bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Acne treatment by methyl aminolevulinate photodynamic therapy with red light vs. intense pulsed light
Authors: Hong Jong Soo , Jung Jae Yoon , Yoon Ji Young , Suh Dae Hun 
Published: October 2012

AbstractVarious methods of photodynamic therapy (PDT) for acne have been introduced. However, comparative studies among them are still needed. We performed this study to compare the effect of methyl aminolevulinate (MAL) PDT for acne between red light and intense pulsed light (IPL). Twenty patients were enrolled in this eight‐week, prospective, split‐face study. We applied MAL cream over the whole face with a three‐hour incubation time. Then patients were irradiated with 22 J/cm2 of red light on one‐half of the face and 8–10 J/cm2 of IPL on the other half during each treatment session. We performed three treatment sessions at two‐week intervals and followed‐up patients until four weeks after the last session. Inflammatory and non‐inflammatory acne lesions were reduced significantly on both sides. The red light side showed a better response than the IPL side after the first treatment. Serious adverse effects after treatment were not observed. MAL‐PDT with red light and IPL are both an effective and safe modality in acne treatment. Red light showed a faster response time than IPL. After multiple sessions, both light sources demonstrated satisfactory results. We suggest that reducing the total dose of red light is desirable when performing MAL‐PDT in Asian patients with acne compared with Caucasians.
Medical student education: what it costs and how it is funded
Authors: Goulston K. , Oates K. , Shinfield S. , Robinson B. 
Published: October 2012

AbstractThe cost to Sydney University to educate a medical student in 2010 was obtained by dividing the total teaching costs by the number of students. This showed the annual cost to educate one medical student was $53 093. Sixty‐one per cent comprised salaries. Fifty‐three per cent is met by Commonwealth funding and the Higher Education Loan Programme. Fees from international medical students contributed a margin of only 2% towards total education costs. The shortfall of 45% is provided from other sources within the university. This cross‐subsidisation may not be sustainable.
Percutaneous stone surgery using a tubeless technique with fibrin sealant: report of our first 107 cases
Authors: Gudeman Suzanne R. , Stroup Sean P. , Durbin Jason M. , Patino Guillermo , L'Esperance James O. , Auge Brian K. 
Published: October 2012

Study Type – Therapy (case series)Level of Evidence 4What's known on the subject? and What does the study add?Small case series support the safety and efficacy of tubeless PCNL with fibrin sealant. However, there is a paucity of data from larger case series supporting this approach.To our knowledge, this is among the largest tubeless PCNL series. We found the use of fibrin sealant for tubeless PCNL was associated with excellent stone‐free rates (approaching 90%), short hospitalisation, and low complication rates. Tubeless PCNL with nephrostomy tract fibrin sealant appears to be viable option for appropriately select patients.OBJECTIVE
To report on our first 107 cases of tubeless percutaneous nephrolithotomy (PCNL) using fibrin sealant as a haemostatic agent within the access tract. PCNL is the preferred treatment for patients with large renal stones, and the tubeless technique with the use of fibrin sealant has recently gained popularity.
PATIENTS AND METHODS
We performed a retrospective review of single‐access, PCNL cases performed without a nephrostomy tube from January 2002 to July 2008.
Nephrostomy tracts were sealed at the conclusion of each procedure with fibrin‐containing haemostatic agents.
We evaluated demographic variables, tracked complications, and compared pre‐ and postoperative haemoglobin, haematocrit and creatinine levels.
On postoperative day 1 computed tomography was used to determine stone‐free rates.
Student's t‐test calculations were used to determine statistical significance at P≤ 0.05.
RESULTS
In all, 59 men and 48 women with a mean age of 43 years were included in the analysis of 107 cases. The mean stone size was 2.9 cm2 and the average hospital stay was 1.07 days.
Pre‐ and postoperative changes in serum haemoglobin and serum creatinine were not statistically different. Postoperative haematocrit declined by a mean of 4.5% (P≤ 0.05), but no patients required a transfusion.
Stone‐free rates were 72% overall, and 90% when excluding patients with residual fragments of <4 mm.
Complications included seven asymptomatic subcapsular haematomas, one pseudoaneurysm requiring selective embolization, one urine leak, and five return visits to the emergency room for pain.
CONCLUSIONS
The use of fibrin sealant in this large tubeless PCNL series was associated with favourable stone‐free rates, short hospital stays, and low complication rates with no significant bleeding.
Tubeless PCNL with nephrostomy tract fibrin sealant appears to be a viable option for appropriately selected patients, but future randomised trials are warranted.
The impact of metabolic syndrome on long‐term outcomes of percutaneous nephrolithotomy (PCNL)
Authors: Akman Tolga , Binbay Murat , Erbin Akif , Tepeler Abdulkadir , Sari Erhan , Kucuktopcu Onur , Ozgor Faruk , Muslumanoglu Ahmet 
Published: October 2012

