Racial differences in systemic sclerosis disease presentation: a European Scleroderma Trials and Research group study

Objectives. Racial factors play a significant role in SSc. We evaluated differences in SSc presentations between white patients (WP), Asian patients (AP) and black patients (BP) and analysed the effects of geographical locations.Methods. SSc characteristics of patients from the EUSTAR cohort were cross-sectionally compared across racial groups using survival and multiple logistic regression analyses.Results. The study included 9162 WP, 341 AP and 181 BP. AP developed the first non-RP feature faster than WP but slower than BP. AP were less frequently anti-centromere (ACA; odds ratio (OR) = 0.4, P < 0.001) and more frequently anti-topoisomerase-I autoantibodies (ATA) positive (OR = 1.2, P = 0.068), while BP were less likely to be ACA and ATA positive than were WP [OR(ACA) = 0.3, P < 0.001; OR(ATA) = 0.5, P = 0.020]. AP had less often (OR = 0.7, P = 0.06) and BP more often (OR = 2.7, P < 0.001) diffuse skin involvement than had WP.AP and BP were more likely to have pulmonary hypertension [OR(AP) = 2.6, P < 0.001; OR(BP) = 2.7, P = 0.03 vs WP] and a reduced forced vital capacity [OR(AP) = 2.5, P < 0.001; OR(BP) = 2.4, P < 0.004] than were WP. AP more often had an impaired diffusing capacity of the lung than had BP and WP [OR(AP vs BP) = 1.9, P = 0.038; OR(AP vs WP) = 2.4, P < 0.001]. After RP onset, AP and BP had a higher hazard to die than had WP [hazard ratio (HR) (AP) = 1.6, P = 0.011; HR(BP) = 2.1, P < 0.001].Conclusion. Compared with WP, and mostly independent of geographical location, AP have a faster and earlier disease onset with high prevalences of ATA, pulmonary hypertension and forced vital capacity impairment and higher mortality. BP had the fastest disease onset, a high prevalence of diffuse skin involvement and nominally the highest mortality

Categorical identity change: the privatization of Royal Mail

This paper uses findings from a longitudinal case study of the privatization of Royal Mail – the British national postal service organization – to examine internal dynamics triggered by categorical identity changes. By categorical identity change, I refer to changes that alter structural features that determine organizational membership in a particular category, thereby subjecting the organization to a partly new set of rules and expectations, from partly new audiences. This study uncovered the symbolic (e.g. attribution of status and meaning) and substantive (e.g. allocation of resources and discretion) implications of such changes, and how they reflected in a discursive struggle between the employees and the leadership of the organization over “who we are” as an organization, which, at the time of our study, five years after the change, was still ongoing and partly unresolved. By doing so, the findings provide insights into the previously under-theorized substantive implications of organizational identity claims and their role in discursive identity struggles

Systemic Sclerosis

Systemic sclerosis is a rare autoimmune disease characterized by immunological alterations, small vessel vasculopathy, and skin and other organ fibrosis. Despite progress in the knowledge of pathogenic steps and therapeutic options, when compared with other rheumatic conditions, it shows the lowest life expectancy rate. Early diagnosis is important as early treatment could lead to better outcomes. Great progress has been made in the treatment of specific symptoms; however, there are still no disease-modifying drugs that are able to control the overall disease activity satisfactorily. This book covers the latest knowledge in systemic sclerosis from pathophysiology to clinical presentation and management. Hopefully, this book will be a useful resource to students, residents, rheumatologists, dermatologist, and anyone interested in this fascinating disease

The public responsibility of platform corporations

To capture the ethical and political challenges posed by so-called platform corporations, in this paper we develop the concept of public responsibility. Despite the proliferation of research in corporate social responsibility (CSR), existing theories seem to fall short when it comes to the complexities of recent forms of organising. By analysing the concept of a multisided platform business models (MSPs) through a CSR lens, we argue that the responsibilities they face resemble more those of organisations in the public sector (i.e., public utilities) than those normally ascribed to private businesses – hence we develop the concept of public responsibility. We identify five sources of this responsibility: network effects; centrality of data production, collection and monetisation; global scale; and private policy-setting. Consequently, we argue that MSPs uniquely combine them, leading to three dimensions of public responsibility: privacy, accessibility and control of content. By doing so, we show how platform corporations have developed and provide ‘private’ services that in many ways are of ‘public character’, blurring our traditional understanding of public vs. private goods and services

Privatization: implications of a shift from state to private ownership

Privatization-defined here as the transfer of ownership of state-owned organizations to private parties-has attracted the attention of scholars across multiple fields. Privatization programs have been based on the assumption, grounded in microeconomic theory, that a shift from public to private ownership will incentivize more efficient management of available resources. However, failure to deliver the expected outcomes in some cases and the more nuanced perspective on state-ownership offered by recent research in management seem to challenge this assumption, calling for revisiting this literature. Our comparative review of existing studies suggests that the mixed results of privatization programs could be partly explained by what was privatized, how it was privatized, and the regulatory regime under which it was privatized. By doing so, our review provides conceptual clarity and structure to a rich but fragmented body of literature, making seemingly divergent findings more legible, outlining theoretical gaps, and identifying avenues for future exploration