nils-herrmann/clean_scirepeval huggingface dataset:
Percutaneous cryodenervation of lumbar facet joints: a prospective clinical trial

Facet joint pain is an important aspect of degenerative lumbar spine disease, and radiofrequency medial branch neurotomy remains an established therapy, while cryodenervation has still been poorly examined. This study was undertaken to examine the effects of medial branch cryodenervation in the treatment of lumbar facet joint pain. This was a prospective clinical case series. Patient selection was based on the history, physical examination and positive medial branch blocks. Percutaneous medial branch cryodenervation was performed using a Lloyd Neurostat 2000. Target parameters were low back pain (VAS), limitation of activity (McNab) and overall satisfaction. Fifty patients were recruited, and 46 completed the study. The follow-up time was 1 year. At 6 weeks, 33 patients (72%) were pain free or had major improvement of low back pain; 13 (28%) had no or little improvement. Including failures, mean low back pain decreased significantly from 7.7 preoperatively to 3.2 at 6 weeks, 3.3 at 3 months, 3.0 at 6 months and 4.2 at 12 months (P<0.0001). Limitation of the activities of daily living improved parallel to reduced pain. Our results suggest that medial branch cryodenervation is a safe and effective treatment for lumbar facet joint pain. But de l’étude : les douleurs facétaires articulaires sont un élément important de la pathologie dégénérative de la colonne lombaire et la neurotomie par radio fréquence de la branche médiale est un traitement classique, alors que les résultats de la cryodénervation ne sont pas considérés comme évidents. Cette étude a pour but d’examiner les effets de la cryodénervation des rameaux médians dans le traitement des douleurs facétaires. L’étude a été menée de façon prospective. Les patients ont été sélectionnés selon leur histoire, l’examen physique et la positivité de la réalisation d’une infiltration des rameaux médians. La cryodénervation par voie percutanée a été réalisée par un appareil Lyod Neurostat 2000. Les paramètres étudiés ont été les lombalgies (VAS), la limitation d’activité (McNab) et la satisfaction. Cinquante patients ont été recrutés pour ce traitement, 46 sujets ont été spécialement étudiés et suivis pendant au moins un an. Résultats : à 6 semaines, 33 patients (72%) ne présentent aucune douleur et ont une grande amélioration de leur lombalgie, 13 (28%) n’ont pas ou simplement ont une petite amélioration. Malgré les échecs, les douleurs lombaires diminuent de façon significative avec une échelle de 7.7 préopératoire à 3.2 à 6 semaines, de 3.3 à 3 mois, de 3.0 à 6 mois et 4.2 à 12 mois (P<0.0001). En conclusion, nous pouvons affirmer, aux vues de nos résultats que la cryodénervation des rameaux médians est un procédé donnant de bons résultats réguliers dans le traitement des syndromes facétaires douloureux.
Latent structure and reliability analysis of the measure of body apperception: cross-validation for head and neck cancer Patients

Cancer and its treatments are associated with psychological distress that can negatively impact self-perception, psychosocial functioning, and quality of life. Patients with head and neck cancers (HNC) are particularly susceptible to psychological distress. This study involved a cross-validation of the Measure of Body Apperception (MBA) for HNC patients. One hundred and twenty-two English-fluent HNC patients between 20 and 88 years of age completed the MBA on a Likert scale ranging from “1 = disagree” to “4 = agree.” We assessed the latent structure and internal consistency reliability of the MBA using Principal Components Analysis (PCA) and Cronbach's coefficient alpha (α), respectively. We determined convergent and divergent validities of the MBA using correlations with the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), observer disfigurement rating, and patients' clinical and demographic variables. The PCA revealed a coherent set of items that explained 38 % of the variance. The Kaiser–Meyer–Olkin measure of sampling adequacy was 0.73 and the Bartlett's test of sphericity was statistically significant (χ 2 (28) = 253.64; p < 0.001), confirming the suitability of the data for dimension reduction analysis. The MBA had good internal consistency reliability (α = 0.77) and demonstrated adequate convergent and divergent validities based on statistically significant moderate correlations with the HADS (p < 0.01) and observer rating of disfigurement (p < 0.026) and nonstatistically significant correlations with patients' clinical and demographic variables: tumor location, age at diagnosis, and birth place (all p s  > 0.05). The MBA is a valid and reliable screening measure of body apperception for HNC patients.
Decrease in insulin resistance has a key role in improvement of metabolic profile during intragastric balloon treatment

