Search results for: acceptance and commitment therapy

Authors: Maryam Radan, Fereshteh Nejad Dehbashi, Vahid Bayati, Mahin Dianat, Seyyed Ali Mard, Zahra Mansouri

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Pulmonary emphysema is a pathological respiratory condition identified by alveolar destruction which leads to limitation of airflow and diminished lung function. A substantial body of evidence suggests that mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have the ability to induce tissue repair primarily through a paracrine effect. In this study, we aimed to determine the efficacy of Intratracheal adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells (ADSCs) therapy in comparison to this approach with that of Intravenous (Systemic) therapy. Fifty adult male Sprague–Dawley rats weighing between 180 and 200 g were used in this experiment. The animals were randomized to Control groups (Intratracheal or Intravenous vehicle), Elastase group (intratracheal administration of porcine pancreatic elastase; 25 U/kg on day 0 and day 10th), Elastase+Intratracheal ADSCs therapy (1x107 Cells, on day 28) and Elastase+Systemic ADSCs therapy (1x107 Cells, on day 28). The rats which not subjected to any treatment, considered as the control. All rats were sacrificed 3 weeks later. Morphometric findings in lung tissues (Mean linear intercept) confirmed the establishment of the emphysema model via alveolar disruption. Contrarily, ADSCs administration partially restored alveolar architecture. These results were associated with improving arterial oxygenation, reducing lung edema, and decreasing lung inflammation with higher significant effects in the Intratracheal therapy route. These results documented that the efficacy of intratracheal ADSCs was comparable with intravenous ADSCs therapy. Accordingly, the obtained data suggested that intratracheal delivery of ADSCs would enhance lung repair in pulmonary emphysema. Moreover, this method provides benefits over a systemic administration, such as the reduction of cell number and the low risk to engraft other organs.

Keywords: mesenchymal stem cell, emphysema, Intratracheal, systemic

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Authors: Jim Shih-Chiao Chin , Tsai Lin Hsu, Shui Lien Chen

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This article extends the relation between company’s employee and customers in market. According to the previous researches, most researchers analyzed and focused on customers’ brand perception. In the recently, some scholars star to explore the brand management from company viewpoint. The aim of this study is to explore whether consumers perception would be affected by the firm brand. This research would like to examine the relationship between individual consumers and corporate brands in the business-to-consumers sector. First, the study develops a framework that the connection with consumer and company. Second, this article uses three dimensions, brand knowledge, brand commitment, and brand equity to measure employees’ loyalty of brand and applies brand relationship quality to gauge the level of brand’s importance in consumer’s mind. This paper uses SPSS 20.0 and AMOS 20.0 to test consumers’ minds toward the brand equity which the company provides. There are totally 862 valid questionnaires returned, and 431 participants are consumers; the other 431 participants are employees. Those questionnaires are one-by-one to consumer and employee so those are 431 pairs questionnaires. Based on 431 pairs of consumers and company’s employees, analyzed results show that brand knowledge and brand commitment play important roles influencing brand equity. The results also demonstrate the extra-role brand equity positively impact on the brand relationship quality of consumers. In addition, the findings reveal that the company can improve brand relationship quality of consumers by enhancing extra-role brand equity. There is a sufficient evidence denote that brand relationship quality not only shows about the brand of customers’ thought but also implies company how to build the brand to impress on consumers. These findings provide the degree of the brand in consumers’ cognition. The brand-owner employee can reference the conclusion to creative new strategic to the next time or can be one of the company’s competitive advantages. Those results and conclusions are contributed to management practice and future.

Keywords: brand knowledge, brand commitment, brand equity, brand relationship quality

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Authors: F. Noto, G. Costa, L. Celona, F. Chines, G. Ciavola, G. Cuttone, S. Gammino, O. Leonardi, S. Marletta, G. Torrisi

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At Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare – Laboratorio Nazionale del Sud (INFN-LNS), a broad experience in the design, construction and commissioning of ECR and microwave ion sources is available. The AISHa ion source has been designed by taking into account the typical requirements of hospital-based facilities, where the minimization of the mean time between failures (MTBF) is a key point together with the maintenance operations, which should be fast and easy. It is intended to be a multipurpose device, operating at 18 GHz, in order to achieve higher plasma densities. It should provide enough versatility for future needs of the hadron therapy, including the ability to run at larger microwave power to produce different species and highly charged ion beams. The source is potentially interesting for any hadron therapy facility using heavy ions. In this paper, we analyzed the dimensional test and electrical test about an innovative solution for the containment chamber that allows us to solve our isolation and structural problems.

Keywords: FEM analysis, electron cyclotron resonance ion source, dielectrical measurement, hadron therapy

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Authors: Hsin-Yu Lee, Ming-Zhong Li, Wen-Hsi Chiu, Su-Fen Cheng, Shwu-Wen Lin

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Background: The use of medical terminology is essential to professional nurses on clinical practice. However, most nursing students consider traditional lecture-based teaching of medical terminology as boring and overly conceptual and lack motivation to learn. It is thus an issue to be discussed on how to enhance nursing students’ self-directed learning and improve learning outcomes of medical terminology. Digital game-based learning is a learner-centered way of learning. Past literature showed that the most common game-based learning for language education has been immersive games and teaching games. Thus, this study selected role-playing games (RPG) and digital puzzle games for observation and comparison. It is interesting to explore whether digital game-based learning has positive impact on nursing students’ learning of medical terminology and whether students can adapt well on this type of learning. Results can be used to provide references for institutes and teachers on teaching medical terminology. These instructions give you guidelines for preparing papers for the conference. Use this document as a template if you are using Microsoft Word. Otherwise, use this document as an instruction set. The electronic file of your paper will be formatted further at WASET. Define all symbols used in the abstract. Do not cite references in the abstract. Do not delete the blank line immediately above the abstract; it sets the footnote at the bottom of this column. Page margins are 1,78 cm top and down; 1,65 cm left and right. Each column width is 8,89 cm and the separation between the columns is 0,51 cm. Objective: The purpose of this research is to explore respectively the impact of RPG and puzzle game on nursing students’ self-directed learning and technology acceptance. The study further discusses whether different game types bring about different influences on students’ self-directed learning and technology acceptance. Methods: A quasi-experimental design was adopted in this study so that repeated measures between two groups could be conveniently conducted. 103 nursing students from a nursing college in Northern Taiwan participated in the study. For three weeks of experiment, the experiment group (n=52) received “traditional teaching + RPG” while the control group (n=51) received “traditional teaching + puzzle games”. Results: 1. On self-directed learning: For each game type, there were significant differences for the delayed tests of both groups as compared to the pre and post-tests of each group. However, there were no significant differences between the two game types. 2. On technology acceptance: For the experiment group, after the intervention of RPG, there were no significant differences concerning technology acceptance. For the control group, after the intervention of puzzle games, there were significant differences regarding technology acceptance. Pearson-correlation coefficient and path analysis conducted on the results of the two groups revealed that the dimension were highly correlated and reached statistical significance. Yet, the comparison of technology acceptance between the two game types did not reach statistical significance. Conclusion and Recommend: This study found that through using different digital games on learning, nursing students have effectively improved their self-directed learning. Students’ technology acceptances were also high for the two different digital game types and each dimension was significantly correlated. The results of the experimental group showed that through the scenarios of RPG, students had a deeper understanding of medical terminology, which reached the ‘Understand’ dimension of Bloom’s taxonomy. The results of the control group indicated that digital puzzle games could help students memorize and review medical terminology, which reached the ‘Remember’ dimension of Bloom’s taxonomy. The findings suggest that teachers of medical terminology could use digital games to assist their teaching according to their goals on cognitive learning. Adequate use of those games could help improve students’ self-directed learning and further enhance their learning outcome on medical terminology.

