Northwestern University

About: Northwestern University is a education organization based out in Evanston, Illinois, United States. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Medicine. The organization has 75430 authors who have published 188857 publications receiving 9463252 citations. The organization is also known as: Northwestern & NU.

Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease: A Systematic Review

Abstract: Importance Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease and its subtype nonalcoholic steatohepatitis affect approximately 30% and 5%, respectively, of the US population. In patients with nonalcoholic steatohepatitis, half of deaths are due to cardiovascular disease and malignancy, yet awareness of this remains low. Cirrhosis, the third leading cause of death in patients with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, is predicted to become the most common indication for liver transplantation. Objectives To illustrate how to identify patients with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease at greatest risk of nonalcoholic steatohepatitis and cirrhosis; to discuss the role and limitations of current diagnostics and liver biopsy to diagnose nonalcoholic steatohepatitis; and to provide an outline for the management of patients across the spectrum of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. Evidence Review PubMed was queried for published articles through February 28, 2015, using the search termsNAFLD and cirrhosis, mortality, biomarkers,andtreatment. A total of 88 references were selected, including 14 randomized clinical trials, 19 cohort or case-control studies, 1 population-based study, 2 practice guidelines, 7 meta-analyses, 43 classified as other, and 2 webpages. Findings Sixty-six percent of patients older than 50 years with diabetes or obesity are thought to have nonalcoholic steatohepatitis with advanced fibrosis. Even though the ability to identify the nonalcoholic steatohepatitis subtype within those with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease still requires liver biopsy, biomarkers to detect advanced fibrosis are increasingly reliable. Lifestyle modification is the foundation of treatment for patients with nonalcoholic steatosis. Available treatments with proven benefit include vitamin E, pioglitazone, and obeticholic acid; however, the effect size is modest ( Conclusions and Relevance Between 75 million and 100 million individuals in the United States are estimated to have nonalcoholic fatty liver disease and its potential morbidity extends beyond the liver. It is important that primary care physicians, endocrinologists, and other specialists be aware of the scope and long-term effects of the disease. Early identification of patients with nonalcoholic steatohepatitis may help improve patient outcomes through treatment intervention, including transplantation for those with decompensated cirrhosis.

Molecular electronic-structure theory

Abstract: Second Quantization Spin in Second Quantization Orbital Rotations Exact and Approximate Wave Functions The Standard Models Atomic Basis Functions Short-Range Interactions and Orbital Expansions Gaussian Basis Sets Molecular Integral Evaluation Hartree-Fock Theory Configuration-Interaction Theory Multiconfigurational Self-Consistent Field Theory Coupled-Cluster Theory Perturbation Theory Calibration of the Electronic-Structure Models List of Acronyms Index

Managing Risk To Avoid Supply-Chain Breakdown

Abstract: Natural disasters, labor disputes, terrorism and more mundane risks can seriously disrupt or delay the flow of material, information and cash through an organization's supply chain The authors assert that how well a company fares against such threats will depend on its level of preparedness, and the type of disruption Each supply-chain risk to forecasts, information systems, intellectual property, procurement, inventory and capacity has its own drivers and effective mitigation strategies To avoid lost sales, increased costs or both, managers need to tailor proven risk-reduction strategies to their organizations Managing supply-chain risk is difficult, however Dell, Toyota, Motorola and other leading manufacturers excel at identifying and neutralizing supply-chain risks through a delicate balancing act: keeping inventory, capacity and related elements at appropriate levels across the entire supply chain in a rapidly changing environment Organizations can prepare for or avoid delays by "smart sizing" their capacity and inventory The manager serves as a kind of financial portfolio manager, seeking to achieve the highest achievable profits (reward) for varying levels of supply-chain risk The authors recommend a powerful "what if?" team exercise called "stress testing" to identify potentially weak links in the supply chain Armed with this shared understanding, companies can then select the best mitigation strategy: holding "reserves," pooling inventory, using redundant suppliers, balancing capacity and inventory, implementing robust backup and recovery systems, adjusting pricing and incentives, bringing or keeping production in-house, and using Continuous Replenishment Programs (CRP), Collaborative Planning, Forecasting and Replenishment (CPFR) and other supply-chain initiatives

Time Varying Structural Vector Autoregressions and Monetary Policy

Abstract: Monetary policy and the private sector behavior of the US economy are modeled as a time varying structural vector autoregression, where the sources of time variation are both the coefficients and the variance covariance matrix of the innovations. The paper develops a new, simple modeling strategy for the law of motion of the variance covariance matrix and proposes an efficient Markov chain Monte Carlo algorithm for the model likelihood/posterior numerical evaluation. The main empirical conclusions are: 1) both systematic and non-systematic monetary policy have changed during the last forty years. In particular, systematic responses of the interest rate to inflation and unemployment exhibit a trend toward a more aggressive behavior, despite remarkable oscillations; 2) this has had a negligible effect on the rest of the economy. The role played by exogenous non-policy shocks seems more important than interest rate policy in explaining the high inflation and unemployment episodes in recent US economic history.