Incompetent patients need to have someone else make decisions on their behalf. According to the Substituted Judgment Standard the surrogate decision maker ought to make the decision that the patient would have made, had he or she been competent. Objections have been raised against this traditional construal of the standard on the grounds that it involves flawed counterfactual reasoning, and amendm

Bees provide essential pollination services that are potentially affected both by local farm management and the surrounding landscape. To better understand these different factors, we modelled the relative effects of landscape composition (nesting and floral resources within foraging distances), landscape configuration (patch shape, interpatch connectivity and habitat aggregation) and farm managem

The human skin exerts many functions in order to maintain its barrier integrity and protect the host from invading microorganisms. One such pathogen is Streptococcus pyogenes, which can cause a variety of superficial skin wounds that may eventually progress into invasive deep soft tissue infections. Here we show that keratinocytes recognize soluble M1 protein, a streptococcal virulence factor, as

A comprehensive experimental study on the interaction between the PEO-PPO-PEO block copolymer P123 (EO20PO68EO20) and the anionic bile salt sodium glycodeoxycholate (NaGDC) in water has been performed. The work was aimed at investigating the suitability of using P123 as bile salt sequestrant beside the fundamental aspects of PEO-PPO-PEO block copolymer-bile salt interactions. Various experimental

To address immunocapture of proteins in large cohorts of clinical samples high throughput sample processing is required. Here a method using the proteomic sample platform, ISET (integrated selective enrichment target) that integrates highly specific immunoaffinity capture of protein biomarker, digestion and sample cleanup with a direct interface to mass spectrometry is presented. The robustness of

Rationale: Long-term outcomes after acute kidney injury (AKI) are poorly described. Objectives: We hypothesized that one single episode of minimal (stage 1) AKI is associated with reduced long-term survival compared with no AKI after recovery from critical illness. Methods: A prospective cohort of 2,010 intensive care unit (ICU) patients admitted to the ICU between years 2000 and 2009 at a provinc

Virtually all destinations seek to increase tourist numbers, pursuing economic maximization strategies. Considerably less attention is paid to optimizing existing tourist systems to create more profitable, stable, resilient and potentially more sustainable entities. While aspects of tourist expenditure, average length of stay and seasonality as three key destination management variables have recei

The neutron-rich lead isotopes, up to Pb-216, have been studied for the first time, exploiting the fragmentation of a primary uranium beam at the FRS-RISING setup at GSI. The observed isomeric states exhibit electromagnetic transition strengths which deviate from state-of-the-art shell-model calculations. It is shown that their complete description demands the introduction of effective three-body

In previous longitudinal studies of mortality and morbidity among foreign-born and native-born Swedes, increased mortality and dissimilarities in mortality pattern were found. The aim of this study is to describe, compare, and analyse the utilization of in-hospital care among deceased foreign- and Swedish-born persons during the years 1987-1999 with focus on four diagnostic categories. The study p

OBJECTIVE:: To study the rate of common comorbidities and cardiovascular disease in ankylosing spondylitis (AS) patients compared with the general population seeking health care. METHODS:: This cohort study included 935 subjects (67% men) age ≥20 years, diagnosed with AS and the adult background population in southern Sweden. During 2004 to 2007 we recorded the occurrence of physicians' diagnostic

Using a combination of surface X-ray diffraction and mass spectrometry at realistic pressures, the CO oxidation reactivity of a Rh(111) model catalyst has been studied in conjunction with the surface structure. The measurements show that it specific thin surface oxide is always present in the high activity regime of Rh-based CO oxidation.

How do political parties arrive at their policy positions? We conceptualize position formation in federalist countries as an intra-party bargaining process in which subnational parties compete with each other in an attempt to get their own positions into their national party manifesto. Drawing on theories about inter-party bargaining over ministerial portfolios, we hypothesize that the bargaining

Research has found that individuals varying in hypnotizability and dissociation respond differently to questionnaires and procedures geared to affect their state of consciousness, but their stream of consciousness in everyday life has not been investigated. We evaluated the everyday mentation of students (N 46) in a 2 (High vs. Low Hypnotizability) 2 (High vs. Low Dissociative) design through expe

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a common neurodevelopmental condition characterized by marked genetic heterogeneity. Recent studies of rare structural and sequence variants have identified hundreds of loci involved in ASD, but our knowledge of the overall genetic architecture and the underlying pathophysiological mechanisms remains incomplete. Glycine receptors (GlyRs) are ligand-gated chloride

Bone grafts are well-established in the treatment of fracture non-unions but union is still not always achieved. Harvesting autograft is associated with donor site morbidity and the available amount of bone is limited. Allograft is more easily obtained and available in greater quantities but lacks the osteoinductive characteristics of autograft. We have previously shown a synergistic effect of bon

To update the European System for Cardiac Operative Risk Evaluation (EuroSCORE) risk model. A dedicated website collected prospective risk and outcome data on 22 381 consecutive patients undergoing major cardiac surgery in 154 hospitals in 43 countries over a 12-week period (May-July 2010). Completeness and accuracy were validated during data collection using mandatory field entry, error and range

Initial viral decay rate may be useful when comparing the relative potency of antiretroviral regimens. Two hundred twenty-seven ART-naive patients were randomized to receive efavirenz (EFV) (n=74), lopinavir/ritonavir (LPV/r) (n=77), or atazanavir/ritonavir (ATV/r) (n=79) in combination with two NRTIs. The most frequently used NRTI combinations in the EFV and ATV/r groups were the nonthymidine ana