bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Correlation between total homocysteine and cerebral small vessel disease: A Mendelian randomization study
Authors: Cao Yuze , Su Ning , Zhang Dingding , Zhou Lixin , Yao Ming , Zhang Shuyang , Cui Liying , Zhu Yicheng , Ni Jun 
Published: December 2020

AbstractBackground and purposeCerebral small vessel disease (CSVD) is a clinical imaging syndrome with diverse etiology. Total homocysteine (HCY) level might increase the risk of myocardial and cerebral infarction by damaging the vascular endothelium. We aimed to explore the correlation between total HCY and CSVD imaging burden, based on Mendelian randomization methods.MethodsA total of 1,023 participants of the Shunyi study, a population‐based cohort study, were included. Vascular risk factors, total HCY levels and methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) gene mutations (C677T and A1298C) were examined. CSVD imaging markers, including lacunes, cerebral microbleeds, white matter hyperintensity, enlarged perivascular space and brain parenchymal fraction (BPF) were also assessed.ResultsMutations of C677T were significantly correlated with increased total HCY levels (CC→TT: β = 0.28, p < 0.0001), while mutations of A1298C were correlated with decreased total HCY levels (AA→AC: β = −0.13, p < 0.0001; AA→CC: β = −0.25, p = 0.004). In the Mendelian randomization study, the C677T genotype was significantly associated with lacunes (CC→CT: odds ratio [OR] 2.76, p = 0.008; CC→TT: OR 2.50, p = 0.018), and the A1298C genotype was significantly correlated with BPF (AA→CC: β = 1.32, p = 0.015). Similarly, in multivariate regression analysis, total HCY levels were significantly correlated with lacunes (OR 2.14, p < 0.0001) and negatively correlated with BPF (β = −0.55, p = 0.004). Age, sex and vascular risk factors were adjusted for.ConclusionsTotal HCY level was correlated with imaging burden of CSVD, especially with lacunes and brain volume loss. For individuals with risk genetic predisposition, enhanced homocysteine‐lowering strategies might be necessary to reduce the risk and progress of CSVD.
From connection to collusion: How college admissions bow to powerful alumni in China
Authors: Li Tao , Mo Kun 
Published: December 2020

AbstractAccess to college is critical for social mobility in China. Using a detailed college admission database that includes essentially all four‐year public universities from 2005 to 2013, we demonstrate that Chinese universities preallocate more admission seats to provinces that happen to fall under the leadership of their alumni. Moreover, we demonstrate that the identified admission favoritism constitutes a political exchange between public universities and their powerful alumni in the sense that (a) universities and the connected provinces tend to sign formal partnership agreements; and (b) university leaders who sign formal partnership agreements receive indirect personal gains in terms of career advancement in the party‐state bureaucracy. Our article provides causal evidence that social connections facilitate powerful government insiders' collusion and capture of public resources in a weak institutional environment.
A cross‐sectional study on dermatoses among underwater workers: a new clinical sign of peculiar distribution pattern of lesions in sea urchin prick reaction revealed
Authors: Nikhila Pappinisseri Komalalayam , Sukumarakurup Sreekanth , Abdul Latheef Ettappurath N. , Kidangazhiathmana Ajithkumar , Raman Rajendran Vadukkot , George Biju , Riyaz Najeeba , Binitha Manikoth Payyanadan 
Published: December 2020

