bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Physiologic and Antinociceptive Effects of Intrathecal Resiniferatoxin in a Canine Bone Cancer Model
Authors: Brown Dorothy Cimino , Iadarola Michael J. , Perkowski Sandra Z. , Erin Hardam , Shofer Frances , Laszlo Karai J. , Olah Zoltan , Mannes Andrew J. 
Published: October 2005

Background
Resiniferatoxin is a potent capsaicin analog. Intrathecal administration leads to selective, prolonged opening of the transient receptor potential V1 ion channel, which is localized mainly to C-fiber primary afferent nociceptive sensory neurons. Following work in laboratory animals, the authors explored the use of intrathecal resiniferatoxin to control spontaneous bone cancer pain in companion (pet) dogs.

Methods
Normal canine population: Behavioral testing was performed to establish baseline paw withdrawal latency; subsequently, general anesthesia was induced and resiniferatoxin was administered intrathecally while hemodynamic parameters were recorded. Behavior testing was repeated for 12 days after administration of resiniferatoxin. Clinical canine population: Twenty companion dogs with bone cancer pain were recruited. The animal's baseline level of discomfort and analgesic use were recorded. Resiniferatoxin was administered intrathecally and hemodynamic parameters were monitored while the dogs were under general anesthesia. Dogs were reevaluated up to 14 weeks after resiniferatoxin administration.

Results
Normal canine population: In the first minutes after resiniferatoxin injection, there were significant (P < 0.05) increases in mean arterial blood pressure and heart rate from baseline. Two days after injection, limb withdrawal latencies increased to the point of cutoff in the dogs that received at least 1.2 microg/kg resiniferatoxin. Clinical canine population: From baseline, there were significant (P < 0.05) increases in mean arterial blood pressure and heart rate after resiniferatoxin injection. Comfort scores were significantly improved at 2, 6, 10, and 14 weeks after resiniferatoxin administration (P < 0.0001). There was decreased or discontinued use of supplemental analgesics in 67% of the dogs 2 weeks after resiniferatoxin administration.

Conclusions
Intrathecal resiniferatoxin elicits transient hemodynamic effects. In controls, a profound and sustained blockade of thermal stimuli is produced in a dose-dependent fashion. Similar administration in dogs with bone cancer produces a prolonged antinociceptive response.
Adenosine Reduces Glutamate Release in Rat Spinal Synaptosomes
Authors: Li Xinhui , Eisenach James C. 
Published: October 2005

Background
A1 adenosine receptor activation reduces hypersensitivity in animal models of chronic pain, but intrathecal adenosine does not produce analgesia to acute noxious stimuli. Here, the authors test whether increased inhibition by adenosine of glutamate release from afferents after injury accounts for this difference.

Methods
Synaptosomes were prepared from the dorsal half of the lumbar spinal cord of normal rats or those with spinal nerve ligation. Glutamate release evoked by the TRPV-1 receptor agonist, capsaicin, was measured. Adenosine with or without adenosine A1 and A2 receptor antagonists was applied to determine the efficacy and mechanism of adenosine to reduce capsaicin-evoked glutamate release.

Results
Capsaicin produced a concentration-dependent glutamate release similarly in normal and nerve-injured rats. Capsaicin-evoked glutamate release was inhibited by adenosine or R-PIA (R-N6-(2- phenylisopropyl)-adenosine) in a concentration-dependent manner, with a threshold of 10 nm in both normal and nerve-ligated synaptosomes. Blockade of capsaicin-evoked glutamate release by adenosine was reversed similarly in synaptosomes from normal and spinal nerve-ligated animals by an A1 adenosine receptor antagonist DPCPX (8-cyclopentyl-1,3-dipropylxanthine) but not by an A2 adenosine receptor antagonist DMPX (3'7-dimethyl-1-proparaglyxanthine). Capsaicin-evoked glutamate release, as well as its inhibition by adenosine, did not differ between synaptosomes prepared from tissue ipsilateral and contralateral to spinal nerve ligation.

