Search results for: healthy body

Authors: B. O. Adegoke, B. O. Ola, D. T. Ademiluyi

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This paper examines the use of computer and its related health hazard among computer users in South-Western zone of Nigeria. Two hundred and eighteen (218) computer users constituted the population used to evaluate association between posture, extensive computer use and related health hazard. The instruments for the study are a questionnaire on demographics, lifestyle, body features and work ability index while mean rating, standard deviation and t test were used for data analysis. Identified health related hazard include damages to the eyesight, bad posture, arthritis, musculoskeletal disorders, headache, stress and so on. The results showed that factors such as work demand, posture, closeness to computer screen and excessive working hours on computers constitute health hazards in both old and young computer users of various gender. It is therefore recommended that total number of hours spent with computer should be monitored and controlled.

Keywords: computer-related health hazard, musculoskeletal disorders, computer usage, work ability index

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Authors: Noor Arda Adrina Daud, Mohd Hanafi Ali

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The compensating filter is placed between the patient and X-ray tube to compensate various density and thickness of human body. The main purpose of this project is to study the effect of compensating filter on image quality in lateral projection of thoracolumbar radiography. The study was performed by an X-ray unit where different thicknesses of aluminum were used as compensating filter. Specifically the relationship between thickness of aluminum, density and noise were evaluated. Results show different thickness of aluminum compensating filter improved the image quality of lateral projection thoracolumbar radiography. The compensating filter of 8.2 mm was considered as the optimal filter to compensate the thoracolumbar junction (T12-L1), 1 mm to compensate lumbar region and 5.9 mm to compensate thorax region. The aluminum wedge compensating filter was designed resulting in an acceptable image quality.

Keywords: compensating filter, aluminum, image quality, lateral, thoracolumbar

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Authors: Ghodbane Azeddine, Saad Maarouf, Boland Jean-Francois, Thibeault Claude

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This paper proposes a new design of an active fault-tolerant flight control system against abrupt actuator faults. This overall system combines a multiple time scale sliding mode controller for fault compensation and a geometric approach for fault detection and diagnosis. The proposed control system is able to accommodate several kinds of partial and total actuator failures, by using available healthy redundancy actuators. The overall system first estimates the correct fault information using the geometric approach. Then, and based on that, a new reconfigurable control law is designed based on the multiple time scale sliding mode technique for on-line compensating the effect of such faults. This approach takes advantages of the fact that there are significant difference between the time scales of aircraft states that have a slow dynamics and those that have a fast dynamics. The closed-loop stability of the overall system is proved using Lyapunov technique. A case study of the non-linear model of the F16 fighter, subject to the rudder total loss of control confirms the effectiveness of the proposed approach.

Keywords: actuator faults, fault detection and diagnosis, fault tolerant flight control, sliding mode control, multiple time scale approximation, geometric approach for fault reconstruction, lyapunov stability

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Authors: R. P. Hewawasam, M. H. A. D. de Silva, M. A. G. Iresha

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In recent years childhood obesity has increased to pan-epidemic proportions along with a concomitant increase in obesity-associated morbidity. Birth weight is an important determinant of later adult health, with neonates at both ends of the birth weight spectrum at risk of future health complications. Consequently, infants who are born large for gestational age (LGA) are more likely to be obese in childhood and adolescence and are at risk of cardiovascular and metabolic complications later in life. Adipose tissue plays a role in linking events in fetal growth to the subsequent development of adult diseases. In addition to its role as a storage depot for fat, adipose tissue produces and secrets a number of hormones of importance in modulating metabolism and energy homeostasis. Cord blood leptin level has been positively correlated with fetal adiposity at birth. It is established that Asians have lower skeletal muscle mass, low bone mineral content and excess body fat for a given body mass index indicating a genetic predisposition in the occurrence of obesity. To our knowledge, studies have never been conducted in Sri Lanka to determine the relationship between adipocytokine profile in cord blood and anthropometric parameters in newborns. Thus, the objective of this study is to establish the above relationship for the Sri Lankan population to implement awareness programs to minimize childhood obesity in the future. Umbilical cord blood was collected from 90 newborns (Male 40, Female 50; gestational age 35-42 weeks) after double clamping the umbilical cord before separation of the placenta and the concentration of leptin was measured by ELISA technique. Anthropometric parameters of the newborn such as birth weight, length, ponderal index, occipital frontal, chest, hip and calf circumferences were measured. Pearson’s correlation was used to assess the relationship between leptin and anthropometric parameters while the Mann-Whitney U test was used to assess the differences in cord blood leptin levels between small for gestational age (SGA), appropriate for gestational age (AGA) and LGA infants. There was a significant difference (P < 0.05) between the cord blood leptin concentrations of LGA infants (12.67 ng/mL ± 2.34) and AGA infants (7.10 ng/mL ± 0.90). However, a significant difference was not observed between leptin levels of SGA infants (8.86 ng/mL ± 0.70) and AGA infants. In both male and female neonates, umbilical leptin levels showed significant positive correlations (P < 0.05) with birth weight of the newborn, pre-pregnancy maternal weight and pre pregnancy BMI between the infants of large and appropriate for gestational ages. Increased concentrations of leptin levels in the cord blood of large for gestational age infants suggest that they may be involved in regulating fetal growth. Leptin concentration of Sri Lankan population was not significantly deviated from published data of Asian populations. Fetal leptin may be an important predictor of neonatal adiposity; however, interventional studies are required to assess its impact on the possible risk of childhood obesity.

