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One Agent (one + agent)
Selected AbstractsPrincipal,Agent Analysis with One Agent and Two Principals: European Union Trade Negotiations with South AfricaPOLITICS & POLICY, Issue 3 2007Magdalena Frennhoff Larsén This article explores the utility of using principal,agent analysis,both at the level of the Commission and the European Union (EU) as a whole,to explain EU decision making in the negotiations between the European Union and South Africa that led to the Trade, Development and Co-operation Agreement of 1999. The article argues that the internal Commission negotiations, which are often overlooked in analyses of EU trade negotiations, need to be analyzed. It demonstrates that both the initial EU agenda and the final agreement with South Africa were heavily influenced by those Directorates-General (DGs) most affected by these policy decisions. Moreover, the EU negotiators, who had developmental interests because of their location within DG Development, were particularly influential. [source] Travel Agents and the Prevention of Health Problems among Travelers in QuébecJOURNAL OF TRAVEL MEDICINE, Issue 1 2002Sylvie Provost Background: Among the factors influencing travelers to seek preventive health advice before departure, the travel agent's recommendation plays an important role. The objective of our study was to document the practices and needs of travel agents in Québec (Canada) in relation to the prevention of health problems among travelers. Methods: In June 2000, a cross-sectional descriptive survey was carried out among travel agents from all travel agencies in Québec. One agent per agency was asked to answer our questions. Data were collected using a 32-item telephone questionnaire. Results: Altogether, 708 travel agents from the 948 agencies contacted answered our questionnaire (participation rate: 75%). Most respondents (81%) believed that the travel agent has a role to play in the prevention of health problems among travelers, especially to recommend that travelers consult a travel clinic before departure. Although over 80% of the agents interviewed mentioned recommending a visit to a travel clinic before an organized tour to Thailand or a backpacking trip in Mexico, less than half said they make the same recommendation for a stay in a seaside resort in Mexico. The majority of respondents were acquainted with the services offered in travel health clinics, and these clinics were the source of travel health information most often mentioned by travel agents. However, nearly 60% of the agents questioned had never personally consulted a travel clinic. When asked about the best way to receive information about travelers' health, more than 40% of respondents favoured receiving information newsletters from public health departments regularly whereas 28% preferred the Internet. Conclusion: Despite the limits of this study, our results should help the public health network better target its interventions aimed to inform travel agents on prevention of health problems among travelers. [source] One agent, many diseases: Exposure-response data and comparative risks of different outcomes following silica exposure,AMERICAN JOURNAL OF INDUSTRIAL MEDICINE, Issue 1 2005Kyle Steenland Abstract Background Evidence in recent years indicates that silica causes lung cancer, and probably renal disease, in addition to its well-known relationship to silicosis. There is also suggestive evidence that silica can cause arthritis and other auto-immune diseases. Silica has, therefore, joined a handful of other toxic exposures such as tobacco smoke, dioxin, and asbestos which cause multiple serious diseases. Methods The available exposure-response data for silica and silicosis, lung cancer, and renal disease are reviewed. We compare the corresponding excess risks (or absolute risks in the case of silicosis) of death or disease incidence by age 75 for these three diseases, subsequent to a lifetime (45 years) of exposure to silica at current US standard (0.1 mg/m3 respirable crystalline silica). Results The absolute risk of silicosis, as defined by small opacities greater than or equal to ILO classification 1/1 on an X-ray, ranges from 47% to 77% in three cohort studies with adequate follow-up after employment. The absolute risk of death from silicosis is estimated at 1.9% (0.8%,2.9%), based on a pooled analysis of six cohort studies. The excess risk of lung cancer death, assuming US male background rates, is 1.7% (0.2%,3.6%), based on a pooled analysis of ten cohort studies. The excess risk of end-stage renal disease (assuming male background rates) is 5.1% (2.2%,7.3%), based on a single cohort. The excess risk of death from renal disease is estimated to be 1.8% (0.8%,9.7%), based on a pooled analysis of three cohorts. Conclusions Keeping in mind that the usual OSHA acceptable excess risk of serious disease or death for workers is 0.1%, it is clear that the current standard is far from sufficiently protective of workers' health. Perhaps surprisingly, kidney disease emerges as perhaps a higher risk than either mortality from silicosis or lung cancer, although the data are based on fewer studies. Am. J. Ind. Med. 48:16,23, 2005. © 2005 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] The Mirrlees Approach to Mechanism Design with Renegotiation (with Applications to Hold-up and Risk Sharing)ECONOMETRICA, Issue 1 2002Ilya Segal The paper studies the implementation problem, first analyzed by Maskin and Moore (1999), in which two agents observe an unverifiable state of nature and may renegotiate inefficient outcomes following play of the mechanism. We develop a first-order approach to characterizing the set of implementable utility mappings in this problem, paralleling Mirrlees's (1971) first-order analysis of standard mechanism design problems. We use this characterization to study optimal contracting