bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
The CelluTome epidermal graft‐harvesting system: a patient‐reported outcome measure and cost evaluation study
Authors: Smith Oliver J , Edmondson Sarah‐Jayne , Bystrzonowski Nicki , Hachach‐Haram Nadine , Kanapathy Muholan , Richards Toby , Mosahebi Ash 
Published: August 2016

AbstractConventional split skin grafts (SSG) require anaesthesia, specialist equipment and can have high donor site (DS) morbidity. The CelluTome epidermal graft‐harvesting device is a novel alternative, providing pain‐free epidermal skin grafts (ESG) in the outpatient setting, with projected minimal DS trauma and improved patient satisfaction. This study aimed to compare ESG with SSG by evaluating patient‐related outcome measures (PROMs) and the cost implications of both.Twenty patients answered a graft satisfaction questionnaire that evaluated: donor/graft site noticeability, aesthetic concerns, adverse problems and patient satisfaction. Cost/patient was calculated based on total operative expenses and five clinic follow‐ups.In 100% of the ESG cases, there were no DS noticeability or adverse problems compared to 25% in the SSG group. Complete satisfaction with DS appearance was observed in 100% of the ESG cases (50% SSG). Noticeability, adverse problems and overall satisfaction were significantly better in ESG cases (P < 0.05). Graft site parameters were comparable with similar healing outcomes.The cost per patient for ESG was £431 and £1489 for SSG, with an annual saving of £126 960 based on 10 grafts/month.For the right patient, CelluTome provides comparable wound healing, with reduced DS morbidity and higher patient satisfaction.
The impact of lower limb chronic oedema on patients' quality of life
Authors: Greene Adelene , Meskell Pauline 
Published: August 2016

AbstractThis study aimed to explore patients' perceptions regarding the impact that lower limb chronic oedema has on their quality of life (QoL). A quantitative descriptive design was used to collect data from patients with lower limb chronic oedema. A condition‐specific validated questionnaire was distributed to a purposive sample (n = 122) through manual lymphatic drainage/vascular/health clinics in Ireland. Results indicated that patients with lower limb chronic oedema experience a wide range of physical problems such as limb heaviness (74%, n = 66), weakness (44%, n = 40) and pain (38%, n = 34). Additionally, difficulties with walking (53%, n = 48), standing (51%, n = 46) and bending (45%, n = 40) were reported. Concerns regarding poor body image were strongly evident (76%, n = 68). Difficulties finding clothing/footwear to fit oedematous limb(s) were reported (59%, n = 53), in addition to finding clothes that participants would like to wear (64%, n = 58). Emotional symptoms of irritability (42%, n = 38), anxiety (41%, n = 37) and tension (40%, n = 36) were reported. Over half of the participants (55%, n = 49) stated that their chronic swelling affected their social functioning and their ability to engage in leisure activities. This study has identified that lower limb chronic oedema has significant psychological, social and physical implications for persons' QoL.
The SICAM‐trial: evaluating the effect of spouses' involvement through case management in older patients' fast‐track programmes during and after total hip replacement
Authors: Berthelsen Connie Bøttcher , Kristensson Jimmie 
Published: August 2016

AbstractAimThe aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of spouses' involvement in older patients' care trajectories, using case management as intervention in total hip replacement through fast‐track programmes.BackgroundPatients need their spouses to be involved in their fast‐track programmes and this involvement is often associated with improvements in patient outcomes. However, the effect of spouses' involvement in older patients' fast‐track programmes has not yet been investigated.DesignA two‐group quasi‐experimental design with pre‐test and repeated post‐test measures was conducted in an orthopaedic ward of a Danish Regional Hospital from February 2014–June 2015. Spouse–patient dyads were initially recruited for the control group (n = 14), receiving usual care; dyads for the intervention group (n = 15) were recruited afterwards, receiving case management intervention elements before, during and after admission.MethodsFace‐to‐face interviews on questionnaires were conducted with spouses and patients at baseline, 2 weeks and 3 months after discharge, measuring spouses' caregiver satisfaction, difficulties and level of anxiety and patients' functional and nutritional status, pain and level of depression.ResultsThe results showed that there were no differences between the groups with regard to any of the outcome measures. However, statistically significant improvements were found in the patient groups on functional status, pain and depression and in the groups of spouses on caregiver satisfaction.ConclusionThe case management intervention seemed to have an effect in patient and spousal groups; however, this improvement could also have been caused by the effect of fast‐track treatment.
Development and validation of a prognostic nomogram for acute‐on‐chronic hepatitis B liver failure
Authors: Shi Ke‐Qing , Cai Yi‐Jing , Lin Zhuo , Dong Jin‐Zhong , Wu Jian‐Min , Wang Xiao‐Dong , Song Mei , Wang Yu‐Qun , Chen Yong‐Ping 
Published: August 2016

