bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
A HIPAA Security and Privacy Compliance Audit and Risk Assessment Mitigation Approach
Authors: Choi Young B. , Williams Christopher E.
Published: August 2022

Data breaches have a profound effect on businesses associated with industries like the US healthcare system. This task extends more pressure on healthcare providers as they continue to gain unprecedented access to patient data, as the US healthcare system integrates further into the digital realm. Pressure has also led to the creation of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, Omnibus Rule, and Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health laws. The Defense Information Systems Agency also develops and maintains security technical implementation guides that are consistent with DoD cybersecurity policies, standards, architectures, security controls, and validation procedures. The objective is to design a network (physician's office) in order to meet the complexity standards and unpredictable measures posed by attackers. Additionally, the network must adhere to HIPAA security and privacy requirements required by law. Successful implantation of network design will articulate comprehension requirements of information assurance security and control.
TBHM
Authors: Gupta Lalit Mohan , Samad Abdus , Garg Hitendra
Published: August 2022

Healthcare today is one of the most promising, prevailing, and sensitive sectors where patient information like prescriptions, health records, etc., are kept on the cloud to provide high quality on-demand services for enhancing e-health services by reducing the burden of data storage and maintenance to providing information independent of location and time. The major issue with healthcare organization is to provide protected sharing of healthcare data from the cloud to the decision makers, medical practitioners, data analysts, and insurance firms by maintaining confidentiality and integrity. This article proposes a novel and secure threshold based encryption scheme combined with homomorphic properties (TBHM) for accessing cloud based health information. Homomorphic encryption completely eliminates the possibility of any kind of attack as data cannot be accessed using any type of key. The experimental results report superiority of TBHM scheme over state of art in terms throughput, file encryption/decryption time, key generation time, error rate, latency time, and security overheads.
Assessing HIPAA Compliance of Open Source Electronic Health Record Applications
Authors: Shahriar Hossain , Haddad Hisham M. , Farhadi Maryam
Published: August 2022

Electronic health record (EHR) applications are digital versions of paper-based patient health information. EHR applications are increasingly being adopted in many countries. They have resulted in improved quality in healthcare, convenient access to histories of patient medication and clinic visits, easier follow up of patient treatment plans, and precise medical decision-making process. The goal of this paper is to identify HIPAA technical requirements, evaluate two open source EHR applications (OpenEMR and OpenClinic) for security vulnerabilities using two open-source scanner tools (RIPS and PHP VulnHunter), and map the identified vulnerabilities to HIPAA technical requirements.
Pattern of occlusive disease in lower extremity arteries in patients qualifying for revascularization in a North Central Province tertiary care centre in Sri Lanka
Authors: Arudchelvam J. , De Soyza M.
Published: August 2022

Introduction: In Sri Lanka many patients with the occlusive arterial disease [OAD] undergo revascularization. The patterns of OAD vary with the underlying risk factors, however, there is a paucity of data regarding this in Sri Lankan patients. Only one study reported the pattern of OAD among patients undergoing angioplasty in Sri Lanka. This study used conventional or catheter angiograms.  There were no studies describing the patterns of OAD based on computerized tomographic angiography [CTA] imaging reported in Sri Lanka earlier. This study describes the CTA-based pattern of OAD among patients admitted for intervention at the Teaching Hospital Anuradhapura [THA].
Methods: This study was done at the vascular and transplant unit of THA. Patients with critical limb ischemia [ulcer, gangrene, rest pain] and disabling claudication were included. Data on patient demography, comorbid diseases, and the pattern of arterial occlusion were analysed.
Results: 100 patients with 81 [81%] males were included. The mean age was 67.6 years [53-83].60 had ulcers, 25 gangrene, 10 rest pain and 5 had disabling claudication. 63 [63%] were smokers. diabetes mellitus,   hypertension, ischemic heart disease, heart failure and chronic kidney disease were present in 65 [65%], 47, 25, 11 and 13 respectively.
Distal vascular disease [anterior tibial- AT - 55 and posterior tibial - PT - 44] was present in 65 [65%]. Iliac, Femoral [common femoral – CFA and superficial femoral - SFA] disease were present in 15 [15%] and 57 [57%] respectively. 28 [28%] had isolated distal arterial disease. The distal disease was not significantly associated with diabetes mellitus [p - 0.39].
Conclusion: Distal occlusive arterial disease is the commonest followed by femoral disease. This study does not show an association between diabetes mellitus and distal disease, contrary to the popular belief. Further countrywide studies with larger study populations are needed to come to a final conclusion.
Laparoscopic repair of a rare type of internal hernia: a case of left para-duodenal hernia
Authors: Lakmal M. A. C. , Gamage B. D. , Sanjeewa S. H. R. , Varun S.
Published: August 2022

No abstract available
Trends in early onset colorectal cancer (EOCRC) in a South Asian cohort: data from a specialized tertiary care center in western Sri Lanka
Authors: Chandrasinghe P. , Godahewa S. , Mahendra G. , Hewavissenthi J. , Kumarage S.
Published: August 2022

