Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Knowledge and attitude about intrauterine contraceptive devices among patients attending the National Guard Hospital in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia: a cross-sectional study

Abstract Objectives To investigate women’s knowledge and attitudes regarding the use of the intrauterine device (IUD) for contraceptive purposes and to explore eventual misconceptions about its benefits, and disadvantages. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted in the Obstetrics and Gynaecology (OB/GYN) outpatient department at King Khalid National Guard Hospital in King Abdul-Aziz Medical City, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. It involved women aged 15–55 years, who attended the outpatient OB/GYN clinic from July 2018 till May 2019. A validated self-structured questionnaire was used to collect demographic data and clinical data; including, medical and surgical history, obstetrical and gynaecological history. Results Of 269 participants, 32.3% reported a positive history of unintended pregnancy, and 28.6% declared using or having used IUD, with copper being the most frequent type (17.8%). A majority (81.4%) of the respondents viewed IUD as a contraceptive method only. In comparison, more than 70% declared not knowing the type of IUD used for bleeding control, cycle regulation, endometriosis treatment, cervix cancer prevention, and endometrial hyperplasia. Further, 21.9% and 55.4% believed that IUD increases the risk of ectopic pregnancy and infections, respectively. Conclusion Women attending outpatient clinics in our centre had poor knowledge levels about IUDs, with several misconceptions and apprehensions, especially regarding the risk of genital infections and ectopic pregnancy, which may constitute a significant psychological barrier use.
Diversity Training Goals, Limitations, and Promise: A Review of the Multidisciplinary Literature.

In this review, we utilize a narrative approach to synthesize the multidisciplinary literature on diversity training. In examining hundreds of articles on the topic, we discovered that the literature is amorphous and complex and does not allow us to reach decisive conclusions regarding best practices in diversity training. We note that scholars of diversity training, when testing the efficacy of their approaches, too often use proxy measures for success that are far removed from the types of consequential outcomes that reflect the purported goals of such trainings. We suggest that the enthusiasm for, and monetary investment in, diversity training has outpaced the available evidence that such programs are effective in achieving their goals. We recommend that researchers and practitioners work together for future investigations to propel the science of diversity training forward. We conclude with a roadmap for how to create a more rigorous and relevant science of diversity training. Expected final online publication date for the Annual Review of Psychology, Volume 73 is January 2022. Please see http://www.annualreviews. org/page/journal/pubdates for revised estimates.
V oxidation state and coordination number in silicate glasses by XAS

Abstract The local structure of vanadium (V)in synthetic glasses of basaltic composition has been studied by means of high-resolution V K-edge X-ray absorption near-edge structure (XANES) and extended X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) spectroscopy to obtain quantitative data on distances, V coordination number (CN), and oxidation state. The compositions and experimental conditions were chosen so as to verify the effect of bulk-glass composition (using a diopside-anorthite composition, a sodium disilicate glass, and an iron-titanium-bearing basaltic glass) and V content (from 0.1 to 5 V2O5 wt%) on the structural role of V in these glasses. The combined analysis of high-resolution XANES spectra and EXAFS data indicate that on average, the Fe-free glasses synthesized in air show vanadium in the V5+ state, mainly in tetrahedral coordination (less than 20% [5]V5+) and with distances of 1.697 (± 0.020) Å, in agreement with the values found for tetrahedral V in minerals. In contrast, the Fe-bearing basaltic glasses display a mixture of V5+ in fourfold and fivefoldcoordination, 40% [4]V5+-60% [5]V5+ in proportion, and the EXAFS-derived distances and coordination numbers are in agreement with this interpretation. No significant changes in the V local structure were found in the glasses analyzed as a function of V-contents in the 0.1 to 5 V2O5 wt% range. The data obtained suggest that the structural role of vanadium in these melts is rather insensitive to bulk composition, in terms of V and alkali content, but can be strongly affected by the presence of other transition elements, e.g., Fe3+ competing with V to enter the tetrahedral framework.
Facemasks: A Looming Microplastic Crisis

