bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Prince N. A. Kudashev — the Last Envoy Extraordinary of the Russian Empire to China
Authors:   St. Petersburg State University, Samoylov N. A.
Published: October 2023

The article discusses the activities of the Russian Envoy Extraordinary to China, Prince Nikolai Alexandrovich Kudashev, who was appointed to this post at a difficult period in the history of the two countries: Russia and China. He took up his duties in 1916 as an Envoy of the Russian Empire to the Republic of China, continued to serve in 1917 as a diplomatic representative of the Russian Provisional Government and remained in office until 1920, without recognizing the Bolsheviks’ power, but being still recognized by the government of China. The article analyzes his activities and characterizes the state of Russian-Chinese relations in that most challenging period of history. Although N. A. Kudashev was not an outstanding diplomat, he played a prominent role at a turning point in the development of Russian-Chinese relations. The purpose of the article is not only to consider specific aspects of the diplomatic work of N. A. Kudashev in China and evaluate his role in the development of Russian-Chinese relations but also to demonstrate complicated conditions under which Russian-Chinese relations developed at a critical point in Russian, Chinese and World history. The example of N. A. Kudashev and the Russian consuls subordinate to him makes it possible to clearly trace the problems of relations between diplomats of the old school and the new Bolshevik government. Remaining at their posts, these people tried to work conscientiously and fulfill their duties as they understood them. The novelty of the article lies in the involvement of a large number of archival documents on the history of the Russian diplomatic mission in Beijing during the period under review.
The Formation of “Soviet Modernity” and the Regional Elite in the 1960s–1970s
Authors:   Penza State University, Kondrashin V. V. ,   Institute of Russian History of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Sukhova O. A. ,   Penza State University
Published: October 2023

Based on the materials of the Penza region, the problem of the formation of “Soviet modernity” in the consciousness and practices of political management of the regional elite during the 1960s–1970s is considered. The authors agree with M. David-Fox’s position on Soviet modernity as another type of industrial society, expressed through ideological and cultural representations and behavioral strategies established in the minds and psychology of the elite and society as a whole. The analysis of recruiting, social composition, mental attitudes and aspirations of the regional elite, the results of regional identity formation in the 1960s–1970s was carried out on the basis of the sources of mass origin, documents of Party and Soviet governing bodies, diary records and memoirs. The chronotope of development of the Penza region in this period was due to the later terms of the territorial organization, the processes of industrialization and regional specialization of industrial production. The general trend of changes can be characterized as a situation of unprecedented and unrestrained, in some ways rampant industrial construction, construction of housing and social and cultural facilities. The most important conditions for the formation of the local elite as carriers and generators of new attitudes and values are considered: the socio-economic transformation of the region, its transformation from a backward agricultural to one of the centers of the military-industrial complex of the USSR; as well as the process of mass promotion of leaders in the 1950s–1960s. Most of them were natives of the Penza region, people 30–40 years old, came from the workers and peasants, with higher, usually technical, education, hard military youth, about one-third — participants in the Great Patriotic War, about half — former Komsomol leaders.
Repatriation of Soviet Сitizens and Soviet Partisans of the French Resistance from France to the USSR
Authors:   Kutafin Moscow State Law University (MSAL), Reshetnikov S. V.
Published: October 2023

The article is devoted to aspects of the repatriation of citizens and Soviet partisans of the French Resistance from France to the USSR. For the Soviet Union the first facts of the mass presence of its citizens on French territory began to appear even before the allied landings in Normandy, in 1944. After the liberation of most of French territory, in October 1944, the allies handed over to the USSR information about the presence in their zone of occupation of about 30.000 soviet citizens who became prisoners of war. The repatriation of Soviet citizens from France was one of the earliest repatriation activities for the USSR during the war years. The activity of the Soviet department for the repatriation of Soviet citizens began on 10 November, 1944 even before the signing of an agreement with the allies on the mutual return of their citizens. The publication examines the categories of Soviet citizens in France, the course of the organization of repatriation, as well as the problems that the Soviet mission has faced. The position of Soviet citizens at the time of their liberation on French territory, the attitude of Soviet citizens to their return to the USSR and their post-war fate are considered. It is noted that the factor of the presence among the repatriated “false partisans” and former soldiers of the ost-troops of the Wehrmacht for the worse affected the fate of some of the true heroes of the Resistance. The result of the study shows that most of the Soviet participants in the Resistance after the war were discriminated throughout their lives and were deprived of their rights, despite their contribution to the defeat of the enemy in a foreign land.
They Don’t Like to be Remembered. “Second Wave” of Emigration from the USSR in Domestic Studies of the Second Decade of the 21st Сentury
Authors:   Ural Federal University, Antoshin A. V.
Published: October 2023

