bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Incidence and predictors of virological failure among children receiving first-line anti-retroviral treatment in public comprehensive specialized hospitals found in Northeast Ethiopia: a retrospective follow-up study
Authors: Abebe Estifanos Belay , Gebregeorgis Meseret Ekubay , Seid Fuad Ahmed , Zemariam Alemu Birara , Dejene Tadesse Mamo , Masresha Seteamlak Adane 
Published: March 2024

BackgroundDespite anti-retroviral treatment coverage in resource-limited countries being highly appreciated, the occurrence of first-line virological failure remains a priority agenda. Therefore, this study serves as an input for evidence of virological failure among children.ObjectiveThis study aimed to assess the incidence and predictors of virological failure among children receiving first-line anti-retroviral treatment in public comprehensive specialized hospitals found in Northeast Ethiopia through a retrospective follow-up study.MethodsA multicenter institution-based retrospective follow-up study was conducted on the medical records of 481 human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected children who were on first-line anti-retroviral therapy from 1 January 2017 to 31 December 2021. Data were retrieved from 15 May to 15 June 2022 at three public comprehensive specialized hospitals. Study participants were recruited using a simple random sampling technique. STATA-14 was used to analyze the data, which was entered using EpiData version 4.6.2.0. The Kaplan–Meier estimator was used to estimate the survival. Both bivariable and multivariable Cox regression models were fitted to identify predictors. Finally, adjusted hazards ratios (AHRs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were computed, and variables with a P-value of &lt;0.05 were considered statistically significant predictors of virological failure.ResultA total of 481 children records were included in the final analysis, with an observed follow-up period of 16,379 person-months. Among these, 60 (12.47%) had developed virological failure, resulting in an overall incidence density rate of 3.67 (95% CI; 2.84, 4.73) per 1000 person-month observations. The hazards of virological failure (VF) among children were found to be increased by being in recent WHO stages III and IV (AHR = 3.688; 95% CI: 1.449–6.388), poor adherence to anti-retroviral treatment (ART) (AHR = 3.506; 95% CI: 1.711–7.234), and living in a rural environment (AHR = 5.013; 95% CI: 1.958–8.351). Conversely, the hazard of VF was reduced by 60% when the age of caregivers was less than 40 years (AHR = 0.405; 0.003–0.449).Conclusion and recommendationsThe incidence rate of virological failure was relatively high. Living in a rural area, poor adherence to ART, being in a recent advanced WHO clinical stage, and having a caregiver of 40 years of age or older were all independent predictors of virological failure in children. Patients or parents (caregivers) need to be aware of the importance of strictly adhering to treatment regimens to prevent virological failure.
Prone position in the mechanical ventilation of acute respiratory distress syndrome children: a systematic review and meta-analysis
Authors: Qin Wen , Mao Lei , Shen Yue , Zhao Li 
Published: March 2024

BackgroundProne position has been well recognized for the treatment of adult acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). We aimed to evaluate the role of prone position in the mechanical ventilation in children with ARDS, to provide evidence to the treatment and care of children with ARDS.MethodsWe searched the Pubmed et al. databases by computer until January 23, 2024 for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) on the role of prone position in the mechanical ventilation in children with ARDS. We evaluated the quality of included studies according to the quality evaluation criteria recommended by the Cochrane library. RevMan 5.3 software was used for meta-analysis.Results7 RCTs involving 433 children with ARDS were included. Meta-analysis indicated that prone position is beneficial to improve the arterial oxygenation pressure [MD = 4.27 mmHg, 95% CI (3.49, 5.06)], PaO2/FiO2 [MD = 26.97, 95% CI (19.17, 34.77)], reduced the oxygenation index [MD = −3.52, 95% CI (−5.41, −1.64)], mean airway pressure [MD = −1.91 cmH2O, 95% CI (−2.27, −1.55)] and mortality [OR = 0.33, 95% CI (0.15, 0.73), all P &lt; 0.05]. There were no statistical differences in the duration of mechanical ventilation between the prone position group and control group [MD = −17.01, 97.27, 95% CI (−38.28, 4.26), P = 0.12]. Egger test results showed that no significant publication bias was found (all P &gt; 0.05).ConclusionsProne position ventilation has obvious advantages in improving oxygenation, but there is no significant improvement in the time of mechanical ventilation in the treatment of children with ARDS. In the future, more large-sample, high-quality RCTs are still needed to further analyze the role of prone position in the mechanical ventilation in children with ARDS.
End-to-end security enabled intelligent remote IoT monitoring system
Authors: Saleem Kashif , Zinou Mohammed Farouk , Mohammad Farah , Ouni Ridha , Elhendi Ahmed Zohier , Almuhtadi Jalal 
Published: March 2024

