The work description of virtual reality technology is superior to static reference pictures and videos, which can improve the predictability of decision makers and become a powerful performance tool for urban lighting design. The urban scene is constructed by Unity 3D, and the intelligent lamp pole and Rhododendron landscape lawn lamp are taken as the research objects. On the basis of maximizing the application effect of lamps with the HTC VIVE virtual headset, the city and lamps are digitally mapped 1:1, After applying the model material self-luminous, setting the type of light source and the position of the light source point, setting the transparency mixing, adding glow, and changing the light effect, a highly restored lamp and lamp simulation model are formed. The research results show that this method provides a convenient research method for the three-dimensional reconstruction and visual simulation of urban landscape lamps. It can make decision makers have a clear understanding of the application effect, application quantity and interval of lamps. Immersive observation experience can make the design scheme more honest and reliable. The efficient simulation of lighting lamps will play an important role in the dynamic development of smart cities in the future.

Published version:  Journal of Field Robotics https://doi.org/10.1002/rob.22329

AbstractMedical students (NSB, NM, JDW), spearheaded revision of the written policy and clinical practice for shackling incarcerated patients at Boston Medical Center, the largest safety net hospital in New England. Across hospitals in the United States, routine shackling of incarcerated patients with metal handcuffs is widespread, except for pregnant prisoners, regardless of consciousness, immobility, illness severity, or age. The modified policy includes individualized assessment and allows incarcerated patients to be unshackled if they meet defined criteria. The students also formed the Stop Shackling Patients Coalition (SSP Coalition) of clinicians, public health practitioners, human rights advocates, and community members who share the goal of humanizing the inpatient treatment of incarcerated patients.IntroductionRoutine shackling of incarcerated patients with metal handcuffs is widespread in hospitals across the United States (US), with the exception of pregnant prisoners.  Despite harmful effects on patients and national attention to health equity, incarcerated patients are routinely shackled regardless of consciousness, immobility, illness severity, or age.1,2 A large cohort study (n = 1078) of Israeli hospitals found that 84% of incarcerated patients who have severely impaired mobility for medical reasons are shackled, nonetheless.3 The discriminatory and dehumanizing practice of routinely applying shackles to incarcerated patients exacerbates existing care disparities by violating both medical ethics and human rights principles. The 2018 federal First Step Act prohibited “the shackling of pregnant prisoners in federal custody, except in certain cases.”4 As the name of this criminal justice bill suggests, the ban did not entirely eliminate shackling and the practice continues to impact nonpregnant incarcerated patients.5There is a common misconception amongst healthcare professionals that they cannot influence the use of shackles to restrain their patients. By not challenging this practice within our healthcare institutions, the correctional system essentially governs aspects of patient care. Protocols for shackling incarcerated patients can and must be changed to respect human dignity and health, while simultaneously providing safety in the workplace.6-9Harms to IndividualsShackling impacts physical health in several ways. In the hospital setting, restraints can result in skin breakdown, circulation compromise, compressive neuropathies, fractures, increased fall risk, increased risk of delirium, and predisposition to severe vascular injury.6,8,10,11 Clinicians may be limited in their ability to perform a thorough physical examination.8Clinician bias against the shackled patient may also harm the clinician-patient relationship. In fact, the presence of shackles negatively affects empathy, precipitates diagnostic skepticism and elicits unsubstantiated fears of personal harm by the patient.6 Shackles have led to insensitive, inappropriate, neglectful, or abusive actions by staff or associated authority figures, which in turn evokes a response of fear in patients along with a loss of trust in the care team.12 These negative healthcare interactions further stress incarcerated patients’ post-carceral challenges within the healthcare system.13Human Rights ViolationsRoutine shackling of incarcerated patients violates foundational international human rights principles, including those contained in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.14-16  These principles are designed to protect human dignity and protect persons from discrimination and cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment.  Shackling patients who are critically ill or at the end of life is an affront to their human dignity, and increases pain and suffering in this vulnerable time. Routine shackling violates the United Nations (UN) Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners (The Nelson Mandela Rules) – the internationally accepted standard for the treatment of prisoners.17  Rule 48 addresses the use of restraints. See Box 1. Box 1: UN Standard Minimum Rules (The Nelson Mandela Rules) Rule 48 When the imposition of instruments of restraint is authorized in accordance with paragraph 2 of rule 47, the following principles shall apply: (a) Instruments of restraint are to be imposed only when no lesser form of control would be effective to address the risks posed by unrestricted movement; (b) (c) The method of restraint shall be the least intrusive method that is necessary and reasonably available to control the prisoner’s movement, based on the level and nature of the risks posed; Instruments of restraint shall be imposed only for the time period required, and they are to be removed as soon as possible after the risks posed by unrestricted movement are no longer present. Instruments of restraint shall never be used on women during labor, during childbirth and immediately after childbirth. In accordance with these Mandela Rules and the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, the head of the British prison service proclaimed that the “shackling of patients in hospital[s] should not occur,” emphasizing that “security is important, but it should never blind us to the overriding need for compassion and humanity.”18, 19 In the Netherlands, chains are never used and handcuffs are used only in exceptional circumstances.20  Our work amended shackling practices to introduce a risk-stratified, individualized protocol for American hospitals that aligns with human rights principles better upheld by Western nations. 21, 22From Changing Hospital Policy to Launching a National Movement We began by writing and circulating a petition to local hospital affiliates and community members to raise awareness and support.23  The petition then spread nationally, amassing 780 signatures across 129 institutions. The response demonstrated a consensus for change that enabled us to engage the hospital’s executive leadership in policy reform. Next, we solicited input from key hospital stakeholders including public safety and patient-facing staff such as nurses, as well as medical, nursing leadership, and legal hospital leadership. Identifying shared values for patient care helped generate feedback to balance concerns for safety and liability with human dignity. We then engaged with hospital administration and proposed a modification to existing hospital policy.  Following multiple meetings with and input from key stakeholders, the policy on shackling incarcerated patients was officially modified in February 2023. The core of the modified policy is a process that allows for the removal or modification of shackling in certain incarcerated patients and provides hospital personnel with a detailed protocol for the assessment and implementation of this policy. The policy outlines a schema for communication and decision-making among carceral facilities, hospital security, and the patient’s healthcare team with the goal of providing dignified and humane care to incarcerated patients while maintaining hospital security. The discourse around shackling practices reached beyond the walls of our hospital, inciting a national discussion not only regarding the issue of shackling patients but how this practice could be brought to an end. In parallel to the conversations we were leading and progress we were making within Boston Medical Center, we also launched the Stop Shackling Patients Coalition (SSP) – a body of clinicians, public health practitioners, human rights advocates, and community members who share the goal of humanizing the inpatient treatment of incarcerated patients. SSP has now grown into a diverse task force and learning collaborative that meets to empower healthcare institutions from across the United States to change their shackling policies.

