bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Cost Effectiveness Analysis: Small Country Pediatric Cardiac Surgery Program Development
Authors: Cardarelli Marcelo , Chadikovski Vladimir , Novick William 
Published: June 2022

Abstract

Background
The cost-effectiveness of sending children abroad for treatment of their congenital heart disease (CHD) in small population countries versus developing a local program should be carefully considered. We investigated the cost-effectiveness analysis of developing such program in a small Eastern-European country.
Methods
Calculated costs during different stages in the development of a program in North Macedonia were obtained from the Ministry of Health. All patients diagnosed and surgically treated between 2010 and 2017 were included along 3 distinctive periods.
2010-2012 - Outsourcing (All patients sent abroad for surgical treatment)
2013-2016 - Foundational (Program development with assistance from a global charity organization)
2017 - Tutelage Period (Semi-Independent program)
Cost-Effectiveness is provided in US$ per Disability Adjusted Life Years (DALY) as unit of health value.
Results
Between January 2010 and December 2017, a total of 384 patients diagnosed with CHD underwent surgical treatment at government expense. The breakdown was: 125; 204 and 55 patients in each period.The cost-effectiveness of the intervention was $315; $297 and $251 per DALY averted respectively.
Conclusions
Surgical treatment of patients born with CHD is a highly cost-effective intervention irrespective of the approach taken. Even after accounting for the initial capital investment costs, the development of a local pediatric cardiac surgery program seems to be slightly more cost-effective than outsourcing.
Trends in prevalence and patterns of use of a heated tobacco product (IQOSTM) in Japan: A three-year repeated cross-sectional study
Authors: Fischer Karina , Bajec Martha , Mainy Nelly , AlMoosawi Suzana , Sieverding Marius , Zwisele Bertram , Camille Nathalie , Magnani Pierpaolo , Roulet Steve 
Published: June 2022

Background: Numerous smoke-free tobacco or nicotine-containing product (TNP) alternatives have been introduced to support individual- and population-level harm reduction relative to continued cigarette smoking. This article details the nationwide prevalence and patterns of TNP use between 2016 and 2019 in Japan following the commercialization of IQOSTM, a smoke-free heated tobacco product (HTP). Methods: Cross-sectional surveys were conducted over a period of three study years (2016/2017, 2017/2018, and 2018/2019) in representative samples of the Japanese general adult population and samples of Japanese adult IQOS users registered in the IQOS owner database of Philip Morris International’s affiliate in Japan. Results: Across the three study years (Y1-Y3), the prevalence of overall current TNP use (Y1-Y3: 18.5%, 18.9%, and 18.2%) and overall TNP use by age and sex remained similar. However, there was a growing shift from cigarette smoking to smoke-free TNP use across the three study years. While the cigarette smoking prevalence (Y1-Y3: 17.6%, 17.3%, and 16.0%) decreased, the use prevalence of smoke-free TNPs, including the HTP IQOS (Y1-Y3: 1.8%, 3.2%, and 3.3%) and e-cigarettes (Y1-Y3, 0.7%, 1.6%, and 2.0%) increased. At the same time, TNP initiation, TNP relapse, and TNP reinitiation with IQOS were all very low across the three study years. Across Y1-Y3, exclusive use of only one type of TNP (Y1-Y3: 82.3%, 75.0%, and 70.4%) decreased, while dual use of two types of TNPs (Y1-Y3: 14.3%, 17.2%, and 16.7%) increased, and poly-TNP use (Y1-Y3: 2.1%, 6.1%, and 10.0%) increased markedly. Moreover, the majority of adult IQOS users were exclusive IQOS users. Conclusions: These findings suggest that current IQOS use behavior trends are in line with the principles of tobacco harm reduction and that HTPs are effective tools for complementing current tobacco control measures.
Dry textile electrode for ambulatory monitoring after catheter ablation of atrial fibrillation: A pilot study of simultaneous comparison to the Holter electrocardiogram
Authors: Machino Takeshi , Aonuma Kazutaka , Komatsu Yuki , Yamasaki Hiro , Igarashi Miyako , Nogami Akihiko , Ieda Masaki 
Published: June 2022

