Revista Jurídica Digital UANDES
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Heliox for inducible laryngeal obstruction (vocal cord dysfunction):A systematic literature review
No full textObjectives: To perform a systematic literature review on the use of Heliox with patients with inducible laryngeal obstruction/vocal cord dysfunction to: i) identify current evidence base; and ii) establish the methodological quality of published research.Methods: Articles published up to March 2018 were searched for key words and terms using Cochrane Library, MEDLINE, PubMed, CINAHL, EMBASE and Dynamed. Studies were included if they presented original research into the use of Heliox for vocal cord dysfunction.Results: Only three studies met the inclusion criteria for review. All reported favorable results for the use of Heliox as an adjunctive therapy for vocal cord dysfunction but none had sufficient methodological quality to support their conclusions.Conclusion: Despite review articles recommending the use of Heliox in vocal cord dysfunction, there is a lack of good quality research to support this conclusion. There is a need for further research to investigate the effectiveness of Heliox as an adjunctive therapy for vocal cord dysfunction.Level of Evidence: 4.</p
“Age-related Hearing Loss”? It’s Time to Retire the Term and Find a Replacement
No full textPurpose: To examine whether socioeconomic position and major lifestyle risk factors are associated with hearing loss, using data from ELSA wave 7 (n=8,529 participants, aged 50-89).Methods: Hearing was measured using an audiometric screening device and HL defined as >35dB at 3.0 kHz, in the better-hearing ear. Using multiple logistic regression modelling we examined the association of hearing loss with non-modifiable factors (age, gender), partly modifiable factors (socioeconomic indicators), and fully modifiable lifestyle risk factors (body mass index, physical activity, smoking and alcohol consumption). Results: Those in a lower socioeconomic position were up to two times more likely to have hearing loss. In addition, several modifiable lifestyle factors (such as high body mass index, physical inactivity, and excessive smoking and alcohol consumption) were involved to a large extent in the pathways of the association between socioeconomic position and hearing loss.Conclusion: Hearing loss may be a potential preventable lifestyle disease and not necessarily an inevitable accompaniment of the ageing process, paving the way for the term “lifestyle-related hearing loss”, where lifestyle refers to social practices and ways of living adopted by individuals that reflect personal, group, and socio-economic identities, instead of the non-inclusive term “age-related hearing loss”
Border Lives:An Ethnography of a Lebanese Town in Changing Times
No full textBorder Lives offers an in-depth account of how people in Arsal, a northeastern town on the border of Lebanon with Syria, experienced postwar sociality, and how they grappled with living in the margins of the Lebanese state in the period following the 1975-1990 war. In a rich ethnography of ‘changing times,’ Michelle Obeid shows how restrictions in cross-border mobility, transformations in physical and social spaces, burgeoning new industries and shifting political alliances produced divergent ideologies about domesticity and the family, morality and personhood. Attending to metaphors of modernity in a rural border context, Border Lives broadens the sites in which modernity and social change can be investigated
Controlled Electrodeposition of Gold on Graphene: Maximisation of the Defect-Enhanced Raman Scattering Response
No full textA reliable method to prepare a surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) active substrate is developed herein, by electrodeposition of gold nanoparticles (Au NPs) on defect-engineered, large area CVD graphene (GR). A plasma treatment strategy has been used in order to engineer the structural defects on the basal plane of large area single-layer graphene. This defect-engineered Au functionalised GR, offers reproducible SERS signals over the large area GR surface. The Raman data, along with X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and analysis of the water contact angle are used to rationalise the functionalization of the graphene layer. We find that Au NPs functionalisation of the “defect-engineered” graphene substrates permits detection of concentrations as low as 10−16 M for the probe molecule Rhodamine B (RhB), which offers an outstanding molecular sensing ability. Interestingly, a Raman signal enhancement of up to∼ 108 was achieved. Moreover, we observed that GR effectively quenches the fluorescence background from the Au NPs and molecules due to the strong resonance energy transfer between Au NPs and GR. The results presented offer significant direction for the design and fabrication of ultra-sensitive SERS platforms, and also open up possibilities for novel applications of defect engineered graphene in biosensors, catalysis, and optoelectronic devices
Staphylococcus aureus drives expansion of low-density neutrophils in diabetic mice
No full textDiabetic individuals are at considerable risk for invasive infection by Staphylococcus aureus, however, the mechanisms underlying this enhanced susceptibility to infection are unclear. We observed increased mortality following i.v. S. aureus infection in diabetic mice compared with nondiabetic controls, correlating with increased numbers of low-density neutrophils (LDNs) and neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs). LDNs have been implicated in the inflammatory pathology of diseases such as lupus, given their release of large amounts of NETs. Our goal was to describe what drives LDN increases during S. aureus infection in the diabetic host and mechanisms that promote increased NET production by LDNs. LDN development is dependent on TGF-β, which we found to be more activated in the diabetic host. Neutralization of TGF-β, or the TGF-β-activating integrin αvβ8, reduced LDN numbers and improved survival during S. aureus infection. Targeting S. aureus directly with MEDI4893*, an α toxin-neutralizing monoclonal antibody, blocked TGF-β activation, reduced LDNs and NETs, and significantly improved survival. A comparison of gene and protein expression in high-density neutrophils and LDNs identified increased GPCRs and elevated phosphatase and tensin homolog (PTEN) in the LDN subset. Inhibition of PTEN improved the survival of infected diabetic mice. Our data identify a population of neutrophils in infected diabetic mice that correlated with decreased survival and increased NET production and describe 3 therapeutic targets, a bacterial target and 2 host proteins, that prevented NET production and improved survival.</p