Single-use disposable facemasks have been used as a preventive measure against the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. However, many researchers have found evidence that these facemasks are being dumped into lakes, rivers, and open garbage dumps. Facemasks have the potential of releasing microplastic fibers into the environment; a phenomenon that has been poorly investigated. Moreover, microplastic fibers composed of plastics have the potential of affecting the flora and fauna of many ecosystems. In this preliminary study, we investigate how many microplastic fibers had been released to the water by KF-AD, KF94, surgical, and FFP1 standard facemasks, which are the most widely available facemask standards in South Korea. The waterbody in our research was mechanically agitated for 24, 48, and 72 h. Findings showed that most of the layers of facemasks are composed of polypropylene. The surgical and KF94 standard facemasks released the highest number of microplastic fibers. Furthermore, under our research conditions, a single facemask can release at least 47 microplastic fibers per day (e.g., KF-AD standard mask), which can lead to the release of at least 1381 million microplastic fibers per day in total in South Korea if 70% of the urban population uses a single mask every day. Moreover, the released microplastic fibers significantly increased when the agitation time extended from 24 to 48 h. This finding suggests that the number of released microplastic fibers is likely to increase drastically.
Ticagrelor Monotherapy Versus Ticagrelor With Aspirin in Acute Coronary Syndrome Patients With a High Risk of Ischemic Events

Supplemental Digital Content is available in the text. Background: In patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS) with a high risk of ischemia, the impact of ticagrelor monotherapy after short-term dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) has not been clearly elucidated. Methods: This post hoc analysis of the TICO trial (Ticagrelor Monotherapy After 3 Months in the Patients Treated With New Generation Sirolimus-Eluting Stent for Acute Coronary Syndrome) compared the impact of ticagrelor monotherapy after 3-month DAPT versus ticagrelor-based 12-month DAPT in patients with high-ischemic risk ACS, defined as any of the following: number of stents implanted ≥3, total stent length >60 mm, complex procedures (chronic total occlusion, left main occlusion, or bifurcation plaques remedied using the 2-stent technique), or a history of diabetes or chronic kidney disease. Ischemic (composite of death, myocardial infarction, stent thrombosis, stroke, and target vessel revascularization) and bleeding outcomes (major bleeding) were evaluated at 12 months. Results: Of the total population (N=3056), 1473 (48.2%) patients were identified as having high-ischemic risk ACS. The rate of the ischemic outcome was significantly higher in high-ischemic risk ACS patients than in nonhigh-ischemic risk ACS patients (3.9% versus 1.9%, hazard ratio, 2.14 [95% CI, 1.37–3.35], P=0.001). Furthermore, the risk of major bleeding (3.2% versus 1.5%, hazard ratio, 2.23 [95% CI, 1.36–3.68], P=0.001) and the composite ischemic and bleeding outcome (6.6% versus 3.3%, hazard ratio, 2.02 [95% CI, 1.44–2.84], P<0.001) were also higher in the high-risk ACS population. In ACS patients with or without high-ischemic risk, the effect of ticagrelor monotherapy after 3-month DAPT, as compared to that of 12-month DAPT, was consistent with ischemic (Pint=0.718), bleeding (Pint=0.092), and composite outcomes (Pint=0.094) without significant interactions. Conclusions: There were no significant heterogeneities in the impact of ticagrelor monotherapy after 3-month DAPT compared with that of ticagrelor-based 12-month DAPT on clinical outcomes according to the presence of high-ischemic risk. Registration: URL: https://www.clinicaltrials. gov; Unique identifier: NCT02494895.
Improving Diabetes Self-management by Providing Continuous Positive Airway Pressure Treatment to Patients With Obstructive Sleep Apnea and Type 2 Diabetes: Qualitative Exploratory Interview Study

