable and rapid improvement in developmental delays upon reaching the UK. Through childhood, those who had spent less than 6 months in such an environment suffered comparatively low levels of psychiatric symptoms, similar to their British counterparts. However, despite well-resourced and loving care from their adoptive UK families, children who had spent more than 6 months in this deprivation had persistently greater rates of autism spectrum disorder (ASD), disinhibited social behaviour, and inattention and hyperactivity symptoms that persisted into adulthood. Although childhood cognitive impairment in this more vulnerable group returned to normal levels by later life, they had lower educational attainments and higher rates of unemployment and increased use of mental health services. The authors praise the resilience of the children, noting how a fifth of those who spent more than 6 months in deprived care still remained problem-free at all points: it also underlines how this was not the case for the other 80% of them. In seemingly introspective political times, it reminds us to look outwards.
Therapeutic communities enter the world of evidence-based practice
Authors: Haigh Rex
Published: May 2017

This editorial provides the modern-day context for a long-established psychiatric treatment, democratic therapeutic communities. As this treatment is now such a small field in psychiatry, readers may not have enough background to be able to place the research in a suitable context. This includes the previous gap in experimental research, the difference between the modern model and the one used in the 20th century and the general field of personality disorder evidence.
The use of community treatment orders in competent patients is not justified
Authors: Newton-Howes Giles , Ryan Christopher James
Published: May 2017

Empirical evidence for the effectiveness of community treatment orders (CTOs) is at best mixed. We examine CTOs through the prism of human rights and discrimination, bearing the evidence in mind, and argue that a necessary condition for their use is that a person lacks decision-making capacity.
SEGGA: a toolset for rapid automated analysis of epithelial cell polarity and dynamics
Authors: Farrell Dene L. , Weitz Ori , Magnasco Marcelo O. , Zallen Jennifer A.
Published: May 2017

Epithelial remodeling determines the structure of many organs in the body through changes in cell shape, polarity and behavior and is a major area of study in developmental biology. Accurate and high-throughput methods are necessary to systematically analyze epithelial organization and dynamics at single-cell resolution. We developed SEGGA, an easy-to-use software for automated image segmentation, cell tracking and quantitative analysis of cell shape, polarity and behavior in epithelial tissues. SEGGA is free, open source, and provides a full suite of tools that allow users with no prior computational expertise to independently perform all steps of automated image segmentation, semi-automated user-guided error correction, and data analysis. Here we use SEGGA to analyze changes in cell shape, cell interactions and planar polarity during convergent extension in the Drosophila embryo. These studies demonstrate that planar polarity is rapidly established in a spatiotemporally regulated pattern that is dynamically remodeled in response to changes in cell orientation. These findings reveal an unexpected plasticity that maintains coordinated planar polarity in actively moving populations through the continual realignment of cell polarity with the tissue axes.
Human organomics: a fresh approach to understanding human development using single-cell transcriptomics
Authors: Camp J. Gray , Treutlein Barbara
Published: May 2017

Innovative methods designed to recapitulate human organogenesis from pluripotent stem cells provide a means to explore human developmental biology. New technologies to sequence and analyze single-cell transcriptomes can deconstruct these ‘organoids’ into constituent parts, and reconstruct lineage trajectories during cell differentiation. In this Spotlight article we summarize the different approaches to performing single-cell transcriptomics on organoids, and discuss the opportunities and challenges of applying these techniques to generate organ-level, mechanistic models of human development and disease. Together, these technologies will move past characterization to the prediction of human developmental and disease-related phenomena.
An interview with John Gurdon
Authors: Maartens Aidan
Published: May 2017

John Gurdon is a Distinguished Group Leader in the Wellcome Trust/Cancer Research UK Gurdon Institute and Professor Emeritus in the Department of Zoology at the University of Cambridge. In 2012, he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine jointly with Shinya Yamanaka for work on the reprogramming of mature cells to pluripotency, and his lab continues to investigate the molecular mechanisms of nuclear reprogramming by oocytes and eggs. We met John in his Cambridge office to discuss his career and hear his thoughts on the past, present and future of reprogramming.
O valor da reinvenção [entrevistado por Adriana Wilner e Aline Lilian dos Santos]
Authors: Diniz Abilio
Published: May 2017

