bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Impact of Human Leucocyte Antigen epitope matched platelet transfusions in alloimmunised aplastic anaemia patients
Authors: Kallon Delordson , Navarrete Cristina V. , Sage Deborah A. , Stanworth Simon , Mufti Ghulam J. , Marsh Judith C. W. , Brown Colin J. 
Published: June 2019

SummaryAims/ObjectivesTo explore the impact of Human Leucocyte Antigen (HLA)‐A and B epitope‐matched platelets on the outcome of platelet transfusions in alloimmunised patients with aplastic anaemia (AA). The relevance of HLA‐C epitope mismatches was also investigated.BackgroundPatients who become immunologically refractory (IR) to random platelet transfusions can experience an adequate rise in platelet count through the provision of HLA‐compatible platelets using an antigen‐matching algorithm. This approach has been shown to be effective in patients with a low calculated reaction frequency, but it is not always successful in highly sensitised patients. The use of HLA epitopes‐selected platelets has been suggested as an alternative to the antigen matching approach.MethodsThe effect of HLA epitope matching (both Eplets and Triplets) on the outcome of platelet transfusion was analysed in 37 highly immunised AA patients previously transfused with HLA‐A and B antigen‐matched platelets. Epitope matching was determined using the HLAMatchmaker programme. The outcome of the transfusions was assessed by the platelet count increments (PCIs) obtained 1 and 24 hours post‐transfusions.ResultsHLA‐A and B epitope matching was equivalent to HLA antigen matching in raising platelet counts. There was no significant difference in PCI when HLA‐C epitope mismatches were considered. In addition, transfusions with fewer than two antigen mismatches resulted in significantly higher PCIs compared to transfusions with more than two antigen mismatches.ConclusionsHLA epitope‐matched platelet provision may represent a clinically effective transfusion strategy for patients IR to random platelet transfusions. Further prospective studies are required.
Migration and servicification: Do immigrant employees spur firm exports of services?
Authors: Hatzigeorgiou Andreas , Lodefalk Magnus 
Published: June 2019

AbstractServices play an increasingly important role in production, employment and international trade but are subject to substantially higher trade costs relative to manufactured goods. Knowledge of how these trade costs can be mitigated is important for facilitating trade of services. In this paper, we analyse the role of immigrant employees as facilitators of firm exports of services, a role that remains largely unexamined. We bridge the gap in existing research by drawing on new data for nearly 30,000 Swedish firms during the period 1998–2007 within a heterogeneous firm framework. The results have important policy implications. As the multilateral approach to facilitating trade is challenged and more countries are imposing measures to restrict the cross‐country mobility of people, policymakers may need to find new ways to promote exports of services. Our results indicate that immigrant employees spur firms' export of services activities: hiring one additional foreign‐born worker can increase services exports by approximately 2.5 per cent, on average, with a stronger effect found for skilled and newly arrived immigrants. Therefore, policymakers could leverage the findings of this study to implement initiatives that utilise high‐skilled immigrants to promote services exports.
Mucoid Pseudomonas aeruginosa infection in a cat with severe chronic rhinosinusitis
Authors: Sharma Diya , Pakravan Natasha , Pritchard Jessica C. , Hartmann Faye A. , Young Karen M. 
Published: June 2019

AbstractA 6‐year‐old male neutered Bengal cat was presented to the University of Wisconsin Veterinary Care Hospital with a history of severe chronic rhinitis that was unresolved from kittenhood. In weeks prior to presentation, the cat's upper respiratory signs had significantly worsened and a left‐sided facial swelling overlying the left frontal sinus was noted. Skull computed tomography, rhinoscopy, bilateral nasal biopsies, bacterial and fungal cultures of fluid from the left frontal sinus, and cryptococcal fungal antigen testing were performed. The cat was diagnosed with severe chronic rhinosinusitis and determined to have an infection with a mucoid variant of Pseudomonas aeruginosa (P aeruginosa). This case highlights an atypical cytomorphologic appearance of the well‐known bacterial pathogen, P aeruginosa, an appearance that could be confused cytologically with other microorganisms, such as septate fungi. Mucoid variants of P aeruginosa are often associated with progressive lung or airway disease in people with cystic fibrosis and have not been previously documented in feline respiratory tract disease. This report also presents a brief review of chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) in cats and describes a novel interventional treatment approach to feline CRS via sinusotomy and sinus flushing for severely affected cats.
Paleomagnetism of the Chuar Group and evaluation of the late Tonian Laurentian apparent polar wander path with implications for the makeup and breakup of Rodinia
Authors: Eyster Athena , Weiss Benjamin P. , Karlstrom Karl , Macdonald Francis A. 
Published: June 2019

