bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Health Research Funding Agencies' Support and Promotion of Knowledge Translation: An International Study
Authors: TETROE JACQUELINE M. , GRAHAM IAN D. , FOY ROBBIE , ROBINSON NICOLE , ECCLES MARTIN P. , WENSING MICHEL , DURIEUX PIERRE , LÉGARÉ FRANCE , NIELSON CAMILLA PALMHØJ , ADILY ARMITA , WARD JEANETTE E. , PORTER CASSANDRA , SHEA BEVERLEY , GRIMSHAW JEREMY M. 
Published: February 2008

Context: The process of knowledge translation (KT) in health research depends on the activities of a wide range of actors, including health professionals, researchers, the public, policymakers, and research funders. Little is known, however, about health research funding agencies' support and promotion of KT. Our team asked thirty‐three agencies from Australia, Canada, France, the Netherlands, Scandinavia, the United Kingdom, and the United States about their role in promoting the results of the research they fund. Methods: Semistructured interviews were conducted with a sample of key informants from applied health funding agencies identified by the investigators. The interviews were supplemented with information from the agencies' websites. The final coding was derived from an iterative thematic analysis. Findings: There was a lack of clarity between agencies as to what is meant by KT and how it is operationalized. Agencies also varied in their degree of engagement in this process. The agencies' abilities to create a pull for research findings; to engage in linkage and exchange between agencies, researchers, and decision makers; and to push results to various audiences differed as well. Finally, the evaluation of the effectiveness of KT strategies remains a methodological challenge. Conclusions: Funding agencies need to think about both their conceptual framework and their operational definition of KT, so that it is clear what is and what is not considered to be KT, and adjust their funding opportunities and activities accordingly. While we have cataloged the range of knowledge translation activities conducted across these agencies, little is known about their effectiveness and so a greater emphasis on evaluation is needed. It would appear that “best practice” for funding agencies is an elusive concept depending on the particular agency's size, context, mandate, financial considerations, and governance structure.
Measurement of family impact of skin disease: further validation of the Family Dermatology Life Quality Index (FDLQI)
Authors: Basra MKA , Edmunds O , Salek MS , Finlay AY 
Published: February 2008

AbstractAim  To adapt the Impact on Family scale (IOF), originally developed for families of children with chronic illnesses, for use in families of adult patients and to examine the convergent validity of the Family Dermatology Life Quality Index (FDLQI) by comparing it with the adapted version of the IOF scale.Methods  Adult family members of patients with different skin diseases attending the out‐patients clinic of a secondary referral centre completed the FDLQI and the adapted version of the IOF scale, whereas patients completed the Dermatology Life Quality Index (DLQI).Results  A total of 50 patients and 50 family members/partners participated in the study. The mean scores for the three instruments were as follows: FDLQI = 6.0 (SD = 6.4, median = 4); IOF scale = 27.9 (SD = 8.2, median = 29); DLQI = 5.4 (SD = 5.6, median = 3). There was no difference between male and female participants in the mean scores of any of the three instruments. The FDLQI demonstrated high internal consistency (Cronbach's α = 0.91). Factor analysis revealed the presence of one factor structure underlying the items of the FDLQI, which explained 55.8% of the total variance. The IOF scale also showed a high internal consistency (Cronbach's α = 0.89). The results of factor analysis revealed one dominant factor and three weaker factors, which together explained 72% of the total variance. The convergent validity of the FDLQI was demonstrated by a highly significant positive correlation between the mean FDLQI and the IOF scale scores (rs = 0.61, P < 0.0001). All the items of the FDLQI also had significant correlations with the mean total IOF scale scores (P < 0.05).Conclusions  The results of this study have demonstrated that with minor modifications IOF scale, which was originally developed for families of children suffering from chronic illnesses, can also be used in families of adult dermatology patients. The study has also provided further evidence of the validity of the newly developed FDLQI.
Recent Currents in the Nineteenth‐Century American Maritime History
Authors: Raffety Matthew 
Published: February 2008

