Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Candiduria: a reliable indicator of neonatal candidemia ? An experience in a tertiary care hospital.

Background & Objectives: Candidemia is a significant cause of nosocomial mortality and morbidity in neonates. Prompt diagnosis and treatment is crucial. Non-albicans Candida (NAC) species are assuming an increasing role in nosocomial infections in neonates. The present study was carried out i) to identify and speciate the Candida isolates obtained from cases of neonatal candidemia and to assess the risk factors and clinical manifestations associated with it (ii) to evaluate if candiduria, can be considered as a reliable indicator of candidemia. Methods: The prospective cohort study included the blood samples from 527 clinically suspected cases of neonatal septicaemia which were subjected to automated culture and processed as per standard microbiological techniques. The urine samples from all the 527 neonates were processed by conventional method. Results: Frequency of neonatal candidemia in culture proven cases of septicemia was 30.1%. Low birth weight was the commonest risk factor, followed by prematurity. Non-albicans Candida (NAC) species were isolated from blood in 86.4% cases compared to Candida albicans in 13.6%. Candida glabrata was the predominant species. Overall, candiduria was found in 54.5% cases of neonatal candidemia with same species of Candida isolated both from blood and urine samples. Among the cases of candiduria, NAC species were isolated in 81.7% compared to C. albicans in 18.3%. Correlation between candiduria and candidemia was maximum (73.33%) in C. albicans followed by C. tropicalis (72.41%) and C. glabrata (55.81%). Conclusions: The present study highlights the emergence of NAC species as an important cause of neonatal candidemia from Meerut city: definitely a changing trend. Further, our study also highlights that candiduria may be considered as a reliable indicator of candidemia in neonates.
EFFECTIVENESS OF PEER MENTORING IN ENHANCING THE MATHEMATICAL PROBLEM SOLVING SKILLS OF COLLEGE STUDENTS IN BICOL UNIVERSITY

The students’ performance in mathematics across levels in the country has been persistently low as shown by 2003 TIMMS results where the Philippines is ranked 41st among 45 countries (Mullis, Martin, Gonzalez & Chrostowski, 2004). An institutionalized peer-mediated academic support system can help in addressing the student’s academic needs and problems. The Institutionalized Peer Academic Assistance Program (I-PASS) in Mathematics was implemented to enhance the problem solving skills of 60 BEED students of BU College of Education with BSED Mathematics major students as mentors during the 1st Semester SY 2012- 2013. Data were gathered using parallel pre-test and posttest results in problem solving, documentary analysis, focus group discussions, interview and questionnaires for mentees, mentors, and concerned officials of the college. The student’s peer mentoring program was found effective in terms of enhancing the problem solving skills of both mentors and mentees whose test results showed a mean gain of 3.72 and 4.74, respectively. The t-test of the I-PASS and non-I-PASS participants’ posttest results in problem solving in Mathematics (t = 0.002484143, p<0.01) revealed a significant difference. Its features such as open to all students, free, voluntary, based on learning needs, used developmentally appropriate learning materials, individualized and group learning strategies, supervised by discipline experts, and based on pedagogical principles, were acceptable to all the stakeholders, contribute to make the program academically sound and valid, and help ensure its sustainability. The students’ participation in peer mentoring led to useful insights and favorable beneficial experiences. The university-wide implementation of I-PASS can help in proactively minimizing the students’ difficulties in mathematical problem solving.
Repeatability of the Universiti Teknologi MARA reading charts

