bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Barriers to Same‐Day Discharge of Patients Undergoing Total and Completion Thyroidectomy
Authors: Rutledge Jonathan , Siegel Eric , Belcher Ryan , Bodenner Donald , Stack Brendan C. 
Published: February 2014

ObjectiveDescribe barriers to same‐day surgery for patients undergoing total and completion thyroidectomy.Study DesignCase series with chart review.SettingAcademic health sciences center.Subjects and MethodsThe subjects were patients who underwent total thyroidectomy or completion thyroidectomy and remained in hospital overnight or longer. A review was performed on patients who were operated on by a single surgeon from July 2005 through June 2013.ResultsTwo hundred and sixty‐eight cases were planned for same‐day surgery. One hundred patients were not discharged on the same day (37%). Patients observed overnight or admitted to hospital had significantly lower postoperative calcium levels, 8.4 mg/dL (P <. 0001), and lower intraoperative parathyroid hormone (PTH), mean 6.0 pg/mL (P <. 0001). Those significantly more likely to require overnight observation were male patients (P =. 0117), black patients (P =. 0045), those with completion thyroidectomy (P =. 0039), and those with a complication of surgery (P =. 003).ConclusionIntraoperative PTH less than 10 pg/mL was the most frequent factor (25.7%) precluding same‐day discharge, followed by admission for social/financial/transportation reasons (22.6%), large dead space from goiter (15.5%), multiple comorbidities (13.4%), multiple surgical reasons (5.2%), airway observation (5.2%), pain management (3.1%), and intractable nausea due to general anesthetic (2.1%). Hypocalcemia and postoperative bleeding still remain obstacles to outpatient thyroid surgery; however, the use of rapid PTH testing, modern hemostatic techniques, appropriate calcium prophylaxis, and experienced clinical decision making can effectively stratify which patients require overnight observation.
Nurses’ perceptions of the use of restraint in pediatric somatic care
Authors: Kangasniemi Mari , Papinaho Oili , Korhonen Anne 
Published: February 2014

Background: The interest in the children’s role in pediatric care is connected to children’s health-related autonomy and informed consent in care. Despite the strong history of children’s rights, nurses’ role in the everyday nursing phenomenon, that is, restraint in somatic pediatric care, is still relatively seldom reported. Aim: The aim of this study is to describe nurses’ perceptions of the use of restraint in somatic pediatric care. The ultimate aim is to deepen the understanding of the phenomenon of restraint, whose previous study has been fragmented. Methods: Qualitative approach was selected because of the lack of previous information. Due to the sensitivity of the research question, individual interviewees were selected among voluntary nurses (n = 8). All participants were registered nurses with general work experience as nurses of 5–16 years on average and specifically 1.5–10 years in pediatric nursing. Inductive content analysis was used for aiming to produce a synthesis of the research phenomenon. Ethical considerations: The research received organizational approval by the university hospital, and informed consent and confidentiality were ensured. Results: Restraint in pediatric nursing was process-like, but occurred without advanced planning. The restraint-related process included five categories: (a) identification of the situations where restraint may occur, (b) finding preventive methods, (c) identification of different forms of restraint, (d) rationing the use of restraint, and (e) post-restraint acts. Restraint was seen as a part of pediatric nursing which occurred daily and involved several professionals. According to the nurses’ illustrations, restraint means doing things even when a child is not agreeable. Conclusion: Restraint is part of somatic pediatric nursing, described as the last, but in some cases, the only resort for carrying out care or treatment. Restraint is not a goal in itself, but an instrumental tool and procedure in carrying out care. In the future, more information about nurses’ role and the use of restraint in pediatric nursing is still needed.
Evaluation of the first year of the Oxpal Medlink: A web-based partnership designed to address specific challenges facing medical education in the occupied Palestinian territories
Authors: Penfold Rose S , Ali Mohammad A , Ali Adam M , Patel Ishita , MacGregor Thomas , Shankar Sushma , Cahill Thomas J , Finlayson Alexander ET , Mahmud Imran 
Published: February 2014