Background: Holter electrocardiogram (ECG) is the gold standard for ambulatory monitoring of atrial fibrillation (AF) but it is insufficient because of its limited recording time. Although several consumer ECG devices provide longer recording time, they generally do not undergo the regulatory process for medical use. Furthermore, current medical-grade devices for longer ECG monitoring are not continuous or too invasive for AF monitoring. A wearable ECG with a medical-grade dry textile electrode is a promising technology to remedy this limitation. This pilot study aimed to simultaneously compare the wearable and Holter ECGs for ambulatory monitoring in a clinical setting. Methods: This prospective observational study enrolled 18 patients who underwent AF ablation. One day after AF ablation, ambulatory ECG was obtained for three hours simultaneously using both the wearable and Holter ECG devices. Automatic ECG interpretations between devices were compared with correlation and agreement analyses. Results: Simultaneous ECG monitoring demonstrated a comparable analysis time and total heart beats between the two devices. Almost complete correlation and agreement were also demonstrated in all clinically relevant testing aspects except in R-wave amplitude (r = 0.743, p < .001). AF was detected in three patients. AF duration was the same in both ECG devices in two patients with continuous AF. In the remaining patient with intermittent AF, AF duration was shortened by 0.6% with the wearable ECG as compared to that with the Holter ECG. Conclusions: Simultaneous ECG comparison revealed a high consistency between the wearable and Holter ECG devices. The results of this study warrant further clinical studies for long-term monitoring of ambulatory ECG after AF ablation.
A geospatial source selector for federated GeoSPARQL querying
Authors: Troumpoukis Antonis , Konstantopoulos Stasinos , Prokopaki-Kostopoulou Nefeli 
Published: June 2022

Background: Geospatial linked data brings into the scope of the Semantic Web and its technologies, a wealth of datasets that combine semantically-rich descriptions of resources with their geo-location. There are, however, various Semantic Web technologies where technical work is needed in order to achieve the full integration of geospatial data, and federated query processing is one of these technologies. Methods: In this paper, we explore the idea of annotating data sources with a bounding polygon that summarizes the spatial extent of the resources in each data source, and of using such a summary as an (additional) source selection criterion in order to reduce the set of sources that will be tested as potentially holding relevant data. We present our source selection method, and we discuss its correctness and implementation. Results: We evaluate the proposed source selection using three different types of summaries with different degrees of accuracy, against not using geospatial summaries. We use datasets and queries from a practical use case that combines crop-type data with water availability data for food security. The experimental results suggest that more complex summaries lead to slower source selection times, but also to more precise exclusion of unneeded sources. Moreover, we observe the source selection runtime is (partially or fully) recovered by shorter planning and execution runtimes. As a result, the federated sources are not burdened by pointless querying from the federation engine. Conclusions: The evaluation draws on data and queries from the agroenvironmental domain and shows that our source selection method substantially improves the effectiveness of federated GeoSPARQL query processing.
Gold market and selected Nordic stock markets: Granger causality
Authors: Mamcarz Katarzyna 
Published: June 2022

Motivation: The turbulence in financial markets, especially stocks, makes investors seek safer ways of capital allocation. Gold exhibiting a low or negative correlation with stocks can constitute an alternative form of investment for them. The price volatility of aforementioned assets has impact on investors’ decisions. That is why the assessment of interrelations between stock and gold returns is important. The direction of causality between the analysed variables is reflected by the fact that investors tend to transfer their funds from gold markets to more profitable markets, or return to gold markets. The research focuses on linkages between gold-stock markets of selected Nordic countries which in comparison with countries classified as key producers and consumers of gold were not under investigation so far. There is therefore a research gap in empirical research.
Aim: The aim of this paper is to investigate the causal relationship between the rates of return on stock markets in three Nordic countries, represented by their respective indices — OMXH25 (Finland: the Helsinki Stock Exchange Index), OMXS30 (Sweden: the Stockholm Stock Exchange Index) and OSEAX (Norway: the Oslo Børs All Share Index) — and the returns from investment in gold. The VAR model was applied in the analysis to perform a Granger non-causality linear test, along with decomposition of variance and the impulse response function. The study covered the period between September 2001 and October 2020.
Results: The study showed no causality between the analysed rates of return, except in Norway, where the gold market was found to have an impact on the stock market, assuming a statistical significance of 0.14. In the other two countries, changes in gold prices did not affect stock prices, and vice versa.
Examining person-centred maternal care services at the Princess Christian Maternity Hospital, Freetown, Sierra Leone
Authors: Mclellan Andrew , Van Ham Patricia Titulaer , Sidney Dana , Aden Abdi , Lacroix Antoine , Edem-Hotah Joseph 
Published: June 2022