Objective: This study was done to investigate the repeatability measurements in reading rate using the Universiti Teknologi MARA Malay related words (UiTM-Mrw) reading chart and Universiti Teknologi MARA Malay unrelated words (UiTM-Muw) reading chart. Methodology: Thirty normally sighted participants were randomly recruited through randomised sampling (mean age =21.5±1.1 years). Participants were instructed to read aloud, clearly and as quickly as possible at 2 different sessions using two different charts. The two charts were selected at random sequence. A minimum of 7 days interval was used to minimize the learning affect. The time taken to read each chart was recorded and any errors while reading was noted. Reading performance was quantified as reading rate in words per minute (wpm). Results: Comparison of reading rate between session 1 and session 2 was not significantly different (p=0.894, df=1, F=0.018) for UiTM-Mrw reading chart. The reading rate between session 1 and 2 also showed no significant difference (p=0.99, df=1, F=2.811) in UiTM-Muw reading chart. Intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC) showed a good consistency in repeatability for both UiTM-Mrw reading chart and UiTM-Muw reading chart with ICC values of 0.849 and 0.814 respectively. The Bland and Altman plot between measurement of reading rate in session 1 and session 2 showed a good agreement in UiTM-Mrw reading chart and UiTM-Muw reading chart. Conclusion: Both UiTM-Mrw reading chart and UiTM-Mur reading chart showed a good consistency and good agreement in repeated measurement of reading rate. Bangladesh Journal of Medical Science Vol.14(3) 2015 p.236-240
The Effects of Disease Management on Glycemic Control and Adherence to American Diabetes Association Guidelines in an Air Force Population

Abstract : Diabetes has a profound and widespread effect on the medical and financial well-being of this country. Healthcare providers are not always aware of, nor do they always comply with the American Diabetes Association's (ADA) published practice guidelines for diabetic care. To improve patient care, the United States Air Force, as well as many civilian medical care facilities, have implemented a primary care approach to diabetes care based upon continuous quality improvement principles called Disease Management. This quasi-experimental study employed a pre/post-intervention design to compare the effectiveness of traditional primary care with disease management care in achieving glycemic control and adherence to American Diabetes Association guidelines in 28 type 1 and type 2 diabetes patients at an Air Force family medicine clinic. Content validity testing on the study instrument designed for this study showed a content validity index of 0.95. There was a high degree of correlation on intra-rater and inter-rater reliability tests of the instrument. Non-significant improvements in glycemic control were found in disease management care compared with traditional care. Disease management improved compliance in all 18 adherence to ADA guideline indicators studied, with significant improvements in nutritional assessment 25.0% (p = 0.009), exercise addressed 26.8% (p = 0.006), annual foot exams 39.3% (p = 0.001), annual urine microalbumin screening 32.1% (p = 0.004), annual lipid screening 28.5% (p = 0.02), comprehensive diabetes education 28.6% (p = 0.008), baseline EKG 42.8% (p < 0.001), and tobacco and alcohol assessment 33.9% (p < 0.001). Study findings add to the current body of nursing knowledge regarding diabetes care.
Factors Affecting Mathematics Performance of Junior High School Students

Self-concept in mathematics can be defined as student ratings of their skills, ability, enjoyment, and interest in mathematics is seen as an essential factor in their achievement in math. This study assessed the self-concept and academic performance in Math of the Grade 10 students of a public national high school, Cebu, Philippines. The study employed descriptive correlational research. One hundred eighty-three respondents were asked to answer a survey questionnaire in order to measure their self-concept. Their academic performances were assessed using their grades in Math. The assembled information was dealt with measurably utilizing recurrence, percentage, weighted mean, t-test, and Pearson r. Results revealed that they had a moderate level of self-concept towards learning Mathematics. No gender difference was found on the self-concept of the respondents, but there was a significant relationship between self-concept and the respondents’ academic performance in Mathematics. Hence, a Math performance enhancement plan is highly recommended for adoption and evaluation.
The QUIPPED Project: Students’ Attitudes Toward Integrating Interprofessional Education into the Curriculum

