bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Prostate‐specific antigen assay using whole blood samples spotted on filter paper and its application to mass screening for prostate cancer
Authors: Nanri Masaharu , Nanri Kazushige , Fujiyama Chisato , Tokuda Yuji , Nakamura Kiyoko , Uozumi Jiro 
Published: May 2007

Aim:  The disc assay system for prostate‐specific antigen (PSA) is a novel technique using a small amount of whole blood on filter paper. The accuracy of this assay system and its feasibility for use in prostate cancer mass screening were evaluated.Methods:  In the first arm of the study, to evaluate the accuracy of the disc assay system, PSA values were determined by both a disc assay system and a standard serum assay system using the same blood samples obtained from 420 outpatients. In the second arm of the study, the feasibility and reliability of the disc assay system were examined in prostate cancer mass screening. A total of 2475 men were screened by the disc assay (disc group) and 3348 men were screened by the standard serum assay (serum group) in the first step of mass screening. In the second step of the screening in the disc group, 101 men underwent PSA tests by a standard serum assay, then the first PSA values determined by the disc assay were compared with the second PSA values determined by the standard serum assay. In the second step of the screening in the serum group, 94 men underwent additional PSA tests by a serum assay, and then the first PSA values were compared with the second PSA values. Two men in each group were excluded from analysis because the true PSA values of the first step were not available (more than 50 ng/mL).Results:  The PSA values determined by the disc assay closely correlated with those obtained by the standard assay (r = 0.987) in 295 outpatients with PSA levels between 1.0 and 20 ng/mL. In the PSA mass screening, the PSA values determined in the first step closely correlated with those in the second step both in the disc group (r = 0.916) and in the serum group (r = 0.845). A significant dissociation of the two PSA values was observed in seven of 99 men in the disc group and in three of 92 men in the serum group. However, there was no statistical significance in the incidence of dissociation in the two PSA values between the disc group and the serum group.Conclusions:  The disc assay system seems to be a sensitive and accurate assay system. The feasibility and reliability of the disc assay system were well demonstrated in the field during prostate cancer mass screening.
RISE OF COLORECTAL CANCER IN SINGAPORE: AN EPIDEMIOLOGICAL REVIEW
Authors: Wong Mark T. C. , Eu Kong Weng 
Published: May 2007

Background:  Over the past three decades, Singapore has seen a dramatic increase in the incidence of colorectal cancer and this is now the most frequent cancer when both genders are combined.Methods:  In light of this alarming trend, a review of colorectal cancer in Singapore was conducted, using data from the Singapore Cancer Registry from 1968 to 2002. Our research has shown that among Southeast Asian countries, Singapore has the highest age‐standardized incidence rates, 35.1% in men and 29.9% in women, more than twice that of the next country; these rates have been increasing at a startling average annual rate of approximately 2.6 and 2.35%, for men and women, respectively.Results:  Between 1998 and 2002, deaths from colorectal cancer constituted 19% of all cancer mortalities in men and 14% in women, accounting for the second highest cause of cancer mortality in both genders. In the same period, more than three quarters (75.6%) of colorectal cancers occurred in the distal colon (including splenic flexure, descending, sigmoid colon and rectum), with the predominant histological subtype being adenocarcinoma (approximately 90%). The age‐specific rates for colorectal cancer begin to increase sharply in the 40‐ to 45‐year age group. It remains the most common primary site of cancer in men aged between 35 and 64 years but lies a distant second after breast cancer in women. In individuals aged 65 years and above, colorectal cancer remains prominent in both genders.Conclusion:  Despite the dramatic increase in incidence of colorectal cancer in Singapore, there has also been significant progress in survival of colorectal cancer patients with localized disease (limited to large bowel), with 5‐year, age‐standardized relative survival improving from 36 to 66% in men and 32 to 71% in women; in rectal cancer, improvements from 25 to 66% in men and 23 to 66% in women were also observed. Similar improvements were noted in patients with regional disease (lymph node involvement) but not with distant metastases. This has paralleled the dramatic national development in socioeconomic and health‐care services.
CYSTIC CHANGE IN THYROID CANCER
Authors: Lin Jen‐Der , Hsuen Chuen , Chen Jeng‐Yeou , Liou Miaw‐Jene , Chao Tzu‐Chieh 
Published: May 2007

