bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Does willingness-to-pay for weather index-based insurance follow covariant shocks?
Authors: Castellani Davide , Viganò Laura
Published: March 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the role that weather shocks can play in the livestock mortality microinsurance take-up when the insured risk has a prevalent covariant component.

Design/methodology/approach

The sample consists of 360 rural Ethiopian households. Data were collected in a panel-structure at the end of three agricultural seasons (2011-2013). In the questionnaire, a specific section on insurance was meant to collect information on the farmer’s willingness-to-pay (WTP) for a set of insurance products, including livestock mortality insurance. Two OLS regression models and a quantile regression model were employed to estimate the impact of weather anomalies on the WTP for the insurance product.

Findings

The authors find that weather anomalies contribute to changes in the WTP to a large extent. Negative (positive) changes in precipitation (temperature) anomalies can lead to more than a 30 percent reduction in the WTP. This general finding is complemented with the analysis of the conditional distribution of the WTP, which shows that other elements can prevail for low values of the conditional distribution. In this case, the WTP seems to be represented more by the interviewee’s age and basic knowledge of insurance, and village fixed-effects. Basic knowledge of insurance, in particular, can increase WTP by about 60 percent.

Practical implications

This paper has straightforward implications from a policy perspective. It suggests that farmers would prefer an insurance premium that follows the changes in the systemic component. On the contrary, insurance as well as reinsurance companies are usually reluctant to frequently revise their premiums. Financial education programs, farmer-driven design, trust building, and bundling insurance with other financial and non-financial products can increase the value proposition perceived by the farmers. From a marketing perspective, the overall findings suggest that continuous fine-tuning of the contract, transparency, and targeted information campaigns can contribute to increase and stabilize potential customers’ WTP.

Originality/value

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first paper that considers the impact of weather shocks on the WTP for a livestock mortality insurance product. Livestock is one of the most strategic assets of poor rural households in Africa. This study contributes to the theoretical and empirical literature on the determinants of weather insurance take-up in developing countries and, in particular, the role of spatiotemporal adverse selection and basis risk (e.g. Jensen et al., 2016).
Mediators of the relationship between service quality and customer loyalty
Authors: Makanyeza Charles , Chikazhe Lovemore
Published: March 2017

Purpose

There is a dearth of studies that have investigated mediators of the effect of service quality on customer loyalty under the conditions prevailing in Zimbabwe; where bank customers’ confidence in the banking system has been dented by bank failures. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to investigate the mediators of the effect of service quality on loyalty among bank customers in Zimbabwe.

Design/methodology/approach

A cross-sectional survey of 310 bank customers was conducted in Chinhoyi, Zimbabwe. A questionnaire with Likert type questions was used to collect data. Customers were randomly intercepted as they walked out of five major banks. Structural equation modelling was used to test the proposed relationships.

Findings

The study found that service quality, satisfaction and corporate image all have positive direct effects on loyalty. It was also found that satisfaction and corporate image all mediate the effect of service quality on loyalty.

Research limitations/implications

The study was conducted in Chinhoyi, one of the emerging towns in Zimbabwe. There is a need to conduct more similar studies in other parts of the world in future in order to have a better understanding of this subject.

Practical implications

Banks are advised to address issues to do with service quality, customer satisfaction and corporate image when designing marketing programmes intended to increase customer loyalty.

Originality/value

Studies that have investigated mediators of the relationship between service quality and customer loyalty in banking environments such as in Zimbabwe are scarce. This study was conducted to address this knowledge gap. Relationships among customer loyalty and its antecedents are not likely to change due to conditions prevailing in a particular banking environment.
The NICE alcohol misuse standard – evaluating its impact
Authors: Knight Alec , Littlejohns Peter , Poole Tara-Lynn , Leng Gillian , Drummond Colin
Published: March 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore factors affecting implementing the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) quality standard on alcohol misuse (QS11) and barriers and facilitators to its implementation.

Design/methodology/approach

Qualitative interview study analysed using directed and conventional content analyses. Participants were 38 individuals with experience of commissioning, delivering or using alcohol healthcare services in Southwark, Lambeth and Lewisham.

Findings

QS11 implementation ranged from no implementation to full implementation across the 13 statements. Implementation quality was also reported to vary widely across different settings. The analyses also uncovered numerous barriers and facilitators to implementing each statement. Overarching barriers to implementation included: inherent differences between specialist vs generalist settings; poor communication between healthcare settings; generic barriers to implementation; and poor governance structures and leadership.

Research limitations/implications

QS11 was created to summarise alcohol-related NICE guidance. The aim was to simplify guidance and enhance local implementation. However, in practice the standard requires complex actions by professionals. There was considerable variation in local alcohol commissioning models, which was associated with variation in implementation. These models warrant further evaluation to identify best practice.

