bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Determinants of Persistent PTSD in War-Exposed Children: Application of a New Causal Discovery and Inference Approach in Syrian Refugees
Authors: Junior Claudinei Eduardo Biazoli , McEwen Fiona , Karam Elie , Pluess Michael
Published: March 2024

Objective: Identification of the most relevant factors leading to severe and persistent Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) presentation in refugee children is critical for prevention and treatment. Using causal inference tools for observational studies, we aimed to estimate the total putative causal effects of the most relevant factors for persistent and severe PTSD in Syrian refugee children living in Informal Tented Settlements (ITS) in Lebanon.Methods: A population-based prospective cohort study of Syrian refugee families living in ITS in Lebanon (BIOPATH study) was analysed. Families with children aged 8-16 years that had left Syria less than 4 years prior to recruitment were included. The first wave was conducted between October 2017 and January 2018. Follow-up data collection was conducted one year later (51.55 +/- 1.84 weeks). A subsample of 134 children was assessed with a structured clinical interview six months after the follow-up (27.02 +/- 7.16 weeks), between December 2018 and August 2019. Of the 2282 families approached in 77 selected settlements, 1600 (70.1%) agreed to participate. After one year, 1438 families were approached and data collected from 1009 families (62.8% re-participation rate). Data from 9 families were excluded during data cleaning. Ninety-eight variables across multiple domains (demographic, psychological, familial and community level) were measured using validated questionnaires and considered for a systematic causal discovery and inference method. Increased risk for severe and persistent PTSD based on symptom score was the primary outcome of interest. This outcome was validated a posteriori through structured clinical interviews in a subsample. Results: 1591 child-caregiver dyads were included (age = 11.44 +/- 2.44 years, 52.6% female) and 16.2% of children were at classified as at risk for severe and persistent PTSD (DSM-5 confirmed diagnoses in clinical interviews 6 months later 62.5% vs 34.5% in children with lower risk, p<.05; clinical severity score 4.5 vs 3.4, p<.01). In the systematic causal discovery and inference analysis, the level of war exposure (OR: 1.07, 95% CI: 1.03-1.11 , p<.01), peer violence victimisation (OR: 1.05 , 95% CI: 1.02-1.08, p<.05), neglect (OR: 1.11 , 95% CI: 1.05-1.17 , p<.01), maltreatment (OR: 1.04 , 95% CI: 1.02-1.07 , p<.05) and caregiver depression (OR: 1.04 , 95% CI: 1.01-1.17 , p<.05) predicted risk for persistent and severe PTSD. The quality of the concurrent refugee environment (OR: 0.55, 95% CI: 0.38-0.77, p<.01) was strongly negatively associated with severe and persistent PTSD presentations.Conclusion: Minimising violent re-victimization and exposure to daily stressors, and addressing caregiver mental health, might prevent the development of severe PTSD in refugee children.
A Framework for Assessment of Adverse Events Occurring in Psychedelic Assisted Therapies
Authors: Palitsky Roman , Kaplan Deanna M , Perna John , Bosshardt Zacchary , Maples-Keller Jessica L. , Levin-Aspenson Holly Frances , Zarrabi Ali John , Peacock Caroline , Mletzko Tajna , Rothbaum Barbara O , Raison Charles , GRANT GEORGE H. , Dunlop Boadie W.
Published: March 2024

Objective: Despite considerable research examining the efficacy of psychedelic-assisted therapies (PATs) for treating psychiatric disorders, assessment of adverse events (AEs) in PAT research has lagged. Current AE reporting standards in PAT trials are poorly calibrated to features of PAT that distinguish it from other treatments, leaving many potential AEs unassessed.Methods: A multidisciplinary working group of experts involved in PAT pooled formally and informally documented AEs observed through research experience and in published literature. This information was integrated with (a) current standards and practices for AE reporting in pharmacotherapy and psychotherapy trials, and (b) published findings documenting post-acute dosing impacts of psychedelics on subjective states, meaning, and psychosocial health variables, to produce a set of AE constructs important to evaluate in PAT as well as recommended methods and time frames for their assessment and monitoring. Correspondence between identified potential AEs and current standards for AE assessment was examined, including the extent of coverage of identified AE constructs by 22 existing measures used in relevant research. Results: 53 potential AE terms warranting systematized assessment in PAT were identified, defined, and categorized. Existing measures demonstrated substantial gaps in their coverage of identified AE constructs. Recommendations were developed for how to assess PAT AEs (including patient, clinician, and informant reports), and when to assess over preparation, dosing session, integration, and follow-up. Conclusions: This assessment framework addresses the need to capture post-acute dosing AEs in PAT, accounting for its pharmacotherapy and psychotherapy components, as well as documented impacts of psychedelics on worldviews and spirituality.
Jak nauczyć się czytać w dorosłości? Joanny Landy-Tołwińskiej walka z analfabetyzmem / How to Learn to Read as an Adult? Joanna Landy-Tołwińska's Battle Against Illiteracy
Authors: Chyl Katarzyna
Published: March 2024