Background The World Health Organization includes women's experiences of care and person-centred outcomes as primary components in their quality-of-care framework for maternal and newborn health. Patients' perceptions of quality of care indicate how well health systems meet patients' expectations, as well as their level of trust in the system. Methods This study was a cross-sectional examination of person-centred maternal care service delivery, from the perspective of women who used the services of the Princess Christian Maternity Hospital in Sierra Leone. The care was measured using the person-centred maternity care survey, which was administered to 100 women at the hospital. Results Person-centred maternal care was found to be lacking in patient–provider interactions, especially in the areas of communication, autonomy and dignity and respect. Conclusions This study provides evidence regarding the extent to which person-centred maternity care is delivered at the Princess Christian Maternity Hospital. The findings could be used to target interventions to improve patient satisfaction and quality of care at the Princess Christian Maternity Hospital.
3D Dirac semimetals-dielectric elliptical fiber supported tunable terahertz hybrid waveguide
Authors: Wang Guangqing , Liang Yubo , Leng Jin , He Xiaoyong , Lin Fangting , Liu Feng 
Published: June 2022

Based on the proposed elliptical dielectric fiber-polyethylene gap-3D Dirac semimetal (DSM) hybrid plasmonic waveguide structure, the tunable propagation characteristics have been systematically investigated in the terahertz region, taking into account the influences of the structural parameters, the modified dielectric fiber, and the 3D DSM Fermi levels. The results show that as the ratio of the elliptical semi-axis along the

y

-direction

a
y

and the

x

-direction

a
x

(

a
y

/

a
x

) increases, the hybrid mode confinement increases. The real part of the effective mode index and propagation length increase with increasing the refractive index of the elliptical fiber. The propagation length and figure of merit of the hybrid modes reach

1.56

×

10

4

µ

m

and 300, respectively. In addition, by changing the Fermi level of the 3D DSM layer, the propagation properties of the hybrid modes can also be modulated in a wide range, e.g., the modulation depth of the propagation length reaches about 71.53% if the Fermi level varies in the range of 0.03–0.15 eV. The propagation properties of the hybrid modes are enhanced significantly by utilizing the modified three elliptical fiber structures, the real part of the effective mode index, and the propagation length of the modified structure are enhanced simultaneously. The results are very helpful for understanding the tunable mechanism of the 3D DSM devices and aids the design of novel plasmonic devices, e.g., lasers, modulators, and resonators.
Predicting resistance to fluoroquinolones among patients with rifampicin-resistant tuberculosis using machine learning methods
Authors: You Shiying , Chitwood Melanie H. , Gunasekera Kenneth S. , Crudu Valeriu , Codreanu Alexandru , Ciobanu Nelly , Furin Jennifer , Cohen Ted , Warren Joshua L. , Yaesoubi Reza 
Published: June 2022

Background
Limited access to drug-susceptibility tests (DSTs) and delays in receiving DST results are challenges for timely and appropriate treatment of multi-drug resistant tuberculosis (TB) in many low-resource settings. We investigated whether data collected as part of routine, national TB surveillance could be used to develop predictive models to identify additional resistance to fluoroquinolones (FLQs), a critical second-line class of anti-TB agents, at the time of diagnosis with rifampin-resistant TB.

Methods and findings
We assessed three machine learning-based models (logistic regression, neural network, and random forest) using information from 540 patients with rifampicin-resistant TB, diagnosed using Xpert MTB/RIF and notified in the Republic of Moldova between January 2018 and December 2019. The models were trained to predict the resistance to FLQs based on demographic and TB clinical information of patients and the estimated district-level prevalence of resistance to FLQs. We compared these models based on the optimism-corrected area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (OC-AUC-ROC). The OC-AUC-ROC of all models were statistically greater than 0.5. The neural network model, which utilizes twelve features, performed best and had an estimated OC-AUC-ROC of 0.87 (0.83,0.91), which suggests reasonable discriminatory power. A limitation of our study is that our models are based only on data from the Republic of Moldova and since not externally validated, the generalizability of these models to other populations remains unknown.

