bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
OIL PRICE SHOCKS AND STOCK MARKET BOOMS IN AN OIL EXPORTING COUNTRY
Authors: Bjørnland Hilde C. 
Published: March 2009

ABSTRACTThis paper analyses the effects of oil price shocks on stock returns in Norway, an oil‐exporting country, highlighting the transmission channels of oil prices for macroeconomic behaviour. To capture the interaction between the different variables, stock returns are incorporated into a structural VAR model. I find that following a 10% increase in oil prices, stock returns increase by 2.5%, after which the effect gradually dies out. The results are robust to different (linear and non‐linear) transformations of oil prices. The effects on the other variables are more modest. However, all variables indicate that the Norwegian economy responds to higher oil prices by increasing aggregate wealth and demand. The results also emphasize the role of other shocks; monetary policy shocks in particular, as important driving forces behind stock price variability in the short term.
Total daily sleep duration and the risk of dementia: a prospective population‐based study
Authors: Benito‐León J. , Bermejo‐Pareja F. , Vega S. , Louis E. D. 
Published: March 2009

Background and purpose: We determined in a population‐based study whether sleep duration was associated with an increased risk of incident dementia.Methods: In a population‐based study in central Spain, participants were evaluated at baseline and 3 years later. Baseline demographic variables were recorded and participants indicated their daily sleep duration as the sum of night‐time sleep and daytime napping. The average daily total sleep duration was grouped into five categories: ≤5 (short sleepers), 6, 7 (reference), 8, and ≥9 h (long sleepers). We identified all cases with incident dementia, diagnosed using DSM‐IV criteria.Results: Three thousand two hundred eighty six participants with baseline information about sleep duration had a median duration of follow‐up of 3.2 years. There were 140 incident cases of dementia. The relative risks (RR) for short sleepers and for long sleepers were 2.36 (95% CI = 1.07–5.21, P = 0.03) and 2.40 (95% CI = 1.20–4.81, P = 0.01), respectively. After adjustment for potential confounders, the RR was only marginally increased for short sleepers (1.87, 95% CI = 0.85–4.15, P = 0.12) but remained increased for long sleepers (2.18; 95% CI = 1.09–4.37, P = 0.03).Conclusions: Prolonged sleep duration (night‐time sleep and daytime napping) may be associated with an increased risk of dementia.
Persistence of literacy problems: spelling in adolescence and at mid‐life
Authors: Maughan B. , Messer J. , Collishaw S. , Pickles A. , Snowling M. , Yule W. , Rutter M. 
Published: March 2009

Background:  Developmental reading problems show strong persistence across the school years; less is known about poor readers’ later progress in literacy skills.Method:  Poor (n = 42) and normally developing readers (n = 86) tested in adolescence (ages 14/15 years) in the Isle of Wight epidemiological studies were re‐contacted at mid‐life (ages 44/45 years). Participants completed a spelling test, and reported on educational qualifications, perceived adult spelling competence, and problems in day‐to‐day literacy tasks.Results:  Individual differences in spelling were highly persistent across this 30‐year follow‐up, with correlations between spelling at ages 14 and 44 years of r = .91 (p < .001) for poor readers and r = .89 (p < .001) for normally developing readers. Poor readers’ spelling remained markedly impaired at mid‐life, with some evidence that they had fallen further behind over the follow‐up period. Taking account of adolescent spelling levels, continued exposure to reading and literacy demands in adolescence and early adulthood was independently predictive of adult spelling in both samples; family social background added further to prediction among normally developing readers only.Conclusions:  By adolescence, individual differences in spelling and its related sub‐skills are highly stable. Encouraging young people with reading disabilities to maintain their exposure to reading and writing may be advantageous in the longer term.
Brand switching in clothing: the role of variety‐seeking drive and product category‐level characteristics
Authors: Michaelidou Nina , Dibb Sally 
Published: March 2009

