bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Healthcare costs related to adverse events in hepatocellular carcinoma treatment: A retrospective observational claims study
Authors: Lal Lincy S. , Aly Abdalla , Le Lisa B. , Peckous Susan , Seal Brian , Teitelbaum April 
Published: September 2021

AbstractBackgroundHepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is an aggressive form of liver cancer with increasing incidence and mortality worldwide. For metastatic disease, systemic treatment is recommended. In addition to tumor characteristics, adverse events (AEs) may influence regimen choice.AimTo analyze healthcare burden among patients with advanced HCC, by treatment type and AEs observed.MethodsIncluded were adult commercial and Medicare Advantage enrollees with ≥2 non‐diagnostic claims coded for HCC (the first setting the index date); ≥1 claim for systemic treatment of advanced/metastatic HCC; and continuous enrollment for a 6‐month pre‐index baseline period to ≥1 month post‐index (follow‐up). Patients were excluded by lack of systemic treatment; incomplete demographic information; pregnancy, liver transplant, other cancers during baseline or clinical trial participation. We describe patient characteristics, common AEs, overall survival, and healthcare burden in 2017 USD up to 12 months after initiation of tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) monotherapy; immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI) monotherapy; or FOLFOX combination therapy.ResultsThe analytic sample consisted of 322 patients (median age 65.8 years, 76% male) who had 12 months' (unless death occurred prior) available follow‐up, with median follow‐up of 9 months. Among these, 241 (75%) had TKI monotherapy, 23 (7%) had ICI monotherapy, and 58 had FOLFOX (18%) first‐line treatment. Overall, patients had a high burden of AEs (mean 3.2), with the most prevalent being pain (75%), infection (39%), ascites (34%), and bleeding (29%). After adjusting for covariates, infection ($50 374), fever ($47 443), and diarrhea ($29 912) imposed the highest incremental annual costs versus patients without the AE. Up to 90% of costs were attributable to inpatient admissions, with 56% to 60% involving intensive care. Median 1‐year survival was 32%.ConclusionsThis real‐world study demonstrated AE burden in alignment with previous clinical studies. Regardless of regimen used, AEs are associated with substantial healthcare costs due to inpatient care.
Early oral intake and early removal of nasogastric tube post‐esophagectomy: A systematic review and meta‐analysis
Authors: Kaaki Suha , Grigor Emma J. M. , Maziak Donna E. , Seely Andrew J. E. 
Published: September 2021

AbstractBackgroundEarly oral intake (EOI: initiated within 1 day) and early nasogastric tube removal (ENR: removed ≤2 days) post‐esophagectomy is controversial and subject to significant variation.AimOur aim is to provide the most up‐to‐date evidence from published randomized controlled trials (RCTs) addressing both topics.MethodsWe searched MEDLINE and Embase (1946‐06/2019) for RCTs that investigated the effect of EOI and/or ENR post‐esophagectomy with gastric conduit for reconstruction. Our main outcomes of interest were anastomotic leak, aspiration pneumonia, mortality, and length of hospital stay (LOS). Pooled mean differences (MD) and risk ratios (RR) estimates were obtained using a DerSimonian random effects model.ResultsTwo reviewers screened 613 abstracts and identified 6 RCTs eligible for inclusion; 2 regarding EOI and 4 for ENR. For EOI (2 studies, n = 389), was not associated with differences in risk of: anastomotic leak (RR: 1.01; 95% CI: 0.407, 2.500; I2: 0%), aspiration pneumonia (RR: 1.018; 95% CI: 0.407, 2.500), mortality (RR: 1.00; 95% CI: 0.020, 50.0). The LOS was significantly shorter in the EOI group: LOS (MD: −2.509; 95% CI: −3.489, −1.529; I2: 90.44%). For ENR (4 studies, n = 295), ENR (removed at POD0‐2 vs. 5–8 days) was not associated with differences in risk of: anastomotic leak (RR: 1.11; 95% CI 0.336, 3.697; I2: 25.75%) and pneumonia group (RR: 1.11; 95% CI: 0.336, 3.697; I2: 25.75%), mortality (RR: 0.87; 95% CI: 0.328, 2.308; I2: 0%)or LOS (MD: 1.618; 95% CI: −1.447, 4.683; I2: 73.03%).ConclusionsOur analysis showed that EOI as well as ENR post‐esophagectomy do not significantly increase the risk of anastomotic leak, pneumonia, and mortality. The LOS was significantly shorter in the EOI group, and there was no significant difference in the ENR group. A paucity of RCTs has evaluated this question, highlighting the need for further high‐quality evidence to address these vital aspects to post‐esophagectomy care.Systematic review registrationCRD42019138600
Smart resource allocation of concurrent execution of parallel applications
Authors: da Silva Vinicius S. , Nogueira Angelo G. D. , de Lima Everton Camargo , de A. Rocha Hiago M. G. , Serpa Matheus S. , Luizelli Marcelo C. , Rossi Fábio D. , Navaux Philippe O. A. , Beck Antonio Carlos S. , Francisco Lorenzon Arthur 
Published: September 2021

