bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
A functional magnetic resonance imaging study of the effect of sacral neuromodulation on brain responses in women with Fowler’s syndrome
Authors: Kavia Rajesh , DasGupta Ranan , Critchley Hugo , Fowler Clare , Griffiths Derek 
Published: September 2009

Study Type – Aetiology (case series) Level of Evidence 4OBJECTIVETo examine brain responses to bladder filling in young women with Fowler’s syndrome (FS, a sphincter abnormality manifested by impaired voiding and bladder sensation), treated with sacral neuromodulation (SNM).PATIENTS AND METHODSSix women, aged 18–39 years with FS underwent functional brain magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) immediately after SNM and when untreated (baseline). Data were collected at four sessions: after SNM with an empty and a full bladder, and at baseline with an empty and a full bladder. In each session, 280 whole‐brain scans were acquired while repeatedly infusing and withdrawing 50 mL of saline, using push‐buttons to report changing desire to void. Data were analysed using Statistical Parametric Mapping.RESULTSAt baseline with an empty bladder, extensive responses (contrast = infusion–withdrawal) were almost exclusively negative (‘deactivations’), e.g. in the right insula, seat of visceral sensation. Increased bladder volume and/or SNM treatment reduced deactivations and strengthened normal (positive) responses, e.g. in the periaqueductal grey (PAG) terminus of ascending spinal afferents. At baseline, there was significant correlation of brain responses with maximum urethral closure pressure.CONCLUSIONThese data show that brain responses to bladder filling are abnormal in FS. The explanation for this that best explains the evidence is that the primary abnormality is an overactive urethra that generates abnormally strong inhibitory afferent signals, so effectively blocking bladder afferent activity at the sacral level and deactivating the PAG and higher centres, with consequent loss of bladder sensation and ability to void. Apparently, a normal mechanism for suppression of incontinence involving the striated urethral sphincter becomes exaggerated in FS and prevents voiding. SNM seems to act at the sacral level, by blocking inhibition by urethral afferents.
Risk factors for gestational diabetes mellitus in Chinese women—a prospective study of 16 286 pregnant women in China
Authors: Yang H. , Wei Y. , Gao X. , Xu X. , Fan L. , He J. , Hu Y. , Liu X. , Chen X. , Yang Z. , Zhang C. ,   on behalf of China National GDM Survey Working Group
Published: September 2009

AbstractAims  To determine the incidence of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) in China and to further identify population specific risk factors for GDM.Methods  Following a universal GDM screening recommendation, 16 286 pregnant women who underwent a 50‐g glucose challenge test from 18 cities in China were followed up through pregnancy. GDM was confirmed by oral glucose tolerance test according to American Diabetes Association criteria.Results  The incidence of GDM was 4.3%. Previously reported risk factors for GDM, including advanced maternal age, pre‐pregnancy obesity and family history of diabetes, were strongly associated with an elevated GDM risk. Moreover, after the adjustment for the above‐mentioned risk factors, a history of recurrent vulvovaginal candidiasis, residency in south China and a history of spontaneous abortion were significantly associated with an increased GDM risk; adjusted odds ratio (OR) [95% confidence interval (95% CI)] were 1.97 (1.39, 2.80), 1.84 (1.59–2.13), and 1.46 (1.12, 1.91), respectively.Conclusions  In this large study of GDM in Chinese women, advanced maternal age, pre‐pregnancy overweight or obesity and family history of diabetes were confirmed to be risk factors. In addition, a history of recurrent vulvovaginal candidiasis or spontaneous abortion and residency in south China appeared to be novel risk factors in this population.
The threshold for definition of impaired fasting glucose in a Japanese population
Authors: Inoue K. , Matsumoto M. , Akimoto K. 
Published: September 2009

