Academic Ceremonies March 2014

“Proteomics investigations; towards mechanisms and biomarkers for drug-induced hepatotoxicity”

“The relevance of Earnings Information: A Multi-User perspective”

This dissertation describes various methods of reporting business profits. The reported profits are extremely important to investors when assessing a company. An initial study examined how the investors’ reactions to profit reports changed after companies entered the stock market. It also revealed that, while reactions to profit reports increased the longer these companies remained on the market, there were significant developmental differences between the companies. A second study examined how financial analysts – an important source of profit-related information – collect more industry-specific information when the competition had more and better-informed (institutional) investors. In addition to accurate profit reporting, managers also have the opportunity to manipulate these by making strategic accounting decisions and changing the operational activities. A third study sought to develop a better research standard for identifying profit manipulation by changing the investment level.

Key words:

reporting business profit, investor knowledge, profit manipulation 

“Improving care for patients with rheumatic diseases”

This dissertation describes examples of healthcare improvements for various chronic rheumatic disorders. The first section describes a randomised study exploring the effects of a new and intensive multidisciplinary treatment and aftercare for patients recently diagnosed with fibromyalgia (a pain disorder). Given the minor differences between the group that received the new treatment and the group that did not, we were unable to conclude that the treatment was more (cost) effective. Furthermore, given the discrepancies between the patients involved, we believe this treatment should be further tailored.

The second section describes the development and evaluation of an international standard for nursing care in patients with arthritis. While nurses play an important role, there are major international differences in terms of their tasks and responsibilities. This leads to undesirable differences in the quality of care. Widespread support for standardised care justifies the investments required for further implementation.

Key words:

chronic rheumatic disorders, healthcare

“Translational research on spinal cord injury and cell-based therapies; a focus on pain and sensorimotor disturbances”

“Partial flap loss and fat necrosis in autologous breast reconstruction”

“Anatomical, radiologica land clinical findings on perforator flaps”

“De lokale staat”

“High risk newborns and brain biochemical monitoring” 

“Dopamine mechanisms in learning and memory: Evidence from rodent studies”

“Don’t pay attention to high-calorie foods for a healthy Weight: Attention bias for food and the desire to eat”

Does looking at food influence your eating behaviour? Our environment contributes to the increasing obesity prevalence because we are constantly surrounded by tempting foods. However, individuals differ in their susceptibility to this environment - not everybody is obese. We tested if preferentially looking at tempting, but unhealthy food is related to eating behaviour and weight. Six laboratory studies showed that biased attention for food is related to food intake, BMI differences in adults and weight change in obese children who participated in a lifestyle intervention. Thus, attentional bias for food is a psychological factor related to overeating and obesity.

Key words:

Obesity, attention bias, overeating, weight change, cognitions, eating behaviour

“Processing of natural sounds and scenes in the human brain”

Voor het onderzoek dat in dit proefschrift wordt beschreven, zijn natuurlijke geluidsstimuli en muziek gebruikt in combinatie met beeldvorming van de hersenen, om te onderzoeken: 1) hoe we geluiden waarnemen in een natuurlijke omgeving en 2) hoe onze hersenen relevante geluiden uit de mengeling van overlappende geluiden oppikt. Onder andere is aangetoond dat neurale geluidsvoorstellingen in gehoornetwerken in de superieure temporale cortex cruciaal zijn voor zowel de bottom-up verwerking van spectrale en tijdelijke relaties van de akoestische omgevingselementen als de top-down processen van het aandachtig selecteren en vergroten van de relevante geluiden. Deze ontdekkingen geven inzicht in de neuro-computermechanismen die ons in staat stellen geluiden tijdens het dagelijks leven te herkennen. In de toekomst zal de bouw van kunstmatige systemen die de hersenen nabootsen, leiden tot verbeterde gehoorapparaten.

Key words:

natural sounds, music, fMRI, MEG, brain, human audition

“Stamcellen: bright side, dark side”

“Evaluation of speed of sound aberration and correction for ultrasound guided radiation therapy”

For radiation therapy treatments, cancer patients must be accurately positioned to achieve optimal radiation delivery. Ultrasound is an imaging modality which can help perform this operation. To this end, it must be quantitatively reliable. In this work a correction for an imaging error, due to the wrong assumption that speed of sound has a constant value in human tissues, is presented. Local speed of sound values can show important variations, instead, and we calculated these values from the physical density inside the patient. When applied, the correction allows better localization of the treatment target (the tumor) and better sparing of surrounding healthy tissues.

