bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Effects of a Community Population Health Initiative on Blood Pressure Control in Latinos
Authors: Langabeer James R. , Henry Timothy D. , Perez Aldana Carlos , DeLuna Larissa , Silva Nora , Champagne‐Langabeer Tiffany 
Published: October 2018

Background
Hypertension remains one of the most important, modifiable cardiovascular risk factors. Yet, the largest minority ethnic group (Hispanics/Latinos) often have different health outcomes and behavior, making hypertension management more difficult. We explored the effects of an American Heart Association–sponsored population health intervention aimed at modifying behavior of Latinos living in Texas.

Methods and Results

We enrolled 8071 patients, and 5714 (65.7%) completed the 90‐day program (58.5 years ±11.7; 59% female) from July 2016 to June 2018. Navigators identified patients with risk factors; initial and final blood pressure (
BP
) readings were performed in the physician's office; and interim home measurements were recorded telephonically. The intervention incorporated home
BP
monitoring, fitness and nutritional counseling, and regular follow‐up. Primary outcomes were change in systolic
BP
and health‐related quality of life. Using a univariate paired‐samples pre–post design, we found an average 5.5% (7.6‐mm Hg) improvement in systolic
BP
(139.1 versus 131.5, t=10.32,
P
<0.001). Quality of life measured by the European quality of life 5‐dimension visual analog scale improved from 0.79 to 0.82 (t=31.03,
P
<0.001). After multivariate regression analyses, improvements in quality of life and overall body mass index were significantly associated with reductions in systolic
BP
.

Conclusions
A noninvasive, population health initiative that encourages routine engagement in patients’ own BP control was associated with improvements in systolic BP and quality of life for this largely Latino community.
Change of Kidney Function Is Associated With All‐Cause Mortality and Cardiovascular Diseases: Results From the Kailuan Study
Authors: Guo Yidan , Cui Liufu , Ye Pengpeng , Li Junjuan , Wu Shouling , Luo Yang 
Published: October 2018

Background

Current evaluation about the relationship of sequential change in estimated glomerular filtration rate (
eGFR
) and clinical outcomes are still inconsistent. We aimed to investigate the association between the change in kidney function over time and the risk of all‐cause mortality and cardiovascular disease.

Methods and Results

This prospective cohort including 37 691 participants aged ≥45 years used data from the Kailuan Health Registry. The relationship of the annual percentage and absolute change in
eGFR
and outcomes were analyzed with Cox proportional regression. The participants were stratified according to the quintiles distribution of the percentage annual change in
eGFR
(Q1–Q5). After adjusting for baseline covariates including initial
eGFR
, participants with annual
eGFR
decline were at significantly greater risk for all‐cause mortality (Q1: hazard ratio, 1.22 [95% confidence interval, 1.04–1.43]; Q2: 1.19 [1.01–1.40]) than noted for patients in Q3. Cardiovascular disease risk was also significantly higher in participants with annual
eGFR
decline (Q1 and Q2). No significantly increased risk of adverse outcomes was noted for patients with annual
eGFR
increased groups (Q4 and Q5). When considering the absolute
eGFR
annual change rate (no/mild/rapid decline), we obtained similar results in chronic kidney disease participants, whereas non–chronic kidney disease participants had less pronounced association of
eGFR
decline with cardiovascular disease, though not with mortality.

Conclusions

A decline in
eGFR
over time is associated with higher risk for all‐cause mortality and cardiovascular disease independent of initial
eGFR
and other known risk factors at baseline. Our data support the serial evaluation of change in kidney function as a better prognostic indicator than single
eGFR
assessments.
Impact of Gauge Representative Error on a Radar Rainfall Uncertainty Model
Authors: Dai Qiang , Yang Qiqi , Zhang Jun , Zhang Shuliang 
Published: October 2018

AbstractIn modeling the radar rainfall uncertainty, rain gauge measurement is generally regarded as the areal “true” rainfall. However, the inconsistent scales between radar and gauge may introduce a new uncertainty (also known as gauge representative uncertainty), which is erroneously identified as radar rainfall uncertainty and therefore called pseudouncertainty. It is crucial to comprehend what percentage of the estimated radar rainfall uncertainty actually stems from such pseudouncertainty rather than radar rainfall itself. For this reason, based on a fully formulated radar rainfall uncertainty model, this study aims to explore how the gauge representative error affects the distribution, spatial dependence, and temporal dependence of hourly accumulated radar rainfall uncertainty, and consequently affects the produced radar rainfall uncertainty band. Three group scenarios that delineate various degrees of gauge representative errors were designed to configure and run the uncertainty model. In the setting of a long-term analysis (almost 7 years) of the Brue catchment in the United Kingdom, we found that the gauge representative error affected the simulation of the marginal distribution of radar rainfall error, and had a considerable effect on temporal dependence estimation of radar rainfall uncertainty. The spread of the rainfall uncertainty band decreased with the growth of the gauge density in a radar pixel. The scenario with the lowest representative error only had 78% uncertainty spread of the scenario that has the largest error. This indicated there was a large impact of the representative error on radar rainfall uncertainty models. It is hoped that more catchments with diverse climate and geographical conditions and more radar data with various spatial scales could be explored by the research community to further investigate this crucial issue.
Extratropical Influence on 200-hPa Easterly Acceleration over the Western Indian Ocean Preceding Madden–Julian Oscillation Convective Onset
Authors: Gahtan Jennifer , Roundy Paul 
Published: October 2018

