bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The Impact of Short-term Integrated Yoga practice on Psychological wellbeing in special educators of individual with special needs
Authors: PS Vijayakumar , AU Sahana , Rajanna Anusha
Published: September 2021

Background: Special educators face unprecedented work conditions and expectations that affect their psychological wellbeing and professional outcome as well. This study examines the growing evidence that even a short-term Integrated yoga practice enhance psychological wellbeing among special educators by reducing their stress, anxiety and depression levels. Materials and Methods: Special educators were recruited based on inclusion and exclusion criteria (n=20) age ranging between 25-50 years (Mean35±6.3) for a single group interventional pre-post study design: Integrated yoga module (included postures, breathing practices, relaxation and mediation) was given for a period of 8 weeks. The subjects were assessed on day 1 pre and post intervention on day 60 on perceived stress scale (PSS), Beck’s depression inventory (BDI-II) and Beck’s Anxiety Inventory (BAI). Results: After 8 weeks of Integrated yoga practice there was asignificant reduction in anxiety scores (P less than 0.000), depression scores (P less than 0.000) and perceived stress levels (P less than 0.000) respectively compared to baseline by wilcoxon signed rank test. Conclusions: The results of this study suggest that even a short-term integrated yoga intervention that can enhance psychological wellbeing of the special educators.
Kulathadi Kwatha and Talisapatradi Churna In Tamaka Shwasa (Bronchial Asthma) : An Open Label, Single Arm Clinical Study
Authors: KS Sreedevi , Jadhav Lakshmiprasad L. , KJ Girish , Powar Vibhu
Published: September 2021

Background: Tamaka Shwasa is a Pranavaha Sroto Vikara, with predominant Dosha, Kapha and Vata and the site of origin is Pittasthana. The condition has similarity in clinical presentation with Bronchial Asthma. It leads to recurrent episodes of breathlessness, wheezing, cough and tightness of chest. Shamshodhana and Shamshamana are the two treatment modalities explained in Tamaka Shwasa. Objectives: To clinically assess the combined effectiveness of Kulathadi Kwatha and Talisapatradi Churna in Tamaka Shwasa. Materials and methods: This study was carried out by Shamanaushadhis viz; Kulathadi Kwatha and Talisapatradi Churna in 30 subjects of either sex in between the age 18-40 years, for 30 days, followed by follow up on 45th day. Collected data were tabulated and analysed using SPSS (Statistical package for social sciences) version 20 by using appropriate statistical test. Results: There was statistically significant improvement observed in the signs and symptoms of Tamaka Shwasa and Peakflow Meter with the P value less than 0.05. Conclusion: The trial drug Kulathadi Kwatha and Talisapatradi Churna was found beneficial in symptoms of Tamaka Shwasa.
A comparative clinical study on Madhusiktadi Lepa with and without Siravyadha in the management of Padadari
Authors: Bhiradi Varsha M. , Gannur Prasadshakti G. , Mashetti N.B.
Published: September 2021

Movement is one of the important gifts of God to mankind. If the individual has proper movements then it is indicative of undisturbed health. In some disorders foot movement are impaired; Crack foot syndrome is one such disorder where the person is apparently healthy but unable to walk because of pain, bleeding coupled with itching. In Ayurveda, it is referred as Padadari. The disease involves the Vatadosha leading to dryness, cracks, and fissures. The symptoms may include Vedana, Kandu, Daha, Raktasrava. So, in case of Padadari Acharyas’ explained Snehan, Swedan, Siravyadha followed by Lepa are advised as line of treatment. So, in this study two modalities viz. Siravyadha and Lepa are selected. The study was carried out on 60 patients. These patients were divided into two groups A and B each of 30 patients. Group A patients received Madhusiktadi Lepa and group B received Siravyadha with Madhusiktadi Lepa. Considering thorough statistical analysis of various study parameters and patient responses to the treatment, it is observed that Group B treatment has shown relatively better performance than group A treatment. Group B treatment has shown 53.26% patients completely cured (76-100% cure) and 46.66% patients shown marked improvement which is between 51-75% cure. Whereas group A treatment has shown 39.9 % patients were completely cured (76-100% cure) and 60.0% marked improvement (51-75% cure).
Pharmaceutico analytical study of Mukha Kanthikara Lepa and development of its new dosage form into Cream and Gel
Authors: Jeedi Amaresha , Yadav Srinivas , Medikeri Surekha S.
Published: September 2021

The need for cosmetics is seen from very ancient days; peoples were using variety of cosmetic products both for curative purpose as well as enhancing beauty. Mukhakantikara Lepa is a polyherbal formulation mentioned in Sharandhara Samhita in the form of Churna, which is extensively used to enhance skin complexion. In present time, the difficulty of portability, application, removal and shelf life of the Churna is a great challenge to Lepa form though being effective. Here arises a need for newer dosage form. Creams and gels are semisolid preparations which may be defined as topical products intended for application on skin or accessible mucous membrane to provide localised and sometimes systemic effects at the site of application. This dosage forms are more stable, easy to handle, easy to apply and remove. Hence, modification of Mukhakatikara Lepa into Cream and Gel can be a better idea to overcome the shortcoming of Lepa form.
A Clinical Study in the management of Garbhini Pandu with Draksha Ghrita w.s.r. to Iron Deficiency Anaemia in Pregnancy
Authors: Singh Laxmi , HV Rachana
Published: September 2021

