Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Isolation, Characterization and Antibiotic Susceptibility Patterns of Pseudomonas Aeruginosa and Staphylococcus Aureus from Hospital Environment in Kaduna Metropolis, Kaduna State

Background: Hospital acquired infections are serious problems in patient care, and adversely affect the mortality and morbidity; despite antimicrobial therapy and advances in supportive care. The environment can serve as a source of infection. The aim of this work is to evaluate contamination of the inanimate hospital environment by bacterial agents, particularly Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa; and to determine the susceptibility of the bacterial isolates to various antibiotics. Methods: Four different hospitals were included in this study. These are General Hospital Sabo, St. Gerard Catholic Hospital, Barau Dikko Specialist Hospital, and Yusuf Dantsoho Memorial Hospital. Between October 2014 to January 2015, 160 swabs samples (40 each) were taken from environmental surfaces of the four hospitals. Bacterial identification was carried out using routine biochemical tests, and confirmed with polymerase chain reaction. Susceptibility testing for the bacterial isolates was done using the disk diffusion method. Results: One hundred and seventy (170) bacterial pathogens were isolated, of which 138(81.2%) were identified as Staphylococcus aureus, and 32(18.8%) were identified as Pseudomonas aeruginosa and all were confirmed with polymerase chain reaction. The total percentage distribution of this pathogen on the surfaces was 53.12%. S. aureus was isolated from sinks (43.8%), floor (90.6%), bedrails (96.9% ) , door knobs(100%) and table tops(100%). P. aeruginosa was isolated from sinks (59.4%), floor (34.4%), table tops (6.3%) with none isolated from door knobs and bedrails. The statistical analysis showed that there was significant difference in the prevalence rate of the organisms on the surfaces. (P=0.000*). Of all the Staphylococcus aureus isolates, 41.3% were found to be multi-drug resistant (MDR), while 21.9% of the P.aeruginosa isolates were MDR. Conclusion: Lack of a universal procedure for surveillance of nosocomial infection, presence of pathogenic bacteria with multidrug resistant organism, poor hygiene practices and heavy contamination of some important surfaces are the most important problems in our hospitals.
High dose chemotherapy and autologous stem cell transplantation in nodular lymphocyte‐predominant Hodgkin lymphoma: A retrospective study by the European society for blood and marrow transplantation‐lymphoma working party

Whilst autologous stem cell transplantation (auto‐SCT) is considered standard of care for relapsed/refractory classical Hodgkin lymphoma, the role of auto‐SCT in nodular lymphocyte‐predominant Hodgkin lymphoma (NLPHL) is not well defined due to limited data. We report the first study on auto‐SCT for NLPHL with a larger cohort. Eligible for this retrospective registry study were patients reported to the EBMT between 2003 and 2013, aged 18 or older with relapsed/refractory NLPHL who underwent first auto‐SCT with disease chemosensitive to salvage therapy. NLPHL transformed to diffuse large B cell lymphoma were excluded. Sixty patients (83% male; median age 40 years) met the eligibility criteria. The median time between diagnosis and transplant was 21 months (IQR 13–58), and the median number of prior treatment lines was 2 (range 1–5), including rituximab in 63% of the patients. At auto‐SCT, 62% of the patients were in complete remission (CR) and 38% in partial remission. Seventy‐two percent of the patients received BEAM as high‐dose therapy. With a median follow‐up of 56 months (range 3–105), 5‐year progression‐free and overall survival (OS) were 66% and 87%, respectively. Univariate comparisons considering age, time from diagnosis to transplant, prior chemotherapy lines, and prior rituximab use failed to identify significant predictors for any survival endpoint except for being in CR at the time of auto‐SCT (vs PR, P = .049) for OS. Auto‐SCT in patients with relapsed/refractory NLPHL who are sensitive to salvage therapy gives excellent disease control and long‐term survival independent of the time interval between diagnosis and transplant.
Universal recursion theoretic properties of r.e. preordered structures