Nos últimos anos, Abilio Diniz viveu grandes mudanças em sua vida empresarial. Deixou a presidência do Conselho de Administração do Grupo Pão de Açúcar em 2013, após uma ruidosa disputa com o Grupo Casino, assumiu a presidência do Conselho de Administração da BRF, resultado da fusão da Sadia com a Perdigão, e tornou-se o terceiro maior acionista e membro do Conselho do Grupo Carrefour. Apesar de tantas transformações terem trazido muito aprendizado ─ o que é narrado em seu livro Novos caminhos, novas escolhas, lançado em 2016 ─, sua visão de negócio não mudou. Acredita que o principal fundamento para qualquer empresa é escolher os profissionais corretamente, alocá-los de forma adequada e organizar processos.  Formado na segunda turma de Administração de Empresas da FGV EAESP, em 1959, ele mantém uma relação muito forte com a instituição, sendo professor do curso Liderança 360º e compartilhando seu conhecimento com os alunos. Aos 80 anos, Abilio diz que vive seu momento de maior reinvenção. Pai de Maria, João Paulo, Pedro Paulo e Adriana, frutos de seu primeiro casamento, teve mais dois filhos com sua segunda esposa, Geyze: Rafaela, de 10 anos, e Miguel, de 7. Apesar do temperamento forte, de quem admite não aceitar derrotas, hoje o empresário parece encarar os desafios profissionais de forma mais lúdica. Exemplo disso é como define sua experiência na Península Participações, empresa de investimentos de sua família:“divertida” e “de mais inspiração do que transpiração”. Nessa entrevista exclusiva à GV-executivo, Abilio revela seu modo de lidar com os negócios, dá dicas de como gerenciar momentos de crise, opina sobre a nova geração de líderes, mostra sua visão de mercado e fala das expectativas para o futuro.
Marketing na era digital
Authors: Rosenthal Benjamin
Published: May 2017

O desafio atual é gerenciar centenas de ações na internet, em fluxo permanente, para atingir um consumidor que tem cada vez mais poder na relação de compra.
De Il principe a Il esecutivo: Maquiavel no século XXI
Authors: Nogueira Fernando do Amaral
Published: May 2017

Enquanto olharmos a corrupção apenas pela perspectiva moral e ética, não saberemos combater os incentivos que levam il esecutivo às práticas lesivas para crescer e consolidar seu poder.
Training strategies and outcomes of ab interno trabeculectomy with the trabectome
Authors: Fallano Katherine , Bussel Igor , Kagemann Larry , Lathrop Kira L. , Loewen Nils A.
Published: May 2017

Plasma-mediated ab interno trabeculectomy with the trabectome was first approved by the US Food and Drug Administration in 2004 for use in adult and pediatric glaucomas. Since then, increased clinical experience and updated outcome data have led to its expanded use, including a range of glaucomas and angle presentations, previously deemed to be relatively contraindicated. The main benefits are a high degree of safety, ease, and speed compared to traditional filtering surgery and tube shunts. The increasing burden of glaucoma and expanding life expectancy has resulted in demand for well-trained surgeons. In this article, we discuss the results of trabectome surgery in standard and nonstandard indications. We present training strategies of the surgical technique that include a pig eye model, and visualization exercises that can be performed before and at the conclusion of standard cataract surgery in patients who do not have glaucoma. We detail the mechanism of enhancing the conventional outflow pathway and describe methods of visualization and function testing.
Recent advances in understanding Cushing disease: resistance to glucocorticoid negative feedback and somatic USP8 mutations
Authors: Daniel Eleni , Newell-Price John
Published: May 2017

Cushing’s disease is a rare disease with a characteristic phenotype due to significant hypercortisolism driven by over-secretion of adrenocorticotropic hormone and to high morbidity and mortality if untreated. It is caused by a corticotroph adenoma of the pituitary, but the exact mechanisms leading to tumorigenesis are not clear. Recent advances in molecular biology such as the discovery of somatic mutations of the ubiquitin-specific peptidase 8 (USP8) gene allow new insights into the pathogenesis, which could be translated into exciting and much-needed therapeutic applications.
Cardiovascular involvement and manifestations of systemic Chikungunya virus infection: A systematic review
Authors: Alvarez María Fernanda , Bolívar-Mejía Adrián , Rodriguez-Morales Alfonso J. , Ramirez-Vallejo Eduardo
Published: May 2017