AbstractPaleogeographic models commonly assume that the supercontinent Rodinia was long-lived, with a static geometry involving Mesoproterozoic links that developed during assembly and persisted until Neoproterozoic rifting. However, Rodinian paleogeography and dynamics of continental separation around its centerpiece, Laurentia, remain poorly constrained. On the western Laurentian margin, geological and geochronological data suggest that breakup did not occur until after 720 Ma. Thus, late Tonian (ca. 780–720 Ma) paleomagnetic data are critical for reconstructing paleogeography prior to dispersal and assessing the proposed stasis of Rodinia. Here, we report new paleomagnetic data from the late Tonian Chuar Group in the Grand Canyon, Arizona. We combined this new data set with reanalyzed existing data to obtain a new paleopole preserved in hematite, the reliability of which is supported by six of the seven (Q1–Q6) Van der Voo reliability quality criteria. In addition, we identified pervasive mid- to high-temperature overprints. This new paleomagnetic pole was incorporated with recent high-precision geochronological data and existing paleomagnetic data to present a new late Tonian Laurentian apparent polar wander path (APWP). Having examined the paleomagnetic data of other cratons, global reconstructions for 775 Ma, 751 Ma, and 716 Ma are presented. These reconstructions are consistent with Australia located near the present southern margin of Laurentia. However, a stringent analysis of the global data set does not support a good match between any major craton and the rifted conjugate margin to western Laurentia. Breakup on the western Laurentian margin may have involved rifting of a continental fragment or a craton with uncertainties in its late Tonian geochronologic and paleomagnetic constraints. Our revised Laurentian APWP will allow for more robust tests of paleogeography and evaluation of the proposed supercontinent Rodinia.
Development of a predictive risk model for school readiness at age 3 years using the UK Millennium Cohort Study
Authors: Camacho Christine , Straatmann Viviane S , Day Jennie C , Taylor-Robinson David 
Published: June 2019

ObjectivesThe aim of this study is to develop a predictive risk model (PRM) for school readiness measured at age 3 years using perinatal and early infancy data.Design and participantsThis paper describes the development of a PRM. Predictors were identified from the UK Millennium Cohort Study wave 1 data, collected when participants were 9 months old. The outcome was school readiness at age 3 years, measured by the Bracken School Readiness Assessment. Stepwise selection and dominance analysis were used to specify two models. The models were compared by the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUROC) and integrated discrimination improvement (IDI).ResultsData were available for 9487 complete cases. At age 3, 11.7% (95% CI 11.0% to 12.3%) of children were not school ready. The variables identified were: parents’ Socio-Economic Classification, child’s ethnicity, maternal education, income band, sex, household number of children, mother’s age, low birth weight, mother’s mental health, infant developmental milestones, breastfeeding, parents’ employment, housing type. A parsimonious model included the first six listed variables (model 2). The AUROC for model 1 was 0.80 (95% CI 0.78 to 0.81) and 0.78 (95% CI 0.77 to 0.79) for model 2. Model 1 resulted in a small improvement in discrimination (IDI=1.3%, p<0.001).ConclusionsPerinatal and infant risk factors predicted school readiness at age three with good discrimination. Social determinants were strong predictors of school readiness. This study demonstrates that school readiness can be predicted by six attributes collected around the time of birth.
Asthma and risk of glioma: a population-based case–control study
Authors: Kaur Harsheen , Lachance Daniel H , Ryan Conor S , Sheen Youn Ho , Seol Hee Yun , Wi Chung-Il , Sohn Sunghwan , King Katherine S , Ryu Euijung , Juhn Young 
Published: June 2019