Keywords: appropriate for gestational age, childhood obesity, leptin, anthropometry

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Authors: Mayurachat Kanyamee, Srisuda Rassameepong, Narunest Chulakarn

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This experimental pretest-posttest control group design aimed to examine the effects of a family-based intervention on increasing fruit and vegetable intake and reduce fat and sugar intake and nutritional status among school-age children. Children were randomized to experimental 68 children and control 68 children. The experimental group received the intervention based on Social Cognitive Theory. The control group received the school’s usual educational program regarding healthy eating behavior. Data were collected via three questionnaires including: demographic characteristics; fruit and vegetable intake; and fat and sugar intake at baseline, sixteen weeks after baseline. Analysis of the data included the use of descriptive statistic and independent t-test. Results revealed the significant differences between the experimental and control group, regarding: fruit and vegetable intake, fat and sugar intake and nutritional status at sixteenth week after baseline. The findings suggest a family-based intervention, based on SCT, appears to be effective to improve eating behavior, and nutritional status of school -age children. So, the intervention can be applied to improve eating behavior among other groups of children.

Keywords: family-based intervention, children, unhealthy food, food safety

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Authors: Anusha Bhardwaj, Shekhar Shinde

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Nitric oxide (NO•) has been documented in research papers as one of the most versatile player in the therapeutics. It is identified as a biological multifunctional messenger molecule which is synthesized by the action of nitric oxide synthase (NOS) enzyme from L-arginine. The protective and the toxic effect in conjunction form the complete picture of the biological function of nitric oxide in humans. The dual nature is because of various factors such as concentration of NO, the isoform of NOS involved, type of cells in which it is synthesized, reaction partners like proteins, reactive oxygen intermediates, prosthetic groups, thiols etc., availability of the substrate L-arginine, intracellular environment in which NO is produced and generation of guanosine 3, 5’- cyclic monophosphate (cGMP). Activation of NOS through infection or trauma leads to one or more systemic effects including enhanced immune activity against invading pathogens, vaso/bronchodilatation in the cardiovascular and respiratory systems and altered neurotransmission which can be protective or toxic. Hence, NO affects the balance between healthy signaling and neurodegeneration in the brain. In lungs, it has beneficial effects on the function of airways as a bronchodilator and acts as the neurotransmitter of bronchodilator nerves. Whereas, on the other hand, NO may have deleterious effects by amplifying the asthmatic inflammatory response and also act as a vasodilator in the airways by increasing plasma exudation. But NOS Inhibitors and NO donors hamper the signalling pathway and hence a therapeutic application of NO is compromised.

Keywords: nitric oxide, multifunctional, dual nature, therapeutic applications

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Authors: Tahir Majeed, Michael Handschuh, René Meier

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Rheumatoid arthritis patients have swelling and pain at the joints of the hand. The regions where the patient feels pain also show increased body temperature. Thermal cameras can be used to detect the rise in temperature of the affected regions. To monitor the disease progression of rheumatoid arthritis patients, they must visit the clinic regularly for scanning and examination. After scanning and evaluation, the dosage of the medicine is regulated accordingly. To monitor the disease progression over time, the correlation between the images between different visits must be established. It has been observed that by using low-cost thermal cameras, the thermal measurements do not remain the same over time, even within a single scanning. In some situations, temperatures can vary as much as 2°C within the same scanning sequence. In this paper, it has been shown that although the absolute temperature varies over time, the relative difference between the different regions remains similar. Results have been computed over four scanning sequences and are presented.