AbstractBackgroundThe pattern of dermatoses among underwater workers is undocumented and, hence, worth studying. The objective of the study was to document the pattern of dermatoses among underwater workers in a tropical seaside area.MethodsA population‐based cross‐sectional study of 1 year from April 2015 among people regularly involved in underwater occupation, especially the collection of mollusks.ResultsAmong 62 participants analyzed, the commonly noted dermatoses were scars of previous injuries, sea urchin prick reaction, onychomycosis, tinea versicolor, dermatophytosis, warts, and intertrigo. These workers stabilize their position under water by fixing elbows and knees to rocks, where they get accidentally pricked by sea urchins attached to the rocks. Hands also get pricked by sea urchins while trying to pluck mollusks from rocks, thus leading to the predominance of lesions in elbows, knees, and hands.ConclusionDocumenting the pattern of dermatological diseases in any group of underwater workers has not been done previously. Along with doing that, the study also brought to light the existence of a rare disease, sea urchin prick reaction, in notable proportions among an underprivileged group. This study also detected a previously unrecorded clinical finding of a peculiar distribution pattern of lesions over the body in patients with sea urchin prick reaction. The evidence toward possible commensalism between the two species of organisms noted in this study extends its scope beyond the realms of dermatology and opens new areas for research in other branches of science also.
Spatial heterogeneity in temporal dynamics of Alpine bird communities along an elevational gradient
Authors: García‐Navas Vicente , Sattler Thomas , Schmid Hans , Ozgul Arpat 
Published: December 2020

AbstractAimMountains are biodiversity hotspots and are among the most sensitive ecosystems to ongoing global change being thus of conservation concern. Under this scenario, assessing how biological communities vary over time along elevational gradients and the relative effects of niche‐based deterministic processes and stochastic events in structuring assemblages is essential. Here, we examined how the temporal trends of bird communities vary with elevation over a 20 year‐period (1999–2018). We also tested for differences in temporal dynamics among habitat types (among‐community variability) and functional groups (within‐community variability).Taxon97 species of common breeding birds.LocationSwiss Alps.MethodsWe used abundance data from the Swiss breeding bird survey to compute different temporal dynamic metrics (temporal turnover, synchrony, rate of community change and community‐level of covariance among species). We also examined the relative contribution of deterministic and stochastic processes in community assembly using the Raup‐Crick method and the normalized stochasticity ratio.ResultsWe found that, with greater elevation, temporal species turnover increased while the rate of overall community change over successive years decreased, suggesting that high‐elevation communities display more erratic dynamics with no clear trend. Despite this, we found a more deterministic assembly of alpine communities in comparison to those located at lower elevations. Deterministic processes had greater influence than stochastic processes on community assembly along the entire elevational gradient (80% of communities). Forest communities exhibited higher synchrony in comparison to the remaining habitats likely because they consisted of species with greater functional redundancy, whereas alpine communities were the least stable as a result of their low taxonomic richness (‘portfolio’ effect).Main conclusionsCommunity‐level synchrony was overall positive supporting the idea that compensatory mechanisms are rare in natural biological communities. Our results suggest that rather than competition, the existence of differences in the ecological strategies of species may have a stabilizing effect on bird communities by weakening the concordance of species responses to fluctuations in environmental conditions (i.e. enhanced interspecific temporal asynchrony). This study provides evidence that, although species turnover in metacommunities is frequent, a high temporal turnover does not necessarily imply the overriding importance of stochastic processes.
Specific electrogram characteristics impact substrate ablation target area in patients with scar‐related ventricular tachycardia—insights from automated ultrahigh‐density mapping
Authors: Schwarzl Jana M. , Schleberger Ruben , Kahle Ann‐Kathrin , Höller Alexandra , Schwarzl Michael , Schaeffer Benjamin N. , Münkler Paula , Moser Julia , Akbulak Ruken Ö. , Eickholt Christian , Dinshaw Leon , Dickow Jannis , Maury Philippe , Sacher Frederic , Martin Claire A. , Wong Tom , Estner Heidi L. , Jaïs Pierre , Willems Stephan , Meyer Christian 
Published: December 2020

