Monotherapy of acetylsalicylic acid or warfarin for prevention of ischemic stroke in low-risk atrial fibrillation: A Easter Asian population-based study

Background: This study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of monotherapy acetylsalicylic acid(ASA) and warfarin for stroke prevention in low-risk atrial fibrillation (AF) by using a population--based cohort study in Taiwan.Methods: A newly diagnosed low-risk AF patient cohort were identified by using National HealthInsurance Research Database (NHIRD) in Taiwan in 2008. The study cohort was observed witha follow-up of 2 years to examine the onset of ischemic stroke (IS) (to 2010). The longitudinal data wereanalyzed by using generalized estimation equations (GEE).Results: A total of 8,065 newly-diagnosed low-risk AF patients were identified in 2008. 7.4% wereprescribed with ASA and 4.6% were prescribed with warfarin. The GEE results showed that low-riskAF patients with hypertension who received warfarin were associated with a statistically significant58.4% reduction of IS risk (OR = 0.416, p = 0.024, 95% CI 0.194–0.891). Additionally, low-risk AFpatients with hyperlipidemia who received warfarin were associated with a 69.3% reduction of IS risk(OR = 0.307, p = 0.044, 95% CI 0.097–0.969).Conclusions: Warfarin is suggested to be prescribed in preventing IS for low-stroke-risk AF patientswith hypertension and hyperlipidemia

An Empirical Study on Logistics Service Providers’ Intention to Adopt Green Innovations

This study examines six factors that will influence the intention to adopt green innovations for logistics service providers. The determinant factors include technological, organizational and environmental dimensions. The data came from the questionnaire survey on logistics companies in Taiwan, and 162 samples were analyzed. According to the survey results, all the factors have positive influences on the intention to adopt green practices. Explicitness and accumulation of green practices, organizational encouragement, quality of human resources, environmental uncertainty and governmental supports exhibit significant influences on the willingness to adopt green practices.This study examines six factors that will influence the intention to adopt green innovations for logistics service providers. The determinant factors include technological, organizational and environmental dimensions. The data came from the questionnaire survey on logistics companies in Taiwan, and 162 samples were analyzed. According to the survey results, all the factors have positive influences on the intention to adopt green practices. Explicitness and accumulation of green practices, organizational encouragement, quality of human resources, environmental uncertainty and governmental supports exhibit significant influences on the willingness to adopt green practices.This study examines six factors that will influence the intention to adopt green innovations for logistics service providers. The determinant factors include technological, organizational and environmental dimensions. The data came from the questionnaire survey on logistics companies in Taiwan, and 162 samples were analyzed. According to the survey results, all the factors have positive influences on the intention to adopt green practices. Explicitness and accumulation of green practices, organizational encouragement, quality of human resources, environmental uncertainty and governmental supports exhibit significant influences on the willingness to adopt green practices

The Antecedents and Consequences of RFID Technology Adoption for China’s Logistics Companies

With the fast growth in China’s economy, the logistics industry in China is set to take off, and more and more logistics companies begin to adopt innovative logistics technologies. RFID technology has been regarded as an important innovative application in logistics operations and supply chain management. This paper aims to study the antecedents and consequences of RFID technology adoption from the perspective of technological innovation by conducting a questionnaire survey on China’s logistics companies. The factors influencing RFID technology adoption consist of organizational and environmental dimensions. Research findings reveal that organizational encouragement for innovation, quality of human capital, organizational accumulation of related knowledge, perceived environmental uncertainty, and governmental support exhibit significant influences on the willingness to adopt RFID technology. Logistics companies with higher levels of willingness to adopt RFID technology will be associated with better supply chain performance