ObjectivesLiterature suggests an inconsistent, but largely inverse, association between asthma and risk of glioma, which is primarily due to methodological inconsistency in sampling frame and ascertainment of asthma. The objective of the study was to clarify the association between asthma and risk of glioma by minimising methodological biases (eg, recall and detection bias).DesignA population-based case–control study.SettingGeneral population in Olmsted County, Minnesota, USA.ParticipantsAll eligible biopsy-proven incident glioma cases (1995–2014) and two sets of controls among residents matched to age and sex (first set: community controls without glioma; second set: MRI-negative controls from the same community).MethodsThe predetermined asthma criteria via medical record review were applied to ascertain asthma status of cases and controls. History of asthma prior to index date was compared between glioma cases and their matched controls using conditional logistic regression models. Propensity score for asthma status was adjusted for multivariate analysis.ResultsWe enrolled 135 glioma cases (median age at index date: 53 years) and 270 controls. Of the cases, 21 had a history of asthma (16%), compared with 36 of MRI controls (27%) (OR (95% CI) 0.48 (0.26 to 0.91), p=0.03). With MRI controls, an inverse association between asthma and risk of glioma persisted after adjusting for the propensity score for asthma status, but did not reach statistical significance probably due to the lack of statistical power (OR (95% CI) 0.48 (0.21 to 1.09); p=0.08). Based on comparison of characteristics of controls and cases, community controls seem to be more susceptible to a detection bias.ConclusionsWhile differential detection might account for the association between asthma and risk of glioma, asthma may potentially pose a protective effect on risk of glioma. Our study results need to be replicated by a larger study.
Assessment of patients’ expectations: development and validation of the Expectation for Treatment Scale (ETS)
Authors: Barth Jürgen , Kern Alexandra , Lüthi Sebastian , Witt Claudia M 
Published: June 2019

ObjectiveTo develop a short self-report instrument for the assessment of expectations (Expectation for Treatment Scale(ETS)) using acupuncture as a case example.DesignA cross-sectional assessment with retest after 1 week.SettingA web-based survey with patients suffering from pain.MethodsIn a three-step approach, we reduced the initially collected number of items from 17 to 9 and to 5, including expectations about coping ability, vitality, physical health and reduction of patient complaints. Items were selected according to internal consistency (Cronbach’s alpha); convergent and divergent validities with related constructs (optimism, pessimism, resilience, perceived sensitivity to medicines, depression and others); 1-week retest reliability (intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC)); and exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA).ResultsA total of 102 patients suffering from pain were included, and 54 of these patients completed the retest assessment. The final version of the ETS consisted of five items and had an excellent Cronbach’s alpha (0.90), with 72.33% variance on one single factor. Depression, pessimism and perceived sensitivity to medicines showed positive correlations with our expectation measure (r=0.23, r=0.20 and r=0.34, respectively); the correlation between the ETS and optimism was low (r=−0.07) and no correlation between the ETS and resilience was found (r=−0.07). Convergent validity was confirmed with a high correlation (r>0.90) between ETS and a treatment-specific measure of expectations. The retest ICC was 0.86, which showed high stability over 1 week. A CFA (n=439) with data from patients with low back pain confirmed the single-factor structure of the instrument.ConclusionThe ETS showed strong psychometric properties and covered a distinct construct. As the next step, the ETS might be implemented in different clinical conditions and settings to investigate psychometrics and its predictive power for treatment outcomes.
Mixed methods evaluation of a hospital group model using an embedded research approach: study protocol
Authors: Vindrola-Padros Cecilia , Capelas Barbosa Estela , Ramsay Angus I G , Turner Simon , Morris Stephen , Agble Ronald , Caldwell-Nichols Amy , Fulop Naomi J 
Published: June 2019

