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In the presented paper, we estimate the impacts of three distinct housing policy interventions to deal with distressed and abandoned residential properties: leaving vacant buildings in their current state, remodeling/rebuilding residential structures, and razing vacant structures. We show that vacant structures negatively impact nearby housing up to 4.1%, but when demolition is followed by complete reconstruction, neighboring housing can be appreciated by as much as 14.1%. In addition, negative spillover effects from foreclosures and vacant buildings are primarily observed in low‐income and middle‐income Census tracts, whereas positive spillover effects generated by remodeling are seen in high‐income Census tracts.

Aim: Erythropoiesis-stimulating agents (ESAs) are particularly used to treat dialysis patients suffering from anemia due to renal failure. Since March 2014, ESAs have no longer been funded on top-of-diagnosis-related groups (DRGs) in French hospitals and are funded via DRGs. There are two ways to fund dialysis in French hospitals: the ‘DRG for dialysis in session’ and the ‘off-dialysis DRG’, which is not a DRG and consists in a supplement tariff specific to dialysis for patients hospitalized for another main reason than dialysis. The aim of this study is to assess the impact of this funding change on the dialysis activity and on the budget of the 37 University Public University Hospitals in Paris (10% of the hospitalizations in France). Materials & methods: A before–after study (March–September 2013 vs March–September 2014) was conducted. Medical activity data (and ESAs consumption data) were used to assess the number and costs of DRGs associated with ESAs use. As we do not have access to the whole dialysis activity over the period studied, two hypotheses were considered: the proportion of the dialysis activity was constant between the two periods (Hypothesis A); the dialysis activity was correlated to ESA consumptions delivered by hospital pharmacies to healthcare units (Hypothesis B). A budget impact analysis was also conducted taking into account the evolution of DRG costs and ESA prices. Results: The number of dialysis ‘DRG for dialysis in session’ with ESA consumption have increased by 5% (Hypothesis A) and decreased by 9% (Hypothesis B) between the two periods while the volume of ‘off-dialysis DRG’ with ESA consumption increased by 2% (Hypothesis A) and by 9% (Hypothesis B). The budget impact was -€1.02 million (Hypothesis A) and -€0.7 million (Hypothesis B) leading to a loss for our hospitals. Conclusion: There is no significant impact of the change of funding of ESAs on the hospital activity. The DRG-based payment is negative for the budget of our hospitals but is positive for the French National Health Insurance. Indeed, with the price decrease, the ESAs are more costly for hospitals (not funded on top-of-DRG), but less costly for the society.

International audience; BackgroundTo reach the French market, a new drug requires a marketing authorization (MA) and price and reimbursement agreements. These hurdles could delay access to new and promising drugs. Since 1992, French law authorizes the use of unlicensed drugs on an exceptional and temporary basis through a compassionate-use programme, known as Temporary Authorization for Use (ATU). This programme was implemented to improve early access to drugs under development or authorized abroad. However, it is suspected to be inflationary, bypassing public bodies in charge of health technology assessment (HTA) and of pricing.ObjectiveThe aim of this study is to observe the market access after the formal licensing of drugs that went through this compassionate-use programme.MethodsWe included all ATUs that received an MA between 1 January 2005 and 30 June 2010. We first examined market access delays from these drugs using the standard administrative path. We positioned this result in relation to launch delays observed in France (for all outpatient drugs) and in other major European markets. Second, we assessed the bargaining power of a hospital purchaser after those drugs had obtained an MA by calculating the price growth rate after the approval.ResultsDuring the study period, 77 ATUs were formally licensed. The study concluded that, from the patient’s perspective, licensing and public bodies’ review time was shortened by a combined total of 36 months. The projected 11-month review time of public bodies may be longer than delays usually observed for outpatient drugs. Nonetheless, the study revealed significant benefits for French patient access based on comparable processing to launch time with those of other European countries with tight price control policies. In return, a 12 % premium, on average, is paid to pharmaceutical companies while drugs are under this status (sub-analysis on 56 drugs).ConclusionsIn many instances, the ATU programme responds to a public health need by accelerating the availability of new drugs even though this study suggests an impact of the programme on the market access of these drugs for which the standard administrative path is longer than usual. In addition, pharmaceutical companies seem to market compassionate-use drugs with a presumed benefit/risk ratio at a price that guarantees a margin for future negotiation.

We provide a Bayesian spatial Markov Chain Monte Carlo model composition (MC3) analysis of growth rates in European regional patenting activity. Based on theoretical models on innovation and growth, we identify a large set of candidate explanatory variables that characterize regional stocks of knowledge, including: human resources devoted to innovative activity, scientific and technical capabilities, public and private investments, government policies, as well as regional industry structure, and indicators of regional technology gaps that reflect distance from the technological frontier. Our analysis shows that accommodating spatial dependence and heterogeneity leads to different conclusions regarding factors important for technological transfer and knowledge spillovers.

