Search

Aims Forensic psychiatric services address the therapeutic needs of mentally disordered offenders in a secure setting. Clinical, ethical, and legal considerations underpinning treatment emphasize that the Quality of Life (QOL) of patients admitted to forensic hospitals should be optimised. This study aims to examine changes in the QOL in Ireland's National Forensic Mental Health Service (NFMHS) following its relocation from the historic 1850 site in Dundrum to a new campus in Portrane, Dublin. Methods This multisite prospective longitudinal study is part of the Dundrum Forensic Redevelopment Evaluation Study (D-FOREST). Repeated measures were taken for all inpatients in the service at regular 6 monthly intervals. The WHOQOL-BREF questionnaire was offered to all inpatients. An anonymised EssenCES questionnaire was used to measure atmosphere in wards. Data were obtained at 5 time points for each individual patient and ward. WHOQOL-BREF ratings were obtained across 5 time points with comparisons available for 4 time intervals, including immediately before and after relocation. For 101 subjects across 4 time intervals, 215 sets of data were obtained; 140 before and 65 after relocation with 10 community patients who did not move. Using Generalised Estimating Equations (GEE) to correct for multiple comparisons over time, the effect of relocation, with community patients as a control, was analysed by ward cluster and whether patients moved between wards. Observations were categorised according to security level – high dependency, medium secure, rehabilitation, or community – and trichotomised based on positive moves to less secure wards, negative moves to more secure wards, or no moves. Results Relocation of the NFMHS was associated with a significant increase in environmental QOL (Wald X2 = 15.9, df = 1, p < 0.001), even when controlling for cluster location, positive and negative moves. When controlling for ward atmosphere, environmental QOL remained significantly increased after the move (Wald X2 = 10.0, df = 1, p = 0.002). EssenCES scores were obtained within the hospital for 3 time points before relocation and 2 time points afterwards. No significant differences were found on the three subscales before and after the move. All three EssenCES subscales progressively improved with decreasing security level (Patient Cohesion: Wald X2 = 958.3, df = 1, p < 0.001; Experiencing Safety: Wald X2 = 152.9, df = 5, p < 0.001; Therapeutic Hold: Wald X2 = 33.6, df = 3, p < 0.001). Conclusion The GEE model demonstrated that the move of the NFMHS improved self-reported environmental QOL. The cluster location made significant differences, as expected for a system of stratified therapeutic security, with a steady improvement in scores on all three atmosphere subscales.

Aims The Central Mental Hospital is the Republic of Ireland's only secure forensic hospital and the seat of its National Forensic Mental Health Service (NFMHS). We scrutinised admission patterns in the NFMHS during the period 01/01/2018–01/10/2023; before and after relocating from the historic 1850 site in Dundrum to a modern facility in Portrane on 13/11/2022. Methods This prospective longitudinal cohort study included all patients admitted during the above period. The study initially commenced in Dundrum and continued afterwards in Portrane. Data gathered included demographics, diagnoses, capacity to consent to treatment, and the need for intramuscular medication (IM) after admission. Therapeutic security needs and urgency of need for admission were collated from DUNDRUM-1 and DUNDRUM-2 scores rated pre-admission. Hours spent in seclusion during the first day, week, and month after admission were calculated. Data were collected as part of the Dundrum Forensic Redevelopment Evaluation Study (D-FOREST). Results There were 117 admissions during the 69-month period. The majority were male (n = 98). Most were admitted from prisons (87%). Schizophrenia was the most common diagnosis (55.8%). Mean DUNDRUM-1 triage security scores were in the medium-security range (2.84–3.15) during this period. At the time of admission, 53.8% required seclusion, 25.6% required IM medication, and 79.5% lacked capacity to consent to treatment. Those who required seclusion on admission had worse scores on the DUNDRUM-2 triage urgency scale (F = 20.9, p < 0.001). On linear logistic regression, the most parsimonious model resolved with five predictors of hours in seclusion during the first day and week, which were: D1 item 8 – Victim sensitivity/public confidence issues, D1 item 10 – Institutional behaviour, D2 item 2 – Mental health, D2 item 4 – Humanitarian, and D2 item 6 – Legal urgency. 50% required IM medication during their first week of admission and these patients had significantly worse scores on: D1 item 8 – Victim sensitivity/public confidence issues, D1 item 10 – Institutional behaviour, D2 item 2 – Mental health, and D2 item 4 – Humanitarian (all p < 0.05). Conclusion There was an increase in the frequency of admissions since relocating to Portrane. The results suggest that there was no change in overall triage security and urgency needs during the time period in question. Major mental illness related factors impacted the need for seclusion early in the admission, whereas factors linked to prison behaviour or personality-related factors were more associated with an ongoing need for seclusion at month one.

