bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Severe hypoglycaemia in a person with insulin autoimmune syndrome accompanied by insulin receptor anomaly type B
Authors: Kato T. , Itoh M. , Hanashita J. , Itoi T. , Matsumoto T. , Ono Y. , Imamura S. , Hayakawa N. , Suzuki A. , Mizutani Y. , Uchigata Y. , Oda N. 
Published: October 2007

AbstractAims  A rare case of the insulin autoimmune syndrome (IAS) accompanied by insulin receptor anomaly is reported.Methods  Antibodies to insulin and insulin receptor were determined in the patient with severe hypoglycaemia before and after the treatment with prednisolone.Results  Titers of antibody to insulin and insulin receptors were 73.0% and 41.5%, respectively. Drug‐induced lymphocyte stimulation tests were all negative for the suspicious drugs. Her HLA‐DR was DRB1*0403/04051. Following steroid therapy, the formation of antibodies was suppressed and alleviated her symptoms. Scatchard analysis yielded findings specific to polyclonal antibodies.Conclusions  The changes in autoantibodies resulted in alleviation of the hypoglycemic symptoms as a result of steroid therapy.
Rationale for and study design of the sulodexide trials in Type 2 diabetic, hypertensive patients with microalbuminuria or overt nephropathy
Authors: Lambers Heerspink H. J. , Fowler M. J. , Volgi J. , Reutens A. T. , Klein I. , Herskovits T. A. , Packham D. K. , Fraser I. R. , Schwartz S. L. , Abaterusso C. , Lewis J. ,   on behalf of the Collaborative Study Group
Published: October 2007

AbstractBackground  Patients with Type 2 diabetes and albuminuria are at high risk to progress to end‐stage renal disease (ESRD). Although angiotensin receptor blockers confer renoprotection, many diabetic patients still develop overt nephropathy and reach ESRD. Glycosaminoglycans belong to the same family as heparin and heparinoids. Pilot studies with sulodexide, a glycosaminoglycan, have shown that sulodexide can reduce urinary albumin excretion rates in diabetic patients. No hard renal end‐point data are available.Methods  Two multicentre, double‐masked, randomized placebo controlled trials were designed to study the renoprotective potential of sulodexide. The Sulodexide Microalbuminuria Trial examined the efficacy of sulodexide given over 26 weeks in 1000 patients with Type 2 diabetes, hypertension and microalbuminuria. The Sulodexide Overt Nephropathy Trial examined the efficacy of sulodexide in 2240 patients with Type 2 diabetes, hypertension and proteinuria ≥ 900 mg/24 h.Results  The primary outcome of The Sulodexide Microalbuminuria Trial was (i) conversion to normoalbuminuria and at least a 25% decrease in the urinary albumin creatinine ratio (UACR), or (ii) at least a 50% reduction in UACR. The primary outcome of The Sulodexide Overt Nephropathy Trial was time to a composite end point of doubling of serum creatinine or ESRD.Conclusions  The sulodexide nephropathy programme will document whether therapy with sulodexide confers renal protection in Type 2 diabetes and nephropathy.
Perceptions of undergraduate students not participating in HIV/AIDS prevention activities in Botswana
Authors: Sabone M. , Ntsayagae E. , Brown M.S. , Seboni N.M. , Mogobe K.D. , Sebego M. 
Published: October 2007

Background:  Botswana is one of the countries hardest hit by HIV/AIDS. Prevalence rates of 22.8% and 38.6% have been reported for age groups 15–19 and 20–24 years respectively. The government has solicited a concerted effort of all individuals and agencies in both the public and private sector in the fight against HIV/AIDS.Purpose:  This report is part of the findings of a study conducted at a university to evaluate students’ perceptions of the effectiveness of two HIV/AIDS initiatives put in place and aimed at changing the students’ knowledge, attitudes and behaviour.Methods:  The study utilized the Rapid Assessment Process (RAP). Four teams interviewed: students who had taken the course; students who had used the centre; students who had taken the course and used the centre; and students who have neither taken the course nor used the centre. Initial steps in data analysis involved coding and theme derivation. Findings reported here were from participants who neither participated in the course nor used the centre.Findings:  Participants reported the following problems, which were hindering the success of the programmes: problems in the ABC message; permissive campus environment; lack of entertainment; and students’ perceptions about HIV/AIDS and their own vulnerability. Participants came up with suggestions for improving the initiatives. The authors discuss implications of the study findings for the university’s initiatives.
Revenue Sharing and Information Exchange under Non‐discriminatory Taxation*
Authors: Keen Michael , Ligthart Jenny E. 
Published: October 2007