Study Type – Prognosis (cohort)Level of Evidence 2bWhat's known on the subject? and What does the study add?The presence of metabolic syndrome is associated with development of kidney stones and an increase in the stone‐recurrence rate. However, studies reporting long‐term results of percutaneous nephrolithotomy (PCNL) in metabolic syndrome are lacking.The present study showed that metabolic syndrome was associated with worsening renal function at long‐term follow‐up and the stone‐recurrence rate recurrence after PCNL in patients with metabolic syndrome was 3.2‐fold higher compared with the control group.OBJECTIVE
To investigate the impact of metabolic syndrome on long‐term kidney function and stone recurrence rates after percutaneous nephrolithotomy (PCNL).
PATIENTS AND METHODS
In all, 73 patients with metabolic syndrome who underwent stone analysis and had a minimum follow‐up of 12 months after PCNL were reviewed.
In addition, 73 patients without any metabolic syndrome components who had undergone PCNL and were followed‐up for at least 12 months were included in the study as the control group.
These control group patients were selected from 226 patients who were matched with the patients with metabolic syndrome using a 1 : 1 ratio. The matching parameters were age, gender and stone size.
RESULTS
Stone analyses showed that calcium oxalate monohydrate (52.0%) and uric acid (21.9%) were most common among patients with metabolic syndrome, whereas calcium oxalate monohydrate (76.7%) was the most common stone type in the control group.
Stone recurrences occurred with a mean (sd, range) of 36.1 (21.3, 12–109) months follow‐up in 26 patients (41.9%) and 12 patients (18.9%) in the metabolic syndrome and control groups, respectively (P= 0.003).
While estimated glomerular filtration rate was decreased from 87.8 to 66.6 mL/min/1.73 m2 in the metabolic syndrome group, it changed from 96.4 to 91.2 mL/min/1.73 m2 in control group at long‐term follow‐up.
CONCLUSIONS
The most frequent stone type was calcium oxalate monohydrate in patients with or without metabolic syndrome.
In patients with metabolic syndrome who underwent PCNL, the stone recurrence rate was >40%.
Metabolic syndrome is associated with worsening renal function at long‐term follow‐up.
Simultaneous implantation of bilateral ureters into bladder acellular matrix graft after partial cystectomy in a porcine model
Authors: Mitsui Yozo , Shiina Hiroaki , Hiraoka Takeo , Arichi Naoko , Yasumoto Hiroaki , Dahiya Rajvir , Tanagho Emil A. , Igawa Mikio 
Published: October 2012

What's known on the subject? and What does the study add?The process of bladder regeneration with a bladder acellular matrix graft (BAMG) is thought to be accelerated by administration of vascular endothelial growth factor into the host bladder.In the present study, we showed that simultaneous implantation of bilateral ureters into a BAMG after a partial cystectomy is reasonable and provides an increased opportunity to the bio‐scaffold for communication with host tissues from which a blood supply and stem cells will be generated.OBJECTIVE
To evaluate if the implantation of bilateral ureters into a bladder acellular matrix graft (BAMG) at the time of its implantation would enhance bladder regeneration in a partial substitution BAMG.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
Partial cystectomies were performed under general anaesthesia in 12 pigs, followed by augmentation with a BAMG.
Six (ureteric implantation group) also received simultaneous implantation of bilateral ureters into the BAMG, while the remaining six (control group) did not have ureteric implantation.
In both groups, bladder regeneration was evaluated using endoscopic and histopathological methods at 1, 2, 4, and 8 weeks after implantation.
RESULTS
At 1 week after BAMG implantation, there were significant inflammatory changes on the host bladder in both groups, while no significant endoscopic changes were seen on the BAMG luminal surfaces.
At 2 weeks, inflammatory changes were diminished and epithelialisation on the BMAG was identified, especially near the host bladder in both groups.
Similarly, epithelialisation on the BAMG near the implanted ureters was seen in the ureteric implantation group.
At 4 and 8 weeks, epithelialisation remained in progress in both groups, although it was more active and expansive in the ureteric implantation group.
CONCLUSIONS
In our porcine model, endoscopic and histopathological examinations showed that simultaneous implantation of bilateral ureters into a BAMG enhanced epithelialisation of the AMG.
This new approach using host ureters and bladder as a potential source of bladder regeneration may provide for rapid and complete regeneration of a bladder substitute.
A Spatiotemporal GIS Framework Applied to the Analysis of Changes in Temperature Patterns
Authors: Bothwell James , Yuan May 
Published: October 2012