To the Editor, Obesity is a chronic polygenic disease in most cases . Despite the different pathogenesis, all obese individuals have something in common: low growth hormone (GH) levels and increased insulin levels . This hormonal imbalance plays an important role in other metabolic disorders, such as glucose intolerance and dyslipidemia. Adipose tissue mass is also important factor. It is an endocrine organ that secrets several metabolic hormones and proinflammatory cytokines. The intensity of their secretion positively correlates with adipose tissue mass . Weight loss improves metabolic profile, although the exact mechanism is poorly understood. A detailed study regarding this matter was published only 1 year ago. The authors disclosed that diet-induced weight loss increases GH and ghrelin levels and decreases insulin and leptin levels . However, neither one study analyzed parallel changes in metabolic hormones and metabolic profile in short time intervals during weight loss. Hence, the exact causative relations between these hormones are unknown. BioEnterics intragastric balloon (BIB) is a endoscopic method in obesity treatment. The balloon placed in the stomach delays stomach emptying and enhances the feeling of satiety [4]. We aimed to investigate changes in serum insulin, C-peptide, GH, blood glucose, glycated hemoglobin, insulin resistance and lipid profile in first, third and sixth month after BIB placement. Since our previous study showed that the change in ghrelin and leptin levels during BIB treatment considerably depends on body mass index (BMI) , we analyzed those changes separately in obese (BMI \40 kg/m) and morbid obese (BMI \40 kg/m) patients.
A trial of nicotinamide in newly diagnosed patients with Type 1 (insulin-dependent) diabetes mellitus

Various agents have been tried in subjects with newly diagnosed Type 1 (insulin-dependent) diabetes mellitus in an attempt to preserve Beta-cell function. In this double-blind study, nicotinamide or placebo were given for one year to 35 children and adolescents with newly-diagnosed Type 1 diabetes. All subjects were within six weeks of diagnosis and were between the ages of 6 and 18 years. Nicotinamide, a poly-(ADP-ribose) synthetase inhibitor, was given in a dose of 100 mg/year of age up to a maximum of 1.5 g/day. There were no initial differences between the 17 control and the 18 test subjects in relation to mean age, sex distribution, or severity at onset. Mean insulin dosages and HbA1 values were similar for the two groups during the year of study. Fasting and glucagon-stimulated C-peptide levels were similar for the control and nicotinamide treated groups at the beginning and after 4 and 12 months. There were no differences in remission rates between the two groups. Nicotinamide, at this dosage, does not preserve residual insulin secretion in subjects with newly diagnosed Type 1 diabetes.
A double-blind, adjuvant-controlled trial of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) immunogen (Remune) monotherapy in asymptomatic, HIV-1-infected thai subjects with CD4-cell counts of >300.

We examined the effect of a human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-specific immune-based therapy in Thailand, where access to antiviral drug therapy is limited. A 40-week trial was conducted with 297 asymptomatic, HIV-infected Thai subjects with CD4-cell counts greater than 300 microl/mm(3). Subjects were randomized to receive either HIV type 1 (HIV-1) immunogen (Remune; inactivated HIV-1 from which gp120 is depleted in incomplete Freund's adjuvant or adjuvant control at 0, 12, 24, and 36 weeks at five different clinical sites in Thailand. Neither group received antiviral drug therapy. The a priori primary endpoint for the trial was changes in CD4-cell counts with secondary parameters of percent changes in CD8-cell counts (percent CD4, CD8, and CD4/CD8) and body weight. Subsets of subjects were also examined for changes in plasma HIV-1 RNA levels, Western blot immunoreactivity, and HIV-1 delayed-type hypersensitivity (DTH) skin test reactivity. There was a significant difference in changes in CD4-cell counts that favored the HIV-1 immunogen-treated group compared to those for the adjuvant-treated control group (P<0.05). On average, for HIV-1 immunogen-treated subjects CD4-cell counts increased by 84 cells by week 40, whereas the increase for the control group was 38 cells by week 40. This increase in CD4-cell count was associated with increased HIV-specific immunogenicity, as shown by Western blotting and enhanced HIV-1 DTH skin reactivity. No significant differences in adverse events were observed between the groups. The results of this trial suggest that HIV-1 immunogen is safe and significantly increases CD4-cell counts and HIV-specific immunity compared to those achieved with the adjuvant control in asymptomatic HIV-1-infected subjects not taking antiviral drugs.
A powerful and robust co-expression network analysis algorithm