Background: In the last three years, chikungunya virus disease has been spreading, affecting particularly the Americas, producing more than two million cases. In this setting, not only new disease-related epidemiological patterns have been found, but also new clinical findings have been reported by different research groups. These include findings on the cardiovascular system, including clinical, electrocardiographic and echocardiographic alterations. No previous systemic reviews have been found in major databases about it.

Methods: We performed a systematic review looking for reports about cardiovascular compromise during chikungunya disease. Cardiac compromise is not so common in isolated episodes; but countries where chikungunya virus is an epidemic should be well informed about this condition. We used 6 bibliographical databases as resources: Medline/Pubmed, Embase, ScienceDirect, ClinicalKey, Ovid and SciELO. Dengue reports on cardiovascular compromise were included as well, to compare both arbovirus’ organic compromises. Articles that delved mainly into the rheumatic articular and cutaneous complications were not considered, as they were not in line with the purpose of this study. The type of articles included were reviews, meta-analyses, case-controls, cohort studies, case reports and case series. This systematic review does not reach or performed a meta-analysis.

Results: Originally based on 737 articles, our reviewed selected 40 articles with 54.2% at least mentioning CHIKV cardiovascular compromise within the systemic compromise. Cardiovascular manifestations can be considered common and have been reported in France, India, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Colombia, Venezuela and USA, including mainly, but no limited to: hypotension, shock and circulatory collapse, Raynaud phenomenon, arrhythmias, murmurs, myocarditis, dilated cardiomyopathy, congestive insufficiency, heart failure and altered function profile (Troponins, CPK).

Conclusions: Physicians should be encouraged to keep divulgating reports on the cardiovascular involvement of chikungunya virus disease, to raise awareness and ultimately encourage suitable diagnosis and intervention worldwide. More research about cardiovascular involvement and manifestations of systemic Chikungunya virus infection is urgently needed.
PubRunner: A light-weight framework for updating text mining results
Authors: Anekalla Kishore R. , Courneya J.P. , Fiorini Nicolas , Lever Jake , Muchow Michael , Busby Ben
Published: May 2017

Biomedical text mining promises to assist biologists in quickly navigating the combined knowledge in their domain. This would allow improved understanding of the complex interactions within biological systems and faster hypothesis generation. New biomedical research articles are published daily and text mining tools are only as good as the corpus from which they work. Many text mining tools are underused because their results are static and do not reflect the constantly expanding knowledge in the field. In order for biomedical text mining to become an indispensable tool used by researchers, this problem must be addressed. To this end, we present PubRunner, a framework for regularly running text mining tools on the latest publications. PubRunner is lightweight, simple to use, and can be integrated with an existing text mining tool. The workflow involves downloading the latest abstracts from PubMed, executing a user-defined tool, pushing the resulting data to a public FTP, and publicizing the location of these results on the public PubRunner website. This shows a proof of concept that we hope will encourage text mining developers to build tools that truly will aid biologists in exploring the latest publications.
On Buyer Selection of Service Providers in Online Outsourcing Platforms for IT Services
Authors: Hong Yili , Pavlou Paul A.
Published: May 2017

The Internet has presumably created a level playing field that allows any service provider across the globe to compete for contracts on online outsourcing platforms for information technology (IT) services. In this paper, we empirically examine (a) how country (language, time zone, cultural) differences and the country’s IT development affect buyers’ selection of service providers in online outsourcing platforms; and (b) how the reputation of service providers moderates the proposed effects of country differences and the country’s IT development. We integrated a unique data set formed by a sample of 11,541 software development projects from an online outsourcing platform matched with archival sources on the language, time zone, culture, and IT development of countries. Since price is typically endogenous in any supply demand system, we used the exogenous variation of the normalized exchange rate of the currency among countries, as a “cost-shifter” type instrumental variable (IV) for econometric identification. Our panel data analyses results (both with and without IV) show that buyers are negatively affected by country differences in terms of language, time zone, and culture, and prefer service providers from countries with higher IT development. Notably, the reputation of service providers attenuates the negative effects of language and cultural (but not time zone) differences, while it substitutes the positive effect of the country’s IT development. We discuss the study’s theoretical and managerial implications for understanding the global dynamics of online outsourcing platforms and better designing these platforms.

