bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Effect of ballistic impacts on batteries and the potential for injury
Authors: Rabbitt Alex , Horsfall I , Carr D J 
Published: February 2019

IntroductionOn military operations, ballistic impact damage is possible to lithium ion (Li-ion) batteries worn on the body by military personnel and the potential for exothermic reactions may result in injury. This paper investigated the effect of impact on batteries that might be worn in front or behind body armour.MethodsLi-ion batteries were subjected to ballistic impact both without and in combination with body armour using 7.62×39 mm ammunition (mean velocity=769 m/s) at charge levels up to 40%. The effect of penetrating impacts on charged batteries was also investigated using an outdoor range.ResultsThe backface signature due to ballistic impact was reduced by including a battery pack between fabric body armour and an armour plate, however the batteries were crushed and mechanically disrupted. Ballistic impacts on batteries mounted in front of an armour plate resulted in perforation of the batteries. Increases in temperature, fire and toxic gas emission were noted when batteries were penetrated by an impact.ConclusionsBatteries provided limited ballistic protection disproving the hypothesis that batteries could replace or enhance existing body armour solutions. Ballistic impact of charged batteries could lead to injury due to heat/flame and toxic discharge. It is recommended that batteries need to be carried in a position from which they can be rapidly removed from contact with the body.
Long-term transportation noise exposure and incidence of ischaemic heart disease and stroke: a cohort study
Authors: Pyko Andrei , Andersson Niklas , Eriksson Charlotta , de Faire Ulf , Lind Tomas , Mitkovskaya Natalya , Ögren Mikael , Östenson Claes-Göran , Pedersen Nancy L , Rizzuto Debora , Wallas Alva Käte , Pershagen Göran 
Published: February 2019

BackgroundThere is limited evidence from longitudinal studies on transportation noise from different sources and development of ischaemic heart disease (IHD) and stroke.ObjectivesThis cohort study assessed associations between exposure to noise from road traffic, railway or aircraft and incidence of IHD and stroke.MethodsIn a cohort of 20 012 individuals from Stockholm County, we estimated long-term residential exposure to road traffic, railway and aircraft noise. National Patient and Cause-of-Death Registers were used to identify IHD and stroke events. Information on risk factors was obtained from questionnaires and registers. Adjusted HR for cardiovascular outcomes related to source-specific noise exposure were computed using Cox proportional hazards regression.ResultsNo clear or consistent associations were observed between transportation noise and incidence of IHD or stroke. However, noise exposure from road traffic and aircraft was related to IHD incidence in women, with HR of 1.11 (95% CI 1.00 to 1.22) and 1.25 (95% CI 1.09 to 1.44) per 10 dB Lden, respectively. For both sexes taken together, we observed a particularly high risk of IHD in those exposed to all three transportation noise sources at≥45 dB Lden, with a HR of 1.57 (95% CI 1.06 to 2.32), and a similar tendency for stroke (HR 1.42; 95% CI 0.87 to 2.32).ConclusionNo overall associations were observed between transportation noise exposure and incidence of IHD or stroke. However, there appeared to be an increased risk of IHD in women exposed to road traffic or aircraft noise as well as in those exposed to multiple sources of transportation noise.
Visualization of pleural fissures in infants on computed tomography
Authors: Phelps Andrew , Tan Cynthia , Ahuja Saveen , Kolnick Dean , Courtier Jesse , MacKenzie John D 
Published: February 2019

PurposeFor infants with prenatally detected lung lesions, a chest CT is performed prior to surgery. The chest CT is performed as close to the surgery date as possible, because it is presumed that the visualization of lung fissures would be poor in the immediate neonatal setting. However, this presumption has never been formally studied. The purpose of this study is to assess differences in lung fissure visualization on chest CT in different infant age groups.MethodsThis was a retrospective study of clinically indicated chest CT approved by the institutional review board performed in infants of different ages. The visibility of pleural fissures was subjectively assessed by three pediatric radiologists who were blinded to age group.ResultsIn the 0–2 months age group, 80% of all fissure segments were visible versus 92% in the 5–6 months group (p=0.04) and 95% in the 7–9 months group (p=0.01).ConclusionsThe ability to visualize pleural fissures on CT increases with infant age. This observation should be taken into consideration when choosing the optimal timing of preoperative CT for asymptomatic congenital lung lesions.
Hierarchical Matrix Operations on GPUs
Authors: Boukaram Wajih , Turkiyyah George , Keyes David 
Published: February 2019