Introduction: Internet of things (IoT) compose of million of devices connected together over the internet. IoT plays a vital role now a days and especially in future, the most of the monitoring and data collection. The data should be secure while collection and as well in the process of transferring till the destination whether Service Organization Control (SOC) or to cloud for storage. In this paper, a secure IoT based intelligent monitoring system is proposed.Methods: An intelligent IoT station that interacts via cellular connection to relay data to the cloud is constructed using the Waspmote platform. The algorithm is injected to automatically filter and only keep the new data for transfer to avoid redundancy. The advanced encryption standard (AES) 256-bit method is enabled for onboard data encryption and then the generated cipher text is transmitted. The encrypted data is then stored over the cloud to ensure privacy. Moreover, the mobile application (mApp) is developed to be installed on handheld devices for calling the secure data from the cloud, decrypting it, and displaying it as per user input, whether real-time or historical.Results and Discussion: The encryption algortihm helps in securing the proposed monitoring system from brute force, man in the middle, phishing, spoofing, and denial of service (DoS) attacks. The results of the real testbed experimentation demonstrate the complexity evaluation and reliability of IoT monitoring systems with end-to-end data security in terms of encryption algorithm delay and data rate, respectively.
Predicting resprouting of Platanus × hispanica following branch pruning by means of machine learning
Authors: Shu Qiguan , Yazdi Hadi , Rötzer Thomas , Ludwig Ferdinand 
Published: March 2024

IntroductionResprouting is a crucial survival strategy following the loss of branches, being it by natural events or artificially by pruning. The resprouting prediction on a physiological basis is a highly complex approach. However, trained gardeners try to predict a tree’s resprouting after pruning purely based on their empirical knowledge. In this study, we explore how far such predictions can also be made by machine learning.MethodsTable-topped annually pruned Platanus × hispanica trees at a nursery were LiDAR-scanned for two consecutive years. Topological structures for these trees were abstracted by cylinder fitting. Then, new shoots and trimmed branches were labelled on corresponding cylinders. Binary and multiclass classification models were tested for predicting the location and number of new sprouts.ResultsThe accuracy for predicting whether having or not new shoots on each cylinder reaches 90.8% with the LGBMClassifier, the balanced accuracy is 80.3%. The accuracy for predicting the exact numbers of new shoots with the GaussianNB model is 82.1%, but its balanced accuracy is reduced to 42.9%.DiscussionThe results were validated with a separate dataset, proving the feasibility of resprouting prediction after pruning using this approach. Different tree species, tree forms, and other variables should be addressed in further research.
Response of bacterial community structure to different phosphorus additions in a tobacco-growing soil
Authors: Zhou Beibei , Cheng Shiqian , Peng Shuang , Li Wenqing , Li Chunying , Wang Qianqian , Wang Yiming , Guo Jinping 
Published: March 2024