When dealing with axiomatic theories from a recursion-theoretic point of view, the notion of r.e. preordering naturally arises. We agree that an r.e. preorder is a pair = 〈P, ≤P〉 such that P is an r.e. subset of the set of natural numbers (denoted by ω), ≤P is a preordering on P and the set {〈;x, y〉: x ≤Py} is r.e. Indeed, if is an axiomatic theory, the provable implication of yields a preordering on the class of (Gödel numbers of) formulas of . Of course, if ≤P is a preordering on P, then it yields an equivalence relation ~P on P, by simply letting x ~Py iff x ≤Py and y ≤Px. Hence, in the case of P = ω, any preordering yields an equivalence relation on ω and consequently a numeration in the sense of [4]. It is also clear that any equivalence relation on ω (hence any numeration) can be regarded as a preordering on ω. In view of this connection, we sometimes apply to the theory of preorders some of the concepts from the theory of numerations (see also Eršov [6]). Our main concern will be in applications of these concepts to logic, in particular as regards sufficiently strong axiomatic theories (essentially the ones in which recursive functions are representable). From this point of view it seems to be of some interest to study some remarkable prelattices and Boolean prealgebras which arise from such theories. It turns out that these structures enjoy some rather surprising lattice-theoretic and universal recursion-theoretic properties. After making our main definitions in §1, we examine universal recursion-theoretic properties of some r.e. prelattices in §2.
Brazilian Journal of Chemical Engineering ANAEROBIC TREATMENT OF WASTEWATER FROM THE HOUSEHOLD AND PERSONAL PRODUCTS INDUSTRY IN A HYBRID BIOREACTOR

The anaerobic treatment of wastewater from the household and personal products industry was studied using a 16.3 L hybrid reactor (UASB and biofilter). The top of the UASB reactor was filled with coconut shells to act as the support material for the biofilter. The wastewater was characterized in terms of pH (1.0 – 12.0), COD (1,000 – 5,000 mg/L), BOD5 (700 – 1,500 mg/L), chloride (55 – 850 mg/L), ammonia nitrogen (0.4 – 0.9 mg/L), total Kjeldahl nitrogen (22.1 – 34.0 mg/L), phosphorus (2.0 – 2.5 mg/L), anionic surfactants (100 – 600 mg/L), turbidity (115 – 300 NTU) and total suspended solids (450 – 1,440 mg/L). The bioreactor was operated continuously for 120 days at room temperature (26 ± 5C) with hydraulic retention times of 50, 40 and 60 h. COD and BOD removals and biogas production were evaluated in order to analyze process efficiency. The average removal efficiencies for COD (77%, 72% and 80%) and BOD5 (approximately 90%) were obtained with HRTs of 50, 40 and 60 h, respectively. The average specific biogas production was 0.32 L/g COD (at standard temperature and pressure) for the three experimental runs. These data indicate good reactor efficiency and suggest the possibility of using this system to treat wastewater generated by the household and personal products industry.
The influence of objects on place field expression and size in distal hippocampal CA1

The perirhinal and lateral entorhinal cortices send prominent projections to the portion of the hippocampal CA1 subfield closest to the subiculum, but relatively little is known regarding the contributions of these cortical areas to hippocampal activity patterns. The anatomical connections of the lateral entorhinal and perirhinal cortices, as well as lesion data, suggest that these brain regions may contribute to the perception of complex stimuli such as objects. The current experiments investigated the degree to which three‐dimensional objects affect place field size and activity within the distal region (closest to the subiculum) of CA1. The activity of CA1 pyramidal cells was monitored as rats traversed a circular track that contained no objects in some conditions and three‐dimensional objects in other conditions. In the area of CA1 that receives direct lateral entorhinal input, three factors differentiated the objects‐on‐track conditions from the no‐object conditions: more pyramidal cells expressed place fields when objects were present, adding or removing objects from the environment led to partial remapping in CA1, and the size of place fields decreased when objects were present. In addition, a proportion of place fields remapped under conditions in which the object locations were shuffled, which suggests that at least some of the CA1 neurons' firing patterns were sensitive to a particular object in a particular location. Together, these data suggest that the activity characteristics of neurons in the areas of CA1 receiving direct input from the perirhinal and lateral entorhinal cortices are modulated by non‐spatial sensory input such as three‐dimensional objects. © 2011 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Left hepatic trisegmentectomy.