Objective: Work-Related Quality of Life (WRQoL) is a multidimensional concept that is difficult to measure owing to the challenge of reaching a consensus on the factors involved. Although the WRQoL Scale has been proven effective in evaluating the construct in several countries, it has not been translated into Brazilian Portuguese until now. The aim of this study was to measure burnout, life satisfaction and WRQoL in psychologist, beyond validate the Brazilian Portuguese version of the WRQoL Scale, using psychology professionals as the target population. Methods: 610 psychologists participated in this study, who responded to the Maslach Burnout Inventory, Life Satisfaction Scale and the WRQoL Scale. Spearman’s correlation and group comparison analyzes were performed. Bilingual translators translated the scale into Portuguese, then English, and finally back into Portuguese. Adjustments to the final scale were made through a focus group comprising psychology professionals. The scale was administered online using SurveyMonkey. Confirmatory Factor Analysis was used to test the existing models in the sample WRQoL Scale. Exploratory Factor Analysis was used to examine the potentially improved model fits. Results: 42% indicated adequate levels of satisfaction with life, 53% had burnout for Emotional Exhaustion and Depersonalization. Protective factors for the mental health of psychologists were identified. The final model to WRQoL Scale comprised 21 items distributed across 4 factors. The Cronbach’s alpha reliability index was 0.94 and CR = 0.95. Conclusion: This study provides evidence that the WRQoL Scale is a valid tool that can measure work-related quality of life. Keywords: burnout; life satisfaction; Work-Related Quality of Life Scale; psychometric validation; psychologist

In this work we have investigated buoyancy driven convection in bi-viscous Bingham fluid layer under gravity modulation and its weakly non-linear and linear stability analyses. We derive the critical Rayleigh number expression from linear analysis. From non-linear analysis we compute the heat and mass transport parameters Nu and Sh respectively based on Ginzburg-Landau equation.These numbers are obtained as a function of wavenumber and amplitude of modulation. The Gravity modulation effect on heat and mass transport are obtained in terms of Nusselt number ( Nu) and Sherwood number( Sh) respectively. Further, various parameters have significant effect on heat and mass transport. This is also analysed and depicted graphically.

Hepcidin is an important peptide hormone for iron homeostasis. It was shown to be increased in COVID-19 patients and may be a prognostic marker. In this study, the aim was to investigate serum hepcidin values and other iron metabolism parameters following the first and second COVID-19 vaccination. Thirty-eight healthcare workers were included in the study. Serum ferritin, hepcidin, iron, COVID-19 IgG and unsaturated iron binding capacity (UIBC) values were measured after the first vaccination (PRE) and second vaccination (POST). Changes and associations of serum parameters were statistically analyzed. It was determined that there was no statistically significant difference between the pre and post levels of ferritin (p=0.122), serum iron (p=0.127) or UIBC (p=0.145). Hepcidin was found to be significantly different between PRE and POST samples (p=0.0001). Hepcidin (PRE) was found to be significantly higher than the POST levels. Interestingly, there was no statistically significant relationship between the PRE and POST changes of ferritin and hepcidin (p=0.063). The association of PRE and POST changes of other parameters were also analyzed and a significant negative correlation between PRE and POST changes of serum iron and UIBC were found (rho=-0.751, p=0.0001). It was observed a decrease in hepcidin measures after second vaccination compared to the values after first vaccination. Vaccination affects serum hepcidin and this may be related with the interaction of hepcidin and the immune response.