IntroductionHospital group models represent an organisational form that aims to bring together multiple provider organisations with a central headquarters and unified leadership responsible for locally managed operating units, standardised systems and a value-set shared across the group. These models seek to improve outcomes by reducing unwarranted variations in care provision and reducing costs through economies of scale. There is limited evidence on the impact and processes of implementing these models, so this study aims to evaluate one case study of a hospital group model.Methods and analysisWe will conduct a formative, mixed-methods evaluation using an embedded research approach to analyse the implementation of the model and its impact on outcomes and costs. We will carry out a multisited ethnography to analyse the programme theory for model design and implementation, the barriers and facilitators in the implementation; and wider contextual issues that influence implementation using semi-structured interviews (n=80), non-participant observations (n=80 hours), ‘shadowing’ (n=20 hours) and documentary analysis. We will also carry out an economic evaluation composed of a cost-consequence analysis and a return on investment analysis to evaluate the costs of creating and running the model and balance these against the potential cost-savings.Ethics and disseminationThe study protocol was reviewed by the local R&D Office and University College London Ethics Committee and classified as a service evaluation, not requiring approval by a research ethics committee. We will follow guidelines for informed consent, confidentiality and information governance, and address issues of critical distance prevalent in embedded research. Findings will be shared at regular time points to inform the implementation of the model. The evaluation will also generate: an evaluation framework to evaluate future changes; recommendations for meaningful baseline data and measuring improvement; identification of implementation costs and potential cost-savings; and lessons for the National Health Service on implementing these models.
Life and bladder cancer: protocol for a longitudinal and cross-sectional patient-reported outcomes study of Yorkshire (UK) patients
Authors: Mason Samantha J , Downing Amy , Wright Penny , Bottomley Sarah E , Winterbottom Andrew , Glaser Adam W , Catto James W F 
Published: June 2019

IntroductionLittle is known about the impact of bladder cancer (BC) and its treatments on health-related quality of life (HRQL). To date, most work has been small in scale or restricted to subsets of patients. Life and bladder cancer is a cross-sectional and longitudinal study collecting patient-reported outcomes within two distinct cohorts.Methods and analysisA longitudinal study will collect patient-reported outcomes at 3-monthly intervals from newly diagnosed patients. Eligible cases will be identified by recruiting hospitals and surveyed at baseline, 6, 9 and 12 months postdiagnosis to explore changes in outcomes over time. A separate cross-sectional cohort of patients diagnosed within the last 10 years across Yorkshire will be identified through cancer registration systems and surveyed once to explore longer-term HRQL in BC survivors. A comprehensive patient-reported outcome measure (PROM) has been developed using generic, cancer-specific and BC-specific instruments. The study will provide evidence about how useful these PROMs are in measuring BC patient HRQL. The outcome data will be linked with administrative health data (eg, treatment information from hospital data).Ethics and disseminationThe study has received the following approvals: Yorkshire and the Humber—South Yorkshire Research Ethics Committee (17/YH/0095), Health Research Authority Confidentiality Advisory Group (17/CAG/0054). Results will be made available to patients, funders, NHS Trusts, Clinical Commissioning Groups, Strategic Clinical Networks and other researchers.
Improving hospital-based communication and decision-making about scope of treatment using a standard documentation tool
Authors: Kohen Samuel Abuaf , Nair Rajesh 
Published: June 2019

BackgroundThe Vancouver Island Health Authority (VIHA) implemented a standard advance care planning (ACP) document called the medical order for scope of treatment (MOST) in February 2016 to improve end of life communication and documentation. This study aims to see if the MOST implementation improves inpatient ACP documentation when compared with the ‘do not resuscitate’ (DNR) order. Improvement is measured by: (1) proportion of inpatients with documented orders for life-sustaining treatment, (2) discordance between patient’s expressed wishes and chart documentation, (3) patient satisfaction and (4) days admitted to an acute care hospital within 90 days of study inclusion.MethodsWe performed a single-centre quality improvement study tracking the effects of MOST implementation. 329 consecutive patients were enrolled at a 215-bed community hospital located in Comox, British Columbia, Canada.ResultsThe MOST integrated well into the process of care, significantly improving ACP documentation from 33% preimplementation to 100% over 8 months of implementation. MOST completion was associated with a significant decrease in discordance between patients’ wishes and documented goals of care. Patients with a MOST were significantly older and had a higher charlson comorbidity score than those without a MOST. Despite this, there was no difference in the number of days study patients were admitted to hospital within 90 days of study inclusion.ConclusionsMOST implementation improves the frequency and quality of inpatient ACP documentation with no effect on acute care utilisation.
Midlife cardiorespiratory fitness and the long-term risk of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
Authors: Hansen Gorm Mørk , Marott Jacob Louis , Holtermann Andreas , Gyntelberg Finn , Lange Peter , Jensen Magnus T 
Published: June 2019

