bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Dental student education during the COVID-19 pandemic: a scoping review of frontline teaching approaches
Authors: Lewis Kegan , Karim Ikhlas El , Lappin Mark 
Published: November 2023

Abstract
Introduction Traditional methods of dental undergraduate education were impacted by cross-infection precautions associated with SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19), necessitating rapid implementation of virtual and novel in-person education strategies. The unprecedented pace at which COVID-19 caused educational disruption required universities to rapidly design and apply novel methods amidst limited clinical learning opportunity.
Objectives To use a scoping review to identify from published literature the educational methods employed globally during the COVID-19 pandemic, to explore stakeholders’ perceptions of their use, and to identify potential future good practise.
Method Scoping review methodology was used to select and analyse 63 articles. Comprehensive searches were conducted in MEDLINE, EMBASE, and Web of Science databases, with inclusion/exclusion criteria applied. Articles were screened at the title and abstract level by one reviewer, and at full text by one reviewer, with supervisory assistance from a second reviewer.
Results Dental education rapidly transitioned to total online learning for theoretical and clinical aspects. A shift to hybrid models followed, employing advanced virtual techniques for theory and in-person clinical training in laboratories and limited patient settings as restrictions eased. Students valued self-directed virtual methods but were concerned about reduced practical training. Hands-on mannequins and patient interactions remained preferable for clinical skills acquisition. Interactive online and in-person activities were highly valued for engagement and feedback, while case-based learning enhanced critical thinking. Virtual exams were accepted for communication and theory evaluation, though in-person assessments were favoured for clinical skills. Teaching staff highlighted the desire for additional IT related training and the development of existing IT infrastructure. Both teachers and learners endorsed blended approaches, combining in-person and virtual methods, for optimised clinical learning exposure.
Conclusions Undergraduate programmes should devise hybrid programmes that harnesses the educational efficacy and technological benefits of both virtual and in-person approaches amidst reduced clinical exposure. This approach ensures that dental graduates attain essential knowledge, competence, and readiness for autonomous practice.
Spatial Distribution Patterns of Pleural Dissemination in Patients with Thymoma and Survival Analysis
Authors: Chang Hao , li Gaiyan , He Dongjie , Zhu Siying , Jing Yong , Liu Honggang , Li Junting , Wu Peiwen , Shao Qiuju 
Published: November 2023

Abstract
Background
Thymoma is a common malignancy with a low incidence, and pleural metastases are a common pattern of recurrence. It is necessary that the spatial location of pleural metastatic lesions be analyzed. This study aimed to analyze the spatial distribution patterns of pleural dissemination in patients with thymoma and evaluate the variables that influence the survival of pleural metastasis in this population.
Methods
This retrospective study investigated hospital admissions of patients diagnosed with pleural metastasis from thymoma. The spatial distribution pattern and visualization of the pleural metastases were analyzed after establishing a coordinate system. We further analyzed the survival and influencing factors in patients with pleural metastases from thymoma.
Results
The analysis included 56 patients with a cumulative count of 365 pleural metastases, with 351 metastases from zones 1–5 finally included in the analysis. The spatial distribution of the 285 initially diagnosed pleural metastases was significantly concentrated in zones 3 and 4 near the lateral half of the spine 56.5% (161/285), followed by zone 5 17.5% (50/285). Collectively, these two components accounted for 74.0% (211/285) of all initial metastatic lesions. The survival rates at 5 years for those who underwent surgery versus non-surgical treatment were 68.3% and 37.1%, respectively (p = 0.015). Univariate Cox regression analysis showed that surgical intervention reduced the risk of death by 61% (HR = 0.391, P = 0.018).
Conclusions
The distribution of pleural metastatic lesions exhibited a non-uniform pattern, primarily concentrated on the spinal aspect below the aortic arch of the costal pleura and the spinal aspect of the diaphragmatic pleura. Surgical intervention plays a crucial role in the patients with pleural metastases from thymoma. Further investigation is necessary to explore preventive measures in areas with high incidence of pleural metastases from thymoma.
Investigation on the Crystallization Process of Microcellular Injection Moulded Parts and the Influences of Parameters on the Crystallization by Simulation
Authors: Ding Yifei , Yang Jiong , Bakker Otto , Hinduja Srichand , Bartolo Paulo 
Published: November 2023

