bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Management practices associated with the rate of respiratory tract disease among preweaned beef calves in cow-calf operations in the United States
Authors: Hanzlicek Gregg A. , Renter David R. , White Brad J. , Wagner Bruce A. , Dargatz David A. , Sanderson Michael W. , Scott H. Morgan , Larson Robert E. 
Published: April 2013

Abstract
Objective—To assess associations between herd management practices and herd-level rates of bovine respiratory disease complex (BRDC) in preweaned beef calves in US cow-calf operations.
Design—Cross-sectional survey.
Sample—443 herds weighted to represent the US cow-calf population.
Procedures—Producers from 24 states were selected to participate in a 2-phase survey; 443 producers completed both survey phases and had calves born alive during the study period. Data from those respondents underwent multivariable negative binomial regression analyses.
Results—Bred heifer importation was associated with lower BRDC rates (incidence rate ratio [IRR], 0.40; confidence interval [CI], 0.19 to 0.82), whereas weaned steer importation was associated with higher BRDC rates (IRR, 2.62; CI, 1.15 to 5.97). Compared with single-breed herds, operations with calves of 2-breed crosses (IRR, 2.36; CI, 1.30 to 4.29) or 3-breed crosses (IRR, 4.00; CI, 1.93 to 8.31) or composite-herd calves (IRR, 2.27; CI, 1.00 to 5.16) had higher BRDC rates. Operations classified as supplemental sources of income had lower BRDC rates (IRR, 0.48; CI, 0.26 to 0.87) than did operations classified as primary sources of income. Reported feed supplementation with antimicrobials was positively associated with BRDC rates (IRR, 3.46; CI, 1.39 to 8.60). The reported number of visits by outsiders in an average month also was significantly associated with herd-level BRDC rates, but the magnitude and direction of the effects varied.
Conclusions and Clinical Relevance—Management practices associated with preweaning BRDC rates may be potential indicators or predictors of preweaning BRDC rates in cow-calf production systems.
Ab initio studies of two pyrimidine derivatives as possible photo-switch systems
Authors: Csehi András , Woywod Clemens , Halász Gábor , Vibók Ágnes 
Published: April 2013

AbstractThe six lowest lying electronic singlet states of 8-(pyrimidine-2-yl)quinolin-ol and 2-(4-nitropyrimidine-2-yl)ethenol have been studied theoretically using the complete active space self-consistent-field (CASSCF) and M’ller-Plesset second-order perturbation theory (MP2) methods. Both molecules can be viewed as consisting of a frame and a crane component. As a possible mechanism for the excited-state relaxation process an intramolecular hydrogen transfer promoted by twisting around the covalent bond connecting the molecular frame and crane moieties has been considered. Based on this idea we have attempted to derive abstracted photochemical pathways for both systems. Geometry optimizations for the construction of hypothetical reaction coordinates have been performed at the MP2 level of theory while the CASSCF approach has been employed for the calculation of vertical excitation energies along the pathways. The results of the calculations along the specific twisting displacements investigated in this study do not support the notion of substantial twisting activity upon excitation of any of the five excited states at the planar terminal structures of the torsion coordinates of both molecules. However, the present analysis should be considered only as a first, preliminary step towards an understanding of the photochemistry of the two candidate compounds. For example, we have not performed any excited state geometry optimizations so far and the estimates of vertical excitation energies do not take dynamical electron correlation into account. Further work on this subject is in progress.
A kinetic Monte Carlo study for stripe-like magnetic domains in ferrimagnetic thin films
Authors: Tyukodi Botond , Chioar Ioan-Augustin , Néda Zoltán 
Published: April 2013