Introduction: Early onset colorectal cancer [EOCRC] has significantly increased during the past decade globally. It is defined as cancers diagnosed in those aged 50 years or less. Most research on EORC are from western populations where the tumour biology and risk factors may differ from other regions. Evidence on EOCRC from the South Asian region is particularly scarce. This study presents the basic trends in presentation and overall survival [OS] pattern of EOCRC using data from a single specialized tertiary care institution over two decades.
Methods: A total of 723 patients treated at the University surgical unit of the North Colombo teaching hospital from 1995 to 2020 were included in the analysis. Overall survival of the EOCRC was compared with that of the older population using Kaplan- Meier survival curves. Survival patterns over two time periods [pre-2010 vs post-2010] were also compared between the two populations. The stage at presentation, family history of colorectal or related cancers, tumour site, and tumour stage were also compared.
Results: The proportion of EOCRC in this cohort has not shown a significant increase over the past two decades [2001-2010: 24% vs 2011-2020: 21%]. The advanced tumour stage at presentation and the presence of significant family history are also comparable. EOCRC cohort demonstrates a better OS for the entire study period [Median survival: < 50 years – not reached; >50 years – 91 months; 95%CI – 72-132; P<0.001]. However, this survival advantage is only observed during the pre-2010 period [Median survival: < 50 years – 160 months; 95%CI – 120 – not reached; >50 years – 84 months; 95%CI – 62-132; P=0.01] and becomes comparable in the 2010-2020 period [P=0.16]. OS of the EORC has not also improved over the two decades from 2001 to 2020 [P=0.51].
Conclusion: There is no significant increase in the EOCRC rates in this population over time although the rate has remained high throughout. The OS of the EOCRC population is better compared to the older population. A significantly better OS is observed during the pre-2010 period in the EOCRC but is not present in the post-2010 period. Advancement in therapy may have improved the survival of the older population during the latter part but not that in the EOCRC due to its inherently aggressive nature. This paper provides preliminary data on EOCRC from Sri Lanka. The South Asian population may have a different disease pattern with younger age at onset compared to the western populations and needs to be further explored.
Abdominal wall abscess with fish bone migration from proximal ileum
Authors: Nabil M. N. M. , Sameem A. W. M.
Published: August 2022

No abstract available
Alopecia areata after COVID-19 vaccination: two cases and review of the literature
Authors: Fusano Marta , Zerbinati Nicola , Bencini Pier Luca
Published: August 2022

Alopecia Areata (AA) is an autoimmune disorder characterized by hair loss, due to a T-lymphocyte-mediated inflammatory response targeting anagen-phase hair follicles. Former studies have suggested that vaccination and viral infections may play a role in the onset of AA through a variety of different mechanisms. We report here two cases of AA following COVID-19 vaccination.
Traditional Uses and Phytochemical Constituents of Cynanchum otophyllum C. K. Schneid (Qingyangshen)
Authors: Bailly Christian , Xiang Cheng , Zhang Ji-Hong
Published: August 2022

The roots of the plant Cynanchum otophyllum C. K. Schneid (Apocynaceae), known as Qingyangshen in Chinese, are used for a long time as a traditional medicine by different ethnic communities in the Yunnan province (China). The multiple properties and applications of this herbal medicine have been analyzed. C. otophyllum is a perennial herbal liana, nonedible, and generally wild harvested. A cultivation method has been proposed to increase the fruit set level. Qingyangshen is used essentially to treat epilepsy, rheumatism, or other inflammatory diseases. The plant can be found also in diverse polyherbal preparations used in cosmetic or as food supplement (detox products), and in phyto-preparations claimed to reduce hair loss. The plant is a rich reservoir of C-21 steroidal glycosides. Many bioactive compounds have been isolated from this plant and some of them have been pharmacologically characterized, such as otophyllosides, cynotophyllosides, cynanotins, cynotogenins, cynanchins, all briefly evocated here. The plant presents also interesting features in other domains. In particular, leave extracts of C. otophyllum C. K. Schneid contain proteases which are exploited for the local preparation of a cheese-like milk cake. Qingyangshen herbal preparation can be useful to treat epilepsy and inflammation. It has applications beyond medicine in the cosmetic and food industry.
The Role of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 Viroporins in Inflammation
Authors: Zebardast Arghavan , Latifi Tayebeh , Yavarian Jila
Published: August 2022

In December 2019, genomic screening of clinical samples from patients with viral pneumonia in Wuhan, China, revealed the presence of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). COVID-19 is the official name for the disease caused by this virus, according to the World Health Organization. SARS-CoV-2 can activate the NLRP3 inflammasome directly in apoptosis-associated speck-like protein (ASC)-dependent or independent manner through several proteins, including viroporins. Viroporins are viral proteins with ion channel functions that play crucial roles in different aspects of virus replication and pathogenesis. SARS-CoV-2 viroporins encoded by Open Reading Frame (ORF) 3a, ORF8 and the E gene activate the NLRP3 inflammasome and trigger the cleavages of pro-interleukin 1 β (IL1 β) and pro-IL18 by the caspase enzyme and convert them to the mature form (IL-1 β, IL18). Most of the inflammation in severe COVID-19 patients is caused by the activation of inflammasomes. Studies revealed that SARS-CoV-2 viroporins could be the possible targets for therapeutic interventions.
Comparative Evaluation of the Physical Properties of Membranes for Periodontal Regeneration
Authors: Mhatre Apoorva , Shetty Devanand , Shetty Arvind , Dharmadhikari Suyog , Wadkar Pooja
Published: August 2022

Introduction:

Barrier membranes are the devices used in guided tissue regeneration procedures to promote the repopulation of the wound space by periodontal ligament cells. Commercially available membranes have been used widely for periodontal regeneration. The aim of the present study is to compare and evaluate the physical properties of membranes used for periodontal regeneration.

