bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Qualitative, multimethod study of behavioural and attitudinal responses to cochlear implantation from the patient and healthcare professional perspective in Australia and the UK: study protocol
Authors: Rapport Frances , Bierbaum Mia , McMahon Catherine , Boisvert Isabelle , Lau Annie , Braithwaite Jeffrey , Hughes Sarah
Published: May 2018

Introduction

The growing prevalence of adults with ‘severe or greater’ hearing loss globally is of great concern, with hearing loss leading to diminished communication, and impacting on an individual’s quality of life (QoL). Cochlear implants (CI) are a recommended device for people with severe or greater, sensorineural hearing loss, who obtain limited benefits from conventional hearing aids (HA), and through improved speech perception, CIs can improve the QoL of recipients. Despite this, utilisation of CIs is low.

Methods and analysis

This qualitative, multiphase and multimethod dual-site study (Australia and the UK) explores patients’ and healthcare professionals’ behaviours and attitudes to cochlear implantation. Participants include general practitioners, audiologists and older adults with severe or greater hearing loss, who are HA users, CI users and CI candidates. Using purposive time frame sampling, participants will be recruited to take part in focus groups or individual interviews, and will each complete a demographic questionnaire and a qualitative proforma. The study aims to conduct 147 data capture events across a sample of 49 participants, or until data saturation occurs. Schema and thematic analysis with extensive group work will be used to analyse data alongside reporting of demographic and participant characteristics.

Ethics and dissemination

Ethics approval for this study was granted by Macquarie University (HREC: 5201700539), and the study will abide by Australian National Health and Medical Research Council ethical guidelines. Study findings will be published through peer-reviewed journal articles, and disseminated through public and academic conference presentations, participant information sheets and a funders’ final report.
Standardisation of perioperative urinary catheter use to reduce postsurgical urinary tract infection: an interrupted time series study
Authors: Sadeghi Mahsa , Leis Jerome A , Laflamme Claude , Sparkes Darrel , Ditrani Wendy , Watamaniuk Aaron , Taggar Ru , Jinnah Fatema , Avaness Melisa , Vearncombe Mary , Nathens Avery B
Published: May 2018

Background

Prevention of healthcare-associated urinary tract infection (UTI) has been the focus of a national effort, yet appropriate indications for insertion and removal of urinary catheters (UC) among surgical patients remain poorly defined.

Methods

We developed and implemented a standardised approach to perioperative UC use to reduce postsurgical UTI including standard criteria for catheter insertion, training of staff to insert UC using sterile technique and standardised removal in the operating room and surgical unit using a nurse-initiated medical directive. We performed an interrupted time series analysis up to 2 years following intervention. The primary outcome was the proportion of patients who developed postsurgical UTI within 30 days as measured by the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS NSQIP). Process measures included monthly UC insertions, removals in the operating room and UC days per patient-days on surgical units.

Results

At baseline, 22.5% of patients were catheterised for surgery, none were removed in the operating room and catheter-days per patient-days were 17.4% on surgical units. Following implementation of intervention, monthly catheter removal in the operating room immediately increased (range 12.2%–30.0%) while monthly UC insertion decreased more slowly before being sustained below baseline for 12 months (range 8.4%–15.6%). Monthly catheter-days per patient-days decreased to 8.3% immediately following intervention with a sustained shift below the mean in the final 8 months. Postsurgical UTI decreased from 2.5% (95% CI 2.0-3.1%) to 1.4% (95% CI 1.1-1.9; p=0.002) during the intervention period.

Conclusions

Standardised perioperative UC practices resulted in measurable improvement in postsurgical UTI. These appropriateness criteria for perioperative UC use among a broad range of surgical services could inform best practices for hospitals participating in ACS NSQIP.
Excessive exercise in endurance athletes: Is atrial fibrillation a possible consequence?
Authors: Goodman Jack M. , Banks Laura , Connelly Kim A. , Yan Andrew T. , Backx Peter H. , Dorian Paul
Published: May 2018

Moderate physical activity levels are associated with increased longevity and lower risk of atrial fibrillation (AF). However, the relative risk of lone AF is 3–5-fold higher in intensive endurance-trained athletes compared with healthy adults. There is growing concern that “excessive” endurance exercise may promote cardiac remodelling, leading to long-term adverse consequences. The pathogenesis of exercise-induced AF is thought to arise from an interplay of multiple acute and chronic factors, including atrial enlargement, pro-fibrotic tendency, high vagal tone, and genotypic profile, which collectively promote adverse atrial remodelling. Clinical management of athletes with AF, while challenging, can be achieved using various strategies that may allow continued, safe exercise. Based on the overall risk-benefit evidence, it is premature to suggest that excessive exercise is unsafe or should be curtailed. Evidence-based assessment and treatment guidelines are required to ensure optimal and safe exercise among the growing number of endurance athletes with AF.
Vertical uplift resistance of horizontal plate anchors for eccentric and inclined loads
Authors: Kumar Jyant , Rahaman Obaidur
Published: May 2018