Hierarchical matrices are space- and time-efficient representations of dense matrices that exploit the low-rank structure of matrix blocks at different levels of granularity. The hierarchically low-rank block partitioning produces representations that can be stored and operated on in near-linear complexity instead of the usual polynomial complexity of dense matrices.

In this article, we present high-performance implementations of matrix vector multiplication and compression operations for the
H
2
variant of hierarchical matrices on GPUs. The
H
2
variant exploits, in addition to the hierarchical block partitioning, hierarchical bases for the block representations and results in a scheme that requires only
O
(
n
) storage and
O
(
n
) complexity for the mat-vec and compression kernels. These two operations are at the core of algebraic operations for hierarchical matrices, the mat-vec being a ubiquitous operation in numerical algorithms while compression/recompression represents a key building block for other algebraic operations, which require periodic recompression during execution.

The difficulties in developing efficient GPU algorithms come primarily from the irregular tree data structures that underlie the hierarchical representations, and the key to performance is to recast the computations on flattened trees in ways that allow batched linear algebra operations to be performed. This requires marshaling the irregularly laid out data in a way that allows them to be used by the batched routines. Marshaling operations only involve pointer arithmetic with no data movement and as a result have minimal overhead.
Our numerical results on covariance matrices from 2D and 3D problems from spatial statistics show the high efficiency our routines achieve over 550GB/s for the bandwidth-limited matrix-vector operation and over 850GFLOPS/s in sustained performance for the compression operation on the P100 Pascal GPU.
Responsiveness to PD-1 Blockade in End-Stage Colon Cancer with Gene Locus 9p24.1 Copy-Number Gain
Authors: Ree Anne Hansen , Nygaard Vigdis , Russnes Hege G. , Heinrich Daniel , Nygaard Vegard , Johansen Christin , Bergheim Inger Riise , Hovig Eivind , Beiske Klaus , Negård Anne , Børresen-Dale Anne-Lise , Flatmark Kjersti , Mælandsmo Gunhild M. 
Published: February 2019

Abstract
Most patients whose large bowel cancer has spread to other organs do not respond to immune therapy. We detected a rare gene mutation, termed 9p24.1 copy-number gain (CNG), in an otherwise incurable colorectal cancer that provoked an immune therapy response. We identified this gene mutation by gene-panel sequencing of DNA from a liver metastasis biopsy from a patient who had disease refractory to standard therapies. Following immune checkpoint blockade (ICB) with pembrolizumab (anti–PD-1), the patient experienced conversion of the tumor phenotype from one with epithelial features to that of an inflamed microenvironment, detected by high-resolution RNA sequencing. Circulating tumor DNA disappeared over the first weeks of therapy. As assessed by standard radiographic measurement, the patient had a partial response that was durable. This patient's response may support the use of histology-agnostic ICB in solid tumors that carry the rare 9p24.1 CNG.
Accelerated Weight Gain Subsequent to Postnatal Slow Weight Gain and Overweight Risk in Early Childhood: A Nested Case-Control Study
Authors: Akaboshi Izumi 
Published: February 2019

