bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
On the formation of the phenomenon of the economic lag of Russia in the first half of the 19th century
Authors:   Institute of History and Archaeology of the Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Nefedov Sergey
Published: November 2021

The article is devoted to the analysis of the reasons for Russia’s economic lagging behind during the Great Divergence. The author tests the well-known hypotheses that industrial development was hampered by the opposition of the nobility and the cheap labor of serfs. Upon closer examination, these assumptions are not confirmed. The economic lag was primarily due to the lag in railway construction, which in the 19th century was the main driver of the development of heavy industry. The article analyzes the policy in the field of railway construction during the reign of Emperor Nicholas I (1825–1855). It is shown that the formation of this policy took place in a conflict between the emperor and the ministerial bureaucracy, headed by the Minister of Finance, Count Kankrin. While Nicholas I was guided by military-strategic considerations, the ministers proceeded from economic interests. Economic calculations pointed to the unprofitability of railways compared to transportation by waterways. The technical conservatism of the bureaucracy did not allow adequately assessing the prospects for new technology and the possibility of reducing the cost of transportation in the future. The article analyzes the difference between economic policy in Russia and in England, the United States, France and Germany, which led to the lag of Russia. In the West (with the exception of France), economic policy developed spontaneously on the basis of private initiative. The Russian bureaucracy blocked private initiative, it sought to preserve the capital stored in state banks to finance the great power politic. On the other hand, the railroad “mania” in England was accompanied by a speculative boom and the ruin of many railroad companies. For the Russian bureaucracy, this was another argument in favor of refusing to attract private capital. Meanwhile, “mania” promoted the mobilization of capital from small shareholders for railway construction and spurred the development of industry. Another way of using controlled private initiative was possible, which was implemented in France in the “Legrand project”. But the Russian bureaucracy refused to use private initiative, which doomed the country to an economic lag.
Adsorption kinetics of reactive dye using agricultural waste: banana stem
Authors: Arun Kumar K. , Bharath M. , Krishna B. M.
Published: November 2021

Removal of color from dye-bearing water has been a bothering task from the health point of view and in the aesthetic sense as well. Finding out the effectiveness of Remazole Red RGB dye removal is the aim of the present work using banana stem, an agricultural waste, as an activated carbon. The preparation of the banana stem activated carbon was done in the laboratory by carbonization followed by activation. To assess the impact of varied exploratory variables such as pH of adsorbate, contact time, initial dye concentration and dosage of adsorbent on the removal of Remazole Red RGB dye from aqueous solution adopting batch studies were performed. The Freundlich and Langmuir isotherm models were used to predict the adsorption capacity of adsorbent at equilibrium conditions, the kinetic parameters were also determined. The concentration of dye remaining in the system was measured using a UV visible spectrometer. The batch test resulted in the removal of the maximum of 87% of dye when the dye concentration was 2 mg/L, at an adsorbent dose of 0.5 gm/L and dye pH 4 in 35 minutes. It is established from the studies that the equilibrium data suited excellently both Freundlich and Langmuir isotherms. The maximum adsorption capacity of 14.28 mg/L was established from the Langmuir isotherm model. To state the sorption kinetics, pseudo-first-order and pseudo-second-order kinetic models were evaluated. The intraparticle diffusion model was checked for the adsorption data and it was observed that intraparticle diffusion is not the only rate-limiting step. The regression analysis results indicated that the linear regression model gave the best results. The above detection exhibits that banana stems can be used productively for the removal of color from dye-containing wastewater.
ASPECTOS CLÍNICO-EPIDEMIOLÓGICOS DA SÍFILIS GESTACIONAL NO NORDESTE DO BRASIL
Authors: Soares de Sousa Sandy , Barbosa Silva Yanneck , Maria Lima da Silva Iara , Flanklin Carvalho Oliveira Hernandes , Gabriel dos Santos Castro Antonio , Cezar Antunes de Araujo Filho Augusto
Published: November 2021

Introdução: A sífilis é uma das infecções transmissíveis de maior impacto global. Quando acomete em gestante é denominada sífilis gestacional, que pode ocasionar resultados fetais graves e também a sífilis congênita, que tem sido uma das principais responsáveis pela alta carga de morbimortalidade de recém-nascidos. Por conta disso, a sífilis gestacional tem atraído ações mundiais em prol do seu combate, porém, apesar dos esforços, há um aumento persistente, ano após ano dessa infecção, principalmente no Nordeste brasileiro. Objetivo: Analisar o perfil epidemiológico da sífilis gestacional no Nordeste brasileiro, entre os anos de 2014 e 2018. Metodologia: Estudo descritivo, transversal, realizado por meio de dados secundários de casos confirmados de sífilis em gestante entre os anos de 2014 a 2018, em todos os Estados do Nordeste brasileiro. As variáveis investigadas são referentes ao perfil sociodemográfico materno (idade, escolaridade e cor/raça), à idade gestacional e à classificação clínica da sífilis. Resultados: No período investigado foram notificados 41.605 casos de sífilis em gestantes, com aumento expressivo de quase 287% do ano de 2014 (5.137 casos) para 2018 (14.507 casos). Entre os Estados nordestinos, os números foram mais alarmantes, respectivamente, em: Bahia, Pernambuco, Ceará e Maranhão. Observou-se, entre os casos, predomínio de mães na faixa etária de 20 a 29 anos, com ensino fundamental incompleto, de raça parda e diagnosticadas no 3º trimestre com sífilis primária. Conclusões: O estudo demonstrou que os casos de sífilis cresceram gradativamente, o que indica a necessidade de intervenções precoces tanto no rastreio como no tratamento das gestantes e dos seus parceiros, a fim de minimizar os casos de sífilis congênita.
ATUAÇÃO DOS RESIDENTES MULTIPROFISSIONAIS EM SAÚDE DA FAMÍLIA NA CAPACITAÇÃO DE AGENTES COMUNITÁRIOS DE SAÚDE: RELATO DE EXPERIÊNCIA
Authors: Jackson Gonçalves de Carvalho Daniel , Soares Oliveira Pâmela , Oliveira Silva Amanda , Carla Cordeiro Magali , Nogueira de Souza Thalyta , Custódio Neto Eliana , Cristina Gonçalves Leite Isabel
Published: November 2021

