bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Initiation of insulin glargine therapy in type 2 diabetes subjects suboptimally controlled on oral antidiabetic agents: results from the AT.LANTUS trial*
Authors: Davies M. , Lavalle‐González F. , Storms F. , Gomis R. ,   AT.LANTUS Study Group
Published: March 2008

Objective:  For many patients with type 2 diabetes, oral antidiabetic agents (OADs) do not provide optimal glycaemic control, necessitating insulin therapy. Fear of hypoglycaemia is a major barrier to initiating insulin therapy. The AT.LANTUS study investigated optimal methods to initiate and maintain insulin glargine (LANTUS®, glargine, Sanofi‐aventis, Paris, France) therapy using two treatment algorithms. This subgroup analysis investigated the initiation of once‐daily glargine therapy in patients suboptimally controlled on multiple OADs.Research Design and Methods:  This study was a 24‐week, multinational (59 countries), multicenter (611), randomized study. Algorithm 1 was a clinic‐driven titration and algorithm 2 was a patient‐driven titration. Titration was based on target fasting blood glucose ≤100 mg/dl (≤5.5 mmol/l). Algorithms were compared for incidence of severe hypoglycaemia [requiring assistance and blood glucose <50 mg/dl (<2.8 mmol/l)] and baseline to end‐point change in haemoglobin A1c (HbA1c).Results:  Of the 4961 patients enrolled in the study, 865 were included in this subgroup analysis: 340 received glargine plus 1 OAD and 525 received glargine plus >1 OAD. Incidence of severe hypoglycaemia was <1%. HbA1c decreased significantly between baseline and end‐point for patients receiving glargine plus 1 OAD (−1.4%, p < 0.001; algorithm 1 −1.3% vs. algorithm 2 −1.5%; p = 0.03) and glargine plus >1 OAD (−1.7%, p < 0.001; algorithm 1 −1.5% vs. algorithm 2 −1.8%; p = 0.001).Conclusions:  This study shows that initiation of once‐daily glargine with OADs results in significant reduction of HbA1c with a low risk of hypoglycaemia. The greater reduction in HbA1c was seen in patients randomized to the patient‐driven algorithm (algorithm 2) on 1 or >1 OAD.
Transperitoneal left laparoscopic pyeloplasty with transmesocolic access to the pelvi‐ureteric junction: technique description and results with a minimum follow‐up of 1 year
Authors: Porpiglia Francesco , Billia Michele , Volpe Alessandro , Morra Ivano , Scarpa Roberto M. 
Published: March 2008

OBJECTIVESTo describe and evaluate the safety and outcome of transperitoneal left laparoscopic pyeloplasty (TLLP) with a direct approach to the pelvi‐ureteric junction (PUJ) through the mesentero‐colic space, which avoids mobilization of the descending colon.PATIENTS AND METHODSFrom March 2005 to June 2006, 18 consecutive patients underwent TLLP with direct access. For each patient age, gender, body mass index (BMI), hospital stay, skin‐to‐skin operative time, time from incision of the posterior peritoneum to dissection of the PUJ, blood loss, time to resumption of oral intake and complications were recorded. Statistical analysis was used to assess whether the body habitus (BMI <25 kg/m2 or >25 kg/m2) affected the outcomes.RESULTSThere were no complications during or after surgery and no conversions to open surgery were needed. The mean (sd) time to resumption of oral intake was 1.36 (0.5) days. The mean hospital stay was 3.3 (0.67) days and the mean follow‐up was 17.4 (4.7) months. There was no statistical difference between patients with BMI higher or lower than 25 kg/m2 (P = 0.42). The success rate at 1 year after surgery was 100%.CONCLUSIONTLLP with direct access to the PUJ through the mesentero‐colic space is a safe and effective technique. This approach should be considered for all patients with left primary PUJ obstruction who are eligible for a LP and especially for slim patients or patients with a large renal pelvis.
Visualization of the neurovascular bundles and major pelvic ganglion with fluorescent tracers after penile injection in the rat
Authors: Davila Hugo H. , Mamcarz Maggie , Nadelhaft Irving , Salup Raoul , Lockhart Jorge , Carrion Rafael E. 
Published: March 2008

