bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Assessing Care of Vulnerable Elders—Alzheimer's Disease: A Pilot Study of a Practice Redesign Intervention to Improve the Quality of Dementia Care
Authors: Reuben David B. , Roth Carol P. , Frank Janet C. , Hirsch Susan H. , Katz Diane , McCreath Heather , Younger Jon , Murawski Marta , Edgerly Elizabeth , Maher Joanne , Maslow Katie , Wenger Neil S. 
Published: January 2010

OBJECTIVES: To determine whether a practice redesign intervention coupled with referral to local Alzheimer's Association chapters can improve the quality of dementia care.DESIGN: Pre–post intervention.SETTING: Two community‐based physician practices.PARTICIPANTS: Five physicians in each practice and their patients aged 75 and older with dementia.INTERVENTION: Adaptation of the Assessing Care of Vulnerable Elders (ACOVE)‐2 intervention (screening, efficient collection of clinical data, medical record prompts, patient education and empowerment materials, and physician decision support and education). In addition, physicians faxed referral forms to local Alzheimer's Association chapters, which assessed patients, provided counseling and education, and faxed information back to the physicians.MEASUREMENTS: Audits of pre‐ (5 per physician) and postintervention (10 per physician) medical records using ACOVE‐3 quality indicators for dementia to measure the quality of care provided.RESULTS: Based on 47 pre‐ and 90 postintervention audits, the percentage of quality indicators satisfied rose from 38% to 46%, with significant differences on quality indicators measuring the assessment of functional status (20% vs 51%), discussion of risks and benefits of antipsychotics (32% vs 100%), and counseling caregivers (2% vs 30%). Referral of patients to Alzheimer's Association chapters increased from 0% to 17%. Referred patients had higher quality scores (65% vs 41%) and better counseling about driving (50% vs 14%), caregiver counseling (100% vs 15%), and surrogate decision‐maker specification (75% vs 44%). Some quality indicators related to cognitive assessment and examination did not improve.CONCLUSION: This pilot study suggests that a practice‐based intervention can increase referral to Alzheimer's Association chapters and improve quality of dementia care.
White Matter Hyperintensities Predict Functional Decline in Voiding, Mobility, and Cognition in Older Adults
Authors: Wakefield Dorothy B. , Moscufo Nicola , Guttmann Charles R. , Kuchel George A. , Kaplan Richard F. , Pearlson Godfrey , Wolfson Leslie 
Published: January 2010

OBJECTIVES:To compare magnetic resonance imaging data with functional assessments of mobility, urinary control, and cognition to determine common or distinctive features in the distribution of brain white matter hyperintensities (WMHs) associated with functional decline and impairment.DESIGN:Baseline data from subjects aged 75 to 89 enrolled in a longitudinal study. Assessors and subjects were blinded to group assignment.SETTING:Healthy community‐dwelling volunteers.PARTICIPANTS:Ninety‐nine subjects were enrolled using a balanced 3 × 3 matrix stratified according to age and mobility performance. Exclusion criteria were medication, systemic conditions, and neurological diseases that can compromise mobility.MEASUREMENTS:WMHs were identified using a semi‐automated segmentation method, and regional burdens were assessed using a white matter parcellation atlas. Quantitative measures of mobility, urinary incontinence (UI) severity, and executive function and processing speed were obtained.RESULTS:WMHs occur predictably in predominantly periventricular areas. There were powerful correlations between total (tWMH) and regional (rWMH) WMH, with correlation coefficients of 0.5 to 0.9 for eight of 10 structures analyzed. tWMH predicted functional measures of UI, mobility, executive function, and processing speed nearly as well as the best regional measures. The total volume of WMHs independently explains 5% to 11% of the variability for mobility, UI severity, executive function, and processing speed and is a sensitive (0.7–0.8) predictor of functional decline. The odds of decline in each of the three functional domains was 1.5 to 2.4 times greater with each 1% increase in tWMH.CONCLUSION:This work establishes the importance of brain WMH burden in three major geriatric syndromes. The findings support the inclusion of total WMH burden as a risk factor in the predictive and diagnostic criteria.
An Exploratory Study of Student Perceptions of Which Classroom Policies Are Fairest
Authors: Duplaga Edward A. , Astani Marzie 
Published: January 2010

