LLukas22/scidocs huggingface dataset:
Validation of the Japanese Severe Respiratory Insufficiency Questionnaire in hypercapnic patients with noninvasive ventilation.

BACKGROUND
The Severe Respiratory Insufficiency (SRI) Questionnaire was originally developed in German to assess health-related quality of life (HRQL) and was validated as a multidimensional instrument with high psychometric properties in chronic hypercapnic respiratory failure (CHRF) patients receiving noninvasive ventilation (NIV). We aimed to investigate the intercultural adaptation of the Japanese SRI Questionnaire and whether it is a reliable and valid HRQL questionnaire to administer to those patients.


METHODS
The SRI Questionnaire was adapted to Japanese using a translation and back-translation procedure, followed by equivalency assessment. It was validated in 56 stable outpatients receiving NIV for CHRF, primarily due to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and/or pulmonary tuberculosis sequelae.


RESULTS
Examination of the frequency distribution of the Japanese SRI Questionnaire showed that the subscales and summary were approximately normally distributed and well balanced. There were no significant differences in SRI scores between patients with COPD and pulmonary tuberculosis sequelae. Cronbach׳s α values representing internal consistency of seven SRI subscales ranged from 0.56 to 0.80; attendant symptoms and sleep had the lowest values. Cronbach׳s α value was 0.92 for the SRI summary. The SRI summary score was significantly related to all eight subscales of the Medical Outcomes Study 36-item short form, with correlation coefficients of 0.41-0.66.


CONCLUSIONS
The Japanese SRI Questionnaire was produced using a standardized procedure and an equivalency study. It has high psychometric properties with internal consistency and concurrent validity. The Japanese SRI Questionnaire can be used to assess HRQL in patients on NIV for CHRF.
How specific are executive functioning deficits in attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and autism?

BACKGROUND
The objective of this study is to identify intact and deficient cognitive processes in children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and children with high functioning autism (HFA).


METHOD
Three rigorously diagnosed groups of children aged between 6 and 12 years (54 ADHD, 41 HFA, and 41 normal controls) were tested on a wide range of tasks related to five major domains of executive functioning (EF): inhibition, visual working memory, planning, cognitive flexibility, and verbal fluency. In addition, the role of comorbid oppositional defiant disorder (ODD) and comorbid conduct disorder (CD) in ADHD was investigated by directly comparing 20 children with ADHD and 34 children with comorbid ADHD + ODD/CD.


RESULTS
ADHD was associated with EF deficits in inhibiting a prepotent response and verbal fluency. Children with HFA demonstrated deficits in all EF domains, except interference control and working memory. The HFA group showed more difficulties than the ADHD group with planning and cognitive flexibility. The comorbid ADHD + ODD/CD group did not show a distinctive pattern of performance on the EF tests compared to the ADHD group.


CONCLUSION
The present study indicates that children with HFA exhibit more generalised and profound problems with EF tasks compared to children with ADHD.
Vocal Fold Disorder Detection by applying LBP Operator on Dysphonic Speech Signal

The automatic system for voice pathology assessment is one of the active areas for researchers in the recent years due to its benefits to the clinicians and presence of a significant number of dysphonic patients around the globe. In this paper, a voice disorder detection system is developed to differentiate between a normal and pathological voice signal. The system is implemented by applying the local binary pattern (LBP) operator on Mel-weighted spectrum of a signal. The LBP is considered as one of the sophisticated techniques for the image processing. The technique also provided very good results for voice pathology detection during this study. The English voice disorder database MEEI is used to evaluate the performance of the developed system. The results of the LBP operator based system are compared with MFCC and found to be better than MFCC. Key-Words: LBP operator, MFCC, Vocal fold disorders, Sustained vowel, MEEI database, disorder detection system.
The Instrumented Sit-to-Stand Test (iSTS) Has Greater Clinical Relevance than the Manually Recorded Sit-to-Stand Test in Older Adults

BACKGROUND
The ability to rise from sitting to standing is critical to an individual's quality of life, as it is a prerequisite for functional independence. The purpose of the current study was to examine the hypothesis that test durations as assessed with the instrumented repeated Sit-To-Stand (STS) show stronger associations with health status, functional status and daily physical activity of older adults than manually recorded test durations.


METHODS
In 63 older participants (mean age 83 ±6.9 years, 51 female), health status was assessed using the European Quality of Life questionnaire and functional status was assessed using the physical function index of the of the RAND-36. Physical performance was measured using a wearable sensor-based STS test. From this test, durations, sub-durations and kinematics of the STS movements were estimated and analysed. In addition, physical activity was measured for one week using an activity monitor and episodes of lying, sitting, standing and locomotion were identified. Associations between STS parameters with health status, functional status and daily physical activity were assessed.