Conclusion
These observations confirm previous neurophysiologic studies that presynaptic adenosine A1 receptor activation inhibits glutamate release from primary afferents. This effect is unaltered after peripheral nerve injury and thereby is unlikely to account for the enhanced analgesic efficacy of intrathecal adenosine in this setting.
Lower urinary tract symptoms in middle‐aged women – prevalence and attitude towards mild urinary incontinence. A community‐based population study
Authors: Teleman Pia , Lidfeldt Jonas , Nerbrand Christina , Samsioe Göran , Mattiasson Anders 
Published: October 2005

Objective.  To investigate the prevalence and perceived bother of lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) in middle‐aged women with and without self‐reported urinary incontinence.Patients and methods.  In the Women's Health In the Lund Area study (WHILA 1995–2000), 32% of the participating 6917 women, 50–59 years, reported urinary incontinence defined as involuntary urinary leakage causing a social and/or hygienic problem. Out of these, 1500 women with (INCONT) and 1500 without incontinence (CONT) received the Bristol Female lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) questionnaire in January 2001.Results.  A total of 2682 (89%) women were included. Most common LUTS in the INCONT and CONT groups, respectively, were any urinary leakage (93.8% vs. 53.3%, P < 0.001), urgency (86.2% vs. 62.5%, P < 0.001), stress incontinence (85.1% vs. 41%, P < 0.001), and frequency (86.9% vs. 35.6%, P < 0.001). The two groups differed significantly in the degree of reported bother by infrequently occurring stress and urge incontinence. Urinary leakage more than once a week was reported as bothersome by 97.5%. The prevalence of self‐reported urinary incontinence increased from 32% to estimated 66% if the demand for social and/or hygienic bother was omitted from the definition.Conclusion.  The prevalence of self‐reported urinary incontinence increased from 32% to estimated 66%, if the demand for social and/or hygienic bother was omitted from the definition. LUTS other than incontinence are common in middle‐aged women, with a significantly higher prevalence in women with self‐reported incontinence than in continent women. The attitude towards stress‐ and urge incontinence varied widely when the symptoms occurred infrequently. Urinary leakage more than once a week was considered bothersome by 97.5%.
Maternal antibodies against cytomegalovirus in pregnancy and the risk of fetal death and low birth weight
Authors: Eskild Anne , Jenum Pål A. , Bruu Anne‐Lise 
Published: October 2005

Background.  The aim of this study was to assess the impact of maternal cytomegalovirus (CMV) antibody status in pregnancy on the risk of fetal death and of low birth weight.Methods.  The study of fetal death risk was a nested case–control study. Cases were all women within a cohort of 35 940 pregnant women in Norway 1992–94, who experienced fetal death after 16th week of gestation (n = 281). Controls were 957 randomly selected women with live born children. Both groups were identified through linkage to the Norwegian Medical Birth Registry. The risk of low birth weight was studied in the live born childrenResults.  Seventy‐two percent (203/281) of the cases and 69% (662/957) of the controls had CMV immunoglobulin G (IgG) antibodies in the first trimester (P = 0.3). 0.4% (1/281) of the cases and 0.7% (7/957) had CMV IgM antibodies in the first trimester (P = 0.7). Among 322 initially CMV antibody‐negative women, 11% (6/55) of the cases and 9% (24/267) of the controls had occurrence of CMV IgG and/or IgM antibodies (P = 0.7) during pregnancy. Also, after control for maternal age, parity, and follow‐up time, no association between CMV antibodies and fetal death was found. CMV antibody status was not associated with low birth weight.Conclusions.  This study does not support a causal relation between CMV infection in pregnancy and fetal death or low birth weight.
Interobserver agreements in assessing 549 labor admission tests after a standardized training program
Authors: Blix Ellen , Øian Pål 
Published: October 2005