The article is devoted to modern Russian historiography of the problem of the “second wave” of emigration from the USSR. The author characterizes the “politics of memory” in the Russian Federation, connected with the theme of emigration from our country in the 20th century. Analyzed undertaken at the beginning of the 21st century attempts to use the phenomenon of the Russian diaspora in the process of constructing a national ideology. At the same time, it is proved that the main attention was paid to the “first wave” of Russian emigration, primarily to the leaders of the White movement who left our country after the end of the Civil War. The problem of the “second wave” of emigration from the Soviet Union, closely connected with the events of the Second World War, often remained “in the background”. The structure of the article corresponds to the main stages of the “epic” that the emigrants of the “second wave” had a chance to go through. The author pays considerable attention to the coverage of the phenomenon of displaced persons (“DP”) in the scientific literature. It is proved that insufficient attention is paid in the Russian literature to the circumstances of everyday life in the European DP camps. Meanwhile, this factor had a significant impact on the moral and psychological atmosphere in the camps and the values of the Soviet displaced persons. The article also describes the coverage in modern scientific literature of the immigration policy of the Western states in relation to “di-pi”, it is shown that the governments of most countries were only interested in the influx of young able-bodied people who could contribute to the development of the national economy. The role of Soviet displaced persons in the political confrontation of the Cold War era is analyzed.
Innovating superparamagnetic chitosan hybrid nanoparticles for a high-efficiency separation of oil from oil–water emulsions
Authors: Bairagi Anup Kumar , Mohapatra Soumya Sanjeeb , Sahoo Abanti , Tembhurne Saurabh Chokhoba
Published: October 2023

In an era marked by rapid industrialization and heightened automobile usage, the demand for crude oil has surged, inducing ecological degradation and resource depletion. Effective management of intricate oily wastewater presents a formidable challenge. While diverse methods like gravity separation, centrifugation, and membrane techniques are employed for oil-water separation, gravity separation is the prevailing choice, yet limited to unstable emulsions. These methods often involve toxic substances harmful to marine life. Our research focuses on separating oil microemulsions in aqueous solutions. This study explores the application of superparamagnetic chitosan coagulants, revealing an optimal 10 ml dosage for peak efficiency. Aiming for rapid oil separation, we achieved a breakthrough with just 30 minutes, establishing a new benchmark. Rigorous VSM testing solidified the particles' magnetic capabilities, augmented through size reduction. Notably, at a 15% oil concentration, a remarkable 99.26% efficiency in oil separation was achieved, offering potential in microbiology, medicine, and drug delivery systems.
Hydrogeologic characteristics of groundwater in the Kızılırmak graben (Nevşehir–Turkey) and its evaluation in terms of irrigation water quality
Authors: Demircioğlu Ramazan , Dursun Yusuf Gökhan , Demircioğlu İlknur
Published: October 2023

In this study, an area of 150 km2 with important settlements and agricultural areas within the Kızılırmak and Kuyulukışla grabens, in the north of Nevşehir province (Turkey), was investigated. This study aimed to evaluate the hydrochemical properties and water quality of the vital groundwater in the study area, determine effective utilisation methods, and make recommendations for sustainable use. From the data obtained as a result of these analyses, sodium adsorption ratio (SAR) and sodium percentage (%Na) values were calculated and compared with WHO (World Health Organization) and TS-266 (Turkish Standards) quality standards to determine the characteristics of water for human consumption and irrigation for agricultural purposes. Based on these values, Wilcox diagrams and US Salinity Laboratory diagrams were used. According to these evaluations, it was found that sample SMP1 is not suitable for use as drinking water according to the basic parameters in the reference standards, while the other samples are suitable for drinking and human consumption. Electrical conductivity, %Na, SAR values, US Salinity Laboratory, and Wilcox diagrams were used to evaluate the use of water resources for irrigation purposes. According to the results obtained, all samples except sample SMP1 were found to be suitable for use as irrigation water.
Vermicomposting as an effective approach to municipal sewage sludge management through optimization of the selected process variables
Authors: Banda Beauty , Habtu Nigus Gabbiye , Gebreeyessus Getachew Dagnew , Meshesha Beteley Tekola
Published: October 2023

In most developing countries, municipal sewage sludge end-use practices appear unsustainable; rather, it poses environmental concerns. This study examined the potential of vermicomposting of municipal sewage sludge and its blend with other biowaste for agricultural application. Using a response surface methodology and the Box–Behnken design in Design Expert Software (Version 10.0.7), the current study optimized the moisture content (60–90%), turning frequency (1–3 turnings/week), and substrate mixing ratios (50:50 to 80:20 wt.%) to maximize the content of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium. As a result, an optimal moisture content (72%), substrate mixing ratio (72.34:27.6 wt.%), and turning frequency (2 per week), producing a promising-quality vermicompost with a maximum yield of nitrogen (2.76%), phosphorus (1.80%), and potassium (1.88%) is achieved. Thus, vermicomposting can effectively turn the concerning municipal sewage sludge into useful agricultural input for its sustainable management.
Sobre la necesidad de investigar las estrategias de lectura y escritura que profesores de lengua castellana llevan a cabo en zonas de postconflicto: una deuda de la academia
Authors: Gómez Rodríguez Jhonatan , Mosquera Mosquera Carlos
Published: October 2023

