bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Occupation classification predicts return to work after carpal tunnel decompression
Authors: Stirling P H C , Jenkins P J , Clement N D , Duckworth A D , McEachan J E 
Published: April 2020

Abstract

Background
The relationship between hand function, employment status and return to work (RTW) after carpal tunnel decompression (CTD) is unclear.

Aims
To investigate predictors of RTW following CTD.

Methods
We prospectively collected pre-operative and 1-year post-operative outcomes and RTW data for all patients undergoing CTD at one centre between 29 May 2014 and 29 May 2017. We used the Standard Occupation Classification 2010.

Results
Pre- and post-operative results were available for 469 (79%) of the 597 patients who had CTD surgery. Pre-operatively, 219 (47%) were employed, 216 (46%) were retired, 26 (6%) were not working due to long-term illness and eight (2%) were unemployed. Complete data sets were available for 178 (81%) of the 219 employed patients, of whom 161 (90%) were able to RTW. Of the rest, five (3%) had changed jobs and 12 (7%) were unable to work. Median RTW time was 4 weeks (interquartile range [IQR] 2–6 weeks). Significantly more patients undertaking manual labour were unable to RTW (15% versus 5%; P &lt; 0.05). There was no significant difference in mean number of weeks absent between manual (5.7; 95% confidence interval [CI] 4.9–6.5) and non-manual workers (6.2; 95% CI 4.8–7.6) (P &gt; 0.05). Median pre-operative (difference 15.9; 95% CI 4.5–25) and post-operative (difference 43.2; 95% CI 13.6–43.2) hand function scores were significantly worse in patients who did not RTW (P &lt; 0.05).

Conclusions
Most patients can RTW within 1 year of CTD. Failure to RTW is more likely in manual workers and patients with poorer pre-operative hand function.
Systemic sclerosis in an anaesthetist
Authors: Magnavita N , Di Prinzio R R , Soave P M 
Published: April 2020

AbstractIntroductionSystemic sclerosis is a potentially devastating disease in which the aetiology and pathogenesis has not yet been fully understood. It has been associated with occupational exposure to silica, vinyl chloride, solvents and other chemical agents.Case summaryIn this paper, we present the case of an anaesthetist who developed scleroderma after an occupational exposure to volatile anaesthetic gases (halothane, sevoflurane, isoflurane and enflurane) in operating theatres with poor scavenging systems and we discuss the possible causal link between occupational exposure and the disease.ConclusionsThe case reported is the second that we are aware of in recent years. Reporting scleroderma cases in workers may be the first step in assessing the causal link between occupational exposure to anaesthetic gases and the disease.
Review: Hydroxychloroquine and Chloroquine for Treatment of SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19)
Authors: Pastick Katelyn A , Okafor Elizabeth C , Wang Fan , Lofgren Sarah M , Skipper Caleb P , Nicol Melanie R , Pullen Matthew F , Rajasingham Radha , McDonald Emily G , Lee Todd C , Schwartz Ilan S , Kelly Lauren E , Lother Sylvain A , Mitjà Oriol , Letang Emili , Abassi Mahsa , Boulware David R 
Published: April 2020

AbstractSevere acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is a rapidly emerging viral infection causing coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine have garnered unprecedented attention as potential therapeutic agents against COVID-19 following several small clinical trials, uncontrolled case series, and public figure endorsements. While there is a growing body of scientific data, there is also concern for harm, particularly QTc prolongation and cardiac arrhythmias. Here, we perform a rapid narrative review and discuss the strengths and limitations of existing in vitro and clinical studies. We call for additional randomized controlled trial evidence prior to the widespread incorporation of hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine into national and international treatment guidelines.
Paediatric euthanasia in Canada: New challenges for end of life care
Authors: Lamb Christina Marie 
Published: April 2020

