Digital Commons Network^™

Usefulness Of The Echocardiographic Multi-Parameter Score (Emps) In Evaluating Left Ventricular Global Heart Function, Bingyuan Zhou, Junhua Yang, Xiangjun Yang, Yongming He, Caiming Zhao, Sudan Xu, Huifeng Wang

The Texas Heart Institute Journal

In this study, we established a new index by combining several echocardiographic parameters to quantify heart failure. We selected 233 consecutive patients who underwent both echocardiographic and plasma B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP) tests within 24 hours after referral for suspected heart failure. The echocardiographic parameters included systolic function, diastolic function, left ventricular chamber remodeling, valvular lesions, systolic pulmonary arterial pressure, and regional wall-motion abnormality. Each factor was scored from 1 to 3 points according to its severity. The total point from these 6 factors is the echocardiographic multi-parameter score (EMPS).

The EMPS for 37, 51, 77, and 38 patients from …

Prehypertension: A Meta-Analysis Of The Epidemiology, Risk Factors, And Predictors Of Progression, Xiaofan Guo, Liling Zou, Xingang Zhang, Jue Li, Liqiang Zheng, Zhaoqing Sun, Jian Hu, Nathan D Wong, Yingxian Sun

The Texas Heart Institute Journal

We investigated the prevalence and risk factors of prehypertension, as well as the predictors of progression from prehypertension to hypertension. To do this, we performed a systematic review and meta-analysis of cross-sectional and longitudinal studies, after unrestricted searches of PubMed and The Cochrane Library through September 2010. In addition, we reviewed references, major textbooks, and review articles. Pooled prevalence, standardized mean differences, and odds ratios were estimated by using a random-effects model.

Twenty-six articles met our inclusion criteria; these included 20 cross-sectional and 6 longitudinal studies, with a total sample of 250,741 individuals. The overall pooled prevalence of prehypertension was …

Measuring Alcohol Craving: Development Of The Alcohol Craving Experience Questionnaire., Dixie J. Statham, Jason P. Connor, David J. Kavanagh, Gerald F.X. Feeney, Ross Mc D. Young, Jon May, Jackie Andrade

School of Psychology

To develop a measure of craving based on the Elaborated Intrusion (EI) theory of desire and to examine the construct, concurrent and discriminant validity of the instrument.

Referrals To A Regional Allergy Clinic - An Eleven Year Audit., Ray B. Jones, Paul Hewson, Edward R. Kaminski

School of Nursing and Midwifery

BACKGROUND: Allergy is a serious and apparently increasing public health problem yet relatively little is known about the types of allergy seen in routine tertiary practice, including their spatial distribution, co-occurrence or referral patterns. This study reviewed referrals over an eleven year period to a regional allergy clinic that had a well defined geographical boundary. For those patients confirmed as having an allergy we explored: (i) differences over time and by demographics, (ii) types of allergy, (iii) co-occurrence, and (iv) spatial distributions. METHODS: Data were extracted from consultant letters to GPs, from September 1998 to September 2009, for patients confirmed …

Golgi Cells Operate As State-Specific Temporal Filters At The Input Stage Of The Cerebellar Cortex, Shane A. Heine, Stephen M. Highstein, Pablo M. Blazquez

Open Access Publications

Cerebellar processing of incoming information begins at the synapse between mossy fibers and granule cells, a synapse that is strongly controlled through Golgi cell inhibition. Thus, Golgi cells are uniquely positioned to control the flow of information into the cerebellar cortex and understanding their responses during behavior is essential to understanding cerebellar function. Here we show, for the first time, that Golgi cells express a unique oculomotor-related signal that can be used to provide state- and time-specific filtering of granule cell activity. We used newly established criteria to identify the unique electrophysiological signature of Golgi cells and recorded these neurons …

Uterine Epithelial Cell Regulation Of Dc-Sign Expression Inhibits Transmitted/Founder Hiv-1 Trans Infection By Immature Dendritic Cells, Daniel O. Ochiel, Christina Ochsenbauer, John C. Kappes, Mimi Ghosh, John V. Fahey, Charles R. Wira

Dartmouth Scholarship

Background:

Sexual transmission accounts for the majority of HIV-1 infections. In over 75% of cases, infection is initiated by a single variant (transmitted/founder virus). However, the determinants of virus selection during transmission are unknown. Host cell-cell interactions in the mucosa may be critical in regulating susceptibility to infection. We hypothesized in this study that specific immune modulators secreted by uterine epithelial cells modulate susceptibility of dendritic cells (DC) to infection with HIV-1.