En este texto se argumenta, de manera reflexiva, sobre la necesidad de investigar las estrategias de lectura y escritura que maestros de Lengua Castellana utilizan en zonas caracterizadas por el conflicto armado. Si bien es cierto las diferentes culturas académicas del país, en especial los estudiosos de las Ciencias del Lenguaje, han indagado sobre los procesos de lectura y la escritura desde distintos ámbitos, contextos escolares y extraescolares, en este artículo se muestra cómo aún hace falta investigar el cómo y el para qué se lee y escribe en aquellos territorios educativos oficiales situados en zonas de “posconflicto”.
Case study of canine brucellosis by brucella abortus: epidemiological inquiry
Authors: Fleury Canesin Caroline , Patrícia Chaves da Silva Karla , Rodrigues de Amorim Lopes Chiara , Kopinits de Oliveira Graziela , Castanha Barreto Tenório Nunes Annelise , Fernandes Costa Neto Luiz , Christina Pereira Lima Kátia
Published: October 2023

The objective of this research was to identify brucellosis by Brucella abortus and the possible risk factors associated with the transmission of the infection in dogs in the urban area of the municipality of Viçosa-AL, as well as to alert health authorities about the risk of this potential zoonosis, create a booklet to alert the population about the risks of the disease and the possibility of creating a test protocol in clinical care at the Veterinary Hospital of the Federal University of Alagoas. A study was carried out in the city of Viçosa-AL to investigate the presence of B. abortus in 30 adult male dogs. The animals that showed symptoms suggestive of reproductive disease were referred for evaluation of the hematological pattern and clinical and surgical treatment. Parallel to the blood collection, a questionnaire was applied to the owners of these dogs. Buffered acid antigen (AAT) techniques were used as a screening test and 2-Mercaptoethanol (2-ME) as a confirmatory test for AAT positives with symptoms of brucellosis. The study aimed to analyze the number of positive dogs, the clinical and anatomopathological changes and the risk factors for the occurrence of brucellosis in dogs in the municipality of Viçosa-AL. As dogs are a means of transmission for humans, health authorities must pay special attention to this disease, including the control of dogs in the Program for Control and Eradication of Brucellosis of the Ministry of Agriculture. In addition to intensifying control of vaccination and diagnosis in cattle.
Documentary research of clinical and epidemiological aspects of lymphoma in dogs treated at the federal rural university of Rio de Janeiro
Authors: Noleto de Paiva Felipe , Carlos Silva Danielle , Carvalho Cassino Pedro , Souza Costa Thiago , Israel Fernandes Julio
Published: October 2023

Lymphomas, malignant neoplasms that originate in the lymphocytes, have a high incidence in domestic animals. This paper aimed to describe the clinical and epidemiological findings of 200 cases of canine lymphoma evaluated over nine years (2011–2019) at the Oncology Service of the Veterinary Hospital at The Federal Rural University of Rio de Janeiro. A majority of mixed-breed canines (84/200-42%) were observed, followed by the Labrador Retriever, Pitbull, and Rottweiler with similar incidence (15/200-7.5%). The average age was 7.7 years and the most affected canines were aged approximately 3 and 11 years old (146/200-73%). As for the anatomical classification, the cases classified as multicentric (131/200-65,5%) were the most common, followed by cases of the cutaneous form (44/200-22%), alimentary form (7/200 - 3.5%), mediastinal form (5/200-2.5%), and extranodal form (16/200-6,5%). Among extranodal cases were described cases of ocular involvement (5/200-2.5%), oral cavity involvement (4/200-2%), cardiac involvement (3/200-1.5%), and pulmonary involvement (1/200-0.5%). The clinical manifestation observed was related to the affected region in the different anatomical forms. More studies of this nature are needed to profile the disease presentation and contribute to clinical identification and diagnosis.
Clinical and surgical aspects of hypospadia and urethral diverticulum in goats
Authors: Rizzo Huber , Eduardo de Andrade Lima Kayo , Hugo de Souza Jerônimo , Pimentel Ribeiro Danielle , José de Oliveira Nascimento Rummeniggue , Antunes de Albuquerque Karoline
Published: October 2023

Hypospadia is the imperfect closure of the external urethra of the male which results from the incomplete fusion of the urogenital folds and abnormal openings of the penile urethra. The urethral diverticulum is the abnormal dilatation of the urethra, and can be of multifactorial origin and related to genetic, endocrinological and environmental factors. The objective of this article is to report on the clinical and surgical treatment of two cases of hypospadias and one case of urethral diverticulum in goats raised as pets, originated from cross breeding polled pairs. In Case 1 the hypospadias was characterized by two orifices on the ventral portion of the penis, separated by a 2 cm interruption of the urethra, and in Case 2 by an orifice on the ventral portion in the region of the urethra. In both cases there was an accumulation of urine in the middle ventral region of the foreskin, leading to distension of the skin. Both cases were successfully treated by urethrostomy and partial penectomy with fixation of the proximal urethral ostium to the skin. In Case 3, the animal was seen at ten days of age with presence of a diverticulum in the preputial region, however, the animal returned for new care only after four months due to urethral obstruction and died as a result of advanced azotemia. Surgical treatment of hypospadia, when performed before the development of azotemia associated with urinary retention, has been shown to be efficient, and post-operative care is important.
Treatment of zolpidem poisoning with flumazenil in a cat
Authors: Horta Gomes Viviane , Fernanda Albuquerque de Silva Marta , Dalloz Marques dos Santos Paloma , Tiradentes Montechiari Patricia
Published: October 2023