OBJECTIVETo evaluate whether fluorescent tracers can consistently label the neurovascular bundles (NVBs) and major pelvic ganglion (MPG) after an intracavernosal penile injection, as the reported incidence of erectile dysfunction (ED) in men after radical prostatectomy (RP) is 55–65% and thus preservation of erectile function, sparing one or both of the NVBs remains one of the most vital factors.MATERIALS AND METHODSMale Sprague‐Dawley rats (3 months old) received penile injections (20 µL; seven rats/group) of either deionized water (DW), Fluoro‐Gold (FG), Fast‐Blue (FB), Fluoro‐Ruby (FR) or green fluorescent pseudorabies virus (GF‐PRv). The rats were killed at 2, 3 and 14 days after injection and the NVBs and MPG were harvested and placed directly under fluorescence light. Image analysis was done by computer, coupled to a microscope equipped with a digital camera. Each NVB and MPG were analysed for its staining pattern and consistency.RESULTSWhen compared with the FB, FR and GF‐PRv rats, the FG‐injected rats had better staining of the NVB at 2, 3 and 14 days after injection. Under ×200, FG highlighted the axons of the cavernous nerve (CN) and cell bodies (MPG). This indicates that FG injection into the penis induced the strongest CN labelling (positive staining) at 2 and 3 days after injection as compared with FB‐, FR‐ and GF‐PRv‐injected rats.CONCLUSIONFG injection into the penis has consistent retrograde staining of the NVBs and MPG after 3 days. Therefore, we predict that FG could potentially be used to improve the identification of the NVB in other models. However, further studies need to be carried out before these tracers can be used in humans.
Single‐institution experience with primary tumours of the male urethra
Authors: Gillitzer Rolf , Hampel Christian , Wiesner Christoph , Hadaschik Boris , Thüroff Joachim 
Published: March 2008

OBJECTIVETo assess primary tumours of the urethra in males.PATIENTS AND METHODSWe retrospectively reviewed our database from 1986 to 2006 for primary tumours of the male urethra; nine patients with primary tumours of the urethra were analysed and follow‐up information was obtained.RESULTSThree patients had tumours of the prostatic urethra, two of which had proliferating focal inflammation and one a low‐grade, superficial urothelial cancer. All patients were treated successfully with transurethral resection. Six patients had carcinoma of the bulbar or penile urethra, including two with previous local percutaneous radiotherapy for prostate cancer. All had primary surgical excision that was adapted to tumour location and extension. One patient had adjuvant chemotherapy after surgery. All but one patient remain recurrence‐free after a median follow‐up of 20 months.CONCLUSIONPrimary carcinoma of the male urethra is a rare entity. Previous radiotherapy might be a predisposing factor. Local surgical tumour control is essential for long‐term survival, but the extent of surgery depends on tumour location and stage. Multimodal therapy might be required to obtain an optimum oncological outcome.
Prospective study of the relationship between the systemic inflammatory response, prognostic scoring systems and relapse‐free and cancer‐specific survival in patients undergoing potentially curative resection for renal cancer
Authors: Ramsey Sara , Lamb Gavin W.A. , Aitchison Michael , McMillan Donald C. 
Published: March 2008

OBJECTIVETo examine the prognostic value of markers of systemic inflammatory response, together with established scoring systems, in predicting relapse‐free and cancer‐specific survival in patients with primary operable renal cancer, as there is increasing evidence that such markers provide prognostic information, in addition to scoring systems, in patients with metastatic renal cancer.PATIENTS AND METHODSIn all, 83 patients undergoing potentially curative nephrectomy for localized renal cancer were recruited. The University of California Los Angeles Integrated Staging System (UISS), ‘Stage Size Grade Necrosis’ (SSIGN) and Kattan scores were constructed. The systemic inflammatory response was assessed by counting white cells, neutrophils, lymphocytes and platelets, and measuring albumin and C‐reactive protein (CRP) concentrations.RESULTSOn multivariate analysis of the significant individual covariates, T stage (hazard ratio 2.38, 95% confidence interval 1.06– 5.36, P = 0.037), necrosis (3.73, 1.26–11.05, P = 0.018) and CRP (4.31, 1.20–15.49, P = 0.025) were significant independent predictors of relapse‐free survival. On multivariate analysis of significant scoring systems and CRP, only UISS (3.50, 1.66–7.40, P = 0.001), SSIGN (2.83, 1.19–6.72, P = 0.018) and CRP (4.14, 1.16–14.73, P = 0.028) were significant independent predictors of relapse‐free survival.CONCLUSIONElevated circulating CRP levels appear to be better than other markers of the systemic inflammatory response, and independent of established scoring systems, in predicting relapse‐free and cancer‐specific survival in patients undergoing potentially curative nephrectomy for renal cancer.
Bilateral laparoscopic nephrectomy for significantly enlarged polycystic kidneys: a technique to optimize outcome in the largest of specimens
Authors: Desai Premal J. , Castle Erik P. , Daley Shane M. , Swanson Scott K. , Ferrigni Robert G. , Humphreys Mitchell R. , Andrews Paul E. 
Published: March 2008

