bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Impact of EBUS-TBNA on PET-CT Imaging of Mediastinal Nodes
Authors: Sivapalan Pradeesh , Naur Therese Maria Henriette , Colella Sara , Richter Larsen Klaus , Konge Lars , Frost Clementsen Paul 
Published: July 2017

Background:
Positron emission tomography-computed tomography (PET-CT) with fluorine-18-fluorodeoxyglucose has a high sensitivity in detecting malignancy in patients suspected of lung cancer but a low specificity as inflammatory reactions can also result in metabolic activity. Furthermore, it is assumed that invasive pulmonary procedures with biopsies from benign lesions can induce metabolic activity resulting in false-positive results. However, this hypothesis lacks solid evidence. We aimed to evaluate how often endobronchial ultrasound (EBUS) with biopsies from benign lesions are followed by false-positive results.

Methods:
Patients with suspected or proven lung cancer admitted for invasive pulmonary procedures in a 6-year period were retrospectively reviewed. Patients who had at least 1 nonmalignant mediastinal lymph node (MLN) biopsied 1 to 13 days before PET-CT were included. The number of false-positive and true-negative results shortly after EBUS biopsy of nonmalignant MLN was reviewed.

Results:
Of 1025 patients, 216 patients were referred for PET-CT 1 to 13 days after biopsy. Of these, 107 patients had at least 1 MLN biopsied. From a total of 198 biopsied MLNs, we found 62% without metabolic activity (benign) and 38% with metabolic activity. In 5% the metabolic activity could be explained by an infection or inflammatory disorder, in 15% no cytologic follow-up was available, in 1% malignancy was confirmed at follow-up, and in 3% the patients were not possible to follow-up. In the remaining 14%, no other reasonable explanation for the metabolic activity was found other than the biopsy.

Conclusions:
EBUS with biopsy do not necessarily result in PET activity. Therefore, PET-positive results should always be taken seriously, even when PET is performed shortly after biopsies.
Pretreatment Neutrophil-to-Lymphocyte Ratio and Lymphocyte Recovery: Independent Prognostic Factors for Survival in Pediatric Sarcomas
Authors: Vasquez Liliana , León Esmeralda , Beltran Brady , Maza Ivan , Oscanoa Monica , Geronimo Jenny 
Published: July 2017

Background:
Pretreatment neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and absolute lymphocyte count (ALC) recovery have been shown to be associated with prognosis in several types of cancer in adults. However, evidence in pediatric cancer is scarce. The aim of our study was to evaluate whether pretreatment NLR and lymphocyte recovery are prognostic factors in pediatric sarcomas.

Materials and Methods:
Study participants were identified from a retrospective cohort of 100 children with osteosarcoma (n=55), rhabdomyosarcoma (n=22), and Ewing sarcoma (n=23). Data for the hematological variables were obtained from medical records and analyzed with other known prognostic factors in univariate and multivariate analyses.

Results:
In multivariate analysis, NLR>2 was an independent prognostic factor for OS in patients with osteosarcoma (hazard ratio [HR], 2.27, 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.07-5.30; P=0.046) along with metastatic disease and poor histologic response; as well as in patients with rhabdomyosarcoma (HR, 4.76, 95% CI, 1.01-22.24; P=0.0237) along with metastatic disease and risk group. ALC recovery correlated for inferior OS in osteosarcoma (HR, 3.34, 95% CI, 1.37-8.12; P=0.008) and rhabdomyosarcoma (HR, 3.89; 95% CI, 1.01-14.89; P=0.0338).

Conclusions:
Our study confirms that NLR and ALC recovery are independent prognostic factors for pediatric sarcomas, implying an important role of immune system in survival. Clinical utility of these prognostic biomarkers should be validated in larger pediatric studies.
Utility of Lumbar Puncture in Children Presenting With Status Epilepticus
Authors: Michelson Kenneth A. , Lyons Todd W. , Johnson Kara B. , Nigrovic Lise E. , Harper Marvin B. , Kimia Amir A. 
Published: July 2017

Objectives
Because meningitis may trigger seizures, we sought to determine its frequency in children with first-time status epilepticus (SE).