Objectives To (1) evaluate educational needs of clinical students at Al-Quds University Medical School in the West Bank; (2) address these needs where possible using synchronous distance learning, with clinicians in Oxford providing case-based tutorials to undergraduates in the West Bank via an online platform (WizIQ) and (3) assess the impact of this education. Design Review of online OxPal Medlink database for tutorials held between March 2012 and April 2013. Needs assessment and evaluation of student and tutor experiences through online questionnaires, focus groups and semi-structured interviews. Setting Oxford University Hospitals, Oxford, UK, and Al-Quds University Medical School, Abu Dies, Palestine. Participants Doctors at Oxford University Hospitals and fourth-, fifth- and sixth-year medical students and faculty members at Al-Quds Medical School. Main outcome measures Number of tutorials, student participation, student-rated satisfaction and qualitative feedback from tutors and students. Results Students demonstrated strong theoretical knowledge but struggled to apply this in presentation-based scenarios. Between March 2012 and April 2013, 90 tutorials were delivered to 60 students. Feedback: >95% respondents rated tutorials as ‘Excellent’ or ‘Good’ and ‘Very’ or ‘Fairly’ relevant to their future practice in Palestine. Students reported the programme had modified their approach to patients but requested better synchronization with concurrent attachments and clarification of learning outcomes. Conclusions OxPal Medlink is a novel, web-based distance-learning partnership designed to overcome some of the challenges to local medical education in the occupied Palestinian territories. Evaluation of the first year indicates teaching is relevant to local practice and of high quality. This approach may have the potential to strengthen local capacity for medical education.
Rapid air infusion into the oesophagus: Motor response in patients with achalasia and nonobstructive dysphagia assessed with high‐resolution manometry
Authors: Elvevi Alessandra , Mauro Aurelio , Consonni Dario , Pugliese Delia , Tenca Andrea , Franchina Marianna , Conte Dario , Penagini Roberto 
Published: February 2014

BackgroundAchalasia is a neurodegenerative disorder of the oesophagus. Alteration of motor activity induced by oesophageal distension has not been explored.ObjectivesTo investigate this function, using high‐resolution Manometry.MethodsThis study enrolled 15 healthy subjects, 15 nonobstructive dysphagia (NOD), and 18 achalasia patients successfully treated with pneumatic dilation (six with restored peristalsis). The three groups underwent five rapid (<1 s) intraoesophageal infusions of 20‐ml air boluses, followed by eight 5‐ml water swallows.ResultsWhereas the response rate to water swallows was similar in the three groups, air infusion induced a lower response rate in achalasia (median, interquartile range: 70%, 40–100%) and, to a lesser extent, in NOD patients (100%, 60–100%) than in healthy subjects (100%, 100–100%; p  < 0.001 and p  = 0.06, respectively). However, the response rate was highly variable in achalasia patients irrespective of presence of peristalsis. Furthermore, the strength of motor response to air infusion when compared to water swallows was diminished in achalasia patients but not in healthy subjects and NOD.ConclusionsMotor response to rapid air infusion was variably impaired in achalasia. The role of this alteration in the long‐term outcome deserves evaluation.
Tracing the development of acute myeloid leukemia in CBL syndrome
Authors: Becker Heiko , Yoshida Kenichi , Blagitko-Dorfs Nadja , Claus Rainer , Pantic Milena , Abdelkarim Mahmoud , Niemöller Christoph , Greil Christine , Hackanson Björn , Shiraishi Yuichi , Chiba Kenichi , Tanaka Hiroko , Miyano Satoru , Döhner Konstanze , Schnittger Susanne , Henneke Philipp , Niemeyer Charlotte M. , Flotho Christian , Pfeifer Dietmar , Ogawa Seishi , Lübbert Michael 
Published: February 2014

Key Points
The CBL syndrome may predispose to myeloid neoplasias other than juvenile myelomonocytic leukemia. Whole-exome sequencing identifies mutations that possibly cooperate with mutant CBL in AML development.
Comparison of oral and intravenous Alfacalcidol in chronic hemodialysis patients
Authors: Lessard Myriam , Ouimet Denis , Leblanc Martine , Nadeau-Fredette Annie-Claire , Bell Robert , Lafrance Jean-Philippe , Pichette Vincent , Vallée Michel 
Published: February 2014

Abstract

Background
Activated vitamin D is the mainstay of treatment for secondary hyperparathyroidism (SHPT) in chronic hemodialysis patients. However, the optimal route of administration is still debated. The aim of our study was to compare efficacy of oral vs intravenous (IV) administration of alfacalcidol in hemodialysis. A secondary objective was to determine the cost-effectiveness advantage of oral administration.

