bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Assessment of Freestyle Local Facial Perforator Flaps for Coverage of Facial Defects
Authors: Ellabban Mohamed A. , Ibrahim Ahmed M. , Gomah Amr A. , Salah Omar , Abdelrahman Islam , Steinvall Ingrid , Adly Osama A. , Aboelnaga Ahmed M. 
Published: December 2020

Objective:
To assess local freestyle facial perforator flaps in the reconstruction of small to medium-sized facial defects.

Materials and methods:
In a case series, local freestyle perforator flaps were used in Suez Canal University Hospital to reconstruct 28 facial defects in 26 patients between 2017 and 2019. Adequate perforators were identified near those defects and flaps were designed as propeller or VY advancement. Four scales from the FACE-Q (satisfaction with facial appearance, satisfaction with the outcome, psychological function, and appearance-related psychosocial distress) and 2 scales from the SCAR-Q (Appearance scale and Symptom scale) were used as well as the observer part of the Patient and Observer Scar Assessment Scale. The mean follow up period was 10 months.

Results:
Complete reconstruction was achieved in all cases with a high rate of patient satisfaction which was assessed by FACE-Q and SCAR-Q. Moreover, observer assessment by Patient and Observer Scar Assessment Scale score showed high patient satisfaction with the scars with a mean (SD) 15.5 (3.4) and there was a positive correlation between subjective and objective: results (r2 from 0.27 to 0.41, P < 0.01). Regarding complications, bulkiness occurred in 2 flaps, congestion in 2 flaps, dehiscence in 1 flap, and tip necrosis in 5 flaps. Accordingly, secondary intervention in the form of medicinal leech therapy was used in 3 flaps, delayed closure for the dehisced flap and debulking for 1 flap.

Conclusions:
Local freestyle perforator flap reconstruction is one of the recommended techniques for small to medium-sized facial defects which gives a high aesthetic outcome and patient satisfaction.
Secondary Cervicofacial Soft Tissue Reconstruction With Upper Trapezius Myocutaneous Flap in “Frozen Neck” With Bone Flap and Reconstructive Plate Exposure
Authors: Navarro Cuéllar Carlos , Alonso Dafne Gascón , Antúnez-Conde Raúl , Martínez Marc Agea , Martínez Eduardo Monteserín , Cuéllar Ignacio Navarro , Fernández-Micheltorena Pablo Montes , Escobar José Ignacio Salmerón 
Published: December 2020

Abstract
A frozen neck is a scarred neck with severe fibrosis with a loss of tissue planes secondary to prior irradiation with or without surgery. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the outcomes of cervicofacial reconstruction in patients with soft tissue defects and bone flap and reconstruction plate exposure with the upper trapezius myocutaneous flap. Fifteen oncologic patients with prior surgery and radiotherapy developed soft tissue dehiscence with bone and osteosynthesis material exposure. All patients had either a frozen neck or a vessel-depleted neck. The soft tissue defects were reconstructed, the osteosynthesis material was removed and the bone flap exposure was covered in all patients. One patient developed a seroma and 1 patient reported wound dehiscence. In terms of esthetic results, 6 patients referred a good esthetic result, whereas 8 patients referred a fair result and 1 patient a poor result. Two patients with prior radical neck dissection reported a poor functional result in the ipsilateral shoulder, previously to secondary reconstruction. Functional neck dissection was performed in 10 patients, 8 patients referred a good functional outcome and 2 patients reported a fair result. The upper trapezius flap is an extremely reliable source for secondary cervicofacial soft tissue reconstruction in “frozen neck.” In comparison with other locoregional flaps, the upper trapezius flap fulfills all aesthetic and functional criteria for secondary cervicofacial soft tissue reconstruction.
The Value of Extracellular Cold-Inducible RNA-Binding Protein (eCIRP) in Predicting the Severity and Prognosis of Patients After Cardiac Arrest: A Preliminary Observational Study
Authors: Wang Ling , Li Rui-Fang , Guan Xiao-Lan , Liang Shuang-Shuang , Gong Ping 
Published: December 2020

ABSTRACT

Background:
Extracellular cold-inducible RNA-binding protein (eCIRP) acting as a novel damage-associated molecular pattern molecule promotes systemic inflammatory responses, including neuroinflammation in cerebral ischemia. We aimed to observe the changes of serum eCIRP and evaluate whether the increased serum eCIRP was associated with the severity and prognosis in patients with restoration of spontaneous circulation (ROSC).