Networks provide classic approaches to model complex systems, hence their wide application to investigate biological systems. Many types of biological networks are available; we have focused on co-expression networks. Co-expression networks have become standard tools in the systems biology toolbox to examine possible functional relationships in whole-transcriptome and -genome studies. These networks provide simple yet effective models of putative gene or protein interactions and potential functional groupings. Current methods often use parametric metrics, a misleading default option, as most high-throughput expression data are not normally distributed. To provide statistically sound network construction, our algorithm includes parametric and non-parametric similarity measures to allow for various types of data distributions. Biological networks are known to have approximate scale-free and small-world structure, thus we believe it is imperative that any co-expression network models follow these two properties, a feature often not provided or supported by current available methods. By allowing the network construction to be governed by these properties, our networks are guaranteed to be both scale-free and small-world. Our algorithm is implemented in R, with minimal effort required from the user. Input requirements consist only of a text file of quantified expression measures, and the choice of similarity metric. The output is a simple text file indicating connections between all nodes in the expression data file. This file can then be used for downstream analysis, such as the identification of interesting network structures. These structures include, but are not limited to, paths, cliques, modules, and clusters, which provide biological insights and possibly aid in hypothesizing novel functional properties of genes within the network. For example, paths can indicate actual metabolic pathways and cliques may illuminate functional properties of novel genes within gene groupings. One of our goals is to identify cliques within the co-expression network and use their mathematical properties to identify stronger functional gene groupings than typical clustering routines. Additionally, we hope that cliques will enable us to reduce the dimensionality of the network by merging genes (nodes) belonging to the same cliques into 'bigger' nodes. This will benefit in the visualization of the network.
 We believe an appropriate statistical sound similarity measure in combination with the known network properties will best enable the construction of mathematically reliable and biologically meaningful and relevant networks. Our main goal therefore is to generate more biologically meaningful network models, which then can be examined for connectivity structures to identify gene modules, functional groups, and regulatory/influential patterns, which may be missed by current methods. Finally, we propose to apply these approaches to whole-genome data and whole-transcriptome experiments unlike other algorithms utilizing only a pre-selected gene subset.
Periodontal therapy reduces plasma levels of interleukin-6, C-reactive protein, and fibrinogen in patients with severe periodontitis and refractory arterial hypertension.

Recent epidemiologic studies suggest that inflammation is the link between periodontal diseases and cardiovascular complications. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of non-surgical periodontal treatment on plasma levels of inflammatory markers (interleukin [IL]-6, C-reactive protein [CRP], and fibrinogen) in patients with severe periodontitis and refractory arterial hypertension.



Twenty-two patients were examined and randomly divided into two groups. The test group was composed of 11 patients (mean age, 48.9 +/- 3.9 years) who received periodontal treatment, whereas the control group had 11 patients (mean age, 49.7 +/- 6.0 years) whose treatment was delayed for 3 months. Demographic and clinical periodontal data were collected, and blood tests were performed to measure the levels of IL-6, CRP, and fibrinogen at baseline and 3 months later.



The clinical results showed that the mean percentages of sites with bleeding on probing, probing depth (PD) 4 to 5 mm, PD > or =6 mm, clinical attachment loss (CAL) 4 to 5 mm, and CAL > or =6 mm were significantly reduced in the test group 3 months after periodontal treatment. There were no significant differences between the data at baseline and 3 months in the control group. Periodontal treatment significantly reduced the blood levels of fibrinogen, CRP, and IL-6 in the test group.