Background:  To determine the incidence of cystic change of thyroid cancer detected by ultrasonography and to compare the diagnostic accuracy of fine‐needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) postultrasonography in solid and cystic thyroid nodules.Methods:  This retrospective study collected data for 6219 patients with thyroid nodules. Mean patient age was 49.7 ± 13.6 years. Of these 6219 patients, 1983 had cystic changes of thyroid nodules and 4236 had solid masses as detected by ultrasonography. Following FNAC, 506 of the patients with solid masses (11.9%) underwent surgical treatment, compared with 143 of those with cystic change of thyroid masses (7.2%).Results:  Of the 649 nodules treated surgically in the solid and cystic change groups, 29.8% (151/506) and 9.1% (13/143) were malignant, respectively. Overall, after surgical treatment, 0.65% of cystic changes to thyroid lesions were diagnosed as thyroid cancer. Diagnostic accuracy of FNAC in cystic changes of the thyroid masses after ultrasonographic examination resembled that in solid thyroid nodules.Conclusions:  Cystic changes of thyroid masses are common. Positive predictive value in diagnosing papillary carcinoma of thyroid masses with cystic changes is high. Notably, preoperative accurate diagnosis is difficult.
EXTRAVISCERAL PRIMARY HYDATID CYST OF THE RETROPERITONEUM
Authors: Aydinli Bulent , Ozturk Gurkan , Polat K. Yalcin , Atamanalp S. Selcuk , Ozbey Isa , Onbas Omer , Akcay M. Nuran , Balik Ahmet A. , Guvendi Bulent 
Published: May 2007

Background:  Hydatid cyst (HC) continues to be endemic in the Mediterranean countries, such as Turkey. Living in a rural area is an important risk factor for the disease. HC is most commonly seen in the liver and lungs, but retroperitoneal hydatid cyst is very rare. The objective of this study was to evaluate the clinical and radiographic findings and surgical treatment of this unusual lesion.Methods:  Between 1979 and 2004, 14 cases with primary retroperitoneal hydatid cyst were treated surgically at our clinic.Results:  Symptoms included flank pain in eight (57.1%) and palpable mass in six patients (42.8%). The cyst was located in the right retroperitoneum in seven patients (50%), left retroperitoneum in five patients (35.7%), retrovesical region in one patient (7.1%) and paravesical region in one patient (7.1%). Surgical approaches were right paramedian extraperitoneal approach in four patients, left paramedian extraperitoneal approach in two patients and midline transperitoneal approach in eight patients. Total pericystectomy was chosen as the surgical procedure in all patients except in five (35.7%), who had partial cystectomy for cysts located near the vital structures. There were no complications and mortality postoperatively.Conclusion:  A primary HC of the retroperitoneum is a distinct clinical entity that must be considered when caring for a patient with a retroperitoneal mass in endemic regions. It should be treated after the diagnosis is confirmed without any delay because of secondary spillages due to perforations and other possible complications.
RANDOMIZED TRIAL OF SKIN CLOSURE AFTER LAPAROTOMY FOR GYNAECOLOGICAL SURGERY
Authors: Obermair Andreas , Crandon Alex , Perrin Lewis , Walsh Tom , Carrazo Marcelo , Nicklin James 
Published: May 2007

Background:  New suture materials may provide patients with a better cosmetic outcome at similar pain and wound complication rate.Methods:  To assess pain and cosmetic outcome among patients randomized to receive wound closure after laparotomy for gynaecological surgery using staples, polyglecaprone 25 or polyglecaprone 6211 subcuticular sutures.Results:  Overall, 90 patients (87.4% consent rate) were randomized. There was no difference in wound complications and pain between the three groups. Patients randomized to polyglecaprone 6211 subcuticular sutures rated the cosmetic result at 1 and 6 weeks after surgery somewhat lower than patients randomized to the two alternative groups; however, at 3 months after surgery, all three groups rated the cosmetic result as similar.Conclusions:  This study suggests that the three wound closure methods have similar short‐term pain and cosmetic outcomes, as well as a similar rate of wound complications, leaving the decision of the most appropriate closure method to individual surgeons.
INLINE RADIOFREQUENCY ABLATION‐ASSISTED LAPAROSCOPIC LIVER RESECTION: FIRST EXPERIMENT WITH STAPLING DEVICE
Authors: Yao Peng , Gunasegaram Aravin , Ladd Leigh A. , Chu Frank , Morris David L. 
Published: May 2007