Background : Healthcare learners are the future healthcare providers. The preparation they receive in their pre-registration programs will be vital to ensuring that they practice patient-centred care. One approach to this learning model is interprofessional education (IPE). Methods and Findings : Learner attitudes towards interprofessional education and practice were obtained over a thirty-three month period from the Queen’s University Inter-Professional Patient-centred Education Direction (QUIPPED) project. Attitudes were measured by questionnaires based on a 6-point Likert scale. The learners received a number of opportunities to engage in IPE and demonstrated positive attitudes. The degree to which one or more educational initiatives can make a difference in attitude is limited. However, over the course of the project both statistically significant and clinically meaningful differences were found. Different health professional student groups, including medical, medical radiation technology, nursing, occupational therapy, and physical therapy learners varied in their attitudinal responses, demonstrating they have already acquired professional identity. Conclusions: Recommendations include offering varied opportunities to learners, and providing them with the tools to communicate and collaborate together. Limitations include a lack of empirical evidence as to whether IPE translates into interprofessional practice and better patient-centred care.
Assessing and quantifying placental dysfunction in relation to pregnancy outcome in pregnancies complicated by reduced fetal movements

Currently there is no test to accurately predict stillbirth. It is proposed that better identification of placental disease in utero may aid stillbirth prediction and prevention. Pregnancies complicated by reduced fetal movement (RFM) have increased risk of stillbirth. We hypothesised that RFM is a symptom of placental dysfunction associated with adverse pregnancy outcome (APO) and that this placental abnormality can be detected antenatally and used to identify fetuses at highest-risk of APO. We tested this hypothesis by: 1) comparison of ex vivo placental structure and function between APO RFM pregnancies and their normal outcome RFM counterparts, 2) comparison of in utero estimates of placental size, vascularity, vascular and endocrine functions obtained from placental ultrasound, Doppler waveform analysis and maternal circulating placentally-derived hormone concentrations, to their ex vivo correlates and 3) examination of the predictive potential of placental biomarkers at the time of RFM.Ex vivo placentas from APO RFM pregnancies, compared to normal outcome RFM counterparts, were smaller (diameter, area, weight and volume, p<0.0001), less vascular (vessel number and density, p? 0.002), with arteries that were less responsive to sodium nitroprusside (p<0.05), and with aberrant endocrine function (reduced tissue content and/or release of human chorionic gonadotrophin (hCG), human placental lactogen (hPL) and soluble fms-like Tyrosine Kinase-1 (sFlt-1), p<0.03). Placental volume (PV) ex vivo correlated with sonographic estimated PV (p<0.004), hPL, hCG and placental growth factor (PlGF) concentrations in the maternal circulation (p<0.03). Ex vivo villous vessel number and density correlated with Doppler impedance at the umbilical artery free-loop (UAD-F, p=0.02) and intraplacental arteries (p<0.0001) respectively, whilst UAD-F impedance correlated with arterial thromboxane sensitivity (p<0.04). Examination of placental structure and function at the time of presentation with RFM identified 15 independently-predictive biomarkers. Three potential predictive models, incorporating measures of placental size (PlGF), endocrine function (sFlt-1), arterial thromboxane sensitivity and villous vascularity (UAD-F), were proposed. Using these models, sensitivity for APO was improved from 8.9% with baseline care (assessment of fetal size and gestation) to up to 37.5% at a fixed specificity of 99% (p<0.05). This series of studies shows that antenatal placental examination is possible and improves identification of pregnancies at highest risk of stillbirth in a high-risk population by up to 29%. Therefore such tests merit further development to prospectively assess their ability to predict and prevent stillbirth itself.
ANEMIA DURING PREGNANCY IN THE WOMEN OF WESTERN NEPAL