Abstract
The topology and dynamics of stripe-like magnetic domains obtained in a ferrimagnetic garnet subjected to a time-dependent external magnetic field is studied experimentally and theoretically. Experiments are performed on a commercially available magnetic bubble apparatus, allowing the observation of the time-evolution of the magnetic domain structure. The system is modeled by a meso-scale Ising-type lattice model. Exchange and dipolar interactions between the spins, and interaction of the spins with the external magnetic field are considered. The model is investigated by kinetic Monte Carlo simulations with time-varying transition rates. In the limit of low temperatures the elaborated model leads to a magnetic domain topology and dynamics that is similar to the ones observed in the experiments. In the highly non-equilibrium limit with a high driving frequency the model reproduces the experimentally recorded hysteresis loops as well.
Risk factors in patients with herpes zoster infections: case-control study
Authors: Pezer Maja , Vidić Vjeran , Nikolić Jadranka , Curić Ivo , Arapović Jurica 
Published: April 2013

Abstract
The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of chronic disease and the risk factors for herpes zoster infection. In this case-control study medical records were collected from 55 patients who presented with herpes zoster and 54 patients in a control group who presented with gastroenterocolitis. Both groups were treated at the Clinic for Infectious Diseases, University Clinical Hospital Mostar from January, 2005 to December, 2010. When we compared the herpes zoster group with the control group, we did not demonstrate any significant difference in the overall prevalence of chronic diseases. However, the prevalence of diabetes and cancer was statistically higher when compared to the control group. A statistically significant difference in the number of cigarette smokers was not observed, whereas the number who consumed alcohol in the herpes zoster group was significantly higher compared to the control group. The correlation between alcohol and herpes zoster could help in solving the reactivation mechanism of VZV.
Intravascular large B-cell lymphoma with prominent cutaneous manifestation — case report
Authors: Stefanko Ewa , Wróbel Tomasz 
Published: April 2013

Abstract
Intravascular large B-cell lymphoma (IVLBCL) is a rare subtype of extranodal diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) characterized by selective growth of neoplastic cells within the vascular lumen. IVLBCL involves all types of organs and mostly is associated with poor prognosis, but patients with cutaneous variant have significantly better survival. In this article we report a case of 80-year-old woman with prominent cutaneous manifestation of intravascular large B-cell lymphoma.
Borreliosis presenting as autonomic nervous dysfunction, phrenic nerve palsy with respiratory failure and myocardial dysfunction — a case report
Authors: Petrun Andreja , Sinkovič Andreja 
Published: April 2013

Abstract
Unrecognized and untreated Borrelia infection can progress from localized inflammation (erythema migrans) to early or late generalized stage within weeks to months. Meningoradiculitis, arthritis, multiple erythemas, myositis, and myocarditis of the early generalized stage have a good prognosis after antibiotic treatment, but late manifestations can progress to chronic disease. Phrenic nerve palsy, autonomic nervous system dysfunction and carditis with acute heart failure are among rare manifestations as well as late generalised stage with myelitis. We present a case of a patient with meningoradiculitis, autonomic nervous dysfunction, respiratory failure due to phrenic nerve palsy and acute heart failure with systolic myocardial dysfunction. The diagnosis of Borrelia infection was confirmed by positive serological testing, appropriate response to antibiotic therapy and exclusion of other diseases. Our case suggests that in unexplained respiratory failure and acute systolic myocardial dysfunction, particularly associated with signs of meningoradiculitis, Borrelia infection should be included in the differential diagnosis.
Impact of melatonin on immunity: a review
Authors: Pohanka Miroslav 
Published: April 2013

Abstract
Melatonin is a hormone produced by the pineal gland. In addition to its hormonal effect, it has strong antioxidant properties. Melatonin is probably best known for its ability to control circadian rhythm; it is sold in many countries as a supplement or drug for improving of sleep quality. However, melatonin’s effect is not limited to control of circadian rhythm:. it is involved in other effects, including cell cycle control and regulation of several important enzymes, including inhibition of inducible nitric oxide synthase. Melatonin affects immunity as well. It can modulate the immune response on disparate levels with a significant effect on inflammation. The role of melatonin in body regulatory process is not well understood; only limited conclusions can be drawn from known data. The current review attempts to summarize both basic facts about melatonin’s effects and propose research on the lesser known issues in the future.
Adaptive Exploration through Covariance Matrix Adaptation Enables Developmental Motor Learning
Authors: Stulp Freek , Oudeyer Pierre-Yves 
Published: April 2013