AbstractDespite a substantial amount of scholarship in new and exciting directions, some scholars are concerned that the field of nineteenth‐century U.S. Maritime history is becoming too fragmented to function as a coherent field. The ‘new maritime history’ of the late 1960s has ushered in a host of new approaches to the lives, labor, and politics of American seamen. Scholars examining the gender identity, labor, ideology, legal status, literary portrayals, nationalism, multiculturalism, and racial and cultural identities of seafarers have created a dynamic, if at times confusing and atomized portrait of American seafarers in the nineteenth century. Nevertheless, despite the myriad of approaches and specialties within the literature, ranging including piracy, mutiny, shipbuilding, whaling, fishing, and packet ships, scholars do agree that the maritime setting was crucial to the national development and sense of self for the United States during nineteenth century, and the maritime history of the United States needs to be integrated more completely into the larger national story and transnational stories.
South Africa's Soviet Connection1
Authors: Filatova Irina 
Published: February 2008

AbstractTo outward appearance at least, South Africa and the Soviet Union did not enjoy close relations during most of the 20th century. Diplomatic relations existed on paper between the Boer republics and Russia during the Anglo‐Boer war but they ended when the republics lost their independence. During the 1920s and 1930s trade was negligible, and the new high point in mutual interest and relations came only during the Second World War, when Soviet diplomatic or trade missions opened in Johannesburg, Pretoria and Cape Town. This official relationship was broken by the National Party government in 1956, and was re‐established only in the early 1990s, after the collapse of the Soviet Union and the end of apartheid. Diplomatic relations were, however, just the tip of the iceberg. The Soviet Union maintained a close connection with the Communist Party of South Africa (CPSA) and, later on, with both the African National Congress (ANC) and the South African Communist Party (SACP), the CPSA's successor. This article attempts to assess the extent and importance of this connection, and its influence on South Africa's transition to democracy and on the political players in today's South Africa.
Minority Disparities in Disability Between Medicare Beneficiaries
Authors: Ciol Marcia A. , Shumway‐Cook Anne , Hoffman Jeanne M. , Yorkston Kathryn M. , Dudgeon Brian J. , Chan Leighton 
Published: February 2008

OBJECTIVES: To examine racial and ethnic disparities in mobility limitation, activities of daily living (ADLs), and instrumental activities of daily living (IADLs) in older adults enrolled in Medicare.DESIGN: Longitudinal national survey.PARTICIPANTS: Community‐dwelling respondents in the Medicare Current Beneficiaries Survey from 1992 to 2004 (10,180–16,788 respondents per year).MEASUREMENTS: Disability‐related outcomes included mobility limitation, difficulty in six ADLs and six IADLs. Explanatory variables included age, sex, racial or ethnic group, living situation, and income level.RESULTS: From 1992 to 2004, proportions of Medicare beneficiaries with mobility limitations were stable across racial and ethnic groups, improving slightly for ADLs and IADLs. Blacks reported more limitations in all three disability‐related measures. In a longitudinal analysis, the probability of developing mobility limitation was consistently higher for blacks, followed by white Hispanics, white non‐Hispanics, and Asians, after adjusting for age, sex, socioeconomic status, and living situation. For ADL and IADL difficulties, the number of reported difficulties increased with age for all ethnic and racial groups. At approximately age 75, Asians and white Hispanics reported difficulties with much higher numbers of ADLs and IADLs than the other groups.CONCLUSION: Across all ethnic and racial groups, self‐reported disability has declined in the past decade, but even after adjusting for age, sex, socioeconomic status, and living situation, racial and ethnic disparities in disability outcomes persist. Race and ethnicity may influence the reporting of disability, potentially affecting measures of prevalence. Further research is needed to understand whether these differences are a result of perceptions related to disablement or true differences in disability between racial and ethnic groups.
Muscle Endurance in Elderly Nursing Home Residents Is Related to Fatigue Perception, Mobility, and Circulating Tumor Necrosis Factor‐Alpha, Interleukin‐6, and Heat Shock Protein 70
Authors: Bautmans Ivan , Njemini Rose , Predom Heidi , Lemper Jean‐Claude , Mets Tony 
Published: February 2008