Keywords: digital game-based learning, medical terminology, nursing education, self-directed learning, technology acceptance model

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Authors: Sharifah I. N. A. Syed Azmi, Nazarina Mohd Nasir

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The Billing & Customer Relationship Management (BCRM) project is an important enabler towards realizing customer experience transformation. It involves technological shifts for future scalability, revision of multiple business processes and adoption of change by the users and impacted employees. This massive transition, if not managed properly, may result in the decline of business performance due to productivity drop. Organizational change management is an essential element in BCRM project implementation to ensure the system is well understood and embraced by all stakeholders. In order to move impacted employees from unaware state or denial mode to full-acceptance mindset and committing themselves in using the new system, their involvement in the whole change process starting from the initial stage is imperative. Through the BCRM Change Management Plan, a holistic approach was taken whereby the strategy and program for five key components namely executive sponsorship, continuous communication, process change readiness, organizational readiness and individual readiness were all carefully established. Roles of the project sponsor, change agents, change ambassadors and community of practice (CoP) were clearly defined in gaining high commitment and support across the entire organization. Continuous communication and engagement initiatives throughout project implementation have been carried out to reach all stakeholders. The business readiness was constantly monitored and assessed including effectiveness of end-user training, thorough review of process documentation and completion of roles realignment exercise.

Keywords: BCRM, change management, organizational change, transformation project

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Authors: F. Bosca, F. Foglietta, F. Turci, E. Calcio Gaudino, S. Mana, F. Dosio, R. Canaparo, L. Serpe, A. Barge

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In recent years, medical science has improved chemotherapy, radiation therapy and adjuvant therapy and has developed newer targeted therapies as well as refining surgical techniques for removing cancer. However, the chances of surviving the disease depend greatly on the type and location of the cancer and the extent of the disease at the start of treatment. Moreover, mainstream forms of cancer treatment have side effects which range from the unpleasant to the fatal. Therefore, the continuation of progress in anti-cancer therapy may depend on placing emphasis on other existing but less thoroughly investigated therapeutic approaches such as Sonodynamic Therapy (SDT). SDT is based on the local activation of a so called 'sonosensitizer', a molecule able to be excited by ultrasound, the radical production as a consequence of its relaxation processes and cell death due to different mechanisms induced by radical production. The present work deals with synthesis, characterization and preliminary in vitro test of Single Walled Carbon Nanotubes (SWCNT) decorated with porphyrins and biological vectors. The SWCNT’s surface was modified exploiting 1, 3-dipolar cycloaddition or Dies Alder reactions. For this purpose, different porphyrins scaffolds were ad-hoc synthesized using also non-conventional techniques. To increase cellular specificity of porphyrin-conjugated SWCNTs and to improve their ability to be suspended in aqueous solution, the modified nano-tubes were grafted with suitable glutamine or hyaluronic acid derivatives. These nano-sized sonosensitizers were characterized by several methodologies and tested in vitro on different cancer cell lines.

Keywords: sonodynamic therapy, porphyrins synthesis and modification, SWNCT grafting, hyaluronic acid, anti-cancer treatment

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Authors: Sung Hyun Kim

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Introduction: Sleep disturbance is common in children with developmental disorders (D.D.). Sleep disturbance has a variety of negative effects, such as behavior problems, medical problems, and even developmental problems in children with D.D. However, to our best knowledge, there has been no proper treatment for sleep disorders in children with D.D. Therefore, we conduct this study to know the positive effects of intensive rehabilitation therapy in children with D.D. on the degree of sleep disturbance. Method: We prospectively recruited 22 patients with a diagnosis of D.D. during the period of January 2022 through May 2022. The inclusion criteria were as follows: 1) a patient who would participate in the intensive rehabilitation therapy of our institution; 2) the age participant under 18 years at the time of assessment; 3) a child who has consented to participate in the study by signing the consent form by the legal guardian. We investigated the clinical characteristics of participants by the medical record, including sex, age, underlying diagnosis of D.D., and Gross Motor Function Measures (GMFM). Before starting the intensive rehabilitation therapy, we conducted a Sleep disturbance scale for children (SDSC). It contains 26 questions about children’s sleep, and those questions are grouped into six subscales, such as Disorders of initiating and maintaining sleep (DIMS), Sleep Breathing Disorders(SBD), Disorders of arousal(DOA), Sleep-Wake Transition Disorders(SWTD), Disorders of excessive somnolence(DOES) and Sleep Hyperhydrosis(SHY). We used the t-score, which was calculated by comparing the scores of normal children. Twenty two patients received 8 weeks of intensive rehabilitation, including daily physical and occupational therapy. After that, we did follow up with SDSC. The comparison between SDSC before and after intensive rehabilitation was calculated using the paired t-test, and P< 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: Demographic data and clinical characteristics of 22 patients are enrolled. Patients were 4.03 ± 2.91 years old, and of the total 22 patients, 14 (64%) were male, and 8 (36%) were female. Twelve patients(45%) were diagnosed with Cerebral palsy(C.P.), and the mean value of participants’ GMFM was 47.82 ± 20.60. Each mean value of SDSC’s subscales was also calculated. DIMS was 62.36 ± 13.72, SBD was 54.18 ± 8.39, DOA was 49.59 ± 7.01, SWTD was 58.95 ± 9.20, DOES was 53.09 ± 15.15, SHY was 52.14 ± 8.82, and the total was 59.86 ± 13.18. These values suggest that children with D.D. have sleep disorders. After 8 weeks of intensive rehabilitation treatment, the score of DIMS showed improvement(p=0.016), but not the other subscale and total score of SDSC. Conclusion: This result showed that intensive rehabilitation could be helpful to patients of D.D. with sleep disorders. Especially intensive rehabilitation therapy itself can be a meaningful treatment in inducing and maintaining sleep.