Originality/value

Little evidence exists on the implementing quality standards, as distinct from clinical practice guidelines. The authors present direct evidence on quality standard implementation, identify implementation shortcomings and make recommendations for future research and practice.
Failure mode and effect analysis: improving intensive care unit risk management processes
Authors: Askari Roohollah , Shafii Milad , Rafiei Sima , Abolhassani Mohammad Sadegh , Salarikhah Elaheh
Published: March 2017

Purpose

Failure modes and effects analysis (FMEA) is a practical tool to evaluate risks, discover failures in a proactive manner and propose corrective actions to reduce or eliminate potential risks. The purpose of this paper is to apply FMEA technique to examine the hazards associated with the process of service delivery in intensive care unit (ICU) of a tertiary hospital in Yazd, Iran.

Design/methodology/approach

This was a before-after study conducted between March 2013 and December 2014. By forming a FMEA team, all potential hazards associated with ICU services – their frequency and severity – were identified. Then risk priority number was calculated for each activity as an indicator representing high priority areas that need special attention and resource allocation.

Findings

Eight failure modes with highest priority scores including endotracheal tube defect, wrong placement of endotracheal tube, EVD interface, aspiration failure during suctioning, chest tube failure, tissue injury and deep vein thrombosis were selected for improvement. Findings affirmed that improvement strategies were generally satisfying and significantly decreased total failures.

Practical implications

Application of FMEA in ICUs proved to be effective in proactively decreasing the risk of failures and corrected the control measures up to acceptable levels in all eight areas of function.

Originality/value

Using a prospective risk assessment approach, such as FMEA, could be beneficial in dealing with potential failures through proposing preventive actions in a proactive manner. The method could be used as a tool for healthcare continuous quality improvement so that the method identifies both systemic and human errors, and offers practical advice to deal effectively with them.
Voluntary disclosure and corporate governance: empirical evidence from Kuwait
Authors: Alfraih Mishari M. , Almutawa Abdullah M.
Published: March 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to assess and analyse the level of voluntary disclosure practices in the annual reports of Kuwait Stock Exchange (KSE) listed firms and explore the association between corporate governance mechanisms and voluntary disclosure practices.

Design/methodology/approach

Panel data analysis was undertaken over a period from 2005-2008 with an aim to examine the influence of corporate governance mechanisms on voluntary disclosures made by 52 listed firms in their four years of annual reports. An unweighted voluntary disclosure index has been used for hand-collecting data from annual reports.

Findings

The findings show that the mean voluntary disclosure level over the four years is 23 per cent. Four out of eight corporate governance mechanisms examined found to be significantly associated with the level of voluntary disclosure, three negatively, one positively. Cross directorship, board size and role duality are negatively related to voluntary disclosure, while government ownership is positively related to voluntary disclosure. In contrast, the proportion of non-executive directors, family members on the board, the presence of an audit committee and the presence of the ruling family on the board have an insignificant influencer on voluntary disclosure practices.

Practical implications

The study provides an assessment of KSE-listed firm voluntary disclosure practices and its determents and highlights that that corporate governance attributes affect the voluntary disclosure practices of KSE-listed firms.

Originality/value

The findings of this study contribute to the arguments concerning the role of corporate governance mechanisms in improving the level of disclosure and information transparency.
Impact of PMS on organizational performance and moderating effects of context
Authors: Gomes Patrícia , Mendes Silvia M. , Carvalho João
Published: March 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore the impact of performance measurement systems (PMS) on organizational performance in public sector. In addition, it investigates the moderating effects of the organizational context.

Design/methodology/approach

Using a multivariate analysis, the authors investigate the extent of PMS used among Portuguese Government agencies and their effects on organizational performance. Data were gathered from the only survey (based on their Comparative Public Organization Data Base for Research and Analysis survey) applied to the Portuguese Government agencies.

Findings

The authors find that the extent to which agencies use PMS is positively associated with the organizational performance (in a multidimensional perspective). Moreover, the organizational performance is contingent upon the fit between PMS and the agency’s context in light of the contingency theory (especially the orientation to citizens and the level of competition).

Originality/value

Although prior research has studied the use of PMS in public sector organizations, one question that has not been effectively answered is whether performance information is effectively used to improve public sector performance. In this way, this paper contributes to the understanding of the impact of PMS on the organizational performance, providing empirical evidence in a country that is in a period of “transition” in the introduction of NPM reforms.
Matrix organizations and cross-functional teams in the public sector: a systematic review
Authors: Pakarinen Mikko , Virtanen Petri Juhani
Published: March 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to review the empirical research on matrix organizations and cross-functional teams (CFTs) in the public sector, focussing on typical application areas and settings and on motivation for deployment and evidence of utility.

Design/methodology/approach

This is a systematic literature review compiled from several electronic databases. Data cover the period from 1990 to 2015 and are confined to academic articles written in English.

Findings

Applications of the matrix approach in public sector organizations are found in human resource management and performance management, service development and public procurement, and creation of new organizations or organization reform and network organizations. While the proven utility of matrix organization is often unclear, especially CFTs are linked to better organizational performance, improved coordination, internal collaboration and development of cross-boundary tasks.

Research limitations/implications

Methodological limitations relate to excluded data due to non-accessible articles.