Abstract
The “Policy Improvement with Path Integrals” (PI2) [25] and “Covariance Matrix Adaptation - Evolutionary Strategy” [8] are considered to be state-of-the-art in direct reinforcement learning and stochastic optimization respectively. We have recently shown that incorporating covariance matrix adaptation into PI2 – which yields the PICMA
2 algorithm – enables adaptive exploration by continually and autonomously reconsidering the exploration/exploitation trade-off. In this article, we provide an overview of our recent work on covariance matrix adaptation for direct reinforcement learning [22–24], highlight its relevance to developmental robotics, and conduct further experiments to analyze the results. We investigate two complementary phenomena from developmental robotics. First, we demonstrate PICMA
2’s ability to adapt to slowly or abruptly changing tasks due to its continual and adaptive exploration. This is an important component of life-long skill learning in dynamic environments. Second, we show on a reaching task PICMA
2 how subsequently releases degrees of freedom from proximal to more distal limbs as learning progresses. A similar effect is observed in human development, where it is known as ‘proximodistal maturation’.
A Synchrony-Based Perspective for Partner Selection and Attentional Mechanism in Human-Robot Interaction
Authors: Hasnain Syed Khursheed , Mostafaoui Ghiles , Gaussier Philippe 
Published: April 2013

Abstract
Future robots must co-exist and directly interact with human beings. Designing these agents imply solving hard problems linked to human-robot interaction tasks. For instance, how a robot can choose an interacting partner among various agents and how a robot locates regions of interest in its visual field. Studies of neurobiology and psychology collectively named synchrony as an indispensable parameter for social interaction. We assumed that Human-Robot interaction could be initiated by synchrony detection. In this paper, we present a developmental approach for analyzing unintentional synchronization in human-robot interaction. Using our neural network model, the robot learns from a babbling step its inner dynamics by associating its own motor activities (oscillators) with the visual stimulus induced by its own motion. After learning the robot is capable of choosing an interacting agent and of localizing the spatial position of its preferred partner by synchrony detection.
Cognitive-Behavioral–Based Physical Therapy to Improve Surgical Spine Outcomes: A Case Series
Authors: Archer Kristin R. , Motzny Nicole , Abraham Christine M. , Yaffe Donna , Seebach Caryn L. , Devin Clinton J. , Spengler Dan M. , McGirt Matthew J. , Aaronson Oran S. , Cheng Joseph S. , Wegener Stephen T. 
Published: April 2013

Background and PurposeFear of movement is a risk factor for poor postoperative outcomes in patients following spine surgery. The purposes of this case series were: (1) to describe the effects of a cognitive-behavioral–based physical therapy (CBPT) intervention in patients with high fear of movement following lumbar spine surgery and (2) to assess the feasibility of physical therapists delivering cognitive-behavioral techniques over the telephone.Case DescriptionEight patients who underwent surgery for a lumbar degenerative condition completed the 6-session CBPT intervention. The intervention included empirically supported behavioral self-management, problem solving, and cognitive restructuring and relaxation strategies and was conducted in person and then weekly over the phone. Patient-reported outcomes of pain and disability were assessed at baseline (6 weeks after surgery), postintervention (3 months after surgery), and at follow-up (6 months after surgery). Performance-based outcomes were tested at baseline and postintervention. The outcome measures were the Brief Pain Inventory, Oswestry Disability Index, 5-Chair Stand Test, and 10-Meter Walk Test.OutcomesSeven of the patients demonstrated a clinically significant reduction in pain, and all 8 of the patients had a clinically significant reduction in disability at 6-month follow-up. Improvement on the performance-based tests also was noted postintervention, with 5 patients demonstrating clinically meaningful change on the 10-Meter Walk Test.DiscussionThe findings suggest that physical therapists can feasibly implement cognitive-behavioral skills over the telephone and may positively affect outcomes after spine surgery. However, a randomized clinical trial is needed to confirm the results of this case series and the efficacy of the CBPT intervention. Clinical implications include broadening the availability of well-accepted cognitive-behavioral strategies by expanding implementation to physical therapists and through a telephone delivery model.
Incidence and Factors Associated With Falls in Independent Ambulatory Individuals With Spinal Cord Injury: A 6-Month Prospective Study
Authors: Phonthee Sirisuda , Saengsuwan Jiamjit , Siritaratiwat Wantana , Amatachaya Sugalya 
Published: April 2013

