bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Association and prognostic value of serum inflammation markers in patients with leukoplakia and oral cavity cancer
Authors: Chang Pi-Yueh , Kuo Yung-Bin , Wu Tsu-Lan , Liao Chun-Ta , Sun Yu-Chen , Yen Tzu-Chen , Chan Err-Cheng 
Published: November 2012

Abstract

Background: Oral cavity cancer ranks as the fourth leading cancer in men in Taiwan. The development of a serum biomarker panel for early detection and disease monitoring is, therefore, warranted.

Methods: Nine inflammation-associated markers were investigated in 46 patients with leukoplakia, 151 patients with untreated oral cavity squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC), and 111 age- and gender-matched healthy controls using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. During a subsequent 28-month surveillance of OSCC patients, serum samples were prospectively collected at predetermined intervals following the completion of therapy.

Results: Logistic regression analysis showed matrix metalloproteases (MMP)-2, MMP-9, C-reactive protein (CRP), transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1), and E-selectin having the best discrimination power between groups and significant elevation trends of those five markers were noted from control to OSCC. By combining those five markers, a 0.888 and 0.938 area under curve by ROC curve analysis with 67.4% and 80% overall sensitivity and fixed 90% specificity for leukoplakia and OSCC groups were demonstrated. In the follow-up period, 25 OSCC patients developed recurring or secondary tumors. All examined markers had decreased in relapse-free patients following treatment. However, in patients with relapse, interleukin-6, CRP, and serum amyloid A remained at elevated levels. Statistical analysis showed that patients with CRP ≧2 mg/L and E-selectin ≧85 ng/mL at baseline had highest probability of relapse (odds ratio=3.029, p<0.05).

Conclusions: The results indicate that inflammation plays a crucial role in the pathogenesis process of OSCC. By examining the inflammation markers, physicians could potentially identify patients at risk of cancer transformation or relapse.
Gangstabilisierung humanoider Roboter mittels Capture Point Regelung
Authors: Englsberger Johannes , Ott Christian 
Published: November 2012

Zusammenfassung
Dieser Beitrag beschreibt einen Ansatz zur durchgängigen Ausnutzung der Capture Point Dynamik für die Regelung von zweibeinigen Laufmaschinen. Der Regler beschränkt sich dabei auf die Stabilisierung des instabilen Anteils der Schwerpunktsdynamik. Von der Erzeugung einer Capture Point Referenztrajektorie aus gegebenen Schrittpositionen, bis zum Tracking dieser Referenztrajektorie werden alle nötigen Einzelschritte beschrieben. Eine Erweiterung des Capture Point Reglers auf Gangmuster, welche stark vom linearen inversen Pendel Modell abweichen, erlaubt das Laufen mit veränderlicher Schwerpunktshöhe und über Untergrund mit veränderlichem Höhenprofil. Das Regelungskonzept wurde in Simulationen und Experimenten verifiziert.
Magnetic resonance imaging of CNS in 15 043 children with GH deficiency in KIGS (Pfizer International Growth Database)
Authors: Maghnie Mohamad , Lindberg Anders , Koltowska-Häggström Maria , Ranke Michael B 
Published: November 2012