Methods
Eighty-eight chronic hemodialysis patients receiving IV alfacalcidol three times a week were included in the study. All were switched to the same dose of alfacalcidol given orally three times a week during the hemodialysis session. A budget impact analysis was performed.

Results
Mean patient age was 64 years old and 43% were males. The mean alfacalcidol dose administered was 2.1 μg three times a week. After three months, serum parathormone (PTH) levels decreased from 80 to 59 pmol/L (p = 0.001) and total serum calcium levels increased from 2.34 to 2.40 mmol/L (p = 0.002). After six months, total serum calcium levels were still significantly higher. Alfacalcidol dosage was significantly decreased during study period; the mean reduction was 0.44 μg per dose. Finally, oral administration was associated with an annual cost reduction of 197 678$CAN and an annual nursing time reduction of 25 days.

Conclusion
Our findings support that switching IV to oral administration of alfacalcidol during hemodialysis sessions may lead to a similar control of SHPT with lower doses of activated vitamin D. This is a good strategy for optimizing compliance and may allow a dose reduction because of a greater efficacy to suppress PTH. Oral administration also has significant cost-effectiveness advantages.
Epidemiological characteristics of acute disseminated encephalomyelitis in Nanchang, China: a retrospective study
Authors: Xiong Chang-hui , Yan Yan , Liao Zhen , Peng Shi-hui , Wen Hai-rong , Zhang Yan-xia , Chen Shu-hua , Li Jian , Chen Hai-ying , Feng Xiao-wu , Yao Hui-qing , Huang Li , Zhang Li 
Published: February 2014

Abstract

Background
Acute disseminated encephalomyelitis (ADEM) is an autoimmune disease that typically follows a monophasic course and may affect any age group. The precise population-based incidence of ADEM is still unknown in most countries. In China, there is no ADEM surveillance system. The exact incidence of ADEM is difficult to estimate, and other epidemiological characteristics of ADEM are unknown. The purpose of this study is to investigate the epidemiological characteristics of ADEM in Nanchang, China.

Methods
A retrospective investigation was conducted with ADEM patients admitted to second-level and third-level hospitals in Nanchang from 2008 to 2010, aiming to analyse the epidemiologic characteristics of ADEM in the population in Nanchang. ADEM patients, defined as patients who were diagnosed according to the consensus definition of ADEM provided by the International Pediatric MS Study Group, were enrolled in the study. The data were extracted from the ADEM patients’ medical records.

Results
Forty-seven ADEM patients were investigated. The average annual incidence was 0.31/100,000; the incidence among males (0.31/100,000) was nearly equal to that among females (0.31/100,000). The median age of onset was 25.97 years old, and the peak incidence was observed in the 5- to 9-year-old age group (0.75/100,000), followed by the over-60 age group (0.55/100,000). ADEM occurs throughout the year, but it occurs most frequently in March (n = 7) and least frequently in April and July (both n = 2). The patient numbers are roughly even in the other months. In the 2 months before the onset of ADEM, 15 patients presented with a preceding infection, but none of the patients received a vaccination. An increased number of vaccination was not accompanied by a corresponding increased number of cases of ADEM.

Conclusions
The average annual incidence of ADEM was 0.31/100,000 in Nanchang. The incidence among males was nearly equal to that among females. The peak age of onset was 5–9 years old. The peak season of onset was not apparent. There was no evidence of an association between increased number of vaccines administered and number of cases of ADEM in Nanchang, China.
Retroperitoneal laparoscopic technique in treatment of complex renal stones: 75 cases
Authors: Qin Chao , Wang Shangqian , Li Pu , Cao Qiang , Shao Pengfei , Li Pengchao , Han Zhijian , Tao Jun , Meng Xiaoxin , Ju Xiaobing , Song Rijin , Li Jie , Zhang Wei , Lu Qiang , Yin Changjun 
Published: February 2014

Abstract

Background
In most hospitals, several options for the management of renal stones are available: shockwave lithotripsy, endourologic treatment, or surgery. Choice of treatment is based on the anatomic characteristics of the patient, and the location and size of the stones. In this study we assessed a retroperitoneal laparoscopic technique for treatment of complex renal stones.

