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Introduction- Lower Gastrointestinal bleeding (LGIB) constitutes a major spectrum of signs and symptoms among patients visiting general surgery clinics ranging from occult bleeding to hematochezia and massive hemorrhage with shock. It is a frequent cause of hospital admission, particularly in elderly patients, and is an important determinant of morbidity and mortality. Detailed history taking, thorough clinical examination, and judicious use of diagnostic modalities are paramount in delineating the causative factors. This study aims to understand the distribution and prevalence of various causes of LGIB in the general population visiting a tertiary care center in India. The present study was a prospective observational study conducted Methods- at the Department of General Surgery, Anantshree Multispeciality Hospital, Aurangabad, India to observe the prevalence of various causes of LGIB and their age and sex-wise distribution in the patients visiting the surgery clinic for a period of two years from January 2020 to December 2021. All patients were examined and investigated as per the standard protocols and the inclusion criteria to be included in the study. The sample size came out to be 700. The majority of the Resultsstudy participants were in the age group of 41-60 years and were males. The most common presenting symptom was hematochezia and the most common etiology of LGIB was found to be hemorrhoids in both males and females. The neoplastic cause (carcinoma) was seen in the elderly group of more than 60 years of age. 65.7 % of the patients in this study were found to have anemia. LGIB is a common and alarming Conclusionpresenting condition in the practice of gastroenterology and surgery. A careful clinical history and physical examination with colonoscopic visualization of the lesion with or without biopsy signicantly impact the patients' early diagnosis and proper treatment

Among various parameters of 3D CNTs as a conductive sulfur host material in LSB cathodes, high surface area, high porosity, and small pore size distribution, among others, are the most critical parameters, enhancing LSB performance.

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We aimed to assess the burden of NCDIs across socioeconomic groups, their economic impact, existing health service readiness and availability, current policy frameworks and national investment, and planned programmatic initiatives in Nepal through a comprehensive literature review. Secondary data from Global Burden of Disease estimates from GBD 2015 and National Living Standard Survey 2011 were used to estimate the burden of NCDI and present the relationship of NCDI burden with socioeconomic status. The Commission used these data to define priority NCDI conditions and recommend potential cost-effective, poverty-averting, and equity-promoting health system interventions. NCDIs disproportionately affect the health and well-being of poorer populations in Nepal and cause significant impoverishment. The Commission found a high diversity of NCDIs in Nepal, with approximately 60% of the morbidity and mortality caused by NCDIs without primary quantified behavioral or metabolic risk factors, and nearly half of all NCDI-related DALYs occurring in Nepalese younger than 40 years. The Commission prioritized an expanded set of twenty-five NCDI conditions and recommended introduction or scale-up of twenty-three evidence-based health sector interventions. Implementation of these interventions would avert an estimated 9680 premature deaths per annum by 2030 and would cost approximately $8.76 per capita. The Commission modelled potential financing mechanisms, including increased excise taxation on tobacco, alcohol, and sugar-sweetened beverages, which would provide significant revenue for NCDI-related expenditures. Overall, the Commission’s conclusions are expected to be a valuable contribution to equitable NCDI planning in Nepal and similar resource-constrained settings globally.

Coherent THz optical lattice and hybridized phonon-magnon modes are triggered by femtosecond laser pulses in the antiferromagnetic van der Waals semiconductor FePS

A narrow region having sharp gradients in physical parameters is formed whenever plasma comes into contact with a material wall. In this work, the temporal velocity variation of ions in such a sheath has been studied in the presence of an external oblique magnetic field. The Lorentz force equation has been solved for the given boundary conditions using Runge-Kutta method. In order to satisfy the Bohm criterion, ions enter the sheath region with ion acoustic velocity. It is observed that all components of the velocity waves are damped in plasma in the time scale of one second. The computed oscillatory part of ion velocity match with the equation of the damped harmonic oscillator. Thus obtained damping constants as well as the frequency of all three components are nearly equal for obliqueness less than 600 after which they are distinctly different. This is due to the fact that the magnetic field becomes almost parallel to the wall. In earlier studies, only the final velocity profiles are reported and hence this study is useful in understanding how the ion velocities evolve in time as they move from sheath entrance towards the wall.