The vertical uplift resistance of horizontal plate anchors embedded in sand has been computed for inclined and eccentric pullout loads. The analysis has been performed by using the lower-bound theorem of the limit analysis in combination with finite element and second-order cone programming (SOCP). The methodology is based on the Mohr–Coulomb yield criterion and the associated flow rule. Several combinations of the eccentricity (e) and vertical inclinations (α) of the resultant pullout loads have been considered. The computations have revealed that the magnitude of the vertical uplift resistance decreases with an increase in the values of both e and α. The reduction of vertical pullout resistance with eccentricity and inclination becomes more prominent for smaller values of embedment ratio. The anchor–soil roughness angle (δ) hardly affects the uplift capacity factor as long as the value of α remains smaller than δ.
Geometrization of heat conduction in perturbative space–times
Authors: Jamal Sameerah
Published: May 2018

We prove that the problem of symmetry determination linked to first-order perturbations of a metric, can be elegantly expressed using geometric conditions. In particular, an important feature of this study is that for any space–time that contains small perturbations, any equation constructed on such a space will inherit the perturbations. Intrigued by this connection between geometry and perturbations, we take the heat conduction equation and explore how the inherited perturbations affect the geometric symmetry conditions.
Breast cancer drug trastuzumab induces cardiac toxicity: evaluation of human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 as a potential diagnostic and prognostic marker
Authors: Johnson Taylor A. , Singla Dinender K.
Published: May 2018

Breast cancer is one of the most prevalent forms of cancer in the United States and worldwide. Cancer occurs through the uncontrolled development of new abnormal cell growth. Clinicians and researchers strive to improve diagnostics and treatments in pursuit of remedying breast cancer, while limiting or removing any potential side effects that may arise. Unfortunately, traditional treatments, such as anthracyclines (i.e., doxorubicin), can damage the cardiovascular system. Recent strategies have utilized antibody-based compounds as singular treatments, or in conjunction with other treatments, with the aim to minimize side effects. The human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) protein has been the target of numerous antibody-based breast cancer therapies, such as trastuzumab (TZM) and trastuzumab emtansine (T-DM1). This review will discuss the HER2 receptor as a diagnostic marker in targeting breast cancer using the therapeutic agents TZM and T-DM1, as well as discuss the induced cardiac toxicity following TZM and T-DM1 treatments.
Extreme operative temperatures in exposed microsites used by roosting Rufous-cheeked Nightjars (Caprimulgus rufigena): implications for water balance under current and future climate conditions
Authors: O’Connor R.S. , Brigham R.M. , McKechnie A.E.
Published: May 2018

Nocturnally active birds roosting in exposed microsites can experience operative temperatures (Te) that markedly differ from air temperature (Ta). Thus, quantifying Te becomes important for accurately modeling energy and water balance. We measured Te at roost and nest sites used by Rufous-cheeked Nightjars (Caprimulgus rufigena A. Smith, 1845) (mean body mass = 57.1 g) with three-dimensionally printed models covered with the plumage of a bird. Additionally, we estimated site-specific diurnal water requirements for evaporative cooling by integrating Te and Ta profiles with evaporative water loss (EWL) data for Rufous-cheeked Nightjars. Between the hours of 12:00 and 15:00, representing maximum solar radiation, mean Te at roost sites varied from 33.1 to 49.9 °C, whereas at the single nest site, Te averaged 51.4 °C. Mean diurnal EWL, estimated using Te, ranged from 2.8 to 10.5 g among roosts, values 1.2- and 3.6-fold greater, respectively, than Ta estimates. At the nest site, total EWL estimated using Te was 11.3 g, 4.0-fold greater than the corresponding estimate based on Ta. Consequently, Rufous-cheeked Nightjars can experience EWL potentially approaching their limits of dehydration tolerance. In the absence of microsite changes, climate change during the 21st century could perhaps create thermal conditions under which Rufous-cheeked Nightjars exceed dehydration tolerance limits before the onset of their nocturnal active phase.
An efficient nested chaotic image encryption algorithm based on DNA sequence
Authors: Slimane Nabil Ben , Aouf Nahed , Bouallegue Kais , Machhout Mohsen
Published: May 2018

In this paper, an efficient scheme for image encryption based on the nested chaotic map and deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) is introduced. In order to generate the initial condition values of the nested chaotic system, the Secure Hash Algorithm SHA-256 is used. The algorithm consists of two main layers: confusion and diffusion. In the first layer, the nested chaotic map is employed to create the scrambled image. The scrambled image is obtained through the ascending sorting of the first component of the nested chaotic index sequence. To ensure higher sensitivity, higher complexity and higher security, DNA sequence and DNA operator are employed additionally with the nested chaotic map and hash algorithm to modify the pixel values. The important advantages of our algorithm are the improvement of Number of Pixel Change Rate (NPCR), Unified Average Changing Intensity (UACI) and entropy, which improve resistivity against several attacks. Experimental results and relevant security analysis demonstrated that our proposed encryption scheme has the highest security level because it is more complicated, and it has a sufficiently large key space. The proposed method is compared to other recent image encryption schemes using different security analysis factors, including NPCR, UACI, correlation coefficients (CCs), encryption quality (EQ) and entropy. It is also resistant to noise (Salt and Pepper, Gaussian and speckle) and data loss attacks. The illustrated results demonstrated that the proposed image encryption scheme is efficient, and can be adopted for image encryption and transmission.
Naturally Occurring and Synthetic Mesoporous Nanosilica: Multimodal Applications in Frontier Areas of Science
Authors: Mitra Sutanuka , Kumar Rajesh , Roy Pradip , Basu Satakshi , Barik Samarendra , Goswami Arunava
Published: May 2018

Mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSNs) have gained attention worldwide due to their structural versatility for diverse applications in a number of frontier areas of sciences. The intrinsic chemical, textural and structural features of MSNs allow fabricating versatile multifunctional nanosystems. The present review provides an overview of the research progress in artificial and biological production of MSNs, their properties and various applications in cutting edge areas of sciences.
Oil and gas in the Vienna Basin: hydrocarbon generation and alteration in a classical hydrocarbon province
Authors: Rupprecht Bernhard J. , Sachsenhofer Reinhard F. , Zach Clemens , Bechtel Achim , Gratzer Reinhard , Kucher Friedrich
Published: May 2018

The Vienna Basin, a major petroleum province in Central Europe, hosts hydrocarbons in stacked carbonate and siliciclastic reservoirs. The study of 84 oil and 51 gas samples in the Austrian sector yields new insights into the petroleum system. The Upper Jurassic Mikulov and Falkenstein formations are the only significant source rocks, which generated oil between 0.7 and 1.0%Rr, and gas between 1.1 and 1.6%Rr. Microbial gas prevails in the southern part of the basin. Biodegradation affects oil down to a depth of 2000 m. Miocene reservoirs in the hanging wall of major faults and oils in transgressive sands are more prone to biodegradation than footwall flysch reservoirs and oils in turbiditic sands in structural-stratigraphic traps. Anaerobic biodegradation results in the formation of isotopically heavy CO
2
and isotopically light (secondary) microbial methane. Hydrocarbons in deep carbonate reservoirs are affected by thermochemical sulphate reduction (TSR). While TSR-affected gas is rich in H
2
S and CO
2
, TSR-affected oil is characterized by increased dibenzothiophene/phenantrene (DBT/Ph) ratios. In clastic reservoirs, H
2
S is removed by pyrite precipitation, whereas DBT/Ph ratios remain high. Hence, high DBT/Ph ratios may be used as proxy for TSR. Stable sulphur isotopes signatures confirm Upper Triassic anhydrites as the main sulphur source for H
2
S.
Algorithmic Analysis of Qualitative and Quantitative Termination Problems for Affine Probabilistic Programs
Authors: Chatterjee Krishnendu , Fu Hongfei , Novotný Petr , Hasheminezhad Rouzbeh
Published: May 2018

In this article, we consider the termination problem of probabilistic programs with real-valued variables. The questions concerned are: qualitative ones that ask (i) whether the program terminates with probability 1 (almost-sure termination) and (ii) whether the expected termination time is finite (finite termination); and quantitative ones that ask (i) to approximate the expected termination time (expectation problem) and (ii) to compute a bound
B
such that the probability not to terminate after
B
steps decreases exponentially (concentration problem). To solve these questions, we utilize the notion of ranking supermartingales, which is a powerful approach for proving termination of probabilistic programs. In detail, we focus on algorithmic synthesis of linear ranking-supermartingales over affine probabilistic programs (A
pps
) with both angelic and demonic non-determinism. An important subclass of A
pps
is LRA
pp
which is defined as the class of all A
pps
over which a linear ranking-supermartingale exists.

Our main contributions are as follows. Firstly, we show that the membership problem of LRA
pp
(i) can be decided in polynomial time for A
pps
with at most demonic non-determinism, and (ii) is NP-hard and in PSPACE for A
pps
with angelic non-determinism. Moreover, the NP-hardness result holds already for A
pps
without probability and demonic non-determinism. Secondly, we show that the concentration problem over LRA
pp
can be solved in the same complexity as for the membership problem of LRA
pp
. Finally, we show that the expectation problem over LRA
pp
can be solved in 2EXPTIME and is PSPACE-hard even for A
pps
without probability and non-determinism (i.e., deterministic programs). Our experimental results demonstrate the effectiveness of our approach to answer the qualitative and quantitative questions over A
pps
with at most demonic non-determinism.
CD4+CD25highCD127low/−FoxP3+ Regulatory T Cell Subpopulations in the Bone Marrow and Peripheral Blood of Children with ALL: Brief Report
Authors: Niedźwiecki M. , Budziło O. , Zieliński M. , Adamkiewicz-Drożyńska E. , Maciejka-Kembłowska L. , Szczepański T. , Trzonkowski P.
Published: May 2018

CD4+CD25highCD127low/−FoxP3+ regulatory T cells (Tregs) are currently under extensive investigation in childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) and in other human cancers. Usually, Treg cells maintain the immune cell homeostasis. This small subset of T cells has been, in fact, considered to be involved in the pathogenesis of autoimmune diseases and progression of acute and chronic leukemias. However, whether Treg dysregulation in CLL and ALL plays a key role or it rather represents a simple epiphenomenon is still a matter of debate. Treg cells have been proposed as a prognostic indicator of the clinical course of the disease and might also be used for targeted immune therapy. Our study revealed statistically higher percentage of Treg cells in the bone marrow than in peripheral blood in the group of 42 children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia. By analyzing Treg subpopulations, it was shown that only memory Tregs in contact with leukemic antigens showed statistically significant differences. We noticed a low negative correlation between Treg cells in the bone marrow and the percentage of blasts (R=−0.36) as well as a moderate correlation between Treg cells in the bone marrow and Hb level (R=+0.41) in peripheral blood before therapy. The number of peripheral blood blasts on day 8th correlates negatively (R=−0.36) with Tregs. Furthermore, statistical analysis revealed low negative correlation between the number of Tregs in the bone marrow and the minimal residual disease measured on day 15th, the percentage of blasts in the bone marrow and leukocytosis after 15 days of chemotherapy. These results indicate the influence of Tregs on the final therapeutic effect.
The Dependencies of X-Ray Conductivity and X-Ray Luminescence of ZnSe Crystals on the Excitation Intensity
Authors: Degoda V. Ya. , Alizadeh M. , Kovalenko N. O. , Pavlova N. Yu.
Published: May 2018

