bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Prevalence and risk factors of gallstone disease in an adult population of Taiwan: an epidemiological survey
Authors: Chen Chien‐Hua , Huang Min‐Ho , Yang Jee‐Chun , Nien Chiu‐Kue , Etheredge Gina Doskey , Yang Chi‐Chieh , Yeh Yung‐Hsiang , Wu Hurng‐Sheng ,   Der‐Aur Chou, Yueh Sen‐Kou 
Published: April 2006

AbstractBackground and Aims:  The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence and risk factors of gallstone disease (GSD) in an adult population of Taiwan through a population‐based screening study.Methods:  A cross‐sectional community study in a rural village of Taiwan was conducted in 3333 Chinese adults (aged ≥18 years) undergoing ultrasonography. A questionnaire on personal history was completed to ascertain whether the removed gallbladder contained stones in all cholecystectomized subjects, the dietary habits (vegetarian/non‐vegetarian diet), the history of GSD in the participant’s first‐degree relatives, the history of gastrointestinal surgery (vagotomy, gastrectomy for peptic ulcer disease, or ileal resection), parity, and use of oral contraceptives. The demographic characteristics and biochemical parameters were recordedResults:  The overall prevalence of GSD was 5.0% (4.6% in men, 5.4% in women) with no significant sex differences (men/women: odds ratio [OR] 0.71, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.50–1.01, P = 0.058). Logistic regression analysis showed that increasing age (men: 40–64 years, OR 7.38, 95% CI 2.59–21.01, P < 0.001 and ≥65 years, OR 14.16, 95% CI 4.84–41.47, P < 0.001; women: 40–64 years, OR 4.08, 95% CI 1.90–8.75, P < 0.001 and ≥65 years, OR 6.78, 95% CI 2.97–15.46, P < 0.001) and the presence of fatty liver evidenced by ultrasonography (men: OR 2.24, 95% CI 1.32–3.80, P = 0.003; women: OR 2.13, 95% CI 1.33–3.42, P = 0.002) were risk factors for GSD. Additionally, fasting plasma glucose ≥126 mg/dL (OR 2.11, 95% CI 1.16–3.83, P = 0.014), history of GSD in the first‐degree relatives (OR 7.47, 95% CI 2.22–25.12, P = 0.001), and use of oral contraceptives (OR 10.71, 95% CI 3.06–37.49, P < 0.001) were risk factors for GSD in women, but fasting plasma glucose ≥126 mg/dL was only correlated to GSD without controlling for other confounding factors in men. Other demographic characteristics and biochemical parameters, such as high body mass index (≥25 kg/m2), increased parity, hypercholesterolemia, hypertriglyceridemia, hyperuricemia, hepatitis C infection and cirrhosis, did not exhibit any correlation to GSD in logistic regression analysis, although they appeared to be related to GSD in women in univariate analysis.Conclusions:  Age and fatty liver in both sexes were found to be risk factors for GSD in the study population. The finding of a correlation between fatty liver and GSD is an important addition to the literature concerning the risk factors of GSD. Diabetes mellitus, history of GSD in the first‐degree relatives, and use of oral contraceptives were also risk factors for GSD in women.
Spontaneous locomotor recovery in spinal cord injured rats is accompanied by anatomical plasticity of reticulospinal fibers
Authors: Ballermann Mark , Fouad Karim 
Published: April 2006

AbstractAlthough injured axons in mammalian spinal cords do not regenerate, some recovery of locomotor function following incomplete injury can be observed in patients and animal models. Following a lateral hemisection injury of the thoracic spinal cord, rats spontaneously recover weight‐bearing stepping in the hind limb ipsilateral to the injury. The mechanisms behind this recovery are not completely understood. Plasticity in the reticulospinal tract (RtST), the tract responsible for the initiation of walking, has not been studied. In this study, rats received lateral thoracic hemisection of the spinal cord, and RtST projections were compared in two groups of rats, one early in recovery (7 days) and the other at a time point when weight‐bearing stepping was fully regained (42 days). We found that this recovery occurs in parallel with increased numbers of collaterals of spared RtST fibers entering the intermediate lamina below the injury at L2. Sprouting of injured RtST fibers above the lesion was not found. In conclusion, our study suggests that sprouting of spared RtST fibers might be involved in the recovery of locomotion following incomplete spinal cord injury.
Preservation of functional architecture in visual cortex of cats with experimentally induced hydrocephalus
Authors: Imamura Kazuyuki , Tanaka Shigeru , Ribot Jérôme , Kobayashi Masayuki , Yamamoto Masao , Nakadate Kazuhiko , Watanabe Yasuyoshi 
Published: April 2006