Abstract
The onset of Madden–Julian oscillation (MJO) deep convection often occurs over the western Indian Ocean and has upper-tropospheric circulation precursors that consist of eastward-circumnavigating tropical easterlies and subtropical cyclonic Rossby gyres near eastern Africa. Moreover, the evolution of the large-scale circulation and its ability to reduce subsidence may be necessary for the initial development of organized deep convection. To better understand the evolution of the circulation precursors and their interaction with convective onset, this paper analyzes the upper-tropospheric zonal momentum budget using a regional index based on the temporal progression of the meridional structure of intraseasonal outgoing longwave radiation anomalies over eastern Africa and the western Indian Ocean. The circumnavigating intraseasonal easterly acceleration produces upper-level divergence when it reaches the western extent of a region of intraseasonal westerlies and may provide a forcing for the in-phase midtropospheric upward vertical motion. For about three-quarters of the identified cases, the easterly acceleration over the western Indian Ocean is a response to the zonal pressure gradient over the region. In the composite, the negative pressure gradient force may be initially induced by the injection of negative geopotential height anomalies from the extratropics of both hemispheres to the tropics over eastern Africa, though tropically circumnavigating and local signals may also contribute to the easterly acceleration, especially in the days following convective onset.
Inhomogeneous Mixing in Lagrangian Cloud Models: Effects on the Production of Precipitation Embryos
Authors: Hoffmann Fabian , Yamaguchi Takanobu , Feingold Graham 
Published: October 2018

Abstract
Although small-scale turbulent mixing at cloud edge has substantial effects on the microphysics of clouds, most models do not represent these processes explicitly, or parameterize them rather crudely. This study presents a first use of the linear eddy model (LEM) to represent unresolved turbulent mixing at the subgrid scale (SGS) of large-eddy simulations (LESs) with a coupled Lagrangian cloud model (LCM). The method utilizes Lagrangian particles to provide the trajectory of air masses within LES grid boxes, while the LEM is used to redistribute these air masses among the Lagrangian particles based on the local features of turbulence, allowing for the appropriate representation of inhomogeneous to homogeneous SGS mixing. The new approach has the salutary effect of mitigating spurious supersaturations. At low turbulence intensities, as found in the early stages of an idealized bubble cloud simulation, cloud-edge SGS mixing tends to be inhomogeneous and the new approach is shown to be essential for the production of raindrop embryos. At higher turbulence intensities, as found in a field of shallow cumulus, SGS mixing tends to be more homogeneous and the new approach does not significantly alter the results, indicating that a grid spacing of 20 m may be sufficient to resolve all relevant scales of inhomogeneous mixing. In both cases, droplet in-cloud residence times are important for the production of precipitation embryos in the absence of small-scale inhomogeneous mixing, either naturally due to strong turbulence or artificially as a result of coarse resolution or by not using the LEM as an SGS model.
A Nonstationary ENSO–NAO Relationship Due to AMO Modulation
Authors: Zhang Wenjun , Mei Xuebin , Geng Xin , Turner Andrew G. , Jin Fei-Fei 
Published: October 2018

Abstract
Many previous studies have demonstrated a high uncertainty in the relationship between El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO). In the present work, decadal modulation by the Atlantic multidecadal oscillation (AMO) is investigated as a possible cause of the nonstationary ENSO–NAO relationship based on observed and reanalysis data. It is found that the negative ENSO–NAO correlation in late winter is significant only when ENSO and the AMO are in phase (AMO+/El Niño and AMO−/La Niña). However, no significant ENSO-driven atmospheric anomalies can be observed over the North Atlantic when ENSO and the AMO are out of phase (AMO−/El Niño and AMO+/La Niña). Further analysis indicates that the sea surface temperature anomaly (SSTA) in the tropical North Atlantic (TNA) plays an essential role in this modulating effect. Because of broadly analogous TNA SSTA responses to both ENSO and the AMO during late winter, a warm SSTA in the TNA is evident when El Niño occurs during a positive AMO phase, resulting in a significantly weakened NAO, and vice versa when La Niña occurs during a negative AMO phase. In contrast, neither the TNA SSTA nor the NAO shows a prominent change under out-of-phase combinations of ENSO and AMO. The AMO modulation and the associated effect of the TNA SSTA are shown to be well reproduced by historical simulations of the HadCM3 coupled model and further verified by forced experiments using an atmospheric circulation model. These offer hope that similar models will be able to make predictions for the NAO when appropriately initialized.
Impact of GVF Derivation Methods on Noah Land Surface Model Simulations and WRF Model Forecasts
Authors: Fang Li , Zhan Xiwu , Hain Christopher R. , Yin Jifu , Liu Jicheng 
Published: October 2018