This work studies the conductivity and luminescence of ZnSe single crystals under X-ray irradiation. The experimentally derived lux-ampere characteristics of the X-ray conductivity for ZnSe crystals have a sublinear behavior within the temperature range from 8 to 420 K. The theoretical analysis of the conductivity kinetics at X-ray excitation showed that the value of maximum accumulated lightsum at deep traps does not depend on radiation intensity. However, regarding shallow and phosphorescent traps, the strength of accumulated lightsum depends on the intensity of exciting irradiation. Specifically, these shallow traps and phosphorescent traps cause the sublinear behavior of lux-ampere characteristics in the semiconductor material.
Neuropsychiatric Involvement in Juvenile-Onset Systemic Lupus Erythematosus
Authors: Khajezadeh Mohammad-Amin , Zamani Gholamreza , Moazzami Bobak , Nagahi Zahra , Mousavi-Torshizi Mahdie , Ziaee Vahid
Published: May 2018

Objective. Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a complex autoimmune disorder characterized by multisystem involvement, including the nervous system. In the present study, we aimed to assess neuropsychiatric manifestations in juvenile-onset systemic lupus erythematosus (JSLE) in Iran.Methods. One hundred and forty-six pediatric onset patients with SLE who had registered in our pediatric rheumatology database were evaluated prospectively and cross sectionally within 2013-2015. Data including sex, age, age at the time of diagnosis, age at the time of study, physical examination, laboratory review, and neuropsychiatric inventory were extracted from this database. Classification of neuropsychiatric JSLE was according to the 1999 American College of Rheumatology (ACR) neuropsychiatric manifestations of SLE case definitions.Result. A total number of 41 patients with neuropsychiatric symptoms were selected. The patients’ average age was 12.2 years. The most common neuropsychiatric symptoms were seizures, migraine, and depression. The mean age at the onset of symptoms was 10.2 ± 3 years. Mean follow-up period was 57±34 (range: 12-120) months. From 41 SLE patients, 18 (43.9) presented symptoms at the time of diagnosis. In thirteen (31.7%) patients, neurological symptoms were developed more than 1 year after SLE diagnosis. Headache was the most common feature (13%), followed by seizure (9.5%) and chorea (3.4%). Other neurological manifestations included cranial nerve involvement (0.7%), loss of consciousness (2.7%), and impaired deep tendon reflex neuropathy (2.5%). The least common neuropsychiatric JSLE manifestation was aseptic meningitis seen in only one patient (0.7%).Conclusion. The presence of headache, mood disorders, psychosis, depression, and other neuropsychological manifestations in a patient with JSLE should prompt investigations into diagnosis of the primary nervous system involvement in order to reduce mortality and morbidity.
Biosynthesis of the Essential Fatty Acid Oxidation Cofactor Carnitine Is Stimulated in Heart and Liver after a Single Bout of Exercise in Mice
Authors: Broderick Tom L. , Cusimano Frank A. , Carlson Chelsea , Babu Jeganathan Ramesh
Published: May 2018

We determined whether one single bout of exercise stimulates carnitine biosynthesis and carnitine uptake in liver and heart. Free carnitine (FC) in plasma was assayed using acetyltransferase and [14C]acetyl-CoA in Swiss Webster mice after 1 hour of moderate-intensity treadmill running or 4 hours and 8 hours into recovery. Liver and heart were removed under the same conditions for measurement of carnitine biosynthesis enzymes (liver butyrobetaine hydroxylase, γ-BBH; heart trimethyllysine dioxygenase, TMLD), organic cation transporter-2 (OCTN2, carnitine transporter), and liver peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-alpha (PPARα, transcription factor forγ-BBH and OCTN2 synthesis). In exercised mice, FC levels in plasma decreased while heart and liver OCTN2 protein expressed increased, reflecting active uptake of FC. During recovery, the rise in FC to control levels was associated with increased liverγ-BBH expression. Protein expression of PPARαwas stimulated in liver after exercise and during recovery. Interestingly, heart TMLD protein was also detected after exercise. Acute exercise stimulates carnitine uptake in liver and heart. The rapid return of FC levels in plasma after exercise indicates carnitine biosynthesis by liver is stimulated to establish carnitine homeostasis. Our results suggest that exercise may benefit patients with carnitine deficiency syndromes.
Application of a Mobile Chronic Disease Health-Care System for Hypertension Based on Big Data Platforms
Authors: Li Dingkun , Park Hyun Woo , Batbaatar Erdenebileg , Munkhdalai Lkhagvadorj , Musa Ibrahim , Li Meijing , Ryu Keun Ho
Published: May 2018