Methodology/Principal Findings:

Here we report that uterine epithelial cell secretions (i.e. conditioned medium, CM) decreased DC-SIGN expression on immature dendritic cells via a transforming growth factor beta (TGF-β) …

C-Jun Inhibits Mammary Apoptosis In Vivo., Sanjay Katiyar, Mathew C Casimiro, Luis Dettin, Xiaoming Ju, Erwin F Wagner, Hirokazu Tanaka, Richard Pestell

Department of Cancer Biology Faculty Papers

c-jun, which is overexpressed in a number of human cancers encodes a critical component of the AP-1 complex. c-jun has been shown to either induce or inhibit cellular apoptosis. Germ line deletion of both c-jun alleles is embryonically lethal. To determine the role of the endogenous c-jun gene in apoptosis, we performed mammary epithelial cell-targeted somatic deletion using floxed c-jun (c-jun(f/f)) conditional knockout mice. Laser capture microdissection demonstrated endogenous c-jun inhibits expression of apoptosis inducing genes and reactive oxygen species (ROS)-reducing genes (MnSOD, catalase). ROS have been implicated in apoptosis and undergo enzymatic elimination via MnSOD and CuZnSOD with further …

Voices Raised, Issue 30, University Of Dayton. Women's Center

Women’s Center Newsletter

Included in this issue: Sisterhood of the Traveling Scarf; Dr. Corvino Speaks on Homosexuality; Center for Social Concern Offers Break-out Trips; UD Shows Continues Dedication to Women’s Athletics; The A Team; There’s no (bent) grass growing under these sisters feet; The Importance of Taking Time for Yourself; Home for the Holidays; Unique Nativity Scenes; Thanks to those who make UD “run like butter”.

Relation Of Size Of Secondary Ventricles To Exercise Performance In Children After Fontan Operation., Ashwin Prakash, Thomas G. Travison, Mark A. Fogel, Lynne M. Hurwitz, Andrew J. Powell, Beth F. Printz, Michael D. Puchalski, Girish S. Shirali, Shi-Joon Yoo, Tal Geva, Pediatric Heart Network Investigators

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

The effects of the nondominant or secondary ventricle on the Fontan circulation are not known. The present study used cardiac magnetic resonance imaging to investigate the relations between secondary ventricular size and global cardiac performance. The Fontan cross-sectional study collected data from 7 centers participating in the Pediatric Heart Network. Subjects with complete cardiac magnetic resonance imaging data and an identifiable secondary ventricle were included in the analysis. Relationships between body surface area-adjusted parameters of the secondary ventricle (mass, end-diastolic volume, mass/volume ratio, and stroke volume) and the following measures were assessed. These measures included the percentage of predicted peak …

Incidence Of, Predictors For, And Mortality Associated With Malignant Ventricular Arrhythmias In Non-St Elevation Myocardial Infarction Patients., Shuchita Gupta, Md, Gregg S. Pressman, Vincent M. Figueredo, M.D.

Division of Cardiology Faculty Papers

BACKGROUND: The incidence of non-ST elevation myocardial infarction (NSTEMI) is increasing. Although life-threatening ventricular arrhythmias have been well-documented in patients with ST elevation MI (STEMI), their incidence and importance in NSTEMI have not been examined in similar detail. We examined the incidence, predictors, and mortality rates of ventricular arrhythmias in a cohort of NSTEMI patients undergoing an early invasive strategy.