AbstractThread‐level parallelism (TLP) has been widely exploited to optimize computational resource usage in high‐performance systems. However, as many applications do not scale as the number of threads increase, resources will be wasted when the application executes with the maximum possible number of threads (i.e., the default execution) rather than fewer threads (thread throttling) that may use the resources more efficiently. Hence, instead of executing only one application with as many threads as possible, one can run more applications simultaneously by applying thread throttling to each one. The primary outcome of this strategy is a significant reduction in the total execution time and energy consumption when the system needs to execute a list of applications. Given that, we propose a smart resource allocation (SRA) for concurrent parallel application execution. It automatically finds the ideal degree of TLP for each application and guides the simultaneous parallel applications execution. When running 25 well‐known benchmarks on three multicore systems and comparing SRA to state‐of‐the‐art strategies (e.g., Batch, Equal policy, and Scalability), SRA improves the EDP by 87.4% over the Batch strategy; 75.5% over the Equal policy; and 38.8% over the scalability strategy.
First Principles Dynamics Study of Excited Hole Relaxation in DNA
Authors: Wong Jian Cheng , Kanai Yosuke 
Published: September 2021

AbstractA recent theoretical work showed that ion irradiation generates excited holes deep within the valence band of DNA. In this work, we investigate the excited hole relaxation toward HOMO using a first‐principles computational method following such ionization events. The excited hole relaxation is found to depend significantly on the energetic position of the excited hole generated. The relaxation process is found to be an order of magnitude slower for holes that are generated deeper than 20 eV than those generated within 10 eV, where the probability for the initial ionization events is the highest. However, the excited holes that are generated in different spatial moieties such as DNA nucleotide bases and phosphate backbones do not show noticeable differences in terms of the relaxation time. Our work also shows that decoherence due to nuclei dynamics slows down the relaxation by a factor of two or more. At the same time, the relaxation time is found to be less than a couple of picoseconds, much shorter than typical timescales associated with chemical bond dissociation.
Dynamics of conflicts between informal groups in adolescence: Qualitative analysis in the school context
Authors: Rodríguez Gloria Inés , Chaux Enrique 
Published: September 2021

AbstractConflicts between informal groups are common in adolescence, and can lead to much aggression, but have been much less studied than conflicts between stable groups such as gangs. Seeking to understand better their conflict dynamics, informal groups were identified with a peer‐nomination method applied to 121 adolescents from Bogotá, Colombia (12–16 years), and 23 semi‐structured interviews were conducted. Most conflicts escalated to verbal or physical aggression. Whether conflicts escalated or de‐escalated seemed to depend on beliefs legitimizing aggression, social identities, online (vs. face‐to‐face only) interactions, and on third parties interventions. Results provide insights for prevention of school violence.
MIMO broadcast scheduling using binary spider monkey optimization algorithm
Authors: Mohanty Jyoti , Pattanayak Prabina , Nandi Arnab , Baishnab Krishna Lal , Gurjar Devendra Singh , Mandloi Manish 
Published: September 2021