Materials and Methods:

The tensile strength and surface topography using scanning electron microscope were analysed of three commercially available membranes: chorion membrane, Healiguide™ membrane and PerioCol®-GTR membrane were analysed.

Results:

The tensile strength of the PerioCol®-GTR membrane was the highest, while that of the Chorion membrane was the least. Variations in the surface topography were observed in all three membranes groups.

Conclusion:

The study demonstrated variation in surface topography and tensile strength of the resorbable periodontal membranes, suggestive of differences in the time of resorption during regenerative periodontal procedures.
Burden Experience by Cancer Patient Caregivers
Authors: Kulkarni Shreenath , Pandit Niraj
Published: August 2022

Introduction:

Cancer is one of the leading causes of death all over the world, estimated by various organisations. It affects the life of the patients as well as their caregivers. Caregivers feel the burden with respect to various factors while caring for a cancer relative.

Materials and Methods:

A cross-sectional study was conducted during October–November 2020 at the selected hospitals of Bareilly, UP. A total of 34 caregivers were selected for the study with non-probability purposive sampling who were involved in the direct care of cancer patients. Baseline pro forma and family burden assessment tools were used for the data collection.

Results:

It was found that the majority of the caregiver (58.8%) experience mild-to-moderate burden while caring for the cancer patient.

Conclusion:

The caregiver of a cancer patient feels the burden. There could be various factors such as financial burden and stressors, along with the health issue of a loved one that could result in caregiver burden.
Effect of leukapheresis on pain reduction in leukemic priapism
Authors: Noushad Shahida , Sahoo Dibyajyoti , Basavarajegowda Abhishekh , Toora Esha , Paudel Purshotam
Published: July 2022

Priapism is a rare presentation of Chronic Myeloid Leukaemia (CML). It is also considered a medical emergency as delay in treatment may lead to impotence. Prompt medical and surgical interventions such as hydroxyurea, analgesia, phenylephrine injection and aspiration, open surgical shunting, and local radiation therapy are essential. Leukapheresis effectively reduces leukocyte count rapidly and effectively, thereby an important therapy along with other standard of care in CML-induced priapism. In the present case, priapism was the presenting symptom of CML. The same was managed with various modalities such as hydroxyurea, allopurinol, antibiotics, analgesics, sedatives, phenylephrine injection, and aspiration but failed to reduce priapism pain. With a single cycle of leukapheresis, priapism pain could be reduced significantly.
Evaluation of the International Society on Thrombosis & Haemostasis scoring system & its modifications in diagnosis of disseminated intravascular coagulation: A pilot study from southern India
Authors: Muddana Pooja Sai , Kar Sitanshu Sekhar , Kar Rakhee
Published: August 2022

Background & objectives:

Diagnosis of disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC) rests primarily on the clinical profile along with supportive laboratory tests. The International Society on Thrombosis and Haemostasis (ISTH) had proposed a scoring system for the diagnosis of overt DIC. However, fibrinogen values which are supposed to be low are often found to be elevated due to the associated inflammation seen in some cases. Moreover, peripheral smear is known to show schistocytes, which is also not included in the score. This study was done to evaluate ISTH scoring system and its modifications in suspected DIC.

Methods:

Fifty-six patients were enrolled for the present study of whom; in four, fibrinogen assay could not be done. Modifications in the ISTH scoring with the exclusion of fibrinogen, i.e. modified ISTH (MI) score and subsequent inclusion of schistocytes, i.e. modified ISTH with schistocytes (MIS) score, were used. The modified scores were analyzed for diagnostic accuracy parameters and agreement with ISTH score.

Results:

Amongst 56 cases, 9/52 (17.3%), 22 (39.3%) and 17 (30.4%) were diagnosed as positive for overt DIC by ISTH, MI and MIS scores and mortality was 33, 22.7 and 17.6 per cent, respectively. The sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values for the MI score were 100, 74.4, 45 and 100 per cent and for MIS score were 100, 86, 60 and 100 per cent, respectively. The agreement between MI score and MIS score with ISTH score was moderate [κ=0.502, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.272-0.732, P<0.001] and substantial (κ=0.681, 95% CI: 0.45-0.91, P<0.001).