BackgroundSensorimotor impairments following spinal cord injury (SCI) affect mobility and subsequently increase the risk of falls to patients. However, most of the fall data for these patients were retrospectively gathered.ObjectivesThis study prospectively assessed falls and intrinsic factors associated with falls in 89 independent ambulatory individuals with SCI over the course of 6 months. In addition, functional ability between participants who did and did not fall was compared.MethodsParticipants were interviewed and assessed for their baseline data and functional ability using the Timed “Up & Go” Test and the Six-Minute Walk Test. Then they were interviewed by telephone to complete a self-report questionnaire once per week to gather fall data for 6 months. A stepwise multiple logistic regression was utilized to determine the effects of demographics and SCI characteristics on occurrence of falls. The functional data between participants who fell and those who did not fall were compared using the Mann-Whitney U test.ResultsThirty-five participants (39%) experienced at least 1 fall during 6 months (range=1–11). Two participants required medical attention due to patellar and sternum fractures after falling. Participants with an educational level of high school graduate or greater, an American Spinal Injury Association Impairment Scale C (AIS-C) classification, and a fear of falling (FOF) significantly increased their risk of falls approximately 4 times more than those who graduated primary education, had an AIS-D classification, and did not have FOF. Moreover, the functional abilities of participants who fell were significantly poorer than those who did not fall.LimitationsThe sample size was calculated based on the primary objective (incidence of falls), which may not be sufficient to clearly indicate factors associated with falls for the participants.ConclusionsMore than one third of the independent ambulatory participants with SCI experienced at least 1 fall during the 6-month period of the study. The findings suggest the importance of functional improvement on the reduction of fall risk in these individuals.
Kierkegaard, Fire, and the Prolixity of Filling Time
Authors: Ziolkowski Eric 
Published: April 2013

Abstract: According to Marthe Robert, the novel Don Quixote raises the question of the truth of literature: “What place do books have in reality? Are they absolutely true or true only relatively?… If they are false, their very fascination makes them useless or harmful and they must be rendered null and void, or better still, burned.” This article explores the pertinence of this question to the writings of Kierkegaard, who was preoccupied by images of fire and burning as well as by questions of the ultimate adequacy of literature, including his own “prolix literature,” to communicate Christian truth. Throughout his authorial career, and increasingly in his final years, Kierkegaard expresses concerns over what Johannes Climacus calls “the inadequacy of language.” Incited by Jesus's arsonist declaration “I came to cast fire upon the earth” (Luke 12:49), which he invokes as part of his attack on the established Danish Church, Kierkegaard becomes convinced that the “prolixities” of false Christendom “must go.” Yet, as his journals and authorship reveal, he remains haunted to the end of his life by thoughts about his (and his pseudonyms’) own sheer verbosity, his authorial needs for “filling up” time and narrative, and the ultimate “superficiality” of his literary vocation.
Early and long-term excess mortality in 227 patients with intracranial dural arteriovenous fistulas
Authors: Piippo Anna , Laakso Aki , Seppä Karri , Rinne Jaakko , Jääskeläinen Juha E. , Hernesniemi Juha , Niemelä Mika 
Published: April 2013

Object
The aim of this study was to assess the early and long-term excess mortality in patients with intracranial dural arteriovenous fistula (DAVF) compared with a matched general Finnish population in an unselected, population-based series.

