bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
An efficient, fast, and robust algorithm for single diode model parameters estimation of photovoltaic solar cells
Authors: Ismail Husain A. , Diab Ahmed A. Zaki 
Published: February 2024

AbstractParameter estimation of photovoltaic (PV) solar cells and module models pays attention to researchers owing to their importance in practical considerations. The single diode model (SDM) circuit with five unknown parameters is widely used to model PV solar cells and modules. In this paper, a novel approach called alternate optimization (AO) algorithm based on a discrete search is proposed to estimate the SDM parameters. The proposed algorithm provides efficient and robust performance, considering a limited set of discrete values and increasing the convergence speed. Two practical case studies with actual measurements are considered to assess the proposed AO algorithm: the RTC France solar cell and monocrystalline PV modules with different irradiations and temperatures. The numerical findings underscore the superior performance of the proposed AO algorithm across various metrics. Notably, it achieves an exceptional Root Mean Square Error (RMSE) of 7.7426 × 10−04 for the RTC France PV cell and approximately 1 × 10−03 RMSE for monocrystalline PV modules. Additionally, the algorithm exhibits unparalleled speed, showcasing the fastest convergence with an elapsed time of 1.66 × 10−05—markedly 4.45 times quicker than the fastest method documented in the literature for SDM parameter estimation. Furthermore, the proposed AO algorithm stands out for its efficiency, requiring a maximum of five iterations for parameter estimation, a substantial improvement compared to the more than 10 iterations typically needed by algorithms in the existing literature. Its robustness is also commendable, as evidenced by the stability of final RMSE values across a variety of experiments, distinguishing it from less robust algorithms found in the literature.
Ventriculoperitoneal Shunt Surgery in Pediatrics: Does Preoperative Skin Antisepsis with Chlorhexidine/Alcohol Reduce Postoperative Shunt Infection Rate?
Authors: Ammar Ahmed Shawky , Elnoamany Hossam , Elkholy Hany 
Published: February 2024

Abstract
Background In pediatrics, shunt infection is considered the most common complication of ventriculoperitoneal (VP) shunt insertion and the main cause of shunt failure. Careful surgical technique and hygienic skin preparations are highly important for prevention of shunt infections. Our objective was to assess the significance of using preoperative chlorhexidine/alcohol as a skin antiseptic in reducing the infection rate in pediatric VP shunts surgery.
Methods We conducted a retrospective, case control study of 80 pediatric patients with active hydrocephalus. The control group (a single step of preoperative skin antisepsis using povidone-iodine and isopropyl alcohol) comprised 40 patients who underwent a shunt surgery between January 2019 and June 2020 and the study group (two steps of preoperative skin antisepsis using 2% chlorhexidine gluconate in 70% isopropyl alcohol as a first step followed by povidone-iodine as a second step) comprised 40 patients who underwent a shunt surgery between July 2020 and January 2022.
Results Shunt infection was encountered in 11 (13.7%) patients. It was significantly higher in preterm babies (p = 0.010), patients with a previous shunt revision (p < 0.001), and those with a previous shunt infection (p < 0.001). The incidence of infection was 22.5% in the control group and 5% in study group, with a statistically significant difference (p = 0.023).
Conclusions Two steps of preoperative skin antisepsis, first using chlorhexidine/alcohol and then povidone-iodine scrub solution, may significantly reduce the infection rate in pediatric VP shunt surgeries.
What Is the Correlation between Coronal Plane Alignment Measured on Pre- and Postoperative Weight-bearing Radiographs and Intraoperative Navigation When Stress Is Applied to the Knee?
Authors: O'Neill Anthony , McAuliffe Michael , Pillay Tristan , Garg Gautam , Whitehouse Sarah , Crawford Ross 
Published: February 2024