Introdução: A Estratégia Saúde da Família (ESF) busca promover saúde de maneira integralizada, acessível e equânime dentro da Atenção Primária em Saúde. O agente comunitário de saúde(ACS) é uma categoria profissional essencial para a execução da ESF. Por esse motivo, é necessário a busca pela qualificação desta força de trabalho. Objetivo: O objetivo deste trabalho é retratar as atividades desenvolvidas durante a pandemia de Covid-19 com Agentes Comunitários de Saúde(ACS) em uma Unidade Básica de Saúde(UBS) em um município do estado de Minas Gerais. Metodologia: Trata-se de um relato de experiência oriundo de uma capacitação multiprofissional elaborada pelos Residentes Multiprofissionais em Saúde da Família(RMSF) realizada no período de Abril a Agosto de 2020. As oficinas eram apresentadas utilizando recursos manuais, audiovisuais e atividades mobilizadoras de participação, estimulando a interação desses profissionais  e  estreitando o vínculo entre o ACS e a equipe de saúde da família Resultados: As atividades eram realizadas a partir de oficinas mediante a discussão de temas relacionados ao cotidiano vivenciado pelos ACS na comunidade. Após a realização dessas atividades, notou-se os principais desafios enfrentados por  essa categoria e sua relação com a equipe de saúde da família da UBS. Além disso, a atividade permitiu um espaço de reflexão sobre os impactos dessa interação entre equipe e ACS na comunidade. Conclusões: Portanto, conclui-se que esses encontros foram oportunos para enfatizar o seu protagonismo nessa lógica do processo de trabalho, destacando a busca pela qualificação desses profissionais, garantindo a integralidade do cuidado aos usuários.
USO DE MÍDIAS SOCIAIS NA DIVULGAÇÃO CIENTÍFICA E PROMOÇÃO DE EVENTOS PARA REDUÇÃO DA MORTALIDADE MATERNA EM ÂMBITO NACIONAL
Authors: Lima Carneiro José Alberto , Alves de Carvalho Eliane , Duarte da Silva Nayana , Cardoso Marinho Medeiros Lis
Published: November 2021

Introdução: A divulgação científica tem o objetivo de promover o acesso ao conhecimento científico, acessibilidade e estabelecer condições para a promoção da alfabetização científica. Objetivo: Objetivou-se relatar a experiência no uso de mídias sociais na divulgação e promoção de eventos para redução da mortalidade materna. Metodologia: Estudo descritivo do tipo relato de experiência vivenciado por discentes, profissionais e orientadores envolvidos no processo de divulgação científica no Instagram e site da UNA-SUS- UFPI. Resultados: Assim, desenvolveram-se matérias informativos com chamamento aberto dos profissionais de Saúde para participarem dos eventos e cursos oferecidos pela Universidade Aberta do SUS da Universidade Federal do Piauí. Conclusões: A utilização das mídias sociais mostraram-se efetivas na divulgação dos eventos científicos oferecidos na Universidade Aberta do Sistema Único de Saúde, tendo em vista o amplo alcance em nível nacional do público alvo.
PERFIL EPIDEMIOLÓGICO HIV/AIDS NO ESTADO DO PIAUÍ EM 2019
Authors: Gonçalves Costa Junior Ivanildo , Joana Serra Ribeiro Sara , Matheus Ferreira do Nascimento João , Soares Tiago , Nascimento Vieira Júnior Denival
Published: November 2021

Introdução: O vírus da imunodeficiência Humana e a Síndrome da Imunodeficiência Adquirida ainda é expessivamente presente em grupos que sofrem de vulnerabilidades sociais, sendo um desafio ainda não superado, principalmente no que diz respeito ao desempenho de ações  de saúde e por parte dos gestores no sentido da realização de prevenções amplas, baseadas nos contextos epidemiológicos das comunidades, cabendo também considerar os problemas de estrutura da rede de saúde para com o manejo diagnóstico, contextos de desigualdade  e gênero que são as principais influencias para o desenvolvimento da doença. Objetivo: observar por meio de indicadores o panorama da situação do HIV/AIDS no Piauí no ano de 2019. Metodologia: Estudo epidemiológico realizado pela consulta às bases do DATASUS, IBGE e SINAN. Foram consultados dados referentes ao período de 2019, tendo como população avaliada a do Estado do Piauí. Buscou-se informações referentes aos indicadores de incidência, sexo, raça/cor, faixa etária, escolaridade e exposição, com foco nas taxas de incidência, óbitos e letalidade. Os dados foram agrupados e tabulados por meio dos programas Excel e Tabwin, utilizando o método de análise a técnica de percentagem. Resultados: No período vigente, o Estado apresentou 207 novos casos. A incidência foi de 6,32/100.000 habitantes, tendo maior detecção para o público masculino (73,91%), faixa etária de 30-39 anos, maior predominância da população parda, escolaridade de ensino médio completo e heterossexuais.  Quanto a mortalidade, foram notificados 134 óbitos por HIV, predominante para o sexo masculino. A Letalidade mostrou que 65% foram realmente afetadas pela doença. Conclusões: O perfil epidemiológico dos casos de HIV/Aids no Piauí foi caracterizado pela prevalência em determinados grupos, demonstrando que apesar da existência de políticas públicas que buscam a prevenção da doença, essa realidade ainda é presente nos dias atuais. Ressalta-se a importância da realização de estudos epidemiológicos para comparação e analise situacionais futuras.