OBJECTIVES: To explore the relationships between muscle endurance and circulating interleukin (IL)‐6, tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF‐α), and heat shock protein (Hsp)70 in nursing home residents and to assess how muscle endurance relates to self‐perceived fatigue and mobility.DESIGN: Exploratory study.SETTING: Three nursing homes of the Foundation for Psychogeriatrics (Brussels, Belgium).PARTICIPANTS: Seventy‐seven residents (53 female and 24 male, mean age 81 ± 8).MEASUREMENTS: Participants were assessed for muscle endurance (fatigue resistance and grip work); perceived fatigue (visual analogue scale for fatigue); fatigue during daily activities (Mobility‐Tiredness Scale); effect of fatigue on quality of life (World Health Organization Quality Of Life questionnaire); mobility (Tinetti Test & Elderly Mobility Scale (EMS)); and circulating IL‐6, TNF‐α, and Hsp70.RESULTS: Residents with better fatigue resistance reported less self‐perceived tiredness (P<.05). Similar trends were observed for fatigue during daily activities and for the extent to which fatigue bothered subjects. Higher grip work was associated with less self‐perceived fatigue on all fatigue scales (P<.01). Fatigue resistance and grip work were positively related to balance and basic mobility (all P<.01; trend for relationship between fatigue resistance and EMS). Subjects with high IL‐6 and Hsp70 showed significantly worse fatigue resistance (P=.007) and muscle work (P=.045) than those with high IL‐6 and low Hsp70. In male residents, higher TNF‐α was related to worse fatigue resistance and grip work (P<.05).CONCLUSION: Elderly nursing home residents complaining of fatigue need to be taken seriously, because they show worse muscle endurance, which is related to poorer mobility. Inflammatory processes involving TNF‐α and the interaction between IL‐6 and Hsp70 are related to poorer muscle endurance in these patients.
Creation and Testing of the Geriatric Self‐Efficacy Index for Urinary Incontinence
Authors: Tannenbaum Cara , Brouillette Judith , Korner‐Bitensky Nicol , Dumoulin Chantale , Corcos Jacques , Tu Le Mai , Lemieux Marie‐Claude , Ouellet Stephane , Valiquette Luc 
Published: February 2008

OBJECTIVES: To report on the content development, construct validity, and reliability testing of the Geriatric Self‐Efficacy Index for Urinary Incontinence (GSE‐UI).DESIGN: Prospective cohort study.SETTING: Six UI outpatient clinics in Quebec, Canada.PARTICIPANTS: Community‐dwelling incontinent men and women aged 65 and older.MEASUREMENTS: Thirty‐eight items were generated using a literature search and interdisciplinary panel of experts. Item reduction was achieved through field‐testing with 75 older men and women with UI attending an information session. The final 20‐item draft, measuring older adults' level of confidence in preventing urine loss, was administered to a new group of consecutive patients 1 week before and at the time of their first visit to the UI clinic to enable evaluation of test–retest reliability. A 3‐day voiding diary, quantifying the frequency of UI, and the Incontinence Quality of Life questionnaire were used to test construct validity.RESULTS: One hundred sixteen of 300 eligible patients (39%) participated (mean age±standard deviation 74±6, range 65–87). The GSE‐UI items showed normal distributions and no ceiling effects. Self‐efficacy scores ranged from 16 to 193 (mean 104±41, possible range 0–200) and correlated positively with quality of life scores (r=0.7, P<.001) and negatively with UI severity (r=−0.4, P<.001). Internal consistency for the GSE‐UI was 0.94 (Cronbach alpha). Initial test–retest reliability of the 20 items using intraclass correlations ranged from 0.50 to 0.86.CONCLUSION: The GSE‐UI will enable measurement of whether a person's confidence in their ability to prevent urine loss is an important mechanism contributing to improvements in UI.
Can Counseling and Support Reduce Burden and Depressive Symptoms in Caregivers of People with Alzheimer's Disease During the Transition to Institutionalization? Results from the New York University Caregiver Intervention Study
Authors: Gaugler Joseph E. , Roth David L. , Haley William E. , Mittelman Mary S. 
Published: February 2008

