bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Dietary and allergic associations with rheumatoid arthritis: Self‐report of 704 patients
Authors: Tanner S. Bobo , Callahan Leigh F. , Panush Richard , Pincus Theodore 
Published: February 2007

AbstractA survey of 704 rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients was performed to analyze responses of patients reporting favorable or unfavorable effects of specific foods on clinical status. Overall, 28% of patients reported some association between a specific food and clinical status. Patients reporting food associations tended to report higher levels of allergies and family history of allergies, but did not differ importantly in clinical status or demographic variables from patients reporting no associations of foods and clinical status. These data suggest that a subset of RA patients might have food sensitivity as a component of clinical activity, but most patients find no associations between foods and clinical status.
The efficacy of the back school: A randomized trial
Authors: Keijsers Jolanda F. E. M. , Steenbakkers Mieke W. H. L. , Meertens Ree M. , Bouter Lex M. , Kok Gerjo 
Published: February 2007

AbstractAlthough the back school is a popular treatment for patients with low back pain, especially in Scandinavian countries, very few well‐designed studies into the effectiveness of this type of treatment have been performed. Back schools are programs in a group setting, directed toward pain management and consisting of elements of education and/or training of skills. The Maastricht Back School is designed to be a combination of all those elements about which we consider a back school should give information and training. In order to determine the effectiveness of the Maastricht Back School, we conducted a randomized trial (n = 77) comparing a group that attended back school with a waiting list control group. The most important measures of effect were pain management, pain, medical consumption, and absenteeism from work. The overall response was 85.5%. The results of an intention‐to‐treat analysis of the data collected 2 and 6 months after randomization consistently suggested inefficacy of the Maastricht Back School for all effect parameters (except for the effect parameter knowledge). Though the present study certainly had some limitations, we question the clinical relevancy of back schools.
Nonsurgical management of the boutonniere deformity
Authors: Palchik Nancy S. , Mitchell Douglas M. , Gilbert Naomi L. , Schulz Amy J. , Dedrick Robert F. , Palella Thomas D. 
Published: February 2007

AbstractThe present study examined the effectiveness of a 6‐week experimental program of splinting and joint protection education in reducing the progression of the early boutonniere deformity. Nine patients with mild or moderately reducible boutonniere deformities were randomized into experimental and control groups and followed for 1 year. Improvements in active extension of the proximal interphalangial joint for patients in the experimental program suggest that early initiation of a nonsurgical intervention can reduce or reverse progression of the boutonniere deformity in some patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Although the number of patients was small, we conclude that early splinting and joint protection education may limit the anatomical and functional derangements of boutonniere deformity in the rheumatoid hand.
The social network characteristics of fibromyalgia patients compared with healthy controls
Authors: Bolwijn Paulien H. , Baars Herman M. J. , Kaplan Charles D. , van Santen‐Hoeufft Marijke H. S. , van der Linden Sjef 
Published: February 2007

AbstractObjective. To assess structural social network characteristics and perceived loneliness in fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) patients and healthy controls.Methods. A cross‐sectional, retrospective, case‐control design was employed using a structured interview and a self‐report questionnaire. We studied 25 female FMS patients and 25 matched healthy female controls.Results. FMS patients had statistically significantly (P < 0.05) more intimate friends (mean 4.5) and more health care providers (mean 1.5) than did controls (2.3 and 0.0, respectively). The FMS patients more often initiated the contact with family members (mean 2.1) than did controls (mean 0.8). FMS patients did not perceive themselves as lonelier than controls perceived themselves. While there was a significant negative correlation between loneliness and social network variables among the controls, this relationship was not significant among the FMS patients. Among the patients, there was a strong correlation between the total social network size and the number of intimate friends, whereas in controls, the mean number of acquaintances was strongly correlated with the total network size.Conclusion. Compared to healthy controls, the social networks of FMS patients presented more linkages with intimate friends, family members, and health care providers. The lack of correlation between loneliness and social network variables for FMS patients is not what might be expected from social support theory. The assessment of structural social network characteristics along with social support variables may add to our understanding of the social functioning of FMS patients.
Ethnicity and access to care in systemic lupus erythematosus
Authors: Waters Teresa M. , Chang Rowland W. , Worsdall Ellen A. , Ramsey‐Goldman Rosalind 
Published: February 2007