SummaryMulti‐user multiple‐input multiple‐output (MU‐MIMO) system has the capability of delivering optimal system capacity that provides the simultaneous service to a large number of users using dirty paper coding (DPC) scheme. However, the DPC scheme is quite difficult to be implemented in the real‐time scenario as the computational complexity is very high and the process cannot be accomplished within the duration of few coherence periods. In this paper, we have adopted a newly developed binary spider monkey optimization (binary SMO) algorithm for the joint user and antenna scheduling (JUAS) problem to maximize the achievable system sum‐rate performance. It has been shown that JUAS with binary SMO achieves nearly 99% of system throughput achieved by the extensive search algorithm (ESA) using DPC. Also it is compared with binary flower pollination algorithm (binary FPA) to check which of the two gives better result. It is observed that the binary SMO in JUAS achieves a globally optimal solution quite rapidly, to remain well within the modern‐day packet data communication interval. The proposed binary SMO shows low computational complexity and computation time as compared to ESA (i.e., DPC). Also when it is compared with binary FPA, it shows quite a significant improvement in system throughput. Moreover, the effectiveness of binary SMO in the MU‐MIMO broadcasting scenario is verified through extensive simulation results.
Early construction of the thalamocortical axon pathway requires c‐Jun N‐terminal kinase signaling within the ventral forebrain
Authors: Cunningham Jessica G. , Scripter James D. , Nti Stephany A. , Tucker Eric S. 
Published: September 2021

AbstractBackgroundThalamocortical connectivity is essential for normal brain function. This important pathway is established during development, when thalamic axons extend a long distance through the forebrain before reaching the cerebral cortex. In this study, we identify a novel role for the c‐Jun N‐terminal kinase (JNK) signaling pathway in guiding thalamocortical axons through intermediate target territories.ResultsComplete genetic removal of JNK signaling from the Distal‐less 5/6 (Dlx5/6) domain in mice prevents thalamocortical axons from crossing the diencephalon‐telencephalon boundary (DTB) and the internal capsule fails to form. Ventral telencephalic cells critical for thalamocortical axon extensions including corridor and guidepost neurons are also disrupted. In addition, corticothalamic, striatonigral, and nigrostriatal axons fail to cross the DTB. Analyses of different JNK mutants demonstrate that thalamocortical axon pathfinding has a non‐autonomous requirement for JNK signaling.ConclusionsWe conclude that JNK signaling within the Dlx5/6 territory enables the construction of major axonal pathways in the developing forebrain. Further exploration of this intermediate axon guidance territory is needed to uncover mechanisms of axonal pathfinding during normal brain development and to elucidate how this vital process may be compromised in neurodevelopmental disorders.
IRB Decision‐Making about Minimal Risk Research with Pregnant Participants
Authors: White Amina , Grady Christine , Little Margaret , Sullivan Kristen , Clark Katie , Ngwu Monalisa , Lyerly Anne Drapkin 
Published: September 2021

AbstractPregnant individuals are often excluded from research without clear justification, even when the research poses minimal risk of harm to the fetus. Little is known about institutional review board (IRB) decision‐making practices when reviewing such research. We conducted a survey of current and former IRB personnel in the United States to elicit their interpretations of “minimal risk”—a formal regulatory category—and to identify factors that may influence IRB decisions to approve or disapprove research involving pregnant participants. Study results revealed some consensus among IRB members about the risk level of individual research procedures and hypothetical study vignettes. However, we uncovered important variations not only in the assessment of risk but also in the willingness of IRB members to approve minimal risk research that includes pregnant women. Based on our findings, guidance is needed to assist IRB members in characterizing risk, applying federal regulations, and appropriately ensuring the inclusion or justified exclusion of pregnant people in research.
Making Metrics Meaningful: How Human Research Protection Programs Can Efficiently and Effectively Use Their Data
Authors: Serpico Kimberley 
Published: September 2021