Methods
Seventy-five patients, including 53 men and 22 women with a mean age of 47.8 years (range 18–74 y), underwent retroperitoneal laparoscopy for the treatment of complex renal stones between July 2006 and November 2012 in our hospital.

Results
The retroperitoneal laparoscopic procedures for treatment of complex renal stones were completely successful in 73 cases, while 2 cases converted to open surgery. The operative time was 85–190 min with a mean of 96 min. The estimated blood lost was 20–400 mL with a mean of 80 mL. After the operation 7 patients experienced urinary leakage. Ultrasonography, x-ray of the kidney, ureter and bladder, and intravenous urography were reviewed at post-procedural follow-up at 6–82 months. No hydronephrosis aggravation was found, and there was no calculus recurrence.

Conclusion
The merits of retroperitoneal laparoscopy for the treatment of complex renal stones include sparing the nephron, less bleeding, short hospitalization, quick postoperative recovery, and controllable procedure after training Success depends on the experience of surgeons and judicious selection of cases.
Ephrin (Eph) receptor A1, A4, A5 and A7 expression in human non-small cell lung carcinoma: associations with clinicopathological parameters, tumor proliferative capacity and patients’ survival
Authors: Giaginis Constantinos , Tsoukalas Nikolaos , Bournakis Evangelos , Alexandrou Paraskevi , Kavantzas Nikolaos , Patsouris Efstratios , Theocharis Stamatios 
Published: February 2014

Abstract

Background
Ephrin (Eph) receptors are frequently overexpressed in a wide variety of human malignant tumors, being associated with tumor growth, invasion, metastasis and angiogenesis. The present study aimed to evaluate the clinical significance of EphA1, A4, A5 and A7 protein expression in non-small cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC).

Methods
EphA1, A4, A5 and A7 protein expression was assessed immunohistochemically in tissue microarrays of 88 surgically resected NSCLC and was analyzed in relation with clinicopathological characteristics and patients’ survival.

Results
Elevated EphA4 expression was significantly associated with low histopathological stage and presence of inflammation (p = 0.047 and p = 0.026, respectively). Elevated EphA7 expression was significantly associated with older patients’ age, presence of fibrosis and smaller tumor size (p = 0.036, p = 0.029 and p = 0.018, respectively). EphA1, A5 and A7 expression were positively associated with tumor proliferative capacity (p = 0.047, p = 0.002 and p = 0.046, respectively). Elevated EphA4, A5 and A7 expression were identified as predictors of favourable patients’ survival at both univariate (Log-rank test, 0 = 0.019, p = 0.006 and p = 0.012, respectively) and multivariate levels (Cox-regression analysis, p = 0.029, p = 0.068 and p = 0.044, respectively).

Conclusions
The present study supported evidence that Ephs may be involved in lung cancer progression, reinforcing their utility as clinical biomarkers for patients’ management and prognosis, as also as potential targets for future therapeutic interventions.
Relaxed and composite viscosity methods for variational inequalities, fixed points of nonexpansive mappings and zeros of accretive operators
Authors: Ceng Lu-Chuan , Al-Otaibi Abdullah , Ansari Qamrul Hasan , Latif Abdul 
Published: February 2014

AbstractIn this paper, we present relaxed and composite viscosity methods for computing a common solution of a general systems of variational inequalities, common fixed points of infinitely many nonexpansive mappings and zeros of accretive operators in real smooth and uniformly convex Banach spaces. The relaxed and composite viscosity methods are based on Korpelevich’s extragradient method, the viscosity approximation method and the Mann iteration method. Under suitable assumptions, we derive some strong convergence theorems for relaxed and composite viscosity algorithms not only in the setting of a uniformly convex and 2-uniformly smooth Banach space but also in a uniformly convex Banach space having a uniformly Gâteaux differentiable norm. The results presented in this paper improve, extend, supplement, and develop the corresponding results given in the literature.
A Grassmann graph embedding framework for gait analysis
Authors: Connie Tee , Goh Michael Kah Ong , Teoh Andrew Beng Jin 
Published: February 2014