This report aims to describe the case of a cat intoxicated with zolpidem that was treated with flumazenil. Flumazenil is an imidazodiazepine that effectively reverses the central effects of benzodiazepines. In humans, it is used to treat zolpidem poisoning. Zolpidem is a sedative hypnotic agent, non-benzodiazepine, that is used to treat patients with insomnia. A 2-year-old Bengal cat weighing 2.5 kg showed signs of ataxia, incoordination and diarrhea after accidental ingestion of 10 mg zolpidem (Stilnox®). The cat was administered with 0.1 mg/kg of flumazenil intravenously, and after 20 minutes all clinical signs disappeared. To our knowledge, this is the first report of the use of flumazenil for the treatment of zolpidem poisoning in cats. Discussion regarding the treatment of zolpidem poisoning is necessary owing to the increased prescription of this drug in humans and, consequently, to a greater possibility of accidental poisoning in domestic animals.
Feeding efficiency of sheep as a strategy for mitigating greenhouse gas emissions
Authors: Crisóstomo Charleni , Luiz Abdalla Adibe , Lopes Dias da Costa Ricardo
Published: October 2023

Climate change is a very relevant and worrying topic today and is present in the agendas of different spheres of society. High concentrations of greenhouse gases (GHGs) are released into the atmosphere, causing global temperatures to rise. In agricultural production, methane (CH4) is considered one of the highest GHG emissions, causing a negative impact on natural resources and accelerating climate change. In the coming years, with the increase in the world population, food production should be implemented in self-sufficient, quality, and sustainable production systems to meet the need for high consumption. The reduction in CH4 production is related to the better efficiency of energy use of the feed by the animals; therefore, the knowledge of the ruminal fermentation parameters, identification of the ruminal microbiota, and selection of more efficient animals, with lower consumption and greater weight gain, in addition to producing less GHGs like CH4, have a less negative impact on the environment and are economically viable. This review presents some aspects of selection for feed efficiency in sheep as a strategy to mitigate GHG emission and some techniques for measuring these gases.
Pandemia
Authors: Callegari José Antonio
Published: October 2023

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Analysis of Product Design Long Leg Braces With Kansei Words Approach and Biomechanics
Authors: Sugiono Sugiono , Cendy Bellyn Mey , Hardiningtyas Dewi
Published: October 2023

Many aspects become consideration related to the needs and desires of consumers with disabilities. Categories of persons with disabilities using using the lame use walking aids (long leg braces) for everyday mobility. Long leg braces that are now in the market have some complaints. Incompatibility use walking aids prove that the identification and analysis of existing of long leg braces as consideration for further improvement. When using the product, 40 of long leg braces become the sample from 64 populations in Malang. The consumer of long leg braces tend to express a desire using abstract words. Identification of the feelings and emotions of the users done using kansei words. Kansei words represent human psychological as feelings and emotions. Considerations that appear on kansei words, become consideration in the calculation of biomechanics. Therefore,it is expected that the design of the new long leg braces are able to distribute energy/ the load of the user so it can reduce complaints based on kansei words. Based on the kansei questionnaire there are 25 pairs of words that represent the desire of consumers to the product. 7 factors which produce ergonomic consideration factors have the most variable. Adjustments to the forces and moments between the segments of the normal foot greatest force in doubled phase support pelvic segment amounted to 28.93 N and moment of inertia of 658.53 KgM2. With a recommendation on long leg braces segment so that the resulting mass at the base of the thigh segment amounted to 0.864 kg, 0.792 kg calf and the foot segment amounted to 0.182 kg. Biomechanical calculations have proved that complaints of long leg braces have the highest number of complaints on the suitability of the thigh segment based on kansei words.
Niños de 3 años empezando a desarrollar la competencia matemática a través de la modelización matemática temprana
Authors: Salgado María , Alsina Ángel
Published: October 2023

Se analizan las habilidades de modelización matemática temprana que empiezan a emerger en un grupo de 20 niños de 2-3 años a partir de la resolución de un problema real. Adicionalmente, se describen los contenidos matemáticos que movilizan durante el proceso de modelización, cuya meta es generar un modelo concreto a partir del problema real planteado. Los resultados muestran: a) las habilidades del ciclo de modelización más frecuentes son las de Comprensión e Interpretación y, en menor medida, Estructuración, Matematización, Validación y Exposición/Presentación, mientras que Trabajo Matemático es muy escasa; b) los contenidos matemáticos que los niños movilizan se asocian al Álgebra Temprana (reconocimiento de cualidades y atributos para establecer relaciones); Números y Operaciones (reconocimiento de cantidades de elementos y comparaciones entre ellos); y c) Estadística y la Probabilidad (organización de datos en tablas de recuento). Se concluye que las habilidades del ciclo de modelización enriquecen la resolución de problemas y, más en general, promueven el desarrollo de la competencia matemática, por lo que se recomienda introducir este tipo de actividades desde los primeros niveles.
Efecto de los lineamientos de la OCDE respecto a la tributación de dividendos en el Ecuador
Authors: Sánchez Moreno Stefany , Córdova Naranjo Mentor , Sánchez Lindao Julio , Arcos Escobar Nelson
Published: October 2023