Interpretation & conclusions:

In the present study, the calculated mortality was highest by ISTH score. Best agreement was between MIS score and ISTH score. In a resource-constrained setup where fibrinogen assay and therefore ISTH score is difficult, it is suggested that MIS score can be considered.
Safety of autologous intramuscular platelet lysate injections in patients with critical limb ischaemia: A pilot, exploratory study
Authors: Sofia Adwan , Moaath AlSmady , Omar Al-Qatawneh , Rand Zaza , Hanan Jafar , Amir Malkawi , Abdalla Awidi
Published: August 2022

Background & objectives:

Platelet concentrate contains a rich cocktail of growth factors that support growth and proliferation of cells. The primary goal of this study was to investigate the safety of platelet lysate (PL) in patients with critical limb ischaemia (CLI) not suitable for standard revascularization. Data on the preliminary efficacy are also presented.

Methods:

Seven patients (18-70 yr) with CLI classified in the Rutherford grades 3-5, with history of intermittent claudication for more than eight weeks and were not suitable for standard revascularization, underwent autologous intramuscular injections of PL. These patients were examined physically alongside other parameters such as TcPO2, toe pressure, and ankle brachial index, at baseline and were followed up for 12 months.

Results:

The procedure was well tolerated with no serious adverse or any adverse events reported during follow up. Although not the primary aim of this report, preliminary data showed significant clinical improvement in Rutherford stage, ankle-brachial index and toe pressure which persisted for a year.

Interpretation & conclusions:

Intramuscular injection of PL was well tolerated with no major adverse events reported in our study participants. With the observed satisfactory safety data, preliminary efficacy data of PL should be further validated.
Cost of providing family planning services & management of pregnancy outcomes at public health facilities in India
Authors: Moray Kusum V. , Joshi Beena , Sachin Oshima , Chaurasia Himanshu
Published: August 2022

Background & objectives:

Lack of costing data is a critical gap that exists in the field of family planning (FP) in India. The aim of this study was to estimate health system costs of FP in India for existing modern methods, and potential newer methods (etonorgestrel implant and levonorgestrel intrauterine device) and pregnancy-related services in India.

Methods:

A bottom-up micro-costing study was conducted in five public health facilities of an Indian State. Data of last one year were collected from existing hospital records and hospital staff was interviewed. Collected data were analyzed using standard costing methods.

Results:

Package costs of delivering FP services ranged from

JOURNAL/ijmer/04.03/02223309-202201000-00006/math_6MM1/v/2022-09-30T185925Z/r/image-tiff

807 (95% CI 685, 931) for condoms and

JOURNAL/ijmer/04.03/02223309-202201000-00006/math_6MM2/v/2022-09-30T185925Z/r/image-tiff

10,539 (8796, 12269) for tubal ligation. Estimates of etonorgestrel implant and levonorgestrel intrauterine system were

JOURNAL/ijmer/04.03/02223309-202201000-00006/math_6MM3/v/2022-09-30T185925Z/r/image-tiff

3,200 (2800, 3625) and 3,426 (3232, 3623). Cost of antenatal care along with vaginal delivery, caesarean and abortion were

JOURNAL/ijmer/04.03/02223309-202201000-00006/math_6MM4/v/2022-09-30T185925Z/r/image-tiff

10,916 (8744, 13078), 22,136 (17570, 26910) and 8,574 (6791, 10379), respectively. One way sensitivity analysis showed that the three most influential factors on the costs of FP services were prices of drugs and consumables, number of beneficiaries and health personnel cost.

Interpretation & conclusions:

The present study has generated package costs for FP and pregnancy-related services in India which could be used by publicly-funded insurance schemes, for budgeting, economic evaluations and improve resource allocation of services. The cost estimates from this study add to the limited literature in India on costs of FP.
Are thiol-disulfide homeostasis & neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio useful in the differential diagnosis of acute familial Mediterranean fever attacks & acute appendicitis?
Authors: Tanrıverdi Fatih , Yıldırım Çağdaş , Şener Alp , Erel Özcan
Published: August 2022

Background & objectives:

Continuous subclinical inflammation can be seen in patients with familial Mediterranean fever (FMF) during the attack-free period. The importance of oxidative stress parameters in acute appendicitis (AA) progression has also been shown in previous studies. So, oxidative stress and the oxidant/antioxidant balance may play a role in this persistent subclinical inflammation. With this background the main objective of this study was to investigate the usefulness of combining the thiol-disulfide homeostasis parameters and the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) in the differential diagnosis of AA and an acute FMF attack.

Methods:

The present study was conducted prospectively with 84 patients who were admitted to the emergency department between May 1, and December 31, 2018. Another 40 healthy individuals were assigned as the control group. The homeostasis parameters of thiol-disulfide were measured by a spectrophotometric method and NLR was measured in the patient and control groups.

Results:

Native thiol and total thiol values were lower, while disulfide values were insignificantly higher in patients with AA than in patients with FMF. The white blood cell (WBC), neutrophil and NLR values were significantly higher in the AA group (P<0.001, P<0.001, P<0.001, respectively). When the neutrophil cut-off value for AA was set at 8.55, the calculated sensitivity was 80 per cent, the specificity was 72.2 per cent, and the area under the curve was 0.837.