Palavras-Chave: Epidemiologia.  HIV. Perfil de Impacto da Doença.
TNF-induced Lupus. A Case-Based Review
Authors: Skalkou Anastasia , Pelechas Eleftherios , Voulgari Paraskevi V. , Drosos Alexandros A.
Published: November 2021

:

Nowadays, tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNFα) inhibitors have revolutionised the treatment of inflammatory arthritides by demonstrating efficacy with an acceptable toxicity profile. However, autoimmune phenomena and clinical entities have been reported ranging from an isolated presence of autoantibodies to full-blown autoimmune diseases, including drug-induced lupus (DIL).

Case Presentation:

A 62-year-old woman with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) refractory to methotrexate and prednisone was treated with adalimumab (ADA). 4 months later, she presented acute cutaneous eruptions after sun exposure, positive ANA (1/640 fine speckled pattern), Ro (SSA) and anti- Smith (Sm) antibodies with no other clinical or laboratory abnormalities. The diagnosis of DIL was made, ADA was discontinued, and she was treated successfully with prednisone plus local calcineurin inhibitors.

Conclusion:

Thus, we review the literature for cases of DIL development in patients treated with TNFα inhibitors. Rheumatologists should be aware of the possible adverse events and the requirement of careful clinical evaluation and monitoring.
Application of Some Graphene Derivatives to Increase the Efficiency of Stem Cell Therapy
Authors: Foroutan Tahereh
Published: November 2021

Graphene and its derivatives have application potential in many areas such as environmental technology, catalysis, biomedicine, and in particular, stem cell-based differentiation and regenerative therapies. Mesenchymal stem cell transplantation has emerged as a potential therapy for some diseases, such as acute kidney damage, liver failure and myocardial infarction. However, the poor survival of transplanted stem cells in such applications has significantly limited their therapeutic effectiveness. Graphene-based materials can improve the therapeutic efficacy of stem cells as they prevent the death of implanted cells by attaching them prior to implantation and increasing their paracrine secretion. In this review, we will highlight a number of recent studies that have investigated the potential use of graphene or its derivatives in stem cell applications and the prevention of transplanted stem cells from cell death, thereby improving their therapeutic efficacy.
Isopropyl Ricinoleate, A Potential Alternative to Isopropyl Myristate:
Experimental and Computational Evaluation
Authors: Pratap Amit , Mali Suraj N. , Khan Nishat , Meena P. , Mohile Rashmikant
Published: November 2021

Background:

Due to growing environmental concerns, eco-friendly and sustainable materials have become one of the key interests of cosmetics research. Isopropyl myristate is be-ing used as a major cosmetic ingredient, like in many other cosmetic items, as an emollient for a long time.

Methods:

An emollient ester, isopropyl ricinoleate, is derived from non-edible oil, castor oil. The synthesized isopropyl ricinoleate using greener enzyme catalysed methodology was further tested for sensory evaluation and transepidermal water loss (TEWL) studies.

Results:

An ester, isopropyl ricinoleate, imparted better gloss and shine to the skin as compared to isopropyl myristate due to its higher refractive index. Both esters, isopropyl ricinoleate and isopropyl myristate, showed minimum tackiness and residue after spreading. Moreover, in-silico toxicity analysis of ester, isopropyl ricinoleate, supported previously reported in-vitro tox-icity data.

Conclusion:

Thus, the current study provides better insights on the replacement of emollient es-ter isopropyl myristate by isopropyl ricinoleate.
Real-time IR700 Fluorescence Imaging During Near-infrared Photoimmunotherapy Using a Clinically-approved Camera for Indocyanine Green
Authors: OKUYAMA SHUHEI , FUJIMURA DAIKI , INAGAKI FUYUKI , OKADA RYUHEI , MARUOKA YASUHIRO , WAKIYAMA HIROAKI , KATO TAKUYA , FURUSAWA AKI , CHOYKE PETER L. , KOBAYASHI HISATAKA
Published: November 2021

Background/Aim: Near-infrared photoimmuno-therapy (NIR-PIT) is a newly approved cancer phototherapy. We aim to confirm whether a clinically approved camera for indocyanine green (ICG) could monitor IR700 fluorescence in real time during exposure to therapeutic NIR light. Materials and Methods: An NIR camera, LIGHTVISION, designed to image ICG fluorescence, was used. A431-GFP/luc tumor-bearing mice were exposed to therapeutic NIR light and real-time fluorescence imaging (RT-FI) was obtained and measured with LIGHTVISION. Bioluminescence imaging (BLI) was performed to confirm cell death. Results: RT-FI during NIR-PIT revealed an initial rapid loss of fluorescence, followed by a plateau which occurred at a light dose of approximately 30 J/cm2. Correlation between BLI and IR700 fluorescence loss showed that loss of fluorescence was associated with increased cell death. Conclusion: The efficacy of NIR-PIT could be monitored non-invasively and in real-time using weak fluorescence at wavelengths much longer than the peak fluorescence of IR700. This technique can achieve precise light dosimetry that allows us to decide on the optimal exposure.
Influence of Concomitant Polypharmacy on Docetaxel-induced Febrile Neutropenia
Authors: MAKIHARA KATSUYA , SHIMEDA YUKA , MATSUMURA TOMOKAZU
Published: November 2021

