Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Identifying Patient Perceived Barriers to Trichiasis Surgery in Kongwa District, Tanzania

Background Trachomatous trichiasis (TT), inturned eyelashes from repeated infection with Chlamydia trachomatis, is the leading infectious cause of blindness in the world. Though surgery will correct entropion caused by trachoma, uptake of TT surgery remains low. In this case-control study, we identify barriers that prevent TT patients from receiving sight-saving surgery. Methodology/Principal Findings Participants were selected from a database of TT cases who did (acceptors) and did not (non-acceptors) have surgery as of August 2015. We developed an in-home interview questionnaire, using open and closed-ended questions on perceived barriers to accessing surgical services. We compared responses between the acceptors and non-acceptors, examining differences in reasons for and against surgery, sources of TT information, and suggestions for improving surgical delivery. 167 participants (mean age 61 years, 79.7% females) were interviewed. Compared to acceptors, non-acceptors were more likely to report they had no one to accompany them to surgery (75.3% vs. 42.6%, p<0.0001), they could manage TT on their own (69.9% vs. 31.5%, p<0.0001), and the surgery camp was too far (53.4% vs. 28.7%, p = 0.001). Over 90% of both acceptors and non-acceptors agreed on the benefits of having surgery. Fear of surgery was the biggest barrier stated by both groups. Despite this fear, acceptors were more likely than non-acceptors to also report fear of losing further vision without surgery. Conclusions/Significance Barriers included access issues, familial and/or work responsibilities, the perception that self-management was sufficient, and lack of education about surgery. Fear of surgery was the biggest barrier facing both acceptors and non-acceptors. Increasing uptake will require addressing how surgery is presented to community residents, including outlining treatment logistics, surgical outcomes, and stressing the risk of vision loss.
Intestinal colonization of Campylobacter jejuni in chickens.

Chickens, infected with a small number of Campylobacter jejuni, ceased excreting C. jejuni in their feces 3 months after challenge, although mice shed the organism for 6 months or more. C. jejuni was excreted in the feces of 3-day-old chickens longer than in those of 5-week-old ones. Three-month-old chickens ceased to excrete the bacteria in the feces earlier than did 5-week-old ones. The minimum infectious dose of organisms depended on the age of chickens and strains used. C. jejuni was observed not only in the contents of the digestive tract but also in the spleen and the liver of infected chickens. Fecal excretion continued by serum agglutinin was developed to 1:80. This suggested that humoral antibodies developed in the chicken body might have no important effect on the fecal excretion of C. jejuni.
The Relationship between Lecture Attendance and Academic Performance in an Undergraduate Psychology Class

This article reports on a preliminary investigation into the impact of non-attendance at lectures on the performance of students in a second-year psychology class. Results suggest that the frequency of lecture attendance is significantly, but moderately, related to better academic performance and that ‘always’ attending lectures is the best indicator of academic performance. These results are discussed in relation to understanding lecture non-attendance and improving academic performance.
Statistical and computational guarantees for the Baum-Welch algorithm

The Hidden Markov Model (HMM) is one of the main-stays of statistical modeling of discrete time series and is widely used in many applications. Estimating an HMM from its observation process is often addressed via the Baum-Welch algorithm, which performs well empirically when initialized reasonably close to the truth. This behavior could not be explained by existing theory which predicts susceptibility to bad local optima. In this paper we aim at closing the gap and provide a framework to characterize a sufficient basin of attraction for any global optimum in which Baum-Welch is guaranteed to converge linearly to an “optimally” small ball around the global optimum. The framework is then used to determine the linear rate of convergence and a sufficient initialization region for Baum-Welch applied on a two component isotropic hidden Markov mixture of Gaussians.
Cell‐mediated immune status in patients with squamous cell carcinoma of the oral cavity