Keywords: sleep disorder, developmental delay, intensive rehabilitation therapy, cerebral palsy

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Authors: Yasmin Sayed, Hala Hamdy, Hafez Bazaraa, Hanaa Rady, Sherif Elanwary

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Intravenous and inhaled magnesium sulfate (MgSO₄) had been recently used as an adjuvant therapy in cases suffering from the wheezy chest. Objective: We aimed to determine the possible change in the hemodynamic state in cases received intravenous or inhaled MgSO₄ in comparison to cases received standard treatment in critically ill infants and children with the wheezy chest. Methods: A randomized controlled trial comprised 81 patients suffering from wheezy chest divided into 3 groups. In addition to bronchodilators and systemic steroids, MgSO₄ was given by inhalation in group A, intravenously in group B, and group C didn't receive MgSO₄. The hemodynamic state was determined by assessment of blood pressure, heart rate, capillary refill time and the need for shock therapy or inotropic support just before and 24 hours after receiving treatment in 3 groups. Results: There was no significant difference in the hemodynamic state of the studied groups before and after treatment. Means of blood pressure were 102.2/63.2, 105.1/64.8 before and after inhaled MgSO₄; respectively. Means of blood pressure were 105.5/64.2, 104.1/64.9 before and after intravenous MgSO₄; respectively. Means of blood pressure were 107.4/62.8, 104.4/62.1 before and after standard treatment, respectively. There was a statistically insignificant reduction of the means of the heart rate in group A and group B after treatment rather than group C. There was no associated prolongation in capillary refill time and/or the need for inotropic support or shock therapy after treatment in the studied groups. Conclusion: MgSO₄ is a safe adjuvant therapy and not associated with significant alteration in the hemodynamic state in critically ill infants and children with the wheezy chest.

Keywords: critically ill infants and children, inhaled MgSO₄, intravenous MgSO₄, wheezy chest

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Authors: Tabassum Yasmin, Hamid Pahlevan

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HIV/Hepatitis C co-infection treatments have evolved substantially and they have similar sustained virologic response rates as those of Hepatitis C monoinfected population. There are a few studies on therapy of patients with dual genotypes, especially in HIV/Hepatic C coinfected group. Most studies portrayed case reports of dual genotype chronic Hepatitis C coinfection treatment with Sofosbuvir/Ledipasvir and Ribavirin. A 79-year-old male with a history of HIV on Truvada and Isentress had chronic Hepatitis C with 1a and 2 genotypes. The patient has a history of alcohol intake for 40 years but recently stopped drinking alcohol. He has a history of intravenous drug use in the past and currently is not using any recreational drugs. Patient has Fibro score of 0.7 with Metavir score F2 to F4. AFP is 3.2. The HCV RNA is 493,034 IU/ML. The HBV viral DNA is < 1.30 (not detected). The CD4 is 687CU/MM. The FIB 4 is 3.34 with APRI index 0.717. The HIV viral load is 101 copies/ML. MRI abdomen did not show any liver abnormality. Fixed dose Sofosbuvir/Ledipasvir was used for therapy without Ribavirin. He tolerated medication except for some minor gastrointestinal side effects like abdominal bloating. He demonstrated 100% adherence rate. Patient completed 12 weeks of therapy. HCV RNA was undetectable at 4 and 12 weeks. He achieved SVR at week 12 and subsequently had undetectable RNA for 2 years. Dual genotype prevalence in chronic hepatitis C population is rare, especially in HIV/hepatic coinfection. Our case demonstrates that dual genotypic cases can still be successfully treated with Direct Acting Antiviral agents. The newer agents for therapy for pan genotypes were not available at the time the patient was being treated. We demonstrated that dual agent therapy was still able to maintain SVR in our patient.

Keywords: HIV/Hepatitis C, SVR (sustained virologic response), DAA (direct active antiviral agents, dual genotype

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Authors: Marzieh Yassin, Azizeh Parandnia, Javad Sarrafzadeh, Reza Salehi

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Background: Myofascial trigger points (MTrPs) are one of the main causes of musculoskeletal pain syndromes and are associated with pain, tenderness, and limited range of motion (ROM). This study compared the effectiveness of high-intensity laser therapy (HILT) and dry needling (DN) on pain intensity, pain pressure threshold, cervical range of motion and disability in people with chronic neck pain. Method and Material: 30 patients with chronic neck pain were randomly divided into two groups: a HILT group (n=15) and a DN group (n=15). Treatment sessions were performed for three weeks, and all participants received related intervention twice a week (5 sessions). The pain level was measured using a Visual Analog Scale (VAS); the pain pressure threshold (PPT) was measured using a digital algometer; perceived disability was measured using the neck disability index (NDI); and cervical range of movements (CROMs) were measured using an iPhone app (lateral flexion) and a goniometer (Rotation). Results: In both the dry needling and high-intensity laser therapy groups, the pain and neck disability were significantly decreased (P < 0.05). Also, the pain pressure threshold and cervical range of motions were significantly increased in both groups. However, there was no significant difference between the two groups (P > 0.05). Conclusion: Both high-intensity laser therapy and dry needling can be used to treat chronic neck pain.

Keywords: chronic neck pain, dry needling, high intensity laser therapy (HILT), pain, pain pressure threshold

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Authors: Jungbin Lim, Bohee Kang, Heelim Lee, Sunjin Kim, GeumHee Choi, Jae-Suk Jung, Suk Ji

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Nonsurgical periodontal therapies have, for several decades, been the basis of periodontal treatment concepts. The aim of this paper is to investigate the effectiveness of non-surgical periodontal therapy according to the severity of periodontitis disease. Methods: Retrospective data of patients who visited Department of periodontics in Ajou University Medical Center from 2016 to 2022 were collected. Among the patients, those who took full mouth examination of clinical parameters and non-surgical periodontal therapy were chosen for this study. Selected patients were divided into initial, moderate, and severe periodontitis based on severity and complexity of management (2018 World Workshop EFP/AAP consensus). Recall visits with clinical periodontal examination were scheduled for 1,2,3 months or 1,3,6 months after the treatment. The results were evaluated by recordings of mean probing pocket depth (mean PD), mean clinical attachment levels (mean CAL), bleeding on probing (BOP%), mean gingival index (mean GI), mean regression, mean sulcus bleeding index (mean SBI), mean plaque scores (mean PI). All statistical analyses were performed with R software, version 4.3.0. A level of significance, P<0.05, was considered to be statistically significant. Results: A total of 92 patients were included in this study. 15 patients were diagnosed as initial periodontitis, 14 moderate periodontitis, and 63 severe periodontitis. The all parameters except for mean recession decreased over time in all groups. The amount of mean PD decreased were the greatest in severe periodontitis group followed by moderate and initial, which was found to be statistically significant. The changes of mean PD were 0.15±0.05 mm, 0.37±0.06 mm, and 1.01±0.07 mm (initial, moderate, and severe, respectively, P<0.001). When comparing before and after treatment, the reductions in BOP(%), mean GI, mean SBI, and mean PI were statistically significant. Conclusion: All patients who received non-surgical periodontal therapy showed periodontal healing in terms of improvements in clinical parameters, and it was greater in the severe group.