The online appendix is available at https://doi.org/10.1287/isre.2017.0709 .
Estimating Search Benefits from Path-Tracking Data: Measurement and Determinants
Authors: Seiler Stephan , Pinna Fabio
Published: May 2017

We study consumer search behavior in a brick-and-mortar store environment, using a unique data set obtained from radio-frequency identification tags, which are attached to supermarket shopping carts. This technology allows us to record consumers’ purchases as well as the time they spent in front of the shelf when contemplating which product to buy, giving us a direct measure of search effort. We estimate a linear regression of price paid on search duration, in which search duration is instrumented with a search-cost shifter. We show that this regression allows us to recover the marginal return from search in terms of price at the optimal stopping point for the average consumer. Our identification strategy and coefficient interpretation are valid for a broad class of search models, and we are hence able to remain agnostic about the details of the search process, such as search order and search protocol. We estimate an average return from search of $2.10 per minute and explore heterogeneity across consumer types, product categories, and category location in the store. We find little difference in the returns from search across product categories, but large differences across consumer types and locations. Our findings suggest that situational factors, such as the location of the category or the timing of the search within the shopping trip, are more important determinants of search behavior than category characteristics such as the number of available products.

Data are available at https://doi.org/10.1287/mksc.2017.1026 .
Primary giant aggressive amelanotic duodenal melanoma
Authors: Kilambi R , Singh AN , Dash NR , Madhusudhan KS , Das P
Published: May 2017

Primary malignant melanoma of the gastrointestinal tract is extremely rare. A 35-year-old man presented with complaints of abdominal pain and weight loss. Contrast enhanced computed tomography showed a large mass involving the duodenum and the superior mesenteric vessels. Upper gastrointestinal endoscopy demonstrated a large, friable mass along the duodenal wall and biopsy was suggestive of malignant melanoma. A detailed physical examination and whole body imaging (positron emission tomography and computed tomography) did not reveal any other lesion.

The patient underwent a pancreaticoduodenectomy with segmental resection and anastomosis of the superior mesenteric vein as well as a segmental colectomy. His postoperative recovery was uneventful. The histopathology of the operative specimen showed a malignant amelanotic melanoma arising from the duodenum with lymph nodal involvement. He received oral temozolomide. However, he developed liver metastasis at six months and again at ten months, which was managed with radiofrequency ablation both times. He is doing well at 32 months of follow-up review. Multimodality treatment including surgery, adjuvant chemotherapy and salvage therapy appears to be a promising tool for achieving long-term survival in such patients.
Can laparoscopy be part of a paediatric surgery outreach service?
Authors: Peeraully R , Hill R , Colliver D , Williams A , Motiwale S , Davies B
Published: May 2017

INTRODUCTION

The aim of this study was to assess the outreach laparoscopic service delivered by four paediatric surgeons to a district general hospital (DGH).

METHODS

A retrospective review was carried out of all laparoscopic procedures performed in a single DGH between January 2004 and November 2014 by the four paediatric surgeons providing the outreach service. All operations were identified from the electronic theatre system and archived correspondence. Demographic and clinical details were obtained from contemporaneous records.

RESULTS

Over the 11-year study period, 1,339 operations were performed as part of the outreach paediatric surgery service, with 128 patients (9.6%) undergoing laparoscopy. The indications for laparoscopic surgery were impalpable unilateral or bilateral undescended testes (UDT) (n=79, 62%) or request for insertion of a feeding gastrostomy (n=49, 38%). All but six UDT cases (96%) were performed as day surgery and the median length of stay for gastrostomy patients was 3 days (interquartile range: 2–3 days). There were three UDT cases with surgical complications and one had complications related to the anaesthesia. One gastrostomy case required transfer to our tertiary centre for management of postoperative urinary retention and urethral injury.