Background There is a high prevalence of unexplained and unexplored obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) among patients with type 2 diabetes. The daytime symptoms of OSA include severe fatigue, cognitive problems, a decreased quality of life, and the reduced motivation to perform self-care. These symptoms impair the management of both diabetes and daily life. OSA may therefore have negative implications for diabetes self-management. Continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) therapy is used to treat OSA. This treatment improves sleep quality, insulin resistance, and glycemic control. Although the benefits of using CPAP as a treatment for OSA are clear, the noncompliance rate is high, and the evidence for the perceived effect that CPAP treatment has on patients with type 2 diabetes and OSA is poor. Objective The purpose of this study was to analyze the impacts that comorbid diabetes and OSA have on the daily lives of older adults and to investigate the perceived effect that CPAP treatment for OSA has on patients’ diabetes self-management. Methods A qualitative follow-up study that involved in-depth, semistructured dyad interviews with couples before and after CPAP treatment (N=22) was conducted. Patients were recruited from the Hilleroed Hospital in Denmark and were all diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, aged >18 years, and had an apnea-hypopnea index of ≥15. All interviews were coded and analyzed via thematic analysis. Results The results showed that patients and their partners did not consider OSA to be a serious disorder, as they believed that OSA symptoms were similar to those of the process of aging. Patients experienced poor nocturnal sleep, took frequent daytime naps, exhibited reduced cognitive function, and had low levels of physical activity and a high-calorie diet. These factors negatively influenced their diabetes self-management. Despite the immediate benefit of CPAP treatment, most patients (11/12, 92%) faced technical challenges when using the CPAP device. Only the patients with severe OSA symptoms that affected their daily lives overcame the challenges of using the CPAP device and thereby improved their diabetes self-management. Patients with less severe symptoms rated CPAP-related challenges as more burdensome than their symptoms. Conclusions If used correctly, CPAP has the potential to significantly improve OSA, resulting in better sleep quality; improved physical activity; improved diet; and, in the end, better diabetes self-management. However, there are many barriers to undergoing CPAP treatment, and only few patients manage to overcome these barriers and comply with correct treatment.
Emerging role of artificial intelligence in stroke imaging

ABSTRACT Introduction: The recognition and therapy of patients with stroke is becoming progressively intricate as additional treatment choices become accessible and new associations between disease characteristics and treatment response are incessantly uncovered. Therefore, clinicians must regularly learn new skill, stay up to date with the literature and integrate advances into daily practice. The application of artificial intelligence (AI) to assist clinical decision making could diminish inter-rater variation in routine clinical practice and accelerate the mining of vital data that could expand recognition of patients with stroke, forecast of treatment responses and patient outcomes. Areas covered: In this review, the authors provide an up-to-date review of AI in stroke, analyzing the latest papers on this subject. These have been divided in two main groups: stroke diagnosis and outcome prediction. Expert opinion: The highest value of AI is its capability to merge, select and condense a large amount of clinical and imaging features of a single patient and to associate these with fitted models that have gone through robust assessment and optimization with large cohorts of data to support clinical decision making
Functional nature of the spasmolytic effect, phytochemical composition and acute toxicity studies on Sauromatum guttatum

The aim of the present work was to study the functional nature of the potential spasmolytic effect of the crude extract of Sauromatum guttaum . It was found positive for the presence of alkaloid and tannins. In isolated rabbit jejunum preparation, S. guttaum caused inhibition of spontaneous and high K + (80 mM)-induced contractions, with respective EC 50 values (95% confidence intervals) of 1.50 mg/mL (0.69-3.02) and 1.17 mg/mL (0.81-1.61), similar to verapamil. Inhibition of high K + -induced contractions suggests Ca ++ antagonistic effect. The Ca ++ channel blocker activity of S. guttaum was confirmed when pre-treatment of the tissues with extract (0.3-3 mg/mL) caused a rightward displacement in the Ca ++ concentration-response curves. Moreover, in the acute toxicity test, S. guttaum was found safe up to the dose of 3 g/kg. The findings of the current study suggest that the S. guttaum exhibited spasmolytic activity, possibly mediated through inhibitory effect on Ca ++ entry and was found safe and this current study provides first evidence to the potential use of this plant as antispasmodic and can play a possible role as antidiarrheal.
Healthcare professionals’ perceptions of dignity-preserving care for older home-dwelling women with incurable cancer in Norway