Joanna Landy made significant contributions throughout her fifty-year academic and educational career to combat illiteracy in post-war Poland. She also shed light on issues related to functional illiteracy, lifelong learning, and the lack of institutional support for adult learners. In this paper, I discuss the course books she developed for adults in introductory courses. I present a follow-up study conducted fifteen years after the conclusion of the literacy campaign, focusing on the situation of the courses’ graduates. I also discuss a unique study of autobiographical materials collected through a memoir competition targeting adults who informally taught themselves to read and write. Finally, I delve into Joanna Landy's advocacy and activism for self-education and lifelong learning, which she promoted in Poland.The article is written in Polish.
The influence of surface roughness on heat transfer characteristics in micro channel heat sinks for electronic cooling application
Authors: Tera Terry , Kelvin Kelly , Tobiloba Bamigboye
Published: March 2024

Microchannel heat sinks are pivotal components in electronic cooling systems, efficientlydissipating heat generated by electronic devices. The optimization of heat transfer within theseheat sinks is paramount for enhancing thermal management in various applications. Among thecritical factors influencing heat transfer characteristics, surface roughness of microchannel wallshas garnered significant attention due to its profound impact on convective heat transfer andfluid flow behavior. This study aims to comprehensively investigate the influence of surfaceroughness on heat transfer performance in microchannel heat sinks, particularly focusing onelectronic cooling applications. The research employs a combination of numerical simulations and experimental analyses toexplore the intricate interplay between surface roughness, heat transfer, and fluid dynamics withinmicrochannels. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations are conducted to model the heattransfer phenomena and fluid flow behavior in microchannel heat sinks with varying degrees ofsurface roughness. Additionally, experimental studies are conducted to validate the simulationresults and provide empirical insights into the heat transfer characteristics under different surfaceroughness conditions. The outcomes of this research elucidate the complex relationship between surface roughness andheat transfer performance in microchannel heat sinks. Through systematic analyses of thermalresistance, pressure drop, and heat transfer coefficients, the study identifies optimal surfaceroughness parameters for maximizing heat dissipation efficiency while minimizing pressure droppenalties. Furthermore, the insights gained from this investigation facilitate the design andoptimization of microchannel heat sinks tailored to specific electronic cooling requirements. Overall, the findings from this study contribute to the advancement of thermal managementtechniques for electronic devices, offering valuable insights into the design and optimization ofmicrochannel heat sinks for enhanced heat dissipation capabilities in electronic coolingapplications.
The role of episodic memory in causal reasoning with counterfactuals: A perspective from predictive processing and trace minimalism
Authors: Rappe Sofiia , Werning Markus
Published: March 2024

Over the past several years, there has been a shift in the researchers’ thinking about the functional role of episodic memory. Rather than focusing on how memory represents the past, recent literature often presents memory as ultimately dealing with the future–helping the organism to anticipate events and increase its adaptive success. However, the distinct contribution of episodic (as opposed to semantic) memory to future-oriented simulations remains unclear. We claim that episodic memory yields adaptive success because of its crucial role in singular counterfactual causal reasoning, which thus far has been mostly ignored in causal reasoning literature. Our paper presents a causal inference model based on the predictive processing framework and the minimal trace account of episodic memory. According to our model, evaluating the cause of an event involves (i) generating an episodic memory related to the said potential cause, (ii) constructing a counterfactual scenario through inhibition of the relevant part of the past episode, and (iii) temporal evolution followed by alternative model evaluation. We further discuss our approach in the developmental context.
Inside the Multilingual and Bidialectal Mind: An Investigation of the Cognitive Effect on Executive Function
Authors: Antoniou Kyriakos , Spanoudis George Charilaos
Published: March 2024

Whether speaking two or more languages (multilingualism) or dialects of one language (bidialectalism) affect executive function (EF) is controversial. Theoretically, these effects may depend on at least two conditions. First, the multilingual and bidialectal characteristics; particularly, (second) language proficiency and the sociolinguistic context of language use (e.g., Green & Abutalebi, 2013). Second, the EF aspects examined; specifically, recent accounts of the locus of the multilingual effect propose a general EF effect rather than an impact on specific processes (Bialystok, 2017). We compared 52 “monolingual” (with limited additional-language/dialect experience), 79 bidialectal, and 50 multilingual young adults in the diglossic context of Cyprus, where bidialectalism is widespread and Cypriot and Standard Greek are used in different everyday situations. Three EF processes were examined via seven tasks: inhibition, switching, working memory (Miyake et al., 2000). We found better multilingual and bidialectal performance in overall EF, an effect moderated by high (second) language proficiency.
How to Build a Normative Creature
Authors: Tomasello William
Published: March 2024

Human individuals often make judgments about what they or others ought to believe or do in a situation. These normative judgments carry with them a supra-individual force, as they purport to take precedence over the individual’s own personal perspectives and preferences. They also carry with them a supra-individual generality, even universality, as they purport to apply not just to the self or other specific individuals but to persons in general (within some parameters).Here we pursue the hypothesis that the supra-individual force and generality of normative thinking and attitudes - both sociomoral and epistemic - is a natural consequence of their source in humans’ species-unique skills and motivations of shared intentionality.
Retrieval-Induced Semantic Interference
Authors: Hambric Channing Everidge , O'Seaghdha Padraig
Published: March 2024