Background/Aim: Docetaxel (DTX) is metabolized by liver cytochromes P450 (CYP) 3A4 (CYP3A4) and 3A5 (CYP3A5) CYP3A4 activity is considered the main factor affecting the effectiveness in DTX clearance. We, therefore, explored the association between DTX-induced febrile neutropenia (FN) and concomitant polypharmacy involving CYP3A4 inhibitors in cancer patients. Patients and Methods: Among patients who received docetaxel, we compared the number of concomitant medications between patients with and without FN, and risk factors associated with FN were identified. Results: The total number of concomitant CYP3A4 inhibitors and substrates used was significantly higher in patients with FN [mean: 2.1 (95% confidence interval (CI)=1.5-2.9)] than in those without FN [mean: 1.4 (95% CI=1.0-1.8)] (p=0.01). The only risk factor for FN was the use of ≥2 concomitant CYP3A4 inhibitors and substrates in total (OR=4.82, 95% CI=1.77-14.1; p=0.002). Conclusion: Polypharmacy involving CYP3A4 inhibitors and substrates increases the risk of DTX-induced FN.
Significance of 5-Aminolevulinic Acid-mediated Photodynamic Diagnosis Following Standard Transurethral Resection in Non-muscle Invasive Bladder Cancer
Authors: WATANABE KYOHEI , TAMURA KEITA , MATSUSHITA YUTO , WATANABE HIROMITSU , MOTOYAMA DAISUKE , ITO TOSHIKI , SUGIYAMA TAKAYUKI , OTSUKA ATSUSHI , MIYAKE HIDEAKI
Published: November 2021

Background/Aim: Transurethral resection of bladder tumors (TURBT) guided by photodynamic diagnosis (PDD) with 5-aminolevulinic acid (5-ALA) has been shown to be superior to conventional white light (WL) cystoscopy with regard to diagnostic accuracy, for non-muscle invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC); however, PDD is usually performed prior to WL TURBT. The objective of this study was to investigate the diagnostic significance of 5-ALA-mediated PDD following TUR of NMIBC. Patients and Methods: In 83 NMIBC patients, all visible tumors were completely resected under the conventional WL guidance followed by additional resection if fluorescent lesions were observed under the blue light (BL) guidance, and random biopsy was further conducted. Results: With the BL source, 39 (47.0%) patients were judged to have fluorescent lesions. Twenty (51.3%) of the 39 patients with positive findings by PDD were diagnosed with residual cancer by additional resection, while random biopsy detected cancers in 2 (4.5%) of the 44 patients with negative findings by PDD. Accordingly, the sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value and negative predictive value in diagnosing residual cancer by our PDD system were 90.9, 68.9, 51.3 and 95.5%, respectively. Univariate analysis showed that the presence of residual cancers shown by WL TURBT was significantly associated with the preoperative findings of urinary cytology, tumor multiplicity, pathological T stage and tumor grade, of which only the preoperative finding on urinary cytology was shown to have an independent impact on the diagnosis of residual cancer. Conclusion: 5-ALA-mediated PDD following standard WL TURBT could improve the diagnostic accuracy in NMIBC patients, particularly those who are positive for preoperative urinary cytology.
Tumour-associated Angiogenesis and Intermediate Blood Vessels in Renal Cell Carcinoma
Authors: RAICA MARIUS , CIMPEAN ANCA MARIA , FERICIAN OVIDIU CATALIN , FERICIAN ADELA MARIA
Published: November 2021

Background/Aim: Renal cell carcinoma is strongly vascularized, and formation of new blood vessels is a complex and multi-step process. In this study, we analysed the subtypes of intermediate blood vessels, as shown by double immunohistochemistry. Materials and Methods: Tumour-associated blood vessels were identified by double immunostaining based on CD34 and smooth muscle cell actin. Blood vessels were classified both quantitatively and qualitatively based on the expression of the aforementioned two markers. The main criteria to sub-classify intermediate blood vessels was the presence, distribution, and arrangement of perivascular cells. Results: We described three subtypes of intermediate blood vessels found particularly in the tumour area: Subtype 1 lacked perivascular cells, subtype 2 showed scattered pericytes attached to the vascular wall, and subtype 3 showed a continuous layer of perivascular cells on one side. Conclusion: We describe for the first time three subtypes of renal cell carcinoma-associated intermediate blood vessels, which could be important in prognosis and as potential targets for anti-vascular therapy.
Natural Language Processing and Machine Learning Methods to Characterize Unstructured Patient-Reported Outcomes: Validation Study
Authors: Lu Zhaohua , Sim Jin-ah , Wang Jade X , Forrest Christopher B , Krull Kevin R , Srivastava Deokumar , Hudson Melissa M , Robison Leslie L , Baker Justin N , Huang I-Chan
Published: November 2021

Background

Assessing patient-reported outcomes (PROs) through interviews or conversations during clinical encounters provides insightful information about survivorship.

Objective

This study aims to test the validity of natural language processing (NLP) and machine learning (ML) algorithms in identifying different attributes of pain interference and fatigue symptoms experienced by child and adolescent survivors of cancer versus the judgment by PRO content experts as the gold standard to validate NLP/ML algorithms.

