bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Harmonization across programmed death ligand 1 (PD‐L1) assays for lung cancer by immunohistochemistry using noncontact alternating current electric field mixing
Authors: Matsuo Tsubasa , Imai Kazuhiro , Nanjo Hiroshi , Takashima Shinogu , Hiroshima Yuko , Atari Maiko , Kuriyama Shoji , Ishii Yoshiaki , Wakamatsu Yuki , Sato Yusuke , Motoyama Satoru , Matsumura Yuki , Suzuki Hiroyuki , Nomura Kyoko , Minamiya Yoshihiro 
Published: March 2021

AbstractBackgroundImmune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) are a promising advance in the treatment of patients with lung cancer. However, each ICI has been tested with an independently designed companion diagnostic assay that is based on a unique antibody. Consequently, the different trial‐validated programmed death ligand 1 (PD‐L1) immunohistochemistry (IHC) assays should not be considered interchangeable. Our aim was to compare the performance of each available PD‐L1 antibody for its ability to accurately measure PD‐L1 expression and to investigate the possibility of harmonization across antibodies through the use of a new rapid IHC system, which uses noncontact alternating current (AC) mixing to achieve more stable staining.MethodsFirst, 58 resected non‐small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) specimens were stained using three PD‐L1 IHC assays (28–8, SP142, and SP263) to assess the harmonization achieved with AC mixing IHC. Second, specimens from 27 patients receiving ICIs for postoperative recurrent NSCLC were stained using the same IHC method to compare the clinical performance of ICIs to PD‐L1 scores. All patients received a tumor proportion score (TPS) with the 22C3 companion diagnostic test.ResultsBetter staining was achieved with the new AC mixing IHC method than the conventional IHC in PD‐L1‐positive cases, and the interchangeability of some combinations of assays was increased in PD‐L1‐positive. In addition, AC mixing IHC provided more appropriate overall response rates for ICIs in all assays.ConclusionsStable PD‐L1 IHC driven by AC mixing helped to improve TPS scoring and patient selection for ICIs through interchangeable assays.
Factors and health‐related quality of life associated with participation in a post‐ICU follow‐up. A register study
Authors: Glimelius Petersson Cecilia , Jakobsson Liselotte , Westergren Albert , Bergbom Ingegerd 
Published: March 2021

BackgroundFollow‐up for heterogeneous intensive care patients presents challenges for rehabilitation interventions and outcome measurements. The aim was to describe and explore characteristics and determinants for visiting/not visiting a nurse‐led clinic (NLC) at different time‐points, and to describe physical and mental health (HRQoL) over time.MethodsPatients with a length of stay (LOS) of ≥72 hours, discharged from a general intensive care unit 2004‐2014, who participated in a 6‐month follow‐up programme offering visits to NLC at 2 and 6 months were included. The register study includes information regarding patients’ participation in NLC, clinical and demographic data from the Patient Administrative System within Intensive care, and data on 2‐, 6‐ and 12‐month HRQoL by using SF‐36 from the Swedish Intensive Care Registry.ResultsOf 656 patients, 57% visited the NLC on some occasion. These patients were younger (P = .000), had lower Simplified Acute Physiology scores (P = .001) and higher SF‐36 physical health domain scores at 2 months (P < .05) compared to those not visiting at all. Visitors at 2 months only were younger, had shorter LOS and higher physical and mental domain scores than patients visiting at 6 months only. Patients visiting the NLC scored significantly higher in all domains from 2 to 12 months, whereas non‐visiting‐patients’ did this in four out of eight domains during the same time frame.ConclusionIndividual patient's characteristics and current health conditions seem to influence visits to NLC or not. The findings may contribute to the development of existing routines to match the diversity of patients’ needs and life situations.
Costs of schizotypal disorder: A matched‐controlled nationwide register‐based study of patients and spouses
Authors: Hastrup Lene Halling , Jennum Poul , Ibsen Rikke , Kjellberg Jakob , Simonsen Erik 
Published: March 2021

