bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
The impact of domestic travel on estimating regional rates of human campylobacteriosis
Authors: ZINSZER K. , MICHEL P. , HARĐARDÓTTIR H. , KRISTINSSON K. G. , SIGMUNDSDÓTTIR G. , ST-ONGE L. , REIERSEN J. , CHARLAND K. , LOWMAN R. ,   the ‘Campy on Ice’ Consortium
Published: May 2010

SUMMARYResidential locations of cases are often used as proxy measures for the likely place of exposure and this assumption may result in biases affecting both surveillance and epidemiological studies. This study aimed to describe the importance of domestic travel in cases of human campylobacteriosis reported during routine surveillance in Iceland from 2001 to 2005. Various measures of disease frequency were calculated based upon the cases' region of residence, adjusting location of domestic travel cases to their travel region, as well as separate estimations for travellers and non-travellers. Of the 376 cases included in the analysis, 37% had travelled domestically during their incubation period. Five of the eight regions were identified as high-risk when considering domestic travel whereas there were no high-risk regions when considering only region of residence. The change in regional representation of disease occurrence indicates the importance of collecting domestic travel information in ongoing surveillance activities.
Burden of acute gastrointestinal illness in the Metropolitan region, Chile, 2008
Authors: THOMAS M. K. , PEREZ E. , MAJOWICZ S. E. , REID-SMITH R. , OLEA A. , DIAZ J. , SOLARI V. , McEWEN S. A. 
Published: May 2010

SUMMARYThe purpose of this study was to determine the magnitude and distribution of acute gastrointestinal illness (GI) in the Chilean population, describe its burden and presentation, identify risk factors associated with GI and assess the differences between a 7-day, 15-day and a 30-day recall period in the population-based burden of illness study design. Face-to-face surveys were conducted on 6047 randomly selected residents in the Metropolitan region, Chile (average response rate 75·8%) in 2008. The age-adjusted monthly prevalence of GI was 9·2%. The 7-day recall period provided annual incidence rate estimates about 2·2 times those of the 30-day recall period. Age, occupation, healthcare system, sewer system, antibiotic use and cat ownership were all found to be significant predictors for being a case. This study expands on the discussion of recall bias in retrospective population studies and reports the first population-based burden and distribution of GI estimates in Chile.
Munc18 and Munc13 regulate early neurite outgrowth
Authors: Broeke Jurjen H.P. , Roelandse Martijn , Luteijn Maartje J. , Boiko Tatiana , Matus Andrew , Toonen Ruud F. , Verhage Matthijs 
Published: May 2010

Background information. During development, growth cones of outgrowing neurons express proteins involved in vesicular secretion, such as SNARE (soluble N‐ethylmaleimide‐sensitive fusion protein‐attachment protein receptor) proteins, Munc13 and Munc18. Vesicles are known to fuse in growth cones prior to synapse formation, which may contribute to outgrowth.Results. We tested this possibility in dissociated cell cultures and organotypic slice cultures of two release‐deficient mice (Munc18‐1 null and Munc13‐1/2 double null). Both types of release‐deficient neurons have a decreased outgrowth speed and therefore have a smaller total neurite length during early development [DIV1–4 (day in vitro 1–4)]. In addition, more filopodia per growth cone were observed in Munc18‐1 null, but not WT (wild‐type) or Munc13‐1/2 double null neurons. The smaller total neurite length during early development was no longer observed after synaptogenesis (DIV14–23).Conclusion. These data suggest that the inability of vesicle fusion in the growth cone affects outgrowth during the initial phases when outgrowth speed is high, but not during/after synaptogenesis. Overall, the outgrowth speed is probably not rate‐limiting during neuronal network formation, at least in vitro. In addition, Munc18, but not Munc13, regulates growth cone filopodia, potentially via its previously observed effect on filamentous actin.
Low value of simple echocardiographic indices of ventricular dyssynchrony in predicting the response to cardiac resynchronization therapy
Authors: Bordachar Pierre , Lafitte Stéphane , Réant Patricia , Reuter Sylvain , Clementy Jacques , Mletzko Ralph‐Uwe , Siegel Robert M. , Goscinska‐Bis Kinga , Bowes Robert , Morgan John , Bénard Sandrine , Leclercq Christophe 
Published: May 2010