AbstractThis study examines the correlation between the weight-bearing (WB) long leg radiograph (LLR)-derived hip–knee–ankle angle (HKAA) and intraoperative supine computer-assisted surgery (CAS)-derived HKAA measurements at the beginning and end of total knee arthroplasty (TKA). The primary aim of the study was to determine if WB alignment could be mimicked or inferred based on intraoperative alignment findings. We conducted a prospective analysis from a cohort of 129 TKAs undergoing a CAS TKA at a single center by a single surgeon. The HKAA was recorded using the CAS navigation system immediately postregistration of navigation data and after implantation of the prosthesis. The intraoperative HKAA was recorded in both the supine “resting” position of the knee and also while the knee was manipulated in an effort to replicate the patient's WB alignment. These measurements were compared with the HKAA recorded on pre- and postoperative WB LLRs. There was a strong correlation between the preoperative WB LLR HKAA and the intraoperative preimplant CAS-derived stressed HKAA (R = 0.946). However, there was no correlation between the postoperative WB LLR HKAA and the postimplant insertion HKAA as measured intraoperatively via CAS for either a “resting” or “stressed” position of the operated knee (R = 0.165 and R = 0.041, respectively). Thus, the interpretation of intraoperative alignment data is potentially problematic. Despite technological advances in the development and utilization of computer navigation and robotics in arthroplasty to help obtain the optimal alignment, it would seem apparent from our study that this alignment does not correlate to upright stance postoperatively. Surgeons should apply caution to the strength of assumptions they place on intraoperative coronal plane alignment findings.
Are Femoral Stems in Primary Total Knee Arthroplasty Cost Effective in High Fracture Risk Patients? A Risk Model and Cost Analysis
Authors: Rackard Forrest , Gilreath Noah , Pasqualini Ignacio , Molloy Robert , Krebs Viktor , Piuzzi Nicolas S. , Deren Matthew E. 
Published: February 2024

AbstractFemoral stemmed total knee arthroplasty (FS TKA) may be used in patients deemed higher risk for periprosthetic fracture (PPF) to reduce PPF risk. However, the cost effectiveness of FS TKA has not been defined. Using a risk modeling analysis, we investigate the cost effectiveness of FS in primary TKA compared with the implant cost of revision to distal femoral replacement (DFR) following PPF. A model of risk categories was created representing patients at increasing fracture risk, ranging from 2.5 to 30%. The number needed to treat (NNT) was calculated for each risk category, which was multiplied by the increased cost of FS TKA and compared with the cost of DFR. The 50th percentile implant pricing data for primary TKA, FS TKA, and DFR were identified and used for the analysis. FS TKA resulted in an increased cost of $2,717.83, compared with the increased implant cost of DFR of $27,222.29. At 50% relative risk reduction with FS TKA, the NNT for risk categories of 2.5, 10, 20, and 30% were 80, 20, 10, and 6.67, respectively. At 20% risk, FS TKA times NNT equaled $27,178.30. A 10% absolute risk reduction in fracture risk obtained with FS TKA is needed to achieve cost neutrality with DFR. FS TKA is not cost effective for low fracture risk patients but may be cost effective for patients with fracture risk more than 20%. Further study is needed to better define the quantifiable risk reduction achieved in using FS TKA and identify high-risk PPF patients.
Paraneoplastic Syndrome: A Missed Diagnosis
Authors: Kalaichelvam Archana , Narayanasamy Karunya , B. Thinakarmani 
Published: February 2024