ObjectivesNeuroimaging has become an essential part of the diagnostic process in children with GH deficiency (GHD). The aim of the study was to document the frequency of neuroanatomical abnormalities in a very large cohort of children with GHD and to relate these findings to patient clinical characteristics.Design and methodsResults of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) were reported in 15 043 of 43 725 children with non-acquired GHD (idiopathic, neurosecretory dysfunction (NSD) and known congenital cause) who were enrolled in KIGS (Pfizer International Growth Database) between 1987 and 2011. Clinical characteristics of patients before GH treatment with normal MRI (idiopathic GHD (IGHD) and NSD) were compared with those of patients with abnormal pituitaries (hypoplasia, empty sella (ES), HME (hypoplastic anterior pituitary, missing pituitary stalk and ectopic posterior pituitary)).ResultsAbnormal MRIs were found in 4032 (26.8%) children, within which ES (n=1178 (7.8%)) and HME (n=1019 (6.8%)) were the most frequent findings. In 2361 children diagnosed as IGHD or NSD before MRI examination, anatomical abnormalities ((pituitary hypoplasia:n=974); (HME:n=459)) were documented. Patients with anatomical abnormalities had more severe characteristics of GHD: normal MRI < pituitary hypoplasia < ES < HME.ConclusionsGHD is associated with a great variety of neuroanatomical abnormalities as identified by MRI. The investigation and evaluation of MRI need to be conducted in a structured mode. There is an association between anatomical and functional abnormalities of the pituitary.
Fundamental Causes of Colorectal Cancer Mortality in the United States: Understanding the Importance of Socioeconomic Status in Creating Inequality in Mortality
Authors: Saldana-Ruiz Nallely , Clouston Sean A. P. , Rubin Marcie S. , Colen Cynthia G. , Link Bruce G. 
Published: November 2012

Objectives. We used the fundamental cause hypothesis as a framework for understanding the creation of health disparities in colorectal cancer mortality in the United States from 1968 to 2005. Methods. We used negative binomial regression to analyze trends in county-level gender-, race-, and age-adjusted colorectal cancer mortality rates among individuals aged 35 years or older. Results. Prior to 1980, there was a stable gradient in colorectal cancer mortality, with people living in counties of higher socioeconomic status (SES) being at greater risk than people living in lower SES counties. Beginning in 1980, this gradient began to narrow and then reversed as people living in higher SES counties experienced greater reductions in colorectal cancer mortality than those in lower SES counties. Conclusions. Our findings support the fundamental cause hypothesis: once knowledge about prevention and treatment of colorectal cancer became available, social and economic resources became increasingly important in influencing mortality rates.
Adversity and Syndemic Production Among Men Participating in the Multicenter AIDS Cohort Study: A Life-Course Approach
Authors: Herrick Amy L. , Lim Sin How , Plankey Michael W. , Chmiel Joan S. , Guadamuz Thomas T. , Kao Uyen , Shoptaw Steven , Carrico Adam , Ostrow David , Stall Ron 
Published: November 2012

Objectives. We tested a theory of syndemic production among men who have sex with men (MSM) using data from a large cohort study. Methods. Participants were 1551 men from the Multicenter AIDS Cohort Study enrolled at 4 study sites: Baltimore, Maryland–Washington, DC; Chicago, Illinois; Los Angeles, California; and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Participants who attended semiannual visits from April 1, 2008, to March 31, 2009, completed an additional survey that captured data about events throughout their life course thought to be related to syndemic production. Results. Using multivariate analysis, we found that the majority of life-course predictor variables (e.g., victimization, internalized homophobia) were significantly associated with both the syndemic condition and the component psychosocial health outcomes (depressive symptoms, stress, stimulant use, sexual compulsivity, intimate partner violence). A nested negative binomial analysis showed that the overall life course significantly explained variability in the syndemic outcomes (χ2 = 247.94; P < .001; df = 22). Conclusions. We identified life-course events and conditions related to syndemic production that may help to inform innovative interventions that will effectively disentangle interconnecting health problems and promote health among MSM.
Assessment of Biases Against Latinos and African Americans Among Primary Care Providers and Community Members
Authors: Blair Irene V. , Havranek Edward P. , Price David W. , Hanratty Rebecca , Fairclough Diane L. , Farley Tillman , Hirsh Holen K. , Steiner John F. 
Published: November 2012

