Unified Definitions Research Articles

Detection of metabolic syndrome features among childhood cancer survivors: a target to prevent disease.

Along with the growing epidemic of obesity, the risk of atherosclerosis, cardiovascular disease morbidity, and mortality are increasing markedly. Several risk factors for cardiovascular disease, such as visceral obesity, glucose intolerance, arterial hypertension, and dyslipidemia commonly cluster together as a condition currently known as metabolic syndrome. Thus far, insulin resistance, and endothelial dysfunction are the primary events of the metabolic syndrome. Several groups have recommended clinical criteria for the diagnosis of metabolic syndrome in adults. Nonetheless, in what concerns children and adolescents, there are no unified definitions, and modified adult criteria have been suggested by many authors, despite major problems. Some pediatric disease states are at risk for premature cardiovascular disease, with clinical coronary events occurring very early in adult life. Survivors of specific pediatric cancer groups, particularly acute lymphocytic leukemia, central nervous system tumors, sarcomas, lymphomas, testicular cancer, and following bone marrow transplantation, may develop metabolic syndrome traits due to: hormonal deficiencies (growth hormone deficiency, thyroid dysfunction, and gonadal failure), drug or radiotherapy damage, endothelial impairment, physical inactivity, adipose tissue dysfunction, and/or drug-induced magnesium deficiency. In conclusion, some primary and secondary prevention remarks are proposed in order to reduce premature cardiovascular disease risk in this particular group of patients.

Remarks on potential spaces and Besov spaces in a Lipschitz domain and on Whitney arrays on its boundary

In this note, we propose to remove some small gaps in the theory of potential spaces Hps(Ω) and Besov spaces Bps(Ω), 1 < p < ∞, s ∈ ℝ, for a bounded Lipschitz domain Ω ⊂ ℝn, n ⩾ 2. Namely, we discuss 1) the unified definitions of these spaces with s of any sign, the unified duality theorems and interpolation relations, 2) the possibility of constructing a function in these spaces with given array of traces of its derivatives on the boundary.

Classification and Treatment of Rare and Aggressive Types of Peripheral T-Cell/Natural Killer-Cell Lymphomas of the Skin

The classification of cutaneous lymphomas has been contentious. Two major competing classifications were the World Health Organization (WHO) and the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC). The principal authors met for a consensus meeting resulted in a combined classification called WHO-EORTC Classification of Cutaneous Lymphoma. We review the classification of "mature" or peripheral T-cell lymphoma (PTCL) with high predilection to the skin as published by the WHO-EORTC. We also highlight new information and changes from the previous classifications of cutaneous PTCL according to the WHO classification or the EORTC classification. Finally, the salient findings are compared with similar-looking nodal PTCLs with a high frequency of skin involvement. This review focuses on a rare group of cutaneous PTCLs other than mycosis fungoides or its variants. Changes from the previous classifications are discussed, and the rare group of nodal PTCLs with high predilection to the skin are presented. The salient findings, diagnostic features, and treatments are included, along with summary tables and clinical-histopathologic images. This review may serve as a guide for hematologists, oncologists and dermatologists in the diagnosis and management of these rare, aggressive, and often difficult to diagnose lymphomas. Although cutaneous lymphomas are morphologically identical to systemic lymphomas, the former behave differently, require divergent management, and should be recognized as separate entities. The consensus WHO-EORTC classification presents unified terminology and definitions to promote conformity in diagnosing and treating these cases, to foster a multidisciplinary approach to these often-obscure diseases, and to lead to more advances in identifying molecular targets specific to these entities.

The GH/IGF-1 Axis in Obesity: Physiological and Pathological Aspects

The cluster of cardiovascular risk factors-abdominal obesity, dyslipidaemia, insulin resistance and hypertension-has been recognized as the core of the metabolic syndrome. Adults with severe growth hormone (GH) deficiency have, to a large extent, features of the metabolic syndrome, and there is a strong inverse association between visceral fat accumulation and blunted GH secretion in adults. Hyposomatotropism in abdominal obesity has therefore been suggested to be of importance for its metabolic consequences. However, the underlying pathophysiological mechanisms are poorly understood. Prevalence of the metabolic syndrome is steadily increasing worldwide. Overnutrition and sedentary habits are the stigmata of modern society that predispose genetically susceptible individuals to develop central obesity and other features of the metabolic syndrome including glucose intolerance, hypertension and dyslipidemia. Although there are still no unified definitions of the syndrome, it is clear that this condition is associated with an increased risk for development of cardiovascular disease (CVD) and diabetes mellitus (DM). In this review, we discuss current evidence regarding alterations in the GH-IGF- 1 axis in abdominal obesity and its possible impact on other features of the metabolic syndrome.