AbstractParaneoplastic syndrome can involve a single organ or diverse organ systems. It is one of the rare manifestations of occult malignancy. A 47-year-old female patient with history of recent suspected herpes infection presented with features of extensive skin darkening and thickening, associated with poor swallowing and cough reflex. Patient was not able to lift both arms nor able to sit or stand which was suggestive of proximal muscle weakness involving the shoulders and hip. Patient's initial workup for autoimmune disorders including dermatomyositis was negative. With paraneoplastic syndrome as differential diagnosis contrast-enhanced computed tomography chest and abdomen and tumor markers CA125 and CA19.9 done showed no evidence of occult malignancy. Patient was started on empirical steroids for polyradiculoneuropathy. After starting steroids patients was able to sit and walk with support. Patient was able to swallow liquids without aspiration. On regular follow-up over a period of 3 months, patient developed abdomen pain and abdominal distention which on evaluation showed ascites and multiple new cystic ovarian lesions suggestive of ovarian malignancy. Patient's CA125 was repeated and was markedly elevated. Patient was referred to an oncologist and was started on chemotherapy along with immunosuppressants. This case report emphasizes the need for regular follow-up of patients suspected of paraneoplastic syndrome. Although the initial workup for malignancy did not give a clue, on periodic review we were able to make the primary diagnosis and start appropriate treatment and achieve a better patient survival.
Localized Rectal Cancer: Indian Consensus and Guidelines
Authors: Lavingia Viraj , Sardana Shefali , Khanderia Mansi , Bisht Niharika , Patel Amol , Koyyala Venkata Pradeep Babu , Sheth Harsh , Ramaswamy Anant , Singh Ashish , deSouza Ashwin , Jain Sneha Bothra , Mahajan Mukta , Gohel Shruti , Parikh Aparna , Brown Gina , Sirohi Bhawna 
Published: February 2024

AbstractThe rising incidence of colorectal cancer (CRC) in India, particularly the prevalence of rectal cancer over colon cancer (0.7:1), has been a growing concern in recent decades; especially notable is the trend of increasing cases among young CRC patients. Given the diverse treatment approaches for rectal cancer globally and the varying economic capacities of patients in low to middle-income countries (LMICs) like India, it is essential to establish consensus guidelines that are specifically tailored to meet the needs of these patients. To achieve this, a panel comprising 30 eminent rectal cancer experts convened to conduct a comprehensive and impartial evaluation of existing practices and recent advancements in the field. Through meticulous scrutiny of published literature and a consensus-building process that involved voting on pertinent questions, the panel formulated management strategies. These recommendations are the result of a rigorous, evidence-based process and encapsulate the collective wisdom and judgment of leading authorities in the field.
A Cross-Sectional Study about Demographic and Medical Characteristics of Hypertensive Pregnant Women in Two Secondary Healthcare Facilities, in Ilorin, Nigeria
Authors: Aliyu F. O. , Olatunde O. O. , Abdulbaki M. , Bello S. I. , Olajide Qadri 
Published: February 2024

Background Hypertension is one of the major causes of related maternal deaths worldwide and it is one of the most common medical disorders encountered during pregnancy.
Aim This study aimed at assessing the demographic and medical characteristics of hypertensive pregnant women in two secondary healthcare facilities, in Ilorin, Nigeria
Method This was a cross-sectional study among 104 pregnant women with hypertension attending the outpatient department of General Hospital and Civil Service Clinic, Ilorin between March and May 2021. A validated self-administered questionnaire was used to obtain information on sociodemographics. Data on the medical characteristics of the respondents and their medications were extracted from the respondent's medical files. Ethical approval was obtained from the Ministry of Health and General Hospital, Ilorin. For statistical analysis for categorical measurements, the frequencies and percentages were computed.
Results Seventy-five percent of the correspondents were below 36 years old, 97% were married, 79% had tertiary education, and 74% were above 24 weeks of gestation. About 68% of the correspondents had blood pressure more than or equal to 140/90 and 10% had blood pressure more than 160 mm Hg systolic or more than 100 mm Hg diastolic. About 78.8% of the correspondents had a family history of hypertension, 13.5% had a family history of diabetes mellitus, and 22.1% had a family history of obesity. About 27.9% had pre-existing hypertension, 61.5% developed hypertension before the end of 20 weeks of gestation, and 10.6% developed hypertension after 20 weeks of gestation. About 24% had their antihypertensive medication changed during pregnancy, 38.5% were treated with methyldopa, 31.7% with nifedipine, and 27% with nifedipine and methyldopa. Majority (83.6%) of the respondents were not adherent to their medications.
Conclusion Two-third of the patients had poor blood pressure control irrespective of the fact that all were under drug therapy. Family history and large body mass index are the main risk factors for the development of hypertension during pregnancy. Noncompliance may play a significant role in no drug response.
Crowing in two voices: The cultural transformation of the Portuguese rooster in postcolonial Macau
Authors: Amaro Vanessa 
Published: February 2024