AbstractIntroductionSubstrate‐based catheter ablation approaches to ventricular tachycardia (VT) focus on low‐voltage areas and abnormal electrograms. However, specific electrogram characteristics in sinus rhythm are not clearly defined and can be subject to variable interpretation. We analyzed the potential ablation target size using automatic abnormal electrogram detection and studied findings during substrate mapping in the VT isthmus area.Methods and ResultsElectrogram characteristics in 61 patients undergoing scar‐related VT ablation using ultrahigh‐density 3D‐mapping with a 64‐electrode mini‐basket catheter were analyzed retrospectively. Forty‐four complete substrate maps with a mean number of 10319 ± 889 points were acquired. Fractionated potentials detected by automated annotation and manual review were present in 43 ± 21% of the entire low‐voltage area (<1.0 mV), highly fractionated potentials in 7 ± 8%, late potentials in 13 ± 15%, fractionated late potentials in 7 ± 9% and isolated late potentials in 2 ± 4%, respectively. Highly fractionated potentials (>10 ± 1 fractionations) were found in all isthmus areas of identified VT during substrate mapping, while isolated late potentials were distant from the critical isthmus area in 29%.ConclusionThe ablation target area varies enormously in size, depending on the definition of abnormal electrograms. Clear linking of abnormal electrograms with critical VT isthmus areas during substrate mapping remains difficult due to a lack of specificity rather than sensitivity. However, highly fractionated, low‐voltage electrograms were found to be present in all critical VT isthmus sites.
Long sleep duration and cardiovascular disease: Associations with arterial stiffness and blood pressure variability
Authors: Matsubayashi Hideaki , Nagai Michiaki , Dote Keigo , Turana Yuda , Siddique Saulat , Chia Yook‐Chin , Chen Chen‐Huan , Cheng Hao‐Min , Van Minh Huynh , Verma Narsingh , Chin Tay Jam , Wee Teo Boon , Kario Kazuomi 
Published: December 2020

AbstractAlthough short and long sleep duration are both risk factors of cardiovascular disease (CVD), the recent meta‐analyses have been shown that long sleep duration was closely associated with CVD mortality. While the specific mechanism underlying the association between long sleep duration and CVD remains unclear, long sleep duration was shown to be associated with arterial stiffness and blood pressure variability (BPV) in many Asian populations. This review article will focus on the pathophysiology of long sleep duration, arterial stiffness, BPV and their effects on CVD. To set the stage for this review, we first summarize the current insights for the relationship between long sleep duration and CVD in relation to arterial stiffness and BPV.
Testing the Premises of International Society in the European Energy Union: The Pluralism/Solidarism Nexus
Authors: Stefanova Boyka M. , Zhelev Paskal 
Published: December 2020

AbstractThis paper sheds new light on the policy reality of the European Energy Union on the example of the EU natural gas market. The paper argues that, as the energy union preserves the treaty‐based parallelism between the competences of the EU and the member states, the resolution of conflicts between individual preferences and shared priorities has emerged as a measure of consolidation in the EU energy domain. Which logic prevails: the common good or the consensus will? The paper applies the concept of international society to test key hypotheses related to the pluralism/solidarism nexus in the European Energy Union.The paper concludes that individual interests and collective decision‐making in the EU natural gas market are reconciled along the premises of pragmatic solidarism with demonstration effects for the regional energy system, indicative of the EU's vanguard role as a regional regulator setting the rules of energy investment and trade in Europe.
Feedback on Forensic Mental Health Assessments in a Juvenile Court Clinic Certification Program
Authors: DiCataldo Frank , Serafinski Rachel L. , Beam Danielle C. , Grisso Thomas 
Published: December 2020

AbstractPublic‐sector mental health systems have set forth specialized practice competencies for forensic mental health clinicians conducting court‐ordered examinations. This study examined a sample of feedback letters to clinicians who submitted mid‐training and final reports for review as part of the requirements for certification as a juvenile court clinician. The most common feedback points were insufficient/irrelevant historical data, problems with clarity/organization of the report, problems with interview/mental status examination, and problems with competency to stand trial data/opinions. Clinicians had fewer deficiencies in their final report compared to their mid‐training report, supporting the perspective that forensic training and supervision is associated with better quality reports.
Evidence‐Based Guidance for Self‐Administration of Injectable Contraception
Authors: Marx Megan 
Published: December 2020

