Nevin Manimala

Heliyon. 2023 Mar;9(3):e13912. doi: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e13912. Epub 2023 Feb 24.

ABSTRACT

This study investigates the augmentation of students’ engagement in the online learning process using Zoom platform. To engage students more in the online classes we have conducted a survey on four universities students in the four dimensions. To investigate effective online class, we have gone through descriptive statistics followed by principal component analysis (PCA) and factor regression model to identify predicted factors that engage students more in the Zoom online classes. The results of PCA confirmed that questions answer session, instructor asks question to them, break during the class, topic related examples, experience sharing scope, case studies, using Google classroom, screen share, screen annotation, video contents share, class recording, raise hand and reactions to topics can enhance students engagement in the Zoom online classes. The regression results validate all four dimensions have significant influence on effective zoom online class that enhance students learning process. Thus, findings of this study recommend educating course instructors for ensuring all the applications of online learning process while conducting online classes. We strongly believe this course of action will engage students in the online class to enhance learning activities using Zoom platform in Bangladesh.

PMID:36855649 | PMC:PMC9951031 | DOI:10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e13912

J Inflamm Res. 2023 Feb 22;16:769-778. doi: 10.2147/JIR.S401818. eCollection 2023.

ABSTRACT

ABO blood group antigens exhibit alternative phenotypes and genetically derived structures that are located on the red cell surface. The role of ABO blood group in cancer biology has been intensely reported by several studies, and it is now widely recognized that ABO antigens are associated with the risk and prognosis of several types of tumors, namely gastric cancer and pancreatic cancer. However, there have been contentious limited issues with the association between the ABO blood group and lymphoma. In this narrative review, based on literature data, we discuss the role of ABO blood group in the risk and prognosis of lymphoma and summarize the current knowledge of the underlying pathogenic mechanisms of the association. The possible association of ABO blood group with racial disparities and pathological classification in lymphoma patients is also discussed.

PMID:36855543 | PMC:PMC9968433 | DOI:10.2147/JIR.S401818

J Product Anal. 2023 Feb 24:1-16. doi: 10.1007/s11123-023-00665-4. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

The aim of this paper is to extend the literature on multisectoral industries productivity such as tourism by simultaneously analysing the multidimensional nature of the Italian tourism sector in the period 2011-2020, considering both cross-sectoral and spatial spillover effects. To further improve our analysis, we consider two fundamental features for policy decisions: high spatial detail of analysis and the multipurpose nature of the tourism industry. Empirical findings confirm the hypotheses that the productivity level of the Italian tourism industry depends on its ability to make to most of the different input factors coming from different sectors and on (positive and negative) input spillovers.

PMID:36855518 | PMC:PMC9951159 | DOI:10.1007/s11123-023-00665-4

Med Devices (Auckl). 2023 Feb 22;16:37-46. doi: 10.2147/MDER.S401041. eCollection 2023.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: The significance of effectively using medical equipment has received widespread public attention. Due to its complex effects on healthcare costs and quality, the relationship between hospital features and medical equipment consumption has drawn increased attention. Therefore, the study aimed to evaluate the efficiency of medical equipment utilization and its associated factors.

METHODS: The study was conducted at public referral hospitals in East Wollega, Oromia Regional National State, Ethiopia, in 2021. A cross-sectional study design was mixed with observation and document review. The study included approximately 192 pieces of equipment. Descriptive statistics and Pearson Chi-square (χ ²) were used to identify associations between each independent and dependent variable at p<0.05 to declare level of significance.

RESULTS: Using 95% confidence interval (CI), the level of utilization coefficient was estimated to be 0.49 (0.44-0.55). As a result, 111 pieces of equipment (57.8%) were used efficiently, while 81 (42.2%) were underutilized. The form in which the hospitals received the equipment (χ ²=7.7.2; P=0.005), regular availability (χ ²=19.30; P=0.00), equipment breakdown (χ ²=11.57; P=0.001), the availability of trained staffs operating the equipment (χ ²=26.14; P=0.00), performing preventive maintenance (χ ²=91.54; P=0.00), the availability of spare parts (χ ²=32.36; P=0.00), and the availability of accessories (χ ²=43.91; P=0.00) were statistically significant factors affecting the medical equipment utilization.

