bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Estimating Price Elasticities of Food Trade Functions: How Relevant is the CES‐based Gravity Approach?
Authors: Gohin Alexandre , Féménia Fabienne 
Published: February 2009

AbstractThe main objective of this article is to examine econometric estimates of price elasticities of food trade functions. We investigate the relevance of the prominent gravity approach. This approach is based on the assumptions of symmetric, monotone, homothetic, Constant Elasticity of Substitution (CES) preferences. We test all these assumptions using intra‐European trade in cheese. In general, the assumptions made on preferences by the gravity approach are not supported by our dataset. The bias induced in the estimated price elasticities is ambiguous.
Cognitive Impairment Improves the Predictive Validity of the Phenotype of Frailty for Adverse Health Outcomes: The Three‐City Study
Authors: Ávila‐Funes José Alberto , Amieva Hélène , Barberger‐Gateau Pascale , Le Goff Mélanie , Raoux Nadine , Ritchie Karen , Carrière Isabelle , Tavernier Béatrice , Tzourio Christophe , Gutiérrez‐Robledo Luis Miguel , Dartigues Jean‐François 
Published: February 2009

OBJECTIVES: To determine whether adding cognitive impairment to frailty improves its predictive validity for adverse health outcomes.DESIGN: Four‐year longitudinal study.SETTING: The French Three‐City Study.PARTICIPANTS: Six thousand thirty community‐dwelling persons aged 65 to 95.MEASUREMENTS: Frailty was defined as having at least three of the following criteria: weight loss, weakness, exhaustion, slowness, and low physical activity. Subjects meeting one or two criteria were prefrail and those meeting none as nonfrail. The lowest quartile in the Mini‐Mental State Examination (MMSE) and the Isaacs Set Test (IST) was used to identify subjects with cognitive impairment. The predictive validity of frailty for incident disability, hospitalization, dementia, and death was calculated first for frailty subgroups and then rerun after stratification according to the presence or absence of cognitive impairment.RESULTS: Four hundred twenty‐one individuals (7%) met frailty criteria. Cognitive impairment was present in 10%, 12%, and 22% of the nonfrail, prefrail, and frail subjects, respectively. Those classified as frail scored lower on the MMSE and IST than those classified as prefrail and nonfrail. After adjustment, frail persons with cognitive impairment were significantly more likely to develop disability in activities of daily living (ADLs) and instrumental ADLs over the following 4 years. The risk of incident mobility disability and hospitalization was marginally greater. Incident dementia was greater in the groups with cognitive impairment irrespective of their frailty status. Conversely, frailty was not a significant predictor of mortality.CONCLUSION: Cognitive impairment improves the predictive validity of the operational definition of frailty, because it increases the risk of adverse health outcomes in this particular subgroup of the elderly population.
Fewer Emergency Readmissions and Better Quality of Life for Older Adults at Risk of Hospital Readmission: A Randomized Controlled Trial to Determine the Effectiveness of a 24‐Week Exercise and Telephone Follow‐Up Program
Authors: Courtney Mary , Edwards Helen , Chang Anne , Parker Anthony , Finlayson Kathleen , Hamilton Kyra 
Published: February 2009

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the effect of an exercise‐based model of hospital and in‐home follow‐up care for older people at risk of hospital readmission on emergency health service utilization and quality of life.DESIGN: Randomized controlled trial.SETTING: Tertiary metropolitan hospital in Australia.PARTICIPANTS: One hundred twenty‐eight patients (64 intervention, 64 control) with an acute medical admission, aged 65 and older and with at least one risk factor for readmission (multiple comorbidities, impaired functionality, aged ≥75, recent multiple admissions, poor social support, history of depression).INTERVENTION: Comprehensive nursing and physiotherapy assessment and individualized program of exercise strategies and nurse‐conducted home visit and telephone follow‐up commencing in the hospital and continuing for 24 weeks after discharge.MEASUREMENTS: Emergency health service utilization (emergency hospital readmissions and visits to emergency department, general practitioner (GP), or allied health professional) and health‐related quality of life (Medical Outcomes Study 12‐item Short Form Survey (SF‐12v2™) collected at baseline and 4, 12, and 24 weeks after discharge.RESULTS: The intervention group required significantly fewer emergency hospital readmissions (22% of intervention group, 47% of control group, P=.007) and emergency GP visits (25% of intervention group, 67% of control group, P<.001). The intervention group also reported significantly greater improvements in quality of life than the control group as measured using SF‐12v2™ Physical Component Summary scores (F (3, 279)=30.43, P<.001) and Mental Component Summary scores (F (3, 279)=7.20, P<.001).CONCLUSION: Early introduction of an individualized exercise program and long‐term telephone follow‐up may reduce emergency health service utilization and improve quality of life of older adults at risk of hospital readmission.
High Levels of Serum C‐Reactive Protein Are Associated with Greater Risk of All‐Cause Mortality, but Not Dementia, in the Oldest‐Old: Results from The 90+ Study
Authors: Kravitz B. Adar , Corrada Maria M. , Kawas Claudia H. 
Published: February 2009