METHODS: Consecutive patients admitted with NSTEMI who underwent cardiac catheterization within 48 h of admission were identified by chart review. Presence and type of ventricular arrhythmias and 30-day mortality were recorded. Malignant arrhythmias were defined as sustained ventricular tachycardia (VT, …

Beauty, Breasts, And Brains: An Exploration Of Using The Adolescent Female Body As A Resistance Site, Hanna Andrews Beall

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

Adolescent girls are continuously barraged with messages regarding what it means to be a girl and the appropriate way in which to do so. Particularly within the South, there are strict boundaries for acceptable forms of femininity both within school and in the broader social context. However, within the walls of the classroom, these lived experiences of girls are often ignored. By ignoring the lived experiences of girls in schools, many girls are being marginalized, trivialized, and dismissed from the school environment. This dissertation examines the hidden curriculum as it applies to adolescent girls in schools today and offers a …

Priming In Interpersonal Contexts: Implications For Affect And Behavior., Na Wyer, G Calvini, A Nash, N Miles

School of Psychology

Priming stereotypes can lead to a variety of behavioral outcomes, including assimilation, contrast, and response behaviors. However, the conditions that give rise to each of these outcomes are unspecified. Furthermore, theoretical accounts posit that prime-to-behavior effects are either direct (i.e., unmediated) or mediated by cognitive processes, whereas the role of affective processes has been largely unexplored. The present research directly investigated both of these issues. Three experiments demonstrated that priming a threatening social group ("hoodies") influences both affect and behavior in an interpersonal context. Hoodie priming produced both behavioral avoidance and several affective changes (including social apprehension, threat sensitivity, and …

Integrating The Promotion Of Physical Activity Within A Smoking Cessation Programme: Findings From Collaborative Action Research In Uk Stop Smoking Services., Adrian H. Taylor, Emma S. Everson-Hock, Michael Ussher

Peninsula Medical School

BACKGROUND: Within the framework of collaborative action research, the aim was to explore the feasibility of developing and embedding physical activity promotion as a smoking cessation aid within UK 6/7-week National Health Service (NHS) Stop Smoking Services. METHODS: In Phase 1 three initial cycles of collaborative action research (observation, reflection, planning, implementation and re-evaluation), in an urban Stop Smoking Service, led to the development of an integrated intervention in which physical activity was promoted as a cessation aid, with the support of a theoretically based self-help guide, and self monitoring using pedometers. In Phase 2 advisors underwent training and offered …

Supply Sensitive Services In Swiss Ambulatory Care: An Analysis Of Basic Health Insurance Records For 2003-2007, André Busato, Pius Matter, Beat Künzi, David C. Goodman

Dartmouth Scholarship

Swiss ambulatory care is characterized by independent, and primarily practice-based, physicians, receiving fee for service reimbursement. This study analyses supply sensitive services using ambulatory care claims data from mandatory health insurance. A first research question was aimed at the hypothesis that physicians with large patient lists decrease their intensity of services and bill less per patient to health insurance, and vice versa: physicians with smaller patient lists compensate for the lack of patients with additional visits and services. A second research question relates to the fact that several cantons are allowing physicians to directly dispense drugs to patients ('self-dispensation') whereas …

Biparental Mucus Feeding: A Unique Example Of Parental Care In An Amazonian Cichlid., Jonathan Buckley, Richard J. Maunder, Andrew Foey, Janet Pearce, Adalberto L. Val, Katherine A. Sloman

School of Biomedical Sciences

Vertebrates display a wide variety of parental care behaviours, including the guarding of offspring pre and post nutritional independence as well as the direct provision of nutrients during the early development period. The Amazonian cichlid Symphysodon spp. (discus fish) is unusual among fish species, in that both parents provide offspring with mucus secretions to feed from after hatching. This extensive provision of care, which can last up to a month, imposes a physiological demand on both parents and gives rise to conflict between the parent and offspring. Here, we investigated the relationship between parents and offspring during a breeding cycle, …

The Endogenous Soluble Vegf Receptor-2 Isoform Suppresses Lymph Node Metastasis In A Mouse Immunocompetent Mammary Cancer Model, Masa-Aki Shibata, Jayakrishna Ambati, Eiko Shibata, Romulo J. C. Albuquerque, Junji Morimoto, Yuko Ito, Yoshinori Otsuki