Background:  In liver surgery, the increase in advancement of laparoscopic equipment has allowed the feasibility and safety of complex laparoscopic liver resection. However, blood loss and the potential risk of gas embolism seem to be the main obstacles. In this study, we successfully used the InLine radiofrquency ablation (RFA) device to carry out laparoscopic hand‐assisted liver resection in pigs.Methods:  Under general anaesthesia with tracheal intubation, pigs underwent InLine RFA‐assisted laparoscopic liver resection. After installation of Hand Port and trocars, the InLine RFA device was introduced through Hand Port system and inserted into the premarked resection line. Then the generator was turned on and the power was applied according to the power setting. The resection was finally carried out using diathermy or stapler. For the control group, resection was simply carried out by diathermy or stapler.Results:  Eight Landrace pigs underwent 23 liver resections. Blood loss was reduced significantly in the InLine group (P < 0.001) when compared with control group in both surgical methods (diathermy and stapler).Conclusion:  In this study, we successfully carried out InLine RFA‐assisted laparoscopic liver resection in both stapled and diathermy group. We showed that there was a highly significant difference between InLine and other liver resection techniques laparoscopically.
Thyrotoxic, hypokalaemic periodic paralysis: Polynesians, an ethnic group at risk
Authors: Elston M. S. , Orr‐Walker B. J. , Dissanayake A. M. , Conaglen J. V. 
Published: May 2007

AbstractBackground: Thyrotoxic, hypokalaemic periodic paralysis (TPP) is a reversible cause of severe muscle weakness that occurs in a small minority of thyrotoxic patients. Most cases to date have been reported in Asian men.Aims: To evaluate the ethnic distribution of patients with TPP.Methods: Retrospective analysis of all patients presenting with thyrotoxicosis and hypokalaemia with paralysis to two New Zealand hospitals.Results: Seventy‐one per cent of the 21 patients with TPP were of Polynesian ethnicity (Maori and Pacific Islander), 24% Asian and 5% European. Based on population demographics, these figures suggest a 37‐fold overrepresentation for Polynesians and 159‐fold for Asians compared with New Zealand Europeans.Conclusion: Polynesian, in addition to Asian people, are two ethnic groups at particular risk of TPP, and this condition must be considered in the differential diagnosis for patients presenting to the emergency department with severe hypokalaemia and weakness.
Anti‐CD20 antibody in thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura refractory to plasma exchange
Authors: Chow K. V , Carroll R , Branley P , Nicholls K , Becker G , Hogan C 
Published: May 2007

AbstractThrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura is a rare condition characterized by microangiopathic haemolytic anaemia, thrombocytopenia, altered neurology, renal impairment and fever. While plasma exchange has reduced mortality from more than 90% to between 10 and 30%, a proportion of cases fail to respond. Rituximab may be efficacious in the management of refractory cases of thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura. We present two cases in which rituximab was used with successful outcomes. Treatment resulted in resolution of severe clinical and haematological abnormalities in both patients. There has been no relapse after 16 months follow up. Our experience supports the use of rituximab in difficult cases of TTP. Ongoing evaluation of its use is in progress at our institution.
Development and validation of the Diabetes Obstacles Questionnaire (DOQ) to assess obstacles in living with Type 2 diabetes
Authors: Hearnshaw H. , Wright K. , Dale J. , Sturt J. , Vermeire E. , Van Royen P. 
Published: May 2007