Background: Pregnancy is a beautiful phase because it gives a woman the joy and fulfilment which comes from bringing a new life in to the world. It is a state, where there is progressive anatomical, physiological and biochemical change not only confined to the genital organs but also to all the system of body. In underdeveloped countries due to nutrient deficiency anaemia has become major contributing factor for mortality and morbidity. In Pregnancy if anaemia is not treated in time may lead to complications like Preterm labor, Low birth weight, Infection, PPH, Growth retardation, Pregnancy Anaemia cause high maternal and pre-nantal, morbidity and mortality. Objective: This study was carried out to know the efficacy of Draksha Ghrita in Garbhini Pandu (Anaemia in Pregnancy). Methods: A Randomized clinical study of two groups consisting of 15 patients each in control and trial group. Group A was administered with Draksha Ghrita in the dose of 15ml BD with hot water before food daily for the period of 60 days. Group B was administered with Dadimadi Ghrita, 15ml BD with hot water before food daily for the period of 60 days. Results: The study revealed a substantial efficacy of Draksha Ghrita in Garbhini Pandu (Anaemia in Pregnancy) with respect to subjective parameters and also with objective parameter. Draksha Ghrita has got a vital role in the pregnancy which has shown successful result in symptomatic relief. Conclusion: The drug is proved to be safe, easily available and cost effective and no adverse effect has seen.
A comparative clinical study to evaluate the effect of Indrayavadi Yoga and Bhoomyamalaki Choorna in the management of Asrigdara w.s.r. to Puberty Menorrhagia
Authors: Shrimant Patil Ashwini , Rawal P. K. , Shiraguppi Sunita , Pujeri Shrishail. S.
Published: September 2021

A normal menstruation denotes a healthy state of female reproductive system. If the menstrual bleeding is abnormally excessive, prolonged and is associated with pain, it indicates some pathology. The abnormal menstrual cycle not only disturbs the general health, it also disturbs routine work schedule of the woman and her entire family. There is no direct reference of Puberty menorrhagia in classics. Puberty menorrhagia is defined as excessive bleeding occurring between menarche to 19 years of age. Anovulatory bleeding with irregular shedding of endometrium is the cause for puberty Menorrhagia which can be effectively tackled with the help of herbal drugs which contains hemostatic action. Asrigdara mainly due to vitiation of Vata and Pitta Doshas, hence the treatment should be based on use of drugs which are having predominance of Kashayarasa and Pitta-Vatashamaka properties and Stambhan action. Thus selected drugs are Indrayavadi Yoga and Bhoomyamalaki Choorna possess Vata-Pitta Shamaka and Raktastambhaka. This research work is comparative clinical study. 40 patients presenting with Pratyatma Lakshana of Asrigdara were randomly selected and divided into 2 groups of 20 patients each. Group A were given Indrayavadi Yoga and group B were given Bhoomyamalaki Choorna for a period of 2 menstrual cycle and two follow up during treatment and one follow up after treatment. After the completion of clinical trial, it was found that Bhoomyamalaki Choorna which was group B is more effective than group A. The overall effect in group A and Group B, both the groups shown excellent response, but when comparing all the parameters Bhoomyamalaki Choorna shown more significant response than Indrayavadi Yoga. Trial drug is a better remedy for Asrigdara. It has no side effect, cost effective.
An open label single arm prospective clinical study in the management of Pakshaghata (CVA due to infarct) with Maharasnadi Kashaya and Shunti Churna
Authors: Mohandas Rohan , Totad Muttappa , B Vasantha , Narasimhan Sphoorthi
Published: September 2021

Pakshaghata is one among 80 Vata Namathmaja Vyadhi. In Pakshaghata vitiated Vata resides in one half of body and causes Vishoshana of Sira and Snayu leading to loosening of joints results into manifestation of symptoms like Cheshta Nivrutti, Ruja and Vakstambha. Pakshaghata can be correlated to stroke or CVA. The study aims to evaluate the combined effectiveness of Maharasnadi Kashaya with Shunti Churna as Anupana in management of Pakshaghata (CVA due to infarct). The open label prospective clinical study was conducted among the 32 patients of Pakshaghata by convenient sampling method at a tertiary Hospital Sri Dharmasthala Manjunatheshwara College of Ayurveda and Hospital, Hassan, Karnataka from December 2018 to December 2019. The effectiveness of the drug showed improvement in primary outcome measures such as Cheshta Nivrutti, Vakstambha and Ruk in subjects of Pakshaghata with p value less than 0.05. In this study, maximum improvement was found in “Ruk” followed by “Cheshta Nivrutti” and then “Vak Stambha”. Hence this drug is more effective in “Saruja Pakshaghata” hence; it showed improvement in the NIH stroke scale parameters with p value less than 0.05. The combined effectiveness of Maharasnadi Kashaya with Shunti Churna as Anupana in management of Pakshaghata (CVA due to Infarct) is proved.
Effect of Marma Therapy on Sandhigata Vata w.s.r. to Osteoarthritis
Authors: Dighekar Urvashi , S.K. Joshi , Vimal Kumar
Published: September 2021

