bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Pneumococcal pericarditis in a patient with newly diagnosed diabetes mellitus: a case report
Authors: Dijkstra Suzan , Houtgraaf Jaco H. , Sankatsing Sanjay U. C. 
Published: September 2022

Abstract
Background
After the introduction of antibiotics, pneumococcal pericarditis has become a rare finding. However, this severe condition with high mortality and complication rates requires rapid recognition and intervention. Herein, we describe a patient that presents with this rare disease resulting in an unusual, fatal outcome.

Case presentation
A previously healthy, 68-year-old, Caucasian male presented with progressive fatigue, dyspnea, and appetite loss since 12 days. He was diagnosed with diabetes mellitus 5 days before presentation but had not started treatment. After echocardiography revealed pericardial effusion, pericardiocentesis was performed with immediate drainage of a large volume of purulent fluid suggestive of bacterial pericarditis. On the basis of cultures showing Streptococcus pneumoniae as the causative organism, a regimen of intravenous penicillin was initiated. Additionally, antidiabetic drugs were started as his diabetes also predisposed him to invasive infectious disease. No other primary source of the infection, such as pneumonia, was found. Though the patient was found to be severely ill on admission, his clinical condition improved. A total of 1235 mL of pericardial fluid was drained, and adequate drainage was confirmed by daily, bedside echocardiography. However, 6 days post-admission, the patient suddenly developed intrapericardial bleeding with blood clot formation on the right chamber with subsequent cardiac tamponade. With the blood clot precluding adequate drainage through the catheter, the patient suffered cardiac arrest and died before surgical intervention could be attempted.

Conclusions
Pneumococcal pericarditis is a very rare but life-threatening disease that necessitates immediate intervention with antibiotics and drainage of the pericardial effusion. Thus, although symptoms may be variable and aspecific, early recognition of this condition is critical. The present case illustrates the presentation, diagnosis, and clinical course of a patient presenting with pneumococcal pericarditis in current clinical practice. Through this report, we aimed to increase awareness among clinicians both of the existence of this phenomenon and of its uncertain clinical course. As is highlighted by the case, patients with pneumococcal pericarditis are at high risk for complications and should be closely monitored.
Quality assurance awareness in higher education in China: big data challenges
Authors: Zhang Ruihua , Zhou Jincheng , Hai Tao , Zhang Shixue , Iwendi Marvellous , Biamba Cresantus , Anumbe Noble 
Published: September 2022

AbstractThe quality assurance of higher education in China is an issue of vital international interest. To improve the international reputation of the nation’s universities, steps must be taken to ensure a sustained focus on the quality assurance within its ranks. This paper is primarily focused on the quality assurance models operational in Chinese universities, the Big data challenges and the legal framework backing them. The paper also discusses the implementation of the models, the extent to which they meet international standards, and how they adhere to prevailing laws. The degree of success in attaining and maintaining quality and evaluation of quality improvement opportunities are also discussed. Some of the solutions recommended in this study are the participation of more teachers and students in quality management, more emphasis of Higher Education Institution (HEI) quality assurance on self-regulation and a learning-oriented approach and conducting sessions to collect anonymous feedback from students to reward staff with best practices. Some of the Quality Assurance practices/models adopted in Chinese Universities are the Ministry of Education (MOE) reviews; the Academic Degree Committee oversight; Higher Education Evaluation Center (HEEC) overview, University self-evaluation according to HEEC Indicators, and the Webometric Ranking Model.
RDPNet: a single-path lightweight CNN with re-parameterization for CPU-type edge devices
Authors: Xu Jiarui , Zhao Yufeng , Xu Fei 
Published: September 2022

AbstractDeep convolutional neural networks have produced excellent results when utilized for image classification tasks, and they are being applied in a growing number of contexts. Model inference on edge devices is challenging due to the unending complicated structures needed to improve performance, which adds a significant computing burden.According to recent research, the often utilized residual structure in models does not support model inference. The idea of structural reparameterization is put out to address this shortcoming. The RepVGG produced with this method is a high-performance, quick-inference single-path network. Even after reparameterization, the model still needs GPUs and other specialized computing libraries to accelerate inference, however this still has a limit on how quickly the model can infer at the edge. We construct RDPNet using depthwise separable convolution and structural reparameterization to further reduce model size and accelerate inference. When utilizing an Intel CPU, this is a straightforward network that may be utilized for inference. For re-parameterization, we specifically adopt Depthwise separable convolution as the basic convolution form. Create a multi-branch model for training on the training side, and then simplify it into a single-branch model that the edge devices can easily infer. Research demonstrates that compared to alternative lightweight networks that can attain SOTA performance, RDPNet offers a superior trade-off between accuracy and latency.
Use of broad-spectrum antimicrobials for more than 72 h and the detection of multidrug-resistant bacteria in Japanese intensive care units: a multicenter retrospective cohort study
Authors: Yoshida Hideki , Motohashi Takako , De Bus Liesbet , De Waele Jan , Takaba Akihiro , Kuriyama Akira , Kobayashi Atsuko , Tanaka Chie , Hashi Hideki , Hashimoto Hideki , Nashiki Hiroshi , Shibata Mami , Kanamoto Masafumi , Inoue Masashi , Hashimoto Satoru , Katayama Shinshu , Fujiwara Shinsuke , Kameda Shinya , Shindo Shunsuke , Suzuki Taketo , Komuro Tetsuya , Kawagishi Toshiomi , Kawano Yasumasa , Fujita Yoshihito , Kida Yoshiko , Hara Yuya , Fujitani Shigeki ,   DIANA Study Japanese group
Published: September 2022