in hold-up and risk-sharing models. In particular, we examine when the contracting parties can optimally restrict attention to simple contracts, such as noncontingent contracts and option contracts (where only one agent sends a message). [source] Synergistic Combinations of Anticonvulsant Agents: What Is the Evidence from Animal Experiments?EPILEPSIA, Issue 3 2007Daniël M. Jonker Summary:,Purpose: Combination therapy is often used in the treatment of seizures refractory to monotherapy. At the same time, the pharmacodynamic mechanisms that determine the combined efficacy of antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) are unknown, and this prevents a rational use of these drug combinations. We critically evaluate the existing evidence for pharmacodynamic synergism between AEDs from preclinical studies in animal models of epilepsy to identify useful combinations of mechanisms and to determine whether study outcome depends on the various research methods that are in use. Methods: Published articles were included if the studies were placebo-controlled, in vivo, or ex vivo animal studies investigating marketed or experimental AEDs. The animal models that were used in these studies, the primary molecular targets of the tested drugs, and the methods of interpretation were recorded. The potential association of these factors with the study outcome (synergism: yes or no) was assessed through logistic regression analysis. Results: In total, 107 studies were identified, in which 536 interaction experiments were conducted. In 54% of these experiments, the possibility of a pharmacokinetic interaction was not investigated. The majority of studies were conducted in the maximal electroshock model, and other established models were the pentylenetetrazole model, amygdala kindling, and the DBA/2 model. By far the most widely used method for interpretation of the results was evaluation of the effect of a threshold dose of one agent on the median effective dose (ED50) of another agent. Experiments relying on this method found synergism significantly more often compared with experiments relying on other methods (p < 0.001). Furthermore, experiments including antagonists of the AMPA receptor were more likely to find synergism in comparison with all other experiments (p < 0.001). Conclusions: Intensive preclinical research into the effects of AED combinations has not led to an understanding of the pharmacodynamic properties of AED combinations. Specifically, the majority of the preclinical studies are not adequately designed to distinguish between additive, synergistic, and antagonistic interactions. Quantitative pharmacokinetic,pharmacodynamic studies of selectively acting AEDs in a battery of animal models are necessary for the development of truly synergistic drug combinations. [source] Eletriptan in Migraine Patients Reporting Unsatisfactory Response to RizatriptanHEADACHE, Issue 7 2006Jerome Goldstein MD Objective.,The objective of this open-label study was to evaluate the efficacy of switching patients who had a previous unsatisfactory response to rizatriptan to eletriptan 40 mg. Background.,The characteristics of individual migraine patients can vary tremendously and can have a significant impact on treatment outcomes. In addition, clinical experience has demonstrated that the triptans are not identical or interchangeable and that patients who respond poorly or who are dissatisfied with one agent can derive benefit by being switched to another agent within the triptan class. Methods.,Patients were eligible if they met International Headache Society criteria for migraine, with a frequency of 1 to 6 migraine attacks per month, and had documented "unsatisfactory treatment response" to rizatriptan within the past year (54% on the melt formulation; 46% on tablets). Reasons for dissatisfaction with rizatriptan (>1 could be cited) included inadequate (84%) or slow onset (50%) of pain relief, high recurrence rate (69%), and lack of improvement in associated symptoms (60%). One hundred twenty-three patients were eligible for treatment. Patients were instructed to take eletriptan 40 mg as soon as they were certain that their headache was a migraine, regardless of level of pain severity (8% treated headaches that were mild). Results.,Headache response at 2 hours (first-attack data) was 64%. Absence of nausea (from baseline to 2 hours) increased from 50% to 78%, absence of photophobia from 30% to 72%, and absence of phonophobia from 39% to 77%. Functional response at 2 hours was 63%, with 41% of patients reporting normal functioning. Treatment with eletriptan 40 mg was associated with a 27% to 40% reduction in migraine attack-related functional impairment, as measured by the PQ-7. Recurrence rates were 36.6%. Overall, 72% of patients rated eletriptan as a "good-to-excellent" treatment, and 78% reported overall satisfaction with the degree of headache relief. Conclusion.,The results of this study suggest that eletriptan is an efficacious treatment option for patients who are dissatisfied with their response to rizatriptan. [source] Avandamet: combined metformin,rosiglitazone treatment for insulin resistance in type 2 diabetesINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CLINICAL PRACTICE, Issue 9 2004C.J. Bailey Summary Insulin resistance is a major endocrinopathy underlying the development of hyperglycaemia and cardiovascular disease in type 2 diabetes. Metformin (a biguanide) and rosiglitazone (a thiazolidinedione) counter insulin resistance, acting by different cellular mechanisms. The two agents can be used in combination to achieve additive glucose-lowering efficacy in the treatment of type 2 diabetes, without stimulating insulin secretion and without causing hypoglycaemia. Both agents also reduce a range of atherothrombotic factors and markers, indicating a lower cardiovascular risk. Early intervention with metformin is already