The long-term negative effect of semantic retrieval on the subsequent accessibility of related material has been extensively studied in separate memory and language production literatures. Though ostensibly studying the same phenomenon, these literatures have remained separated by different framings and methodologies. We argue for integration of the two research streams in an adaptive learning perspective and present a bridging experiment as a proof of concept of this approach. The experiment implemented a multiphase retrieval-induced forgetting (RIF) design (with generation and memory assessment phases) in combination with the use of naming latency measures and the temporal analysis of interference featured in language production research. The generation phase, typically unanalyzed in the memory literature, examined generation time for category-stem completions as a function of ordinal positions of related items. There was strong cumulative interference in generation latencies in the first pass though the structured list, showing that memory is already affected in this phase. After a retention interval, accessibility of new items from previously activated categories and unactivated controls was assessed using continuous picture naming rather than aggregate memory measures. Crucially, there was a picture naming cost to previously activated (but not generated) category members relative to the control condition, a RIF effect. This cost was supervenient on new cumulative interference in the assessment phase, underlining the value of the combined methodology. The findings add important detailing to the processes underlying retrieval-induced costs in memory research while also showing that retrieval-induced semantic interference transfers from stem-completion to picture naming retrieval tasks. This format-independence is consistent with a conceptual basis of semantic interference but does not preclude a locus of adaptive learning in conceptual-lexical links. Overall, we show that the memory and language production fields are indeed different but complementary perspectives on the same semantic interference phenomenon. Combining the fields promises to be productive.
Policy-based and Affective Partisanship Depend on Dissociable Neural Systems
Authors: Jacoby Nir , Landau-Wells Marika , Pearl Jacob , Paul Alexandra Master , Falk Emily B. , Bruneau Emile , Ochsner Kevin
Published: March 2024

Political partisanship is often conceived as a lens through which we view politics. Behavioral research has distinguished two types of “partisan lenses” - Policy-based and Affective – that may influence our perception of political events. Little is known, however, about the mechanisms through which partisanship operates within individuals. We addressed this question by collecting neuroimaging data while participants watched videos of speakers expressing partisan views. A “partisan lens effect” was identified as the difference in neural synchrony between each participant’s brain response and that of their partisan ingroup vs. outgroup. A policy-based partisanship lens effect was observed in socio-political reasoning and affective responding brain regions. An affective partisanship lens effect was observed in mentalizing and affective responding brain regions. These data suggest that policy-based and affective partisanship are supported by related but distinguishable neural and therefore psychological mechanisms, which may have implications for how we characterize partisanship and ameliorate its deleterious impacts.
Is there a subconscious cause for our love of music?
Authors: Khan Tariq
Published: March 2024

A speculative essay proposing that the human subconscious mind can understand language but, while it can communicate with the sleeping mind via images in dreams, it can only communicate to an individual’s awake mind via what appear to the individual as a random recall of a musical song in working memory. Remarkable lyrics of a given song can thus be used by the subconscious as a means to communicate to the awake mind. A theory of subconscious communication from Cormac McCarthy in his Kekule’ Problem essay and the research of Jeff Hawkins and Numenta Corporation showing the human brain storing sequences of patterns including songs, are used to support the proposal.
An Adaptive Learning System for Stepwise Automatisation of Multiplication Facts in Primary Education
Authors: Iancu Stefania D. , Braam Myrthe , McCabe Nathan , Wilschut Thomas , van Rijn Hedderik , van der Velde Maarten
Published: March 2024

We demonstrate an application for learning multiplication problems with an adaptive algorithm that is based on a computational cognitive model of the learner's memory. The application helps learners automatise multiplications through repeated practice over three levels of difficulty. In a naturalistic setting involving more than 500 primary school students (ages 6-10) who together recorded over 200,000 responses, we observed that performance improved as learners using the application progressed through the levels. A model-based analysis of performance revealed that learners' estimated speed of forgetting decreased from the second to the third level. This is consistent with a shift towards stronger declarative knowledge and/or more efficient computation procedures. The model also identified consistent differences in the difficulty of individual multiplication facts that persisted across levels. This study demonstrates the feasibility of using an adaptive fact learning application to help young learners automatise multiplication, an essential mathematical skill.
Towards more ethical social media field experiments
Authors: Straub Vincent John , Burton Jason W. , Geers Michael , Lorenz-Spreen Philipp
Published: March 2024

The growing use of social media field experiments demands a rethink of current research ethics in computational social science. Here, we provide an empirical account of key user concerns and outline a number of critical discussions that need to take place to protect participants and help researchers to make use of the novel opportunities of digital data collection and field studies. Our primary contention is that we need to elicit public perceptions to devise more up-to-date guidelines for review boards whilst also allowing and encouraging researchers to arrive at more ethical individual study design choices themselves. We conclude by discussing how we can better strike a balance between meeting ethical guidelines and the concerns of social media users alongside maximizing scientific impact and credibility.
The Ames room and the misunderstood versions and depictions
Authors: Koshmanova Ekaterina , Dvoeglazova Maria , Myrov Vladislav , Gorina Elena Olegovna , Vodorezova Kristina , Gorbunova Elena , Sawada Tadamasa
Published: March 2024