El presente artículo se enfoca en el tratamiento tributario a distribución de dividendos contemplado en el marco legal tributario ecuatoriano. La metodología aplicada corresponde al enfoque cualitativo con la modalidad de investigación documental, por lo que, se compararon las recomendaciones del Informe de la Acción 2 del modelo BEPS (del inglés: Base Erosion and Profit Shifting y del español: Erosión de la Base Imponible y traslado de beneficios) y su aplicación en la normativa ecuatoriana. Este artículo surge de la percepción de la inestabilidad jurídica generada por la normativa tributaria ecuatoriana debido a la modificación constante del tratamiento a la renta de dividendos al momento de someterla a imposición. Para el presente artículo se analizaron datos de la Administración Tributaria, respecto a rubros declarados por los contribuyentes en los Formularios de Retenciones en la Fuente de Impuesto a la Renta y Formulario de Impuesto a la Renta de los ejercicios fiscales 2017 al 2020  por dividendos, y se evaluó el nivel de percepción a expertos en fiscalidad internacional, con lo cual permitió concluir que, la normativa ecuatoriana ha aplicado parcialmente las reglas secundarias planteadas por la Acción 2 del modelo BEPS, debido a que su legislación interna mantiene el criterio de fuente y de residencia, o también denominado sistema de renta mundial.
Penile skin microbiota / microbiome in healthy men and some diseases
Authors: Naboka Yu. L. , Kotieva E. M. , Kotieva V. M. , Kogan M. I.
Published: October 2023

The study of the cutaneous microbiota/microbiome of the male genital is relevant not only to understand "normality" for this biotope but also to correctly interpret the results obtained from patients with infectious-inflammatory diseases or postoperative infectious-inflammatory complications of penile skin. The study aimed to generalize and critically analyze data on microbial contamination of various areas of the penile skin by conducting a systematic review of publications. The search led to the selection of eight articles published in 2011 ­– 2023 that investigated the microbiota / microbiome features of the penile skin in health and some diseases. Thus, in sexually active healthy men, the penile skin microbiota / microbiome partly reflects the vaginal microbiome of sexual partners. After unprotected sexual contact, the frequency of detection and the number of Lactobacillus increase in the penile skin microbiota. In general, Corynebacteriaceae dominate on the penile skin, while Prevotellaceae, nc Clostridiales, Porphyromonadaceae, Staphylococcaceae, Bifidobacteriaceae, Lactobacillaceae, Veillonellaceae, Anaerococcus are less frequently recorded. Circumcision has a significant effect on the bacterial diversity of the penile skin. Although data regarding the penile skin microbiota/microbiome in various diseases are scarce, certain interactions have been noted. Thus, in healthy sexually active male partners of women with bacterial vaginosis, the number of bacteria associated with bacterial vaginosis increases and Corynebacterium decreases. In HIV-positive men, Staphylococcus, Faecalibacterium, Strenotrophominas, Jonquetella, Ruminococcus, Roseburia, Pseudochrobactrum and Lamia predominate on the penis skin. It is also noted that circumcision reduces the risk of HPV and HIV infections. Knowledge of not only the bacterial, but also fungal diversity of the penile skin microbiota is of great clinical importance, because conditionally pathogenic yeast-like fungi under certain conditions can cause a few diseases. Thus, this review analyses the microbial composition of penile skin in normal and some diseases, revealing a great gap in current knowledge of penile skin microbial assemblages. Studies are needed to better understand the microbial composition of normal penile skin and its impact on the results of reconstructive and plastic surgeries using penile skin.
Zinner's syndrome: clinical case of a rare pathology
Authors: Dobroserdov D. A. , Kuchinskii M. P. , Filatova N. A. , Nalgieva L. T.
Published: October 2023

Zinner’s syndrome is a rare congenital urogenital anomaly characterised by the triad of seminal vesicle cyst, ipsilateral renal aplasia, and seminal duct obstruction. According to the published data, the incidence of seminal vesicle cysts with ipsilateral renal agenesis is 0.0046%, but the true incidence appears to be higher. The article presents a rare clinical case of patient K, 17 years old, followed since birth with a solitary right kidney. The patient was repeatedly examined (ultrasound, cystography, urography, abdominal MRI, pelvic CT). The boy was admitted to our clinic with the diagnosis of "Solitary right kidney" and pelvic cystic formation detected according to the last CT scan. MRI examination of the small pelvis, cystoscopy, diagnostic laparoscopy, puncture of the cystic mass were performed. The diagnosis of "Zinner's syndrome" was made. The size of the cyst did not change during follow-up.
Clip migration after minimally-invasive surgical procedures
Authors: Kotov S. V. , Guspanov R. I. , Zhuravleva A. K.
Published: October 2023

Introduction. Today absorbable suture material as well as plastic nonabsorbable clips are widely used for surgical haemostasis and stabilisation of sutures during minimally invasive operations, however, they are capable of potential and spontaneous migration into the lower and upper urinary tract.