AbstractObjective. To define access to care and to examine the relationship between ethnicity and access to care in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE).Methods. A review of published literature was supplemented with preliminary data from a pilot study. Data from patient interviews, chart reviews, and insurer surveys were collected at 2 sites and used to develop several measures of access. The relationship between ethnicity and access was examined through chi‐square analyses, difference of means testing, and multivariate regression.Results. Although African‐American SLE patients appear less likely to be privately insured and more likely to be uninsured, no significant differences in utilization rates were detected between ethnic groups. Uninsured patients, however, had significantly fewer physician visits than both the Medicaid and the privately insured patients. Multivariate regression results confirm a strong and negative relationship between physician visits and patient coinsurance rates.Conclusion. Careful examination of multiple dimensions of access may highlight differences between ethnic groups. Further research is necessary to document these differences and explore their relationships to outcomes.
Commercial wrist extensor orthoses: A descriptive study of use and preference in patients with rheumatoid arthritis
Authors: Stern Erica B. , Ytterberg Steven R. , Krug Hollis E. , Larson Lea M. , Portoghese Caroline Parke , Kratz William N. R. , Mahowald Maren L. 
Published: February 2007

AbstractObjective. To describe patients' functional uses of 3 commercial wrist orthoses, to describe patients' preference patterns for the orthoses, and to clarify orthotic attributes that are viewed positively and negatively.Methods. Using a cross‐over design, 42 patients with definite rheumatoid arthritis used each of 3 commercial orthoses for one week. There was a one‐week washout between each week of use. At the end of the study, private semi‐structured interviews were conducted with each participant. Data from close‐ended questions were tabulated. Open‐ended data were analyzed using qualitative methods.Results. Patients reported that the 3 commercial wrist orthoses reduced wrist pain similarly, but that comfort and a sense of security during functional tasks were only found if the orthoses were comfortable and well‐fitting. Most subjects preferred the padded, short forearm orthosis, though a small number found it uncomfortably warm, and many complained that it was difficult to use when wearing long‐sleeved garments. Common complaints about the two elastic orthoses included chafing at the thumb webspace and chafing at the proximal closures. Longer forearm length was often perceived as providing unnecessarily high levels of wrist support.Conclusions. No single orthosis suited all subjects. Satisfaction with an orthosis appears to be based not only on its therapeutic effect, but also the comfort and ease of its use. To maximize patient satisfaction and improve the likelihood of appropriate fit and comfort, several styles of commercial orthoses should be available. The current trend toward restricted clinic stocks appears contrary to both therapeutic goals and patient satisfaction.
The feasibility and validity of studies comparing orthopedists and non‐orthopedists caring for musculoskeletal injuries: Results of a pilot study
Authors: Gabriel Sherine E. , Amadio Peter C. , Ilstrup Duane 
Published: February 2007