Background Ventral hernias are commonly encountered problems in the field of general surgery. Incisional hernia is a common complication following abdominal surgery that requires reoperation. This study was conducted to understand the incidence of various types of ventral hernia in both sexes and various age groups, predisposing factors, clinical features, and complications. Methods This prospective observational study was conducted in the Department of Surgery, Dr. Hedgewar Hospital, Aurangabad, Maharashtra, India, on a total of 100 patients diagnosed with anterior abdominal wall hernia between September 2020 to February 2021. Data collection included thorough history taking and clinical examination along with relevant investigations. The data collected was entered in a proforma, tabulated, and analyzed with the IBM SPSS Statistics for Windows, Version 24.0 (Released 2016; IBM Corp., Armonk, New York, United States). Results Incisional hernia (43%) was the most common of all ventral hernias. Females were much more affected than males. Out of these types studied, epigastric hernia showed more incidence among males. The average age of presentation was 52 years. Obesity was the most common predisposing factor (34%) with female preponderance. Obese patients were also associated with a higher rate of postoperative complications like wound infection and seroma. In the cases of incisional hernia, 32.6% of the patients gave a history of previous surgery complicated by a wound infection. Incisional hernias were more common in lower midline incisions (34.9%) and after gynecological surgery (55.81%) like total abdominal hysterectomy, cesarean section, or tubal ligation. In the majority of the patients (62.8%), the incisional hernia occurred within three years of the previous surgery. Wound infection following ventral hernia repair occurred in 11% of the cases, wound dehiscence in 3%, and seroma in 2 % of the cases. Conclusions The most common ventral hernias in decreasing order of their frequency are incisional hernia, umbilical hernia, para-umbilical hernia, and epigastric hernia. Epigastric and umbilical hernias are more common in males whereas incisional hernia is more common in females. Obesity and constipation were found to be the major predisposing risk factors. Incisional hernia is more common in females after gynecological and obstetrics surgery. The lower midline segment is the most common site for developing an incisional hernia.

In this study, we present the fabrication and characterization of the kink-free electrospun small caliber (4 mm in internal diameter) vascular graft based on a blend of biocompatible poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) and highly elastomeric polyurethane (PU) and subsequently reinforced by additive manufacturing 3D printing. We also report the design and simulation of the grafts under various internal pressures. Long-length small-diameter grafts suffer from the kink and loop formation for electrospun tubes. We have seen that collector rotation speeds (from 50 to 200 rpm) yielded grafts with varied mechanical properties and kink resistance. By reinforcing electrospun vascular grafts with the help of 3D printing, we report the reduction of the kink radius from 2.30 to 0.45 cm and 0.57 cm, respectively, for poly(lactic acid) (PLA)- and PET-reinforced vascular graft.

Introduction A pilonidal sinus (PNS) is a small passageway in the subcutaneous tissue which develops most frequently in the sacrococcygeal area. In terms of postoperative outcomes, the decision on the best surgical treatment for PNS is still a challenge for a surgeon. Prevention of the disease recurrence and improving quality of the life can be considered primary goals of the treatment. The current study intends to compare two commonly practiced surgical treatments for PNSes-Rhomboid excision with Limberg flap repair against wide-open excision with healing by secondary intention. Methods In a prospective randomized study, 50 patients with sacrococcygeal PNS were divided into two groups. Group A was operated by rhomboid excision with Limberg flap reconstruction and Group B was operated by wide-open excision and healing by secondary intention. Data were collected on a specially designed structured proforma and consisted of patient demographics, medical history, presentation, and postoperative complications assessed for a period of 6 months. Comparative outcomes of interest were postoperative pain, postoperative anxiety, duration of wound healing, duration of work loss, presence of wound infection, and recurrence. Results Mean age of 28 years was observed across the study with a male preponderance (76%). The mean visual analog scale (VAS) score for pain was greater in Group A during the early postoperative period, i.e., days 1, 3, and 7. However, patients in Group B reported a mean VAS score of 3 ± 0 and 1 ± 0 at one month and 2 months, respectively indicating a longer duration of postoperative pain overall. Patients in Group B also reported a significantly higher VAS for anxiety (VAS-A) score for postoperative anxiety/stress in all the follow-up visits. The mean healing time was 20 ± 2 days in Group A and 57 ± 11 days in Group B showing a significant difference. Duration of work loss was also significantly higher in Group B (31 days). Five patients in Group B developed wound infections. No recurrence was observed across both the groups in this study. Conclusion According to the findings of this study, the Limberg flap method outperforms the wide-open excision approach in terms of healing duration, work loss days, postoperative pain, anxiety, and wound infection. Both the techniques, however, are comparable in terms of recurrence.

The understanding of ion dynamics in magnetized plasma sheath is crucial for all applications of plasma. The velocity variation as well as modulation frequency of ions in a magnetized plasma sheath has been studied for different obliqueness of the magnetic field. The governing Lorentz force equation has been solved numerically for the given boundary conditions as applicable in the kinetic simulation of the sheath. For different obliqueness of the magnetic field, the average values, maximum amplitude, damping factor as well as frequency of oscillation are studied. The oscillating velocity components change at different rates depending on their orientation with respect to the field direction. Significant changes in the damping factor and modulation frequency has been observed for all components of velocity; however, the frequency of oscillation remains the same. As the obliqueness increases, shoulder natures in the components of velocity are observed. BIBECHANA 18 (2021) 134-139

Plasma sheath, which forms between a material wall and incoming plasma, plays an important role in controlling particle and energy fluxes to the wall. The problem of plasma sheath is one of the oldest in plasma and still draws attention, especially in magnetized plasmas. In this work velocity of ions in a magnetized plasma sheath has been studied using a kinetic trajectory simulation model for varying obliqueness of the field. Any change in obliqueness of the field causes the velocities to change. The change in mean value of the component normal to the wall is comparatively small whereas the other two components of velocity vary sinusoidally, nearly complementary to each other with nearly equal amplitudes.

