The diagnosis of cystic lung diseases: A role for bronchoalveolar lavage and transbronchial biospy?

SummaryPulmonary Langerhans’ cell histiocytosis (PLCH) and lymphangioleiomyomatosis (LAM) are two rare cystic lung diseases of unknown aetiology and different pathogenesis. Although the diagnosis can be strongly suspected on the basis of the medical history and clinical and radiological features, at times a pathological confirmation of the diagnosis is necessary. Surgical lung biopsy is considered the gold standard in the diagnosis of both LAM and PLCH. However, bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) and transbronchial lung biopsy (TBB) are less invasive procedures that can be useful in diagnosis. BAL has a high specificity but low sensitivity for PLCH, and in an appropriate clinical context it can be used to establish the diagnosis. However, even if a high percentage of pigment-laden macrophages are found in the BAL fluid of patients with LAM, no BAL findings are considered suggestive for the disease. TBB shows a low diagnostic yield (10–40%) in PLCH because of the small amount of tissue obtained and the patchy nature of the disease, although it may be of more use in LAM

The Sanctuary City Project

Artist, curator, and professor Sergio De La Torre discusses his work with The Sanctuary City Project, which is an ongoing community-based participatory project that develops deeper conversations and awareness about immigration issues often times transforming oral history into visual representations

Financial globalization : unequal blessings

The authors present a framework to analyze financial globalization. They argue that financial globalization needs to take into account the relation between money (particularly in its role as store of value), asset and factor price flexibility, and contractual and regulatory institutions. Countries that have the"blessed trinity"(international currency, flexible exchange rate regime, and sound contractual and regulatory environment) can integrate successfully into the world financial markets. But developing countries normally display the"unblessed trinity"(weak currency, fear of floating, and weak institutional framework). The authors define and discuss two alternative avenues (a"dollar trinity"and a"peso trinity") for developing countries to safely embrace international financial integration while the blessed trinity remains beyond reach.Economic Theory&Research,Fiscal&Monetary Policy,Banks&Banking Reform,Payment Systems&Infrastructure,Financial Intermediation,Financial Economics,Macroeconomic Management,Economic Stabilization,Economic Theory&Research,Fiscal&Monetary Policy

Capital market development : whither Latin America ?

Over the past decades, many countries have implemented significant reforms to foster capital market development. Latin American countries were at the forefront of this process. The authors analyze where Latin American capital markets stand after these reforms. They find that despite the intense reform effort, capital markets in Latin America remain underdeveloped relative to markets in other regions. Furthermore, stock markets are below what can be expected, given Latin America's economic and institutional fundamentals. The authors discuss alternative ways of interpreting this evidence. They argue that it is difficult to pinpoint which policies Latin American countries should pursue to overcome their poor capital market development. Moreover, they argue that expectations about the outcome of the reform process may need to be revisited to take into account intrinsic characteristics of emerging economies. The latter may limit the scope for developing deep domestic capital markets in a context of international financial integration.Markets and Market Access,Economic Theory&Research,Access to Markets,Financial Economics,Financial Intermediation

Living and dying with hard pegs : the rise and fall of Argentina's currency board

The rise and fall of Argentina's currency board shows the extent to which the advantages of hard pegs have been overstated. The currency board did provide nominal stability and boosted financial intermediation, at the cost of endogenous financial dollarization, but did not foster monetary or fiscal discipline. The failure to adequately address the currency-growth-debt trap into which Argentina fell at the end of the 1990s precipitated a run on the currency and the banks, followed by the abandonment of the currency board and a sovereign debt default. The crisis can be best interpreted as a bad outcome of a high-stakes strategy to overcome a weak currency problem. To increase the credibility of the hard peg, the government raised its exit costs, which deepened the crisis once exit could no longer be avoided. But some alternative exit strategies would have been less destructive than the one adopted.Economic Theory&Research,Banks&Banking Reform,Fiscal&Monetary Policy,Payment Systems&Infrastructure,Financial Intermediation,Banks&Banking Reform,Fiscal&Monetary Policy,Financial Intermediation,Financial Economics,Economic Theory&Research

Financial globalization: Unequal blessings

This paper presents a framework to analyze financial globalization. It argues that financial globalization needs to take into account the relation between money (particularly in its role as store of value), asset and factor price flexibility, and contractual and regulatory institutions. Countries that have the “blessed trinity” (international currency, flexible exchange rate regime, and sound contractual and regulatory environment) can integrate successfully into the (imperfect) world financial markets. But developing countries normally display the “unblessed trinity” (weak currency, fear of floating, and weak institutional framework). The paper defines and discusses two alternative avenues (a “dollar trinity” and a “peso trinity”) for developing countries to safely embrace international financial integration while the blessed trinity remains beyond reach.

Stock market development under globalization : whither the gains from reforms ?

Over the past decades, many countries have implemented significant reforms to foster domestic capital market development. These reforms included stock market liberalization, privatization programs, and the establishment of regulatory and supervisory frameworks. Despite the intense reform efforts, the performance of capital markets in several countries has been disappointing. To study whether reforms have had the intended effects on capital markets, the authors analyze the impact of six capital market reforms on domestic stock market development and internationalization using event studies. They find that reforms tend to be followed by significant increases in domestic market capitalization, trading, and capital raising. Reforms are also followed by an increase in the share of activity in international equity markets, with potential negative spillover effects on domestic markets.Markets and Market Access,Economic Theory&Research,Access to Markets,Privatization,Corporate Law

Innovative experiences in access to finance : market friendly roles for the visible hand ?

Interest in access to finance has increased significantly in recent years, as growing evidence suggests that lack of access to credit prevents lower-income households and small firms from financing high return investment projects, having an adverse effect on growth and poverty alleviation. This study describes some recent innovative experiences to broaden access to credit. These experiences are consistent with an emerging new view that recognizes a limited role for the public sector in financial markets, but contends that there might be room for well-designed, restricted interventions in collaboration with the private sector to foster financial development and broaden access. The authors illustrate this view with several recent experiences inLatin America and then discuss some open policy questions about the role of the public and private sectors in driving these financial innovations.Debt Markets,Banks&Banking Reform,,Emerging Markets,Bankruptcy and Resolution of Financial Distress