The Ames room illusion is one of the best-known geometrical illusions but its geometrical properties are often misunderstood. This study discusses the differences in the geometrical properties between the original Ames room and what have been often referred to as “Ames rooms” in recent studies.
Asymmetries in Event-Related-Potentials Part 1: A Systematic Review of Face Processing Studies
Authors: Reinke Petunia , Ocklenburg Sebastian , Deneke Lisa Sophie
Published: March 2024

The human brain shows distinct lateralized activation patterns for a range of cognitive processes. One such function, which is thought to be lateralized to the right hemisphere (RH), is human face processing. Its importance for social communication and interaction has led to a plethora of studies investigating face processing in health and disease. Temporally highly resolved methods, like the EEG, allow for a detailed characterization of different processing stages and their specific lateralization patterns. This systematic review aimed at disentangling some of the contradictory findings regarding the RH specialization in face processing focusing on EEG research in heathy participants. Two databases were searched for studies that investigated left and right electrodes while participants viewed facial stimuli. The final data selection highlights, that strongest lateralization to the RH was found for the N170, especially for right-handed young male participants. Left-handed, female, and older participants showed less consistent lateralization patterns. Other ERP components like the P1, P2, N2, P3, and the N400 were overall less clearly lateralized. The current review highlights that many of the assumed lateralization patterns are less clear than previously thought and that the variety of stimuli, tasks, and EEG setups used, might contribute to the ambiguous findings.
Algorithmic Abduction: Robots for Alien Reading
Authors: Evans James , Foster Jacob G.
Published: March 2024

How should we incorporate algorithms into humanistic scholarship? The typical approach is to clone what humans have done, but faster, extrapolating expert insights to landfills of source material. But creative scholars do not clone tradition; instead, they produce readings that challenge closely held understandings. We theorize and then illustrate how to construct “bad robots,” trained to surprise and provoke. These robots aren’t the most human but rather the most alien; not tame but dangerous. We explore the relationship between the reproduction of tradition and the generation of surprise, and then show how formalizing a particular humanistic theory as a Bayesian prior allows us to identify readings that disrupt it through a process of algorithmic abduction. Among the exploding universe of surprising (and mostly ridiculous) possible readings, algorithmic efficiency allows us to select readings that nonetheless garner substantial support from the total archive and so merit interpretation and engagement. It is in such interaction between alien and human readers that meaning is made and understanding disturbed; it is by extending alien readings to novel texts that the scholarly community tests the value of those readings.
A Summer Bridge Program for First-Generation Low-Income Students Stretches Academic Ambitions with No Adverse Impacts on GPA
Authors: Johnson Rebecca , Simko Tyler , Imai Kosuke
Published: March 2024

A large body of research documents the barriers faced by first-generation, low-income (FGLI) students as ``hidden minorities'' on elite college campuses. Although existing studies show brief psychological interventions can help mitigate some of these obstacles, universities are investing in more intensive interventions that try to both shift mindsets and mitigate structural disadvantages in FGLI students' academic preparation. In collaboration with the administrators at a highly selective university, we conducted the first randomized controlled trial of a summer bridge program targeted at FGLI students. During summers between 2017 and 2019, we randomly selected 232 out of 418 first-generation or low-income students and invited them to attend an intensive, six-week long residential summer program featuring courses for academic credit. Students randomized to the control group either interacted with online content offering no academic credit or had no summer intervention. Our pre-registered analysis shows that the program encouraged FGLI students to pursue a more ambitious first-year program, increasing the proportion of non-introductory courses by 7 percentage points. The program also increased the proportion of courses taken for a grade rather than as pass-fail by 6 percentage points. These improvements were accompanied by no discernible impact on first-year GPAs and academic withdrawal. The findings show the ability to academically integrate FGLI students into selective university communities.
Local Economic Impacts of Hydroelectric Power Plants: Evidence from Brazil
Authors: Costa Francisco J M , Szerman Dimitri , Assunção Juliano
Published: March 2024

This paper evaluates the short- and medium-run effects of large hydroelectric power plant (HPP) construction on the economic development of Brazilian municipalities. Using the synthetic control method, we estimate the effects for 82 municipalities affected by HPP construction between 2002 and 2011. The average impact follows an inverted U-shape over a five-year horizon. The median impact in the medium run is positive but modest, with no effect on the composition of local economic activity. However, the estimated effects are highly heterogeneous. Five years after construction, the median impact on GDP growth rate is close to zero, while the 75th percentile of the treatment effects distribution is a 6.7 percentage points increase, and the 25th percentile is a 7.9 percentage points decrease. These results do not support the argument that large construction works unequivocally spur local development.
PSYCHOLOGICAL ARCHETYPES OF SCIENTISTS WITH AN INTROVERT TYPE OF THINKING
Authors: Knar Eldar
Published: March 2024