ABSTRACTFairness is a critical issue in the educational setting, and the research is unified in the view that professors need to be fair in setting course policies and procedures. However, many unanswered questions still remain as to which specific classroom policies and procedures students find fair or unfair. This study explores student perceptions of which course policies provide the fairest treatment for all students in a college class. In addition, we also investigate the presence of a relationship between students’ locus of control and their perceptions of the fairest course policies. Data were provided by 254 undergraduate students enrolled in sections of an introductory operations management course or an introductory management information systems course. As an initial, exploratory study in this specific area, eight common classroom policy situations were investigated. Although, not surprisingly, all students did not agree on which policy was the fairest for any given classroom situation, we were able to identify those policies considered fairest by the most students. The results can help professors develop course policies that improve students’ perceptions of fairness in the college classroom.
Effects of Transparency and At‐Stakeness on Students’ Perceptions of Their Ability to Work Collaboratively in Effective Classroom Teams: A Partial Test of the Jassawalla and Sashittal Model
Authors: Jassawalla Avan R. , Sashittal Hemant C. , Malshe Avinash 
Published: January 2010

ABSTRACTWhile teams are common in business school classrooms, scholars note that few instructors provide teamwork‐related instruction. The consequent negative experiences may explain the reported cynicism about teamwork among students. This article reports findings from a study that examined the link between a teaching strategy designed to help students function more effectively in teams and its impact on student perceptions of their ability to work collaboratively with others and on their perceptions of their team's effectiveness. The study found evidence to suggest that a teaching strategy designed to help students reach the multiple stages of team development such as high levels of at‐stakeness and transparency positively impacts their perceptions and that these stages effectively mediate the link between the strategy and key outcomes.
Why Is Performance on Multiple‐Choice Tests and Constructed‐Response Tests Not More Closely Related? Theory and an Empirical Test*
Authors: Kuechler William L. , Simkin Mark G. 
Published: January 2010

ABSTRACTBoth professional certification and academic tests rely heavily on multiple‐choice questions, despite the widespread belief that alternate, constructed‐response questions are superior measures of a test taker's understanding of the underlying material. Empirically, the search for a link between these two assessment metrics has met with limited success, leading some researchers to conclude that the relationship is close and others to conclude that no relationship exists at all. The authors suggest that “knowledge level” may play a key role in explaining this disparity in findings. This article outlines the theory for such a concept, and investigates the possibility using 172 carefully constructed tests in several entry‐level programming classes. The article also discusses several caveats that suggest the usefulness of yet further research in the area.
A Reference Model for Sustainable E‐Learning Service Systems:Experiences with the Joint University/Teradata Consortium
Authors: Demirkan Haluk , Goul Michael , Gros Mary 
Published: January 2010

ABSTRACTMany e‐learning service systems fail. This is particularly true for those sponsored by joint industry/university consortia where substantial economic investments are required up‐front. This article provides an industry/university consortia reference model validated through experiences with the 8‐year‐old Teradata University Network. The reference model addresses basic and advanced sustainability capabilities that integrate partner, application, faculty, student, and e‐learning service system issues. Our validation of the reference model includes a mapping to the literature regarding recent advances in e‐learning service system infrastructures and supported capabilities. One outcome of that validation step is a comprehensive set of capability assessment questions to be used by consortia.
The “End Of History” 20 Years Later
Authors: FUKUYAMA FRANCIS 
Published: January 2010

Twenty years after the fall of the Berlin Wall and the triumphant celebrations of the West, a new chapter of history has opened featuring the rising powers of Asia, led by China. Though embracing free markets, China has looked to its Confucian traditions instead of liberal democracy as the best route to good governance.Will China manage to achieve high growth and a harmonious society through a strong state and long‐range planning that puts messy Western democracy and its short‐term mindset to shame? Or, in the end, will the weak rule of law and absence of political accountability in a one‐party state undermine its promise?Francis Fukuyama and Kishore Mahbubani, the Singaporean thinker who has become the apostle of non‐Western modernity, debate these issues.In this section we also republish a collective memoir by George H.W. Bush, Mikhail Gorbachev, Margaret Thatcher and François Mitterrand, recalling their fears and hopes two decades ago as they brought the Cold War to an end.
Financial Markets Must Not Return to “Bad Old Ways”
Authors: BARROSO JOSÉ MANUEL 
Published: January 2010