Preterm birth: associated risk factors in the tertiary care center 1Mrs Sweety Jousline Fernandes, 2Dr Tessy Treesa Jose, 3Dr Judith Angelitta Noronha,4Dr Sushmitha R Karkada (1. MSc (N), MPhil(N), Asst Professor, OBG Dept., MCON Manipal, Karnataka, India. 2.MSc (N), Ph.D. (N) Professor and Head, Dept of Psychiatry (N), MCON Manipal, Karnataka, India. 3. MSc (N), MPhil. (N), Ph.D. (N), Associate Dean, Professor & Head Dept of OBG (N) MCON, Manipal, Karnataka, India, 4. MSc (N), Asst Professor(Sr Scale), OBG Dept., MCON Manipal, Karnataka, India)Abstract:Objective: The study aimed at identifying the prevalence of preterm labor and the associated risk factors.Design: A quantitative approach using retrospective case control study. Setting: Tertiary care hospital of Udupi district Karnataka. Population or Sample: Women delivered in tertiary care hospital of Udupi district Karnataka were the sample, among them the cases (250) were the records of the women who had delivered before 37 weeks of gestation and controls (500) were the records of women who delivered after 37 weeks of gestation and without any complications. Method: The study was conducted using, retrospective case-control design by reviewing the case records of women who had delivered in a tertiary care hospital. Main Outcome Measures: Women delivered in tertiary care hospital of Udupi district Karnataka, their inpatient records were assessed for the risk factors during the antenatal period and the period of delivery.Results: The study revealed that the prevalence of preterm labor was 356 (14.86%) Out of 2402 deliveries. Among them only 250 were assessed. It was significantly correlated with age, place of residence, degree of education, occupation, marital status, gravid para, and number of deliveries, type of deliveries, gap between births, blood type, and religion. Pregnant women who had been exposed or had risk for preterm labour included those who had been diagnosed with pregnancy-induced hypertension, medication during pregnancy, history of abortion, intense physical labour, and conception dates older than 30 years.Conclusion: The preterm labor prevalence can be minimized if the modifiable risk factors are in control. Non-Modifiable risk factors require keen supervision. Thus the health professional needs to be alert about all the modifiable and non-modifiable risk factors.Keywords: preterm labor, prevalence, risk factorsBackground: Preterm labor can be prevented if detected earlier, thus to determine the risk factors of preterm labor, the present study was conducted to identify preventive measures. The study was conducted in the tertiary care hospital of Udupi district using retrospective case-control design for identifying the prevalence and the risk factors of preterm labor by reviewing the case records of women who had delivered in a tertiary care hospital. The study revealed that the prevalence of preterm labor was 356 (14.86%) Out of 2402 deliveries. Among this 356 preterm labor, only 250 samples were assessed randomly for identifying the risk factors of preterm labor as per the sample size calculation. A significant association was found between preterm labor and age, residence, education level, occupation, marital status, gravid para (number of conception), number of deliveries, type of delivery, birth interval, blood group, and religion. The number of preterm labor were seen among the pregnant women who had been exposed and were proved to be at risk if they were diagnosed with pregnancy-induced hypertension, previous abortion, hard physical work, and age of conception above 30 years. The preterm labor prevalence can be minimized if the modifiable risk factors are in control. Non- Modifiable risk factors require keen supervision to prevent preterm labor.Keywords: preterm labor, prevalence, risk factorsIntroduction:A neonate who is born after 37 weeks itself requires a lot of attention and care as it steps into a different atmosphere after birth. The morbidity concerning preterm labor will continue in later life, which will result in physical, psychological, and economic costs. Globally, one out of 10 babies is born preterm. Approximately one million babies lose their lives every year because of complications of preterm births. Preterm labor is an obstetric emergency and a threat to population health. 75% of infant mortality is related to preterm labor. Preterm labor not only inflicts financial and emotional distress on the family, but it may also lead to permanent disability (physical or neural damages) in infants. The survival babies, express a periodic disability such as learning, visual and hearing difficulties. The preterm birth rate ranges from 5% to 7% of total live births in developed countries in comparison to developing countries. Over the last two decades, the preterm birth rate has remained unchanged or even risen in most countries, despite the increased understanding of possible risk factors and their pathological mechanisms. The pathway for the preterm labor is not clear in terms of whether it is because of the interaction of more than two pathways or is it the reason for the independent pathway. Commonly affecting factors for preterm labor include the health condition of the mother or fetus, genetic causes, exposure to the environment, treatment taken for infertility, habits, socioeconomic and iatrogenic factors. Preterm birth was the second leading cause of death in children under 5 years old. In 2010 there were approximately 3.1 million newborn deaths, out of them one-fourth of the death was in the first 24 hours after birth. Out of 184 countries, preterm birth is approximately 5 % to 18% of neonates born. In India out of 27million neonates born every year, 3.5 million are delivered prematurely. Antenatal period, labor process, and the postnatal period are the most critical period for the infant and maternal survival. Preterm labor is unpredictable but the cues can be identified and preventive measures can be taken. Physicians will make every effort to delay the delivery so that the baby can grow as much as possible. Therefore, one should not skip any important health details during the regular visit to the obstetrics clinic. The pregnant women should give a detailed history of once lifestyle, past pregnancies, any health issues which one had been through and get the doubts clarified. The statistics presented above along with the supported data helps obstetric care providers to design appropriate study and plan for measures to decrease the delivery rates before 37 weeks of gestation and to improve the health status of the women who have delivered. This will finally assist in reducing and filling the gaps between the study areas, as baseline information for other existing countries. To determine the risk factors of preterm labor, the present study was conducted to identify preventive measures. Medication intake during pregnancy, previous abortion which can be identified earlier and extra precautions to these risk factors can prevent preterm labor. There are modifiable risk factors like hard physical work and age of conception above 30 years which, if taken care of, can prevent preterm labor.Materials and Methods:A retrospective case-control study design was used to identify the prevalence and risk factors for preterm labor by assessing the case records of the women delivered in the tertiary care hospitals of the Udupi district. Cases for the study were women delivered before 37 weeks of gestation and controls were the women delivered after 37 weeks of gestation without any complication. A purposive sampling technique was used to select the records of 250 out of 356 women as per the sample size calculation who delivered in the year 2016.Procedure: The tools used were maternal socio-demographic proforma which consisted of 19 items. The structured Risk Assessment tool for preterm labor was developed by a researcher and it consisted of items that were classified as modifiable and non-modifiable risk factors. Modifiable risk factors had twenty-five items that were further subdivided into social factors, economic factors, and environmental factors. Non-modifiable risk factors had thirty-five items that were further subdivided as a medical condition, obstetrical condition, and fetal condition. The internal consistency of the tool was r=1. Permission was obtained from administrators and heads of departments of the institution Udupi district, ethical clearance was obtained from the Institutional Kasturba Medical College and Kasturba hospital, institutional Ethics Committee (IEC 30/2018). The study was registered with the Clinical Trial Registry of India (CTRI/2018/05/014078). Data analyzed using the “SPSS”16 version using descriptive and inferential statistics.Result: The study identified that the prevalence of preterm labor as shown in Figure 1 was 356 (14.82%) out of total 2402 deliveries. About background characteristics the cases and control varied as shown in table 1, with majority191 (76.4%) of them were residing in a rural area, maximum200 (80%) among the cases had occupation being housewives, many 189 (75.6%) were primi, thus the birth interval was not specified. The mean height among the cases as shown in table 2 among the cases was 154.32cm, in terms of mean age was 27.44 and the total weight gain of pregnant women during the pregnancy on an average was 7.67kgs among the cases (preterm deliveries). Among the controls (term deliveries) the majority 334 (66.8%) of them were residing in a rural area, maximum 250 (50%) among the cases had occupation being housewives, many 251 (50.2%) of pregnant women were pregnant for the second time with majority 292 (58.4%) of them had a birth interval of 1-2yrs. The mean height among the cases as shown in table 2 was 154.34cm, the mean age was 27.07 and the total weight gain during the pregnancy on an average was 7.54kgs. Thus it states that there is a high risk for preterm labor in the age group of 27 – 30 years if the women were homemakers and are from a rural area with the first pregnancy. Initially, univariate analysis was computed as shown in table 3 and then to get an accurate result by the adjusted odds ratio which was computed and depicted