Background: Pregnant and breastfeeding women are more susceptible to viral infection and in the year 2020 they have to face the COVID-19 pandemic. Since, no successful treatment and vaccine has been developed so far, efforts to enhance the knowledge, attitudes, and practice of the public, especially the high-risk groups like pregnancy and postpartum period are crucial to manage COVID-19 pandemic. Objective To analyze the knowledge, attitude, practice and hospital experience regarding COVID-19 among post-partum mothers at a tertiary care center of Nepal Method The data collection was based on direct interview after receiving written consent from the research participants, using a semi-structured questionnaire. The questionnaire consisted of 4 major domains- knowledge (8 questions), attitude (6 questions), practice (5 questions) and experience (5 questions). Standard descriptive statistics were used for the data, mean and standard deviation for continuous variables whereas frequencies and percentages for categorical variables. Result A total of 203 post-partum women participated in the study. Almost all the participants had heard about COVID-19 (96.6%). A majority of them were aware about how COVID-19 gets transmitted and its preventive measures. Most of the participants (88.2%) knew that COVID-19 has effects on pregnancy. Almost all of participants (97%) wore mask during hospital stay. All of the women washed their hands with soap water or alcohol based sanitizer. A majority of the mothers (79.3%) wore mask while breastfeeding their baby. Conclusion The post-partum mothers have good knowledge, attitude, practice and experiences regarding the COVID-19 pandemic.

Background: Sleep is important in maintenance of proper functioning of both mental and physical functions of human body. Studies have shown there is impact on the sleep parameters with the use of caffeine, cigarette and alcohol. As there is little availability of similar studies here in Nepal, we made an attempt to know the relation of consumption of such substances with the sleep quality and sleep parameters as per Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index scale. Methods: A cross sectional study was conducted among the undergraduate students at BP Koirala Institute of Health Sciences, Dharan. Students were asked to complete a self- administered questionnaire to give information about demographic variables and habit of consumption of caffeinated beverages, cigarette and alcohol. The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index was utilized after the permission from authority to evaluate sleep quality. Results: Out of 350, almost half of the students (44.6%) had poor sleep quality. 40.8% students reported sleeping six hours or less per night and 10.1% used medications to sleep. 96% reported consuming caffeinated beverages, 20% consumed cigarettes and 38.3% consumed alcoholic beverages. There was significant association of poor sleep quality with the increased consumption caffeine, cigarette and alcohol (p

The kinetic trajectory simulation method has been used to study ion velocity profile in a plasma sheath for varying magnetic field at fixed obliqueness. As the electrons have higher velocity compared to that of ions the wall is charged up negatively with respect to the core plasma. The negative potential then attracts the ions and repels electrons forming a thin positive space charge region in front of the wall. This positive space charge region, known as the ‘sheath’ separates the negatively charged wall from the quasineutral ‘presheath’ plasma. The ions moving towards the wall have to satisfy the Bohm criterion to ensure the stability of the overall plasma. The mean value as well as oscillation frequency of velocity of ions change as the magnetic field is varied from 1.5 to 10.5 mT. The maximum amplitude of normal component of velocity is almost independent of the magnetic field but the maximum amplitude of other components of velocity change and shows oscillating nature as the magnetic field changes.

This paper presents a motion-sensing device with the capability of harvesting energy from low-frequency motion activities. Based on the high surface area reverse electrowetting-on-dielectric (REWOD) energy harvesting technique, mechanical modulation of the liquid generates an AC signal, which is modeled analytically and implemented in Matlab and COMSOL. A constant DC voltage is produced by using a rectifier and a DC–DC converter to power up the motion-sensing read-out circuit. A charge amplifier converts the generated charge into a proportional output voltage, which is transmitted wirelessly to a remote receiver. The harvested DC voltage after the rectifier and DC–DC converter is found to be 3.3 V, having a measured power conversion efficiency (PCE) of the rectifier as high as 40.26% at 5 Hz frequency. The energy harvester demonstrates a linear relationship between the frequency of motion and the generated output power, making it highly suitable as a self-powered wearable motion sensor.

The goal of this work is to develop Sb-based nBn infrared detectors operating at 2 µm with Quantum Efficiency (QE) exceeding 99%. These detectors have the potential to significantly increase the sensitivity of future generations of the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO) by exploiting quantum entanglement for sub-Poisson limited laser interferometry.

The last two decades have witnessed the emergence of three deadly coronaviruses (CoVs) in humans: severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV), Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV), and severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). There are still no reliable and efficient therapeutics to manage the devastating consequences of these CoVs. Of these, SARS-CoV-2, the cause of the currently ongoing coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, has posed great global health concerns. The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in an unprecedented crisis with devastating socio-economic and health impacts worldwide. This highlights the fact that CoVs continue to evolve and have the genetic flexibility to become highly pathogenic in humans and other mammals. SARS-CoV-2 carries a high genetic homology to the previously identified CoV (SARS-CoV), and the immunological and pathogenic characteristics of SARS-CoV-2, SARS-CoV, and MERS contain key similarities and differences that can guide therapy and management. This review presents salient and updated information on comparative pathology, molecular pathogenicity, immunological features, and genetic characterization of SARS-CoV, MERS-CoV, and SARS-CoV-2; this can help in the design of more effective vaccines and therapeutics for countering these pathogenic CoVs.

