bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Sexual Dysfunction in Patients with Obstructive Sleep Apnea: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
Authors: Liu L. , Kang R. , Zhao S. , Zhang T. , Zhu W. , Li E. , Li F. , Wan S. , Zhao Z. 
Published: September 2015

ABSTRACT

Introduction
Sexual dysfunction is an under-recognized problem in men and women with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). Epidemiologic findings were inconclusive regarding the risk for sexual dysfunction associated with OSA.

Aim
The aim of this study was to examine the association between OSA and sexual dysfunction.

Methods
The PubMed, Cochrane Library, and Embase databases were searched for observational studies on the OSA and the risk of sexual dysfunction. The methodologic quality of the case–control and cohort studies was assessed with Newcastle–Ottawa Scale (NOS). The cross-sectional study quality methodology checklist was used for cross-sectional study. Data were pooled for the random-effects model. Sensitivity analyses were conducted to assess potential bias.

Main Outcome Measure
The association between OSA and sexual dysfunction was summarized using relative risk (RR) with a 95% confidence interval (CI).

Results
This meta-analysis included 1,275 participants from nine studies. Five studies reported the incidence of erectile dysfunction (ED); the remaining four studies reported the incidence of female sexual dysfunction (FSD). Pooled results demonstrated that OSA was associated with increased risk of ED (pooled RR = 1.82, 95% CI: 1.12–2.97) as well as FSD (pooled RR = 2.00, 95% CI: 1.29–3.08). Estimates of the total effects were generally consistent in the sensitivity analysis. No evidence of publication bias was observed.

Conclusions
Evidence from the observational studies suggested that OSA individuals might have an increased incidence of sexual dysfunction despite significant heterogeneity. More researches are warranted to clarify the relationship between OSA and the increased risk of sexual dysfunction.
Emotional Intelligence and Sexual Functioning in a Sample of Swiss Men and Women
Authors: Willi J. , Burri A. 
Published: September 2015

ABSTRACT

Introduction
Past research has emphasized the importance of psychologic factors in the multifactorial etiology of sexual problems.

Aim
The purpose of the study was to examine (i) how emotional intelligence (EI) associates with sexual functioning; and (ii) whether EI moderates the association between sexual functioning and sexual quality of life (SQoL).

Methods
A total of 211 participants completed questionnaires relating to EI, sexual functioning, and SQoL. A set of standardized and validated questionnaires were used, including the International Index of Erectile Function, the Premature Ejaculation Diagnostic Tool, the Female Sexual Function Index, the Trait Emotional Intelligence Questionnaire-Short Form (TEIQue-SF), and the Sexual Quality of Life Questionnaire (SQoL).

Main Outcome Measures
Correlation, partial correlation, and moderation analyses were used to investigate the associations and moderations.

Results
When taking into account age and relationship duration, EI was significantly negatively correlated with female sexual desire only (r s  = −0.39, P  &lt; 0.01). No associations between EI and male sexual functioning on any domain could be detected. A moderation effect of EI in the association between sexual satisfaction and SQoL was observed in women, but not in men. Sexual functioning correlated positively with SQoL in both sexes.

Conclusions
Our findings show for the first time an association between female desire levels and normal variations in EI. Findings also tentatively suggest a relative gender difference in the factors contributing to sexual problems and SQoL, although results need to be confirmed in larger samples.
Disaggregating polyploidy, parental genome dosage and hybridity contributions to heterosis in Arabidopsis thaliana
Authors: Fort Antoine , Ryder Peter , McKeown Peter C. , Wijnen Cris , Aarts Mark G. , Sulpice Ronan , Spillane Charles 
Published: September 2015

Summary

Heterosis is the phenomenon whereby hybrid offspring of genetically divergent parents display superior characteristics compared with their parents. Although hybridity and polyploidy can influence heterosis in hybrid plants, the differential contributions of hybridity vs polyploidy to heterosis effects remain unknown.

To address this question, we investigated heterosis effects on rosette size and growth rate of 88 distinct F1 lines of Arabidopsis thaliana consisting of diploids, reciprocal triploids and tetraploids in isogenic and hybrid genetic contexts.