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate whether high levels of C‐reactive protein (CRP) in serum are associated with greater risk of all‐cause dementia or mortality in the oldest‐old.DESIGN: Prospective.SETTING: Research clinic and in‐home visits.PARTICIPANTS: Population‐based sample of adults (N=227; aged 93.9±2.8) from The 90+ Study, a longitudinal cohort study of people aged 90 and older.MEASUREMENTS: CRP levels were divided into three groups according to the assay detection limit: undetectable (<0.5 mg/dL), detectable (0.5–0.7 mg/dL), and elevated (≥0.8 mg/dL). Neurological examination was used to determine dementia diagnosis (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition, criteria). Adjusted hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were computed using Cox regression, and results were stratified according to and apolipoprotein E4 (APOE4) genotype.RESULTS: Subjects with detectable CRP levels had significantly greater risk of mortality (HR=1.7, 95% CI=1.0–2.9), but not dementia (HR=1.2, 95% CI=0.6–2.1), 0.4 to 4.5 years later than subjects with undetectable CRP. The highest relative risk for dementia and mortality was in APOE4 carriers with detectable CRP (dementia HR=4.5, 95% CI=0.9–23.3; mortality HR=5.6, 95% CI=1.0–30.7).CONCLUSION: High levels of CRP are associated with greater risk of mortality in people aged 90 and older, particularly in APOE4 carriers. There was a trend toward greater risk of dementia in APOE4 carriers with high CRP levels, although this relationship did not reach significance. High levels of CRP in the oldest‐old represent a risk factor for negative outcomes.
Occurrence, Predictors, and Outcomes of Post‐Percutaneous Coronary Intervention Thrombocytopenia in an Unselected Population
Authors: SHENOY CHETAN , ORSHAW PAMELA , DEVARAKONDA SRINIVAS , HARJAI KISHORE J. 
Published: February 2009

Objectives: We sought to determine the occurrence, predictors, and prognostic impact of post‐percutaneous coronary intervention (post‐PCI) thrombocytopenia on an unselected real‐world patient population.
Background: Thrombocytopenia after PCI has been shown to portend worse prognosis in clinical trials. The significance of post‐PCI thrombocytopenia has not previously been examined outside the clinical trial setting.
Methods: The study cohort consisted of 1,302 consecutive patients with normal baseline platelet count (150 × 109/L). Post‐PCI thrombocytopenia was defined as nadir platelet count <100 × 109/L or a drop >50% from baseline. The primary outcomes were in‐hospital and 6‐month rates of death and major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE), and the secondary outcomes were bleeding, need for blood transfusion, and length of hospital stay. Logistic regression was performed to identify independent predictors.
Results: Post‐PCI thrombocytopenia developed in 41 patients (occurrence 3.1%). Independent predictors were baseline creatinine clearance (odds ratio [OR] 1.02 for every unit decrease, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.01–1.03, P=0.001), failed PCI (OR 3.8, CI 1.6–9.4, P=0.003), and use of intraaortic balloon pump (OR 2.8, CI 1.1–6.8, P=0.024). All study outcomes were significantly higher in patients with post‐PCI thrombocytopenia. Post‐PCI thrombocytopenia independently predicted MACE at 6 months (hazard ratio 2.7, CI 1.3–5.5, P=0.0069) and all the secondary outcomes.
Conclusions: Post‐PCI thrombocytopenia occurred in 3.1% of patients in an unselected real‐world population and carried a significant detrimental impact on prognosis. Failed PCI was the strongest correlate identified.
Guidelines to Practice Gap in the Use of Glycoprotein IIb/IIIa Inhibitors: From ISAR‐REACT to Overreact?
Authors: VISWANATHAN G. , JAVED S. , MAYURATHAN G. , SALLEHUDDIN S. , JAMIESON S. , ZAMAN A. G. 
Published: February 2009