Objectives. We assessed implicit and explicit bias against both Latinos and African Americans among experienced primary care providers (PCPs) and community members (CMs) in the same geographic area. Methods. Two hundred ten PCPs and 190 CMs from 3 health care organizations in the Denver, Colorado, metropolitan area completed Implicit Association Tests and self-report measures of implicit and explicit bias, respectively. Results. With a 60% participation rate, the PCPs demonstrated substantial implicit bias against both Latinos and African Americans, but this was no different from CMs. Explicit bias was largely absent in both groups. Adjustment for background characteristics showed the PCPs had slightly weaker ethnic/racial bias than CMs. Conclusions. This research provided the first evidence of implicit bias against Latinos in health care, as well as confirming previous findings of implicit bias against African Americans. Lack of substantive differences in bias between the experienced PCPs and CMs suggested a wider societal problem. At the same time, the wide range of implicit bias suggested that bias in health care is neither uniform nor inevitable, and important lessons might be learned from providers who do not exhibit bias.
Influence of Community Social Norms on Spousal Violence: A Population-Based Multilevel Study of Nigerian Women
Authors: Linos Natalia , Slopen Natalie , Subramanian S. V. , Berkman Lisa , Kawachi Ichiro 
Published: November 2012

Objectives. We examined whether social norms toward spousal violence in Nigeria, at the state level, are associated with a woman’s exposure to physical and sexual violence perpetrated by her husband. Methods. Using data from the 2008 Demographic and Health Survey, we fit four 3-level random intercepts models to examine contextual factors associated with spousal violence while accounting for individual-level predictors. Results. Of the 18 798 ever-married Nigerian women in our sample, 18.7% reported exposure to spousal sexual or physical violence. The prevalence was geographically patterned by state and ranged from 3% to 50%. Permissive state-level social norms toward spousal violence were positively associated with a woman’s report of physical and sexual violence perpetrated by her husband (odds ratio [OR] = 1.80; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.17, 2.77), after adjusting for individual-level characteristics. A number of individual-level variables were significantly associated with victimization, including a woman’s accepting beliefs toward spousal violence (OR = 1.11; 95% CI = 1.09, 1.14). Women living in states with Sharia law were less likely to report spousal violence (OR = 0.58; 95% CI = 0.35, 0.95). Conclusions. Efforts to end violence against women, particularly spousal violence, should consider broader social and contextual determinants of violence including social norms.
Safer Sex Media Messages and Adolescent Sexual Behavior: 3-Year Follow-Up Results From Project iMPPACS
Authors: Hennessy Michael , Romer Daniel , Valois Robert F. , Vanable Peter , Carey Michael P. , Stanton Bonita , Brown Larry , DiClemente Ralph , Salazar Laura F. 
Published: November 2012

Objectives. We estimated the long-term (36-month) effects of Project iMPPACS, a multisite randomized controlled trial of mass media and small-group intervention for African American adolescents. Methods. We collected 6 waves of longitudinal data on program participants aged 14 to 17 years (n = 1139) in Providence, Rhode Island; Syracuse, New York; Columbia, South Carolina; and Macon, Georgia, 36 months (December 2009–December 2010) after the intervention began (August 2006–January 2008). Seemingly unrelated regressions at each wave estimated the effects of 3 types of mass media messages (the thematic mediators: selection, pleasure, and negotiation) on condom use intention and self-reported unprotected vaginal sex events. Results. All 3 mediators of behavior change that were introduced during the media intervention were sustained at the follow-up assessments at least 18 months after the intervention ended, with intention having the largest correlation. Unprotected vaginal sex increased with each wave of the study, although cities receiving media exposure had smaller increases. Conclusions. Project iMPPACS demonstrates that mass media influence delivered over an extended period, when adolescents were beginning to learn patterns of behavior associated with sex, persisted after the media program ended.
History, Biology, and Health Inequities: Emergent Embodied Phenotypes and the Illustrative Case of the Breast Cancer Estrogen Receptor
Authors: Krieger Nancy 
Published: November 2012