in table 4 which showed the factor that pregnant women had exposure to the risk factors like pregnancy-induced hypertension with the Odds ratio (OR) was 1.288 (CI 140.829,1.17), Medication intake during pregnancy with OR 62.406 (CI 7.599,512.513), previous abortion with OR 0.007 (CI.001,.066), hard physical work with OR.021(CI.002,.217), Conception age 30 and above with AOR 24.837(CI 2.648,232.965) had more chances of having preterm labor. After assessing the adjusted odds ratio, the data showed that the risk factors like pregnancy-induced hypertension (p=.001), medication intake (p=.001), and conception age at 30 or above (p= .005) are having chances of preterm labor which is significant at 0.005 level. Previous Abortion (p=.001) & hard physical work (p= .001) are statistically preventive factors but clinically it is not the preventive risk factors. The majority of the women among the cases and controls had taken medication like tab tibolone (steroids) and tab ceftriaxone (antibiotic) which has increased chances of having preterm labor.Discussion: Main findings: Description of sample characteristics in frequencies and percentage: Majority of the pregnant women both among cases and controls are residing in rural area 191(76.4%) and 334 (66.8%), Most of the women’s educational status is not mentioned as, many of the women’s in both the groups are housewives (case 200 (80%) and controls 250 (50%)), All the women in both the groups were married and were with their spouses. Majority of the women among cases were primi 189 (75.6%) and majority of them 251 (50.2%) of pregnant women among control were pregnant for the second time. Majority among the cases had delivered once 189 (75.6%) and maximum among the controls delivered twice 333(66.6%). Among the Cases majority were Primi so the birth interval was not specified and among the controls majority 292 (58.4%) of them had birth interval of 1 – 2yrs. All the women’s in both the group had regular follow up and had taken supplements as specified. The mean age of cases, is 27.44 followed by the mean age for controls was 27.07. The mean height for the cases was 154.32cm and control group is 154.34cm. The total weight gain of pregnant women during the pregnancy on an average was 7.67kgs and that of control is 7.54kgs. Additional information on Blood grouping and religion was collected, Were by majority among the cases were belonging to O+ 111 (44.4%) blood group and among the controls majority had A+ 209 (41.8%) blood group.Among both the group, cases and control were belonging to the Hindu religion i.e. 227 (90.8%) and 375 (75%) respectively.Prevalence of preterm labor in tertiary care hospital of Udupi district Karnataka: Out of 2402 deliveries in Tertiary care hospital of Udupi district Karnataka. 356 (14.82%) were preterm labor and maximum number 2046 (85.17%) were term deliveries irrespective of their mode of deliveries.Association between selected variables and the preterm labour: There is association with the age (p= .002), residence (p= .001), education level (p=.001), occupation (p=.001), marital status (p=.004), gravida (p=.001), number of deliveries (p=.001), type of delivery (p=.001), birth interval (p=.001), blood group (p=.001) and the religion (p=.001). But there is no association between Height and weight gain during pregnancy. Thus it states that there is high risk for the preterm labor at the age ranging from 27 – 30 years, if the women are from rural area, being at home with primi para.The pregnant women had exposure to the pregnancy induced hypertension AOR 1.288(CI 140.829,1.17), Medication intake during pregnancy AOR 62.406(CI 7.599,512.513), Abortion AOR.007(CI.001,.066), hard physical work AOR.021(CI.002,.217), Conception age 30 and above AOR 24.837(CI 2.648,232.965) has chances of having preterm labor.After assessing the Adjusted Odds ratio, the data shows that the risk factors like pregnancy induced hypertension (p=.001), medication intake (p=.001) and conception age at 30 or above (p= .005) are having chances of preterm labor which is proved significantly at the level of .005. Previous Abortion (p=.001) & hard physical work (p= .001) are proved statistically as the preventive factors but clinically it is not. The majority of the women among the cases and controls had taken only tidalone and ceftriaxone which may be the reason for the chances of having preterm labor. Betamethasone intake is excluded because it is a drug of choice for lung maturity in case if the women comes with preterm labor pain. This is the drug of choice for prevention of preterm labor.Limitations: The limitations of the study are:As the present study is retrospective, the data was based on availability of information in the recordsWomen with preterm labour in Kasturba hospital were only included for the studyPurposive sampling technique was used so the generalization of the study is difficult.InterpretationThe data in the study show that 356 (14.82%) women delivered before 37 weeks of gestation among the total 2406 deliveries. The present study supports the finding of a cross-sectional study conducted on the Prevalence of preterm labor among young parturient women aged 15 – 24 years attending public hospitals in Brazil. The study findings revealed that the prevalence of preterm labor was 2071 (86.3%) out of 2400 parturient women. The maximum (36.1%) women with preterm labor were found in the northern region and the minimum (6.9%) number of preterm labor was found in the southern region, Results showed a high prevalence of preterm labor among young women in Brazil. Another retrospective study was conducted to identify the existence and reason associated with the occurrence of delivery before 37weeks of gestation in Jordan. The findings of the study showed that all the preterm deliveries were approximately 647. The maximum neonates were female than the males (54.9% Vs 45.1%), out of the maximum (75.6%) neonates were the second child, the women who delivered before 37weeks of gestation proper half were between the age group of 25–35 years of age. This is also supported by present study findings. The study finding showed an association between preterm and age (p= .002), residence (p= .001), education level (p=.001), occupation (p=.001), marital status (p=.004), gravida (p=.001), number of deliveries (p=.001), type of delivery (p=.001),birth interval (p=.001), blood group (p=.001) and the religion (p=.001) But there is no association between height and weight gain during pregnancy. Thus it states that there is a high risk for preterm labor if they are primipara, with conception age ranging from 27 – 30 years, residing in a rural area and homemakers. Similar studies findings are present like a retrospective cross-sectional study on the prevalence of preterm labor in a Labor room. It shows that the risk factors for early labor were active relationships during the previous week of labor, multiple pregnancies, the small birth intervals between two conceptions, PIH, fetal anomaly, premature rupture of membrane, and HTN. But the other aspects show that iron consumption, normal fetal presentation, blood-related problems, previous LSCS, prenatal care, and mother’s weight during pregnancy were considered as positive factors for the prevention of preterm labor. A case-control study was conducted by Barbara Luke et, al in the United States on the relation between the occupational factors and preterm delivery among the nurses. A total number of 210 nurses who had preterm labor and 1260 nurses who had delivered at term were included in the group. An occupational fatigue tool was used. Results showed that the risk factors related to preterm delivery included working hours per week (P=.002), different duty timings (p=.00l), standing hours (p=.001), noisy areas (p=.005), physical stress (p=.01) and work-related stress (p =.002). The result is the adjusted odds ratio was calculated for working hours per week were 1.6 (p=.006) and for fatigue was1.4 (p = 0.02). Preterm labor among the working women which can be a risk about the number of hours per day, week, and even extreme working condition. Using the results of this study and similar ones, to eliminate the risk factors and reinforce the protective factors would help decrease the rate of preterm labor and its human and social burden. Yet, for accurately determining these factors, studies with better design, such as cohort prospective studies, with proper follow-up period and large study population, are needed. Since the studied hospital is a referral center for these patients, it represents the general population of the country to a great extent. Still, the final decision regarding factors affecting pre-term labor should be made after further studies.Conclusion: The study concludes that preterm labor is commonly seen in pregnant women who are exposed to non-modifiable and modifiable risk factors. Modifiable risk factors can be avoided and thus allow the pregnancy to continue till term. Non-Modifiable risk factors need to be supervised very keenly so that there is no risk to the life of the mother and the fetus. It even states that the prevalence of preterm is more among the homemakers, thus these women need to be released from the level of stress which they are exposed to. All in all, the study concludes that these risk factors are different for each woman which will lead to preterm labor, but it needs to be identified at the earliest and needs to be treated adequately.Declaration :Principal Investigator: Mrs Sweety J Fernandes (role: Recrutment, data collection, rater, intervention provider, concept analysis, training provider and manuscript)Guide : Dr Tessy Treesa Jose (Role: Intellectual inputs , mentoring)Co – guide : Dr Judith A Noronha (Role: Intellectual, mentoring)Co- investigator: Dr Sushmitha R Karkada ( Role: Intellectual analysis)Funding statement: Manipal University provides the employees certain fund for research purpose so the same will be utilized for publication. PI has self funded for the studyAcknowledgement: I am greatful to the Hospital for giving the permission to get access to the records and greatful to the co investigators for their constant support and intellectual inputs

