Productivity,Preferences and UIP Deviations in an Open Economy Business Cycle Model

We show that a flex-price two-sector open economy DSGE model can explain the poor degree of international risk sharing and exchange rate disconnect. We use a suite of model evaluation measures and examine the role of (1) traded and non-traded sectors; (2) financial market incompleteness; (3) preference shocks; (4) deviations from UIP condition for the exchange rates; and (5) creditor status in net foreign assets. We find that there is a good case for both traded and non-traded productivity shocks as well as UIP deviations in explaining the puzzles.     

Medication,equipment, and supply costs for common interventions providing extended post-surgical analgesia following total knee arthroplasty in US hospitals

Aims: To estimate the cost to hospitals of materials (i.e. medications, equipment, and supplies) required to administer common interventions for post-surgical analgesia after total knee arthroplasty (TKA), including single-injection peripheral nerve block (sPNB), continuous peripheral nerve block (cPNB), periarticular infiltration of multi-drug cocktails, continuous epidural analgesia, intravenous patient-controlled analgesia (IV PCA), and local infiltration of bupivacaine liposome injectable suspension (BLIS).

Materials and methods: This analysis was conducted using a mixed methods approach combining published literature, publicly available data sources, and administrative data, to first identify the materials required to administer these interventions, and then estimate the cost to the hospital of those materials. Medication costs were estimated primarily using the Wholesale Acquisition Costs (WAC), the cost of reusable equipment was obtained from published sources, and costs for disposable supplies were obtained from the US Government Services Administration (GSA) database. Where uncertainty existed about the technique used when administering these interventions, costs were calculated for multiple scenarios reflecting different assumptions.

Results: The total cost of materials (i.e. medications, equipment, and supplies) required to provide post-surgical analgesia was $41.88 for sPNB with bupivacaine; $756.57 for cFNB with ropivacaine; $16.38 for periarticular infiltration with bupivacaine, morphine, methylprednisolone, and cefuroxime; $453.84 for continuous epidural analgesia with fentanyl and ropivacaine; $178.94 for IV PCA with morphine; and $319.00 for BLIS.

Limitations: This analysis did not consider the cost of healthcare providers required to administer these interventions. In addition, this analysis focused on the cost of materials and, therefore, did not consider aspects of relative efficacy or safety, or how the choice of intervention for post-surgical analgesia might impact outcomes such as length of stay, re-admissions, discharge status, adverse events, or total hospitalization costs.

Conclusions: This study provided an estimate of the costs to hospitals for materials required to administer commonly used interventions for post-surgical analgesia after TKA.     

Ethnic fragmentation,public good provision and inequality in India, 1988–2012

We study how ethnic fragmentation in Indian districts influences the distribution of consumption, both overall and between social groups. In the absence of systematic evidence on inequality between social groups (horizontal inequality) during the sample period, we construct estimates of horizontal and overall inequality, and find that horizontal inequality is a small proportion of overall inequality, as well as that both overall and horizontal inequality have increased over time. Our empirical results indicate that more fragmented districts have higher inequality, but the relationship between fragmentation and horizontal inequality is weak. Additionally, we show that fragmentation increases inequality by lowering public good provision.     

Product Cycles, Innovation, and Exports: A Study of Indian Pharmaceuticals

This paper studies the product cycle and neo-technology theories of trade in the context of generic pharmaceuticals. It analyzes the export performance of 131 Indian pharmaceutical firms for the period 1989–2004. The results indicate that technology proxied by foreign patent rights has a positive impact on exports. This suggests that developing countries with innovation skills for process innovations are capable of penetrating international markets in the later stages of the product cycle by using patents, which were the barriers to trade in the early stages of the product cycle.     

The resource dynamics of early internationalising Indian IT firms

Building on the resource-based view of the firm, this study explores how firms entering into early internationalisation combine different resources to discover the international market opportunities. Based on an in-depth analysis of case studies of five knowledge-intensive firms from India, this study suggests that the differences in the extent of resources available and their combinations influence the early stage of the internationalisation process and pace of learning in the foreign markets. This study contributes to the existing research on international entrepreneurship by explaining how new international ventures overcome the challenges of internationalisation by wisely utilising a broad set of available and potential resources during their early internationalisation efforts and gradually shift the focus on the internalisation of resources. Moreover, this study suggests that the effects of the combination of resources vary across different ventures. A strong combination can increase internationalisation and minimise the risks of failure in new international ventures.     

Isolated gastric varices: Ultrasound detection

Isolated gastric varices (IGV) (resulting from varying etiologies) were diagnosed in six patients using ultrasound examination of the wall of the fluid-filled stomach. Small gastric varices are seen as circular or linear anechoic channels within the gastric wall without a significant intraluminal projection. Large varices are seen as anechoic, lobulated “bulging masses” projecting into the fluid-filled lumen of the stomach. Doppler technique assists in confirming the vascular nature of these lesions and thus avoids confusion with other hypoanechoic lesions of the gastric wall. The technique is simple, noninvasive, and extremely useful in diagnosing IGV in patients investigated for recurrent undiagnosed gastrointestinal bleeding.