Hadoop is a globally famous framework for big data processing. Data mining (DM) is the key technique for the discovery of the useful information from massive datasets. In our work, we take advantage of both platforms to design a real-time and intelligent mobile health-care system for chronic disease detection based on IoT device data, government-provided public data and user input data. The purpose of our work is the provision of a practical assistant system for self-based patient health care, as well as the design of a complementary system for patient disease diagnosis. This system was only applied to hypertensive disease during the first research stage. Nevertheless, a detailed design, an implementation, a clear overview of the whole system, and a significant guide for further work are provided; the entire step-by-step procedure is depicted. The experiment results show a relatively high accuracy.
Test Conditions for Pipeline Materials Selection with High Pressure Sour Gas
Authors: Gabetta G. , Correra S. , Sgorlon S. , Bestetti M.
Published: May 2018

Acid gases, such as CO2, H2S, and/or sulfur in oil industry’s production fluids, can be responsible for both general and localized corrosion, acting with different mechanisms, which depend on chemical and physical properties of the produced fluids. Materials selection for handling such fluids is performed by combining experience with suggestions from standards and regulations. A good deal of knowledge is available to predict corrosion rates for CO2-containing hydrocarbons, but the effect of high H2S pressure is less understood, mainly due to the difficulty of performing laboratory tests in such challenging conditions. For instance, the so-called NACE solution to assess SSC (Sulfide Stress Cracking) susceptibility of steels is a water-based solution simulating production fluids in equilibrium with one bar bubbling H2S gas. This solution does not represent environments where high gas pressure is present. Moreover, it does not take into account the corrosive properties of sulfur and its compounds that may deposit in such conditions. Besides, properties of high pressure gases are intermediate between those of a gas and those of a liquid: high pressure gases have superior wetting properties and better penetration in small pores, with respect to liquids. These features could enhance and accelerate damage, and nowadays such conditions are likely to be present in many production fields. This paper is aimed to point out a few challenges in dealing with high pressure gases and to suggest that, for materials selection in sour service, a better correspondence of test conditions with the actual field conditions shall be pursued.
Displacement and Stress Analysis of Thin Plate for Cement Concrete Pavement
Authors: Jia Liang , Zhang Li , Guo Jian , Yao Kai , He Shikai
Published: May 2018

In order to analyze the displacement and stress of thin plate for cement concrete pavement with rectangle shape and resting on Winkler soil foundation, an analysis model was set up based on the theory of elastic thin plate on Winkler foundation. According to elasticity Kirchhoff theory of thin plates and Winkler soil foundation model, the expressions of displacement and stress were yielded by using the inverse Hankel transform. Numerical method was employed to calculate displacement and stress of the thin plate. Results showed that displacement and stress corresponded with using the method from Code for Highway Design-Pavement. Results showed that the method can provide a new computation method for displacement and stress of the thin plate about cement concrete pavement.
Blood Pressure and Its Association with Gender, Body Mass Index, Smoking, and Family History among University Students
Authors: Alhawari Hussein H. , Al-Shelleh Sameeha , Alhawari Hussam H. , Al-Saudi Aseel , Aljbour Al-Majali Dina , Al-Faris Leen , AlRyalat Saif Aldeen
Published: May 2018

Hypertension is one of the major risk factors associated with cardiovascular diseases. In this study, we will assess the frequency of hypertension among healthy university students and its association with gender, body mass index, smoking, and family history of both hypertension and cardiovascular diseases. We screened healthy university students ranging from 18 to 26 years of age. For each participant, we performed blood pressure measurements using a previously validated device and obtained demographic data, body mass index (BMI), smoking status, and family history of both hypertension and cardiovascular diseases. Out of the total number of 505 participants included in this study, 35.2% have blood pressure between 130/80 and 139/89, and 13.5% have blood pressure of more than 140/90. We found significant gender differences in both systolic pressure (p = 0.003) with mean difference = 18.08 mmHg (CI: 16.13 to 19.9) and diastolic pressure (p = 0.011) with mean difference = 3.6 mmHg (CI: 2.06 to 5.14), higher in males than in females. Upon comparing the mean difference in both systolic and diastolic blood pressure with BMI, we found significant differences in both systolic (p < 0.001) and diastolic (p = 0.002) blood pressure. We also found that smokers have significantly (p = 0.025) higher systolic blood pressure (mean difference = 4.2 mmHg, CI: 3.2 mmHg to 8.8 mmHg), but no significant difference for diastolic blood pressure (p = 0.386), compared to nonsmokers. First-degree family history of both hypertension and cardiovascular diseases affected systolic but not diastolic blood pressure. Taking into account the adverse short- and long-term effect of hypertension, we recommend adopting an awareness program highlighting the importance of screening blood pressure in young adolescent populations, keeping in mind that both high BMI and smoking are important modifiable factors.
Improved Model-Free Adaptive Sliding-Mode-Constrained Control for Linear Induction Motor considering End Effects
Authors: Song Xiaoqi , Xu Dezhi , Yang Weilin , Xia Yan , Jiang Bin
Published: May 2018

As a kind of special motors, linear induction motors (LIM) have been an important research field for researchers. However, it gives a great velocity control challenge due to the complex nonlinearity, high coupling, and unique end effects. In this article, an improved model-free adaptive sliding-mode-constrained control method is proposed to deal with this problem dispensing with internal parameters of the LIM. Firstly, an improved compact form dynamic linearization (CFDL) technique is used to simplify the LIM plant. Besides, an antiwindup compensator is applied to handle the problem of the actuator under saturations in case during the controller design. Furthermore, the stability of the closed system is proved by Lyapunov stability method theoretically. Finally, simulation results are given to demonstrate that the proposed controller has excellent dynamic performance and stronger robustness compared with traditional PID controller.
A Profibrotic Phenotype in Naïve and in Fibrotic Lung Myofibroblasts Is Governed by Modulations in Thy-1 Expression and Activation
Authors: Cohen Pazit Y. , Breuer Raphael , Wallach-Dayan Shulamit B.
Published: May 2018

