Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Calcinosis cutis in systemic sclerosis: a conundrum

Calcinosis cutis (CC) is an autoimmune disorder that presents with a wide range of systemic manifestations. Respiratory and gastrointestinal tracts along with skin are affected. Skin manifestations can progress to significant deformities, causing discomfort to patients severely affecting quality of life. Management of patients with Scleroderma requires a multidisciplinary approach in order to attain the best possible outcomes. Wound care is not yet standardized and multiple approaches exist with varying degrees of success. Surgical approaches vary based on anatomical location along with the depth and area of the wound. It is imperative to provide continuity of care with this patient population. If there is not adequate communication with regards to expectations, the disease burden may progress and ultimately prolong patient treatment. We presented the case of a 65 year old female with scleroderma that is followed within our wound care clinic for long term care of cutaneous lesions. Wound healing varied throughout the duration of treatment with moderate success seen with the use of wound vac therapy.
Internal parasites that infected local rabbits

Rabbits are animals affected by many different species of parasites, infection Lead to lower body weight gain compared with non-infected rabbits , while sever infection Lead to death , although rabbits are less likely to develop epidemic diseases, but they are exposed to diseases of care and malnutrition, as well as parasitic diseases . Turning to previous studies that dealt with the spread of internal parasites in rabbits such as (Giardia, Cryptosporidium, Eimeria sp., Cystecercus pisiformis, Passalurus ambiguous). The current study aimed to defined of intestinal parasite in rabbit. Despite, the few of research on this subject for this study of intestinal parasites that Infection of rabbits and suggestion development of a database of studies of internal parasites affecting rabbits.
Beta-Lactam Antibiotic Discrimination Using a Macromolecular Sensor in Water at Neutral pH

Penicillins and cephalosporins belong to the β-lactam antibiotic family, which accounts for more than half of the world market for antibiotics. Misuse of antibiotics harms human health and the environment. Here, we describe an easy, fast, and sensitive optical method for the sensing and discrimination of two penicillin and five cephalosporin antibiotics in buffered water at pH 7.4, using fifth-generation poly (amidoamine) (PAMAM) dendrimers and calcein, a commercially available macromolecular polyelectrolyte and a fluorescent dye, respectively. In aqueous solution at pH 7.4, the dendrimer and dye self-assemble to form a sensor that interacts with carboxylate-containing antibiotics through electrostatic interaction, monitored through changes in the dye’s spectroscopic properties. This response was captured through absorbance, fluorescence emission, and fluorescence anisotropy. The resulting data set was processed through linear discriminant analysis (LDA), a common pattern-base recognition method, for the differentiation of cephalosporins and penicillins. By pre-hydrolysis of the β-lactam rings under basic conditions, we were able to increase the charge density of the analytes, allowing us to discriminate the seven analytes at a concentration of 5 mM, with a limit of discrimination of 1 mM.
Risk Factors of Extubation Failure in Intubated Preterm Infants at a Tertiary Care Hospital in Oman

Objectives This study aimed to determine extubation failure (EF) rate among intubated preterm infants (<37 weeks gestational age [GA]) admitted to a tertiary care neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) in Oman and identify the risk factors associated with EF. Methods This retrospective study included all intubated preterm infants (<37 weeks GA) admitted to the NICU at Sultan Qaboos University Hospital (SQUH) from January 2013 to December 2017. EF was defined as reintubation within seven days of planned extubation. Demographics, ventilation parameters, blood gas values and other possible risk factors of EF were collected. Statistical analysis included comparisons between EF and extubation success (ES) groups and a binary logistic regression analysis. Results A total of 190 preterm infants were intubated during the study period with 140 eligible for analysis. A total of 106 infants (75.7%) were successfully extubated while 34 (24.3%) failed extubation. GA <28 weeks (P = 0.029), lower 1-minute Apgar score (P = 0.023) and patent ductus arteriosus diagnosis (P = 0.018) were significantly associated with EF. After the multivariate analysis, only GA <28 weeks predicted EF with an adjusted odds ratio of 2.621 (95% confidence interval: 1.118 – 6.146). Conclusion EF rate in preterm infants admitted at the NICU of SQUH was within international rates. GA <28 weeks was the only predictor of the identified extubation failure. Neonatal practitioners need to seriously consider extreme prematurity in the extubation process and consider implementing strategies to decrease extubation failure in this group of fragile infants.
Modeling the Transmission of the SARS-CoV-2 Delta Variant in a Partially Vaccinated Population