AimsA recent study suggested that no single echocardiographic index of cardiac dyssynchrony can reliably identify candidates for cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT). We examined the value of three simple echocardiographic indices for predicting the 6‐month clinical and echocardiographic responses to CRT.Methods and resultsWe analysed data from 75 CRT‐D system recipients. Standard echocardiography was used to measure aortic pre‐ejection delay (APED), interventricular mechanical delay (IVMD), and delayed activation of the left ventricular (LV) infero‐lateral wall (OVERLAP). Clinical responders were defined as patients who had an improved status, based on rehospitalization for heart failure, NYHA class, and peak oxygen consumption. Echocardiographic responders had a ≥10% decrease in LV end‐systolic volume. During the study, one patient died and five were lost to follow‐up. Of the remaining 69 analysable patients, 50 (72.5%) were classed as clinical responders and 41 (59.4%) as echocardiographic responders to CRT. Before CRT implantation, APED, IVMD, and OVERLAP were similar in responders and non‐responders. The value of these indices of dyssynchrony as single or combined predictors of the clinical or echocardiographic response to CRT was low, with sensitivities ranging between 4 and 63%, and specificities between 37 and 100%.ConclusionSimple echocardiographic indices of dyssynchrony were poor predictors of response to CRT.
Systematic review: the role of self‐expanding plastic stents for benign oesophageal strictures
Authors: REPICI A. , HASSAN C. , SHARMA P. , CONIO M. , SIERSEMA P. 
Published: May 2010

Aliment Pharmacol Ther 31, 1268–1275SummaryBackground  Treatment of refractory or recurrent benign oesophageal strictures is demanding and surgery may be the only available option. The role of self‐expanding plastic stents (SEPS) in the treatment of these strictures is still controversial because of the conflicting results of various studies.Aim  To analyse with regard to SEPS: technical and clinical success, factors associated with outcome, and safety.Methods  Pooled‐data analysis of a systematic review of the literature. Clinical success was defined as no need for further endoscopic or surgical treatment after SEPS removal.Results  Data of 10 studies with 130 treated patients were included. SEPS insertion was technically successful in 128 of 130 patients (98%, 95% CI = 96–100%). Clinical success was achieved in 68 patients (52%, 95% CI = 44–61%) and this was found to be lower in those with a cervical localization of the stricture (33% vs. 54%; P < 0.05). Early (<4 weeks) migration of the stent was reported in 19 (24%, 95% CI = 14–32%) cases, while post‐insertion endoscopic re‐intervention was required in 25 (21%, 95% CI = 14–28%). Major clinical complications occurred in 12 patients (9%, 95% CI = 4–14%), resulting in death of one (0.8%) patient.Conclusions  Our pooled‐data analysis showed a favourable risk/benefit ratio when SEPS are applied in patients with recurrent or refractory benign oesophageal strictures. This supports the use of SEPS before referring patients to surgery, and they are a valuable alternative to repeat endoscopic dilation.
Nationwide linkage analysis in Scotland implicates age as the critical overall determinant of mortality in ulcerative colitis
Authors: NICHOLLS R. J. , CLARK D. N. , KELSO L. , CROWE A. M. , KNIGHT A. D. , HODGKINS P. , SATSANGI J. 
Published: May 2010

