bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
A Global Dataset of Palmer Drought Severity Index for 1870–2002: Relationship with Soil Moisture and Effects of Surface Warming
Authors: Dai Aiguo , Trenberth Kevin E. , Qian Taotao 
Published: January 2005

AbstractA monthly dataset of Palmer Drought Severity Index (PDSI) from 1870 to 2002 is derived using historical precipitation and temperature data for global land areas on a 2.5° grid. Over Illinois, Mongolia, and parts of China and the former Soviet Union, where soil moisture data are available, the PDSI is significantly correlated (r = 0.5 to 0.7) with observed soil moisture content within the top 1-m depth during warm-season months. The strongest correlation is in late summer and autumn, and the weakest correlation is in spring, when snowmelt plays an important role. Basin-averaged annual PDSI covary closely (r = 0.6 to 0.8) with streamflow for seven of world's largest rivers and several smaller rivers examined. The results suggest that the PDSI is a good proxy of both surface moisture conditions and streamflow. An empirical orthogonal function (EOF) analysis of the PDSI reveals a fairly linear trend resulting from trends in precipitation and surface temperature and an El Niño– Southern Oscillation (ENSO)-induced mode of mostly interannual variations as the two leading patterns. The global very dry areas, defined as PDSI &lt; −3.0, have more than doubled since the 1970s, with a large jump in the early 1980s due to an ENSO-induced precipitation decrease and a subsequent expansion primarily due to surface warming, while global very wet areas (PDSI &gt; +3.0) declined slightly during the 1980s. Together, the global land areas in either very dry or very wet conditions have increased from ∼20% to 38% since 1972, with surface warming as the primary cause after the mid-1980s. These results provide observational evidence for the increasing risk of droughts as anthropogenic global warming progresses and produces both increased temperatures and increased drying.
Comparison of the GPCP and CMAP Merged Gauge–Satellite Monthly Precipitation Products for the Period 1979–2001
Authors: Yin Xungang , Gruber Arnold , Arkin Phil 
Published: January 2005

Abstract
The two monthly precipitation products of the Global Precipitation Climatology Project (GPCP) and the Climate Prediction Center (CPC) Merged Analysis of Precipitation (CMAP) are compared on a 23-yr period, January 1979–December 2001. For the long-term mean, major precipitation patterns are clearly demonstrated by both products, but there are differences in the pattern magnitudes. In the tropical ocean the CMAP is higher than the GPCP, but this is reversed in the high-latitude ocean. The GPCP–CMAP spatial correlation is generally higher over land than over the ocean. The correlation between the global mean oceanic GPCP and CMAP is significantly low. It is very likely because the input data of the two products have much less in common over the ocean; in particular, the use of atoll data by the CMAP is disputable. The decreasing trend in the CMAP oceanic precipitation is found to be an artifact of input data change and atoll sampling error. In general, overocean precipitation represented by the GPCP is more reasonable; over land the two products are close, but different merging algorithms between the GPCP and the CMAP can sometimes produce substantial discrepancy in sensitive areas such as equatorial West Africa. EOF analysis shows that the GPCP and the CMAP are similar in 6 out of the first 10 modes, and the first 2 leading modes (ENSO patterns) of the GPCP are nearly identical to their counterparts of the CMAP. Input data changes [e.g., January 1986 for Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES) precipitation index (GPI), July 1987 for Special Sensor Microwave Imager (SSM/I), May 1994 for Microwave Sounding Unit (MSU), and January 1996 for atolls] have implications in the behavior of the two datasets. Several abrupt changes identified in the statistics of the two datasets including the changes in overocean precipitation, spatial correlation time series, and some of the EOF principal components, can be related to one or more input data changes.
Coupling between Large-Scale Atmospheric Processes and Mesoscale Land–Atmosphere Interactions in the U.S. Southern Great Plains during Summer. Part II: Mean Impacts of the Mesoscale
Authors: Weaver Christopher P. 
Published: January 2005