AbstractObjectiveInformation on societal cost of patients with schizotypal disorder is limited. The aim was to investigate the societal costs of schizotypal disorder before and after initial diagnosis including both patients and their spouses.MethodsA register‐based cohort study of 762 patients with incident schizotypal disorder (ICD‐10; F21) including their spouses and 3048 matched controls, during 2002 to 2016. Total healthcare costs, home care costs, and costs of lost productivity of patients and spouses were included in the analysis.ResultsTotal costs amounted €47,215 per year for patients with schizotypal disorder, which was fifteen times higher than the matched controls. Of these, 41% were healthcare and home care costs and 59% were costs of lost productivity. Healthcare costs and costs of lost productivity were increased during five years before initial diagnosis of schizotypal disorder. Total costs of spouses to patients were €21,384 compared with € 2519 among spouses of controls. 75% of the total costs of spouses to patients were related to lost productivity. The total costs were higher than the costs of borderline personality disorder, but on the same level as the costs of schizophrenia identified in earlier comparable studies.ConclusionsThe total societal costs of patients with schizotypal disorder drawn from national registers differed substantially from the controls representing the general population. As evidence‐based recommendations for diagnoses and treatment of patients with schizotypal disorder do not exist, future research should focus on developing effective treatment for this group of patients to reduce cost of illness.
Heroin use cannot be measured adequately with a general population survey
Authors: Reuter Peter , Caulkins Jonathan P. , Midgette Greg 
Published: March 2021

AbstractBackgroundGlobally, heroin and other opioids account for more than half of deaths and years‐of‐life‐lost due to drug use and comprise one of the four major markets for illegal drugs. Having sound estimates of the number of problematic heroin users is fundamental to formulating sound health and criminal justice policies. Researchers and policymakers rely heavily upon general population surveys (GPS), such as the US National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH), to estimate heroin use, without confronting their limitations. GPS‐based estimates are also ubiquitous for cocaine and methamphetamine, so insights pertaining to GPS for estimating heroin use are also relevant for those drug markets.AnalysisFour sources of potential errors in NSDUH are assessed: selective non‐response, small sample size, sampling frame omissions and under‐reporting. An alternative estimate drawing on a variety of sources including a survey of adult male arrestees is presented and explained. Other approaches to prevalence estimation are discussed.FindingsUnder‐reporting and selective non‐response in NSDUH are likely to lead to substantial underestimation. Small sample size leads to imprecise estimates and erratic year‐to‐year fluctuations. The alternative estimate provides credible evidence that NSDUH underestimates the number of frequent heroin users by at least three‐quarters and perhaps much more.ImplicationsGPS, even those as strong as NSDUH, are doomed by their nature to estimate poorly a rare and stigmatized behavior concentrated in a hard‐to‐track population. Although many European nations avoid reliance upon these surveys, many others follow the US model. Better estimation requires models that draw upon a variety of data sources, including GPS, to provide credible estimates. Recent methodological developments in selected countries can provide guidance. Journals should require researchers to critically assess the soundness of GPS estimates for any stigmatized drug‐related behaviors with low prevalence rates.
Reduction in the population prevalence of hepatitis C virus viraemia among people who inject drugs associated with scale‐up of direct‐acting anti‐viral therapy in community drug services: real‐world data
Authors: Palmateer Norah E. , McAuley Andrew , Dillon John F. , McDonald Scott , Yeung Alan , Smith Shanley , Barclay Stephen , Hayes Peter , Shepherd Samantha J. , Gunson Rory N. , Goldberg David J. , Hickman Matthew , Hutchinson Sharon J. 
Published: March 2021