Interpretation & conclusions:

The results of this study suggest that neutrophil, WBC and NLR values can be useful in the differentiation of AA from an acute FMF attack.
Development & validation of scales to assess stigma related to COVID-19 in India
Authors: Nair Saritha , Joshi Aparna , Aggarwal Sumit , Adhikari Tulsi , Mahajan Nupur , Diwan Vishal , Stephen A. , Devi K. Rekha , Mishra Bijaya Kumar , Yadav Girijesh Kumar , Kohli Rewa , Sahu Damodar , Gulati Bal Kishan , Sharma Saurabh , Yadav Jeetendra , Ovung Senthanro , Duggal Chetna , Sharma Moina , Bangar Sampada Dipak , Andhalkar Rushikesh , Rebecca Pricilla B. , Rani S. , Selvaraj Pradeep , Xavier Gladston G. , Peter Vanessa , Watson Basilea , Kannan T. , Asmathulla K.S.MD. , Bhattacharya Debdutta , Turuk Jyotirmayee , Palo Subrata Kumar , Kanungo Srikanta , Behera Ajit Kumar , Pandey Ashok Kumar , Zaman Kamran , Misra Brij Ranjan , Kumar Niraj , Behera Sthita Pragnya , Singh Rajeev , Sarkar Abu Hasan , Narain Kanwar , Kant Rajni , Sahay Seema , Tiwari Rajnarayan Ramshankar , Thomas Beena Elizabeth , Panda Samiran , Rao M. Vishnu Vardhana
Published: August 2022

Background & objectives

COVID-19 pandemic has triggered social stigma towards individuals affected and their families. This study describes the process undertaken for the development and validation of scales to assess stigmatizing attitudes and experiences among COVID-19 and non-COVID-19 participants from the community.

Methods

COVID-19 Stigma Scale and Community COVID-19 Stigma Scale constituting 13 and six items, respectively, were developed based on review of literature and news reports, expert committee evaluation and participants’ interviews through telephone for a multicentric study in India. For content validity, 61 (30 COVID-19-recovered and 31 non-COVID-19 participants from the community) were recruited. Test–retest reliability of the scales was assessed among 99 participants (41 COVID-19 recovered and 58 non-COVID-19). Participants were administered the scale at two-time points after a gap of 7-12 days. Cronbach’s alpha, overall percentage agreement and kappa statistics were used to assess internal consistency and test–retest reliability.

Results

Items in the scales were relevant and comprehensible. Both the scales had Cronbach’s α above 0.6 indicating moderate-to-good internal consistency. Test–retest reliability assessed using kappa statistics indicated that for the COVID-19 Stigma Scale, seven items had a moderate agreement (0.4-0.6). For the Community COVID-19 Stigma Scale, four items had a moderate agreement.

Interpretation & conclusions

Validity and reliability of the two stigma scales indicated that the scales were comprehensible and had moderate internal consistency. These scales could be used to assess COVID-19 stigma and help in the development of appropriate stigma reduction interventions for COVID-19 infected, and mitigation of stigmatizing attitudes in the community.
Neutralization assays for SARS-CoV-2
Authors: Mukhopadhyay Labanya , Gupta Nivedita , Yadav Pragya D. , Aggarwal Neeraj
Published: August 2022

The WHO emergency use-listed (EUL) COVID-19 vaccines were developed against early strains of SARS-CoV-2. With the emergence of SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern (VOCs) - Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta and Omicron, it is necessary to assess the neutralizing activity of these vaccines against the VOCs. PubMed and preprint platforms were searched for literature on neutralizing activity of serum from WHO EUL vaccine recipients, against the VOCs, using appropriate search terms till November 30, 2021. Our search yielded 91 studies meeting the inclusion criteria. The analysis revealed a drop of 0-8.9-fold against Alpha variant, 0.3-42.4-fold against Beta variant, 0-13.8-fold against Gamma variant and 1.35-20-fold against Delta variant in neutralization titres of serum from the WHO EUL COVID-19 vaccine recipients, as compared to early SARS-CoV-2 isolates. The wide range of variability was due to differences in the choice of virus strains selected for neutralization assays (pseudovirus or live virus), timing of serum sample collection after the final dose of vaccine (day 0 to 8 months) and sample size (ranging from 5 to 470 vaccinees). The reasons for this variation have been discussed and the possible way forward to have uniformity across neutralization assays in different laboratories have been described, which will generate reliable data. Though in vitro neutralization studies are a valuable tool to estimate the performance of vaccines against the backdrop of emerging variants, the results must be interpreted with caution and corroborated with field-effectiveness studies.
Hopelessness and quality of life in elderly
Authors: Sajeev Amithabh , Kakunje Anil , Karkal Ravichandra
Published: August 2022

Introduction:

Elderly population has a higher vulnerability to many physical and mental disturbances. These setbacks can lead to decreased quality of life (QOL) which may increase the feeling of hopelessness among the elderly.

Aim:

This study aims to assess the association between hopelessness and the QOL among the elderly in the community.

Materials and Methods:

This cross-sectional study involved 100 elderly people with 50 participants each from two different locations of South India. The study was conducted from February 2020 to December 2020 after obtaining the institutional ethics committee approval. Beck's Hopelessness Scale and the World Health Organization quality of life (WHOQOL)-BREF instrument were used to assess hopelessness and QOL.