We report on the properties of defects in exfoliated graphene on SiO2 produced by electron irradiation at 25 keV and dosages from 4.96 × 1015 to 9.56 × 1017 electrons/cm2. With increasing dosage, graphene exhibits the two-stage amorphization trajectory reported for the Ar ion bombardment of graphene. Initially, the ratio of the D-peak height, ID, to the G peak height, IG, increases as new defects are formed. In the second stage, ID/ IG decreases as defects cover most of the sample. In the second stage, we find that the full width at half maximum of the Raman 2 D, D, and G peaks increases by 3, 3, and 6 cm−1, respectively. These values are less by factors of about 10, 5, and 10, respectively, than those reported for amorphous graphene produced by Ar ion bombardment. We find that ID/ IG monotonically decreases in the second stage as the annealing temperature increases from 80 to 220 °C. Assuming that ID/ IG is proportional to the defect density, we find an activation energy for defect healing, Ea = 0.48 eV, which is significantly less than Ea = 0.95 eV reported for vacancies and closer to Ea = 0.29 and 0.58 eV reported for hydrogen and hydroxyl group adsorbates, respectively. We propose that, in the second stage, graphene does not become amorphous, and the defects responsible for the D peak are adsorbates.

A study was conducted to understand the relationship among dietary branched-chain amino acids (BCAA) on the performance of Ross 344 × 708 male broilers. A total of 2,592 d-old male chicks were randomly placed into 144-floor pens according to a 2

This paper presents a motion-sensing device with the capability of harvesting energy from low-frequency motion activities. Based on the high surface area reverse electrowetting-on-dielectric (REWOD) energy harvesting technique, mechanical modulation of the liquid generates an AC signal, which is modeled analytically and implemented in Matlab and COMSOL. A constant DC voltage is produced by using a rectifier and a DC-DC converter to power up the motion-sensing read-out circuit. A charge amplifier converts the generated charge into a proportional output voltage, which is transmitted wirelessly to a remote receiver. The harvested DC voltage after the rectifier and DC-DC converter is found to be 3.3 V, having a measured power conversion efficiency (PCE) of the rectifier as high as 40.26% at 5 Hz frequency. The energy harvester demonstrates a linear relationship between the frequency of motion and the generated output power, making it highly suitable as a self-powered wearable motion sensor.

Reverse electrowetting-on-dielectric (REWOD)-based energy harvesting has been studied over the last decade as a novel technique of harvesting energy by actuating liquid droplet(s) utilizing applied mechanical modulation. Much prior research in REWOD has relied on planar electrodes, which by its geometry possess a limited surface area. In addition, most of the prior REWOD works have applied a high bias voltage to enhance the output power that compromises the concept of self-powering wearable motion sensors in human health monitoring applications. In order to enhance the REWOD power density resulting from an increased electrode-electrolyte interfacial area, high surface area electrodes are required. Herein, electrical and multiphysics-based modeling approaches of REWOD energy harvester using structured rough surface electrodes are presented. By enhancing the overall available surface area, an increase in the overall capacitance is achieved. COMSOL and MATLAB-based models are also developed, and the empirical results are compared with the models to validate the performance. Root mean square (RMS) power density is calculated using the RMS voltage across an optimal load impedance. For the proposed rough electrode REWOD energy harvester, maximum power density of 3.18 μW cm

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Government of Nepal (GoN) has been prioritizing Integrated Pest Management (IPM) strategy as the most important strategy after a sudden outbreak of Brown Plant Hopper (BPH) and heavy loss in rice production. GoN has been continuing IPM programs with the successful completion of different phases like technical cooperation, marketing and institutionalization. Awareness creation among multisectoral stakeholders is the most and major outcome through IPM program in Nepal. Plantwise, a global program led by CABI, has been working with GoN since 2013, for the improvement of plant health system. This program has also a good impact in the promotion of nonchemical strategies of pest management. Despite of having many national programs, efforts of GoN as well as different non-governmental and community based organizations; a significant progress has not been seen in the use of biological pesticides. This paper has tried to analyze the role of different stakeholders in the promotion of bio-pesticides along with other non-chemical management strategies viz. the trend of recommendations by plant doctors with the information retrieved from Plantwise Online Management System (POMS), perception of farmers as well as agro-input suppliers to the bio-pesticides, plant clinic interventions for bio-pesticides promotion, and policy review for finding reasons for less use of bio-pesticides in the field. Around 200 farmers who visited plant clinics and 50 agro-inputs suppliers from different regions were randomly selected for the survey with the developed questionaire. This paper is a preliminary review of secondary information on relevant policies, acts, regulations, etc. Major problem has been observed in agro-input suppliers among the whole cycle of biopesticide use.

This paper primarily presents the trajectory of growing up in South Asia drawing insights from the selected novels about South Asian youths (SA youths). In this process, the paper explores the political interest of the West in non-Western children and youths. The focus is on the exploration of whether contemporary youth literatures have still been reinforcing the image of SA youths as the Other of the European youths, or if there has been any significant change augmented by the recent phenomenon of global connectedness. By laying a framework of these forces for analyzing how they are reflected in the literatures for the South Asian youths by foreign, diaspora and home authors, this paper prepares a ground for further exploration.