AbstractHuman research protection programs (HRPP) generate an abundance of data on performance, capacity, and compliance. When used effectively, this information can be instrumental in helping HRPPs meet programmatic and institutional goals, demonstrate growth and success, and improve the HRPP overall. Metrics must be grounded in professional insight so that HRPPs can pair analytics with strategies for future action or improvement. The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate how high‐performing HRPPs develop, adopt, and implement a metrics framework that benefits everyday operations and produces real‐world results. Through a three‐part thematic framework (of insight, data, and action) and by providing case examples and actionable strategies, this article will address how HRPPs iteratively develop and characterize their metrics, build a metrics framework that leverages both quantitative and qualitative data to validate outcomes, and activate human insight to produce meaningful communication, visualization, and dissemination of data.
Opt‐Out Design for an Observational Toxicology Study Involving Intoxicated Patients at a Dance Music Event
Authors: Calle Paul , Blanckaert Peter , Lemoyne Sabine , Rubens Robert 
Published: September 2021

AbstractAt electronic dance music events in Belgium in 2013 to 2015, seemingly intoxicated patients were included without their informed consent in an observational toxicology study when the attending physicians determined that they needed treatment with an intravenous line. All included patients received an information letter inviting them to contact the principal investigator (PI) to obtain more information about the study and/or to inform the PI that they wanted to be excluded from it. Overall, 238 patients were included in the study. Nine participants (4%) responded to the information letter, either on their own or through their parent; none of them asked to be excluded from the study. All respondents expressed their gratitude for the information they received. The opt‐out study design seemed to be acceptable to the patient‐participants, and it provided a fuller picture of the drug‐related medical incidents at such music events than what could likely be achieved through a study that includes only people who explicitly choose to participate. These findings may help institutional review boards when evaluating study designs involving recreational drug use, especially at electronic dance music events. Nevertheless, we warn against extrapolation to other settings where informed consent is difficult to obtain.
Organocatalytic Enantioselective Michael‐Aldol[3+2] Annulation for the Synthesis of Nitro‐Methanobenzo[7] annulenes
Authors: Zhang Yang , Liu Jin‐Yu , Zhang Xiao‐Hai 
Published: September 2021

AbstractWe report an enantioselective Michael‐Aldol[3+2] annulation between 2‐alkyl‐3‐hydroxynaphthalene‐1,4‐diones and nitroalkenes using a bifunctional thiourea catalyst, and a series of nitro‐methanobenzo[7]annulenes with potential biological activities were synthesized in good yields with excellent enantio‐ and diastereoselectivities. A gram‐scale synthesis and further transformation of the product demonstrated the synthetic value of this reaction.
Potential application of supercritical extract of pomegranate peel as bio‐antioxidant for biodiesel
Authors: Witt Elaine de Paula , Johann Gracielle , Triques Carina Contini , da Silva Edson Antonio , da Silva Camila , Borsato Dionisio , da Silva Baumgartner Tatiana Rodrigues 
Published: September 2021

AbstractThe performance of the pomegranate peel extract against the synthetic antioxidant additives on the oxidation stability of commercial biodiesel B100 derived from soybean was evaluated. The experimental extraction was conducted under 200 bar, 35, 45, and 55°C, and 0.0, 2.5, and 5.0 mL of ethanol as co‐solvent. Due to the rich in squalene and α‐tocopherol composition, all extracts presented high antioxidant capacity, 16.70 to 1.68 μg mL−1. In the oxidation stability tests, the addition of 1000 ppm of the supercritical extracts of pomegranate peel to biodiesel resulted in the increment of the induction time of pure biodiesel by up to 1.83. In contrast, the biodiesel added at 1000 ppm with commercial antioxidants increased the times up to 1.58 and 1.79, respectively for butylated hydroxyanisole and butylated hydroxytoluene. Biodiesel added with supercritical extract of pomegranate peel, obtained under 35°C and with 5.0 mL of ethanol, presented higher efficiency in the prevention of the oxidative process and was in accordance with norm European Standard EN 14214. The findings revealed that the extract is a promising natural antioxidant for biodiesel, that, besides being eco‐friendly, is an additive that can substitute commercial synthetic antioxidants, extending biodiesel stability.
Treatment delay and tumor size in patients with oral cancer during the first year of the COVID‐19 pandemic
Authors: Metzger Karl , Mrosek Jan , Zittel Sven , Pilz Maximilian , Held Thomas , Adeberg Sebastian , Ristow Oliver , Hoffmann Jürgen , Engel Michael , Freudlsperger Christian , Moratin Julius 
Published: September 2021