known to reduce myocardial infarction and increase survival in overweight type 2 patients. Recently, a single-tablet combination of metformin and rosiglitazone, Avandamet, has become available. Avandamet is suitable for type 2 diabetic patients who are inadequately controlled by monotherapy with metformin or rosiglitazone. Patients already receiving separate tablets of metformin and rosiglitazone may switch to the single-tablet combination for convenience. Also, early introduction of the combination before maximal titration of one agent can reduce side effects. Use of Avandamet requires attention to the precautions for both metformin and rosiglitazone, especially renal, cardiac and hepatic competence. In summary, Avandamet is a single-tablet metformin,rosiglitazone combination that doubly targets insulin resistance as therapy for hyperglycaemia and vascular risk in type 2 diabetes. [source] Prospective randomised single blind study of epidural steroid injection comparing triamcinalone acetonide with methylprednisolone acetateINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF RHEUMATIC DISEASES, Issue 1 2005A. ANWAR Abstract Aim:, This study aims to assess the effectiveness of epidural steroid injection as well as comparing two agents commonly used in these procedures, namely triamcinalone acetonide and methylprednisolone acetate. Method:, Twenty subjects were recruited into each group receiving either agent. Results:, Overall result showed that there were marked improvement in symptoms in both agents but there were no differences in terms of superiority from one agent to another. Conclusion:, Epidural steroid injection is effective and both agents are equipotent. [source] Your Drug, My Drug, or Our Drugs: How Aggressive Should We Be With Antihypertensive Therapy?JOURNAL OF CLINICAL HYPERTENSION, Issue 2005Joseph L. Izzo Jr. MD In the prevention of hypertensive complications, especially stroke and kidney disease, "lower is better" because for each decrease of 20 mm Hg systolic or 10 mm Hg diastolic pressure in the population, cardiovascular risk is halved. Ideally, the goal for each patient should be to reach the lowest blood pressure that is well tolerated, a value that may be well below the arbitrary threshold value of 140/90 mm Hg. For the majority of "uncomplicated hypertensives," the question of single-drug therapy is essentially moot, because more than one agent is almost always required to optimally control blood pressure. In individuals who already have heart or kidney disease, there are compelling indications for the use of drugs that block the renin-angiotensin system, but the large outcome studies that spawned these recommendations are themselves combination trials. Thus, in virtually all patients, more than one drug is indicated. The best combinations take advantage of long durations of action and complementary mechanisms of action of the component and are not only able to effectively lower blood pressure, but also to favorably affect the natural history of hypertensive complications. Regimens,including fixed-dose combination products,that combine a thiazide diuretic or calcium antagonist with an angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor or angiotensin receptor blocker are most efficient. In summary, why would an astute clinician (or informed patient) be satisfied with the relatively limited effects of any single class of antihypertensive agents when better overall protection is possible? [source] Equity and Adverse SelectionJOURNAL OF ECONOMICS & MANAGEMENT STRATEGY, Issue 2 2007Ramarao Desiraju We introduce concerns with inequity into the canonical adverse selection model. We find that aversion to ex post inequity is not constraining for the principal if the two agents are identical ex ante, but generally is constraining when the agents differ ex ante. Constraining equity concerns can lead to output levels that are either above or below standard levels, and can result in only one agent experiencing systematic inequity in equilibrium. [source] Interdependent Preferences and Groups of AgentsJOURNAL OF PUBLIC ECONOMIC THEORY, Issue 1 2001Stanley Reiter An individual's preferences are assumed to be malleable and may be influenced by the preferences of others. Mutual interaction among individuals whose preferences are interdependent powers a dynamic process in which preference profiles evolve over time. Two formulations of the dynamic process are presented. One is an abstract model in which the iteration of a mapping from profiles to profiles defines a discrete time dynamic process; the other is a linear discrete time process specified in more detail. Examples motivate the model and illustrate its application. Conditions are given for the existence of a stable preference profile,a rest point of the dynamic process. A stable profile is naturally associated with a division, not in general unique, of the set of agents into subgroups with the property that preference interdependencies within a subgroup are "stronger" than those across subgroups. The conventional case in which each agent's preference relation is exogenously given is, in this model, the special case where each subgroup consists of just one agent. [source] Behavioral uncertainty and investments in cooperative relationshipsMANAGERIAL AND DECISION ECONOMICS, Issue 1 2004Rudolf Vetschera We study a cooperative relationship between two economic agents, in which one agent can make investments in the relationship to reduce the probability that the other agent defects. The probability of defection is derived from an incomplete information decision model of the transaction partner. We show that the relationship between investment and probability of defection depends on the type of uncertainty considered and analyze the effects of parameter changes on the optimal level of investment. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] | |||||||||||||