AbstractWe investigated how neural function is preserved or matured in the visual cortex of cats, following the induction of hydrocephalus by kaolin injection. In vivo optical imaging of intrinsic signals in 11–17‐week‐old hydrocephalic cats revealed orientation maps showing the orderly arrangement of preferred orientations when stimulated by grating stimuli at a low spatial frequency, whereas stimulus‐evoked intrinsic signals in response to gratings at a high spatial frequency were often too weak to construct orientation maps. Furthermore, in two of the three hydrocephalic cats, initially deteriorated orientation maps became almost regular maps in the second imaging experiments conducted 8 and 11 weeks, respectively, after the first imaging. This indicates that, despite large structural deformation of the hydrocephalic brain, orientation maps are elaborated sufficiently after the age of 5–6 months, by which time the orientation map formation is usually completed in normal cats. Single unit recording from the decompressed visual cortex revealed that many neurons showed normal orientation selectivity, whereas the binocularity of these neurons was found to be reduced. These results suggested that the deformed visual cortex of hydrocephalic cats exhibits a high plasticity, retaining its functional organization.
The efficacy of excimer laser (308 nm) for vitiligo at different body sites
Authors: Hofer A , Hassan AS , Legat FJ , Kerl H , Wolf P 
Published: April 2006

AbstractBackground  The treatment with XeCl‐excimer laser generated 308‐nm UVB radiation has shown promising results in patients with vitiligo.Objective  In this controlled, prospective trial we studied the primary efficacy (start and grade of repigmentation) and patient's satisfaction of XeCl‐excimer laser for treatment of vitiligo patches at different body sites and re‐evaluated the achieved repigmentation 12 months after the end of therapy.Methods  Twenty‐five patients with generalized or localized vitiligo with a total of 85 lesions at different body sites were enrolled in this study. Vitiligo patches were treated with 308‐nm XeCl‐excimer laser 3 times a week for 6 to 10 weeks. The overall repigmentation grade of each treated lesion was evaluated once a week on a 5 point scale rating from 0 (no repigmentation), 1 (1–5%), 2 (6–25%), 3 (26–50%), 4 (51–75%), to 5 (76–100%).Results  Twenty‐four patients completed the study. Within 6 to 10 weeks of treatment 67% of the patients (16/24) developed follicular repigmentation of at least one of their vitiligo lesions. Lesion repigmentation started after a mean of 13 treatments in lesions located on the face, trunk, arm, and/or leg (high‐responder location), and after a mean of 22 treatments in lesions located on the elbow, wrist, dorsum of the hand, knee, and/or dorsum of the foot (low‐responder location). Untreated control lesions and lesions located on the fingers did not achieve any repigmentation. After 10 weeks of treatment repigmentation of more than 75% was found in 25% (7/28) of lesions of the high‐responder location group versus 2% (1/43) of lesions of the low‐responder location group. In most cases, laser‐induced repigmentation was persistent, as determined 12 months after the end of treatment.Conclusions  308‐nm excimer laser is an effective modality for the treatment of vitiligo. However, similar to other non‐surgical treatment modalities, the therapeutic effect is mainly dependent on the location of vitiligo lesions.
The usefulness of a diagnostic biopsy clinic in a genitourinary medicine setting: recent experience and a review of the literature
Authors: Palamaras I , Hamill M , Sethi G , Wilkinson D , Lamba H 
Published: April 2006