Adjunctive use of glycoprotein IIb/IIIa inhibitors (GPI) is associated with favorable outcomes following percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Guidelines for use of GPI have been published by various national societies including National Institute of Clinical Excellence (NICE), United Kingdom. The latter has not been updated since publication. The impact of contemporary trials such as ISAR‐REACT (which showed no benefit of abciximab and 600 mg of clopidogrel compared with 600 mg of clopidogrel alone, in elective patients) on adherence to NICE guidelines is unknown.
Methods: We audited use of GPI against NICE guidelines following publication in May 2002. Data were collected from 1,685 patients between September and November in years 2002, 2003, 2004, and 2007.
Results: In 2002 and 2003, only 10.2% and 11.8%, respectively, of patients were noncompliant to NICE guidelines. Over time, there was an increase in patients not given GPI despite meeting NICE criteria. After publication of ISAR‐REACT, the comparative figures for noncompliance in 2004 and 2007 were 40.0% and 44.5%. A similar pattern was seen in patients with diabetes; in 2002 and 2003 noncompliance was 16.7% and 11.1%, respectively, and in 2004 and 2007 noncompliance was 38.0% and 44.7%, respectively. Qualitatively, similar findings were recorded in patients with NSTE‐ACS. The overall noncompliance to NICE guidelines increased from 11.0% to 42.1% (P < 0.0001) after the ISAR‐REACT study.
Conclusions: We found a decline in compliance to NICE guidelines on GPI usage during PCI. This was likely influenced by contemporary trials demonstrating little or no benefit of GPI in patients undergoing elective PCI who are adequately pretreated with clopidogrel. Our findings suggest the need for a mechanism whereby regular updates to guidelines can be disseminated following new trial evidence.
A High Blood Pressure Predicts Bleeding Complications and a Longer Hospital Stay after Elective Coronary Angiography Using the Femoral Approach
Authors: MAY OLE , SCHLOSSER HELLE , SKYTTE LENE 
Published: February 2009

Aim: The aim of this study was to assess risk factors for bleeding complications after elective coronary angiography (CA).
Methods and results: We consecutively included 1,000 patients scheduled for elective diagnostic CA using the femoral approach. A bleeding complication was defined as formation of a hematoma ≥5 cm, severely oozing or pulsating bleeding through the skin, development of a pseudoaneurysm, or a bleeding demanding blood transfusion. We found a bleeding complication in 88 patients. In the multivariate analysis, only female gender and systolic blood pressure were associated with a bleeding complication.
Conclusion: We conclude that systolic blood pressure and female gender are independent predictors of bleeding complications and that a high systolic blood pressure should be reduced before elective CA.
Disjuncture, Continental philosophy's new “political Paul,” and the question of progressive Christianity in a Southern California Third Wave church
Authors: BIALECKI JON 
Published: February 2009

ABSTRACTDrawing on recent anthropological debates on temporality, hope, and the relationship between Christian eschatology and political action, I use Alain Badiou's reading of St. Paul's epistles to trace out the internal logic of a left‐leaning Southern California church in the Vineyard, a strongly charismatic Christian denomination. I argue that members of this church see progressive politics as a function of the incomplete eschatological event of Jesus's redemption of the world. This view of progressive politics as demarcating an ontological divide serves to foreclose certain forms of political organizing and alliances because such political activity, being recognizable, does not fit the condition of radical alterity associated with the divine in church members’ religious practice. [anthropology of Christianity, anthropology of temporality, Pentecostal/charismatic Christianity, Southern California, progressive Christianity, Badiou, critical anthropology]
“Dear Dr. Kothari …”: Sexuality, violence against women, and the parallel public sphere in India
Authors: DEWEY SUSAN 
Published: February 2009