Technological Innovation for China’s Logistics Industry

China’s logistics industry has started to pay attention to adopt more efficient logistics technologies to provide better services for their customers. This paper employes the questionnaire survey to study the factors influencing the adoption of technological innovations by logistics service providers in China as well as the influences of technological innovation on supply chain performance. Technological innovations are categorized into data acquisition technologies, information technologies, warehousing technologies, and transportation technologies. The results show that the adoption of technological innovations is significantly influenced by technological, organizational and environmental factors, and adopting innovative technologies will increase supply chain performance for the logistics industry in China.China’s logistics industry has started to pay attention to adopt more efficient logistics technologies to provide better services for their customers. This paper employes the questionnaire survey to study the factors influencing the adoption of technological innovations by logistics service providers in China as well as the influences of technological innovation on supply chain performance. Technological innovations are categorized into data acquisition technologies, information technologies, warehousing technologies, and transportation technologies. The results show that the adoption of technological innovations is significantly influenced by technological, organizational and environmental factors, and adopting innovative technologies will increase supply chain performance for the logistics industry in China.China’s logistics industry has started to pay attention to adopt more efficient logistics technologies to provide better services for their customers. This paper employes the questionnaire survey to study the factors influencing the adoption of technological innovations by logistics service providers in China as well as the influences of technological innovation on supply chain performance. Technological innovations are categorized into data acquisition technologies, information technologies, warehousing technologies, and transportation technologies. The results show that the adoption of technological innovations is significantly influenced by technological, organizational and environmental factors, and adopting innovative technologies will increase supply chain performance for the logistics industry in China

Examining The Factors That Affect ERP Assimilation

The aim of this study is to identify the factors that influence the assimilation of enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems in the post-implementation stage. Building on organizational information processing theory (OIPT) and absorptive capacity (AC), we propose an integrated model, which examines the relationship among organizational fit, absorptive capacity, environmental uncertainty, and ERP assimilation. Based on the survey data from 98 firms that have implemented ERP, most of the proposed hypotheses were supported, showing that initial fit, potential AC, realized AC, and heterogeneity jointly affect ERP assimilation. Task uncertainty (hostility and heterogeneity) negatively moderates the relationship between initial fit and ERP assimilation. The implications for both theory and practice are discussed

Key Factors to Increasing Free Cash Flow for Manufacturers Utilizing Lean Production: An AHP-DEMATEL Approach

This paper aims to apply AHP and DEMATEL to analyze the key factors and interrelationships of lean production to increase free cash flow for manufacturers. The AHP hierarchy was determined through literature and interviews with leading management experts. The assessment criteria were categorized into five major criteria and 15 sub-criteria, including production, sales, human resources, R&D, and finance. According to the AHP results, the first eight key factors were identified as the key factors to increasing cash flow for manufacturers who utilized lean production. DEMATEL was used to identify the interactions among the eight key factors and further identify the four more important ones. The four key factors are strategic planning, strategic deployment, leadership, and goal orientation. This paper proposes management implications and improvement suggestions for the four key factors and their interactions

Type I IL-1 Receptor (IL-1RI) as Potential New Therapeutic Target for Bronchial Asthma

The IL-1R/TLR family has been receiving considerable attention as potential regulators of inflammation through their ability to act as either activators or suppressors of inflammation. Asthma is a chronic inflammatory disease characterized by airway hyperresponsiveness, allergic inflammation, elevated serum total, allergen-specific IgE levels, and increased Th2 cytokine production. The discovery that the IL-1RI–IL-1 and ST2–IL-33 pathways are crucial for allergic inflammation has raised interest in these receptors as potential targets for developing new therapeutic strategies for bronchial asthma. This paper discusses the current use of neutralizing mAb or soluble receptor constructs to deplete cytokines, the use of neutralizing mAb or recombinant receptor antagonists to block cytokine receptors, and gene therapy from experimental studies in asthma. Targeting IL-1RI–IL-1 as well as ST2–IL-33 pathways may promise a disease-modifying approach in the future

