Paris West University Nanterre La Défense

About: Paris West University Nanterre La Défense is a education organization based out in Paris, France. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Computer science & Politics. The organization has 895 authors who have published 1430 publications receiving 21712 citations.

What Drives the Efficiency of Selected Mena Banks? A Meta-Frontier Analysis

Abstract: This study examines the effect of financial sector reform on bank performance in selected Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) countries in the period 1993-2006. We evaluate bank efficiency in Egypt, Jordan, Morocco and Tunisia by means of Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) and we employ a meta-frontier approach to calculate efficiency scores in a cross country setting. We then employ a second-stage Tobit regression to investigate the impact of institutional, financial and bank specific variables on bank efficiency. Overall, the analysis shows that, despite similarities in the process of financial reforms undertaken in the four MENA countries, the observed efficiency levels of banks varies substantially across markets, with Morocco and Tunisia outperforming Egypt and Jordan. Differences in technology seem to be crucial in explaining efficiency differences. To improve banking sector efficiency, policies should be aimed at giving banks incentives to improve their capitalisation and liquidity. Improvements in the legal system and in the regulatory and supervisory bodies would also help to reduce inefficiency. Finally, increased investments and upgrading of the stock markets in the region would help banks improve their performance.

Diffusion tensor imaging tractography parameters of limbic system bundles in temporal lobe epilepsy patients.

Abstract: Purpose: To investigate changes in diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) measures in limbic system white matter of patients with temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) using diffusion tensor tractography. Materials and Methods: DTI metrics including fractional anisotropy (FA), λ1, λ2, λ3, and trace (Tr) coefficients were obtained from tractography for bilateral fornix, superior and inferior cingulum fibers in 18 patients and 10 healthy controls. Hippocampal signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) quantitative analysis was performed in order to confirm the magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) hippocampal lesion presence or absence in TLE patients. Results: Nine patients presented unilateral hippocampal sclerosis (TLE+HS) and nine patients had no signal abnormalities on conventional MRI (TLE−HS). On the ipsilateral seizure side, all three investigated tracts showed significant DTI indices abnormalities in both patient groups when compared with controls, most marked on the inferior cingulum. Contralateral to the seizure side, the three tracts presented significant DTI parameters in only the TLE+HS group when compared with controls. Conclusion: The DTI abnormalities found in the TLE−HS group may suggest that in the inferior cingulum the structural integrity is more affected than in the fornix or superior cingulum white matter bundles. The eigenvalues taken separately add complementary information to the FA and Tr metrics and may be useful indices in better understanding the architectural reorganization of limbic system tracts in TLE patients without HS. J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2012;36:561–568. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.