Abstract
Canadians are looking to expand their Medical Assistance in Dying (MAID) program to include mature minors. Yet, little evidence exists to support this expansion. The Council of Canadian Academies released a report in December 2018 indicating that little is known about how mature minors make meaning of end of life care. To address this knowledge gap, research is needed to understand how mature minors make meaning of the dying process in the first place. Since social perceptions drive Canadian health care, practice, and end of life mentalities, the question that needs to be asked is: What is the Canadian perception of a good death for mature minors? To answer this question it is first necessary to examine the meaning that death and dying hold for mature minors, as voiced by mature minors themselves.
Ratio-independent prey preferences by an estuarine mysid
Authors: Froneman P William , Cuthbert Ross N 
Published: April 2020

Abstract
The present study quantified prey preferences by adult males and females of the mysid Mesopodopsis wooldridgei fed the calanoid copepods Pseudodiaptomus hessei and Paracartia longipatella at varying proportions. Both sexes of M. wooldridgei showed a lack of prey switching and a strong preference for the smaller, less active P. longipatella irrespective of density. Given a lack of low-density prey refuge, this finding may have important implications for the distribution of P. longipatella in estuaries along the eastern seaboard of South Africa. Results of the present study contribute to a growing body of literature that suggests that selective predation may play an important role in structuring plankton prey populations in shallow water ecosystems.
To what extent is severe osteoarthritis preventable? Occupational and non-occupational risk factors for knee and hip osteoarthritis
Authors: Kontio Tea , Heliövaara Markku , Viikari-Juntura Eira , Solovieva Svetlana 
Published: April 2020

Abstract

Objectives
To explore the relative contribution of cumulative physical workload, sociodemographic and lifestyle factors, as well as prior injury to hospitalization due to knee and hip OA.

Methods
We examined a nationally representative sample of persons aged 30–59 years, who participated in a comprehensive health examination (the Health 2000 Study). A total of 4642 participants were followed from mid-2000 to end-2015 for the first hospitalization due to knee or hip OA using the National Hospital Discharge Register. We examined the association of possible risk factors with the outcome using a competing risk regression model (death was treated as competing risk) and calculated population attributable fractions for statistically significant risk factors.

Results
Baseline age and BMI as well as injury were associated with the risk of first hospitalization due to knee and hip OA. Composite cumulative workload was associated with a dose–response pattern with hospitalizations due to knee OA and with hospitalizations due to hip OA at a younger age only. Altogether, prior injury, high BMI and intermediate to high composite cumulative workload accounted for 70% of hospitalizations due to knee OA. High BMI alone accounted for 61% and prior injury only for 6% of hospitalizations due to hip OA.

Conclusion
Our results suggest that overweight/obesity, prior injury and cumulative physical workload are the most important modifiable risk factors that need to be targeted in the prevention of knee OA leading to hospitalization. A substantial proportion of hospitalizations due to hip OA can be reduced by controlling excess body weight.
Systemic juvenile idiopathic arthritis and recurrent macrophage activation syndrome due to a CASP1 variant causing inflammasome hyperactivation
Authors: Jørgensen Sofie E , Christiansen Mette , Høst Christian , Glerup Mia , Mahler Birgitte , Lausten Mira M , Gad Hans Henrik , Hartmann Rune , Herlin Troels , Mogensen Trine H 
Published: April 2020