Thanks to the draining effects of the Iraq war and the financial meltdown emanating from Wall Street, a powershift away from American dominance is taking place. Caught between a rising China and an America in relative decline, the new leadership in Japan is recalibrating its post‐World War II relationships. The G‐20 has usurped the role once played by the G‐8 as the governing committee of globalization. And the symbiotic coupling of “Chimerica”, born out of the credit bubble built up over the past two decades, is being put to the test.In this section, the new prime minister of Japan, the president of the European Union, the president of Brazil and a leading economic historian assess these shifts.
The G‐2: Are America and China Headed for Divorce?
Authors: FERGUSON NIALL 
Published: January 2010

Thanks to the draining effects of the Iraq war and the financial meltdown emanating from Wall Street, a powershift away from American dominance is taking place. Caught between a rising China and an America in relative decline, the new leadership in Japan is recalibrating its post‐World War II relationships. The G‐20 has usurped the role once played by the G‐8 as the governing committee of globalization. And the symbiotic coupling of “Chimerica”, born out of the credit bubble built up over the past two decades, is being put to the test.In this section, the new prime minister of Japan, the president of the European Union, the president of Brazil and a leading economic historian assess these shifts.
Rebalancing the Global Economy: China Must Allow Currency to Rise, US Must Boost Savings
Authors: STRAUSS‐KAHN DOMINIQUE 
Published: January 2010

Thanks to the draining effects of the Iraq war and the financial meltdown emanating from Wall Street, a powershift away from American dominance is taking place. Caught between a rising China and an America in relative decline, the new leadership in Japan is recalibrating its post‐World War II relationships. The G‐20 has usurped the role once played by the G‐8 as the governing committee of globalization. And the symbiotic coupling of “Chimerica”, born out of the credit bubble built up over the past two decades, is being put to the test.In this section, the new prime minister of Japan, the president of the European Union, the president of Brazil and a leading economic historian assess these shifts.
Don't Sacrifice Democracy in Negotiations With Iran
Authors: EBADI SHIRIN 
Published: January 2010

As the confrontation between the West and Iran over uranium enrichment comes to a head, the internal confrontation in Iran between the partisans of divine sovereignty, allied with the Revolutionary Guard, and popular sovereignty continues to simmer.In this section, the first president of the Islamic Republic, a leading cleric of the opposition, the Iranian human rights activist and Nobel Laureate Shirin Ebadi and a former British intelligence agent ponder what lies ahead.
A Review of Vasomotor Responses of Arterioles on the Surface of the Mouse Brain: The Necessary Prelude to Studies Using Genetically Manipulated Mice
Authors: ROSENBLUM WILLIAM I. 
Published: January 2010

ABSTRACTObjective: To review the published data concerning the vasomotor responses of arterioles on the surface of the mouse brain. This information is essential to the planning of studies using genetically manipulated mice to investigate the control of cerebral vascular resistance.Results: Cerebral vasomotor responses of mice have been reported using a wide variety of vasoactive agents. The responses are usually like those of other laboratory animals. Some agents are capable of elicting opposing dilating and constricting responses. The initial tone of the arteriole is one of several factors that can determine the direction of the response elicited by such agents. Endothelium‐dependent dilators and constrictors have been described. There are a variety of endothelium‐derived relaxing factors (EDRFs). Only one of these is synthesized by nitric oxide synthase (NOS). Antisense data suggests that both the endothelial and the neuronal isoforms of NOS may exist in the endothelial cells of these vessels. Several diseases can be modeled in mice and cerebrovascular responses studied. Studies of genetically modified mice suggest that the endothelial form of NOS contributes to microvascular events, which limit ischemic damage to brain parenchyma. However, during and following ischemia there may be loss of this NOS or inability to mobilize a storage form of the EDRF, which it produces.Conclusions: Data available from studies of mice provide a good basis for planning further studies, examining cerebrovascular control mechanisms in health and disease, by workers now using genetically modified mice. The latter represent a powerful and increasingly popular tool for this purpose.
Differential Expression of Platelet‐Endothelial Cell Adhesion Molecule‐1 (PECAM‐1) in Murine Tissues
Authors: EPPIHIMER MICHAEL J. , RUSSELL JANICE , LANGLEY ROBERT , VALLIEN GINA , ANDERSON DONALD C. , GRANGER D. NEIL 
Published: January 2010