The chronological hierarchy and classification of psychological types of individuals are considered. The anomalous nature of psychological activity for individuals involved in scientific work is noted. Some aspects of introverted, extroverted, and ambivalent thinking in scientific activity are discussed. Psychological archetypes of scientific workers with pronounced introversion are postulated for the first time: they are less communicative (loner scientists), have a greater percentage of single-authored publications than collaborative ones, show less attachment to the sense and rhythm of time (prolonged work on a topic), exhibit high immersion in the subject of scientific research, are conservative in the theme of scientific research, conduct the majority of scientific research independently, are less adaptive to the environment, are less loyal and receptive to established rules or regulations, and critically perceive secondary details unrelated to scientific research. The normative-legal framework in the field of science does not fully take into account the psychological characteristics of a scientific worker and scientific activity. It is proposed to take into account the psychological archetypes of a scientific worker in grant and other programs, interpreted through variable terms of execution and reporting.
Started From the Bottom, Now We’re (Working) Here: Workplace Segregation by Social Class Origin
Authors: Hällsten Martin , Wartin August Torngren
Published: March 2024

Segregation is a pervasive social phenomenon, separating individuals of different categories or groups across social foci. Workplaces are hubs of the labor market and central to economic outcomes, but may also facilitate cross-cutting social ties. Workplace segregation might exacerbate social inequality and decrease social cohesion. Most work on segregation focuses on salient categories like race and ethnicity, and we know little about segregation by more subtle statuses. Social class background is a case in point, because it is imperfectly observed by individuals involved in social interaction, and is more difficult to measure for total populations. In this paper, we analyze workplace segregation by social class background. We document substantial segregation by social background, over and above counterfactual segregation under random allocation of employees across workplaces. Moreover, we observe segregation levels over and above what would be expected under random allocation conditional on individual and workplace characteristics, including e.g. human capital, occupation, and workplace county. Also, when accounting for our richest set of covariates, employees are somewhat overexposed to coworkers who share their own class background. The excess segregation is the smallest for groups at the bottom of the class origin distribution, and larger at the top.
Exploring research quality and journal representation: A comparative study of African Journals Online, Web of Science, and Scopus
Authors: Alonso-Álvarez Patricia
Published: March 2024

The unequal knowledge production and dissemination structure divides the world's academic system into a dominating mainstream circuit and a peripherical one, favoring the influence of certain communities in science and constituting the source of structural epistemic injustices. Several local and international initiatives have recently emerged to reduce regional inequalities and build alternative transnational publishing circuits. This paper studies alternative Journal Indexing Systems (JIS) and journal representation in alternative and traditional indexes. To do so, it focuses on the African publishing environment. First, it revises and compares the quality criteria of each database to explore the subjective nature of research quality. Then, the paper develops a methodology to compare journal coverage in different JIS and applies it to study African Journals Online, Scopus, and the Web of Science. It shows the coverage of the databases of African journals and their relative coverage in terms of countries, research areas, language, and geospatial focus. The results show the need for a situated notion of research quality and the biases of mainstream and alternative databases toward specific countries, research areas, and languages. The results presented here contribute to the ongoing conversation about diversity and inclusion in science and describe the current situation concerning the representation of African journals in three JIS. They can also be used to assess the limitations of our current bibliometric analysis and find ways to incorporate more inclusive data.
Is resisting Covid-19 vaccination a “problem”? A critical policy inquiry of vaccine mandates for healthcare workers
Authors: Chaufan Claudia , Hemsing Natalie
Published: March 2024

As the COVID-19 global vaccination campaign was launched in December of 2020, vaccination became mandatory for many healthcare workers (HCWs) worldwide. Large minorities resisted the policy, and the responses of authorities to this resistance led to damaged professional reputations, job losses, and suspension or termination of practice licenses. The joint effect of dismissals, early retirements, career changes, and vaccine injuries disabling some compliant HCWs from adequate performance, has exacerbated existing crises within health systems. Nevertheless, the position of leading health authorities has been that the benefits of a fully vaccinated healthcare labour force - protecting health systems, vulnerable patient populations, and even HCWs themselves – achieved through mandates, if necessary, outweigh its potential harms. Informed by critical policy and discourse traditions, we examine the expert literature on vaccine mandates for HCWs. We find that this literature neglects evidence countering claims about the safety and effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines, dismisses the science supporting the contextual nature of microbial virulence, miscalculates patient and system-level harms of vaccination policies, and ignores or legitimizes the coercive elements built into their design. We discuss the implications of our findings for the sustainability of health systems, for patient care, and for the well-being of HCWs, and suggest directions for ethical clinical and policy practice. (Update: Published in AIMS Public Health https://www.aimspress.com/article/doi/10.3934/publichealth.2024035)
The Flow of Funds Accounting and Monetary Theories: Their Relevance for Financial Planning with Special Reference to Nepal
Authors: Reejal Pushkar R.
Published: March 2024

