bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Dental flossing behaviour and its determinants among students in a suburb area of Tehran–Iran: using Transtheoretical Model
Authors: Kamalikhah T , Mazllomi Mahmood abad Ss , Khalighinejad N , Rahmati‐Najarkolaei F 
Published: June 2015

AbstractObjectivesOral health problems are a global concern particularly among underprivileged groups. This study aimed to use TTM model to assess the flossing behaviour and its determinants among students in a suburb area and compare the flossing behaviour between boys and girls using TTM.MethodsCluster sampling was employed to recruit 653 high school students from eight schools in Tehran suburban area, Iran. Two self‐administrated questionnaires: (i) stage of change questionnaire and (ii) TTM constructs questionnaire including demographic features, decisional balance (perceived benefits and barriers), self‐efficacy and process of change were used to assess the flossing behaviour and its psychological determinants. The statistical analysis of the data included Kruskal–Wallis test, t‐test, anova, Spearman correlation and binary logistic regression using SPSS ver15 software.ResultsIn this study, 301 (46.1%) and 352 (53.9%) of participants were women and men, respectively. Nearly half of the students (51.4%) were in precontemplation stage with the rest distributed among the other stages of flossing behaviour change. There was no statistically significant difference between genders regarding the stages of change (P < 0.05). Flossing behaviour is related to TTM constructs such as self‐efficacy, perceived benefits, low perceived barriers and process of changes.ConclusionAccording to the results of this study, TTM is useful in determining the stages of interdental cleaning behaviour among students. However, further interventional researches are suggested to support the potential for eventual use of the TTM as a framework for understanding the determinants of interdental cleaning behaviour.
Intakes of Magnesium, Potassium, and Calcium and the Risk of Stroke among Men
Authors: Adebamowo Sally N. , Spiegelman Donna , Flint Alan J. , Willett Walter C. , Rexrode Kathryn M. 
Published: June 2015

Background Intakes of magnesium, potassium, and calcium have been inversely associated with the incidence of hypertension, a known risk factor for stroke. However, only a few studies have examined intakes of these cations in relation to risk of stroke. Aim The aim of this study was to investigate whether high intake of magnesium, potassium, and calcium is associated with reduced stroke risk among men. Methods We prospectively examined the associations between intakes of magnesium, potassium, and calcium from diet and supplements, and the risk of incident stroke among 42 669 men in the Health Professionals Follow-up Study, aged 40 to 75 years and free of diagnosed cardiovascular disease and cancer at baseline in 1986. We calculated the hazard ratio of total, ischemic, and haemorrhagic strokes by quintiles of each cation intake, and of a combined dietary score of all three cations, using multivariate Cox proportional hazard models. Results During 24 years of follow-up, 1547 total stroke events were documented. In multivariate analyses, the relative risks and 95% confidence intervals of total stroke for men in the highest vs. lowest quintile were 0·87 (95% confidence interval, 0·74–1·02; P, trend = 0·04) for dietary magnesium, 0·89 (95% confidence interval, 0·76–1·05; P, trend = 0·10) for dietary potassium, and 0·89 (95% confidence interval, 0·75–1·04; P, trend = 0·25) for dietary calcium intake. The relative risk of total stroke for men in the highest vs. lowest quintile was 0·74 (95% confidence interval, 0·59–0·93; P, trend = 0·003) for supplemental magnesium, 0·66 (95% confidence interval, 0·50–0·86; P, trend = 0·002) for supplemental potassium, and 1·01 (95% confidence interval, 0·84–1·20; P, trend = 0·83) for supplemental calcium intake. For total intake (dietary and supplemental), the relative risk of total stroke for men in the highest vs. lowest quintile was 0·83 (95% confidence interval, 0·70–0·99; P, trend = 0·04) for magnesium, 0·88 (95% confidence interval, 0·75–4; P, trend = 6) for potassium, and 3 (95% confidence interval, 79–09; P, trend = 84) for calcium. Men in the highest quintile for a combined dietary score of all three cations had a multivariate relative risk of 0·79 (95% confidence interval, 0·67–0·92; P, trend = 0·008) for total stroke, compared with those in the lowest. Conclusions A diet rich in magnesium, potassium, and calcium may contribute to reduced risk of stroke among men. Because of significant collinearity, the independent contribution of each cation is difficult to define.
Poor Utility of Grading Scales in Acute Intracerebral Hemorrhage: Results from the Interact2 Trial
Authors: Heeley Emma , Anderson Craig S. , Woodward Mark , Arima Hisatomi , Robinson Thompson , Stapf Christian , Parsons Mark , Lavados Pablo M. , Huang Yining , Wang Yanxia , Crozier Sophie , Parry-Jones Adrian , Wang Jiguang , Chalmers John 
Published: June 2015