Keywords: periodontology, clinical periodontology, oral treatment, comprehensive preventive dentistry, non-surgical periodontal therapy

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Authors: Liudmila Garzanova, Lidia Ananyeva, Olga Koneva, Olga Ovsyannikova, Oxana Desinova, Mayya Starovoytova, Rushana Shayahmetova, Anna Khelkovskaya-Sergeeva

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Objectives. There is very few data on changes of the musculoskeletal manifestations (artritis, arthralgia, muscle weakness, etc.) in systemic sclerosis (SSc) on rituximab (RTX) therapy. The aim of our study was to assess the severity of the musculoskeletal involvement in SSc patients (pts) and its changes during RTX therapy. Methods. Our study included 103 pts with SSc. The mean followup period was 12.6±10.7 months. The mean age was 47±12.9 years, female-87 pts (84%), the diffuse cutaneous subset of the disease had 55 pts (53%). The mean disease duration was 6.2±5.5 years. All pts had interstitial lung disease (ILD) and were positive for ANA, 67% of them were positive for antitopoisomerase-1. All patients received prednisolone at a dose of 11.3±4.5 mg/day, immunosuppressants at inclusion received 47% of them. Pts received RTX due to the ineffectiveness of previous therapy for ILD. The cumulative mean dose of RTX was 1.7±0.6 grams. Arthritis was observed in 22 pts (21%), arthralgias in 47 pts (46%). Muscle weakness was observed in 17 pts (17%). Tendon friction rubs was established in 7 pts (7%). The results at baseline and at the end of the follow up are presented in the form of mean values. Results. There was an improvement of all outcome parameters and musculoskeletal manifestations on RTX therapy. There was a decrease in the number of pts with arthritis from 22 (21%) to 10 (9%), a decrease in the number of pts with arthralgias from 47 (46%) to 31 (30%). The number of pts with muscle weakness decreased from 17 (17%) to 7 (7%). The number of pts with tendon friction rubs decreased from 7 (7%) to 3 (3%). The creatine phosphokinase decreased from 365.5±186 to 70.8±50.4 (p=0.00006). The C-reactive protein (CRP) decreased from 23.2±31.3 to 8.62±7.4 (p=0.001). The dose of prednisolone was reduced from 11.3±4.5 to 9.8±3.5 mg/day (p=0.0004). Conclusion. In our study, musculoskeletal involvement was detected in almost half of the patients with SSc-ILD. There was an improvement of musculoskeletal manifestations despite a small cumulative dose of RTX. We also managed to reduce the dose of glucocorticosteroids. The improvement of musculoskeletal manifestations was accompanied by a decrease in laboratory parameters - creatine phosphokinase and CRP. RTX is effective option for treatment of musculoskeletal manifestations in SSc.

Keywords: arthritis, musculoskeletal involvement, systemic sclerosis, rituximab

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Authors: Omer Zvi Shaked, Amir Tirosh

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Type 1 Diabetes (T1DM) is an incurable chronic illness with no known preventive measures. Excess to insulin therapy can lead to hypoglycemia with neuro-glycogenic symptoms such as shakiness, nausea, sweating, irritability, fatigue, excessive thirst or hunger, weakness, seizure, and coma. Severe Hypoglycemia (SH) is also considered a most aversive event since it may put patients at risk for injury and death, which matches the criteria of a traumatic event. SH has a ranging prevalence of 20%, which makes it a primary medical Issue. One of the results of SH is an intense emotional fear reaction resembling the form of post-traumatic stress symptoms (PTS), causing many patients to avoid insulin therapy and social activities in order to avoid the possibility of hypoglycemia. As a result, they are at risk for irreversible health deterioration and medical complications. Fear of Hypoglycemia (FOH) is, therefore, a major disturbance for T1DM patients. FOH differs from prevalent post-traumatic stress reactions to other forms of traumatic events since the threat to life continuously exists in the patient's body. That is, it is highly probable that orthodox interventions may not be sufficient for helping patients after SH to regain healthy social function and proper medical treatment. Accordingly, the current presentation will demonstrate the results of a study conducted among T1DM patients after SH. The study was designed in two stages. First, a preliminary qualitative phenomenological study among ten patients after SH was conducted. Analysis revealed that after SH, patients confuse between stress symptoms and Hypoglycemia symptoms, divide life before and after the event, report a constant sense of fear, a loss of freedom, a significant decrease in social functioning, a catastrophic thinking pattern, a dichotomous split between the self and the body, and internalization of illness identity, a loss of internal locus of control, a damaged self-representation, and severe loneliness for never being understood by others. The second stage was a two steps study of intervention among five patients after SH. The first part of the intervention included three months of therapeutic 3rd wave CBT therapy. The contents of the therapeutic process were: acceptance of fear and tolerance to stress; cognitive de-fusion combined with emotional self-regulation; the adoption of an active position relying on personal values; and self-compassion. Then, the intervention included a one-week practical real-time 24/7 support by trained medical personnel, alongside a gradual exposure to increased insulin therapy in a protected environment. The results of the intervention are a decrease in stress symptoms, increased social functioning, increased well-being, and decreased avoidance of medical treatment. The presentation will discuss the unique emotional state of T1DM patients after SH. Then, the presentation will discuss the effectiveness of the intervention for patients with chronic conditions after a traumatic event. The presentation will make evident the unique situation of illness-related PTSD. The presentation will also demonstrate the requirement for multi-professional collaboration between social work and medical care for populations with chronic medical conditions. Limitations of the study and recommendations for further research will be discussed.

Keywords: type 1 diabetes, chronic illness, post-traumatic stress, illness-related PTSD

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Authors: Wang Xue, Fan Liwei

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The trust and use of social network platforms by users are instrumental factors that contribute to the platform’s sustainable development. Studying the influential factors of the use of social network platforms is beneficial for developing and maintaining a large user base. This study constructed an extended unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (UTAUT2) moderating model with perceived privacy risks to analyze the factors affecting the trust and use of social network platforms. 444 participants completed our 35 surveys, and we verified the survey results by structural equation model. Empirical results reveal the influencing factors that affect the trust and use of social network platforms, and the extended UTAUT2 model with perceived privacy risks increases the applicability of UTAUT2 in social network scenarios. Social networking platforms can increase their use rate by increasing the economics, functionality, entertainment, and privacy security of the platform.

Keywords: perceived privacy risk, social network, trust, use, UTAUT2 model

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Authors: Bill D. Geis

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Even with significantly increased spending, suicide rates continue to climb—with alarming increases among traditionally low-risk groups. This has caused clinicians and researchers to call for a complete rethinking of all assumptions about suicide prevention, assessment, and intervention. A form of therapy--Internal Family Systems Therapy--affords tremendous promise in sustained diminishment of lethal suicide risk. Though a form of therapy that is most familiar to trauma therapists, Internal Family Systems Therapy, involving direct work with suicidal parts, is a promising therapy for meaningful and sustained reduction in suicide deaths. Developed by Richard Schwartz, Internal Family Systems Therapy proposes that we are all influenced greatly by internal parts, frozen by development adversities, and these often-contradictory parts contribute invisibly to mood, distress, and behavior. In making research videos of patients from our database and discussing their suicide attempts, it is clear that many persons who attempt suicide are in altered states at the time of their attempt and influenced by factors other than conscious intent. Suicide intervention using this therapy involves direct work with suicidal parts and other interacting parts that generate distress and despair. Internal Family Systems theory posits that deep experiences of pain, fear, aloneness, and distress are defended by a range of different parts that attempt to contain these experiences of pain through various internal activities that unwittingly push forward inhibition, fear, self-doubt, hopelessness, desires to cut and engage in destructive behavior, addictive behavior, and even suicidal actions. These suicidal parts are often created (and “frozen”) at young ages, and these very young parts do not understand the consequences of this influence. Experience suggests that suicidal parts can create impulsive risk behind the scenes when pain is high and emotional support reduced—with significant crisis potential. This understanding of latent suicide risk is consistent with many of our video accounts of serious suicidal acts—compiled in a database of 1104 subjects. Since 2016, consent has been obtained and records kept of 23 highly suicidal patients, with initial Intention-to-Die ratings (0= no intent, 10 = conviction to die) between 5 and 10. In 67% of these cases using IFST parts-work intervention, these highly suicidal patients’ risk was reduced to 0-1, and 83% of cases were reduced to 4 or lower. There were no suicide deaths. Case illustrations will be offered.