Practical implications

The findings have practical implications for public sector organizations in adapting to a changing environment.

Originality/value

This is the first systematic literature review of matrix management in public sector organizations.
Morris B. Holbrook: an historical autoethnographic subjective personal introspection
Authors: Holbrook Morris B.
Published: March 2017

Purpose

This paper describes the personal history and intellectual development of Morris B. Holbrook (MBH), a participant in the field of marketing academics in general and consumer research in particular.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper pursues an approach characterized by historical autoethnographic subjective personal introspection or HASPI.

Findings

The paper reports the personal history of MBH and – via HASPI – interprets various aspects of key participants and major themes that emerged over the course of his career.

Research limitations/implications

The main implication is that every scholar in the field of marketing pursues a different light, follows a unique path, plays by idiosyncratic rules, and deserves individual attention, consideration, and respect … like a cat that carries its own leash.

Originality/value

In the case of MBH, like (say) a jazz musician, whatever value he might have depends on his originality.
Philip Kotler: some of my adventures in marketing
Authors: Kotler Philip
Published: March 2017

Purpose

This paper presents an autobiographical sketch of Philip Kotler.

Design/methodology/approach

I use an autobiographical narrative.

Findings

This sketch focuses on my contributions to the marketing discipline in teaching and, especially, in book publishing while including some of the many scholars who have collaborated with me.

Originality/value

This paper is a condensed sketch based on the full-length autobiography titled My Adventures in Marketing forthcoming on Kindle.
Enhancing the simultaneous utilization of measure in product design for academic-practitioner collaboration
Authors: Suh Taewon , Ford John , Ryu Young S. , Kim John H.S.
Published: March 2017

Purpose

This study aims to enhance the simultaneous utilization of measure in product design by mapping out the possible and potential uses of a measure for both academicians and practitioners.

Design/methodology/approach

To map out a way for the simultaneous utilization of measure, the authors assessed and portrayed the diverse facets of a four-factor measure for the development of mobile devices by adopting pluralistic techniques through a series of studies and three different study samples.

Findings

This study provided a solution for enhancing the usability of measure in product management, showing that a measure can be developed using a pluralistic methodology so that the results can be incorporated into the practitioners’ design activities that occur and when the gap between theory and practice is a knowledge production problem.

Research limitations/implications

The main positioning of this study involves the science-design interface (Simon, 1992) to bridge the important gap between theory and practice by showcasing a measure development for product design as a strategy of intellectual arbitrage (Van De Ven and Johnson, 2006). Relying on the design scientific approach, the authors focused this study on a prescriptive procedure rather than a more rigorous methodological procedure.

Practical implications

The authors provided product managers with a systematic and synergistic approach to developing a measure and recommended several usages of the developed measure to enhance its simultaneous utilization between academics and practitioners.

Originality/value

Emphasizing pluralistic methodology in the measure development, the authors recommended the concept of intra-examination. The first-order intra-examination, utilizing Bayesian Networks, makes available the thick descriptions of the measure and supports reasoning under uncertainty. The second-order intra-examination examined nomological networks regarding the pragmatic relationships between the four factors that comprise the measure and other important constructs.
Perception of past portfolio returns, optimism and financial decisions
Authors: Khan Mohammad Tariqul Islam , Tan Siow-Hooi , Chong Lee-Lee
Published: March 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationships among perception of past portfolio returns, optimism and financial decisions.

Design/methodology/approach

The relationships are examined using a data set of both retail and institutional investors in Malaysia and estimated using ordinary least square regression.

Findings

The results demonstrate that perception of past portfolio returns influences both retail and institutional investors’ trading and risk taking. Optimism measured as relative investment optimism and personal investment optimism similarly influences both groups of investors’ financial decisions. However, perception of past portfolio returns causes only retail investors to exhibit optimism. The results furthermore show that only for retail investors perception of past portfolio returns indirectly influences financial decisions, through the mediating channel of optimism.

Practical implications

The findings on the influences of perception of past portfolio returns and the mediating channel in decision process help to understand the differences between retail and institutional investors. Retail investors are found to be more susceptible to optimism. Therefore, regulators in Malaysia may enhance their initiatives by incorporating the peril of forming optimistic expectations in financial decisions, by giving special focus on retail investors.