OBJECTIVES: To determine whether counseling and support reduce the burden and depressive symptoms of spouse caregivers of patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD) during the transition to institutionalization.DESIGN: A randomized, controlled trial of an enhanced counseling and support program for spouse caregivers of persons with AD. Structured interviews were conducted with spouse caregivers at baseline, every 4 months during Year 1, and every 6 months thereafter for up to 16 years.SETTING: Outpatient research clinic in the New York City metropolitan area.PARTICIPANTS: Referred volunteer sample of 406 spouse caregivers of community‐dwelling patients with AD enrolled over a 9.5‐year period.INTERVENTION: Enhanced counseling and support consisting of six sessions of individual and family counseling, support group participation, and continuous availability of ad hoc telephone counseling.MEASUREMENTS: Outcome measures included burden (modified Zarit Burden Interview) and depressive symptoms (Geriatric Depression Scale).RESULTS: Burden and depressive symptoms were significantly lower for caregivers in the treatment group than for controls receiving usual care at the time of and after institutionalization. Nursing home admission itself significantly reduced burden and depressive symptoms in the intervention and control groups.CONCLUSION: Institutionalization alone can reduce caregiver burden and depressive symptoms, but enhanced counseling provides additional long‐term benefits. The results offer some of the first clinical evidence of the benefits of enhanced counseling during the transition to institutionalization for caregivers of people with AD.
Subtypes of Disability in Older Persons over the Course of Nearly 8 Years
Authors: Gill Thomas M. , Guo Zhenchao , Allore Heather G. 
Published: February 2008

OBJECTIVES: To characterize distinct and clinically meaningful subtypes of disability, defined based on the number and duration of disability episodes, and to determine whether the incidence of these disability subtypes differ according to age, sex, or physical frailty.DESIGN: Prospective cohort study.SETTING: Greater New Haven, Connecticut.PARTICIPANTS: Seven hundred fifty‐four community‐living residents aged 70 and older and initially nondisabled in four essential activities of daily living.MEASUREMENTS: Disability was assessed during monthly telephone interviews for nearly 8 years; physical frailty was assessed during comprehensive home‐based assessments at 18‐month intervals. The incidence of five disability subtypes was determined within the context of the 18‐month intervals in participants who were nondisabled at the start of the interval: transient, short‐term, long‐term, recurrent, and unstable.RESULTS: Incident disability was observed in 29.8% of the 18‐month intervals. The most common subtypes were transient disability (9.7% of all intervals), defined as a single disability episode lasting only 1 month, and long‐term disability (6.9%), defined as one or more disability episodes, with at least one lasting 6 or more months. Approximately one‐quarter (24.7%) of all participants had two or more intervals with an incident disability subtype. Although there were no sex differences in the incidence rates for any of the subtypes, differences in rates were observed for each subtype according to age and physical frailty, with only one exception, and were especially large for long‐term disability.CONCLUSION: The mechanisms underlying the different disability subtypes may differ. Additional research is warranted to evaluate the natural history, risk factors, and prognosis of the five disability subtypes.
Activity Restriction Induced by Fear of Falling and Objective and Subjective Measures of Physical Function: A Prospective Cohort Study
Authors: Deshpande Nandini , Metter E. Jeffrey , Lauretani Fulvio , Bandinelli Stefania , Guralnik Jack , Ferrucci Luigi 
Published: February 2008

OBJECTIVES: To examine whether activity restriction specifically induced by fear of falling (FF) contributes to greater risk of disability and decline in physical function.DESIGN: Prospective cohort study.SETTING: Population‐based older cohort.PARTICIPANTS: Six hundred seventy‐three community‐living elderly (≥65) participants in the Invecchiare in Chianti Study who reported FF.MEASUREMENTS: FF, fear‐induced activity restriction, cognition, depressive symptoms, comorbidities, smoking history, and demographic factors were assessed at baseline. Disability in activities of daily living (ADLs) and instrumental activities of daily living (IADLs) and performance on the Short Performance Physical Battery (SPPB) were evaluated at baseline and at the 3‐year follow‐up.RESULTS: One‐quarter (25.5%) of participants did not report any activity restriction, 59.6% reported moderate activity restriction (restriction or avoidance of <3 activities), and 14.9% reported severe activity restriction (restriction or avoidance of ≥3 activities). The severe restriction group reported significantly higher IADL disability and worse SPPB scores than the no restriction and moderate restriction groups. Severe activity restriction was a significant independent predictor of worsening ADL disability and accelerated decline in lower extremity performance on SPPB over the 3‐year follow‐up. Severe and moderate activity restriction were independent predictors of worsening IADL disability. Results were consistent even after adjusting for multiple potential confounders.CONCLUSION: In an elderly population, activity restriction associated with FF is an independent predictor of decline in physical function. Future intervention studies in geriatric preventive care should directly address risk factors associated with FF and activity restriction to substantiate long‐term effects on physical abilities and autonomy of older persons.
Nasal Septum Resection in the Horse
Authors: TULLENERS ERIC P. , RAKER CHARLES W. 
Published: February 2008