Keywords: relative thermal difference, rheumatoid arthritis, thermal imaging, thermal sensors

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Authors: Behzad Sinaei, Shahryar Sane, Behzad Kazemi Haki

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Children with different malignancies usually experience potential neurologic complications when treated with radiation therapy, especially if under frequent anesthesia. The aim of this study was to evaluate the neurologic problems associated with anesthesia in pediatrics treated with radiotherapy under anesthesia. The study was a cross-sectional experiment that consisted of 133 pediatric patients with different malignancies who needed anesthesia for performing radiotherapy and were referred to Omid Charity Hospital and Imam Khomeini University Hospital from 2014 to 2020 by the census. P-values less than 0.05 were considered statistically significant (P-value < 0.05). Anesthesia complications in this study were slight and insignificant. Some were due to the effects of the tumor on other important organs or either previous radiation therapy or chemotherapy. For safe anesthesia, considering the effects of tumors on body organs and the neurological complications they cause can greatly help reduce anesthesia complications in pediatrics under radiation therapy.

Keywords: anesthesia, neurologic complications, pediatrics, radiotherapy

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Authors: Mehraj Udin Ganaie, Mohammad Israrul Haque

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The purpose of this paper is to enhance the theoretical and conceptual understanding of human talent management (HTM). With the help of extensive review of existing literature, we proposed a conceptual framework and few propositions to elucidate the influential relationship of competency focus, talent pooling, talent investment, and talenting orientation with value creation of a firm. It is believed that human talent management model will enhance the understanding of talent management orientation among practitioners and academicians. Practitioners will be able to align HTM orientation with business strategy wisely to yield better value for business (Shareholders, Employees, Owners, Customers, agents, and other stakeholders). Future research directions will explain how human talent management researchers will work on the integration of relationship and contribute towards the maturity of talent management by further exploring and validating the model empirically to enhance the body of knowledge.

Keywords: talent management orientation, competency focus, talent pooling, talent investment, talenting orientation

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Authors: B. K. Gill, Himani Sharma, V. K. Rattan

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Experimental data of refractive index, excess molar volume and viscosity of binary mixture of morpholine with cumene over the whole composition range at 298.15 K, 303.15 K, 308.15 K and normal atmospheric pressure have been measured. The experimental data were used to compute the density, deviation in molar refraction, deviation in viscosity and excess Gibbs free energy of activation as a function of composition. The experimental viscosity data have been correlated with empirical equations like Grunberg- Nissan, Herric correlation and three body McAllister’s equation. The excess thermodynamic properties were fitted to Redlich-Kister polynomial equation. The variation of these properties with composition and temperature of the binary mixtures are discussed in terms of intermolecular interactions.

Keywords: cumene, excess Gibbs free energy, excess molar volume, morpholine

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Authors: Sirajoddeen Al-Ameen

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Researchers seek to introduce development leading to technologies that address environmental problems and learn how to interact with stakeholders, managers, and policymakers for appropriate actions. One of the greatest strategies that African countries need to consider in realizing sustainable development is effective, efficient, credible, and lasting environmental sustainability and ensuring that future generations have access to natural resources to live in a better way. Therefore the coordinated set of participatory and continuously improving processes of analysis, capacity, planning, and investment seeks to integrate the social and environmental objectives of society, and this is not given priority in Nigeria. Environmental sustainability is a field where people can understand the natural environment and public works for sustainable development. Sustainable development requires shifts from ordinary ways of doing things to modern ways of executing activities ranging from low to high productivity, the creation and adoption of new strategies, new skills, and knowledge. It ensures a developed world with a secure and healthy environment for all; human beings, animals, and plants alike. This paper is to carry out a review of various literature sources to ascertain the potential strategy of environment and sustainable development reform using the content analysis method to discuss the environmental strategies towards sustainable development in Nigeria. The objective of this paper is to enable Nigerians to understand and have an orientation on how to manage environmental resources and avoid environmental impact on the ecosystem, and also to find sustainable solutions for environmental issues without compromising economic development.

Keywords: development, environment, strategies, sustainable

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Authors: J. P. Reges, L. C. S. Mazza, E. J. Braga, J. A. Bessa, A. R. Alexandria

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This paper proposes the development of control and automation of irrigation system located sunflower harvest in the Teaching Unit, Research and Extension (UEPE), the Apodi Plateau in Limoeiro do Norte. The sunflower extraction, which in turn serves to get the produced oil from its seeds, animal feed, and is widely used in human food. Its nutritional potential is quite high what makes of foods produced from vegetal, very rich and healthy. The focus of research is to make the autonomous irrigation system sunflower crop from programmable logic control energized with alternative energy sources, solar photovoltaics. The application of automated irrigation system becomes interesting when it provides convenience and implements new forms of managements of the implementation of irrigated cropping systems. The intended use of automated addition to irrigation quality and consequently brings enormous improvement for production of small samples. Addition to applying the necessary and sufficient features of water management in irrigation systems, the system (PLC + actuators + Renewable Energy) will enable to manage the quantitative water required for each crop, and at the same time, insert the use of sources alternative energy. The entry of the automated collection will bring a new format, and in previous years, used the process of irrigation water wastage base and being the whole manual irrigation process.

