1,720,985 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
Retroperitoneal endometriosis in postmenopausal woman causing deep vein thrombosis: case report and review of the literature
No full textEndometriosis is an uncommon disease in postmenopausal women (PMW), ranging from 2% to 5% of cases, and it is very important to exclude neoplastic transformation of the endometrium. The authors would like to introduce the case of a 63-year-old overweight patient with abdominal pain associated to pain and swelling of the left inferior limb occurring for approximately six weeks. The CT X-ray of the abdomen revealed the presence of a retroperitoneal mass causing deep vein thrombosis because of extrinsic compression of the left iliac vein. Following removal of the pelvic masses with laparotomy, the histological exam revealed an endometriosis. The CT X-ray carried out after a month postoperatively revealed the root canal treatment of the left femoral vein with a considerable decrease of the thrombosis of homolateral external iliac veins. Despite the endometriosis, it is uncommon in women who have reached menopause and must be considered in the differential diagnosis of pelvic masses
Impact of the new guidelines of the American Thyroid Association on the treatment of the differentiated thyroid tumor in an Italian center with medium-high volume thyroid surgery
No full textBackgroundThe therapy for differentiated thyroid tumors is currently built upon two cornerstones: the stage of the disease and the new guidelines of the American Thyroid Association, jointly converging to lobohystmectomy for selected cases that meet certain criteria. The aim of the study was to relate these guidelines to the activity of an Italian center with a medium-high volume of thyroidectomies in a region with a high rate of endemic disease of the thyroid.MethodsIn order to conduct the analysis, the clinical records of the last 3years, including 194 cases of total thyroidectomy and 3 lobohystmectomy, were taken into consideration. There were 46 cases of differentiated thyroid cancer (18 incidental tumors were found during thyroidectomies for benign diseases). Postoperative complications, patient characteristics and the stage of the tumor were assessed in relation to the new ATA guidelines.ResultsAll patients underwent total thyroidectomy, with 2 of them also undergoing lymphadenectomy. The incidence of transient hypoparathyroidism was 19% with 1 case of permanent deficit. No cases of recurrent nerve injury were reported. Twenty-five out of the 28 patients with cancer preoperatively diagnosed were found with more nodules and in 15 of them the nodule had a diameter bigger than 1cm. All the parameters suggested lobohystmectomy only for one case.The treatment for the differentiated thyroid tumor is still widely discussed. Above all, differences between populations, screening methods and surveillance programs are still evident.ConclusionsThe ATA guidelines applied to our cases, even if limited, have shown limited applicability to our study, mainly due to the high incidence of multinodularity and the size of the nodule: typical characteristics of a region with a high rate of endemic thyroid pathology
How we do it: totally laparoscopic complete mesocolon excision for splenic flexure cancer
No full textSplenic flexure (SF) cancer is not a common condition and its treatment is still under discussion. Although laparoscopic surgery is well accepted for the treatment of colon cancer at any stage, complete mesocolon excision (CME) with selective vascular ligation using the laparoscopic approach for SF cancer remains technically demanding and represents a real challenge for surgeons.
METHODS:
We present a single-institution experience of laparoscopic CME for SF cancer. Intra-operative, pathologic, and post-operative data of patients who underwent laparoscopic SF resection were reviewed to assess the technical feasibility and oncologic safety. Technical features, histopathology, morbidity, and mortality were evaluated.
RESULTS:
From February 2015 to October 2017, a minimally invasive approach was proposed to 17 patients (M/F 14/3) affected by splenic flexure cancer. In all patients, the procedure was completed by laparoscopy. The anastomosis was completed intra-corporeally in 89% of cases. The distal margin was 3.1 ± 2.6 cm and the proximal margin was 6.5 ± 3.3 cm from the tumor site. The number of mean harvested nodes was 13.9 ± 7. The mean operative time was 215.5 ± 65 min, and blood loss was 80 ± 27. In one case, a laparoscopic partial gastrectomy was associated due to tumor invasion. The mean post-operative stay was 6.7 ± 3.3 days. Readmission was necessary for two patients. No major morbidity was recorded
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
Surgical skills and technological advancements to avoid complications in lateral neck dissection for differentiated thyroid cancer
Full text linkNeck dissection is a surgical procedure reserved for thyroid cancer cases with clinically evident lymphatic invasion. Although neck dissection is a reliable and safe procedure, it can determine a significant morbidity involving a variety of structures of nervous, vascular and endocrine typology. A careful pre-operative study is therefore essential to better plan surgery. Surgical experience, combined with accurate surgical preparation and merged with adequate and specific techniques, can certainly help reduce the percentage of complications. In recent years, however, technology has also proved to be useful. Its crucial role was already recognized in the safeguard of the integrity of the laryngeal nerve through neuro-monitoring, but new technologies are emerging to help the preservation also of the parathyroid glands and other structures, such as the thoracic duct. These surgical skills combined with the latest technological advancements, that allow us to reduce the incidence of complications after neck dissection for thyroid cancer, will be reported in the present article. This topic is of significant interest for the endocrine and metabolic surgeons’ community
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
Stapled Hemorrhoidectomy and obstructive defecation symptoms: postoperative functional outcome
No full textDispelling 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
- …