AbstractThe international exchange of tax information, and its merits compared to withholding taxation, has emerged as a central topic in international tax policy. We characterize and compare the outcomes that emerge, in a two‐country world, with and without information exchange, under the assumption that countries are unable to tax residents and non‐residents differentially. The analysis focuses on the role of asymmetries in country size (capturing a key feature of tax havens) and on the impact and potential desirability of schemes to share the revenue raised by withholding (as under the new EU savings tax arrangements) or (more innovatively) as a consequence of information exchange. We show that, irrespective of any difference in country size, it is in the interests of both countries, in terms of tax revenue, that all revenue collected from non‐residents be transferred to the residence country—which would entail taking the EU practice even further from the norm, but is currently the standard in relation to information exchange. A withholding scheme with revenue fully reallocated in this way gives both countries more revenue than does information sharing, whatever the allocation under the latter.
Inefficient Public Provision in a Repeated Elections Model
Authors: CASAMATTA GEORGES , DE PAOLI CAROLINE 
Published: October 2007

AbstractWe consider a dynamic setting with no policy commitment. Two parties that compete for election must choose the level of provision of a public good as well as the tax payment needed to finance it. The cost of producing the good may be high or low and this information is not known to the voters. We show that there exists an equilibrium in which the party that does not want much of the public good uses the inefficient (high cost) technology even though the efficient one is available. Using the low cost technology would, by informing the voters about the cost parameter, force it to produce an excessively high level of the good in the future. Interestingly, this equilibrium is not symmetric, suggesting that a party with a strong taste for the public good is less likely to adopt a wasteful policy.
Increasing Returns, Learning, and Beneficial Tax Competition
Authors: HONKAPOHJA SEPPO , TURUNEN‐RED ARJA 
Published: October 2007

AbstractWe analyze the welfare impact of entrepreneur mobility in a two‐country overlapping generations model. Increasing returns in production yield multiple equilibria that are stable under adaptive learning. Governments compete for the mobile resource by setting income taxes. We show that large welfare gains can arise from noncooperative taxation. If expectational barriers prevent the realization of high output equilibria, tax competition can sufficiently perturb expectations so that high steady states become attainable. Once in a high production regime, governments may institute cooperative tax increases or reductions so as to bring the economy to the global joint optimum without disturbing the regime.
Political Support for Tax Decentralization
Authors: PERALTA SUSANA 
Published: October 2007

AbstractWe present a spatial model of a city with two unequally productive jurisdictions. City residents bear a commuting cost to work in either of the two jurisdictions. Each jurisdiction must finance a public budget with a wage and a head tax. We compare the first best optimum to tax decentralization. From the total welfare viewpoint, tax competition is always inefficient. However, majoritarian local governments may prefer the inefficient tax decentralization to the first best.
Extendable Cooperative Games
Authors: AZRIELI YARON , LEHRER EHUD 
Published: October 2007

AbstractA (TU) cooperative game is extendable if every core allocation of each subgame can be extended to a core allocation of the game. It is strongly extendable if any minimal vector in the upper core of any of its subgames can be extended to a core allocation. We prove that strong extendability is equivalent to largeness of the core. Further, we characterize extendability in terms of an extension of the balanced cover of the game. It is also shown how this extension can unify the analysis of many families of games under one roof.
Endogenously Weighted Voting
Authors: HOUY NICOLAS 
Published: October 2007

AbstractWe define Endogenously Weighted Plurality Voting (EWPV) as the voting rule that, each individual being allowed to cast exactly one vote, selects the individual(s) who obtain(s) the greatest number of indirect votes. Endogenously Weighted Approval Voting (EWAV) selects the individual(s) who obtain(s) the greatest number of indirect votes when each individual can cast as many votes as he wants. In both cases, each individual can vote for any other individual, i.e., the set of candidates is the set of voters. In this study, we give necessary and sufficient axioms for EWPV and EWAV. We also propose a simple model where EWAV is more efficient than the traditional Approval Voting.
How Much Is Too Much: Are Merger Premiums Too High?
Authors: Antoniou Antonios , Arbour Philippe , Zhao Huainan 
Published: October 2007