The principal aim of Ayurveda is to maintain and promote positive physical and mental health as well as ensure the prevention of diseases. Sandhigata Vata is the commonest form of articular disorder. It is a type of Vatavyadhi which mainly occurs in Vriddhavastha due to Dhatukshaya, which limits everyday activities such as walking, dressing, bathing etc. It occurs due to change in lifestyle like unsuitable sitting, sleeping, standing and look upwards or obliquely in various professions. Osteoarthritis (OA) is degenerative joint disorder, represents failure of the diarthrodial (movable, synovial lined) joint. OA of the joints comes under the inflammatory group which is almost identical to Sandhigata Vata described in Ayurveda with respect to etiology, pathology, and clinical features. Marma therapy is one which gives instant relief from pain by balancing local Vata and Kapha Dosha without any untoward effects. In the present research work, total 15 diagnosed case of Sandhigata Vata were randomly selected from OPD and IPD of department of Shalya Tantra, Rishikul Campus, Uttarakhand Ayurveda University, Haridwar (U.K.) India, all these patients were treated with the application of Marma therapy. Result was observed on the basis of subjective and objective parameters and analysed statistically. No complications were observed in this clinical study.
Predicting the Mortality and Readmission of In-Hospital Cardiac Arrest Patients With Electronic Health Records: A Machine Learning Approach (Preprint)
Authors: Chi Chien-Yu , Ao Shuang , Winkler Adrian , Fu Kuan-Chun , Xu Jie , Ho Yi-Lwun , Huang Chien-Hua , Soltani Rohollah
Published: September 2021

BACKGROUND

In-hospital cardiac arrest (IHCA) is associated with high mortality and health care costs in the recovery phase. Predicting adverse outcome events, including readmission, improves the chance for appropriate interventions and reduces health care costs. However, studies related to the early prediction of adverse events of IHCA survivors are rare. Therefore, we used a deep learning model for prediction in this study.

OBJECTIVE

This study aimed to demonstrate that with the proper data set and learning strategies, we can predict the 30-day mortality and readmission of IHCA survivors based on their historical claims.

METHODS

National Health Insurance Research Database claims data, including 168,693 patients who had experienced IHCA at least once and 1,569,478 clinical records, were obtained to generate a data set for outcome prediction. We predicted the 30-day mortality/readmission after each current record (ALL-mortality/ALL-readmission) and 30-day mortality/readmission after IHCA (cardiac arrest [CA]-mortality/CA-readmission). We developed a hierarchical vectorizer (HVec) deep learning model to extract patients’ information and predict mortality and readmission. To embed the textual medical concepts of the clinical records into our deep learning model, we used Text2Node to compute the distributed representations of all medical concept codes as a 128-dimensional vector. Along with the patient’s demographic information, our novel HVec model generated embedding vectors to hierarchically describe the health status at the record-level and patient-level. Multitask learning involving two main tasks and auxiliary tasks was proposed. As CA-mortality and CA-readmission were rare, person upsampling of patients with CA and weighting of CA records were used to improve prediction performance.

RESULTS

With the multitask learning setting in the model learning process, we achieved an area under the receiver operating characteristic of 0.752 for CA-mortality, 0.711 for ALL-mortality, 0.852 for CA-readmission, and 0.889 for ALL-readmission. The area under the receiver operating characteristic was improved to 0.808 for CA-mortality and 0.862 for CA-readmission after solving the extremely imbalanced issue for CA-mortality/CA-readmission by upsampling and weighting.

CONCLUSIONS

This study demonstrated the potential of predicting future outcomes for IHCA survivors by machine learning. The results showed that our proposed approach could effectively alleviate data imbalance problems and train a better model for outcome prediction.
A Computer-Based Interactive Narrative and a Serious Game for Children With Asthma: Development and Content Validity Analysis (Preprint)
Authors: Sarasmita Made Ary , Larasanty Luh Putu Febryana , Kuo Li-Na , Cheng Kuei-Ju , Chen Hsiang-Yin
Published: September 2021

BACKGROUND

Nonadherence to medications, failure to prevent exposure to asthma triggers, lack of knowledge about using medications, and fixed mindsets contribute to poor asthma control in children. Digital learning could provide a new strategy for improving health-related outcomes in children with asthma.

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this study is to develop and design a digital educational program, titled Module of Inhaler and Asthma Triggers for Children (MIRACLE), for Indonesian children with asthma. The program comprises an interactive narrative and a serious game. It was proposed to increase the understanding of asthma self-management, instruct on proper inhaler techniques, improve asthma control, and promote a growth mindset for children with asthma.

METHODS

Two phases of research were conducted to develop the program. In the first phase, a literature search and two rounds of the Delphi technique were conducted to obtain agreement from an expert panel regarding elements of asthma self-management and the design of interactive narratives and a serious game. The expert panel item statements were evaluated using the content validity index (CVI). In the second phase, the SERES framework, Norma Engaging Multimedia Design, and Psychological Theory of Growth Mindset were applied to create a storyline, learn objectives, and game challenges.

RESULTS

In the first phase, 40 experts were invited to participate in Delphi round 1. Forty responses were collected to generate 38 item statements that consisted of part 1, elements of asthma self-management (25 items), and part 2, design of an interactive narrative and a serious game (13 items); 38 experts were involved in Delphi round 2. In total, 24 statements in part 1 and 13 items in part 2 had item-CVI values >0.80. The average CVI was 0.9, which was considered acceptable. Four narrative plots and five game sessions were developed during the second phase. Challenges with the scenario, scoring, and feedback on asthma difficulties were designed to promote a growth mindset for learners.