Methods
The authors identified 227 patients with DAVFs admitted to 2 of the 5 Departments of Neurosurgery in Finland—Helsinki and Kuopio University Hospitals—between 1944 and 2006. All patients were followed until death or the end of 2009. Long-term excess mortality was estimated using the relative survival ratio compared with the general Finnish population matched by age, sex, and calendar year.

Results
The median follow-up period was 10 years (range 0–44 years). Two-thirds (67%) of the DAVFs were located in the region of transverse and sigmoid sinuses. Cortical venous drainage (CVD) was present in 28% of the DAVFs (18% transverse and sigmoid sinus, 42% others). Of the 61 deaths counted, 11 (18%) were during the first 12 months and were mainly caused by treatment complications (5 of 11, 45%). The 1-year survivors presenting with hemorrhage experienced excess mortality until 7 years from admission. However, DAVFs with CVD were associated with significant, continuous excess mortality. There were more cerebrovascular and cardiovascular deaths in this group of patients than expected in the general Finnish population. Location other than transverse and sigmoid sinuses was also associated with excess mortality.

Conclusions
In the patients with DAVF there was excess mortality during the first 12 months, mainly due to treatment complications. Thereafter, their overall long-term survival became similar to that of the matched general population. However, DAVFs with CVD and those located in regions other than transverse and sigmoid sinuses were associated with marked long-term excess mortality after the first 12 months.
Efficacy of vagus nerve stimulation in brain tumor–associated intractable epilepsy and the importance of tumor stability
Authors: Patel Kunal S. , Moussazadeh Nelson , Doyle Werner K. , Labar Douglas R. , Schwartz Theodore H. 
Published: April 2013

Object
Vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) is a viable option for patients with medically intractable epilepsy. However, there are no studies examining its effect on individuals with brain tumor–associated intractable epilepsy. This study aims to evaluate the efficacy of VNS in patients with brain tumor–associated medically intractable epilepsy.

Methods
Epilepsy surgery databases at 2 separate epilepsy centers were reviewed to identify patients in whom a VNS device was placed for tumor-related intractable epilepsy between January 1999 and December 2011. Preoperative and postoperative seizure frequency and type as well as antiepileptic drug (AED) regimens and degree of tumor progression were evaluated. Statistical analysis was performed using odds ratios and t-tests to examine efficacy.

Results
Sixteen patients were included in the study. Eight patients (50%) had an improved outcome (Engel Class I, II, or III) with an average follow-up of 39.6 months. The mean reduction in seizure frequency was 41.7% (p = 0.002). There was no significant change in AED regimens. Seizure frequency decreased by 10.9% in patients with progressing tumors and by 65.6% in patients with stable tumors (p = 0.008).

Conclusions
Vagus nerve stimulation therapy in individuals with brain tumor–associated medically intractable epilepsy was shown to be comparably effective in regard to seizure reduction and response rates to the general population of VNS therapy patients. Outcomes were better in patients with stable as opposed to progressing tumors. The authors' findings support the recommendation of VNS therapy in patients with brain tumor–associated intractable epilepsy, especially in cases in which imminent tumor progression is not expected. Vagus nerve stimulation may not be indicated in more malignant tumors.
Infundibular widening mimicking anterior communicating artery aneurysm
Authors: Park Jaechan , Kang Dong-Hun 
Published: April 2013

Because infundibular widening most commonly appears at the origins of the posterior communicating artery and anterior choroidal artery from the internal carotid artery, its occurrence in association with the anterior communicating artery (ACoA) or the A1-A2 junction can be misinterpreted as an ACoA aneurysm on angiograms.
The authors report on 2 such cases; one in a 73-year-old woman with infundibular widening of the recurrent artery of Heubner, and the other in a 44-year-old woman with infundibular widening of a perforating vessel from the ACoA. The correct diagnosis was established based on surgical exploration. In addition, grayscale modification of 3D reconstruction images of preoperative digital subtraction angiography revealed the cases of the recurrent artery of Heubner and perforating artery of the ACoA arising from the apex of the infundibular widening.