Keywords: suicide, internal family systems therapy, crisis management, suicide prevention

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Authors: Nadezda Sergunicheva, Victoria Vasilenko

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The emotional sphere is one of the most important aspects of the child's development and significant factor in his psychological well-being. Present research aims to identify the relationships between emotional characteristics of preschoolers and parameters of family interaction: emotional interaction, parental styles, family adaptation, and cohesion. The study involved 40 people from Saint-Petersburg: 20 children (10 boys and 10 girls) from 5 to 6 years, Mage = 5 years 4 months and 20 mothers. Methods used were: Test 'Emotional identification' by E.Izotova, Empathy test by T. Gavrilova, Children's fears test by A. Zakharov, M. Panfilova, 'Parent-child emotional interaction questionnaire' by E. Zakharova, 'Analysis of family relationships questionnaire by E. Eidemiller and V. Yustitskis, Family Adaptation and Cohesion Scales (FACES III) by D. X. Olson, J. Portner, I. Lavi. Сorrelation analysis revealed that the higher index of underdevelopment of parental feelings, the lower the child’s ability to identify emotions (p < 0,05), but at the same time, the higher ability to understand emotional states (p < 0,01), as in the case of hypoprotection (p < 0,05). Two last correlations can be explained by compensatory mechanism. This is also confirmed by negative correlations between maternal educational uncertainty and child’s ability to understand emotional states and between indulgence and child’s ability to perceive emotional states (p < 0,05). The more pronounced the phobia of a child's loss, the higher egocentric nature of child’s empathy (p < 0,05). The child’s fears have the greatest number of relationships with the characteristics of family interaction. The more pronounced mother’s positive feelings in interaction, emotional support, acceptance of himself as a parent, desire for physical contact with child and the more adaptive the family system, the less the total number of child’s fears (p < 0,05). The more the mother's ability to perceive the child's state, positive feelings in interaction, emotional support (p < 0,01), unconditional acceptance of the child, acceptance of himself as a parent and the desire for physical contact (p < 0,05), the less the amount child’s spatial fears. Socially-mediated fears are associated with less pronounced mother's positive feelings in interaction, less emotional support and deficiency of demands, obligations (p < 0,05). Fears of animals and fairy-tale characters positively correlated with the excessive demands, obligations and excessive sanctions (p < 0,05). The more emotional support (p < 0,01), mother's ability to perceive the child's state, positive feelings in interaction, unconditional acceptance of the child, acceptance of himself as a parent (p < 0,05), the less the amount child’s fears of nightmares. This kind of fears is positively correlated with excessive demands, prohibitions (p < 0,05). The more adaptive the family system (p < 0,01), the higher family cohesion, mother's acceptance of himself as a parent and preference to childish traits (p < 0,05), the less fear of death. Thus, the children's fears have the closest relationships with the characteristics of family interaction. The severity of fears, especially spatial, is connected, first of all, with the emotional side of the mother-parent interaction. Fears of animals and fairy-tale characters are associated with some characteristics of the parental styles, connected with the rigor of mothers. Correlations of the emotional identification are contradictory and require further clarification. Research is supported by RFBR №18-013-00990.

Keywords: emotional characteristics, family interaction, fears, parental styles, preschoolers

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Authors: A. Gramza-Michałowska, J. Skręty, M. Antczak, J. Kobus-Cisowska, D. Kmiecik, J. Korczak, Kulczyński Bartosz

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Background: Modern consumer highly appreciates the correlation between eating habits and health. Intensified research showed many proofs confirming that food besides its basic nutritional function, possess also significant prophylactic and therapeutic potential. Preventive potential of selected food is commonly used as improvement factor of patients life standard. World Health Organization indicates that diabetes (Diabetes mellitus) and obesity are two of the most common and dangerous diseases. Diet therapy is an element of diabetes education program and a part of healing process, allowing maintaining and remaining the optimal metabolic state of the system. It must be remembered that diabetes treatment should be individualized to each patient. One of highly recommended vegetable for diabetes is asparagus (Asparagus officinalis L.), low calories common plant, growing in European countries. Objective: To propose the technology of unsweetened muesli production with addition of new components, we investigated the effects of selected vegetable addition on antioxidative capacity and consumer’s acceptance of muesli as representative of breakfast product. Methods: Muesli was formulated from a composition of oat flakes, flaxseed, bran, carrots, broccoli and asparagus. Basic composition of muesli was evaluated as content of protein, lipids, fatty acid composition, ash, selected minerals and caloricity. Antioxidant capacity of muesli was evaluated with use radical scavenging methods (DPPH, ABTS), ORAC value and PCL - photochemiluminescence antiradical potential. Proposed muesli as new product was also characterized with sensory analysis, which included color, scent, taste, consistency and overall acceptance of a product. Results: Results showed that addition of freeze-dried asparagus into muesli allowed to lower the fat content and caloricity of a product according to the base product. No significant loss in antioxidant potential was evaluated, also the sensory value of a product was not negative. Conclusion: Designed muesli would be an answer for obese people looking for healthy snack during the daytime. Results showed that product with asparagus addition would be accepted by the consumers and because of its antidiabetic potential could be a n important factor in prevention of diabetes or obesity. Financial support by the UE Project no PO IG 01.01.00.00-061/09

Keywords: muesli, vegetables, asparagus, antioxidant potential, lipids

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Authors: Isaac Kofi Mensah

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Public sector organizations, ministries, departments and local government agencies are adopting e-government as a means to provide efficient and quality service delivery to citizens. The purpose of this research paper is to examine the extent to which perceived usefulness (PU) of e-government services moderates between perceived ease-of-use (PEOU) of e-government services and intention to use (IU) e-government services in Ghana. A structured research questionnaire instrument was developed and administered to 700 potential respondents in Ghana, of which 693 responded, representing 99% of the questionnaires distributed. The Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) was used as the theoretical framework for the study. The Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) was used to capture and analyze the data. The results indicate that even though predictors such as PU and PEOU are main determiners of citizens’ intention to adopt and use e-government services in Ghana, it failed to show that PEOU and IU e-government services in Ghana is significantly moderated by the PU of e-government services. The implication of this finding on theory and practice is further discussed.

Keywords: e-government services, intention to use, moderating role, perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness, Ghana, technology acceptance model

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Authors: Diab Z., Hamad A., Dixit A., Al-Rikabi M., Keshaverzi F.