In a population with ongoing vaccination, the trajectory of a pandemic is determined by how the virus spreads in unvaccinated and vaccinated individuals that exhibit distinct transmission dynamics based on different levels of natural and vaccine-induced immunity. We developed a mathematical model that considers both subpopulations and immunity parameters including vaccination rates, vaccine effectiveness, and a gradual loss of protection. The model forecasted the spread of the SARS-CoV-2 delta variant in the US under varied transmission and vaccination rates. We further obtained the control reproduction number and conducted sensitivity analyses to determine how each parameter may affect virus transmission. Our results show that a combination of strengthening vaccine-induced immunity and preventative behavioral measures will likely be required to deaccelerate the rise of infectious SARS-CoV-2 variants.
Oral, similar to intranasal, administration of oxytocin decreases top-down social attention, but additionally enhances bottom-up control

The neuropeptide oxytocin (OXT) can modulate social cognition by facilitating attention towards social cues and may be a potential therapeutic intervention for social attention impairment in disorders such as autism. Intranasal administration of OXT is widely used to examine its functional effects in both adults and children. However, we have recently shown that administration orally as a lingual spray also modulates neural responses to emotional faces and is potentially better tolerated for therapeutic use. Here, we therefore examined if 24IU OXT administered orally is also effective in facilitating social attention. In a randomized, placebo-controlled, pharmacological study we used a validated emotional anti-saccade eye-tracking paradigm to explore effects of oral OXT on bottom-up and top-down attention processing in 80 healthy male subjects. Our findings showed in terms of top-down attention, oral OXT increased both errors and response latencies for all social stimuli (angry, fearful, happy, sad and neutral emotion faces) but not non-social stimuli (oval shape) in the anti-saccade condition. Comparison with our previous intranasal OXT study using the same task paradigm revealed both routes have a similar effect on increasing anti-saccade errors. However, compared with intranasal OXT, oral OXT significantly decreased error rates for social stimuli in the pro-saccade condition, indicative of increased bottom-up attention processing. Additionally, OXT administration both either route produced an anxiolytic effect evidenced by reduced state anxiety scores. Together, these findings suggest that orally administered OXT has a similar effect on top-down social attention control and anxiety as intranasal administration but more potently influences bottom-up control.
Relationship Between Support for Workers With Illness and Work Functioning Impairment in Japan During the COVID-19 Pandemic

This study revealed a relationship between support for workers with illness and work functioning impairment. While workers continue to work with illnesses has been increasing, this survey shows the importance for companies to support workers with illness. Objective: This study examined the relationship between job accommodations for workers with poor health and work functioning impairment during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: An internet survey was conducted in December 2020. We included 24,429 subjects for analysis. One question was used to determine whether subjects needed job accommodations from their company to continue working in their current health condition. The odds ratios (ORs) of the necessity of job accommodations for sick workers associated with work functioning impairment were estimated using multilevel logistic regression analysis. Results: The OR of work functioning impairment among sick workers not receiving job accommodations was 5.75 (95% confidence interval (CI): 5.34 to 6.20, P < 0.001) and those receiving job accommodations was 1.88 (95% CI: 1.69 to 2.08, P < 0.001) compared to healthy workers. Conclusions: This study suggests that providing job accommodations to workers with poor health may improve their work functioning impairment.
Real time secure messaging service for internet of things applications using MQTT