Keywords: automation, control, sunflower, irrigation, programming, renewable energy

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Authors: Ahmad Akrad, Rabia Sehab, Fadi Alyoussef

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Nowadays, induction machines are widely used in industry thankful to their advantages comparing to other technologies. Indeed, there is a big demand because of their reliability, robustness and cost. The objective of this paper is to deal with diagnosis, detection and isolation of faults in a three-phase induction machine. Among the faults, Inter-turn short-circuit fault (ITSC), current sensors fault and single-phase open circuit fault are selected to deal with. However, a fault detection method is suggested using residual errors generated by the root mean square (RMS) of phase currents. The application of this method is based on an asymmetric nonlinear model of Induction Machine considering the winding fault of the three axes frame state space. In addition, current sensor redundancy and sensor fault detection and isolation (FDI) are adopted to ensure safety operation of induction machine drive. Finally, a validation is carried out by simulation in healthy and faulty operation modes to show the benefit of the proposed method to detect and to locate with, a high reliability, the three types of faults.

Keywords: induction machine, asymmetric nonlinear model, fault diagnosis, inter-turn short-circuit fault, root mean square, current sensor fault, fault detection and isolation

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Authors: Meghana Pandit, Abhishek Chakraborty

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There are a multitude of factors that influence the clinical success of bariatric surgery. This study seeks to determine the efficacy of preoperative weight management education. The Food and Fitness Program at Mount Sinai serves to educate patients on topics such as stress management, sleep habits, body image, nutrition, and exercise 5-6 months before their surgeries to slowly decrease their weight. Each month, patients are weighed, and a different topic is presented. To evaluate the longitudinal effects of these lectures, patient’s weights are evaluated at the first appointment, before an informative lecture is presented. Weights are then reevaluated at the last appointment before the surgery. The weights were statistically analyzed using a paired t-test and the results demonstrated a statistically significant difference (p < .0001, n=55). Thus, it is reasonable to conclude that the education paradigm employed successfully empowered patients to maintain and reduce their gross BMI before clinical intervention.

Keywords: bariatric, surgery, weight, education

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Authors: Wen Huei Chou, Yi-Ting Chen

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Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) often struggle with social interactions and communication. It is challenging for them to understand social cues such as facial expressions, body language, and tone of voice in social settings, leading to social conflicts and misunderstandings. Over time, feelings of frustration and anxiety can make them reluctant to engage in social situations and worsen their communication barriers. This study focused on children with autism who also experience social anxiety. Through focus group interviews with parents of children with autism and occupational therapists, it explores the reasons and scenarios behind the development of social anxiety in these children. Social scenario stories and interactive applications tailored for children with autism were designed and developed. In addition, working with the educational robots, coping strategies for various emotional situations were elaborated on, and children were helped to understand their emotions.

Keywords: autism spectrum disorder, social anxiety, robot, social scenario story, interactive applications

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Authors: Nipin Kohli, Ravi Chand Singh

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Diabetes mellitus is a serious illness and can be life-threatening if left untreated. Acetone present in the exhaled breath of a diabetic person is a biomarker of patients suffering from diabetes mellitus and is higher than its usual concentration present in the breath of healthy people. In the present work, a portable gas sensor system based on chromium oxide (Cr₂O₃) nanoparticles has been developed that can analyze diabetic patient’s breath. Undoped and indium (In) doped Cr₂O₃ nanoparticles were synthesized by a chemical route and characterized by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, Raman spectroscopy, UV-visible spectroscopy, and photoluminescence spectroscopy for their structural, morphological and optical properties. Thick film gas sensors were fabricated out of synthesized samples. To diagnose diabetes, the sensors’ response to low concentrations of acetone was measured, and it was found that the addition of indium dramatically enhances the acetone gas sensing response. Moreover, the fabricated sensors were highly stable, reproducible and resistant to humidity. Enhancement of sensor response of doped sensors towards acetone can be ascribed to increase in defects due to addition of a dopant, and it was found that in-doped Cr₂O₃ sensors are more useful for analysis of breath of diabetic patients.

