Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to contribute an international perspective to corporate social responsibility (CSR) and sustainability (Sus) discussions by examining CSR/Sus reporting practices of the 200 largest state-owned and private companies in India. Design/methodology/approach – The authors conduct a case study at the Danish carpet manufacturer EGE. The authors interpret the case from the perspective of pragmatic constructivism, which focusses on the integration of four dimensions: facts, possibilities, values, and communication. Findings – The analyses showed that while most companies share CSR/Sus information through their websites they associate different levels of importance to this communication. However, the study found that overall the CSR/Sus climate in India is showing signs of positive reform. Research limitations/implications – Being among the first, this study provides a framework for future studies to continue exploring CSR/Sus context in India, a country that despite its growing importance and influence has been largely ignored in the CSR/Sus literature. Practical/implications – The study outlines the current CSR/Sus reporting trends and best practices in India that can help managers and organizations identify issues and topics that they could channel their resources and efforts into to maximize returns and benefits in this area. Social/implications – This study provides insights into how corporations in an emerging and complex economy such as India are assuming roles of corporate citizens and are actively using web-based communication to engage and interact with stakeholders on issues that are of general concern. Originality/value – The value of this study is in providing empirical insights into the strategies that Indian companies use to report on their CSR/Sus policies and commitments. The study is among the first to examine CSR in India from a sustainability perspective, and evaluate compliance with global reporting standards among top corporations.

We conducted a meta-analysis to determine what factors in treatment regimens for Helicobacter pylori are associated with increased discontinuation rates. Studies were selected from the 1990-1996 MEDLINE data base, and references in published articles and reviews were obtained. Each article was uniformally abstracted for factors that could potentially affect dropout rates. Drug regimens with high numbers of doses per day had highest dropout rates (p=0.0001). The total dropout rate was lowest for regimens containing a proton pump inhibitor (OR = 0.75, CI 0.57, 0.98). The rate was high in regimens containing a bismuth compound due to side effects (OR = 2.79, CI 1.78, 4.36). The main finding was that drug regimens for eradication of H. pylori that have a high number of doses per day result in higher discontinuation rates than regimens with fewer doses per day.

No abstract

In our cohort of symptomatic infants, transcatheter PDA occlusion was successful in most and a ratio of minimum PDA diameter/length of <0.4 was predictive of technical success. Using a surrogate for pulmonary support, the majority of patients were on less support 7 days after closure.

Bone-specific alkaline phosphatase (BALP) is produced by osteoblasts. A recent series noted a positive association between cardiac index (CI) and BALP in patients with Fontan circulation. CI is low at baseline in these patients, and small decreases in CI may result in diverting of blood away from bone. We prospectively enrolled 15 patients (males ≤ 14 yo, females ≤ 12 yo) who had previously undergone Fontan operation and were undergoing cardiac catheterization. Serum BALP was measured at catheterization, and analysis performed to evaluate association between age-/gender-specific BALP z-score and CI as well as other patient variables. The median age at catheterization was 5.6 years (3.1-13.1), and time from Fontan was 1.5 years (0.1-12.1). The median superior vena cava saturation (SVC) was 65 % (52-74), median average between SVC and inferior vena cava (IVC) saturations was 62.5 % (51-70), and median CI was 3.8 L/min/m(2) (2.0-8.4). The median BALP was 65 IU/L and BALP z-score was -2.1 (-3.2 to 0.9). BALP z-score was not associated with CI (ρ = -0.1, p = 0.7), but a positive correlation was noted with the average of SVC and IVC saturation (ρ = 0.5, p = 0.052) and with SVC saturation (ρ = 0.4, p = 0.07), both nearly reaching statistical significance. In our cohort of children with Fontan circulation undergoing catheterization, BALP z-score was not associated with CI, but an association with estimates of mixed venous saturation was noted that nearly reached statistical significance. We hypothesize that BALP is a marker of oxygen delivery in those with Fontan circulation and may represent a valuable biomarker in this population.