Most of the IoT applications require real time and secure exchange of information among connected devices and hence, currently, security of communication protocols is becoming key topic of research. MQTT, a lightweight communication protocol, is used for real time communication between networks. Authors have reviewed numerous published researches on secure MQTT protocol for IoT networks and have discovered security loop holes of MQTT communication protocol that are needed to be addressed. This article proposes a secure and real time MQTT protocol by incorporating SSL certificate to MQTT broker for IoT applications without data loss. The research has been implemented in Raspberry Pi 3B system using Python 3.4. 10 development platform along with Numpy 1.11. 1 and scipy 0.18. 0 (for mathematical analysis), paho-mqtt 1.5. 0 (for MQTT publication/subscription), and Chromium (for displaying research outcome). The outcome of this research shows that the proposed MQTT protocol has tighten security during exchanging information over IoT networks without any loss of data. IIUC Studies Vol.17, December 2020: 27-42
Cord blood and peripheral nucleated red blood cells levels in term asphyxiated and non-asphyxiated new borns and neonatal outcome: a comparative study

Background: Perinatal asphyxia can cause severe hypoxic-ischemic damages in the organs and causes severe long-term consequences. It has recently been suggested that the increase in NRBC count in the umbilical vein of newborns can be considered a sign of birth asphyxia. The aim of the study was to evaluate the role of cord blood nucleated RBC count as a marker for presence and severity of birth asphyxia.Methods: This prospective observational comparative study was conducted among 30 asphyxiated (case) and 30 non-asphyxiated newborns (control) in Swami Dayanand Hospital. Number of nucleated red blood cells in cord blood and peripheral blood were counted per 100 leukocytes in smears in cases and control. Maternal parameters and neonate characteristics were recorded in a proforma.Results: NRBC count increased in cord blood during the first few hours of life in perinatal asphyxia (10.79±9.58) as compared with the healthy control subjects (4.03±2.87, p=0.002). Significant positive correlation of C-NRBC and P-NRBC with NICU stay (r=0.921, p<0.0001 and r=0.698, p<0.0001 respectively). Nucleated RBC count more than 18 can be used as predictor of abnormal neurological outcome with sensitivity 100% and specificity of 93.1%. The cord blood NRBC >3/100 WBC has sensitivity of 92% and specificity of 77.8% in predicting birth asphyxia.Conclusions: Nucleated RBC count can be used as surrogate marker for birth asphyxia. It has significant positive correlation with severity of hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy, duration of NICU stay and duration of O2 requirement.
Red blood cell profile in patients with mild, moderate and severe COVID-19

Background and objectives: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has affected millions of people world-wide. It is caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Increasing evidence has shown abnormalities of different hematological parameters with the severity of the diseases. The present study was undertaken to determine the red blood cell (RBC) profile in different categories of COVID-19 patients. Materials and methods: The study was conducted from January 2020 to December 2020. Reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) positive COVID-19 patients were enrolled. Patients were categorized into mild, moderate and severe COVID-19 cases. Blood samples were analyzed by Automated Hematology Analyzer for hemoglobin concentration, total erythrocyte count and RBC indices. ANOVA followed by Bonferroni test, Chi square test, Spearman’s rho correlation coefficient test were performed as applicable using SPSS version 25.0. Results: A total of 100 RT-PCR positive COVID-19 patients were included in the study. There were 25, 38 and 37 mild, moderate and severe cases respectively. The mean age of the study participants was 44.68 + 13.16 years (range: 18 to 65 years). There were 67 (67%) males and 33 (33%) females. No significant difference in hemoglobin (Hb), hematocrit (HCT), total RBC count, red blood cell distribution width (CDW) was observed among the three groups. Significant negative correlation of mean corpuscular volume (MCV) and mean corpuscular hemoglobin (MCH); rs-0.362 & -0.255 respectively) was observed with disease severity. Conclusion: The study showed low MCV and MCH were significantly related with the severity of the COVID-19 illness. Therefore, comprehensive analysis of the RBC profile would be helpful to understand the disease course. Ibrahim Med. Coll. J. 2021; 15(2): 26-31
Preliminary study on the synergistic interaction of Garcinia kola and Vernonia amygdalina against Candida albicans