Originality/value

This paper focuses on investors’ perception of past portfolio returns and its influence on various financial decisions, unlike past portfolio returns or market returns. Also, this paper is among the first to demonstrate the mediating channel of optimism in investors’ decision process.
Accountability in Public Service Quasi‐markets: The Case of the Australian National Disability Insurance Scheme
Authors: Malbon Eleanor , Carey Gemma , Dickinson Helen
Published: March 2017

Australia's National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) represents the latest in a worldwide shift towards individualised funding models for the delivery of care services. However, market‐based models for care deliveries bring new considerations and dilemmas for accountability. Drawing on previous work by Dickinson et al. (2014), we examine a range of accountability dilemmas developing within the early implementation of the NDIS. These relate to accountability for the following: care outcomes, the spending of public money, care workers, and advocacy and market function. Examining these accountability dilemmas reveals differences in underpinning assumptions within the design and on‐going implementation of the NDIS, suggesting a plurality of logics within the scheme, which are in tension with one another. The contribution of this paper is to set out the accountability dilemmas, analyse them according to their underpinning logics, and present the NDIS as having potential to be a hybrid institution (Skelcher and Smith 2015). How these dilemmas will be settled is crucial to the implementation and ultimate operation of the scheme.
Effect of copper on probiotic properties of Lactobacillus helveticus CD6
Authors: Paradeshi Jayasinh S , Patil Sandeep N , Koli Sunil H , Chaudhari Bhushan L
Published: March 2017

Copper imparts better organoleptic properties to cheese, while cheese acts as a vehicle for probiotic cultures. These studies revealed that copper stress changed key probiotic properties like acid and bile salt tolerance of a model organism Lactobacillus helveticus CD6. After growing the culture in copper stress, the acid tolerance at pH 2 was lost along with a decrease in bile salt tolerance by 15%, while other desiring properties like auto‐aggregation, cell surface hydrophobicity and antibacterial activity were improved. This study suggests that copper tolerant culture with retained probiotic properties could be used to deliver through cheese to the consumers.
Supporting and Assessing Agents
Authors: LAUX VOLKER
Published: March 2017

This manuscript proposes a theory of why and when organizations “support” their employees with resources, time, and freedom beyond what seems economically optimal. The idea is that support plays an information‐generating role in that it renders output more informative about employees' abilities. This effect reduces the need to gather additional information about ability via costly monitoring and commits the firm to make replacement/promotion decisions that are more sensitive to performance. Consequently, support indirectly strengthens employees' career concern incentives and reduces the pressure on costly bonus payments. I apply the model to tech companies, academia, and capital budgeting.
Cultivated Ancient Wheats (Triticum spp.): A Potential Source of Health‐Beneficial Food Products
Authors: Arzani Ahmad , Ashraf Muhammad
Published: March 2017

A sustainable and wholesome food supply is the most important incentive that has led to an increasing interest in ancient wheats over the past few decades. Domestication of wheat, followed by breeding efforts, largely over the past 2 centuries, has resulted in yield increases but with grain quality deterioration due to the reduction of protein, vitamins, and minerals in grains. It has also resulted in a decrease in food diversity due to the loss of genetic variation in the cultivated wheat gene pool. Ancient hulled wheats, einkorn, emmer, and spelt are among the early cereals that were domesticated in their places of origin in the Fertile Crescent of the Middle East where their wild predecessors still grow. The ancient wheats had a long history as part of human diet, and played an important role as a major source of food for the early civilizations in that region. The risks of genetic erosion of crop plants and the associated likely consequences for agriculture now call for revitalization of the unrealized potentials of ancestral species like einkorn, emmer, and spelt wheat, the domesticated ancestors of modern durum and bread wheats. These ancestors need to be exploited to maximize the sustainable supply of grain protein, fiber, minerals, and phytochemicals. In addition, ancient wheat biodiversity can be utilized to ensure sustainable wheat production in the context of climate change and low‐input organic farming systems. This review provides a holistic synthesis of the information on ancient wheats to facilitate a greater exploitation of their potential benefits.
Intra‐prelimbic cortical inhibition of striatal‐enriched tyrosine phosphatase suppresses cocaine seeking in rats
Authors: Siemsen Ben M. , Lombroso Paul J. , McGinty Jacqueline F.
Published: March 2017

Cocaine self‐administration in rats results in dysfunctional neuroadaptations in the prelimbic (PrL) cortex during early abstinence. Central to these adaptations is decreased phospho‐extracellular signal‐regulated kinase (p‐ERK), which plays a key role in cocaine seeking. Normalizing ERK phosphorylation in the PrL cortex immediately after cocaine self‐administration decreases subsequent cocaine seeking. The disturbance in ERK phosphorylation is accompanied by decreased phosphorylation of striatal‐enriched protein tyrosine phosphatase (STEP), indicating increased STEP activity. STEP is a well‐recognized ERK phosphatase but whether STEP activation during early abstinence mediates the decrease in p‐ERK and is involved in relapse is unknown. Here, we show that a single intra‐PrL cortical microinfusion of the selective STEP inhibitor, TC‐2153, immediately after self‐administration suppressed post‐abstinence context‐induced relapse under extinction conditions and cue‐induced reinstatement, but not cocaine prime‐induced drug seeking or sucrose seeking. Moreover, an intra‐PrL cortical TC‐2153 microinfusion immediately after self‐administration prevented the cocaine‐induced decrease in p‐ERK within the PrL cortex during early abstinence. Interestingly, a systemic TC‐2153 injection at the same timepoint failed to suppress post‐abstinence context‐induced relapse or cue‐induced reinstatement, but did suppress cocaine prime‐induced reinstatement. These data indicate that the STEP‐induced ERK dephosphorylation in the PrL cortex during early abstinence is a critical neuroadaptation that promotes relapse to cocaine seeking and that systemic versus intra‐PrL cortical inhibition of STEP during early abstinence differentially suppresses cocaine seeking.
Effects of group size and starvation on survival of the Asian subterranean termite Coptotermes gestroi (Isoptera: Rhinotermitidae)
Authors: Haifig Ives , Lima Juliana Toledo , Janei Vanelize , Costa‐Leonardo Ana Maria
Published: March 2017