OBJECTIVETo present our experience with bilateral laparoscopic nephrectomy (BLN) for symptomatic autosomal‐dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD), as surgical management of massively enlarged polycystic kidneys can be a daunting task.PATIENTS AND METHODSThe study was a retrospective chart review of all patients undergoing BLN for ADPKD. Patient demographics, indications for the procedure, perioperative data, and pathological data were analysed.RESULTSIn all, 12 patients underwent BLN at our institution; eight were performed before transplant, three after transplant, and one with a concomitant kidney transplant. Indications for surgery included abdominal pain, fullness and early satiety, recurrent urinary tract infections, and need for space for future transplant. The mean patient age was 49.6 years, with a body mass index of 27.0 kg/m2. The mean operative duration was 214 min, estimated blood loss was 169 mL, and the hospital stay was 4 days. There were no conversions to open surgery. The mean (range) pathological kidney mass was 2243 (656–4200) g on the left and 2379 (789–5042) g on the right. No patients with a previous renal transplant had deterioration in postoperative renal function. There was one minor intraoperative complication, one postoperative complication, and one patient with preoperative anaemia required a blood transfusion.CONCLUSIONSSymptomatic patients with ADPKD due to massively enlarged kidneys should be considered for BLN when performed by an experienced laparoscopic surgeon. This includes patients with an existing renal allograft and candidates for concomitant transplantation. The approach should be tailored to avoid injury to adjacent structures secondary to displacement from the mass effect of these kidneys.
A FINE‐TUNED ESTIMATOR OF A GENERAL CONVERGENCE RATE
Authors: Mcelroy Tucker , Politis Dimitris N. 
Published: March 2008

SummaryA general rate estimation method based on the in‐sample evolution of appropriately chosen diverging/converging statistics has recently been proposed by D.N. Politis [C. R. Acad. Sci. Paris, Ser. I, vol. 335, pp. 279–282, 2002] and T. McElroy & D.N. Politis [Ann. Statist., vol. 35, pp. 1827–1848, 2007]. In this paper, we show how a modification of the original estimators achieves a competitive rate of convergence. The modified estimators require the choice of a tuning parameter; an optimal such choice is generally a non‐trivial problem in practice. Some discussion to that effect is given, as well as a small simulation study in a heavy‐tailed setting.
Truth and sight: generalizing without universalizing
Authors: Bloch Maurice 
Published: March 2008

This paper examines the link between truth and sight, and the implications of this link for our understandings of the concept of evidence. I propose to give an example of precisely how we might attempt to generalize about a phenomenon such as the recurrence of the association between truth and sight without ignoring important anti‐universalist points. In doing this, I hope to give one example of how anthropology, in the original sense of the term, is a still possible enterprise, in spite of the criticisms such an approach has had to face in the last thirty years.RésuméL'auteur examine le lien entre vérité et vision et ses implications pour notre compréhension du concept de preuve. Il propose un exemple de la manière dont nous pourrions tenter de généraliser un phénomène tel que la récurrence de l'association entre vérité et vision, sans négliger d'importants arguments anti‐universalistes. Par la même occasion, l'auteur espère donner un exemple de la façon dont l'anthropologie, au sens originel du terme, est encore une entreprise possible malgré les critiques que cette approche a essuyées au cours des trente dernières années.
The evidence of the senses and the materiality of religion
Authors: Keane Webb 
Published: March 2008