Methods:
A total of 73 patients after ROSC were divided into non-survivor (n = 48) and survivor (n = 25) groups based on 28-day survival. Healthy volunteers (n = 25) were enrolled as controls. Serum eCIRP, procalcitonin (PCT), the pro-inflammatory mediators tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, interleukin-6 (IL)-6 and high mobility group protein (HMGB1), the neurological damage biomarkers neuron-specific enolase (NSE), and soluble protein 100β (S100β) were measured on days 1, 3, and 7 after ROSC. Clinical data and laboratory findings were collected, and the Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) score and Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation (APACHE II) were calculated concurrently. Cerebral performance category scores on day 28 after ROSC were recorded.

Results:
Serum eCIRP, IL-6, TNF-α, PCT, and HMGB1, NSE and S100β were significantly increased within the first week after ROSC. The increased levels of eCIRP were positively correlated with IL-6, TNF-α, lactate, NSE, S100β, CPR time, SOFA score, APACHE II score, and HMGB1 after ROSC. Serum eCIRP on days 1, 3, and 7 after ROSC could predict 28-day mortality and neurological prognosis. Serum eCIRP on day 3 after ROSC had a biggest AUC [0.862 (95% CI: 0.741–0.941)] for 28-day mortality and a biggest AUC [0.807 (95% CI: 0.630–0.981)] for neurological prognosis.

Conclusions:
Systemic inflammatory response with increased serum eCIRP occurred in patients after ROSC. Increased eCIRP level was positively correlated with the aggravation of systemic inflammatory response and the severity after ROSC. Serum eCIRP serves as a potential predictor for 28-day mortality and poor neurological prognosis after ROSC.
Pharmacological and Genetic Inhibition of Translocator Protein 18 kDa Ameliorated Neuroinflammation in Murine Endotoxemia Model
Authors: Giga Hiroshi , Ji Bin , Kikutani Kazuya , Fukuda Shuji , Kitajima Takashi , Katsumata Seishi , Matsumata Miho , Suhara Tetsuya , Yamawaki Shigeto , Shime Nobuaki , Hosokawa Koji , Aizawa Hidenori 
Published: December 2020

ABSTRACT
Sepsis-associated encephalopathy (SAE) is a diffuse brain dysfunction associated with sepsis. The development of an effective strategy for early diagnosis and therapeutic intervention is essential for the prevention of poor prognosis of SAE. Translocator protein 18 kDa (TSPO) is a mitochondrial protein implicated in steroidogenesis and inflammatory responses. Despite accumulating evidence that implicates TSPO in the neuroinflammatory response of the central nervous system, the possible role of TSPO in SAE remains unclear. The aim of this study is to address a role of TSPO in neuroinflammation using mice 24 h after systemic injection of LPS, which consistently demonstrated microglial activation and behavioral inhibition. Quantitative polymerase chain reaction analysis revealed that hippocampal TSPO expression was induced following the systemic LPS injection, associated with an increase in pro-inflammatory cytokines such as tumor necrosis factor-α and interleukin-1β. Interestingly, pretreatment with the TSPO antagonist, ONO-2952, or germ-line deletion of the TSPO gene exhibited an anti-inflammatory effect with significant suppression of LPS-induced production of those cytokines. These effects demonstrated by the ONO-2952 or TSPO knockout were associated with significant recovery from behavioral inhibition, as shown by improved locomotor activity in the open field analysis. Histological analysis revealed that ONO-2952 pretreatment suppressed the LPS-induced activation of TSPO-expressing microglia in the hippocampus of mice. Collectively, these results suggest that TSPO plays a critical role in the SAE mouse model. Based on this finding, monitoring TSPO activity, as well as the progress of endotoxemia and its sequelae in the animal model, would deepen our understanding of the underlying molecular mechanism of SAE.
“Safer at home”: The effect of the COVID-19 lockdown on epidemiology, resource utilization, and outcomes at a large urban trauma center
Authors: Chiba Hiroto , Lewis Meghan , Benjamin Elizabeth R. , Jakob Dominik A. , Liasidis Panayiotis , Wong Monica D. , Navarrete Sixta , Carreon Robert , Demetriades Demetrios 
Published: December 2020

BACKGROUND
The COVID-19 pandemic has affected the entire global health care system. In California, because of a high burden of cases, a lockdown order was announced on March 19, 2020. This study investigated the impact of the lockdown on the epidemiology and outcomes of trauma admissions at the largest trauma center in Los Angeles.