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Introduction: According to the NICE guidelines, 2020Prasugrel is the recommended first line treatment in adults with acute coronary syndromes (ACS) in patients with ST-segment-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI), defined as ST elevation or new left bundle branch block on ECG , that cardiologists intend to treat with primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). The current literature suggests that this is largely due to safety and efficacy, and cost effectiveness. We wanted to do an audit to examine the adherence of the MRI hospital with guidelines in using prasugrel as first-line therapy in patients with STEMI and undergoing PPCI. AIM: To examine the adherence of the MRI hospital with guidelines in using prasugrel as first-line therapy in patients with STEMI and undergoing PPCI Methods: We looked at the patients presented to MRI during1^st of January 2022 to 28th February 2022. We included all the people who were above 18 and were brought to the hospital through the PPCI pathway and diagnosed as ACS and underwent PPCI. We excluded Patients who were brought to the hospital through the PPCI pathway and underwent coronary angiography and their diagnosis was found other than STEMI or if the outcome was death before discharge or they were above age >75 (as per guideline increase bleeding risk of prasugrel in a person aged 75 or older). Results: The total number of patients was 100. There were a total of seventy patients who had STEMI and fit the criteria for inclusion. Out of these, only 72.9% (51) were given Prasugrel as a first line. Seventeen (17) 24.3% STEMI patients were candidates for prasugrel as first-line therapy but were instead offered (clopidogrel/ticagrelor). Two 2 (2.9%) STEMI patients were not given prasugrel as first-line therapy because of C/I (CVA) or the use of anticoagulant Nine 9 (9%) of them died before discharge. Eleven 11 (11%) were above the age of 75. Ten 10 (10%) of patients had a diagnosis other than STEMI. Conclusions and recommendations: Our audit has shown the need to increase awareness amongst staff re: the first line use of Prasugrel as per NICE guidelines. We aim to arrange awareness sessions for staff and increase visibility of the guidelines for the staff to encourage them to adhere to the guideline. Further research is needed to find the optimum treatment in patients above 75.

Keywords: pasurgrel, PCI, NICE, STEMI

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Authors: Gesti Prastiti, Maylina Adani, Yuyun darma A. N., M. Khilmi F., Yunita Wahyu Pratiwi

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Combination therapy may allow interaction on two drugs or more that can give adverse effects on patients. Simvastatin is a drug of antihyperlipidemia it can interact with drugs which work on cytochrome P450 CYP3A4 because it can interfere the performance of simvastatin. Flavonoid found in plants can inhibit the cytochrome P450 CYP3A4 if taken with simvastatin and can increase simvastatin levels in the body and increases the potential side effects of simvastatin such as myopati and rhabdomyolysis. Green tea leaves and mint are herbal medicine which has the effect of antihiperlipidemia. This study aims to determine the potential interaction of simvastatin with herbal drinks (green tea leaves and mint). This research method are experimental post-test only control design. Test subjects were divided into 5 groups: normal group, negative control group, simvastatin group, a combination of green tea group and the combination group mint leaves. The study was conducted over 32 days and total cholesterol levels were analyzed by enzymatic colorimetric test method. Results of this study is the obtainment of average value of total cholesterol in each group, the normal group (65.92 mg/dL), the negative control group the average total cholesterol test in the normal group was (69.86 mg/dL), simvastatin group (58.96 mg/dL), the combination of green tea group (58.96 mg/dL), and the combination of mint leaves (63.68 mg/dL). The conclusion is between simvastatin combination therapy with herbal drinks have the potential for pharmacodynamic interactions with a synergistic effect, antagonist, and a powerful additive, so the combination therapy are no more effective than a single administration of simvastatin therapy.

Keywords: hyperlipidemia, simvastatin, herbal drinks, green tea leaves, mint leaves, drug interactions

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Authors: Niyada Naksuk, Thoetchai Peeraphatdit, Vitaly Herasevich, Peter A. Brady, Suraj Kapa, Samuel J. Asirvatham

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Introduction: Little is known about the safety of antipsychotic therapy for delirium in the coronary care unit (CCU). Our aim was to examine the effect of delirium and antipsychotic therapy among CCU patients. Methods: Pre-study Confusion Assessment Method-Intensive Care Unit (CAM–ICU) criteria were implemented in screening consecutive patients admitted to Mayo Clinic, Rochester, the USA from 2004 through 2013. Death status was prospectively ascertained. Results: Of 11,079 study patients, the incidence of delirium was 8.3% (n=925). Delirium was associated with an increased risk of in-hospital mortality (adjusted OR 1.49; 95% CI, 1.08-2.08; P=.02) and one-year mortality among patients who survived from CCU admission (adjusted HR 1.46; 95% CI, 1.12-1.87; P=.005). A total of 792 doses of haloperidol (5 IQR [3-10] mg/day) or quetiapine (25 IQR [13-50] mg/day) were given to 244 patients with delirium. The clinical characteristics of patients with delirium who did and did not receive antipsychotic therapy were not different (baseline corrected QT [QTc] interval 460±61 ms vs. 457±58 ms, respectively; P = 0.57). In comparison to baseline, mean QTc intervals after the first and third doses of the antipsychotics were not significantly prolonged in haloperidol (448±56, 458±57, and 450±50 ms, respectively) or quetiapine groups (459±54, 467±68, and 462±46 ms, respectively) (P > 0.05 for all). Additionally, in-hospital mortality (adjusted OR 0.67; 95% CI, 0.42-1.04; P=.07), ventricular arrhythmia (adjusted OR 0.87; 95% CI, 0.17-3.62; P=.85) and one-year mortality among the hospital survivors (adjusted HR 0.86; 95% CI 0.62-1.17; P = 0.34) were not different in patients with delirium irrespective of whether or not they received antipsychotics. Conclusions: In patients admitted to the CCU, delirium was associated with an increase in both in-hospital and one-year mortality. Low doses of haloperidol and quetiapine appeared to be safe, without an increase in risk of sudden cardiac death, in-hospital mortality, or one-year mortality in carefully monitored patients.

Keywords: arrhythmias, haloperidol, mortality, qtc interval, quetiapine

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Authors: Ibrahim Masud, Yusheng Kong, Adam Diyawu Rahman

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Mobile payment variously referred to as mobile money, mobile money transfer, and mobile wallet refers to payment services operated under financial regulation and performed from or via a mobile device. Mobile payment systems have come to augment and to some extent try to replace the conventional payment methods like cash, cheque, or credit cards. This study examines mobile payment adoption factors among retailers in Ghana. A conceptual framework was adopted from the extant literature using the Technology Acceptance Model and the Theory of Reasoned action as the theoretical bases. Data for the study was obtained from a sample of 240 respondents through a structured questionnaire. The PLS-SEM was used to analyze the data through SPSS v.22 and SmartPLS v.3. The findings indicate that factors such as perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, perceived security, competitive pressure and facilitating conditions are the main determinants of mobile payment adoption among retailers in Ghana. The study contributes to the literature on mobile payment adoption from developing country context.