<b><i>Background:</i></b> The effects of accelerated weight gain (AWG) immediately after a postnatal slow weight gain (PSWG) on the risk of later overweight is unknown. The objective of this study was to assess the relationship between AWG after PSWG and overweight risk at 3 years of age. <b><i>Methods:</i></b> This nested case-control study included 255 subjects born at term, appropriate for gestational age, and with normal birth weight but PSWG (&#x3c; 0.67 SD score) until 3–4 months of age. Overweight cases at 3 years of age were defined according to International Obesity Task Force criteria. The association between AWG after PSWG and overweight status at age 3 years was analyzed by the Fisher’s exact, Breslow-Day, and Mantel-Haenszel tests. <b><i>Results:</i></b> Seven of the subjects that showed AWG after PSWG were deemed overweight at age 3. An AWG from 6–9 to 17–20 months after PSWG during the first 3–4 months of life had the most significant association with overweight status at 3 years of age (adjusted OR 10.06, 95% CI 1.74–58.01, <i>p</i> value: 0.0022). <b><i>Conclusions:</i></b> AWG immediately after PSWG, even occurring at only 1 of 3 interval from 3–4 to 6–9 months, from 6–9 to 17–20 months, and 17–20 months to 3 years after PSWG, leads to an overweight status at 3 years of age. Monitoring weight growth after PSWG may help identify AWG and later overweight risk.
The role of school-based health education in adolescent spiritual moral, social and cultural development
Authors: Chester Kayleigh L , Klemera Ellen , Magnusson Josefine , Spencer Neil H , Brooks Fiona M 
Published: February 2019

Background: The broad nature of young people’s development is internationally acknowledged, which includes physical, mental, spiritual, moral and social elements. In England, schools have a legal obligation to promote spiritual, moral, social and cultural (SMSC) development. It has been suggested that personal, social, health and economic (PSHE) education, a broad form of school-based health education, may contribute to building SMSC development in young people. Objective: To examine the association between PSHE education in schools and outcomes of an SMSC nature. Method: The study drew on data collected as part of the 2014 World Health Organization Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) study for England. Data were collected from young people aged 11, 13 and 15 years, using anonymous self-completed surveys administered during school lessons. The analysis drew on responses from 3,731 young people. Multilevel modelling was used to examine the association between PSHE education and variables of an SMSC nature, while controlling for demographic variables. Results: Overall, the majority of young people who reported receiving PSHE education were positive about the benefits of this school-based health education. Positive perceptions of PSHE education were significantly associated with increased spirituality among young people, reduced engagement in both fighting and bullying perpetration and increased general self-efficacy. Conclusion: This paper highlights the important role that health education in a school context may have for young people’s broader development, and contributes to the national evidence base advocating for compulsory PSHE education in schools.
The effectiveness of somatosensory retraining for improving sensory function in the arm following stroke: a systematic review
Authors: Turville Megan L , Cahill Liana S , Matyas Thomas A , Blennerhassett Jannette M , Carey Leeanne M 
Published: February 2019

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate if somatosensory retraining programmes assist people to improve somatosensory discrimination skills and arm functioning after stroke. Data sources: Nine databases were systematically searched: Medline, Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature, PsychInfo, Embase, Amed, Web of Science, Physiotherapy Evidence Database, OT seeker, and Cochrane Library. Review methods: Studies were included for review if they involved (1) adult participants who had somatosensory impairment in the arm after stroke, (2) a programme targeted at retraining somatosensation, (3) a primary measure of somatosensory discrimination skills in the arm, and (4) an intervention study design (e.g. randomized or non-randomized control designs). Results: A total of 6779 articles were screened. Five group trials and five single case experimental designs were included ( N = 199 stroke survivors). Six studies focused exclusively on retraining somatosensation and four studies focused on somatosensation and motor retraining. Standardized somatosensory measures were typically used for tactile, proprioception, and haptic object recognition modalities. Sensory intervention effect sizes ranged from 0.3 to 2.2, with an average effect size of 0.85 across somatosensory modalities. A majority of effect sizes for proprioception and tactile somatosensory domains were greater than 0.5, and all but one of the intervention effect sizes were larger than the control effect sizes, at least as point estimates. Six studies measured motor and/or functional arm outcomes ( n = 89 participants), with narrative analysis suggesting a trend towards improvement in arm use after somatosensory retraining. Conclusion: Somatosensory retraining may assist people to regain somatosensory discrimination skills in the arm after stroke.
Social cognition and emotion regulation: a multifaceted treatment (T-ScEmo) for patients with traumatic brain injury
Authors: Westerhof-Evers Herma J , Visser-Keizer Annemarie C , Fasotti Luciano , Spikman Jacoba M 
Published: February 2019