Bi-manual (two-handed) actions have shown notable success in rehabilitative and therapeutic applications from the point of motor symmetry. Recent studies have shown that symmetry in actions is attributed to sensorimotor perception than mere co-activation of homologous muscles. In this paper, we present a study of symmetric and asymmetric haptic (specifically force) feedback on human perception and motor action during bi-manual spatial tasks. To the best of our knowledge, ours is the first procedure to specifically test the perceptual aspect of bi-manual actions in contrast to other works that typically characterize the physical/bio-mechanical aspects. Thereby in our experiment, healthy individuals were tasked with stretching a virtual spring using two symmetrically located haptics devices that provide an equal amount of resistive force on each hand while pulling the spring. In this experiment, we implement four kinesthetic conditions, namely (1) feedback on both hands, (2) feedback only on dominant hand, (3) feedback only on non-dominant hand, and (4) no feedback as our control. Our first goal was to determine if there exists a range of spring stiffness in which the individual incorrectly perceives bi-manual forces when the feedback is deactivated on one hand. Subsequently, we also wanted to investigate what range of spring stiffness would lead to such perceptual illusions. Our analysis shows that not only does such a range exist, it is wide enough so as to be potentially utilized in future rehabilitative applications.

This paper presents a motion-sensing device with the capability of harvesting energy from low-frequency motion activities that can be utilized for long-term human health monitoring. The energy harvester used in the proposed motion sensor is based on the mechanical modulation of liquid on an insulated electrode, which utilizes a technique referred to as reverse electrowetting-on-dielectric (REWOD). The generated AC signal from the REWOD is rectified to a DC voltage using a Schottky diode-based rectifier and boosted subsequently with the help of a linear charge-pump circuit and a low-dropout regulator (LDO). The constant DC voltage from the LDO (1.8 V) powers the motion-sensing read-out circuitry, which converts the generated charge into a proportional output voltage using a charge amplifier. After amplification of the motion data, a 5-bit SAR-ADC (successive-approximation register ADC) digitizes the signal to be transmitted to a remote receiver. Both the CMOS energy harvester circuit including the rectifier, the charge-pump circuit, the LDO, and the read-out circuit including the charge amplifier, and the ADC is designed in the standard 180 nm CMOS technology. The amplified amplitude goes up to 1.76 V at 10 Hz motion frequency, following linearity with respect to the frequency. The generated DC voltage from the REWOD after the rectifier and the charge-pump is found to be 2.4 V, having the voltage conversion ratio (VCR) as 32.65% at 10 Hz of motion frequency. The power conversion efficiency (PCE) of the rectifier is simulated as high as 68.57% at 10 Hz. The LDO provides the power supply voltage of 1.8 V to the read-out circuit. The energy harvester demonstrates a linear relationship between the frequency of motion and the generated output power, making it suitable as a self-powered wearable motion sensor.

Monitoring human health in real-time using wearable and implantable electronics (WIE) has become one of the most promising and rapidly growing technologies in the healthcare industry. In general, these electronics are powered by batteries that require periodic replacement and maintenance over their lifetime. To prolong the operation of these electronics, they should have zero post-installation maintenance. On this front, various energy harvesting technologies to generate electrical energy from ambient energy sources have been researched. Many energy harvesters currently available are limited by their power output and energy densities. With the miniaturization of wearable and implantable electronics, the size of the harvesters must be miniaturized accordingly in order to increase the energy density of the harvesters. Additionally, many of the energy harvesters also suffer from limited operational parameters such as resonance frequency and variable input signals. In this work, low frequency motion energy harvesting based on reverse electrowetting-ondielectric (REWOD) is examined using perforated high surface area electrodes with 38 µm pore diameters. Total available surface area per planar area was 8.36 cm2 showing a significant surface area enhancement from planar to porous electrodes and proportional increase in AC voltage density from our previous work. In REWOD energy harvesting, high surface area electrodes significantly increase the capacitance and hence the power density. An AC peak-to-peak voltage generation from the electrode in the range from 1.57-3.32 V for the given frequency range of 1-5 Hz with 0.5 Hz step is demonstrated. In addition, the unconditioned power generated from the harvester is converted to a DC power using a commercial off-theshelf Schottky diode-based voltage multiplier and low dropout regulator (LDO) such that the sensors that use this technology could be fully self-powered. The produced charge is then converted to a proportional voltage by using a commercial charge amplifier to record the features of the motion activities. A transceiver radio is also used to transmit the digitized data from the amplifier and the built-in analog-to-digital converter (ADC) in the micro-controller. This paper proposes the energy harvester acting as a self-powered motion sensor for different physical activities for wearable and wireless healthcare devices.