Abstract Is it too much to pay target firm shareholders a 50% premium on top of market price? Or is it too much to pay a 100% premium when pursuing mergers and acquisitions? How much is too much? In this paper, we examine how the extent of merger premiums paid impacts both the long‐run and announcement period stock returns of acquiring firms. We find no evidence that acquirers paying high premiums underperform those paying relatively low premiums in three years following mergers, and the result is robust after controlling for a variety of firm and deal characteristics. Short term cumulative abnormal returns are moreover positively correlated to the level of the premium paid by acquirers. Our evidence therefore suggests that high merger premiums paid are unlikely to be responsible for acquirers' long‐run post merger underperformance.
Convergence in West German Regional Unemployment Rates
Authors: Bayer Christian , Jüßen Falko 
Published: October 2007

AbstractDifferences in regional unemployment rates are often used to describe regional economic inequality. This paper asks whether changes in regional unemployment differences in West Germany are persistent over time. Understanding the persistency of regional unemployment differences helps us to assess how effective regional policy can be. While univariate tests suggest that changes in regional unemployment differences are persistent in West Germany, more powerful panel tests lend some support to the hypothesis that regional unemployment rates converge. However, these tests reveal a moderate speed of convergence at best. Because there is a structural break following the second oil crisis, we also use tests that allow for such a break. This provides evidence for both convergence and quick adjustment to an equilibrium distribution of regional unemployment rates that is, however, subject to a structural break.
Labor Market Effects of Economic Integration: The Impact of Re-Unification in German Border Regions
Authors: Buettner Thiess , Rincke Johannes 
Published: October 2007

AbstractThis paper exploits the significant reduction in impediments to labor mobility in the process of German re-unification in order to identify labor supply shocks in the West German labor market. The focus is on the quasi-experiment of the border removal in the regions situated at the German-German border that faced a massive increase of cross-border labor supply. The results indicate that despite a gain in employment, the border removal was accompanied by a decline in wages and an increase in unemployment relative to other West German regions.
Improved cognitive function as a consequence of hepatitis C virus treatment*
Authors: Thein HH , Maruff P , Krahn MD , Kaldor JM , Koorey DJ , Brew BJ , Dore GJ 
Published: October 2007

ObjectiveThe aim of the study was to investigate the impact of treatment‐related clearance of hepatitis C virus (HCV) on cognitive function.MethodsA prospective study was conducted in 19 HCV‐monoinfected and 15 HIV/HCV‐coinfected individuals undergoing pegylated interferon α‐2a and ribavirin therapy between April 2003 and August 2005. Neuropsychological, mood, and health‐related quality of life (HRQOL) effects were assessed using computer‐based battery, Trail Making Tests, Depression Anxiety Stress Scales and the Short Form‐36 health survey.ResultsPretreatment cognitive function, mood status, and HRQOL were similar between the HCV patient groups. Sustained virological response (SVR) rates were similar between HCV‐monoinfected (68%) and HIV/HCV‐coinfected (73%) groups. SVR was associated with significant improvements in some measures of cognitive function, independent of HRQOL improvement.ConclusionsOur findings provide evidence to support cognitive effects of HCV independent of mood status and HRQOL profiles.
HIV in the UK 1980–2006: reconstruction using a model of HIV infection and the effect of antiretroviral therapy
Authors: Phillips AN , Sabin C , Pillay D , Lundgren JD 
Published: October 2007

