bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Transforming Crucial Academic Support Services During a Pandemic
Authors: Elias Nisma , Collins Kelly , Steiner Jennifer P.
Published: May 2021

This chapter explores the transformation of teaching and leadership practices at the Student Academic Success Services office (SASS) at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities (UMN) in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The sobering reality of the disruption to on-campus instruction due to the escalating pandemic required a multi-pronged approach for a workplace geared towards advancing the academic progress of its students. Through a collaborative autoethnography, the authors, who work with students to improve academic performance through courses and individualized coaching sessions, chronicle how they were able to pivot rapidly and transition effectively into virtual modes of teaching and supporting students. SASS students are some of the most vulnerable to abrupt changes to their learning routines and styles; this includes students on probation, those with learning disabilities, and students struggling to stay motivated and balance their social, personal, and academic demands.
Forms of Night-Time Economy Governance
Authors: Cibin Alessia
Published: May 2021

This chapter introduces a framework for understanding forms of night-time economy governance. First, the chapter identifies, defines, and classifies six ideal types of night-time economy governance modes drawing upon key literatures and real-world night-time economy governance practices. The six ideal types of night-time economy governance modes are: public-private partnership, night-time commission, night mayors, night city managers, night lobby groups, and night advocacy groups. Second, the chapter discusses the ideal type of night-time economy governance modes, and their potential role for night-time economy resilience and recovery during and post-COVID-19 crisis. Local governments, policy practitioners, night-time economy advocates have the opportunity to rethink night-time economy governance through entrepreneurialism, flexibility, adaptation, leadership, resource mobilization, coordination, and knowledge generation. Alternatively, we may assist to a weak night-time economy policy implementation and the decadence of forms of night-time economy governance. Recently, public discourse praises a night mayor or a night city manager with little knowledge around governance models.
The Development of Smart Public Spaces in the Greek Historic Centers
Authors: Dimelli Despina
Published: May 2021

Historic centres constitute a substantial urban fabric which concentrate cultural elements that have been shaped through the centuries. The current chapter investigates the role of public spaces in Greek historical centres and the role of smart tools and applications in their integrated conservation. The paper examines three public spaces of Athens historic center and analyzes the threats and opportunities they face. Urban planning and design have an essential role in the historic centres' public spaces revival, and towards this direction, smart technologies can be decisive. The chapter evaluates parameters that shape historic public spaces as urban design, sustainable moblity, urban functions and participatory processes and it proposes the integration of ICT in these fields in order to make historic public spaces vibrant urban areas.
Case Study on Coaching Community College Faculty Member Experiences Transitioning to Online Education During COVID-19
Authors: Bartlett Michelle E. , Warren Carrol , Dolfi Jordan
Published: May 2021

This embedded case study focused on the experiences of coaches and community college faculty who participated in the coaching portion of an emergency remote transition project. The transition project was holistically designed to support community college faculty who had prepped for face-to-face courses and were shifting to remote teaching in a short period of time. Coaching services were one element of the project that also offered webinars, creation of short tutorial videos, and other support services. Qualitative and quantitative data were analyzed. Coaching was successful in helping community college faculty transition from teaching in-person courses to fully online courses quickly. Community college faculty showed determination, resilience, and remained dedicated to their students' successful completion of the semester despite the worldwide pandemic.
Criticality-Based Designs of Power Distribution Systems
Authors: Ottenburger Sadeeb Simon
Published: May 2021

The generation and supply of electricity is currently about to undergo a fundamental transition that includes extensive development of smart grids. Smart grids are huge and complex networks consisting of a vast number of devices and entities which are connected with each other. This fact opens new variations of disruption scenarios which can increase the vulnerability of a power distribution network. However, the network topology of a smart grid has significant effects on urban resilience particularly referring to the adequate provision of infrastructures whereby the way in which a distribution network is divided into interconnected microgrids is of particular importance. Such decompositions enable the systematic protection of important infrastructures and furthermore allow new forms of resilient power supply avoiding large-scale power blackouts. Therefore, the authors introduce a concept of criticality adapted to a power system relying on an advanced metering infrastructure and thereby propose a metric for an integrated resilience assessment of power distribution networks.
Unleashing the Convergence of Cloud Computing With Internet of Things
Authors: Suresh Nalina , Hashiyana Valerianus , Ujakpa Martin Mabeifam , Limbo Anton , Iyawa Gloria E. , Ndapewa Ntinda Maria
Published: May 2021

The term “cloud of things” is currently in the forefront of computer research topics due to its vital role towards the internet of things. To integrate cloud computing and internet of things into a single technology or worldview, this chapter discussed the evolution of internet of things and cloud computing and reviewed literature on cloud computing and internet of things and their possible integration. The chapter also discussed the importance of cloud internet of things, its architecture, and operation; the need to integrate internet of things and cloud computing; and challenges of cloud internet of things. The chapter then used the identified open issues and future direction to propose a generic cloud internet of things architecture and pilot simulated the results to verify the possibility and effectiveness of cloud computing and internet of things (CIoTs) integration. The researchers believe that the chapter will provide a better insight for anyone who wishes to carry out research in the field of cloud internet of things.
Energy Optimization in a WSN for IoT Applications
Authors: Manzar Syed Ariz , Gupta Sindhu Hak , Alankar Bhavya
Published: May 2021