Abstract
Background
Large multicenter studies reporting on the association between the duration of broad-spectrum antimicrobial administration and the detection of multidrug-resistant (MDR) bacteria in the intensive care unit (ICU) are scarce. We evaluated the impact of broad-spectrum antimicrobial therapy for more than 72 h on the detection of MDR bacteria using the data from Japanese patients enrolled in the DIANA study.

Methods
We analyzed the data of ICU patients in the DIANA study (a multicenter international observational cohort study from Japan). Patients who received empirical antimicrobials were divided into a broad-spectrum antimicrobial group and a narrow-spectrum antimicrobial group, based on whether they received broad-spectrum antimicrobials for more or less than 72 h, respectively. Differences in patient characteristics, background of infectious diseases and empirical antimicrobial administration, and outcomes between the two groups were compared using the chi-square tests (Monte Carlo method) for categorical variables and the Mann–Whitney U-test for continuous variables. We also conducted a logistic regression analysis to investigate the factors associated with the detection of new MDR bacteria.

Results
A total of 254 patients from 31 Japanese ICUs were included in the analysis, of whom 159 (62.6%) were included in the broad-spectrum antimicrobial group and 95 (37.4%) were included in the narrow-spectrum antimicrobial group. The detection of new MDR bacteria was significantly higher in the broad-spectrum antimicrobial group (11.9% vs. 4.2%, p = 0.042). Logistic regression showed that broad-spectrum antimicrobial continuation for more than 72 h (OR [odds ratio] 3.09, p = 0.047) and cerebrovascular comorbidity on ICU admission (OR 2.91, p = 0.041) were associated with the detection of new MDR bacteria.

Conclusions
Among Japanese ICU patients treated with empirical antimicrobials, broad-spectrum antimicrobial usage for more than 72 h was associated with the increased detection of new MDR bacteria. Antimicrobial stewardship programs in ICUs should discourage the prolonged use of empirical broad-spectrum antimicrobial therapy.
Trial registration ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT02920463, Registered 30 September 2016, https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02920463
Clinical and radiological comparison of the zero-profile anchored cage and traditional cage-plate fixation in single-level anterior cervical discectomy and fusion
Authors: Zhang Jun , Wang Shanxi , Tang Xiangyu , Xiong Wei , Wu Hua , Liu Chaoxu , Li Feng 
Published: September 2022

Abstract
Background
The aim of this study was to compare the clinical outcomes and radiographic parameters of the zero-profile anchored cage and traditional cage-plate fixation in single-level anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF).

Methods
Between January 2016 and November 2018, a total of 68 patients with degenerative cervical spondylosis who underwent single-level ACDF were evaluated in this retrospective study. Thirty-five patients were treated with the zero-profile anchored cage (Zero-P group), and 33 patients were treated with the traditional cage-plate fixation (Cage group). The two groups were compared in reference to clinical outcomes and radiographic parameters.

Results
The mean operation time in the Zero-P group was significantly shorter than that in the Cage group. The incidence of postoperative dysphagia in the Cage group was higher than that in the Zero-P group at 3 months and 12 months postoperatively. No bony spurs were found in the Zero-P group, whereas 5 patients in the Cage group developed bony spurs. There were no statistically significant differences between the two groups in the JOA scores, VAS scores, NDI scores, C2-7 Cobb angles, segmental Cobb angles, total interbody height or fusion rates at 3 months or 12 months postoperatively.