Background Several simple clinical grading scores have been developed for intracerebral hemorrhage, primarily to predict 30-day mortality. Aims We aimed to determine the accuracy of three popular scores (original intracerebral hemorrhage, modified intracerebral hemorrhage, and intracerebral hemorrhage grading scale) on 30-day mortality and 90-day death or major disability, and whether the magnitude of benefit varies according to prognosis graded by the three predictive scores. Methods Data from the Intensive Blood Pressure Reduction in Acute Cerebral Hemorrhage Trial which included 2839 intracerebral hemorrhage patients (<6 hours) and elevated systolic blood pressure (150–220 mmHg), randomized to intensive (target systolic blood pressure <140 mmHg) or guideline-based (<180 mmHg) blood pressure management. Discrimination of scales for predicting death and poor outcome (modified Rankin scale 3–6) was evaluated in area under receiver operator characteristic curves. Results Among 2556 (90%) participants with available data, the modified intracerebral hemorrhage had the highest discrimination (receiver operator characteristic 0·75) for 90-day poor outcome compared with the original intracerebral hemorrhage (receiver operator characteristic 0·68) and intracerebral hemorrhage grading scale (receiver operator characteristic 0·69). All scores had good positive predictive value (approximately 80–90%) for poor outcome but poor sensitivity and positive predictive value for death. The scores do not clearly discriminate a patient group most likely to benefit from blood pressure lowering. Conclusions Intracerebral hemorrhage prognostic scores are not useful in defining patients at high probability of early death, but they are reliable for predicting poor outcome, defined by death or major disability. Potential benefits of early intensive blood pressure lowering are broadly applicable across grades of severity defined by such scores.
Intra-Arterial Bone Marrow Mononuclear Cells (BM-MNCS) Transplantation in Acute Ischemic Stroke (IBiS Trial): Protocol of a Phase II, Randomized, Dose-Finding, Controlled Multicenter Trial
Authors: Moniche Francisco , Escudero Irene , Zapata-Arriaza Elena , Usero-Ruiz María , Prieto-León María , de la Torre Javier , Gamero Miguel-Angel , Tamayo Jose Antonio , Ochoa-Sepúlveda Juan-José , Maestre José , Carmona Magdalena , Piñero Pilar , Calderón-Cabrera Cristina , Jimenez Maria-Dolores , Gonzalez Alejandro , Montaner Joan 
Published: June 2015

Rationale No neuroprotective or neurorestorative therapies have been approved for ischemic stroke. Bone marrow mononuclear cell intra-arterial transplantation improves recovery in experimental models of ischemic stroke. Aims This trial aims to test safety and efficacy of intra-arterial injection of autologous bone marrow mononuclear cell in ischemic stroke patients. Design Multicenter, prospective, phase II, randomized, controlled (non-treated group as control), assessor-blinded clinical trial. Seventy-six stroke patients will be enrolled. Patients fulfilling clinical and radiological criteria (e.g. age between 18 and 80 years, middle cerebral artery ischemic stroke with a National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale score of 6–20 within one- to seven-days from stroke onset and no lacunar stroke) will be randomized to intervention or control group (1 : 1). Bone marrow harvest and intra-arterial injection of autologous bone marrow mononuclear cell will be done in the intervention group with two different doses (2 × 106/kg or 5 × 106/kg in 1 : 1 proportion). Patients will be stratified at randomization by National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale score. Patients will be followed up for two-years. Study outcomes The primary outcome is the proportion of patients with modified Rankin Scale scores of 0–2 at 180 days. Secondary outcomes include National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale and Barthel scores at six-months, infarct volume, mortality, and seizures. Discussion This is the first trial to explore efficacy of different doses of intra-arterial bone marrow mononuclear cell in moderate-to-severe acute ischemic stroke patients. The trial is registered as NCT02178657.
Income inequalities and stroke mortality trends in Sao Paulo, Brazil, 1996-2011
Authors: Fernandes Tiótrefis G. , Bando Daniel H. , Alencar Airlane P. , Benseñor Isabela M. , Lotufo Paulo A. 
Published: June 2015