Methods

This cross-sectional study focused on child and adolescent survivors of cancer, aged 8 to 17 years, and caregivers, from whom 391 meaning units in the pain interference domain and 423 in the fatigue domain were generated for analyses. Data were collected from the After Completion of Therapy Clinic at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. Experienced pain interference and fatigue symptoms were reported through in-depth interviews. After verbatim transcription, analyzable sentences (ie, meaning units) were semantically labeled by 2 content experts for each attribute (physical, cognitive, social, or unclassified). Two NLP/ML methods were used to extract and validate the semantic features: bidirectional encoder representations from transformers (BERT) and Word2vec plus one of the ML methods, the support vector machine or extreme gradient boosting. Receiver operating characteristic and precision-recall curves were used to evaluate the accuracy and validity of the NLP/ML methods.

Results

Compared with Word2vec/support vector machine and Word2vec/extreme gradient boosting, BERT demonstrated higher accuracy in both symptom domains, with 0.931 (95% CI 0.905-0.957) and 0.916 (95% CI 0.887-0.941) for problems with cognitive and social attributes on pain interference, respectively, and 0.929 (95% CI 0.903-0.953) and 0.917 (95% CI 0.891-0.943) for problems with cognitive and social attributes on fatigue, respectively. In addition, BERT yielded superior areas under the receiver operating characteristic curve for cognitive attributes on pain interference and fatigue domains (0.923, 95% CI 0.879-0.997; 0.948, 95% CI 0.922-0.979) and superior areas under the precision-recall curve for cognitive attributes on pain interference and fatigue domains (0.818, 95% CI 0.735-0.917; 0.855, 95% CI 0.791-0.930).

Conclusions

The BERT method performed better than the other methods. As an alternative to using standard PRO surveys, collecting unstructured PROs via interviews or conversations during clinical encounters and applying NLP/ML methods can facilitate PRO assessment in child and adolescent cancer survivors.
Benefits, Problems, and Potential Improvements in a Nationwide Patient Portal: Cross-sectional Survey of Pharmacy Customers’ Experiences
Authors: Sääskilahti Maria , Ojanen Anna , Ahonen Riitta , Timonen Johanna
Published: November 2021

Background

Patient engagement is a worldwide trend in health care. Patient portals have the potential to increase patients’ knowledge about their health and care and therefore enhance patient engagement. Portal users’ experiences are needed to determine if these portals work appropriately and if there are barriers to achieving the aims that were set before their implementation.

Objective

The aim of this study is to analyze pharmacy customers’ experiences of the Finnish nationwide patient portal My Kanta in terms of benefits, problems, and potential improvements.

Methods

A questionnaire survey was conducted among pharmacy customers in the spring of 2019. The questionnaires (N=2866) were distributed from 18 community pharmacies across mainland Finland to customers aged ≥18 years who were purchasing prescription medicines for themselves or their children aged <18 years. Using open-ended questions, customers were asked about their experiences of the benefits and problems of My Kanta and what improvements could be made. Their responses were encoded and categorized using inductive content analysis, stored in SPSS Statistics for Windows, and analyzed using frequencies.

Results

Of the 2866 questionnaires, a total of 994 (34.68%) questionnaires were included in the analysis. Most respondents were My Kanta users (820/994, 82.5%); of these 820 users, 667 (81.3%) reported at least one benefit, 311 (37.9%) reported at least one problem, and 327 (39.9%) reported at least one potential improvement when using My Kanta. The most commonly mentioned benefits were opportunities to view health data (290/667, 43.5%) and prescriptions (247/667, 37%) and to renew prescriptions (220/667, 33%). The most extensively reported problems with My Kanta were that the portal lacks health data (71/311, 22.8%), navigating the service and searching for information is difficult (68/311, 21.9%), and the delay before health data are incorporated into the service (41/311, 13.2%). The most frequently suggested potential improvements were that My Kanta needs more comprehensive health data (89/327, 27.2%); the service should be easier to navigate and information easier to access (71/327, 21.7%); the service should have more functions (51/327, 15.6%); and health data should be entered into the portal more promptly (47/327, 14.4%).

Conclusions

Pharmacy customers reported more benefits than problems or potential improvements regarding the use of My Kanta. The service is useful for viewing health data and prescriptions and for renewing prescriptions. However, portal users would like to see more data and functions available in the portal and data searches to be made easier. These improvements could make the data and functions provided by the portal easier to view and use and hence promote patient engagement.
Examining the Utility of Social Media in COVID-19 Vaccination: Unsupervised Learning of 672,133 Twitter Posts (Preprint)
Authors: Liew Tau Ming , Lee Cia Sin
Published: November 2021

BACKGROUND

Although COVID-19 vaccines have recently become available, efforts in global mass vaccination can be hampered by the widespread issue of vaccine hesitancy.

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this study was to use social media data to capture close-to-real-time public perspectives and sentiments regarding COVID-19 vaccines, with the intention to understand the key issues that have captured public attention, as well as the barriers and facilitators to successful COVID-19 vaccination.

METHODS

Twitter was searched for tweets related to “COVID-19” and “vaccine” over an 11-week period after November 18, 2020, following a press release regarding the first effective vaccine. An unsupervised machine learning approach (ie, structural topic modeling) was used to identify topics from tweets, with each topic further grouped into themes using manually conducted thematic analysis as well as guided by the theoretical framework of the COM-B (capability, opportunity, and motivation components of behavior) model. Sentiment analysis of the tweets was also performed using the rule-based machine learning model VADER (Valence Aware Dictionary and Sentiment Reasoner).