AbstractAims  We examined whether the cut‐off value of fasting plasma glucose (FPG) for diagnosing impaired fasting glucose (IFG) should be lowered, using data from a large Japanese population.Methods  A retrospective cohort study was conducted from 1998 to 2006. Follow‐up (2002–2006) data were merged with baseline (1998–2002) data, yielding 11 129 persons who had participated on both occasions. Among these, 10 475 persons who did not have diabetes (known diabetes or defined as FPG ≥ 7.0 mmol/l) or suspected diabetes (glycated haemoglobin ≥ 6.4%) were analysed.Results  During follow‐up of an average of 5.4 years, 279 (5.2%) out of 5372 men and 98 (1.9%) out of 5103 women developed diabetes. According to the three baseline FPG categories (< 5.6, 5.6–6.1 and 6.2–6.9 mmol/l), 28/3401 (0.8%), 91/1456 (6.3%) and 160/515 (31.1%), respectively, in men and 13/4231 (0.3%), 30/695 (4.3%) and 55/177 (31.1%), respectively, in women developed diabetes. The optimal cut‐off FPG value to predict diabetes was 5.7 mmol/l for both men (sensitivity 84.2%, specificity 76.9%) and women (81.6%, 91.0%). However, lowering the cut‐off from 6.1 to 5.7 mmol/l increased the prevalence of IFG 2.7‐fold in men and 3.0‐fold in women. Lowering the value further to 5.6 mmol/l increased the prevalence of IFG 3.8‐fold in men and 4.9‐fold in women.Conclusions  It may be reasonable to retain the conventional lower FPG limit for IFG and treat FPG values of 5.6–6.1 mmol/l as non‐diabetic hyperglycaemia, considering the four‐ to fivefold increase in individuals classified as IFG when the new cut‐off is applied.
ACCOUNTING FOR NON‐COMPLIANCE IN THE ANALYSIS OF RANDOMIZED RESPONSE DATA
Authors: Van Den Hout Ardo , Klugkist Irene 
Published: September 2009

SummaryThe randomized response model is a misclassification design that is used to protect the privacy of respondents with respect to sensitive questions. Conditional misclassification probabilities are specified by the researcher and are therefore considered to be known. It is to be expected that some of the respondents do not comply with respect to the misclassification design. These respondents induce extra perturbation, which is not accounted for in the standard randomized response model. An extension of the randomized response model is presented that takes into account assumptions with respect to non‐compliance under simple random sampling. The extended model is investigated using Bayesian inference. The research is motivated by randomized response data concerning violations of regulations for social benefit.
Distributed Augmented Reality for Collaborative Design Applications
Authors: Ahlers Klaus H. , Kramer André , Breen David E. , Chevalier Pierre‐Yves , Crampton Chris , Rose Eric , Tuceryan Mihran , Whitaker Ross T. , Greer Douglas 
Published: September 2009

AbstractThis paper presents a system for constructing collaborative design applications based on distributed augmented reality. Augmented reality interfaces are a natural method for presenting computer‐based design by merging graphics with a view of the real world. Distribution enables users at remote sites to collaborate on design tasks. The users interactively control their local view, try out design options, and communicate design proposals. They share virtual graphical objects that substitute for real objects which are not yet physically created or are not yet placed into the real design environment.We describe the underlying augmented reality system and in particular how it has been extended in order to support multi‐user collaboration. The construction of distributed augmented reality applications is made easier by a separation of interface, interaction and distribution issues. An interior design application is used as an example to demonstrate the advantages of our approach.
Reasoning About Gestural Interaction
Authors: Duke D.J. 
Published: September 2009

AbstractMany of the reported developments in the design of virtual spaces or visualisation systems are based on improvements in technology, either physical devices or algorithms for achieving realistic renderings within real‐time constraints. While this experimental approach produces a wealth of empirical results, it operates largely without a sound underlying theory that can be used to design systems that will effectively support users in real‐world domains. One of the main problems is that these sophisticated technologies rely on, but rarely assess, the cognitive abilities of the user. This paper introduces a new approach to modelling human‐system interaction. A syndetic model combines a formal expression of system behaviour with an approximate representation of cognitive resources to allow reasoning about the flow and utilisation of information within the combined system. The power of the approach to provide insight into novel interaction techniques is illustrated by developing a syndetic model of a gesture‐driven user interface.
Spherical Triangular B‐splines with Application to Data Fitting
Authors: Pfeifle Ron , Seidel Hans‐Peter 
Published: September 2009