Development and validation of a risk prediction score for severe acute pancreatitis
No full textINTRODUCTION: The available prognostic scoring systems for severe acute pancreatitis (SAP) have limitations that restrict their clinical value. The aim of this study was to develop a simple model (score) that could rapidly identify those at risk for SAP.METHODS: We derived a risk model using a retrospective cohort of 700 patients by logistic regression and bootstrapping methods. The discriminative power of the risk model was assessed by calculating the area under the receiver operating characteristic curves (AUC). The classification and regression tree (CART) analysis was used to create risk categories. The model was internally validated by a tenfold cross-validation and externally validated in a separate prospective cohort of 194 patients.RESULTS: The incidence of SAP was 9.7% in the derivation cohort and 9.3% in the validation cohort. A prognostic score (We denoted it as the SABP score), ranging from 0 to 10, consisting of systemic inflammatory response syndrome, serum albumin, blood urea nitrogen and pleural effusion, was developed by logistic regression and bootstrapping analysis. Patients could be divided into three risk categories according to total SABP score based on CART analysis. The mean probability of developing SAP was 1.9%, 12.8% and 41.6% in patients with low (0-3), moderate (4-6) and high (7-10) SABP score, respectively. The AUCs of prognostic score in tenfold cross-validation was 0.873 and 0.872 in the external validation.CONCLUSION: Our risk prediction score may assist physicians in predicting the development of SAP.</p
An Experimental and Computational Study on Inverted Flag Dynamics for Simultaneous Wind–Solar Energy Harvesting
No full textThis paper presents results from experiments and simplified numerical simulations on the flow-induced dynamics and power generation of inverted flags that combine flexible piezoelectric strips with photovoltaic cells to simultaneously harvest kinetic wind energy and solar radiant energy. Experiments were conducted in a wind tunnel under controlled wind excitation and light exposure, focusing in particular on the dynamics and power generation of the inverted flag harvester. Numerical simulations were carried out using a lattice-Boltzmann fluid solver coupled with a finite element structural solver via the immersed-boundary method, focusing in particular on minimizing the simulation run time. The power generated during the tests shows that the proposed inverted flag harvester is a promising concept, capable of producing enough power (on the order of 1 mW) to supply low-power electronic devices in a range of applications where distributed power generation is needed. Notwithstanding key simplifications implemented in the numerical model to achieve a fast execution, simulations and measurements are in good agreement, confirming that the lattice-Boltzmann method is a viable and time-effective alternative to classic Navier–Stokes-based solvers when dealing with strongly coupled fluid–structure interaction problems characterized by large structural displacements
An overview of social responsibility dimensions in international business
No full textThis chapter aims at taking stock of business-responsibility-related studies in international business (IB) research. Key features of this literature review include (1) a broad search strategy capturing both positive and negative aspects of responsibility, (2) not imposing any constraints on the time period, and (3) extending the search to all IB journals included in the Web of Science database. By incorporating both responsible and irresponsible behavior in the search strategy, we are able to provide a holistic map of responsibility-related research in IB
MNEs and human rights: From responsibilities to rights to governance
No full textPurpose – This paper explores the links between MNEs and human rights abuses, and reviews the development of international business and human rights initiatives. Arguing that the focus of the business and human rights debate has shifted from responsibility to rights, and subsequently to governance, it proposes a framework for analysing international business and human rights governance issues in the context of social value creation. Design/methodology/approach – The paper develops a framework for analysing business and human rights governance with respect to (i) the business and human rights field; and (ii) four business and human rights subfields (labour, consumption, community, and environment).Findings – The analytical framework is organised around the relationships between human rights duty-bearers (companies) and human rights-holders (e.g., employees, consumers). It emphasises the role of actors and their interests, the relationships between actors, the objectives of these relationships, and the role of governance mechanisms and structures, which, for a particular human rights subfield, define the international business and human rights governance system. Originality/value – The analytical framework can be used by international business researchers, practitioners and public policy-makers to describe, analyse, discuss and address business and human rights issues and challenges. It can be used for comparing and evaluating characteristics and properties of alternative institutional arrangements in the field of business and human rights. Furthermore, it can be used to support the design corporate non-market strategies as well as public policies