Coptotermes gestroi forages on wooden structures and causes substantial damage in urban areas of Brazil. The survival of foragers may be influenced by either group size or caste composition. It was hypothesised that workers survive at higher rates in larger groups and consequently exhibit higher rates of food consumption and that soldiers represent a nutritional resource for foragers during starvation periods. To test the first hypothesis, groups of 100, 200 and 400 workers were placed in experimental arenas containing wood as food. After 28 days, the units were evaluated and the number of living termites and wood consumption were estimated and compared. An analysis of the data found that there were no significant differences within the group sizes on termite survival but that relative wood consumption was significantly higher in the smaller groups. To test the second hypothesis, groups containing workers and soldiers (9:1 ratio) or only workers were placed in experimental arenas with food present or absent. Survival for each caste was monitored at 3 day intervals over 9 days to estimate the cannibalism rate. Cannibalism was significantly higher in the starved groups, but the presence of soldiers did not influence the rate of cannibalism. Colony fragmentation and starvation are stressful conditions that lead foragers of C. gestroi to adaptive behaviours in order to enhance their survival.
Toxicity profile differences of adjuvant docetaxel/cyclophosphamide (TC) between Asian and Caucasian breast cancer patients
Authors: Chow L.W.C. , Biganzoli L. , Leo A. D. , Kuroi K. , Han H. S. , Patel J. , Huang C.S. , Lu Y.S. , Zhu L. , Chow C.Y.C. , Loo W.T.Y. , Glück S. , Toi M.
Published: March 2017

Aim

For early‐stage breast cancer, four cycles of docetaxel and cyclophosphamide (TC) was proven superior to doxorubicin plus cyclophosphamide in the US Oncology 9375 trial. Given primary prophylactic antibiotics, 5% febrile neutropenia was recorded in a population comprising 75.5% Caucasians. Smaller trials and retrospective studies reviewing TC use in Asian patients did not produce similar incidence rates. This study aims to discover the variable hematological toxicities with TC use in Caucasian and Asian patients.

Methods

Breast cancer data was retrospectively reviewed for patients receiving adjuvant docetaxel 60–75 mg/m2 plus cyclophosphamide 600 mg/m2 from six countries (China, Hong Kong, Japan, Taiwan, Italy, and United States). Similar number of patients with relatively balanced baseline characteristics were chosen for analysis of hematological and nonhematological toxicities and survival data.

Results

From March 2004 to July 2013, data of 227 patients (127 Asians and 100 Caucasian) patients were analyzed for treatment‐related toxicities. During the four cycles of TC, Asians had a significantly higher rate of grade ≥2 neutropenia than Caucasians (45.7% vs 6.0%; P <0.001) and significantly more grade ≥3 neutropenia events were documented (respectively 30.7% vs 4.0%, P <0.001). The prophylactic use of G‐CSF was similar; 26.0% in Asians and 28.0% in Caucasian (P = 0.764). There were no differences in nonhematological toxicities. No significant difference in disease‐free survival was observed between Asians and Caucasians (log‐rank P = 0.910).

Conclusions

Ethnic differences in toxicity profile exist between Asian and Caucasian patients given adjuvant TC. Over 30% Asians but less than 5% Caucasians experienced grade ≥3 neutropenia.
Computerized data‐driven interpretation of the intrapartum cardiotocogram: a cohort study
Authors: Georgieva Antoniya , Redman Christopher W.G. , Papageorghiou Aris T.
Published: March 2017

Introduction

Continuous intrapartum fetal monitoring remains a significant clinical challenge. We propose using cohorts of routinely collected data. We aim to combine non‐classical (data‐driven) and classical cardiotocography features with clinical features into a system (OxSys), which generates automated alarms for the fetus at risk of intrapartum hypoxia. We hypothesize that OxSys can outperform clinical diagnosis of “fetal distress”, when optimized and tested over large retrospective data sets.

Material and methods

We studied a cohort of 22 790 women in labor (≥36 weeks of gestation). Paired umbilical blood analyses were available. Perinatal outcomes were defined by objective criteria (normal; severe, moderate or mild compromise). We used the data retrospectively to develop a prototype of OxSys, by relating its alarms to perinatal outcome, and comparing its performance against standards achieved by bedside diagnosis.