AbstractThe study explores the impact of internal factors such as variety‐seeking drive, loyalty, involvement, perceived risk, pleasure and similarity perceptions on brand‐switching propensity in clothing purchases using multiple regression. The model derived shows that five internal factors including involvement, perceived risk, loyalty and variety‐seeking drive have an impact on brand switching propensity. The findings highlight that highly involved and loyal consumers are likely to show brand‐switching propensities in their clothing purchases, thus buying from a repertoire of brands and stores. These findings imply that retailers should ensure that their clothing brands or stores are among those in the multi‐brand repertoire of the consumer.
The Within‐Year Concentration of Medical Care: Implications for Family Out‐of‐Pocket Expenditure Burdens
Authors: Selden Thomas M. 
Published: March 2009

Objective. To examine the within‐year concentration of family health care and the resulting exposure of families to short periods of high expenditure burdens.Data Source. Household data from the pooled 2003 and 2004 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS) yielding nationally representative estimates for the nonelderly civilian noninstitutionalized population.Study Design. The paper examines the within‐year concentration of family medical care use and the frequency with which family out‐of‐pocket expenditures exceeded 20 percent of family income, computed at the annual, quarterly, and monthly levels.Principal Findings. On average among families with medical care, 49 percent of all (charge‐weighted) care occurred in a single month, and 63 percent occurred in a single quarter). Nationally, 27 percent of the study population experienced at least 1 month in which out‐of‐pocket expenditures exceeded 20 percent of income. Monthly 20 percent burden rates were highest among the poor, at 43 percent, and were close to or above 30 percent for all but the highest income group (families above four times the federal poverty line).Conclusions. Within‐year spikes in health care utilization can create financial pressures missed by conventional annual burden analyses. Within‐year health‐related financial pressures may be especially acute among lower‐income families due to low asset holdings.
The Health Effects of Medicare for the Near‐Elderly Uninsured
Authors: Polsky Daniel , Doshi Jalpa A. , Escarce José , Manning Willard , Paddock Susan M. , Cen Liyi , Rogowski Jeannette 
Published: March 2009

Objective. To determine whether Medicare enrollment at age 65 has an effect on the health trajectory of the near‐elderly uninsured.Data Sources. Eight biennial waves (1992–2006) of the Health and Retirement Study, a nationally representative panel survey of noninstitutionalized 51–61 year olds and their spouses.Study Design. We use a quasi‐experimental approach to compare the health effects of insurance for the near‐elderly uninsured with previously insured contemporaneous controls. The primary outcome measure is overall self‐reported health status combined with mortality (i.e., excellent to very good, good, fair to poor, dead).Results. The change in the trajectory of overall health status for the previously uninsured that can be attributed to Medicare is small and not statistically significant. For every 100 persons in the previously uninsured group, joining Medicare is associated with 0.6 fewer in excellent or very good health (95 percent CI: −4.8, 3.3), 0.3 more in good health (95 percent CI: −3.8, 4.1), 2.5 fewer in fair or poor health (95 percent CI: −7.4, 2.3), and 2.8 more dead (−4.0, 10.0) by age 73. The health trajectory patterns from physician objective health measures are similarly small and not statistically significant.Conclusions. Medicare coverage at age 65 for the previously uninsured is not linked to improvements in overall health status.
Impact of Public Reporting on Quality of Postacute Care
Authors: Werner Rachel M. , Konetzka R. Tamara , Stuart Elizabeth A. , Norton Edward C. , Polsky Daniel , Park Jeongyoung 
Published: March 2009

Objective. Evidence supporting the use of public reporting of quality information to improve health care quality is mixed. While public reporting may improve reported quality, its effect on quality of care more broadly is uncertain. This study tests whether public reporting in the setting of nursing homes resulted in improvement of reported and broader but unreported quality of postacute care.Data Sources/Study Setting. 1999–2005 nursing home Minimum Data Set and inpatient Medicare claims.Study Design. We examined changes in postacute care quality in U.S. nursing homes in response to the initiation of public reporting on the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services website, Nursing Home Compare. We used small nursing homes that were not subject to public reporting as a contemporaneous control and also controlled for patient selection into nursing homes. Postacute care quality was measured using three publicly reported clinical quality measures and 30‐day potentially preventable rehospitalization rates, an unreported measure of quality.Principal Findings. Reported quality of postacute care improved after the initiation of public reporting for two of the three reported quality measures used in Nursing Home Compare. However, rates of potentially preventable rehospitalization did not significantly improve and, in some cases, worsened.Conclusions. Public reporting of nursing home quality was associated with an improvement in most postacute care performance measures but not in the broader measure of rehospitalization.
Deconstructing the association between relationship maintenance and commitment: Testing two competing models
Authors: OGOLSKY BRIAN G. 
Published: March 2009