Solving the inverse scattering problem is of utmost importance in various fields such as medical imaging, remote sensing, radar systems, and many more. However, obtaining complete information about the scattered wavefield is often challenging, leading to partial data measurements known as “phase-less” data. In this paper, we propose a novel method for solving the inverse scattering problem using deep learning-based DConvNet. Our approach leverages the phase-less data and learns a mapping between the unknown object and scattered wave field using the convolutional neural network architecture. Since the DConvNet can be trained on a large dataset of scattering field data, it can generalise well to new objects and scenarios. We demonstrate the effectiveness of our proposed method which also works for Lossy scatterers. Our method produces superior reconstruction results when compared with literature.

Vital signs such as heart rate (HR) and respiration rate (RR) are essential physiological parameters used to assess human health and bodily functions. These can be measured via methods that either require or do not require direct contact. A non-contact Doppler radar millimeter (mm)-wave sensing firmware utilizes a 76–81 GHz (W-band) electromagnetic wave over a short-range path to the human body. It then processes the reflected electromagnetic wave to filter and extract human heartbeat and breathing rhythm signals. The short-range sensor system proposed herein eliminates the need for electrodes, electric patches, photoelectric sensors, and conductive wires, as well as the requirement for direct contact with the human body when measuring physiological signals. The W-band Doppler mm-wave sensing firmware, paired with frequency-modulated continuous wave radar, enables continuous monitoring of HR and RR. Short-wavelength mm-waves are employed in short-range detection to deliver highly precise measurements of physiological signals with minimal noise interference. Consequently, experimental tests were conducted in a laboratory setting to measure the heartbeats and breathing rhythm signals of healthy young men. Their HR and RR were estimated through frequency- and time-domain analyses. The experimental results confirm the feasibility of the proposed mm-wave radar for continuous human vital sign detection.

