BACKGROUND Most complications during labour and childbirth could be averted with timely interventions by skilled healthcare providers. Yet, the quality and outcomes of childbirth care remains suboptimal in many health facilities in low-resource settings. To accelerate the reduction of childbirth-related maternal, fetal and newborn mortality and morbidity, the World Health Organization has initi...

Propensity Score Matching in a Meta-Analysis Comparing Randomized and Non-Randomized Studies Felix J. Thoemmes a , Stephen G. West b & Eric Hill b a Texas A&M University b Arizona State University Published online: 11 Dec 2009. To cite this article: Felix J. Thoemmes , Stephen G. West & Eric Hill (2009) Abstract: Propensity Score Matching in a Meta-Analysis Comparing Randomized and Non-Randomiz...

The application of expert systems techniques to process control domains represents a potential approach to managing the increasing complexity and dynamics which characterizes many process control environments. This thesis reports on one such application in a complex, multi-agent environment, with an eye toward generalization to other process control domains. The application concerns the automat...

Dear Sir, The overall prevalence of chronic kidney disease (CKD) with estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) < 60 mL/min per 1.73 m (stage 3) has substantially increased over the last decades and is further growing. On the other hand, it's still a debatable issue whether such population should be referred to the nephrologists given the professional burden of care versus the potential of th...

Previously, the field of tumor immunology has relied on T cell receptor (TCR) transgenic mice and model tumor antigens to study the T cell:tumor cell interaction. However, these models have limitations. Namely, they do not reflect the natural affinity, repertoire, or precursor frequency of tumor antigen-specific T cells. Using a novel TCR affinity tool, the Nur77GFP mouse, we have characterized...

An important objective in computer vision research is the automatic understanding of aerial photographs of urban and suburban locations. Several systems have been developed to begin to recognize man-made objects in these scenes. A brief review of these systems is presented. This paper introduces the Pennsylvania Landscan recognition system. It is performing recognition of a scale model of the U...

The past two decades have seen a global convergence from gambling prohibition to legalization, but also a divergence regarding how new gambling industries are structured and regulated. This article compares two cases of casino legalization exhibiting different and, given conventional understandings of the two countries, unexpected outcomes. In the United States, ethnic entrepreneurs (Indian tri...

BACKGROUND BRCA1 and BRCA2 are the two major susceptibility genes involved in hereditary breast cancer. This study was undertaken to provide reliable population-based estimates of genetic influence and to characterize the nature and prevalence of BRCA1 and BRCA2 germline mutations in early-onset breast cancer. METHODS In a series comprising all women diagnosed with breast cancer under the age...

BACKGROUND Labral reconstruction using iliotibial band (ITB) autografts and semitendinosus (Semi-T) allografts has recently been described in cases of labral deficiency. PURPOSE/HYPOTHESIS To characterize the joint biomechanics with a labrum-intact, labrum-deficient, and labrum-reconstructed acetabulum in a hip cadaveric model. The hypothesis was that labral resection would decrease contact a...

BACKGROUND After external beam radiation therapy (EBRT) for prostate cancer, a short interval to biochemical failure of <18 months has been proposed as a surrogate for cause-specific survival. Because EBRT dose influences biochemical failure, the authors investigated the interval to biochemical failure in a cohort of patients treated with dose-escalated EBRT. METHODS From 1998 to 2008, 710 pa...