UNDERSTANDING COMPETITIVE PERFORMANCE OF SOFTWARE-AS-A-SERVICE (SAAS)—THE COMPETITIVE DYNAMICS PERSPECTIVE

Understanding the antecedents and consequences of a firm’s agility in cloud software applications is important. This papers draws on the competitive dynamics perspective to develop a model that explains the relationships between collaboration with vendors, agility, and competitive performance in software-as-a-service (SaaS) context. Collaboration reflects a firm’s ability to leverage interfirm resources, characterized as knowledge sharing and process alignment. Agility is measured by a firm’s strategy-oriented agility and service-oriented agility. This study also investigates the moderating effect of environmental turbulence. The proposed hypotheses are supported by the empirical data. The results show that competitive performance is affected by ability, which, in turn, is impacted by collaboration. Environmental turbulence positively moderates the relationship between agility and performance. Finally, we discuss the implications of our results

Juvenile Dermatomyositis: A 20-year Retrospective Analysis of Treatment and Clinical Outcomes

BackgroundJuvenile dermatomyositis is a rare childhood multisystem autoimmune disease involving primarily the skin and muscles, and it may lead to long-term disability. This study aimed to describe the clinical course of juvenile dermatomyositis and determine if any early clinical or laboratory features could predict outcome.MethodsMedical charts of patients aged ≤18 years and diagnosed with juvenile dermatomyositis (according to the criteria of Bohan and Peter) at the Pediatric Department, National Taiwan University Hospital, between 1989 and 2009 were reviewed. The endpoints for disease assessment were complete clinical response and complete clinical remission. Cox's proportional hazards model was fitted to identify important predictors of complete clinical remission.ResultsA total of 39 patients with juvenile dermatomyositis were reviewed. Two-thirds were females, and the mean age at disease onset was 81.97 ± 46.63 months. The most common initial presentations were Gottron's papule (82.1%) and muscle weakness (82.1%). After excluding one patient with an incomplete record, the remaining 31 patients who had muscle weakness were analyzed; among them, 22 (70.97%) achieved complete clinical response, but only six (19.4%) achieved complete clinical remission. Multivariate analysis showed that female sex, negative Gowers' sign at disease onset, and positive photosensitivity at disease onset were favorable factors to achieve complete clinical remission. Moreover, covariate-adjusted survival curves were drawn for making predictions of complete clinical remission. Only 13 (33.33%) patients were symptom free at the end of follow up, whereas the other 26 suffered from different kinds of complications. None of them developed malignancy, but two (5.13%) patients died during the follow-up period.ConclusionFactors such as male sex and Gowers' sign were unlikely to favor the achievement of complete clinical remission in juvenile dermatomyositis. Certain complications cannot be avoided, and thus more effective treatments and monitoring strategies are needed for better control of juvenile dermatomyositis

Alterations in IL-6, IL-8, GM-CSF. TNF-α, and IFN-γ Release by Peripheral Mononuclear Cells in Patients with Active Vitiligo

The purpose of this study was to clarify the relationship between the cellular and humoral immune components in the pathogenesis of vitiligo vulgaris. By using cytokines as indicators of peripheral mononuclear cell (MNC) function, we compared the effects of phytohemagglutinin (PHA) and purified IgG on MNCs derived from patients suffering from active vitiligo with those from normal controls. The results revealed (i) a significant increase in spontaneous production of 11-6 and IL-8 in patients; (ii) PHA, purified IgG from patients (IgG-anti-MC), or IgG from normal controls (N-IgG) induced a significant increase in IL-6 but diminished GM-CSF, TNF-α, and IFN-γ release in patients; and (iii) IgG-anti-MC brought about a significantly higher stimulatory effect on IL-1β and IFN-γ production than N-IgG in normal controls. Immunologically, IL-6 can enhance melanocyte ICAM-1 expression, which may increase leukocyte-melanocyte attachment and cause melanocyte damage in vitiligo. A decrease in GM-CSF (an intrinsic growth factor for melanocyte) production may retard recovery from vitiligo by checking the proliferation of surviving melanocytes. A significant decrease in TNF-α and IFN-γ production may partially explain the reduced inflammatory reaction in vitiliginous lesions. That IgG-anti-MC stimulates an increase in IL-1β and IFN-γ production in controls suggests that IgG-anti-MC may play a role in melanocyte destruction mediated by monocytes