IntroductionPhosphorus (P), which plays a vital role in plant growth, is continually added to soil to maximize biomass production, leading to excessive P accumulation and water eutrophication.ResultsIn this study, a pot experiment using a subtropical tobacco-growing soil fertilized with four P levels—no P, low P, medium P, and high P—was conducted and rhizosphere and bulk soils were analyzed.ResultsP addition significantly increased tobacco biomass production (except under low P input) and total soil P and available P content (P&lt;0.05), whereas total nitrogen content decreased in the rhizosphere soils, although this was only significant with medium P application. P fertilization also significantly altered the bacterial communities of rhizosphere soils (P&lt;0.05), but those of bulk soils were unchanged (P&gt;0.05). Moreover, a significant difference was found between rhizosphere soils with low (LR) and high (HR) P inputs (P&lt;0.05). Additionally, compared with rhizosphere soils with no P (CKR), Shannon diversity showed a declining trend, which was significant with LR and HR (P&lt;0.05), whereas an increasing tendency was observed for Chao1 diversity except in LR (P&gt;0.05). Functional prediction revealed that P application significantly decreased the total P and N metabolism of microorganisms in rhizosphere soils (P&lt;0.05).DiscussionCollectively, our results indicate that maintaining sustainable agricultural ecosystems under surplus P conditions requires more attention to be directed toward motivating the potential of soil functional microbes in P cycling, rather than just through continual P input.
Capture and corporate cooptation: the role of the Mexican Foundation for Health in public health policy
Authors: Torres Christian , Calvillo Alejandro , Zúñiga Javier 
Published: March 2024

IntroductionCorporate capture responds to efforts to strengthen regulation or prohibition of commercial determinants of health [tobacco, alcohol, sugar-sweetened beverages, ultra-processed products (UPFs), commercial milk formula, and pharmaceuticals], in an attempt to interfere with public health policies that threaten the commercial, economic, and political interests of major industries. This manuscript proposes the characterization of the corporate capture of public health in Mexico, exercised through the Mexican Foundation for Health (FUNSALUD).MethodologyAn analysis of FUNSALUD and its stakeholders was carried out under the framework of commercial determinants of health, using a qualitative methodology, and executed in five stages: document analysis from 1985 to 2021; identification and characterization of stakeholders; semi-structured interviews; classification of corporate strategies; and relationship mapping.ResultsActors in the pharmaceutical, food, tobacco, alcohol, commercial milk formula, and sugar-sweetened beverage industries were identified as corporate members of FUNSALUD. We identify six corporate strategies used to interfere in public health and food policies, highlighting the role of a revolving door bureaucracy in the case of the Ministry of Health.ConclusionThe Mexican Foundation for Health has functioned as a front organization created by the private sector to influence public policy decision-making, protect corporate interests, and oppose international recommendations to combat non-communicable diseases.
Human values, civic participation, and wellbeing: analysis on their relationship among older Europeans
Authors: Vega-Tinoco Andrea , Sánchez-García Julia , Gil-Lacruz Marta , Sierra Berdejo María José , Gil-Lacruz Ana Isabel 
Published: March 2024

IntroductionSo far, both for the general and older population, research on human values and wellbeing mainly shows correlational associations but does not inquire about the direction of this relationship. This is also true for values and civic participation. Therefore, our objective is to identify the directional association between civic participation and Schwartz values, and between values and wellbeing, among older Europeans.MethodsA pseudo-panel was created from the cross-sectional data of the European Social Survey (ESS 2002-2018), controlling for gender, age-group, country and level of studies (n = 3926). The data analysis was performed using a cross-lagged model, applying both random-effects and fixed-effects models.ResultsOn the one hand, the relationship between participation and values is bidirectional, but the effect of civic participation on values is more significant since participating stimulates the development of certain values. On the other hand, although the relationship between values and wellbeing is also bidirectional, the effect of wellbeing on values is stronger since a given level of wellbeing favors the development of particular values.DiscussionWe conclude that civic participation should be promoted within the older population since it directly increases wellbeing, and moreover reinforces those (Growth-oriented) values that positively influence the health, happiness and life satisfaction of older people.
Social vulnerabilities among immigrants and refugees in emergencies and disasters: a systematic review
Authors: Doust Mohammadi Mohammad Mahdi , Salmani Ibrahim , Farahmandnia Hojjat 
Published: March 2024