The nasal septum was surgically removed from 22 horses with upper airway obstruction caused by thickening and/or deviation of the septum. The most common presenting complaints were a low‐pitched, snoring, respiratory noise and respiratory difficulty during exercise, which usually occurs in young horses. Abnormalities of the septum were most commonly congenital defects or caused by trauma or inflammation secondary to severe respiratory infection.Diagnosis was made based on history, clinical signs, and results of physical examination. Radiography and endoscopy were useful adjuncts in some horses.Under general anesthesia, the septum was removed by scalpel and osteotome (19 horses) or by obstetrical wire and osteotome (1 horse). In two horses, the rostral one third of the septum was removed by scalpel alone.In three horses, the alar folds and floor of the nasal diverticula were removed in an attempt to relieve airway obstruction caused by flattening of the bridge of the nose following removal of the nasal septum.Follow‐up was obtained on 18 horses: persistent noise during exercise continued in 90%; however, 50% returned to usefulness.
Dorsal Frontal Fractures of the First Phalanx in the Horse
Authors: MARKEL MARK D. , Jr. BENSON B. MARTIN , RICHARDSON DEAN W. 
Published: February 2008

Dorsal frontal fractures of the first phalanx in nine horses are described. All fractures were in hindlimbs, and two horses were affected bilaterally. Of the eleven fractures, seven were incomplete and nondisplaced, one was complete and nondisplaced, and three were complete and displaced. Two horses with complete displaced fractures had their fractures repaired with lag screw fixation combined with open reduction, and the other seven horses were treated nonsurgically.All horses were sound on the injured limb within 3 to 6 months of the injury. Lag screw fixation was recommended for horses with complete, displaced dorsal frontal fractures in order to reduce the articular defect and help prevent secondary joint changes. Nonsurgical therapy in the form of stall rest with a heavy support wrap resulted in bony healing of the fracture in 4 to 6 months.Follow‐up was obtained on all nine horses: two were retired for breeding; five performed equal to or better than their previous level of racing performance; one was performing successfully as a combined training horse; and one returned to a lower level of performance due to an unrelated forelimb lameness.
Cecocolic Anastomosis for the Surgical Management of Cecal Impaction in Horses
Authors: ROSS M. W. , TATE L. P. , DONAWICK W. J. , RICHARDSON D. W. 
Published: February 2008

Fourteen horses with cecal impaction were treated by cecocolic anastomosis. In nine horses, the anastomosis followed enterotomy and evacuation of the cecal contents, and in two horses it followed saline infusion and massage of the cecum. In three horses, the anastomosis was the only surgical procedure performed. Cecocolic anastomosis was performed between the lateral and dorsal cecal teniae, and the lateral and medial free teniae of the right ventral colon. The anastomosis was hand sutured in five horses. In all other horses, the GIA surgical stapling instrument was used in combination with hand sutured seromuscular layer closures and became the preferred surgical technique. The anastomosis allowed an alternative route for the transit of ingesta from the cecum to the right ventral colon.Twelve of the 14 horses survived 2 months or longer after surgery (short‐term survival rate, 86%) and 10 horses survived 12 months or longer after surgery (long‐term survival rate, 71%). Early postoperative complications included mild abdominal pain (6 horses), wound infections (3 horses), fatal peritonitis (2 horses), and large colon distention necessitating reoperation (2 horses).