AbstractObjectivesWe investigated a patient with systemic juvenile idiopathic arthritis (sJIA) and recurrent macrophage activation syndrome (MAS) to discover genetic and immunological contributing factors.MethodsSevere recurrent MAS motivated whole exome sequencing (WES) to identify genetic variants potentially involved in disease pathogenesis. In vitro peripheral blood mononuclear cell (PBMC) stimulations for cytokine expression and caspase-1 activity assays as well as NF-κB reporter luciferase assays were performed to functionally characterize variants.ResultsWES revealed an extremely rare heterozygous missense variant, c.482G&gt;A, p.R161H in the CASP1 gene encoding pro-caspase-1. Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) stimulation of patient PBMCs induced high levels of IL-6 compared to controls, and activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome resulted in increased production of IL-1β and IL-18 as well as significantly elevated caspase-1 activity. Constitutive and inducible levels of IL-18 and IFNγ in whole blood were markedly elevated. Expression of the CASP1 variant in an NF-κB reporter luciferase assay induced increased NF-κB activation in a RIP2-dependent manner. The disease course of the patient was complicated by severe recurrent MAS. However, dual IL-1 and IL-6 blockade caused disease remission.ConclusionFor the first time, we demonstrate the involvement of a CASP1 variant in sJIA and recurrent MAS. This variant is gain-of-function for both inflammasome and NF-κB activation leading to increased production of IL-6, IL-1β and IL-18. Although dual IL-1 and IL-6 blockade may be beneficial in patients, in whom single treatment is not sufficient to control MAS, caution should be practiced, since interstitial lung disease may progress despite apparent clinical and biochemical remission.
CoV Genome Tracker: tracing genomic footprints of Covid-19 pandemic
Authors: Akther Saymon , Bezrucenkovas Edgaras , Sulkow Brian , Panlasigui Christopher , Li Li , Qiu Weigang , Di Lia 
Published: April 2020

AbstractSummaryGenome sequences constitute the primary evidence on the origin and spread of the 2019-2020 Covid-19 pandemic. Rapid comparative analysis of coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 genomes is critical for disease control, outbreak forecasting, and developing clinical interventions. CoV Genome Tracker is a web portal dedicated to trace Covid-19 outbreaks in real time using a haplotype network, an accurate and scalable representation of genomic changes in a rapidly evolving population. We resolve the direction of mutations by using a bat-associated genome as outgroup. At a broader evolutionary time scale, a companion browser provides gene-by-gene and codon-by-codon evolutionary rates to facilitate the search for molecular targets of clinical interventions.Availability and ImplementationCoV Genome Tracker is publicly available athttp://cov.genometracker.organd updated weekly with the data downloaded from GISAID (http://gisaid.org). The website is implemented with a custom JavaScript script based on jQuery (https://jquery.com) and D3-force (https://github.com/d3/d3-force).Contactweigang@genectr.hunter.cuny.edu, City University of New York, Hunter CollegeSupplementary InformationAll supporting scripts developed in JavaScript, Python, BASH, and PERL programming languages are available as Open Source at the GitHub repositoryhttps://github.com/weigangq/cov-browser.
A large decrease in the magnitude of seasonal fluctuations in mortality explains part of the increase in longevity in Sweden during the 20th century
Authors: Ledberg Anders 
Published: April 2020

AbstractBACKGROUNDMortality rates of are known to depend on the seasons and in temperate climates rates are highest during winter. The magnitude of these seasonal fluctuations in mortality have decreased substantially during the 20th century in many countries, but the extent to which this decrease has contributed to the concurrent increase in life expectancy, is not known. Here I describe how the seasonality of all-cause mortality among persons aged 60 years or more in Sweden has changed in the time period from 1860 to 1995, and furthermore investigate how this change has contributed to the increase in life expectancy observed during the same period.METHODSYearly sex-specific birth cohorts consisting of all persons born in Sweden between 1800 and 1901, and who reached at least 59 years of age, were obtained from a genealogical database. The mortality rates of each cohort were modeled by an exponential function of age modulated by a sinusoidal function of time of year. The contribution of seasonal fluctuations to life expectancy was investigated by a novel decomposition of the total mortality rate into a seasonal part and a part independent of the seasons. Cohort life expectancy at 60 was used to quantify changes in lifespan during the time period.RESULTSThe magnitude of seasonal variations of mortality rates decreased substantially over the time period. For cohorts born in 1800, the risk of dying during the winter season was almost twice that of dying during summer. For cohorts born in 1900, the relative increase in winter mortality was 10%. Cohort life expectancy at 60 increased with 4.3 years for men and 6.8 years for women and the decrease of seasonal variability accounted for approximately 40% of this increase in average lifespan.CONTRIBUTIONBy following a large number of extinct cohorts it was possible to show how the decrease in seasonal mortality fluctuations has contributed to an increase in life expectancy. The decomposition of total mortality introduced here might be useful to better understand the processes and mechanisms underlying the marked improvements in life expectancy seen over the last 150 years.
Estimate of the Maximum Limit of Total Cases of Infected Patients COVID-19
Authors: Dutra Carlos Maximiliano , de Melo Carlos Augusto Riella 
Published: April 2020

