bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Expression of Concern: The efficacy of a novel insecticidal protein, Allium sativum leaf lectin (ASAL), against homopteran insects monitored in transgenic tobacco
Authors: Dutta Indrajit , Saha Prasenjit , Majumder Pralay , Sarkar Anindya , Chakraborti Dipankar , Banerjee Santanu , Das Sampa 
Published: October 2005

SummaryThe homopteran group of polyphagous sucking insect pests causes severe damage to many economically important plants including tobacco. Allium sativum leaf lectin (ASAL), a mannose‐binding 25‐kDa homodimeric protein, has recently been found to be antagonistic to various sucking insects in the homopteran group through artificial diet bioassay experiments. The present study describes, for the first time, the expression of the ASAL coding sequence under the control of the cauliflower mosaic virus (CaMV) 35S promoter in tobacco by Agrobacterium‐mediated transformation technology. Molecular analyses demonstrated the integration of the chimeric ASAL gene in tobacco and its inheritance in the progeny plants. Western blot analysis followed by enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) determined the level of ASAL expression in different lines to be in the range of approximately 0.68%−2% of total soluble plant protein. An in planta bioassay conducted with Myzus persicae, peach potato aphid (a devastating pest of tobacco and many other important plants), revealed that the percentage of insect survival decreased significantly to 16%−20% in T0 plants and T1 progeny, whilst approximately 75% of insects survived on untransformed tobacco plants after 144 h of incubation. Ligand analyses of insect brush border membrane vesicle receptors and expressed ASAL in transgenic tobacco showed that the expressed ASAL binds to the aphid gut receptor in the same manner as native ASAL, pointing to the fact that ASAL maintains the biochemical characteristics even in the transgenic situation. These findings in a model plant open up the possibility of expressing the novel ASAL gene in a wide range of crop plants susceptible to various sap‐sucking insects.
A review of women, poverty and informal trade issues in East and Southern Africa
Authors: Akinboade Oludele Akinloye 
Published: October 2005

The paper conducts a review of various issues of women's poverty and participation in informal sector trade in Eastern and Southern Africa. Poverty is endemic in the region, where an estimated half of the population lives on less than one dollar per day. This situation is more pronounced for women and has added significance in the subregion where nearly half of the households are headed by women. Women's deprivation is manifold and ranges across the economic, social and political arenas.Women are heavily involved in the informal sector and cross‐border trade. These activities are generally low‐paying, tedious and erratic. They also tend to be survivalist in nature and unsophisticated, involving the sale of cheap perishable commodities. These have now expanded to involve trade in biological and forest resources in a region that is being devastated by HIV‐AIDS.
Physical Intervention with People with Intellectual Disabilities: The Influence of Cognitive and Emotional Variables
Authors: Dagnan Dave , Weston Clive 
Published: October 2005

Background:  This study examines the relationship between the topography of challenging behaviour, subsequent attributions and emotional responses, with whether carers use physical intervention and their satisfaction with their intervention.Method:  Thirty‐seven carers described incidents where a person with an intellectual disability had exhibited verbal or physical aggression. The carer rated attributions of controllability, internality, globality and stability, global evaluations of the person's behaviour and of the persons themselves, emotions of anger and sympathy, and satisfaction with their intervention. The topography of the aggressive behaviour (verbal or physical) and the topography of the intervention (physical intervention or non‐physical intervention) were coded from accounts of the incident given by carers in the interview.Results:  Attributions of control and internality were significantly associated with less satisfaction with intervention. People who presented with physical aggression were evaluated more negatively. However, only the topography of the behaviour (whether the incident was verbal or physical aggression) was associated with the use of physical intervention.Conclusions:  This study did not find a relationship between cognitive‐emotional variables and the topography of intervention. However, relationships between cognitive variables and satisfaction with intervention were observed. Implications for research and clinical work are discussed.
A randomised controlled trial of a CBT intervention for anxiety in children with Asperger syndrome
Authors: Sofronoff Kate , Attwood Tony , Hinton Sharon 
Published: October 2005