ABSTRACTObjective: To characterize and compare the expression of PECAM‐1 in unstimulated and tumor necrosis factor α‐ (TNF‐α)‐stimulated tissues of mice.Methods: Binding and non‐binding monoclonal antibodies (mAb) were radio‐labeled and injected into wild‐type mice deficient of P‐selectin, CD18, or ICAM‐1. The relative accumulation of binding mAb (PECAM‐1 mAb) was determined in wild‐type mice following a 25 µg/kg i.p. injection of TNF‐α and in mutant mice under basal conditions.Results: Under unstimulated conditions, PECAM‐1 was significantly expressed in all tissues examined, with no changes occurring after TNF‐α stimulation. An equivalence of PECAM‐1 expression was observed in unstimulated tissues among wild‐type mice and mice that are genetically deficient in either CD18, ICAM‐1, or P‐selectin. The level of PECAM‐1 expression in different vascular beds was highly correlated to published values of endothelial surface area. Normalization of previously published values of ICAM‐1, VCAM‐1, E‐ and P‐selectin expression relative to PECAM‐1 expression in the same tissues revealed a diminished organ‐to‐organ variability in expression of the different adhesion molecules. Estimates of adhesion molecule expression in lung and brain were most profoundly affected by normalization to PECAM‐1 expression.Conclusions: These findings support the use of PECAM‐1 expression in regional vascular beds as an indicator of endothelial cell surface area.
An Absolute Requirement for P‐Selectin in Ischemia/Reperfusion‐Induced Leukocyte Recruitment in Cremaster Muscle
Authors: KANWAR SAMINA , SMITH C. WAYNE , KUBES PAUL 
Published: January 2010

ABSTRACTObjective: To systematically examine a role for P‐selectin in a model of striated muscle ischemia/reperfusion (I/R).Methods: Ischemia was induced in the cremaster muscle of mice by occluding the main feeding arteriole for 30 minutes. Blood flow was then restored to allow for 60 minutes of reperfusion and leukocyte kinetics were assessed during the control period (before I/R) and at 5, 30, and 60 minutes of reperfusion. To study a role for P‐selectin in this model, three different approaches were used: Wildtype animals received fucoidin (10 mg/kg, iv), an anti‐P‐selectin antibody (RB40.34; 20 mg/animal, iv) at 25 minutes of ischemia, or I/R was induced in P‐selectin‐deficient mice.Results: Ischemia/reperfusion induced a rapid and significant increase in leukocyte rolling, adhesion, and emigration in wild‐type mice. The I/R‐induced increase in leukocyte rolling was transient, inasmuch as it was reduced by approximately 50% at 30 minutes of reperfusion, and returned to control levels by 60 minutes. Both fucoidin and an anti‐P‐selectin antibody completely prevented the I/R‐induced increase in leukocyte rolling. The P‐selectin‐deficient animals exhibited absolutely no baseline leukocyte rolling, adhesion, or emigration. Furthermore, I/R did not induce any increase in leukocyte recruitment in the Pselectin‐deficient animals over the first 60 minutes of reperfusion.Conclusion: The results from this study clearly illustrate that P‐selectin is absolutely critical in both baseline and I/R‐induced leukocyte infiltration in the murine‐striated muscle.
Effects of Environmental Stress on the Architecture and Permeability of the Rat Mesenteric Microvasculature
Authors: WILSON LISA M. , BALDWIN ANN L. 
Published: January 2010