Results

OxSys1.5 triggers an alarm if the initial trace is nonreactive or the decelerative capacity (a nonclassical cardiotocography feature), exceeds a threshold, adjusted for preeclampsia and thick meconium. There were 187 newborns with severe, 613 with moderate and 3197 with mild compromise; and 18 793 with normal outcome. OxSys1.5 increased the sensitivity for compromise detection: 43.3% vs. 38.0% for severe (p = 0.3) and 36.1% vs. 31.0% for moderate (p = 0.06); and reduced the false‐positive rate (14.4% vs. 16.3%, p < 0.001).

Conclusions

Large historic cohorts can be used to develop and optimize computerized cardiotocography monitoring, combining clinical and cardiotocography risk factors. Our simple prototype has demonstrated the principle of using such data to trigger alarms, and compares well with clinical judgment.
Weighted Pseudolikelihood for SNP Set Analysis with Multiple Secondary Outcomes in Case-Control Genetic Association Studies
Authors: Sofer Tamar , Schifano Elizabeth D. , Christiani David C. , Lin Xihong
Published: March 2017

We propose a weighted pseudolikelihood method for analyzing the association of a SNP set, example, SNPs in a gene or a genetic pathway or network, with multiple secondary phenotypes in case-control genetic association studies. To boost analysis power, we assume that the SNP-specific effects are shared across all secondary phenotypes using a scaled mean model. We estimate regression parameters using Inverse Probability Weighted (IPW) estimating equations obtained from the weighted pseudolikelihood, which accounts for case-control sampling to prevent potential ascertainment bias. To test the effect of a SNP set, we propose a weighted variance component pseudo-score test. We also propose a penalized IPW pseudolikelihood method for selecting a subset of SNPs that are associated with the multiple secondary phenotypes. We show that the proposed variable selection procedure has the oracle properties and is robust to misspecification of the correlation structure among secondary phenotypes. We select the tuning parameter using a weighted Bayesian Information-like Criterion (wBIC). We evaluate the finite sample performance of the proposed methods via simulations, and illustrate the methods by the analysis of the multiple secondary smoking behavior outcomes in a lung cancer case-control genetic association study.
The role of preschool teacher–child interactions in academic adjustment: An intervention study with Playing‐2‐gether
Authors: Van Craeyevelt Sanne , Verschueren Karine , Vancraeyveldt Caroline , Wouters Sofie , Colpin Hilde
Published: March 2017

Background

Social relationships can serve as important risk or protective factors for child development in general, and academic adjustment in particular.

Aims

This study investigated the role of teacher–child interactions in academic adjustment among preschool boys at risk of externalizing behaviour, using a randomized controlled trial study with Playing‐2‐gether (P2G), a 12‐week indicated two‐component intervention aimed at improving the affective quality of the teacher–child relationship and teacher behaviour management.

Sample

In a sample of 175 preschool boys showing signs of externalizing behaviour (Mage = 4 years, 9 months, SDage = 7 months) and their teachers, we investigated P2G effects on academic engagement as well as on language achievement.

Methods

Academic engagement was rated by teachers at three occasions within one school year (T1 = pretest, T3 = post‐test, and T2 = in‐between intervention components). Language achievement was assessed by researchers at pre‐ and post‐test, using a standardized test.

Results

Cross‐lagged path analyses revealed a direct intervention effect of P2G on academic engagement at Time 2. In addition, a significant indirect intervention effect was found on academic engagement at Time 3 through academic engagement at Time 2. Finally, academic engagement at Time 2 was found to predict language achievement at post‐test. A marginally significant indirect intervention effect was found on language achievement at Time 3, through academic engagement at Time 2.

Conclusions

This intervention study suggests that teacher–child interactions predict academic engagement over time, which in turn improves language achievement among preschool boys at risk of externalizing behaviour.
Safety and efficacy of 2‐weekly cabazitaxel in metastatic castration‐resistant prostate cancer
Authors: Clément‐Zhao Alice , Auvray Marie , Aboudagga Hail , Blanc‐Durand Félix , Angelergues Antoine , Vano Yann Alexandre , Mercier Florence , El Awadly Nader , Verret Benjamin , Thibault Constance , Oudard Stéphane
Published: March 2017

Objectives

To evaluate the safety and efficacy of a 2‐weekly cabazitaxel schedule in patients with metastatic castration‐resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC).

Materials and methods

During the period October 2013 to February 2016, 43 patients with mCRPC were treated with cabazitaxel (16 mg/m2, on days 1 and 15 of a 4‐week cycle) together with prophylactic granulocyte colony‐stimulating factor (G‐CSF). The safety profile and efficacy (prostate‐specific antigen [PSA] response; biological, clinical or radiological progression‐free survival [PFS] and overall survival [OS]) of the treatment were analysed.

Results

All patients had received prior docetaxel and 79.1% abiraterone acetate. At inclusion, 46.5% were aged >70 years and 27.9% had an Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status ≥2. Six patients stopped treatment because of toxicity. Grade ≥3 toxicities were: asthenia (16.3%); neutropenia (11.6%); thrombocytopenia (9.3%); diarrhoea (7%), anaemia (4.7%), febrile neutropenia (4.7%) and haematuria (2.3%). In all, 52.4% achieved a ≥30% PSA response and 40.5% had a ≥50% PSA response. The median OS was 15.2 months.