AbstractBackground and AimDetermining individual risk of short‐term mortality in patients with acute‐on‐chronic hepatitis B liver failure (ACHBLF) is a difficult task. We aimed to develop and externally validate a prognostic nomogram for ACHBLF patients.MethodsThe nomogram was built to estimate the probability of 30‐day, 60‐day, 90‐day, and 60‐month survival based on an internal cohort of 246 patients with ACHBLF. The predictive accuracy and discriminative ability of nomogram were determined by a concordance index (C‐index), calibration curve, and time‐dependent receiver operating characteristics (tdROC), comparing with model for end‐stage liver disease (MELD) score. The results were validated using bootstrap resampling and an external cohort of 138 patients. Furthermore, we plotted decision curves to evaluate the clinical usefulness of nomogram.ResultsIndependent factors derived from multivariable Cox analysis of training cohort to predict mortality were age, total bilirubin, serum sodium, and prothrombin activity, which were all assembled into nomogram. The calibration curves for probability of survival showed optimal agreement between nomogram prediction and actual observation. The C‐index of nomogram was higher than that of MELD score for predicting survival (30‐day, 0.809 vs 0.717, P < 0.001; 60‐day, 0.792 vs 0.685, P < 0.001; 90‐day, 0.779 vs 0.678, P < 0.001; 6‐month, 0.781 vs 0.677, P < 0.001). Additionally, tdROC and decision curves also showed that nomogram was superior to MELD score. The results were confirmed in validation cohort.ConclusionsThe prognostic nomogram provided an individualized risk estimate of short‐term survival in patients with ACHBLF, offering to clinicians to improve their abilities to assess patient prognosis.
Activation of σ1 and σ2 receptors by afobazole increases glial cell survival and prevents glial cell activation and nitrosative stress after ischemic stroke
Authors: Katnik Christopher , Garcia Angela , Behensky Adam A. , Yasny Ilya E. , Shuster Alex M. , Seredenin Sergei B. , Petrov Andrey V. , Cuevas Javier 
Published: August 2016

AbstractActivation of sigma receptors at delayed time points has been shown to decrease injury following ischemic stroke. The mixed σ1/σ2 receptor agonist, 5‐ethoxy‐2‐[2‐(morpholino)‐ethylthio]benzimidazole (afobazole), provides superior long‐term outcomes compared to other σ ligands in the rat middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) stroke model. Experiments using the MCAO model were carried out to determine the molecular mechanism involved in the beneficial effects of afobazole. Administration of afobazole (3 mg/kg) at delayed time points post‐stroke significantly increased the number of microglia and astrocytes detected in the ipsilateral hemisphere at 96 h post‐surgery. Morphological analysis of the microglia indicated that a greater number of these cells were found in the ramified resting state in MCAO animals treated with afobazole relative to MCAO vehicle controls. Similarly, fewer reactive astrocytes were detected in the injured hemisphere of afobazole‐treated animals. Both the enhanced survival and reduced activation of glial cells were abolished by co‐application of either a σ1 (BD‐1063) or a σ2 (SM‐21) receptor antagonist with afobazole. To gain further insight into the mechanisms by which afobazole lessens stroke injury, we probed the brain sections for markers of neuroinflammation (tumor necrosis factor α) and nitrosative stress (S‐nitrosocysteine). Data show that afobazole significantly reduces S‐nitrosocysteine levels, but does not alter tumor necrosis factor α expression 96 h after an ischemic stroke. Taken together our data indicate that afobazole acting via both σ1 and σ2 receptors decreases stroke injury by enhancing glial cell survival, blocking ischemia‐induced glial cell activation, and decreasing nitrosative stress.
image
Ethnobotanical Uses and Antimicrobial Properties of Plants in Small‐Scale Tropical Fish Farms: The Case of Indonesian Fish Farmers in Java (Indonesia)
Authors: Caruso Domenico , Lusiastuti Angela Maria , Taukhid Taukhid , Avarre Jean‐Christophe , Yuhana Munti , Sarter Samira 
Published: August 2016