The advances in the fields of scanning probe microscopy, scanning tunneling spectroscopy, point contact spectroscopy, and point contact Andreev reflection spectroscopy to study the properties of conventional and quantum materials under cryogenic conditions have prompted the development of nanopositioners and nanoscanners with enhanced spatial resolution. Piezoelectric-actuator stacks as nanopositioners with working strokes of 10 μm and positioning resolution ∼(1-10) nm are desirable for both basic research and industrial applications. However, information on the performance of most commercial piezoelectric actuators in cryogenic environment and in the presence of magnetic fields in excess of 5 T is generally not available. In particular, the magnitude, the rate, and the associated hysteresis of the piezo-displacement at cryogenic temperatures are the most relevant parameters that determine whether a particular piezoelectric actuator can be used as a nanopositioner. Here, the design and realization of an experimental setup based on interferometric techniques to characterize a commercial piezoelectric actuator over a temperature range of 2 K ≤ T ≤ 260 K and magnetic fields up to 6 T are presented. The studied piezoelectric actuator has a maximum displacement of 30 μm at room temperature for a maximum driving voltage of 75 V, which reduces to 1.2 μm with an absolute hysteresis of 9.1±3.3nm at T = 2 K. The magnetic field is shown to have no substantial effect on the piezo-properties of the studied piezoelectric-actuator stack.

Background Pregnant and breastfeeding women are more susceptible to viral infection and in the year 2020 they have to face the COVID-19 pandemic. Since, no successful treatment and vaccine has been developed so far, efforts to enhance the knowledge, attitudes, and practice of the public, especially the high-risk groups like pregnancy and postpartum period are crucial to manage COVID-19 pandemic. Objective To analyze the knowledge, attitude, practice and hospital experience regarding COVID-19 among post-partum mothers at a tertiary care center of Nepal Method The data collection was based on direct interview after receiving written consent from the research participants, using a semi-structured questionnaire. The questionnaire consisted of 4 major domains- knowledge (8 questions), attitude (6 questions), practice (5 questions) and experience (5 questions). Standard descriptive statistics were used for the data, mean and standard deviation for continuous variables whereas frequencies and percentages for categorical variables. Result A total of 203 post-partum women participated in the study. Almost all the participants had heard about COVID-19 (96.6%). A majority of them were aware about how COVID-19 gets transmitted and its preventive measures. Most of the participants (88.2%) knew that COVID-19 has effects on pregnancy. Almost all of participants (97%) wore mask during hospital stay. All of the women washed their hands with soap water or alcohol based sanitizer. A majority of the mothers (79.3%) wore mask while breastfeeding their baby. Conclusion The post-partum mothers have good knowledge, attitude, practice and experiences regarding the COVID-19 pandemic.

Background Pregnancy or gestation is the time during which a single or more children grows and develops inside a woman. Antenatal care improves the pregnancy outcomes under which a group of medication i.e. iron, folic acid and calcium are supplemented. Despite the effectiveness of such supplements, poor clinical outcomes are often encountered because of poor-adherence to the regimen. Objective To determine the adherence pattern and factors affecting adherence in antenatal care patients under iron, folic acid, and calcium therapy. Method A cross-sectional study was conducted in Dhulikhel Hospital, Kathmandu University Hospital. Pregnant women attending antenatal care under iron, folic acid, and calcium therapy fulfilling the inclusion criteria were enrolled in this study. After obtaining the informed consent from the patients, structured questionnaire was used to interview the patients. Statistical analysis was performed by using SPSS 23.0. P-value0.05 was considered as statistically significant. Result Among 191 patients enrolled in this study majority (39.3%) of them belonged to age group 26-30 years. More than half (61.3%) of the patients were illiterate. Of the total 191, 64.40% were non-adherent to the medication. Forgetfulness was the main reason for missing the dose in majority (52.06%) of the non-adherent subjects while adverse effects (55.40%) was the most prominent cause for discontinuing the medication among non-adherent participants. Significant association was found between patients' adherence and busy work schedule, visiting doctor for follow up. Conclusion More than half of the patients had not adhered to the medication under antenatal care. Forgetfulness was the most common factor for missing the dose in nonadherent patients. Illiteracy was associated with poor adherence. Patient-provider relationship, Socio-economic factors were determined as major barrier to medication adherence.

Amyloidosis represents a heterogeneous group of disorders characterized by the deposition of amyloid protein in various target organs of the body. Amyloidosis is classified as systemic or local. Larynx is the common site for localized amyloid deposition and patient usually presents with hoarseness of voice. Because of the similar clinical and imaging features to malignant laryngeal mass, diagnostic confusion occurs and histopathological confirmation is usually needed. Although laryngeal tracheo-bronchial amyloidosis is rare, it should be considered among the differentials of benign laryngeal tumors.

This paper presents a reverse electrowetting-on-dielectric (REWOD) energy harvester integrated with rectifier, boost converter, and charge amplifier that is, without bias voltage, capable of powering wearable sensors for monitoring human health in real-time. REWOD has been demonstrated to effectively generate electrical current at a low frequency range (< 3 Hz), which is the frequency range for various human activities such as walking, running, etc. However, the current generated from the REWOD without external bias source is insufficient to power such motion sensors. In this work, to eventually implement a fully self-powered motion sensor, we demonstrate a novel bias-free REWOD AC generation and then rectify, boost, and amplify the signal using commercial components. The unconditioned REWOD output of 95–240 mV AC is generated using a 50 μL droplet of 0.5M NaCl electrolyte and 2.5 mm of electrode displacement from an oscillation frequency range of 1–3 Hz. A seven-stage rectifier using Schottky diodes having a forward voltage drop of 135–240 mV and a forward current of 1 mA converts the generated AC signal to DC voltage. ∼3 V DC is measured at the boost converter output, proving the system could function as a self-powered motion sensor. Additionally, a linear relationship of output DC voltage with respect to frequency and displacement demonstrates the potential of this REWOD energy harvester to function as a self-powered wearable motion sensor.