AbstractAims  To develop and validate an easy‐to‐use questionnaire to identify obstacles to self management in Type 2 diabetes.Methods  The Diabetes Obstacles Questionnaire (DOQ) was developed from earlier research and the literature. It was completed by 180 people with Type 2 diabetes, recruited from 22 general practices in the UK. Responders also completed a quality‐of‐life questionnaire (ADDQoL) and the Problem Areas in Diabetes (PAID) scale.Results  From analysis of the 176 usable questionnaires, 36 items of the original 113 items were deemed redundant. The remaining 77 items were assembled into eight sub‐scales covering Medication, Self Monitoring, Knowledge and Beliefs, Diagnosis, Relationships with Health‐Care Professionals, Lifestyle Changes, Coping, and Advice and Support. Each sub‐scale had a factor structure of no more than three factors, had Cronbach's alpha of more than 0.75, and a Kaiser–Meyer–Olkin of more than 0.75. Each sub‐scale correlated significantly with the PAID scale (P < 0.01), demonstrating criterion validity. Construct validity was shown by significant correlation between HbA1c and the sub‐scales which relate to managing blood glucose levels: Self Monitoring, Relationship with Health‐Care Professionals, Lifestyle Changes and Coping. Construct validity was further shown by significant correlation between QoL scores and Medication, Lifestyle Changes and Coping.Discussion  The DOQ, comprising eight sub‐scales, is a usable, valid instrument for both clinical and research settings. It helps to identify in detail the obstacles which an individual finds in living with Type 2 diabetes.
Hypothesis: the ‘metabolic memory’, the new challenge of diabetes
Authors: Ihnat M. A. , Thorpe J. E. , Ceriello A. 
Published: May 2007

AbstractLarge randomized studies have established that early intensive glycaemic control reduces the risk of diabetic complications, both micro‐ and macrovascular. However, epidemiological and prospective data support a long‐term influence of early metabolic control on clinical outcomes. This phenomenon has recently been defined as ‘metabolic memory.’ Potential mechanisms for propagating this ‘memory’ are the non‐enzymatic glycation of cellular proteins and lipids, and an excess of cellular reactive oxygen and nitrogen species, in particular originated at the level of glycated‐mitochondrial proteins, perhaps acting in concert with one another to maintain stress signalling. Furthermore, the emergence of this ‘metabolic memory’ suggests the need for very early aggressive treatment aiming to ‘normalize’ glycaemic control and the addition of agents which reduce cellular reactive species and glycation in order to minimize long‐term diabetic complications.
Field production and functional evaluation of chloroplast‐derived interferon‐α2b
Authors: Arlen Philip A. , Falconer Regina , Cherukumilli Sri , Cole Amy , Cole Alexander M. , Oishi Karen K. , Daniell Henry 
Published: May 2007

SummaryType I interferons (IFNs) inhibit viral replication and cell growth and enhance the immune response, and therefore have many clinical applications. IFN‐α2b ranks third in world market use for a biopharmaceutical, behind only insulin and erythropoietin. The average annual cost of IFN‐α2b for the treatment of hepatitis C infection is $26 000, and is therefore unavailable to the majority of patients in developing countries. Therefore, we expressed IFN‐α2b in tobacco chloroplasts, and transgenic lines were grown in the field after obtaining United States Department of Agriculture Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (USDA‐APHIS) approval. Stable, site‐specific integration of transgenes into chloroplast genomes and homoplasmy through several generations were confirmed. IFN‐α2b levels reached up to 20% of total soluble protein, or 3 mg per gram of leaf (fresh weight). Transgenic IFN‐α2b had similar in vitro biological activity to commercially produced PEG‐Intron™ when tested for its ability to protect cells against cytopathic viral replication in the vesicular stomatitis virus cytopathic effect (VSV CPE) assay and to inhibit early‐stage human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection. The antitumour and immunomodulating properties of IFN‐α2b were also seen in vivo. Chloroplast‐derived IFN‐α2b increased the expression of major histocompatibility complex class I (MHC I) on splenocytes and the total number of natural killer (NK) cells. Finally, IFN‐α2b purified from chloroplast transgenic lines (cpIFN‐α2b) protected mice from a highly metastatic tumour line. This demonstration of high levels of expression of IFN‐α2b, transgene containment and biological activity akin to that of commercial preparations of IFN‐α2b facilitated the first field production of a plant‐derived human blood protein, a critical step towards human clinical trials and commercialization.
Immigration, Labour Markets and Employment Relations: Problems and Prospects
Authors: McGovern Patrick 
Published: May 2007

AbstractIn this review essay, I argue that immigration presents employment researchers with a promising strategic research site because it raises a number of theoretically significant problems with mainstream economic approaches to labour and labour markets. Despite the tendency to view economic migrants as homo economicus personified, I argue that immigration brings the institutional nature of labour markets into sharp relief as it exposes, among other things, the influence of the state, processes of labour market segmentation, and the role of trade union policy and practice. Having identified a number of empirical anomalies that contradict neoclassical economic theory, I proceed to sketch out three areas where a more institutionally oriented approach should prove more fruitful.
Labour Market Assimilation of Recent Immigrants in Spain
Authors: Amuedo‐Dorantes Catalina , De La Rica Sara 
Published: May 2007