AbstractTriangular B‐splines surfaces are a tool for representing arbitrary piecewise polynomial surfaces over planar triangulations, while automatically maintaining continuity properties across patch boundaries. Recently, Alfeld et al. [1] introduced the concept of spherical barycentric coordinates which allowed them to formulate Bernstein‐Bézier polynomials over the sphere.In this paper we use the concept of spherical barycentric coordinates to develop a similar formulation for triangular B‐splines, which we call spherical triangular B‐splines. These splines defined over spherical triangulations share the same continuity properties and similar evaluation algorithms with their planar counterparts, but possess none of the annoying degeneracies found when trying to represent closed surfaces using planar parametric surfaces. We also present an example showing the use of these splines for approximating spherical scattered data.
An Incremental Alignment Algorithm for Parallel Volume Rendering
Authors: Or Daniel Cohen , Fleishman Shachar 
Published: September 2009

AbstractThis paper introduces a data distribution scheme and an alignment algorithm for parallel volume rendering. The algorithm performs a single wrap‐around shear transformation which requires only a regular inter‐processor communication pattern. The alignment can be implemented incrementally consisting of short distance shifts, thus significantly reducing the communication overhead. The alignment process is a non‐destructive transformation, consisting of a single non‐scaling shear operation. This is a unique feature which provides the basis for the incremental algorithm.
A Multimedia Constraint System1
Authors: van Hintum J.E.A. , Reynolds G.J. 
Published: September 2009

AbstractThe MADE constraint system provides excellent opportunities to introduce constraints in a multimedia application. Multimedia applications are not only a good place to experiment with constraint systems; constraints in a multimedia environment are almost indispensable. Due to the overwhelming amount of data and the number of relations between several parts of this data, multimedia applications almost demand the support of a constraint management system.The MADE constraint system combines the object oriented programming paradigm, inherited from the mC++ language, the declarative constraint programming paradigm and the special requirements imposed upon the constraint system by the multimedia environment. Among other things, the MADE constraint system provides parallel satisfaction techniques; several constraints may be solved simultaneously and this satisfaction process is performed in parallel with the application. This not only reduces the time needed to solve the constraints, it also allows the multimedia application to proceed with its presentation while (beneath the surface) the constraints are maintained. This not only holds for the parts of the presentation that are not constrained at all, but also for those parts that are. Furthermore, the constraint system is transparent to the multimedia application; no special coding or preparation of the objects in the application is necessary. Constraints can be added later to the application without much work. Besides that, it is also possible to add and remove constraints at runtime; objects may be constrained for only a period of the time the application is running.
A Direct Manipulation Interface for 3D Computer Animation
Authors: Snibbe Scott Sona 
Published: September 2009

AbstractWe present a new set of interface techniques for visualizing and editing animation directly in a single three‐dimensional scene. Motion is edited using direct‐manipulation tools which satisfy high‐level goals such as “reach this point at this time” or “go faster at this moment”. These tools can be applied over an arbitrary temporal range and maintain arbitrary degrees of spatial and temporal continuity.We separate spatial and temporal control of position by using two curves for each animated object: the motion path which describes the 3D spatial path along which an object travels, and the motion graph, a function describing the distance traveled along this curve over time. Our direct‐manipulation tools are implemented using displacement functions, a straightforward and scalable technique for satisfying motion constraints by composition of the displacement function with the motion graph or motion path. This paper will focus on applying displacement functions to positional change. However, the techniques presented are applicable to the animation of orientation, color, or any other attribute that varies over time.
The HUMANOID Environment for Interactive Animation of Multiple Deformable Human Characters
Authors: Boulic R. , Capin T. , Huang Z. , Kalra P. , Lintermann B. , Magnenat‐Thalmann N. , Moccozet L. , Molet T. , Pandzic I. , Saar K. , Schmitt A. , Shen J. , Thalmann D. 
Published: September 2009