AbstractObjective. To review care provided by orthopedists and non‐orthopedists for a variety of common acute injuries to the shoulder, knee, and ankle; and to evaluate the difficulties in assessing results from diagnostic data collected for administrative reporting by comparing these data with data collected by medical record abstraction for the same patients.Methods. The Rochester Epidemiology Project database was used to identify new cases of Colles fracture, knee sprain, ankle sprain, and shoulder sprain/rotator cuff injury among Olmsted county residents >18 years of age, who were evaluated between January 1, 1990 and December 31, 1992. Data were collected from an administrative database and medical records.Results. Although the diagnoses recorded in the administrative database and those obtained from medical record review were the same in 94% of the 500 cases reviewed, only 270 (67.7%) actually represented acute injuries. Medical record review showed that (for the shoulder and ankle) injury severity was highly correlated with treatment specialty: 13 of 15 severe injuries were cared for by orthopedists, while 64 of 68 mild injuries were treated by non‐orthopedists. Diagnostic uncertainty was more common among non‐orthopedists; in 21 of the 149 patients treated by non‐orthopedists (15.1%), the final (i.e., recorded for coding) diagnosis was different from the initial diagnosis. In 14 of these cases, an orthopedist made the final diagnosis. None of the diagnoses made by orthopedists were revised.Conclusion. Current diagnostic coding does not capture injury acuity, severity, or diagnostic uncertainty. Studies that limit themselves to such data for diagnostic information are likely to suffer from biases which can skew results in unpredictable ways. Conclusions drawn from such studies are likely to be flawed.
In vivo hip pressures during cane and load‐carrying gait
Authors: McGibbon Chris A. , Krebs David E. , Mann Robert W. 
Published: February 2007

AbstractObjective. To test the hypotheses that carrying a load reduces hip contact pressure ipsilateral to the load and that using a cane when carrying a load further reduces hip contact pressure.Methods. A Moore‐type endoprosthesis with 13 femoral‐head pressure transducers was implanted in a human subject following a Garden III fracture. Hip contact pressures were measured during unaided, cane‐aided, and load‐carrying gait over two years.Results. Relative to unloaded gait, contact pressures increased significantly when ipsilateral to the carried load. Using a contralateral cane when carrying the load reduced ipsilateral posterior‐superior contact pressure; however, the hip contralateral to the load experienced significantly higher than normal pressures.Conclusions. Ipsilaterally carried loads may not always provide stress protection of the arthritic hip. Using a cane opposite to the load may aid in restoring normal pressures to the ipsilateral hip, but may expose the contralateral hip to a significant stress burden.
Biofeedback/relaxation training and exercise interventions for fibromyalgia: A prospective trial
Authors: Buckelew Susan P. , Conway Robert , Parker Jerry , Deuser William E. , Read Joan , Witty Thomas E. , Hewett John E. , Minor Marian , Johnson Jane C. , Van Male Lynn , McIntosh Matthew J. , Nigh Margaret , Kay Donald R. 
Published: February 2007

AbstractObjective. To compare the effectiveness of biofeedback/relaxation, exercise, and a combined program for the treatment of fibromyalgia.Methods. Subjects (n = 119) were randomly assigned to one of 4 groups: 1) biofeedback/relaxation training, 2) exercise training, 3) a combination treatment, or 4) an educational/attention control program.Results. All 3 treatment groups produced improvements in self‐efficacy for function relative to the control condition. In addition, all treatment groups were significantly different from the control group on tender point index scores, reflecting a modest deterioration by the attention control group rather than improvements by the treatment groups. The exercise and combination groups also resulted in modest improvements on a physical activity measure. The combination group best maintained benefits across the 2‐year period.Conclusion. This study demonstrates that these 3 treatment interventions result in improved self‐efficacy for physical function which was best maintained by the combination group.
Coping with pain in the hip or knee in relation to physical disability in community‐living elderly people
Authors: Hopman‐Rock M. , Kraaimaat F. W. , Odding E. , Bijlsma J. W. J. 
Published: February 2007

AbstractObjective. To investigate the use of pain coping strategies by community‐living older people with pain in the hip or knee and the mediating role of coping with pain in the relationship between the chronicity of pain and physical disability.Methods. A group of 157 people with pain “in the last month” was identified. Coping with pain was assessed with the Pain Coping Inventory, physical disability with the Sickness Impact Profile, and household and sport activities with a validated structured interview method.Results. People with chronic pain used relatively more “resting,” and “reducing demands” as pain coping strategies. Pain chronicity made a significant contribution to physical disability; however, when corrected for other variables in a regression model, no significant partial correlation was found.Conclusion. We conclude that pain coping has a mediating role in the relationship between pain chronicity and physical disability. Less use of “resting” and a physically active lifestyle are independently associated with less physical disability.
Predictors of functional disability in patients with rheumatoid arthritis
Authors: Holm Margo B. , Rogers Joan C. , Kwoh C. Kent 
Published: February 2007