Background.   The labor admission test is a short cardiotocography (CTG) performed upon admission to the maternity ward. The aim of the present study is to examine interobserver agreements when the labor admission tests were assessed by midwives and obstetricians who had received training in interpreting CTG.Methods.   Five hundred forty‐nine high‐ and low‐risk women who delivered at Hammer‐fest Hospital were included. The tests were assessed by three midwives and three obstetricians who had completed a standardized training program. The traces were assessed as normal, intermediary, or abnormal. Weighted kappa (κw), proportion of agreement (Pa), and predictive values were calculated.Results.   Between the pairs of observers, κw varied between 0.57 and 0.75; Pa for a normal test between 0.78 and 0.88, and Pa for an intermediary/abnormal test between 0.56 and 0.69. At a cutoff intermediary test, mean sensitivity was 0.43 (range = 0.39 – 0.48), specificity 0.75 (range = 0.69 – 0.81, positive predictive value 0.13 (range = 0.12 – 0.15), negative predictive value 0.94 (range = 0.94 – 0.94), likelihood ratio (LR) for a positive test result 1.73 (range = 1.53 – 1.99), and LR for a negative test result 0.76 (range = 0.75 – 0.77).Conclusions.   Midwives and obstetricians who had completed the training program achieved good levels of agreements in assessing labor admission tests. The agreements in normal tests were better than those in intermediary/abnormal tests. Obstetric staff should be aware that there are disagreements in assessing labor admission tests; especially in tests assessed as intermediary/abnormal.
An outpatient regimen of combined oral mifepristone 400 mg and misoprostol 400 µg for first‐trimester legal medical abortion
Authors: Ravn Pernille , Rasmussen Åse , Knudsen Ulla Breth , Kristiansen Frank Vous 
Published: October 2005

Aim.  To evaluate the success rate of medical abortion using an outpatient regimen of oral mifepristone 400 mg and oral misoprostol 400 µg for legal abortion in women < 56 days pregnant.Methods.  Successful abortion was defined as an endometrial thickness < 20 mm evaluated by transvaginal ultrasound and minimal vaginal bleeding at a control examination performed 14 days after administration of misoprostol. Over a 6‐month period in 2003, a questionnaire (completion rate 70%) was used for a spot check of the patients' evaluation of the method.Results.  Six hundred and sixty women underwent the procedure over a 3‐year period and 606 (92%) experienced successful medical abortion. The remaining 8% had vacuum aspiration performed mainly due to uterine retention (70%). Other reasons were vaginal bleeding (25%), vomiting (2%), or pelvic infection (4%). Most women reported no days with severe pain (67%), 0–1 days with moderate pain (82%), and 0–1 days with light pain (62%). In terms of gastrointestinal side effects, 68% reported nausea, 33% vomiting, and 27% diarrhea. Most women (90%) felt that the information given at the hospital prior to the abortion was sufficient, 74% would prefer medical abortion again in case of a future unwanted pregnancy, and 85% would prefer to abort at home again.Conclusion.  A high acceptance and success rate was seen using this outpatient oral regimen of mifepristone and misoprostol.
Laminin‐5γ2 chain expression in cervical intraepithelial neoplasia and invasive cervical carcinoma
Authors: Noel J.‐C. , Fernandez‐Aguilar S. , Fayt I. , Buxant F. , Ansion M.‐H. , Simon P. , Anaf V. 
Published: October 2005

Background.  To analyze the expression of laminin‐5γ2 chain, a protein which plays a major role in keratinocyte migration, in cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN), and invasive cervical carcinoma associated with high‐risk oncogenic human papillomaviruses (HR‐HPVs).Material and methods.  The expression of laminin‐5γ2 chain protein has been analyzed by immunohistochemistry in 17 cases of low‐grade squamous intraepithelial lesions (LSIL‐CIN1), 35 high‐grade squamous intraepithelial lesions (HSIL‐CIN2/3), 18 microinvasive or invasive carcinomas, and three metastatic lymph nodes. All these lesions have been proved to contain HR‐HPVs and were also positive for p16 protein which classically is overexpressed at all stages of cervical neoplasia and dysplasia linked with HR‐HPVs. 20 cases of normal cervix served as controls.Results.  The expression of laminin‐5γ2 chain protein was observed in 100% of invasive or microinvasive carcinoma and in their related lymph node metastasis with an immunoreactivity located preferentially at the invasive front of the lesions. All the HSILs (100%) associated with invasive carcinoma were also positive. In contrast, in HSILs without associated invasive component, the expression of the protein has been found in only 34% of cases. In positive HSILs, laminin‐5γ2 protein was expressed in basal layers. In LSILs and normal epithelium, no expression of the protein was noted.Conclusions.  We conclude the following: (i) the expression of laminin‐5γ2 is a late event in cervical carcinogenesis increasing with the grade of dysplastic lesions; (ii) laminin‐5γ2 expression facilitates the identification of invasive and microinvasive lesions which could be difficult to diagnose on the basis of routine stains; (iii) laminin‐5γ2 expression in HSILs could potentially identify those lesions with a more increased risk of tumor progression.
Variables that predict the success of labor induction
Authors: Bueno Beatriz , San‐Frutos Luis , Salazar Francisco , Pérez‐Medina Tirso , Engels Virginia , Archilla Beatriz , Izquierdo Fernando , Bajo José 
Published: October 2005

