Glycogen phosphorylase isoenzyme BB in the diagnosis of acute myocardial infarction: a meta-analysis

Background

Early diagnosis is crucial for management of patients with suspected acute myocardial infarction (AMI). Among innovative and promising biomarkers, the recent interest raised on glycogen phosphorylase isoenzyme BB (GPBB) has prompted us to perform a meta-analysis of published studies.

Materials and methods:

A systematic electronic search was carried out on PubMed, Web of Science and Google Scholar, with no date restriction, to retrieve all articles that have investigated the early diagnostic performance of GPBB in patients with suspected AMI, and directly reported or allowed calculation of sensitivity and specificity. A meta-analysis of the reported sensitivity and specificity of each study and pooled area under the curve (AUC) was then performed by random effect approach. Heterogeneity was assessed by I-square statistics.

Results:

Eight studies were finally selected for analysis (941 subjects; 506 cases and 435 controls), with a high heterogeneity (I-squared, 86.3%). The resulting pooled estimates and 95% confidence interval were 0.854 (0.801–0.891) for sensitivity, 0.767 (0.713–0.815) for specificity, 0.826 (0.774–0.870) for negative predictive value, 0.802 (0.754–0.844) for positive predictive value, and 0.754 (0.602–0.907) for AUC. In those studies that have simultaneously assessed GPBB and a troponin immunoassay, the combination of these biomarkers did not significantly improve the performance of troponin alone.

Conclusion:

GPBB does not meet the current requirements for an efficient diagnosis of AMI when used as a stand-alone test, whereas its combination with troponin merits further investigation in larger trials.     

THE INTERNATIONALIZATION OF HIGHER EDUCATION: A POINT OF VIEW FROM A DEVELOPING COUNTRY

This article takes a close analytical look at the internationalization of higher education, asking penetrating questions with regard to its basis, its forms, and its results. The author is particularly concerned with problems of asymmetry with regard to the educational links, particularly at higher education level, between the developed western democracies and the developing countries. Going beyond the question of brain drain, the article probes the problem of the alienation of third world academics trained in the higher education institutions of developed countries. While on the balance the author praises the results of the internationalization of higher education and, at any rate, recognizes that it is here to stay, he cautions all those involved in it be aware of who in fact gains and who loses as a result of it.     

苏联现代高等学校图书馆

<正> 目前苏联全国共有高等学校891所(其中综合性大学68所),在校学生人数已超过600万.这些高等学校分布于200多座城市.在高等学校的教学和科学研究活动中,图书馆起着重要的作用.图书馆工作的主要方向是积极参与教学过程,及时为学生提供必需的图书文献,为科学研究提供高效率的、全面的情报服务.因此,今日的高校图书馆已看作是同时执行公共图书馆、科学图书馆和学校图书馆多种职能的复合体.     

The effects of middle-school career intervention on students’ career readiness

International Journal for Educational and Vocational Guidance - The study examines the effectiveness of a career intervention in middle schools. The intervention was organized in eight...     

From solo-run to mainstream thinking: project-based learning in engineering design

The paper begins with an overview of project-based learning (PBL) teaching and assessment methods that have been developed as an integral part of a 4-year undergraduate engineering degree programme in Galway, Ireland. The course described was first introduced as a ‘solo-run’ by the author in 1989. The paper goes on to describe comprehensive changes affecting higher educational establishments in Ireland and, in particular, those changes currently taking root in Galway. One such change is the encouragement to introduce a variety of teaching and assessment methods, including PBL. From ‘solo-run’ towards accepted mainstream thinking—interesting times!     

Policy change in higher education: the New Zealand experience

For over one hundred years, the structure of the New Zealand education system has been basically stable. After re-election in 1987, however, the Labour government initiated a major reform of the system, from early childhood to tertiary. Although the pace of change has been great, most of the changes are only recently in place or, in the case of the tertiary sector, not yet fully operative. It is, then, too early to assess the consequences of the changes except rather intuitively. Nevertheless, this is an opportune moment to begin to document and analyze the changes in the tertiary sector.     

Development of terminological resources for expert knowledge: a case study in mining

In this paper we outline an approach to application of ontology in knowledge management. The University of Belgrade Faculty of Mining and Geology research team has developed a terminological resource to support knowledge management in mining engineering. Mining engineering, like all other engineering disciplines, needs comprehensive, consistent and standardized definitions of terms for efficient knowledge management and interoperability among various related IT applications. This goal can best be reached by terminological resources in electronic form organized as thesauruses or ontologies. The resource used to illustrate this approach, RudOnto, is a system of ontologies developed for mining engineering and their application in mining equipment and mine safety domains. Key benefits of applying ontologies in knowledge management, aside from securing interoperability, are enhancement of browsing/searching functions, and reuse and structuring capabilities. Through export to several specific formats, RudOnto ontologies offer the possibility of generating stand-alone terminological resources or ontologies in specific sub-fields, such as mining equipment, mine safety and geostatistics.