Sixteen untreated patients with squamous cell carcinoma of the oral cavity were tested for in vitro immune status in comparison with the normal healthy donors. The parameters investigated were total leukocyte and lymphocyte counts, percentages and absolute counts of T‐ and B‐cells in circulation, subsets of T‐cells identified by the Fc receptors, phytohemagglutinin (PHA), and mixed lymphocyte culture (MLC) responses, natural killer (NK) and antibody‐dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC) activities, and circulating immune complexes (CICs). Eight of these patients were retested 3 to 6 months after surgery. The results showed that there was an increase in leukocyte and lymphocyte counts, an increase in the percentage and absolute number of B‐lymphocytes, an increase in the percentage of T‐gamma cells, suboptimal PHA and MLC responses, normal NK and ADCC activities, and increased levels of CICs in untreated oral cancer patients. In the postoperative stage, except for a reduction in leukocyte and lymphocyte counts, other abnormalities remained unchanged. The CICs in treated patients correlated with the tumor load in that in three patients showing recurrence, the CIC level remained elevated, whereas in patients without evidence of the disease the CIC level was either low or comparable to the upper normal limits.
Comparison the effect of ephedrine and phenylephrine in treatment of hypotension after spinal anesthesia during cesarean section

Background and Objective: The effectiveness of ephedrine and/or phenylephrine, in treatment of hypotension secondary to spinal anesthesia for cesarean section and their effects on fetal/neonatal outcome were studied. Methods and Materials: Sixty healthy parturients were randomly assigned to two groups; group E (n = 33) received boluses 5 mg/ml increments ephedrine and group P (n = 27) received a boluses of phnylephrine 100 μg/ml increments for treatment of hypotension after spinal block during cesarean section. Changes in maternal blood pressure and heart rate, and incidence of nausea-vomiting, neonatal Apgar score at 1 and 5 minutes of delivery, and umbilical arterial blood gas values were recorded. Results: There were no differences in treatment of hypotension following sympathectomy after spinal block with two drugs. Neonatal outcome was similar in two groups. There were not significant differences in umbilical arterial values in two groups. Conclusion: Ephedrine and phenylephrine are both effective vasopressores for treatment of hypotension associated to spinal block during cesarean section without adverse effects on infants/neonates.
Language and literacy acquisition in bilingual contexts

This paper discusses the role of research and theory regarding language and literacy acquisition in planning for bilingual programmes involving lesser used languages. Three psycho‐educational principles are outlined: the additive bilingual enrichment principle, the interdependence principle and the sufficient communicative interaction principle. The role of these principles in the educational language planning process is discussed in the context of a procedural framework for problem‐solving in educational contexts.
Comments from the Classroom: A Case Study of a Generation-1.5 Student in a University IEP and Beyond

This case study examines the patterns of participation of one US-educated refugee student in a university intensive English program (IEP). Specifically, I illustrate how the focal student used her advanced oral proficiency and prior experience with US educational norms and practices to engage in various interactional behaviours, such as shifting participation structures, taking an active role in classroom management, and positioning herself as more knowledgeable than her peers. Using observational and interview data, I demonstrate that such behaviours resulted in teachers' constructions of this student as 'highly engaged and motivated' despite their assessment of her written work as 'poor-to-average. ' Finally, I link this student's behaviours to classroom performance outcomes and show that although her 'good student' behaviours enabled her to complete her high school and university ESL programs successfully, those behaviours - and her highly advanced oral proficiency - were ultimately insufficient to ensure her academic success beyond the IEP. Cette étude de cas examine le type de participation d'une réfugiée ayant étudié aux États-Unis dans un programme universitaire d'anglais intensif. Plus particulièrement, l'auteur montre comment l'étudiante s'est servie de son niveau avancé de langue orale et de son expérience avec les pratiques et les normes d'enseignement américaines pour adopter divers comportements interactifs (p.ex. modifier les structures de participation, jouer un rôle actif dans la gestion de la classe et démontrer de plus grandes connaissances que ses pairs). À l'aide de données provenant d'observations et d'entrevues, l'auteur démontre comment de tels comportements ont donné l'impression à l'enseignant que cette étudiante était « très motivée et intéressée », même si le résultat de l'évaluation de ses travaux écrits est « faible à passable ». Enfin, l'auteur établit un lien entre le comportement de l'étudiante et ses résultats en classe, et démontre que même si son bon comportement lui a permis de terminer avec succès le programme d'anglais langue seconde de niveau secondaire et celui de niveau universitaire, son comportement - et son niveau très avancé d'anglais oral - n'a pas suffi à lui assurer un succès scolaire après le programme d'anglais intensif.
Influence of personality traits on perceived relationship quality within a franchisee‐franchisor context