Methods
We performed a retrospective cross-sectional study of children aged 1 month to 21 years who presented to a single pediatric emergency department between 1995 and 2012 with SE and who had a lumbar puncture (LP) performed as part of the diagnostic evaluation. We defined bacterial meningitis as a cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) culture positive for a bacterial pathogen or CSF pleocytosis (CSF white blood cells ≥10 cells/mm3) with a blood culture positive for a bacterial pathogen. We defined viral meningitis or encephalitis using a positive enterovirus or herpes simplex virus polymerase chain reaction test.

Results
Among 126 children with SE who had an LP performed, 8 (6%) had CSF pleocytosis. Of these, 5 had received antibiotics before performance of a diagnostic LP. One child in the cohort was proven to have bacterial meningitis (0.8%; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0%–6%). Two other children had enteroviral meningitis (2/13 tested, 15%; 95% CI, 3%–51%), and 1 had a herpes simplex virus infection (1/47, 2%; 95% CI, 0%–15%).

Conclusions
Bacterial meningitis is an uncommon cause of SE.
Computerized Virtual Reality Simulation in Preclinical Dentistry: Can a Computerized Simulator Replace the Conventional Phantom Heads and Human Instruction?
Authors: Plessas Anastasios 
Published: July 2017

Summary Statement
In preclinical dental education, the acquisition of clinical, technical skills, and the transfer of these skills to the clinic are paramount. Phantom heads provide an efficient way to teach preclinical students dental procedures safely while increasing their dexterity skills considerably. Modern computerized phantom head training units incorporate features of virtual reality technology and the ability to offer concurrent augmented feedback. The aims of this review were to examine and evaluate the dental literature for evidence supporting their use and to discuss the role of augmented feedback versus the facilitator's instruction. Adjunctive training in these units seems to enhance student's learning and skill acquisition and reduce the required faculty supervision time. However, the virtual augmented feedback cannot be used as the sole method of feedback, and the facilitator's input is still critical. Well-powered longitudinal randomized trials exploring the impact of these units on student's clinical performance and issues of cost-effectiveness are warranted.
Assessment of Conflicts of Interest in Robotic Surgical Studies
Authors: Patel Sunil V. , Yu David , Elsolh Basheer , Goldacre Ben M. , Nash Garrett M. 
Published: July 2017

Background:
Accurate conflict of interest (COI) statements are important, as a known COI may invalidate study results due to the potential risk of bias.

Objective:
To determine the accuracy of self-declared COI statements in robotic studies and identify risk factors for undeclared payments.

Methods:
Robotic surgery studies were identified through EMBASE and MEDLINE and included if published in 2015 and had at least one American author. Undeclared COI were determined by comparing the author's declared COI with industry reported payments found in the “Open Payments” database for 2013 and 2014. Undeclared payments and discrepancies in the COI statement were determined. Risk factors were assessed for an association with undeclared payments at the author and study level.

Results:
A total of 458 studies (2253 authors) were included. Approximately, 240 (52%) studies had 1 or more author receive undeclared payments and included 183 where “no COI” was explicitly declared, and 57 with no declaration statement present. Moreover, 21% of studies and 18% of authors with a COI declared it so in a COI statement. Studies that had undeclared payments from Intuitive were more likely to recommend robotic surgery compared with those that declared funding (odds ratio 4.29, 95% confidence interval 2.55–7.21).