AbstractAmong the most common plants used by fish farmers in Java, 18 were selected for deeper ethnobotanical and laboratory investigation into their antimicrobial activity. These plants are mainly used against fish diseases, but with no precise therapeutic indication, leading to low specificity of use. Leaves, which were the most commonly used part of plants, were generally placed directly in water or less frequently added to the feed. Disk diffusion tests showed that 15 plants of the 18 (83%) displayed varying degrees of antibacterial activity and that Streptococcus agalactiae was more sensitive than Aeromonas hydrophila. Crude ethanolic extracts (EE) were more active than water macerates (WM), and minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) ranged from 12.5 to 25 mg/mL. Only the EE of Piper betle had an inhibitory effect against A. hydrophila. No MIC was found for any of the WM studied here. Furthermore, both the EE and, to a lesser extent, the WM of active plants were able to reduce bacterial growth by more than 99%, even at doses below their MICs. These results suggest that these plant extracts have a potential for eco‐friendly prevention of bacterial fish diseases.
‘Marriage had bastilled me for life’: Propertied Women as Property in the Legal Fictions of Richardson, Wollstonecraft and Collins
Authors: Pullan Fern 
Published: August 2016

AbstractWhen a woman married during the eighteenth century, according to Blackstone's Commentaries on the Laws of England (1765–69), her autonomous identity was removed, and she was immediately classed as one with her husband. This consolidation into the husband's own identity means that she is automatically classed as his property, as to incorporate and consolidate implies a taking over of ownership of the item being transferred – and thus, of course, a complete lack of self‐governance over mind, body and actions on behalf of the woman. This leads to the perception that the woman has been transformed from a human into a mere thing, while still retaining human function. It is this mid‐existence of the eighteenth and nineteenth century woman and her entrapment somewhere between human and thing that raises a key question. Is it possible for such a legal phenomenon to own property (thus, another thing) itself without repercussions – essentially, if the propertied woman was herself property? This ‘work in progress’ paper examines the extent to which this may be true, and if so, how it affected her identity as an independent human being in a patriarchal legal system over a specific time period by studying several themes of what are arguably legal fictions. The gendered inheritance of Samuel Richardson's work and the obstacles this incurs due to the female's lack of legal recognition in the eighteenth century are referred to, and explorations are made into the questions about inheritance, identity and what constitutes as property raised by the French Revolution of the 1790s, and the representations of this in Gothic and revolutionary literature, specifically Wollstonecraft's Maria (). Moreover, I consider the effects of the Gothic upon the development of sensation fiction, positing the latter as a direct descendant rather than subscribing to the notion of them being related but rigidly disparate, with sensation fiction suddenly emerging in the mid‐nineteenth century (Hughes ; Thomas ; Herbert ). Within these two genres, the entity of the married woman is well‐established but, I argue, warrants further examination of its representations of the legal entity of woman in her occupation of the domestic sphere as a wife and the social sphere as a single, propertied, legally existing woman in Wilkie Collins's The Woman in White (1860‐61).
Calcium oxalate crystal production and density at different phenological stages of soybean plants (Glycine max L.) from the southeast of the Pampean Plain, Argentina
Authors: Borrelli N. , Benvenuto M. L. , Osterrieth M. 
Published: August 2016

Abstract

Glycine max L. (soybean) is one of the major crops of the world. Although the process of biomineralisation has been reported in some organs of soybean, we now report the description and quantification of calcium oxalate crystals in vegetative and reproductive organs of soybean during its life cycle, as they act as an important source of calcium to the soil, once the harvesting is finished.

Through diaphanisation, cross‐sectioning, optical and scanning electron microscopy analysis of the organs, morphology, size and location of the crystals were identified. In addition, crystal density (n° crystals·mm−2) and the input of crystals to soil (n° crystals·ha−1) were calculated.