CONCLUSIONS

We developed a culture-specific, computer-based asthma program containing an interactive narrative and a serious game to deliver asthma self-management and promote a growth mindset among Indonesian children.
COVID-19 Diagnosis from Chest X-Ray Images Using a Robust Multi-Resolution Analysis Siamese Neural Network with Super Resolution Convolutional Neural Network: Algorithm Development and Validation (Preprint)
Authors: Monday Happy Nkanta , Li Jian Ping , Nneji Grace Ugochi , Hossin Md Altab , Kumar Rajesh , Oluwasanmi Ariyo , James Edidiong Christopher , Mgbejime Goodness Temofe , Umana Edwin Sunday , Chikwendu Ijeoma Amuche , Ejiyi Chukwuebuka Joseph , Ogungbile Abel , Dike Ifeanyi Desmond , Ukwuoma Chiagoziem Chima
Published: September 2021

BACKGROUND

The chest x-ray (CXR) is becoming a useful method in the evaluation of coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19). Despite the global COVID-19 uprising, utilizing computer-aided diagnosis approach for COVID-19 classification based on CXR images could significantly reduce clinician burden. There is no dispute that low resolution, noisy and irrelevant annotations in chest x-ray images is a major constraint to the performance of AI-based COVID-19 diagnosis. While few studies have made huge progress, they underestimate these bottlenecks.

OBJECTIVE

In this study, we propose a Super Resolution based Siamese Wavelet Multi-Resolution Convolutional Neural Network called COVID-SRWCNN for COVID-19 Classification using chest x-ray images.

METHODS

Concretely, we first reconstruct high-resolution (HR) counterparts from low resolution (LR) images of CXR images in order to enhance the quality of the dataset for improved performance of our model by proposing a novel enhanced fast super resolution convolutional neural network (EFSRCNN) to capture texture details in each given chest x-ray image. Since the datasets are collected from different sources with varying resolutions and the input layer of a convolutional neural network requires that the input size of the images in the training distribution must be fixed, therefore we extend the super resolution convolutional neural network by introducing an adaptive scaling operation to resize the images to a fixed resolution prior to the enhancement operation. Exploiting a mutual learning approach, the HR images are passed to the proposed siamese wavelet multi-resolution convolutional neural network to learn the high-level features for COVID-19 classification.

RESULTS

We validate the proposed COVID-SRWCNN model on public-source datasets achieving an accuracy of 99.6%, precision of 99.7%, and F1 score of 99.9%. Our screening technique achieved 99.8 % AUC, 99.7% sensitivity and 99.6% specificity.

CONCLUSIONS

Owing to the fact that COVID-19 chest x-ray dataset are low in quality, experimental results show that our proposed algorithm obtained up-to-date performance which is useful for COVID-19 screening.
Fine-tuned Siamese Network with Modified Enhanced Super-Resolution GAN Plus Based on Low Quality Chest X-ray Images for COVID-19 Identification: Algorithm Development and Validation (Preprint)
Authors: Nneji Grace Ugochi , Cai Jingye , Jianhua Deng , Hossin Md Altab , Monday Happy Nkanta , Oluwasanmi Ariyo , Chikwendu Ijeoma Amuche , Ejiyi Chukwuebuka Joseph , Ukwuoma Chiagoziem Chima , James Edidiong Christopher , Mgbejime Goodness Temofe
Published: September 2021

UNSTRUCTURED

Background: Coronavirus disease has explosively spread globally since the early January of 2020. With the millions of the death rate of individuals, it is essential for an automated system to be utilized for aiding the clinical diagnosis and reduce time consumption for the image analysis.
Objective: Our aim is to rapidly develop an automated AI model to diagnose COVID-19 in CXR images and differentiate COVID-19 from healthy and other pneumonia.
Methods: This article presents a GAN-based deep learning application in precisely regaining high-resolution (HR) CXR images from low-resolution (LR) CXR correspondents for COVID-19 identification. Respectively, using the building block of generative adversarial network (GAN), we introduce a modified enhanced super-resolution with generative adversarial network plus (MESRGAN+) to inculcate a connected nonlinear mapping collected from noise-contaminated low-resolution input images to produce deblurred and denoised HR images. As opposed to the latest trend of increasing network elaboration and depth to advance imaging performance, we incorporated an enhanced VGG19 fine-tuned twin network with wavelet pooling strategy in order to extracts distinct features for COVID-19 identification. The qualitative results establish that the proposed model is robust and reliable for COVID-19 screening.
Results: We demonstrate the proposed enhanced siamese fine-tuned model with wavelet pooling strategy and modified enhanced super-resolution GAN plus based on low quality images for COVID-19 identification on a publicly available dataset of 11,920 samples of chest x-ray images, each having 2,980 cases of COVID-19 CXR, healthy, viral and bacterial cases for our four-class classification. Furthermore, we performed binary classification of COVID-19 verse healthy cases. The proposed method achieves accuracy of 98.8%, precision of 98.6%, sensitivity of 97.5%, specificity of 98.9%, F1-score of 97.8% and ROC AUC of 98.8% for the multi- class task while for the binary class, the model achieved accuracy of 99.7%, precision of 98.9%, sensitivity of 98.7%, specificity of 99.3%, F1-score of 98.2% and ROC AUC of 99.7%.
Conclusions: Our method obtained state-of-the-art (SOTA) performance, according to experimental results, which is helpful for COVID-19 screening. This new conceptual framework is proposed to play an influential task in the issue facing COVID-19 examination and other ailments, using CXR datasets.
Acceptability of Serious Games in Pediatric Asthma Education and Self-management: Pilot Study (Preprint)
Authors: Silva-Lavigne Nicole , Valderrama Alena , Pelaez Sandra , Bransi Myriam , Balli Fabio , Gervais Yannick , Gaudy Thomas , Tse Sze Man
Published: September 2021