Purpose – This is the first attempt to examine the theoretical and empirical linkages between franchisee personality traits and franchisee‐franchisor relationship quality.Design/methodology/approach – A self‐report online survey was used in this research to collect data from a random sample of 225 franchisees drawn across 80 franchise systems. Personality was represented by the Big Five personality traits (IPIP‐B5 scales) and relationship quality was conceptualized as a 23‐item second‐order construct (incorporating trust, commitment and relationship satisfaction). Regression analysis was used to test the hypothesized relationships.Findings – Four of the five personality dimensions had the predicted effect on the outcome variable of relationship quality. Dimensions of “agreeableness”, “conscientiousness”, “emotional stability” had a positive effect on relationship quality, while “extraversion” had a negative effect on the dependent variable. Implications of these results are discussed.Research limitations/.
Leading Workers to Lead Themselves: The External Leadership of Self-Managing Work Teams.

We gratefully acknowledge the encouragement and support of Dr. Richard Cherry. This paper explores the paradoxical role of the external leaders of self-managing workteams. Observation, interviews, group elicitations, and a literature search were used to identify salient leader behaviors in a medium-sized manufacturing plant that had been operating for several years under a system of self-managing work teams. A selfmanagement leadership questionnaire was developed to measure the 21 leader behaviors identified. Correlations with overall leadership-effectiveness ratings generally indicated that the external leaders' most important behaviors are those that facilitate the team's self-management through self-observation, self-evaluation, and selfreinforcement. The study suggests that there is a legitimate role for external leaders of self-managing work teams but that it differs from traditional and participative leadership roles.
Visual and Verbal Communication in the Design of Eco-Label for Green Consumer Products

Abstract Eco-labels are meant to convey information to consumers about the environmental implications of purchasing the product, so that consumers who care about such effects can express their desires in the market. Whereas all eco-label designs utilize a visuallogo, only a few of them include verbalmessage withinthe label to communicate the main reason why the label is granted. As such, the purpose of this study is to investigate the influence of visual and verbal communication in eco-label designs on consumers purchasing behavior. Using an experimental design with homogenous sample, participants were randomly assigned one of four possible treatments in a 2 × 2 design with manipulations of both visual and verbal communication cues within a simulated web-based shopping experience. It was found that both the visual and verbal communication had significant individual and additive effects on the purchase of the designated products.
Black Students and International Education

Black students participate in international education or study abroad experiences far less than other college students. The reasons, as stated in previous literature, include choice of major, attrition rates, lower levels of social economic affluence, and the lack of encouragement and support. These conclusions were tested with a sample of Black high school graduates enrolled in a residential, summer college-preparatory program. Results contradicted previous findings and led to the creation of a model to increase Black students’ participation in international education through a service learning pedagogy using short, intensive study abroad experiences.
Staphylococcus aureus carriage in twins.