Abstract
Crystallization, as a physical transformation process, plays an important role on the final properties of a plastic part. Similar to other injection moulding processes, injection and cooling conditions in microcellular injection moulding (e.g. MuCell® process) determine the phase change transformation of the material (molten to solid) and consequently, nucleation, crystal growth and crystallinity. The crystallization process of microcellular injection moulded parts has been mainly investigated using laborious and time-consuming experimental characterization techniques, but no studies reported the use of numerical methods to estimate the crystallization process. This paper presents a mathematical model successfully used to simulate the crystallization process of microcellular injection moulded parts. Microcellular injection moulding was simulated using Moldex 3D, and the crystallization process was investigated using the Hoffman nucleation theory for the crystal nucleation rate, the Lauritzen-Hoffman growth theory for the crystal growth rate, and the Avrami model to calculate the relative crystallinity. Numerical simulations allowed to investigate the effect of key processing parameters (melt temperature, mould temperature, flow rate, gas dosage amount and shot volume) on the crystallization process. Moreover, the numerical model was validated considering published experimental data.
Geochemical, ecological, and health risk assessment of potentially toxic elements (PTEs) in the surrounding soil of a cement plant
Authors: Sulaiman Mohammad Bashir , Okoye Chukwuma OB , Asegbeloyin Jonnie N 
Published: November 2023

Abstract
Cement plants are the major anthropogenic sources of potentially toxic elements (PTEs), which are generated from the processing of raw materials and combustion of fossil fuels. This study determined the PTE concentration and assessed the geochemical, ecological, and health risks associated with the activities in the Ashaka cement plant, Bajoga, Nigeria. Soil samples were collected between 2019 and 2020, and analyzed by ICP-OES for 20 PTEs. The data obtained were statistically evaluated for descriptive and inferential statistics. The mean concentrations of PTEs were in the declined order of Al > Fe > Mn > Zn > Ti > Ba > Sr > Pb > Cu > V > Cr > Ni > As > Sc > Mo > Hg > Cd > Se > Sb > Co. Multivariate analysis revealed that the main sources of PTEs might be related to anthropogenic activities from cement plant. The geochemical load index (GLI) values obtained range from unpolluted to moderate. The ecological risk ranged from 4.74 × 10− 3 to 8.00 × 100, and the overall risk index indicated low contamination for the investigated elements. The hazard index (HI) was < 1, suggesting non-probable non-carcinogenic effects. However, children were more susceptible to risk than adults, and the cancer risk (CR) values of Cd for children and adults were higher than the threshold level of 1.0 × 10− 4, which suggests probable development of cancer risk for residents.
Disparities in integrating non-invasive prenatal testing into antenatal healthcare in Australia: A survey of healthcare professionals
Authors: Johnston Molly , Hui Lisa , Bowman-Smart Hilary , Taylor-Sands Michelle , Pertile Mark D , Mills Catherine 
Published: November 2023