Ophthalmology and Visual Science Faculty Publications

BACKGROUND: Cancer metastasis contributes significantly to cancer mortality and is facilitated by lymphangiogenesis and angiogenesis. A new splicing variant, endogenous soluble vascular endothelial growth factor receptor-2 (esVEGFR-2) that we recently identified is an endogenous selective inhibitor of lymphangiogenesis. To evaluate the antimetastatic potential of esVEGFR-2, gene therapy with vector expressing esVEGFR-2 (pesVEGFR-2) or endostatin (pEndo) as a positive control was conducted on murine metastatic mammary cancer.

METHODS: Syngeneic inoculated metastatic mammary cancers received direct intratumoral injection of pesVEGFR-2, pEndo or pVec as control, once a week for six weeks. In vivo gene electrotransfer was performed on the tumors after each …

The Association Between Soft Drink Consumption And Body Fat In Females Age 16 To 24, Megan M. Costello, Kate A. Heelan, Deborah A. Mowry, Bryce Abbey

International Journal of Exercise Science

American soft drink consumption (SDC) has increased since the 1960’s surpassing all other kinds of beverage consumption. In recent years, the scientific literature has suggested that SDC has been linked to the rising epidemic of obesity in children and adolescents. However, there is lack of information in scientific literature on the effects of SDC on body fat (BF%) in young females. The purpose of this study was to determine the association between SDC and BF% in young women, ages 16-24 years. Sixty-six females were asked to complete a 3-day food record, food frequency questionnaire, and an assessment BF% by dual-energy …

Wild-Type And Mutant Sod1 Share An Aberrant Conformation And A Common Pathogenic Pathway In Als., Daryl A Bosco, Gerardo Morfini, N Murat Karabacak, Yuyu Song, Francois Gros-Louis, Piera Pasinelli, Holly Goolsby, Benjamin A Fontaine, Nathan Lemay, Diane Mckenna-Yasek, Matthew P Frosch, Jeffrey N Agar, Jean-Pierre Julien, Scott T Brady, Robert H Brown

Farber Institute for Neuroscience Faculty Papers

Many mutations confer one or more toxic function(s) on copper/zinc superoxide dismutase 1 (SOD1) that impair motor neuron viability and cause familial amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (FALS). Using a conformation-specific antibody that detects misfolded SOD1 (C4F6), we found that oxidized wild-type SOD1 and mutant SOD1 share a conformational epitope that is not present in normal wild-type SOD1. In a subset of human sporadic ALS (SALS) cases, motor neurons in the lumbosacral spinal cord were markedly C4F6 immunoreactive, indicating that an aberrant wild-type SOD1 species was present. Recombinant, oxidized wild-type SOD1 and wild-type SOD1 immunopurified from SALS tissues inhibited kinesin-based fast axonal …

Image Guided Near-Infrared Spectroscopy Of Breast Tissue In Vivo Using Boundary Element Method, Subhadra Srinivasan, Colin M. Carpenter, Hamid R. Ghadyani, Senate J. Taka, Peter A. Kaufman, Roberta M. Diflorio-Alexander, Wendy A. Wells, Brian W. Pogue, Keith D. Paulsen

Dartmouth Scholarship

We demonstrate quantitative functional imaging using image-guided near-infrared spectroscopy (IG-NIRS) implemented with the boundary element method (BEM) for reconstructing 3-D optical property estimates in breast tissue in vivo. A multimodality MRI-NIR system was used to collect measurements of light reflectance from breast tissue. The BEM was used to model light propagation in 3-D based only on surface discretization in order to reconstruct quantitative values of total hemoglobin (HbT), oxygen saturation, water, and scatter. The technique was validated in experimental measurements from heterogeneous breast-shaped phantoms with known values and applied to a total of seven subjects comprising six healthy individuals …

