bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Our Approach to Minimize Risk of Epicardial Access: Standard Techniques with the Addition of Electroanatomic Mapping Guidance
Authors: BRADFIELD JASON S. , TUNG RODERICK , BOYLE NOEL G. , BUCH ERIC , SHIVKUMAR KALYANAM 
Published: November 2012

Epicardial Access TechniquesEpicardial mapping and ablation is increasingly being performed for the treatment of complex arrhythmias. Right ventricular (RV) puncture remains the most common complication, with damage to surrounding non‐cardiac structures also a concern. We describe the standard techniques used in our lab essential for safe epicardial access, as well as a novel technique incorporating electroanatomic mapping (EAM) guidance. In a series of 8 patients referred for ventricular tachycardia ablation, an RV endocardial voltage map was created using EAM systems. EAM images were fused with preprocedure CT scans when available. A 17G Tuohy needle was integrated with the EAM system by attaching the needle to sterile electrode clamps. EAM location points were used in conjunction with standard access techniques until epicardial access was obtained. Epicardial access was successfully obtained in 8/8 (100%) patients. Successful access without RV puncture was achieved in 7/8 (88%) cases. This proof of concept study demonstrates that EAM systems can be used as an adjunct to standard access techniques to visualize and facilitate pericardial access.
Efficacy of modified minimally invasive surgical technique in the treatment of human intrabony defects with or without use of rhPDGF‐BB gel – a randomized controlled trial
Authors: Mishra Ashank , Avula Haritha , Pathakota Krishnajaneya R. , Avula Jayakumar 
Published: November 2012

AbstractAimTo evaluate the efficacy of modified minimally invasive surgical technique (M‐MIST) technique with local delivery of recombinant human platelet derived growth factor (rhPDGF‐BB) gel in the treatment of intrabony defects.Material and MethodsTwenty‐four healthy subjects were included in the present double‐blinded, randomized, controlled study. Test group was treated with M‐MIST and rhPDGF‐BB and control group with M‐MIST alone.ResultsThe mean probing depth (PD), clinical attachment level (CAL) and gingival recession, cementoenamel junction to base of the defect (CEJ‐BD), defect depth (DD) and cementoenamel junction to alveolar crest (CEJ‐AC), at baseline to 6 months post‐operatively in both the groups were statistically significant. Inter‐group comparison for gain in attachment level (CAL‐G), probing depth reduction (PD‐R) and change in gingival margin position linear bone growth (LBG), percentage bone fill, residual defect depth (residual DD) and the change in alveolar crest position revealed no statistically significant differences. Gain in CAL and LBG was 3 ± 0.89 mm and 1.89 ± 0.6 in test group and 2.64 ± 0.67 mm and 1.85 ± 1.18 mm in control group, respectively, and did not show statistical significance.ConclusionsThe improvement in both groups could be attributed to the novel surgical technique rather than addition of rhPDGF‐BB.
Aetiology, microbiology and therapy of periapical lesions around oral implants: a retrospective analysis
Authors: Lefever David , Van Assche Nele , Temmerman Andy , Teughels Wim , Quirynen Marc 
Published: November 2012

AbstractObjectiveThe aim of this study was: (i) to evaluate whether an endodontic pathology on the extracted tooth or adjacent teeth of an implant site has an influence on the emergence of a periapical lesion, (ii) to retrospectively analyse the outcome of different treatment strategies, (iii) to determine which bacteria were present in periapical lesions.MethodsThe endodontic status of the tooth at the implant site and the adjacent teeth was explored and linked to the periapical status of the implant. For all the lesions treated since 2000, their survival was assessed. Finally, microbial samples (culturing) from the periapical lesions, were analysed.ResultsIf an endodontic treatment or a periapical lesion at the apex of a tooth is present, a periapical lesion around the implant can be detected in 8.2% up to 13.6% (OR 7.2). For periapical pathology at the adjacent teeth, the percentage rises to 25% (OR 8.0). The best treatment option could not be found. Bacteria were found in 9/21 lesions. The most prominent species was P. gingivalis.ConclusionsWhen an endodontic pathology is present on the extracted or neighbouring teeth, it is significantly more likely that a periapical lesion will develop around a future implant.
‘Sustaining Place’ – a grounded theory of how informal carers of people with dementia manage alterations to relationships within their social worlds
Authors: Daly Louise , McCarron Mary , Higgins Agnes , McCallion Philip 
Published: November 2012