BackgroundGood midlife cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) may reduce the risk of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Reverse causation may play a role if follow-up time is short. We examined the association between CRF and both incident COPD and COPD mortality in employed men with up to 46 years follow-up, which allowed us to account for reverse causality.MethodsMiddle-aged men (n=4730) were recruited in 1970–1971. CRF was determined as VO2max by ergometer test. Categories of CRF (low, normal, high) were defined as ± 1 Z-score (± 1 SD) above or below the age-adjusted mean. Endpoints were identified through national registers and defined as incident COPD, and death from COPD. Multi-adjusted Cox models and restricted mean survival times (RMST) were performed.ResultsCompared with low CRF, the estimated risk of incident COPD was 21% lower in participants with normal CRF (HR 0.79, 95% CI 0.63 to 0.99) and 31 % lower with high CRF (HR 0.69, 95% CI 0.52 to 0.91). Compared with low CRF, the risk of death from COPD was 35% lower in participants with normal CRF (HR 0.65, 95% CI 0.46 to 0.91) and 62% lower in participants with high CRF (HR 0.38, 95% CI 0.23 to 0.61). RMST showed a delay to incident COPD and death from COPD in the magnitude of 1.3–1.8 years in normal and high CRF vs low CRF. Test for reverse causation did not alter the results.ConclusionIn a population of healthy, middle-aged men, higher levels of CRF were associated with a lower long-term risk of incident COPD and death from COPD.
Coset construction of Virasoro minimal models and coupling of Wess–Zumino–Witten theory with Schramm–Loewner evolution
Authors: Koshida Shinji 
Published: June 2019

Schramm–Loewner evolution (SLE) is a random process that gives a useful description of fractal curves. After its introduction, many works concerning the connection between SLE and conformal field theory (CFT) have been carried out. In this paper, we develop a new method of coupling SLE with a Wess–Zumino–Witten (WZW) model for [Formula: see text], an example of CFT, relying on a coset construction of Virasoro minimal models. Generalizations of SLE that correspond to WZW models were proposed by previous works [E. Bettelheim et al., Stochastic Loewner evolution for conformal field theories with Lie group symmetries, Phys. Rev. Lett. 95 (2005) 251601] and [Alekseev et al., On SLE martingales in boundary WZW models, Lett. Math. Phys. 97 (2011) 243–261], in which the parameters in the generalized SLE for [Formula: see text] were related to the level of the corresponding [Formula: see text]-WZW model. The present work unveils the mechanism of how the parameters were chosen, and gives a simpler proof of the result in these previous works, shedding light on a new perspective of SLE/WZW coupling.
Efficient degradation of refractory contaminants with silver ferrite for persulfate activation
Authors: Li Cong , Yang Wei , Guo Sheng , Yang Zhixiong , Fida Hussain , Liang Huan 
Published: June 2019

The advanced oxidation processes (AOPs) based on sulfate radicals have triggered tremendous research efforts in environmental remediation field. In this study, we proposed a facile silver ferrite ([Formula: see text] nanocatalyst via a simple co-precipitation at room temperature. The as-prepared AgFeO2 was characterized by XRD, SEM, TEM, XPS, FTIR and N2 adsorption–desorption techniques and was used for persulfate (PDS) activation for the first time. The result showed that AgFeO2 as a PDS activator exhibited superior degradation efficiency of Rhodamine B (RhB) as compared to bare Ag2O, FeOOH and CuFeO2. Moreover, the AgFeO2 catalyst also demonstrated high degradation efficiency for 4-nitrophenol and Methyl Orange in the presence of PDS. The catalytic performance of AgFeO2 was further evaluated in terms of various parameters, including solution pH, PDS concentration and catalyst dosage. The degradation pathway was proposed based on Liquid Chromatography Mass Spectrometer (LC-MS) result and the degradation mechanism was elucidated through radical scavenger experiments. These findings will extend the scope of novel catalysts for PDS activation and promote the use of AgFeO2 in more practical applications.