Conclusions
Models trained on data from phenotypic surveillance of drug-resistant TB can predict resistance to FLQs based on patient characteristics at the time of diagnosis with rifampin-resistant TB using Xpert MTB/RIF, and information about the local prevalence of resistance to FLQs. These models may be useful for informing the selection of antibiotics while awaiting results of DSTs.
The effect of weather and climate on dengue outbreak risk in Peru, 2000-2018: A time-series analysis
Authors: Dostal Tia , Meisner Julianne , Munayco César , García Patricia J. , Cárcamo César , Pérez Lu Jose Enrique , Morin Cory , Frisbie Lauren , Rabinowitz Peter M. 
Published: June 2022

Background
Dengue fever is the most common arboviral disease in humans, with an estimated 50-100 million annual infections worldwide. Dengue fever cases have increased substantially in the past four decades, driven largely by anthropogenic factors including climate change. More than half the population of Peru is at risk of dengue infection and due to its geography, Peru is also particularly sensitive to the effects of El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO). Determining the effect of ENSO on the risk for dengue outbreaks is of particular public health relevance and may also be applicable to other Aedes-vectored viruses.

Methods
We conducted a time-series analysis at the level of the district-month, using surveillance data collected from January 2000 to September 2018 from all districts with a mean elevation suitable to survival of the mosquito vector (<2,500m), and ENSO and weather data from publicly-available datasets maintained by national and international agencies. We took a Bayesian hierarchical modeling approach to address correlation in space, and B-splines with four knots per year to address correlation in time. We furthermore conducted subgroup analyses by season and natural region.

Results
We detected a positive and significant effect of temperature (°C, RR 1.14, 95% CI 1.13, 1.15, adjusted for precipitation) and ENSO (ICEN index: RR 1.17, 95% CI 1.15, 1.20; ONI index: RR 1.04, 95% CI 1.02, 1.07) on outbreak risk, but no evidence of a strong effect for precipitation after adjustment for temperature. Both natural region and season were found to be significant effect modifiers of the ENSO-dengue effect, with the effect of ENSO being stronger in the summer and the Selva Alta and Costa regions, compared with winter and Selva Baja and Sierra regions.

Conclusions
Our results provide strong evidence that temperature and ENSO have significant effects on dengue outbreaks in Peru, however these results interact with region and season, and are stronger for local ENSO impacts than remote ENSO impacts. These findings support optimization of a dengue early warning system based on local weather and climate monitoring, including where and when to deploy such a system and parameterization of ENSO events, and provide high-precision effect estimates for future climate and dengue modeling efforts.
The polymorphic landscape analysis of GATA1 exons uncovered the genetic variants associated with higher thrombocytopenia in dengue patients
Authors: Al Rimon Razoan , Sayem Mohammad , Alam Saruar , Al Saba Abdullah , Sanyal Mousumi , Amin Md. Robed , Kabir Ahmedul , Chakraborty Sajib , Nabi A. H. M. Nurun 
Published: June 2022