AbstractObjective. Using the World Health Organization's classification system of the consequences of disease, this study sought to examine the impact of physical and psychological impairment variables, beyond that contributed by social, demographic, and disease variables, on the functional disability of a rheumatoid arthritis (RA) sample. Data collected during an acute episode were used to predict concurrent and future disability status.Method. A secondary data analysis of 85 adults hospitalized for exacerbations in arthritis was undertaken. Disability was assessed with the Health Assessment Questionnaire. Physical impairment was measured with the Keitel Function Test and Pain Analog Scales, and psychological impairment was measured with the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale and the Perceived Self‐Efficacy Scale for People with Arthritis.Results. Our findings indicated that physical impairment, demographic, and disease variables accounted for 64% of the explained variance in disability during the concurrent episode. Psychological impairment as well as demographic and disease variables accounted for 49% of the explained variance in future disability status.Conclusion. The combined influence of demographic characteristics and the consequences of the pathology of RA experienced as physical and psychological impairments contributed differentially to disability during concurrent and future time periods.
A comparison of three types of neck support in fibromyalgia patients
Authors: Ambrogio Nancy , Cuttiford Joanne , Lineker Sydney , Li Linda 
Published: February 2007

AbstractObjective. To determine the effectiveness of 3 types of neck support for patients with fibromyalgia (FMS) and their preference for the type of support.Methods. Thirty‐five patients with FMS chose the order of application and used each type of neck support for a 2‐week period, followed by a 2‐week washout. The same schedule was repeated a second time. The neck supports included a Shape of Sleep pillow, two neck ruffs with one standard pillow, and a single standard pillow. All subjects received a physiotherapy treatment and educational program in the home. Outcome measures included visual analog scales (VAS) for neck pain and quality of sleep, the Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire (FIQ), and a neck and shoulder pain distribution diagram.Results. Analysis using Friedman's 2‐way analysis of variance revealed no significant differences in any outcome measure, although there was a trend towards improvement in the FIQ and VAS neck pain and quality of sleep scores for some patients. Most participants (62.9%) preferred the Shape of Sleep pillow, 20.0% preferred cervical ruffs with one standard pillow, and 17.1% preferred a single standard pillow.Conclusions. The results of this study are inconclusive due to the small sample size. However, from a patient's perspective, neck support is an important part of a comprehensive physiotherapy program. Most participants preferred the more rigid support of a Shape of Sleep pillow. Further research into the efficacy of the use of neck support in people with FMS is warranted.
Case of the hidden assumptions
Authors: Koshland Daniel E. 
Published: February 2007

AbstractThe Ogston “three point attachment” model to explain how proteins discriminate between d and l isomers was originally proposed to explain the asymmetric distribution of isotopes that passed through a symmetric intermediate. It has been a standard in textbooks and the literature until the recent finding of Mesecar and Koshland [6] that it could not explain data of isocitrate dehydrogenase and other enzymes and must be replaced by a “four location model.” The hidden assumptions that are part of the Ogston model are seen to be an interesting feature of the scientific method that can both advance and hinder scientific progress.
Detection of genetically modified organisms in food by DNA extraction and PCR amplification
Authors: Thion Laurent , Vossen Christine , Couderc Bettina , Erard Monique , Clemençon Blandine 
Published: February 2007