ABSTRACT Municipal end-of-life care for older home-dwelling patients with cancer is a complex matter requiring healthcare professionals (HCPs) to recognize gender differences in a social, historical and organizational context. A qualitative approach was chosen to explore and identify HCPs value-based principles and organizational conditions promoting dignity-preserving care practice for these women. HCPs recognized the importance of sheltering the women’s identity, their sense of being home and acknowledged their personal preferences as value-based principles, whereas creating a flexible culture of care, establishing a functional professional collaboration and developing individualized plans of care, were crucial organizational conditions influencing the practice of dignity-preserving care.
Diversity, Complexity and Ordinality: Mental Health Services Outside the Institutions—Service Users’ and Professionals’ Experience-Based Practices and Knowledges, and New Public Management

In conjunction with the dismantling of psychiatric hospitals, social workers have been commissioned to help service users in their daily living in their homes and in the community. The consequences of these changes for experience-based knowledge and practices in their contexts remain relatively unknown. In this study, eighteen service users and the social workers they described as helpful for them were interviewed. The interviews were recorded, transcribed, and analyzed using Thematic Analysis. The following themes emerged: “Here, there and everywhere”, “Doing, being, becoming”, “Talking” and “Order, planning and improvisation” concerning the contradictions service users and professionals mentioned about their practices and the conditions imposed by managerial methods connected to New Public Management. Finally, “Spontaneous planned complexity” was chosen as our overarching theme to characterize the new knowledge and practices which have been developed. The displacement of the place for the encounter and the introduction of non-medicalized professions have allowed community-based practices and thus the co-creation and emergence of new knowledge about the service users as persons and the professionals as qualified professionals. The challenge remains for managers to have trust in their colleagues and not impose rigid rules, schematized methods, and repeated controls.
The Impact of a Fundamentals of Speech Course on Public Speaking Anxiety

Thirty to forty percent of Americans suffer from Communication Apprehension (CA) to a degree that impairs their ability and willingness to speak publicly (McCroskey, 1984). McCroskey (1984) defines CA as “an individual’s level of fear or anxiety associated with either real or anticipated communication with another person(s)” (p.13). There are many forms of CA, but “the most common [form] is Public Speaking Anxiety” (McCourt, 2007, p.6), which can be defined as the fear of speaking in front of a group of people. Because research has shown that such fears may hinder career aspirations, personal relationships and self-image, scholarly examination of means to reduce CA are merited. Therefore, overcoming CA is a fundamental goal of introductory speech classes. To test the impact of a basic-level speech course on students’ CA, 324 students at a large, Midwestern university took McCroskey’s Personal Report of Public Speaking Anxiety (PRPSA) questionnaire via Questionpro as a preand post-test during the first two weeks, and again during the last two weeks of the course, which served as the treatment. Results show a significant decrease in CA after completion of the speech course.
Growth dynamics of vaterite in relation to the physico-chemical properties of its precursor, amorphous calcium carbonate, in the Ca-CO3-PO4 system

Abstract Vaterite is one of three non-hydrate calcium carbonate crystalline polymorphs and is formed as an initial phase under pseudo-biological conditions. However, biological hard tissues that use vaterite are rare; the reason for vaterite rarely appearing in vivo is still unclear. There is consensus that, in phosphate-containing solutions, vaterite barely forms and amorphous calcium carbonate (ACC), the precursor of crystalline calcium carbonate and considered as aggregation of growth unit of vaterite, is stabilized. In this study, to clarify the biomineralization process, we investigated how phosphate acts as an inhibitor of vaterite growth. We measured vaterite growth rates in situ and estimated the essential crystal growth parameter, edge free energy, in the Ca-CO3-PO4 system in relation to the physico-chemical properties of ACC. The effects of PO4 on the ACC structure and dynamics were also observed. Co-existed PO4 reduced the growth rate of vaterite even when it was added in µM-scale concentrations. The surface free energy of vaterite increased with increasing PO4 concentration and was 10× higher in a 10 μM PO4-containing solution than in a PO4-free solution. Spectroscopic analyses showed that the chemical bonds in ACC particles were drastically changed by the addition of μM-scale PO4, and the particles could no longer transform into vaterite. We conclude that PO4 inhibits vaterite growth and changed the ACC structure. And the original growth units of vaterite were also modified to the other structures. Thus, vaterite crystals could not grow by association of these growth units, which resulted in an increase in the apparent surface free energy of vaterite.
SPWM GENERATOR BASED ON FPGA FOR HIGH SWITCHING FREQUENCY DC/AC INVERTERS