Conclusion

This prospective pilot study suggests that cabazitaxel 16 mg/m² given 2‐weekly has a manageable toxicity profile in docetaxel‐ and abiraterone acetate‐pretreated patients with mCRPC. A prospective phase III trial comparing this regimen with the standard cabazitaxel regimen is planned to confirm these results.
Family Instability and Young Children's School Adjustment: Callousness and Negative Internal Representations as Mediators
Authors: Coe Jesse L. , Davies Patrick T. , Sturge‐Apple Melissa L.
Published: March 2017

This study examined the mediating roles of children's callousness and negative internal representations of family relationships in associations between family instability and children's adjustment to school in early childhood. Participants in this multimethod (i.e., survey, observations), multiinformant (i.e., parent, teacher, observer), longitudinal study included 243 preschool children (Mage = 4.60 years) and their families. Findings from the lagged, autoregressive tests of the mediational paths indicated that both children's callousness and negative internal representations of family relationships mediated longitudinal associations between family instability and children's school adjustment problems over a 2‐year period (i.e., the transition from preschool to first grade). Findings are discussed in relation to the attenuation hypothesis (E. J. Susman, 2006) and emotional security theory (EST; P. T. Davies, M. A. Winter, & D. Cicchetti, 2006).
Predicting Adolescents’ Bullying Participation from Developmental Trajectories of Social Status and Behavior
Authors: Pouwels J. Loes , Salmivalli Christina , Saarento Silja , van den Berg Yvonne H. M. , Lansu Tessa A. M. , Cillessen Antonius H. N.
Published: March 2017

The aim of this study was to determine how trajectory clusters of social status (social preference and perceived popularity) and behavior (direct aggression and prosocial behavior) from age 9 to age 14 predicted adolescents’ bullying participant roles at age 16 and 17 (n = 266). Clusters were identified with multivariate growth mixture modeling (GMM). The findings showed that participants’ developmental trajectories of social status and social behavior across childhood and early adolescence predicted their bullying participant role involvement in adolescence. Practical implications and suggestions for further research are discussed.
Lycium barbarum polysaccharide extracts preserve retinal function and attenuate inner retinal neuronal damage in a mouse model of transient retinal ischaemia
Authors: Yang Di , So Kwok‐Fai , Lo Amy CY
Published: March 2017

Background

Retinal ischaemia is a common feature shared by numerous eye diseases. Ischaemic insult leads to retinal dysfunction and neuronal death. Lycium barbarum polysaccharides are well known for eyesight preservation. We have previously reported the effect of Lycium barbarum polysaccharides on cell death, blood ocular barrier and oxidative stress within 24 h retinal ischaemia. This study focuses on retinal function and looks for ultrastructural and cellular correlates after a relatively long period of reperfusion for 7 days.

Methods

Two‐hour ischaemia was induced by intraluminal occlusion of the internal carotid artery. Either Lycium barbarum polysaccharides or phosphate‐buffered saline was orally pre‐administered daily for 7 days before ischaemia and continued for 1, 3 and 7 days after reperfusion. Electroretinogram was performed to evaluate visual function. Paraffin‐embedded retinal sections were prepared 7 days after reperfusion and utilized for histological and immunohistochemical analyses.

Results

Ischaemia led to sustained inhibition of b‐wave amplitude and oscillatory potentials. Lycium barbarum polysaccharide‐treated mice exhibited greater b‐wave and oscillatory potential responses from days 1 to 7 after reperfusion. In addition, increased number of viable cells and calretinin‐positive cells, as well as enhanced immunoreactivity of protein kinase C alpha and attenuated glial fibrillary acidic protein expression, was noted in Lycium barbarum polysaccharide‐treated retina.

Conclusions

Daily consumption of Lycium barbarum polysaccharides effectively alleviated ischaemia‐induced retinal dysfunction as well as reduced correlated neuronal death and glial activation. This prolonged effect could last at least 7 days. It suggested that Lycium barbarum polysaccharides might serve as a neuroprotective agent in ischaemic retinopathies.
Randomized clinical trial of ridge preservation using porcine bone/cross‐linked collagen vs. bovine bone/non‐cross‐linked collagen: cone beam computed tomographic analysis
Authors: Lim Hyun‐Chang , Jung Ui‐Won , You Hoon , Lee Jung‐Seok
Published: March 2017

Purpose

The aim of this study was to radiographically compare horizontal and vertical alterations of the alveolar ridge after ridge preservation using different combinations of biomaterials.

Materials and methods

The patients were randomly assigned into two groups: (a) the test group, which received collagenated porcine bone plus cross‐linked collagen membrane (n = 15), and (b) the control group, which received collagenated bovine bone plus non‐cross‐linked collagen membrane (n = 15). Cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) was performed immediately after ridge preservation and 4 months thereafter to compare the horizontal and vertical alterations of the ridge. Intention‐to‐treat (ITT) and per protocol (PP) analyses were performed.