AbstractBackground and aimsThere has been little empirical evidence to show the ‘real‐world’ impact of scaling‐up direct‐acting anti‐viral (DAA) treatment among people who inject drugs (PWID) on hepatitis C virus (HCV) viraemia at a population level. We aimed to assess the population impact of rapid DAA scale‐up to PWID delivered through community services—including drug treatment, pharmacies, needle exchanges and prisons—in the Tayside region of Scotland, compared with Greater Glasgow and Clyde (GGC) and the Rest of Scotland (RoS).Design, setting and participantsNatural experiment, evaluated using data from national biennial surveys of PWID and national clinical data. Services providing injecting equipment (2010–18) and HCV treatment clinics (2017–18) across Scotland. A total of 12 492 PWID who completed a questionnaire and provided a blood spot (tested for HCV‐antibodies and RNA); 4105 individuals who initiated HCV treatment.Intervention and comparator, measurementsThe intervention was rapid DAA scale‐up among PWID, which occurred in Tayside. The comparator was GGC/RoS. Trends in HCV viraemia and uptake of HCV therapy over time; sustained viral response (SVR) rates to therapy by region and treatment setting.FindingsUptake of HCV therapy (last year) among PWID between 2013–14 and 2017–18 increased from 15 to 43% in Tayside, 6 to 16% in GGC and 11 to 23% in RoS. Between 2010 and 2017–18, the prevalence of HCV viraemia (among antibody‐positives) declined from 73 to 44% in Tayside, 67 to 58% in GGC and 64 to 55% in RoS. The decline in viraemia was greater in Tayside [2017–18 adjusted odds ratio (aOR) = 0.47, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.30–0.75, P = 0.001] than elsewhere in Scotland (2017–18 aOR = 0.89, 95% CI = 0.74–1.07, P = 0.220) relative to the baseline of 2013–14 in RoS (including GGC). Per‐protocol SVR rates among PWID treated in community sites did not differ from those treated in hospital sites in Tayside (97.4 versus 100.0%, P = 0.099).ConclusionsScale‐up of direct‐acting anti‐viral treatment among people who inject drugs can be achieved through hepatitis C virus (HCV) testing and treatment in community drug services while maintaining high sustained viral response rates and, in the Tayside region of Scotland, has led to a substantial reduction in chronic HCV in the population.
Characterising vaping products in the United Kingdom: an analysis of Tobacco Products Directive notification data
Authors: Nyakutsikwa Blessing , Britton John , Bogdanovica Ilze , Boobis Alan , Langley Tessa 
Published: March 2021

ABSTRACTAimsTo analyse content and emission data submitted by manufacturers for nicotine‐containing vaping products in the United Kingdom (UK) in accordance with the European Union Tobacco Products Directive.DesignAnalysis of ingredient and emission data reported for all e‐liquid‐containing e‐cigarettes, cartridges or refill containers notified to the Medicines and Healthcare Regulatory Agency (MHRA) from November 2016 to October 2017.SettingUnited KingdomCasesA total of 40 785 e‐liquid containing products.MeasurementsThe average number of ingredients per product, nicotine concentrations, frequency of occurrence ingredients and frequency and levels of chemical emissions.FindingsReports were not standardised in relation to units of measurement or constituent nomenclature. Products listed an average of 17 ingredients and 3.3% were reported not to contain nicotine. A total of 59% of products contained <12 mg nicotine per mL, and <1% were reported to have nicotine concentrations above the legal limit of 20 mg/mL. Over 1500 ingredients were reported, and other than nicotine the most commonly reported non‐flavour ingredients were propylene glycol (97% of products) and glycerol (71%). The most common flavour ingredients were ethyl butyrate (42%), vanillin (35%) and ethyl maltol (33%). The most frequently reported chemical emissions were nicotine (65%), formaldehyde (48%) and acetaldehyde (40%). The reporting of the concentration of emissions was not standardised; emissions were reported in a format allowing analysis of median estimated concentration for between 13% and 100% of products for each reported emission. Most of the frequently reported emissions, other than nicotine, were present in median estimated concentrations below 1 μg/L of inspired air, and with the exception of nicotine, acrolein and diacetyl, at median levels below European Chemicals Agency Long Term Exposure and United States (US) Department of Labor Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) limits, where these were available.ConclusionsAn analysis of reports to the United Kingdom's Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency by manufacturers of vaping products shows that (i) these products have a large range of ingredients and emissions, (ii) the reporting system is unstandardized in terms of reporting requirements, and (iii) for quantified emissions, median levels are for the most part below published safe limits for ambient air.
Detection of the internal anatomy of lower anterior teeth using cone‐beam computed tomography
Authors: Santos Marice C. , Souza‐Gabriel Aline E. , Cruz‐Filho Antônio M. , Sousa‐Neto Manoel D. , Silva Ricardo G. 
Published: March 2021