RESULTS
The manually recorded STS times were not significantly associated with health status (p = 0.457) and functional status (p = 0.055), whereas the instrumented STS times were (both p = 0.009). The manually recorded STS durations showed a significant association to daily physical activity for mean sitting durations (p = 0.042), but not for mean standing durations (p = 0.230) and mean number of locomotion periods (p = 0.218). Furthermore, durations of the dynamic sit-to-stand phase of the instrumented STS showed more significant associations with health status, functional status and daily physical activity (all p = 0.001) than the static phases standing and sitting (p = 0.043-0.422).


CONCLUSIONS
As hypothesized, instrumented STS durations were more strongly associated with participant health status, functional status and physical activity than manually recorded STS durations in older adults. Furthermore, instrumented STS allowed assessment of the dynamic phases of the test, which were likely more informative than the static sitting and standing phases.
Passenger BUS alert system for easy navigation of blind

Talking signs, guide cane, echolocations are all useful in navigating the visually challenged people to reach their destination, but the main objective is not reached that it fails to join them with traffic. In this project we propose a bus system using wireless sensor networks (WSNs). The blind people in the bus station is provided with a ZigBee unit which is recognized by the ZigBee in the bus and the indication is made in the bus that the blind people is present in the station. So the bus stops at the particular station. The desired bus that the blind want to take is notified to him with the help of speech recognition system HM2007. The blind gives the input about the place he has to reach using microphones and the voice recognition system recognizes it. The input is then analyzed by the microcontroller which generates the bus numbers corresponding to the location provided by the blind. These bus numbers are converted into audio output using the voice synthesizer APR 9600. The ZigBee transceiver in the bus sends the bus number to the transceiver with the blind and the bus number is announced to the blind through the headphones. The blind takes the right bus parked in front of him and when the destination is reached it is announced by means of the GPS-634R which is connected with the controller and voice synthesizer which produces the audio output. This project is also aimed at helping the elder people for independent navigation.
Female autoerotic asphyxial death - features and issues.

A 44-year-old woman was found by her partner and a friend hanging from a stair well at her home address. Her partner, who had been looking at a social media site in a downstairs room while she was upstairs, had gone to the front door when the friend had arrived. It was then that they noticed the body suspended from side railings at the top of the stairs by a Chinese silk dressing robe sash. The subsequent history from her partner was that the decedent had a history of hanging herself while masturbating. Their friend confirmed that she had also previously told him that she enjoyed “auto asphyxiation” and had wanted to put up a curtain at the top of the stairs so that she would have some privacy during this activity. He had warned her that she should have some type of knot that would give way if too much weight was suspended from it (i.e. a ‘fail safe’ mechanism). The decedent’s other past history included possible bipolar illness, intravenous drug use and hepatitis C positivity. Police investigations found no suspicious features. At autopsy the decedent was wearing a leopard skin patterned bustier (Fig. 1) and black lace panty hose over leopard skin patterned panties (Fig. 2). The panties had been cut at the front so that the decedent’s labia were protruding (Fig. 3). A parchmented ligature mark was present around the neck rising to a point of suspension over the right side of the occiput (Fig. 1). There were no facial or conjunctival petechaie. Heavy dark eye liner makeup had been applied. Apart from evidence of recent attempted resuscitation by ambulance personnel the only other injuries were minor superficial abrasions over the dorsa of both feet and a right-sided subgaleal bruise without underlying skull fracture or cerebral contusion. These minor injuries would have been compatible with agonal movements in the stair well. The vagina and rectum were unremarkable with no foreign bodies or injuries. No underlying organic diseases were present which could have caused or contributed to death. Toxicological analyses of blood revealed a high level of methadone (0.7 mg/L) most likely associated with habituation from chronic use, methylamphetamine and non-toxic concentrations of diazepam and olanzapine. Given the history and circumstances of the death these were not thought to be involved in the fatal episode. Death was therefore attributed to neck compression from hanging in the context of autoerotic activity.
Antimicrobial-coated endotracheal tubes: an experimental study