Aims and objectivesThis paper presents a theory explaining the processes used by informal carers of people with dementia to mange alterations to their, and people with dementias' relationships with and places within their social worlds.BackgroundInformal carers provide the majority of care to people with dementia. A great deal of international informal dementia care research is available, much of which elucidates the content, impacts and consequences of the informal caring role and the coping mechanisms that carers use. However, the socially situated experiences and processes integral to informal caring in dementia have not yet been robustly accounted for.DesignA classic grounded theory approach was used as it is designed for research enquiries that aim to generate theory illustrating social patterns of action used to address an identified problem.MethodsThirty interviews were conducted with 31 participants between 2006–2008. The theory was conceptualised from the data using the concurrent methods of theoretical sampling, constant comparative analysis, memo writing and theoretical sensitivity.ResultsInformal carers' main concern was identified as ‘Living on the fringes’, which was stimulated by dementia‐related stigma and living a different life. The theory of ‘Sustaining Place’ explains the social pattern of actions employed by informal carers to manage this problem on behalf of themselves and the person with dementia.ConclusionsThe theory of ‘Sustaining Place’ identifies an imperative for nurses, other formal carers and society to engage in actions to support and enable social connectedness, social inclusion and citizenship for informal carers and people with dementia.Relevance to clinical practice‘Sustaining Place’ facilitates enhanced understanding of the complex and socially situated nature of informal dementia care through its portrayal of informal carers as social agents and can be used to guide nurses to better support those who live with dementia.
Adherence to treatment among adolescents in a psychiatric ward
Authors: Timlin Ulla , Riala Kaisa , Kyngäs Helvi 
Published: November 2012

Aims and objectivesTo examine the adolescent's adherence in psychiatric inpatient care that includes both medication and non‐pharmacological treatment.BackgroundAdolescents can deny having a problem or being in need of treatment and are therefore prone to defying attempts to engage them in a collaborative treatment process. There is still little information in the literature concerning adherence to psychiatric inpatient treatment among mentally ill adolescents, especially focusing on the entire treatment period and all forms of treatment.DesignThis is a retrospective, mixed‐method study.MethodsData were collected from discharge reports written by doctors (n = 72) and were subjected to inductive content analysis. Adherence to all forms of treatment was considered, over the entirety of the treatment period rather than focusing on a single specific time point.ResultsThree main adherence‐related content categories were identified: non‐adherence to treatment, adherence to treatment and challenges of adherence. The last of these categories contains information on factors that affect adolescent treatment adherence.ConclusionsWe found that adherent adolescents are cooperative, willing to receive treatment and participate actively in therapies aimed at relieving their mental symptoms or illness.Relevance to clinical practiceThe findings presented herein are likely to be informative in the context of inpatient treatment, and it is expected that the results presented herein will help to improve adolescents' quality of treatment.
Is Perception of Sucrose and Caffeine Affected by Training or Experience? Monitoring Training Effects in Female Subjects over a Half‐Year Period
Authors: Hoehl Karolin , Schoenberger Gesa U. , Schwarz Karin , Busch‐Stockfisch Mechthild 
Published: November 2012