CONCLUSION: On average, the utilization coefficient of medical equipment in the study hospitals was low compared to other study findings, which indicated that 2 out of 5 pieces of medical equipment were under-utilized, which could be significantly affected by the form in which the hospital received the equipment, its regular availability, equipment breakdown, availability of trained staff operating the equipment, performing preventive maintenance, and availability of adequate spare parts and accessories. Every hospital should develop an appropriate strategic framework to manage and utilize the available medical diagnostic equipment based on its level and demand.

PMID:36855514 | PMC:PMC9968427 | DOI:10.2147/MDER.S401041

Vet World. 2023 Jan;16(1):161-167. doi: 10.14202/vetworld.2023.161-167. Epub 2023 Jan 27.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Bacterial and viral infections affect the welfare of animals and lead to large economic losses in dairy cattle breeding due to decreased productive indicators and increased culling rates. In modern dairy farming, farmers are looking for effective solutions to prevent and minimize infectious disease risks. To this end, the most relevant study field is the search for gene sites that impact production and health. This study aimed to determine the nature of the distribution of the relative frequencies of alleles and genotypes of polymorphic prolactin (PRL) and nitric oxide synthase (NOS2) in Holstein cows and identify the relationship of these genes with resistance to mastitis and bovine leukemia.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: For this study, we chose cows because infectious diseases affect the amount of lactation and milk quality. Holstein cattle with mastitis and bovine leukemia were selected. Animal genotypes were determined by restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) products. The results were analyzed using a nonparametric statistical method using Microsoft Excel 2010 and Statistica 6.0.

RESULTS: In healthy animals, 94 genotypes were identified for both genes under study. For bPRL, bPRL-RsaI^AA (72) was the most common genotype and bPRL-RsaI^BB (4) the least; for NOS2, bNOS2 –HinfI^AB (47) was the most common genotype and bNOS2 –HinfI^AA the least (21). In animals with leukemia, 34 genotypes were identified. For PRL, bPRL-RsaI^AA (25) was the most common genotype and bPRL-RsaI^BB (2) the least; for NOS2, bNOS2 –HinfI^BB (17) was the most common genotype and bNOS2 –HinfI^AA (3) the least. In animals with mastitis, 67 genotypes were identified. For PRL, bPRL-RsaI^AA (43) was the most common genotype and bPRL-RsaI^BB (6) the least; for NOS2, bNOS2 –HinfI^BB (31) was the most common genotype and bNOS2-HinfI^AA (7) the least. The distribution of genotypes of polymorphic bPRL and bNOS2 generally coincides, and bPRL-RsaI^BB is the most common genotype. In groups of sick animals, the number of bNOS2 –HinfI^AA homozygotes was lower than that of the control group. In particular, the proportion of animals with the bNOS2 –HinfI^AA genotype with bovine leukemia was 8.7% and with mastitis was 10.3% compared with 22.4% in healthy animals. These data support the possible association of the bNOS2 –HinfI^AA genotype with resistance to infection. The frequency of the bPRL-RsaI^B allele was higher in groups of sick animals. This allele is associated with increased milk productivity, suggesting that highly productive animals are less resistant to the incidence of viral bovine leukemia and mastitis of bacterial etiology.

CONCLUSION: DNA amplification of Holstein cattle for the polymorphic regions of PRL and NOS2 using the PCR-RFLP method revealed a possible connection between the distribution of relative allele frequencies of bPRL and bNOS2 and resistance to viral and bacterial infections. Thus, in groups of sick animals, the frequency of bPRL-RsaI^BB, associated with increased milk production compared with the theoretically calculated equilibrium value was higher and the number of homozygotes bNOS2 –HinfI^AA was lower than in the control group. In conclusion, animals with increased milk production were more prone to diseases, such as mastitis and bovine leukemia.