AbstractIn this study, the author compares 2 models: the information‐seeking model, in which perceptions of relationship maintenance predict subsequent commitment, and the motivational model, in which commitment predicts subsequent perceptions of relationship maintenance, by means of a daily, cross‐lagged, dyadic design. The moderating effects of relationship length and global commitment are also tested. A sample of 98 same‐sex couples from the United States completed an Internet daily diary for 14 consecutive days. The results of 2 hierarchical linear models showed that, as predicted, the information‐seeking model was characteristic of couples who had been together for a shorter amount of time whereas the motivational model better characterized couples who had been together longer.
Implementation of a two‐specimen requirement for verification of ABO/Rh for blood transfusion
Authors: Goodnough Lawrence T. , Viele Maurene , Fontaine Magali J. , Jurado Christine , Stone Nancy , Quach Peter , Chua Lee , Chin Mei‐Ling , Scott Robert , Tokareva Irina , Tabb Kevin , Sharek Paul J. 
Published: March 2009

BACKGROUND: This study presents our implementation of a two‐specimen requirement with no prior record of ABO/Rh to verify patients' blood type before transfusion.MATERIALS AND METHODS: Blood type verification was introduced, discussed, approved, and implemented over a 12‐month period (May 2007 to May 2008). Potential barriers and impact on benchmark indicators were identified and tracked.RESULTS: Inpatient identification and/or specimen labeling for nursing and laboratory phlebotomists baseline corrected error rates were 1:467 and 1:5555, respectively. This study therefore sought and obtained approval to initiate a new policy of blood type verification before blood transfusion. Compliance in turnaround time (TAT) before and after implementation for completion of STAT type and screen/crossmatch within 60 minutes worsened marginally, from 90% to 80%. The impact on use of O–, uncrossmatched blood was found to be manageable. Seven (of 25 total) recorded electronic complaints were received after implementation. The corrected error rate for nurse phlebotomy draws after implementation was 1:630.CONCLUSION: Despite the lack of an instigating event, verification of blood type before blood transfusion was successfully implemented. An impact on resources and benchmark indicators such as TAT can be anticipated and managed. Further process improvement efforts will be needed to ensure safety (e.g., at time of blood transfusion) for patients receiving blood transfusions. ABO/Rh verification may be necessary even after future implementation of bar coding and/or RFID chips, because human errors continue to occur even with systems improvements.
The risk of dengue transmission by blood during a 2004 outbreak in Cairns, Australia
Authors: Seed Clive R. , Kiely Philip , Hyland Catherine A. , Keller Anthony J. 
Published: March 2009

BACKGROUND: Dengue virus (DENV) is a Flavivirus transmitted by the Aedes mosquito. The related arbovirus, West Nile virus, has been shown to be transfusion transmitted, which, added to the four recorded dengue transfusion‐associated cases, indicates that DENV is also transfusion transmitted. The purpose of this study was to assess the risk of transfusion‐transmitted DENV during a 2004 outbreak in the Australian city of Cairns.STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: A mathematical model was constructed to estimate the risk of transfusion‐transmitted dengue. The model's central premise is that the transmission risk is proportional to the frequency of dengue‐viremic donations and correlates with the incidence of asymptomatic dengue viremia among the population at large.RESULTS: The modeling predicted that the total number of DENV infections (clinical plus subclinical) among the population at large during the entire outbreak ranged from 156 to 569 with the epidemic peak occurring between February 8 and March 6, 2004. The overall transmission risk during the entire outbreak was estimated as 1 in 19,759 (range, 1 in 3404 to 75,486) peaking at 1 in 5968 (range 1 in 1028 to 22,800).CONCLUSION: By use of the most conservative estimates for key variables, the risk of collecting a viremic donation could have been as high as 1 in 1028 during the peak of the 2004 outbreak. The model can be used to determine transfusion transmission risk levels during DENV outbreaks and inform decisions as to when fresh component restriction measures are required to minimize transfusion transmission risk.
Distance‐dependent effects of soil‐derived biota on seedling survival of the tropical tree legume Ormosia semicastrata
Authors: Li Ruibo , Yu Shixiao , Wang Yongfan , Staehelin Christian , Zang Runguo 
Published: March 2009

