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We report the first work on the development of biodegradable acoustic foams from self‐grown bacterial cellulose (BC) from kombucha solution and green processing techniques. Kombucha BC‐agar and kombucha BC‐polyvinyl alcohol foams were fabricated by using slurries of BC pellicles mixed with the additives, froze for 24 h, and recast into foams using the freeze‐drying method. The foams were aerogel‐like with a density 20 kg/m3, thermally stable upto 220 °C, and crystallinity ~74%. Morphological analysis revealed macropores with coarse walls in agar‐based foams, whereas the PVA‐based foams comprised a polydisperse pore network with coarse walls. A broadband absorption was observed with a maximum of 0.4 for the 2.5‐mm‐thick single‐layer foams and 0.9 for the 12‐mm‐thick multilayer foams. The sound absorption was found to be on par with the biodegradable foams of agar and other cellulose‐rich materials such as agricultural residue, yet with a lightweight. Being largely porous, the foams had little transmission loss. As the densities and the crystallinities of these foams are tunable by the addition of other polymers, the results from this study provide scope to explore BC‐based lightweight materials for large‐scale fabrication suitable for sound absorption over specific regimes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The ability to generate valuable products through oxidation makes it one of the most pivotal industrial processes. While organic oxidants have traditionally been the focus in converting alcohols into carbonyl compounds, inorganic oxidants have been relatively underutilized. In this study, we delve into the influence of Potassium periodate (KIO4) in an acidic environment on the oxidation of selected alcohols, comparing its performance with that of catalyst silver nanoparticles prepared from two distinct plant sources: Madhuca longifolia flowers and Ziziphus jujuba leaves. The reactions were intentionally conducted under conditions that adhere to first-order kinetics. At regular intervals throughout the reaction, iodometric measurements were employed to monitor the progress of the reaction. It was noted that the oxidation rate exhibited a proportional increase corresponding to the concentration of alcohol for all the alcohols examined, while it decreased with an increasing concentration of the oxidant. In contrast, when AgNP catalysts were employed in conjunction with KIO4, significantly higher rate constants were achieved compared to using KIO4 alone. This research underscores the potential of silver nanoparticles prepared from plant sources as effective catalysts for alcohol oxidation, offering promising avenues for the development of more efficient and sustainable oxidation processes in the industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Toward identifying environmentally friendly sound‐absorbing materials, the fabrication of biodegradable bagasse foams and their acoustic absorption and transmission loss were investigated. 10‐mm‐thick bagasse foams were fabricated using different concentrations of four non‐carcinogenic surfactants: sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS), sodium bicarbonate (SB), potassium oleate (PO), and polyoxyethylene sorbitol ester (T20). Electron microscopy revealed that the foams comprised microfibers with a 10%–25% porosity. The foams were found to be thermally stable up to 300 °C. While foams fabricated using SDS were found to have a maximum increment in acoustic absorption (by 200%), those made of T20 had a mild decrease in absorption. The increment in absorption was attributed to the decrease in crystallinity and increase in porosity of microstructure, and the decrement to the decrease in viscous nature. Minimal changes were observed in the transmission loss of the foams. The results presented here demonstrate a simple, scalable green method to fabricate porous biodegradable foams of bagasse, without using any binder or filler, suitable for acoustic insulation that fits sustainable development objectives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Total cavopulmonary connection (Fontan) without using cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) may be superior to Fontan on CPB. In the experience of many, a Fontan operation without CPB may be associated with a reduced need for inotropic support, improved outcomes in the postoperative phase including faster time to termination of mechanical ventilatory support, reduced intensive care unit stay, lower volume of pleural and peritoneal effusions, and decreased hospital stay, thereby rendering it more cost-effective. However, the operation is technically more difficult to perform than Fontan on CPB and requires significant modifications of surgical technique and alteration in overall management strategy. In this article, an alternative technique of performing total cavopulmonary connection without CPB is described. Its advantages are briefly discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The rapid detection of buried landmines has become a crucial concern of global security owing to the advancement in terrorist attacks. Indeed, the development of smart materials for the rapid detection of explosives especially nitro‐explosives is the need of time. However, the sensitivity and selectivity of materials for the detection of nitro‐explosives are major hurdles due to their low vapour pressure at room temperature. Albeit, it could be resolved by the use of advanced functional nanomaterials bearing high surface area and excellent optoelectronic properties. In this context, the water‐soluble MoS2 quantum dots (QDs) are synthesized by an ultrafast eco‐friendly hot injection method and potentially used for the detection of nitro‐explosives. The detection of picric acid (PA), 2,4,6‐Trinitrotoluene (TNT) and various other nitroaromatic compounds is performed by fluorescent probe technique. Notably, MoS2 QDs have effectively detected picric acid and TNT exhibiting detection limits of 5.13 ppm and 43.93 ppm respectively in water via a photoinduced electron transfer mechanism. Real‐time analysis of picric acid employing a paper strip of MoS2 QD as a fluorescent probe clearly demonstrates MoS2 QDs′ potential for practical usage in explosive detection. This work is patented: Application No. 202121000715 (applied). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Many mothers are given an episiotomy during a normal vaginal delivery. There are many alternative interventions used by the community to heal the episiotomy wound. Applying breast milk topically to a wound is simple, free of charge and has no side-effects. Breast milk contains therapeutic qualities that aid in the healing of wounds. Aim: To evaluate the effect of topical breast milk application on postpartum women's episiotomy wound healing. Materials and Methods: This pretest, post-test quasi-experimental study was conducted in three selected health centres of Central Gujarat from February 2022 to March 2022. Using a pretest, posttest control group design, the quantitative quasi-experimental study design was used. A total of 40 postnatal women were recruited for experimental (20) and control group (20). Intervention of topical application of breast milk was offered two times a day for seven continuous days in experimental group and routine care was provided to participants in control group. Participants of experimental and control group was assessed using Redness, Edema, Ecchymosis, Discharge and Approximation (REEDA) scale on 1st, 3rd, 5th and 7th day. Descriptive and inferential statistics was applied to analyse the data. Results: A total 40 postnatal mothers participated in the present study with mean age of 23.05±3.80 years. Topical application of breast milk displayed positive effect on episiotomy wound healing in experimental group. The result exhibited that the experimental group's episiotomy wound healing significantly improved (before: 14.75±0.55, after: 4.55±1.32) as compared to the control group (before: 14.65±0.59, after: 9.35±1.46). Conclusion: The study proved that there was a significant gradual healing of episiotomy wound after the use of breast milk topically in postpartum women. This also indicates that human breast milk can be an alternative strategy for accelerating episiotomy wound healing process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Corn stalk fibers were extracted from corn stalk using sodium hydroxide for textile application. The extraction conditions were optimized on the basis of the quality and quantity of extracted fibers. The optimum conditions were obtained by treating corn stalk with 5 g/L concentration of sodium hydroxide for 60 min at boiling temperature using a 1:50 material-to-liquor ratio. Extracted fibers were bleached and tested for different physical and chemical properties. Besides these properties, the characterization of extracted fibers was carried out by a scanning electron microscope (SEM), X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD) and Fourier–transform infrared (FTIR) analysis. SEM was used to study the morphological changes in the raw and bleached fibers. The crystallinity changes of the raw and bleached samples were measured with an X-ray diffractometer by peak height method. FTIR was used to examine the compositional changes in the bleaching process. It was found that raw fibers contained the cellular residues such as lignin and hemicelluloses, which cement the fibers together. The chemical treatments such as alkali and bleaching partially removed hemicelluloses, lignin, and amorphous fractions of cellulose. This led to the gradually increasing crystallinity of the treated fiber. Peak height values were obtained by measuring the transmittance of the spectra through FTIR analysis. Different physical and chemical properties of the extracted corn stalk fibers indicated that it can be used for making biodegradable composite materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Menopause means permanent cessation of menstruation at the end of reproductive life. With the increase in life expectancy, women spend one-third of their life in menopausal period. Menopausal women face problems like hot flushes, feeling accomplished, poor memory, tiredness, joint pain, weak physical strength, lack of energy, avoiding intimacy, and vaginal dryness. Due to these the physical, psychosocial, and sexual health-related aspects get deteriorated. Aim: To assess the effect of postmenopausal symptoms on health-related quality of life among women. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional research design was used, and 168 postmenopausal women, were selected following home visits at selected rural areas of Central Gujarat and Saurashtra, India. Women in the age group of 40-60 years, who had completed seven years of natural menopausal period were eligible for the study. The Menopause Specific Quality of Life Questionnaire was used and statistical analysis was done using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) Version 20.0. Results: Mean age of the postmenopausal women was 76.93 years. The majority 85 (50.6%) had completed their primary education. The most commonly found postmenopausal symptoms were feeling tired 153 (91.07%), loss of physical strength 153 (91.07%), and lack of energy 153 (91.07%). The mean score for vasomotor domain was 5.34±1.91, sexual domain 4.31±1.69, psychosocial domain 4.07±1.44, and physical domain was 3.85±1.10. The majority of the postmenopausal symptoms were related to the vasomotor domain. Conclusion: The present study findings concluded that all domains' symptoms negatively impacted a women's quality of life. The majorly affected domain was vasomotor, while least affected was physical domain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: India started its vaccination programme for Coronavirus-19 infection (COVID-19) on 16 January 2021 with CovishieldTM (Oxford/Astra