bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Comparison of forced‐air warming systems with lower body blankets using a copper manikin of the human body
Authors: Bräuer A. , English M. J. M. , Lorenz N. , Steinmetz N. , Perl T. , Braun U. , Weyland W. 
Published: March 2003

Background: Forced‐air warming has gained high acceptance as a measure for the prevention of intraoperative hypothermia. However, data on heat transfer with lower body blankets are not yet available. This study was conducted to determine the heat transfer efficacy of six complete lower body warming systems.Methods: Heat transfer of forced‐air warmers can be described as follows:

Q˙=h·ΔT·A

where Q˙ = heat transfer [W], h = heat exchange coefficient [W m−2 °C−1], ΔT = temperature gradient between blanket and surface [°C], A = covered area [m2].We tested the following forced‐air warmers in a previously validated copper manikin of the human body: (1) Bair Hugger® and lower body blanket (Augustine Medical Inc., Eden Prairie, MN); (2) Thermacare® and lower body blanket (Gaymar Industries, Orchard Park, NY); (3) WarmAir® and lower body blanket (Cincinnati Sub‐Zero Products, Cincinnati, OH); (4) Warm‐Gard® and lower body blanket (Luis Gibeck AB, Upplands Väsby, Sweden); (5) Warm‐Gard® and reusable lower body blanket (Luis Gibeck AB); and (6) WarmTouch® and lower body blanket (Mallinckrodt Medical Inc., St. Luis, MO).Heat flux and surface temperature were measured with 16 calibrated heat flux transducers. Blanket temperature was measured using 16 thermocouples. ΔT was varied between −10 and +10 °C and h was determined by a linear regression analysis as the slope of ΔT vs. heat flux. Mean ΔT was determined for surface temperatures between 36 and 38 °C, because similar mean skin temperatures have been found in volunteers. The area covered by the blankets was estimated to be 0.54 m2.Results: Heat transfer from the blanket to the manikin was different for surface temperatures between 36 °C and 38 °C. At a surface temperature of 36 °C the heat transfer was higher (between 13.4 W to 18.3 W) than at surface temperatures of 38 °C (8–11.5 W). The highest heat transfer was delivered by the Thermacare® system (8.3–18.3 W), the lowest heat transfer was delivered by the Warm‐Gard® system with the single use blanket (8–13.4 W).The heat exchange coefficient varied between 12.5 W m−2°C−1 and 30.8 W m−2°C−1, mean ΔT varied between 1.04 °C and 2.48 °C for surface temperatures of 36 °C and between 0.50 °C and 1.63 °C for surface temperatures of 38 °C.Conclusion: No relevant differences in heat transfer of lower body blankets were found between the different forced‐air warming systems tested. Heat transfer was lower than heat transfer by upper body blankets tested in a previous study. However, forced‐air warming systems with lower body blankets are still more effective than forced‐air warming systems with upper body blankets in the prevention of perioperative hypothermia, because they cover a larger area of the body surface.
Clinical trial of esmolol‐induced controlled hypotension with or without acute normovolemic hemodilution in spinal surgery*
Authors: Lim Y. J. , Kim C. S. , Bahk J. H. , Ham B. M. , Do S. H. 
Published: March 2003

Background: Drug‐induced controlled hypotension (CH) combined with acute normovolemic hemodilution (ANH) is being widely used for blood conservation in surgical patients. The purpose of this study was to investigate the efficacy and safety of esmolol‐induced CH combined with ANH (hematocrit down to 28%).Methods: Thirty patients who were scheduled to receive spinal surgery were randomly divided into two groups: an esmolol‐induced CH alone group (esmolol group, n=15) and a CH‐ANH combined group (E‐ANH group, n=15). Controlled hypotension was induced with esmolol 500 µg/kg, followed by a continuous infusion of 0–300 µg/kg/min to maintain mean arterial pressure at 55–65 mmHg.Results: The mean infusion rate of esmolol in the esmolol‐ANH group was 46±6 µg/kg/min (mean±SD), which was significantly lower than the 77±9 µg/kg/min used in the esmolol group (P<0.05). The number of units of homologous blood (packed RBC) transfused perioperatively was 2.2±0.6 units in the esmolol‐ANH group, which was significantly less than 4.3±0.4 units used in the esmolol group (P<0.01). While O2 delivery decreased significantly during CH, O2 consumption remained unchanged in both groups. No complications resulted from CH or ANH in any of the groups.Conclusion: Our data suggest that ANH of moderate degree can be combined with esmolol‐induced CH to improve blood conservation in surgical patients.
Oral clonidine premedication does not reduce postoperative vomiting in children undergoing strabismus surgery
Authors: Gulhas N. , Turkoz A. , Durmus M. , Togal T. , Gedik E. , Ersoy M. O. 
Published: March 2003