Abstract
This is Part II of a two-part study of mesoscale land–atmosphere interactions in the summertime U.S. Southern Great Plains. Part I focused on case studies drawn from monthlong (July 1995–97), high-resolution Regional Atmospheric Modeling System (RAMS) simulations carried out to investigate these interactions. These case studies were chosen to highlight key features of the lower-tropospheric mesoscale circulations that frequently arise in this region and season due to mesoscale heterogeneity in the surface fluxes. In this paper, Part II, the RAMS-simulated mesoscale dynamical processes described in the Part I case studies are examined from a domain-averaged perspective to assess their importance in the overall regional hydrometeorology. The spatial statistics of key simulated mesoscale variables—for example, vertical velocity and the vertical flux of water vapor—are quantified here. Composite averages of the mesoscale and large-scale-mean variables over different meteorological or dynamical regimes are also calculated. The main finding is that, during dry periods, or similarly, during periods characterized by large-scale-mean subsidence, the characteristic signature of surface-heterogeneity-forced mesoscale circulations, including enhanced vertical motion variability and enhanced mesoscale fluxes in the lowest few kilometers of the atmosphere, consistently emerges. Furthermore, the impact of these mesoscale circulations is nonnegligible compared to the large-scale dynamics at domain-averaged (200 km × 200 km) spatial scales and weekly to monthly time scales. These findings support the hypothesis that the land– atmosphere interactions associated with mesoscale surface heterogeneity can provide pathways whereby diurnal, mesoscale atmospheric processes can scale up to have more general impacts at larger spatial scales and over longer time scales.
Lateral weight transference exercises following acute stroke: a preliminary study of clinical effectiveness
Authors: Howe T E , Taylor I , Finn P , Jones H 
Published: January 2005

Objectives: To evaluate a training programme aimed at improving lateral weight transference in patients following acute stroke to determine main treatment effects, if any, to inform the design of future studies. Design: A single-blind randomized controlled trial. Setting: The Stroke Unit at The James Cook University Hospital, Middlesbrough, UK. Subjects: Thirty-five patients with an acute stroke. Interventions: All subjects received their usual care, including physiotherapy. The treatment group (n / 17) received 12 additional therapy sessions (over four weeks) comprising exercises aimed at improving lateral weight transference in sitting delivered by trained physiotherapy assistants. Main outcome measures: Measures of dynamic reaching, sitting and standing, and static standing balance were undertaken by a blind independent observer. Results: Specific measures of weight displacement in standing and reaching, and timed standing up and sitting down did not detect any differences over time regardless of group. Neither were there any significant changes over time, except for sway during static standing (p B=0.01) and time to return to their original position during dynamic reaching (p / 0.01). Conclusions: A training programme aimed at improving lateral weight transference did not appear to enhance the rehabilitation of acute stroke patients. Improvements observed in postural control in standing and sitting may be attributable to usual care or natural recovery.
Effects of home massage rehabilitation therapy for the bed-ridden elderly: a pilot trial with a three-month follow-up
Authors: Hirakawa Yoshihisa , Masuda Yuichiro , Kimata Takaya , Uemura Kazumasa , Kuzuya Masafumi , Iguchi Akihisa 
Published: January 2005

Objectives: To assess the effects of home massage rehabilitation therapy on the bed-ridden elderly. Design: Alternatively allocated trial. Setting: Subjects' homes, three home nursing stations, 13 visit care stations and one day service centre in Aichi prefecture, Japan. Subjects: Bed-ridden patients who were 65 years and above, no dementia, stable general condition, and receiving no rehabilitation therapy. Intervention: Thirty-minute sessions of home massage rehabilitation therapy by a massage practitioner 2 or 3 days a week for three consecutive months or usual care. Main measurements: Barthel Index (BI), Subjective Satisfaction and Refreshment Scale, Apathy Scale and Self-rating Depression Score. Results: Fifty-three subjects were recruited, 26 in the home massage rehabilitation group (HMG) and 27 in the routine care group without massage (RCG). The protocol was completed for 40 subjects, 22 in the HMG and 18 in the RCG. There were no significant differences between the baseline characteristics of both groups; age, presence of spouse, diseases associated with disabilities and use of day care rehabilitation (p / 0.76, 0.36, 0.94 and 0.71, respectively). The total BI score of the HMG (15.279=4.51) at baseline was nonsignificantly lower (p=0.03) than those of the RCG (11.449=5.90). Subjective Satisfaction and Refreshment Scale, Apathy Scale and Self-rating Depression Score of both groups at baseline were matched (p / 0.12, 0.32 and 0.89, respectively). There were no statistical differences between the intergroup changes over time in BI, Subjective Satisfaction and Refreshment Scale, Apathy Scale and Self-rating Depression Score (p / 0.35, 0.08, 0.70 and 0.55, respectively). Conclusion: Home massage rehabilitation therapy did not show a positive effect on the bed-ridden elderly, either mentally or physically. We would require large-size trials to determine whether it is effective.
Gender and deprivation and rates of referral and thereby admission to a national neurorehabilitation service
Authors: Macleod M R , Smith S J 
Published: January 2005