Objective: Anemia is the most common nutritional deficiency disorder in the world. The prevalence of anemia in pregnancy varies considerably because of differences in socioeconomic conditions, lifestyles and health seeking behaviors across different cultures. The aim of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of anemia among pregnant women in western part of Nepal. Method : A hospital based study was carried out in Nepalgunj Medical College, Kohalpur, Banke Nepal to determine prevalence of anemia among pregnant women. A total of 512 pregnant (15-45 years old) were included in this study. Cyanmethaemoglobin method was used to determine the hemoglobin level. The study took place from January 2012 to December 2012. Statistical analyses were carried out by applying percentage and words excel 2007. Results : Out of five hundred twelve pregnant women, 210 (41.02%) pregnant women were anemic and 302 pregnant women were non anemic (58.98%). Also, among these anemic pregnant women, majority (67.14 %) of these women were mildly anemic, whereas 28.57% were moderately and 4.29% were severely anemic . Conclusion: Prevalence of anemia was higher in the pregnant women at the second trimester (51.1%) and also at the 20-35 years age group (62.79%).
Better Communication Research Programme

The reports from the Better Communication Research Programme (BCRP) reflect the results of a three-year research programme designed to investigate the progress of children with speech, language and communication needs over time; the support and interventions offered to them and the evidence base for them; and the perspectives of parents and children about the outcomes they value. The programme draws on evidence provided in the thematic and technical reports and considers the overall implications for policy, practice and research. It is aimed particularly at non-specialist policy makers and commissioners
Components Affecting Intention to Use Online Dating Apps in India: A Study Conducted on Smartphone Users

Online dating apps have a potential market throughout the world. India is also trying to capture this particular market through various apps like Tinder, Woo, TrulyMadly and so on. The different literatures have been analysed from various sources to find out the factors influencing the use online dating apps. This particular study has identified few key elements, which is motivating the online dating app users in India. A total of 296 samples have been selected from college goers and young professionals with the help of structured questionnaire. Simple random sampling has been used to conduct the study, and from all the metro cities, the responses have been collected. The multiple regression analysis has been used to find out the impact of factors towards utilising dating apps. Playfulness is the most impactful factor when compared to others. The study has also found that trust does not have any impact towards utilising dating apps. The study also implies that consumers mainly enjoy the dating apps, and they have very less trustworthiness towards these apps. The study is unique in nature as very few studies till date have been conducted in India.
Variaciones Morfométricas de la Próstata de Chinchilla laniger (MOLINA, 1982) y de la Concentración de Testosterona Plasmática Durante un Ciclo Reproductivo Anual

Durante un ano, se estudio la prostata de individuos adultos de la especie Chinchilla laniger (MOLINA, 1982), mantenidos en cautiverio, para detectar posibles variaciones estacionales en el peso glandular y corporal, indice organo-somatico (IOS), grosor de la pared y altura del epitelio glandular y concentracion de testosterona plasmatica. Ademas, se realizo un analisis histoquimico con tecnicas de PAS, diastasa-PAS y Azul de Alcian pH1 y pH 2,5. Se describio una Zona A, periferica y una Zona B, central. En ambas, las celulas epiteliales siempre fueron negativas al Azul de Alcian. En la Zona A, se detecto la presencia de glicoproteinas neutras con intensa reaccion PAS (+++) entre octubre y abril y leve a moderada (+/++) entre mayo y septiembre, y ausencia de glicogeno. La Zona B siempre fue PAS negativa. Los valores morfometricos maximos se registraron entre mayo y julio y los minimos entre noviembre y febrero, presentando diferencias estacionales significativas (p 0,05), con excepcion del peso corporal, que no mostro variaciones durante el ano. La concentracion de testosterona plasmatica presento los valores minimos en enero, febrero y junio y los maximos en abril, mayo, julio y agosto. Se concluye, que la prostata de la Chinchilla laniger en cautiverio, presenta la mayor actividad secretora durante el periodo otono-invierno, respondiendo positivamente a la concentracion de testosterona y coincidiendo con la maxima actividad reproductiva descrita para la especie en el mismo periodo
Sexually Transmitted Infections, Sex and the Irish