Background It is not clear the relationship between stroke mortality trends and socioeconomic inequalities in low- and middle-income countries. Aims We compared differences of trends in stroke mortality by socioeconomic status in the city of Sao Paulo, Brazil. Methods We analyzed the intra-urban distribution of stroke death rates from 1996 to 2011 for persons aged 35-74 years old according to income using joinpoint regression. Results We confirmed 77 848 stroke deaths in the period, 51-4% of them among persons aged 35-74 years old. For all areas, there was parallelism between genders, and the average annual percent changes combined was -5.2 (-5.7 to -4.6) from 1996 to 2005 and -30 (-4.3 to -1.7) from 2005 to 2011. The full period average annual percent changes of age-adjusted rates between persons living in the high- and low-income area were, respectively, -5.4 and -4.2 ( P = 0.002) for men and -5.9 vs.-4.9 ( P = 0.017) for women. Differences in the risk of stroke between the high- and low-income areas increased more than twofold in the period in both genders. Conclusions The risk of stroke death is decreasing in all regions, but the faster decline in mortality rates in the wealthiest area contributes to further greater inequalities.
Sparing of the Hippocampus Indicates Better Collateral Blood Flow in Acute Posterior Cerebral Artery Occlusion
Authors: Förster Alex , Mürle Bettina , Kerl Hans U. , Wenz Holger , Al-Zghloul Mansour , Habich Sonia , Groden Christoph 
Published: June 2015

Background In acute posterior cerebral artery, occlusion involvement of the hippocampus is a common finding. Nevertheless, until today, infarction and ischemic lesion evolution in the hippocampus has not been studied systematically. Aim Evaluation of hippocampal infarction patterns in posterior cerebral artery occlusion in the very early phase (≤six-hours) and ischemic lesion evolution on follow-up magnetic resonance imaging in relation to collateral blood flow assessed by a magnetic resonance imaging-based approach was conducted. Methods In 28 patients [mean age 69·4 ± 13·8 years, 19 (67·9%) males, 10 (32·1%) females] with proximal posterior cerebral artery occlusion, magnetic resonance imaging findings were analyzed, with emphasis on hippocampal infarction patterns on diffusion-weighted images and collateralization on dynamic 4D angiograms derived from perfusion-weighted raw images. Results On initial diffusion-weighted images, we identified all known hippocampal infarction patterns: type 1 (complete) in 6/18 (33·3%) patients, type 2 (lateral) in 10/18 (55·6%) patients, and type 3 (dorsal) and type 4 (circumscribed) in 1/18 (5·6%) patient respectively. On dynamic 4D angiograms, the grade of collateralization was classified as 1 in 9 (32·1%), 2 in 1 (3·6%), 3 in 10 (35·7%), and 4 in 8 (28·6%) patients. On follow-up diffusion-weighted images, we found new ischemic lesions in three and infarction growth in the hippocampus in five patients. Patients with better collateralization (grades 3 and 4) less often had hippocampal infarctions on initial ( P = 0·003)/follow-up diffusion-weighted images ( P = 0·046) as well as type 1 on initial ( P = 0·007)/follow-up diffusion-weighted images ( P = 0·005). Conclusions Involvement of the hippocampus in proximal posterior cerebral artery occlusion is frequently but not obligatorily observed and highly dependent on the extent of collateralization. The same holds true for hippocampal infarction patterns.
Statin therapy and the risk of intracerebral haemorrhage: a nationwide observational study
Authors: Åsberg Signild , Eriksson Marie 
Published: June 2015