Artificial insemination is an emerging technique to ensure productivity and rapid genetic improvement in camels. This technique is not well developed due to involving different challenging factors because of semen collection, viscosity, nature of ejaculates, dilution in stabilized semen extenders, processing and cryopreservation, challenging related to artificial insemination and low conception rate. Numerous bovine commercial and non-commercial extenders with slight modification have been utilized for camel semen cryopreservation with little success. The gelatinous nature of the camel semen is one of the major challenges for proper evaluation, dosage calculation and cryopreservation. Various techniques have been used to liquefy the semen within a short spin of time without compromising the quality of sperm cells. This review provides precise data that appears in the peer reviews journals collected most of information to highlight the different semen extenders, addition of different supplementation and essential additives in semen extenders, challenges factors regarding camel bull and camel cow involved in success of artificial insemination.

Glioblastoma (GBM) cancer stem cells (GSCs) contribute to GBM's origin, recurrence, and resistance to treatment. However, the understanding of how mRNA expression patterns of GBM subtypes are reflected at global proteome level in GSCs is limited. To characterize protein expression in GSCs, we performed in‐depth proteogenomic analysis of patient‐derived GSCs by RNA‐sequencing and mass‐spectrometry. We quantified > 10 000 proteins in two independent GSC panels and propose a GSC‐associated proteomic signature characterizing two distinct phenotypic conditions; one defined by proteins upregulated in proneural and classical GSCs (GPC‐like), and another by proteins upregulated in mesenchymal GSCs (GM‐like). The GM‐like protein set in GBM tissue was associated with necrosis, recurrence, and worse overall survival. Through proteogenomics, we discovered 252 non‐canonical peptides in the GSCs, i.e., protein sequences that are variant or derive from genome regions previously considered non‐protein‐coding, including variants of the heterogeneous ribonucleoproteins implicated in RNA splicing. In summary, GSCs express two protein sets that have an inverse association with clinical outcomes in GBM. The discovery of non‐canonical protein sequences questions existing gene models and pinpoints new protein targets for research in GBM.

This study applied the solid-state reaction technique to synthesize g-C3N4, Fe3O4, and g-C3N4/Fe3O4 composites in various ratios. XRD confirmed the formation of g-C3N4, Fe3O4, and a g-C3N4/Fe3O4 heterostructure. SEM confirmed the rod-shaped structure of Fe2O3 and the layered-like fabrication of g-C3N4. The Eg of g-C3N4/Fe3O4 was approximately 1.9 eV, making it a beneficial composite material for visible response in photocatalysis activity, which was confirmed by UV-Vis spectroscopy. Dielectrics were used to study ferrite nanoparticles and provide information on the mechanism of conductivity in the parts of the dielectric that responded to an applied alternating electric field. In polycrystalline ceramics, the resistive and capacitive grains, contributions, electrode specimen interfaces, and grain boundaries may all be distinguished using impedance analysis, a crucial tool for the study of complicated electrical performance. The g-C3N4/Fe3O4 composite material showed high photocatalytic activity against methylene blue (MB) dye.

Introduction Bipolar disorder (BD) is a source of marked disability, morbidity, and premature death. There is a paucity of research on personalized psychosocial interventions for BD, especially in lowresource settings. A previously published pilot randomized controlled trial (RCT) of a Culturally adapted PsychoEducation (CaPE) intervention for BD in Pakistan reported higher patient satisfaction, enhanced medication adherence, knowledge and attitudes towards BD, and improvement in mood symptom scores and health-related quality of life measures compared to treatment-as-usual (TAU). Objectives This protocol describes a larger multicentre RCT to confirm the clinical and cost-effectiveness of CaPE in Pakistan. Methods A multicentre individual, parallel arm, RCT of CaPE in 300Pakistani adults with BD. Participants over the age of 18, with adiagnosis of bipolar I and II and who are currently euthymic, will berecruited from seven sites including Karachi, Lahore, Multan, Rawalpindi,Peshawar, Hyderabad and Quetta. Time to recurrence will be the primaryoutcome assessed using Longitudinal Interval Follow-up Evaluation(LIFE). Secondary measures will include mood symptomatology, qualityof life and functioning, adherence to psychotropic medications, andknowledge and attitudes towards BD. Results Full ethics approval has been received from National Bioethics Committee (NBC) of Pakistan and Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH), Toronto, Canada. The study has completed sixty-five screening across the seven centres, of which forty-eight participants have been randomised. Conclusions A successful trial will lead to rapid implementation of CaPE in clinical practice, not only in Pakistan, but also in other low-resource settings including those in high-income countries, to improve clinical outcomes, social and occupational functioning, and quality of life in South Asian and other minority patients with BD. Disclosure of Interest None Declared