Identical twins had a slightly greater incidence of concordance of Staphylococcus aureus carriage than nonidentical twins and unrelated children. This concordance was not statistically significant. There was no significant difference among the identical and nonidentical twins and unrelated children in the types of numbers of the other categories of bacteria.
The additive and interactive roles of aggression, prosocial behavior, and social preference in predicting resource control in young children

Purpose – Distinguishing between physical and social aggression, this study aimed to examine whether the predictive effect of aggression on resource control is moderated by prosocial behavior and corresponds to a linear or a curvilinear trend. Moderating effects of children's social preference among peers and child sex in this context were also tested.Design/methodology/approach – Based on a sample of 682 kindergarten children (348 girls; average age 72.7 months, 3.6 SD), multilevel regressions revealed additive linear effects of social preference and prosociality on resource control.Findings – Moderate (but not high) levels of social aggression also facilitated resource control for disliked children. There was no such threshold effect for well‐liked children, who increasingly controlled the resource the more socially aggressive they were. In contrast, physical aggression hampered resource control unless used very modestly.Originality/value – The present study has a number of positive features. First, the.
Evolutionary genomics of epidemic and nonepidemic strains of Pseudomonas aeruginosa

Significance The bacterium Pseudomonas aeruginosa is an opportunistic pathogen of humans and is the leading cause of death in patients with cystic fibrosis (CF). We sequenced the genomes of P. aeruginosa isolated from respiratory tracts of patients with CF to investigate general patterns of adaptation associated with chronic infection. Selection imposed by the CF lung environment has had a major influence on genomic evolution and the genetic characteristics of isolates causing contemporary infection. Many of the genes and pathways implicated in adaptive evolution within the host had obvious roles in the pathogenic lifestyle of this bacteria. Genome sequence data indicated that an epidemic strain, with increased virulence and multidrug resistance, has spread between clinics in the United Kingdom and North America. Pseudomonas aeruginosa is an opportunistic pathogen of humans and is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in patients with cystic fibrosis (CF). Prolonged infection of the respiratory tract can lead to adaptation of the pathogen to the CF lung environment. To examine the general patterns of adaptation associated with chronic infection, we obtained genome sequences from a collection of P. aeruginosa isolated from airways of patients with CF. Our analyses support a nonclonal epidemic population structure, with a background of unique, recombining genotypes, and the rare occurrence of successful epidemic clones. We present unique genome sequence evidence for the intercontinental spread of an epidemic strain shared between CF clinics in the United Kingdom and North America. Analyses of core and accessory genomes identified candidate genes and important functional pathways associated with adaptive evolution. Many genes of interest were involved in biological functions with obvious roles in this pathosystem, such as biofilm formation, antibiotic metabolism, pathogenesis, transport, reduction/oxidation, and secretion. Key factors driving the adaptive evolution of this pathogen within the host appear to be the presence of oxidative stressors and antibiotics. Regions of the accessory genome unique to the epidemic strain were enriched for genes in transporter families that efflux heavy metals and antibiotics. The epidemic strain was significantly more resistant than nonepidemic strains to three different antibiotics. Multiple lines of evidence suggest that selection imposed by the CF lung environment has a major influence on genomic evolution and the genetic characteristics of P. aeruginosa isolates causing contemporary infection.
Is Local Anesthesia the Optimum Strategy in Retrograde Transcatheter Aortic Valve Implantation? A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Abstract Background Retrograde transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) can be performed under local anesthesia (LA) or general anesthesia (GA); however, a wide variation in practice exists. Methods PubMed was searched between 2009 and 2013. Data were extracted from eligible studies. Random-effects meta-analysis was performed using DerSimonian Laird between-study variance. Results There was no statistically significant difference identified between groups based on age or EuroSCORE. There was no statistically significant difference seen in all-cause mortality, or complication rates between groups. Mean procedural duration was 36 minutes shorter in the LA group (p = 0.001). There was increased vasopressor use in the GA group (odds ratio 3.92; p = 0.017). Mean hospital stay was 3.41 days shorter in the LA group (p = 0.018). Conclusion Results suggest that the use of LA for retrograde TAVI is feasible. There are several potential benefits associated, shorter procedural duration, and hospital stay with lower vasopressor requirements. Further studies and randomized trials are mandatory to confirm the presented findings and to identify those patients for whom LA would be appropriate.
Cultivating a sense of belonging in part-time students