Background: Many patients with moderate to severe traumatic brain injury have deficits in social cognition. Social cognition refers to the ability to perceive, interpret, and act upon social information. Few studies have investigated the effectiveness of treatment for impairments of social cognition in patients with traumatic brain injury. Moreover, these studies have targeted only a single aspect of the problem. They all reported improvements, but evidence for transfer of learned skills to daily life was scarce. We evaluated a multifaceted treatment protocol for poor social cognition and emotion regulation impairments (called T-ScEmo) in patients with traumatic brain injury and found evidence for transfer to participation and quality of life. Purpose: In the current paper, we describe the theoretical underpinning, the design, and the content of our treatment of social cognition and emotion regulation (T-ScEmo). Theory into practice: The multifaceted treatment that we describe is aimed at improving social cognition, regulation of social behavior and participation in everyday life. Some of the methods taught were already evidence-based and derived from existing studies. They were combined, modified, or extended with newly developed material. Protocol design: T-ScEmo consists of 20 one-hour individual sessions and incorporates three modules: (1) emotion perception, (2) perspective taking and theory of mind, and (3) regulation of social behavior. It includes goal-setting, psycho-education, function training, compensatory strategy training, self-monitoring, role-play with participation of a significant other, and homework assignments. Recommendations: It is strongly recommended to offer all three modules, as they build upon each other. However, therapists can vary the time spent per module, in line with the patients’ individual needs and goals. In future, development of e-learning modules and virtual reality sessions might shorten the treatment.
Distinguishing metastases from benign adrenal masses: what can CT texture analysis do?
Authors: Shi Bing , Zhang Gu-Mu-Yang , Xu Min , Jin Zheng-Yu , Sun Hao 
Published: February 2019

Background Computed tomography texture analysis (CTTA) has gained an increasing role in oncology and has successfully demonstrated to reflect biological associations with glucose metabolism, hypoxia, angiogenesis, and even genetic variation. Purpose To determine whether quantitative CTTA can be used to differentiate metastases from benign adrenal masses on single energy CT images. Material and Methods A total of 225 patients with 265 histologically confirmed adrenal masses (101 metastases, 98 pheochromocytomas, and 66 lipid-poor adenomas) were included in this retrospective study. CTTA was performed and six texture parameters (including mean, SD of pixel distribution histogram, mean of positive pixels, entropy, kurtosis, skewness) across six spatial scaling factor (SSF) were recorded on both unenhanced and contrast-enhanced CT images. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis was performed and the area under the ROC curve (AUC) was calculated using the significant texture parameters for the objective. Diagnostic performance was evaluated using the cut-off values of texture parameters by ROC analysis. The optimal discriminative texture parameters were used to produce support vector machine (SVM) classifiers. Diagnostic accuracy and 10-fold cross-validation was performed. Results Compared to benign adrenal masses, metastases had significantly lower mean gray-level intensity, SD, entropy, mean of positive pixels and kurtosis on unenhanced images ( P < 0.0083). On contrast-enhanced CT images, except for skewness and kurtosis, the other four texture texture-quantifiers were lower in the metastatic compared to the other group ( P < 0.0083). A model incorporating mean, SD, entropy and mean value of positive pixels produced an AUC of 0.85 ± 0.03 with an SVM accuracy of 77% to identify metastatic from benign adrenal masses. Conclusion Differentiation of metastatic and benign adrenal masses can be achieved accurately with CTTA on contrast-enhanced CT images.
Effect of alteplase on platelet function and receptor expression
Authors: Lu Jun , Hu Peng , Wei Guangyu , Luo Qi , Qiao Jianlin , Geng Deqin 
Published: February 2019