‘Heterosis without hybridity’ effects on plant size can be generated in genetically isogenic F1 triploid plants. Paternal genome excess F1 triploids display positive heterosis, whereas maternal genome excess F1s display negative heterosis effects. Paternal genome dosage increases plant size in F1 hybrid triploid plants by, on average, 57% (in contrast with 35% increase displayed by F1 diploid hybrids). Such effects probably derive from differential seed size, as the growth rate of triploids was similar to diploids. Tetraploid plants display a lower growth rate compared with other ploidies, whereas hybrids display increased early stage growth rate.

By disaggregating heterosis effects caused by hybridity vs genome dosage, we advance our understanding of heterosis in plants and facilitate novel paternal genome dosage‐based strategies to enhance heterosis effects in crop plants.
Conditions of Cognitive Sanity and the Internalist Credo
Authors: Spear Andrew D. 
Published: September 2015

AbstractBonJour has proposed background conditions on internalist justification, which Kornblith argues are inconsistent with a core internalist ‘credo’ – that subjects internally alike are justificationally alike – signaling the ‘death’ of internalism. The funeral arrangements are premature, though more systematic consideration of background conditions is needed. The majority of BonJour's conditions are not background conditions as their failure makes an epistemically relevant internal difference. This neutralizes Kornblith's criticisms and reveals how the proposed conditions are not departures from internalism. BonJour's background conditions are simply conditions, the credo remains intact, and Kornblith's objections do not spell problems for internalism, let alone death.
Regulator's Determination of Return on Equity in the Absence of Public Firms: The Case of Automobile Insurance in Ontario
Authors: Lazar Fred , Prisman Eliezer Z. 
Published: September 2015

AbstractIn a regulated market, such as automobile insurance (AI), regulators set the return on equity that insurers are allowed to achieve. Most insurers are engaged in a variety of insurance lines of business, and thus the full information beta methodology (FIB) is commonly employed to estimate the AI beta. The FIB uses two steps: first, the beta of each insurer is estimated, and then the beta of each line of business is estimated, as the beta of an insurer is a weighted average of the betas of the lines of business. When there are a sufficient number of public companies, company and market returns are used. Otherwise, researchers have resorted to using accounting data in the FIB. Theoretically, the two steps are not separable and the estimation should be done with one step. We introduce the one‐step methodology in our article. The one‐step and two‐step methodologies are compared empirically for the Ontario market of AI. Insurers in Ontario are predominantly private companies; thus, accounting data are used to estimate the AI beta. We show that a significant bias is introduced by the traditional, two‐step FIB methodology in estimating the betas for different lines of business, while insurers’ betas are very similar under both methods. This has a significant application to the estimation of betas of “pure players” in classic corporate finance. It implies that their betas and hence the resulting, required rates of return used in the net present value calculations should be estimated based on the one‐step method that we develop in this article.
Cn‐continuity in Digital Image Correlation: Implementation and Validation of C− 1, C0 and C1 Algorithms
Authors: Wittevrongel L. , Lava P. , Lomov S. V. , Debruyne D. 
Published: September 2015

AbstractIn digital image correlation (DIC), a global approach is more and more used aside from the traditional subset method. The biggest advantages of the global approach are the continuity of the displacement field and the clear link to finite element analysis. In this paper, the traditional subset method is compared to several implementations of the global method, to investigate the importance of continuity in DIC. As first, the most known Q4‐DIC is implemented, where linear elements describe the deformation. The second implementation is the so‐called p‐DIC where the element mesh used in the correlation can be updated to higher‐order elements to describe more complex deformations. The third implementation is a newly proposed C1‐continuous global algorithm. This algorithm is similar to the other global approaches but uses a triangular finite element mesh where the triangular elements within the mesh have a generic pth‐order description. Accordingly, elements can vary both in size and element order to describe more complex deformations while preserving C1‐continuity. The four implementations are made in the same platform, leading to a more robust comparison. In the comparison, both numerical and experimental tests are conducted, and the relation between resolution and special resolution is investigated for all approaches. It is concluded that continuity itself does not have a major influence on the methods performance. The choice of algorithm will be based on the desired specifications of the measurement.
Full‐length HLA‐DRB1 coding sequences generated by a hemizygous RNA‐SBT approach
Authors: Gerritsen K. E. H. , Groeneweg M. , Meertens C. M. H. , Voorter C. E. M. , Tilanus M. G. J. 
Published: September 2015