Abstract
Gait recognition is important in a wide range of monitoring and surveillance applications. Gait information has often been used as evidence when other biometrics is indiscernible in the surveillance footage. Building on recent advances of the subspace-based approaches, we consider the problem of gait recognition on the Grassmann manifold. We show that by embedding the manifold into reproducing kernel Hilbert space and applying the mechanics of graph embedding on such manifold, significant performance improvement can be obtained. In this work, the gait recognition problem is studied in a unified way applicable for both supervised and unsupervised configurations. Sparse representation is further incorporated in the learning mechanism to adaptively harness the local structure of the data. Experiments demonstrate that the proposed method can tolerate variations in appearance for gait identification effectively.
Comparison of physician-certified verbal autopsy with computer-coded verbal autopsy for cause of death assignment in hospitalized patients in low- and middle-income countries: systematic review
Authors: Leitao Jordana , Desai Nikita , Aleksandrowicz Lukasz , Byass Peter , Miasnikof Pierre , Tollman Stephen , Alam Dewan , Lu Ying , Rathi Suresh Kumar , Singh Abhishek , Suraweera Wilson , Ram Faujdar , Jha Prabhat 
Published: February 2014

Abstract

Background
Computer-coded verbal autopsy (CCVA) methods to assign causes of death (CODs) for medically unattended deaths have been proposed as an alternative to physician-certified verbal autopsy (PCVA). We conducted a systematic review of 19 published comparison studies (from 684 evaluated), most of which used hospital-based deaths as the reference standard. We assessed the performance of PCVA and five CCVA methods: Random Forest, Tariff, InterVA, King-Lu, and Simplified Symptom Pattern.

Methods
The reviewed studies assessed methods’ performance through various metrics: sensitivity, specificity, and chance-corrected concordance for coding individual deaths, and cause-specific mortality fraction (CSMF) error and CSMF accuracy at the population level. These results were summarized into means, medians, and ranges.

Results
The 19 studies ranged from 200 to 50,000 deaths per study (total over 116,000 deaths). Sensitivity of PCVA versus hospital-assigned COD varied widely by cause, but showed consistently high specificity. PCVA and CCVA methods had an overall chance-corrected concordance of about 50% or lower, across all ages and CODs. At the population level, the relative CSMF error between PCVA and hospital-based deaths indicated good performance for most CODs. Random Forest had the best CSMF accuracy performance, followed closely by PCVA and the other CCVA methods, but with lower values for InterVA-3.

Conclusions
There is no single best-performing coding method for verbal autopsies across various studies and metrics. There is little current justification for CCVA to replace PCVA, particularly as physician diagnosis remains the worldwide standard for clinical diagnosis on live patients. Further assessments and large accessible datasets on which to train and test combinations of methods are required, particularly for rural deaths without medical attention.
Using climate-FVS to project landscape-level forest carbon stores for 100 years from field and LiDAR measures of initial conditions
Authors: Gálvez Fabián B , Hudak Andrew T , Byrne John C , Crookston Nicholas L , Keefe Robert F 
Published: February 2014

Abstract

Background
Forest resources supply a wide range of environmental services like mitigation of increasing levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2). As climate is changing, forest managers have added pressure to obtain forest resources by following stand management alternatives that are biologically sustainable and economically profitable. The goal of this study is to project the effect of typical forest management actions on forest C levels, given a changing climate, in the Moscow Mountain area of north-central Idaho, USA. Harvest and prescribed fire management treatments followed by plantings of one of four regionally important commercial tree species were simulated, using the climate-sensitive version of the Forest Vegetation Simulator, to estimate the biomass of four different planted species and their C sequestration response to three climate change scenarios.

Results
Results show that anticipated climate change induces a substantial decrease in C sequestration potential regardless of which of the four tree species tested are planted. It was also found that Pinus monticola has the highest capacity to sequester C by 2110, followed by Pinus ponderosa, then Pseudotsuga menziesii, and lastly Larix occidentalis.

Conclusions
Variability in the growth responses to climate change exhibited by the four planted species considered in this study points to the importance to forest managers of considering how well adapted seedlings may be to predicted climate change, before the seedlings are planted, and particularly if maximizing C sequestration is the management goal.