In previous reports (1, 2), we have provided a detailed technical description of right hepatic trisegmentectomy and discussed the relation of this procedure to other more commonly used resections of the liver. At that time, the four standard kinds of anatomic liver resection were right lobectomy; right trisegmentectomy, extended right lobectomy; left lobectomy, and left lateral segmentectomy. We report herein upon a fifth procedure, left hepatic trisegmentectomy, or an extended left lobectomy, with which the true left lobe of the liver and most, or all, of the anterior segment of the right lobe have been removed in continuity.
Infective endocarditis: improving the diagnostic yield.

INTRODUCTION Isolating aetiological agents in patients with infective endocarditis (IE) remains problematical. We postulated that the high local incidence of culture-negative IE resulted from antibiotic exposure prior to blood cultures and that a structured delay in therapy in the subacute presentation would improve the diagnostic yield. AIM We aimed to prospectively observe the diagnostic approach and give an overview of supplementary laboratory tests. STUDY DESIGN Patients with suspected IE were enrolled into this analytical observational study and followed up for six months (n = 92). We compared the diagnostic yield and outcome in cases where antibiotics were withheld for 72 hours, with those cases who received early antimicrobials, despite being deemed safe for delayed therapy. RESULTS Definitive diagnoses (definite or excluded IE) were made in 92.8% of patients where antibiotics were delayed, compared to 60% of patients who received empirical treatment (p = 0.08). The mortality rates were 18.4% and 30.0% (p = 0.18). Twenty-three of 26 patients with definite culture-negative IE received antibiotics during the 48 hours preceding cultures, compared to eight of 21 culture-positive patients (P < 0.001). Screening for atypical bacteria did not improve the yield. C-reactive protein (CRP) had a sensitivity of 97.0% (negative predictive value 87.5%), whereas a positive rheumatoid factor (RF) had a specificity of 93.8% (positive predictive value 91.7%). CONCLUSIONS We observed tendencies towards a greater diagnostic yield and lower mortality where antibiotics were initially withheld. Antibiotic prior to blood cultures were an important cause of culture-negative IE. A normal CRP proved useful in excluding IE; a positive RF strongly favoured IE.
Higher frequency of high-grade rejections in cardiac allograft patients after quilty B lesions or grade 2/4 rejections

Background. To better understand how different histologic patterns of allograft inflammation found on biopsies of human cardiac allografts progress to high-grade rejection, we undertook a statistical analysis of our institutional database to detect statistical patterns among different types of myocardial allograft inflammations found on sequential biopsies. Methods. Biopsies were analyzed for statistical associations between high-grade rejections (International Society of Heart and Lung Transplantation [ISHLT] grade ≥3A/4) and the type of cardiac allograft inflammation found on prior biopsies. Case cross-over and case control designs were used to compare the antecedent patterns of inflammation on biopsies with high-grade rejection compared to biopsies with low-grade rejection, all within the same subject. Quilty lesions were correlated with cyclosporine levels. Results. Patients with Quilty B lesions or ISHLT grade 2/4 rejections show an increased risk for high-grade rejection on their next biopsies (Odds ratio 5.9 to 11.2). The presence of two pathological findings, especially Quilty B and grade 2/4 rejection, creates additional risk in excess of that found independently (Odds ratio >14). Quilty lesions are found only in cardiac allografts, and do not correlate with trough cyclosporine levels. Conclusions. The morphological patterns of several types of human cardiac allograft inflammation found on sequential protocol biopsies are not randomly associated. Patients with grade 2/4 rejections and Quilty B lesions show an increased risk for high-grade rejections on their next biopsies. Quilty B lesions, similar to ISHLT grade 2/4 rejections, may represent subclinical rejection. Both are more likely to progress to a high-grade rejection.
IT for niche companies: is an ERP system the solution?