Soybean produced prismatic calcium oxalate crystals in vegetative and reproductive organs, generally associated with vascular bundles, resulting in a potencial transfer to the soil of 81.4 x 107 crystals·ha−1 throughout its life cycle. Pods were the organs with higher calcium oxalate crystal production (1112.7 ± 384.6 crystals·mm−2), but with the smaller size (12.3 ± 2.1 μm long). However, cotyledons were the organs that produce the larger crystals (21.3 ± 3.5 μm long), but in lesser amounts (150.9 ± 64.4 crystals·mm−2). In leaves, although crystal size did not differ from vegetative to reproductive stage (14.5 ± 4.2 and 14.5 ± 4 μm in length, respectively), the crystal density increased (293.2 and 409 crystals·mm−2, respectively).

These results will contribute to knowledge of the amount of calcium oxalate crystals involved in the process of Ca recycling through cultivated vegetation in fields from humid plains at medium latitudes, which therefore have biological, botanical, biogeochemical and pedological relevance.
Assessment of 3 Bowel Preparation Protocols for Computed Tomography Pneumocolonography in Normal Dogs
Authors: Steffey Michele A. , Zwingenberger Allison L. , Daniel Leticia , Taylor Sandra L. 
Published: August 2016

ObjectiveTo investigate the effects of 3 different bowel preparation protocols on interpretation of computed tomography (CT) pneumocolonography images.Study DesignExperimental crossover design.AnimalsIntact male, hound‐cross, research colony dogs (n=4).MethodsAll dogs received the 3 different bowel preparation protocols for CT pneumocolonography in the same order, with a minimum of 2 weeks between protocols. For each segment of large bowel, the subjective adequacy of bowel cleansing was assessed, residual fecal and bowel volumes were calculated, and the density of fecal material in the bowel lumen was measured. Linear mixed effect models that included a random dog effect were used to evaluate mean differences in outcome measures across protocols.ResultsNo dogs experienced any clinical problems associated with the protocols or CT pneumocolonography. Bowel cleansing was considered adequate for CT pneumocolonography interpretation for all 3 protocols. There was a significant effect of protocol on residual fecal volumes and the fecal:bowel volume ratio, with the 2 protocols that included an extended fast producing the lowest total residual fecal volumes. There was a significant effect of protocol on maximum measured density of residual fecal material with the 2 protocols including iodinated contrast having the highest density.ConclusionsAll protocols were sufficient for CT pneumocolonography interpretation and contrast‐tagging of residual fecal material was successful with oral iopamidol administration. An at‐home bowel cleansing protocol may provide adequate bowel cleansing for CT pneumocolonography image interpretation.
Optimization of rotational arc station parameter optimized radiation therapy
Authors: Dong P. , Ungun B. , Boyd S. , Xing L. 
Published: August 2016

Purpose:To develop a fast optimization method for station parameter optimized radiation therapy (SPORT) and show that SPORT is capable of matching VMAT in both plan quality and delivery efficiency by using three clinical cases of different disease sites.Methods:The angular space from 0° to 360° was divided into 180 station points (SPs). A candidate aperture was assigned to each of the SPs based on the calculation results using a column generation algorithm. The weights of the apertures were then obtained by optimizing the objective function using a state‐of‐the‐art GPU based proximal operator graph solver. To avoid being trapped in a local minimum in beamlet‐based aperture selection using the gradient descent algorithm, a stochastic gradient descent was employed here. Apertures with zero or low weight were thrown out. To find out whether there was room to further improve the plan by adding more apertures or SPs, the authors repeated the above procedure with consideration of the existing dose distribution from the last iteration. At the end of the second iteration, the weights of all the apertures were reoptimized, including those of the first iteration. The above procedure was repeated until the plan could not be improved any further. The optimization technique was assessed by using three clinical cases (prostate, head and neck, and brain) with the results compared to that obtained using conventional VMAT in terms of dosimetric properties, treatment time, and total MU.Results:Marked dosimetric quality improvement was demonstrated in the SPORT plans for all three studied cases. For the prostate case, the volume of the 50% prescription dose was decreased by 22% for the rectum and 6% for the bladder. For the head and neck case, SPORT improved the mean dose for the left and right parotids by 15% each. The maximum dose was lowered from 72.7 to 71.7 Gy for the mandible, and from 30.7 to 27.3 Gy for the spinal cord. The mean dose for the pharynx and larynx was reduced by 8% and 6%, respectively. For the brain case, the doses to the eyes, chiasm, and inner ears were all improved. SPORT shortened the treatment time by ∼1 min for the prostate case, ∼0.5 min for brain case, and ∼0.2 min for the head and neck case.Conclusions:The dosimetric quality and delivery efficiency presented here indicate that SPORT is an intriguing alternative treatment modality. With the widespread adoption of digital linac, SPORT should lead to improved patient care in the future.
Multifunctional T Cell Response to DosR and Rpf Antigens Is Associated with Protection in Long-Term Mycobacterium tuberculosis-Infected Individuals in Colombia
Authors: Arroyo Leonar , Rojas Mauricio , Franken Kees L. M. C. , Ottenhoff Tom H. M. , Barrera Luis F. 
Published: August 2016