Keywords: Diabetes mellitus, nanoparticles, raman spectroscopy, sensor

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Authors: Parthasarathi Pramanik

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Paediatric blunt abdominal trauma associated with superficial bruise, hematoma, or laceration and internal organ damage secondary to bicycle handlebar is widely documented in the literature. In this article, we have presented a case of bicycle handlebar inflicted fatal neck laceration in a road accident. The deceased sustained a horizontally placed laceration injury over the front and both sides of the middle third of neck (13 cm x 5-8 cm x 2-3.5 cm).The margins of the wound were irregular and focally abraded. The right corner of the injury was pointed whereas the left one was ended with a skin flap. Multiple graze abrasions, contusions and lacerations were found on different parts of body. Autopsy findings and other circumstantial evidences revealed that the victim died due to exsanguination because of severance of carotid artery and jugular vein of both sides. Analysis of the wound suggests the decease sustained the wound by the revolving bicycle handle bar while he had lost the balance.

Keywords: bicycle handle bar, neck injury, lacerated injury, road acident

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Authors: F. Saptouw, L. Reddy

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Tertiary institutions are often faced with a challenge when incorporating social awareness into course content. The information campaigns in the media often alienate the viewers and the knowledge is not readily assimilated into the students’ consciousness. This paper will present a discussion of the results of collaborative teaching projects run by the Michaelis School of fine art and the HIV/AIDS, Inclusivity and Change Unit (HAICU) at the University of Cape Town. In these projects the artistic process is employed to generate ‘praxical knowledge’ in the student body about socially relevant issues like HIV-AIDS, Gender-Based Violence (GBV) and sexual identity, specifically LGBTQI. The combination of lectures, group discussions and the creative process has been a very successful way to disseminate information amongst the student population. Evidence of the project’s success will be provided by referencing interviews, focus groups as well as surveys done with the participants. This paper will conclude by arguing for the positive role of practice-led research in developing a socially conscious public.

Keywords: art, education, HIV-AIDS, practice-led research

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Authors: Elkington Sibusiso Mnguni

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The Mokolo-Crocodile Water Augmentation Project (MCWAP) is located in the Limpopo Province in the northern-western part of South Africa. Its purpose is to increase water supply by 30 million cubic meters per year to meet current and future demand for users, including power stations, mining houses, and the local municipality in the Lephalale area. This paper documents the planning and implementation aspects of the MCWAP infrastructure project. The study will add to the body of knowledge with respect to bulk water infrastructure development in water-scarce regions. The method used to gather and collate relevant data and information was the desktop study. The key finding was that the project was successfully completed in 2015 using conventional project management and construction methods. The project is currently being operated and maintained by the National Department of Water and Sanitation.

Keywords: construction, contract management, infrastructure project, project management

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Authors: Tabitha D. Hussein, Arigu M. Sunday

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This paper is an attempt to gauge the conception and misconception of mental health in the Gwafan community, Jos North Plateau State, Nigeria (West Africa), to ascertain which side of the scale the pendulum swings. Mental health education and awareness are necessary for healthy community development. However, in a society such as ours in Nigeria (Africa) that is not knowledge-based, it is easy for people to embrace hearsay, speculations, superstition, and the supernatural. The objectives of this paper are two folds: first, to examine the level of awareness of the people on mental health, or the lack of it; second, to ascertain their access to mental health services and good practices. The methodology adopted is qualitative research, and the instrument used is T-test related. The findings include, first, the fact that a larger population has misconceptions about Mental Health. Second, this misconception is a result of a lack of basic knowledge of Mental Health. Based on the aforementioned, the paper recommends that there is a need for more Mental Health Education among the populace and access to Mental Health services and practices (Preventative and Curative). The paper concludes that in a society that is not knowledgebase, every attempt should be made to shift people’s mindset from superstitious knowledge to evidence-based knowledge, which can empower them to make informed decisions not only on mental Health but on associative Health issues that can aid their wellbeing, livelihood and sustainable development as a whole.