This paper presents the integration of an AC-DC rectifier and a DC-DC boost converter circuit designed in 180 nm CMOS process for ultra-low frequency (

This paper presents a self-powered motion sensor based on reverse-electrowetting on dielectric (REWOD) energy harvesting having the capability of remotely keeping a track of any motion activity. The energy harvester includes a rectifier and a voltage regulator to provide the DC supply voltage to the analog front-end and the transmitter to wirelessly transfer the data from the motion sensor. The on-chip circuitry includes a seven-stage voltage-doubler based rectifier, an amplifier, an analog-to-digital converter (ADC), and a transmitter, and is designed in standard 180 nm CMOS process with a supply voltage of 1.8 V. The recycled folded cascode (RFC) based charge amplifier has a closed-loop gain of 53 dB within the bandwidth of 1–150 Hz, which is suitable to detect any low-frequency motion signal. An 8-bit SAR-ADC is designed to digitize the amplified signal with a sampling rate of 1 ksamples/s. The transmitter used for this application operates in the 3.1–5 GHz frequency band with an energy efficiency of 8.5 pJ/pulse at 100 kbps data rate. The wireless motion sensing device with the REWOD can be suitable for quantitatively monitoring the motion-related data as a wearable sensor.

An interplay of conservation and breaking of local and global symmetries in topological phases of matter leads to the emergence of topological phenomena including quantum anomalous (QAH) Hall effect, topological superconductivity, and non-Abelian quantum statistics. Among the members of the family of topological materials, magnetically doped topological crystalline insulators (TCI) were foreseen to host topologically protected QAH states generating multiple dissipationless edge and surface conduction channels with Chern number C ≥1. The symmetry protected topological phase of the SnTe class of TCI is characterized by a mirror symmetry resulting in topological surface states. Theoretical and experimental studies demonstrated that four Dirac points are located at the time-reversed-invariant-momentum (TRIM) points for the (111) surface of the SnTe compounds. In this work, via low temperature magnetotransport studies, the opening of the gaps at the TRIMs is demonstrated in ferromagnetic 30 nm thick Sn1-xMnxTe (111) thin epitaxial layers grown onto BaF2(111) substrates by molecular beam epitaxy. While a spin mediated magnetoconductance is observed in layers with 𝑥 ≥ 0.03, the appearance of hysteretic magnetoconductance behaviour and square-like anomalous Hall effect indicate the onset of a hole mediated ferromagnetic ordering in epitaxial Sn1-xMnxTe (111) layers for 𝑥 ≥ 0.06. The anomalous Hall angle, 𝜃AH~0.3 estimated for Sn0.92Mn0.08Te is one of the highest recorded for magnetic topological quantum materials. The tuning of the global band topology by magnetic doping opens wide perspectives for topology driven quantum spintronic technology.

Introduction. Alopecia areata is one of the commonest causes of nonscarring alopecia. Since hair is a vital part with very high cosmetic concern, hair loss might have a significant negative impact on patient’s life. Hence, we aimed this to investigate depression and anxiety in patients with alopecia areata. Methods. In this cross-sectional study, a total of 75 consecutive eligible patients of alopecia areata were interviewed over one-year period in the dermatology outpatient department. We recorded the relevant history and examination details in the present proforma. Nepali versions of Beck Depression Inventory and Beck Anxiety Inventory were used for the assessment of depression and anxiety, respectively. Data analysis was done with Statistical Package for the Social Sciences version 11.5. Results. Among 75 patients, the prevalence of depression and anxiety were 66.7% and 73.3%, respectively, with median depression score = 5 (IQR = 0.0–10.0) and median anxiety score = 5 (IQR = 0.0–11.0). Out of all depressed patients, 82.0% had minimal and 18.0% had moderate depression. However, none of them had severe depression. Likewise, out of all patients with anxiety, 89.0% had mild and 11.0% had moderate anxiety, but none of them had severe anxiety. Conclusion. Anxiety and depression are common psychological problems in patients with alopecia areata. Because of their direct impact on treatment outcome, we, treating dermatologist, must be aware of them, and we should counsel our patients for consultation with the psychiatrist on time for their maximum benefit.