Not Available.
Reliability of RUT done on endoscopy guided gastric biopsy in detecting Helicobactor Pylori
Authors: Mohammad Ali Wasif , Tanveer Khadeeja , Zehra Asiya , Parkar Zainuddin Liyakat , Afroz Nishat
Published: March 2024

Introduction: This study was done to identify the reliability of RUT in detecting H. Pylori in patients of gastritis by performing Histopathological examination. Endoscopic biopsy samples were taken from gastritis lesions present in the stomach.
Methods:  This was a prospective observational study done at Jawaharlal Nehru Medical College (JNMC), Aligarh Muslim University (AMU), Aligarh between May 2021 and May 2022 with a sample size of 230 patients. The endoscopists performed RUT on biopsy samples taken from gastritis lesions and  sent another biopsy sample from the same patient for histopathological examination. On the basis of histopathological report, results were compared and analyzed.
Results: In our study the specificity, sensitivity, positive predictive value (PPV), negative predictive value (NPV), and diagnostic accuracy of RUT were 60.81%, 67.31% ,78.36%, 46.88% , and 65.22%, respectively.
Conclusion: Our study suggests that RUT can reliably identify Helicobacter pylori infection in gastric mucosa.
Comparison of stone clearance rate based on upper, middle, or lower calyx puncture in Mini Percutaneous Nephrolithotomy (mPCNL)
Authors: Karki Kushal , Bhusal Narayan
Published: March 2024

Introduction: PCNL is the most common surgical technique used for the management of renal stones, particularly for those with more than 2 cm stones. The aim of this study is to identify which kidney calyx—upper, middle, or lower—when punctured achieves the highest stone clearance rate.
Methods: This was a prospective non-randomised study performed in department of urology, KIST medical college from September 1, 2021 to November 16, 2022. Patients who underwent PCNL were evaluated with detailed history, examination, and investigation. All the patients who fulfill the inclusion criteria during study period were included in the study. After preoperative investigation PCNL was done according to standard protocol. Perioperative complication recorded in Performa. Stone-free status was checked after 2 months of surgery with ultrasonography.
Results: 100 patients were included in this study among which 59 were male. The mean age of patients was 33.35 years [range 18-65 years]. Upper, middle and lower pole puncture was done in 23%, 33% and 44% patients respectively.  The mean stone burden of the patient was 380.680 mm2. The average time for surgery according to access was 67.34 mins, 63.12mins, and 64.07 mins for the upper calyx, mid-calyx and for the lower calyx respectively. 84.33% of patients had complete stone clearance after 2 months in the USG examination. 91.3% [21] had stone clearance when approached through the upper calyx. It was 87.8%[29] by mid calyx and 75%[33] by lower calyx. Upper calyx puncture had statistical significance in stone clearance rate [P=0.43, P=0.021, P=0.002].  11 had CRIF ≤4mm stone in PCS, and the remaining 6 had residual stone >4mm. In our study, thoracic complications were significantly higher in upper calyx puncture 8[30.4%, 8[24.24% in the middle calyx, and 3[6.8%] in lower calyx [P=0.02, P=0.98, P=0.03] respectively.
Conclusion: Upper calyceal puncture can produce the highest stone clearance rate, but it has been associated with significant postoperative morbidity, particularly in the chest. Lower calyx punctures have less intraoperative and postoperative morbidity, but their stone removal rates are lower than those of other procedures. Therefore, the balance between stone clearance rate and morbidity has been achieved using middle calyx puncture.
Tzanaki’s Score Vs Modified Alvarado’s Score In Diagnosing Acute Appendicitis: A Comparative Study In A Tertiary Care Hospital
Authors: Rajpura Ashok Kumar , Choudhary Dharmendra , Khorwal Bhagchand , Bhutra Shyam , Yadav Dinesh Kumar , Bansal Kamal
Published: March 2024

Introduction: Acute appendicitis is commonly diagnosed when a patient presents with pain in right iliac fossa. Various Scoring systems are used to diagnose acute appendicitis and mainly include the presenting signs and symptoms, but are not acceptable for patients. The purpose of this study was to assess effectiveness of modified Alvarado score and Tzanaki’s Score in the diagnosis of acute appendicitis.
Methods: A prospective observational study was done in department of General Surgery JLN Medical College Hospital, Ajmer which incorporated 200 patients presenting with the signs and symptoms of acute appendicitis.  Patients were evaluated by Modified Alvarado score and Tzanaki’s Score during admission and based on the treating surgeon’s decision, were operated. Finally, the score was compared with the diagnosis done by histopathological examination of the operated specimen.
Results: The sensitivity & specificity of Modified Alvarado Score was 84.26% & 72.7% respectively with a positive predictive value of 96.15% & negative predictive value of 36.3%. The sensitivity and specificity of Tzanaki’s score was 88.2% and 72.7% respectively with a positive predictive value of 96.31% and negative predictive value of 43.24%. The diagnostic accuracy of Alvarado score was 83% and that of Tzanaki’s score was 86.5%.
Conclusion: Tzanaki’s scoring system can be used as an effective modality in the diagnosis of acute appendicitis. There is increased sensitivity and diagnostic accuracy in Tzanaki’s scoring when compared to modified Alvarado score.
A Rare Presentation of Lipoma: Case of Preputial Lipoma
Authors: Jain Aakansh , Khan Manal M. , Namdev Rohit
Published: March 2024