Objective: Radiotherapy and endoscopic laser surgery (ELS) has been considered the primary treatment for laryngeal cancer. This study aims to compare ESL and radiotherapy in terms of organ preservation, disease-free survival, overall survival, and cancer-specific survival. Methods: A retrospective study using database of T1-T2 glottic cancer treated with radiotherapy and ELS. Disease-free survival, overall survival and Cancer Specific Survival (CSS) for both groups according to Kaplan-Meier. Results: 108 patients received radiotherapy and 98 patients underwent ELS were analyzed. . Organ preservation rate was higher in the ELS group (88.8% vs 84.3%) p=NS. The percentage of patients alive without disease was higher in the ELS group (85.7% vs 58.3%) (p< 0.00). The five-year General OS rates were 93% and 91% in the ELS and radiotherapy group, respectively; while the ten-year OS rates were 93% and 63%, respectively. The five-year and ten-year OS rates for T1 and T2 (p=NS). Five-year CSS in the ELS and radiotherapy group was, respectively, 86% and 85%, whereas ten-year CSS was 83% and 50%, respectively (p=NS). A subanalysis of recurrent cases was performed for both groups. Organ preservation was achieved in 71.1% of cases in the ELS group compared with 58% in the radiotherapy group (p=0.23). Conclusion: T1 tumors should be exclusively treated with ELS or open surgery, diagnosis and treatment can be combined in a single surgical procedure. Before administering radiotherapy, a diagnosis is needed. T2 tumors should be properly selected for their management, and many approaches are available.. Organ preservation is similar for both groups. Evidence level: 3

Objectives: We aimed to report the surgical outcomes of phosphaturic mesenchymal tumors causing tumor-induced osteomalacia in the head and neck. Design: A retrospective cohort study Setting: A tertiary care academic hospital Methods: This study analyzed nine patients who underwent surgical excision of phosphaturic mesenchymal tumors in the head and neck region. The primary sites were two in the maxilla and ethmoid sinus, and one in the intracranial, skull, parotid gland, maxillary sinus, and nasal cavity in each patient. Outcomes were compared with those in the extremities and trunk (n = 32). Results: Five of nine patients (56%) developed residual disease/local recurrence associated with low serum phosphate level after initial surgical excision. At the last follow-up, the biochemical parameters were normalized in four of the five patients after re-excision without any medication. The local recurrence/residual disease risk was significantly higher for the head and neck compared with the extremities and trunk (56% vs. 25%, p = 0.048). The rate of remission (normalized serum phosphate without medication) at final follow-up was similar in both groups after re-excision (head and neck vs. extremities and trunk, 86% vs. 73%, p = 0.827). Conclusions: Phosphaturic mesenchymal tumor resection in the head and neck region was challenging because of its complex anatomy and proximity to the brain or other crucial organs, which was associated with high local recurrence/residual disease rate. However, biological remission was achieved in the majority of the patients after re-excision.