Non-surgical periodontal therapy was effective in improving periodontal clinical data and in reducing the plasma levels of IL-6, CRP, and fibrinogen in hypertensive patients with severe periodontitis.
The effect of eprosartan on reflex sympathetic activation in sodium restricted patients with essential hypertension.

AT(1) receptor antagonists possess sympathoinhibitory effects in animal experiments, but in human studies the results are conflicting. We tested the hypothesis that very short-term treatment with the AT(1) receptor antagonist eprosartan inhibits reflex activation of the sympathetic nervous system in sodium-restricted patients with essential hypertension. The effect of eprosartan on urinary sodium and lithium excretion, heart rate, blood pressure, and vasoactive hormones was measured during reflex activation of the sympathetic nervous system by a cold pressor test and by a sodium nitroprusside induced 10 mm Hg reduction of the mean arterial pressure. It was a randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blinded, crossover study in 14 patients with essential hypertension. Glomerular filtration rate and renal tubular function were determined with continuous infusion clearance technique and vasoactive hormones with radioimmunoassays. Eprosartan had no effect on the increases in heart rate and plasma levels of noradrenaline during reflex activation of the sympathetic nervous system. However, eprosartan significantly decreased in fractional excretions of sodium (mean ± SD) (0.23 ± 0.22%) and lithium (3.1 ± 1.7%) during the sodium nitroprusside infusion, compared to placebo. Very short-term eprosartan treatment does not seem to have any sympathoinhibitory effects in sodium restricted patients with essential hypertension.
Late recanalisation beyond 24 hours is associated with worse outcome: an observational study

We evaluated the rate of late recanalisation beyond 24 h after intravenous thrombolysis (IVT) and its relationship with haemorrhagic transformation and outcome. We reviewed prospectively collected clinical and imaging data from acute ischaemic stroke patients with distal internal carotid artery or proximal middle cerebral artery occlusion who underwent angiography on admission, 24 h and 1 week after IVT. Patients were trichotomised according to vascular status: timely recanalisation (<24 h), late recanalisation (24 h-7 days), and no recanalisation. Non-invasive angiography revealed timely recanalisation in 52 (50.0 %) patients, late recanalisation in 25 (24.0 %) patients, and no recanalisation in 27 (26.0 %) patients. Pre-existing atrial fibrillation was associated with the occurrence of late recanalisation (odds ratio 6.674; 95 % CI: 1.197 to 37.209; p = 0.030). In patients without timely recanalisation, shift analysis indicated that late recanalisation led to a worse modified Rankin Scale score (odds ratio 6.787; 95 % CI: 2.094 to 21.978; p = 0.001). About half of all patients without recanalisation by 24 h after IVT may develop late recanalisation within 1 week, along with higher mRS scores by 3 months. Pre-existing atrial fibrillation is an independent predictor for late recanalisation. • About half of patients may develop late recanalisation within 1 week. • Pre-existing atrial fibrillation was associated with the occurrence of late recanalisation. • Late recanalisation led to a higher mRS score than no recanalisation.
A feasibility study of outpatient chemotherapy with S-1 + cisplatin in patients with advanced gastric cancer

Regimens of standard-dose cisplatin have usually been administered as inpatient chemotherapy in Japan. This prospective study evaluated the feasibility of outpatient chemotherapy with standard-dose cisplatin in Japanese patients with advanced gastric cancer. Advanced gastric cancer patients received an S-1 + cisplatin regimen (S-1: 80–120 mg days 1–21; cisplatin: 60 mg/m2 day 8, every 4–5 weeks), either as outpatient chemotherapy with oral hydration on days 9–10, or as inpatient chemotherapy with intravenous hydration on days 9–10, based on the results of an oral hydration test during days 1–7 of the first cycle. The primary endpoint was the completion rate of two cycles in the outpatient group. A total of 36 patients were enrolled: 32 were allocated to the outpatient group and 4 to the inpatient group. The completion rate of two cycles in the outpatient group was 78% [90% confidence interval (CI): 63–89]. The median of the total number of treatment cycles of S-1 + cisplatin and the median progression-free survival in the outpatient group were 5 (range 1–11) and 10.6 months (95% CI 4.2–16.9), respectively. Although seven patients in the outpatient group discontinued treatment, mainly owing to gastrointestinal toxicity, most of them could continue S-1 + cisplatin by switching to inpatient chemotherapy from the next cycle. Outpatient chemotherapy with S-1 + cisplatin in advanced gastric cancer patients can be safely and effectively administered in Japan with appropriate patient selection and supportive treatment.
Comparison of Long-term Results of Computer-Assisted Anti-Stigma Education and Reading Anti-Stigma Educational Materials