Results:

The average age of the sample was 66.26 ± 5.29 years with a male predominance. The Beck's hopelessness score was greater in females, whereas the WHOQOL score was higher in males. We also found a significantly strong negative strength of association (Pearson's correlation score of − 0.954) between Beck's hopelessness score and WHOQOL scoring systems. Our study showed that hopelessness and QOL were significantly influenced by educational status, marital status, annual income, medical illness, psychiatric illness, and duration of hospital admissions.

Conclusion:

Elderly people with good financial stability are more secure with a higher QOL.
Dry eye disease related to digital screen exposure in medical students
Authors: Tripathi Alka , Agarwal Richa , Kharya Pradip
Published: July 2022

Aim:

The aim of this study is to determine the magnitude and severity of dry eye disease (DED) in medical students as per assessed by the questionnaire Ocular Surface Disease Index (OSDI) and Schirmer's test.

Materials and Methods:

A cross-sectional study of a 2-month duration involving medical students was conducted to determine the magnitude and severity of DED. Dry eye was assessed through self-administered questionnaire, Schirmer's test, and OSDI scoring.

Results:

The most common symptom among the participants was eyestrain in 39% (N = 31) followed by headache in 33% (N = 26). Based on Schirmer's test, 75% (n = 60) of the participants were normal, 8% (n = 6) students had mild DED, 5% (N = 4) students with moderate DED, and 11% (N = 9) students had severe DED. Based on OSDI scoring, 59% (n = 47) participants were normal, 28% (n = 21) had mild DED, 11% (N = 9) had moderate, while 2% (N = 2) had severe DED.

Conclusion:

In this era of digitalization, DED has engulfed the younger population who are spending greater hours on different digital devices. The prevalence of symptomatic dry eyes in our study was 41% while it was 25% based on signs. This should raise concern among the caregivers to increase awareness regarding dry eyes and give strict guidelines restricting screen time. The use of ergonomic practices such as appropriate lighting in a room, adjusting digital screen parameters (resolution, text size, contrast, and luminance), and taking frequent breaks while using the screen should be encouraged.
The reconstruction theorem in quasinormed spaces
Authors: Zorin-Kranich Pavel
Published: August 2022

We extend the Hairer reconstruction theorem for distributions due to Caravenna and Zambotti [EMS Surv. Math. Sci. 7.2 (2020)] to general function spaces satisfying a translation and scaling condition. This includes Besov type spaces with exponents below 1 and Triebel–Lizorkin type spaces.
The Calabi–Yau problem for minimal surfaces with Cantor ends
Authors: Forstnerič Franc
Published: August 2022

We show that every connected compact or bordered Riemann surface contains a Cantor set whose complement admits a complete conformal minimal immersion in

\mathbb{R}^3

with bounded image. The analogous result holds for holomorphic immersions into any complex manifold of dimension at least 2, for holomorphic null immersions into

\mathbb{C}^n

with

n \geq 3

, for holomorphic Legendrian immersions into an arbitrary complex contact manifold, and for superminimal immersions into any selfdual or anti-self-dual Einstein four-manifold.
Динамика решений логистического уравнения с запаздыванием и диффузией в плоской области
Authors: Goryunov Vladimir Evgen'evich
Published: July 2022

Рассматривается краевая задача, основанная на логистической модели с запаздыванием и диффузией, которая описывает динамику изменения плотности популяции в плоской области. У нее существуют пространственно неоднородные устойчивые решения, ответвляющиеся от пространственно однородного, с качественно не различающимися динамическими свойствами. Численно исследуются их фазовые перестройки при значительном уменьшении значения коэффициента диффузии. Численно построены сосуществующие с ними устойчивые режимы с качественно иными свойствами. На основе применяемых численных и аналитических методов удалось разделить решения изучаемой краевой задачи на два типа, к первому из которых относятся решения, наследующие свойства однородного решения, а ко второму - так называемые режимы самоорганизации. Решения второго типа более сложно распределены в пространстве и имеют существенно более предпочтительные с точки зрения популяционной динамики свойства.
Простейшая модель уравнения больцмановского типа для распределения межчастичных сил в неупорядоченной упаковке
Authors: Grinev Dmitry Vasil'evich
Published: July 2022

Упаковка абсолютно твердых частиц, находящихся в контакте друг с другом, рассмотрена в качестве простейшей модели неупорядоченной системы. В рамках статически разрешимой задачи возможно аналитически получить плотность распределения вероятности модулей межчастичных сил. Рассмотрено простейшее уравнение больцмановского типа и получено его решение, соответствующее экспериментально наблюдаемому распределению экспоненциального вида.
Теоретико-множественные решения уравнения тетраэдров Замолодчикова
на ассоциативных кольцах и интегрируемость по Лиувиллю
Authors: Igonin Sergei
Published: July 2022