Keywords: mobile payment, retailers, structural equation modeling, technology acceptance model

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Authors: Sarah Hamdan Al-Jahdali, Khaled Alsaad, Abdullah Al-Sayyari

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Objectives: To study the prevalence, clinicopathological features, risk factors and outcome of biopsy proven polyoma (BK) virus infection among Saudi kidney transplant recipients and compare them to negative BK virus group. Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the charts of all the patients with biopsy-proven polyoma (BK) virus infection in King Abdulaziz Medical City in Riyadh between 2005 and 2011. The details of clinical presentation, the indication for kidney biopsy, the laboratory findings at presentation, the natural history of the disease, thepathological findings, the prognosis as well as the response to therapy were all recorded. Results: Kidney biopsy was performed in 37 cases of unexplained graft dysfunction. BK virus was found in 10 (27%). Out of those 10, 3 (30%) ended with graft failure. BK virus occurred in all patients who received ATG induction therapy 100% versus 59.3% in the non BK virus patients (p=0.06). Furthermore, the risk of BK virus was much less in those who received acyclovir as an anti-viral prophylaxis as compared to those who did not receive it (p=0.01). Also, patients with BK virus weighed much less (mean 46.7±20.6 Kgs) than those without BK virus at time of transplantation (mean 64.3±12.1). Graft survival was better among deceased donor kidneys compared to living ones (P=0.016) and with older age (P=0.005). Conclusion: Our findings suggest the involvement of ATG induction therapy, the lack of antiviral prophylaxis therapy and lower weight at transplant as significant risk factors for the development of BK virus infection.

Keywords: BKVAN, BKV, kidney transpant, Saudi Arabia

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Authors: Wei-Po Wu, Wen-Yu Liu, Wei−Ting Lin, Hen-Yu Lien

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Introduction: Improving balance function for individuals after stroke is a crucial target in physiotherapy. Aquatic therapy which challenges individual’s postural control in an unstable fluid environment may be beneficial in enhancing balance functions. The purposes of the systematic review with meta-analyses were to validate the effects of aquatic therapy in improving balance functions for individuals with strokes in contrast to conventional physiotherapy. Method: Available studies were explored from three electronic databases: PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science. During literature search, the published date of studies was not limited. The study design of the included studies should be randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and the studies should contain at least one outcome measurement of balance function. The PEDro scale was adopted to assess the quality of included studies, while the 'Oxford Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine 2011 Levels of Evidence' was used to evaluate the level of evidence. After the data extraction, studies with same outcome measures were pooled together for meta-analysis. Result: Ten studies with 282 participants were included in analyses. The research qualities of the studies were ranged from fair to good (4 to 8 points). Levels of evidence of the included studies were graded as level 2 and 3. Finally, scores of Berg Balance Scale (BBS), Eye closed force plate center of pressure velocity (anterior-posterior, medial-lateral axis) and Timed up and Go test were pooled and analyzed separately. The pooled results shown improvement in balance function (BBS mean difference (MD): 1.39 points; 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.05-2.29; p=0.002) (Eye closed force plate center of pressure velocity (anterior-posterior axis) MD: 1.39 mm/s; 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.93-1.86; p<0.001) (Eye closed force plate center of pressure velocity (medial-lateral) MD: 1.48 mm/s; 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.15-2.82; p=0.03) and mobility (MD: 0.9 seconds; 95% CI: 0.07-1.73; p=0.03) of stroke individuals after aquatic therapy compared to conventional therapy. Although there were significant differences between two treatment groups, the differences in improvement were relatively small. Conclusion: The aquatic therapy improved general balance function and mobility in the individuals with stroke better than conventional physiotherapy.

Keywords: aquatic therapy, balance function, meta-analysis, stroke, systematic review

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Authors: Yulistiani Yulistiani, Wenny Nilamsari, Laurin Winarso, Rizkiya Rizkiya, Zamrotul Izzah, Budi Suprapti, Arif Bachtiar

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Approximately, a million new cases of TB have been found out per year, making Indonesia as the second greatest country with TBC after India. Nevertheless, until now, there are still many patients failure to conventional therapy with oral anti tuberculosis. Thus, the discovery of supplement therapy is urgently needed. Many studies showed that probiotic had the positive impact in lung diseases, diarrhea, pneumonia and it was attributed to its capability to balance the level of cytokine pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory. It was demonstrated in active disease the production of IFN-γ is strongly depressed and IL-10 level increases. This study aimed to investigate the effect of probiotic (multi strains) and vitamin B complex supplementation on IFN-γ and IL-10 level in patients with TB infection during intensive phase therapy. A randomized controlled trial, open labeled was conducted in TB patients with the following criteria: 1) age 18-55 years old 2) receiving oral antituberculosis during intensive therapy 3) not using probiotic, vitamin B1, B6, B12 2 weeks before enrollment 4) willing to participate in this study and signed an informed consent. While, patients with HIV, pregnant, had the history of diabetes mellitus, using corticosteroid or other immunosuppressants were excluded. IFN-γ and IL-10 levels were drawn before observation and after a month observation. The assay was performed by ELISA. There were seven patients in treated group and five patients in controlled group obtained in this study. Between groups, there was no statistical difference in comorbid, age, and disease duration. The mean level of IFN-γ after a month observation increased in treated group and controlled group, which were 31.47 ± 105.46 pg/ml and 15.09 ± 24.23 pg/ml, respectively (p> 0.005). Although, there were not statistically different, treated group showed a greater increase of IFN-γ level than that of the controlled group. IFN-γ plays an important role in immune response to Mycobacterium Tuberculosis, by activating macrofag, monosit and furthermore killing Mycobacterium Tuberculosis. Thus the level was expected to increase after supplementation with probiotic and Vitamin B complex. While the mean level of IL-10 also increased after one month observation in the treated group and controlled group (4.28 ± 12.29 pg/ml and 5.77± 6.21 pg/ml, respectively) (p>0.005). To be compared, the increased level of IL-10 in the treated group were lower than the controlled group, although it was not statistically different. IL-10 is a cytokine anti-inflammatory, thus, the level after the observation was expected to decrease. In this study, a month therapy of probiotic and vitamin B complex was not able to demonstrate the decrease of the IL-10 level. It is suggested to prolong observation up to 2 months, because, in intensive phase, the level of cytokine anti-inflammatory is very high, so the longer therapy is needed. It is indicated that supplementation therapy with probiotic and vitamin B complex to Oral Anti-Tuberculosis may have a positive effect on increasing IFN-γ level and slowing the progression of IL-10.

Keywords: TB Infection, IFN-γ, IL-10, probiotic, vitamin B complex

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Authors: Yasser Almazrua

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Terrorism is a multidimensional phenomenon that has increased recently. Many countries started combating terrorism through security forces; however, there has been relatively little attention given to rehabilitation programs for people involved in such terrorism acts. In Saudi Arabia, after facing so many terrorist attacks, they started understanding and countering terrorism differently by establishing Mohammad bin Naif Counselling and Care Center in 2006. The center now is considered one of the top experience centers in the world for terrorist rehabilitation and ideology correction. The center offers different programs such as training, educational, social, art and psychological programs. One of the approaches that have been used by psychological experts at the center is Narrative Therapy. It is a therapeutic approach that focuses on the ability of the client to identify their personal life story. The client during therapy works as a storyteller where he or she gets insight, meaning and better understanding of their own lives. Because each client at the center had a story, it can be better fit method for rehabilitation towards healing and personal development. The case describes a 34-years-old man who was involved in some terrorism activities locally by technically and financially supporting a terrorist group related to Al-Qaida. The beneficiary joined Mohammad bin Naif Counseling and Care Center after serving his sentence. Informed of consent has been given to the beneficiary before starting the therapeutic program. Both qualitative and quantitative data on the beneficiary are collected by self-reporting during the initial session, and by using a psychological measurement. The result found that the beneficiary was not insightful about himself, and he had a high level of repression which relatedly moved him to be targeted for recruitment in the terrorist group. With rehabilitation and by using the therapeutic approach, the beneficiary improved on the level of insight, specifically about himself and also about the experience. This case illustrates the importance of considering the effect of Narrative Therapy in terrorist rehabilitation programs.