BackgroundDue to cultural, economic, and societal factors, immigrants and refugees are pivotal groups in dealing with social vulnerability in disasters. Ignoring or inadequate attention to those groups in preparing for and responding to disasters and health emergencies could decrease the effectiveness of efforts. This article aims to identify the most basic social vulnerabilities among immigrants and refugees and provide effective solutions to alleviate or eliminate these vulnerabilities.MethodsThis systematic review was performed based on the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. The main keywords include Social Vulnerabilities, Immigrants, Refugees, and Disasters. All articles published up to February 2023 were reviewed regardless of language and location. A total of 575 articles were extracted from SCOPUS, Web of Science, ScienceDirect, ProQuest, PubMed, EMBASE, and PsycINFO databases, and finally, 14 articles were selected for full-text analysis. The Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology (STROBE) was used to evaluate the quality of the selected articles.ResultsFourteen articles including 4 qualitative and 10 quantitative articles were selected and analyzed in this review. The findings showed: 1. According to the consensus of the studies, the most vulnerable people who need urgent care during an epidemic due to their special conditions are immigrants and refugees; 2. In most countries, no database provides reliable, up-to-date, and accurate statistics about these people; 3. Refugees usually hesitate to express their vulnerability and receive services due to the fear of deportation; and 4. The main challenges faced by refugees are socio-economic problems such as language problems, lack of emotional and social support, and living in crowded places.ConclusionConsidering the prevalence of migration among countries, it is essential to identify the social problems and vulnerabilities of immigrants and provide effective solutions to cope with their challenges, especially during crises and emergencies.Systematic review registrationhttps://clinicaltrials.gov/, identifier CRD42022371345.
Relationship between socio-descriptive characteristics, burnout syndrome, and quality of life of employees
Authors: Rancic Natasa K. , Veljkovic Dejan R. , Mirkovic Momcilo R. , Kulic Ljiljana M. , Jovanovic Verica S. , Stamenkovic Bojana N. , Maksimovic Natasa S. , Ciric Vojislav M. , Marinkov-Zivkovic Emilija M. , Giljaca Sonja D. , Đorđevic Gordana , Đorđevic Ognjen G. , Stojanovic Marko M. , Bojanic Novica Z. , Miljkovic Dusan P. , Otasevic Suzana A. 
Published: March 2024

IntroductionBurnout syndrome develops as a consequence of chronic stress among employees. The study objective was to examine what socio-descriptive characteristics of employees might be associated with the appearance of the occupational burnout and to evaluate the relationship between job burnout and the quality of life among security employees of the professional private security sector in Central Serbia.MethodsA multicenter cross-sectional questionnaire-based study was performed. A multivariate logistic regression analysis and ANOVA post choc test was applied.ResultsA total of 353 respondents (330 male and 23 female) participated in the study. Female sex and older age were associated with a higher risk of total burnout and the development of emotional exhaustion while male sex, higher education, and managerial position were associated with higher personal achievement and lower risk of total burnout. Male sex, marital union, two or more children, and direct contact with clients were significantly associated with a lower quality of life of employees. A significant negative correlation was found between total burnout and the Physical Health Composite Score (PHC) score with a correlation coefficient (rs) of −0.265 (95%CI from −0.361 to −0.163); between total burnout and the and Mental Health Composite Score (MHC) score with a rs of −0.391 (95%CI from −0.480 to −0.301); and between total burnout and TQL score with a rs of −0.351 (95%CI from −0.445 to −0.258).ConclusionFemale sex and older age were associated with a higher risk of total burnout and the development of EE while a managerial position and higher education were protective factors in relation to the development of burnout. Male sex, marital union, two or more children, and direct contact with clients were significantly associated with a lower quality of life of the employees. Shift work significantly reduced the total quality of life, while managerial positions increased the quality of life.
Belief in omens and superstitions among patients with chronic neurological disorders
Authors: Mameniškienė Rūta , Kizlaitienė Rasa , Kaladytė Lokominienė Rūta , Puteikis Kristijonas 
Published: March 2024