AbstractGenital diseases include a wide range of lesions e.g. infectious and inflammatory. In most cases a clinical diagnosis is reached without the need for a biopsy. Nonetheless, a genital biopsy is safe and may help to confirm the diagnosis. We established a dedicated diagnostic biopsy clinic in 2003. Our objective was to evaluate the effectiveness of our diagnostic biopsy clinic and compare it with other Genitourinary medicine (GUM) clinics in the UK. A retrospective case‐note study was performed on 71 patients referred to the biopsy clinic with persistent genital lesions over a 12‐month period. Forty‐seven biopsies were performed (71% biopsy rate). 43 specimens (92%) were appropriate for histopathological diagnosis. Of these 15% were lichen planus, 15% lichen sclerosis, 10% psoriasis, 7.5% each: eczema, Zoon's and non‐specific balanitis. The remainder represented a variety of other conditions. In 27 cases (68%) the clinical diagnosis was consistent with the histological result.The possibility of self‐referral and walk‐in nature of our GUM service substantially decrease the waiting times for assessment of anogenital disorders. We had a lower biopsy rate for the diagnosis of non‐specific balanitis (7.5%) compared with the average rate (21.5%) in 14 UK GUM clinics and good agreement between clinical and histological diagnosis. An empirical first treatment, with simple emollients before biopsy, appears to be a safe clinical approach for the treatment of non‐specific balanitis. A multidisciplinary approach (GUM physicians, dermatologists and urologists/gynaecologists) could help prevent unnecessary biopsies and improve correlation between clinical and histological diagnosis.
A neuroactive steroid 5α‐androstane‐3α,17β‐diol regulates androgen receptor level in astrocytes
Authors: Agapova Olga A. , Malone Paula E. , Hernandez M. Rosario 
Published: April 2006

AbstractOptic nerve head (ONH) astrocytes from patients with glaucomatous optic neuropathy exhibit increased production of 5α‐androstane‐3α,17β‐diol (3α‐diol), a neuroactive metabolite of 5α‐dihydrotestosterone (5α‐DHT). To determine whether ONH astrocytes are androgen target cells, and whether 3α‐diol is capable of regulating astrocyte functions, we studied the response of human ONH astrocytes to 3α‐diol compared with 17β‐hydroxy‐17α‐methyl‐estra‐4,9,11‐trien‐3‐one (R1881), a synthetic 5α‐DHT agonist. In ONH astrocytes, both 3α‐diol and R1881 increased protein levels of androgen receptor (AR) and glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP), however, only R1881 also increased the AR mRNA level and astrocyte proliferation. Both R1881 and 3α‐diol rapidly activate the mitogen‐activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling pathway in ONH astrocytes, as confirmed by phosphorylation of extracellular signal‐regulated kinase (ERK). 3α‐diol also activates the phosphatidylinositol 3‐kinase (PI3K)/protein kinase B (Akt) pathway. 3α‐diol regulates the increase of AR protein level and the phosphorylation through the PI3K/Akt pathway, whereas R1881 regulates them through the MAPK/ERK pathway. Our findings demonstrate that human ONH astrocytes are androgen target cells and respond to androgens by the rapid activation of cell signaling. The activation of the PI3K/Akt pathway by 3α‐diol may regulate various properties of astrocytes, including cell motility and survival, and may play a role in the formation and maintenance of the reactive phenotype of ONH astrocytes in glaucoma.
Targeted Versus Daily Naltrexone: Secondary Analysis of Effects on Average Daily Drinking
Authors: Hernandez‐Avila Carlos A. , Song Changhong , Kuo Lynn , Tennen Howard , Armeli Stephen , Kranzler Henry R. 
Published: April 2006

Background:To extend our previous findings that naltrexone reduced the likelihood of heavy drinking on a given day among problem drinkers, while targeted administration reduced the likelihood of any drinking, we examined the effects of naltrexone and targeted administration on the continuous outcome of drinks/day. Because treatment response may differ by gender, we also compared the effects on this factor.Methods:In a double‐blind, placebo‐controlled study, problem drinkers (n=150, 58% men) were randomly assigned to 8 weeks of treatment with naltrexone (50 mg/day) or placebo, either daily or on a targeted schedule. All subjects also received brief coping skills therapy. To complement the traditional regression analysis conducted previously, a zero‐inflated Poisson regression model was used to examine the effects of medication, schedule of administration, and gender on the number of standard drinks consumed daily.Results:Targeted naltrexone, and to a lesser extent targeted placebo, yielded a greater reduction in daily drinking than did daily placebo, an effect that did not differ by gender and that was greater than that seen for daily naltrexone treatment. Relative to daily placebo, daily naltrexone reduced the number of drinks/day only among men, at the level of a nonsignificant trend.Conclusions:Although in both genders, targeted treatments appeared to reduce the volume of drinking, treatment with targeted naltrexone was somewhat better. In contrast, heavy drinking women showed no benefit from daily naltrexone treatment. Further evaluation of the efficacy of targeted treatments and of daily naltrexone and the relationship of these treatments with gender is warranted.
Effect of an In‐Home Occupational and Physical Therapy Intervention on Reducing Mortality in Functionally Vulnerable Older People: Preliminary Findings
Authors: Gitlin Laura N. , Hauck Walter W. , Winter Laraine , Dennis Marie P. , Schulz Richard 
Published: April 2006

