In this task, you are given a passage which has a question and the context. You have to generate an answer to the question based on the information present in the context.
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Question: Context: Accumulating evidence has indicated that inflammation may act as a potential mechanism underlying post-operative cognitive dysfunction (POCD). High-mobility group box 1 (HMGB1), as a known late mediator of inflammation, is involved in the development of post-operative complications. Thus, we sought to determine the role of HMGB1 in reflecting POCD following major gastrointestinal surgery.', 'Fifty-three elderly patients undergoing gastrointestinal surgery were recruited, and 50 patients completed the study. Serum HMGB1 and interleukin (IL)-6 levels were measured pre-operatively and at 6 h, day 1 and day 3 post-operatively. Neuropsychological tests were administered before and 1 week after surgery. POCD was determined using a Z score ≥ 1.96.', 'Seventeen (34%, 17/50) patients developed POCD at 1 week. The POCD group had higher serum HMGB1 levels at day 1 (12.15 ± 3.12 vs. 9.91 ± 3.15 ng/ml, P = 0.021) and day 3 (11.04 ± 2.88 vs. 8.52 ± 3.31 ng/ml, P = 0.011). IL-6 levels at 6 h (51.18 ± 15.22 vs. 39.20 ± 14.32 pg/ml, P = 0.009) and day 1 (41.59 ± 11.08 vs. 33.81 ± 11.42 pg/ml, P = 0.026) were significantly higher in POCD patients. Serum values of IL-6 at 6 h, HMGB1 at day 1 and levels of education showed positive correlations with Z scores. HMGB1 at day 3 and IL-6 at 6 h were independent risk factors.\Question: Does serum high-mobility group box 1 protein correlate with cognitive decline after gastrointestinal surgery?

Answer: Serum HMGB1 and IL-6 levels increase significantly after major gastrointestinal surgery in elderly patients and such elevations are associated with the occurrence of cognitive decline after surgery.


Question: Context: To determine the effect of introducing a rapid enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) D-dimer on the percentage of emergency department (ED) patients evaluated for pulmonary embolism (PE), the use of associated laboratory testing, pulmonary vascular imaging, and the diagnoses of PE.', 'Patients evaluated for PE during three 120-day periods were enrolled: immediately before (period 1), immediately after (period 2), and one year after the introduction of a rapid ELISA D-dimer in the hospital. The frequency of ED patients evaluated for PE with any test, with D-dimer testing, and with pulmonary vascular imaging and the frequency of PE diagnosis during each time period were determined.', 'The percentage of patients evaluated for PE nearly doubled; from 1.36% (328/24,101) in period 1 to 2.58% (654/25,318) in period 2 and 2.42% (583/24,093) in period 3. The percentage of patients who underwent D-dimer testing increased more than fourfold; from 0.39% (93/24,101) in period 1 to 1.83% (464/25,318) in period 2 and 1.77% (427/24,093) in period 3. The percentage of patients who underwent pulmonary vascular imaging increased from 1.02% (247/24,101) in period 1 to 1.36% (344/25,318) in period 2 and to 1.39% (334/24,093) in period 3. There was no difference in the percentage of patients diagnosed as having PE in period 1 (0.20% [47/24,101]), period 2 (0.27% [69/25,318]), and period 3 (0.24% [58/24,093]).\Question: Does a highly sensitive ELISA D-dimer increase testing but not diagnosis of pulmonary embolism?

Answer: In the study's academic ED, introduction of ELISA D-dimer testing was accompanied by an increase in PE evaluations, D-dimer testing, and pulmonary vascular imaging; there was no observed change in the rate of PE diagnosis.


Question: Context: Thermal microdebridement for the treatment of chronic tendinopathy has recently been introduced. The effect of thermal microdebridement on the biomechanical properties of human tendons, however, remains unknown.', 'Thermal microdebridement does not affect the biomechanical properties of human patellar tendons in a cadaveric model at the time of initial treatment.', 'Controlled laboratory study.', 'The central 15 mm of 12 matched, human (mean age, 71 years; 8 male, 4 female), fresh-frozen patellar tendons was divided into 3 equal 5-mm specimens. The treatment group (n = 12) underwent thermal microdebridement with a radiofrequency probe. A sham treatment group (n = 12) underwent insertion of a deactivated probe. The control group (n = 12) underwent no treatment. After treatment, each specimen was tested to failure in a servo-hydraulic materials testing machine at an elongation rate of 3 mm/s. One-way repeated measures analysis of variance was used to determine differences between groups.', 'No significant difference in ultimate stress at failure, elastic modulus, strain energy density, or strain at maximum load was found between the groups. The ultimate stress at failure for the treatment, sham, and control groups was 61.0, 66.7, and 63.0 MPa, respectively (P = .653), and the strain at maximum load was 0.12, 0.11, and 0.09, respectively (P = .279).\Question: Does thermal microdebridement affect the time zero biomechanical properties of human patellar tendons?

Answer:
Thermal microdebridement does not affect the biomechanical properties of cadaveric human patellar tendons at the time of initial treatment.