Background The association between statin therapy and intracerebral haemorrhage is still unclear. The aim was to investigate whether prior use of statin was associated with risk of intracerebral haemorrhage. Methods Between 2006 and 2009, we identified 7696 cases of intracerebral haemorrhage that were first-ever strokes in the Swedish Stroke Register and 14 670 stroke-free controls that were matched on age and gender in the Population Register. Drug therapy at the time of intracerebral haemorrhage was extracted from the Drug Prescription Register. The risk of intracerebral haemorrhage with statins was estimated by conditional logistic regression. Results In cases and controls, the median age was 73 years and 53% were men. Intracerebral haemorrhage cases had higher prevalence of antithrombotic therapy, hypertension, and diabetes than controls. Statins were used by 1276 (16.6%) of the intracerebral haemorrhage cases and by 2552 (17.4%) of the controls. The crude odds ratios of intracerebral haemorrhage did not differ significantly between patients with and without statins, but after adjustment for antithrombotic therapy, hypertension, and diabetes, patients with statins had a decreased risk of intracerebral haemorrhage (odds ratio = 0.68, 95% confidence interval, 0.63-0.74). The highest proportion (>20%) of antecedent statins was seen in the 70-84 age group, for both cases and controls. Conclusions In this matched case-controlled study, statin therapy was associated with a decreased risk of incident intracerebral haemorrhage. Future studies on risk of stroke with statin therapy after intracerebral haemorrhage are needed.
Attachment security and intergroup contact
Authors: Boccato Giulio , Capozza Dora , Trifiletti Elena , Di Bernardo Gian Antonio 
Published: June 2015

AbstractThe contact hypothesis suggests that the interaction between members of different groups decreases prejudice. Moderators and mediators shaping this link have been investigated. However, research about the factors that facilitate contact is not frequent. This article examines secure attachment as an antecedent of contact. Three studies provide information about various aspects of the relationship between secure attachment and contact: security is positively associated with (a) intergroup contact, which in turn is related to reduced prejudice (Study 1); (b) implicit approach tendencies toward the outgroup (Study 2); and, once again, (c) with contact through the indirect effect of openness to exploration (Study 3). In the discussion, we recommend priming both secure and insecure schemas to investigate their unique effects on intergroup contact.
Does Family Control Shape Corporate Capital Structure? An Empirical Analysis of Eurozone Firms
Authors: Pindado Julio , Requejo Ignacio , de la Torre Chabela 
Published: June 2015

AbstractThis study investigates the relationship between family control and corporate capital structure considering the dynamic nature of the debt policy and the ownership structure of family firms. Our results show that the sensitivity of debt to fluctuations in cash flow is less pronounced in family firms and highlight that family control increases the speed of adjustment toward target debt. Four dimensions of the family business model explain these results: deviations of voting from cash flow rights, the presence of a second blockholder in the company, involvement of family members in management, and the generation in charge of the business. The weaker negative impact of cash flow on debt is driven by family firms with no control‐enhancing mechanisms, companies with active family participation in management and family businesses that are still controlled by the first generation. By contrast, the more severe agency conflicts between owners and creditors in family firms with a second blockholder lead to more pronounced pecking order behaviour. Furthermore, the higher flexibility in corporate decision‐making of family firms managed by the family and under the influence of the first generation explains why family companies are able to rebalance their capital structure faster.
Sensory control of normal movement and of movement aided by neural prostheses
Authors: Prochazka Arthur 
Published: June 2015