Energy consumption has become a prime concern in designing wireless sensor networks (WSN) for the internet of things (IoT) applications. Smart cities worldwide are executing exercises to progress greener and safer urban situations with cleaner air and water, better adaptability, and capable open organizations. These exercises are maintained by progresses like IoT and colossal information examination that structure the base for smart city model. The energy required for successfully transmitting a packet from one node to another must be optimized so that the average energy gets reduced for successful transmission over a channel. This chapter has been devised to optimize the energy required for transmitting a packet successfully between two communicating sensor nodes using particle swarm optimization (PSO). In this chapter, the average energy for successfully transmitting a packet from one node to another has been optimized to achieve the optimal energy value for efficient communication over a channel. The power received by the sensor node has also been optimized.
A Conceptual Model to Next-Generation Smart Education Ecosystem
Authors: Kuppusamy Palanivel , Joseph K. Suresh
Published: May 2021

Transforming IT systems educational applications has become imperative in a rapidly evolving global scenario. Today, educational organizations have to provide transparent, confident, secured information and quality data for monitoring and advanced predictive capabilities services to society. Educational organizations have to meet these objectives consistently during typical and crisis scenarios. Modern educational applications are integrated with social network sites, sensors, intelligent devices, and cloud platforms. Hence, data management solutions serve as the basis for educational organizations' information needs. However, modern technologies demand a re-engineer of these platforms to meet the ever-growing demand for better performance, scalability, and educational organizations' availability. This chapter discusses the challenges inherent to the existing educational data system, the architectural methods available to address the above challenges, and the roadmap for building next-generation educational data ecosystems.
Factors Affecting Women´s Involvement in the Governance of Family Firms
Authors: Sentuti Annalisa , Chamochumbi Diaz Gail Denisse , Cesaroni Francesca Maria
Published: May 2021

The chapter analyzes female involvement in medium-sized family businesses in Central Italy. The empirical analysis focuses on 233 firms over the period 2007-2014, to understand how female representation in corporate governance has evolved in recent years, and to pinpoint the factors tending to encourage/discourage female involvement in the board of directors. A descriptive analysis was conducted, enabling a fuller understanding of how female involvement in governance roles has evolved over the years. A regression analysis was performed to determine if and how specific governance characteristics – such as family ownership and generational stage – may have a bearing on the female presence on the board. The results confirm that female representation is favorably influenced by a strong family presence in the ownership of the business, while family firms under first-generation control exert a negative influence on female involvement.
“I Didn't Expect YOU to Be the University President!”
Authors: Timmons Vianne
Published: May 2021

After decades of being male dominated in nearly every respect, Canadian universities made significant progress toward gender equity in 1980s and ‘90s. That momentum stalled for the most part for almost two decades, and only in the past few years has an awareness of the lack of progress—as well as the importance of overtly promoting gender equity and women's leadership—re-emerged as an urgent priority both for faculty members and for the institutions where they work. In this chapter, the past three decades of women's advancement and leadership in Canadian academia are described and analyzed through the reflections and experiences of one woman.
Mentoring and Supervision for Women of Color Leaders in North American Higher Education
Authors: Sandoval-Lucero Elena , White Tamara D. , Bonacquisti Judi Diaz
Published: May 2021

Reflecting on their mentoring and supervision experiences as Latina and Black women leaders in higher education, this article proposes that Women of Color employees are more effective when supervisors give them space to draw upon their own rich histories and cultural wealth in their professional lives. Viewed through the lens of Relational Cultural Theory, which grew out of the work of Jean Baker Miller and colleagues providing culturally relevant, affirmative supervision is a growth-fostering experience for both employee and supervisor. The tenants of RCT include authenticity, growth-fostering relationships, mutual empathy, and mutual empowerment as aspects of supervision that are particularly effective for employees with multiple intersected identities working in higher education spaces. The authors make recommendations for supervisor training that would allow supervisors to draw upon the cultural capital of their diverse employees to provide healing from oppression and build resilience through validation of cultural assets and approaches to leadership.
Challenges for Asian American and Immigrant Asian Women in the U.S. Higher Education Administration
Authors: Roy Sayani
Published: May 2021

In spite of this rising presence and educational attainment, Asian American and immigrant Asian women are notably underrepresented in academic leadership roles. Asian American women fall far behind White females in leadership positions in higher education, especially in community colleges that are assumed to be more liberal in acceptances than four year universities while nurturing women in administrative positions. Only nine Asian American women held presidential positions in community colleges in 2010. There was no immigrant Asian woman who reached the supreme leadership position. This chapter explores the question: Why are Asian American and immigrant Asian women, in spite of their rising presence in academia, severely underrepresented in leadership roles in academic administration? This is the point of focus this chapter engages to study from existing research.
Role of Women Empowerment in Public and Corporate Leadership
Authors: Lakshmi P. , Visalakshmi S.
Published: May 2021