Abstract. Niche companies are per definition idiosyncratic. They survive in a competitive world by mastering a small market niche, providing what their customers need. This often requires a flexible organization, and the ability to customize products. To be more efficient, many of these companies rely on extensive use of IT, often by installing general Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems. These systems have grown from isolated systems that handle planning based on incoming orders and the component structure of the various products, to systems with ambitions to embrace the total functioning of the company including vendor and customer relation management. In this paper, we present four case studies. One company is a part of a large enterprise, but performs niche functions within this enterprise. The other three are small‐ or medium‐sized enterprises. Each of these performs in small niche markets. Common to all is the fact that they encounter problems with the utilization of their ERP systems. The major problem seems to be that the ERP system has an inherent business model that may not conform to the needs of the company. Without a good understanding of the underlying models and the constraints under which the fundamental algorithms operate, it is difficult to use these systems correctly. Even excellent systems may give bad results if they are applied to situations where they are not suited. Further, the monolithic structure of an ERP system, with a rather complicated parameter setting, is often insufficient to mould the system to the needs of a niche company. We discuss these problems based on our four case studies, and offer alternative approaches that may be considered.
Prosthetic Status and Prosthetic Needs of Mentally Challenged Individuals Attending Special Schools in Nasik District, Maharashtra, India

Objectives: Mentally challenged individuals are faced with many challenges in understanding and maintain their health and are particularly vulnerable to having unmet health care needs. Prosthetic status of these individuals has received a very little attention and there is paucity of information about their prosthetic status and prosthetic needs. A cross sectional study was conducted to assess the prosthetic status and prosthetic needs of mentally challenged individuals attending special schools in Nasik district, Maharashtra, India. Subjects and methods: On the basis of convenient nonprobability sampling technique. All the mentally challenged individuals residing at special school of Nasik district was examined to assess for prosthetic status and prosthetic needs. Data was evaluated by using Statistical Package for Social Science version 20. Data comparison was done by applying Chiâsquare test. Results: A total 272 subjects were examined. Out of that 201 were male subjects and 71 were female subjects. Among 272 study subjects, 20.56% of the subjects were having prosthesis. 73.16% of study subjects were having prosthetic needs, that includes single and multiple unit prosthesis. The need for single unit prosthesis (46.31%) was higher than multiple unit prosthesis (26.83%). Female subjects were reported higher prosthetic needs (94.28%) than male subjects (66.58%) in all groups, but the difference was not statistically significant. Conclusion: The results of the study shows that, there was high percentage of unfulfilled prosthetic needs among mentally challenge individuals attending in special school in Nasik district A strong deficit was seen in between the prosthetic needs and prosthetic status.
Firm Boundaries, Information Processing Capacity, and Performance in Manufacturing Firms

Abstract We analyze the alignment between information processing needs and capacities. First, we explore the relationship between firms’ vertical and horizontal boundaries and information technology (IT) capabilities. The literature postulates that less internalization leads firms to invest more in information technology. However, we argue that the use of taper integration and diversification increases the demand for IT-based resources such as IT infrastructure and IT human resources. Second, we propose that the fit between information processing needs and capacity has a positive effect on performance. Our hypotheses are tested on a panel of Spanish manufacturing firms, and the results provide general support for our arguments. One advantage of the data is that they include not only large firms but also small and medium-size manufacturers. From a theoretical perspective, the study contributes to the literature by providing novel insights on how decisions on the vertical dimension condition investments in IT capabilities. It also adds new evidence on the diversification–IT capabilities relationship and studies the consequences of alignment of corporate strategies and IT capabilities on firm performance. From a managerial perspective, our study suggests that changes in the vertical and horizontal limits should be followed by changes in IT capabilities to improve performance.
Visual Search: Spatial Frequency and Orientation