AbstractIn this work, we present a method to estimate the maximum limit of total cases COVID-19 cases considering that the time in which the maximum number of new daily cases occurs corresponds to the inflection point of the curve described by the total number of cases that assumed to have a growth according to a logistical function in which the number of total cases at the inflection point will correspond to half of the maximum limit of total cases COVID-19. We estimate this maximum limit for China and South Korea, obtaining results compatible with the observations. And we also estimate for Italy, Germany, United Kingdom, United States and Spain.
Delayed-Phase Thrombocytopenia in Patients of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)
Authors: Chen Wanxin , Li Ziping , Yang Bohan , Wang Ping , Zhou Qiong , Zhu Jianhua , Chen Xuexing , Yang Peng , Zhou Hao 
Published: April 2020

ABSTRACTThe pandemic COVID-19 pneumonia has engulfed the entire world. Hematopoietic system can also be affected by COVID-19. Thrombocytopenia at admission was prevalent, while late-phase or delayed-phase thrombocytopenia is obscure. This retrospective single-center case series analyzed patients with COVID-19 at the Union Hospital, Wuhan, China, from January 25th to March 9th, 2020. Analysis began on March 11th, 2020. COVID-19 associated delayed-phase thrombocytopenia was occurred in 11.8% percent of enrolled patients. The delayed-phase thrombocytopenia in COVID-19 is prone to develop in elderly patients or patients with low lymphocyte count on admission. The delayed-phase thrombocytopenia is significantly associated with increased length of hospital stay and higher ICU admission rate. Delayed-phase nadir platelet counts demonstrated a high and significantly negative linear correlation with B cell percentages and serum IL-6 levels. We also presented bone marrow aspiration pathology of three patients with delayed-phase thrombocytopenia, showing impaired maturation of megakaryocytes. We speculated that the delayed-phase platelet destruction might be mediated by antibodies, and suggest immunoregulatory treatment in severe patients to improve outcomes. Besides, clinicians need to pay attention to the delayed-phase thrombocytopenia especially at 3-4 weeks after symptom onset.
Human agency and infection rates: implications for social distancing during epidemics
Authors: Ramsey Christopher Bronk 
Published: April 2020

AbstractSocial distancing is an important measure in controlling epidemics. This paper presents a simple theoretical model focussed on the implications of the wide range in interaction rates between individuals, both within the workplace and in the social setting. The model is based on well-mixed populations and so is not intended for studying geographic spread. The model shows that epidemic growth rate is largely determined by the upper interactivity quantiles of society, implying that the most efficient methods of epidemic control are interaction capping approaches rather than overall reductions in interaction.The theoretical model can also be applied to look at the dynamics of epidemic progression under various scenarios. The theoretical model suggests that with no intervention herd immunity would be achieved with a lower overall infection rate than if variation in interaction rate is ignored, because by this stage almost all the most interactive members of society would have had the infection; however the overall mortality with such an approach is very high. Scenarios for mitigation and suppression suggest that, by using interactivity capping, it should be possible to control an epidemic without extreme sanctions on the majority of the population if R0 of the uncontrolled infection is 2.4. However to control the infection rate to a specific level will always require the switching on and off of measures and for this reason eradication is likely to be a less costly policy in the long run. While social distancing alone can be used for eradication it is not be a good mechanism on its own to prevent reinfection. The use of robust testing, quarantining, and contact tracing would strengthen any social distancing measures, speed up eradication, and be a better tool for prevention of infection or reinfection.
Validation Study of HLA-B*13:01 as a Biomarker of Dapsone Hypersensitivity Syndrome in Leprosy Patients in Indonesia
Authors: Krismawati Hana , Irwanto Astrid , Pongtiku Arry , Irwan Ishak Darryl , Maldan Yustinus , Sitanggang Yuli Arisanti , Wahyuni Tri , Tanjung Ratna , Sun Yonghu , Liu Hong , Zhang Furen , Oktavian Antonius , Liu Jianjun 
Published: April 2020