BackgroundGiven the extent of data on the natural history of HIV infection and the effect of antiretroviral therapy (ART), it should be possible to develop a model that encapsulates and can simulate these processes, providing a means of exploring various clinical and epidemiological questions. We aimed to develop such a model and use it to reconstruct the HIV‐infected population in the UK to 2006.MethodsA stochastic computer simulation model was developed that incorporates much of our understanding of the underlying processes of HIV disease progression and the effect of ART.ResultsThe model generally fitted well to a range of data in treated and untreated infection. UK reconstructions suggest that, of around 68 500 people alive with HIV infection at the end of 2006, around 34 000 (49%) were on ART, with an increasing proportion of these on first‐line regimens (75% in 2006). The number of patients who have failed virologically on the original three main drug classes (estimated at around 4300 in 2006) is increasing only gradually, and an increasing proportion of these patients have suppressed viral load.ConclusionsThe beneficial effects of ART at a population level look set to continue as the number of patients exhausting the three original drug classes remains small.
Trends and determinants of severe morbidity in HIV‐infected patients: the ANRS CO3 Aquitaine Cohort, 2000–2004*
Authors: Bonnet F , Chêne G , Thiébaut R , Dupon M , Lawson‐Ayayi S , Pellegrin JL , Dabis F , Morlat P ,   for the Groupe d'Epidémiologie Clinique du SIDA en Aquitaine (GECSA)
Published: October 2007

ObjectiveThe aim of the study was to characterize the causes, trends and determinants of severe morbidity in a large cohort of HIV‐infected patients between 2000 and 2004.MethodSevere morbid events were defined as medical events associated with hospitalization or death. Epidemiological and biological data were recorded at the time of the morbid event. Trends were estimated using Poisson regression.ResultsAmong 3863 individuals followed between 2000 and 2004, 1186 experienced one or more severe events, resulting in 1854 hospitalizations or deaths. The severe events recorded included bacterial infections (21%), AIDS events (20%), psychiatric events (10%), cardiovascular events (9%), digestive events including cirrhosis (7%), viral infections (6%) and non‐AIDS cancers (5%). Between 2000 and 2004, the incidence rate of AIDS events decreased from 60 to 20 per 1000 person‐years, that of bacterial infections decreased from 45 to 24 per 1000 person‐years, and that of psychiatric events decreased from 26 to 14 per 1000 person‐years (all P<0.01), whereas the incidences of cardiovascular events and of non‐AIDS cancers remained stable at 14 and 10 per 1000 person‐years, on average, respectively.ConclusionSevere morbidity has shifted from AIDS‐related to non‐AIDS‐related events during the course of HIV infection in developed countries. Limiting endpoints to AIDS events and death is insufficient to describe HIV disease progression in the era of combination antiretroviral therapy.
Peripheral arterial disease in HIV‐infected and uninfected women
Authors: Sharma A , Holman S , Pitts R , Minkoff H L , DeHovitz JA , Lazar J 
Published: October 2007

ObjectiveAlthough HIV infection has been associated with increased risk of subclinical atherosclerosis and cardiovascular events, peripheral arterial disease (PAD) has not been assessed in HIV‐infected patients. The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence of, and risk factors for, PAD using ankle‐brachial index (ABI) measurement in HIV‐infected and uninfected women.MethodsABI was determined for 335 participants in the Women's Interagency HIV Study (WIHS). A cross‐sectional analysis was conducted to determine factors associated with high (≥1.40) ABI.ResultsThe prevalence of low ABI (≤0.9) was 0.9% (n=3) and the prevalence of high ABI (≥1.40) was 6.9% (n=23). The prevalence of low ABI was too low to allow risk factor analysis. On multivariate analysis, factors associated with high ABI were current cigarette smoking [adjusted odds ratio (ORadj) 2.53, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.99–6.43], being underweight (ORadj 11.0, 95% CI 1.61–75.63) and being overweight (ORadj 5.40, 95% CI 1.13–25.89).ConclusionsAlthough the prevalence of ABI ≤0.9 was low in this cohort of HIV‐infected and uninfected women, the prevalence of ABI ≥1.40 was unexpectedly high. Further studies are indicated to determine the clinical significance of high ABI and its relation to the risk of cardiovascular events in HIV‐infected women.
A comparison of cerebral glucose metabolism in Parkinson's disease, Parkinson's disease dementia and dementia with Lewy bodies
Authors: Yong S. W. , Yoon J. K. , An Y. S. , Lee P. H. 
Published: October 2007