Background:  The aim of the study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a brief CBT intervention for anxiety with children diagnosed with Asperger syndrome (AS). A second interest was to evaluate whether more intensive parent involvement would increase the child's ability to manage anxiety outside of the clinic setting.Methods:  Seventy‐one children aged ten to twelve years were recruited to participate in the anxiety programme. All children were diagnosed with AS and the presence of anxiety symptoms was accepted on parent report via brief interview. Children were randomly assigned to one of three conditions: intervention for child only, intervention for child and parent, wait‐list control.Results:  The two intervention groups demonstrated significant decreases in parent‐reported anxiety symptoms at follow‐up and a significant increase in the child's ability to generate positive strategies in an anxiety‐provoking situation. There were a number of significant differences between the two interventions to suggest parent involvement as beneficial.Conclusions:  The sample of children with AS in this study presented with a profile of anxiety similar to a sample of clinically diagnosed anxious children. The intervention was endorsed by parents as a useful programme for children diagnosed with Asperger syndrome and exhibiting anxiety symptoms, and active parent involvement enhanced the usefulness of the programme. Limitations of the study and future research are discussed.
Parenting the premature infant: balancing vulnerability and quality of life
Authors: Eiser C. , Eiser J. R. , Mayhew A.G. , Gibson A.T. 
Published: October 2005

Background:  Relationships between child quality of life (QOL), maternal well‐being and parenting were explored in a questionnaire study.Method:  Mothers of 126 full‐term (FT) and 91 pre‐term (PT) infants during the child's second year of life completed measures of their own and the child's quality of life and behavioural difficulties. We developed a measure of parenting style derived from Regulatory Focus Theory (RFT), to distinguish greater reported use of promotion as opposed to prevention strategies (emphasising gains rather than losses, and encouraging pursuit of goals rather than prevention of harm).Results:  The two groups of mothers showed no differences on the parenting measure, but those in the PT compared with the FT group described their infant as having lower QOL and more behavioural and mood problems, and rated their own well‐being as less satisfactory. Greater use of promotion was associated with reports of fewer difficulties (better QOL) for the child and better mothers’ well‐being. Differences in mothers’ well‐being as a function of group (FT vs. PT) and promotion were strongly mediated by mothers’ perceptions of their child's difficulties. At the same time, associations with child difficulties were partly mediated by mothers’ well‐being, suggesting that maternal distress may have partly contributed to higher perceptions of such difficulties. Among PT infants, the degree of prematurity predicted child difficulties, but was not consistently related to mothers’ well‐being.Discussion:  Mothers of PT infants report more physical health and behavioural difficulties than mothers of FT infants, but specific parenting styles can contribute to child difficulties and QOL in both infants and their mothers.Conclusion:  We conclude that RFT has potential for understanding the conflicts experienced by parents caring for vulnerable children.
Practitioner Review: Chronic fatigue syndrome in childhood
Authors: Elena Garralda M. , Chalder Trudie 
Published: October 2005

Background: Chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) is being increasingly recognized in children and adolescents. Yet comparatively little attention has been given in the literature to management.Methods: Description of the main features of the disorder, precipitating and maintaining factors and diagnostic assessment. Outline of different views on the nature and treatment of CFS in childhood. Description of a rehabilitation program based on cognitive behavior therapy and graded activity.Results: Using adult research criteria, CFS can be diagnosed in children and adolescents. In its severe form it is often triggered by infectious illness episodes. It is commonly associated with mood disorders in the child and with mental distress and high levels of emotional involvement in parents. A number of patient support groups hold the view that CFS is a medical disorder, contest a psychiatric contribution and advocate ‘pacing’ as an approach to rehabilitation which includes avoiding activities. To date there is no empirical evidence for the efficacy of this approach. Research in adults, open and clinical reports in children support the use of graded activity and family cognitive behavior therapy. The main aim is to enable children, with the help of their family, to carry out their own rehabilitation with some support and guidance from a health professional. Engaging the child and family in treatment and forming a therapeutic alliance is a continual process and a crucial aspect of management, as many families view the condition as a medical disorder and are initially ambivalent towards this approach.Conclusions: There is controversy about the nature and management of CFS in childhood but a rehabilitation program based on family cognitive behavior therapy can be implemented and seems to hold most promise in the management of children with CFS. Family engagement is a crucial aspect of management.
The comparative diagnostic accuracy of conventional and liquid‐based cytology in a colposcopic setting
Authors: Hussein T. , Desai M. , Tomlinson A. , Kitchener H.C. 
Published: October 2005