AbstractThe study focuses on potential differences between trained and untrained female subjects with regard to their ability to recognize sweet and bitter. Seventy‐six European female students (mean age 22.1) were recruited. They were randomly classified into a control group (n = 35) and an intervention group (n = 41), who were trained. Matching test, intensity testing, and threshold measurements were conducted for all and quantified at t0 (baseline), t1 (after intervention), and t2 (6 months after intervention). The intervention group's performance was enhanced after training: Panelists tended to match more taste samples correctly. Bitter samples were matched better at t1 in comparison with t0. Intensity of sweet and bitter samples was rated higher after intervention, too. The performance was reproduced at t2. Threshold results were ambiguous. Intervention increased the ability to detect tastes. However, in the control group, the recognition thresholds were improved during repeated testing (t1 and t2). The intervention group's performance in perception of sweet and bitter increased because of training. The performance in the control group also improved while the subjects gained experience over the course of the three testing sessions.Practical ApplicationsThe study offers new insight into the effects of sensory training or sensory experiences on the perception of the basic tastes, sweet and bitter. Because many sensory laboratories follow the advice of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) when conducting sensory training or developing special test designs, the study design was geared to the specifications given in ISO 8586‐1 (Sensory analysis – General guidance for the selection, training and monitoring of assessors), and in ISO 3972 (Sensory analysis – Methodology – Method of investigating sensitivity of taste). Of special interest may be the fact that the study focuses on monitoring the effects of training in women over a period of half a year to show how long training effects can last. Training and monitoring of sensory panelists is time consuming and expensive. Simplifying the procedures would be advantageous for panel leaders as well as for the panelists themselves.
Participatory action research: moving beyond the mental health ‘service user’ identity
Authors: HUTCHINSON A. , LOVELL A. 
Published: November 2012

Accessible summary

The pervasive impact of mental illness on identity is generally held as negative. Contemporary Models of involvement within statutory services pay little regard to the identity of individuals beyond the “service user” label and in doing so unwittingly perpetuate and sustain the negative impact of mental illness.

This aim of this paper is to discuss the process of working alongside people who use statutory mental health services as co‐researchers. It highlights the perspective of those involved as researchers on both the process and the impact of this type of involvement on them considering a move beyond the illness identity.

This three year participatory action research study was facilitated within community mental health services. 6 people, currently using statutory mental health services were recruited as co‐researchers. The study required that they undertook a series of interviews with service users in relation to their life stories. The transcripts were mapped and analysed by the researchers using interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA). In order that the people were enabled to undertake these roles the study included a process of interviewing and appointing service user researchers followed by a programme of training workshops, supervision and discussion group/peer support throughout.

The study reveals the importance of key aspects within the process of user involvement emphasizing the potential for transformation: connection, creditable definitions of self and reciprocity. It discusses implications for service user involvement within the statutory mental health service, acknowledging potential for transformation at both an individual and collective level.

AbstractContemporary models of involvement within statutory services pay little regard to the identity of individuals beyond the ‘service user’ label and in doing so unwittingly perpetuate and sustain the negative impact of mental illness. The aim of this paper is to discuss the process of a 3‐year participatory action research study facilitated by a mental health nurse. It highlights the perspective of those involved as co‐researchers, all having experience of accessing statutory mental health services. It identifies both the process and the impact of this type of involvement on them illustrating their move beyond an illness identity. The study involved them undertaking a series of interviews with other service users in relation to their life stories. They subsequently mapped and analysed the transcripts. In order that the people were enabled to undertake these roles the study included a process of interviewing and appointing service user researchers followed by a programme of training workshops, supervision and discussion group/peer support. The accounts provided reflect the six researchers' attempts to make sense of their experience and reveal the path of transformation through collaboration.
Prolonged wakefulness alters neuronal responsiveness to local electrical stimulation of the neocortex in awake rats
Authors: Vyazovskiy Vladyslav V. , Olcese Umberto , Cirelli Chiara , Tononi Giulio 
Published: November 2012