The digital implementation of Sinusoidal Pulse Width Modulation (SPWM) generators have dominated over their counterparts based on analog circuits. Here an FPGA based SPWM generator is implemented, which is capable to support the high switching frequencies more than 1 MHZ, thus it is capable to support the high switching frequency requirements of modern single-phase dc/ac power converters. This design occupies a small fraction of a medium sized FPGA and, thus can be integrate in larger designs. In addition to that, it has a flexible architecture that can be implemented to a variety of single-phase dc/ac inverter applications. This experimental results confirm that compared to the past-proposed microcontrollers and DSPs generation unit designs, the SPWM generator exhibits much faster frequency, lower power consumption, and higher accuracy of generating the desired SPWM waveform.
REMOVAL OF PHENOL FROM AQUEOUS SOLUTION BY MAHUA SEED ACTIVATED CARBON: KINETIC, ISOTHERM, MASS TRANSFER AND ISOSTERIC HEAT OF ADSORPTION STUDIES

Mahua (Madhuca longifolia) seed activated carbon (MSAC) has been developed as an effective adsorbent for the removal of phenol from contaminated wastewaters. Prepared MSAC was characterized for various physico-chemical properties, Fourier transform infra- red (FTIR) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis. Laboratory batch experiments were performed to investigate the effect of MSAC dosage (w), pH, contact time (t), and initial phenol concentrations (Co) on sorption efficiency at optimal conditions. The maximum adsorption capacity of phenol was obtained at pH=6, t=5 h and MSAC dosage=1.2 g/l. The kinetics data of phenol adsorption was very well described by the pseudo-second-order kinetic model. The equilibrium adsorption data were best fitted to the Langmuir isotherm. The average effective diffusion coefficient 6.4×10-13 m2/s was calculated from the experimental data. Thermodynamic studies confirmed the sorption process to be spontaneous and exothermic. The isosteric heat of adsorption of phenol was found to increase with an increase in the surface loading indicating that MSAC have more homogeneous surface.
Oxidative stress-related biomarkers in Parkinson’s disease: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a neurodegenerative disease characterized with the loss of dopamine-producing neurons in a mid-brain. This loss is believed to be associated with number of environmental and genetic factors. Oxidative stress is found to be one of the factors responsible for the initiation and progression of PD. However, studies are still continued to confirm the connection and mechanism associated with oxidative stress and PD. This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to assess the association between oxidative stress markers and PD, and explore factors that may elucidate the contradictions in these results. As per Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guideline systematic literature search was carried out. Meta-analysis was carried out on pooled standardized mean differences with 95% confidence interval (CI) of patients with PD and controls using random effect model in comprehensive meta-analysis statistical software. Total 17 studies were included into which 25 oxidative stress markers were analyzed. The results revealed that oxidative stress markers [nitrate and nitric oxide (NO)] and antioxidant markers [total antioxidant status (TAS) and thiols] were not statistically different between the PD and control group (P > 0.05). In case of oxidative stress markers, levels of malondialdehyde (MDA), 8-Oxo-2'-deoxyguanosine (8-oxo-dG), and lipid hydro-peroxide (LPO) were found to be high in patients with PD as compared to controls with P < 0.05, whereas lower levels of antioxidant activity of superoxide dismutase (SOD), glucose 6 phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD), catalase (CAT), and glutathione peroxidase (GPx) were noticed in the PD group as compared to controls (P < 0.05 for all). From the results, it is concluded that patients with PD have high oxidative stress and lower antioxidant activity, and these studied biomarkers would be used as potential diagnostic tool to measure oxidative stress in patients with PD.