Background.  To analyze the clinical and sonographic variables that affect the success of labor induction.Methods.  Bishop score, cervical length, and parity were studied in 196 pregnant women in the prediction of successful vaginal delivery within 24 hr of induction. Logistic regression and segmentation analysis were performed.Results.  Cervical length [odds ratio (OR) 1.089, P < 0.001], Bishop score (OR 0.751, P = 0.001), and parity (OR 6.85, P < 0.001) predict the success of labor induction. The best cut‐off points for cervical length were <16.5, 16.5–27, and >27 mm (P = 0.0016). In the analysis of the Bishop score, we also obtained three discriminatory points, 0, 1–4, and >4 (P = 0.0006), that best predict the labor induction. Finally, in a global analysis of the variables studied, the best statistic sequence that predicts the labor induction was found when we introduced parity in the first place. The success of labor induction in nulliparous was 50.77 and 83.33% in multiparous (P = 0.0001).Conclusions.  Cervical length, Bishop score, and parity predict the success of labor induction.
Chromosomal anomalies in first‐trimester miscarriages
Authors: Ljunger Elisabeth , Cnattingius Sven , Lundin Catarina , Annerén Göran 
Published: October 2005

Background.  It is well known that a large proportion of first‐trimester spontaneous abortions is caused by chromosomal disorders. The present study represents a unique material and the success rate of the karyotyping was high.Methods.  Chromosomal analysis from chorionic villus sampling of 259 of 304 consecutive first‐trimester miscarriages in the Uppsala County, Sweden is presented.Results and conclusions.  An abnormal karyotype was found in 61% of the cases. Autosomal trisomies were most frequently detected (in 37% of the karyotyped samples), followed by polyploidies (9%) and monosomy X (6%). Cases with an extra sex chromosome constituted approximately 5% of the karyotyped abortions, with a remarkable high frequency of 47,XXY (3.4%), that is approximately 40 times greater the prevalence of Klinefelter syndrome among live birth. Similar to autosomal chromosome abnormalities, present finding indicates that the majority of sex chromosome abnormalities do not survive to term. Autosomal trisomies and an extra X‐chromosome in males (47,XXY) were associated with an advanced maternal age, whereas monosomy X as well as polyploidy changes seems to be inversely related to the age of the mother. The single most common aberration was trisomy 16, which was found in 14% of the chromosomally abnormal abortions.
The Age of Environmental Impasse? Globalization and Enviromental Transformation of Metropolitan Cities
Authors: Melchert Luciana 
Published: October 2005

AbstractMetropolitan cities are undergoing a major spatial and environmental transformation. The proliferation of business districts, corporate headquarters and international hotels is prompting a massive verticalization and densification of land use, which is affecting the urban environment and infrastructure in a number of ways. Nowhere are urban environmental pressures so accentuated as in Third World metropolitan cities. Here the rush to gain a competitive edge in the global economy, in order to attract multinational firms and become a ‘global city’, is leading to an inconsistent urban policy framework in which development policies frequently clash with environmental policies. This article explores the environmental complexity of Third World metropolitan cities, focusing on the cases of Beijing and São Paulo. After a conceptual review of the relationship between globalization, cities and urban environmental problems, it examines how globalization is prompting spatial and environmental transformations in both cities; looks at the dichotomy between development policies and environmental policies by analysing the instruments in place; and investigates the role of globalization vis‐à‐vis urban sustainability issues.
Land Tenure Insecurity and Inequality in Nicaragua
Authors: Broegaard Rikke J. 
Published: October 2005