AbstractCurrently 1582 HLA‐DRB1 alleles have been identified in the IMGT/HLA database (v3.18). Among those alleles, more than 90% have incomplete allele sequences, which complicates the analysis of the functional relevance of polymorphism beyond exon 2. The polymorphic index of each individual exon of the currently known allele sequences, shows that polymorphism is present in all exons, albeit not equally abundant. Full‐length HLA‐DRB1 RNA sequencing identifies polymorphism of the complete coding region. Here we describe a hemizygous full‐length RNA sequence‐based typing (SBT) approach based on group‐specific HLA‐DRB1 amplification and subsequent sequencing. RNA full‐length sequences can easily be accessed because of the short amplicon length (801 bp). The RNA‐SBT approach was successfully validated on a panel of DRB1 alleles having fully known coding sequences according to the IMGT/HLA database, and cover all serological equivalents. Subsequently, the approach was applied on a panel of 54 alleles with incomplete allele sequences, resulting in full‐length coding sequences and the identification of one new and one corrected allele. This study shows the universal applicability of the RNA‐based sequencing approach to identify full‐length coding sequences and to define the polymorphic content of HLA‐DRB1 alleles.
Hemodynamics of the pectinis oculi artery in American pekin ducks (Anas platyrhynchos domestica)
Authors: Ferreira Thiago Alegre C. , Turner Giannico Amália , Montiani‐Ferreira Fabiano 
Published: September 2015

AbstractObjectiveTo measure blood velocity parameters of the main detectable branch of the pectinis oculi artery and compare with values found in other arteries in other species to form a hypothesis of the function of the pecten oculi in birds.MethodsEleven American pekin ducks (Anas platyrhynchos domestica) without ocular diseases were examined with ocular Doppler ultrasonography. The pectinate artery resistive index (RI) and pulsatility index (PI) were calculated.ResultsThe mean of RI and PI values resulted, respectively, in: left eye (0.43 ± 0.07; 0.58 ± 0.13), right eye (0.37 ± 0.09; 0.47 ± 0.14), and both eyes (0.40 ± 0.08; 0.53 ± 0.14).DiscussionThe low RI and PI values found in the main branch of the pectinis oculi artery compared with other arteries in other tissues suggest a high metabolic activity in the pecten oculi, and it could indicate a nutritional function and/or intraocular pressure regulation.
DECT evaluation of noncalcified coronary artery plaque
Authors: Ravanfar Haghighi Rezvan , Chatterjee S. , Tabin Milo , Sharma Sanjiv , Jagia Priya , Ray Ruma , Singh Rishi P. , Yadav Rakesh , Sharma Munish , Krishna Karthik , Vani V. C. , Lakshmi R. , Mandal Susama R. , Kumar Pratik , Arava Sudhir 
Published: September 2015

Purpose:Composition of the coronary artery plaque is known to have critical role in heart attack. While calcified plaque can easily be diagnosed by conventional CT, it fails to distinguish between fibrous and lipid rich plaques. In the present paper, the authors discuss the experimental techniques and obtain a numerical algorithm by which the electron density (ρe) and the effective atomic number (Zeff) can be obtained from the dual energy computed tomography (DECT) data. The idea is to use this inversion method to characterize and distinguish between the lipid and fibrous coronary artery plaques.Methods:For the purpose of calibration of the CT machine, the authors prepare aqueous samples whose calculated values of (ρe, Zeff) lie in the range of (2.65 × 1023 ≤ ρe ≤ 3.64 × 1023/cm3) and (6.80 ≤ Zeff ≤ 8.90). The authors fill the phantom with these known samples and experimentally determine HU(V1) and HU(V2), with V1,V2 = 100 and 140 kVp, for the same pixels and thus determine the coefficients of inversion that allow us to determine (ρe, Zeff) from the DECT data. The HU(100) and HU(140) for the coronary artery plaque are obtained by filling the channel of the coronary artery with a viscous solution of methyl cellulose in water, containing 2% contrast. These (ρe, Zeff) values of the coronary artery plaque are used for their characterization on the basis of theoretical models of atomic compositions of the plaque materials. These results are compared with histopathological report.Results:The authors find that the calibration gives ρe with an accuracy of ±3.5% while Zeff is found within ±1% of the actual value, the confidence being 95%. The HU(100) and HU(140) are found to be considerably different for the same plaque at the same position and there is a linear trend between these two HU values. It is noted that pure lipid type plaques are practically nonexistent, and microcalcification, as observed in histopathology, has to be taken into account to explain the nature of the observed (ρe, Zeff) data. This also enables us to judge the composition of the plaque in terms of basic model which considers the plaque to be composed of fibres, lipids, and microcalcification.Conclusions:This simple and reliable method has the potential as an effective modality to investigate the composition of noncalcified coronary artery plaques and thus help in their characterization. In this inversion method, (ρe, Zeff) of the scanned sample can be found by eliminating the effects of the CT machine and also by ensuring that the determination of the two unknowns (ρe, Zeff) does not interfere with each other and the nature of the plaque can be identified in terms of a three component model.
Technical Note: Characterization and correction of gradient nonlinearity induced distortion on a 1.0 T open bore MR‐SIM
Authors: Price Ryan G. , Kadbi Mo , Kim Joshua , Balter James , Chetty Indrin J. , Glide‐Hurst Carri K. 
Published: September 2015