RESULTS

Tweets related to COVID-19 vaccines were posted by individuals around the world (N=672,133). Six overarching themes were identified: (1) emotional reactions related to COVID-19 vaccines (19.3%), (2) public concerns related to COVID-19 vaccines (19.6%), (3) discussions about news items related to COVID-19 vaccines (13.3%), (4) public health communications about COVID-19 vaccines (10.3%), (5) discussions about approaches to COVID-19 vaccination drives (17.1%), and (6) discussions about the distribution of COVID-19 vaccines (20.3%). Tweets with negative sentiments largely fell within the themes of emotional reactions and public concerns related to COVID-19 vaccines. Tweets related to facilitators of vaccination showed temporal variations over time, while tweets related to barriers remained largely constant throughout the study period.

CONCLUSIONS

The findings from this study may facilitate the formulation of comprehensive strategies to improve COVID-19 vaccine uptake; they highlight the key processes that require attention in the planning of COVID-19 vaccination and provide feedback on evolving barriers and facilitators in ongoing vaccination drives to allow for further policy tweaks. The findings also illustrate three key roles of social media in COVID-19 vaccination, as follows: surveillance and monitoring, a communication platform, and evaluation of government responses.
Refining POSSIBLE: A Multicomponent Intervention
to Increase HIV Risk Perceptions and PrEP Initiation
Among Black Sexual Minority Men (Preprint)
Authors: Dangerfield Derek , Anderson Janeane N. , Wylie Charleen , Arrington-Sanders Renata , Bluthenthal Ricky N. , Beyrer Christopher , Farley Jason E.
Published: November 2021

BACKGROUND

Increased HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) initiation is urgently needed to substantially decrease the incidence among Black sexual minority men (BSMM). However, BSMM are less likely than other groups to accept a clinician’s recommendation to initiate PrEP and uptake remains suboptimal. Peers and smartphone apps are popular HIV prevention-intervention mechanisms that are typically used independently. Few studies have combined these strategies into a multi-component intervention to increase PrEP initiation for BSMM.

OBJECTIVE

This study refined an intervention using a smartphone app and a peer change agent (PCA) to increase HIV risk perceptions (HRP) and PrEP initiation among BSMM.

METHODS

Data were obtained from 12 focus groups and one in-depth interview among BSMM from Baltimore, MD, between October 2019 and May 2020 (N=39). Groups were stratified by age group: 18-24, 25-34, and 35 and older. Facilitators probed on attitudes towards the app, working with a PCA, and preferences for PCA characteristics.

RESULTS

Most self-identified as homosexual, gay, or same gender-loving (68%), were employed (69%), single (66%), and interested in self-monitoring sexual behaviors (68.4%). Overall, participants had low HRP and suggested that self-monitoring sexual behaviors could trigger internalized stigma. An acceptable PCA should be a “possible self” for BSMM to aspire.

CONCLUSIONS

Future research should explore the impact of implementing this strategy on HRP and PrEP initiation among BSMM.
Mobile apps for health professionals experiencing stress and burnout: scoping review (Preprint)
Authors: Zamani Rehona , Sriharan Abi , Aziz Amar
Published: November 2021

BACKGROUND

The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated the mental health crisis within the health workforce. There is evidence that mobile apps that promote psychosocial wellness may be an effective, low-cost, and widely accessible tool to reduce stress and burnout among HCPs.

OBJECTIVE

The objective of this scoping review is to explore whether there are mobile-based apps tailored to HCPs for stress and burnout relief during a crisis time and explore their characteristics and key features.

METHODS

The Google Play and Apple app stores were searched for wellness apps using the key words “relaxation” and “mental wellness”. The first 100 search results were assessed for eligibility. This was supplemented by an online search for burnout and stress relief apps for physicians and/or nurses. The apps were included if they focused on burnout and/or stress relief and demonstrated relevance to HCPs. More specifically, the app must be marketed to HCPs, recommended by health professional organizations, or was studied for efficacy among HCPs. The details of included apps were extracted on Microsoft Excel.

RESULTS

Most burnout and/or stress relief apps are targeted to the general population. Few apps (n=8) were specifically built for HCPs, but the pandemic crisis has encouraged existing apps to create specific content for this group (n=7). The features within apps relevant to HCPs were largely mindfulness/meditation (n=19) and wellness education (n=12), whereas community support (n=9) and access to psychological services (n=4) were less common.

CONCLUSIONS

Stress and burnout are widespread and severe among HCPs during the COVID-19 crisis. Mobile apps may be a feasible tool to offer wellness interventions, but most existing apps do not provide targeted content for HCPs. For those that do, they largely focus on individual-based activities, rather than external support.
Natural Language Processing to Identify Digital Learning Tools in Postgraduate Family Medicine: Protocol for a Scoping Review (Preprint)
Authors: Yan Hui , Rahgozar Arya , Sethuram Claire , Karunananthan Sathya , Archibald Douglas , Bradley Lindsay , Hakimjavadi Ramtin , Helmer-Smith Mary , Jolin-Dahel Kheira , McCutcheon Tess , Puncher Jeffrey , Rezaiefar Parisa , Shoppoff Lina , Liddy Clare
Published: November 2021

BACKGROUND

The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the growing need for digital learning tools in postgraduate family medicine training. Family medicine departments must understand and recognize the use and effectiveness of digital tools in order to integrate them into curricula and develop effective learning tools that fill gaps and meet the learning needs of trainees.

OBJECTIVE

This scoping review will aim to explore and organize the breadth of knowledge regarding digital learning tools in family medicine training.