Objective: To investigate the association between gender and deprivation and rates of admission to a national neurorehabilitation facility following subarachnoid haemorrhage or traumatic brain injury. Design: Retrospective analysis of hospital activity data. Setting: Lothian Health Board hospital activity; national neurorehabilitation centre. Subjects: Patients with subarachnoid haemorrhage or traumatic brain injury. Methods: We obtained data for hospital discharge for subarachnoid haemorrhage and traumatic brain injury for patients living in the Lothian Health Board area for the five years 1995 to 1999 by age (15 and over), sex and deprivation category of home residence from nationally held data sets. Similar data were extracted for discharges from the national neurorehabilitation unit. Main measures: Rates of neurorehabilitation admission per 1000 hospital admissions. Chi-squared testing was used to assess statistical significance. Results: Data for 13 338 hospital admissions and 329 neurorehabilitation admissions were available. We observed higher than expected rates of rehabilitation admission for men with subarachnoid haemorrhage and for patients from more affluent postcode sectors with traumatic brain injury. Conclusion: Higher rehabilitation rates are seen among men following subarachnoid haemorrhage and may indicate a focus on return-to-work in the referral or assessment of those suitable for or requiring neurorehabilitation. Higher rehabilitation rates in head injury in those from Carstairs Deprivation Category (DepCat) 2 postcode sectors may represent a bias favouring those from affluent areas in the interaction between the individual and the health service in this group.
Chronic low back pain in traumatic lower limb amputees
Authors: Kulkarni J , Gaine W J , Buckley J G , Rankine J J , Adams J 
Published: January 2005

Objective: To ascertain the prevalence of back pain amongst traumatic lower limb amputees attending a regional rehabilitation centre and to determine the possible causes of back pain. Design: All traumatic lower limb amputees given a semi-structured questionnaire to complete and a comparative subgroup of amputees with back pain and without back pain underwent physical examination, gait analysis, magnetic resonance scanning (MRI) and gait/standing stability analysis. Setting: A subregional amputee rehabilitation centre. Results: Transfemoral amputees were more likely to suffer from back pain (81%) than transtibial amputees (62%) (p≤0.05) and of those suffering from severe back pain, 89% and 81% also suffered from severe pain in the phantom limb and severe stump pain respectively. In two comparative subgroups of amputees there was no significant difference between back pain and pain-free groups except those with pain were more likely to have a body mass index (BMI) ratio above 50% of the recommended ratio. No difference in degeneration or disc disease between the groups on MR scans was found. Impact ground reaction forces during walking, irrespective of limb, were significantly greater (p≤0.05) in the pain-free group than in the pain group, as was walking speed. Gait asymmetry measures were similar in both groups. Centre of pressure displacement measures during standing were greater in the pain group than in the pain-free group. Conclusions: Low back pain in amputees is a significant problem equal to that of pain in the phantom limb and a biomechanical (myofascial) rather than a degenerative aetiology is suggested.
The influence of contractures and variation in measurement stretching velocity on the reliability of the Modified Ashworth Scale in patients with severe brain injury
Authors: Mehrholz Jan , Major Yvonne , Meißner Daniel , Sandi-Gahun Sahr , Koch Rainer , Pohl Marcus 
Published: January 2005