Observers searched for a Gaussian-windowed patch of sinewave grating (Gabor pattern) through displays containing varying numbers of other such patterns (distractors). When the spatial frequencies of target and distractors differed by ± 2 octaves and their orientations by ± 60°, the search proceeded spatially in parallel irrespective of whether the target could be discriminated in terms of spatial frequency differences alone, orientation differences alone, or their combination. However, when target and distractors differed by only ±. 5 octave in spatial frequency and by ± 15° in orientation, the search was serial and self-terminating, again irrespective of the nature of the target-distractor differences. These findings show that, contrary to some suggestions, the preattentive detection of targets defined by conjunctions of spatial frequency and orientation may occur, but only when the spectral distance between target and distractors allows their encoding by independent mechanisms.
Time interval to initiation of contraceptive methods following childbirth in a low-resource setting

Objectives: The objectives of the study were to determine factors affecting the interval between a woman's last childbirth and the initiation of contraception. Materials and Methods: This was a retrospective study. Family planning clinic records of the Barau Dikko Teaching Hospital Kaduna from January 2000 to March 2014 were retrieved. Information was collected on demographics, reproductive, and contraceptive history. Data were analyzed using the SPSS version 15 software, and missing responses were excluded. Chi-square was used as a test of association with significance level established at P = 0.05. Results: A total of 5992 client's cards were retrieved. All were female and married. Majority were aged 25–34 years (53.1%), had completed secondary education (56%) and were Muslims (52.3%). Only 4979 cards (83.1%) had correct data on intervals and 22.1% of these clients initiated contraception within 6 months of their last childbirth. Education, religion, source of information, number of living children, desire to have more children, previous use of contraception, and type of contraception chosen were significantly associated with intervals for initiating contraception after last childbirth (P < 0.05) while the presence of complications in the last delivery was not (P > 0.05). Conclusions: Majority of women initiate contraception late after childbirth in this setting. Increased awareness on immediate/early postpartum contraception is required. Further qualitative studies will help to explore findings of this study.
The impact of circadian variation on outcomes in emergency acute anterior myocardial infarction percutaneous coronary intervention

Objectives: We investigated the impact of primary coronary angioplasty performed during night and compared to the impact of that performed during day‐time on outcomes of patients with acute ST elevation anterior wall myocardial infarction (AMI). Methods: We prospectively followed 273 consecutive patients of whom 160 (58.6%) were treated during day time (8:00 a.m. to 6 p.m.) and 113 (41.4%) were treated “off hours”/at night (6 p.m. to 8 a.m.). Baseline demographics, angiographic factors, and clinical outcomes (death, recurrent AMI, and need for repeat revascularization) were compared between the groups. Results: Baseline clinical characteristics were similar between the two groups. Unadjusted mortality at one‐month was significantly higher among patients who were treated during night compared with those treated at day‐time (9.7% vs. 3.1% P = 0.03), as was adverse cardiac event rate (15.9% vs. 6.9%; P = 0.02). Multiple logistic regression analysis adjusted for the CADILLAC risk score demonstrated that this score, which includes baseline LVEF, renal failure, Killip class, final TIMI flow, age>65 years, anemia, and the number of coronary vessel diseases, is a significant predictor of one‐month mortality, while the effect of time of treatment was borderline (night vs. day; odds ratio 2.7; 95% confidence interval, 0.8–9.4; P = 0.095). Conclusions: The results of this study indicate that patients with anterior myocardial infarction treated during night time have worse unadjusted short‐term clinical outcomes despite no delay from onset of symptoms to actual treatment. Larger studies are needed in order to identify potential contributors to this phenomenon. © 2006 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.