AbstractQuestion: How do seed germination and subsequent seedling survival of O. semicastrata (Hance forma litchiifolia How) vary with respect to distance from parent trees and conspecific density in different types of tropical forest? Are there effects of soil biota on O. semicastrata that systematically depend on distance from parent trees and conspecific density? Do soil pathogens differently affect survival of O. semicastrata in different types of tropical forest?Location: Tropical lowland rain forest and tropical montane rain forest in Jianfengling National Nature Reserve, Hainan Island, China.Methods: Individual adult O. semicastrata trees were selected in lowland rain forest and montane rain forest. Soil was collected at a distance of 0‐5 m or 15‐20 m from the parent tree. Soil samples from each distance were combined into a bulk sample. Half of the soil sample was sterilized by autoclaving. Surface‐sterilized seeds were then added to the soil material in shade‐houses at both forests.Results: Germination of O. semicastrata seeds at low‐ or high‐seed density was barely affected by the sterilization procedure. In both forests, seedlings grown in non‐sterilized soil collected close to parent trees had significantly higher mortality compared to those in sterilized soil. In contrast, seedling survival with soil collected far from parent trees was not affected by the soil sterilization procedure.Conclusions: Host‐specific pathogens concentrated in the soil around parent trees may regulate community structure of tropical trees at the stage of seedling development.
Herb layer response to broadleaf tree species with different leaf litter quality and canopy structure in temperate forests
Authors: Wulf Monika , Naaf Tobias 
Published: March 2009

AbstractQuestion: How do broadleaf tree species affect humus characteristics, herb layer composition and species diversity through their leaf litter quality and canopy structure?Location: Mixed broadleaf forests in Brandenburg, NE Germany.Methods: We studied the herb and tree layer composition in 129 undisturbed stands using a 10‐degree cover‐abundance and percentage scale, respectively. The main floristic gradients were extracted by non‐metric multidimensional scaling. Effects of tree species on the herb layer were analysed with partial Spearman rank correlation. We assessed affinities for specific tree species using indicator species analysis.Results: Both beech and oak influenced herb layer composition mainly through their litter quality, which resulted in deep Ol and Of horizons, respectively. The less dense canopy of oak, in contrast to the dense beech canopy, enhanced species diversity in favour of indifferent herb species (species not closely tied to forests). Lime was correlated with a distinct floristic gradient, but a direct effect on the herb layer cannot be proven with the available data. Effects of hornbeam were less pronounced.Conclusions: The relationship between the tree and herb layer must be partly attributed to pH differences. However, tree species effects on humus characteristics and on light flux to the ground were largely responsible as well. The results suggest that tree species can influence herb layer composition and diversity, but the missing correlation with lime and hornbeam raise questions requiring further detailed investigation.
Identification of Quantitative Trait Loci for Rice Quality in a Population of Chromosome Segment Substitution Lines
Authors: Hao Wei , Zhu Mei‐Zhen , Gao Ji‐Ping , Sun Shi‐Yong , Lin Hong‐Xuan 
Published: March 2009