Background: We evaluated the effect of oral clonidine on postoperative vomiting (POV) in children undergoing strabismus surgery.Methods: Eighty ASA physical status I children aged 3–12 years were randomly assigned to one of two groups in a double‐blinded manner. One hour before surgery, each patient in the clonidine group (n=40) received clonidine 4 µg kg−1 in apple juice 0.2 ml kg−1, and each of the controls (n=40) received apple juice 0.2 ml kg−1 only. The protocol for general anesthesia was propofol‐sevoflurane in N2O/O2. A paracetamol suppository was administered in each case to prevent postoperative pain. Patient responses during 0–48 h after anesthesia were recorded as complete (no POV, no antiemetic rescue required), retching, vomiting, or rescue antiemetic.Results: There were no significant differences between the clonidine and control groups regarding the number of patients with complete response (21 vs. 18, respectively) retching (10 vs. 14, respectively), vomiting (19 vs. 22, respectively), or rescue antiemetic (9 vs. 12, respectively) during the first 48 h.Conclusion: Oral premedication with clonidine 4 µg kg−1 did not reduce the rate of POV in the children undergoing strabismus surgery.
Maternal mortality in West Africa
Authors: Bouvier‐Colle Marie‐Hélène , Ouedraogo Charlemagne , Dumont Alexandre , Vangeenderhuysen Charles , Salanave Benoît , Decam Christophe ,   the MOMA group
Published: March 2003

Background. According to estimates of maternal mortality rates from WHO/UNICEF, the West African rates appear to be among the world’s highest. The precision of these estimates from general mortality models is far from ideal and no information on the distribution of causes of death is provided. The principal objective of our study is to describe the maternal mortality, estimation of the rates and distribution of obstetric causes, from a population based survey of pregnant women carried out in West Africa. We also present the main characteristics of the deaths that occurred, including avoidable aspects.Methods. The survey included all the pregnant women living in seven defined areas, from December 1994 through June 1996, depending on the area. Twenty thousand three hundred and twenty‐six pregnant women (94.3% of all those identified) agreed to participate and 19,545 were followed throughout the second trimester of pregnancy, delivery and the puerperium. Physicians from the survey team made special enquiries about all maternal deaths. But the deaths occurring during the first months of pregnancy could not be estimated. A subcommittee analyzed all the deaths, assigned the underlying cause and discussed the avoidable aspects of the death.Results. Sixty‐six deaths were reported. Fifty‐five (three late) were deaths due to obstetric causes; six were fortuitous deaths, and no cause could be defined for five. As a mean and for pregnancy after week 25, the maternal mortality rate was estimated at 311 (95% CI 234–404) per 100,000 live births and 852 (95% CI 456–1457) in rural areas. Hemorrhages accounted for 29% of obstetric deaths, uterine rupture 13%, eclampsia and infectious diseases 11% each. Seventy‐four percent of the direct obstetric causes were considered avoidable.Conclusion. Confidential enquiries into maternal deaths in West Africa are not just a concern of the others. They are urgently requested to promote the improvement of health services.
Growth factors in corneal wound healing following refractive surgery: A review
Authors: Baldwin Heather C. , Marshall John 
Published: March 2003