AbstractA practical class experiment based on the extraction/purification of DNA from soybeans and the identification of exogenous DNA sequences amplified by PCR is described. This is used in a biochemistry and molecular biology course for advanced science undergraduate students. Students are given small amounts of soybean powder, and they practice a DNA extraction, purification, and a PCR with a set of different specific primers followed by an electrophoresis to determine whether the sample is transgenic. A major aim is to provide experience in the use of common techniques such as DNA extraction/purification and PCR and their interpretation.
Introducing problem‐based learning into a traditional lecture course
Authors: Johnson Elizabeth , Herd Susanna , Andrewartha Kathy , Jones Steve , Malcolm Susan 
Published: February 2007

AbstractWe have developed a short program of problem‐based learning (PBL) sessions for third year nutrition science, integrated within a traditional lecture and practical format. This course was designed to develop additional generic skills without losing the benefits of the existing course. The inherent flexibility of problem‐based sessions allows the time to both reinforce and expand the original course material. PBL has proved popular with our students, and we have measured a high degree of satisfaction with the format. Many students have requested an extension of the PBL program throughout the year.
A simple question to think about when considering the hemoglobin function
Authors: Ruiz‐Larrea M. Begoña 
Published: February 2007

AbstractHemoglobin is a complex protein formed by various subunits interacting with each other. These non‐covalent interactions, quaternary structure, are responsible for hemoglobin functioning as an excellent oxygen transporter, loading up with oxygen in the lungs and delivering it to tissues, where the oxygen pressure is lower. The communications between subunits make hemoglobin bind oxygen in a cooperative way, displaying sigmoidal saturation curves. In addition to oxygen, hemoglobin also transports H+, CO2, and 2,3‐bisphosphoglycerate, and these molecules regulate the transport of oxygen. The quaternary structure of hemoglobin accounts for the different behavior with respect to another oxygen‐binding protein, myoglobin, a monomeric protein, thus lacking quaternary structure, whose function is mainly to store oxygen. A simple question, “What consequences would the loss of the hemoglobin quaternary structure have on oxygenation?” helps the student to think about the behavior of hemoglobin and to integrate and relate all the elements affecting its binding with oxygen.
A Professor's Pathway through problem‐based learning
Authors: Hodges Linda C. 
Published: February 2007

AbstractNumbers of articles document the power of problem‐based learning in promoting various facets of student learning, yet many faculty are still hesitant to use this pedagogy. Balancing the complexity of the classroom dynamic in student‐centered strategies and the content demands of our discipline with our personal philosophy of teaching is a challenging task. In this article I share my personal insights in adopting problem‐based learning in an undergraduate survey course in biochemistry and the rewards and challenges that this pedagogy posed for my students and for me. I offer a rationale for adopting a holistic model of teaching that takes into account both our students' and our own intellectual and personal growth in the classroom.
Random amplified polymorphic DNA PCR in the microbiology teaching laboratory: Identification of bacterial unknowns*
Authors: Baker Jason C. , Crumley Richard E. , Eckdahl Todd T. 
Published: February 2007

AbstractThere continues to be a need for authentic and engaging undergraduate teaching laboratory investigations that reflect modern molecular biological research methods. We adapted random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) analysis for the microbiology laboratory as a practical activity that allowed students to generate and analyze data for the identification of bacterial unknowns. The activity gave students an appreciation of the value of applying a molecular biological method to a discipline‐specific question.The abbreviation used is: RAPD, random amplified polymorphic DNA.
Visualization of aligned genomic open reading frame data*
Authors: Boyle Alan P. , Boyle John A. 
Published: February 2007

AbstractStudents can better appreciate the value of genomic data if they are asked to use the data themselves. However, in general the enormous volume of data involved makes detailed examination difficult. Here we present a web site that allows students to study one particular aspect of sequenced genomes. They are able to align the open reading frames (ORFs) of any available genome that is of reasonable size. The ORFs may be aligned using either the start codon or the stop codon as the starting points. Results will readily show the presence of common ribosome binding sites as well as reveal interesting order within the ORFs that is nonexistent outside of them. Students will be able to ask various questions involving comparisons of genomes and see the results presented in both a tabular and graphic format. An example problem is presented under “Results.”