Abstract
Background
Non-invasive prenatal testing (NIPT) has been clinically available in Australia on a user-pays basis since 2012. There are numerous providers, with available tests ranging from targeted NIPT (only trisomies 21, 18, and 13 +/- sex chromosome aneuploidy) to genome-wide NIPT. While NIPT is being implemented in the public health care systems of other countries, in Australia, the implementation of NIPT has proceeded without public funding. The aim of this study was to investigate how NIPT has been integrated into antenatal care across Australia and reveal the successes and challenges in its implementation in this context.
Methods
An anonymous online mixed-methods survey was conducted from September to October 2022. Invitations to participate were sent to healthcare professionals (HCPs) involved in the provision of NIPT in Australia through professional society mailing lists and networks.
Results
A total of 475 HCPs responded, comprising 48.8% obstetricians, 35.2% general practitioners, 6.7% midwives, and 9.3% genetic specialists. NIPT was most commonly offered as a first-tier test, with most HCP (60.3%) offering it to patients as a choice between NIPT and combined first-trimester screening. Fifty-three percent of respondents always offered patients a choice between NIPT for the common autosomal trisomies and expanded (including genome-wide) NIPT. This choice was understood as supporting patient autonomy and informed consent. Cost was seen as a major barrier to access to NIPT, for both targeted and expanded tests. Equitable access, increasing time demands on HCPs, and staying up to date with advances were frequently reported as major challenges in delivering NIPT.
Conclusions
Our findings demonstrate substantial variation in the clinical implementation of NIPT in Australia, including in the offers of expanded screening options. After a decade of clinical use, Australian clinicians still report ongoing challenges in the clinical and equitable provision of NIPT.
Potential impacts of invasive Pythons in Brazil
Authors: Guimarães Victor Hugo Silva , Machado Ricardo Bomfim , Giugliano Lilian Gimenes 
Published: November 2023

Abstract
The global pet trade's demand has led to the introduction of large constrictor snakes into new environments, either intentionally or accidentally. Brazil boasts the third-highest reptile species diversity globally, with snakes representing the predominant reptilian group, including 12 constrictor species. The potential for competition and predation between invasive and native snakes underscores the need for a comprehensive assessment of risks faced by endemic herpetofauna. This study aims to identify potential areas for invasive python establishment and assess their impact on native constrictors in Brazil. Environmental Niche Models were employed to predict suitable habitats for both invasive pythons and four endemic Brazilian snake species. By overlapping Python spp. records with those of endemic serpents, the study sought to understand resource availability for potential invasive species and the vulnerability of native species to python invasion. The results highlight Python sebae and Python bivittatus as potential invasive species posing a threat to native constrictors. Conversely, Eunectes murinus, with its semi-aquatic behavior, exhibited lower vulnerability. Endemic serpents, including Boa constrictor, Corallus hortulanus, and Epicrates cenchria, were identified as highly susceptible to potential competition from invasive pythons. These findings emphasize the importance of understanding the potential ecological impacts of the introduction of invasive species on native ecosystems.
The Effect of Social Network-Based Motivational Interviewing on Health- Promoting Behaviors and Quality of Life among Infertile Women with Polycystic Ovary Syndrome: A Randomized Controlled Trial
Authors: Hamzehgardeshi Zeinab , Elyasi Forouzan , Moosazadeh Mahmood , Ahmadi Imaneh , Jahanfar Shayesteh , Ahmadian Maryam , Ansari Fatemeh 
Published: November 2023

Abstract
Objective:Polycystic ovary syndrome is one of the commonest and complex endocrine disorders in females of reproductive age. Attention to self-care behaviors such as health-promoting behaviors can improve physiological and psychological conditions in women with PCOS. This study aimed to determine the efficacy of Social Network-Based Motivational Interviewing on health-promoting behaviors and quality of life of infertile women with polycystic ovary syndrome.
Methods: In this randomized controlled trial, 60 infertile women with polycystic ovary syndrome were randomly selected and assigned to the interventio (n = 30) or a control group (n = 30). Participants in the control group received routine care. Those in the intervention group received five motivational group sessions in WhatsApp, which were conducted in five groups of six participants each. The data related to health-promoting behaviors and quality of life were collected through an online questionnaire. Both groups were followed up immediately and 2 months after the intervention. Data collected in the two stages were analyzed using the paired-samples t-test, Chi-square, and repeated measures analysis.
Results: No significant difference was observed between the two groups before the intervention means health-promoting behaviors and quality of life scores (p>0.05). Immediately and two months after the intervention, the mean scores of health-promoting behaviors and their domains increased in the intervention group. This increase is statistically compared to the first test, and the scores obtained by the control group in the second (p< 0.001, ES = 1.5) and the third test (p< 0.001, ES= 1.3) were significant. The score of the quality of life variable increase was not statistically significant compared to the first test and also to the scores obtained by the control group. However According to the GEE test, the changes in quality of life score between the two groups in the three stages of measurement are statistically significant.
Conclusions: WhatsApp support increases the health-promoting self-care behaviors rate and has favorable effects on follow-up.
Trial registration: Iranian Registry for Clinical Trial (the link to trial: https://www.irct.ir/trial/48089). Registered August 11 2020
Simultaneous time-resolved aqueous haloamine measurement empowers robust kinetic model analysis
Authors: Katz Lynn , Brodfuehrer Samuel , Blomdahl Daniel , Wahman David , Speitel Gerald , Misztal Pawel 
Published: November 2023