Definition of major bleeding in clinical investigations of antihemostatic medicinal products in non‐surgical patients

Summary. A variety of definitions of major bleeding have been used in published clinical studies, and this diversity adds to the difficulty in comparing data between trials and in performing meta-analyses. In the first step towards unified definitions of bleeding complications, the definition of major bleeding in non-surgical patients was discussed at the Control of Anticoagulation Subcommittee of the International Society on Thrombosis and Haemostasis. Arising from that discussion, a definition was developed that should be applicable to studies with all agents that interfere with hemostasis, including anticoagulants, platelet function inhibitors and fibrinolytic drugs. The definition and the text that follows have been reviewed and approved by the cochairs of the subcommittee and the revised version is published here. The intention is to also seek approval of this definition from the regulatory authorities.

Unifying simulatability definitions in cryptographic systems under different timing assumptions

The cryptographic concept of simulatability has become a salient technique for faithfully analyzing and proving security properties of arbitrary cryptographic protocols. We investigate the relationship between simulatability in synchronous and asynchronous frameworks by means of the formal models of Pfitzmann et al., which are seminal in using this concept in order to bridge the gap between the formal-methods and the cryptographic community. We show that the synchronous model can be seen as a special case of the asynchronous one with respect to simulatability, i.e., we present an embedding from the synchronous model into the asynchronous one that we show to preserve simulatability. We show that this result allows for carrying over lemmas and theorems that rely on simulatability from the asynchronous model to its synchronous counterpart without any additional work, hence future work on enhancing simulatability-based models can concentrate on the more general asynchronous case.

Inequity Measures for Evaluations of Environmental Justice: A Case Study of Close Proximity to Highways in New York City

Assessments of environmental and territorial justice are similar in that both assess whether empirical relations between the spatial arrangement of undesirable hazards (or desirable public goods and services) and sociodemographic groups are consistent with notions of social justice, evaluating the spatial distribution of benefits and burdens (outcome equity) and the process that produces observed differences (process equity). Using proximity to major highways in New York City as a case study, we review methodological issues pertinent to both fields and discuss choice and computation of exposure measures, but focus primarily on measures of inequity. We present inequity measures computed from the empirically estimated joint distribution of exposure and demographics and compare them with traditional measures such as linear regression, logistic regression, and Theil's entropy index. We find that measures computed from the full joint distribution provide more unified, transparent, and intuitive operational definitions of inequity and show how the approach can be used to structure siting and decommissioning decisions.

Comparison of EAI Frameworks.

EAI (Enterprise Application Integration) is defined as the set of plans, methods and tools aimed at modernizing, consolidating, integrating and coordinating information systems within an enterprise. An EAI Framework (EAIF) is presented to provide sound and unified definitions of the modeling elements involved in the EAI approach. The goal of this work is to compare EAIF with other widely accepted frameworks that can be used to model EAI. A set of reusable features are defined to identify the main weakness and strength of these frameworks. As a result, EAIF has been enriched with the “human aspects” feature.

A mixing layer theory for flow resistance in shallow streams

A variety of surface roughness characterizations have emerged from nineteenth and twentieth century studies of channel hydraulics. When the water depth h is much larger than the characteristic roughness height ks, roughness formulations such as Manning's n and the friction factor f can be explicitly related to the momentum roughness height zo in the log‐law formulation for turbulent boundary layers, thereby unifying roughness definitions for a given surface. However, when h is comparable to (or even smaller than) ks, the log‐law need not be valid. Using a newly proposed mixing layer analogy for the inflectional velocity profile within and just above the roughness layer, a model for the flow resistance in shallow flows is developed. The key model parameter is the characteristic length scale describing the depth of the Kelvin‐Helmholtz wave instability. It is shown that the new theory, originally developed for canopy turbulence, recovers much of the earlier roughness results for flume experiments and shallow gravel streams. This study is the first to provide such a unifying framework between canopy atmospheric turbulence and shallow gravel stream roughness characterization. The broader implication of this study is to support the merger of a wealth of surface roughness characterizations independently developed in nineteenth and twentieth century hydraulics and atmospheric sciences and to establish a connection between roughness formulations across traditionally distinct boundary layer types.