METHODS
A retrospective study comparing epidemiological and clinical characteristics and outcomes of trauma admissions during the lockdown period (March 20, 2020, to June 30, 2020) to a similar period in the previous year (March 20, 2019, to June 30, 2019) was performed. Data collection included demographics, mechanism of injury, prehospital transportation, substance use, injury severity, resource utilization, and outcomes.

FINDINGS
There were 1,202 admissions during the lockdown period in 2020 and 1,143 during the same calendar period in 2019. Following the lockdown, there was a reduction in the automobile versus pedestrian admissions by 42.5%, motorcycle injuries by 38.7%, and bicycle accidents by 28.4% but no significant effect on the number of motor vehicle accident admissions. There was an increase in ground level falls by 32.5%, especially in the elderly group. The absolute number of gunshot wounds increased by 6.2% and knife injuries by 39.3%. Suicides increased by 38.5%. Positive testing for substance use increased by 20.9%. During the lockdown, patients suffered less severe trauma, with Injury Severity Score of <9 (p < 0.001), as well as less severe head (p = 0.001) and severe chest trauma (p < 0.001). Trauma deaths were reduced by 27.9%, and the crude overall mortality was significantly lower during the lockdown period (4.1% vs. 5.9%, p = 0.046). Intensive care unit admission rates, mechanical ventilation, and intensive care unit length of stay were all reduced.

CONCLUSION
The COVID-19 lockdown in 2020 had a significant effect on the epidemiology, clinical characteristics, and critical care resource utilization of trauma admissions in a large academic trauma center. These findings may help in planning and optimization of hospital resources during the pandemic.

LEVEL OF EVIDENCE
Epidemiological study, level III; Retrospective observational, level III.
Salesforce product knowledge in Islamic financial institutions; development and validation of measurement scale
Authors: Shamsudheen Shinaj Valangattil , Chowdhury Mohammad Ashraful Ferdous 
Published: December 2020

Purpose
The purpose of the study is to develop and validate scale to measure the “product knowledge of salesforce in Islamic financial institutions”.

Design/methodology/approach
A total of 371 responses were collected from the salesforce of Islamic financial institutions in the United Arab Emirates. Study adopted both exploratory and confirmatory approach with fundamental principles of Islamic finance. Content validity test and factor analysis are employed to refine measurement items and define as well as validate the scale, respectively.

Findings
Total three dimensions were extracted, i.e. “System”, “Features” and “Contracts” through “exploratory factor analysis” (EFA), and evidence of validation of measurement scale/construct was reported through “confirmatory factor analysis” (CFA).

Research limitations/implications
The span of the study is limited to a single country. Future studies are suggested to employ the newly developed scale/construct in the research frameworks and obtain the overall model fit.

Practical implications
The scope of developed and validated measurement scale is broad and can be applied in any kind of Islamic financial institutions in which the study requires capturing product knowledge of salesforce with special reference to peculiar characteristics of Islamic financial institutions.

Originality/value
While there is ample literature addressing the issues of competence and need for capacity building among Islamic banking practitioners in general, little has been explored with special reference to the salesforce, their degree of knowledge about the product they offer to the customers and a scale to measure their knowledge that envelopes the specific features of Islamic finance. These gaps serve as justification for undertaking this study.
A fully unsupervised and highly generalized deep learning approach for random noise suppression
Authors: Saad Omar M. , Chen Yangkang 
Published: December 2020