Keywords: conceptions, misconceptions, mental health, knowledge, superstition, service delivery

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Authors: M. H. Pazandeh, M. Doudi, S. Barahimi, L. Rahimzadeh Torabi

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The use of antibiotics is essential in reducing the occurrence of adverse effects and inhibiting the emergence of antibiotic resistance in microbial populations. The necessity for a novel methodology concerning local administration of antibiotics has arisen, with particular focus on dealing with localized infections prompted by bacterial colonization of medical devices or implant materials. Bioactive glasses (BG) are extensively employed in the field of regenerative medicine, encompassing a diverse range of materials utilized for drug delivery systems. In the present investigation, various drug carriers for imipenem and tetracycline, namely single systems BG/SnO2, BG/NiO with varying proportions of metal oxide, and nanocomposite BG/SnO2/NiO, were synthesized through the sol-gel technique. The antibacterial efficacy of the synthesized samples was assessed through the utilization of the disk diffusion method with the aim of neutralizing Staphylococcus aureus as the bacterial model. The current study involved the examination of the bioactivity of two samples, namely BG10SnO2/10NiO and BG20SnO2, which were chosen based on their heightened bacterial inactivation properties. This evaluation entailed the employment of two techniques: the measurement of the pH of simulated body fluid (SBF) solution and the analysis of the sample tablets through X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. The sample tablets were submerged in SBF for varying durations of 7, 14, and 28 days. The bioactivity of the composite bioactive glass sample was assessed through characterization of alterations in its surface morphology, structure, and chemical composition. This evaluation was performed using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, and X-ray diffraction spectroscopy. Subsequently, the sample was immersed in simulated liquids to simulate its behavior in biological environments. The specific body fat percentage (SBF) was assessed over a 28-day period. The confirmation of the formation of a hydroxyapatite surface layer serves as a distinct indicator of bioactivity. The infusion of antibiotics into the composite bioactive glass specimen was done separately, and then the release kinetics of tetracycline and imipenem were tested in simulated body fluid (SBF). Antimicrobial effectiveness against various bacterial strains have been proven in numerous instances using both melt and sol-gel techniques to create multiple bioactive glass compositions. An elevated concentration of calcium ions within a solution has been observed to cause an increase in the pH level. In aqueous suspensions, bioactive glass particles manifest a significant antimicrobial impact. The composite bioactive glass specimen exhibits a gradual and uninterrupted release, which is highly desirable for a drug delivery system over a span of 72 hours. The reduction in absorption, which signals the loss of a portion of the antibiotic during the loading process from the initial phosphate-buffered saline solution, indicates the successful bonding of the two antibiotics to the surfaces of the bioactive glass samples. The sample denoted as BG/10SnO2/10NiO exhibits a higher loading of particles compared to the sample designated as BG/20SnO2 in the context of bioactive glass. The enriched sample demonstrates a heightened bactericidal impact on the bacteria under investigation while concurrently preserving its antibacterial characteristics. Tailored bioactive glass that incorporates hydroxyapatite, with a regulated and efficient release of drugs targeting bacterial infections, holds promise as a potential framework for bone implant scaffolds following rigorous clinical evaluation, thereby establishing potential future biomedical uses. During the modification process, the introduction of metal oxides into bioactive glass resulted in improved antibacterial characteristics, particularly in the composite bioactive glass sample that displayed the highest level of efficiency.

Keywords: antibacterial, bioactive glasses, implant infections, multi drug resistant

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Authors: Zulfa D. Putri, Jumayanti Jumayanti, Hatiefah T. I. Melati, Kiki Indriati, Farah U. Mauhibah

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Momordica charantia is a food that is often used for nutrition therapy for patients with Diabetes Mellitus (DM) because of its effect as antihiperglicemia. However, the bitter taste of Momordica charantia may be an obstacle to consume. Some people remove the bitter taste of this by boiling it with salt water. The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of Momordica charantia boiling with salt water in lowering blood glucose levels. This study is a quasi-experimental study with pre-post test with control group design. The research sample consisted of 25 rats Sprague-Dawley were divided into 5 groups: Control group of healthy, control group of DM, control group of DM with the addition of Momordica charantia are boiled by salt for 3 minutes, 6 minutes, and 9 minutes. Blood glucose levels were measured after 4 weeks using a spectrophotometer. These results indicate that there is the effect of bitter taste from Momordica charantia in lowering blood glucose levels in rats significantly. The conclusion of this study is giving a Momordica charantia juice in Sprague-Dawley rats that induced by alloxan has meaningful statistically proven by One Way ANOVA test (p = 0.00) in lowering blood glucose levels of rats.