PMID:36855359 | PMC:PMC9967724 | DOI:10.14202/vetworld.2023.161-167

Vet World. 2023 Jan;16(1):111-117. doi: 10.14202/vetworld.2023.111-117. Epub 2023 Jan 16.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND AND AIM: White spot disease (WSD) is a highly lethal and contagious viral disease in marine shrimp caused by the white spot syndrome virus (WSSV). White spot disease impacts the worldwide crustacean aquaculture sector, including Thailand. This study aimed to investigate the effect of farm management practices and wild carriers on WSD occurrence in grow-out marine shrimp farms in Rayong Province, Thailand.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: A longitudinal study was conducted using a structured questionnaire from June 2018 to June 2020. A total of 186 questionnaires for 186 ponds were collected from 15 shrimp farms. Univariate and multivariable analyses using generalized estimating equations were used to determine the risk factors associated with WSD. In addition, possible carrier samples (wild shrimp and wild crabs) were collected inside and outside farms to test for the presence of WSSV.

RESULTS: Direct discharge of treated wastewater into farm ponds was statistically significant in the final model (p < 0.01), with an odd ratio (OR) factor of 0.097 (95% confidence interval [CI] of OR = 0.007-0.242). Pooled sampling for WSSV in wild shrimp and crabs showed that 48 out of 936 (5.13%) samples tested positive for WSD using nested polymerase chain reaction. The samples from banana shrimp, jinga shrimp, banded snapping shrimp, dwarf prawn, whiteleg shrimp, green tidal crabs, and mangrove crabs tested positive.

CONCLUSION: Based on the findings of this study, we infer that the environment plays an important role in the spread of this disease. The results of this study will provide insights into the effective planning of disease control.

PMID:36855356 | PMC:PMC9967711 | DOI:10.14202/vetworld.2023.111-117

J Pharm Health Care Sci. 2023 Mar 1;9(1):8. doi: 10.1186/s40780-023-00276-z.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: There is no unified view of the necessity of prophylactic antimicrobial agents in trabeculectomy. Preoperative prophylactic antimicrobial agent injection and cefazolin sodium (CEZ) for trabeculectomy were discontinued at the Hiroshima University Hospital. In this study, we evaluated whether discontinuation of preoperative administration of CEZ in ophthalmology affects the incidence of postoperative infections.

METHODS: We retrospectively investigated patient background, concomitant medications, subconjunctival dexamethasone sodium phosphate (DEX) injection at the end of the surgery, and the incidence of infective endophthalmitis within 6 weeks after surgery in the CEZ and non-CEZ groups. We also performed propensity score matching for background matching. Statistical analysis was performed using the Mann-Whitney U-test and Fisher’s exact test.

RESULTS: The incidence of postoperative endophthalmitis was not significantly different between 629 and 751 patients in the CEZ and no-CEZ groups, respectively (0 in the CEZ group and 2 in the no-CEZ group, P = 0.504). More patients in the CEZ group were taking diabetes drugs preoperatively (P = 0.028) and fewer patients were receiving subconjunctival DEX at the end of surgery (P < 0.001) than those in the non-CEZ group. Propensity scores were calculated using the risk factors for postoperative infection as covariates, and matching (580 patients in the CEZ group and 580 patients in the non-CEZ group) showed no significant difference in the incidence of postoperative endophthalmitis (P = 0.500).

CONCLUSIONS: There was no significant difference in the incidence of endophthalmitis after trabeculectomy between the CEZ and non-CEZ groups, suggesting a decreased need for CEZ injections before trabeculectomy.

PMID:36855191 | DOI:10.1186/s40780-023-00276-z

Trials. 2023 Feb 28;24(1):152. doi: 10.1186/s13063-023-07162-x.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Minimally invasive surgery has become popular as a surgical approach for colorectal cancer because it has fewer complications related to the abdominal incision and perioperative complications. However, the incidence of incisional hernias in laparoscopic surgery has been reported to be similar to that in open surgery. We developed a new method, the non-muscle-cutting periumbilical transverse incision, for a small incision in laparoscopic colon cancer surgery. This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of the non-muscle-cutting periumbilical transverse incision in comparison with the midline incision in reducing the incidence of an incisional hernia in patients undergoing laparoscopic colon cancer surgery.

METHODS: This is an open-label, multi-centre, parallel, superiority, and randomised trial. Altogether, 174 patients will be allocated in a 1:1 ratio to either the midline incision or the non-muscle-cutting periumbilical transverse incision group, after stratifying by the location of the tumour (right- or left-sided). The primary outcome of this study is the incidence of incisional hernias (both symptomatic and radiologic hernias) at 12 months after surgery. The secondary outcomes include operative outcomes, 30-day postoperative complications, pathological results, and patient-reported outcomes (short form-12 health survey questionnaire and body image questionnaire). Both primary (intention-to-treat) and secondary (as-treated principles) analyses will be performed for all outcomes. The statistical significance level was set at p < 0.05 (two-sided testing).