BACKGROUND

Asthma is the most common chronic pediatric disease. Despite existing tools to manage asthma, 40%-55% of children with asthma experience uncontrolled asthma. Serious games (SGs) represent a novel approach in promoting asthma education and self-management for children.

OBJECTIVE

In this qualitative pilot study with an embedded quantitative design, we aim to use focus groups and questionnaires to describe the perceived role of SGs in different aspects of asthma self-management by children and their parents. These aspects include asthma perception and knowledge, the impact of asthma and barriers to asthma self-management, and the support system for asthma self-management.

METHODS

A total of 5 children with asthma and their parents were invited to participate in an organized gaming session. Children and their parents completed a pregaming questionnaire on their medical history and asthma knowledge. Then, they were invited to test 4 original SG prototypes, after which the children answered a postgaming questionnaire on their asthma knowledge and perception of the SGs. Children and their parents subsequently participated in parallel focus groups, which were video-recorded or audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim, and analyzed by reaching consensus among members of the research team.

RESULTS

The mean age of the children was 10.3 (SD 1.5) years, with 20% (1/5) of the children being male. Qualitative data from the transcripts were coded into three separate domains: asthma self-management perception and knowledge, impact of asthma and barriers to asthma self-management, and support system for asthma self-management. We specifically explored the perceived roles of SGs within each domain. A key takeaway message was identified for each of these three domains: heterogeneity of asthma knowledge and the ability of SGs to encourage knowledge transfer through games, consequences and limitations of asthma and the ability of SGs to allow for identification and management of real-life situations through games, and insufficient support system and the ability of SGs to encourage playing with others for support and shared knowledge.

CONCLUSIONS

Our pilot study explored the role of SGs in the self-management of asthma, as perceived by children and their parents. Our findings support the acceptability of SGs in asthma education and self-management in pediatrics and the necessity for future development in this field.
Pandemic Acceptance and Commitment to Empowerment Response (PACER) Training: Protocol for the Development and Rapid-Response Deployment (Preprint)
Authors: Fung Kenneth , Liu Jenny JW , Vahabi Mandana , Li Alan Tai-Wai , Zurowski Mateusz , Wong Josephine Pui-Hing
Published: September 2021

BACKGROUND

During a global pandemic, it is critical to rapidly deploy a psychological intervention to support the mental health and resilience of highly affected individuals and communities.

OBJECTIVE

This is the rationale behind the development and implementation of the Pandemic Acceptance and Commitment to Empowerment Response (PACER) Training, an online, blended, skills building intervention to increase the resilience and well-being of participants while promoting their individual and collective empowerment and capacity building.

METHODS

Based on acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) and social justice–based group empowerment psychoeducation (GEP), we developed the Acceptance and Commitment to Empowerment (ACE) model to enhance psychological resilience and collective empowerment. The PACER program consists of 6 online, interactive, self-guided modules complemented by 6 weekly, 90-minute, videoconference, facilitator-led, group sessions.

RESULTS

As of August 2021, a total of 325 participants had enrolled in the PACER program. Participants include frontline health care providers and Chinese-Canadian community members.

CONCLUSIONS

The PACER program is an innovative intervention program with the potential for increasing resilience and empowerment while reducing mental distress during the pandemic.

INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT

DERR1-10.2196/33495
Digital Health Interventions to Enhance Prevention in Primary Care: Scoping Review (Preprint)
Authors: Willis Van C , Thomas Craig Kelly Jean , Jabbarpour Yalda , Scheufele Elisabeth L , Arriaga Yull E , Ajinkya Monica , Rhee Kyu B , Bazemore Andrew
Published: September 2021

BACKGROUND

Disease prevention is a central aspect of primary care practice and is comprised of primary (eg, vaccinations), secondary (eg, screenings), tertiary (eg, chronic condition monitoring), and quaternary (eg, prevention of overmedicalization) levels. Despite rapid digital transformation of primary care practices, digital health interventions (DHIs) in preventive care have yet to be systematically evaluated.

OBJECTIVE

This review aimed to identify and describe the scope and use of current DHIs for preventive care in primary care settings.

METHODS

A scoping review to identify literature published from 2014 to 2020 was conducted across multiple databases using keywords and Medical Subject Headings terms covering primary care professionals, prevention and care management, and digital health. A subgroup analysis identified relevant studies conducted in US primary care settings, excluding DHIs that use the electronic health record (EHR) as a retrospective data capture tool. Technology descriptions, outcomes (eg, health care performance and implementation science), and study quality as per Oxford levels of evidence were abstracted.