The present study attempts to highlight the social and economic benefits of leadership of Indian women based on past evidence; current trends; challenges faced and the path forward in the public and corporate arena. Women empowerment has been a vital issue that has come to limelight in the recent years. Despite numerous government schemes and policy decisions, women in India remain deprived of equal opportunities in terms of education, employment and skill development. Many social scientists have derived that economic independence plays a vital role in ensuring that women get equal opportunities in the society and thereby enjoy and benefit from their other rights. This makes women empowerment as much of an economic issue as a social one. In corporate and public life, success of policies is determined by decisions that incorporate the viewpoints of both men and women. Hence, it becomes essential to understand the nature and extent of gender equality especially in public and corporate leadership and decision making roles. The outcomes of this study from these perspectives will serve to help both sectors in narrowing the gender bias in leadership roles.
Analysis Sustainability of Women's Leadership for Watershed Conservation in the Urban Area
Authors: Asteria Donna , Herdiansyah Herdis
Published: May 2021

The purpose of this study is to explore the pattern of sustainability of women's leadership roles in watershed management. A quantitative approach did the research. A survey was conducted as a data collection technique. The analysis technique used is the analysis of causality with regression, accompanied by multi-dimensional scaling (MDS) analysis. The quantitative research samples were 120 respondents in 2 cities by purposive sampling (with the criteria of women who actively participated in watershed conservation in urban areas). The results show that women's leadership as environmental activists contribute to the sustainability of watershed management. For the sustainability of women's leadership, it is necessary to integrate social, economic, and ecological dimensions by focusing on aspects of women's empowerment to improve innovation capabilities in change adaptation, access to information and local institutions will support participatory approaches in watershed conservation to increase women's participation.
Quantum Key Distribution Approach for Secure Authentication of Cloud Servers
Authors: Fatima Shahin , Ahmad Shish
Published: May 2021

Cloud computing has become a feasible solution for virtualization of cloud resources. Although it has many prospective to hold individuals by providing many benefits to organizations, still there are security loopholes to outsource data. To ensure the ‘security' of data in cloud computing, quantum key cryptography is introduced. Quantum cryptography makes use of quantum mechanics and qubits. The proposed method made use of quantum key distribution with Kerberos to secure the data on the cloud. The paper discussed the model for quantum key distribution which makes use of Kerberos ticket distribution center for authentication of cloud service providers. The proposed model is compared with quantum key distribution and provides faster computation by producing less error rate.
Analysis of Heterogeneous Data Storage and Access Control Management for Cloud Computing Under M/M/c Queueing Model
Authors: Sharma Divya , Kumar Gireesh , Sharma Richa
Published: May 2021

This study focuses on challenges faced during optimization of the performance of multiple users under encrypted data storage. Traditional single storage instance schemes are much concerned about the application scenarios rather than data sensitivity. This paper provides an optimization function for analyzing the performance parameters of developed queueing system. On the other hand, simulation results are further examined in order to optimize the average waiting time, average queue length, and total number of data packets. In addition, deduplication check provides more storage by eliminating duplicate files, and the remaining files further get encrypted by two cryptographic algorithms, namely advanced encryption standard (AES) and Rivest–Shamir–Adleman (RSA), respectively. Moreover, this paper emphasises performance of data in terms of storage and security; on the same basis, its comparison and implementation has been done. At last, conclusion is given.
Effective Utilization of Resources Through Optimal Allocation and Opportunistic Migration of Virtual Machines in Cloud Environment
Authors: Priyanka H.  , Cherian Mary
Published: May 2021

Cloud computing has become more prominent, and it is used in large data centers. Distribution of well-organized resources (bandwidth, CPU, and memory) is the major problem in the data centers. The genetically enhanced shuffling frog leaping algorithm (GESFLA) framework is proposed to select the optimal virtual machines to schedule the tasks and allocate them in physical machines (PMs). The proposed GESFLA-based resource allocation technique is useful in minimizing the wastage of resource usage and also minimizes the power consumption of the data center. The proposed GESFL algorithm is compared with task-based particle swarm optimization (TBPSO) for efficiency. The experimental results show the excellence of GESFLA over TBPSO in terms of resource usage ratio, migration time, and total execution time. The proposed GESFLA framework reduces the energy consumption of data center up to 79%, migration time by 67%, and CPU utilization is improved by 9% for Planet Lab workload traces. For the random workload, the execution time is minimized by 71%, transfer time is reduced up to 99%, and the CPU consumption is improved by 17% when compared to TBPSO.
Examining the Factors Influencing the Intention to Adopt Cloud ERP Systems by SMEs in Jordan
Authors: Habahbeh Ahmad Ibrahim , Obidat Ahmad Hamza
Published: May 2021