ABSTRACTIn this study, we proposed a deep learning algorithm (PATCHUNET) to suppress random noise and preserve the coherent seismic signal. The input data are divided into several patches, and each patch is encoded to extract the meaningful features. Following this, the extracted features are decompressed to retrieve the seismic signal. Skip connections are used between the encoder and decoder parts, allowing the proposed algorithm to extract high‐order features without losing important information. Besides, dropout layers are used as regularization layers. The dropout layers preserve the most meaningful features belonging to the seismic signal and discard the remaining features. The proposed algorithm is an unsupervised approach that does not require prior information about the clean signal. The input patches are divided into 80% for training and 20% for testing. However, it is interesting to find that the proposed algorithm can be trained with only 30% of the input patches with an effective denoising performance. Four synthetic and four field examples are used to evaluate the proposed algorithm performance, and compared to the deconvolution and the singular spectrum analysis. The results indicate the ability of the proposed algorithm in attenuating the random noise and preserving the seismic signal effectively despite the existence of a large amount of random noise, for example, when the input signal‐to‐noise ratio is as low as −14.2 dB.
State dependence explains individual variation in nest defence behaviour in a long‐lived bird
Authors: de Jong Margje E. , Nicolaus Marion , Fokkema Rienk W. , Loonen Maarten J. J. E. 
Published: December 2020

Abstract

Parental care, such as nest or offspring defence, is crucial for offspring survival in many species. Yet, despite its obvious fitness benefits, the level of defence can consistently vary between individuals of the same species. One prominent adaptive explanation for consistent individual differences in behaviours involves state dependency: relatively stable differences in individual state should lead to the emergence of repeatable behavioural variation whereas changes in state should lead to a readjustment of behaviour. Therefore, empirical testing of adaptive state dependence requires longitudinal data where behaviour and state of individuals of the same population are repeatedly measured.

Here, we test if variation in states predicts nest defence behaviour (a ‘risky’ behaviour) in a long‐lived species, the barnacle goose Branta leucopsis. Adaptive models have predicted that an individual's residual reproductive value or ‘asset’ is an important state variable underlying variation in risk‐taking behaviour. Hence, we investigate how nest defence varies as a function of time of the season and individual age, two state variables that can vary between and within individuals and determine asset.

Repeated measures of nest defence towards a human intruder (flight initiation distance or FID) of females of known age were collected during 15 breeding seasons. Increasing values of FID represent increasing shyness.

We found that females strongly and consistently differed in FID within‐ and between‐years. As predicted by theory, females adjusted their behaviour to state by decreasing their FID with season and age. Decomposing these population patterns into within‐ and between‐individual effects showed that the state‐dependent change in FID was driven by individual plasticity in FID and that bolder females were more plastic than shyer females.

This study shows that nest defence behaviour differs consistently among individuals and is adjusted to individual state in a direction predicted by adaptive personality theory.
Plant volatiles mediate evolutionary interactions between plants and tephritid flies and are evolutionarily more labile than non‐volatile defenses
Authors: Wang Hua , Zhou Wenlong , Li Zhao , Niklas Karl J. , Sun Shucun 
Published: December 2020

AbstractStudies show that plant defenses influence the host‐use of herbivores and tend to be evolutionarily more labile than herbivore traits (e.g. feeding preferences). However, all previous studies have focused exclusively on non‐volatile plant defenses thereby overlooking the roles of plant volatiles.We hypothesized that volatiles are equally important determinants of herbivore host‐use and are evolutionarily more labile than herbivore traits. To test these hypotheses, the following experiments were conducted.We identified the volatiles and non‐volatiles of 17 Asteraceae species and measured their relative contents. We also used a highly resolved bipartite trophic network of the 17 host species and 20 herbivorous (pre‐dispersal seed predator) tephritid fly species to determine the evolutionary interactions between plants and herbivores.The chemical data showed that interspecific similarity in volatiles—but not non‐volatiles and phylogenetic distance—significantly accounted for the herbivore community across the plant species; this implies that plant volatiles—but not non‐volatile compounds and species identity—dictate plant‐tephritid fly interactions. Moreover, we observed phylogenetic signal for non‐volatiles but not for volatiles; therefore closely related herbivores do not necessarily use closely related host species with similar non‐volatiles, but do tend to attack plants producing similar volatiles. Thus, plant volatiles are evolutionarily more labile than non‐volatiles and herbivore traits associate with host use.These results show that the interactions between plants and herbivores are evolutionary asymmetric, shed light on the role of plant volatiles in plant–herbivore interactions, and highlight the need to include data for both volatiles and non‐volatiles when investigating plant–animal interactions.
Enhancing ecosystem services in apple orchards: Nest boxes increase pest control by insectivorous birds
Authors: García Daniel , Miñarro Marcos , Martínez‐Sastre Rodrigo 
Published: December 2020