Abstract The demand for high quality rice represents a major issue in rice production. The primary components of rice grain quality include appearance, eating, cooking, physico‐chemical, milling and nutritional qualities. Most of these traits are complex and controlled by quantitative trait loci (QTLs), so the genetic characterization of these traits is more difficult than that of traits controlled by a single gene. The detection and genetic identification of QTLs can provide insights into the genetic mechanisms underlying quality traits. Chromosome segment substitution lines (CSSLs) are effective tools used in mapping QTLs. In this study, we constructed 154 CSSLs from backcross progeny (BC3F2) derived from a cross between ‘Koshihikari’ (an Oryza sativa L. ssp. japonica variety) as the recurrent parent and ‘Nona Bokra’ (an O. sativa L. ssp. indica variety) as the donor parent. In this process, we carried out marker‐assisted selection by using 102 cleaved amplified polymorphic sequence and simple sequence repeat markers covering most of the rice genome. Finally, this set of CSSLs was used to identify QTLs for rice quality traits. Ten QTLs for rice appearance quality traits were detected and eight QTLs concerned physico‐chemical traits. These results supply the foundation for further genetic studies and breeding for the improvement of grain quality.
MTA pulpotomy of human permanent molars with irreversible pulpitis
Authors: Eghbal Mohammad Jafar , Asgary Saeed , Baglue Reza Ali , Parirokh Masoud , Ghoddusi Jamileh 
Published: March 2009

AbstractThe histological success of mineral trioxide aggregate (MTA) pulpotomy for treatment of irreversible pulpitis in human teeth as an alternative treatment was investigated in this study. Fourteen molars which had to be extracted were selected from patients 16–28 years old. The selection criteria include carious pulp exposure with a history of lingering pain. After isolation, caries removal and pulp exposure, MTA was used in pulpotomy treatment. Patients were evaluated for pain after 24 h. Two patients were lost from this study. Twelve teeth were extracted after 2 months and were assessed histologically. Recall examinations confirmed that none of the patients experienced pain after pulpotomy. Histological observation revealed that all samples had dentin bridge formation completely and that the pulps were vital and free of inflammation. Although the results favour the use of MTA as a pulpotomy material, more studies with larger samples and a longer recall period are suggested to justify the use of MTA for treatment of irreversible pulpitis in human permanent teeth.
Incongruent Counterparts and the Reality of Space
Authors: Nerlich Graham 
Published: March 2009

AbstractLeft and right hands are incongruent counterparts. Yet each replicates the intrinsic properties of the other. This suggests that differing relations to space make the difference. Kant's and Weyl's discussions of the problem are critically discussed. It emerges that spatial relationism fails to explain how its relations may be interpreted. An excursion into visual geometry explains the basis of handedness in the orientable structure of space.
A Population‐Based Survival Assessment of Categorizing Level III and IV Rural Hospitals as Trauma Centers
Authors: Arthur Melanie , Newgard Craig D. , Mullins Richard J. , Diggs Brian S. , Stone Judith V. , Adams Annette L. , Hedges Jerris R. 
Published: March 2009

ABSTRACT:
Context: Patients injured in rural areas are hypothesized to have improved outcomes if statewide trauma systems categorize rural hospitals as Level III and IV trauma centers, though evidence to support this belief is sparse. Purpose: To determine if there is improved survival among injured patients hospitalized in states that categorize rural hospitals as trauma centers. Methods: We analyzed a retrospective cohort of injured patients included in the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project's Nationwide Inpatient Sample from 1997 to 1999. We used generalized estimating equations to compare survival among injured patients hospitalized in states that categorize rural hospitals as Level III and IV trauma centers versus those that do not. Multivariable models adjusted for important confounders, including patient demographics, co‐morbid conditions, injury severity, and hospital‐level factors. Findings: There were 257,044 admitted patients from 7 states with a primary injury diagnosis, of whom 64,190 (25%) had a “serious” index injury, 32,763 (13%) were seriously injured (by ICD‐9 codes), and 12,435 (5%) were very seriously injured (by ICD‐9 codes). There was no survival benefit associated with rural hospital categorization among all patients with a primary injury diagnosis or for those with specific index injuries. However, seriously injured patients (by ICD‐9 codes) had improved survival when hospitalized in a categorizing state (OR for mortality 0.72, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.53‐0.97; OR for very seriously injured 0.68, 95% CI 0.52‐0.90). Conclusions: There was no survival benefit to categorizing rural hospitals among a broad, heterogeneous group of hospitalized patients with a primary injury diagnosis; however the most seriously injured patients did have increased survival in such states.