METHODS

This scoping review follows the 6 stages of the methodological framework outlined first by Arksey and O’Malley, then refined by Levac et al, including a search of published academic literature in 6 databases (MEDLINE, ERIC, Education Source, Embase, Scopus, and Web of Science) and gray literature. Following title and abstract and full text screening, characteristics and main findings of the included studies and resources will be tabulated and summarized. Thematic analysis and natural language processing (NLP) will be conducted in parallel using a 9-step approach to identify common themes and synthesize the literature. Additionally, NLP will be employed for bibliometric and scientometric analysis of the identified literature.

RESULTS

The search strategy has been developed and launched. As of October 2021, we have completed stages 1, 2, and 3 of the scoping review. We identified 132 studies for inclusion through the academic literature search and 127 relevant studies in the gray literature search. Further refinement of the eligibility criteria and data extraction has been ongoing since September 2021.

CONCLUSIONS

In this scoping review, we will identify and consolidate information and evidence related to the use and effectiveness of existing digital learning tools in postgraduate family medicine training. Our findings will improve the understanding of the current landscape of digital learning tools, which will be of great value to educators and trainees interested in using existing tools, innovators looking to design digital learning tools that meet current needs, and researchers involved in the study of digital tools.

CLINICALTRIAL

Open Science Framework osf.io/wju4k 10.17605/OSF.IO/WJU4K

INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT

DERR1-10.2196/34575
Can machine learning be used to reduce overtreatment of the axilla in breast cancer? Results from a retrospective cohort study (Preprint)
Authors: Jozsa Felix , Baker Rose , Kelly Peter , Ahmed Muneer , Douek Michael
Published: November 2021

BACKGROUND

Patients with early breast cancer undergoing primary surgery who have low axillary nodal burden can safely forego axillary node clearance (ANC). However, routine use of axillary ultrasound (AUS) leads to 43% of patients in this group having ANC unnecessarily following a positive AUS. The intersection of machine learning with medicine can provide innovative ways to understand specific risk within large patient data sets, but this has not yet been trialled in the arena of axillary node management in breast cancer.

OBJECTIVE

To assess if machine learning techniques could be used to improve pre-operative identification of patients with low and high axillary metastatic burden.

METHODS

A single-centre retrospective analysis was performed on patients with breast cancer who had a preoperative axillary ultrasound, and the specificity and sensitivity of AUS were calculated. Machine learning and standard statistical methods were applied to the data to see if, when used preoperatively, they could have improved the accuracy of AUS to better discern between high and low axillary burden.

RESULTS

The study included 459 patients; 31% (n=142) had a positive AUS, and, among this group, 62% (n=88) had two or fewer macrometastatic nodes at ANC. When applied to the dataset, logistic regression outperformed AUS and machine learning methods with a specificity of 0.950, correctly identifying 66 patients in this group who had been incorrectly classed as having high axillary burden by AUS alone. Of all the methods, the artificial neural network had the highest accuracy (0.919). Interestingly, AUS had the highest sensitivity of all methods (0.777), underlining its utility in this setting.

CONCLUSIONS

Machine learning greatly improves identification of the important subgroup of patients with no palpable axillary disease, positive ultrasound, and more than two metastatically involved nodes. A negative ultrasound in patients with no palpable lymphadenopathy is highly indicative of low burden and it is unclear if sentinel node biopsy adds value in this situation.

CLINICALTRIAL

n/a
La pobreza de los recién llegados a Baja California
Authors: Peláez Herreros Óscar , Espinosa Godínez Jorge Iván
Published: November 2021

Objetivo: demostrar que la población que llegó en los últimos años a Baja California es más pobre que los residentes establecidos desde hace más tiempo, e investigar las causas y características del fenómeno. Metodología: se utilizan datos bienales de entre 2010 y 2018 del Consejo Nacional de Evaluación de la Política de Desarrollo Social, se realizan contrastes de proporciones y se estiman modelos de regresión de datos agrupados y de efectos fijos. Resultados: se encontró que, contrario a lo que ocurre en los demás estados de México, en Baja California la proporción de pobres es mayor entre los residentes más recientes que entre los que llevan más tiempo en la entidad. El porcentaje de pobres, el número relativo de inmigrantes y su origen son factores explicativos de esta diferencia. Limitaciones: los datos proceden de las encuestas no necesariamente diseñadas para los fines de esta investigación. Además, no fue posible detectar todas las causas del fenómeno analizado. Valor: se cuantifica por primera vez la relación entre la pobreza y los inmigrantes que llegan a Baja California, y se aporta información sobre las causas y características de esta relación. Conclusiones: Baja California es el único estado del país en el que los recién llegados contribuyen de manera sistemática a elevar la pobreza.
Ojos de Giotto
Authors: Maurette Pablo
Published: November 2021

One of the most curious excerpts of The Divine Comedy comes in the sixteenth canto of the Inferno when Dante addresses the reader and swears on the pages of his own work that what he is about to narrate is true. The creation of evidence through appeals to the reader is something usual in Dante, and something similar happens with one of his most remarkable contemporaries, the painter Giotto di Bondone. In several of the frescoes that have been preserved by his hand, the artist depicts a space of transcendent evidence through odd games of glances between the characters, but also calling upon the participation of the observer of the work and of his own eyes. Both Dante and Giotto, each in their own way, convey through their work a concern that will be the hallmark of modernity: the need to produce evidence.
La Comedia, una suma de prodigios entrevistos por José María Micó
Authors: Ortega-Jiménez Julio
Published: November 2021