CONCLUSIONS

Elective laparoscopic procedures in young children can be provided safely as components of an outreach paediatric surgery service in a DGH setting as part of an increasing volume of operations performed by specialist paediatric surgeons. This enables children to have a high quality service as close to their home as possible.
Evaluation of the radiation dose exposure and associated cancer risks in patients having preoperative parathyroid localization
Authors: Moosvi SR , Smith S , Hathorn J , Groot-Wassink T
Published: May 2017

OBJECTIVE

The study aimed to evaluate the total effective and organ absorbed radiation doses associated with three- and four-phase parathyroid computed tomography (CT) and sestamibi scans used for the preoperative localisation of parathyroid adenomas in a cohort of patients with primary hyperparathyroidism at a single institution. We aimed to assess the risk of cancer incidence for the organs demonstrating the highest absorbed doses for the different imaging techniques, and more specifically determine the risk for our cohort of patients.

METHODS

Fifty patients with primary hyperparathyroidism had both multiphase CT and sestamibi scans. The Imaging Performance Assessment of CT Scanners (ImPACT) calculator was used to estimate the patient-effective and organ-absorbed radiations doses for all the CT examinations. For sestamibi scans, the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission NUREG/CR-6345 publication was used to estimate the dose for each patient. The attributable risks of cancer were calculated using the Health Protection Agency HPA-CRCE-028 publication.

RESULTS

The mean patient total effective doses were 15.9% ± 2.8 mSv, 20.2% ± 2.8  mSv and 5.6 ± 0.24 mSv for three-phase CT, four-phase CT and sestamibi examinations, respectively. In our cohort, the highest attributable lifetime risk was for lung cancer (0.03%) after multiphase CT. This compared with a tenfold lower risk for thyroid cancer (0.003%). After sestamibi, the highest risk was for colon cancer (0.06%).

CONCLUSIONS

Multiphase CT is associated with a higher radiation dose and thus a higher potential risk of cancer, but this risk is low in the older population that constituted the majority of our cohort.
Antibiotic prophylaxis for clean neck surgery
Authors: Vamvakidis K , Rellos K , Tsourma M , Christoforides C , Anastasiou E , Zorbas KA , Arambatzi A , Falagas ME
Published: May 2017

The frequency of surgical site infections (SSIs) after clean neck surgery is low and antibiotic prophylaxis is not recommended. This retrospective study investigated the effect of perioperative prophylactic antimicrobial therapy on the development of infections. A total of 807 consecutive patients undergoing clean neck surgery were included in the study. Antimicrobial prophylaxis with intravenous cefuroxime was administered in 518 cases. Although patients who received prophylaxis had a lower rate of SSIs than those who did not receive antibiotics, this was not statistically significant (0.4% vs 1.4% respectively, p=0.19). Older age was the only variable associated with the development of SSIs (p=0.014).
Laboratory risk indicator for necrotising fasciitis (LRINEC) score for the assessment of early necrotising fasciitis: a systematic review of the literature
Authors: Bechar J , Sepehripour S , Hardwicke J , Filobbos G
Published: May 2017

Introduction

Early operative debridement of necrotising fasciitis is a major outcome determinant. Identification and diagnosis of such patients can be clinically difficult. The Laboratory Risk Indicator for Necrotising Fasciitis (LRINEC) score first published in 2004 is based on routinely performed parameters and offers a method for identifying early cases. No literature review has yet been performed on the application of such a score.

Methods

A systematic review of English-language literature was performed from 2004 to 2014 to identify articles reporting use of LRINEC score and the incidence of necrotising fasciitis. We performed a critical review of PubMed, Medline and Embase in line with the PRISMA statement. A meta-analysis was performed with a random effects model and 95% confidence interval. Suitable correlation coefficient and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were also calculated.

Results

After application of inclusion criteria, 16 studies with 846 patients were included. The mean LRINEC score in patients with necrotising fasciitis was 6.06. Two papers reported LRINEC score in patients without necrotising fasciitis with a mean 2.45. All six studies with a reported coefficient of variance were < 1; Pearson correlation coefficient was r = 0.637 (P = 0.011). An ROC curve showed an area under the curve of 0.927.