AbstractWe describe the HUMANOID environment dedicated to human modeling and animation for general multimedia, VR, and CAD applications integrating virtual humans. We present the design of the system and the integration of the various features: generic modeling of a large class of entities with the BODY data structure, realistic skin deformation for body and hands, facial animation, collision detection, integrated motion control and parallelization of computation intensive tasks.
Discrete Ray‐Tracing of Huge Voxel Spaces
Authors: Stolte Nilo , Caubet René 
Published: September 2009

AbstractThe quality of images produced by Discrete Ray‐Tracing voxel spaces is highly dependent on 3d grid resolution. The huge amount of memory needed to store such grids often discards discrete Ray‐Tracing as a practical visualization algorithm. The use of an octree can drastically change this when most of space is empty, as such is the case in most scenes.Although the memory problem can be bypassed using the octree, the performance problem still remains. A known fact is that the performance of discrete traversal is optimal for quite low resolutions. This problem can be easily solved by dividing the task in two steps, working in two low resolutions instead of just one high resolution, thus taking advantage of optimal times in both steps. This is possible thanks to the octree property of representing the same scene in several different resolutions. This article presents a two step Discrete Ray‐Tracing method using an octree and shows, by comparing it with the single step version, that a substantial gain in performance is achieved.
A Graph–Based Approach to Surface Reconstruction
Authors: Mencl Robert 
Published: September 2009

AbstractA new approach to the reconstruction of a surface from an unorganized set of points in space is presented. The point set may for example be obtained with a laser scanner or a manual digitizing tool, and is the only source of information about the shape of the acquired object. The basic idea is to calculate the Euclidean minimum spanning tree (EMST) of the given points. The EMST is then augmented to the so‐called surface description graph (SDG). Finally the wire frame defined by the SDG are filled with triangles. The advantage of our approach is that also highly non‐convex and even disconnected surfaces are reconstructed quite reliably. This is demonstrated for a variety of data sets.
Fair Surface Reconstruction Using Quadratic Functionals
Authors: Kolb Andreas , Pottmann Helmut , Seidel Hans‐Peter 
Published: September 2009

AbstractAn algorithm for surface reconstruction from a polyhedron with arbitrary topology consisting of triangular faces is presented. The first variant of the algorithm constructs a curve network consisting of cubic Bézier curves meeting with tangent plane continuity at the vertices. This curve network is extended to a smooth surface by replacing each of the networks facets with a split patch consisting of three triangular Bézier patches. The remaining degrees of freedom of the curve network and the split patches are determined by minimizing a quadratic functional. This optimization process works either for the curve network and the split patches separately or in one simultaneous step. The second variant of our algorithm is based on the construction of an optimized curve network with higher continuity. Examples demonstrate the quality of the different methods.
Product Market Competition, Managerial Incentives and Firm Valuation
Authors: Beiner Stefan , Schmid Markus M. , Wanzenried Gabrielle 
Published: September 2009

Abstract This paper contributes to the very small empirical literature on the effects of competition on managerial incentive schemes. Based on a theoretical model that incorporates both strategic interaction between firms and a principal agent relationship, we analyse the relationship between product market competition, incentive schemes and firm valuation. The model predicts a nonlinear relationship between the intensity of product market competition and the strength of managerial incentives. We test the implications of our model empirically based on a unique and hand‐collected dataset comprising over 600 observations on 200 Swiss firms over the 2002–2005 period. Our results suggest that, consistent with the implications of our model, the relation between product market competition and managerial intensive schemes is convex indicating that above a certain level of intensity in product market competition, the marginal effect of competition on the strength of the incentive schemes increases in the level of competition. Moreover, competition is associated with lower firm values. These results are robust to accounting for a potential endogeneity of managerial incentives and firm value in a simultaneous equations framework.
Thioctic acid protects against carrageenan‐induced acute inflammation in rats by reduction in oxidative stress, downregulation of COX‐2 mRNA and enhancement of IL‐10 mRNA
Authors: El‐Shitany Nagla A. , El‐Masry Sanaa A. , El‐Ghareib Mahmoud A. , El‐Desoky Karema 
Published: September 2009