Lung fibrosis is characterized by abnormal accumulation of Thy-deficient fibroblasts in the interstitium of the alveolar space. We have previously shown in bleomycin-treated chimeric Thy1-deficient mice with wild-type lymphocytes that Thy1-deficient fibroblasts accumulate and promote fibrosis and an “inflammation-free” environment. Here, we aimed to identify the critical effects of Thy1, or the absence of Thy1, in lung myofibroblast profibrotic functions, particularly proliferation and collagen deposition. Using specific Thy1 siRNA in Thy1-positive cells, Thy1 knockout cells, Thy1 cDNA expression vector in Thy1-deficient cells, and Thy1 cross-linking, we evaluated cell proliferation (assessed by cell mass and BrdU uptake), differentiation (using immunofluorescence), and collagen deposition (using Sircol assay). We found that myofibroblast Thy1 cross-linking and genetic manipulation modulate cell proliferation and expression of Fgf (fibroblast growth factor) and Angtl (angiotensin) receptors (using qPCR) that are involved in myofibroblast proliferation, differentiation, and collagen deposition. In conclusion, lung myofibroblast downregulation of Thy1 expression is critical to increase proliferation, differentiation, and collagen deposition.
Erythrocyte Senescence in a Model of Rat Displaying Hutchinson-Gilford Progeria Syndrome
Authors: Chaudhary Manoj Kumar , Rizvi Syed Ibrahim
Published: May 2018

Background.Increased oxidative stress is a major cause of aging and age-related diseases. Erythrocytes serve as good model for aging studies. Dihydrotachysterol is known to induce premature aging feature in rats mimicking Hutchinson-Gilford progeria syndrome.Aim.In the present study, attempts have been made to explore the differential response of young and senescent erythrocytes separated by density gradient centrifugation from accelerated senescence model of rats mimicking Hutchinson-Gilford progeria syndrome and naturally aged rats.Methods.The erythrocytes of naturally aged and progeroid rats were separated into distinct, young and old cells on the basis of their differential densities. The parameters of oxidative stress and membrane transport systems were studied.Discussion and Conclusion.Our study provides evidence that organismal aging negatively affects oxidative stress markers and membrane transport systems in both young and old erythrocytes. This study further substantiates that the changes in progeria model of rats resemble natural aging in terms of erythrocyte senescence.
Epidemiology of Hypertensive State among Chinese Migrants: Effects of Unaffordable Medical Care
Authors: Guan Ming
Published: May 2018

Hypertension is a major risk factor for heart disease and stroke. Affordability of medical care affects hypertension prevention, treatment, and control, but limited information is available for Chinese migrants with hypertensive state. Using Longitudinal Survey on Rural Urban Migration in China 2009 data, 2468 Chinese migrants reported hypertensive status. On the basis of comparison between medical payment and job income, participants were categorized as unaffordable and affordable. Thus, unaffordable expenses and unaffordable services were defined based on a public available survey. The descriptive statistics showed that 24.96% were at risk of prehypertension and mild-moderate-severe hypertension among 2468 Chinese migrants from 15 cities. Small part of the sample was not affordable to pay medical expenses and services. There were significant differences of hypertensive states between gender, marital status, regular smoker, and economic unaffordability. Multiple logistic regressions indicated that economic unaffordability had associations with abnormal weight, poor health assessment, and unhealthy hypertensive status. The alarming results may necessitate targeted interventions, even among people with good health status.
Modelling Trends of Climatic Variability and Malaria in Ghana Using Vector Autoregression
Authors: Ankamah Sylvia , Nokoe Kaku S. , Iddrisu Wahab A.
Published: May 2018

Malaria is considered endemic in over hundred countries across the globe. Many cases of malaria and deaths due to malaria occur in Sub-Saharan Africa. The disease is of great public health concern since it affects people of all age groups more especially pregnant women and children because of their vulnerability. This study sought to use vector autoregression (VAR) models to model the impact of climatic variability on malaria. Monthly climatic data (rainfall, maximum temperature, and relative humidity) from 2010 to 2015 were obtained from the Ghana Meteorological Agency while data on malaria for the same period were obtained from the Ghana Health Service. Results of the Granger and instantaneous causality tests led to a conclusion that malaria is influenced by all three climatic variables. The impulse response analyses indicated that the highest positive effect of maximum temperature, relative humidity, and rainfall on malaria is observed in the months of September, March, and October, respectively. The decomposition of forecast variance indicates varying degree of malaria dependence on the climatic variables, with as high as 12.65% of the variability in the trend of malaria which has been explained by past innovations in maximum temperature alone. This is quite significant and therefore, policy-makers should not ignore temperature when formulating policies to address malaria.
Cretaceous-Tertiary Foraminifera and Palynomorphs from Djega Section and Inferred Paleodepositional Environments, Rio Del Rey Basin, Cameroon, West Africa
Authors: Anoh Njon Olivier , Njoke Mbanda L. , Elangwe Ngoe D.
Published: May 2018