AbstractSignals from sensory receptors in muscles and skin enter the central nervous system (CNS), where they contribute to kinaesthesia and the generation of motor commands. Many lines of evidence indicate that sensory input from skin receptors, muscle spindles and Golgi tendon organs play the predominant role in this regard. Yet in spite of over 100 years of research on this topic, some quite fundamental questions remain unresolved. How does the CNS choose to use the ability to control muscle spindle sensitivity during voluntary movements? Do spinal reflexes contribute usefully to load compensation, given that the feedback gain must be quite low to avoid instability? To what extent do signals from skin stretch receptors contribute? This article provides a brief review of various theories, past and present, that address these questions. To what extent has the knowledge gained resulted in clinical applications? Muscles paralyzed as a result of spinal cord injury or stroke can be activated by electrical stimulation delivered by neuroprostheses. In practice, at most two or three sensors can be deployed on the human body, providing only a small fraction of the information supplied by the tens of thousands of sensory receptors in animals. Most of the neuroprostheses developed so far do not provide continuous feedback control. Instead, they switch from one state to another when signals from their one or two sensors meet pre‐set thresholds (finite state control). The inherent springiness of electrically activated muscle provides a crucial form of feedback control that helps smooth the resulting movements. In spite of the dissimilarities, parallels can be found between feedback control in neuroprostheses and in animals and this can provide surprising insights in both directions.
Modulating mechanosensory afferent excitability by an atypical mGluR
Authors: Watson Sonia 
Published: June 2015

AbstractMechanotransduction by proprioceptive sensory organs is poorly understood. Evidence was recently shown that muscle spindle and hair follicle primary afferents (lanceolates) constantly release glutamate from synaptic‐like vesicles (SLVs) within the terminals. The secreted glutamate activates a highly unusual metabotropic glutamate receptor (mGluR) to modulate the firing rate (spindles) and SLV recycling (lanceolates). This receptor has yet to be isolated and sequenced. To further investigate this receptor's pharmacology, ligands selective for classical mGluRs have been recently characterised for their ability to alter stretch‐evoked spindle firing and SLV endocytosis in these different endings. Here, it is described how the results of these screens facilitated the development of novel compounds to be used in the process of isolating and sequencing of this non‐canonical mGluR. This study shows how the compounds were tested for their ability to alter stretch‐evoked afferent firing in muscle spindles and SLV endocytosis in the lanceolate endings of hair follicles to ensure they maintained their ability to bind to the receptor. For the development of novel compounds, kainate was chosen as the parent ligand due to its potency and ease of chemical modification. Novel kainate derivatives were then synthesised and tested to find potent analogues suitable for ‘click‐chemistry’, an established technique for relatively quick, cheap, stereospecific and high‐yield chemical modifications (Angewandte Chemie (International ed. in English), 40, 2001, pp2004). Of the novel kainate analogues developed, unfortunately ZCZ49 and ZCZ50 lost the ability to produce a significant change in spindle stretch‐evoked firing. However, ZCZ90 was as potent as kainate, increasing firing by a similar margin at 1 μm (n = 8; P < 0.001). The addition of either a biotin or a fluorescein side group to ZCZ90, using the click‐chemistry technique, did not affect the potency and hence these compounds will be used in further studies of the receptor. As well as the development of these compounds, the study found not only many similarities, but also some key differences between the two types of primary mechanosensory endings investigated. These differences must be taken into account in further study. However, they also present an intriguing opportunity for these receptors to be targeted selectively to modulate ending sensitivity as treatments for muscle spasm in multiple sclerosis and spinal cord injury, and possibly even baroreceptor firing to treat hypertension.
Effect of S100A6 over‐expression on β‐catenin in endometriosis
Authors: Liu Zequn , Zhang Xiaoling , Chen Meihong , Cao Qing , Huang Donghua 
Published: June 2015

AbstractAimS100A6 is over‐expressed in several human tumors, including pancreatic carcinoma, malignant fibrous histiocytoma, breast, colon, and gastric carcinoma, but little is known about the role of S100A6 in endometriosis. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of S100A6 over‐expression on β‐catenin in endometrial stromal cells.MethodsEndometrial stromal cells were transfected with an hS100A6‐expressing recombinant lentivirus construct. The expression of β‐catenin was assessed using western blot and reverse transcription‐polymerase chain reaction.ResultsS100A6 over‐expression promoted β‐catenin expression at the RNA and protein levels, in endometrial stromal cells.ConclusionsS100A6 induces expression of β‐catenin in endometrial stromal cells.