A prospective study was designed to determine the sensitivity and specificity of nonenhanced T2-weighted and contrast material-enhanced T1-weighted magnetic resonance (MR) imaging in assessing the depth of myometrial invasion in patients with proved endometrial cancer. In 56 consecutive patients with clinically determined early-stage disease, findings of the two MR imaging techniques were compared with results of histologic examination of surgical specimens. Myometrial invasion was classified as absent (stage IA), superficial (stage IB), or deep (stage IC). In the assessment of each tumor stage, the sensitivity and specificity of contrast-enhanced T1-weighted MR imaging were higher than those of non-enhanced T2-weighted MR imaging. In determining the degree of myometrial tumor invasion, the overall sensitivity of enhanced T1-weighted MR imaging was 87.5%, whereas that of nonenhanced T2-weighted MR imaging was 71.4% (P less than .05). The use of contrast material may improve the ability to assess, with MR imaging, the depth of myometrial invasion by endometrial cancer.

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effects of training activity on labor productivity in a panel of Italian firms. Design/methodology/approach – The use of a large panel data of individual firms allows the author to properly account for the possible endogeneity of training activity and avoid aggregation biases typical in industry-level data. Findings – The paper finds that training has a positive and significant impact on productivity. While unobserved heterogeneity leads to overestimate the impact of training, failing to account for the endogeneity of training leads to underestimate its effects on productivity. Within occupational groups, training has large and significant effects for blue-collar workers, while the effects for executives and clerks are relatively small. Finally, using a measure of effective training intensity the paper finds that failing to account for training duration may lead to underestimate the effect of training on productivity. Originality/value – Our data set is unique in terms of size and coverage and overcomes several limitations of previous research using firm-level data. Moreover, besides estimating the overall effect of training on productivity, the paper allows to address some more specific questions. Does the effect of training depend on the type of worker being trained? What is the relevance of effective participation to training activity?

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This paper investigates the capital structure of Hungarian firms using a cross-section and a panel data approach. The data set is composed of balance sheet data and information on market structure for 1100 firms from 1992 to 1996. Evidence is found of imperfections that constrain firms in the achievement of their optimal capital structure, but also some positive indications: there are no distortions typical of the planned system and no signs of the presence of soft budget constraints.