Zeneca vaccine manufactured by Serum Institute of India) and Covaxin ® (Bharat Biotech, India). We designed the present study to study the effectiveness of vaccines for COVID-19 in prevention of breakthrough infections and severe symptomatic cases among health care workers in a real-life scenario in Mumbai, India. Furthermore, we also wanted to study the factors associated with this effectiveness. Methods: This is cohort analysis of secondary data of 2762 individuals working in a tertiary health care setting in Mumbai, India (16 January 2021 to 16 October 2021). Vaccination records of all groups of health care staff (including the date of vaccination, type of vaccine taken, and date of positivity for COVID-19) were maintained at the hospital. The staff were tested for COVID-19 at least once a week and when symptomatic. The observation time for everyone was divided into unvaccinated, partially vaccinated (14 days after the first dose); and fully vaccinated (14 days after the second dose). If the individual was found to be positive, the day of positivity was considered the 'day of the event' for that individual. We combined unvaccinated/partially vaccinated into one group and completely vaccinated in the other group. We estimated hazard ratios (HR) and their 95% confidence intervals. The vaccine effectiveness (VE) was assessed as (1-HR)*100. Results: The mean age (SD) of the study participants was 32.3 (8.3) years; majority of these individuals had taken Covishield TM (99.0%) and only 0.9% (n = 27) had taken Covaxin ®. The incidence rate in the overall population was 0.067/100 person-days (PD). The incidence rate was significantly higher in the unvaccinated/partially vaccinated group compared with the fully vaccinated group (0.0989 / 100 PD vs 0.0403/100 PD; p < 0.001). The adjusted HR (aHR) in the fully vaccinated group compared with the unvaccinated/partially vaccinated group in the complete cohort was 0.30 (95% CI: 0.23, 0.39). Thus, the vaccine effectiveness (VE) for full vaccination was 70% (95% CI: 61%, 77%). It remained the same in the Covishield TM only cohort. The VE in completely vaccinated and with a history of previous infection was 88% (95% CI: 80%, 93%). Only 11 health care workers required hospitalization over the entire observation period; the incidence rate in our cohort was 0.0016 / 100 PD. None of the HCWs reported any severe adverse events after vaccination. Conclusions: In this real-world scenario, we did find that complete vaccination reduced the rate of infection, particularly severe infection in health care personnel even during the severe delta wave in the country. Even among those infected, the hospitalisation rates were very low, and none died. We did not record any major side effects of vaccination in these personnel. Previous infection with COVID-19 and complete vaccination had a significantly higher effectiveness in prevention of infection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Anterior knee pain (AKP) is the most common musculoskeletal complaint in all age groups. It is common in both recreational and professional athletes. The literature shows a lack of studies that focus on AKP in middle-aged population. The study aimed to evaluate the AKP using the Kujala AKP Scale (KAKPS) in middle-aged recreational and professional athletes. Materials and Methods: It was a cross-sectional study that evaluated AKP in middle-aged athletes, both recreational and professional, using the KAKPS. The study included 44 individuals (between 40 and 60 years of age), with an equal number in each group. The study was questionnaire based, for which a Google Form was created. The questionnaire included demographic data and the KAKPS, and it was distributed through digital platforms such as E-mail, WhatsApp, and Telegram. These individuals were both male and female recreational and professional athletes who had been involved in their respective sports for at least 3 years. Results: The mean age of the participants was 40.25. Based on responses given by the participants, we found that there was a significant difference found (P < 0.05) between Kujala AKP score in recreational (76.09 ± 12.88) and professional athletes (68.18 ± 17.57) indicating more pain in recreational as compared to professional athletes. Conclusion: We conclude that AKP is higher in recreational as compared to professional athletes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction and Background: According to WHO infertility is failure to achieve a pregnancy after 12 months or more than or without use of any contraception method, it is a reproductive system disease. Infertility can cause increase level of stress and create negative thought. So this study is aimed to find out effectiveness of guided imagery technique on stress and quality of life of infertile women. Methodology: The research approach used was quantitative approach. Quasi experimental: nonequivalent control group, Pre-test post-test design was used. 66 infertile women were selected for both the group was selected 33 subjects in each group. Pre assessment for stress level & quality of life was done for both experimental and control group. The tool of data collection included a sociodemographic Performa, Perceived stress scale (PSM-10) and FertiQol scale assessment tool. Guided imagery provided to experimental group. The intervention was given to infertile women is recorded 15 minutes audio tract. Participants had listened the infertile specific GI recording once in a day for 7 consecutive days. In control group, the GI therapy did not provided. Result: The data was analyzed by using descriptive and inferential statistics. The study result shows that effect of GI intervention on stress intensity and on QoL are effective and P value for stress was <0.001 and for QoL p value was <0.001. Conclusion: The study concluded that Guided imagery technique is effective in reducing stress level and improve quality of life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]