Purpose:Distortions in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) compromise spatial fidelity, potentially impacting delineation and dose calculation. We characterized 2D and 3D large field of view (FOV), sequence‐independent distortion at various positions in a 1.0 T high‐field open MR simulator (MR‐SIM) to implement correction maps for MRI treatment planning.Methods:A 36 × 43 × 2 cm3 phantom with 255 known landmarks (∼1 mm3) was scanned using 1.0 T high‐field open MR‐SIM at isocenter in the transverse, sagittal, and coronal axes, and a 465 × 350 × 168 mm3 3D phantom was scanned by stepping in the superior‐inferior direction in three overlapping positions to achieve a total 465 × 350 × 400 mm3 sampled FOV yielding >13 800 landmarks (3D Gradient‐Echo, TE/TR/α = 5.54 ms/30 ms/28°, voxel size = 1 × 1 × 2 mm3). A binary template (reference) was generated from a phantom schematic. An automated program converted MR images to binary via masking, thresholding, and testing for connectivity to identify landmarks. Distortion maps were generated by centroid mapping. Images were corrected via warping with inverse distortion maps, and temporal stability was assessed.Results:Over the sampled FOV, non‐negligible residual gradient distortions existed as close as 9.5 cm from isocenter, with a maximum distortion of 7.4 mm as close as 23 cm from isocenter. Over six months, average gradient distortions were −0.07 ± 1.10 mm and 0.10 ± 1.10 mm in the x and y directions for the transverse plane, 0.03 ± 0.64 and −0.09 ± 0.70 mm in the sagittal plane, and 0.4 ± 1.16 and 0.04 ± 0.40 mm in the coronal plane. After implementing 3D correction maps, distortions were reduced to <1 pixel width (1 mm) for all voxels up to 25 cm from magnet isocenter.Conclusions:Inherent distortion due to gradient nonlinearity was found to be non‐negligible even with vendor corrections applied, and further corrections are required to obtain 1 mm accuracy for large FOVs. Statistical analysis of temporal stability shows that sequence independent distortion maps are consistent within six months of characterization.
Paddle‐based rotating‐shield brachytherapy
Authors: Liu Yunlong , Flynn Ryan T. , Kim Yusung , Dadkhah Hossein , Bhatia Sudershan K. , Buatti John M. , Xu Weiyu , Wu Xiaodong 
Published: September 2015