Objective: To determine the influence of contractures and different stretching velocities on the reliability of the Modified Ashworth Scale (MAS) in patients with severe brain injury and impaired consciousness.Design: Cross-section observational study.Setting: A rehabilitation centre for adult persons with neurological disorders.Subjects: Fifty patients with impaired consciousness due to severe cerebral damage of various aetiologies.Measurement protocol: Three experienced and trained medical professionals rated each patient in a randomized order once daily for two consecutive days. Shoulder, elbow, wrist, knee and ankle spasticity were assessed by the use of the MAS with different stretching velocities. The presence of contractures was assessed by a goniometer.Main outcome measures: Retest and inter-rater reliability (kw= weighted kappa) of the MAS.Results: The retest reliability of the MAS was good (shoulder joints (kw0.74), elbow joints (kw0.74), wrist joints (kw0.72), knee joints (kw0.72), ankle joints (kw0.77)) and the inter-rater reliability was moderate (shoulder joints (kw0.49), elbow joints (kw0.52), wrist joints (kw0.51), knee joints (kw0.54) ankle joints (kw0.49)). The presence of contractures significantly influenced the reliability of MAS in shoulder and wrist joints. No influence of stretching velocity on the reliability of the MAS was found.Conclusion: In patients with impaired consciousness due to severe brain injury the MAS has good retest, but only limited inter-rater, reliability. The presence of contractures may influence reliability of the MAS, but stretching velocity does not.
Effects of home training and additional physical therapy on recovery after acute unilateral vestibular loss- a randomized study
Authors: Kammerlind Ann-Sofi C , Ledin Torbjöfn EA , Ödkvist Lars M , Skargren Elisabeth IB 
Published: January 2005

Objective: To evaluate the effects of additional physical therapy on recovery after acute unilateral vestibular loss given to patients receiving home training. Design: Randomized controlled trial. Setting: Ear, nose and throat departments in three hospitals. Subjects: Fifty-four patients (mean age 52 years) with acute unilateral vestibular loss within the last week confirmed with electronystagmography testing were included. Patients with central neurologic or auditory symptoms or other vertigo disease were excluded. Interventions: Home training with or without additional physical therapy 12 times during 10 weeks. Main measures: Electronystagmography testing was performed before and after the training period. Clinical static (Romberg?s test, sharpened Romberg?s test, standing on foam and standing on one leg) and dynamic (walking forward and backward on a line) balance tests and subjective ratings of vertigo and balance problems on a visual analogue scale were done one week, 10 weeks and six months after the start of training. Results: Similar changes were seen in the two training groups. Conclusions: No significant differences in outcome regarding balance function or perceived symptoms were found between home training with or without additional physical therapy.
The effectiveness of exercise programmes after lumbar disc surgery: a randomized controlled study
Authors: Filiz Mustafa , Cakmak Aysegul , Ozcan Emel 
Published: January 2005

Objective: To compare two different exercise programmes versus a control group, after lumbar disc surgery. Design: A prospective, single-blind, randomized controlled study. Setting: Outpatient clinic of Istanbul Faculty of Medicine, Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation. Subjects: Sixty patients diagnosed as having single level lumbar disc herniation with clinical examination and MRI evaluation and who had undergone lumbar discectomy (post-operative first month) at a single level. Patients with serious pathologies involving the cardiac and respiratory systems that could prevent them from doing exercises were excluded. Intervention: The patients were randomly split into three groups. The first group received an intensive exercise programme and back school education while the second group received a home exercise programme and back school education. The third group was defined as the control group and did not receive education or exercise. Main measures: The patients were evaluated at the beginning and end of the treatment with clinical parameters, pain levels, endurance tests and weight-lifting tests, modified Oswestry Disability Index, Beck Depression Inventory, Low Back Pain Rating Scale and return to work. Results: The groups doing exercises experienced a decrease in the severity of pain and disability, also functional parameters showed better improvement than the control group. The intensive exercise programme was better than the home exercise programme. Conclusions: It seems that intensive exercise is more effective in reduction of pain and disability, but whether it is cost-effective is not clear.
Home-based trunk-strengthening exercise for osteoporotic and osteopenic postmenopausal women without fracture –a pilot study
Authors: Chien M Y , Yang R S , Tsauo J Y 
Published: January 2005