Abstract

Ecological intensification in croplands aims to enhance biodiversity‐based ecosystem services, helping to increase yield while reducing agricultural environmental impacts. Identifying ecological intensification tools of wide applicability and easily implemented by farmers is, therefore, an imperative. Here, we verify the efficiency of provisioning artificial nest boxes for insectivorous birds to reinforce pest biological control in apple orchards.

The study was conducted in 24 cider‐apple orchards in Asturias (NW Spain) over 3 years. We compared the effect of insectivorous birds between orchards with and without nest boxes occupied by different bird species, through insectivory estimates based on attack on a sentinel pest and measurements of arthropod abundance in apple trees. We also identified preys that birds of different species captured to feed nestlings.

Bird occupancy of nest boxes was widespread, ranging 25.0%–33.3% each year. Great tit was the dominant species, followed by blue tit and, occasionally, common redstart.

Predation pressure on apple pests increased in orchards with nest boxes, as judged by the increased proportion of sentinel models attacked by birds (34.9% increase in 2018 and 41.1% in 2019), decreased biomass of tree‐dwelling arthropods (−51.7%) and reduced probability of apple pest occurrence (from 57% to 40%), compared to orchards without nest boxes.

Nesting species showed different predatory roles in apple orchards. Fewer attacks on sentinel pests but lower arthropod biomass was associated with blue tit rather than great tit. Besides, blue tit fed nestlings at a faster rate and included in their diet a higher proportion of apple pests than great tit, which preyed mostly on other herbivorous insects.

Synthesis and applications. We demonstrated the usefulness of nest boxes for insectivorous birds in enhancing biological control of apple pests at a regional scale, identifying tit species as complementary predators of apple pests and herbivores. From the farmers' perspective, providing nest boxes in orchards may represent an efficient, easy to implement, cheap and attractive measure of ecological intensification, compatible with other actions fostering biodiversity in croplands.
A relationship between unrecognized anaemia and the development of type 2 diabetes mellitus in patient with cardiovascular risks
Authors: Choi Byoung Geol , Kim Jung Boone , Rha Seung‐Woon , Kim Suhng Wook , Lee Min Woo , Lee Michael S. , Choi Se Yeon , Byun Jae Kyeong , Cha Jinah , Na Jin Oh , Choi Cheol Ung , Park Chang Gyu , Seo Hong Seog , Oh Dong Joo , Hong Sunghoi 
Published: December 2020

AbstractStudies on anaemia in diabetic patients are well known. However, the data regarding association of anaemia on the development of diabetes mellitus (DM) are very limited. We aimed to evaluate the association of anaemia on the development of DM and major clinical outcomes in a series of the Korean population during 5‐year clinical follow‐up. The patients were retrospectively enrolled using the electronic database of Korea University Guro Hospital from January 2004 to February 2013. A total of 17 515 subjects without a history of DM were analysed. The World Health Organization definition of anaemia was used. Patients were divided into the anaemia group (n = 2907 patients) and the non‐anaemia group (n = 14 608 patients). The primary endpoint was the development of DM. To adjust baseline potential confounders, a propensity score matching (PSM) analysis was performed. After PSM analysis, two matched groups (2731 pairs) were generated and their baselines characteristics were balanced. During 5‐year follow‐up, the anaemia group had a higher incidence of type 2 DM (10.7% vs 7.7%; hazard ratio [HR], 1.356; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.021–1.802; P = .035), and total death (2.6% vs 1.2%; HR, 2.449; 95% CI, 1.337–4.486; P = .004) compared to the non‐anaemia group. In the present study, anaemia was associated with higher rate of the development of DM and mortality during 5‐year clinical follow‐up. A randomized trial is needed to determine whether this results can be reproducible or not for the final conclusion.