AbstractFree radicals are highly reactive species which played an important role in the pathogenesis of acute inflammation. In this study, the protective role of the known antioxidant, thioctic acid, in carrageenan‐induced acute inflammation in rats was assessed and was compared to the reference non‐steroidal anti‐inflammatory drug (NSAID) indomethacin. In addition, the roles of oxidative stress, nitric oxide (NO), inducible cyclooxygenase isoform (COX‐2) and interleukin (IL)‐10 mRNA expressions in thioctic acid‐induced effects were also investigated. Inflammation was induced by injection of 0.1 ml of 1.5% carrageenan into the plantar side of right hind paws of the rats. Thioctic acid (50, 100 or 200 mg/kg), indomethacin (10 mg/kg), DMSO and saline were injected i.p. 2 h before carrageenan injection. The percentage increase in paw weight was calculated. Frozen hind paw were used for estimation of lipid peroxides (MDA), NO, GSH, COX‐2 and IL‐10 mRNA expression. Formalin fixed hind paw were used for histopathological examination. Thioctic acid (200 mg/kg) reduced both paw edema formation and lymphocytes infiltration more significant than indomethacin itself: Both thioctic acid and indomethacin reduced paw MDA and NO formation. In addition, both agents restored the depleted GSH contents in the paw. Thioctic acid decreased the elevated COX‐2 mRNA while indomethacin, failed. Furthermore, thioctic acid increased IL‐10 mRNA expression while indomethacin decreased its expression. Thioctic acid exhibited a potent anti‐inflammatory effect on carrageenan‐induced inflammation compared to the NSAID indomethacin. The mechanisms of thioctic induced protection were proved to be due to reduction of NO, MDA, COX‐2 mRNA and induction of GSH, IL‐10 mRNA.
Coupling of deformation and reactions during mid‐crustal shear zone development: an in situ frictional–viscous transition
Authors: MARSH J. H. , JOHNSON S. E. , YATES M. G. , WEST JR D. P. 
Published: September 2009

AbstractA well preserved strain and reaction gradient records the progressive transformation of a megacrystic Kfs+Cpx+Opx+Bt1±Qtz syenitic pluton to a strongly sheared Kfs+Act+Bt2+Ab+Qtz tectonite within the exhumed Norumbega Fault System, Maine, USA. Detailed microstructural analysis indicates that fracturing and localized fluid infiltration initiated the deconstruction of the existing K‐feldspar and two‐pyroxene load‐bearing framework, and that feedback among metamorphic reactions, fabric development and enhanced permeability during progressive shearing led to the development of an interconnected, biotite‐ and actinolite‐rich foliation. The activation of dislocation creep in biotite and quartz, and dissolution–precipitation creep in actinolite and feldspar, with increasing strain ultimately resulted in a transition from dominantly frictional to dominantly viscous deformation processes. Petrological data show that various scales of geochemical disequilibrium exist across the strain and reaction gradient, and that reaction progress was limited by slow chemical diffusion during the early stages of deformation. Petrological modelling results indicate that the existing plutonic assemblage was metastable at mid‐crustal conditions, and that fluid infiltration and deformation allowed the product assemblage to advance towards chemical equilibration. Comparison of the observed microstructures and deformation mechanisms with experimental and numerical modelling results suggest that the development of an interconnected biotite‐dominated fabric probably caused a major (up to three fold) reduction in bulk rock strength and localization of strain into the foliated margin.
A stochastic model for transepidermal drug delivery
Authors: Zhong Wen , Xing Malcolm M. Q. , Hui Xiaoying , Maibach Howard I. 
Published: September 2009

Background: Topical drug application has been widely used to manage skin diseases as well as to treat a variety of local and systemic disorders. To evaluate the efficiency of transepidermal drug delivery, an efficient model is needed to study the process of percutaneous transport.Model description: A stochastic model based on Monte Carlo methods and Cellular Automata is presented in this work to study the molecular transport through the stratum corneum of the human skin, which is a typical process in transepidermal drug delivery.Methods: To validate the model, an in vitro experiment on percutaneous absorption of radioactive 17β‐estradiol was performed.Results and discussion: The simulation results agree with the experimental data.Conclusion: The use and power of the presented approach in studying the process of transepidermal drug delivery were demonstrated.