ABSTRACT.The first part of this review article aims to provide important basic definitions of growth factor terminology, and to put forward a model for understanding the role of growth factors in a wound healing context. In the second part of the paper, we review the literature on growth factors in the cornea, including that on changes associated with wound healing following refractive surgery in the epithelial, stromal, and endothelial layers. The role of growth factors in stromal removal, corneal neovascularization, corneal innervation and wound healing is considered. The importance of the epithelial–stromal interaction is discussed, including the role of growth factors in keratocyte apoptosis. In the final section, we review the current literature on endogenous and exogenous modulation of growth factors in corneal wound healing. This includes importantin vitrowork but aims to emphasize clinically relevant results. Photorefractive keratectomy(PRK) may have short‐term complications such as pain and haze, whereas laserin situkeratomilieusis (LASIK) may have longer‐term adverse effects on corneal biomechanics. The emerging technique of laser epithelial keratomilieusis (LASEK) provides an interesting alternative wound which may be less susceptible to the inherent complications of PRK and LASIK. At present, the phenomenon of iatrogenic keratectasia following LASIK is not fully understood, but these features of wound healing following PRK may be amenable to growth factor modulation.
On the operationalization of psychopathy: further support for a three‐faceted personality oriented model
Authors: Johansson P. , Andershed H. , Kerr M. , Levander S. 
Published: March 2003

Objective: This study is an attempt to compare two alternative models of psychopathy (PCL‐R); (i) the traditional 17‐item two‐factor model where the first factor describes a deceitful, manipulative and callous, unemotional dimension and the second factor describes the impulsive, irresponsible and antisocial behavioral lifestyle dimension; and (ii) a recently proposed 13‐item three‐factor model involving an interpersonal facet, an affective facet and a behavioral facet.Method:  Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses of PCL‐R scores on a sample of 293 adult male violent offenders were conducted.Results:  The results of the exploratory factor analysis showed that the 13 items yielded three easily interpretable factors: an interpersonal factor, an affective factor and a behavioral/lifestyle factor. Through confirmatory factor analysis we showed that this model had a significantly closer fit to the data than the classical 17‐item, two‐factor model of the PCL‐R.Conclusion: The study supports the three‐faceted model of psychopathy.
Psychopathy and violent recidivism among young criminal offenders
Authors: Långström N. , Grann M. 
Published: March 2003

Objective: To investigate the predictive validity of psychopathic personality traits (assessed with the revised psychopathy checklist, PCL‐R; Hare, 1991) for violent criminal recidivism among young offenders.Method:  The relationship between PCL‐R psychopathy and violent re‐offending was studied in 98 young (M=18.40, range 15–20 years) violent and sex offenders subjected to forensic psychiatric evaluation in Sweden during 1988–95. Subjects were followed during detainment and for 24 months in the community to first reconviction for a violent offence.Results:  We found a modest but significant association between PCL‐R scores and violent recidivism, almost exclusively accounted for by behavioural criteria. Among 13 possible confounders tested, conduct disorder before age 15 and a young age at first conviction eliminated the relationship between psychopathy and violent recidivism in pair‐wise logistic regression models.Conclusion:  PCL‐R psychopathy may be a less valid predictor for violent criminal recidivism among severe youthful offenders than among adult offenders.
Measuring aggression with the staff observation aggression scale − revised
Authors: Nijman H. , Palmstierna T. 
Published: March 2003

Objective:  The staff observation aggression scale (SOAS; Palmstierna & Wistedt, 1987) was developed to measure nature, number, as well as severity of aggressive incidents. In 1999, a revised version of the SOAS (i.e. the SOAS‐R), with a more fine‐grained severity scoring system, was presented. In the current paper, the development and testing of the revised severity scores of the SOAS‐R are addressed.Method: In two consecutive studies, staff members recorded inpatient aggression on SOAS‐R forms, but also expressed their opinion about the severity of incidents on 100 mm visual analogue scales (VASs). Correlations were calculated between SOAS and SOAS‐R severity scores, on the one hand, and clinical judgements of severity, on the other.Results:  In both studies, revised SOAS severity scores were more closely related to clinical judgements of aggression severity than the original ones.Conclusion: The SOAS‐R is a promising tool for research on the prevalence, severity and determinants of inpatient aggression.
Anabolic androgenic steroids and violence
Authors: Thiblin I. , Pärlklo T. 
Published: March 2003