Antibiotic-resistant bacterial biofilm may quickly form on endotracheal tubes (ETTs) and can enter the lungs, potentially causing pneumonia. In an attempt to prevent bacterial colonization, we developed and tested in an in-vitro study and animal study several antibacterial-coated ETTs (silver sulfadiazine with and without carbon in polyurethane, silver sulfadiazine and chlorhexidine with and without carbon in polyurethane, silver–platinum with and without carbon in polyurethane, chlorhexidine in polyurethane, and rose bengal for UV light). After preliminary studies, silver sulfadiazine in polyurethane (SSD-ETT) was selected among the coatings to be challenged every 24 h with 104–106 Pseudomonas aeruginosa/ml and evaluated at 6 h, 24 h, and 72 h with standard microbiological studies, scanning electron microscopy, and confocal scanning microscopy. Subsequently, eight sheep were randomized to receive either a SSD-ETT or a standard ETT (St-ETT). After 24 h of mechanical ventilation, standard microbiological studies were performed together with scanning electron microscopy and confocal microscopy. In the in-vitro study SSD-ETT remained bacteria-free for up to 72 h, whereas St-ETT showed heavy P. aeruginosa growth and biofilm formation (p < 0.01). In sheep, the SSD-ETT group showed no bacterial growth in the ETT, ventilator tubing, and lower respiratory tract, while heavy colonization was found in the St-ETT (p < 0.01), ventilator tubing (p = 0.03), and lower respiratory tract (p < 0.01). This study describes several effective and durable antibacterial coatings for ETTs. Particularly, SSD-ETT showed prevention against P. aeruginosa biofilm formation in a 72-h in-vitro study and lower respiratory tract colonization in sheep mechanically ventilated for 24 h.
E-government adoption: architecture and barriers

Purpose – To provide an integrated architecture framework for e-government that represents the alignment of IT infrastructure with business process management in public sector organisations and classify the barriers that might complicate the implementation of the proposed architecture framework. The study will help IT practitioners in the public sector learn how to use and manage information technologies to revitalise business processes, improve decision-making, and gain a competitive advantage from the adoption of e-government. The proposed architecture framework for e-government adoption will reduce confusion surrounding e-government infrastructure in the public sector through understanding the implementation processes, identifying requirements of information and communications technology tools, highlighting the importance of the organisational management resources and the impact of barriers. Design/methodology/approach – A range of earlier studies have been critically examined and analysed to provide an integrated architecture framework for e-government adoption that can address and identify the standards, infrastructure components, applications, and technologies for e-government. The authors have divided the architecture framework into four layers; access layer, e-government layer, e-business layer, and infrastructure layer; each layer addresses a particular aspect of e-government architecture. This paper then presents a critical analysis of barriers experienced in public sector organisations, which prevent the successful adoption of e-government; such barriers being presented in a taxonomy. Findings – Defined organisational and technological requirements that will be necessary for the adoption of e-government in public sector organisations through construct an integrated architecture framework for e-government. The difficulties and barriers that have been experienced in public sector organisations which complicate the implementation process of e-government have been analysed and then identified and presented in a taxonomy. Originality/value – The paper provides architecture framework for e-government adoption that can help to guide IT managers recognise the technological and organisational requirements for e-government adoption in public sector organisations. The framework can also help the decision makers to set a vision statement and strategic action plan for future direction in the information technology age through identifying key elements and stages for action. The authors also identify and classify the perceived barriers that might complicate the implementation process of e-government projects. The awareness of these barriers is important for any e-government project since they will alert the e-government project team with any problems or challenges might be existed during the implementation process so they will be ready to overcome them.
Experience on healthcare utilization in seven administrative regions of Tanzania

Health care utilization in many developing countries, Tanzania included, is mainly through the use of traditional medicine (TRM) and its practitioners despite the presence of the conventional medicine. This article presents findings on the study that aimed to get an experience of health care utilization from both urban and rural areas of seven administrative regions in Tanzania. A total of 33 health facility managers were interviewed on health care provision and availability of supplies including drugs, in their respective areas. The findings revealed that the health facilities were overburden with higher population to serve than it was planned. Consequently essential drugs and other health supplies were available only in the first two weeks of the month. Conventional health practitioners considered traditional health practitioners to be more competent in mental health management, and overall, they were considered to handle more HIV/AIDS cases knowingly or unknowingly due to shear need of healthcare by this group. In general conventional health practitioners were positive towards traditional medicine utilization; and some of them admitted using traditional medicines. Traditional medicines like other medical health systems worldwide have side effects and some contentious ethical issues that need serious consideration and policy direction. Since many people will continue using traditional/alternative medicine, there is an urgent need to collaborate with traditional/alternative health practitioners through the institutionalization of basic training including hygiene in order to improved healthcare in the community and attain the Millennium Development Goals by 2015.
Intra-articular injection of hyaluronic acid is not superior to saline solution injection for ankle arthritis: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study.

BACKGROUND
Intra-articular injections of hyaluronic acid are potentially useful to treat ankle osteoarthritis, yet their effectiveness has not been proven. Both single and multiple-dose treatments for ankle arthritis with use of various hyaluronic acid products have been recommended, but few high-quality studies have been published. The aim of this study was to compare the effectiveness of a single intra-articular injection of hyaluronic acid with a single intra-articular injection of normal saline solution (placebo) for osteoarthritis of the ankle.