AbstractMorphology study of root canal systems is essential for a correct diagnosis, therapy and prognosis of root canal treatment. This study aimed to analyse the dental anatomy of the lower anterior teeth, using cone‐beam computed tomography (CBCT). Lower anterior teeth were classified in terms of type, number and location of root canals, evaluating the bilaterality of anatomical occurrences and determining whether the gender and age influence the findings. We analysed 749 CBCT of patients attending the School of Dentistry for different reasons. Spearman’s correlations and Wilcoxon signed‐rank test were used to analyse data (α = 0.05). There was no significant correlation between gender (male and female) and anatomy of the canals 33 (P = 0.162), 32 (P = 0.815), 31 (P = 0.708), 41 (P = 0.422), 42 (P = 0.382) and 43 (P = 0.063). There was a significant correlation between age and anatomy of the canals 33 (P = 0.045), 32 (P = 0.033), 31 (P = 0.022), 41 (P = 0.000), 42 (P = 0.037) and 43 (P = 0.037). There was no significant correlation between gender and patients' age (P = 0.325). There was no anatomical difference between the bilateral pairs (right and left homologous teeth) (P > 0.05). The most common anatomical configuration was single‐canal teeth (85.29%), followed by the configuration in which one canal leaves the chamber, divides into two and unite again (12.88%). Anatomy of the lateral incisors and lower canines does not change with the gender of patients. However, as age rises, single canals and the incidence of division into two canals ending in a single foramen also increases.
Impact of anxiety, stress and depression related to COVID‐19 pandemic on the course of hereditary angioedema with C1‐inhibitor deficiency
Authors: Eyice Karabacak Deniz , Demir Semra , Yeğit Osman Ozan , Can Ali , Terzioğlu Kadriye , Ünal Derya , Olgaç Müge , Coşkun Raif , Çolakoğlu Bahauddin , Büyüköztürk Suna , Gelincik Aslı 
Published: March 2021

AbstractBackgroundHereditary angioedema (HAE) attacks can be provoked with psychological factors. The aim of this study was to assess the effects of anxiety, depression and stress related to COVID‐19 pandemic on disease activity of HAE patients during the quarantine period (QP) and the return to normal period (RTNP).MethodsThis study was conducted between March 2020 and September 2020 in four allergy centres. Demographic, clinical features and mental health status were evaluated in QP (from March to the beginning of June) and RTNP (from June to the beginning of September) applied by the government. The 10‐point visual analogue scale (VAS10) was used to define the severity of HAE attacks. Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scales‐21 (DASS‐21) and Fear of COVID‐19 (FC‐19) scale were performed to assess mental health status.Results139 HAE patients were included in the study. In QP, median attack numbers and median VAS10 scores were 5 (min‐max: 0–45) and 6 (min‐max: 0–10), respectively. HAE attack numbers, DASS‐21 stress, anxiety, depression and total DASS‐21 scores, and FC‐19 scores were higher in QP than RTNP (p = 0.001, p < 0.001, p = 0.001, p < 0.001, p < 0.001, p < 0.001, respectively). However, there was no difference in attack severity scores between the two periods (p > 0.05).ConclusionsThis study revealed that the restriction measures during COVID‐19 outbreak cause an increase in the number of HAE attacks in relation to anxiety, depression, stress and fear of COVID‐19 pandemic. Therefore, it is important to provide psychological support to HAE patients during the pandemic.
Flood regime alters the abiotic correlates of riparian vegetation
Authors: Steinberg Kelly A. , Eichhorst Kim D. , Rudgers Jennifer A. 
Published: March 2021