Keywords: antihiperglicemia, diabetes mellitus, momordica charantia, salt

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Authors: Malik Takreem Ahmad, Pablo Lamata, Rasi Mizori

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Background: In recent years, mobile health apps have grown in popularity as a means for people to track and manage their health. While there is increasing worry that these applications may potentially contribute to the emergence of health anxiety, they can also help to encourage healthy behaviours and provide access to health information. Objective: The objective of this literature review is to look at available mhealth apps and critically evaluate the compromise between reassurance and anxiety. Methodology: A literature review was carried out to analyse the effects of mhealth apps on the creation of health anxiety within the general population. PubMed and SCOPUS were used to search for relevant articles, and abstracts were screened using inclusion criteria of the terms: mhealth apps; e-Health; healthcare apps; cyberchondria; Health anxiety; illness anxiety disorder. A total of 27 studies were included in the review. Results and discussion: The findings suggest a direct relationship between mobile health app use and health anxiety. The impact of mobile health apps on health anxiety may depend on how they are used - individuals receiving a constant stream of health-related information may trigger unnecessary concern about one's health. The need for more regulation and oversight is identified, which can lead to app quality and safety consistency. There are also concerns about data security and privacy and the resulting "digital gap" for individuals without mobiles or internet access. Conclusion: While health apps can be valuable tools for managing and tracking health, individuals need to use them in a balanced and informed way to avoid increased anxiety.

Keywords: mobile health, mhealth apps, cyberchondria, health anxiety

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Authors: Faraz Ali Memon

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Stakeholders are a vital part of any organisation. It includes working on the demands of different stakeholders within the projects. However, the reality of construction projects is slightly different when it comes to practice. The UK construction projects have a history of failing to complete projects on time and within the budget. The purpose of this qualitative study is to enhance knowledge of stakeholder engagement. Semi-structured interviews will be carried out using a purposive sampling technique. It includes interviewing and getting knowledge from industry practitioners from top UK construction firms on how to manage stakeholders effectively. The findings from this study will help in understanding stakeholders' impact and how the engagement of stakeholders can affect construction projects. The conclusions of this study add value to the existing body of knowledge on stakeholder management, especially in the UK, where academic studies on construction projects are few. As a contribution, this study will provide a practical guide for the practitioners to engage stakeholders within the scope of the project. In addition, this study is limited to UK construction projects. Therefore, the outcome may not be generalised to other developing and underdeveloped countries.

Keywords: stakeholders, UK construction, project management, cost and time

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Authors: Nan Deng, Zhenqiu Liu

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Thousands of patients with metastatic tumors were diagnosed with cancers of unknown primary sites each year. The inability to identify the primary cancer site may lead to inappropriate treatment and unexpected prognosis. Nowadays, a large amount of genomics and transcriptomics cancer data has been generated by next-generation sequencing (NGS) technologies, and The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database has accrued thousands of human cancer tumors and healthy controls, which provides an abundance of resource to differentiate cancer types. Meanwhile, deep convolutional neural networks (CNNs) have shown high accuracy on classification among a large number of image object categories. Here, we utilize 25 cancer primary tumors and 3 normal tissues from TCGA and convert their RNA-Seq gene expression profiling to color images; train, validate and test a CNN classifier directly from these images. The performance result shows that our CNN classifier can archive >80% test accuracy on most of the tumors and normal tissues. Since the gene expression pattern of distant metastases is similar to their primary tumors, the CNN classifier may provide a potential computational strategy on identifying the unknown primary origin of metastatic cancer in order to plan appropriate treatment for patients.

Keywords: bioinformatics, cancer, convolutional neural network, deep leaning, gene expression pattern

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Authors: Yi-Jiun Chou, Ying-Hsuan Li, Yi-Jung Liu, Hsin-Yu Chiang, Hsuan-Ching Wang

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Background: Patients received therapeutic hypothermia (TH) after resuscitation from cardiac arrest are more dependent on continue and intensive nursing care. It involves many difficult steps, especially achieving target body temperature. To our best knowledge, there is no consensus or recommended standards on nursing practice of TH. Aim: The aim of this study is to increase the completion rate of nursing care at therapeutic hypothermia. Methods: We took five measures: (1) Amendment of nursing standards of therapeutic hypothermia; (2) Amendment of TH checklist items to nursing records; (3) Establishment of monitor procedure; (4) Design each period of TH care reminder cards; (5) Providing in-service training sections of TH for ICU nursing staff. Outcomes: The completion rate of nursing care at therapeutic hypothermia increased from 78.1% to 89.3%. Conclusion: The project team not only increased the completion rate but also improved patient safety and quality of care.