Conclusions

The LRINEC score is a useful clinical determinant in the diagnosis and surgical treatment of patients with necrotising fasciitis, with a statistically positive correlation between LRINEC score and a true diagnosis of necrotising fasciitis.
Malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumour in the submandibular space
Authors: Olivier JB
Published: May 2017

Malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumours (MPNSTs) are a rare but aggressive form of soft tissue sarcoma with few reported cases in the anatomic location seen with the case presented here. This case involves a 23-year-old man presenting with a soft tissue mass under the mandible found to be a MPNST, which was investigated and fully excised. Adjuvant radiotherapy was used postoperatively. Although uncommon, these tumours have a poor prognosis and suitable management therefore needs to be put in place as soon as possible. Complete excision with negative margins and adjuvant radiotherapy are the current methods used for treatment. This case is unusual and highlights the management of an aggressive tumour in a difficult anatomical area, prompting the consideration of MPNST as a differential diagnosis for a soft tissue mass.
ASPECTOS DE MEDIAÇÃO COMUNITÁRIA, CIDADANIA E DEMOCRACIA
Authors: Bertaso João Martins , Prado Keila Sim do
Published: May 2017

O texto trabalha a mediação comunitária como processo de empoderamento da sociedade civil. Para tal, aproxima categorias como cidadania, democracia, educação e políticas públicas. Essas categorias norteiam e perpassam as sociedades atuais, complexas e multiculturais. A mediação comunitária é tomada como mecanismo voltado a alavancar uma cultura fraterna, democrática, participativa e produtora de autonomias. A mediação comunitária como mecanismo emancipatório, e o diálogo como condição de possibilidades de um novo modo de se realizar as interações e os conviveres sustentáveis interculturais, funciona como reconhecimento do outro nas sociedades atuais. A mediação comunitária como procedimento e o diálogo como meio, tornam-se caminhos de fuga, como alternativas, para a cidadania de viés intercultural nas sociedades atuais. Em suas diferentes variantes a mediação é geradora de autonomia, já que viabiliza a comunicação horizontal e seus genes carregam aspectos dialogais, por meio dos quais abrem espaços restaurativos de vínculos socioafetivos rompidos. Projeta-se a mediação comunitária como realização da cidadania, já que consolida  a materialidade democrática forte e efetiva.
Investigación y/o extensión: Profesores memorables de la carrera de Historia: pensamiento crítico y relaciones pasado–presente en sus prácticas de enseñanza // Memorable professors of the History career: critical thinking and past-present relationships in their teaching practices
Authors: Álvarez Lucrecia Milagros
Published: May 2017

Este artículo presenta los avances de una investigación realizada en la Universidad Nacional del Litoral (UNL), «Estudio de casos de prácticas de enseñanza de profesores memorables de Geografía e Historia que promueven el pensamiento crítico en la universidad». (2)En esta ocasión se analizan las prácticas de enseñanza de dos profesores de la carrera de Historia mencionados por sus alumnos como dignos de ser ecordados.Se hace hincapié en cómo promueven el pensamiento crítico a través de la relevancia que le otorgan al establecimiento de relaciones pasado–presente en el marco de la enseñanza de la disciplina
Experiencias institucionales: Tercera Autoevaluación Institucional (TAI) en la Universidad Nacional del Litoral (UNL) // Third Institutional Self-Assessment (TAI) of the Universidad Nacional del Litoral (UNL)
Authors: Stubrin Adolfo , Díaz Natalia
Published: May 2017

El artículo, de autoría institucional, informa acerca de un asunto de trascendencia institucional y político–universitario: la realización por tercera vez de unproceso de consulta y participación tendiente a la autoevaluación institucional global de la Universidad Nacional del Litoral (UNL).En el texto se reseñan antecedentes y se caracteriza la evolución experimentada por las autoevaluaciones UNL a través de las dos décadas. Quedan consignados los mecanismos organizativos con los que la UNL asumió la iniciativa, como una tarea global pero también como una colección bien  organizada de sus particularidades disciplinares. Las comisiones organizadoras, integradas por consejeros superiores ydirectivos de los distintos claustros e instaladas en el nivel tanto de la Universidad como de cada una de las Facultades, expresó una combinación virtuosa entre elarriba–abajo y el abajo–arriba de un ejercicio de diagnóstico que se caracterizó por elpluralismo de perspectivas y por la convergencia de conclusiones.En el texto se mencionan los mecanismos de recolección de información, el análisis por medio de indicadores y las actividades participativas de consulta y debate, que fueron variadas y de amplio alcance. Por último, se exponen detalles operativos de la evaluación externa a cargo del comité de pares designado por CONEAU, cuyo Informe está próximo a recibirse en los días de cierre de edición de la revista.
A revision on Urena lobata L.
Authors: Islam Muhammad , Uddin Mohammad
Published: May 2017