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the effect of a multicomponent intervention on mortality and the role of control‐oriented strategy use as the change mechanism.DESIGN: Two‐group randomized design with survivorship followed for 14 months. Participants were randomized to intervention or a no‐treatment control group.SETTING: Urban, community‐living older people.PARTICIPANTS: Three hundred nineteen people aged 70 and older with functional difficulties.INTERVENTION: Occupational therapy and physical therapy sessions involving home modifications, problem solving, and training in energy conservation, safe performance, balance, muscle strength, and fall recovery techniques.MEASUREMENTS: Survival time was number of days between baseline interview and date of death or final interview if date unknown. Control‐oriented strategy use was measured using eight items.RESULTS: Intervention participants exhibited a 1% rate of mortality, compared with a 10% rate for no‐treatment control participants (P=.003, 95% confidence interval=2.4–15.04%). At baseline, those who subsequently died had more days hospitalized and lower control‐oriented strategy use 6 months before study enrollment than survivors. No intervention participants with previous days hospitalized (n=31) died, whereas 21% of control group counterparts did (n=35; P=.001). Although intervention participants with low and high baseline control strategy use had lower mortality risk than control participants, mortality risk was lower for intervention participants with low strategy use at baseline (P=.007).CONCLUSION: An occupational and physical therapy intervention to ameliorate functional difficulties may reduce mortality risk in community‐dwelling older people overall and benefit those most compromised. Instruction in control‐oriented strategies may account for the intervention's protective effects on survivorship.
Computerized Prescribing Alerts and Group Academic Detailing to Reduce the Use of Potentially Inappropriate Medications in Older People
Authors: Simon Steven R. , Smith David H. , Feldstein Adrianne C. , Perrin Nancy , Yang Xiuhai , Zhou Yvonne , Platt Richard , Soumerai Stephen B. 
Published: April 2006

OBJECTIVES: To examine the effect of replacing drug‐specific computerized prescribing alerts with age‐specific alerts on rates of dispensing potentially inappropriate medications in older people and to determine whether group academic detailing enhances the effectiveness of these alerts.DESIGN: Cluster‐randomized trial of group academic detailing and interrupted time‐series analysis.SETTING: Fifteen clinics of a staff‐model health maintenance organization.PARTICIPANTS: Seven practices (113 clinicians, 24,119 patients) were randomly assigned to receive age‐specific prescribing alerts plus the academic detailing intervention; eight practices (126 clinicians, 26,805 patients) received alerts alone. Prior implementation of drug‐specific alerts established a downward trend in use of target medications that served as the baseline trend for the present study.INTERVENTION: The computerized age‐specific alerts occurred at the time of prescribing a targeted potentially inappropriate medication (e.g., tertiary tricyclic amine antidepressants, long‐acting benzodiazepines, propoxyphene) and suggested an alternative medication. Clinicians at seven sites were randomized to group academic detailing, an interactive educational program delivering evidence‐based information.MEASUREMENTS: Number of target medications dispensed per 10,000 patients per quarter, 2 years before and 1.5 years after the replacement of drug‐specific with age‐specific alerts.RESULTS: Age‐specific alerts resulted in a continuation of the effects of the drug‐specific alerts without measurable additional effect (P=.75 for level change), but the age‐specific alerts led to fewer false‐positive alerts for clinicians. Group academic detailing did not enhance the effect of the alerts.CONCLUSION: Age‐specific alerts sustained the effectiveness of drug‐specific alerts to reduce potentially inappropriate prescribing in older people and resulted in a considerably decreased burden of the alerts.
Impaired Executive Function Is Associated with Delirium After Coronary Artery Bypass Graft Surgery
Authors: Rudolph James L. , Jones Richard N. , Grande Laura J. , Milberg William P. , King Emily G. , Lipsitz Lewis A. , Levkoff Sue E. , Marcantonio Edward R. 
Published: April 2006