Some aspects of measurement, interpretation and practical use of results from solid fuel reactivity studies

The reactivity of solid fuels i.e. fossil fuels, waste fuels and coal processing products is a feature decisive for the reaction rate under various burning conditions and affects both the burn-up factor of the fuel in the furnace and hence also the combustion efficiency, which further influences the usability of the so-called furnace wastes (too high content of underburnts excludes further utilisation), the ability of fuels to create NOx, temperature distribution in the furnace etc. The reactivity of solid fuels is not actually tested on the standardised basis because of the lack of unified definitions of terms, deficiency of a fairly simple laboratory method for the reactivity determination and of a practical method for the interpretation of the test results. A step towards standardisation of the methodology of reactivity tests can be made by using such terms as combustion intensity u [kg/s], surface combustion rate q [kg/m2/s] and chemical reaction rate constant Kkin [kg(C)/m2/s/Pa0,5] together with kinetic constants k and E determining the fuel reactivity.

Coming out and Staying Home: Nice Jewish Girls and Home Girls

As multi-genre anthologies by groups of women have rapidly proliferated in the 1980s and 1990s, they have become a primary site both to theorize and to put into practice communities founded upon a politics of identity. Two such anthologies, Nice Jewish Girls: A Anthology (1982) and Home Girls: A Black Feminist Anthology (1983), form themselves around the seemingly homogeneous identities of their contributors: Home Girls is comprised of African American working class lesbian feminists; Nice Jewish Girls, of Jewish lesbian feminists. Such specificity constitutes contributors' challenge to unified definitions of woman and also to Monique Wittig's concept of a Lesbian Nation-an international community and culture shared by all lesbians-promoted by white middle class lesbians in the 1970s. The women in Nice Jewish Girls and Home Girls use identity politics to challenge their exclusions not only from lesbian communities, but also, in the case of Home Girls contributors, from their African American communities and from Black nationalist move-

SPECULATIONS ON THE CONFLICT OF DISCOURSES: FINANCE, CRIME AND REGULATION

The paper assumes a conflict between the discourses (domains of language) of finance, criminality and regulation. It suggests that in the recent past transgression of codes has become the norm in financial services practices. Utilising the idea that profit orientated organisations and operatives are crimogenic and that the border between organised economic activity and organised criminality is negotiable, it further suggests that the strategic deployment of nomination in relation to economic activities involving financial services serves to neutralise responses which would ordinarily classify these activities as deviant and subject to orthodox criminalisation. Without recourse to unified definitions and standards of criminality, the effectiveness of rational regulatoiy responses is flawed from the beginning. The paper raises broader questions regarding governmentality, legitimation and anomie. The deregulation, technologisation and internationalisation of the London financial markets has served to remove a central source of regulator authority (the State and its institutional agencies). Regulation through compliance suggests that the responsibility for legitimation and the production of values and ethics resides with the practitioners themselves who operate in a state of anomie (normlessness) in response to risk (financial risk and norm‐breaking risk). The absence of a grounded discourse of criminality operative within the con sciousness of practitioners and regulators enables ethical and moral relativity to flourish. The paper ends with a call for a restatement of criminological ‘labelling’ theory and for this to become an element in the informing theoretical criteria in future studies of fraudulent activity.

A unified definition for the discrete-time, discrete-frequency, and discrete-time/Frequency Wigner distributions

Various discrete definitions of the Wigner distribution (WD) for discrete-time signals have been proposed in previous works. The formulation developed in this paper leads to natural and unified definitions of discrete versions of the WD. They are directly related to the continuous and preserve most of its properties. The discretization is first considered in the time domain (DTWD), in the frequency domain (DFWD), and then in both domains simultaneously (DTFWD). In each case, the aliasing problem is studied and generalized interpolation formulas allowing the reconstruction of the continuous WD are derived. The DTFWD is particulary relevant for computer implementation of the WD.

A Unifying View of Hybrid Simulation/Analytic Models and Modeling

In this paper we give unifying definitions for both hybrid simulation/analytic models and modeling. We present four classes of hybrid simulation/analytic models and give examples of each class, including numerical results for two of the examples Four usages of hybrid simulation/analytic modeling are also presented with examples.