Aliment Pharmacol Ther 31, 1310–1321SummaryBackground  Recent data associated higher mortality with medical rather than surgical intervention in patients with ulcerative colitis who require hospitalization.Aim  To examine factors influencing UC‐related mortality in Scotland.Method  Using the national record linkage database 1998–2000, 3‐year mortality was determined after four admission types: colectomy‐elective or emergency; no colectomy‐elective or emergency.Results  Of 1078 patients, crude 3‐year mortality rates were: colectomy elective 5.6% (n = 177) and emergency 9.0% (100); no colectomy elective 9.8% (244) and emergency 16.0% (557). Using elective colectomy as reference, multivariate analysis [OR (95% CI)] showed that admission age >50 years [OR 5.46 (2.29–11.95)], male gender [OR 1.92 (1.23–3.02)], comorbidity [OR 2.2 (1.38–3.51)], length of stay >15 days [OR 2.04 (1.08–3.84)] and prior IBD admission [OR 1.66 (1.06–2.61)] were independently related to mortality. Age was the strongest determinant. No patient <30 years died. Mortality of patients aged <50 years [10/587 (1.7%)] was significantly lower than mortality of those aged 50–64 years [26/246 (10.6%)] (χ2 = 32.91; P < 0.0000001) and >65 [96/245 (39.2%)] (χ2 = 218.2; P < 0.0000001). For those patients aged more than 65 years, mortality in the four groups was 29.4%, 33.3%, 28.1% and 44.7%– all greater than expected in the Scottish population on assessment of standardized mortality ratios.Conclusion  Hospital admission in UC patients >65 is associated with high mortality. Management strategies should consider this by treatment in specialist units, early investigation, focused medical treatment and earlier surgical referral.
Adalimumab sustains clinical remission and overall clinical benefit after 2 years of therapy for Crohn’s disease
Authors: PANACCIONE R. , COLOMBEL J.‐F. , SANDBORN W. J. , RUTGEERTS P. , D’HAENS G. R. , ROBINSON A. M. , CHAO J. , MULANI P. M. , POLLACK P. F. 
Published: May 2010

Aliment Pharmacol Ther 31, 1296–1309SummaryBackground  In the randomized, double‐blind, placebo‐controlled CHARM trial, adalimumab was more effective than placebo in maintaining clinical remission for patients with moderate‐to‐severe Crohn’s disease (CD) through 56 weeks.Aim  To substantiate the long‐term safety and clinical benefits of adalimumab through 2 years of therapy in CHARM and its open‐label extension (ADHERE).Methods  Patients entering ADHERE on blinded therapy received adalimumab 40 mg every other week (eow). Patients who had already moved to open‐label adalimumab eow or weekly in CHARM continued their regimens. Data were analysed by originally randomized treatment group at CHARM baseline (adalimumab 40 mg eow, adalimumab 40 mg weekly, or placebo), regardless of whether patients entered ADHERE or received open‐label adalimumab (eow or weekly).Results  After up to 2 years of therapy, 37.6%, 41.9% and 49.8% of patients originally randomized to placebo, adalimumab eow and adalimumab weekly, respectively, were in clinical remission. All groups experienced sustained improvements on the Inflammatory Bowel Disease Questionnaire. Decreasing hazard rates for both all‐cause and CD‐related hospitalizations were observed over time. Over a 2‐year period, the rates of serious adverse events and malignancies (33.3 and 1.1 events/100‐patient‐years respectively) were similar to those observed during the overall adalimumab CD clinical development programme.Conclusions  Adalimumab demonstrated sustained maintenance of clinical remission, improvements in quality of life and reductions in hospitalization during long‐term treatment for CD, with no new safety concerns identified.
Cost‐utility analysis of proton pump inhibitors and other gastro‐protective agents for prevention of gastrointestinal complications in elderly patients taking nonselective nonsteroidal anti‐inflammatory agents
Authors: CAMERON C. , VAN ZANTEN S. V. , SKEDGEL C. , FLOWERDEW G. , MOAYYEDI P. , SKETRIS I. 
Published: May 2010

