1,721,014 research outputs found
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
The impact of shift work on the psychological and physical health of nurses in a general hospital: a comparison between rotating night shifts and day shifts
No full textBackground: Shift work is considered necessary to ensure continuity of care in hospitals and residential facilities. In particular, the night shift is one of the most frequent reasons for the disruption of circadian rhythms, causing significant alterations of sleep and biological functions that can affect physical and psychological well-being and negatively impact work performance.
Objectives: The aim of this study was to highlight if shift work with nights, as compared with day work only, is associated with risk factors predisposing nurses to poorer health conditions and lower job satisfaction.
Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted from June 1, 2015 to July 31, 2015 in 17 wards of a general hospital and a residential facility of a northern Italian city. This study involved 213 nurses working in rotating night shifts and 65 in day shifts. The instrument used for data collection was the “Standard Shift Work Index,” validated in Italian. Data were statistically analyzed.
Results: The response rate was 86%. The nurses engaged in rotating night shifts were statistically significantly younger, more frequently single, and had Bachelors and Masters degrees in nursing. They reported the lowest mean score in the items of job satisfaction, quality and quantity of sleep, with more frequent chronic fatigue, psychological, and cardiovascular symptoms in comparison with the day shift workers, in a statistically significant way.
Conclusion: Our results suggest that nurses with rotating night schedule need special attention due to the higher risk for both job dissatisfaction and undesirable health effects
Safety and efficacy of T-DM1 in HER2 positive metastatic breast cancer patients: a real word experience.
Full text linkBackground: T-DM1 is an antibody–drug conjugate that combines the antitumor effects of trastuzumab with a cytotoxic antimicrotubule agent that is only released in HER-positive tumor cells. It has been approved for the treatment of patients with HER2 positive metastatic breast cancer (MBC) pre-treated with trastuzumab + taxanes or progressing while on adjuvant trastuzumab, after the pivotal phase III trial EMILIA. The aim of this study is to audit the real life experience with T-DM1 at the University Hospital of Modena.
Material and methods: All patients treated with T-DM1 in our Institution between May 2014 – February 2016 were retroprospectively collected. All patients registered at the time of analysis were evaluated for safety and efficacy. Treatment toxicities were graded according to CTCAE version 4.0. Efficacy was assessed as per clinical practice.
Results: Twenty-two patients have been treated with T-DM1. The median age was 58 years (range 38-77), 50% of them with ECOG 1-2. With regards to tumor characteristics, 72% were hormonal receptor positive BC and 82% of patients had visceral involvement at the beginning of T-DM1. All patients received previous trastuzumab and taxane, 50% received anthracycline-based therapy too. 27% of patients were pre-treated with at least three prior chemotherapy lines for MBC. Pertuzumab was previously administered to one patient, lapatinib to 8 patients. The median number of T-DM1 cycles was 9 (range 1-30), with 50% of patients receiving 5 or more courses. All patients were assessed for efficacy: 36% obtained PR and 18% SD as the best response. The clinical benefit rate (CR+PR+SD>6months) was 45%. The median PFS was 9.0 months (CI 2.8–20.8). Six patients (27%) out of 22 died. Mild grade transaminitis was the most common side effect observed in 50% of patients, followed by fatigue in 41% of patients, thrombocytopenia in 35% and diarrhea in 28%. No grade 3 adverse events were observed, although two hypersensitivity reactions were reported.
Conclusions: T-DM1 administered outside the context of a clinical trial is safe, well tolerated, and with reproducible efficacy, consistent with those published in the EMILIA and TH3RESA studies
"the More the Better" Paradox of Antenatal Ultrasound Examinations in Low-Risk Pregnancy
No full textObjective To investigate whether different antenatal care models could account for differences in operative delivery rates and adverse neonatal outcomes among low-risk pregnant women, and to identify independent variables associated with delivery modes and adverse neonatal outcomes. Study design Retrospective cohort from a single center of singleton, term, live births between January 2012 and June 2014. Rates of cesarean deliveries, operative vaginal deliveries, and neonatal morbidities were analyzed among women followed by private obstetrician-gynecologists versus national health system providers (certified nurse midwifes supervised by obstetrician-gynecologists), and adjusted for potential confounders. Results Among the 2,831 women in our cohort, obstetric and neonatal outcomes were independent of obstetric providers. After we controlled for confounders, private patients having more than four antenatal ultrasound examinations were more likely to undergo cesarean delivery than public patients with four or fewer sonographic assessments (five to eight prenatal scans: relative risk ratio, 3.3; 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.4-8; nine or more prenatal scans: relative risk ratio, 4.1; 95% CI 1.2-14). Conclusions Multiple prenatal ultrasound examinations in low-risk obstetric populations appear to be an independent and potentially modifiable risk factor for cesarean deliveries
New approaches to the design of clinical trials in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis
No full textIdiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is one of the major challenges for respiratory medicine since prognosis is particularly poor and few therapeutic options are available - in fact, at present to the only approved drug is pirfenidone. Winning this challenge will be based on successful design and completion of randomized clinical trials. The last decade witnessed an unprecedented increase in quality and quantity of trials in IPF: nonetheless, most have been negative and potential obstacles did emerge. In particular, the choice of the best endpoint, i.e. clinically meaningful and feasible at the same time, and the management of missing data still represent issues not fully resolved. The increasingly competitive environment and the heterogeneity in approach by different regulatory agencies also need to be considered. In the next few years more and more trials will be designed and completed, in the hope of taking quicker and safer treatments to IPF patients
Variations on the Author
Full text link“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis
Full text linkWe provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis
Dispelling the Myths Behind First-author Citation Counts
Full text linkWe conducted a full-scale evaluative citation analysis study of scholars in the XML research field to explore just how different from each other author rankings resulting from different citation counting methods actually are, and to demonstrate the capability of emerging data and tools on the Web in supporting more realistic citation counting methods. Our results contest some common arguments for the continued
use of first-author citation counts in the evaluation of scholars, such as high correlations between author rankings by first-author citation counts and other citation
counting methods, and high costs of using more realistic citation counting methods that are not well-supported by the ISI databases. It is argued that increasingly available digital full text research papers make it possible for citation analysis studies to go beyond what the ISI databases have directly supported and to employ more
sophisticated methods
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