This study aims to explore the factors influencing the intention to adopt cloud enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems by small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Jordan. The research proposes a new model by extending the technology acceptance model (TAM) with four additional factors, including computer self-efficacy, complexity, compatibility, and organizational support. Using a questionnaire, data was collected from 394 subjects. An adaptive neuro fuzzy inference system (ANFIS) was utilized to analyze the data. The results revealed that perceived usefulness and perceived ease-of-use of cloud ERP systems have a low-direct effect on the intention to adopt cloud ERP systems. Also, the study found that computer self-efficacy, complexity, compatibility, and organizational support have a low-direct effect on perceived usefulness and perceived ease-of-use of cloud ERP systems and, in turn, on the intention to adopt cloud ERP systems.
E-Government in the Republic of Croatia
Authors: Hrestak Denis
Published: May 2021

The goal of this article is to present the development and use of e-government services in the Republic of Croatia. So far, there has been no systematic presentation of Croatian e-government, despite the strong momentum in the development of new electronic services in the last few years. Therefore, this article will be a good basis for further research on Croatian e-government. The article shows the historical development of e-government in Croatia, the current situation and the number of available services in and outside of the e-citizens system (which is the central place of access to Croatian e-government), and the messages that citizens can receive in their user inbox. The intensity of use of all e-government services and the intensity of the use of credentials, depending on their level of security, are shown. A survey was conducted among e-government users about their preferences for using credentials depending on the level of security they offer and ease of use. The results were compared with data on the intensity of use of individual credentials.
Best Laptop Model Selection by Applying Integrated AHP-TOPSIS Methodology
Authors: Goswami Shankha Shubhra , Behera Dhiren Kumar
Published: May 2021

The main objective of this research article is to select the best laptop model among six models available in the market. For this analysis, six laptop models are selected from different online shopping websites having different specifications after seeing the customer ratings. After doing some research, it is found that these laptop models are presently in demand and mostly preferred by the customers. So, an initiative is taken to propose the best laptop among these six models by implementing multiple-criteria decision-making (MCDM) methodology. The selection process is done based on seven criteria (i.e., processor, hard disk capacity, operating system, RAM, screen size, brand, color). For this purpose, analytic hierarchy process (AHP) is adopted for calculating the weightages of the criteria, and TOPSIS is used for selecting the best model. A preference ranking order of the six models is also proposed at the end indicating the best model to the worst. From the whole analysis, it is found that Model 4 came out to be the best model followed by Model 5 and Model 3.
The Impact of Co-Creating Through AR in Retail Stores on Purchase Intentions
Authors: Alimamy Saifeddin , Gnoth Juergen , Deans Kenneth Richard
Published: May 2021

With the broad diffusion of technology in the past few decades, there has been a shift in power from sellers to buyers. Marketers can no longer offer a product to the customer without considering their input in the development, customisation, and personalisation of the product. Innovative companies are learning how to co-create with their customers in order to understand what they want and how they want it. In this paper, the authors examine the role of augmented reality (AR) technology in co-creation and the effect it has on customer perceived risk, trust and purchase intent. A 2x2x2 factorial experimental design was used and followed up with an attitudinal survey measuring perceived risk, trust, and purchase intent. The results show that AR reduces perceived risk, increases perceived trust and purchase intent, thus providing evidence that AR may be more than just a novelty technology in today's evolving business environment.
Blazing a Trail to First Generation Success
Authors: Bharucha Jehangir Pheroze
Published: May 2021

While higher education is rich in diversity and rewards, it can be particularly arduous for first-generation college students. This paper reports the results of a qualitative research study investigating the college experiences, identity development, and issues faced by this student subpopulation that moved from sixth-form and completed the undergraduate programme at a midsized public university in Peninsular Malaysia. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews and focus groups. These students have faced and managed to overcome a host of academic, socio-economic, emotional, and cultural challenges. The parents' low socio-economic status is the biggest barrier to the academic success of these students. They viewed their status as a source of strength. The biggest cultural transition faced by the participants involved bringing their student identity home. It is hoped that the results of this study will offer some fresh perspectives into the continuing discussion on first generation students.
Formation and Development of Educational Potential of Russian Unemployed Adolescents
Authors: Mkrttchian Vardan , Rozhkova Liliya , Salnikova Olga , Vlazneva Svetlana
Published: May 2021

The problem of educational potential and work potential is multifaceted. First, it is necessary to increase their rational use for sustainable development of the country. Secondly, the value components of educational potential and work potential of young people are unstable and contradictory. This fact leads to socio-cultural features and has an impact on the level of development of the social potential of modern youth. This work addresses the status roles of the unemployed, types of their employment behaviour, attitudes to education, training, retraining, self-development of unemployed youth as a specific social group. The features of value components of educational potential and work potential of the Russian unemployed youth in modern conditions are analyzed based on authors' research. The article analyzes the possibility of using various systems and technologies of training, including traditional, electronic, distance; it also reveals modern methods and techniques of training and offers a model of distance learning for young unemployed.
Learning Management System (LMS) Development for Higher Technical Education in Ghana
Authors: Asabere Nana Yaw , Agyiri Joseph , Tenkorang Richard , Darkwah Anita
Published: May 2021