SummaryProlonged wakefulness or a lack of sleep lead to cognitive deficits, but little is known about the underlying cellular mechanisms. We recently found that sleep deprivation affects spontaneous neuronal activity in the neocortex of sleeping and awake rats. While it is well known that synaptic responses are modulated by ongoing cortical activity, it remains unclear whether prolonged waking affects responsiveness of cortical neurons to incoming stimuli. By applying local electrical microstimulation to the frontal area of the neocortex, we found that after a 4 h period of waking the initial neuronal response in the contralateral frontal cortex was stronger and more synchronous, and was followed by a more profound inhibition of neuronal spiking as compared with the control condition. These changes in evoked activity suggest increased neuronal excitability and indicate that, after staying awake, cortical neurons become transiently bistable. We propose that some of the detrimental effects of sleep deprivation may be a result of altered neuronal responsiveness to incoming intrinsic and extrinsic inputs.
Working memory performance of older adults with insomnia
Authors: Lovato Nicole , Lack Leon , Wright Helen , Cant Megan , Humphreys Joanne 
Published: November 2012

SummaryOlder individuals suffering insomnia typically report declines in their cognitive performance beyond what they consider to be normal changes due to the aging process. Recent neuro‐imaging studies have demonstrated frontal lobe hypo‐activation among insomniac populations when compared with healthy, good sleepers. However, research is yet to confirm whether frontal lobe hypo‐activation translates into objective declines when performing tasks hypothesized to draw upon this brain region. This study aimed to investigate whether older insomnia sufferers demonstrate significantly impaired performance on a challenging working memory task when compared with age‐matched good sleepers. Forty‐nine older individuals (mean age = 69.43 years, SD = 4.83) suffering from sleep maintenance insomnia were compared with 49 age‐matched good sleepers. Cognitive performance was assessed using the Double Span Memory Task, a computer‐based working memory task that requires participants to indicate the names and/or spatial locations of increasingly longer sequences of visually presented objects. After controlling for general intelligence, the individuals suffering from insomnia did not perform differently when compared with the good sleepers on either the simpler or more cognitively demanding components of the task. Older individuals with insomnia did not display an observable impairment of working memory in this study relative to good sleepers. Despite the mixed results from previous research, this study adds weight to the absence of objective impairment in insomniacs, at least while performing short‐term demanding cognitive tasks.
Serum Lipocalin2 is a potential biomarker of liver irradiation damage
Authors: Sultan Sadaf , Cameron Silke , Ahmad Shakil , Malik Ihtzaz A. , Schultze Frank C. , Hielscher Ruth , Rave‐Fränk Margret , Hess Clemens F. , Ramadori Giuliano , Christiansen Hans 
Published: November 2012

AbstractBackground/AimIL‐6 – IL‐1– lipocalin2 (LCN2) – liver irradiation – oxidative stress – TNF‐a Lipocalin2 (LCN2) is an acute phase protein. The source of its increased serum level in oxidative stress conditions (ROS) remains still unknown. We prospectively evaluate the serum LCN2 increase after single dose liver irradiation along with hepatic LCN2 gene and protein expression.MethodsA single dose of 25 Gray was administered percutaneously to the liver of randomly paired rats after a planning CT scan. Male Wistar rats were sacrificed 1, 3, 6, 12, 24 and 48 h after irradiation along with sham‐irradiated controls. ELISA, RT‐PCR, Western blot and immunofluorescence staining was performed. Furthermore, hepatocytes, myofibroblasts and Kupffer cells were isolated from the liver of healthy rats and irradiated ex‐vivo.ResultsAfter liver irradiation, LCN2 serum levels increased significantly up to 2.7 μg/ml within 6 h and stayed elevated over 24 h. LCN2 specific transcripts increased significantly up to 552 ± 109‐fold at 24 h after liver irradiation, which was further confirmed at protein level. α2‐macroglobulin and hemoxygenase‐1 also showed an increase, but the magnitude was less as compared to LCN2. LCN2+ granulocytes were detected within 1 h after irradiation around central and portal fields and remained high during the course of study. Ex‐vivo irradiated hepatocytes (2.4 ± 0.6‐fold) showed a higher LCN2 gene expression as compared to myofibroblasts and Kupffer cells. IL‐1β treatment further increased LCN2 gene expression in cultured hepatocytes.ConclusionsSingle dose liver irradiation induces a significant increase in LCN2 serum levels, comparable to the induction of acute phase proteins. We suggest LCN2 as marker for the early phase of radiation‐induced tissue damage.
Nutrition in pregnancy and early childhood and associations with obesity in developing countries
Authors: Yang Zhenyu , Huffman Sandra L. 
Published: November 2012