ABSTRACT

Multifunctional T cells have been shown to be protective in chronic viral infections. In mycobacterial infections, however, evidence for a protective role of multifunctional T cells remains inconclusive. Short-term cultures of peripheral blood mononuclear cells stimulated with the
Mycobacterium tuberculosis
RD1 antigens 6-kDa early secretory antigenic target (ESAT6) and 10-kDa culture filtrate antigen (CFP10), which are induced in the early infection phase, have been mainly used to assess T cell multifunctionality, although long-term culture assays have been proposed to be more sensitive than short-term assays for assessment of memory T cells, which are essential for long-term immunity. Here we used a long-term culture assay system to study the T cell immune responses to the
M. tuberculosis
latency-associated DosR antigens and reactivation-associated Rpf antigens, compared to ESAT6 and CFP10, in patients with pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) and household contacts of PTB patients with long-term latent tuberculosis infection (ltLTBI), in a community in which
M. tuberculosis
is endemic. Our results showed that the DosR antigens Rv1737c (
narK2
) and Rv2029c (
pfkB
) and the Rv2389c (
rpfD
) antigen of
M. tuberculosis
induced higher frequencies of CD4
+
or CD8
+
mono- or bifunctional (but not multifunctional) T cells producing interferon gamma (IFN-γ) and/or tumor necrosis alpha (TNF-α) in ltLTBI, compared to PTB. Moreover, the frequencies of CD4
+
and/or CD8
+
T cells with a CD45RO
+
CD27
+
phenotype were higher in ltLTBI than in PTB. Thus, the immune responses to selected DosR and Rpf antigens may be associated with long-term latency, correlating with protection from
M. tuberculosis
reactivation in ltLTBI. Further study of the functional and memory phenotypes may contribute to further discrimination between the different states of
M. tuberculosis
infections.
Evaluation of Semiautomated IS
6110
-Based Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism Typing for Mycobacterium tuberculosis in a High-Burden Setting
Authors: Said Halima M. , Krishnamani Keshav , Omar Shaheed V. , Dreyer Andries W. , Sansom Bianca , Fallows Dorothy , Ismail Nazir A. 
Published: August 2016

ABSTRACT

The manual IS
6110
-based restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) typing method is highly discriminatory; however, it is laborious and technically demanding, and data exchange remains a challenge. In an effort to improve IS
6110
-based RFLP to make it a faster format, DuPont Molecular Diagnostics recently introduced the IS
6110
-PvuII kit for semiautomated typing of
Mycobacterium tuberculosis
using the RiboPrinter microbial characterization system. This study aimed to evaluate the semiautomated RFLP typing against the standard manual method. A total of 112 isolates collected between 2013 and 2014 were included. All isolates were genotyped using manual and semiautomated RFLP typing methods. Clustering rates and discriminatory indexes were compared between methods. The overall performance of semiautomated RFLP compared to manual typing was excellent, with high discriminatory index (0.990 versus 0.995, respectively) and similar numbers of unique profiles (72 versus 74, respectively), numbers of clustered isolates (33 versus 31, respectively), cluster sizes (2 to 6 and 2 to 5 isolates, respectively), and clustering rates (21.9% and 17.1%, respectively). The semiautomated RFLP system is technically simple and significantly faster than the manual RFLP method (8 h versus 5 days). The analysis is fully automated and generates easily manageable databases of standardized fingerprints that can be easily exchanged between laboratories. Based on its high-throughput processing with minimal human effort, the semiautomated RFLP can be a very useful tool as a first-line method for routine typing of
M. tuberculosis
isolates, especially where Beijing strains are highly prevalent, followed by manual RFLP typing if resolution is not achieved, thereby saving time and labor.