Conclusion
In this study, both the zero-profile anchored cage and traditional cage-plate fixation were demonstrated to be effective and safe strategies. Given the lower incidence of dysphagia and degenerative changes, zero-profile anchored cage is a good option.
Contingent convertible lease modeling and credit risk management
Authors: Triki Ons , Abid Fathi 
Published: September 2022

AbstractThe main objective of this study is to determine a lease agreement to finance an investment project and a solution for managing credit risk. This study investigates three types of contingent leases to reduce the costs associated with bankruptcy and compensate for the lessor's position. A leasing defaultable contract allows the lessor to obtain the rent that will be recovered if the lessee defaults. A leasing convertible contract can be automatically converted into shares when certain default conditions related to the cash flows generated by the firm are met. These conditions are triggered by the ratio of the firm's value and leasing payments. A Defaultable-Convertible-Leasing contract with a payback option grants the lessor the right but not the obligation to convert the remaining lease payments into stocks or to break up the contract and pick up the rented equipment when the firm reaches the default threshold. These contracts are motivated by contributing to the range of risk-management strategies by adding more flexibility to standard leasing contracts and contingent rents. Closed-form securities pricing solutions are set forward in a dynamic model for firms with existing assets and a growth option financed by shares and a contingent lease. Risk-neutral pricing theory and the backward induction method are used to determine the pricing of corporate securities. Numerical analysis shows that leasing convertible contracts and defaultable-convertible contracts with payback options impact the service value of the leased asset, maturity, and inefficiencies resulting from insolvency and asset substitution. An optimal conversion rate reduces inefficiencies, thus making the leasing convertible contract and defaultable-convertible-leasing contract with payback option a reliable solution to ensure business continuity and loss coverage of the leasers upon default.
Risk assessment in clinical practice: a framework for decision-making in real-world complex systems
Authors: Nathan Rajan , Bhandari Sahil 
Published: September 2022

SUMMARYRisk assessment in clinical practice is often characterised as a process of analysing information so as to make a judgement about the likelihood of harmful behaviour occurring in the future. However, this characterisation is brought into question when the evidence does not support the current use of risk assessment approaches to predict, or provide probability estimates of, future behaviour in a way that is usable in single instances arising in individual cases. This article sets out a broader and more clinically applicable description of risk assessment which takes account of the wider influences on how this clinical activity takes place. In so doing, it provides a framework to guide clinicians, researchers and authors of practice guidance who are interested in improving approaches to risk assessment.
Escaping Policy Traps: Strategic Options for Overcoming Entrenchment
Authors: Starr Paul 
Published: September 2022

AbstractPolicy entrenchment per se is a neutral concept; both good and bad policies may become entrenched. A policy trap, however, is entrenchment's pathological form: a self-reinforcing array of policies that simultaneously creates (1) well-established, often widely recognized failures in society, and (2) high barriers to change. A familiar type of policy trap arises when the benefits of a policy are concentrated while the costs, albeit greater, are widely diffused, opaque to many who bear them, or seemingly remote. But policy traps are not necessarily permanent; they may persist only as long as reformers are unable to identify their vulnerabilities and seize moments of political opportunity. Reconstituting a domain of policy ultimately requires formulating an alternative. Without presuming to be exhaustive, this article outlines four general strategies for overcoming policy entrenchment: Schumpeterian innovation, globally oriented innovation, institutional conversion, and social creativity (the nonmarket analog to Schumpeterian change). Focusing on three areas, the article examines how policy traps have arisen and might be overcome in fossil fuels, the internet economy, and the US health care system.
Anniversary Narratives of the Health Care State: Institutional Entrenchment in Retrospect
Authors: Tuohy Carolyn Hughes 
Published: September 2022

AbstractInstitutional narratives, appealing both to the intellect and the imagination, are powerful mechanisms of entrenchment. Drawing on close examination of legislative debates, interview transcripts, and official documents, this article analyzes institutional narratives of the British National Health Service (NHS) and American Medicare and Medicaid. These narratives take the form of epics, featuring founding heroes, adversaries, stewards, saviors, and other characters, and are retold on multiple occasions, and especially on anniversaries of the founding date. In the process, certain elements of history are remembered, and others forgotten. The myth of the NHS as a single national institution obscured much of the complexity and compromise that went into its founding and subsequent development, but preserved fidelity to its founding principles. In the United States, the dominant narrative belonged to Medicare, while Medicaid featured as an afterthought. In the case of the NHS, narrative entrenchment served to preserve universal access to comprehensive health care. In the case of American Medicare, entrenchment preserved the original mission of the institution but kept it from expanding to a broader swath of the population, even as its less-entrenched companion Medicaid provided a vehicle for coverage of an increasingly wide range of population groups. A distinct Medicaid narrative developed only after incremental expansion was well underway.
Cerebellum lineage allocation, morphogenesis and repair: impact of interplay amongst cells
Authors: Joyner Alexandra L. , Bayin N. Sumru 
Published: September 2022