Key words:

radiation therapy, ultrasound

“PRODUCTIVE FANDOM; Intermediality and Affective Reception in Fan Cultures”

Fans and gamers do more than just couch-surf: pop culture demands an increasing degree of participation via social media and platforms. Fans have been around for centuries and what they share is a strong social and creative culture that takes place online and offline at fan conventions and other events. Fans can also be extremely productive. They write their own stories based on films and television shows such as Glee and design their own costumes based on video game characters. Productive fandom is the result of an extensive ethnographic research study, which reveals that pop culture is not only created by media moguls, but is also intimately connected to the audience itself.

Key words:

gaming, fans, subculture, ethnography

“The Cultural Complexity of problem-based learning across the world”

Problem-based learning (PBL) is a popular student-centred teaching method in which students guide their own learning process in small groups. PBL is becoming increasingly popular in institutes of higher education around the world. However, the cross-cultural applicability of PBL is being called into question by the cross-cultural differences in the Western educational standards and values that characterise PBL. This dissertation describes the cross-cultural applicability of PBL and concludes that it is particularly challenging in non-Western contexts. Various cross-cultural differences have been identified in terms of how and what students learn in terms of communication and lifelong learning skills, for example. PBL is not the best choice for all faculties worldwide. That being said, when PBL is implemented properly, students are better equipped to handle practical situations in various cultural contexts compared to more traditional teaching methods.

Key words:

problem-based learning, cross-cultural research

“An interdisciplinary primary care approach for frail older people feasibility, effects and costs”

Our greying population and our increasingly extramural healthcare system will put increasing pressure on primary care in the coming years. The interdisciplinary primary care programme Zorg uit Voorzorg was designed to support vulnerable older people in their independent daily functioning at home. This dissertation explored the efficacy, cost-efficiency and practical feasibility of Zorg uit Voorzorg. The results reveal that the programme is highly valued by older people and healthcare providers, but has yet to achieve the desired effect. Further research on identifying and supporting this vulnerable section of the population is highly recommended.

Key words:

elderly, vulnerability, primary care, daily functioning

“About the (dis)continuation of fertility treatment”

Couples with an unfulfilled desire to conceive can begin a course of treatment if this is expected to increase their chances of conception. This dissertation examined various components in this treatment process, with the goal of identifying resources to optimise healthcare. A high dropout rate was found after analysing the follow-up results of a cohort on the IVF waiting list. This dropout rate did not lead to an overestimation of the reported treatment results. Various models used to test ovarian reserve were compared to determine who should receive treatment. The antral follicle count alone proved just as reliable as the use of multivariate models.

Key words:

fertility, IVF, ICSI, pregnancy

“Management of midtrimester prelabour rupture of membranes”

“Preterm prelabor rupture of membranes: different gestational ages, different problems”

This dissertation describes the issues surrounding the preterm rupture of membranes (PROM) during pregnancy. PROM is particularly risky for the unborn child, but can also affect the mother’s health in the event of infection. This study examined the neurological and behavioural development of toddlers born to mothers who presented with PROM between weeks 34 and 37. A policy of expectant management was the most effective strategy for newborns; however, a slight preference for induction was preferred for toddlers, given the increased risk of developmental problems.

The study also found an increased risk for adverse pregnancy outcomes in extreme cases of PROM (<27 weeks). The diagnostic methods currently available for detecting the preterm rupture of membranes (blood tests and ultrasounds) proved to be poor predictors.

Key words:

pregnancy, preterm rupture of membranes, risks

“The role of accounting and market-based information signals in the bond market”

“Kidney transplantation form donors after cardiac death”

“The highs and lows of drugs use: acute effects of cannabis, cocaine and MDMA on impulsivity, cognition and subjective experience”

This study focuses on the acute effects of drugs such as cannabis, cocaine and MDMA (XTC) on impulsivity and cognitive functioning. The results of this dissertation demonstrate that MDMA has no effect on impulsivity. Regular cannabis users became more impulsive under the influence of both cannabis and cocaine; however, in which way this happened differed. This suggests that these addictions also differ and should be treated differently.

Cannabis, cocaine and MDMA had a significant effect on positive and negative moods. MDMA’s positive effect on mood was cancelled out by blocking the 5-HT2 receptor. This means MDMA could be useful in treating post-traumatic stress disorder because stimulating this receptor enhances social feelings and interaction with the therapist.

Dissociative and psychedelic experiences increased in cannabis and cocaine users. This increase was primarily perceived in participants with impulsive personalities, which could explain why impulsive people are more likely to develop addictions.

Key words:

drugs, effects, cognitive functions

“More Bureaucracy or more Democracy: The EU at an 'unrepresentative turn?'”