AbstractThe requirement of in‐person visits every 3 months for a health care provider to administer intramuscular depot medroxyprogesterone acetate (DMPA‐IM) is a significant barrier to its use, particularly in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. Time and travel costs as well as scheduling conflicts also negatively impact the receipt of subsequent contraceptive injections, which can result in unintended pregnancies. Subcutaneous depot medroxyprogesterone acetate (DMPA‐SC) can be self‐administered by individuals at home, expanding contraceptive access, convenience, and reproductive autonomy. With 30% less progestin, DMPA‐SC improves upon the DMPA‐IM formulation while retaining efficacy. As part of comprehensive contraceptive counseling, health care providers should consider offering DMPA‐SC to eligible individuals interested in self‐administration. Using a case study approach, evidence‐based recommendations are reviewed for the off‐label use of self‐administered DMPA‐SC in the United States.
Clinical academic research internships: What works for nurses and the wider nursing, midwifery and allied health professional workforce
Authors: Olive Philippa , Maxton Fiona , Bell Cate Ann , Bench Suzanne , Tinkler Linda , Jones Steph , Kenkre Joyce 
Published: December 2020

AbstractNurse‐led research and innovation is key to improving health experiences and outcomes and reducing health inequalities. Clinical academic training programmes for nurses to develop research and innovation skills alongside continued development of their clinical practice are becoming increasingly established at national, regional and local levels. Though widely supported, geographical variation in the range and scope of opportunities available remains. It is imperative that clinical academic opportunities for nurses continue to grow to ensure equity of access and opportunity so that the potential of nurse‐led clinical academic research to improve quality of care, health experience and health outcomes can be realised. In this paper, we describe and report on clinical academic internship opportunities available to nurses to share internationally, a range of innovative programmes currently in operation across the UK. Examples of some of the tangible benefits for patients, professional development, clinical teams and NHS organisations resulting from these clinical academic internships are illustrated. Information from local evaluations of internship programmes was collated to report what has worked well alongside ‘real‐world’ set‐up and sustainability challenges faced in practice. Clinical academic internship schemes are often opportunistically developed, making use of hybrid models of delivery and funding responsive to local needs and available resources. Key enablers of successful clinical academic internship programmes for nurses were support from senior clinical leaders and established relationships with local universities and wider organisations committed to research capacity building.
A challenging balancing act to engage children and their families in a healthy lifestyle – Nurses' experiences of child‐centred health dialogue in child health services in Sweden
Authors: Castor Charlotte , Derwig Mariette , Borg Sofie Johanna , Ollhage Malin Elisabeth , Tiberg Iren 
Published: December 2020

AbstractAims and objectivesTo describe nurses' experiences of a child‐centred family guided intervention of obesity tested within the child health services targeting children identified with overweight and their caregivers.BackgroundInterventions aiming to support families towards a healthier lifestyle can lead to decreased risk of overweight evolving into obesity in a child. At the same time, nurses have found dialogues on weight challenging and may therefore avoid them.DesignQualitative descriptive inductive design following content analysis applying to the COREQ guidelines.MethodsContent analysis was used to analyse 13 individual semi‐structured interviews with nurses in the child health service in Sweden after completed training in CCHD, including how to facilitate the dialogue with the use of illustrations.ResultsThe theme Health dialogue about weight is a challenging balancing act facilitated by a supportive intervention emerged through eight subcategories in three main categories. Nurses experienced that CCHD with children identified with overweight and their caregivers provoked an emotional response both for themselves and for the caregivers of the child. The training in child‐centred health dialogues promoted the nurses' work with structure and professionalism, as the nurses carefully took tentative steps to engage the family for a healthy lifestyle.ConclusionsEmotional and practical challenges in performing CCHD still remained among nurses after customised training, which might comprise the child's rights to be involved in his or her own care when the child was identified as overweight. However, training for nurses, including lectures and tutorials, was found to increase the quality and professionalism of performing CCHD by providing structure, tools and tutorial support.Relevance to clinical practiceCustomised training and illustrations can support nurses when performing a structured intervention such as child‐centred health dialogues.
Randomised controlled trial of a smartphone application‐based dietary self‐management program on haemodialysis patients
Authors: Pack Songyi , Lee Jia 
Published: December 2020