Conclusions:
We found that it was common for payments from Intuitive to be undeclared in robotic surgery articles. Mechanisms for accountability in COI reporting need to be put into place by journals to achieve appropriate transparency to those reading the journal article.
Valproic acid decreases brain lesion size and improves neurologic recovery in swine subjected to traumatic brain injury, hemorrhagic shock, and polytrauma
Authors: Nikolian Vahagn C. , Georgoff Patrick E. , Pai Manjunath P. , Dennahy Isabel S. , Chtraklin Kiril , Eidy Hassan , Ghandour Mohamed H. , Han Yanyan , Srinivasan Ashok , Li Yongqing , Alam Hasan B. 
Published: July 2017

BACKGROUND
We have previously shown that treatment with valproic acid (VPA) decreases brain lesion size in swine models of traumatic brain injury (TBI) and controlled hemorrhage. To translate this treatment into clinical practice, validation of drug efficacy and evaluation of pharmacologic properties in clinically realistic models of injury are necessary. In this study, we evaluate neurologic outcomes and perform pharmacokinetic analysis of a single dose of VPA in swine subjected to TBI, hemorrhagic shock, and visceral hemorrhage.

METHODS
Yorkshire swine (n = 5/cohort) were subjected to TBI, hemorrhagic shock, and polytrauma (liver and spleen injury, rib fracture, and rectus abdominis crush). Animals remained in hypovolemic shock for 2 hours before resuscitation with isotonic sodium chloride solution (ISCS; volume = 3× hemorrhage) or ISCS + VPA (150 mg/kg). Neurologic severity scores were assessed daily for 30 days, and brain lesion size was measured via magnetic resonance imaging on postinjury days (PID) 3 and 10. Serum samples were collected for pharmacokinetic analysis.

RESULTS
Shock severity and response to resuscitation were similar in both groups. Valproic acid–treated animals demonstrated significantly less neurologic impairment between PID 1 to 5 and smaller brain lesions on PID 3 (mean lesion size ± SEM, mm3: ISCS = 4,956 ± 1,511 versus ISCS + VPA = 828 ± 279; p = 0.047). No significant difference in lesion size was identified between groups at PID 10 and all animals recovered to baseline neurologic function during the 30-day observation period. Animals treated with VPA had faster neurocognitive recovery (days to initiation of testing, mean ± SD: ISCS = 6.2 ± 1.6 vs ISCS + VPA = 3.6 ± 1.5; p = 0.002; days to task mastery: ISCS = 7.0 ± 1.0 vs ISCS + VPA = 4.8 ± 0.5; p = 0.03). The mean ± SD maximum VPA concentrations, area under the curve, and half-life were 145 ± 38.2 mg/L, 616 ± 150 hour·mg/L, and 1.70 ± 0.12 hours.

CONCLUSIONS
In swine subjected to TBI, hemorrhagic shock, and polytrauma, VPA treatment is safe, decreases brain lesion size, and reduces neurologic injury compared to resuscitation with ISCS alone. These benefits are achieved at clinically translatable serum concentrations of VPA.

LEVEL OF EVIDENCE
Therapeutic (preclinical study).
Improving decision making in product flow-based tiling automation for custom mosaic design
Authors: Peganant Panitcha , Koomsap Pisut 
Published: July 2017

Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to present a new tile dispensing decision-making to improve a row formation of a product flow-based tiling automation that has been being developed to support tile placement for custom mosaic design.

Design/methodology/approach
A new tile dispensing decision-making combines maximum tile loading and simple cycle strategies to minimize time for forming rows of tiles. The maximum tile loading strategy is for minimizing the number of loading rounds, while the simple cycle strategy is for minimizing the movement during the row formation.

Findings
This proposed decision-making has been developed; implemented in LabVIEW software; linked with other LabVIEW-based programs to control the system; and tested. The results showed the tile dispensing with the proposed decision-making performed better than the previous one.

Research limitations/implications
The tiling automation is being developed and is currently on a prototyping stage.

Originality/value
Tile dispensing is critical for this row by row automated assembly, but the existing shortest distance strategy does not guarantee the best performance for a row formation. Therefore, the combination of the maximum tile loading and simple cycle strategies has been developed to improve the performance of the product flow-based tiling automation to better support assembly of custom mosaic design that requires individual tesserae to be assembled to particular positions to illustrate an image properly.
A study of indentation behaviour of sandwich panels supported rigidly
Authors: Zhou Gang , Zhang Bolun , Pasricha Aimee 
Published: July 2017

Purpose
The indentation behaviour of sandwich panels is significant to incipient damage and is known to be affected by a number of dominant parameters. However, it is challenging not only to demonstrate how those few dominant parameters influence the indentation behaviour but also to ascertain that such influence was coupled to the variation of the other dominant parameters. The paper aims to discuss these issues.