Objectives: To investigate whether a 12-week home-based programme of trunk-strengthening exercise could benefit spinal mobility, function and quality of life for osteoporotic and osteopenic postmenopausal women without fracture. Designs: Randomized controlled clinical trial. Setting: Department of Physical Therapy in National Taiwan University Hospital. Subjects: Twenty-eight postmenopausal women (mean age 60.39=9.3 years) diagnosed with osteoporosis or osteopenia without fracture history were recruited for this study. Subjects were randomly assigned into exercise or control groups, each consisting of 14 subjects. Interventions: The 12-week exercise programme included strengthening routines for the trunk extensor and flexor muscles. The subjects performed three sets of 10 repetitions for each of the exercises, with programmes carried out three times per day at home. Main outcome measurements: Muscular strength, spinal range of motion (ROM) and motion velocity, Oswestry Disability Questionnaire (ODQ) and quality of life (QOL) were measured before the start and after completion of the exercise programme. Results: Statistically significant improvements were demonstrated in spinal ROM and motion velocity in the sagittal and frontal planes for the exercise group (pB=0.05). Further, the strength of the trunk flexors and extensors increased after exercise training (pB=0.05). ODQ measure was significantly reduced in the exercise group (pB=0.05), while the controls showed no significant change. Subjects in the exercise group showed better satisfaction in some domains of the Short-Form-36 Health Survey quality of life questionnaire (pB=0.05). Conclusions: This 12-week home-based trunk-strengthening exercise programme could improve trunk mobility and strength, and enhance QOL in osteoporotic and osteopenic postmenopausal women without vertebral fracture. Future study should recruit more cases or more severe subjects to verify the results.
Staff attitudes to a daily otolaryngology ward round
Authors: Montague M.-L. , Lee M.S.W. , Hussain S.S.M. 
Published: January 2005

This survey investigates the attitudes of medical and nursing staff towards the daily otolaryngology ward rounds in a teaching hospital.Initial, open-ended questionnaires generated themes from which a structured questionnaire was constructed. Respondents indicated on a Likert scale the extent to which they agreed or disagreed with statements concerning their attitudes towards the ward round.Thirty-five members of staff were surveyed. The overall response rate was 74.3 per cent (n = 26). The majority of staff agreed that the ward round was a constructive use of their time and served to promote team spirit. It allowed for adequate communication between medical and nursing staff but there was uncertainty about the provision of adequate patient communication. The nursing staff agreed that the ward round provided a valuable learning experience. There was uncertainty about this among the medical staff. There was agreement in both groups that patients find the ward round to be reassuring. A significant majority of staff expressed concerns over maintenance of patient confidentiality.These findings could be used to inform changes in the departmental ward round structure. Specific attention should be directed to discussing sensitive issues in a more private setting and maximizing educational opportunities for junior medical staff.
External failures as descriptor of quality in clinical microbiology laboratory services
Authors: Saarela Ulla , Kivinen Tuula , Sarkkinen Hannu 
Published: January 2005

AbstractThis study employed customer feedback surveys to assess the quality of the laboratory services provided by an accredited clinical microbiology laboratory. The purpose of the study was to classify external failures and determine the quantity of such errors, and to establish how much time was spent processing and correcting these errors, together with the costs arising. The study indicates that the quality of laboratory test results can be regarded as good based on the accuracy of the result. Customer needs were also well taken into account in practice because of the good quality of the service. However, improvements are required in providing customers with test results without delay. The cost of processing and correcting such errors was negligible. The use of a customer feedback system allows systematic monitoring of external failures. In the accredited laboratory under study, it is unnecessary to monitor continually the costs and working time involved in processing and correcting external failures. The most essential point is to monitor the effects of the quality measures taken to reduce the number of failures.