The Determinants of Banks’ Capital Adequacy Ratio: Some Evidence from South Eastern European Countries

The legal authorities set the minimum capital level for the banks. Recent studies have shown that variables used to explain capital structure of non financial firms, such as size, profit, leverage, liquidity and risk, could also be helpful in understanding banks’ capital structure. This paper aims to evaluate the impact of bank-dimensional and environmental factors on bank’s capital adequacy ratio in South Eastern European (SEE) region. Size, profitability (ROA), leverage, liquidity, net interest margin (NIM), and risk are used as bank-dimensional explanatory variables in a feasible GLS regression model. On the other hand, economic growth rate, inflation, real interest rate, Eurozone stock market volatility index, deposit insurance coverage, and governance indicator are added to the original model to control for environmental factors. Annual data from 71 commercial banks belong to 10 different countries in SEE region for the period of 2007 – 2012 is used. This region mainly consists of the “transition economies†which are still experiencing the difficulties of turning into efficient market economies with high economic potentials. The results of our study show that among the bank dimensional explanatory variables size, ROA, leverage, liquidity, net interest margin and risk have statistically significant effects in determining CAR for the banks in the region. Among the environmental factors, economic growth rate, Eurozone stock market volatility index, deposit insurance coverage, and governance have statistically significant effects in determining CAR for the banks in the SEE region

Noninvasive assessment of liver fibrosis with the aspartate transaminase to platelet ratio index (APRI): Usefulness in patients with chronic liver disease: APRI in chronic liver disease

Background: The aspartate aminotransferases (AST) to platelet ratio index (APRI) may serve as a noninvasive marker to assess liver fibrosis. Objectives: To assess the diagnostic ability of the APRI for prediction of fibrosis in patients with chronic hepatitis B (CHB), chronic hepatitis C (CHC), and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). Patients and Methods: This retrospective study included 207 patients with CHB,108 with CHC, and 140 patients with NAFLD. The APRI was calculated as (AST level/upper normal limit for AST)/platelet counts (109/L) x 100. The stage of liver fibrosis in patients with chronic viral hepatitis was graded using the METAVIR scale. The Kleiner system for grading fibrosis was used in patients with NAFLD. Results: Bivariate correlation analyses showed that the APRI was significantly associated with fibrosis scores in patients with CHC (p = 0.2634, p = 0.0059) and NAFLD (p = 0.2273, p = 0.0069), but not in those with CHB (p = 0.1005, p = 0.1495). Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were used for assessing the ability of the APRI as a predictor of the absence or presence of liver fibrosis (fibrosis score of 0 vs fibrosis scores of 1-4). In patients with CHC, the APRI showed a sensitivity of 72.7% and a specificity of 62.4% for detection of fibrosis (p<0.01). In the NAFLD group, the APRI showed a sensitivity of 60.0% and specificity of 73.3% for detection of fibrosis (p<0.01). In patients with CHB, the APRI showed a sensitivity of 55.0% and a specificity of 75.4% for fibrosis (p=NS). Conclusions: The APRI shows an acceptable accuracy for the assessment of liver fibrosis in patients with CHC and NAFLD, but not in those with CHB

Thyroid papillary carcinoma presenting with femoral neck metastasis: a case report

Thyroid carcinoma is relatively uncommon, accounting for 2% of all cancers. Although they usually present as a neck lump, occasionally they may be presented with a distant metastasis. In this study, a 65 year-old woman was referred to our clinic with a pain on her left hip at both rest and walking. A lytic area at the inferior femoral neck was found with plain radiography. To clarify the characteristics of the lesion, left hip magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) had been performed displaying 3×5 cm hyperintense lesion extending from medial part of the left femoral neck to the left femoral head. Laboratory findings were normal. An open biopsy had then been performed from the left femoral neck with a suspicion of a metastatic tumor. After Immunohistochemical assesment diagnosis was consistent with metastatic thyroid papillary cancer. Proximal femoral resection with clear margins were achieved by proximal femur tumor endoprosthesis.  In conclusion, papillary thyroid cancer have an excellent prognosis and doesn’t tend to metastese. But rarely, as seen in our case it can even present with syptoms of metastasic disease. Management strategy is the same as other solitary bone metastasis. Papillary thyroid cancer must be kept in mind as a differential diagnosis in solitary bone metatasis

Localization Techniques for Non-Palpable Breast Lesions : Current Status, Knowledge Gaps, and Rationale for the MELODY Study (EUBREAST-4/iBRA-NET, NCT 05559411)

Funding: The MELODY study will be financially supported by: Hologic, Merit Medical, Endomag and Sirius Medical.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Multigene prognostic tests in breast cancer: past, present, future

There is growing consensus that multigene prognostic tests provide useful complementary information to tumor size and grade in estrogen receptor (ER)-positive breast cancers. The tests primarily rely on quantification of ER and proliferation-related genes and combine these into multivariate prediction models. Since ER-negative cancers tend to have higher proliferation rates, the prognostic value of current multigene tests in these cancers is limited. First-generation prognostic signatures (Oncotype DX, MammaPrint, Genomic Grade Index) are substantially more accurate to predict recurrence within the first 5 years than in later years. This has become a limitation with the availability of effective extended adjuvant endocrine therapies. Newer tests (Prosigna, EndoPredict, Breast Cancer Index) appear to possess better prognostic value for late recurrences while also remaining predictive of early relapse. Some clinical prediction problems are more difficult to solve than others: there are no clinically useful prognostic signatures for ER-negative cancers, and drug-specific treatment response predictors also remain elusive. Emerging areas of research involve the development of immune gene signatures that carry modest but significant prognostic value independent of proliferation and ER status and represent candidate predictive markers for immune-targeted therapies. Overall metrics of tumor heterogeneity and genome integrity (for example, homologue recombination deficiency score) are emerging as potential new predictive markers for platinum agents. The recent expansion of high-throughput technology platforms including low-cost sequencing of circulating and tumor-derived DNA and RNA and rapid reliable quantification of microRNA offers new opportunities to build extended prediction models across multiplatform data

Human-Material Interaction: Examining the Material Agency Concept in Making Processes

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You Have One New Message: Knitting intimacy for connecting opinions, people and the world

Knitting is often practiced as a group activity that takes place in the domestic environment. Besides the collectivity, using motifs with meanings has also facilitated communication between people. Building on these ideas, a workshop was designed to facilitate discussions about everyday concerns or experiences, both on personal and societal levels, to strengthen communication with the self and others. In the workshop, the thirteen participants were asked to design a motif to convey a message to themselves, to the group or to the society. Through a group discussion, the motifs stemming from personal experiences were knitted, shared and discussed. The topics emerging from the workshop indicates that knitting affords intimate exchanges between the self and others, and connects people by facilitating socio-political discussions, such as on environmental sustainability, women rights and self-developmentPeer reviewe