Abstract
Green vegetation fraction (GVF) plays a crucial role in the atmosphere–land water and energy exchanges. It is one of the essential parameters in the Noah land surface model (LSM) that serves as the land component of a number of operational numerical weather prediction models at the National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP) of NOAA. The satellite GVF products used in NCEP models are derived from a simple linear conversion of either the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) from the Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) currently or the enhanced vegetation index (EVI) from the Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) planned for the near future. Since the NDVI or EVI is a simple spectral index of vegetation cover, GVFs derived from them may lack the biophysical meaning required in the Noah LSM. Moreover, the NDVI- or EVI-based GVF data products may be systematically biased over densely vegetated regions resulting from the saturation issue associated with spectral vegetation indices. On the other hand, the GVF is physically related to the leaf area index (LAI), and thus it could be beneficial to derive GVF from LAI data products. In this paper, the EVI-based and the LAI-based GVF derivation methods are mathematically analyzed and are found to be significantly different from each other. Impacts of GVF differences on the Noah LSM simulations and on weather forecasts of the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) Model are further assessed. Results indicate that LAI-based GVF outperforms the EVI-based one when used in both the offline Noah LSM and WRF Model.
The right thalamic glutamate level correlates with functional connectivity with right dorsal anterior cingulate cortex/middle occipital gyrus in unmedicated obsessive–compulsive disorder: A combined fMRI and 1H-MRS study
Authors: Chen Yongjun , Meng Ziyu , Zhang Zongfeng , Zhu Yajing , Gao Rui , Cao Xuan , Tan Ling , Wang Zhen , Zhang Haiyin , Li Yao , Fan Qing 
Published: October 2018

Objective: The imbalance in neurotransmitter and neuronal metabolite concentration within cortico-striato-thalamo-cortical (CSTC) circuit contributes to obsessive–compulsive disorder’s (OCD) onset. Previous studies showed that glutamate mediated upregulation of resting-state activity in healthy people. However, there have been few studies investigating the correlational features between functional and neurochemical alterations in OCD. Methods: We utilize a combined resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI) and proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (1H-MRS) approach to investigate the altered functional connectivity (FC) in association with glutamatergic dysfunction in OCD pathophysiology. Three regions of interest are investigated, i.e., medial prefrontal cortex and bilateral thalamus, for seed-based whole-brain FC analysis as well as MRS data acquisition. There are 23 unmedicated adult OCD patients and 23 healthy controls recruited for brain FC analysis. Among them, 12 OCD and 8 controls are performed MRS data acquisition. Results: Besides abnormal FC within CSTC circuit, we also find altered FCs in large-scale networks outside CSTC circuit, including occipital area and limbic and motor systems. The decreased FC between right thalamus and right middle occipital gyrus (MOG) is correlated with glutamatergic signal within right thalamus in OCD patients. Moreover, the FC between right thalamus and right dorsal anterior cingulate cortex (dACC) is associated with glutamate level in right thalamus, specifically in patient’s group. Finally, the FC between right thalamus and right MOG is correlated with patient’s Yale–Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale (YBOCS) compulsion and total scores, while the right thalamic glutamatergic signal is associated with YBOCS-compulsion score. Conclusion: Our findings showed that the coupled intrinsic functional–biochemical alterations existed both within CSTC circuit and from CSTC to occipital lobe in OCD pathophysiology.
Age dependency of cerebral P-glycoprotein function in wild-type and APPPS1 mice measured with PET
Authors: Zoufal Viktoria , Wanek Thomas , Krohn Markus , Mairinger Severin , Filip Thomas , Sauberer Michael , Stanek Johann , Pekar Thomas , Bauer Martin , Pahnke Jens , Langer Oliver 
Published: October 2018