RESULTS

The search yielded 5274 citations, of which 1060 full-text articles were identified. Following a subgroup analysis, 241 articles met the inclusion criteria. Studies primarily examined DHIs among health information technologies, including EHRs (166/241, 68.9%), clinical decision support (88/241, 36.5%), telehealth (88/241, 36.5%), and multiple technologies (154/241, 63.9%). DHIs were predominantly used for tertiary prevention (131/241, 54.4%). Of the core primary care functions, comprehensiveness was addressed most frequently (213/241, 88.4%). DHI users were providers (205/241, 85.1%), patients (111/241, 46.1%), or multiple types (89/241, 36.9%). Reported outcomes were primarily clinical (179/241, 70.1%), and statistically significant improvements were common (192/241, 79.7%). Results were summarized across the following 5 topics for the most novel/distinct DHIs: population-centered, patient-centered, care access expansion, panel-centered (dashboarding), and application-driven DHIs. The quality of the included studies was moderate to low.

CONCLUSIONS

Preventive DHIs in primary care settings demonstrated meaningful improvements in both clinical and nonclinical outcomes, and across user types; however, adoption and implementation in the US were limited primarily to EHR platforms, and users were mainly clinicians receiving alerts regarding care management for their patients. Evaluations of negative results, effects on health disparities, and many other gaps remain to be explored.
Enablers and Barriers to HIV Services for Gay and Bisexual Men in the COVID-19 Era: Fusing Data Sets from Two Global Online Surveys Via File Concatenation With Adjusted Weights (Preprint)
Authors: Ayala George , Arreola Sonya , Howell Sean , Hoffmann Thomas J , Santos Glenn-Milo
Published: September 2021

BACKGROUND

Gay and bisexual men are 26 times more likely to acquire HIV than other adult men and represent nearly 1 in 4 new HIV infections worldwide. There is concern that the COVID-19 pandemic may be complicating efforts to prevent new HIV infections, reduce AIDS-related deaths, and expand access to HIV services. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on gay and bisexual men’s ability to access services is not fully understood.

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this study was to understand access to HIV services at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

METHODS

Our study used data collected from two independent global online surveys conducted with convenience samples of gay and bisexual men. Both data sets had common demographic measurements; however, only the COVID-19 Disparities Survey (n=13,562) collected the outcomes of interest (HIV services access at the height of the first COVID-19 wave) and only the Global Men’s Health and Rights Survey 4 (GMHR-4; n=6188) gathered pre-COVID-19 pandemic exposures/covariates of interest (social/structural enablers of and barriers to HIV services access). We used data fusion methods to combine these data sets utilizing overlapping demographic variables and assessed relationships between exposures and outcomes. We hypothesized that engagement with the gay community and comfort with one’s health care provider would be positively associated with HIV services access and negatively associated with poorer mental health and economic instability as the COVID-19 outbreaks took hold. Conversely, we hypothesized that sexual stigma and experiences of discrimination by a health care provider would be negatively associated with HIV services access and positively associated with poorer mental health and economic instability.

RESULTS

With 19,643 observations after combining data sets, our study confirmed hypothesized associations between enablers of and barriers to HIV prevention, care, and treatment. For example, community engagement was positively associated with access to an HIV provider (regression coefficient=0.81, 95% CI 0.75 to 0.86; P<.001), while sexual stigma was negatively associated with access to HIV treatment (coefficient=–1.39, 95% CI –1.42 to –1.36; P<.001).

CONCLUSIONS

HIV services access for gay and bisexual men remained obstructed and perhaps became worse during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. Community-led research that utilizes novel methodological approaches can be helpful in times of crisis to inform urgently needed tailored responses that can be delivered in real time. More research is needed to understand the full impact COVID-19 is having on gay and bisexual men worldwide.
Kukulcán, Venus y los ciclos agrícolas en la estructura 2D5 de Chichén Itzá, Yucatán / Kukulcan, Venus and agriculture cicles on the 2D5 structure of Chichen Itza, Yucatán
Authors: Casares Contreras Orlando Josué
Published: September 2021

Los recientes debates en torno al evento astronómico denominado el Descenso de Kukulcán han demostrado nuevas interpretaciones sobre el tema y la reconsideración de ideas que teníamos sobre los equinoccios en el área maya. El presente documento tiene como objetivo la propuesta de un nuevo modelo más complejo sobre la hierofanía.Metodológicamente, se revisaron investigaciones previas, se tomó registro del evento durante los años 2014-2018 y se compararon los resultados obtenidos con otras investigaciones relacionadas con el calendario, la astronomía y el culto venusino, para explicar la relación del evento solar de formación de triángulos de luz en periodos más extensos y complejos. El análisis contempló datos comparativos con otros sitios y con información etnográfica de la misma región.Abstract: The recent debates about the solar illumination on the northwest side of the staircase of the Castillo, has shown us new perspectives to considerate about what we know of the astronomical event. The hierophany as equinox event has been questioned and discarded on one side of the discussion, and the other are trying to validate the equinox as the main event on the cited structure. However, the main objective is to explain the entire illumination as a complex model of mesure time. Methodologically, previous research was reviewed as well as the event was recorded during the years 2014 to 2018 and the results obtained were compared with other investigations related to the calendar, astronomy and the Venus cult, to explain the relationship of the solar formation event of triangles of light as an instrument to relate these subjects. Comparative data are also contemplated with other sites and ethnographic information from the same region.Keywords: Chichen Itza; Kukulcan; astronomy; calendars; agriculture.Résumé : Les récents débats autour de l’événement astronomique appelé la Descente de Kukulcán nous ont montré de nouvelles veines sur le sujet et la reconsidération des idées que nous avions sur les équinoxes dans la région de Maya. Le présent document a pour objectif de proposer un nouveau modèle plus complexe de la hiérarchie. Méthodologiquement, les recherches précédentes ont été passées en revue et l’événement a été enregistré au cours des années 2014 à 2018 et les résultats obtenus ont été comparés à d’autres investigations liées au calendrier, à l’astronomie et au culte vénusien, afin d’expliquer le lien entre l’événement de formation solaire de triangles de lumière dans des périodes plus longues et plus complexes. L’analyse comprenait des données comparatives avec d’autres sites et avec des informations ethnographiques de la même région.Mots-clés : Chichén Itzá ; Kukulcán ; astronomie ; calendriers ; agriculture.
Mujeres mexicanas retornadas: reconfiguraciones en la dinámica familiar / Mexican women migrants returning. Reconfigurations in the family dynamics
Authors: Franco Aguilar José
Published: September 2021