Late Cretaceous-Paleocene foraminiferans and palynomorphs were recovered from the upper section of the Djega outcrop in the Rio del Rey Basin. Only a few planktonic foraminiferan species of the generaHeterohelixandHedbergellawere recovered among an assemblage dominated by calcareous and agglutinated benthonics. Marine dinocysts are curiously absent from among the palynomorph assemblage, which consists dominantly of pollen grains from land plants (angiosperms and gymnosperms) and pteridophytic spores, together with a few fungal remains. Two benthonic foraminiferal assemblages that include the Campanian-MaastrichtianBolivina afra-Haplophragmoides talokensisand the PaleoceneAnomalinoides umboniferus-Eponides pseudoelevatusare well established at this outcrop. The palynomorphs include a few typical Late Cretaceous and typical Paleogene species, while the majority are long ranging forms that straddle the Cretaceous-Tertiary boundary. The foraminiferal and palynomorph biostratigraphic distributions permitted us to recognize the succession of Campanian-Maastrichtian and Paleocene strata and the Cretaceous-Tertiary boundary for the first time in this basin. Lithofacies change from a monotonous thick pile of shales below, succeeded by sandstones, frequently alternating with mudstone, above. This indicates a general fall in sea level during the Early Paleocene earlier reported within this subregion, and the boundary marks the start of the out building of the Niger Delta which the Tertiary Rio del Rey Basin is part of. Both microfossils and lithofacies analyses aided the reconstruction of an open marine, probably middle to inner neritic shallow and transitional intertidal paleodepositional environments for the sediments exposed at this outcrop.
The Sensitivity of a Water Distribution System to Regional State Parameter Variations
Authors: Page Philip R.
Published: May 2018

The sensitivity of a pressurised water distribution system (WDS) to state parameter variations is studied. A novel local regional sensitivity analysis (LRSA) approach is introduced which applies the same change to a collection of parameters, called a region. For example, sensitivity to suburbs can be studied. General analytical (using algebraic methods) results are derived. They show how sensible conclusions arise from LRSA and state this dependence of the WDS on regions for the first time. For most cases, the WDS is 1.852–2 times more sensitive to pipe roughness coefficients than to pipe lengths. In most cases, when certain pipes do not have minor losses, the WDS is 4.871–5.333 times more sensitive to pipe diameters than to pipe lengths. Hence, the WDS is the most sensitive to pipe diameters, medium sensitive to pipe roughness coefficients, and least sensitive to pipe lengths. For most cases, when all reservoir and tank elevations (and heads) remain the same, changes of other elevations do not change flow rates and change the pressures in a simple additive way. In most cases, when all the reservoir water surface elevations are changed together, the flow rates remain unchanged, and the pressures change in a simple additive way.
A Shorter Circular Stapler Height at the Gastrojejunostomy during a Roux-En-Y Gastric Bypass Results in Less Strictures and Bleeding Complications
Authors: Horkoff Michael , Purich Kieran , Switzer Noah , Prasad Shalvin , Church Neal , Shi Xinzhe , Mitchell Philip , Debru Estifanos , Karmali Shahzeer , Gill Richdeep
Published: May 2018

The laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (LRYGB) is prone to a number of complications, most notably at the gastrojejunostomy (GJ) staple line. The circular stapler technique is a common method used to create the GJ anastomosis. Although recent studies have shown a decreased rate of anastomotic strictures with shorter stapler heights, the optimal circular stapler height to use remains controversial. We therefore completed a retrospective cohort study within the Alberta Provincial Bariatric Program (APBP) to compare outcomes between the 3.5 mm and 4.8 mm stapler heights. We identified 215 patients who had a LRYGB done between the years 2015 and 2017. 143 patients had the GJ constructed with a 3.5 mm circular stapler height, with the remaining 72 patients having the GJ fashioned with a 4.8 mm stapler height. The rate of anastomotic stricturing was lower in the 3.5 mm stapler group compared to the other cohort (3.5 versus 13.9%, resp., p=0.008). Likewise, the overall rate of bleeding complications was lower in the 3.5 mm stapler group compared to the 4.8 mm group (6.3 versus 15.3%, resp., p=0.04). The rate of anastomotic stricturing and postoperative bleeding is lower with the use of a 3.5 mm circular stapler compared to a 4.8 mm circular stapler when forming the GJ.
Time Dilation in Relativistic Quantum Decay Laws of Moving Unstable Particles
Authors: Giraldi Filippo
Published: May 2018

The relativistic quantum decay laws of moving unstable particles are analyzed for a general class of mass distribution densities which behave as power laws near the (nonvanishing) lower bound μ0 of the mass spectrum. The survival probability Pp(t), the instantaneous mass Mp(t), and the instantaneous decay rate Γp(t) of the moving unstable particle are evaluated over short and long times for an arbitrary value p of the (constant) linear momentum. The ultrarelativistic and nonrelativistic limits are studied. Over long times, the survival probability Pp(t) is approximately related to the survival probability at rest P0(t) by a scaling law. The scaling law can be interpreted as the effect of the relativistic time dilation if the asymptotic value Mp∞ of the instantaneous mass is considered as the effective mass of the unstable particle over long times. The effective mass has magnitude μ0 at rest and moves with linear momentum p or, equivalently, with constant velocity 1/1+μ02/p2. The instantaneous decay rate Γp(t) is approximately independent of the linear momentum p, over long times, and, consequently, is approximately invariant by changing reference frame.
Knowledge and Perception of Falls among Community Dwelling Elderly: A Study from Southern Sri Lanka
Authors: Gamage Nirmala , Rathnayake Nirmala , Alwis Gayani
Published: May 2018