METHODS
Sixty-four patients with ankle osteoarthritis who met all study criteria were randomly assigned to a single intra-articular injection of 2.5 mL of low-molecular-weight, non-cross-linked hyaluronic acid or a single intra-articular injection of 2.5 mL of normal saline solution. The primary outcome measure was the change from baseline in the American Orthopaedic Foot & Ankle Society (AOFAS) clinical rating score at the six-week and twelve-week follow-up examination. Secondary outcome measures included the Ankle Osteoarthritis Scale score and patient-reported pain with use of a visual analog pain scale.


RESULTS
Of the sixty-four patients randomized and treated, eight patients withdrew, leaving fifty-six patients who completed the entire study. There was one mild adverse event (1.6%) among the sixty-four patients. At six weeks and twelve weeks, the mean AOFAS scores in the hyaluronic acid group had improved from baseline by 4.9 and 4.9 points, respectively, whereas the mean AOFAS scores in the placebo group initially worsened by 0.4 point at six weeks and then improved by 5.4 points at twelve weeks. While the change at twelve weeks from baseline was substantial for both groups, the between-group differences were not significant.


CONCLUSIONS
We found that a single intra-articular injection of low-molecular-weight, non-cross-linked hyaluronic acid is not demonstrably superior to a single intra-articular injection of saline solution for the treatment of osteoarthritis of the ankle.
Spatial and temporal effects of wildfire on the hydrology of a steep rangeland watershed

Wildfire is a major ecological process and management issue on western rangelands. The impacts of wildfire on hydrologic processes such as infiltration, runoff, and erosion are not well understood. Small-plot rainfall simulation methods were applied in a rangeland wildfire setting to determine post-fire hydrologic response. Infiltration and interrill erosion processes were measured immediately post-fire and one year following the 1999 34 400 ha Denio fire in northwestern Nevada. Plot-scale spatial and temporal variability in fire impacts was compared with adjacent unburned areas. An index of water repellency was derived and used to quantify the influence of water-repellent soil conditions on infiltration. Results indicate the impact of the fire on infiltration was localized primarily on coppice microsites directly under shrubs characterized by high surface litter accumulations. Coppice microsites had very uniform fireinduced soil water repellency with 29 of 30 plots exhibiting at least a 10% reduction in initial infiltration with an average 28% reduction. Cumulative erosion was nearly four times higher on burned coppices compared with unburned coppices. The impact of the fire on infiltration and erosion was reduced, but still evident, 1 year after fire. Significant temporal variability in infiltration between years was observed on both burned and unburned areas, complicating the interpretation of fire impacts and hydrologic recovery following wildfire. Published in 2001 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Controller Area Network for Vehicle Automation

Based on requirements of modern vehicle, invehicle Controller Area Network (CAN) architecture has been implemented. In order to reduce point to point wiring harness in vehicle automation, CAN is suggested as a means for data communication within the vehicle environment. The benefits of CAN bus based network over traditional point to point schemes will offer increased flexibility and expandability for future technology insertions. This paper describes the ARM7 based design and implementation of CAN Bus prototype for vehicle automation. It focus on hardware and software design of intelligent node. Hardware interface circuit mainly consists of MCP2515 stand alone CAN-Controller with SPI interface, LPC2148 microcontroller based on 32-bit ARM7 TDMI-S CPU and MCP2551 high speed CAN Transceiver. MCP2551 CAN Transceiver implements ISO-11898 standard physical layer requirements. The software design for CAN bus network are mainly the design of CAN bus data communication between nodes, and data processing for analog signals. The design of software communication module includes system initialization and CAN controller initialization unit, message sending unit, message receiving unit and the interrupt service unit. Keywords—Vehicle Automation, Controller Area Network (CAN), Electronic Control Unit (ECU), CANopen, LIN, SAE J1939.
A 7-Layered E-Government Framework Consolidating Technical, Social and Managerial Aspects

E-Government has been hype for the last 2 decades and still several implementations do not reach the intended success. Different definitions and consequently different models of operations and assessment were developed. This required the formulation of various frameworks describing the different perceptions and understandings of e-Government. The different frameworks proposed tend to agree on a set of elements, but each framework seems to have one or few different elements, depending on the perception of the framework founder. Also, entire categories (or dimensions) of elements seem to be left out. Through a literature review and field survey, the authors identified challenges of an e-Government initiative, categorized in five dimensions: technical, adoption, organizational, strategy and cultural. Not all categories were covered in any of the existing government frameworks. This would prove to be awkward in the formulation of new government initiatives or in the assessment of existing ones and evolution plan. In an effort to represent the majority of the factors and elements involved in most e-Government initiatives, the authors present a proposed seven-layer-framework for e-government. The layers included are: 1) end user access layer, 2) e-government layer, 3) organization layer, 4) national infrastructure layer, 5) strategic layer, 6) social cultural layer, and 7) national execution layer. The proposed model is compared with existing models and demonstrates that it covers all the aforementioned dimensions. Keywords—E-government; framework; e-government; challenges, decision support system (DSS)