Design/methodology/approach
In this work, the authors adopted a controllable quasi-static testing to carry out a diagnostic interrogation on the nature of incipient damage in laminate-skinned sandwich panels using hemispherical indenter and used photographs taken from the cross-sections of all the cut-up tested specimens, which were stopped both just before and after the initial critical loads, respectively, to confirm the mechanism of the incipient damage. Sandwich panels with aluminium honeycomb core had carbon/epoxy skins of two different thicknesses and lay-ups and hemispherical nosed indenter had three different diameters.

Findings
The authors found that: the incipient damage mechanism in all the panels was combined delamination in the skin and core crushing without debonding; doubling the skin thickness had the significant enhancement on critical load and indentation and this enhancement became greater for the larger indenter diameters; the indenter diameter had the moderate effect on critical load in the thick panels from 8 to 14 mm but had the negligible effect on thin panels and no effect on the thick panels from 14 to 20 mm; varying the skin lay-up or support had little effect on the indentation behaviour.

Research limitations/implications
These findings were limited to the constant core density and core thickness. Varying the former significantly could alter the findings accordingly.

Practical implications
The results of this work should be tremendously useful to design and analysis in industrial applications of sandwich structures in aircraft, vehicles, marine vessels and transport carriages for situations involving localised loading and deformation.

Originality/value
The results of this research work is one of the very few that demonstrated a systematic understanding of the indentation behaviour characteristics of sandwich construction, which is vital to the establishment of indentation law for sandwich structures in future.
Understanding modern terror and insurgency through the lens of street gangs: ISIS as a case study
Authors: Valasik Matthew , Phillips Matthew 
Published: July 2017

Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to use nearly a century’s worth of gang research to inform us about modern terrorist groups, specifically the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS).

Design/methodology/approach
A case study approach is employed, comparing and contrasting the competing theoretical frameworks of gangs and terrorist organisations to understand group structure, demographics, patterns of behaviour (e.g. territoriality, strategic, and instrumental violence), goals, and membership patterns of ISIS.

Findings
The qualitative differences of ISIS make them more comparable to street gangs than other terrorist groups.

Practical implications
ISIS, while being qualitatively different from other terrorist groups, actually has many similarities with street gangs allowing for the adaptation of effective gang prevention, intervention, and suppression strategies. This paper highlights how the expansive literature on street gangs is able to inform practical interventions to directly target ISIS and deradicalise potential recruits. By introducing a gang-terror nexus on the crime-terror continuum, this paper provides a useful perspective on the decentralised but dynamic nature of modern era insurgencies. This paper urges similar case studies of terrorist organisations to determine the extent to which they conform to street gang characteristics.

Originality/value
Terrorist groups are often compared to street gangs, yet it has not been until the last few years that gang researchers (Curry, 2011; Decker and Pyrooz, 2011, 2015a, b) have begun to compare and contrast these two deviant group archetypes. The goal of this paper is to use nearly a hundred years of gang research to better equip scholars and practitioners with a broader understanding of terrorism and insurgency in the era of globalisation by presenting a case study of ISIS using a street gang perspective.
Preventing successful assassination attacks by terrorists: an environmental criminology approach
Authors: Mandala Marissa , Freilich Joshua D. 
Published: July 2017