AbstractThis research develops a new temporal Geographic Information System (GIS) framework and applies it to compare General Circulation Model (GCM) products and reanalysis datasets in order to discern differences in patterns and locations of change as a proof of concept. The proposed framework incorporates the concept of kinematics to represent the movement of isolines as advection displacement vectors. Comparison of displacement vectors from the four datasets shows differences in isotherm shifts for both median values and interquartile ranges along with several prominent, well defined difference regions across the globe. Among the four datasets used in the study, the two reanalysis datasets have the smallest median difference in displacement vectors indicating the least spatiotemporal difference. As both reanalysis datasets are based on actual observations, this result validates the displacement vector representation. The CNRM CM3 20C3M dataset contains an Antarctic Cooling that led to most of the differences in displacement vectors against the other datasets. The research shows the effectiveness of GIS enabled displacement vectors analysis to elicit spatial differences in climate patterns among GCM data and reanalysis data. While temperature data were used in the case study, the proposed method is based on concepts applicable to other isolines of geographic variables (such as isobars or isohyets).
Trajectories of Moving Objects on a Network: Detection of Similarities, Visualization of Relations, and Classification of Trajectories
Authors: Sadahiro Yukio , Lay Raymond , Kobayashi Tetsuo 
Published: October 2012

AbstractDevelopment in techniques of spatial data acquisition enables us to easily record the trajectories of moving objects. Movement of human beings, animals, and birds can be captured by GPS loggers. The obtained data are analyzed by visualization, clustering, and classification to detect patterns frequently or rarely found in trajectories. To extract a wider variety of patterns in analysis, this article proposes a new method for analyzing trajectories on a network space. The method first extracts primary routes as subparts of trajectories. The topological relations among primary routes and trajectories are visualized as both a map and a graph‐based diagram. They permit us to understand the spatial and topological relations among the primary routes and trajectories at both global and local scales. The graph‐based diagram also permits us to classify trajectories. The representativeness of primary routes is evaluated by two numerical measures. The method is applied to the analysis of daily travel behavior of one of the authors. Technical soundness of the method is discussed as well as empirical findings.
Measuring Dynamic Interaction in Movement Data
Authors: Long Jed A. , Nelson Trisalyn A. 
Published: October 2012

AbstractThe emergence of technologies capable of storing detailed records of object locations has presented scientists and researchers with a wealth of data on object movement. Yet analytical methods for investigating more advanced research questions from such detailed movement datasets remain limited in scope and sophistication. Recent advances in the study of movement data has focused on characterizing types of dynamic interactions, such as single‐file motion, while little progress has been made on quantifying the degree of such interactions. In this article, we introduce a new method for measuring dynamic interactions (termed DI) between pairs of moving objects. Simulated movement datasets are used to compare DI with an existing correlation statistic. Two applied examples, team sports and wildlife, are used to further demonstrate the value of the DI approach. The DI method is advantageous in that it measures interaction in both movement direction (termed azimuth) and displacement. Also, the DI approach can be applied at local, interval, episodal, and global levels of analysis. However the DI method is limited to situations where movements of two objects are recorded at simultaneous points in time. In conclusion, DI quantifies the level of dynamic interaction between two moving objects, allowing for more thorough investigation of processes affecting interactive moving objects.
Finding Optimal Travel Routes with Uncertain Cost Data
Authors: Dean Denis J. 
Published: October 2012