AbstractThis article provides a preliminary analysis of the employment and occupational assimilation of recent immigrant waves to the Spanish labour market as their residencies lengthen. Using Spanish data from the 2001 Population Census and the 2002 Earnings Structure Survey, we find evidence of immigrant employment and occupational assimilation significantly varying by gender, origin and educational attainment.
Industrial Districts and Migrant Labour in Italy
Authors: Andall Jacqueline 
Published: May 2007

AbstractBoth the flexibility of labour and wider sociocultural issues have historically been identified as important dimensions of the economic success of Italy's industrial districts. Increasing numbers of labour migrants from Africa, Asia and Eastern Europe are now working in industrial districts and living in local communities previously characterized as socially cohesive. Immigration status, Italian employment legislation and the micro‐level conditions prevailing in districts appear as key issues affecting employment relationships for labour migrants, and the social cohesiveness seen to contribute to the success of industrial districts is being undermined through the treatment of labour migrants as people outside the national Italian community in terms of rights and other markers of citizenship.
Parent and Sibling Influences on the Quality of Children's Conflict Behaviours across the Preschool Period
Authors: Perlman Michal , Garfinkel Daniel A. , Turrell Sheri L. 
Published: May 2007

AbstractParent and sibling influences on children's development of conflict management strategies were examined. Data consist of naturally occurring, in‐home sibling disputes of 37 families at two time points. The siblings were approximately two and four years old at Time 1, and four and six years old at Time 2. Parents' and children's use of conflict strategies that reflect proactive autonomy assertions such as opposition and verbal and physical power were the focus of the current study. Results suggest that parents and siblings play an important role in shaping children's conflict behaviours over time. For instance, parents' reliance on unelaborated opposition to the child, and older siblings' increased use of physical power predicted decreases in younger siblings' ability to assert themselves during conflict. In addition, increased proportions of opposition from a younger sibling was associated with the older siblings using less verbal aggression and using more mature conflict strategies such as justifying their own behaviour to their younger sibling. As sibling conflict is a salient child rearing concern for parents, practical implications are discussed.
The Lives We Choose to Remember: A Quantitative Analysis of Newspaper Obituaries
Authors: Fowler Bridget , Bielsa Esperança 
Published: May 2007

Collective memory is intertwined with remembering the dead. Systematic forgetting affects certain ethnic groups, nationalities and classes disproportionately. This study assesses whom we choose as our heroes by commemorating them in obituaries. It is the first cross-national, historical approach to this subject. Constant structures are shown in different Western countries over time in terms of the selection of individuals for this honour. In particular, there are still a high proportion of the subjects in British newspapers who have attended private schools and Oxford and Cambridge. The impact of elite higher educational establishments is also evident, on a reduced scale, in Le Monde and The New York Times. Yet certain signs of movement within the obituary world can also be detected: women start to appear in their own right, the Third World begins to be represented and a wider array of occupations have become the source of obituary portraits.
MARGARET THATCHER'S CHRISTIAN FAITH: A Case Study in Political Theology
Authors: Smith Graeme 
Published: May 2007

ABSTRACTThroughout the 1980s Margaret Thatcher dominated British and global politics. At the same time she maintained an active Christian faith, which she understood as shaping and informing her political choices and policies. In this article I argue that we can construct from Thatcher's key speeches, her memoirs, and her book on public policy a cultural “theo‐political” identity which guided her political decisions. Thatcher's identity was as an Anglo‐Saxon Nonconformist. This consisted of her belief in values such as thrift and hard work, care for the family and local neighbor, and charitable generosity; her belief in the renewal of the national British Christian spirit; and her notion of morality as the opportunity for free choice. Without a recognition of the centrality of her theo‐political identity, it is difficult to understand the values and beliefs which were central to her political life. The methodological issues raised by the construction of this theo‐political identity are examined in this article. The aim of the proposed methodology is to develop theological insights into a political phenomenon like Thatcher rather than make policy judgments or recommendations.