Introduction Low and middle-income countries (LMICs) hold the majority of disease burden attributed to major depressive disorder (MDD). Despite this, there remains a substantial gap for access to evidence-based treatments for MDD in LMICs like Pakistan. Measurement-based care (MBC) incorporates systematic administration of validated outcome measures to guide treatment decision making and is considered a low-cost approach to optimise better clinical outcomes for individuals with MDD but there is a paucity of evidence on the efficacy of MBC in LMICs. Objectives This protocol highlights a randomized trial which will include Pakistani outpatients with moderate to severe major depression. Methods Participants will be randomised to either MBC (guided by schedule), or standard treatment (guided by clinicians’ judgement), and will be prescribed with paroxetine (10–60mg/day) or mirtazapine (7.5–45mg/day) for 24 weeks. Outcomes will be evaluated by raters blind to study protocol and treatment. Results National Bioethics Committee (NBC) of Pakistan has given full ethics approval. The trial is being conducted and reported as per recommendation of the CONSORT statement for RCTs. Conclusions With increasing evidence from high-income settings supporting the effectiveness of MBC for MDD, it is now necessary to explore its feasibility, utility. and efficacy in low-resource settings. The results of the proposed trial could inform the development of a low-cost and scalable approach to efficiently optimise outcomes for individuals with MDD in Pakistan. Disclosure of Interest None Declared

Objective: To find out the frequency of delirium associated with peri-operative use of dexmetedomidine and propofol in post CABG patients. Study Design: Comparative Cross-sectional study. Place and Duration of Study: Adult Intensive Care unit, Department of Cardiac Anesthesiology and Intensive Care, Armed Force Institute of Cardiology, Rawalpindi Pakistan from Feb to Jun 2022. Methodology: All post CABG patients who have undergone elective surgery were included through non-probability consecutive sampling technique. All the delirious patients amongst them were subjected to a modified version of ICU-CAM to establish post-operative delirium (POD) caused by either dexmedetomidine or propofol. POD in both the category of patients was compared. Results: A total of 179 CABG patients were included in our study. 140(78.2%) of the patients were subjected to the use of dexmedetomidine throughout their surgery while 39(21.8%) of the patients were given propofol. After subjecting the patients to our exclusion criteria which aimed to eliminate the confounding causes of POD in post-CABG patients, only 30(16.8%) had delirium while 149(83.2%) didn’t develop delirium (p-value=0.003). Majority of the delirious patients were given dexmedetomidine (n=29; 20.77%) in the operation theatre while only a fraction (n=1; 2.58%) were given propofol. Average duration of ICU stay in our study population was 5 days. 15(8.4%) cases out of our total study population underwent reintubation and re-ventilation because of low cardiac output or respiratory distress. Conclusion: Dexmedetomidine could possibly be associated with POD in patients undergoing cardiac surgery. Propofol on the other hand is considerably safe in this regard and doesn’t cause POD.

Half the world's population resides within 310 transboundary lake and river basins shared among 151 riparian nations. Approximately 60% of these basins lack cooperative frameworks to share water. The complexities of sharing water necessitate identifying approaches for managing transboundary international freshwater resources. While much has been written about the histories, theory, and mechanisms of transboundary water management, conflict, and cooperation among riparian nations, we draw attention to scholarship written about what we believe is the central tool for cooperation: data and data sharing. The 1997 United Nations' Convention on the Law of the Non-Navigational Uses of International Watercourses (UN Watercourse Convention) recognizes sharing water resources data is vital to river basin cooperation. Data sharing builds trust between riparian states, aids in mitigating conflict, and improves environmental, economic, and social outcomes. Despite calls to increase data sharing in transboundary basins to support cooperative management, few papers review the role of data sharing in transboundary water management, including how often and what types of water resources data and information are shared. We synthesize the role of data in conflict and collaboration from peer-reviewed papers on transboundary water management from the year the UN Watercourse Convention went into force, 2014 to May 2022. We outline what scholars argue are the types of water-related data to be shared, the frequency of data sharing, and the mechanisms for sharing data for facilitating cooperation in transboundary waters.