Professionals working with psychiatric patients very often have negative beliefs and attitudes about their clients. We designed our study to investigate the effectiveness of anti-stigma interventions among university students who are trained to provide special education.



The objective of our study was to compare sustainability of the effect of two anti-stigma education programs.



We enrolled 91 college students from the School of Special Education at the Herzen Russian State Pedagogic University (St Petersburg, Russia). Of those, 36 read two articles and World Health Organization brochure (reading group, RG) devoted to the problem of psychiatric stigma, and 32 studied an anti-stigma web-based program (program group, PG). Twenty-three students were in a control group (CG) and received no intervention. The second study visit in six months was completed by 65 students. To measure the level of stigma we used the Community Attitudes toward the Mentally Ill (CAMI) questionnaire. The web-based program was based on the Computer-assisted Education system (CO-ED) which we described previously. The CO-ED system provides self-paced interactive education driven by adult learning theories.



At the time of their first visit the age of the study participants was 19.0+/-1.2 years; of them, 99% were females. After the intervention in PG, the level of stigma assessed by CAMI decreased from 24.0+/-5.0 to 15.8+/- 4.6 points (p<0.0001). In RG the level of stigma dropped from 24.1+/-6.1 to 20.3+/-6.4 points (p<0.0001). In six months after the intervention the analysis of CAMI scores showed that the level of stigma in PG was significantly lower than in CG and RG (20.2+/-6.2 in CG, 21.3+/-6.5 in RG, and 18.7+/-4.9 in PG, p<0.01).



Web-based education or reading anti-stigma materials could be effective in reducing psychiatric stigma among university students. The effect of interactive web-based education based on adult learning theories was more stable as assessed in six months.
The association of cyclin D1 G870A and E-cadherin C-160A polymorphisms with the risk of colorectal cancer in a case control study and meta-analysis.

Cyclin D1 (CCND1) and E-cadherin (CDH1) have been shown to be important genes of the beta-catenin/LEF pathway that is involved in colorectal carcinogenesis. However, epidemiological studies on relationship between genetic variants of these two genes and colorectal cancer (CRC) have shown inconsistent results. In a population-based case-control study (498 cases and 600 controls), we assessed the association of CCND1 G870A and CDH1 C-160A polymorphisms with CRC risk. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was used to estimate the association between genotypes, environmental exposures and CRC risk, adjusting for potential confounders. Compared to common homozygotes, the OR for heterozygous and homozygote variant genotype was 1.08 (95% CI, 0.80-1.46) in CCND1 and 0.97 (95% CI, 0.75-1.25) in CDH1. Neither tumor stage nor location showed an association with genetic susceptibility. However, a significant interaction between hormone replacement therapy (HRT) and CCND1 genotypes in CRC risk was found among postmenopausal women (p(interaction) = 0.02). The risk reduction associated with HRT was substantial (OR, 0.09; 95% CI, 0.02-0.35) in women who were GG homozygous. A meta-analyses including 11 published studies on CCND1 G870A in addition to our study showed a slightly increased risk of CRC for carriers of the A allele (OR, 1.19; 95% CI, 1.06-1.34); however, there was some indication of publication bias. We conclude that the CCND1 G870A and CDH1 C-160A polymorphisms are not associated with the risk of CRC in the German population. However, the CCND1 G870A polymorphism may modify the protective effect of postmenopausal hormone use on the development of CRC.