AbstractAims and objectivesTo develop a smartphone application‐based dietary self‐management program for haemodialysis patients and to examine its effects on biochemical indicators, self‐efficacy and quality of life.BackgroundLack of dietary management in haemodialysis patients can lead to serious complications such as oedema, hyponatremia, hyperkalaemia, hypertension, uraemia and eventually death; however, studies using smartphone applications for dietary self‐management in haemodialysis patients are rare.DesignA prospective, single‐blind, randomised, controlled design with repeated measures was followed with 75 haemodialysis patients at a haemodialysis centre. Data were collected from 10 January 2017–6 May 2018. The study applied the Consolidated Standards of Reporting Trials statement.MethodsThe 8‐week smartphone application‐based dietary self‐management program was developed through collaboration with a haemodialysis equipment company. The experimental group took this program while the control group took an 8‐week general program. Study variables were serum phosphorus, potassium and albumin, self‐efficacy and quality of life. They were measured at pretest, and 8 weeks and 12 weeks after the programs, and analysed using two‐way repeated measures analysis of variance.FindingsThe smartphone application‐based program significantly improved serum phosphorus, potassium, self‐efficacy and quality of life over time compared with the general program. There was no significant difference in albumin level changes between the groups.ConclusionsThe smartphone application‐based dietary self‐management program is an opportune and effective nursing intervention to lower serum phosphorus and potassium levels in haemodialysis patients over time. Trial registration was performed on www.cris.nih.go.kr (KCT0005366).Relevance to clinical practiceHaemodialysis patients can easily use the smartphone application to manage their diet anytime and anywhere. They can get real‐time feedback and solutions to prevent haemodialysis complications. Nurses can provide tailored high‐quality care based on an individual's lifelog data from the smartphone application.
Promoting safer sex in the context of heterosexual anal intercourse: A scoping review
Authors: Stewart Joanne , Douglas Gillian , O'Rourke Tammy , Gammel Carolyn 
Published: December 2020

AbstractAims and objectivesTo locate and summarise existing literature regarding safer sex practices specific to heterosexual anal intercourse and identify promising health promotion strategies.BackgroundMuch of the literature regarding anal intercourse and safer sex is related to men who have sex with men. However, some studies suggest there are more women than men engaging in unprotected receptive anal intercourse. The risks associated with this sexual practice have been well documented, although many healthcare providers fail to ask about anal intercourse while addressing safer sex in the heterosexual population.DesignThe study was based on Arksey and O’Malley's 2005 five‐step methodology.MethodsA search was conducted of MEDLINE; CINAHL; PsycInfo; Cochrane; and PubMed. Databases were searched from 1990–2020. The 72 studies selected were classified according to their main area of focus. A grey literature search was also included. This scientific submission has been assessed for accuracy and completeness using the PRISMA‐ScR guideline criteria (File S1).ResultsThe literature in this area is heterogeneous in terms of method and topic. Prevalence and incidence (n = 26) in addition to sexually transmitted infection risks (n = 26) related to heterosexual anal intercourse are well understood. However, there is limited information on condom use (n = 6), factors that influence heterosexual anal intercourse (n = 10) and health promotion strategies for this population and practice (n = 4). Two websites that mentioned heterosexual anal intercourse risk reduction activities were included.ConclusionsAlthough heterosexual anal intercourse appears to be an increasingly common sexual practice, very little is known about health promotion strategies nurses might use for encouraging safer sex in this population.Relevance to clinical practiceIncreased awareness of the prevalence and risks of heterosexual anal intercourse could enhance nurses’ harm reduction strategies. Screening for sexually transmitted infections may be based on incorrect assumptions about sexual practices or due to stigma linked with anal intercourse. Reducing unprotected heterosexual anal intercourse will reduce sexually transmitted infections and their long‐term sequelae.