ABSTRACTImportanceLeprosy is a stigmatizing, chronic infection which degenerates the nervous system and often leads to incapacitation. Multi-drug therapy (MDT) which consists of dapsone, rifampicin and clofazimine has been effective to combat this disease. In Indonesia, leprosy is still a problem. Furthermore, there had been reports of Dapsone Hypersensitivity Syndrome (DHS) which also challenges leprosy elimination in certain aspects. HLA-B*13:01 has been found to be associated with DHS and prospective screening has proven its ability to prevent DHS in the Chinese population, but has not been validated in Indonesians.ObjectiveTo validate HLA-B*13:01 as a biomarker for DHS in the Indonesian population.DesignThis is a case-control study.SettingPopulation-based, multi-district recruitment from primary care centers in two of the top 3 most prevalent provinces in Indonesia, Papua and West Papua.ParticipantsLeprosy patients who presented themselves with DHS were recruited as case subjects (34 cases) and leprosy patients without DHS were recruited as control subjects (52 controls).ExposureLeprosy patients who had undergone multi-drug treatment for leprosy under the standard WHO guideline, consisting of rifampicin, dapsone and clofazamine.Main Outcome and MeasuresThe association of HLA-B*13:01 to DHS based on difference in allele frequencies between cases and controls. HLA-B alleles were typed using the gold-standard Sequence Based Typing method. Results were analyzed using logistic regression and risk assessment was carried out.ResultsThe results of HLA-typing showed that HLA-B*13:01 was the most significant allele associated with DHS, with odds ratio=247.6 and P-value=4.81E-9, confirming the strong association of HLA-B*13:01 to DHS in the Indonesian population. The sensitivity of this biomarker is 91.2% and specificity is 96.2%, with an area under the curve of 0.95.Conclusions and RelevanceHLA-B*13:01 is validated as a biomarker for DHS in leprosy patients in Indonesia, and can potentially be a good predictor of DHS to help prevent this condition in the future.KEY POINTSQuestionCan HLA-B*13:01 be a predictor of Dapsone Hypersensitivity Syndrome in Indonesians?FindingsIn this case control validation study, HLA-B*13:01 is significantly associated with DHS in Indonesians and can predict a person at risk of DHS 95% of the time.MeaningHLA-B*13:01 is validated as a biomarker for DHS in Indonesians and can be useful to screen and prevent further incidences of DHS in the population.
Processivity of molecular motors under vectorial loads
Authors: Khataee Hamid , Neufeld Zoltan , Mahamdeh Mohammed 
Published: April 2020

AbstractMolecular motors are cellular machines that drive the spatial organisation of the cells by transporting cargoes along intracellular filaments. Although the mechanical properties of single molecular motors are relatively well characterised, it remains elusive how the three-dimensional geometry of a load imposed on a motor affects its processivity, i.e., the average distance that a motor moves per interaction with a filament. Here, we theoretically explore this question for a single kinesin molecular motor by analysing the load-dependence of the stepping and detachment processes. We find that the processivity of kinesin increases with lowering the load angle between kinesin and microtubule filament, due to the deceleration of the detachment rate. When the load angle is large, the processivity is predicted to enhance with accelerating the stepping rate, through an optimal distribution of the load over the kinetic transition rates underlying a mechanical step of the motor. These results provide new insights into understanding of the design of potential synthetic biomolecular machines that can travel long distances with high velocities.