Objective  This study was conducted to compare the performance of liquid‐based cytology (LBC) and conventional cytology (CS) in the high prevalence setting of colposcopy clinic.Design  A split sample of matched ThinPrep (TP) and conventional smear from 563 patients were evaluated blindly. The performance of both techniques was compared with the gold standard of biopsy results or normal colposcopy examination in 441 cases.Setting  Colposcopy clinic of an inner city hospital for women and children.Sample  Five hundred and sixty‐three women referred to colposcopy clinic over 14‐month period.Methods  Cervical smears were taken from 563 women referred for colposcopy. Using the split‐sample technique, the material was spread on a conventional (CS) slide and the remaining material rinsed in a PreservCyt solution. A T2000 processor was used to prepare LBC preparations. All women underwent colposcopy/biopsy according to local protocol. Four hundred and forty‐one women met the diagnostic standard criteria of the study, which was either a normal colposcopy or histopathology result. Sensitivity, specificity and positive and negative predictive values were calculated for both methods of cytology preparations.Main outcome measures  Matched TP and conventional smears, detection of abnormality, matched biopsies, sensitivity, specificity, and positive and negative predictive values.Results  Inadequate rates for CS and LBC (TP) were 4.3% and 0.68%, respectively. In 73% of cases, the CS and the LBC preparations showed exact agreement, whereas 77% agreement was seen when comparison was made for amalgamated low grade and high grade abnormalities. Low grade cytological abnormalities accounted for 44% of LBC slides versus 37% in CS slides. High grade cytological abnormalities accounted for 22% of LBC versus 17% seen in CS cases (P < 0.001). LBC showed increased sensitivity in the detection of CIN2 or worse than CS (92% and 83%, respectively) and CS showed greater specificity than LBC (82% and 76%, respectively).Conclusions  In high prevalence setting, LBC performed at least as well as CS. The inadequate rate was significantly lower with LBC. The numbers are too small, however, to make confident comments about increased sensitivity and negative predictive value with LBC. Larger studies are required to verify these findings.
Peripheral arterial pulse wave analysis in women with pre‐eclampsia and gestational hypertension
Authors: Spasojevic Mica , Smith Simone A. , Morris Jonathan M. , Gallery Eileen D.M. 
Published: October 2005

Objective  To compare peripheral pulse pressure waveforms in normal pregnancy, gestational hypertension (GH) and pre‐eclampsia (PE).Design  Comparative study.Setting  Tertiary referral teaching hospital.Sample  Women with hypertensive disease in pregnancy and matched normal pregnant controls.Methods  Women in the third trimester of pregnancy with newly developed PE (n= 27) or GH (n= 33) were studied by radial artery applanation tonometry. Values were compared with those for gestational age matched normal pregnant women (n= 39).Main outcome measures  Augmentation Index.Results  Hypertension was of equal severity in PE and GH. Central augmentation pressure and augmentation index, indicating vasoconstriction, were mildly elevated in GH, but markedly elevated in PE.Conclusion  Non‐invasive applanation tonometry discriminates among normal pregnancy, GH and PE, and may be useful to predict PE.
Accuracy of ultrasound biometry in the prediction of macrosomia: a systematic quantitative review
Authors: Coomarasamy Arri , Connock Martin , Thornton Jim , Khan Khalid S. 
Published: October 2005