Introduction: Due to the emergence and spread of infections caused by Candida albicans especially among immunocompromised patients and increase in resistance by this group of fungi to commonly used antifungal agents, this study was undertaken to investigate the possible synergy between Garcinia kola seed and Vernonia amygdalina leaves extracts against organism. Methods: Ethanol extraction of Vernonia amygdalina leaves and Garcinia kola seeds were carried out and extract evaluated for anti-candida activities. The combined anti-candida activities of the extracts were also assessed using Checkerboard assay. Results: Extract of G. kola seed showed minimal anti-candida activity against the C. albicans with an inhibition zone of 5 mm and minimum inhibitory concentration of 50 mg/mL. The combined effect of both extract was demonstrated to be synergistic at most combination ratios tested. Furthermore, the combined effect was observed to have outweighed their individual effect, inhibiting the test isolates at concentration far less than the MICs of each of the extracts. The fractional inhibitory concentration index of the combined extracts at their various combination ratios against C. albicans ranged between 0.14 – 0.45 mg/ml indicating a synergistic effect by the various combinations against the organism. Conclusion: The combined activities by the two extracts showed marked improvement in anti-candida activities compared with their individual activities. The results support harnessing the individual bioactive constituents of the extracts and combining them for the development of potential antifungal agents.
Thoracic empyema: clinical course and management in Trivandrum Medical College

Background: The incidence of empyema thoracis among adults is increasing steadily. It may be primary empyema (pleural infection developing without pneumonia) or secondary empyema. The common cause of secondary empyema being- community acquired pneumonia or hospital acquired pneumonia, empyema due to iatrogenic causes, secondary to trauma etc. With advancement in science and technology, early recognition of empyema in patients with symptoms is now possible. But the treatment guidelines are not unified so that each physician may treat this condition in a different way without referring to higher concerned specialties making it complicated. The objective of this study was to determine the clinical profile of thoracic empyema in Trivandrum Medical College a tertiary care centre in South Kerala.Methods: A total of 56 patients with empyema admitted to Government Medical College, Trivandrum, Kerala in 2018-2019 were reviewed retrospectively. The demographic details, clinical presentation, etiology, microbiological findings, and management were recorded in a planned proforma, and analysis was done.Results: The mean age was 49.1 years with peak incidence seen in 40-60 years of age. The male to female ratio was 4.6:1.0 and right pleura was more involved than left pleura. Risk factors were diabetes mellitus, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, pulmonary tuberculosis, and smoking. Etiology of thoracic empyema was infective in 78.6% cases and traumatic in 21.4% cases. Only two cultures showed gram positive aerobe, rest of the culture was sterile. Only a few cases resolved with medical management. Decortication was needed for 52 patients (82.1%). Conclusions: A unified protocol need to be formulated and followed up in all centres for the management of empyema before its evolution and thus reducing the incidence of empyema and its associated complications.
Evaluation of Housing Quality in a Selected Urban Fringe of Ilorin, Kwara State, Nigeria

Globally, a lot of research efforts have been put into investigating housing quality in urban areas, but little is known about housing situation in the urban fringes of developing nations. This article examines the factors influencing residents’ satisfaction with housing quality in Oke-Andi, an urban fringe in Kwara State, Nigeria. The research design for this study was quantitative in nature. Sampling was carried out at different stages during the field exercise. A preliminary survey of Oke-Andi in Ilorin through satellite imageries and reconnaissance revealed an approximate population of 593 buildings. From this, a 20% sample size, approximated to 120 buildings were randomly sampled and considered reasonable for the study. Using the housing quality criteria drawn from previous contextual studies, validated and pretested structured questionnaires were used to elicit data on respondents’ satisfaction with their dwelling unit, building unit, and neighbourhood quality. Information on residents’ socio-economic characteristics was also collected. From each selected building, a copy of the questionnaire was administered on the household heads or adult representatives. At the end of the survey, 120 questionnaires were administered, but only 100 were subsequently retrieved for data analysis. Simple frequency tables and Principal Component Analysis were used for the analysis of collected data. The result of PCA shows neighbourhood attributes, public utilities and building conditions as the factors influencing residents’ satisfaction with housing quality. The study recommends community driven urban renewal schemes for redevelopment, rehabilitation and upgrading of the quality of urban fringes.
Factors Affecting the Use of Job Aid Posters as a Guide for Malaria Diagnosis among Primary Healthcare Workers in Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria

Introduction: Malaria is the major cause of mortality worldwide. Accurate diagnosis is key for effective management of the disease. Non-adherence to diagnosis guidelines by primary healthcare (PHC) workers affects quality healthcare provisions. Job aid posters help enhance adherence to guidelines for several diseases. Thus, this study determined PHC worker’s use of job aid posters and identified factors affecting its use as a guide for malaria diagnosis. Methods: The study was a hospital-based cross-sectional survey, a multistage sampling technique was used to select 384 PHC workers from seventy-eight PHC facilities in Ibadan Oyo State, Nigeria. A semi-structured, self-administered questionnaire was used to obtain participant’s socio-demographic characteristics, knowledge and adherence to malaria diagnosis guidelines, and factors affecting the use of job aid posters as a guide for malaria diagnosis. Data analysis was done using descriptive statistics, chi-square, and logistic regression with P-Value=0.05 declared as statistically significant. Results: Two hundred and forty-four (63.5%) PHC workers were knowledgeable about malaria diagnosis guidelines whereas only 58.1% of the total respondents adhere to the guidelines. Just less than half (45.3%) of participants uses job aid posters always. Knowledge of malaria diagnosis guidelines (AOR = 0.272, 95% C.I = 0.115-0.643), comprehensiveness of job aid poster (AOR = 0.345, 95% C.I = 0.148-0.807), physical integrity of job aid posters (AOR = 0.219, 95% C.I = 0.092-0.522), and positioning of job aid posters (AOR = 5.704, 95% C.I = 2.375-13.67) were significant predictors of use of job aid posters for malaria diagnosis. Conclusion: the healthcare worker’s adherence to guidelines for malaria diagnosis was inadequate. Provision of comprehensive job aid posters on malaria diagnosis, replacement of damaged ones, and strategic display of the job aid posters is recommended to enhance use and adherence.
THE CORRELATION OF TUMOR BUDDING INDEX WITH GRADING OF INFILTRATING UROTHELIAL CARCINOMA

Background: Urothelial carcinoma is the most common type of bladder cancer. WHO Classification of Tumors of Urinary System and Male Genital Organs 2016 classifies urothelial carcinoma based on its histological structure and cell morphology, namely, low grade urothelial carcinoma (LGUC) and high grade urothelial carcinoma (HGUC). Tumor grading should be reported because it is one of the important prognostic factors in infiltrating urothelial carcinoma. Tumor budding has been extensively studied and has been established as a prognostic factor in several types of carcinoma where it has independent predictive and prognostic relevance. Research on tumor budding is still very rarely done on infiltrating urothelial carcinoma and in Indonesia there are no published journals related to tumor budding on infiltrating urothelial carcinoma. Research Objectives: To determine the correlation between tumor budding index and grading of infiltrating urothelial carcinoma Materials and Methods: This study was an analytic study with a cross sectional approach on 38 samples of paraffin block patients diagnosed histopathologically as infiltrating urothelial carcinoma. Then, the paraffin blocks were re-cut and the slides stained with H&E. The tumor budding index was assessed as < 10 buds (low grade) and 10 buds (high grade). The grading of infiltrating urothelial carcinoma is divided into two, namely low grade and high grade and is assessed based on cell morphology. The relationship between tumor budding index and grading of infiltrating urothelial carcinoma was statistically tested. Results: The most age was 56-65 years, with a mean age of 62 years. Male gender was found more than female. The highest grading is high grade (92.11%). There were 7 histopathological subtypes from 13 histopathological subtypes, the majority of the samples were infiltrating urothelial carcinoma with squamous differentiation subtype. LVI was found in 33 cases (86.84%), and PNI was found in 8 cases (21.05%). The most common budding tumors were high grade buds at 92.10%. Conclusion: The study showed a significant relationship between the tumor budding index and grading (p-value = 0.0001) where the tumor budding index could be used to determine an independent prognosis that could predict disease progression.