Penile lipoma itself is a very rare finding. Over which preputial lipoma is not reported previously so this case of a 33-year-old married male is probably the first documented case of preputial lipoma where it causes sexual dysfunction.
A Juxta-Articular Myxoma of the Thumb in a young male: A case report
Authors: Tripathi Sudhanshu Vinay , Khurram Mohammad Fahud , Ahmed Murad , Chaudhury Gautam
Published: March 2024

Juxta-articular myxomas are benign tumours that are most commonly associated with larger joints. Cases involving hand have been rarely reported till date. We present a case of a juxta-articular myxoma at the metacarpophalangeal joint of the thumb in a 30-year-old male patient. The preoperative diagnostic work-up included ultrasound and X-ray of left hand. The histopathological examination of the resected tumor confirmed the diagnosis. Follow-up ultrasound six months after surgery revealed no obvious recurrence. At 6 months, the patient had full range of motion without pain.
Critical Awareness within the Teachings of the Bhagvat Gita and the Aditya Jyoti Path
Authors: Sharma Bikash
Published: March 2024

Total ignorance of what we have had in the eastern body of knowledge and civilization for a long period of time may lead ones to imperfect course of learning since there have already been in the east what we claim today to be new and innovative. The concepts such as critical thinking and critical teaching – though they were not explicitly expressed in words – existed clearly in the literatures and practices of the ancient eastern life. In this brief review article an attempt is made to explore some kind of bridging up between the ancient eastern values and today’s (post) modern expressions related with criticalities in education, particularly in teachings. The concepts of critical discourse and critical pedagogy are elaborated, and a few of the contents of the two renowned books on eastern values are analyzed and interpreted putting the intensive curiosity on how these ancient eastern understandings throw insights on today’s critical framework of thinking. This article expects for the readers to have general background knowledge on the discourse related with the Mahabharata War in the times of Krishna and on the enriched guidelines given by Guru Aditya for ideal human life of the present time.
चिकित्सकको भाषा {The language of the physician}
Authors: दाहाल Dahal दुर्गाप्रसाद Durgaprasad
Published: March 2024

‘चिकित्सकको भाषा’ शीर्षकको प्रस्तुत अध्ययन पाँच जना चिकित्सकले बिरामीसँग प्रयोग गरेको भाषामा आधारित रहेर गरिएको अध्ययन हो । यस अध्ययनबाट चिकित्सकीय भाषाका वाक्यहरू प्रायजसो छोटो र सम्प्रेषणजन्य हुने गरेको देखियो । उनीहरूको भाषामा पनि कथ्य भाषामा पाइने लोपगत विशेषताहरूयुक्त प्रयोग भएको पाइयो । उनीहरूले भाषामा कोड मिश्रण र चिकित्सा शब्दावलीको अत्यधिक प्रयोग गर्ने गरेका हुनाले सर्वसाधारणका लागि सहज बोधगम्य हुन नसकेको अवस्था विद्यमान रहेको छ । यही कोड मिश्रण र चिकित्सा शब्दावलीको प्रयोगले गर्दा चिकित्सकको भाषामा सम्प्रेषणगत जटिलताको सिर्जना हुन गई विचार विनिमयमा सहज नभएको देखिन्छ । चिकित्सकको भाषालाई सर्वसाधारणका लागि सम्प्रेषण योग्य बनाउनका लागि उनीहरूको अभिव्यक्तिमा सकेसम्म नेपाली शब्दको प्रयोग गरी कोड मिश्रणयुक्त प्रयोगलाई न्यूनीकरण गर्न आवश्यक छ । यसका लागि चिकित्सक र सर्वसाधारणलाई चिकित्साशास्त्रीय नेपाली को ज्ञान दिनाले सम्प्रेषणका लागि सहज वातावरण निर्माण हुने सक्नेछ ।
The Effect of Cardiometabolic Control and Malnutrition on the Prevalence and Prognosis of Diabetic Retinopathy in Type 2 Diabetes
Authors: ÖZDEMİR Melek , DAĞ Yaşar , UZUNLULU Mehmet , OĞUZ Aytekin , ARDAGİL Aylin , ACAR Ömer , SELBEST Bensu
Published: March 2024

Purpose:It is estimated that type 2 diabetes mellitus affects 530 million people worldwide and 10.5 per cent of these patients have diabetic retinopathy. This study aims to investigate the predictive value of cardiometabolic control, GGT and malnutrition-related inflammation markers for predicting Diabetic retinopathy prevalence and prognosis.