The current study elucidated an association between gene variants and thrombocytopenia through the investigation of the exonic polymorphic landscape of hematopoietic transcription factor—GATA1 gene in dengue patients. A total of 115 unrelated dengue patients with dengue fever (DF) (N = 91) and dengue hemorrhagic fever (DHF) (N = 24) were included in the study. All dengue patients were confirmed through detection of NS1 antigen, IgM, and IgG antibodies against the dengue virus. Polymerase chain reaction using specific primers amplified the exonic regions of GATA1 while Sanger sequencing and chromatogram analyses facilitated the identification of variants. Variants G>A (at chX: 48792009) and C>A (at chX: 4879118) had higher frequency out of 13 variants identified (3 annotated and 10 newly recognized). Patients carrying either nonsynonymous or synonymous variants had significantly lower mean values of platelets compared to those harboring the reference nucleotides (NC_000023.11). Further analyses revealed that the change in amino acid residue leads to the altered three-dimensional structure followed by interaction with neighboring residues. Increased stability of the protein due to substitution of serine by asparagine (S129N at chX: 48792009) may cause increased rigidity followed by reduced structural flexibility which may ultimately disturb the dimerization (an important prerequisite for GATA1 to perform its biological activity) process of the GATA1 protein. This, in turn, may affect the function of GATA1 followed by impaired production of mature platelets which may be reflected by the lower platelet counts in individuals with such variation. In summary, we have identified new variants within the GATA1 gene which were found to be clinically relevant to the outcome of dengue patients and thus, have the potential as candidate biomarkers for the determination of severity and prognosis of thrombocytopenia caused by dengue virus. However, further validation of this study in a large number of dengue patients is warranted.
Trial Registration: number SLCTR/2019/037.
The effectiveness of a motivational enhancement smartphone application promoting lifestyle improvement for brain health: A randomized controlled trial
Authors: Roh Hyun Woong , Ryu Hankyel , Jeong Sooin , Han Jieun , Park Bumhee , Moon So Young , Choi Seong Hey , Son Sang Joon , Hong Chang Hyung 
Published: June 2022

Multidomain lifestyle modification is considered an effective intervention for dementia prevention due to its multifactorial nature. Recognizing that participants’ activity adherence is crucial for successful lifestyle modification, our team developed a smartphone application to enhance motivation toward brain health behavior based on gamification theory, which influences behaviors by enhancing motivation. The developed smartphone application has two main functions: delivering supporting videos from family, friends, and medical staff, and self-evaluation. We assessed the effectiveness of this smartphone application with regard to brain health behavior. In this eight-week randomized controlled trial, 40 participants were randomly assigned to the smartphone application intervention group or control group. The primary outcome reflected participants’ brain health behavior in three categories: physical activity, cognitive activity, and healthy diet. Each brain health behavior was measured by the Korean version of the Global Physical Activity Questionnaire, Cognitive Activity Score, and Mediterranean DASH Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay Diet Score. Furthermore, we investigated the change in motivation, measured by the Situational Motivation Scale. Additionally, we reviewed participants’ self-record diary during the first, fourth, and eighth week of intervention for evaluation of adherence. The intervention group was found to have a positive association with moderate metabolic equivalent activities (P = 0.01) and intrinsic motivation change (P = 0.01). There was a significant difference between the intervention and control groups regarding average physical activity at week 8 (P = 0.037). An eight-week intervention with the smartphone application induced physical activity of moderate intensity through intrinsic motivation enhancement. We suggest that the motivation enhancement application could be an efficient option for maintaining and promoting psychosocial health behavior. This smartphone application can be applied to any other disease that needs behavioral change. Through the application, a broader spectrum of the population, regardless of time, space, and human resources, can benefit from community health services.
Trial registration: Korean National Clinical Trial Registry CRIS identifier: KCT0005231.
Interferon gamma release assays for diagnosis of osteoarticular tuberculosis: A systematic review and meta-analysis
Authors: Ren Chunnian , Tang Jie , Xia Liangfeng 
Published: June 2022

Background
Although the Interferon Gamma Release Assays (IGRA) is often used to identify latent tuberculosis, it also plays a crucial role in diagnosing active extrapulmonary tuberculosis. Some studies have assessed the use of IGRA as a biomarker for osteoarticular tuberculosis (OATB), which is elevated following TB infection. Still, conclusive results about its effectiveness have not been reported.

Method
We searched PubMed, Embase, and Cochran databases. We obtained literature related to the diagnosis of OATB by IGRA, and the retrieval period was from the establishment of the database to June 2021. The bivariate random effect model was used to summarize the sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy of other indicators in diagnosing OATB by IGRA, and the forest plot and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve were used for testing.

Results
We included seven studies involving 643 subjects in diagnosing OATB by IGRA. The comprehensive sensitivity and specificity were 0.84 (95% CI, 0.70–0.92) and 0.78 (95% CI, 0.66–0.87), respectively. The area under the curve (AUC) was 0.87.

Conclusion
In blood samples, the diagnostic accuracy of IGRAS is poor in patients with suspected OAT. We conclude that IGRA may not be appropriate for patients with OATB.