AbstractThe Barcelos Rooster, an emblem rooted in Portuguese folklore, has undergone a significant transformation, evolving from a local curiosity to an icon of national pride and subsequently into a symbol of Macau’s post-sovereignty transfer to China in 1999. This study examines the rooster’s metamorphosis in Macau. In this former Portuguese territory, the rooster has transcended its original symbolism, aligning with the Chinese cultural values of honesty, bravery, and prosperity and becoming ingrained in the city’s identity. By tracing its journey from Portugal to Macau, the study explores the rooster’s role as a transcultural object within postcolonial tourism and transculturalism frameworks. It investigates how the rooster’s adaptation reflects the complex interplay of power, identity, and culture, contributing to the discourse on cultural symbols and collective identity in postcolonial societies.
The predictive value of anticholinergic drug exposure and the outcome of pneumonia: a Danish database study
Authors: Yoshimatsu Yuki , Kragholm Kristian , Clemmensen Silas Zacharias , Melgaard Dorte , Torp-Pedersen Christian , Smithard David G , Riis Johannes 
Published: February 2024

Abstract

Introduction
Older adults are susceptible to anticholinergic effects. Dysphagia and pneumonia are associated with anticholinergic usage, though a definitive causative relationship has not been established. There is no effective way to predict the prognosis of older adults with pneumonia; therefore, this study investigates the predictive value of anticholinergic burden.

Methods
Patients aged 65 years and above admitted for community-acquired pneumonia from 2011 to 2018 in Denmark were included through Danish registries. We calculated anticholinergic drug exposure using the CRIDECO Anticholinergic Load Scale (CALS). The primary outcome was in-hospital mortality, and other outcomes included intensive care unit admission, ventilator usage, length of stay, 30-day/90-day/1-year mortality, institutionalisation, home care utilisation and readmission.

Results
186,735 patients were included in the in-hospital outcome analyses, 165,181 in the readmission analysis, 150,791 in the institutionalisation analysis, and 95,197 and 73,461 patients in the home care analysis at follow-up. Higher CALS score was associated with higher in-hospital mortality, with a mean risk increasing from 9.9% (CALS 0) to 16.4% (CALS &gt;10), though the risk plateaued above a CALS score of 8. A higher CALS score was also associated with greater mortality after discharge, more home health care, more institutionalizations and higher readmission rates.

Conclusions
High anticholinergic burden levels were associated with poor patient outcomes including short-/long-term mortality, dependence and readmission. It may be useful to calculate the CALS score on admission of older patients with pneumonia to predict their prognosis. This also highlights the importance of avoiding the use of drugs with a high anticholinergic burden in older patients.
SpecieScan: semi-automated taxonomic identification of bone collagen peptides from MALDI-ToF-MS
Authors: Végh Emese I , Douka Katerina 
Published: February 2024

Abstract

Motivation
Zooarchaeology by Mass Spectrometry (ZooMS) is a palaeoproteomics method for the taxonomic determination of collagen, which traditionally involves challenging manual spectra analysis with limitations in quantitative results. As the ZooMS reference database expands, a faster and reproducible identification tool is necessary. Here we present SpecieScan, an open-access algorithm for automating taxa identification from raw MALDI-ToF mass spectrometry (MS) data.

Results
SpecieScan was developed using R (pre-processing) and Python (automation). The algorithm’s output includes identified peptide markers, closest matching taxonomic group (taxon, family, order), correlation scores with the reference databases, and contaminant peaks present in the spectra. Testing on original MS data from bones discovered at Palaeothic archaeological sites, including Denisova Cave in Russia, as well as using publicly-available, externally produced data, we achieved &gt;90% accuracy at the genus-level and ∼92% accuracy at the family-level for mammalian bone collagen previously analysed manually.