﻿The national reported rates of sexually transmitted infections (other than HIV/AIDS) in Ireland have been increasing over the last decade of the 20th century. Medical professionals and epidemiologists consider the rates of STIs as indicators of the proportion of the population engaging in 'high risk' behaviour. According to this hypothesis, an increase in reported rates reflects an increase in 'high risk' behaviours. This thesis will examine this relationship and determine the reasons for the increased reported rates in Ireland. This will involve an investigation into Irish sexual behaviours and attitudes, thus giving an insight into Irish sexuality, which has previously attracted little sociological interest. Evidence in regard to Irish sexuality and sexually transmitted infections is limited. In the absence of longitudinal data on sexual behaviours and a national survey on STIs and risk-taking sexual behaviours, the question of the rising rates has to be addressed by collating available data from different sources. This involves: (1) the use of epidemiological and GUM clinics' information, (2) a socio-historical account of Irish sexuality and sexually transmitted infections and (3) a comparative analysis of Irish sexual behaviours and attitudes with four other countries utilising the International Social Survey Programme's 1994 dataset, Family and Changing Gender Roles II. It is concluded that the increasing reporting rates of STIs are not being directly caused by accompanying increases of 'high risk' sexual behaviours in the general population but are produced by a number of factors including a growing public openness about sexuality and sexual health awareness.
Patterns and Predictors of HIV, Sexually Transmitted Infections, and Staphylococcus Aureus Co-Infection among New York State Prison Inmates

Patterns and Predictors of HIV, Sexually Transmitted Infections, and Staphylococcus Aureus CoInfection among New York State Prison Inmates Nowai L. Keleekai U.S. prisons are overextended, physically restrictive environments. Overcrowding in these facilities enhances the transmission of infectious, communicable diseases. At the same time, Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) colonization and infection rates are elevated in these settings. Moreover, HIV and sexually transmitted infections (STIs) are also prevalent. The purpose of this cross-sectional, correlational secondary analysis was to describe patterns of S. aureus co-infection with HIV and STIs in two New York State prisons and to identify risk factors for co-infection. Cultures were obtained from the anterior nares and oropharynx of a convenience sample of male (n = 383) and female (n = 373) prisoners in each facility. Descriptive and comparative statistics were used to accomplish the study aims. Overall S. aureus colonization rate was 53.8%. Among men, the rates of HIV-S. aureus and STI-S. aureus coinfection were 75% and 45.7%, respectively. Among women, the rates of HIV-S. aureus and STI-S. aureus co-infection were 47.4% and 59.1%, respectively. No statistically significant differences in S. aureus carriage rates were detected when comparing subjects with and without HIV or STIs. Multivariate logistic regression techniques were used to identify predictors of STIS. aureus co-infection in women. Insufficient numbers of subjects with HIV and men with STI-S. aureus limited regression modeling in these groups. After adjusting for age, race/ethnicity, and educational level, only taking more (10.1 vs 8.6) showers each week was significantly associated with increased risk of co-infection (p = .04). Results of this study suggested that rates of S. aureus carriage may be uniformly elevated across many risk groups in prisons. Suboptimal sample size limited interpretation of the study results.
Diagnosis of Peste Des Petits in 2 Year Old Buck on The Basis of Clinical Signs and Hematology

Abstract: This case study signifies the diagnosis of Peste des Petits ruminants (PPR) in 2 year old buck of discrete breed on the basis of clinical signs and Hematology. Case presented to Department of Clinics Medicine and Surgery (CMS), Faculty of Veterinary Sciences (FVS) at University of Agriculture Faisalabad, Pakistan (UAF) with chief complain of anorexia, watery diarrhea, ocular discharge and muco-purulent nasal discharge from last 4 days. Clinical examination revealed high fever 104.4*F, increase in respiration and pulse rate as 38/min, and 112/min respectively. Capillary refill time was more than 3 seconds indicating dehydration (CRT >3). Lesions were visible on gums in oral cavity and lymph nodes were swollen. Complete blood count (CBC) showed lymphopenia. Disease was diagnosed as PPR on clinical basis and history. Treatment was done symptomatically for 7 days because of unavailability of specific treatment. Animal started showing recovery signs from 5 th day and recovered completely at 10 th day after visit.