Objective:  To scrutinize the criminal career among users of anabolic androgenic steroids (AAS) with focus on a possible relationship between use of AAS and violent offences.Method:  Prospective longitudinal follow‐up of police records concerning known users of AAS.Results:  The present study describes five young men who started to use AAS with the primary motive of gaining muscle mass and strength and who subsequently got involved in criminal activities, including violent offences. One person showed deviant behaviour suggestive of conduct disorder at an early age. The other persons appeared to have low self‐confidence, but had not been acting out during early adolescence.Conclusion:  Use of AAS may constitute an increased risk of developing an antisocial life style with involvement in criminal violence.
Effect of combined treatment with nandrolone and cocaine on the NMDA receptor gene expression in the rat nucleus accumbens and periaqueductal gray
Authors: Le Grevès P. , Zhou Q. , Huang W. , Nyberg F. 
Published: March 2003

Objective:  Anabolic androgenic steroids (AAS) have been suggested to sensitize mechanisms involved in drug dependency and aggressive behaviour. Nucleus accumbens and periaqueductal gray (PAG) are believed to be critical in the functional anatomy of these two phenomena, which are partly mediated by the NMDA receptor. This study was undertaken in order to determine the relationship between the effect of AAS and cocaine (given alone or in combination) on the gene expression of the NMDA receptor subtype NR1 in the rat nucleus accumbens and PAG.Method:  Male rats were subjected to 2 weeks of daily doses of cocaine and the anabolic‐androgenic steroid nandrolone, administrated separately or in combination, and the effect on the mRNA expression for the NMDA receptor NR1 subunit was studied by Northern blot analysis.Results:  In the nucleus accumbens, injection of cocaine alone and the combination of cocaine and nandrolone caused a significant decrease in the NR1 mRNA level compared with that of control rats. The combined treatment significantly down‐regulated the transcript in the PAG compared with the groups injected with vehicle, nandrolone or cocaine alone.Conclusion:  It was concluded that AAS combined with cocaine may induce additive increases in glutamatergic activity in these brain areas, supporting the notion that these steroids can sensitize mechanisms involved in the reward and the expression of aggression.
Prediction of inpatient violence
Authors: Steinert T. 
Published: March 2003

Objective:  An overview of studies on predictors and on the accuracy of prediction of inpatient violence should be given.Method:  To date, the published data do not allow a systematic meta‐analysis due to different sample characteristics, different measures and definitions of violence, and different time frames of observation. Published studies were reviewed regarding significant predictors of inpatient violence.Results:  Predictors of violence in institutional settings are different from predictors of violence in the community: variables such as sex, age, diagnosis and alcohol abuse play a minor role, while clinical and psychopathological variables are prominent. Only history of violence is a robust static predictor. The total level of positive and general psychotic symptoms seems to enhance the violence risk of inpatients, whereas results concerning specific features like delusions or command hallucinations are contradictory due to inevitable problems of sample selection. The accuracy of clinical predictions is better than chance but limited by the effects of therapeutic interventions and research artefacts.Conclusion:  The author argues that more precise determinations of the violence risk in institutions will fail and that the role of environmental factors has often been underestimated.
Alcohol's role in domestic violence: a contributing cause or an excuse?
Authors: Leonard K. E. 
Published: March 2003

Objective: This paper reviews evidence regarding the deviance disavowal approach to alcohol‐related violence. It focuses on whether alcohol intoxication is used to excuse domestic violence, and whether this can explain alcohol/violence association.Method:Four hypotheses derived from the deviance disavowal approach were identified, including (i) people accept alcohol as a cause of violence; (ii) people attribute less blame and punishment to intoxicated aggressors than to sober aggressors; (iii) the belief that alcohol causes or excuses violence should be associated with and predict the occurrence of alcohol‐related domestic violence; and (iv) the administration of a placebo should increase aggressive behaviour.Results: The review suggested that some people do accept alcohol as a cause of violence, but that alcohol does not appear to mitigate blame, and this belief is not longitudinally predictive of violence.Conclusion: The evidence for a deviance disavowal model of alcohol and domestic violence appears quite weak.
Preventing men's violence against women
Authors: Leander K. 
Published: March 2003