Objective. In this paper, we present clinical cases of clip migration after radical prostatectomy and renal resection.

Clinical cases. Clinical cases of spontaneous clip migration after the two most common minimally invasive interventions: kidney resection with subsequent removal of a foreign body after the use of lithokinetic therapy and a case of hemostatic material migration after robot-assisted radical prostatectomy. The literature review is also available.

Conclusion. Excessive use of non-absorbable plastic clips around their close contact with the kidney cavity or the bladder wall should be avoided to achieve adequate hemostasis during minimally invasive methods of treating patients.
Gender-related differences and its effects on ureteroscopy success
Authors: Kotov S. V. , Nemenov A. A. , Perov R. A. , Sokolov N. M.
Published: October 2023

Introduction. The prevalence of urinary stone disease (USD) historically considered a predominantly male disease. It has been rising over the last several decades with the rate of increase being higher among females. However, factors such as stone localisation, size, and density are usually analysed in postureteroscopic complications, and reports on gender-specific differences in the treatment of USD are scarce.

Objective. To investigate the impact of gender differences on treatment success, intraoperative and postoperative complications in patients undergoing ureteroscopy.

Materials & methods. A total of 300 patients with USD, who were performed ureteroscopic interventions in the period from September 2021 to November 2022 in Yudin City Clinical Hospital. Depending on gender, patients were divided into two groups — 194 (64.7%) men and 106 (35.3%) women. Recurrent USD was observed in 71 (36.6%) cases in Group I and in 45 (42.5%) cases in Group II, with an average recurrence time of 4.3 and 6.3 years, respectively. Male and female patients have had stone location in the upper third in 14.4% and 18.9% of cases, in the middle third in 18% and 6.6% (p = 0.005), in the lower third in 36 .1% and 49.1% (p = 0.04), in the intramural ureter in 28.9% and 21.7%, and in several localisations in 2.6% and 3.8% of cases, respectively.

Results. The duration of surgery did not differ in both groups and composed 41.6 minutes. Internal ureteral stent placement was in 37 (19.1%) male patients and in 14 (13.2%) female patients. Based on specialised postureteroscopic lesion scales such as PULS and Satava, the percentage of complications in Groups I and II was 2.1 and 2.8 and 4.1 and 9.4 (p = 0.03) respectively.

Conclusion. The development of acute renal colic in women with patients less intensity than in the male group leads to hospitalisation in the delayed period. In female patients, the number of postureteroscopic complications has higher rates due to the size and density of the stone and its location.
Changes of serum osteoprotegerin level in recurrent urolithiasis
Authors: Savilov A. V. , Jain M. , Tivtikyan A. S. , Kotsepuga M. E. , Anokhin D. M. , Samokhodskaya L. M. , Okhobotov D. A. , Shershnev S. P. , Kamalov A. A.
Published: October 2023

Introduction.In our earlier research on the role of genetic factors in the development of recurrent urolithiasis, a significant relationship was found between the presence of single-nucleotide polymorphism rs3134057 in the osteoprotegerin (OPG) gene and the development of this disease. The above-mentioned single-nucleotide polymorphism is intronic, therefore, it is unable to involve the structure and functions of the OPG but to affect its expression. Thus, the study of serum OPG level may have diagnostic significance in recurrent urolithiasis.

Objective.To study the relationship of serum OPG level with the presence of recurrent urolithiasis, as well as the effect of single nucleotide polymorphism rs3134057 on the OPG level.

Materials & methods.One hundred and fifteen volunteers were included in the study from January 2021 to January 2022. Of the 115 participants, 45 (main group #1) were diagnosed with recurrent urolithiasis and localisation of the main stone in one of the ureters, 28 participants (main group #2) had previously suffered a single episode of acute renal colic followed by surgical treatment or stone self-discharge and were stone-free at the time of the study. Forty-two control group respondents were free of urolithiasis, including family history of urolithiasis. The serum OPG levels was determined by enzyme immunoassay using the Human OPG ELISA kit ab100617 ("Abcam plc", Cambridge, UK) according to the manufacturer's advice.

Results.The analysis revealed that the serum OPG levels were significantly higher in the main group #1 than in the control group (median: 9.02 vs. 3.635, p = 0.012). When analyzing the relationship between the concentration of OPG in serum and the AA + AG genotype versus GG according to rs3134057 of the OPG gene, no statistically significant difference was found (p > 0.05). The same result was obtained when comparing groups with AA vs. AG vs. GG genotypes (p > 0.05).