Aliment Pharmacol Ther 31, 1354–1364SummaryBackground The use of proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) among elderly patients using nonselective nonsteroidal anti‐inflammatory drugs (nsNSAIDs) has increased; the price of PPIs is higher than that of majority of alternative treatment strategies.Aim To evaluate the cost‐effectiveness of nsNSAIDS + PPIs relative to alternative gastroprotective regimens in the prevention of GI complications among elderly patients (aged ≥65 years).Methods An incremental cost‐utility analysis, comparing PPIs with alternative gastroprotective regimens was conducted using a decision analytical model. Clinical outcomes, costs and utilities were derived from recently published studies. Probabilistic and deterministic sensitivity analyses were performed to test the robustness of the results to variation in model inputs and assumptions.Results The incremental cost‐utility ratio (ICUR) of PPIs, relative to nsNSAID alone, was $206 315 per QALY gained or were more costly and less effective. Other co‐prescribed treatment options had higher costs per QALY gained. In patients with a history of a complicated or uncomplicated ulcer, PPIs had ICURs of $24 277 and $40 876, respectively.Conclusions Use of PPIs in all elderly patients taking nsNSAIDs is unlikely to represent an efficient use of finite healthcare resources. Co‐prescribing PPIs, however, to elderly patients taking nsNSAIDs who have a history of complicated or uncomplicated ulcers appears to be economically attractive.
Sabotaging behaviour and minimal latex of Asclepias curassavica incur no cost for larvae of the southern monarch butterfly Danaus erippus
Authors: RODRIGUES DANIELA , MAIA PEDRO H. S. , TRIGO JOSÉ R. 
Published: May 2010

1. The southern monarch, Danaus erippus, uses mainly Asclepias curassavica as its host in the Neotropics, a plant species bearing articulated anastomosing laticifers. When artificially severed, A. curassavica has been shown to release significantly less latex than other Asclepias species.2. The present study tested the hypothesis that sabotaging behaviour changes during the ontogeny of D. erippus and recorded latex outflow of A. curassavica during sabotaging and feeding. Larvae displayed vein‐cutting behaviour, which was initially observed in the second instar, became more pronounced in the third and fourth instars, and less frequent in the fifth instar. When present, latex outflow was never more than 1 µl at a time during either vein cutting or feeding, regardless of the instar.3. Mandibular and midrib morphometrics revealed that larvae selected thicker midrib sites for severing as instars progressed; however, no correlation between mandibular size and midrib size severed was found within instars.4. Costs of sabotaging behaviour and the effects of A. curassavica latex outflow on D. erippus larvae were also examined. Sabotaging behaviour did not incur growth costs for larvae, and only latex exudation volumes at least 10‐fold greater than those observed due to D. erippus sabotaging or feeding, caused significantly higher larval mortality than controls.5. Since latex outflow is minimal or non‐existent in A. curassavica, sabotaging behaviour in D. erippus is mostly limited by morphological constraints and is probably driven by chemical stimulants rather than latex defence. In turn, latex does not constitute a major defence of A. curassavica against D. erippus.
Dynamically honest displays: courtship locomotor performance indicates survival in guppies
Authors: O’Steen Shyril , Eby Stephanie L. , Bunce John A. 
Published: May 2010

Summary 1. The indicator theory of sexual selection suggests that mating displays honestly signal aspects of fitness. While rarely studied, kinematic (locomotor) performance is an excellent candidate for an honest indicator, as mating displays of many animals include rapid or extended locomotion that may be physiologically correlated with performance traits that impact survival. 2. We investigate the indicator value of display locomotion of wild‐caught male guppies, Poecilia reticulata, by examining relationships between mating display kinematic traits, anti‐predator kinematic traits, and survival during a subsequent staged encounter with a natural predator, the pike cichlid Crenicichla alta. 3. We first compared guppy display kinematics with subsequent survival, and found that display body angle and angular speed positively predicted survival. We next compared anti‐predator kinematic and tactical traits with survival, to identify traits that might link mating displays to survival. We measured anti‐predator traits in two tests, first in response to a standardized stimulus (fast start test), and second in response to the live predator (encounter test). Guppy fast start speed and encounter speed, time in refuges, and approach distance (response distance) all positively predicted survival, while encounter swim duration negatively predicted survival. These data provided our final hypothesis, that these particular anti‐predator traits would be correlated with mating display kinematics. However, we detected only one of eight predicted correlations, a negative relationship between display body angle and encounter swim duration that may reflect an energy trade‐off. 4. We conclude that courtship locomotor performance can be an honest survival indicator in guppies, and that the mechanism linking courtship to survival merits further study. These results suggest that courtship locomotion may contribute to viability impacts on the evolution of animal mate choice, and support others in suggesting that these traits may reward greater attention in sexual and natural selection studies.
Identifying attitudes, beliefs and reported practices of nurses and doctors as immunization providers
Authors: Pielak Karen L. , McIntyre Cheryl C. , Tu Andrew W. , Remple Valencia P. , Halperin Beth , Buxton Jane A. 
Published: May 2010