In developing nations such as Ghana, traditional face-to-face (F2F) mode of education is challenged when physical classroom (academic) resources are not available for all students in a particular tertiary institution. Globally, education modes have improved through learning management systems (LMSs) as a result of technological advancements. Accra Technical University (ATU) in Ghana is currently facing the problem of turning away qualified applicants due to the fact that the academic resources in ATU are not enough to accommodate all qualified applicants. Using a quantitative research instrument (questionnaire) in accordance to the five-point Likert scale and components of the technology acceptance model (TAM) framework, this paper tackled the problem above by proposing and developing an LMS to support the education of students in ATU. Analytical results of data responses from 200 lecturers and 16 students in ATU, showed that majority of these stakeholders are willing to embrace technology and the developed LMS in ATU.
Optimization of Composite Fruit Peel Powder as a Texture Modifier for Fat Free Set Yoghurt: A Mixture Design Approach
Authors: Dias P.G.I. , Sajiwanie J.W.A. , Rathnayaka R.M.U.S.K. , Awolu O.O.
Published: May 2021

Purpose: Fruit waste (FW) is a leading food waste type generates globally. Industrial management of such FW is a great challenge. Since those wastes are rich in nutrients, phytochemicals, and other functional compounds, they can be reused by value addition. In the present study, composite fruit peel powder was formulated and optimised from the FW collected from leading fruit processing industries in Sri Lanka. This powder was utilized as a texture modifier in fat free yoghurt to minimise the whey off.Research Method: The experiment was carried out using an optimal mixture design of response surface methodology (Design Expert, 8.0.3.1 trial version) for sixteen composite samples. The independent variables were passion fruit peel (FFPP) (60.00–70.00 g/100 g), pineapple peel (PPP) (20.00–30.00 g/100 g), and orange peel (OPP) (10.00–20.00 g/100 g) powders. The dependent variables were proximate composition (fibre, fat, and ash contents), physiochemical (colour values), and technological (bulk density, swelling capacity, oil holding capacity, water holding capacity) properties.Findings: Results of the ANOVA test showed that the model and model terms significantly affect (P≤0.05) all the parameters except bulk density and oil holding capacity. The contour plots showed that the orange peel largely contributes to the fibre, fat, ash contents and redness (a*) while passion fruit peels highly contribute to the lightness (L*) and water holding capacity. PFPP (60%), OPP (20%) and PPP (20%) were selected as optimum blend due to high fibre content, water holding capacity, and lightness along with less fat content.Originality/Value: Accordingly, it is possible to optimise some quality parameters of fruit peel powders by compositing them.
Comparative Analysis of Antigen-Specific Anti–SARS-CoV-2 Antibody Isotypes in COVID-19 Patients
Authors: Fujigaki Hidetsugu , Inaba Masato , Osawa Michiko , Moriyama Saya , Takahashi Yoshimasa , Suzuki Tadaki , Yamase Kenya , Yoshida Yukihiro , Yagura Yo , Oyamada Takayoshi , Takemura Masao , Doi Yohei , Saito Kuniaki
Published: May 2021

Serological tests for detection of anti–severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) Abs in blood are expected to identify individuals who have acquired immunity against SARS-CoV-2 and indication of seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 infection. Many serological tests have been developed to detect Abs against SARS-CoV-2. However, these tests have considerable variations in their specificity and sensitivity, and whether they can predict levels of neutralizing activity is yet to be determined. This study aimed to investigate the kinetics and neutralizing activity of various Ag-specific Ab isotypes against SARS-CoV-2 in serum of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients confirmed via PCR test. We developed IgG, IgM, and IgA measurement assays for each Ag, including receptor-binding domain (RBD) of spike (S) protein, S1 domain, full-length S protein, S trimer, and nucleocapsid (N) domain, based on ELISA. The assays of the S protein for all isotypes showed high specificity, whereas the assays for all isotypes against N protein showed lower specificity. The sensitivity of all Ag-specific Ab isotypes depended on the timing of the serum collection and all of them, except for IgM against N protein, reached more than 90% at 15–21 d postsymptom onset. The best correlation with virus-neutralizing activity was found for IgG against RBD, and levels of IgG against RBD in sera from four patients with severe COVID-19 increased concordantly with neutralizing activity. Our results provide valuable information regarding the selection of serological test for seroprevalence and vaccine evaluation studies.
Delayed Tracheal Rent Following Total Thyroidectomy
Authors: Subramanian Avanthi , Rajan Sunil , Kumar Lakshmi
Published: May 2021