Availability and implementation
The SpecieScan algorithm, along with the raw data used in testing, results, reference database, and common contaminants lists are freely available on Github (https://github.com/mesve/SpecieScan).
PanEffect: a pan-genome visualization tool for variant effects in maize
Authors: Andorf Carson M , Haley Olivia C , Hayford Rita K , Portwood John L , Harding Stephen , Sen Shatabdi , Cannon Ethalinda K , Gardiner Jack M , Kim Hye-Seon , Woodhouse Margaret R 
Published: February 2024

Abstract

Summary
Understanding the effects of genetic variants is crucial for accurately predicting traits and functional outcomes. Recent approaches have utilized artificial intelligence and protein language models to score all possible missense variant effects at the proteome level for a single genome, but a reliable tool is needed to explore these effects at the pan-genome level. To address this gap, we introduce a new tool called PanEffect. We implemented PanEffect at MaizeGDB to enable a comprehensive examination of the potential effects of coding variants across 50 maize genomes. The tool allows users to visualize over 550 million possible amino acid substitutions in the B73 maize reference genome and to observe the effects of the 2.3 million natural variations in the maize pan-genome. Each variant effect score, calculated from the Evolutionary Scale Modeling (ESM) protein language model, shows the log-likelihood ratio difference between B73 and all variants in the pan-genome. These scores are shown using heatmaps spanning benign outcomes to potential functional consequences. In addition, PanEffect displays secondary structures and functional domains along with the variant effects, offering additional functional and structural context. Using PanEffect, researchers now have a platform to explore protein variants and identify genetic targets for crop enhancement.

Availability and implementation
The PanEffect code is freely available on GitHub (https://github.com/Maize-Genetics-and-Genomics-Database/PanEffect). A maize implementation of PanEffect and underlying datasets are available at MaizeGDB (https://www.maizegdb.org/effect/maize/).
Conservation biogeography and diversity of tarantulas in Argentina
Authors: Allegue Maite , Schwerdt Leonela , Ferretti Nelson 
Published: February 2024

Abstract
The loss of biodiversity due to the effects of a number of human activities is a cause for great concern. Protected areas are currently one of the main conservation tools worldwide and their correct selection and design play a key role. Since 2000, there have been protocols for systematic conservation planning, which emphasize the identification of priority conservation areas (PCAs) to ensure the persistence of species habitats and the environmental processes associated with them. Spiders of the family Theraphosidae (tarantulas) have biological characteristics that make them vulnerable to fragmentation in time and space and also are underrepresented in current conservation efforts. The geographical distribution of endemic species, such as tarantulas, represents a historical and ecological footprint of all biological entities; therefore, such endemic areas are recognized as priority areas for biodiversity conservation plans. The present work aims to develop an integrative biogeographical approach to conservation through the evaluation of multispecies distribution patterns, and the study of species richness and areas of endemism of tarantulas in Argentina with the ultimate goal of assessing their relationship to existing protected areas and proposing PCAs.
Endovascular intervention to treat spontaneous carotid-cavernous fistula in a patient with Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome with an access site anatomical variant
Authors: See Austin Jin Xian , Ashok Abhishekh Hulegar , Joshi Yogish , Guilfoyle Mathew , See Teik Choon 
Published: February 2024

Abstract
Vascular Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (vEDS) is a rare and potentially life-threatening inherited connective tissue disorder. Patients with vEDS can present with spontaneous arterial dissections and ruptured aneurysms. There are previous reports of large artery dissections and vessel rupture following conventional catheter diagnostic angiography. We present the case of a patient with vEDS who had a spontaneous carotid-cavernous fistula (CCF) and visceral aneurysms, associated with a normal variant of corona mortis. A CCF was successfully treated with a transvenous approach with detachable coils.