Objective To investigate the role of alteplase, a widely-used thrombolytic drug, in platelet function. Methods Human platelets were incubated with different concentrations of alteplase followed by analysis of platelet aggregation in response to adenosine diphosphate (ADP), collagen, ristocetin, arachidonic acid or epinephrine using light transmittance aggregometry. Platelet activation and surface levels of platelet receptors GPIbα, GPVI and αIIbβ3 were analysed using flow cytometry. The effect of alteplase on clot retraction was also examined. Results This study demonstrated that alteplase significantly inhibited platelet aggregation in response to ADP, collagen and epinephrine in a dose-dependent manner, but it did not affect ristocetin- or arachidonic acid-induced platelet aggregation. Alteplase did not affect platelet activation as demonstrated by no differences in P-selectin levels and PAC-1 binding being observed in collagen-stimulated platelets after alteplase treatment compared with vehicle. There were no changes in the surface levels of the platelet receptors GPIbα, GPVI and αIIbβ3 in alteplase-treated platelets. Alteplase treatment reduced thrombin-mediated clot retraction. Conclusions Alteplase inhibits platelet aggregation and clot retraction without affecting platelet activation and surface receptor levels.
Long-term Results After Repair of Isolated Meniscal Tears Among Patients Aged 18 Years and Younger: An 18-Year Follow-up Study
Authors: Hagmeijer Michella H. , Kennedy Nicholas I. , Tagliero Adam J. , Levy Bruce A. , Stuart Michael J. , Saris Daniel B.F. , Dahm Diane L. , Krych Aaron J. 
Published: February 2019

Background: Meniscal repair is desirable over resection to prevent postmeniscectomy arthritis, especially among young and active patients. However, long-term data are currently lacking following isolated meniscal repair, particularly in the pediatric population. Purpose/Hypothesis: To report long-term follow-up of isolated meniscal tears treated by meniscal repair in a pediatric and adolescent population and to compare those results with previous midterm follow-up data reported. The authors hypothesized that these patients would have satisfactory function and reoperation rates at long-term follow-up. Study Design: Case series; Level of evidence, 4. Methods: Forty-four patients aged ≤18 years undergoing repair of an isolated meniscal tear (without concomitant anterior cruciate ligament injury) between 1990 and 2005 were included. At the time of final follow-up, recurrent tear, reoperations, and International Knee Documentation Committee (IKDC) and Tegner scores were determined. With logistic regression, the overall failure among tear types was calculated. Wilcoxon rank sum analysis were performed to calculate the differences in clinical outcome for different time points, and Spearman coefficients were calculated for Tegner and IKDC with different variables. Results: At a mean follow-up of 17.6 years (range, 13.1-25.9 years), 32 patients with 33 isolated meniscal repairs (29 male, 3 female) with a mean age of 16.1 years (range, 9.9-18.7 years) at surgery were included in this study. At early follow-up, the overall failure rate was 14 of 33 (42%); complex tears (80%) and bucket-handle tears (47%) had higher overall failure rates when compared with simple tears (18.2%), although only complex tears had a significantly higher failure rate. However, no further failures occurred since midterm follow-up with any tear type. At final follow-up, the mean IKDC score was 92.3, which was significantly increased when compared with preoperative (65.3, P < .0001) and midterm (90.2, P = .01) scores. The mean Tegner score (6.5) was significantly lower than both preoperative (8.3, P < .0001) and midterm (8.4, P < .0001) scores. There was no difference in Tegner or IKDC score for patients with successful versus failed repair. Conclusion: In conclusion, while there was a high early failure rate, this study demonstrated overall good to excellent long-term clinical outcomes after isolated meniscal repair in an adolescent population, even for those requiring reoperation. Early failure and reoperation rates were variable, depending on tear type, with complex multiplanar tears having more failures at short-term follow-up. However, at long-term follow-up, IKDC and Tegner scores were not significantly different for those with complex tears as compared with other tear types.