Изучаются отображения тетраэдров, которые являются теоретико-множественными решениями уравнения тетраэдров Замолодчикова. Построено семейство отображений тетраэдров на ассоциативных кольцах. Полученные отображения являются, насколько нам известно, новыми. Показано, что полученные ранее матричные отображения тетраэдров являются частным случаем нашей конструкции. Это дает алгебраическое объяснение того факта, что эти матричные отображения удовлетворяют уравнению тетраэдров. Также для некоторых из построенных отображений установлена интегрируемость по Лиувиллю.
Broken Toughness: Iranian Older Adults’ Perceptions of Abuse
Authors: Maryam Esmaeili , Masoomeh Adib , Masomeh Zakeri Moghadam , Nahid Dehghan Nayeri , Monir Mazaheri
Published: August 2022

Background: Older people abuse includes intentional or unintentional conduct or omission of a specific behavior by a trusted person that causes injury or distress to older people. This study described older peoples’ perceptions of abuse in Iranian society. Methods: This qualitative study applied a conventional content analysis method to understand the perceptions of abuse among older Iranian people. Twenty older residents were selected by purposeful sampling. Data were collected through in-depth, semi-structured, and face-to-face interviews. The six-step Graneheim and Lundman content analysis method guided data analysis. MAXQDA software version 10 was used to manage the data.Results: The data analysis led to the identification of three main themes: broken toughness, hidden abuse, and exploitation. The first theme had two sub-themes: domination and disturbed peace and tranquility. Conclusion: Abuse resulted from a combination of causes and factors. Abuse was hidden in many cases and was not limited to physical abuse. The other examples of abuse included disrespect, deprivation of authority, disturbed tranquility, and financial exploitation of older adults.
JATS Superhighway
Authors: Beck Jeffrey
Published: July 2022

Tag sets change over time. Tag set designers manage a complex system where everything is connected to everything else and new user requirements continue to surface. Tag set users manage complex systems to create, manage, and archive documents. Users strongly resist backward-incompatible change, so as JATS has grown we have made compromises in the design to meet new requirements while maintaining backward-compatability. We think it is time to consolidate redundant models, remove deprecated items, and generally reduce confusion. Can we guide users towards a new, backwards incompatible version in a way that they'll find palatable?

We have a plan. We're going to extend the JATS 1.x schema so that it contains the new, 2.0 models in addition to the old models. Then we'll make an "Onramp" subset of 1.x that has the deprecated items removed. Documents valid against the onramp subset of 1.x will also be valid against 2.0.
Adventures in Correcting XML Collation Problems with Python and XSLT
Authors: Beshero-Bondar Elisa E.
Published: July 2022

The process of instructing a computer to compare texts, known as computer-aided collation, might resemble trying to fix a power loom when the threads it is supposed to weave together become tangled. The power of the automated weaving continues, with the threads improperly aligned and the pattern broken in a way that can make it difficult to isolate the cause of the problem. Automating a tedious process magnifies the complexity of error-correction, sometimes calling for new tooling to help us perfect the weaving or collating process.

The authors are attempting to refine a collation algorithm to improve its alignment of variant passages in the Frankenstein Variorum project. We have begun with a Python script that tokenizes and normalizes the texts of the editions and delivers them to collateX for processing the collation and delivering TEI-conformant output for our project. In post-processing stages after running the collation, we apply a series of XSLT transformations to the collation output. This post-collation XSLT pipeline publishes the digital variorum edition, which prepares each output witness in TEI XML to store information about its own variance from the other editions. We have discussed that pipeline elsewhere, but our interest in this paper is in efforts to repair and correct and improve the collation process.

We have applied Schematron and XSLT in post-processing to correct patterns of erroneous alignments, but eventually realized that the problems we were trying to solve required repairing the collation algorithm. We are now experimenting with revising the collation algorithm in two ways: 1) by fine-tuning the text preparation algorithms we apply in our Python file that delivers text to the collateX software, and 2) by attempting to introduce those same text preparation algorithms entirely with XSLT using the Text Alignment Network's XSLT application of tan:diff() and tan:collate(), introduced by Joel Kalvesmaki at the 2021 Balisage conference. In this paper we discuss the challenges of figuring out where and how to intervene in the collation process, and what we are learning about how far we can take XSLT and Schematron in helping to automate the preparation, collation, and correction process.
Human Readability of Data Files
Authors: Gryk Michael Robert
Published: July 2022

In this era of big data and FAIR data, data formats must be machine interpretable. XML, among other standards, satisfies this requirement. Yet many standardization initiatives cite human readability as a second, key property in data format development. Examples include the development of STAR in the field of structural biology, W3C PROV for provenance, and even the continuing development of XML. This begs the question(s), what is meant by human readability and can this property be measured for a given data format or compared between competing standards?