AbstractGeospatial data analysis techniques are widely used to find optimal routes from specified starting points to specified destinations. Optimality is defined in terms of minimizing some impedance value over the length of the route – the value to be minimized might be distance, travel time, financial cost, or any other metric. Conventional analysis procedures assume that impedance values of all possible travel routes are known a priori, and when this assumption holds, efficient solution strategies exist that allow truly optimal solutions to be found for even very large problems. When impedance values are not known with certainty a priori, exact solution strategies do not exist and heuristics must be employed. This study evaluated how the quality of the solutions generated by one such heuristic were impacted by the nature of the uncertainty in the cost database, the nature of the costs themselves, and the parameters used in the heuristic algorithm. It was found that all of these factors influenced the qualities of the solutions produced by the heuristic, but encouragingly, an easily controlled parameter of the heuristic algorithm itself played the most important role in controlling solution quality.
Symbiotic Production and Optimal Export Policy
Authors: Liang Wen‐Jung , Mai Chao‐Cheng , Wang Tzu‐Kai 
Published: October 2012

AbstractThis paper constructs a two‐country trade model to examine the optimal policies relating to the export of final and intermediate products under Cournot as well as Bertrand competition when firms engage in symbiotic production internationally. The paper shows that given linear demand for the final product, the optimal export policies are to tax the exports of both the final and intermediate goods under symbiotic production, regardless of whether firms engage in Cournot or Bertrand competition in the final good market, which is contrary to the conventional wisdom.
Mate attraction by male anurans in the presence of traffic noise
Authors: Cunnington G. M. , Fahrig L. 
Published: October 2012

AbstractWe previously found that males of two anuran species –Hyla versicolorandRana clamitans –alter their mating calls in response to traffic noise. To test whether these alterations compensate for an effect of traffic noise on mate attraction, we (1) recorded a male calling at a quiet site; (2) played traffic noise at the same male and recorded its altered call; (3) used these recordings to attract females to a trap at sites either with or without broadcast traffic noise. The calls produced without traffic noise attracted fewer females when they were played at sites with traffic noise than when they were played at sites without noise. However, the calls of the same individuals produced with traffic noise attracted as many females at sites with noise as at sites without noise, and they attracted as many females as did the call of the same male made without noise and played at sites without noise (the ‘natural’ situation). Therefore, for these species, traffic noise does not affect mate attraction; males change their calls to compensate for a potential effect of traffic noise on mate attraction. A third species –Bufo americanus –does not alter its call in response to traffic noise, and its call made in the absence or presence of traffic noise was equally able to attract females in the absence or presence of traffic noise, indicating that traffic noise does not negatively affect mate attraction. Therefore, it appears that traffic noise does not negatively affect mate attraction in these three species of anurans. We suggest that, if our results apply to anurans in general, the previously documented negative effects of roads on anuran populations are likely caused mainly by road mortality. If this is true, road mitigation for anurans should focus mainly on reducing this mortality.
The key host for an invasive forest pathogen also facilitates the pathogen's survival of wildfire in California forests
Authors: Beh Maia M. , Metz Margaret R. , Frangioso Kerri M. , Rizzo David M. 
Published: October 2012

Summary

The first wildfires in sudden oak death‐impacted forests occurred in 2008 in the Big Sur region of California, creating the rare opportunity to study the interaction between an invasive forest pathogen and a historically recurring disturbance.

To determine whether and how the sudden oak death pathogen, Phytophthora ramorum, survived the wildfires, we completed intensive vegetation‐based surveys in forest plots that were known to be infested before the wildfires. We then used 24 plot‐based variables as predictors of P. ramorum recovery following the wildfires.

The likelihood of recovering P. ramorum from burned plots was lower than in unburned plots both 1 and 2 yr following the fires. Post‐fire recovery of P. ramorum in burned plots was positively correlated with the number of pre‐fire symptomatic California bay laurel (Umbellularia californica), the key sporulating host for this pathogen, and negatively correlated with post‐fire bay laurel mortality levels.