In this paper, we present a study to explore the symmetry of kinesthetic perception. Our goal is to add to the growing literature that investigates haptics technologies for therapeutic and rehabilitative applications. To this end, we study how selective activation/ deactivation of haptic (specifically force) feedback affects human perception during symmetric bi-manual (two-handed) spatial tasks. We conducted a simple experiment where healthy individuals are tasked with stretching a virtual spring using two symmetrically located haptics devices that provide an equal amount of resistive forces on each hand while pulling the spring. In this experiment, we implement four kinesthetic conditions, namely (1) feedback on both hands, (2) feedback only on dominant hand, (3) feedback only on non-dominant hand, and (4) no feedback as our control. Our first goal was to determine if there exists a range of spring stiffness in which the individual incorrectly perceives bi-manual forces when the feedback is deactivated on one hand. Subsequently, we also wanted to investigate what range of spring stiffness would lead to such perceptual illusions. Our studies show that not only does such a range exist, wide enough so as to be potentially utilized in future rehabilitative applications. Interestingly, we also observe that for few cases, symmetry can be independent of the kinesthetic perception.

Let X be an infinite dimensional real reflexive Banach space with dual space X∗ and G⊂X open and bounded. Let T:X⊃D(T)→2X∗ be a maximal monotone operator with 0∈D(T) and 0∈T(0), and let C:X⊃D(C)→2X∗ be densely defined strongly quasibounded and of type (S~+). A new topological degree theory is introduced for the sum T+C with a degree mapping d(T+C,G,0) defined eventually in terms of the Ma degree for multivalued compact operators. Unlike single-valued operators considered by Kartsatos and Skrypnik, the operator C here is multivalued so that the multivalued generalized pseudomonotone operators considered by Browder and Hess include such C and even T+C. Consequently, the main existence results of Browder and Hess are obtained via the new degree theory and some of their existence results are extended. An application of the theory to elliptic partial differential inclusions in divergence form is included.

Beat frequency and velocity variation of ions in a magnetized plasma sheath has been numerically investigated by using a kinetic trajectory simulation (KTS) model for varying obliqueness of the external magnetic field in presence of an electric field. Angular dependence of mean value, maximum amplitude, damping constant, frequency of oscillation and beat frequency have been studied. As the obliqueness of the field changes the mean values, beat frequency as well as the maximum amplitude of the velocity components also change but frequency of oscillation remains almost the same.

Bacterial blight disease of rice is a growing and challenging concern in Nepal. Since bacterial pathogen (Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzae) is difficult to manage by other means effectively, development of host plant resistance is the most effective mean to control this disease. This study was carried out to identify the bacterial leaf blight resistant genotypes of rice by using of molecular markers linked with bacterial blight resistant genes. Sixty genotypes of rice were screened at glass house for BB resistance and they were tested for the presence of Xa4, Xa5, Xa7 and Xa21 genes using markers MP, RM122, M5 and pTA248 respectively. IRBB 60 and Jumli Marshi were used as resistant and susceptible check respectively. Twenty five genotypes of rice were detected with presence of Xa4 gene, 24 genotypes with Xa5 gene and fourteen genotypes with Xa7 gene. Twenty four genotypes did not showed presence of any gene. Twenty four genotypes showed the presence of more than one gene with the specific molecular markers. Almost all genotypes that did not show presence of any gene were found highly susceptible in greenhouse conditions with both inoculums. Genotypes having more than one BB resistance gene were found resistant in greenhouse conditions with both inoculums suggesting combination of BB resistance gene through gene pyramiding will provide BB resistant varieties in rice breeding.

A research was done at Aquaculture department laboratory of Institute of Agriculture and Animal Science Paklihawa Campus, Rupandehi from 28 February 2017 to 28 April 2017 using two ornamental fishes; Goldfish (Carassius auratus) and Red cap oranda (Carassius auratus auratus) . Twelve rectangular glass aquarium of size of 12” × 24” × 12” were used for the purpose to assess the growth performance and feeding efficiency. Four treatments selected for this purpose were local feed containing rice bran and mustard oil cake (MOC) in T1 (Control), Local Feed with 5% Cassava leaves powder in T2, Local Feed with 5% Sweet Potato leaves powder in T3 and Local Feed with 5% Colocasia leaves powder 5% T4 during the experimental period. The initial weight of red cap was significantly lower in T3 as compared to T1 but was at par with T2 and T4. Furthermore, the final weight was not significantly different among the treatments. In case of goldfish, the initial weight at T4 was significantly lower than T2 but was at par among other treatments. The final weight was significantly higher in T2 as compared to T4 and T3 was at par with T1. Feed conversion ratio (FCR) was observed higher in case of T2 (6.981±3.14) and lower in case of T3 (3.325±0.48). However, no significant difference was noticed among the treatments. Specific growth rate (SGR) was observed higher in T3 (0.0370±0.088) as compared to other treatments. However, in this case also, no significant difference was observed. Survivability percentage for red cap fish was observed higher in T3 (100±0.00) and least inT2 (50.000±40.82), whereas, survivability was 100% for goldfish in all the treatments. The average survivability was highest (100%) in T3 for both kinds of fishes and minimum in T2 (75±20.41). Also, the mean pH observed at T1, T2, T3 and T4 was 9.165, 9.222, 9.196 and 9.172 respectively. Similarly, daily mean dissolved oxygen recorded at T1, T2, T3 and T4 was 6.23 mg/l, 6.16 mg/l, 6.267mg/l and 6.147 mg/l respectively. Moreover, the mean average temperature recorded in these four treatments; T1, T2, T3 and T4 were 23.342°>C, 23.272°C, 23.342°C and 23.339°C respectively.