Precipitation, atmospheric and in-cloud icing affect wind turbine operation in various ways, including measurement and control errors, power losses, mechanical and electrical failures and safety hazard. Anti-icing and de-icing strategies are used to minimize these effects. Many active and passive methods are in development but few are available on the market. Active heating of blades is the most tested, used and reliable way to prevent icing effects. It is used in parallel with passive hydrophobic coating to lower energy consumption. Precise icing evaluation of the site should be done during the assessment phase to evaluate the necessity and benefits of installing an anti-icing and/or a de-icing system. This evaluation shall continue during operation in order to optimize production and avoid component failure related to icing events. Multiple anemometry in combination with relative humidity measurements is a cheap and reliable icing detection method during assessment while the use of ice sensors and the power curve method is recommended during operation.

A space–time filter is set forth for spatial panel data situations that include random effects. We propose a general spatial dynamic specification that encompasses several spatiotemporal models previously used in the panel data literature. We apply the model to the case of highway induced travel demand. The theory of induced travel demand asserts that increased highway capacity will induce growth in traffic for a number of reasons. Our model allows us to quantify the spatial spillover impacts of increased highway capacity at one location in the network on travel times in neighboring locations and in future time periods.

1. The goal of this study was to investigate the effects of the delayed pharmacological preconditioning produced by an adenosine A(1)-receptor agonist (A(1)-DPC) against ventricular arrhythmias induced by ischaemia and reperfusion, compared to those of ischaemia-induced delayed preconditioning (I-DPC). 2. Eighty-nine instrumented conscious rabbits underwent a 2 consecutive days protocol. On day 1, rabbits were randomly divided into four groups: 'Control' (saline, i.v.), 'I-DPC' (six 4-min coronary artery occlusion/4-min reperfusion cycles), 'A(1)-DPC(100)' (N(6)-cyclopentyladenosine, 100 microg kg(-1), i.v.), and 'A(1)-DPC(400)' (N(6)-cyclopentyladenosine, 400 microg kg(-1), i.v.). On day 2, i.e., 24 h later, the incidence and severity of ventricular arrhythmias during a 30-min coronary artery occlusion and subsequent reperfusion were analysed in all animals, using an arrhythmia score. 3. I-DPC, A(1)-DPC(100) and A(1)-DPC(400) significantly reduced the infarct size (34+/-5, 42+/-3 and 43+/-7% of the area at risk, respectively) as compared to Control (55+/-3% of the area at risk). 4. During both ischaemia and reperfusion, neither the incidence nor the severity of ventricular arrhythmias were altered by A(1)-DPC(100), A(1)-DPC(400) or I-DPC as compared to Control. 5. Thus, despite reduction of infarct size induced by delayed preconditioning, A(1)-DPC as well as I-DPC failed to exert any anti-arrhythmic effect in the conscious rabbit model of ischaemia-reperfusion.

Late preconditioning (PC) against myocardial stunning develops after coronary artery occlusion (CAO) at rest and subsequent reperfusion. We investigated whether late PC occurs after exercise-induced ischemia (high-flow ischemia) in dogs. A circumflex coronary artery stenosis (by using occluders) was set up before the onset of treadmill exercise in nine chronically instrumented dogs to suppress exercise-induced increase in mean coronary blood flow velocity (CBFV, Doppler) without simultaneously affecting left ventricular (LV) wall thickening (Wth) at rest. Two similar exercises were performed 24 h apart. On day 1, LV Wth was reduced by 84 ± 5% ( P < 0.01), and exercise-induced increases in transmural myocardial blood flow (MBF, fluorescent microspheres) in the ischemic zone were blunted. LV Wth was depressed throughout the first 10 h and returned to its baseline value after 24 h. On day 2, changes in LV Wth and MBF were similar as was the time course for LV Wth recovery, indicating lack of late PC. Also, CBFV responses to acetylcholine, nitroglycerin, and reactive hyperemia (20-s CAO) were not significantly different on days 1 and 2. Similar results were obtained in a subgroup of four additional dogs with more severe stenosis during exercise. Late PC against myocardial stunning was confirmed to occur in a model of 10-min CAO followed by coronary artery reperfusion (CAR) in another four dogs. Thus in contrast with CAO at rest followed by CAR, severe myocardial ischemia in coronary flow-limited exercising dogs does not induce late PC against myocardial stunning.