Materials and Methods:Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus patients who were consecutively admitted to Internal and Ophthalmology outpatient clinics were included in this study. Clinical, haematological and biochemical data were recorded. Cut-off values of GGT, PNI, NRI and HALP scores were determined by receiver operator characteristic curve analysis. Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed to determine the association of all variables with Diabetic retinopathy. As a result, we evaluated which of these tests were predictive and prognostic for the development of diabetic retinopathy.

Results:This study included 166 patients. Fasting blood glucose(p
Wings of Knowledge: Navigating Learner Confidence and Cognitive Load in Avian Radiography with a Low Fidelity Model
Authors: Stanley Daniel , Booth Francesca , Dickson Julie
Published: March 2024

In veterinary first opinion practice, radiography is an important diagnostic tool for avian patients. Teaching of such diagnostic skills to learners is usually conducted using teaching models in clinical skills laboratories. The aim of this work is to evaluate the impact of using a teaching model for avian radiography positioning by measuring learner's cognitive load, confidence, satisfaction, and assessing learning by OSCE assessment. An avian radiography positioning model was created and evaluated with pre- and post-Likert questions on confidence, a pre and post 9-point cognitive load scale, an OSCE assessment (max score = 20), and post Likert questions on satisfaction. Thirty-two undergraduate veterinary medicine and veterinary nursing students participated in the study. The results showed the cognitive load of participants was high and did not change with the use of a physical model ( p = .882). Participants exhibited increased confidence in avian radiography positioning (pre; M = 2, post; M = 4, p < .001) and expressed high overall satisfaction with the model (x̄ = 4.6, no negative or neutral Likert responses). The OSCE results demonstrated a higher pass rate mean (82%) for the positioning tasks compared to the collimation and centering tasks (53%). Overall, the model was well received by learners with increased confidence and a satisfactory learning experience in a clinical skill for exotics species. These findings suggest the avian radiography positioning model is an effective model to train students to position avian patients for radiography.
Quantifying Curcumin, Gallic Acid, and Resveratrol in a Polyherbal Mixture: a Robust HPTLC Method
Authors: Gandhi Sejal P. , Mate Gresi D. , Nagore Dheeraj H. , Chitlange Sohan S.
Published: March 2024

The need for this study arises from the growing importance of polyherbal formulations in herbal medicine, particularly due to their potential health benefits and synergistic effects. In this research, development and validation of an HPTLC method for simultaneous quantification of curcumin, gallic acid, and resveratrol in a polyherbal mixture are primary focus. Additionally, study assesses the Total Phenolic Content (TPC), Total Flavonoid Content (TFC) and antioxidant potential using the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) assay. The results reveal that TPC is 212.1 mg gallic acid equivalent per gram of plant material, and the TFC is 133.06 mg rutin equivalent per gram of plant material. Notably, DPPH assay demonstrates mixture's robust antioxidant activity, with an IC50 value of 3.83 µg/ml. Furthermore, HPTLC method used a carefully optimized mobile phase, providing excellent resolution for gallic acid, resveratrol, and curcumin with corresponding Rf values of 0.18, 0.43, and 0.53. This method is highly linear over a concentration range of 200-1000 ng/band for all three compounds. Precision studies confirm method's reproducibility with low Relative Standard Deviation values below 2 %. Ultimately, this HPTLC method offers a simple, accurate, precise, and cost-effective solution for routine quality control analysis, shedding light on potential applications of the polyherbal mixture in various therapeutic contexts.
Improving irrigated maize (Zea mays L.) production with saline agricultural drainage water using drip irrigation system and organic mulches: Field study and simulation modelling
Authors: AHMED SOMYA SAID , SOUSSA HODA KAMAL , HASSAN NAGY ALI ALI , E. ABDELRAOUF R. , R. RAGAB
Published: March 2024

Due to the scarcity of fresh water in dry areas, including Egypt, emphasis has been placed on the importance of studying non-traditional water sources as an alternative source of irrigation. Therefore, this research aimed at investigating the impact of saline agricultural drainage water, drip irrigation and organic mulching using rice straw on maize water productivity under Egypt’s arid condition. The field experiment included sixteen treatments during two seasons, 2022 and 2023. Irrigation systems were [Furrow irrigation system (FIS) and drip irrigation system (DIS)] while saline agricultural drainage water strategies were [FW (0.55 dS/m), SW1 (1.35 dS/m), SW2 (3 dS/m) and SW3 (5 dS/m)] represented as sub main plot and organic mulching using rice straw (OMRS) was also investigated. The highest MY values were achieved with DIS with FW and also with irrigation with salty agricultural drainage water, with the necessity of using organic mulches of rice straw. The highest MY values were achieved as a result of achieving the best water-salt balance within the root propagation zone. The highest values were 10.89 t/ha with FW and there were no significant differences between them and the values of 10.83 t/ha when irrigated with saline agricultural drainage water for 2022 and the similar results were achieved during the 2023 season. Based on the above, SW1 can be used directly without mixing with FW1 if the ability of the grown plant to tolerate the level of salinity concentration, with the necessity of using organic mulches. The SALTMED model simulated reasonably well the soil moisture and soil salinity as well as maize yield and for all treatments, with R2 of 0.87, 0.98 and 0.96, respectively.