The medicinal plant, Urena lobata L. (Malvaceae) is commonly known as aramina fibre, caesarweed or congo jute is widely distributed in Bangladesh. The ethnopharmacological usages of the parts of this plant are antique for the treatment of various diseases. In the recent years, a number of scientific evidences have been seen on its isolated phytochemicals and biological activities. This review offers a current scenario of the U. lobata, emphasized on the phyto-pharmacological findings. A search was made in the electronic databases such as PubMed, Science Direct and Google scholar for the published articles till January 31, 2017. To date, several important flavonoids, glycosides and terpenoids have been isolated from this plant. U. lobata possesses promising biological activities, including antioxidant, inflammatory, antimicrobial, anticancer, anti-diarrheal, anti-diabetic, anti-hyperlipidemic, neuropharmacological etc. U. lobata may be one of the good sources of therapeutic phytochemicals.
Bilingual and multilingal Russian-English phraseological dictionaries
Authors: Arsenteva Elena , Ayupova Rosa
Published: May 2017

The paper looks into macrostructural and microstructural parameters of bilingual and multilingual Russian-English phraseological dictionaries. The dictionaries are considered in chronological order, beginning from the very first to the latest ones. Macrostructural parameters description includes the number of head phrases presented, their choice, order of their presentation. Analysis of microstructural parameters of dictionaries pays special attention to introducing head phrases from the formal viewpoint, revealing their grammatical valiency and lexical collocability, stylistic labels, giving examples illustrating the ways of their use and presentation of synonyms and antonyms. The paper also analyzes the volume and quality of the information unit of dictionary entries. The conclusions are that their volume is constantly extended and the quality of each parameter description is enhanced. Authors of dictionaries published later try to add still more parameters of phraseological unit meaning to be described in bilingual dictionaries.
Phraseological signaling of discourse organization in academic lectures: A comparison of lexical bundles in authentic lectures and EAP listening materials
Authors: Schnur Erin
Published: May 2017

Although recorded lectures are frequently used in EAP listening courses, the use of formulaic language in EAP listening material has been largely overlooked. This article reports the results of a study on the frequency and use of phraseology for discourse organization in recorded English for Academic Purposes (EAP) lectures and authentic lectures. Using corpus linguistics methodology in combination with qualitative analysis, the present study identifies strings of frequently co-occurring words (lexical bundles) that are frequent in EAP listening materials and goes on to compare the frequency and use of these bundles and those identified by Biber, Conrad, and Cortes (2004) from the T2K-SWAL teaching subcorpus, in both EAP listening materials and authentic lectures. Lexical bundles used for discourse organization were more frequently occurring in EAP lectures than academic lectures, and analysis of the functions and context of these two registers provides insight into the cause.
Der Einfluss der préciosité auf das Gegenwartsfranzösische. Eine korpusbasierte Untersuchung formelhafter Wendungen aus Molières Les Précieuses ridicules (1659)
Authors: Issel-Dombert Sandra , Serwe Marie
Published: May 2017

Molière’s farce Les Précieuses ridicules (1659) contains a vast selection of formulaic expressions. The play serves as a historical reference for the identification of formulaic language influenced by a period called the préciosité, originating in 17th-century France. Based upon a survey of French native speakers, this paper will deal with the question of whether these formulaic expressions have left traces upon present day French. Given the empirical evidence, one must conclude that the majority of these expressions are widely known and are in general use today. Furthermore, the hypothesis that such expressions predominate in higher-register French (cf. Klare 2011: 126) is confirmed.