AbstractConcerns about the increasing rates of obesity in developing countries have led many policy makers to question the impacts of maternal and early child nutrition on risk of later obesity. The purposes of the review are to summarise the studies on the associations between nutrition during pregnancy and infant feeding practices with later obesity from childhood through adulthood and to identify potential ways for preventing obesity in developing countries. As few studies were identified in developing countries, key studies in developed countries were included in the review.Poor prenatal dietary intakes of energy, protein and micronutrients were shown to be associated with increased risk of adult obesity in offspring. Female offspring seem to be more vulnerable than male offspring when their mothers receive insufficient energy during pregnancy.By influencing birthweight, optimal prenatal nutrition might reduce the risk of obesity in adults. While normal birthweights (2500–3999 g) were associated with higher body mass index (BMI) as adults, they generally were associated with higher fat‐free mass and lower fat mass compared with low birthweights (<2500 g). Low birthweight was associated with higher risk of metabolic syndrome and central obesity in adults.Breastfeeding and timely introduction of complementary foods were shown to protect against obesity later in life in observational studies. High‐protein intake during early childhood however was associated with higher body fat mass and obesity in adulthood.In developed countries, increased weight gain during the first 2 years of life was associated with a higher BMI in adulthood. However, recent studies in developing countries showed that higher BMI was more related to greater lean body mass than fat mass. It appears that increased length at 2 years of age was positively associated with height, weight and fat‐free mass, and was only weakly associated with fat mass.The protective associations between breastfeeding and obesity may differ in developing countries compared to developed countries because many studies in developed countries used formula feeding as a control. Future research on the relationship between breastfeeding, timely introduction of complementary feeding or rapid weight gain and obesity are warranted in developing countries.The focus of interventions to reduce risk of obesity in later life in developing countries could include:
improving maternal nutritional status during pregnancy to reduce low birthweight;
enhancing breastfeeding (including durations of exclusive and total breastfeeding);
timely introduction of high‐quality complementary foods (containing micronutrients and essential fats) but not excessive in protein;
further evidence is needed to understand the extent of weight gain and length gain during early childhood are related to body composition in later life.
Telomere length and dynamics predict mortality in a wild longitudinal study
Authors: Barrett Emma L. B. , Burke Terry A. , Hammers Martijn , Komdeur Jan , Richardson David S. 
Published: November 2012

AbstractExplaining variation in life expectancy between individuals of the same age is fundamental to our understanding of population ecology and life history evolution. Variation in the length and rate of loss of the protective telomere chromosome caps has been linked to cellular lifespan. Yet, the extent to which telomere length and dynamics predict organismal lifespan in nature is still contentious. Using longitudinal samples taken from a closed population ofAcrocephalus sechellensis(Seychelles warblers) studied for over 20 years, we describe the first study into life‐long adult telomere dynamics (1–17 years) and their relationship to mortality under natural conditions (n = 204 individuals). We show that telomeres shorten with increasing age and body mass, and that shorter telomeres and greater rates of telomere shortening predicted future mortality. Our results provide the first clear and unambiguous evidence of a relationship between telomere length and mortality in the wild, and substantiate the prediction that telomere length and shortening rate can act as an indicator of biological age further to chronological age when exploring life history questions in natural conditions.