Abstract

We demonstrate the first application of Proton Transfer Time-of-Flight Mass Spectrometry (PTR-ToF-MS) for monitoring kinetics of disinfectant decay in water with 1 to 3 orders of magnitude greater sensitivity than other analytical methods. Chemical disinfection inactivates pathogens during water treatment and prevents regrowth as water is conveyed in distribution system pipes, but it also causes formation of toxic disinfection by-products (DBPs). Analytical limits have hindered kinetic models which aid in ensuring water quality and protecting public health by predicting disinfectant DBPs formation. PTR-ToF-MS, designed for measuring gas phase concentrations of organic compounds, was able to simultaneously monitor aqueous concentrations of five haloamines relevant to chloramine disinfection under drinking water relevant concentrations. This novel application to aqueous analytes opens a new range of applications for PTR-ToF-MS.
Efficacy and Safety of Injectable Dulaglutide 1.5 mg among Type 2 Diabetes Patients in Clinics at King Saud Medical City, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Authors: Albargawi Mashael Saad , Alharbi Rawan Naser , Alajlani Mohammad Abbas , Abdulaal Ibtihal Abdulwarith , Aldakhil Lina Othman 
Published: November 2023

Abstract

Introduction: Type 2 diabetes mellitus is the most common type of diabetes, characterized by varying degrees of insulin resistance and diminishing beta-cell function, which increases the risk of macrovascular and microvascular complications. Dulaglutide is a long-acting glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonist that is administered once weekly and approved for treating adults with type 2 diabetes mellitus. It can be used as a monotherapy or in addition to oral hypoglycemic or insulin therapy.
Aim: This study aims to provide information contributing to assessing the efficacy and safety of weekly 1.5 mg dulaglutide therapy in Saudi adult patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus.
Methods: A retrospective single-arm cohort study using a purposive sample to recruit type 2 diabetes mellitus patients on dulaglutide from endocrine and diabetic outpatient clinics in King Saud Medical City (N = 205). Data were collected from participants’ medical profiles and through the phone using interview questionnaires.
Results: Most participants were female and married; approximately 33% had had diabetes for more than 20 years, 41.4% of the sample had third-class obesity, and more than half had used dulaglutide for the last 1 to 2 years. With therapy, weight, body mass index, hemoglobin A1c, and fasting blood sugar were significantly improved after 6 and 12 months from baseline. The main side effects reported were nausea (52%) and fatigue (28%).
Conclusion:Dulaglutide is a safe and effective therapy that demonstrated favorable glycemic control and weight reduction in obese type 2 diabetes patients of Saudi origin.
Pipeline Parallelism with Reduced Network Communications for Efficient Compute-intensive Neural Network Training
Authors: Yu Chanhee , Park Kyongseok 
Published: November 2023

Abstract
Pipeline parallelism is a distributed deep neural network training method suitable for tasks that consume large amounts of memory. However, this method entails a large amount of overhead because of the dependency between devices in performing forward and backward steps through multiple devices. A method to remove forward step dependency through the all-to-all approach has been proposed for the compute-intensive models; however, this method incurs large overhead when training with a large number of devices and is inefficient in terms of weight memory consumption. Therefore, we propose a pipeline parallelism method that reduces network communication using a self-generation concept and simultaneously reduces overhead by minimizing the weight memory used for acceleration. In a Darknet53 training throughput experiment using six devices, the proposed method showed excellent performance of approximately 63.7% compared to the baseline by reduced overhead and communication costs and showed less memory consumption of approximately 17.0%.
Investigating the relationship between carbapenemase production and biofilm formation in Klebsiella pneumoniae clinical isolates
Authors: Naggar Nora M. El , Shawky Riham M. , Serry Fathy M. E. , Emara Mohamed 
Published: November 2023