The knowledge and perception of falls facilitate a better pathway to improve the health status among the elderly. Knowledge and perception of falls among community dwelling elderly were assessed in 300 participants (175 females) aged 65 years and above using an interviewer-administered questionnaire. Mean (SD) age of the participants was 73.0 (6.7) years. Majority (72%) knew some biological factors, and 60% knew environmental and behavioral factors which increase the risk of falls. Among 300 participants, 18% had poor, 61% had average, and 21% had good knowledge on falls. The mean (SD) knowledge was 48.14 (19.13). The most frequent (49%) information source was television. Significant associations were found between age (p=0.002) and educational status (p<0.001) with level of knowledge regarding falls. Individuals, 25.4% with good knowledge, 32.2% with average knowledge, and 51.9% with poor knowledge, had experienced falls during the previous 12 months (p=0.007). Regarding perception of falls, 20.3% (n=61) had negative perception and 79.7% (n=239) had positive perception. Significant associations were found between gender (p=0.01), age (p=0.04), and level of education (p<0.001) with perception of falls. This study revealed that the community dwelling elders had average knowledge and positive perception regarding falls and preventive measures, emphasizing the importance of falls prevention awareness programs.
Can Chaotic Analysis of Electroencephalogram Aid the Diagnosis of Encephalopathy?
Authors: Jacob Jisu Elsa , Cherian Ajith , Gopakumar K. , Iype Thomas , Yohannan Doris George , Divya K. P.
Published: May 2018

Chaotic analysis is a relatively novel area in the study of physiological signals. Chaotic features of electroencephalogram have been analyzed in various disease states like epilepsy, Alzheimer’s disease, sleep disorders, and depression. All these diseases have primary involvement of the brain. Our study examines the chaotic parameters in metabolic encephalopathy, where the brain functions are involved secondary to a metabolic disturbance. Our analysis clearly showed significant lower values for chaotic parameters, correlation dimension, and largest Lyapunov exponent for EEG in patients with metabolic encephalopathy compared to normal EEG. The chaotic features of EEG have been shown in previous studies to be an indicator of the complexity of brain dynamics. The smaller values of chaotic features for encephalopathy suggest that normal complexity of brain function is reduced in encephalopathy. To the best knowledge of the authors, no similar work has been reported on metabolic encephalopathy. This finding may be useful to understand the neurobiological phenomena in encephalopathy. These chaotic features are then utilized as feature sets for Support Vector Machine classifier to identify cases of encephalopathy from normal healthy subjects yielding high values of accuracy. Thus, we infer that chaotic measures are EEG parameters sensitive to functional alterations of the brain, caused by encephalopathy.
Prediction of Peak Velocity of Blasting Vibration Based on Artificial Neural Network Optimized by Dimensionality Reduction of FA-MIV
Authors: Zhongya Zhang , Xiaoguang Jin
Published: May 2018

Blasting vibration is harmful to the nearby habitants and dwellings in diverse geotechnical engineering. In this paper, a novel scheme based on Artificial Neural Network (ANN) method optimized by dimensionality reduction of Factor Analysis and Mean Impact Value (FA-MIV) is proposed to predict peak particle velocity (PPV) of blasting vibration. To construct the model, nine parameters of field measurement are taken as undetermined input parameters for research, while peak particle velocity (PPV) is considered as output parameter. With the application of FA, common factors are extracted from undetermined input parameters. Then, principal components are defined as a linear combination of common factors. The weight of each principal components effected on output parameter is ranked according to the calculation of MIV, and two principal components with minimum weight are eliminated. Ultimately, output parameter (PPV) is explained in a low-dimensional space with four input characteristic parameters. In the prepared database consisting of 108 datasets, 98 datasets are used for the training of the model, while the rest are used for testing performance. The performances of the ANN models are compared with regression analysis, in terms of coefficient of determination (R2) and mean absolute error (MAE). It is found that the performances of ANN models with using FA-MIV are superior to those of models without using FA-MIV in the prediction of PPV. In addition, the abilities of ANN models are all superior to regression analysis in the prediction of PPV. The result obtained from ELM is more accurate than BPNN and MVRA models.
Study of the Corrosion Process of AZ91D Magnesium Alloy during the First Hours of Immersion in 3.5 wt.% NaCl Solution
Authors: Pinela Vanessa Mandarano , de Oliveira Leandro Antônio , de Oliveira Mara Cristina Lopes , Antunes Renato Altobelli
Published: May 2018

The AZ91D magnesium alloy was immersed in 3.5 wt.% NaCl solution at room temperature for times ranging from 1 minute up to 72 hours. The aim was to investigate the evolution of the corrosion process using confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM), electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The microstructure of the as-received alloy was initially characterized by optical microscopy and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The crystalline phases were identified by X-ray diffractometry. The main phases were primary-α, eutectic-α, andβ(Mg17Al12). Vickers microhardness markings were made on the surface of one etched sample to facilitate the identification of the same region at each different immersion time, thus enabling the observation of the corrosion process evolution. Corrosion initiates at the grain boundaries of the eutectic microconstituent and, then, propagates through primaryα-grains. Theβ-phase was less severely attacked.