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is a major incurable health burden, ranking as the 3rd leading cause of death worldwide, mainly driven by cigarette smoking. COPD is characterised by persistent airway inflammation, lung function decline, and premature aging with the presence of pulmonary senescent cells. This review proposes that cellular senescence, a state of stable cell cycle arrest linked to ageing; induced by inflammation and oxidative stress in COPD, extends beyond the lungs and impacts the systemic circulation. This “spill over” of senescent cells contributes to brain inflammation and damage, increasing the risk of neurological comorbidities, such as stroke, cerebral small vessel disease, and Alzheimer’s disease. The review explores the role of cellular senescence in COPD-associated brain conditions and investigates the relationship between cellular senescence and circadian rhythm in COPD. Additionally, it discusses potential therapies, including senomorphic and senolytic treatments, as novel strategies to halt or improve COPD progression.

Silicosis unveiled: Improving diagnostic accuracy and distinguishing it from tuberculosis: A case report from a low and middle-income countryChapagain, Sanskriti1 , Shrestha,Abhigan Babu2 ,Shrestha ,shumneva 3,Shrestha, sajina4,jaiswal ,vikash5,yadav,Hritik Raj 2, Shrestha ,Nilasma61. Devdaha Medical College and Research Institute, Bhaluhi, Rupandehi, Nepal2.M Abdur Rahim Medical Medical College Hospital, Department Of Internal MedicineDinajpur, Bangladesh3. Tribhuvan University Institute of Medicine Maharajgunj Medical Campus ,Nepal4. KIST Medical College, Department Of Internal Medicine, patan Imadol, Lalitpur,Nepal5. Medical AMA School of Medicine, Medicine Bangkal makati, Philippines Makati City, Luzon6.Kathmandu Medical College,Kathmandu,NepalCorresponding author :Chapagain,SanskritiDevdaha Medical College and Research Institute, Bhaluhi, Rupandehi, Nepalsanskritichapagain527@gmail.com

With the increasing demand for homoallylic silanes and allylic silanes, the highly efficient and regioselective hydrosilylations of conjugated dienes are urgently needed. Herein, we developed a Ni-catalyzed regiodivergent hydrosilylation of aromatic conjugated dienes by adjusting the temperature and ligands. Under low temperature (-30 oC), an eternal-ligand-free system (Ni/t-BuOK) can efficiently facili-tate the 3,4-anti-Markovnikov hydrosilylation to provide homoallylic silanes via electrophilic activation process; under room temperature (25 oC), a ligand-controlled system (Ni/t-BuOK/PPh3) can eventuate the 3,4-Markovnikov hydrosilylation to produce allylic silanes via Chalk-Harrod process. Both systems are compatible with various conjugated dienes and primary silanes in excellent yields and regioselec-tivities.

A document by Abubakar Haruna. Click on the document to view its contents.

Geological events and historical environmental change can strongly affect the genetic structures and differentiation of fish populations. Although the central region of the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau contains the highest concentration of rift-subsidence lakes in China, the effects of key geological events on the distributions and genetic structures of the regional fauna remain poorly understood. Fishes of the genus Sinocyclocheilus are endemic to the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau, where they are found in karst landforms. As a result of environmental pollution and other human activities, Sinocyclocheilus populations have decreased sharply, and the genus is currently listed under Class II of the nationally protected animals classification in China. Examining the phylogeographic patterns of Sinocyclocheilus fishes can be useful for elucidating the spatio-temporal dynamics of their population size, dispersal history and extent of geographical isolation, thereby providing a theoretical basis for their protection. Here, we used Restriction Site Associated DNA Sequencing (RAD-seq) to investigate the evolution of Sinocyclocheilus fishes. Our analysis supports the endemicity of Sinocyclocheilus, and identifies the formation of Dianchi Lake and Fuxian Lake as key geological events shaping Sinocyclocheilus population structure. We estimate that the most recent common ancestor (MRCA) of Sinocyclocheilus fish occurred in the Central Yunnan Basin 3.75~3.11 Ma. It is the first time to prove that the altitude change has a great influence on the genetic variation among the populations of Sinocyclocheilus. We discuss the implications of our results for the protection and management of Sinocyclocheilus grahami and other cave fishes.

Nanoscale memristors open up new opportunities for the development of brain neural networks. Simple and precise memristors enhance the performance of various neural networks and operational circuits. In this letter, a three-terminal memristor is proposed, which makes the memristor more flexible and practical in circuit design and application through the introduction of a control port. Consid-ering that the resistance of a three-terminal memristor consists of three parts, i.e., metal region, low-resistance region, and high-resistance region, a three-segment piecewiselinear method is applied to fit these three regions. The model of this memristor is constructed through the derivation of the memristor formula and working principle.Candence simulations are conducted on the resultant circuit to verify its correctness.

Total body irradiation is an important part of the pre-HSCT preparation regimen. In treatments applied in combination with radiotherapy and chemotherapy, survival is long-term, especially in pediatric cases. So, increasing the quality of life of patients is as important as the success of the treatment. Today, the general approach is the application of the TBI with conventional radiotherapy devices.In the TBI applications, it is recommended to use in-vivo dosimeters to measure, quantify, control and monitor the dose homogeneity applied to the patient.In this study, we evaluated the importance of inter-fraction dose tracking for bilateral TBI irradiations, which is the most commonly used, simple and feasible method.Measurements were made with MOSFET for brain, neck, lung, umbilicus and pelvis regions in each fraction during the entire treatment, to prevent inter-fractional variations. The midline dose was calculated from the MOSFET skin doses and then interpreted. Dosage tracking within fractions allows the revision of the dosimetric errors that may occur between the fractions, and prevents the transfer of the possible error to the next fraction. Thus, it is aimed to minimize the possible side effects of the treatment and to reach the maximum targeted dose that will prevent recurrence and/or graft failure.