Patchy burn patterns that left green, P. ramorum‐infected bay laurel amidst the charred landscape may have allowed these trees to serve as inoculum reservoirs that could lead to the infection of newly sprouting vegetation, further highlighting the importance of bay laurel in the sudden oak death disease cycle.
Permanent raised beds improved soil structure and yield of spring wheat in arid north‐western China
Authors: He J. , McHugh A. D. , Li H. W. , Wang Q. J. , Li W. Y. , Rasaily R. G. , Li H. 
Published: October 2012

AbstractIn arid north‐western China, soil degradation, limited water and subsequent yield decline, largely as a result of excessive tillage and residue removal practices, are the main factors limiting further development of local agriculture. The effects of permanent raised beds (PRB), no‐till (NT) and traditional tillage (TT) on soil structure and yield were investigated in a wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) – maize (Zea mays L.) cropping system from 2004 to 2009 in the Hexi Corridor of Gansu Province, China. PRB and NT had more macro‐aggregates (>0.25 mm, +2.7%), a better distribution of pore size classes and improved hydraulic conductivity, whereas TT soils were dominated by micro‐aggregates and micro‐porosity. In PRB, soil bulk density decreased significantly by 6.3 and 7.0% for the 0‐ to 10‐cm and 20‐ to 30‐cm depths relative to TT. The PRB mean crop yields increased by 4.2% and water use efficiency improved by 21.3% compared with TT because of greater soil moisture and improved soil physical and chemical status. These improvements in soil properties, yield and water use are of considerable importance for soil regeneration, food security and sustainable agriculture in arid regions, such as north‐western China.
Semidefinite relaxation for linear programs with equilibrium constraints
Authors: Fampa Marcia H.C. , Melo Wendel A.X. , Maculan Nelson 
Published: October 2012

AbstractIn this paper, we present a semidefinite programming (SDP) relaxation for linear programs with equilibrium constraints (LPECs) to be used in a branch‐and‐bound (B&B) algorithm. The procedure utilizes the global optimal solution of LPECs and was motivated by the B&B algorithm proposed by Bard and Moore for linear/quadratic bilevel programs, where complementarities are recursively enforced. We propose the use of the SDP relaxation to generate bounds at the nodes of the B&B tree. Computational results compare the quality of the bounds given by the SDP relaxation with the ones given by conventional linear programming relaxations.
Comparison of maternal abdominal subcutaneous fat thickness and body mass index as markers for pregnancy outcomes: A stratified cohort study
Authors: Suresh Ashwin , Liu Anthony , Poulton Alison , Quinton Ann , Amer Zara , Mongelli Max , Martin Andrew , Benzie Ronald , Peek Michael , Nanan Ralph 
Published: October 2012

BackgroundObesity in pregnancy is associated with a number of adverse outcomes. The effects of central versus general obesity in pregnancy have not been well established.AimTo compare subcutaneous fat thickness (SFT) with body mass index (BMI) as a marker for pregnancy outcomes.MethodsA stratified retrospective cohort study was performed on 1200 pregnancies, selected from a total of 4862 nulliparous, nonsmoking women between 2006 and 2010. SFT was measured on routine ultrasound at 18–22 weeks gestation. BMI and SFT measurements were compared for estimating risks for obesity‐related pregnancy outcomes using logistic regression adjusted for maternal age.ResultsThe median SFT was 18.2 mm (range 6.3–50.9 mm), the median BMI was 23.8 kg/m2 (range 15.2–52.5), and the correlation between SFT and BMI was 0.53. For every 5 mm increase in SFT and every 5 kg/m2 increase in BMI, the odds ratios for developing gestational diabetes mellitus were 1.40 (CI 1.22–1.61, P < 0.001) and 1.16 (CI 0.95–1.40, P = 0.1), for caesarean section 1.28 (CI 1.16–1.40, P < 0.001) and 1.16 (CI 1.05–1.28, P = 0.003), large for gestational age 1.28 (CI 1.16–1.47, P = 0.001) and 1.10 (CI 0.95–1.28, P = 0.16) and cumulative adverse obesity‐related pregnancy outcomes 1.16 (CI 1.10–1.28, P = 0.002) and 1.05 (CI 0.95–1.16, P = 0.45), respectively.ConclusionSFT at 18–22 weeks gestation is better than BMI as a marker for obesity‐related pregnancy outcomes. As SFT is considered a surrogate measure for visceral fat, these results suggest that central obesity is a stronger risk factor than general adiposity in pregnancy.