Tracheal injury associated with thyroidectomy is rare. We report the case of a 41-year-old lady who underwent total thyroidectomy for multinodular goitre. The surgery was uneventful. On postoperative day (POD) 8, she complained of cough followed by a ‘give-way’ sensation over her neck. On POD 10, she presented with dyspnoea after a sudden bout of cough with blood-tinged sputum, stridor and swelling over the surgical site. Computerised tomographic (CT) scan showed a defect on the right anterolateral wall of the trachea at the level of C6 vertebra and subcutaneous emphysema. She underwent emergency tracheostomy under general anaesthesia. Intraoperatively, a 5 mm × 10 mm tracheal rent was visualised between the first and second tracheal rings over the right side with surrounding unhealthy tracheal cartilages. The defect was closed with strap muscles and surgical tracheostomy performed between the 4th and 5th tracheal rings. In patients presenting with respiratory distress and subcutaneous emphysema following thyroid, mediastinal or anterior cervical approach surgery, a high index of suspicion of delayed tracheal injury must be entertained. An X-ray, and more importantly a CT imaging, may be conclusive to identify the site of tracheal rupture. The decision to follow conservative management or consider urgent surgery will depend on patient presentation.
Bedside Tracheostomy on COVID-19 Patients in the Intensive Care Unit
Authors: Swain Santosh Kumar , Acharya Satyabrata
Published: May 2021

Introduction:

Currently, coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infection is a global challenge to the medical community, often resulting in acute respiratory distress syndrome and respiratory failure needing mechanical ventilation. Tracheostomy is needed for prolonged ventilation as the severity of respiratory failure often escalates, needing extended ventilation in an intensive care unit (ICU).

Objective:

The objective of study was to evaluate clinical details of performing tracheostomy including patient profile, surgical steps, complications and precautions by health-care workers in the ICU of a specially assigned hospital for COVID-19 patients.

Patients and Methods:

This is a retrospective study of 22 COVID-19 patients who underwent bedside surgical tracheostomy in the ICU. Patient profile such as age, gender, comorbidities, complication of tracheostomy, ventilator withdrawal after tracheostomy and nosocomial infections of health-care workers related to tracheostomy were analysed.

Results:

In the study period of 6 months, there were 12,850 COVID-19 patients admitted to our COVID-designated hospital, of whom 2452 patients needed ICU care. A total of 610 patients needed ventilatory support, with 22 patients aged between 42 and 75 years (mean age of 64 years) undergoing a tracheostomy (16 males and 6 females). The median duration from the day of the orotracheal intubation to the day of tracheostomy was 13 days.

Conclusion:

Surgical tracheostomy on COVID-19 patients is a high-risk aerosol-generating procedure for health-care workers. It should be performed with close communication between otorhinolaryngologists, anaesthesiologists and intensivists, along with adequate personal protective equipment for smooth management of the airway.
Is the Nature (Extent and Characteristics) of Schistosoma-Induced Chronic Inflammation Organ Dependents?
Authors: Bello Shamsu Sahalu , Atanda Akinfenwa Taoheed , Olatunde O. A. O. , Gana S. L. , Ibrahim-Saad A. B.
Published: May 2021

Context:

Pathogenesis of schistosomiasis related bladder cancer has been attributed to induced chronic inflammation and its sequelae. There is paucity of studies on the inflammatory cell profile.

Aim:

This study, therefore, aims to characterise the degree and repertoire of this inflammatory response.

Settings and Design:

A retrospective study of all non-neoplastic cases of schistosomiasis histologically confirmed between January 2012 and December 2019 in a tertiary hospital.

Materials and Methods:

Data were retrieved from archives and slides made for the cases were evaluated for ova density, type and degree of inflammation and pattern of fibrosis.

Statistical Analysis:

The degree of inter observer variation (kappa value) was also calculated while statistical significance was set at P ≤ 0.5 at 95% confidence interval.

Results:

Eighty one cases were diagnosed in the study period. The mean age was 33.8 years and M:F ratio was 15:1. Bladder, ureter, gastrointestinal tract, testes and other less frequent sites accounted for 58.0%, 12.0%, 8.0%, 8.0% and 7.4% of cases, respectively. Eosinophilic infiltration and granulomatous reaction were predominantly minimal even in cases with significant oviposition. There was no significant difference between ova density and degree of overall inflammation (P = 0.9) or between ova density and degree of lymphocytic infiltration (P = 0.2). Similarly, even though fibrosis was more frequent in cases with high ova density, no significant difference was found in cases with low ova density.

Conclusion:

Even though carcinogenesis in bladder schistosomiasis has been attributed to chronic inflammation and fibrosis, this study, however, showed that there are no statistically significant differences between schistosoma ova density and degree of inflammation as well as fibrosis in both bladder and other organs.
Protective Effect of Alpha-Lipoic Acid against Liver Damage Induced by Cigarette Smoke
Authors: Gumral Nurhan , Aslankoc Rahime , Senol Nurgul , Cankara Fatma Nihan
Published: May 2021

Background:

Long-term cigarette smoking damages the liver tissue. Alpha-lipoic acid (ALA) is used as a therapeutic agent in a number of conditions and is known to have ameliorative effects against oxidative stress in the liver.

Objective:

To investigate the ameliorative effects of ALA on cigarette smoke (CS)-induced oxidative liver damage by examining histopathological, immunohistopathological changes and biochemical parameters in an animal model.