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to use an environmental criminology and situational crime prevention (SCP) framework to study global assassinations carried out by terrorists. The authors set forth a series of hypotheses to explain successful and unsuccessful assassination incidents.Design/methodology/approachThe authors use assassination data from the Global Terrorism Database from 1970 to 2014 to estimate a series binary logistic regression models.FindingsResults indicate that various situational factors contribute to successful assassinations, such as target types, weapon types, total fatalities, and injuries.Practical implicationsThese findings suggest that environmental criminology and SCP are valuable in developing prevention measures that thwart and disrupt attempted assassinations by terrorists.Originality/valueCriminology has yet to apply environmental criminology and SCP to assassinations, a tactic often used by terrorists. This paper thus extends the existing assassination, terrorism, and criminology literature by applying this framework to assassinations performed by terrorists.
Comfort and shelter for all: a case of an entrepreneurial firm
Authors: Joshi Manoj , Dixit Shailja , Sinha Amit 
Published: July 2017

PurposeThe purpose of this case study is to explore enterprise creation and explore the entrepreneurship process, which necessitates entrepreneurial recognition and entrepreneurial orientation. The case also investigates how an entrepreneurial firm appreciates the importance of innovative practices for an organisational growth.Design/methodology/approachThe case is based on primary research, secondary information, followed by testing the case several times and plugging case gaps. To authenticate information, multiple sources have been used in a time frame of over one year.FindingsThis case clearly demonstrates ability by an entrepreneur towards opportunity recognition, pro-activeness, engaging innovative skills and a capacity to undertake risks.Research limitations/implicationsThe findings are based on observations of one company and research carried through secondary sources, which may limit the theory creation.Practical implicationsThe accomplishment of the firm is attributed in accepting opportunities and potentially utilising its strengths towards growth. The case reflects, how Ajay, the founder of a Start-up ‘Comfort and Shelter’, intrinsically motivated and with prior knowledge in the financial services sector, was able to translate opportunities effectively via his orientation skills. Besides this in his entrepreneurial journey, Ajay was able to scale the business by continuously orienting his start-up towards customer orientation.Social implicationsIt is imperative to understand social needs of individuals, hereby in this case need for affordable homes. An entrepreneur can be driven by social needs and create a profitable enterprise.Originality/valueThe case is original and reflects entrepreneurial journey of an individual as well as that of an enterprise.
Oil exports and non-oil exports
Authors: Karamelikli Huseyin , Akalin Guray , Arslan Unal 
Published: July 2017

Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine the dynamic relationship between oil exports, non-oil exports, imports and economic growth in the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), covering the period 1972-2013 by using panel data analysis.

Design/methodology/approach
The results from the dynamic panel data methods are as follows: there exists the cross-sectional dependence on each variable. According to the cross-sectionally augmented panel unit root tests, all variables are stationary at the first difference. Westerlund and Edgerton (2007) LM Bootstrap cointegration test shows that there is a long-term relationship between variables.

Findings
The results obtained by the Common Correlated Effects (CCE) estimator indicate that the increase in oil exports has a positive impact on the GDP of all countries, while the increase in oil exports has a negative impact on the non-oil exports of some countries.

Originality/value
In this study, the relationship between oil exports, economic growth, imports and non-oil exports of the 12 OPEC member countries is tested by considering the cross-sectional dependence between 1972 and 2013. In the study, the authors found a positive relationship as a result of researching the impact of oil exports on economic growth in the frame of CCE panel estimations results.
Assessing the effect of inflation uncertainty on inflation: further evidences for Latin America
Authors: Ferreira Diego , Palma Andreza Aparecida 
Published: July 2017

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to evaluate whether the effect of inflation uncertainty on inflation has changed over time in Latin America.Design/methodology/approachThe authors use a stochastic volatility in mean (SVM) model with time-varying parameters (TVP) as proposed by Chan (2017).FindingsConsidering inflation series for the last two decades, we report evidences of high uncertainty from 1996 to early 2000s. Moreover, despite being positive throughout the sample, the overall relationship between inflation uncertainty and inflation has changed over the years in Latin America, underscoring the importance of our time-varying specification.Practical/implicationThere are evidences of a greater volatile inflation behavior in the beginning of the sample period in comparison to the last few years. Overall, the considered Latin American economies seem to have endured relatively well the external adverse shocks from the 2008 global financial crisis.Originality/valueThe use of an SVM model with TVP in order to assess the effect of inflation uncertainty on inflation is new to the Latin America literature.