Keywords: narrative therapy, rehabilitation, Saudi Arabia, terrorism

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Authors: Aishatu Shuaibu

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It is expected that electronic voter registration and verification in Nigeria will enhance the integrity of elections, which is vital for democratic development; it is also expected to enhance efficiency, transparency, and security. However, the reasons for citizens' intentions with respect to behavioral use of such platforms have not been studied in the literature much. This paper, therefore, intends to look into significant characteristics affecting the acceptance and use of e-voter technology among Nigerian residents. Data will be collected using a structured questionnaire from several local government areas (LGAs) around Nigeria to evaluate the influence of demographic characteristics, technology usability, security perceptions, and governmental education on the intention to implement e-voter systems. The results will offer vital insights into the barriers and drivers of voter technology acceptance, aiding in policy suggestions to enhance voter registration and verification processes within Nigeria's electoral framework. This study is designed to aid electoral stakeholders in devising successful strategies for encouraging the broad deployment of e-voter systems in Nigeria.

Keywords: e-governance, e-voting, e-democracy, INEC, Nigeria

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Authors: M. R. Akbari, M. Sadeghi, R. Faghihi, M. A. Mosleh-Shirazi, A. R. Khorrami-Moghadam

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Proton radiotherapy (PRT) is becoming an established treatment modality for cancer. The localized tumors, the same as undifferentiated thyroid tumors are insufficiently handled by conventional radiotherapy, while protons would propose the prospect of increasing the tumor dose without exceeding the tolerance of the surrounding healthy tissues. In spite of relatively high advantages in giving localized radiation dose to the tumor region, in proton therapy, secondary neutron production can have significant contribution on integral dose and lessen advantages of this modality contrast to conventional radiotherapy techniques. Furthermore, neutrons have high quality factor, therefore, even a small physical dose can cause considerable biological effects. Measuring of this neutron dose is a very critical step in prediction of secondary cancer incidence. It has been found that FLUKA Monte Carlo code simulations have been used to evaluate dose due to secondaries in proton therapy. In this study, first, by validating simulated proton beam range in water phantom with CSDA range from NIST for the studied proton energy range (34-54 MeV), a proton therapy in thyroid gland cancer was simulated using FLUKA code. Secondary neutron dose equivalent of some organs and tissues after the target volume caused by 34 and 54 MeV proton interactions were calculated in order to evaluate secondary cancer incidence. A multilayer cylindrical neck phantom considering all the layers of neck tissues and a proton beam impinging normally on the phantom were also simulated. Trachea (accompanied by Larynx) had the greatest dose equivalent (1.24×10-1 and 1.45 pSv per primary 34 and 54 MeV protons, respectively) among the simulated tissues after the target volume in the neck region.

Keywords: FLUKA code, neutron dose equivalent, proton therapy, thyroid gland

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Authors: M. Abuqebitah, H. Tanyildizi, N. Yeyin, I. Cavdar, M. Demir, L. Kabasakal

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Aim: Targeted radionuclide therapy (TRT) is an increasingly used treatment modality for wide range of cancers. Presently dosimetry is highly required either to plan treatment or to ascertain the absorbed dose delivered to critical organs during treatment. Methods and Materials: The study comprised 7 patients suffered from prostate cancer with progressive disease and candidate to undergo Lu-177-DOTA-617 therapy following to PSMA- PET/CT imaging for all patients. (5.2±0.3 mCi) was intravenously injected. To evaluate bone marrow absorbed dose 2 cc blood samples were withdrawn in short variable times (3, 15, 30, 60, 180 minutes) after injection. Furthermore, whole body scans were performed using scintillation gama camera in 4, 24, 48, and 120 hours after injection and in order to quantify the activity taken up in the body, kidneys , liver, right parotid, and left parotid the geometric mean of anterior and posterior counts were determined through ROI analysis, after that background subtraction and attenuation correction were applied using patients PSMA- PET/CT images taking in a consideration: organ thickness, body thickness, and Hounsfield unites from CT scan. OLINDA/EXM dosimetry program was used for curve fitting, residence time calculation, and absorbed dose calculations. Findings: Absorbed doses of bone marrow, left kidney, right kidney, liver, left parotid, right parotid, total body were 1.28±0.52, 32.36±16.36, 32.7±13.68, 10.35±3.45, 38.67±21.29, 37.55±19.77, 2.25±0.95 (mGy/mCi), respectively. Conclusion: Our first results clarify that Lu-177-DOTA-617 is safe and reliable therapy as there were no complications seen. In the other hand, the observable variation in the absorbed dose of the critical organs among the patients necessitate patient-specific dosimetry approach to save body organs and particularly highly exposed kidneys and parotid gland.

Keywords: Lu-177-PSMA, prostate cancer, radionuclide therapy

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Authors: Daniele Zullino, Gabriel Thorens, Léonice Furtado, Federico Seragnoli, Radu Iuga, Louise Penzenstadler

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Context: Since the start of the 21st century, there has been a resurgence of interest in psychedelics, marked by a renewed focus on scientific investigations into their therapeutic potential. While psychedelic therapy has gained recognition for effectively treating depression and anxiety disorders, notable progress has been made in the clinical development of substances like psilocybin. Moreover, mounting evidence suggests promising applications of Lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) and psilocybin in the field of addiction medicine. In Switzerland, compassionate treatment with LSD and psilocybin has been permitted since 2014 through exceptional licenses granted by the Federal Office of Public Health. This treatment approach is also available within the Geneva treatment program, extending its accessibility to patients undergoing opioid-assisted treatment involving substances like morphine and diacetylmorphine. The aim of this study is to assess the feasibility of psychedelic-assisted therapy in patients with opioid use disorder who are undergoing opioid-assisted treatment. This study addresses the question of whether psychedelic-assisted therapy can be successfully implemented in patients with opioid use disorder. It also explores the effects of psychedelic therapy on the patient's experiences and outcomes. Methodology: This is an open case series on six patients who have undergone at least one session with either LSD (100-200 micrograms) or psilocybin (20-40 mg). The patients were assessed using the Five Dimensional Altered States of Consciousness (5D-ASC)-Scale. The data were analyzed descriptively to identify patterns and trends in the patients' experiences. Results: The patients experienced substantial positive psychedelic effects during the psychedelic sessions without significant adverse effects. The patients reported positive experiences and improvements in their condition. Conclusion: The findings of this study support the feasibility and potential efficacy of psychedelic-assisted therapy in patients undergoing opioid-assisted treatment.

Keywords: psychedelics, psychedelic-assisted treatment, opioid use disorder, addiction, LSD, psilocybin

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