ABSTRACTIn India, cultural prohibitions on discussions about sexuality and violence against women have resulted in a parallel public sphere in which individuals make use of popular culture to resolve private dilemmas. In this article, I examine how female discourse regarding two highly publicized cases of violence against women in Mumbai employed the parallel public sphere, a cultural phenomenon that allows individual normalcy to be gauged as part of a broader process by which the silenced learn to use their voices only at certain times and in certain ways. [South Asia, sexuality, Mumbai, popular culture, Habermas, violence against women]
Facing the music: Rituals of belonging and recognition in contemporary Western art music
Authors: EL‐GHADBAN YARA 
Published: February 2009

ABSTRACTIn this article, I examine the tense relationship between belonging and recognition that occurs as two young composers try to situate their musical identities between the urge to contest the hegemony of Western art music and the desire to be part of and recognized within this musical tradition. I draw on their participation as finalists in an international composition competition to examine how issues of identity, postcoloniality, and belonging, on the one hand, and of musical authorship, subjectivity, and agency, on the other hand, are woven into the highly ritualized processes of evaluation and recognition in contemporary Western art music. [music, identity, postcoloniality, ritual, agency, authorship]
Rethinking “make do”: Action “from the side” and the politics of segmentation in the Republic of Macedonia
Authors: NEOFOTISTOS VASILIKI P. 
Published: February 2009

ABSTRACTIn this article, I examine the social performance of bodily movement “from the side” in bureaucratic institutions in Macedonia, specifically, how locals use their bodies to weave their way in and out of insider–outsider classifications that shape bureaucratic organization. Additionally, I explore how Macedonians and Albanians use, in common parlance, bodily movement “from the side” as a metaphor to lend different meanings to a new sociopolitical order wrought by the collapse of socialism. The case study of Macedonia helps refine theories of “make do” by pointing to the shifting degrees of insiderhood and outsiderhood within the body of insiders. [embodiment, bureaucracy, make do, insider–outsider classifications, make do, Macedonia]
Tracing landscapes of the past in class subjectivity: Practices of memory and distinction in marketizing Russia
Authors: Rivkin‐Fish Michele 
Published: February 2009

ABSTRACTThe creation of class subjectivities is an important but understudied topic for social memory studies, particularly in former socialist contexts. Soviet policies generated fertile conditions for the intertwining of class subjectivity and popular memory by deploying the categories of “intelligentsia” and “worker” as reified, enduring, and oppositional groups and privileging these groups in contradictory and often hypocritical ways. In this article, I explore the traces such policies left on contemporary, educated Russians’ sense of themselves as long‐standing victims of class‐based dispossession. Ethnographically, I examine debates I had with Russian friends about Mikhail Bulgakov's popular novel, Heart of a Dog, which depicts the Bolsheviks’ establishment of power in the 1920s through the eyes of an elite physician–scientist. Exploring Russians’ reactions to this story and their sense of its broader relevance reveals how aspiring middle‐class subjects embraced a narrative of the Soviet past to justify the emerging inequalities of market reforms. Narrative landscapes of the socialist past illuminate a politics of victimization and moral restitution that underlies the contemporary embrace of inequality and stratified consumption. [memory, class, stratified consumption, health care, postsocialism, Russia]
Racial Disparities in Emergency Department Length of Stay for Admitted Patients in the United States
Authors: Pines Jesse M. , Russell Localio A. , Hollander Judd E. 
Published: February 2009