Objective  To determine the accuracy of ultrasonographically estimated fetal weight (EFW) and abdominal circumference (AC) in the prediction of macrosomia.Design  Systematic quantitative review.Methods  Studies were identified without language restrictions from MEDLINE (1966–2003), EMBASE (1980–2003), Cochrane Library (2003:4), SCISEARCH (1974–2003) and manual searching of bibliographies of known primary and review articles. Studies were selected if accuracy of ultrasonographically EFW or AC was evaluated for predicting macrosomia using birthweight as the reference standard. Data were extracted on study characteristics, quality and accuracy. Data were pooled to produce summary receiver operating characteristic curves (sROC) for studies with various test thresholds. Summary likelihood ratios for positive (LR+) and negative (LR−) test results were generated for an EFW of 4000 g and an AC of 36 cm for predicting birthweight of over 4000 g.Main outcome measures  Birthweight over various thresholds.Results  There were 36 primary articles consisting of 63 accuracy studies (51 evaluating the accuracy of EFW, and 12 accuracy of fetal AC), including a total of 19,117 women. The sROC area for EFW was not different from the area for fetal AC (0.87 vs 0.85, P= 0.91). For predicting a birthweight of over 4000 g, the summary LRs were 5.7 (95% CI: 4.3 to 7.6) for a positive test and 0.48 (95% CI: 0.38 to 0.60) for a negative test, using Hadlock's method of ultrasonographically estimating fetal weight. For ultrasound fetal AC of 36 cm, the respective LRs for predicting a birthweight over 4000 g were 6.9 (95% CI: 5.2 to 9.0) and 0.37 (0.30–0.45).Conclusion  There is no difference in accuracy between ultrasonographically EFW and AC in the prediction of a macrosomic baby at birth. A positive test result is more accurate for ruling in macrosomia than a negative test result for ruling it out.
Twenty‐four‐hour urine insulin as a measure of hyperinsulinaemia/insulin resistance before onset of pre‐eclampsia and gestational hypertension
Authors: Emery Stephen P. , Levine Richard J. , Qian Cong , Ewell Marian G. , England Lucinda J. , Yu Kai F. , Catalano Patrick M. ,   for the CPEP Study Group
Published: October 2005

Objective  To evaluate levels of 24‐hour urine insulin excretion before the onset of pre‐eclampsia and gestational hypertension.Design  Nested case–control study within the Calcium for Preeclampsia Prevention (CPEP) study cohort.Setting  Five university medical centres in the United States.Sample  Cases had developed pre‐eclampsia (n= 70) or gestational hypertension (n= 142) in the absence of gestational diabetes. Controls (n= 429) had remained normotensive without gestational diabetes.Methods  Subjects were required to have had an adequate baseline 24‐hour urine collection prior to CPEP enrolment at 13–21 weeks. Controls were matched to cases by enrolment site and specimen storage time, without regard to gestational age or CPEP treatment. Adjusted mean 24‐hour urine insulin excretion was, however, calculated using analysis of covariance, with adjustment models for pre‐eclampsia considering body mass index, race and smoking status; and for gestational hypertension, gestational age at specimen collection, height, body mass index and smoking. Urine insulin was measured by radio‐immunoassay.Main outcome measures  Twenty‐four‐hour urine insulin excretion.Results  Adjusted 24‐hour urine insulin excretion at baseline (mean 17 weeks of gestation) was greater in women who developed pre‐eclampsia than in normotensive controls (mean [SE]: 15.6 [1.5] vs 13.1 [1.2] × 103μIU/24 hour, P= 0.06), but not in women who developed gestational hypertension (14.7 [0.9] vs 15.0 [0.6] × 103μIU/24 hour, P= 0.79, in cases vs controls). Among women who developed pre‐eclampsia, adjusted urine insulin excretion was greater than controls only in women with mild pre‐eclampsia and not in severe pre‐eclampsia (mild pre‐eclampsia vs controls: 17.3 [2.0] vs 13.7 [1.6] × 103μIU/24 hour, P= 0.04; severe pre‐eclampsia vs controls: 12.3 [2.2] vs 11.5 [1.2], P= 0.69).Conclusion  The data suggest that early hyperinsulinaemia, a marker of insulin resistance, may predispose to mild pre‐eclampsia.
Randomised controlled trial of community debriefing following operative delivery
Authors: Kershaw Kathryn , Jolly John , Bhabra Kalvinder , Ford Jane 
Published: October 2005