P-glycoprotein (P-gp, ABCB1) is an efflux transporter at the blood–brain barrier (BBB), which mediates clearance of beta-amyloid (Aβ) from brain into blood. We used ( R)-[11C]verapamil PET in combination with partial P-gp inhibition with tariquidar to measure cerebral P-gp function in a beta-amyloidosis mouse model (APPtg) and in control mice at three different ages (50, 200 and 380 days). Following tariquidar pre-treatment (4 mg/kg), whole brain-to-plasma radioactivity concentration ratios ( Kp,brain) were significantly higher in APPtg than in wild-type mice aged 50 days, pointing to decreased cerebral P-gp function. Moreover, we found an age-dependent decrease in cerebral P-gp function in both wild-type and APPtg mice of up to −50%. Alterations in P-gp function were more pronounced in Aβ-rich brain regions (hippocampus, cortex) than in a control region with negligible Aβ load (cerebellum). PET results were confirmed by immunohistochemical staining of P-gp in brain microvessels. Our results confirm previous findings of reduced P-gp function in Alzheimer’s disease mouse models and show that our PET protocol possesses adequate sensitivity to measure these functional changes in vivo. Our PET protocol may find use in clinical studies to test the efficacy of drugs to induce P-gp function at the human BBB to enhance Aβ clearance.
Contamination of Household Open Wells in an Urban Area of Trivandrum, Kerala State, India: A Spatial Analysis of Health Risk Using Geographic Information System
Authors: Ananth Mohan , Rajesh Reghunath , Amjith Rajeevan , A L Achu , Valamparampil Mathew J , Harikrishnan M , Resmi M S , Sreekanth K B , Sara Varghese , Sethulekshmi S , Prasannakumar V , Deepthi S K , Jemin Aby Jose , Krishna D S , Anish T S , Insija Ilyas Selene , Nujum Zinia T 
Published: October 2018

Objective: To assess the sanitary condition and water quality of household wells and to depict it spatially using Geographic Information System (GIS) in an urban area of Trivandrum, Kerala state, India. Study design: A community-based cross-sectional census-type study. Methods: Study was conducted in an urban area of Trivandrum. All households (n = 449) residing in a 1.05 km2 area were enrolled in the study. Structured questionnaire and Differential Global Positioning System (DGPS) device were used for data collection. Water samples taken were analyzed in an accredited laboratory. Results: Most of the wells were in an intermediate-high contamination risk state, with more than 77% of wells having a septic tank within 7.5 m radius. Coliform contamination was prevalent in 73% of wells, and the groundwater was predominantly acidic with a mean of 5.4, rendering it unfit for drinking. The well chlorination and cleaning practices were inadequate, which were significantly associated with coliform contamination apart from a closely located septic tank. However, water purification practices like boiling were practiced widely in the area. Conclusion: Despite the presence of wells with high risk of contamination and inadequate chlorination practices, the apparent rarity of Water-borne diseases in the area may be attributed to the widespread boiling and water purification practices at the consumption level by the households. GIS technology proves useful in picking environmental determinants like polluting sources near the well and to plan control activities.
The efficiency of single institutional review board review in National Institute of Child Health and Human Development Cooperative Reproductive Medicine Network–initiated clinical trials
Authors: Diamond Michael P , Eisenberg Esther , Huang Hao , Coutifaris Christos , Legro Richard S , Hansen Karl R , Steiner Anne Z , Cedars Marcelle , Barnhart Kurt , Ziolek Tracy , Thomas Tracey R , Maurer Kate , Krawetz Stephen A , Wild Robert A , Trussell JC , Santoro Nanette , Zhang Heping ,   for the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development Cooperative Reproductive Medicine Network
Published: October 2018

Background/aims: Timely review of research protocols by institutional review boards leads to more rapid initiation of clinical trials, which is critical to expeditious translation from bench to bedside. This observational study examined the impact of a single institutional review board on time and efforts required to initiate clinical trials by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development Cooperative Reproductive Medicine Network. Methods: Collection of data from the same six main clinical sites for three current clinical trials and two past clinical trials, including time from institutional review board submission to approval, pages submitted, consent form length, number of required attachments, other regulatory requirements, order of review at central or local sites, and language in documents at individual participating sites. Results from two past clinical trials were also included. Results: While time required for actual institutional review board submission’s review and initial approval was reduced with use of a single institutional review board for multicenter trials (from a mean of 66.7–24.0 days), total time was increased (to a mean of 111.2 or 123.3 days). In addition to single institutional review board approval, all institutions required local approval of some components (commonly consent language and use of local language), which varied considerably. The single institutional review board relied on local institutions for adding or removing personnel, conflict of interest review, and auditing of activities. Conclusion: A single institutional review board reduced time for initial review and approval of protocols and informed consents, although time for the entire process was increased, as individual institutions retained oversight of components of required regulatory review. In order to best achieve the National Institute of Health’s goals for improved efficiency in initiation and conduct of multisite clinical research, greater coordination with local institutional review boards is key to streamlining and accelerating initiation of multisite clinical research.