AbstractObjectives:  Recent studies have demonstrated the adverse effects of prolonged emergency department (ED) boarding times on outcomes. The authors sought to examine racial disparities across U.S. hospitals in ED length of stay (LOS) for admitted patients, which may serve as a proxy for boarding time in data sets where the actual time of admission is unavailable. Specifically, the study estimated both the within‐ and among‐hospital effects of black versus non–black race on LOS for admitted patients.Methods:  The authors studied 14,516 intensive care unit (ICU) and non‐ICU admissions in 408 EDs in the National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey (NHAMCS; 2003–2005). The main outcomes were ED LOS (triage to transfer to inpatient bed) and proportion of patients with prolonged LOS (>6 hours). The effects of black versus non–black race on LOS were decomposed to distinguish racial disparities between patients at the same hospital (within‐hospital component) and between hospitals that serve higher proportions of black patients (among‐hospital component).Results:  In the unadjusted analyses, ED LOS was significantly longer for black patients admitted to ICU beds (367 minutes vs. 290 minutes) and non‐ICU beds (397 minutes vs. 345 minutes). For admissions to ICU beds, the within‐hospital estimates suggested that blacks were at higher risk for ED LOS of >6 hours (odds ratio [OR] = 1.42, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.01 to 2.01), while the among‐hospital differences were not significant (OR = 1.08 for each 10% increase in the proportion of black patients, 95% CI = 0.96 to 1.23). By contrast, for non‐ICU admissions, the within‐hospital racial disparities were not significant (OR = 1.12, 95% CI = 0.94 to 1.23), but the among‐hospital differences were significant (OR = 1.13, 95% CI = 1.04 to 1.22) per 10% point increase in the percentage of blacks admitted to a hospital.Conclusions:  Black patients who are admitted to the hospital through the ED have longer ED LOS compared to non–blacks, indicating that racial disparities may exist across U.S. hospitals. The disparity for non‐ICU patients might be accounted for by among‐hospital differences, where hospitals with a higher proportion of blacks have longer waits. The disparity for ICU patients is better explained by within‐hospital differences, where blacks have longer wait times than non–blacks in the same hospital. However, there may be additional unmeasured clinical or socioeconomic factors that explain these results.
Rural nonfarm income and its impact on agriculture: evidence from Albania
Authors: Kilic Talip , Carletto Calogero , Miluka Juna , Savastano Sara 
Published: February 2009

AbstractUsing data from the 2005 Albania Living Standards Measurement Study (ALSMS05) survey, this article analyzes the overall impact of household nonfarm income‐generating activities (RIGA) on agricultural expenditures as well as technical efficiency of rural farm households. We also differentiate the impact for subsistence and commercial farmers, who are in the top 25% of the distribution of value of annual agricultural sales. Our results show that on the whole, Albanian rural households utilize their nonfarm earnings not to invest in time‐saving, efficiency‐increasing technologies, but to move out of crop production. We derive similar findings when we try to estimate the same relation separately for commercial and subsistence farmers. However, for commercial farmers, we find a positive impact of household nonfarm earnings on livestock expenditures.
The effect of nonfarm income on investment in Bulgarian family farming
Authors: Hertz Tom 
Published: February 2009

AbstractThis article documents a relationship between nonfarm income (primarily earnings and pensions) and agricultural investment in Bulgaria, specifically, expenditures on working capital (variable inputs such as feed, seed, and herbicides) and investment in livestock. Among those with positive spending on farm inputs, the estimated elasticity of these expenditures with respect to nonfarm income is 0.14. Nonfarm income also has an effect on the number of households that purchase farm animals, with an estimated elasticity of 0.35. The use of nonfarm income for farm investment is consistent with the presence of credit constraints, as is the fact that less than one percent of farmers report outstanding debts for agricultural purposes. Yet many farm households take out large unsecured loans for other purposes, primarily to cover consumption expenditures, implying that credit is available, but that farmers prefer not to use borrowed funds to finance agricultural investment. This would suggest that increases in the availability of agricultural credit may have little effect on farm outcomes, whereas increases in nondebt‐financed sources of liquidity, such as subsidies or transfers, may better stimulate investment.
Rural nonfarm activities and agricultural crop production in Nigeria
Authors: Oseni Gbemisola , Winters Paul 
Published: February 2009

AbstractAlthough most rural households are involved in the farm sector, the nonfarm sector has grown significantly in recent decades, and its role in rural development has become increasingly important. This article examines the effect of participation in nonfarm activities on crop expenses of farm households in Nigeria. The relationship is modeled using a nonseparable agricultural household model that suggests that participating in nonfarm activities can relax the credit constraints facing farm households and reduce risk thereby helping households improve farm production and smooth consumption over time. The results show that participation in nonfarm activities by Nigerian farmers has a positive and significant effect on crop expenses and in particular on payments for hired labor and inorganic fertilizers. Separate analysis of the six geopolitical zones in Nigeria indicates that it is in the South‐South and South‐East zones where nonfarm participation appears to induce more hiring of labor. The results support the hypothesis that nonfarm participation helps relax liquidity constraints but suggests how that liquidity is used is zone‐specific. In general, the results also indicate that liquidity is used more to pay for inputs into staple production as opposed to cash crops.