AbstractBackgroundWe set out to investigate how the ongoing coronavirus pandemic affected the size of tumors and the duration of treatment delay in patients with surgically treated oral squamous cell carcinoma.MethodsPatients with surgically treated oral cavity squamous cell carcinoma were assessed retrospectively and divided into two groups depending on when they had first presented at our clinic. Patients presenting from 2010 to 2019, that is, before COVID‐19 onset (n = 566) were compared to patients presenting in 2020 (n = 58).ResultsA total of 624 patients were included. Treatment delay was significantly longer in 2020 (median = 45 days) versus 2010–2019 (median = 35 days) (p = 0.004). We observed a higher pathological T classification in 2020 (p = 0.046), whereas pathological N classification was unchanged between groups (p = 0.843).ConclusionsWhile extraordinary efforts continue to be made in the context of the pandemic, it is imperative that this does not lead to significant disadvantages for many people with oral cancer.
Assessing personal protective equipment needs for healthcare workers
Authors: Lee Young‐A , Salahuddin Mir , Gibson‐Young Linda , Oliver Gretchen D. 
Published: September 2021

AbstractBackgroundPersonal protective equipment (PPE) is critical for healthcare workers (HCWs) since it acts as a barrier to infection transmission; however, current PPE is not ideally suited to their needs due to limitations in protection and comfort. Thus, the purpose of this study was to identify major issues of current PPE for body protection and assess its needs within health care.MethodsAn online survey was conducted with a convenience sample of 200 U.S. healthcare professionals who interact with patients. The survey was designed to identify the types of PPE that HCWs currently use, assess current PPE design features for body protection, examine the effect of PPE design features for body protection, and HCWs' years of work experiences on overall PPE acceptability, and explore current PPE maintenance practices. Both quantitative and qualitative data were used for analyses.ResultsThis study showed the need for current PPE improvement in terms of fit, comfort, mobility, and donning and doffing for HCWs' safety and health. Donning and doffing plays an important role in HCWs' overall acceptance of PPE for body protection. This study revealed that most HCWs dispose of their PPE in a trashcan in a healthcare unit and non‐disposed PPE is laundered at home, which may expose their family members to a health risk if a proper precaution is not followed.ConclusionThis study provides critical insights for the needs of (a) novel PPE design research and (b) proper donning and doffing training and its strict regulatory effort to ensure HCWs' safety and health.
Integrating observations and models to determine the effect of seasonally frozen ground on hydrologic partitioning in alpine hillslopes in the Colorado Rocky Mountains, USA
Authors: Rey David M. , Hinckley Eve‐Lyn S. , Walvoord Michelle A. , Singha Kamini 
Published: September 2021

AbstractThis study integrated spatially distributed field observations and soil thermal models to constrain the impact of frozen ground on snowmelt partitioning and streamflow generation in an alpine catchment within the Niwot Ridge Long‐Term Ecological Research site, Colorado, USA. The study area was comprised of two contrasting hillslopes with notable differences in topography, snow depth and plant community composition. Time‐lapse electrical resistivity surveys and soil thermal models enabled extension of discrete soil moisture and temperature measurements to incorporate landscape variability at scales and depths not possible with point measurements alone. Specifically, heterogenous snowpack thickness (~0–4 m) and soil volumetric water content between hillslopes (~0.1–0.45) strongly influenced the depths of seasonal frost, and the antecedent soil moisture available to form pore ice prior to freezing. Variable frost depths and antecedent soil moisture conditions were expected to create a patchwork of differing snowmelt infiltration rates and flowpaths. However, spikes in soil temperature and volumetric water content, as well as decreases in subsurface electrical resistivity revealed snowmelt infiltration across both hillslopes that coincided with initial decreases in snow water equivalent and early increases in streamflow. Soil temperature, soil moisture and electrical resistivity data from both wet and dry hillslopes showed that initial increases in streamflow occurred prior to deep soil water flux. Temporal lags between snowmelt infiltration and deeper percolation suggested that the lateral movement of water through the unsaturated zone was an important driver of early streamflow generation. These findings provide the type of process‐based information needed to bridge gaps in scale and populate physically based cryohydrologic models to investigate subsurface hydrology and biogeochemical transport in soils that freeze seasonally.