Conclusion.The present study showed that an increased serum OPG level in patients with recurrent urolithiasis may indicate the presence of a relapse of the disease. Further study in large samples will finally confirm the significance of OPG as a marker of relapse, including in genetically determined forms.
A Multilabel Text Classifier of Cancer Literature at the Publication Level: Methods Study of Medical Text Classification
Authors: Zhang Ying , Li Xiaoying , Liu Yi , Li Aihua , Yang Xuemei , Tang Xiaoli
Published: October 2023

Background

Given the threat posed by cancer to human health, there is a rapid growth in the volume of data in the cancer field and interdisciplinary and collaborative research is becoming increasingly important for fine-grained classification. The low-resolution classifier of reported studies at the journal level fails to satisfy advanced searching demands, and a single label does not adequately characterize the literature originated from interdisciplinary research results. There is thus a need to establish a multilabel classifier with higher resolution to support literature retrieval for cancer research and reduce the burden of screening papers for clinical relevance.

Objective

The primary objective of this research was to address the low-resolution issue of cancer literature classification due to the ambiguity of the existing journal-level classifier in order to support gaining high-relevance evidence for clinical consideration and all-sided results for literature retrieval.

Methods

We trained a multilabel classifier with scalability for classifying the literature on cancer research directly at the publication level to assign proper content-derived labels based on the “Bidirectional Encoder Representation from Transformers (BERT) + X” model and obtain the best option for X. First, a corpus of 70,599 cancer publications retrieved from the Dimensions database was divided into a training and a testing set in a ratio of 7:3. Second, using the classification terminology of International Cancer Research Partnership cancer types, we compared the performance of classifiers developed using BERT and 5 classical deep learning models, such as the text recurrent neural network (TextRNN) and FastText, followed by metrics analysis.

Results

After comparing various combined deep learning models, we obtained a classifier based on the optimal combination “BERT + TextRNN,” with a precision of 93.09%, a recall of 87.75%, and an F1-score of 90.34%. Moreover, we quantified the distinctive characteristics in the text structure and multilabel distribution in order to generalize the model to other fields with similar characteristics.

Conclusions

The “BERT + TextRNN” model was trained for high-resolution classification of cancer literature at the publication level to support accurate retrieval and academic statistics. The model automatically assigns 1 or more labels to each cancer paper, as required. Quantitative comparison verified that the “BERT + TextRNN” model is the best fit for multilabel classification of cancer literature compared to other models. More data from diverse fields will be collected to testify the scalability and extensibility of the proposed model in the future.
Social media recruitment as a trigger for vulnerability? A multi-stakeholder interview study (Preprint)
Authors: Matthes Nina , Willem Theresa , Buyx Alena , Zimmermann Bettina
Published: October 2023

BACKGROUND

Social media recruitment is increasingly applied for clinical studies. However, empirical analyses focusing on the ethical aspects pertinent when targeting patients with vulnerable characteristics are lacking.

OBJECTIVE

This study aims to explore expert and patient perspectives on vulnerability in the context of social media recruitment and seeks to explore how social media can reduce or amplify vulnerabilities.

METHODS

As part of an international consortium that tests a therapeutic vaccine against Hepatitis B (TherVacB), we conducted 30 qualitative interviews with multidisciplinary experts in social media recruitment from the fields of clinical research, public relations, psychology, ethics, philosophy, law, and social sciences about the ethical, legal, and social challenges of social media recruitment. Findings were triangulated with the perceptions of six Hepatitis B patients regarding social media usage and attitudes relative to their diagnosis.

RESULTS

Experts perceived social media recruitment to be beneficial for reaching hard-to-reach populations and preserving patient privacy. Features that may aggravate existing vulnerabilities are the acontextual point of contact, potential breaches of privacy, biased algorithms disproportionately affecting disadvantaged groups, and technological barriers such as insufficient digital literacy skills and restricted access to relevant technology. We also report several practical recommendations from experts to navigate these triggering effects of social media recruitment – including transparent communication, addressing algorithm bias, privacy education, and multi-channel recruitment.

CONCLUSIONS

Utilising social media for clinical study recruitment can both mitigate and aggravate the vulnerabilities of potential study participants. Researchers should anticipate and address the outlined triggering effects within the study design and proactively define strategies to overcome them. The study provides concrete practical recommendations to achieve this.
The #SeePainMoreClearly Phase II Pain in Dementia Social Media Campaign: Implementation and Evaluation Study (Preprint)
Authors: Castillo Louise I R , Tran Vivian , Brachaniec Mary , Chambers Christine T , Chessie Kelly , Couros Alec , LeRuyet Andre , LeRuyet Charmayne , Thorpe Lilian , Williams Jaime , Wheelwright Sara , Hadjistavropoulos Thomas
Published: October 2023

BACKGROUND

Social media platforms have been effective in raising awareness of the underassessment and undertreatment of pain in dementia.

OBJECTIVE

After a successful pilot campaign, we aimed to scale our pain-in-dementia knowledge mobilization pilot initiative (ie, #SeePainMoreClearly) to several social media platforms with the aid of a digital media partner. The goal of the initiative was to increase awareness of the challenges in the assessment and management of pain among people with dementia. A variety of metrics were implemented to evaluate the effort. Through this work, we endeavored to highlight key differences between our pilot initiative (which was a grassroots initiative), focusing largely on Twitter and YouTube, and the current science-media partnership. We also aimed to generate recommendations suitable for other social media campaigns related to health or aging.