Abstract
Background
Infections caused by K. pneumoniae rely heavily on biofilm formation, which also contributes to its ability to withstand the effects of antibiotics. Carbapenemase production in K. pneumoniae poses a formidable challenge, rendering it resistant to multiple antibiotic classes. Both biofilms and carbapenemases exert a significant influence on the pathogenicity of K. pneumoniae. This study aimed to explore the association between carbapenemase production and biofilm formation by employing a collection of clinically isolated K. pneumoniae strains.
Research Surgical outcomes of hepatocellular carcinoma patients with Child-Pugh grade B liver function and beyond Milan criteria
Authors: Lu Zhan , Li Jindu , Gao Junping , Xie Yilin , Gong Wenfeng , Xiang Bangde 
Published: November 2023

Abstract
Background
Due to impaired liver function, hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients with Child-Pugh grade B (CPG-B) liver function need carefully chosen treatment. Radical treatment for patients beyond Milan criteria is limited. It has not been established whether hepatectomy is safe and effective under these circumstances.
Methods
This was a retrospective analysis of patients from January 2010 to October 2021 in a tertiary care centre. Postoperative complications and oncological prognosis were observed. Then, we investigated the feasibility of major hepatectomy for HCC in patients with CPG-B liver function.
Results
Among HCC patients with CPG-B liver function, recurrence-free survival (RFS) and overall survival (OS) significantly differed between patients with Milan criteria and those beyond Milan criteria (p < 0.05), but there was no significant difference in 90-day mortality (4.8% vs. 4.4%) or postoperative complications (55.4% vs. 57.0%). The 1-, 3-, and 5-year RFS for patients beyond Milan criteria were 42.2%, 22.8%, and 15.1%, respectively, while the 1-, 3-, and 5-year OS were 76.6%, 48.1%, and 36.0%, respectively. In HCC patients beyond Milan criteria, an inverse probability treatment weighting (IPTW) analysis revealed significant differences in RFS and OS between minor hepatectomy and major hepatectomy (p < 0.05). Cox proportional analysis also revealed that major hepatectomy was a prognostic factor for worse RFS (hazard ratio (HR): 1.77, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.14–2.73) and OS (HR: 1.57, 95% CI: 1.01–2.82).
Conclusion
Hepatectomy is still feasible in HCC patients with CPG-B liver function and beyond Milan criteria, but major hepatectomy will result in a poor prognosis.
Amorphous multimetal catalyst for oxygen evolution reaction
Authors: Zhang Zishuai , Vieira Daniela , Barralet Jake E , Merle Geraldine 
Published: November 2023

Abstract
The development of efficient, low-cost water splitting electrocatalysts is needed to store energy by generating sustainable hydrogen from low power clean but intermittent energy sources such as solar and wind. Here, we report a highly sustained low overpotential for oxygen evolution reached by the unique combination of three metals (NiCoV) prepared from a simple low temperature auto-combustion process. The amorphous multimetal oxygen evolving catalyst could be stably coated on a stainless-steel support using a tribochemical particle blasting method to create an oxygen evolution reaction (OER) electrode with a low overpotential of 230 mV at 10 mA cm-2 and a low Tafel slope of 40 mV dec-1. In addition to their low overpotential, this oxygen evolving electrocatalyst preserved performance demonstrating a stability after 10 hours at the technologically relevant current density and without any surface morphology alteration. Given the importance of sustainable hydrogen production, the development of this new OER catalyst points the way to removing a key technical bottleneck for the water splitting reaction and could offer a route to cost reduction and lowering hurdles to more widespread adaptation of electrolyser technologies for hydrogen production.