How we think about biology—in historical, ecological, and societal context—matters for framing causes of and solutions to health inequities. Drawing on new insights from ecological evolutionary developmental biology and ecosocial theory, I question dominant gene-centric and ultimately static approaches to conceptualizing biology, using the example of the breast cancer estrogen receptor (ER).Analyzed in terms of its 4 histories—societal, individual (life course), tumor (cellular pathology), and evolutionary—the ER is revealed as a flexible characteristic of cells, tumors, individuals, and populations, with magnitudes of health inequities tellingly changing over time.This example suggests our science will likely be better served by conceptualizing disease and its biomarkers, along with changing magnitudes of health inequities, as embodied history—that is, emergent embodied phenotype, not innate biology.
It Is Time to Integrate Abortion Into Primary Care
Authors: Yanow Susan 
Published: November 2012

The Roe v Wade decision made safe abortion available but did not change the reality that more than 1 million women face an unwanted pregnancy every year. Forty years after Roe v Wade, the procedure is not accessible to many US women. The politics of abortion have led to a plethora of laws that create enormous barriers to abortion access, particularly for young, rural, and low-income women. Family medicine physicians and advanced practice clinicians are qualified to provide abortion care. To realize the promise of Roe v Wade, first-trimester abortion must be integrated into primary care and public health professionals and advocates must work to remove barriers to the provision of abortion within primary care settings.
Use and Interpretation of Composite End Points in Orthopaedic Trials
Authors: Busse Jason W. , Bhandari Mohit , Ferreira-González Ignacio , Montori Victor M. , Guyatt Gordon H. 
Published: November 2012

Abstract:
Randomized controlled trials in orthopaedics are often underpowered to detect important differences in outcomes. Composite end points (CEPs) hold promise as a strategy to address this issue by combining multiple end points into one summary measure, thus increasing the observed event rate. The use of CEPs by trialists, however, can be problematic when they include components that vary greatly in importance to patients and when differences in apparent effect between components are large. We present an overview of CEPs with a focus on appropriate design and interpretation of results.
Efficient Designs: Factorial Randomized Trials
Authors: Whelan Daniel B. , Dainty Katie , Chahal Jaskarndip 
Published: November 2012

Abstract:
As an alternative to conducting multiple parallel group randomized controlled trials, the factorial design is an efficient means of evaluating multiple interventions. This review highlights when it is appropriate to conduct a factorial trial, considers the structure and nomenclature of factorial designs, and discusses various methodological considerations, including sample size calculation, the role of statistical interactions between different interventions, and statistical power. Several pertinent examples in orthopaedics and medicine are used to highlight the key concepts.
Global Randomized Trials: The Promise of India and China
Authors: Perkovic Vlado , Patil Vinodvenkatesh , Wei Liu , Lv Jicheng , Petersen Marisa , Patel Anushka 
Published: November 2012

Abstract:
Although modern clinical trials are traditionally conducted in Western countries, currently there is a shift to involve developing countries, particularly China and India. For these trials, the large population size of India and China means that substantial numbers of individuals affected by rare diseases may be found, increasing the likelihood of successfully completing enrollment in a clinical trial. Furthermore, the increasing involvement of Asian countries in global clinical trials is likely to lead to greater appreciation of the value of evidence-based treatment decisions in the region. These sites are more cost-effective, although this advantage is being eroded over time. Asian participants in clinical trials are also typically more likely to complete study follow-up and procedures, and to adhere to their randomized treatment allocation than individuals from Western countries. Challenges include relevance of the proposed trial to the region, capacity limitations because of undeveloped training, and ensuring research implementation quality and different intellectual property practices. There are specific challenges to conducting clinical trials in India, such as the status of ethics committees, health insurance and coverage for participants, and variability in languages and record-keeping. Challenges in both countries are substantial but are able to be managed with appropriate planning.
Participating in Multicenter Randomized Controlled Trials: What’s the Relative Value?
Authors: Tornetta Paul , Pascual Mandy , Godin Katelyn , Sprague Sheila , Bhandari Mohit 
Published: November 2012