Automated Classification Of Breast Pathology Using Local Measures Of Broadband Reflectance, Ashley M. Laughney, Venkataramanan Krishnaswamy, Pilar Beatriz Garcia-Allende, Olga M. Conde, Wendy A. Wells, Keith D. Paulsen, Brian W. Pogue

Dartmouth Scholarship

We demonstrate that morphological features pertinent to a tissue's pathology may be ascertained from localized measures of broadband reflectance, with a mesoscopic resolution (100-μm lateral spot size) that permits scanning of an entire margin for residual disease. The technical aspects and optimization of a k-nearest neighbor classifier for automated diagnosis of pathologies are presented, and its efficacy is validated in 29 breast tissue specimens. When discriminating between benign and malignant pathologies, a sensitivity and specificity of 91 and 77% was achieved. Furthermore, detailed subtissue-type analysis was performed to consider how diverse pathologies influence scattering response and overall classification efficacy. The …

Simvastatin Enhances Immune Responses To Aβ Vaccination And Attenuates Vaccination-Induced Behavioral Alterations, Jinghong Kou, Hong-Duck Kim, Jingji Jin, Dongfeng Cao, Ling Li, Robert Lalonde, Ken-Ichiro Fukuchi

NYMC Faculty Publications

Statins are widely used to lower cholesterol levels by inhibiting cholesterol biosynthesis. Some evidence has indicated that statins might have therapeutic and preventive benefits for Alzheimer's disease (AD). We and others also have shown the beneficial effect of statin treatment in reversing learning and memory deficits in animal models of AD. However, data from clinical trials are inconclusive. We previously documented that the adenovirus vector encoding 11 tandem repeats of Aβ1-6 fused to the receptor-binding domain (Ia) of Pseudomonas exotoxin A, AdPEDI-(Aβ1-6)(11), is effective in inducing an immune response against amyloid-β protein (Aβ) and reducing brain Aβ load in Alzheimer's …

Patient-Orientated Longitudinal Study Of Multiple Sclerosis In South West England (The South West Impact Of Multiple Sclerosis Project, Swims) 1: Protocol And Baseline Characteristics Of Cohort., John P. Zajicek, Wendy M. Ingram, Jane Vickery, Siobhan Creanor, Dave E. Wright, Jeremy C. Hobart

Peninsula Medical School

BACKGROUND: There is a need for greater understanding of the impact of multiple sclerosis (MS) from the perspective of individuals with the condition. The South West Impact of MS Project (SWIMS) has been designed to improve understanding of disease impact using a patient-centred approach. The purpose is to (1) develop improved measurement instruments for clinical trials, (2) evaluate longitudinal performance of a variety of patient-reported outcome measures, (3) develop prognostic predictors for use in individualising drug treatment for patients, particularly early on in the disease course. METHODS: This is a patient-centred, prospective, longitudinal study of multiple sclerosis and clinically isolated …

Differential Effects Of Mindful Breathing, Progressive Muscle Relaxation, And Loving-Kindness Meditation On Decentering And Negative Reactions To Repetitive Thoughts., Greg Feldman, Jeffrey M. Greeson, Joanna Senville

College of Science & Mathematics Departmental Research

Decentering has been proposed as a potential mechanism of mindfulness-based interventions but has received limited empirical examination to date in experimental studies comparing mindfulness meditation to active comparison conditions. In the present study, we compared the immediate effects of mindful breathing (MB) to two alternative stress-management techniques: progressive muscle relaxation (PMR) and loving-kindness meditation (LKM) to test whether decentering is unique to mindfulness meditation or common across approaches. Novice meditators (190 female undergraduates) were randomly assigned to complete one of three 15-min stress-management exercises (MB, PMR, or LKM) presented by audio recording. Immediately after the exercise, participants completed measures of …

The Pathways To Mental Health Care Of First-Episode Psychosis Patients: A Systematic Review., Kelly K. Anderson, Rebecca Fuhrer, Ashok K. Malla

Epidemiology and Biostatistics Publications

BACKGROUND: Although there is agreement on the association between delay in treatment of psychosis and outcome, less is known regarding the pathways to care of patients suffering from a first psychotic episode. Pathways are complex, involve a diverse range of contacts, and are likely to influence delay in treatment. We conducted a systematic review on the nature and determinants of the pathway to care of patients experiencing a first psychotic episode.