pielak k.l., mcintyre c.c., tu a.w., remple v.p., halperin b. & buxton j.a. (2010) Identifying attitudes, beliefs and reported practices of nurses and doctors as immunization providers. Journal of Advanced Nursing 66(7), 1602–1611.AbstractTitle.  Identifying attitudes, beliefs and reported practices of nurses and doctors as immunization providers. Aim.  This paper is a report of a study conducted to examine the attitudes, beliefs, behavioural intentions and self‐reported behaviour of nurses and physicians relating to key immunization behaviours and compare the findings for nurses and physicians.Background.  Immunization is an important and effective public health intervention. Understanding immunization providers’ attitudes and beliefs toward immunization has the potential to improve educational efforts and lead to behavioural change.Method.  A postal survey was conducted with all immunization providers in British Columbia, Canada, in 2005. The survey elicited data on demographics, practice characteristics, attitudes, perceived social norms and perceived behavioural control related to key immunization behaviours.Results.  Responses were received from 344 nurses and 349 physicians. The response rate was 67% for nurses and 22% for physicians. More nurses than physicians thought that administering all recommended vaccines at one visit was important (89·2% vs. 63·2%P < 0·001); nurses felt more pressure from parents to administer all recommended vaccines (82·4% vs. 48·7%P < 0·001), and nurses were also more likely to intend to give all recommended vaccines at one visit (98·8% vs. 73·8%P < 0·001). Both nurses and physicians thought that their own receipt of influenza vaccine each year was important (88·9%, 87·1% respectively P = 0·65).Conclusion.  The foundational work done to develop the survey tool can be used to modify it so that survey findings can be validated according to the Theory of Planned Behaviour. The results could inform the development of behavioural change interventions targeting the identified determinants of immunization provider behaviour.
Spiritual health, clinical practice stress, depressive tendency and health‐promoting behaviours among nursing students
Authors: Hsiao Ya‐Chu , Chien Li‐Yu , Wu Li‐Yu , Chiang Chih‐Ming , Huang Song‐Yuan 
Published: May 2010

hsiao y.‐c., chien l.‐y., wu l.‐y., chiang c.‐m. & huang s.‐y. (2010) Spiritual health, clinical practice stress, depressive tendency and health‐promoting behaviours among nursing students. Journal of Advanced Nursing 66(7), 1612–1622.AbstractTitle.  Spiritual health, clinical practice stress, depressive tendency and health‐promoting behaviours among nursing students. Aim.  This paper is a report of an exploration of the association of spiritual health with clinical practice stress, depressive tendency and health‐promoting behaviours among nursing students.Background.  Several studies in western countries have demonstrated an association between spirituality and health. Spirituality‐related research in eastern countries, however, is still in its infancy.Methods.  A cross‐sectional design was adopted and structured questionnaires were used for data collection. We adopted the Probability Proportional to Size cluster sampling method to recruit nursing students in senior grades. Data were collected in 2005 using the Spiritual Health Scale, Perceived Clinical Practice Stress Scale, Beck Depression Inventory‐II and Health Promotion Behaviours Scale.Results.  A total of 1276 nursing students with an average age of 20·1 years (sd = 1·6 years) participated in the study. Spiritual health was negatively associated with clinical practice stress (r = −0·211, P < 0·001) and depressive tendency (r = −0·324, P < 0·001) and positively associated with health‐promoting behaviours (r = 0·611, P < 0·001). Using hierarchical regression analysis to control for demographic factors, spiritual health was found to be an important predictive factor for clinical practice stress, depressive tendency and health‐promoting behaviours.Conclusion.  These results are consistent with research findings from western countries. Educators should develop strategies to address nursing students’ spiritual health. This may help nursing students to manage their stress, to reduce depressive symptoms and to enhance health‐promoting behaviours.