Background: Atrial cardiopathy is a proposed mechanism of embolic stroke of undetermined source (ESUS). Left atrial (LA) strain may identify early atrial cardiopathy prior to structural changes. We aim to study the associations between LA strain, ESUS, and atrial fibrillation (AF) detection in ESUS. Methods: The study population included patients with ESUS and non-cardioembolic (NCE) stroke presenting to statewide stroke center between January 2016 and June 2017 who underwent transthoracic echocardiography. Speckle tracking echocardiography (STE) was used to measure the 3 phases of LA strain (reservoir, conduit, and contractile). Binary logistic regression analysis was performed to determine the associations between LA strain and stroke subtype (ESUS vs. NCE) as well as follow-up detection of AF in ESUS patients. Results: We identified 656 patients, 307 with ESUS and 349 with NCE. In binary logistic regression, the lowest tertiles of LA reservoir (adjusted OR 1.944, 95% CI 1.266-2.986, p = 0.002), contractile (aOR 1.568, 95% CI 1.035-2.374, p = 0.034), and conduit strain (aOR 2.288, 95% CI 1.448-3.613, p = 0.001) were more likely to be significantly associated with ESUS compared to NCE stroke. Among all ESUS patients, the lowest tertiles of LA reservoir strain (OR 2.534, 95% CI 1.029-6.236, p = 0.043), contractile strain (OR 2.828, 95% CI 1.158-6.903, p = 0.022), and conduit strain (OR 2.614, 95% CI 1.003-6.815, p = 0.049) were significantly associated with subsequent detection of AF. Conclusion: Reduced LA strain is associated with ESUS occurrence and AF detection in ESUS patients. Therefore, quantification of LA strain in ESUS patients may improve risk stratification and guide secondary prevention strategies.

Inorganic aqueous binders (IAB) are an emerging class of aqueous binders. They offer exceptional physicochemical properties like intrinsic ionic conductivity, high thermal stability (>1000°C), and environmental benignity making them attractive. In a previous study, we found that graphite anode shows improved electrochemical performance with these binders as compared to conventional PVDF binder for lithium-ion batteries (LIB). However, the cyclic performance of graphite-IAB at a higher rate (e.g., 1C) showed a declining trend. We attributed it to the poor binding strength between graphite and IAB due to insufficient functional groups in graphite. Therefore in this report, SiOx-based surface coatings of graphite are employed to improve its rate capability with silicate-based IAB by providing functional silicon oxide polymorphs on the coated graphite as an intermediate layer. The nature and structural arrangement of these coatings are investigated by tip-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (TERS), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Optimized SiOx-coated graphite (GS) with sodium metasilicate binder leads to excellent cyclic stability with a capacity retention of >90% at 20C for more than 4000 cycles. A high specific capacity of >315 mAhg-1 at 2C, stable for over 1000 cycles, is achieved for GS with IAB. The improved performance of the coated graphite is attributed to ameliorated binding with IAB as well as stable solid electrolyte interphase. We propose inorganic aqueous binders in combination with SiOx-coated graphite as an approach to realize a stable anode for LIB.

Manufacturing thin-film components is crucial for achieving high-efficiency and high-power thermal batteries (TBs). However, developing binders with low gas production at the operating temperature range of TBs (400−550 °C) has proven to be a significant challenge. Here we report the use of acrylic acid derivative terpolymer (LA136D) as a low-volatile binder for thin-film cathode fabrication and studied the chain scission and chemical bond-breaking mechanisms in pyrolysis. It is shown LA136D defers to random-chain scission and cross-linking chain scission mechanisms, which gifts it with a low proportion of volatile products (ψ, ψ=39.2wt%) at even up to 550 °C, well below those of the conventional PVDF (77.6wt%) and SBR (99.2wt%) binders. Surprisingly, LA136D contributes to constructing a thermal shock-resistant cathode due to the step-by-step bond-breaking process. This is beneficial for the overall performance of TBs. In a 130 s pulse discharging test, the thin-film cathodes exhibited a remarkable 440% reduction in polarization and 300% enhancement in the utilization efficiency of cathode materials, while with just a slight increase of 0.05 MPa in gas pressure compared with traditional “thick-film” cathode. Our work highlights the potential of LA136D as a low-volatile binder for thin-film cathodes and shows the feasibility of manufacturing high-efficiency and high-power TBs through polymer molecule engineering.

A document by David Catanzaro. Click on the document to view its contents.

A document by Raoudha Slim. Click on the document to view its contents.

A potential solution to the world’s energy crisis has been demonstrated in the use of sunlight to generate electricity. Solar cells, which convert solar energy into electrical energy, must be reliable and cost effective in order to compete with traditional sources. The purpose of this paper is to describe the different generations of photovoltaic cells and the current and upcoming technologies that will be utilised in the photovoltaic systems. The introduction describes the fundamentals of photovoltaic (PV) cells, including their working principle and their main properties. After that the paper discusses all generations of PV cells, mainly in terms of the efficiency at which they can convert sunlight to electricity as well as the materials used. A comparison of the latest efficiencies of the PV cells is provided. With the advancement of photovoltaic technology, the possibilities of increasing efficiencies, production and innovations are also discussed. The limitations as well as possible solutions and future hopes are outlined in the conclusion.