Results

In both analyses, there was no statistically significant difference in the horizontal alteration of the alveolar ridge between the test and control groups: −1.3 ± 0.6 (ITT)/1.2 ± 0.5 (PP) vs. −1.5 ± 0.9 mm at the 1‐mm level; −1.2 ± 0.7 (ITT and PP) vs. −1.2 ± 0.7 mm at the 3‐mm level; and −0.9 ± 0.7 (ITT)/ −0.9 ± 0.7 (PP) vs. −0.9 ± 0.9 mm at the 5‐mm level, whereas the vertical height in the midfacial area was significantly reduced in the test group compared with the control group: −‐1.1 ± 2.8 (ITT)/1.5 ± 3.0 (PP) vs. −0.7 ± 1.8 mm.

Conclusions

The horizontal ridge alteration in ridge preservation did not differ significantly between using the test the control groups, but the vertical ridge alteration was more pronounced when using the test group (KCT0001709).
Clinical impact of surveillance colonoscopy using magnification without diminutive polyp removal
Authors: Ninomiya Yuki , Oka Shiro , Tanaka Shinji , Boda Kazuki , Yamashita Ken , Sumimoto Kyoku , Hirano Daiki , Tamaru Yuzuru , Shigita Kenjiro , Hayashi Nana , Matsuo Taiji , Chayama Kazuaki
Published: March 2017

Background and Aim

In Western countries, endoscopic removal of all adenomas during colonoscopy is recommended. The present study evaluates the usefulness of magnifying colonoscopy without removal of diminutive (≤5 mm) colorectal polyps.

Methods

Patients with diminutive polyps who were observed for over 5 years using magnification at Hiroshima University Hospital were selected retrospectively. Lesions ≥6 mm in size, depressed lesions, and lesions with type V pit pattern were indications for endoscopic resection. We investigated the characteristics of lesions indicated for endoscopic resection detected on surveillance colonoscopy and the risk factors for the incidence of lesions indicated for endoscopic resection.

Results

A total of 706 consecutive patients were enrolled. Sixty‐eight lesions indicated for endoscopic resection were detected, averaging 9.0 ± 4.8 mm, and 33 (49%) lesions were located in the right colon. Pathological diagnoses were adenoma, Tis carcinoma, and T1 carcinoma in 58 (85%), eight (12%), and two (3%) lesions, respectively. Five lesions were considered to grow from previously detected diminutive polyps. Relative risks for the incidence of a lesion indicated for endoscopic resection were 1.76 (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.004–3.23) for males compared with females, 3.76 (95% CI, 2.03–7.50) for more than three polyps at initial colonoscopy compared with one polyp, and 2.84 (95% CI, 1.43–5.24) for patients with carcinoma at initial colonoscopy compared with patients with no lesion indicated for endoscopic resection. Nine carcinomas were resected endoscopically.

Conclusion

Diminutive low‐grade adenomas detected by using magnifying colonoscopy may not necessarily require removal.
Prospective evaluation of digital single‐operator cholangioscope for diagnostic and therapeutic procedures (with videos)
Authors: Ogura Takeshi , Imanishi Miyuki , Kurisu Yoshitaka , Onda Saori , Sano Tastsushi , Takagi Wataru , Okuda Atsushi , Miyano Akira , Amano Mio , Nishioka Nobu , Yamada Tadahiro , Masuda Daisuke , Takenaka Mamoru , Kitano Masayuki , Higuchi Kazuhide
Published: March 2017

Background and Aim

Recently, the digital single‐operator cholangioscope (SPY‐DS) has become available. This system may allow diagnosis by direct visualization and allow performance of various therapeutic procedures. The aim of the present study was to prospectively evaluate the clinical utility of DSOCS for diagnostic and therapeutic procedures for biliary disease.

Methods

Technical success was defined as successful visualization of target lesions in the biliary tract and carrying out forceps biopsy as a diagnostic procedure, and successfully carrying out treatment such as guidewire insertion for the area of interest, electrohydraulic lithotripsy (EHL), or migrated stent removal. Also, the present study aimed at investigating diagnostic yield of the cholangioscopic findings and biopsy specimens.

Results

A total of 55 consecutive patients were prospectively enrolled in this study; a diagnostic procedure was done in 33 patients, and a therapeutic procedure was done in 22 patients. Overall accuracy of visual findings was 93%, with a sensitivity of 83%, a specificity of 89%, positive predictive value (PPV) of 83%, and negative predictive value (NPV) of 100%. However, the overall accuracy of forceps biopsy was 89%, with a sensitivity, specificity, and PPV of 100%, and NPV of 90%. Overall technical success rate of therapeutic procedures such as selective guidewire insertion, EHL or migrated stent removal was 91% (20/22). Finally, adverse events were seen in two cases in the diagnostic group, but were not seen in the therapeutic group.

Conclusion

Although additional cases and a randomized, controlled study with another cholangioscope are needed, diagnostic and therapeutic procedures using SPY‐DS appear to be feasible and safe.