IntroductionChronic neurological disorders may affect various cognitive processes, including religiosity or superstitious belief. We investigated whether superstitious beliefs are equally prevalent in patients with Parkinson’s disease (PD), people with epilepsy (PWE), patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) and healthy controls (HCs).MethodsFrom late 2014 to early 2023 we conducted a cross-sectional in-person anonymous paper-based survey at the tertiary clinic of Vilnius University Hospital Santaros Klinikos among outpatients and HCs by asking them to ascribe meaning or report belief for 27 culturally adapted statements (9 omens and 18 superstitions). The sum of items that a respondent believes in was labeled the superstition index (SI). The SI was compared between groups by means of the Kruskal-Wallis (H) test and negative binomial regression modeling. A two-step cluster analysis was performed to discern different subgroups based on answers to the items of the SI.ResultsThere were 553 respondents who completed the questionnaire (183 PWE, 124 patients with PD, 133 with MS and 113 HCs). Complete SI scores were collected for 479 (86.6%) participants and they were lower in patients with PD (n = 96, Md = 1, IQR = 0–5.75) in comparison to those with epilepsy (n = 155, Md = 6, IQR = 1–14), MS (n = 120, Md = 4, IQR = 0–12) or HCs (n = 108, Md = 4.5, IQR = 1–10), H (3) = 26.780, p &lt; 0.001. In a negative binomial regression model (n = 394, likelihood ratio χ2 = 35.178, p &lt; 0.001), adjusted for sex, place of residence, income and education, female sex was the only characteristic associated with the SI (β = 0.423, OR = 1.526, 95% CI = 1.148 to 2.028). Both female sex (β = 0.422, OR = 1.525, 95% CI = 1.148 to 2.026) and Parkinson’s disease (β = −0.428, OR = 0.652, 95% CI = 0.432 to 0.984) were significant predictors of the SI when age was removed from the model. Two-step cluster analysis resulted in individuals with PD being grouped into “extreme non-believer,” “non-believer” and “believer” rather than “non-believer” and “believer” clusters characteristic for PWE, patients with MS and HCs.ConclusionOur study suggests that individuals with PD believe in less superstitions than patients with MS, PWE or HCs. The results of this investigation should be independently confirmed after adjusting for PD-specific variables.
Automated surgical step recognition in transurethral bladder tumor resection using artificial intelligence: transfer learning across surgical modalities
Authors: Deol Ekamjit S. , Tollefson Matthew K. , Antolin Alenka , Zohar Maya , Bar Omri , Ben-Ayoun Danielle , Mynderse Lance A. , Lomas Derek J. , Avant Ross A. , Miller Adam R. , Elliott Daniel S. , Boorjian Stephen A. , Wolf Tamir , Asselmann Dotan , Khanna Abhinav 
Published: March 2024

ObjectiveAutomated surgical step recognition (SSR) using AI has been a catalyst in the “digitization” of surgery. However, progress has been limited to laparoscopy, with relatively few SSR tools in endoscopic surgery. This study aimed to create a SSR model for transurethral resection of bladder tumors (TURBT), leveraging a novel application of transfer learning to reduce video dataset requirements.Materials and methodsRetrospective surgical videos of TURBT were manually annotated with the following steps of surgery: primary endoscopic evaluation, resection of bladder tumor, and surface coagulation. Manually annotated videos were then utilized to train a novel AI computer vision algorithm to perform automated video annotation of TURBT surgical video, utilizing a transfer-learning technique to pre-train on laparoscopic procedures. Accuracy of AI SSR was determined by comparison to human annotations as the reference standard.ResultsA total of 300 full-length TURBT videos (median 23.96 min; IQR 14.13–41.31 min) were manually annotated with sequential steps of surgery. One hundred and seventy-nine videos served as a training dataset for algorithm development, 44 for internal validation, and 77 as a separate test cohort for evaluating algorithm accuracy. Overall accuracy of AI video analysis was 89.6%. Model accuracy was highest for the primary endoscopic evaluation step (98.2%) and lowest for the surface coagulation step (82.7%).ConclusionWe developed a fully automated computer vision algorithm for high-accuracy annotation of TURBT surgical videos. This represents the first application of transfer-learning from laparoscopy-based computer vision models into surgical endoscopy, demonstrating the promise of this approach in adapting to new procedure types.