El presente artículo analiza los cambios o continuidades generados por mujeres mexicanas retornadas dentro de su dinámica intrafamiliar, derivados de su experiencia migratoria en EE. UU. El objetivo será la construcción de una tipología que discrimine la existencia de transformaciones dentro de dicha dinámica. En concreto, se exploran cuestiones intrínsecas en las familias que dan la pauta para contrastar situaciones. Particularmente, se estudian las siguientes dimensiones de análisis: trabajo doméstico, cuidado de los hijos, pautas de interacción familiar y concepción propia de la posición dentro del grupo doméstico. Los sujetos de análisis son veinte mujeres retornadas que tuvieron una residencia en EE. UU., quienes radican en una localidad rural, en el estado de Jalisco en México.Abstract: This article analyzes the changes and continuities in gender roles and family dynamics among migrant women returning from the United States. It considers the migratory experience as a potentially important factor influencing changes in gender dynamics within the family. The objective is to construct a typology that discriminates between existing changes in family dynamics and changes in gender roles resulting from the migratory experience. In order to provide a context to contrast situations, the article explores gender dynamics apparent in certain family dynamics, including housework, childcare, patterns of family interaction, and returning migrants’ conception of their position within the domestic group. The subjects of analysis are twenty returning migrant women from the United States who currently reside in a rural village in Jalisco, Mexico. Keywords: return migration; female return migration; family dynamics; rural area; Mexico. Résumé : Cet article analyse les changements et les continuités générés par les femmes mexicaines de retour de migration dans leur dynamique intra-familiale, comme résultats de leur expérience migratoire aux États-Unis. L’article propose de construire une typologie qui observe l’existence de transformations dans ces dynamiques. Plus précisément, les problèmes intrinsèques sont explorés au sein des familles et définissent la norme dans des situations contrastées. En particulier, sont analysées les dimensions suivantes : travail domestique, garde des enfants, modèles d’interaction familial et conception du rôle féminin dans le groupe domestique. Les sujets analysés sont vingt femmes de retour de migration qui ont résidé aux États-Unis et qui vivent actuellement dans une ville rurale de l’État de Jalisco au Mexique.Mots-clés : migration de retour ; femmes rapatriées ; dynamique intra-familiale ; zones rurales ; Mexique.
Hidroextractivismo en la cuenca del Usumacinta: entre dinámicas transfronterizas y diferenciaciones fronterizas / Hydroextractivism in the Usumacinta river basin: among transboundary dynamics and border differentation
Authors: Kauffer Edith
Published: September 2021

Partiendo de una reflexión teórica sobre el extractivismo, el artículo desarrolla una tipología que evidencia a la vez las características del hidroextractivismo y su profunda diversidad. ¿Qué entendemos por hidroextractivismo y cuáles son sus componentes? ¿Cuáles son las expresiones del hidroextractivismo en la cuenca transfronteriza del río Usumacinta? ¿Cuál es la relación con lo fronterizo y transfronterizo en este escenario? Para contestar a estas tres interrogaciones, el trabajo aborda, en primer lugar, la noción de hidroextractivismo como fenómeno sociopolítico y sus diversas expresiones. En segundo lugar, presenta las formas que adopta en la cuenca del Usumacinta a partir de hallazgos del trabajo de campo. Finalmente, profundiza en torno a sus relaciones con las dimensiones transfronterizas del fenómeno y al papel de la frontera en la existencia de diferenciaciones asociadas a este fenómeno. Abstract: Starting from a theoretical reflection on extractivism, the paper proposes a typology that evidences the characteristics of hydroextractivism and its deep diversity. What is hydroextractivism and what is it compounded by? How is hydroextractivism stated in the Usumacinta transboundary river basin? How does it relate with transboundary and border issues in this context? To attend these questions, the text first evokes the notion of hydroextractivism as a socio-political phenomenon and its diverse expressions. Then it focuses on its manifestations in the Usumacinta basin according to fieldwork findings. It eventually deepens on the links between hydroextractivism, transboundary and border issues that deal with observed differentiations.Keywords: extractivism; hydroextractivism; Usumacinta; transfronterity; border.Résumé : A partir d’une réflexion théorique sur l’extractivisme, l’article développe une typologie qui met à la fois en évidence les caractéristiques de l’hydroextractivisme et sa grande diversité. Qu’est-ce que l’hydroextractivisme et quels en sont ses composantes ? Quelles sont ses expressions dans le bassin transfrontalier de l’Usumacinta ? Quelles sont les relations avec le frontalier et le transfrontalier dans ce contexte ? Pour répondre à ces trois questions, le texte aborde en premier lieu la notion d’hydroextractivisme en tant que phénomène socio-politique et ses diverses expressions. Il présente ensuite les formes qu’il adopte dans le bassin de l’Usumacinta à partir de données de terrain. Enfin, il approfondit les relations que ce phénomène entretient avec les dimensions transfrontalières et le rôle de la frontière dans l’existence d’éléments de différentiation.Mot-clés : extractivisme ; hydroextractivisme ; Usumacinta ; transfrontérité ; frontière.
Dimensión y validez convergente. Sentidos y significados de la producción y la difusión científica en ambientes universitarios
Authors: León-Duarte Gustavo Adolfo , Contreras Cázarez Carlos René , Meneses Jurado Erika Carolina
Published: September 2021