AbstractQuestionsPredicting the influence of climate change on riparian plant communities improves management strategies. The sensitivity of riparian vegetation to climate and other abiotic factors depends on interactions between properties of the ecosystem, like flood regime, and plant characteristics. To explore these interactions, we addressed three questions: (a) does the composition and diversity of riparian vegetation vary with the flood regime; (b) do abiotic correlates of vegetation, including climate and groundwater, differ between sites that flood compared to locations that did not experience floods; and (c) which plant functional groups account for differential plant community sensitivity to abiotic factors between flood regimes?LocationMiddle Rio Grande Valley, New Mexico.MethodsWe used long‐term observations of plant community composition, groundwater depth, precipitation and interpolated temperature from 24 sites spanning 210 km of the Rio Grande riparian cottonwood–willow forest to explore the relative importance of climate and hydrologic correlates of riparian vegetation diversity and composition.ResultsRiparian plant diversity was higher at sites flooding compared to non‐flooding sites. Plant diversity positively tracked shallower groundwater depth at flooding sites, but was best predicted by intra‐annual groundwater variability at non‐flooding sites. Plant community composition correlated with groundwater depth and air temperature at all sites, but at non‐flooding sites, also with intra‐annual groundwater variability and precipitation. Relationships between native plant cover and potential environmental drivers diverged strongly between the two flood regimes; non‐native plant cover had only weak relationships with most environmental predictors.ConclusionsThe current flood regime of a site determined the climate and hydrologic factors that best predicted riparian plant community composition and diversity. Relationships between plant diversity or total cover and groundwater, temperature, precipitation, or groundwater variability can change in strength or direction depending on a site's flood history, highlighting the importance of flood regime to predicting the sensitivity of riparian woodlands to future environmental change.
Situational context influences the degree of hostile attributions made by individuals with schizophrenia or autism spectrum disorder
Authors: Zajenkowska Anna , Rogoza Radosław , Sasson Noah J. , Harvey Philip D. , Penn David L. , Pinkham Amy E. 
Published: March 2021

ObjectivesPrevious work has demonstrated that the tendency to make hostile attributions is not a stable trait but varies across different social situations. Therefore, we sought to investigate whether hostile attributions within clinical samples are better understood as a persistent characteristic or one that varies across contexts.MethodsThe current analyses investigated patterns of attributions among people diagnosed with schizophrenia (SCZ, n = 271) or autism spectrum disorder (ASD, n = 100) and non‐clinical control participants (NCC, n = 233) in an existing data set.ResultsResults showed that specific relational features in vignettes portraying different social encounters influence the way people make attributions and that variability across contexts is present in both non‐clinical and clinical populations. Like non‐clinical participants, participants diagnosed with ASD ascribed the greatest hostility to a scene involving an authority figure. In contrast, SCZ participants reported the greatest hostility in response to a scene involving a friend.ConclusionsThese findings suggest that salient environmental factors should be considered when assessing social cognitive skills and biases.Practitioner points

Hostile attributions should be perceived as situational constructs rather than stable and persistent characteristics.

Hostile attributions were most prevalent among persons diagnosed with schizophrenia; however, on average, all participants showed greater hostility for situations involving an authority figure, an acquaintance, or a friend relative to those involving a co‐worker or stranger.

Psychotherapists and clinicians working with people diagnosed with schizophrenia or autism spectrum disorder could work on identifying situation triggers, which may prompt hostile attributions.

Psycho‐educational and psychotherapeutic interventions can be altered based on individual triggers of hostile attributions, and attempts can be made to lessen these attributions.

Paranoia appears to be linked to hostile attributions regardless of the specific clinical diagnosis and should be considered in the therapeutic process.
The impact of inflation targeting: Testing the good luck hypothesis
Authors: Ravenna Federico , Mølbak Ingholt Marcus 
Published: March 2021

AbstractStarting in the mid‐1980s, the level and volatility of inflation decreased across industrial countries. The inflation stabilization can be explained by a shift in monetary policy or by a lucky period of low volatility in business cycle shocks. To test the “good luck hypothesis,” we examine the inflation experience of Canada, one of the earliest and most successful adopters of an inflation targeting monetary policy. We Kalman‐filter the historical structural shocks consistent with an estimated dynamic stochastic general equilibrium (DSGE) model of the Canadian economy. The estimated shocks are used to build counterfactual histories. The good luck hypothesis can explain only a minor portion of the change in the path and volatility of inflation after the shift in policy. Most of inflation and output stabilization is accounted by the impact on expectations. Unconditionally, the inflation targeting policy does not improve on the previous policy in terms of inflation volatility, but supports a more favourable trade‐off, reducing substantially output volatility.