Clinical endometritis is a common uterine disease of bovine caused by various pathogenic bacteria, owing to reduce the reproductive efficiency, infertility and huge economic losses to the livestock farmer. It has already been reported that endometritis affects reproductive performance of livestock by delaying service interval, reduce conception rate, and repeat breeding. Contamination during artificial insemination, dystocia, unhygienic handling of parturition, multiple birth and abortion are the predisposing factors related to endometritis in cattle. Additionally, several microorganisms have been frequently isolated such as Escherichia coli, Fusobacterium necrophorum, Actinomyces pyogenes and Bacteroides species. Due to lack of awareness regarding the diagnosis and treatment of this devastating condition, farmers usually cull exaggerated animals even having better genetic potential. The present review summarizes the contemporary understanding about the quantifiable importance of endometritis, including aetiology, clinical signs, diagnosis, treatment and its control. Moreover, present work will researchers, veterinarians and dairy farmers in early diagnosis and treatment this menace to minimize economic losses and also safeguard high milk yielding animal.

The series of Bi2O2Se-Ag2Se composites were synthesized by two step solid state reaction followed by Spark plasma sintering. To optimize their thermal transport properties, different weight percent (wt. %) of silver i-e, 10%, 15% and 20%, was added. The room temperature X-ray diffraction (XRD) and high temperature XRD was used to investigate the crystalline phases, whereas the morphological study was conducted through FESEM. The thermal transport properties were evaluated from 323 K to 773 K, to study the effect of silver addition on thermal conductivity of all the composite samples. The reduced thermal conductivity of the composite with decreasing Ag contents is might be attributed to increase of the Ag2Se and Bi2O3 nano-inclusions in Bi2O2Se multi-phase-system that increased the phonon scattering regions and reduced the overall thermal conductivity significantly, up to 54 % for BA15SO as compared to that of BA20CO at 473 K.

A number of objections have been raised against the prohibition of riba (interest) in Islam and it has been alleged that a riba-free economy will face so many problems that it may not be able to survive. This paper evaluates the nature and significance of some of the major objections and, in the process, also indicates the rationale behind the prohibition of riba. I. ALLOCATION OF RESOURCES One of the objections raised against an interest-free economy is that it will not be able to bring about an optimum allocation of resources. The reason given for this is that interest is a price and like all prices it performs the function of allocating 'scarce' loanable funds among the 'infinite' users of such funds in an objective manner on the basisof ability to pay the price. If the demand for, or supply of, loanable funds changes, a new equilibrium is reached at a different rate of interest. This objection is based on two assumptions. The first assumption is that in the absence of interest loanable funds will be available ‘free’ to borrowers, the demand will thus be infinitely large and there will be no mechanism for equating demand with supply. This implies that interest is the only objective criterion for allocation of resources and, in its absence, scarce financial resources will be used inefficiently to the detriment of society. The second assumption is that the money rate of interest has been a successful mechanism in allocqting resources optimally and that profit cannot perform the function efficiently. The first asumption is baseless because funds will not be available ‘free’ in the Islamic system. They will be available at a cost, and the cost will be the ‘share’ in profit. The rate of profit will hence become a criterion for allocation of resources as well as the mechanism for equating demand with supply. The greater the expected or ex-ante rate of profit in any business, the greater may be the supply of funds to that business. If the actual or ex-post profit for certain businesses is consistently lower than the ex-ante profit such businesses may face difficulty in raising funds in the future. Therefore, while ex-ante profit will be immediately important in determining the flow of investment, the ex-post performance will be crucial for the future success of the business in raising funds. This should help enforce a greater discipline in investments through a more careful evaluation of projects, weeding out all inefficient and unproductive projects. This is not the same in interestbased investment. The interest-oriented lender does not share in the risk of the business financed. He shifts the entire risk of busines to the entrepreneur and assures himself of a predetermined rate of return irrepwtive of the ultimate net outcome of the borrower’s business. He thus does not have to undertake as thorough an evaluation as the sahib al-mal (financier) would have to undertake in a riba-free economy, either by himself or with the help of a bank or consulting firm. Because of a twosided evaluation of projects, the rate of profit in the Islamic system should be a more efficient mechanism for allocation of resources than interest can ever be in the capitalist system ...