METHODS

Evidence-based information about pain in dementia was summarized into engaging content (eg, videos) tailored to the needs of various knowledge users (eg, health professionals, families, and policy makers). We disseminated information using Facebook (Meta Platforms), Twitter (X Corp), YouTube (Alphabet Inc), Instagram (Meta Platforms), and LinkedIn (LinkedIn Corp) and measured the success of the initiative over a 12-month period (2020 to 2021). The evaluation methods focused on web analytics and questionnaires related to social media content. Knowledge users’ web responses about the initiative and semistructured interviews were analyzed using thematic analysis.

RESULTS

During the course of the campaign, >700 posts were shared across all platforms. Web analytics showed that we drew >60,000 users from 82 countries to our resource website. Of the social media platforms used, Facebook was the most effective in reaching knowledge users (ie, over 1,300,000 users). Questionnaire responses from users were favorable; interview responses indicated that the information shared throughout the initiative increased awareness of the problem of pain in dementia and influenced respondent behavior.

CONCLUSIONS

In this investigation, we demonstrated success in directing knowledge users to a resource website with practical information that health professionals could use in patient care along with pain assessment and management information for caregivers and people living with dementia. The evaluation metrics suggested no considerable differences between our pilot campaign and broader initiative when accounting for the length of time of each initiative. The limitations of large-scale health campaigns were noted, and recommendations were outlined for other researchers aiming to leverage social media as a knowledge mobilization tool.

CLINICALTRIAL
Low-Fidelity Prototype of a Sensor-Dependent Interaction Platform: Formative Evaluation With Informal Caregivers of Older Adults With Cognitive Impairment (Preprint)
Authors: Sharma Nikita , Grotenhuijs Karen , Gemert-Pijnen J E W C van , Oinas-Kukkonen Harri , Braakman-Jansen L M A
Published: October 2023

BACKGROUND

Unobtrusive sensing technologies developed for monitoring deviant behaviors in older adult care require integration with an interaction platform to facilitate the flow of information between older adults and their caregivers. However, the continuous monitoring capabilities generate a considerable amount of data that must be interpreted, filtered, and personalized before being communicated to the informal caregivers based on their specific care needs and requirements.

OBJECTIVE

For the effective implementation of unobtrusive sensing solutions (USSs) in the care of older adults with cognitive impairment, we aimed to explore the expectations and preconditions regarding the implementation of USSs from the perspective of informal caregivers. Subsequently, we designed and evaluated a low-fidelity prototype of an interaction platform for its conceptual workflow and usability, incorporating persuasive system design features based on the needs and requirements of informal caregivers.

METHODS

Overall, 6 informal caregivers of older adults with cognitive impairment living alone participated in this qualitative interview study. We explored the expectation and preconditions regarding implementation through open-ended questions and conducted a formative evaluation (usability study with a think-aloud approach) to evaluate the conceptual workflow and used persuasive system design features in the interaction platform. Overall, a combination of inductive and thematic analyses was used to analyze the interviews.

RESULTS

The results of this study present both positive and negative outcome expectations regarding the implementation of USSs, highlighting benefits such as objective decision-making and peace of mind and concerns about information overload and the potential substitution of human contact. Strategic information communication agreements between informal and formal caregivers were deemed crucial for the successful implementation of USSs in care. Overall, informal caregivers had a positive experience with the low-fidelity prototype of the interaction platform, particularly valuing the personalization feature.

CONCLUSIONS

In conclusion, to achieve successful implementation, a holistic design approach is necessary, and equal consideration should be given to the personalization-privacy paradox to balance users’ needs and privacy.
Evaluation of Student Services in the New Normal: A tool for Quality Improvement
Authors: Dupali-Wangiwang Maryjoyce
Published: October 2023

Student affairs and services in higher education at present in the new normal is faced with many challenges. It has been fundamentally a profession that willingly subjects itself to periodic evaluation and capacity assessment to ensure the quality of service being delivered (UNESCO, 2002). Several studies in the Philippines were made regarding the evaluation of SAS in light of the paradigm suggested in the CMO No. 21, s. 2006. This study aimed to evaluate the student services in the Kalinga State University utilizing a quantitative research design framework as to the extent of priority, level of satisfaction among the three areas, suggestions were asked to support the result of the study. Student welfare and institutional program may be given further strategic planning for students to give equal priority as that of student development. Provision of student centers in every college and office space for the student council may be considered as priority need of students while College of Agriculture may be encouraged to actively participate in activities for development. Clients are moderately satisfied in the student welfare programs but identified. Availment of student emergency loan may be proposed as one of the students’ privileges. Further study for College of Criminal Justice Education for getting the lowest mean. On the institutional program, dormitory services and boarding houses services of the owners has to be reviewed, while College of Criminal Justice Education needs to be more motivated to participate in the institutional program of the school.