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The fully human monoclonal antibody guselkumab is an effective treatment option for patients with moderate to severe psoriasis. The objective of this study was to examine the cost per responder of guselkumab compared with other targeted therapies for the treatment of moderate to severe plaque psoriasis in Germany. A one-year cost per responder model was developed based on efficacy and safety data from a published network meta-analysis. Drug, treatment administration, resource use, and adverse event costs were included in the analysis. The primary analysis assessed the cost per Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI) 90 responder at week 16. Additional analyses were conducted at year 1. In the year 1 analyses, treatment response was assessed at the end of the induction period (week 16) to determine which patients continued onto maintenance therapy (responders) and which patients moved onto a subsequent adalimumab or secukinumab therapy (non-responders). At week 16, the cost per PASI 90 responder was lower for guselkumab than all comparators except adalimumab and brodalumab. Similarly, in the year 1 analyses, guselkumab had a lower cost per PASI 90 responder than all comparators except brodalumab. Guselkumab is a cost-effective therapy option in Germany. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In light of the ongoing transformation of scholarly publishing toward open access, libraries need data-based tools that enable them to make decisions that respond to the challenges posed by this shift. Tasks such as collection development, applications for funding, or consulting researchers on publication venues require a solid base of data, which is not always easily available to librarians. Funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF), the Open Access Monitor Germany (OAM) aims to provide libraries, funders, and researchers with a freely available tool that presents data on publications and citations for analysis. The OAM records the publication output of German academic institutions in scientific journals. Through analyses of subscription fees and (open access) publication fees, it helps to monitor and support the transition of the publishing system toward an open access system. To this end, data from existing sources are collated within an expanded database, made available to users in an open interface, and disseminated by means of scientific publications. The OAM draws on sources such as Unpaywall, Dimensions, Web of Science, Scopus, and OpenAPC. Unpaywall is used as a central data source for publication metadata including open access availability; this data is then matched with Crossref data for journal-level metadata and finally with Dimensions, Web of Science and Scopus data for affiliations and citation data. The connection to OpenAPC provides data on publication costs for each participating institution. The interface presents users with a wide range of filters that can be used to customize the underlying data in line with specific needs. Users can switch between Dimensions, Web of Science and Scopus affiliations and make use of different analysis types including publication analyses, cost analyses, and citation analyses. Results are presented as tables as well as charts and can be downloaded for further use. In the future, additional data sources including subscriptions to scientific journals and subscription payments will be integrated to allow the shift in payment flows in the changing publication market to be observed. The integration of data from the electronic resource management system LAS:eR has already been initiated and will soon be completed. Moreover, interfaces will be created to connect the Alma and FOLIO systems. Together with data on publication costs, this will provide participating institutions with easily accessible overview of their total costs, thus enabling them to calculate an integrated budget for subscriptions and publications. Institutions using the OAM are advised with regard to analyzing data and technically integrating the OAM into their own applications. Small and medium-sized publishers from German-speaking countries are supported in the negotiation of transformation contracts by means of data from the OAM. The OAM project team also conducts studies that address a number of scientific issues, for example the impact of open access on scientific networks and the role of open access in the field of monographs. The relationship between open access and the citation rates of published works is another possible research area that can be addressed with the help of the OAM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Carbon dioxide sequestration is one of the most potent ways to offset global warming. Deep saline aquifers are one of the prime targets for carbon dioxide sequestration, among several storage media. Here, a reservoir simulation study was conducted on a repository – a deep saline aquifer to store carbon dioxide. The basis of the study was to evaluate the fluid flow and heat transfer mechanisms under non-isothermal conditions. Different mass and heat transfer mechanisms were studied, and diffusion and conduction were found to have profound effects on the fate of CO2. Plume height was varied along with reservoir geometry to determine their effects on the spread of the plume. Both reservoir geometry and permeability anisotropy were found to impact the plume shape. The results show that changing the reservoir geometry changed the fate of CO2. When the reservoir was made wider, solubility trapping prevailed. In contrast, when reservoir length was narrowed, residual and capillary trapping took over. Cost analysis considering a single well of the Ketzin site, Germany, was carried out to add to the existing database, along with source–sink matching. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous studies on agreement violation in sign languages report neurophysiological responses similar to those observed for spoken languages. In contrast, the two current event-related potential studies (ERP) on agreement violations in German Sign Language sentences present results that allow for an alternative explanation. In experiment A, we investigated the processing of agreement verbs ending in an unspecified location different to the location associated with the referent. Incorrect agreement verbs engendered a posterior positivity effect (220-570 ms post nonmanual cues) and a left anterior effect (300-600 ms post the subsequent sign onset). In experiment B, we investigated a violation of morphologically modified plain verbs. Incorrect plain verbs, articulated to express third person object agreement, engendered a broadly distributed positivity effect (420-730 ms post mismatch onset). We discuss the results under the perspective of enhanced costs for context updating, and argue that sign language agreement is based on phonological and pragmatic principles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Postoperative pain and severe side effects of opioid analgesics present a clinical challenge after cardio-thoracic surgery. In this study, the impact of Kinesio® taping on postoperative morbidity after median sternotomy was observed. Methods: Thirty-nine patients (mean age 66 ± 9 years, CI: 63.28; 68.98) who underwent median sternotomy between 09/2014 and 11/2014 participated in this prospective randomized controlled trial. Patients were assigned into a treatment on a non-treatment group. Patients in the treatment group were taped after leaving the intensive care unit. We assessed, pain, consumption of pain medication, the subjective estimation of patients’ ability to breathe, radiologic and microbial abnormalities as well as adverse effects resulting from the tape use daily until discharge. To determine the patients’ satisfaction a discharge questionnaire was offered after completion of data. Results: Patients who were treated with tape report significantly less pain (2.14 ± 0.5, CI: 1.1; 3.13) than patients from the control group (4.16 ± 0.6, CI: 2.92; 5.41, p = 0.01). The need for opioid pain medication, as assessed by total analgesic consumption per patient, was significantly less in the treatment group (1.2 ml ± 0.4 ml, CI: 0.40 ml; 2.01 ml) versus (3.1 ml ± 0.5 ml, CI: 2.0 ml; 4.2 ml, p = 0.01). The subjective estimation of patients’ ability to breathe was significantly better (p < 0.001) and the satisfaction was higher in the Kinesio® tape group compared to the control group. Taped patients had a mean hospitalization of 10 ± 1 day (CI: 8.74 days; 11.78 days) untapped patients stayed for 11 ± 1 days (CI: 9.17 days; 11.83 days). Adverse effects from the tape treatment were not observed. Conclusions: Kinesio® taping after median sternotomy is a low-risk, non-pharmacologic, cost effective, and promising method for improving patients’ breathing conditions, reducing postoperative pain, pain medication consumption, and thus, potential adverse effects of analgesics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite increasing social inequality, hunger and nutritional poverty are not regarded as phenomena of German reality; Germany's debate on eating patterns is largely dominated by the issue of obesity. The article challenges this view and shows by means of empirical approaches that hunger and nutritional poverty tend to be underestimated in a supposedly affluent society. Due to a lack of appropriate food research in Germany, our study gives quantitative evidence drawn from a combination of studies to show that there is nutritional poverty in Germany, and that social welfare recipients are widely excluded from eating out, arguably an essential form of social and cultural participation. Furthermore, we provide insights, based on a qualitative longitudinal study, into day-to-day coping practices in response to food shortage. As the empirical results show, physiological hunger and hunger for social inclusion by eating out are a reality in contemporary German society. The predominant responses of the German political and social welfare system, however, can be characterised by delegation and denial of the problem and by a tendency to stigmatise the poor. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Objective: This study presents a cost-minimisation analysis of moxifloxacin compared to combination treatment with levofloxacin and ceftriaxone in patients hospitalised with community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) in Germany.Research design and methods: In the MOTIV study, 738 adult patients with CAP requiring hospitalisation and initial parenteral antibiotic therapy were randomised to sequential IV/oral therapy with either moxifloxacin (n = 368), or levofloxacin and ceftriaxone (n = 365). The primary effectiveness endpoint was the proportion of patients demonstrating clinical improvement 5–7 days after the completion of study treatment. Subgroup analysis considered patients with severe CAP according to pneumonia severity index (PSI) risk class IV and V, microbiologically proven infection, a history of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and a history of cardiovascular disease. The analysis included the cost of study medication, hospital stay, readmission and inpatient procedures and diagnostics. Event frequency in the study was multiplied by German unit costs to estimate per-patient expenditure. The analysis was conducted from a hospital perspective. Sensitivity analysis investigated the effect of costing from an insurer perspective.Results: No significant difference was found in the percentage of successfully treated patients. Average per patient cost was €2190 for the moxifloxacin group, and €2619 for the levofloxacin + ceftriaxone group (difference −€430, 95% CI: −€138, −€740; p < 0.05). Variability in total costs was wide, with some patients accruing up to €18 000. Medication cost was significantly lower with moxifloxacin than levofloxacin + ceftriaxone (−€470, 95% CI: −€522, −€421), and accounted for between 15 and 30% of total costs.Conclusions: In this analysis of patients hospitalised with CAP in Germany, treatment with moxifloxacin was significantly less costly than treatment with levofloxacin and ceftriaxone. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]