ABSRACT
The cerebellum has a simple cytoarchitecture consisting of a folded cortex with three cell layers that surrounds a nuclear structure housing the output neurons. The excitatory neurons are generated from a unique progenitor zone, the rhombic lip, whereas the inhibitory neurons and astrocytes are generated from the ventricular zone. The growth phase of the cerebellum is driven by lineage-restricted progenitor populations derived from each zone. Research during the past decade has uncovered the importance of cell-to-cell communication between the lineages through largely unknown signaling mechanisms for regulating the scaling of cell numbers and cell plasticity during mouse development and following injury in the neonatal (P0-P14) cerebellum. This Review focuses on how the interplay between cell types is key to morphogenesis, production of robust neural circuits and replenishment of cells after injury, and ends with a discussion of the implications of the greater complexity of the human cerebellar progenitor zones for development and disease.
The developing epicardium regulates cardiac chamber morphogenesis by promoting cardiomyocyte growth
Authors: Boezio Giulia L. M. , Zhao Shengnan , Gollin Josephine , Priya Rashmi , Mansingh Shivani , Guenther Stefan , Fukuda Nana , Gunawan Felix , Stainier Didier Y. R. 
Published: September 2022

ABSTRACT
The epicardium, the outermost layer of the heart, is an important regulator of cardiac regeneration. However, a detailed understanding of the crosstalk between the epicardium and myocardium during development requires further investigation. Here, we generated three models of epicardial impairment in zebrafish by mutating the transcription factor genes tcf21 and wt1a, and ablating tcf21+ epicardial cells. Notably, all three epicardial impairment models exhibited smaller ventricles. We identified the initial cause of this phenotype as defective cardiomyocyte growth, resulting in reduced cell surface and volume. This failure of cardiomyocyte growth was followed by decreased proliferation and increased abluminal extrusion. By temporally manipulating its ablation, we show that the epicardium is required to support cardiomyocyte growth mainly during early cardiac morphogenesis. By transcriptomic profiling of sorted epicardial cells, we identified reduced expression of FGF and VEGF ligand genes in tcf21−/− hearts, and pharmacological inhibition of these signaling pathways in wild type partially recapitulated the ventricular growth defects. Taken together, these data reveal distinct roles of the epicardium during cardiac morphogenesis and signaling pathways underlying epicardial-myocardial crosstalk.
Cost-Restricted Feature Selection for Data Acquisition
Authors: Liu Xiaoping , Li Xiao-Bai , Sarkar Sumit 
Published: September 2022

When acquiring consumer data for marketing or new business initiatives, it is important to decide what attributes or features of potential customers should be acquired. We study a new feature selection problem in the context of customer data acquisition in which different features have different acquisition costs. This feature selection problem is studied for linear regression and logistic regression. We formulate the feature selection and acquisition problems as nonlinear discrete optimization problems that minimize prediction errors subject to a budget constraint. We derive the analytical properties of the solutions for the problems, develop a computational procedure for solving the problems, provide an intuitive interpretation for the feature selection criteria, and discuss managerial implications of the solution approach. The results of the experimental study demonstrate the effectiveness of our approach. This paper was accepted by Kartik Hosanagar, information systems. Supplemental Material: Data are available at https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2022.4551 .
Optimal Presignal Control for Two-Mode Traffic at Isolated Signalized Intersections
Authors: Khwais Miran , Haddad Jack 
Published: September 2022

Delay imposed on buses is witnessed at isolated signalized intersections, as part of the delay is created due to bus and car interactions at the signalized approaches. Inexpensive solutions that do not involve new infrastructure are the most desired. Toward reducing person delay, presignal lights are installed at the upstream of the intersection. Presignal is a control tool that can manage the interaction and space conflict between cars and buses at the mixed lanes, located after the presignals, approaching the intersection. This paper presents an optimal presignal control policy that determines signal settings based on minimization of total person-time spent. The developed model is comprised of a simplified signalized intersection with one approach, where two presignal lights are located: one for bus lane and one for car lane. A continuous-time model is first developed to describe the queue dynamics for the mixed lanes after the presignals and the bus and car lanes before the presignals. The optimal solutions are derived analytically via the Pontryagin maximum principle, and the optimal presignal control policy is determined and synthesized. The derived analytical solutions are verified through the use of the optimal control software, DIDO, which uses an advanced optimization method and solves complex dynamic optimization problems without prior knowledge of the analytical computations or the solution. Several examples are used to test and analyze the derived solutions. Finally, the microscopic simulation software AIMSUN is used to test, assess, and evaluate the performance of the proposed optimal control policy in a more realistic traffic condition, where stochastic arrivals are incorporated. Supplemental Material: The online appendix is available at https://doi.org/10.1287/trsc.2022.1172 .