This study investigated the sense of belonging of part-time students through interviews with 53 novice or experienced students enrolled in part-time programmes in Hong Kong. It was found that students were more easily able to affiliate with their class groups or teaching staff than with their department or university. Seven methods are suggested for promoting a sense of belonging. Class cohesiveness can be developed through learning activities and maintaining classes as a cohort. Relationships with teaching staff can be developed through encouraging interaction, providing good quality teaching and making a positive initial impression. There was also evidence that a sense of belonging was more likely to develop if enrolment was through departments and part-time students had access to resources and facilities. The data showed that promoting a sense of belonging contributed to better quality learning outcomes and increased the chances of students completing programmes.
Transcatheter aortic valve implantation in failed bioprosthetic surgical valves.

IMPORTANCE Owing to a considerable shift toward bioprosthesis implantation rather than mechanical valves, it is expected that patients will increasingly present with degenerated bioprostheses in the next few years. Transcatheter aortic valve-in-valve implantation is a less invasive approach for patients with structural valve deterioration; however, a comprehensive evaluation of survival after the procedure has not yet been performed. OBJECTIVE To determine the survival of patients after transcatheter valve-in-valve implantation inside failed surgical bioprosthetic valves. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS Correlates for survival were evaluated using a multinational valve-in-valve registry that included 459 patients with degenerated bioprosthetic valves undergoing valve-in-valve implantation between 2007 and May 2013 in 55 centers (mean age, 77.6 [SD, 9.8] years; 56% men; median Society of Thoracic Surgeons mortality prediction score, 9.8% [interquartile range, 7.7%-16%]). Surgical valves were classified as small (≤21 mm; 29.7%), intermediate (>21 and <25 mm; 39.3%), and large (≥25 mm; 31%). Implanted devices included both balloon- and self-expandable valves. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES Survival, stroke, and New York Heart Association functional class. RESULTS Modes of bioprosthesis failure were stenosis (n = 181 [39.4%]), regurgitation (n = 139 [30.3%]), and combined (n = 139 [30.3%]). The stenosis group had a higher percentage of small valves (37% vs 20.9% and 26.6% in the regurgitation and combined groups, respectively; P = .005). Within 1 month following valve-in-valve implantation, 35 (7.6%) patients died, 8 (1.7%) had major stroke, and 313 (92.6%) of surviving patients had good functional status (New York Heart Association class I/II). The overall 1-year Kaplan-Meier survival rate was 83.2% (95% CI, 80.8%-84.7%; 62 death events; 228 survivors). Patients in the stenosis group had worse 1-year survival (76.6%; 95% CI, 68.9%-83.1%; 34 deaths; 86 survivors) in comparison with the regurgitation group (91.2%; 95% CI, 85.7%-96.7%; 10 deaths; 76 survivors) and the combined group (83.9%; 95% CI, 76.8%-91%; 18 deaths; 66 survivors) (P = .01). Similarly, patients with small valves had worse 1-year survival (74.8% [95% CI, 66.2%-83.4%]; 27 deaths; 57 survivors) vs with intermediate-sized valves (81.8%; 95% CI, 75.3%-88.3%; 26 deaths; 92 survivors) and with large valves (93.3%; 95% CI, 85.7%-96.7%; 7 deaths; 73 survivors) (P = .001). Factors associated with mortality within 1 year included having small surgical bioprosthesis (≤21 mm; hazard ratio, 2.04; 95% CI, 1.14-3.67; P = .02) and baseline stenosis (vs regurgitation; hazard ratio, 3.07; 95% CI, 1.33-7.08; P = .008). CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE In this registry of patients who underwent transcatheter valve-in-valve implantation for degenerated bioprosthetic aortic valves, overall 1-year survival was 83.2%. Survival was lower among patients with small bioprostheses and those with predominant surgical valve stenosis.