This review examines the editorial characteristics of José María Micó’s version of the Comedia. It emphasizes a series of traits that singularizes the translation job and the commentary on the Dantesque work relevant to Spanish-speaking readers in the 21st century.
Thermal Analysis of a Disc
Authors: Wadile Ratnajeet
Published: November 2021

Abstract: The disk brakes are special mechanized parts in a vehicle attached with the tires to help reduce the velocity of the vehicle. As the brake pads caused friction with the disc brakes, there is a temperature rise. Due to this there are great chances of disc brake’s failure if temperature rises above some permissible limit. Solidworks and ANSYS are the design and analysis tools which are used to accomplish this project. The disc brake was designed using Solidworks and it was analysed in ANSYS workbench. The main aim of this project is to analyse two-disc brakes manufactured with different materials to compare their properties and select one with most benefits. Keywords: ANSYS, FEA, Disc brake, Thermal analysis, braking system, Radiation.
MOLECULAR-GENETIC MECHANISMS OF RESISTANCE OF NOSOCOMIAL KLEBSIELLA PNEUMONIAE STRAINS TO POLYMYXINS AND ANTIBIOTICS OF OTHER GROUPS ACCORDING TO WHOLE GENOME SEQUENCING DATA
Authors:   Gomel State Medical University, Petrovskaya T.A. , Karpova E.V. ,   Gomel State Medical University, Tapalski D.V. ,   Gomel State Medical University, Mozharovskaya L.V. ,   Forest Institute of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus, Baranov O.Y. ,   Forest Institute of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus
Published: November 2021

Identification of numerous mechanisms of resistance to colistin and other antibiotics is possible using whole genome sequencing. Objectives. To assess the molecular-genetic mechanisms of resistance to polymyxins and antibiotics of other groups in nosocomial Klebsiella pneumoniae strains. Material and methods. For 13 multidrug- and extensively drug-resistant K.pneumoniae strains semiconductor sequencing was performed in the Ion PGM System genomic sequencer (Thermo Fisher Scientific, USA). The assembly of genomic sequences and their annotation were carried out. The PROVEAN software tool was used to predict the influence of nucleotide replacements on the structure of amino acid sequences and functional activity of proteins. The identification of antibiotic resistance genes and the search for efflux mechanisms were performed by the ResFinder v.4.1 and CARD web resources. Results. Several types of β-lactamase genes were detected simultaneously in all strains, as well as genes of resistance to fosfomycin. Genes of resistance to aminoglycosides were identified in 11 strains, to chloramphenicol - in 10, to rifampicin - in 5, to macrolides - in 4. The mcr phosphoethanolamine transferase genes were absent in all strains. Functionally significant substitutions were revealed in the pmrB gene (D150Y, T157P, G207S) comparing the studied samples with the reference K. pneumoniae strain ATCC 700603. Changes in the mgrB gene were also found in colistin-resistant strains (W20R replacement, insertional inactivation of the gene by transposons of the IS1, IS4 and IS5 families). Conclusions. The results of whole genome sequencing represent the significant resistance of nosocomial Klebsiella pneumoniae strains to the majority of antibiotics including β-lactams, aminoglycosides, fluoroquinolones, fosfomycin, chloramphenicol, polymyxins. Genetic determinants of colistin resistance were revealed (insertional inactivation and deletion of the mgrB gene; D150Y, T157P and G207S substitutions in the pmrB gene) in strains with colistin MIC 64-128 mg/l and their absence in colistin-susceptible strains.
THE USE OF NEUROSMG:FOT APPLICATION FOR CARRYING OUT TAPPING TEST
Authors:   Vitebsk State Order of Peoples' Friendship Medical University, Usialionak G.O. , Kirpichenka A.A. ,   Vitebsk State Order of Peoples' Friendship Medical University, Martynova E.V. ,   Vitebsk Regional Clinical Center of Psychiatry &,   Narcology, Martsinkevich A.F. ,   Vitebsk State Order of Peoples' Friendship Medical University
Published: November 2021

The application of objective, high-precision and instrumental methods for diagnosing human psyche continues to be a pressing problem in modern psychiatry, narcology and other sciences. The rapid development of modern technology, including mobile phones, tablets and computers, makes it possible to port classical neuropsychological methods to mobile devices, thus simplifying the process of diagnosis and analysis of its results. The tapping test is a simple and easy-to-reproduce method of rapid diagnosing of nervous system properties by psychomotor indices. The classical method of the tapping test is the estimation of the number of marks given to the subjects on the selected piece of paper in the allotted time by the right and left hand. The given test has proved itself well, and later more sophisticated touch tracking devices appeared, including mechanical and electronic ones, which allow registering not only the number of touches, but also their duration, speed and strength. At the same time, despite the increased analytical significance, the carrying out of the automated tapping test is associated with significant difficulties, justified, first of all, by low portability, high cost, and low prevalence of the said equipment. This article describes the development of an application of E.P. Ilyin tapping test for the Android operating system. Tapping test is a classic technique for diagnosing the properties of the nervous system by psychomotor indicators, which determines the strength of the subject’s nervous system. In the course of the application work, in addition to determining the coefficient of strength of the nervous system, a number of psychomotor characteristics are additionally investigated: the coefficient of functional asymmetry in terms of the working capacity of the left and right hands, the interval between touches in milliseconds, the duration of the touch, the speed of the touch, the number of touches per second, the cumulative sum of touches per second , the density of touches during the tapping test. The functionality of the application and the testing methodology are also described.