Travel and leisure recorded a consecutive robust growth and become among the fastest economic sectors in the world. Various forecasting models are proposed by researchers that serve as an early recommendation for investors and policy makers. Numerous studies proposed distinct forecasting models to predict the dynamics of this sector and provide early recommendation for investors and policy makers. In this paper, we compare the performance of smooth transition autoregressive (STAR) and linear autoregressive (AR) models using monthly returns of Turkey and FTSE travel and leisure index from April 1997 to August 2016. MSCI world index used as a proxy of the overall market. The result shows that nonlinear LSTAR model cannot improve the out-of-sample forecast of linear AR model. This finding demonstrates little to be gained from using LSTAR model in the prediction of travel and leisure stock index. Keywords: Nonlinear time-series, Out-of-sample forecasting, Smooth transition autoregressive, Travel and leisure

This paper compares several commonly used state-of-the-art ensemble-based data assimilation methods in a coherent mathematical notation. The study encompasses different methods that are applicable to high-dimensional geophysical systems, like ocean and atmosphere and provide an uncertainty estimate. Most variants of Ensemble Kalman Filters, Particle Filters and second-order exact methods are discussed, including Gaussian Mixture Filters, while methods that require an adjoint model or a tangent linear formulation of the model are excluded. The detailed description of all the methods in a mathematically coherent way provides both novices and experienced researchers with a unique overview and new insight in the workings and relative advantages of each method, theoretically and algorithmically, even leading to new filters. Furthermore, the practical implementation details of all ensemble and particle filter methods are discussed to show similarities and differences in the filters aiding the users in what to use when. Finally, pseudo-codes are provided for all of the methods presented in this paper.

Flood management is adopting a more risk-based approach, whereby flood risk is the product of the probability and consequences of flooding. Two-dimensional flood inundation modeling is a widely used tool to aid flood-risk management. The aim of this study is to develop a flood inundation model that uses historical flow data to produce flood-risk maps, which will help to identify flood protection measures in the rural areas of Sri Lanka. The LISFLOOD-FP model was developed at the basin scale using available historical data, and also through coupling with a hydrological modelling system, to map the inundation extent and depth. Results from the flood inundation model were evaluated using Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) images to assess product accuracy. The impacts of flooding on agriculture and livelihoods were analyzed to assess the flood risks. It was identified that most of the areas under paddy cultivation that were located near the middle and downstream part of the river basin are more susceptible to flood risks. This paper also proposes potential countermeasures for future natural disasters to prevent and mitigate possible damages.

The primary purpose of this study is to perform a wide-ranging analysis of the electronic, optical, structural, elastic, and mechanical properties of cubic-structured potassium tantalum oxide (KTaO3) by applying different amounts of stress (0, 20, 40, and 60 GPa). The computational generalized gradient approximation technique is applied on cubic KTaO3 with the Perdew–Burke–Ernzerhof exchange–correlation functional. We found that applied stress causes an increase in bandgap from 1.624 eV to 1.871 eV. The partial densities of state for bulk potassium tantalum oxide (KTaO3), potassium (K), tantalum (Ta), and oxygen (O) are also predicted. In the valence band range, the dominant peaks of KTaO3 at 0 GPa, 20 GPa, 40 GPa, and 60 GPa are due to p-states. We found noteworthy variations in optical parameters such as absorption I ω , optical conductivity σ 1 ω real and σ 2 ω imaginary, dielectric function ε 1 ω real and ε 2 ω imaginary, loss function L ω , reflectivity R ω and real/imaginary refractive index n ω with varying stress ranging from 0 GPa to 60 GPa. The values of elastic constants are predicted (4.1741–3.8890 Å) computationally using energy deformation equations when stress is applied at 0–60 GPa. Mechanical features including bulk modulus (161.0911–426.1323), shear modulus (99.4505–153.3127), and Young's modulus (247.4334–410.6864) increase with increasing stress. The Pugh, Poisson, and Frantsevich ratios show that the material is ductile from 20 GPa to 60 GPa, while at 0 GPa, the material is brittle. Anisotropy is observed in the estimated values of KTaO3. Moreover, our predicted results reveal that the chosen material is good for optoelectronic devices because it has a high refractive index and good absorption, reflectivity, and conductivity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

No abstract available. doi:10.2204/iodp.sd.8.10.2009