Religious practices are commonly treated as evidence for something else, such as beliefs. There are a number of problems with privileging beliefs or ideas when trying to define religion. An alternative is to rethink the relationship between the materiality of religious activity and the ideas that have sometimes been taken to define ‘religion’. This approach may also be a productive way to look at religious practices across widely differing contexts without eliminating their fundamentally historical character.RésuméLes pratiques religieuses sont habituellement envisagées comme des preuves d'autre chose, par exemple de croyances. Or le fait de privilégier les croyances ou les idées pour tenter de définir la religion pose plusieurs problèmes. Une autre approche consiste à repenser la relation entre la matérialité de l'activité religieuse et les idées qui ont parfois été employées pour définir la « religion ». Cette approche peut être un moyen productif d'examiner les pratiques religieuses à travers des contextes très différents, sans éliminer leur caractère fondamentalement historique.
Linguistic and cultural variables in the psychology of numeracy
Authors: Stafford Charles 
Published: March 2008

Although anthropologists pride themselves on paying attention to the small details of everyday life, experimental psychologists arguably have an even smaller scale of research – examining variables such as infant staring time and the speed at which words are pronounced. This paper considers the impact of these different approaches to scale and selectivity in research objects, focusing in particular on studies of Pirahã and Chinese numerical cognition. Everyone accepts that cultural factors, such as the use of different counting term sets in different languages, may influence numerical thought. But the tendency of psychologists to restrict scale and eliminate variables, including cultural ones, in order to be able to falsify their claims sits uncomfortably with the anthropological tendency to incorporate variables in order to be holistic.RésuméBien que les anthropologues se targuent de faire attention aux petits détails de la vie de tous les jours, les psychologues expérimentaux travaillent à une échelle de recherche encore plus petite, sur des variables telles que le temps de fixation du regard d'un nourrisson ou la vitesse à laquelle les mots sont prononcés. Le présent article examine l'effet de ces approches différentes de l'échelle et de la sélectivité dans les objets de recherches en se concentrant en particulier sur des études de la cognition numérique chez les Pirahã et les Chinois. Il est largement admis que des facteurs culturels, tels que l'utilisation de systèmes différents de numération, influent sur la pensée numérique. Toutefois, la tendance des psychologues à restreindre l'échelle et àéliminer les variables, y compris culturelles, pour falsifier leurs affirmations les place en porte‐à‐faux par rapport à la tendance de l'anthropologie à intégrer les variables dans une approche holistique.
Some problems with property ascription
Authors: Knight Nicola , Astuti Rita 
Published: March 2008

We discuss the practice of property ascription in anthropology. While recognizing that it is an inevitable and often useful way to convey the knowledge that anthropologists have acquired through ethnographic fieldwork, we identify three of the most common ways in which ascription can be misleading. First, when a property is ascribed to a collective entity, but it is unevenly distributed among social sub‐groupings; second, when an ascribed mental property is alleged to cause an individual's behaviour, but the property proves to be empirically unsupported; third, when a belief is ascribed to an individual, while another belief that effectively contradicts the first one is also entertained by that same individual. We review anthropological and psychological solutions to these problems.RésuméLes auteurs discutent de la pratique d'attribution de propriétés en anthropologie. Tout en reconnaissant qu'il s'agit d'un moyen inévitable, et souvent utile, de transmettre les connaissances que les anthropologues ont acquises sur le terrain, ils identifient trois des manières les plus courantes dont cette attribution peut induire en erreur : premièrement, lorsqu'une propriété attribuée à l'identité collective est répartie inégalement parmi les sous‐groupes sociaux ; deuxièmement, lorsqu'on affirme qu'une propriété mentale attribuée est la cause du comportement d'un individu, mais que cette propriété s'avère dépourvue de fondement empirique ; troisièmement, lorsqu'une croyance est attribuée à un individu alors que ce même individu entretient une autre croyance, qui contredit de facto la première. Les auteurs examinent les solutions anthropologiques et psychologiques à ces problèmes.
DECOMPOSING THE TECHNOLOGY SHIFT: EVIDENCE FROM THE SWEDISH MANUFACTURING SECTOR
Authors: LUNDQUIST KARL‐JOHAN , OLANDER LARS‐OLOF , SVENSSON HENNING MARTIN 
Published: March 2008