OBJECTIVES: To determine the extent to which preoperative performance on tests of executive function and memory was associated with delirium after coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery.DESIGN: Prospective observational cohort study.SETTING: Two academic medical centers and one Department of Veterans Affairs medical center in Massachusetts.PARTICIPANTS: Eighty subjects without preoperative delirium undergoing CABG or CABG‐valve surgery completed baseline neuropsychological assessments with validated measures of memory and executive function.MEASUREMENTS: Beginning on postoperative Day 2, a battery to diagnose delirium was administered daily. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was used to define two cognitive domain composites (memory and executive function). The loading pattern of neuropsychological measures onto the latent cognitive domains was determined a priori. Poisson regression was used to model the association between neuropsychological performance and cognitive domain composite scores and risk of postoperative delirium. The association was expressed as the difference between impaired (0.5 standard deviations (SDs) below mean) and nonimpaired (0.5 SDs above mean) performers.RESULTS: Forty subjects (50%) developed delirium. Measures of memory function were not significantly related to delirium. Of the executive function measures, verbal fluency, category fluency, Hopkins Verbal Learning Test learning, and backward recounting of days and months were significantly related to delirium. Preoperative mental status was a strong predictor of postoperative delirium. After controlling for age, sex, education, medical comorbidity, mental status, and the other cognitive domain, CFA cognitive domain composites suggest that risk for delirium is specific for executive functioning impairment (relative risk (RR) = 2.77, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.12–6.87) but not for memory impairment (RR = 0.49, 95% CI = 0.19–1.25).CONCLUSION: Worse preoperative performance in executive function was independently associated with greater risk of developing delirium after CABG.
SOURCE‐ROCK EVALUATION AND BASIN MODELLING IN NE EGYPT (NE NILE DELTA AND NORTHERN SINAI)
Authors: Shaaban F. , Lutz R. , Littke R. , Bueker C. , Odisho K. 
Published: April 2006

The area comprising the NE Nile Delta and adjacent northern Sinai is an important hydrocarbon province in Egypt, but the origin of the hydrocarbons and their migration is not fully understood. In this paper, we evaluate organic source facies and assess the results of basin modelling in order to improve our understanding of the regional petroleum system.Organic‐geochemical and petrographic analyses of 800 rock samples ranging in age from Early Jurassic to Pleistocene were used in this study. Most of the samples studied had moderate to high TOC contents, and kerogen was a mixture of Types II and III with a wide range of petroleum generation potentials from very poor to very good. Thermal and burial history models indicate that the source rocks entered the early‐mature/mature stage in very recent times (Pleistocene to Recent). The top of the oil window ranges in depth from 1,800 m to 4,500 m, whereas the bottom of the oil window was not reached by most of the studied wells.In combination with numerical modelling results, structure contour maps for key horizons reveal possible migration trends and prospective areas. We tentatively identify prospective targets for hydrocarbon exploration, both in the Tertiary sequence and in the Cretaceous succession, especially where carbonate build‐ups are present.
WEYL TYPE ALGEBRAS FROM QUANTUM TORI
Authors: ZHAO KAIMING 
Published: April 2006

We introduce and study the quantum version of the differential operator algebra on Laurent polynomials and its associated Lie algebra over a field F of characteristic 0. The q-quantum torus Fq is the unital associative algebra over F generated by [Formula: see text] subject to the defining relations titj = qi,jtjti, where qi,i = 1, [Formula: see text]. Let D be a subspace of [Formula: see text] where ∂i is the derivation on Fq sending [Formula: see text] to [Formula: see text]. Then, the quantum differential operator algebra is the associative algebra Fq[D]. Assume that Fq[D] is simple as an associative algebra. We compute explicitly all 2-cocycles of Fq[D], viewed as a Lie algebra. More precisely, we show that the second cohomology group of Fq[D] has dimension n if D = 0, dimension 1 if dim D = 1, and dimension 0 if dim D > 1. We also determine all isomorphisms and anti-isomorphisms Fq[D] → Fq′[D′] of simple associative algebras, and all isomorphisms Fq[D]/F → Fq′[D′]/F of simple Lie algebras.