The broad topic of readability is considered with attention to the various aspects of written text which either foster or counter readability. Drawing on efforts in the educational system, a metric is proposed for estimating the relative human readability of structured data within an archival file format. Comparison is made between the same data represented in various formats, including JSON and XML, to help judge whether these standards have accomplished their simultaneous goals of machine interpretability and human readability.
Metadata for Creators
Authors: Holstege Mary
Published: July 2022

Metadata is generally viewed from a third-party perspective, standing aside from both the creator and the audience of a work. This paper looks at the problem from the creator's standpoint: metadata that is deeply intertwined with the process of creation. In additional to more conventional organization metadata, two other important classes of metadata stand out: signature metadata, which is for the creator of a work to claim authorship and communicate with their audience, and process metadata, which is to help the creator recover key details of the creation process for themselves to drive further creation. Some key techniques for capturing and embedding signature and process metadata are detailed for a particular use case are described, along with some lessons learned. It turns out that taking a metadata-first development approach can make is easier both to capture the metadata and implement and tweak the process itself.
Multiple String Comparison in XSLT with tan:collate()
Authors: Kalvesmaki Joel
Published: July 2022

In this article I introduce tan:collate(), an XSLT function for comparing three or more strings. Collated multiple string comparison is a difficult problem that merits experimentation with alternative methods. tan:collate() approaches the task in three different ways. Two of those methods involve a sequence of pairwise comparisons, with each comparison grafted into a guide tree. The third method applies the distinctive staggered-sample approach of tan:diff() to multiple strings, to detect a common superskeleton, before attempting to refine results. This paper situates the problem of multiple string comparison in the context of textual criticism, proposes a general output format and test suite, and presents measured results for the quality and performance of tan:collate() against an example test suite. Released as part of an open-source function library, tan:collate() enables developers to incorporate robust text comparison directly into XSLT applications.
Project Mirabel: XQuery-Based Documentation Reporting and Exploration System
Authors: Kimber Eliot
Published: July 2022

Describes the organic development of a multi-function XQuery-based system, Project Mirabel, for capturing and reporting on the results of applying Schematron validation to large sets of DITA documents, growing from a simple reporting utility to a multi-function platform for general reporting and exploration over large and complex sets of DITA content, representing non-trivial hyperdocuments, all within the span three weeks.
The Impossible Task of Comparing CALS Tables
Authors: La Fontaine Robin , Francis John
Published: July 2022

Finding out what has changed in a CALS table is remarkably complicated. Some variant of the CALS standard is often used to represent tabular data in XML, but it permits considerable flexibility in the form of headers, footers, and spans. Additional complexity arises when authors use empty columns for layout or use column or row spans specified in unusual ways, or when applications simply do not follow the standard. In practice, comparing CALS tables directly is impossible. But maybe that is OK if all we need is a clear representation of the changes. And if we can represent them in a CALS table!
Markup Category Terminology over the Years: a First Look
Authors: Renear Allen H. , DeRose Steven J.
Published: July 2022

We’ve been doing the “markup” thing for more than half a century, since the beginnings of computerized text processing. In that time we’ve put a lot of adjectives in front of “markup” that reflect how we think of and apply the markup. These qualifiers have tended to fall into two categories, those that suggest what will happen, particularly in presentation, as a result of the application of markup to a string of data and those that reflect what we think about the data itself. Beginning with broad terms, like “generic” we have made many attempts to elucidate what our our markup is intended to accomplish: “conceptual”, “declarative”, “logical”, “structural”, and “semantic” have all had their times in the spotlight. What do the changing fashions in terminology say about our data and about what we, the practitioners, think about our work?
Designing for change
Authors: Hillman Tomos , Sperberg-McQueen C. M. , Tovey-Walsh Bethan , Tovey-Walsh Norm
Published: July 2022

Invisible XML (ixml) is a method for treating non-XML documents as if they were XML. The 1.0 specification for Invisible XML was announced in June of this year. No technology foresees all of its use cases, especially in 1.0. How can ixml allow experimentation, and channel experimentation in useful ways, to allow ideas to be expressed in ixml grammars that go beyond what is foreseen, without compromising interoperability or the value of strict conformance to the specification?

Many programming languages (C, JavaScript, Pascal, XQuery, etc.) address this question with pragmas. A pragma is a semi-formal way to instruct a processor/compiler/interpreter how it should operate. Typical pragmas extend a specification but are not a part of it. We propose pragmas as an optional add-on to ixml to allow implementation of non-standardized functionality in a way that does not interfere with standard ixml processing. We describe our general framework for pragmas, some specific pragmas (to illustrate how pragmas can be used), and a few pragmatic implementations.
The Use of Learner-centered Approaches in Mathematics Subject: A Case of Pugu Secondary School in Ilala District, Tanzania
Authors: Zuberi Mavumba Hussein , Andreas Mtitu Evaristo
Published: August 2022

This study sought to examine the use of learner-centered approaches in mathematics Subject at Pugu Secondary School in Ilala District, Tanzania. The study employed a qualitative approach through interviews, focus group discussions, documentary review and classroom observations. The study involved 30 students who participated in classroom observations and FGD and two teachers through interviews and the classroom observations. The study established that advanced mathematics teachers and students equally positively perceived the use of learner-centered approaches in the mathematics subject. Teachers integrated teacher-centered and learner-centered approaches but they lacked competence on how to effectively integrate different strategies when facilitating the lessons. Teachers either prepared lesson plans without following it or did not prepare the lesson plans at all. The study recommends that school administrators should make sure that teachers prepare and use lesson plans to guide the teaching and learning processes for better results. Finally, there is a need for frequent in-service training to mathematics teachers on how to effectively integrate different teaching and learning strategies in order to enhance students’ achievement in mathematics.