ABSTRACTObjective: This study was performed to determine the effects of environmental stress on the leakage to albumin and architecture of microvessels in the rat mesentery.Methods: One group of rats (Group A, n = 6) were examined immediately upon arrival at the animal care facility. Groups B (n = 24) and C (n = 32) were housed in rooms with high and low personnel activity, respectively, for up to 7 weeks. Group D (n =18) was housed in the high activity room for 2, 3, or 4 weeks followed by the low activity room.Results: Rats in the low activity room for 3–4 weeks showed robust microvascular networks within 25% to 50% of the mesenteric windows (each window consisting of the tissue extending between two adjacent feeding arterioles in the mesentery), whereas rats in Group B only showed fragile vessels at the edges of the mesenteric windows within fat deposits. Groups A and C demonstrated little mesenteric fat and few fragile vessels, in contrast to group B. Group D showed increased mesenteric networks and decreased mesenteric fat as recovery progressed. The microvascular networks of 6 rats, randomly selected from Group C, showed few venular leaks following perfusion with fluorescein isothiocyanatelabeled bovine serum albumin (FITC‐BSA). Such leaks were abundant in the mesenteric microvasculature of 3 rats randomly selected from Group B.Conclusions: This study demonstrates that environmentally induced stress alters the architecture and leakage to albumin of the rat mesenteric microvasculature, and emphasizes the importance of closely monitoring the environment of experimental animals.
A Mechanism of Oxygen Free Radical Production in the Dahl Hypertensive Rat
Authors: SWEI ALLEN , LACY FRED , DELANO FRANK A. , PARKS DALE A. , SCHMID‐SCHÖNBEIN GEERT W. 
Published: January 2010

ABSTRACTObjective: To determine if oxygen free radicals derived from xanthine oxidase are involved in the development of salt‐induced hypertension. Enhanced production of oxygen free radicals may play a role in hypertension by affecting vascular smooth muscle contraction and provide a mechanism for lesion formation.Methods: Dahl salt‐sensitive (Dahl‐S) and salt‐resistant (Dahl‐R) rats were fed either a low‐salt, high‐salt or high‐salt + tungsten diet for 4 wk. In vivo production of superoxide (O2−) was detected by the reduction of a tetranitroblue tetrazolium (TNBT) dye in the rat mesentery, while plasma hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) production levels were determined using a modified electrochemical electrode technique.Results: The tungsten diet lowered the blood pressure of Dahl‐S rats compared to high‐salt‐treated Dahl‐S rats, but had no effect on blood pressure in Dahl‐R rats. Light absorption of formazan deposits revealed that tungsten‐treated Dahl‐S rats had reduced TNBT staining along the endothelium of arterioles and venules compared to hypertensive, high‐salt‐treated Dahl‐S rats. In addition, tungsten‐treated Dahl‐S rats had a lower plasma H2O2 concentration compared to hypertensive, high‐salt‐treated Dahl‐S rats.Conclusions: These findings indicate that xanthine oxidase‐derived oxygen free radicals are involved in the pathogenesis of salt‐induced hypertension.
Tissue Oxygenation Modifies Nitric Oxide Bioavailability
Authors: HEYMAN SAMUEL N. , GOLDFARB MARINA , DARMON DAVID , BREZIS MAYER 
Published: January 2010

ABSTRACTObjective: Because changes in blood oxygenation acutely alter vascular tone, we explored a possible modulation of nitric oxide‐induced vasodilation (nitrovasodilation) by oxygen.Methods: We studied the effects of manipulation of tissue oxygenation on renal parenchymal nitric oxide (NO) with a selective NO electrode placed in the well‐oxygenated renal cortex or in the physiologically hypoxemic outer medulla.Results: In the cortex, as expected, NO signals fell in response to the NO synthase (NOS) inhibitor L‐NAME. By contrast, in the outer medulla, NO signals paradoxically rose following NOS inhibition, known to intensify local hypoxia. Other manipulations that intensify outer medullary hypoxia (such as indomethacin or radiologic contrast media) increased local NO readings, while measures known to ameliorate outer medullary hypoxia (furosemide, L‐arginine, hypotension) reduced regional NO readings.Conclusions: Oxygen appears to modulate NO bioavailability, in particular, in tissues with low ambient pO2, perhaps through enhanced binding to oxygenated hemoglobin. It is proposed that this phenomenon may participate in physiological microvascular regulation, with hypoxemia enhancing NO concentration, while hyperoxemia resulting in accelerated NO removal.