Objective  The aim of this study was to determine if two debriefing sessions following an operative delivery could reduce a woman's fear of future childbirth.Design  Prospective randomised controlled trial (RCT) with two arms comparing debriefing, aimed to reduce fear of future childbirth, with standard care after birth.Setting  District General Hospital with 2500 deliveries per year.Sample  Three hundred and nineteen mothers who delivered a first child by operative delivery (i.e. forceps, vacuum or emergency caesarean section). The study took place at Huddersfield Royal Infirmary, from January 2002 to July 2003.Methods  Debriefing by community midwives specifically trained in postpartum debriefing at 10 days and 10 weeks.Main outcome measure  Fear of childbirth was assessed using the Wijma Delivery Expectancy Scale (WDEQ). WDEQ scores were measured 10 days, 10 weeks and 20 weeks following delivery.Results  Fear of childbirth as measured by the WDEQ was lower throughout the study for the debriefing group. However, it never reached statistical significance in the short term [10 days debriefing = 94.5, control = 97.5 (P= 0.295), 10 weeks debriefing = 92.0, control = 97.9 (P= 0.076), 20 weeks debriefing = 90.9, control = 97.4 (P= 0.057)].Conclusion  This study shows in the short term there was no significant difference in the WDEQ fear of childbirth scores. The debriefing group were showing a tendency for lower scores. Long term follow up of these cases may be more relevant.
A randomised controlled trial of a new handheld vacuum extraction device
Authors: Attilakos G. , Sibanda T. , Winter C. , Johnson N. , Draycott T. 
Published: October 2005

Objective  To evaluate the effectiveness of a new handheld vacuum delivery device.Design  Randomised controlled trial.Setting  Southmead Hospital, Bristol, UK.Population  One hundred and ninety‐four women requiring delivery with vacuum extraction.Methods  Women were recruited into the study while still in early labour. If during delivery, vacuum extraction was indicated they were then randomly allocated to either a new handheld vacuum device, the Kiwi Omnicup, or to a ‘standard’ vacuum cup selected by the obstetrician. The ‘standard group’ consisted of the silastic (66/98, 67%) or the metal cups (32/98, 33%). Study data were recorded at completion of the delivery and at 24–48 hours. An additional brief symptom questionnaire was completed by the mother at 10 days postnatally. Statistical analyses were done on an ‘intention‐to‐treat’ basis.Main outcome measures  The primary outcome was the successful completion of delivery with the allocated instrument. Secondary outcomes were substantial fetal scalp trauma and substantial maternal trauma.Results  The Omnicup was associated with a significantly higher failure rate than the standard cup [34%vs 21%, odds ratio (OR) = 1.9 (1.01–3.6)]. This difference persisted after adjusting for confounding factors [adjusted OR = 2.25 (1.01–5.0)] and resulted in significantly more forceps deliveries in the Kiwi Omnicup group [22%vs 10%, unadjusted OR = 2.5 (1.1–5.5)]. The caesarean section rates were similar in both groups [9.4%vs 8.2%, OR = 1.2 (0.4–3.2)]. Rates of substantial scalp trauma and maternal trauma were similar in both groups. However, there were more cases of jaundice in the standard cup group [2.3%vs 12.0%, unadjusted OR = 0.18 (0.04–0.82) and adjusted OR = 0.10 (0.01–0.88)].Conclusions  The Omnicup is not as successful at achieving a vaginal delivery as the combination of the currently used vacuum cups.
Prediction of findings at defecography in patients with genital prolapse
Authors: Roovers Jan‐Paul W.R. , Van Der Bom Johanna G. , Van Der Vaart C. Huub , Heintz A. Peter M. 
Published: October 2005

Objective  Defecography may be useful in pre‐operative assessment of patients with genital prolapse. Defecography is an invasive and embarrassing procedure for patients and little effort has been made to optimalise selection criteria for defecography. This study investigated whether discrimination of high and low probability of abnormal defecography is possible based on the quantified findings from patient history, pelvic examination and a validated questionnaire.Design  Prospective observational study.Setting  Three teaching hospitals in The Netherlands.Population  Eighty‐two patients undergoing surgical correction of uterine prolapse Stages 2–4.Methods  A history and pelvic examination were obtained from all patients. A validated questionnaire was used to assess the presence of defecation and micturition symptoms. Using multivariate logistic regression analyses with receiver operating characteristic curves, a diagnostic model to predict the presence of an abnormal defecography was systematically constructed and validated.Main outcome measure  Presence of abnormal finding at defecography.Results  The most important predictors for abnormal defecography were prolapse of the posterior vaginal wall, history of abdominal or pelvic surgery and the presence of constipation. With these variables, a prediction rule could be constructed which predicted the prevalence of an abnormal defecography (area under curve = 0.73; 95% CI 0.61–0.83).Conclusions  This study shows that a diagnostic model based on findings obtained from a non‐invasive workup can accurately predict the presence of an abnormal defecography. Such a model provides the possibility to tailor the request for defecography to the individual patient.