Keywords: therapeutic hypothermia, nursing, critical care, quality of care

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Authors: Wei-Hwa Chiang, Wei-Ting Hsu, Yuan-Chi Liu, Cheng-Che Tsai

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A sustainable built environment aims for minimizing both regional and global environmental impact while maintaining a healthy living for individuals. Sustainability of performing venues has rarely been discussed when compared with residential, office, and other popular building types. Life-cycle carbon emission due to the high standard requirements in acoustics, stage engineering, HVAC, and building structure need to be carefully examined. This can be complicated by social-economic and cultural concerns in addition to technical excellence. This paper reported case-based study and statistics of performing venues regarding urban connectivity and spatial layouts in enhancing facility usage and promoting cultural vitality. Interviews conducted for a major venue at Taipei indicated high linkage with surrounding leisure activity and the need for quality pedestrian and additional spaces open to the general public. Statistics of venues with various size and function suggested the possibility and strategies limit the size and height of reception and foyer spaces, and to maximize their use when there are no performances. Design strategies are identified to increase visual contact or facility sharing between the artists and the audience or the general public in reducing facility size and promoting potential involvement in cultural activities.

Keywords: sustainability, performing venue, design, operation

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Authors: Twarakavi Venkata Suresh Kumar, Sailaja Kumar, B. Eswara Reddy

Abstract:

In a world of tremendous technical developments, effective and efficient higher education has always been a major challenge. The rising number of educational institutions have made it mandatory for healthy competitions among the institutions. To evaluate the qualitative competence of these educations institutions in engineering and technology and related disciplines, an efficient assessment technique in internal and external quality has to be followed. To achieve this, the curriculum is to be developed into courses, and each course has to be presented in the form teaching lesson plan consisting of topics and session outcome known as Course Outcomes (COs), that easily map into different Programme Outcomes (POs). The major objective of these methodologies is to provide quality technical education to its students. Detailed clear weightage in CO-PO mapping helps in proper measurable COs and to devise the POs attainment is an important issue. This ensures in assisting the achievement of the POs with proper weightage to POs, and also improves the successive curriculum development. In this paper, we presented a methodology for mapping CO and PO considering the key elements supported by each PO. This approach is useful in evaluating the attainment of POs which is based on the attainment of COs using the existing data from students' marks taken from various test items. Such direct assessment tools are used to measure the degree to which each student has achieved each course learning outcome by the completion of the course. Hence, these results are also useful in measuring the PO attainment for improving the programme vision and mission.

Keywords: attainment, course outcomes, programme outcomes, educational institutions

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Authors: Koichi Kurita

Abstract:

In this study, we propose a real-time data collection technique for the detection of human walking motion from the charge generated on the human body. This technique is based on the detection of a sub-picoampere electrostatic induction current, generated by the motion, flowing through the electrode of a wireless portable sensor attached to the subject. An FFT analysis of the wave-forms of the electrostatic induction currents generated by the walking motions showed that the currents generated under normal and restricted walking conditions were different. Moreover, we carried out a cepstrum analysis to detect any differences in the walking style. Results suggest that a slight difference in motion, either due to the individual’s gait or a splinted leg, is directly reflected in the electrostatic induction current generated by the walking motion. The proposed wireless portable sensor enables the detection of even subtle differences in walking motion.

Keywords: human walking motion, motion measurement, current measurement, electrostatic induction

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Authors: Ke Qiu, Minzi Mao, Jianjun Ren, Yu Zhao

Abstract:

Although much has been done to investigate the influence of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) on cognitive function, little attention has been paid to the role which gender differences play in this association. In the present study, we aim to explore the gender-specific association between OSA and cognitive impairment. Participants from UK biobank who have completed at least one of the five baseline cognitive tests (visuospatial memory, prospective memory, fluid intelligence, short numeric memory and reaction time) were included and were further categorized into three groups: (1) OSA, (2) self-reported snoring but without OSA, and (3) healthy controls (without OSA or snoring). Multivariable regression analysis was performed to examine the associations among snoring, OSA and performance of each of the five cognitive domains. A total of 267,889 participants (47% male, mean age: 57 years old) were included in our study. In the multivariable regression analysis, female participants in the OSA group had a higher risk of having poor prospective memory (OR: 1.24, 95% CI: 1.02～1.50, p = 0.03). Meanwhile, among female participants, OSA were inversely associated with the performances of fluid intelligence (β: -0.29, 95% CI: -0.46～-0.13, p < 0.001) and short-numeric memory (β: -0.14, 95% CI: -0.35～0.08, p = 0.02). In contrast, among male participants, no significant association was observed between OSA and impairment of the five cognitive domains. Overall, OSA was significantly associated with cognitive impairment in female participants rather than in male participants, indicating that more special attention and timely interventions should be given to female OSA patients to prevent further cognitive impairment.

Keywords: obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), cognitive impairment, gender-specific association, UK biobank

Procedia PDF Downloads 147