Objective:  The treatment and prevention of men's violence against women has increasingly been recognized as an issue not only for the criminal justice but also for the health and public health sectors. It is necessary to determine how health care can avoid accelerating women's ‘entrapment’ in a violent situation and to contribute to empowering them to take proactive steps.Method:  Research and experience reveal how the nature of domestic violence can lead to health care playing a preventive role. The responsible body for health care in Stockholm, the Stockholm County Council, is one of several public authorities involved in a county‐wide initiative called Operation Kvinnofrid, which has focused on internal training programmes as well as public poster campaigns.Results:  Public awareness campaigns in combination with internal training programmes do have an impact, especially where political and management will is clear.Conclusion:  Heightened awareness among the public, enhanced skills among health workers, and multiagency coordination of the response to men's violence against women are essential elements of the long‐term prevention of this violence.
Psychological impact of torture: a 3‐month follow‐up of mass‐evacuated Kosovan adults in Sweden. Lessons learnt for prevention
Authors: Ekblad S. , Prochazka H. , Roth G. 
Published: March 2003

Objective:  To study the impact of torture on symptomatology among mass displaced adults.Method: A sample (total 131; 70 females, 61 males) of mass displaced adults from Kosovo, in Sweden, completed 3 months after a baseline study on trauma experiences and perceived symptoms, self‐rated instruments measuring psychiatric symptoms, aggression and coping.Results:  Torture is associated with poor coping (manageability); depression, anxiety and aggression are associated with post‐traumatic stress disorder. All psychiatric symptoms and poor coping (but not aggression) are associated with being female. Limitations of the study include a relatively small sample. Ongoing trauma and stress before repatriation may also influence the responses. Several lessons learnt for prevention are discussed.Conclusion: Anger and hostility are important consequences of torture. Further research is necessary to understand the associations among coping strategies, psychiatric symptoms, aggression, torture experience and gender over time after repatriation or applying for asylum.
A population study on the influence of depression on neuropsychological functioning in 85‐year‐olds
Authors: Pálsson Sigurður , Johansson Boo , Berg Stig , Skoog Ingmar 
Published: March 2003

Objective: To examine cognitive function in very old depressed individuals. Method: Individuals with major depression (MDS) or dysthymia according to the DSM‐III‐R were compared to mentally healthy regarding tests of verbal ability, inductive logical reasoning, spatial ability, perceptual speed, basic arithmetics, primary memory and secondary memory in a population‐based sample of 85‐year‐olds. Results: Individuals with MDS performed worse than mentally healthy individuals in tests of verbal ability, inductive logical reasoning, spatial ability, perceptual speed and secondary memory. There were no differences between the groups regarding basic arithmetics and primary memory. The poor test performance was mainly associated with psychomotor retardation and decreased concentration in depressed individuals. Memory complaints were not correlated to poor test performance, neither in the mentally healthy nor in the depressed. Conclusion: MDS in elderly individuals is associated with reduced cognitive test performance, especially regarding more complex and time‐demanding tests and in tests of secondary memory.
Smoking and the risk of suicide
Authors: Tanskanen A. , Tuomilehto J. , Viinamäki H. , Vartiainen E. , Lehtonen J. , Puska P. 
Published: March 2003

Objective:To estimate the relationship between cigarette smoking and the risk of suicide. Method:The mortality of 36 527 adult men and women was monitored for the mean 14.4 years. Information on deaths caused by suicide was obtained from the National Mortality Register. Suicides were subclassified by the level of violence used. Current smokers of 1–20 cigarettes per day were considered light/moderate smokers and heavy smokers were defined as those smoking 21 cigarettes per day. Results:There were 134 suicides among 17 798 men and 31 suicides among 18 729 women. The most common suicide methods were hanging, firearms and drug overdose. According to the Cox model the adjusted relative risk of both violent and non‐violent suicide was significantly and linearly increased among light/moderate and heavy smokers compared with non‐smokers. Conclusion:Smoking was associated with an increased risk of suicide irrespective of the level of violence used.