Abstract:
The value of high-quality, large-scale, multicenter randomized controlled trials (RCTs) in orthopaedic surgery is becoming well recognized; however, the efforts of investigators participating in RCTs are often underappreciated in areas such as academic merit. Within this manuscript, we discuss how involvement in a large-scale RCT can lead to benefits, such as improvements to clinical practice and decision-making as well as personal incentives. We also examined how investigators’ contributions to large multicenter RCTs are perceived and recognized by academic promotion committees. We found that academic promotion committees undervalue contributions to multicenter RCTs as compared with participation in studies that offer lower levels of evidence. The culture of academic promotion needs to evolve to ensure that participation in large multicenter RCTs is appropriately valued by these committees.
Hypoglycemia After Gastric Bypass Surgery
Authors: Singh Ekta , Vella Adrian 
Published: November 2012

In Brief
Severe hypoglycemia characterized by neuroglycopenic symptoms is a recently described and relatively uncommon complication of gastric bypass surgery. It occurs several months to years after surgery and may be distinct from the more commonly encountered dumping syndrome that occurs early in the postoperative course and usually improves with time. Nesidioblastosis has been proposed as a possible underlying mechanism for late postoperative hypoglycemia. This syndrome is distinct from noninsulinoma pancreatogenous hypoglycemia and likely has a multifactorial etiology. It responds variably to nutrition and pharmacological interventions. Partial pancreatectomy and reversal of the bypass have sometimes been used to ameliorate symptoms.
Victorian Fashion Accessories
Authors: Beaujot Ariel 
Published: November 2012

In Victorian England, women's accessories were always much more than incidental finishing touches to their elaborate dress. Accessories helped women to fashion their identities. Victorian Fashion Accessories explores how women's use of gloves, parasols, fans and vanity sets revealed their class, gender and colonial aspirations.
The colour and fit of a pair of gloves could help a middle-class woman indicate her class aspirations. The sun filtering through a rose-colored parasol would provide a woman of a certain age with the glow of youth. The use of a fan was a socially acceptable means of attracting interest and flirting. Even the choice of vanity set on a woman's bedroom dresser reflected her complicity with colonial expansion. By paying attention to the particular details of women's accessories we discover the beliefs embedded in these artefacts and enhance our understanding of the culture at large.
Beaujot's engaging prose illuminates the complex identities of the women who used accessories in the Victorian culture that created and consumed them. Victorian Fashion Accessories is essential reading for students and scholars of, history, gender studies, cultural studies, material culture and fashion studies, as well as anyone interested in the history of dress. In Victorian England, women's accessories were always much more than incidental finishing touches to their elaborate dress. Accessories helped women to fashion their identities. Victorian Fashion Accessories explores how women's use of gloves, parasols, fans and vanity sets revealed their class, gender and colonial aspirations.
The current status of robotic oncologic surgery
Authors: Yu Hua‐yin , Friedlander David F. , Patel Sunil , Hu Jim C. 
Published: November 2012

AbstractAnswer questions and earn CME/CNEThe use of robotic assistance facilitates minimally invasive surgery and has been widely adopted across multiple specialties. This article reviews the published literature on use of this technology for treatment of oncologic conditions. PubMed searches were performed for articles published between 2000 and 2012 using the keywords “robotic” or “robotic surgery” in conjunction with “oncology” or “cancer.” Although the most common use for robotics was to treat urologic oncologic conditions, it has also been widely adopted for gynecologic, general, thoracic, and head and neck surgeries. For several procedures, there is evidence that robotics offers short‐term benefits such as shorter lengths of stay and lower intraoperative blood loss, with safety profiles and oncologic outcomes comparable to open or conventional laparoscopic approaches. However, long‐term oncologic outcomes are generally lacking, and robotic surgeries are more costly than open or laparoscopic surgeries. Robotic technology is widely used in oncologic surgery with demonstrated short‐term advantages. However, whether the benefits of robotics justify the higher costs warrant large comparative effectiveness studies with long‐term outcomes. CA Cancer J Clin 2013. © 2012 American Cancer Society.