Materials and Methods:

Twenty-eight female Sprague–Dawley rats were randomly divided into three groups. In the control group (n = 8), rats were exposed to fresh air twice a day and given 0.1 ml of saline by gavage once a day for 8 weeks. In the smoking group (n = 10), rats were exposed to CS for 1 h in the morning and afternoon and given 0.1 ml of saline by gavage once a day for 8 weeks. In the smoking + ALA group (n = 10), CS exposure was same as the smoking group in addition to 100 mg/kg of ALA per day for 8 weeks through gavage. Oxidative damage in the liver tissue was determined by evaluating malondialdehyde (MDA), catalase (CAT) and superoxide dismutase (SOD) levels. Aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransaminase (ALT), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), direct bilirubin and total bilirubin levels were measured in the blood. Histopathological and immunohistochemical examinations were performed.

Results:

MDA (P = 0.011), AST (P = 0.018) and total bilirubin levels (P < 0.001) were increased, while CAT activity (P = 0.009) and the efficiency of SOD (P = 0.010) were decreased in the smoking group compared with the control group. CAT activity was increased (P = 0.017) and AST (P = 0.018) and total bilirubin levels (P < 0.001) were decreased in ALA-treated group compared with the smoking group. We observed vascular dilatation and hemorrhagic areas in the smoking group. TNF-α expression was increased in the smoking group compared with the control group. However, TNF-α expression was high in some preparations in the ALA-treated group.

Conclusions:

ALA can enhance antioxidant activity, but studies with different doses of ALA are required to determine the extent of its hepatoprotective effect.
Standing and Walking Balance in Patients with Chronic Shoulder Pain
Authors: Alshami Ali M. , Alrammah Talal A.
Published: May 2021

Background:

Patients with shoulder pain may have proprioceptive and balance deficits. However, studies on balance in patients with shoulder pain are scarce.

Objective:

This study aims to investigate if patients with chronic shoulder pain demonstrate deficits in standing and walking balance and to study the relationship between outcome measures of balance and age and body mass index (BMI).

Materials and Methods:

This case–control study was conducted at Dammam Medical Complex, Dammam, Saudi Arabia, between March and November 2018. The study recruited patients (n = 15) with chronic shoulder pain (>4 months) and healthy controls (n = 15) matched for age, gender and BMI. Standing balance was tested using a Challenge Disc test, the Romberg test and timed unipedal stance test (UPST). Walking balance was assessed using the timed up and go (TUG) test, stance phase duration and center of pressure (COP) deviation. Independent t-tests were used to investigate the differences between the two groups in demographic data and all the outcome measurements. Pearson correlation coefficients were used for correlation analysis.

Results:

No statistically significant differences were found between the two groups in any outcome of the standing balance (P ≥ 0.095) or walking balance (P ≥ 0.160). However, medium effect sizes were found for the UPST (η2: ≥0.06), Challenge Disc (η2: 0.06), TUG (Cohen's d: 0.54) and COP deviation (Cohen's d: 0.53). There was a moderate correlation between BMI and Challenge Disc (P = 0.025) and between age and Challenge Disc (P = 0.012) in both the groups.

Conclusion:

Patients with chronic shoulder pain had lower balance measurements compared with healthy people, although this difference was not statistically significant.
Natural History and Clinical Course of Symptomatic and Asymptomatic COVID-19 Patients in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
Authors: Almubark Rasha A. , Memish Ziad A. , Tamim Hani , Alenazi Thamer H. , Alabdulla Mohammed , Sanai Faisal M. , BinDhim Nasser F. , Alfaraj Sarah , Alqahtani Saleh A.
Published: May 2021

Objectives:

To analyze symptomatic and asymptomatic COVID-19 patients in Saudi Arabia in terms of initial presentation, risk factors, laboratory findings, clinical outcomes and healthcare utilization.

Methods:

All laboratory-confirmed reverse transcription–polymerase chain reaction positive COVID-19 patients who had been tested at three governmental hospitals in Saudi Arabia (two in Riyadh and one in Makkah) between March 8 and May 18, 2020 were included. Demographics, COVID-19 variables, clinical characteristics and healthcare utilization variables were extracted and combined, and a descriptive analysis was conducted. Symptomatic and asymptomatic (on presentation) patients' data were compared.

Results:

Eighty percent of the patients were males (81.4% of symptomatic and 73.2% of asymptomatic patients, P = 0.02). Moreover, 47.6% and 38.4% of symptomatic and asymptomatic patients were aged 40–64 years, respectively. Fever, cough and breathing difficulties were frequent presenting symptoms. Overall, diabetes (16.4%), hypertension (11.7%), chronic respiratory disease (7.1%) were the most frequent comorbidities, with no differences between the two groups. Symptomatic patients had higher C-reactive protein levels (3.55 vs. 0.30 mg/L; P < 0.0001) and lower total lymphocytes (1.41 vs. 1.70; P = 0.02). ICU admission and mortality were 12.1% and 4.1% in symptomatic, compared to 6.0% and 2.9% in asymptomatic patients, respectively.

