Is Success Hereditary? Evidence on the Performance of Spawned Ventures

A common phenomenon in entrepreneurship is that employees turn away from employmentto found their own businesses. Prior literature discusses the former employers’characteristics that influence the creation of entrepreneurial ventures. An investigation ofwhether these characteristics also affect the success of the spawned ventures is missing so far. This paper contributes to the literature by showing that entrepreneurial ventures spawned by well performing firms are financially more successful than ventures stemming from bad performing firms. This suggests that spawned entrepreneurs are able to exploit valuable knowledge from their previous employers which impacts their ventures’ performance positively. The analysis is based on a linked employee-employer dataset for the Netherlands for the period 1999-2004.Strategy;

AACAP 2006 Research Forum--Advancing research in early-onset bipolar disorder: barriers and suggestions

OBJECTIVE: The 2006 Research Forum addressed the goal of formulating a research agenda for early-onset bipolar disorder (EOBP) and improving outcome by understanding the risk and protective factors that contribute to its severity and chronicity. METHOD: Five work groups outlined barriers and research gaps in EOBP genetics, neuroimaging, prodromes, psychosocial factors, and pharmacotherapy. RESULTS: There was agreement that the lack of consensus on the definition and diagnosis of EOBP is the primary barrier to advancing research in BP in children and adolescents. Related issues included: the difficulties in managing co-morbidity both statistically and clinically; acquiring adequate sample sizes to study the genetics, biology, and treatment; understanding the EOBP\u27s developmental aspects; and identifying environmental mediators and moderators of risk and protection. Similarly, both psychosocial and medication treatment strategies for children with BP are hamstrung by diagnostic issues. To advance the research in EOBP, both training and funding mechanisms need to be developed with these issues in mind. CONCLUSIONS: EOBP constitutes a significant public health concern. Barriers are significant but identifiable and thus are not insurmountable. To advance the understanding of EOBP, the field must be committed to resolving diagnostic and assessment issues. Once achieved, with adequate personnel and funding resources, research into the field of EOBP will doubtless be advanced at a rapid pace

Effect of aliskiren on post-discharge outcomes among diabetic and non-diabetic patients hospitalized for heart failure: insights from the ASTRONAUT trial

Aims The objective of the Aliskiren Trial on Acute Heart Failure Outcomes (ASTRONAUT) was to determine whether aliskiren, a direct renin inhibitor, would improve post-discharge outcomes in patients with hospitalization for heart failure (HHF) with reduced ejection fraction. Pre-specified subgroup analyses suggested potential heterogeneity in post-discharge outcomes with aliskiren in patients with and without baseline diabetes mellitus (DM). Methods and results ASTRONAUT included 953 patients without DM (aliskiren 489; placebo 464) and 662 patients with DM (aliskiren 319; placebo 343) (as reported by study investigators). Study endpoints included the first occurrence of cardiovascular death or HHF within 6 and 12 months, all-cause death within 6 and 12 months, and change from baseline in N-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) at 1, 6, and 12 months. Data regarding risk of hyperkalaemia, renal impairment, and hypotension, and changes in additional serum biomarkers were collected. The effect of aliskiren on cardiovascular death or HHF within 6 months (primary endpoint) did not significantly differ by baseline DM status (P = 0.08 for interaction), but reached statistical significance at 12 months (non-DM: HR: 0.80, 95% CI: 0.64-0.99; DM: HR: 1.16, 95% CI: 0.91-1.47; P = 0.03 for interaction). Risk of 12-month all-cause death with aliskiren significantly differed by the presence of baseline DM (non-DM: HR: 0.69, 95% CI: 0.50-0.94; DM: HR: 1.64, 95% CI: 1.15-2.33; P < 0.01 for interaction). Among non-diabetics, aliskiren significantly reduced NT-proBNP through 6 months and plasma troponin I and aldosterone through 12 months, as compared to placebo. Among diabetic patients, aliskiren reduced plasma troponin I and aldosterone relative to placebo through 1 month only. There was a trend towards differing risk of post-baseline potassium ≥6 mmol/L with aliskiren by underlying DM status (non-DM: HR: 1.17, 95% CI: 0.71-1.93; DM: HR: 2.39, 95% CI: 1.30-4.42; P = 0.07 for interaction). Conclusion This pre-specified subgroup analysis from the ASTRONAUT trial generates the hypothesis that the addition of aliskiren to standard HHF therapy in non-diabetic patients is generally well-tolerated and improves post-discharge outcomes and biomarker profiles. In contrast, diabetic patients receiving aliskiren appear to have worse post-discharge outcomes. Future prospective investigations are needed to confirm potential benefits of renin inhibition in a large cohort of HHF patients without D