Purpose:The authors present a novel paddle‐based rotating‐shield brachytherapy (P‐RSBT) method, whose radiation‐attenuating shields are formed with a multileaf collimator (MLC), consisting of retractable paddles, to achieve intensity modulation in high‐dose‐rate brachytherapy.Methods:Five cervical cancer patients using an intrauterine tandem applicator were considered to assess the potential benefit of the P‐RSBT method. The P‐RSBT source used was a 50 kV electronic brachytherapy source (Xoft Axxent™). The paddles can be retracted independently to form multiple emission windows around the source for radiation delivery. The MLC was assumed to be rotatable. P‐RSBT treatment plans were generated using the asymmetric dose–volume optimization with smoothness control method [Liu et al., Med. Phys. 41(11), 111709 (11pp.) (2014)] with a delivery time constraint, different paddle sizes, and different rotation strides. The number of treatment fractions (fx) was assumed to be five. As brachytherapy is delivered as a boost for cervical cancer, the dose distribution for each case includes the dose from external beam radiotherapy as well, which is 45 Gy in 25 fx. The high‐risk clinical target volume (HR‐CTV) doses were escalated until the minimum dose to the hottest 2 cm3 (D2cm3) of either the rectum, sigmoid colon, or bladder reached their tolerance doses of 75, 75, and 90 Gy3, respectively, expressed as equivalent doses in 2 Gy fractions (EQD2 with α/β = 3 Gy).Results:P‐RSBT outperformed the two other RSBT delivery techniques, single‐shield RSBT (S‐RSBT) and dynamic‐shield RSBT (D‐RSBT), with a properly selected paddle size. If the paddle size was angled at 60°, the average D90 increases for the delivery plans by P‐RSBT on the five cases, compared to S‐RSBT, were 2.2, 8.3, 12.6, 11.9, and 9.1 Gy10, respectively, with delivery times of 10, 15, 20, 25, and 30 min/fx. The increases in HR‐CTV D90, compared to D‐RSBT, were 16.6, 12.9, 7.2, 3.7, and 1.7 Gy10, respectively. P‐RSBT HR‐CTV D90‐values were insensitive to the paddle size for paddles angled at less than 60°. Increasing the paddle angle from 5° to 60° resulted in only a 0.6 Gy10 decrease in HR‐CTV D90 on average for five cases when the delivery times were set to 15 min/fx. The HR‐CTV D90 decreased to 2.5 and 11.9 Gy10 with paddle angles of 90° and 120°, respectively.Conclusions:P‐RSBT produces treatment plans that are dosimetrically and temporally superior to those of S‐RSBT and D‐RSBT, although P‐RSBT systems may be more mechanically challenging to develop than S‐RSBT or D‐RSBT. A P‐RSBT implementation with 4–6 shield paddles would be sufficient to outperform S‐RSBT and D‐RSBT if delivery times are constrained to less than 15 min/fx.
Factors that may determine the targeting accuracy of image‐guided radiosurgery
Authors: Subedi Gopal , Karasick Todd , Grimm Jimm , Jain Sheena , Xue Jinyu , Xu Qianyi , Chen Yan , Asbell Sucha , Pahlajani Niraj , LaCouture Tamara 
Published: September 2015

Purpose:The AAPM TG‐135 report is a landmark recommendation for the quality assurance (QA) of image‐guided robotic radiosurgery. The purpose of this paper is to present results pertaining to intentionally offsetting the phantom as recommended by TG‐135 and to present data on targeting algorithm accuracy as a function of imager parameters in less than ideal circumstances, which had not been available at the time of publication of TG‐135.Methods:All tests in this study were performed at the Cooper University Hospital CyberKnife Center in Mt. Laurel, NJ. For intentional offsets, initial tests were performed on the Accuray‐supplied anthropomorphic head and neck phantom, whereas for subsequent tests, the Accuray‐supplied alignment quality assurance (AQA) phantom was used. To simulate the effects of imager parameters for larger patients, slabs of Blue Water (Standard Imaging, Inc., Middleton, WI) were added to attenuate the x‐ray images in some of the tests. In conjunction with attenuated x‐ray tests, the number of fiducials was varied by systematically deselecting them one at a time at the CyberKnife console.Results:Tests using the AQA phantom verified that submillimeter alignments were consistently achieved even with intentional shifts and rotations of up to 10.0 mm and 1.0°, respectively. An analysis of 17 months of daily QA alignment tests showed that submillimeter alignments were achieved more than 99% of the time even with such intentional shifts and rotations of the phantom. When additional slabs of Blue Water were added to simulate patient attenuation of the x‐ray images, targeting errors could be induced depending on imager parameters and the amount of Blue Water used. A series of consecutive tests showed that two helpful variables to ensure good accuracy of the system were (1) the fiducial extraction confidence level (FECL) system parameter and (2) the number of targeted fiducials. When fewer than four fiducials were used, the FECL reported by the CyberKnife was sometimes high even when a false lock occurred, so using multiple fiducials helped to ensure reliable targeting.Conclusions:Radiosurgery requires the highest degree of targeting accuracy, and in our experience, the CyberKnife has been able to maintain submillimeter accuracy consistently. It has been verified that our CyberKnife can correct for phantom shifts of up to 10.0 mm and rotations of up to 1.0°. It has also been discovered that false locks are more likely to occur with a single fiducial than with multiple fiducials. Although targeting accuracy can only be measured on a phantom, the insight gained from analyzing the QA tests can help us in devising better strategies for achieving the best treatment for our patients.