AbstractThis article uses empirical data from a case study in rural Nicaragua to demonstrate the need for a conceptualization of tenure security as seen from the perspective of the landholder. A large group of farmers in the case study area perceive their tenure situation as being insecure despite the fact that they possess a legal title to their land. The article argues that more attention must be paid to aspects such as inequalities of wealth and power, lack of enforcement and lack of impartiality on the part of the formal institutions when addressing tenure security in an institutionally unstable setting, such as that found in Nicaragua. The article contributes to the ongoing discussion by arguing that future research on how to increase rural land tenure security should explore the concept of tenure security as experienced by farmers.
Law, Culture and Access to Justice under the Palestinian National Authority
Authors: Kelly Tobias 
Published: October 2005

AbstractIt has been widely claimed that the Palestinian National Authority has failed to provide adequate access to the law for many Palestinians. Whilst impediments to legal access are often treated as a technical questions of procedure, or as an issue of the cultural appropriateness of legal regimes, this article takes a third approach, which stresses political and historical factors. In order to understand obstacles to legal access it is necessary to discover the ways in which legal practices are understood, used and abandoned in particular contexts. Through an examination of labour disputes, the article argues that in the context of the West Bank, legal claims have no absolute moral value, but are attractive for the substantive claims that can be made through them, opening up legal avenues for political manipulation. In this context, legal entitlements are distributed according to political resources, rather than legal procedures. The article concludes by arguing that promotion of effective access to legal processes in the West Bank should not be seen as a short‐cut to a stable political regime, since accountable legal processes require a centralized, strong and stable coercive support, based in a measure of organizational cohesion and territorial sovereignty.
Orphans’ Land Rights in Post‐War Rwanda: The Problem of Guardianship
Authors: Rose Laurel L. 
Published: October 2005

AbstractIn 1994, the Rwandan civil war and genocide produced thousands of orphans. Alongside the war, the growing HIV/AIDS crisis in Rwanda has produced a current population of about 300,000 orphans — many of whom are compelled to head households. These orphans urgently require land use rights, but many find that their rights to their deceased parents’ customary land holdings are denied or restricted by their guardians and others. Despite the legal protections for children that are guaranteed within Rwanda's laws, the reality is that many guardians do not respect orphans’ land rights and few orphans have sufficient access to administrative and legal forums to assert and defend these rights. In contrast to most accounts in the literature that discuss more generally the issue of African orphans’ land rights in the context of adults’ land rights, this article focuses on specific cases in which Rwandan orphans independently pursued their land rights. Ultimately, the article concludes that in Rwanda — and elsewhere in Africa — government officials should re‐examine their ideas about guardianship and grant orphans urgent attention as individuals and as a special interest group.
Witchcraft, Social Cohesion and Participation in a South African Village
Authors: Golooba‐Mutebi Frederick 
Published: October 2005

AbstractThe past thirty years have seen development agencies, non‐governmental organizations and their funders embrace ‘participatory’ development strategies. These strategies require the poor to take part in decision‐making about, and the implementation of, development projects and programmes. Underlying enthusiasm for participation is the recognition that centralized, top‐down systems and methods have not delivered development, and the assumption that the poor are eager and able to ‘participate’. Using ethnographic research on witch beliefs and their impact on social relations in a South African village, this article argues that such assumptions are not always justified. It shows that witch beliefs and related conflicts have long‐term negative consequences for intra‐community relations and examines what this implies for development policy and practice.
The nuclear power industry as an alternative analogy for safety in anaesthesia and a novel approach for the conceptualisation of safety goals
Authors: Webster C. S. 
Published: October 2005

SummarySafety practices in health care have not kept pace with the increasing complexity of medical technology. Although anaesthesia is generally considered to be a leader in the improvement of patient safety, more powerful safety strategies must be found and employed. From an analysis of system characteristics, the nuclear power industry is proposed as an alternative analogy for safety in anaesthesia, and a novel diagrammatic approach is developed for the conceptualisation of safety goals. The nuclear power industry has spent vastly more time and money than has health care on the development of safety, and has progressed through significant safety milestones approximately three times more quickly than has anaesthesia. The greatest scope for the improvement of safety in anaesthesia lies in the appropriate re‐design of medical systems and the lowering of the threshold for the reporting of incidents to include accident precursors, thus allowing the identification of dangerous systems before accidents occur.