Objetivo: examinar la dimensión y la validez de la escala de uso de productos de difusión científica aplicada a procesos de enseñanza-aprendizaje en el área de las ciencias de la comunicación. Metodología: evaluación de los resultados de una muestra de 61 docentes de pre y posgrado de la Universidad de Sonora, México. Resultados: el estudio sugiere que la escala se describe mejor mediante un modelo con tres factores y con los ajustes que proporciona el análisis de componentes principales. El índice de ajuste normado de Bentler-Bonet (0.88), el índice de ajuste no normado (0.91) y el índice de ajuste comparativo (0.93) son superiores a lo recomendado. Valor: es el primer estudio en la región que tiene este objetivo. Conclusiones: los análisis factoriales confirmatorios demuestran una validez convergente entre los factores teóricos analizados. En plena sintonía con la fiabilidad del cuestionario, se evidenció un ajuste adecuado y aceptable del modelo estructural planteado, lo que demostró la validez del constructo con los eventos observables del estudio. En consecuencia, es probable que el uso de la escala mejore el conocimiento sobre el sentido y el significado de la producción y la difusión de la investigación científica y su concepción activa y constructiva en procesos de enseñanza-aprendizaje, así como la calidad de su medición cuando se realice.
Mario Molina: pionero de la justicia ambiental
Authors: Bolaños Guerra Bernardo
Published: September 2021

Durante su vida, Mario Molina no rehuyó participar en instituciones y campañas destinadas a conseguir regulaciones y leyes que buscaban garantizar un medio ambiente sano. Molina participó desde el Consejo Universitario de la UNAM hasta las negociaciones para alcanzar el Protocolo de Montreal. Contribuyó a: definir la justicia en materia de normas sobre calidad del aire mediante control vehicular y coordinación metropolitana, elaborar leyes e instituciones encargadas de enfrentar el cambio climático, así como comprender la transmisión por aerosoles de la covid19. Durante sus intervenciones públicas en los medios, Molina buscaba que no se le asociara a un partido político o ideología, pero no dudaba en criticar decisiones de autoridades y empresas que carecían de una base de evidencia científica. Molina fundó y presidió en México, desde 2004, el Centro Mario Molina, institución de investigación y promoción de políticas públicas. Desde éste think tank o grupo de expertos se realizaron estudios estratégicos sobre calidad del aire, energías renovables y cambio climático que transformaron la justicia ambiental en el país.
Comparable Expressions of Bacillus species on Different Growth Media
Authors: Itoandon Emoleila
Published: September 2021

Abstract: An investigation was carried out using Pikovskaya Broth (PKB), Luria Bertani Broth (LBB), and Peptone Water (PW) to analyse growth expressions of constructed Bacillus subtilis sub sp and compared to a commercial Bacillus subtilis RIK 1285. The aim was to determine the effect of carbon, nitrogen and other elements at different variations on the metabolic activities under different conditions. The results obtained showed growth density of 4.1 g/ml at 70oC and 3.1 g/ml at pH 6.0; 3.3 g/ml at 70oC and 2.8 g/ml at pH 6.0; 3.8 g/ml at 60oC and 2.6 g/ml at pH 7.0 from PKB, LBB and PW respectively. The growth density of the commercial strain recorded 3.8 g/ml at 50oC and 2.8 g/ml at pH 7.0; 3.1 g/ml at 50oC and 2.3 g/ml; 3.0 at 50oC and 2.3 at pH respectively. The investigation showed importance and relevance of gene metabolic upgrade on the utilization of multiple nutrients present from one media to another. Keywords: media formulation, microbial reaction, growth promoters, growth density
Wheeled Robot Development for Obstruction Avoidance Mechanism
Authors: Patil Abhay
Published: September 2021

Abstract: Consolidating the current improvement status of clever robots, impediment aversion and programmed following are the focal point of robot travel issues. In light of the improvement status of homegrown clever control frameworks, current innovation, and so on, this paper utilizes Arduino as the centre control framework, joined with an infrared following module. Four modules, for example, ultrasonic impediment aversion module, engine drive module and force module have planned a decent control conspire, accordingly understanding the insightful following and hindrance evasion capacity of the wheeled robot. Keywords: Arduino, Wheel robot, Tracking, Obstacle Avoidance