METHOD: We searched four databases (Medline, HealthStar, EMBASE, PsycINFO) to identify articles published between 1985 and 2009. We manually searched reference lists and relevant journals and used forward citation …

Voices Raised, Issue 29, University Of Dayton. Women's Center

Women’s Center Newsletter

Included in this issue: Women journalists come to UD; Love Your Body Month; UD Women Athletes & Breast Cancer Awareness; OMA Welcomes New Director; But He Doesn’t Hit Me; Is Your Relationship Emotionally Abusive?; UD Women’s Athletics; Newsletter focus on UD women’s athletics.

Leg Ulcers In Sickle Cell Disease., Caterina P Minniti, James Eckman, Paola Sebastiani, Martin H Steinberg, Samir K. Ballas

Department of Medicine Faculty Papers

Sickle cell disease is a single amino acid molecular disorder of hemoglobin leading to its pathological polymerization, red cell rigidity that causes poor microvascular blood flow, with consequent tissue ischemia and infarction. The manifestations of this disease are protean.Among them, leg ulcers represent a particularly disabling and chronic complication, often associated with a more severe clinical course.Despite the fact that this complication has been recognized since the early times of SCD, there has been little improvement in the efficacy of its management and clinical outcome over the past 100 years. Recently, vasculopathic abnormalities involving abnormal vascular tone and activated, adhesive …

Alterations In Multiple Measures Of White Matter Integrity In Normal Women At High Risk For Alzheimer's Disease, Brian T. Gold, David K. Powell, Anders H. Andersen, Charles D. Smith

Neuroscience Faculty Publications

There is evidence that disruption of white matter (WM) microstructure is an early event in the course of Alzheimer's disease (AD). However, the neurobiological bases of WM microstructural declines in presymptomatic AD are unknown. In the present study we address this issue using a multimodal imaging approach to the study of presymptomatic AD. Participants were 37 high-risk (both family history of dementia and one or more APOE4 alleles) women and 20 low-risk (neither family history nor APOE4) women. Groups were matched for age, education, neuropsychological performance, and vascular factors that could affect white matter. Whole-brain analyses of diffusion tensor imaging …

Crossing Over: The Influence Of Black American Female Representation On Nigerian Films And Music Videos, Adaora O. Arachie

Research Papers

No abstract provided.

Are Roadside Pedestrian Injury Patterns Predictable In A Densely Populated, Urban Setting?, Niels D. Martin, Daniel J. Grabo, Lili Tang, Jacqueline Sullivan, Kris R. Kaulback, Michael S. Weinstein, Gary A. Lindenbaum, Murray J. Cohen

Department of Surgery Faculty Papers

BACKGROUND: Roadside pedestrian injuries represent a significant portion of trauma team activations, especially at urban trauma centers. Patient demographics and severity of injury vary greatly in this patient population. Herein, we hypothesize that injury patterns may be predictable, especially with respect to age.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: All patients with roadside pedestrian injuries evaluated at our urban, level one trauma center from January 2006 through December 2008 were retrospectively reviewed. Data were collected from the institutional trauma registry. Age was used as an independent variable and compared with injury type, substance abuse, discharge setting, and mortality.

RESULTS: There were 226 roadside …

Routine Opt-Out Hiv Testing In Jails: Findings From Two Prospective Controlled Trials, Ravi Kavasery

Yale Medicine Thesis Digital Library

Background: Tens of millions of Americans enter jails annually. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention now recommends routine HIV testing in prisons and jails. The logistics for performing routine HIV testing within jails, however, remains controversial. Specific Aims: 1) To simulate and explore the feasibility of future implementation of a routine opt-out HIV testing protocol using rapid testing methods in the often-chaotic jail setting. 2) To evaluate the optimal time to perform routine HIV testing among inmates who are competent to consent to testing, in a manner that not only maximizes public health but also attends to the safety …