DISCUSSION: This trial may show that the non-muscle-cutting periumbilical transverse incision will reduce the incidence of incisional hernias compared to the midline incision.

TRIAL REGISTRATION: Clinical Research Information Service (CRiS) of Republic of Korea, KCT0006082 . Registered on April 12, 2021.

PMID:36855158 | DOI:10.1186/s13063-023-07162-x

Diabetol Metab Syndr. 2023 Mar 1;15(1):32. doi: 10.1186/s13098-023-01006-z.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Diabetes mellitus is a major risk factor for heart failure. A recent consensus statement recommended annual cardiac biomarker testing (e.g. natriuretic peptide or high-sensitivity cardiac troponin) for all patients with diabetes. We aimed to identify patients at a higher risk of hospitalization for heart failure among patients with type 2 diabetes to prioritize those who would require screening.

METHODS: Overall, 1,189,113 patients who underwent two medical health checkup cycles (2009-2012 and 2011-2014) and had stable diabetic kidney disease (DKD) phenotype in the Korean National Health Insurance Service database were included in this study. After excluding those with concurrent proteinuria (PU) and reduced estimated glomerular filtration rate, three groups (no-DKD, PU⁺DKD, and PU^–DKD) were identified. A fatty liver index of ≥ 60 was defined as metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD). Patients were followed up until December 2018 or until outcomes developed. The Cox proportional hazard model was used to compare the risk of hospitalization for heart failure across groups.

RESULTS: During an average of 6.6 years of follow-up, 5781 patients developed hospitalization for heart failure. After adjusting for covariates, the risk of hospitalization for heart failure was highest in the PU⁺DKD group [HR 3.12, 95% CI (2.75-3.55)], followed by the PU^–DKD group [HR 1.85, 95% CI (1.73-1.99)] using the no-DKD group as the reference category. The risk of hospitalization for heart failure was comparable regardless of MAFLD status in patients who already had DKD. However, in the no-DKD group, the risk of hospitalization for heart failure was 1.4 times higher in patients with MAFLD than in those without [HR 1.41, 95% CI (1.31-1.52)].

CONCLUSIONS: In lines with the international consensus statement, we suggest that annual cardiac biomarker testing should be conducted at least in patients with DKD and/or MAFLD.

PMID:36855144 | DOI:10.1186/s13098-023-01006-z

Eur Spine J. 2023 Feb 28. doi: 10.1007/s00586-023-07621-8. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

PURPOSE: Predict nonhome discharge (NHD) following elective anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF) using an explainable machine learning model.

METHODS: 2227 patients undergoing elective ACDF from 2008 to 2019 were identified from a single institutional database. A machine learning model was trained on preoperative variables, including demographics, comorbidity indices, and levels fused. The validation technique was repeated stratified K-Fold cross validation with the area under the receiver operating curve (AUROC) statistic as the performance metric. Shapley Additive Explanation (SHAP) values were calculated to provide further explainability regarding the model’s decision making.

RESULTS: The preoperative model performed with an AUROC of 0.83 ± 0.05. SHAP scores revealed the most pertinent risk factors to be age, medicare insurance, and American Society of Anesthesiology (ASA) score. Interaction analysis demonstrated that female patients over 65 with greater fusion levels were more likely to undergo NHD. Likewise, ASA demonstrated positive interaction effects with female sex, levels fused and BMI.

CONCLUSION: We validated an explainable machine learning model for the prediction of NHD using common preoperative variables. Adding transparency is a key step towards clinical application because it demonstrates that our model’s “thinking” aligns with clinical reasoning. Interactive analysis demonstrated that those of age over 65, female sex, higher ASA score, and greater fusion levels were more predisposed to NHD. Age and ASA score were similar in their predictive ability. Machine learning may be used to predict NHD, and can assist surgeons with patient counseling or early discharge planning.

PMID:36854862 | DOI:10.1007/s00586-023-07621-8