Conclusion:

In the studied COVID-19 cohort, symptomatic patients tended to be older, had higher C-reactive protein and more lymphopenia with worse outcome than asymptomatic patients. This granular analysis of COVID-19 cohorts enables identification of at-risk cohorts in future waves, optimizing development of patient pathways and public health interventions.
Density theorems for anisotropic point configurations
Authors: Kovač Vjekoslav
Published: May 2021

Several results in the existing literature establish Euclidean density theorems of the following strong type. These results claim that every set of positive upper Banach density in the Euclidean space of an appropriate dimension contains isometric copies of all sufficiently large elements of a prescribed family of finite point configurations. So far, all results of this type discussed linear isotropic dilates of a fixed point configuration. In this paper, we initiate the study of analogous density theorems for families of point configurations generated by anisotropic dilations, i.e., families with power-type dependence on a single parameter interpreted as their size. More specifically, we prove nonisotropic power-type generalizations of a result by Bourgain on vertices of a simplex, a result by Lyall and Magyar on vertices of a rectangular box, and a result on distance trees, which is a particular case of the treatise of distance graphs by Lyall and Magyar. Another source of motivation for this paper is providing additional evidence for the versatility of the approach stemming from the work of Cook, Magyar, and Pramanik and its modification used recently by Durcik and the present author. Finally, yet another purpose of this paper is to single out anisotropic multilinear singular integral operators associated with the above combinatorial problems, as they are interesting on their own.
Dimension distortion by right coset projections in the Heisenberg group
Authors: Harris Terence L. J. , Huynh Chi N. Y. , Román-García Fernando
Published: May 2021

We study the family of vertical projections whose fibers are right cosets of horizontal planes in the Heisenberg group,

\mathbb{H}^n

. We prove lower bounds for Hausdorff dimension distortion of sets under these mappings with respect to the natural quotient metric, which we show behaves like the Euclidean metric in this context. Our bounds are sharp in a large part of the dimension range, and we give conjectural sharp lower bounds for the remaining range. Our approach also lets us improve the known almost sure lower bound for the standard family of vertical projections in

\mathbb{H}^n

for

n \geq 2

.
On the $\mathcal{F}^*$-norm of a finite group
Authors: Yan Quanfu , Shen Zhencai
Published: May 2021

Let

G

be a finite group and

\mathcal{F}

be a non-empty formation. We define the

\mathcal{F}^*

-norm, denoted by

N_{\mathcal{F}}^{*}(G)

, to be intersection of the normalizers of the

\mathcal{F}

-residuals of all

F

-subgroups of

G

, where

F=\mathcal{N}\mathcal{F}

is the class of all groups whose

\mathcal{F}

-residuals are nilpotent. In this paper, we research the properties of

N_{\mathcal{F}}^{*}(G)

and investigate the relationship between

N_{\mathcal{F}}^{*}(G)

and

N_{\mathcal{F}}(G),

where

N_{\mathcal{F}}(G)

is the intersection of the normalizers of the

\mathcal{F}

-residuals of all subgroups of

G.

We show that

N_{\mathcal{F}}^{*}(G)=N_{\mathcal{F}}(G)

if

\mathcal{A}\subseteq \mathcal{F}\subseteq\mathcal{N}

.
Overdiagnosis of Malaria Illness in an Endemic Setting: A Facility-Based Surveillance Study in Malawi
Authors: Peterson Ingrid , Kapito-Tembo Atupele , Bauleni Andrew , Nyirenda Osward , Pensulo Paul , Still William , Valim Clarissa , Cohee Lauren , Taylor Terrie , Mathanga Don P. , Laufer Miriam K.
Published: May 2021

In endemic settings where asymptomatic malaria infections are common, malaria infection can complicate fever diagnosis. Factors influencing fever misdiagnosis, including accuracy of malaria rapid diagnostic tests (mRDTs) and the malaria-attributable fraction of fevers (MAF), require further investigation. We conducted facility-based surveillance in Malawi, from January 2012 through December 2013 in settings of high perennial (Chikhwawa), high seasonal (Thoylo), and moderate seasonal (Ndirande) malaria transmission. Consecutive patients presenting to outpatient departments were screened; those with suspected malaria illness were tested by mRDT or routine thick-smear microscopy. Test positivity rates (TPRs), positive predictive value (PPVs) of mRDTs, and MAFs were calculated by site, age, and season. Of 41,471 patients, 10,052 (24.2%) tested positive for malaria. The TPR was significantly greater in Chikhwawa (29.9%; 95% CI, 28.6–30.0) compared with Thyolo (13.2%; 95% CI, 12.5–13.7) and Ndirande (13.1%; 95% CI, 12.2–14.4). The overall PPV was 77.8% (95% CI, 76.8–78.7); it was lowest among infants (69.9%; 95% CI, 65.5–74.2) and highest among school-age children (81.9%; 95% CI, 80.3–83.4). Malaria infection accounted for about 50% of fevers in children younger than 5 years old with microscopy-confirmed Plasmodium falciparum infection, and less than 20% of such fevers in school-age children. Outpatient settings in Malawi had a high burden of malaria illness, but also possible overdiagnosis of malaria illness. Interventions to reduce malaria transmission and rapid testing for other common febrile illness may improve diagnostic clarity among outpatients in malaria endemic settings.