Parkinson's disease dementia (PDD) and dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) share many similar aspects, and making a clinical diagnosis of one disorder over the other relies heavily on an arbitrary criterion, so‐called 1‐year rule. This study was designed to search for any difference of metabolic patterns in these two disorders using F‐18 fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) positron emission tomography (PET) images.We enrolled 16 patients with PD, 13 patients with PDD, and seven patients with DLB. FDG PET was performed, and images were reconstructed by iterative reconstruction using the computed tomography (CT) images, and were normalized to a standard template. Statistical comparison between groups were performed on a voxel‐by‐voxel basis using t‐statistics (two‐sample t‐test).Compared with the patients with PD, both PDD and DLB patients showed similar patterns of decreased metabolism in bilateral inferior and medial frontal lobes, and right parietal lobe (Puncorrected < 0.001). In a direct comparison, DLB patients had significant metabolic decrease (puncorrected < 0.005) in the anterior cingulate compared with those with PDD. These findings support the concept that PDD and DLB have similar underlying neurobiological characteristics, and that they can be regarded as a spectrum of Lewy body disorders.
The renewed Lisbon Strategy and social exclusion policy
Authors: Dieckhoff Martina , Gallie Duncan 
Published: October 2007

ABSTRACTIn the light of its manifest mid‐term failure to make progress towards its key objectives, the EU introduced in 2005 a major ‘relaunch’ of its Lisbon Strategy for economic, employment and social development. The core aspect of this was ‘prioritisation’, involving an increased focus on growth and jobs. This raised the issue of whether the pursuit of greater competitiveness would lead to a downgrading of the importance of the original social objectives of the programme. In its focal concern on the fight against social exclusion, the EU's strategy involved both employment and social objectives. These emphasised in particular the creation not only of more but of ‘better jobs’ and the pursuit of actions to reinforce ‘social inclusion’ and ‘social cohesion’. This article considers whether a significant shift did occur in policy emphasis and the implications of the Lisbon reform for progress in reducing the risks of social exclusion. It reviews first the basic changes in the formulation of the strategy and then examines in turn the effectiveness of its policy initiatives with respect to employment, the quality of work and social inclusion.
Posting of workers in the single market: attempts to prevent social dumping and regime competition in the EU
Authors: Cremers Jan , Dølvik Jon Erik , Bosch Gerhard 
Published: October 2007

ABSTRACTThe so‐called ‘Posting of Workers Directive’ was an integral part of the European Commission (EC) Action programme linked to the Community Charter of Fundamental Rights of Workers and was meant to establish a legal frame for labour conditions of workers posted for a temporary period to another Member State. Its content is about equal treatment, a guarantee of minimum protection, fair competition and respect for the regulatory frame in the host country. In the cases included in this article, increased divergence can be observed with respect to the role of the state versus the social partners with regards to regulation and control. The over‐riding challenge nowadays is to develop effective mechanisms of enforcement compatible with the constraints of European Union principles and regulations. In the EC documents, any reference to the Community Charter of Basic Rights of Workers has disappeared and the weight of power has shifted in favour of the free market hardliners, who seem to regard the Directive as an oddity in breach with the logic of the four freedoms.
The public–private pension mix in OECD countries
Authors: Queisser Monika , Whitehouse Edward , Whiteford Peter 
Published: October 2007

ABSTRACTThis article provides a survey of selected aspects of the relationship between public and private pension provision in European countries in the Organisation for Economic Co‐operation and Development and compares this with other regions of the OECD. Population ageing has led many OECD countries to undertake a wide range of pension reforms. The overall effect of these reforms has in many cases been to significantly reduce public pension promises. This, in turn, has increased the interest in the role of private pensions, which has expanded significantly in a number of OECD countries. The article discusses the extent to which a number of countries will need to further increase private provision in order to guarantee adequate future retirement incomes.
Work–life balance in the EU and leave arrangements across welfare regimes
Authors: Aybars Ayse Idil 
Published: October 2007

ABSTRACTWork–life balance has been a central theme of the EU gender equality framework and has been promoted through both ‘hard’ and ‘soft’ components. Although the EU concern in promoting work–life balance has been more to increase employment and economic productivity than to promote gender equality, all Member States have now established standards in accordance with the EU regulations. Statutory leave arrangements are a key component of work–life balance policies and they vary significantly across Member States with different welfare regime traditions. This study examines the transposition of EU Directives and the implications of the European Employment Strategy for leave arrangements across the UK, Denmark, France and Spain as exemplars of four welfare regimes.