ABSTRACTThe aim of this paper is to conduct an analysis of the changing geographies of production and industrial renewal in Sweden during the period 1978 to 2004. Conceptually, we build on the regional version of the technology shift cycle thesis. This is performed in two steps and by combinations of national and regional empirical evidence. First, we construct a taxonomic method that distinguishes between renewed, followers, transformed, induced, contracting, and obsolete industries in the national production system. These different kinds of industries have all had different roles in the dramatic transformation of Swedish manufacturing, and we empirically identify the groups of industries using new time series data. Second, the regional footprints of the transformation are investigated applying a systemic view of regional development. The results of our investigations provide a detailed picture of the anatomies of both sector and regional transformation of the Swedish economy.
REGIONAL KNOWLEDGE ECONOMIES: AN EU‐UK AND ISRAEL PERSPECTIVE
Authors: COOKE PHILIP , SCHWARTZ DAFNA 
Published: March 2008

ABSTRACTThis paper elaborates on the concept of ‘knowledge economy’ as a prelude to demonstrating its incidence at regional and sub‐regional levels in the UK, EU and Israel. The paper shows consistencies in the incidence of knowledge economies across the countries and georegion. This is a good test of the basic methodology, which is simple, and suggests its underlying theory is robust for distinctive spaces and times. It should thus contribute to standard methodology in academic and policy environments. The future economy will be characterised by more knowledge‐intensive activities, and as shown in the paper, will be a highly disequilibriated one in spatial terms. Consequently the need for counter‐measures is growing in order to continuously follow up and to take the needed actions in lagging regions. This is an acute challenge for future policy, namely to correct market failure in the knowledge economy for peripheral and otherwise deprived areas.
INDUSTRIAL LOCATION AT A LOCAL LEVEL: COMMENTS ON THE TERRITORIAL LEVEL OF THE ANALYSIS
Authors: ARAUZO‐CAROD JOSEP‐MARIA 
Published: March 2008

ABSTRACTThis paper contributes to the existing literature on industrial location by discussing the territorial levels that are used in location analysis. We use data for new manufacturing firms and analyse the advantages and disadvantages of performing location analyses at three levels: municipality, county and travel‐to‐work areas. We show that location determinants vary according to the territorial level used in the analysis and conclude that the level at which the investigation is performed should be carefully selected.
APPLIED GEOGRAPHY AND ETHICS IN SPATIAL PLANNING: THE DUTCH NATIONAL SPATIAL STRATEGY 2006
Authors: HOEKVELD GERARD A. 
Published: March 2008

ABSTRACTThe ethical dimensions of geography attract attention of academic and applied geographers more and more. Still, in contrast with the planners, applied geographers mostly only deal with ethics in vague terms and ways, not suitable for the evaluative practices of geography applied in spatial planning. In this paper, some principles or criteria explicitly used in planning or implicitly in applied geography are formulated. One can distinguish the normative ex ante evaluation from the ex post evaluation of a decision. Both have their own set of criteria, but in practice the ex post principles will be used in the ex ante evaluation too and vice versa. The ‘Nota Ruimte’ is the major Dutch planning document, in force since 2006. The ex ante and ex post evaluations are applied to the parliamentary discussions when deciding to accept the Nota. The final ethical evaluation of the Nota has to be postponed until its elaboration at lower governmental levels has become clear.
EQUAL ORGANIC COMPOSITION OF CAPITAL AND REGULARITY
Authors: Burmeister Edwin 
Published: March 2008

ABSTRACTEqual organic composition of capital (EOCC) is shown to be a necessary and sufficient condition for constant relative prices in no‐joint production technologies with neoclassical production functions. It is then proved that such neoclassical technologies are regular (which implies that consumption is well behaved across steady‐state equilibria). Regularity is also a necessary and sufficient condition for near aggregation (which implies an aggregate production function with all but one of the usual neoclassical properties). Except perhaps for some fluke cases, the existence of an aggregate production function with all of the usual neoclassical properties (full aggregation) requires the stronger EOCC property.